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Sri Parthasarathi thunai

Srimathe Ramanujaya Namaha

Sri Vara Vara munayE Namaha

Sri vAnAchala mahA munayE Namaha

 

MUTTU KURI

 

One special happening during the araiyar sevai is the muttu kuri. Usually 
during the araiyar sevai the araiyars do beautiful and apt abhinayam (enacting) 
only to the paasurams. First the araiyars explain a paasuram with theabhinayam 
and then they give out the commentary to the paasuram. This is the general 
procedure followed on all days other than the day of the muttu kuri on which 
day the enacting is done not only for the paasuram but also for some portions 
of the commentary with music. This is also referred to as?abhinaya vAkyam? in 
the tambhirAnpadi vyakhyanam with the araiyars. During this occasion the 
araiyars pose themselves to be a kuraththi (tribalwoman who predicts hidden 
things)/ kattuvichchi, and tries to predict the reason behind the illness of 
the heroin (thalaivi) and also the cure for the same.

 

Since the kattuvichchi uses pearls to predict the reason of illness, this 
occasion has been named as muttu (pearl) kuri (prediction). This occasion 
happens on the last day of pagal pattu utsavam, part of adhyayana utsavam in 
Azhvar thirunagari. While in Srirangam this happens on the nineth day ofthe 
pagal pattu utsavam. In case of Srivilliputtur this occasion is celebrated 
three times in a year viz., on the tenth day of the Adipoora utsavam,on the 
nineth day of mArgazhi ennai kAppu utsavam (on the 2nd day of monththai, on 
kanu pongal) and tenth day of panguni thirukalyana utsavam. On the last day of 
the margazhi pagal pattu utsavam thirumangai azhvar?s thirunedunthAndakam is 
recited and amirthamadhanam is enacted.

 

The paasurams, which are selected for the muttu kuri occasion for araiyar 
sevai, is the first 11 paasurams (?from minnuruvAi to pattudukkum?) of 
thirumangai Azhvars, thirunedunthAndakam. Out of this, starting from 
?minnuruvAi? to the third paasuram (?thiruvadiviR karunedumAl???peruvadivil 
kadalamudham konda kAlam??) forms one part. This is called as 
?amrithamadhanam?. Since the lines in these paasurams indicate the incident of 
churning the milk ocean to get amrutham, this occasion is called as 
?amruthamadhanam?. It is to be known at this point that even bharatha muni has 
named the incident of churning the parkadal as ?amrutha madhanam? in his nAtya 
sAstra.

 

The second part starts with the fourth paasuram ?indirarkum? and ends with the 
tenth paasuram ?ponnAnAi?.

 

The third part contains the 11th paasuram ?pattudukkum? which is only named as 
muttu kuri. This paasuram comes under the category of ?agapporulpAdal? in Tamil 
literature. The first few lines of the paasuram are thewords of the heroin who 
is in love then follows the words of the heroin?s mother followed by the words 
of the kattuvichchi, the tribal woman who does predictions.

 

The paasuram goes as follows:

 

?pattudukkum ayarthirangum pAvai penal

paNinedunkanneer thadumbha palli koLLAL

eLthunai pOdenkudankAl erukka killAL

emperumAn thiruvarangam engE?? ennum

mattuvikki manivaNdu muralum koondal

madamAnai edhu seydhAr thammai ?meyyE

kattuvichchi sol? enna sonnAl ?nangAi

kadalvannar edhu seidhAr kAppArArE??

 

Here the mother with great worry enquires to the tribal woman to predict who 
has created the love illness in her daughter?s mind. The woman predicts and 
says that the emperuman, with the colour of the ocean has created love in the 
mind of the heroin. While enacting this paasuram, the araiyar assumes himself 
to be the heroin, the mother and the tribal woman and does an excellent 
performance. On one side the araiyar shows the feelings inside the heroin 
(parakala nAyaki) on not being able to get together with the hero(emperuman), 
then he enacts the feelings of the mother who is worried on seeing her daughter 
in the depressed state and wanting to know the reason behind the depression and 
hence requesting the tribal woman to find out the same (?teerpAraiyAmini 
enganan nAdudhum?) and finally the araiyar takes the role of the kattuvichchi 
and with the help of pearls she finds the reason behind the heroin?s illness 
and delivers it to the mother, ?kadalvannar edhu seidhAr?. Thereby the
enacting is done in three stages. All these are enacted by the same araiyar. 
While taking the role of the mother the araiyar puts a knot in the silk cloth 
in his hand and assumes that to be her daughter and explains her daughter?s 
state each time pointing towards the knot. The tambhirAnpadi vyakhyanam to this 
muttu kuri paasuram is also elaborate. This is a long occasion when considered 
to all other days of araiyar sevai. Though there arethree stages in enacting 
the paasuram the commentary does not show any difference.

 

In azhvar thirunagari and Srirangam, during the adhyayana utsavam both 
amruthamadhanam and muttu kuri happens on the same day. In Srivilliputtur, 
during the adhyayana utsavam only amruthamadhanam is enacted while muttu kuri 
happens three times in a year (as discussed already). Since the paasuram starts 
with ?pattudukkum? the araiyar is first blessed with a silk clothfrom the 
temple and then the araiyar starts the sevai adorning the silk cloth. In azhvar 
thirunagari the araiyar goes all round the long pagal pattumandapam during this 
occasion while in srivilliputtur the voice of the araiyar immerses all of us 
into the occasion.

 

Stopping with happy anubhavams at this point let us from the next posting try 
to analyse how thirumangai Azhvar has framed this prabhandam keeping in mind 
the words of the geethAcharyan, Sri Parthasarathi emperuman. At this point we 
have to remember that geetha is a crux of all the vedas and is regarded as the 
Upanishad part of the fifth Veda ?bharatham panchamO veda:? and the prabhandams 
of thirumangai azhvar are regarded as the ?tamil nannool turaigal 
anjukkilakkiyam Arana sAram? (?mAran seidha thamizh maraikku mangaiyar kOn 
Arangam koora avadhariththa?). Here out of the six prabhandams of thirumangai 
azhvar the last prabhandam, thirunedunthAndakam is considered as the 
upanishadic part by our poorvacharyas that contains the essence of the ultimate 
knowledge. Let us try to analyse the two great works one by the tattvam, 
bhagavan geethAcharyan himself and the other by the tattvadarshi, thirumangai 
azhvar to the lowest level possible and leave the in-depth analyses to the 
divine
feet of the learned scholars who are well versed in ubhaya Vedanta. Let adiyen 
inform you all at this point that adiyen is unfit to take this great task but 
just out of interest and adiyen?s liking for both the works adiyen wishes to 
scribble something about the two. Adiyen requests the pardon of all bhagavatas 
for the mistakes already committed and those yet to be committed. Hope to spend 
atleast a few hours in trying to learn something bybhagavat/bhagavata/Acharya 
krupai.

 

Azhvar EmperumAnAr Jeeyer thiruvadigalE sharanam

 

Adiyen ramanuja dAsee

Sumithra Varadarajan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



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