adiyEn's KshEthrADanam : Third Day : Part II at Thirumala ( Pre-SaRRumuRai Reflections at AchArya RaamAnujar Sannidhi

[Guest guest]

SrI:

 

Dear Devotees of ThiruvenkadamudayAn :

 

After the reflections on the SlOkams of Sri DayA Sathakam , adiyEn closed my

eyes and visualized the Ten AzhwArs except the RanganAtha Pathivrathai

( ThoNDaradippodi) and Madhura Kavi enter the Garbha Graham of Lord SrinivAsa

one by one with their hands filled with TuLasi and just-blossomed Lotus flowers

..

Their tongues were performing MangaLAsAsanams for the Lord with their

divine Paasurams .

 

Let us start with the highlights of MangaLAsAsanams of ThiruvengaDamudayAn

by the TTEN AzhwArs , which was taking place 200 plus feet from where adiyEn

was sitting . There are outstanding coverages of the Paasurams of AzhwArs on

ThiruvengadamudayAn by Sri MadhavakkaNNan of Srirangam (ongoing series)

and Srimathi KalyANi KrishNamAchAri on ANDAL's NaacchiyAr Thirumozhi ,

where ANDAL starts Her Blesed Thirumozhi with an intense prayer to be united

with

Her dear Lord , ThiruvEnkadamudayAn . Please refer to them for details .

 

PeriyAzhwAr MangaLAsAsanam

*****************************************

1. First among the AzhwArs came PeriyAzhwAr all the way from SrivilliputthUr

with His Munkudumi and TuLasi Maalai . He started with the celebration the

Ambuli

Paruvam of Baala GopAlan :

 

" Vitthahan VenkatavANan unnai viLikkinRa

kaittalam nOvAme Ambulee kadithOdi Vaa "

 

The parivu of PeriyAzhwAr for ThiruvEkadamudayAn makes him plead with the

crescent

Moon and asks him not to tarry and hurry to Baala GopAlan's side before His

inviting hands

get fatigued .

 

2. Next PeriyAzhwAr celebrated the heroism of Baala GopAlan relating to His

swirling of

Namuchi asuran and dispatching him to his noisy death :

 

Mannu Namuchiyai vaaniR-suzhaRRiya ,

Minnu MudiyanE AcchO AcchO

VenkatavANanE AcchO AcchO

 

PeriyAzhwAr was wonder struck at the dazzling bravery of the Kutti KaNNan here .

 

3 . PeriyAzhwAr became YasOdhA PirAtti and enjoyed the Baala chEstithams of

VenkatavANan as Baala GopAlan : As YasOdha , AzhwAr tried to distract Kutti

KaNNan

so that He can stay at home and keep her company .She asked the crow on

the nearby tree to bring a stick for helping Kutti KaNNan go to woods to graze

the cattle

to distract him from running to the forest with His friends :

 

minnalangAraRkkOr kOl koNDu vaa

VenkatavANaRkkOr kOl koNDu vaa

 

4. In another Paasuram , The exasperated PeriyAzhwAr begs the Lord to come

closer

and adorn Paathiri flowers on Baala GopAlan's black tresses instead of causing

mischief to

the little girls of BrundhAvanam :

 

nicchalum theemaikaL seyvAy NeeL ThiruvengadatthenthAi

pacchaittmanahatthOdu Pathiri Poo sootta VaarAi

 

The detailed write up on Pucchuttal Paasurams are available at :

 

http://www.ibiblio.org/Sripedia/Oppiliappan/archives/1997/msg00310.html

 

5. Govindhan goes on with His mischief and angers the neighbors .

They complain to YasOdhA . She pleads with Her mischevious son

and confides that she can not bear with those complaints of the neighbors

and asks KaNNan to stay away from such visits full of pranks . She invites

Him to stay by Her side instead and make Her happy :

 

" VedapporuLE Yenn Venkatavaa ! VitthahanE ! ingE pOtharAyE " .

