श्री:
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.1
PASURAMS 1448 TO 1457
TIRUVINNAGARAM - 1/3
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| OPPILIAPPAN MOOLAVAR |
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| OPPILIAPPAN SRINIVASAN |
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.2
PASURAMS 1458 TO 1467
TIRUVINNAGARAM - 2/3
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| OPPILIAPPAN TIRUVINNAGARAM |
Not receiving any immediate answer from Oppiliappan at tiruviNNagaram, AzhvAr reflects on the reason for the delay on the part of bhagavAn to liberate him. He looks back and tries to figure out his wrong deeds, confesses about it and again pleads Lord Oppiliappan to grace him, assuring that he has now changed and is not the same person.
iruTTEn aimpulanhaTku iDan Ayina vAyiloTTi |
aruTTEn ArvachcheTTram avaitammai manattahaTTri
veruTTEn ninaDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (1)
1458. When people taunted me and hurt my heart with harsh words, I tolerated them. I employed all my five senses solely for the enjoyment of the two purushArthas namely artham-wealth and kAmam-pleasure. At that time, I ignored the other two purshArthas namely dharmam-righteousness and mOksham-liberation. Out of my ahankAra (I) and mamakAra (mine), I proudly vowed to show love towards my favourite people, and hatred towards my enemies.
Oh, Lord of tiruviNNagar! I assure you that I have now removed from my heart, all those twin afflictions namely guilt and self-pity; wealth and pleasure; love and hate (‘rAga’ and ‘dvEsha’). This equanimous self has now sought refuge in You. Nin aDaindEn! tiruviNNagar mEyavanE! (1)
Bhagavat GeetA, Chapter 2.64
रागद्वेषवियुक्तैस्तु विषयानिन्द्रियैश्चरन् |
आत्मवश्यैर्विधेयात्मा प्रसादमधिगच्छति ||
rAga-dveSha-viyuktais tu viShayAn indriyaish charan |
Atma-vashyair-vidhEyAtmA prasAdam adhigachchhati| |
One who controls the mind, and is free from love and hate even while using the senses, attains the Grace of God.
irandEnettanaiyum adanAl iDumbaikkuzhiyil |
pirandEyeitozhindEn perumAn tirumArbA
SirandEn ninaDikkE tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (2)
1459. I lived my early days totally bereft of your thoughts. On top of it, I never realized that bhagavat smaraNam was necessary. With such a deluded mind, I spoiled myself with worldly pleasures.
Oh, ‘Lord of tiruviNNagar’ who bears Lakshmi on Your chest! tirumArbA! PerumAn! I now realise that this kind of mundane life will make me fall into the womb again and again, only to be caught in the endless, meaningless, vicious cycle of birth and death. Now, it is only Your divine feet that I wish to serve. ChirandEn nin aDikkE, tiruviNNagar mEyavanE! (2)
Bhagavat GeetA, Chapter 6.5
उद्धरेदात्मनात्मानं नात्मानमवसादयेत् |
आत्मैव ह्यात्मनो बन्धुरात्मैव रिपुरात्मन: ||
uddharEt AtmanA AtmAnam na AtmAnam avasAdayEt |
Atmaiva hyAtmano bandhuh Atmaiva ripuh Atmanah ||
Elevate yourself through the power of your mind and not degrade yourself, for the mind can be the friend and also the enemy of the self.
oonEi Akkai tannai udavAmai uNarnduNarndu
vAnE mAnilamE vandu vanden manattirunda
tEnE ninaDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (3)
1460. People fall for 'beautiful women having looks like a deer' and indulge in physical pleasures of the body with them. Due to their vAsanas, they enter the dark womb of women, undergo garbha vAsam for 10 months and struggle to survive amidst flesh and water.
Oh, The Lord of leelA-vibhooti in the earth (mA nilamE)!
इन्द्रियाणि मनो बुद्धिरस्याधिष्ठानमुच्यते |
एतैर्विमोहयत्येष ज्ञानमावृत्य देहिनम् ||_
indriyANi manO buddhir asyAdhiAhThAnam uchyatE |
Etair vimohayatyeSha gyAnam AvRutya dEhinam ||
The senses, mind, and intellect are said to be breeding grounds of desire. They cloud one’s knowledge and delude the embodied soul. (3)
arindEn neepaNitta aruLennum oLvALuruvi |
erindEn aimpulanhaL iDarteera erinduvandu
SerindEn ninaDikkE tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (4)
1461. I have now removed my attachment towards my children, wife and relatives after realising that they will not help me in my old age. (As against my expectation that they will take care when I need them and say soothing nAmas of bhagavAn when my soul leaves, they would infact be fighting for my wealth.)
Oh, Lord of tiruviNNagar! I now recollect the ‘charama shlOka’ that you pronounced while being seated on the chariot of Arjuna. I shall use Your solemn words of promise as a bright sword taken out of its cover, to chop the enemies arising out of my age-old bond with the five elements. (panchabhootas). Without worries, I hereby fall out your feet which is the sole goal (upEyam) and sole means (upAyam) and which will always protect me without fail. SerindEn, nin aDaindEn, tiruviNNagar mEyavanE!
Bhagavat GeetA, Chapter 18.66
CHARAMA SHLOKA
सर्वधर्मान्परित्यज्य मामेकं शरणं व्रज |
अहं त्वां सर्वपापेभ्यो मोक्षयिष्यामि मा शुच: ||
sarvadharmAn parityajya mAm Ekam sharaNam vraja |
aham tvAm sarva pApEbhyOh mOkshayishyAmi mA shuchah||
Give up all dharmas and surrender only unto Me. I will liberate you of all your sins. Do Not Worry! (mA shuchah). (4)
ANDAr vaiyamellAm araSAhi mun ANDavarE |
mANDArenruvandAr andO manaivAzhkkaitannai
vENDEn ninaDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (5)
1462. For ages, millions of Kings ruling the earth, have been praised by the word “PALLANDU’ by women having beautiful tresses swarmed by buzzing honey-bees. Even though they keep singing their praises, one day, they will have to bring the news that the king is no more.
Oh! (andO!), I have given up this impermanent life! Oh, Lord of tiruviNNagar! I have now sought refuge in You who can grant me the permanent happiness of nitya kainkaryam (aprAkruta bhooti) as against life on earth which can grant only temporary happiness (prAkruta bhooti). Nin aDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE! (5)
Bhagavat GeetA, Chapter 2.18
अन्तवन्त इमे देहा नित्यस्योक्ता: शरीरिण: |
अनाशिनोऽप्रमेयस्य तस्माद्युध्यस्व भारत ||
antavanta imE dEhE nityasyoktAh shareeriNah |
anAśhinO ’prameyasya tasmAd yudhyasva bhArata ||
The material body is perishable. The embodied soul within is indestructible, immeasurable, and eternal. Therefore, fight, Oh descendent of bharata.
mallA mallaruL mallar mALA mallaDartta |
mallA mallalam Seer madiL neer ilangaiazhitta
villA ninaDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (6)
1463. In those days, I had allowed my five senses namely sight, smell, taste, hearing and touch, to act according to my whims and fancies. I had not used them for worshipping the most powerful Lord ‘mallA’ – the little KrishNa who killed the strong wrestlers (mallars) and the Lord -‘villA’ – the brave rAma with the bow who destroyed the enemies in the prosperous city of LankA fortified with strong walls.
Oh Lord of tiruviNNagar! I now surrender unto You. Nin aDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE! (6)
ArAvennaragattu aDiyEnai iDakarudi |
koorA aivarvandu kumaikka kuDiviTTavarai
tErAduninaDainEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (7)
1464. Oh, my master, entAy! I am begging You in a little different way. (vERu A irandEn). Please bless me without getting angry! (vegulAdu manakkoL, entAy!)
Though you created the senses for human beings to experience and realise You, I don’t trust them because their very nature is to torture me (aDiyEnai) with an intention to push me into the never-ending hell of samsAra.
Oh, Lord of tiruviNNagar! Abandoning the senses and their consequences, I now seek refuge in You. Please absorb this self. un aDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE!
Bhagavat GeetA, Chapter 2.60
यततो ह्यपि कौन्तेय पुरुषस्य विपश्चित: |
इन्द्रियाणि प्रमाथीनि हरन्ति प्रसभं मन: ||
yatato hyapi kauntEya puruShasya vipashchitah |
indriyAṇi pramātheeni haranti prasabhaM manah ||
Oh, Arjuna! The senses are so strong that they forcibly snatch away the mind of even the most self-controlled person. (7)
mEvAvennarahattu iDaruTTru virainduvandAr |
moovA vAnavar tam mudalvA madikOLviDutta
dEvA ninaDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (8)
1465. All the accumulated pApas stay with jeevAtmA as if they are its close relatives. They are like the powerful and cruel fire, ever waiting to push us into the horrific hell.
Oh, the Lord of tiruviNNagar! The ever-youthful Lord of the dEvas, never affected by old age! (moovA vAnavar tam mudalvA!) You were the one who cured the ‘kshaya rOga’ of Chandra, the moon (madi kOL viDutta dEva!). It is You who can protect me from karma bandham. So, I take refuge in You. Nin aDaindEn, tiruviNNagar mEyavanE! (8)
THE THREE ENDLESS KARMAS.
HOW DOES BHAGAVAN UPLIFT US FROM THEM?
Karmas are exceedingly difficult to be nullified. They are endless. There are three types of karmas: Sanchita, PrArabdha and Agami karmas.
1. sanchita karmas are those accumulated karmas which have not yet started giving results.
2. prArabdha karmas are those karmas which have already begun to give results.
3. Agami karmas are those karmas which are destined to come up in future.
Only when all these karmas are nullified, will the jeevAtmA be eligible for mOksha. But, as AzhvAr says, the mumukshu, i.e, the one who has surrendered to Shreeman nArAyaNa for mOksha, need not worry about these karmas. Once the mumukshu starts living his life in bhagavat smaraNam, this is how the karmas get negated.
1. sanchita karmas will be exhausted the moment one does prapatti to Shreeman nArAyaNa. (surrender)
2. prArabdha karmas will have to be experienced during his life time. But, due to the nirhEtuka krupai (unconditional compassion) of bhagavAn, the gravity of the problems may be reduced. He somehow helps the jeevAtmAs face the challenges without getting depressed or falling back to lowly life.
3. Agami karmas will also be exhausted for a ‘mumukshu’ who is continuously meditating on Shreeman nArAyaNa and avoiding nishiddha karma. Seeing his dedication, BhagavAn keeps His promise as mentioned in charama shloka and aids the non-creation of new karmas. Thus, all the pApas attached to the jeevAtmA are absolved. (8)
kOdA kOdil SengOl kuDaimannariDai naDanda |
toodA toomozhiyAi SuDarpOl enmanattirunda
vEdA ninaDaindEn tiruviNNagar mEyavanE || (9)
1467. Oh, gOdA, the one who is the beloved of periya pirATTi who abodes in the beautifully bloomed lotus (pOdu Ar tAmaraiyAL)! The one who is the beloved of bhoomi pirATTi (pulavi)! The one who is the beloved of the distinguished nityasooris (kulam vAnavar tam)!
