Koil Ozhugu

[Guest guest]

SRI:

 

Sri T. R. Govindarajan wrote:

>>

>> Sri. Bhagavathas:

>> Who wrote Koil Ozhugu? What is written there?

 

"Koil Ozhugu" is the Srirangam Temple Record with

details from the days of Ramanujar and even Nathamuni.

 

Does anyone have a copy of the following text?

 

Hari Rao, V.N., edited and translated; Koil Ozhugu:

The Chronicle of the Srirangam Temple with

Historical Notes. Madras: Rochouse and sons, 1961.

 

adiyEn,

-Shreyas

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[Guest guest]

Dear BhakthAs :

 

Professor Vasumathi Narayanan of Florida

University is very knowledgable about

Koil Ozhugu (KO), a document that was assembled over several

centuries and has insertions for periods , when there

were no records available on temple practises .Hence

a number of passages there are recognized as interpolations .

Some of the included items are even anachronistic .

KO is OK when we remember the above fact .

 

Koil Ozhugu literally means the Chronicles of( Srirangam )

Koil and is an excellent record of the Koil SamprdhAyams

and especially ThiruadhyayanOthsavam and the procedures

followed on Pahal Patthu , Iraa Patthu , MokshOthsavam

for NammAzhwAr , the important roles played by the Arayars

representing NammAzhwAr during those days in general

and particularly on the MokshOthsavam day at Srirangam .

 

The following two sholarly books by Professor Narayanan

are quite important for BhakthAs interested in the history

of AdhyayanOthsavam at Srirangam , which is the driver

for all the other AdhyayanOthsavams :

 

1. The Tamil VedhA : PiLLAn's Interpretation

of ThiruvAimozhi --John Carman & V.NarayaNan

( Very good chapters on Ubhaya Vedaantham , TattvA ,

UpAyaa and PurushArtham as found in NammAzhwAr's

ThiruvAimozhi ).

 

2. The Vernacular VedhA : Revelation , Recitation and Ritual

By VasudhA NaarAyanan ( This book is most important

in the context of the AdhyayanOthsavam ).

 

KO deals extensively with the origin of AdhyayanOthsavam

at Srirangam .There are references in it to Sri Nathamuni

establishing classes for teaching ThiruvAimozhi at

Srirangam , when he was in charge of the temple

administration during the 10th Centrury .

 

Some highlights from Koil Ozhugu are summarized below:

 

1. KO covers the importance of music in worship of

the Lord up to the fourteenth Century . KO refers to

the Lord's special affection for the Arayars and relates

the grace of the Lord as " the Emperor among Musicians /

Gaayaka Saarvabhouman " in awarding special honorific

titles to ThiruvarangaperumAL Arayar of AchArya RaamAnujA's

time (11th century ). It is mentioned that the Arayar

sevai is viewed by the Arayars as Sevai for Namm PerumAL

(Our Lord) and Namm AzhwAr ( Our AzhwAr) The Koil Ozhugu

makes reference to the Arayars as the limbs of

the AzhwAr(s).

 

2.Reference is there to the divine command/

invitation of the Lord for NammAzhwAr thru

the chief of the Temple servants to come to

Srirangam from ThirukkuruhUr for adhyayanOthsavam.

The sampradhAyam of writing , reading aloud

the invitation and tying that message to the head

of The Temple KainkaryaparAL to deliver to

AzhwAr and then bringing AzhwAr back to Srirangam

for the AdhyayanOthsvam are mentioned .

 

The happenings of the days and nights during

the AdhyayanOthsavam recorded by KO are throroughly

covered by Professor NarAyaNan under the chapter,

" Recreating Heaven on Earth " .Her description of the

MokshOthsavam is very poignant .Here is an excerpt

that describes the event preceding NammAzhwAr's ascent

to Sri Vaikuntam :

 

The Moksham drama begins , when the Arayars come

to ThiruvAimozhi 10.9 , which describes the final ascent

of NammAzhwAr to Sri Vaikuntam . The last twenty verses

TVM: 10.9 and 10.10) are recited twice .The archa of NammAzhwAr

is carried around the Lord to the accompaniment of

torches , umbrella , fan with reverence . The conclusion

of the recitation signals the ascent of AzhwAr to

Paramapadham .

 

Now NammaazhwAr's head is placed at the feet of

His Lord and curtains are drawn hiding the Lord and AzhwAr

from the sight of the audience. few minutes later , there

is a dhIpArAdhanai and we see AzhwAr now covered totally

by a mound of ThuLasi leaves representing his liberation

(Moksham ). The last ten verses of TVM is recited and

is followed by the first verse of TVM to complete

the cycle.

 

What happens thereafter is described by Prof.NarayaNan:

" A representative of the Sri VaishNavA community then

goes up and requests the Lord to return NammAzhwAr to them

and recites verses from SaraNAgathi Gadhyaa ... The Lord's

reply spoken thru a priest , thunders forth: "We give him

back to you ". The request and its affirmation are repeated

three times , at which point the AzhwAr and the Lord are covered

behind the curtain.The TuLasi leaves are removed and

when the curtain is pushed aside ,we see NammAzhwAr

returning to humanity as we hear the recitation of

KaNNinuNN SirutthAmpu of Madhura Kavi " . NammAzhwAr

has now returned to earth to be our PrathamAchAryan .

"while acheiving salvation , he remians as an indispensable

link between humna beings and the Lord. Liberated from

mortal life , he is yet one with the living people ,

drawing them to the feet of the Lord , where he abides.

Through his presence and by the sacred words that

he spoke --words that are considered divine , yet spoken in

human voice (thiru vai mozhi) --he binds the devotees of

the Lord and becomes the person in whom the divine

and the human relams intersect ".

 

This is the central message of the Thriu AdhyayanOthsavam

that will be celebrated at the Sri RanganAthA temple of

North America in a few days time .

 

NammAzhwAr ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam ,

V.SadagOpan

[Guest guest]

SrImatyaI GodayaI Nama:

 

Dear Bhagavathas,

 

I am looking for a copy of koil Ozhugu(English) edited by Sri V.N.Hari

Rao.I have searched for this book in chennai and also tried to contact the

publishers but it seems the publishers have moved their premisis.Even

in SriRangam i was not able to get a copy .Only the tamil version is

available.

 

I would be very greateful if anyone can direct me to

the address where it is still available or if anyone in India having a

copy and willing to send a photocopy by post can contact me at the

email address of this posting

 

Thanks and regards

 

adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Venkat S Iyengar