Today is Basava Jayanti – The birthday of Bhakti Bhandari Basavanna.
Basavanna is one of Karnataka’s earliest social reformers – and his writings are known as vachanas (sayings). There is a very strong likelyhood that the later day haridAsas of Karnataka were influenced by the vachanas of Basavanna and others of the 12th century.
Here are some of my favorite vachanas written by Basavanna, with some of my own very rudimentary translation 🙂
The first one tells about the desperation and longing Basavanna had for Shiva, the lord of kUDala sangama ( A place in Karnataka, where river malaprabha joins river krishna).
ಚಕೋರಂಗೆ ಚಂದ್ರಮನ ಬೆಳಕಿನ ಚಿಂತೆ
ಅಂಬುಜಕೆ ಭಾನುವಿನ ಉದಯದ ಚಿಂತೆ
ಭ್ರಮರಂಗೆ ಪರಿಮಳದ ಬಂಡುಂಬ ಚಿಂತೆ
ಎನಗೆ ಎನ್ನ ಕೂಡಲಸಂಗಮದೇವನ ನೆನೆವುದೆ ಚಿಂತೆ!
The partridge bird
worries about moonlight
The lotus flower
worries about the sunrise
The bee only worries
about drinking fragrant nector
My only worry is to be
reminiscing about you
Oh my lord of kUDala sangama!
Watch Dr Vasundhara Doreswamy dance to this vachana (Pandanallur stlyle of Bharatanatya). The haunting chakravAka / Ahir Bhairav raaga greatly accents the mood of this vachana.
The second vachana talks about the likes and dislikes of his lord Shiva:
ನಾದಪ್ರಿಯ ಶಿವನೆಂಬರು ನಾದಪ್ರಿಯ ಶಿವನಲ್ಲ
ವೇದಪ್ರಿಯ ಶಿವನೆಂಬರು ವೇದಪ್ರಿಯ ಶಿವನಲ್ಲ
ನಾದವ ಮಾಡಿದ ರಾವಣಂಗೆ ಅರೆಯಾಯುಷವಾಯ್ತು
ವೇದವನೋದಿದ ಬ್ರಹ್ಮನ ಶಿರಹೋಯ್ತು
ನಾದಪ್ರಿಯನೂ ಅಲ್ಲ ವೇದಪ್ರಿಯನೂ ಅಲ್ಲ
ಭಕ್ತಿಪ್ರಿಯ ನಮ್ಮ ಕೂಡಲಸಂಗಮದೇವ!
They say Shiva loves music;
No, he doesn’t.
They say Shiva loves the learned;
No, He doesn’t.
Ravana, who made wonderful music
did not lead a full life.
Brahma, who learnt all the Vedas,
had to lose his head.
Neither is he fond of music
Nor is he fond of the Vedas
Our good lord of kUDala sangama,
is fond of devotion!
Those who know the composition of Purandara dAsa : kELanO hari tALano, can’t but fail to notice the similarity between the two.
Listen to this vachana here: nAdapriya SivaneMbaru
The third one goes even further. Basavanna calls his body as the temple where Shiva dwells.
ಉಳ್ಳವರು ಶಿವಾಲಯವ ಮಾಡುವರು
ನಾನೇನು ಮಾಡಲಿ ಬಡವನಯ್ಯ?
ಎನ್ನ ಕಾಲೇ ಕಂಬ ದೇಹವೆ ದೇಗುಲ
ಶಿರವೇ ಹೊನ್ನ ಕಳಸವಯ್ಯ!
ಕೂಡಲಸಂಗಮ ದೇವ ಕೇಳಯ್ಯ
ಸ್ಥಾವರಕ್ಕಳಿವುಂಟು ಜಂಗಮಕ್ಕಳಿವಿಲ್ಲ!
Rich build temples for Shiva
What can I, a poor man, do?
My legs are pillars
My body is the temple
My head makes the golden cupola
Oh, Lord of kUDala sangama
The standing will perish
The moving will stay on.
Watch Nachiketa Sharma sing uLLavaru shivAlayava mADuvaru, in rAga madhuvanti:
I will end with another of Basavanna’s vachana that deals with music.
