aRivu onRum illaadha aayk kulaththu un_dhannaip
piRavi peRundhanaip puNNiyam yaam udaiyOm
kuRai onRum illaadha gOvindhaa un_dhannOdu-
uRavael namakku ingu ozhikka ozhiyaadhu
aRiyaadha piLLaigaLOm anbinaal un_dhannai
siRu paer azhaiththanam seeRi aruLaadhae
iRaivaa nee thaaraay paRaiyaelOr embaavaay (28)
In the very first paasuram Sri ANDAL declared unequi-
vocally that Sriman Narayana alone was the Means(UPAAYA)
for getting emancipation and His Service."NarayananE
Taruvaan"- the "E" is very significant.Similarly Lord
Krishna in His CHARAMA SLOKA commanded "Maam EKAM
Saranam Vraja." - "EKAM" = Me ALONE. This is very well
brought out By Sri Andal in this verse.
A Prapanna who firmly believes that the Lord alone is
capable of putting an end to our ever-revolving cycle
of births and deaths should possess SIX essential
characteristics:
1.He should have no truck with any other "means" like
Karmayoga etc( this is his AAKINCHANYA).
2.Moreover to observe such Yogas he does not have any
legitimate right,as sanctioned by the Scriptures.He
has to declare his "lowness".(ANANYAGATITVA)
3.He has to keep thinking constantly of the Fullness
or unimaginable capabilities of Lord Almighty who
is the "MOOLA SUKRITA".
4.He should concentrate on the indissoluble relationship
that he has with God.
5.He should beg pardon of the Lord for all his countless
acts of misbehaviour in the past.
6.He should pray to God for the realisation of his
aspiration,namely Service to the Almighty.
Sri Andal in a very dramatic manner brings out all
these in this verse.
Sri Krishna observed,"O Girls! When your aspiration
is for the highest End - my Service (KAINKARYA),you
must have also performed the prescribed rites for it
like Karma Yoga etc. Have you done so ?"
Gopis: (emphatically) No,O Lord! To perform them we
should in the first place have learnt the Vedas by
sitting at the holy feet of a great Acharya(Prasaanta-
chittaaya samaanvitaya etc) reputed for his erudition
and practice of rites. But our "gurus" are the milch-
cattle and our vocation is tending them to fill our
stomachs.(KARAVAIGAL PIN SENRU etc)
To add to this we are born of a race which has no claim
for knowledge.(ARIVONRUMILOM)
Krishna: If that is the case I can't help you.
Gopis: We are imperfect creatures but your perfection
should fill up this gap.(KURAIVONRUM etc)
Krishna:Now you claim a relationship with me,but this
can be broken off very easily by performing a rite
called "Ghata Sraaddha"
Gopis:That rite is applicable only to the relationships
which are the result of Karma.But our relationship(namely
the one between the Soul and God)is indissoluble either
by you or us or both together.(UNTHANNODU etc)
Krishna: Now you correctly understand our relationship
and call me "Govinda" signifying my being one amongst
you.But in the past you have called me as 'Narayana"
which has caused me considerable pain.(NOTE: NARAYANA
indicates the Lord's relationship with every created
being,prapanna as well as non-prapanna;where as GOVINDA
was the title He received indicative of His special
Accessibility(SOULABHYA) and compassion towards calves,
cows and cowherds.)
Gopis: we apologise to you for this oversight on our
part.But after all we are innocent cowherd girls.Out
of our affection for you we lost our balance of mind.
Please forgive us.(ARIYAADA PILLAIGALOM etc)
Krishna then summoned NAPPINNAI and ordered her to
give them what they desired.
Gopis: No! she has played her role by recommending our
case to you.(PURUSHAKAARATVA).Now it is your turn.You
are the UPAAYA,the bestower of your very valuable and
much sought-after Service.(NOTE: in a similar case Sri
RAMANUJA in SARANAAGATI GADYA prayed to SRI LAKSHMI for
intercession and when she said ,"Astu te; tayaiva sarvam
sampatsyate", he proceeded to pray to the Lord for
Kainkarya.)Please do it.(IRAIVA etc)
"Sriman Narayana charanau...etc" - the First Line of
the DVAYA Mantra is well illustrated in this paasuram.
The stanza needs to be understood with an elaborate
explanation by an erudite Guru.The sum and substance
of the stanza is that He alone is the sole Means of
Salvation; and a person who has no claim for any Sat
Karma as the Means of salvation and a refugee, alone
is fit for surrendering himself unto the Lord.
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