October 2018 – Page 7 – dhivya prabandham

pukka ari uruvAy avuNan udal kINdugandha
sakkarach chelvan thannaik kurugUrch chatakOpan sonna
mikka Or AyiraththuL ivai paththum vallAravaraith
thokkup pallANdisaiththuk kavari seyvar EzhaiyarE

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Word-by-Word meanings (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

a – very wonderful
ari uruvAy – having lion form
pukku – setting out towards the enemy
avuNan – hiraNya, the demon, his
udal – body
kINdu – tore
ugandha – became pleased due to effortlessly eliminating prahlAdha’s enemy

(due to not having opportunity for killing the enemies)
sakkarach chelvan thannai – having the divine disc which is part of his beauty and wealth
kurugUr – leader of AzhwArthirunagari
satakOpan – nammAzhwAr
sonna – mercifully spoke
mikka – having greatness of presenting the qualities and activities of bhagavAn clearly
Or – distinguished
AyiraththuL – among the thousand pAsurams

(revealing the affection due to bhagavAn being the goal and the eliminator of enemies)
ivai paththum – this decad
vallAravarai – those who are able to practice
Ezhaiyar – “madhi muga madandhaiyar” (beautiful-faced damsels) who are servitors of bhagavAn and are eager to serve bhAgavathas
thokku – in group
pallANdu isaiththu – performing mangaLASAsanam
kavari – chAmara (fan) kainkaryam (which is done for bhagavAn) etc
seyvar – will serve

Simple translation (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

emperumAn, having a very wonderful lion form, set out towards the enemy hiraNya, the demon, and tore his body and became pleased due to effortlessly eliminating prahlAdha’s enemy; nammAzhwAr, leader of AzhwArthirunagari, mercifully spoke about such emperumAn who is having the divine disc which is part of his beauty and wealth, in this decad, among the distinguished thousand pAsurams which are having greatness of presenting the qualities and activities of bhagavAn clearly; those who are able to practice this decad will be performed mangaLASAsanam by “madhi muga madandhaiyar” who are servitors of bhagavAn and are eager to serve bhAgavathas and be served with chAmara (fan) etc.

vyAkyAnams (commentaries)

Highlights from thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn‘s vyAkyAnam

See vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s translation.

Highlights from nanjIyar‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from periyavAchchAn piLLai‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam as documented by vadakkuth thiruvIdhip piLLai

pukka ari uruvAy – avvari uruvAy pukku. We can only say “avvari uruvu” (that lion form) [it’s beyond description]. Assuming the human-lion form and entering into the place of the enemy. Alternatively – the fierce anger with which emperumAn tore and moved forward. Instead of someone from outside doing that, it appeared as if a lion came out of hiraNya’s body tearing it apart; AzhwAr is speaking about that.
avuNan … – After tearing apart hiraNya’s body, emperumAn became pleased thinking “the enemy of the child is gone”.
sakkarach chelvan thannai – As hiraNya’s body could only partly satisfy the divine nail [which is an incarnation of sudharSana chakra], it was only present for adding beauty.
kurugUr … – Those who learnt this decad among the thousand pAsurams which are mercifully spoken by AzhwAr, which reveal bhagavath vishayam fully.
thokku … – As people will enter flood waters in a group instead of entering alone, madhi muga madandhaiyar (beautiful-faced damsels) will perform mangaLASAsanam saying “poliga, poliga”, and serve in a distinguished manner just as they will serve sarvESvaran, to those who practice this decad. They will be praised so much that they will be relieved of the sufferings which they went through in this samsAram since time immemorial.

In the next article we will enjoy the next pAsuram.

adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan

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iyaRpA periya thiruvandhAdhi

periya thiruvandhAdhi – thaniyan

October 5, 2018 Published by: T N Krishnan

SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

Full Series

avathArikai

This thaniyan, composed by bhagavadh SrI rAmAnujar, is considered by our preceptors as having been composed for the prabandham periya thiruvandhAdhi. Certain words, found in the first pAsuram of periya thiruvandhAdhi have been used in the thaniyan. muyaRRi sumandhu ezhundhu mundhuRRa nenjE [which are present in the first pAsuram of the prabandham] have been slightly rearranged for the first line of the thaniyan to read mundhuRRa nenjE muyaRRi dhariththu uraiththu.

