Saturday, September 12, 2009

Andaal


Aandaal is a 10th century Tamil saint and one of the twelve Alvars (saints) and the only woman Alvar of Vaishnavism. She is credited with the great Tamil works of Thirupavai and Nachiar Tirumozhi that are still recited by devotees during the month of Margazhi.

Aandaal is known for her unwavering devotion to Lord Vishnu. The Srivilliputhoor Temple is dedicated to her and marks her birth place. Adopted by her father, the famous saint Periyalvar who found her as a baby, Aandaal avoided earthly marriage. She pined to "marry" Lord Vishnu, both spiritually and physically. In many places in India, particularly in Tamilnadu, Aandaal is treated more than a saint and as a form of God HERSELF.

Early life

Aandaal is believed to have been discovered under a Tulsi plant in the temple garden of Srivilliputtur, by a person named Vishnucitta (Periyalvar), who later became one of the most revered saints in Hinduism. The child was named Kodhai (meaning, a beautiful garland, in Tamil) and she was raised by Vishnucitta as a doting father. Kodhai grew up in an atmosphere of love and devotion. Vishnucitta taught her to sing songs about Lord Krishna; teaching her all the stories and philosophy he knew; and sharing with her his love for Tamil poetry. As she grew into a beautiful maiden, her love and devotion for the Lord ripened to such an extent that she decided to marry none but the Lord Himself. As days progressed, her resolve strengthened and she started to live in her own dream world and thought of nothing else but marrying Him.

Vishnucitta had the responsibility of delivering flower garlands to the Lord's temple, everyday. Kothai made these garlands and sent it to her beloved Lord through her father. Eventually she started acting unusual by wearing the flower garland that were meant to be offered to the Lord. This is a sacrilege in Hinduism as a thing that has already been used by a human being should not be offered to the Lord.

However, Kothai would wear the garland on herself and only if it suited her would she offer it to the Lord. One day, she was caught red-handed by her father in this strange act. As an orthodox devotee, he was extremely upset. He rebuked her and told her not to repeat the sacrilegious act. Frightened and apologetic, Kothai made a new garland for offering that day. Legend says that that very night the Lord appeared to Vishnucitta in his dream and asked him not to discard Kothai's garland but instead offer to Him. The Lord told Vishnucitta that He had whole-heartedly accepted Kothai's offering all this time. This moved Vishnucitta so much even as he began to realize the Divine Love that existed between the Lord and his daughter. From this day on, Kothai is believed to have been respected by the devotees and addressed as "Aandaal", the girl who "ruled" over the Lord. She is also known by a phrase "Soodi kodutha Sudarkodi" which means "The bright creeper-like woman who gave her garlands after wearing them".

Marrying the Lord

As Aandaal blossomed into a fifteen-year-old beautiful young woman of marriageable age (during those days), her father prepared to get her married to a suitable groom. Aandaal, however, was stubborn and insisted that she would marry only the Lord at Srirangam. This perplexed and worried her father. Legend has it that he had a vision of the Lord, once again, and was instructed to send Aandaal to Srirangam; the lord simultaneously commanded the priests at Srirangam, in their dreams, to prepare for the wedding. Aandaal who was anxious to reach Srirangam was unable to control herself in her urgency to meet her beloved Lord. She ran into the sanctum sanctorum of the Lord and is believed to have merged with Him

Literary Works
Aandaal composed two works in her short life of fifteen years. Both these works are in Tamil verse form and are exceptional in their literary, philosophical, religious, and aesthetic content. Her contribution is remarkable considering that she was a girl of fifteen when she composed these verses and her prodigiousness amazes readers till date.

Her first work is the Thiruppavai, a collection of thirty verses in which Aandaal imagines herself to be a Gopi or cowherd girl during the incarnation of Lord Krishna. She yearns to serve Him and achieve happiness not just in this birth, but for all eternity. It describes the religious vows (pavai) that she and her fellow cowherd girls would observe for this purpose.

The second is the Nachiar Tirumozhi, a poem of 143 verses. Tirumozhi, literally meaning "Sacred Sayings of the Goddess." This poem fully reveals Aandaal's intense longing for Vishnu, the Divine Beloved. Utilizing classical Tamil poetic conventions and interspersing stories from the Vedas and Puranas, Aandaal creates imagery that is possibly unparalleled in the entire gamut of Indian religious literature.

The impact of these works on the daily religious life of the South Indian has been tremendous. Just like the Ramayana and the Mahabharata, the Thiruppavai is recited with great religious fervor by women, men, and children of all ages. The daily services in most Vaishnava temples and households include this recitation.

Status in the Society

Aandaal is now one of the best-loved poet-saints of the Tamils. Pious tradition reckons her to be the veritable descent of Bhumi Devi (Mother Earth) to show humanity the way to His lotus feet. She is present in all Sri Vaishnava temples, in India and elsewhere, next to her Lord, as she always desired.


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