MEMOIRS OF KANCHI MUNIVAR: A FLORAL COLLECTION
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These English translations done by me of darshan of Paramacharya and other Gurus and experiences of devotees, their discourses and other kinds of publications on and by Paramacharya and other Gurus, from their original presentations in print and other media are posted here with the sole intention of carrying the divine message of Paramachaya and other Gurus to the members of this Forum, for a discussion among the members so as to understand and practice the directions contained in the message.
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'saidevo', as translator of the materials presented.
Special Note
The book Memoirs of Kanchi Munivar: A Floral Collection that narrates the life story of Kanchi Paramacharya is replete with historical and spiritual information about people, places and times, mainly of Tamilnadu. My main objective in posting the contents of the book here is to share this highly interesting and enlightening information with the members of HDF.--sd author:...... Raa. Ganapathi source:...... kAnchi munivar ninaivuk kadambam, 240 pages publisher:.... Divya Vidya Padhippaham (Jun. 1995 Edition) type:...... book, Tamil Chapter 1. The pUrNa kumbham and the vAhana ArohaNam pages 1-6
The time when Sri Maha PeriyavaaL was the boy Swaminathan in Tindivanam. That is, the beginning years of this century.
In that town, sIDai muRukku vyApAram (sale of crunchy snacks) of an a~ndaNap pATTiyammai (brahmin old woman).
Swaminathan had a special taste in pATTiyammai's sIDai muRukku. When he got chillaRai (surplus small coins of money) he used to buy and be happy eating them.
Without just being happy himself, he would also distribute them to his friends and make them happy.
Later, when those friends too got chillaRai (let us not go 'researching' into how they got the coins! Can everyone be like the chaste Swaminathan?), they started buying pATTiyammai's ~noRukkut tIni (crunchy snacks), muRukku ityAdi (Murukku and such).
The chaste Swaminathan was also a sAmartyashAli (skilful person). His chasteness elegantly set a limit for his skill to remain justifiable.
Now, that boy of about twelve years of age, showed that nyAya sAmartyam to pATTiyammai.
"pATTI! I have given you these many customers, right? So you sell the edibles at a discount to me", he said. Commission and discount are there in any dharma nyAya vyApAram, right? pATTiyammai refused--since she did not know that the boy was an avatara of Lord bhikShANDi to whom she can give even her sweet soul not just for a commission, but free.
That avatara also, even when he saw his hundred years of age, acted as if he didn't know it? Therefore, like a twelve-year old sAmAnya mANavan (ordinary pupil) he bargained again. pATTiyammai did not budge.
Swaminathan said angrily, "I am not going to buy form you henceforth!" pATTiyammai asked him with even more anger: "Go away if you don't buy! As if if you are not buying, I shall have no means of living, and shall call you with pUrNa kumbham, you thought?"
"kUppiTTuttAn pArEn (you try doing it)!" said Swaminathan and moved away. *** *** ***
Only a year or two would have run.
Tindivanam swelled in utsava utsAham (festive delightful enthusiasm) that Kanchi KamakoTi PIThAdhipatigaL was to visit the town. Any place would swell at the visit of a Jagadguru, but it was not like that. The town swelled anantam (countless) times in a swell of bliss.
The reason was that, it was only that thirteen year old Swaminathan, who, until two months ago, was the pet boy of Tindivanam, was the Jagadguru Kanchi KamakoTi PIThAdhIshvara Sri Sankaracharya SwamigaL who was to visit the town now! In a totally unexpected turn of events, the school boy has evolved into a world teacher!
The pUrvAshrama Swaminathar, who ascended to pIThAdhipatyam without much kolAhalam (fanfare) in the North Arcot Kalavai, and became Srimad Chandrasekharendra SaraswatigaL, is now going for a sampradAya paTTabhiShekam (tradition-honoured consecration) with rajarIka vimarisai (royal grandeur) in Kumbakonam, a town that in those days remained as the rAjatAni (capital) of SriMaTham. On the way he visits Tindivanam, his previous vAsasthalam (town of residence) that gave him to the world.
Happiness in every house, of the expectation of seeing their own son as DandapaniSwamy who guides a householder! As if an external sign of that ananta kumbham filling their hearts, a pUrNa kumbham was kept ready to receive the deivIka kuzhandai (divine child). (It was the custom that people of sakala jAtis (all castes), even women, did this honour in bhrAmmaNa mukham to the Jagadguru.)
That muRukkup pATTiyammai who had a twist of temperament on that day also had an intention to honour, and was ready with her pUrNa kumbham. And that with what agitating emotions? After she drove away that samarttu sarkkaraik katti (skilled and gentle 'suger candy') with her words, "...shall call you with pUrNa kumbham?"--words that were just short of a slap on the face--, that 'candy' never showed its head in that area. Later pATTiyammai learnt that it ascended the Mahaguru PiTham, which was a rare honour to get. From the day she learnt the news, she was regretting her action, with the feelings of an aparAdhin (guilty, offending). Only with the pressure of that feeling, today she prepares her pUrNa kumbham to earnestly receive that child whom she drove away on that day. pATTiyammai's manas (mind) is in saMcgalanam (agitation): 'Whether the kuzhandai guruswAmi (the Child Guruswamy) would accept or decline it?' Did he not pose a challenge on that day saying, "kUppiTTuttAn pArEn (you try doing it)!"?
The Guruswamy that appeared far away, moves towards her, little by little, stopping here and there, and has now come to the next-door! How much of a change in figure! That within one or two years! The tejas (shine) that stopped at the limit of adisamarttuk kaLai (elegance of extreme skill) then had now become elevated into deivIka gaMbhIryam (divine majesty). In that is weaved in wonder, the suppleness of a divine motherliness!
When on behalf of pATTiyammai at the entrance of her house, the pUrNa kumbham is offered next, would that tejas separate itself and scorch as a flame?
There, when the Guruswamay has arrived... eagerness and anticipation pushing pATTiyammai's legs forward, fear and a feeling of guilt drawing them back... somehow her managing it, coming forward and standing with humility... on her behalf, SastrigaL extended the pUrNa kumbham before Kuzhandai Gurunathan.
The shining eyes of the Gurubala settled on the pATTiyammai who was desparate to hide herself.
The light did not become a flame! Instead of the tejas alone separating, only the motherliness separated and came up swelling!
That motherliness, with the simple and readily relating heart of a child, blossomed into a smile and flowered as a talk with a childlike frolic.
Touching the coconut that was pUrnaphalam on the kumbham, and saying as honey, "kuDuppEnA-nna ~nIyum kuDuttuTTE! vA~ggippEnA-nna ~nAnum vA~ggiNDuTTEn! (you who said 'will I give it', gave it! I who said 'will I receive it', received it!)", he took it in his hand, that Acharya Murtam of all beings, who has become the embodiment of love.
The joy of victory to both of them, for having got defeated in their own challenges!
As a rUpakam (form) of that joy, pATTiyammai did a namaskAram that matched all the prostrations done by the people of the town.
The Child Guruswamy who has become a suddha prEmai vaDivu (pure embodiment of love) in which thoughts like guilt and pardon never arise, blessed pATTiyammai with a blessing that matched all the blessings he gave to the people of the town, with the prArthanA 'Narayana, Narayana'.
*** *** *** Glossary: aparAdhin - guilty, offending, criminal.
Pages 6-12
The previous year before Swaminathan became SwamigaL, the then Sri KamakoTi PiThAdhipatigaL was camping in a village called Saaram, located a few miles away from Tindivanam. A short time before that he had risen in his blessing stance in another village called Perumukkal near Tindivanam, for chAturmAsyam. Even at that time, a magnetic attraction had developed between that PiThAdhipati SwamigaL and Swaminathan. Meetings had taken place between the two that surprised the people of the place as to what subject could there be to converse in private, between a twelve year old school boy and a Jagad Acharya. Nevertheless, more than those sAmIpya sa~ndippugaL (meetings in person), when after finishing his chAturmAsyam, the PiThAdhipatigaL started from his two months camp and went to the Alayam (temple) of that place in what was known as the viShvarUpa yAtrA, the bAlakan saw the Acharyadeva in the temple from a distance, and it was only then for him, "Something that cannot be described as this or that, registered deep in mind!"
Maha PeriyavaaL has generously given a lot of details about his external life to the author of this essay, but showed his inner life only much less than the 'tip of the iceberg', therefore slipped away from revealing more than what he said above!
Thus, that 'something that cannot be described as this or that' did not leave the baAlakan to stay doing nothing about it. Although on that occasion he returned home with his father-mother, later when he came to know about the PiThAdhipatigaL visiting Saaram village, that 'something' stired and prodded him--out of the house.
One day, before dawn, without informing his parents about it, he started for the SriMaTham camp.
The young heart longed to have a companion. He went to his classmate Krishnaswamy's home. As he was not able to 'kidnap in stealth' the boy who was doing Kumbakarna upAsana (fast asleep), he gestured to a relative-lad of the boy who was sleeping near his friend but woke up suddenly, asking the boy to follow him silently.
Both the young things (chiTTu) flew away.
The bAlan who was running towards Acharyapada's sripAda (holy feet), had pain in his legs. Right at that time they spotted a cart belonging to the MaTham going towards the village Saaram. Both the boys rushed prodding their aching legs even harder, with the thought of catching that cart for further travel. Swaminathan also spotted the mEnA (palanquin) of the PiThAdhipati going before the cart, which made his Ananda swell for a kShaNam (moment). The reason his happiness subsided after a second was that he saw that the bhoyis who carried the mEnA were jogging at a hectic pace. The clever boys understood that the sage had gone on vijayam (visit) to some surrounding village the previous day and was hastily returning to his Saaram camp in that tender morning. Therefore, they somehow digested the situation that they could only have the darshan of the mEnA then, with no possibility of darshan of the traveller in the mEnA.
They decided to seek a place in the MaTham cart as they thought earlier, so they rushed toward it and caught the vehicle. kArvAr Sri Venkataramaiyer was inside the cart.
'kArubAru' in Telugu refers to government administration. Based on that term, the name kArvAr came to refer to the man holding an important administrative responsibility in large institutions. The chief official of SriMaTham has the names 'srikAryam', 'agent'; also referred to as 'sarva muktiyArnAmA'. Next comes the kajAnA adhikAri called 'kajAnji'. Third in the hierarchy is 'kArvAr', then 'mEstri (supervisor)'.
Venkataramaiyer, who had became a SriMaTham chippanti (staff member) many years before Sri Maha PeriyavaaL ascended to the PiTham, was also a strict kArvAr for a long time in PeriyavaaL's PiThAdhipatyam.
That kaRAr (strictness) he showed on that day to those chiRar (lads)!
To Swaminathan who asked for a place in the cart, he showed the rule 'the MaTham cart is only meant for people who belonged to the MaTham' and refused to let him climb in.
Just like the muRukkup pATTi refused to give him a discount! Another paribhava (humiliation) in this way to the tavak kuzhandai (child born out of tapas-penance)!
However, just like he challenged the pATTiammai then, he did not do anything now; only continued his 'Nataraja service' (walking)!
The bAlakAs reached the Saaram village. Gurunathar welcomed them, in the camp, his face blossming--as the sAram (essence) of shuddha premai (pure love)!
Instead of asking how the two lads came alone, he said in sarva sahajam (very naturally), "Swaminatha, ingEyE iru~nduDEn (why don't you stay/remain here)!" As how much dIrgha darshanam (previson of a long future) did the later times regard it? But then at that time? It had occurred to the bAlaka in earlier times of his darshan of SriGuru, if he could stay with the sage without returning home. But at this time specifically? Since the bAlaka in some rush had come without informing his home, and as he had the prevailing feeling of how anxious would the parents be--his friends' too--not finding their children at home, he told the truth without hiding anything to the PiThAdhipatigaL and sought his early leave to return home. (Later too he was 'pecked away' by the SriMaTham people to 'remain there itself', without his even informing home!)
