SONG NO:11 KATRRUK KARAVAIK

Katrruk karavaik kanangal palakarandhu
Chetrraar tiralazhiyach chenru cheruccheyyum
Kutrram onrillaada koovalartham porkodiye!
Putrrara valkul punamayile! Podaraai,
Sutrrattuth thozhimar ellaarum vandunin
Mutrram pugundu mukilvannan perpaada,
Sitrraadhe pesaadhe selvappendaatinee
Etrrukkurangum porulelorempaavai


Serve to make Him happy:

The gOpikA spoken about in this pAsuram is known for her slender physical feature and AnDAL calls her as "porkodi". More importantly AnDAL sings about her family for having discharged duties bestowed on them. Her father is renowned for having performing his duties of milking hundreds of cows in AyarpADi. AnDAL makes a special mention of such dutiful men for a simple reason that these duties have been given to us by the Lord Himself through the scriptures. Performing these rituals is to bring happiness to the Lord and hence falls in the category of His service. Any such duty that we perform is done as a service to the Lord.

Enemies to SrivaishnavA:

Another important issue to be noted in this pAsuram is "SetRRAr thirlazhiya". She speaks about the enemies to SrivaishnavA's, where enemies are none other than those who want to harm Sri Krishna. This is so because SrivaishnavAs cant even have enemies. Anybody who is against the Lord or His scriptures are the enemies of SrivaishnavA.
Service is the ultimate goal:

A special mention is to be made here about these divine friends of AnDAL. Though all of them have taken refuge in the Lords feet we see a few sleeping peacefully but a few awake in an urge to serve Him. But we should understand that there exists no difference between them whatsoever.

SwAmi PiLLailOkAchAryA in mumookshupaDi discusses the ideal characters of an individual who has taken refugee in the Lords lotus feet. He says, "pERu thappAdhenRu thunindhirukkai" and "pERRukku thwarikkai". Former means that we should have enough confidence that we will be bestowed divine service at the Lords feet but at the same time we should have a constant urge to achieve that. Those who are sleeping belong to the first category and those awake belong to the second.

In this pAsuram AnDAL sings about "suRRaththu thOzhimAr". The exclusive character of these divine friends is that their ultimate goal is to serve the Lord expecting nothing in return, but His happiness and satisfaction.

"eRRukkurangum poruL"

SONG NO:10 NOTTRUCH CHUVARGAM

Nottruch chuvargam puguginra ammanaai
Maatramum tharaaro, vaasal thiravaadhar
Naatrath thuzhaimudi naaraayanan nammaal
Potrapp paraitarum punniyanaal; Pandorunaal
Kootrathin vaayveezhnda Kumbakarnanum
Thotrum unakke perunthuyilthaan thandaano ?
Aatra aanandaludaiyaai! arungalame!
Thetrramaai vandu tiravelorembavaai

The only refuge:

In this pAsuram, the gOpikA who is being woken up is considered as one who has completed her vow and even attained the benefits as a result of it. AnDAL refers to her as "nORRu suvargam puguginRa", meaning someone who has entered swargam as a result of her nOnbu. Here swargam means the everlasting Krishna anubhavam that she has been enjoying. Now we get a doubt here. When all of them are just in the process of gathering to conduct the vow, how come AnDAL refers to this gOpikA as one who has already completed and also blessed with the benefits?

NammAzhwAr refers to the inmates of Srivaramangai dhivya dEsam, also called vAnamAmalai as "seidha vELviyar", i.e., people who have already completed all their vows. It does not mean that they have completed all rituals bestowed on them, but they are those who have understood their nature as jeevAthmAs and the celestial relationship between them and the Lord. Its this knowledge of understanding that we are His property and He at any cost should come to our rescue is the most celebrated ritual here. Similar to those divine souls of vAnamAmalai, this gOpikA had understood the souls nature and by performing that she has already finished her vow and is enjoying its benefits. Benefit being none other than Krishna anubhavam. Most important aspect to be understood here is that we as SrivaishnavAs, after accepting Him as the ONLY refuge, should not try any other means.
Virtues are the valuable ornaments:

The same gOpikA, owing to this superior quality of hers is referred to as "arunkalam". This term as such has two meanings. It might refer to her as a worthy vessel to store the blessings of Krishna. Another is that she can be referred to as an ornament for these virtues that she possesses. Its by such virtues SrivaishnavAs get distinguished from others. So developing such virtues makes one a SrivaishnavA.