Let us go through the thaniyan and its meanings:

mundhuRRa nenjE muyaRRi dhariththuraiththu
vandhiththu vAyAra vAzhththi sandham
murugUrum sOlai sUzh moymbUm porunal
kurugUr mARan pEr kURu

Word by Word meaning:

mundhuRRa nenjE – Oh mind which is going ahead of me, (to attain AzhwAr)
muyaRRi – the dhivya prabandham (divine composition) which starts with the word muyaRRi
dhariththu – sustaining (in the mind)
uraiththu – reciting (through the mouth)
vandhiththu – worshipping (AzhwAr)
vAyAra vAzhththi – praising (AzhwAr) until the mouth hurts
murugu Urum – overflowing with honey
sandham sOlai – in the grove with sandalwood trees
sUzh – being surrounded by
moy – with water bodies
pU – being beautiful
porunal – having the river thAmirabaraNi
kurugUran – the lord of (AzhwAr) thirunagari
mARan pEr kURu – keep reciting the divine name of AzhwAr

vyAkyAnam

mundhuRRa nenjE – Oh mind, which is ahead of me in the matters related to AzhwAr! swAmy rAmAnujar has mercifully spoken about AzhwAr in the same way by which AzhwAr has mercifully spoken about emperumAn. Isn’t the divine mind of AzhwAr involved with the divine feet of emperumAn, more than AzhwAr himself! At several places, AzhwAr has mentioned about his mind/heart having gone ahead of him in matters relating to emperumAn. A few examples have been cited:

thiruvAimozhi 8-2-10 “ennenjennai ninnidaiyEnallEnenRu nIngi nANmalarp pAdham adaindhadhu”

thiruvAimozhi 7-3-4 “ennenjinArum angE ozhindhAr”

thiruviruththam 30 “ennenjinAraik kaNdAl ennaichcholli”

periya thiruvandhAdhi 49 “kAruruvam kANdORum nenjOdum kaNNanAr pEruruvam enRemmaip pirindhu”

periya thiruvandhAdhi 50 “thammudaiya pinnE thirundhuzhalum sindhanaiyAr ”

periya thiruvandhAdhi 7 “ennenjinAr thAme aNukkarAich chArndhozhindhAr”

In the same way, the minds of mahAthmAs (distinguished souls) such as madhurakavi AzhwAr would have tried to go ahead of the mahAthmAs themselves in matters relating to AzhwAr.

muyaRRi dhariththu – having great enthusiasm as mentioned in kaNNinuN siRuththAmbu 10 “muyalginREn undhan moy kazhaRku anbaiyE” (I am making effort to have affection towards your great, divine feet). While AzhwAr has mercifully mentioned muyaRRi sumandhu, swAmy rAmAnuja has mercifully mentioned muyaRRi dhariththu. muyaRRi – enthusiasm.

muyaRRi dhariththu uraiththu – Alternatively, muyaRRI could be taken to mean periya thiruvandhAdhi itself, which starts with the word muyaRRi. In this case, the meaning would change to – keeping the prabandham periya thiruvandhAdhi which starts with the word muyarri in the mind and then reciting it through the mouth. uraiththu – just as it is mentioned in thiruvAimozhi 6-8-1 “en nilaimai uraiththu” (revealing my state) and as mentioned by AzhwAr himself about his forlorn state in separation, this could be construed as speaking about his [reference here is to swAmy rAmAnujar’s] sorrow in separation.

vandhiththu – worshipping at the divine feet of AzhwAr.

muyaRRI dhariththu uraiththu vandhiththu – meditating upon the relationship of Lord and servitor which exists between AzhwAr and us and worshipping him.

vandhiththu – worshipping one who mercifully composed the divine prabandham periya thiruvandhAdhi.

muyaRRi . . . vandhiththu – initially worshipping the divine chest, the lotus like hands with the gyAna mudhrA (impression (sign) of knowledge), the divine feet of AzhwAr which are in padhmAsana (posture of lotus) just as AzhwAr himself had spoken of the divine limbs of emperumAn through various pAsurams such as thiruvAimozhi 6-1-7 “karuvaNNam seyya vAy, seyya kaN, seyya kai, seyya kAl seruvoN chakkaram sangu adaiyALam thirundhakkaNdE”, thiruvAimozhi 6-1-3 “iRangi nIr thozhudhu paNiyIr” and as he said of himself in thiruvAimozhi 4-10-11 “nAtkamazh magizh mAlai mArbinan”; then praising him [AzhwAr] handsomely, just as AzhwAr praised emperumAn in pAsurams such as periya thiruvandhAdhi 39 “avan pugazhE vAyupakAram koNda vAyppu”, periya thiruvandhAdhi 12 “kaNNan thAL vAzhththuvadhE kaNdAy vazhakku”, periya thiruvandhAdhi 84 “vAzhththi avan adiyai”, thiruvAimozhi 6-1-5 “adiyEnukkum pORRuminE”. Praising AzhwAr just as madhurakavi AzhwAr praised him in kaNNinuN siRuth thAmbu 2 ”nAvinAl naviRRu inbam eydhinEn“ and in the pramANam “prathyakshE gurava: sthuthyA:”, justifying the benefit obtained by having mouth.

