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SriRangaSri List Archive: Message 00081 Dec 2003

 
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Dear friends,

(9) "mA mAyan mAdhavan vaikuntam en enru nAmam palavUm
navinnru?"

There are several modes of worship in which a
"satsangh" engages but nothing gives it more enjoyment
than the singing of "bhagavan-nAmA", the sacred names
of God? such as "mAmAyan", "mAdhavan", "vaikuntan". 

The "nAmA" of God are many -- there are 1000 in the
Vishnu-Sahasranama, another 1000 in the
"garuda-purAna". And many more in other texts and
passages of the scriptures like the 'sruti', 'smriti'
and 'purANA'. The word "palavUm" means refers to those
innumerable names of God. 

The word "navinnru" means 'delectation', 'to whet
one's appetite', 'to ravish'? There is sheer
delectation in singing the "nAmA" of God. The question
is, hence, whose "delectation"? Whose "delight"? God's
or the 'satsangh's'? The answer is both...
i.e."parasparam". 

In the stillness of the night a mother, lovingly
cradling her infant in her arms, sings a soft lullaby
to put it to sleep. Whose delight is greater -- the
mother's or the baby's? Difficult to say, isn?t it?
The 'namA' of God too is similarly "twice-blessed" --
for it blesseth them that sing it, and blesseth Him
for the sake of whom it is sung. And it is never
really ascertainable whose blessedness is greater. 

(The foremost among the mystic AzhwArs, Peria-AzhwAr
sung a mother's lullabies to put the child Krishna,
Lord of the Worlds, to bed. The lullabies, wherein the
"nAmA" of God are plentifully interspersed, form an
exceptionally endearing collection of songs in the
sacred 4000 Divya-Prabhandham known as "tAlAttu".
Reading those wonderful lyrics we are often left
imagining who really derived more delight out of them
-- the AzhwAr himself or the Lord!)

There is thus, if we notice it, the suggestion of a
strong element of "parasparam" or strong mutuality
here between God and 'satsangh' whenever and wherever
"bhagavan-nAma" is sung or recited. 

(10) "nAtra tUzhaay mudi nArAyaNan nammAl pOtra parai
tarUm punniyanAL.."

What is the purpose behind singing the 'nAmA' of
NarAyAna? The members of AndAl's "satsangh" -- the
girls of the "aayarpAdi" village -- give their answer
by saying "nammAl pOtra?" in this verse.  

(Later in stanza 21 too, through another expression
"pOtri-yAm vandhu pUgUzhndhu?" they reiterate the same
idea of "pOtri, pOtri" and in Stanza 24 the girls all
break out ecstatically into a full-fledged,
full-throated song of "pOtri, pOtri".) 

The Tamil "pOtri" is the equivalent of "Hail to Thee!
Victory to Thee!" The term, in one part, is a blessing
wished upon God and, in the other, an ardent prayer
that His will should ever prevail. 

A 'satsangh' is wholly made up of 'pure-minded' souls
(as explained earlier in Stanzas 5 and 16 vide
"tUyOmaay vandOm.." above) and the pure-minded are
otherwise also known as 'sAdhu-s'. The blessing of
Victory upon God  -- "pOtri", "pOtri" -- serves to
keep the Almighty constantly reminded of his sworn and
primary duty towards the 'sAdhu-s' of the world and
which He proclaimed Himself in the Bhagavath-Gita:

       "paritrANAya sAdhUnaam 
          vinAshAya cha dushkrutAm
       dharma-samstApAna-arthAya
         sambhavama yUgE yUgE!"
         
        "In every age, from time to time,
          I descend upon the world of men
        To defeat Evil --
          But, more importantly --
       For the sake of protecting
         The 'sAdhu-s' of the world!
   
In the 'satsangh's' collective cry of "pOtri, pOtri",
thus, there is the individual 'sAdhu's' expression of
faith... The unshakeable and all-abiding faith that
the Will of God shall ever prevail upon earth, that
Good shall win over Evil and that it is the 'sAdhu-s'
of the world who shall ultimately inherit the world? 
            
                   ***********
                (to be continued)

Regards,

dAsan,
Sudarshan






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