Kulasekara Azhvaar Dasaratha’s state of mind

Refers to hunch back Manthara 

Sentiment, Despair, Anguish, Anger - Kulasekara Azhvaar captures the different moods of King Dasaratha immediately after spelling out the wishes of Kaikeyi to his dear son Rama

If Thirumangai Azhvaar describes beautifully, in the Periya Thirumozhi, the desperate state of mind of the rakshashas of Lanka after the death of their King Ravana (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2015/01/thirumangai-azhvaar-on-asuras-of-lanka.html), Kulasekara Azhvaar in his Perumal Thirumozhi provides a similar description of a 'sad story' from an earlier episode in the Ramayana.

Similar to the hapless asuras, King Dasaratha too is a helpless state of mind having banished his dear son to the forest as per the wishes of Kaikeyi.

If the asuras in the Periya Thirumozhi pleaded (with Rama) for protection, here in the Perumal Thirumozhi Dasaratha is seen pleading (with Rama) for his return for he believes that it was not right on his part to have sent him out of the city merely to fulfil the wishes of the 'wicked Kaikeyi'.

வந்தாளின் இணை வணங்கி வளநகரம்

தொழுது ஏத்தமன்னன்  ஆவான்

நின்றாயை அரியணை மேல் இருந்தாயை

நெடுங்  கானம் படரப் போகு என்றாள்

எம் இராமாவோ உனைப் பயந்த கைகேசி தன் சொற் கேட்டு

நன்றாக நானிலத்தை ஆள்வித்தேன்

நன்மகனே உன்னை  நானே

He starts off by saying that it was just about the time for him to pass on the mantle to his dear son, the day for him to on the majestic Lion Throne and be crowned the King of Ayodhya. Alas, bound by my old promise, I had to accede to the wishes of the ‘wicked’ Kaikeyi.

செவ்வாயேன் செவ்வுரை கேட்டு இருநிலத்தை வேண்டாதே

விரைந்து வென்றி மைவாய

 'களிறொழிந்து தேரொழிந்து மாவொழிந்து'

வானமே மேவி

Dasaratha is seen visualising the sudden physical transformation in Rama and as he describes this, he becomes inconsolable. ‘You sent back our majestic huge elephants and the beautiful fast horses. You are now on barefoot in a wild forest that is full of thick thorns. The ‘soon to be queen’ is now bereft of even the basic jewels. From sleeping on a soft beautiful bed, my dear son, you will now have to spend your time sleeping on rugged rocks’ and ‘I am just helpless mute spectator’ bemoans Dasaratha.

மெல் அணைமேல் முன் துயின்றாய்

இன்று

இனிபோய் வியன்கான மரத்தின் நிழல்

கல் அணைமேல் கண் துயிலக் கற்றனையோ

He then turns sentimental and pleads with Rama to come once more and show a glimpse of his handsome looks. ‘I was proud and happy when you broke Lord Shiva’s bow to win the beautiful Sita’s hand. But now are you going to ‘break my heart.’

Kulasekara Azhvaar then captures the change of mood. Sentiment turns to anger and despair. He calls his wife Kaikeyi a ‘dreadful sinner’ and a ‘wicked women’ as he visualised Rama suffering from hunger in the soaring heat of the forests but alas ‘I do not now even have the power to feed you’ for I listened to the foul words of Kaikeyi.

தூ மறையீர்  இது தகவோ சுமந்திரனே வசிட்டனே

சொல்வீர் நீரே

Dasaratha now moves into a lost state. ‘How am I even alive after sending my son away? I am not worthy of being a man’.  He calls Sumantra and the wise Sage Vashishta and asks if what he had done was right.  Should he not have been the man to have gone to the forest after having placed the kingdom in the safe hands of the young and handsome Rama, he asks them.

As he remembers once again those words of Kaikeyi, his mind turns angry again. ‘how wicked can a woman be’ he asks. ‘What pleasure would she have derived by sending Rama to the wild forest and now sending her own husband to death’ indicating that his time had arrived.

நின்னையே மகனாகப் பெறப்பெறுவேன் ஏழ்பிறப்பும்

And he shifts one last time to sentimental mood. ‘How could you, my dear son, take Kaikeyi’s promise for real’ and says that for the next seven lives, he would like Rama alone for a son.

