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The Sunny Azhwar

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sadagopaniyengar • May 1, 2003 


                 
Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

                           The Sunny Azhwar

 

         The importance of Sri Nammazhwar to our Sampradaya cannot be captured in words. The very fact that his magnum opus, Tiruvaimozhi, is reverentially called "Bhagavat Vishayam" is ample testimony to its magnificence. He is accepted as the moola purusha or "kootasttha" of the entire clan of surrendered souls ("Prapanna jana kootasttha:") and a standing example to the Srivaishnavite maxim that at the rarefied heights of bhakti, differences occasioned by caste, race etc. matter little. It is also a testimony to the liberal outlook of our much-maligned Sampradaya, that it has accorded a lofty pedestal to a true bhakta beyond compare, disregarding considerations of birth, caste, etc.  Not only is Sri Satakopa Muni considered to be our spiritual leader, but other Azhwars, notwithstanding their lofty birth, are held to be adjuncts of the former. His outpourings occasioned by matchless devotion are accorded the same elevated status ("DrAvida VEda  SAgaram") as the Shruti, which is held to be the PramANam par e

who has been adorned with a thousand slokas, that too by an Acharya of the calibre of Swami Desikan, in the guise of praising the holy sandals of Sri Rangaraja. It is only Tiruvaimozhi which can boast of two distinguished mothers-

Sri Satakopa Muni, who begot it and Sri Ramanuja, who contributed to its spread and glory, with deep devotion ("eendra mudal tAi Satakopan, moimbAl vaLarttha ida tAi irAmAnusan"). Again, it is only Tiruvaimozhi which can boast of a plethora of rich commentaries by several distinguished Acharyas-Sri Tirukkurugai Piran Pillan, Sri Nanjeeyar, Sri Periavacchan Pillai, Sri Nampillai, Swami Desikan, Sri SAkshAt Swami, Sri Parakala Swamy etc.

 

     Though all Acharyas, without exception, have paid handsome tribute to Sri Nammazhwar in recognition of his unrivalled contribution, there is one sloka in particular, attributed to Sri Nathamuni, which speaks volumes about the Azhwar's greatness-

 

"Yat gO sahasram apahanti tamAmsi pumsAm

  NarayanO vasati yatra sashankha chakra:

  Yan mandalam Shrutigatam praNamanti viprA:

  Tasmai namO VakuLabhooshaNa BhAskarAya"

 

In this beautiful tribute, Sri NathamunigaL likens Sri Nammazhwar to the Sun. Rather than a word-for-word translation of the sloka, the following analysis of the similarities between the Lord of the Skies and the Lord of the PrapannAs would make more interesting reading.

 

1.      The Sun generates thousands of rays, each travelling millions of miles to light up the earth. Similarly, Azhwar'd outpourings consist of a thousand and odd pasurams and thousands of nectarine words dripping with devotion.

 

2.      The Sun fills the earth with precious light, but for which the world would wallow forever in benumbing gloom. Likewise, Azhwar's pasurams, by holding forth the luminous lamp of knowledge, banish the darkness of ignorance from our souls.

 

3.      The Sun is touted to be the abode of the Paramapurusha. Numerous Shruti vAkyAs can be found, giving the Lord's address as the centre of the Solar System-"ya EshOntarAdityE Hiranmaya: purusha:", "SayaschAyam PurushE, eschAsAvAditye, sa Eka:". The Smrti too confirms this-"DhyEya: sadA Savithru mandala madhyavarti Narayana:"

 

More than the Sun, it is in Sri Nammazhwar that the Lord resides with delight, as Azhwar himself confirms more than once-

"Tirumalirumsolai endrEn, enna, Tirumal vandu en nenju niraya pugundAn". Further, Azhwar furnishes a graphic description of the magnificent tirumEni with which the Lord resides forever in Azhwar-

 

"KaNgaL sivandu periavAi, vAyum sivandu kanindu, uLLE

  veN pal ilagu sudar ilagu vilagu makara kundalatthan

 KoNdal vaNNan sudar mudian nAngu tOLan kuni SArngan

 ON sangu gadai vAL AzhiyAn oruvan adiyEn uLLAnE"

 

 Emperuman inhabits Azhwar's soul as antaryAmi. And even in the rather cramped space available to Him, He manages to retain all His magnificent and matchless adornments and weapons and is resplendent with the beautiful white Conch, the dazzling Divine Discus, the Mace, the long bow which has been the nemesis of brave warriors like Ravana, etc.   Azhwar is able to perceive vividly in his mind's eye the towering tenant with the large, beautiful lotus-like eyes, lips resembling a dark red fruit, dazzling white teeth, a magnificent and tall headgear indicative of His supremacy, attractive ears adorned by fish-shaped earrings and with a complexion akin to dark, rain-bearing clouds. There is thus no doubt that Azhwar's tirumeni and soul are places of preferred residence for the Paramapurusha.

