Fwd: Enjoying Valmiki's sundara-kaandam with the aid of TiruppAvai phrases - Part 1

[Guest guest]

tiruvenkatam, "sudarshan madabushi"

<sudarshan.madabushi wrote:

 

Dear members,

 

The TiruppAvai is often referred to by Vedantic scholars as "upanishad

saaram" -- the Essence of Upanishadic thought. The reason for it is

that many of the themes of the Upanishads (such as Katopanishad,

Chaandogya, Brihadaaranyaka, Kena, and Taittiriya) find their distinct

echo in the fine poetic cadences of the TiruppAvai. To take only one

of several examples, the simple phrase, "mElai-yaar seyyvenagal" in

Stanza 26 resonates strongly with the ringing passage found in the

"sIkshaavalli" of the Taittiriya Upanishad:

 

atha yadi tE karma-vichikitsaa vaa vruttavichikitsaa vaa'syaat

yE tatra brAhmanAh sammarshinah:

yUktA aayukthAh

alUkshA dharma kaamaah'syUh

yathaa tE tatra vartEran

tathA tatra vartEttaah:

 

(meaning):

"When in doubt regarding any act or conduct in life, follow the

example and custom of good and wise-men (i.e "mElai-yaar seyyvenagal")

who live amongst you, who are known to judge impartially, who by

themselves are devoted to good deeds, who are without bitterness or

rancor, and who are life-long committed to dharmA."

 

The TiruppAvai also abounds in allusions and veiled references to

SriVaishnavite hagiography. Traditional commentators like

Periavaachaan Pillai and others have shown how certain stanzas in the

TiruppAvai are capable of being read and construed as pithy

biographies or life-sketches of the 10 AzhwArs, the holy saints of the

Srivaishnava faith. Stanzas 6 right through to Stanza 15 in the

TirupAvai have been commented upon by Tamil SriVaishnavite scholars

(vide "muvaa-aiyara", "aaraayira padi") as each portraying either

events in the life or specific character-traits of the 10 "aazhwArs".

 

The TiruppAvai also stands tall as an all-time favorite amongst the

classic works of ancient Tamil literature ("sanga-tamizh"). Tamil

literary scholars draw attention to the richness of the language

employed by ANdAL. They find in it many examples of grammatical,

euphonic and idiomatic excellence: simile, metaphor, alliteration,

poetic scale and construction, prosody, syntax, onamotopoeia,

allegory, epigram, irony, pun etc., all of these literary graces

present in the TiruppAvai hearken back to the glorious days of the

ancient Silapadikaaram, the Tirukkural etc. Later giants of Tamil

literature like Kamban, for example, were indeed truly inspired in

part by the sheer classicism and majesty of the TiruppAvai.

 

The TiruppAvai is also a work in which one may easily find resonances

of a great many themes found in the ancient Indian "itihAsAs" and

"purANAs" --- like the Ramayana, Mahabharatha, Vishnu-purANA,

BhAgavatham etc. A mere phrase in a TiruppAvai stanza can arouse in

the minds of readers vivid remembrance of a whole chapter, say, from

the Srimadh Bhaagavatham. A phrase, for example, like "mathinaal osai

paduttha thyre-aravam kettilaiyO..." (stanza 7) is at once highly

evocative of the lovely village and languid pastoral life-styles of

Brindavan where the events of the youthful days of Lord Krishna's

avatar were all enacted --- so poignantly described opera-style in the

Srimadh Bhaagavatam. Similarly, a phrase such as "ullatthu kondu

munivargalUm, yOgigallUm meLLa ezhundu ari-yenra pEr aravam" (Stanza

6) immediately evokes in one's mind the dark and silent forests of

Dandakaranya, in the Valmiki Ramayana, where the wandering "r-shis",

monks and mendicants had the good fortune to behold -- with naked,

mortal eyes --the Almighty Himself, in the avatar of Lord Rama.

 

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

 

During the period of the sacred month of "maargazhi" (dec-jan) in the

past years (in 2003 and 2005, if I recall correctly), I had

contributed to the Tiruvenkatam Group ( a few other cyber-groups like

Oppiliappan & Srirangasri), two separate series of postings on the

TiruppAvai, wherein it was sought to be explained how, besides its

great Upanishadic resonances or its contextual references to the

"purAna" or "itihAsa", the TiruppAvai can also be well understood and

appreciated for the singular way it deals with lesser known, but

equally significant Vedantic themes. In the first of those 2 series of

postings, entitled "Salvation in Numbers", it was explained how

"Satsangh" -- i.e the constant company of God's devotess, or

"bhAgavatha-sambhandham" being an effective path to salvation -- forms

an integral and underlying theme of the TiruppAvai. The second of the

series of postings (2005), entitled "marrai nam kaamangaL maatru",

sought to explain how the TiruppAvai can be appreciated and understood

too as an elaborate treatise on the great Vedantic theme of "kaama" or

Human Desire.

 

(Both the above series of postings are hosted in the archives of the

Tiruvenkatam Group Home Page under the section marked

"Files").

 

This year (2006), with the advent once again of the holy month of

"maargazhi", I consider it a God-blessing and my unalloyed delight to

be able to once again take up the TiruppAvai as a subject of

contemplation and begin penning yet another series of postings on what

I venture to describe as a rather unusual proposition --- viz.: the

proposition that AndAl's great poetic work can serve us well indeed in

yet another extraordinary capacity.

 

It is my proposition that the TiruppAvai -- and especially some of the

exquisite Tamil phrases and expressions contained in the work --

serves as a very handy and innovative aid for ordinary people like us

to arrive at a deeper understanding and appreciation of the most

central, perhaps the most philosophical too -- and certainly the most

poignant -- chapter in the whole of the "Srimadh Valmiki Ramayana": I

mean the "Sundara Kaandam"! Such an understanding infinitely enhances

one's enjoyment of Valmiki's magnum-opus.

 

Starting today, the first day of the sacred month of "maargazhi" 2006,

let us set sail aboard the stately boat of the Tiruppavai and

adventure out into a month-long journey of delight --- a journey of

the spirit that will carry us along the course of the deep, gentle and

wonderful narrative stream of the "sundara-kaandam" where picturesque

sights and breath-taking beauty-spots await us.

 

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

(to be continued)

 

Regards,

daasan,

Sudarshan

 

--- End forwarded message ---

[Guest guest]

tiruvenkatam, "sudarshan madabushi"

<sudarshan.madabushi wrote:

 

Dear members,

 

The TiruppAvai is often referred to by Vedantic scholars as "upanishad

saaram" -- the Essence of Upanishadic thought. The reason for it is

that many of the themes of the Upanishads (such as Katopanishad,

Chaandogya, Brihadaaranyaka, Kena, and Taittiriya) find their distinct

echo in the fine poetic cadences of the TiruppAvai. To take only one

of several examples, the simple phrase, "mElai-yaar seyyvenagal" in

Stanza 26 resonates strongly with the ringing passage found in the

"sIkshaavalli" of the Taittiriya Upanishad:

 

atha yadi tE karma-vichikitsaa vaa vruttavichikitsaa vaa'syaat

yE tatra brAhmanAh sammarshinah:

yUktA aayukthAh

alUkshA dharma kaamaah'syUh

yathaa tE tatra vartEran

tathA tatra vartEttaah:

 

(meaning):

"When in doubt regarding any act or conduct in life, follow the

example and custom of good and wise-men (i.e "mElai-yaar seyyvenagal")

who live amongst you, who are known to judge impartially, who by

themselves are devoted to good deeds, who are without bitterness or

rancor, and who are life-long committed to dharmA."

 

The TiruppAvai also abounds in allusions and veiled references to

SriVaishnavite hagiography. Traditional commentators like

Periavaachaan Pillai and others have shown how certain stanzas in the

TiruppAvai are capable of being read and construed as pithy

biographies or life-sketches of the 10 AzhwArs, the holy saints of the

Srivaishnava faith. Stanzas 6 right through to Stanza 15 in the

TirupAvai have been commented upon by Tamil SriVaishnavite scholars

(vide "muvaa-aiyara", "aaraayira padi") as each portraying either

events in the life or specific character-traits of the 10 "aazhwArs".

