SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
The thaniyan has been composed by emperumAnAr (bhagavadh rAmAnujar). The commentary for the thaniyans has been written by piLLailOkam jIyar.
avathArikai (Introduction)
This thaniyan has been mercifully composed by emperumAnAr. It would appear that emperumAnAr, engaging with kulaSEkhara AzhwAr, assumes the emotions of a lady and is asking a parrot to praise the auspicious qualities of AzhwAr. innamudham UttugEn – In many dhivyadhEsams (divine abodes), AzhwArs have mercifully told parrots and animals to recite the divine names of emperumAn. The following pAsurams are examples of this:
- periyAzhwAr thirumozhi 4-2-8 – “pUmaruvip puLLinangaL puLLaraiyan pugazh kuzhaRum punalarangamE”
- periyAzhwAr thirumozhi 4-2-8 – “aRugAl varivaNdugaL Ayira nAmam solli siRu kAlaip pAdum thirumAlirunjOlaiyE”
- periyAzhwAr thirumozhi 4-8-8 – “elliyambOdhE irunjiRai vaNdu emperumAn guNam pAdi malligai veN sangu Udhum madhiLarangam enbadhuvE”
- periya thirumozhi 4-10-7 – “alliyam pozhil vAy irundhu vAzh kuyilgaL ari ari enRu avai azhaippa veLLiyAr vaNanga viraindhu aruL seyvAn kiLi nAnmaRai pAdu thillAiththiruchchithrakUtam senRu sErmingaLE”
- Following AzhwArs, parASara bhattar (son of kUraththAzhwAn) too, in his SrI rangarAnatha SthOthram has said “SagunAnUdhitha brahma gOshAm” (SrIrangam which is full of birds which repeat the vEdhams which are recited by brAhmaNas). We could consider this thaniyan as the followers of kulaSEkhara AzhwAr asking parrots to recite the divine names of AzhwAr just as AzhwAr, who was a devotee of SrI rAma had asked the parrots which were with him to recite the divine names of SrI rAma.
Alternatively, we can consider the term parrot to refer to disciples. Thus, it could be said that emperumAnAr is telling his disciples to speak about the greatness of kulaSEkhara AzhwAr. emperumAnAr was always engaged with the epic SrI rAmAyaNam, as said in irAmAnusa nURRandhAdhi pAsuram 37 “irAmAyaNam ennum bhakthi veLLam kudikoNda kOyil irAmANusan..” and with the dhivyadhEsam SrIrangam, as mentioned in irAmANusa nURRandhAdhi pAsuram 37 “ponnarangam enil mayalE perugum irAmAnusan…” In the same way, kulaSEkhara AzhwAr too was engaged with SrI rAmAyaNam as brought out by his perumAL thirumozhi pAsuram 10-11 “ellaiyil sIrththayaradhan maganAyth thOnRiRRadhu mudhalAth thannulagam pukkadhu IRA..” and perumAL thirumozhi 10-8 “emperumAn than saridhai seviyAl kaNNAl paruguvOm innamudham madhiyOminRE”. Also, he was always engaged with the dhivyadhESam SrI rangam as brought by the lines in his thaniyan “ghushyathE yasya nagarE rangayAthrA dhinE dhinE I thamaham SirasA vandhE rAjAnAm kulaSEkharam” (I bow down to the divine feet of that kulaSEkharar from whose capital city the cry of ‘SrIrangayAthrA’ is heard everyday) and in his pAsuram perumAL thirumozhi 3-9 “arangan adiyiNaith thangu sindhaith thanipperum piththanAm”. Thus, just as it is mentioned in irAmANusa nURRandhAdhi pAsuram 14 “kolli kAvalan sol padhikkum kalaikkavi pAdum periyavar pAdhangaLE thudhikkum paraman irAmANusan”, since emperumAnAr who is like a king among ascetics was totally engaged with the (chEra) king kulaSEkharar, he had composed this thaniyan on AzhwAr. We could consider that emperumAnAr was referring to his disciples such as kUraththAzhwAn et al as parrot, since his disciples were constantly dwelling in SrI rangam as mentioned in thiruchchandhaviruththam pAsuram 52 “aRRapaRRar suRRi vAzhum andhaNIr arangamE”. A parrot will repeat what it is taught, dutifully. kUraththAzhwAn too mercifully recorded in his works such as panchasthavam, that which he had been taught by emperumAnAr. Has he ever said anything that he was not taught? Thus, we can say that in this thaniyan emperumAnAr is asking his disciples such as kUraththAzhwAn to narrate about the greatness of kulaSEkharar.
