Thiruppavai Vyakyanam by PBA Swami

Azhvar EmperumAnAr Andal Jeeyer thiruvadigalE sharanam

Pictures courtesy: www.pbase.com/svami

PB Annangarachariar swamy’s anubhavams on Thiruppavai

(Thiruppalliezhuchi for azhvars) Translated in English by Smt. Sumithra Varadarajan



1. “pullum silambina kAn”........................................................................................... 3 2. “Keesu keesendru” ..................................................................................................... 5 3. “keezhvAnam vel endru”.......................................................................................... 7 4. “Thoomani mAdaththu”.......................................................................................... 10 5. “nOttru suvargam” ................................................................................................... 14 6. “kattru karavai”......................................................................................................... 16 7. “kanaiththilam kattrerumai” .................................................................................. 19 8. “PullinvAi keendAnai” ........................................................................................... 23 9.”Vungal puzhakkadai” ............................................................................................. 26 10. “ellE elankiliyE”...................................................................................................... 27



“poigaiyAr bhoodhaththAr pEyAr pugazh mazhisai iyan arul mAran sEralarkOn-tuiyapatta

nAdhan anbartAl thooli narpAnan nankaliyan edhivar thOtrath thadaivAm engu”

“In her divine work thiruppavai, our dear godhA piratti, soodikodduththa nAchiyar Sri Andal, from the sixth to the fifteenth paasuram awakens the ten Azhvars”, enjoys our poorvacharyas in their svabhadeshArtham (these are special anubhavams of our acharyas which are near and dear to their heart). Andal is regarded as “anju kudikkoru sandhadhi” (as a daughter to all the Azhvars). In the above mentioned ten paasurams andal awakens the Azhvars one by one starting with periyAzhvar, andal’s foster father who brought her up and then she goes in a descending order till poigai azhvar and in the following seven paasurams explains the seven thirunAmams respectively. Then she proceeds to wake up the 3 azhvars, anbartAl thooli, narpAnan and nankaliyan who are going to take birth in future predicting their birth by her jnana drishti. Sri PrathivAdi bhayangaram annangaracharya swamy deeply immerses himself in the anubhavam of andal singing thirupalliezhuchi to the various Azhvars in her paasurams and explains the correlations in meanings and words in the lines of andal that indicates the Azhvars. Let us also enjoy swamy’s anubhavams to the smallest extent possible.

1. “pullum silambina kAn” This paasuram awakens periyAzhvar (periyAzhvar thirupalliezhuchi). Andal calls periAzhvar as “pillAi!” One who is ignorant is called as “pillAi”. What is periAzhvar’s ignorance? Periazhvar is ignorant (has forgotten) of the fact that perumal is sarva rakshakan (one who is the saviour of all) and hence he does mangalasasanams to perumal for the welfare of emperuman. Hence andal calls periAzhvar as “pillAi”. “jnana vibhAga kAryamAna agnAnaththAlE varumavaiellAm adikazhanju perum” says pillai ulagAriyan in his Srivachana bhooshanam. Here lokAcharya shows that agnanam (the agnanam that has arised due to the ultimate jnanam covered due to love and devotion) is the root for mangalAsAsanam. Since this azhvar has spent most of his time in the garden, in this paasuram andal starts the paasuram indicating the atmosphere in a garden, “pullum silambina kAn”. “Pullaraiyan” refers to Periya thiruvadi (Sri garudAzhvan).



According to the guru parampara prabhAvam periAzhvar is supposed to be the avathara of Periya thiruvadi (“vainathEyAmsa sambhoodham vishnuchittham aham bhajE”). Here andal indicates the same and says “pullaraiyan”.

Periyazhvar-Thiruvallikeni

“vellai vilisangu” is a phrase which has been first used by periAzhvar (periAzhvar thirumozhi 4-1-7). Andal repeats the same in this paasuram to strongly show the correlation of this paasuram to periAzhvar. “peimulai nanjundu”-- PeriAzhvar, out of all the leelas of Krishna, first talks only about the incident of Krishna drinking the poisoned milk of bhoothanai in periyAzhvar thirumozhi (seedhakadalul) “pirangiya pEichi mulai suvaitundittu” says periAzhvar in another paasuram. In one another paasuram “nAlgalOr nAlaindhu” periAzhvar combines the incident of sagadAsurabhangam along with the above incident. So Andal here also says, “peimulai nanjundu kalla sagadam kalakkazhiya kAlOchchi”. “vella tharavil thuyilamarindha viththinai vullaththukkonda munivargalum



yOgigalum” says andal. PeriAzhvar is called as “Vishnu chittar”-one whose mind is always filled with the thought of lord Vishnu. So the above line of andal also indicates towards periAzhvar. Now that andal has awakened periAzhvar in this paasuram lets see how she awakens kulasekara perumAn in the next paasuram.

