Thiruvaimozi-1-3-1

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Thiruvaimozi 1.3

 

1.patthudaiyavarkkeLiyavanpiRargaLukkuriya

vitthagan malarmagaL virumbum nam arum peRal adigaL

matthaRukadai veNNaikaLavil uralidai yaappuNdu

etthiRam uralinodu iNaindhirundhEngiyaeLivE

 

 

How can one describe the soulabhya of our Lord, the beloved of Lakshmi, who is easily available to His devotees but not for those who are without devotion, such an unattainable Lord who was bound to the mortar because He stole butter while being churned and who stood without moving from the mortar to which he was tied around His waist.

 

This pasuram is of special significance not only because it describes the scene of Krishna bound to the mortar and thus showed that he could be bound with love but because on describing His soulabhya thus azvar went into a trance in which he stayed for six months, on uttering the words 'etthiRam' meaning how great is His soulabhya

 

Patthudaiya – those who have devotion, patthi refers to bhakthi.

 

adiyavarkkeLiyavan- He is easy to get for the devotees. In Ramayana we see that when Ravana tried to lift Lakshmana who was unconscious due to being attacked by SakthyaayuDha in order to carry him to Lanka. He could not lift Lakshmana who became too heavy to lift o for him. After all he was none other than Adhisesha who bears the entire earth and it was no wonder that Ravana could not lift him. But Hanuman was able to lift him without effort which shows that for a devotee can do to the Lord through his love. Valimki refers to hanuman as suhrd, one with good hear and a friend, which means bhakthi only.

 

Here also in the mortar episode, Yasodha was able to bind Him who cannot be bound through her love. To show that he could not be bound he acted his leela by which the rope Yasodha was trying to bind him was short by two inches, says Bhagavatham , with whatever rope she tried, however long. But seeing her disheveled and ashamed that others would laugh at her He got himself bound, out of mercy to His devotees.

 

Desika describes this saying ulookhale kuthrachith aatthapuNye banDhum sathaam banDhum iyesha maathaa , his mother wished to tie , banDHum iyesha, Him who is banDhum sathaam, of His devotees ( with a pun on the word banDhum meaning tying as well as realative), to a mortar, ulookHa, which was aatthapuNya, the mortar has done some punya to acquire that good fortune that Yasodha wanted to tie Krishna to it.

 

Azvar visualizing scene sees Krishna tied to the mortar and being threatened by Yasodha and he is standing tied to the mortar and feigning fear with his eyes filled with tears and azvar exclaims `etthiRam,' and went into a trance thinking on His soulabhya. He seems to be controlled by His devotees which is also His will. In this instance he allowed himself to be bound in order to perform his ela of freeing the sons of Kubera who were waiting for him at the backyard as twin trees.

 

Both in Ramavathara and Krishnavathara we see instances of the Lord's soulabhya through out but though in Ramavatahra He never disclosed His identity, in krishnavathara He showed clearly His divinity in many instances. But only the devotees who were dasa as well knew His real identity like Vidhura, Uddhava etc. Others like Yasodha and the gopis or the Pandavas with the exception of Sahadeva who bound Him with devotion, they never really remembered His divinity always, which was again the maya of the Lord to facilitate the performance of His leelas.

 

This is why the Lord told in Gita `janma karma cha me dhivyam evam yo vetthi thatthvathaH,' meaning that only those endowed with jnana born a out of bhakthi can understand His births and actions fully. Others think that he is only human like Sisupala and Duryodhana or Ravana as He says in Gita `avajaananthi maam mooDaaH maanusheem thanum aasritham param bhaavam ajaananthaH,' those who have no knowledge about My real nature consider Me as a human being without knowing my divinity.