innamudham UttugEn ingE vA paingiLiyE
thennarangam pAdavalla sIrpperumAn – ponnin
silaisEr nudhaliyarvEL sEralarkOn engaL
kulaSEkharan enRE kURu
Word-by-word Meanings
paingiLiyE – Oh parrot with a greenish complexion
in amudham UttugEn – I will offer you sweet nectar to eat
ingE vA – come near me
then arangam – regarding thiruvarangam, which is on the southern side
pAdavalla – capable of composing (sweet poems)
sIr – overflowing with qualities such as devotion
perumAn – having the divine name ‘perumAL’
ponnin silai sEr – having brows which are desirous, and which resemble a bow
nudhaliyar vEL – one who steals the minds, just as manmatha (cupid) does to women
sEralar kOn – being the head of the clan of chEras (kings of kEraLa)
engaL kula – for our clan of prapannars (those who have surrendered to SrIman nArAyaNa)
SEkharan – kulaSEkharap perumAL who is like a jewel on the crown
enRE kURu – keep blabbering the divine name
Simple Translation
Oh parrot! Come near me, I will offer you sweet nectar to eat. All that you have to do is to keep blabbering the divine name of kulaSEkhara AzhwAr, who is also called as perumAL. He is capable of composing sweet hymns on emperumAn who is lying in SrI rangam. AzhwAr has overflowing qualities such as devotion towards emperumAn, has eye-brows which are like bows and which are desirable, he steals the minds, just as manmathan did towards women, and he is the head of the clan of chEras. He also happens to be the head of the clan of prapannars.
vyAkyAnam (Detailed commentary):
innamudham Uttugen – Did not ANdAL, a lady, mercifully say in nAchchiyAr thirumozhi 5-5 “innadisalOdu pAlamudhu Utti eduththa en kOlakkiLiyai” (did I not nurture my beautiful parrot with sweet rice and milk)? In the same manner, emperumAnAr too nurtured kUraththAzhwAn and others with the divine names of thirumAl (SrIman nArAyaNa) just as it has been mentioned in periya thirumozhi 6-10-6 “thEnum pAlum amudhumAya” (like honey and milk). In order to bring this out clearly, emperumAnAr, who had mercifully recited dhvayam (the two esoteric lines which are recited while surrendering to emperumAn) at the time of carrying out panchasamskAram (a ritual, composed of five parts, which is conducted during the performing of surrendering to emperumAn), once again mercifully recited dhvayam in kUraththAzhwAn’s right ear.
ingE vA – beckoning them (AzhwAn and other disciples), since emperumAnAr tells them “engaL kulaSEkharan enRE kURu” (say that he is our kulaSEkharar), it is clear that emperumAnAr had seen the joy emanating from the forms of kUraththAzhwAn and others. Hence, he is calling them to come near him.
paingiLiyE – having green complexion, emitting the radiance of emerald gem, and being obedient (to emperumAnAr). This brings out the equality between emperumAn and the parrot, just as it has been mercifully stated by nammAzhwAr in his thiruvAimozhi 9-5-6 “en Aruyir kAguththan nin seyya vAyokkum vAyan kaNNan kai kAlinan nin pasum sAma niRaththan”. muNdaka upanishath 3-1-3 says “paramam sAmyam upaithi” (mukthAthmA (the liberated soul) attains distinguished equality with emperumAn). Thus, has it not been said in upanishath too that wise people, similar to the parrot, attain equality with emperumAn!