2. “Keesu keesendru” In the next paasuram, “keesu keesendru” Sri Andal awakens Sri kulasekara azhvar. In this andal refers to kulasekara azhvar with three phrases, “pEy pennE! Nayaka pen pillAi! DEsamudaiyAi!” Kulasekara Azhvar in his perumal thirumozhi, “meiyil vAzhkkaiyai” padhigam calls himself to be a pEyan. Later in his other padhigams, viz., “Er malar poonguzhal, Alaineel karumbhu, mannupugazh kOsalaithan” this azhvar talks considering himself to be a girl. Since kulasekarar declares himself to be “kollikAvalan koodalnAyakan” andal calls him nAyaka pen pillAi. The gem in the center of a garland is referred to as “nAyaka kal”. In the acharya guruparamparai garland EmperumAnAr is considered to be the nadunAyakam (one in the middle). Swamy desikan says this in his ethirAja sapthadhi as “ethirAjEna nibhaththa nAyaka sri: mahathee gurupankthi hArayasti:” Similarly among the Azhvars kulasekarar stands in the middle. On one side of the garland stands the first five, viz., poigaiyAr, bhoodhathAr, pEyAr, mazhisai pirAn and mAran and on the other side, pattanAthan, kOdhai, thondaradipodi, panperumal and kaliyan. Hence it is apt to call kulasekarar in the middle as nAyaka pen pillAi. (DesamudaiyAi) In bhagavat geetha Sri Krishna says, “sowryam thEjO thruthir dhAkshyam-kshAthram karma svabhAvajam” where tEjas has been told to be a characteristic of kshatriyas. Thereby calling kulasekara perumal as desamudiyai! does suit him. Further according to the acharya hrudhaya sutra, “dEvathvamum niththaiyAnavanukku olivarum janigal pOlE rajajanmamum ezhukkenbArkku pandai nAlil piravi vunnAttudEsirE” and Periya thiruvandhAdhi (79) paasuram, which has been the root cause for the above sutra, “ mannAttil ArAgi evvizhivittrAnAlum, Azhiangai pErAyarkku AlAm pirappu-vunnAttu dEsandrE” tEjas actually refers to that birth which supports bhagavat seshatvam. Kulasekara azhvar in his “voonEru selvaththu” padhigam clearly shows his deep wish to take a birth to do kainkaryam to emperuman in any form. Hence there is no mistake in calling him “dEsamudaiyAi!”



In this paasuram, andal uses the word “Anai sAththan”. This is actually a word in malayalam which refers to a bird (Anasaththam). Since this azhvar took birth in kerala probably this word is used in this paasuram. “kAsum pirappum” reminds the jewellery incident in the life of kulasekara azhvar. “Arankeda parananbar kollAr endru avargalukkE vArankeda kudappAmbil kaiittavan” says a thaniyan on kulasekara azhvar. The line “vAsanarun kuzhalAychiyar maththinAl Osai paduththa thayiraravam” brings to our memory the following lines in perumal thirumozhi, “kendai onkan madavAloruththi keezhaiyagaththu thayir kadaiyakkandu vandamar poonkuzhal thAzhindhulAva thaN thayir nee kadainthitta vannam”

Kulasekara Azhvar

(nArAyanan moorthi kesavanai pAdavum) kesavan refers to the incident in krishnavatAram where lord Krishna killed the asura, kEsi who came in the form of a horse. Kulasekara azhvar first of all talks only about this incident in his prabhandam as “mAvinai vAipilandhukandha mAlai”. And azhvar completes his prabhandam saying, “nalanthigazh nArananadi keezh naNNuvArE”.



(kEttE kidaththiyO) This azhvar has always enjoyed hearing Sri rAmAyanam from bhagavatas and not stopping with listening he got deeply immersed in the same and has even started off with his army to help rAmA fight the asuras. With the above points it is clear that in this paasuram andal awakens kulasekara azhvar. Next, we will enjoy how Sri GOdhA nAchiyar awakens vagulabhooshana bhAskaran, prapanajana koodasthar mAran satAkOpan Sri nammAzhvar.

3. “keezhvAnam vel endru” In the next paasuram, Sri Andal awakens nammAzhvar who is prior to kulasekarar in the descending hierarchy of Azhvars. “kOdhukalamudaiya pAvAi!” refers to Sri NammAzhvar. There is a common error prevailing for a long time to recite “kOdhukulamudaiya “instead of “kOdhukalamudaiya”. In Sanskrit, “Kowdhoohalam” means wish. Only that term has been changed to “kOdhukalam” in tamil. Even periyAzhvar says, “kOdhukalamudaiya kuttanEyO”. Here the wish is towards emperuman or otherwise those who have got the wish of emperuman towards them. Sri parasara bhattar while talking about nammazhvar says, “rushim jushAmahE krishnatrishnA thathva mivOdhitam” meaning that nammazhvar is a sole representation of Krishna kudhoohalam. Again krishnatrishnA came be either trishna towards Krishna or krishna’s trishna (love towards Krishna or krishna’s love). Nammazhvar himself shows his feeling in the following paasuram, “kaimAdhunpozhiththAyendru kaithalai poosalittE, meimAlA ozhindhEn embhirAnum en mElAnE”. Like reflecting words of geethacharyan, “priyOhi jnAni nOthyarththam aham sacha mama priya:” nammazhvar remained with deep love towards emperuman who was filled with great love towards azhvar. The phrase “pAvAi!” also suits nammazhvar. In thiruvAimozhi, Azhvar in many places, viz., “soozhvinai yAttiyEn pAvaiyE” “enpAvai pOyiniththaN pazhanaththirukkOloorkE” calls himself similarly.



Nammazhvar-Thiruvallikeni

The word “ezhundirai” should clearly refer only to nammazhvar as he is the azhvar who is seen in sitting posture in all divyadesams. Our poorvAcharyas admire this posture as “padmAsanOpa vishtam”. So it will be meaningful only to ask a person sitting to stand up. (keezhvAnam vellendru) Only during the sooryOdhaya time the eastern side of the sky will be clear. Similarly the rise of vagulabhooshana bhAskaran in the starting period of kali Yuga has cleared the minds of people. The lower part of the sky here refers to leela vibhuti and the upper part is the nithya vibhuthi. Due to the thiruvaimozhi paasurams of azhvar, this leela vibhuthi has been turned to nithya vibhuthi (“OrAyiraththul eppaththu vuraikka vallArkku vaikundamAgum thammoorellAm”, “vaiyam manni veetrirundhu vinnumAlvar mannoodE”).



(erumaisiru veedu mEivAn) veedu means moksham. Siru veedu refers to kaivalyam. This reference has been first used by nammazhvar in his paasuram, “kurugamiga vunarvaththodu nOki”. ‘erumai’ refers to thAmasaprakrudhigal (those filled with thAmasa guna). Before the thiru-avadhAram of nammAzhvar many people where filled with thAmasa guna and hence they reached siruveedu (kaivalyam) instead of the real moksha. (mikkulla pillaigalum ….) The action of stopping the rest of the gopis from proceeding and halting in front of this gopi’s house shows the importance of this gopi in their group, which again indicates the greatness of nammazhvar, prapanna jana koodasthar among the group of Azhvars. (pOvAn pOginrAnai) The usage of this phrase is amazing. Will we ever say they are going for going, Then why this usage? This is to show that the action of going itself is the goal (svayamprayOjanam). Such a usage has been first done by nammazhvar in his thiruviruththam “pOvAn vazhikonda mEgangalE!” (vunnai koovuvAn vandhu nindrOm) “koovikkollum kAlamennum kurukAdhO” “ennai kooviarulAi kannanE” “koovikkollAi vandhandhO” wishes nammazhvar in many paasurams and hence andal puts the above phrase to make him happy. (mAvAi pilandha dEvAdhi dEvanai) Similar to andal’s nOmbhu in thiruppavai nammazhvar also sings 10 paasurams with the same feelings. In his thiruvAimozhi “veetrirundhEzhulagam” nammazhvar says “EttranOttrErkku” in the start and ends with “vanthamizh noorka nORREn” and in this azhvar enjoys devAdhi dEvan starting with his mAvAi pilandha leelai in the first paasuram (“vemmApilandhAn thannai”). In his first prabhandham azhvar enjoys devAdhirajan as “emaiyOr thalaivA!” and as “ayarvarum amarargal adhipathi” in his last prabhandam. (sendru nAm sEviththAl) “vAnanAyakanE! Adiyen thozha vandharulE” Azhvar called emperuman to come and give him darshan but now andal calls azhvar to accompany her to go and have darshan of emperuman. (avAvendru) Andal says that as per azhvar’s wish, “AvAvena virangAr andhO validhE kol, mAvAi pilandhAr manam”, “and adiyErkku avAvennAyE“ mAvAi



pillandha emperuman will say ” avA”. (ArAindhu) thereby azhvar’s wish “Arennai arAivAr” will also be satisfied.

4. “Thoomani mAdaththu” In the next paasuram, “thoomani mAdaththu” andal awakens the next earlier azhvar, thirumazhisai pirAn. Here the phrase “mAmAn magalE” refers to a bodily relationship. Thirumazhisai azhvar and andal have a sort of bodily relationship. As per Sri desikan’s godhasthuthi, “kamalAmivAnyAm gOdhAm” and “sandha:payOdhi dhuhidhus sahajAm vidhustvAm” andal is none other than sri mahalakshmi and as per amarakosham “bhArgavee lOkajanani ksheerasAgara sambhavA” and as per the puranas lakshmi (andal) was born in brughu kulam. As per the charitram of thirumazhisai azhvar, he was also born in bhrughu kulam. So the fact that both of them were born in the same kulam has to be kept in mind. Azhvar took birth as a son of a rishi and then was brought up by a hunter (pirambhan kudi). Andal was born as a daughter to a brahmin and changed herself as a gopika.

