SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:
avathArikai
AzhwAr says that those who attained emperumAn will experience the result of their misdeeds on the day when the pANdavas kill their adversaries themselves [without seeking krishNa’s help] (in other words, this will not happen at all). In continuation of the earlier pAsuram when AzhwAr had mentioned about divine abodes “vEngadamum vehkAvum vELukkaippAdiyumE”, he mentions about how emperumAn is subservient to his followers.
Let us go through the pAsuram and its meanings:
adaindhadhu aravaNai mEl aivarkkAy anRu
midaindhadhu bAradha vem pOr udaindhadhuvum
AychchipAl maththukkE ammanE vALeyiRRup
pEychchi pAl uNda pirAn
Word by Word Meanings
vAL eyiRu – having teeth which are like sword
pEychchi – pUthanA’s
pAl – bosom milk
uNda – one who drank and killed her
pirAn – the benefactor
adaindhadhu – reached out to take rest
aravu aNai mEl – on top of AdhiSEshan as mattress
anRu – at one point of time
aivarkku Ay – for the five pANdavas
midaindhadhu – conducted vehemently
bAradha vempOr – the rigorous bhAratha battle [ held at kurukshEthra]
udaindhadhuvum – trembling with fear
AychchipAl – towards the cowherd person yaSOdhA’s
maththukkE – staff
ammanE – how amazing!
vyAkyanam
adaindhadhu aravaNai mEl – emperumAn cannot ignore thiruvananthAzhwAn (AdhiSEshan) who cannot sustain himself without emperumAn. Hence he reclines on him.
aivarkkAy anRu midaindhadhu bAradha vem pOr – for the sake of his followers, emperumAn even transformed himself. For the sake of pANdavas, he conducted the rigorous mahAbhAratha war. By these two lines, it is opined here that emperumAn will give his own divine form as he gave to AdhiSEshan and transform his divine form, as he did in the case of pANdavas. AzhwAr says that emperumAn, who has the softness of divine form to recline on AdhiSEshan, conducted the rigorous battle also.
midaindhadhu – AzhwAr says that it was emperumAn who conducted the mahAbhAratha battle. The pANdavas were not even the mere reason for it.
udaindhadhuvum AychchipAl maththukkE – emperumAn did not fear bhIshma et al; he did not fear their weapons such as brahmAsthra, spear etc. But he was very much afraid of the staff [used for churning curd to get butter] at the hands of yaSOdhA. The one who did not lose to great warriors lost out to yaSOdhA, without any remedy! Fearful of yaSOdhA, he suffered at her hands just as his opponents suffered at his. It appears that if his enemies had dropped their weapons and instead took a staff in their hands, they might have won! When rAvaNa lost his bow, didn’t SrI rAma spare him without killing him, as mentioned in SrI rAmAyaNam yudhdha kANdam 59-130 “chachAla chApancha mumOcha vIra:” (rAvaNa walked unsteadily; he let go of his bow)!
ammanE – how amazing is this act of his when he stood trembling seeing the staff at the hands of yaSOdhA! AzhwAr says “What simplicity! Haven’t I been won over by this simplicity?”
vAL eyiRRup pEychchi pAl uNda pirAn – he is the benefactor who destroyed pUthanA who came with teeth which were like swords when he was just an infant. Afraid of yaSOdhA who was very much favourable to him, he did not sever himself from the string with which she had tied him. Is it not amazing that even at that tender age, he had the capability to distinguish between his mother and the demon who came in the form of his mother! What would have happened had you been afraid of pUthanA who came in the form of yaSOdhA? Is it not our fortune that you did not fear her thinking that she is your mother! For the phrase vAL eyiRu we can consider the meaning as pUthana with radiant teeth. AzhwAr expresses his amazement with the word ammanE.
We will take up the 29th pAsuram next.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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