To avert the mahAbharata war, You wore the tag of a messenger of the pANDavas. You approached king duryOdhana who ruled the royal throne under the resplendent umbrella (kOdu il senkOl kuDai). You are the one who talks sweetly (too mozhiyAy)! You are the one who can be known only by the great vEdas (vEdA!). Despite your greatness, You chose to reside like a light in my heart (chuDar pOl en manattirunda). Oh, Lord of tiruviNNagar, I have reached Your feet to do nitya kainkaryam. Nin aDaindEn, tiruviNNagar mEyavanE! (9)
vAnArum madiLSoozh vayal mangaiyar kOn maruvAr |
oonAr vElkaliyan oliSei tamizh mAlaivallAr
kOnAi vAnavar tam koDimAnavar kooDuvarE ||
1468. Tirumangai AzhvAr (the king of tirumangai city surrounded by sky-high ramparts and green fields) has composed this sweet garland of tamizh verses on Lord Oppiliappan doing nityavAsam in tiruviNNagar replete with groves filled with honey laden flowers. Those who recite these pAsurams will rule the supreme abode, Shree VaikuNTham decorated by flags and inhabited by the eternal nityasooris. (10)
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.3
PASURAMS 1468 TO 1477
TIRUVINNAGARAM - 3/3
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| TIRUVINNAGARAM OPPILIAPPAN |
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.4
PASURAMS 1478 TO1487
TIRUNARAIYOOR - 1/10
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| NARAIYUR NAMBI AND NAMBIKKAI NACHCHIYAR, TIRUNARAIYUR |
Tirumangai AzhvAr holds the Lord of this kshEtram, TIRUNARAIYUR NAMBI in high esteem as He was the one who performed PANCHASAMSKARAM for him. Out of immense respect and love for his AchAryan tirunaRaiyoor Nambi, AzhvAr composed 110 pAsurams on this divya dEsam covered in four prabandhams sung by him (106 in Periya Tirumozhi, 2 in TiruneDuntAnDakam, 1 in Siriya TirumaDal and 1 in Periya TirumaDal).
STHALA PURANAM
TirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam is situated on the outskirts of Kumbakonam, full of fragrant groves filled with honey, hence the name naRaiyoor {naRumanam and naRai (honey)}. The huge temple is surrounded by massive walls and a five tier rajagOpuram built by the Chola king kOchengan.
The moolavar in the temple is fondly called naRaiyoor Nambi, SrinivAsan, Vyooha VAsudevan and Sugandhavana nAthan. The Lord is in standing posture (ninRa tirukkOlam) holding the conch and discus close to His ears.
tAyAr is Vanjulavalli or Nambikkai nAchchiyAr who can be seen standing along with the Lord. There is no separate sanctum for tAyAr here. PerumAL and tAyAr are always seen in kalyaNa kOlam (marriage attire).
The sthala vruksham is vanjuLa tree (magizham maRam or bullet wood) and vilvam tree.
Lord nArAyaNa manifested to BrahmA and MEdhAvi maharishi here.
MEdhAvi maharishi who resided in this kshEtram did penance under the Vanjula tree desirous to have Goddess MahAlakshmi as his daughter and Lord Shreeman nArAyaNa as his son in law. tAyAr manifested as a child under the vanjula tree and was brought up by the rishi. EmperumAn came down to bhoolOkA on His vehicle GaruDa in search of His dear consort. Prompted by GaruDa who spotted tAyAr; emperumAn reached this kshEtram; manifested before the rishi and married Vanjulavalli tAyAr and made this his permanent abode.
MEdhAvi maharishi expressed his desire to emperumAn that his beloved daughter vanjulavalli should be given a special status in tirunaRaiyoor. Hence, even today, tAyAr is given prominence over the Lord while offering food and during utsavams, the Lord follows Her! This is the reason this kshEtram is popularly called NACHCHIYAR KOVIL.
KAL GARUDAN
Tirumangai AzhvAr surrenders to tirunaRaiyoor Nambi aspiring for kainkaryam. Begging for redemption from the sins committed due to prakRuti sambandham or poorva janma vasanAs, AzhvAr filled with guilt enumerates a list of his misdeeds of his youth.
This way of resorting to introspection is called ‘naichyAnusandhAnam’ or ‘dOshAnusandhAna ’ which is expressed beautifully in these ten soulful pAsurams. The recitation of the list of the mundane pursuits, their effects and rectifying them is mainly for us to reflect upon.
paNNin mozhiyAr paiya naDamin ennAdamun
viNNum malaiyum vEdamum vELviyumAyinAn
naNNu naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (1)
1478. Oh! NenjE! Due to the vasanAs of the previous births, many youthful days were wasted succumbing to beautiful women and petty worldly desires inspite of advice by elders to resort to emperumAn. Even before entering the old age, I experience suffering from blurred vision (kaN chuzhanRu) and thick secretions formed in my eyes (peeLaiyODu); severe congestion of phlegm in the lungs (eeLai vandu) and stumbling to walk with a stick. ManamE! Before being admonished by the beautiful sweet spoken women who pass sarcastic comments as they hold the shivering hands, prostrate with devotion to that emperumAn who cheerfully resides in tirunaRaiyoor.
He is the sarvajagatkArakan who possesses the quality of sarvavyApakatvam. He is the vast AkAsham (vinnum), the mountains(malaiyum), the four vEdAs (vEdangaLum) and the five sacrifices (vELvigaLum). naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (1)
NYASA TILAKAM BY SWAMI VEDANTA DESIKAN
SHLOKA- 23
सकृदपि विनतानां सर्वदे सर्वदेहिनि
उपनिषदभिधेये भागधेये विधेये ।
विरमति न कदाचिन्मोहतो हा हतोऽहं
विषम विषय चिन्ता मेदुरा मे दुराशा ॥
sakrudapi vinatAnAm sarvadE sarvadEhini
upanishadabhidEyE BhAgadhEyE vidhEyE.
viramati na kadAchinmOhatO hA hatO(a)ham
vishama vishaya chintA mEdurA mE durAshA.
Even if one surrenders just once in the simple act of prapatti, emperumAn grants everything. He is the one who has everything as His body, is extolled in the Upanishads and is the epitome of fortune. Inspite of His favourable disposition towards me, my mind is ceaselessly chasing the sorrow producing worldly desires. Alas! It’s my fault!
ingen? irumi embAlvandadenRi kazhAdamun
tingaLerikAl senchuDarAyavan tESuDai
naNgaL naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (2)
1479. Hey manamE! Before being verbally insulted and questioned about the purpose of seeking the beautifully decked up women with bees swarming on their fragrant braids; Even before being disowned for the weak unsteady walk; coughing continuously while longing to seek them inspite of the sickness; proceed to take refuge (namakku pugaliDam) in the Lord of tirunaRaiyoor who alone can provide asylum.
This emperumAn, the possessor of the powerful attribute of Tejas (capacity to function without assistance) is the sun (chem suDar), agni (eri) and the wind (kAl) which are mere reflections of His luminance. naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (2)
KATHOPANISHAD, 2.2.15
न तत्र सूर्यो भाति न चन्द्रतारकं नेमा
विद्युतो भान्ति कुतोऽयमग्निः ।
तमेव भान्तमनुभाति सर्वं तस्य भासा
सर्वमिदं विभाति ॥ १५ ॥
na tatra sooryO bhAti na chandratArakaṃ nEmA
vidhyutO bhAnti kutOyamagniH।
tamEva bhAntamanubhAti sarvaM tasya bhAsA
sarvamidaM vibhAti ||15||
The kathOpanishad tells us that the luminance of the Lord nArAyaNa is so radiant that all luminous objects like the sun, moon, fire are mere reflections compared to His lustre.
eNkOlam aiyA! ini kANbadu ennAda mun
sengOl valavan tAn paNindEtti tigazhum oor
naNgOn naRaiyoor nAmtozhudum ezhunenjamE! (3)
1480. Oh! NenjE! If I were still seeking pleasures even in old age, unable to stand steadily, the beautiful women with honey dripping fragrant flowers adorned on their braids, would ridicule me. (ennAda munnE) Before they ask me, "Is it befitting for your age to seek us?" (emmai, em kOlam aiyA, en kANbadu?); ManamE! Proceed to the famous tirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam.
This kshEtram belongs to emperumAn Nambi (nam kOn) who was glorified (tudittu)by the modest Chola king who was a powerful ruler too (cheNkOn-kOchOzhan); who took refuge (paNindu) in Him. manamE! Seek asylum at the feet of this emperumAn! naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (3)
vambuN kuzhalAr vAsalaDaittu igazhAdamun
sempon kamuginam tAn kaniyum sezhum sOlai soozh
namban naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (4)
1481. Oh! nenjE! At a ripe old age, aspiring to visit the enticing beautiful women whose waist are adorably slim and delicate than a snake (aravamum), a creeper (valliyum) or a climber(kombum); before they humiliate me by unwelcoming gestures and harsh words and block the entrance to their house; proceed to the tirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam enveloped by thick groves and areca nut trees (kamugu inam) with red-coloured ripened fruits.
This kshEtram belongs to emperumAn Nambi (nampan) who possesses the eternal attributes of SouhArdam (One who can be trusted) and Premam (likable by all). naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (4)
salankoNDa sollAr tANgaL sirittu igazhAda mun |
malaNgum varAlum vALaiyum pAi vayal sUzhtaru
nalaNkoL naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (5)
1482. Hey manamE! Listen! My vAsanas provoke me to fall for petty pleasures to seek women at this elderly age. Even before I am mocked and spurned by the cunning women with appealing bewitching eyes which will put to shame even the eyes of a deer (vilangum), a fish (meenum), the edge of a sharp spear (vElum)and the red water lily (oN kaviyum); proceed to the ever-beautiful tirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam.
This kshEtram is rich with paddy fields and abundant water along the agricultural tracts. Fishes like eel (malaNgum), finger fish (varAlum) and sword fish (vALaiyum) play sportively jumping over the water. The emperumAn’s presence has made this kshEtram beneficial in all aspects. naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (5)
enneer irumi empAl vandadu? enru igazhAda mun
tonneer ilangaimalaNgai vilaNgeriyooRRinAn
nanneer naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (6)
1483. Oh nenjE! Desiring to quench mundane desires; before I am spurned and condemned by the enticing women with lightning-like slender waist; as I go to seek them coughing severely (irumi) in my old age; before they mockingly question (igazhAda mun) the lowly reasons for my visit, proceed to the divine tirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam with ponds brimming with pure water (nanneer).
This kshEtram is the abode of the mahAveeran rAma who set fire (eri ooTTinAn) to the city of LankA surrounded by oceans with the help of the vAnara veeran HanumAn (viLaNgu); vanquished the city of LankA leaving the people in a state of great anxiety and confusion. nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (6)
pollAn tirandAnennum puRanurai kEtpadan mun
sollAr marai nAngOdi ulakil nilAyavar
nallAr naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (7)
1484. nenjE! In my youth, the charming women with bow-like eyebrows showed great interest in me. Now, before they shun this worthless old man; before I hear despicable words, gossiping and mocking at my shrunken skin due to aging, manamE! proceed to tirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam, the home to vedic scholars.
The highly virtuous men residing in this kshEtram are full of virtues and morals; profound in reciting the four vEdAs and skillful in perpetuating them. Hence they can be considered as the torch bearers of our sampradAyam, says AzhvAr. tirunaRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (7)
kELuNgaL eeLaiyODu Engu kizhavan ennAda mun |
vELvum vizhavum veediyil enRum aRAdavoor
nALum naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (8)
1485. Oh! nenjE! The young men were held in high regard equal to kAmadeva (madanan-god of love) by the women (nallAr) admirable with captivating long eyes like a sword (vAL). Having entered old age; before these women verbally dishonour me for being worthless; before they ask demeaning questions on my desire to seek them with a wobbly walk; before the phlegm congests in my lungs causing immense sickness; manamE! Proceed to tirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam which is always in a festive mood.
In this divine kshEtram, all around the year, festivals (vizhAvum) and religious sacrifices (vElvi-yAgaNgaL) are performed in every house. Utsavams are celebrated for naRaiyoor nambi and tAyAr with great fervour. tirunaRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (8)
kuni sErnduDalam kOlil taLarndu iLaiyAda mun |
pani sEr visumbil pAl madikOL viDuttAniDam
nani sEr naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (9)
1486. Oh! NenjE! during the youthful days the pretty women with enticing lips as red as the ripe fruit of the ivy gourd (kOvai pazham) had immense affection and regards for me. Having realized these passions to be worthless, I wish to completely get rid of these lowly desires; before I falter with a stick, a big hunch on my back and feel guilty for having spent this life without doing good deeds (kainkaryam). manamE! Proceed to prostrate the emperumAn in the splendid divine kshEtram tirunaRaiyoor!
tirunaRaiyoor Nambi is the one who removed the misery of the cool, milk coloured moon (madi) who was once cursed by Daksha prajApati. naRaiyoor nAm tozhudum ezhu nenjamE! (9)
PHALASHRUTI
naRaiSEr pozhilSoozh naRaiyoor tozhu nenjamE enRa|
kaRaiyAr neDuvEl maNgaiyar kOn kalikanRi sol
maRavAdu uraippavar vAnavarkku innarasAvarE! (10)
1487. These ten beautiful verses have been written by Kaliyan, the ruler of tirumangai (maNgayar kOn) whose spear conquered the enemies of righteousness.
AzhvAr now commands his mind. Oh! manamE! Before being mocked and insulted (pENudal illAda mun) by the gorgeous women with crescent shaped forehead, proceed to prostrate the divya kshEtram of tirunaRaiyoor surrounded by honey laden groves. Those devotees who recite these ten pAsurams with respect will be held in high esteem by the nityasooris. (10)
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.5
PASURAMS 1488 -1497
TIRUNARAIYOOR - 2/10
tulangal teeranalhu SOdiSuDarAya |
valangai yAzhi iDangaiSangam uDaiyAnoor
nalangoLvAimai andaNarvAzhum naRaiyoorE (1)
1488. This set of ten pAsurams is the second in the series of TirunaRaiyoor Divya Desams. As in the previous set, AzhvAr seeks the Lord's blessings from this divine place, TirunaRaiyoor.
AzhvAr comments that though KsheerAbdhi is EmperumAn's eternal dwelling place, TirunaRaiyoor is where the Lord, with the SudarshaNa chakram on His right hand and the PAnchajanya shankh on His left hand, happily resides. The same EmperumAn did not hesitate to distort the ocean, twirl, and fetch the divine nectar in order to protect the dEvas who were rendered powerless by Sage DurvAsa's curse.
Kaliyan says that the same TirunaRaiyoor sthalam is home to learned scholars and pundits who never go against the shaastras and always speak only the truth (satyam) as described in the Vedas. (1)
punaivALugirAl pOzhpaDaveernda punidanoor |
SinaiyAr tEmAm SendaLir kOdi kuyil koovum
nanaiyAr SOlaiSoozhndu azhagAya naRaiyoorE (2)
1489. It is well known that the Lord, in his Nrusimha avatAra, could not tolerate his ardent devotee PrahlAda being tortured by his father, the demon king Hiranyakashipu. The Lord who fiercely tore open Hiranyakashipu's chest with his nails is the one who resides in TirunaRaiyoor.
Many learned pundits and BhAgavatas who preach the holy Sri ViShNu PurANam and Srimad BhAgavatam dwell in TirunaRaiyoor.
AzhvAr concludes that such is the divinity of TirunaRaiyoor, where the koels rhythmically sing while perching on the honey-filled mango trees and other beautiful floral plants. (2)
SEnaittogaiyaiSADi ilangaiSeRRAnoor |
meenaittazhuvi veezhndezhum maLLarkaLamandu
nAnappudalil Amai oLikkum naRaiyoorE (3)
1490. AzhvAr states that TirunaRaiyoor is immensely rich and fertile and that the fish there are so healthy that when the farmers attempt to catch the stout fishes with both their hands, they would fall down. The tortoises watching this sight would fearfullyy move to the nearby turmeric fields.
Thus, in this song, Kaliyan describes the fields of TirunaRaiyoor and recollects Sri Ramavatar where Lord Rama destroyed the entire battalion (elephant, horses, chariots, and army) of King Raavana and caused great destruction to LankA. AzhvAr further connects that the same EmperumAn resides in the divine Divya DEsam of TirunaRaiyoor. (3)
veriyAr koondal pinnai poruTTAn enrAnoor |
poriyAr manjnai poombozhil tOrum naDamADa
narunANmalar mEl vaNDiSaipADum naraiyoorE (4)
1491. AzhvAr subtly indicates that TirunaRaiyoor is one place where PerumAl clearly reveals his paratva and soulabhya guNas through two well-known incidents that occurred during the KrishNa avatAra.
guNa 1 - Soulabhyam/Simplicity:-
In TiruvAypADi, when little Krishna stole butter from the pots kept on top, mother Yasodha tied him to the mortar stone. Here, He pretends to be innocent and this reveals His simplicity.
guNa 2 - Paratvam/Supremacy:-
He controlled the seven bulls to marry Nappinnai, and proved his Paratvam.
AzhvAr also states that TirunaRaiyoor is a sthalam where beautiful peacocks (with dots all around their body) dance in the floral gardens, and bees (who have happily sucked the nectar from the dark pink coloured lotus) sing to the tune of the peacocks' dance. (4)
naDaiyAl ninRa marudam chAitta nAdanoor |
paDaiyODannam peivaLaiyAr tampinchenRu
naDaiyODiyali nANiyoLikkum naRaiyoorE (5)
1492. AzhvAr says TirunaRaiyoor is the divine dwelling of EmperumAn, who fiercely crushed the twin Maruda trees to pieces to unwind from the knot around the mortar stone tied by mother YasodA and who controlled the seven bulls to marry Nappinnai.
AzhvAr visualises and narrates that the place is so beautiful that the swans, with their spouses, attempt to imitate the walk of the women folk of TirunaRaiyoor and were ashamed when they failed. Thus is the wealth of TirunaRaiyoor, says Tirumangai mannan. (5)
puguvAy ninRa pOdagam veezha porudAnoor |
neguvAy neidal poomadumAndi kamalattin
naguvAy malar mEl annam uRangum naRaiyoorE (6)
1493. The Supreme Lord resides in the divine place of TirunaRaiyoor and AzhvAr repeatedly claims this in all these pAsurams. He says that the Lord residing here is none other than Sri KrishNa who destroyed demoness PootanA when she (disguised as mother YasodhA) came to breastfeed Him with poisoned milk. The Almighty Lord is the very same one who killed the fierce elephant, which was instigated and sent by King Kamsa. TirunaRaiyoor is a calm place where the swans, after having sucked the nectar from the water lily flower, happily lay on the lotus bed, concludes Kaliyan. (6)
andaNALan piLLaiyai anjAnru aLittAnoor |
pondil vAzhum piLLaikkAhippuLLODi
nanduvArum paimbunalvAvi naRaiyoorE(7)
1494. AzhvAr again describes the fertile and serene lands of TirunaRaiyoor. He says that EmperumAn resides in this sthalam where the birds, dwelling in the nest on trees, fetch the snails from nearby ponds and serve them as prey to their young ones. It is the same Lord whose yagyOpaveetam ceremony (upanayanam) happened at the Ashrama of sage sAndeepani and acquired deep knowledge. The Almighty Lord is happy in blessing his devotees from the divine land of TirunaRaiyoor.*
Sri KrishNa, BalarAma and Uddhava along with SudhAmA, were sent to sage sAndeepani's ashram. KrishNa rigorously learnt all the art forms in 64 days. Upon the completion of their education, they persuaded their teacher to accept Guru dakshiNa. SAndeepani asked them to rescue his child Punardatta, who had disappeared in the ocean at PrabhAsa. KrishNa, as promised, rescued Punardatta from the demon pAnchajana and fulfilled the vow given to his Guru. It is here where krishNa during the war with Panchajana intelligently made him lose his conch. KrishNa picks the conch and named it pAnchajanya and from then onwards, during every victory of Dharma over adharma, KrishNa has always blown the conch.
Recollecting, the same meaning has been described in a PeriyAzhvAr Tirumozhi pAsuram 4-8-1.
...மாதவத்தோன் புத்திரன் போய் மறிகடல்வாய்
மாண்டானை.....(7)
viLLa SindukkOn vizhavoornda vimalanoor |
koLLaikkozhumeenuN kuruhODippeDaiyODum
naLLakkamala tEral ugukkum naRaiyoorE (8)
1495. AzhvAr recollects the most important incident that occurred during the MahAbhArata war. Lord Krishna helped Vijayan (Arjuna) to slay the head of king Jayadratha (Duryodana's brother-in-law and king of Sindhu), on the 14th day of KurukshEtra war, by hiding the sun with His Sudarsana chakra and convincing the sun to have set. Jayadrathan (also known as Saindavan) came out of his hiding place and fell on Arjuna's sword.
The same incident has been referred to in PeriAzhvAr Tirumozhi 4-1-7.
வெள்ளைப்புரவிக்குரக்கு வெல்கொடித்தேர்மிசை....
AzhvAr feels that the same Lord is calmly residing at the TirunaRaiyoor Divya KshEtram. AzhvAr repeatedly reveals his love and admiration towards nature. He claims that this sthalam is where the cranes, who catch the stout fishes, rush together with their spouses to suck the nectar from the beautifully blossomed lotus petals. (8)
tEraiyoorum dEvadEvan SErumoor |
tAraiyoorum taNtaLirvEli puDaiSoozha
nAraiyoorum nalvayal choozhnda naRaiyoorE (9)
1496. When Sri BhoomAdEvi (Mother Earth) requested Lord BrahmA and the other devas to guard her from the evil spirits prevailing in the Earth, they rushed to TirupaarkaDal and pleaded to MahavishNu about rescuing BhoomA dEvi. His sacred lips uttered these words to them: "I will be born to Devaki and Vasudeva as Krishna to save the Earth from all evil and restore dharma. (Saadhu paritrANam, DuShTha nigraham and dharma samsthaapanam)
It is the divine place named TirunaRaiyoor where the same KrishNa, who saved the Earth, is dwelling with his consorts, says AzhvAr.
Following his usual style of description, Kaliyan concludes with a description of nature at TirunaRaiyoor. He says that this sthalam is carefully yet beautifully fenced on all four sides and is home to huge musters of storks, that relish the honey from the spruce (தளிர்) and rejoice freely. (9)
nAmattiraL mAmaLigai choozhnda naRaiyoor mEl |
kAmakkadir vElvallAn kaliyan olimAlai
SEmattuNaiyAm Seppumavarku tirumAlE || (10)
1497. All those who recite all these ten verses written by the mighty Tirumangai king (who took us on a spiritual and natural tour of TirunaRaiyoor) with faith and devotion would undoubtedly be blessed by the Lord of TirunaRaiyoor (with Sri MahAlakshmi). The Lord, who wears the long and dense Tulasi garland as a symbol of sahAya bhootan, will abundantly bless all. (10)
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.6
PASURAMS - 1498 - 1507
TIRUNARAIYOOR 3/10
In yet another decade about this Divya desam, AzhwAr directs those desirous, to reach "tirunaRaiyoor", similar to the way the great chOzha King did and experience the divine presence.
alaikaDalum kulavaraiyum uNDakaNDan
kombamarum vaDmarattin ilaimEl paLLi
kooDinAn tiruvaDiyE kooDahirpEr |
vambavizhum SeNbahattin vASamuNDu
maNivaNDu vakuLattin malarmEl vaihu
Sembiyan kOchchengaNAn SErnda kOyil
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (1)
1498. Those who wish to unite with the Lotus feet of the Lord who swallowed the whole space, (அம்பரமும்) the widespread world(பெருநிலனும்), eight directions(திசைகள்எட்டும்), tumultuous oceans(அலைகடலும்) and mountains(குலவரையும்) and finally lay on a single banyan leaf, proceed to tirunaRaiyoor ManimADam.
After rejoicing in the fragrance of the just bloomed shenbaga flowers the bees of this place cradle within the magizham flowers.
It is here the Chozha King 'Sembiyan kO sengaNAn' served the Lord of this Divya desam.(1)
kulavaraiyin meedODi aNDattappAl
ezhundinidu viLaiyADumeeSan endai
iNaiyaDikkeezh inidiruppeer inavaNDAlum|
uzhum Seruvil maNikoNarndu karaimEl Sindi
ulahellAm Sandanamum ahilum koLLa
Sezhum ponni vaLangoDukkum SOzhan SErnda
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (2)
1499. Those who wish to stay happily under the Lotus feet of the Lord who took the form of a lofty fish (கொழுங் கயல்) and lodged over the mountains, at the time when pralaya waters engulfed the whole world and later happily emerged from there, tirunaRaiyoor manimADam is your destination .
