Nammalvar

 

Nammalvar ( நம்மாழ்வார்) was one of the twelve Alvars. Well known for his many hymns on devotion to Vishnu. Legend gives him the date 3102 B.C. (i.e., the beginning of the kali yuga). He was born in the asterism Visakham, in what is now alwar thirunagari, Tamil Nadu.[1] His name means "our own alvar (alvar means "one immersed in God"). He was also known as Maran and Sadagopan.

Nammalwar was born in a clan "Vellalar tribe" on the 43rd day of kali yuga on Friday, under the star “Vishakha”, during the sukla pakshi, chathur dashi, in kataka lagna, in the month of vrushabha (May-June), in vasantha ruthu, in the year of Pramadhi, in Thiru kurugoor (near Thirunelveli) in the Pandaya dynasty of Tamil Nadu, to kariyar and Udayanangayar.
The child was extraordinary. For several days, it lived with eyes closed in perfect health, without food (neither breast fed milk nor any other). For days together, it never spoke. Distressed at this, the parents place the child at the shrine of Aadinathar, the deity of Kurugoor, surrendering into Him the entire burden of upbringing the child.
As the child was totally different from the general human nature, he was named Maran. He was also called “Sadagopan” as, unlike other children, he did not allow earthly ignorance to envelope him.

For sixteen long years, Maran sat motionless under the tamarind tree in Adinathar temple without food or drink, eyes closed, in padmasana ( one of the meditative posture), in utter silence. He was verily a SUN in human form with an aura encompassing the universe. He is believed to be the Avatara of Vishwak-Sena, chief of the hosts of Sriman Narayana in Vaikuntam.

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Madhurakavi Alwar:

During that period, an elderly Brahmin scholar named Madhurakavi was on his pilgrimage to north Indian shrines. At Ayodhya, the pilgrim saw an extraordinary sweet glowing light as a star on the southern sky. Keen on knowing the source whence it emanated he traveled southward. Even when he reached Srirangam, (near Trichy in Tamil Nadu) the light was visible in far south. He continued his quest till he reached kurugoor, where the light merged with the person in Nammalwar, seated blissfully under the tamarind tree. He was simply excited and deeply attracted by the Divine figure and Golden hue of
AzhwAr's face.

With great difficulty, Madhura kavi succeeded in drawing out Nammalwar from his deep samadhi. He just threw a small stone into a nearby pond and for that splash sound, our azhwAr opened his lotus eyes. Madhurakavi asked in tamil
"Seththathin vayiRRil siRiyadhu piRandhAl yetthai thinRu engE kidakkum?"

(meaning: If the small is born in a dead's body(or stomach), what will it eat and where will it stay?)
nammAzhwAr, the one who has not opened his mouth since his birth (not even for food) opened his lips and answered
"aththaith thinRu angE kidakkum"

(meaning: It will eat that and stay there).

The small one refers to the individual soul and the dead one refers to the gross matter, the body. When the soul enters the body, the body comes into life; and when it leaves, it becomes a corpse. The soul experiences the pleasures and pains through the body and its senses and reaps only what it has sown quite unaware and unconscious of its true nature of its being part of the Almighty, as His body. So the soul will eat that and stay there;

When the soul realises its true nature and does prapatti to Him Srman nArAyaNan (realizing the body/mind and intellect as not attached to its nature), it will eat His thoughts. verses and pAsurams as his "annam" and will stay there( at His abode as His servant rendering service to Him).

Madhurakavi was greatly impressed at AzhwAr's depth of answer and his philosophy. He prostrated at the feet of AzhwAr and with tears in his eyes said " O, southern sun! Please take me as your disciple: Please make me cross the ocean of Births and deaths. Please protect me". Seeing him at his feet, nammAzhwAr said " Stay with me and write my pAsurams on Sriya:patih".
He learnt from Nammalwar the secrets of all the shastras by becoming his disciple. Thenceforward, he remained at his lotus feet, recording the divine poem swelling out of the heart of Nammalwar in great ecstasy of Krishna Bhakti, sometimes rapidly and other times slowly, depending on the intensity of intuition and inspiration. At the very thought of the birth and beauty of Sri Krishna, the Alwar used to go into deep trance for months together.
Nammalwar is the seer of Dravidian Vedas. He sang four immortal poems as the Tamil version of the of the four Vedas – Rig, Sama, Yajur and Atharvanda.

Nammalwar stayed on earth in flesh and blood only for a brief thirty-five years. His return back to Vaikuntam through the Archaradhi gathi has also been sung by him in the penultimate portion of Thiruvaimozhi.

Madhurakavi's eyes were welled with tears and was immensely pleased and excited when he saw his AchAryA became one with the Lord and united with Him. Simulataneously, he was also blessed with a swarNa vigrahA (Golden statute) of nammazhwAr which he consecrated at the Tamarind tree.
He performed daliy ArAdhanA to his AzhwAr and even ignored the Lord Sriman nArAyaNana since then.

NammAzhwAr composed the following:
1.Thiruviruttam (100 verses as the essence of Rg vEdA)
2.ThiruvAsiriyam (7 verses as the essence of yajur vEdA)
3.Periya ThiruvandhAdhi (87 verses as the essence of atharvaNa vEdA)
4.ThiruvAimozhi (1002 verses as the essence of sAma vEdA)

Tiruvaymozhi describes Ranganatha as a metaphor to discussing the philosophical details in

Ø The nature of the paramatma (divine soul)

Ø The nature of the jeevatma (living soul)

Ø The means for the jeevatma (living soul) to attain the goal of Paramatma (divine soul)

Ø The blocks and hurdles on the way and

Ø The goal moksha (divinity).

Sri AlavandhAr's sthOthra rathna verse paying tribute to Swami NammAzhwAr:
mathA pithA yuvathayas tanayA vibhUthi:
sarvam yadhEva niyamEna madhanvayAnAm
Adhyasya Na: Kulapather VakuLAbhirAmam
Srimath Tadhangri YugaLam praNamAmi MoordhnA

For me and all those associated with me, Swamy NammAzhwAr is always
the Mother, Father, progeny, spouses and all other wealth. At the most
beautiful pair of Thiruvadis of the emperor of our Kulam [Kula
pathi], Swamy NammAzhwAr adorned with the most fragrant divine VakulA
flower garland, adiyEn salutes those holy feet with my head.

Swamy Desikan's tribute in UpakAra Sangraham:

"anthamilA pErinbham arundha yERkkum
adiyOmai aRivudanE yenRum kaatthu
munthai vinai nirai vazhiyil ozhuhAthemmai
munnilayAm Desikar tamm munnE sErtthu
manthiramum manthiratthin vazhiyum kaatti
Vazhippadutthi vaann yERRi adimai koLLa
Tanthai yena ninRa Tanit ThirumAl thALil
talai vaitthOm SATAKOPAN ARULAALE

----Mudal AdhikAram of UpakAra Sangraham

We bow unto the matchless thiruvadigaL of ThirumAl solely due to the Krupai of Swamy NammAzhwAr, who made us fit to enjoy the measureless aanandham of Moksham , who protected our eternal Dharma bhUtha Jn~Anam , who saved us from being swept away by the ancient torrent
of karmaas by placing us at the feet of sadAchAryans, who in turn initiated us in to Thirumanthiram and Saranagati [Prapatthi] UpAyam and then helped us climb the steps to Sri Vaikuntam for nithya
Kaimkaryam to Sriya: pathi.