"Having come, stay here for at least a couple of days and then go. I shall send word to your home right now", said the gurunAtha pitA with vAtsalyam, seeing in the lad his own jnAna putra. And forthwith he sent word.
Two days later, when he bid farewell to Swaminathan, he ordered a chippanti take the boys to Tindivanam in the SriMaTham cart.
He could also do this adhisaya vAhana upakAram (strange obligation of a vehicle) according to the nyAya that the vehicle is meant only for those who belong to the MaTham? Because, then and there, why even before that time when he first met Swaminathan, he had made a saMkalpam to have the boy as his successor!
The bAlar who returned home in the MaTham cart, did not at that time meet the kArvAr in person. Still, as one who had administered the MaTham affairs in all strictness, he would have heard the strange news that the official cart was used to take the school boys home; and also obtained the inner paripakvam (spiritual maturity). The same story of the pATTiammai again!
Later, within four to five months when this Swaminathan was elected as the next PiThAdhipati, in the rush of events on that day, from Kalavai where SriMaTham was camping then, it was a cart drawn by kOvERu kazhudai (mule, as the mount of a king) that was sent to bring the vArisu (successor)! Like a god that was sought to be worshipped accosting the devotee by crossing his path, the iLamkO (young king) having been spotted in Kanchi, a town that was the single large capital of SriMaTham, the vAhanam locked to an ERu vilangu (mule), took him there and then and brought him to Kalavai.
This would in all certainty have been known to the kArvAr. Not only known to him, but there would also have been his role in sending the cart. But then, the hero of our essay did not witness the paripakvam of the official at this juncture too.
It took sometime later, by which time Swaminathan had become SwamigaL and the yajamAna (boss) who does 'kArubAru' as one in rank far above the 'kArvAr! It was a day of festivity, or so it seemed. The MaTham carts were given a coat of paint and decorated. To supervise the work, that kArvAr himself brought the 'yajamAnan' Swamy!
BalaGuruswamy had a look all the carts, rolling his splendid eye. Also looked at the kArvAr meaningfully, in a way the meaning sank in the official's heart!
The kArvAr face bowed, with the thought 'I refused him to take in one cart that day; today all these carts belong to him'.
BalaGuruswamy's milky words raised with coolness, the face that bowed! The parivu mozhi (word of compassion) that wipes away the guilt and comforts! In that a subtle streak of humour!
"It was (the case) then that only those belong to the MaTham could climb into a cart. Now you people have made all these carts, even this MaTham itself, as mine. But even now for me it is the same thing--not climbing into a cart", he said, that sannyAsa chakravarti (emperor of ascetics) who had the tuRavaRa niyamam (discipline of asceticism), of not climbing into a cart that has a wheel!
Glossary: kajAnA - treasury, public treasury. paribhava - m. insult, injury, humiliation, contempt, disgrace. saidevo 27 June 2008, 08:14 PM Chapter 2. avatAra dinam (The Day of Avatara) Pages 13-17
Like the vinAyaka chaturthi, janmAShTami, and shrI sankara jayanti, the good day of vaikAsi anusham has also become one of our sacred days. Is there any doubt in the janma dinam of the visible God Sri KamakoTi Maha PeriyavaaL who touched his hundredth year of age, being among the divine days?
It would be proper to refer to vaikAsi anusham as vaishAkha anurAdhA. Only vaishAkhi has become vaikAsi--like madurai becoming marudai! That month of vaishAkha is the period of two pakShas (fortnights) from the day of pratamai which is the next day of our chittirai (chaitra) month amAvasya, until the day of the next amAvasya. Since the days of avatara and pandigai (festivals) are determined in the chAndramAna rIti* that starts its months from the vaLarpiRai pratamai (waxing lunar fortnight), only this will apply to Sri Maha PeriyavaaL's jayanti (day). Further, Sri PeriyavaaL was born in the Kannada kuDi (class) that follows the Chandramana Panchangam. Therefore, it is always the custom in our Kanchi SriMaTham to celebrate his jayanti in the Chandramana vaishAkha month only.
On some occasions, that would also be the vaikAsi month according to the Sauramana Panchangam we follow in Tamilnadu. On many other occasions, however, the day would fall during our chittirai month itself. The last and hundredth jayanti when Maha PeriyavaaL carried his sharIraM (body) also came in our chittirai month. Only on that day, which was May 7, 1993, the beginning of the shatApta mahotsavam was conducted in vimarisai (royal grandeur). Since the lunar eclipse took place on June 4, which was the day of our (Tamilians') vaikAsi month anusham, commencing the festivities on that day was not considered that shlAgya (excellent). But then during the eclipse time the vIryam will increase much for mantra japam. Therefore, some of us among his adiyars (devotees) took it as two jayanti days blessed by him: one on May 7th as a day of external festivity and another on June 4, the day when we can experience the shAnta sukham by ceaselessly chanting "jaya jaya sankara, hara hara sankara, taking it as the mahAmantram for our sadguru paramAtman and soaking inwardly in him.
One hudred years ago, that day of anusham when he took avatar--the golden day of May 20, 1894--was in the month of vaishAkha-vaikAsi, in harmony with the two systems Chandramanam and Sauramanam. There can't be the dvaita (duality) of two computations after all on the very avatara day of the advaita svarUpam that arose to unite the whole country in harmony (~nADellAm oRRumaikkuL uyyavE)?
*** *** ***
Sri Maha PeriyavaaL's janana kAlam (time of birth) is one that shines with grandeur in many respects.
It was vasanta Rtu (spring time), the best of the seasons. Madhavan has said "Among the seasons I remain as the spring." (aham RutunAm kusumAkaraH-- Gita 10.35). Among the two months that come in vasantam, vaikAsi is distinguished by the very name 'mAdhava' month. chittirai is known as madhu and vaikAsi as mAdhavam; means 'full of honey'. Only in the vaikAsi month referred to as the very nArAyaNa svarUpam, did Sri Sankara Bhagavadpada, who prescribed nArAyaNa smaraNam to his descendents, took avatar; and gushed the honey of grace. He has also said, "mahAns go about their saMchAra (roaming) as the vasanta Rutu, doing loka hitam (healing the world)!" In vaikAsi only did the vaishNava tilakas Ramanuja and Nammazhvar took birth. Buddhas' birth, jnAnodaya (revelation) and mahAnirvANa, all three happened only on the vaishAkha pUrNima.
When a person takes birth, the day of his birth will have a certain tithi and nakShatra. But then in the later years, when we start computing his day of birth, we would find that his janma tithi and nakShatra, have no necessity to fall on the same day, and actually fall on different days.
In such a state, a question arises as to on which day between these two days, a person's birthday celebrations and the Aysh-homAdi worships should be done. Our ancients have prescribed that only the day in the month of birth, when a person's janma nakShatra falls should be taken as the birth day for the general jana samudAya (public). Only accordinly, all of us are doing. However, that same great tradition has determined that the janma dinam of mahA puruShAs should be celebrated based only on the tithi, not on the nakShatra.
In udAharaNam (example thereof), we celebrate sri-rAmanavami based only the navami (tithi), without considering the punarvasu (nakShatra). Although Adi Sankara Bhagavadpada Acharya's janma nakShatra is Athirai (Aardhra), we take up the jayanti vizhA (birthday celebrations) only on the panchami tithi. Those belonging to institutions such as the Ramakrishna Mutt also conduct the jayanti vaibhava for their mukhya puruShAs based only on the janma tithi. In addition, they derive the month of birth following only the Chandramana system, as with the jayanti of pUrva KAla puruShAs (great people of the ancient times). Sri Ramanuja Vaishnavas too have accepted the Chandramanam. Nevertheless, when it comes to tithi or nakShatras, in contrast to what the rest of the people do, they would take up janma dina celebrations for their mahA puruShAs only based on the nakShatra. Although they too celebrate jayanti for Ramapiran as per the navami tithi, for Kannan (Krishna), they celebrate it as 'Sri Jayanti', based only on the rohiNi nakShatra .
Importance is not given in general, in the bhArata samudAyam for the maRaivu dinam (day of death) of mahA puruShAs. On the maRaivu dinam of a tuRavi (ascetic), only his disciples in the name of ArAdhana worship it like a shrArda (ceremony). Mostly the day is not even known to the other general public. The world does not also know the maRaivu dinam of Ramapiran and Kannan! However, in Tamilnadu, it is the custom among the Saiva Nayanmars to give importance only to the day of death and worship it in the form of Guru Puja. As even more unusual in this, if in general we consider only the tithi and not the nakShatra for the day of death and follow it, these Sivanesa SelvargaL alone do their puja only on the day of the nakShatra on which their gurus attained shivapadam. In that way, only on the vaikAsi mUlam is the worship conducted for Tirugnana Sambandar who was the amshAvatara of Sri Kumaraswamy.
Sri Maha PeriyavaaL's jayanti would fall as the next day of Nammazhvar's (avatara) day which is vaikAsi visAkam and two days before Jnana Sambandar's (mukti) day which is vaikAsi mUlam. Based on the tithi if we celebrate PeriyavaaL's jayanti on the vaikAsi kRushNa pratama, that same day would sometimes would happen to be Sambandar's day of mUla nakShatra. Although in the vaikAsi month mahima, that month is spoken as belonging to Madhavan, visAkam is very much connected to Murugan too. There is a name 'visAkan' for Muruga! If Sambanda Peruman is murugAmsha, there are nAdi leaves that describe our Dandapani Jagadguru who took the holy name 'Swaminathan' as the avatara of Sri Swaminatha himself.
Note: * Hindus celebrate their new year according to two systems known as CHANDRAMANA and SAURAMANA. Those who follow the lunar calendar observe Chandramana and those who follow the solar calendar observe Sauramana. (http://yoga.india.yogelements.com/FPYK_Yoga_Newsletters.php? ltr=21Mar04 )
Glossary: udAharaNa - n. the act of relating, saying, declaring, declaration; referring a general rule to a special case, an example, illustration.
Pages 17-22
Is the mAdhava month only for pouring honey as amudham (nectar)? Adavan (the sun) pouring warmth in amita (limitlessly) is also in that month only! As that Adavan only is the jnAnam spoken of! The same mahAtmAs who shower the honey of grace, also remain as Aditya in giving the light of knowledge, jnAna oLI. When Aditya's Adhipatyam is uccha in the vaishAkha month, on the day of 15th which is in the exact middle of the month (according to Chandramanam), at midday, the shubha jananam (auspicious birth) of our SriCharaNaaL who is the jnAna-bhAskara (sun of knowledge), took place. The day of that date was also Sunday! sUrya bhagavAn is also the adhi-devatA (presiding deity) of the anurAdhA nakShatra! There is a custom to refer to Goddess Lakshmi as that tArakA's deity. Still, on the words of the shruti, "anUrAdhA nakShatram mitro devatA" (Krishna Yajur Veda, 4.4.10), mitra is only sUrya. If that mitra is the friend who shapes up our worldly life, only AsAn (the teacher) is the friend who shapes up the spiritual life?
