"The WEll-dressed Gentleman"
From the Bhakti List Archives
• February 28, 2003
Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
The Well-dressed Gentleman
Most of us are very particular about our dress. We would never wear a dress that is rumpled or soiled. A person wearing such apparel is liable to be construed to be down at the heels. We know how a well-dressed person elicits respect and regard even from strangers, while one who sports inelegant wear draws only derisive glances, though he might otherwise be deserving of regard. Thus dress considerably enhances one's impact, though it may not disclose the true nature of the wearer.
If we reflect on wherefrom we inherited our penchant for sartorial elegance, analysis leads us to the conclusion that it is indeed from the Lord. It is He who has set an example, by sporting impeccable outfits. In fact, we might even call Him a dandy; so particular He is about His costume. Everyone who is acquainted with Him says He is extremely finicky about His gear and always wears the best. "YuvA suvAsA: pariveeta AgAt" says the Shruti, attesting to His sartorial elegance (Paradoxically, this mantra is uttered when those officiating in a ShrAddha are offered new clothes!).
The Lord is clothed in the finest of silks, says the Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram-
"peeta kousEya vAsam". Though there are colours aplenty, everyone would agree that yellow silk has a beauty of its own. With an unerring eye for the best in clothes, much like a lady, the Lord too is robed in yellow silk-"sa peeta vastram". He looks verily like the pleasing Moon, attired as He is in these yellow robes. That these are His habitual wear is attested by Sri Periazhwar- "peetaka Adai pirAnAr", "udutthu kaLainda nin peetaka Adai" etc. Sri Krishnashtakam says that He is ever resplendent in silken yellow costumes-"peetAmbara susObhitam". Sri Alavandar loses himself to the brilliant combination of the bright yellow silk and the beautiful black tirumEni of the Lord-"virAjamAna ujjvala peetavAsasam". Swami Desikan brings to our mind the beautiful thighs of Sri Rangaraja, which are clothed in yellow silk-"Kshouma Aslishtam kimapi KamalA Bhoomi NeelA upadAnam"(Sri Bhagavat DhyAna SOpanam) "PeetAmbarENa parivAravatee sujAtA" (Sri Devanayaka Panchasaat).
Sri Tiruppanazhwar differs from others. To this Azhwar, the Lord appears to be wearing red silk and not the customary yellow one. Perhaps He wanted a change, perhaps He put on new, colourful clothes to welcome Azhwar- whatever it might have been, Azhwar is very specific about His sporting red silk around His midriff-'arai sivanda adayin mEl chendradam en sindayE". The cloth itself is so bewitching that it captures the senses, preventing Azhwar from proceeding further with the enjoyment of other parts of the Lord's handsome tirumEni. Sri Nammazwar, steering clear of the colourful controversy, merely mentions that He is clothed in silk, without indicating its hue-"pAngu thOndrum pattum nANum pAviyEn pakkatthavE".
When the Lord sets His mind on beautiful clothes, He gets to wear them by hook or by crook. Thus, in Sri Krishnavatara, while entering Mathura (for the purpose of slaying Kamsa), Sri Krishna wants to shed His cowherd-clothes and adorn Himself with robes befitting a Prince. When He goes to war, the Lord takes care to see that He is impeccably attired. Sri Krishna and Sri Balarama encounter a washerman bearing clothes freshly washed and pressed, for use by the King (Kamsa). When the dhobi doesn't part with the clothes voluntarily, Sri Krishna fells him with a blow and appropriates the regal robes. In so doing, He puts on the yellow one, leaving the blue one to His brother. We must really admire the Lord's dress code-He knows full well that yellow would sit well on His black body, as would blue on His fair brother's. Imagine Kamsa's indignation when the boy he detests comes to fight with him, dressed in his own clothes.
However beautiful the cloth, if the wearer doesn't have the figure to go with it, the end result would be unimpressive. Conversely, however humble be the apparel, if the person for whom it is intended is of exceptional beauty, the combination is a treat to the eyes. This is what happens, when Sri Rama leaves on his fourteen-year exile to the forests. Readying himself for the life of a forest-dweller, Raghava relinquishes his princely robes for the ones made of deerskin and tree-bark. The citizens of Ayodhya, watching the heart-rending spectacle of the Prince assuming the demeanour of a vanavAsi, are hardly surprised to find that the robes of skin and bark suit Sri Rama to a T, giving Him a serene look of austerity and penance.