Thirumazhisai azhvar-Thirumazhisai



Thoomani mAdhaththu- the manikka gem inside the shell will not be clearly visible. Thirumazhisai azhvar requests emperuman to show him the darshan of emperuman as he is inside “vutkidandha vannamE puramposindhu kAtitE” and emperuman did as per the wish of azhvar and hence it is appropriate to use thoomanimAdhaththu to refer to thirumazhisai pirAn. Suttrum vilakkeriya- here the lamp is the light of knowledge (jnana oli). As per the verse, “sAkiyam kattrOm, samanam kattrOm, sankaranAr Akkiya Agamanool ArAindhOm” this azhvar has learned all philosophies and hence got a clear knowledge which is referred to as suttrum vilakkeriya. Azhvar himself declares this in his paasurams as “yAnarindhavAru ArarivAr” and “en madhikku vinnellAm vundO vilai” dhoobham kamazha- It is not enough if one has deep knowledge it has to be practiced and the knowledge should flourish. One who has deep knowledge will submit him to the divine feet of emperuman and will not fall to the feet of any other deity even due to loss of memory (marandhum puram thozhA mAndhar) tuyilanaimEl kanvalarum- This azhvar was deeply involved with emperuman’s in sayana thirukolam (reclining posture). Thirumazhisai azhvar spent most of his time in kachchi vekka and thirukkudandhai. Azhvar lists the divya desams in which emperuman is seen in reclining posture as “nAgaththanai kudandhai vekkA thiruevvul nAgaththanai arangam pEr anbil nagaththanai pArkadal kidakkum Adhi nedumAl anaippAr karuththanAvAn” tuyilanaimEl kanvalarum mAmAnmagalE- the word magal shows the closeness (vedhEyathvam). It is a practice for a daughter to listen to the words of the father and visa versa. MAmAn refers to mahA mahAn (greatest among the great). TuyilanaimEl kanvalarum mahA mahAn is none other than the emperuman in thiruvekka (sonna vannam seidha perumal, yadhOthakAri) who did as per the words of azhvar. Emperuman obliged to the words of azhvar when he said, “kanikannan pOgindrAn neeyum vun painAgappAi surittikkol” and again later when azhvar said, “vun painAgappAi viriththukkol”. Then another perumal, thirukkudandhai AravamudhAzhvan who also reclines on the divine serpant adhisesha listened to azhvar’s words “ezhundirundhu pEsu vAzhikEsanE” and thereby even today gives darshan in the half reclining and half getting up posture (uththAna sayanam).



Otherwise mAman can refer to the great pEyazhvar who enlightened thirumazhisai pirAn and brought him to our sampradayam. In the thaniyan, “bhoodham sarascha” pEiyazhvar has been referred to as mahadhAhvaya.

vunmagal thAn voomaiyO- dumb people express their ideas with actions. Similarly in perum puliyur azhvar on his way halted in front of a Brahmins house. There some brahmanas were chanting some vedic mantras. On seeing azhvar not knowing azhvar’s greatness, considering him to be a low caste person not wanting the vedic mantras to be heard by him stopped the chanting. Understanding the same azhvar left that place and seated himself in front of another house. The brahmanas wanted to continue chanting but were unable to recollect the place they stopped. Immediately azhvar took a black grain and spilt it with his nail and indicated the meaning of the vedic manthra where they stopped (“krushnAnAm vreeheenAm naganirbhinnam”. Immediately the Brahmins understood azhvar’s greatness and thereby prostrasted azhvar and showed their deep respect towards the great mahan. Since azhvar indicated the manthra through action andal wonders if he is dumb. SevidO- a person whose ears have lost the power of listening. In the same perumpuliyur incident some Brahmins invited azhvar to a yagna where some others insulted azhvar like sisupala who insulted Krishna in krishnavatharam. Azhvar shut his ears to the insulting words of those persons and hence andal wonders if he is a deaf person. AnathalO- are you asleep? Sleep for paramaikAnthis is shutting their eyes towards anything other than bhagavat vishayam. Azhvar says, “vunnai theriththezhudhi vAsiththum kettu vanangi vazhi pattum poosiththum pOkkinEn pOdhu” and “thozhilenakku thollaimAl thannAmamEththa pozhudhu enakku mattradhuvE pOdhum”. This mental state of azhvar itself is a sleep for him from other matters. A-mapperunthuyil mandhirappattAlO- More than the other Azhvars, this azhvar had a special attraction towards emperuman and special separation from other issues and hence he was in the state of perunthuyil. “pidhiru manamillEn piggnagan thannOdedhirvan, avanenakku nErAn” says azhvar. This strength in words is the speciality of thirumazhisai pirAn.



MAmAyan- “mAyamenna mAyamE” and “mAyamAya mAkkinAi vun mAyamuttrum mAyamE” says azhvar about the mayam (the astonishing act) of emperuman in various places.

BhakthisArar -Thirumazhisai

MAdhavan- “mAdhavanai ethAdhAr eenavarE” says azhvar. Further in another place azhvar says, “thiruvillAth dEvarai thErEnmin dEvu” Vaikundan- Azhvar declared himself to be the person who has sung his paasurams on vaikundan “vaikunda selvanar sevadimEl pAttu”. Hence it is clear that this azhvar has enjoyed singing the thirunamams of mAmAyan, mAdhavan and vaikundan in his paasurams.



