SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction)
In the previous pAsuram, AzhwAr mentioned about his engagement with the beauty of emperumAn’s divine form by saying “ninna vaNNam alladhu illai“. In this pAsuram, he says “Even if I engage with other divine qualities of yours, my heart does not engage with any quality other than the quality of your helping in times of danger”
kaRuththedhirndha kAlanEmi kAlanOdu kUda anRu
aRuththa Azhi sangu thaNdu villum vALum EndhinAy
thoRukkalandha Unam ahdhu ozhikka anRu kunRam mun
poRuththa nin pugazhkkalAlor nEsamillai nenjamE
Word-by-Word Meanings
kaRuththu – becoming angry
edhirndha – opposed
kAlanEmi – kAlanEmi [the monster]
kAlanOdu kUda – to be together with yama
anRu – that day (when danger surrounded brahmA et al because of him)
aRuththa Azhi – divine disc which severed his head
sangu thaNdu villum vALum – the other divine weapons of pAnchajanyam [conch],
kaumOdhakI [mace], SArngam [bow) and nandhagam [sword]
EndhinAy – oh one who is donning (like donning a flower)!
thoRu – for the cows
kalandha – [incident which] happened
Unam ahdhu – that danger
ozhikka – to remove
anRu – at an earlier time
kunRam – the mountain gOvardhanam
mun – before (anyone got hurt)
poRuththa – tolerated by lifting the mountain
nin pugazhkkalAl – other than your quality of helping in times of danger
nenjam – for my heart
or nEsamillai – there is no affection in any other matter
Simple Translation
Oh, one who is donning the divine weapons of disc, conch, mace, bow and sword, as if they were flowers, with which you severed the head of the monster kAlanEmi so that he could be together with yama! At an earlier point of time, you lifted the mountain gOvardhana, tolerating it, when danger threatened cows, before anyone got hurt. For my heart, there is no affection in any matter other than your quality of helping in times of danger.
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
kaRuththedhirndha kAlanEmi kAlanOdu kUda – you made the monster kAlanEmi, who came and opposed you due to his anger, to be together with yama, the lord of righteousness [and death]. This refers to the anger which kAlanEmi had because of the wealth which celestial entities such as indhran et al had and the mercy which you showed on them. He became angry with emperumAn, who is friendly towards all, just as it has been said in bhagavath gIthA 5-29 “bhOkthAram yagya thapasAm sarvalOka mahESvaram l suhrudham sarvabhUthAnAm gyAthvA mAm SAnthim ruchchathi ll” (Knowing me, who eats the [fruits of] rituals and penance, who is the lord of all the worlds and who is the friend of all creations, one attains peace). He became angry with emperumAn who is the natural relative of all, just as it has been said in thaiththirIya upanishath nArAyaNavalli 1-15 “sa nO bandhur janithA sa vidhAthA dhAmAni vEdha bhuvanAni viSvA” (paramAthmA, who is the causative factor for the entire universe, is our relative. He alone bestows benefits; he alone grants us the enjoyments, the implements as well as the abode for enjoying those) and in SrI vishNu purANam 5-13-12 “nAham dhEvO na gandharvO na yakshO na cha dhAnava: l aham vO bAndhavO jAthO naithachchinthyamithO’nyathA ll” (I am not a dhEvan; not a gandharvan; not a yakshan; not a demon (these are all different types of celestial entities). I am born as your relative; my birth is not to be considered (by you people) in any other manner). Just as it has been said from etymology of the word anjali (salutations offered to emperumAn with folded hands, cupping the palms together), “am jalayathi ithi anjali” (since it makes emperumAn to melt like a liquid, it is called as anjali), didn’t [kAlanEmi] get destroyed in a matter in which he could have made emperumAn to be like a liquid and mingle with him? Isn’t it your nature to take under your refuge those who come with affection and destroy those who come opposing!
anRu – on that day when danger came the way of indhran and other celestial entities.
aRuththa Azhi sangu thaNdu villum vALum EndhinAy – Oh one who donned the five divine weapons of disc, conch, mace, bow and sword, with which you severed the head of kAlanEmi! Even after severing the head of kAlanEmi with the divine disc, thinking “What harm will come to the followers from anyone?” you are holding the divine weapons, just as nammAzhwAr had said in periya thiruvandhAdhi 87 “eppOdhum kai kazhalA nEmiyAn” (one who always holds the divine disc in his divine hand).
In the first part of the pAsuram, AzhwAr mentioned about the danger that came the way of indhran and others. In the second part he speaks about the danger which emperumAn removed for the cows and cowherds which came from indhran.
thoRukkalandha Unamahdhu ozhikka – in order to remove the danger which came the way of cows. Indhran was protected by emperumAn when danger came his way from the monster kAlanEmi. However, indhran, who was favourable then, became angry when he was denied his food and ordered hailstorm. Unlike the way he protected indhran, before danger came his way, emperumAn protected the cows after they were caught in the hailstorm. The term thoRu refers to cows. The term kalandha refers to danger coming their way.
anRu – during the time when cows, herdsmen and herdswomen suffered due to the hailstorm, just as it has been mentioned in SrI vishNu purANam 5-11-13 “thathas thadh gOkulam sarvam gOgOpijanasankulam l athIvaRtham harir dhrushtvA maithrEyAchinthayath thadhA ll” (Oh maithrEya! Subsequently, seeing gOkulam with abundance of cows, herdsmen and herdswomen suffering terribly, bhagavAn then started thinking).
kunRa mun poRuththa nin pugazhkkalAl – other than your auspicious quality of holding the gOvardhana mountain and protecting. The indication is that since it is not natural for emperumAn to fight with indhran, he did not destroy indhran even though he had the weapons for destroying him; he protected the cows etc which were to be protected, by holding up the mountain. The term mun indicates that he protected the cows, herdsmen and herdswomen, before anyone was harmed. thoNdaradippodi AzhwAr, who described the same narrative, said in his thirumalai 36 “mazhaikku anRu varai mun Endhum maindhanE” (Oh one who has the strength with which you held the mountain on that day before harm came the way [of cows and others]). While thoNdaradippodi AzhwAr had used the term Endhum which means that he held the mountain casually, this AzhwAr says poRuththa which indicates that he endured it. The reason for this is that while he did hold it casually, considering emperumAn’s tenderness, AzhwAr says that he endured it.
Or nEsamillai nenjamE – While I engage with incarnations other than krishNAvathAram and emperumAn’s auspicious qualities other than that of helping in times of danger, my heart does not involve that way. Thus, the implied meaning of this pAsuram is – my heart does not involve with any auspicious quality of emperumAn’s other than his quality of helping in times of danger, whether it was through weapons with which he destroyed the danger which befell indhran et al or through holding up a mountain to protect cows and herds-people whom he considered as his own.
Next, we will take up the 107th pAsuram of this prabandham.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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