OOTHUKAADU SRI KAALEEYA NARDHANA SWAMI

RAAGAM: CHENJURUTTI                                 TAALAM: AADHI

Pullaai piravi tharavaenum kannaa                                                                
Punidhamaana pala koti piravi thandhaalum brundaavanamadhiloru  || Pullaai piravi ||

Charanam

Oru kanam un padham padum enthan maelaey                                                           
Maru kanam naan uyarvaen menmaelaey un                                                    
Thirumaeni en maelaey amarnthidum oru kaalaey                                   
Thirumagalaena malaradi peyarnthu unaith thodarntha raadhaikku idam tharuvaenaey

Smitha smitha sundhara mukaaravindha Naacho nandhalaala
Meeraa maae ko pyaaraa Nandhalaala prabhu Nandhalaala                               

SRI KAALEEYA NARDHANA SWAAMI KI !! JAI!!!

Sri venkatakavi was born in the early years of the 18th century, at MANNARGUDI (TAMIL NADU - INDIA) also known as 'Dakshina Dwaraka' a well known pilgrimage center famous for the krishna shrine.  His father was Ramachandra Vathoolar and mother Kamala Narayani ammal.  Owing to the premature demise of both parents, the orphaned young boy was brought up by his step mother in her native village of OOTHUKKADU also known as 'Dakshina Gokulam' on the bank of Vattar in Tanjavur District.  Venkatakavi lived most of his life time in Oothukkadu.

Oothukkadu village:

Oothukkadu village is very ancient village as there are references to it in puranic thimes as also in Tamil Sangam literature.  When Kamadhenu the celestial cow had a souourn at the adjacent temple village called AAVOOR, its claves Nandini and Patti used to graze in the fields of Oothukkadu and Sage Narada was a regular visitor.  This village was also known as Dhenuswaasapuram since these celestial claves heaved a sigh of relief here after being protected by Lord Krishna.  The moolavar in this village temple is Vedanarayana Perumal.  The Swayamby (Self-created) moorthi of Lord Kalinga Narthanar which was found in the temple tank called "kalingan madu", has been installed in the temple here.  Sage Narada is said to have first Consecrated this moorthi here.  Subsequently, in the Sangham period, this village was known as Kovoor.   Nalakanda Chozhan built a greater part of this temple in its present form.  A tablet of this chozhan along with his two wives, is fixed in the rampart wall of the temple.  A later king Azhahaadri Naick completed this temple.

The young Venkatasubbu was keen on learning music but he was unable to find a proper guru, his earlier preceptor had told this disciple that there was nothing more he could teach and asked the disiple to seek a better guru.  His elder brogher a talented musician had left the family and settled elsewhere.  Then he approched his maternal uncle who was a great musican and at the same time a yogi.  But the yogi refused to teach him for the simple reason the boy was his relative.

One cannot say whether it was purely accidental or a Divine call that young Venkatasubbu had moved from "Dhakshina Dwaraka" to Dhakshina Gokulam".   From his childhood, he was an ardent devotee of Lord Krishna and as he grew this devotion also increased.  Seeing the boy heart-broken and trustrated, his mother advised him to go to Krishna's temple and seek Divine help.  The young boy took his mother's advice earnestly.  He used to visit the temple, prostrate before Krishna.   Pray and make repeated entreaties to show him the path for mastering music.   Suddenly one day he heard the sounds of anklets and a divine mental direction to him to go to the north east corner of the temple by the side of the thulasi plant in the temple precincts where his prayer would be answered.  With implicit faith and obdeience, the boy used to sit by the side ot thulasi plant daily and seek divine direction.  There his prayer was fulfilled.  He received divine inspiration and practised music for hours.  He had also a divine hint that his maturity as a musician and composer would be indicated by a darshan of Lord himself.  This practice continued for more that 16 years.  All these incidents were noted and reported by the temple priest.

As years rolled by, his Bhakthi and concentration become more and more intense.   He used to close his eyes and totally unmindful of the surroundings, make it a penance with his musical "sadhaka" for hours.  It so happened that one day when he was totally absorbed in his musical prayer he feld a chid sitting on his lap.   He was used to similar disturbance in the temple premises and never allowed his concatration to suffer on account of these. On this occation also without opening his eyes he brushed aside the child and continued his musical offering to Lord.  Again and again, he had same experience and finally, he brushed aside the child forcefully.  He was however surprised to hear the noise of anklets and on opening his eyes, saw child krishna in all his resplendent formup from his lap and going out.  He ran after the child who disappeared in a short while.  It was also reported by the temple priest that though he could not get darshan of the Lord, he too heard the sound of anklets.

Venkatakavi had this Dharsan of Krishna in the month of "libra".   Immediately after the Dharshan he had composed three songs which are now famous.   After this occasion when the Lord Krishna sat on his laps, Venkatakavi discontinued the practice of beating Tala on his laps.  From this occasion onwards, the saing started composing songs in mellifluous Tamil and majestic Sanskrit.  The varieys exhibited in his songs is quite vast.  

Venkatakavi's patorn-diety (ishta - Devata) is Lord krishna more so in his dancing form (Kalinga Narthana) and so naturally most of his songs are in praise of this diety just as Saint Thiagaraja had composed most of his song on Lord Rama.  Anyway, between these two great saint composers, the two most important Avathars of god Vishnu have been misically covered.  Venkatakavi's compositions are mostly in Tamil.  Along with "Arunachala Kavirayar" he can be said to have laid the foundation for Tamil isai in Carnatic music.  Having been inspried by a dancing diety, no wonder many of his songs have a number of Sollukkattus, dancing jathis.  When Venkatakavi sang his Kalinga-narthana Thillana in the temple, the icon of Krishna reported to have shaken in token of Divine appreciation.

Venkatakavi had visited a number of places of pilgrimage in Tamil nadu including Chennai (Tiruvellikkeni).  He had composed a few songs on all the important Dieties of the Hindu Pantheon Viz., Ganesa, Muruga, Siva, Rama, Hanuman and Elevan Navavarna keerthanas on Divine mother Kamakshi.  As the post was an ardent worshipper of dancing diety, it is but natural that many of his songs culd form part of dance programmes.  He had also composed Thillanas.  Javalis and Padams, besides fome folk-songs and domestic tunes.

It will be a surprise to many to learn that the ever-green, ever-popular, domestic, marriage delody "Gowri-Kalyana-Vaibhohame" was authored by Venkatakavi.   Venkatakavi has also sung in praise of Nayanmars.

Venkatakavi lived and died as a bachelor.  He did not compose or sing for any material gain or worldly possessions.  He dedicated his entire life to Krishna, singing his glory.  He did not have any organised heirarchy of disciples to carry on his torch.  His manuscripts were left with his brother kattu Krishna Iyer's family.   In this family, there were three daughters and there was no musician of repute to propogate them.  It was ony after six generations, one of the descendents of Kattu Krishna Iyer's daughter, Sri Needaamangalam Krishnamurthy Bhagavathar was able to fish out some of these manuscripts, Sri Bhagavathar had more then a few thousand of the composer's songs.  He was propogating them through his musical discourses for which he had an excellent voice.  He had done yeoman seryice.  The entire of unearthing these treasures and presenting them to the world, goes to Sri Needaamangalam Krishnamoorthy Bhagavathar.  After the demise of Bhagavathar, this public service is being carried on by his wife and other family members.  There is still lot of work to be done and these family members deserve all help from the public.

                                             COURTESY: OOTHUKKADU VENKATAKAVI TRUST

                                                             No.4 MATHALA NARAYANAN ST., MYLAPORE

                                                            CHENNAI - 600 004 (INDIA)