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Srivilliputtur as Then Indiya Aayarpadi

From the Bhakti List Archives

Venkat Iyengar S. • December 25, 1998 


                  Srimate Godaya Namaha

Thiruayarpadi is about 12 kms from the city of Mathura,with the
Vrinda forest (vrindaban) nearby.Srimad Bhagavatham also mentions
the forest being filled with the sweet fragrance of flowers growing
around the forest(SB 10.33.24)

           Srivilliputtur is 72 kms(6*12) from the city of madurai
(madura) and the Shenbagaranyam(shenbaga forest ) is around 5 kms
from srivilliputtur which is filled with the fragrance of shenbaga
flowers

                  *****

In the days of  Sri Krishnavataram gokulam(aayarpadi) was a rich
and a prosperous village with the cowherds supplying large
quantities of milk and milk products to mathura .Sri Andal also
mentions about the "girls of aayapadi adorning precious jewels"
in the first paasuram of Thiruppavai.

          In Srivilliputtur the diary business is prosperous even
today.The town produces milk far in excess of its requirement and
the excess milk is used for making the famous "palgova".The quality
of milk available at srivilliputtur is also excellent( it seems
even the cows of gokul took rebirth at srivilliputtur during sri
Andal's period).As for the jeweleries in srivilliputtur one can find
a whole block of jewellery shops adjacent to the car street in 
srivilliputtur which might appear highly disproportionate for a
small pilgrim town.There are indications that Srivilliputtur
might have been a rich and prosperous town in the earlier days during
the period of Sri Andal with some of the references such as "sodhi manimaadam
thonrum oor" and "minnar thadamadilchule villiputtur".

                 ********

Sri Andal incarnated in the town of Srivilliputtur where aayarpadi
kannan was already present in the form of archavataram as vata-patra-sayee
(child krishna in a leaf).
        In her poetic work sri Andal imagines herself to be a cowherd
girl at aayarpadi during the incarnation of lord krishna and exhorts
her friends (whom she considers as her mates at aayarpadi) at srivilliputtur
for the Pavai Nonbu to attain union with the lord.In srimad Bhagavatham
we find the cowherd girls observing the vow of worshipping goddess
katyayani in the first month of the winter season to unite with sri
Krishna (SB-10.22.1) which is similar to the pavai nonbu suggested 
by andal to her friends at srivilliputtur in the month of margazhi.

As Sri Krishna gladly accepted the flowers and kumkumam from Sri Radhe
at aayarpadi,so did sri Vatapatrasayi eagerly accept the garlands
worn and presented by Sri Andal at Srivilliputtur
 
     As these views of mine are based on physical similarities and
well known facts i request Bhagavathas to correct me and also add their 
own inputs if they feel necessary to bring the deeper significance
of sri Andal's Anubhavam.

adiyen
Venkat S iyengar