High Brow Stuff

[Guest guest]

Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

 

 

High-Brow Stuff

 

 

Each and every part of the human anatomy has been designed by an expert divine

engineer, with an eye both for aesthetics and utility. Almost all components of

our physique have an indispensable function to perform, the eyes leading us

straight on our path and letting us see the myriad objects in God's Creation,

the ears enabling us to grasp sounds, the nose and nostrils filtering the air we

breathe in, the tongue enableing communication with others and so on. Every part

of our body thus appears to have a highly utilitarian role, so much so that its

absence or impairment cripples us badly. Even the insignificant eyelashes appear

to perform the important function of keeping dust and grime out of our eyes.

 

 

 

However, think as we might, we are unable to find any practical utility for one

part of the human anatomy, viz., the Brows. We are hard put to divine what

exactly they are meant for, for they apparently have no real use, situated as

they are on top of the eye-socket. It is then that we remember that the Divine

Architect, who designed our physique, had in mind not only utilitarian but also

artistic and aesthetic considerations. Perhaps He wanted the human body to be

not only a high-performance mechanism, but also one which was easy on the eye.

But for this artistic consideration, the human anatomy would perhaps have been

as much of an eyesore as the robots that we humans have designed. If we really

stop to think about it, the human physique could very well have been made

strictly functional, without any of the frills and embellishments that add some

colour, beauty, softness and general good looks to it. That the Creator has

chosen to endow us with not only functional efficiency but also some element of

seemliness, indicates consideration and kindness of a very high order, for which

we have to remain eternally thankful to Him.

 

 

 

Coming back to the Brows, it appears pretty clear that this particular part of

our physique has little practical utility and is meant solely to enhance our

looks. Those of you who have any doubt as to whether the Brows serve as

adornments to our face, would only have to look at some of the strange specimens

of humanity, who chose to shave off their brows for reasons best known to

themselves-the rather strange and unseemly spectacle that these creatures

present is enough assurance to us that the Brows do have a function to perform,

that of making our visages more seemly.

 

 

 

Everything about Emperuman is beautiful, sweet and magnificent- " MathurAdhipatE:

akhilam madhuram " . This being so, His Brows are no exception and are as

exquisite as the rest of His divine anatomy. They are perfectly shaped

semi-circles situated above His broad and beautiful eyes, representing a hairy

adornment to them. They resemble a magnificent Bow in shape and instantly

enchant devotees whose glances happen to stray on to these brows. Swami Desikan

says that in creating Manmatha's famous bow (with which he lets loose flowery

arrows on people, instantly inducing romantic thoughts in them), it was the

Lord's Brow that served as a model to the creator Brahma, but for which the

latter would have been hard put to design the same-

 

 

'Evam chEt akhila jantu vimOhanArhA

 

Kim mAtrukA bhavati KAma sharAsanasya? "

 

 

 

Not only in shape, but also in enchanting and enticing all onlookers, it is the

Lord's brows which have served as a role model for ManmathA's bow.

 

The Lord's Brows serve as a Welcome Arch, a " TOraNam " for devotees, who wish to

treat themselves to the beauty of His splendorous eyes.

 

 

 

Is it any wonder then that Sri Kodai Nacchiar loses Herself in the boundless

beauty of these Brows? She tells us that the Lord's brows are as bent and

beautiful as the magnificent Bow SArngam that He holds in His hand. ( " Tan kai

SArngam aduvE pOl azhagiya puruva vattam " ). She also seems to imply that the

Brows are no less deadly than the SArngam, flooring opponents with a rain of

lethal arrows. In fact, the Brows are worse than the SArngam in one respect.

While it is only the opponents of the Lord and His votaries who form the victims

of the Bow, the Brow, on the other hand, floors His devotees too. They are

unable to hold their own against its onslaught and surrender meekly to the Lord,

with cries of " JitantE! PundarIkAksha! " ( " We are won over, despite ourselves " ).

Even if one wants nothing to do with the Lord, His beautiful Brows fell the

unwilling devotee with a single shot, with arrows from the lotus eyes coated

with overwhelming love and affection, to which no human being or celestial is

immune. Thus, whether it is devotees of the Lord or His sworn enemies, none is

proof against the onslaught of the beautiful bow comprising of the Lord's brows.

 

 

 

It is significant that the words " Bow " and " Brow " are very much alike, with but

an " r " to distinguish them-for, from the aforesaid, they appear to be extremely

similar in appearance and function too. It is also worth noting that the word

" Brow " in English, is but a derivative of its equivalent in Sanskrit- " Bhruva: " ,

to which the Tamil " Puruvam " also owes its origin.

 

 

 

It is thus not at all strange that the Lord's Brows have innumerable

admirers-Sri Periazhwar, Sri Nammazhwar, Sri Andal, Sri Alavandar and Swami

Desikan, to name but a few.

 

Sri Vishnuchitta is so captivated by the arched Brows of Sri Krishna, that not

only does he feast his eyes on their beauty, but invites everyone in the world

to partake in his bliss-

 

 

 

" Paruvam nirambAmE pAr ellAm uyya

 

Tiruvin vadivu okkum Devaki pettra

 

Uruvu kariya oLi maNi vaNNan

 

Puruvam irundavA kANIrE, pooN mulayeer vandu kANeerE "

 

 

 

Sri Nammazhwar too expresses his utter fascination with the beautiful Brows of

Tirukkurungudi Nambi, commenting incidentally on their length--

" tokka sOdi toNdai vAyum neeNda puruvangaLum

 

Takka tAmarai kaNNum pAviyEn Aviyin mElanavE "

 

 

 

Since the eyes are long ( " neeNda ap periayavAya kaNgaL " ), it is but natural that

the Brows are long too- " neeNda puruvangaL " .

 

 

 

Sri Alavandar tells us that Emperuman's Brows are not only beautiful, they are

slender too, long like a creeper and stylishly bent, so as to instantly capture

the hearts of onlookers- " sa vibhrama bhroo latam " . The Lord's brows are not

" Beetle Brows " , thick and unseemly, but slender, like a creeper. Nor are the

brows straight as a bar, but bend stylishly like a bow, enchanting everyone who

sets eyes on them. We find so many women paying fortunes for shaping their

eyebrows-they can save themselves a lot of money, if they adopt the Lord's Brows

as models for their own.

 

 

 

Here is Swami Desikan's tribute to the bewitching Brows, in Sri Devanayaka

Panchasat-

 

 

 

" nEtum sarOja vasati: nijam Adhi rAjyam

 

nityam nisAmayati DEvapatE! Bhruvou tE

 

Evam na chEt akhila jantu vimOhanArhA

 

Kim mAtrukA bhavati KAma sharAsanasya "

 

 

 

Though the function of Creation has been delegated by the Lord to BrahmA, the

latter looks to the former at each and every stage of the creative process, for

approval and agreement. Such consent of the Lord is expressed by the movement of

His beautiful brows, says Swami Desikan.

 

 

 

If the eyebrows of Emperuman can be so beautiful, it stands to reason that those

of His Consort must be more so, for beauty and elegance are usually the preserve

of the fairer sex. We thus find that Sri Sita Piratti, who is the

personification of beauty and loveliness, sports infinitely exquisite brows,

which is evident from Her being addressed as " Shubhroo " .

 

 

 

According to Sri Bhattar, in carrying out the Creative function, the Lord looks

at every stage for approval to His Mahishi and the innumerable differences in

social, economic and spiritual status that we find in the world are but the

result of the raising or lowering of Piratti's brows, to signify approval or

disapproval. Such is the power this Fist Lady wields over the Lord, that Her

implied wishes, not even expressed, through the movement of Her brows, form the

very basis for the Lord's functions, says the Acharya-

 

" Yat bhroo bhangA: pramANam stthira chara rachanA tAratamyE MurArE: "

 

 

 

It appears that Piraatti blesses other celestial consorts too with the

capability of moving their husbands with the raising of their brows. Swami

Desikan says that PArvati dEvi too is able to wind Shankara around her little

finger, with a slight movement of her brows-none other than the virile Shankara,

who has to his credit the exploit of having bent the colossal MEru mountain

itself as a bow, during Tripura SamhAram- " Yat bhroo bhangAt kusuma dhanusha:

kinkarO MeEu dhanvA " .

 

 

 

We find that almost the entire range of human emotions like anger, surprise,

annoyance, happiness etc., can be conveyed by appropriate movements of the

eyebrows. A knitting of the brows, for instance, indicates displeasure, while

the lifting of the brows in a particular way conveys surprise. The following

sloka from Srimad Ramayana tells us that eyebrows could be used as effective

indicators of displeasure and anger-

 

 

 

" TadA tu baddhvA bhrukutim bhruvo: madhye nararshabha:

 

nisasvAsa mahA sarpam bilasya iva roshita: "

 

 

 

When told by Rama that the dramatic turn of events culminating in His having to

leave for a long sojourn in the jungles, (instead of His being crowned the

Prince of Ayodhya) is due to the unseen but ever present hand of fate, Lakshmana

refuses to buy this argument and expresses his dissatisfaction, distress and

anger at those responsible for the happenings. And before bursting into a

voluble condemnation of KaikEyi and others, he eloquently conveys his anger

through a knitting of his eyebrows.

 

 

 

Another person who manages to terrorise the whole world by a mere knitting of

his eyebrows is the God of Death, YamadharmarAjA.

 

And we all know when his terrifying brows and lethal glances fall on us-when our

sojourn in this world comes to an end. However, if, before this avenging angel's

fleeting look falls on us, if the Lord were to be kind enough to look at us with

His soft and cool lotus eyes, imminent death would be immediately converted into

immortality, says Swami Desikan, praying for the rejuvenating glances of Sri

Varadaraja-

 

 

 

" yAvat na pasyati nikAmam amarshaNo mAm

 

Bhroo bhanga bheeshaNa karALa mukha: kritAnta:

 

TAvat patantu mayi tE Bhagavan! DayAlO;

 

unnidra padma kalikA madhurA: katAkshA: "

 

 

 

Brows appear to be a beautiful bow, when on the forehead of the Lord. The same

Brows, situated atop the eyes of another, resemble a venomous snake stretched

full length. This is how the brows on the face of Yamadharma appear to those

forever indulging themselves in the pleasures of the flesh, says Swami Desikan

in Sri Achyuta Satakam-

 

 

 

" Karma gati dOsha du:khitA: kritAnta bhrukutee bhujangee darsana trastA:

 

archanti tava charaNou achyuta prabhrashta Manmatha rasAsvAdA: "

 

 

 

Brows are probably the most insignificant part of the human anatomy, consisting

merely of a line of hair across one's forehead. Their absence would in no way

affect our effective functioning. However, when they adorn the Lord's face,

they acquire a beauty, seemliness and significance of their own, due to their

exalted association. Like other parts of the Paramapurusha's divya mangala

vigraham (Divine Body), His Brows too are boundlessly beautiful and captivating.

If one were blessed with even a millionth of Swami Desikan's creativity and

poetic skills, composing a thousand verses on these High Brows would pose no

difficulty at all.

 

 

 

Srimate Sri lakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana

Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

dasan, sadagopan