Sri RaamAnuja NooRRandhAthi & Thiruvarangatthu AmudanAr: AchArya RaamAnujA Thirunakshathram:His 983rd Blessed Birthday celebrations : Part I

[Guest guest]

SrimathE RaamAnujAya Nama:

 

Dear IrAmAnusa BhakthAs :

 

We will be celebrating Our matchless Sri RaamAnujA's

birthday with pomp and circumstance on May 7 , 2000

at USA and May 8 at India . This is an occasion to

pass and reflect on the great Kula dhanams left behind

for our Ujjeevanam by Udayavar . The recent CD ROM released

by The International RaamAnujA Society attempts to pay tribute

to the magnificient Life and illustrious Dhivya Sookthis of

AchArya RaamAnujA (http://www.geocities.com/irscd)

 

The wonderful home pages created by Sri Madhavakkannan

and Sri Achutharaman of Singapore for AchArya RaamAnujA

(http://members.tripod.com/~Sriramanujar) is an

outstanding summary of our Great AchAryan's dhivya charitham ,

His Sri Sookthis , His Dhivya MangaLa Vigraham at Srirangam

and the tributes paid by Swamy Desikan ( YathirAja Sapthathi),

MaNavALa MaamunigaL ( YathirAja Vimsathy) and IrAmAnusa-

NooRRandhAthi ( Thiruvarangatthu Amudanaar) .In the last tribute

(IrAmAnusa NooRRandhAthi) consisting of 108 paasurams ,

coverage has been upto 85 Paasurams sofar.

 

There are other Kaimkaryams that are either underway

or have been completed this first year of this new millenium

by the International RaamAnujA Society with the strong

participation by the members of the Bhakthi and

MalOlan Net:

 

(1) MudaliyANDAn SamarpaNam at ThriunArAyaNapuram(Feb 11,2000)

 

(2) "Golden" ThridhaNDam for the Hastham of Moolavar

at SriperumbhUthUr ( MAY , 2000)

 

(3) Anubhavam of Sri Thirukkudanthai Sampath Rengarajan

on the individual paasurams of IrAmAnusa NooRRandhAthi

( Starting from May First week of this year).

 

(4) Two Silver Vattils for the daily ThiruvArAdhanam

of ThirunArAyaNan at Melukote , where AchArya RaamAnujA

performed prathishtai for the Moolavar 900 years ago.

This vattil SamarpaNa kaimkaryam is in memory of adiyEn's

dear parents ,Parama PadhavAsis , Sri Poundarikapuram

VaradAchAr Swamy and Srimathi AlamElu ammAl, who have nurtured

adiyEn in the Ubhaya VedAntha sampradhAyam of AchArya RaamAnujA ;

this Kaimkaryam is hence a personal one and the SamarpaNam

should also take place in May 2000.

 

Coming back to item 3 , it will be wonderful to have

the Bhakhti-laden postings of Sri Sampath Rengarajan

on the individual Paasurams of IrAmAnusa NooRRandhAthi

in the days to come and their solkkattu and

artha gouravam . As a part of this celebrations,

adiyEn will post two postings on the author

of the AchArya-Bhakthi filled paasurams of the NooRRandhAthi

and the four taniyans for this final prabhandham of

the blessed collect of the Four Thousand.

 

Life of Thiruvaranagatthu AmudanAr (TVA)

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

 

We will commence this posting with the Vaazhi

ThirunAmam for Sri TVA:

 

YenthAthai KoorEsar iNaiyadiyOn VaazhiyE

yezhil moongirkkudi viLanga inghu vanthOn vaazhiyE

nanthAmal YathirAsar nalam puhazhvOn vaazhiyE

nann Madhura kavinilayai naNNinOn vaazhiyE

painthAma Arangan padham paRRinAn vaazhiyE

Panguniyil attha naaL paaruthitthAn vaazhiyE

andhAthi nooRRettum aruLinAn vaazhiyE

aNiyarangatthamudanAr adiyiNaikaL vaazhiyE

 

This Vaazhi ThirunAmams salutes the pair of

sacred feet of Thiruvarangatthu Amudanar ,

who had KurEsan as his AchAryan .His birth

at ThirumUngirkkudi on Panguni Hastham day ,

his ever-lasting tribute to AchArya RaamAnujA

in the form of 108 paasurams set in the kalitthuRai

andhAthi form are recognized. The most important

part of this Vaazhit thirunAmam identifies AmudanAr

as the One , who attained the status of

Madhura Kavi in illustrious AchArya Bhakthi.

 

Madhura Kavi declared in his Prabhandham:

"tEvu maRRariyEn" ( I do not know of any God

other than my AchAryan, Swamy NammAzhwAr).

