SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction) – looking at the malabar glory lily flowers which blossom during monsoon season, she asks “Where is the one who sent you all, to fight with me?”
kArkkOdal pUkkAL! kArkkadal vaNNan en mEl ummaip
pOrkkOlam seydhu pOraviduththavan enguRRAn?
ArkkO ini nAm pUsal iduvadhu aNi thuzhAyth
thArkkOdum nenjam thannai padaikka vallEn andhO
Word-by- Word Meanings
kArkkOdal pUkkAL! – oh black coloured kAndhaL (malabar glory lily) flowers!
ummai – you all
pOrkkOlam seydhu – aptly decorating [you] for battle
en mEl – upon me
(to attack)
pOra viduththavan – one who sent
kAr kadal vaNNan – kaNNapirAn, who has the complexion of a dark ocean
enguRRAn – where is he?
nAm – I (who had been tormented by you)
ini – hereafter
Arkku – to whom
pUsal iduvadhu – could complain
(I do not know)
aNi – beautiful
thuzhAy thArkku – desiring thuLasi garland
Odum nenjam thannai padaikka vallEn andhO! – I am having a heart which is running after it! Alas!
Simple Translation
Oh, dark flowers of malabar glory lily! Where is kaNNa pirAn, who decorated you suitably for battle in order to wage a war on me and who has the complexion of dark ocean? To whom could I, who had been tormented by you all, go and complain? I do not know. Alas! My heart, which is desirous of the beautiful thuLasi garland, is running after it.
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
kArkkOdal pUkkAL – This could be construed as either “The dark malabar glory lily flowers which blossom during monsoon!” or as “Oh, great malabar glory lily flowers!” The term kAr would refer to both monsoon and greatness. Alternatively, the term kAr could be taken to mean blackness and this could be construed as “Oh, black coloured malabar glory lily flowers!” Wouldn’t malabar lily flowers be red in colour? Since black coloured malabar lily flowers are also seen, this meaning too would be apt. When it comes in the meaning of monsoon season, the implied meaning is “These flowers are tormenting me in the season in which he had promised me that he would return, by reminding me of him”. When it refers to dark colour or greatness, the meaning hinted is “They are tormenting me by reminding me of his great, dark divine form”.
kArkkOdal pUkkAL …. pOraviduththavan – Oh malabar glory lily flowers! He had created you in order to wage a battle against me. Since he united with me earlier, only to separate from me afterwards, he had probably created these so that “When I separate from her, let these be present, to torment her”. This is her thinking. Earlier she had thought that the reason for creating the worlds was to make chEthanas (entities with knowledge) to attain mOksham. But the situation has changed now, such that she thinks that they have been created in order to torment her. After separating from sIthAp pirAtti, the entire clan of demons became SrI rAma’s enemies. In a similar way, ANdAL is sad that “For me who is suffering due to separation from emperumAn, flowers, peacocks, cuckoos etc have become inimical”. During his fight with the main army of rAvaNa, just like countless demons had surrounded SrI rAma, for ANdAL, wherever she could see, all the entities there seemed to torment her. In the eighth decad of viNNeela mElAppu, clouds, which were tormenting her, could move away with a strong breeze. However, these flowers are stationary, even with breeze, tormenting her. She feels bewildered and says words, in distress.
pUkkAL – Leaving aside your natural gentle behaviour, you have taken over this nature of harshness in order to torment a weak person such as I.
kArkkadal vaNNan – one who has a blue complexion, similar to the dark complexion of an ocean. Why is she referring to his divine form here? The reason for his taking over a dark complexion too is to torment her, she feels in her divine mind. Just as he had created, through his desire, flowers etc to torment her, he had taken over a dark complexion due to his desire to torment her.
emmEl – upon me, who is by nature, a tender person, and now having got weakened considerably due to the pangs of separation. On me, who has thinned out so much that I could not even bear if he were to embrace me, making one wonder whether ‘this entity is existing or not’
ummai – you all, who have taken over a complexion with which you could torment me.
emmEl – upon me who has weakened a lot in separation, such that the blame could be shifted on the person who had touched me.
ummai – you all who are, unlike me who is tender, having strength and the complexion, by manifesting which you could destroy me. She thinks “My life was about to ebb from this body; by showing the complexion of his divine form, you gave me a fresh lease of life, but are torturing me by showing that complexion.”
pOrkkOlam seydhu – just as SrI rAma had decorated lakshmaNa when he sent him to destroy indhrajith [son of rAvaNa], she thinks that emperumAn has decorated these flowers and sent them to fight with her, in order to destroy her. chakravarthith thirumagan [son of emperor dhaSaratha], who is dear to one’s mind, had decorated with armour etc in order to kill those who were responsible for separating his beloved from him. kaNNapirAn, who is mischievous and who does not know right deeds, has decorated them [flowers] to destroy his beloved [ANdAL]. This is her thinking.
