295 ā mīṃ̐di nijasukha marayalēmu (ఆ మీఁది నిజసుఖ మరయలేము)

 TALLAPAKA ANNAMACHARYULU

295 ఆ మీఁది నిజసుఖ మరయలేము

(ā mīṃ̐di nijasukha marayalēmu)

తెలుగులో చదవడానికి ఇక్కడ నొక్కండి.

INTRODUCTION

Annamacharya does not preach.

He has no doctrine.

He simply places a mirror in front of us

to know what we really are.

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అధ్యాత్మ​ కీర్తన	Philosophical Poem
రేకు: 107-1 సంపుటము: 2-37	Copper Plate: 107-1 Vol: 2-37
ఆ మీఁది నిజసుఖ మరయలేము పామరపు చాయలకే భ్రమసితిమయ్యా ॥పల్లవి॥ మనసునఁ బాలు దాగి మదియించి వున్నట్టు ననిచి గిలిగింతకు నవ్వినయట్టు యెనసి సంసారసుఖ మిది నిజము సేసుక తనివొంది యిందులోనే తడఁబడేమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥ బొమ్మలాట నిజమంటాఁ బూఁచి చూచి మెచ్చినట్టు తెమ్మగా శివమాడి తా దేవరైనట్టు కిమ్ముల యీజన్మనందు కిందుమీఁదు నేఱక పమ్మి భోగములనే తెప్పలఁ దేలేమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥ బాలులు యిసుకగుళ్లు పఁస గట్టు కాడినట్టు వీలి వెఱ్ఱివాఁడు గంతువేసినయట్టు మేలిమి శ్రీవేంకటేశ మిమ్ముఁ గొలువక నేము కాల మూరకే యిన్నాళ్ళు గడపితిమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥	ā mīṃ̐di nijasukha marayalēmu pāmarapu cāyalakē bhramasitimayyā            ॥pallavi॥ manasunaṃ̐ bālu dāgi madiyiṃci vunnaṭṭu nanici giligiṃtaku navvinayaṭṭu yenasi saṃsārasukha midi nijamu sēsuka tanivoṃdi yiṃdulōnē taḍaṃ̐baḍēmayyā          ॥āmīṃ̐॥ bommalāṭa nijamaṃṭāṃ̐ būṃ̐ci cūci meccinaṭṭu temmagā śivamāḍi tā dēvarainaṭṭu kimmula yījanmanaṃdu kiṃdumīṃ̐du nē\raka pammi bhōgamulanē teppalaṃ̐ dēlēmayyā    ॥āmīṃ̐॥ bālulu yisukaguḻlu paṃ̐sa gaṭṭu kāḍinaṭṭu vīli ve\r\rivāṃ̐ḍu gaṃtuvēsinayaṭṭu mēlimi śrīvēṃkaṭēśa mimmuṃ̐ goluvaka nēmu kāla mūrakē yinnāḻḻu gaḍapitimayyā ॥āmīṃ̐॥

Details and Discussions:

Chorus (Pallavi):

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ఆ మీఁది నిజసుఖ మరయలేము

పామరపు చాయలకే భ్రమసితిమయ్యా ॥పల్లవి॥

ā mīṃ̐di nijasukha marayalēmu

pāmarapu cāyalakē bhramasitimayyā          ॥pallavi॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
ఆ మీఁది నిజసుఖ మరయలేము	(అరయలేము = Can’t perceive, Can’t understand, Can’t enquire into)  We cannot inquire into, perceive, or understand the true happiness that exists beyond this state
పామరపు చాయలకే భ్రమసితిమయ్యా ॥పల్లవి॥	(పామరపు = ignorant) Due to ignorance and lack of discernment, we were deluded by shadows and accepted them as reality.

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Literal Meaning:

The happiness that lies beyond liberation

cannot be grasped by the ordinary human mind.

Yet, instead of recognizing this limitation,

we foolishly cling to appearances,

mistaking shadows for truth.

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 Interpretative Notes: 

ఆ మీఁది — beyond

Here, “beyond” refers to the state after release,

where our worldly perception no longer holds.

ఆ మీఁది నిజసుఖ మరయలేము

In that state, one cannot say

whether there is pleasure or pain

in terms familiar to the human mind.

That realm is not an extension of worldly happiness.

It does not fit our ideas, expectations,

or emotional comfort.

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A Supporting Pallavi by Annamacharya

అదిగాక నిజమతం బదిగాక యాజకం-

బదిగాక హృదయసుఖ మదిగాక పరము ॥పల్లవి॥

The supreme state (param)

does not depend on our opinions,

does not arise from rituals or sacrifices,

does not rely on human effort,

and may not even offer emotional consolation.

This clearly shows:

'Param' the beyond is not aligned with human preferences.

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 పామరపు చాయలకే భ్రమసితిమయ్యా

Human beings often confuse:

a rope for a snake,

a shadow for substance,

mental comfort for truth.

This is exactly what Annamacharya calls

“పామరపు చాయలు” — ignorant shadows.

Let us understand this further by exploring

A surreal Painting by Salvador Dali

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The Knight at the Tower — Description

In this painting,

we see an armoured knight holding a large staff.

He is turned away from us,

appearing to assure people on the other side.

A tall tower stands beside him.

Its shadow falls across the scene.

Beyond that shadow, a village can be seen.

Near the shadow stands two tiny persons,

gazing at the knight with awe,

as though seeking protection.

An important detail:

the shadow of the tower

and the shadow of the persons

fall in opposite directions.

This means —

one of them is unreal.

The knight is deliberately shown

larger than human proportion,

creating the impression

that he is a powerful protector.

A bright, halo-like light around his head

adds to this illusion of extraordinary power.

The painting creates just enough conditions

for those person to feel safe —

even though that safety is imaginary.

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Interpretation of Dalí’s Painting

The armoured knight represents

an imagined protector created by the mind.

The tower symbolizes

stored memories, beliefs, and experiences.

The shadow acts like a false mirror.

The small human figures represent real people

seeking reassurance and protection.

They look toward the towering knight,

believing he alone can save them.

Dalí is exposing the illusion:

the protector is exaggerated, idealized,

and ultimately unreal.

The sense of having a protector does not come from the knight.

It is produced by surrounding circumstances

and by assumptions the mind quietly carries.

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Final Insight

Just like the figures in the painting,

we place our trust in imagined strengths,

projecting power onto concepts that do not truly exist.

The shadow feels reassuring,

but it is not real.

Annamacharya’s warning is simple and sharp:

We miss the truth not because it is hidden,

but because we settle for shadows.

That settling —

that satisfaction with illusion —

is our real bondage.

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First Stanza:

మనసునఁ బాలు దాగి మదియించి వున్నట్టు

ననిచి గిలిగింతకు నవ్వినయట్టు

యెనసి సంసారసుఖ మిది నిజము సేసుక

తనివొంది యిందులోనే తడఁబడేమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥

manasunaṃ̐ bālu dāgi madiyiṃci vunnaṭṭu

nanici giligiṃtaku navvinayaṭṭu

yenasi saṃsārasukha midi nijamu sēsuka

tanivoṃdi yiṃdulōnē taḍaṃ̐baḍēmayyā          ॥āmīṃ̐॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
మనసునఁ బాలు దాగి మదియించి వున్నట్టు	As though one feels proud imagining he has drunk milk, when in fact he has not
ననిచి గిలిగింతకు నవ్వినయట్టు	As though one laughs heartily, merely assuming that he has been tickled
యెనసి సంసారసుఖ మిది నిజము సేసుక	Likewise, people indulge in worldly pleasures and equate them with ultimate truth
తనివొంది యిందులోనే తడఁబడేమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥	Satisfied with these pleasures alone, we get stuck and stumble within our own delusions

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Literal Meaning:

O Lord,

we foolishly derive pleasure from imagined sensations.

We feel proud over what we have not attained

and laugh at what we merely assume.

Mistaking worldly pleasures for truth,

we become content with what is readily available,

look no further,

and remain trapped in our own self-created illusions.

(Please note how Annamacharya is able to articulate

such an erratic mind in details

and without reducing the intensity of his poetry)

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Interpretative Notes: 

తనివొంది యిందులోనే తడఁబడేమయ్యా

(Foolish Nature)

Here, Annamacharya deliberately strings together

apparently illogical and shallow arguments

to expose the true nature of the human mind.

This is a mind that does not stand on facts,

but on stubborn, self-justifying reasoning —

a quarrelsome logic that defends itself

even when it cannot see clearly.

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It is the foolishness captured in the saying:

“For the rabbit one caught has only three legs”

Once a conclusion is fixed,

everything else is forced to fit it.

This is not clarity;

it is inability to see,

disguised as confidence —

a false seriousness that protects ignorance.

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The inner world of such a person

resembles René Magritte’s painting

“The Listening Room.”

In that painting,

an apple fills the entire room.

The apple is not unusually large,

nor is the room unusually small —

that is simply the reality presented.

But the problem is this:

there is no space left

to acknowledge anything else.

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The painting becomes a powerful image

of a rigid mind —

one that believes

what it already knows is the truth,

what it has experienced is the whole world,

and therefore refuses to allow

any other way of seeing.

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Such a mind is busy

justifying its own assumptions,

finding comfort in its conclusions,

and remaining satisfied within them.

And so, as Annamacharya points out,

we do not move forward —

we stumble,

trapped within our own constructions.

This, he suggests,

is the real condition of the human being.

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Second Stanza:

బొమ్మలాట నిజమంటాఁ బూఁచి చూచి మెచ్చినట్టు

తెమ్మగా శివమాడి తా దేవరైనట్టు

కిమ్ముల యీజన్మనందు కిందుమీఁదు నేఱక

పమ్మి భోగములనే తెప్పలఁ దేలేమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥

bommalāṭa nijamaṃṭāṃ̐ būṃ̐ci cūci meccinaṭṭu

temmagā śivamāḍi tā dēvarainaṭṭu

kimmula yījanmanaṃdu kiṃdumīṃ̐du nē\raka

pammi bhōgamulanē teppalaṃ̐ dēlēmayyā   ॥āmīṃ̐॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
బొమ్మలాట నిజమంటాఁ బూఁచి చూచి మెచ్చినట్టు	As though a mere puppet-play were real, and we perform our roles with seriousness and pride
తెమ్మగా శివమాడి తా దేవరైనట్టు	As though by performing (शिवतांडवम्) శివతాండవం in drenching water, one may feel he became God
కిమ్ముల యీజన్మనందు కిందుమీఁదు నేఱక	We act as if seeking pleasure in this very life, without acknowledging ones true status.
పమ్మి భోగములనే తెప్పలఁ దేలేమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥	O Lord, we indulge excessively in pleasures by floating on rafts of security

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Literal Meaning:

(In this stanza, Annamacharya is diving deep.

Some of the ideas are difficult to digest).

O Lord,

we take a puppet-show to be real

and perform our assigned roles with undue seriousness.

We are like the one

who enacts a divine dance

and imagine himself to be God.

We act as if seeking pleasure in this very life

Without winking for a moment on our own internal status.

 We construct exaggerated platforms of enjoyment

and spend our lives floating upon the rafts of security..

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Interpretative Notes: 

బొమ్మలాట నిజమంటాఁ బూఁచి చూచి మెచ్చినట్టు

తెమ్మగా శివమాడి తా దేవరైనట్టు

We people truly do not understand this life and our role in it.

Though we speak of निमित्तमात्र nimittamatra

(= a signpost, an instrument in Divine hands)

to live it is to understand the

relationships such as parent, child, spouse, companion

in that respect.

However, often, we are like that proverbial person

who performs as Siva in

శివతాండవం(शिवतांडवम्) 

and excels in that

feels he became Lord Siva.

In the same way, we are merely acting those roles.

When we assume some roles with grave seriousness leads

to the strife we witness in our lives.

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కిందుమీఁదు నేఱక

Without observing

our own deeper inner worlds

(the true states of awareness),

we continue to act foolish

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పమ్మి భోగములనే తెప్పలఁ దేలేమయ్యా

Driven by fear,

we build protective rafts—

and choose to drift safely upon them.

We are like fish who don’t want to swim

the very water that gives us life.

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Let us understand this thru an imaginative painting

by Rene Magritte, titled “Selective Affinities” given below.

The egg shown there enters this world.

after due natural protection.

The additional protection that we impose upon it

is unnecessary — and even dangerous.

That excess protection is unnatural.

It marks our first artificial step.

Everything that follows

is merely the shadow of that diverted path.

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If we observe carefully,

every step we take is only an extension

of the step taken before.

Life’s true challenge

to know that very step we made the wrong move.

That demands go to the very root of the issue.

That is true seeing.

One may ask,

“Then how are we to live?”

Knowing how to live —

that itself is living.

All else is deviation:

like the egg in the painting,

floating endlessly on artificial rafts,

mistaking safety for life.

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Third Stanza:

బాలులు యిసుకగుళ్లు పఁస గట్టు కాడినట్టు

వీలి వెఱ్ఱివాఁడు గంతువేసినయట్టు

మేలిమి శ్రీవేంకటేశ మిమ్ముఁ గొలువక నేము

కాల మూరకే యిన్నాళ్ళు గడపితిమయ్యా ॥ఆమీఁ॥

bālulu yisukaguḻlu paṃ̐sa gaṭṭu kāḍinaṭṭu

vīli ve\r\rivāṃ̐ḍu gaṃtuvēsinayaṭṭu

mēlimi śrīvēṃkaṭēśa mimmuṃ̐ goluvaka nēmu

kāla mūrakē yinnāḻḻu gaḍapitimayyā          ॥āmīṃ̐॥

Telugu Phrase	Meaning
బాలులు యిసుకగుళ్లు పఁస గట్టు కాడినట్టు	Like children skillfully building and playing with sand mounds,
వీలి వెఱ్ఱివాఁడు గంతువేసినయట్టు	our actions resemble the meaningless leaps of a foolish man, unaware of what he is doing.
మేలిమి శ్రీవేంకటేశ మిమ్ముఁ గొలువక నేము	Without seeking You, O auspicious Srivenkatesa,
కాల మూరకే యిన్నాళ్ళు గడపితిమయ్యా	we have spent all these years merely wasting time.

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Literal Meaning:

(Here Annamacharya is exposing misdirected seriousness)

O Lord,

like children who carefully build sand structures and delight in them,

Our actions appear active and skilful—

yet they are no different from the aimless jumping of a fool.

Without turning to You, O pure and benevolent Venkatesha,

we have passed all these years

doing nothing but squandering time.

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Interpretative Notes:

బాలులు యిసుకగుళ్లు పఁస గట్టు కాడినట్టు

Children build sand mounds with great care—

but the child knows it is play.

The tragedy is not playfulness,

but living play as purpose.

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వీలి వెఱ్ఱివాఁడు గంతువేసినయట్టు

Human life, when the “essential task” is forgotten,

becomes outwardly busy

yet inwardly empty—

no different from the random leaps of foolish man

who does not know why he moves.

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కాల మూరకే యిన్నాళ్ళు గడపితిమయ్యా

Annamacharya says quietly, without accusation:

We came here for something essential.

Forgetting that

we mistook activity for meaning

and spent years merely consuming time.

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Take away from this poem

The problem is not ignorance alone.

The problem is intelligent interference with life’s natural unfolding.

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