"thERamAi va~ndhu thiRa"

SONG NO: 09 THOOMANI MAADATUCH

Thoomani maadatuch chutrum vilakkeriya
Thoobam kamazhat tuyilanaimel kannvalarum
Maamaan magale! Mannikkadavam taazhtiravaai
Maameer avalai yezhuppeero? Unmagaldaan
Oomaiyo? Anrich chevido? Anantalo?
Emap peruntuyil mandirap pattaalo?
Maamaayan maadhavan vaikuntan enrenru
Naamam palavum navinrelorembavai.

Owner and His Property:

The girl woken up in this song is one with unintimidated belief that Lord alone is the means to Liberation. When HanumAn meets SeethA pirATTi at LankA and suggested that He carries Her back to RAmA. PirATTi refused it immediately and said that by doing that HanumAn would have done something similar to rAvanA. Just that rAvana robbed SeethA, an important possession of RAmA from Him but HanumAn is robbing the Lord of His divine quality of "sarva lOka rakshakatvam", i.e., His sole right to protect all. Further She says, "Your burning tail was cooled by my chastity and with that I could have saved me myself. But by doing that I would have only spoilt RamA's reputation. He alone by His power should rescue me and establish by His valiance." She said, "tat tasya sadrusam bhavEt", that alone would be befitting Him. HanumAn was awestruck by this reply and hailed PirATTi.

On similar lines to SeethA pirATTi, this girl had utmost faith on the Lord and having transfered her burden on Him, was enjoying a sound sleep. This is how a soul after surrendering to Sriman NArAyanA should behave. The utmost faith that the owner will take care of His property is what every single soul should exhibit.

Celestial Relationship:

AnDAL refers to this gOpikA as, "mAmAn magaLE", i.e., Her uncles daughter. Though they do not have actual blood relationship, She is referring to the relation that their inner souls are enjoying as devotees of the Lord. Generally blood relationships are condemend by our AchAryAs as they bring with them material interest and worldly attachments. But on the other hand, they welcomed it if such relations help in serving the Lord and His devotees. SwAmi NammAzhwAr blesses us to live with reations, earn a rich living etc in ThiruvAimozhi (8.10.11). Immediately in the next decade(9.1.1) He condemns it for the above said reasons. KoorathAzhwAn used to feel for not having a blood relation with SwAmi RamAnujA unlike MudhaliyAndAn or EmbAr.

Contradicting Qualities Together:

Further AnDAL coins a phrase with three important names of EmperumAn. She calls him "mAmAyan mAdhavan vaikundhan". In this the first name "mAmAyan", refers to the simpleness of EmperumAn when He came down as KrishnA to play childish tricks, steal butter and get along with us like one amongst us. The third name "vaikundhan" refers to His greatness as the ultimate power, owner of the universe and ruling it sitting at His eternal abode the Srivaikuntam. The former quality is called "sowlabhyam" and the latter as "parathvam". It has always been a constant question to AzhwArs as to how EmperumAn alone could incorporate both these qualities together as they are mutually contradicting. AnDAL interestingly used the term "mAdhavan" in between the other two. "MAdhavan" means the one in whose possession is Madhavi, i.e., Sri MahAlakshmi. Or in other words, it is because of PirATTi's uninterrupted presence with Him, these two otherwise mutually contradicting qualities are present in Him.


"~nAmam palavum navinRu"

SONG NO:08 KEEZHVAANAM

keezhvaanam vellenru erumai siru veedu
meivaan parandanakaan! Mikkulla pillaigalum
povaan poginraaraip pogaamal kaathunnaik
koovuvaan vandunindrom, kodhu kalamudaiya
paavai! ezhundirai; paadi paraikondu
maavaai pilandaanai mallarai maattiya
devaadhi devanai chenru naam sevithaal
aavaaven raaraaindarulelorembaavaai.

Meaning :
The most Special Girl:

The girl who is being woken up in this pAsuram is a special one. In fact she is very close to EmperumAn, or probably a devotee deeply in love with Krishna. Our AchAryAs compared her to SwAmi NammAzhwAr, rightly called as "krishna-trishnA thathvam", an embodiment of true love and perfect devotion towards KrishnA. Such a devotee's company is desirable to one and all. Hence AnDAL requests this particular gOpikA to join their group so that all of them are benefited. She refers to her as "kOdhugalamuDaya pAvAi", the special maiden.

