Part 1:Sri Bhagavad Dhyana Sobhanam & Thiruppaanalvar's Amalanaadipiran.

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Yuva Samvatsara,Karthigai Month

 

Kaisika Ekadasi Day, Dec 2, 1995

 

 

Dear Members of the Prapatti Group:

 

Yesterday, A number of Postings covered the Aruliccheyal of Thiruppaanaalvar

known as the

Amalannadhipiraan. Today, on this sacred day revered as Kaisika Ekadasi day, I

will post a note on the importance of the ten stanzas of the Alvar and add some

thoughts on how the Alvar"s Bhagavad Anubhavam moved many of the Vaishnava

Acharyas. These ten verses are housed in the Sixth Prabhandam of the

Mudalaaiyram of the Naalaiyra Divya Prabhandam.This Alvar by tradition is

considered to be Ayonija or one, who is not born of mortal human beings. He is

also

considered as an Amsa of (Sri Vatsa mark, the mole on the chest ) of Sriman

Narayana. He was

brought up however as a foster-child by a childless couple of the Paanar caste

(wandering ministrel caste Like that of Neelakanta Yazhpaanar, who accompnaied

Thiru Gyana Sambhandar).

 

Swami Desiakn was moved very much by the Composition of this Alvar and wrote a

commentary

called Munivahana Bhogam in Sanskritized Tamil (Mani pravaalam). He also

composed four verses

in Tamil in His Prabhanda Saaram to elaborate on the significance of the

Contribution of this

Alvar. He went on to compose a Stotram in Sanskrit known as" Sri Bhagavad Dhyana

Sobhaanam"

to praise the matchless beauty of the Lord of Sri Rangam in the spirit of the

Alvar"s experience

accounted for in the immortal verses of Amalanaadhipiran. We will now summarize

the earthly

life of this great Alvar and his Anubhavam of the Lord of Sri Rangam, which

inspired Swami

Desikan and the Acharyas before him.

 

Thiruppanar was a resident of one of the 108 divya desams known as Kozhi or

Nisulapuri, which is

on the banks of cauveri river , very close to Sri Rangam. He used to come to

the banks of Cauvery

and sing about the glory of Ranganatha and lose himself in a trance like state.

On one of those days,

when he was totally oblivious to his surroundings, the temple priest of Lord

Ranganatha came to the river to collect water for the Sacred bath of the Archa

Moorthy .He saw our Alvar and thought that latter was a man of lower caste

and therefore, he should move away to permit the collection

of the water for the daily abishekam of Sri Ranganatha without pollution. The

name of the Ranganatha Purohita(Priest) was Loka Saranga Muni. He was called a

Muni by the residents of Sri Rangam because of his piety and scholarship. He

devoted every moment of his life to the service of the Lord at Sri Rangam.

 

The Alvar was lost inthe thoughts of Sri Ranganatha and did not hear the shouts

of Loka Saranga

Muniasking him to move away. The preist got angry at nonresponse and threw a

small pebble at the Alvar to wake him up from his trance. The pebble missed the

water and hit the Alvar in on the forehead and opened a wound

from which blood began to gush. The Alvar woke up and realized the situation,

apologized for his

unawareness and moved away. The Priest collected the water in his golden pot

and reached the inner sanctum of Lord Ranganatha. There , he saw to his sorrow

and astonishment blood oozing from the forehead of the Lord at the same site,

where the Alvar had a wound earlier.The Muni recognized

his apachara and went home and had restless sleep. In his dream appeared the

Lord of Sri

Rangam and commanded the Priest to bring the Alvar to the temple as a praaya

chittam(expiation ) for the apacharam (grave misdeed) to his dear devotee. The

priest woke up at that dawn and rushed to the banks of Cauvery and saw the

Alvar pouring his heart out to Sri Ranganatha through his songs. The Muni

conveyed to the Alvar , the message of the Lord to come to HIS temple. The Alvar

refused , since he felt that as a man of lower caste, he was not fit to set

FOOT in the holy city of Sri Rangam or enter the most sacred sanctum of the

Lord there. Loka

Saranga Muni was desparate to make amendments for his boorish act and persuaded

the Alvar to

ride on his back to the sanctum of the Lord to avoid touching the sacred ground

of Sri Rangam.

