SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:
periya thirumozhi >> First centum >> Ninth decad
Highlights from avathArikai (Introduction)
No specific introduction.
pAsuram
thAyE thandhai enRum thAramE kiLai makkaL enRum
nOyE pattozhindhEn unnaik kANbadhOr AsaiyinAl
vEyEy pUmbozhil sUzh viraiyAr thiruvEngadavA!
nAyEn vandhadaindhEn nalgi AL ennaik koNdaruLE
Word-by-Word meanings
vEy – bamboos
Ey – being dense
pU – blossomed
virai Ar – very fragrant
pozhil sUzh – surrounded by garden
thiruvEngadavA – oh one who is identified by SrI vEnkatAdhri!
thAyE enRum – (one who is not the real mother) as mother
thandhai enRum – (one who is not the real father) as father
thAramE enRum – (one who is not the real wife) as wife
kiLaiyE enRum – (those who are not real relatives) as relatives
makkaLE enRum – (those who are not real children) as children
nOy pattu ozhindhEn – experienced disaster
nAyEn – I who am very lowly as a dog
unnai – your highness who are the natural relative
kANbadhu – to see
Or AsaiyinAl – with the desire
vandhu – arriving at your highness’ divine feet
adaindhEn – I surrendered;
ennai – I who am a servitor
nalgi – showing mercy
AL koNda aruL – kindly accept my service
Simple translation
Oh one who is identified by SrI vEnkatAdhri which is surrounded by very fragrant and blossomed garden having dense bamboos! I considered unreal ones as mother, father, wife, relatives and children and experienced disaster; I who am very lowly as a dog, with the desire to see your highness who are the natural relative, arrived at your highness’ divine feet and surrendered; Showing mercy, kindly accept the service of mine, a servitor.
Highlights from vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
thAyE … – AzhwAr says – As said in subhAla upanishath 6 “mAthA pithA bhrAthA” (Mother, father, brother), SrI rAmAyaNam ayOdhyA kANdam 58.31 “bhrAthA bharthA cha” (brother, lord etc) and ahirbudhnya samhithA 20 “Ekaika pala lAbhAya” (bhagavAn kESava is present to bestow all results given by various relatives), while your highness remains as all types of relatives, being relatives due to a particular reason (karma), until there is benefit from him, the relatives will get his help and when he needs some help, they will move away and even harm him. I thought of such relatives as real ones and experienced disaster. Alternative explanation – considering the children and friends as mother, father and wife.
nOyE pattu – Since they accept help from him whenever possible and when they have to help him, they will cause harm and go away from him. If we think about such persons as relatives, when they don’t fulfil their responsibility as relatives, that will only result in sorrow. He thinks about them as relatives, but they don’t reciprocate that. They will themselves lead to sorrow, instead of having to do something to cause sorrow.
pattozhindhEn – Experienced. Alternative explanation [pattu ozhindhEn] – experienced the suffering and gave up those relatives. To know that bhagavAn’s qualities are desirable, one needs the instructions of a true AchArya and SAsthram; but to know that samsAram is to be given up, real life experience is sufficient. These practical experience remained the teacher here.
unnaik kANbadhu Or AsaiyinAl – As I was bewildered in considering these incidental relatives as real relatives, I expected them to help when in need but they did not help; hence that aspect [of them abandoning us] caused the desire in me to see you who are the natural relative.
vEy … – Unlike those who abandoned me when help is needed for me after accepting my help when it was available, you remained away all along but favoured me when help was needed. The abode where bamboos are densely present.
pUm pozhil … – It appears that the entity who is praised in chAndhOgya upanishath as “sarva gandha:” (the origin of all fragrance), is present inside; I arrived here tracing such fragrance.
vEngadavA – His relationship and desire [towards us] is visible to our eyes. emperumAn, not being bound by karma, who gives his divine audience to nithyasUris in paramapadham, arrived in this samsAram where the chEthanas are suffering for their protection just as a mother would jump into the well to save a child who fell into that well.
nAyEn – If we look at my previous conduct, I am neither qualified to stay outside (away from you) nor to exist for your highness. If I go out, they will pelt stones at me and if I enter your abode, it will become impure just as anything which contacts a dog becomes impure.
vandhu adaindhEn – Due to ananyagathithvam (not having any other refuge), I came and surrendered unto your divine feet.
emperumAn asks “If you caused your own lowliness, what do you expect me to do?” AzhwAr replies,
nalgi – A prince would have liking towards a lowly dog [similarly, you accept me desirously].
AL ennaik koNdu aruLE – Considering yourself as all types of relatives, you should accept all kinds of services from me as performed by nithyasUris and as said in SrI rAmAyaNam ayOdhyA kANdam 31.25 “bhavAmsthu saha vaidhEhyA girisAnushu ramsyathE – aham sarvam karishyAmi jAgratha svapathaSchathE” (While you enjoy with sIthA in the foothills of the mountain, I will serve you both in all the ways whether you are sleeping or awake).
In the next article we will enjoy the next pAsuram.
adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan
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