The gently treading fertile Cauvery ever swarmed by bees bring along and scatter precious gems on the banks of the paddy fields. The place is rich with sandalwood and agil tress.
It is here the Chozha King 'Sembiyan kO sengaNAn' served the Lord of this Divya desam. (2)
MATSYAVATARA STORY :
At a time, when naimittika pralayam happened at the end of a Brahmakalpam, all the worlds were at the verge of getting immersed. The four vEdas emerged out of BrahmA who woke up from his sleep. The demon named hayagreeva abducted all the vEdas.
In order to retrieve the vEdas, Lord Vishnu took to a small fish form and got himself caught into the hands of a rAjarishi named Satyavrata. He in turn left it in the water. Immediately the fish pleaded the rishi, not to leave him like that as he might be consumed by bigger fish. So he took the fish and slid it into the kamaNDala waters, where the fish outgrew it overnight and pleaded again to be rescued. The rishi at once transferred it to a bigger vessel, later to a pond, then to a river and so on as it kept growing. Finally the rishi left the fish in the sea and curiously wanted to know from the fish who he was. By then the fish had grown 100 yojana long and correspondingly huge. As the Rishi questioned, the fish replied that within seven days from then all the 3 worlds would be submerged. An enormous boat will sail on the water with the saptarishis and instructed the rishi to join them along with all creatures.
As they would be happily meandering on the waters suddenly a fierce hurricane will tremble the boat. With the help of a lengthy snake the boat will have to be tied to the horn on the fish's face. The fish later said, "I will take care of the boat until everything calms down. You will realise my value at that time. Saying so, the fish disappeared.
Stunned by hearing this, Satyavrata waited patiently until that period and everything happened as said. Taking the Matsya form, the Lord jumped and played in the water, at the same time safeguarding the boat and retrieved all the vEdas abducted by the demon too.
This Matsyavataram story is briefly depicted in the pAsuram.
pArahalam tiruvaDiyA pavanam meyyA
Sevvi mAtirameTTum tOLA aNDam
tirumuDiyA ninrAnpAl SellahirppEr |
kavvaimAkaLirundi veNNiyETTra
kazhalmannar maNimuDimEl kAhamEra
deivavAL valangoNDa SOzhanSErnda
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (3)
1500. Those who wish to reach the Lord, who is metaphorically imagined to have the ocean water as the yellow silk drape that he wears, the vast expanse of land as His divine feet, the endless space as His divine body, the eight direction to be His shoulders, the upper world to be His head (tirumukam), the energy of nature for consecration, then tirunaRaiyoor maNimADam is the place to go.
It is where the great valorous Chozha King 'Sembiyan kO sengaNAn', reached and received the divine sword from 'TirunaRaiyoor Nambi'. With the help of the sword, he combated against the approaching army along with clamorous elephant force at the place called VeNNi and made them prey to the crows.(3)
paruvaraittOLiraNiyanai paTTrivAngi
angaivALuhirnudiyAl avanadAham
angurudipOnguvittAnaDikkeezh nirppeer |
vengaN mAkaLirundi veNNiyERRa
viral mannar tiralazhiya veimAvuitta
SengaNAn kOchchOzhan SErnda kOyil
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (4)
1501. Those who wish to stand under the gracious feet of the Lord who took the unique form of Nrusimha, pulling the strong shouldered hiraNyan to fall on His lap with one fierce stare from His flourishing eyes and flooded the whole place with the blood, tearing his body with His shining sharp nails, get going to “tirunaRaiyoor manimADam”.
This is the same place sought by 'Sembiyan Ko sengaNAn', who emerged out victoriously with his cavalry defeating the approaching kings at VeNNi.(4)
ariyuruvAi iraNiyanadAham keeNDu
venravanai viNNulahil SelavuittArku
virundAveer mElezhundu vilangal pAindu |
ponSidari maNikoNarndu karaimEl Sindi
pulam parandu nilam parakkum ponninADan
ten tamizhan vaDapulakkOn SOzhan SErnda
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (5)
1502. Those who wish to be the visitors of the Lord who, in the times of the past measured all three worlds with His Tiruvadi in TivikramAvatAr and with the unparalleled Nrusimha form ripped apart HiraNyan, giving him veeraprApti (swargam), then go and visit tirunaRaiyoor manimADam.
This is where the great chozha king who ruled the tamil kingdom of the south, where the Cauvery flows scattering gold everywhere along its course, and collecting precious gems,breaking the mountains blocking its way and laying it all over its bank, reached.
With the grace of this Lord, not only did he rule the south, but also brought the province of the north under his control. (5)
tayangoLiSEr moovulahum tAnAi vAnAi
tannAlE tam uruvil moorti moonrAi
tAn AyanAyinAn SaraNenruiveer |
minnADuvElEndu viLandaivELai
viNNErattanivEluittu ulahamANDa
tennADan kuDakongan SOzhan SErnda
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (6)
1503. Those who wish to thrive with the devout thought of surrendering and attaining Him as their goal, who with His own will assumes His form, who represents all three magnificent worlds, who heads paramapadam , who appears in all three forms with His own will,still maintaining His ParamAtmA form and who with His compassion came down to the earth to be born as GopAlakrishna. , then there is no other place to go than “tirunaRaiyoor manimADam”.
The renowned king of the southern province 'Sembiyan Ko sengaNAn', who became the leader of the western kongu province too, attained this lord and won over the king ‘ViLandaiven’ with his strong army and sent him to “swargam “.(6)
mudutuvarai kulapatiyAi kAlippinnE
ilaittaDatta kuzhaloodi yAyar mAdar
inavaLai koNDAnaDikkeezh eidahirppeer |
malaittaDatta maNikoNarndu vaiyamuyya
vaLangoDukkum varupunal ambonninADan
SilaittaDakkaikkulachchOzhan SErnda kOyil
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (7)
1504. Those who wish to be dependent on the Lord, who finished the large breasted monstrous pootanA, by drinking the poison smeared milk, who as KrishNa ruled the ancient dwAraka and even went behind the cattle with a flute made of leaf, who robbed the clothes and the accessories of AyarpAdi girls who went to bathe in the early hours and sat watching on the kurunda tree, then do not hesitate to reach “tirunaRaiyoor manimADam”.
The great Chozha King holding a victorious bow in his hands, 'Sembiyan Ko sengaNAn', offered his services to the Lord of this temple here. He was the ruler of the southern province, where Cauvery flows, collecting and bringing along the precious gems from the mountainous path and scatters it all over for the world to prosper.(7)
mannellAm munnaviyachchenru venri
SerukkaLattu tiralazhiya SeTTravEndan
SiranduNittAn tiruvaDinum Sennivaippeer |
irukkilangu tirumozhivAi eNtOLeeSarku
ezhil mADam ezhubadu Seidu ulahamANDa
tirukkulattu vaLachOzhan SErnda kOyil
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam SErmingaLE || (8)
1505. Those who wish to bear the divine feet of the Lord upon their head, who is the heart-throb of Nappinnai pirATTi with her lips shaped like the murukkam flowers (kalyana murungai) and reddish in colour like the kovai fruit, who in the days of yore severed the head of the rivalrous thousand armed kartavirya Arjuna in the battlefield killing the entire Kshatriya clan, as Parasuraman, then proceed to “tirunaRaiyoor manimADam”.
This is where the noble Chozha King 'Sembiyan Ko sengaNAn', finally reached after constructing seventy shrines for Lord Shiva who always keeps chanting the purushasuktam from the vEdas. (8)
Knowing about this King.
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| KOCHENGANAN AND THE ELEPHANT |
This Chozha King who was a staunch shaivite later turned to be a devotee of 'tirunaRaiyoor Nambi '. It is said that in his previous birth, he was born a spider and kept building a web ceiling atop the idol of Lord Shiva in the 'tiruvAnaikAl' temple, which was constantly being destroyed by an elephant. So in this birth he constructed strong stone temples where the elephant can not enter. This has reference in sEkkizhAr's PeriyapurANam too.
taniyALan muniyALar Ettaninra
pErALan Ayiram pEruDaiya vALan
pinnaikku maNavALan perumai kETpeer |
pArALar avarivarenru azhundaiyETTra
paDaimannar uDal tuNiya parimA uitta
tErALan kOchchOzhan sErnda kOyil
tirunaraiyoor maNimADam sErmingaLE || (9)
1506. Those who wish to listen to the laurels of the Lord, who bears the garland of pledge, to protect the worlds, and reclines in 'Tiruvarangam', who is the beloved of MahAlakshmi born on the lotus flower, who is praised and worshiped by great sages (sanakAthi muni), who is the possessor of thousand names and the Lord of Nappinnai, then resort to “tirunaRaiyoor manimADam”.
The great charioteer and Chozha King 'Sembiyan Ko sengaNAn', defeated the approaching warrior kings and laid them to the ground at 'tiruvazhundoor', with his cavalry and resorted to this Lord at tirunaRaiyoor. (9)
tirunaraiyoor maNimADaSengaNmAlai
poimmozhiyonrillAda meimmaiyALan
pulamangai kulavEndan pula maiyArnda |
ammozhivAi kalikanri inbappADal
pADuvAr viyanulahil namanAr pADi
vemmozhikETTanjAdE meimmai Sollil
viNNavarku virundAhu perundakkOrE || (10)
1507. The ever truthful King, Tirumangai AzhwAr proficient in vEdas, without any exaggeration, sang about Lord "PUNDAREEKAKSHAN",who abodes in “tirunaRaiyoor maNimAdam”, where truthful Vedic brahmins live.
Those who happily sing to tune, these kaliyan's verses, need not endure the hardships of yamalOkam, rather will be honoured by the nityasooris. (10)
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.7
PASURAMS 1508 TO 1517
TIRUNARAIYOOR - 4/10
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| TIRUNARAIYUR NAMBI PERFOMING PANCHASAMSKARAM FOR TIRUMANGAI AZHVAR |
With tAyAr Nambikkai nAchchiyAr standing nearby in varada hastam, AzhvAr is reminded of this Lord's benevolent qualities that substantiate the meaning of the name - *‘Nambi - The wholesome reliable Lord'*. He shares his ecstasy with us in 10 eloquent verses ending with the refrain ‘naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE’.
tOLum talaiyum tuNiveida SuDuvenjilaivAi Saram turandAn |
vELum SEyum anaiyArum vErkaNArum payilveedi
nALum vizhavinoliyOvA naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (1)
1508. Recollecting the panchasamskAram performed by Nambi, AzhvAr feels grateful for initiating him as a vaishNava.
My AchAryan Nambi has accepted me as His shishya and taken control of me (ALum). Not stopping with that, He has also directed me to do kainkaryam for Him (paNiyum). How blessed aDiyEn is to get the shEshatvam (the status of being His servant) and pAratantryam (serving the Lord, totally dependent on Him) just like how LakshmaNa got to serve rAma closely! He is verily the PurushOttama Lord rAma who destroyed the heads and shoulders of the demons of LankA, with powerful arrows showered from His bow.
