SrI rAmAyaNa thani SlOkam – 28 – AraNya kANdam 19.14 – tharuNau – Part 4

_{SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImath varavaramunayE nama:}

We are continuing to enjoy the vyAkhyAnam for SlOkam “tharuNau” 19.14 in AraNya kANdam. This SlOkam is uttered by SUrpaNakhA to her brother khara and dhUshaNa, identifying perumAL and iLaiya perumAL as the cause for her current predicament.

SrI rAma and iLaiya perumAL who are youthful, good-looking, gentle yet very strong, with eyes broad like lotuses, and dressed in treebarks and deerskin are the cause of this condition of hers.

In the previous article, some portions of this vyAkhyAnam were already enjoyed; we shall continue now with the remaining vyAkhyAnam for the SlOkam. periyavAchchAn piLLai expresses his astonishment about rAkshasis like SUrpanakhA and maNdOdhari, expressing such meanings – (“yuvAkumAra:”) which are learned through vEdhantham.

Notes from periyavAchchAn piLLai’s vyAkhyAnam

tharuNau

perumAL enchants his lovers through his youth; whether it is mukthAthmA, badhdhAthmA, king dhaSaratha, or vAma dhEva, all of them are attracted by perumAL’s youth. This can be also seen through the following pAsurams.

periya thirumozhi 3-7-1 “kariyAn oru kALai” (a dark, young person).
nachchiyAr thirumozhi 6-2 “gOvindhan enbAn Or kALai pugudhak kanAk kaNdEn” (In my dream, I saw a youth named gOvindhan entering)

Similarly, for SUrphaNakhA too, it was SrI rAma’s youthfulness that attracted her first.

tharuNau – in their youth. Why does SUrpaNakhA address in plural?

Her desire was towards perumAL but it was iLaiya perumAL who disfigured her. Why does she talk about both of them together?

The first reason – It is because both perumAL and iLAiya perumAL are equally beautiful and courageous.

The second reason – When SUrpaNakhA initially approached perumAL, he pointed her to iLaiya perumAL and told her to desire iLaiya perumAL as her husband. Then she began to desire iLaiya perumAL. Since she developed a desire for both of them, she spoke about both of them – tharuNau.

The third reason – the reason for her disfigurement being both of them. It was perumAL who prompted iLaiya perumAL and then iLaiya perumAL executed as per perumAL’s wish. Also, SUrpaNakhA thinks that both perumAL and iLAiya perumAL are behaving towards her this way because of sIthAp pirAtti.

SrI rAmAyaNam kishkindhA kANdam 3-12 “anyOnyasadhruSau vIrau” (Both perumAL and iLaiya perumAL are equal in beauty and chivalry).

perumAL says to SUrpaNakhA and pointing to iLaiya perumAL, “Since I am married, and love my wife very much, I am not eligible for you to be desired. He is not with his wife, and interested in marriage, you can desire him as your husband”.

Now, as she looked at iLAiya perumAL, iLaiya perumAL said, “I am his servitor, if you become my wife, you will also be a servitor. Servitorship will not suit the nature of rAkshasis like you. So, you must desire to become perumAL’s younger wife”.

SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 18-2 “kruthadhArO’smi bhavathi bhAryEyam dhayithA mama” (I am a married person, she is my wife who is dear to me).
SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 18-3 “SrImAn akruthadhAraScha lakshmaNO nAma vIryavAn I apUrva bhAryAprArthI cha tharuNa: priyadharSana: II Enam bhaja viSAlAkshi bharthAram” (perumAL says: Oh large-eyed one! lakshmaNa is beautiful, without a wife, chivalrous, interested in a unique wife (life you), young, very sweet; desire him as your husband).
SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 18-10 “katham dhAsasya mE dhAsI bhAryA bhavithumarhasi I Aryasya thvam viSAlAkshi bhAryA bhava yavIyasI II” (I am a servitor for SrI rAma and sIthAp pirAtti; by becoming my wife, do you also want to be a servitor like me? Oh the one with large eyes! You should become the younger wife for my brother).

Upon perumAL’s prompt, iLaiya perumAL cuts the ears and nose of SUrpaNakhA.

SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 18-20 “virUpayithumarhasi” (lakshmaNa! Disfigure her)
SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 18-21 “udhdhruthya khadgam chichchEdha karNanAsam mahAbala:” (iLaiya perumAL, who has great strength, drew the sword out and cut her ears and nose).
SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 19-18 “thAbhyAmubhAbhyAm sambhUya pramadhAm adhikruthya thAm I imAm avasthAm nIthAham” (For the sake of that woman, I have been put in this situation by these two people).

Since SrI rAma had ordered, and lakshmaNa had followed that order, and since she talks about them together in the same breath, she is referring them togethr, in the plural term [tharuNau].

tharuNau

thirunedunthANdakam 21 “iruvarAy vandhAr en munnE ninRar” (perumAL and iLaiya perumAL, who does not separate from him, came and stood in front of me). (Isn’t it a contradiction to say that two of them came, after having said he came with his bow as the companion? There is no contradiction since like how the bow gives him identification, presence of iLaiya perumAL also gives him identification.)

As said, in the pAsuram, there is no contradiction in saying perumAL took two forms and came as two people.

tharuNau

Commonly, there will be some age difference between two brothers; since the difference between them is negligible, they look similar. SrI rAma was born in punarvasu and iLaiya perumAL pushya star, hence there is not much disparity in their age and appearance.

rUpasampannau

Maybe their youthfulness is attractive, how about their form, does it match their youthfulness in attractiveness?

Oh! Their beauty – the sheer abundance of their beauty was such that whoever has a desire to feel beautiful, can beg and take some beauty from perumAL and iLAiya perumAL.

rUpasampannau

periya thirumozhi 1-1-3 “kAmanAr thAdhai” (father of cupid).

The cupid, though born from only a very small portion of emperumAn, is very attractive and beautiful. His attractiveness and beauty come because he is born from a small portion of emperumAn’s thirumEni (divine body), who is manmatha manmathan (beauty of beauties).

manthrapraSnam 2-11-33 “angAdhangAthsambhavasi” (Oh child! You are born out of a small portion of my limb).

rUpasampannau

According to tharka philosophy, first there is creation of the body, then other attributes such as form are added.

“uthpannam dhravyam kshaNa nirguNam thishtathi” (When something is created, very momentarily that object will remain without any attributes).
SrI rAmAyaNam sundhara kANdam 35-8 “rUpadhAkshiNyasampanna: prasUtha:” (SrI rAma was born along with his divine attributes).

As such, when SrI rAma was born, all the divine attributes were born together with his divine body. So, rUpasampannau means perumAL’s thirumEni is brimming with the divine attributes, but it is not as though it has been first created and then added, it is present naturally right from his birth.

rUpasampannau

thiruvaimozhi 7-2-10 “vadivudai vAnOr thalaivanE!” (Oh one who is the lord of nithyasUris who are having a matching form like yours!).
periya-thirumozhi 9-2 “achcho oruvar azhagiyavA!” (thirumangai AzhwAr, lost in perumAL’s beauty, says in delight, Oh, how beautiful he is!)
periya thirumozhi 3-6-9 “en mulaiyALa oru nAL un agalaththAl ALAyE?” (You should rule me by embracing me with your vast chest, at least one day such that my bosoms shall serve you)
siRiya thirumadal 19 “kArAr thirumEni kaNdadhuvE kAraNamA” ( Having seen your thirumEni is the reason for my suffering).
SrI rAmAyaNam sundhara kANdam 32-11 “rAmEthi rAmEthi sadhaiva budhdhyA vichinthya vAchA bruvathI” (sIthAp pirAtti was always thinking of SrI rAma in her mind and always uttering his name with her mouth).

SUrpaNakhA says, “perumAL’s thirumEni will make the women to be madly in love with him and will make them open their mouths and lament about him. And iLAiya perumAL being his brother – it is needless to say about him separately. It is in the beauty of these two people that I am trapped”.

tharuNau rUpasampannau – they are youthful, with a beautiful form.

Being youthful, will they be rough when embraced ?