5. “nOttru suvargam” In the next paasuram, “nOttru suvargam” Sri Andal awakens the next elder azhvar to thirumazhisaipiran, pEyAzhvar. The yogis, the mudal Azhvars, poigai, bhoodham and pey kept on moving from one place to another without meeting each other till the day when emperuman decided to enjoy their satsangam in the corridor (edaikazhi) in thirukkovaloor. Thiruvarangathamudhanar in his nootrandhAdhi says about pEyAzhvar as follows: “manniya pErirul mAndapin kOvalul mAmalarAl thannOdu mAyanai kandamai kAttum thamizh thalaivan”. Poigai azhvar and bhoodhaththAzhvar lit two lamps and in that light the third among them, pEyAzhvar saw emperuman and sang, “ThirukkandEn ponmEni kandEn”. This meaning has been shown in the very first line of andal’s paasuram. NOttru: The other two Azhvars lighted two lamps and did the required upAyAnushtAnam. Suvargam is nothing but anandAnubhavam (relishing happiness) Piratti in Sri Ramayana says, “yestvayA saha sa svargO nirayOya stvayAvinA”. VAsal thiravAdhAr: In thirukkovaloor, poigaiazhvar entered first and closed the door. Then bhoodhaththAzhvar came and hence poigayar opened the door for bhoodhaththAzhvar. When pEyAzhvar came bhoodhaththAr opened the door for him. But since no one came after pEyazhvar andal here calls him as vAsal thiravAdhar. This is a very apt phrase for pEyAzhvar. NAttraththuzhAi mudi nArAyanan: PeyAzhvar is very fond of the thiruththuzhAi, which emperuman adorns and hence he sings about the thiruththuzhai in many places. In the second paasuram, in his moondram thiruvandhAdhi he says, “ponthOi varai mArbil poonthuzhai” and in the ending paasuram,”thaNthuzhAithAr vAzhvarai mArban”. In between also in many paasurams azhvar talks about narayanan and the thiruththuzhai he adorns. In the ninth paasuram (nAmam pala solli), azhvar talks about narayanan, thiruththuzhai and kannan simultaneously. PandorunAl…... Andal awakens azhvar equating him to kumbakarnan. Andal says, “You were the person who sang, “kAnkAn ena virumbum kangal” and wanted to have darshan of emperuman always not stopping even for a second, then how come you are sleeping so long winning over even kumbakarna who is supposed to be the best sleeper.” Kootraththin vAi veezhdha – the one who reached the southern direction, kumbakaranan or the one who has the kumbam as the reason for birth, i.e.,



agaththiyar who was born from a kumbam (a type of holy vessel) lost to your Tamil scholarship. That is why amudhanar also praises pEyAzhvar as thamizh thalaivan.

Peyazhvar at his avatara stalam-Thirumayilai

In this paasuram andal talks about Sri rAmapiran in the middle to indicate pEyAzhvar doing the same in the middle of his thiruvandhAdhi (“avanE-elangApura meriththAneidhu” and “eidhadhuvum then elangai kOn veezha”) In the previous paasuram andal while awakening thirumazhisaipiran says “ananthalO” whereas here she says “AttraanandhaludaiyAi!” This is because this azhvar is an acharya to thirumazhisaipiran and hence has been given a special adjective. Ananthal does not refer to the ordinary sleep but here it refers to the height of paramaikAnthikam, which has been greatly celebrated in the sastras as “vurOvinyastha hastAsthE nidhrAyanthE sunirbharA:” ArunkalamE: This azhvar is the luckiest vessel who has received the grace of emperuman fully at the very start of his paasuram. Other Azhvars have strived to get emperuman’s darshan and has finally received the same but this azhvar in the very start sings, “thirukkandEN pon mEni kandEn”



PEyAzhvar at mAdamAmayilai Thiruvallikeni

ThEttramAi vandhu thira: “Your name itself is pEyAr (a mad person). So Oh! azhvar get to your self and come and open the door leaving your madness” awakens andal.

6. “kattru karavai” Next to pEyAzhvar in this paasuram “kattru karavai” Sri goda nAchiyar awakens bhoodhaththAzhvar. The phrase “kuttramondrilla kOvalar tham porkodiyE” suits bhoodhaththAzhvar very well. The word “kO” has a number of meanings. Out of the various meanings here it indicates srisookthi (works) as in the word “kOdha”. Kovalar thus indicates to the Azhvars who are capable of making many prabhandhams. The adjective “kuttramondrillAdha” suits only the mudal Azhvars (first Azhvars), the best, since they do not even have the fault of being born from the