This supreme Lord, my master Nambi stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. The streets of this kshEtra reverberate with auspicious sounds of monthly and annual utsavams conducted by ardent devotees residing here. Due to their piety, the purushas (men) here, look charismatic akin to resplendent dEvas like manmada (vELum) and subrahmaNya (chEyum), and the women have beautiful eyes as sharp as the spear (vEl kaN Arum). naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (1)
tanivAi mazhuvin paDaiyANDa tArAr tOLAn vArpuravil |
paniSEr mullai pallarumba pAnalorupAl kaNkATTa
naniSEr kamalam muhangATTum naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (2)
1509. Aiming to reduce the earth’s burden, this Lord incarnated as ParashurAma Muni. Using His sharp-edged weapon called ‘parashu-the axe’, He wiped out twenty-one generations of the greedy king kArtaveeryArjuna. It is to punish the wicked that he wears the garland of righteousness on his shoulders. (tAr Ar tOLAn)
This righteous Lord, my master, Nambi stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor that is filled with dense fragrant groves. The pleasant jasmine buds (mullai), the blue pea flowers (pAnal - karum kuvaLai poo) and the fully bloomed lotus flowers (kamalam) seem like the teeth, eyes and face of the beautiful women living here. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (2)
tuLLAvarumAn vizha vALiturandAn irandAn mAvalimaN |
puLLAr puravil poongAvi pulankoL mAdar kaNkATTa
naLLAr kamalamuhangATTum naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (3)
1510. In the clear milky ocean tirupArkaDal, AdishEsha is the most trusted attendant who guards Lord VishNu by angrily spitting venom on the approaching enemies. Hence, my Lord is able to recline peacefully, filled with zeal to bless the dEvas seeking His favor. In PanchavaTee, the same Lord shot the asura mAreecha who came disguised as a delightful leaping deer. The Lord of such a stature is the one who begged mahAbali for three steps of land.
This wondrous Lord, my master, Nambi stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. A variety of birds fly happily over the groves of this kshEtram. The red lilies and pink lotuses seem to express the beauty of the eyes and face of the women living here. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (3)
viLiyAvArkkavAppuNDu vimmiyazhudAn menmalarmEl |
kaLiyAvaNDu kaLLuNNa kAmartenral alartooTTra
naLirvAi mullai muravalikkum naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (4)
1511. Just because He stole butter and consumed it secretly, yashOdA angrily tied KrishNa to the mortar with a thin rope. As if He had no magical powers, KrishNa submitted to yashOdA innocently and started crying constantly sniffling. (AppunDu vimmi azhudAn).
My permissive little KrishNa, my master, Nambi, stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. The bees of this kshEtram doze on flowers after indulging in their favourite honey drink; and the pleasant jasmines fall to bloom after being swept away by the breeze. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (4)
kallAr tiraLtOL kanjanai kAindAn pAindAn kALiyan mEl |
SollAr Surudi muraiyOdi Somuchcheyyum tozhilinOr
nallAr maraiyOr palar vAzhum naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (5)
1512. Conspiring to kill KrishNa, King Kamsa asked his chief akroora to invite KrishNa and BalarAma to the ceremony of worshipping bows - ‘The Dhanur yAga’. (vil Ar vizhavil). The brothers entered MathurA and encountered the two awaiting wrestlers ‘muShtika’ and ‘chAnUra’, crushing them to death. The brothers further advanced towards the strong shouldered Kamsa and killed him too. (kal Ar tiraL tOL). It is the same hero who danced on the hoods of kAliya the serpent.
This mighty KrishNa, my master, Nambi, stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. This kshEtra is inhabited by several noble vaidikas (nal Ar maRaiyOr) who religiously recite the four vEdas called shRutis (sol Ar surudi) and perform the sOma yAgas (sOmu cheyyum) as ordained by our scriptures. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (5)
veLhiyODa viralvANan viyan tOL vanattai tuNittuhandAn |
paLLikamalattiDaippaTTa pahuvAi alavan muham nOkki
naLLiyooDum vayalSoozhnda naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (6)
1513. KrishNa’s grandson aniruddha, fell in love with the demon bANAsura’s daughter, ushA. Not approving this, bANAsura captivated aniruddhA. KrishNa then waged a war against him. As bANAsura was Shiva’s devotee, Shiva supported him with his army lead by his son SubrahmaNya, the beloved of vaLLi (vaLLi kozhunan). After a terrific battle, Shiva (mukkaNAn)! and his armies retreated in defeat. KrishNa chopped off bANAsura’s 1000 hands with His chakra. It indeed seemed like a forest being felled at large.
This powerful Lord, my master, Nambi stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. This kshEtra is filled with green fields where female crabs (naLLi) engage in love quarrel with their male counterparts (alavan) for sleeping in the lotus flowers overnight (paLLi kamalam) and not returning home. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (6)
CRABS, LOTUSES, LILIES AND NATURE
The amusing life of the crab couple at NaRaiyoor.
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.7.6
(Extracted from the narrative of AchArya Shree ParasAra Bhattar)
"பள்ளி கமலத்து இடைப்பட்ட பகுவாய் அலவன் முகம் நோக்கி நள்ளி ஊடும் வயல் சூழ்ந்த நறையூர்.
paLLi kamalattu iDai paTTa pagu vAy alavan mugam nOkki naLLi ooDum vazhal choozhnda naRaiyoor."
A crab couple lives happily inside the water lily (Ambal poo). When the female crab (naLLi) is pregnant, she has food cravings. The empathetic male crab (alavan) with the big mouth (paguvAy) wants to bring honey from the lotus flower to quench her taste buds. So, the male crab strolls slowly towards the lotus flower (kamalam). When he enters the lotus, it is already evening and so the lotus closes its petals. Caught inside the lotus and unable to move, he sleeps cozily all through the night. All night, the female crab is waiting to see his face. (mugam nOkki).
Next morning, the light and heat from the sun wakes him up. He gathers honey and walks back to meet his beloved wife. But now, it is morning and time for lilies to close their petals. The female crab is now caught inside the lily. The male crab almost reaches the lily and lo! He cannot see her. He now waits in dismay till the lily opens up. They then meet when the time gets favourable.
Our favorite nature cum spiritual poet Kaliyan, captures this amazing phenomenon of biodiversity in nature. He also gives an allegory that the female crab waiting to see her husband’s face, wanted to punish him for having kept her waiting through the night, and so she hid herself inside the lily, in a sweet love quarrel. (praNaya kalagam)
‘Shree PiLLai tirunaRaiyoor araiyar’ is said to have added subtle humor to BhaTTar's narrative.
"ஆராய்ந்து குற்றம் நிரம்பினால் பின்னையன்றோ தண்டிப்பது! என் செய்வோம்? கேள்வி இல்லாதபடி! பெண்ணரசு நாடாய்த்தே!!
"ArAyndu kuRRam nirambinAl pinnaiyanRO danDippadu? En seyvOm? kELvi illAda paDi, peN arasu nATTAyttE!”
Meaning - Punishments have to be given after proper investigation. What to do? Who is to ask? Isn't tirunaRaiyoor under the lady's control?!
(In tirunaRaiyoor sthalam, importance is given to vanjulavalli nAchchiyar. She is seen standing prominently in front of the Lord in the garbha graham, directly visible from the entrance. Even in tiruveedi purappAdu processions, pirATTi is given prAdhAnyam and so she leads first followed by perumAl.)
Jokes apart, the key take-away for us is that ‘all actions are provoked by the original svabhAva (nature) attached to the embodied soul on account of prakruti sambandham'. It is thus imperative for one seeking mOksha, to understand natural behaviours and keep a calm disposition for things to be sorted.
kuDaiyAvarai onreDuttu Ayar kOvAi ninrAn koorAzhi |
paDaiyAn vEdanAngu ainduvELvi angamAru iSaiyEzh
naDaiyAvalla andaNar vAzh naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (7)
1514. Supporting his shishya Arjuna (visayan) as a mere charioteer, KrishNa supervised the mahAbhArata war without using a single weapon. Yet, several kings and their armed soldiers were vanquished just by His quirky guidance. Protecting the cowherds against the torrential rains, He gave shelter by holding the gOvardhana hill as an umbrella for them to take refuge for 7 consecutive days.
This guardian Lord, My master, Nambi who holds the sharp edged chakrAyudham, stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. The brAhmaNas in this kshEtram, enjoy a wholesome vEdic life, practising the four vEdas with its six angas, performing the pancha-mahAyagyas and exploring the sapta swaras in their pastimes. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (7)
THE DYNAMIC CHAKRA - "கூர் அழி படையான் / ‘Koor Azhi paDaiyAn"
In this context, this phrase is also understood as the Lord who uses his resplendent chakra (Azhi) with providence (கூர்). The term Sudarshana Chakra means the disc that has auspicious vision {su + darshana}. So, the chakra is not always meant to destroy or kill enemies but is also utilized with caution to suit the need of the hour and for the overall benefit of the universe.
First instance quoted here (mahAbharata): KrishNa chose not to use his weapon in the battlefield. But He used it once to create an artificial sunset to enable arjuna kill Jayadratha.
Second instance (gOvardhanagiri uddhAraNam): KrishNa could have easily sent his sudarshana chakra to kill Indra who was troubling his devotees with incessant rains. But He chose not to use it and waited until Indra himself admitted his folly. (The locals of Braj narrate a story that krishNa held the chakra above the gOvardhana mountain. The heat and movement of the chakra evaporated the water continuously for seven days until Indra got tired. To signify this, there is an important pilgrimage place called Chakrateertha in the Braj Darshan ). (7)
kandAr kaLiTTru kazhalmannar kalangaSangam vAivaittAn |
SendAmaraimEl ayanODu Sivanumanaiya perumaiyOr
nAndAvaNkai maRaiyOr vAzh naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE || (8)
1515. Back in HastinApur, duhshAsana humiliated the gentle draupadee (pAnchAli) in the royal court, by pulling her hair and disrobing her. No one came to her rescue. Draupadee helplessly cried out to KrishNa whom she considered to be her dearest friend and trusted brother: She sought protection with full faith saying the sharaNAgati vAkyam:
शङ्ख चक्र गदा पाणे द्वारकानिलयाच्युत |
गोविन्द पुण्डरीकाक्ष रक्ष मां शरणागतम् ||
shankha chakra gadA pANE
dwArakA nilayA achyuta
gOvinda puNDareekAksha raksha mAM sharanAgatam.
KrishNa rushed there and covered her up with an infinitely lengthy saree, rendering DuhshAsana tired and unconscious. But insulted Draupadi was still unhappy. She swore that she would not tie her hair up until DuhshAsana was killed. Inorder to pacify His dear friend and devotee draupadee, KrishNa decided to blow His conch, calling for the mahAbhArata war (sangam vAy vaittAn). The very sound of pAnchajanya sent trembles among the kings wearing proud armors and seated on the well-trained and invigorated elephants smelling with the fragrance of their ichor’.
This guarding Lord, my master, Nambi stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. The brAhmaNas living in this kshEtram are godly alike BrahmA and Shiva, and possess limitless generosity. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (8)
uDalam neerum pooSi Eroorum iraiyOn Senru kuraiyirappa |
mAronrillAvASaneer varaimArvahalattu aLittuhandAn
nArum pozhil Soozhnda azhahAya naraiyoor ninra nambiyE || (9)
1516. Lord Shiva who adorns his matted hair with the Ganges (Arum), the crescent moon (piRaiyum), the serpent (aravamum), the aDambu flowers (aDambum - bay hop flowers?); the one who smeared his body with sacred ash (tiruneer); and the one who rides on his bull, approached VishNu to get relief from the brahmahatyA dOsha for which he could not find solace. Lord VishNu, out of compassion, slit his chest from which matchless fragrant water flowed out and filled the skull. (As it is mahAlakshmi who resides in the Lord's chest, the blood is referred as sacred water, amudam, sweta jalam, etc) - (மாறொன்று இல்லா வாசநீர், வரைமார்பு அகலத்து அளித்து உகந்தான்.)
This compassionate Lord, my master, Nambi stands with benevolence in tirunaRaiyoor. This kshEtra looks beautiful filled with fragrant green groves. naRaiyoor ninRa nambiyE! (9)
kannimadiL Soozh vayal mangai kaliyan olisey tamizh mAlai |
panniyulagil pADuvAr pADuSArA pazhavinaigaL
manniyulagam ANDupOy vAnOr vaNanga vAzhvArE || (10)
1517. TirunaRaiyoor kshEtram is a very divine place where noble vedic brAhmaNas live. The Lord of such a kshEtram, TirunaRaiyoor Nambi, has been greatly extolled by Kaliyan, the king of the well ramparted tirumangai city.