The finale

தேன்நகு மாமலர்க் கூந்தற்

கௌசலையும்  சுமித்திரையும் சிந்தை நோவ

கூன் உருவின் கொடுந் தொழுத்தை சொற்கேட்ட

கொடியவள் தன்  சொற்கொண்டு

இன்று

கானகமே மிகுவிரும்பி நீதுறந்த வளனகரைத் துறந்து

நானும் வானகமே மிகவிரும்பிப் போகின்றேன்

மனு குலத்தார்  தங்கள் கோலே

Kulasekara Azhvaar then brings out the final unbearable state of mind of Dasaratha. Seeing Kousalya and Sumitra by his side, he hits out once more at Kaikeyi for it was her sinful wish that has been the cause for this gloom all around Ayodhya.

Kulasekara Azhvaar's reference to Kaikeyi’s advisor Manthara.

Dasaratha laments that listening to the ill advice of the hunch-back, Kaikeyi wanted Rama out of the Kingdom.

Kulasekara Azhvaar ends these set of verses with final expression from Dasaratha to leave this world ‘With Rama leaving the city, I too have no desire to remain in this city. My time has come to leave the city and head to the abode of heaven.'

Umpire Ravi debuts at Lords

Terrific decision on the last ball of Day 1

'Great feeling to be umpiring in a Lords Test' - S Ravi

Just the other day he was in the thick of action at the IPL shuttling between cities. But just like McCullum and Boult, Umpire Shiva Ravi too boarded the flight from Madras to London.

It was his fifth test match but the most memorable one to-date. Not just the players, it is an umpire’s dream too to umpire at the Home of Cricket. And it was a great moment for the cricket lovers in Madras when Ravi took the field earlier this afternoon (IST) along with Erasmus to make his Lords debut.

Great Feeling to be umpiring at Lords 

In a quick chat with prtraveller immediately after the end of the first day’s play, Ravi said it was a good feeling to be umpiring at Lords and that he was particularly keen to do well in front of a worldwide TV audience.

(an Indian umpire is standing in a Lords test after a long gap - Venkataraghavan was the previous one)  

Ravi (http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2013/08/s-ravi-set-for-umpiring-test-debut.html) says he was delighted to be chosen to umpire at Lords for it is every umpire’s wish to umpire there. The fact that this happened to be a Test Match and a high profile one has made it even more special for Ravi. There has been so much publicity leading up to the Lords Test with papers all over the World having been hot on the topic of Peterson being left out of this summer’s matches, the sacking of coach and the MD and the appointment of Strauss to manage English cricket.

And after their outstanding performance in the World Cup and their moving up the test rankings to number three, this Kiwi test team is no pushover this summer. And hence this was a much awaited clash.

Two of his reviews (by the Kiwis) against his decisions earlier in the day were negated as was the one on the dramatic final ball of the day.

Last Ball Decision

It looked like it would be a quiet end to the day for the 7^th wicket pair had batted for 25 overs without any trouble.  But Ravi’s agility was put to test on the last ball of the day.

Bowling left arm over, Boult hit Butler on the pads as he tried to play to leg. The commentators’ immediate reaction was that it may have pitched outside leg and that Ravi may have got it wrong.

It turned out to be a perfect decision as Ravi lifted his index finger almost immediately after the appeal for he had no doubt that it would have hit the stumps.

Butler’s review was negated ( all three reviews against Ravi on day one were negated) .

It was a delightful end to his first day at Lords. And this augurs well for Ravi who has been umpiring more of one- dayers since his international debut.

But this may be the right sort of break for him to get into the Test arena.

Ravi, who will also be standing in the 2^nd test of this series at Leeds next week, said it is quite challenging to umpire in England given the conditions (movement (of the ball) both sides, cloud cover, chilly weather conditions etc) – Yes while he was umpiring in the 15 degrees summer at Lords on Thursday, it almost touched 40 degrees in his home town of Madras, conditions that he is more familiar with.

The way he handled the game on his debut day at Lords and the terrific last ball decision (more so as it was from a left arm over to a right hand batsman) should help his confidence for the rest of the test match.

A good couple of games in the first half of the summer could help him clinch a few tests of the Ashes later this English Summer.

