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Tiruppâṇ Alvar - A GREAT DEVOTEE OF LORD HARI

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Tiruppaan Alvar’s life is illustrative of what Sri Vaishnavas have always considered important, i.e., being a servant of Lord’s servants. Nammalvar expresses this concept very forcefully in Tiruvaymoli 3.7.9:



குலந்தாங்கு சாதிகள் நாலிலும்
கீழிழிந்து, எத்தனை
நலந்தானிலாத சண்டாள சண்-
டாளர்கள் ஆகிலும்,
வலந்தாங்கு சக்கரத் தண்ணல்
மணிவண்ணற் காளென்று உள்-
கலந்தார், அடியார் தம்ம அடி-
யார் எம்மடிகளே.


If an individual is a devotee of Lord Vishnu, then, even if he belongs to a lowly caste, you must consider his devotee’s devotee as your lord.


Nammalvar’s above verse is acted out in Tiruppaan Alvar’s life story. Being of low birth, Tiru Paana-naathan was not permitted to enter the Tiruvarangam (Srirangam) temple. Yet, the Alvar’s bhakti was unparalleled. One day, upon seeing the Tiruvarangam temple gopuram from a distance, Alvar went into a trance. He was standing in the middle of the road leading to the temple from the Kaveri river. At that time the chief priest Lokasaaranga Muni was returning to the temple with a pot full of Kaveri water intended for thirumancanam (abhishekam) for Lord Ranganatha. Upon seeing a Paanan (low caste minstrel) obstructing his way, he scolded him to move away at once. Immersed in meditation on Lord Ranganatha and oblivious to his surroundings, our Paanan did not respond. To draw his attention, the priest picked up a small stone and threw it at him. It struck Tiruppaan’s forehead. Coming back to this world, he profusely apologized for the transgression and ran away. When the priest reached the temple, blood was streaming out of Lord Ranganatha’s forehead.

That night Lord Ranganatha appeared in the priest’s dream and chastised him for striking his bhakta with a stone. He then instructed the priest to carry the Alvar upon his shoulders and bring him to the temple. Realizing his great misdeed, Lokasaaranga Muni searched out Tiruppaan, found him and despite the saint’s humble protests, carried him in broad daylight for everyone to see. The priest carried the Alvar in a procession around the temple and finally took him inside the sanctum. The sight of a “high brahmin” carrying an untouchable on his shoulders and taking him inside the temple must have caused quite a stir!
Upon entering the sanctum, Tiruppaan Alvar, overcome with emotion upon seeing the Lord with his own eyes, sang 10 paasurams in His praise. This Prabandham is called amalan aadhipiraan. Alvar describes in exquisite detail each part of the Lord Ranganatha’s thirumEni (sacred body) starting from kamala paadham (lotus feet), to neeNdavap periya vaaya kaNgaL (long, large eyes). The bhakti rasam is unsurpassed by any other Alvar.
 
Tiruppaan Alvar’s life is illustrative of what Sri Vaishnavas have
krishnathilak, have you heard of the word "plagiarism" and do you know what it means? If you do a cut-and-paste job please provide a citation.

Here is the web page from which krishnathilak has lifted this.
 
Apoliziging for not giving in citation

Dear Sir,

I apologize for not giving in citation, in over excitement, of coming across such great history, i was forced to share it with others, sorry for not following the traditional way of writing, history cannot be written newly. it is derived always from other sources, it can be written in a new style, but it is important, it has to be shared with others. one's more i apologize for not giving in citation
 
HOLY MOTHER SRI SARADA DEVI SAYS

" I TELL YOU ONE THING - IF YOU WANT PEACE, DO NOT FIND FAULT WITH OTHERS. RATHER SEE YOUR OWN FAULTS. LEARN TO MAKE THE WORLD YOUR OWN. NO ONE IS STRANGER, MY CHILD; THE WHOLE WORLD IS YOUR OWN.

TO ERR IS HUMAN. ONE MUST NOT TAKE THAT INTO ACCOUNT. IT IS HARMFUL FOR ONESELF. ONE GETS INTO THE HABIT OF FINDING FAULT.... DO NOT LOOK FOR FAULTS IN OTHERS, OR YOUR EYES WILL BECOME FAULTY.

