Thirumaalai-24

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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,

 

Paasuram-11

 

“oru villAl Ongu munneeradaiththu vulagangal uyya

seruvilE arakkarkOnai settra nam sEvakanAr

maruviya periya kOil madhil thiruvarangamennA

karuvilE thiruvilAtheer! KAlaththai kazhikkindreerE.”

 

oru villAl Ongu munneeradaiththu vulagangal uyya: In this paasuram alwar talks

about the rAmAvataram of Emperuman. The word ‘oru’ in tamil can be used in two

ways. It can denote both the meaning of one and only or a thing which has

nothing equal to it. Here alwar says that there is no bow equal to Sri rAma’s

bow. It is equal to only itself. In Ramayana, Sri rAma kept his kodandam(his

special bow) down only once. That was when he did saranagathi to the samudhra

rajan in darpa sayanam. Now a doubt will arise in all our minds. We are able

to accept srivaishnavas doing saraganathi to emperuman because he is our sole

refuge and we are incapable to saving ourselves and all other devatas are

incapable of giving us the final purushartha, the moksha. But why should the

emperuman do saranagathi? In Rama Avatara emperuman stayed like a man. He

didn’t show his divine powers. That is why the alwars say “manisarukkai

padAdhanapattu”. He suffered so as to lift us up. When the issue of how to

the build the bridge across the sea to go to lanka came, vibheshana who had

just joined the rama parivar gave the idea of Sri rAma surrendering to the

samudra raja. Though vibheshana joined only then, still rAma gave him the due

respects and obliged to his words. But why did vibheshana suggest this method

of saranAgathi? That’s because he did saranAgathi in the feet of Sri rAma and

was saved from rAvana and assured lanka rajyam. So he thought the saranagathi

at any place will give the best fruit and hence suggested this. Though there

were many others in the side of rAma like hanuman and sugreeva, hanuman talked

always at the last after hearing to the others opinion and perumal also

listened to all the suggestions and then only gave his decision. But since

vibheshana put forward his opinion immediately after rAma’s question, “samudram

rAghavO raja sharanam ganthumarhathi”, and since even perumal felt it to be a

good idea he accepted to do saranAgathi on the darpa sayanam. But even after 3

days of fasting the samudra raja never turned up so emperuman who has no

experience in doing saranAgathi since he is used to only others doing

saranAgathi in his feet lost his patience and called for lakshmana to bring his

bow to dry the ocean(“sApmAnAya sowmithrE!”). This is not a saranAgatha

lakshana since a saranAgathan should never get impatient with the master’s

silence. But emperuman didn’t have the experience to wait for others to accept

his saranagathi and hence couldn’t tolerate samudra rajan’s silence. But then

lakshmana knew very well that Sri rAmar was capable of drying the ocean and

that it should not occur since it is harmful to the whole world. Sri PVP

clearly says in his Thanisloki vyakhyanam how lakshmana reacted to this

situation. First he got a ordinary bow alone and perumal then ordered him to

get his kOdandam and then lakshmana got only the bow after which emperuman

ordered him to get the bow and the arrow. Seeing perumal’s anger samudra raja

came running and surrendered unto the feet of the emperuman. So alwar here

says emperuman for the benefit of the whole world built the bridge across the

ocean with the help of his great bow(seeing which in perumal’s hand made

samudra raja surrender to emperuman’s feet).

 

In his vyakhyanam Sri PVP explains this in the simple way. “upAdhyAyan kaiyilE

kasai kandu siru prajaigal kAlilE vizhumA pole Thiruvadigal alavum vandhu

vellam kOththAr pOl Ayittru” When a teacher calls a boy with a stick in his

hand the boy gets afraid and falls in his feet even before the teacher could

beat him. Similarly when perumal got angry with samudra rajan and got ready to

hit him with his bow and arrow samudra rajan came running and surrendered to the

feet of emperuman.

 

We will continue the next half of the paasuram in the next posting.

 

AzhwAr emberumAnAr jeeyar thiruvadigaLE saraNam

Adiyen Ramanuja Dasyai

Sumithra Varadarajan

 

 

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