tirumantra churukku

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tirumantra churukku

Introduction

The Thirumanthira Churukku Prabhandham has 10 Paasurams , which cover the essence of the meanings of Thirumanthiram/Moola Manthram/AshtAksharam/ Thiruvettezhutthu.

Swamy Desikan has covered extensively the deep meanings of Thirumanthiram in His Magnum Opus , SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram ( Chapter : 27 ). adiyEn's postings on PradhAna Sathakam are archived in SaraNAgathy Journal and there are considerable discussions there on the three rahsyams in general and Moola Manthram in particular ( begins with Volume 1.20: June 1998) :

http://www.srivaishnava.org/sgati

As the final grantham of his long life known for the creation of many lofty and erudite granthams , VirOdha ParihAram was created by Swamy Desikan to clear our anticipated doubts about the Three rahasyams covered earlier in SrInmath Rahasya Thraya Saaram . Here is also found elaborations and clarfications of the subtle points about . Moola Manthram , Dhvayam & Charama slOkams (the Three rahsyams). BhakthAs are referred to these authoritative sources to go beyond the Coverage here on the "Churukkus" (short summaries).

Summary of the Vaibhavam of Thirumanthiram
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It shines over all VyApaka manthrams . It is the essence of all Vedams. It removes all anishtams (inauspiciousness). It tops all upAyams and grants all desired phalans. It can be recited by sakala jAthis according to ancient practises as Vaidhika or Taantrika manthram along the lines shown by PaancharAthram . It has the power to shed light on the three tatthvams: ChEtanan,
achEtanam and Iswaran. It does not need the support of other manthrams for yielding the sought after phalans. The sages of the yore and the divine AzhwArs have sung about the glories of this AshtAksharam . Only those like Thirumangai , who had the distinct honor of receiving UpadEsam on this sacred Manthram form the Lord Himself can know its full glories.

This manthram is made up of 8 aksharams .The Upanishads have pointed out that this Manthram can reveal SrIman NaarAyaNan and sings the glories of one , who performs AshtAkshara Manthra Japam .The AchAryAs have treated it as a sacred treasure and released the full meanings of this manthram only to those , who thirst for it.

This Prabhandham is named "Thirumanthira Churukku" because this Prabhandham seperates the manthram in to its 8 padhams ( aksharams ) and provides their meanings in a condensed form ( Churukku). This whole Prabhandham is blessed to us by Swamy Desikan out of His compassion for all the jeevans drowning in the fearsome ocean of SamsAram and for uplifting them .

The condensed meaning of the ten paasurams of this Prabhandham is:

(1) SrIman NaarayaNan is Sarav Rakshakan (Protector of ALL). 

(2) He is never is away from His PirAtti even for a fraction of a second.
(3) He is Eternal
(4) He blesses all janthus with true knowledge and directs them to auspicious paths.
(5) He has an unmatched beautiful body and is the abode of limitless auspicious guNams.
(6) He is the creator of all ChEtanams and achEtanams.
(7) He stands as the UpAyam (means) and goals for ALL.
(8) He stays as the aadharam for ChEtanams and achEtanams and enters them and stays inside them as the indweller .

About the JeevAthmA:
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(1) JeevAthma is of the form of Jn~Anam (Jn~Ana Svaroopan)
(2) He has Jn~Anam as GuNam.
(3) He is of the atomic size (aNu) and is different from Iswaran and achEthanam.
(4) He is the servant (Seshan) of the Lord and His PirAtti .
(5) There is nothing of which the Jeevan is Master
(6) He stays always under the influence & power of the Lord .
(7) He has no independence whatsoever of his own.
(8) This Jeevan in the liberated state performs nithya kaimkaryam to the Dhivya Dampathis at SrI Vaikuntam.

We will study the individual Paasurams of this Prabhandham next .

we will study few of the Paasurams of Thirumanthira Churukku . PraNavam is the mudhal Paadham of AshtAksharam . PraNavam itself is made up of three yezhutthukaL ( AkAram , UkAram and MakAram ).

Slokas

Commentary

293. PraNavam: The Meaning behind AkAram of PraNavam
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naa alar maRai naal onRu nalam thihazh maRai onRu OrAthu
aavalippu alaikkum mOhatthu azhundhi ninRu alamarhinReer
thU valam puriyA onRil tuvakkamAm vaNNam onRAl
kAval yenRu Akaratthu avvAik-karutthuRak-kANmin neerE

(Meaning): PraNavam alone is the essence of all VedAs. When one understands its true meaning (from AchAryAs) , the svaroopam of the Lord (SrIman NaarAyaNa) and the Jeevan , which in turn leads to the destruction of Ahankaara-MamakArams ; that destruction results in getting across the ocean of SamsAram and arriving at the other bank of SamsAram , SrI Vaikuntam . Oh ChEthanams , who do not have that good fortune ! When you write PraNavam on an aadharam (on paper, slate et al) , it will resemble the Conch with the right side twist (Valampuri Sankhu).The first letter of PraNavam is AkAram . In Sanskrit , that first letter represents the verb "avv" (viz) performing protection . According to VyAkaraNa Saasthram , the fourth case associated in a hidden manner with AkAram denotes the Sarava Rakshakan , SrIman NaarAyaNan. Therefore that "AkAram " instructs usto meditate on the Sarava Rakshaka Prabhu , the Lord.

