kanaka-vasana vs. kanaka-mrga – what is the true measure of “attraction” or mOhana
Only the tyAgarAja describes his own “mOhanam” BY the lord rAma as if it is mAriCa, the wondrous “deer”, charming the sitA-dEvi !
“nannu pAlimpa nadaCi vaCitti vO” is one of the most widely heard mOhana kritis, its gist being the vision that the glittering lord has literally “walked up” to save the tyAgarAja...
Now, of course no one expects that the lord would take a cab or uber or fly in, but I show below how this particular verb “nadaCi” for “walk”
as well as several other aspects of this famous kriti have a rather unique basis in the scripture.
1.
nadaCi vaCitti vO – he who came walking
According to the aranya-kAnda of the rAmAyana, the shape-shifting asura mArICa was commissioned by rAvana to take the form of a magical deer and “walk up” to the sitA-dEvi’s presence, as part of the nefarious scheme to lure her away from safety.
The verb used in particular is “Cara” = chara, which denotes also the aspect of casually walking, ambling.
the rAmAyana describing mArICa says
“sa rAvana vacah SrutvA mArICO rAkSasa tadA , mrigO bhUtvA ASrama dvaari rAmasya viCa-Cara ha”
i.e. ..Upon hearing rAvana's words the demon mArICa then became a deer and ambled freely in front of the lord’s ASrama”
2. vanaja nayana - he who is lotus eyed
vanaja nayana is obviously equivalent to doe-eyed similar to “rAjiva-nayana” where noticeably “rAjiva” also means both deer (doe) and lotus
3. sura pati nIla maNi nibha tanuvutO – he whose body is bedecked with blue-colored gems – the indra-nIla (blue) sapphire
In general lord rAma is “kanaka vasana” or of golden appearance (noted for e.g. in the varAli "kana kana ruCira"). The magical deer is also “mostly” golden (e.g. the “kanaka-mrga” of the mahArAjas "bhAvayAmi raghurAmam")
But both carry a blue-hue as well !
The blue-hue is ascribed to the indra mani jewels. The same usage is also seen in the mukhAri “muripEmu galigE”...
In both the mOhana and the mukhAri, the tyAgarAja uses “sura-pati” as the synonym for “Indra”
Perhaps he was trying to meet the poetic meter for the words that follow i.e. “nila maNi”...
or perhaps he was trying to throw us of the scent ?
Because in the rAmAyana the word “Indra-nila maNi” (the fabled blue sapphire) appears specifically for the wondrous deer mAriCa !!
It appears twice , once for the blue-tipped ears and once for the blue colored stomach of the magical deer, as shown below..
the rAmAyana describing mArICa says
indranIlOtpala shravAh , indranIla nibha udarah
i.e....the deer with ears of the hue of a blue-lotus colored sapphire, the shine of its stomach is like that of the Indra-nIla-maNi gem
4. karamuna Sara - he who is holding Sara =arrows
The word “shara” is phonetically close to “sarah” which means “necklace = string of pearls”
whereby “karamuna sarah” means “he whose hands are decked with strings of gems”
Regarding “sarah”, no less an authority than
bhavabhUti in the Uttara rAma Carita says
“ayaṃ kaṇṭhE bAhu SiSira masrinO mauktika sarah”
where the lord rAma is describing the cool and smooth (SiSira-masrino) string of pearls/necklace (mAuktika -sara) on his neck (kanthE) and hands (bAhu). mauktika is derived from muktA=maNi=pearl
the rAmAyana describing mArICa (the deer) says strikingly !
muktA mani vicitra aNgam
i.e. the deer whose LIMBS are surprising as though studded with pearls and gems
5. kOdaNDa kAntitO – he who has a brilliant, resplendent bow
the rAmAyana describing mArICa says
indra Ayudha savarnena puChEna Urdhvam virAjitah
i.e...the tail of the mAriCa deer is stated to be arched as Indra’s bow the indra-dhanuS , which is also a synonym for the colorful rain-bow !
6. uramuna mutyapu sarula CayamutO – he who bears an array of pearls on his chest
the rAmAyana describing mArICa says
manohara snigdha varno ratnaih nAnA vidhaih , rAkSaso jaato mrigah parama shobhanah,
i.e...the dazzling deer (actually a rAkSasa) that bears myriad gems (ratna)
dharaNi tanaya - which means “child of the earth”
In the scripture the word “mrga” is generic for all animals , which are all considered “children of the aranyam”, as in “aranyAni tanaya”, the forest being the mother to all such creatures
So at least half-dozen attributes of the lord (in the kriti) can be mapped logically to the “deer” of the scripture.
Which brings us finally to
“tyAgarAja-arCita” – the pujA by the tyAgarAja
I started this post by noting the lord’s charming OF the tyAgarAja, and its analogy to the magical deer bewitching the sitA-dEvi.
But in reality it is the arCana by the tyAgarAja that is the true mOhanam OF the lord.
Shape-shifting rAkSaSA’s appearing as golden deer, dappled with jewels and gems with rainbow like tails and the like , that are employed by other demons ..these are all of course terrific, imaginative illusions of ancient Hindu thinking and likely also metaphors for human conditions of avarice and temptation.
Maybe the multiple similarities discovered above are all mere, happy coincidences.
However, to the nAda-upAsaka, the following is much more compelling.
The wondrous deer is the lynchpin of the rAmAyana.
Without it there is no abduction and no rAmAyana.
And without the rAmAyana there is a vastly diminished tyAgarAja, (if he exists at all !)
The deer, the mrga, therefore, is the vital key to “attract” the sitA-dEvi away from her lord.
As a measure of attraction, the tyAgarAja has glimpsed that this is indeed a very powerful magnet.
And this becomes the measure by which the tyAgarAja gauges his own ability to attract the lord.
Scores upon scores of the tyAgarAja’s kritis are about summoning or beckoning the lord, by means child-like and colloquial and beautiful.
But it is only in this timeless mOhana that the attraction is mapped to an attractive force equivalent to that exerted on the sitA-dEvi, by the wondrous deer, as reported in ancient Hindu scripture.
By listening to the kriti, it becomes clear the tyAgarAja succeeded ! and all nAda-upAsakas are enriched forever.
nannu pAlimpa - mOhana
MSS (who also does rAgam-tAnam , fine violin by kandadEvi alagiriswAmi)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SiBtprlerEo
veena S bAlaCandar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fclZJxpAruk
violin MSG
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yMz3aIpQGgA
flute mAli
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1NpPjmZ9SSw
