AcArya rAmAmRtam - (from SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA dt. April 08 Part 1)

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SrIH

SrImate ra’ngarAmAnuja MahA deSikAya namaH

SrImate SrInivAsa rAmAnuja MahA deSikAya namaH

SrImate VedAnta rAmAnuja MahA deSikAya namaH

SrI ra’nganAtha divya maNi pAdukAbhyAm namaH

 

AcArya rAmAmRtam - (from SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA dt. April 08 Part 1)

 

English Translation of

SrImad rAmAyaNa upanyAsam in tamizh by SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan

 

As published in SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA by

SrI u.ve. nATTEri KiDAmbi rAjagopAlAcAriyAr (Editor of SrI ra’nganAtha

pAdukA)

 

(Please set your encoding to Unicode UTF-8)

SrImad ANDavan tiruvaDi,

kalyANi kRshNamAcAri

=====================================

SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan’s SrImad rAmAyaNa upanyAsam

 

tato rAtryAm vyatItAyAm sopAdhyAyaH sabAndhavaH |

rAjA daSaratho hRshTaH sumantram idam abravIt ||

 

adya sarve dhanAdhyakshA dhanam AdAya pushkalam |

vrajantvagre suvihitA nAnAratna samanvitAH || (bAla. 69.1,2)

 

cakravarti daSaratha said, " Okay! Let the four kinds of armies start for

MithilA. Take a lot of cash! Take also a lot of gems! We need them for

vratam, kumbham, and many other things. We have to place the nine kinds of gems

in the kumbhams (pots). We have to give dakshiNai (fees). Take plenty of

money " .

 

The boy's father will collect thousand or ten thousand rupees from girl's side

as dowry, but after the jAnavAsam (the procession ceremony for the boy before

the wedding) is over, he will say: " Get money for the morning vratam from the

girl's side " ; isn't it true? What is wrong with the money he got earlier? When

the oil is brought the previous night, the girl's side has to shell out some

more money for the vratam also (laughter in the audience). He has received ten

thousand rupees the previous day; can't he take from that?

 

daSaratha said that the girl's side must not be asked for anything.

 

vasishTho vAmadevaSca jAbAliratha kASyapaH |

mArkaNDeyaH sudIrghAyuH RshiH kAtyAyanastathA ||

(bAla.

69.4)

 

They [VasishTha, VAmadeva, JabAli, KASyapa, MArkaNDeya, KatyAyana, etc] left

immediately. It was a sight! They brought the chariot and said, " Let us all

leave for the wedding " . daSaratha started. VasishTha also started. vAlmIki

rAmAyaNam does not explicitly say that KausalyA etc., went. Why didn't he write

that KausalyA also went? Answer is - Would she have stayed back? Why should

VAlmIki write all these details? He has to write all the important ones; why

should he write minor details? Wouldn't a mother go for her son's marriage?

Was there any fight? Did she not go because of that? Or, was it love marriage

and she did not want to go? Nowadays, people go and attend even when that is

the case (laughter in the audience). Then, why wouldn't she go? This is called

nisarga siddham (it is a fact without having to be stated explicitly); so,

VAlmIki did not write about that. Kambar did not want to have this as a gap;

so, he wrote about it. [fn 1]

 

veRRivEl mannavan, 'takkan vELviyil,

kaRRai vAr SaDai muDik kaNicci vAnavan,

muRRa Ezh ulagaiyum venRa mUri vil

iRRa pEr olikolAm iDittadu, I'ngu?' enRAn.

(kambar - ezhuccip paTalam-5)

 

daSaratha said, " Let us go; let all the armies go [to the place where the bow

was broken] " .

 

In those days, ta'njAvUr king used to go to mAyavaram for camping. His armies

would leave first. They would carry guns. The end of that army line would

extend up to sundarap perumAL temple. For the cOLa bhUpati (king), an

impressive army would precede. But the ta'njAvUr king would not have left his

palace yet [because he would leave at the tail end of the army, after all the

army has assembled in formation]. It is said that the army was that huge.

 

Like that, daSartha cakravarti started. He asked the army to lead first. The

armies left; the [front] end of that line reached mithilA city; the army was so

large. King daSaratha had not left his palace yet. How big an army? Did he

have such a big army? Was it the case that each soldier was separated from the

next one by a mile?

