Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
Four is a Crowd!
The month of Iyppasi is perhaps the best of all the twelve months in the
calendar. As a child, I remember having eagerly anticipated the month, right
from the previous Karthigai. The reasons are not far to seek. It is the month
of Deepavali, which brings with it a lot of gifts-new clothes, sweets,
crackers, etc. "Iyppasiyil adai mazhai" is the popular saying-it is the month
which brings copious rains, making farmers happy, for, rain in so crucial to
crops and therefore to farmers' own wellbeing. North Indians begin their new
accounting year this month and also celebrate the festival of lights as the day
of return of Sri Rama to Ayodhya, from His long sojourn in the jungles. After
Purattaasi, which is considered unsuitable (not because it is bad per se, but
because it is a month devoted to the worship of Pitru devatas during the
Mahaalaya Paksham) for secular functions, marriages and other such celebrations
begin again in Iyppasi. Thus, looked at from the popular angle, Iyppasi is
indeed a month everyone welcomes.
And for SriVaishnavas, Iyppasi has a triple bonanza, for it is the month of
appearance of three of the holiest sages of our Sampradayam, who are celebrated
as the forerunners of the band of apostles that Emperuman sent from Sri
Vaikunttam to Earth, for emancipating errant souls like us. There is no month
like Iyppasi, in which three of the Azhwars were born, that too on three
consecutive days of the month. Iyppasi is also the month, during which Sri
Tirukkurugai Piraan Pillaan, the foremost disciple of Sri Ramanuja and known as
his "Gnaana Putran", took birth and later went on to compose the famous
"Aaraayirappadi" commentary on Tiruvaaimozhi, which is the seed from which the
later commentaries blossomed. Sri Ramanuja is known not to have written a
single word in Tamizh, nor to have quoted a single word from Azhwars'
Aruliccheyal, in his vast works. However, it is Sri Pillan's commentary,
reported to be a transcription of Sri Bhashyakara's lectures on Tiruvaaimozhi,
which tells us how dear Divya Prabandam was to Sri Ramanuja's heart and how
deep his erudition was, as far as Tamizh Vedam is concerned. And Iyppasi is
indeed a red-letter month, for it is the month of avataram of Sri Pillai
Lokacharya, who gave up his life in a gesture of supreme sacrifice in the
defence of Sri Ranganatha and Sri Manavala Mamunigal too, whose Aarti Prabandam
and Yatiraaja Vimsati bring tears to our eyes. Apart from Sri Varavaramuni, Sri
Koorakulotthama Daasar and Sri Aay Jananyaacharya of Tirunarayanapuram, (the
author of the famous commentary on Tiruppavai) were also born during Iyppasi.
Sri Utthama Nambi, renowned for his and his descendants' innumerable
kainkaryams to Sri Ranganatha and who is repeatedly mentioned with appreciation
in Koilouzhugu, was also born in Iyppasi. Strangely enough, none of the
Acharyas belonging to Sri Ahobila Matham or Srimad Andavan Ashramam, or for
that matter, Sri Poundareekapuram Ashramam, appear to have been born in
Iyppasi-perhaps they did not want to divert devotees' attention from the
celebrations relating to the Mudal Azhwars. There are no major utsavams at
various sannidhis too during this month, perhaps for the same reason. And Tulaa
maasam, as it is known, is a month for teerttha sevai and a dip in the Kaveri
during this month is supposed to purify us and make us eligible for the worlds
above.
However, the emphasis of this article is not on Tulaa Maasam, but on the three
saints who descended to earth during this month and how they were eulogized by
Swami Desikan, who appears to have had special devotion for the trio.
The first of the three Mudal Azhwars, Sri Poygai Azhwar, incarnated on a golden
lotus in the temple tank (Poigai) of Sri Yathoktakaari Perumal at Kanchipuram,
as the "amsam" of Paanchajanyam, under the Lord's own asterism of Sravanam. Sri
Bhootattaazhwar appeared at Mahabalipuram (Tirukkadalmallai) in a Kurukkatthi
flower, when the star "Avittam" was in ascendance, as the amsam of Koumodaki,
the Lord's Magnificent Mace. Emperuman's sword Naandakam took birth as
Peyazhwar on a red lily flower, in the well of AdiKesava Perumal Sannidhi at
Mylapore, under the star "Sathayam". It can thus be seen that these three
Azhwars came into the world without undergoing the mandatory imprisonment in a
womb. The coordinating hand of Emperuman is seen throughout the lives of the
Mudal Azhwars, first in their births, not out of a human womb, but on a flower,
secondly on successive asterisms in the same month and finally in their
providential meeting at Tirukkovalur. Though the three Azhwars were born
hundreds of miles apart and spent their early years apart, engaged in deep
spiritual search within themselves, oblivious to the outside world (which
earned them the rather unusual sobriquets of "Bhootam" and "Pey") the Lord
decided to bring them together, for the benefit of posterity and for His own
benefit.
Before we see the beautiful connection between Swami Desikan and the Mudal
Azhwars, I would like to narrate a small tale which everyone would definitely
know, but which is still worth recounting. The Lord is an extremely playful
person, an "alagilaa vilayaatu udayaar" and a "teeraada vilayaaatu pillai".
However, His play always has the effect of bringing into limelight the glory of
some devotee, who has hitherto remained without popular recognition. And the
current leela also was with the same aim, that of introducing three of His
matchless devotees to one another and to the world.
It was a dark and stormy night at Tirukkovalur, with rain coming down in
torrents, the threatening roar of thunder shaking all souls and with flashes of
lightning serving as the only illumination. It was a night when none would
venture out and everyone had shut himself up tight in his home. Yet, it was a
night on which three Yogis, who had the Lord entrenched in their hearts, chose
to be out and about. When they reached Tirukkovalur separately by different
routes, they found all houses shut, all choultries locked up, with the inmates
unlikely to open up. The first to reach was Poigayazhwar, who found a narrow
passage in the front portion of an ashramam belonging to Mrigandu Maharshi and
lay down, prepared to spend the night among the inhospitable and confined
environs. Sometime later, Bhootattaazhwar too discovered the same place and
finding someone already occupying the space, enquired whether there would be
room for one more person. The first occupant welcomed the stranger, saying that
if there was space enough for one person to lie down, two could sit there. An
hour or so passed and there came knocking another worthy, wet and drenched to
the skin and seeking shelter in the passage. He too was welcomed by the other
two, who thought that three could at least stand comfortably in the small
space, which could seat two and provide a bed for one. The three Azhwars were
thus standing in the pitch dark, sharing with one another their experiences of
the Lord and His auspicious attributes. All of a sudden, they felt rather tight
pressed. Where they were standing comfortably earlier, they now felt that the
available space had diminished, as if a fourth person, unknown to the other
three, had entered the narrow passage and was crowding them. Apparently,
someone had sneaked into the already constricted space without announcement and
was standing as one with them.
As it was pitch dark and they had no way of producing light, Poygaiazhwar hit
upon the idea of lighting a novel lamp. Using the elements of nature as
ingredients, considering the whole earth as a lamp, the waters of the salty
seas as oil and with the shining Sun as the wick, he lit a glorious lamp that
would shine forever and show up with clarity even the tiniest speck of dust.
For his part, Bhootattaazhwar lit another lamp, using entirely home-made
ingredients, all available within oneself and yet the hardest to find in any
human being: he fashioned a lamp out of his unafathomable love for Emperuman.
Oil for the lamp was his uncontrollable urge to see the Lord and the wick was
his intellect, made sweet and melting by constant contemplation of the Lord's
auspicious attributes.
Such was the extraordinary illumination provided by the two lamps lit by these
two Yogis, that the third, Sri Peyazhwar, was able to see clearly the fourth
person who had been squeezing them tight. First and foremost, Azhwar's eyes
alighted on the glorious form of Sri Mahalakshmi adorning the broad chest of
the intruder-"Tiru kanden" sang out Sri Peyazhwar, exulting in the wonderful
spectacle that greeted his eye. Having realized, from the presence of the
Divine Consort, that it was none other than the Paramatma Sriman Narayana who
had entered the passage and was squeezing the trio, Azhwar's sight fell next on
the glorious golden tirumeni of the Paramapurusha-"Ponmeni kanden". The
brilliant and blazing complexion of the stranger imprinted itself upon Azhwar's
eyes, prompting him to comment ecstatically on the same-"Tigazhum arukkan ani
niramum kanden". The Lord's Divine Discus and the Cosmic Conch adorning His
upper hands presented a spectacular sight to the thirsty eyes of
Azhwar-"Serukkilarum Ponnaazhi kanden, puri Shankham kai kanden".