( Ravi works for the RBI in Madras and played 1st division cricket for RBI in the 80s)

Divya Desam named after Nandi

Thirumangai Azhvaar calls Nandipura Vinnagaram ( Nathan Koil) as the best city among Divya Desams 

'மண்ணில்  இது போல நகர் இல்லை' - Thirumangai Azhvaar Periya Thirumozhi

It is now on the outskirts of Kumbakonam with limited public transport access. Mini buses are few and infrequent. It is managed by the centuries old Vanamamalai Mutt but not much attention is paid to the temple by the renowned Mutt.One would have to make many enquiries to find this location from the heart of Kumbakonam.   But it wasn't always so for Thirumangai Azhvaar in his Periya Thirumozhi hails Nandipura Vinnagaram ( Nathan Koil) as the best city among Divya Desams.

(http://prtraveller.blogspot.in/2008/02/108-divya-desam-nathan-koil-nandipura.html)

It is the only Divya Desam to be named after Lord Shiva’s Vahana (Nandi). 

It is also the only set of verses  in the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham where an Azhvaar has dedicated exclusively to Nandi naming him in every single verse and referring to this temple as one where the Lord resides in the place of ‘Nandi’ taking one back to the story of the liberation here of Nandi’s curse and his request for this place to be named after him.

Huge Mango Groves at Nathan Koil

மைய வரி வண்டு மது உண்டு

கிளையோடு மலர் கிண்டி

அதன்மேல் நைவளம் நவிற்று

வம்பு மலர்கின்ற பொழில் பைம் பொன்

வரு தும்பி மணி கங்குல் வயல் சூழ்

Thirumangai Azhvaar refers to Nandipura Vinnagaram as a temple that is surrounded by groves full of bees where one is able to smell the fragrance of flowers all the time. He says that the mango groves here were so huge and growing that one got the feeling that it would one day touch the clouds in the sky.

Amidst these mango groves, he says that peacocks and cuckoos played around, singing and dancing all the time.

கொம்பு குதி கொண்டு குயில் கூவ

மயில் ஆலும் எழில் ஆர் புறவ

He describes these groves as being bright and beautiful that brought positive energy to the devotees who visited Lord Jagannathan here at this temple.

சிறை கொள்  மயில் குயில் பயில

 மலர்கள் உக அலி முரல

அடிகொல் நெடு மா நறைசெய்  பொழில்

Pallava King's Vists to Nathan Koil 

He also makes a mention of the great Pallava King Nandivarma visiting this temple and offering his sincere prayers seeking victory in his battles.

In those times, fresh flowers were offered to the Lord every morning from the huge garden around the temple.

Grand Festivals

மந்த முழவு ஓசை மழை ஆகா எழு கார்

மயில்கள் ஆடு பொழில் சூழ்

Festivals at Nandipura Vinnagaram were celebrated in a grand manner a 1000 years ago. Thirumangai Azhvaar says that the drum beats were so loud and celebratory that it sounded like thick thunderous monsoon clouds coming together.

During such festive times, peacocks happily danced around to the beating of the drums creating happiness among the devotees who thronged in big numbers to seek the blessings of the Lord .

Best City among Divya Desams

Thirumangai Azhvaar is so pleased with the Lord of Nandipura Vinnagaram that he says that one cannot find a better city to worship the Lord than the one here.

He concludes with a positive message for devotees. He says that when floods strike this place and create a deluge, the sincere devotees who had carried the Lord’s wishes and worked for the well being of everyone will be protected and well taken care of during such emergencies. 

Nam Azhvaar Temporary State of Life

Thank God for all the good things he has given us

In his Tiruvoimozhi praise on the Lord of the Northern City of Mathura, Nam Azhvaar describes the futility of temporary relationships of life. He says that the relationships that we think are close are only temporary.

கொண்ட பெண்டிர் மக்கள் உற்றார் கற்றத்தவர் பிறரும்

கண்டதோடு  பட்டது அல்லால்  காதல் மற்று யாதும் இல்லை

துணையும் சார்வும் ஆகுவார்போல் கற்றத்தவர் பிறரும்

அனணய வந்த ஆக்கம் உண்டேல் அட்டைகள்போல் சுவைப்பர்

Relatives, including the wife and children, and friends see only what is in it for them.  As long as they see that you have something to offer them, they will have the time for you. But as you go along in life, you will find that they are all after your ‘wealth’ and they will ‘enjoy’ it as much as possible.

