Bhakti List Archives

thirup pAvai - part 13 - "pOthuminO nEr izhaiyeer"

From the Bhakti List Archives

Rengarajan • Thu Dec 25 1997 - 06:04:31 PST 


	
ANDAL thiruvadikaLE saraNam

pOthumiNo nEr izhiayeer - perumAL's thiru uLLam
pOthumiNo nEr izhiayeer !

In Tamil :

"vArunGaL nAm nOnbu nooRkalAm, melliyathum azahgiya
 abArNangaLai thariththathum aAga uLLa siRu idaiyai uLLa thOzhiyar
 gaLE vArungAL".

In English:

"Come  and  join us  folks, Let us perform the nOnbu, Ye, folks of 
aayarpAdi  those who are with the tender hip and wearing the  most 
precious jewelleries".

    The nOnbu here is addressed as saraNAgathi (prapatti) and this 
"pOthu minO" is the key word here in some ways. It is perumaL Lord 
Krishna's  thiru  uLLam  that  some  are  made  to  surrender  and 
undertake  prapatti (saraNAgathi - observed in these pAsurams as a 
nOnbu). It  is  Lord  Krishna's  thiru uLLam that some are made to 
follow the other mArgams.

	 ie., the chOsen ones for the easier mArgam are made to be 
incarnated as  aaycchiyars and attain Sri KrishnA anubavam through 
bagwath kAmA  and  self surrender.  This is the precedence for the 
srivaishnavaLs who  are  chOsen  due  to  Lord's thiru uLLam to be 
incarnated in Sri Sampradhayam (ie., following piratti Sri ANDAL's  
foot steps) as aaycchiyar (gOpika sthrees) and immerse in our love 
with  Sri Krishna (Sri Krishna anubavam) and undertake saraNagathi 
(or prapatti) as similar to aaycchiyar. 

	This effort can be conceived as  both  mental  realisation 
and  as  well  as   performing  externally   the  ritual otherwise 
chracterised  as  a  little effort known as "nOnbu" addressed here 
for  prapatti   at the feet of acharyAL. prapatti or sarangathi is 
accepted by  the  Lord  when  performed both mentally and by doing 
this nOnbu.  (even  the  mental  work is an effort though there is 
insignificant "physical energy" exhausted in doing it).  The  word 
"neerAda pothuveer" has two meanings to support both these ways of 
performing  prapatti.  The  outer most meaning is to take an early 
morning  bath and  perform  this "nOnbu" known as prapatti or bara 
nyAsam.  The inner meaning  is to  have  the  Sri KrishnA anubavam 
by mentally surrendering to the lord and observing the five angams 
of  prapatti. This is conceived by some as performing this "nOnbu" 
or  prapatti  mentally  without  any  ritual  in realising the Sri 
KrishnA  anubavam.  

	It  is  important  to  note  that  both  these 
conceptions are valid as they  both  are  invloving  little effort 
either  mentally or physically. Though it is sometimes argued that 
the  physical  ritual  never  took  part,  it  is evident from the 
vaibavam  of  Sri  ANDAL  that  she  did take bath every day early 
morning  and  offered  her prayers to the Lord. It is also evident  
from  the following episode from her vaibavam that she did perform 
the  "nOnbu"  by  which   she "physically"   surrendered  to  Lord 
Sri Krishna and was accpeted by Lord Sri Krishna in Sri Arangam. 

Sri ANDAL thiruvadikaLE saraNam
Sampath Rengarajan