The three Azhwars, inspired by the grand spectacle of Emperuman's glorious form
in their midst, poured out their devotion in a hundred beautiful verses each,
brimming over with Bhakti. These are the paasurams which served as forerunners
of the four thousand nectarine verses that were to be composed by the other
Azhwars. Though there is no direct internal evidence in the Divya Prabandas of
one Azhwar eulogizing another (except in the case of Sri Madhurakavi and Sri
Andal), Sri Nammazhwar refers to these three "pioneer" Azhwars as "Paaley
Tamizhar, Isaikaarar, patthar", paying generous tribute to their devotion and
the beauty of their compositions.
Sri Nammazhwar's eulogy to the Mudal Azhwars is rather cryptic and concise; nor
have other Poorvacharyas rendered specific poetical tribute to these three
Yogis, but for Sri Amudanaar, who has devoted one paasuram each in his
Iraamaanusa Nootrandaadi. When you come to think of it, it is indeed strange
that our Poorvacharyas have somehow not composed paeans of praise (excluding
"Tanian"s) for these three Azhwars, as part of their Stotrams and Prabandams,
though commentators on the Tiruvandaadis have naturally spoken about them.
It was therefore left to Swami Desikan to bring out fully the glory of these
three Azhwars, in his inimitable poetic style. And being at home in Sanksrit
and Tamizh, the Acharya lavishes choice words of praise on these worthies. His
tribute to this trio is not limited to a single stotram, but extends to several
other compositions too. Dehalisa Stuti, Prabanda Saaram and Adhikaara Sangraham
are some of Swami Desikan's works, in which generous tributes are paid to the
Mudal Azhwars. In Dehalisa Stuti, which consists of 29 slokas, Swami Desikan
reserves not less than 6 slokas for singing the praise of the Mudal Azhwars-it
would appear as though in the guise of adulating the Emperuman of Tirukkoilur,
Swami Desikan really wanted to lavish praise on Poigai Muni, Bhootattaar and
Peyaazhwar. And each of these 6 slokas serves to bring out the glory of the
Azhwars in all its myriad facets. Here is a beautiful one for a sample:
Everyone knows that sugarcane grows well near rivers. Swami Desikan likens
Dehaleesan of Tirukkovalur to ripe and succulent sugarcane, grown on the banks
of the Penna river, near which Tirukkovalur is situated. And it is this
sugarcane which gets squeezed, when it tries to encroach upon the narrow space
already occupied by the three Azhwars on that stormy night at Tirukkovalur.
What happens when you squeeze sugarcane? Out flows its sweet juice. This juice
is nothing but the best of the Lord's auspicious attributes, viz., Souseelyam,
the quality which makes the Paramatma come down to the level of and move as one
with mundane mortals. The purport is that due to their matchless devotion, the
Mudal Azhwars succeeded in making manifest the Lord's ever-latent attribute of
Souseelyam. And this sugarcane juice mixes with the honey constantly flowing
from the Lord's lotus feet, ("Tene malarum tiruvadi taamarai") making for an
extremely delicious and heady mixture, a new and unprecedented type of divine
and delectable sugar-"Nootana sharkkaraa". Those who taste this special sugar
find themselves so enslaved by it that they spurn all other types of sweets-the
reference being to devotees who, once they have an experience of the Lord, find
themselves unable and unwilling to delight from any other pleasure. Here is the
slokam, for your enjoyment:
"Kaasaara poorva kavi mukhya vimarda janmaa
Panna tata ikshu subhagasya raso bahuste
Tvat paada padma madhuni tvat ananya bhogye
Noonam samaasrayati nootana sharkkaraa tvam"
We are now able to appreciate why Swami Desikan is acclaimed as a lion among
poets-"Kavi Simham". To whom else would strike the idea of conceiving the three
Azhwars as the rollers through which sugarcane passes, squeezing out its
essence? And who else can contemplate the process generating a sugar of
immeasurable sweetness, when it mixes with the heady honey from the Lord's
lotus feet?