Is that the sunrise ?

As usual they explain to her the signs of dawn. "The horizon on the east is becoming bright. Get up." and she replied, "It is the glow and lust from your moon-like faces which has brightened the horizon. Its not dawn actually."(one should remembre the phrase "thingaL thirumugathu sEyizhayAr" that AnDAL uses to describe these little girls)
Perfect Imitation of the Character Played:

Now these girls explain to the sleeping one the second sign of sunrise. Its an interesting phrase where AnDAL mentions about the buffaloes being dispersed to graze dew clad grass in the early morning hours. Its a technical issue about how the cowherds disperse their cattle to graze in a restricted zone and how is that AnDAL, a brahmin by birth knew this? The commentator says AnDAL is so much into Her character as a gOpikA and She has understood this, and more technical issues about the cowherds and their practice. She got to know their daily chores and habits. Further She persuades the sleeping girl by saying that if we delay Krishna might also leave behind the cattle to help them graze and there are chances we migh
Divine Relations:

Its something similar to Her father Sri PeriyAzhwAr who enjoyed all the childish pranks of Krishna considering Himself to be YasOdhA. Being a learned vEdic scholar and authoring a book titled "kalpasoothrA", didn't stop Him from enjoying those acts of the Lord. AnDAL refers to Him as "bhOgaththil vazhuvAdhA pudhuvayarkOn", He who never misses a single opportunity to enjoy Krishna's childish play. She has done the same thing here.

Conclusion:

Considering these issues, SwAmi PiLLai lOkAchArya in Sri vachanabooshanam says, "periyAhzwArum thirumagaLArum gOpa janmaththai AsthAnam panninArgaL". This means Sri PeriyAzhwAr and His daughter took appropriate roles of cowherds to enjoy Krishna and His plays. So it becomes evident that any role which is compatible for enjoying and serving the Lord is desirable for us.

"AvAvenRArAi ndhu aruL"

SONG NO:07 KEESU KEESU

keesu keesu endrengum aanaicchaathan kalandhu
pesina pecharavam kettilayo? peippenne !
kaasum pirappum kalakalappak kaiperndhu
vaasa narumkuzhal aayichiyar mathinaal
osaippadutha thayiraravam kettilayo?
naayaga penpillaai! naaraayanan moorthi
kesavanaip paadavum nee kette kidathiyo?
thesam udayaai! thiravelorempaavai

Taking them all to enjoy Ecstasy:

This song is second in line of waking up other devotees. Now we tend to think, why is AnDAL so specific about waking up every single devotee ? She could have as such proceeded with a handful of gOpikAs, instead She goes to every single house and dutifully sings to wake up the sleeping gOpikA. Here again the great note of enjoying the company of bhAgavathAs is being emphasized. AnDAL was pretty sure that unless every single girl of thiruvAipADi joins her, She is not going to conduct the vow. Not even one girl should miss the golden opportunity of enjoying the causeless mercy of Sriman NArAyanA. SrivaishnavA's greatness lies in treating everybody like their own relatives. So even when an unknown person is in worry, a Srivaishnava feels for it. If one fails to feel so, He is not a Srivaishnava.

Contradictory words:

AnDAL makes an excellent usage of 2 contradictory terms in this pAsuram. First She says "pEy pennE" and later on refers to the same girl as "nAyaka pen piLLAi". It sounds like referring to the same person by two words that are directly opposite. This usage is to show what love and affection AnDAL had towards the sleeping girl. Though the terms used are contradictory, the inner meaning is of more importance. Same rule is applied when moving with SrivaishnavAs as such.

BAgavatha sambandham Vs. Bagavath sambandham:

Sri Nanjeeyar and Sri ATkonDavilli JEyar, happened to meet once at Srirangam. The former is a student of Sri ParAsara Bhattar and the latter, of Sri RamAnuja. On seeing Sri Nanjeeyar, Sri AtkonDavilli Jeyar said, "O seer, I have not developed a good taste for Bhagavath vishayam". Nanjeeyar who was shocked to hear this said, " You being a faithful student of SwAmi himself, should not say this. Such a thing can't even happen." AtkonDavilli JEyars replied, "If someone is interested in developing love towards God, he should first start enjoying the company of His devotees. If that does not happen He is not a Srivaishnavan. Have we evolved that interest? Hence I said so."

