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Kanninun Siruththambu - 05

From the Bhakti List Archives

vtca • September 17, 2002 


Sri:
Srimathe Ramanujaya Nama:

Kanninun Siruththambu Fifth Pasura Vyakhyana Saram
Excerpted from Sri Nanjeeyar and Nampillai's Vyakhyanam

A Tamil version of this vyakhyana saram can be found at
http://www.acharya.org/vyakyanam/kst/kst05.pdf

nambinEn piRar nanporuL thannaiyum
nambinEn madavAraiyum munnelAm
sembonmAdath thirukkurukUr nambikku
anbanAy adiyEn sathirththEn inRE


Meaning:
I, who call myself adiyEn today, was attached to and 
believing in others things and women, prior to reaching
Nammazhvar. Today I am a bhakta of Nammazhvar, who is
the leader of Thirukkurukur which is made up of lofty
golden mansions.


Vyakhyana Saram:
What was Madhurakavi Azhvar's errors that all good things
left him? He answers in this pasuram that he was wallowing
for countless time in lowly matters. Previously he had
said that he was lowly qualities personified and that 
Nammazhvar had therefore become everything to him. In this
song, he explains the errors of his ways and invites all
to see the great help given to him by Nammazhvar. Therefore,
he declares that he has become a servant to Nammazhvar who 
saved him without looking at his lowly nature.


nambinEn piRar nanporuLthannaiyum:
Madhurakavi Azhvar is stating that he had thought that he
owned his soul, when it truly is the property of the 
Supreme ("chOreNAtmApahAriNA"). That is, his low quality 
lay in the fact that he believed to own that which 
belonged to another. He is now expressing his errors that 
arose from such false belief. He had stolen ("kaLvanAnEn",
"van kaLvan") the first amongst all things in this world 
which is the soul ("dravyam guNastathA karma 
jAtischetastadAsraya:"). His crime is magnified by the 
fact that he stole not something that stops with His 
anubhava, but one that goes all the way to Nammazhvar, 
his acharya.

piRar poruLai:
The atonement for stealing some thing depends on the 
greatness and importance of the thing as well as on the 
greatness and importance of its owner. What he stole was
a very special thing, his soul, and he stole it from 
the Supreme Lord!

nambinEn madavAraiyum:
Having stolen such an important thing from Him, he now
proceeds in other petty crimes - stealing other things. 
That is he believed in a number of things associated with
his body. 

madavAraiyum munnelAm:
The great faith ("mahAvishvAspUrvakam") that needs to be 
placed in Him was placed by him with women instead. Despite 
the fact that acharyas have said that such faith should not 
be placed with women, Madhurakavi Azhvar says that he went 
ahead did the same for countless time. The word women and 
its usage in plural refers to the many lowly qualities that
he was attached to.

munnelAm:
He says forever before because the soul is forever, He is
forver and time is without beginning.

sempon mAda:
Because Kurukur is where Nammazhvar was born, everything
there is glorious to Madhurakavi Azhvar. Kurukur is 
complete in all wealth because of Nammazhvar's birth
there. That Nammazhvar made him, who did not know the
path he came in, become a person with bhakti to 
Nammazhvar. That is, he saved him who was immersed in
all low qualities.

nambi:
Nammazhvar completeness is such that he could save even
one who had stolen his own soul for countless time.

inRu anbanAy:
Leaving aside that which makes one think that one owns
everything including the soul, leaving everything else,
becoming completely devoted to Him and not stopping there
if one were to journey further one would reach Nammazhvar.
However, for Madhurakavi Azhvar, this order has been
not necessary and he has reached Nammazhvar in the first
step itself.

adiyEn:
Madhurakavi Azhvar used the words naan and en (me and 
mine) during the time when he coveted his body and soul,
but now that he has gained the true knowledge he states
adiyEn.

sathirththEn inRE:
Madhurakavi Azhvar states that reaching Him does not
complete the journey; reaching Nammazhvar is what 
completes the journey. He prides in the fact that his
journey is now complete because he who was attached to
several other things is now attached to Nammazhvar.
Madhurakavi Ahvar has exemplified the notion of calling
one's acharya as complete (nambi/pUrna) and calling 
one's self as adiyEn (in their service).

Madhurakavi Azhvar, Nanjeeyar, Nampillai Thiruvadigale Saranam
Azhvar Emperumanar Jeeyar Thiruvadigale Saranam

adiyEn madhurakavi dAsan
T.C.A. Venkatesan

Kanninun Siruththambu Vyakhyana Saram Series:
http://www.acharya.org/vyakyanam/kst/index.html



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