SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction)
AzhwAr felt that he did not have the devotion which he had spoken about in the previous pAsuram “vIdilAdha vaiththa kAdhal inbamAgumE” (uninterrupted devotion at the divine feet of emperumAn will give continuous happiness). He realised that he was still connected to his physical form. Since sarvESvaran (supreme being) is capable of doing whatever he wishes and since the benefit of mOksham is attained through his wish, AzhwAr says in this pAsuram “Has emperumAn decided that I should have parama bhakthi towards his divine feet or has he decided that I should continue to suffer in this samsAram? What has he thought of me, in his divine mind?”
pinpiRakka vaiththanan kol anRi ninRu than kazhaR(ku)
anbuRaikka vaiththa nAL aRIndhanan kol AzhiyAn
thanRiRaththor anbilA aRivilAdha nAyinEn
enRiRaththil enkol empirAn kuRIppil vaiththadhE
Word-by-Word Meanings
empirAn – my swAmy (lord)
pin – even after (this physical form comes to an end)
piRakka – to be born (further)
kuRippil – in divine mind
vaiththanan kol – did he carry out a sankalpam (vow)?
anRi – alternatively
than kazhaRku – in his divine feet
ninRu – being firm
anbu uRaikka vaiththa nAL – the day when abundant devotion was kept
aRindhanan kol – has he taken a vow?
AzhiyAn – one who is holding the divine disc
than thiRaththil – in matters related to him
oranbilA – without having any affection
aRivilAdha – being without any knowledge
nAyinEn – being lowly
en thiRaththu – towards me
empirAn – my swAmy
kuRippil vaiththadhu – having in his divine mind
en kolO – what is it?
Simple Translation
Has my lord taken a vow in his divine mind that I should be born repeatedly in this samsAram, after this form comes to an end or has he decided the day when I will have firm, abundant devotion towards his divine feet? I am a lowly person, without any affection or knowledge. What has my swAmy, who is holding the divine disc, thought of in his divine mind, about me?
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
pin piRakka vaiththanan kol – What has emperumAn thought of in his divine mind as to how many more births should I take after getting rid of this physical form? Alternatively, the verse could be split as “pinbu iRakka vaiththana kol” which will mean “Even after attaining knowledge about him, is he thinking of making me forget him and attain AthmanASam (ruining of AthmA)?” Don’t vEdhavAkyams (passages from vEdhas) too say that a person is said to exist only if he gets firm knowledge about emperumAn and not to exist, otherwise, as brought out in thaiththirIya upanishath Anandhavalli 6? “asannEva sa bhavathi l asadh brahmEthi vEdha chEth l asthi brahmEthi chEdh vEdha l santhamEnam thathO vidhu: ll”
(Since the soul does not have knowledge about brahmam (supreme entity) he is considered as not existing; if it has (such knowledge), for that reason alone, he is considered to be existing)
anRi – alternatively
ninRu than kazhaRku anbuRaikka vaiththa nAL aRindhanan kol – has he taken a vow in his divine mind that he will create a day for me too when I will have firm devotion towards his divine feet and enjoy that experience? anbu uRaikka vaiththal refers to being with parama bhakthi (a situation where one can sustain only in the presence of emperumAn). vaiththu anubavikkum nAL refers to reaching parama padham and enjoying service to emperumAn there. Through these statements of queries, it is indicated that “For this jIvAthmA, birth, forgetting emperumAn and the resultant AthmanASam are due to absence of devotion”. Taking birth in this samsAram is the reason for engaging with worldly pursuits. Engaging with worldly pursuits becomes the reason for forgetting emperumAn. Thus, for the AthmA, taking birth is equivalent to forgetting emperumAn.
AzhiyAn than thiRaththu – in the matters related to emperumAn, who is superior to everyone else since he is donning the divine disc.
oranbilA aRivilAdha nAyinEn – I, who am like a dog, without even the trace of devotion towards his svarUpam (basic nature), rUpam (divine physical form), guNam (auspicious qualities), vibhUthi (wealth) and not having the knowledge even a little bit which is the prerequisite for that devotion. The meaning for the term anbilA aRivilA is “Not having even an iota of devotion and not having the knowledge to realise that even that is a deficiency”. Usage of the term nAyinEn (like a dog) signifies that just like a dog which will enter any place, I have also entered various physical forms through many births, being driven away by others just like that dog and being impure such that even if someone were to touch me, he / she will have to take a bath.
enthiRaththil – I am a person who is unlike the samsAris, not to think ever of emperumAn, as well as unlike mukthas (those who have got liberated from samsAram and have attained parama padham) who enjoy him without any interruption.
empirAn kuRIppil vaiththadhu enkol) – what is my swAmy thinking about me in his divine mind? Not considering the knowledge which he had referred to in the 64th pAsuram “piRandhapin maRandhilEn” or the rising affection which he had towards emperumAn as referred to in the 61st pAsuram “nadandha kALgaL nondhavO” as the means [for attaining emperumAn], since emperumAn’s thoughts [what emperumAn thinks] would be the means, he feels that he is without devotion towards emperumAn and without knowledge to realise that devotion. He is going to say further in pAsuram 101 “varam tharum kuRippil vaiththadhAgil” that emperumAn’s thoughts alone would be the means. Specifically, he says here that the means for him is the thought of emperumAn in his divine mind. The essence of this pAsuram is “Is he going to give me up, looking at my status since time immemorial or is he going to uplift me thinking that the relationship between us is such that my [AzhwAr’s] destruction is emperumAn’s loss”
Next, we will take up the 85th pAsuram of this prabandham.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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