MAN FIND FAULTS IN OTHERS AFTER BRINGING DOWN HIS OWN MIND TO THAT LEVEL. DOES ANYTHING EVEN HAPPENS TO ANOTHER IF YOU ENUMERATE HIS FAULTS? IT ONLY INJURES YOU. THIS HAS BEEN MY ATTITUDE"

a humble request to the brother is, before coming out with the offensive language to correct others, it is always better to use kind and soft words to correct others mistakes, that will have an intense effect than the previous method.

with regards
Thilak
 
Dear Shri.Krishnatilak,
Welcome to the Forum.I am a member of this forum from January,2010.Shri.Nara is a very knowledgeable person and an authority on
SV philosophy.He has written a lot about SV Azwars.Please go through his earlier threads.I learn a lot from writings of Shri.Nara.In my
younger days,my father used to bring a HOE & CO diary every year in which I used to read an essay on who is a 'Gentleman'In my humble view,
Shri.Nara is fully qualified to be called 'A fine Gentleman'. If your father or elder brother or any other elderly well wisher advices you, hope you welcome such advices.So I request you to consider Shri.Nara as an elderly wellwisher and welcome his comments and do not take it as a criticism.
 
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Folks,

Thiruppanazhvar's story, as narrated by the SV hagiographers, is indeed quite instructive, particularly to present day SV brahmins.

People often compare Thiruppanazhavr's story with that of Nandanar aka Thirunalaippovar. But, IMO, there is nothing comparable except that they both were considered untouchable and were not permitted to enter the temple.

In Nandanar's story, he never enters the temple. The most charitable version is that Brahmins were ordered to prepare a large pit of fire and Nandanar on his own accord went into the fire to purify his polluted body. Purified by this fire, he arose with a Brahmin body and then he was able to enter the temple.

A more reasonable version that can only be inferred, no proof exists, is, the Brahmins forced the uppity Nandanar into a pit of fire, and then concocted a nice story.

Thiruppanazhvar's story, which may also be a mere concoction, states that the chief priest of Sri Rangam temple carried the Azhvar upon his shoulders into the temple. For this reason, the Azhvar is also known as Muni Vahanan. He didn't have to go through fire "purification" like Nandanar. He entered the temple with his original "untouchable" body upon the shoulder of Loakasranga Muni.

Another touching aspect of the story, quite possibly a concocted one, is, both the Azhvar and the Muni took the act of riding on the shoulder in the case of Azhvar, and carrying in the case of Muni, as service to Bhagavatha. The Muni carrying the Azhvar is easily understood as service to Azhvar, but how can Azhvar riding on the shoulder of the Muni be a service? The SV texts state that the Azhvar was reluctant to do this, but agreed to ride on the Muni's shoulder as that was the only way the Muni could fulfill the command of Ranganatha.

Personally, I have no idea to what extent any of these things actually took place. What impresses me is what the hagiographers saw fit to write down. Unlike the case of Nandanar, the SV scribes put an exalted Brahmin -- he was no ordinary Brahmin, he was the chief priest of the temple that SVs consider Bhooloka Vaikuntam and even the center of the material universe -- in a subordinate position to a person who was viewed by the wider society to be unfit to touch or even come anywhere near the precincts of the temple. So, to me, even if the story was a complete fiction, the SVs of that era wanted revolutionary changes. So sad all this petered out.

The later-day SV brahmins invented a whole lot of innovative tactics to accept Thiruppanazvar, but continue to practice untouchability in no less a despicable fashion than the Brahmins Nandar encountered.

BTW, the ten verses of Thiruppanazvar drip with intense bhakti. Another trivia is he used the word ஐயோ, a word that is not viewed favorably by Tamil Hindus, in one of his verses. That verse is:
ஆலமா மரத்தின் இலைமேல் ஒரு பாலகனாய்
ஞாலம் ஏழும் உண்டான் அரங்கத்து அரவின் அணையான்
கோலமாமணி ஆரமும், முத்துத் தாமமும், முடிவில்லதோர் எழில்
நீல மேனி ஐயோ, நிறை கொண்டது என் நெஞ்சினையே!
Enough to melt the heart of even a confirmed atheist like me.

Cheers!
 
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Dear Nara Sir,

Just curious -- to which caste did Thiruppanazhvar belong?

