Tiruppavai 12

 27-12-25 | Vatsalya , Rajagopala , Ramayana , Bhagavatha , Gopika

Andal wakes up a gopika who is sleeping even after daybreak.

She is the sister of a great devotee and a close personal attendant of Krishna (Sridhama).

He milks the buffalo in his home. On a particular day, he had rush to the temple on an important errand to the Lord. Due to the urgency, he left the buffalo unmilked. The buffalo was unable to bear the delay, and pours out her milk. It forms a slush in the gopikas house. Andal and the others couldn't get in.

Andal stays outside, holding the door step with the dense morning dew falling on their heads.

Andal: "You're still asleep? How can you be so ignorant? You're so fortunate to have a brother who has earned auspicious wealth? (Sharanagathi to Krishna.)

Since she didn't wake up by hearing glories of Krishna, Andal decides to sing the glories of Rama. "Rama is sweet to the mind (Ramayati iti Ramah)*. The one who would be affectionate even to his opponent. These should not only be enjoyed by the mind, but should also be talked about.

Everyone nearby is already awake. Get up now!"

Here, Andal lists the types of services to Krishna, and how to prioritise it.

Tiruppavai 11

 26-12-25 | Vatsalya , Rajagopala , Bhagavatha , Gopika , Tiruppavai , Guru and Devotee

In Gokula, the number of cows are not counted. Only the number of cow-sheds are mentioned.  Such is the grand wealth of Gokula. The cowherds have to milk the cows in turns, without getting tired.   

 

Here the gurus are likened to the cows. The disciples (cowherds) absorb the wisdom from the gurus and keep gathering them like bees collect honey from the flower. They protect it from being misinterpreted out of ill-will; and from attributing inappropriate meanings which does not adhere to scriptural norms. 

 

Andal wakes up another Azhwar, whose character is without blemish. She has all the necessary traits worthy of the highest devotee of Krishna. But she has been sleeping, unmoved. 

 

The friends waiting outside appreciate her humble and attractive presence — and also the clarity with which she puts forth her interpretations.  She’s joyful like a peacock dancing in the rain. Andal and her friends exhort this gopika, a favorite of Krishna, to share her Krishna-anubhava with them.

 

Tiruppavai 10

 25-12-25 | Utsav , Bhagavatha , Tulasi Priyam , Gopika , Tiruppavai , Guru and Devotee , Vishnu

Next Andal wakes up another devotee of the topmost order, immersed in devotion to Krishna (the Azhwars). 

“O’ dear sakhi!  You’ve got absolute confidence in completing the austerities (kanya vrata) and attaining heaven! (Here heaven means union with the Lord - not Indra’s heaven, where our senses wander - looking for worldly pleasures.)  

“You sleep like Kumbhakarna, not answering our efforts  to wake you up. Has he ceded his wealth of sleep to you? The righteous Rama made him leap to death.

“Oh, wait!  Are you already clinging to his feet in total surrender?  There’s a divine fragrance of Tulasi leaves wafting from inside!!   

 

“O’ great devotee!  You’re a gem of a character and the most precious ornament in our group. Please come out and lead us in singing paeans of Narayana, adorning the fragrant Tulasi* garland on His head.” 

——————— 

*Among flowers, Tulasi is considered the most sacred. Tulasi emerged from the great churning of the ksheersagar. 

Tiruppavai 09

 24-12-25 | Bhagavatha , Gopika , Tiruppavai , Guru and Devotee

Andal next wakes up her cousin. (Supportive of the spiritual quest to serve Krishna and his devotees). 

The cousin is sleeping in a mansion of defect-free gems (a treasure which is a wealth of wisdom of our scriptures — the vedas). She is peacefully asleep, with a certainty of reaching Krishna.

 

The mansion is lit with lamps all around. (Gita, Upanishad and Puranas which explain the esoteric meanings of the scriptures.) 

 

And wafting with the smell of incense. (the sincere practice of daily duties as ordained, and Vairagya — a dispassionate view of life’s joyous and challenging moments.)

Despite many calls, the girl does not respond. 

Andal then asks her aunt*  “Please wake her up. Is she deaf, dumb or blind?”

