42. mUlam enRu azhaiththEnO gajarAjanaip pOlE
In the eighth skandam of Bhagavata Puranam, the story of Gajendra the elephant, is written. In the Trikuta mountains, there was a beautiful lotus pond owned by varuna. Oneday, a herd of elephants led bt Gajendra and his consorts came there. They entered the pond, took a bath and played around. At that time, a crocodile caught the foot ofGajendra. Gajendra fought with all his strength but could not free himself. Later the otherelephants too tried to help him but could not. The battle lasted for many years.Eventually, the elephant lost his strength and realized death was imminent. At that time,he also realized that neither could he save himself nor could he trust other beings like himand that the only true refuge was Sriman Narayana. He surrendered to the Lord and calledout to the supreme “namo namaste akhila kAraNAya niShkAraNAya adhbuta kAraNAya…”; the one who is the source of all (AdimUla). Hearing this plea, all devatas stepped aside, whereas Sriman Narayana got on His Garudaand flew to the pond. There, He used His Sudarshana Chakra and cut the head of thecrocodile, freed the elephant and protected him. He then personally accepted the flowerthat the elephant had plucked from the pond for Him.Gajendra was a king called Indradyumna and the crocodile was a Gandharva calledHoohoo in their earlier births. Due to a curse, they were born as animals, and now bothwere freed from their curse. The both praised Sriman Narayana.This event has been praised greatly by Azhvars and Acharyas in their works.
44. pUvaik koduththEnO mAlAkAraraip pOlE
Krishna and Balarama entered Mathura to take part in the archery event organized byKamsa. On the way, they met a washerman first. They asked him for some new clothes,but he refused. So, they defeated him, took some clothes, put them on and left. Then theywished to wear new and fragrant flowers. So, they entered a small street and reached thehome of a florist. Bhagavatam says that his name was Sudama. Upon seeing them both,Sudama recognized their greatness and fell at their feet.The two, who looked like freshly blossomed lotuses themselves, asked him for flowers.Sudama praised them and gave them wonderful flowers to wear. Our acharyas wonder atthe fact that a florist who would cover his own face to avoid being attracted to flowersand using them himself instead of selling them, would give the best garlands that he haddue to the great love he felt for the Lord. Krishna was pleased by the affection shown bythe mAlakAra and gave him several boons.Swami Ramanuja praises Sudama along with Akrura in his Gita BashyamIt is due to this that many of our Azhvars and Acharyas seeked to perform flower serviceto the Lord.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I show the selfless love exhibited by mAlAkAra?”
45. vazhi adimai seydhEnO lakshmaNanaip pOlE
When Rama was asked to go to the forest based on the boons that Kaikeyi got fromDasaratha, Lakshmana too wanted to go with Him. Initially, Rama did not agree to that.However, Lakshmana pleaded with Rama thus: “Just as a fish would not survive out ofthe water, so too mother Sita and myself cannot survive separation from You. Therefore,You have to take me with You.” He then told Rama that when He and Sita live and playin the sides of mountains, he would perform all kinds of services to them “aham sarvamkarishyAmi”.Lakshmana’s mother Sumitra also tells him that he was made for the sake of living in theforest “srushTstavam vanavAsAya”. She also warned him that he should not lose hismind watching the beauty of Rama’s walk and fail in his duties.Nammazhvar also worries “Only due to Lakshmana following Him, Rama survived in theforest. Otherwise what might have happened to Him.”
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I stay always with Him and perform all kinds ofservices like Lakshmana did?”
