DEIVATHIN KURAL # 146 (Vol # 6) Dated 24 Mar 2013

DEIVATHIN KURAL # 146 (Vol # 6) Dated 24 Mar 2013

(These e-mails are translations of talks given by PeriyavaaL of Kanchi Kaamakoti Peetam, over a period of some 60 years while he was the pontiff in the earlier part of the last century. These have been published by Vanadi Padippagam, Chennai, in seven volumes of a thousand pages each as Deivathin Kural. Today we are going ahead from the last paragraph on page No 999 of Volume 6 of the Tamil original. The readers may note that herein ‘man/he’ includes ‘woman/she’ too mostly. These e-mails are all available at   http://Advaitham.blogspot.com updated constantly)

653.  We consider her as the wife of Siva, keeping his character qualities as though a natural combination of 'Satyam, Sivam and Sundaram', think of her simply as Sivã with a longish ending of the name, without giving it any thought as to what are her qualities! But here the words of the Veda, turns that idea upside down by saying that, "It is the input of Sivã that made the fierce Rudra into the benevolent Siva.  That ferocious Rudra, gets a body that is, 'mangal maya sareera' – 'मङ्गलमय शरीर', meaning an auspicious body.  Instead of being mentioned in the male gender as, 'Siva Tanu' – 'शिव तनु', is being mentioned in the female gender as 'Sivã Tanoo' – 'शिवा तनू'.  That means a figure or form or body.  That means it is a body that has been made by the motherly instinct or attitude that is known as 'Mãtru Bhãva'!  The Bhãva is Mothers but, the body is that of the Father.  We call the herbal plants in Tamil as 'மூலிகை' – for which 'मूलिका' is the name in female gender.  Eating that मूलिका there could be born a boy child and don't we say, 'This body itself is due to that मूलिका?'  Similarly, the Sivã Bheshaji (medicine) that converted the body of Rudra into Siva's body, but was called as 'Sivã Tanoo', as though it is her body! Bheshaji is also female gender indicating the motherly instinct rather than saying Bheshajam in the neuter gender!  Thus after the male body of Siva came into being, so that the world may know them to be the Father and Mother too, left half of the body became AmbãL's in appearance.

654.  She first came as the cure for his ferociousness – 'roudrãkãram'.  Then as compassion sprouted in his heart, he consumed the 'Kãlakoota' poison without a second thought, so that the Devatas may not be adversely affected.  Now also it is she who countered the effects of the poison without any harm for the body; she who is half of the Ardha Nãri Sareera!  Even for ordinary citizens if AmbãL's Katãksha is there, he will not die a premature death.  When such is the case, with her as the inalienable half of the mental and physical being, how can the poison affect him?  How can he be affected by Pralaya or Maha Pralaya?  As per the words of our ÃchãryãL there is no 'kãlakalanã' – or calculation of time for Easwara.  No recorded date of birth and no end to time for him either!  We say in Tamil that so and so 'காலமானார்' to mean that he is dead and gone and that his time is over! But this Siva is 'Kãlakãlan' meaning that he is the death of death and hence is known as 'mrutyunjaya' – 'मृत्युञ्जय', in celebration of which we chant the 'Mrutyunjaya' mantra for our own longevity.  She who got that victory for him is the left half of his body and being who keeps him immortal forever!  That is probably why the wives are known as the 'better half', I suppose!

655.  To make this fact known to the world that she has protected him from certain death, that she caressed his neck and displayed the fact of stopping the poison there.  Even if the poison had reached his stomach, her power and effectiveness of protection would have continued.  But still people should know the value of her 'pãtivratyam' that is fidelity, that they should know of the power of AmbãL, and her Love for her Husband; that she stopped the poison there in the neck, by caressing his neck with her hands!  "But that poison is extremely potent isn't it?  All the Devatas were literally shivering at the very sight of that poison!  Even looking at it can burn one's eyes!  How were you able to look at it without closing your eyes?  Not only you looked at it but, just rolled it into a ball and put it into your mouth!  What, did you think of it as some berry fruit such as 'நாவற்பழம்'?  Did it become some 'குளிகை' that Siddha Purusha's give as panacea for all sorts of diseases and problems?  They may say, "Put it under the tongue and you fly in the air" or some such thing!  Is it that the sort of a thing here?"

656.  (I am saying all this from what is in Soundarya Lahari only!  Please do not think that I am letting my own imagination run riots!  While talking about Siddha GuLika, that and 'शिवा भेषजी' that is mentioned in Rudram, both seem to be connected and spoken about in the same vein!)  With that, a beautiful logic as to why it was stopped at the neck is also instantly clear!   "You saw, picked it up and put it in your mouth!  Did you stop with that?  No, what was placed in the mouth was further swallowed and stored in the throat!  Was it that you were desirous of wearing a Blue Diamond Necklace?  Is that the reason for your retaining the poison in your throat?  Tell me 'vada' – 'वद'", the poet demands!  Swami is without any such aspirations.  So, he would not have thought of an ornament for the throat.  But his wife AmbãL, who must have been keen that his throat that is as white as the conch, should be decorated by blue gems.  As otherwise by her such a 'Sankalpa' or just by a touch of her fingers she could have caused the poison to disappear without a trace!  Instead she caused it to stay forever to be shining as a necklace around his throat, for him to get a name as 'Neela Kantan'?

657.  AmbãL is forever – 'shaasvatai' – 'शास्वतै'; with that she is also 'pativratai'  – 'पतिव्रतै' meaning the one who is absolutely faithful and devoted to her husband and 'nitya sumangali' – 'नित्य सुमङ्गली' meaning the one whose husband continues to live eternally saving her from the embarrassment of becoming a widow!  If she is forever she must be class apart than the Devatas and the Amrita that they partook because even those who took the Amrita could not survive the Pralaya.  If Amrita Sãgara is flowing around her abode, it is 'தண்ணி பட்ட பாடு' – a way of saying that it is too simply taken for granted!  So, she must be made up of something far superior than even Amrita!  That is the Chid or Chaitanyam, far more effective than the Amrita!  That is why she is called the 'chid roopiNi' – 'चिद् रूपिणी' and 'amrita chaitanya roopiNi' – 'अमृत चैतन्य रूपिणी'.   In Tamil it is called 'மூவா மருந்து' to mean 'a medicine that prevents old age and keeps you ever young! 

658.  Here in our sloka the phrase 'jara mrutyu hariNi', 'jara' means old age with greying of the hair and 'mrutyu' means death.  This 'jara' is worse than death as it is ceased with, inabilities, poor hearing, bad eye sight, physical debilities and lack of energy!  So this 'மூவா மருந்து' is Amrita superior to all the medicines that we know of and Amrita Chaitanyam is even better.  It is that 'maha medicine' – 'Amrita Chaitanya' – 'विश्व भेषजी'.  AmbãL is left half of his very being, how can there be any destruction for him?  So, what we call as 'தாலி பாக்கியம்' – after a huge smash up or accident like being run over by truck or afflicted by a disease for which there is no medicine available; if a man survives and thrives we say it is his wife's 'தாலி பாக்கியம்' – like that, it is AmbãL's luck and 'தாலி பாக்கியம்', that Swami is saved unhurt in Maha Pralaya as well as well as when consuming the 'Kãlakoota' poison!

அம்பாளின் தாடங்கம்

AmbãL's Thãtangam i.e., Ear-Stud

659.  It is that 'தாலி பாக்கியம்' which has been mentioned as 'ताटङ्ग महिमा'.  If the Vedas are known as Sruti, the Dharma Sãstrãs by various Rishis and Sri Krishna Paramãtma's Bhagawat Gita are collectively known as the Smruti.  Whatever our ÃchãryãL has written can be included in it.  The Sruti Vãkya, that for Swami, AmbãL is the medicine – 'रुद्रस्य भेषजी'; that ÃchãryãL has now given as Smruti Vãkya here.  Instead of directly copying, and saying that Swami's life is protected by her, what we say generally as 'தாலி பாக்கியம்', he has said in other words as 'ताटङ्ग महिमा'.

660.  Surprisingly that 'ताटङ्ग' is also about the auspicious piece of thread indicating the woman's status as a married woman, known as 'தாலி' in Tamil!  I am not saying anything new on my own.  I am only repeating what Kãlidãsa has said in the 'Nava Ratna Mãlikã' Stotram (sloka No 6), as 'thalee palãsa thatangãm' – 'थाली पलास ताटङ्गाम्.  This word 'Thalee' meant the palm tree.  'Palãsa' means a tree of that name or could also mean any leaf!  It is the palm-leaf that was rolled into a small curl and fitted in the ear as the 'ताटङ्ग'.  In the olden times people were much simpler without much of bluster. The medallion in the 'Mãngalya Saradu' and the ear ornament were both made of a bit of palm-leaf only, which indicated that the woman was married and other men stayed off to enable her to keep her dignity with respect and awe!  So this bit-piece of palm leaf came to be known as 'தாலி' and 'தோடு' or 'ताटङ्ग'.  I have seen this myself in many women till the later day show-off habits became a way of life!  So from the women working in the fields to Brahmin women to – as per words of Kãlidãsa – including AmbãL Parãsakti, they all wore only 'ஓலைத் தோடு' uniformly!  That is why in later days when it came to be made of gold with diamond insets, it still came to be called the 'வைர ஓலை'!

661.  This ear-stud known as 'தோடு' is also called the 'Kamal' or 'Kamalam', which over time and usage became 'Kammal!'  In the center was a stone, at times may be of a different colour such as blue or red with six diamond stones arranged around it, in the shape of a lotus, this 'தோடு' was made in gold and called 'Kamalam' the word for lotus in Tamil and Sanskrit and such an ornament came to be called a 'Kammal', so much so that, even diamonds came to be called 'Kamalam'!  Those traders may be from Gujarat or Rajasthan, may be a Marvadi or a Pashtu Muslim, trading with a South Indian Brahmin household will show an expertise not only in 'Vairam' that is, diamond but also in multiple language abilities, by claiming a gem shown after much flourish of removal of many a wrapper to be, 'நல்ல ௨டானீ கமலம்' – 'nalla udanee kamalam'!  Despite all the ostentatiousness of today, in a pooja for AmbãL we still place the simple 'கருக மணி மாலை & பச்சோலை' which is also distributed to the assembled married ladies.

662.  If in 'தாலி' you can make out that it is made of 'thãlam' i.e., palm leaf; the ear-ornament 'தோடு' or 'ताटङ्ग' are also made of the same material. What is 'thalam' can become 'thadam' and 'angam' means sign and so 'ताटङ्गम्' is the auspicious sign of 'mangalam'.  Instead of having separate attachments as the stud with a tube with threads inserted into the hole pierced in the ear from the front and the screw fitted from the other side of ear and another pendent known as 'lolakku' and or 'jimikki' as is done these days; ''it was a simpler arrangement I suppose!  'தாலி' and 'ताटङ्गम्' thus, are both especially indicative of 'सुमन्गलित्वम्'.  If the lady happens to continue to live as a widow after the passing away of the husband, these two things should be shunned.  The longevity of the husband and his survival even after a major accident of ailment is mentioned as the 'தாலி பாக்கியம்' is what our ÃchãryãL is calling the 'ताटङ्ग महिमा'.  "When all the Devatas who shared the Amrita were erased out of existence, your husband who ate the poison without sharing it with anybody continues to thrive and flourish; it is the special power of your 'ताटङ्ग महिमा' only he says – 'तव जननि ताटङ्ग महिमा'!"

(To be continued.)

Sambhomahadeva