The Alvar was thus transported to the sanctum and earned the title as

Munivahana. .During this ride, the Alvar closed his eyes thinking about the

blessings of the Lord. On reaching the inner court of the Lord of Sri Rangam ,

the Alvar descended from the back of the elderly priest , opened his

eyes to feast on the beauty of the Lord and burst forth in a song known as

Amalanaadi Piran, which

is a reflection of the Sampoorna Bhagavd Anubhavam of the beauty of the Lord

from HIS Lotus feet

to HIS crown. At the end of this tribute , the Alvar declared that his eyes will

never rest on anything else, after seeing the Lord of Sri Rangam and he merged

with the Lord right there and then.

 

Loka Saranga Muni learnt about the greatness of the devotees of the Lord inspite

of the superficial

accidents of life such as caste or Scholarship. The Lord of Sri Rangam

demonstrated to one and all

the importance of HIS Bhakthas ,just as He would do later , when Thyaga Brahmam

stood at one corner of Chitra veedhi during HIS Brahmotsavam. At that time, Sri

Ranganatha halted His procession to let every

one know that a great Bhaktha of HIS was standing aside without any

recognition.. He halted his procession on the Raja Veedhi of Sri Rangam, only

after Thyaga Brahmam came close to HIM and received His blessings and

Maryadhai(honor).

 

Loka Saranga Muni was deluded like Adi Sankara at Kasi Kshetram,when latter

was hastening to offer his worship at the Temple of Lord Viswanatha. The great

Acharya shouted at a "Chandala with four accompanying Dogs" blocking his way in

a narrow street to get out of his way , so he wont be polluted through bodily

contact. . When the "Chandala" questioned the Acharya as to whether he should

remove his physical body or the eternal Atman inside ,Adi Sankara realized his

folly and understood that the Chandala

standing before him was none other than the Lord of Kasi Kshetram and the four

dogs were the

four Vedas.

 

Sri Vaishnavite Acharya"s tributes to Thiruppaanaalvar

************************************************************

Mahapurna or Periya Nambi composed the Taniyan (invocatory Verse) in Sanskrit in

praise of this

work of the Alvar, which begins with the words: Aapaada choodam anubhuya Harim

Sayaanam----

 

Dr.V.K.S.N.Raghavan"s translation of this Taniyan is as Follows:

" Let me contemplate on Tiruppaanaalvar (Munivahana, the saint who was carried

to the precincts of the shrine of Lord Ranganatha , by Lokasarangamamuni on his

shoulders) ,whose inner soul (antaratma) became enraptured at the sight of the

reclining Lord Hari(Ranganatha) betwixt (the two streams of ) the river Kaveri

,and who ,having experienced (the vision of the Lord) from the feet to His head

declared that his eyes would not see other objects (except the Lord).

 

The second Taniyan in Tamil is said to be composed by Thirumalai Nambi or

Srisaila Purna, who summarized the Alvar"s composition in a quintissential

manner.The translation given by Sri Raghavan for this verse is as follows:

 

"Let us sing in praise of the holy feet of Sri Tiruppaanaalvar ,who entered

(the holy shrine of Lord Ranganatha) riding on the shoulders of the sage

(Lokasaranga-Mahamuni) saw( the Lord in

full) and sung (in praise) HIM limb by limb ,as the Lord showed to him ,i.e.,

the lotus feet , the

silk garment, the navel, the waist band of rare excellence, the holy chest, the

neck, the red mouth(with rosy lips) ,the eyes of unfading (red lotuscharm) and

the (whole divine) Archa form."

 

Sri Vedantha Desikan was so moved by the Ten verses of Amalanaadhipiraan that he

paid

multiple tributes to the Alvar. He put together a Manipravala commentary known

as Munivahana Bhogam. Swami Desikan was overwhelmed by the profound Bhagavad

Anubhavam of

the Alvar that he declared the ten verse compendium to be the essence of

countless Vedic

texts. Swami went on to compose 4 verses in Tamil to praise the work of the

Alvar in his

Prabhanda Saaram. The translations of these 4 Tamil verses are as follows:

 

1.We are liberated from our accumulated sins and defects ,after understanding

the

true nature of Lord Krishna, whose twin charactrestrics are His paramountcy

(Root cause of the Universe and its beings) and his overlordship ( role as the

emperor of the Universe and its controller). This is what Thiruppaanalvar

revealed to us in his ten verses and thus brought out the true meaning of the

important teachings of the Vedas in Tamil verses. Swami describes the Lord

revealed by the Alvar as "Kaavalanum , Kanavanumaai kalandhu ninra Kaaranan". He

salutes

the Alvar as the "Tamil Marayin Payaneh konda Paan Perumaal".

