Thirumaalai-11

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Srimathe Ramanujaya Namaha

 

 

“ Mattrondrum vEinda Maname Madhilarangar

Kattrinum meitha kazhalinai keezh- uttra

Thirumaalai paadum seer Thondaradipodi Emperumaanai

Eppozhudum peesu”

 

“ Srimat Krishna samahvaya Namo yaamuna soonave

yetkadAkshai kalakshyAnAm sulabha: Sridara: sadaa”

 

Pranams,

Now we proceed to see the meanings of rest of the lines in the second paasuram in Thirumaalai.

 

PavalavAi kamala chengan achchudha: Earlier azhvar has visuvalised before us a

huge green mountain, Emperuman. Now he proceeds to further describe the other

beautiful parts of that mountain. This mountain(Emperuman) has a mouth with a

colour of a red coral, and he has beautiful eyes which are like a lotus. It is

a general tendency of all tamil poets to attribute the eyes to the blossomed

lotus to show the beauty of the eyes. Even Kamban while describing the beauty

of Sri rAmA says “Alarindha senthamarai pOndra kangal”(the eyes are like a

blossomed red lotus).

 

Emperuman as we told earlier is a little different from the usual mountain in

the sense that he doesn’t cause any illusion like approaching us but himself

runs to the call of his bhakthas. When a bhagavata does ThirunAma sankeetanam

he from his reclining position sits and listens and if the bhagavata starts

dancing a little bit then the emperuman becomes over joyed. Usually the

bhagavatas say that if we sit and sing his praise, he stands and listens if we

stand and sing then he walks and listens and if we start dancing(this is the

stage when bhagavatas doing bhagavan nAma keertanam loose themselves) then he

gives us darshan and enjoys us singing mangalasasanam to him. There is one

rishi vakhyam which says “VishnOr gAnancha natanamca visheshataha brahman

brahmana jAtEnAm karthavyam Nityakarmavatu”(It is a prime duty of any brahmana

to sing and dance to the praise of the lord vishnu) and bhagavan says “naham

vasame vaikunthe”(I will not stay in vaikundam when a bhagavatan is singing my

praise or doing mangalAsAsanam to me). Emperuman becomes a servant of the

devotees who always are involved in his nAma keertanam.

 

In Nammazhvar’s Thiruvaimozhi there is one excellent pAsuram “pulingudi kidandhu

varagunamaNgai erundu vaikundaththil nindru”(ThiruvAimozhi 9-2-4). Here azhvar

does mangalAsAsanams to three of the Nava thirupathi divyadesams which are all

located in and around Alwar Thirunagari. The vyakhyanam to this pAsuram is

excellent. Alwar started singing the praise of the bhagavan. The Emperuman

who was in a reclining pose in Thirupulingudi divyadesam hearing alwar’s

excellent pAsurams got very much attracted that he sat up in Varaguna maNgai

and then alwar continued to sing and emperuman wasn’t able to control himself

that he stood up in Srivaikunda divya desam. Alwar didn’t stop yet he

continues and now emperuman has walked all the way listening to alwar and now

has reached Alwar thirunagari and has settled in Alwar’s mind(ensindhai

angaNkazhiyAdhe). Now perumal has come, so alwar gets more enthusiastic to

sing and dance. But then bhagavat anubhavam is more nice if we have more

bhagavatas with us. So alwar now starts searching for saga bhagavatals. Now

the ghosti of bhagavatals have come. What are they going to do? Alwar replies

“nalindha seer ulagam moondrudan viyappa, nangal koothAdi nindrArppa”. That is

now that alwar has got a ghosti they are not able to restrict themselves to

just singing the praise of bhagavan but they also start to dance(koothu) and

they have made such a huge noice that all the 3 worlds have come to see what

was happening and seeing the bhagavata ghosti headed by alwar singing and

dancing forgetting themselves, they are all astonished. Here alwar doesn’t

stop with saying we sing and dance he says ‘nindrArppa’ that is inbetween the

dance they stand and shout “hare! KrishnA! Jai! etc” putting the 3 worlds to

surprise seeing the involvement of the bhagavata ghosti. But the bhagavata

ghosti are not at all bothered what the others feel and how they praise them

but they are interested only in bhagavan coming to see their koothu. So

ignoring all others who are praising them, alwar continues to call the bhagavan

“palingu neer mugilin pavalam pOl kanivAi sivappa nee kAna VarAye”. Here alwar

challenges perumal that if you have the luck to enjoy our bhajanai then come

here with a smile on your beautiful red coral coloured mouth. Here alwar is

saying that the mouth of emperuman is like a pavalam(coral) found in the water

in the clouds. We all know that we find corals in water but here alwar says

that the mouth of emperuman is like a coral in the clouds. This is called as

Abhoodha kalpanai in tamil poetry. That is the poet dreams of something which

is not possible. Even kamban says “mEgaththil Thamarai kAdu pOtharpOl” that is

he is saying, like a lotus forest in the sky. Lotus is found in water and the

clouds also have water in them but can a lotus grow in the sky? Though it is

not possible kamban gives such a description to show that like this imagination

cannot come true similarly we cannot also say any comparison for the beauty of

emperuman. His beauty is also beyond imagination. Nammazhvar also follows the

same technique here.

So alwar said come with your beautiful red coloured coral like mouth. But then

one thing struck alwar the red colour is beautiful but does a coral have any

taste? It is like a stone but emperuman’s mouth is so sweet so he says it is

kanivAi(like a fruit sweet and soft). Now emperuman hearing our nAma keetanam

enjoys so much, like tasting a very nice sweet dish. So with a happy

expression on your face come to give us darshan, says the alwar. Here alwar

doesn’t ask emperuman to come with his usual symbols like shangu and chakram

but only with his kanivAi. Almost all the alwars get immersed in the beautify

of the ThiruvAi(mouth) and eyes of the bhagavan. Alwar has a similar anubhavam

with the Thirukurungudi divyadesa emperuman also. “Sanginodum nemeyodum

thamaraikangalodum sengkanivAi ondrinodum selgindraden nenjame” (Thiruvaimozhi

5-5-1)Alwar first sees the sanghu and chakram and then the lotus like eyes of

the bhagavan but he is steady all this time but then when he finally saw the

senkanivAi he lost his senses to the bhagavan and his mind as gone at the back

of the bhagavan. So when alwar thinks about the sanghu or chakram which the

emperuman is holding he gets the respect towards him but his love floods when

he sees the emperuman’s beautiful eyes and mouth. So he sings ‘sanghu chakaram

endru kaikoopum’(respect is shown by prostrating to him seeing the sanghu and

chakaram) but when he sees the thamaraikan he faints(thalarum) and loses power.

 

So there are so many other paasurams were the alwars rejoice seeing the beauty

of the thiruvAi and thirukkan of bhagavan so now thondaradi podigal calls the

bhagavan with the nAmA “pavalavAi kamalachengan Achchudha”. Achchudha means

one who doesn’t leave his adiyars at any point of time.

 

Let us continue in the next posting.

 

Adiyen Ramanuja Dasyai

Sumithra Varadarajan.

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