341 తరితీపులఁ బెట్టీని
తనముందర నిప్పుడు
(taritīpulaṃ̐ beṭṭīni
tanamuṃdara
nippuḍu)
INTRODUCTION
Tallapaka Peda Tirumalacharyulu invites us
into a piercing inquiry regarding our ongoing relationship with the
pleasurable, sensory world. Rather than offering abstract theories or dry
scriptural citations, he confronts us with remarkably straightforward, intimate
questions that expose the sheer fragility and limits of our worldly
dependencies.
The underlying genius of this composition
lies in its relentless focus on the word "Now" (Ippudu).
Maya (illusion) is not a historical event from the past, nor is it a distant
cosmological mystery; it is an active, psychological phenomenon operating
directly before us in this very moment. Through fourteen concise lines, Peda
Tirumalacharyulu demonstrates how our past memories, attachments, and
psychological inertia continuously block us from directly entering the living
present. The value of this sankeertana does not lie in establishing its
intellectual supremacy over other texts, but in its ability to serve as a clean
mirror for rigorous self-observation.
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అధ్యాత్మ సంకీర్తన
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రాగి
రేకు: 46-4
సంపుటము - సంకీర్తన: 15-261
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తరితీపులఁ బెట్టీని తనముందర నిప్పుడు హరిమాయ యింకా నెంత ఆసల ముంచీనో ॥పల్లవి॥ అన్ని వేడుకలు గల యఖిల ప్రపంచము కన్నులు మూసితే నెక్కడ నుండునో చెన్నుమీఱ గృహారామక్షేత్రాదు లవి యెల్లా యెన్నఁగా నిద్రించేవేళ యేడ నుండునో ॥తరి॥ వొసఁగ తా భోగించిన భోగోపకరణములు యెసగఁ గొన కెక్కితే నేమి సేసునో వనమైన పుత్రమిత్ర వర్గంబు లెల్లాను వెసన వేరొక్క జన్మపువేళ నెట్టు లుందురో ॥తరి॥ పరగఁ దాఁ జేసిన పాపము శ్రీవేంకటేశు శరణాతుఁడైతే నే చందమగునో అరుదైన తనతొంటి యజ్ఞానము లన్నియును గురుకృపగలవేళ కొంచి యెందు దాఁగునో ॥తరి॥
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PHILOSOPHICAL POEM |
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Copper
Plate: 46-4 Volume: 15-261 |
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taritīpulaṃ̐
beṭṭīni
tanamuṃdara
nippuḍu harimāya
yiṃkā
neṃta
āsala
muṃcīnō ॥pallavi॥ anni vēḍukalu
gala yakhila prapaṃcamu kannulu mūsitē
nekkaḍa
nuṃḍunō cennumī\ra
gṛhārāmakṣētrādu
lavi yellā yennaṃ̐gā
nidriṃcēvēḻa
yēḍa
nuṃḍunō ॥tari॥ vosaṃ̐ga
tā
bhōgiṃcina
bhōgōpakaraṇamulu yesagaṃ̐
gona kekkitē nēmi
sēsunō vanamaina putramitra vargaṃbu
lellānu vesana vērokka
janmapuvēḻa
neṭṭu
luṃdurō ॥tari॥ paragaṃ̐ dāṃ̐ jēsina
pāpamu
śrīvēṃkaṭēśu śaraṇātuṃ̐ḍaitē nē
caṃdamagunō arudaina tanatoṃṭi
yajñānamu
lanniyunu gurukṛpagalavēḻa
koṃci
yeṃdu
dāṃ̐gunō ॥tari॥
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Details and Discussions:
Chorus
(Pallavi):
తరితీపులఁ
బెట్టీని తనముందర నిప్పుడు
హరిమాయ
యింకా నెంత ఆసల ముంచీనో ॥పల్లవి॥
Literal Sense:
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Poem Line
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Normal
Sense
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Philosophical
sense
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తరితీపులఁ బెట్టీని తనముందర నిప్పుడు
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(తరితీపులఁ = Indifference, love, desire, longing, attachment, and intensity) Placing
indifference, love, desire, longing, and intensity right before oneself, now…
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Illusion does not
exist in the abstract past or future; it operates dynamically right now,
directly within our present field of awareness.
