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Divine Name of Sri SaTakOpar

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Madhavakkannan V • May 24, 2002 


SrI:
SrImathE SaTakOpAya namah:
SrImathE Gopaladesika mahadesikaya namah:
Dearest Srivaishnavas,
Today is Vaikaasi Visaakam - Sri SaTakOpar- NammAzhwAr Thirunakshathram. One 
can dwell and enjoy for ages on the divine works of our AzhwAr (num AzhwAr) 
NammAzhwAr- Sri SaTakOpar.

Let us enjoy his sweet name.. (as described by Sri Madhurakavi AzhwAr).
Madhuram itself means honey. This AzhwAr himself writes verses (prabandhams) 
which are like honey; and if he says, the name of NammAzhwAr itself is sweet 
and gives us instant everlasting sweetness which is sweeter than the Lord's 
name, then where is the question of denying it?

Madhurakavi AzhwAr being a great devotee of the Lord Sriman Narayanan, went 
on a pilgrimage trip to North India. He went to ayOddhi, and from there he 
could have desired to go to dwaraka. He describes the Lord KrishnA first.

kaNNinuN chiRutthaambinaal kattuNNap paNNiya peru maayan- en appan..
en appan- My Swamy- My Father; My Lord- who is the Mysterious Lord (maayan)- 
who is the primordial Chief; Supreme Lord- Lord of all; - He out of His 
greatest sowlabhyam, and sowseelyam (neermai - in Tamil), [easily accessible 
nature of His] stooping down to an ordinary cowherd boy of an illiterate 
YasOdhA PiraaTTi (the blessed mother). Angered by His mischief of stealing 
eating butter, she threatened him with a stick, and grabbed a rope to tiem 
Him down to a mortar. The rope was short of the circumference of His 
ThirumEni (divine Body) and she (wondering- as to how the rope can be 
shorter than this little boy's body- when she knew that it is longer), took 
another longer rope and attempted. Again, it became smaller than the body. 
The Boy was standing with His mouth and lips quivering, tears rolling down 
cheeks, eyes full of water; Hands shutting the mouth not to let the cries 
heard by His mother (then she gets more angry); and He does this mystery of 
making the rope shorter than His body circumference.

She gets fed up.. Kutti KaNNan crying externally (and smiling inside), could 
not digest his mother getting troubled anymore and makes Himself available 
and accessible for being tied down to the mortar. YasOdhA now smiles when 
the rope (at last- not knowing it is due to KaNNan's sankalpam only) is just 
nice. She ties Him tightly with that thin, slender rope with strands, to 
mortar. The Lord, who is never bound by anything, is now bound by a simple 
rope, tied by a simpler human being. (NammAzhwAr faints adoring the 
sowseelyam of this Lord's, when he sings.. etthiRam uralinOdu 
iNaindhiandhEngiya eLivE.... - How and what sowseelyam to be tied down to 
mortar!]

In the world, generally people run to human beings (bosses, chief, kings and 
others) and the demi gods for material benefits and worldly pleasures. The 
Lord of Devas is sought by few knowledgeable people to seek what they need 
in this world. Knowing his Parathvam unambiguously, and realizing his 
greatest sowseelyam and sowlabhya kalyANa guNas in its entirety, there are 
rare few who consider Him alone as the means as well as the end and nothing 
else do they aspire for. Our Madhurakavi AzhwAr being one among those rare 
few went everywhere and finally landed at AyOddhi where he saw a light in 
the sky from the south. Wondering that rare and uncommon light in the sky, 
he traced to reach at Thirukkurugoor (the light was not seen by anyone else- 
is to be noted..). Thus, he skipped going to Dwaraka and landed at 
Thirukurugoor where NammAzhwAr (at the age of 16) was in his trance. 
NammAzhwAr had not spoken since birth and now when Madhurakazi AzhwAr came 
and stood, AzhwAr opened his eyes and answered the query from NammAzhwAr 
(first time he opened his eyes and spoke...)

Read NammAzhwArÂ’s life in http://members.tripod.com/~sriramanujar/ and click 
on AzhwArs menu.

This NammAzhwAr has become Parama bhOgyam now for me- says Madhurakavi 
AzhwAr. That does not mean that I have not realized about the Lord's 
greatness. I know that He is Sarva dEvathA Saarvabhouman. He is the Swamy 
for all and for me too. Look at His sowlabhyam and sowseelyam (and that's 
why I mentioned the tying the rope incident). When one thinks of such 
greatest Lord with such accessible nature of His, how can one not get 
sweetness.. Sure-one can get the utmost sweetness. But when I saw this 
Kurugoor Nambhi, NammAzhwAr, the divine utterance of His name (AzhwAr's 
name) itself has become sweet instantly. At the very moment of uttering his 
name makes it (the utterance) sweeter than anything else. The tongue which 
is blessed to recite the Divya SrI Sookthis of this AzhwAr has now been 
relishing the sweet nectar flowing therein by uttering his name.

