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SrimatE Raamaanujaaya Namaha //
SrimatE Nigamaanta Mahaa Desikaaya Namaha //
SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya/
SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya//
KAvEri VardhathAm kAlE, kAlE varshathu vAsava: /
SrI RanganAthO jayathu Sri Ranga Sri cha VardhathAm//
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SRI RANGA SRI VOL.06 / ISSUE # 03 dated 16th  October 2004
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IN THIS ISSUE:
1.             IMPORTANT DAYS IN AIPPASI (TULA) MONTH
2.      GLORY OF GARUDAZHWAR ?
                Part 3 (Anbil Ramaswamy)
3.      NAMMAZHWAR SNIPPETS  -
                TIRUVOIMOZHI Part ? 8 (Anbil Ramaswamy)
4.      FROM MAHABHARATA: ?YAKSHA PRASNAM?
        PART 48: PRASNAM 115 BY SRI M.K. RAMASWAMY IYENGAR SWAMI,
        SENIOR OFFICER OF GOVT. OF INDIA.
======================================================
149 Regular issues have been released, so far besides several Special
Issues) -
- 27 Issues of Vol. 1
- 15 Issues of Vol. 2
- 42 Issues of Vol. 3
- 35 Issues of Vol. 4
- 28 Issues of Vol. 5 &
- 02 Issue of Vol.  6
These issues have been archived for public view at -
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by Sri Diwakar Kannan (diwakark@xxxx)
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by Sri Srinivasan Sriram (ajiva_rts@xxxx)
We strongly urge you to kindly peruse the "Regular Issues" archived in the
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Anbil Ramaswamy,
Editor & Publisher,
?Sri Ranga Sri?
=================================================
1.      IMPORTANT DAYS IN AIPPASI (TULA) MONTH
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DATE /ENGLISH)/DAY/NAKSHATRAM/ (THITHI)/ EVENT/ REMARKS
===================================================
01/10.17.04/Sunday/ Tula month begins, Tula kavEri Snaanam
04/10.20.04/Wednesday/Pooradam/Vishavaksenar,Tirukkurugaipiraan pillaan,
                                        Kidambi Ramanujap pillaan
05/10.21.04/Thursday/ Utradam-Tiruvonam/Sravana Upavasam. Pinbazhagiya 
Jeeyar (V)
06/10.22.04/Friday/Sravanam/POIGAI AZHWAR, Saraswati Pooja, Pillai Lokachar 
(V & P)
07/10.23.04/SaturdayAviTTam/ (Dasami)/ BUDAT AZHWAR, VIJAYA DASAMI
08/10.24.04/Sunday/Sadayam/ (Ekadasi)/ PEY AZHWAR, Suklapaksha Ekadasi, 
Tirumalai
                                        AaNDaan (V & P)
09/10.25.04/PooraTTadi/ Monday/ ViLaancholaippillai (V)
10/10.26.04/Tuesday/Utrattadi/ Valayapettai STTMD, Vatsya Varada MD (P341),
                        Vangipuram Srinivasachariar (p343), Setlur 
Narasimhachariar
11/10.27.04/Wednseday/ Pournami
17/11.02.04Tuesday/ Tiruvadirai/  Koora kulothama Daasar (P)
20/11.05.04/Friday/Ayilyam/Yathiraja Jeeyar, Tirupputkuzhi TTD (p 390)
22/11.07.04/Sunday/ Magam/ Krisahna paksha Ekadasi
26/11.11.04/Thursday/DEEPAVALI, Irumpuliappa (V)
27/11.12.04/Friday/ AMAVASYA
30/11.15.04/Monday/ Moolam/ MANAVALA MAMUNIGAL, Uthama Nambi,
  KethaNDIpaTTi  RRMD (Periya Swami), Kadaimukam
======================================================x
Abbreviations: P: Pambu Panchangam, S: Srirangam Koil Panchangam, V: Vasan 
Panchangam (P): Page number in Swami Desikan?s Commemoration volume, MD: 
Maha Desikan, RRMD: Ranga Ramanuja Maha Desikan, TTD: Tata Desikan

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2.                 GLORY OF GARUDAZHWAR ?
                     Part 3
                    (Anbil Ramaswamy)
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SHARED TIRUNAKSHATRAM:
We saw that the Tirunakshatram of GaruDaazhwar is Swati and that this is 
also the Tirunakshatram of Periyazhwar. It was under this Tirunakshtarm that 
the Lord took His Avatara as Nrisimha. The specialty of this star is that 
the Vedas praise it as ?JyOtir nakshtram?. It is believed that girls whose 
weddings are celebrated in the Suba muhoortam of Swati will live happily in 
their husband?s homes. The Vedas aver this by saying ?nishTaayaam 
dadhyaath?.