ಎನ್ನ ಕಾಯವ ದಂಡಿಗೆಯ ಮಾಡಯ್ಯ
ಎನ್ನ ಶಿರವ ಸೋರೆಯ ಮಾಡಯ್ಯ
ಎನ್ನ ನರಗಳ ತಂತಿಯ ಮಾಡಯ್ಯ
ಬತ್ತೀಸ ರಾಗವ ಹಾಡಯ್ಯ
ಉರದಲೊತ್ತಿ ಬಾರಿಸು ಕೂಡಲಸಂಗಮದೇವ!
And here is the tranlation:
Make my body the fretboard,
Make my head resonator
Make my nerves into the strings
Sing those thirtytwo rAgas
Play intensely
Oh the lord of kUDala sangama!
I could not find a link for the audio or video. If you happen to know a link, please pass it on!
And, if you are keen on reading more vachanas, but do not know kannaDa, here is your best bet – A collection of vachanas tranlated in English by Prof A K Ramanujam: Speaking of Siva
-neelanjana
23 comments
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ಮೇ 9, 2008 at 12:06 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Rajesh
Hi – I have a collection of some songs by Nachiket Sharma (incidentally he is a family friend). It has ‘Enna Kaayava…’ in DVD format. I’ll see if I can upload it here.
-Rajesh
Rajesh,
Welcome to my blog. So we have one thing in ocmmon – I know Nachiketa Sharma very well too! I have heard him sing enna kAyava on couple of occasions, but have no recordings..
-neelanjana
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ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರ್ 12, 2011 at 8:49 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
dean
its nice but you should have written still more vachanas instead of translating them to english.
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ಆಗಷ್ಟ್ 25, 2012 at 9:04 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
mona
If some one doesn’t knows kannadda how they will understand the vachanaas
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ಸೆಪ್ಟೆಂಬರ್ 6, 2012 at 11:44 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Ramesh
Kalabeda, Kolabeda, Husiya nudiyalu beda,
Muniyabeda, Anyarige asahya padabeda
Tanna bannisabeda, Idira haliyalubeda
Ide antaranga shuddhi, Ide bahiranga shuddhi Ide namma kooDalasangamadevaranolosuva pari.
Translation :
You shall not steal nor kill,
Nor speak a lie,
Be angry with no one,
Neither scorn another man;
And never glorify thyself and insult others
These are the means to inward purity
These are the means to outward purity
This is the way to please our Lord of Koodala Sangama
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ಜನವರಿ 6, 2012 at 6:23 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Sujith
Guy’s ur making one of the best efforts to know our self’s as kannadiga’s….
Thx guy’s keep up ur good work…..
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ಫೆಬ್ರವರಿ 16, 2012 at 8:08 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
shwetha
hey………still more vachanas …… i know some of them but,ehere do i upload it
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ಜುಲೈ 9, 2014 at 11:23 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ
venkatesh.h maharaja colleg.mysore.
kalabeda kolabeda usiya nudiyalu beda
ayarige asahya padabeda tanna bannisabeda
idura aliyalu beda ide antaranga shuddi ide bahiranga shuddi
enna kudala sangamadevanolisuva pari.
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ಫೆಬ್ರವರಿ 21, 2012 at 6:36 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Kavan Deep
Please tell me the Maathu aadidare linga mechhi ahud ahud ennabeku vachana….
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ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರ್ 23, 2013 at 7:57 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ
GIRISH
NUDIDHADE MUTTINA HARADANTIRABEKU
NUDIDHADE MANIKYADA DEEPTIENTIRABEKU
NUDIDHADE SPATIKADA SALAAKEYANTIRABEKU
NUDIDHADE LINGA MECCHI AVUDAVUDENNABEKU
NUDIYOLAGAGI NADEYADIDDADE KOODALA SANGAMADEVAENTHALIVANAYYA
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ಸೆಪ್ಟೆಂಬರ್ 29, 2015 at 10:55 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ
ajkumar
bhakta matanadidare jangamaru(seve madisikombuvaru) ahud ahud annutirbeku yakendar jangamave linga illi ede jana seva bhavane
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ಮೇ 24, 2012 at 8:57 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Basavaraj Kabbin
Indeed a pleasure to listen vachana singing and i am spell bound
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ಆಗಷ್ಟ್ 28, 2012 at 11:37 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ
PATHRESH INGALDAL
What you doing regarding vachanas, it is a very nice job it may helps to the society, many people are neglecting vachanas they do not know the richness of the vachanas vachanas are indirectly guidelines for our life everyone should learn vachanas- patresh ingaldal
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ನವೆಂಬರ್ 16, 2012 at 7:42 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Sucheta Pai
Dear Nilanjana,
Found your site interesting. You seem to have missed out a line in the vachana – “enna kaayavaa.” The third, fourth and fifth lines are as follows-
enna naravaa tantiya maadayya
enna beralaa kaddiya maadayya
battisa raagava haadayya
My teacher taught me this vachana in raag Madhukauns and it is still my favourite.
