Divine Name of Sri SaTakOpar

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SrI:

SrImathE SaTakOpAya namah:

SrImathE Gopaladesika mahadesikaya namah:

Dearest Srivaishnavas,

Today is Vaikaasi Visaakam - Sri SaTakOpar- NammAzhwAr Thirunakshathram. One

can dwell and enjoy for ages on the divine works of our AzhwAr (num AzhwAr)

NammAzhwAr- Sri SaTakOpar.

 

Let us enjoy his sweet name.. (as described by Sri Madhurakavi AzhwAr).

Madhuram itself means honey. This AzhwAr himself writes verses (prabandhams)

which are like honey; and if he says, the name of NammAzhwAr itself is sweet

and gives us instant everlasting sweetness which is sweeter than the Lord's

name, then where is the question of denying it?

 

Madhurakavi AzhwAr being a great devotee of the Lord Sriman Narayanan, went

on a pilgrimage trip to North India. He went to ayOddhi, and from there he

could have desired to go to dwaraka. He describes the Lord KrishnA first.

 

kaNNinuN chiRutthaambinaal kattuNNap paNNiya peru maayan- en appan..

en appan- My Swamy- My Father; My Lord- who is the Mysterious Lord (maayan)-

who is the primordial Chief; Supreme Lord- Lord of all; - He out of His

greatest sowlabhyam, and sowseelyam (neermai - in Tamil), [easily accessible

nature of His] stooping down to an ordinary cowherd boy of an illiterate

YasOdhA PiraaTTi (the blessed mother). Angered by His mischief of stealing

eating butter, she threatened him with a stick, and grabbed a rope to tiem

Him down to a mortar. The rope was short of the circumference of His

ThirumEni (divine Body) and she (wondering- as to how the rope can be

shorter than this little boy's body- when she knew that it is longer), took

another longer rope and attempted. Again, it became smaller than the body.

The Boy was standing with His mouth and lips quivering, tears rolling down

cheeks, eyes full of water; Hands shutting the mouth not to let the cries

heard by His mother (then she gets more angry); and He does this mystery of

making the rope shorter than His body circumference.

 

She gets fed up.. Kutti KaNNan crying externally (and smiling inside), could

not digest his mother getting troubled anymore and makes Himself available

and accessible for being tied down to the mortar. YasOdhA now smiles when

the rope (at last- not knowing it is due to KaNNan's sankalpam only) is just

nice. She ties Him tightly with that thin, slender rope with strands, to

mortar. The Lord, who is never bound by anything, is now bound by a simple

rope, tied by a simpler human being. (NammAzhwAr faints adoring the

sowseelyam of this Lord's, when he sings.. etthiRam uralinOdu

iNaindhiandhEngiya eLivE.... - How and what sowseelyam to be tied down to

mortar!]

 

In the world, generally people run to human beings (bosses, chief, kings and

others) and the demi gods for material benefits and worldly pleasures. The

Lord of Devas is sought by few knowledgeable people to seek what they need

in this world. Knowing his Parathvam unambiguously, and realizing his

greatest sowseelyam and sowlabhya kalyANa guNas in its entirety, there are

rare few who consider Him alone as the means as well as the end and nothing

else do they aspire for. Our Madhurakavi AzhwAr being one among those rare

few went everywhere and finally landed at AyOddhi where he saw a light in

the sky from the south. Wondering that rare and uncommon light in the sky,

he traced to reach at Thirukkurugoor (the light was not seen by anyone else-

is to be noted..). Thus, he skipped going to Dwaraka and landed at

Thirukurugoor where NammAzhwAr (at the age of 16) was in his trance.

NammAzhwAr had not spoken since birth and now when Madhurakazi AzhwAr came

and stood, AzhwAr opened his eyes and answered the query from NammAzhwAr

(first time he opened his eyes and spoke...)

 

Read NammAzhwAr’s life in http://members.tripod.com/~sriramanujar/ and click

on AzhwArs menu.

 

This NammAzhwAr has become Parama bhOgyam now for me- says Madhurakavi

AzhwAr. That does not mean that I have not realized about the Lord's

greatness. I know that He is Sarva dEvathA Saarvabhouman. He is the Swamy

for all and for me too. Look at His sowlabhyam and sowseelyam (and that's

why I mentioned the tying the rope incident). When one thinks of such

greatest Lord with such accessible nature of His, how can one not get

sweetness.. Sure-one can get the utmost sweetness. But when I saw this

Kurugoor Nambhi, NammAzhwAr, the divine utterance of His name (AzhwAr's

name) itself has become sweet instantly. At the very moment of uttering his

name makes it (the utterance) sweeter than anything else. The tongue which

is blessed to recite the Divya SrI Sookthis of this AzhwAr has now been

relishing the sweet nectar flowing therein by uttering his name.

 

When the name itself is so sweet granting, how can one talk of the sweetness

of having the darshan of SaTakOpar (Sri nammAzhwAr)? Indescribable. Also,

down the ages, people will not be able to see the vibhava avatar of this

AzhwAr and can relish the sweetness by simple utterance of his name..

realize that oh folks! That's why I have been uttering his name (sweetness

for myself and for you all to follow the same.)

 

En appanil- From my Swamy- Father (leaving Him)I have come to this AzhwAr.

Is that correct? Can one leave the Lord and come to Acharya as everything?

Is that correct? One can get such doubts.

 

Swamy Desikan says: It is strictly in accordance with saasthras. It is

oldest ancient tradition (thol vazhi) and the correct, most accurate

tradition and practice- nal vazhi to surrender at the feet of Acharya. Like

the life can not sustain without food, the means of Bhakti yoga and Prapatti

will not hold water without AcharyasrayaNam. This way of surrendering at the

feet of Acharyan is the way (old way through which many - our Poorvacharyas

- have walked and hence well laid out and reaching destination is certain)

and it is the correct way in line with saasthrAs (nal vazhi). Those who have

realized this understanding the meaning of KaNNinunChiRuthaambu are the

intelligent and brave ones (DhIrA:) who have taken this path which is

ancient and correct. Swamy Desikan has not just given his interpretation on

his own. He has followed (as always) the sruthis and smurthis to mention

this. The word DhIrA: is referred in MuNDakOpanishad where it mentions

"AcharyaasrayaNam alone can grant all fruits and those who do that are

DhIrA" says the Upanishad.

sa vEdhaithath paramam bhramha DhAma yathra viswam nihitham bAthi Subram |

upAsathE purusham yE hyakAmA: thE SukthamEthadhathivarthanthi DHEERAA:

Sathyaki Tantram gives us the same message , when it says: " GurO: Gurutaram

naasthi " ( There is nothing more sacred than one's AchAryA) . Upanishad

asserts : " AchArya dEvO Bahva".

In the second slOkam of Sri NyAsa Vimsathi , Sri NigamAntha MahA Desikan

gives us the reasons for worshipping the AchAryan as equivalent to

SarvEsvaran. He also states emphatically in the spirit of Saathyaki Tanthram

that no one can ever pay back the debt of gratitude to one's AchAryA for

their mahOpakAram. It is for this reason that , Swami Desikan says that we

have to worship our AchAryAs as the Lord Himself ( AchArya : sadhbhi:

aprathyupakaraNa dhiyA dEvavath upasya: syAth ).

Swamy says: Achaaryaadhiha dEvathAm samadhikaam anyaamna manyaamahE.. We

will never ever consider anyone as Superior to God than The Acharyan. (In

line with Madhurakavi's dhEvu maRRaRiyEn.. (I do not know any God other than

NammAzhwAr- my AchArya).

 

Swami Desikan has pointed out that it is impossible to pay back in any

manner to The AchAryA, who lights the lamp of knowledge in our minds and

banishes the nescience and vibhareetha JnAnam that occupied our mind before

.. The only service that we can do is to praise His kalyANa guNAs and reflect

on them and to spread the message of the great help that he gave us ( Gurum

prakAsayEth ):

 

yERRi manatthu yezhil jnAna viLakkai iruL anaitthum /mARRinavarkku oru

kaimmAru Maayanum kANahillAn /pORRi uhapathum punthiyil koLvathum pongu

puhazh /sARRi vaLarpathum saRRallavO munnam peRRathaRkE

 

Swami Desikan states authoritatively that even the Lord can not find a

proper way to return the gratitude for the AchAryan who lit the JnAna deepam

in our minds and chased away the darkness of ajnAnam.

 

SrI Manavala maanuigaL also mentions about this way of worshipping Acharyan

equal to the Lord (if not more) in Artthi prabandham:

thennarangar seeraruLukku ilakkAga peRROm/

thiruvarangam thiruppathiyE iruppAgap peRROm

manniya seer maaRan pugazh uNavaagap peRROm

MADHURAKAVI SORPADIYE nilaiyaagap peRROm

 

Let us recite KaNNinunChiRutthambu today as many times as we can and pay our

obeisance to AzhwAr- Acharya- Prapanna jana santhAna kUtasthar SrI

SaTakOpar- NammAzhwAr.

 

References: (1) Sri uttamUr swamy's Prabandha Rakhsa on KanninunchiRutthambu

and (2)Sri Periya Parakala Swamy and Sri Thirukkudanthai Desikan's

manipravala commentary on KaNNIinunchiRuthaambhu (released by Srimad

Poundarikapuram Andavan Ashramam)- anything good -credit goes to these

original excellent commentaries. All mistakes are only my lack of

misunderstanding (and no understanding.)

Please forgive aDiyEn for the same

AchAryan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Regards

Namo Narayana

aDiyEn dAsan

 

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