SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:
avathArikai
AzhwAr is asking whether emperumAn should not be attained if one has knowledge.
Let us go through the pAsuram and its meanings:
yAdhAnum onRaRiyil thannugakkil enkolO
yAdhAnum nErndhu aNugA ARudhAn yAdhAnum
thERumA seyyA asurargaLai nEmiyAl
pARupARAkkinAn pAl
Word by Word Meanings
yAdhAnum – in any way
thERumA seyya – not carrying out activities which generate confidence (in emperumAn)
asurargaLai – demons
nEmiyAl – with chakrAyudha (divine disc)
pARu pARu AkkinAn pAl – towards emperumAn who cut them to pieces
yAdhAnum nErndhu – by giving something (which does not belong to self)
aNugA ARudhAn en kolO – why is he not being attained?
yAdhAnum onRu aRiyil (en kolO)- what if something (which is among emperumAn’s bodily entities) is known (as it is)?
than ugakkil (en kolO) – what if (the chEthana) develops affection towards himself?
vyAkyAnam
yAdhAnum onRaRiyil en kolO – Is it not proper to know any entity? Just as it has been mentioned in mudhal thiruvandhAdhi 67 “oN thAmaraiyAL oruvanaiyE nOkkum uNarvu” the implied meaning is that if anything is known, then that knowledge will reach down to emperumAn, the antharyAmi (indwelling soul) of that entity and hence it could be said that he is known.
thannugakkil en kolO – even if one does not know an entity other than oneself, one can at the least like oneself. Could that not be done? The opinion is that since there is no benefit other than desiring emperumAn, if one likes oneself, that would end up in desiring emperumAn.
enkolO yAdhAnum nErndhu anugAvARudhAn – why is it that he is not attained by offering something? The implied meaning is that since every entity belongs to emperumAn, by offering something which belongs to emperumAn, should he not be attained. What is the reason for using the term nErndhu (bestowing something) which is actually carrying out a huge activity? The jIvAthmA (soul) on seeing anything thinks that everything is his and (not emperumAn’s) and gets bewildered. He thinks that he is independent. Since he is giving something which he thinks (mistakenly) as his, it could be said that he is bestowing something.
Would emperumAn be happy if the chEthana offers something which is not his, but thinks that it is his? Just as it is mentioned in thiruvAimozhi 8-1-10 “thAlgaLai enakkE thalaiththalaich chiRappath thandha pErudhavikkaimmARA thOLgaLai Araththazhuvi ennuyirai aRavilai seydhanan sOdhi” – when nammAzhwAr gave to emperumAn as his gratitude his AthmA which is actually emperumAn’s, emperumAn was so overjoyed as if he had received something which was not his, that his shoulders, heads, eyes etc multiplied in thousands, as said in the same pAsuram 8-1-10 “thOLgaL AyiraththAy mudigaL AyiraththAy thuNai malarkkangaL AyiraththAy”. Thus there is no doubt that emperumAn becomes happy when chEthana offers him anything. Even by offering one’s AthmA to emperumAn, he should be approached is the underlying meaning here.
yAdhAnum thERumA seyyA asurargaLai nEmiyAl pARu pARu AkkinAn pAl – emperumAn held the divine disc in his hand only to destroy the enemies of his followers and not for destroying his enemies.
yAdhAnum thERumA seyyA asurargaLai – if in the assembly of demons, if there is even one who is favourable, likeprahlAdha, he will protect all the demons. The implied meaning is that he will destroy the demons with his divine disc only if they indulge in activities which do not create trust in emperumAn. The words should be rearranged to read pARu pARu AkkinAn pAL yAdhAnum onRaRiyil to get the correct meaning. The larger meaning is that one should offer something to him and attain him who removes one’s enemies just as he had removed the demons with his divine disc. One who is powerless should attain the omnipotent. Hence only emperumAn should be attained.
We will take up the 34th pAsuram next.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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