288 tanuṃ̐ dā nēmaraka daivamu maravakuṃṭē (తనుఁ దా నేమఱక దైవము మఱవకుంటే)

 TALLAPAKA ANNAMACHARYULU

288 తనుఁ దా నేమఱక దైవము మఱవకుంటే

(tanuṃ̐ dā nēmaraka daivamu maravakuṃṭē)

for Telegu (తెలుగు) Version press here 

INTRODUCTION

A poem like this does not arrive through thought,
nor through imagination’s labour.
It descends — quietly, sharply —
as if truth itself decided
to take the shape of words for a moment. 

Here is a seer who carries no sentiment,
no ornament, no softness to please the ear.
Annamacharya stands like a lamp in a stormless night,
showing only what is,
wiping away everything we merely believed. 

How can such a poem be conceived?

How can anyone dare to utter it,

let alone release it into the world

to be judged, forgotten, misunderstood? 

Yet it survived.
It walked across centuries, untouched.
And now it stands before us —
a rare visitor,
a reminder that truth needs no protection.
Only an open mind.
Only a listening heart. 

We are fortunate —
not because we understand it fully,
but because we were allowed
to witness its breath.

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Skeletal guide to the poem: 

Pallavi: “What truly exists — me or the divine?”

Stanza 1: “The Transience of Life and Breath”

Stanza 2: “baseless ground for feelings and Sensations”

Stanza 3: “What you hold as your ‘self’ — is it truth or mere imagination?” 

అధ్యాత్మ​ కీర్తన	Philosophical Poem
రేకు: 293-6 సంపుటము: 3-541	Copper Plate: 293-6 Vol: 3-541
తనుఁ దా నేమఱక దైవము మఱవకుంటే మనసులోనే కలుగు మహామహిమ      ॥పల్లవి॥ కనురెప్ప మూసితేనే కడ దాఁగె జగమెల్ల కనుదెరచినంతనే కలిగెఁ దాను ననిచివుండుట లేదు నమ్మకపోవుట లేదు తనతోడిదే యిన్నిఁ దాఁ గలితేఁ గలవు ॥తనుఁ॥ కడుపు నిండినంతనే కైపాయ రుచులెల్లా బెడిదపు టాఁకలైతేఁ బ్రియమాయను యెడనెడఁ జేఁదు గాదు యింతలోనే తీపు గాదు వొడలితోడివే యివి వుండినట్టే వుండును ॥తనుఁ॥ అద్దములోఁ దననీడ అంతటా మెరసినట్లు పొద్దువొద్దు తనతోనే భోగాలెల్లా అద్దిన శ్రీవేంకటేశుఁ డంతరాత్మయైనవాఁడు కొద్ది లేదాతనిమాయ కొనసాగుచుండును॥తనుఁ॥	tanuṃ̐ dā nēma\raka daivamu ma\ravakuṃṭē manasulōnē kalugu mahāmahima    ॥pallavi॥ kanureppa mūsitēnē kaḍa dāṃ̐ge jagamella kanuderacinaṃtanē kaligeṃ̐ dānu nanicivuṃḍuṭa lēdu nammakapōvuṭa lēdu tanatōḍidē yinniṃ̐ dāṃ̐ galitēṃ̐ galavu            ॥tanuṃ̐॥ kaḍupu niṃḍinaṃtanē kaipāya ruculellā beḍidapu ṭāṃ̐kalaitēṃ̐ briyamāyanu yeḍaneḍaṃ̐ jēṃ̐du gādu yiṃtalōnē tīpu gādu voḍalitōḍivē yivi vuṃḍinaṭṭē vuṃḍunu            ॥tanuṃ̐॥ addamulōṃ̐ dananīḍa aṃtaṭā merasinaṭlu podduvoddu tanatōnē bhōgālellā addina śrīvēṃkaṭēśuṃ̐ ḍaṃtarātmayainavāṃ̐ḍu koddi lēdātanimāya konasāgucuṃḍunu          ॥tanuṃ̐॥

 Details and Discussions:

Chorus (Pallavi):

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తనుఁ దా నేమఱక దైవము మఱవకుంటే

మనసులోనే కలుగు మహామహిమ              ॥పల్లవి॥

tanuṃ̐ dā nēma\raka daivamu ma\ravakuṃṭē

manasulōnē kalugu mahāmahima       ॥pallavi॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
తనుఁ దా నేమఱక దైవము మఱవకుంటే	If, with utmost alertness, one does not forget oneself and at the same time does not let go of the Divine
మనసులోనే కలుగు మహామహిమ	A great marvel arises in the mind

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Literal Meaning: 

If one does not lose awareness of oneself, and does not lose hold of the Divine, then the great marvel unfolds within the mind.

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Interpretative Notes:  

Ordinarily, when we pay attention, we shift from an unconscious state to a conscious one. Whatever we focus on becomes present in awareness. When we shift to something else, the first thing slips out of awareness and the second occupies the field completely. The mind cannot hold two objects with full attention at the same time. This mental limitation is exactly what Annamacharya is challenging. 

He places two seemingly impossible states on a single axis. In our everyday experience, there are three components: the seer, the seen, and the act of seeing.When the “seen” changes, the axis itself shifts. 

But for the axis to remain unchanged, both the seer and the seen must dissolve; what remains is only ‘seeing’. The division of “I” and “that” gives birth to duality. When that division melts away, duality disappears. Then the inner radiance already within us shines by itself. This is the “great marvel” born within the mind. 

Buddha spent his second week after enlightenment in the state of animēṣa-locana—a motionless, fleshless gaze that holds nothing and seeks nothing. This mirrors precisely what Annamacharya points to. A mind that plays between the sense of “me” and the sense of “the Divine” remains bound to duality. But a mind freed even from the effort to see becomes capable of grasping everything.

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First Stanza:

కనురెప్ప మూసితేనే కడ దాఁగె జగమెల్ల

కనుదెరచినంతనే కలిగెఁ దాను

ననిచివుండుట లేదు నమ్మకపోవుట లేదు

తనతోడిదే యిన్నిఁ దాఁ గలితేఁ గలవు              ॥తనుఁ॥

kanureppa mūsitēnē kaḍa dāṃ̐ge jagamella

kanuderacinaṃtanē kaligeṃ̐ dānu

nanicivuṃḍuṭa lēdu nammakapōvuṭa lēdu

tanatōḍidē yinniṃ̐ dāṃ̐ galitēṃ̐ galavu          ॥tanuṃ̐॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
కనురెప్ప మూసితేనే కడ దాఁగె జగమెల్ల	When the eyelid closes (symbolising death), the world disappears in an instant.
కనుదెరచినంతనే కలిగెఁ దాను	When the eyelid opens (symbolising birth), the world appears just as instantly.
ననిచివుండుట లేదు నమ్మకపోవుట లేదు	We cannot fully believe this, nor can we disbelieve it.
తనతోడిదే యిన్నిఁ దాఁ గలితేఁ గలవు	Everything exists only in His presence; if He is, all this is.

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 Literal Meaning:

The world appears and disappears with consciousness. Certainty about its absolute status is impossible. Therefore, one must turn inward, not outward. The Divine is not outside the world; the world is within the Divine presence.

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Interpretative Notes:

 

కనురెప్ప మూసితేనే కడ దాఁగె జగమెల్ల

Death is presented as nothing more than the shutting of an eyelid —

the total vanishing of the experienced world.

Not the physical world, but the world as it is known to the individual.

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కనుదెరచినంతనే కలిగెఁ దాను

Birth is the resumption of experience —

the world arriving again as perception re-forms.

The world that “comes” and “goes” with the impulses of perception

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Therefore, Annamacharya says

ననిచివుండుట లేదు నమ్మకపోవుట లేదు

cannot be declared absolutely real or unreal.

To determine whether the world truly exists or not,

we need a reliable instrument.

But the only available instrument is the mind —

and the mind is part of the very world it tries to judge.

We cannot find the Self as an object within the world.

But we can find the world as an appearance within the Self.

This inversion is the heart of Annamacharya’s wisdom in this stanza.

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“తనతోడిదే యిన్నిఁ దాఁ గలితేఁ గలవు”

Everything exists only in the presence of the Divine.

A world perceived without the perceiver has no reality.

When understood properly,

God cannot be sought separate from the world,

nor the world separate from God.

This is not theology — this is pure phenomenology.

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Annamacharya indicating the path to liberation is from

inner realisation not an external induced vibration

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Second Stanza: 

కడుపు నిండినంతనే కైపాయ రుచులెల్లా

బెడిదపు టాఁకలైతేఁ బ్రియమాయను

యెడనెడఁ జేఁదు గాదు యింతలోనే తీపు గాదు

వొడలితోడివే యివి వుండినట్టే వుండును ॥తనుఁ॥

kaḍupu niṃḍinaṃtanē kaipāya ruculellā

beḍidapu ṭāṃ̐kalaitēṃ̐ briyamāyanu

yeḍaneḍaṃ̐ jēṃ̐du gādu yiṃtalōnē tīpu gādu

voḍalitōḍivē yivi vuṃḍinaṭṭē vuṃḍunu          ॥tanuṃ̐॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
కడుపు నిండినంతనే కైపాయ రుచులెల్లా	When the stomach is full, even delightful tastes lose their appeal.
బెడిదపు టాఁకలైతేఁ బ్రియమాయను	When fierce hunger strikes, those very tastes become desirable again.
యెడనెడఁ జేఁదు గాదు యింతలోనే తీపు గాదు	In between, nothing is entirely bitter; nothing is entirely sweet.
వొడలితోడివే యివి వుండినట్టే వుండును	these are merely bodily fluctuations; they keep changing.

