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AparyApthmrutha DhyAna sOpanam--Third SlOkam

From the Bhakti List Archives

V. Sadagopan • January 29, 1998 


Dear BhakthAs of Sri AparyAptha Para Brahmam :

In the third slOKam , Thirukkudanthai Desikan shifts his gaze
from the "kamala Paadhams "( SvarNAmbhoja prathimam
SaarngiNa: Paadha Yugmam )  of the Lord , which he saluted
for their Paavanathvam ( sacredness ) and BhOgyathvam
( enjoyability ) . His gaze shifted upward from Paadha Yugmam to
JangA Yugmam ( the pair of ankles )  . This AnandhAnubhavam 
of the AchAryA transformed into a beautiful slOkam to celebrate
the soundharyam of the ankles :

chitrAkAram kataka ruchibhi: dharmaputarsya dhUthyE
GopasthreeNAm vasana haraNE dhaithya nAsaarthayAthE I
bhaddha snEham manasija vibhO: kAhaLAbham manOgyam 
JangA yugmam lasathu hrudhayE maamakE SaarngapANE : II

( Anvaya Kramam ) : kataka ruchibhi: chithrAkAram Dharmaputrasya
DhUthyE  , Gopa sthreeNAm vasana haraNE , dhaithya nAsArthayAthE , 
Bhaddha snEham manasija vibhO : kahaLAbham manogyam 
SaarngapANE : JangA yugmam mAmakE HrudhayE lasathu .

( General Meaning ) : May  the beautiful pairs of ankles of 
Sri AarAvamudhan adorned by the resplendent ankle ornament 
( Tandai ) engaged in walking to DuryOdhanA 's court as an 
ambassador on behalf of Dharmaputrar shine forever in my 
heart . They are the ones that are the delight for the mind to 
comprehend and enjoy ; they ran down from the punnai tree 
branch on the bank of YamunA river to steal the sarees of 
haughty Gopis ; they are the ones that hurried to the places
of the offending asurAs to destroy them . May  those ankles
with their mysteriously beautiful saanidhyam ( presence ) 
continue to reside in my heart  and sanctify it.

CHITHRAAKAARAM KATAKA RUCHIBHI : -- Here , our AchAryA
enjoys the sondharyam of the pair of ankles of the Lord , which 
are decorated with the nUparams enmeshed with nava rathnams .
The natural beauty of the ankles  enhances the splendour of
the nUpurams ( tandais ) . The association with the Lord's 
most beautiful ankles makes the ankle ornament shine 
brilliantly as the AzhwAr experienced : " iNaikkAlil veLLit taLai 
ninrilangum kanaikkAlirunthavA " .  This mysterious beauty
( chithrAkAram ) of the katakam thrills the AchAryA . He begins 
to remenisce about the activities those pair of ankles were 
engaged in the past . A whole flood of memories of the happenings
during KrishNAvatharam inundate our AchAryA's mind . It is only 
appropriate KrishNAvathAram rushes to his mind , since many 
AzhwArs have enjoyed AarAvamudhan as KaNNan .  

DHARMAPUTRASYA DHUTHYE : Besides their beauy , these pair of 
ankles of Lord AarAvamudhan have displayed their valor through 
the act of walking to DhuryOdhanA's court to plead for the PaandavAs 
at the request of DharmaputrA . This Paandavar DhUthan did what 
needed to be done and when the mission  failed because of the ill 
will of DuryOdhanA and his courtiers , He became ParthasArathy  
to destroy  the KauravAs and their associates . He had no weapon 
other than the whip in His hand that was used to direct the horses
in the battle field . Thirumangai describes the identity of that 
ParthasArathy and reveals that divine charioteer of ArjunA is
none other than Kudanthaik Kovalan : " Tann Kudanthai 
naharALan , eiyvarkkyamarilyuttha ThErALan " and " Pandu 
Bhaarathatthut thUthiyangi Paarthan selvat thErEru SaarathiyAi " .

PeriyAzhwAr addresses the crow and asks it to bring the shepherd's
crook to Bala KrishNA as YasOdha with the intention of distracting
Him from going with His friends to graze cows : " Baalap pirAyatthE 
PaartharkkaruL seytha kOlappirAnukkOr kOl konduvA ,
Kudanthai kidanthArkkOr kOl kondu vaa " . PeriyAzhwAr connects here 
ParthasArathy of Vibhavam with the ArchAmUrthy of Thirukkudanthai
resting on AdisEshA .  

GOPA STHREENAM VASANA  HARANE : Those ankles of Gopalan were 
engaged in descending from the branch of Punnai tree to teach a
lesson to the haughty gOpis and stole their vasthrams and made 
them beg for the VasthrAs . ANDAL , who has enjoyed Him as a Gopi 
in ThiruppAvai and NaacchiyAr Thirumozhi( NT )  has etched her love for 
Kudanthai Gopaalan in many pasages of Her divya sUkthis :

Kudanthai kidantha kudamAdi --NT

Madhuvin thuzhAi mudi mAlE , MayanE yengaLamudhE --NT 

Kudatthai yedutthEravittuk kUtthAdavallavenkOvE -- NT

She followed the footsteps of Her father , PeriyAzhwAr ,
who recognized the Lord of Thirukkudanthai as GopAlan 
in his pUcchUdal paasurams : 

" kudangaledutthEravittuk kUtthAdavallavenkOvE ,
madangaL madhimuhatthArai maal seyya valla yem
maindhA , Kudanthaik kidanthavenkOvE " 

When ANDAL heard the description of Thirukkudanthai 
AarAvamudhan as the Kudamaadi , she expressed Her
love for Her Lordimmediately , almost in the same words of 
Her father : " Kudatthai yedutthut thEravittuk kUtthAdavalla venkOvE " .


DHAITHYA NAASAARTHA YAATHE BHADDHA SNEHAM : 
These very same ankles have gone on yathrAs to the places
of the AsurAs to seek them out and destroy them .Thirukkudanthai
sthala purANam describes one such journey : " KaalanEmi 
mukAn dhaithyAn jithvA Saarngadhara Prabhu: " . He rested 
thereafter on His beautiful bed of AdisEshA at Thirukkudanthai .
As Sri Varahap PerumAn , they went under the waters of
the Ocean to seek out the AsurA and retreive His consort .
As Sri hayagreevA , they sought out and destroyed the 
asuran , who stole the VedAs and became known as 
the ankles of Madhuvijayina:   

MANASIJA VIBHO: KAAHALAAPAM :  Swami Desikan is
reminded of the beautiful musical instrument of ManmathA ,
which is narrow at one end and broadens to a wider base 
at the other end . Our Lord's ankles are narrow at one end 
and broadens to a beautiful, symmetric  finish at the knee . Swami Desikan 
has been mesmerized by the beauty of Thiruvahindrapuratthu
EmperumAn's ankles  and has salured them as " Kandharpa 
KaahaLa " ( manmathan's musical Instrument )  . The aparAvathAram 
of Swami Desikan saluted AarAvamudhan's beautiful ankles 
as " mansija vibhO: kAhaLApam " .

MANOGYAM :  These pair of ankles of AarAvamudhan are parama 
BhOgyam for Thirukkudanthia Desikan , which can only be 
experienced by his mind , but are beyond description by speech . 

JANGAA YUGALAM LASATHU HRUDHAYE MAAMAKE 
SAARNGAPAANE : --  Here , our AchAryan prays for the 
sacred pair of ankles of Kudanthai kudamAdi, SaarangapANi 
to shine without let  in the temple of his mind .

Sri KomaLavalli Sametha AparyAptha Para BrahmaNE nama: 
Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan