Vairaagya Panchakam of Swami desikan: Part 2

[Guest guest]

Dear Members of the Prapatti Group:

 

Sri Vairaagya Panchakam is a work of

profound philosophical significance .

It consists of five slokaas summarizing

Swami Desikan's renunciation of material wealth.

In these slokaas,Venkatesa kavi

described the deplorable

state of praising another human being for the

sake of improving one's financial lot. He refers

to the degradation resulting from praising rich

men and asserted that he will not stoop to

offer his service to such people. He comments

on the transitory nature of wealth and presses on

the fact that the only imperishable wealth is that ,

which was handed to him by his forefathers (the

presiding deity of Attigiri revered as Sri Varadarajan ).

He demonstrated time and again his disinterest in

the accumulation of material wealth . He helped

the poor Brahmachari to get wealthy by appealing to

Sri Ranganayaki through the composition of his

Sri Sthuti. Personally, he was not interested. On one

occasion, some of his devoted disciples hid a few gold

coins in his Thandulum (rice) presented for the daily

Aaradhanam of their Acharya. When Swami Desikan

saw the golden coins in the Thandalum, he threw them

away and demonstrated his aversion for worldly wealth.

He followed the tradition of Kuratthaazhwaan , who

threw away the golden drinking vessel that his wife had

brought with her on the journey to Srirangam.

 

***Introductory Verse sent first to Sri Vidyaranyaa :

 

This was the verse that he sent as a response to

Sri Vidyaaranya to convey the message that he will not

come to the court of the king to praise him and

gain wealth that way.This is not considered as

one of the five slokaas of the Vairaaghya Panchakam.

The individual slokas of this Panchakam including the

Phala Sruthi are set in five different poetic meters

known as Saardhoola Vikriditham, PrithvI , Harinee,

Vamsastham and Anushtup.

 

I will use the Anvaya Kramam(prose order)

of the verses to convey the

meaning of these terse verses.

This way, it will be easier to follow

the meaning of these profound Verses.

 

***Verse that started the Panchakam

 

kshoNeekoNa sata amsa paalana kalaa

durvaara garvaanala Kshubhayat Kshudra Narendra

Chatu rasanaa Dhanyaan na Manyaamahe .

 

We will not consider those the blessed (lucky ) ones,

those who praise with skill the deluded and arrogant

kings that rule over a small portion of the earth and are

overcome with a sense of power.

 

DayaaLu: Ya: Asau Puraa Dhaanaa mushti mucheh

Kusela Munayeh Vittedasathaam Dhattehsma Devam

Sevithum Nicchinumahe .

 

Once the great merciful Lord (Avyaja Karuna Murthy),

gave to the poor Kusela , his boyhood friend indescribable

wealth in exchange for the handful of pounded rice given

to Him. We are determined to serve only that Lord and

no one else.

 

*** First slokam of Vairaagya Panchakam

 

Silam oudharam analam Bhaadhitum Analam

Bhaveth Kim? Prasruthi poorakam Saarasam

Bhaya: Tarakam Kimu Na: ? Pathi Kaccharam

pataccharam ayatna malamallakam vibudhaa:

Kukshita Mudhaa Kukshita: Bhajanthi hi Ahaha !

 

Swami Desikan asks a series of questions here

regarding the minimum needed to carry on one's

life on earth . He observes that even those with

discriminatory knowledge serve the rich to appease

their needs. He asks : Is not the grain spilled from the

harvests sufficient to quell one' s hunger? Would not the

volume of water held in one's palm sufficient to

quench one's thirst ? Will not the rag obtained along the

wayside sufifcient to serve as an effortlessly gained

loin cloth? Alas! the scholars offer their salutations to

the kings for the sake of filling their stomachs.

This and other verses of the Panchakam have phrases

with double meanings . For instance , Analam can mean

in one context, the fire in the belly known as Jaataraagni ; in

another context, it can mean insufficient . the word Kukshitha:

seen twice , next to each other means Stomach at one place and

kings at the other place. The skill of the poet is abundantly

seen even while tackling a serious theme.