With the rest of the pAsuram, SrI rAmAnujar tells his heart to recite the divine name of nammAzhwAr, apart from praising him as mentioned above, either staying in the same place where he [SrI rAmAnuja] is presently staying or by going to AzhwAr thirunagari.

sandham murugUrum sOlai sUzh – the words could be rearranged to read as murugUrum sandham sOlai sUzh. murugu refers to honey and sandham to sandalwood. Thus, the meaning for this will be – surrounded by grove of sandalwood trees flooded by honey, just as it is mentioned in rAmAnusa nURRandhAdhi 20 “Arappozhil then kurugai” (AzhwAr thirunagari with sandalwood groves).

moypUm porunal – having the river thAmirabaraNi with copious amount of water and being beautiful.

moypUm porunal kurugUran mARan pEr kURu – recite the divine name of AzhwAr so that you can exist. How is kurugUr? It is on the banks of river thAmirabaraNi, which has copious amount of water which is clear and sweet.

kurugUr mARan pEr kURu – recite the name ‘kurugUr sadagOpan’ just as nammAzhwAr himself had mercifully mentioned in thiruviruththam 100 “nallAr navil kurugUr nagarAn thirumAL thiruppEr vallAr adikkaNNi sUdiya mARan” and in thiruvAimozhi 4-5-11 “paimpozhil sUzh kurugUr nagar kArimARan sadagOpan”.

kurugUran mARan pEr kURu – recite the names of nammAzhwAr just as he had referred to himself as “kurugUrch chadagOpan” in thiruvAimozhi 2-5-11 and just as he recited the divine names of emperumAn in various pAsurams such as in periya thiruvandhAdhi 46 “nAn kURum kURRAvadhu iththanaiyE”, thiruvAimozhi 2-5-11 “kudakkUththa ammAnaik kURudhalE mEvi”, ending with thiruvAimozhi 5-9-11 “sadagOpan therindhuraiththa nAmangaL Ayiram ” and thiruvAimozhi 5-9-10 “nArAyaNan nAmangaLE”. Recite the names of nammAzhwAr just as the (thamizh sanga) poets had sung about him as “nAmam parAngusanO”

If the text is kurugUr nam mARan the meaning will change as ‘our nammAzhwAr who is in thirukkurugUr’.

pEr kURu – recite the name of nammAzhwAr which he himself mentioned in thiruvAimozhi 5-4-5 “pEr ennai”. Recite the name “kurugUr sadagOpan” such that the entire place, on hearing this, will raise its hands (in other words, all the people living in the place will raise their hands) and salute nammAzhwAr. Recite his name as mentioned in kaNNInuN siRuth thAmbu 7 “eNdhisaiyum aRiya iyambugEn” such that his name will spread in all eight directions.

Through this thaniyan, it has been mentioned that prior to reciting AzhwAr’s divine prabandham, it is apt to recite his divine name as mentioned in prapanchasAram “gurupAdhAmbujam dhyAyEth gurOr nAma sadhA japEth I gurusEvAm sadhA kuryAth sO’mruthathvAya kalpathE II ” (one should constantly meditate on the divine feet of AchArya (guru / teacher); one should constantly recite his divine name; one should constantly carry out kainkaryam (service) to him; one who does this is considered as fit for mOksham).

We will now move on to the avathArikai (introduction) for this prabandham.

adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan

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thiruvAimozhi thiruvAimozhi 7th centum

thiruvAimozhi – 7.6.10 – ERRarum vaigundhaththai

October 4, 2018 Published by: Sarathy Thothathri

SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

Full series >> Seventh Centum >> Sixth decad

Previous pAsuram

Introduction for this pAsuram

Highlights from thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn‘s introduction

No specific introduction.

Highlights from nanjIyar‘s introduction

In the tenth pAsuram, AzhwAr sustains himself thinking “krishNa who is the young toddler of cowherd clan, without checking AzhwAr’s qualities/defects due to his childish ignorance, will bestow SrIvaikuNtam which is difficult to attain”.

Highlights from vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s introduction

Subsequently, AzhwAr says “krishNa who protected his own people such as SrI vasudhEva, pANdavas et al by eliminating their enemies, will bestow SrIvaikuNtam to me”.

Highlights from periyavAchchAn piLLai‘s introduction

See nanjIyar‘s introduction. See nampiLLai‘s introduction.

Highlights from nampiLLai‘s introduction as documented by vadakkuth thiruvIdhip piLLai

Tenth pAsuram. AzhwAr explains that emperumAn is the goal, he is the means to attain himself, and he is the one who eliminates the hurdles; as there is no shortcoming to obtain the result in this manner, AzhwAr determines that emperumAn will bestow himself to self.

pAsuram

ERRarum vaigundhaththai aruLum namakku Ayar kulaththu
IRRiLam piLLai onRAyp pukku mAyangaLE iyaRRi
kURRiyal kanjanaik konRu aivarkkAyk kodunjEnai thadindhu
ARRal mikkAn periya paranjOdhi pukka ariyE

Listen

Word-by-Word meanings (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

InRu – on birth
iLam – being an infant
piLLai – child
Ayar kulaththu – in cowherd clan
onRAy – becoming one with them
pukku – entered
mAyangaLE – very amazing acts such as killing puthanA, Sakata, yamaLArjuna et al
iyaRRi – engaged in
kURRu – death which separates body and soul
iyal – having the nature
kanjanai – kamsa (who separated krishNa, who is the life for SrI vasudhEva and dhEvaki, from them)
konRu – killed