When he compares the Lord of Tirukkovalur to sugarcane, Swami Desikan's mind is
obviously musing over the lines of Tirumangai Mannan, (for, he is, after all,
"Kaliyan urai kudi konda karutthudayon") who too sings of this divine sugarcane
gracing the fields near Penna river, delighting itself with the sweet songs of
the honey bees thronging the cane fields. The bees here represent the Mudal
Azhwars and the songs, the first three Tiruvandaadis. Here is the relevant
portion of the beautiful paasuram-
"Konkarumbu sura punnai kuravaar solai kuzhaa vari vandu isai paadum paadal
kettu
Teenkarumbu kan valarum kazhani soozhnda Tirukkovaloor adanul kanden naane"
It is no surprise that during Trivikramavataram, all the three wide worlds were
easily measured by just three steps of the Lord's holy feet, avers Swami
Desikan. What is indeed surprising is that He made His huge, cosmic form small
enough to be accommodated in the narrow passageway at Tirukkovalur, squeezing
it in somehow along with the three Azhwars. The extent to which He reduced His
primordial form shows how much He was enamoured of the three Azhwars and wanted
to be one with them, on that stormy night.
"Chitram na tat trishu mitaani padeshu yat te
visvaani amooni bhuvanaani visankateshu
Bhaktai: samam kvachit asou bhavana ekadese
Maati sma moorti: amitaa tat iha adbhutam na:"
In another slokam, pondering over the possible reasons for the Lord's strange
conduct of squeezing in with three of His devotees in a narrow space, Swami
Desikan concludes that Emperuman's infatuation with Azhwars was due to their
having mastered Vedas and Yoga and the purity of their devotion. Having known
intimately about the Lord's auspicious attributes from the Shruti, Azhwars
could verily see the Lord through their deep Yogic saadhana. When these two
attainments combine with boundless love for the Lord, it is but natural that
Emperuman revealed Himself to them in all His glory, says the following slokam,
again from Dehalisa Stuti:
"Deepena kenachit aseeta ruchaa niseete
sneha upapanna parisuddha guna arpitena
dahra avakaasa nibidam dadarusu: bhavantam
svaadhyaaya yoga nayanaa: suchaya: kaveendraa:"
These Azhwars were not mere poets, but kings among poets-"Kaveendraa:", their
divine poetry capable of moving not only men but the Lord Himself. They are to
be counted as the principals among poets-"Kavi mukhya:" Just as the Ganga
originated from the Lord's feet during Trivikramaavataram and split into three
huge streams, the beautiful compositions of the three Azhwars too originated
from the upraised feet of the Lord of Tirukkovalur (it was the Lord's beautiful
and gigantic form which inspired the three Tiruvandaadis of the three Azhwars).