When the name itself is so sweet granting, how can one talk of the sweetness 
of having the darshan of SaTakOpar (Sri nammAzhwAr)? Indescribable. Also, 
down the ages, people will not be able to see the vibhava avatar of this 
AzhwAr and can relish the sweetness by simple utterance of his name.. 
realize that oh folks! That's why I have been uttering his name (sweetness 
for myself and for you all to follow the same.)

En appanil- From my Swamy- Father (leaving Him)I have come to this AzhwAr. 
Is that correct? Can one leave the Lord and come to Acharya as everything? 
Is that correct? One can get such doubts.

Swamy Desikan says: It is strictly in accordance with saasthras. It is 
oldest ancient tradition (thol vazhi) and the correct, most accurate 
tradition and practice- nal vazhi to surrender at the feet of Acharya. Like 
the life can not sustain without food, the means of Bhakti yoga and Prapatti 
will not hold water without AcharyasrayaNam. This way of surrendering at the 
feet of Acharyan is the way (old way through which many - our Poorvacharyas 
- have walked and hence well laid out and reaching destination is certain) 
and it is the correct way in line with saasthrAs (nal vazhi). Those who have 
realized this understanding the meaning of KaNNinunChiRuthaambu are the 
intelligent and brave ones (DhIrA:) who have taken this path which is 
ancient and correct. Swamy Desikan has not just given his interpretation on 
his own. He has followed (as always) the sruthis and smurthis to mention 
this. The word DhIrA: is referred in MuNDakOpanishad where it mentions 
"AcharyaasrayaNam alone can grant all fruits and those who do that are 
DhIrA" says the Upanishad.
sa vEdhaithath paramam bhramha DhAma yathra viswam nihitham bAthi Subram |
upAsathE purusham yE hyakAmA: thE SukthamEthadhathivarthanthi DHEERAA:
Sathyaki Tantram gives us the same message , when it says: " GurO: Gurutaram 
naasthi " ( There is nothing  more sacred than one's AchAryA) . Upanishad 
asserts : " AchArya dEvO Bahva".
In the second slOkam of Sri NyAsa Vimsathi , Sri NigamAntha MahA Desikan 
gives us the reasons for worshipping the AchAryan as equivalent to 
SarvEsvaran. He also states emphatically in the spirit of Saathyaki Tanthram 
that no one can ever pay back the debt of gratitude to one's AchAryA for 
their mahOpakAram. It is for this reason that , Swami Desikan says that we 
have to worship our AchAryAs as the Lord Himself ( AchArya : sadhbhi: 
aprathyupakaraNa dhiyA dEvavath upasya: syAth ).
Swamy says: Achaaryaadhiha dEvathAm samadhikaam anyaamna manyaamahE.. We 
will never ever consider anyone as Superior to God than The Acharyan. (In 
line with Madhurakavi's dhEvu maRRaRiyEn.. (I do not know any God other than 
NammAzhwAr- my AchArya).

Swami Desikan has pointed out that it is impossible to pay back in any 
manner to The AchAryA, who lights the lamp of knowledge in our minds and 
banishes the nescience and vibhareetha JnAnam that occupied our mind before 
. The only service that we can do is to praise His kalyANa guNAs and reflect 
on them and to spread the message of the great help that he gave us ( Gurum 
prakAsayEth ):

yERRi manatthu yezhil jnAna viLakkai iruL anaitthum /mARRinavarkku oru 
kaimmAru Maayanum kANahillAn /pORRi uhapathum punthiyil koLvathum pongu 
puhazh /sARRi vaLarpathum saRRallavO munnam peRRathaRkE

Swami Desikan states authoritatively that even the Lord can not find a 
proper way to return the gratitude for the AchAryan who lit the JnAna deepam 
in our minds and chased away the darkness of ajnAnam.

SrI Manavala maanuigaL also mentions about this way of worshipping Acharyan 
equal to the Lord (if not more) in Artthi prabandham:
thennarangar seeraruLukku ilakkAga peRROm/
thiruvarangam thiruppathiyE iruppAgap peRROm
manniya seer maaRan pugazh uNavaagap peRROm
MADHURAKAVI SORPADIYE nilaiyaagap peRROm

Let us recite KaNNinunChiRutthambu today as many times as we can and pay our 
obeisance to AzhwAr- Acharya- Prapanna jana santhAna kUtasthar SrI 
SaTakOpar- NammAzhwAr.

References: (1) Sri uttamUr swamy's Prabandha Rakhsa on KanninunchiRutthambu 
and (2)Sri Periya Parakala Swamy and Sri Thirukkudanthai Desikan's 
manipravala commentary on KaNNIinunchiRuthaambhu (released by Srimad 
Poundarikapuram Andavan Ashramam)- anything good -credit goes to these 
original excellent commentaries. All mistakes are only my lack of 
misunderstanding (and  no understanding.)
Please forgive aDiyEn for the same
AchAryan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam
Regards
Namo Narayana
aDiyEn dAsan

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