kannanaik kanden

[Guest guest]

Dear Sri vaishnavap perunthagaiyeer,

 

On the krishna jayanthi day, I saw my kaNNan. Oh! friend (s), I saw him with

my own eyes, I saw him within my eyes. Oh friend (s). I was overjoyed. I was

drowned in that joy of seeing him, with my eyes and with my own eyes, within

my eyes. Tears flowing on the cheeks. Surrounding noises no bar. I was

drowned in that sea of fathomless joy. Time was passing. That joy continued

for a time. No counting on timescales. Afterwards slowly risen up and came

to normalcy.

 

This joy of seeing him gave birth to a beautiful song- says the poetess. Oh!

Friends, let us enjoy that krithi. Here it is. This one is in raaga

maalikaa.

 

Pallavi and anupallavi in raagam simhendra madhyamam:

 

Pallavi:

KaNgaLil theriyak kaNdEn sakhiyE,

KaLippinil moozhgith thiLaiththu ezhunthEn

 

Anupallavi:

KaNNeer malgida kaalamellaam Engi

KaaNath thaviththa en kaNNan thiru uru (kaNgaLil)

 

CharaNam 1 in raagam nayaki:

KaNmaNi unthan eNNam arinthu

Kadugi vanthEn unnai aNainthu magizhnthida

NaaNam viduththu en nayanam nOkku enRaan

KaNNodu kaN iNaiththEn kanni en uru kamalak (kaNgaLil)

 

CharaNam 2 in raagam hameer kalyaaNi

KaNNidaiyE en karuththinil puguntha

KaarigaiyE unnaik kaNam pirigilEn enRu

In mozhi pEsi idhazh amudham thantha

En uyir anaiyaanin kaathal avan kadaik (kaNgaLil)

 

CharaNam 3 in raagam madhyamaavathi

ENNarum gOpiyar Enguvathai maranthu

KanRugaL kaaligaL mEippathum maranthu

Innisai pozhi vEin kuzhalaiyum maranthu

KaNNanudan naan onRik kalanthathu agak (kaNgaLil)

 

"These I saw in my mind and these came before me like a tele - vision in

front of me, oh friend!" says Smt Ambujam krishna.

 

The poetess must be a true yogi, a lucky one to see Him in her agak kaNgal -

In her mind. She has poured her heart and soul in this song. Now let us see

the meaning of the lines.

 

Pallavi: Oh friend! I could see that- that, in my vision. I was overjoyed

and immersed in that happiness, after plunging deep into that joy, came back

[to normalcy].

 

Comment: "moozhgith thiLaiththu" says the poetess. Not only getting

immersed, just enjoying that immersion itself, not only the joy of having

the vision, but the joy of drowning into that thought itself. Do not want to

come out of that joy, - unable to come out, or not willing to come out and

lo ! is it easy to leave that enjoyment. The words come to the poet so

easily, nicely and sit in position to give us immense enjoyment.

 

Anu pallavi: With tears flowing from the eyes, I was struggling to see that

kaNNan, my krishnan, and longing to see him over long and long periods of

time [kaalam ellaam], I could see such a kaNNan's beautiful thiru mEni with

my eyes.

 

Comment: kaalam ellaam-all the times in the world- when a person waits for

some thing to happen, then the time in seconds become hours, minutes became

days, hours become yugams. So even a small while or really kaalam ellaam?

"Engi" says the poetess- That too this waiting is for the lover, then that

longing is so terrible time wise. kaaNath thaviththa- even just to see once

also, it was so difficult. That kaNnan came in my sight, rather I caught him

in my sight. Thiru uru- is it thiruvaith thaangiya uru- that figure which

adorns the thiru -mahaa lakshmi - or thiruvudan ulla uru- selvam porunthiya

uru- that figure which has the glory of wealth- or thiruvaagiya uru- that

figure itself is thiru, wealth for the entire world. Oh! again words just

came and sat in position.

 

Here Sri Swami Desikan's words come to the mind- thiruvudan vantha sezhumaNi

pol thirumaal - in adhikaara sangraham and also same lines again appearing

in rahasya thraya saaram.

 

CharaNam 1: KaNNan said "Oh my dear, you are the pupil of my eyes, I know

your mind. That is why, I came swiftly to embrace you and enjoy that

proximity of you, my beloved. Please shirk your usual shyness and see me

through my eyes". I, the young spinster, for the first time in my life,

looked at the eyes of a male, allowed my eyes to join with his lotus eyes.

In his lotus eyes, I saw the figure of myself.

 

Comment: On the first sight itself, that bondage and love became so thick,

that he immediately says "oh! my kaNmaNi"- you are so dear to me as the

pupil of my eye. Bhagavaan's love towards his devotees is spoken very well

in this one word.

 

See the words "kadugi"- "with such a speed I came to see you" says krishna -

may be, with the same speed of saving that gajendhra, came flying on the

garuda, with consort Lakshmi just hanging on the sides, making it to catch

him when he started, she could not even adjust her position on the seat in

the vaahanam garuda- he came to see this longing girl.

 

NaaNam viduththu en nayanam nOkku- any girl in the adolescent or

marriageable age, in the first instance will feel shy to look at an young

man. This is what is described as "paramparai naaNam". So he advises "please

shirk that lajjai which comes so naturally to you, young girl". Oh my pet

girl, See my eyes- the amount of my love towards you is just dazzling in my

eyes. So you look at my eyes and realise that longing of mine towards you,

oh my dear, so don't look at any other place on me, like my dress, hairstyle

etc, but look into my eyes. That aravindha lochanam has the power even to

melt stone like hard hearts. "Before my eyes, you tender hearted, get

drowned in my kaaruNyam and turn into a serious dhaasan to me" says the lord

indirectly.

 

Now I could see my figure in his kamala nayanam. So I had the chance to get

caught in his sight. This is the one for which I was longing kaalam ellaam.

Oh what a bhagyam.

 

CharaNam 2: "Oh my dear young lady, through the eyes you are entering my

mind, Since you have entered I and you became we, joined together, no more

separation" said KaNNan, He talked so sweetly and wanted a sweet kiss from

my lips, which I readily gave. He also enjoyed it very much. That krishna

became my sweet life thereafter. Such a krishna's love towards me was seen

by me in his lotus eyes.

 

Comment: kaNNidaiyE en karuththinil puguntha- for any thing to get

registered in the mind, first it must enter the eyes, then into the mind.

Could have said kaN vazhiyE en karuththinil puguntha- which conveys the

above meaning. But the words are kaNNidaiyE en karuththinil puguntha- means,

if you look at my eyes, through my eyes, I am sending you, that yogic power

of my mind, please be ready to receive it, receive it and become a part of

me. Is it not said that hypnosis is done at the central spot of both eyes

near the brows.

 

Once you become part of me, then there is no separation. No need for saying

unnai kaNam pirigilEn because already became a part of kaNNan by

karuththinil pugunthu. Then he also gave idhazh amudham- that life giving

tonic- for which aaNdaaL vied with that sangu. See next word-

innuyiranaiyaanin kaathal- his kaadhal achchaaram by way of that kiss makes

her to say he is innuyir anaiyaan- he is sweeter than my life.

 

CharaNam 3: Countless gopies were longing for his embrace, longing for his

love towards them. That Kannan forgot these gopies. He forgot his duty of

grazing the young calves and their mother cows. He forgot that bamboo

through which he sang that sweet music. I was totally got entrenched in that

Krishnan mixed into him.

 

Comment: He missed his duties like grazing the cows, his usual vENu gaanam-

music. There were countless gopies who were in love with him so much. A

comparison statement became a proverb that any body is in true love means,

it should be like gopies love towards Krishna. Krishna also forgot such

gopies' love for my sake. I mixed endlessly into him- aikkiyamaai vittEn-

"these I could see in my mind". Just for a ladylove's sake he forgot his

duties means think of his kaaruNyam towards his bhakthaaas.

 

Now read again the full krithi and enjoy the richness of the true krishna

bhakthi.

 

Dhaasan

 

Vasudevan M.G.