Kanninun Siruththambu - 05

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Sri:

Srimathe Ramanujaya Nama:

 

Kanninun Siruththambu Fifth Pasura Vyakhyana Saram

Excerpted from Sri Nanjeeyar and Nampillai's Vyakhyanam

 

A Tamil version of this vyakhyana saram can be found at

http://www.acharya.org/vyakyanam/kst/kst05.pdf

 

nambinEn piRar nanporuL thannaiyum

nambinEn madavAraiyum munnelAm

sembonmAdath thirukkurukUr nambikku

anbanAy adiyEn sathirththEn inRE

 

 

Meaning:

I, who call myself adiyEn today, was attached to and

believing in others things and women, prior to reaching

Nammazhvar. Today I am a bhakta of Nammazhvar, who is

the leader of Thirukkurukur which is made up of lofty

golden mansions.

 

 

Vyakhyana Saram:

What was Madhurakavi Azhvar's errors that all good things

left him? He answers in this pasuram that he was wallowing

for countless time in lowly matters. Previously he had

said that he was lowly qualities personified and that

Nammazhvar had therefore become everything to him. In this

song, he explains the errors of his ways and invites all

to see the great help given to him by Nammazhvar. Therefore,

he declares that he has become a servant to Nammazhvar who

saved him without looking at his lowly nature.

 

 

nambinEn piRar nanporuLthannaiyum:

Madhurakavi Azhvar is stating that he had thought that he

owned his soul, when it truly is the property of the

Supreme ("chOreNAtmApahAriNA"). That is, his low quality

lay in the fact that he believed to own that which

belonged to another. He is now expressing his errors that

arose from such false belief. He had stolen ("kaLvanAnEn",

"van kaLvan") the first amongst all things in this world

which is the soul ("dravyam guNastathA karma

jAtischetastadAsraya:"). His crime is magnified by the

fact that he stole not something that stops with His

anubhava, but one that goes all the way to Nammazhvar,

his acharya.

 

piRar poruLai:

The atonement for stealing some thing depends on the

greatness and importance of the thing as well as on the

greatness and importance of its owner. What he stole was

a very special thing, his soul, and he stole it from

the Supreme Lord!

 

nambinEn madavAraiyum:

Having stolen such an important thing from Him, he now

proceeds in other petty crimes - stealing other things.

That is he believed in a number of things associated with

his body.

 

madavAraiyum munnelAm:

The great faith ("mahAvishvAspUrvakam") that needs to be

placed in Him was placed by him with women instead. Despite

the fact that acharyas have said that such faith should not

be placed with women, Madhurakavi Azhvar says that he went

ahead did the same for countless time. The word women and

its usage in plural refers to the many lowly qualities that

he was attached to.

 

munnelAm:

He says forever before because the soul is forever, He is

forver and time is without beginning.

 

sempon mAda:

Because Kurukur is where Nammazhvar was born, everything

there is glorious to Madhurakavi Azhvar. Kurukur is

complete in all wealth because of Nammazhvar's birth

there. That Nammazhvar made him, who did not know the

path he came in, become a person with bhakti to

Nammazhvar. That is, he saved him who was immersed in

all low qualities.

 

nambi:

Nammazhvar completeness is such that he could save even

one who had stolen his own soul for countless time.

 

inRu anbanAy:

Leaving aside that which makes one think that one owns

everything including the soul, leaving everything else,

becoming completely devoted to Him and not stopping there

if one were to journey further one would reach Nammazhvar.

However, for Madhurakavi Azhvar, this order has been

not necessary and he has reached Nammazhvar in the first

step itself.

 

adiyEn:

Madhurakavi Azhvar used the words naan and en (me and

mine) during the time when he coveted his body and soul,

but now that he has gained the true knowledge he states

adiyEn.

 

sathirththEn inRE:

Madhurakavi Azhvar states that reaching Him does not

complete the journey; reaching Nammazhvar is what

completes the journey. He prides in the fact that his

journey is now complete because he who was attached to

several other things is now attached to Nammazhvar.

Madhurakavi Ahvar has exemplified the notion of calling

one's acharya as complete (nambi/pUrna) and calling

one's self as adiyEn (in their service).

 

Madhurakavi Azhvar, Nanjeeyar, Nampillai Thiruvadigale Saranam

Azhvar Emperumanar Jeeyar Thiruvadigale Saranam

 

adiyEn madhurakavi dAsan

T.C.A. Venkatesan

 

Kanninun Siruththambu Vyakhyana Saram Series:

http://www.acharya.org/vyakyanam/kst/index.html