jananāt kamalālayē, darśanāt aprasadasi,

smaraṇād aruṇācalam, kāśi tu maraṇān muktiḥ

Born in Tiru̱vārūr in 1775, Dīkṣita came from family steeped in learning, culture, and music. His father – Rāmasvāmi Dīkṣita – is often credited with inventing the rāga Hamsadhvani. As a child, Muttusvāmi quickly mastered the kāvya-s, vyākaraṇa-s and alaṅkāra-s. The milieu of Dīkṣita’s time in South India was marked by culture, arts, bhakti and spirituality, and the deep impact that these had on the maestro, is evident in his oeuvre.

Śrī Muttusvāmi Dīkṣita's compositions are celebrated for their lyrical richness and his exceptional command of the Sanskrit language as much as for the bhakti bhāva they evoke. He masterfully employed the literary and figurative elegance that this ancient language affords, across several of his Kṛti-s, which are replete with poetic and artistic elements. He was also a devoted traveller and pilgrim, often visiting sacred sites – he in fact visited Kāśi as a young child, under the sole guidance of Cidambaranātha Yōgi. And at nearly every holy shrine he visited, he composed kṛti-s in praise of the presiding deity. Tiru̱vārūr, being the focal point of his musical and spiritual activity, inspired numerous compositions dedicated to its principal deity, Lord Tyāgarāja (Śiva), and his consort, Goddess Kamalāmbā.

One of Dīkṣita's signature techniques was his seamless integration of the rāga name into the text of the composition. Remarkably, he achieved this without compromising the lyrical beauty of the sāhitya, often employing slēśa (pun or double entendre) with great finesse. He also used creative word splits and combinations to subtly embed the rāga name within the composition. His kṛti-s are thus as much admired for their poetic elegance in Sanskrit as they are for their profound musicality.

Dīkṣita’s kṛti-s also frequently reference the architecture and layout of these temples, incorporating local legends and temple lore. Many of them paint vivid pictures of the shrine, the idol, and the mythological significance of the site. Some even mention details such as the sthala vṛkṣa (sacred temple tree), the temple tank, special offerings, festivals, and sometimes, the unique rituals associated with the deity's worship. Through his music, Dīkṣita not only immortalized the divinity of these shrines but also documented their cultural and spiritual heritage with poetic grace.

Dīkṣita was fond of composing groups of songs on the same unifying theme, at the same time embedding devotion (bhakti) and declination (vibhakti, the various cases of declination of nouns). A striking example is the batch of eight kṛti-s that he composed in praise of Lord Subraḥmaṇya of Tiru̱ttani and contains the noun, Guruguha, in its various forms.

Specific to Tiru̱vārūr, there are several notable groups of kṛti-s.

Interweaving bhakti and vibhakti

First is a group of kṛti-s that follow the above-mentioned scheme of bhakti and vibhakti, this time in praise of, Lord Tyāgarāja, the presiding deity of the temple, who also serves as the noun being declined in eight cases! The kṛti-s here are: tyāgarājō virājatē (aṭhāṇā, rūpaka), tyāgarājam bhajarē (yadukula kāmbhōji, miśra cāpu), tyāgarājēna samrakṣitōham (sālakabhairavī, ādi), tyāgarājāya namastē (bēgaḍa, rūpaka), tyāgarāja dhanyam (darbār, ādi), śrī tyāgarājasya bhaktō (rudrapriyā, miśra cāpu), tyāgarājē kṛtya kṛtyam (sāraṅgā, jhampa), vīravasanta tyāgarāja (vīravasantam, ādi). There are also other – and equally famous – kṛti-s which he composed on Lord Tyāgarāja here. These include tyāgarāja pālayāśumām and tyāgēśam bhajarē.

Gauḷānta Kṛti-s on Nīlōtpalāmbā

The Gauḷānta kṛti-s are a set of eight kṛti-s set on Goddess Nīlōtpalāmbā of the temple. All eight kṛti-s are rendered in rāga-s whose names end with “gauḷa”. nīlōtpalāmbā jayati (nārāyaṇagauḷa), nīlōtpalāmbām bhajarē (nārī rītigauḷa), nīlōtpalāmbikayā (kannaḍagauḷa), nīlōtpalāmbikāyai (kēdāragauḷa), nīlōtpalāmbikāyāḥ param (gauḷa), nīlōtpalāmbikayāstava (mālavagauḷa), nīlōtpalāmbikāyām (pūrvagauḷa), and nīlōtpalāmbikē (chāyāgauḷa).