46. vaiththa idaththu irundhEnO baradhanaip pOlE
When Kaikeyi asked for the boons of making Bharatha the king and that Rama should goto the forest for 14 years, Bharatha was not in Ayodhya. He was at his uncles’ place in theKekaya kingdom. After Rama left for the forest and the king Dasaratha died due to theseparation from Rama, the ministers of Ayodhya requested Bharatha to return toAyodhya. When Bharatha returned and found about what had happened, he became veryangry. He then made a decision to get his brother Rama back to Ayodhya and coronateHim as the king.After the final rites were completed for Dasaratha, Vasishta and the ministers of Ayodhyarequested Bharatha to become the king. He refused and said “Both I and this kingdom arethe property of Rama. How can one property rule over another?”He then took his mothers, ministers, pundits, army and a large number of people with himand went into the forest to meet Rama. There, he met Rama, told Him of Dasaratha’sdemise and prayed to Him “I along with the ministers bow my head to You. Please showmercy on me who is Your brother, disciple and slave”.Rama did not accede. He told Bharatha that they both must fulfill their father’s command.He promised Bharatha that He would come back after 14 years in the forest and acceptthe kingdom, but that Bharatha should rule Ayodhya till that time.Bharatha agreed, but took Rama’s padukas and told Him that he would rule on behalf ofthe padukas.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I show the state of pAratantrya – of accepting theLord’s wish, no matter whether it is agreeable or not – like Bharatha did?”
47. akkaraikkE vittEnO guhapperumALaip pOlE
Following the word of Dasaratha, Rama decided to go to the forest for 14 years.Sumanthra drove Him, Sita and Lakshmana in a chariot to the banks of Ganges and leftthem at a town called Srungiberapura. There, the hunters were ruled by Guha. Hereceived Rama with honor and hosted them at his place. Rama spent the night at Guha’splace and asked him to take them across the river the next day. Guha took them, as wellas their weapons and other items, to the other side of Ganges in a beautiful boat.Later, when Bharatha and others came to the same place to meet Rama and plead withHim to return, Guha carried them all in 500 boats across the river.For his noble service to the Lord, Bharatha and their retinue, our elders respectfully referto Guha as Guha Perumal.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I help the Lord and His devotees reach the other sideof the river like Guha did?”
48. arakkanudan porudhEnO periya udaiyAraip pOlE
When Rama, Sita and Lakshmana left sage Agastya’s ashrama and left for Panachavati,on the way, they met an old vulture. When they asked who he was, the vulture replie”My name is Jatayu and I am your father Dasaratha’s friend.” Rama bowed to the vultureand enquired about him and his antecedents. Jatayu replied “One of the wives ofKashyapa Prajapati was Thamra. In her clan was born Vinata. Vinata had two sonsGaruda and Aruna. To Aruna were born two sons – the elder is Sambhati and I am theyounger, Jatayu. I am living in this forest and I will accompany You while You arehere”, and blessed them.So, Rama, Sita, Lakshmana and Jatayu all went together to Panchavati. Jatayu stayedclose to the ashrama where Rama was staying. Rama told Lakshmana “We have beenseparated from our father. So, let’s stay under the wings of Jatayu”.Later, Ravana planned to abduct Sita and used Mareecha to trick and get Rama andLakshmana away from Her. As he was carrying away Sita, Jatayu intercepted them. Hetried to talk Ravana into giving up this bad idea and release Sita. When he did not listen,Jatayu began waging a great war with Ravana. He broke Ravana’s chariot and attackedhim fiercely. In the end, Ravana managed to cut Jatayu’s wings and feet and threw him tothe ground. He then left with Sita to Lanka.When Rama and Lakshmana came looking for Sita, they saw Jatayu lying in the ground.Jatayu told them what happened, performed mangalashasana to Rama by calling Him’Ayushman’ and then gave up his life. Due to that and the great respect Rama had for him,our acharyas refered to Jatayu as Periya Udaiyar.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I fight with Ravana and dare to give up my body andsoul, like Periya Udaiyar did?”