How much distinction has our religion given to the anurAdhA nakShatra! Whatever be the homam conducted, at the beginning, when the deiva- brAhmaNAs' anumati (permission) is sought by what is known as anujnA, the mantra says: "May we attain fulfilment by giving upachAra through homam and namaskAram to mitra deva! O mitrA! Bless us with your bounty! Adoring the anurAdhA nakShatras by giving aviH, may we live for a hundred years as parAkramashAlis!" ruddhyAsma hayair namasopasadya | mitram devam mitradheyam no astu | anurAdhAn havishA vardhayantaH | shatam jIvema saradaH savIrAH |
For our anurAdhA nakShatra avatAra reaching his hundred years of age, what wonderful connection does the "shatam jIvema saradaH svIrAH" show! Here the parAkramam known as vIram not only shows the bodily might; also the inner power. It is the Anma dhIram (spiritual wisdom) spoken of by Avvai as "pulanai~ndum venRAn tan vIramE vIram" (the valor is that of one who has conquered his five senses).
The reason for referring to anurAdhA nakShatras in plural is that it is composed of four tArakAs. The visAka nakShatram has another name, rAdhA. One that follows it is 'anu- rAdhA'. The terms 'rAdh, rAdhA' refer to ArAdhana (worship), giving happiness, luxuriance and victory. The year too, when Sri Maha PeriyavaaL took avatara, refers to victory--jaya varsham!
Whereas Sri PeriyavaaL for himself would only do parihAsam about his janma nakShatram. "If there is one way for all the people, it is the opposite for me. My nakShatra visheSham is such! Would you know it is vishvAmitra sRuShTi?", he would say. anurAdhA is one of the nakShatras that vishvAmitra created, when he created a svargam for triSha~gku (Trisanku), which was an alternative to the brahma sRuShTi. These nUtana tArakAs appear to move in the opposite direction of the gati (path) of the rest of the twenty-seven tArakAs. It was that which SriCharanaaL attributed for himself as "If there is one way for all the people, it is the opposite for me." In that parihAsam too there is only truth--when the whole world is going the Kali way, losing its order, was he not the one who remained as the maharshi and went in the Satya Yuga way, in the opposite direction?
If for a deiva puruSha, taking the janma dinam based on the tithi and not the nakShatra is the most suitable, what is SriCharanaaL's janma tithi? In addition, if we are to take up PeriyavaaL's jayanti celebrations only in accordance with the Chandramana janma tithi, without letting the difference in the day between the Chandramana and Sauramana arise, as we celebrate in the case of Rama Navami, Krishna Jayanti, Vinayaka Chaturthi and Sankara Jayanthi, what is that day which suits this presciption?
The pratama of the waning lunar fortnight, which is born on the next day of paurNami (full moon day) in the Chandramana vaishAkha month, which according to our (that is, Sauramana) system is born as the pratama on the next day of the Chittirai amAvAsyai (new moon day) is that holy day. If we are to express Sri PeriyavaaL's jayanti computed acording our sampradAya (tradition)--as we say that Sri Rama (was born) on chitra shukla navami, Kannan on shrAvaNa kRushNa aShTami, Adi Sanakara on vaishAkha shukla panchami--it is vaishAkha kRushNa pratama.
Nevertheless, it has been the custom to celebrate the birthday of SriCharanaaL based on the nakShatra as with the case of the general public like us, and as against what is appropriate for the avatAra mahA puruShas. Such a jayanti in many years has been the day that the government honours as buddha pUrNima. On many occasions, Kanchi Varada Garudotsavam has also aligned on that same day.
When we say pratamai, there is no need to feel chuNakkam (depressed) that it is an "ahAta nALAchchE" (an inauspicious day)! Many that are 'ahAta' in laukikam would be very 'Ahira' (auspicious) in AnmIkam--like krittika, aShTami, navami! Just as the chaturdashI (14th day) on the day before the amAvAsya when the moon completely wanes, has visheSha shiva sambandham, so also the pratamai on the next day of pUrNima when the moon completely waxes, has a special devi sambandham. For the pUrNima that reels and rolls in close intimacy with Goddess Ambika who is karuNAmayI (compassion itself), the pratamai on the next day is only an apt tithi when the vAnaha mahA mAtA (Heavenly Great Mother) comes as SriMata, reducing by just one kalA (sixteenth part).
During the waxing phase, Ambikai's charanAmRutam fills up the chandra manDalam as moonlight, tithi after tithi; and once it attains pUrNa kalA, from the waning phase pratama, the tithi nityA devIs one by one on each day would drink from that nectar, a volume of one kalA. If they as the mothers drink it, it means that they drink it for us, the people of the world, and that AmbaaL's charaNAmRutam through them would collect within us even without our knowing it. Thus, when it is emptied on the amAvasya, during the next waxing phase the charaNAmRutam would again start filling up of its own accord. In this way, it is only on the kRushNa pakSha pratama that sAkShAt jaganmAtA's aruLamuda pAnaM (nectar drink of grace) becomes available to us. For one who came as apara kAmAkShi to feed the world with the nectar of grace to take avatara, is there any other tithi more suitable than that?
Did we not speak about the honey of grace together with the splendour of jnAnam above? Appropriately, the pratama that follows the nectar-showering pUrNima also remains in sUrya sambandham (connected to the sun deity). There is a tradition to worship AmbaaL as chandra-manDala-vAsini during the waxing phase and as sUrya-manDala-vAsini during the waning phase, starting from the pratama.
Even though there is a general opinion that there should be no shubha kAryam (auspicious work) on the pratamai, the jyotiSham (astrology) experts say that to do utsavArambha on the kRushNa pakSha pratama is visheSha. Not only this deivIka kAryam, two important activities in vaidIka kAryam also are carried out on the pratama. A karma called sthAlI bhAgam, which is the basis known as prakRuti for all the bhAga yajnas, and the dharSa-pUrNa iShTi, which is the prakRuti for havIr yajnas, are to be performed only on the pratama. Therefore, the vEda mudalOn (God of the Vedas) who came to sustain the world from forgetting the Vedas, taking birth on a pratama is appropriate only!
The 'mudalvan' (the principal one) should appear only on the pratama tithi? The advaita that establishes only the eka tattvam should start its utpava (winnowing) only on the first tithi?
Glossary: Adhipatyam - supremacy, overlordship, duties of a king. Arambha - undertaking, beginning; haste, speed, effort, exertion. anuj~jA - permission, consent, command. chuNakkam - (Tamil) 1. delay; 2. emaciation; fatigue; depression of spirits; 3. dalliance parakramaH - valour, bravery, aggression. parihAsaH, parIhAsaH - joking, jest. sRuShTiH - creation, production, creation of the world, offspring. triSha~gkuH - Trisanku, king of Ayodhya, Chataka bird, cat, glow-worm. uccha - high, tall, loud.
Pages 22-24
When we see that the pratama for festivities, Sunday for mangala kAryas and anurAdhA for the sthApitam of maTha, devAlayAs are visheSha, we wonder how appropriately the tithi-vAra-nakShatra have aligned at the time of our SriCharaNar's avatAra kAlam (time of birth).
There is a certain adbhuta (wonderous) agreement. SriCharaNar was one who lived with Goddess Kamakshi as his life breath. There are people who worship him as the apara kAmAkShi. The day that Kamakshi was in AvirbhAva in the Kanchi Kama Kottam was only on a waning phase pratama. (SriKamakshI Vilasam, XII.76).
Securing the tradition without any compromise was one of the specialities in the greatness of SriCharaNargaL. Showing himself only as a sAmAnya manuShya (ordinary human), he guarded the sampradAya muRaimais (traditional rights and properties) with strictness. So long as he was bearing a body, we too could act as if we accepted that sAmAnyatvam only! Whereas today when he has become akhaNdam (partless, wholesome) giving up his body, it appears that it might be appropriate not to consider him with the sAmAnyAs but to rank him among the deiva puruShas that include Ramapiran, Kannapiran, and his mUla puruSha Adi AcharyaaL, and as we do to them, for him also fix only one day as jayanti day, as 'standard', in accordance with the Chandramanam as well as the janma tithi.
However, we should also note an adbhuta agreement in our having celebrated rAma-kRushNAdhi jayanti as per Chandramanam and SriCharaNar's jayanti as Sauramanam until now. That is, in many years, this SriCharaNa jayanti happened to be the exact mid-date between Sri Rama Navami and Sri Krishna Janmashtami! Even in this year 1995, it is 64 days from Sri Rama Navami to vaikAsi anusham; and 66 days from vaikAsi anusham to Gokulashtami. Taking the vaikAsi waning phase pratama as SriCharaNa jayanti, it is exactly 65 days from Sri Rama Navami to that day and from that day to Gokulashtami! "As Raman lived, as Kannan taught"--in this way people are usually given the Adesha (advice). Is not the avatara of our Maha PeriyavaaL a Rama-Krishna sangamam (confluence) that shows that his very life was an upadesha and he also did upadesha by his words?
Sri PeriyavaaL once explained the meaning of the gap of an exact half year between two puNya dinams (sacred days). Pointing out the half year gap between Shivaratri and Gokulashtami, he gave this explanation. The same satya tattvam remains as jnAna-shAntam inside and shows an outward appearance of prema-lIlA. That jnAna-shAntam is Shiva; and the prema-lIlA is Tirumal (Vishnu). The figure wherein they both remain pappAdhi (in exact halves) in the same body is Sankara Narayana Murti. Only in order to show that just as they are pappAdhi in the same figure, so also are they pappAdhi in the same kAla tattvam, the Shivaratri and Gokulashtami meant for Kannan who is a pUrNAvatara of Tirumal (Vishnu) take place.--This is the explanation that PeriyavaaL gave.
As detailed here, SriCharaNar jayanti and the jayanti of another contemporary mahApuruSha happen at a gap of an exact half year. That another person is Swami Sathya Sai Baba. When we see that Shivaperuman's jnAna-shAntam is more explicit in SriCharaNar and Kannan's prema-lIlA is more explicit in Baba, doesn't this time gap sweeten us as an adbhuta agreement?
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Glossary: AvirbhAva - m. manifestation, becoming visible, presence sthApita - mfn. caused or made to stand, fixed, established, founded etc.; handed over, deposited; put aside, kept, stored
Pages 24-29
So far as SriMaTham is concerned, for this birthday there are three special agreements. First, the vaishAkha kRuShNa pratamai, the day of SriCharaNa jayanti falls on the eleventh day after the vaishAkha shukla panchami on which day the first among the jnAnis Sri Adi Sankara took avatara. That is, on the holy day when Bagavadpada was given the nAmakaraNa Sankara, our Abhinava Sankara has taken avatara.
The second one, to put it properly, concerns the year of birth, not the day. It was only in the year 1894 when Sri Maha PerivaaL was born, that his paramaguru (guru's guru) gave the world a great vedAnta shAstra vichAra institution named 'Advaita Sabha'.
Thirdly, for the vaikAsi anusham too there is a visheSham. The janana dinam of Sri Sudarsana Mahadevendra Saraswati Maha SwamigaL, SriCharaNar's paramEShTi guru (guru of guru's guru), known as 'Ilayattankudi PeriyavaaL' was also a vaikAsi anusham.
Beyond everything, for Tamizhagam (Tamilnadu), there is a speciality for this day. It is only a news custom to celebrate the birthday of TiruvaLLuvar Peruman, the first among the great people that Tamizhagam gave the world, on the day after the Pongal festival, in his own name. The day perumakkaL (great people) who respect the ancient traditions attribute as the birthday of that Perumagan (great son)--according to the very Panchangam they follow-- is only vaikAsi anusham!
Only the TirukkuRaL author's avatara day? There is a song sung by Nammazhvar that refers to Sri Vamana Murti, who was of kuRuvadivu (small frame), as 'TirukkuRaLan'. There is a statement in that song that appears as if it describes only our SriCharaNar in ratna churukkam (bright and compact as a precious stone). There was a Vaishnava pUrvAcharya who took up vichAra (inquiry) of the inner meaning of that statement. The day he took janma was also a vaikAsi anusham. Why give this narration as just a kuRaL in brief? Let us see it in some detail!