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హరిమాయ యింకా
నెంత ఆసల ముంచీనో
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..to what greater depths of endless
desire will this divine illusion (Hari Maya) drown us?
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The more we treat
external projections as absolute reality, the deeper we sink into the
psychological whirlpool of continuous seeking and desire.
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Deeper
Note:
In the line
“తరితీపులఁ
బెట్టీని తనముందర నిప్పుడు Taritīpulaṁ
beṭṭīni tanamundara nippuḍu” (Presenting indifference, love, desire, atachment and intensity right
before oneself at this very moment), particular attention must be paid to
the word “Ippuḍu” (Now / At this moment). Māyā (illusion)
is not a past occurrence; it is actively operating right before us in this very
instant. Indifference, love, desire, longing, attachment, and self-assertion
are not events happening outside of us—they are psychological movements
occurring entirely within us.
Among these, indifference (upekṣa)
is also crucial. As observed in the third chapter of the Bhagavad Gītā,
although all activities are carried out by nature (Prakṛti), yet human
beings accord very little value to the underlying nature that drives
them. On our priority scale, it sits at the very bottom. This very indifference
is itself a movement of Māyā.
This Pallavi is like an endless spring or a deep
well. No matter how deeply one attempts to look into it, new perspectives
continue to echo. Just as enticing pleasures unfold directly before us, Hari-Māyā
also stands directly before us. Māyā is not hidden away in some distant
realm.
“హరిమాయ యింకా నెంత ఆసల ముంచీనో Harimāya
yiṁkā nenta āsala muṁčīnō” (To what greater depths of endless desire
will this divine illusion drown us?) — The more one is entangled in Māyā,
the deeper one sinks into desires. Is it then possible to escape Māyā and
truly comprehend it? Here, Māyā refers to that which is directly
manifested. The poet asks us to observe that what is manifested does not stand
independently of what lies behind it.
In this manner, everyone in the world observes
the manifested phenomenon, examines it, assumes it to be the sole knowable
Truth, and forms their respective opinions upon it. Māyā is a force
operating from within a person.
Therefore, understanding Māyā does not
mean abandoning Māyā and stepping outside of it; one must understand Māyā
while remaining directly within it. The origin of this inquiry does not lie
somewhere outside—it lies in observing what is unfolding right here, right now,
before our very eyes.
Supplementary Commentary — “Now” (ఇప్పుడు Ippuḍu)
The word “Ippuḍu” (Now) in
this Pallavi demands special reflection. Hari-Māyā is not something that
occurred in the past; it is operating right in front of us in this exact
moment. What we see, what we think, what we desire—all of these are occurring
right now, in this very instant.
However, Peda Tirumalacharyulu’s insight does not
stop there. Even when one consciously tries to remain in the present moment, Māyā
continues to operate. The mind establishes its relationship with whatever
stands before it through indifference, love, desire, longing, or
self-assertion. Therefore, the problem is not merely escaping into the past or
the future; the real issue is how we are experiencing that which is
unfolding right in front of us right now.
Hence, “Ippuḍu” (Now) is not merely
a temporal marker. The poet is redirecting our gaze to what is occurring in the
immediate present. To comprehend Māyā, one does not need to step outside
of it; one must observe how Māyā operates in the very moment it is
happening—right now.
First
Stanza:
అన్ని
వేడుకలు గల యఖిల ప్రపంచము
కన్నులు
మూసితే నెక్కడ నుండునో
చెన్నుమీఱ
గృహారామక్షేత్రాదు లవి యెల్లా
యెన్నఁగా
నిద్రించేవేళ యేడ నుండునో ॥తరి॥
Literal Sense:
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Poem Line
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General Meaning
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Philosophical
sense
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అన్ని వేడుకలు
గల యఖిల ప్రపంచము
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This entire world
filled with all festivities, celebrations, and grand spectacles...
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Our relationship with the
world is itself the spectacle (vEduka). Pleasure and pain, gain and loss are
all dynamic movements within this grand spectacle.
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కన్నులు మూసితే
నెక్కడ నుండునో
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...where does that
world reside once we close our eyes?
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Here, "eyes"
represent sensory perception. The poet asks us to observe where our
pleasures, pains, gains, and losses vanish when sensory connection is
withdrawn?
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చెన్నుమీఱ గృహారామక్షేత్రాదు
లవి యెల్లా
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All the beautiful
homes, gardens, lands, and properties...
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Everything that gives us the
experience of pleasure (or pain) serves as a symbol of our psychological
attachments.
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యెన్నఁగా నిద్రించేవేళ
యేడ నుండునో
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...when properly
considered, where do they all exist during deep sleep?
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We are asked to observe
where our attachments go during moments of inattention, deep sleep, or
ultimately at the time of death?.
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Deeper
Notes:
In this stanza, the poet presents us with a
profound challenge. He points directly at the factors that continuously pull us
into distraction, preventing us from entering fully into the living present
moment.
The poet uses ordinary daily experiences such as “closing
one’s eyes” (కన్నులు
మూసితే Kannulu
mUsitE) and “the
time of sleeping” (నిద్రించేవేళ nidriMchEVEla) as metaphors for forgetfulness, states of inattention, and
ultimately, death itself. He asks us to observe where this world—which appears
so absolute and real to us—and all our attachments, joys, sorrows, gains, and
losses go during these states. The poet is not asking us to analyze the
external world itself; rather, he is directing us to examine the nature of our
relationship that binds us to it.
Here, the famous verse from the Bhagavad Gītā
(Chapter 4, Verse 18) comes to mind: Karmaṇyakarma yaḥ paśyed akarmaṇi ca
karma yaḥ...(He who sees inaction in action, and action in inaction...) If
we approach this from the perspective of observing action (karma), being
able to observe distraction within attention, and attention within distraction,
stands out as a crucial state of self-inquiry.
However, our ordinary state of mind is not like
that. Whether we are attentive or distracted, we rarely remain aware of that
state itself. It is only when we consciously attempt to pay attention that we
realize we had been distracted until that point.
Viewed in this light, the word “Now” (Ippuḍu)
from the Pallavi emerges as an even more subtle and piercing pointer. Where is
our attention right now? What is taking us away into distraction right
now? This is the central question the poet places before us.
This is precisely where this stanza connects
seamlessly back to the Pallavi: Māyā is not something to be
understood later or at a distant point in time; it must be observed right
now—how it operates within our attention and within our distraction.
Second Stanza:
వొసఁగ
తా భోగించిన భోగోపకరణములు
యెసగఁ
గొన కెక్కితే నేమి సేసునో
వనమైన
పుత్రమిత్ర వర్గంబు లెల్లాను
వెసన
వేరొక్క జన్మపువేళ నెట్టు లుందురో ॥తరి॥
Literal Sense:
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Poem Line
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General
Sense
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Philosophical
sense
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వొసఁగ తా భోగించిన
భోగోపకరణములు
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The instruments of pleasure
and gratification one has enjoyed in the past...
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Objects enjoyed in the past
and the relationships formed through them remain within us, continuing to
drive and condition our experience in subsequent moments.
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యెసగఁ గొన కెక్కితే
నేమి సేసునో
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...if one carries them
forward as heavy baggage, what will they do?
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The poet quietly asking us “If
we carry forward past experiences and view the new moment through the lens of
memory, what does it do? Is it not
this old momentum blocks us from directly entering living reality?”
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వనమైన పుత్రమిత్ర
వర్గంబు లెల్లాను
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The entire circle of sons,
friends, and family that has grown like a vast forest...
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Sons, friends, and kinships
that expand over time like a dense forest become a formidable psychological
net woven with past experiences, memories, and emotional ties.
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వెసన వేరొక్క
జన్మపువేళ నెట్టు లుందురో
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...when the next life
arrives so swiftly (vesana), how will they remain?
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"Vesana" =
rapidly/swiftly. Even though the new moment arrives rapidly, old
relationships persist in their previous momentum due to their inertia. If we
view "another life" (vErokka janma) as the next new moment, it
shows our inability to enter it fresh, burdened as we are with old memories.
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Deep
Notes:
In the first stanza, the poet guided us to
examine our relationship with the external world—the house, the garden, the
land, and physical property. In this second stanza, he brings the same inquiry
much closer to home, directing our gaze toward immediate objects of pleasure
and intimate personal relationships.
“వొసఁగ తా భోగించిన భోగోపకరణములు Vosaga tA bhOgiMchina bhOgOpakaraNamulu” — The objects we have enjoyed in the past do not simply end
when the physical act of enjoyment ceases. The experiences, memories, and
emotional attachments formed with them remain recorded within us. In the very
next moment, we view the present through the filter of those past imprints.
