SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: Sri varavaramunayE nama:
periyAzhwAr thirumozhi >> Fourth Centum >> Tenth decad
avathArikai
In the svApadhESam, it is said that in the previous pAsuram AzhwAr said that the sorrow resulting from break in carrying out mangaLASAsanam would come about due to travelling in the path to narakam. In this pAsuram, he tells emperumAn “You, who are the entity explained by praNavam, should mercifully remove that sorrow”
oRRai vidaiyanum nAnmuganum unnai aRiyAp perumaiyOnE
muRRa ulagellAm nIyEyAgi mUnRezhuththAya mudhalvanEyO!
aRRadhu vANAL ivaRkenRu eNNi anja naman thamar paRRal uRRa
aRRaikku nI ennakk kAkka vENdum arangaththu aravaNaip paLLiyAnE!
Word-by-Word Meanings
onRu – unique
vidaiyanum – rudhran, who has bull as his vehicle
nAl muganum – brahmA too, who has four faces
unnai – your highness
aRiyA – beyond knowing
perumaiyOnE – oh, one who has the eminence!
muRRa – without leaving out anything
ulagu ellAm – all the worlds
nIyE Agi – as you alone
mUnRu ezhuththu Ay – being the meaning for praNavam, which is composed of three syllables
mudhalvanE – oh, one who is the causative entity!
arangaththu aravaNaip paLLiyAnE – oh, one who is mercifully reclining on the mattress of
AdhiSEshan in SrIrangam!
naman thamar – servitors of yama
ivaRku – “For this person
vAzh nAL – life
aRRadhu enRu eNNi – is over” thinking on these lines
anja – to be frightened due to their hold
paRRal uRRa aRRaikku – on the day when they are focussed on grasping
nI – you, who are the protector of your followers
ennai – me
kAkka vENdum – should mercifully protect me, without leaving me with them.
Simple Translation
Oh, one who has the eminence of being unknown to rudhran, who has a unique bull as his vehicle, and brahmA, who has four faces! Oh, one who is mercifully reclining on the mattress of AdhiSEshan in SrIrangam! When the servitors of yama think “This person’s life is over” and grasp me, I get frightened. On that day, when they hold me such that I am frightened, you, who are the protector of your followers, should mercifully protect me from them.
vyAkhyAnam
oRRai vidaiyanum – When brahma bhAvanai [the engagement with emperumAn] comes to the fore, as mentioned in thiruvAimozhi 6.10.8 “nuNNuNarvil neelAr kaNdaththu ammAnum” (rudhra, who is omniscient, being able to see subtle things, and is having a throat that is fully black in colour), rudhra has subtle knowledge which enables him to worship the true entity [emperumAn], as he is. oRRai vidaiyanum – one who has a unique bull as his vehicle. This term has been mentioned to make it appear that it is different from the other bulls in the world, and is dear to rudhran. It is this that rudhran too thinks of, as a great possession.
The svApadhESam says here that emperumAn has the eminence of not being comprehensible to rudhra, who has bull as a distinguished possession, and brahmA, who keeps reciting the four vEdhams through his four faces continuously, when their brahma bhAvanai is prominent and when they attempt to know emperumAn, with their efforts. It is pertinent to reminisce sthOthra rathnam SlOkam 11 “yasya mahimArNava viprushasthE” (brahmA, rudhra, indhra, liberated souls are all but a tiny drop in the infinite ocean of your glory). Is it possible for these entities, with their aupAdhika gyAnam [knowledge which has come about because of having taken a physical form], to know about you, who cannot be estimated even by vEdhams?
