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Sri ManavALa Maamuni"s YathirAja Vimsathi(YRV) : part 6

From the Bhakti List Archives

V. Sadagopan • March 23, 1997 


Dear Members of the Bhakthi group :

I will discuss a few slokams of YRV in this posting .

Slokam 6:
***********

AlpApi mE na bhavadheeya padhAbhja Bhakti : 
    SabdhAthi bhoga ruchi: anvaham yethatE haa I
madh pApamEva hii nidhAnam amushya nAnyath 
    tath vaaraya Aarya YathirAja Dhayaika SindhO II

( Meaning ) : O Ocean of Mercy ! O my Crown Jewel of 
an Achaarya ! I do not possess deep attachment to your 
lotus  feet . I do  not seem to have even a small measure 
of that bhakthi to your sacred feet. My desire for the 
worldly pleasures keeps on growing day by day . 
What a pity ! The fundamental reason for this phenomenon 
is the underlying paapams of mine. I can not think of any 
other causative factor for this state . Therefore , I beg you 
to banish my paapams with your grace . 

Slokam 7:

vrthyA pasu: naravapu: thvahameedhrusOpi 
   sruthyAthi siddha nikhilaathma  guNArayOyam I
ithyAtarENa krithinOpi mitha: pravakthum 
   adhyApi vanchanaparOhtra Yatheendhra varthE II

(Meaning ) : O King of Yathis ! I am an animal edition 
of human existence. I have the body of a human being
(nara Vapu :) ,but by deeds , I am closer to an animal 
(Pasu Vrutthi ) . Inspite of this , I mislead others and 
make them think that I am a model of one shining 
with aathma GuNAs celebrated by the VedAs and 
VedAngAs . I am completely different than the impression 
I give them. I am a poli Bhagavathan(pOtkan ) . What a Pity that 
I am in this despicable state ! 

(Comments ) : Sri MunigaL is in a state of NaichyAnusandhAnam 
or SvanikarshAnusandhAnam . He is in a repentive mood 
contemplating on his unfitness . He remembers the adage :
J~nEna Heena: Pasubhi: SamAna : " . He cries out that he has no 
true knowledge ( J~nana Heenan ) and is poor in anushtaanam
(AnushtAna Vaikalyam ) . He  says : "Others describe me as 
the treasure house of all of the celebrated  aathma guNAs 
saluted  by the sruthis . What a tragedy ? I am totally unfit 
to be called a BhagavathA . O Ocean Of Mercy ! O DayA SindhO ! 
Please save me from this self-generated calamity ! 

Slokam 8
***********

In this and the next  two  slokas , Our Aachryan describes 
himself as a Moorkan or undisciplined ruffian . He pleads 
for Acharya RamAnujA's grace . The 8th slokam is as folows :

dukkhAvaha : aham anisam tava dushta chEshta : 
     sabdhAdhi Bhoga Niratha: saraNAgAthAkya : I 
Tvath paadha bhaktha iva sishta janowka madhyE 
     mithyA charaami YathirAja TadhOsmi Moorka : II

(Meaning ) : O YathirAjA ! What a ruffian and vesha Dhaari 
(actor ) I  am ! I carry the title of Prapannan and yet I am engaged 
in the performance of deeds not permitted by sAsthrAs . I create 
great sorrow for you with my conduct . I am not fit to be seen in
the company of your devout sishyAs and yet I pretend that I am
one of your very dear disciple and thus practise falsehood . 
You must take mercy on me and lift me up . 

AcharyA's Mental state of NaichyAnusanthAnam 
*****************************************************

This state  is also known as Aathma GarhaNam or Self-
depreciation . In this state , the bhakthan recounts one's 
shortcomings and prays for the Lord"s or one's Acharyan's 
compassion ( AnukmapA and DayA ) . Such Acharya PurushAs
like MaNavALa Maamuni had no particular defects or 
shortcomings . This mood however is a sanchAri Bahvam 
born out of Nirvedam and helplessness . 

There are many instances of VaishNava AcharyAs , who cry out 
with naicchiyam in a spirit of identification with our inadequacies 
and misdeeds . Thyaga Brhamam was a Rama  Chaithanyaa 
and had a spotless life devoted to the worship of Sri Ramachandra.
He lamented however about his unfitness and sought the dayA 
of Sri RamA in the following  krithis :(1) Tudukku Gala (Gowlai ) ;
Etula BrOthuvO teliya ( ChakravAham ) ; PrAlabdha ( SvarAvaLi 
raagam ) ; TelinE jEyu ( Kokila dhvani ) ; nOrEmi Sri RaamA (VarALi ).

I will take the Gowlai krithi to compare the state of mind of 
MM to that of another great BhakthA , ThyagarAjA ,
who blessed this earth with his presence few centuries later .

This krithi in RaagA Gowlai starts with the pallavi ,
"Tudukku Gala nannE dora koduku prochurA yenthO ".
In this second pancha Rathna Krithi , Saint ThyagaraajA starts
in the lower rishabha svaram indicative of his agitated mental state.
He asks as to which dorai magan ( son of the powerful Master/
Chakravarthi Thirumagan ) is going to come to his rescue . He
suggests that Dasarathi , the son of Dasaratha chakravarthi is 
the only one , who can save him from his aparAdhams . 

Professor Saambhamurthy describes the mental state of 
NaicchyanusandhAnam of the Saint this way : " The sahityam reflects 
the pathetic state of mind and the penitent mood the composer 
had at that  time . The sahitya is confessional in tone ; but the fact is 
ThyagarAjA never committed the sins enumerated therein . Indirectly , 
it is provided as a lesson to others to desist from committng such sins . " 

Sadhguru SwamigaL has gone on to compose many krithis 
expressing similar aathma GarhaNa mood for our benefit .
Some of them are : YennALLu tirikEthi ( MaaLava Sri ) ,
Yetula KaapAduthuvO ? Sri RamachandrA ! ( Aahiri ) ;
Nenandhu VedakudhurA , Hari  ( Hari KaambhOji ) ;
Sikku Maali naa ValE tara -nEvaru thiruga jaalarayaa
(KedAra Gowlai ) ; Nimmana valasinadhEmi ? Raama 
nannavalEnugaaka ( kalyANi ) ; Gattigaanu nanu
chEyi BattE tEnnadi ko ( Begada) ; Paahi KalyaaNa-
sundara Raama  maam ( Punnaaga VarALi ) ; 
Nee chitthamu nirmalamani ninnE namminAnu ( DhanyAsi). 

Earlier VaishNava AchAryA's Aathma GarhaNam 
*****************************************************
MM followed a traditional method set by earlier AachaaryAs
in including many Aathma GarhaNa slokams in his YathirAja 
Vimsathi . 

AaLavandhAr's 11th verse in Sthothra Rathnam 
starting with , " Na Ninthitam karma tadhasthi lokE 
sahasrasO YannamayAvdhAyee "  is a case in point.
Here , the great AachAryA cries out to Lord MukhundA :
" O Lord ! There is not a sin that I have not committed 
tens of thousands of times . I do not know of any 
sin that I have not committed. All of these sins have 
now ripened and are ready to yield their fruits . At this 
time of desperation and terror , I stand before you 
screaming as to who is going to protect me . 

Swami Desikan states elsewhere :

jaanan anaadhi vihithaan aparAdha vargaan
Swamin bhayaath KIMAPI  vakthumaham na saktha : 

(Meaning ) : O SarvesvarA ! I AS THE BEARER OF LIMITLESS
LOAD OF ANCIENT SINS am standing before you with terror 
in my mind and am dumb to describe your glories . I stand 
muted before you weighted down by my paapa Raasis. 

Swami Desikan  also has described himself in yet another 
sthothram as " Adharma pravaNAnAm agra skandha 
pravruttham agatamaana vipratheesAram maam " . 
Here he describes himself as the one standing in the front row 
unrighteous and as one , who has no compassion for 
fellow jeeva Raasis .

This is the Aaathma GarhaNa , Aakinchanya Mood 
that MaNavALa Maamuni that he engages in this 
and other slokams to follow to seek the compassion 
of DayA sindhu , Sri RaamAnujA.

Sri MaNavALa MaamunigaL ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam
Oppiliappan KOIL VaradAchAri Sadagopan