There is a story surrounding the Tyagaraja keertana "mundu venuka". Tyagaraja was on his way from Tirupati to Tiruvottriyur. He was being carried in a palanquin by his disciples. Tyagaraja had no knowledge that his disciples were carrying some money with them. Had he known it, he would have disapproved of it.
Kovur Sundara Mudaliar was a patron of music. He had great respect for Tyagaraja and had personally invited Tyagaraja on this trip. It was Sundara Mudaliar who had gifted money to the disciples so that this money could be used for Lord Rama's worship. This information was kept away from Tyagaraja.
The palanquin was now in the middle of the forest. Suddenly, the disciples panicked. They were under attack from robbers! They rushed to Tyagaraja. Tyagaraja was composed. "Surely, we have nothing to fear. After all, we carry no money!" he said. It was then that the disciples disclosed to him about the money that they were carrying.
Tyagaraja was unperturbed. He did not rebuke his disciples. Instead, he replied that if the money was to be used for Lord Rama's worship, then, it was Lord Rama's duty to protect his wealth too. After all, isn't it true that "tan man dhan...sab kuch tera" as the popular Hindi bhajan goes? "This body, mind and wealth...everything is Yours, O Lord".
It was at this juncture, right in the middle of the forest and under attack from forest robbers, that Tyagaraja composed and sang the keertana "mundu venuka" set to the raga Durbar. The impact of the song was immediate.
Now, it was the turn of the robbers to panic. They saw two divine youths guarding the palanquin. They attacked the robbers forcing them to flee. The robbers rushed to the feet of Tyagaraja and begged for forgiveness. Tyagaraja heard their story patiently. He knew that it was Rama and Lakshmana who had guarded the palanquin. There was little doubt.
Tyagaraja was distraught and wept. He had pined for the Lord's vision for many years and Rama still eluded him. On the other hand, these robbers had had the fortune of the Lord's vision. How ironical! And how the Lord's vision had changed the robbers so completely! They were immediately chastened... in one stroke! As the Upanishad says - "bhidyate hrdaya granthihi, chidyantey sarva samshayaah, ksheeyantey cha asya karmaani, tasmin drshtey paraavarey" - "The moment one "sees" (drshtey) the Ultimate (paraavaram), all the knots in the heart (hrdaya granthi), all the doubts (samshaya) and all karma...everything gets uprooted in one stroke.
The pallavi of the keertana goes as follows:
mundu venukayiru pakkala tōḍai mura khara hara rārā -
"Hey Rama, the one who vanquished rakshasas like "mura" and "khara", may you come and protect me from the "front", "rear" and from every "side".
Khara and Dushana had come with an army of 14000 rakshasas. Single handed, Rama and Lakshmana killed all of them. That is the reference to "khara hara" in the pallavi.
Incidently, the raaga Durbar is a janya of "Kharaharapriya" raaga in the melakarta classification scheme!
The other epithet "mura hara" in the pallavi actually refers to Krishna. It appears to have been used for alliterative effect in the song- mura, khara, hara etc. Tyagaraja often replaces Rama for other forms of Vishnu. We see this in other places. For example, "vandanamu raghunandana", the popular Sahaana kriti is found in Prahlada Bhakti Vijayam! There is time-wise "aberration" (for Narasimha as an avatar precedes Rama (raghu-nandana)) too. But Tyagaraja's fascination for Lord Rama is such that it cannot be restricted by such common concerns!
In this essay, we want to mainly focus on this point- "that the Lord should be like my armour and protect me from all sides". Tyagaraja has used this idea in the song. We find a similar mention in other places and this song appears to paraphrase this particular strain of thought. We take a few examples here:
Shloka on Lord Rama which has a similar theme:
The shloka is quite popular. It goes as follows:
"agratah prshtatashchaiva paarshvatashcha mahaabalau
Apoorna karna dhanvaanau raskshetaam raama lakshmanau"
"May Rama and Lakshmana protect me"....and how.?..."ready with a bow drawn right up to the ear"...(aapoorna karna dhanvaanau) ..and standing where?....on all sides... "agratah" (in front)..."prshtatah" (at the back) and "paarshvatashca"...(on each side).
This is exactly what Tyagaraja also says in "Mundu venuka".
