Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
High-Brow Stuff
Each and every part of the human anatomy has been designed by an expert divine
engineer, with an eye both for aesthetics and utility. Almost all components of
our physique have an indispensable function to perform, the eyes leading us
straight on our path and letting us see the myriad objects in God's Creation,
the ears enabling us to grasp sounds, the nose and nostrils filtering the air
we breathe in, the tongue enableing communication with others and so on. Every
part of our body thus appears to have a highly utilitarian role, so much so
that its absence or impairment cripples us badly. Even the insignificant
eyelashes appear to perform the important function of keeping dust and grime
out of our eyes.
However, think as we might, we are unable to find any practical utility for one
part of the human anatomy, viz., the Brows. We are hard put to divine what
exactly they are meant for, for they apparently have no real use, situated as
they are on top of the eye-socket. It is then that we remember that the Divine
Architect, who designed our physique, had in mind not only utilitarian but also
artistic and aesthetic considerations. Perhaps He wanted the human body to be
not only a high-performance mechanism, but also one which was easy on the eye.
But for this artistic consideration, the human anatomy would perhaps have been
as much of an eyesore as the robots that we humans have designed. If we really
stop to think about it, the human physique could very well have been made
strictly functional, without any of the frills and embellishments that add some
colour, beauty, softness and general good looks to it. That the Creator has
chosen to endow us with not only functional efficiency but also some element of
seemliness, indicates consideration and kindness of a very high order, for
which we have to remain eternally thankful to Him.
Coming back to the Brows, it appears pretty clear that this particular part of
our physique has little practical utility and is meant solely to enhance our
looks. Those of you who have any doubt as to whether the Brows serve as
adornments to our face, would only have to look at some of the strange
specimens of humanity, who chose to shave off their brows for reasons best
known to themselves-the rather strange and unseemly spectacle that these
creatures present is enough assurance to us that the Brows do have a function
to perform, that of making our visages more seemly.
Everything about Emperuman is beautiful, sweet and magnificent-"MathurAdhipatE:
akhilam madhuram". This being so, His Brows are no exception and are as
exquisite as the rest of His divine anatomy. They are perfectly shaped
semi-circles situated above His broad and beautiful eyes, representing a hairy
adornment to them. They resemble a magnificent Bow in shape and instantly
enchant devotees whose glances happen to stray on to these brows. Swami Desikan
says that in creating Manmatha's famous bow (with which he lets loose flowery
arrows on people, instantly inducing romantic thoughts in them), it was the
Lord's Brow that served as a model to the creator Brahma, but for which the
latter would have been hard put to design the same-
'Evam chEt akhila jantu vimOhanArhA
Kim mAtrukA bhavati KAma sharAsanasya?"
Not only in shape, but also in enchanting and enticing all onlookers, it is the
Lord's brows which have served as a role model for ManmathA's bow.
The Lord's Brows serve as a Welcome Arch, a "TOraNam" for devotees, who wish to
treat themselves to the beauty of His splendorous eyes.
Is it any wonder then that Sri Kodai Nacchiar loses Herself in the boundless
beauty of these Brows? She tells us that the Lord's brows are as bent and
beautiful as the magnificent Bow SArngam that He holds in His hand. ("Tan kai
SArngam aduvE pOl azhagiya puruva vattam"). She also seems to imply that the
Brows are no less deadly than the SArngam, flooring opponents with a rain of
lethal arrows. In fact, the Brows are worse than the SArngam in one respect.
While it is only the opponents of the Lord and His votaries who form the
victims of the Bow, the Brow, on the other hand, floors His devotees too. They
are unable to hold their own against its onslaught and surrender meekly to the
Lord, with cries of "JitantE! PundarIkAksha!" ("We are won over, despite
ourselves"). Even if one wants nothing to do with the Lord, His beautiful Brows
fell the unwilling devotee with a single shot, with arrows from the lotus eyes
coated with overwhelming love and affection, to which no human being or
celestial is immune. Thus, whether it is devotees of the Lord or His sworn
enemies, none is proof against the onslaught of the beautiful bow comprising of
the Lord's brows.
It is significant that the words "Bow" and "Brow" are very much alike, with but
an "r" to distinguish them-for, from the aforesaid, they appear to be extremely
similar in appearance and function too. It is also worth noting that the word
"Brow" in English, is but a derivative of its equivalent in Sanskrit-"Bhruva:",
to which the Tamil "Puruvam" also owes its origin.
It is thus not at all strange that the Lord's Brows have innumerable
admirers-Sri Periazhwar, Sri Nammazhwar, Sri Andal, Sri Alavandar and Swami
Desikan, to name but a few.
Sri Vishnuchitta is so captivated by the arched Brows of Sri Krishna, that not
only does he feast his eyes on their beauty, but invites everyone in the world
to partake in his bliss-
"Paruvam nirambAmE pAr ellAm uyya
Tiruvin vadivu okkum Devaki pettra
Uruvu kariya oLi maNi vaNNan
Puruvam irundavA kANIrE, pooN mulayeer vandu kANeerE"
Sri Nammazhwar too expresses his utter fascination with the beautiful Brows of
Tirukkurungudi Nambi, commenting incidentally on their length--
"tokka sOdi toNdai vAyum neeNda puruvangaLum
Takka tAmarai kaNNum pAviyEn Aviyin mElanavE"
Since the eyes are long ("neeNda ap periayavAya kaNgaL"), it is but natural
that the Brows are long too-"neeNda puruvangaL".
