154 kannadETidO vinnadETidO kAgaladika nEdO (కన్నదేఁటిదో విన్నదేఁటిదో కాఁగలదిఁక నేదో )

 ANNAMACHARYULU

154 కన్నదేఁటిదో విన్నదేఁటిదో కాఁగలదిఁక నేదో

(kannadETidO vinnadETidO kAgaladika nEdO) 

for Telegu (తెలుగు) Version press here 

 

Synopsis:  “Movement from being Me to being with God is a futile journey”

Summary of this Poem:

Chorus: What do I see?  What Do I Hear? Do not know what may happen here after. I do not know who I am. Do not know who you are. The life in between is starkly naked. Implied Meaning: O man, do you realise that “what you see and hear is your own echoes”. When you understand the falsity of this vulgar world and discard, you may come upon the truth.         

Stanza 1: Possibly by the power of your miracles, perhaps an end unknown to me; you exist here on this earth. I keep taking birth here. I know not what I would be. Neither know what I was. I keep witnessing regular rises and settings of the sun and moon continuously. Implied Meaning: O Man!  you keep oscillating between the known to the known. There is no separate place like heaven or hell. However, all such movement is a deadwood for it is steeped in the past. Such an existence is not life.  

Stanza 2:  O God! You may be an embodiment of intelligence. However, my ignorance could be even stronger. Your names are innumerable on steady observation. Is this entire visible world a dream or a reality? Is my nose a measuring jar for quantifying exhaling and inhalations? (To reflect my age).

 (To reflect my age). Implied Meaning: I am powerless to decide which way. You perplex me with your innumerable forms. I am unable distinguish truth from illusion. I neither understand time and infinity.

Stanza 3: I know not whether you had condescended to take compassionate view on me. Or it is due to the grace of teacher. Having accepted you as my inside dweller, now I can see/find you. I know not you are Lord of Vishnu or Lord Venkateswara. We know this world is your abode Vaikutham. (वैकुंठ). I find numerous servants of yours in all directions.

 

 

 

Detailed Presentation

Introduction: In this deeply enigmatic verse, you shall find Annamacharya is simply irresistible. He weaves of web of ambiguities to attract. Beyond that simplicity, he is virtually dragging us to explore. 

Greatness of Annamacharya is that his observations on life were reflected by western thinking long after his departure.   His questions are addressed directly to individuals to ponder. He does not quibble with words, rather attracting us to find the missing links.  

 

కీర్తన: రాగిరేకు:  255-5  సంపుటము: 3-318

కన్నదేఁటిదో విన్నదేఁటిదో కాఁగలదిఁక నేదో నన్నుం గానను నిన్నుం గానను నడుము బట్టబయలు ॥పల్లవి॥   నీమాయమహిమో నే నేరని కడమో భూమిలోన నీవున్నాఁడవు నా పుట్టుగులుఁ గలవు యేమి గాఁగలనో యింకా మీఁదట నిటకతొల్లి యేమైతినో సోమార్కుల వుదయాస్తమయంబులు చూచుచునున్నాఁడను నేను ॥కన్న॥   జ్ఞానము నీవో అజ్ఞానంబే బలువో నీనామంబులు అనంతకోట్లు నిలుకడగాఁ గాను కానఁగల యీ ప్రపంచమెల్లా కలయో యిది నిజమో కానరాని యీ ముక్కున నూర్పులు కాలముఁ గొలచేటి కుంచములు ॥కన్న॥   నీకు నీవే నను దయ దలఁచితివో నేనాచార్యుని నమ్మితినో కైకొని నాయంతర్యామివి నినుఁ గంటినిపుడే నేను శ్రీకాంతుఁడవో శ్రీవేంకటేశ్వర శ్రీవైకుంఠమే యీజగము యేకడ చూచిన నీదాసులు నాయెదుటనే వున్నారు ॥కన్న॥

POEM Copper Leaf:  255-5  Volume: 3-318

kannadETidO vinnadETidO kAgaladika nEdO nannuM gAnanu ninnuM gAnanu naDumu baTTabayalu ॥pallavi॥   nImAyamahimO nE nErani kaDamO bhUmilOna nIvunnADavu nA puTTugulu galavu yEmi gAgalanO yiMkA mIdaTa niTakatolli yEmaitinO sOmArkula vudayAstamayaMbulu chUchuchununnADanu nEnu ॥kanna॥   j~nAnamu nIvO aj~nAnaMbE baluvO nInAmaMbulu anaMtakOTlu nilukaDagA gAnu kAna@Mgala yI prapaMchamellA kalayO yidi nijamO kAnarAni yI mukkuna nUrpulu kAlamu golachETi kuMchamulu ॥kanna॥   nIku nIvE nanu daya dalachitivO nEnAchAryuni nammitinO kaikoni nAyaMtaryAmivi ninu gaMTinipuDE nEnu SrIkAMtuDavO SrIvEMkaTESvara SrIvaikuMThamE yIjagamu yEkaDa chUchina nIdAsulu nAyeduTanE vunnAru ॥kanna॥