fetus of a mother like the other Azhvars (they were ayonijargal who took avathar in a flower). PorkodiyE- In his own paasuram bhoodhaththAzhvar calls him to be a creeper, “kOl thEdiyOdum kozhundhadhE pOndradhE mAl thEdiyOdum manam”. The creeper, bhoodhaththAzhvar goes in the search of the tree, emperuman to climb over and sustain life. Kattru karavai ganangal pala karandhu- this indicates all the 3 mudal Azhvars. The rest of the Azhvars gave big paasurams whereas the mudal Azhvars gave short paasurams in venpA note (a type of poetry in tamil). The first thiruvandhAdhi (work of poigaiyazhvar) is regarded as ‘karavai ganam’ (group of milking cow), The second thiruvandhAdhi of bhoodhaththAzhvar is regarded as ‘karavai ganangal’ (in plural) and peyAzhvar’s third thiruvandhAdhi further changes the term to ‘karavai ganangal pala’ (lot of such groups). In this way by order there has been a change in the singular, dual and plural. SettrAr thiralazhiya sendru seruch cheiyum-we have to move from one place to another and win over the bhagavat virodhis (enemies to bhagavan and bhagavat vishayam) declares this very azhvar in his paasuram, “endesiyum pErtha karam nAngudaiyAn pErOdhi pEdhaikAl! TheerthakararAmin thirindhu” Puttraravalgul-This refers to the beauty of the hip. Hip in svapadEsa (poorvacharya interpretations) explanations refers to the strength of bhakthi. Among the three jnanam, bhakthi and virakthi, Bhakthi holds the center position and hence the beauty of the hip refers to beauty of bhakthi. This azhvar ends his prabhandham as, “endralavandral yAnudaiya anbu”. BhoodhaththAr started his prabhandam with anbu (love) and ended with the same, which clearly shows his bhakthi nishtai (deep love for emperuman). Punamayilai-this is one other good reference to this azhvar. Peacocks live in gardens (pozhil). This azhvar was born in thirukkadalmallai. Kaliyan (thirumangai azhvar) who did mangalasasanams to this divya desam, thirukkadalmalli at many places calls it to as “kadipozhil soozh kadal malli” (kadal malli, a place surrounded with beautiful gardens). Peacocks are very found of clouds. Clouds are formed due to the water absorbed from the sea. So peacocks live very happily near the seashore. This azhvar also stood in the seashore at mahabalipuram.



BhoodhatAzhvar at his avatara stalam-Thirukkadalmallai

(Photo courtesy: Sri B. Senthil Kumar)

SuttraththOzhimAr –poigaiyar and pEyar were relatives to bhoodhathAzhvar and the other Azhvars were friends. Mugil vannan pErpAda- only this azhvar sings first about mugilvannan, “vulAKeZhum muttrum vizhungum mugil vannam-Ethum ennenju”. It is natural for a peacock to praise only the emperuman with the colour of the clouds isn’t it!



7. “kanaiththilam kattrerumai” Next paasuram, “kanaiththilam kattrerumai” awakens poigaiyAzhvar, the next predecessor. Generally in sampradayam, sridevi is regarded as the younger sister and moo devi is regarded as the elder sister. Here andal refers to azhvar as “thangAi!” “chettai than madiyagaththu” says thirumaalai paasuram.

Poigaiazhvar -Thiruvallikeni

Here elder sister is referred to as chettai (jhesta is the term in Sanskrit). Sri Mahalakshmi took avataram in a lotus flower. Vazhi thirunAmam of poigaiyAzhvar says as follows: “vanasa malarkaruvadhanil vandhamaindhAn vAzhiyE” (one who took avatara in a lotus flower) indicating the birth of poigaiyAzhvar also in a lotus flower. Due to this similarity it is apt for poigaiyAr to be called “thangAi!” Andal’s phrase “ninaiththillam sErAkkum” also suits this



azhvar since he is the azhvar who sang “pazhudhE pala pagalum pOyinavendru anji azhudhEn” (I am crying in fear of loosing all my precious time in a useless manner). So with his tears this Azhvars wets his house and makes it messy. Being born in a lotus flower, the house of azhvar (poigai) itself is always marshy. Kanaiththu: It is a general practice for anyone to clear his/her throat before starting to talk something. There is no one who talked before poigaiazhvar. Being the first among the mudal Azhvars, poigaiazhvar first cleared his throat, which is indicated by andal in the term kanaiththu.

Poigaiazvar at his avathara stalam-Thiruvekka

Elam kattrerumai: erumai means mahishee (consort). By lakshitha lakshanAkramam (a grammar in sanskrit) this indicates “deva dEva divya mahishee” This azhvar is equated to the divine consort Periya piratti to Periya perumal. “kandru” here indicates that poigaiyAr has other Azhvars younger to him to follow him.



Kandrukkirangi: He gave his divine paasurams due to the grace (krupai) he had on all of us. Ninaiththu mulaivazhiyE nindru pAl sOra: On thinking about the divine qualities of emperuman azhvar lost his control and paasurams came flooding out of his mouth like milk flowing from a cow on seeing its calf. Paniththalai veezhanin vAsar kadai pattri: Since this azhvar was born in a lake (poigai) it is natural for anyone’s head visiting his place to be filled with dew (snow) drops. SinathtinAl….: This is the praise to emperumAn’s rAmAvathara. This azhvar has sung a beautiful paasuram about Sri rAmA which has slipped even the divine knowledgeable eyes of the maharishis. “poomEya mAdhavaththOn thAl panindha vAlarakkan neNmudiyai pAdhamaththAl enninAn paNbhu” says azhvar. Andal says “manadhukkiniyAnai” as a parallel term to azhvar’s words “nAmE arikirppOm nannenjE!” EniththAn ezhundhirAi: After singing “pazhudhE pala pagalum pOyina” with great sorrow (arthi) is it right for you to still keep sleeping? Enquires Sri godha piratti. Here it is apt to bring to memory the sutra in mumukshupadi of Sri pillai lokacharya that reads as follows: “pazhudhE pala pagalum pOyinavendru erandha nAlaikku koopidukiravanukku vuranga viragillai”(it is not suitable for one who has cried for loosing all his precious time to still keep sleeping) Anaiththil aththArum arindhu: This brings to our memory the words of poigaiazhvar, “ariyumulagellAm yAnEyum allEn” With this paasuram andal awakens all the Azhvars elder to her. Keeping the count of Azhvars to be 12 in number, andal and madurakavigal are also included in the ghosti of Azhvars. Thereby this paasuram can also be considered to awaken madurakavigal and andal. Here narchelvan thangAi! Can be read as narchelvan than kaiyE! (Hand to the good person). Here narchelvan is none other than nammazhvar. Nammazhvar gave the divine paasurams of thiruvaimozhi, which was recorded by madhurakavigal who acted as the hand of nammazhvar, and hence here narchelvan thangAi can be considered to refer to madurakavigal also.