294. The meaning behind the fourth case (Chathrutrthi Vibhakthi)
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iLakkamin mayakkam tannAl yAnn yenakku uriyanyennum
kaLakkarutthu onRE koNDu kadu narahu adainthu ninReer!
viLakkum avvezhutthil nAlAm vERRumai yERRi vaangit-
tuLakkamil adimai pooNDu thUyarAi vaazhminErE

(Meaning): Oh ChEthanams ! For time immemorial , you have been steeped in false knowledge and ignorance (ajn~Anam) and are sinking in SamsAric ocean as a aresult of your conviction that your Aaathma svaroopam is independent and fail to recognize that your Jeevan is forever a servant (sEshan) of the Lord (Sarva SEshi) .The fourth vibhakthi that became ascendant on the AkAram representing the Lord' Svaroopam as Your Master is present now in a hidden manner . The meaning of that fourth case is adimai (sEshithvam) to the Lord .Therefore , please comprehend and put in to practise the doctrine that you are the servant to the Sarvarakshakan , the Lord. As a result of that newly gained knowledge , your egotism will be banished and you will be uplifted from the mire of samsAric afflictions .

295. The Meaning of UkAram
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apporuL ihanthu maRRum azhitthu yezhuvAr thALil
ipporuL ihanthavan pAll irangineer vaNangi veenzhhteer
upporuL uLLi maRROr uyir tanakku urimai mARRi
yepporuL payanum eethu yenRu yeNNIneer yezhumineerE

(Meaning): It is the proper thing that you perform SaraNAgathi to the Lord , who stands as the meaning of AkAram .As a result , you will be blessed with lofty fruits like Kaimkaryams. As you acquire the mahA Paapam by not doing your SaraNAgahty , you are disheartened , enter the never ending cycles of births and deaths and end up worsening your situation by falling at the feet of powerless insignificant gods . You drown further in to samsAric ocean. Let me instruct you on another aspect of the second letter of PraNavam , UkAram . In its meaning , it stands for its power to reject all other sambhandhams ( links). When the Lord , the AkAra Vaacchyan is associated with UkAram for the purposes of comprehending the meaning of that union of the two letters , the doctrine of the jeevan never being servant to any one except the Lord becomes evident . Please firm up this meaning in your minds and get uplifted from all other debilitatiing false sAsthrams and anushtAnams.

296. Another Meaning for UkAram
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yenRum ohr Odham inRi Iravium oLiyum pOla
onRi ninRu ulahu aLikkum uham idinthu adimai vaittheer
onRu moonRu yezhutthAi onRum onRil onRudaya munnE
onRiya iraNDai uLLi uLar yena uyminneerE

(Meaning): It is but natural for the Sun and His radiance to be united together . Similarly , EmperumAn and PirAtti are together always and protect the world. They are never away from each other even for a fraction of a second. It is essential that you consider yourself as the bonded servants of both EmperumAn and His PirAtti always . Oh chEthanams that consider only the Lord as Your Master and ignore the yEka sEshithvan of the divine couple ! Pleasedo not seperate the two Tatthvams ! The yEkAksharam PraNavam is a Padham with three aksharams inside it. The third aksharam is MakAram . AkAram amd UkAram precede the MakAram. UkAram also refers to PirAtti just as AkAram refers to EmperumAn .May you all become the bonded servants to the Dhivya damapthis representd by AkAram and UkAram and fulfill the purpose of your births and gain the Parama PurushArTam !

297. The Meaning of MakAram
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Tatthuvam aRunAnkOdu tani iRai anRi ninRa
chitthinai uNarAthu yenRum tiraL thohayAhi ninReer !
Matthanai tani vidAthE mayyilA viLakkam aaki
utthaman adimyAna uyir nilai uNarmineerE !

