based on the vyakhyanam of Sri Periyavaccan Pillai
by Smt Sumithra Varadarajan

Paasuram-10
nAttinan deivam engum nallathOr arulthannAlE
kAttinAn thiruvarangam uybhavarkku uyyumvannam
kEttirE nambimeergAl! Geruda vAhananum nirkka
sEttai than madi yagaththu selvam pArtirukkindreerE

nAttinan deivam engum nallathOr arulthannAlE: We find a number of devi's and devata's temples all over the world. Different people worship different gods. Different gods are worshipped in different modes by different people. Alwar here says all these gods where created only by Sriman Narayanan. But then why should he create so many and divert the people when he is the supreme self who everyone has to worship? That is because, all people are not same. Some are sattvikas, some rajasas and some thAmasas. So emperuman by his nirheduka krupa created even gods according to the various tastes of the people. Only the belief in god and spiritual practice can make people orderly and refrain from doing mistakes. So he created different gods to cater to the needs of the different types of people. We find many people criticizing the sattivikas but still even those people do pooja and visit the temples of their own estha(favorite) devatha. Such is the mentality of the people. Emperuman who knows each and every one of us due to his divine grace(nallathOr arul) established different gods in different places. He is the antaryami of all the devathas and having them as his body he gives the results. But people do not realize it and sometimes even talk ill of the lord Sriman Narayana. But unfortunately they do not know that whatever they do as worship finally reaches only emperuman. Nowadays, even srivaishnavas do not understand the magimai of emperuman and unfortunately go and stand in front of other devatas for some lowkika palans. This is like a son of a big person(wealthy and healthy) going and standing in front of a daridran (poor and weak) for sudhra (cheap) palans. How can we say that only emperuman created all these devatas? Would be the next question anyone will ask. Bhagavan himself in Bg says, "Yo yo yam yam thanum bhaktha:" and Nammazhvar in thiruvaimozhi says, 'Avar avar thamathamadu arivari vagaivagai avaravar eraiyavar ena adi adaivargal avaravar eraiyavar kuraivilar eraiyavar avaravar vidhivazhi adaiyanindranarE". Here alwar says that there are so many gods and different people fall into their feet depending on their fate. If they are rajasas they go to the temples of rajasic gods and if they are thamasAs they go to the temples of thamasic gods. There is nothing wrong if people visit and worship the gods according to their nature but what is disheartening and what alwar condemns is the srivaishnavas going to other temples for favour. This is like a sat patni(a good wife) going and standing in the footsteps of para purushan(other men).

Whatever emperuman has done is due to his krupai only. In Vishnu temples mangalAsAsanams , ghosti, thiruvArAdanam etc are done for just pleasing emperuman and seeing the smile on his face by bhagavatas not seeking any other palan. But this will not work out with people who go to temple only when they find some reason to do so. So to satisfy all and avoid confusion emperuman has done all these. "Sarva deva namaskAraha kesavam pratigachchathi" anyway on namaskarams ultimately reach bhagavan only. Slowly the others will also gain sattvika gunas and reach bhagavan but it may take time depending on the nature and fate of individuals.

kAttinAn thiruvarangam uybhavarkku uyyumvannam: Though emperuman created number of gods and various types of worship he also showed the difference between worshipping the gods who are bodies and the emperuman himself who is the soul. Whoever worshipped the lord in Srirangam for the sake of just doing bhakthi and kainkaryam to him will reach the highest abode of the lord, the moksha. So they attain what a jeevatma has to attain in this janma and break the cycle of life and death and reach the world from where they never return.

kEttirE nambimeergAl! Geruda vAhananum nirkka: Even though alwar says so much about the lord and his karunai these people go deaf eared. Alwar's words never strike them and they are interested only in the lowkika pleasures. So now alwar draws their attention towards him and says "listen! You folks emperuman is waiting in garuda vahanam to come running to our call and grant moksha". Not only that emperuman is waiting, Sri mahalakshmi who stays in the vakthastalam of emperuman always is also waiting to talk on our behalf to perumal to forgive all our sins and give us all mangalams. Even if emperuman get angry by the crores of apacharams(mistakes) we all commit thayar who is a mother to all of us talks to him politely and showers mercy on us. She never gets angry with her kids who are prone to mistakes. She also changes all of us by her grace. She is the godown of wealth and when she comes to a place the whole area becomes filled with wealth and well being. But alwar feels , why these people do not understand this. They do not fall in the feet of Sriman Narayanan instead what do they do?

sEttai than madi yagaththu selvam pArtirukkindreerE: They are in the look out for the elder sister of sridevi. Who is this elder sister? She is jhestha devi(settai in tamil) and she is one who gives all amangalams(commonly called moodevi). Well educated persons suffer from ahankAram and mamakAram and hence never go near emperuman and so moodevi visits them. Whereas even a poorly educated person may get the kataksham of Sridevi. Sridevi was born in Parkadal which is a mine of pearls and corals. Every wealth in this world belongs to Sridevi only and she showers it on us due to her krupai. But inspite of all these people never approach her instead look for wealth from moodevi who gives only worry. Even in Srishooktham they is a reference to this moodevi(Jhestha). "shut bhebhasa malAm jheshtam…. nAsayAmyaham". So alwar feels for those who leave sridevi and go to moodevi. Even for attaining lowkika palans there are sannadhi's in srirangam itself. Emperuman is capable of granting both lowkika palans and moksham also. Dhanvantri is a doctor who cures our disease, sudarshanar protects us from all evils, santhanagopalan blesses us with a child and so on. That is why even nammazhvar says 'nindra Adipiran nirka mattrai deivam nAduthirE"(when Adipiran is standing to grant us whatever we want why go to other gods?).