 

Details and Explanations:

 

కన్నదేఁటిదో విన్నదేఁటిదో కాఁగలదిఁక నేదో

నన్నుం గానను నిన్నుం గానను నడుము బట్టబయలు ॥పల్లవి॥

 

kannadETidO vinnadETidO kAgaladika nEdO

nannuM gAnanu ninnuM gAnanu naDumu baTTabayalu ॥pallavi॥ 

Word to word meaning: కన్నదేఁటిదో (kannadETidO) = What do I see?  విన్నదేఁటిదో (vinnadETidO) =What Do I Hear? కాఁగలదిఁక నేదో (kAgaladika nEdO) = Do not know what may happen here after; నన్నుం గానను (nannuM gAnanu) = I do not find myself (I do not know who I am); నిన్నుం గానను (ninnuM gAnanu) = do not know who you are; నడుము (naDumu) = in the middle; బట్టబయలు (baTTabayalu) = quite open, quite naked, or evident. 

Literal meaning: What do I see?  What Do I Hear? Do not know what may happen here after. I do not know who I am. Do not know who you are. The life in between is starkly naked.

Explanation: I don’t know who I am. Therefore, all that I see, hear, and anticipate is futile exploration. Hence my claim that I know you is false. Annamacharya is quite clear that the life from birth to death is starkly naked to derive any comfort and engage in activities we do as now.

Thus, it translates to “movement from being me to being with you (God) is a futile journey”. This is also the meaning of Bhagavadgita verse below:

अव्यक्तादीनि भूतानि व्यक्तमध्यानि भारत |
अव्यक्तनिधनान्येव तत्र का परिदेवना || 28||

avyaktādīni bhūtāni vyakta-madhyāni bhārata / avyakta-nidhanānyeva tatra kā paridevanā Purport: O Arjun, all created beings are unmanifest before birth, manifest in life, and again unmanifest on death. So why grieve?

Now let us examine a painting titled “The common place” (Le Lieu Commun) by Rene Magritte. In this picture we see an expressionless person on the left side coming out of an unknown background. On the right we see he is leaving the visible field, again into an unknown construct. We see a forest in between these characters. The forest here is indicative of hidden nature in spite of physical presence in front of us. Thus, Magritte is saying that the life is mysterious. Is not this picture reflecting this chorus?

Mere viewing with our sense organs is not seeing. We all are blind to the truth.

Implied Meaning: O man, do you realise that “what you see and hear is your own echoes”. When you understand the falsity of this vulgar world and discard, you may come upon the truth. 

        

నీమాయమహిమో నే నేరని కడమో

భూమిలోన నీవున్నాఁడవు నా పుట్టుగులుఁ గలవు

యేమి గాఁగలనో యింకా మీఁదట నిటకతొల్లి యేమైతినో

సోమార్కుల వుదయాస్తమయంబులు చూచుచునున్నాఁడను నేను ॥కన్న॥

 

nImAyamahimO nE nErani kaDamO

bhUmilOna nIvunnADavu nA puTTugulu galavu

yEmi gAgalanO yiMkA mIdaTa niTakatolli yEmaitinO

sOmArkula vudayAstamayaMbulu chUchuchununnADanu nEnu ॥kanna॥

 

Word to word meaning: నీమాయమహిమో (nImAyamahimO) = by the power of your miracles; నే (nE) = my;  నేరని కడమో (nErani kaDamO) = unknown end; నా పుట్టుగులుఁ (nA puTTugulu) = my births; గలవు (galavu) = available;  యేమి (yEmi) = what; గాఁగలనో (gAgalanO) = can become; యింకా మీఁదటన్ (yiMkA mIdaTan) = beyond this; ఇటకతొల్లి యేమైతినో (niTakatolli yEmaitinO) = earlier what I was; సోమార్కుల (sOmArkula) = the sun and Moon’s; వుదయాస్తమయంబులు (vudayAstamayaMbulu) = regular rises and settings; చూచుచునున్నాఁడను (chUchuchununnADanu) = keep observing, keep counting;  నేను (nEnu) = me

Literal Meaning: Possibly by the power of your miracles, perhaps an end unknown to me; you exist here on this earth. I keep taking birth here. I know not what I would be. Neither know what I was. I keep witnessing regular rises and settings of the sun and moon continuously.

