Sri AparyApthAmrutha DhyAna SopAanam : SlOkam 11

[Guest guest]

Dear BhakthAs of Sri AarAvamudhan :

 

After focusing on the ThiruvabhishEkam(crown) of the Lord

adorned with the fragrant garlands , Thirukkudanthai

Desikan (1701-1783 A.D )reflected on the overall beauty of

the Lord reclining under the Vaidhikha VimAnam at KumbakONam.

He also remembered his own eulogy of Sri Ranganathan during

his avathaaram earlier as Swami Vedantha Desikan (1268-1369 A.D).

Four centuries of stored memory rushed past him and out came

the beautiful eulogy of the beauty of Sri SaarangarAjan , which

has many echos of his earlier mangaLAsAsanam of Sri RangarAjan .

Let us enjoy these two eulogies side by side .

 

Swami Desikan's sthuthi at Srirangam is as follows :

 

paadhAmbhOjam sprusathi bhajathE RanganAthasya janghAm

uRu dhvandhE vilagathi sanair Urdhvam abhyEthi naabhim I

vakshasyAsthE valathi bhujayOr maamikEyam manishA

vakthrAbhikhyAm pibhathi vahathE vAsanAm mowlibhandhE II

--SlOkam 10 of Sri Bhagavadh DhyAna sOpAanam

 

Thirukkudanthai Desikan's sthuthi of Sri AarAvamudhan

starts with the very words of Swami Desikan :

 

paadhAmbhOjam prahtikalam iham SaarngiNO noumi nithyam

janghAjAnu pravara yugaLam samsmarEyam tathOpi I

UrvOryugmam tadhanu mahitham naabhi dEsam bhujou dhvou

vakshOvakthram tadhitham akhilam sundaram nirvisEyam II

--SlOkam 11 of Sri AparyApthAmrutha DhyAna sOpAnam

 

Both their salutations start with the PaadhAmbhOjam of

the Lord and ends up with the enjoyment of the Kireetam

symbolizing His SarvEsvarathvam .

 

(1)Swami Desikan says : " MaamikA iyam manIshA RanganAthasya

PaadhAmbhOjam sprusathi "

 

(meaning ): This mind of mine touches the lotus feet of

Sri RanganAthan .

 

Thirukkudanthai Desikan says in his aparAvathaaram :

" aham SaarngiNa: PaadhAmbhOjam nithyam prathikalam

noumi ".

 

(meaning ): I pay obescience to the Lotus feet of

Lord SaarangapANi every second of each day .

 

Swami Desikan prostrated before Sri RangarAjan and his mind

touched the lotus feet of the Lord of Srirangam with reverence .

 

Thirukkudanthai Desikan's mind has ceaseless rememberance

(dhruva smruthi ) of the Lord's lotus feet .

 

(2)As their next step , both the AchAryAs salute the beautiful

ankles and knees of the Lords at Srirangam and Thirukkudanthai.

 

Swami Desikan says: "maamikA iyam manIshA janghAm bhajathE "

(This mind of mine salutes next the (comely )ankles of the Lord ".

 

Resonating with this thought , Thirukkudanthai Desikan says:

" Tadhanu janghA jAnu pravara yugaLam samsmarEyam "( After

the meditation on the lotus feet of the Lord of Thirukkudanthai ,

my mind thinks about the lovely ankles and the well-shaped knees

of AarAvamudhan ).

 

(3) Swami Desikan continues with the PaadhAthi kEsAntha

varNanam and salutation . He concedes: " MaamikA iyam maneeshA

RanganAthasya Uru dhvandhvE sanai: vilagathi , Urdhvam naabhim

abhyEthi" ( This mind of mine now focuses firmly on the beauty of

the Lord's pair of thighs and thereafter approaches the Lord's

naabhi dEsam ".

 

Thurukkudanthi Desikan responds : " TathOpi UrvO: yugmam tadhanu

mahitham naabhi dEsam noumi "( After enjoying the beauty of the

ankles and the knees of the Lord of Thirukkudanthai , my mind

salutes His powerful thighs and then the much celebrated naabhi

dEsam ).

 

Swami Desikan moves from the naabhi dEsam and progresses very

quickly to appreciate the beauty of the chest , arms , face

and the kireetam of the Lord of Srirangam one by one ( MaamikA

iyam manishA vakshasi aasthE; bhujayO: valathi; vakthra

abhikhyAm pibhathi ; moulibhandhE vAsanAm vahathE ). Through

a beautiful choice of words , Swami Desikan shares his

blissful experience of the enjoyment of the Lord's soundharyam

with us : This mind of mine rests at the chest of the Lord

to enjoy that extraordinary beauty; it roves around the arms

to salute their valour ; it drinks without let the soundharyam of

the face of the Lord ; it reflects and remembers firmly the

supreme Lord's Kireetam .

 

Thirukkudanthai Desikan's mind becomes a kaledioscope

to enjoy the upper limbs of the Lord starting from the chest

region :

 

" aham SaarngiNa: dhvou bhujau nithyam prathikalam noumi;

aham SaarngiNa: Vaksha Noumi; aham SaarngiNa: vakthram

noumi; aham SaarngiNa: Sudaram tadhitham akhilam nirvisEyam "

( I salute the anugraha hastham and the nigraha hastham

of the Lord Of Thirukkdanthia always; I salute and enjoy

His broad chest and the lotus-like face every moment

without satiety ; I thoroughly enjoy all of these most

beautiful limbs without let ".

 

The aanandhAnubhavams of both the Desikans is rooted

in the anubhavam of Swami NammAzhwAr , who explained

his state of mind , when he enjoyed the beauty of

the lotus feet of the Lord of Thirukkudanthai:

" kannAr mathiL soozh Kudanthaik kidanthAi

adiyEnaruvANAL , sennAL yennAL annALL unathALL

pititthE selakkANE "

 

The beauty of this third Paasuram passage of NammAzhwAr

can only be appreciated by translating rhe whole Paasuram .

Dr. V.N. Vedantha Desikan's transaltion captures the essence

of the mood of NammAzhwAr , when he held on to the lotus

feet of the Lord of Thirukkudanthai: " Oh Lord reclining at

Thirukkudanthai ! I am not in a fit position to resort to any

procedural technique--as SaadhanA or UpAyam -to reach You.

At this stage, what can I do? Who can serve me as a help?

Why do you subject me to impossible acts of ritual? Because ,

I do not -- let me make it very clear to You , my dear Lord --

need any technique or any person except You to reach You .

This is because I can not ever think of any other help from

any body except You , even if it be for the laudable purpose

of reaching You. Make no mistake about it , please . So, till

the last moment of my life here , I must go about and do things,

at all times , only clinging to Your feet as a prop . This is

my strong desire (will )".

 

Thus , Thirukkudanthai Desikan enjoyed step by step

the inexhautible and the insatiable beauty of AarAvamudhan

in the spirit of " AapeetAn MouLi paryantham pasyatha:

PurushOtthamam " and lost himself in the aanandha lahari

arising from such an anubhavam .

 

Lord AarAvamudhan was immensely pleased with his dear

devotee and entered the heart cavity of the Bhakthan

standing in front of Him in a state of trance in

the manner described by PeriyAzhwAr earlier:

" aravatthamaLiyinODum azhagiya PaaRRkkadalOdum ,

Aravindhap paavayum taamumahampaDi vanthu puhunthu ,

paravait thirai pala mOthap paLLikoNDAn ". He wanted

His devotee to continue with his mangaLAsAsanams

consistent with his paripUrNAnubhavam . Thirukkudanthai

Desikan woke out of his trance and eulogized the insistent

Lord with two more SlOkams .AdiyEn will cover them next .

 

Sri KomaLavalli SamEtha Sri AaarAvamudhan thiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Daasan, Oppiliappan koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan