62. adhvaidham venREnO emperumAnAraip pOlE
In explaining the meanings of the Vedas and Vedantas, three major sampradhayams cameinto being – Advaitam, Visishtadvaitam and Dvaitam. In these, Advaitam says that theSupreme Lord alone is the truth and that everything else is false. Even though the jIvamay appear to be different based on our experiences, it is not different from the supreme.This is the interpretation of Adi Shankara of the famous Upanishad statement “tat tvamIn the Vedantas, one can see statements that support the former (abheda sruti) and thelatter (bheda sruti). Swami Ramanuja followed the teachings of Alavandar andpurvacharyas and the words of Azhvars and established Visishtadvaitam based on bothbheda and abheda srutis. The cornerstone of this sampradhayam is the sharIrAtma bhAvabetween the Supreme and the jIva – that is, the Supreme acts as the antaryami of all souls(“yasya AtmA sharIram”). Azhvar establishes this as “udal misai uyir enak karandhuengum parandhu uLan”. Vedas too say the same as “antarbahischa tat sarvam vyApyanArAyaNa sthita:”.In his work Sri Bhashya, that is a commentary to the Brahma Sutra, Ramanuja condemnsthe mAyA vAda of the advaita sampradhayam. This is celebrated in Dhati Panchakam as”mAyAvAdi bhujanga bhanga garuDa” and by Amudhanar in Ramanuja Nutrandhadhi as”uyirgaL meyvittu AdhipparanOdu onRAm enRu sollum avvallal ellAm vAdhilvenRAn”.Even when he was a student and learning from advaita teacher Yadavaprakasha, he hadthe courage to correct the statements made by him. Later, he debated the great advaitavidwan Yajnamurthi, defeated him and took him as his disciple (he would be renamed asArulala Perumal Emberumanar).
63. aruLAzhi kaNdEnO nallAnaip pOlE
In the banks of Kaveri river in a town lived a brahmin devotee of Sriman Narayana. Onetime in the floods of the river, a dead body was washed ashore in that town. The brahminsaw that in the shoulders of that body the marks of Shanka and Chakra and realized that itwas a Srivaishnava. Therefore, without examining further to determine who it might havebeen, what caste he might have belonged to, he performed the final rites for that person.The people in the town were not pleased with what happened. They said that the bodywas that of a low caste person and that this brahmin should not have performed final ritesfor him. Therefore, they made him an outcast. The brahmin prayed to the Lord to correctthe townsfolk.The next day at the temple in the town where the town people were gathered, the Lordbut to Me, he is a good person (‘nallAn’). Therefore, you too accept him as such”. Fromthat day forward,he and his descendants came to be known as “Nallan Chakravarthy”.The Lord’s Chakra (discus) is also known as “aruL Azhi”. Nallan saw only the mark ofthe “aruLAzhi” and nothing else. In the process, he also saw the depth of the Lord’s grace(“aruL Azham”).Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I see only the mark of the Lord’s discus and nothingelse like Nallan did?”
64. ananthapuram pukkEnO ALavandhAraip pOlE
Alavandar, the grandson of Nathamunigal, was the leader of Srivaishnavas at Srirangamand having taken sanyashrama dharma lived in his mutt there. While doing service to theLord as the darshana pravarthaka, one day while he was at the temple, ThiruvarangaPerumal Araiyar was reciting Nammazhvar’s Thiruvaymozhi with both music andabhinaya (dramatic action). As he sang “kedum idarAyavellAm” (Thiruvaymozhi 10-2),the phrase “kaduvinai kaLaiyalAgum … ezhil aNi ananthapuram … nadaminO namaragaLuLLIr” occured. Araiyar Swami looked at Alavandar’s face and repeated “nadaminO”three times.Understanding the Lord’s command through Araiyar, thet he should go toThiruvananthapuram and serve the Lord there, as per Azhvar’s words, Alavandar took thepermission of Namperumal. He then asked one of his disciples, Dheyvariyandan, to takecare of his mutt and headed immediately to Thiruvananthapuram. There he performedservice to the Lord and stayed for a while before his return to Srirangam.It was during this stay that he missed meeting Kurugai Kavalappan, the disciple ofNathamunigal, to whom he had taught yoga rahasya and told him to pass it on toAlavandar.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I understand the Lord’s wish and go toThiruvananthapuram like Alavandar did?”