Wiki article on Thiruppanazhvar says Paanar Cheri and a community of musicians and traditional songmakers. Was Paana or Paanar the name of a caste?
 
Dear Nara Sir,

Just curious -- to which caste did Thiruppanazhvar belong?

Wiki article on Thiruppanazhvar says Paanar Cheri and a community of musicians and traditional songmakers. Was Paana or Paanar the name of a caste?
Yes HH, his caste was supposed to be Panar, remember George Hart's article about ancient untouchables who controlled some sort of spiritual energy for the benefit of the ruling class? This azvar probably belonged to one such caste. The later brahmin SVs simply claimed he was an ayonija, found and raised by a paanaa couple, so pathetic.

Cheers!
 
Yes HH, his caste was supposed to be Panar, remember George Hart's article about ancient untouchables who controlled some sort of spiritual energy for the benefit of the ruling class? This azvar probably belonged to one such caste. The later brahmin SVs simply claimed he was an ayonija, found and raised by a paanaa couple, so pathetic.

Cheers!
Thankyou sir. I googled to find more on Panar caste.

Gavin Flood in 'The Blackwell companion to Hinduism', defines the term as "Panar. (from pan. "melody"), which was the same designation used of bards in the Cankam age". Tamildictionary.org defines them as "the caste of lute-players, patuvor; 2. panegyrists, pukazvor".

After quite some search i found that these are actually Valluvars. Wiki mentions there is a sub-division amongst Valluvars who claim descent from Thiruppanalwar.

Not surprising. The Valluvars were priests to Pallavas and in regions ruled by the Bana (Paanaa) chieftains. So i feel the term "Panar" merely designates their old 'nationality' and does not indicate their occupation or caste [Like Kammas are people who lived in Kammarashtra in recent past and Velamas in Velanadu, irrespective of whatever occupation they professed].

Personally, i do not see what was really untouchable about these Valluvar bards. They merely involved in what we call "pooja" today. That is, drawing beautiful kolams, offering flowers, incense, food, doing purification with fire by taking aarati or harathi, etc. (makes me wonder that even such regular poojas are infact 'tantric' and non-vedic ).

The only difference was that instead of sanskrit shlokams, they did the poojais with exhilarating Tamil songs of love and devotion. Perhaps before the king went to war, he depended on such songs for motivation and to inspire him with bravery.

And ofcourse after the kings and chieftains shifted their patronage to homams, the fortunes and pre-eminent position of these valluvar bards came tumbling down.

Sad to think that Thiruppanalwar came to be characterised as an "ayonija".
 
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Sad to think that Thiruppanalwar came to be characterised as an "ayonija".

You see, brahmin status had become irrevocably one acquired by birth/parentage. So, if you have to make an untouchable person as having been admitted into any temple - which is the exclusive preserve of dwijas - there were only few alternatives available; one, kill him, tell that he acquired a divine body and merged with the murthy in the sanctum sanctorum — what we see in movies! and, 2. make his parentage beyond discussion and for that, make him an "ayonija", "divyagarbha" or at the very least, an "immaculate conception".
 
You see, brahmin status had become irrevocably one acquired by birth/parentage. So, if you have to make an untouchable person as having been admitted into any temple - which is the exclusive preserve of dwijas - there were only few alternatives available; one, kill him, tell that he acquired a divine body and merged with the murthy in the sanctum sanctorum — what we see in movies! and, 2. make his parentage beyond discussion and for that, make him an "ayonija", "divyagarbha" or at the very least, an "immaculate conception".
Thiruppan alvar lived around 8th-9th century AD. So by this time, the bards, ministrels or former preists who enjoyed a high status earlier were already kept out as untouchables.

This does fit in perfectly with the thesis of Prof Hart according to whom brahmins arrived in tamilakam between 100 AD to 700 AD. Their incoming i think must have affected the former priests the most. Because quite naturally, the former priests must have been kept out assidously.

However, am not really sure about other occupation groups. Am still looking for evidence if any kingdom enforced strict birth-based dharmashastras in southindia before the vijayanagar period.
 
Mr. Nara said:
This azvar probably belonged to one such caste. The later brahmin SVs simply claimed he was an ayonija, found and raised by a paanaa couple, so pathetic.