SUrpaNakhA looking at khara and dhUshaNa says, “They are not rugged rAkshasas like you. They are very gentle, it is like hugging flowers”. (why is ‘flower’ used as a reference to describe gentleness?). It is customary to give examples of kAyAmbU (blue Indian water-lily flower) and golden yellow garment while describing the thirumEni of paramapurushan (SrIman nArAyaNa). bhIshma and vAlmIki, ANdAL and AzhwArs have given those same examples.

mahAbhAratham SAnthi parva 46-118 “athasIpushpasangASam” (bhIshma says: achyutha who is like the kAyAmbU flower, who is wearing the golden yellow garment).
SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 17-9 “rAmamindhIvaraSyAmam” (SrI rAma who is like dark blue kAyAmbU flower).
thiruppavai 23 “pUvaippU vaNNA” (Oh one who is of the colour like kAyAmbU flower).

sukumArau

perumAL’s tenderness is such that it turns reddish even by the stare of SrI dhEvip pirAtti and SrI bhUmip pirAtti, who are embodiments of the sweet scent of the flower and tender scent of the earth, respectively.

thiruvAimozhi 9-2-10 “vadiviNai illA malar magaL maRRai nila magaL pidikkum mel adi” (SrI mahAlakshmi who resides in lotus, who is having great beauty for which, even your beauty is not a match and SrI bhUmip pirAtti who is massaging the tender divine feet, also having similar greatness).

sukumArau

Their tenderness is such that perumAL’s devotees get scared and sing mangaLAsAsanam even when observing his seemingly trifling natural activities like walking or measuring the universe.

thiruchchandha viruththam 61 “nadandha kAlgaL nondhavO” (walking in the forest, measuring the worlds, did these activities cause your divine feet to suffer?).
thiruvAimozhi 8-3-5 “adiyAr allal thavirththa asaivO? anREl ip padidhAn nINdu thAviya asaivO?” (Are you resting here due to the fatigue of eliminating the sorrows of your devotees or due to the fatigue of growing that day to measure and accept this world?) (Note from kAlakshEpam: This third decad is highlighted as nammAzhwAr’s thiruppallANdu)
nAnmugan thiruvandhAdhi 35“thALAl ulagam aLandha asaivE kol vALA kidandharuLum vAy thiRavAn” (Oh emperumAn! Are you lying down without moving or speaking because your divine form is tired after measuring the worlds?).

sukumArau

There is only one manmatha (kAma dhEva) in the dhEva lOkam, but perumAL and iLaiya perumAL are looking like two kAma dhEvas on this earth.

rUpasampannau sukumArau

The kAma dhEva in the dhEva lOkam is ‘ananga’ – without form.

These two kAma dhEvas – perumAL and iLAiya perumAL are the kAma dhEvas with a body.

SrI rAmAyaNam sundhara kANdam 34-30 ‘kandharpa iva mUrthimAn” (SrI rAma is like the kAma dhEva with a body).

kAlidhAsan also has said the same thing in raghuvamSam.

raghuvamSam 11-20 “rAmam manmatha SarENa thAdithA dhussahEna hrudhayE niSAcharI” (thAtakA, the rAkshasi, hit by SrI rAma, with an irresistible manmatha’s arrow, was smeared with foul smelling blood like a sandal paste, and reached yama’s abode).

rUpasampannau sukumArau – maybe from a distance their youth, beautiful form, and tenderness appear to be attractive. Are they enjoyable in close proximity or are they weak?

mahAbalau

They (perumAL and iLaiya perumAL) are such strong and bold that women, captivated by their might, write testaments declaring themselves as his belongings.

thiruvAimozhi 2-1-7 “thORROm mada nenjam emperumAn nAraNaRku” (We lost our humble heart to our master srIman nArAyaNan).
periya thirumozhi 8-3-1 “varai eduththa perumAnukku izhandhEn en varivaLaiyE” (I lost my bangles to the emperumAn who lifted the gOvardhana mountain).

mahAbalau

When in love, perumAL enjoys pirAtti incessantly, and even as many seasons pass, perumAL (mahAbalau) remains dominant as a beloved providing enjoyment bountifully, while pirAtti remains a beneficiary, enjoying his love.

SrI rAmAyaNam bAla kANdam 77-26 “rAmasthu sIthayA sArdham vijahAra bahUn ruthUn” (SrI rAma enjoyed for many years with sIthAp pirAtti).
thiruvAimozhi 1-10-4 “maindhanai malarAL maNavALanai” (one who is youthful, one who is the enjoyer to SrI mahAlAkshmi, who is infinitely enjoyable).

mahAbalau

With their youthfulness, beautiful form and perpetual novelty, perumAL and iLAiya perumAL make everyone exhausted and throbbing with love. Yet their mental strength (mahAbalau) is such that they remain inconceivable to the mind.

thiruvAimozhi 5-3-4 “kAdhal kadal puraiya viLaiviththa kAramar mEni nam kaNNan” (Our obedient krishNa, who is having cloud like divine form, made my devotion abundant like an ocean).