Madurakavigal-Thiruvallikeni

Again if we consider narchelvan to be EmperumAnAr then his sister is none other than andal herself and hence here narchelvan thangAi! Can indicate towards andal also (“kOdhattra jnAnaththiruppAvai pAdiya pAvai thangai”, “perumbhoodur mAmunikku pinnAnAl vAzhiyE”). All these are only anubhavams to enjoy the divine paasurams and hence questioning if andal can awaken herself becomes senseless.



Andal-Thiruvallikeni

In the following three paasurams, Sri Andal awakens the Azhvars who took avatharam after her. A doubt may arise. How did andal awaken the Azhvars who were born in the future? Sri PBA swamy answers the doubt by quoting the following srisookthi of aalavandaar “vidhayascha vaidhikAstvadeeya gambeera manOnu sArinA:” and bhAshyam of Bhavabhoothi “rusheenAm punarAthyAnAm vAsamarthOnudhAvathi”.

8. “PullinvAi keendAnai” The next paasuram, “pullinvAi keendAnai” indicates towards thondaradipodi azhvar who stands next in the queue of Azhvars. “pOdhu ari kanninAi” refers to thondaradipodigal whose eyes were always focused on plucking the flowers. Thondaradipodi Azhvar’s main kainkaryam was pushpa kainkaryam (adorning the lord with tulasi and flowers). He himself says in his paasurams, “tulabhath thondAya



tholseer thondaradipodi” and “thodaiyoththa thulabhamum koodaiyum polindhu thOndriyathOl thondaradipodi”. Pavai! This reference also suits this azhvar well. A wife highly dedicated to her husband is called as pAvai. Thondaradipodi Azhvar was so dedicated to arangan that he never sang or visited anyother divyadesam. He even refused to think about another divya desa perumal and hence remained like a chase women married to ranganatha.

Thondaradipodi azhvar in his avatara stalam-thirumandangudi

NannAnAl Andal starts her prabhandam praising the Tamil month of margazhi (“mArghazhiththingal madhiniraidha nannAnAl”). Thondaradipodi Azhvar was born in month of marghazhi, which is considered as the best month by andal. Kallam thavirindhu: Thondaradipodi azhvar talks about his “kallam” (falsehood) in many of his paasurams.”soodhanAi kalvanAgi”, “kallamE kAdal seidhu”, “kallaththE nAnum thondAi”. Even in his story this azhvar has been charged for



stealing a golden vessel and then was proved faultless. Only then azhvar joined the ghosti of bhagavatas. Since this azhvar also like periazhvar spent most of his time in the garden the reference “pullum silambhina kAn” indicating the same has been given in this paasuram. Kullakulira: This azhvar forgot even bathing and doing the daily rituals for sometime in his story. This has been indicated in the following lines. Then starting with the words “pullinvAi keedAnai” praises about rama krishnAvataras have been given. Since this azhvar ends his thirumAlai prabhandam with “valavezhum thavala mAda maduraimA nagaranthannul kavalamAl yAnai kondrai kannanai arangamAlai” and in thirupalliezhuchi says “mAmuni vElviyai kAththu avapiradhamAtiya vaduthiral ayOdhiyam arasE arangaththammA!” thereby talking about rama krishnAvataras. “PillaigalellArum” indicates towards all the earlier Azhvars.

Thondaradipodiazhvar-Thiruvallikeni



9. “Vungal puzhakkadai”

