SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction) – In the first pAsuram, ANdAL explains her attaining kAman and his younger brother sAman.
thaiyoru thingaLum tharai viLakkith thaN maNdalamittu mAsi munnAL
aiya nuNmaNaRkoNdu theruvaNindhu azhaginukku alangariththa ananga dhEvA
uyyavumAngolO enRu solli unnaiyum umbiyaiyum thozhudhEn
veyyadhOr thazhalumizh chakkarakkai vEngadavaRkennai vidhikkiRRiyE
Word–by–Word Meanings
thaiyoru thingaLum – throughout the month of thai [thamizh month, equivalent of makara mAsam]
tharai – the place where he comes to
viLakki – decorated it
thaN – being cool and beautiful
maNdalam – pattern, which is a design, on earth
ittu – applying it
mAsi – in the month of mAsi [thamizh month, equivalent of kumbha mAsam]
munnAL– in the first half of the month
aiya – being beautiful
nuN – being fine [minute]
maNal koNdu – with sand
theru – the street where he is coming to
azhaginukku – that which is already beautiful
aNindhu – to become [more] beautiful
alangariththu – decorated it
ananga dhEvA – Oh manmatha! (cupid)
uyyavumAngolO enRu – ‘is it possible to sustain’
solli – saying it
unnaiyum umbiyaiyum – you and your younger brother, sAman
thozhudhEn – I worshipped
veyyadhu – being cruel
thazhal umizh – spitting out sparks of fire
Or – unique
chakkaram – divine disc
kai – having divine hands
vEngadavaRku – for the one who has mercifully taken residence in thirumalai
ennai – me
vidhikkiRRiyE – you should issue a command that I should carry out confidential service
Simple Translation
Throughout the month of thai, I had applied patterns on the region where he [kAman, manmathan] would come. In the early part of the month of mAsi, I had added beauty to an already beautiful street, where he would come, with the help of fine sand. Oh manmatha! Wondering whether I will be able to sustain myself, I worshipped you and sAman, your younger brother. You should issue a command that I should be able to carry out service, in confidence, to the one who has mercifully taken residence in thirumalai [emperumAn] and who is having in his divine hand, a unique disc which is emitting cruel, fiery sparks.
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
thaiyoru thingaLum – Did not these people [cowherd girls] observe a vow [as mentioned in thiruppAvai] throughout the month of mArgazhi [thamizh mAdham, equivalent of dhanur mAsam]? Now, she is speaking about decorating the place, throughout the month of thai, where kAman would come.
thaiyoru thingaLum – Just as it has been said in mUnRAm thiruvandhAdhi 17 “sengaNmAl engaLmAl enRanAL ennALum nALAgum“, if there is a day when emperumAn recalls that ”this chEthanan has been affectionate towards us”, all the days which have passed by, which is present and which will come in future, will all be good days. Is it not this emperumAn, who thinks that “even one day when he shows his affection towards us, is indeed one-too-many”, that she shows her urge to attain and as a consequence falls at the feet of kAman, for a month?
tharai viLakki – decorating the place where kAman is expected to come to. thirukkaNNamangai AndAn, a disciple of AchAryar [preceptor] nAthamuni, had cleaned the temple at thirukkaNNamangai, considering that action [of cleaning the temple] itself as the ultimate benefit. She is carrying out that task in kAman’s matter. For her, born in a clan in which carrying out service to emperumAn in a temple is natural, carrying out this task of doing service to other deities such as kAman and sAman has come to pass. Cleaning up the pathway for kAman has become equal to periyAzhwAr cleaning up the pathway in vataperungOil (the temple at SrIvillipuththUr).
thaNmaNdalamittu – applying beautiful kOlams [patterns] which are comforting [to the eyes] in the region where kAman was to come. nammAzhwAr had said in thiruvAimozhi 9-3-9 “thozhudhu mAmalar nIr sudar dhUbam koNdu ezhudhum ennum idhu migai Adhalin” (emperumAn would think that our act of worshipping him with praiseworthy flower, sacred water, lamp and incense is superfluous); while emperumAn thinks that our act of falling at his divine feet and getting up in itself is superfluous, she is indulging in various activities since she is unable to attain him. Her activities are: applying kOlam for the region; carrying out worship for a specific duration; carrying out activities which are forbidden, such as worshipping other deities; even while observing such activities, she is doing them with knowledge which matures into devotion, making that forbidden activity into a noble one.
thaN maNdalamittu mAsi munnAL – isn’t it ordained that when one is observing a ritual, expecting a benefit, it will give that benefit only if it is observed for one maNdalam (a maNdalam is 48 days, sometimes 40 days)? This appears to be her mandala sEvai (kainkaryam or service)
thaN maNdalamittu – her activity is something which none else on this earth would have carried out. There will be no one other than ANdAL who would fall at the feet of kAman after being bewildered at not attaining emperumAn.
mAsi munnAL – The first fifteen days in the moth of mAsi, during the waxing phase of moon. She has to observe the ritual during one phase of the moon. What ritual is it?
aiya nuNmaNal koNdu theru aNindhu – decorating the street where kAman will come, with fine sand which is matching the beauty of kAman and being soft enough (not to hurt his feet).
