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Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

 

                The Peerless Pedestrian
 

   To the newborn infant, which would you say is the most attractive part of 
the mother's anatomy? The baby is unable to focus yet on the mother's face, 
which is wreathed in smiles, nor is it able to look her in the eye and 
encounter the brimming love and affection it reflects. Nor even is the little 
one aware of her warm hands holding it with all gentleness. The one and only 
part of the mother the baby is instinctively and immediately aware of is her 
breast, which serves as its sole source of sustenance.

 

Now, putting ourselves in the position of the babe (which, in any case, people 
like me are, in terms of wisdom and maturity) and picturising the Lord as the 
mother (which also shouldn't be difficult, considering His being the progenitor 
of all beings), which would we find to be the most important part of His 
tirumEni, in terms of affording us the greatest bliss, security, sustenance and 
succour? Whole volumes might have been written on the beauty of the Lord's 
captivating eyes, His blooming countenance, His broad and beautiful chest 
housing Sri Mahalakshmi, His long and sinewy hands holding weapons which serve 
at once as destroyers and adornments, and so on. However, to suffering mortals 
like us steeped in sin and blundering eternally in the mundane maze, which 
would be the part of the Lord's torso that is most useful to us, that affords 
us the most relief and bliss and ultimately serves as a beautiful boat ferrying 
us across the treacherous waters of Samsara? 

 

Much more than any other part of His glorious tirumEni, the Lord's holy feet 
("Tiruvadi") are the ones that find repeated mention in the Shruti, which is, 
for us, the ultimate authority on any matter under the Sun. The SamhitAs and 
BrAhmaNAs are replete with adulatory references to these Tiruvadis. Here are a 
few, for a sample-

 

"VishNO: padE paremE madhva utsa:"

 

The incredibly sweet and glorious feet of the Lord secrete nectar, says the 
Shruti, which Sri Nammazhwar translates thus-"un tEnE malarum tiruvadi 
tAmarai". When we consider that these tiruvadi are likened to freshly bloomed 
lotuses ("PAda pankajam", TAmarai adikkaL", "Pankaya TAL", etc.), there is 
nothing strange or unnatural about their secreting nectar. While ordinary 
Nectar obtained from the depths of the Milky Ocean is supposed to confer 
immortality on the consumer, the nectar emanating from the Lord's feet afford 
eternal bliss and emancipation, which are a billion times more desirable than 
mere immortality. Sri Alavandar too confirms that the Lord's tiruvadi is the 
source of this incredible secretion-"Tava amruta syandini pAda pankajE".

 

Talking of secretions, it is worth remembering that the Lord's feet were also 
the source of the holiest of all rivers, the Ganga. Legend has it that when the 
Lord's feet, in their conquering spree during the TrivikramAvatAra, visited 
SatyalOka, BrahmA performed tirumanjam to it with water from his "kamandalu", 
which then became a veritable torrent, later brought to the mundane worlds 
through the marathon efforts of the IkshvAku Emperor BhagIratha. "VishNu 
pAdAbja sambhootE, GangE! Tripada gAminI" is a tribute to this sacred river, 
indicating its holy origins. 

 

Why should the Lord's feet be likened to the lotus, when there are any numbers 
of other blooms? There are several similarities between the Lord's tiruvadi and 
the TAmarai. For one thing, both are a bright and beautiful red. Both are 
incredibly soft and supple. Both secrete delectably sweet juices, the former 
nectar and the latter, honey. Both bloom at the prompting of external stimuli, 
the lotus at the rising sun and the Lord's feet at the proximity of devotees. 
Just as a bee, which has tasted the pollen from the lotus, would never ever 
look again at a thorny shrub, one who has been fortunate to savour the flavour 
of the divine tiruvadi would look askance at any other mundane pleasure. 

("tava amruta syandini pAda pankajE

nivEsitAtmA katham anyat icchati

stitthEravindE makaranda nirbharE

madhuvratO na ikshurakam hi veekshatE"

--Sri Alavandar).

 

It is not only Nectar and the Ganga which owe their origins to the Lord's 
feet-even this big, broad world and numerous others like it, along with the 
innumerable galaxies and universes, originated from the holy tiruvadi, says the 
Purusha Suktam-"PadhbhyAm Bhoomi: disa: shrotrAt".  These were again the 
incredible feet, which transformed a dust-coated wayside stone into an 
extremely beautiful Rishi patnI (AhalyA). (So much so that the boatman Guha had 
initial reservations about letting Sri Rama set foot on his boat, lest the 
ferry be transformed into a bewitching feminine form.)