Lord Shiva...appearing on all sides:
The eleventh and final anuvaka of Shri Rudram (from Yajur Veda) has these lines:
"namo rudrebhyo ye prithivyaam ye antarikshe"....etc... and ends with "dasha praacheer dasha dakshinaa dasha praticheer dasho udicheer.. etc"
It says: With my 10 (dasha) fingers, I bow to Lord Shiva, the one who is everywhere- in the East (praachee), in the South (dakshinaa), in the West (pratichee), in the North (udichee) and who exists even at the top (oordhva).
Just like Tyagaraja wanted Rama to appear all around him and serve as a protective armor, in Shri Rudram, the devotee reaches out to Lord Shiva...who as the vishwaroopa, appears on all sides.
Dik-devataadi vandanam in Sandhya vandanam:
Regular Sandhya Vandanam has the following simple shloka:
"praachyai dishey namah, dakshinaayai dishey namah, prateechyai dishey namah, udeechyai dishey namah, oordhvaaya namah, adharaaya namah"
Here, a devotee faces each direction- the East, West, North, South, Up and Down and offers prostration to the cardinal directions itself. Though this prayer is normally referred to as "namaskara" to the dik devatas or "direction devatas", in reality, the One Lord alone.... is seen in the form of his aspects in every direction.
Like "mundu venuka", the Lord surrounds us from all sides and protects us. That is the message here too.
Finally, we see a reference in Mundaka Upanishad where Brahman is pointed out as all pervading...and as it were...enveloping every direction.
Quote from Mundaka Upanishad:
"brahma eva idam amritam purastaad, brahma pashchaad, brahma dakshinatah cha uttarena, adhah cha oordhvam cha prasritam brahma eva vishwam idam varishtam"
What we see as "this world" (idam) is Brahman alone (brahma eva) who appears in front (purastaad), who appears at the back (pashchaat), who appears to the right (dakshinatah), who appears to the left (uttarena)...and who is spread all over (prasritam)...at the top (oordhvam) and below (adhah)!!
And as the "nama ramayanam" text says: "shuddha brahma paraatpara raam", Rama is Brahman alone. That Brahman which is formless and all-pervading, appears for us in the captivating form of Rama. Thus, Tyagaraja's Rama in "Mundu Venuka" is the same Brahman referenced in this verse from the Upanishad.
Summing up:
Tyagaraja's "mundu venuka" echoes a popular theme that the Lord is present everywhere.
Just as there is "spatial protection" from the Lord, "mundu venuka" also has a veiled reference to "time wise protection".
In the first charanam, Lord Rama is addressed as the "moon" (chandra) rising over the "ocean (abdhi) of the Solar (bhaaskara) race (kula)". The line is "chanda bhaaskara kulaabdhi chandra".
The "moon" stands for the principle of time. Time in ancient India was measured in terms of "tithis" (digits of the moon). As the Lord of Time, Rama Chandra is present at all times and showers his protection on us.
Further, the sun (bhaaskara) is the Lord of the day. The moon is the Lord of the night. By referencing both the sun and the moon in the charanam, it looks as though Tyagaraja completes the entire picture. The Lord's kavacham is present at all places...and at all times- both day and night!
"Eri Kaatha Raamar":
We may dismiss the story of Lord Rama coming to Tyagaraja's rescue as a fable. Could the robbers have had some other vision which they mistook to be Lord Rama? Could it be a story fabricated to lend divine status to Tyagaraja and his music? Doubts assail us at every step.
The story of "Eri kaatha raamar" proves that Lord Rama does come to our aid at all times and at all places. It is a matter of faith...and sometimes, the most unlikely candidate is chosen as the "paatram" (receptacle) for his grace.
The year was 1798. Colonel Lionel Blaze was at Madhurantakam, close to Chengalpet, Tamil Nadu. Rains lashed the countryside as never before. Colonel Blaze's eyes were glued to the "bund". The township's fate hinged on this bund, beyond which lay a huge water-tank. Once breached, the township would be inundated for sure.
Madhurantakam was well known for the temple of Lord Rama. It was here that Saint Ramanuja himself had stayed for many years.
On that fateful day, Colonel Blaze swears that he saw Lord Rama and Lakshmana guard the bund and protect the township. Based on this incident, the temple deity is known today as "eri kaatha raamar" (Rama...who protected the water-bund).
