Selected Excerpts from MahA VidvAn Sri
U.Ve. PerukkAraNai Swamy ' ThiruppAvai Monograph'
Significance of the 30th Paasuram
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Today is the day , when the MahA Prabhandam of Soodikkoduttha NaacchiyAr
comes to the stage of SaatthumuRai.
It is UttharAyaNa PuNya Kaalam .It is Makara SankarAnthi dinam. May
Subhiksham spread all over the lands , where ANDAL
BhakthAs are there and May her endearing message for our upliftment
to reach Her Lord's Lotus feet easily serve as
a beacon light for us all !Today is indeed a Parama MangaLa Dinam
for us all !The 30th paasuram has the benedictions
for a Kaimkaryam-filled life ,the fruits of Bhagavath Daasyam .BhAgavatha
dAsyam is the yellai nilam for that Bhagavath dAsyam .
Sri PBA Sawamy's summary of the Thirty Verses
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To appreciate the context of the 30th verse , we should reflect on
the summary of the 29 passurams that preceded it.
In the first Paasuram , Andal celebrated the time for the nOnbhu , the
adhikAris performing the nOnbhu and the Lord
who is the object of this nOnbhu .
In the second paasuram , She mentioned about the Karthavyam and ThyAjyam
for the nOnbhu ;in the third paasuram, She
pointed out that for the successful performance of the nOnbhu , the
aanushankika Varsha roopa phalan (Copious and timely rains
for desa kshEmam) will be realized. In the fourth paasuram, She invited
the parjanya devan, VaruNan to bless the land
with the nourishing rains .
In the fifth paasuram, She pointed out that all the obstacles
to the performance of the Paavai nOnbhu will be eliminated
quickly , if we sing and reflect on the name of the Lord.
>From the sixth to the fifteenth paasurams , ANDAL went around the streets of Gokulam and awakened the pancha laksham kudis of fellow Gopis to join the ghOshti to NandhagOpan's mansion.
In the 16th paasuram, Gopis wake up the dhvAra PaalakAs at the
Lord's mansion and remind them about the earlier
promise of KrishNan to grant them the PaRai ; in the 17th pssuram ,
they awaken NandhagOpan, YasOdhai PirAtti , KaNNapirAn , Nampi Moottha
PirAn(BalarAman)in that order.In the 18th paasuram , they wake up
Nappinnai PirAtti with reverence ; they awaken (next) Nappinnai PirAtti
and KaNNan together in the 19th and the 20th paasurams.
In the 21st and the 22nd Paasurams , the Gopis submit that they have
arrived at the Lord's mansion after being defeated
by the power of His GuNams in a state of AbhimAna bhangam and with
expectation of receiving His katAksham as taarakam .
In the 23rd paasuram , They request Him to travel to His lofty simhAsanam
;they perform mangaLAsAsanam for
Him there in His throne room in the 24th paasuram .
In the 25th pasuram , they submit to Him that they have arrived in a state of ananyagathithvam ( with no others to protect them) and in the 26th paasuram they spell out the VrathOpakaraNams needed for the nOnbhu. In the 27th paasuram ,they describe the sanmAnams (rewards) desired after the completion of the Paavai nOnbhu .
In the 28th paasuram,they point out their lowliness and celebrate His
loftiness and remind Him of their inseperable relationship
with Him and seek aparAdha KshAmaNams for earlier trespasses.
In the 29th paasuram of yesterday , they press Him for the granting of
the desired boons and He agrees heartily .
In the 30th and concluding Paasuram , ANDAL comes to the fore and acknowledges
the fulfillment arising from the observance of the paavai nOnbhu
of the Gopis and declares that those , who recite Her ThiruppAvai
paasurams would become the objects of Her Lord's grace and threy would
be filled with bliss. There will be bliss in Ubhaya VibhUthi for those
, who recite the thirty paasurams of ThiruppAvai blessed by SaakshAth PirAtti
Herself.This Phalan is for "ThiruppAvai KaRppAr". They earn
the lotus-faced Lord's ThiruvaruL and become Bhgya- saalis ( SenkaNN
Thirumuhatthu SelavtthirumAlAl
yengum ThiruvaruL peRRU InbhuRuvar ).
