• Know description of Ramayana scene in song Yaaro Ivar Yaaro by Ashwath Narayanan and get lyrics of song in Tamil and English.

Rama is the talk of town now. With the Prana Pratistha of the temple in Ayodhya just around the corner, many artists from around the country are putting out songs and bhajans celebrating Rama. The Indian Prime Minister Sri Narendra Modi is also actively promoting a number of artists and songs on his social media platforms. 

A few days ago, one such share from him was Yaaro Ivar Yaaro in Raga Bhairavi, rendered by Ashwath Narayanan and produced by Minna Minni (Link to the song is given below). This song is from a very popular musical opera titled Ramanataka Keertanaigal, composed by Arunachala Kavi (1711–1779 CE). This musical masterpiece goes over the Ramayana story almost dialogue by dialogue, and is composed in simple Tamil that is easily understandable. 

To hear song

Unfortunately over the years, most of the original tunes of the songs were lost, and only the lyrics were available. In the early 20th century, Sri Ariyakudi Ramanuja Iyengar, a musical stalwart of his times, revived this opera by resetting a number of compositions to music. Yaaro Ivar Yaaro is one of them. The song was originally said to have been sung in Raga Saveri, but Ariyakudi has reset it in Raga Bhairavi. 

This song describes the scene where Rama sees Sita for the first time when he visits Mithila with Guru Vishwamitra and his brother Lakshmana. The situation has also beautifully been captured by artist Ananth KK in the painting given here, specially commissioned by Minna Minni for the Ramanatakam series.

Click on PDF for a PDF file with the lyrics of the song in Tamil as well as English, along with the rough English translation. Check out the link below to listen to the full song.

Link to song

Link to Minna Minni homepage

Link to full Ramanatakam playlist featuring Ashwath Narayanan and Ananth KK

Also read

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2. Architecture of Ram Mandir

3. What is Pran Pratistha

4. On Chanting the Name of SRI RAM

5. What is the deeper meaning behind the names of Sri Ram and his brothers

6. Adhyatma Ramayan marries Bhakti with Advaita Vedanta

7. Many versions of the Ramayana

8. A sacred journey to meet Pandit Ramashraya Tripathi Ji, a present-day disciple in the lineage of Goswami Tulsi Das