49. ikkaraikkE senREnO vibIshaNanaip pOlE
After Hanuman discovered the presence of Sita in Lanka, Rama came to the other shorefrom Lanka with a huge monkey army under the guidance of Sugreeva. At that time,Ravan called a meeting in his rajya sabha and discussed the situation. His ministers andarmy leaders told him that their army would easily defeat the army of Rama andSugreeva. They said “With Ravana and Indrajit on our side who defeated even the devasunder Indra, how could we lose to a mere army of men and monkeys?”The only one in the meeting who objected was Ravana’s brother Vibeeshana. He said “Itis not smart to judge another army without fully judging its capability. From the time Sitawas kidnapped and brought here, we have been seeing many inauspicious signs. Sita is agreat pativrata. Rama and Lakshmana are incomparable warriors. At Janastana, Ramadestroyed our huge army in no time by Himself. They have also killed rakshasas such asVirata and Kabanda. Therefore, it is best that we return Sita to Rama and discuss peace.That’s our only path to survival. I am saying this because of my interest in what is best forour clan.”Ravana and Indrajit were not pleased with this talk and they abused Vibeeshana. WhenVibesshana insisted again, Ravan got angry with him and asked him to leave Lanka.Vibeeshana left Lanka along with four of his close friends and flew across the ocean towhere Rama and His army were camped.There, he seeked surrender at Rama’s divine feet, the sarva loka sharaNya. Initially,Sugreeva and others objected to accepting Vibeeshana. Rama, however, disagreed andaccepted Vibeeshana, who fell at His feet and said “I have given up all my priorattachments. My life is now entirely in Your hands.”Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I leave everything on this side and go to where theLord is, like Vibeeshana did?”
50. niyadhu enRu vaiththEnO sabariyaip pOlE
In the ashrama of Mathanga rishi lived a woman called Sabari, who belonged to thehunter tribe. She served the rishi and his disciples and became the target of their grace.When they attained siddhi and left for the higher worlds, she wanted to go with them.However, Mathanga rishi told her “Sri Rama and Lakshmana will be coming to this areain the future. You should serve and worship them and by their grace you can reach us”.Obeying her acharya’s words, Sabari stayed back looking forward to the arrival of Ramaand Lakshmana.Due to the greatness of Mathanga rishi, in the forest near his ashrama, plucked flowerswould not wilt; plucked fruits would not age or lose their good taste. Sabari collected thefruits, tested them herself for sweetness, and kept them for Rama.After the abudction of Sita, Rama and Lakshmana went in search of Her. On the way,they met and killed a rakshasa called Kabandha (see Varththai 17). Before he died,Kabandha told them to meet and gain the friendship of Sugreeva. He also told them to seeSabari at the ashrama of Mathanga muni.So, Rama and Lakshmana came to the ashrama of Mathanga and met Sabari there. Sheprayed to them and offered them the fruits that she had gathered and kept for them. Dueto her pure devotion, Rama accepted her service. In turn, she lost her sins and attained thefruits of her acharya bhakti.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I offer sweet fruits to the Lord like Sabari did?”
51. ingum uNdu enREnO prahlAdhanaip pOlE
The asuras Hiranyaksha and Hiranyakashipu were brothers. They were both very cruel.Hiranyaksha hid the world under the ocean and Sriman Narayana took the Varaha avatarato restore it; after doing that, He also killed Hiranyaksha. Due to that, Hiranyakashpudeveloped great hatred toward Him. He performed great penance toward Brahma,obtained several boons from him and started ruling this world and Indraloka. He then putforth the command that no one should worship Sriman Narayana and instead everyoneshould worship him.Prahlada was the son of Hiranyakashipu. Despite being born to this evil asura, Prahladawas a great devotee of Sriman Narayana. While the teachers of Hiranyakashipu’s landtaught all children that Hiranya was the supreme power, Prahlada prayed only toNarayana and also taught the same to the children in his gurukula.This infuriated Hiranya and he began many attempts at torturing and even killingPrahlada – such as using weapons, having poisonous snakes bite him, crushing him withelephants, throwing him from a mountain-top, throwing him in fire, into the ocean, etc.Prahlada’s mind was always set on Narayana and as such Hiranya was unable to doanything to him.In spite of everything that Hiranya did to him, Prahlada showed no anger toward him.Instead he advised Hiranya “Vishnu is the antaryami to everything in this universe. Beingthat the case, where is the idea of considering some as friends and some as enemies. Justas He is inside me, so too He is inside you. He is present everywhere.”At that time, Hiranya showed a pillar and asked Prahlada if He was in it. Prahladaanswered that He was everywhere including that pillar. When Hiranya wrecked thatpillar, Sriman Narayana appeared as Narasimha and killed Hiranya by ripping him withhis finger nails. Nammazhvar celebrates this event: engum uLan kaNNan enRa maganayk kAyndhu ingu illaiyA en iraNiyan thUN pudaippa angu appozhudhE avan vIyath thOnRiya en singap pirAn perumai ArAyum sIrmaiththE
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I say with great conviction that He is everywhereincluding here (in this pillar), like Prahlada did?”