65. Ariyanaip pirindhEnO dheyvAriyANdAn pOlE
When Alavandar left for Thiruvananthapuram (see previous vArththai), he left his mutt atSrirangam under the care of his disciple, Dheyvariyandan. Dheyvariyandan did not wantto be separated from his acharya. However, as it was the word of his acharya, he stayedback and started taking care of the mutt. The separation was too much to bear for himthough and his health started deteriorating. The other disciples at the mutt began to worryabout him and had a physician take a look at his health. The physician told them that itwas his mental state that was affected due to the separation from his acharya which inturn was affecting his health.The disciples decided that he would not survive away from Alavandar and decided totake him to Thiruvananthapuram. As he was too weak to walk, they placed him in a chairand began carrying him. As they got closer and closer to Thiruvananthapuram, Andanbecame happier and happier that he was going to be re-united with Alavandar and as suchhis health began to pick up. Soon he became healthy enough to walk and started doing so.At the same time, Alavandar too began his return journey to Srirangam. The two met onthe way and Andan fell at the feet of his acharya. Alavandar remarked “Sri Rama toldBharata to stay back at Ayodhya for 14 years. He being supremely independent andpowerful, Bharata followed His word and stayed there. Since I am neither, Andan hascome here now”. Andan felt very bad and stayed on the ground. Alavandar then said “Areyou going to stay down till I too become independent?” Fearing even more, Andan cameup and stood quietly.The other disciples then told Alavandar what had happened. Hearing that Alavandarbecame happy and told Andan “You have lost so much weight. Go and pray to the Lordat Thiruvananthapuram and come back”. Andan replied “When my Thiruvananthapuramis standing in front of me (meaning Alavandar), why do I need to go to anotherThiruvananthapuram?” and fell at his acharya’s feet again. Alavandar appreciated hisacharya bhakti and returned to Srirangam with him and the other disciples.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I separate from my acharya and almost lose my lifelike Dheyvariyandan did?”
66. andhAdhi sonnEnO amudhanAraip pOlE
During Ramanuja’s time at Srirangam, there was a great scholar there called Periya KoyilNambi who held a high office at the temple. Initially he was antagonistic to Ramanuja.Ramanuja corrected him through Kooraththazhvan and he became the disciple ofAzhvan. He then developed great devotion toward Ramanuja. Since he was capable ofwriting wonderful and sweet poems, he was also called as “Amudhanar” (and alsoThiruvarangaththamudhanar).One time he wrote a few verses praising Ramanuja to a great extent and submitted themto Ramanuja. Ramanuja rejected them and threw them away saying that those versesabout us, write about our great affinity to the divyadesams, Azhvars, our acharyas such asNathamunigal and Alavandar and your acharya Kooraththazhvan”. Amudhanar thereforewrote the famous Ramanuja Nutrandhadhi pasurams – 108 pasuram in andhadhi style, inwhich each pasuram uses the word Ramanuja while showing Ramanuja’s affinity todivyadesams, Azhvars and Acharyas. In one verse, Amudhanar also included thegreatness of his acharya Kooraththazhvan (“mozhiyaik kadakkum perum pugazhAn”).When Ramanuja heard this work, he approved it and it was determined that this workwould become part of the daily recitation (nityAnusandAnam) for all Srivaishnavas. Thiswork is included at the end of the Azhvar’s divya prabandham and is now part of the 4000verses.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I write nectar like verses on my acharya likeAmudhanar did?”
