Eti Janma - Varali - Tyagaraja - Misra Chapu

Charity Fund Raising Concert, Melbourne: June 2016
Vocal: Raghuveer Rangan, Narayan Rangan (disciples of Sri OS Thiagarajan)
Violin: Arushi Ramesh (disciple of Smt Lalgudi Vijayalakshmi) , Mridangam: Bala Shankar (disciple of Sri. Srimushnam Raja Rao)

[@mysuruvasudevacharya]

Excellent Rendition ! Eti janmamidi Ragam Varali Misra Chapu Talam Thyagaraja Krithi
This kruti in varali is more like a padam full of Srungara rasam, pangs of separation and dejection.Tyagaraja yearns to see,to talk to and to embrace Rama expressing that his life is worthless without it.He depicts how prahlAda laments about not having darSan of the Lord.
In charanam 3 ingitamerigina - Please refer to kRti ‘Emani mATADitivO’ rAga tODi wherein SrI tyAgarAja wonders how ‘the Lord spoke understanding each one’s mind’.
P ETi janmamidi ha oh rAmA|
Oh Rama,what sort of life is this? Why am I destined to have this birth?
AP ETi janmamidi enduku kaligenO
entani sairintu ha oh rAmA ||
How long should I endure?
C1 sATi lEni mArakOTi lAvaNyuni
mATi mATiki joochi mATalADani ||
He is unparalleled with the beauty of a million Manmathas.What is this life for, if I am not able to see him and talk to him again and again? ||
C2 sAreku mutyAla hAramuramuna pAlu
gAru mOmunu gannulAra jooDani tana
ingita merigina sangeeta lOluni
ponguchu tanuvAra kougilinchani tana ||
He is adorned with a pearl garland on his chest.What is this life for, if I can not see his delicate face to my heart's content ? He is shrewd,he engrosses in music. What is this life for, if he is not embraced whole heartedly?
C3 sAgara Sayanuni tyAgarAja nutuni
vEgame chooDaga vEgEni hrudayamu ||
My heart throbs to see my lord who reclines on the ocean,soon.
Gist :- O Rama! What life is this ? Why did this fall into my lot, wherein I am not able to meet and converse frequently with Hari as beautiful as a crore of Cupids and wherein I cannot set eyes on His bosom decked with pearl necklaces gamboling daintily. What a destiny that denies me the privilege of embracing to my heart's content this wise and Omniscient Lord who is such a profound Lover of music? Not being able to see this Lord, who reclines on Adisesha on the waves of the Milk-ocean and who is worshipped by Tyagaraja. My mind is in turmoil.
Varali :- In Mind, Body and Soul Chakra - Chakra 7 is the Divine Chakra lined up with the heart and the throat chakras, enabling the higher spirit energies to work through ones voice and body. Therapeutically Varali is said to be good for Heart and Skin ailments and gastric problems.
This raga is mentioned in many of the earlier texts in the names Varadi, Varati,Varali and Varatika and is said to be more than 1300 years old. It is with this name that it is referred in ancient lakshana grandhas like Sangeeta Makarandha and Sangeeta Ratnakara. It is also said that there was a place called as “Varata Desa” and this melody was prevalent there and hence the name Varati / Varal
There is a superstitious belief that teaching Varali direct to a student will strain the relations of guru sishya. Hence the students are advised to learn the raga by direct listening or by self learning. But factually, Varali is a difficult raga to be taught and learned. In case if the student fails to get a grip over the nuances and pidis of raga and sings in a wrong way, the Guru will be responsible for the same and may be it is for this reason that the earlier gurus safely avoided teaching Varali by citing the reason that their(guru-sishya) relationship will be strained. Hence no student would prefer to lose their relationship with their Guru and hence they may not insist their Guru to teach Varali. But the Guru will readily teach the raga called Vijayasree which is a close cousin of Varali.

[@raghu5224]

Thank you ,sir.We totally agree with you.

[@juliesrinivasan9213]

What an alapanai Raghu! The Sringara Rasa was beautifully expressed and FELT in the alapanai itself! The violin rendition was also exquisite! The song was a masterpiece! May the Lord bestow more and more opportunities and accolades for you both! May He Bless you two with divine experiences and thus taking you all on amazing spiritual journeys! Hare Krishna!

[@raghu5224]

Thank you, Akka. Acharya krupa.

[@sudhagars1955]

Beautiful ❤️❤️