Explanation: సోమార్కుల వుదయాస్తమయంబులు చూచుచునున్నాఁడను sOmArkula vudayAstamayaMbulu chUchuchununnADanu (= keep watching rises and falls of moon and sun) is indicating that the man merely watches the passing of time. By declaring భూమిలోన నీవున్నాఁడవు (bhUmilOna nIvunnADavu = you exist on this earth) Annamacharya is asserting that the God is here on our planet. Thus, Annamacharya is saying that by merely being the people as we are today, we continue this journey perpetually and ineffectively.

యేమి గాఁగలనో యింకా మీఁదటన్ (yEmi gAgalanO yiMkA mIdaTan = what may I become here after) is psychological movement of expectation and anticipation. Annamacharya is denouncing this tendency.

This stanza and the next stanza are essentially same. I am providing more detailed explanation in the next one.

Implied Meaning: O Man!  you keep oscillating between the known to the known. There is no separate place like heaven or hell. However, all such movement is a deadwood for it is steeped in the past. Such an existence is not life. 

 

జ్ఞానము నీవో అజ్ఞానంబే బలువో

నీనామంబులు అనంతకోట్లు నిలుకడగాఁ గాను

కానఁగల యీ ప్రపంచమెల్లా కలయో యిది నిజమో

కానరాని యీ ముక్కున నూర్పులు కాలముఁ గొలచేటి కుంచములు ॥కన్న॥

j~nAnamu nIvO aj~nAnaMbE baluvO

nInAmaMbulu anaMtakOTlu nilukaDagA gAnu

kAnagala yI prapaMchamellA kalayO yidi nijamO

kAnarAni yI mukkuna nUrpulu kAlamu golachETi kuMchamulu ॥kanna॥

 

Word to word meaning: జ్ఞానము (j~nAnamu) = intelligence; నీవో (nIvO) = may be you are; అజ్ఞానంబే (aj~nAnaMbE) = may be the ignorance; బలువో (baluvO) = is stronger, is mightier; నీనామంబులు (nInAmaMbulu) = your names; అనంతకోట్లు (anaMtakOTlu) = billions; నిలుకడగాఁ గాను (nilukaDagA gAnu) = on steady ground; కానఁగల (kAnagala) =possible to find; యీ (yI) = this; ప్రపంచమెల్లా (prapaMchamellA) = entire world;  కలయో (kalayO) = is it a dream? యిది (yidi) = this; నిజమో (nijamO) = may be a fact; కానరాని (kAnarAni) = not possible to see; యీ (yI) = these; ముక్కున (mukkuna) = thru the nose; నూర్పులు (nUrpulu) = inhaling and exhaling; కాలముఁ (kAlamu) = time; గొలచేటి (golachETi) = measuring; కుంచములు (kuMchamulu) = jars;

 

Literal meaning: O God! You may be an embodiment of intelligence. However, my ignorance could be even stronger. Your names are innumerable on steady observation. Is this entire visible world a dream or a reality? Is my nose a measuring jar for quantifying exhaling and inhalations? (To reflect my age).

Explanation: Annamacharya is clear that tenacity of ignorance is stronger than magnetism of truth. Finally, man gets convinced that he knows the truth. While the great sages like Annamacharya, Jiddu Krishnamurti are in doubt, the fools feel they know the truth. What else can be more sheepish?

Let me continue with the Swan no 10, a 1915 painting by Hilma Af Klint. These Swans^#1 in general are representing the picture of Consciousness. Now in this painting you find again an inverse astral plane reflection. Near things look far and far things nearer. Coloured hexagonal shape indicate our present position.

While the truth shines colourful and attractive, we get enticed by it. Little we realise that our present identity (hexagon) is not harmoniously mingling with the sea of consciousness. This hexagon is built by us. “To be in oneness with the truth is not a journey to the centre but dissolve the artificial boundaries we created” is the meaning of the painting.

Again, in the painting you see innumerable circles, indicating we are just a drop in the ocean of awareness. When one joins this ocean, an infinity, therefore, it makes no difference between death and existence.