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Sri Maha PeriyavargaL would say that the mUla puruSha, mukhya puruSha of all the sects of our Sanatana Dharma, is Veda Vyasa. The father who gave that mahA puruSha was Parasara Maharshi. He is the one who gave in upakAra (service) the great book Vishnu Puranam--a mother-like root book for Srimad Bhagavatam. To ensure a permanent place for this Rishi's name in the world was one of the AGYAs (orders) that Sri Ramanujacharya had received from his guru ALavandar.
Ramanuja's atyanta (closest) disciple was KoorathAzhvan. To him and his wife mangai nallAL (best among women) AndaL, by the sarkkaraip pongal (sweet rice) prasAdam that Sri Ranganatha himself had sent to them, two sons were born as little lumps of sugar. To the elder among them, Sri Ramanuja himself did the nAmakaraNam, as Parasara. Growing in the tirusannidhi (holy sanctum) itself as Sri Ranganatha's pet child in a thULi (a swinging cradle in cloth), and wallowing with his hand (aLaindu the nivedanams meant for Him, that child finally blossomed as Parasara Bhattar, one of the mukhya puruShas of Sri Ramanuja Darshan. If it is 'Bhattar', it was only him for the Vaishnavas!
It was he who wrote a commentary for Sri Vishnu Sarasranamam in the Ramanuja tradition.
Bhattar who was a bhaktimAn and a buddhimAn even in childhood, would listen and feel happy about the Divya Prabhandam that his father gave him in anusaMdhAnam. One day his father--KoorathAzhvan, who is referred to by Sri Vaishnavas as 'Azhvaan'--was reciting a pathikam (set of 10 hymns) starting with the phrase 'NeDumARkaDimai' (slave of Tirumal) from 'Tiruvaimozhi' composed by Nammazhvar, who is referred to by Vaishnavas as 'Azhvaar'. The third line in that song would speak very highly of adiyAr perumai (greatness of the devotees) as "when the parama bhAgavatas remain in this very world, would it be right to merge in bhagavAn's pAdam?"
உ ேமா பா ேய k இv லக µட ைறய மாேம rtத எ ெசnதாமைரk க k றளா ந மா ைர நா மலர k p தல அவன யாr மாம சராy எ ைனயா டாr இŋேக யேவ? uRumO pAviyEnukku ivvulaka mUnRumuDan ~niRaiya chiRumAmEni ~nimirtta en se~ndAmaraik kaN tirukkuRaLAn ~naRumAvirai ~nAN malaraDik kIzhp pukutalanRi avanaDiyAr chiRumAmanisarAy ennaiyANDAr i~ggE tiriyavE?
(When the devotees of God, appearing in smaller and bigger frames and taking charge of me, wander this world of lands, will it be right for this sinful man to avoid them and try to merge in the fragrant, flowery feet of my red-lotus-eyed Vanama Murti, who grew his small frame replete with greatness in such a way that it filled up well the three worlds?)
To the anju vayasu pinju (five-year-old offspring) Parasara, the tAtparyam (purport), padap poruL (phrasewise meaning), everything was intelligible, except the phrase 'chiRu mA manisar' that occurs in the fourth pAda (quarter)!
Since the one who took kuRaL vadivam (tiny form) as Vamanan became Trivikrama and pervaded the three worlds, it is alright to speak of him as chiRu mA mEniyan (small-framed, great-famed). But then why refer to the Adiyar Tilakas who voluntarily take control to guide the worldly people (including those who call them pAviyEn-sinful) as 'chiRu mA manisar' (little great men)?
Interrupting his father who was reciting the pAsuram (hymn), the bAlaka asked: "What is that 'chiRu mA manisar' Appa? How can the chiRumai (meanness) and the perumai (greatness) that are opposite to each other come together in the same person?"
The thandai (father) did sindhai (gave it a thought). Then came back with the answer: "PiLLAi (my boy)! Since you haven't undergone upanayanam (thread- bearing ceremony), there is no way to show the veda shAstrArtham (scriptural meaning) for this. But I shall give you a pratyakSha (plainly visible) example. How do the men such as [b]siRiyAcchAn[/i] (Balariyar), AruLaLap Peruman (Devarajamuni), who are seen as respectable in our tradition even today, look like? Only small in their frames. But then in knowledge and experience, what greatness do they possess? These men who are 'chiRu' in appearance but 'mA' (big) inwardly--aren't they chiRu mA manisar'? Why, even our Emperumanar (Ramanuja), when we look at his inner greatness, remains only small in his body? Azhvar has described only such people as 'chiRu mA manisar'."
This is the explanation given by Sri Vaishnavas' guruparampara story, through 'Azhvaan'.
If 'chiRu' refers only to the bodily appearance, there would be many people among the bhAgavatas who are not that way? Why speak highly of only the small-framed, leaving those other people? Therefore we can have it that 'chiRu' does not refer to the smallness of the body frame, but only refers to the vinaya sampath--the naichchiya guNam (humility) that Vaishnavas speak highly of--in which the devotees, though their inner greatness is much, they don't display it explicitly, but only consider and present themselves as small-framed. This vinaya is the lakShaNa (indication) of all the bhAgavatas, without any difference in the frames of their bodies as small or big.
The pratyakSha udAharaNam (visible example) we have seen for such 'chiRu mA manisar' in our times--should we say that explicitly?
'mA' in knowledge and experience; not an ordinary 'mA' but one who can be refered to as 'mA mA (mahA mahA}' (great among the great) is our Maha PeriyavargaL.
In vinaya sampath, naichchiya guNam--who else can be there to receive that epithet 'chiRu' like him, who always shrinks himself?
Apart from that, he also remained small-framed according to the explanation of the guru parampara story? Is there any other example for the saying 'mUrti chiRisu, kIrti perusu' (the figure is small but the fame is large)?
Therefore we can say that in the words of Nammazhvar, who wrote the Vedas in Tamil, the phrase 'chiRu mA manisar' is one which has become the most suitable ratna garbha epithet for our Maha PeriyavaaL.
The reason why all this story is narrated here is that, that great man Parasara Bhattar, who asked for and got the explanation for phrase 'little great men' was also born on a vaikAsi anusham!
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Glossary: anusaMdhAnam - investigation, deep scrutiny nAmakaraNa - m. a nominal suffix; n. the calling of a person by the name of; (Tamil) ceremony of naming a child on the 11th day after birth;
Pages 29-33
I had mentioned in the beginning of this essay that it would be proper to refer to our Sri Maha PeriyavargaL's janma dinam as vaishAkha anurAdhA instead of vaikAsi anusham. But even the wrong prayoga (usage) vaikAsi anusham has a lofty meaning! Sri Maha PeriyavargaL would say, 'There can be a tattvam (principle) even in nescience.' We can see such tatvArtham here.
SriCharaNargaL (once said that he) had gone to a temple near Sirkazhi, seventy years ago. There, the name of Padanjali who was near Nataraja Murti was wrongly written as 'Padancholli'. Our Tavamunivar saw a tattvam even in that mistake! It was Patanjali Maharshi who authored the vyAkaraNam, the scripture of grammar. vyAkaraNam is known by the very term padam also. Therefore SriCharaNar asked if it is not right to call that Rishi 'Padancholli' (one who spells out the usage of words). Referring to this ten years later in an upanyAsa (speech) he gave in Chennai, he said, "I was happy that even in nescience there was found a tattvam."
Saying vikAsam is to mean 'blossoming out'. vikAsam has meanings such as AkAsham, prakAsham (sky, brightness). All these padams (words) have been derived from the dhAtu (root) 'kas'. Related to the vikAsam is vaikAsi. For the vaikAsi we have obtained by corrupting vaishAkha there is one such meaning! Blossomed AvirbhAvam, expanding vimala AkAsham, prakAsham--all these are apt references to PeriyavaaL, right?
To say Sha is to mean parama shreSTa (the very best). That Sha would also indicate the parama puruShArtham known as mokSham. anu refers to something prefixed. Looking in this way, rather than anurAdhA, saying anusha seems to have a lofty meaning, right?
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Until 1964, SriCharaNar's jayanti was held shAstroka (done according to scriptures) only in SriMaTham without any publicity. (To give an idea, although during his jayanti in the years 1958 and 1959, he was camping in the Chennai city, the general public had no idea about the birthday at all!) Only in 1964, at the completion of his seventieth year of age, when the bhImaratha shAnti was performed, his aNukka bhaktas (close devotees), conducted it as a general festivity in vimarisai (grandeur). From that day, the outer world too was awakened to the vaikAsi anusham. And festivities were started to be arranged in several places.
At that time it is said, the shiShya santati (disciple family) who were computing and publishing an almanac as the Sri AcharyaaL MaThatthup Panchangam since the time of SriCharaNar's parApara guru (SwamigaL of the 64th Title), wanted to mention this jayanti also in the almanac. Whereas SriCharaNar did not give approval (for many years) saying, "The already existing pandigais (festivals) are enough; no need to add this as another." Still, after fourteen years, when in 1978 the jayanti celebrations had started to be held with much popularity in every house and magazine, he did not express any AkSepaNa (objection) for including that day in the Panchangam.
The kuTi (lineage) SriCharanaaL was born in belongs to the Kannada tradition. They have their months according to the Chandramanam. In SriMaTham too, the Acharyas from the 61st Title have been Kannadastas (until SriCharanaaL). Perhaps due to that, his janma dinam was celebrated in SriMaTham also on the day of Chandramana vaishAkha anurAdhA. However, perhaps since SriMaTham has the Tamizhaga Kanchi as its capital, SriCharaNar permitted the Tamilian Sauramana vaikAsi anusham as his janma dinam, saying, "If one such thing is to be included at all, it can be done."
Even though it is the tradition that for the deiva puruShas the janma dinam is celebrated based on the tithi rather than the nakShatra, and in addition, though a guru does not appear to have any viShesha deivAmsam he should be considered as a deivam, for the vinaya-shIla (humility as the very nature) SriMaTham Acharya lineage, the janma dina homam and celebrations are conducted on the day of the nakShatra only, as done for the ordinary people.
In the first year when SriCharaNar jayanti entered the Panchangam in 1978, that is in the KaLayukta year, the same day according to the Chandramanam of the Kannadastas and the Sauramanam of the Tamilians, happened to be his janma dinam. But then in the later years when these days happened to be different, his jayanti was mentioned (in the Panchangam) only according to the tradition of Tamilnadu, in the month of vaikAsi. However, in the (SriMukha) year 1993 when he commenced his hundredth year of age, though the Kannada-Tamil jayanti days came on different dates, contrary to the previous custom, only the Chandramana vaishAkha anusham that came in our chittirai has been mentioned in the Panchangam as his jayanti day. It might be that the festivities of the hundredth year were decided on that day, several months earlier. In addition, the reason could be that the lunar eclipse taking place on the day of our vaikAsi anusham might have seemed amangaLa to some people. Whatever the reason, with the SriMukha year, the jayanti witnessed during SriCharaNar's sthUla vAzhvu (life in the gross body), has taken leave of farewell. Even before the shatApti pUrti, the nara vaDivinar (bearing the human form) of the nitya tattvam (deathless principle), did samApti (completion) of his life and went into samAdhi.
But there is no doubt that SriCharaNar Jayanti will be celebrated until the world exists, like Sri Rama Navami, Janmashtami, Vinayaka Chaturthi and Acharya Jayanti.
Glossary: vikAsa - m. expanding, budding, blowing (of flowers); m. opening, blossoming, expansion, diffusion; opening of the heart, i.e. cheerfulness, merriment.
