Sri Srinivaasa Vaibhavam- Thirumangai AzhwAr anubhavam ThirukkuRunthANdakam verse 7- Srirangam and ThiruvEnkatam

[Guest guest]

SrI:

SrImathE Gopaladesika mahadesikaya namah:

Dearest all,

 

Let us continue to enjoy Thirumangai AzhwArs wonderful

verses on Thiruvenkatamudiayaan. Now after Periya

Thirumozhi today let us enjoy ThirukkuRunthANdakam

verse no.7.

 

kalayaami kalidhvamsam kavim lOkadhivaakaram

yaSya kObi: prakaaSaabir aavidhyam niHatham thama:

 

I meditate on the Poet, who is like the Sun for the

whole world, to destroy the darkness of

ignorance(a~jnAnam) with his word and who destroys the

Kali dhOsham.

 

[from Sri Satagopan mama’s treatise]

Thirukkurnthaandakam (TKT) has 20 moving verses

celebrating the rakshatvam of Sriman Narayana and the

Maha Viswasam of the Azhwar . After his deep immersion

in the mysteries of the Ashtakshara Maha Mantram of

the Lord and after visiting the many Divya Desams , at

the end of Periya Thirumozhi, Thirumangai is in a

mellow mood .

 

In the pasurams of his Periya Thirumozhi, he expressed

his fear of being caught in the snares of Samsara and

rebirth and cried aloud for the Lord's boon of

Moksham. The Lord wanted to enjoy few more Pasurams

from his dear Bhaktha and therefore did not respond to

the fervent plea of the Azhwar. In his desperation,

the Azhwar engaged in a strenous effort to enjoy the

auspicious qualities of the Lord by mind , body and

speech in TKT and declared his utter servitude to Him

under all circumstances. As a result of this

exercise, he got his boon of Moksham and overcame the

afflictions of Samsara . He continued on in TNT and

although there is no clear proof , TNT might have been

the last work of Thirumangai judging from the mood of

the two Thaandakams.

 

Another school of thought centers on the theme that

Sriman Narayana blessed the Azhwar at the end of

Composing Periya Thirumozhi and presented himself

before him and blessed him. This school believes that

the joyous outpourings of the Azhwar in TKT is a

reflection of the ecsatatic state and the mindset of

the Azhwar.

 

Independent of the correctness of one point of view or

the other, the verses of TKT are testimony to the

unshakable belief of the Azhwar in the Rakshakatvam

and Bhaktha Vaatsalyam of Sriman Narayana.TKT also

houses the Mangalasaasanamof the Azhwaar for the

Archamurthys of Srirangam, Thirukkudanthai, Thirupper

Nagar, Venkatam, Thirukkandiyur, Thirukkadanmallai,

Kacchi and Thirumayyam. The Azhwaar seems to point

out that the Murthy Jnanam is essential even after

understanding the means (Upaayam) and Target (Upeyam)

aspects of Saranagati. There are pasurams in TKT that

capture the mood of Nirvedam ,where the Azhwaar

laments over the time lost in chasing the transient

pleasures of life instead of reflecting on the holy

feet of the Lord.

 

Like Nammazhwaar, He recognizes that the thought of

the Lord and the experience of His Kalyana Gunaas are

his food and Water (UNNum SoRu and Paruhum Neer ). His

celebration of the Bhakti Yogam in one of the Pasuram

is a marvel from the point of succinct capture of the

essence of this Yogam. He answers the Rg Vedic

Question: Kasmai Devaaya Vidhema.To Which god shall we

offer our offerings and obesiance is the question

raised by the Rg Veda mantra. Like Nammazhwaar,

Thirumangai states unambigouosly that Sriman Naryana

is the God , who is the supreme principle and the

adoration of HIM is the highest rite (charya) to

enjoy Moksha Sukham (eternal bliss). [Thanks to Sri

Satakopan swami for his permission]

 

SEVENTH verse is our ThiruvEnkatam verse:

 

immaiyai maRumai thannai

emakkuvee tAki ninRa,

meymmaiyai virin^tha sOlai

viyanthiru varangkam mEya,

semmaiyaik karumai thannaith

thirumalai orumai yAnai,

thanmaiyai ninaivA renRan

thalaimisai mannu vArE. 7

 