(later)
aivarkku – for pANdavas
Ay – for the sake of
kodum – cruel
sEnai – dhuryOdhana’s army
thadindhu – destroyed

(even after doing all of these, as he says “ruNam pravruththam iva mE” as if he has done nothing and hence remaining with anger on self)
mikka – great
ARRalAn – with patience
periya – having infinite glories
paranjOdhi – in paramapadham which is known by the term “param jyOthi”
pukka – to enter (after eliminating the burden of earth)
ari – krishNa who is like a great lion
ERRarum – having nature/qualities which are inconceivable even by the mind and speech of great yOgis
vaigundhaththai – SrIvaikuNtam
namakku – for us
aruLum – will bestow (by his grace)

Simple translation (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

Being a very infant child, krishNa entered the cowherd clan and became one with them; he was engaged in very amazing acts such as killing puthanA, Sakata, yamaLArjuna et al and killed kamsa who was having the nature of death which separates body and soul; he destroyed cruel dhuryOdhana’s army for the sake of pANdavas; with great patience, having infinite glories, he set out to enter into paramapadham which is known by the term “param jyOthi”; such krishNa who is like a great lion, will bestow SrIvaikuNtam which is having nature/qualities which are inconceivable even by the mind and speech of great yOgis, for us. emperumAn who is the eliminator of all hurdles as said in “sarvapApEbhyO mOkshayishyAmi“, will also bestow the result to us to eliminate our suffering as said in “mA Sucha:“.

vyAkyAnams (commentaries)

Highlights from thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn‘s vyAkyAnam

See vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s translation.

Highlights from nanjIyar‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from periyavAchchAn piLLai‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam as documented by vadakkuth thiruvIdhip piLLai

ERRarum vaigundhaththai aruLum – He himself will bestow SrIvaikuNtam which is unattainable by one’s own effort, to us [who will get it from him only].

When asked “though you know his nature fully and remain confident that he will bestow it to us, will he not look at the nature of us who are to be the recipients”? AzhwAr responds,

Ayar kulaththu IRRiLam piLLai – He is a toddles who cannot see our nature [i.e. faults]. It is said in sthOthra rathnam 63 “mugdha sAyujyadhO’bhU:” (Oh krishNa who doesn’t know [care for] any defects! You bestowed SiSupAla with liberation). Here, the words can be split in a couple of ways; a) having IRu at the end, as in “IRAna iLam piLLai” – meaning infant. Alternatively, as in “InRiLam piLLai” – which is “kaRRiLam piLLai“. In both usage, the meaning remains “infant” only.
onRAyp pukku – kamsa, krishNa’s maternal uncle invited him mischievously for “vil vizhavu” (archery festival), and krishNa too mischievously considering himself to be the main participant, went in. Alternatively – krishNa entered mathurA having the archery festival as a reason to go in there.
mAyangaLE iyaRRi – Performing amazing acts such as entering the weapon storage area and breaking the weapons, killing the washerman and wearing the clothes he had, breaking the tusk of kuvalayApIdam, the elephant, killing the wrestlers etc. As kamsa heard krishNa’s actions, he rose angrily like the deity of death.
kURRu iyal kanjanaik konRu – krishNa dragged kamsa who was seated on the throne to have his face hit the ground and killed him. ammAL explained the meaning of SrIvishNu purANam 5.20.84 “vigaLath krIdamavanIthalE pAthayAmAsa” (krishNa, pushed kamsa to ground to have him lose his crown) as, “as when one kills traitors (coming in the dynasty), one will withdraw their royal symbols and then kill them; here krishNa killed kamsa after taking his crown away”. As kamsa was allowed to be king by emperumAn only, he first withdrew the royal symbols, to let others have faith in the royal system. Hence, in the early life, emperumAn escaped from those who were sent by kamsa and kamsa himself. Once he became old enough and realised himself, he helped pANdavas.
aivarkkAyk kodum sEnai thadindhu – As those who were angry at pANdavas were screaming “sArathi” repeatedly and were running towards him, he rode over them with his chariot and killed them.
ARRal mikkAn – Even after uprooting the enemies, crowning dharma puthra (yudhishtra) and having draupadhi tie her hair, he mercifully returned to paramapadham saying “nAthisvasthamanA:” (I am not having a satisfied mind). ARRal indicates poRai (patience). Alternatively, it means vali (strength). Implies, he has the strength to destroy everything.
periya paranjOdhi pukka ariyE – Even after reaching paramapadham where kamsa, dhuryOdhana et al are not present, instead of thinking “we are amidst the nithyasUris”, he remained with the same anger of dealing with kamsa, dhuryOdhana, karNa et al and holding the weapon.