 

***Second Verse of the Panchakam

 

The key message here is that " Vaachaa

Yaachamaeh na Maheeswaraan " . We will

not beg even for a small blade of grass from

the kings under any circumstance .

 

JATARA ANALA: JALATHI KROTA KREEDATH

KRUPEETABHAVA PRABHAA PRATIPATA

PATU JWAALAA MAALAA AKULA: JWALATHU .

 

Let the Jataraagni (the fire in the belly ) burn

sending up flames equalling that of the intense

flames of Vatavaagni that is at the center of

the oceans !

 

VAYAM SAAYAM SAMPPULLA MALLI MADALLIKAA

PARIMALA MUCHAA VAACHAA MAHISWARAAN TRUNAMAPI

NA yAACHAAMAEH .

 

We shall not ask the great kings for even a speck of

dust to reward us with the speech resembling that of

the fragrance of the mallika buds that has blossomed

in the evening.

 

Verse 3 of the Panchakam:

 

YADH ANJANA AAPAM NIRAPAAYAM DHANAJYA

SYANDANA BHUSHANAM DHANAM MEH ASTHI

DUREESWARA DWARA BAHIR VITARKIKAA

DURAASIKAAYAI AYAM ANJALI: RACITA:

 

I have that dark hued , imperishable wealth that

sat in front of the chariot of Arjuna and decorated

that chariot. While I have that enduring wealth, why

whould I sit in the outter portion of the little princelings

and wait for an opportune time to address them and

plead for the granting of perishable wealth from them.

I raise my hands in salutation to say No !

 

***Verse 4 of the Panchakam

 

APP INDHANA DHANANJAYA PRASAMADAM

DHANAM SARIRA PATANA AVATHI PRABHU

NISHEVANA AAPADHANAATH DHANDANAM

DHANANJAYA VIVARDHANAM UTHUTA GOVARDHANAM

SUMANASAAM SAMAARADHANAM SUSAADHANAM

APAADHANAM DHANAM

 

Swami Desikan uses the word Dhanam eleven times

in this verse to describe what is the Dhanam(wealth ) that

one should seek . Rest of them are only for sorrow-causing

purposes because of their vanishing nature according to him.

That kind of wealth is only good to quell one"s hunger

through the act of praising rich people and serving

them until the body falls on ground. That is useless

compared to the wealth that enhanced the fame of Arjuna in the

battle field , lifted the Govardhana giri , makes the mind of

good ones filled with joy, serves to yield all types of boons

and is imperishable . That then is the true wealth to seek.

 

*** Verse 5 of Panchakam

 

In the final verse , Swami Desikan states that he did not

accumulate much wealth in his lifetime; his father did not

leave him much of an estate. He however has a possession

that is superior to every other kind of wealth. That is the wealth

handed to him by his great, great, great, great grandfather, Brahmaa

revered as Varadarajan standing vigil on the top of

Hasthigiri. This famous verse summarizing the Vairaghyam and

Bhakthi of Swami Desikan is as follows:

 

NAASTHI PITRAARJITHAM KIMCHITH

NA MAYA KIMCHITAARJITHAM

ASTHI MEH HASTHI SAILAAGREH

VASTHU PAITHAAMAHAM DHANAM

 

Here Swami Desikan points out that the wealth that

arose from the Agni Kuntam of the Aswamedha

sacrifice conducted by Brahma with the name of

PeruraLaaLan is the greatest of the wealth that he has

acquired as eternal , everlasting family wealth .

He asks why he would go in search of any other

kind of wealth under the circumstances. This sloka alone

would restore one's perspective as one gets befuddled

with the chase after material wealth in a hedonistic fashion.

 

Swami Desikan, Varadarajan Thiruvadigaleh Saranam,

 

Oppiliappan Koil Varadachari Sadagopan