ParAsara Bhattar's upadesam
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The great AchAryan , ParAsara Bhattar , has observed appropriately
that we should get up early in the morning and recite the 30 paasurams
; if that were not possible ,we should atleast recite the "SiRRam SiRu
Kaalai " paasuram;If even that were not to be possible, we should think
of the the joy we had in reciting the paasurams and hearing
the kaalakshEpam about them in earlier times .
ParAsara Bhattar, the creator of the great Taniyan for ThiruppAvai(NeeLA
Tunga --),has also revealed to us that the grace of the merciful Lord
is sure to fall on us from His listening to our recitation
of His PirAtti's Thiruppaavai:" KanRizhantha Talai Naaku , thOl kanRai
madukka ,athukku irangumAppOlE , ippaasuram koNDu puha namakku palikkum
". He reveals that one gets this albhya laabham ( obtaining the wealth
that is "unattainable") in DhrushtAdhrushtam ( here and in the other world)
from
the Lord through our recitation of the ThiruppAvai Paasurams (Sanga
Tamizh maalai muppathum tappAmE) of His PirAtti.
Literal Meaning of the 30th Paasuram (Dr.Raghavan):
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Approaching Him --the Lord Kesavan (of lovely curly locks of hairs)
, the Lord Maadhavan ( the husband of Goddess Sri) who (enabled the gods)
to churn the seas abounding in ships , and praying to Him , the Young
charming damsels (of Gokulam ) with exquisite faces of Moon-like
beauty and good ornaments , obtained the unparalleled drum.
Describing their observances , prayer and getting the drum (from
the Lord) , GodhA , the foster-daughter of Bhattar PirAn adorned
with the cool garlands of fresh lotuses , and a resident of beautiful SrivilliputthUr
has composed this ThiruppAvai --sangat Tamizh maalai(Garland of Tamizh
songs , sung in group by the devotees of the Lord ; or hailed as
the lyric poem in Tamizh of the great Sangam poets and poetesses) consisting
of thirty paasurams (equal to the number of Vowels and Consonants
of the Tamizh
alphabet).Whosoever recites this hymn --referring to the award
of paRai , faithfully will get the divine bliss here and hereafter
, through the benign grace of the Lord ThirumAl ( Sriya: Pathi)
endowed with a supreme , divine form , namely four strong mountain-like
shoulders, beautiful face with eyes of reddish hue along with other
prosperous glory.
adiyEn will conclude the series of postings on ThiruppAvai with a
companion piece next.(provided below..)
The thirtieth paasuram is known as Thiru nAma Paattu or Phala Sruthi Paasuram .In this posting , we will enjoy together the padha-Vaakya arthams.
Anubhandha Chathushtyam in the 30th Paasuram
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The anubhandha chathushtyam are:
(1)The excellence of the subject matter of this Sri Sookthi.
(2)the uniqueness of the author(vakthA)
(3)the superior nature of the meanings of this prabhandham and
(4)the excellent benefits (prayOjanam) of recitation of this Prabhandham.
The Four Prabhandha VailakshaNyam is celebrated this way :
(1)"Vangak Kadal --angap paRai koNDavARRai" refers to the Vishaya LakshaNyam .
(2)"aNiputhuvai--GOdhai sonna" relates to the Superiority of the VakthA (GOdhai).
(3)"Sangat Tamizh Maalai " connects with the artha-VailakshaNyam of ThiruppAvai covering the VedAnthic doctrines.
(4)Muppathum tappAmE--Selvat ThirumAlAl Yengum ThiruvaruLpeRRu inbhuRuvar" links up with the PrayOjana VailakshaNyam.
Padha Vaakhya vishayam: (1) Vangak Kadal Kadainthu:
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Amrutha Mathanam ( churning the Milky Oceans) is referred to here.It
has been intrepreted as NithyasoorIs arriving by
ships to pay their salutations to their Lord reclining on AdhisEsahn
in the middle of the Milky Ocean .Vangam has also been translated as the
foam and froth arising from the churning activity .
(2)Vangak Kadal Kadaintha Maadhavanaik Kesavanai
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EmperumAn churned the Milky Ocean to gain nectar for the dEvaas and
PeNNamuthu (MahA lakshmi )for Himself .KrishNan churned the ocean of curd
in Gokulam and also churned the Ocean of the armies of Rukmi to gain RukmiNi
. The Lord , who used the excuse of churning the milky ocean to gain MahA
Lakshmi also used the ThiruppAvai nOnbhu as the VyAjam for gaining
the Pancha Laksha Kudis (gOpis)of Gokulam.