The mutual enjoyment:

This world here is a training ground for us to develop qualities like enjoying His devotees company, serving His devotees, mutually enjoying the Gods divine stories etc. Unless we have developed these attitudes when in this world, mOksham as such will not be luscious. When AzhwAr reached Srivaikuntam, He started enjoying the divine group of devotees there and says "a~nthamil pErinbaththu aDiyarODu iru~ndhamai". So its evident that AzhwAr's urge to reach the sacred abode was not only for the union with the Lord but also with His devotees.

"thEsamuDayAi thiRa"

SONG NO:06 PULLUM SILAMBINAKAAN

pullum silambinakaan pullarayan kovilil
vellai vili sangin peraravam kettilayo
pillaai ezhundhiraai! pei mulai nanjundu
kalla chakatam kalakkazhiya kaalochi
vellaththaravil thuyilamarndha vitthanai
ullathukkondu munivargalum yogigalum
mella ezhundhu hari endra peraravam
ullam pugundhu kulirndhelorempaavaai


Birds chant His names too:

The girls approach the house of the first gOpika to be woken up. They tell her about the birds chirping, indicating the early dawn hours and ask her to wake and join them. The gOpikA rejects their reason and says, " you girls never allow the birds in your town to sleep, neither do you sleep. You keep chanting BhagavAns name all night long and they have learned to do the same. So I cant take this as a sign of dawn."
Naming to attain bliss:

Then they mention the divine sound of the conch being played at the "puLLarayan kOil", the temple of Sriman NarAyana, indicating the early morning worship and inviting devotees for His service. The phrase " puLLarayan kOil" is an intersting usage here. The meaning is puL= garuDa, arayan= king, i.e., the king of garuDa, none other than Sriman NarAyana, kOil= temple. That is Sriman NarAyanA's temple. But why is that AnDAL uses such an ambage here. The commentator gives a very interesting reply here. In RamAyanA when SeethA pirATTi explains Her abduction by RAvAnA to HanumAn, she says, "....I was separated from Rama's younger brother and LakshmanA's elder brother on that fateful day...." (rAmAnujam lakshmana poorvajamcha:) Such usage is for an interesting reason that the Lord feels hapy when His divine name is coupled with His devotee and so does the devotee. So AnDAL made this excellent usage of "puL arayan kOil", referring to the Lord through His ardent devotee GaruDa.

Don disturb the Lord:

The next interesting phrase is "uLLaththukkonDu munivargaLum yOgigaLum mellayezhundhu". AnDAL sings about the ascetics, who are in the habit of waking up slowly from their beds. This, they are in practice so that they don't disturb the Lord, who has taken an eternal abode in their heart if they wake up in haste. PrahlAdhA, when pushed down from the
mountain caught His heart firmly so that the Lord residing inside is not disturbed by the fall. The Lord wanted to help such devotee and was waiting to receive him in the bottom of the mountain with His arms spread.

Sing His name aloud:

AnDAL finishes this pAsuram with another important note, "hari enRa pErravam". We should be in the habit of chanting HARI's divine names when we wake up to cleanse us from the sins committed that night unknowingly in our sleep. It was for this reason that our poorvAchArya made this compulsory that we chant His names aloud when we wake up from bed.

Introduction to second part:

As we enjoyed the first 5 pAsurams as introduction to the whole of thiruppAvai and the details about conducting the vows etc, AnDAL sings the next ten songs to wake up Her sleeping friends, calling them all to join the divine group of bhAgavadhAs to conduct the vow. The two groups of people one asleep and the other awake represents the two kinds of devotees, mainly the "kainkarya nishTA" or those interested in serving the Lord, like LakshmanA and the "guna nishTA" or those who are happy merely by meditating on the wonderful qualities of the Lord, like BharathA. AzhwAr sings about the presence of both these kinds devotees in Srivaikuntam as such. He refers to them as "vaikunthaththu amararum" and "munivarum" respectively. Just like how poison acts differently on different people, that is a few faint, a few resist etc, KrishnAs attributes reacted the same way with His devotees. The ones sleeping are regarded at par with the ones awake.Now comes the million dollar question. Why is AnDAL so keen on increasing the head count of gOpikAs? Why cant She just continue with the ones who are awake? The answer is given by AzhwAr when He sings about how we worship Him. AzhwAr says, "vEdham vallArgaLai konDu vinnOr perumAn thirupAdham panindhu". That is, it is best to approach EmperumAn with the guidance and support of sacred men. Here sacred men mean, any devotee of His who feel He is the sole means to liberation and do not tend to practice any other alternative. The reason for this that, we as human beings have committed enough sins for Him to punish us using His rights to act independently, being the most supreme being. Hence the necessity to approach Him through a recommending authority becomes inevitable. This person acts like a boat to help us cross the mighty river of virtues of Sriman NarayanA. Moreover enjoying His qualities would be best done in a big group of devotees where they can treat each other mutually with the nectar of the Lords greatness.