Kamalāmbā Navāvaraṇa kṛti-s

Next come the Kamalāmbā Navāvaraṇa kṛti-s in praise of Goddess Kamalāmbā here (remember, Kamalālayam is also the name of the temple Tīrtha here!). This group of kṛti-s starts with an invocation to Lord Gaṇēśa (śrī mahā gaṇapatiravatumām), which is followed by a composition for Murugan (bālasubraḥmaṇyam bhajēham). The group of kṛti-s on Kamalāmbā follows, which are: kamalāmbikē (dhyāna kṛti: tōḍi, rūpaka), kamalāmbā samrakṣatu mām (ānanda bhairavī, tisra jāti tripuṭa), kamalāmbām bhajarē (kalyāṇī, ādi), kamalāmbikayā (śaṅkarābharaṇam, rūpaka), kamalāmbikāyai (kāmbhōji, aṭa), śrī kamalāmbikāyāḥ param (bhairavī, jhampa), kamalāmbikāyāḥ (punnāgavarāḷi, rūpaka), śrī kamalāmbikāyām (sahānā, tripuṭa), śrī kamalāmbikē (ghaṇṭa, ādi), śrī kamalāmbā jayati (āhiri, rūpaka), śrī kamalāmbikē (śrī, khaṇḍa ēka).

Pañcabūta kṣētra and Pañcaliṅga kṛti-s

In the previous edition, we saw that Tiru̱vārūr is sometimes regarded as a prithvi kṣētra and a pañca bhūta sthala. In Hindu bhakti tradition and belief, Lord Śiva is said to manifest in five forms – earth, water, fire, wind (or air), and space (or ether). As per the Taitriya Upaniṣad these elements came from the Supreme Being. Dīkṣita composed the pañcabhūta kṛti-s after visiting the five shrines at Kāñcipuram, Tiru̱vānaikkā (Tiruchirappalli), Tiru̱vaṇṇāmalai, Kālahasti and Cidambaram.

However, this should not be confused with the Tiru̱vārūr Pañcaliṅga kṛti-s, or Pañcaratna Kṛti-s, of Dīkṣita. These are a set of five kṛti-s composed on five Śiva liṅga-s located inside the Tiru̱vārūr temple, at the shrines of Acalēśvara, Hāṭakēśvara, Valmīkēśvara, Ānandēśvara and Siddhīśvara. These shrines are located at different places within the Tiru̱vārūr temple complex, with Valmīkēśvara (Tyāgarāja) being at the centre.

Sadācalēśvaram (bhūpālam, ādi) is composed on Acalēśvara, who has a separate shrine in the southeastern part of the temple complex (we mentioned this as a separate Pāḍal Peṟṟa Sthalam as well, in the previous part of this feature). The architecture of this shrine is said to have inspired the Tañjāvūr Bṛhadīśvara temple, going by some accounts.

Hāṭakēśvara (bilahari, rūpaka) is composed on Hāṭakēśvara, who has a separate shrine in the southern part of the middle prakāra of the Tiru̱vārūr temple. According to some beliefs, this is the first place that Lord Śiva manifest Himself in the form of fire, even before doing so at Tiru̱vaṇṇāmalai. 

Śrī Valmīkaliṅgam (kāmbhōji, aṭa) is composed on Valmīkanātha or Tyāgarāja, the principal deity of the Tiru̱vārūr temple, envisaged as an anthill (valmīka or vanmīka). The lyric “dēvatādi vinuta divya vītī viṭaṅkam” in the anupallavi references the unchiselled form of the liṅga through the word “viṭaṅkam”, another reference to the fact that this is one of the sapta-viṭaṅka sthalams in Saivite tradition. 

Ānandēśvarēṇa (ānanda bhairavī, miśra cāpu) is on Ānandēśvara and Siddhīśvarāya (nīlāmbarī, miśra cāpu) is a kṛti on Siddhēśvara. While some sources refer to these two forms of Lord Śiva as being amongst the many shrines inside the Tiru̱vārūr temple, others say that the Ānandēśvaraṇa kṛti is based on Lord Śiva as Ānantēśvara at Kīẕvēlūr, while the Siddhīśvarāya is dedicated to Siddha Nāthēśvara at Tiru̱narayūr near Kumbhakōṇam.

Muttusvāmi Dīkṣita's contributions to Carnatic music are unparalleled, seamlessly blending lyrical beauty, intricate musicality, and deep spiritual devotion. His compositions not only serve as exquisite works of art but also as historical and cultural records of the sacred sites he visited. The structured thematic compositions, such as the Pañcaliṅga Kṛti-s and Kamalāmbā Navāvaraṇa Kṛti-s, showcase his mastery over language, music, and devotion. Through his works, he immortalized the grandeur of temples, the essence of bhakti, and the scholarly depth of Sanskrit poetry. Even today, his kṛti-s continue to inspire musicians and devotees alike, standing as a timeless testament to the enduring power of music as a medium of spiritual transcendence. And will endure in the eons to come.