- Lyricist
- Kannadasan
- Singer
- K. B. Sundarambal
- Music director
- Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan
- Movie name
- Karaikkal Ammaiyar
- Movie release year
- 1973
- Lyrics added on
- 31 May 2020
Lyrics & meaning
♫ Tanglish lyrics
↻ English translation
Odungaal odi ullam urugi isai paadungaal
Paada vandhaen param porulae
Odungaal odi ullam urughi isai paadungaal
Paada vandhaen param porulae
Aadungaal eduthu nadamiduvaai iraivaa
Un thamizhamudhai paditha naan paadum padi…ee..
Un thamizhamudhai paditha naan paadum padi…ee..
Thagathagathaga thagavena aadavaa
Sivasakthi sakthi sakthiyodu aadavaa
Thagathagathaga thagavena aadavaa
Sivasakthi sakthi sakthiyodu aadavaa
Aala gaalanae aalangaattinil
Aadidum naayaganae
Neelagandanae vaedha naayagaa
Needhiyin kaavalanae
Aala gaalanae aalangaattinil
Aadidum naayaganae
Neelagandanae vaedha naayagaa
Needhiyin kaavalanae
Thaala vagaigalodu maela thundhubigal
Muzhanghida or ganamae
Kaalai thookkiyae aanandha thaandavam
Aaduga mannavanae
Thaala vagaigalodu maela thundhubigal
Muzhanghida or ganamae
Kaalai thookkiyae aanandha thaandavam
Aaduga mannavanae
Muthukkodi sakthi kulamagal viththukkoru
Vellam thunaiyena
Bakthi kodi padarum nenjinil vilaiyaada
Thiththippadhu iraivan seyalena pathu tharum
Paraman thunaiyena
Suththakkoru manidhan kulamoru isai paada
Kattru tharum oru vagai arivinil
Muttrum therivadhu pol manidhargal
Vettru pugazh peruvaar avargalum uravaada
Thikku pala dhimidhimidhimiyena
Thakka thunai thagathagathagavena
Thakka kadal alaiyena nadamidu ulagaala
Immaikkum ezhaezhu piravikkum pattraagi
Ezhilodu emaiyaala vaa
Iyal isai naadagam muththamizh thannilae
Iyangiyae ulagaala vaa
Ammaikkum naayagaa appanae aiyanae
Arasanae nadamaada vaa
Aadugira kaal azhagil kaadu podiyaaga vena
Ammaiyudan neeyaada vaa
Sirippukkul neruppondru varacheidha nee
Neruppukkul neer ondru tharacheidha nee
Sirippukkul neruppondru varacheidha nee
Neruppukkul neer ondru tharacheidha nee
Karuppaikkul iruppkkum uyir thandha nee
Kalippukkul ulagangal nadamaada vaa
Karuppaikkul iruppukkum uyir thandha nee
Kalippukkul ulagangal nadamaada vaa
Ulagathu nidhiyae samayaththu porulae
Idhayaththu arivae irulukkul oliyae
Ulagathu nidhiyae samayaththu porulae
Idhayaththu arivae irulukkul oliyae
Aadavaa nadamaadavaa
Vilaiyaadavaa ulagaadavaa
Aadavaa nadamaadavaa
Vilaiyaadavaa ulagaadavaa
Naadha geedha bodha vaedha
Bhaava raaga thaalamodu
Naadha geedha bodha vaedha
Bhaava raaga thaalamodu
Adiyavar thirumudi vanangida
Kodi uyarndhida padai nadungida
Adiyavar thirumudi vanangida
Kodi uyarndhida padai nadungida
Thagathagathaga thagavena aadavaa
Sivasakthi sakthi sakthiyodu aadavaa
Thagathagathaga thagavena aadavaa
Sivasakthi sakthi sakthiyodu aadavaa
Thagathagathaga thagavena aadavaa
Sivasakthi sakthi sakthiyodu aadavaa
Om nama shivaaya…(3)
Running till my feet grew weary, my heart melting into music,
I have come to sing when it is time to sing, O Supreme Being!
Running till my feet grew weary, my heart melting into music,
I have come to sing when it is time to sing, O Supreme Being!
Lift your dancing foot and begin your dance, O Lord,
So that I, who learned the sweet nectar of your Tamil, may sing...
So that I, who learned the sweet nectar of your Tamil, may sing...
Come dance, glowing with fiery splendour, thaka-thaga thaka-thaga!
O Shiva, come dance alongside Shakti!
Come dance, glowing with fiery splendour, thaka-thaga thaka-thaga!
O Shiva, come dance alongside Shakti!
O Lord who swallowed deadly poison, in the forest of Thiruvalangadu,
O Master who dances there,
O blue-throated Lord, master of the Vedas,
O guardian of justice!