 

6. Next PeriyAzhwAr in the form of YasOdhA regrets her folly in not equipping

GopAlan with umbrella and shoes to protect Him against the heat in the forest

and is sorrow stricken about the status of her son exposed to the scorching sun

as a result of her carelessness :

 

" KadiyAr PozhilaNi Vengadavaa ! Nee uhakkum kudayum seruppum kuzhalum

taruvikkakoLLAthE pOnAy MaalE ! ---kaDiya venkAnidaik-kanRin pinn pOna

siRukkuttan senkamala adiyum vethumbi , unn kaNkaL sivanthAi asaynthittAi

Nee EmpirAn " .

 

She laments: What a folly on my part ! I let you rush off with Your friends

without

Your umbrella , shoes and your darlng flute . In the mid day heat , when You run

after

the cows and their calves , Your eyes would be reddened with fatigue and Your

lotus

soft feet would have been scorched . You would be moving slowly with discomfort

..

What kind of Mother am I to have let You down like this asks Mother YasOdhA .

 

7. PeriyAzhwAr concluded his eulogy with a heart felt expression of thanks to

Venaktavan

to acknowledge the blossoming of the Lord , who was seated inside his heart

lotus

hearing his MangaLAsAsanams :

 

" SenniyOngu taNN ThiruvEngadamudayAi , ulahu tannai vaazha ninRa nambee !

DhAmOdharA SathirA , yennayum yennudamaiyayum unn chakkarappoRiyoRRikkoNDu

NinnaruLE purinthEn ini Yenn ThirukkuRippE "

 

The detailed two part series on the profound SenniyOngu Paasurams are archived

in

Sripedia :

 

http://www.ibiblio.org/Sripedia/oppiliappan/archives/dec1997/0074.html

 

http://www.ibiblio.org/Sripedia/Oppiliappan/archives/dec97/0075.html

 

 

With great joy and with a deep sense of fulfilment , PeriyAzhwAr acknowledged

that he filled himself with the blissful anubhavam of the Lord just as filling a

pot

with the nectar that was churned from the Milky Ocean :

 

" kadal kadaintha amutham koNDu kalasatthai niRaitthArppOl

udal uruhi vaay tiRanthu madutthu Unnai niRaitthukkoNDEn "

 

2. ANDAL followed Her Father to the Seven Hills in search of Her Lord .

She offered poojA to Manmathan and pleaded with him to unite Her with

Venkatavan adorning the flame spitting chakkaram in His hand :

 

" veyyathOr tazhal umizh chakkarakkai

VenkatavaRkena Yennai VithikkiRRiyE "

 

Next , She begged Manmathan to help Her enter the param JyOthi

( ViLakku ) of VenkatavANan :

 

" Vitthahan VenkatavANan yennum

ViLakkinil puhala Yennai VithikkiRRiyE ".

 

In the KuyiR Patthu , ANDAL pleaded with the nightingale in Her garden

to sing and charm ThiruvengadamudayAn and to lure Him to Her proximity :

 

" KaLLavizh SeNpakap-Poomalar kOthik-kaLitthu Isai paadum KuyilE !

Tenn Venkatavan varak-koovAi !

 

In a Koodal KuRippu Paasuram , Andal asked the Lord of ThiruvEnkatam

standing in the middle of the forest about union with Her and prayed to the

Koodal

to come up with the good signs :

 

" Kaattil Venkatam mahizhnthuRai Vaamanan---Yenn kaippaRRi ,

Tannodum koodumAhil nee koodidu KoodalE "

 

As She was climbing the hills of ThriuvEngatam , Andal saw these fast moving

clouds of the rainy season rushing to serve the Lord and appealed to them to

carry

Her message that She is suffering from the pangs of seperation from Her Lord and

requested the clouds to tell Her Lord that She will keep on singing His sacred

names

until She got united with Him :

 

' KuLir aruvi Venkadatthu Yenn Govindhan guNam Paadi

aLiyattha mEhangAL Aavi kaatthiruppEnE "

 

Through Her moving Ten paasurams of Mega-vidu ThUthu , ANDAL expressed

Her AaRRAmai over the seperation from Her Lord at Thirumala , who was playing

hide and seek games with Her .

