SUrpaNakA pays SrI rAmA a visit in pancavaTi.

 

pilankoLvAi tiRandu tan mEl varum avaL seviyum mUkkum vALinAl taDinda endai –

my lord, rAma, had her ears and nose cut off of that woman, who came charging like a bull, with her mouth wide open

perumagaL pEdai mangai tannoDUm –

with bhUdevi who ignores the apacAram-s committed by devotees, and

pirivilAda tirumagaL maruvum nAngUrt tirumaNik kUDattAnE –

with mahAlakshmi tAyAr, who is inseparable from Him (tiruvAimozhi 6.10.10 'agalagillEn iRaiyum enRu'), SrI varadaAraja perumAL is stationed permanently in tirunAngUr tirumaNikkUDam divyadESam.

 

C. SrI UV:

karumagaL ilangai ATTi –

with her tAmasa guNam, SUrpaNakA was terrorizing ilangai; tamo guNam is usually described by 'black' color; hence the 'karumagaL'. lankai's king, rAvaNa was acting per the advice of SUrpaNaka and hence she was thinking of herself like lanka's queen and wrecking havoc.

perumagaL pEdai mangai –

the young sItA, who appeared in janakar’s kulam as an ayonijai (made her 'appearance' as a daughter) to king janaka, an embodiment of dharmam and jn~Anam, was also the wife of raghukula tilaka rAma and was a nirdosha kalyANa guNa nidhi (devoid of faults and full of auspicious characteristics), who does not look at the devotees' apachArams(like that of KaakAsuran).

It can also be interpreted to mean bhUdevi here.

tannoDum pirivilAda –

mahAlakshmit tAyAr does not leave perumAL for a single moment; she is 'vishNoH SrIranapAyinI' (vishNu purANam). She was extremely unhappy that she had to be separated from perumAL and the devotees during rAmavatAram. In order to alleviate that pain, emperumAn is happily living in tirunAngUr tirumaNik kUDam permanently with periya pirATTi, sItA, and His devotees.

tirumagaL maruvum nAngUrt –

that periya pirATTi lovingly lives in tirunAngur with perumAL.

Thus, this is where rAma and sItA are living; per the alternate interpretation, this is where emperumAn lives with SrIdevi and bhUdevi.

 

D. SrI PBA:

karumagaL vALinAl taDinda endai –

The following event is a very well known one -When SrIrAmapirAn was in pancavaTi, during a winter season, SUrpaNaka assumed a beautiful form and requested rAma, without any shame, to accept her as His wife. rAma explained that He has a wife and jokingly pointed her to lakshmaNa saying she can be happy with him. When lakshmaNa counteracted saying, 'I am only a servant, if you marry me, you will also be a servant; so, you are better off marrying my elder brother', SUrpaNaka realized the futility of her efforts and attempted to kill sItA. Acting on rAmapirAn's orders, lakshmaNa cut off her ears and nose with his sword.

Even though iLaiya perumAL did the actual anga bhangam, AzhvAr-s enjoy calling this an act of rAma. A person who gets an act committed by someone else is praised as the one who actually did it also. Not only that, lakshmaNa is called 'rAmasya dakshiNo bAhuH' (rAmAyaNam.yuddha.28.24) - he is considered the right arm of rAma. Thus the right-hand lakshmaNa's act can

be taken as the act of rAma, to whom the right hand belongs. This is similar to kaNNan being praised of doing pralambAsura vadham, even though it was actually done by His brother, balarAma.

 

***

 

PAsuram 4.5.6 – keNDaiyum

keNDaiyum kuRaLum puLLum kEzhalum ariyum mAvum
aNDamum SuDarum allA ARRalum Aya endai
oN tiRal tennan ODa vaDavarasu OTTam kaNDa
tiN tiRal ALar nAngUrt tirumaNik kUDattAnE,

A. SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan:

sarveSvaran, who made His divine appearance as a 'fish', as 'vAmanan', 'hamsam', 'simham' and 'hayagrIvan', lives for ever in tirumaNik kUDam as the AtmA and the lord of the universe, the 'sun', the 'moon' and all other magnificent things.

One time, the brahmins in that place were instrumental in defeating the strong king of pANDiya dESam in the south and the cOzha king in the north and driving them away. Since those two kings were indulging in enmity towards bhAgavata-s and were committing atrocities, these brahmins, who were very talented, won over them in a battle and drove them away. They earned a place in tirumAlai 8 - 'veRuppoDu SamaNar muNDar' (best reaction to listening to arguments against perumAL, from the jains who hate Him, and also from the buddhists, is to die as if from a disease; better yet, if there is a chance to fight them, is to cut off their heads) The brahmins exhibited what perumAL would have done in His avatArams.

