Thuppul PiLLai- 36- Garuda DhaNdakam- A wonderful composition!

[Guest guest]

SrI:

SrImathE Nigamantha Mahadesikaya namah:

SrImAn venkatanAthAryaH kavitArkika kesarI |

vedAntAcArya-varyo me sannidhattAm sadA hRdi ||

 

May the glorious Venkatanatha, the greatest of teachers of Vedanta, and the

lion among poets and debaters, reside forever in my heart.

 

Dearest Srivaishnavas,

Let us begin to enjoy the sthOthra granthas of Swamy Desikan [in

alphabetical order]

Garuda-Dandaka -The hymn on Garuda

 

Garuda-Dandka is in praise of Garuda, who is Veda incarnate. He is

Bhagavan’s vehicle that carries Him on his shoulders and is also his banner

of victory. Rudra and Sukeerti are loving consorts of Garuda.

 

Serpents are the food of Garuda and also his ornaments. He is an aspect of

Sankarshana. One of the four Vyooha emanations of bhagavan. In the form of

Satya and other deities, garuda presides over the fire and Maruts and

controls them.(2).

 

By the strength of his wings Garuda is able to enter into the Patala-loka

and display his power to control it. He is the master of Adhyaatma-Vidya and

can be pleased by prayer to bestow that knowledge and to do service to him.

 

The last quarter of the hymn describes the Garuda mantra which is composed

of three words and five syllables-Pranava as the first word. pa-kshi as the

two lettered second word and ‘svaaha’ as the two lettered third word.

Meditation on Garuda with that mantra will bestow all the three purusharthas

here and Moksha in the other world. It ends with a prayer to Garuda that he

should bestow knowledge and devotion.

 

The respect and devotion that Sri Desika has for Garuda can be seen from the

obeisance and prayer that he makes in everyone of the four quarters of the

Hymn.

 

Garuda-dandaka is the name given by Sri Desika himself to this sthothra in

the last two slokas. Dandaka is a metre of four quarters (feet, charana or

paada). In Sanskrit Prosody, the maximum number of syllables is the one

quarter of the sloka is twenty –six. Such a sloka is called ‘vrtta’ or

‘chandas’. If the number of letters in a foot exceeds twenty-six, as

27,30,33and so on by multiples of three which go by the name of ‘ganas’ of

groups, the metre is called ‘dandaka’.

 

There is no limit to the number of ganas. Garuda-dandaka has thirty-six

ganas as Sri Desika himself declares in the last two phala-sruti slokas.

“Shat-thrismsat gana-charanah”- (Each foot (charana) having six and thirty

ganas or groups). By process of combination the three letters of a gana,

which may be short or long, eight ganas can be formed. Separate names are

given to such ganas of which two are called ‘na’ gana and ‘ra’gana.

 

In ‘na’ gana all the three syllables are short-U U U;

In ‘ra’ gana, the middle is short and the other two long;--- U ---,

 

Every one of the four feet begins with two ‘na’ ganas and the rest are

‘ra’ganas as Sri Desika says ‘na’ ‘ra’ paripaatee.

 

Ga-ru-da/ma-khi-la are like U U U U U U / ve da nee/daa dhi roo

are like

- U - - U - .

 

So there are two ‘na’ganas and thirty-four ‘ra’ ganas 34+2=36x3=108

syllables in each foot. [Genius Acharya!]

 

(Vaalakhilaya- pratijnaa- avateerna!-Garuda who was born by the vow

Vaalakhilaya –sages.

 

Vaalakhilayas were a group pf sages who were extremely dwarfish in bodies,

but of great by their penance. When they were coming to attend the sacrifice

performed by Sage-Kasyapa, they were no able to cross a small pit with a

handful of water because of the smallness of their bodies. Indra who was

coming on his elephant saw them and made fun of them. They became angry and

cursed him that he would be defeated in a fight by a son of Kasyapa. When

Garuda went to Svarga to take the Amrita, Indra with his army came to fight

hard and defeated by Garuda who was the son of sage Kasyapa.

[From the Life and works of Sri Nigamantha Mahadesikan- by Prof Sri A

Srinivasaraghavan]

 

Swamy Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Regards

Namo narayana

dAsan

kavi-tArkika-simhAya kalyANa-guNa-SAline |

Srimate venkateSAya vedAntagurave namaH ||

 

Salutations to Sri Venkatesa, in whom all perfections reside, who is the

teacher of Vedanta and the lion among poets and debaters

 

_______________

Keep track of Singapore & Malaysia stock prices.

http://www.msn.com.sg/money/