seydhu – isn’t he the one who created them and gave them the complexion? Did not authentic text such as mahAbhAratham sabhA parvam 38-23 also say “krishNa Eva hi lOkAnAmuthpaththirapi chApyaya: l krishNasya hi kruthE bhUthamidham viSvam charAcharam ll” (It is krishNa alone who is responsible for your creation, protection and destruction. World, with movable and immovable entities, came into existence only for the sake of krishNa)?
pOraviduththavan – she thinks that emperumAn, considering that they do not have the speed, is hastening them to go fast. When a king lays siege on his enemy, if the enemy’s fort had not been demolished, he would stand at the back end, send his regal umbrella and chAmaram (fly-flapper) to encourage his warriors to demolish the fort. Similar to that, she thinks that emperumAn has given them his complexion and sent them to destroy her. If he had not created them to destroy her, he could have prevented them from coming in her field of vision!
enguRRAn – SrI rAmAyaNam bAla kANdam 1-68 says “thathO’garjith harivara: sugrIvO hEmapingaLa: l thEna nAthEna mahathA nirjagAma harISvara: ll” (after that, the best among monkeys, sugrIva, who had a golden hue, let out a roar. The head of monkeys, vAli, upon hearing that, came out). Hearing the strength in sugrIva’s voice, did not vAli come out, thinking “This sound is not displaying cowardice, like it used to; he must have obtained a supporting strength. If that supporting strength is inimical to us, we shall take it head on”? Similarly, looking at their [flowers etc] attempts at tormenting her and their being inimical to her, ANdAL thought “They have not come alone; the one who has sent them is behind them”. With this line of thought, she asks “enguRRAn?” (where is he?) Why is she asking them “Where is he?” when they have come to destroy her? The reason for this is her thinking “It is certain that they are going to destroy me. Before dying, let us see his divine form once and then die”. If they point out to where he is, there is a possibility of our desire to see him being fulfilled. Once we see him, since our life is going to ebb, his desire too would be fulfilled – so thinks she. If she asks them “Where is he?” will the flowers, which do not have knowledge, respond to her? She thinks that looking at her precarious state, they will respond. Is there anyone who had asked a question of achEthana entity (entity without knowledge)? Did not sIthAp pirAtti ask the river gOdhAvari, which is without knowledge, as seen in SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 49-32? “hamsakAraNdavAkIrNAm vandhE gOdhAvarIm nadhIm l kshipram rAmAya Samsa thvam sIthAm harathi rAvaNa: ll” (I pray to you, river gOdhAvari, who are with swans and other water-birds. Tell SrI rAma immediately that rAvaNa is abducting sIthA). There, the deity which is representing river gOdhAvari, could respond to a query. For these flowers, even that is not possible. She thinks that looking at her pitiable condition, they will respond. Contrary to her expectation, the flowers did not respond. Not realising that “These flowers are incapable of saying a word” she tells them further, thinking that “They are keeping quiet since he has not come” …
ArkkO ini nAm pUsal iduvadhu – to whom could we go and complain? You, who have been created by him, are inimical to me. Just as it has been said in bhagavath gIthA 10-9 “machchiththA madhgatha prANA: bhOdhayantha: parasparam l kathayanthaScha mAm nithyam thushyanthi cha ramanthi cha ll” (Keeping their hearts on me, sustaining themselves by holding on to me, telling each other (about my auspicious qualities), exchanging with each other (my divine activities), they remain blissful, by telling and hearing about me), if we wish to discuss the union which took place between him and us, there is no one around. To whom could we complain? Even when he became inimical to us, we thought that the flowers etc would be willing to be with us. When they are also biased towards him, to whom could we complain?
aNithuzhAyth thArkkOdum nenjam thannaip padaikka vallEn – when he and his wealth, the flowers, were together in tormenting me, did I have my wealth, my heart, to be supportive of me? Even that started running behind him, as soon as it heard about the divine thuLasi garland on his divine chest. SrI vishNu purANam 6-7-28 says “mana Eva manushyANAm kAraNam bandha mOkshayO: l bandhAya vishyAsangi mukthyai nirvishayam mana: ll” (For human entities, mind is the reason for both samsAram and mOksham. That mind which engages with Sabdha, sparSa etc (five senses of hearing, touching etc) is the reason for samsAram; that mind which is detached from these, is the reason for liberation). As said in this, my mind became an obstacle for me.
nenjam thannai padaikka vallEn – I have committed sins to get a heart like this. Even if my heart is not for me, at the least, am I for me? Am I not the one who had committed sins due to which I have this dhEham (physical form) which houses the heart?
andhO! – He is not for me; his wealth [flowers] is also not for me; I am not for me; my wealth [my heart] is not for me. After seeing this status of mine, there is no one to take pity on me and say “Alas”! Hence, taking pity on herself, she says “Alas!”
Next, we will consider the 2nd pAsuram of this decad.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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