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Tamilnadu,India".

SONG NO:05 MAYANAI MANNU

mayanai mannu vada madurai maindanai
thuyapperu neer Yamunai thhuraivanai
Ayar kkulatthinil thondrum mani vailakkai
thayaik kudal vilakkam cheida damodaranai
thuyomai vandu nam
thumalartthuvit thozhudu
vayinalppadi manatthinal chindikka
poyappizayum pugu tharuvan nindranavum
theeyinil thusagum cheppelorembavai

On hearing AnDAL's invitation to attend the vow, a big group of gOpikAs assemble to enjoy company mutually. One among them raised a doubt, "When we do all this to get to enjoy the company of Krishna, we should not forget that we have done enough sins that will pose barricades in our path to salvation." Further on she goes over to explain the story of how much of plans and preparations Dasaratha made for Rama's coronation, with his kula guru, maharishi Vasishta fixing the date, with the whole city of AyOdhyA singing in bliss and finally question, "But Rama went to forests forsaking the city and His PdhukA's decorated the royal throne and reigned for fourteen long years. So what is the surety that we will succeed our mission?"AnDAL sings this pAsuram as a reply to that question. You will be freed of all your obstacles just by reciting His divine names, having your thoughts always filled by Him and offering flowers to His lotus feet. By doing these simple deeds, all your sins committed before your surrender at His lotus feet and those committed inadvertently after it will all perish. Just that your sins committed prior to your surrender will be burnt to ashes and those done after it will not stick on to you, like water droplets on a lotus leaf.EmperumAn can be compared with milk, as its both a pleasurable food and also a medicine to cure bile. AzhwAr rightly calls him, maruththuvanAi ninRa mAmanivanna.

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SONG NO:04 AAZHIMAZHAIK KANNA

aazhimazhaik kanna! ondru nee kaikaravel
aazhiyul pukku mugandhu kodaartheri
uzhi muthalvan uruvam pol mei paruththup
paazhiyantholudaya parpanaabhan kaiyil
aazhipol minni valampuripol nindru adhirnthu
thaazhaathe saarngamudhaiththa saramazhai pol
vaazha ulaginil peithidaai naangalum
maargazhi neeraada magizhndelor empaavaai.

Meaning :
In the last pAsuram, AnDAL wished there be prosperity in the world. Varuna, the demigod in charge of rain watches these events happening at ThiruvAipADi. Awestruck by the way his master, Sriman Narayana serving His fond gOpikAs, varuna thought, helping them by satisfying their desires is the easiest way he could please his Master. He approaches AnDAL, who was in the guise of a gOpikA and requests Her to command him.A very interesting pAsuram by itself, it speaks how the demi gods comport with SrivaishnavAs. An excellent example quoted here is, the demigods like bhrahma, rudhra and indhira treat prapannAs at par how a heir apparent to a kingship is treated with respect and esteemed by all his ministers and subjectsWhen they treat prapannAs like that, its heights of ridicule and derision when SrivaishnavA's fall at their feet. More importantly such people cause their own downfall by loosing their chance to get salvation and hurt Sriman Narayana by doing so. Once when questioned, how do these demi gods behave with vaishnavAs, KoorathAzhwAn replied back saying, the question will sound correct if its rephrased as to how SrivaishnavAs treat these demi gods. Such is the greatness of SrivaishnavAs that these demi gods feel great to be at their call and commands.
That being the essence of the song as such, AnDAL's instructions to varuna, goes to the extant of demanding him to consume the water from the middle of the sea, not leaving back a speck. Further She commands him to pour it all to its integrality without discriminating between the places where noble and bad people live. The sharp rain drops that resembles the powerful arrows shot by Sri Rama to shatter the asurAs to pieces, should bring happiness and prosperity to the entire world.
The most important aspect of being a Srivaishnava is to think about the welfare of everybody in the world, an exclusive attitude eluded on SrivaishnavAs.
"mArgazhi neerADa magizhndhu"

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SONG NO:03 ONGI ULAGALANDHA

ongi ulagalandha uttaman per paadi
naangal nam paavaikkuch chaatri neeraadinaal
theengindri naadellam thingal mummaari peidhu
onguperunj chennaloodu kalyal ugala
poonguvalaip pothil porivandu kanpaduppa
thengaathe pukkirundhu seerthamulai pattri
vaangakkudam niraikkum vallal perum pasukkal
neengaatha selvam nirainthelor empaavai.