In the next article we will enjoy the next pAsuram.

adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan

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iyaRpA periya thiruvandhAdhi

periya thiruvandhAdhi

October 4, 2018 Published by: T N Krishnan

SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

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This prabandham (collection of hymns) is the third among the four prabandhams composed by SrI nammAzhwAr, who is the leader among the AzhwArs who have been granted unblemished knowledge and devotion by emperumAn, and who is the leader among those who have surrendered to emperumAn. thiruviruththam, thiruvAsiriyam, periya thiruvandhAdhi and thiruvAimozhi are the four divine compositions of nammAzhwAr. These four prabandhams are the essence of the four vEdhas. This prabandham is the essence of atharvaNa vEdham and is the 7^th prabandham in the third thousand, called as iyaRpA, among the four thousand hymns composed by all the AzhwArs.

periya thiruvandhAdhi means thiruvandhAdhi which is considered great. andhAdhi is a classification of poems in which the last word or line or syllable of one hymn forms the first word or line or syllable of the next hymn. When the last word of the last hymn becomes the first word of the first hymn, it is called as maNdaliththal. andhAdhi forms one of 96 types of prabandhams. There are internal classifications among andhAdhis such as padhiRRandhAdhi (andhAdhi with ten pAsurams), nURRandhAdhi (andhAdhi with hundred pAsurams). This prabandham (periya thiruvandhAdhi) is composed of 87 pAsurams, less than 100. While the andhAdhis compiled by the first three AzhwArs had 100 pAsurams each, this andhAdhi (compiled by nammAzhwAr), which is less in terms of number, is termed as periya thiruvandhAdhi. The reason for this is that the term periya (or peridhu) would refer to greatness in form [big or huge] as well as to greatness in terms of qualities. Thus if someone is referred to as periya manidhar (great person) it would be because of the greatness of his qualities only and not to hugeness in form.

Since this prabandham, while being smaller than the other thiruvandhAdhi prabandhams in terms of number of pAsurams, has sweetness of words and sweetness of meanings, our pUrvAchAryas (preceptors) gave it the title of periya thiruvandhAdhi. One need not ask whether the other thiruvandhAdhis composed by the first three AzhwArs are siRiya thiruvandhAdhi (small thiruvandhAdhi). What is to be kept in mind at this juncture is that this prabandham has a greatness and not about any comparison with other thiruvandhAdhis.

Another reason can also be attributed for naming this prabandham as periya thiruvandhAdhi. There is a pAsuram in this prabandham (pAsuram 75) in which AzhwAr tells emperumAn “puviyum iruvisumbum ninnagaththa nI en seviyin vazhi pugundhu ennuLLAy avivinRi yAn periyan nI periyai enbadhanai yAr aRivAr Un parugu nEmiyAy uLLu” (Oh emperumAn! Both materialistic and spiritualistic realms are under your control. Are you, the one who is controlling these two realms, the bigger entity or am I, holding you inside me, after receiving you through my ears, the bigger entity? You please analyse). vEdhas state that you [emperumAn] are mahathO mahIyAn (larger than the largest entities). Is this appropriate? I am bearing you inside a corner of my form. Am I not then the bigger entity, between the two of us? AzhwAr mercifully states that this has to be analysed. Thus, since AzhwAr spoke about his greatness in this prabandham, this came to be called as periya thiruvandhAdhi!

The vyAkyAnam (commentary) for this prabandham has been written by periyavAchchAn piLLai. We have taken liberal assistance from puththUr swAmy’s explanatory notes on periyavAchchAn piLLai’s vyAkyAnam.

Note – this section is written in English based on kAnchIpuram P B aNNangarAchAryar swamy’s dhivyArtha dhIpikai vyAkyAnam for periya thiruvandhAdhi.

adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan

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thiruvAimozhi thiruvAimozhi 7th centum

thiruvAimozhi – 7.6.9 – kANdungolO? nenjamE!

October 2, 2018 Published by: Sarathy Thothathri

SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

Full series >> Seventh Centum >> Sixth decad

Previous pAsuram

Introduction for this pAsuram

Highlights from thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn‘s introduction

No specific introduction.

Highlights from nanjIyar‘s introduction

In the ninth pAsuram, AzhwAr says “Oh heart! Will we see the son of dhaSaratha who killed rAvaNa et al?”.

Highlights from vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s introduction

Subsequently, AzhwAr mercifully says to his heart “Will we see emperor dhaSaratha’s divine son, who eliminated the clan of rAvaNa without a trace due to his partiality towards vibhIshaNa, who crowned vibhIshaNa as the king of lankA, who himself became coronated and ruled over the kingdom of ayOdhyA, and ascended to paramapadham, with that greatness?”

Highlights from periyavAchchAn piLLai‘s introduction

See nanjIyar‘s introduction.

