tAtparya ratnAvaLi - Submission 40, Slokam 17 Part 2, tiruvAimozhi 1.6, pASuram-s 1.6.2 to 1.6.4.

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SrImate ra'nga rAmAnuja mahA deSikAya namaH tAyparya ratnAvaLi - Submission 40, Slokam 17 Part 2, tiruvAimozhi 1.6, pASurams 1.6.2 to 1.6.4. · pASuram 1.6.2: madhu vAr taNNam tuzhAyAn muzhu veda mudalvanukku edu Edu en paNi ennAdu aduvE AT-ceyyum IDE. madhu

vAr taN am tuzhAyAn, muzhu veda mudalvanukku edu paNi, Edu en paNi, ennAdaduvE AL Seyyum IDu – The qualification to perform kai’nkaryam to emperumAn who wears the beautiful, cool, honey-laden tulasi garlands, and who is the One revealed by all the veda-s as the Supreme Deity, is to not even think in terms of “What is it that will serve as kai’nkaryam to Him? There is really nothing that I can do that will qualify as kai’nkaryam” etc. In the previous pASuram, AzhvAr indicated that there is no dravya niyamam – restriction on items to be used for His worship; in the current pASuram, he points out that there is no ‘adhikAri

niyamam’ also – no restriction on who can worship Him. One need not think that because of His Supremacy – as identified by the tulasI garland that is one of pernumAL’s lakshaNa-s (distinguishing mark), that only the likes of nitya sUri-s are qualified to worship Him. Anyone is qualified to worship Him – He is a sulabhan – easy to access. svAmi deSikan describes this guNam of bhagavAn sung in this pASuram as ‘a-niyata vividha abhyarcanAt’ – Because His worship (abhyarcanam) does not have to follow any set rules (aniyatam), and can be in varied forms as well (vividham). SrI PBA gives the explanation that bhagavAn can be worshiped in many different ways, without any restriction on who can perform the worship to Him – adhikAri niyamAdikaL illAda paDi pal vagai ArAdhana’ngaLum uDaiyavan. SrI UV’s interpretation is that “the worship by the same person can be different because of ‘deSa kAla bheda-s’ – differences because of the time and place that one might find oneself in; so His ArAdhanam is aniyata – not strictly defined as one particular method only for a given individual; it can also differ because of different individuals’ specific circumstances, other than deSam, kAlam etc., , such as jAti (birth, race), guNa (aptitude) etc, and thus the worshp is vividha – of different kinds. Still they are all His worship. The instruction here is that one should stop

finding excuses such as feeling that one is at too low a level to offer proper worship to the Supreme Deity, and instead, involve oneself whole-heartedly and with devotion in the worship of emperumAn. AzhvAr declares that the only qualification, and the true qualification needed for worshiping Him is to remove the thought about whether one is qualified or not – edu paNi, Edu en paNi ennAdu AL Seyyum IDu, and involve oneself in His kai’nkaryam with devotion. · pASuram 1.6.3: IDum eDuppum il ISan mADu viDAdu en mananE pADum en nA avan pADal ADum en a’ngam aNa’ngE. en mannan IDum eDuppum il ISan mADu viDAdu; en nA avan pADal pADum; en a’ngam aNa’ngu ADum – My mind does not ever move away from the Lord who has the

guNam that does not discriminate between people , such as favoring some people and ignoring some. My tongue will always keep singing His Glory. My body will keep dancing with joy thinking of Him. (aNa’ngu ADal = to be taken over by a deity, and then dancing under that influence). svAmi deSikan captures the guNam conveyed in this pASuram through the words ‘alpa tushTeh’ – Even if what we do towards His worship is alpam – meager, He becomes extremely pleased by accepting it - IDum eDuppum il en ISan – Onr who does not favor one thing while discarding another. All that AzhvAr does is sit in one place and devote his thought, word and deed on emperumAn, and AzhvAr is saying that with this ‘meager offering’, perumAL is very pleased. · pASuram 1.6.4: aNa’ngu ena ADum en a’ngam vaNa’ngi vazhi paDum ISan piNa’ngi amarar pidaRRum guNam kezhu koLgaiyinAnE. aNa’ngu ena ADum en a’ngam vaNa’ngi vazhi paDum ISan, amarar piNa’ngip pidaRRum guNam kezhu koLgaiyinAn – This Supreme Lord who is easily accessible for me to worship with my body as if it is fully intoxicated, is the same enperumAn who is endowed with so many auspicious qualities that the nitya sUri-s vie with each other to describe them. SrI PBA notes that based on piLLAn’s ARAyirappaDi vyAkhyAnam, the

pATham could be ‘guNam kezhu koL kalanAnE’ – the reservoir of all kalyANa guNa-s. svAmi deSikan describes the guNam sung in this pASuram through the phrase ‘prahva Avarjya ISa bhAvAt’, which has been explained as “He who has the divine nature that He becomes subservient to those who prostrate to Him with devotion”. (prahva – one who is humble, one who prostrates with folded hands; Avarjya – bending down, subservient) – vaNa’ngi vazhi paDum ISan. SrI ve’nkaTeSAcArya’s explanation is: prahvI bhAvattAlE tAnE Avarjikkap

paDubhavan AgaiyAlum; SrImad tiruukuDanthai ANDavan explains svAmi deSikan’s guNAnubhavam as “vaNakkattAlE svAdhInap paDak kUDiyavan”; and SrI PBA gives the explanation “prahvargaLAlE AvarjanIyanAna ISvaran”. Recall that the central theme for this tiruvAimozhi is the enjoyment of the guNa of sukara bhajanatvam of perumAL – the ease with which He can be worshiped. There are two ways in which the pASuram can be placed in prose order for ease of understanding – 1. piNa’ngi amarar pidaRRum guNam kezhu koL kalan Ana ISanaik kaNDu aNa’ngu ena ADum en a’ngam vaNa’ngi vazhi paDum 2. aNa’ngu ena ADum en a’ngam vaNa’ngi vazhi paDum ISan, piNa’ngi amarar pidaRRum guNam kezhu koL kalanAn”. The second prose order brings out the emphasis of ‘sukara bhajanatvam’ of emperumAn more directly. AzhvAr points out that just by just thinking of bhagavAn’s infinite kalyANa guNa-s in his mind, he derives such extreme joy that his whole body gets immersed in the enjoyment of His infinite kalyANa guNa-s, and starts dancing the ‘aNa’ngu ADal’ because of the flood of the thought of these kalyANa guNa-s in his mind. Thus, bhagavAn is the ISan that drives one to His worship so easily because He is possessed of such infinite kalyANa guNa-s – guNam kezhu koL kalanAn - this is the gist of the pASuram. One can think of svAmi deSikan’s words ‘prahva Avarjya ISa bhAvAt’ as “One who has the supreme attributes - kalyANa guNa-s - that make the devotee prostrate to Him with folded hands and makes them sub-servient (guNam kezhu kol kalanAn vaNa’ngi vazhi paDum ISan). This brings out the ‘sukara bhajanatvam’ directly. ‘praha Avarjaika ISvara bhAvah = One who has the divinity that drives the devotee to prostrate with folded hands and to become subservient. The flood of the thought of His infinite kalyANa guNa-s that drive a devotee to worship Him in ecstacy is the same one that drives the nitya sUri-s to vie with each other in trying to outwit each other in describing and enjoying the flood of His kalyANa guNa-s one ahead of the other. BhagavAn is the Possessor of such infinite kalyANa guNa-s that attract the devotee to Him - the sukara bhajanatvam aspect of emperumAn. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan (To be continued)