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Thirumaalai-64

From the Bhakti List Archives

Varadarajan Sourirajan • September 26, 2002 


Sri Parthasarathi thunai,
Srimathe Ramanujaya Namaha

“ Mattrondrum vEinda Maname Madhilarangar
  Kattrinum meitha kazhalinai keezh- uttra
  Thirumaalai paadum seer Thondaradipodi Emperumaanai
  Eppozhudum peesu”

“ Srimat Krishna samahvaya Namo yaamuna soonave 
  yetkadAkshai kalakshyAnAm sulabha: Sridara: sadaa”

Pranams,

Paasuram-42

“pazhuthilA ozhughalAttru palasadu pEdhimArgal!
  ezhikulaththavargalElum emmadiyArgalAgil
  thozhumineer kodumin konmin endru ninnOdum okka
  vazhipada arulinAi pOl madhil thiruvarangaththAnE!”

pazhuthilA ozhughalAttru palasadu pEdhimArgal!:  Here emperuman refers to the chatur vEdis who are well versed in Vedas but due to their ego they consider bhAgavatas born in a lower birth to be inferior.  Here in the vyakhyanam Sri PVP says, such Brahmins though well versed in Vedas are considered to be like a donkey carrying saffron on its back (“kumkumam sumandha kazhudhai OpAdhi”).  Though the donkey is carrying saffron on its own back it never realizes the sweet smell and worth of the same.  Similarly these haughty Brahmins though capable of chanting the veda mantras from top to bottom they do not know the meanings and hence cannot put them to practice.  Emperuman calls such Brahmins, who though having a very clear ancestral history still are stringent in their behavior and instructs them to do as follows:  

ezhikulaththavargalElum emmadiyArgalAgil:  Even if a bhAgavatan is born in the lowest of the lowest class, still if he is my bhakthan then,

thozhumineer kodumin konmin:  fall into the feet of such a bhAgavata, give him the knowledge you possess and take the knowledge from him. 

endru ninnOdum okka vazhipada arulinAi pOl madhil thiruvarangaththAnE!:  Quoting the above instruction of bhagavan alwar wonders, Oh Ranganatha! Residing in thiruvarangam surrounded by huge walls, you were the one with so much grace on your bhakthas who ordered even the chatur vEdis to consider the bhAgavatas, though born in a low caste to be equal to you and prostrate them, as given above.  In the vyakhyAnam, Sri PVP wonderfully says, emperuman has such grace that he actually wanted to say consider bhAgavatas to be greater than me but then since no one can ever be greater than bhagavan he then changed it and made them equal to him.  Such was the jnana paripAgam of our acharyas.

Accepting a jAthi heenan as great, considering his Jnanam and bhakthi is not only alwars or acharyas philosophy.  It is seen even in the puranas.  SounakAdhi maharishis were high class Brahmins doing tapas in naimisAranyam.  When soodar, a bhAgavatan born in a low caste came over there all the rishis prostrated him and gave him a seat with due respect.  They requested him to shower bhagavat gunam to them.  Though born in a low birth, due to guru (veda vyasa) krupai, soodhar was well versed in all sastras and was a great jnani and parama bhAgavathan.  So from this too it is proved that irrespective of the birth, if a person is a bhAgavatan then we should prostrate him, and give and take knowledge.

A piece of wood can be used to burn some object or can be made into a padhuka.  When the same piece is used for burning then it has no value but when it is made into a padhuka then it gets due regards.  One interesting incident in the life history of Sri manavAla mAmunigal goes as follows:  Once mAmunigal asked his shisya erumbiappa to get his thiruvArAdhana perumal.  Erumbiappa returned with mAmunigal’s perumal in one hand and with mAmunigal’s pAdhukai on the other.  MAmunigal got very angry and scolded the shisya for doing such a great abhachAram of carrying the padhukai equal to perumal.  The shisya without any hesitation replied “vumadhu perumAllukku em-perumAl kuraindhavarO?”(Is my perumal in way less greater than yours?).  The shisya had so much acharya bhakthi that he considered his acharya padhuka to be his thiruvArAdhana perumal.  When even a pAdhuka can get such greatness just due to the sambhandam of a jnanAcharyan, then shouldn’t the bhAgavatas who have great jnanam and bhagavat sambhandam be reg

AzhwAr emberumAnAr jeeyar thiruvadigaLE saraNam
Adiyen Ramanuja Dasyai
Sumithra Varadarajan


 



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