śyāma sundarāṅga
Sahityam
Pallavi
śyāma sundarāṅga sakala śaktiyu¹ nīvērā
Show Word Meanings
O Lord with beautiful limbs of dark-blue hue! All the Gods are indeed You alone.
Anupallavi
tāmasa rahita² guṇa sāndra
dharanu velayu rāmacandra (śyāma)
Show Word Meanings
dharanu velayu rāmacandra (śyāma)
O Lord who is beyond inertial qualities! O Lord full of virtues!
O Lord Ramachandra effulgent on this Earth!
Charanam
duṣṭa danuja mada vidāra
śiṣṭa jana hṛdaya vihāra
iṣṭa daivamu³ nīvērā
ilanu tyāgarāju vērā (śyāma)
Show Word Meanings
śiṣṭa jana hṛdaya vihāra
iṣṭa daivamu³ nīvērā
ilanu tyāgarāju vērā (śyāma)
O Lord who destroyed the arrogance of wicked demons!
O Lord dwelling in the hearts of wise or self-restrained people!
You alone are the God of my liking;
on the Earth, is this Thyagaraja different from You?
References
- 2 tāmasa rahita – Though Lord is beyond all Gunas – Satva, Rajas, Tamas - this specific reference may be to the two groups of incantations (mantra grāmaṃ ) known as ‘balā’, ‘ati balā ’ bestowed on Sri Rama and Lakshmana by sage Visvamitra. By chanting these one would be able to overcome sleep, hunger and thirst. These mantra are considered as daughters of Brahma. (Srimad Valimiki Ramayana – Balakanda – Chapter 22)
Renditions
Commentary
- 1 śaktiyu – Here the word stands for all the forms of the Supreme Lord worshipped by people. This is so because of the word ‘iṣṭa daivamu ’ – Lord of his liking. Sri Thyagaraja states that the form of Sri Rama is the one of his liking – thus differentiating other forms of the Supreme Lord.
- 3 iṣṭa daivamu – It is a phenomenon that every one – particularly devotees of Lord – develop liking for a particular form of the Lord depending on one’s temperament and family customs.