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- Subject: NAMMAZHWAR TIRUNAKSHATRAM
- From: "Ram Anbil" <Ramanbil@xxxx>
- Date: Mon, 04 Jun 2001 13:47:22 -0000
- Bcc:
SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anubadravam anudhinam samvardhaya/
SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anubadravam anudhinam samvardhaya//
KAvEri VardhathAm kAlE, kAlE varshathu vAsava:/
SrI RanganAthO jayathu SrI Ranga SrIs cha VardhathAm//
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SRI RANGA SRI VOL. 2 / 05 DATED 4th June 2001
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SPECIAL ISSUE CELEBRATING
NAMMAZHWAR TIRUNAKSHATRAM VAIKASI-VISAKAM
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?VAGHULABARANA PERUMAL VASI ARINDHIDU NAAL?
(Anbil Ramaswamy)
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The above line is recited in the verse in the ?TirunaaL PaaTTu? dedicated to
celebrate the birthday of Swami Desika.
What has this to do with Nammaazhwaar?
?Vaghula? is the fragrant flower of ?Magizhampoo? (in Tamil). Nammaazhwaar
used to wear a garland of this flower. He is, therefore, known as
?VaghulaabharaNan?. It is said that the fragrance of this flower permeates
to every syllable of his ?Tituvoimozhi?, considered to be the essence of
Vedas. Says Desika:
? varNasthomai Vaghula sumano vaasanaam Udhvahantheem /
aamnaayaanaam prakritim aparaam samhithaam drishTavantham?
1. Those who have learned the Vedas are dear to Bhagavan; to help those not
eligible to learn Vedas, Nammaazhwaar had rendered the Vedas in Tamil.
Hence, he is known as ?Vedam Tamizh seitha Maaran?.
2. The moment one learns to recite Tiruvoimozhi instantly becomes dear to
the Lord as if that one had learned to recite the Vedas. In fact, this is
considered superior to the work of Paraasara in expounding the esoteric
truths to be understood by even the lay folk.
3. For those, who cannot learn to recite even this Tituvoimozhi,
Nammaazhwaar, out of his infinite compassion, took the incarnation of the
?Paadukas? of the Lord.
?DraminidOpanishaan nivesa soonyaanapi dhruvam aavisathi sma Paadhukaatmaa
Satakopa swameva maananeeya:?
Through his Tituvoimozhi, Nammaazhwaar has given us some valuable message.
The one who not only understood thoroughly the mind (Tiru uLLam) of the
Azhwaar but also applied it in his own lifestyle was none other than Swami
Desika. That is why we sing ?Vaghulabarana PerumaaL Vaasi ArindhiDu NaaL?.
Let us see how?
Nammaazhwaar looked around to see if there were any Vaishnavas who could
give him company in enjoying the Gunaanubhavams of the Lord. He was totally
disappointed to find none to dos so; they were so madly after filthy lucre
and wasted their lives in singing the praise of mere mortals to earn their
morsels. He lamented:
?True. I will antagonize) if I tell you the truth: Never mind; I will
nevertheless tell what I have to. At least listen to me?
?Sonnaal virodham idhu; aagilum solven, kenmin?
In other words, ? I ask you not to sing the praise of mere mortals, if only
for earning your livelihood. I know that if I say this to you, you will
consider me as your enemy. Even if you do not ?follow? Oh! Friends,
Vaishnavas, Countrymen! Lend me your ears?. For how long can these mortals
provide you sustenance? If you sing the praise of Lord Venkata, He is sure
to grant you all that you need and good for you, not for now only but
forever. (KoLLak kuraivilan, veNDitrellaam tharum kOdhilaan).
So, please come on! Let us praise His glory?.
What was the response? None heeded his advice.
Swami Desika is the one who took this advice seriously.
Once, VidyaaraNya who was a minister to Vijayanagar empire wrote to Swami
Desika ? Swamin: I described to the Emperor your poetic skills and how
easily you demolish the arguments of your adversaries by sheer logic based
on appropriate authority (PramaaNas). Since then, he has always been
thinking of you. I beseech you to go over here and give us the pleasure of
your abilities in praise of the Emperor?
Following the advice of Nammaazhwaar, he sent a slOka in reply commencing
with the words ?kshoNeekoNa? meaning- ?What is the use of praising a petty
king who takes pride in ruling over a miniscule bit of the land? How long
can he provide sustenance? We do not care for this. We have decided to
praise only Sriman Narayana who can grant not only ?moksha? but also all
else as a bonus?
He goes on to substantiate this by citing the case of ?Kuchela Muni? who
offered just a fistful of beaten rice (aval) and in turn was rewarded with
unimaginable wealth and was transformed into a ?Kubera?, the Lord of wealth.
Azhwaar pleaded for a ?hearing? at least, even if his listeners did not
?heed? his advice but was sorely disappointed. Swami Desika removed his
anguish through this incident In fact, Swami Desika employed almost the same
words and sentiments which Azhwaar used. The ?Kuchela muni? was endowed with
?kubera sampath? in proof of Azhwaar?s general statement
?koLLak kuraivilan, venditrellaam tharum vaLLal?
Swami imagines that some materialistic minded poets posing a question to
Azhwaar ?
?We are praising mortal kings for earning our livelihood. What is wrong in
this? Can we do hard work like tilling the land which involves manual labor
for which we are not cut out? What is wrong in adopting the easier means of
gaining what we want by dishing out a few words of praise on ordinary human
beings who could satisfy our needs of the hour??
The Swami replies:
?There is none in this world who could guarantee you whatever you need. Not
only for now but forever. The only one who could grant all and more is our
Lord?
When VidyaaraNya repeated his entreaty again, Swami Desika who was a
?Vairaghya nidhi? sent again another reply of 5 slokas commencing with the
words-?silam kim analam bhaveth? These were also on the lines of Azhwaar?s
Srisookti.
Swami asks ??What else do you want beyond food to eat, water to drink and
clothes to wear? For securing these, you don?t need to do any hard labor.
All you have to do is to gather a few grains from the fields, drink the
copious waters that flow in the streams and use some bits of torn clothes to
cover your body. These are all available for free. Why should you waste your
talents on petty kings? I, for one, would never squander my God-given gift
of fragrant speech and would never ever beg for anything which, for me, is
no better in value than a piece of grass?/
Thus, Swami Desika followed the advice of Azhwaar and relieved him of his
anxiety and also felt himself relieved. Thus, did Swami Desika understand
the import of Azhwaar?s advice, as it is, and faithfully implemented it in
practice.
Now, let us enjoy the couplet ?
?VaghuLabharaNap perumaaL
Thamizhin Vaasi arindhiDu naaL
Uthamamaana Purattaasi
ThiruvoNam enu naaLe?
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(Based on article in Swami Desika?s 7th Centenary Commemoration Volume, by
Siromani, Sri Bhashya Simhasanam Srimad U. Ve. Vidwan Purisai Nadadur
Krishnamachariar Swami, Editor & Publisher, Nrisimhapriya.)
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