SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: Sri varavaramunayE nama:
periyAzhwAr thirumozhi >> Third Centum >> Fifth decad
avathArikai
thiruvAimozhip piLLai, says in his svApadhESam, that AzhwAr thinks of poRuththa malai [the mountain that krishNa held] and he says in this pAsuram that he held it for seven days.
vazhuvonRum illAch cheygai vAnavar kOn
valippattu munindhu vidukkappatta
mazhai vandhu ezhunAL peydhu mAththadaippa
madhusUdhanan eduththu maRiththa malai
izhavu thariyAdhadhu Or IRRuppidi
iLam sIyam thodarndhu mudugudhalum
kuzhavi idaik kAlittu edhirndhu porum
gOvarththanam ennum koRRak kudaiyE
Word-by-Word Meanings
onRum vazhu illA – not having any flaw in the means carried out to get the position of indhra
seygai – having activities
vAnavar kOn – dhEvEndhran’s
valippattu – being under his control
munindhu – in anger (with all his one thousand eyes becoming red)
vidukkappatta – ordered
mazhai – clouds
vandhu – coming
Ezhu nAL – seven days
peydhu – pouring
mAththadaippa – hindering the herds and herd-folks such that they did not have a way out
madhusUdhanan – kaNNan, who killed the monster, madhu
eduththu – lifted effortlessly
maRiththa – held in an inverted manner
malai – mountain
iLa sIyam – lion cub
thodarndhu – following (in order to harm an elephant calf)
mudugudhalum – on approaching
izhavu – harm coming in the way of its calf
thariyAdhadhu – unable to tolerate
Or – a
IRRup pidi – female elephant, which has given birth to
kuzhavi – its calf
kAlidai – within its four legs
ittu – keeping
edhirndhu – fighting with that lion cub
porum – it is the victorious gOvardhana mountain, which is like an umbrella
Simple Translation
Indhra, the head of celestial entities, had carried out all the means required to attain the position of indhra, without any fault. Clouds are under the control of such indhra. When indhra ordered them, they came to thiruvAyppAdi and poured rains for seven days to harm herds and herd-folk such that they could not find a safe place. madhusUdhanan [krishNa], effortlessly lifted gOvardhana mountain, upside down, to protect them. On this mountain, when a young lion approached an elephant calf, the mother elephant, which had just then given birth to the calf, unable to tolerate any harm coming in the calf’s way, protected the calf within its legs and drove away the young lion.
vyAkhyAnam (Commentary)
vazhuvu …– indhra, had carried out faultless means in order to attain the position of being indhra, the head of celestial entities, as a result of which thirty-three crore celestial entities were under his control. Clouds were under the control of that strong indhra. This implies that they were totally under his control and had to carry out whatever he ordains them to do.
thiruvAimozhip piLLai says here the following, to explain the faultless means carried out by indhra in order to attain the position of indhra. When carrying out the means, if he had not done any particular activity, he had to atone for it by carrying out further activities, in line with SAsthrams [sacred texts]. Also, he had to carry out those activities, abandoning three thoughts: that he is the doer, that he expects a benefit out of it and that it is ordained for him to do so. Also, he had to carry out the activity without any shortcoming in the materials, in the hymns to be recited and in the activities performed. With all these, he had attained his position as indhra. Even when he had to face the order of emperumAn, for having crossed emperumAn’s orders, he carried out the remedial action for those, without any shortcoming. It is this strength which he had, as the head of celestial entities. The clouds were under this strength of indhra’s.
munindhu vidukkappatta – Not only were they [clouds] under the control of his strength. When he was angry, having been denied food and prayer, which the herd-folk were offering him for a long time, he became angry with his thousand eyes becoming reddish, appearing like a thousand lotus flowers bursting out.
thiruvAimozhip piLLai says here that more than that strength explained earlier, indhra now had a huge hunger, having been denied his food. His thousand eyes became red, just as mentioned in periya thirumozhi 10.7 “Ayiram kaNNudai indhiranAr” (indhran, who has thousand eyes).
mazhai vandhu – Clouds such as pushkalAvarthaka etc came [to thiruvAyppAdi]
Ezhu nAL peydhu mAththadaippa – It was not for one or two days, the clouds poured heavily, in a synchronised manner, such that the herds, the herd-men and herd-women had nowhere to go.
msadhusUdhanan eduththu maRiththa malai – he [krishNa], who is eminent in annihilating inimical entities [such as madhu, kaitaba et al], lifted the mountain, gOvardhana, and held it upside down such that cattle could stand in a widespread manner, for grazing.
[What kind of mountain was it?]
izhavu thariyAdhadhOr IRRup pidi – a female elephant, which had recently given birth to a calf, could not tolerate any harm coming in the calf’s way.
thiruvAimozhip piLLai says here that the female elephant, due to overflowing affection towards the calf that it had given birth to …
iLam sIyam thodarndhu mudugudhalum – a young lion came towards the calf, in order to harm it.
kuzhavi idaikkAl ittu edhirndhu porum – the mother elephant kept its calf within its legs and went to fight with the young lion.
gOvardhanam ennum koRRak kudaiyE – since the mountain had grass and water with it all the time, it was nurturing cattle, leading to plentiful of cattle. Hence, it was called “gOvardhanam” [that which nurtures and multiplies cattle]. Since it inverted fully and prevented any drop of water to fall on anyone, when it rained heavily [due to indhra’s anger], it is referred to as gOvardhanam ennum koRRak kudai [victorious umbrella called as gOvardhanam].
thiruvAimozhip piLLai says at the end that the elephant calf is equated to a disciple, who approaches his AchArya. The AchArya takes care of the needs of the disciple and does not tolerate any separation from his disciple [just like the mother elephant]. The young lion which comes to harm the elephant calf is nothing but the scent of past deeds which come to harm the disciple if he moves away from his AchArya. Thus, just like the mother elephant keeps the calf within its legs and protects it, the AchArya also keeps the disciple under his tutelage and removes the effects of scent of past deeds.
We shall next consider the 3rd pAsuram of this thirumozhi.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
archived in https://divyaprabandham.koyil.org
pramEyam (goal) – http://koyil.org
pramANam (scriptures) – http://granthams.koyil.org
pramAthA (preceptors) – http://acharyas.koyil.org
SrIvaishNava education/kids portal – http://pillai.koyil.org