 

SrI nrsimha avatAram

 

B. SrI PVP:

He took His avatArams,

keNDaiyum – as a 'fish'

kuRaLum – as 'vAmana'

puLLum –

as a 'hamsam'

kEzhalum – as 'varAham'

ariyum –

as 'narasimham'

mAvum-

as 'hayagrIvan'

aNDamum SuDarum allA ARRalum Aya endai –

my svAmi is also the inner soul of all the brahmANDam – universe, the 'sun', the 'moon' and all the best things in life.

bhagavadgItA 10:41 says,

yadyad vibhUtimat sattvaM SrImadUrjitameva vA|
tattadevAvagaccha tvaM mama tejo aMSa saMbhavam ||

(Every thing that is glorious, brilliant and powerful is a manifestation of My own glory).

nAngUrt tirumaNik kUDattAnE –

He lives in tirunAngUr tirumaNikkUDam

oN tiRal tennan ODa vaDavarasu OTTam kaNDa tiN tiRal ALar –

where learned brahmins, who drove away the pANDya king and the cozha king from the battlefield, live.

 

C. SrI PBA:

tirunAngUr is the place where even brahmins acted valorously like soldiers and drove away the enemies.

 

***

 

PAsuram 4.5.7 – kunRamum

kunRamum vAnum maNNum kuLir punal tingaLODu
ninRa vencuDarum allA nilaigaLum Aya endai
manRamum vayalum kAvum mADamum maNankoNDu engum
tenRal vandu ulavum nAngUrt tirumaNi kUDattAnE.

SrI varadarAja perumAL who lives in tirumaNik kUDam

A. SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan:

perumAL also represents the mountains, the sky, the bhUmi, the cool water, the 'moon', the 'sun' and all the stars; being antaryAmi in them, He preserves the world.

The mountains provide things for people to enjoy and instruments for providing happiness; the sky gives the place for us to experience these happy moments. The bhUmi also presents us with materials for indulgence. The 'moon' provides coolness. The 'sun' provides the warmth to counteract the coolness. The stars show the good and bad for the people and are part of their lives. All these are manifestations of perumAL who lives in tirumaNik kUDam.

tirumaNik kUDam is a place with wide streets, paddy fields, groves, tall houses, etc. The spring breeze picks up the fragrance from all these places and gently blows around on all the four directions. The breeze also absorbs the sweet smell of the ladies living in the houses that are in the midst of the fertile paddy fields.

 

B. SrI PVP:

kunRamum … endai –

the inhabitants of the earth are provided with bhoghya vastu-s and places to enjoy them; the providers of these enjoyments, namely, the mountains, the sky, the bhUmi, the cool water, the cool moon, the warm sun and the stars like aSivni etc are materializations of emperumAn, who is the antaryAmi of all.

And, where is He living now?

manRamum tirumaNik kUDattAnE –

He is in tirunAngUr tirumaNikkUDam, where the breeze spreads different kinds of fragrances picked up from the streets, fields, groves, gardens, houses, ladies living in those houses etc.

 

C. SrI UV:

Just as the breeze takes the fragrance from the fields, groves etc into the city with its tall houses, it also picks up the city fragrances and smell from the padmini jAti ladies living in those houses into the fields.

 

***

 

PAsuram 4.5.8 – Sankaiyum

Sankaiyum tuNivum poyyum meyyum it taraNi Ombum
pongiya mugilum allAp poruLgaLum Aya endai
pangaya mukunda tERal parugiya vALai pAya
senkayal ugaLum nAngUrt tirumaNi kUDattAnE.

A. SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan:

'saMSayAtmA vinaSyati' - cause for destruction is disbelief; 'vyavasAyAtmikA buddhirekeha kurunandana' – Truth is the cause for fame. sarveSvaran, who has as His manifestations, these characteristics, the earth- preserving- clouds, the thunder, the lightning etc, is standing in tirumaNikkUDam.

This place is very fertile with plenty of water; when the big fish jumps out of joy after drinking the nectar from the lotus flower, the small, red fish becomes frightened and swims away with agitation.

 

B. SrI PVP:

Sankaiyum –

disbelief

tuNivum – determination

poyyum –

the divergence from truth

meyyum –

the truth; He is verily the establisher of these traits.

Sankaiyum –

gItA 4.40 states:

aj~naSca aSradda dhAnaH ca saMSayAtmA vinaSyati |
na ayaM loko asti na paro na sukhaM saMSayAtmanaH ||

(One who lacks faith and is a doubter is lost to the spiritual world; neither this world, nor the world beyond, nor even happiness befalls a doubting soul)

tuNivum -

gItA 2.41 talks about determination -

vyavasAyAtmikA buddhiH ekhA iha kurunandana |
bahuSAkA hi anantASsca buddhayaH avyavasAyinAm ||

In this Karma Yoga, Oh arjuna! the resolute mind is one-pointed; the minds of the irresolute are many–branched and endless.

it taraNi Ombum pongiya mugilum allAp poruLgaLum Aya endai –

my svAmi is also behind the clouds that protect the earth, and other things.

pangayam ukunda tERal parugiya vALai pAya senkayal ugaLum –

when the big fish drinks the lotus flower nectar, it jumps with ecstasy, frightening the smaller fish which swims away.

nAngUrt tirumaNi kUDattAnE –

emperumAn lives in this tirunAngUr tirumaNik kUDam divya dESam.