52. ingu illai enREnO dhadhipANdanaip pOlE
The name Dhadhipanda means one who has a large yogurt pot. Each day, Dhadhipandawould take a large pot of yogurt and go about selling it. In the evening, he would comeback with the empty pot and rest outside his home.One day, Krishna was sitting in his mother Yashoda’s lap and drinking milk. Suddenlyshe remembered leaving milk on the stove and she left Krishna and ran inside to take themilk before it got overheated. Krishna became angry at that and threw a stone on a potcontaining ghee. When Yashoda returned, she saw the broken ghee pot while Krishna satinnocently nearby. She became angry at Him and called out to Him while brandishing asmall stick. Krishna began to run crying and Yashoda started to run behind Him.While running to escape His mother, Krishna saw Dhadhipanda and his pot. So, he toldhim “O Dhadhipanda! My mother is angry with me and she is going to hit me. Pleasehide me in your pot and tell her that you did not see me”. So, Dhadhipanda hid Krishna inhis pot. When Yashoda came there and asked if he had seen Krishna and if He was hidingthere, he lied “He is not here”.Believing him, Yashoda left. Krishna then called out from inside the pot “ODhadhipanda! I am not able to breathe inside here. Please let me out”. Dhadhipanda wasgraced at that time by the Lord and he realized that Sri Krishna was the supreme. So, hetold Krishna “O Krishna! Only if You promise to give me moksha, will I let you out”.After a short argument Krishna agreed. Not satisfied, Dhadhipanda also asked for mokshafor his pot and Krishna acquiesced. As promised, Krishna gave moksha to bothDhadhipanda and his pot.No one can say, upon whom the Lord’s grace would fall. In the previous varththai, onesaw that His grace fell on Prahlada who told that He was everywhere; in this varththai, itis seen that He gave moksha to Dhadhipanda who said that He was not there (near him).
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I say a lie (that He was not present nearby) for Hissake, like Dhadhipanda did?”
53. kAttukkup pOnEnO perumALaip pOlE
After Dasaratha decided to coronate Rama as the king, he informed that to everyone inhis kingdom and with the consultations of his guru’s he set a date for the same. The nightbefore the coronation ceremony, Rama performed a vratam along with Sita and prayed toLord Ranganatha. However, due to the ill advise of Mantara, Kaikeyi had a change ofheart and demanded two boons that she had from Dasaratha. With those boons, she askedthat her son Bharatha be crowned the king instead of Rama and that Rama should go tothe forest for 14 years.Hearing that Dasaratha was extremely sad and fainted. When Rama came to the palace ofKaikeyi, she told Him about the two boons and that it was a royal decree that He go to theforest.Rama immediately accepted it and with great pleasure prepared to go to the forest.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I show steadiness in my heart and mind like Ramashowed in following His father’s word and give up the kingdom and go to the forest?