MUKTA KALAAPAM:
When the Sun is in Tulaa Raasi and in conjunction with Swati nakshatram, it 
is said that pearls appear in the shells. These pearls are known as ?Swati 
pearls? and ?Muktaakalaapam?

KULA DEIVAM:
The Kula devata of GaruDazhwar is Brihaspati otherwise known as ?Guru?. We 
know the popular saying that the wedding bells toll when there is ?Guru 
Paarvai? in the Jatakam as per JyOtish Sastra. The inference is that if a 
Jataka is a recipient of the blessings of Guru, he/she would get married 
soon.

THE FAMILY TREE:
GaruDa?s father was ?Kaasyapa Maharishi?, son of Sage ?Mareechi?. His mother 
?Vinatai?, was the daughter of Daksha. His elder brother ?Arunan? has no 
limbs below his waist and appears on the sky with a red glow before Sunrise. 
GaruDa had two wives called ?Rudrai? and ?Sukeerthi?.

VAALAKHILYAS:
Valakhilyas were a group of 60.000 Sages born to Brahma?s ?manasa putra 
?Kratu? and his wife ?Kriya?. They were as dwarfish in stature as to be no 
taller than the line across the middle finger. But, they were great 
Tapasvis, who acquired great power by dint of their rigorous penance. They 
used to move in groups. When once they were proceeding to a sacrifice 
performed by Sage Kasyapa, they could not ford a small pit with a handful of 
water because of their physical stature and they did not like to invoke 
their spiritual powers just for this small purpose. They were struggling to 
cross the waters, when Indra came on his elephant. On seeing their plight, 
he made fun of them. Enraged, they cursed Indra that he would be defeated by 
a son of Kasyapa. Thus, they were born as a result of the penance of 
Valakhilyas and their curse on Indra.
During the visit of GaruDa in search of nectar (amrita), Indra with his army 
came to fight and was defeated by GaruDa, son of Kasyapa. (We will revert to 
the story of ?amritaapaharaNa? later)

GaruDa?s IDs:
-       As per the Aagamas, he wears a red garment below his waist.
-       As per Azhwar?s description, he has a mole on the top right portion of 
his 
nose.
-       GaruDa birds have sharp eyesight and could identify even small objects 
with utmost clarity of vision. They are otherwise known as Sem-parundu?.
-       Experts have identified 48 types of the species belonging to this kind 
of 
bird.
-       The height of GaruDa birds ranges up to 1½  feet
-        As per Veda Vaakhyas, however, generally for birds, the ground would 
appear at nights as a flame of fire. So, normally birds would not sit on 
ground during nights. GaruDa birds also do not sit down on ground at nights.
-       When GaruDa birds fly, you can witness a special majesty in their gait. 
They fly without fluttering their wings and fly in an even manner 
reminiscent of the Swastik symbol.
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To Continue
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3.      NAMMAZHWAR SNIPPETS  -
                TIRUVOIMOZHI Part ? 8
                (Anbil Ramaswamy)
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VERSE 4.9.10
kaNdu kETTU urru mOnthu uzhalum aingkaruvi
kaNDa inbam, therivariya alavillaah chitrinbam
oNN Thodiyaal tirumagaLum neeyumE nilaa nirpak
kaNda sadir kaNDu ozhindEn unn tiruvaDiyE

?Oh! Lord! By your grace, I have abandoned the limited mundane pleasures 
provided by the senses of sight, sound, smell, taste and touch and even the 
purely self-gratifying self-knowledge called ?Kaivalyam? or ?Atma 
anubhavam?. All these pleasures are the very anti-thesis of the incomparable 
experience of absolute happiness that you alone can grant?

oNN Thodiyaal tirumagaLum neeyumE nilaa nirpa: I have found out the way to 
realize this happiness of serving you and your consort, the bangle-spangled 
PiraaTTi and I have reached your glorious feet ? glorious because you both 
stand unique and unrivalled in Sri VaikunTam. This ?Serthi? or 
?togetherness? is our ?upaaya? and ?UpEya?.