 

2. In the second verse, Swami states that the work of the Alvar as an

extraordinarily unique poem that has to be learnt ,studied, explained and

meditated upon. He describes the poem as a true summary of all discourses on

the Vedas given by all learned scholars. An understanding of this poem is

tantamount to an understanding of the essentials of Vedantha. Swami claims that

the Alvar is his Paanan , who has seen the Lord of Sri Rangam , the ocean of

Daya and limitless grace at HIS sanctum sanctorium and sung about HIS greatness

in ten stanzas containg the essence of the Vedas and Vedantha...

 

3.In the third verse, Swami Desikan offers his highest tribute to the Alvar and

his Verses. He says: "

Pannperumal is the one , who spoke only of the supreme Brahman(Kannan) after

having seen HIM (directly) as Ranganatha,neglecting everything else as nothing

to be seen or spoken of; the Alvar had unsurpassed devotion towards the Lord ;

his songs are acclaimed to be the essence of

the beginningless Vedas (and we adore them).I (Vedantha Desika) got the title

of Vedanthaacharya from the Lord of Sri Rangam in this world ,surrounded by the

vast sea ---- it is my submission that

I abhor ego and am devoid of pride; whatever greatness is spoken of me, it is

only the fruit of the perceptor"s blessings and so I ever resort to the great

teachers (like the Alvar) for their instructions

on the good and evil."

 

4. In the fourth and final verse on the Alvar , Swami Desikanstates that the

Verses known as

Amalanaadhipiran are the essence of the innumerable Vedic Texts and prays for

the Alvar"s blessings to understand their full meaning .

 

Dr. Raghavan"s translation of the ten verses of Thiruppaanaalvar

***********************************************************************

 

For the sake of completeness, I will now include the excellent translation of

Dr.Raghavan, who is a Reader in the Department of Vaishnavism at he University

of Madras. This translation closely follows the Muni Vahana Bhogam of Swami

Desikan:

 

(1) Amalanaadhipiraan---- : He, the Lord Vishnu is blemishlesss, the foremost

God, and the resplendent one that has made me serve His ardent devotees; He, the

Lord of Nityasuris(Celestial, eternal Arch angels) has taken His abode at the

Venkatam hill surrounded

by fragrant groves; He, the immaculate Lord is the ever pure, sacred God; (now

I look at) Him,

the overlord of supreme justful heaven (Vaikuntham or Vaan) ,and the divine God

(Ranganatha) of

Sri rangam (girt with ) long ramparts. (As I see Him), His sacred lotus FEET

enter into and become merged with my eyes.

 

(2) Uvanda ULLattaanay-----: Lord Ranganatha (Arangatthu Ammaan) who has with

His heart full of pleasure, mesured the worlds (earth and heaven) (in His

descent as Trivikrama) shines with His tall and lofty crown. He ,whose sharp

and piercing arrows destroyed (devoured) the demons (night -wanderers) who came

to fight Him that day(i.e,. In His descent as Rama), is the scion of the race of

Kakutsa. He is the Lord of Sri Rangam full of (flowery and) fragrant gardens;

now my mind becomes immersed with the Lord"s Reddish SILK GARMENT worn by Him

around His waist.

 

(3) Mandi Paai Vada Venkata Maamalai--------: The Lord , Ranganatha ,who

reclines on the serpent couch (Adi Sesha) in Sri Rangam ,is the same Lord Vishnu

,(Srinivasa) who has stood in the north at the great Venkatam hills, where

monkeys jump from one tree to the other. Lord Srinivasa has

stood there for the sake of Gods , who come to worship Him; the sweet core

(inner soul) of my heart rests on the twilight colored garment of the Lord and

on His beautiful NAVEL, above it (the garment) -the great NAVEL that created the

four faced God Aja (Brahma Devan).

 

(4) Cadura Mamadil Soozh---: The Lord of Sri Rangam (full of Woods) ,where

sweetly singing bees hum and great peacocks dance (happily) ,is the same as the

Lord Sri Rama of (life-bestowing) ocean hue; Lord Rama vanquished Ravana ,the

king of Lanka surrounded by Massive and square ramparts; after driving him out

(Once from the battlefield), Lord Rama later aimed an invincible

sharp arrow at Ravana and made his ten heads fall down (simultaneously cut off);

The WAISTBAND (of this Ranganatha) found on His beautiful belly makes plesant

strolls within my

heart.