azhaginukku alangariththu – if a decoration were made with an objective, since one’s mind will also go towards that objective, there may be some shortcoming in the decoration. Instead, decorating in a way similar to those who decorate in order to see the beauty of decoration. Considering that manmathan (kAman) asks her “Looking at what qualify of mine are you taking refuge under me?”, ANdAL responds, saying ….
anangadhEvA – I am taking refuge under you, looking at your quality of uniting those who had got separated, even at the cost of losing your physical form. She recalls the narrative where manmathan was burnt during his attempt at uniting Sivan and pArvathi, getting the name of anangan (one who lost his physical body).
uyyavumAngolO ….. thozhudhEn – Since she is using the verse Angolo she indicates her doubt in attaining her goal [of uniting with emperumAn and carrying out confidential service to him]. Since the deity that she is taking refuge under is not the omnipotent deity, she cannot have the faith that she will not fail in reaching her goal. Isn’t she, who is holding on to emperumAn who is firm that the goal will not be elusive, out of her bewilderment, falling at the feet of kAman, who cannot say with firmness that the goal will not be elusive? Isn’t she attempting to get her svarUpam (basic nature) by taking refuge under another deity, which will annihilate her svarUpam?
enRu solli – with the desire “Could I sustain myself”
unnaiyum umbiyaiyum thozhudhEn – due to the habit of being together with the followers of emperumAn when taking refuge under emperumAn, she is worshipping kAman as well as his brother SyAman. Just as iLaiya perumAL [lakshmaNa] had taken refuge under SrI rAma, invoking sIthAp pirAtti, as mentioned in SrI rAmAyaNam ayOdhyA kANdam 31-2 “sa bhrAthuScharaNau gAdam nipIdya raghunandhana: l sIthAmuvAchAyhiyaSAm rAghavancha mahAvratham ll ” (lakshmaNa, who brings joy to the clan of raghu and who is highly renowned, getting hold of his elder brother’s divine feet firmly, told these words, looking at sIthAp pirAtti and rAghavan (SrI rAma) who has taken a great vow (in protecting those who take refuge under him)), ANdAL too takes refuge under kAman invoking his younger brother, sAman. Just as hanuman had taken refuge under SrI rAma, invoking iLaiya perumAL as mentioned in SrI rAmAyaNam sundhara kANdam 13-60, hanumath vAkyam “namO’sthu rAmAya sa lakshmaNAya dhEvyai cha thasyai janakAthmajAyai” (salutations to SrI rAma, who is with lakshmaNa; salutations to that sIthAp pirAtti, who is the daughter of king janaka), ANdAL too says “unnaiyum umbiyaiyum thozhudhEn”
thozhudhEn – She, who was born in the (AzhwArs’) clan which had said, as in mudhal thiruvandhAdhi 63 “thOL avanaiyallAl thozhA” (my hands will not worship anyone other than emperumAn), worshipped inappropriately and lost her hands. Did not hanuman tell sugrIva in SrI rAmAyaNam kishkindhA kANdam 32-17 “kruthAparAdhasya hi thE nAnyath paSyAmyaham kshamam l antharENAnjalim bhadhdhvA lakshmaNasya prasadhanAth ll” (For you who had committed an offense (towards SrI rAma), I do not see any atonement other than to cup your palms together and make lakshmaNa happy)? Isn’t anjali (saluting with cupped palms) one which removes an offence carried out towards a person and fulfils the desire of the offender? Considering that kAman is asking her “Why are you worshipping me like this?”, she says further …
veyyadhOr … vEngadavaRku – emperumAn is the head of nithyasUris (permanent dwellers of SrI vaikuNtam), giving dharSan [manifesting himself] to them, manifesting his eminence. Considering in his divine mind “Even samsAris should get this great benefit and uplift themselves”, he came down from paramapadham to thiruvEngadam. When he came down like that, in order to protect his followers and to annihilate their enemies, he held the divine disc in his divine hand, in thiruvEngadam. To that thiruvEngadamudaiyAn (one who has thiruvEngadam as his divine abode) …
ennai vidhikkiRRiyE – I am worshipping you with the thought that you will unite me with him, with the desire of seeing the beauty of that emperumAn with his divine disc. The underlying meaning here is this: he is standing in close proximity; I am unable to sustain myself, in separation from him; in this situation, you should unite me with him.
What is the purpose of adding an adjective “veyyadhOr thazhalumizh chakkarakkai” to chakraththAzhwAn (divine disc)? The disc functions as a weapon to destroy the enemies and as a decorative jewel to his followers. These two qualities are acceptable to me. Did not nammAzhwAr too say in thiruvAimozhi 6-9-1 “kUrArAzhi veNsangEndhi … vArAy” (You should manifest yourself to me, holding the sharp divine disc and the white divine conch)? Through the term kUrArAzhi, the quality of the divine disc being a weapon and through the term Endhi, the quality of being a decorative entity have been highlighted. In a similar vein, ANdAL, by saying veyyadhOr thazhal umizh, highlights its status as a weapon, and through the term chakkarakkai, highlights its status as a decorative entity, thus confirming that this is acceptable to her.
In the next article, we shall take up the second pAsuram of this decad.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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