SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavara munayE nama:
avathArikai (Introduction) – There is no avathArikai for this pAsuram
AychchimArgaLum Ayarum anjidap
pUththa neeL kadambERip pugap pAyndhu
vAyththa kALiyan mEl nadamAdiya
kUththanAr varil kUdidu kUdalE
Word-by-Word Meanings
AychchimArgaLum – cowherd women
Ayarum – cowherd men
anjida – to be frightened
pUththa neeL kadambERi – climbing a tall kadamba (Indian oak) tree which had just blossomed
puga pAyndhu – to jump such that [his divine feet and snake kALiyan’s head) immersed in water
vAyththa kALiyan mEl nadam Adiya – one who danced atop the fortunate kALiyan
kUththanAr varil – if kaNNapirAn, who is an expert on the treatise on dancing, were to come
kUdalE – Oh, kUdal!
kUdidu – you indicate positively
Simple Translation
Even as the cowherd women and men were frightened, kaNNapirAn climbed a tall kadamba [Indian oak] tree, which had just then blossomed and jumped on the head of snake kALiyan such that both his divine feet and kALiyan’s head immersed in water. He danced on top of that fortunate kALiyan. If that expert on dance treatise were to come here, oh kUdal, you should indicate in a positive manner.
vyAkyAnam (Commentary)
AychchimArgaLum Ayarum anjida – the womenfolk of cowherd clan are by nature always frightened. The menfolk, on the other hand, are never fearful of anything, just as it has been said in thiruppAvai 18 “undhu madhakaLiRRan OdAdha thOL valiyan” ([nandhagOpan, father of kaNNan] is a strong shouldered person who never runs away from a battlefield and is like an exulting elephant), the menfolk, like nandhagOpan, were without any fear. However, both the womenfolk and menfolk were frightened. As mentioned in nAchchiyAr thirumozhi 12-5 “pOrkkaLamAga niruththam seydha poygaikkarai” (the bank of that river on which he danced such that it appeared like a battlefield), as soon as they head that kaNNan jumped on the head of kALiyan, both the women and men of the clans of cowherds swooned down, wherever they were, such that both the bank of the river and AyppAdi [SrI gOkulam] appeared like a graveyard.
pUththa neeL kadambu – the kadamba tree which had got burnt and dried due to the effect of kALiyan’s poison, blossomed as soon as the divine feet of kaNNan, which shower a rain of nectar, touched it. Would a burnt-out tree blossom as soon as the divine feet touched it? When a mango kernel, which has been applied with a type of oil, is planted, it will immediately sprout into a fully grown tree, yielding mango fruits. The implied meaning is that, if a seed, when planted, immediately starts yielding fruits, a burnt-out tree could also blossom, when touched by the divine feed of emperumAn. If a stone could turn into a lady on being touched by the divine feet of SrI rAmapirAn [this narration is related to ahalyA SApavimOchanam, wherein ahalyA, cursed by her husband, sage gauthamar, regains her form, on being touched by the divine feet of SrI rAma], why can’t a burnt-out tree blossom when touched by the divine feet of kaNNan?
neeL kadambu – in order to make it convenient to jump on top of kALiyan’s head, kaNNan climbed to the top of the kadamba tree and jumped from there.
pugap pAyndhu– since kaNNan jumped from a height, as he jumped on to the head of kALiyan, both kALiyan’s head and kaNNan’s divine feet went into the water.
vAyththa kALiyan – kALiyan was very fortunate since emperumAn repeatedly jumped on his head with his divine feet. ANdAL’s desire that emperumAn should touch her bosoms did not fructify, but kALiyan, who had not desired to be touched by emperumAn, had emperumAn’s divine feet dancing on him, several times. Isn’t he fortunate? ANdAL felt that instead of having been born as a lady and desiring this way, she could have been born as kALiyan, and even without such a desire, emperumAn would have touched her. The head, which stored poison, received distinction of having been touched by emperumAn while the bosom, which gives milk of knowledge, did not get that favour.
kALiyan mEl nadamAdiya – did not sages such as bharatha et al write down the treatise on the dance form bharathanAtyam [a type of classical dance performed in the southern parts of the country], after they witnessed kaNNapirAn dance on kALiyan!
kUththanAr varil – she desires that kaNNan, after dancing atop kALiyan, should walk with his tender form and embrace her.
kUdidu kUdalE – AndAL says “I, who am looking up to him, am now looking up to your agreement” [so that kaNNan would embrace me].
Next, we will consider the 5th pAsuram of this decad.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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