 

(5)Paaramaya Pazha Vinai-----: The Lord of Sri Rangam has cut asunder all my

burdensome old sins (ripe and heavy); He has now made me His (exclusive)

servant;further ,He has also entered into my heart;What a wonder! I do not know

how much severe and great penance I have done

to acheive such a great fortune of the Lord"s immense grace over me.The Lord"s

CHEST ,beautified by the Goddess Lakshmi and the great garland Vaijayanthi ,

indeed has wholly captured and

enslaved me.

 

(6) Tunda Venpirayan------: My master, Lord Ranganatha , has His abode in the

holy city of Sri Rangam surrounded by groves,wherein live the swarms of bees

with fascinating wings; He is the One ,who has removed the sufferings of Lord

Siva with the crescent moon on His head ( when

a skull got stuck in His hand).Lord Ranganatha "s throat (in days of Yore)

consumed in full the

whole Universe comprising (a) many worlds inhabited by Andar( a category of

people) (b) the higher

and the nether worlds © this massive and vast earth (d) all the seven

Kulaachalas (Ezhu maal Varai, the seven mountains balancing this earth); Harken!

Such a THROAT of the Lord

indeed has saved me.

 

(7)Kaiyinar Curi canganal aaliyar------: The Lord of the beautiful city of Sri

Rangam and the one supreme God,Mayan (beyond the ken of all the ordinary

individual souls) ,who reclines on the serpent couch Adisesha holds on His

hands ,the Conch Paanchajanyam with winding rekha

and the chakra (disc Sudarsanam) that emits fiery sparks; His divins body (archa

form) is like a lengthy mountain range ; He is our father and saviour ,who has

a very long crown smelling

exuberently with the fragrance of Tulasi leaves ! His beautiful RED MOUTH (with

rosy lips), aye!(Aiyoh) has captivated and enraptured my mind and heart.

 

(8) Pariyanaahi vanda AvuNan------: The blemishless Lord of Sri rangam is the

Supreme Being(i.e,. the foremost creator and benefactor) ,who made the advent as

Narasimha and tore into shreds the massive body of the demon king(Hiranyakasipu)

that came to assault Him; Lord Narasimha was (and also is) unapproachable and

inaccessible to the Gods (Brahma, Siva,Indra et al); in the face of Lord

Ranganatha , there are those wide eyes, which are very much black,broad and

extensive towards the sides ,glittering (restless) , with ruddy lines(rekhas)

running across and very much lengthy; these EYES of the Lord have made me a

fool (and I am stupefied).

 

(9) Aalamaa maratinilaimel oru balakanaai------: Lord Ranganatha reclining on

the serpent couch Adisesha in Sri Rrangam is the one who (long ago) having

devoured the seven worlds ,was seen (by the sage Markandeya and found to be)

lying on the leaf of a great banyan tree as (an exquisite)

Child, incomparable; the Lord Ranganatha is adorned with beautiful garland

studded with

peerless gems and pearl necklace; His holy body (archa form) of blue diamond

lustre is of enormous beauty and excellent complexion; such a divine BODY of

God has, aye(aiyoh) outweighed my mind (i.e,. the Lord showing His whole body

full of beauty has taken away every thing from me-my mind, heart and soul).

 

(10) Kondal Vannanai Kovalanaai ------:Lord Ranganatha is the Overlord (supreme

Soverign) of

the whole world and all the people (residing there); Him-who is of the black

color of the clouds as well as the nature of the clouds; who ,as Lord Gopala

(Kovala alias Krishna) ,ate butter with His mouth; who has stolen my mind and

heart; and who is my immortal ambrosia-; my eyes

that have looked at His beauty; (I swear ) these eyes of mine ,that have seen

Him , will never see anything else.

 

The next posting will cover the Stotram of Swami Desikan (Sri Bhagavad Dhyana

Shobanam) ,

which is a describtion of the enjoyment of Sri Ranganatha by this Acharya in

the manner

immortalized by Thiruppaanaalvar.Kaisika was of a "low caste" like the Alvar

and he obtained

the boon of Moksham on this day by observing the Ekadasi Vratham (fasting) all

through his life. That is the reason for this Ekadasi of the month of kartigai

being named as Kaisika Ekadasi.

 

V.Sadagopan