To Swami Desikan, it appears as though the Lord's holy feet originated another
set of three streams, a new Ganga so to say, in the form of the three hundred
paasurams of Peyazhwar, Bhootattaazhwar and Poigaiyazhwar-
"Vetaala Bhoota Sarasaam apadisya vaacham
Praayena tat prasava bhoomim avaapa bhooya:"
Swami Desikan continues to describe how much Emperuman was enamoured of the
Azhwars. The Acharya says the Lord created a new and broad route through the
heavens to Sri Vaikunttam and took the Azhwars there personally. The upraised
feet of the Tirukkovalur Emperuman and His reddish nails are so luminous that
they cast their brilliance far and wide, appearing to light up a new route to
Paramapadam, created specifically for the Mudal Azhwars. As compensation for
having made their place of stay at Tirukkovalur congested by squeezing in with
them, Emperuman appears to have fashioned a broad and spacious route to His
abode, meant solely for these devotees, says Swami Desikan-
"Kreedaa parena bhavataa vihita uparodhaan
Aaradhakaan anuparodham udanchayishyan
Taamrena paada nakharena tadaa anda madhye
Ghantaa padam kamapi noonam avarttaya: tvam"
If such are Swami Desikan's tributes to the Mudal Azhwars in his Sanskrit
Stotras, he praises them no less in his Tamizh Prabandams. In Prabanda Saaram,
for instance, he tells us that Sri Poigayazhwar was divine mercy and compassion
personified-"Arul migutthathu oru vadivaai Kacchi tanil...vandu uditta
Punitha!". Swami Desikan's devotion for the three Azhwars is such that he
addresses these Azhwars as "Vende! ("Oh! My King!"), "Deve! (Oh! My Lord!)",
"Parama! (Supreme Being)", "Punitha!" (sacred and immaculate person) etc., all
of which are normally used to denote the Lord Himself. By calling himself
"Pazhavadiyen", Swami Desikan signifies that not only he, but his predecessors
and forefathers for innumerable generations past, had been devotees of Mudal
Azhwars. Swami Desikan also tells us that hard-to-understand parts of the
Shruti can be understood only through the paasurams of Azhwars-"Teliyaada marai
Nilangal teligindrome". In Adhikaara Sangraham, the Acharya praises Mudal
Azhwars as "Paatukku uriya pazhayavar"-ancient sages who knew how to adulate
Emperuman-- and the lamps lit by them as being Lamps of Truth, capable of
destroying the gloom of ignorance enveloping the whole world and highlighting
the eternal message of the Upanishads-" Naatukku irul sega, naanmarai andi
nadai vilanga, veetukku idai kazhikke veli kaattum am mey vilakke". He swears
further that the contribution of the Mudal Azhwars is immeasurable and beyond
recompense-the Lord Himself would not be able to think of a suitable reward for
the Mudal Azhwars' yeomen service of lighting up the lamp of wisdom and
devotion, thereby driving away ignorance and sin from our souls-
"Etri manatthu ezhil gnaana vilakkai irul anaitthum
maatrinavarkku oru kaimmaaru Maayanum kaanakillaan"
and that the only way we can repay them even slightly is to constantly adore
them and to spread their glory for all to know.
While Swami Desikan's reverence to Azhwars in general is boundless, as can be
gauged from his various works, he seems to reserve a special niche of devotion
and a lofty pedestal of respect for the Mudal Azhwars, who take precedence over
other Azhwars not only chronologically, but also by their symbolic acts of
lighting up lamps of wisdom to drive away the demon of ignorance from our
souls. They had the unique distinction of enjoying and benefiting from the
enlightening company of one another, which no other Azhwar was blessed with.
The reason for Swami Desikan's empathy with the Mudal Azhwars is not far to
seek-both were responsible for lighting up lamps in darkened souls, banishing
ignorance and sin. Both (at least Poigayazhwar) were born under the star of
Sravanam. Both were "amsam' of nitya suris, sent to earth by the Lord for
emancipation of errant souls. Sri Amudanaar tells us that the three Azhwars
were enshrined in Sri Ramanuja's heart-
" Bhootat tiruvadi taalgal nenjatthu uraya vaitthu aalum Iraamaanusan",
"Poygai Piraan .erittha tiru vilakkai tan tiruvullatthe irutthum paraman
Iraamaanusan"
"Tamizh talaivan ponnadi pottrum Iraamaanusan".
Anything or anyone so dear to Sri Ramanuja cannot but be the very pulse of
Swami Desikan's heart.
To conclude, shall we enjoy a couple of paasurams from the Upadesa Ratnamaalai,
which finds Sri Manavala Mamunigal in absolute agreement with Swami Desikan
about the glory of the Mudal Azhwars?
"Iyppasiyil Onam Avittam Sathayam ivai
Oppillaa naatkal ulagattheer-eppuviyum
Pesu pugazh Poygayaar Bhootatthaar Peyaazhwaar
Tesudane tondru chirappaal"
Mattrulla Azhwaargalukku munne vandu udittu
Nattramizhaal nool seidu naattai uyttha-pettrimayor
Endru Mudal Azhwaargal ennum peyar ivarkku
Nindradu ulagatthe nigazhndu"
Srimate Sri LakshmiNrisimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana
Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
dasan, sadagopan
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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