Kanninun Siruththambu - 11 - Question.

[Guest guest]

This is a beautiful translation. One doubt: when the

subject is Nammazhwar, the word "anban" is presumed to

refer to him; why the vyakhya alludes to Vatsalya Guna

of the Lord?

Adiyen,TCASrinivasaramanujan

--- "vtca <vtca" <vtca wrote:

> Kanninun Siruththambu Eleventh Pasura Vyakhyana

> Saram

> Excerpted from Sri Nanjeeyar and Nampillai's

> Vyakhyanam

>

> A Tamil version of this vyakhyana saram is available

> at

> http://www.acharya.org/vyakyanam/kst/kst11.pdf

>

>

> Pasuram:

> anbanthannai adainthavarkatkellAm

> anban thenkurukoor nambikku

> anbanAy mathurakavi sonnasol

> nambuvAr pathi vaikuntham kANminE

>

>

> Meaning:

> Those who have faith in these words of Madhurakavi

> Azhvar,

> which were said by him with great devotion to

> Nammazhvar

> who has love and devotion to everyone who is a

> devotee of

> the Lord who Himself loves all who seek Him, will

> find

> their abode to be Vaikunta.

>

>

> Vyakhyana Saram:

> Madhurakavi Azhvar concludes by stating that for

> those who

> learn this prabhandam, their place of abode is that

> Sri

> Vaikunta where the word of Nammazhvar is the rule.

> For

> those who consider this prabandham as their refuge,

> His

> lotus feet is their abode.

>

>

> anban:

> Lordship is not His main quality; showing love and

> affection to all is ("ripUNAmapi vatsala:"). He has

> the

> quality of vAtsalya as one of His kalyANa guNas. His

> love

> reaches everyone without regard ("dEvAnAm

> dAnavAnAnjca

> sAmAnyamadhidaivatam").

>

> adainthavarkatkellAm anban:

> He loves everyone whether they are attached to Him

> or not.

> All those who are attached to one such as Him are

> loved

 

=====

T. C. A Srinivasaramanujan

Email: tcasr

[Guest guest]

Sri:

Srimathe Ramanujaya Nama:

 

Dear bhAgavatas,

 

In the eleventh pasuram, Madhurakavi Azhvar uses the word

anban three times; and each time it refers to a different

person. The first anban refers to Sriman Narayana, the

second one refers to Nammazhvar and the third one refers

to Madhurakavi Azhvar himself. While it is true that

Nammazhvar is the main subject of Kanninun Siruththambu,

Perumal gets refered to a few times - in the very first

pasuram itself, in the third pasuram, and so on. This

should not be suprising (even if Madhurakavi Azhvar says

"thEvu maRRaRiyEn"), as it is impossible to separate

Nammazhvar and Sriman Narayana.

 

So, in the last pasuram, the first anban refers to the

Lord. Why is He being called an anban? anban could mean

two things. He is very affectionate to others or that

others are very affectionate toward Him.

 

Let's take the latter case first. If someone says that he

or she likes/loves someone a lot, it is usually because

of something that they see in that person. So, there must

be something, some quality of the Lord that makes everyone

love Him. The vyakhyadars declare that it is the divine

quality of vAtsalyam that everyone loves in the Lord. This

vAtsalyam is declared as an ocean (from the Stotra ratnam,

"niravadhika vAtsalya jaladhE") and therefore all other

divine qualities are considered to be present inside this

ocean (like precious stones present in the ocean).

 

Taking the latter case, that He loves others, the question

then becomes whether He loves some selectively or if He

loves everyone unconditionally. The second anban which

refers to Nammazhvar clearly shows that Nammazhvar loves

only those that love Him. Whereas in His case all evidences

show that He loves everyone, irrespective of how they

respond to Him. From the Ramayana, "ripUNAmi vatsala" -

affectionate even to His enemies. This is also said in

the Jitante Stotram, "devAnAm dAnavAnAm ca sAmAnyam

adhidaivatam" - He is the common Lord for both the devas

who have devotion to Him and the asuras who oppose Him.

 

So, what would be the quality in Him that makes Him love

everyone no matter who they are? Again, the answer is

vAtsalyam. For example, a mother would love both her

children even if one of them were bad. This is due to

Her vAtsalyam. Similarly, He loves us all, even though

we are deep in karmas and sins, and that is due to His

vAtsalya guNa.

 

Why would He have that kind of love toward all? From the

Mahabharata, "sarveshAmEva lOkAnAm pitA mAtA ca mAdhava:"

- Narayana is the father and mother to all worlds. From

the Bhagavad Gita, "pitAmahasya jagatho mAtA dAta

pitAmaha:" - I am the mother, father, protector and

grandfather of this world. Alavandar too says in his

Stotra ratnam "Evam nisargasuhrudi tvayi sarvajanto:

svamin! na citramidamAsrita vatsalatvam" - O Lord! You

are naturally friendly to every being and therefore

this quality of vAtaslya is not surprising in You.

 

Therefore, the vyakhyadars say that the first anban

which refers to Him, speaks of His vAtsalaya guNam. It

is this vAtsalyam that Nammazhvar too talks about with

the words "nigaril pugazhAy" as he surrenders to

Thiruvengadamudaiyan in the "agalakillEn" pasuram. Our

acharyas say that His compare-less fame comes out of His

vAtsalya guNa - loving everyone no matter who they are.

 

Azhvar Emperumanar Jeeyar Thiruvadigale Sharanam

 

adiyEn madhurakavi dAsan

TCA Venkatesan

 

--- Srinivasaramanujan TCA <tcasr wrote:

> This is a beautiful translation. One doubt: when the

> subject is Nammazhwar, the word "anban" is presumed to

> refer to him; why the vyakhya alludes to Vatsalya Guna

> of the Lord?

> Adiyen,TCASrinivasaramanujan

> --- "vtca <vtca" <vtca wrote:

> > anban:

> > Lordship is not His main quality; showing love and

> > affection to all is ("ripUNAmapi vatsala:"). He has

> > the

> > quality of vAtsalya as one of His kalyANa guNas. His

> > love

> > reaches everyone without regard ("dEvAnAm

> > dAnavAnAnjca

> > sAmAnyamadhidaivatam").

 

 

 

 

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