Adivo Alladivo
అదివో అల్లదివో
Adivo Alladivo, "Behold, there it is", is a sankirtana by Annamacharya that describes the first sight of the Tirumala hills, the home of Lord Venkateswara. It is among the most frequently sung songs of the Annamacharya repertoire.
- Written by
- Annamacharya (died 1503)
- Music
- Annamacharya
- Raga
- Madhyamavati
- In the video
- Rahul Vellal
- Context
- Sankirtana of Annamacharya in praise of the Tirumala hills
- Year
- 15th century
- Language
- Telugu
Adivo Alladivo lyrics with English translation
అదివో అల్లదివో శ్రీహరివాసము పదివేల శేషుల పడగలమయము॥
Adivo alladivo sriharivasamu Padivela seshula padagalamayamu
Behold, there it is, the home of Sri Hari, made of the hoods of ten thousand Seshas.
అదె వేంకటాచల మఖిలోన్నతము అదివో బ్రహ్మాదుల కపురూపము అదివో నిత్యనివాస మఖిలమునులకు అదె చూడుడదె మ్రొక్కుడానందమయము॥
Ade venkatachala makhilonnatamu Adivo brahmadula kapurupamu Adivo nityanivasa makhilamunulaku Ade chududade mrokkudanandamayamu
That is Venkatachala, the highest of all, there is the wonder that even Brahma and the gods hold rare, there is the eternal dwelling of all the sages; look at it, bow to it, it is full of bliss.
చెంగట నల్లదివో శేషాచలము నింగి నున్నదేవతల నిజవాసము ముంగిట నల్లదివో మూలనున్నధనము బంగారు శిఖరాల బహు బ్రహ్మమయము॥
Chengata nalladivo seshachalamu Ningi nunnadevatala nijavasamu Mungita nalladivo mulanunnadhanamu Bangaru sikharala bahu brahmamayamu
Close by, there is Seshachala, the true home of the gods who dwell in the sky; right before us, there is the treasure that lay hidden, full of the Absolute, with peaks of gold.
కైవల్యపదము వేంకటనగమదివో శ్రీ వేంకటపతికి సిరులైనవి భావింప సకలసంపదరూపమదివో పావనములకెల్ల పావనమయము॥
Kaivalyapadamu venkatanagamadivo Sri venkatapatiki sirulainavi Bhavimpa sakalasampadarupamadivo Pavanamulakella pavanamayamu
There is the Venkata hill, the state of liberation, the riches that belong to the Lord of Venkata; contemplate it and it is the form of every wealth, the holiest of all holy things.
Translation: Lyriccs (original translation). Transliteration: Lyriccs.
The story behind Adivo Alladivo
Annamacharya (1408-1503) spent much of his life at Tirumala, and many of his sankirtanas are addressed directly to Lord Venkateswara of the hill shrine. Adivo Alladivo is written as if the singer is standing with a crowd of pilgrims and pointing up at the hills: there is Venkatachala, there is Seshachala, there is the abode of Hari.
The song is commonly set in raga Madhyamavati and Adi tala, as Telugu Wikisource records. It became widely familiar through the twentieth-century revival of Annamacharya's music, and it is sung at temple festivals, in classical concerts and by devotional groups across South India. A version of it was also used in the 1997 Telugu film Annamayya; the text given here is the traditional sankirtana only.
What Adivo Alladivo means
The pallavi pictures the sacred hill as a home made of the ten thousand hoods of Adisesha, the serpent on whom Vishnu rests; in Tirumala tradition the seven hills are seen as the coils of that serpent. The stanzas then name the hills one by one, Venkatachala and Seshachala, and call them the highest of all places, a marvel even to Brahma, and the eternal home of sages.
The poet urges listeners to look, to bow, and to feel the bliss of the place. In the last stanza the hill itself becomes the goal of the spiritual journey, kaivalya, the state of liberation, and the treasure of the Lord. The song is less a description than an act of pointing: an invitation to see the divine in the landscape in front of the pilgrim.
Quick facts
- The song was composed by Annamacharya (1408-1503) for Lord Venkateswara of Tirumala.
- Telugu Wikisource gives its raga as Madhyamavati and tala as Adi.
- It names Venkatachala and Seshachala, two of the sacred hills of Tirumala.
- The opening words mean "Behold, there it is".