what was that you did?- 4

[Guest guest]

Dear sri vaishnava perunthagaiyeer,

 

You may think, this MGV is just stretching himself to do some kathai [story]

on the bhakti list on krishna. "kathaiyum perum poruLum kaNNa nin pErE" says

boothaththaaazhvaar in verse 64 second thiruvanthaathi. [the story and

resulting wealth are all, Oh! Krishna, it is from your name -nin thiru

naamam]. "Kathaip poruLthaan kannan" [he is the subject for story] says

Thirumazhisai aazhvaar in 32 naanmugan thiruvanthaathi. It is apt and most

fit to do some kathai on that kathaip poruL kaNNan.

 

In the previous posts, we saw three krithis from three different authors

with the same central theme of wondering about yasOdhaa's bhaagyam, comments

on the first krithi "enna thavam seidhanai" by PS. In this part, we will go

for some comments and meanings of the next krithi containing same theme by

Smt. Ambujam Krishna AK.

 

Pallavi: paNNiya puNNiyam yadhu? Ammaa, adhaip

parinthu emakku ingu kooru, ammaa - paNNiya

 

Meaning: What is the penance you did, Oh mother! I prey to you, please be

cordial to me and tell me.

 

Comment: AK indirectly puts "My intention is to know from you Oh yasOdha,

so that I also will do that to get similar grace from Him". In the PS

krithi, it is clear, that, it is addressed to yasOdhaa. Here it is not clear

if you consider the pallavi alone, whether it is really addressed to

yasOdhaa or some other lady.

 

Now combine pallavi with Anu pallavi:

paNNiya puNNiyam yadhu? Ammaa, adhaip

parinthu emakku ingu kooru, ammaa -

paarkadal paambu aNai viduththup paraman un

madi aduththup paal uNNa yasOdhaa nee - paNNiya

 

Meaning: Oh! Yasodhaa!! That supreme lord left his abode in the snake bed in

the milk ocean and took to your lap. What is that good penance you did [or

fortune you had] to have him on your lap and feed him oh! YasOdhaa!! please

tell.

 

Comment: By combining the anu pallavi with the pallavi, it is clear that it

is addressed to yasOdhaa. Since it is addressed as "oh mother", even if she

is that not courteous, not preferring to reveal these secrets / answer, she

is forced / made to become courteous, by that calling "ammaa" twice, because

a mother is naturally generous towards their children calling ammaa and

rallying behind her.

 

In the second post we saw comments on 'paarkadal paambu aNai viduththup

paraman'. So no repetition.

 

See the following verse from thirumangai aazhvaar

Thanthai thaLai kazhalath thOnrip pOi aaippaadi nandhan kula madhalaiyaai

vaLanrnthan kaaNEdee! Nandhan kula madhalaiyaai vaLarnthaan naan mugarkuth

thanthai kaaN - 11- 5-2.

 

Meaning: Girl 1 says to girl 2 as a sort of information- "As soon as the

child was born, the child got his father's shackles released on their own

[shackles slipped on their own], the child got himself transported from one

place to other place and grew as Nandhagopa's son". Girl 2 replies to girl 1

again as information "That son of nandhagopa is the father of that four

faced Brahma". That brahma's father is the that paarkadal paambu aNai

viduththup paraman - See the clue is available easily from this pasuram to

AK.

 

The next line in krithi is "un madi aduththup paal uNNa yasOdhaa nee". This

"paal uNNal" is has been extensively elaborated by Periyaazhvaar in 2-2- 1

to 10 starting "aravaNaiyaai" saying "mookku urinchi mulai uNaayE" and

others. Similarly 3-1- 1 to 10 thannEraayiram periyaazhvar deals with same

paal uNNal saying "anjuvan ammam tharavE". Kaliyan also has 9 paasurams on

this paal uNNuthal in 10-4- 1 to 9 santha malar [perhaps readers will

remember these came up translated very nicely by Sri MadhavakkaNNan

recently]. Kulasekhara also covers whatever he has to say on this paal

uNNuthal in just a single marvel in 7-7.

 

I wonder, at times, these three are what great "observers". Is it their

observation combined with their visualisation of that scene of krishna being

fed by mother, gave these nice verses? Or is it by HIS grace, that these

verses come off so nicely with that beautiful taste. So there is no wonder

AK also falls in line with these poorvar to say "un madi aduththup paal uNNa

yasOdhaa nee" which has so much meaning in it.