Chapter 3. avatAra sthalam (The Place of Avatara) Pages 34-36
The janma sthalam (place of birth) of Maha PeriyavaaL, who is of vizhumiya (excellent) greatness is vizhuppuram (written Villuppuram in English). 'vizhu', 'vizhumiya' denote chief excellence, great goodness.
" ணகt ேதவ m ந ண மா டா pெபா ேள "
"viNNakat tEvarum ~naNNavumATTA vizhupporuLE" "Even the heavenly gods cannot come near that Truth of Excellence."
--thus MaNivachagar would spread the truth of Parasivam. If that Parasivam draws near the maNNagam (the lands of the world) and takes birth, that place should only be Vizhuppuram, be the most excellent among the places? puram refers to the body. The name 'puruSha' came to refer to Jiva based only on the body that is puram. The shUla-sUkShma-kAraNa deha (gross-subtle- causal bodies) are known as muppuram (the three outer sheaths). If the feeling of them drops (for 'vizhu' as a verb in Tamil means 'to fall'), that state is mokSham (liberation). We can say that Vizhuppuram is one that points out to this tattvam (principle).
The mahA kShetram (great place) Tiruvatikai--the great place sung by the (great) Three Nayanmars-- which was the the vIrATTAnam (vIra sthAnam, place of valour) where Isha (Shiva) burnt the Muppuram, is in the Vizhuppuram taluk. "வைளnத l ; ைளnத சl; உைளnதன µp ரm" "vaLai~ndadu villu; viLai~ndadu pUsal; uLai~ndana muppuram" (Bent was the Bow, went on the war, and rent in pain was Muppuram.")--MaNivachakar would thus sing the tale of TripurAntaka bending his bow and burning Tiripuram. There is a custom to attribute the name Vizhuppuram as a corruption of 'Villuppuram'. Even today, in English it is known as Villupuram, having a connection with the bow.
But then perhaps since there is also the aitihyam that Isha burnt the Puram just by laughing, without taking up any weapon, people speak of our Villupuram relating it not to Sivaperuman, but to Ramapiran. They would say that Villuppuram is the place where the Ayyan (Sri Rama) fitted an arrow to his bow to hit the maya Maricha (who took the appearance of a golden) deer. The would also say that the small village called Kandamanadi ('kanDamAnaDi'--'where the deer was seen'--'mAn' in Tamil meaning a deer), is the place where the deer was hit. Indeed an apt place to arise for the JnAnAsAn who beats down Maya! Apart from this, Sri Rama was one who took it as his avatara charitam (life) to hide his divine greatness and create Adarsha mAnuDam (ideal example of a man). For our Munipungava who follows him totally, it is only very appropriate to speak of his sambandham, while we are in his janma sthalam!
I would also share an opinion of mine that appeared rather funny to me, to add to the Tiripuram bearning. It seemed to me that for the Acharya who was the very mUrtam (image) of AchAra neRi (scripture-dictated tradition), the avatAra sthalam being 'vizhuppu'ram is not so appropriate (the term 'vizhuppu' meaning 'ceremonial impurity'). However, it came to my mind that the following 'ram' (the suffix) denotes agni (fire). So I made up the vyAkhyAnam (explanation) that Vizhuppuram is the place where the ram as fire burns the vizhuppu! What to say of the happening that Vizhuppuram, which was the headquarters of a taluk in the South Arcot district, in that year of SriCharaNaaL shatApti becoming the headquarters of a newly-formed Vizhuppuram district!
(The SriMaTham capital Kanchi, thought by the people of the North from the ancient times to be the capital of the entire Dravida Desham, and later becoming the capital of Pallava Samrajyam, became only the headquarters of a taluk during the British rule. But then after SriCharaNaaL changed SriMaTham from Kumbakonam--where it had moved in the meantime for two hundred years--back to Kanchi, that Kanchi too has become the headquarters of a district!)
I had written about Vizhuppuram so far as my knowledge went, about thirty years ago (in 1966). SriCharaNargaL who ran his holy eyes through that write up told me a surprising piece of news. He said, "If one goes straight 'as the crow flies' (he used this very same phrase), one would find that Vizhuppuram is 'equi-distant' (he used this phrase) from Kanchipuram as well as Kumbakonam." He added, "Not only that; if you connect Kanchi and Kudantai (Kumbakonam) in the straight path of a crow, then Vizhuppuram would be in the exact middle of that line of path."
Glossary: aitihyam - traditional instruction, legendary account.
Pages 36-39
In the ancient divisions of Tamizhagam, Vizhuppuram is located in the area of TirumunaippAdi in the NadunAdu.
Nadunadu has other names, Sethi Nadu, MalAdu Nadu, said SriCharaNar, and added that there is an opinion that even Tirumunippadi was another name for Nadunadu. "But then nadu is the madhyabhAgam (central part); whereas munai is the tapering place. Howsoever then Nadunadu became MunaippAdi?", he also raised this question. Saying that for the king who adopted and brought up Sundaramurti SwamigaL, there was a name Munaiyaraiyar, he clarified that Munaiyaraiyar was only the king of Munaippaadi. The name Tirumunaippadi might have referred to one end of Nadunadu; since there are many places that end with the term 'pAdi', Muniappadi could as well have been the name of a place at a tapering end of Nadunadu and later that name might have come to be referred to the surrounding areas too.--it seems that he was of this opinion.
Since it was the middle part of Tondai Mandalam and Chozha Mandalam, it became 'Nadunadu'. Our Acharya PerumAn, the embodiment of neutrality, has taken avatara in Vizhuppuram in Nadunadu, which was located between the Tondai Mandala Kanchi and the Chozha Mandala Kudanthai (Kumbakonam)-- both these places having received a special connection with SriMaTham! The greatness of Nadunadu is limitless. It was only in an idaikazhi (narrow place) of a house in this idainAdu (middle country) that the first three Azhvars (Poigaiyar, Boothathar and Peyazhvar) met accidentally (since they had to be huddled there to escape from rains), NamperumaL (Lord Vishnu) came as the fourth, pressurized them and obtained an antAdi song from each of them and created the Nalayira Divya Prabhandam known as the Dravida Vedam. This great incident took place in Tirukkovalur in Nadunadu.
For the country Nadunadu--specifically the part around Vizhuppuram--that obtained such a great honour in Vaishnavam, there are many honours in Saivam.
Tiruvamur where Appar Peruman took avatara, Tiruvatikai where he returned to Saivam from the Jaina religion, Tirunavalur where Sundaramurti SwamigaL took avatara, and TiruveNNainallur where Iraivan (Shiva) took charge of him and made him sing a song on His glory--these uttama sthalas (lofty places) are located near Vizhuppuram. TiruveNNainallur has also the honour that the Saiva Santana Acharya MeikaNda Tevar lived there. Tiruturaiyur, a Padal Petra Sthalam and the place of Arunandi Sivacharyar, is also located near Vizhuupuram.
Since the Advaita Sampradaya Sannyasis forgo their shikhA (hair) and do muNDanam (tonsure) they are known as muNDa(r), munDi(n). Among the Patal Petra Sthalams near Vizhuppuram, there is a place bearing the very name Mundeechvaram (muNDIchvaram). Next to Vizhuppuram is another place called Mundiyampakkam with a railway station. I had mentioned in my earlier-written essay about our Turavi Vendar's (ascetic king's) birthplace thus being surrounded by places that have connection with turavu (asceticism). Whereas (on reading it) SriCharaNar said playfully, "It can also be taken to mean the good-for-nothing muNDam (headless body)!" He also gave an interesting new piece of information: "There are stone inscriptions, that, for the very place Mundeechvaram having the name of a moTTaitthalai (tonsured head), give name in Sanskrit as 'Mauligramam' and in Tamil as a direct translation, as 'Tirumudi' (tirumuDi). Our (SriMaTham) Swami is also Chandramauli, right? Those who carry that name, we call them just 'Mauli'". Thus he showed one more connection.
He continued with another interesting connection: "If our Swami is here in Mundeechvaram, In Tiruvatikai, Amman bears the name of our MaTham's AmbaaL and remains as 'TripuraSundari'. In the very place where Swami remains as Tripurantaka, AmbaaL TripuraSundari is also there."
He who told this also spoke about a mahat tattvam (great truth) in anAyAsa (effortlessly), which can be elaborated over pages. "The essence of Brahma Vidya and SriVidya, both are seen here; the process of rejection by neti neti and the process of acceptance as sarvam shakti mayam!" To reject the shUla, sUkShma, kAraNa purams as none of them are Atman is the neti of Advaita that is Brahma Vidya; to accept even these as parashakti vilAsa (manifestions of Goddess Parashakti) and have the essence of Shiva in them is the Shakta that is SriVidya.)
Glossary: antAdi - end and beginning, a poetic work where the ending word or phrase appears as the first of successive verses. muNDana - shaving the head, tonsure; protecting, defending. shikhA - locks of hair on the head, tuft, crest, peacock's crest, flame, ray of light.
Pages 39-42
"Not only is the name Tripurasundari there for Amman; in one of the TiruttANDakams on that place, Appar SwamigaL has spoken about AmbaaL as the very 'KamakoTi'! Is not Tiruvatikai the kShetram where Swami took charge of Appar? So he has sung several pathikams (set of 10 hymns) on the Swami of that Ur (place): 'tiruvaDit tiruttANDakam, pORRit tiruttANDakam, aDaiyALat tiruttANDakam'--he has poured it all in this manner! Among them, in the TiruttANDakam where he shows aDaiyALam (identity) to Swami--In KanchIpuram on the KambA tIram (shores of the Kamba river) when Kamakshi was doing puja with a Sand Lingam that she had shaped by her own hands, Swami tested her causing a great flood. AmbaaL, however, did not give up her puja, but remained tightly hugging the Lingam with the thought 'let the floods do whatever they can'. Appreciating her prema veLLam (flood of love), Swami controlled the floods of the river and became prasanna (visible)--is there not such a story?
"When AmbaaL tightly hugged Swami, it is said that her own 'karattazhumbu' and 'urattazhumbu' (strong marks of her hands and fingers) were stamped on the Lingam. Even now on the Ekambareshvara Prithvi Lingam that mark is there. It is this 'urattazhumbu' that Appar SwamigaL has spoken about in his Tiruvatikai aDaiyALat tiruttANDakam as "ெகா mபவளc ெசŋக வாyk காமkேகா ... த m ளேவ"--"kozhumpavaLach che~gkanivAyk kAmakkOTTi... tazhumbuLavE"...
"In accordance with the lingustics of the Tamil language, the term 'KamakoTi' is referred to as 'KamakkOTTi', 'KamakkoDi' in the old Tamil songs. Kamakshi resides only in KamakkOTTam known as KamakoshTam? Therefore she might have been spoken of as 'KamakkOTTi'."
Let Rama shooting the arrow from his bow be on one side; the story of his mUlavan (root form) Malavan (Vishnu) himself becoming an arrow--he narrated it in connection with Tiruvatikai--SriCharaNar, who has no match in linking several kinds of tales and truths.
The bow called pinAka that Sivaperuman took up to destroy the Muppuram was the Meru mountain. That which became the arrow for that bow, sAkShAt Tirumal (Vishnu)! SriCharaNar said that for Tirumal who helped Tiruvatikai TripurAntaka by becoming a charam (arrow), there is a separate temple there, and that in that temple Perumal's name is CharaNarayana.