So long as you have money and you are willing to spend on them, they will seem to come to you with their good wishes but the moment you are financially poor not one will come forward to enquire about you.

பொருள் கை உண்டாய்ச் செல்லக்காணில்

போற்றி  என்று ஏற்று ஏழ்வர் இருள்கொள்

துன்பத்து இன்மை காணில் என்னே என்பாரும் இல்லை

அரணம் ஆவர் அற்ற காலைக்கு என்று என்று

அமைக்கப்பட்டார்

Those in the past who were trustees of your wealth will behave almost like petty money lenders in bad times.

சதுரம் என்று தம்மைத் தாமே சம்மதித்து

இன்மொழியார் மதுர போகம் துற்றவரே 

வைகி  மற்று ஒன்று உறுவர்

If this were so, there is little that needs to be said about the beautiful women in your life. Even those who enjoyed your friendship and company and who you repeatedly pampered with goodies will vanish from your sight when they find that you do not have the money to splurge on them.

இல்லை கண்டீர் இன்பன் அந்தோ உள்ளது நிளையாதே
தொல்லையார்கள் எத்தனைவர் தோன்றிக் 
கழிந்தொழிந்தார்

While this is there for all to see, Nam Azhvaar says that it is surprising that men have unfortunately not realised this, and for centuries have fallen to the lure of relationships in life that are so temporary.

He says that if there is anything that we truly consider ours, we should sacrifice it to Him.

For starters, Nam Azhvaar asks us to consider at least reciting his name and thanking him,  on a daily basis, for what he has given us. And then as a next step, if possible, he asks us to try singing praise of the Lord.

For those in the initial phase he asks us to take the effort to know the different names of God for, he says, this small step will lead you on to the right path and away from mistakes.

And as we make progress in this direction, worshiping him with sincerity and dedicating everything to him will be the way to go. There is no other route that will give us satisfaction in the long run. Hence seek the Lord of 'Vada Madurai', says Nam Azhvaar, without any further delay.

The Lord in the Northern city of Mathura is waiting to bless us. Invoke his blessings and try to get his grace every day, concludes Nam Azhvaar.

Hemant Srivatsa Cricketer of the 1980s

South Zone U19, India U19 Against Australia, 1st Division while still at School

Retired by the time he completed his education!!!

After having represented Tamil Nadu at the Sub Junior level in Swimming when he was just 9 and then having played Billiards for a few years, Hemant took to cricket only when he was around 15years in the 1^st half of the 1980s.

He went to Chepauk for the U16 selection. One of the selectors, M Srinivasan, immediately spotted the talent in him and picked him in the squad with the encouraging words ‘You have a run up like the legendary Aussie Alan Davidson.’

That season, he bagged the South Zone Sub Junior cricketer of the year award.  When he was just 16, he played in the Madras Test for India U19 against Australia U19 comprising of Tom Moody, Paul Reiffel, Andrew Zesers and Gavin Robertson.

He very quickly moved up the rank and was at that time the only school boy cricketer to play in the 1^st division for Alwarpet first under the captaincy of Bharat Kumar and then under K Srikkanth.  He had also become a specialist short leg fielder (he dedicates his entire cricket achievements to PK Dharmalingam). But very soon cricket politics got the better of him.

He had the highest marks for a cricketer in the class XII exam and yet the Anna University sports seat went to another cricketer (he still plays cricket in Madras) with lower credentials at that time but better ‘support’!!

Instead of exploring other options in Madras that could have furthered his cricketing ambitions, his father (KC Srivatsa, Partner at that time at the legendary Auction House Murrays) directed him to take up the seat offered by GCT Coimbatore. This meant that through that year he would travel unreserved on Friday evening to play the league match for Alwarpet and get back to Coimbatore unreserved on Sunday night. It was something that took its toll on his body and undid his cricketing future.

PK Dharmalingam who coached Hemant from his school days as well as at Alwarpet believes that had he stayed back in Madras during those four years, it is very likely he would have achieved big in cricket for he was at the peak of his form during that phase.

‘Hemant had a lot of potential as a left arm fast bowler. ‘He had a long and an economical run up, his delivery stride was a coach’s delight- he accelerated at the right time, had a high arm action, the perfect landing of the right foot and a pronounced follow through.’

‘He had the potential to play much higher level of cricket than what he finally ended up with, which is very unfortunate.’

Districts beat City

Hemant captained the Combined districts team that beat the strong N Gautham led City team. He was the new ball bowler for South Zone U19 and took 5wickets against a West Zone U 19 team that comprised of Ranji cricketers. And yet a player who played only one match that year for South Zone (from Karnataka) was selected for India U19. A former off spinning great was the Selector.

As luck would have it, that same former India Spinner was the manager of the Indian team when Pakistan toured India. That Pak team had an upcoming left armer in Azeem Hafeez. Leading up to the series, the Indian team wanted to practise against a good left arm quickie and Srikkanth brought Hemant to bowl at the Indian stars in the nets leaving  the offie totally embarrassed.

(The offie called up Srikkanth asking him to convey his apologies to Hemant for having had to overlook him (for non cricketing reasons) at the India U19 level and promised to include him next year!!!)

On another occasion, another South Zone manager from Mangalore told him a day ahead of the match that another player (not half as good as him) from Karnataka would be playing the match and that Hemant was dropped (again for reasons similar to the above).

In a practise match against SPIC as a teenager, he bowled a sharp bouncer that hit the then SPIC captain P Ramesh on the chest (after the left hander had hit him for four the previous ball). He was asked to apologise but Hemant stood his ground and did not. That was the stuff he was made of and was not known to be a ‘yes man’, another reason that slowed down his progress.

MRF Pace Academy’s deal with 1^st Div teams

It was also during that period that MRF struck a deal with league clubs in Madras to play some of the pace academy fast bowlers in their teams. Hemant was the only real left arm quickie at that time and MRF academy had none.

Yet, as part of this deal, two fast bowlers from the academy automatically played in the XI for Alwarpet though Hemant had a proven track record and like the case with the Anna University admission was far more meritorious. And he missed out again on crucial opportunities.

All of these frustrated Hemant and the entire selection process left a poor taste in him. He quit cricket for good just after 20 despite having played SZ U19 for 4years and India U19 as well.

Looking back, Hemant regrets taking up cricket for he could never get to terms with the amount of politics and match fixing.

Dharmalingam has the final word on Hemant ‘Whenever I watch Mitchel Johnson in action, I am reminded of Hemant, for I could spot a lot of similarities between the two. I really enjoyed coaching him for he was a very well behaved boy, a genuine fast bowler with the right attitude and was liked by everyone in the team. I would say that Hemant’s was yet another case of talent not being fully utilised in Tamil Nadu.

Hemant currently runs the famous Murrays Auction in Madras.

Panguni Uthiram Debate Srirangam

When Ranganayaki Thayar shut the door on Lord Ranganatha

It is a drama created by Lord Ranganatha and Ranganayaki Thayar through a personal and healthy debate to highlight the importance of solving the most challenging of issues within a family. The debate also brings to light the need for respecting elders in the society.

This historic annual event dating back to the period of the origins of Araiyars was re-enacted on the occasion of Panguni Uthiram last Friday morning at the Thayar Sannidhi of the Ranganathaswamy temple in Srirangam.

Thayar’s anger

Ranganayaki Thayar was furious. She had heard from her sources about Lord Ranganatha’s secret trip to Woraiyur, earlier that week, to meet his beloved Kamalavalli Nachiyar. To add fuel to fire, her sources also told her that he had presented a ring at Woraiyur.

Clearly she was upset and was waiting for an opportunity to express her disapproval of his trip. And the opportunity presented itself on the morning of Panguni Uthiram when Lord Ranganatha was to come and meet with her.

As he tried to make a hurried entry into her Sannidhi just after 10am, she shut the door on him. Shortly after, as he tried to make a re-entry, a fuming Thayar directed her representatives to pelt the Lord and his representatives with butter.

This led to five rounds of debate inside the Thayar Sannidhi with Araiyars (Krishnan and Sampath Kumar) representing Lord Ranganatha trying their best to defend the Lord and his actions against the Pandaris (Sudarshan) representing Ranganayaki Thayar.

Round 1

The Araiyars began round one by putting forth the Lord’s defence that he had been out for well over three hours that morning in the hot Panguni sun, listening to the Vedic and Divya Prabhandham recitals of the Brahmins and providing darshan to the devotees across the four Chitra and Uthira streets. He pleaded that this was the reason for the delay and that it was only fair that she accepted his garland and allowed him to enter her Sannidhi.

Pandaris (who were assigned the responsibility by Ramanuja of taking care of Thayar) retorted that this was poor reasoning and put him on the defensive by questioning if providing darshan to devotees was indeed the real reason or if there was some hidden agenda (indirectly pointing to the fact that he was actually out there through the morning collecting money from the devotees to try and buy a ring to replace the one that he had presented to Kamalavalli Nachiyar at Woraiyur)

Thayar was surprised to find his eyes red, the hair disturbed, Thiruman not in the way it usually is and even nail marks on his body. Thayar was insistent on status quo being maintained – No one inside the Sannidhi should go out and those that are outside should not enter her Sannidhi, she ordered through the Pandaris.

Did you go to Woraiyur

As part of the second round of the debate, Araiyars defended the Lord saying that he had spent sleepless nights protecting his devotees and that was the reason for the red eyes. He had to go to the forest to fight the wild animals to protect his devotees and the nail marks was a result of that fight. He had lost his ring when Thirumangai Azhvaar, posing as a thief, attacked him in the middle of the night and that he was still searching for it and was confident of finding it back.

 

An unconvinced Ranganayaki Thayar fired a fiery question at him sending shock waves to the other side – ‘Did you go to Woraiyur.’

              

Where is Woraiyur:)

The next round began with Ranganatha in all his innocence saying that he had neither heard of nor seen that place. He contested that she was purposely trying to insult him in front of everyone by naming some place that he had never even heard of. This angered Thayar even further and she retorted that the Lord was trying to create an illusion by hiding everything and that she had gathered all the truth about his trip from her sources.

Lofty Promises

Pushed back further in every round and completely exasperated with the negative response, Lord Ranganatha decided that it was now time to resort to promises in an effort to convince her. He asked his representatives to draw her to his side by telling her that the Lord was ready to promise on the Ocean, the Fire and that he was even ready to put his hand inside the snake pit to prove his innocence.

Ranganayaki Thayar scoffed at these seemingly lofty promises saying that she is not the one to be outdone by these.  Making promises was a well accepted practice to a truce when there was a fight between two parties but Thayar expressed surprise at the kind of promises he has made.

Does he expect the Serpant King on whom he resides all the time to bite him, she extolled!!! She refused to allow him entry at the end of the fourth round as well saying that he was trying to lure her back with such simple promises.

Climax

Araiyars came back a fifth time with an emotional appeal from the Lord who was standing at the entrance of the Thayar Sannidhi. ‘With the whole world watching him being thus insulted, it is a matter of time before they scoff at her and that all the blame for this public embarrassment of the Lord will have to be taken up by her. He has tried to convince her in every possible way but she has remained adamant and has refused to accept the flowers that he has presented her with love and affection.’

Thayar stood firm – ‘The Lord had done everything wrong but it now looked like he was passing on the blame game and trying to make me feel guilty’ she argued.

Nam Azhvaar who was a witness to the five rounds of intense debate for over an hour now intervened and advised Thayar to not insult the Lord anymore and to save him from further embarrassment.  And as a mark of respect to the greatest of the Azhvaars, Ranganaayaki Thayar at the stroke of noon relented, ‘Lord, I accept you and allow you inside my Sannidhi as reasoned out and directed by Nam Azhvaar.’

This historic debate showcases to the world the beautiful relationship between a husband and a wife, the difference of opinion and the fights that are an integral part of a long relationship and the adjustments one has to make in a relationship for it to succeed. 

This event also showcases the regard one must have for elders and the role they play in our lives. This can be seen from the fact that despite being angry and upset at Lord Ranganatha, Ranganayaki Thayar listens to the words of Nam Azhvaar and forgives the Lord and accept him once again. 

( A version of this featured in The Hindu Friday Review on 10th April)