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nAcciyAr tirumozhi X - kArkkoDal pUkkAL - Introduction

From the Bhakti List Archives

Kalyani Krishnamachari • September 8, 1999 


                            SrI:
      SrI ANDAL samEta SrI rangamannAr tiruvaDigaLE SaraNam

      nAcciyAr tirumozhi X - kArkkoDal pUkkAL - Introduction 


A. Translation from SrImAn SaDagOpan's tamizh treatise 

Frustrated and despondent that she had not succeeded in 
her desire to be united with emperumAn, godai falls at the 
feet of the flowers, cuckoos, peacocks, the rain and the 
dark-blue ocean. She appeals to them to convey to her nAthan, 
nAraNan, how in her distress and solitude she is constantly  
saying His several names "mAmAyan, mAdhavan, vaikuNthan, 
mAyan, mannu vaDa mathurai maindan, tUya perunIr yamunait 
turaivan, tAyaik-kuDal viLakkam Seida dAmOdaran" etc even 
though He totally ignored her and disappeared from her eyes. 
Her "nARRattuzhAi muDi nArAyaNan, SangODu cakkaram Endum 
taDakkaiyan" has vanished from her sight, instead of turning 
His "pangayakkaN" (lotus-eyes) towards her.  She cannot bear 
this atrocity any more and pleads with all of them individually 
to please unite her with her Selva maNALan.  These ten 
pASurams that fall under "kArkkODal pUkkAL" are full of beauty.

B. Some additional thoughts (from SrI PVP):

Because she longed to live the life of union with emperumAn, 
ANDAL appealed to the bees etc. in the previous tirumozhi 
(Sindurac cempoDi) in the pASuram "enakkOr SaraN SARRuminE", 
and fell at the feet of the clouds in the viNNIla mElAppu 
tirumozhi, all in vain.  The intensity of her longing for Him 
kept growing to such an extent that she felt she would live 
only if He presents Himself right in front of her, or at least 
shows some signs that He is going to come to her.  The kAr 
kAlam (rainy season) in which He had promised to come has come 
and gone. The flowers that appeared during this season and 
other characteristics of the season reminded her of His 
beautiful tirumEni, color and His other attributes and made 
her come to life and faint alternately.  Even though all 
these were torturing her, she still had two reasons to 
continue to live: 

The first was His repeated declarations that He will never 
give up any one who is devoted to Him.  

    -  mitrabhAvEna samprAptam na tyajeyam kata`ncana |
       dosho yadyapi tasya syAt satAm etat agarhitam || " 
       (yuddha. 18.3)

"I will never forsake him (vibhishaNan) since he came to 
me seeking my friendship. Even if he has any dOsham - fault, 
it is not inappropriate for noble people to accept him".  
  
   - dyou: patet prthivI SIryet himavAn SakalI bhavet |
     Sushyet toyanidhih kRshNe! na me mogham vaco bhavet  || 
(bhAratam uttara kANDam 70-48)

"kRshNe!  The sky might fall down, the Earth might shatter 
into pieces, the himAcala mountain might disintegrate, the ocean 
might dry out, but my words will never become vain".

   - sakRdeva prapannAya tavAsmIti ca yAcate  |
     abhayam sarva bhUtebhyo dadAmyetat vratam mama || 
     (yuddha. 18.33)

"It is My vow to protect unconditionally from every living being, 
anyone that surrenders to Me even once, or seeks my protection 
saying "I am your servant".

All the above declarations ensure that He will definitely take 
care of godai, and so she can continue to live in the definite 
confidence that He will fulfil her wish.

The second reason that godai feels justified to continue to 
hold on to her life is: she is confident that He will fulfil 
her wish  because she is none other than the daughter of the 
great periAzhvAr, and if not based on her prayers, but because 
of her association with periAzhvAr, there is no other course 
except for her to be taken to His Feet ultimately.  Even though 
He is a svatantran and thus there is no one who can question 
Him if He fails to keep His word to her, yet the link between 
her and emperumAn is periAzhvAr.  Since periAzhvAr is too dear to 
Him, this relationship will change His svAtantriyatvam if needed, 
and He will have no choice except to accept those who have 
association with periAzhvAr at His Feet for kaimkaryam to Him.  
This is what godai is conveying to us all in this tirumozhi.

The point brought about here is that even with bhagavAn's 
assurance that He will not fail in His words that He will 
save those who surrender to Him, there is the need for 
purushakAratvam or the intermediary in the form of an AcArya.  
The example that SrI PVP gives is bhagavAn's own word:  

 Anayainam hariSreshTha: dattamasya abhayam mayA |
 vibhIshaNO vA sugrIva!  yadi vA rAvaNa svayam ||  - yuddha. 18.34.

"Oh sugrIva! Bring him to me; whether it is vibhIshaNan or 
rAvaNan himself who has sought My protection, I have 
already assured him My protection".  

The key word here is "Bring him to Me".  Thus, even after 
bhagavAn has assured His protection, there is the purushakAratvam 
or intermediary involved.  

Here SrI PVP quotes another incidence of the importance 
of purushakAratvam in attaining Him.   When SrI parASara bhaTTar 
once was visiting  a king named vANavadaraiyan, he stayed in 
a village called "SrIdEvimangaLam", all the SrI vaishNava-s in 
that village flocked to him and performed kaimkaryam to him 
with intense devotion.  Some people asked him "why do these 
SrI vaishNavas come to you with such great devotion when they 
are supposed to seek perumAL instead with this kind of devotion". 
SrI bhaTTar's aruLicceyal was: "His aDiyAr-s are the facilitators 
or ghaTaka-s in bringing about the union between Him and His seekers.  
People are approaching me because of my association with AzhvAn, 
who they pray will be the ghaTaka who will help them attain Him".
[The reference to AzhvAn here is to kUrattAzhvAn, the father 
of SrI parASara bhaTTar].  

[The importance of  purushakAratvam is emphasized repeatedly by 
our pUrvAcArya-s in many places.  In the vyAkhyAnam for 
kaNNiNuN SiruttAmbu pASuram 3, we find the analogy of an 
elephant and a person trying to mount on top of it.  If the person 
tries to get on the back of the elephant with the mahout assisting 
in the process, the elephant willingly accepts the person on its 
back and carries him.  But if the person tries to get on 
the elephant's back in the absence of the mahout, we all know 
the consequence. The role of the purushakAratvam by the AcArya 
is similar to that of the mahout in this analogy.]

sarvam SrIman nArAyaNAyEti samarpayAmi.

adiyEn,
kalyANi kRshNamAcAri
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