The Guruparampara was written centuries ago and it is quoted by Mr. Nara frequently to prove a point or two here. It is in this same Guruparampara that it is stated that the Thiruppaan alwar was picked up as a baby by a harijan couple and was brought up by them. It was not the later day(whatever this means) brahmin SVs who claimed him to be an ayonija picked up by a paanaa couple. Our prejudices come out in the open in what we write perhaps!!
 
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Thiruppan alvar lived around 8th-9th century AD. So by this time, the bards, ministrels or former preists who enjoyed a high status earlier were already kept out as untouchables.

This does fit in perfectly with the thesis of Prof Hart according to whom brahmins arrived in tamilakam between 100 AD to 700 AD. Their incoming i think must have affected the former priests the most. Because quite naturally, the former priests must have been kept out assidously.


However, am not really sure about other occupation groups. Am still looking for evidence if any kingdom enforced strict birth-based dharmashastras in southindia before the vijayanagar period.


HH,


The Kalabhra interregnum is supposed to be
between the third and the 6th century C.E.At the end od this period, we have reason to postulate the arrival of the vedic hinduism under the umbrella of the Pallavas (some even hold the view that the Pallavas were actually Pahlavaas or Pahlaavis and hence could sync with their long lost cousins the vedic people). This new batch of vedic folks would have been doubly zealous in imposing their world view including the Dharmasastras. It is significant that the Pallavas made land grants to āpastambīyas, as per Dr. P.V. Kane (History of the Dharmasastras, Vol I, p.44). There is, therefore, enough grounds to conclude that the Dharmasastras were very much vigorously adhered to in the new-found vedist society of South India during Pallava reign.
 
.... Am still looking for evidence if any kingdom enforced strict birth-based dharmashastras in southindia before the vijayanagar period.
Happy, there is enough evidence in Dhivya Prabhandam for birth-based castes. If you want a specific mention of "birth" in connection with caste, then here is one from Thondaradippodi Azhvar's Thirumalai verse #39:
அடிமையில் குடிமை இல்லா அயல் சதுப்பேதிமாரில்
குடிமையில் கடைமை பட்ட குக்கரில் பிறப்பரேலும்
முடியினில் துளபம் வைத்தாய் மொய்கழற்கு அன்பு செய்யும்
அடியரை உகத்தி போலும் அரங்கமானகர் உளானே
குக்கரில் = = Chandala caste
O! Ranganatha, with Thiruthuzay in your crown, you treasure those who love for your lotus feet even if they are born into lowest of low Chandala than those who don't care to serve you even if they are learned in all the four Vedas.
This Azhvar is no later than 9th century CE., long before Vijayanagar empire. Such extreme social segregation wouldn't be possible without active royal support and enforcement.

If you are looking for copper plates with edicts or some such hard evidence, I believe there are some from Chola period that show caste-based segregated housing that include "Para-cheri" outside the oor. I don't know whether birth-based caste is mentioned in these records, but it would be hard to believe otherwise.

Cheers!
 
You see, brahmin status had become irrevocably one acquired by birth/parentage. So, if you have to make an untouchable person as having been admitted into any temple - which is the exclusive preserve of dwijas - there were only few alternatives available; one, kill him, tell that he acquired a divine body and merged with the murthy in the sanctum sanctorum — what we see in movies! and, 2. make his parentage beyond discussion and for that, make him an "ayonija", "divyagarbha" or at the very least, an "immaculate conception".

Dear Shri Sangom,

I am somewhat familiar with SV only, and what you say is very true among SVs. Of the twelve Azhvars, three were male brahmins (Periyaazhvar, Madhurakavi Azhvar and Thondaradippodi Azhvar) and two were kings (Kulasekarazhvar and Thirumangai azhvar). The other 7 were "Shudra" or worse, and one was a woman. Here is how the birth of these 8 are dealt with in SV literature.