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ಡಿಸೆಂಬರ್ 21, 2013 at 1:20 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Prathap
Mundha kke eli plzzzzzzzz
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ಜುಲೈ 13, 2013 at 11:59 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ
ravi
koodala sangama sharanara vachanagalu namma mana-tanu galannu ullasagolisuttave.
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ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರ್ 9, 2013 at 2:38 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
manjunatha.b
vachana sahityave jnanada kiru hottige.
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ಅಕ್ಟೋಬರ್ 22, 2013 at 3:21 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
lalita ganesh
Bassvana vachan galu tumba channgiva.
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ಡಿಸೆಂಬರ್ 23, 2013 at 6:58 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Shiv
Does anyone happen to know the full wordings of one of the Vachanas that goes as follows?
Eeru NeeruMboda, Beli Kaeyya Mevodae
NariYe Thanna Maguvannu KoluvaDae
InYarigae DooruvuNayya KudalaSangamaDeva
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ಜನವರಿ 8, 2014 at 12:44 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Shri
Vachangalannu Oodi Tumba Kushi Aithu 🙂
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ಜನವರಿ 13, 2014 at 11:47 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
Shiv Kambi
Hi, I am trying to place some vachanas that I had come across long time back. It goes something like this: … … Yeru Needumboda, Beli Kayya Mevoda, Nari Thanna Maguvanna Koluvoda, Innariga Dooruvanayya, Koodalasangamadeva. … .. If any one happens to know the complete listing of this vachana, I would appreciate it you you can forward it to me. Regards Shiv
________________________________
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ಡಿಸೆಂಬರ್ 27, 2014 at 10:49 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ
Kruthika.R.
ee vachanagalu tumba chennagive.
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ಮಾರ್ಚ್ 14, 2016 at 2:42 ಫೂರ್ವಾಹ್ನ
gouri
kudala sangama deva hara hara mahadeva jagadguru basavanna navarige jayavagali neu hadutthiruva ee hadugalu thumbha chennagive
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ಮೇ 22, 2017 at 11:50 ಅಪರಾಹ್ನ
Madan
ಮಾನ್ಯರೆ,
ವಿಶ್ವಗುರು ಬಸವಣ್ಣ ರವರ ೧೨೬೪(1264) ವಚನಗಳನ್ನು “ಬಸವ ವಚನಾಮೃತ – ಕಿರುತಂತ್ರಾಂಶದಲ್ಲಿ” ಅಳವಡಿಸಲಾಗಿದೆ.
ಬಸವಣ್ಣ ರವರ ವಚನಗಳು ಪ್ರತಿಯೊಬ್ಬರಿಗೂ ತಲುಪಬೇಕೆಂಬ ಆಶಯ ನನ್ನದು.
ಈ ನಿಟ್ಟಿನಲ್ಲಿ ನನ್ನದೊಂದು ಸಣ್ಣ ಪ್ರಯತ್ನ ಈ ಕಿರುತಂತ್ರಾಂಶ.
ಕಿರುತಂತ್ರಾಂಶವನ್ನು ಕೆಳಗಿನ ಕೊಂಡಿಯನ್ನು ಬಳಸಿ ತಮ್ಮ ಮೊಬೈಲ್ ನಲ್ಲಿ ಡೌನ್ಲೋಡ್ ಮಾಡಿ .
http://bit.ly/2pZWY3x
ಸಾಧ್ಯವಾದಲ್ಲಿ ಇತರರಿಗೂ ಕಳುಹಿಸಿ.
ಧನ್ಯವಾದಗಳು,
ಮದನ್.ಎಮ್.
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