"pancha-sayanattin male-Eri"

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Dear friends,

 

Today (3 January) adiyen continued freely "reflecting"

into his private "mArgazhi" diary about the

'tiruppAvai' verse of the day ... "kuttu-villakk-eriya

kOttukAl kattil male..." (Stanza # 19).

 

adiyen is sharing only a few impressions of the verse

below and exactly as they were said to be have been

held by venerable "purvAchAryA-s". (Very scrupulously,

adiyen has duly censored out all embellishments,

fanciful or otherwise, of adiyen's own handiwork lest

it offend the tastes and sensitivities of learned

'bhAgavatA-s' on the list).

 

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

 

Stanza #21 is a very important verse for Sri

Vaishnavas since it is said to contain some cardinal

principles of doctrine.

 

The first 2 lines are of utmost philosophical

significance to the adherents of SriRamanuja

'darsanam':

 

"kuttu-villaku-eria kottukAl kattil male

metth-enra pancha-sayanattin male-Eri...".

 

In this verse, the damsels from the 'aayarpAdi'

village of Nandagopalan, give vent to slightly

vehement feelings as they address "nappinnai-pirAtti".

Their feelings are at best described as one of

"platonic jealousy".

 

They feel really jealous that while they are left

fretting and fuming at the gates of "napinnai's"

house, impatient to have audience with Krishna, the

girl "napinnai-pirAtti" however chooses to remain

completely unmindful of their restiveness. She seems

wholly insensitive to their gnawing anxiety to quickly

meet with Lord Krishna. Napinnai simply continues to

remain supine in Krishna's warm embrace

("vaittu-kidantha- malar-mArbA"), savouring its warmth

on a grand "ivory bedstead" (kOttukAl-kattil") and

blissfully ensconsed in the deep and delicious valleys

of an incredibly "soft mattress" ("metth-enra

pancha-sayanam").

 

Thus, the girl "napinnai" ("thAyyAr") appears to be

giving the 'aayarpAdi" damsels the "divine

cold-shoulder" and the latter (in this verse) seem to

resent it. And the resentment apparently arises from a

twinge of "platonic jealousy" they cannot help feeling

towards "napinnai".

 

(If you ask adiyen if there is ever such a special

variety of "jealousy" on earth, adiyEn can only say,

"Yes, everything is possible in the exquisite poetry

of AndAl!" There is indeed such a thing ...a human

feeling which one may perhaps licentiously call

"sAtvika-porAmai" ... "platonic envy" which does

sometimes overtake a spiritual-aspirant when he sees

the rapid spiritual progress another more "advanced"

'bhAgavata' is making towards God. He thinks the

latter is "nearer" God than he is himself and hence is

also better off ! It is such a variety of

"jealousy"... the platonic type.. that also afflicted

the "aayarpAdi" girls who beseeched "napinnai-pirAtti"

to let them a little nearer bhagawan Krishna, although

not as near as pirAtti herself was. Adiyen must

confess here that he always feels "platonic jealousy"

fill his heart whenever he is standing far behind in

the 'dharma-darshan' queue in the Tirumala temple and

resentfully watches a "VIP-vAru" being led right

royally past him by temple-officials straight into

"Sri-vAru" Venkateshwara's Presence ! In those moments

adiyen usually conquers feelings of jealousy by

reciting silently this verse #19 of the "tiruppAvai"

in praise of "tiruvEngada-mudaiyAn"!)

 

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

 

Scholars and "achAryA-s" point out that the expression

"pancha-sayanattin-male-Eri" is to be interpreted in

more ways than one.

 

One is to understand it as: "the Lord and His Consort

Napinnai lying on a cotton-bedding or mattress". This

meaning is appropriate from a literal and contextual

point of view. To take it a little further we may even

say that "pancha-sayanam" refers to a "mattress" that

has the 5 excellent features of beauty, coolness,

whiteness, softness and fragrance. Or, it may be taken

to mean a "mattress" made out of 5 excellent

substances viz., tendrils, flowers, cotton-fluff, soft

wool and pieces of finest silk. (Once again here,

adiyEn must recollect the "pancha-sayanam" that is

usually provided for the "utsava-murthy" of Lord

Venkateshwara who goes out in ritual procession, with

the two "pirAtti-s", on a grand palanquin. Adiyen once

had the opportunity to feel with his hands those

"mattresses" which the temple priests had used to

upholster the palanquin. Believe me, sirs, they are

truly pure "pancha-sayanam" as they have all the

qualities and excellences of bedding described by the

'tiruppAvai'! Next time you visit Tirumala please make

it a point to observe the "cushions and mattresses" on

the Lord's palanquin and you will instantly and

certainly remember AndAl's phrase!).

 

"pancha-sayanam", our "purvAchAryA-s" remind us,

however has a deeper, more esoteric significance of

doctrine than the literal context would ordinarily

suggest.

 

"pancha-sayanam" in this verse of AndAl refers to

"artha-panchaka" ... which is 'sine-qua-non' for the

understanding of the SriVaishnava conception of

Godhead.

 

What is the "artha-panchaka"?

 

The "AchAryA-s" explain it as one's 5 inner states of

realization. The states of realization are wholly

experiential. They are not measurable by applying

external yardsticks. They are

 

(1) The state of realization of the true nature of God

known as "paramAtma-svarupa" or "Iswara-svarupa". In

Tamil, this is also called "mikka-iRanilai".

 

(2) The state of realization of the completely

helpless nature of the individual soul known as

"jivAtma- svarupa" or as in Tamil, "uyir-nilai".

 

(3) The realization of "upAya-svarupa" or the means of

attaining "mukti" or salvation. This is called

"takka-neRigal" in Tamil. These means or "upAya"

include GnyAna, karma, Bhakti yoga and "prappathi" or

"saranagathi".

 

(4) The realization of the various pitfalls on the

road to attainment of "paramAtma"... the realization

of sins and fates that can impede one's progress

towards salvation. These are called "virOdhi-svarupa"

or "jivAtma-virOdhigal" (in tamil). These pitfalls are

again 5 in number: (a) 'svarupa-virOdhi' or what is

anti-soul (b) 'paratva-virodhi' or anti-God ©

'purushArtha- virodhi' or what is inimical to the

ultimate goals of life (d) 'upAya-virodhi' or what

impairs adoption of the right means to attain mukti

(e) 'prApti-virOdhi' or what is antipathic to one's

natural destiny

 

(5) The realization of "purushArtha-svarupa" which is

the actual experience of "paramAtmA". This in Tamil is

called "vAlvinai", eternal and undiminishing bliss.

 

According to SriVaishnava doctrine every Man must

strive to the above 5 States of Realization with the

help of an "achArya" and the Grace of Isvara. And that

indeed is the true goal of all human existence.

 

Parashara Bhattar talked of the same 5-fold States of

Realization, the "artha-panchaka", in his famous

'tanian' (doxology):

 

"mikka virai-nilaiyum meyyAm-uyir-nilaiyum

takka neriyum taDaiyAgit-tokkiyallum

Uzhvinaiyum vAlvinaiyum Odhum kurukaiyarkOn

yAzh-inn-isai vedat-tiyal".

 

dAsan,

Sampathkumaran

 

 

 

 

 

 

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