098.Kamalamba Navavarna Kritis By Shri Muthuswami Dikshitar Poem by rajagopal haran

The love for my divine mother overcomes all my other barriers;

This is a small effort to bring to a bigger audience the beauty and benefits of a great composition “ Kamalambha navavarna kritis” by Shri Muthuswamy Dikshitar

I am jumping into the 4 th song which is the first song of the nine songs; will come back to the first three songs after completing the main songs; there will be 14 songs totally including this one
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Yesterday there was a discourse; the story was about Satya Vrathan; the name means one who is committed to truth only; he was born after a penance by his parents; due to a curse that happened during their penance the son was a damn fool; son ultimately realized that he was a burden giving pain every moment to his parents by his presence; so he left home and reached a forest and sat in isolation

One day a pig was chased by a hunter; it entered his ashram and asked Satya Vrathan not to tell about its presence there and subsequently it hid itself there

Hunter came and asked our hero if he saw a pig

The cosmic drama was enacted here then; hero was perplexed and without realizing what he was telling uttered “ ayim “ the syllable part of the bigger “Beeja mantra” recollecting partly from his earlier unsuccessful education

Hering this my Mother saraswathi gave him all the knowledge of the universe;

Now Satya Vrathan answered

The one what I saw I can’t say
What I say can’s be perceived by you

By the blessings of Saraswathi the hunter also got the divine knowledge

The Kamalamba Navavarna Kritis by Shri Muthuswami Dikshitar (1776-1836) are some of the most famous pieces of music in the Carnatic system of Indian classical music. They are treasures which embody not only the technical brilliance of the composer but also offer a peep into the advaitic school of Hindu philosophy and elements of Tantric rituals

These songs are set in praise of the Goddess Kamalamba who is enshrined in Tiruvarur in the Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu in South India. The Goddess is the reference to the Divine Mother of the universe, or the Supreme Consciousness. The lyrics and the descriptive details are loaded with the mystical symbolism of the Vedantic (advaita) tradition and the chakras of the human system are closely linked to the evolutionary aspects described in the compsitions that reflect the scholarly reach, musical depth and mystical significance of the composer.

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English Transliteration

First Song

Raagam: Anandabhairavi Taalam: tishra triputa

pallavi

kamalaamba samrakshatu maam
hruthkamalanagara nivaasini amba

anupallavi

sumanasaaraadhi thabjamukhee
sundaramanah priyakarasakhee
kamalajaanandabhodhasukhee
kaanthaathaarapanjarashukee

charanam

tripuraadichakreshvaree animaadhisiddheeshwaree
nithyakaameshwaree kshithipura trailokya mohanachakravarthinee
prakatayoaginee suraripu mahishaasuraadhimardhinee
nigamapuraanadhisamvaedhinee
tripureshii guruguhajananee tripurabhanjanaranjanee
madhuripusahodararee talodaree tripurasundaree maheshvaree!


Translation

Kamlambha! Protect me
The dweller of the Lotus city
Inside the heart of beings!

Ye lotus-faced beauty!
Delight of the mind of Lord Sundara, the friend of creatures!
You the bliss of Brahman!
Hey mother! Ultimate knowledge!
Thee enjoyer of every moment!
The personification of charm,
Enshrined in the resonance of Om, the pranava!

Oh Goddess Tripurasundari!
The queen of the chakras nine, the interlocking triangles,
And ruler of the siddhis starting with Anima,
-the accomplishments eight eternal on earth,
the unified force of matter and energy (Nitya Kameshwari) ,
of the earth, capital of thy kingdom,
Mother! Enchanter of the three worlds,
Inherent in matters all,
Thee! Yogini, slayer of the demon,
Mahishasura, the buffalo faced enemy of devatas!
The knower of epics and sacred literature!
Goddess of the three cities!
Loving Mother of Guruguha, Lord Subramanya!
You enchant Siva, the demolisher of three cities!
Sister of Vishnu who is the enemy of Madhu!
The slender waisted! Still containing within all the Talas, (worlds) ,
The great Goddess!

Some explanations

Kameshwari

is an aspect of the primordial female energy. She combines in her form the oneness of Shiva and Shakti, (matter and energy) and is the giver of form, fame, bliss and victory. She is the upholder of good and at times the destroyer of enemies. She is revered as the mother of the world, embodiment of truth and consciousness. Kameshwari is the spouse and the half of Kameswar Shiva and is hence endowed with many of Shiva’s attributes and half of Shiva’s form.
This deity form embodies the principle of the union of matter and energy which can overcome all obstacles and achieve all desired ends.

Talodari:

Who, though slender of waist, contains within Herself all the Talas, (worlds) like Atala and others.


This song contains the description of the first trailokyamohana chakra, also called bhupura (or kshitipura) . The cakra for this song consists of three rectangular walls, with openings on the four sides (in some versions of the diagrams, there is no opening, but sub-rectangles closing the entrance!)

The song is set in the nominative case. The basic sentence unit (anvaya) is: kamalambha maam samrakshatu (May the Goddess Kamalamba protect me) , and the various phrases qualify the proper noun Kamalamba.

The eight Yogic accomplishments (siddhis) referred to in this song are:
anima - power to become infinitesimal in size
mahima - power to grow very huge
laghima - power to become very light
garima - power to become inordinately heavy
ishitva - power to rule over everything
vashitva - power to subjugate all
prapti - power to obtain whatever is desired
prakamya - power to fulfill all wishes

Nityas are the primary devatas (goddesses) of the first cakra. They are sixteen in number, kaameshwari being at the center, and the other fifteen (bhagamalini, nityaklinna, bherunda, vahnivasini, mahavajreshwari, shivaduti, tvarita, kulasundari, nitya, nIlapataka, vijaya, sarvamangala, jwalamalini, chitra and mahanitya) around her.

The shaktis residing in this cakra are called prakata yoginis.

The phrase “Ananda” might have been used as a partial raga mudra for the raaga Anandabhairavi.

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