SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction) – SrIrangam is the abode where maNavALan (bridegroom), who has taken residence in thirumAlirunjOlai, comes to take rest. ANdAL desires to carry out kainkaryam [servitude] to that perumAL at SrIrangam.
theLLIyAr palar kai thozhum dhEvanAr
vaLLal mAlirunjOlai maNALanAr
paLLI koLLum idaththu adi kottidak
koLLumAgil nI kUdidu kUdalE
Word-by-Word Meanings
kUdalE – Oh kUdal [calling out to the circle drawn on the sand]!
theLLiyAr palar – many nithyasUris [permanent residents of SrI vaikuNtam] who have clear
knowledge
kai thozhum – being worshipped to the fullest extent by their hands
dhEvanAr – as the lord
vaLLal – as being munificent
mAlirunjOlai maNALanAr – the supreme entity who has mercifully taken residence at thirumAliunjOlai as the bridegroom
paLLi koLLum idaththu – in the place where he mercifully takes rest
adi kottida – for me to gently stroke (his) divine feet
koLLum Agil – if (he) agrees in his divine mind
nI kUdidu – you should agree
Simple Translation
Oh kUdal! emperumAn is being worshipped by many nithyasUris, who have clear knowledge, in paramapadham, through anjali [cupping the palms together in salutation]. He, who is highly munificent, has taken residence in thirumAlirunjOlai as a bridegroom. If he thinks in his divine mind that I should carry out servitude to him at the place where he comes to take rest, you should agree [by ending with even number of circles].
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
theLLiyAr – nithyasUris, who always have clear knowledge [about emperumAn]. While she attempted to be with him for some time, and took the help of kUdal, she thought of nithyasUris, who enjoy him always. How fortunate are they! Aren’t they fortunate that they enjoy him permanently without having to engage with kUdal, unlike her. They have the knowledge that if they separate from him, they too would have to engage with kUdal and hence they are not separating from him ever, enjoying him all the time. Are there just a few entities like them?
palar – just as purusha sUktham 1-3 says “pAdhOsya viSvA bhUthAni thripAdhasyAmrutham dhivi” (all the entities living in samsAram (materialistic realm) form one fourth of his wealth; the remaining three fourths of his wealth, remain in paramapadham, indestructible), aren’t countless nithyasUris enjoying him permanently in paramapadham, which is three times as large as samsAram? On the other hand, here, ANdAL is alone, engaging with kUdal. There is not a second person with whom she could converse about her earlier experience with him. There, since it is a permanent enjoyment, there is no time to speak to someone about the experience.
kai thozhum – mahAbhAratham Santhi parvam 344-45 says “mukthAnAm lakshaNam hyEthath yachchvEtha dhvIpavAsinAm l nithyAnjaliputA hrushtA nama ithyEva vAdhina: ll”
(the identity of SvEtha dhvIpavAsis (those who live in the land, SvEthadhvIpam) is also the identity of mukthAthmAs [those who have got liberated from samsAram and have attained SrI vaikuNtam], viz. they will be always performing anjali [cupping the palms together]. Due to that, they will always be blissful; they will have the nature of repeatedly saying nama: [I do not belong to anyone other than emperumAn]). nithyasUris will have worshipping emperumAn as their nature.
dhEvanAr – just as these people have their existence by worshipping him, he gets his radiance by having them worship him. The syllable dhEva which comes from the etymology dhivu -dhyuthi indicates the meaning dhyuthi, which is radiance.
vaLLal mAlirunjOlai maNALanAr – As mentioned earlier, even though he shines splendidly in paramapadham, even though there are countless nithyasUris who have permanent experience with him there, that experience does not appear as a great one to him; he thinks about how the samsAris are losing out on that experience, becomes pale, like one who has not eaten for days, and with his divine quality of generosity that people in samsAram too should get that experience, he has come to thirumALirunjOlai, as a bridegroom, so that chEthanas (those with knowledge), who are his consorts, could attain him. When he has unlimited experience there, why should he leave that and come here? Just like a rich person, even if he loses a very small part of his wealth, will feel sorry about that loss, emperumAn too, despite countless chEthanas enjoying him in paramapadham, not feeling satiated with that, thinking about the loss of the chEthanas here, becomes pale and comes here to overcome that deficiency. mahOpanishath says “sa EkAki na ramEtha” ((during the time of deluge) that nArAyaNan, who is alone, does not attain bliss). During the time of deluge, even though emperumAn is enjoying in paramapadham, when he looks at the destruction of leelA vibhUthi (samsAram, the materialistic realm), he thinks that he is alone and gets dejected.
vaLLal – one who has the benevolence of offering himself and his wealth to his followers.
maNALanAr – the place which he comes to so that samsAris could attain him.
maNALanAr – unlike the cowherd girls in thiruvAyppAdi [SrI gOkulam] whom he could attain by hiding on the banks of river yamunA or in brindhAvanam, with the help of darkness and night times, he has to get hold of the divine daughter of periyAzhwAr. Since periyAzhwAr is “vEdhappayan koLLa valla vittuchiththan” (periyAzhwAr who has given the meanings of vEdham [sacred texts] in his prabandhams), to manifest his gOthram (clan) and sUthram (the divine treatise which he follows), he comes to thirumAlirunjOlai, ties the auspicious thread around his wrist and waits as the bridegroom.
maNALanAr paLLI koLLUmidaththu – in the divine place where that maNALanAr takes rest. Will the loving consort show her face in a public place? Her servitude is in her private quarters only. Here, the term paLLi koLLum idam refers to SrI rangam, the huge temple. periyavAchchAn piLLai, the commentator for this prabandham says that he has heard piLLai azhagiya maNavALar araiyar quoting parASara bhattar “The place where he takes rest is kOyil [SrI rangam]”.
adi kottida – to massage his divine feet gently. She [ANdAL] thinks of carrying out servitude to emperumAn, not only during the time when he is aware, but also when he is sleeping sweetly, by stroking his divine feet, gently. Aren’t his divine feet the soft ones, as mentioned in thiruvAimozhi 9-2-10 “nilamagaL pidikkum melladi” (tender, divine feet of emperumAn, gently massaged by SrI bhUmip pirAtti)? She is trying to carryout kainkaryam to the divine feet as a measure of her SEshathvam (being dependent on emperumAn). Isn’t this the benefit of attaining him?
koLLumAgil – She manifests the nature of mumukshus [those who desire to attain SrI vaikuNtam, after getting liberated from samsAram], thinking “Only emperumAn’s divine thought of getting servitude [from his followers] is the means; one’s activities such as engaging with kUdal etc are not the means”
nI kUdidu kUdalE – Even though she knows “He alone is the means”, since her urge in attaining him is such deep that she could not sustain herself without attaining him, she falls at the feet of kUdal knowing that it is not the proper means.
Next, we will consider the 2nd pAsuram of this decad.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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