More than Tiruvatikai, I had written so much about Tiruvamathur which is nearer to Vizhuppuram. In that (my writing) I had shown PeriyavaaL's charitam (life), matching it to what Appar ADigaL has sung on the God of that place, relating Him with the Sandhya Vandanam worship, as "சn யாைனc சமா ெசyவாr தŋகl n யாைன "--"sa~ndiyAnaich chamAdi seyvAr ta~ggaL pu~ndiyAnai". SriCharaNar was one who did not specially do any vaidIka anuShThAnam (vedic religious practices) before he ascended to the PiTham. Still at that time he was keen on doing Sandhya Vandanam daily without skipping the appropriate times. Even during those days of boyhood when one is much influenced by the attraction of sports and games, once the astamana kAlam (sunset time) came up, he would throw away his badminton racket and hurry towards the nearby water canal.
I had shown another relation in our Aiyan who came to the vaiyam (world) only to foster vaidIkam, taking birth in the vicinity of Amathur. Sundaramurti SwamigaL in his pathikam on this place has announced his getting away from everyone except the vedavid (Vedic pandit) with a doubly emphatic phrase " m I N D a n a n , m I N D a n a n " a s " டன , டன ேவத tதlலாதவrக ேக!"--"mINDanan, mINDanan vEdavittallAtavarkaTkE!".
SriCharaNaaL who went through what I had written said, "Tiru Atikai got its name due the fact that it had adhikam (much more--of spirtual fame) over all the other kShetras. But then you have written much more about Tiruvamathur than about it (Tiruvatikai)! There is some justice in that too. Don't we say, "avanukkenna, kombA muLaichchirukku (what about him, have two horns grown on his head)?" when someone boasts much about himself? The kShetram to which horns had grown was only that Tiruvamathur!" And he proceeded to explain that horns-grown mahima (greatness).
"It is said that in Adi (the beginning), the Avinam (herds of cows) had no horns. So the cows were suffering from their inability to retaliate when their enemies attacked them. Then they observed severe penance in this kShetram. God appeared before them with compassion, as mother to even those pasuvarga (class of cows) which are known as Gomata. Because of that, that place got the name Gomatrupuram and A-Matru-Ur (Amathur).
"In addition to its calf, since it gives milk to us also, we celebrate the cow as mother and call it Gomata. The place where Swami came as mother to even that pasu jAti (class of cows) is Gomatrupuram (Tiru Amathur). But He did not give milk to those cows. If our mother gives us milk in diluted form, Swami who came as Gomata gave thick horns to the pasu jAti, gave them anugraham so the horns grew on their heads and gave them the boon, 'with these horns you protect yourselves from your enemies.' Wasn't it that lakShyam (aim) they were in tapas for? Only after that the cows and bulls started having horns, and the kShetram got its related name." SriCharaNar laughed like a child as he narrated this story, and continued.
Glossary: prasanna - a. clear, bright, pure; distinct, plain, just; propitiated, pleased, delighted, content; gracious or kind to.
Pages 42-47
"Of those accounts that stand in the name of Sthala Puranam, many would have been written then and there, locally. Some of them would be figuring in the Maha Puranas. If it is so, people will feel prouder about the place. Even more greatness is spoken of it, if there is a mention of a kShetram in the Ramayana-Bharata Itihasas. The greatest pride for a sthalam is to get a mention in the Vedas themselves. Of the kShetrams that are found in lakhs in our desham, only a few--may be a hundred or hundred and fifty--would have a reference in the Vedas. Such a greatness is there for Tiruvamathur. This story is told in the Taittriya Aranyaha.* That Veda story tells that the pasu jAtis that no defence because they had no horns, came together and performed a yajnam and obtained their horns."
About that place that received a Vedic story, Sthala puranam, and Thevara pathikam, the twin-poets (iraTTaip pulavargaL) have composed a book named 'Tiruvamathur Kalambakam'. Vannacharapam Dhandapani SwamigaL, who lived and passed away during the last century has also composed a sthala purANam on the place and a number of hymns on the God of that place. His Samadhi is also located in Amathur. Only this much had I mentioned in my essay. SriCharaNar told more interesting accounts about these two (three) Bhakti PavANargaL (poets of devotion).
"reTTaip pulavar~ggiRavA aNNA tambiyA (are the twin-poets elder-younger brothers)?" he asked as if it was not known to him.
I who had been thinking as such until then, since he posed this question, made 'jAgrata' of myself (look at the thoughts of our own mAnAvamAna-dignity- insult, even in that sannidhi-presence!), and said, "teriyalai (don't know)".
"They were not elder-younger brothers. atthAn-ammAnji (son of father's sister-son of maternal uncle). Some people say mAmA-marumAn (uncle- nephew). What is kalambakam?" Again a question about what is not known to me, as if it is not known to him!
"Except that it is among the ninety-five forms of Prabhandam, I have no further idea", I said.
A beautiful explanation came forth from Gurunathan. "Kalambakam is a mixture composed of many forms of the Prabhandams. If it is a poem, it should be one with a specific subject in a specific bhAvam (viewpoint)--they call it thuRai--and with the lakShaNam (attributes) of that thuRai, and composed in a specific chandam (verse-form); this is the general rule. But then in kalambakam, many subjects in many bhAvams in many chandams should occur. For the taste of variety they have designed one such form of Prabhandam.
"Don't we refer to something made by mixing many things as kadambam? In vAstavam (reality), kadambam is a single kind of puShpaM. It has a rich red colour. So much favoured by AmbaaL that she is herself referred to as 'Kadamba Vana VAsini'. It is a favourite of Subramanya Swami also. To call him KaDamban, KaDappan is all based on the kadambam. That puShpaM blossoms in bunches. A bouquet of many such bunches is referred to as a kadambakam, adding a 'ka'. The same thing is also known as 'kalambakam', in a corrupted form. That same name kadambakam which refers to a bouquet of many flowers of the same class, we use for stringing many classes of flowers and call it kadambam, kadambam. We call it kadambach chAdam when that rice is prepared with annam kneaded with sambAr which in turn is prepared with many kinds of vegetables. Mixing many kinds together, we have made it a kadambam! Taking the term kalambakam which is a corruption of kadambam in prosody, they have named that composition which is made by a mixture of verse forms as kalambakam. It was in that rIti (manner) that the twin-poets sang in Tiruvamathur."
SriCharaNar also amazingly elaborated on the adbhuta shakti (wonderous power) of that specific kalambakam.
"In those days, if it is a postakam (book), it should be staged first in the vidvat samUham (experts community) and only after their approval, it could be made prakAsham (revealed) for the Ur-olagam (place and world). In that way, the arangEttam (enactment) for this kalambakam also was done. In that, in a song, there occurs (a line) that there is a temple on the western bank of the Pampa river. In vAstavam, the temple was then located only on the eastern bank of the river. These people somehow sang this way without paying attention to it.
"The other pulavars (poets) who were waiting to find fault with the submission, forthwith caught hold of it molumolu (uproariously). 'Only one of you two is blind or both of you?* Or both of you jnAna shUnyams (of zero-knowledge) with no sense of direction? If you don't give your samAdAnam (resolution) by tomorrow as to why you changed the direction, we will not give your postakam our angIkAram}, they said.
"The arangEttam took place with the arrangement that these poets would read out their verses on the first day, others would ask questions about them, and these poets should reply to the questions on the next day. For the twin-poets it was a tremendous worry that they had committed such a large blunder. Even then, would it not be possible for the clever to dissect words and letters in a verse and form different meanings on their different combinations? Therefore, with the thought that they would break their heads the whole night as to whether there could be any akaTa-vikaTa-sandhi-vigraham (unusual dissection and combination of words) in the verses they had composed, they said, 'Tomorrow we will give our samAdAnam.' The story runs that in their abhiprAyam (opinion) they sang only on the prompting of Goddess Sarasvati herself, so they said, 'yAmum aRiyOm; vANiyum poy solAL (we do not know it ourselves, and VANi will not utter a lie'.
"But then howevermuch they both tried the whole night, tearing apart their verses into their bolts and nuts, they could not give it a meaning about the location of the river and the temple as found in thir verses.
"When the manuSha yatnam, shakti, sAmarthyam (human endeavour, power, skill)--none of it becomes phalita (fruitful), the only way is to fall at the feet of Ishvara in saraNagati (surrender)? Thus they both prayed to Ishvara with full heart and mind.
"Swami also did parama karuNai (supreme compassion) to them. What he did was that, he caused the rains to pour in aDai mazhai (incessant rains). With the river flooding, it became a jala pralayam--the whole place including the western and easter sides of the temple immersed in the floods. What happened then was that the Pampa river changed its course and ran leaving the temple on its western bank as found in their song! It is as such even now. But to show that the river once upon a time ran its course on the other side of the temple, symptoms of a river bed are found there.
"The Tiruvamathur story shows that Swami Himself would change a lie into truth in order that the words of his bhakta, pulava (devotees and poets) are not proved false.
"On the next day, the other poets saw the wonder of the river and the temple located as found in the song. Celebrating the twin-poets that Swami Himself has replied to their questions and that as Swami Himself has given approval to their book, so who were they to do it, they prostrated to the twin-poets."
Note: *The mantras that start with "gAvo vA etat satramasata ashRu~ggAH satIH shRu~ggANi no jAyanta iti"--in the seventh kANdam, fifth prashnam of the Taittriya Aranyaha that belongs to the Krishna Yajur Veda.--RaaGa.
*One of the twin-poets was blind, the other lame. The blind used to carry the lame and wander places as guided by the carried.--RaaGa.
Glossary: a~gIkAraH - acceptance, agreement akaTam - (Tamil) injustice phalita - mfn. bearing or yielding fruit, producing consequences, fruitful, successful, fulfilled, developed, accomplished samAdAna - n. taking fully or entirely, taking upon one's self. contracting, incurring; resolve, determination samUha - a collection, assemblage, aggregate, heap, number, multitude; association, corporation, community. vigraha - m. separation, division; isolation, analysis (g); discord, contest, quarrel, war with vikaTa - obscure, obsolete; exceeding the usual measure, huge, monstrous, hideous, wicked, bad; yatna - m. endeavour, effort, labour, pains about; m. activity of will, volition, aspiring after
Pages 47-52
The details SriCharaNar gave about Vannacharapam Dhandapani SwamigaL: Like Ramalinga VaLLalar, Dhandapani SwamigaL was one who emphasized jIva kAruNyam (ahimsa towards non-human beings). He did not even accept the vELvis (Vedic sacrifices) that had pasubali (animal sacrifice). (The term 'pasu' here does not denote 'Avinam'-cows; it means generally as the animalkind). He was one who composed songs on God doing parihAsam (joking) even on God as to how He accepts those sacrifices. (SriCharaNar also said, "Even Appaiya Dikshitar was of some such abhiprAyam, but later on when he saw in pratyakSha the yajna pasu after its Ahuti took course towards the divya lokam in sUkShma sharIraM, his mind was calmed down.") Since Tiruvamathur is a kShetram where Swami did paramAnugramahm to the pasu jAti, that place had a special attraction for him. For one who belonged to Tirunvelveli, he did saMchAram (wandering) of aneka sthalams in Tamilnadu and finally settled down in Amathur. "One who said that there should be no pasu arpaNam in yAgas, settled down in the place where the pasus themselves did yAgam and obtained their horns", said SriCharaNaaL and laughed.
"People who go to mukhya kShetras like Kashi with an intention to lay down their lives only there (when the time comes), would take a pratiGYA (oath) in saMkalpa pUrvam (in the form of a firm thought) not to leave that kShetram whatever happens, in order to guard against the possibility that they might have a change of mind and move to another place. Such an oath is known as kShetra sannyAsam. In the North many sAdhus thus remain in kShetrams like Kashi under the name of 'keth sannyAs'. This SwamigaL was one such man who took a saMkalpam not to move away from Tiruvamathur and remained there, until he obtained his Siddhi in that place", SriCharaNar explained thus and also told a rare viShayam (special detail) that had a direct bearing on this chapter titled 'Avatara Sthalam'.