 

CharaNam 1:

kattith thayir veNNai kaaichchina paal vaiththuk

kaaththirunthEn ethir paarththu irunthEn

thatti vazhi maraiththu um sattith thayir veNNai

kotti avan uNNa gOkulaththeer neevir- paNNiya

 

Meaning of charaNam 1: I was anticipating you, was waiting for you with

solid curd, which is very much liked by you, also milk that is boiled well

to give added taste. But he forced you, oh! folks of gokulam! to give him

those pots of curds, pots of butter, when you were carrying them for sale,

and he did eat all that curd butter etc, much to his liking, per force.

 

Comment: Now the focus gets shifted, from yasOdhaa to aayarkulam, the gokula

vaasikgaL, residents of gokulam are considered as puNNiyasaaligaL. Question

is put to them. What is that fortune you had.

 

Here two points are there.

1. Thatti vazhi maraiththu avan kotti uNNa- krishna stands on the way when

these aayar folks take the pots of curd butter etc to go to market and sell

them, he takes these by forcing them -thatti - and he spills some and eats

some - kotti avan uNNa - kottiyavan uNNa.

 

2. "thatti vazhi maraiththu um sattith thayir veNNai kottiyavan uNNa" - the

small bamboo mats which are used as doors in these aayar folks' huts were

used by him as cover for stealing these butter and curd, spilling some and

eating some quantity.

 

For the first there is a reference- Kappaal aayargaL kaavinil koNarntha

kalaththodu saaiththup parugi 3-1-5 periyaazhvaar- kappu- kambu- a bamboo

stick used to carry on the shoulder, which carry weight on both ends so that

the man is able to carry more weight without any damage to the article he

carries- this is similar to kavadi- which is given by the word kaavinil

here.

KummaayaththOdu veNNai vizhungi kudaththayir saaiththup parugi 3-1-3,

saaLagraamam udaiya nambi saaiththup parugittu pOnthu ninRaan - periyazhvar.

He tilts the curd pots and eats some quantity only is clear here.

 

For the second meaning, see a predecessor in Kalaiyan paasuram-

Padal adaiththa siRu kurambai nuzhainthu pukkup

Pasu veNNai padham aara paNNai muRRum- 4-4-3

Padal- is a small bamboo mat

Kurambai - is hut.

So AK has enjoyed the DP well and taken clues and coined the lines so nicely

to give one more dimension of enjoyment on krishna - kathai and

kathaipporuL.

 

CharaNam 2: in raaga naatakurinji

eNNam enum izhaiyil paN malargaL thoduththuk

kaNNan kazhal saaththak kaaththirunthEn

paN isaiththu ummudan paal nilavil avan

vaNNamaai viLaiyaada vanithaiyar neevir - paNNiya

 

Meaning of charaNam 2: I was waiting to offer the garland of "music" flowers

to the feet of KaNNan decorated in the thread called my "thoughts". Oh

maids, but he has come there leaving me behind, to sing and play with you

all in the moon light. To get him like that and what is the kind of good

fortune you had?

 

Comment: Music is the flower. Thought is the thread. That music flower is

tied in the thought thread to make a garland for the feet of KaNNan. Oh!

what a rich imagination.

 

Please remove "Kannan" from the context for a minute. Just consider this is

only a tamil verse addressed to the hero by his lover. Then also the lines

are simply gems. Now add Kannan. The taste increases manifold because the

verse has come out of pure love to him from the bottom of the heart. In

simple words the soul speaks.

 

"Poosum saanthu en nenjame! punaiyum kaNNi enathudaiya vachagam sei malaiyE"

4-3-2 nammazhvar. I apply my mind itself as that sandal paste on you, the

flower garland I put on you is that poem I compose with my words.

Is Idea taken from aazhvaar? Any doubts?

 

"En nenjaththu uLLirunthu ingu iruntha thamizh nool ivai mozhinthu" -10-6-4

says nammazhvaar. So when he comes and sits in the mind, thoughts becomes

the thread, music is the flowers, pooja takes place so nicely with these

music flowers- Naadha upaasanai. [i reserve just another quote from

Nammazhvaar on the music to the concluding part].

 

[Just as a side quote, I would like to mention that Sri K.V.Jagannathan the

great Tamil orator and writer {known as Ki. Vaa. Jaa. and Sishya of maha

mahopaadhyaaya Sri U.V. Swaminatha Iyer tamizh thaaththaa} has appreciated

these lines of AK in his foreword to her book on these krithis- saying

"kaNNanaiip paadumpOdhu ivar gopiyE aagividugiraar- AK becomes a gopi while

singing on Kannan - any doubts?]

 

Oh bhaktaas- trust you are able to appreciate that depth in this song.

 

Dhaasan

 

M.G.Vasudevan