 

Andal"s messages thru the flowers , Fruits , Nightingales to Her Lord of seven

hills

are housed in the Tenth decad of Her Thirumozhi , where She addresses Him as

" nall VenkatatthuL ninRa AzhagappirAnAr ".She catches up with Him at

BrundhAvanam

at the end of Her Prabhandham .

 

3. KulasEkhara PerumAn's intense longing

*****************************************************

The SeralekkOn , KulasEkharan expressed his deep desire to be near

the Lord of Thirumalai in any one of the forms ( Fish in the brooks at

Thriumala,

or a bee singing Hari Naama Sankeerthanam , or a Tampakam , or a forest river ,

or a step in front of the Lord's sannidhi for BhagavathAs step on him or

any thing just to be near Him ) :

 

SempavaLa VaayAn ThiruvEnkatam yennum

EmperumAn Ponn Malai mEl yEthunum aavEnE

 

The King of Chera-Pandiya Naadu declared that he will sacrifice

his worldly wealth and the royal bhOgams in favior of residing

close to ThiruvEnkatamudayAn :

 

AanAtha selvatthu ArambayarkaLtaRR soozha

VaanALum selvamum MaNNarasum Yaan vENDEn

tEnAr PoonchOlai ThiruvEnkatac-chunayil

MeenAy piRakkum vithi udayEn aavEnE

 

4. Thirumazhisai AzhwAr"s MangaLAsAsanam

*************************************************************

Thirumazhisai is an outspoken AzhwAr . He gives us clear UpadEsam :

 

" Venkatam adaintha Maal PadhamE adainthu nALim uyyuminE "

Like AndaL's UnakkE Naamm AatccheyvOm " , Thirumazhisai

emphasizes " PadhamE " adainthu uynthu pOngOL . Just hold on to

those Paadhams alone instructs the AzhwAr .

 

In his Naann Mukhan ThiruvandhAthi , Thirumazhisai sings about the Vaibhavam of

those Venkadatthu MeyAn Paadhams , which unfailingly saves us from the ills of

SamsAram :

 

" Meyvinai nOy yeythAmal , Thaann kadatthum tanmayAn ThaaLL "

 

Like ANDAL , this AzhwAr says that he seeks the Lord's grace and engages in

Koodal game ( " Azhaippan ThiruvEnkadatthAnaik-KaaNa , izhaippan Thirukkoodal

kooda " ).

 

Thirumazhisai acknowledges that the Lord has entered his heart lotus and stays

there :

" pENi vaeu VengdavA YennuLLam puhunthAi " .

 

5. MangaLAsAsanam from ThiruppANar from His position in front of Sri RanganAtha

********************************************************************************\

****************************

Whie pouring out His AmalanAdhipirAn Paasurams , ThiruppANar has

a compelling vision of ThiruvEngadamudayAn and performs MangaLAsAsanam

at Sri RanganAthan's garbhagruham :

 

AmalanAthippirAn adiyArkku yennai Aadpaduttha

Vimalan , ViNNavarkkOn virayAr pozhil Venkadavan

 

He shifts his gaze afterwards to Lord RanganAthan before whom

He was standing .

 

6.Thirumangai 's 61 Pasurams as His MangaLAsAsanam of Venkatavan

********************************************************************************\

***********

The peripatetic Thirumangai filled with vigor and Bhakthi arrived

at the Sannidhi of ThiruvEnkadamudayAn and expressed His deep

devotion to the Lord . AzhwAr appeals to his wavering mind to arrive at

ThiruvEnkatam and perform saraNAgahty at the sacred feet of the ONe

who cuts asunder the ropes that bind us to SamsAram ( PiRappaRukkum

PirAn ) :

 

pEsumin ThirunAmam-yettezutthum solli ninRu pinnarum

pEsuvAr tamai uyya vaangip-piRappaRukkum PirAn idam

vaasa-maamalar naaRuvAr pozhil soozh tarum uluhukku yellAm

tEsamAy thihazhum Malait-ThiruvEnkadamadai nenjE

 

