SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction)
Starting from this pAsuram, for six pAsurams, AzhwAr is enjoying the manner in which emperumAn is reclining in thirukkudandhai (present day kumbakONam). Through this first pAsuram, he enjoys the manner in which emperumAn is lying down in thirukkudandhai, after destroying rAvaNa, the enemy of his followers, such that he could remove the hurdles for his followers who came in later years in attaining him,and who consider him alone as the benefit and to accept their salutation and circumambulation activities which manifest their love towards him.
ilangai mannan aindhodaindhu paindhalai nilaththugak
kalanga anRu senRu konRu venRi koNda vIranE
vilangu nUlar vEdha nAvar nIdhiyAna kELviyAr
valam koLak kudandhaiyuL kidandha mAlum allaiyE
Word-for-Word Meanings
ilangai – for lankA
mannan – king rAvaNa’s
aindhodaindhu – ten
paindhalai – heads, which are strong
nilaththu – on earth
uga – to fall down
kalanga – (rAvaNa to) get bewildered
anRu – at an earlier point of time
senRu – went to his dwelling place
konRu – destroyed him
venRi koNda – one who became victorious
vIranE- Oh warrior!
vilangu – on the body
nUlar – having the yajgyOpavItham (sacred thread)
vEdha – vEdhas (sacred texts)
nAvar – having on their tongues
nIdhiyAna – honest
kELviyAr – brAhmaNas, who give instructions, their
valam – circumambulations
koLa – to accept
kudandhaiyuL – mercifully reclined inside thirukkudandhai
mAlum allaiyE – aren’t you the lord of all!
Simple Translation
Oh warrior, who became victorious by going to the dwelling place of rAvaNa, the king of lankA, and destroyed the bewildered king by making his ten heads, which are strong, to fall on earth! Aren’t you the lord of all, who mercifully reclined inside thirukkudandhai and accepted the circumambulations of brAhmaNas who have sacred thread on their physical forms, sacred vEdhas on their tongues and who give honest instructions!
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
ilangai mannan – just as wasps which have the habit of harming others stay together in an apiary, demons, who have the habit of harming people, lived together in lankA, for which rAvaNa was the king. Just as it has been said in SrI rAmAyaNam yudhdha kANdam 17-12 “rAvaNO nAma dhurvruththO rAkshasO rAkshasESvara: l thasyAhamanujO bhrAthA vibhIshaNa ithi Srutha: ll” (There is a person, rAvaNa, who is a demon, having bad conduct and who is the leader of demons. I, who am his brother, am known by the name vibhIshaNa), wasn’t rAvaNa the one under whom all the demons stayed?
aindhodaindhu paindhalai nilaththuga – the ten heads, which are difficult to be cut off, got severed and fell on the ground.
paindhalai – strong heads. Just as it has been said in sAthvatha samhithai 12-51 “dhaSEndhriyAnanam ghOram yO manOrajanIcharam l vivEkaSarajAlEna Samam nayathi yOginAm ll” (emperumAn destroys the ten heads, which are like ten sensory organs, of the horrible minds of ascetics), in the inner meaning for this verse, AzhwAr hints that emperumAn removes the hurdles of five sensory organs which are for deeds and five sensory organs which are for knowledge, of his followers such that they could attain him.
kalanga anRu senRu konRu venRI koNda vIranE – rAvaNa was one who did not know fear. When he was living at a time with the fame that celestial entities had given up their kingdoms to him and he was living fearlessly, SrI rAma made him fearful and bewildered, not knowing what to do. Oh the warrior, who is like a manly tiger, who annihilated his brothers kara and dhUshaNa, in janasthAnam (a place near chithrakUtam, in present day madhya pradhESam) along with their armies, built a dam across the ocean, went to lankA, killed that rAvaNa and remained victorious!
vilangu nUlar – those who don the sacred thread on their physical forms as a proof of performing activities all the time, as mentioned in vEdhas. The term vilangu refers to physical form.
vEdha nAvar – since they recite vEdhams all the time, reciting vEdham becomes a proof for their mouths.
nIdhiyAna kELviyAr – brAhmaNas who have received instructions from good preceptors that emperumAn, the lord for all, is apt to be worshipped through all deeds.
valam koLak kudandhaiyuL kidandha mAlum allaiyE – aren’t you the head of nithyasUris, mercifully residing in thirukkudandhai such that you could accept the salutations and circumambulations of those brAhmaNas? mAl – one who is greater than all. The term valam refers to circumambulation and is symbolic of all the favourable activities undertaken by followers of emperumAn. Thus, through this pAsuram, AzhwAr has said that he has enjoyed the masculine character of SrI rAma in SArngapANi [name of emperumAn lying in thirukkudandhai], in the divine abode of thirukkudandhai.
Next, we will take up the 57th pAsuram of this prabandham.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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