  1. Poigai azhvar - ayonija - born out of lotus flower
  2. Bhoothahazhvar - ayonija - born out of madhavi flower
  3. Peyazhvar azhvar - ayonija - born out of sevvalli flower
  4. Thirumazhisai azhvar - born as mass of tissue to Bhargva Maharishi's patni and abandoned; later a baby took shape from the ball of tissue, found by a "Shudra" and raised by him
  5. Andal - ayonija - incarnation of Bhumi piraatti, found and raised by Periyazhvar
  6. Thiruppannazvar - ajonija - baby was found and raised by a pana couple
  7. Nammazhvar - born to "Shudra" couple, but immediately after birth he prevented the gas called "shatam" to enter him thus avoided samsara, in other words, the varna did not affect him; this is the reason he is called shata-kopan, the one who showed anger to shatam. Unfortunately, this name is often written as sada-gopan!!
The SV literature did not bother to invent any tall story for the Brahmin or princely males!!

Cheers!
 
Dear Sri "Nara",

As one who has taken interest in " Prabandam" literature, I am so happy to read the posts in this thread. If the standards set by the knowledgeable participants like your good self, Sri "Sangom", Sri "Happy Hindu" and others in discussing the subject is followed in other threads also, members like me will be highly benefited.
Many thanks to Sri" Krishnathilak" for starting this thread.

Regards,
Brahmanyan,
Bangalore.
 
Mr. Nara said:

This Azhvar is no later than 9th century CE., long before Vijayanagar empire. Such extreme social segregation wouldn't be possible without active royal support and enforcement.

I say:

Active royal support would not have been possible without the active collusion and unstinting support of the influential farming, trading and war making communities. So the extreme social segregation we are discussing is the baby of the entire community excluding perhaps the panchamans who never had any say in these matters--never--neither those days nor these days. So to identify the brahmins as the sole cause of social segregation is sheer stupidity. Period.
 
Mr. Nara said:
BTW, the ten verses of Thiruppanazvar drip with intense bhakti. Another trivia is he used the word ஐயோ, a word that is not viewed favorably by Tamil Hindus, in one of his verses. That verse is:
ஆலமா மரத்தின் இலைமேல் ஒரு பாலகனாய்
ஞாலம் ஏழும் உண்டான் அரங்கத்து அரவின் அணையான்
கோலமாமணி ஆரமும், முத்துத் தாமமும், முடிவில்லதோர் எழில்
நீல மேனி ஐயோ, நிறை கொண்டது என் நெஞ்சினையே!
Enough to melt the heart of even a confirmed atheist like me.
Cheers!

I say:

Alwars were not ordinary mortals. They were evolved souls. So in their poems there is no scope for words that can be called meaningless or quoted as trivia. If someone sees such redundancy in their poems, it can only mean that the individual suffers from ignorance. Here is an example of that ignorance.

The ten pasurams of Thiruppaan Alwaar are not only poems sung in praise of Sri Ranganatha. In these ten poems is also told the story of the Alwar going to Sri Vaikuntha(பரமபதம்). It is the story of not only the Atma of Alwar that merged with Lord Sri Ranganatha but also the body of the Alwar which merged with the திருமேனி of Sri Ranganatha. In his journey to the paramapatham Alwar was carried by a yogi (Loka Saaranga muni). According to the SV religious texts a முக்தாத்மா on its way to the paramapatham( through அர்ச்சிராதி மார்க்கம் ) is carried by the Aathi Vaahika(the servants of God). In the case of Alwar it was the Lokasaranga who played the role of these servants. It is also said that in paramapatham there is always Saamagaanam (chanting of Veda) done by the mukthathmas who are in the service of the Lord. In the ten pasurams of அமலனாதிபிரான் there are two places (not one) where Alwar uses the word ஐயோ . According to learned elders of the SV sampradaayam this ஐயோ is the equivalent of ஹாவு ஹாவு (the samaganam)chanted by the mukthathmas in paramapatham.

If we take a little care to read religious literature or to listen to learned elders such mistakes in our understanding of the religious texts can be avoided. Particularly when we tend to wax eloquent about the mistakes of others we should be more careful before dismissing Alwar’s words as superfluous. At least we should avoid flaunting our ignorance as knowledge. There are enough cases where people distort, stretch, misinterpret and misrepresent religious texts. Let us not add any more to this large volume of “literature”.
 
What Mr. Nara said:

Folks,

Thiruppanazhvar's story, as narrated by the SV hagiographers, is indeed quite instructive, particularly to present day SV brahmins.

People often compare Thiruppanazhavr's story with that of Nandanar aka Thirunalaippovar. But, IMO, there is nothing comparable except that they both were considered untouchable and were not permitted to enter the temple.

