`Paasuram-56`

?avarivar endrillai anangavEl tAdaikku

yavarum edir ellai kaNdeer-vuvariK

kadal nanjamundAn kadan endru vANar

kudanindru tORRAn orungu?

Azhvar tried advising and getting people to the right track but all in vain. So azhvar refrained from his act and stopped by saying, ?nedumAlE! Ninadiyai yArOdha vallAravar? Immediately the devotees of rudra said, ?Oh! Azhveer we don?t mind you talking great of your lord but then don?t forget that there is one another rudra equal to him. It was rudra who swallowed the deadly poison that emerged from the milky ocean during amruthamadhanam and saved one and all.? Azhvar couldn?t keep quiet so he clarifies, ?The same rudra vowed to save bhanasuran but failed to do the same against Krishna. How can he be called as the saviour? There is absolutely no one equal to sarvEsvaran?

(anagavEl tAdaikku avarivar endrillai yavaraum edir ellai kaNdeer) No one can be really compared with the great elegant emperuman regarded as ?manmadha manmadhan? (Beautiest beauty). Irrespective of the intellectual or the non-intellectual no one can even come near the greatness of Sriman Narayanan. Do you understand?

(anangavEl tAdaikku yavarum edir ellai) neither anyone equals his beauty nor they equal his virility.

(avar evar) avar-refers to those at a distance

evar-refers to those nearby

Here evar refers to the chetanas close to azhvar and avar refers to the brahma rudras in the deva lokam at a distance from the manushya lokam. Those in this world are deficient in knowledge and power when compared to the brahma rudras but in comparison with the divine lord there is not much difference between the chetanas here or in the deva lokam. None of them can equal the divine lord.

(yAvarum edir ellai kaNdeer)It may be rudra or the devas underneath him none of then can match the greatness of the lord.

If you have not realized this fact till now let me make the point clear, says azhvar

Another objection was raised; didn?t rudra swallow the deadly poison that emerged during the churning of the milky ocean? Can?t we consider him equal to the supreme lord?

(vuvarikadal nanjamuNdAn) Yes siva did swallow the deadly poison but the sastras declare that it was possible only due to the divine grace and blessing of the lord almighty.

(kadan endru vAnarkku) but the same rudra failed to keep up his vow to save bhana infront of all.

(vudan nindru tORRAn) During the bhanasura yuddha, rudra stood in the opposition and fought against Krishna only to face defeat. With the blessings of the lord rudra can do anything but if he tries to oppose the lord himself then he has to face defeat.

(orungu tORRAn) In the case of defeat, there was no difference between bhanasuran or rudra or the whole army. None of them were able to stand in front of Krishna and fight, all of them faced the same defeat.

Thereby it is clear that no one can really equal emperuman, be it brahma or rudra or any other jeeva in the lord?s creation.

(To Be Continued)

Azhvar emperumAnAr Jeeyer thiruvadigalE sharaNam

Adiyen ramanuja dAsee

Sumithra Varadarajan

Ramanuja List Archive: Message 00098 Nov 2005

Paasuram-56

`Paasuram-56`