MahA VisvAsam

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Dear BhakthAs : Sriman VaasudEvan of Chennai

had written beautifully about the MahA VisvAsam

aspects of Thirumangai AzhwAr in the context of his

ManimaDakkOil Paasurams .Sri Velukkudi Krishnan

has followed up with the" Satyam Jn~Anam anantham

Brahman " aspects of the Lord and matched it word by word

with Thirimangai's Paasura Vaakhyams along the lines

of the commentary of our pUrvAchAryAs .

 

Inspite of all their trials and tribulations ,

AzhwArs , AchAryAs and other great souls

trusted the Lord totally and were nourished by

the deep springs of MahA visVaasam inside them for

their Lord as their unfailing Rakshakan as Achyuthan and

held on to His lotus feet at all times . Occasionally ,

they will get unhappy with the Lord for "neglecting"

them inspite of their MahA VisvAsam and will react

angrily like Thirumangai did at Thiru InthaLUr .

 

The dialog between the Lord and Thirumangai

as described by Sriman VaasudEvan is echoed

in Saint ThyagarAjA's kruthis , where he reminds

the Lord of his utter dedication to Him and his sole

dependence on His grace .I will quote some examples

to illustrate how the anubhavam of the great souls

across centuries has the central thread of MahA VisvAsam

that runs thru all of their lives and illuminates all of

their actions and how at times they testily question

the Lord for not taking into account their utter

faith in Him .

 

PanthuvarALi Krithi: ninnE nEra namminAnurA

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>From my early days ( as a boy) , I have placed my

implicit faith in You and You alone .Oh Raamachandra!

I have seen great scholars of VedAs , SaasthrAs and PurANAs

standing baffled by the various controversies about

Your parathvam .I have seen people wandering mindlessly

and performing YaagAs and Yaj~nAs for worldly pleasures.

I am convinced that unless one obtains Your grace , one can not

thrive in this life ( yee janmamunu ninnu raaji jEsikOnalEka

raajillarani ThyagarAja-Raaja , Raaghava , ninnE namminAnurA ).

The choice of the words , " ThyagarAja-RaajA , Raaghava "

by this great Raama BhakthA is most moving .

 

NaattA Raaga Krithi :NinnE Bhajana sEyu VaaDanu

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

Oh Sakala LOka Paalaka ! RaamA ! I meditate on You

and have selected You alone as my object of worship .

I can not bring myself to approach any others for

blessing me and granting me Moksham .

 

Jingala Raaga Krithi: anAthuDanu ghAnu; Raama nE

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

In this krithi popularized by Kadri Gopalnath ,

the Saint declares : Oh RaamabhadrA ! I am not an orphan

(anAthai) without protection . The simple people of

the world think that I am a destitute and an orphan

because I have no support of men . I am protected by You ,

the Supreme One , whose omnipotence has been

celebrated by great rishis well-versed in the VedAs.

Who else do I need for protection , when You are

protcting me ? Here , the Saint pushes aside the perception

and pity of misled people and declares his MahA VisvAsam

in the Lord.

 

Yentha vEdu kOndu RaaghavA : Sarasvathi ManOhari krithi

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

 

He addresses the Lord as Saarvabhouman and says:

with deep and joyous belief , I concede that the

greatest of happiness consists in seeing You taking

residence in my heart cavity . I have reposed my total

faith entirely in You ( chittamanthu ninnu jUju soukhyamE-

yuthamambhanuju nuppOnguchUnu satthamaathramA ! CHAALA

NAMMITHEENI ; SAARVABHOUMA SRI THYAGARAAJANUTHA) .

 

With affection , anguish and salugai , Saint ThyagarAjA

asks the Lord: Oh RaaghavA ! How long shall I have to

beg You , pray to You to come to me ? Do You still have

doubts about my MahA VisvAsam in You ?

 

Aahiri Krithi: Aaa daya Sri Raghuvara! nEdEla raadaya !

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

 

Oh Raghuvara! DayAmbhudhi! You had initiated me with great

affection into the mysteries of Bhakthi to You and have

protected me always. You had asked me to bear with patience

all the insults that have come my way. You had nourished

my body with the needed sustenance to sing about You .

Where is all that mercy gone now ? You had made me believe

that You are my father and Mother .I have MahA VisvAsam

in You and stay in a state of fearlessness.

 

Questioning Sri RaamA tightly , the Saint has a tinge of

doubt here just as Thirumangai had in his MaNimAdakkOil

Paasurams .He goes on to dispell this passing cloud of doubt

by reminding the Lord of the text and context of His assurances

that has made him filled with MahA VisvAsam and sustained

him . This mood is revealed in the famous KamAs Raaga Krithi ,

"SitA pathI ! naamanasuna-siddhAnthamani yunnAnurA" made

famous by SangItha KalANidhi Sri Maharaajapuram

VisvanAtha Iyer.