 

[Kamban describes this in the following pASuram]:

uzhundu iDa iDamillai ulagam e'ngaNum

azhundiya uyirkkelAm aruT kombAyinAn

ezhundilan; ezhundiDaip paDarum SEnaiyin

kozhundu pOi koDi madil mithilai kUDiRRE.

(kambar - ezhuccip paTalam -23)

 

King has not yet gotten up. Army went first. Between one soldier and the other

soldier, was there a separation of one furlong or two furlongs? We have to talk

in terms of kilometer units, right? How many kilometers separating each soldier

from the next?

 

uzhundu iDa iDamillai - there was no space to drop even a grain of lentil; the

space was so tight; even so, one end of the army had reached mithilA, and the

other end was still forming.

 

uzhundu iDa iDamillai - kambar says beautifully. He is saying there was no

space to drop even a grain of lentil. People normally say: " There was no space

left for dropping even a sesame seed " . Why did Kamban use 'uLundu' - a piece of

lentil, instead of saying " There was no space to drop even a sesame seed?

 

Since marriage is an auspicious occasion, he did not want to mention sesame seed

in this context. Instead, he says, " uzhundu iDa iDamillai ulagam e'ngaNum " .

Some people may not know the meaning of the words, but still say things

(audience laughs loudly). Poets must not say like that.

 

I told you the other day. There was a wedding. Lot of people had come.

tirumA'ngalya dhAraNam was over. Girl's side went to the boy's side with silk

bed sheet, silver vessels etc., and there were a hundred people. Girl was asked

to prostrate before the hundred people. Can she prostrate two hundred times -

two for each person? The girl has not eaten from the morning. She has been

sitting in the smoke coming from the homam, wiping her eyes. If she is asked to

pay her respects to a hundred people, what will the poor girl do? She manages to

do that to thirty/forty people; more are left!

 

" Enough! enough! By the time the prostration is done for the 100 people, even

the mA'ngalya sUtram may give way! " (loud laughter in the audience) idAnImeva

mA'ngalya sUtram baddham | tat lokoktiH ala'nkAraH. In the same way, sesame is

not the term to be uttered during a marriage.

 

Kambar does refer to sesame in another context. When rAvaNa is lying down dead,

Kambar says, " eLLirukkum iDaminRi uyir irrukum iDam nADi izhaittavARO! " In

yuddha kANDam, the same Kambar says, " rAma's arrows have pierced rAvaNan's body

with no space for even a seed of sesame anywhere in the body. Each hair hole had

an arrow attack; there is no space even to place even one sesame seed. "

 

Why did he say 'sesame'? Mustard seed is even smaller than sesame seed! Why

didn't he use that as his example? That is what people will ask there. Better

still, he could have used the mustard seed from Tiruchi city for his example.

 

The mustard seed from ta'njAvUr is big. It will look attractive when used in

fluid food preparations. The mustard seed from tiruchi will be very flavorful

and small. You cannot even see it even when you use a lot of it. The big mustard

seed from tanjAvur city will float on top also, and so will be visible.

 

Thus, the tiruchi mustard is smaller than the sesame seed. Why didn't Kamban

mention that? Since her husband's body is lying down, Mandodari remembered that

the priest would arrive soon with sesame seeds. So, Kambar says, " eLLirukkum

iDaminRi " . Since the term 'sesame' must not be used in a wedding context,

Kamban, being a mahA kavi (great poet) says, " uzhundu iDa iDamillai " .

 

uzhundu iDa iDamillai ulagam e'ngaNum

azhundiya uyirkkelAm aruT kombAyinAn

ezhundilan -

 

daSaratha, who is like a pole supporting the creepers for all his people, had

not even gotten up.

 

ezhundu iDaip paDarum SEnaiyin

kozhundu pOi koDi madil mithilai kUDiRRE

 

What happened! The [front] end of the army had reached all the way to mithilA!

 

When daSaratha said, " Let's all go " , the BrAhmaNa-s started.

 

kuDaiyar, kuNDigai tUkkinar, kundiya

naDaiyar, nASi pudaitta kai nARRalar,

kaDa kaLiRRaiyum kArigaiyAraiyum

aDaiya a'njiya, antaNar-mundinAr (ezhuccip paTalam-42)

 

All the BrAhmaNa-s are going first with their maDi sa'nci [bag made of reed or

wool for keeping clothes ceremonially pure]!

 

kuDaiyar kuNDigai tUkkinar - they were holding umbrellas. They carried a 'giNDi'

[a small vessel to hold water] in their hand. SAstram says that if they carried

water in that container while traveling, they won't acquire any impurity during

the travel. It is like having the Ga'ngA river with them.