Devotees who sing, research and analyse the meanings of this garland of ten verses will first be relieved of all their old sins, live a royal life on earth and finally reach the abode of Paramapadam, to be honoured by the nityasooris. (10)
PERIYA
TIRUMOZH 6.8
PASURAMS 1518 TO 1527
TIRUNARAIYOOR 5/10
 |
| TIRUNARAIYUR UTSAVAR |
AzhvAr continues to enjoy his anubhavam of TirunaRaiyoor Nambi in this tirumozhi also. In all these pasurams, AzhvAr says how he longed to have the darshan of PerumAl in His various vibhava avatAra kOlams and how he saw all of it in this TirunaRaiyoor kshEtram. He also mentions other divyakshEtrams like tiruvEnkaTam tiruvAli, tirunAvAy, tirumeyyam, dwArakA and tirukkuDandai and concludes that he got to experience all of them in this kshEtram.
tAn koNDu tALAl aLanda perumAnai |
tEn koNDa sAral tiruvEngaDattAnai
nAn Senru nADi naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (1)
1518. I sought to have the dharshan of the glorious PerumAl wearing the deer skin across his chest, as is wont of a brahmachAri (mANi), who approached mahAbali seeking three feet of land as alms and ended up measuring the entire land mass with His divine feet.
He is tiruvEnkaTanAthan who resides in the tirumalA mountain which has honey dripping from the cliffs. Finally I got to have His dharshan in tirunRaiyoor.
*When NArAyaNan took His vibhava avatAras, He took effort to reach out to us!
As archAmoorthi, He resides in tiruvEnkaTam. But the sulabhan that He
is, He has made TirunaRaiyoor His Abode so that we are even spared the strain of
travelling to tirumalA. (1)
anneerai meenAi amaitta perumAnai |
tennAlimEya tirumAlai emmAnai
nanneer vayal Soozh naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (2)
1519. He is the one who churned the Milky ocean ( munneer).
He took the matsya avatAra ,controlled the surging ocean and protected
the world from total destruction during the deluge( moozhtha nAL).
He is the gracious PerumAL who resides in the beautiful kshEtram of tiruvAli ( Ali mEya). He is the loving consort of Mahalakshmi (tirumAl).
He is my swAmi (emmAn). I finally got His dharshan in TirunaRaiyoor, which is surrounded by well irrigated fields. (2)
moovAmai nalhi mudalai tuNittAnai |
dEvAdidEvanai SengamalakkaNNAnai
nAvAyuLAnai naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (3)
1520. Mounting on His royal vAhanam GaruDa*, PerumAl reached the banks of the pond to save the elephant gajEndran from further agony (moovAmai) and with His chakram, slaughtered the crocodile (tuNindAn).
He is the swAmi of the nityasooris (dEvAdidEvan). He is the one who has
eyes like the lotus petals. He resides in the divya kshEtram tirunAvAi. He is
the same emperumAn whose darshan I got in tirunaRaiyoor.
*GaruDa is given the adjective, 'tooya vAy' because he is veda svaroopan. (3)
SEDAr pozhilSoozh tiruneermalaiyAnai |
vADA malartuzhAimAlai muDiyAnai
nADOrumnADi naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (4)
1521.
Taking the Narasimha avatAra - as a lion that seldom roams inside the
country (OdA ari), He tore apart hiraNyan.
He chose to make tiruneermalai which is surrounded by robust orchards as
His divine abode. He adorned His crown with fragrant and fresh tulasi garland!
In my quest to find Him, I finally had His darshan in tirunaRayoor. (4)
vallAham keeLa varivenjaram turanda |
villAnai Selva vibeeDaNarku vErAha
nallAnai nADi naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (5)
1522.
RAvaNa, the haughty rAkshasa king of the beautiful ( kaDi) LankA which had
fortified ramparts built of rocks, was killed such that his strong, well-built
body (val Agam) was shattered by the powerful arrows rAma shot from His bow - the sArngam. This compassionate emperumAn handed over the kingdom of LankA to
the virtuous (selva) vibeeShaNa.
Seeking to have a darshan of this supreme Lord, I got to see Him in
tirunaRaiyoor.
* vibeeShaNa is given the title 'selva' in this pAsuram, though, infact he had relinquished his family and kingdom to surrender to rAmA. It is interpreted that in doing so, vibeeShaNa got to become a VaiShNava dAsan and was bestowed the title SrivaiShNava Sri. (5)
vambumalarmEl paDaittAnai mAyOnai |
ambannakaNNAL aSOdai tan singattai
nambanai nADi naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (6)
1523.
He is the Lord who created the dEvalOkam (umbar ulagu), and all the living
things in this earth, from the lustrous lotus that emanated from His
navel (undi). He is the emperumAn who performs wondrous deeds (mAyOn). He is the
adorable KrishNa, the darling lion cub child of YashOdA who has spear
like eyes. He is the PerumAL who instills faith in all His devotees (namban).
Seeking Him, I finally had His darshan in tirunaRaiyoor.
*** The Lord with immense ability, (paratvam) to create the animate and inanimate things in this universe also exhibits His saulabhyam by being born as an adorable child to YashOdA. (6)
viTTAnai meyyam amarnda perumAnai |
maTTEru karpahattai mAdarkAi vaNtuvarai
naTTAnai nADi naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (7)
1524.
He is Lord Krishna, who ordered the well protected (kattEru) forest, the
*kANDava vanam which had many orchards, to be set on fire. He is the one who
has made tirumeyyam His abode (meyyamarnda). He is the PerumAL who brought and
planted (nattAn) the honey dripping pArijAta vRuksham to appease SatyabhAmA.*
Seeking His dharshan, I saw Him in tirunaRaiyoor.
*STORY OF KANDAVA VANAM
KANDava
vanam was a flourishing forest under the control of Indra. This is where, the
pANDavAs established their kingdom, Indraprastha.
Once, when Krishna and Arjuna were together, agni bhagavAn
approached them in the guise of a brahmin and sought to be fed. Krishna
extended a warm welcome and promised to feed him till he was satisfied.
The brahmin revealed his identity and asked to devour the kANDava vanam.
In order to keep His word and to uphold the dharma of not going back on one's
promise, Krishna consented to allow agni to consume the forest as it
was home to many wild animals, dacoits and asuras. Agni ravaged and
completely burnt down the forest. This was a leelA performed by Krishna to
relieve the Earth of undesirable elements.
*SATYABHAMA AND THE PARIJATHA VRUKSHAM
The
asurA narakAsuran was becoming a menace to the dEvAs. He had forcibly taken
away the dEva mAtA, Aditi's ear ring. The dEvAs appealed to Lord NArAyaNAn to
save them from the asura. Krishna, along with SatyabhAmA,set out to fight
with narakAsurA and killed him. They then went to dEvalOkha to return
Aditi's earrings. SatyabhAmA was drawn to the fragrant, divine pArijAtha
tree that she saw there and wanted to take it with her to dwArakA. The haughty
IndrANi refused to part with it saying that it was not meant for humans!
KrishNa, however, ordered GaruDa to uproot the tree and plant it in dwArakA
thereby fulfilling SatyabhAmA 's desire. (7)
paNNin mElvanda paDaiyellAm bAradattu |
viNNin meedEra viSayan tEroorndAnai
naNNi nAn nADi naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (8)
1525. Desirous of seeing my Lord who, in order to alleviate Mother Earth of her burden, drove Arjuna 's chariot in the bhAratA battle and sent the enemy kings (maRa mannar) who had assembled in the battlefield to veera swargam (viNNin meedhEra), I had His dharshan in TirunaRaiyoor. (8)
SangErukOla taDakkai perumAnai |
kongEruSOlai kuDandaikkiDandAnay
nangOnai nADi naRaiyooril kaNDEnE || (9)
1526. He is the PerumAL who holds the luminous (neeL sOdhi) and captivating, beautiful golden chakrAyudham and the glorious conch, the pAnchajanyam in His strong, elegant hand. He reclines in the tirukkuDandai kshEtram which has many honey dripping groves.
Seeking Him, I got His dharshan in TirunaRaiyoor. (9)
nannaraiyoor ninranambiyai vambavizhtAr |
kannavilum tOLAn kaliyan olivallAr
ponnulagil vAnavarku puittELirAguvarE || (10)
1527. The cherished, darling son of Vasudeva, the king of the celebrated MathurA, is indeed TirunaRaiyoor Nambi. Tirumangai AzhvAr, who wears the fragrant garland on his hefty shoulders has composed these verses on the presiding deity of TirunaRaiyoor. Those who recite these verses will reach Paramapadam, be glorified and held in esteem by even the nityasooris. (10)
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.9
PASURAMS 1528-1537
TIRUNARAIYOOR – 6/10
Experiencing Nambi’s divine, astounding kAruNyam, Tirumangai AzhvAr counsels his mind to totally surrender (perform sharaNAgati) at the lotus feet of tirunaRaiyoor Nambi, in this decad. He soulfully praises His tiruvaDi in admirable ways, cleansing our mind, speech, and action and describes the prosperous city of tirunaRaiyoor.
This is also called the SharaNAgati pAsuram.
As Swami Ramanuja says in SRIRANGA GADYAM -
श्रीमन्नारायण तव चरणारविन्द युगलं शरण अहम् प्रपद्ये।
Shreeman nArAyaNa tava charaNaravinda yugaLam sharaNam aham prapadhyE.
Oh Ranga! I surrender myself to your Lotus feet considering them as my goal.
maDaleDuttu madu nugarum vayaluDutta tirunaRaiyoor
muDaiyaDartta siramEndi moovulakum balitirivOn
iDarkeDutta tiruvALan iNaiyaDiyE aDai nenjE! (1)
1528. Enclosed by several ponds, a pair of beautiful swan couple seated on a lotus pretend to fight (peDai aDarttu) while making love. They drink honey from the flower without separating from each other. AzhvAr admires this adorable scene in tirunaRaiyoor divya dEsam!
Once, Lord Shiva plucked one of the heads of BrahmA and incurred Brahmahatti dOsha. To get absolved of the curse, he roamed around the three worlds begging for alms holding the stinking skull stuck to his palm. It is this emperumAn, TirunaRaiyoor Nambi, who redeemed him from the curse; the skull fell when the Lord poured the amRuta jalam from his chest.
ManamE! Reach out to the ever-praiseworthy feet (iNai aDi) of this tirumAl (tiruvALan)! iNaiyaDiyE aDai nEnjE! (1)
Commentary by Tiruvaheendrapuram Shri Urupattur Soundararajan Swami
பெரிய திருமொழி --1528
மடல் எடுத்து மது நுகரும் வயல் உடுத்த திருநறையூர்
முடை அடர்த்த சிரமேந்தி மூவுலகும் பலிதிரிவோன்
இடர் கெடுத்த திருவாளன் இணை அடியே அடை நெஞ்சே !
பொழிப்புரை --
வயல்வெளிகளால் நாற்புறமும் சூழப்பட்ட திருநறையூர் திவ்யதேசம்.
அங்கு, தடாகத்தில் அன்னம் தாமரைப்புஷ்பத்தின் மேலே இருக்கிறது. அந்த அன்னம் பெடையுடன் சேர்ந்து உள்ளது. ஆண் அன்னம் வேறு இடம் போக விழைந்தாலும், பேடையான பெண் அன்னம் விடுவதாக இல்லை. ஆதலால் ஆண் அன்னம், பேடைக்கு அடக்கமாக இருக்கிறது.
(நறையூர் நம்பியும் அப்படித்தானே --இது நாச்சியார் கோவில் அல்லவா )
ஆண் அன்னம் என்ன செய்கிறதாம் ?
தாம் இருந்த தாமரைப்பூவின் இதழை விலக்கி பெண் பேடையுடன், தாமரைப்பூவில் உள்ள மதுவைப் பானம் செய்கிறதாம்.