(Meaning): Jeevan is different from the 24 Tatthuvams represented by Prakruthi , MahAn , ahankAram , eleven indhriyams , five tanmAthrangaLs and five bhUthams. This Jeevan is also different from Iswaran . Oh ChEthanams wallowing in the mud of SamsAram deluded by the thought that the Jeevan's svaroopam -- which is distinct from achEthanam and Iswaran -- is the same as the SarIram , the assembly of the pancha bhUthams and the Indhriyams ! Oh ChEthanams! Please do not lose your wisdom anymore due to such grand delusions . Do not make this mistake anymore of treating Jeevan , the meaning of MakAram , as an independent one outside the ownership of the Lord and His PirAtti . Please understand that the Jeevan is Jn~Ana Svaroopan and has Jn~Anam as its attribute (guNam) and its svaroopam is totally subservient to the dhivya dampathis to gain salvation .

MakAram arises from the verb "mann " meaning both Jn~Ana svaroopam and Jn~Anam as GuNam for the jeevan . MakAram can also be derived from the verb "Mass" meaning a measure or limit. Through other pramAnams , MakAram can be connected to atomic sized jeevan. This Jeevan with atomic size stands in contrast with Iswaran , the Vibhu , who pervades everywhere .

Oh ChEthanams ! When you comprehend clearly the meaning of PraNavam , your delusion about aathmA ( Jeevan ) being SarIram (the assembly of pancha bhUthams and eleven indhriyams) will be gone. The avivEkam (the ignorance) that JeevAthmA as an independent one controlling its own destiny (Svatanthran) will be banished and the jeevan will recognize that it is sesham (servant and dependent) to the Lord and this vivEkam will rush it towards Moksham .

Today , we will conclude the study of the remaining Paasurams of Thirumanthira Churukku .

298. The Meaning behind Nama: Sabdham
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tanathu ivai anaitthumAhat-ThAnn iRayAhum Maayan
unathu yenum uNartthi thArAthu umakku neer urimai uRReer
yenathu ivai anaitthum yAnE iRai yenum iraNDum theera
mana yenum iraNDil mARA vallvinai mARRuveerE

(Meaning): Oh ChEthanams! All the vasthus (chEthanam and achEthanam) are His unquestionale Isvaryam ( sEsham). He is the Only Supreme Master without equal or superior. You must accept and reflect that all vasthus are sEsham to Him and Him
alone. Instead of doing that , you are deluded to think that You are independent of Him to control your vyApArams and get destroyed. There is however an UpAyam for you from this destructive approach. There is a second padham in the AshtAkshara Manthram revered as "Nama: ". It is a small padham with two letters: "Na and Ma: ". MakAram in the nama: sabdham is for the JeevAthmA. Na: means not
for . If you add the word Kinchith , then the sentence " Na Ma: kinchith " results. Kinchith stands here for poruL ( owned wealth of any kind or ownership/rulership ) .This means that no vasthu ( PoruL ) is sesham to JeevAthmA . Reflection on this matter and gaining this true knowledge would suggest that the sense of ownership by JeevAthmA or being a Master of things including its destiny will be destroyed . The idea of being a Svatantran will leave the Jeevan as it gains this Seshathva Jn~Anam
.

299. The Meaning of Nara: sabdham of NaarAyaNa naamam
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azhivu ilaa uyirhatkku yellAm arukkanAi azhiyA Isan
vazhiyilA vazhi vilakkum mathi yezha Maaya Moorthy
vazhuvilAtu ivai anaitthum vayiRRil vaitthu umizhntha Maalai
nazhuvilA Naara-vAkkil naadi neer aNuhuveerE

(meaning) : Jeevans are eternal (nithyAs) . Our Lord protects them from entering in to destructive ways through the anugraham of true Jn~Anam .Our Lord is also eternal. He has the most radiant ThirumEni (Body). He protects the entire world by keeping them safely in a small portion of His stomach durign PraLaya Kaalam and releases them at the time of Srushti.May You all reflect on the Lord of such
Vaibhavams by approaching Him throught he "Naara " sabdham and attain Him .

The first line of this Paasuram is derived from one of the two letters of Naara sabdham made up of Na and ra . Ra is derived from the root of "ree" , which means the one that is destroyed . The letter "na " means "not". Together Na and Ra means the objects that are eternal ( not destroyed over time) . Both Iswaran and Jeevan are eternal . This is what is hinted by "Naara " sabdham.

Another intrepretation is that " Naara " is derived from the root "nru", which means that One who guides all in auspicous ways. The second line of the Paasuram refers to this tathtvam behind "Naara " sabdham.

That which belongs to Naran are Naarams. Naara padham then denotes Bhagavaan's ThirumEni and Auspicious attributes . The word Maaya Moorthy in the second line refers to these tatthvams.

NaarAs are those which are born from Naran. Hence Iswaran is recognized as the root cause for all vasthus from this intrepretation. Third line of this Paasuram covers this meaning.

The fourth line instructs us to seek and attain the Lord , the Jagath Srushti Kaaranan , NaarAyaNan , who is not seperated ever from Naara Sabdham.