Meaning :The vow that AndAL started was for the welfare and prosperity of this world, which is His property. In this pAsuram, She wishes that there be rain thrice a month. An excellent character of a Srivaishnava, wishing for the welfare of the whole world is shown here for us to practice. Only SrivaishnavAs till date pray, "kaDal sOzhndha maNNulagam vAzha" , let the world surrounded by the oceans live long. No wonder our poorvAchAryAs made it customary that we pray so everyday.Now a question arises, why is AndAL interested in material well being? Yet another important quality of a vaishnava that She addresses here is the answer for the above question. A Srivaishnavite, must aspire for the well being of the worlds riches considering them as the Lord's own and at the same time keep self detached from them.AndAL asks Her friend to recite the name of the Lord who measured the entire universe with his three steps and conducts the vow, cause of which the whole world becomes prosperous. She speaks about the greatness of His names, which will help us more handy than Himself. Best example that can be quoted here is that of Draupadi. When she was disrobed in the court hall, before her own husbands, she shouted out "gOvindha, puntareekAksha" and immediately she was attended. Its the supreme power of the God's name that saved her modesty when even Lord Himself failed. SwAmi PiLLailOkAchAryar points this out in MumookshupaDi and writes, "avan doorasthanAnAlum idhu kitti ninRu udhavum" (Even if the Lord is far off, His names will be close enough to help us) and "Draupadikku AbathilE puDavai surandhadhu thirunAmamEyirE" (It were His names that helped Draupadi in her emergency).
But we as prapannAs surrender and seek salvation ONLY through Him. His names, more importantly the ashtAkshari is for us to understand the five fold genius, namely: the true nature of the soul, the Lord, our relationship which is mutual, the path to achieve our goal (which is nothing but the Lords lotus feet) and finally that which is stopping us from achieve our goal.Finally She speaks about "neengAdha selvam". Certainly she does not speak about the material wealth,which is never everlasting, but about the eternal service at the lotus feet of the almighty, which according to Srivaishnavam is the true wealth that a soul can accumulate."neengAdha selvam niRaindhu"

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Tamilnadu,India".

SONG NO:02 VAIYATHTHU VAAZHVIRKKAL

vaiyaththu vaazhvIrkaaL! naamum nampaavaikkuc *ceyyum kiricaikaL kELIrO * paaRkataluLpaiyath thuyinRa paraman ati paati *neyyuNNOm paaluNNOm naatkaalE nIraati *maiyittezhuthOm malarittu naam mutiyOm *ceyyaathana ceyyOm thIkkuRaLai cenROthOm *aiyamum piccaiyum aan^thanaiyum kai kaatti *uyyumaaRu eNNi ukan^thu ElOr empaavaay.

AndAL in this pAsuram, explains to Her friends the do's and dont's to conduct this vow. Since Her appeal was for a great cause and the prerequisite was a just interest in doing the deed, a huge group was formed to follow Her. Infact she exclaims as to how come so many people are interested in performing good deeds in this ignorant world.
She explains to them that we might, for outsiders look like we are performing this to please the Supreme God to shower rains, but understand that "Naamum"- i.e., we, the group of elite devotees are different from the usual mass. This is so because we firmly believe that to reach Him, He is the only means and we are longing for His divine company and service.The most important part of this pAsuram is when she starts dictating the code of conduct for SrivaishnavAs in general and for people conducting this vow in particular.First and foremost duty of a vaishnava is to sing the glory of Sriman Narayana as said in the drAvida and samskritha vEdhams. AndAl specifies that one should sing the praise the His lotus feet (paraman aDi pADi) of the Lord who is reclining on His royal serpent couch thinking about one's redemption.Forgo all worldly desires like eating butter, ghee etc. Do not adorn your eyes with collyrium, or decorate your hair with oil etc till the vow is completed. All this AndAL says to stress a point that a Srivaishnavite needs decoration only when in the union of Sriman Narayana. Since the whole concept of this vow is to reunite with Him, AndAl advices us to restrain from these. More importantly never involve in an act forbidden by our ancestors. Bharata refused the kingship though granted by his father and permitted by Rama on the grounds that the tradition of Ikshavaaku Kings did not permit a younger son to rule when the elder was living.
Most important quality of a SriVaishnava that AndAL speaks about is that he should not speak bad about others or even think about it, because it indirectly reflects on speaking bad about the God residing within him.Finally when attending the vow one should give as much to charity as possible and also impart knowledge about God to all those who are in need of it.In a nutshell one should be in divine thoughts and spend as much time as possible in serving and helping Him and His devotees.