In Nandanar's story, he never enters the temple. The most charitable version is that Brahmins were ordered to prepare a large pit of fire and Nandanar on his own accord went into the fire to purify his polluted body. Purified by this fire, he arose with a Brahmin body and then he was able to enter the temple.

A more reasonable version that can only be inferred, no proof exists, is, the Brahmins forced the uppity Nandanar into a pit of fire, and then concocted a nice story.

Thiruppanazhvar's story, which may also be a mere concoction, states that the chief priest of Sri Rangam temple carried the Azhvar upon his shoulders into the temple. For this reason, the Azhvar is also known as Muni Vahanan. He didn't have to go through fire "purification" like Nandanar. He entered the temple with his original "untouchable" body upon the shoulder of Loakasranga Muni.

Another touching aspect of the story, quite possibly a concocted one, is, both the Azhvar and the Muni took the act of riding on the shoulder in the case of Azhvar, and carrying in the case of Muni, as service to Bhagavatha. The Muni carrying the Azhvar is easily understood as service to Azhvar, but how can Azhvar riding on the shoulder of the Muni be a service? The SV texts state that the Azhvar was reluctant to do this, but agreed to ride on the Muni's shoulder as that was the only way the Muni could fulfill the command of Ranganatha.

Personally, I have no idea to what extent any of these things actually took place. What impresses me is what the hagiographers saw fit to write down. Unlike the case of Nandanar, the SV scribes put an exalted Brahmin -- he was no ordinary Brahmin, he was the chief priest of the temple that SVs consider Bhooloka Vaikuntam and even the center of the material universe -- in a subordinate position to a person who was viewed by the wider society to be unfit to touch or even come anywhere near the precincts of the temple. So, to me, even if the story was a complete fiction, the SVs of that era wanted revolutionary changes. So sad all this petered out.

The later-day SV brahmins invented a whole lot of innovative tactics to accept Thiruppanazvar, but continue to practice untouchability in no less a despicable fashion than the Brahmins Nandar encountered.

BTW, the ten verses of Thiruppanazvar drip with intense bhakti. Another trivia is he used the word ஐயோ, a word that is not viewed favorably by Tamil Hindus, in one of his verses. That verse is:
ஆலமா மரத்தின் இலைமேல் ஒரு பாலகனாய்
ஞாலம் ஏழும் உண்டான் அரங்கத்து அரவின் அணையான்
கோலமாமணி ஆரமும், முத்துத் தாமமும், முடிவில்லதோர் எழில்
நீல மேனி ஐயோ, நிறை கொண்டது என் நெஞ்சினையே!
Enough to melt the heart of even a confirmed atheist like me.

Cheers!

What I say:

Krishnatilak’s post #1 has referred to two Alwars. The குலந்தாங்கு சாதிகள் நாலிலும்….…. is a pasuram of Nammazhwar in திருவாய்மொழி (3.7.9). In the first pasuram of பயிலுஞ்சுடரொளி …. He said ……பரமனைப் பயிலும் திருவுடையார் எவரேலும் அவர் கண்டீர் பயிலும் பிரப்பிடைதொறேம்மை யாளும் பரமரே . In the second pasuram he said …….மணிவண்ணன் எம்மான் தன்னை தாளும் தடக்கையும் கூப்பிப் பணியுமவர் கண்டீர் நாளும் பிறப்புடை தொறேம்மை யாளுடை நாதரே . In the third pasuram he said…. எந்தை பிரான் தன்னை பாதம் பணிய வல்லாரை பணியுமவர் கண்டீர் ஓதும் பிறப்பிடைதொறேம்மை யாளுடையார்களே . In the fourth pasuram he said…..திருநாரணன் தொண்டர் தொண்டர் கண்டீர் இடையார் பிரப்பிடைதோ ரேமக்கெம் பெருமக்களே . In the fifth pasuram he said…….. அப்பனை பெருமை பிதற்ற வல்லாரைப் பிதற்றுமவர் கண்டீர் வறுமையும் இம்மையும் நம்மை யளிக்கும் பிராக்களே . In the 6th pasuram he said ……ஒலிக்கொண்ட சோதியை உள்ளத்துக்கொள்ளுமவர் கண்டீர் சலிப்பின்றி யாண்டேம்மைச்சன்ம சன்மாந்தரம் காப்பவரே . In the 7th paasuram he said ……அப்பனை தொன்மை பிதற்றவல்லாறை பிதற்றுமவர் கண்டீர் நன்மை பெருத்தெம்மை நாளுய்யக்கொள்கின்ற நம்பரே . In the 8th pasuram he said யார்க்கும் உணர்வரியான் தன்னை கும்பி நரகர்களேத்துவறேலும் அவர் கண்டீர்... பிறப்பிடை தொரேம் தொழுகுலம் தாங்களே . And in the tenth pasuram he said …………எந்தை பிரான் தனக்கு அடியாரடியார் தம்மடியாரடியார் தமக்கு அடியாரடியார்தக்கடியாரடியோங்களே .