300. The Meaning of Ayana Sabdham of NaarAYaNa Naamam
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vayanam onRu aRinthu uraippAr vaNN kazhal vaNanga veLhi
nayanam uLL inRi nALum naLL iruL naNNi ninReer !
ayanam-ivvanaitthukkum ThAnn avai tanakku ayanam yenna
payanumAyp- PathiyyumAna Paramanip-PaNImineerE !

(Meaning): Oh ignorant chEthanams , who shy away from the upadEsams of SadAchAryans known for true intrepretation of the meanings of Veda Manthrams ! You lose your eyes of Jn~Anam through your avoidance of SadAchAryAs . You fail thereby to know that the Lord is the pervasive indweller in all the created vasthus including yourselves and get immersed in the darkness of samsAric night and suffer . Oh ChEthanams ! Please make an effort to comprehend the meanings of the word , "NaarAyaNa" formed from the combination of the two padhams : " Naara Padham " and "ayana padham ". Please comprehend the meaning of "NaarAyaNa " padham , perform SaraNAgathi and achieve the PurushArTam of Moksham .

NaarAyaNa Padham is intrepreted either as " NaarANAm ayanam " (Tathpurusha SamAsam) or as " NaarA: ayanam yasya" (BahUvreehi SamAsam) .

The first line of SamAsam intrepretation states that He is the ayanam for the NaarAs . Ayanam means UpAyam/Means , Phalan/goal and fruit and AadhAram /Basis or substrata. The assembly of Narans (Naaram) is trhe assembly of JeevAthmAs. In this view , EmperumAn is the means and goal for the Jeeva samUham . He becomes the aadhAram for all that were born from Him .

The second line of SamAsam intrepretation (NaarA; ayanam yasya) means that He has Naarams as His ayanam.The "ayana" padham denotes here the objects for His anupravEsam (entry as the indweller or antharyAmi Brahmam). This leads to the intrepretation of the Lord as the One , who has the chEthanams and achEthanams as the objects for His indwelling .

Further , the padham , ayanam means place of residence . In this context , the first samAsam points out that He is the place of residence for ChEthanams and achEthanams (avaihaLukku iruppidamAnavan) . The second SamAsam suggests that He is the NaarAyaNan ,who has the chEthanams and achEthanams as His place of residence.

301. The Meaning of the fourth case associated with the NaarAyaNa Sabdham
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uyarnthavar uNarnthavaRRAl uvantha kuRREval yellAm
ayarnthu neer iympulankatkku adimai pooNDu alarmarhinReer
payanthu ivai anaitthum yEnthum ParamanAr nAmam onRil
viyantha pEradimai thORRum vERRumai mEvuveerE

(Meaning): Oh ChEthanams! AchAryAs have accepted Bhagavath Kaimkaryam as the Parama PurushArTam in the manner in which the sges of the yore have det rmined and established. All of You have the rights (urimai) to perform these Kaimakryams . As a result of your bad karmAs , you have forgotten your rights and are chasing the transient indhriya sukhams and as a result get drowned in the ocean of SamsAram. I would like to point out an upAyam to overcome your problems. There is the fourth case associated with the NaarAyaNa Padham of the sacred AshtAksharam. This underlines Bhagavath Kaimkaryam. Therefore please connect to this meaning and immerse yourself in Bhagavath Kaimkaryam to gain Moksha Sukham .

302. The above meanings treasured as Rahasyams for the discriminating few
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YeNDisai paravum seerOr yengaLukku eentha yettil
uNDavARu uraippAr pOla onpathu poruL uraitthOm
maNDu nAnn MaRayOr kaakkum Maa nidhi ivai anaitthum
KaNDavar viLLAr viLLak-karuthuvAr KaaNNkilArE

Our SadAchAryA's glories are celebrated all over the world . Such great AchAryAs with their limitless compassion for us have instructed us on the deep meanings of AshtAksharam. We have followed their instructions and have benefited immensely from those precious meanings for our upliftment . We have shared those meanings , which have come to us as kula dhanams through the above nine paasurams of this Prabhandham . These treasures of meanings saved for us by SadAchAryAs will not be given away indiscriminately to the unfit ones . Those who intrepret these deep meanings in a disrespectful and incompetent manner can NOT be viewed as knowledgable people about this rahasyam .

ThiruManthira Churukku Prabhandham completed.

Swamy Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam .

NaarAyaNa , NaarAyaNa , NaarAyaNa
Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradachAri Sadagopan

SrimathE SrI Lakshminrusimha Dhivya PaadhukA Sevaka
SrIvaNN SaThakOpa SrI NaarAyaNa YathIndhra MahA DesikAya Nama:

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