tAtparya ratnAvaLi - Submission 43, Slokam 17 Part 5, tiruvAimozhi 1.6, pASuram-s 1.6.9, 1.6.10.

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SrImate ra'nga rAmAnuja mahAS deSikAya namaH tAtparya ratnAvaLi - Submission 43, Slokam 17 Part 5, tiruvAimozhi 1.6 - pASuram-s 1.6.9, 1.6.10. · pASuram 1.6.9: taruma arum payanAya tiru magaLAr tanik kELvan perumai uDaiya pirAnAr irumai vinai kaDivArE. BhagavAn is the Consort of mahA lakshmi and is the ultimate object attained through all the righteous conduct (dharma arum payan); He is One who is magnanimous enough to remove the effects of both types of our karma (puNya as well as pApa). svAmi deSikan describes the guNam revealed in this pASuram in support of bhagavAn’s ‘sukara bhajanatvam’or ease of worship, through the phrase “dharma sausthyAtâ€- dharuma arum payanAya. SrImad tirkkuDanthai ANDAvan gives the meaning as “dhaarma’ngaLuDaiya parama (mElAna) phalanAi iruppavan†- Because He is the ultimate and highest benefit attained through dharma. SrI UV interprets svAmi deSikan’s phrase ‘dharma sausthyAt’ as meaning “bhagavAn and pirATTi together are well established as the upAyam – dharmam – for mokshaâ€. In other words, worshiping pirATTi and bhagavAn (tiru magaLAr tanik kELvan) with single-minded devotion will lead to the ultimate benefit of all (arum payan = moksham) – therein lies the sukara bhajanatvam, because pirATTi and perumAL together are both the means and the end. One does not need to resort to any other upAyam or means. Based on a reading of the different interpretations for this pASuram, it is clear that the emphasis in this pASuram is that bhagavAn, because of His association with pirATTi, removes all our blemishes –both puNyam and pAvam, and bestows moksham as the ultimate benefit, if we are firmly established in our devotion to them, and realize that this is the sole upAyam or means to attain them. Of particular emphasis is that bhagavAn has the magnanimity to forgive the ‘irumai vinai’ – both the effects of our good deeds as well as bad deeds, because of His being ‘tirumAmagal tanik kELvan’

– the Consort of the ever-compassionate mahA lakshmi. A pramANam quoted in this context is: lakshmyA saha

hRshIkeSo devyA kAruNya rUpayA | rakshakas sarva siddhAnte vedAnte’pi ca gIyate || If it is asked how it is possible that bhagavAn will give the greatest of all benefits – moksham, by our just prostrating to this Duality of pirATTi and perumAL, the answer is that the Personification of Mercy – kAruNya rUpiNI – maha lakshmI, is

inseparably associated with Him. SrI UV indicates that AzhvAr points to the importance of pirATTi in the function of moksha pradatvam – tarum avvarun payanAya, by referring to pirATTi as “tiru magaLAr†in plural, with the added respect, while referring to perumAL as ‘tanik kELvan’ – in singular. In other words, perumAL’s mercy in bestowing moksham derives from His eternal association with pirATTi – kAruNya rUpiNI. The greatest among all His gretnesseses is Sriyah patitvam. Veda sings the same point – SraddhayA devo devatvam aSnute – The Lord derives His divinity because of SraddhA – SrI or lakshmI. There is an alternate pATham for this pASuram that starts with “tarum av-arum payanAya…’: av-arum payanAya tarum; irumai vinai kaDivAr; tiru magaLAr tanik kELvan, perumai uDaiya pirAnAr – emperumAn who is the Consort of mahA lakshmi, will bestow on us that kind of great benefit (referred to in the previous pASuram –

azhivinRi Akkam – moksham), by removing the two kinds of fetters – puNyam and pApam; He is One with such great magnanimity. However, based on svAmi deSikan’s characterization of the guNa sung in this pASuram as “dharma saushthyAt’, it seems that he has preferred the pATham “dharuma arum payanAya….â€. This pASuram can certainly benefit by kAlakshepam with our learned AcArya-s. · pASuram 1.6.10: kaDiyAr tIya vinaigaL noDi Arum aLavaikkaN koDiyA vaDu puL uyartta vaDivAr madhavanArE. aDu puL

koDiyA uyartta vaDivAr mAdhavanAr, noDi Arum AlavaikkaN tIya vinaigaL kaDivAr – Sriyah pati mAdhavan who has garuDan - the destroyer His devotees’ enemies - as His flag, and who has a beautiful tirumEni, will remove all the bad karma-s of His devotees in a fraction of a moment. svAmi deSikan captures the guNam sung in this pASuram through the words – kshipra kshipta ahitatvAt – He throws away or annihilates the worst karma-s of His devotee before a tiny fraction of one moment expires (kshipra – speedily, fast; kshipta –

discarded, thrown away, ahitatva – bad karma-s (tIya vinaigaL) - koDiya tI vinaigaL noDi Arum aLavaikkaN kaDivAr. The fact that bhagavAn will remove the effect of the worst sins of His devotees when they surrender to Him has been mentioned in three different pASuram-s in this tiruvAimozhivazhi: ninRa val vinai mALvittu azhivinRi Akkam tarumE (1.6.8), tiru magaLAr tanik kELvan irumai vinai kaDivArE (1.6.9), and kaDivAr tI vinaigaL noDi Arum aLavaikkaN (1.6.10). SrI PBA notes that there is no redundancy here – the first one stresses that He removes the negative effects of karma-s when one surrenders to Him; the next one stresses the role of pirATTi in this act; the last one streeses the speed with which this removal of the effects of karma-s takes place. The reference to periya tiruvaDi – garuDAzhvAn – in this pASuram is interpreted in more than one way: a) bhagavAn bestows the same level of kai’nkaryam to all the devotees who

surrender to Him as He has given to garuDAzhvAr; b) He will raise His devotees to the high level to which He has raised periya tiruvaDi – a presence on His flag, at a higher level than even Himself. Equality with nitya sUri-s, and the speed with which He bestows this blessing on the true devotee who surrenders to Him unconditionally, are both emphasized. The aspect of sukara bhajanatvam is evident in that such a high blessing – the attainment of the utmost goal in life – is available just by the act of unconditional surrender to Him with no other benefit in mind except Him. Thus, the ten Sloka-s of this tiruvAimozhi point to the ease with which He can be worshiped: - There is no need to expend any money or other wealth on acquiring materials to worship Him – He can be worshiped with mere water, freely available flowers, etc. (1.6.1) - Anyone can worship Him without distinction of varNa-s, using the different ways available as presceibed in the SAstra-s (1.6.2) - He becomes pleased with any sincere offering, without

disntinguishing between the level of the people who are making the offering, or the value of the object that is offered (1.6.3) - He becomes subservient to those who become subservient to Him (1.6.4) - To those who seek Him as

their only goal, He makes Himself available as insatiable Nectar to them (1.6.5) - He is sweet as a result of the abundance of auspicious qualities (1.6.6) - Meditating on His divya caritram will help one cross the ocean of this samsAra very easily (1.6.7) - He will bestow moksham on anyone who surrenders at His feet just once (1.6.8) - He will remove the effect of all our karma-s because of His association with mahA lakshmI who is karuNA incarnate, when we surrender to Him (1.6.9). - He will remove the effects of our karma-s in a fraction of a moment when we surrender to Him unconditionally (1.6.10). -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan (To be continued)

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