theLLiyIr

theLLiyIr

thiru-k-kaNNapuram 2

Mother lamenting at her young daughter's behaviour and being angry at Him who made her thus

AzhwAr talks about his own condition of separation from emberumAn through the mouth of tiruttAyAr

1. teLLiyeer dEvarkkum dEvar tiruttakkeer
veLLiyeer veyya vizhunidi vaNNar O |
tuLLuneer kaNNapuram tozhudAL ivaL
kaLviyO kai vaLai koLvadu takkadE ||

Oh! dEva dEva! teLLiyeer! veLLiyeer! veyya vizhunidi vaNNA! This is not fair on Your part to take away her bangles who always thought of You, talked of You and You alone. Oh! tiruttakkeer she is not a thief and she has not done any AtmApahAra (to claim once Atma as “i” and to think one is independent – swatantra). She always was a dAsi to You desiring kainkarya to Your tiruvaDi. She worshipped You at tirukkaNNapuram. Yet You made her suffer causing her bangles to slip down from her hands. Is it fair?

2. neeL nilA muTTrattu ninru ivaL nOkkinAL
kANumO kaNNapuram enru kATTinAL |
pANanAr tiNNam irukka ini ivaL
nANumO nanru nanru naraiyoorarkkE ||

On seeing the condition of parakAla nAyaki her mother asked her to come to balcony where she would not have any contact with anyone. The daughter looked towards kaNNapuram and said “Ah! i can see tirukkaNNapuram from here! Come! Come! See for yourself!”. Thus she cried to others. When there is the AchArya to bring them together (jeevAtma and paramAtma) i don’t think she will ever feel shy of her condition and come out of it. She has already detached herself from her dEhasambandhis (blood relatives). i tried several ways to bring her to normalcy. Finally naraiyoor nambi alone won and i could not succeed. Well! Well! i don’t think i can do anything about it.

pANanAr– Normally it means the messenger between the nAyaka and nAyaki. He will try to bring them together when they are separated due to petty reasons. Here it means the guru or AchArya who brings jeevAtma and paramAtma together. Already she has left her relatives and her relationships with this world. She is fully involved in Bagavat Bakti, which can be successfully accomplished by AchArya.

3. aruvi sOr vEngaDam neer malai enru vAi
veruvinAL meyyam vinavi irukkinrAL |
peruhu seer kaNNapuram enru pEsinAL
uruhinAL uL melindAL idu en kolO ||

The mother continues – when i try to pacify her and bring her to senses by talking about something else, she doesn’t listen to it but keeps saying “tiruvEngaDam”, “tirunneermalai”. Sometimes she asks questions even when no body is there “What is tirumeyyam? Where is it? Why is that name? Is it because He is true to His Baktas?” When she doesn’t get any reply she keeps quiet, heaves sighs and gazes with the vacant look. Sometimes she says “kaNNapuram” and immediately melts with the broken hearts. i cannot tolerate to see my daughter’s condition. Oh! It is perhaps due to my past karmas.

4. uNNum nALillai urakkamum tAn illai
peNmaiyum sAla niraindilaL pEdai tAn |
kaNNanoor kaNNapuram tozhum kArkkaDal
vaNNar mEl eNNam ivaTkidu en kolO ||

My daughter is yet a lass, has not attained maturity. Still she talks as if she is in love with emberumAn. She has all the symptoms of one who is in love. She does not sleep, nor does she eat. She makes anjali to emberumAn who is residing in tirukkaNNapuram turning towards that direction. i am sure all her thoughts are on Him alone. This is quite unbelievable.

5. kaNNanoor kaNNapuram tozhum kArihai
peNmai en tannuDai uNmai uraikkinrAL |
veNNai uNDu AppuNDa vaNNam viLambinAl
vaNNamum ponniram AvadozhiyumE ||

The mother of parakAla nAyaki continues – this girl, my daughter, speaks loudly about her condition without feeling shy about it. She makes anjali to Him, the tirukkaNNapurattammAn. When she hears someone talk about His stealing of butter, bound by a cord etc., she feels happy and her pasalai complexion (ponniram) changes to normal.

vaNNamum ponniramAvadu ozhiyumE – The ponniram (golden color) is called pasalai vaNNam. It is an indication of love long state, sadness etc., when she hears someone speak about Him whether it be His glories or notorious acts she feels happy and her complexion comes back to original hue.

“kaTTrinam mEikkalum mEikka peTTrAn kADuvAzh SAdiyum AhappeTTrAn paTTri uraliDai AppumuNDAn pAvihAL ungaLukku Echchu kolO”. On hearing His name or deed she feels she had samslESha with Him.

6. vaDavarai ninrum vandu inru kaNapuram
iDavahai koLvadu yAm enru pEsinAL |
maDavaral mAdar en pEdai ivarkku ivaL
kaDavaden kaN tuyil inri ivar koLLavE ||

This pASura speaks of total identification of parakAla nAyaki with kaNNapurattu emberumAn (anukAra). In Sreemad BAgavatam kriShNa calls all the gOpis to come to the banks of yamuna. When they came He was not at the appointed place and time they feel very sad. But they want to somehow enjoy Him in their imagination. One gOpi says “i shall be the kALiya”; the other says “i am kaNNan. i shall jump on Your hoods and dance there”. Thus they enact the incident. Even nammAzhwAr does anukAra and says “kaDal jnAlam seidEnum yAnE ennum” in ten pASuras. parakAla nAyaki also has this kind of mental state. She says “i am here in tirukkaNNapuram having come down from tirumala”. AzhwAr’s involvement in archAvatAra is very well known. Hence the mention of tiruvEngaDam here. She tells her mother she is the SourirAja perumAL. The mother says “thus does she feel herself one with emberumAn. She fails to get any sleep at night. The way He is treating my innocent and beautiful daughter is not proper. The way she submits herself to Him! Amazing !

7. taranga neer pEsinum taN madi kAyinum
irangumO ettanai nAL irundu eLhinAL |
turangam vAi keeNDu uhandAnadu tonmai oor
arangamE enbadu ivaL tanakku AsaiyE ||

The mother continuous my daughter does not become thin on seeing the moon in the sky or on hearing the roaring of the great sea because she has seen and heard since long time. She gets pasalai color and becomes thin when she hears about emberumAn who killed kEsi, the asura in the guise of a horse. She like to talk about His divya dESas and repeats the name of tiruvarangam. When she does so she forgets everything else.

8. tonDellAm ninnaDiyE tozhudu uyyumA
kaNDu tAn kaNapuram kai tozha pOyinAL |
vaNDulAm kOdai en pEdai maNiniram
koNDu tAn kOyinmai seivadu takkadE ||

The mother continues – My daughter has seen the Baktas worshiping Your tiruvaDi and get the life fulfillment. She also try to do the same and went to tirukaNNapuram to worship You. But see what You have done to her! You have taken my dear daughter’s beautiful complexion. You being our swAmi, is it right on Your part to treat her like this? Aren’t You our rakShaka? Will a rakShaka behave as You do? In fact if any one else had done this i would certainly have sought Your help and pleaded to rescue her. Now the king himself is the thief. To whom should i go for help?

9. muLLeyiru Eindila koozhai muDi koDA
teLLiyaL enbadOr tEsilaL en seihEn |
kaLLavizh sOlai kaNapuram kaitozhum
piLLaiyai piLLai enru eNNa peruvarE ||

Previously tiruttyAr said “mulai ilangu poombayalai munbu Oda anbu ODi irukkinrALal”. Now she says “muLLeyiru Eindila koozhai muDi koDA” “teLLiyaL enbadOr tEsilaL” etc., parakAla nAyaki is a matured young girl is explicitly revealed in many earlier pASuras. But here tiruttAyAr says her daughter is so young that not all her teeth have come, her hair not grown long etc., This suggests parakAla nAyaki as a small child. How can a child fall in love with emberumAn? It should be, therefore, taken to mean the tiruttAyAr out of love for her daughter says she is very young and innocent like a child to fall in love with any one, leave alone emberumAn.

She wonders whether she should control her as a young daughter should be or should she allow her to have her own way? “should i scold for her falling in love indiscriminately? Or should i feel happy and let her have her way thinking she is fortunate to have such an infatuation on Him even at this tender age (“viNNuLArilum seeriyaL”). When all her friends are playing with toys and involve themselves in samsArik way of life why should my daughter alone behave differently?

She reveals her decision in the last line. Though she is young, she worships kaNNapurattu ammAn with such a love that i should indeed feel proud of her and admire her bravery at such an act. Then she decides to let her go as she pleases “viLakkoLiyai marahadattai tiru taN kAvil vekkAvil tirumAlai pADa kETTu vaLarttadanAl payan peTTrEn varuha enru maDakkiLiyai kai kooppi vaNanginALE” – tiruneDuntANDaham.

10. kArmali kaNNapurattu em aDihaLai
pArmali mangaiyar kOn parakAlan sol |
seermali pADal ivai pattum vallavar
neermali vaiyattu neeDu nirpArhaLE ||

tirumangai AzhwAr, the world renown poet and Bakta has sung these ten pASuras on tirukkaNNapurattu emberumAn. He has sung on His guNas through the mouth of tiruttAyAr. Those who read them and enjoy the BAva will live longer in this world surrounded by seas.