“54. kaNdu vandhEn enREnO thiruvadiyaip pOlE
When Rama and Lakshmana went in search of the abducted Sita, on the way they metKabandha and killed him. Befoire dying, Kabandha told them that they should meet withSugreeva and make friendship with him and that he would help them in their search ofSita. They did the same and helped Sugreeva become the king of the vanara kingdom.Sugreeva then sent the vanaras in the four directions to find the place where Sita had beenkept. In the southern direction went Angada, Jambavan and Hanuman (thiruvadi).Knowing that it would be Hanuman that would find Sita, Rama gave him a ring to showto Her to prove that he is indeed the messenger of Rama.Learning from Jatayu’s brother Sambhati, that Sita was kept in Lanka, Hanuman wasselected by the vanaras to leap across the ocean to meet with Her. Meeting Sita in Lanka,Hanuman showed Her the ring from Rama, gave His message and made Her feel better.Returning to Rama, he told Him that he had seen Sita (“drushTA sItA”). He also gaveRama the head ornament from Sita that She had given him. Seeing the ornament andhearing the message, Rama became very pleased and embraced Hanuman tightly.This selfless service by Hanuman is greatly praised by our acharyas.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I do service to the Lord like Hanuman did?”
55. iru kaiyum vittEnO dhraupadhiyaip pOlE
Due to their jealousy of the Pandavas, Duryodhana and the Kauravas, under the advice oftheir uncle Sakuni, invited them to a game of dice. In that game, they defeated thePandavas through the unfair means of Sakuni and took over their kingdom, all theirwealth and even themselves. Finally, they made Yudishtra pledge Draupadi in the gameand won her as well. Wishing to insult them, they made Duschasana drag her to the courteven though she was at that time in need of privacy. This ended in the decision to attemptto disrobe her in public, which Dushcasana began to carry out.When she cried out for help, no one in the sabha, including Bheeshma, Drona and eventhe Pandavas, came to her aid. At that time, she remembered the sage Vasishta’s wordsthat Narayana is the sole refuge and surrendered to Him with both hands raised over herheadshanka chakra gadApANe dvArakanilayAchyuta!govinda! puNDarIkAksha! rakshamAm sharaNAgatamRealizing that she can neither depend on her own self nor on others for her protection,she made complete surrender to the Lord. It is next to impossible for a woman to give upher natural sense of modesty and let go of her dress in a public place. Such was her faithin Krishna. At that time, Sri Krishna was in Dvaraka. And from there itself, He made herdress grow, thereby tiring Duschasana and make him give up.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I show complete faith in the Lord, like Draupadi (wholifted both hands and took refuge in Him) did?”
56. ingu pAl pongum enREnO vaduganambiyaip pOlE
Vaduga Nambi (Andra Purna) was one of the close disciples of Swami Ramanuja. Hisfaith in his acharya was unshakeable and superceded even bhagavad bhakti. This isknown as Madhurakavi nishtai (also known as Charamopaya nishtai) – the acharya bhaktishown by madhurakavi Azhvar toward Nammazhvar. It is said that he would callMudhaliyandan and Kooraththazhvan as “iru karaiyar” – meaning that they believe inboth their acharya and the Lord. His take was that one should place their faith completelyin one’s acharya alone (as both the means and the end) and no one else.One time while he was engaged in preparing milk for Ramanuja at Srirangam,Namperumal’s veedhi procession was occuring. As Namperumal came outsideRamanuja’s mutt, everyone went out to have His darshan. Ramanuja was outside andnoticing Vaduga Nambi’s absence called him to come outside. Vaduga Nambi refusedsaying that if he stepped out, then the milk he was preparing for Ramanuja would
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I show the kind of acharya bhakti that Vaduga Nambidid?”
57. iru midaRu pidiththEnO selvappiLLaiyaip pOlE
Due to the problems created by the shaivite Chola king, Ramanuja had to leaveSrirangam. He headed to Karnataka to the Hoysala rajya. There he found that he did nothave any more divine mud to wear the urdhva pundra. As he was wondering what to do,that night in his dream came the Lord Thirunarayana, who told him to go to Yadavadri.The Lord told him “Yadavadri is no longer inhabited and I am buried under a mud hill.Find me from the ground, install me in a temple and perform thiruvardhanam. You willalso find the divine mud in Yadavadri for urdhva pundra”.Ramanuja took the help of the Hoysala king, discovered Thirunarayana Perumal andhimself performed thiruvaradhanam for Him for three days. However, as they were notable to find the utsava vigraha, he was sad. Again, Thirunarayana appeared in his dreamand told him “Our utsava murthi, Ramapriyar, is with the daughter of the padsha at Delhi.Go there and return Him back here”.Ramanuja, therefore, left for Delhi. There he met the padsha, blessed him and asked himto return Ramapriyar. The king said that if Ramanuja invited Him and He responded, thenhe could take Him back. So Ramanuja invited Him like Periyazhvar called to Krishna inhis divine pasurams “sArngapANi thaLar nadai nadavAnO”.Ramapriyar responded and walked with all His jewels ringing, to Ramanuja and sat in hislap. Ramanujaembraced Him and called Him “vArAy! en selvap piLLaiyE!” (Come mydear child). Ramapriyar also embraced Ramanuja by wrapping His divine hands aroundhis neck. From that day forward, He was called “selvap piLLai” and “yatirAja selvakumAra”.Ramanuja then returned to Yadavadri with Selva Pillai and installed Him in the templeand performed utsavams for Him.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I embrace the acharya like Selva Pillai did?”
58. nil enRu peRREnO idaiyARRUr nambiyaip pOlE
In our sampradhayam, the anticipation of the devotees to experience the Lord is greatlypraised. Nammazhvar in his thiruvaymozhi pasuram 7-10-4 says “kaNNapirAn thanmalaradip pOdhugaLE eppOdhum manaththu Ingu ninaigap peRa vAykkum kol”. Wealso see the great anticipation that Akrura showed on his way to meet Krishna. There isan event related to this that is shown in Idu vyakhyanam.At Srirangam, the Lord enjoys four brahmotsavams each year. A devotee fromIdaiyatrukudi called idaiyARRUr nambi would come to every utsavam on the first dayitself (angurArppaNam) and attend till the last day. Once he returned home, he wouldkeep thinking of nothing but the utsavam. This was both his sustenance and pleasure. Ifsomeone told him that it was time to eat, he would ask in reply whether the next utsavamhas neared.When he became 100 years old, due to old age, he lost his strength. During onebrahmotsavam, he was unable to go to Srirangam on the first day itself. As such, he madeit there only on the sixth day. Meanwhile, seeing that His devotee was not there on dayone, Namperumal wondered “Idaiyatru Nambi has not made it to the first day of ourutsavam”. Seeing him on the sixth day, Nameprumal became very happy and told him “Iwould like to give you a boon”. Nambi did not ask Him anything. Instead he mentioned”Through the body You gave me, I worshipped for these many years. Now that old agehas come, this body is no longer capable of travel”. Namperumal replied “From now on,stay here itself” (just as he had told Ramanuja to stay at Srirangam – “atraiva srIrangesukhamAsva”). And as Namperumal reached the next street in procession, Nambi left thisworld and reached His divine abode.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I worship Him and think about nothing else likeIdaiy
atru Nambi did and was told by Namperumal to stay at His place?”
59. nedundhUram pOnEnO nAthamuniyaip pOlE
Nathamunigal’s original name is Ranaganathamishrar. He is the primary acharya inSrivaishnava sampradhayam after Perumal, Thayar, Vishvaksenar and Nammazhvar. Heis celebrated by Kooraththazhvan in his guru paramparai thaniyan as “lakshmInAthasamArambhAm nAtha yAmuna madhyamAm …”. It was through his great effort that the4000 divya prabandha verses that were lost were obtained. Nathamunigal was a greatexponent of the Ashtanga Yoga. He used that to meditate on Nammazhvar in AzhvarThirunagari and obtained the Divya Prabandham from Azhvar.He saw the Lord in everything in this world. One time, while he was in yoga, the Cholaking came to his place with the women of his household to see him. After he left,Nathamunigal heard about the incident. He then left behind the king and walked all theway to the capital city of Gangai Konda Chozhapuram. His disciples followed him andmet him there. They asked him why he had followed the king. Nathamunigal replied “Isaw them as Sri Krishna and His gopikas and that’s why I followed them”. This is thestate described by Nammazhvar “thiruvudai mannaraik kANil thirumAlaik kaNdEnE ennum” – Thiruvaymozhi 4-4-8.Another time, Nathamunigal was deep in meditation. When he came out of it, the peoplein his household told him that two men who catch and train animals, a woman and amonkey came to see him and left. Nathamunigal replied “They must be Sri Rama,Lakshmana, Sita and Hanuman” and started heading in the direction that they went. As hewent, he asked the people in the way if they had seen this group. They agreed and so hefollowed them all the way to Gangai Konda Chozhapuram. There when he made hisenquiries about the group, people told him that they had not seen any such group.Hearing that, Nathamunigal became extremely sad, collapsed there itself and left for Hisabode.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I walk a long distance looking for the Lord, likeNathamunigal did?”
60..avan pOnAn enREnO mAruthiyANdAn pOlE
Because of the troubles created by the Chola king, Ramanuja moved toThirunarayanapuram in Karnataka and lived there many years (see vArththai 57). Whilehe was there, he would often remember Srirangam and Kooraththazhvan and missingthem both would long for his return. This chola king is called “avyapadeshya” bySrivaishnava acharyas – that is, one who is not worthy of being called by his name. Helater died due to a festering wound in his neck and so was also refered to as “kirumikaNdan”.Ramanuja had a disciple called “mARenRillA mAruthi siRiyANdAn” or”mAruthiyANdAn”. He called this disciple and told him to visit Srirangam and bringback news about the temple, Kooraththazhvan, Periya Nambigal and others.Maruthiyandan went to Srirangam and gave the news about Ramanuja to those there. Healso heard about Periya Nambigal attaining the Lord’s lotus feet and Azhvan losing hiseyes and became very sad. At that time, he also heard about the king’s death. He becamehappy on hearing this news (as it meant Ramanuja could return to Srirangam) and walkedvery quickly back to Thirunarayanapuram.At Thirunarayanapuram, he met Ramanuja and said “avan pOnAn”, meaning that thechola king was dead. Hearing that, Ramanuja too became happy that he could now goback to Srirangam and embraced Maruthiyandan and another disciple Ammangi AmmalKooraththazhvan and Periya Nambigal. Afterward, he consoled himself and returned toSrirangam.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I walk a long distance and give good news to theacharya like Maruthiyandan did?”
61. avan vENdAm enREnO AzhvAnaip pOlE
Due to the trouble caused by the Chola king, Ramanuja had left Srirangam forThirunarayanapuram. Periya Nambigal had given up his life and Kooraththazhvan lost hiseyesight. After performing the final rites for Periya Nambigal, Azhvan returned toSrirangam.One time, unable to bear the separation from Ramanuja, Azhvan was in deep despair. Toconsole himself, he went to the Srirangam temple to have the darshan of Sri Ranganatha.However, due to his anger against Ramanuja, the Chola king had decreed that no onewho was associated with Ramanuja should be allowed inside the temple. Therefore, agatekeeper at the temple stopped Azhvan from entering. Another gatekeeper said “Eventhough Azhvan is associated with Ramanuja, he is full of good qualities. Therefore, hecan be allowed inside”, and told Azhvan that he could go in.Azhvan replied “I should be allowed to see the Lord because of my relationship with myacharya and not because I have good qualities. Seeing the Lord while breaking one’sconnection with one’s acharya is not required”. Saying so, he refused to go inside thetemple and went back.
Thirukkolur Ammal is saying “Did I show interest in the relationship to my acharya to
the extent of saying no to even Sriman Narayana, like Kooraththazhvan did?”
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