 

C. SrI UV:

sarveSvaran creates the universes, the panca bhUtams, all the worlds and the inhabitants, who get under the sway of truths and untruths; to protect the earth, He creates the clouds etc.

 

D. SrI PBA:

poyyum meyyum -

He is the creator and sustainer of 'untruth' and 'truth' - tirumAlai 15 –

meyyarkkE meyyanAgum vidi ilA ennaipOla poyyarkkE poyyanAgum puTkoDi uDaiya kOmAn

 

***

 

PAsuram 4.5.9 – pAvamum

pAvamum aRamum vIDum inbamum tunbam tAnum
kOvamum aruLum allA guNangaLum Aya endai
mUvaril engaL mUrti ivan ena munivarODu
dEvar vandiRaincum nAngUrt tirumaNik kUDattAnE.

A. SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan:

Characteristics like sin and virtue which pave the way to salvation, happiness, sadness, anger, compassion etc are all manifestations of my svAmi, who lives in tirumaNikkUDam. In that place, all the sages and deva-s proclaim that among the trimUrti-s, brahma, vishNu and Sivan, they all worship vishNu. Thus, the tiruppati is one favorite place of worship for the deva-s and sages.

 

B. SrI PVP:

sarveSvaran is the One who ordains the activities of people, like performing actions shunned by SAstram, doing activities prescribed by SAstram; these activities lead one to aspiration for mokhsam/salvation, the guNam-s that help towards that realization, the guNam-s that obstruct the path towards salvation, etc.; these follow the set rules formed by emperumAn who lives in this divya dESam.

pAvamum aRamum vIDum inbamum tunbam tAnum kOvamum aruLum allA guNangaLum Aya endai –

my emperumAn is the manager of characteristics like pApam, puNyam, moksham, bliss, sorrow, anger and blessing and others.

mUvaril engaL mUrti ivan ena munivarODu dEvar vandu iRaincum –

sanakAdi Rshi-s and indra and other devata-s are determined that out of the three mUrti-s – brahma, vishNu and Siva, the one to be worshiped is vishNu Himself and are all stationed in tirumaNikkUDam. sanakar and other Rshi-s came to a final decision after some deliberations - “vishNu is the antaryAmi of brahma and rudra; He also preserves this world. So, He is our mUrti” and decided to stay in tirumaNikkUDam.

garuDa vAhanam

nAngUrt tirumaNik kUDattAnE –

that special emperumAn is living in tirunAngUr tirumaNikkUDam.

 

***

 

PAsuram 4.5.10 – tingal

tingaL tOi mADa nAngUrt tirumaNik kUDattAnai
mangaiyar talaivan vaN tArk kaliyan vAi oligaL vallAr
pongu nIr ulagam ANDu ponnulagANDu pinnum
venkadirp paridi vaTTattu UDu pOi viLanguvArE.

A. SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan:

sarveSvaran is living in tirunAngUr tirumaNik kUDam that has tall houses that reach up to the moon. tirumangai AzhvAr, the king of tirumangai nADu and the one who wears (thorny flowered) garlands, has sung about emperumAn in this tirumozhi. Those who learn this tirumozhi will get to rule over this earth surrounded by the oceans, then rule over the heavens and then enter the hole in the sUrya maNDalam and get to go through the arcirAdi mArgam and enter paramapadam and happily live there forever.

 

B. SrI PVP:

AzhvAr declares the benefits of learning this tirumozhi.

tingaL tOi mADa nAngUrt tirumaNik kUDattAnai –

He lives in tirumaNikkUDam which has very tall buildings that reach to great heights like the candra maNDalam.

mangaiyar talaivan vaNtArk kaliyan vAi oligaL –

the tirumangai territory king tirumangai mannan, who wears beautiful garlands has sung about that emperumAn

vallAr –

those who learn this tirumozhi

pongu nIr ulagam ANDu –

will rule over this bhUmi surrounded by waters

Pon ulagu ANDu pinnum –

and will rule over heaven and then

venkadirp paridi vaTTattu UDu pOi viLanguvArE –

will enter the sUrya maNDalam, go through arcirAdi mArgam and live with brilliant splendor in paramapadam with emperumAn.

 

C. SrI UV:

the phalan for learning this tirumozhi on tirumaNikkUDam is the ever resplendent moksham itself.

 

D. SrI PBA:

SAstram says that souls meant to reach paramapadam have to enter through the sUrya maNDalam. Hence the phrase, “venkadirp paridi vaTTattu UDu pOi”.

vaN tArk kaliyan – this can have two meanings:

tirumangai mannan always wore muLLi mAlai - “muLLic cezhu malarO tArAn” - ciRiya tirumaDal tanian, written by piLLai tirunaRaiyUr araiyar.

He was wearing garlands made of sacred beads that are symbols of srIvaishNava lakshaNam.

 

Conclusion of periya tirumozhi 4.5 – tirumaNIkkUDam