Their youthfulness and divine form are charismatic, but how about their individual features?

puNdareekaviSAlAkshau – broad lotus like eyes

Oh, how can one possibly describe other divine features, without describing his divine eyes? But once engaged in the beauty of those divine eyes, it is impossible to move away from them.

puNdareekaviSAlAkshau

Their youthfulness, beautiful form, tenderness, and might – all of these features bewilder only when in close proximity, but the eyes carry his message and captivate even from a distance.

thiruvaimozhi 9-9-9 “thUdhu sey kaNgaL koNdonRu pEsi” (His eyes, which are beautiful on their own, are going as messengers, revealing his opinion clearly).
thiruvaimozhi 10-3-1 “thAmaraik kaNgaL koNdu IrdhiyAlO!” (Oh krishNa! You are piercing me with your eyes which are attractive like lotus).

puNdareekaviSAlAkshau

amarakOSa 1-10-41 “puNdarIkam sithAmbhOjam” (puNdarIkam means white lotus).

Since puNdarIkam means white lotus, it can be understood that the eyes convey tranquility.

SrI rAmAyaNam AraNya kANdam 20-12 “samrakthanayanA ghOrA:” (rAkshasas, who are dreadful and who have red eyes).

SUrpaNakhA says, “His eyes are not reddish due to anger like the rAkshasa, they are white and very pleasant”.

puNdareekaviSAlAkshau

His pupil, iris, and eyeball – all exist for our protection. When thamO guNam arises, it gives rise to sleep that makes the eyes turn red, when rajO guNam arises, it gives rise to anger and makes the eye turn red. These eyes are not red, due to any of these reasons. Since sathva guNam is predominant, their vision is clear and white.

puNdareekaviSAlAkshau

Even if perumAL lowers himself and takes birth as a human, the eyes expose his parathvam (supreme nature).

SrI rAmAyaNam yudhdha kANdam 120-11 “AthmAnam mAnusham maNyE” (SrI rAma says: I think of myself as a human).
chAndhOgya upanishadh 1-7 “yathA kapyAsam puNdarIkam EvamakshiNI” (That supreme lord has two eyes which are like a lotus that was blossomed by the sun).

puNdareekaviSAlAkshau

One cannot see the boundaries of the eyes which are wide like the milky ocean.

puNdareekaviSAlAkshau

Even though perumAL’s eyes are compared to that of a lotus to describe its whiteness, it is merely an artificial example since perumAL’s eyes are unlike that. This is because, in reality, the lotus will not always be white, when dry it will lose its whiteness. Just as one who dives into the ocean, without being able to find the shores, will be lost, one who is caught in those eyes will be overwhelmed by their width. perumAL’s eyes cannot be described by any other means than this pAsuram.

amalanAdhipirAn 8 “pudai parandhu miLirndhu sevvariyOdi nINda apperiya Aya kaNgaL” (The long, great divine eyes of such emperumAn, which are expansive, and splendorous with reddish lines).

puNdareeka viSAlAkshau

He protects everyone in this world by being their mother. With his single glance, he protects both the vibhUthis consisting of badhdhAthmA, mukthAthmA and nithyAthmA.

periya-thirumozhi 7-1-9 “uyirkkellAm thAyAy aLikkinRa thaN thAmaraik kaNNA!” (Oh, one who is our mother, having cool eyes which are like reddish lotus).
thiruvAimozhi 9-2-3 “thadangoL thAmaraik kaN vizhiththu – idangoL mUvulagum thozha irundhu aruLAy (by widely opening your divine eyes which appear like a huge lotus consuming the pond [in which it is present], show your compassion to be seen and enjoyed by the vast three-layered world.)

vyAkhyAnam for the remaining SlOkam will be continued in the next article.

AzhwAr emperumAnAr jIyar thiruvadigaLE SaraNam

periyavAchchAn piLLai thiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Source – SrI rAmAyaNa thani SlOkam – 28 – raNya kANdam 19.14 – tharuNau – Part 4 Audio Video

adiyEn chithrA rAmAnuja dhAsi

Proofreading/Curating done by – kOsalEndhra rAmAnuja dhAsan, krishNan rAmAnuja dhAsan

Artwork – namperumAL rAmAnuja dhAsan

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