Brahmam Okkate (Tandanana Ahi)
బ్రహ్మమొక్కటే (తందనాన ఆహి)
Brahmam Okkate, also known by its refrain Tandanana Ahi, is one of the best-known sankirtanas of the Telugu saint-poet Annamacharya. Set to a lilting folk rhythm, it insists that the same divine presence lives in every being, whatever their rank or birth.
- Written by
- Annamacharya (died 1503)
- Music
- Annamacharya
- In the video
- Sooryagayathri, Rahul Vellal
- Context
- Sankirtana of Annamacharya (Tallapaka Annamacharya), Tirumala
- Year
- 15th century
- Language
- Telugu
Brahmam Okkate (Tandanana Ahi) lyrics with English translation
Text as given on Telugu Wikisource; the pallavi/charanam markers (ప||, చ||) of the source are omitted and a stanza break is added after the refrain.
తందనాన ఆహి తందనాన పురె | తందనాన భళా తందనాన ||
Tandanana ahi tandanana pure | Tandanana bhala tandanana ||
Tandanana ahi, tandanana pure, tandanana bhala, tandanana (a rhythmic folk refrain).
బ్రహ్మ మొకటే పరబ్రహ్మ మొకటే | పరబ్రహ్మ మొకటే పరబ్రహ్మ మొకటే ||
Brahma mokate parabrahma mokate | Parabrahma mokate parabrahma mokate ||
The Absolute is one, the Supreme Absolute is one, the Supreme Absolute is one, the Supreme Absolute is one.
కందువగు హీనాధికము లిందు లేవు | అందరికి శ్రీహరే అంతరాత్మ | ఇందులో జంతుకులమింతా నొకటే | అందరికి శ్రీహరే అంతరాత్మ ||
Kanduvagu hinadhikamu lindu levu | Andariki srihare antaratma | Indulo jantukulaminta nokate | Andariki srihare antaratma ||
The petty notions of low and high have no place here; Sri Hari is the inner self of all. In this, the whole family of living beings is one; Sri Hari is the inner self of all.
నిండార రాజు నిద్రించు నిద్రయు నొకటే | అండనే బంటునిద్ర అదియు నొకటే | మెండైన బ్రాహ్మణుడు మెట్టుభూమి యొకటే | చండాలు డుండేటి సరిభూమి యొకటే ||
Nindara raju nidrinchu nidrayu nokate | Andane bantunidra adiyu nokate | Mendaina brahmanudu mettubhumi yokate | Chandalu dundeti saribhumi yokate ||
The sleep a king sleeps in his comfort is one, and the sleep of the servant beside him is the same. The ground where the proud brahmin treads is one, and the ground where the outcaste lives is just the same.
అనుగుదేవతలకును అలకామ సుఖమొకటే | ఘనకీట పశువులకు కామ సుఖమొకటే | దినమహో రాత్రములు తెగి ధనాఢ్యునకొకటే | వొనర నిరుపేదకును వొక్కటే అవియు ||
Anugudevatalakunu alakama sukhamokate | Ghanakita pasuvulaku kama sukhamokate | Dinamaho ratramulu tegi dhanadhyunakokate | Vonara nirupedakunu vokkate aviyu ||
The pleasure of love for the gods is one, and the pleasure of desire for insects and beasts is the same. Day and night pass alike for the wealthy man, and for the poorest of the poor they are just the same.
కొరలి శిష్టాన్నములు గొను నాకలొకటే | తిరుగు దుష్టాన్నములు తిను నాకలొకటే | పరగ దుర్గంధములపై వాయువొకటే | వరుస బరిమళముపై వాయువొకటే ||
Korali sishtannamulu gonu nakalokate | Tirugu dushtannamulu tinu nakalokate | Paraga durgandhamulapai vayuvokate | Varusa barimalamupai vayuvokate ||
The hunger that eats fine food is one, and the hunger that eats wretched scraps is the same. The wind that blows over foul smells is one, and the wind that blows over fragrance is the same.
కడగి యేనుగు మీద గాయు యెండొకటే | పుడమి శునకము మీద బొలయు నెండొకటే | కడు బుణ్యులను బాప కర్ములను సరిగావ | జడియు శ్రీ వేంకటేశ్వర నామమొకటే ||
Kadagi yenugu mida gayu yendokate | Pudami sunakamu mida bolayu nendokate | Kadu bunyulanu bapa karmulanu sarigava | Jadiyu sri venkatesvara namamokate ||
The sun that beats down on an elephant is one, and the sun that falls on a dog on the earth is the same. To protect the most virtuous and the sinful alike, the name of Sri Venkateswara is one.
Translation: Lyriccs (original translation). Transliteration: Lyriccs.
The story behind Brahmam Okkate (Tandanana Ahi)
Tallapaka Annamacharya (1408-1503) was a poet-saint from the Rayalaseema region who devoted his life to Lord Venkateswara of Tirumala. Tradition credits him with tens of thousands of sankirtanas in Telugu and Sanskrit, and a large body of them was engraved on copper plates by his family and preserved at the Tirumala temple, which is why so many have survived for more than five centuries.
Brahmam Okkate belongs to his philosophical songs. Its refrain of rhythmic syllables, tandanana, echoes the work songs and folk tunes of ordinary people, a deliberate choice for a song whose message is that social distinctions mean nothing to the divine. In the twentieth century the Annamacharya revival, led by scholars, singers and the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, brought the song back into concert halls, temple festivals and school stages, and it is now sung widely in both classical and folk styles.
What Brahmam Okkate (Tandanana Ahi) means
The song is built on a series of plain, almost blunt comparisons. The sleep of a king and the sleep of the servant who guards him are the same sleep. The ground on which a learned brahmin walks is the same ground on which an outcaste lives. Hunger is the same hunger whether it is satisfied with fine food or with scraps, and the same breeze passes over filth and over perfume.
Each image leads back to one idea: Sri Hari is the inner self, the antaratma, of every living creature, so ideas of high and low are illusions. The final stanza turns this into a promise of grace, saying that the single name of Sri Venkateswara protects the virtuous and the sinful alike. Written in an age of rigid caste divisions, the song is often quoted as an early and fearless statement of human equality in Telugu literature.
Quick facts
- Annamacharya lived from 1408 to 1503 and dedicated his songs to Lord Venkateswara of Tirumala.
- The song is also known by its opening refrain, Tandanana Ahi.
- Its stanzas contrast king and servant, brahmin and outcaste, rich and poor to show that all are equal before God.
- Annamacharya's songs were preserved on copper plates kept at the Tirumala temple.