 

KamAs Krithi : SitA Pathi !

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

 

Oh Jaanaki RaamA ! You took the initiative

with great affection towards me to reveal Your

mahimai in presence of AnjanEyan and others and

gave me the words of assurance : " why should you,

ThyagarAjA be afraid in this world ? You are protected

by Me. " I have cherished in the depth of my heart

these words as sacred charter and have MahA VisvAsam

in You ( prEma jUji naapai peddhamanasu jEsi , nee

mahimalElla niNDAra jUpi , yee mahini BhayamEDi kannamADa

Raamachandra ! ThyagarAja Vinutha , SitApathi ).

 

RamA RamaNa BhAramA ? nannu bhrOva Srikara: Vasantha Bhairavi

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

In this long krithi with three charaNams , the Saint

has some tough dialog with RaamA based on his MahA

VisvAsam in the Lord and asks the Lord in return as

to why He does not come forward to bless him .The dialog

goes along these lines : " Oh SamAna rahitha RaamA !

I am proud that there is no one equal or greater than You.

Unlike the common folk , who fail to develop faith (visvAsam )

in You due to their ignorance about Your greatness,

I have fully understood Your limitless and unparalleled

Mahimai . I have accordingly sought refuge in You so that

You can take me in Your hand and bless me " .

 

" As a result of my inner awakening , I have declared before

the lay folk that they can find in You , the ParamAthman ,

who protects all and have proclaimed with undisputed

authority Your Vaibhavam . Pray, uphold with mercy this

truth behind my words. I implore You and prostrate

before You. Why so much hesitation in supporting me?".

 

" I am fully aware that You can see through pretensions

and formalities . If I go to You in all sincerity in

a forlorn condition to unburden to you without reserve my

anguishes , why should You pounce on me like puffed rice

from the frying pan ( gathilEka neethO naajAli delupaBhOthE

laajamulu vEgaga nEla ? ).YOU HAVE GRACED MY HOUSE WITH

YOUR PRESENCE ; AND I AM NOT GOING TO GIVE UP YOUR JAPAM

AND AARAADHANAM".

 

NaarAyaNa GouLai Krithi: InnALLU DayarAkunnA

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Sri ThyagarAja SwamigaL's hrudhaya BhAvam pours out

in this krithi . He pleads with the Lord for not

responding appropriately to his MahA VisvAsam :

" What is the matter that Your grace has not been

made available to me all these days? Pray tell me

atleast now .From my childhood , I have reposed my

faith ENTIRELY in You and You alone. ...Did I ask

You to give me gold, wealth, horses,and elephants

and did I ever utter an untruth ? I have never

forgotten You .I have always cherished You in my

mind as my family Treasure ( kula Dhanam )."

 

" I have always sent my time cherishing You with

happiness in my heart as my father, Mother, elder

and Younger Brother; without engaging myself in

disputation with elders , and worshipping Your

blessed Feet with flowers ."

 

SankharAbharaNa Krithi: yEvidhamulanaina

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

Paavana Roopa ! ParAthpara ! Raama !

BhAvincha jUchupaDla neevE -bhrOvavalEnu

ghAni vErevvaru ? ( However deeply I ponder over

this matter , Can I find anyone except You to

protect me ?)-- I have always firmly believed

that You are the friend of the distressed (dhinAs)

and have constantly prayed to You ( dhIna DayApara

Moorthivi neevani nE nEra nammithirA --nEnu sadhA

ninnu vEDithirA ; RaamA ). You alone are the God ,

whom I want to see ( SaakshAthkAramuna neevE ).

WHO IS THERE WHO COULD LIVE WITHOUT YOUR GRACE ?

 

AsAvEri Krithi: Nammaka nE mOsa bhOdhunaDarA ?

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

 

We will conclude this posting with a magnificient

pronouncement of the Saint about his MahA VisvAsam

as a Prapannan , who has taken refuge at the Lord's

sacred feet .

" Oh Raghu-kula Rathnam ! Would I allow myself to be

deceived without reposing my VisvAsam in You , who would

drive away from my mind all evil propensities , and make me

regard wealth, family etc., of the toy house as not my own ,

and would free me from restless and ceaseless births and

deaths, giving quietitude to the senses by Your

charming figure. "

 

Tvayi Rakshathi Rakshakai: Kimanyai:

tvayi chArakshathi Rakshakai: kimnayai: I

Ithi niscchitha dhee: srayAmi nithyam

NruharE VegavathI taDAsrayam thvAm

 

--- Sri KaamAsikAshtakam : Verse 8

 

Sriman NaarAyanan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan