SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:
avathArikai
Can’t we hold on to other deities? Why talk ill of them? AzhwAr says that these other deities approach emperumAn and obtain the authority that they need and the [limited] ability to fulfil their followers’ wishes. Hence, it is appropriate for us for the remainder of our lives to hold on to emperumAn’s divine feet only (in the second explanation for the earlier pAsuram it was said that the other deities worship emperumAn. In the same way, they get their authority for administrative purposes).
Let us go through the pAsuram and its meanings:
avar ivar enRillai aravaNaiyAN pAdham
evar vaNangi EththAdhAr eNNil pavarum
sezhum kadhirOn oNmalarOn kaNNudhalOn enRE
thozhum thagaiyAr nALum thodarndhu
Word by Word Meaning
eNNil – if we analyse (who all get their sustenance from emperumAn)
avar ivar enRu illai – there is no distinction between one person and the other when it comes to attaining him [for getting favours]
aravu aNaiyAN pAdham – the divine feet of emperumAn who has AdhiSEshan as his mattress
vaNangi – worship
EththAdhAr – those who do not praise
evar – who? (there is none)
pavarum sezhum kadhirOn – sun who has well spread out rays in thousands
oNmalarOn – brahmA who has the beautiful lotus (growing out of emperumAn’s navel) as his seat
kaN nudhalOn – rudhra who has an eye in his forehead
(all these deities)
nALum – every day
thodarndhu thozhum thagaiyAr anRE – aren’t they having the quality of seeking out the place where emperumAn is dwelling and worshipping him?
vyAkyAnam
avar ivar enRillai – There is no difference between lowly people or great people. (emperumAn is attained, without any distinction, by all entities, including the dhEvars such as brahmA, rudhra et al who are famous for being attained by others, and the people who attain such dhEvas . Is there any child who is not liked by its mother? (thus all the entities attain emperumAn).
Who do they attain?
aravaNaiyAn pAdham – the divine feet of emperumAn who is reclining on the mattress of AdhiSEshan in thiruppARkadal (milky ocean). Isn’t reclining on AdhiSEshan a unique identification for emperumAn! AdhiSEshan is there with him in order to speak on our behalf and carry out purushakAram (recommend us to emperumAn). Hasn’t it been said in SrI rAmAyaNam yudhdha kANdam 17-1 “yathra rAmassa lakshmaNa:” (where rAma is together with lakshmaNa) – vibhIshaNa came to that place where the two were together (that vibhIshaNa came to surrender to SrI rAma who was with lakshmaNa (an incarnation of AdhiSEshan) to play the role of recommending, is mentioned here). When nammAzhwAr surrendered to emperumAn he did so in the presence of AdhiSEshan as in thiruvAimozhi 5-10-11 “nAgaNai misai nambirAn charaNE SaraN”. ANdAL too said the same in her nAchchiyAr thirumozhi 10-9 “nAgaNaiikE senRu” (going to the mattress of AdhiSEshan)
evar vaNangi EththAdhAr – who does not hold on to emperumAn? Everyone attains him. This is because one has to attain the divine feet of one who does not have to hold on to someone else (that particular quality is present only with emperumAn)
eNNil – if one were to analyse; or, if one were to think.
pavarum sezhum kadhirOn oN malarOn kan nudhalOn anRE – these people are famous for being attained by others. But even these people attain emperumAn.
pavarum sezhum kadhirOn – sun with spread out, infinite number of rays.
oN malarOn – brahmA who is in the lotus shooting out of emperumAn’s navel.
kaN nudhalOn – rudhra who has an eye in his forehead.
Don’t these people…
thozhum thagaiyAr nALum thodarndhu – have the quality of following emperumAn wherever he goes, compel him and attain him.
nALum thozhum thagaiyAr – every day they are worshipping emperumAn. Just as a rope will lose its strength if it is untwisted, these people also think that they will lose all their power if they do not worship emperumAn and hence keep following him. Instead of worshipping him because this is what has been ordained, they worship him in order to get some benefits [and lose the more important benefit of enjoying him]. How unjustified is this that they are treating their worshipping of emperumAn as a wage for getting some benefits instead of treating the act of worshipping itself as the benefit!
We shall move on to the 13th pAsuram.
adiyEn krishNa ramanuja dhAsan
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