Sri RanganAtha PaadhukhA Sahasram: 22nd Paddhathi

[Guest guest]

Dear Rangaraaja Premis :

 

Swami Desikan named the 22nd chapter of RPS

as Kaanchana Paddathi (KP ) . There are twenty verses

in this section . Kanchanam means gold . After saluting

the different kinds of gems and their reflections , he focusses

in this paddhathi on the Gold in which the various gems

are embedded.

 

Slokam 5 of KP /Slokam 735 of RPS

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sathi varNaguNE suvarNajaathaE :

jagathi khyAtham asowrabhAdh avarNam I

sruthisowrabha saalinA svahemnA

bhavathee SowripadhAvani ! vyudhAstath II

 

O PaadhukhAs of the Lord ! It is well known that the element

known as Gold is splendidly lustrous , but has no fragrance .

You have however removed that deficit of Gold by incorporating

the fragrance of the VedAs in your golden body .

 

Swami Desikan suggests that the VedAs are the breath

of the Lord , which is full of fragrance of the Sarvagandhan .

VedAs are also of the form of divine sound and is therefore made up

of Vaayu (the wind God ) known as Gandhavaaham . There is thus

a relationship between the fragrance of the VedAs emanating from

GandavAham and the Lord's breath enhancing that fragrance .

 

Slokam 9 of KP/ Slokam 739 of RPS

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lEbEh tadhAprabhuruthi noonamiyam bahvathyA :

kaanthyA kaveratanayA kanakApagAthvam I

yaavan Mukhundha PadhahEma padhAvani ! tvam

puNyam vibhooshithavahti puLinam tadheeyam II

 

Swami Desikan suggests here that the river Kauveri ( Ponni )

also got the golden hue from the PaadhukhAs . He says :

O Golden PaadhukhAs of MukundhA ! The river Kauveri attained her

golden color and came to be known as the Golden one

( KanakApagAthvam ) from the day on which you occupied its banks

and spread your golden lustre on her . Basking under that golden lustre

of yours , Cauveri acquired your lustre . Thus She came to be known

as the golden river .

 

Slokam 13 of KP / Slokam 743 of RPS

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SurabhinigamagandhA sowmyapadhmakarasthA

kanakakamalineeva prEkshyasE paadhukhE ! tvam I

bramara iva tvAm prAptha naanAvihAra :

sathamaNineela : sEvathE SaarngadhanvA II

 

O PaadhukhE ! With your fragrance of VedAs , you appear like the Lotus

flower on the hand of Sri Devi . You also remind me of a golden lotus

flower blossoming in the Chandra PushkaraNi of the Lord at Srirangam.

Your Lord , the wielder of Saarangam seeks your company aways

through the adaptation of His form to that of a bluish-black hued king bee

and partakes your makarandham .

 

Swami Desikan suggests that the Lord enjoys the AzhwAr

as intensely as a golden bee enjoys the pollen dust of a

fragrant lotus flower blossoming in a pond .

 

Slokam 20 of KP /Slokam750 of RPS

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prajvalitha panchahEthi: HiraNmayeem tvAm hiranyavilayArha: I

aavahathu JaathavEdA : Sriyamiva na; paadhukhE ! nithyam II

 

O PaadhukhE ! Your Lord possesses the five weapons to destroy

the unrighteous ( AsurAs ) . During His incarnation as Lord NarasimhA ,

He did not even use these weapons and destroyed HiraNyakasipu

with His own sharp nails . He is the one , who arranged the VedAs

for His pleasure and is therefore known as JaathavEdas . May that Lord of

many auspicious attributes bless us to have access to your golden self

always and confer on us that undecaying wealth .

 

Swami Desikan makes reference here to a Rk in Sri Suktham . There , the Golden

 

MahA Lakshmi is saluted and the request is made to Jaatha Vedas for the

attainment of the never-decaying wealth controlled by MahA Lakshmi .

Swami Desikan prays here for the boon of obtaining the Lord's

paadhukhAs as the supreme wealth to possess .

 

Another intreprtation associated with the Aandavan Aasramam for

this slokam is as follows : SaasthrAs state that one obtains supreme

wealth by meditating on Agni BhagavAn . Similar to that , the meditation

on the Lord should yield a SadAchaaryA for a seeker . The reference is

to the situation , where Swami Desikan is asking the Lord to bless us

with SadAchAryAs instead of asking SadAcharyAs to reveal the Lord to us .

 

Sri RanganAtha Divya MaNi PaadhukhE ! Thubhyam Nama:

Swami Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Oppiliappan Kovil VaradAchAri Sadagopan