When the parrot queried as to why it was being called,
thennarangam pAdavalla sIrpperumAL ponnin silaisEr nudhaliyar vEL sEralarkOn engaL kulaSEkharan enRE kURu – the meaning of the verse thennarangam pAdavalla sIrpperumAL is this: in his first three decads of perumAL thirumozhi, kulaSEkhara AzhwAr mercifully praised SrI ranganAthan, as in perumAL thirumozhi 1, iruLiriya, perumAL thirumozhi 2, thEttarum thiRal then and perumAL thirumozhi 3, meyyil vAzhkkai. Also, in the 8th thirumozhi 10th pAsuram, he had mercifully said yAvarum vandhu adivaNanga aranga nagarth thuyinRavanE. In the divine verses of other AzhwArs too, such as in siRiya thirumadal 71 ArAmam sUzhndha arangam (thiruvarangam surrounded by gardens) mention is made of this divine abode. Similarly, in thiruvAImozhi 7-2-3, nammAzhwAr calls kAguththA kaNNanE (Oh SrI rAma! Oh krishNa!), just as kulaSEkhara AzhwAr mercifully speaks about archAvathAram (SrI rAma) in his concluding 10th decad. SrI ranganAthan too has been referred to by thoNdaradippodi AzhwAr in his thirumALai 11 as seruvilE arakkar kOnaichcheRRa nam sEvaganAr and by thiruppANAzhwAr in his amalanAdhipirAn 10 as vennEy uNda vAyan; thus, SrIranganAthar has been praised as both SrI rAma and krishNa by AzhwArs. Hence it would not be inappropriate to say that kulaSEkhara AzhwAr has mercifully spoken only about the divine abode of SrI rangam in his entire perumAL thirumozhi. The meaning of the verse ponnin silaisEr nudhaliyar vEL is this – he (kulaSEkhara AzhwAr) has his eye brows which are much desirable and which are in the form of a bow, and who is much desired by women just as they desire manmathan (cupid, the god of love). The term vEL refers directly to manmathan. In SrI rAmAyaNam sundhara kANdam 34-30 too, was not SrI rAma spoken of as kandharpa iva mUrthimAn (one who has the form of manmathan)! The term ‘women’ in the above-mentioned reference refers to gyAnis (wise people); just as it has been mercifully stated by nammAzhwAr in his thiruvAimozhi 5-8-11 kAmar mAnEy nOkkiyarkku. Thus, it is clearly stated that kulaSEkharap perumAL was desired by followers who had gyAnam (knowledge about emperumAn) and who had distinguished effulgence from their forms.
sEralar kOn – being the head of all the kings who had been born in the chEra clan. Just as it has been said in mahAbhAratham “rAjAdhi rAja: sarvEshAm vishNu” (vishNu is the king among all the kings), kulaSEkharar is the king among all kings. The term kOn refers to his being the king. The meaning is that he is the head of chEra clan.
engaL kulaSEkharan – he is not only the head of chEra clan, he is also the head of the clan of those who surrender to SrIman nArAyaNa. thiruvarangaththu amudahnAr, who had composed irAmAnusa nURRandhAdhi, had referred to rAmAnujar as “irAmAnusan engaL kulakkozhundhu” (rAmANujar is the head of our clan (of those who have surrendered)). In the same way, rAmAnujar mercifully says that kulaSEkharar is the head of prapanna kulam (clan of those who have surrendered).
kulaSEkharan enRE kURu – Oh parrot, who is being nurtured by me! Do not talk gibberish with your sweet voice. Recite the divine name of kulaSEkhara AzhwAr. For saying that, I will offer to your mouth, the divine names of SrIman nArAyaNa which are like nectar. Hence, recite the name of kulaSEkhara alone. Has it not been mentioned mercifully in SrIvachana bhUshaNam 274 “vakthavyam AchArya vaibhavam” (always recite the greatness of AchArya)!
In the next article, we will take up the second thaniyan.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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