Hence, the poet asks: “యెసగఁ గొన కెక్కితే నేమి సేసునో Yesaga gona
kekkitE nEmi sEsunO” (If one carries them along, what will they
do?). If we carry the momentum of past enjoyment into the living present,
what does it do to us in the new moment? Can past memory ever allow what is
newly manifesting right now to be seen in its pristine, unconditioned reality?
This is the core observation.
Next, he says: “వనమైన పుత్రమిత్ర వర్గంబు లెల్లాను Vanamaina putramitra vargaMbu lellAnu”. "Vanamaina" means that which
has grown dense like a forest. Our attachments to children, friends, and
relatives expand over time into branching networks of memories, expectations,
and opinions. Consequently, a heavy psychological inertia develops within these
relationships. Even when a completely new situation arises, these attachments
fail to see the newness and instead persist in their old, habitual momentum.
Here, the word “వెసన Vesana” is of paramount significance. It means rapidly,
swiftly, or urgently. For a human being living amidst relationships that have
grown over long periods like a sprawling forest, the next moment nevertheless
arrives with blinding speed. Yet, old memories and conditioned relationships
drag their past momentum directly into this arriving moment.
Therefore, there is no need to view “వేరొక్క జన్మ vErokka
janma” (another life) solely as a rebirth after
physical death. The very next moment can be seen as a new life—a fresh birth.
Every single moment is being born anew. Yet, because we carry forward old
memories and old ties, we continuously degrade the new moment into a mere continuation
of the old.
Here, we must recall the foundational pointer
from the Pallavi: “tanamuMdara nippuDu” (right before oneself, now).
The new moment stands directly in front of us. Yet, instead of meeting it
directly, we meet it through the filter of the past. Although Reality is
standing right before our eyes, we remain incapable of stepping into it.
This serves as a direct, empirical demonstration
of “Hari-Māyā” mentioned in the Pallavi. In the Bhagavad Gītā (Chapter
7, Verse 13), it is shown how the mind, deluded by the manifestations of the
gunas, fails to recognize the Unborn Reality beyond them. We see a parallel
observation here. Peda Tirumalacharyulu exposes this exact mechanism operating
in our daily psychological lives—past experiences, relationships, and memories
continuously present the new moment as merely the old, effectively blocking us
from entering reality.
Thus, in this stanza, the poet is not merely
offering a cliché that "possessions and relatives are impermanent."
He is revealing something far deeper: Life is recreating itself anew in every
passing moment. We, however, continuously resurrect past memories, forcing life
to appear old. This is what it means to be trapped in time. Even though the new
moment arrives with swift urgency, the mind’s refusal to release its past
momentum remains the primary barrier preventing us from entering Reality.
Third Stanza:
పరగఁ
దాఁ జేసిన పాపము శ్రీవేంకటేశు
శరణాతుఁడైతే
నే చందమగునో
అరుదైన
తనతొంటి యజ్ఞానము లన్నియును
గురుకృపగలవేళ
కొంచి యెందు దాఁగునో ॥తరి॥
Literal Sense:
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Poem Line
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Normal
Sense
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Philosophical
sense
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పరగఁ దాఁ జేసిన
పాపము శ్రీవేంకటేశు
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The innumerable sins
one has committed oneself... and Lord Sri Venkateswara...
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The ultimate
responsibility for one's actions (pApamu) lies with oneself. The Divine does
not arbitrarily assume that personal burden.
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శరణాతుఁడైతే
నే చందమగునో
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...if one surrenders to
Lord Sri Venkateswara, what becomes of those sins?
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The poet questions what
occurs to the momentum of sin when one's relationship with the underlying
state of ignorance (ajñāna) that birthed it is transformed through surrender (Saraṇāgati).
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అరుదైన తనతొంటి
యజ్ఞానము లన్నియును
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If we carry the
momentum of past enjoyment into the living present that have accompanied
oneself from time immemorial...
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The ancient,
hard-to-eradicate forms of ignorance (ajñāna) that have persisted
from the beginning continue to project themselves into one's present state.
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గురుకృపగలవేళ
కొంచి యెందు దాఁగునో
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.(గురుకృప
= Divine Grace) ..when Guru's grace is
present, where do they diminish and hide away?