"Before settling in Tiruvamathur, he did saMchAram of the surrounding places and sang in temple after temple. At that time he also went to Vizhuppuram and in the KailasaNathar temple, did stotram of Swami, AmbaaL, Pillaiyar, Subrahmanya Swami--all these Gods there. Though he was specifically a MuruganAdiyar (devotee of God Muruga) he has also sung in Vishnuparam (about Vishnu). In Vizhuppuram he had also gone to VaikuNTa Perumal temple and sung on Perumal."
*** *** ***
I had collected and written more in my essay about the specialities of the places around Vizhppuram; but about Vizhuppuram itself I had written scanty little, since I did not know much about its greatness. SriCharaNargaL, who gave new information that for the Shiva-Vishnu Alayas of that place there were stotras from great Meyyadiyars (Saivite sages), also talked in Alaya rIti (on the subject of temples) about the ancient greatness of that place. In addition, he made me wonder talking historically about its pUrva kAla specialities.
*** *** ***
Of the many details SriCharaNargaL told me about the historical greatness of Vizhuppuram and its surrounding towns, known through the stone inscriptions, I shall recount about some that has stuck in my memory.
Saying that he would narrate about a kalveTTu (stone inscription) far loftier than the stone-inscribed letters in the prakAra walls of the temples, he started, kindling my interest.
"There is a kalveTTu in all the bANa lingams which are the mUla mUrti. Arjuna beat the Swami with an arrow when He came as a kirAta. 'Kuzhandai (my child), with what kuRi (precision) and visai (force) has hit me?' feeling happy thus and as if Arjuna adorned Him with a tiruvAbharaNam (divine jewel), Swami created a scar of that hit on his shiras (head) and showed that scar proudly to everyone. It was only This God who, at a later time, when the Pandya Raja whacked him with a cane, did not take that strike upon Himself but made everyone including the one who hit Him take that strike! There, since some Raja whacked as a punishment he acted in that manner. In his bhakti Avesha (height of influence of devotion), Manikkavasagar crossed the lokadharmA-dharmas (rules of the world) and built a temple out of the kajAnA (treasury) funds; that the King considered as 'misappropriation' and went on to punish the sage; for that act of punishment, Swami thought of punishing the King and so acted in this manner. Since the people also did not advice the King of what is just, Swami caused the blow to fall on them too.
"But the strike Arjunan gave was according to the dharma of the valiant. When Swami and Arjuna were engaged in a fight, the prince did what he was bound to do. Therefore, appreciating 'with what alacrity has he shown his dhanur veda sAmarthyam (archery skills)' and taking that strike as bhuShaNam, Swami showed it to the entire world. Ordinarily, when we have some swelling or injury, feeling shy to speak of it to others we would 'plaster' it with the words that we fell down or bumped against something. But then sAkShAt Paramesvara, displayed the scar of the strike that He received from Arjuna--as if it was the Bharata Ratna, Padma Bhushan title--as a swelling in the form of an arrow mark, in the shiro bhAgam (head portion) of all His bANa linga rUpams (Bana Linga forms), in a way that the world celebrates it giving the name pArtha prahAram (the strike that Partha gave).
"Only the bANam is the stone obtained naturally as a form of Shiva, in the Narmada river. Such countless stones are found in that river. From the small ones worshipped in home pujas to the larged sized bANams kept in temples-- irrespective of their huge numbers having been extracted from the river over centuries of years, the stones are still being found in abundance, without (any sign of) exhaustion in the Narmada river. And in all those stones this vadu (scar) is found naturally, at their top portion! Those prAntiya-vAsis (provincial residents) proudly speak of them as kankar sab shankar! It means that all the pebbles in that region are Shankara svarUpa (forms of Shiva). Called bANa lingam, in all of them is found the scar caused by Arjuna's arrow. The God who came as a coolie carrying sand in return for pittu (pudding as wages) in the Pandyan story and made the blow that was to fall on Him fall on everyone else except Him; in the Arjunan story did not only allow the strike to fall on Him who was in the form of a kirAta (hunter), but made it fall on all his linga rUpams! Of course, He also gave a blow to Arjuna in return. Even that He gave as a 'prize' a mahAvIra (great fighter) gives another mahAvIra. At length, however, to the one who hit Him with an astram (missile), Swami gave that Pasupata Astram, beyond which there is no other mahA astram, with parama prIti (supreme love).
"The reason I came to narrate this is that, above all the prakAra stone inscriptions, on the Shiva Lingam itself remains as a stone inscription, the blow Arjunan gave..."
"Above the prakAra kalveTTu, the pArtha prahAra kalveTTu", I interrupted. That man of word-play who also indulges in word-play welcomed what I said interrupting him and continued.
"pArtha prahAram is one generally seen in all the kShetras. The visheSham in Tiruvamathur is that there on the linga svarUpam there is no stamp of Arjuna's arrow strike. However, there is another kalveTTu there. It is the mark of a cow's hoof; the mark known as goShpadam. Just as an ammAkkAri (mother of a woman) holds her child aloft her head asking it to kick her head and feel happy at it, in this Gomatrupuram, Swami who came as Amma for the cow, received a blow from its hoof on his head and continues to show it as a permanent stamp in the linga svarUpam. Thus an apUrva kalveTTu (rare stone inscription)!
Glossary: Ahuti - offering oblations with fire to the deities ; any solemn rite accompanied with oblations; bhuShaNa - decorating, adorning, embellishment, ornament, decoration goShpada - n. the mark or impression of a cow's foot, a small puddle; fig. a trifle. kirAtaH - hunter, of mountain tribe, barbarian, savage, horse-man, name of Siva in the disguise of a hunter. prahAra - m. stroke, blow, shot. prakAra - a wall, enclosure, fence, rampart (esp. a surrounding wall elevated on a mound of earth; m. manner, way, sort, kind; --- adj. like, -fold, abstr. {- tva} n. shiras - head, mountain, peak, crest top skull, pinnacle, front part, top part, chief, principal, importance.
Pages 52-55
"Among the kalveTTus in writing in the prakAram also, there is one rare inscription. Stone inscriptions are there since the time of Rajarajan who built the Brihadisvaram. One of them is about a surprising rAjamAnyam (Raja's grant). Since the time of Rajarajan, for singing the Tevara Tiruppathikam in temples, the rAjAngam (government) had been giving grants. In that way, in this kShetram, during the time of the kalveTTu I speak of, ask who were the people who recited the Pathikam--they were sixteen blind men! Without going broken hearted that everything was lost since they lost their eyes, they too had their rights to bhakti in anantam: the elders of those days had made an arrangement that seemed to show that even those blind men could remain happy among themselves and do the service of devotion, as being prayojana (useful) to others. The elders taught Tevaram to these blind men and arranged that they sang it as arpaNam (offering) to Swami in the temple and tad dvAra (by that) the other people could listen and get God's blessings. In this way, sixteen poTTaigaL (blind men). There was a certain place (it seems), either a hostel or some other accommodation, where they could live together. Two guides to bring them from there to the temple and then get them back to their place. In the Ur (town) where at a later time, a lame poet showed the path and a blind poet walked carrying him, thus to show the path to the blind men, two exclusive rAjAnga sEvakas (royal servants) who were, however, not cripped themselves! For the nila mAnya shAsanam (title-deeds to land) made for these eighteen men, there is a kalveTTu there. In other words, combining the makkaL sEvai, mahEsan sEvai (service to people, service to God), by the people who were handicapped, an upakArap paNi (beneficial work) that is deiva sambandham (related to God) had gone on for the other samUham (people).
*** *** ***
Thereafter, on the basis of historical stone inscriptions and copper plates, SriCharaNargaL started talking about the historical importance of Vizhuppuram and its surroundings.
"Even though this was a part of NadunAdu, it remained as an important part of land in the rAjyam (kingdom) of the Pallavas of the Tondai nAdu. Since Kanchipuram which is the rAjatAni (capital) of our MaTham was also the rAjatAni of those Pallavas, from that time, this part might have had an Atma sambandha relationship with Kanchipuram. Mahendra Varma had a title by name Gunaparan. In Tiruvatikai, for the ancient temple that he built, the name Gunaparechcharam--Gunatarechcharam had been its original name. He was one who was a Jaina and then changed into a Saiva. It was only due to the mahimA (influence) of Appar SwamigaL who in that same way, was a Jaina and then changed into a Saiva, that he got converted. They say that as he got converted, he also converted the SamaNappaLLi (Jain temple) in Tiruvatikai a Shivalaya, as Gunaparechcharam! They also debate as to whether the name was Gunaparechcharam or Gunatarechcharam...
"In these days, if Vizzhuppuram remains as a town and Tiruvatikai as a village, in those days however, Tiruvatikai was a large kShetra paTTaNam and Vizhuppuram remained as a village. This Vizhppuram samAchAram (news) is known only since the time of reign of a Pallava called Nrupatunga Varma. At that time, he had named Vizhuppuram as 'VijayaNrupatunga SeyantAngi Chaturvedi Mangalam'.
"If you ask who is he, he was the one who remained as the Pallava Raja during the latter half of the ninth century, seven-eight generations after Mahendra Varma. He had conquered in yuddham (battle) some king who was the mukhya rAja (formidable king) for the southern part of Tamilnadu--a Pandya or a Chola king, yArO oruttan (someone). Ask about the place where he conquered, and it is in the battle of KumbakoNam-Arisil river bank! The Kanchipura-KumbakoNa sambandham arrives here! Touching it, also arrives the Vizhuppura sambandham! Only as the way to celebrate that victory, Nrupatunga Varma had made a dAnam (charity) of Vizhuppuram in a shAsanam made out to BrahmaNas who were pundits skilled in the four Vedas. Only to such villages is the name 'Chaturvedi Mangalam' attributed to. Since this mAnyam was given as a symbol of a victory mahotsavam (grand festivity), adding the terms 'Vijaya' (victorious) and 'SeyantAngi' (bearing victory) he had made that Ur (place) as a brahmadEyam (brahmadesam, a place given to the brahmaNas)."
(For one who took avatar to give a new lease of life to the Vedas, SriCharaNar's avatAra sthalam being mentioned for the first time in history as a village belonging to the chaturvedis (people of the four Vedas)--what an appropriate connection!)
"The kalveTTu relating to this news is found in the Vizhuppuram VaikuNTa PerumaL temple. With the next generation of Nrupatunga Varma, the Pallava vamsam (generation) came to an end. The yuddham (battle) that sang mangaLam (last-song) to their rule also took place in the KumbakoNam locality! And then the kings called 'piRkAlach chOzhargaL' raised their heads."
(The Cholas who ruled since the Sangam times before the Pallava kingdom was formed are known as 'muRkAlach chOzhargaL' (Cholas of the early times). Karikalan, KiLLivaLavan are the ones who belong to that generation. Then the Chola rule ended and the Pallava began; and then later on, when the Pallavas bowed down their heads, the Cholas again formed a kingdom. These are the 'piRkAlach chOzhargaL' (Cholas of later times)).
Glossary: paTTana - town, city. paTTaNam - (Tamil) 1. coastal town; 2. town, city, large town; 3. Ka1viri-p- puum-patTTiNam; 4. Madras shAsanam - teaching, state, government, rule, royal command, law, royal grant of land, houses etc., deed, authority, title-deed, record, royal copper plate, royal inscription, punishment.