The aunt says, you try reciting the many names of the Lord. She may respond. 

Andal says, we have already recited the names of Maayavi, Madhava, and Vaikunthan and a thousand names, but she doesn’t budge. 

 

Andal asks her aunt to unlock of the bejeweled door. (The door represents the ego — attachment to the body).

 

Once the Acharyas gives them the upadesha (spiritual teaching) — the key to the door, the student becomes deaf (to others blaming them), dumb (to criticism from others) and blind (in seeing the faults of others). 
________________
*The supreme mother Mahalakshmi/ the acharya

Tiruppavai 08

 23-12-25 | Krishna Leela , Bhagavatha , Gopika , Tiruppavai

To remove darkness, we light a lamp. This lamp removes darkness and also spreads its aura of divinity around it. The oil that fuels it, is devotion.

 

Andal is determined to make everyone realise the Supreme:  “O learned girl, wake up and open your eyes. The beautiful eastern sky is lightening up the horizon. Even the buffaloes have left to graze the early morning grass, wet with dew".

 

“We have made the other gopikas to wait, so that you can join us all in the austerities. And you know why we insist that you join us?! You are an enthusiastic girl. It is only proper that we all complete all austerities with wholehearted zeal. It is a festive occasion. We need you to inspire us. Get up and join us".

 

“Krishna has reached Mathura. He has killed the rogue elephant  Kuvalayapeeda and also eliminated the wrestlers challenge with speed and alacrity.  He has come to Mathura to kill Kamsa. He’s a cowherd. Now he has proved to the world that he is the Supreme, the lord of lords.

 

“We have to go and worship him. Surrender to him. We will plead with him to ignore our sins born out of desire.  Let’s submit ourselves to all scrutiny and wait for his blessings. He’s generous. He would feel that he has made us wait.  He will call us closer and accept us with joy!”

Tiruppavai 07

 22-12-25 | Tiruppavai

Andal next wakes up another devotee who is learned in the scriptures and is a devotee of Krishna. 

 

“O deluded girl! Don’t you hear the bharadwaja birds chirping all around? It’s dawn. Don’t you hear the churning sound of curd made by the other gopikas? Don’t you hear their auspicious jingling sound of their necklaces and bangles, in sync with the movement? 

 

“How can you continue to sleep? — You are endowed with a lustrous countenance due to your deep learning resulting in bhakti .  You should join us and converse with us for mutual benefit. We can also sing the glory of Narayana (the primordial cause of creation). For the Margasira month, Narayana, is worshipped as Kesava. Please come and share with us your wealth of wisdom.”

Tiruppavai 06

21-12-25 | Bhagavatha , Gopika , Tiruppavai , Dashavatara , Bala Leela

In another ten verses, Andal wakes up devotees of Krishna to participate in the austerities for the rains.

 

It is said that something good, like the joy of experiencing Krishna, should not be enjoyed alone - it should be shared and enjoyed with many.

 

The first Gopi is very young and a novice in devotion to Krishna. Andal slowly tells her to wake up.

 

“O’ Gopi, get up! Don’t you hear the birds chirping? Don’t you hear the sound of the conch from the temple? Don’t you hear the slow chanting of ‘Hari, Hari’ by the many yogis and ascetics? You have to make an effort to experience Krishna anubhava. He is an embodiment of Rasa.”

 

Andal gently tells the young Gopi about the Lord’s different manifestations as

 

Param (the primordial cause of creation),

Vyuham (his four forms as Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumba and Aniruddha in the cosmic ocean),

Vibhavam (his avatars on the earth as Rama, Krishna etc.,), and

Antaryami (his presence in every soul) and Archavatara (his worship as deities in various temples).

 

Andal expands on the Krishna avatar with Putana samhara and Shakatasura vadha. She says Krishna’s deeds are atimanushyam - super human. But still, even Arjuna, a close friend of Krishna had to be shown the Vishwaroopa.

Tiruppavai 05

 20-12-25 | Bhagavatha , Gopika , Tiruppavai , Damodara

The Mayavi.

 

Everyone has a doubt. 

Does God talk to us? Does he mingle with us like normal folk? Can he sit amongst us to chat and have a conversation with us? Will he play with us? He answered all this with his avatar as Krishna - pure Joy. He also restores dharma. 

 

Andal calls Krishna as Maayavi. She elaborates the power of his Maya. He jumps out of a pillar as Narasimha, goes to Mahabali as Vamana and transforms into Thrivikrama, and now incarnates as Krishna, living amongst the cowherds.

 

That’s the wonderful power of Maya. He leaves his comfy snake-bed in Ksheerasagara and chooses Mathura as his home. It is here that Krishna does wonders — he played with everyone in the banks of the Yamuna. When the scriptures were searching for the Supreme, he enriched them with complete Brahmanubhava (the experience with the divine).

 

He chose to be with the cowherds and became a leading light of that community. The gopikas were overjoyed and celebrated Krishna for having chosen to be with them all. Above all, he allowed himself to be tied to a grinding mortar by his mother, Yashoda — showing that he can be won over by love. 

 

Now Andal tells the young gopikas about the ways to worship Krishna. She stresses primarily on purity of the mind. She says Krishna is here, as the antaryami. Where you are. A place which is pure and clean is where god resides. We need not go anywhere in search of him. The gopikas do not know how to string a garland. They just collect different flowers from the plants and offer it gently at his feet. 

Andal says one can sing his glories folding their hands (Anjali) and thinking about him in the mind. When the prayer is sincere, all their sins in the past, present and future will be erased without a trace like dust on fire. 

Tiruppavai 04

 

19-12-25 | Bhagavatha , Gopika , Tiruppavai

Andal assures the children that their vow will bring rains.  She decides to ensure that the rains pour in time. 
 
Varuna is the rain god. Andal prays to him. She instructs him not to hold back on the rains. She also describes the process of distributing the rain without discrimination. 

 

“O’ Lord! Be liberal with the rains. You should go deep down the sea and  draw as much of water as you can. Then with a thundering sound, you should go up the sky slowly."  

 

“O’ Lord! You should become as dark as the primordial cause of the world, Lord Padmanabha* of broad shoulders — shining like the divine discus Sudarshana and roaring thunderously like the divine conch Paanchajanya."

 

 “Then you can rain water on the earth like the powerful Sharnga (bow) releases a shower of arrows."

 

“When you help little girls like us by showering the much needed rains, it will be your service to the Supreme one and world alike. 
So with full of happiness, let the rains pour."

 

(The lotus which Andal holds suggests Lord Padmanabha.)

Sanjeevani Hanuman

 

Tiruppavai 03

 

TIruppavai 03

18-12-25 | Bhagavatha , Gopika , Tiruppavai , Dashavatara , Guru and Devotee

Andal leads the way to the sacred bath, as a part of their austerities, singing the glory of Trivikrama. The one who conquered the three worlds in just two strides, with the third step on Mahabali’s head. She calls him Uthama  (Who can be so benevolent, to claim his own property in alms!) 

She begins to list out the benefits of completing these austerities:

 
“This vow will help our land receive copious rains thrice a month in equal intervals, bringing in prosperity, bountiful crops* of red paddy etc.,

The fish will jump about amidst tall stalks of large red paddy crops. 

 

The bees hovering over the flowers will drink honey and fall asleep amidst the petals.  

 

The generous cows, will yield milk profusely by a mere touch on their udders.  

 

Thus, the whole country will be filled with good wealth and prosperity which will be unhindered.”

————

(Notes for the seeker: )  

Rains three times a month:  attaining fruits of the austerities - When the disciple surrenders (Saranagathi) to the Supreme, initiated by the Acharya.

The strong fish jumping with joy in the paddy fields:  Happy Acharyas , who recognize that their efforts have borne fruit .
Narayana is the bee who sleeps in our heart (Hrdaya Kamalam) without worry, like a content farmer who has realized abundant crops. His work through his AchAryAs has been successful.  

Generous cows : The most generous Acharyas, who just need a small nudge to explain any doubt in detail, without expecting anything in return.  

 *(In olden times, it was the practice of the farmers sing ‘Raghu Rama’ while transplanting paddy seedlings).