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periya thirumozhi >> Third centum >> First decad
Highlights from avathArikai (Introduction)
No specific introduction.
pAsuram
vElkoL kaiththalaththu arasar vempOrinil visayanukkAy maNith thEr
kOlkoL kaiththalaththu endhai pemmAnidam kulavu thaN varaich chAral
kAlkoL kaNkodik kai ezhak kamugu iLampALaigaL kamazh sAral
sElgaL pAy tharu sezhunadhi vayal pugu thiruvayindhirapuramE
Word-by-Word meanings
kaiththalaththu – in the hand
vEl koL – having spear
arasar – dhuryOdhana et al, their
vem – fearsome
pOrinil – in mahAbhAratha battle
visayanukku Ay – being exclusively favourable towards arjuna (his)
maNith thEr – in the front portion of the beautiful chariot
kOl – stick
kaiththalaththu – in the hand
koL – held and stood
endhai – lord of my clan
pemmAn – for sarvESvaran
idam – abode is
kulavu – praised by everyone
thaN – cool
varaich chAral – on the surroundings of the mountain
kAl – pole on which the creeper spreads
kaN koL – growing in every branch
kodi – creeper
kai ezha – to nurture
kamugu – areca trees
iLam pALaigaL – young swathes
kamazh – spreading fragrance
sAral – having surroundings
sElgaL – sEl fish
pAy tharu – jumping
sezhu nadhi – beautiful river
vayal pugu – flowing into the fertile field
thiruvayindhirapuramE – thiruvahindhrapuram
Simple translation
In the fearsome mahAbhAratha battle involving dhuryOdhana et al who were having spear in their hands, emperumAn, the lord of my clan remained exclusively favourable towards arjuna, held a stick in his hand and stood in the front portion of arjuna’s beautiful chariot; his abode is thiruvahindhrapuram where the cool surroundings of the mountain which is praised by everyone, which has the surroundings where young swathes of the areca trees spread the fragrance to nurture the betel leaves which are growing in every branch of the creeper supported by the poles and where the beautiful river having sEl fish jumping around, is flowing into the fertile field.
Highlights from vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
vEl … – There is none lesser than bagadhaththa [in valour] in that battle; it was as said in mahAbhAratham dhrONa parvam 28.17 “pArtham sanchAthya mAdhava” (krishNa accepted the arrow shot at arjuna on his chest which became a garland).
arasar – Unlike the kings who would put their army in the forefront, it was such a battle where these kings themselves were in the forefront.
vem pOr – It was such a fearsome battle that even those who heard about it became frightened and even those [chOLa kings] who came to witness the battle had to hold weapons and protect themselves.
visayanukkAy – For arjuna, he risked himself. When a person becomes angry at a fighter, first he will target the charioteer of the fighter. emperumAn risked himself by not wearing any armour for his body. He placed himself in a submissive role to place his victory on arjuna. periyAzhwAr thirumozhi 2.1.2 “malai purai thOl mannavarum …” (As the great warriors, kings, the hundred brothers were killed by the arrows of arjuna, krishNa stood in front of him and guided him to victory) should be remembered here.
maNith … – On the best chariot, the lord of my clan stood, holding a stick. His abode.
kulavu … – In the surroundings/slope of the mountain which is very praiseworthy.
kAl koL kaN kodi – kAl – veRRilaik kAl – pole on which the creeper spreads; to hide those poles, the betel creepers spread on them just as lizards stick to the wall. These creepers are nurtured well by the fragrance of the young swathes of the areca tree. kai – betel leaf branches. Having such gardens. River flows next to these gardens. The sEl fish jump around as if they are drunk. Such beautiful river flows into the fertile field. That is – the river flows up to the fertile field and as it reaches here, it stops its flow. Thus, this is the abode where dhArakam (that which supports) is hidden under the dhAryam (that which is supported). While the water nurtures the crops, it appears that the fertile field itself nurtures it. This is similar to krishNa crediting arjuna with the victory though it was he who got arjuna the victory.
In the next article we will enjoy the next pAsuram.
adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan
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