In the next paasuram, “vungal puzhakkadai” andal awakens the next azhvar, thiruppAnAzhvar. Here andal refers to thiruppAnAzhvar as “nangAi! NAnAdhAi! NAvudaiyAi!” which suits this azhvar well. “Nangai” indicates the completeness of good qualities. When lokasAranga muni requested azhvar to climb over his shoulders due to his pArathantriya svaroopam (being a servant) azhvar accepted for the same. That shows his divine quality. But even when a pious Brahmin carried him, azhvar was not filled with ego and pride instead he sings, “adiyArkku ennai Atpaduththa vimalan” (emperuman has made him a servant to his servants) even at that moment. That is why andal praises him to be a person without pride (nAn-ahankaram, nAnAdhAi-without pride). Swamy desika praises the divine prabhandam of pan perumal as, “pAN perumal pAdiyadOr pAdal paththum pazhamaraiyin porulendru paravumingal” (Consider the divine 10 paasurams of pAn perumal to be the summary of the vedas). As per the above, thiruppAnAzhvar had the amazing skill to give the essence of the vedas in just 10 paasurams. That is why andal refers to him as “nAvudaiyAi”. ThiruppAnAzhvar enjoys the divine beauty of emperuman holding the conch and chakra and also the mesmerizing beauty of perumal’s divine eyes as “kaiyinAr surisanganalAzhiyar” and “kariyavAgi pudaiparandhu milirindhu sevariyOdi neenda apperiyavAya kangal”. Andal brings back to memory the very words of pannar and says, “sangodu chakara mEndhum thadakkaiyan pangayakkannAnai pAda”. This azhvar lived as per the restrictions on his birth which has been indicated by andal’s words “vungal puzhakkadai” etc. “Sengal podi koorai” etc indicates the qualities of lokasaranga munivar who appeared in the life history of thiruppAnAzhvar.



ThiruppanAzhvar-Thiruvallikeni

“engalai munnam ezhuppuvai vAipesum nangAi” this actually conveys a very interesting meaning. At the start of his paasuram, azhvar says, “adiyArkku ennai Atpaduththa vimalan” which indicates that azhvar has become the servant of the bhagavatas and hence he should carry the bhagavatas on his shoulder but in his story the case is reverse. Only a pious Brahmin carried azhvar over his shoulders. Here andal enquires, “oh! nangai (one with divine qualities) you committed to wake (carry) all of us (engalai- refers to the bhagavatas) but I think those were mere words (vAi pechchu-that which is not real but just a gossip).

10. “ellE elankiliyE” In the next paasuram, “ellE elankiliyE” Sri Andal awakens the youngest of the Azhvars (kadi kutti) Thirumangai azhvar. This azhvar gave a beautiful padhigam (series of 10 paasurams) “mAnamarum mennOkki” which happens to be a dialogue



between two aichis). To remind those wonderful paasuram of thirumangai azhvar andal has made the paasuram to awaken him to also be in the same format as a dialogue between andal and thirumangai azhvar. In many of his paasurams thirumangai azhvar calls him to be parrot. “kili pOla mizhattri nadandhu”, “men kili pOla miga mizhattrim en pEdhaiyE” etc. Thereby andal calls him as “kiliyE!” Otherwise it is a habit of a parrot to repeat whatever we say. Kaliyan took avataram to repeat the words of nammazhvar (“mAran paniththa thamizh maraikku Arangam koora avadhariththa”) so even due to this he can be called as a parrot. Since he is the youngest among the Azhvars he is referred to as “élan kiliyE” (oh! young parrot). The second line is the answer from thirumangai azhvar. Then andal says, “vallai vun katturaigal pandE vun vAyaridhum” Oh! azhveer I am familiar with your strength in talking, because you are the azhvar who has the guts to sing, “vAsivalleer endhalooreerE! VAzhindhE pOm neerE”. PandE! Indicates knowing what is going to happen even before azhvar took avathAram. Listening to this kaliyan says,”valleergal neengalE” You were the one who sang “kollum payanonrillAdha kongai thannaik kizhangOdum, allippariththittavan mArbil erindhu ennazhalai theervanE” Is your words tough or mine? Immediately kaliyan was reminded of his own paasurams where he showed the atmost humility towards bhagavatas (“naNNAdhavAlavunar” “kansOra ven kurudhi”, bhagavata sheshatvam) and hence uttered, “nAnEdhAn Ayiduga” Then andal says, “vunakkenna vErudaiyai” reminded of thirumangai azhvar’s two great thirumadals. Kaliyan then enquires; “ellArum pOndhArO” has all the other Azhvars taken avatharam before me? Val Anai kondrAnai mAyanai: kaliyan was one of the Azhvars who sang wonderfully on the incident of emperuman killing an elephant. He has sung the same in many places. “Avarivai seikaRivAr anjanamAmalai pOlE” “kavala yAnai kombosiththa kannanennum” “vezhamum pAganum veezha” etc.



Thirumangai mannan-kumudavalli Nachiyar in Thiruvali thirunagari

MAttrArai mAttrazhikka vallAnai mAyanai pAda: Emperuman has the special capacity to overcome the pride of those who act against him. In the govardhana giri vriththAntham (story) he in a very tactful way cut down indra’s pride without hurting him in any manner. Kaliyan was deeply involved in the above divine quality of emperuman. That is why he ends his Periya thirumozhi with “kundrameduththu Anirai kAththavan thannai” and while completing his last prabhandam thirunedundAndakam he says, “kundreduththa thOlinAnai”.



Kaliyan-Thiruvallikeni

In this way it has been shown that andal has awakened her foster fathers the other Azhvars in her paasurams one by one. Dealing this subject in more detail will be interesting but will run pages after pages. So we will stop with this.

Andal thiruvadigalE sharaNam

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Thiruppavai Vyakyanam by PBA Swami

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