Tiruppavai: Verse 2

Vaiyaththu Vaazhvirgal

vaiyaththu vAzhvIrgAL! nAmum nam pAvaikku

seiyyum kirisaigaL kELIrO! pArkadaluL

paiyath thuyindra paraman adi pAdi

neiyuNNOm pAluNNOm nAtkAlE nIrAdi

maiyittezhudhOm malarittu nAm mudiyOm

seiyyAdhana seiyyOm thIkkuraLai sendrOdhOm

aiyamum pichchaiyum Andhanaiyum kai kAtti

uyyumAreNNi ugandhElOr empAvAi.

Essence of the verse

Andal knows that ultimate liberation for a sentient being (jIvAtma) is to submit oneself to the supreme being (paramAtma), not in a spirit of subservience, but in voluntary service (kainkaryam). This, she explains, is to be achieved by consciously performing every act with the intention to make the paramAtma happy, and avoiding acts that spring from self-absorption, such as those motivated by vanity and greed.

Word meaning

vaiyaththu

• On this earth

vAzhvIrgAL

• those born to live!

nAmum

• We

uyyum Aru eNNi

• Having understood the way to live purposefully

ugandhu

• Happily

nam pAvaikku

• For our mission

seiyyum kirisaigaL

• The tasks to undertake

kELIrO

• Hear

nAm

• We

pAl kadaluL

• In the hallowed ocean called Tirupparkadal (sanctified by the perpetual presence of Narayana reclining on his serpent bed, Adisesha)

paiya thuyindra paraman

• The Paramatman, who reclines, feigning sleep

aDipAdi

• Singing the praises of his feet

aiyamum

• Articles that are to be presented to the deserving

pichchaiyum

• articles that are to be offered in charity

Anthanaiyum

• As much as the recipients can use

kai kAtti

• We shall offer

nei unnOm

• We will not consume ghee

pAl uNNOm

• We will not drink milk

nAtkAlE

• In the pre-dawn hours

nIrAdi

• (After) bathing

mai ittu ezhudhOm

• We won’t adorn our eyes with collyrium

malar ittu mudiyOm

• We won’t decorate our plaits with flowers

seiyyAdhana

• That which ought not to be done

seiyyOm

• We shall not do

thikkuraLai

• Words of complaint that distort meaning

sendru OdhOm

• We will not carry such tales

El Or empAvAi

• Hear and resolve to do as said, my girl.

Commentary

Andal is aware that the purpose of life for the jIvAtma (sentient being) is to function as the body of the paramAtma (supreme being) which means that every action is to be performed by the jivatma as a offering (kainkaryam) to the supreme entity.

But what does this mean in practice? She now explains:

There will be no shirking of the prescribed duties and prohibited actions will not be done.

Nothing will be too painful as it is an act of offering to God, and no act will be pleasurable unless it is done as an offering to God.

The examples given are: Getting up in the wee hours even in the dew drenched pre-dawn hours, and bathing in the icy waters of the village ponds will be pleasurable since it means an earlier start to their day dedicated to God. On the other hand, even simple accts such as eating their staple foods and donning flowers in their hair will be shunned if they are actions motivated by self-absorption rather than performed to please the Paramatma.

Notes:

Yashodha calls on the women of Gokulam to come and see the loveliness of Krishna rather than be caught up in admiring themselves, says Periyazhwar who brought up Andal as his daughter, in his composition, Tirumozhi (See canto beginning sIthakkadal… Tirumozhi: centum 1, decad 2)

In a later verse in Tiruppavai (kUdArai vellum: verse 27), Andal describes what it means to wear ornaments, deck up themselves, and enjoy a feast. The actions described therein are at variance with what is mentioned here because the perspective of the assembled maidens is different.