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“This joyful practitioner of yoga, Spends all his lawful earnings In providing food for the devotees of Vishnu Who travel between the Himalaya and the Malaya Mountains!”           (Amuktamalyada – translation Srinivas Sistla) That was how the mighty emperor Krishnadeva Raya described our Vishnuchitta. He was hailed as Periyalvar, for the mighty deed of going to the Pandya Sri Vallaba’s court to establishe the Paratva and having had a divine vision of Garudaruda Vishnu and singing ‘Pallandu’ (hail! live long) to Him. This great feat earned not only the title of Periyalvar (Periya = big), but his Prabandham as described by many became the gateway for the divine 4000 verse compilation, ‘Nalayira Diva Prabandham’. In the order of contents in the 4000, 'Tirupallandu' and 'Periyalvar Tirumozhi' are the first prabandhams, followed by 'Tiruppavai' and 'Nachiyar Tirumozhi' of his foster daughter Andal. But, to know him first as V...

Vatapatrasayi January 10, 2021 – it is the 26 th day of the Tamil month of Margazhi. For all those who follow Margazhi and Andal’s Thiruppavai, today is the day of the pasuram “Maale Manivanna”. While reciting the pasuram this morning, I realized that there has been a long pending book post from my side. What is in it that, today’s pasuram reminded me of the pending book post. It is how Krishna is addressed in this particular pasuram. Andal throughout the 30-verses addresses Vishnu/Krishna by various names, Narayana, Kanna, Govinda, Thirumal and all … in this verse she begins by calling him Manivanna, gem hued lord, and finally ends with a prayer, asking for a grant from “aalinilayai arulelo”, the one who slept on the banyan leaf. Soon after I opened facebook and I found my friend Meenakshi had drawn a beautiful kolam for today’s pasuram, representing the baby on the banyan leaf, and she had also begun her explanation of the pasuram with Andal asking the one who floats on the banyan l...