These again were the holy feet, which gave life to UttarA's foetus, which was 
reduced to a handful of ashes and were thus responsible for the very life and 
breath of ParIkshit Maharaja. And these are the tiruvadis which SreedEvi and 
Bhoomi Piratti massage gently with their soft hands, says Swami Desikan-

 

"PAshANa nirmita tapOdhana dharma dAram

 bhasmani upAhita narEndra kumAra bhAvam

samvAhitam TridasanAtha! RamA MaheebhyAm

sAmAnya daivatam usanti padam tvadeeyam"

 

The most-talked about exploit of the Lord's tiruvadi is, of course, the 
measuring of the worlds above and below, during the Trivikramavataram. The 
tiny, delicate feet of the VAmana Brahmachari grew into colossal ones capable 
of spanning the entire universe with one giant step. And in the process of 
measuring the world, these sacred tiruvadis, which only the Divine Consorts 
have any hope of seeing or touching, placed themselves on the heads of all 
beings, right from the most exalted of Emperors to the humblest of menials, 
with absolutely no distinction as to caste, creed, colour, economic or social 
status. Even non-sentient objects were favoured by this purifying contact with 
the holy feet, which they could not dream of in innumerable births. Sri 
Alavandar, who was not around when the Trivikramavataram took place, longs for 
a momentary touch of the Lord's triuvadi on his head-"Trivikrama ! tvat 
charaNAmbuja dvayam madeeya moordhAnam (kadA) alankarishyati!". And it is this 
exploit that the Shruti chronicles time and again, making this the most 
talked-about avatara-

 

"TreeNi padA vichakramE VishNu: gOpA adAbhya:"

"trEdhA VishNu: urugAyO vichakramE"

"VichakramE prithivImEsha EtAm" etc.

Thus, it is the Lord's glorious feet and their exploits that afford Him the 
distinction of repeated mention by the Shruti.

 

When we come to think of it, in the process of Asrita RakshaNam (protection of 
the sAdhUs) it is the Lord's feet which are put in use the most and are also 
the part of the divine torso which strain the most. The event that comes to our 
mind immediately is the long walk of Chakravartthi Tirumagan, from Chitrakootam 
to Lanka, roaming throughout the jungle trails of DandakAraNyam, strewn with 
sharp stones and thorns. Though the Prince of Ayodhya did have sandals on His 
feet when He set out for the jungle sojourn, Sri Bharata took them away at 
Chitrakootam, with the result that the entire remaining journey was completed 
by the Purushottama on bare feet. Just think of it, a Prince of the celebrated 
IkshvAku dynasty, used to all the magnificent comforts of the palace, unused to 
the hardships of the inhospitable forests, traversing the interminable distance 
between Chitrakootam and Lanka on foot, barefoot that too, with the delicate 
soles, unused to hard surfaces, being exposed to stones, thorns and whatnot, 
besides being forced to walk in hot sun, numbing cold and pouring rain! 

 

Even in Sri Krishnavatara, the Lord walked a lot at the bidding of His 
devotees, we are told. When the PandavAs, as a last ditch effort to avoid war 
with the KauravAs, needed someone to carry a message of peace and compromise to 
the latter, it was Sri Krishna they chose, because none else could represent 
their viewpoint with absolute commitment and wisdom. And Sri Krishna accepted 
this assignment with all enthusiasm, despite the rather low profile that a 
messenger carries, and walked with the message from the Pandava camp to that of 
the Kauravas-"Daruman irandadu isaindu chendrana" says Swami Desikan, referring 
to the Lord's feet, which engaged themselves in the lowly occupation of a 
messenger, at the request of the Pandava.

 

Are the Lord's feet capable of only such innocuous deeds? Do they play no part 
in proactive destruction of evil elements, which pose a threat to the good and 
holy? Indeed they do, says Sri Andal, ("pondra sakatam udaittAi pugazh pOttri") 
recounting the Lord's childhood exploit of kicking a wheel and breaking it into 
pieces-"uru sakatam udaya oru kAluttru uNarndana". This was no ordinary wheel, 
but a messenger of death dispatched by Kamsa to eliminate Sri Krishna. Upon 
being administered a well-aimed kick from the Lord's lotus feet, the mortally 
wounded asura regained his natural form and fell down dead. 

 

And then there is the episode of the kutti Krishna subduing the venomous 
serpent KALiya, by dancing on the latter's head--  "adal uraga padam madiya Adi 
kadindana". The normally lotus-soft feet of the Lord acquired an unbearable 
heaviness and punch, and each step of Krishna's ballet descended on the 
serpent's hood like a bolt of lightning, taming the snake in no time at all. 