 

kuDaiyar kuNDigai tUkkinar, kundiya naDaiyar - they are walking a 'bent' walk -

carefully watching where they tread - making sure they don't come in contact

with any old cloth, hair, paper etc., as they walk; otherwise they will acquire

'impurity'. They can't go to the wedding and say they want to take a bath -

the yajamAna (host) will not feel happy about that [that will be considered

inauspicious] (audience laughs). So, instead of placing their feet flat on the

ground, they tip toe - kundiya naDaiyar. VasishThar leads. All the other

BrAhmaNa-s follow him in the front line. The army marches on.

 

poigai am kamalak kAnil polivadu Or annam enna

kaikayar vEndan pAvai, kaNigaiyar ITTam po'ngi

ai - iru nURu SUzha, AymaNic civigai tan mEl

deyva ma'ngaiyarum nANa, tEn iSai muralap pOnAL.

(ezhuccip paTalam-63)

 

Kaikeyi went first. She went in an exquisite palanquin. Even devatA-womenfolk

and apsaras ladies would feel ashamed when they perceived her beauty. Such was

her beauty.

 

viri maNit tArgaL pUNDa vESari veri nil tOnRum

ari malart taDam kaN nallAr Ayirattu iraTTi SUzha

kurumaNic civigai tan mEl, koNDalin min idu enna,

iruvaraip payanda na'ngai, yAzh iSai muralap pOnAL

(ezhuccip paTalam

64)

 

Who is iruvaraip payanda nangai - the one who gave birth to two kids? sumitrai

went also. Then KausalyA.

 

iruvaraip payanda na'ngai, yAzh iSai muralap pOnAL (64)

vaLLalaip payanda na'ngai, vAnavar vaNa'ngap pOnAL (65)

 

Kamban's choice of words is just superb. . For kaikEyi, the terms " tEn iSai

muralap pOnAL " were used; for SumitrA, the terms " yAzh iSai muralap pOnAL " were

used. But, when it comes to KausalyA, when she gets on the palanquin, Kambar

says,

 

" vaLLalaip payanda na'ngai, vAnavar vaNa'ngap pOnAL " .

 

All the gods folded their hands in a worship mode because she was the mother of

rAma, who is the father to the whole world and ParamAtmA. vAnavar vaNa'ngap

pOnAL. She left in a grand manner.

 

VasishTha bhagavAn started! He is the one who has to conduct the wedding. He

packed the dharvI; do you know what dharvI is? It is the leaf with which homam

is performed. He took that. He also took the puffed rice (pori in tamizh); he

cannot go and ask for that in MithilA. The purohitar (the one who conducts the

wedding ceremony) has to bring that. That is how his " poRi " is; that is what has

been written on the " poRi " on his forehead (audience laughs)! [AcAryan is

indulging in a humor with words - rice puff is called 'pori' in tamizh; this is

used for the 'pori iDudal' or dropping the 'pori' in homam that is done by the

newly weds after the wedding; " poRi " with the hard 'Ri' is the fate line that is

supposed to be written for all in the foreheads; AcAryan jokes that VasishThar

has been fated to be responsible for taking the 'pori'; His " poRi " writing is

like that].

 

iru piRappALar eNNAyirar, maNik kalaSam Endi,

arumaRai varukkam Odi, aRugu nIr teLittu vAzhtti,

varanmuRai vandAr, kODi ma'ngala mazhalaic cevvAip

paru maNik kalApattAr, pallANDiSai paravip pOnAr

(ezhuccip paTalam-73)

 

iru piRappALar eNNAyirar - eight thousand BrAhmaNa-s - Twice born. Brahmins are

called twice-born - iru piRappALar - dvijAti. There are eight thousand of them!

VasishThar went in an ivory palanquin. They all followed him!

 

Following that, daSaratha cakravarti's procession started on its way to mithilA.

daSaratha cakravarti got into the chariot, and the chariot started. A lot of

people watched their king leaving.

 

'kaNDilan ennai' enbAr; 'kaNDanan ennai' enbAr;

'kuNDalam vIzhndadu' enbAr; 'kuRuga aridu, inic cenRu' enbAr;

'uNDu kol, ezhucci?' enbAr; 'olittadu Sa'ngam' enbAr;

maNDala vEndar vandu neru'nginar maru'ngu mAdO!