This togetherness is a favorite subject of Swami Desikan.

oNN Thodiyaal: In Tamizh literature, the hero tells his lady love that he 
has plans to go abroad. At the very mention of separation, the lady becomes 
so famished and thin that her bangles become loose and drop down. When he 
said that he would take her along with him, out of sheer exuberance, she 
regains more than her original form so that she now finds it difficult to 
put on the very same bangles and they break off!
Such is the ?togetherness? of Bhagavaan and Bhagavati!
Cf: ?agalakillEn iraiyum enru alarmEl mangai urai maabhaa?

kaNda sadir: All the others are your ?daasabhootas?- servants. This ?sui 
generis? pre-eminence adored by Nityasooris is what I also seek.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
VERSE 4.10.1
Onrum tEvum ulagum uyirum taadumillaa anru;
naanmugan thannODu dEvar ulagODu uyir paDaithaan
kunram pOL maNi maaDam neeDu tiruk kurugur tannuLL
ninra aadhi piraan nirka matrai deivam naaDudhirE

?In the beginning, the Lord was alone. Neither Brahma, nor Shiva, nor any 
dEvas. No human or other beings. Nothing was there.
Cf: ChaDogya U: - ?sadEva sOmya idam agra aseeth?
Cf: Taittriya UP: ?eKO hi saha naaraayaNa aaseeth, na Brahma, na eesaano, na 
imE dyaavaa prithvee?

He started creating everything including the four faced Brahma, the dEvas, 
the heavens where they live, the earth where all other beings live. It is 
this very same Lord who now stands as ?Aadhipiraan? in Tiruk Kurugur in His 
archaa form exhibiting His ?soulabhyam? as much as His ?Paratvam?. When He 
is very much there waiting to grant whatever you want, (even mOksha on death 
? ?maraNam aanaal VaikunTam koDukkum piraan?,
How come, you run after petty deities (kshudra dEvatas) who are as much His 
creations as you yourselves are??

This includes even the ordinary kings on earth.

NAMPILLAI explains that Bhagavaan created the 4 faced Brahma who created the 
5 faced Shiva who in his turn created the 6 faced one. Thus, the ?eka? 
became ?bahu?. This also alludes to the story of ?kapaala mOksham?

Udhanga asked KrishNa whether KrishNa could not have averted the Mahaa 
Bhaarata war. KrishNa is said to have replied:
?I have tried my best but DuryOdhana was bent upon destroying the PaaNDavas 
and swore that he would not live while PaaNDavas were alive, thus exhibiting 
extreme enmity towards PaaNDavas. So, I had to give up ?peace offensives? 
and resort to ?war offensives?

Similarly, the Lord tried His best to wean the Samsaris and elevate them to 
the company of ?Nitya - Sooris?, but they were obstinately determined to be 
?Nitya - Samsaaris? and resisted the Lord so much that He had to give up and 
entrust the duty to Azhwar!

People are confused and misled into false determination by various Saastras 
and PuraaNas that seek to glorify certain petty deities in certain specific 
contexts, giving the impression that they are either equal or even superior 
to Bhagavaan. They do not have either the maturity or the patience to 
examine in what specific circumstances and for what reasons hyperbole was 
employed in the case of other deities. These people fail to understand how 
these hyperboles are never meant to detract from the ?Paratvam? of 
Bhagavaan.

They do not understand how Agni, Shiva and others have been spoken of highly 
in ?Taamasa? PuraaNas which are really NOT authoritative at all and Brhama 
and others in ?Raajasa? PuraaNas that are perhaps only a little more 
authoritative than the earlier ones. The most authentic ?Saatvika? PuraaNas 
have never been tired of declaring Bhagavaan as THE PARAMATMA.

Perhaps, the Lord thought that the best person to disabuse their minds would 
be the Azhwar, instead of Himself making the effort that might be 
misunderstood as ?self-glorification?.

In this decad 4.10, the Azhwar, out of compassion, desires to correct those 
whom even the Lord could not! He first establishes how ?Sriyah Pathi? is THE 
SUPREME LORD and yet He was so accessible taking His abode at Tirunagari, 
the birthplace of the Azhwar himself. Then, he points out how ignorant folks 
fall for the trivial and temporary benefits made available by petty deities. 
He then proceeds to implore them to realize the blend of supreme power with 
supreme mercy of ?sriyah Pathi? who would grant not only ?MOksha? but also 
all that can be and those that cannot be granted by these petty deities.

At the outset, the Azhwar established the ?Paratvam? in: Uyarvara? and in 
?TiNNan veeDU?, he established His ?Vibhavam?. But, to no avail. He now 
gives a clarion call saying that ?HERE HE is standing in all His 
?Soulabhyam? in the archaa form waiting patiently for them to return to Him?