The fruits in this world; the bliss in the other world

[paramapadham] the ultimate goal [purushaartham] of

permanent kaimkaryam [for paramaikAnthins-the devotees

who do not seek anything other than His lotus feet and

any means except the same Lotus Feet of Sriman

Narayanan] are prevalent in this most divine Srirangam

filled with fertile gardens; where the Lord of

ThiruvEnkatam [who has the most beautiful dark form of

dhivya mangaLa ThirumEni and who has the ever aarjava

kalyANa guNA] resides… [AzhwAr says TiruvEnkata

emperumAn is the Lord of Srirangam].

 

Those devotees who meditate and contemplate on this

emperumAn of ThiruvEnkatam [and of Srirangam] reside

on my head forever… means their feet adorn my head. [i

am the dAsa of these bhaagawathas].

 

Sri Ranganathan and the Lord of Thiruvenkatam are

saluted here. The greatness of Bhagavathas are also

saluted by the Azhwaar, who declares that the feet of

the Bhagavathas of the Lord always adorn his head. In

the Eigth verse, he pities those, who do not

understand the uniqueness of the Bhagavathas or their

relationship to the Lord have wasted their lives as

Human beings and may as well be born as birds or

animals. Azhwaar is disgusted with such people.

 

As a great coincidence, in The Hindu today, under

religion column also appears the ThiruvEnkatam and

Srirangam are very beautifully mentioned and equated.

 

Same sentiment of this world and the other world is

found in Srirangam can also be referred to in

Thondaradippodi AzhwAr’s icchuvai and acchuvai. And

also engum thiruvarul peRRu of ThiruppAvai.

 

The Divine name [from the Hindu dated 2nd March 2006]

 

The abodes of the Supreme Being glorified by the

Azhwars of the Srivaishnava tradition are hailed as

Divyadesas and they are 108 in number. Of them

Srirangam has a unique distinction in that all the

Azhwars have sung in praise of the deity there — Lord

Ranganatha. An interesting aside is related in

tradition about an Araiyar (temple minstrel in

Srirangam) who went on a pilgrimage to Tiruvenkatam

and attempted to compare the excellence of Lord

Srinivasa (Tirumala) and Lord Ranganatha.

 

When he started describing them and observed that the

ornaments, which adorned them shone with radiance

because of their beauty, the Lord of Tiruvenkatam

accepted his eulogy. The Araiyar then related that all

the Azhwars had composed verses on Lord Ranganatha

when Lord Srinivasa immediately asked him to stop

comparing them saying that `Chozhiyan' (Tondaradippodi

Azhwar) had indeed failed to extol Him. This is

related to underscore Tondaradippodi Azhwar's singular

devotion to the Lord of Srirangam. His hymns Tirumalai

and Tiruppalli ezhuchi are testimony to his absolute

loyalty to his chosen deity, said Sri K.B. Devarajan

in his discourse. It is said that one who does not

know Tirumalai cannot know Tirumal (God).

 

Such is the greatness of this work. Right at the

outset he highlights the glory of the Divine name as

the means to salvation in the Tirumalai. He declares

that reciting God's names has made him fearless: " By

the impetus of learning Your names the senses have

come under control and Kali overpowered, and we exult

stepping on the heads of Yama's agents. " Thus the

leitmotif of this hymn is the efficacy of chanting the

Divine name as the means to liberation in this Kali

age.

 

This is stressed on the lines of the Bhagavata Purana,

which states that penance, dispassion and wisdom were

essential to realise God in the other three Yugas

(Satya, Treta and Dwapara), while in Kali devotion

(chanting the Divine name) can give the same result. A

devotee once asked Parasara Bhattar what the

prerequisites were for chanting God's names. He asked

in turn, " Is there any eligibility for addressing

one's mother? " thereby driving home the truth that

devotion is enough to chant the Divine name..

 

Thirumangai AzhwAr ThiruvaDigaLE SaraNam

Regards

Namo Narayana

dasan