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Ranganaik KaaNpatheppO ? : Part 3-slOkam 1

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sadagopan • December 16, 1999 


Dear BhakthAs :

On this PramAthi Marghazhi maasa piRappu day ,
let us offer our deep salutations to Sri Godhai and
start with the first of the six slOkams of Sri RanganAtha 
SthOthram of ParAsara Bhattar in this posting :

" Saptha prAkAra madhyE sarasija mukuLOthbhAsamAnE vimAnE
KaavErI madhya dEsE mrudhuthara paNirADD bhOga paryanga bhAgE
nidhrAmudhrAbhirAmam kaDini kaDasira: paarsva vinyastha hastham
PadhmAdhAthrI karAbhyAm parichitha charaNam RangarAjam bhajEham "

(Meaning): In the middle of the island formed by the two
CauvErys , in the center of the seven ramparts (PrAkArams),
inside the lotus bud-like vimAnam known as Sriranga VimAnam 
(PraNavAkruthi VimAnam ), the beautiful Lord RanganAthA 
rests in YoganidhrA with His right hand near His crown and
the left hand at the left side in kaDi bhantham . At his 
Paadha Kamalam is seen Sri RanganAyaki pressing 
the tender feet of Her dear consort . AdiyEn salutes this 
auspicious subhAsrayam of Sri RanganAthan at Srirangam.

Comments(1): 

These six slOkams along with two Muktaga slOkams 
form the set of eight slOkAs of Sri RanganAtha-
SthOthram that is connected with the days of exile of 
Bhattar at ThirukkOttiUr . Bhattar  returned 
later to Srirangam and poured his heart out to
the Dhivya Dampathis of Srirangam through 
the 232 slOkams of Sri RangarAja Sthavam and 
the moving slOkams of GuNarathna KOsam eulogizing
Sri RanganAyaki ThAyAr as the young SitA Piratti 
at the budding stage of Her youth (i-e)the prAyam
some where between saisavam ( infancy )and 
Youvanam ( kumAri dasai). 

Bhattar saluted the "iLamkumaran ", Sri KasthUri-
Rangan , as the beautiful Young Raaman in his
ThirunedumthANDakam nirvAham of stanza 21
( maivaNNa naRumkunji kuzhal pin thAzha--) and 
connected that Sri RangarAman with His divine 
consort SitA in his famous commentary on
the anubhavam of Kaliyan's solloli .

The sorrowful exile at ThirukkOttiUr and 
the the AadhAra Sthuthi (Sri RangarAja SthOthram)
provided the AadhAra sruthi for the later works of 
Bhattar eulogizing his "parents" , the dhivya Dampathis of 
Srirangam .

AdiyEn will link the passages of Sri RangarAja Sthavam 
and GuNarathna Kosam ,wherever appropriate to
illustrate the enduring bhagavath anubhavam
of Bhattar for the " nithyOtsava SamAyukthar "
of Srirangam .The first 62 verses of SrirangarAja
Sthavam (the poorva KhANDam of Dhvyam ) where Bhattar 
approaches the Sriranga VimAnam and the Lord resting 
in His Garbha Graham are the most important for us 
in this context.

Comments(2): 

Line 1 of the first slOkam is : " Saptha prAkAra-
madhyE , sarisajamukuLOthbhAsamAnE VimAnE " .

2.1: Saptha PrAkAra madhyE : without counting
the adaya VaLainthAn ( that which bent and circled
to reach Him ) veedhi -- the eighth outter courtyard
or rampart circling the others -- there are seven (saptha) 
inner PrAkarams . That is what Bhattar refers to here
and connects it to the seven lOkams :(1) BhU lOkam 
(2) Thruvikraman Veedhi/ Bhuvar LOkam (3)KiLIcchOzhan
AkaLankan SuRRU/Svarga lOkam (4)Thirumangai Mannan
veedhi/Makara lOkam (5)KulasEkaran Veedhi/jana lOkam 
(6) Raaja mahEndran PrAkAram /TapO lOkam (7) Dharma
Varman suRRu/Sathya lOkam . In the middle of these 
seven prAkArams symbolizing the seven worlds ,
Sri RanganAthan rests on AdhisEshan .The seven
NaacchiyArs of SriranganAthan is connected to
His seven prAkArams . SlOkam 36 of SrirangarAja
Sthavam is pertinent here.

In the 247 paasurams of AzhwArs on Sri RangarAjan ,
we come often across the salutations to the beautiful
aspects of Sriranga raajadhAni including the amthiLs
of Srirangam and the CauvEry river .Swamy Desikan also 
pays tribute to Sriranga kshEthra darsanam in 
his Kaavyam , Hamsa SandhEsam .

2.2:Sarasija mukuLOthbhAsamaanE vimAne: Sarasija 
mukuLam means an unique and beautiful bud of Lotus that
has not yet opened up.. He is that lotus bud (Taamarai
mottu) in the lotus pond of Srirangam . The radiance 
of that lotus bud is making the Sriranga VimAnam 
effulgent (BhAsamAnE vimAnE). That bud is the AadhAra
JyOthi , Svayam JyOthi and Param JyOthi saluted in
the Upanishads .The description of the Sriranga VimAnam 
is provided by Bhattar in his Sthavam and there he describes 
the VimAnam as the replica of Parama Padham (Sri VaikunTam or 
aparAjitha Nagaram or AyOdhyA nagaram ). Bhattar pays 
special attention in one of his sthavam slOkams to 
the Nrusimha Moorthy presiding over the Sriranga 
VimAnam . AdiyEn wrote last year in the 18 article series 
on Sriranga Vaibhavam on the Vedic sambhandham 
of the Sriranga VimAnam and its kalasams.

(To be continued)

Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan