Suprabhātam (Sanskrit: सुप्रभातम्), literally auspicious dawn is a Sanskrit poem of the Suprabhātakāvya genre. It is a collection of hymns or verses recited early morning to awaken the deity in Hinduism. The metre chosen for a Suprabhātam poem is usually Vasantatilakā.
Contents
The most well-known Suprabhātam work is the Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam recited at Tirupati to awaken Veṅkaṭeśa. A rendition of the poem by renowned carnatic vocalist M. S. Subbulakshmi is extremely popular which is played daily in many homes and temples of South India.
History
The genre of Suprabhātakāvya traces its origin to a single verse (1.23.2) in the Bālakāṇḍa of Vālmīki's Rāmāyaṇa, where Viśvāmitra calls out to Rāma to wake up.
The Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam begins with this very verse.
Venkateshwara Suprabhatam
The Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam was composed around 1430 A.D. by Prativādibhayaṅkara Śrī Anantācārya (also known as Annangaracharyar, and P B Annan). The poet was a disciple of Swami Manavala Mamuni, who composed Sri Ranganatha Suprabhatam. Sri Venkatesa Suprabhatam consists of four parts: Suprabhatam, Sri Venkatesa Stothram, Prapatti, and Mangalasasanam. Lakshmi Narayana deity, Sri-Bhu Devi sametha Padmanabha Swamy deity and 12 divya salagrama silas once worshiped by him are now with Prativada Bhayankaram Raghavacharyulu 15th generation from Sri Anna Swamy. These are now being worshiped daily at Divya Salagrama Kshetram in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh.
Other Suprabhatam Works
There are many other lesser-known Suprabhātam works apart from the Veṅkaṭeśasuprabhātam. Some of these are -