Sri Alavandar tells us that Emperuman's Brows are not only beautiful, they are
slender too, long like a creeper and stylishly bent, so as to instantly capture
the hearts of onlookers-"sa vibhrama bhroo latam". The Lord's brows are not
"Beetle Brows", thick and unseemly, but slender, like a creeper. Nor are the
brows straight as a bar, but bend stylishly like a bow, enchanting everyone who
sets eyes on them. We find so many women paying fortunes for shaping their
eyebrows-they can save themselves a lot of money, if they adopt the Lord's
Brows as models for their own.
Here is Swami Desikan's tribute to the bewitching Brows, in Sri Devanayaka
Panchasat-
"nEtum sarOja vasati: nijam Adhi rAjyam
nityam nisAmayati DEvapatE! Bhruvou tE
Evam na chEt akhila jantu vimOhanArhA
Kim mAtrukA bhavati KAma sharAsanasya"
Though the function of Creation has been delegated by the Lord to BrahmA, the
latter looks to the former at each and every stage of the creative process, for
approval and agreement. Such consent of the Lord is expressed by the movement
of His beautiful brows, says Swami Desikan.
If the eyebrows of Emperuman can be so beautiful, it stands to reason that
those of His Consort must be more so, for beauty and elegance are usually the
preserve of the fairer sex. We thus find that Sri Sita Piratti, who is the
personification of beauty and loveliness, sports infinitely exquisite brows,
which is evident from Her being addressed as "Shubhroo".
According to Sri Bhattar, in carrying out the Creative function, the Lord looks
at every stage for approval to His Mahishi and the innumerable differences in
social, economic and spiritual status that we find in the world are but the
result of the raising or lowering of Piratti's brows, to signify approval or
disapproval. Such is the power this Fist Lady wields over the Lord, that Her
implied wishes, not even expressed, through the movement of Her brows, form the
very basis for the Lord's functions, says the Acharya-
"Yat bhroo bhangA: pramANam stthira chara rachanA tAratamyE MurArE:"
It appears that Piraatti blesses other celestial consorts too with the
capability of moving their husbands with the raising of their brows. Swami
Desikan says that PArvati dEvi too is able to wind Shankara around her little
finger, with a slight movement of her brows-none other than the virile
Shankara, who has to his credit the exploit of having bent the colossal MEru
mountain itself as a bow, during Tripura SamhAram-"Yat bhroo bhangAt kusuma
dhanusha: kinkarO MeEu dhanvA".
We find that almost the entire range of human emotions like anger, surprise,
annoyance, happiness etc., can be conveyed by appropriate movements of the
eyebrows. A knitting of the brows, for instance, indicates displeasure, while
the lifting of the brows in a particular way conveys surprise. The following
sloka from Srimad Ramayana tells us that eyebrows could be used as effective
indicators of displeasure and anger-
"TadA tu baddhvA bhrukutim bhruvo: madhye nararshabha:
nisasvAsa mahA sarpam bilasya iva roshita:"
When told by Rama that the dramatic turn of events culminating in His having to
leave for a long sojourn in the jungles, (instead of His being crowned the
Prince of Ayodhya) is due to the unseen but ever present hand of fate,
Lakshmana refuses to buy this argument and expresses his dissatisfaction,
distress and anger at those responsible for the happenings. And before bursting
into a voluble condemnation of KaikEyi and others, he eloquently conveys his
anger through a knitting of his eyebrows.
Another person who manages to terrorise the whole world by a mere knitting of
his eyebrows is the God of Death, YamadharmarAjA.
And we all know when his terrifying brows and lethal glances fall on us-when
our sojourn in this world comes to an end. However, if, before this avenging
angel's fleeting look falls on us, if the Lord were to be kind enough to look
at us with His soft and cool lotus eyes, imminent death would be immediately
converted into immortality, says Swami Desikan, praying for the rejuvenating
glances of Sri Varadaraja-
"yAvat na pasyati nikAmam amarshaNo mAm
Bhroo bhanga bheeshaNa karALa mukha: kritAnta:
TAvat patantu mayi tE Bhagavan! DayAlO;
unnidra padma kalikA madhurA: katAkshA:"
Brows appear to be a beautiful bow, when on the forehead of the Lord. The same
Brows, situated atop the eyes of another, resemble a venomous snake stretched
full length. This is how the brows on the face of Yamadharma appear to those
forever indulging themselves in the pleasures of the flesh, says Swami Desikan
in Sri Achyuta Satakam-
"Karma gati dOsha du:khitA: kritAnta bhrukutee bhujangee darsana trastA:
archanti tava charaNou achyuta prabhrashta Manmatha rasAsvAdA:"
Brows are probably the most insignificant part of the human anatomy, consisting
merely of a line of hair across one's forehead. Their absence would in no way
affect our effective functioning. However, when they adorn the Lord's face,
they acquire a beauty, seemliness and significance of their own, due to their
exalted association. Like other parts of the Paramapurusha's divya mangala
vigraham (Divine Body), His Brows too are boundlessly beautiful and
captivating. If one were blessed with even a millionth of Swami Desikan's
creativity and poetic skills, composing a thousand verses on these High Brows
would pose no difficulty at all.
Srimate Sri lakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana
Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:
dasan, sadagopan
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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