Saint Sketch -2- Thondaradipodi Azhwar By Sri.Sri.Muralidhara Swamiji- Last Part

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Radhe Krishna To All,

 

“When you get a swelling in your hand, you feel restless to treat it. Even if

the Doctor tells you that it is a harmless swelling, you still are not at ease.

Why is it so? It is because this swelling is not your state of normalcy. So you

want to get back to your normal state. Similarly, the illusion of this world

with its package of joys and sorrows is not your normal, true state. True bliss

of the Self is the normal state. One should get to this normal state of blissâ€

 

--- BHAGAVAN SRI RAMANA MAHARISHI

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These words of repentance that fell out of the lips of Vipranarayana is known as

‘Thirumalai’— ‘Pacchai ma malai pol meni pavazha vai kamalachengann!

Achuta! Amararere! Aayartham kozhunde ennum! Ichuvai thavira yan poi indira

logam allum! Acchuvai perinum venden aranga ma nagarullane!’

 

The above is a verse of ‘Thirumalai’. He has sung wonderful, amazing 40 such

verses, in deep devotion. It is an open cry of a devotee. Its greatness lies in

the fact that it contains the Divine Names of the Lord. It is said,

‘Thirumalai ariyadar tirumalai ariyar’. ‘Thirumalai’ forms part of the

4000 Divya Prabandam. Vipranarayana became Thondaradipodi Azhwar.

 

He sings, ‘all these days when I lay in the dancing girl’s [dasi] home,

 

my friends advised me to leave her company. I did not pay heed to their words.

My parents gave words of advice in vain. The people of the Town offered words of

advice, which went unheeded. Some even criticized my behaviour but I cared not.

But, today I stand here at Thy Holy Feet, oh! Lord! Do you know why? All those

advices entered only my ears but the one given by Thee had touched my mind and

heart—‘ podare enru solli putthiyil pugundu than-paal aadaram perugavaitha

azhaganur arangamanro!’ You worked into my mind and heart.’

 

The words of a Guru and Mahans work in the minds and hearts of the devotee.

Thus, their words of advice transform a person.

 

Would such a great devotee of the Lord [Azhwar] get caught in the net of a

dancing girl? How does one explain this? One should not foolishly question the

behaviour of a great devotee such as the Azhwar. This Lila of the Lord was

performed not for the sake of the Azhwar but for our sake: for stressing a point

to us. What is the message of the Lord to us, in this?—‘if you are deeply

devoted to ME and happen to stray away, I will bring you back. I will never give

up on you! ‘Shipram bhavati dharmatma!’. I will make you virtuous

[‘dharmatma’].’

 

A mother walks on the road holding the child’s hand. If any stone or thorn

lies on the path she would lift the child up and carry him. Wherever the child

can walk she would put him down. If the child falls down she would once again

carry him but after a time put the him down and make him walk. Those who move on

the path of Bhakti have no fear of straying onto a wrong path. What is the

reason for this? Just as the mother holds the hand of a toddler, so too, does

the Lord hold their hands! The Lord is holding their hands! Since the Lord is

holding their hands and leading them on the right path there is great pride in a

person walking on the path of Bhakti – The Lord holds my hand! The Guru is

hold and leading us! The deep faith that the Lord will never, at any time, lead

us on a wrong path is exclusive to the path of Bhakti. This is the reason that

Bhakti enjoys such great glory!

 

In Kali, Bhakti means singing the Divine Name of the Lord [‘Bhagavan Nama

kirtan’], listening to Bhagavat stories (‘katha sravanam’), having darshan

of the Lord in Temples. This is known as ‘Bhagavata dharma’. This is the

reason that though great Mahatmas like Brahmendra, Jayadev, Badrachala Ramadas,

Thiyagaraja Swami could see the Lord in their heart [‘hrudaya’] they advise

ordinary people who cannot understand this (to see the Lord in the heart) to go

to the Temple and worship Him. They advise, ‘or else do Nama kirtan’. These

are the only two Dharmas that all Mahans have shown in this Kali viz. Temple

worship and singing the Divine Names of the Lord [‘Bhagavan Nama kirtan].

 

The life history of Thondaradipodi Azhwar conveys this theme to us.

 

Regards

 

Please Chant

 

Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare

 

and be happy

 

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