Ye Teeruga Nanu Daya Choochedavo (Bhadrachala Ramadasa)
ए तीरुग ननु दय चूचॆदवो in English · English
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✦ Meaning
'Ye Teeruga Nanu Daya Choochedavo' (raga Nadanamakriya) is Bhadrachala Ramadasa's great prayer of helplessness and hope: 'In what manner will you show me mercy, O Rama? Can I cross the ocean of samsara by myself?' Its charanams move through confession of unknowing sins, the plea for fearlessness, the teaching that the Guru is God, the bliss of the Name that fills all universes, and homage to the Lord of Bhadradri — ending in complete surrender. It remains one of the most sung Ramadasa kirtanas, a staple of Rama bhajan traditions.
Origin & Story
Kirtana of Bhadrachala Ramadasa in raga Nadanamakriya, Adi tala (Telugu, 17th century CE) · Bhadrachala Ramadasa (Kancherla Gopanna) · c. 1620-1688 CE
Ramadasa built Rama's temple at Bhadrachalam and paid for it with twelve years in the Golconda dungeon. His kirtanas from those years swing between complaint and adoration; this one stands at the still point — the recognition that no effort of his own could ferry him across the sea of birth and death, and that the mercy of the lotus-eyed Lord must do it. Bhajan traditions across South India have sung it ever since.
✦ As told in scripture
Tradition holds that Rama himself, with Lakshmana, redeemed Ramadasa from prison by paying his debt in divine coin — mercy answering exactly the question this song asks, 'in what manner will you show me your grace?' Devotees of the bhajan sampradaya sing it at dawn, and say the Name repeated at each line's end carries the singer over troubles the way the Lord's bridge crossed the sea.
Complete Text with Meaning
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ē tīruga nanu daya cūcedavō, inavaṃśōttama rāmā nā taramā bhava sāgaramīdanu, nalina dalēkṣaṇa rāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥
Meaning:In what manner will you look upon me with mercy, O Rama, noblest of the Solar line? Is it within my power to swim across this ocean of worldly existence, O lotus-petal-eyed Rama?
śrī raghu nandana sītā ramaṇā, śritajana pōṣaka rāmā kāruṇyālaya bhakta varada ninu, kannadi kānupu rāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥
Meaning:O joy of the Raghu clan, beloved of Sita, nourisher of those who depend on you, O Rama; O abode of compassion, granter of boons to your devotees — you are both the mother who bore me and all that my eyes behold, O Rama.
krūrakarmamulu nēraka cēsiti, nēramuleñcaku rāmā dāridryamu parihāramu sēyavē, daiva śikhāmaṇi rāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥
Meaning:Unknowingly I have committed cruel deeds — do not count my faults, O Rama. Take away this poverty of mine, O crest-jewel of the gods, O Rama.
vāsavanuta rāmadāsa pōṣaka vandana-mayōdhya rāmā dāsārcita mākabhaya-mosaṅgavē dāśarathī raghurāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥
Meaning:O Rama praised by Indra, sustainer of Ramadasa — salutations, O Rama of Ayodhya! Grant fearlessness to this servant who worships you, O Dasharathi, Raghurama.
guruḍavu nā madi daivamu nīvani guruśāstrambulu rāmā gurudaivambani yerugaka tirigeḍu krūruḍanaitini rāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥
Meaning:The scriptures of the gurus declare, 'the Guru is the God of your own heart', O Rama; not knowing the Guru to be God, I wandered astray and turned cruel, O Rama.
niṇḍiti vī vakhilāṇḍa kōṭi brahmāṇḍamulanduna rāmā niṇḍuga madi nī nāmamu dalacina nityānandamu rāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥
Meaning:You fill the countless crores of universes of this whole cosmos, O Rama; and when the heart, brimming full, dwells on your name, there is everlasting bliss, O Rama.
vāsava kamala bhavāsuravandita vāradhi bandhana rāmā bhāsura vara sadguṇamulu kalgina bhadrādrīśvara rāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥
Meaning:O Rama adored by Indra, by the lotus-born Brahma and by the gods; O binder of the ocean with your bridge, O Rama; O Lord of Bhadradri, endowed with radiant, noble virtues, O Rama!
muripemutō nā svāmivi nēvani munduga telpiti rāmā maruvaka ika nabhimānamuncu nē marugujochitini rāmā ॥ ē tīruga ॥ ē tīruga nanu daya cūcedavō, inavaṃśōttama rāmā nā taramā bhava sāgaramīdanu, nalina dalēkṣaṇa rāmā
Meaning:With fond pride I declared beforehand, 'You are my Lord', O Rama; never forgetting, keep your gracious regard upon me — I have taken refuge in you, O Rama. In what manner will you show me mercy, O Rama, noblest of the Solar race — can I ever cross this ocean of existence by my own strength, O lotus-eyed Rama?
Word-by-Word Meaning
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Benefits of Chanting ए तीरुग ननु दय चूचॆदवो
A complete surrender-prayer: confession, plea for mercy, and refuge in Rama in a single song.
Its question — 'can I cross the ocean of samsara alone?' — dissolves self-reliance into humble trust.
Recalls that dwelling on the Name with a full heart is itself everlasting bliss (nityananda).
Honours the Guru as God, correcting the wandering mind.
Sung in the plaintive Nadanamakriya, it is a balm in guilt, poverty and fear, and a favourite of bhajan sampradaya.
How to Chant ए तीरुग ननु दय चूचॆदवो
Sing as a wave of question and surrender: each line ends by calling 'Rama', so let the Name toll like a bell throughout. Offer the charanams one by one — confession, plea, homage — and close with the refrain, leaving the crossing of the ocean entirely to him. Traditionally in raga Nadanamakriya, Adi tala.
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