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SrI-vishNuchitta-kula-nandana-kalpa-vallim
SrIrangarAja-harichandana-yOgadRSyAm
sAkshAt kshamAm karuNayA kamalAm-ivAnyAm
gOdAm ananya-SaraNaS-SaraNam prapadyE
The flower garden in which Aandal is referred to as a golden vine, belongs to the lineage of Periazhwar. She is considered absolutely devout to the Lord of Srirangam, who is depicted as a sandalwood tree that supports this golden vine. Aandal, an incarnation of Bhooma Devi exudes the compassion of PeriyaPirati. Vedanta Desika, in this composition, offers his salutations to her.
Andal, kodhai, One of the most extraordinary personalities in sacred scriptures of Indian origin, is known in her native Srivilliputtur, as an Azhwar, immersed in the depths of devotion to the Omnipresent.
Born in the month of Aadi and celebrate in the month of Margashirsh, the most auspicious of months, she attained the lotus feet of the Lord quite early on in life. The Lord reclining on his eternal Sesha, symbolic of infinite Awareness, smiles as he adorns the ultimate devotion of Andal.
As per scriptutes, Srivilliputtur is considered part of Varahakshetram, which was then ruled by queen Malli, who had two sons, Villi and Kandan. The brothers once set out on a hunting sojourn in the Puthur forest, where unknown to Villi, a tiger killed Kandan. Exhausted post the search for Kandan, Villi laid under a tree, when in his dream, the Lord instructed him to build a city.
Hence the city got to be known as Villiputhur. After the divine maiden Andal’s birth, the place came to be known as Srivilliputtur.
It is believed that the sages Bhrigu and Markandeya were saved here from the demon Kalanerai, who disturbed their worship. Built in the Dravidian style, the temple with its tall Rajagopuram has the shrines of Lord Vatapatrasayi in the North East and that of Andal Nachiyar in the south-west. In between these two is the Nandavanam (the temple garden).
Unlike the experience of other places, Sri Vaikunta is said to be a place of infinite bliss. Likewise is the glory of Srivilliputtur, where Andal incarnated as the divine daughter of Periazhwar - ‘AzhvAr thirumagaLArAi’. Similar to how a queen would give less importance to the flowery bed of the king and lie down holding her baby’s cradle, Andal too ignored the limitless enjoyment of Paramapadham, and came incarnating to be on Earth.
MaNavALa mAmunigal, one of the Srivaishnava saints, beautifully reveals the greatness of Andal in the twenty fourth pasuram of upadhEsa raththina mAlai.
anju kudikku oru sandhadhiyAy AzhwArgaL
tham seyalai vinji niRkum thanmaiyaLAy – pinjAyp
pazhuththALai ANdALaip paththiyudan nALum
vazhuththAy manamE magizhndhu
Andal incarnated as the only inheritor in the clan of Azhwars. She moved a step ahead of even the other Azhwars, in her fearless bhakti and devotion to the Lord. Unlike other plants that would initially give rise to flowers and eventually bear fruits, Tulsi plants bring fragrance, even as they germinate and sprout from the earth. Andal is considered similar to the Tulsi plant, who was steeped in devotion and composed beautiful verses in glory of the lord at a tender age of five. In her composition nAchchiyAr thirumozhi, she melts to attain the Lord.
The prime essence of ‘Nachiyar Thirumozhi’ is “Bhakti”, an intense devotion for the Lord. Andal’s verses express her longing for the divine and her desire to serve the lord. Her poems reflect a deep sense of surrender to the will of the divine. She sees herself as a humble devotee at the feet of the Lord, seeking his grace and blessings. Viewing spiritually, the verses of “Nachiyar Tirumozhi” are not just a celebration of personal devotion, but they convey profound truths about the nature of the path of devotion, and the ultimate goal of human life, that inspire and uplift the hearts of devotees.
For instance, the 7.6th verse of Nachiyar Thirumozhi, says why Panchajanyam, the sacred conch, need not go to every land of pilgrimage to take a holy dip, because he has got a permanent place in the hands of the Lord and bathes in the divine nectar that emerges out of the Lord’s lips.
Through her composition of thiruppAvai, she determined that the Lord is the upAyam (means) and the upEyam (destination). That led to the composition of her Nachiyar Tirumozhi. At the end of each decad, she identified herself as vittuchiththan kOdhai and battarpirAn kOdhai (daughter of periyAzhwAr), being subservient to periyAzhwAr. She reveals her state of being in AchArya nishtai (fully anchored in the position of being subservient to the AchArya, the Guru) by saying that she would welcome if emperumAn accepts her for the sake of periyAzhwAr.
Her description of the Lord’s conch, Panchajanyam, which is white in color, is a symbolism of purity. Considered auspicious and a source of positive energy, blowing the white conch drives away all negativity. Just like how Lord Krishna used the Panchajanyam to foreshadow the defeat of the enemies during the Mahabharata war, Andal equals the cuckoo bird’s call as Her own calling out to Krishna to let Him know of Her devotion. He enters her heart and mind, but He seemed to ignore Her and watch in delight. In a state of ultimate devotion for the Lord, she even spoke to the gentle breeze, to birds and to plants. When She decided to not get involved with Him, He once again occupied Her heart and she regained her life.
Every action of the Lord is towards the welfare of His devotees. He is pure hearted with no flaws whatsoever. He is selfless, always thinks about his devotees and calls out to them through his Panchajanyam. He removes obstacles and difficulties of this world. One can propel towards Him through good deeds alone.
In her NAchiyar Tirumozhi, Andal also sings the praises of the Lord of Thiru Venkatam, a sacred place that vanquishes all bad deeds. She wants Her Venkatavan who has travelled from Srivaikuntam to the Seven Hills to walk a few more miles to see Her.
The most pleasing of her verses ‘Karpooram naarumo? Kamala poo naarumo?’ speaks of the fragrance of camphor, that is symbolic of being sublime and positive and that of the sweet scent of the delicate lotus blooms. On auspicious Fridays, Piratti is said to alight from her permanent place in the Lord’s chest for Tirumanjanam and ascends again to His chest soon after. But the separation during the interim afflicts her with virah thaap to over come which she assumes the role of Andal, an incarnation of Bhumi devi, to celebrate and adorn the lord.
This article, in absolute devotion to Andal is written in significance of her Tirunakshatram, on the day of Tiruvadipooram, this year.
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