SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction)
samsAris (dwellers in materialistic realm) have one of the three qualities of sathvam (noble), rajas (passion) and thamas (ignorance) in excess over the other two. Since they [normally] have rajas and thamas in excess, they attain the corresponding deities and obtain the benefits given by them. AzhwAr stops them, in this pAsuram, saying “Think of getting liberated from samsAram, attain parama purushan [emperumAn, the supreme entity] who is the greatest among all those who have noble qualities and uplift yourselves”
muththiRaththu vANiyaththu iraNdil onRu nIsargaL
maththarAy mayanguginRadhu ittadhil iRandhu pOndhu
eththiRaththum uyvadhOr upAyamillai uyguRil
thoththiRuththa thaN thuzhAy nanmAlai vAzhththi vAzhminO
Word-by-Word Translation
muththiRaththu – of three types (distinguished by sathva, rajas and thamas qualities)
vANiyaththu – among the benefits
iraNdil – among the two benefits which are appropriate with rajas and thamas qualities
onRum – you people, who have taste in it
nIsargaL – those who are lowly
adhil ittu – giving up that benefit at the end of that karma
iRandhu – giving up that physical form which was used for enjoying
pOndhu – taking birth in earth (as mentioned in panchAgni Vidhya, in SAsthram)
maththarAy – enjoying commodities obtained from primordial matter, thinking that body is AthmA
mayanguginRadhu – getting bewildered, being ignorant of the nature of Athma and paramAthmA
(Hence)
eththiRaththum – by any means
uyvadhOr upAyamillai – there is no means for uplifting in any other way
uyguRil – if you wish to uplift yourselves
thoththiRuththa – strung densely
thaN – being cool
thuzhAy – having divine thuLasi
nal – having auspicious qualities such as simplicity etc
mAlai – one who is superior to everyone else
vAzhththi – praying to him
vAzhminO – be blissful, free from all burdens
Simple Translation
Lowly people who have an involvement with rajas and thamas qualities among the three qualities of sathva, rajas and thamas, enjoy the benefits derived from these two qualities, and lose themselves in the materials obtained from prAkrutham (primordial matter) due to their bewilderment that physical form is AthmA and everything should be done to satisfy the physical form. At the end of their lives, they leave behind the benefits, leave the physical forms and through the path of panchAgni vidhyA, re-enter samsAram due to their ignorance. They do not have any means to uplift themselves. If you wish to uplift yourselves, worship emperumAn who is simplicity personified and who wears the densely strung garland of thuLasi and be blissful, leaving aside all your burdens.
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
muththiRaththu vANiyaththu – among the three types of benefits obtained after praying from deities, based on the dominant quality among sAthvika, rAjasa and thAmasa. thiRam – classification; vANiyam refers to benefit, based on higher benefit obtained with lower efforts as in commercial activities. vEdhas and SAsthras identify the deity which a person has to worship appropriate to his quality, the method in which he has to worship and the benefit that he attains through this worship. Examples of such statements are:
manu smruthi 3-76
“agnau prAsthAhuthi: samyagAdhithyam upathishtathE l
AdhithyAjjAyathE vrushtir vruthtErannam thatha: prajA: ll”
(Ahuthi (offering) which has been thrown into fire by one who conducts the ritual, reaches Adhithya (sun); from that sun, rain forms; from that rain food and from that food, progeny are formed).
bhagavath gIthA 9-26
“pathram pushpam palam thOyam yO mE bhakthyA prayachchathi l
thadhaham bhakthyupahrutham aSnAmi prayathAthmana: ll”
(I partake of a leaf or flower or fruit or water which has been offered with devotion by a devotee (as if it is rare to get one)).
bhagavath gIthA 2-45 says “thraiguNya vishayA vEdhA nisthraiguNyO bhavArjuna” (Oh arjuna! vEdhas were created for people who have one of three qualities of sathva, rajas and thamas, in excess; let you be one without sathva guNa which is admixed with rajas and thamas guNas) [in other words, let you have only sathva guNa, without any trace of rajas and thamas]
iraNdil onRum nIsargaL – lowly entities who, instead of being with sathva guNam and worshipping sarvESvaran (supreme entity) who is worshipped by such people, reaping the benefit of attaining mOksham (SrI vaikuNtam), are with the other two qualities of rajas and thamas, worshipping deities who have such rajas and thamas guNas and reaching lowly benefits such as worlds inhabited by celestial entities such as yakshas and demons or even lower benefits such as worlds inhabited by spoofs, corpses and ghosts. nIsar – those who nurture living in samsAram.