Highlights from nampiLLai‘s introduction as documented by vadakkuth thiruvIdhip piLLai

See nanjIyar‘s introduction.

pAsuram

kANdungolO? nenjamE! kadiya vinaiyE muyalum
AN thiRal meeLi moymbil arakkan kulaththaith thadindhu
mINdum avan thambikkE viri nIr ilangai aruLi
ANdu than sOdhi pukka amarar ari ERRinaiyE

Listen

Word-by-Word meanings (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

kadiya – very cruel
vinaiyE – only actions leading to harm for others
muyalum – think about and perform the great task
AN – having valorous, prideful masculinity
thiRal – bravery which hurts others
mILi – like a lion
moymbil – having huge pride
arakkan – rAvaNa who is a demoniac person by birth, his
kulaththai – clan (including brother kumbakarNa, son indhrajith et al)
thadindhu – severed without any trace

(not stopping with that)
mINdum – further

(though being rAvaNa’s brother, due to taking refuge from SrI rAma)
avan thambikkE – for vibhIshaNa
viri – expansive
nIr – having oceanic water
ilangai – lankA
aruLi – granting the kingdom
ANdu – mercifully returning to SrI ayOdhyA, ruling over the kingdom as the crowned emperor for eleven thousand years
than – his exclusive
sOdhi – paramapadham which is in the form of lustrous light
pukka – return and stay there

(due to this greatness)
amarar – for nithyasUris [eternal associates of emperumAn]
ari – like the best among lions
ERRinai – one who mercifully remains seated revealing his supremacy
nenjamE – Oh heart (which colluded with him for the separation)!

(we)
kANdungolO – will see?

Simple translation (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

rAvaNa a demoniac person by birth, was very cruel, and was thinking about and performing the great task of actions leading to harm for other, was having valorous, prideful masculinity, and lion like bravery which hurts others, and was having huge pride; emperumAn severed such rAvaNa’s clan without any trace; further he granted the kingdom of lankA with expansive oceanic water to rAvaNa’s brother vibhIshaNa; he mercifully returned to SrI ayOdhyA, ruled over the kingdom as the crowned emperor for eleven thousand years; he returned and remained in his exclusive abode, paramapadham which is in the form of lustrous light; oh heart! will we see him mercifully seated revealing his supremacy, like the best among the lions [as a leader] for nithyasUris? Implies – just as he killed rAvaNa, kumbakarNa et al along with their descendants and granted the lankA kingdom to vibhIshaNa, he will eliminate my anyathA gyAna (misunderstanding the attribute of a particular entity incorrectly) and viparItha gyAna (misunderstanding the entity itself incorrectly) which are caused by rajas (passion) and thamas (ignorance), and kAma (lust), krOdha (anger) which are caused by such anyathA gyAna and viparItha gyAna, and grant me full expansion of knowledge which is caused by sudhdha sathva (pure goodness). Will we see such emperumAn who is served by nithyasUris?

vyAkyAnams (commentaries)

Highlights from thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn‘s vyAkyAnam

See vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s translation.

Highlights from nanjIyar‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from periyavAchchAn piLLai‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam as documented by vadakkuth thiruvIdhip piLLai

kANdungolO nenjamE – Will you who accompanied me to hug and cry out loud in separation, be with me and see him together when we enjoy him without anything else to do?
kadiya vinaiyE muyalum – He separated perumAL (SrI rAma) and pirAtti (sIthA) and made them live separately, similar to separating mother and father [which is a very cruel act]. There is nothing lower than his such lowly act. His cruel acts are such that sarvESvaran cannot remain peaceful thinking “let me punish you in the course of time”. As said in dharma SAsthram “ihaiva palam aSnuthE” (for greatly pious acts and greatly vile acts, one will reap the rewards/punishment in this birth itself). By the avadhAraNam (“E” in vinaiyE), it is clear that he does not have any noble qualities at all.
AN thiRal … – A demoniac person who is like a valorous lion, in masculinity. meeLi – lion. Alternative explanation – eliminated the clan of rAvaNa who has valour, ability to hurt others and pride of death. Eliminated the whole clan as said in SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 64.66 “karishyE maithilee hEthOr apiSAcham arAkshasam” (For the sake of sIthA, I will eliminate the clans of ghosts and demons).
avan thambikkE viri nIr ilangai aruLi – [Is being rAvaNa’s brother, a reason for emperumAn’s acknowledgement?] His comforting words in SrI rAmAyaNam yudhdha kANdam 18.34 “yadhi vA rAvaNa svayam” (Even if rAvaNa had come [bring him along, he too is given refuge]), look good. SrI rAma was patiently waiting to hear “it is not just someone related to rAvaNa is here, but rAvaNa himself is here”. Is it not sufficient if someone from lankA was accepted? Why is he expecting rAvaNa himself to arrive and surrender? If someone related to rAvaNa is accepted, only he along with few others who accompanied him will benefit; but if rAvaNa himself arrived looking for refuge, the whole town will be protected; now, though rAvaNa was too advanced in unfavourable thoughts, he is most desired by emperumAn to be protected. Now, emperumAn’s anguish in not having rAvaNa take refuge was eliminated only after accepting vibhIshaNa. As vibhIshaNa introduced himself as in SrI rAmAyaNam yudhdha kANdam 19.4 “anujOrAvaNasyAham” (I am the brother of rAvaNa), emperumAn too accepted him considering him to be “rAvaNa’s brother”.
viri nIr ilangai aruLi – Bestowing him the kingdom of lankA which is surrounded by oceanic water.
mINdum – ANdu – After the killing of rAvaNa, brahmA and other dhEvathAs said to SrI rAma “We have accomplished our task, by placing your highness as the target of arrows; now your highness can ascend to paramapadham”; at that time rudhra said “Your highness shall not do that; as your coronation was stopped, your divine mothers are all anguished; the whole kingdom is suffering; SrI bharathAzhwAn is also in grief; hence, as said in SrI rAmAyaNam yudhdha kANdam 122.4 ‘ASvAsya bharatham dhInam‘ (to pacify SrI bharathAzhwAn who is suffering and others), you should mercifully return to SrI ayOdhyA to eliminate the suffering of SrI bharathAzhwAn et al, become crowned and uplift the kingdom”, and as that was pleasing to his divine heart, he remained there for eleven thousand years and mercifully uplifted the kingdom.
than sOdhi pukka – leaving the abode where he can be attacked with arrows and ascending to his distinguished, infinitely radiant abode of paramapadham.
amarar ari ERRinaiyE – Will we see his presence amidst nithyasUris who are favourable by nature and focussed on service to him only, instead of hurling arrows at him? Just as a bull will walk around pridefully amidst a herd of cows, as the nithyasUris praise him, his prideful presence there is explained. The goal is to see emperumAn’s divine presence in the assembly of nithyasUris.

