Aandals Thiruppavai - 2

Hello Meena,

Had I known this secret earlier I would have added those words to all my posts in all the threads. So, at last now I have found out why I could not see you in many of my threada.

I was a little apprehensive after my first post. I was not sure whether my translation would be welcome. The responses to the second post have been encouraging.
Thanks Meena.
sridhar
PS: should I sprinkle words like valentine, love etc. even in my reply to make sure that you read it? Just kidding... ha ha ha

 

Dear Vidhi,
Thanks for those sweet words. I am moved by your earnestness in knowing about pronunciation. As you can see I have already posted a transliteration.
I am trying to add a few more gadgets to my laptop so that I can chant the paasuram (I cant sing) and post the wav file as an attachment here.
I am not sure whether it will work. But let me try.

I am making all these efforts because I am anxious that you should pronounce the words correctly. (No sin attaches if you do it wrong, for Aandal is nothing but Love. But as a mark of our love and devotion we should spare no pains to bring out the words right)

Thanks for the words of encouragement, Vidhi.
sridhar

 

Dear Usha,

Thanks. Very happy to learn about your daughter dancing a medley of Krishna Bakthi.

For me Aandal is a class in herself. So much of bakthi, so much of love, I am yet to see in another person.

I am now simply overwhelmed by your responses. So Aandal-willing I will finish posting Thiruppavai and we can see select verses from naachiyar thirumozhi.

For ones who can read those verses without crying we can give Sahitya Academy Award.

Let me again thank Teja for the beautiful picture of Aandal. She gets a share of all our punniyam. Very thoughtful of you, Teja.

sridhar

 

Dear Vidya,

Thanks for those words which spur me to post more. The mere fact that I have been in a small way instrumental in your chanting with more bakthi, is good enough for me. That feeling, that thought alone is the greatest punyam.

I will definitely post that song Oruthi Mahanai... It is a song which I too like. And the beauty is I translated the song for a friend of mine. But, vidya, please give me a week's time. I want our ILites to savour the meaning and the import of this song.

Like they say in the phala sruthi, all those who visit this thread, those who hear about this, those who say the name Aandal, those who see her picture, and those who are in any way associated with this, including up to the person who made the chip for our computers which enabled us to share this great feeling, will be blessed by Aandal with love. And that love will bring everything else in life - prosperity, children, education, family life, married life.. everything.

Thanks once again, Vidya.
regards,
sridhar

 

Supplement 1!

Dear All,
When I post supplementaries for Valentines Day, hypocrisy and jealousy, why not for Thiruppavai?
So here we go.


Aandals words have come from the depths of her heart. And our acharyas have written pages and pages about their meanings.

It is not just enough for us to chant the paasuram but we should let ourselves soak in its meaning, in the depth of understanding, in the choice of words, in the appropriateness of the similes. Then we may come up with some hidden meanings ourselves.

For example this song starts with the most touching scene one can ever imagine. The mother-buffalo just thinks of her calf. Remember her calf is not nearby. Her calf is not sucking milk now. But the mother thinks of her calf, and what a motherhood oh dears, milk secretes on its own.

This is a very subtle point where we have to pause. Breast-feeding mothers if forced to be away from their children at times secrete milk because they simply thought of their dear ones. Somebody told me (I am not sure if it is true) such mothers secrete milk and wet their blouses when they have very kind thoughts.

The buffalo in this song is doing that precisely. Aandal uses the words," ninaithhu mulai vazhiye ninru paal sora". சுரத்தல் (சோர is another tense-form) "surathaal" is one of the apt words used here.

The milk goes into the mud floor making it a mess. Because the calf is not there to drink it.

No doubt Aandal uses this simile to bring home the prosperity of the girl's brother.

But afer reading the song several times I think there is a hint about God's love for us. God is more than our mother to us. As a mother merely by thinking of her child, secretes milk, God at the mere thought of His devotees showers His blessings.

The mother does not mind or know whether the milk goes to the child or goes waste. Similarly God showers His blessings on us, though he knows we will waste them and we do not absolutely deserve them.

Somehow I can never think of God as a Judge who uses his fine scales to weigh our punyam and paavam and dispense his blessings accordingly.

I see him as our Mother who merely thinking of us can secrete milk, shower His blessings, though we are not at His feet to receive them.

When the Jeganmatha, Aandal herself uses such a simile I lose my power of speech and bow down to that Supreme love, weeping and sobbing.

Varalotti

 

Thanks Vidya