Tiruvaraṅgam manifested. Praṇavākāra Perumal soon had a holy name,
‘Ranganathan.’
The Lord of the heavens came down to earth. In Ayodhya city, for
multiple generations of kingly worships, inundation of his grace and
blessings favored the kings and his subjects. Later, he reached the
Island of Kaveri where the Chola Mandala subjects and their king
contemplated on Emperuman and danced with the sense of Bakthi.
The place to dance is always Araṅgam (Dance Hall).
The reason for the ecstatic dance is Emperuman.
Since all the inhabitants performed the ecstatic dance, the island came
to be known Araṅga Thīvu (Island with the Dance Hall). Later with a
‘Tiru’ (holy) prefix, it became Tiruvaraṅgam. Since Perumal flourished
as the Lord of the Island Dance Hall, Praṇavākāra Perumal earned on this
land the name, ‘Tiruvaraṅga Nāthar.’
He is the Lord of the world. This world came into being because of him.
He is the ‘Head of the world,’ and so the holy name of Araṅganāthaṉ came
about. The progeny of Dharmavarman protected Emperuman as the eyelid and
eyelash would protect the eye and worshipped him. The time rolled on. In
this cyclic time, it is the time for the era of the deluge.
In Vaikunta heaven Perumal and Perumāṭṭi (Lakshmi his consort) discussed
the deluge. Perumāṭṭi worried about the deluge more than Perumal. Her
speech reflected her concern.
Perumāṭṭi = Mahalakshmi: “Emperuman! What a catastrophe! The Great
Deluge is here, it appears.”
Peruman: “Yes Devi! Since the creation of the Bhuloka and humanity,
their maintenance and the creation of civilized society, multiple
Manvantaras have passed. Because of it, multiple parts of the world
suffer from drought, some parts suffer cold, and some others are
afflicted with absent or diminished fertility. There is a background of
the burden from sins and merits. Pralaya or deluge is the way and the
act of cleansing.”
Perumāṭṭi: “Does Pralaya mean cleansing? Is it not great destruction or
dissolution?”
Peruman: “Call it what you want. Great destruction, Pralayam (Great
dissolution), Cleansing: they all mean the same thing.”
Perumāṭṭi: “Millions upon millions will die on this account.”
Peruman: “Why do you look at it as dissolution? Step out of your human
nature and look at it. After dissolution, there will be a change and
because of it, a change for the better.”
Perumāṭṭi: “Where is the need for this dissolution now?”
Peruman: “Kali Yuga is on the cusp of a new era. The creator must make
some changes in this world. On this account, new mountains, rivers, new
places, inorganic matter… will appear. Humanity will thrive.”
Perumāṭṭi: “For that humanity must not face extinction.”
Peruman: “Some will escape the deluge, Devi. With the help of their
intellect, Guṇa, ability…they will establish their own country. The
worshipful Ṛṣis and Munis will help humanity, offer worship to me and
codify worship and homage to me for the benefit of the people. My grace
will come to their aid.”
Perumāṭṭi: “What will become of your temple in Tiruvaraṅgam?”
Peruman: “For some time, it will be buried under the mud.”
Perumāṭṭi: “What a catastrophe?”
Peruman: “Where is the catastrophe here?”
Perumāṭṭi: “Incomparable golden Praṇavākāram buried in the mud? That too
for eons! What am I to call it except a catastrophe?”
Peruman: “Devi! Just think how you appeared (came into being). The
efforts, conflicts, fights, and ruins in the efforts of Devas and Asuras
in the regenerative and ambrosial ocean made your appearance possible.
Not that you are the only one coming from the ambrosial ocean. From
Halāhala poison to Sañjīviṉi, the opposites appeared. The churning of
the Milk Ocean is equal to Pralaya. If the Pralaya did not happen that
day in the distant past, today, you will not be here and neither the
Asuras besides others: Atsaya vessel, Kamadhenu, and Kaṛpaka Virutsam.
Perumāṭṭi: “Should they have been born of the churning of the ocean? Why
can’t they be the instant products of your mental creation? You could
have created me by the graceful mental will of yours. Why the churning?”
Peruman: “Mind creation will not show the time factor. Events are based
on the time factor. History can be compiled from events only. From
history, we can measure the dimension of time.”
Perumāṭṭi: “Will it explain the imminent Pralaya?”
Peruman: “Yes, for some time my form and Praṇavākāram will be enveloped
and buried in Būmidevi’s mud. At a time in the future, my form will be
discovered by a man or a woman and the worship will continue.
Perumāṭṭi: “Worship: it is just flattery. Is worship the best, Prabhu?”
Peruman: “Yes. Those with arrogance or conceit cannot offer worship. The
first principle in worship is the absence of the feeling of ‘I.’ Worship
helps humanity to live without arrogance. “
Perumāṭṭi: “Can anyone walk the great path without worship, Prabhu?”
Peruman: “Not possible, Devi.”
Perumāṭṭi: “Is conceit that serious?”
Peruman: “Conceit depletes Bakthi and encourages selfishness and
self-glory.”
Perumāṭṭi: “Aren’t they like Asuras?”
Peruman: “You said it right. If the narrow and righteous path is missed,
the result is demoniacal. The righteous path means control of the
senses. Bakthi helps spirituality to grow. Self-conceit helps grow the
demoniacal nature.”
Perumāṭṭi: “Wonderful explanation. You as the creator of wonders, the
head of the world and Araṅganāthaṉ are great. As the night and day,
people are demoniacal and human. I understand it. “
Lakshmi Devi became tender with emotion. Initially, she feared the
deluge but came to know from Parantāmaṉ it is finality for the
prospective new beginnings. Devi asked these questions on behalf of
Dethe humanity. She received the answers from the horse’s mouth.
The time-bound Deluge resulting from the roar of the seas on one side
and the inundation of the rivers on the other side made the Island of
Tiruvaraṅgam which sank under the floods and disappeared out of sight.
Peruman in Yoga Nidra on Ādiśeṣa in the Milk Ocean moved the world
screen to the sides and performed his Araṅkētṛṛam (Stage performance) on
the world stage: His creation of the world and the Kaveri River, the
island in the watery midst for some time, and the mud cover for some
time.
Everywhere there was mud with no clues of the prior arrival and the
present burial of the temple from the heavens to the earth. Tiruvaṅgam
with seven streets and terraces was buried under the mud. As the witness
of past existence of the temple in the form of rock cuts, tents or
records by the elders, none existed. Time moved, though it appeared
stagnant.
Dharmavarman’s progeny, during this devastation, continued to exist. So
also, the Nīlivaṉam Ṛṣi progeny continued to live. Because of their deep
Tapas, they had knowledge of their ancestors, and the Praṇavākāra
Perumal aka Araṅganātha Perumal, whom they worshiped and extolled.
They learned of the burial history of Praṇavākāra Perumal. Araṅgam must
be restored and surrounded with devotees. With those intents, they
worshipped.
Worship is worship. The means and the path became apparent.
A Chola king in the lineage of Dharmavarman one day came to the
riverside of Kaveri. The capital for his kingdom was Uraiyūr. He could
not with certainty tell the name given to his kingdom by his ancestors.
The Kaveri river which swallowed Tiruvaraṅgam because of its floods
bifurcated again as the double-stranded garland demarcating the island
of Tiruvaraṅgam. The king jumped into the river, bathed, swam across to
the shore of the island and stepped on the sacred land. The island
invited him with open hands: the trees with luscious fruits, the floral
gardens, the chirping birds, particularly the parrots.
The Chola king was exhilarated seeing the scenic beauty. The parroting
of the birds was sweet as music to him. His body was tingling with
ecstasy. He never felt like it. The chirping of the birds sounded like
Mantras to him.
`காவேரி விரஜா ஸேயம் வைகுண்டம் ரங்கமந்திரம்
ஸ வாசுதேவோ ரங்கேச: ப்ரத்யட்சம் பரமம் பதம்
விமாநம் ப்ரணவாகாரம், வேதச்ருங்கம் மஹாத்புதம்
ஸ்ரீரங்கசாயீ பகவாந் ப்ரணவார்த்த ப்ரகாசக:'
It appeared the parrot sang a Mantra-poem. It sang it multiple times.
The parrot sat on a mud hillock, flapped its wings and loosened the
soil.
The king knew the import immediately. The priest accompanying him was
connected to Nīlivaṉam. The priest understood the Slokam and elaborated
on its meaning to the king.
The priest: “King! This is not an ordinary parrot. It is full of wisdom
like Sukar Ṛṣipuruṣar. Among the birds, parrot and the crow are close to
the people. The crow eats fire-cooked food like people. The parrot talks
like the people.”
“The crow is black reminding us of the dead ancestors. The parrot
sporting the green color of prosperity reminds us of the floral
connection. The crow is Sani’s vehicle. The parrot reminds us of
Emperuman’s green body like that of a green garland. Let me tell you the
meaning of the parrot’s Sanskritic poem.”
In the Vaikuntam of Emperuman, Virajā river runs its course. Virajā
River runs in the Vaikuntam as Kaveri does in Bhuloka. That is why this
land we stand on is Bhuloka Vaikuntam. Likewise, Śrīraṅga Vimanam
indicates Emperuman’s place in Vaikuntam. In it, he presents himself as
Paramapathanāthaṉ, who blesses people in the name of Raṅganāthaṉ. That
is the meaning of the poem.
Chola king was happy to hear it.
Chola king: “Kaveri is Virajā river, amazing. This place is Bhūlōka
Vaikuntam. If that is so, where is the Śrīraṅga Vimanam in which abides
Paramapatha Nāthaṉ.”
The king took the stirring of the mud by the parrot as an indicator and
asked his minions to dig the area. Śrīraṅga Vimanam came into view. Next
appeared Paramapatha Nāthar. Though they were buried for thousands of
years, no stain or defect was detected.
Seeing them, he felt the exhilaration of his soul. That moment he was
called Kiḷi (parrot) Cholan. Under his supervision, thousands of people
joined and recovered the buried Tiruvaraṅgam.
Inordinate recovery! All seven Prakārams (circumambulatory paths) were
dug up. They told us about the island’s society living in devotion and
prosperity. In those days, our ancestors had such a high standard of
living. Kiḷi Cholan thought to himself we should now have a higher
standard of living.
Nīlivaṉa Ṛṣis, standing in the midst of excavation, narrated the story
of Tiruvaraṅgam from the time of Vaisvata Manu to the time when the
Deluge covered the Bhuloka Vaikuntam on the island. Kiḷi Cholan recorded
their narratives on the palm leaves.
Bhuloka Vaikuntam with a new lease on life began its gracious reign
again.
Will Continue.
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