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From: sadagopan
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Sent: Friday, August 26, 2005 9:13 PM
Subject: Fun with a Pun Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama: Fun with a
Pun All of us envy poets. They are facile communicators, often converting prosaic matters into exciting ones. What the rest of us say in pages of verbose prose, these gifted poets manage to convey in a few well-chosen words. On the other hand, the simplest and shortest of tales is often spun out by them into works of epic proportions, adding to the enjoyment and entertainment of readers. Exaggeration, embellishment, flowery styles, ornamentation?all these are poets? own strategies, which endear them to connoisseurs of literature. If these are the accomplishments of even mundane poets, need we say anything about the distinction of divine bards? Sri Valmiki, the venerated Azhwars, Acharyas from Sri Alavandar to Swami Desikan and Sri Manavala Mamunigal, have all resorted to poetry to portray their devotion and to enlighten ignorant mortals. What sounds good in prose sounds even better and appealing in poetry, as any litterateur would attest. While poets employ numerous creative strategies to capture the heart of the reader, the one adopted by Sri Venkataadhvari Kavi of Arasaanipaalai, is indeed interesting. He creates two fictitious characters in his ?Visva Gunaadarsa Champoo?, two Gandharvaas by name Krisaanu and Visvaavasu. These celestials travel in the skies, commenting upon various places and people of interest they observe on different parts of earth. Krisaanu is a die-hard cynic, finding only black spots in whatever and whomever he sees, while Visvaavasu sees only the positive side of things. Together, the pair serves to bring out various facts about people and places, with Krisaanu listing out their shortcomings and Visvaavasu their plus points. The tirades of Krisaanu the disparager, often serve to emphasize the good things in men and matters. Let us enjoy what the pair
has to say about Sri Krishna, while the Gandharvas? flight takes them over
Speaking of the Yamuna, Visvaavasu pays obeisance, to the river which has been sanctified by the embrace of Sri Krishna (?tooya peru neer Yamunai turaivan?), to the Gopis inhabiting the sand dunes of the river, waiting patiently for Krishna to come and hold them in His strong arms, and to Sri Krishna Himself, who is the object of these Gopis? undying adoration. Intervening, the detractor
Krisaanu tells Visvaavasu to halt his praise of Sri Krishna has the habit of barging into
other people?s homes, appropriating for His own use the pots of butter, milk and
curds gathered by Gopis with considerable strain and labour. Adding
insult to injury, He not only consumes all these delicacies, but also bangs down
the empty pots with considerable force, shattering them to pieces. His raids are
not only nocturnal, but carried out brazenly in broad daylight too, when the
inhabitants of the selected house are away or asleep. And the damage caused is
substantial, as the brat always moves about in gangs, of which the other unholy
members too have no less an appetite for butter and curds. To avoid the little
monster from accessing dairy products, clever Gopis fashion slings and
suspend the pots of butter and curds from the ceiling, far beyond the reach of
the short The
long-suffering Gopi, who is the day?s victim, returns much before anticipated
and catches Krishna and His accomplices red-handed. She marches
The
pained Yasoda asks Thus,
by splitting and realigning the words in Yasoda?s dictum, ?Maa navaneetam luntee:?, representing an
injuction not to steal butter, ?It
is such wily one that you want to adore!? says Krisaanu, highlighting
Yasoda has warned The
word ?aparaadhika:? was cleverly
split by Replying, the good Visvaavasu tells Krisaanu, ?Stop
villifying the glorious Paramaatma, who is the personification of sanctity,
righteousness and all auspicousness. It is He who has come down to earth and
moves among mortals, for washing away their baggage of sin. It is He who confers
on His devotees happiness and all that is good for them, and ultiamately ensures
their emancipation. You may call Him a thief?but what He steals is our sin,
ridding us of our accumulated misdeeds of innumerable
births?. The
dialogue between the two Gandharvas concludes with a glowing tribute to Sri
Krishna? ?Kamsam dhvamsayate, Muram tirayate, hamsam tathaa
himsate Baanam
ksheenayate, bakam laghayate, Poundram param
lumpate Bhoumam kshaamayate, balaat balabhido darpam
paraakurvate Klishtam sishta ganam pranamram avate, Krishnaaya tubhyam
nama:? ?O
No
poet considers his words worthwhile, unless he sings the glorious praises of Sri
Krishna. Sri
Venkataadhvari Kavi was an exceptionally talented poet, who could make words
dance to his tunes. Apart from the ?Visva
Gunaadarsa Champoo?, he has
authored another remarkable work, ?Sri
Raaghava Yaadaveeyam?, in which
each sloka sings the praise of not only Sri Rama, but Sri Krishna too. The
uniqueness of this work is that each verse, when read straight, relates the
story of Sri Rama, while a reversal of the couplet portrays the glories of Sri
Krishna. Here is the first sloka,
for a sample? ?Vandeham Devam tam Sreetam rantaaram kaalam
bhaasaa ya: Raamo
Raamaadhee: aapyaaga: leelaam aara Ayodhye
vaase? Read straight, this sloka pays tribute to Sri Rama, who,
with His heart pining for Sri Mythily, travelled across the Sahyaadri Hills,
returned victorious to Ayodhya after slaying Ravana and delighted for long
thereafter in the company of His Consort. If
you read the sloka in reverse, that is, beginning with the last word of the
second line of the verse and going on to the first, it reads as
follows? ?Sevaa dhyeya: raamaa laalee gopyaaraadhee
maaraamoraa: Ya: saabhaalankaaram taaram tam sreentam
vande aham Devam? Read in the reverse, this verse says, ?I bow down to Sri
Krishna, whose broad chest is the home of Sri Mahalakshmi, who is to be
contemplated through penance and sacrifice, who delights in the company of Sri
Rugmini and other Consorts, who is the object of adoration for Gopis, and who is
adorned with brilliant and lustrous
ornaments.? What a beautiful and unique compostion! The 30 slokas of
this work ?Raaghava Yaadaveeyam?
double as 60 if we take the reverse readings into account and provide a
magnificent portrayal of two avataara
purushas simultaneouly. Admittedly, there have been earlier works too,
simultaneouly dealing with the praises of two heroes, but they mostly employ the
double entendre (?slesham?) to
achieve their objective. Sri Venkataadhavari?s work is perhaps the only one
using the ?Anulomam? and ?Pratilomam? method (straight and reverse
readings) to narrate the stories of two different divine personalities. The
poet?s comprehensive mastery over words, grammar and metre are evident in each
and every verse of the beautiful work. The
difference between secular poetry and the devotional, is the latter?s ability to
melt hearts and move even the most hard-hearted of men. The aforesaid verses are
but a small sample of the exceptionally uplifting literature that is available
in all languages, which has acquired the same sort of immortality as its
subject. Irrespective of what standards men may adopt for defining literature,
only that which deals with the Lord can ever qualify for the name and stand the
test of time?for, He is the only one worthy of adulation??Stavya:??as the Vishnu
Sahasranamam says. Srimate Sri LakshmiNrisimha divya paduka sevaka
SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya
nama: dasan, sadagopan
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