The Hindu : Glorious portrait of the Lord of Srirangam

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Apr 30, 2002

Miscellaneous

Miscellaneous - Religion

Glorious portrait of the Lord of Srirangam

CHENNAI APRIL 30. Sages and saints have left a rich treasure for posterity, in the form of classics containing all information about God and how He is ready to respond to the devotees' sincere pleas. In their brilliant religious works they have revelled in not only describing His bewitching forms but also His merciful deeds, inimitable qualities and the way in which He had rushed to the rescue of His dependents. The grace of God has poured on His devotees, irrespective of their caste or status. The Azhwars were witnesses of Divine Grace and one of them evinced no taste for the glamour of the world and as his sole avocation he had taken up his lyre when eternal strains from it glorified his deity, Lord Ranganatha of Srirangam. He had composed just 10 verses describing the effulgence of the idol but each one of them contains philosophic import. Because of the then prevailing custom, though he could not go and have a direct look at the deity, yet the Lord beckoned Him through a priest, who could not recognise his greatness earlier. Thiruppan Azhwar, as he was known, was later led before the idol, when he sang the "Amalanadhipiran" which now forms part of the Nalayira Divyaprabandam. The title of this work refers to God's purity, He being the prime cause for the world's sustenance and He also being the Supreme. In these verses the saint has rendered a glorious portrait of the Lord from head to foot and the ornaments He wore. This work has been commented upon and elaborated by three saintly persons, each known for his scholarship and presentation of Srivaishnavaite philosophy — Periyavachanpillai, Azhagiya Manavalaperumal Nayanar and Vedanta Desika.

Dr. M.A. Venkatakrishnan, in a discourse on the admirable manner in which the annotation spelt out the Azhwar's feelings, said among the many aspects explained by him, one mentions why the Lord should possess the sacred Disc and the Conch in His hands. They are kept ready, say the analysts, to be used in times of emergency when the devotees who are in distress, call Him. Another factor is about the need of a preceptor to approach God and how the Acharyas should possess not only spiritual knowledge to guide their disciples but they should also be in their own lives strict followers of the rules laid down in scriptures. This Song of Bliss has been left for mortals to read and ruminate and plead with the Lord to take us into His Kingdom.

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Glorious portrait of the Lord of Srirangam

dated 30th April, 1952: Independent Japan

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