Let us discover Thiruppavai

It’s Marghali. I’ve wanted to wrote about this month earlier, but I had no time. Well, let’s say, Sriman just blessed me today to write on this topic :) To put in simple word:

This month of margazhi is very divine as Kannan in His geethai says, “Amongst the months, I shall be margazhi”. Imagine how wonderful this month could be.

“If you get me married to mere mortals, I shall not wish to live, I shall not allow you to do so, I shall get wed to Paraman alone”

Thiruppavai.

A well known pasuram, sung by Aandal @ Gothai, on her determination to get married to Rangamanar alone.

"one who sings this garland of pasurams in changattamizh, shall definitely get the divine blessings of Thirumal; one who does not know these thirty pasurams of Thiruppavai is a burden to the earth"

~The beauty of His thirumeni which is the color of a water bearing cloud,
the beauty of His eyes which look like a bloomed lotus are mesmerizing us and inspiring us to observe this paavai nombu with Him.

“Having heard of our grievances and shortcomings, He shall come running to protect us, but we should still perform our ordained duties regularly.

You have captivated Him inside your beautiful eyes that have blossomed like a beautiful lotus. He would come to us only if he were to be freed from the confines of those beautiful eyes.

If you do not come to us and exhibit those virtues (compassion, humility, forbearance), then they would be as good as being absent. Think it over Oh Lord!”

"Whoever resorts to your lotus feet, have been assured of your protection."


When the soiled water is made free of mud and dirt, then what remains below is the pure potable water. Similarly if we remove the vision of our physical eyes that is replete with the blemishes of desire, anger, greed, passion, pride and jealousy and see only through the eyes of our unsullied knowledge, then it is possible to see you in everyone’s heart in your complete divine and magnificent form.”

Oh Naaranane! I am not there without you and you are not there without me.

verse 27:

palagalanum yaam aNivOm – The wonderful hands that do service to your lotus feet,  need to be bejewelled with bangles that are enmeshed with the finest of all the nine gems. The hands that cuddle you need to be adorned with the finest of shoulder jewelry.

You adorn the makarakundalas (ear rings) on your ear. To match the greatness of these, you should bestow a pair of diamond earrings to the beautiful ears that listen to your sweet flute all the time. These ears should be decorated with flowers (chevippoovu) as well. 


You would touch our feet during the observance of ammi midiyal during our holy matrimony. Such legs need to be decorated with the ornament of jingles (paadagam). You should thus grant us with all the jewellery that we seek. Women decorate themselves with jewels before clothing themselves. For this we need finest and fragrant most silk attires worn by you.

Kannan then says “But I do not possess so much to be given to all of you”. The Gopis say, “Pray get us our attires from the same place from where you granted Draupadi with rolls and rolls of attire, when she pleaded unto you taking your holy names like Krishna, Govinda”.

adhan pinnE paaR chORu mooda ney peydhu muzhangai vazhi vaara(k) koodi

irundhu kuLirndhElOr – Until we attained you, we were determined not to take ghee or milk and not to decorate our tresses with fragrant flowers. But we have won you now. 
From now on, we shall bejewel ourselves, wear grand silk attire, get our tresses decorated by you with flowers and we shall relish the sweetness and delicacy of ksheeraannam (milk rice) Oh Sriman Narayana.

verse 29:

Kannan says, “You already asked me for ‘saala perumparaiyE’, the percussion instrument with a well reverberating sound. Here it is, take it all. I have one per person.”

iRRai(p) paRai koLvaan anRu kaaN gOvindhaa– Kannan, when we said ‘paRai’, did we mean this instrument? No. Never. Please take a look at our faces. You seem to be too naive.

eRRaikkum Ezh Ezh piRavikkum un thannOdu uRROmE aavOm unakkE naam

aatcheyvOm– Not only in this birth, but even if we were to take many more births, then in all those births we would wish to be in your service alone. If you bless us with the bliss of beatitude, then we would be in your eternal service at your supreme abode of Srivaikuntham. The Vedas proclaim that a liberated soul can attire itself with many sharirams. Even if we happened to do so, then in every one of those bodies we would continue to serve you alone and none else.

Kannan says, “In that case are you not interested in any other material pleasures?”

matrai nam kaamangaL maatru– Pray bless us to have no other desire other than you.

Andal, in this pasuram is elucidating that, having surrendered unto the Lord, the soul should only ask for the fruit of performing unstinted service to the Lord always, similar to Lakshmana.

Beautiful line, and as a conclusion,

muppadhum thappaamE ingu ipparisuraippaar – The loss of a single gem in a gem

studded necklace makes the necklace of no value. The loss of a single stone in a

diamond earring brings its value down. Similarly all the thirty verses need to be

recited without fail.

~This meaning and verse was taken from Thiruppaavai booklet by Poundarikapuram Srimad Andavan Srimath Gopaladesika Mahadesikan, Translation in english given by Sri C.G. Balaji and  edited by Oppiliappan Koil Sri Varadachari Sathakopan.

May All of us are blessed by Sriman Narayanan and Naachiyar on this auspicious month.