Sunday, February 25, 2007

Mukunda Maala

Mukundamala

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1. TIRUNAKSHATRAM OF KULASEKARA AZHWAR
A SUPPLEMENT ON ?MUKUNDAMALA?
- (Anbil Ramaswamy)
Your kind attention is invited to the article on the life and work of the Azhwar ?PerumaaL Tirumozhi? ? vide Sl. 141 dated 12th March 2001 in Sri Ranga Sri? archives.

It is rather rare for the Tirunakshatram and the thithi to synchronize on the same day. This year it falls exactly on "Sukla Paksha Dvaadasi" and "Punarvasu Nakshatram" in the month of Masi.

We give below a supplementary write up of the Azhwar?s other work viz., ?Mukundamala?. It is believed that Kulasekara Azhwar composed ?Mukunda Maala? in Sanskrit besides his famous ?PermaaL Tirumozhi?. Tritheeya Parakaala BrahmaTantra Swami has authenticated this fact in his ?Guru Parampara Prabhaavam? saying that it is the same Azhwar who gave us PerumaaL Tirumozhi in chaste Tamizh also gave us this ?Mukunda maala? in classic Sanskrit. This is also confirmed in ?Periya TirumuDi aDaivu? of Sri kandaaDai Naayan of Tennacharya Parampara. There is every reason to believe this because, the sentiments expressed, the style exhibited and the syntax employed echo those in the Tamizh Prabandham.

There are 40 Slokas in this. Every Slokam is a gem by itself. Let us savor a few of these by way of honoring the Great Azhwar on his Tirunakshatram day today.

Slokam 3:
Mukunda! Moordhnaa praNipathya yaachE
Bhavantham yEkaantham iyantham artham /
Avismriti: tvad CharaaNaaravindE
BhavE bhavE mE asthu bhavath prasaadaath //
Meaning
?Hey! Mukunda!
- I bow my head and beg of you just this one thing only.
- Please bless me to never ever forget your feet in every life that I may take?

Slokam 4:
Naaham vandE thavacharaNayOr dvandvam advandva hEthO:
Kumbheepaakam gurumapi harE:!naarakam na apanEthum /
Ramyaa raamaa mriduthanulathaa nandanE na api ranthum
BhaavE bhaavE hrudaya bhavanE bhaavayEyam bhavantham //
Meaning
?Hey! HarE! Do you know why I surrender at your feet?
- Not for securing moksha
- Not for escaping the cruel hell of Kumbheepaakam
- Not for enjoying the company of celestial damsels in the Heavens.
But only for the boon that I should ever pay my homage?s to you seated in my heart?

Slokam 5:
Naasthaa dharmE na vasu nichayE naiva kaamOpabhOgE
Yath yath bhavyam bhavathu bhagavan! Poorva karma anuroopam /
Yethath praarthyam mama bahumatham janma janmaantharEpi
Tvad paadaambhOruha yuga gathaa nischalaa bhaktir asthu //
Meaning
?Oh! Bhagavan!
- I have on attachment to Dharma.
- I have no desire to acquire heaps of wealth either.
- Whatever is predetermined in consequence of my prior karmas let them happen as ordained.
- The only thin I intensely desire is that however may lives I may have to take, grant me unswerving devotion at your lotus feet?

Slokam 7:
KrishNa! Tvadeeya pada pankaja panjaraantha
Madhyaiva mE visathu maanasa raaja hamsa: /
PraaNa prayaaNa samayE kapa-vaatha- piththai:
KanTaavarOdhna vidhou smaraNam kutha: thE //
Meaning
?Oh! KrishNa!
- Let the royal swan of my mind gain entry into the cage of your lotus feet HERE and NOW!
- This is because, how can your remembrance dawn on me at the time of death, when the throat gets choked with phlegm, rheumatism and bilious afflictions??

Slokam 16:
JihvE !keerthaya Kesavam muraripum chEtO: bhaja Sreedharam
paaNI dvandva! Samarchaya achyutha kathaa: srOtradvaya! Tvam sruNu /
KrishNam lOkaya Lochana dvaya! HarEr gachcha angriyugam aalayam
Jigra! GraaNa mukunda paada thuLaseem moordhan nama adhOkshajam //
Meaning
- Oh! My tongue! Always recite Kesava?s name.
- Oh! My mind! Always contemplate on Muraari
- Oh! My hands! Always offer worship to Sreedhara
- Oh! My ears! Always listen to the stories of Achyutha
- Oh! My eyes! Always see KrishNa everywhere
- Oh! My nose! Always smell the fragrance of the holy basil at the feet of Mukunda
- Oh! My head! Always bow to Lord Vishnu (adhOkshaja)?

Slokam 21:
Hey! Gopaalaka! Hey! Krupaa jalanidhE! Hey! Sindhu KanyaapathE!
Hey! Kamsaanthaka! Hey! GajEndra karuNaa paareeNa! Hey! Maadhava!
Hey! Raamaanuja! Hey! Jagatraya GurO! Hey! PuNDareekaaksha! Maam
Hey! Gopee jana naatha! Paalaya param jaanaami na tvaam vinaa!
Meaning:
- Hey! Gopaala! Ocean of mercy!
- Hey! Spouse of the daughter of the Ocean (Lakshmi)!
- Oh! The One who destroyed Kamsa!
- Oh! The One who saved GajEndra! Maadhava! Raamaanuja! (Here, younger brother of Balarama)
- Oh! Preceptor of all the three worlds!
- Oh! Lotus eyed Lord!
- Oh! Lord of the Gopis! I do not know anyone other than you.
Please protect me?

