You are on page 1of 14

Pasuram 24 of Andals Thiruppavai

http://www.scribd.com/doc/76214700/Andal-s-Thiruppavai-in-easy-to-readTamil-text-and-English The full text of all 30 Pasurams may be found here. Also, a scholarly discussion can be found at the link given below. http://www.ibiblio.org/sadagopan/sundarasimham/ebooks/Thiru3.pdf A word-by-word translation is given at http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/tpv/ See below the images of the English and Tamil texts of Pasuram No. 24 of Andals Thiruppavai. For those who wish to read the text in other languages, please go to http://www.prapatti.com Andal is considered to be Sridevis amsaavataaram. She was born at Srivilliputoor (close to Kanchipuram, also the city where Indira Gandhis son and Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated), as the daughter of PeriyAzhwar. She is also the only female among the 12 SriVaishNavite Azhwars. She longed for union with Her Lord and insisted that she should be taken to Srirangam where she eventually merged with Lord Ranganatha. You can read more about Andal at the link given above (or click here). The immortal Thiruppavai, attributed to Her, is a divine composition, filled with deep esoteric meanings, on which many commentaries have been written over the centuries. In the first pasuram, ANDAL invites Her friends for the Vratham observance. In the second paasuram, She spells out the rites to be observed and the deeds to be abandoned. In the third Paasuram, She describes the fruits of the Vratham. The aacaaryas who have blessed us are considered to be like the milk giving cows with overflowing udders. In the fourth Paasuram, Andal is directing her prayers to Varuna (actually to KrishNa who had the complexion darker than the darkest rain bearing clouds), the god of the rains, and comparing the bounty bestowing by aacaryas to the bounteous rains showered by Varuna. In Pasuram 5 Andal tells us that He would completely burn off all of our accumulated sins much like a fire burns pieces of straw thrown into it.

Page 1 of 14

PAASURAM 24

Courtesy: http://www.prapatti.com/slokas/tamil/naalaayiram/aandaal/tiruppaavai.pdf
Page 2 of 14

Simple Word for Word meanings (http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia/ebooks/tpv/vstp24.html )

anRu ivv ulakam Once this world

aLan^thaay ati pORRi * measured (Those) feet (we) worship

cenRaNGkuth thenn ilaNGkai ceRRaay thiRal pORRi * After going Southern Lanka conquered (That) valor (we) worship ponRac cakatam uthaiththaay destroyed wheel (by) kicking (obtained) (we) worship pukazh pORRi * (by that The) fame

kanRu kuNilaa eRin^thaay kazhal pORRi * Calf (as a) sling threw (Those) feet (we) worship kunRu kutaiyaay etuththaay kuNam pORRi * Hillrock (as an) umbrella lifted (That) good nature (we) worship venRu pakai ketukkum nin kaiyil vEl pORRi * win (over) enemies (and) destroy (That) your in hand spear (we) worship enRenRu un cEvakamE Eththip paRai koLvaan * In all these ways (we do) your service (and) praise . (So that we may be) emancipated inRu yaam van^thOm iraNGku today we have come (please) show us mercy . El Or empaavaay Come (Let us do) (the penance of) paavai nOmbu See also: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thiruppavai In Pasurams 6 to 15, Andal finishes waking up 10 different types of bhaktas and they all join her in the performance of the Paavai nombhu. In Pasuram 16, the arrival of the entire party at the palace of Nanda Maharaja is described. They ask the doorkeepers to let them in. Pasuram 17 describes their entering the inner
Page 3 of 14

bedchambers to wake up Nanda Maharaja, Mother Yashoda, Krishna and His younger brother Baladeva. Each of them is praised. In Pasurams 18 to 20, Andal and her friends try to wake up Nappinnai, the eternal consort of the Lord, since attempts to wake up Krishna (Kannan) proved futile. In Pasuram 21, they address Krishna directly since Nappinnai has by now agreed to join them. Andal and her friends plead that they have come to Him, on their own, unlike others, with no other expectations other than His grace and to sing His glories. In Pasuram 22, Andal and her friends are assembled at His bedside. They just want Him to glance at them with His beautiful lotus-like eyes, like the cool moon, or the sun, when they rise. In Pasuram 23, ANDAL describes how the Lord should majestically come out of His chamber and be seated on the perfectly suited and well-deserving throne; and then, May You kindly look try to understand the purpose of our coming here (to awaken You). In Pasuram 24, one of the most auspicious pasurams in the entire Thiruppavai, Andal waxes into eloquent poetry with the repeated use of PoTTRi, which is difficult to translate and is roughly equal to Jai ho in Hindi, or All glories to You. And with each PoTTRi she describes one of the divine lilas of the Lord, performed in various incarnations. It is clear that Andal is very fond of Vamana, who she has invoked already in two earlier Pasurams (Ongi ulagalandha Uttaman, in 1st line of pasuram 3 and Ambaram ooDa aruththu ongi ulagaladha in 5th line of pasuram 17). Here she says, all glories to those lotus feet (aDi), we bow to those lotus feet that were used on that day (anRu), a long time ago, to measure this whole world (when Vamana took a gigantic form and became Trivikrama). Then she recalls the lotus feet as Lord Rama, who walked all over the land of Bharata, India, and went south to Lanka to conquer and kill Ravana. All glories to them and all glories to that might and valor (thiRaL) of Yours. Then she says, all glories to those lotus feet that were used, while still a baby, to kill the demon who came in the form of a cart (Shakataasura). As baby Krishna You just gave that cart one kick and toppled it to kill that demon. And, as baby Krishna You also used your lotus feet to toss high into the air, like one throws a sling (kuNilla erindhaai), with a single gentle kick, another asura (demon) who took the form of a bull (kanRu) to kill you (at the behest of Kamsa, Krishnas uncle who wanted all babies in the land killed). Then she recalls the glories of young
Page 4 of 14

Krishnas little finger, which held, like an umbrella (kudaiyaai) the hill (kuNDru) of Govardhana for seven days and nights against the onslaught of the torrential rains unleashed by Indra. All glories to you. All glories to your illustrious gunas (sterling qualities) that we witnessed as you became Govardhana giri dharee! Then she sings the glories of the spear (Vel) held by Krishna, the spear that conquers (venDru) all enemies but then vanquishes their enmity (pagai keDukkum) and wins them over (those who start as enemies become devotees, also mentioned in pasuram 21). She concludes by saying that they would always and every single day (enDru enDrum) like to be blessed with devotion to His service (un sevakame) and thus attain the highest goal of liberation (eththip parai kolvaan). Now, today (inDru) we have come to you (yam vandhom). Please shower your mercy and compassion (irangelor) upon us, so say we young damsels (em paavaai) who have come to you. This Pasuram 24 is usually sung twice (see the symbol used to denote this) during the recitation. Indeed, one feels like chanting this over and over. There are no words more eloquent, more sweet, more simple, and more profound in Tamil (or any language) that can be used to sing the glories of the Lord.

From http://www.ibiblio.org/sadagopan/ahobilavalli/thiruppavai.pdf MEANING OF THE 24th PAASURAM (V. SADAGOPAN):


Heeding to the entreaties of the Gopis, Kannan came and seated Himself on the throne. Captivated by the beauty of His stride and the beauty of His sitting stance, the Gopis forgot the reason for their visit and sung Him a song of pallandu. anRu iv ulagam aLandhaay adi pORRi You incarnated as Vamana and later took the gigantic form of Trivikrama, measuring all the celestial worlds and sanctifying them all with the sacred waters from your lotus feet and consecrated them with the shadow of your lotus feet. With the second measure you placed your foot on the crowns of one and all without any bias relieving them off their sins. You thus upheld your
Page 5 of 14

inherent virtue of souSeelyam, by associating yourself equally well, with the high as well as the low ones. Having made the Lord take steps with such great a thiruvadi, the Gopis deemed this to be a transgression and sought forgiveness from the Lord and sung him a song of pallandu. The Gopis said with delight, Oh Lord! You had once walked into the sacrificial arena displaying the beauty of your pace and had reclaimed the worlds from Bali in the name of generous offerings. Today, by bestowing on us the vision of the same exquisite gait, you have reclaimed us all, who had withered in your separation. That day, Indra got back his lost kingdom from you. The subjects won the association of your lotus feet on their heads. But today, we have won you! senRangu(th) then ilangai seRRaai thiRal pORRi Periyazhwar sung the glories of the Lord in his pallandu as (un sevadi sevvi thirukaappu). Similarly Andal sung a mangalashasanam to the Lord to prevent His lotus feet from being tainted by the devouring looks of humans. Sri Rama was extolled by His father. He sung him a song of praise wishing Him overwhelming success against the evil. Similarly, Andal sings a song of praise in favour of the valour of Sri Rama, who fought triumphantly with the evil demons in Lanka.
Page 6 of 14

senRu Signifies the moving of the army of Sri Rama on the bridge that was built by them across the ocean. The very sight of it would nullify all our sins. Here Andal extols not only the hands that have adorned the bow, but also the lotus feet. To keep Kannan away from thinking that they have started to praise Rama and not Him, she sings ponRa(ch) chakatam udhaiththaay pugazh pORRi The cart guised Shakatasura, received a ghastly kick, and was bestowed with the same fate as that of Maricha. Oh Kannan, the measuring of the worlds and the winning over of Lanka, were all accomplished after reaching manhood. But you vanquished the evil Shakatasura, even as a toddler. Without even the support from your mother, you playfully kicked him and saw his end. Long live, such glory and such greatness. kunRu kudaiyaay eduththaay guNam pORRi (should be kanRu kuNil aaveRindhaay kazhal pORRi) One demon came in the guise of a calf and tried to kill Krishna. Another one tried to hit him hard in the guise of a fruit called vilaampazam. Having known this, you threw the calf into the air and killed the evil Kapiththasuran as well. What a wonder! Just as how a thorn is pricked out by another, you sent one asura into a whirl and smashed the other. Glory to your brave and strong shoulders that have accomplished such a feat, says Andal. kunRu kudaiyaay eduththaay guNam pORRi For seven days in a row, you held aloft the mighty Govardhana on your little finger and protected the entire populace of AayarpAdi along with their cattle from the onslaughts of the incessant rains. You fed the cattle and the folks with fodder and food. Having seen stacks of grass, you imparted the nectar to the folks of AayarpAdi and made their hunger disappear. You thus subdued the pride of Indra, who had inflicted such torments on your devotees. Your glories are immeasurable and beyond reach of mere words. Andal thus extols the infinite auspicious attributes of the Lord with special mention of his compassion and mercy. venRu pagai kedukkum nin kaiyil vEl pORRi Kannan adorns the spear in His hand, in order to protect the cattle and the cowherds from any impediments, when they set out to graze their cattle in the forest.
Page 7 of 14

Also, the discus in His hand has many sharp spikes similar to His spear. Sri Rama was a royal prince and so adorned the bow in His hands. Since Kannan is koorvEl kodundhozhilan nandhagOpan kumaran, He adorned the spear perhaps. Andal thus sang in praise of the spear and the discus that is Sudarshana Azhwar. enRenRum un sEvagamE Eththi(p) paRai koLvaan Having painted the picture of all your adventurous accomplishments on the canvas of our hearts, we have come here singing praises and have assembled here today to relish and celebrate your glories. We pray you to bestow your compassion and to shower your benevolence on us. The purport here is that the Lord unfailingly protects those who seek refuge at His feet. It may also be taken as songs of glories in favour of the preceptors. Preceptors like Bhagavad Ramanuja, travelled far and wide, imparting spiritual and esoterical knowledge to deserving disciples, dispelling the iniquitous attributes in them like pride and selfishness that were as vicious as the ruler of Lanka and thereby showed them all, the path to deliverance. Andal sings the glories of the lotus feet of such an Acharya. This pasuram is the singing of glories of an Acharya, who lights the lamp of knowledge in us and dispels the darkness of nescience, thereby giving us supreme bliss. The following taken verbatim from http://www.ibiblio.org/sadagopan/sundarasimham/ebooks/Thiru3.pdf Dear BhakthAs: BhagavAn has four kinds of gait (chathur-Vithaa gathi) according to JnaanyAcchAr Swamy with special attributes: (1) Rishabatthin serukku (majesty) (2) Mattha Gajatthin Thimirppu (the abandon of the elephant in rut) (3) Puliyin Urattu (Tiger's speed and control like a wound wire) (4) Simhatthinudaya parAbhibhavana saamarthyam (The confident and powerful gait of a Lion as the King of the jungle and conqueror of all beasts)

Page 8 of 14

The Gopis want the Lord to walk to the throne from His bed side and make them blissful through the enjoyment of His different gaits as He takes the steps. Lord KrishNaA accompanied by Nappinnai reaches the throne room, sits on the simhAsanam and the Gopis are overwhelmed by their darsana soubhAgyam and sing pallANDu for His Thiruvadi along the lines of PeriyAzhwAr (Unn sEvadi sevvit-thirukkAppu). Their pallANDU for the Dhivya Dampathis seated on the throne is described by Upanishad BhAshyakArar this way: Tatha: SimhAsanE upavishtam KrishNam aalOkya MangaLAni prayunjathE (MangaLAsAsanam is performed by the Gopis to the Lord seated on His SimhAsanam). Then they take the next step of stating the purpose of their visit to seek saamagriyAs (accessories) for the observance of the Vratham of Paavai Nonbhu and pray for eternal kaimkaryam to Him (sarva Kaalam Tvath PadhAnamEva sthuthva, vrathOpakaraNam Vaadhya VisEsham icchantha: samAgathavAn, TathO dayAm Kuru).

LITERAL MEANING OF THE PAASURAM (DR. V. K. S. N. RAGHAVAN): Slowly and gradually, the young gopis could find Lord KrishNA (1) sleeping (2)getting up and (3) walking towards them. In the meanwhile, when He walks, they perform mangaLAsAsanam for His ThiruvadigaL: Earlier--on that day (long ago) You measured this Universe (with this pair of feet); (now we hail) protection and glory to such a pair of Your feet. Earlier (long ago), You went there to LankA in the Southern region and killed RaavaNA, the aparAdhi; (we proclaim) protection and glory to Your enormous vanquishing power. You gave a kick to sakatAsurA (the asuran, who came in the form of a cart to crush You) and You destroyed Him with Your Thiruvadi; (we hail) glory and safety to Your fame. (Bending Your feet in stiff posture) You threw the calf (vathsAsuran) like a fierce rock-like stick against another demon (KappittAsuran), who had taken the form of a woodapple tree, so that both of them were killed simultaneously; (we hail) glory and safety to Your victorious anklet and feet (that performed this miracle). You have lifted aloft the GovardhanA mountain just as an umbrella; (we sing) hail and safety to Your pristine merits and grace. You hold in Your hand, a powerful spear that completely subjugates and eradicates Your enemies; (we sing) hail and glory to that spear in
Page 9 of 14

Your hand --thus, indeed, do we hail and sing Your miraculous deeds, valour and auspicious ThiruvadikaL. We have come to Your side today now to offer our prayers and to seek the drum (paRai) from You, So Please be compassionate to us, who seek eternal Kaimkaryam to You.

PERUKKARANAI SWAMY'S ANUBHAVAM This Paasuram is one of the most auspicious one in ThiruppAvai. That is why we recite it twice. Since the prayer is in the form of a PallANDu, it can be recited many times more. The gana prEmai (deep affection) of the Gopis for their Lord poured forth in the form of MangaLAsAsanam and PallANDu. They forgot what they came for. First, they hail the Thiruvadi that measured the Universes as Thrivikraman (anRivvulaham aLanthAi adip pORRi). This is the third time ANDAL refers to Thrivikraman's mysterious deed (Ongi UlahaLantha, ambarmUdarutthu Ongi ulhalantha and anRivvulaham aLanthAi here). The anusandhAnam for three times is perhaps to remind us that Vaamanan begged for three feet of land from Emperor Bali. She seems to say that MahA Bali could not succeed in granting three feet of land, but She gave Him three feet/adis (Each ThiruppAvai Paasuram has eight feet or Yettadi). She devoted one adi in each of the above three paasurams to salute the magnificent deed of Thrivikraman, which is hailed by the VedAs as ThrINi padhAn VichakramE). The Gopis say: anRu ivvulaham aLanthAi!adip pORRi! inRu Yaam vanthOm. After saluting MahA Bali VrutthAntham, the Gopis saluted the valor of the Lord in destroying RaavaNan as Raaman, SakatAsura vadham and the wondrous deed of lifting Govardhana Giri to teach Indran, normally an anukoolan, an unforgettable Lesson. THE INNER MEANINGS OF THIS PAASURAM (PERUKKARANAI SWAMY) We have arrived today to sing pallANDu for Your valorous deeds in Vibhavam and to seek eternal kaimkaryam to You in Parama Padham (YenRenRum unn sEvakamE yEtthi parai koLLa inRu yaamm vanthOm). Please have dayA for us (irangu). We hail the spear like, sharp-edged sankalpam of Yours, which banishes obstructions to gaining Moksha Siddhi (venRu pahai kedukkum ninn kaiyill vEL pORRi).

Page 10 of 14

We hail Your lofty guNams as Sri VaikuntanAthan as the SarvEsvaran seated under the white umbrella (yEka ChakrAdhipathi with svEtha Chathram); {kunRu kudayAi yedutthAi guNam pORRi} in Parama Padham. We hail your heroic deeds that destroy like a powerful daNdam thrown at our PuNya Paapams (KuNilA kanRu yeRinthAi, Kazhal pORRi). Sakatam ponRa uthaitthAi puhazh pORRi: we hail Your glories that destroy the manOrathams of Jeevans, which are the causes behind the naraga-Svarga anubhavams! angu senRu tenn Ilankai seRRAi thiRal poRRi: Hail to Your sakthi which is manifested through Your presence in the universe as antharyAmi, VibhavAtharan and AchAryan and for conferring the power of vivEkam to ward off the moksha virOdhis! anRu ivvulaham aLanthAi adip pORRi: Hail to Thee, who created all these Universes and their beings and for making Your Thiruvadi as UpAyam for our Prapatthi! We are eulogizing Your powers of creation, power to control our sanchala manas, power of Your guNams that save us from enjoying the fruits of Paapa-puNyams, power to banish mOksha VirOdhis. We beseech You through our prayers to give us the VrathOpakaranams andto listen to our request for eternal kaimkaryam at Your holy feet; have mercy on us.

****************************************************
1.

Reproduced below is another word-by-word translation of this most auspicious verse. You have to scroll way down the link given below to find this. I found this when trying to check on the meanings of "kazhal" in the 4th line. Adi and kazhal both are used to mean "feet" but some verses in Tamil also mention "kazhaladi". Would appreciate any comments from knowledgeable Tamil scholars. anRu iv ulagam aLandhaay adi pOtri senRangu(th) then ilangai setraay thiRal pOtri ponRa(ch) chakatam udhaiththaay pugazh pOtri kanRu kuNil aaveRindhaay kazhal pOtri kunRu kudaiyaay eduththaay guNam pOtri venRu pagai kedukkum nin kaiyil vEl pOtri enRu enRu un sEvagamE Eththi(p) paRai koLvaan inRum yaam vandhOm irangElOr embaavaay
Page 11 of 14

1. We worship (pOtri) your feet (adi) with which you scaled (aLandhaay) this (iv) world (ulagam) long ago (anRu). 2. We worship (pOtri) your valour (thiRal) with which you conquered (setraay) southern (then) Lanka (ilangai) after going (senRu) there (angu). 3. We worship (pOtri) your fame (pugazh) that you obtained by kicking (udhaiththaay) and destroying (ponRu) the wheel (chakatam) shaped asura. 4. We worship (pOtri) your feet (kazhal) with which you threw (eRindhaay) the calf (kanRu) shaped asura 'vatsaasuran', at the ebony tree (aa) shaped asura 'kapithaasuran', like a sling (kuNil). 5. We worship (pOtri) your good nature (guNam) for having lifted (eduththay) the hillock (kunRu) like an umbrella (kudai), to protect people against the great rain. 6. We worship (pOtri) the spear (vEl) on your (nin) hand (kai), with which you win (venRu) and destroy (kedukkum) the enemies (pagai). 7. Today (inRu) we (yaam) have come (vandhOm) just for your (un) service (sEvakamE) and praise (Eththu) in all these ways (enRu enRu), so that we may be emancipatated (paRai kOlvaan). 8. Please show us your mercy (irangEl). The 6th line actually means the Vel which conquers (venDru) the enemies and then destroys (kedukkum) their enmity (pagai).
http://groups.google.com/group/soc.culture.tamil/tree/browse_frm/month/199301/dabeb8b6f3217da7?rnum=121&_done=%2Fgroup%2Fsoc.culture.tamil%2Fbrowse_frm%2Fmonth %2F1993-01%3F

Page 12 of 14

Venkatesa Prapatti 12 and Andals Pasuram 24


The eloquent singing of the glories of the Lord that we find in Andal's Pasuram 24 is also mirrored in verse 12 of the Venkatesa Prapatti (the third part of the daily prayers called Venkatesa Suprabhatam). The sloka is given below with a brief translation. Manmoordhni KaaliyaphaNe vikaTaataveeshu l ShreevenkaTaadri shikarE Shirasi shruteenaam ll Cittepyananya manasaam samamaahitau te l Shree Venkatesa charaNau sharaNam prapadye ll 12 ll Each of these verses end with the statement of total surrender (sharaNam prapadye) to the two lotus feet (charaNau) of the Lord Venkateswara (in the last line). Here the composer of this hymn is describing these two lotus feet. In the previous verse, the devotee was thinking about the two lotus feet as the same two lotus feet that were shown a long time ago to Arjuna, when he was asked to surrender in the battlefield (Sarva dharmaan parityajya maam ekam sharaNam vraja, chapter 18, verse 66 of the Gita). Now, the devotee invokes some more imageries associated with these two lotus feet. There was a powerful and poisonous snake called Kaaliyaa who lived in one of the huge ponds of Gokula and had poisoned its waters. One day baby Krishna decided to save the residents by killing this Kaliya. He did it simply getting on top of Kaliya's hoods (Kaaliya phaNe) and dancing upon them. The devotee is says, Let those same two lotus feet also dance upon my (man) head (moordhni) as well (and so liberate me, like you did Kaaliya). The devotee is also recalling the two lotus feet as the same two lotus feet that were seen to walk through all the dense and fearful (vikaTa) forests (aTaveeshu) of DandakaaraNya and others in search of Sita, to eventually kill RavaNa. This is also the imagery invoked by Andal in pasuram 24 of the Thiruppavai.

Page 13 of 14

Then the devotee says that these are also the same two lotus feet that we now see atop the peaks (shikarE) of Venkataadri, in the temple on the seven hills. These are also the same lotus feet that are held dear and held high atop the heads (shirasi shurteenaam) of all those who have gained the full knowledge of the Vedas (the shruteenaams, as being the very essence of the Vedas). They are also the same two lotus feet that are seen to dance and pound upon the hearts (the cittam, the whole consciousness) of all those who can think of none other (ananya manasaam) than You. O Venkatesa, I surrender to those two lotus feet.

Vj Laxmanan Images of the lotus feet of Krishna in the temple at Prabhas kshetram (about 5 km from the famous Somnath temple, in Gujarat) where Krishna went back to VaikunTha.

Page 14 of 14

You might also like