ANDAL addresses the Vangak Kadal kadainthavan as "Maadhavan " and "Kesavan".
She addressed the Lord as "Maadhavan" following the Upadesam of Her AchAryan,
PeriyAzhwAr: " Maarvam yenpathOr kOil amaitthu MAADHAVAN yenpathOr Dhaivatthai
naatti". While wearing Urdhva PuNDram , we adorn the Lord with His Piraatti
(Maahdavn) in the middle of our
chest in this context.The Lord is also addressed as "KESAVAN " here.
Kesavan is the adhishta Devathai for Maarghazhi month .He is also the Lord
of BrahmA recognized by the "Ka" sabdham and Isan (Lord Sivan); both of
them arose from our Lord's body .Parathvam of Our Lord is hinted this way
by choice of the naamam, Kesavan . The Maadhava Naamam delineates the "Srimath"
sabdhArtham.The reference to the act of churning the Milky ocean (Vangak
kadal Kadaintha) by the Lord points out His Bhaktha Vaathsalyam and
Omnipotence.
(3)" angu appaRai koNDavARRai":
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"angu" (there) refers to the incident of the Gopis winning paRai
(there)at AaypAdi,(there)at Nandha Gruham and(there) at the throne room
in presence of NeeLA PirAtti ."appaRai " is to be split in to antha-Parai
, appERpatta , VisEsha paRai.
(4)"paimkamalat taNN teRiyal Bhattar PirAn Godhai Sonna" :
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Godhai identifies Herself as Bhattar PirAn's ( PeriyAzhwAr's) Godhai
. He was Her foster father and also Her AchAryan.Thus her vaaku had AchArya
Sambhandham and therefore has been described as "PaathahankaL Theerkkum
Paraman adi Kaattum ,
Vedamanaitthukkum VitthAhum ". Through Her Vaak blessed from Upadesam
of Her AchAryan , ANDAL sang about "sEsahthvam " ( Sruthi satha Siras siddhamAna
PaarArthyam).Her Sri Sookthi churned the essence of VedAs and became GodhOpanishad
, just as Her Lord churned the milky ocean to gain amrutham .She chose
Tamizh (instead of the difficult
Sanskrit )as the language for Her uplifting prabhandham , since She
wanted the ChEthanams to comprehend the meanings
without problems.
Bhattar PirAn's Utthama VaishNava LakshaNam is also referred to here
by Godhai. She descibes him as the One wearing TuLasi and Lotus garlands
around his neck. Sri Vaishnavaas should wear the TuLasi bead and Lotus
bead necklaces always. TuLasi Maalai signifies the Parathvam of the Lord
and the Lotus bead maalai denotes the Parathvam of PirAtti. Thus , Sri
VaishNavAs reveal themselves as the daasans of Dhivya Dampathis.The dried
stems of TuLasi and Lotus are used to make the maalais. ANDAL follows the
route of Madhura kavi , when She puts Her AchAryan in the front :" Bhattar
PirAn Godhai sonna".
Madhura kavi put His AchAryan in the front , when decribing His prabhandam
: Tenn KuruhUr nampikku anbhanAi Madhura Kavi sonna soll",Thus Both Andal's
and Madhura kavi's Prabhandhams are AchArya-para Prabhndhams and have unique
distinction among all Prabhandhams .
(5)"SenkaNN Thirumuhatthu Selvat ThirumAlAl "
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SenkaNN of the Lord has always had a fascination for AzhwArs because
of their VasIkaraNa sakthi and beauty. ANDAL refers those ankaNN and SenkaNN
many times including here in the ThiruppAvai Paasurams ( KaarmEni SenkaNN
kathir muham ,
PankayaRk KaNNanai ,SenkaNN sirUcchirithE , ankaNN iraNDum koNDu).
BheeshmAcchAr described the beauty of those lotus-like eyes as : "PullAmbhuja
pathra nEthra:"; VaalmIki saluted them as "RaamO RaajIva nEthra:.RaamAnujA
, the GodhAgrajar, showed the SenkaNN azhau of RanganAthan to PiLlai URangAvilli
daasar.