nAnmuganum – Just as it has been mentioned in SvEthASvathara upanishadh 6.18 “yO brahmANam vidhadhAdhi pUrvam yO vai vEdhAmScha prahiNOthi thasmai” (one who initially created brahmA, and taught him all the vEdhams, such lord…), brahmA was created in the divine navel, which is like a lotus flower and was instructed all the vEdhams by emperumAn. He also has the distinction of instructing vEdhams to those who were created by him, as mentioned in thiruvAimozhi 1.1.8 “amararkku aRivu iyandhu” (brahmA instructed dhEvathAs). Such brahmA too …
unnai aRiyAp perumaiyOnE – Oh, one who has the eminence of not being able to be known by them [brahmA and rudhran], being the causal entity for all, being the lord for all, being the protector for all and being the SarIri [one who has the entire universe as his divine form] for all. It was brahmA himself who has said that he, rudhran, all the celestial entities and sages do not know the eminent basic nature and the divine abode of vishNu, as mentioned in SrI vishNu purANam 1.9.53 “yanna dhEvA na munayO na chAham na Sankara: jAnanthi paramESasya thadh vishNO: paramam padham” (that which is not known to the celestial entities, to sages, to me [brahmA], to rudhran, is the divine abode of vishNu). thirumazhisaip pirAn too had mercifully said in nAnmugan thiruvandhAdhi 73 “kAr seRindha kaNdaththAn eNkaNNAn kANAn avan vaiththa paNdaiththAnaththin padhi” (rudhran, with bluish coloured throat, and brahmA with eight eyes, do not know the ancient, divine abode of emperumAn).
muRRa ulagellAm nIyE Agi – Being the prakAri [one who is the substrate], having all the entities, other than himself, as his prakAram [attributes], you [emperumAn] are all the worlds, as yourself. It is pertinent to recall chAndhOgya upanishadh 3.14.1 “sarvam kalvidham brahma” (all the worlds are only the supreme being) and purusha sUktham verse “purusha EvEdham sarvam” (all the worlds are only emperumAn).
The svApadhESam says here that it is possible to for others to know about emperumAn only if he is confined to one place [which he is not]. The entire worlds come under you [emperumAn] and you are the causal entity for all.
mUnRezhuththAya mudhalvanE – Oh, one who is the causal entity for all, by being the meaning for praNavam, which is composed of three syllables! Due to sAmAnAdhikaraNyam [having the same base] between the word and the meaning, emperumAn could be referred to as “mUnRezhuththAya” the three syllables themselves. Through the prominence of letters present in it [a, u and ma], praNavam is tilted towards the jIvAthmA, while through the prominence of its meaning, praNavam is tilted towards emperumAn. It is pertinent to recall here SrI vishNu purANam 2.8.54 “OnkArO bhagavAn vishNu:” (The word Om refers to vishNu, viz. emperumAn nArAyaNan) and bhagavath gIthA 8.13 “OmithyEkAksharam brahmavyAharan mAmanusmaran” (Om is a single syllable; by reciting that, remembering me…). In this [praNavam], the first syllable represents the sarvakAraNathvam [being the causal entity for all] since the syllable ‘a’ is the cause for all other syllables and emperumAn, represented by the syllable ‘a’ is the cause for all the other entities.
svApadhESam says here that emperumAn is explained as the meaning of praNavam and as mentioned in thaiththirIya upanishadh nArAyaNavalli “ya:parassamahESvara:” (he, who transcends that syllable, is mahESvara, the supreme being)
O – AzhwAr feels sorrowful that for those who are under emperumAn, looking up to him as their controller, harm is coming from the servitors of yama.
aRRadhu vAzh nAL ivaRku enRu eNNi – During the time when the jIvAthmA is alive, the servitors of yama do not care. During the final stages, considering that his life is coming to an end …
anja naman thamar paRRal uRRavaRRaikku – the way the servitors of yama come and catch hold of the jIvAthmA will cause fear, more than the punishment which they would give subsequently. On the day when they come to take hold of me …
nI ennaik kAKka vENdum – you, who are the sarvAdhikan [greater than everyone else] and SaraNAgatha rakshakan [protector of those who have surrendered to you], should protect me, who cannot sustain myself without caring for you [and carrying out mangaLASAsanam for you], such that I do not get into their hands.
The svApadhESam says here that the term nI refers to emperumAn who says, as in periya thirumozhi 10.6.5 “naman thamar en thamarai vinavap peRuvAr alar” (My followers cannot be questioned by the servitors of yama); such ‘You’ should protect me, who is firm that you are my protector.
arangaththu aravaNaip paLLiyAnE – Isn’t it for protecting your followers that you have come closer, to SrIrangam, and reclined mercifully here?
The svApadhESam says here: Oh, one who is reclining mercifully inside the temple, manifesting radiantly your eminence of being the meaning of praNavam!
We shall next consider the 5th pAsuram of this thirumozhi.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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