(ezhuccip paTalam-74)

 

Many junior kings came to look at daSaratha cakravarti. Some kings in that

crowd started saying - " I was so close, the king did not see me " , but others

said: " He saw me! "

 

'kaNDilan ennai' enbAr; 'kaNDanan ennai' enbAr;

'kuNDalam vIzhndadu' enbAr;

 

One said - 'I wanted to go close and watch. But I lost my ear-ring.' His luck

was like that, right! Everyone else is going to 'get' something from the king,

but this person lost the only ear-rings he had. It was that crowded.

 

Thus, everybody went to mithilA for attending the wedding. Janaka said

'welcome' and received them.

 

svAgatam te maharAja dishTyA prApto'si rAghava |

putrayorubhayoH prItim lapsyase vIryanirjitAm ||

 

dishTyA prApto mahAtejAH vasishThO bhagavAn RshiH |

(bAla.69.10, 11)

 

MahArAja Janaka came. He gave arghyam, pAdyam and AcamanIyam [traditional

greeting] to daSaratha cakravarti. He said, " Oh Great king of the raghu dynasty!

Oh, great valorous one! I am glad that you have come! Your sons have won a

victory with their valor. You should approve this wedding with the girl who has

been won over by valor. It is great that your AcAryan also has come! It is

extremely gratifying, svAmi! "

 

dishTyA me nirjitA vighnA dishTyA me pUjitam kulam |

(bAla.69.11)

 

" With the blessings of BhagavAn, all my impediments have been removed. My

daughter's wedding has become finalized. The status of my family has been

raised higher. "

 

rAghavaiH saha sambandhAt vIrya SreshThaiH mahAtmabhiH |

(bAla.69.11)

 

" The mahArAja-s of raghu clan are well known for their gallant bravery. I am

blessed with connection to them! "

 

SvaH prabhAte narendra tvam nirvartayitum arhasi |

(bAla.69.12)

 

" We should get things ready for the wedding to be conducted tomorrow morning. "

 

daSaratha said, " Okay, let us talk tomorrow " .

 

Janaka said, " You should bless such that everything goes well for the wedding

tomorrow. "

 

daSaratha said, " What is there for me to say about the wedding! "

 

pratigraho dAtRvaSaH Srutam etanmayA purA |

yathA vakshyasi dharmaj~na tat karishyAmahe vayam ||

(bAla.69.15)

 

" What can I say? pratigraham - I am the one receiving! What difficulty do I

have? You are the one doing the kanyA dAnam. So, I will listen to whatever you

say. "

 

SrutvA videhAdhipatiH param vismayam AgataH |

(bAla.69.15)

 

Janaka mahArAja was surprised. " What is this! He is the ikshvAku clan king!

He is saying that he will listen to what I say! What a great surprise this is!

What a great surprise! "

 

He said they can continue their talks the next day. Immediately it was

published in the gazette - " Tomorrow morning, daSaratha cakravarti is going to

talk! This will be for a part of the wedding! He will talk in channel x in the

radio wave X in meter X at X time…. "

 

All are sitting with their radios on. They have all come to the palace. It has

been announced that daSaratha cakravarti is going to talk! Everyone is

wonderstruck!

 

Next day, it dawned. Janaka mahArAja came and sat down, all dressed up.

daSaratha also came. Two oldies; one here and one there! Both sat down.

daSaratha was given a big throne. ViSvAmitra also came and sat down. Everyone

is waiting to hear daSaratha cakravarti speak. . There was pin-drop silence.

Some are even sitting on tops of trees! Some are seated on the compound wall to

listen. There was not enough space to sit.

 

In those days, when lawyers went from Madras to our town (tirukuDandai), people

would be sitting on the Court compounds to listen to them, wondering what are

they going to say, what legal points they going to raise, etc. Did you know

that?

 

Like that, the whole city was all excited saying " daSaratha is going to talk!

daSaratha is going to talk! " .

 

---------

[fn 1] In many kshatriya marriages, many kings would vie for a girl and big wars

would ensue on that account. There is a lot of historical proof for this.

After the svayamvaram (selection of bride-groom for a girl), the prince alone

will go and get married. Thus, boy's mother may not be present in the wedding

hall. VAlmIki says later that when sItA and rAma came to ayodhyA after getting

married, the mothers-in-law welcomed sItA with great fondness.

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To be continued …..

 

 

 

 

 

 

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