"This message was sent by Rekha
Tamilnadu,India".

SONG NO:01 MAARKAZHITH THINGKAL

maarkazhith thiNGkaL mathin^iRain^tha nannaaLaal *nIraatap pOthuvIr! pOthuminO nErizhaiyIr! *cIrmalkum aayppaatic celvac ciRumIrkaaL! *kUrvEl kotun^thozhilan nan^thakOpan kumaran *Eraarn^tha kaNNi yacOthai iLaNYciNGkam *kaarmEnic ceNGkaN kathir mathiyam pOl mukaththaan *naaraayaNanE namakkE paRai tharuvaan *paarOr pukazhap patin^thu ElOr empaavaay.

The first song has been beautifully sung to mention about the core issues that are to be elaborated in the following songs.She first sings the greatness of the wonderful day that got her a sambandham with EmperumAN. As AzhwAr sings, "anRu nAn piRandhilEn, piRandhapin marandhilEn"", its only after understanding the divine relationship between us and emperumAn, we are considered born. This divine relationship as expressed by Thirumanthram, is to be understood and the day when this happens, is to be celebrated. AndAL understood it on this very day and hence praises the day.More next, she goes on to discuss what is that we are actually to do here. She emphasizes the fact that this body is as such to serve him, and the only prerequisite is that you have the interest to do it. Nothing else is a barricade, just the little interest and intention is what you need to qualify to serve Him.She sees this interest glowing in the faces of Her friends as well and feels that the full bright moon is not only in the sky but also in their faces.She then moves on to praise the prosperity of "thiruvAipAdi". The place is immensely prosperous with the pranks of Sri Krishna. Or in other words, the true wealth of vaishnavAs is the enjoyment that he gets from being close to God and serving Him.The amount of care and concern that NandagOpar has for Sri Krishna amazes her so much that she sings about the sharp spear that he has to ward of silly insects that come near Krishna. The mangalAsAsana nishtai of NandagOpA, is similar to her own father Sri PeriyAzhwAr's. More importantly she feels, yasOdhA dEvi's constant watch on Krishna is responsible for His pranks.Finally the most important idea to be learnt from this pAsuaram is discussed. That is, what is the means to attain Him?The answer is very simple,He is the sole means to attain Him.

"This message was sent by Rekha
Tamilnadu,India".

THIRUPP AVAI INTRODUCTION.

INTRODUCTION:Sri AndAL, as spoken by guruparamparA prabhAvams, is the incarnation of Sri Bhoomi Devi, one among the many Divine consort of Sriman Narayana.Her avathAram, as Sri Manvaala Maamunigal says, "emmakkAgavandRO ingu AndAL avatharithAL", was to teach the greatness of saranAgathi and liberate us from the sufferings of this material world. The sweet songs that she sang, numbering 30, more popularly called as "ThiruppAvai" is believed to express the quintessence of Sri Vaishnava Sampradaayam as a whole. She herself declares that those who master these 30 with their meanings will be blessed with peace, prosperity and more importantly the causeless mercy of Sriman Narayanan.The most special aspect of this prabandham can be understood by the way our poorvAchARyAs hailed it. They made it customary that all the 30 songs be chanted everyday at our homes and in temples. We might get to think that AndAL is actually trying to perform a religious ritual by conducting a vow to satisfy the Supreme Lord. But actually one should understand that all that she did is to pray to be granted the boon of "divine service, lasting to eternity", as she says,"iRRaikkum EzhEzh piRavikkum unthanIdu uRROmE yAvOm, unakkE nAm AtseivOm", Divine service at the lotus feet of Sriman Narayana, for all times to come, is the sole goal of all SrivaishnavAs and showing us the way to achieve that in short is what ThiruppAvai is all about.

"This message was sent by Rekha
Tamilnadu,India".