In the next article we will enjoy the next pAsuram.

adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan

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pramANam (scriptures) – http://granthams.koyil.org
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thiruvAimozhi thiruvAimozhi 7th centum

thiruvAimozhi – 7.6.8 – ALiyaik kAN pariyAy

October 1, 2018 Published by: Sarathy Thothathri

SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

Full series >> Seventh Centum >> Sixth decad

Previous pAsuram

Introduction for this pAsuram

Highlights from thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn‘s introduction

No specific introduction.

Highlights from nanjIyar‘s introduction

In the eighth pAsuram, AzhwAr says “I am not able to see sarvESvaran who killed enemies such as mAli et al”.

Highlights from vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s introduction

See nanjIyar‘s introduction.

Highlights from periyavAchchAn piLLai‘s introduction

See nanjIyar‘s introduction.

Highlights from nampiLLai‘s introduction as documented by vadakkuth thiruvIdhip piLLai

See nanjIyar‘s introduction. Eighth pAsuram. In the first two pAsurams, AzhwAr explained that emperumAn is the goal; in the next five pAsurams, AzhwAr explained that emperumAn is the means to reach him; in this pAsuram and the next pAsuram, his quality of eliminating enemies is explained, and that he will himself remove all the hurdles, is explained.

pAsuram

ALiyaik kAN pariyAy ari kAN nariyAy arakkar
ULaiyittu anRu ilangai nadandhu pilambukkoLippa
mILiyam puLLaik kadAy viRan mAliyaik konRu pinnum
ALuyar kunRangaL seydhu adarththAnaiyum kANdungolO?

Listen

Word-by-Word meanings (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

ALi – yALi (a historical lion-faced beast, with four feet and a trunk)
kAN – seen
pariyAy – like a horse
ari – lion
kAN – seen
nari – like a jackal
arakkar – rAkshasas
anRu – when the war started
ULaiyittu – screaming out of great fear

(like bees will leave their hive)
ilangai – lankA
kadandhu – fleeing
pilam – holes in ground
pukku – entering
oLippa – to hide (in pAthALa (netherworld))
mILi – being very prideful
am – attractive
puLLai – periya thiruvadi (garudAzhwAr)
kadAy – riding
viRal – well-known
mAliyai konRu – killing mAli
pinnum – further
AL – brave warriors

(konRu – killing them)
uyar – tall
kunRangaL – as mountains
seydhu – created
adarththAnaiyum – upEndhra (vishNu, who appeared as brother of indhra) who killed them
kANdungol – will I see?

Simple translation (based on vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s 12000 padi)

Will I see upEndhra (vishNu) who rode very prideful, attractive garudAzhwAr, and killed the well-known demoniac people such as mAli et al who were screaming out of fear when the war started and fleeing lankA, entering the holes in the ground to hide in pAthALam, like a horse which saw a yALi and a jackal which saw a lion, and created tall mountains [of their dead bodies]?

Implies “As he destroyed mAli, sumAli and others, would he also destroy our rAga (likes), dhvEsha (dislikes) etc and would we see him after that?”

vyAkyAnams (commentaries)

Highlights from thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn‘s vyAkyAnam

See vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar‘s translation.

Highlights from nanjIyar‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from periyavAchchAn piLLai‘s vyAkyAnam

See nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam.