I give here the plain meaning of these pasurams for the benefit of the readers.

3.7.1. The lord with lotus eyes and effulgent form, who is sweet to the heart, reclines in the ocean of milk. Those who worship him—whoever they may be—are my masters, through seven lives.

3.7.2. The lord who bears the discuss, who is radiant is my master. Those who worship him with folded hands are also my masters forever.

3.7.3. My lord of Tulasi garland and golden discuss is the lord of the celestials and mortals. Those who serve his devotees are my masters, through every blessed life.

3.7.4. My lord wears a necklace, waist belt, yellow robes, splendid golden thread, a golden crown and many ornaments. Those who serve the servants of his devotees are my masters through every blessed life.

3.7.5. My lord came to the aid of the celestials. He gave them the ambrosia from the ocean of milk. Those who praise those who praise him are my masters through this and all my lives.

3.7.6. My effulgent lord of gem’s hue who wears the tulsi garland, who carried a discuss in hand protects all. Those who bear him in their hearts are my masters through every life.

3.7.7. He comes to devotees’ aid through life after life. He gives them his nature and takes them into his feet. Those who praise those who praise his eternal glory shall be my trusted masters forever.

3.7.8. The trusted lord who bears Lakshmi and Brahma on his person is incomprehensible even to the great celestials. Whoever praises him even from the lowest Kumbibhagam hell is my master through every life.

3.7.9. What if a person be of lowly birth –even a chandala of the lowly chandalas—if he is a devotee of my discuss-bearing lord, his servant’s servant shall be my master.

3.7.10 My lord swallowed the earth and slept as a child on a fig leaf floating in the deluge waters. The servant of his servant is my master.

Those who are interested in knowing the philosophical content of these pasurams can read books or attend kalakshepams of learned elders. As we read these pasurams which are the outpourings of a devotee (the Alwar) the message that stands out is the desire on the part of the Alwar to completely erase his ego. Thus he would repeatedly remind himself that he is lower than the true devotees of God, that he is lower than the sinners who are wallowing in the worst possible Kumbibhagom hell as they have turned devotees of God, that he would prefer to be the servants of the devotees of the God not only in this birth but through many births to come, that it would suffice for him to be the servant of the servants of the servant of the servant of the lord, that he would be the servant of the lowly born chandala if that chandala is a devotee of the lord etc., We are impressed with the range of the devotees Alwar has chosen to express his desire to completely efface his ego. The philosophic message also stands out clearly that true devotion to lord is what matters.

I am surprised to note that these same pasurams are used here to find fault with a social group and to vilify it. Here some people always look for only contrived meanings and interpretations which will suit their prejudices and come out with hammer and tongs at Brahmins for their imagined faults. I came to post this only to attract the attention of the people who visit this forum to the fact that Alwars were evolved souls. They did not have any secret agenda (as our friends here have) to convert Brahmins. While they were certainly against hypocrisy they were not rabid Brahmin bashers. But unfortunately it has become the pastime of some members here to use every opportunity to bash Brahmins by twisting, misinterpreting, distorting ancient texts. As this has become a lengthy posting I stop with this. About Thiruppaan Alwar I will post separately.
 
....As one who has taken interest in " Prabandam" literature, I am so happy to read the posts in this thread. .
Dear sir, thank you for your kind words, however, I would like to submit to you that my knowledge is akin to the adage 100 பாட்டுக்கு அடிதெரியும் kind. I do appreciate your encouragement.

Cheers!
 
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