based on the vyakhyanam of Sri Periyavaccan Pillai
by Sri M.N. Ramanuja

tvatpAda kamalAd anyan na mE janmAntarEShvapi
nimittam kushalasyAsti yEna gachchAmi sadgatim

Meaning:
yEna --By which (means)
sadgatim -- good goal
gachchAmi-- I would attain
tasya kushalasya-- for such means
nimittam-- causative initial good deed
tvat pAdakamalAt anyat-- other than thine lotus feet
mE-- for me
janmAntarEShu api na asti-- is not there in any birth including present and future

Introduction:
(tvatpadakamalat etc) God says " Even though I am both the means and goal, the samsAri has been facing away from me and attaching himself to sense objects from times sans a beginning. If love for Me, preceded by dislike for sense objects have to be born in him, is'nt it necessary that he have some initial good deed in his account? Is'nt it that once the adoration to me is born in him due to some initial good deed, only then true knowledge will be born in him? Is'nt it that from that true knowledge, discrimination of acceptable and eschewable things is born in him? Is'nt it that then only the means for the attainment of the goal preceded by avoidance of eschewable things becomes desirable to him? Is'nt it thence that the attainment of the goal arises? is'nt it necessary that the initial good deed that is the root cause of all these must be done by him? ". In answer man says " that initial good deed is Your feet alone; I have no other go". This shlokam reiterates the previous idea that both the means and the goal are He Himself. The means and the goal have been identified in the shlokams "tava charaNa dvandvam vrajAmi" and "yOgAnAm paramAm siddhim paramam te padam vidu:".

VyakhyAnam:
(tvat pAda kamalAt anyat kushalasya nimittam me nAsti) For me, just as You alone are the goal as well as the means to attain it, so also even the initial good deed for deserving it, is none other than Your feet alone. When it was enough to say "tvat anyat kushalasya nimittam me nAsti" (there is none other than You as the prerequisite good deed for deserving You as the means) why use "pAda kamalam"? For, these two words remind one of the goal and the means. The word 'kamala" reminds of the enjoyability of the goal whereas the word "pAda" reminds of the means. In the verse "charana dvandvam sharaNam vrajAmi" the feet have been identified as the means.

(kushalasya nimittam) the initial good deed for obtaining the auspicious means for attaining the goal. But, as stated in "bahUnAm janmanAm ante jnAnavAn mAm prapadyate", the initial good deed is the knowledge of God, being a result of good deeds of many births and finally leading to the acceptance of the means. So how can we say as in "tvat pAda kamalAdanyat nAsti" that there is no other initial good deed than Your own feet? Well, (mE nAsti) even though I am ignorant, there is no go other than Your feet. Why? Well, what is the effect of good deed? it is to steer and revert one's soul, away from indulgence in pleasures of sound etc and arousing love for God. And when that is done as explained in "jitante pundarIkAkSha" by the beauty of the Lord, the initial good deed is also His feet alone, as far as I am concerned.

(janmAntarEShvapi) What if, if one argues that even the reverting of a soul by displaying God's beauty could be the consequence of some special good deed done in some birth? Well, to revert a person who indulges deeply in sense objects, there is no expectation of a good deed and so there is no need for some good deed in some birth also. This concept is verily the base for Alvar gracefully saying "en Aviyai naduve vanduyyak koLginra nAthanai"

(yEna kushalEna sadgatim gachchAmi) sadgati means a very great unique goal. That is, as in "yogAnAm paramAm siddhim paramam te padam vidu:" the paramapadam. Hence the connection is "yena kushalena sadgatim gachchAmi, tasya kushalasya nimittam janmAntareShvapi tvat pAda kamalAt anyat mE nAsti". That cause, which would provide the means by which, I would attain good goal, is none other than Your lotus feet, for me, even in other births. In another interpretation, "yena upAyena sadgatim gachchAmi, tasya sadgati rUpasya kushalasya hetu bhUtam, upAyam, janmAntareShvapi, tvat pAdakamalAdanyat mE nAsti" meaning, by which means I would attain good goal-- for that welfare in the form of sadgati, the causative means, even in other births, there is none other than Your lotus feet, for me.

If the first shlokam is a summary, this verse explains, the word pUrvaja.