AmudanAr's AchArya Bhakthi asserted itself

in the following words of his Prabhandham ,

where he declares that AchArya RaamAnujA

is his sole succor and sustenance :

 

" pERonRu maRRillai ninn CharaNanRi ,

appERaLitthathaRkku aaRu onRumillai,

MaRRa SaRaNanRi.." (45th paasuram )

 

Here AmudanAr states that Sri RaamAnujA's

sacred feet are his UpAyam and Phalan and

he can not describe in words the greatest

help given by Sri RaamAnujA to him . AmudanAr

states that there is nothing else to be

attained as a treasure except the sacred feet

of AchArya RaamAnujA for one's ujjeevanam ,

whether they are scholars steeped in Vedhic

lore or common folk without such austere

training.

 

There are four Taniyans for IrAmAnusa nooRRandhAthi

attributed to Vedhap PirAn Bhattar , SOmAsi ANDAn

and another author .We will salute AmudanAr through

these invocatory paasurams (Taniyans) and cover

the charithram of AmudanAr , the contemproary of

AchArya RaamAnujA , in the next posting .

 

Taniyan 1 by Vedhap PirAn Bhattar:

 

munaani vinai ahala Moonkirkkudiyamudhan,

ponnang kazhark kamalap pOthiraNDum--yennudaya

sennik kaNiyAhac chErthinEn, tennpulatthArkk-

kennaik kadavudayEn yann

 

(Meaning): All of adiyEn's ancient paapams

have been banished with the smaraNam of

the sacred feet of AmudhanAr. He was born in

the village of Moonkirkkudi. His sacred feet are

the most desirable and lovely like the lotus

flower. AdiyEn is wearing them as the abharaNam

for my head.How can adiyEn become the target

now of the Yama kinkarAs and their tortures ?

No way.

 

Taniyan 2 by Vedhap PirAn Bhattar:

 

nayam taru pErinbhamellAm pazhuthenRu naNNInar paal

sayam taru keerthi RaamAnusa Muni thALiNai mEl

Uyarntha guNatthut ThiruvarangatthamudhOnkumanbAl

iyampum KalitthuRaiyandhAthi Odha visai nenjamE

 

(Meaning): Here , the prayer is to one's nenju

to agree to recite the sacred prabhnadham of

IrAmAnusa nooRRandhAthi of AmudhanAr.

 

EmperumAnAr is the glorious One , who blesses

us with victory over the afflictions of SamsAram ,

once we seek His sacred feet as refuge after

clearly recognizing that the material pleasures

are evanescent and ephemeral. Oh My mind, Please

agree to recite the Prabhandham of AmudhanAr set

in kalitthuRai metre in the form of an andhAthi ;

AmudhanAr's dhivya prabhndham originated from

his saraNAgathi with MahA visvAsam at the sacred

feet of RaamAnujar and the love that flowed from that

sacred rite taking the shape of RaamAnuja

nooRRandhAthi is for our ujjeevanam.

 

Taniyan 3 by SOmAsi ANDAn :

 

sollin thohai koNDu unathadip pOthukkut thoNDu seyum

nallanbharEtthum unn naamamelAm yenRan naavinuLLE

allum pahalum amarumpaDi nalhu aRu samayam

vellum Parama, IrAmAnusa! ithenn viNNappamE

 

(Meaning): Here SOmAsi ANDAn wishes his tongue

to recite the ThirunAmams of IrAmAnusan eulogized

by His adiyArs.

 

Oh RaamAnujA , who has the glory of winning over

the six darsanams and demonstrated that they are

no match to Sri VaisNava darsanam ! This is my

prayer to You ! May Your ThirunAmams celebrated

by your adiyArs in their paasurams stay on my tongue

day and night for my enjoyment and ujeevanam.

 

Taniyan 4 used in mElnAttu Thiruppathis:

 

iniyenn kuRai namakkemperumAnAr ThirunAmatthAl

muni tanatha nooRRettu SAAVITHRI yennu nuNNporuLai

kani tantha senjcholl KalithuraiyandhAthi paaDithanthAn

punithan ThiruvarangatthamuthAhiya PuNNiyanE

 

(meaning): We have nothing missing in our lives , now

that we have the prapanna Saavithri -- the 108 pasurams

of RaamAnuja nooRRandhAthi celebrating our AchAryan's

sacred name set in kalitthurai andhAthi, blessed by

the puNya moorthi , ThiruvarangatthamudanAr . Meditating

on the deep meanings of this Prabhandham , we do not

have any more wants in this world . We do not

lack any thing.

 

SrimathE RaamAnujAya nama:

Daasan, Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan