There is a house that has been locked for 10 years, no one has entered it and no lamp has been lit, no human movement for 10 years, an ill fated bungalow it is said. In such a house a person goes in with a lamp and the moment he enters with some light, the house is emptied of darkness. When light entered, darkness should have gone out slowly having been there for nearly 10 years, isnt it, but it was not so. The moment light came in, darkness instantly disappeared though the darkness was there for 10 years or 100 years. Similarly Azhwar says "kavalir pulanai vaithu kalithanaik kadaka payndhu", Kali means "Kalmasham", as this present yugam is filled with Kalmasham, its called Kali. Kalmasham means the doshams inside the mind.
"Kalau Kalmasha chittanam" says Srimad Bhagavatham, Bhavisya puranam, Bharatam, Vishnupuranam, in many places it has been mentioned about these kali doshams. Nobody it seems can escape from these kali doshams. Some people openly say about all their doshams, why have they got all these desires and fear, many don't say about these openly but on the whole no one is free from these doshas. In everyone's mind there is wrong, and doshas are present, the reason being this yugam. This yugam is like that. There was an yugam called Kritha yugam and during that period 100 percent people were possessed with uttama guna. There was the tretha yugam in which 50/100 people were uttamar. In the Dwapara yuga, 5/100 people were uttamar. In the Kali yuga 100/10O people will be with kutram and possessed with doshams - "Kalir doshanithe rajan". So for one who is performing namakeerthanam always, the darshan of the bhagavan will not be in an order like first seeing the feet, then the lower legs, then the thighs, then the stomach, then the chest, neck, face, crown etc., Seeing the bhagavan in the heart is not in pieces or a thing. In an instant, the bhagavan should be seen.
"Kalau Kalmasha chittanam" says Srimad Bhagavatham, Bhavisya puranam, Bharatam, Vishnupuranam, in many places it has been mentioned about these kali doshams. Nobody it seems can escape from these kali doshams. Some people openly say about all their doshams, why have they got all these desires and fear, many don't say about these openly but on the whole no one is free from these doshas. In everyone's mind there is wrong, and doshas are present, the reason being this yugam. This yugam is like that. There was an yugam called Kritha yugam and during that period 100 percent people were possessed with uttama guna. There was the tretha yugam in which 50/100 people were uttamar. In the Dwapara yuga, 5/100 people were uttamar. In the Kali yuga 100/10O people will be with kutram and possessed with doshams - "Kalir doshanithe rajan". So for one who is performing namakeerthanam always, the darshan of the bhagavan will not be in an order like first seeing the feet, then the lower legs, then the thighs, then the stomach, then the chest, neck, face, crown etc., Seeing the bhagavan in the heart is not in pieces or a thing. In an instant, the bhagavan should be seen.
When we boil the water, the steam comes only when it reaches 100 degrees and not even at 99 degrees. Its not like at 10 degrees you get a little steam, 20 some more and 100 a lot more, no, the degree should touch 100 then only the steam. For a devotee the bhagavath darshanam cannot happen in steps, one fine day it will happen in an instant. That's why Azhwar said, "kalithanaik kadaka payndhu", not mere walking, its a jump (paynthu). Suddenly one day the darshanam of the bhagavan will be seen, it seems. Its a jump. Did Hanumar walk over the ocean, swim over the ocean, no! he made a single jump over the lavana sea. In the same manner the devotees performing namakeerthanam will jump over Kali doshas in an instant (kadaka payndhu). That one day when bhagavan makes the sankalpam to show his darshan it will happen in an instant. For Dhruva or Prahlada, bhagavan came like this only. That is why Azhwar uses this word very beautifully - paynthu. "kavalir pulanai vaithu kalithanaik kadaka payndhu" - In the Srimad Bhagavatham, when Dhruva is about to go to Vaikuntam, "mrtyor murdhni padam tattva", Lord Yama himself comes and bends his head in supplication to Dhruva and Dhruva steps on Yama's head in order to board the aerial car to Vaikuntam.
How does Azhwar say this, "naavalituzhi tharuginnomaman thamar thaligal meedhe", haven't the puranas said about what has actually happened. In the Ajamila charithram in the Srimad Bhagavatham, Yama looks at his dutas and says, "parihara madhu sUdana prapannAn prabhur-aham anya nRNAm na vaishNavAnAm" - bring only those who have done sins, even by mistake don't bring those performing namasankeerthanam to madhusudhana. I am not the god of vaishnavas so don't bring them. There is another lord who will question about them. The person performing the namakeerthanam of Narayana will have no loss. There is a story from the Mahabharata.
Jayadrata had a desire to have the same astram which Arjuna had. It was the pAsupatastram, a beautiful and powerful weapon given by Lord Siva. So Jayadrata went to Kailasa. Parameshwara has a famous name "Asuthoshi" (will easily be appeased and become happy and will give anything desired by his devotee), the number 11 is liked by siva, that's why they do the japa of ekadasa rudram for 11 times. Jayadrata appeased Lord Siva and told him that he had come for the pAsupatastram which Arjuna has. Lord Siva gave it to him and asked on whom are you going to program this astra. Jayadrata replies this is for Arjuna. Now Lord Siva says to Jayadrata not to take this and leave it here. "This astra wont work on Arjuna and since it wont work you will blame me". So leave the astra here and dont take it. Jayadrata asks why this astra wont work on Arjuna. "Tasya Narayana Prabhuhu - Who is the prabhu for Arjuna, its Narayana and not me". Narayana's devotees performing namakeerthanam cannot be touched by anyone. Therefore Yama says in Ajamila charithram that he cannot touch the devotees of Narayana, they are the Lord's friends, relatives and Yama has no control over them. Even if they have any doshams or wrongs, its only the bhagavan who can ask about this, Yama has no power.
This is said beautifully "naavalituzhi tharuginnom", as azhwar performed namakeerthanam he was happy, he said "kalithanaik kadaka payndhu" all his doshas in the mind were all destroyed and azhwar is ready to go to vaikuntam. In those days, when someone attained victory, they would celebrate with song and dance. So azhwar is performing jaya gosham out of happiness, "all were telling about kali and making everyone afraid but I have easily crossed the Kali's influence and the reason being I performed harinamakeerthanam". ok, now where did azhwar celebrate? Usually a victory celebration will take place in a certain mantapam or place but where is this celebration happening, it is on Lord Yama's head! "yaman thamar thaligal meedhe", "I have conquered yaman, I am not coming to yama loka, why. I have the mahamantra keerthanam in my lips."
Looking at perumal, Azhwar says "moovulagundumizhndha mudhalva nin namam katra aavalippudaimai kandai". Azhwar gossips with the perumal, is your mouth more sweeter than mine? Perumal asks "why are you asking this and coming up with this? ok, you please tell the answer", says perumal. "moovulagundumizhndha mudhalva nin namam katra aavalippudaimai kandai". I am always saying "arangamanagarulane, arangamanagarulane, ranga, ranga that's why my tongue is sweet. When your name is being said by the bhakthas "aavalippudaimai kandai" - "Oh ramaninamam emiruchira sri rama nee namam entha ruchira rama" says bhadrachala ramadasar, saying rama rama rama the tongue is so sweet just like the sweetness with athirasam, draksha, kalkandu combined, as we keep saying your nama the tongue is so sweet. When anyone asks why does it taste so sweet for the azhwar but not for us, are the azhwars exaggerating it? Azhwar has the answer for this. Lets say one has a typhoid fever with 105 degrees temperature. If Badam alwa is put in his mouth he says it tastes bitter. The dosham is not with the alwa its with the disease he has. Likewise its because of the disease called samsara, this nama is not tasting sweet in your mouth. The poison of samsaram has entered your body. Let that disease leave you, then you try tasting nama. "Perform namakeerthanam this disease will go". After the disease of samsara has left you, then you will know the sweet taste of nama.
Azhwar answers to the perumal that his tongue is sweeter than perumal. why, "nin namam katra aavalippudaimai kandai". Perumal asks why my tongue will not taste sweet, then azhwar says it wont. Because when you were a small child and played with balaraman, balaraman came running to mother yashoda and complained that krishna has been eating all the mud. All the mud in the streets. Yashoda came running with a stick and inquired of krishna whether he ate. Krishna replied "naham bhakshitavan ambe", "I never ate, mother". Can Krishna tell a lie, no, Krishna never lied. Only if the world is apart from krishna, then the question of whether he ate or not ate will come. All is enclosed within him. "naham bhakshitavan ambe - all is lie, mother". No, Yashoda admonishes, "show your mouth" and gets ready to spank him. When little krishna opened his mouth, she could see all the 7 worlds, and within the earth there is a Gokulam, and there is a Krishna within, that krishna within opens his mouth too and there is a Yashoda there and within that kutty krishna there is the 7 worlds showing and another krishna within and it goes on like this. Yashoda with her head swimming says "Kim buddho mohaha" - has something happened to my head, saying so she falls fainting. Krishna now thinks if his mother comes to know that he is an avatar, then she will stop cuddling him and not say endearments anymore, so he rubs away all the memories. See the beauty of the bhagavan, if he feels he wants to give you darshan, bhagavan will do it in a flash of a second, likewise if he wants to make you forget, even that will happen in a flash of a second. That is what all this shows. Azhwar tells perumal there is a reason my tongue is sweeter than yours - "nin namam katra aavalippudaimai kandai". Azhwar tells perumal you cannot keep saying your own name "ranga", "ranga" and it wont be sweet for you because you have eaten mud. The mouth that has eaten mud will not be sweet. In the first pasuram itself, Azhwar converses with the perumal thus,
"kavalil pulanai vaithu kalithanaik kadaka payndhu
naavalituzhi tharuginnom naman thamar thaligal meedhe
moovulagundumizhndha mudhalva nin namam katra
aavalippudaimai kandai arangama nagarulaane".
Radhe Radhe
Read more translations of the other episodes at: http://aranganinarumai.blogspot.com/
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