Colonel Blaze was not a devotee of Lord Rama. Yet, he had the Lord's vision and he testifies to that effect. An edict with the Colonel's name is present in the temple. It stands as a mute testimony to the fact that Lord Rama is present everywhere and at all times. It is for us to tap his ever flowing grace.
Kovur Sundara Mudaliar was a patron of music. He had great respect for Tyagaraja and had personally invited Tyagaraja on this trip. It was Sundara Mudaliar who had gifted money to the disciples so that this money could be used for Lord Rama's worship. This information was kept away from Tyagaraja.
The palanquin was now in the middle of the forest. Suddenly, the disciples panicked. They were under attack from robbers! They rushed to Tyagaraja. Tyagaraja was composed. "Surely, we have nothing to fear. After all, we carry no money!" he said. It was then that the disciples disclosed to him about the money that they were carrying.
Tyagaraja was unperturbed. He did not rebuke his disciples. Instead, he replied that if the money was to be used for Lord Rama's worship, then, it was Lord Rama's duty to protect his wealth too. After all, isn't it true that "tan man dhan...sab kuch tera" as the popular Hindi bhajan goes? "This body, mind and wealth...everything is Yours, O Lord".
It was at this juncture, right in the middle of the forest and under attack from forest robbers, that Tyagaraja composed and sang the keertana "mundu venuka" set to the raga Durbar. The impact of the song was immediate.
Now, it was the turn of the robbers to panic. They saw two divine youths guarding the palanquin. They attacked the robbers forcing them to flee. The robbers rushed to the feet of Tyagaraja and begged for forgiveness. Tyagaraja heard their story patiently. He knew that it was Rama and Lakshmana who had guarded the palanquin. There was little doubt.
Tyagaraja was distraught and wept. He had pined for the Lord's vision for many years and Rama still eluded him. On the other hand, these robbers had had the fortune of the Lord's vision. How ironical! And how the Lord's vision had changed the robbers so completely! They were immediately chastened... in one stroke! As the Upanishad says - "bhidyate hrdaya granthihi, chidyantey sarva samshayaah, ksheeyantey cha asya karmaani, tasmin drshtey paraavarey" - "The moment one "sees" (drshtey) the Ultimate (paraavaram), all the knots in the heart (hrdaya granthi), all the doubts (samshaya) and all karma...everything gets uprooted in one stroke.
The pallavi of the keertana goes as follows:
mundu venukayiru pakkala tōḍai mura khara hara rārā -
"Hey Rama, the one who vanquished rakshasas like "mura" and "khara", may you come and protect me from the "front", "rear" and from every "side".
Khara and Dushana had come with an army of 14000 rakshasas. Single handed, Rama and Lakshmana killed all of them. That is the reference to "khara hara" in the pallavi.
Incidently, the raaga Durbar is a janya of "Kharaharapriya" raaga in the melakarta classification scheme!
The other epithet "mura hara" in the pallavi actually refers to Krishna. It appears to have been used for alliterative effect in the song- mura, khara, hara etc. Tyagaraja often replaces Rama for other forms of Vishnu. We see this in other places. For example, "vandanamu raghunandana", the popular Sahaana kriti is found in Prahlada Bhakti Vijayam! There is time-wise "aberration" (for Narasimha as an avatar precedes Rama (raghu-nandana)) too. But Tyagaraja's fascination for Lord Rama is such that it cannot be restricted by such common concerns!
In this essay, we want to mainly focus on this point- "that the Lord should be like my armour and protect me from all sides". Tyagaraja has used this idea in the song. We find a similar mention in other places and this song appears to paraphrase this particular strain of thought. We take a few examples here:
Shloka on Lord Rama which has a similar theme:
The shloka is quite popular. It goes as follows:
"agratah prshtatashchaiva paarshvatashcha mahaabalau
Apoorna karna dhanvaanau raskshetaam raama lakshmanau"
"May Rama and Lakshmana protect me"....and how.?..."ready with a bow drawn right up to the ear"...(aapoorna karna dhanvaanau) ..and standing where?....on all sides... "agratah" (in front)..."prshtatah" (at the back) and "paarshvatashca"...(on each side).
This is exactly what Tyagaraja also says in "Mundu venuka".
Lord Shiva...appearing on all sides:
The eleventh and final anuvaka of Shri Rudram (from Yajur Veda) has these lines:
"namo rudrebhyo ye prithivyaam ye antarikshe"....etc... and ends with "dasha praacheer dasha dakshinaa dasha praticheer dasho udicheer.. etc"
It says: With my 10 (dasha) fingers, I bow to Lord Shiva, the one who is everywhere- in the East (praachee), in the South (dakshinaa), in the West (pratichee), in the North (udichee) and who exists even at the top (oordhva).