 

The TiruppAvai also stands tall as an all-time favorite amongst the

classic works of ancient Tamil literature ("sanga-tamizh"). Tamil

literary scholars draw attention to the richness of the language

employed by ANdAL. They find in it many examples of grammatical,

euphonic and idiomatic excellence: simile, metaphor, alliteration,

poetic scale and construction, prosody, syntax, onamotopoeia,

allegory, epigram, irony, pun etc., all of these literary graces

present in the TiruppAvai hearken back to the glorious days of the

ancient Silapadikaaram, the Tirukkural etc. Later giants of Tamil

literature like Kamban, for example, were indeed truly inspired in

part by the sheer classicism and majesty of the TiruppAvai.

 

The TiruppAvai is also a work in which one may easily find resonances

of a great many themes found in the ancient Indian "itihAsAs" and

"purANAs" --- like the Ramayana, Mahabharatha, Vishnu-purANA,

BhAgavatham etc. A mere phrase in a TiruppAvai stanza can arouse in

the minds of readers vivid remembrance of a whole chapter, say, from

the Srimadh Bhaagavatham. A phrase, for example, like "mathinaal osai

paduttha thyre-aravam kettilaiyO..." (stanza 7) is at once highly

evocative of the lovely village and languid pastoral life-styles of

Brindavan where the events of the youthful days of Lord Krishna's

avatar were all enacted --- so poignantly described opera-style in the

Srimadh Bhaagavatam. Similarly, a phrase such as "ullatthu kondu

munivargalUm, yOgigallUm meLLa ezhundu ari-yenra pEr aravam" (Stanza

6) immediately evokes in one's mind the dark and silent forests of

Dandakaranya, in the Valmiki Ramayana, where the wandering "r-shis",

monks and mendicants had the good fortune to behold -- with naked,

mortal eyes --the Almighty Himself, in the avatar of Lord Rama.

 

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

 

During the period of the sacred month of "maargazhi" (dec-jan) in the

past years (in 2003 and 2005, if I recall correctly), I had

contributed to the Tiruvenkatam Group ( a few other cyber-groups like

Oppiliappan & Srirangasri), two separate series of postings on the

TiruppAvai, wherein it was sought to be explained how, besides its

great Upanishadic resonances or its contextual references to the

"purAna" or "itihAsa", the TiruppAvai can also be well understood and

appreciated for the singular way it deals with lesser known, but

equally significant Vedantic themes. In the first of those 2 series of

postings, entitled "Salvation in Numbers", it was explained how

"Satsangh" -- i.e the constant company of God's devotess, or

"bhAgavatha-sambhandham" being an effective path to salvation -- forms

an integral and underlying theme of the TiruppAvai. The second of the

series of postings (2005), entitled "marrai nam kaamangaL maatru",

sought to explain how the TiruppAvai can be appreciated and understood

too as an elaborate treatise on the great Vedantic theme of "kaama" or

Human Desire.

 

(Both the above series of postings are hosted in the archives of the

Tiruvenkatam Group Home Page under the section marked

"Files").

 

This year (2006), with the advent once again of the holy month of

"maargazhi", I consider it a God-blessing and my unalloyed delight to

be able to once again take up the TiruppAvai as a subject of

contemplation and begin penning yet another series of postings on what

I venture to describe as a rather unusual proposition --- viz.: the

proposition that AndAl's great poetic work can serve us well indeed in

yet another extraordinary capacity.

 

It is my proposition that the TiruppAvai -- and especially some of the

exquisite Tamil phrases and expressions contained in the work --

serves as a very handy and innovative aid for ordinary people like us

to arrive at a deeper understanding and appreciation of the most

central, perhaps the most philosophical too -- and certainly the most

poignant -- chapter in the whole of the "Srimadh Valmiki Ramayana": I

mean the "Sundara Kaandam"! Such an understanding infinitely enhances

one's enjoyment of Valmiki's magnum-opus.

 

Starting today, the first day of the sacred month of "maargazhi" 2006,

let us set sail aboard the stately boat of the Tiruppavai and

adventure out into a month-long journey of delight --- a journey of

the spirit that will carry us along the course of the deep, gentle and

wonderful narrative stream of the "sundara-kaandam" where picturesque

sights and breath-taking beauty-spots await us.

 

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

(to be continued)

 

Regards,

daasan,

Sudarshan

 

--- End forwarded message ---