இந்தத் திருநறையூரில் இருக்கும் ஸ்ரீயப்பதியான நாராயணன், கெட்டவாசனை வீசுகிற ப்ரஹ்மாவின் ஒருதலையைத் தன்னுடைய உள்ளங்கையில்வைத்துக்கொண்டு, பிக்ஷை கேட்டு மூன்று உலகங்களும் திரிந்த ருத்ரனின் துக்கத்தைத் தொலைத்தான் ஹே ---நெஞ்சே அவன் திருவாளன் - திருவை ஆள்பவன்- மஹாலக்ஷ்மியின் நாயகன் அவனுடைய திருவடிகளை அடைவாயாக.
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தனியே இருப்பதைவிடச் சேர்ந்து இருப்பதே நலம் பயக்கும். சேர்ந்த இடத்திலே, பகவானின் க்ருபையால் ஆஹாரமும் கிடைக்கும் பிராட்டியோடு எம்பெருமான் சேர்ந்து இருப்பதாலே, பிராட்டியைப் புருஷகாரமாக ஆக்கி, பிக்ஷை வேணுமென்று யாசித்ததால், பிக்ஷையளித்து சங்கரனின் ப்ரஹ்மஹத்தி தோஷத்தைப்போக்கினான் அந்த திருமகள்நாதனின் திருவடிகளை, ஹே நெஞ்சமே, அடைவாயாக என்கிறார் திருமங்கை ஆழ்வார் இப்பாசுரத்தில்.
vazhiyAra mutteenRu vaLaNgoDukkum tirunaRaiyoor
pazhiyArum viralaRakkan parumuDigaL avai sidaRa
azhalArum saram turandAn aDiyiNaiyE aDai nenjE! (2)
1529. The streets of tirunaRaiyoor kshEtram is beautified by abundant shell cones, resembling pearls which have piled up in heaps or are scattered along the streets by the ponni river during high tides.
Lord rAma with the attributes of veeram and tEjas resides in this kshEtram. RAma strung his mighty bow, sent a series of fiery arrows, and slayed the ten heads of the mighty rAvana whose character was highly condemnable (pazhi Arum).
ManamE! Resort to the holy feet (aDiyiNaiyE) of tirunaRaiyoor Nambi which is our only hope and goal (upAyam). aDiyiNaiyE aDai nenjE! (2)
tiLaikoNDa pazham kezhumi tigazh sOlai tirunaRaiyoor
vaLaikoNDa vaNNattan pin tOnRal moovulagODu
aLaiveNNai uNDAn tan aDiyiNaiyE aDai nenjE! (3)
1530. The plentiful city of tirunaRaiyoor is enveloped with dense groves. The jackfruit trees with copious honey dripping from healthy pulpy jackfruits (chuLai kONDa) and the banana plantations with bunches of ripe bananas hanging from the trees are a feast to the eyes. EmperumAn kaNNan resides in this kshEtram. He is the younger brother (pin tOnRal) of conch hued (fair like the shankham-vaLai kONDa vaNNattan) balarAma. He is none but the same kaNNan who enjoyably swallowed butter and curd and the three worlds effortlessly! He is sulabhan (easily accessible)! He is the one possessing the amazing attribute of aghaTitaghaTanA sAmarthyam!
Oh nenjE! Proceed to seek the feet of none but this emperumAn, tirunaRaiyoor Nambi! aDiyiNaiyE aDai nenjE! (3)
ninRAra vAn mooDum neeL selva tirunaRaiyoor
manRAra kuDamADi varaiyeDuttu mazhaitaDutta
kunRArum tiraL tOLan kuraikazhalE aDai nenjE! (4)
1531. The prosperous city of tirunaRaiyoor has elegant skyrise buildings built close to each other. The flags (tugil paDalam) atop these towers open gracefully flapping and stretching across the huge sky making the city more gorgeous.
Here resides Lord Krishna, the charmer who performed kuDamADu koottu dance (kuDam ADi) in the streets attracting attention of all in AyarpADi. He is one with the attribute of balam (unassuming strength), who effortlessly held the gOvardhana mountain like an umbrella on his little finger; to protect every being in VrindAvan from the wrath of Indra who caused incessant heavy rains (varaiyeDuttu mazhai taDuttu).
Oh nenjE! Tightly hold on to the feet of tirunaRaiyoor Nambi! He is adorning the anklets of victory (kurai kazhal) proclaiming the bravery of a warrior possessing mountain like strong shoulders. Kurai kazhalE aDai nenjE! (4)
migakoNarndu tiraiyundum viyanpOnni tirunaRaiyoor
pagal karanda uDarAzhippaDaiyAn ivvulagEzhum
pukakkaranda tiruvayiRRan ponnaDiyE aDai nenjE! (5)
1532. The swift overflowing pOnni river with strong currents, carries along with her heavy logs of eagle wood (agil maRam) and sandalwood trees, precious stones like gold and pearls scattering them along the banks.
TirunaRaiyoor is the abode of Lord Krishna who holds the sudarshana chakra as his weapon. During the Mahabharata war, Lord Krishna hid the sun with his lustrous and ever radiant chakra to fulfil the vow of Arjuna; to avenge the death of Abhimanyu by killing Jayadratha. It is the same kaNNan who ingested all the worlds (cosmos), protecting them in his stomach during the cosmic deluge.
1533. pon muttum ariyugirum puzhaikkaimAkari kODum
minnattaN tiraiyundum viyanpOnni tirunaRaiyoor
minnotta nuN maruNgul melliyalai tirumArbil
mannattAn vaittugandAn malaraDiyE aDai nenjE! (6)
1533. The broad ponni river flows from the north, gushing with energy as she carries glistening gold and pearls and shining claws of lions and sharp tusks of massive elephants. She deposits them on the banks as she flows along the divya dEsam tirunaRaiyoor.
The emperumAn here is extremely contended having affectionately adorned the lightning like slender-waisted, ever compassionate periya pirATTi, permanently on His chest. The divya dampatees never wish to get separated from each other.
Oh nenjE! Hold on to the lotus feet of this Nambi of tirunaRaiyoor and vanjulavalli tAyAr. MalaraDiyE adai nenjE! (6)
Swami NammAzhwAr says in TIRUVAYMOZHI 6-10-10.
agalakillEn iRaiyum enRu alarmEl mangai uRaimArpA!
nigaril pugazhAy! ulagamoonRu udaiyAy! ennai ALvAnE!
nigaril amarar munikkaNangaL virumbum thiruvEnkaTattAnE ,
pugal onRillA aDiyEn un aDikkeezh amarndu pugundEnE.
அகலகில்லேன் இறையுமென்று அலர்மேல் மங்கை உறை மார்பா !
நிகரில் புகழாய்! உலகம் மூன்றுடையாய்! என்னை ஆள்வானே!
நிகரில் அமரர் முனிக்கணங்கள் விரும்பும் திருவேங்கடத்தானே,
புகல் ஒன்றில்லா அடியேன் உன் அடிக்கீழ் அமர்ந்து புகுந்தேனே.
TiruvENkaTamuDayAnE! Unassumingly you hold periya pirATTi in your chest who has made it her permanent abode never willing to get separated from you! One with unparalleled fame! Possessor of all the three worlds! My master! Your abode tirumalA is highly regarded by the peerless nityasooris and the rishis!
Realising that you are my only saviour, I helplessly stand before you, entrusting myself and surrendering at your lotus feet with immense faith.(6)
pArtazhaittu karumbOgi payanviLaikkum tirunaRaiyoor
kAr tazhaitta tiruvuruvan kaNNapirAn viNNavarkOn
tArtazhaitta tuzhAimuDiyAn taLiraDiyE aDai nenjE! (7)
1534. The natural beauty of tirunaRaiyoor kshEtram, the land of rich resources is well defined in this pAsuram. Along the fertile fields, rich well grown radiant paddy crops (sennal) are a feast to the eyes with beautiful red lotuses blooming beside them as weeds. The sugarcane stems left behind in the fields after the previous harvest have unexpectedly grown into tall, healthy sugarcane plants in between them; thus, increasing the wealth of the kshEtram.
The emperumAn who resides here is the dark hued kaNNapirAn, the head of the nityasooris and dEvAs. He is adorning a fragrant garland made of colourful flowers and tulsi leaves like a head gear (tAr tazhaitta tuzhAy muDiyum).
NenjE! Submit yourself at the sympathetic and tender feet of the ever merciful tirunaRaiyoor Nambi! taliraDiyE aDai nenjE! (7)
talaiyArnda iLaNkamukin taDamsOlai tirunaRaiyoor |
malaiyArnda kOlam sEr maNimADam mikamanni
nilaiyAra ninRAn tan neeLkazhalE aDai nenjE! (8)
1535. The vast wealthy groves of tirunaRaiyoor have abundant young areca nut trees (kamugu or pAkku maram). These trees have bunches of ripe areca nut fruits (kulai Arnda pazhaNkAyum), raw areca nut fruits yet to ripen and its flowers resembling white pearls decorating the crown of the trees (talai Arnda), hence beautifying the groves.
The charming emperumAn Nambi stands majestically (nilai Ara- in ninra tirukkOlam)) in this divya dEsam resembling a mountain (malai Arnda) having chosen the beautiful maNi mADa kOvil as his permanent residence.
Oh nenjE! surrender to the broad appealing feet of this Nambi! neeLkkazhalE aDai nenjE! (8)
niRaiyAra vAn mooDum neeL selva tirunaRaiyoor |
piRaiyArum saDaiyAnum piramanum mun tozhudEtta
iRaiyAki ninRAn tan iNaiyaDiyE aDai nenjE! (9)
1536. TirunaRaiyoor divya kshEtram is the abode of vedic scholars who practice and preserve the vEdas with dedication, says AzhvAr. They regularly perform sacrifices as prescribed in the vEdic scriptures (maRai Arum). The fragrant auspicious smoke arising from these sacrifices reaches the vast sky completely shielding it (niRai Ara).
Lord BrahmA (piraman) and Shiva who adorns the crescent moon (piRai Arum) serve the Lord and sing praises of this emperumAn brimming with divinity (iRai Agi). He is the one who resides in this affluent divine tirunaRaiyoor!
Oh nenjE! Take the shelter unto the holy feet of tirunaRaiyoor Nambi who is master or Swami of all! iNai aDiyE aDai nenjE! (9)
PHALA SHRUTI
vaNkaLaga nilaveRikkum vayal maNgai nagarALan |
paNkaLagam payinRa seer pADalivai pattum vallAr
viNkaLagattu imaiyavarAi veeRRirundu vAzhvArE! (10)
1537. The chief of tirumangai (vayal mangai) belongs to the prosperous land with paddy fields and attractive swans (vankalagam) as white as the moon amidst the lotus ponds. AzhvAr strung these ten soulful pAsurams in a sweet musical melody of notes (paNkalakam), on the attributes of the emperumAn Nambi whose supreme abode (vinkalagam) is the prosperous tirunaRaiyoor kshEtram enclosed by sturdy majestic walls made of limestone (tinkalagam). Those who sing these ten verses will be elevated to join the group of nityasooris and abode in Paramapadam (10)
PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 6.10
PASURAMS 1538 -1547
TIRUNARAIYOOR - 7/10
This padigam (set of 10) is unique as it concludes with the sacred words "NamO NArAyANamE".
Though the first and last syllables of tirumandiram is missing in the phrase, it is assumed to include those also without doubt. Having tasted the grace of His AchArya who performed pancha samskaaram, AzhvAr wishes that we should also recite this TirunaRaiyoor sthalam emperumAn nambi "NarayaNa's name and get uplifted.
iDanda nambi engaLnambi erigyar araNazhiya |
kaDanda nambi kaDiyArilangai ulahai eeraDiyAl
naDanda nambi nAmam Sollil namO nArAyaNamE || (1)
To shed the tiredness when He emerged with mother Earth as Lord VarAha and to relax after having killed the demons as Lord RAma and to completely rest after measuring three feet to teach a lesson to MahAbali as VAmana, AzhvAr feels that Nambi relaxes at TirunaRaiyoor comfortably. Nambi's name itself is tirumandiram an those who utter them would attain mOksha assures AzhvAr. (1)
taDandAmaraineer poihai pukku mikkatADALan |
iDandAn vaiyyam kEzhalAhi ulahai eeraDiyAl
naDandAnuDaiya nAmam Sollil namO nArAyaNamE || (2)
All those who recite the name of emperumAn (here tirumandiram) would reach the divine destiny VaikuNTam chants Kaliyan. Which emperumAn?