Sorry as they are to see Sri Rama in modest clothes, it is when Sri Mythily is called upon to wear such apparel, that the AyOdhyAvAsIs, including the famed Vasishtta, rise up in protest. When She is handed over the garments of deerskin, Sri Janaki hardly knows how to wear them, being unaccustomed to anything but the softest, finest and the best of silken wear. Wouldn't the delicate body be bruised beyond tolerance by the clothes of tree bark She was required to wear, wonder the grieving ladies of Ayodhya. What a cruel woman that Kaikeyi must be, to demand that the Princess wear such coarse clothes, a Princess hardly into Her teens and used to a sheltered life of creature comforts! Rushing valiantly to the rescue of His beloved, who holds the sackcloth in Her hand, knowing not how to wear it, Sri Raghava drapes the coarse cloth around Her upper and lower body, over the clothes She is wearing. At this, the eyes of all on-lookers fill with tears of anger and grief and they demand that at lea
Turning to happier matters, the Lord often assumes the garb of women, as a matter of sport. We call it the NAcchiar Tirukkolam, where Emperuman puts on a saree, blouse, bangles and other paraphernalia his Consorts normally wear. Only those who have witnessed the spectacle can attest to its immeasurable beauty. All the virile manliness of the Lord just disappears and there is a total transformation from his normal impressive masculinity, to a bewitching feminine façade, with a posture and expression to match. To enhance the effect, the Lord also wears his ample unruly locks in a braid and adorns it with a choodamani. The cumulative effect makes for such a delightful damsel, that even the hearts of senior citizens do a somersault when they witness the Lord in this attire and long-forgotten feelings of romance are rejuvenated. Is it any wonder then, that the asurAs were mesmerised by Him with His MOhini roopam and readily agreed to forego their quota of nectar churned out from the sea with so much
Sri Bhattar, however, refuses to be impressed by this attempt on Emperuman's part to imitate His better half. He points out derisively that however much the Lord may try to simulate a maidenly comportment, His eyes give Him away. After all, they are the inimitable broad, long, black and redlined eyes of the ParamaPurusha ("KariavAgi pudai parandu milirndu sevvariodi neenda ap periavAya kaNgal"), which can never change, whatever costumes He may put on. Further, these eyes of the Lord are no match for the beautiful, mercy-filled eyes of Piratti, with their long lashes. Thus the Lord is unable to impress His intimate acolytes with such fashion-show attire and can never hope to masquerade successfully as the Divine Damsel.
Like the consummate actor He is, the Lord uses the most appropriate costumes suited to His current role. In Sri Vamanavatara, as the bewitching brahmachari, He was attired in a knee-length cloth and deerskin. As the leader of the cowherds in Sri Krishnavatara, he sported a flashy red cloth draped around His head (we can still see this in the Mannargudi Rajagopalaswamy temple), as the Prince of Vrishnis, He wore nothing but the finest of yellow silk, and as the exiled Prince of Ayodhya, He wore modest apparel made of deerskin and tree bark.
If the Lord is adept at wearing clothes suited to the calling, our Acharyas too, especially those who have embraced the sanyAsa Ashrama, are not far behind. We hear a lot about the beautiful ochre robes that Sri Ramanuja used to wear. They were beautiful not because they were of fine material or due to glossy mercerising, but because they adorned the majestic tirumEni of the Bhashyakara. They emitted a glow of pride at covering the handsome body of the Yatiraja- "KAshAya sObhi kamaneeya shikhA nivEsam". Sri Ramanuja had to revert to the white robes of a grihasttha briefly, when his life was threatened by the cruel KulOtthunga ChOza. Concerned disciples of the Acharya compelled him to switch to a white vEshti in disguise and spirited him away from the clutches of the insufferable king. This event is re-enacted till date at SriperumbUdUr, the Saint's birthplace, during the annual festival and is known as the "VeLLai sAtthuppadi utsavam".
Though fond of spotless clothes Himself, it was Sri Krishna's favourite sport to splash mud over the neat and spanking-new clothes the Gopis wore. Not content with this sort of harassment, He also hid the clothes of the Gopakanyas bathing in the Yamuna, ensuring that they could not come out of the cold water without outraging their modesty. He condescended to restore the clothes to their owners who were half-dead with shame, only after a lot of entreaties and after extracting numerous promises.
The very same Lord who made the Gopis stand bereft of dress in the freezing river, rushed to the rescue of Draupadi, when she faced an outrage to her modesty at the hands of the dastardly DucchAsana. Once she appealed to the distant Lord, her saree grew and grew in length, till the Kourava trying to disrobe her fell exhausted in sheer fatigue.
Even in arcchAvatara, the Lord sports the best of clothes at most divyadesams. At Tirumala, He is adorned with a specially-woven, very long upper cloth and a lower one ("MelchAtthu and the uLchAtthu"), designed to ensure that the Lord's delicate tirumEni is not scratched by the numerous ornaments He wears. During cold winters, Sri Parthasarathi sports a dress suit of wool, known as "GabAi", while He doesn't forget His jodhpurs when He goes on a horse ride during Brahmotsavam. Sri Veeraraghava Swamy of Tiruvallur is adorned with a checked cloth resembling a bed sheet. At Guruvayur, the kutti Krishna is to be seen with just a loincloth, in the early mornings. In many of the north Indian temples, the Lord is found wearing trendy pants and shirts, in keeping with times.
If anyone wants new clothes, it is to Emperuman he has to pray-the Emperuman who turned KuchEla (one wearing torn, ill-fitting garments) into SuchEla (well-dressed), the Lord who bestowed bountiful supplies of robes to a maiden battling for her modesty. On birthdays and festive days, when we remember to buy our children and ourselves beautiful new outfits, do we think of the Lord and of adorning Him with new clothes? At several divyadesams, when we find Emperuman dressed in soiled or torn robes, our hearts go out to the Provider, who Himself languishes uncared for. How wonderful would it be if each one of us were to adopt a divyadesam, especially one located in the countryside, and undertake to adorn the Lord and His Consorts with new clothes on His birthdays and on Deepavali or other festivals! It would make the festivities that much more meaningful, instead of remaining as orgies of eating and merry-making.
Srimate Sri LakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
Dasan, sadagopan
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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