In a heart rending manner , Thirumangai asked the Lord of ThiruvEnkatam

to acknowledge his arrival at His sacred feet and declared his helplessness

(ananya gathithvam) and begged the Lord to intervene and save him:

 

kall thEn paaynthu ozhuhum kamalac-chunai VenkatavA

aRREn vanthadainthEn adiyEnai AatkoNdaruLE

 

Thirmangai declared that he knows of nothing except the sacred feet of

the Lord as his refuge :

 

ThiruvEnkata Maamalai mEya

Aayan adi allAthu maRRaRiyEnE

 

Now that he got firm hold of the Lord's sacred feet ,

AzhwAr declared that he will not let go of them :

 

vanthAy yenn manam puhunthAy manni ninRAy

nanthAtha kozhum sudarE YengaL Nampee

ChinthAmaniyE ! ThiruvEnkatamEya !

YenthAy ! ini Yann Unnai yenRum vidEnE

 

7, 8 , 9 : The Mudhal AzhwArs MangaLAsAsanams

*******************************************************************

The older Mudhal AzhwArs , who had waited patiently advanced

to the position right in front of the Lord of ThiruvEnkatam in unison:

 

Poygai offered his salutations to the holy hills of Venkatam( VaanOr manac-

chudaray thooNDum Malai) and and described to us the importance of

this dhivya dEsam as the One very dear to the Lord:

 

---- " VenkatamE VeNN sankham Oothiya Vaay Maal uhanthavUr ".

 

Poygai saluted the Lord of Venkatam as Ubhaya vibhuthi NaaTan and

paid His tribute to His anantha kalyANa guNams:

 

--- ViNNahatthAi ! MaNNahatthAi ! VenkatatthAi !

naal Vedap-paNnahatthAi ! Nee kidantha Paal

 

8. BhUthatthAzhwAr's moving MangaLAsAsanam

*****************************************************************

He identified the Lord of Venkatam as the antharyAmi Brahmam

and as the Lord reclining on the immense Milky Ocan :

 

" Avan KanDAy nannEnjE ---manatthuLLAn VenkatatthAn MaakadalAn "

 

BhUtham instructed us on the sanctity of the Lord's holy feet and asked us

to learn to worship them for our own resurrection :

 

" aLavariya VedatthAn VenkadatthAn , viNNOr mudi thOyum

PaadhatthAn Paadham PayinRu " .

 

9. PEy AzhwAr's MangaLAsAsanam

*********************************************

PEy AzhwAr echos the sentimentsof BhUtham regarding the central

significance of the sacred feet of ThiruvengadamudayAn:

 

" NaaRppala VedatthAn VenkadatthAn ViNNOr mudi thOyum ,

PaadhatthAn paadham paNinthu "

 

PEy AzhwAr also acknowledged Lord VenkatEsa, who pervades the created

beings and entities is also residing inside him as the antharyAmi Brahmam:

 

IRayAyi nilanAhi YenDisayaum thAnAy

MaRayAy MaRai porULAy VaanAy -- piRai Vaayntha

veLLattharuvi ViLangoli Neer VenkadatthAn

 

PeyAzhwar reveals in an insightful Paasuram that the Nithya yuvA

( ILam Kumarar kOmaan) of ThiruvEnaktam is the same as the DakshiNa

VenkatAchalapathy at ThiruviNNagar ( iLam Kumaran Tann ViNNagar).

and He is inside his heart lotus( uLLatthinuLLE uLan ).

 

10. Our Kulapathy Swamy NammAzhwar"s MangaLAsAsanam

********************************************************************************

Right from his yOga Peetam of the hollow of the sacred Tamirand tree ,

Swamy NammAzhwAr with 52 bhakthi-laden Pasurams and performed

His SaraNAgathy at the sacred feet of Lord VenkatEsa . Here are some

excerpts from the anubhavam of Swamy NammAzhwAr :

 

10.1: " KaNNavAvenRum , MaNNOR ViNNOrkku

taNNAr Venkata , ViNNOr veRpanE --- ThiruvAimozhi: 1.8.3

 

( Meaning) :" He is the leading light to Men of this world (BhaddhAs)

as well as those in Sri Vaikuntam ( Nithyasooris and MukthAs) .The deeds of all

these and others as well , are subordinate to , and are directed by , His will .