 

4.      The Sun (or the Lord residing in the luminous orb) is the object of worship for all on earth. It is the Sun to whom prayers are addressed by everyone thrice a day during Sandhyavandanam. Right from the brahmachAri to the enlightened Maharshis pay obeisance to the Sun. Sri Nammazhwar is similarly adored and adulated by one and all, from exalted Acharyas like Sri Bhashyakara and Swami Desikan right down to the unlettered devotee, as the "Prapanna jana kootasttha", as the Satakopa Muni for whom the glorious Lord was mother, father, wife, children and coveted wealth all rolled into one ("MAtA, PitA, yuvataya: tanayA vibhooti: sarvam yadEva niyamEna madanvayAnAm").

 

5.      It is the Sun which makes the lotus bloom. The lotus is like a chaste lady who is gladdened only by the presence of her husband. No amount of heat, other than the Sun's, can make the flower open its petals. Sri Kulasekhara Perumal attests to this-"Sen thazhalE vandu azhalai seididinum senkamalam antaram sEr vem kadirOrkku allAl alarAvAl".  Likewise, Sri Nammazhwar too makes the lotus of our soul bloom with divine wisdom, through the enlightening Tiruvaimozhi and other prabandas. Since he himself has been blessed with blemishless wisdom, Azhwar is able to impart enlightenment, eradicate the gloom of ignorance and restore to the soul its original attribute of boundless wisdom, which was hitherto clouded due to enshackling Karma.

 

Looked at in a different way, Sri Nammazhwar, through his immeasurably sweet pasurams, makes the lotus eyes of the Lord bloom with delight.

 

6.      The Sun is the crowning centrepiece of the Solar System, with all other planets orbiting around the luminous Master, conceding supremacy and importance. There are some planets like the Moon, whose glory is a reflected one, borrowed from the Sun. Similarly, among the elite group of the Lord's devotees, Sri Nammazhwar glows as the luminous, Sun-like centrepiece in a gem-studded garland. It is an accepted tenet of our Sampradaya that Sri Nammazhwar is the "angi" and all other Azhwars "angAs", attesting to the primacy accorded to this scion of TirukkurugUr. It is said, for instance, that Sri Parakala's prabandas are but an expansion and reiteration of Sri Nammazhwar's outpourings.

 

7.      The Sun absorbs salty water from the seas through the process of evaporation and causes precipitation in needy areas, providing people with life-giving water. Sri Satakopa Muni too imbibed the entire expanse of difficult-to-comprehend Shruti and blessed us all with the quintessence of Veda and Vedanta in the form of easily comprehensible, incredibly sweet Tiruvaimozhi pasurams. It is for this immeasurable contribution that the Azhwar is acclaimed as "Vedam Tamizh seida MAran Satakopan", "eidarkku ariya maraigaLai Ayiram intamizhAl seidarkku ulagil varum Satakopan", etc. Swami Desikan records this with gratitude in Sri Guruparamparasaram thus-"Samudra jalatthai vAngi sarvOpajeevyamAna taNNeerAga umizhumA pole, VEdArtthangaLil sAratama amsatthai sarvarukkum adhikarikkavalla bhAshaiyAlE sangrahitthu kAtti".    The immeasurable aid these pasurams are of in interpreting the intricate purport of the Shruti is brought out by the same Acharya thus-"Seyya Tamizh mAlaigaL nAm teLiya Odi, teLiyAda marai nilanga

 

However, as Azhwar himself says in relation to the Lord, though we might hold up several worldly things as examples of the Lord's glory, they can at best be indicative illustrations and can never hope to fully reflect Emperuman's magnificence-"otturaitthu ivvulagu unnai pugazhvellAm perumpAlum                           patturaiyAi purkkendrE kAttumAl ParanjOthI".                        Similarly, comparing Azhwar to the Sun would give us only a glimmering of the former's greatness and can never serve as a comprehensive comparison. For instance, among all the points of similarity, we are also able to observe several dissimilarities-

The Sun offers suffers eclipses and is often masked by dark clouds. However, Azhwar's glory can never be hidden and always shines forth through his immortal compositions.

The Sun performs his duty of illuminating the world due to fear of the Lord, who is a hard task master-"bheeshOdEti Soorya:" says the Upanishad. Azhwar's kainkaryam and outpourings, on the other hand, are prompted by an overwhelming love and affection for Emperuman and are a result of "anubhava janita preeti", adoration born out of extremely sublime experience of divinity in all its facets.

The Sun is but a jeevatma like us, albeit an exalted one, whereas Azhwar is a nitya sUri or a permanent resident of Sri Vaikunatam, sent down to the mundane worlds for the express purpose of reforming errant humanity, a task at which the Lord Himself, despite numerous avataras, admitted defeat.

 

The Acharya Hridayam too follows in the footsteps of Sri Nathamuni in ascribing to Sri Nammazhwar the glory of destroying internal gloom and drying up the Sea of Samsara, a feat which could not be achieved by the Sun, as also by Sri Rama who took birth in the Sun's own dynasty (Ravi kulam) -

 

" Aditya Rama DivAkara Achyuta BhAnukkaLukku pOgAda uLLiruL neengi sOshiyAda piravikkadal vattri vikasiyAda pOdil kamalam malarndadu VakuLa BhooshaNa Bhaskara udayatthilE"

 

"Yasya SArasvatam srOtO VakuLAmOda vAsinam

  ShrutInAm vishramaAyAlam ShathArim tam upAsmahE".

 

Srimate Sri LakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

Dasan, sadagopan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"

                        



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