Tiru Adi Pooram-Andal's Incarnation

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Sri:

 

SrimatE Gopaladesika MahadesikAya Namaha,

 

Dear Bhaktas,

 

On this most sacred Tiruvadi Pooram day, the Tirunakshatram of

Andal, adiyen wishes to share the following reflections.

Srivilliputtur, the birth place of Andal is sanctified because,

Andal chose to incarnate there. Unlike avatarams of the Lord where

He incarnated through GarbhavAsam, Andal was found by Periya Azhwar

in his flower garden.

Therefore, Her birth was Avirbhava. It is significant to note that

two months of the year designated as Shoonya masams are -Adi and

Marghazhi. Significantly, both of these months have been rendered

sacred by Andal-Adi due to Her incarnation and Marghazi due to the

brilliant delivery of the Tiruppavai verses, at the end of which She

attained eternal union with Lord Narayana. Significantly, Lord

Krishna Himself declares in the Bhagavad Gita " mAsAnAm

marghashIrshOsmi " (among the months I am the MargashIrsha) in

anticipation of His union with Andal. For Andal, expression of Her

pangs of separation from Her Beloved (Lord Narayana) came naturally.

Therefore, She did not need to adopt Nayaki Bhavam in her

outpourings

like Swami NammAzhwar or Tirumangai Azhwar.

 

Andal, being an Amsham of Bhumi Piratti is the epitome of

compassion.

This is glorified in the Purusha Sooktam rk " HrIscha thE lakshmIscha

pathnyoU " . The term Hri denotes compassion- Andal's compassion.

Since

Lord Narayana is the father of the entire universe, Andal as His

consort becomes the mother of the entire universe. Her limitless

compassion for Her children (erring baddha jIvans, who are subject

to

a seemingly endless cycle of births and deaths), who perform

SharaNagati manifests itself in the form of Her impassioned appeals

to Lord Narayana to forgive their sins. The act of granting refuge

to

a Prapanna is a yajna performed by Lord Narayana. The term Patni is

reserved for exclusive use in the context of yajna. Andal's elevated

role in this yajna of protecting Prapannas is glorified in the Bhu

Sooktam Rk " shrungE shrungE yajnE yajnE viBhishaNIi "

 

Her compassion for Her children is such that She undertook the

performance of the Vratam (nombu ) of SharaNagati to illustrate the

jiVatma-ParamAtma relationship. The 30 verses of Tiruppavai contain

a

consummate description of this relationship, which has been

elaborated upon in the Upanishads and in the Bhagavad Gita. It is

instructive to note that recitation of Vedic hymns have significant

restrictions in that one must be aware of the time and place to

recite these hymns. Furthermore, not everyone is qualified to recite

these hymns. Some hymns can be recited only by Gruhastas, while some

are the privy of Sanyasis alone and so forth. Whereas no such

restrictions apply to the recitation of verses from Tiruppavai.

Also,

the Vedas are quite cryptic in their reference to the margam of

SharaNagati. Therefore, they are often termed as Marai (that which

is

not visible to the naked eye). However, Andal being an Amsham of

Bhumi Piratti beautifully intuited the nuances and prescriptions of

SharaNagati from the Vedas and described it a simple-to-understand

language using 30 delectable verses of Tiruppavai. The following

important messages are contained in this outstanding literary

masterpiece.

 

(1) Every jivAtma is irrevocably the property of the ParamAtma, Lord

Narayana, who is its Sheshi, ruler, Swami.

(2) The existence and activities of every jivAtma are solely for the

pleasure of Lord Narayana.

(3) The surest way to restore the property (jivAtma) to its rightful

owner is through the path of unconditional, total surrender to the

Lord's Lotus Feet, i.e., SharaNagati

(4) The performance of sharaNagati is simply Atma vivAham, i.e., a

wedding between the jivAtma and the Paramatma

(5) The rules underlying the performance of this nOmbu are clearly

stated in the Tiruppavai. For example, verse 2 elaborates on the

yama

and niyama exercises. The term yama means that which must be given

up, whereas the term niyama means that which must not be given up,

i.e., that which must be followed. Some of the rules contained here

are significant in that they echo important upanishadic messages.

First, upon waking up one must recite the name of Lord Narayana-this

seems to be the basis of Swami Desikan's Vaishnava Dinasari, where

he

notes that upon waking up one must recite the name Hari 7 times.

Next, Andal discusses that which must be given up-neyyuNNOm

pAluNNOm.

This is not interpreted to mean that one must give up partaking of

ghee and milk. However, it is merely an instruction that these

should

be partaken only upon offering to Lord Narayana. Further, Andal

discusses what must be given in charity. This is a remarkable echo

of

the Taittriya Upanishad salutations " shraddaya DhEyam " and " shriyA

DhEyam " and the Dharma Shastras (Manu Smriti for example) which

contain stipulations for setting apart a percentage of one's income

for charitable/philanthrophic purposes. Exponents of Yoga have also

commented that verse 2 is a prescription for faciliatating the

realization that Lord Narayana who resides in the milky ocean is

forever resident in the lotus of one's heart. This illustrates the

Mahanarayana upanishad salutation " yOanta samudhrE kavayO vayanti "

(6) The thirty verses of the tiruppavai represent the condensed

essence of the esoteric messages contained in the three Srivaishnava

rahasyams. The gist of these three rahasyams is that (i) Lord

Narayana is the supreme being-Tattvam (ii) Performance of

SharaNagati

(unconditional, total surrender) at His Lotus Feet is the surest way

of redemption-Hitam (iii) Upon performance of SharaNagati, one must

take delight in performing Kaimkaryam for Lord Narayana, His

Bhagavatas, and Acharyas. Nithya Kaimkaryam at the behest and for

the

pleasure of the Divine Couple follows at the end of one's earthly

existence-PurushArtham

(7) It may be questioned as to what is the authority for performing

this Nombu of SharaNagati? Andal answers this through the

salutation " melayAr seyvanagal " , i.e. treading the path established

by elders. The reference here is to the mahOpakaram of Swami

NammAzhwar-the Prapanna jana Kootasthar, who established the

efficacy

of SharaNagati beyond doubt.

(8) The salutation " unakkE nAmAchaIvOm " is the condensed essence of

the sAma vedam, which glorifies Lord Narayana to the exclusion of

all

other deities.

 

Swami Desikan's Goda Stuthi seems to follow the path of Andal's 30

verses in letter and spirit. Specifically, Swami Desikan's opening

contains a surrender to the Lotus Feet of Goda " . In the concluding

verse of this Stuthi, Swami Desikan elqouently describes the fruit

of

this surrender through the salutation " charaNa kamala sevAm

shAshvatIm abhyupAishyan " . The bountiful blessings arising from the

performance of SharaNagati are also described by Swami Desikan as he

echoes the message

of Andal's " shara mazhai pOl " salutation in the Daya Shatakam

verse " shArnga DhanvAnukampa " It is instructive to note that in the

war against Ravana, after the killing of Indrajit, Ravana was grief

stricken and orderd his fiercest hordes of demons to launch a full

scale offensive on Lord Rama and the Vanara army. The Vanara army

suffered heavily as a result of this attack by the asuras, who used

the darkness of the night to full advantage. Lord Rama entered the

fray at this juncture and rained an unending stream of arrows from

his bow, which effortlessly repelled the attack of the Asuras.

Adikavi, Valmiki, states in the Ramayana that the arrows came so

swiftly from Lord Rama's bow that it appeared as if a multitude of

Ramas were present on the battlefield. This is illustrative of the

fact that every baddha jIvan is unaware of its true swaroopam and is

thus steeped in the darkness of ignorance. Sri Sookthis from

Acharyas

bestow the light of knowledge upon the Baddha jIvan, resulting in

the

performance of Prapatti. The bountiful fruits arising from the

performance of Prapatti are akin to the copious stream of arrows

from

Lord Rama's bow. This is indicative of the Vedic messages " tamasOmA

jyOtirgamayA " and 'mruthyOrmA amruthanga mayA " . The bliss arising

from the performance of eternal Kaimkaryam at the behest and for the

pleasure of the Divine Couple is described in the VishNu Sooktam

Rk " Tad vishNO: Paramam padagam sadhA pashyanthi soorayaha " and the

Taittriya Upanishad salutations " sa yEkO brahmaNa Ananda: "

and " AhamannAdO " .

 

Happy Birthday Amma!

 

Namo Narayana,

 

SriMuralidhara Dasan