A drop of ocean is also the ocean itself- therefore the wording నీనామంబులు అనంతకోట్లు (nInAmaMbulu anaMtakOTlu = your names innumerable) is true. But awareness of such reflection is not in realm of time is indicated by the wording నిలుకడగాఁ గాను (nilukaDagA gAnu = on steady ground = in silence).This is also the meaning of the Bhagavad-Gita verse below: 

तेषां सततयुक्तानां भजतां प्रीतिपूर्वकम् |
ददामि बुद्धियोगं तं येन मामुपयान्ति ते || 10-10||

teṣhāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam / dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ taṁ yena mām upayānti te Purport: O Arjun, whose minds are always united with Me in loving devotion, I give the divine knowledge by which they can attain Me.

Now compare it with the statement of Jiddu Krishnamurti: Now, please compare this statement with Jiddu Krishanmurti’s:  “Only when the mind is still, not expecting or grasping or resisting a single thing, is it possible to see what is true. It is the truth that liberates, not your effort to be free.”

Therefore, readers will appreciate these words of Annamacharya are not mere beautiful compositions in praise of the lord, but deep reflections of a yogi.

 

Implied Meaning: I am powerless to decide which way. You perplex me with your innumerable forms. I am unable distinguish truth from illusion. I neither understand time and infinity.

 

నీకు నీవే నను దయ దలఁచితివో నేనాచార్యుని నమ్మితినో

కైకొని నాయంతర్యామివి నినుఁ గంటినిపుడే నేను

శ్రీకాంతుఁడవో శ్రీవేంకటేశ్వర శ్రీవైకుంఠమే యీజగము

యేకడ చూచిన నీదాసులు నాయెదుటనే వున్నారు ॥కన్న॥

 

nIku nIvE nanu daya dalachitivO nEnAchAryuni nammitinO

kaikoni nAyaMtaryAmivi ninu gaMTinipuDE nEnu

SrIkAMtuDavO SrIvEMkaTESvara SrIvaikuMThamE yIjagamu

yEkaDa chUchina nIdAsulu nAyeduTanE vunnAru ॥kanna॥

 

Word to word meaning: నీకు నీవే (nIku (nIvE) may be on your own will; నను (nanu) = me; దయ దలఁచితివో (daya dalachitivO) = taking compassionate view; నేనాచార్యుని (nEnAchAryuni) = Or the teacher; నమ్మితినో (nammitinO) = might have believed;  కైకొని (kaikoni) = to undertake, to accept; నాయంతర్యామివి (nAyaMtaryAmivi) = my inside dweller; నినుఁ (ninu) = you; గంటినిపుడే (gaMTinipuDE) = found now; నేను (nEnu) = me; శ్రీకాంతుఁడవో (SrIkAMtuDavO) = may the lord of the wealth; శ్రీవేంకటేశ్వర (SrIvEMkaTESvara) = O Lord Venkateswara;  శ్రీవైకుంఠమే (SrIvaikuMThamE) = your great abode Viakuntha; యీజగము (yIjagamu) = this world;  యేకడ (yEkaDa) = in any direction; చూచిన (chUchina) = view; నీదాసులు (nIdAsulu) = your servants; నాయెదుటనే (nAyeduTanE) = in front of me; వున్నారు (vunnAru) = are there;

Literal meaning: I know not whether you had condescended to take compassionate view on me. Or it is due to the grace of teacher. Having accepted you as my inside dweller, now I can see/find you. I know not you are Lord of Vishnu or Lord Venkateswara. We know this world is your abode Vaikutham. (वैकुंठ). I find numerous servants of yours in all directions.

Explanation: There are many who believe in heaven and fear hell. For them, Annamacharya said, there are no other worlds man shall travel. The man remains along with truth in this world.

Now refer to the wording ఆకాశ పాకాశ మరుదైన కూటంబు^#2 (AkASa pAkASa marudaina kUTaMbu = this untidy, disorderly world is an unusual cluster).  This ugly, chaotic world is an extraordinary congregation. In this world, there are many issues tyranny, inequality, and extortion. A rare natural order is hidden behind these impediments. The powers of thought and imagination cannot reach it. Accept the chaos as it is rather than trying to control it. The goal of meditation is the dissolution of the ego, not its accumulation.

When man reaches such state, will he not only find the beauty of this life and shower it on his fellow men?  

 

References and Recommendations for further reading:

 

#114. దిబ్బలు వెట్టుచు దేలిన దిదివో (dibbalu veTTuchu dElina didivO) 

#2 142 ఏమి గలదిందు నెంత పెనగినఁ వృథా(Emi galadiMdu neMta penagina vRthA)

 

 

 

 

-X-The End-X-