67. anukUlam sonnEnO mAlyavAnaip pOlE
There were many people who gave good advice to Ravana, though he did not listen tothem – such as Maricha, Sita Piratti, Vibeeshana, Kumbakarna and Malyavan. Malyavanwas Ravana’s grandfather. Due to his age, relationship, knowledge and worldlyexperience, he was in the right position to offer his advice to Ravana.He told Ravana “O King! You should not go to war with Rama without knowing Hisstrength. Amongst the boons you received, you never got one that protects you againstmen or monkeys. Now, both are standing together against you. In addition, this Ramadoes not appear to be an ordinary human being. It is Lord Vishnu Himself who hasincarnated as Rama. Our entire clan will be destroyed in this war. So, return Sita to Ramaand make peace with Him”. Ravana however, rejected this good advice.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I give words of good advice (that show the right path)like Malyavan did?”
68. kaLvan ivan enREnO lOkaguruvaip pOlE
The name “kaLvan” is one of the many names of Sriman Narayana. He is known by thatname in one His divyadesams also. It means, one who steals or one who cheats/tricksIn the yagasala of Mahabali, He arrived in the form of a small dwarf (vAmana), asked forand obtained three steps of land, grew up as Trivikrama and measured all the worlds withHis divine feet. At that time, the asura guru, Sukracharya called Him as a “kaLvan”.However, it does not appear appropriate that this is the incident being refered to in thisvArththai and that Sukracharya is being called a Loka Guru.It would be appropriate to refer to Swami Nammazhvar as Loka Guru. In severalpasurams, Nammazhvar refers to the Lord as “kaLvan”. In Thiruvaymozhi 5-10-4, hesays “kaLLa vEdaththaik koNdu pOyp puram pukkavARum” – here he refers to the Lordgoing amidst the asuras and taking away their faith in the Vedas. In Thiruvaymozhi 3-8-9, Azhvar says “koLvan nAn mAvali mUvadi thA enra kaLvanE” – refering to the Lord’svAmana avtara.In Thiruvaymozhi 2-2-10, he says “kaLvA! emmaiyum Ezulagum nin uLLE thORRiyaiRaivA …” – in this pasuram, it is Shiva who calls the Lord “kaLvA”. This refers to theincident where Shiva obtained a boon from Narayana that He would ask for and get aboon from him. To fulfill that promise, during His Krishna avatara, He went on a kailashayatra and asked Shiva to grant Him children. Shiva calls Him “kaLvA” because, it is Hewho is the father of all including Shiva and yet He is asking for the boon of a child. SinceShiva is known for the greatness of his knowledge it would be alright that he is refered toas the Loka Guru.Thirumangai Azhvar in his Thirunedunthandagam, says “nIragaththAy! … kArvAnaththuuLLAy! kaLvA!”. Azhvar says it is His trickery that He is hiding and not showingHimself to Azhvar. At another place in Thirunedunthandagam, Azhvar says “puLLUrumkaLvA! nI pOgEl”. Since this Azhvar invited the Lord Himself to learn from him”kaNNa nin thanakkum kuRippAgil kaRkalAm kaviyin poruL”, it would be appropriateto refer to him as Loka Guru.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I refer to Him as ‘kaLvan’ like the knowledgeabledevotees who can be called as Loka Guru’s?