Pages 55-59
"Among them after Vijayalayan and Adityan, Parantaka Chozhan came to power. He was the one who obtained the title 'pon vEi~nda parAntakan' (Parantakan who gold-thatched), after he renovated the Kanakasabha (the Golden Hall) of the Chidambaram temple, thatching it with gold. Many people are thinking that it was Parantaka Chozhan who for the first time thatched in the Chidambaram temple with gold. But then it is in the Puranas that even at the time the temple was built in Adi (ancient times) it was constructed as a kanaka sabhA. Appar SwamigaL himself, who lived many generations before Parantakan, has sung ' ய ெசmெபா னா l எ ேவynத றmபலm' -- 'tUya semponninAl ezhuti vEy~nta chiRRambalam' (the small SabhA thatched with pure gold). The kalveTTu of the Parantaka Chozhan time is at the Vizhuppuram VaikuNTa PerumaL temple. A kalveTTu over a thousand years old. It is in that inscription that there is the reference of Nrupatunga-- who belonged to the Pallavas who were the Chozha's janma shatru (enemies from birth)--having given that Ur (place) as Brahmadeyam.
"When rAja vamsams (royal generations) change, it happens that the dAna shAsanams of the earlier generations get cancelled. In that way, it seems that the state of Vizhuppuram also, which was sarvamAnyam to the BrahmaNas, was cancelled. Because, there is a shAsanam in another temple, that is, VAlIshvarar Alayam, which mentions that Rajarajan--the Rajarajan who built Brihadisvaram--who came three-four generations after Parantakan, again gave Vizhuppuram in dAnam as Chaturvedi Mangalam. Or it might be that for the Brahmadeyam that was in the name of the Pallava Raja until then, Rajarajan might have given his name, gave it in visheSha sambhAvanA[ (special honour) to those BrahmaNas, celebrated the occasion as a new utsavam and made it as a shAsanam.
"If Rajaraja Chozhan gave his name for the place, it is not referred to as 'Rajaraja Chaturvedi Mangalam'. There were many names of title to him. That which remained as the shikharam (peak) of them was the title 'Shiva PAda Sekharan' (one who holds on his hair the holy feet of Shiva Peruman). That was a title that showed his heart of devotion. There is also a title to him that showed his priyam (love) and popularity with his people and his democratic aptitude--as 'JananAthan'. Don't we refer to democracy as 'jananAyakam' (ruled by the people)? For the Vizhuppuram of his times he had given the name 'JananAtha Chaturvedi Mangalam'!
"In addition to the VaikuNTavAsar, VAlIsvarar temples, there is another temple called Kailasanathar Alayam, that also remains as pradhAnam (chief). The mokSha lokam of Saivas is Kaliasam. For VaishNavas it is VaikuNTam. In Kanchipuram, with viShesha silpa prasiddhi (known for its distinguished sculptures), temples are there for both Kailasanathar and VaikuNTa Perumal. As in Kanchipuram, in Vizhuppuram also, two temples are there, in the names of Kailasam and VaikuNTam!. It is known from shilA shAsanas (sculptural inscriptions) that the Kailasanatha Temple existed from the time of Rajarajan.
"Later, when these piRkAlach chOzhargaL passed away, KADavas who are said to belong to the Pallava Vamsam raised their heads, and a man called Koppurumsingan ruled all over the places ToNdaimaNdalam, NadunAdu and the Kerala Seemai (the Chozha kingdom). At that time, without Kanchipuram being the capital, a place called Sendanur, located adjacent to Vizhuppuram, had been the capital. We call it Sendanur now, which was then Sendamangalam. There is a Sendamangalam in the Salem district also. It is the place where the samAdhi of AvadhUta SwamigaL is located. And there are Sendamangalams in many other Tamilnadu areas too. To know the difference perhaps this South Arcot district Sendamangalam became Sendanur. Since it was a rAjatAni paTTaNam (capital town) of a large rAjyam (kingdom), Vizhuppuram might have at that time been sticking to Sendamangalam as a part or suburb.
"After Koppurumsingan, the rule of Pandyas came up. Him and the Chozha Raja who was lying low in his time, JaTAvarma Sundara Pandyan conquered, and became the sAmrAjyAdhipati (emperor). There is a place called KOchchaDai in Madurai. 'Ko' is only 'Raja'? So KOchchaDai is a Raja with jaTa. That was JaTAvarman. Paramesvara, who is JaTAdhara became the pati (husband) of Meenakshi Amman and ruled there as the first Sundara-- Sundaresvara--Pandyan. Therefore, the kings who came in the Pandya Vamsam used to have their names as JaTAvarma Sundara. One such named was the one who conqured the kADava Raja during the latter half of the thirteenth century. From his time only there are shAsanas that mentioned the name Vizhuppuram for Vizhuppuram.
"When JaTAvarman vanquished (vIzhttiya pOdu) Koppurumsingan, the rAjatAni formed with Sendanur and Vizhuppuram stuck together also lost its position and fell (vizhundu viTTadu) in antastu (status). Showing up this condition only that JaTAvarman gave the name 'Vizhuppuram' to that place?--I sometimes used to think that way. I had even felt it as a shortfall that it was a name that refers to the hInasthiti (deprived standing) of a place that became patanam (fallen).
Glossary: antastu - (Tamil) 1. rank, condition, standing; 2. storey of a building; 3. order regularity jaTa - mfn. wearing twisted locks of hair patana - mfn. who or what flies or falls
Pages 59-63
"Later on, after doing some research, it was known (to me) that there was another reason for that name. It was that there was a samUham (community) called 'vizhupparaiyar'. If it is (the term) 'vizhuppu', today we have it (the meaning) as anAchAram, tITTu (ceremonial impurity). Looked in that manner, vizhupparaiyar would mean 'Raja in anAchAram' (king of ceremonial impurity) (because, isn't 'araiyar' a transformation of 'arasar-king? And arasar is a transformation of 'rAjan'?)... (laughs for a long while).
"Not that way. yadartham (actually), vizhuppam means a high lineage. That word comes even in TirukkuraL. vizhupparaiyar are those who brought eminence to the lineage and caste they were born in. Just as we have named the brAhmaNAs who sought udyogam (occupation) in the Rajasabha as amAttiyar, mAmAttirar, these people might have belonged to a sub sect in the caste of brahmins who sought Rajanga service. It seems that as days went by they gave up more and more of their brAhmaNAchAras (customs and practices of brahmins) and only excelled in the Rajanga udoyogas. It is also known that just like the BrahmarAyAs of good brahmin caste of the later time Chozhas, these vizhupparaiyar were (ministers,) even prime ministers. The mukhya sthAnam (chief position) that samUham (community) held in Rajangam is seen until the time of Thanjavur Nayakka Rajas.
"But then whatever happened in the later time, so far as is known to me-- (what is known to him is of the Himalaya dimension!),--nowadays the vizhupparaiyars are found only in the temple kAryam (activities) of the Tiruvarur temple. There, when they bring (Lord) Thyagaraja in bhavani (procession) in the utsavam (festival), He would come in his ajabA naTanam (effortless dance) in hops and leaps. His dancing in such leaps is due to adding something known as puLLat-thaNDu (young stem) in the vArais (bamboo poles) he is seated in. Ask who does the task of adding the puLLat-thaNDu in the vArais--and they are the vizhupparaiyars. What is that and how they add it is a rahasyam (secret) known only to them! (What SriCharaNar told about Thyagar's dance is of the viSTara (spread out) that can be given in a separate essay).
"These vizhupparaiyars were also referred to as vizhubrahmar. The term brahma indicates the vaidIka brAhmaNa mUlam (root of Vedic brahminship) they had in pUrvam (the olden days). The term araiyar is one that indicates the kShatrIya sthAnam (royal position) that came to them later. Another name called 'vizhuppADa-rAyar' also belonged them. The rAyar (which is only a transformation of rAjar) is another name that shows their position in the royal community. "In the Chaturvedi Mangalam of the NadunAdu that was Brahmadeyam until the time of the Chozhas, the rule of KADavas took place later, and still later when the Pandyan conquered it, the vizhupparaiyars became a samUham that held a mukhya sthAnam (chief position) in the nirvAham (governance), and therefore it seems that the name of the place itsself was changed to Vizhuppuram. At that time, being neither 'brahmar' indicating brAhmaNa sthAnam, nor 'araiyar' indicating kShatrIya sthAnam, they were generally referred to as vizhupperumar, in the same way that we refer to the people of the high communities as 'perumakkaL' of the janasamudAyam (public).
"The thought 'vizhu~ndupOna Ur' (fallen place) is wrong, and that it is a place of a samUham that had charitra mukyatvam (historical importance)--when this was known (to me), my shortfall was given nivRutti (rest) to some extent. ~nIyAnAl (Whereas you)--(the 'you' that SriCharanar refers to is only the author of this essay)--you lift it all to the skies saying that the place is of 'vizhumiya siRappu' (excelling greatness), the 'jnAnapuri (town of knowledge) that brings out the AtmA even as the thought about the puram that refers to the sharIram (body) falls, and with your stotram (praise) removed my shortfall right from its base!" Thus laughed as a flood of flowers, our MahaGurunathar!
*** *** ***
Vannacharapam Dhandapani SwamigaL would refer to Sri Maha PeriyavaaL's janma sthalam as
" kக க c rசாl p ரt r" mikka pugazhch chIrsAl vizhuppurattur
"of a great fame and distinction is that place of Vizhuppuram"; and as
"ேமத r க ெதா ைட ந னா m p ரm" mEtaku sIrtigazh toNDai ~nannATTuRum vizhuppuram
"Eminent, distinguished and located in the good country of ToNDainAdu, is Vizhuppuram".
He has sung beautiful pathikams (hymns) on the Sivaperuman, Ambikai, VinAyaka and Murugan who have taken sannidhi (presence) in the Kailasanathar Temple; and on Tirumal who resides in the VaikuNTavAsar Alayam, located in the town.
That periyAr (great man) is one who reached God's feet even as our PeriyavaaL was of four prAyam (years of age). And during the time he sang these pathikams, PeriyavaaL was not at all born. Even so, it is surprising that in those hymns are found some vAchakAs (statements) that show sangeta (signs) to our Sankaravatara ShaNmatha Guru!
When dharma suffers from impoverishment, it is by seeing the sufferings undergone by the mother of the world that Adiya (the most ancient) takes avatar. Considering that before PeriyavaaL's avatara, such an opportune moment has come, that Pulavar PerumAn (great poet) asks Hari who is in yoga nidra (yogic sleep) if he could still be not waking up, in the 'Tirumal Pathikam' he sang at Vizhuppuram.
ைவயமகl அழkக m இரŋகா ேபா l ரl வழkக vaiyamagaL azhakkaNDum ira~ggARpOR RyilkUral vazhakkanRu
"Even after seeing that the Mother of the World is weeping, it is not your custom to remain in sleep, without showing mercy."
He says in the 'Murugap PerumAn Pathikam' that Lord Muruga has six faces each representing one of the shaNmathas (six streams of Hinduism)--Shaivam, Vaishnavam, Shaktham, GaNapatam, KaumAram, Sauram (worship of Shiva, Vishnu, Goddess Shakti, Ganapathi, Karthikeya and the Sun God respectively).
ஆ ந ென m எ µகŋகெள ேறாrகாl அைறn
ARu~nan neRiyum enmuka~ggaLen ROrkAl aRai~ndu
"Once proclaiming that the six streams are your six faces..."
Maha PeriyavargaL used to say that of the pancha bhUtas (five elements), Ganapathi for pritvi (earth), TirumAl (Vishnu) for appu (water), Surya for tEyu (fire), Ambikai for vAyu (air) and Sivaperuman for AkAsha (ether)--thus indicating these five Gods as panchAyatana and adding Skanda as the God of shaNmatha, as the guru svarUpam (form of Guru) that guides to all these Gods, (Adi Sankara) BhagavadpAda gave us a concept worship. Dhandapani SwamigaL too proclaims this greatness of Skanda's as