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The poet inquires where
that ancient ignorance loses its long-held grip and fades away when graced by
the Master's wisdom (Guru-kṛpa).
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Deep
Notes:
In the second stanza, the poet demonstrated how
accumulated pleasures, family bonds, and memories force us to experience every
newly arriving moment merely as an extension of the old. Even though the new
moment arrives swiftly, past relationships drag their inertia forward into it.
Consequently, even though reality is standing directly before us, we remain
incapable of entering it directly.
In this third stanza, the poet takes this inquiry
into an even deeper psychological stratum. “పరగఁ దాఁ జేసిన పాపము Paraga dA jEsina pApamu” refers to the sins committed by oneself. Here, the
responsibility is not shifted onto the Divine; what one has done belongs
strictly to oneself. One may recall a parallel teaching in the Bhagavad Gītā
(Chapter 5, Verse 15): नादत्ते कस्यचित्पापं नादत्ते कस्यचित्पापं Nādatte
kasyacit pāpaṁ... (The
Supreme Self does not assume the sin or merit of anyone...)
The very next phrase in that same Gita verse—“ अज्ञानेनावृतं ज्ञानं Ajñānenāvṛtaṁ jñānaṁ” (Wisdom is enveloped by ignorance)—aligns
even closer with the subsequent line of this verse.
This is why the poet immediately asks: “శరణాతుఁడైతే నే చందమగునో SaraNAtuDaiitē nE chaMdamagunO” (If one surrenders, what becomes of it?). Surrender (Saraṇāgati)
does not merely mean that the Divine takes away one's sins on our behalf.
Rather, the poet asks us to observe what happens to the ongoing momentum of
past misdeeds - the moment our relationship with the underlying ignorance that
caused them undergoes a fundamental shift.
This is a natural progression from the second stanza.
While the second stanza exposed how old memories and ties keep us bound to past
momentum, here we encounter something even older than those memories: “తనతొంటి యజ్ఞానము tanatoMti yajñAnamu”—the primordial ignorance that has accompanied us from time
immemorial.
Here, the word “అరుదైన arudaina” must be carefully examined. It does not merely
mean "extraordinary" or "profound" ignorance. It carries
the weight of something extremely rare to remove, exceedingly difficult to
overcome. The barrier preventing us from stepping out of Viṣṇu-Māyā
is no ordinary obstacle. This mirrors the insight in Bhagavad Gītā (Chapter 7,
Verse 14): दैवी ह्येषा गुणमयी मम माया दुरत्यया daivī hyeṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā...(This divine
illusion of Mine, composed of the gunas, is formidable and hard to cross...)
Peda Tirumalacharyulu articulates this exact
formidable difficulty through the precise phrase " అరుదైన తనతొంటి యజ్ఞానము arudaina tanatoMti yajñAnamu". Crucially, however, the poet does not claim
that "the moment Guru's grace arrives, all ignorance is instantaneously
annihilated." Instead, he uses the deliberate word “KoMchi” (diminishes
/ loosens slightly). That is, the ignorance that kept us locked in past
momentum begins to gradually lose its rigid hold. Guru-kṛpa (the
Master's grace) holds a unique place here: where human self-effort alone fails
to completely shatter its own self-constructed past momentum, grace opens up
the possibility of seeing afresh.
The Inward Journey of the Three stanzas
Viewed as a whole, all three charanams
systematically guide a single inquiry deeper and deeper inward:
- First stanza: External World → House → Garden → Physical Property & Lands
- Second stanza: Objects of Enjoyment → Family & Relatives → Psychological Memories → Past Momentum
- Third stanza: Personal Responsibility (Pāpamu) → Primordial Ignorance (Tanatonti Ajñānamu)
From the outer objective world to the subtle inner psychology, the poet uncovers how ancient the barrier inside us truly is that prevents us from entering reality.
Thus, the question posed in this final stanza is
not simply, "What happens to my sin?" The deeper, ultimate
inquiry is: "When the ancient ignorance that locks me in past momentum
finally loses its grip, what remains for me to step directly into
Reality?" It is at this precise point that the హరిమాయ Hari-Māyā of the
Pallavi and the తనతొంటి
యజ్ఞానము Tanatonti
Ajñānamu of the final stanza converge into a single, unified realization.
X-X-The
END-X-X
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