69. kadalOsai enREnO periyanambiyaip pOlE
One of Alavandar’s disciples was Maraneri Nambi who was born in a low caste. He wasthe target of Alavandar’s grace and another disciple of Alavandar, Periya Nambi who wasthe acharya of Swami Ramanuja, had great affection for him as well. Because he hadunderstood the true nature of his soul, Maraneri Nambi separated from his relatives whodid not understand him, and lived separately. After Alavandar ascended to His divineabode, Maraneri Nambi became physically sick and was struggling alone. Periya Nambitook him under his care without looking at their caste difference, and gave him food fromWhen Maraneri Nambi was in his final stages of his life, he asked Periya Nambi that hisbody not be given back to his relatives for final rites. He told Periya Nambi”purOdAsaththai nAykkidAdhE nOkki aruLa vENum” – that is, do not give the offeringmeant for devas to dogs. After Maraneri Nambi left this world, Periya Nambi followedhis words and performed all the final rites for him standing in his son’s stead. Manybrahmins became very upset that an acharya and brahmin such as Periya Nambiperformed final rites for a low caste person and refused to interact with him.At that time, Ramanuja talked to Periya Nambi and requested to him “When there aremany others who could have done these final rites, did you have to do them yourself?Now so many are disrespecting you”. Periya Nambi replied “Come O Ramanuja! Am Igreater than He who was born in the Ikshvaku family and lived as Dharma itself and isMaraneri Nambi any less than Periya Udaiyar? Am I greater than Dharmaputra and isMaraneri Nambi any less than Vidhura?” Periya Nambi refered to the fact that Sri Ramahad performed the final rites for a vulture (Jatayu) and that Yudishtra had performed finalrites for a low caste person Vidhura.He added “Do we ask someone else to do our sandhyavandanam?”. This was to answerRamanuja’s question as to why he could not have had someone else do the final rites.He also said “Are the words of Nammazhvar in the pasurams Payilum Sudaroli andNedumarkkadimai nothing more than noise made by the ocean? Are these something thatI have to explain and you have to understand?”. These two decads of Thiruvaymozhispeak of the greatness of bhAgavatas. Periya Nambi was asking if Azhvar’s words werenot to be actually followed in real life and were empty like the noise of the ocean. GuruParamparai recordsthat Ramanuja immediately acceded to Periya Nambi’s words.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I do great bhAgavata service and not treat Azhvar’swords like mere noise, like Periya Nambi did?”This episode is also interesting, since Thirukkolur Ammal is reminding Ramanuja of thewords spoken by Periya Nambi to Ramanuja himself.
70..suRRik kidandhEnO mAlaiyANdAn pOlE
Ramanuja had five main acharyas – Periya Nambi, Thirukkottiyur Nambi,Thirumaalaiyandan, Thiruvaranga Perumal Araiyar and Thirumalai Nambi. Periya Nambiwas the one who performed samashrayanam for Ramanuja and is the first acharya forRamanuja. By his order, Ramanuja learned the rahasyartthas from Thirukkotiyur Nambi.And, based on the order of Thirukkotiyur Nambi, he learned Bhagavad Vishayam (theAs Thirumaalaiyandan taught Ramanuja the meanings of Thiruvaymozhi per theteachings of his acharya Swami Alavandar, at some places Ramanuja would propose adifferent explanation for the pasurams. At one point, Thirumaalaiyandan became upsetwith the alternate explanations proposed by Ramanuja and told him “These are not themeanings that I have heard from Alavandar. What you are doing is Vishvamitra srushti”and stopped teaching Ramanuja.When Thirukottiyur Nambi heard that the lessons had stopped, he came to Srirangam andenquired with Thirumaalaiyandan as to what happened. When Thirumaalaiyandan toldhim what happened and the meanings suggested by Ramanuja, Thirukkottiyur Nambi toldhim “I have heard these additional meanings from Alavandar. Ramanuja listening to youis similar to Krishna learning from Sandipa. Ramanuja will not think of any meaningsthat was not in the mind of Alavandar. Do continue the teachings”.Hearing that, Thirumaalaiyandan became pleased that he was able to hear the meaningsof the pasurams that he had missed hearing from Alavandar. He continued the teachingsto Ramanuja. This teaching of Thirumaalaiyandan to Ramanuja as per the wishes ofThirukkottiyur Nambi is refered here as “suRRik kidaththal’ by Thirukkolur Ammal.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I understand the avatara rahasya of Ramanuja andstay with him like Thirumaalaiyandan did?”Another interesting episode where Thirukkolur Ammal refers to an incident in Raamanujar’s life itself.
