The Vijayaraya Kavacha

The aradhane of one of the greatest saints composers of the Haridasa movement. Vijaya Dasa ((1682-1755), is just a day away. Vijaya Dasa along with   Purandara and Kanaka is called the trinity of Haridasa movement.

Vijaya Dasa was believed to be an incarnation of  Madhwapathi Dasa, the youngest son of Purandara Dasa. He was born so that he could fulfill his father’s wishes of writing five lakh devara namas.

Purandara Dasa could compose only 4,75,000 songs and he asked Madhwapathi Dasa to complete the rest 25,000. Since Madhwapati could not complete the numbers in his lifetime, he was reborn as Vijaya Dasa.

Vijaya Dasa was a contemporary of several other Haridasas such as  Gopala Dasa, Helevankatte Giriamma, Jagannatha Dasa and Prasanna Venkata Dasa.

Vijaya Dasa was born in a poor Brahmin family in Cheekalaparvi or Chippagiri to Srinivasappa and Kusamma. It was Purandara Dasa himself who came in a dream and initiated him into the Dasa Koota and gave him the nomenclature Vijaya Vittala.

Vijaya Dasa was among the fist of the dasas to compose  extensively on Raghavendra Swamy of Mantralaya. He is known as Suladi Dasa as he composed innumerable suladis.  

Vijaya Dasa accepted Kallur Subbanachar (1720-1815) as a Haridasa and gave him the Ankita nama Vyasa Vittala. A grateful Subbanachar realised that Vijaya Dasa was not an ordinary person and he  composed this stothra in praise of his Guru and called it as “Vijaya Raya Kavacha.

The Vijaya Raya Kavacha is one of the finest songs of its genre by Kallur Subbanachar on Vijaya Dasa.

This composition is popular even today and it is recited regularly by women folk who believed that if you want any wish to be fulfilled, you have to chant the Vijaya Kavacha everyday.

The English translation goes as follows:

  

“Smarisi badukiro divya charaNakeragiro
durita toredu poreva vijaya gurugalembarA

dAsarAyana dayava sUsi paDedanA
dOSharahitanA santOShabharitanA ||1||

jAnAvantana balu nidhAni shAntana
mAnyavantana bahuvadAnyadAtana ||2||

hariya bhajisuva narahariya yajisuva
durita tyajisuva janake haruSha surisuva ||3||

mOdabharitana paMchabhEdavaritana
sAdhucharitana manOviShAda maretana ||4||

ivara nambida janakE bhavavidembudu
havanavAgadO nammavara matavidu ||5||

pApakOTiya rAshi lEpavAgadu
tApa kalEvanu balu dayApayOnidhi ||6||

pavanarUpadi hariya stavana mADida
bhuvana bEDida mAdhavana nODida ||7||

ragganEndana bhavavu higgitEndana
maggalAggana antaraggavaritana ||8||

kAshinagaradallidda vyAsadEvana
dayava sUsi paDEdana ullAsatanadali ||9||

chintEbEDirO nishchintarAgirO
shAntagurugala pAdondu nambirO ||10||

khEdavAgadO nimage modavAhudo
Adidevana suprasAdavAhudO ||11||

tApa taDevanu banda pApa kaDivanu
shrIpatIya padasamIpaviDuvanu ||12||

veda Odalu baride vAda mADalu
hAdi doreyadu budhara pAda nanbade ||13||

gagge mindare malavu hiMgitallade
raMganoliyanu bhaktara saMga dorakade ||14||

lekkavilladA deshatukki bandarU
duHkhavallade lesha bhakti dorekadu ||15||

dAna mADalu divyagAna pADalu
jAna doreyado ivaradhInavAgade ||16||

niShThe yAtake kaMDa kaShThavyAtake
diTTa gurugala pAda muTTI bhajisiro ||17||

pUje mADalu kaNDa goju bIlalu
bIja mAtina phla sahaja dorakadu ||18||

suraru ellaru ivara karava piDivaro
taralaraMdadi hinde tirugutipparo ||19||

grahagalellavU ivarge sahAya mADuta
ahorAtrili sukhava koDuvavu ||20||

vyAdhi bArado dEhabAdhe taTTado
Adidevana suprasAdavAhudo ||21||

patitapAmara mandamatiyu nA balu
tutisalApane ivara atishayaMgala ||22||

karuNadindaliymma porevanallade
duritakoTiya bega tariva dayadali ||23||

mandamatigalu ivara chandavariyade
nindisuvaro bhavada bhanda tappado ||24||

indirApati ivara munde kuNivano
anda vachanava nijake tandu torpanu ||25||

udayakAladi I padava paThisalu
madaDanAdaru jAna udayavAhudo ||26||

saTeyidellavo vYAsaviThala ballano
paThisabahididu keli kuTilarahitaru” ||27||