Literal Meaning: 

(This stanza turns from cosmic-perceptual insight to bodily relativity.) Annamacharya uses hunger and taste to illustrate a deeper principle: The body does not reveal truth. It reveals only conditions. When the stomach is full, the mind interprets flavours one way. When the stomach is empty, it interprets them another way. The same object appears pleasurable, neutral, or unpleasant — depending solely on the body’s state.

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Interpretative Notes: 

“వొడలితోడివే యివి వుండినట్టే వుండును”

These are merely bodily stirrings — nothing more.

They come and go, rise and fall.

To build conclusions on them is to build a house on shifting sand.

This prepares the ground for the next stanza,

which moves from bodily instability to

the instability of the experiential world itself —

leading finally to the insight of the Pallavi:

True marvel arises only when

one is aware of the Self and the Divine at once.

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Third Stanza:

అద్దములోఁ దననీడ అంతటా మెరసినట్లు

పొద్దువొద్దు తనతోనే భోగాలెల్లా

అద్దిన శ్రీవేంకటేశుఁ డంతరాత్మయైనవాఁడు

కొద్ది లేదాతనిమాయ కొనసాగుచుండును॥తనుఁ॥

addamulōṃ̐ dananīḍa aṃtaṭā merasinaṭlu

podduvoddu tanatōnē bhōgālellā

addina śrīvēṃkaṭēśuṃ̐ ḍaṃtarātmayainavāṃ̐ḍu

koddi lēdātanimāya konasāgucuṃḍunu ॥tanuṃ̐॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
అద్దములోఁ దననీడ అంతటా మెరసినట్లు	Like the reflection in mirror. As many mirrors create as many reflections as possible. (still, what you see is unreal reflection)
పొద్దువొద్దు తనతోనే భోగాలెల్లా	(పొద్దువొద్దు = in every birth) Birth after birth you only enjoy what you have created
అద్దిన శ్రీవేంకటేశుఁ డంతరాత్మయైనవాఁడు	(అద్దిన = imagined, the one touching on the surface​) What we feel that Lord Venkateswara (is at surface level). Deep within the heart, true reality exists
కొద్ది లేదాతనిమాయ కొనసాగుచుండును	Do not underestimate the illusion. It exists beyond every conceivable thing.

Literal Meaning:

(In this final stanza, Annamacharya turns invisible. He places us in that position as if he is asking us to see the very edges of the illusion that is confronting us.)

Like a reflection shining in every available mirror, we can witness many truly unreal things in this world.  The imagination that we can get better with next birth is baseless. The situation of man remains same. The Venkatesha we hold is from our conditioned state. Therefore, not the true Inner Being. Do not underestimate it — His māyā continues beyond every conceivable thing.

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Interpretative notes: 

అద్దములోఁ దననీడ అంతటా మెరసినట్లు

Here, Annamacharya reveals a profound psychological truth.

“Like a reflection shining in every mirror…”

If this world is a mirror,

then whatever you see in it is

 nothing but your own mind reflected back to you. 

“Yet only with the intensity that pushes aside 

the interfering, impermanent consciousness can one come upon the Great Marvel.”

To see through the mirror (called world), the seer must dissolve.

That is the difficulty.

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పొద్దువొద్దు తనతోనే భోగాలెల్లా

“Birth after birth, you enjoy only what you yourself have created.”

The situation remains the same —

whether in this birth or some imagined ‘better next birth.

Every time, we encounter the same situation.

We are never aware of the past births.

The fact remains.

So long as the mind keeps projecting, the world keeps repeating.

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అద్దిన శ్రీవేంకటేశుఁ డంతరాత్మయైనవాఁడు

“The Venkatesha we hold is from our conditioned state

 Therefore, not the true Inner Being.”

This is the turning point of the stanza.

Annamacharya distinguishes between two “Venkatesas”:

The imagined deity —

the god held by the unstable mind,

shaped by concepts,

hopes, fears, rituals, and images.

 

The true inner presence —

untouched by imagination and all that we can recognise.

To reach that inner presence,

we must drop what is known — the imagined deity

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కొద్ది లేదాతనిమాయ కొనసాగుచుండును

“Do not underestimate it — His māyā continues beyond everything.”

This is not a warning; it is a revelation.

Māyā is not only the illusions we see.

Māyā is the very habit of looking outward

and trusting the mind shaped by the outer world.

 

And here is the razor:

When the mind whispers,

“You cannot cross māyā

even that voice is part of māyā.

When we realise this

Stop engaging with the mind

(conditioned by the outside world)

That’s all.

 

When this is seen clearly,

stop engaging with the conditioned responses

then movement of the mind loses its authority.

That alone is enough.

Then we come face to face with the truth.

That is the great marvel Annamacharya was speaking.

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Central Message of this poem: 

A weak, unreliable consciousness blocks the Great Marvel.
Seeing the weakness of that instrument is what frees us from illusion.

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