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DayA /Anukampaa : NammAzhwAr & Swami Desikan--Part 6.1

From the Bhakti List Archives

V. Sadagopan • November 15, 1996 


Dear Members of the Bhakthi group :

Today is Friday. This morning I had the good 
fortune of hearing the majestic renditon of 
Daya Sathakam by Sangeetha Kalanidhi 
Srimathi Mani KrishNaswamy , the mother of our own dear 
Sri Sudarshan of Bahrain .. I am fortunate to
have received  a copy of this exquistely rendered work of 
Swami Desikan from another  dear member of this group .
The musical scholarship of the artist  trained by giants like 
Mysore VasudevAchAr and Tiger VaradAchAr is astounding .
Her exemplary  uccharaNam of the Sanskrit text
of Swami Desikan is a thrilling experience to hear . It was a moving 
experience . The occasion  also reminded me of the song of
ANNamAcharya about Thirumanjanam for Sri Alamelu MangA on 
a SukramVaaram day.  I thought I will continue today  with
the AzhwAr's anubhavam of Daya of the Lord of Seven hills
on this Sukra Vaaram instead of roaming with Sri Ramachandra 
in the depths of DaNdakAraNyam . We will therefore  focus on 
the forst  section of the fifth decad of Thiruvaimozhi in this posting .

I will start this posting with a slokam of the Ashta sloki of
ParAsara Bhattar , which is appropriate for the occasion .
This is the sixth verse of Ashta Sloki composed by Bhattar 
to teach us the meaning of AshtAkshari :

IsAnAm jafadhAm adhIsa dhayithAm nityAnapAyAm sriyam
samsrithAsrayaNOchitAkila guNasyAngri harerAsrayE I
ishtopAyatayA sriyA cha sahithAyAthmEsvarAyArtayE 
karthum dAsyamaseshamaprathihatham nityam tvaham nirmama : II

( Meaning ) : Sri Devi ( Lakshmi ) is the empress ( Soverign 
Goddess ) of ALL the worlds, as NarAyaNa is the emperor. She is
the inseparable consort of His. We offer our prostrations at Her 
lotus feet to empower ourselves to acquire the means of access
to the Lord's feet for our SaraNAgathi . May I be blessed always to
perform service devoid of ego to the Lord , who is the embodiment 
of Dayaa. . 

The hundred verses of the  fifth decad is a gigantic celebration of 
the Lord"s matchless and limitless Daya GuNam . Almost every subsection 
of this decad brim with the mood of celebration of Lord's 
AnukampA and KaruNA .

Section 5.1.1 ( kaiAr chakkaratthu yen karumANikkamE ) salutes the Lord's 
magnanimous qualiy as Para Tantran ( who obeys the wishes of BhakthAs/
Yathoktha Kaari ) because of His daya for His devotees . Swami Desikan
describes His nature as that of a KaruNA paravasan , who is
overcome by His profound mercy to help the suffering ChetanAs . 

MaNavALa Maamuni state in his 41st paasuram of Thiruvaimozhi
NuRRanthAdhi that the Lord out of His infinite compassion blesses 
even those , who have not expressed  genuine Bhakthi towards Him  
(Poli Bhagavathars) , who pretend that they love him through the 
practice of Kapata Bhakthi .Out of his infinite humility, AzhwAr
reveals that the Lord blessed him for expressing  his 
vyAjamAtra abhilaashai . AzhwAr says that he did not declare 
proudly that he was the servant of the Lord , but he only said casually 
that the Lord has accepted him as His servant . Even that  was sufficient 
for the Lord to bless him fully out of his infinite compassion . That vyAjam 
(half-hearted pretext ) was sufficient for Him to rush to accept 
him says the AzhwAr .The Lord's blessing of Prapatthi was 
Nirhethukam (without any quid pro quo consideration ) , 
NirupAdhikam ( without any condition or clauses ) . This is so
because  He is Nirapekshakan ( he does not want  any return ) .
AzhwAr hints that  the Lord thinks that this AyOgyan ( unfit one )
deserves the fruits of Prapatthi because he is unable to practise
the requisitesofthat effort . Such is His boundless Daya ! 

Parasara Bhattar intreprets NammAzhwAr's feelings expressed 
in this section as  follows : " I am a fraud, a liar. I am guilty of 
soul-theft ( AatmaabahAram ) and thought that this soul is mine ,
where as it is His  property . It is not possible for me to control 
my desires, discipline my senses , to shake off my sorrow over 
not realizing my  mundane yearnings or  to make a  distinction between 
the soul and the body .This lowliness, attachment to this perishable 
body and weakness to do anything in the direction of Moksham  
necessitates me to place myself as  the object of your mercy totally. 
That is what I said half-heartedly. He called me to His abode 
fulfilling His  assurance offered in His  charama sloka. Such is 
His  Nirhethuka KrupA !  "

 AzhwAr states in 5.1. 7 ( AmmanAzhipirAn ) , that the Lord's love for 
me(us) is the same irrespective of mine(ours) being feigned or true.
" yemmA pAviyarkum vidhi vAykkinru vAykkum kandeer ". AzhwAr says that 
he sat in  a  corner , raised his hands in false spirti of pathos and cried 
" O Lord ! You came rushing to save an elephant in distress! Do n'"t  You 
know how much I suffer ? " That was all I  did . He took it seriously 
as a true complaint , came and rescued me. Now my love has become 
true love as a result of His Nirhethuka Dayaa. It is clear that His love for
me is the same irrespective of mine being  feigned or not. He is the supreme
Lord. I am the smallest, the most despicable . If his limitless Dayaa
can be extended to me even, then I can attest that any sinner , even
the WORST can reap my Lord's AnukampA . 

In 5.1.9 , Azhwaar describes his condition and the extraordinary grace of 
the Lord to come to his rescue in his hour of need . Azhwaar says :
" aavaa yenru aruL seythu adiyEnodumAnAnE ". Sri V.N. Vedantha Desikan 
translates this Paasuram this way : " I recall the time . I was helpless.
It was very much like the plight of  a ship caught in a strong cyclone and
totally helpless to reach the  shore safely . --Just at that time , He came with

His divine charm and effulgence , the chakrA and SankhA , with overflowing
mercy for me. He took me into His fold. I enjoy His company as any one in His 
heavenly paraphernalia. What a great Mercy ? Now His merger with me is
a FAIT ACCOMPLI ." 

AzhwAr goes on to say in the next verse that he learnt that it was NOT 
his effort that  secured the happy union between the Lord and him ; rather 
it was His special effort . AzhwAr says that that the Lord seems to exult 
over the thought that all His efforts have now been fructified and AzhwAr 
has become His own . AzhwAr confides that he has detected  a distinct
glow in the Lord's face over His achievement . 

Thus ends the the first ten Thirumozhis of decad 5. 

AzhwAr ThiruvadigalE saraNam

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan  

  
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