(6)"Selva ThirumAl:
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He is the SrinivAsan of immeasurable Isvaryam. He has both limitless
DayA and immeasurable wealth. Thus He has Srimathvam. His Srimathvam also
came about by wearing Soodikkodutha NaachiyAr's TuLasi garlands.He is thus
Selva Thiru Naaranan . In this 30th Paasuram, Andal salutes "Maadhavan
" first to offer Her salutations the "Srimath" sabdhAam of the Poorava
KaNDAm of Dhvayam ( Sriman NaarAyana---); She salutes the Lord as
"ThirumAl" at the end of the paasuram to offer Her salutaions to the "SrimathE"
sabdham of NaarAyaNan housed in the second section ( utthara KaaNdham )
of Dhvya Manthram. In this Paasuram , Srimath SabdhArtham is saluted
both at the beginning andat end leading to the incorporation of the three
Rahasyams in this pasuram.
(7)" Yengum ThiruvaruL PeRRU inbhuRuvar:"
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Yengum refers to Immai (LeelA VibhUthi) and maRumai ( Nithya VibhUthi).
EmperumAn with PirAtti will take nithya vaasam with those who perform UpanyAsams
on ThiruppAvai. This is the ThiruvaruL. The Inbham arising from the recitation
of Dhivya Prabhandhams in general has been pointed out by AzhwArs in general.
One example of such citation is that of Swamy NammAzhwAr:
Ingum angum ThirumAlanRi inmai kaNDu
anganE VaNN KuruhUr SatakOpan
InganE sonna OrAyiratthu ippatthum
YenganE sollilum Inbham payakkumE
--ThiruvAimozhi: 7.9.11
(Meaning): KuruhUr SatakOpan realized that there is no protection(help) except Sriya: pathi , here, there or anywhere. The Lord blessed him to sing exactly in that vein a thousand verses. Of those, this decad can be read , sung , recited with proper understanding or not; that is also immaterial . It will reward the reader with bliss (inbham) in whatever manner recited .
(8)"InbhuRuvar:"
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Aathma Yaathrai is under the control of the Lord; dEha yAthrai is under
the control of one's karmAs. Knowing that these are outside our control
, we should recite and write about ANDAL's Prabhandham in the form of a
Kaimkaryam. When done this way , the Lord confers dEha aarOgyam , worldly
wealth and Moksham for Prapannan. He removes all ThApams and grants sukhams
and Aanandham. If we ask for Phalans for Kaimkaryam , we may end up asking
for Kshudhra Phalans (alpa Phalans ); If we leave the phalan granting to
Him , in the spirit of His oudhAryam ( Generosity) , He will grant Phalans
that we could not even
dream about.The prapannan will enjoy the state of "Yengum ThiruvaruL
PeRRu" .He knows what we need in the spirit of JithantE SthOthra Vaakyam:
" Yath Hitham mama dEvEsa tathA aaj~nApaya".
(9)Concluding Remarks:
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ANDAL incarnated as the daughter of PeriyAzhwAr and blessed us with
ThiruppAvai Prabhandham and immersed us in the ocean of Aanandham through
that anugraham. In ThiruppAvai, She gave us the UpadEsam on the Laghu UpAyam
( VarAha Charama SlOkam )that She had received from BhUVarAha perumAL for
our UjjIvanam and Inbham.
With the blessings of ANDAL, ThiruppAvai Jeeyar and asmath AchAryan , Srimath NaarAyaNa YathIndhra MahA Desikan , adiyEn was able to share with You the scholarly commentaries of Sri U.Ve.PerukkAraNai Swamy and other AchArya PurushAs. Due to limitation of space and time, these postings needed to be " short". adiyEn hopes that you will acquire copy of Sri PerukkAranai Swamy's scholarly monograph of 600 plus pages and immerse yourselves in the aanandham of his ThiruppAvai VyAkhyAnam .
AdiyEn thanks you for your understanding of my deficencies in covering adequately the subject matter of the commentary of the Illustrious ThiruppAvai .
AdiyEn places this Kaimkaryam at the Lotus feet of SenkaNN Muhatthu
Selva ThirumAl and Godhai and offer my prayers for the growth of kaimkarya
Sri for all of us at this time of UthtarAyaNa PuNya Kaalam.
Soodikkoduttha NaacchiyAr ThiruvadigaLE Saranam ,
Sarvam KrushNArpanam asthu
RaamAnuja Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri
SatakOpan
Web page kaimkaryam by R.Venkat