In the next 3 slokas, Azhwar describes how the Lord is the gem (MaNi), the magical hymn (mantram) and medicine (Oushadam).

Slokam 22:
Bhaktha apaaya- bhujanga- gaaruDa maNi, trailOkhya rakshaa MaNi
Gopee lochana-chaataka ambuda MaNi, Soundarya MaNi: /
Ya: kaanthaa MaNi RukmiNi ghana kucha dvandvaika bhooshaa MaNi
SrEyO Deva Sikhaa MaNi: disathu na: Gopaala chooDaa MaNi: //
Meaning
?Lord KrishNa is like
- the green emerald that instills fear in the heart of snakes that take the form of sufferings of great Bhaktas;
- the gem that protects the three worlds
- the rain bearing cloud like gem to the eyes of Gopis who look up to it like the Chaataka bird
- the gem bearing the stamp of supreme pulchritude
- the gem that adorns the chest of His darling RukmiNi
Let this crown jewel of KaNNa grant us welfare of every kind?
Slokam 23:
satrus chEtaika mantram, sakalam upanishad vaakhya sampoojya mantram
Samsaara uddhaara mantram, samupachita thamas sanga niryaaNa mantram/
Sarvaiswaryaka mantram, vyasana bhujaga sandashTa santhraaNa mantram
JihvE Sree KrishNa mantram japa japa sathatam janma saapalya mantram //
Meaning:
Oh! My tongue! This ?Sree KrishNa mantram? is -
- the one that can destroy all that is hostile to our interests
- the one that is praised in the Upanishads
- the one that can help us cross the Ocean of Samsaara
- the one that dispels all our ignorance
- the one that bestows all that is auspicious
- the one that neutralizes the venom of all sufferings
- the one that bestows the real objective of life
So, please always go on incessantly reciting this ?Sree KrishNa mantram?

Slokam 24:
VyaamOha prasama Oushadam, Muni manO vrithi pravrithi Oushadam
DaithyEndra aarthikara Oushadam, thrijagathaam sanjeevanaika Oushadam/
Bhakthyaantha hitha Oushadam, Bhava bhaya pradhvamsanaika Oushadam
SrEya: praapthi kara Oushadam Piba mana: Sree KrishNa Divya Oushadam//
Meaning
?Oh! My mind! Drink this medicine called ?Sree KrishnNa Oushadam?
- This will clear all your worldly hallucinations
- This medicine is turned the minds of Sages towards the Lord
- This medicine torments the evil minded Rakshasas
- This medicine rejuvenates the lives in all the three worlds
- This medicine bestows all that is good and desired by devotees
- This medicine will make all your dreams of prosperity come true?

Slokam 27:
Majjanmana: phalam idam Madhu KaiTabhaarE
Math praarthaneeyam madh anugraha yEsha yEva /
Tvat brithya brithya-
Brithyasya brithya iti maam smara Loka naatha //
Meaning:
?Oh! Lord who destroyed the asuras called Madhu and KaiTabha!
- The only fruit I desire for having taken this life is this.
- And, this is what you have to grant me without fail.
- Oh! Lord of the world!
- You should remember me as the servant of the servant of the servant of yours down at the seventh rung of the ladder of your servants?

Slokam 33:
KrishNO rakshathu nO jagatraya guru KrishNam namasyaami aham
KrishNena amaara SatravO vinihatha: KrishNaaya thubhyam nama: /
KrishNaadEva samuthitham jagad idam KrishNasya daasOmi aham
KrishNE tishTathi sarvam etad akhilam Hey! KrishNa Rakshasva maam //
Meaning
? KrishNa, the Lord of the three worlds-May He protect us.
- For KrishNa, do I bow my head
- By KrishNa were killed the enemies of the celestials
- From KrishNa arose this world
- To KrishNa, I am a servant
- In KrishNa, everyone and everything subsist
- Hey! KrishNa! Protect me?
It will be seen that in this verse, the Azhwar has employed the word ?KrishNa? in all the 8 case endings of Sanskrit grammar viz.,
Nominative: KrishNa:
Accusative: KrishNam
Instrumental: KrishNEna
Dative: KrishNaaya
Ablative: KrishNaath
Genitive: KrishNasya
Locative: KrishNE
Vocative: Hey! KrishNa!

Slokam 37:
Anantha VaikunTa mukunda KrishNa
Govinda DaamOdara MadhavEthi /
Vakthum samarthOpi na vakthi kaschith
AhO! Janaanaam vyasanaabhi mukhyam //
Meaning:
?Though everyone has the capacity to call aloud the names of the Lord like Anantha. VaikunTa, Mukunda, KrishNa, Govinda, DaamOdara, Maadhava, how come they do not but find steeped in worldly sufferings.
What a tragedy! What a wonder!?
.

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