Just like Tyagaraja wanted Rama to appear all around him and serve as a protective armor, in Shri Rudram, the devotee reaches out to Lord Shiva...who as the vishwaroopa, appears on all sides.
Dik-devataadi vandanam in Sandhya vandanam:
Regular Sandhya Vandanam has the following simple shloka:
"praachyai dishey namah, dakshinaayai dishey namah, prateechyai dishey namah, udeechyai dishey namah, oordhvaaya namah, adharaaya namah"
Here, a devotee faces each direction- the East, West, North, South, Up and Down and offers prostration to the cardinal directions itself. Though this prayer is normally referred to as "namaskara" to the dik devatas or "direction devatas", in reality, the One Lord alone.... is seen in the form of his aspects in every direction.
Like "mundu venuka", the Lord surrounds us from all sides and protects us. That is the message here too.
Finally, we see a reference in Mundaka Upanishad where Brahman is pointed out as all pervading...and as it were...enveloping every direction.
Quote from Mundaka Upanishad:
"brahma eva idam amritam purastaad, brahma pashchaad, brahma dakshinatah cha uttarena, adhah cha oordhvam cha prasritam brahma eva vishwam idam varishtam"
What we see as "this world" (idam) is Brahman alone (brahma eva) who appears in front (purastaad), who appears at the back (pashchaat), who appears to the right (dakshinatah), who appears to the left (uttarena)...and who is spread all over (prasritam)...at the top (oordhvam) and below (adhah)!!
And as the "nama ramayanam" text says: "shuddha brahma paraatpara raam", Rama is Brahman alone. That Brahman which is formless and all-pervading, appears for us in the captivating form of Rama. Thus, Tyagaraja's Rama in "Mundu Venuka" is the same Brahman referenced in this verse from the Upanishad.
Summing up:
Tyagaraja's "mundu venuka" echoes a popular theme that the Lord is present everywhere.
Just as there is "spatial protection" from the Lord, "mundu venuka" also has a veiled reference to "time wise protection".
In the first charanam, Lord Rama is addressed as the "moon" (chandra) rising over the "ocean (abdhi) of the Solar (bhaaskara) race (kula)". The line is "chanda bhaaskara kulaabdhi chandra".
The "moon" stands for the principle of time. Time in ancient India was measured in terms of "tithis" (digits of the moon). As the Lord of Time, Rama Chandra is present at all times and showers his protection on us.
Further, the sun (bhaaskara) is the Lord of the day. The moon is the Lord of the night. By referencing both the sun and the moon in the charanam, it looks as though Tyagaraja completes the entire picture. The Lord's kavacham is present at all places...and at all times- both day and night!
"Eri Kaatha Raamar":
We may dismiss the story of Lord Rama coming to Tyagaraja's rescue as a fable. Could the robbers have had some other vision which they mistook to be Lord Rama? Could it be a story fabricated to lend divine status to Tyagaraja and his music? Doubts assail us at every step.
The story of "Eri kaatha raamar" proves that Lord Rama does come to our aid at all times and at all places. It is a matter of faith...and sometimes, the most unlikely candidate is chosen as the "paatram" (receptacle) for his grace.
The year was 1798. Colonel Lionel Blaze was at Madhurantakam, close to Chengalpet, Tamil Nadu. Rains lashed the countryside as never before. Colonel Blaze's eyes were glued to the "bund". The township's fate hinged on this bund, beyond which lay a huge water-tank. Once breached, the township would be inundated for sure.
Madhurantakam was well known for the temple of Lord Rama. It was here that Saint Ramanuja himself had stayed for many years.
On that fateful day, Colonel Blaze swears that he saw Lord Rama and Lakshmana guard the bund and protect the township. Based on this incident, the temple deity is known today as "eri kaatha raamar" (Rama...who protected the water-bund).
Colonel Blaze was not a devotee of Lord Rama. Yet, he had the Lord's vision and he testifies to that effect. An edict with the Colonel's name is present in the temple. It stands as a mute testimony to the fact that Lord Rama is present everywhere and at all times. It is for us to tap his ever flowing grace.
