"ThiruppANAzhwAr Charitham ": Input for the new CD ROM on AzhwArs and the 108 Dhivya Desams: Part I

[Guest guest]

Dear BhakthAs :

 

As you might rcall , Both Sriman Alwar of Mysore

and adiyEn are working on the creation and release

of the Second CD ROM under the auspices of the International

RaamAnujA Society .Many of you have helped with financial

support. Thank you all !

 

The pilot version focusing on the Life and works

(AmaladhipirAn Dhivya Prabhandham ) will arrive here

for study.

 

The background materials for " the Tell Me

More sections " of this AzhwAr's vaibhavam

prepared by adiyEn for inclusion as excerpts

would be interesting to you inview of the special

relationship this AzhwAr had With Sri RanganAthan .

 

Sriman TCA Venkatesan is posting extensivea

and most enjoyable articles on the Paasurams

of ThiruppANar following the PoorvAchAryA's

commentaries. They are a joy to read.AdiyEn's

three postings written for the new CD ROM on

AzhwArs are to detailed postings of Sri VenaktEsan .

 

There are number of versions as to how Loka Sarnga Muni

and ThiruppANar interacted culminating in ThiruppANar

being brought to the Sannidhi of Sri RanganAthan

for the AzhwAr's MangaLAsAsanam. We will stay with

one version that has led to ThiruppANar being

addressed reverentially as "Muni Vaahanar".

 

The sources of these articles are from

the scholarly contributions of Sri D.RamaswAmy

Iyengar and U.Ve. Sri SrirAma DesikAcchAr Swamy

of Oppiliappan Koil with few additions from adiyEn .

 

Here is the first in the series of three articles

on ThiruppANar's Vaibhavam. We plan to have simlilar

inputs on the other AzhwArs during the next few weeks

as a part of the creation of the new CD ROM .

 

Daasan, V.SatakOpan

 

Part I:

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Thiruppanazhwaar Vaibhavam

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Thiruppaana azhwaar is the ninth among

the 12 Azhwaars. He has ten paasurams

among the divine collect Four Thousand

revered as "Amalanaadhipiraan " Prabhandham .

 

This Azhwaar's prabhandham is different from

all the other aazhwaar's prabhndhams in that

it does not contain any upadesams , critique

of Veda-Baahya Mathams , messages sent to the Lord

as His Naayaki et al. Thiruppaanar's prabhandham

is an aanandha-lahari ( limitless outpourings of

the bliss of aanandham ) at the anubhavam of

the Lord's Sarvaanga Soundharyam and its redeeming

effect . Azhwaar is totally lost in that

blissful anubhavam and the ten paasurams arose

from him as " the revelational hymns "

 

Thiruppaanar was born in the caste of untouchables.

he felt therefore unqualified to enter into Srirangam

to have the darsanam of Sri Ranganathan that he longed for.

Hence , he stood on the bank of Cauvery river ,

closed his eyes and sang with deep anubhavam

about the kalyana gunams of the Lord every morning .

 

A great scholar by the name of Loka Saaranga Muni

was the temple servant at that time at Srirangam

and was assigned the duties of bringing Thirumanjanam

water (holy water for the bath of the iconic form of

Lord Ranganaathan)every morning . During the collection of

the water from cauvery , Loka Saaranga Muni will have

a cloth over his mouth and will not speak to anyone

until he brought the Cauvery waters to the Lord's

sannidhi.

 

On one particular day , Thiruppaanar was singing

on the banks of Cauvery as usual totally unaware

of the fact that the place he was singing from

was very close to the site , where Loka Saaranga

Muni fetched water for the Lord. Since Muni could

not speak , he threw a small stoone at the Azhwaar

signaling him to move away . That stone hit Thiruppaanar's

forehead and blood began to ooze out of the wound.Recognizing

his mistake , Thiruppaanar moved away to permit

the uninterruted access to the river by Muni to collect

thirumnajanam water for the Lord .

 

Muni collected the water, reached the temple and

the sacred bath was conducted for the Lord .

That night , Muni had a dream in which

Lord Ranganaatha ordered him (Muni) to carry His dear

Bhakthan on his (Muni's ) shoulders to His sannidhi.

 

Next morning , Muni rushed to the site , where

Thiruppaanar was engaged in singing with his lute

and begged him to ride on his shoulders as commanded

by Lord Ranganaathan . Although Thiruppaanar was

uncomfortable , he obeyed the Lord's command

and rode on the shoulders of Muni with closed

eyes until he reached the Lord's sannidhi .

When he opened his eyes at the Sannidhi to see the Lord's

auspicious and majestic Thirumeni , he(Thiruppaanar)

was overwhelmed by that blissful experience . He began

to salute the beauty of the Lord from Thiruppadhams

( sacred feet ) to His head in ten most moving paasurams.

 

At he end of his salutations through the ten paasurams

of Amalanaadhipiraan , he (Thiruppaanar) declared that

his eyes will not care to see anything else anymore

and he merged rightaway in the divine jyothi of Periya Perumaal

at His aasthaanam .

 

Thiruppaanaazhwaar Thiruvadigale Saranam ,

V.Satakopan