He resides in the cool Thiruvenkata hill as well .Let it not be treated as a

mere

earthly hill .It is the abode for nithyasooris to worship the Lord , thought heb

hill

is specailly meant for this world.It is called the Nithyasoori hills because

they hold

it in that affectionate fervour . Cool it is described with specail

significance . Coolness

soothes the heat and sultriness. This hill removes our sins and is thereby cool

to us.

To the Lord , it offers coolness in the form of pious devotees coming as

protegees--

for whom He always yearns.This hill is thus equivalent to Sri Vaikuntam; the

beings

thereon are equal to Nithyasooris; do not take them as mere animals and beings

of

earthly flesh and blood. The traditional sacredness arises from the Lord

bringing

these hills from His nithya VibhUthi " ( Translation by Dr.V.N.VedAntha Desikan

) .

 

Swamy NammAzhwAr has blessed us with many MangaLAsAsana Paasurams on

ThiruvEngadamudayAn . Let us choose two of our Kulapathy's paasurams and perform

our Prapatthy :

 

pOhinRa kaalangaL pOya kaalangaL pOhu kaalangaL , Thaay Tanthai Uyir

aahinRay ! Unnai naanadainthEn viduvEnO ?

paahinRa tollpuhazh moovulahukkum NaaTanE ParamA ! TaNN Venkatam

mEhinRAi ! TaNDuzhay virainARu GaNNiyanE ! ---- ThiruvAimozhi: 2.6.10

 

(Meaning according to Dr.VNV): " You appear to inquire of mewhy I am afraid

that You might leave me.You also appear to be rather diffident in regard to

my steadfastness. Yes, I now assure You that having gained You , I will not

leave You .You are my Mother, Father and soul in the past , now and future

as well .You do me good in all these capacities . You are the Lordof all the

three

worlds . Your auspicious qualities are well known in all circles. You are the

Supreme

Lord , but, for being accessible to us , You have taken Your abode in cool

ThiruvEnkatam ,

wearing fragrant and cool TuLasi garlands. Having gained what I longed for long

,

will I leave You ever ? " .

 

In his grand decad of ThiruvAimozhi 6.10 ( UlahamuNDa PwruvaayA ---) , Swamy

NammAzhwAr performs His SaraNAgathy following the dhvya manthram route :

 

ahalahillEn iRayum yenRalarmEl MangaiuRai MaarbhA !

niharil puhazhAy ! UlahamoonRudayAyi ! Yennai AaLvAnE !

niharil amarar munik-kaNangaL virumpum ThiruvEnkadatthAnE !

puhal onRillA adiyEn Unn adikkeezh amarnthu puhunthEnE

 

( Meaning according to Dr.VNV) : " Not for a moment even will I leave this seat

of Mine"

says AlarmEl Mangai (MahA Lakshmi ) .That She is always on Your chest is

reassuring to me .

Your reputation of qualities is matchless. The three worlds are Yours . You have

enslaved

me. I have adopted You as the Master for all time . You are the unequalled

Master since

this relationship is not conditioned by any circumstance . Great sages who have

no match

and dEvAs as well as nithya sooris come all the way to this place to worship You

.. Oh Lord of

ThiruvEnkatam ! I , who have no other prop to cling to humbly surrendered myself

at

Your feet and there I remaied protected by You ".

 

By this time , the temple bells began to peel inviting us all to join

the SaaRRumuRai GhOshti and adiyEn hurried to the front gate

of ThiruvEngadamudayAn's sannidhi .

 

adiyEn will conclude the narration of the SaaRRumuRai anubhavam

and then descend the sacred hills with the next concluding posting on

the KshEthrAdanam to Thirumalai .

 

Srimath Azhagiya Singar ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam ,

Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan

 

P.S: Please do not forget to lend your support to the uhtsavam of

the 79th birthday celebrations of MalOla PadhukA Sevakan ,

HH Sri NaarAyaNa YathIndhra MahA Desikan . Please contact adiyEn .

Thanks .