maththarAy mayanguginRadhu ittadhil iRandhu pOndhu – in order to attain the respective presiding deity et al for rAjasa and thAmasa qualities and coming out of the benefits granted, which their deeds had been giving them. The word ittadhil has to be changed as adhil ittu to get the meaning – giving up that benefit.
iRandhu – at the end of the period for which they had been provided physical forms in order to enjoy the pleasures in the respective deity’s lands.
pOndhu – descending at the end of the stipulated periods of enjoyment, from worlds such as svargam etc where they had gone to enjoy pleasures, and reaching ethereal layer, cloud, crops etc through panchAgni vidhyai, ultimately reaching a woman’s womb. They take birth again, on earth, just as it has been said in bhagavath gIthA 9-21 “thE tham bhukthvA svargalOkam viSAlam kshINE puNyE marthyalOkam viSanthi l Evam thrayIdharmam anuprapannA: gathAgatham kAmakAmA labhanthE ll” (They (jIvAthmAs) after enjoying in the expansive svarga lOkam (heaven), upon exhausting their reserve of virtues (which had been the reason for their enjoyment), re-enter the land of people [earth]. Thus, those who have desire in deeds which grant them their pleasures, follow the first part of vEdhams [which deals with carrying out deeds, unlike the second part which deals with emperumAn and how to attain him] and attain benefits which come their way, again and again).
maththarAy – since they think that the physical form itself is AthmA, they carry out activities which will nurture the physical form [and not the AthmA], attain their pleasures, and feel proud about it.
mayanguginRadhu – since they do not understand AthmA and ISvaran (emperumAn), aren’t they always in a state of stupor? The opinion here is that the jIvAthmAs do not realise that their physical forms, when they enter worlds of enjoyment such as svargam etc, have a limited life only and that they have to return to earth, once they exhaust their bank of virtues and enter the womb of a lady once again. It is because they do not think about the hardships which they endure in order to come back here repeatedly that they involve with the worldly pursuits in every life cycle and remain in a state of bewilderment as well as pride.
eththiRaththum uyvadhOr ubAyamillai – hence, there is no means to get liberated from samsAram, through one’s own efforts or through attaining other deities or through attaining emperumAn for getting aiSvaryam (wealth).
uyguRil – if you wish to get liberated from samsAram and attain mOksham
thoththiRuththa thaN thuzhAy nanmAlai vAzhththi vAzhminO – emperumAn is decorated with densely strung, cool thuLasi garland which points out firmly that he is the lord of all. Attain such emperumAn who has the auspicious qualities of sauSeelyam (simplicity), saulabhyam (easy to approach), vAthsalyam (motherly forbearance) etc and uplift yourselves. Just as it has been said in thiruvAimozhi 6-10-10 and other such references “nigaril pugazhAy ulagam mUnRudaiyAy ennai ALwAnE nigaril amarargaL munikkaNangaL virumbum thiruvEngadaththAnE” (Oh one who has unparalleled fame! Oh one who is the lord of all chEthana and achEthana entities! Oh one who has made even this lowly person as your servitor! Oh one who is desired by nithyasUris who are engaged with your auspicious qualities or who are involved with carrying out servitude to you! Through these statements, emperumAn’s auspicious qualities of vAthsalyam, swAmithvam, sauseelyam, saulabhyam are described, respectively), praise the divine qualities of emperumAn and until the AthmA exists [which is forever], enjoy the eminent bliss of carrying out kainkaryam in paramapadham and uplift yourselves. Isn’t paramAthmA alone the one who is capable of granting bliss to jIvAthmA, just as it has been said in thaiththirIya upanishath Anandhavalli 7 “Esha hyEvAnandhayAthi” (is it not true that only paramAthmA makes jIvAthmA blissful?)
Next, we will take up the 69th pAsuram of this prabandham.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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