AzhvAr quotes the Lords various Avatars......
Once, when he danced merrily on the heads of the venomous snake kAliyan during KrishNAvatAra (மிக்க தாளாளன்) .
When he lifted and brought bhoomi during his varAha avatAra. (குழல் ஆகி).
When he measured the world with his tiruvaDi during His Tiruvikrama avatAra (ஈர் அடியால் உலகை நடந்தானுடைய). It is the same emperumAn's paratvam that bhAgavatas should sing pallANDu, insists AzhvAr. (2)
pENAnvAngi amudam koNDa perumAn tirumArvan |
pANAvaNDu muralum koondal Aichchi tayir veNNei
nANAduNDAn nAmam Sollil namO nArAyaNamE || (3)
AzhvAr recollects 4 familiar anecdotes in this pAsuram.
1.KrishNa and KuvalayApeeDam.....
Krishna's maternal uncle Kamsa cunningly sent a fierce elephant kuvalayApeeDam to stand at the palace gate to finish Krishna. But the geetAchAryan pulled out its tusk (as easily as one would pluck a creeper from a pond) and destroyed it using the same as a weapon.
2. KsheerAbdi Kannigai.....
When emperumAn churned the milky ocean tirupaarkaDal, using vasuki as a churner and when the divine nectar (amudam) popped up, he made the dEvas consume them and attain immortality. Then, when Sri MahAlakshmi emerged from the ocean (to shower Her krupA kaTAksham to all), Lord VishNu adorned her permanently in His (Alarmel Mangai uraimaarban) tirumArbu (hRudayam) as his paTTamahishee.
3. Little KrishNa's shameless pranks... (Soulabyam)
Mother YashodA born in the clad of Aychchi (who wears the flowers which were rich in fragrance and were desirously sought by the bees ) caught naughty KaNNan red handed and punished ruthlessly when He stole the rich butter and curd of TiruvAypADi.
AzhvAr pleads us all to recite with faith the sacred tirumandiram and fulfill the cause of our birth and secure the blessings of the Lord who has been the sootra dhAree in the above incidents.(3)
ellAvulahum vaNanga irunda ammAn ilangaikkOn |
vallALAham villAl muninda endai vibeeDaNarku
nallAnuDaiya nAmam Sollil namO nArAyaNamE || (4)
AzhvAr says all can pray with faith and devotion and simultaneously chant tirumandiram at TirunaRaiyoor which is also the name of the Lord who is residing at TirupADagam* (one among the 108 Sri VaishNava divya desam in Kancheepuram and tirukachchi is popular for its strong architectural walls and structure) and the Lord who won rAvaNa and the one who gave sharaNam to VibheeShana AzhvAr.
*PADagam....A brief note on this sthalam..
(pADu = perumai ; agam = sannidhi.)
Lord Krishna in the sanctum sanctorum is 35 feet tall. He is pressing His feet here with His VishwapAda yoga powers. He is praised here as pANDavadoota PerumAL went to the court of duryOdhana as he played envoy to PaNDava brothers. It is also said that the Lord rewarded king JanamEjaya with His Vishwaroopa darshan in this place. This incident is also referred in PERIYA TIRUMOZHI 9.1.8 பெரியமாமேனி அண்டம் ஊடுருவப் பெருந்திசை அடங்கிட நிமிர்ந்தோன். (4)
viDaitAnEzhum venrAnkOval ninrAn tennilangai |
aDaiyAvarakkar veeya porudu mEvi vengooRRam
naDaiyAvuNNa kaNDAn nAmam namO nArAyaNamE || (5)
In this song, AzhvAr interestingly recollects perumAL's astonishing deeds in His VishEsha avataras. (LeelA VinOdangal)
First incident AzhvAr shares with us is when the cowherds broke their customary worship and worshipped Krishna and offered varieties of sweets and loads of (anna kooTai) prasAdam at Govardana hills, Lord DEvEndra angrily showered thunderous heavy rains for seven consecutive days. Lord KrishNa by his timely divine gesture, lifted the mountain as an umbrella and saved the cattle folk and the people of Govardana from being washed away in the rains.
Second is when perumAL controlled the seven bulls and married Nappinnai.
Last is when EmperumAn in His RamAvatAra, allowed King Yama to enter the kingdom of LankA and capture all the rAkshasas with ease. (It is believed that Yama normally feared to enter Lanka as rAvaNa is a mighty warrior.
AzhvAr concludes that TirukOvaloor emperuman has all these qualities and he is ready to grant our boons. Hence, AzhvAr assures us that if we worship Nambi (who is the embodiment of all perumALs described above and chant the verses NamO NArAyaNa, we can definitely reach Shree VaikuNTham. (5)
mAnamazhittu ninravenriyammAn enakkenrum |
tEnum pAlum amudumAya tirumAl tirunAmam
nAnum SonnEn namarum uraimin namO nArAyaNamE || (6)
AzhvAr recites that bhAgavan RAma defeated and killed all the Lankan demons (who had the wild bears and monkeys as their supportive army) effortlessly.
Tirumangai mannan, AlinADan firmly believes that uttering bhagavAn's tirunAmam is like consuming honey and milk. I have chanted with faith says AzhvAr. (நானும் சொன்னேன்)
Come, join hands with me and utter the magic words in this divya desam invites AzhvAr. (6)
onRum ozhiyAvaNNam eNNininra ammAnAr |
kunRukuDaiyA eDutta aDigaLuDaiya tirunAmam
nanRu kANmin toNDeerSonnEn namO nArAyaNamE || (7)
AzhvAr expresses his opinion in an elegant style in this pAsuram. Kaliyan repeats the incident of gOvardhana hill in this song also.
AzhvAr insists all His devotees to surrender at His lotus feet by constantly chanting His (who has created the earth, ocean and other Panchabhootas solely by His desire (Sankalpam) divya nAmams at tirunaRaiyoor.(7)
paDungAl neeyE SaraNenru Ayaranja anjAmun |
neDungAl kunRam kuDaiyonrEndi niraiyai SiramattAl
naDungAvaNNam kAttAn nAmam namO nArAyaNamE || (8)
AzhvAr repeats how KrishNa helped the cowherds instantly when they pleaded him to save them from Lord Indra who showered with anger, thunderous rainfall with heavy wind and stone-fall. All should recite the (sacred eight letter word) name of the God who lifted the Govardhana giri, insists Tirumangai Mannan in this song. (8)
mangai piraman Sivan indiranvAnavar nAyaharAya |
engaLaDihaL imaiyOr talaivaruDaiya tirunAmam
nangaL vinaihaL tavira uraimin namO nArAyaNamE || (9)
AzhvAr inscribes that it is evident from the eight syllable that emperumAn is the ultimate nAthan of Bhoomi pirATTi (who wears the milky ocean has her attire) Periya pirATTi, Brahma DEva, Shiva, Indra and other dEvas. By these verses, AzhvAr establishes the meaning of NamO NArAyaNa in this pAsuram.(9)
nAvilparavi nenjilkoNDu nambi nAmattai |
kAvittaDangaN maDavAr kELvan kaliyan olimAlai
mEviSolla vallArhaL pAvam nillAveeyumE || (10)
Whoever in the entire universe chants the divine eight syllable word "NamO NArAyaNa" and ever wonders about the Almighty and recites these ten stanzas sung by tirumangai king in praise of tirunaRaiyoor (a place which is densely surrounded by ponds and manimuthaaru*) nambi would certainly shed their paapas (sins) and find their dwelling in par with nityasooris.
*The Manimuttaaru that flows in TirukOShTiyoor is different. The one referred here is the divya pushkarini of tirunaRaiyoor.(10)
மதிள் நீரிலங்கையழித்த வில்லா!
இவற்றை எல்லாம் இன்பமாக அனுபவித்துக் கொண்டிருக்கிறோம். நாலுகவி யிலும் எழுதும் வல்லவர் ஆதலால் ஆழ்வார் ஒவ்வொரு பத்திலும், அற்புதமான கவிதை பந்தங்களை அள்ளிக் கொடுத்துள்ளார். அவற்றின் மகிமையை வார்த்தைகளால் வர்ணிக்க இயலா!!! மிகக் குறைவான பதங்களிலேயே , மிக உயரிய விரிவான விளக்கங்களையும் தத்துவங்களையும் கூறுவதில் ஆழ்வார் மிகவும் திறம் கொண்டவராக காண்கிறோம்.
ஆழ்வாரின் தமிழ் மொழி ஆளுகைக்கு ஒரு சிறிய உதாரணத்தை இங்கு பார்ப்போம். இராமபிரானின் வீரத்தை சிறப்பாக அனுபவிக்கும் ஆழ்வார், இராமபிரான் இலங்கை சென்று இராவணனை வெற்றி கொண்டதை இந்த பத்தில் மட்டுமே 11 இடத்தில் கூறி உள்ளார். விஷயம் ஒன்றே தான் என்றாலும், ஒரு ஒரு இடத்திலும் ஒவ்வொரு சிறப்பை ப்ரஸ்தாபித்து, அந்தந்த பாசுரத்தின் போக்கிற்கு தக்கபடி அழகாக கூறுகிறார். என்னே தமிழ் வளம்!!!
பாசுர வரிகளைக் கீழே கொடுத்துள்ளேன். அனைவரும் படித்து , ஆழ்வாரின் அருளைப் பெறுவோம்.
மல்லலம் சீர் மதிள்நீரிலங்கையழித்த வில்லா! (6-2-6),
வற்றா நீள்கடல் சூழ் இலங்கையிராவணனைச் செற்றாய்! கொற்றவனே! (6-3-5),
தொன்னீரிலங்கை மலங்க விலங்கெரியூட்டினான் (6-4-6),
ஆனைப் புரவித்தேரொடு காலாளணி கொண்ட சேனைத்தொகையைச்சாடி இலங்கை செற்றானூர் (6-5-3)
விண்டநிசாசரரை தோளும் தலையும் துணிவெய்த சுடுவெஞ்சிலை வாய்ச்சரந்துரந்தான் (6-7-1)
கல்லார் மதிள்சூழ் கடியிலங்கைக்காரரக்கன் வல்லாகம்கீள வரிவெஞ்சுரம் துரந்த வில்லானை (6-8-5)
பழியாரும் விறலரக்கன் பருமுடிகளவை சிதற அழலாரும் சரந்துரந்தான் (6-9-2)
எழிஞரரணழிய கடந்த நம்பி கடியாரிலங்கை (6-10-1)
இலங்கைக்கோன் வல்லாளாகம் வில்லால் முனிந்த எந்தை (6-10-4)
தென்னிலங்கை அடையா அரக்கர்வீயப் பொருது மேவி வெங்கூற்றம் நடையாவுண்ணக்கண்டான் (6-10-5)
கானஎண்கும் குரங்கும் முசுவும் படையா அடலக்கர் மானமழித்து நின்ற வென்றியம்மான் (6-10-6)
ஸ்வாமி தேசிகன் கூட இராம காதையின் சுருக்கமாக எழுதியுள்ள இரகுவீர கத்யத்தில், ஜெய ஜெய மஹாவீர! என்றே துவங்குகிறார். கல்யாண குணங்கள் நிறைந்திருந்தாலும், இராம பிரானின் வீரத்திலேயே ஆழ்வார்கள், ஆச்சாரியர்கள் யாவரும் ஈர்க்கப்பட்டுள்ளனர். நாமும் அந்த சினத்தினால் தென்னிலங்கை கோமானைச் செற்ற _மனத்துக்கு இனியானை_ பாடி, அவர் திருவடி பற்றி நற்கதி அடைவோம்.
TIRUMANGAI AZHVAR TIRUVADIGALE SHARANAM
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