 

>From all the aforesaid, it is clear that the Lord's feet have indeed undergone 
>untold strain. Is it because of all this strenuous walking and other exercise 
>that He adopts a recumbent posture, ask Azhwars-

"andru iv ulagam aLanda asavE kol?"

 

Sri Nammazhwar too poses such a rhetorical question to the Lord, 
querying Him as to the reasons for His apparent tiredness-

"KodiyAr mAda KOLuragatthum PuLingudiyum 

  MadiAdhu indrE nee tuyil mEvi magizhndadhu tAn

  adiAr allal tavirttha asavO andrEl ip

  padithAn neeNdu tAviya asavO, paNiyAyE"

"You were after all a young boy during Vamanavatara. Still, your 
holy feet had to traverse the entire universe and the heavens too. 
Has this been so much of a strain on you that You had to lie down to 
rest? Or are You fatigued by attending to frequent calls for succour 
from distressed devotees?" enquires Azhwar , seeking the reason for 
the Lord's supine posture. 

 

"nadanda kAlgaL nondavO?" inquires Tirumazhisai Piran too.

 

A more modern poet, expanding on the Azhwar's theme, adduces a 
variety of possible reasons for Emperuman's kidandha tirukkOlam. 
Could it be due to the strain of covering innumerable miles on foot 
during the vanavAsa as Sri Rama? Or is it due to running after the 
elusive MArIcha, who, in a bid to isolate Sri Mythily, dragged Sri 
Rama quite far from His Ashrama in hot chase?  Or is it due 
to the constant roaming in the hot sun, tending to cows, in the 
boisterous company of gOpa brats? Listing all these, the poet 
plaintively asks the Lord-"En paLLi koNdeer IyyA?"

 

It is to cure the Lord's feet of all the possible ache and pain the aforesaid 
activities must have caused, that Sridevi and Bhoodevi massage His feet gently, 
with their soft and supple palms. Even their extremely spongy palms leave 
Emperuman's indescribably delicate feet red, says the Venkateswara Prapatti-

"sa prEma bheeti KamalA kara pallavAnAm

samvAhanEpi samatikramam AtatAnou

KAntA vAngmanasa gOchara soukumAryou

Sri Venkatesa charanou sharanam prapadyE"

Swami Desikan confirms this-"Malar MagaL mai varuda malar pOdil sivandana"

 

Be all this as it may, we are more interested in learning what the Lord's feet 
mean to us mortals. We are told that Emperuman's tiruvadis are our ultimate 
refuge, a sanctuary par excellence, a safe haven from the jungle of Samsara 
filled with terrifying wild animals, an admirable asylum from the pursuing 
predator of Karma and a shady shelter from the scorching sun of TApatrayam (the 
three kinds of heat that make us dehydrated spiritually).  It is a place of 
eternal peace, rest, relaxation and recuperation for souls battered by the 
constant buffeting of the winds blowing across the mundane morass. It is in the 
comforting shadow of these divine feet that we can experience the unique and 
unprecedented bliss that only the Lord can afford us. 

 

It is due to all these reasons that we seek refuge in Emperuman's tiruvadi, as 
ordained by the magnificent Dvaya Mantram. However, this is an esoteric 
formulation, obtained only by the elite few. What about the rest of the 
suffering masses who do not have access to this magnificent Mantra? To all 
those in the latter class, Emperuman at Tirumala reveals the secret of 
happiness in this and other worlds, by pointing His right palm at His holy 
feet, indicating to us that it is only through surrender to them that we can 
rid ourselves of our mundane coils and attain liberation.

 

When a thousand slokas could be composed on the sandals adorning the Lord's 
feet, how many million verses could be devoted to the actual tiruvadis 
themselves! Let me end this piece with just one of them, from Swami Desikan's 
NavamaNi Malai, which boasts of a lovely, lilting metre-

 

"oru madhi anbar uLam kavarndana

 ulagam adanga vaLandu aLandana

 oru sadai ondriya Gangai tandana

 uraga padangaL arangu koNdana

 

 Darumam uyarndadu idu enna nindrana

 Daruman irandadu isaindu chendrana

 Sakatam udaindu kalanga vendrana

 TamargaL arundum marundu idu enbana

 

 TirumagaL seyya karangaL ondrina

 Tigazh tuLavu undu maNam kamazhndana

 Chezhu maNi konda silambu ilangina

 Selai tanil andru oru aNangu umizhndana

 

Varu marai andam amarnda paNbina

 Ayan mudi tannil amarndu uyarndana

 AruL tara eNNi ayindai vandana

Adiyavar meyyar malar padangaLE"

 

Srimate Sri lakshmINrisimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana 
Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

dasan, sadagopan

 

 



   

 

 

 

 



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]




 
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