• Source: Tiruppavai

Tiruppavai is a set of Tamil Hindu hymns attributed to the female poet-saint Andal.
Tiruppavai consists of thirty stanzas referred to as pasurams in praise of Vishnu. It is a part of the Naalayira Divya Prabandham, a collection of the works of the twelve poet-saints called the Alvars, an important part of the devotional genre of Tamil literature. Tiruppavai has also been translated into Telugu by Mullapudi Venkata Ramana as Melupalukula Melukolupu. In this work, Andal calls all people to recite the names and glories of Vishnu and Lakshmi.




Genre


Tiruppavai belongs to the pavai genre of songs. This genre referred to the Tamil tradition of unmarried girls and boys performing rites and upholding a vow (vrata) of their performance throughout the month of Margali for their future marriages. This practice assumes special significance during Margali: each day of this month gets its name from one of these thirty verses. There are references to this vow in the late - Sangam era Tamil classic anthology called Paripatal.
Andal's thirty songs contain the cardinal principles of Vaishnavism during the month of Margali. Andal like a Gopi in these 30 verses. Andal appears intent upon performing a particular religious vow to marry Vishnu and remain in his everlasting company, inviting of all her friends to join her to live with him with her and Andal, an incarnation of Lakshmi, marries Vishnu as Rangamannar in Nachiyar Tirumoli.




Theme


According to the religious hymns, the symbolic undertone behind Andal's entreaty to her friends to wake up and seek Vishnu subsumes the essence of the three basic mantras in the Vaishnava tradition — the Tirumantram, Dvayam, and Charama Sloka that signify the truth of Vishnu and Lakshmi as the paramatmas or the absolute selves who dwell in everything. There is a hidden meaning in the 27th pasuram, for example, where Andal explains the importance of an acharya whose guidance is mandatory for a disciple to get to know these three mantras.
Tiruppavai is said to be 'Vedam Anaithukkum Vithagum', meaning it is the seed of the Vedas. As the entire tree coming from it are hidden in the subtle seed and it is grown up fully, so is the entire four Vedas are hidden in Tiruppavai, which can be revealed only under the guidance of an acharya who is well versed in Hindu scriptures.
This entire hidden essence is mentioned in the Andal's verses in the form of poetry.




Overview


The first five stanzas provide an introduction to the main theme, its principle and purpose. According to Andal, one should do penances during this season. Sincere prayers to Vishnu and Lakshmi would bring abundant rain and thus prosperity. Offering Vishnu and Lakshmi flowers would do good things.
In the next ten stanzas she describes the importance of community participation. She invites her friends to gather flowers. She essays the ambience at her city, the chirping of birds, colorful blossoms, the musical sound of butter-churning, herds of livestocks with tinkling bells, the sounding of the conch from the temple.
She visits each household and awakens all her friends to join her for a bath in a nearby pond. She also praises the incarnations of Vishnu and Lakshmi. The next five stanzas describe her visit to the temple accompanied by her friends. She desires to render a Suprabhatam gently to wake up Vishnu. The group appeases the temple guards, enters the temple and recites prayers extolling the parents of Vishnu as Krishna, Vasudeva and Devaki and telling them to wake up Vishnu as Krishna and Shesha as Balarama. Then they see Rukmini, an incarnation of Lakshmi, the wife of Vishnu, to have a darshana.
The last nine stanzas are on the glories of Vishnu and Lakshmi. On receiving his and her blessings, Andal lists her demands; milk for the vrata, white conch, lamps, flowers, and rich dresses and jewellery, plenty of clarified butter and butter. The concluding stanza is an envoie identifying her as the foster-daughter of Vishnucitthan (Periyalvar) who made this garland of 30 pasurams and says those who recite with devotion will have Vishnu and Lakshmi's blessings.




Verses and explanation



Tiruppavai also includes three taniyans ('singletons') composed by later authors to introduce older texts. The first taniyan, "Nila Tungastana" in Sanskrit was composed by Parashara Bhattar, and the next two taniyans, "Anna Vayal Pudhuvai" and "Sudi Kudutha" (translated below) were composed by Sri Uyyakondar.
Taniyan
This song is a prelude to Tiruppavai and is one of the 3 taniyans.
Andal from the swans filled Srivilliputhur,Sung she, in her glorious voice,Several songs,For being sung during,The worship and adulation of Pavai.They are but a garland to him,From her who wore them first,Before presenting them to Him.
Each pasuram (song) of Tiruppavai is named after the first few words of the religious hymns. These are given first and a translation into verse given then:-




Recital in Thailand


In Thailand, an annual Giant Swing ceremony known as Triyampavai-Tripavai was held in major cities until 1935 CE, when it was abolished for safety reasons. The name of the ceremony was derived from the names of two Tamil Hindu songs: Tiruvempavai (a Shaivite hymn by Manikkavacakar) and Tiruppavai (a Vaishnavite hymn by Andal). is known that Tamil verses from Thiruvempavai and Tiruppavai were recited at this ceremony, as well as the coronation ceremony of the Thai rulers. According to T.P. Meenakshisundaram, the name of the festival shows that Tiruppavai and Tiruvempavai is recited as well.




See also


Tirupallantu
Nachiyar Tirumoli
Periyalvar Tirumoli




References

Kata Kunci Pencarian:

• Kresna
• Ksirasagara
• Hinduisme di Thailand
• Tiruppavai
• Andal
• Lakshmi Narasimha
• Devulapalli Krishnasastri
• Shesha
• Naalayira Divya Prabandham
• Amuktamalyada
• Tiruvempavai
• Venkateswara
• Hinduism in Thailand