O Lord who swallowed deadly poison, in the forest of Thiruvalangadu,
O Master who dances there,
O blue-throated Lord, master of the Vedas,
O guardian of justice!
With diverse rhythms and kettle-drums resounding,
Echoing together in a single moment,
Lift your foot in the blissful cosmic dance,
Dance, O King!
With diverse rhythms and kettle-drums resounding,
Echoing together in a single moment,
Lift your foot in the blissful cosmic dance,
Dance, O King!
Like a pearl vine, Shakti the noble daughter, like a flood
That nourishes a sprouting seed,
To play within the heart where devotion climbs like a vine,
Knowing that all sweetness is God's work, and holding fast
With the Supreme Lord as our shelter,
While humankind sings songs together with kin,
With the little knowledge they acquire,
People act as if they know everything,
Chasing hollow fame—yet to embrace even them,
As all directions rumble 'thimi-thimi-thimi',
With your divine companion glowing 'thaka-thaka-thaka-thaka',
Dance like rolling ocean waves so that the world may dance!
Being our anchor in this life and through all seven births,
Come in your beauty to rule over us!
Flowing through the three branches of Tamil—poetry, music, and drama—
Come and reign over the world!
O Lord of the Mother, O Father, O revered Master,
O King, come and dance!
So that the wild forest turns to dust beneath your dancing feet,
Come dance together with the Mother!
You who brought forth fire with just a smile,
You who brought forth water from within fire,
You who brought forth fire with just a smile,
You who brought forth water from within fire,
You who gave breath and life to the child inside the womb,
Come, so all the worlds may dance in joy...
You who gave breath and life to the child inside the womb,
Come, so all the worlds may dance in joy...
O justice of the universe, true essence of faith,
O wisdom of the heart, light in the dark!
O justice of the universe, true essence of faith,
O wisdom of the heart, light in the dark!
Come dance, come step to the rhythm!
Come play your cosmic game, so the world may dance!
Come dance, come step to the rhythm!
Come play your cosmic game, so the world may dance!
With sacred sound, melody, wisdom, and Vedic verse,
With lyric, tune, and steady rhythm,
With sacred sound, melody, wisdom, and Vedic verse,
With lyric, tune, and steady rhythm,
As your devotees bow their heads in reverence,
As your banner rises high and evil armies tremble,
As your devotees bow their heads in reverence,
As your banner rises high and evil armies tremble,
Come dance, glowing with fiery splendour, thaka-thaga thaka-thaga!
O Shiva, come dance alongside Shakti!
Come dance, glowing with fiery splendour, thaka-thaga thaka-thaga!
O Shiva, come dance alongside Shakti!
Come dance, glowing with fiery splendour, thaka-thaga thaka-thaga!
O Shiva, come dance alongside Shakti!
Om Namah Shivaya... Om Namah Shivaya... Om Namah Shivaya...
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Chorus
Beyond the translation
Overall song meaning
This song is a sublime devotional hymn from the 1973 Tamil biographical movie 'Karaikkal Ammaiyar'. It portrays the deep spiritual fervor and ecstatic devotion of Karaikkal Ammaiyar towards Lord Shiva, invoking Him as the cosmic dancer who performs the Ananda Tandava in Thiruvalangadu. The lyrics praise Shiva's divine attributes—his drinking of the poison (Alahala), his blue neck (Neelakantha), his cosmic play (Lila), and his role as the ultimate light in darkness and the giver of life.
Writing craft
Poetic devices
Anaphora / Rhyme (Monnai & Ethukai)
“Aala gaalanae aalangaattinil / Neelagandanae vaedha naayagaa”
Repetition of rhythmically matching syllables across line beginnings and internal rhyme, typical of Tamil devotional prosody.
Onomatopoeia (Oli-kkurippu)
“Thagathagathaga thagavena aadavaa”
Use of rhythmic solkattu words like 'Thagathagathaga' and 'dhimidhimidhimi' to emulate the sound of Lord Shiva's divine dance feet and drums.
Paradox / Antithesis
“Sirippukkul neruppondru varacheidha nee / Neruppukkul neer ondru tharacheidha nee”
Juxtaposition of opposing cosmic elements (fire within a smile, water within fire) to emphasize Shiva's omnipotence.
Metaphor
“Bakthi kodi padarum nenjinil vilaiyaada”
Describing devotion as a climbing vine ('Bakthi kodi') spreading across the heart.
Did you know?
Trivia
The film 'Karaikkal Ammaiyar' (1973) depicts the life of one of the 63 Nayanmars (prominent Shaivite saints). Karaikkal Ammaiyar is revered as one of the earliest poets of Tamil devotional literature who asked Lord Shiva for a skeletal form to abandon her physical beauty and forever witness Shiva's divine dance at Thiruvalangadu. The film featured music composed by Kunnakudi Vaidyanathan and legendary renditions by K. B. Sundarambal.
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