.71. sULuRavu koNdEnO kOttiyUrAraip pOlE
Periya Nambigal, the acharya of Swami Ramanuja, told Ramanuja that Alavandar hadleft the task of teaching him the rahasyartthas to Thirukkotiyur Nambi. He instructedRamanuja to go to Thirukkottiyur Nambi and learn these esoteric meanings at his divinefeet. Ramanuja walked to Thirukkottiyur from Srirangam and sought Nambi and askedhim to teach the meanings. However, Nambi erfused to do so right away. He wanted totest Ramanuja and confirm that he was indeed worthy of receiving these great meanings.Ramanuja made this trip from Srirangam to Thirukkottiyur eighteen times before Nambiwas convinced that he could be given the meanings.Nambi told him to return with his tridandam and pavitram alone the next time and thatNambi would teach him the meanings then. Ramanuja arrived with Mudhaliyandan andKooraththazhvan and declared them to be equivalent to his tridandam and pavitram.Nambi took a vow from Ramanuja (“sULuRavu”) that he would not reveal the meaningsto anyone other than these two disciples (without testing) and revealed the meanings ofKooraththazhvan and taught him the meanings of Charama shloka – once again aftertaking a vow from him not to teach these meanings to anyone without testing.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I demonstrate the strength of mind that ThirukkottiyurNambi did (in making even a great soul like Ramanuja take a vow before revealing thegrand meanings of the sampradhayam)?”
72. uyirAya peRREnO Umaiyaip pOlE
In Ramanuja’s mutt lived a Srivaishnava who was a mute person. He spent his time indoing whatever services he could provide to Ramanuja. One time, Ramanuja’s graceflowed toward him and he took the mute Srivaishnava to a private room. There he closedthe door, blessed the Srivaishnava and placed his padhukas on his head. He then signed tothe Srivaishnava to take his refuge in those padhukas. At that time, Kooraththazhvanwatched what was happening through a window. He exclaimed to himself “I am ruinedbecause of my knowledge. If I had been a naive person like this Srivaishnava, I wouldhave become the target of Ramanuja’s grace easily”.The mute Srivaishnava took his refuge at Ramanuja’s divine feet from that day forwardand considered that as the sole means of survival (“uyirAya”).
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking Ramanuja “Did I become the target of your divine graceand receive that which is dearer than life like the mute Srivaishnava did?”
73. udambai veRuththEnO naRaiyUrAraip pOlE
Pillai Thirunaraiyur Araiyar was a noble Srivaishnava acharya. One time he and hisfamily went to a place called Thottiyam to worship at the Vedanarayana Perumal templethere. At that time, some antagonists set fire to the temple. Seing that everyone ran awayfrom the temple. Araiyar saw that the divine archa rupam of the Lord was about to catchfire. Unable to tolerate that, he embraced the Lord’s form and protected Him. Seeing that,his family including his children too offered their bodies to protect the Lord. In the fire,they all lost their lives.His devotion and love for the Lord is celebrated by Pillai Lokachariar in his Sri VachanaBhushanam – “upEyaththukku iLaiya perumALaiyum periya udaiyAraiyum piLLaiudaiyAraiyum piLLai thirunaRaiyUr araiyaraiyum udambai upEkshiththArgaL,chinthayanthikku udambu thannadaiyE pOyththadhu”.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I let go of my body for the sake of the Lord like PillaiThirunaraiyur Araiyar did?”
74. ennaip pOl enREnO uparisaranaip pOlE
Uparicharavasu was a king who ruled his kingdom as per dharma. He was famed for hisknowledge of dharma and following it sincerely. Due to that he was blessed by thedharma devata so that he could move about without touching the ground. One time,during his rule, an argument broke out between rishis and the devas about the sacrificialoffering during a yaga. There is a rule in the Vedas about not killing any animal. But,there is also a special rule about being allowed to sacrifice an animal during a yaga. It issaid that a goat can be sacrificed after the reciting of specific mantras during a yaga.Due to the rule that animals should not be killed in general, the rishis created the form ofa goat using grains, made it sacred with the mantras and sacrificed it in the yaga. Thedevas did not accept this sacrifice. They wanted a real animal sacrificed in the yaga.Therefore, the devas and the rishis took their case in front of the king Uparicharavasu andasked him to give a dharmic solution.Uparicharavasu respected all souls equivalent to his own. His belief was that the animalhad as much right to live as he himself did. So, he accepted the argument of the rishis.Angered by this, the devas cursed him that he would touch the ground as he moved aboutfrom that time onward.Another version of the story says that he spoke on the side of the devas. The rishis wereangered with him and tried to convince him to speak against dharma. It is said that hecorrected the rishis and made them all understand that everyone should live like himfollowing dharma.In either case, Uparicharavasu comes across as a selfless person.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I follow dharma completely and show that all beingsare the same as one’s self like Uparicharavasu did?”
