[tamil] daynineteen-songnineteen-tiruppavai-from ramani
DAY NINETEEN-SONG NINETEEN -TIRUPPAVAI-FROM RAMANI
It has been brought to the notice of Ramani that the
attachment which is growing day by day makes access to
the mail difficult in certain parts of the world.
Therefore those of you who are reading the
interpretation for the first time may send a mail to
ramaninaidu@yahoo.com requesting the previous songs
and their interpretation which will be promptly
mailed.
It has been brought to the notice of Ramani that in
certain places like Washington, there is difficulty to
reach me at ramaninaidu@yahoo.com. The alternative
address is ramaninaidu@123india.com. If there is any
difficulty in reaching me even at that address, please
post your letter to tamil@tamilnet.com which I will
hopefully get from various parts of the world for
sure.
Transliteration
Kuttu vilakkeriyak kottukkal kattil mel
Mettenra panca cayanattin melerik
Kottalar punkulal nappinnai konkai mel
Vaittuk kitanta malar marpa vay tiravay
Maittatan kanninay ni un manalanai
Ettanai potum tuyilela ottay kan
Ettanaiyelum pirivarrakillayal
Tattuvamanru takavelor empavay.
Translation
As the lamps are lit, You lie on the soft bed with
virtues five
Spread on the ivory-legged cot,
With the feel of Nappinnai’s breasts on your broad
chest.
Cool is your hair making buds bloom,
Nappinnai, with broad colirium lined eyes!
You will not leave your Lord to leave the bed even for
a moment.
Nor can you bear separation from Him.
It becomes not of you to hold Him back all to
yourself.
The nineteenth and the twentieth songs are the only
two songs in Tiruppavai with explicit sexual
implications. While Andal has been quite explicit with
sexual sensuousness in Nacciyar Tirumoli, she seems to
have underplayed the sexual element in the Tiruppavai.
The ninth song earlier also referred to a bed chamber
– that of the maid yet to join the pavai. That was a
bedchamber of luxury while the bedchamber of this song
is one of the bliss of union. That was a chamber lit
by lamps; perfumed with the smoke from incense. The
bed there was luxurious enough to keep one glued to
sleep. The light blurred with the smoke and a bed that
encourages indulgence of the ninth song is in sharp
contrast with the description of a similar chamber in
this song. There is no smoke, however fragrant, to
blur the lamps here. The bed here is endowed with all
five virtues of a bed – beautiful, cool, soft,
fragrant and pure. It is not indulgence but post
sexual bliss that keeps the Lord and the lady held
together in bed. The hair of the lady is so cool as to
make the buds bloom. There is no heat of passion that
will make the flowers wither. The bliss of union is so
lingering in effect that the lady will not leave her
Lord to leave her and hence will try to keep him glued
to his bed. She knows pretty well that her Lord has
His obligations to the devotees and therefore it does
not become of her to keep Him all to herself even as
the day has dawned, bringing the maids to Him.
Traditional interpretation will elaborately dramatise
the whole situation. At the end of the previous song,
Nappinnai leaves the bed to open the door. Krishna
however wants to open the door Himself with the
intention of winning for Himself the credit of having
the maids’ prayer. He thus drags her back to bed and
as she falls on His chest, the feel of her breasts
makes Krishna forget his intention. He forgets the
fact that the maids are waiting outside. And when the
maids appeal to Him to at least answer their prayer if
not open the door, Nappinnai prevents Him from a tight
hug. The maids realise the passionate drama
withindoors and tell Nappinnai that it does not become
of her to prevent her Lord from at least responding to
their prayers if not grace them with his august
appearance.
Traditional interpretation will also ascribe a note of
jealousy to the first four lines of the song. While
the maids could enjoy the company of Krishna out in
the field looking for a sandy spot to lie down,
running through thorny groves, Nappinnai enjoys the
bliss of union with Krishna in a more favourable
situation.
Traditional interpretation will also interpret the
scene of the Lord and the lady twined with each other
in two different ways. In the first, Nappinnai is
dragged back to fall on Krishna lying supine on the
bed and thus her breasts are felt on His broad chest.
In the second, Krishna pushes Nappinnai back to bed
even before she could leave the bed and thus lies on
her breasts. That way, He feels the pressure of His
chest on her breasts. By far, the first interpretation
appears to be more sensuous while traditional
interpretation subscribes to the second.
At the philosophic level, the song seems to answer a
curious question. If God is a need to the soul, is the
soul also a need to God? There are three elements
involved here: the God, the consort and the soul.
Insofar as the soul has taken its origin from the
Primordial because of its karma, and insofar as the
scene of life is a route for the soul back to its
origin cured of its karma spent in living in Divine
consciousness, the Divine consort shall facilitate the
communion between the God and the soul and not act as
a hurdle for whatever reason. Therefore is the last
observation in the song – tattuvamanru – it does not
become of you to hold Him back all to yourself.
Vaishnava poetry is usually sensuous. It does not
advocate renunciation of pleasures. It attempts at a
transvaluation of pleasures enjoyed in the awareness
of the Divine. Incidentally, Tagore has acknowledged
his poetic sensibilities to the sensuous element found
in Bengal Vaishnavite poetry.
The best illustration of God’s passion for union with
the soul is to be found in Jayadevar’s Asthapathi Gita
Govindham in Sanskrit. Kannadasan and Meera have
translated the Sanskrit poem into Tamil and Ramani in
turn has translated it into English, as part of his
attempt at translating Kannadasan’s arttamulla intu
matam – Meaningful Hinduism. Such of those of you who
are interested may visit geocities.com/ramaninaidu or
geocities.com/athens/academy/4485/contents.htm or
geocities.com/athens/academy/4485/kannadasan7.htm and
find the English version of Jayadevar’s Ashtapathi
Gita Govindham in the Meaningful Hinduism section
there.
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