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Re: Chitranchiru kaale - vyakhyanams

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jayasartn • October 3, 2002 


 SRIMATHE RAMANUJAYA NAMAHA.

Pranams.
Sri TCA Venkatesan has given a very good translation of the 
vyakhyanam for ciRRam ciru kAlE.
I think he has relied on 3000-padi and 6000-padi for this.
Let me add another information from 6000-padi in this context.
Sri Azhagiya Manvala perumal Nayanar quotes verses from Thiruppavai 
to denote the activities done at different time periods such as, 
kalai, ciru kalai and ciRRam ciru kAlai.
They are as follows:-

KAlai- is the period of breaking of the dawn -'vidivukku vudal'-when 
thaamasar begin their day.
--"sengal podi-k-koorai" (Thiruppavai -14)

ciru kalai- "vidivukku adaiyaaLam" -the time when 'Aaichchiyar 
maththinaal Osaippaduththa" (pasuram -7)
This is the time when yadava boys take their cattle for grazing. 
Periyalwar Thirumozhi (NDP-245)speaks of this as ciru'kAlE' - already 
quoted by Sri Venkatesan.

ciRRam ciru kalE- The time just before ciru kaalai when "munivargaLum 
yOgigaLum" (pasuram -6)contemplate on Him (uLLaththu -k- kondu) 
Therefore this is the praatha-kaalam / pancha-pancha ushas kaalam 
when sattwam reigns supreme(6000-padi).

Other points to be mentioned here:-

# In many books it has been given as ciRRam ciru 'kAlai' only. This 
is marked with a note that it is customary to read this as kAlE. I 
think the confusion is because of the uasage as kalE.

# The term 'vandu' immediately after kalai is a clear indication that 
the term under discussion is about time when they (Andal and others) 
have come.(like when did you come - eppo vandaai?) 6000-padi uses not 
less than 10 expressions for 'vandu' and Sri Venkatesan can do a good 
traslation of them to ascertain that kaalai in this context really 
stands for the time.

Now about 'IRRai parai koLvaan'
koLvaan has been variously described as vinai echcham and vinai muRRu 
or vinai-ch-chol.
I beg to differ from all these three.

If it is a vinai echcham, the expressioin must be a broken one, 
followed by another verb. The expression might then be 'kondu 
vandhan' or  'kondu pOnaan'and not just 'koLvaan'

If it is a vinai-p-peyar, it would have have ended with 'al' viguthi, 
like 'koLLuthal'

If it is a vinai muRRu, we must know that vaan, paan and paaku ending 
alone do not decide whether it is a vinai muRRu or not. The meaning 
(of action) must have ended with that term.  To know this the 
reference to the meaning and context is always made before  arriving 
at the exact geammatical connotation.

In this context, that is, in the expression, "iRRai parai 
koLvaanandru kaaN', kaaN is the vinai muRRu and not koLvaan.

koLvaan is the 'vinaiyaal aNaiyum peyar' -i.e., a noun upon which an 
action is attributed - which is predicated by the action word 'kaaN'

If we look at the meaning,(according to 6000-padi), Andal says this 
with aatraamai and veruppu (in disgust and distress). 9 times we said 
about this parai (1.parai tharuvaan, 2.paddi-p-parai kondu, 3.pORRa-p-
parai tharum, 4.arai parai, 5.irrai parai kolvan, 6. parai 
thaaruthiyaagil, 7.saala-p-perunm parai, 8.  undrannai paadi parai 
kondu, 9. nee thaarai parai)
But still He is aking us to bring the parai. Does He not know what we 
mean by parai?

"EngaLai nee kolLumaththanai vozhiya, naangaL un pakkalilE unaai 
vozhiyavum koLvadhondrundu endru irundhayO"

It is like telling, "see, how He has made us bring the parai, when He 
actually promised that He will give us the parai" -(the reference 
here is to 'NaaraayananE namakkE parai tharuvan -pasuram -1). The 
meaning herein sdubstantiates that koLvaan is a vinaiyal aNaiyum 
peyar.

That it can not be a vinai muRRu is proved by comparing 'parai 
tharuvan' (Pasuram -1)
with  'parai koLvaan'(pasuram -29)
(These two have been treated as the very essence of thiruppavai in 
many swaapadEsa vyakhyanams too.He guranteed in the beginning that He 
will take care of us. But now it seems He is more concerned about His 
cattle (therefore the expression Govindha, coming after koLvaanandru 
kaaN)and not about us. Therefore it is upto us to cling to Him -
undanOdu uRROmE- unakkE *naaam* aat cheyvOm)

Coming to the grammar,
In 'NarayananE namakkE parai 'tharuvaan'', the action is complete and 
the following term is part of the next sentence -'paarOr pugazha...'
Therefore tharuvaan here is a vinai muRRu

In parai koLvaan, on the contrary, the sentence goes further and 
completes with kaaN, which is a vinai mRRu.
In a vinaiyal aNaiyum peyar, any reference to gender, number,tense 
etc is immaterial- it can be anything.It is a noun (peyar-ch- chol)to 
which an action is attributed.


jayasree sarnathan.

Food for thought:-
When someone requested Emperumaanaar to render upanyaasm for atleast 
one pasuram of Thiruppavai, he was supposed to have replied, "Thiru-p-
pallaNdukku aaL kidaikkilum, Thiruppavaikku aaL kidaiyaadu"



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