76. nIril kudhiththEnO kaNapuraththALaip pOlE
One time Sri Nampillai was crossing the Kaveri river in a small round boat. It was late inthe night and was very dark. The river was also showing sings of flood. While in themiddle of the river, the boatman told the people in the boat “It appears that we areoverloaded and are now at risk of submerging. If one or two people who can swim welljump into the water, then the boat can be saved. Otherwise we will all drown”.As the water rapids were strong, no one stepped forward. At that time, a lady calledKanapuraththal told the boatman “May you live a hundred years. Please save our acharyaNampillai who is in this boat and take him safely to the other side”. Saying so, shejumped into the water.Eventually the boat reached the other side. However, Nampillai was very sad and saidmany times “We lost a lady unnecessarily in the water”. Hearing that, Kanapuraththalcried from the river “Swami! I am safe here. I managed to reach a small island. Please donot worry”.Nampillai became very happy and with the help of the boatman rescued the lady andbrought her to the shore. She fell at the acharya’s feet and said “Swami! It was you whocame in the form of an island with grass to save me”. Nampillai was pleased and told her
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I consider my acharya as everything and was willingto sacrifice
myself for the acharya’s sake like Kanapuraththal?”
77. nIrOrugam koNdEnO kAsi singanaip pOlE
nIrOrugam refers to the lotus flower. In the city of Kasi lived a person called Singan. Hewas an ardent devotee of Sriman Narayana and each day he would go to the ponds in thecity and collect lotus flowers and pray to the Lord with them. He was a very adeptswimmer.He developed arrogance about his swimming ability and one time he claimed that hecould swim across the flooded ganges back and forth several times. He started doing thatwhen suddenly a quick flood came across and carried him away. He got caught in awhirlpool in the river and he was unable to escape from it. He realized that his arrogancewas his undoing and he started praying to the Lord.He remembered at that time the event of the Lord saving the elephant Gajendra. Heprayed “O! Lord. You came to the side of the pond where the elephant sought refuge inYou and saved it. In the same, please save this poor soul as well. I surrender to Youcompletely”. At that time, a sudden gust of wind occured which caused a huge wave inthe river. That wave picked up Singan and pulled him out of the whirlpool. It left himsafely in the banks of the river.Realizing the work of the Lord that saved him, Singan prayed to Him with a melted heart.He then continued to worship Him with the lotus flowers without any ego.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I pray to Him with lotus flowers every day like KasiSingan did?”
78. vAkkinAl venREnO battaraip pOlE
Parasara Bhattar was the son of Kooraththazhvan. When he was a young child, one timeas he was playing in the banks of Kaveri, he saw a procession in which a vidwan calledSarvagna Bhattar was being carried in a palanquin by his disciples. They were crying outhis praises and using trumpets as they went along. Parasara Bhattar was upset that in atown where notable scholars such as Ramanuja, Kooraththazhvan, Mudhaliyandan andEmbar were residing, such a procession was taking place. So he decided to test thisHe went to the procession and stopped it. He then held some sand from the river in hishand and challenged Sarvagna Bhattar to give him a count of the sand. Sarvagna Bhattarwas stumped and could not reply. Parasara Bhattar then told him “This is a fistful of sand.You cannot even say this much and yet you go around with people crying out yourpraises”.Sarvagna Bhattar was amazed by this child’s prowess. He then enquired about him andfound out that he was the son of Kooraththazhvan. He exclaimed “Will the off-spring ofthat which flies just crawl?” and taking Parasara Bhattar on to his palanquin, dropped himoff at his home.At the doorstep, Ponnachchiyar, the wife of Pillai Urangavill Dasar, received the childand heard about the incident. Reciting Dvayam as protection for Parasara Bhattar shetook him to his mother Andal and told her “Please do not let this precious child in thestreets where evil eyes can fall on him”.Later, after Ramanuja’s time, per the instruction of Ramanuja, Parasara Bhattar went toThirunarayanapuram, where he debated the famed scholar Vedanti and won him over intothe Srivaishnava sampradhayam. Vedanti later renounced this world and came toSrirangam to be with his acharya Parasara Bhattar. Named Nanjeeyar by Bhattar, hewould later don the acharya peetam of the sampradhayam.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I win over opponents with my oratory skills likeParasara Bhattar did?”
