SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:
avathArikai
AzhwAr says “When he himself came one day [as thrivikrama] and approached all, I lost him; this earth, because he came one day and measured it, was touched by him on that day. What fortune do you [referring to thiruppARkadal] have, that you are always with emperumAn!”
Let us look at the pAsuram and its meanings.
mAlum karum kadalE ennORRAy vaiyagam uNdu
Alin ilaith thuyinRa AzhiyAn kOlak
karumEnich chengaN mAl kaN padiyuL enRum
thirumEni nI thINdap peRRu
Word by Word Meanings
vaiyagam uNdu – after swallowing the world [after deluge]
Alin ilai – on the banyan leaf
thuyinRa – sleeping
AzhiyAn – one who reclines on the ocean [thiruppARkadal]
kOla karumEni –having beautiful, black form
sem kaN – having reddish eyes
mAl – one who had affection [towards his devotees]
kaN padaiyuL – when he is reclining in a sleeping posture
enRum – at all times
thirumEni – his divine form
thINdappeRRu – feeling it
mAlum – overwhelmed (due to that happiness)
karum kadalE – Oh, black coloured ocean!
ennORRAy – what penance did you perform! [to get this fortune]
vyAkyAnam
mAlum – this word means stupefied or overwhelmed or bewildered. Just as people who get intoxicated after consuming certain types of drinks, the ocean is also feeling intoxicated due to the touch of emperumAn constantly. The ocean has the same happiness that mukthars (those who are liberated from samsAram (materialistic realm) and have reached SrIvaikuNtam) have on enjoying emperumAn.
karum kadalE – wouldn’t the ocean have become pale otherwise? But, emperumAn is lying on milky ocean, which is white in colour. How is AzhwAr then referring to it as the dark coloured ocean? It is said that emperumAn lies in all oceans and hence it is called as dark coloured ocean. Alternatively, the qualities of an ocean are referred to, in all places. Hence it is called as dark coloured ocean. Another explanation is that since dark coloured emperumAn is lying on it, the ocean too has become dark and hence AzhwAr is referring to it as dark coloured ocean. Ocean and emperumAn are having the complexion of bharatha (white) and rAma (dark) respectively.
en nORRAy – what penance did you carry out to be inseparable from emperumAn? AzhwAr wants to rid his attachment toward emperumAn and carry out the same penance for a similar result.
vaiyagam uNdu Alin ilaith thuyinRa – keeping all the worlds within his divine stomach and lying on a banyan leaf which appeared at the same time.
AzhiyAn – lying atop the banyan tree with all the weapons required for protecting. Holding the sudharSana (disc) weapon on his hand, emperumAn says that he will release the disc and tear apart the deluge if it comes to swallow the earth. Alternatively, Azhi could be construed as referring to ocean and in this case it would refer to his reclining on oceans.
kOlak karumEni sem kaN mAl – eyes which are beautiful, remove the tedium of beholders and shower affection on them. His divine eyes are like those referred to in chAndhOgya upanishath 1-6-7 “yathA kapyAsam puNdarIkamEva akshiNI” (eyes like lotus flower just blossomed by sun).
mAl – if the meaning is considered as pride, this word will refer to Isvaran (one who controls). If the meaning is considered as infatuation, it will refer to one who has lot of love.
kaN padaiyuL – where he is sleeping
enRum – at all times. Even if pirAtti (mahAlakshmi) out of a rare discord with emperumAn were to leave him, the ocean has no separation from emperumAn. AzhwAr is praising the good fortune of ocean which, unlike him, has no separation from emperumAn. For upAsakas (those who attain emperumAn through upAsana or bhakthi (devotion)), attaining emperumAn is the end result; kainkaryam is like a by-product. In the same way, for the ocean, feeling emperumAn is the end-result. Just as sweat comes out when one is pounding paddy, kainkaryam, like sweat, comes automatically when emperumAn is attained [through devotion]. If the underlying knowledge about emperumAn, who is the means for attaining him, is obtained, strong belief in him comes on its own.
thirumEni nI thINdap peRRu mAlum karum kadalE – Oh ocean! You are in a stage of stupor after attaining him. I am bewildered because I have not.
karum kadalE – He showers qualities which he himself has, on those who he wants to grace. That is why you are also dark, like him. It appears that you have carried out some penance to get this. At the same time, it appears that this has come about because he has graced you especially.
Let us go on to the 20th pAsuram next.
adiyEn krishNa ramanuja dhAsan
archived in https://divyaprabandham.koyil.org
pramEyam (goal) – https://koyil.org
pramANam (scriptures) – http://granthams.koyil.org
pramAthA (preceptors) – http://acharyas.koyil.org
SrIvaishNava education/kids portal – http://pillai.koyil.org