TIRUKKURUGAIPIRAAN PILLAAN who wrote the 6000 PaDi, marshals unrebuttable 
?PramAaNams? in support of this position while explaining the import of this 
hymn as also hymn 3 of this  decad- ?deivam matrillai pesuminE?. As the 
PramaaNas are inexhaustible, he concludes by saying ?We need not search for 
any more PramaaNas than what the Azhwar has declared in this hymn?

NINRA AADHI PIRAAN: The one who stands foremost in the PramaaNas. The way 
Aadhi piraan stands looks as if He were doing a penance! The Lord seems to 
think ?Oh! I have given these people soul, body limbs and Saastras to guide. 
But, they do not seem to learn. May be, they will realize at some stage when 
they will become mature enough. Let me give them a long rope and wait 
patiently?

TIRUKKURUGAIPIRAAN PILLAAN marvels referring to AADHI PIRAAN ?
?Can you ever imagine a ?SEshi? (master) yearning like a ?saadaka? bird 
(that waits patiently for the fresh rain water which alone it drinks) and 
waiting patiently for His ?SEsha? (servant)? What a Soulabhyam? When such a 
one is waiting for you to grant whatever you want, your running after petty 
deities is like a person digging a well for water on the banks of the 
eternal flowing Ganges?

ACHARYA HRIDAYAM comments that the Azhwar?s poetic genius combined with his 
extreme compassion flows like water, milk and ghee and broke the banks of 
Para Bhakti, Para jnaana and Parama Bhakti and outflowed to save humanity in 
the form of this ?AVAAVIL ANTADI? ? the flood of eagerness to save humanity 
through this ?anta aadhi? ?AzhwaaruDaiya kavi Bhakti praavaNyam, neer, paal, 
nei amudhaai nirambina, Eri mEnikku naLIyumaappOlE Para Bhakti, Para Jnaana, 
Parama Bhakti aaga viLangi, karai miDantu mozhippaTTu avaavil antaadi enru 
peyar petradu?
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To Continue
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4.      FROM MAHABHARATA: ?YAKSHA PRASNAM?
        PART 48: PRASNAM 115 BY SRI M.K. RAMASWAMY IYENGAR SWAMI,
        SENIOR OFFICER OF GOVT. OF INDIA.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
PRASNAM 115
YAKSHA:
?PRIYAVACHANAVAADI KIM LABHATE??
?WHAT DOES THAT PERSON WHO IS EVER SWEET IN SPEECH ACHIEVE??
YUDHISHTIRA:
?PRIYAVACHANAVAADI PRIYO BHAVATI?
?THE PERSON WHO SPEAKS SWEETLY BECOMES POPULAR AND IS WELL LIKED BY ALL?

NOTES:
YudhishTira is emphasizing that there should be no compromise when sweetness 
in speech is concerned. It is well accepted that there can be no compromise 
with truth. ?Satyam brooyaath?- The truth shall be told. It is equally 
important that ?Priyam brooyaath?- what is being told should be said 
pleasantly. Even a bitter pill can be swallowed if it is wrapped in jam.
The cool shade provided by the leafy banyan tree is pleasing. The cool 
sandal paste is likewise pleasing when the Sun is in the mid Heaven and the 
day is extremely hot. The cool beams of the moon shining in the star laden 
cloudless sky also please. But, nothing pleases more than the word uttered 
sweetly.

Even if a person has nothing to give, provided he conveys that modestly and 
sweetly, no pain is caused to the seeker. When YudhishTira and his brothers 
along with Draupadi left Hastinapura to live in the forest for 12 years, 
many Sannyasins and Brahmacharis (who neither have a household nor neither 
cook for food) accompanied him. YudhishTira?s brow became creased with worry 
that in the forest he will not be able to look after them and feed them. He 
said:
?Sahaaya viparibhramsatvayam saadayateeva maam?
(Vana parva Ch.2:7)

?I am without any means or resources to look after you. Because of that, I 
am stricken with grief?

Promptly the Sannyasins and Brahmacharis said that they themselves would 
make all arrangements for their food and shelter and would not prove to be a 
burden to YudhishTira and his brothers. Their main aim was to live by the 
side of good and noble souls and avoid living in a place ruled by a vile 
person like DuryOdana.

The PrasnOttara Maalika tells clearly that a person who does not know how to 
speak sweetly should be classified as dumb.
?KO mookhO?? ?
?Who is dumb??
?Yah kale priyaaNi vaktum na jaanaati?
?He is dumb who does not know how to utter a sweet word at the right time?

YudhishTira makes this subtle point as well. Those who speak words of wisdom 
in a pithy manner through aphorisms are much respected. However, those who 
say the same truth pleasantly and non-judgmentally through parables and 
psalms are more respected and loved than the former.
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