79. vAyil kaiyittEnO embAraip pOlE
The acharya Embar was known as Govinda Bhattar prior to getting the name Embar. Hewas a maternal cousin to Ramanuja. In the early part of his life, he had gone on a yatra toKasi. There, as he was bathing in the river Ganges, a Shiva lingam came into his hand.As such he became a devotee of Shiva, He seettled in the town of Kalahasti and beganmaintaining the Shiva temple there.At that time, due to the request of Ramanuja, Periya Thirumalai Nambi engaged Embar,corrected him and returned him to the Srivaishnava fold. Embar then moved toThirumalai and lived with his acharya Periya Thirumalai Nambi and performed servicesto him. At that time, Ramanuja was also at Thirumalai learning the inner meanings of SriRamayanam from Periya Thirumalai Nambi. Therefore, he got opportunities to observeEmbar’s characteristics.One of the qualities of a Srivaishnava is feeling empathy for others. This quality wasmouth, then take a bath and continue his services to his acharya. He asked “O Govinda!What did you do with the snake?” Embar replied “I noticed that the snake was keeping itstongue out and suffering. When I went near it, I saw that a thorn was stuck in its tongue.So, I pulled the thorn out. The snake then ran away”. Ramanuja was amazed about hissense of mercy and blessed him.Normally a snake instills fear in most people and they tend to keep away from it. Yet, inthis instance Embar did not fear it and was more worried about its suffering.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Am I capable of showing the level of mercy that Embardid by sticking his hand in a snake’s mouth?”
80. thOL kAtti vandhEnO battaraip pOlE
It is not clear what event is the basis for this vArththai from Thirukkolur Ammal. Onepossibility is as follows.When Namperumal goes out in a procession in the streets of Srirangam, due to the largecrowds, there will be some people in front that will hit the ground with long belts to clearthe crowd. In some instances the belt would accidentally hit a devotee. It is said that onetime the belt hit Parasara Bhattar on his shoulder. Bhattar’d disciples got angry and usedharsh words against the person using the belt. Hearing that, Bhattar told his disciples”They were only doing their duty. There is no mistake in that. Besides, what’s wrong inbeing hit by those in the service of the Lord”. He then told the person who hit him “Whatyou did was correct. When I got hit on one shoulder, I should have offered my othershoulder also to you. That was my mistake and I feel bad about it. Now I am showing youmy other shoulder”. The person who had used the leather belt became ashamed andapologized to Bhattar.It is the quality of a Srivaishnava to show patience and mercy to anyone who errs againstthem.
Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I show these qualities any time like
Bhattar didwhen he offered his other shoulder?”
81. thuRai vERu seydhEnO pagavaraip pOlE
In Thiruvayindrapuram lived a Srivaishnava called Villipuththur Bagavar. When he wentto the river to perform his daily anushatanams, he would always go to a different part ofwere in their area of the river asked Bagavar “O! Swami. Why do you not perform youranushatanams in our place?” Bagavar replied “We are Srivaishnavas that follow SwamiRamanuja. We perform these nityanushatanams only as a service to Sriman Narayana.You are brahmins that follow varNashrama dharma. You perform the nityanushtanams aspart of your varNa. Therefore, the two of us cannot mix”. Bagavar was either a brahminwho had understood the true nature of the soul or was a sanyasi.Thirukkolur Ammal is asking “Did I understand the greatness of service and separatefrom those who follow only the dharma anushatana?”
Azhvar Emberumanar Jeeyar Thiruvadigale Sharanam
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