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SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anubadravam anudhinam samvardhaya/
SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anubadravam anudhinam samvardhaya//
KAvEri VardhathAm kAlE, kAlE varshathu vAsava:/
SrI RanganAthO jayathu SrI Ranga SrIs cha VardhathAm// ========================================================================
SRI RANGA SRI VOL. 2 / 05 DATED 4th June 2001
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SPECIAL ISSUE CELEBRATING
NAMMAZHWAR TIRUNAKSHATRAM VAIKASI-VISAKAM
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?VAGHULABARANA PERUMAL VASI ARINDHIDU NAAL?
(Anbil Ramaswamy)
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The above line is recited in the verse in the ?TirunaaL PaaTTu? dedicated to celebrate the birthday of Swami Desika.

What has this to do with Nammaazhwaar?

?Vaghula? is the fragrant flower of ?Magizhampoo? (in Tamil). Nammaazhwaar used to wear a garland of this flower. He is, therefore, known as ?VaghulaabharaNan?. It is said that the fragrance of this flower permeates to every syllable of his ?Tituvoimozhi?, considered to be the essence of Vedas. Says Desika:
? varNasthomai Vaghula sumano vaasanaam Udhvahantheem /
aamnaayaanaam prakritim aparaam samhithaam drishTavantham?

1. Those who have learned the Vedas are dear to Bhagavan; to help those not eligible to learn Vedas, Nammaazhwaar had rendered the Vedas in Tamil. Hence, he is known as ?Vedam Tamizh seitha Maaran?. 2. The moment one learns to recite Tiruvoimozhi instantly becomes dear to the Lord as if that one had learned to recite the Vedas. In fact, this is considered superior to the work of Paraasara in expounding the esoteric truths to be understood by even the lay folk. 3. For those, who cannot learn to recite even this Tituvoimozhi, Nammaazhwaar, out of his infinite compassion, took the incarnation of the ?Paadukas? of the Lord. ?DraminidOpanishaan nivesa soonyaanapi dhruvam aavisathi sma Paadhukaatmaa Satakopa swameva maananeeya:?

Through his Tituvoimozhi, Nammaazhwaar has given us some valuable message. The one who not only understood thoroughly the mind (Tiru uLLam) of the Azhwaar but also applied it in his own lifestyle was none other than Swami Desika. That is why we sing ?Vaghulabarana PerumaaL Vaasi ArindhiDu NaaL?.

Let us see how?

Nammaazhwaar looked around to see if there were any Vaishnavas who could give him company in enjoying the Gunaanubhavams of the Lord. He was totally disappointed to find none to dos so; they were so madly after filthy lucre and wasted their lives in singing the praise of mere mortals to earn their morsels. He lamented:

?True. I will antagonize) if I tell you the truth: Never mind; I will nevertheless tell what I have to. At least listen to me?
?Sonnaal virodham idhu; aagilum solven, kenmin?

In other words, ? I ask you not to sing the praise of mere mortals, if only for earning your livelihood. I know that if I say this to you, you will consider me as your enemy. Even if you do not ?follow? Oh! Friends, Vaishnavas, Countrymen! Lend me your ears?. For how long can these mortals provide you sustenance? If you sing the praise of Lord Venkata, He is sure to grant you all that you need and good for you, not for now only but forever. (KoLLak kuraivilan, veNDitrellaam tharum kOdhilaan).
So, please come on! Let us praise His glory?.

What was the response? None heeded his advice.
Swami Desika is the one who took this advice seriously.

Once, VidyaaraNya who was a minister to Vijayanagar empire wrote to Swami Desika ? Swamin: I described to the Emperor your poetic skills and how easily you demolish the arguments of your adversaries by sheer logic based on appropriate authority (PramaaNas). Since then, he has always been thinking of you. I beseech you to go over here and give us the pleasure of your abilities in praise of the Emperor?

Following the advice of Nammaazhwaar, he sent a slOka in reply commencing with the words ?kshoNeekoNa? meaning- ?What is the use of praising a petty king who takes pride in ruling over a miniscule bit of the land? How long can he provide sustenance? We do not care for this. We have decided to praise only Sriman Narayana who can grant not only ?moksha? but also all else as a bonus?

He goes on to substantiate this by citing the case of ?Kuchela Muni? who offered just a fistful of beaten rice (aval) and in turn was rewarded with unimaginable wealth and was transformed into a ?Kubera?, the Lord of wealth.

Azhwaar pleaded for a ?hearing? at least, even if his listeners did not ?heed? his advice but was sorely disappointed. Swami Desika removed his anguish through this incident In fact, Swami Desika employed almost the same words and sentiments which Azhwaar used. The ?Kuchela muni? was endowed with ?kubera sampath? in proof of Azhwaar?s general statement
?koLLak kuraivilan, venditrellaam tharum vaLLal?

Swami imagines that some materialistic minded poets posing a question to Azhwaar ? ?We are praising mortal kings for earning our livelihood. What is wrong in this? Can we do hard work like tilling the land which involves manual labor for which we are not cut out? What is wrong in adopting the easier means of gaining what we want by dishing out a few words of praise on ordinary human beings who could satisfy our needs of the hour??

The Swami replies:
?There is none in this world who could guarantee you whatever you need. Not only for now but forever. The only one who could grant all and more is our Lord?

When VidyaaraNya repeated his entreaty again, Swami Desika who was a ?Vairaghya nidhi? sent again another reply of 5 slokas commencing with the words-?silam kim analam bhaveth? These were also on the lines of Azhwaar?s Srisookti.

Swami asks ??What else do you want beyond food to eat, water to drink and clothes to wear? For securing these, you don?t need to do any hard labor. All you have to do is to gather a few grains from the fields, drink the copious waters that flow in the streams and use some bits of torn clothes to cover your body. These are all available for free. Why should you waste your talents on petty kings? I, for one, would never squander my God-given gift of fragrant speech and would never ever beg for anything which, for me, is no better in value than a piece of grass?/

Thus, Swami Desika followed the advice of Azhwaar and relieved him of his anxiety and also felt himself relieved. Thus, did Swami Desika understand the import of Azhwaar?s advice, as it is, and faithfully implemented it in practice.

Now, let us enjoy the couplet ?
?VaghuLabharaNap perumaaL
Thamizhin Vaasi arindhiDu naaL
Uthamamaana Purattaasi
ThiruvoNam enu naaLe?
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(Based on article in Swami Desika?s 7th Centenary Commemoration Volume, by Siromani, Sri Bhashya Simhasanam Srimad U. Ve. Vidwan Purisai Nadadur Krishnamachariar Swami, Editor & Publisher, Nrisimhapriya.)
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