Highlights from nampiLLai‘s vyAkyAnam as documented by vadakkuth thiruvIdhip piLLai

[This incident is narrated in SrI rAmAyaNam uththara kANdam, where vishNu kills many demons in lankA, long before the birth of rAvaNa]

Aliyaik kAN pariyAy – Like a horse which saw a yALi.
ari kAN nariyAy – Like a jackal which saw a lion. In SrIrAmAyaNam, how the rAkshasas feared is explained through various examples; AzhwAr is highlighting a couple of them here.
arakkar ULaiyittu – As AzhwAr said “nari” (jackal) previously, he is saying “ULaiyittu” (howling of a jackal) in that context.
anRu … – Being unable to fight the war directly in the battlefield, they left lankA and hid in the pAthALam (netherworld). Just as an anthill (where snakes live) will never be free from snakes, lankA is always filled with rAkshasas, and hence the likes of mAli, sumAli, mAlyavAn were residing there; it is explained that emperumAn arrived there riding the garudAzhwAr and destroyed them. AzhwAr is speaking about that here.
pilam pukku oLippa – It is not ethical to kill those who dropped their weapons and those who fled the battlefield; hence, those who fled from there and hid in the pAthALam, eventually perished there.
mILiyam puLLaik kadAy – miLiyam is considered as a single word, where it means, powerful; saying “one who rides the powerful garudAzhwAr”; it could be considered as “mILi am puL“, as said in thiruvAimozhi 3.10.2 “kaRai aNi mUkkudaip puLLaik kadAvi” (riding garudAzhwAr who is having a stain as ornamental decoration on its divine beak), one who rides garudAzhwAr who is having an attractive form for the favourable ones and who remains as mruthyu (death) for the unfavourable ones, as said in periya thirumozhi 6.8.3 “thUvAya puL Urndhu” (riding the bird with wings). AzhwArs seek for the beautiful sight of emperumAn riding on garudAzhwAr and appearing in front of them. mILi means vali (strength), mruthyu (death) and the leader of a desert kingdom.
viRal mAliyaik konRu – Thus, one of the prominent ones is highlighted here.
pinnum … – Further, killed many brave men and created a mountain of dead bodies. Increasing the height of the mountains with the dead bodies on top of them.
adarththAnaiyum kANdungolO – Just as he destroyed the demoniac forces, would we see him after he eliminates our hurdles, and will we end up seeing him?

In the next article we will enjoy the next pAsuram.

adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan

archived in http://divyaprabandham.koyil.org

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iyaRpA nAnmugan thiruvandhAdhi

nAnmugan thiruvandhAdhi – 96 – iniyaRindhEn

October 1, 2018 Published by: T N Krishnan

SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:

Full Series

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avathArikai

The root cause for knowing everything, for jIvAthmA, at the time of attaining liberation, is blossoming of knowledge. AzhwAr mentions how he got that and brings this prabandham to its end.

Let us go through the pAsuram and its meanings:

iniyaRindhEn IsaRkum nAnmugaRkum dheyvam
iniyaRindhEn emperumAn unnai iniyaRindhEn
kAraNan nI kaRRavai nI kaRpavai nI naRkirisai
nAraNan nI nangaRindhEn nAn

Word for Word Meanings

emperumAn – Oh emperumAn! (my Lord)
IsaRkum – to rudhra
nAnmagaRkum – to brahmA
dheyvam – as Lord
iniyaRindhEn – now, I know (you) firmly
ini – now
unnai aRindhEn – I know your basic nature (truly)
kAraNan nI – you are the causative entity (for the universe)
kaRRavai nI – you are all the entities learnt before
kaRpavai nI – you are all the entities to be learnt in future
nal kirisai – one who carries out protecting all without any reason
nAraNan nI – you are nArAyaNa

(all these)
nAn nangu aRindhEn – I knew very well

vyAkyAnam

iniyaRindhEn IsaRkum nAnmugaRkum dheyvam – I have now seen that you are the Lord for Siva, who is famously known as Isan (one who controls) and brahmA, who has four heads. I have seen now something which I had known only through SAsthras (sacred texts). In any literary composition, since there is a rule that the beginning and end should be congruent, AzhwAr speaks about the same context that he had started with in the first pAsuram “nAnmuganai nArAyaNan padaiththAn nAnmuganum thAn mugamAy sankaranaiththAn padaiththAn ” (nArAyaNa created brahmA and brahmA, with nArAyaNa as his indwelling soul, created siva).

iniyaRindhEn emperumAn unnai – now I have seen you, as you are, directly.

What did you see?

kAraNan nI – I knew that you are the causative entity for all the universe.

kaRRavai nI kaRpavai nI – whatever entities I have known before and now, after having my knowledge blossomed (due to your grace), whatever entities I will know in future, are all following your commands.

naRkirisai nAraNan nI – I knew that you are nArAyaNa, carrying out the great deed of protecting all, without any reason, and that you are the lord of all. nAraNan – one who has the quality of being the lord for all entities which cannot be obliterated.

Haven’t you known this before?

nangaRindhEn nAn – while I had the knowledge about this through SAsthram (sacred texts) now I have known this well, by seeing it directly.

This brings us to the end of this prabandham.

periya pirAttiyAr samEdha periya perumAL thiruvadigaLE SaraNam
thirumazhisai AzhwAr th iruvadigaLE SaraNam
emperumAnAr thiruvadigaLE SaraNam
periyavAchchAn piLLai thiruvadigaLE SaraNam
jIyar thiruvadigaLE SaraNam
appiLLai thiruvadigaLE SaraNam

adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan

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