Seer Of Dravidian Vedas

THE SPEAKING TREE
Seer Of Dravidian Vedas
Sangeeta Venkatesh


In a small, quiet village in Tamil Nadu called Alwaar Thirunagari, close to Tirunelveli, there is a beautiful Vishnu temple. The temple houses an ancient tamarind tree. Though the tree has gnarled branches, the leaves remain fresh and, surprisingly, they do not close at night. This special tamarind tree is connected closely with one of the greatest bhakti saints, Nammazhwar.

Nammazhwar’s birth was prophesied by Veda Vyasa in the Bhagvata Purana. It has been mentioned in the Bhavishyath Purana that a great saint would be born, at the advent of Kali Yuga, in Dravida land by the river Tamaraparani. As prophesied, when the divine baby was born, he neither cried, nor moved nor suckled milk, yet he continued to remain healthy and glowing. When a baby is born, it is believed that a ‘vital air’ or shata engulfs it, which prevents it from imbibing true knowledge. However, the shata did not affect this divine baby and hence Nammazhwar is also known as Shatagopan or the one who has conquered the shata.

Nammazhwar’s parents were so puzzled and worried that on the twelfth day after his birth, he was kept in a golden cradle and placed before the deity. He was given the name ‘Maaran,’ meaning one who is unique. The baby instantaneously crawled out of the cradle and took his position under the divine tamarind tree and assumed the Padmasana posture. Indeed, this tamarind tree is believed to be the incarnation of Adishesha, the divine serpent, whose role was to protect Nammazhwar who is believed to be an incarnation of Viswaksena, the commander of Vishnu’s army. He remained in this posture and meditated for 16 long years.
In Ayodhya, another saint called Madhura Kavi noticed a glowing light which did not recede – and he saw this night after night. Finally, Madhura Kavi followed it and walked for many days till it finally vanished in Thirunagari. Madhura Kavi knew that he had reached his destination and hurried towards this motionless figure under the tamarind tree. To attract Nammazhwar’s attention, Madhura Kavi dropped a huge stone. Lo and behold! Nammazhwar opened his eyes and smiled at Madhura Kavi.

To test whether the child could hear and speak, Madhura Kavi asked in Tamil, “If in the womb of what is dead, a subtle thing is born; what does it eat and where does it abide?” (Here the dead body meant the ‘achit’ or insentient matter and the subtle thing is the formless soul.) To this cryptic question Nammazhwar replied in Tamil, “atthai tinru angey kidakkum” which means, “It will eat that and lie there”. This profound statement philosophically meant that the soul experiences the pleasures as well as pain of the body in which it stays. Alternatively, if the soul is fixed on serving God, it will experience divinity.

Madhura Kavi prostrated before Nammazhwar and requested that he accept him as his shishya or disciple. Nammazhwar is considered to be the foremost Alwaror seer of Dravidian Vedas and has composed four Prabandhams covering the essence of the four Vedas, namely, Thiruviruttham on the Rig Veda, Thiruvaashiriyam on the Yajur Veda, Peria Thiruvandadhi on the Atharva Veda and the magnum opus, Thiruvoimozi on the Sama Veda. This rich treasure expounding devotion continues to be taught in temples and religious institutions of south India.
Today, Vaikashi Vaishaka, is Nammazhwar Jayanti.