Commentary and Notes
to the Tiruppvai

If one were to evoke classical Tami poetic paradigms of the interior (akam) and exterior (puam), then the Tiruppvai moves from the external worlds inhabited by the gops, pausing at the threshold of their homes, but not quite entering there. That voyage into the interior, into the heart as it were, is reserved for Ka’s mansion (verses 16–30), where (in the gop persona, according to various commentators) and her companions make a tantalizing journey into the very interior of Ka’s home. But the Tiruppvai seems to assert that the bold entry into the heart of the matter as it were can only be accomplished with companions, even if some of them are less than eager to wake up at the crack of dawn and venture to bathe in the freezing waters of the local pond. The “waking up of the gops” section of the Tiruppvai in essence is addressed not to just the characters of the poem. Each listener/reader becomes a gop who has slept too late and has forgotten how easy it might be to win Ka for herself; or is too absorbed in Ka and has forgotten the importance of fellow devotees, an interpretation that dominates the exegetical discourse around the Tiruppvai, beginning with Periyavcc Piai in the thirteenth century. Curiously, despite being anachronistic, later commentarial traditions identify each of the sleeping gops of this section with a particular vr (or alternately, crya). For example, in verse 7 Pyvr is imagined as being awakened because the girl is addressed as pype (refer to the note for Tiruppvai 7 for a listing of the vr verse concordances in the text).

Although the vow in the Tiruppvai takes place in Mrkai (December–January), the quest for Ka is presented as timeless, and the poem describes the path to Ka as well as becomes the path to Ka. When finally all of the girls have been gathered, the gops (and all the audience of the poem imagining themselves as gops) approach Ka in his house to awaken him and his family there. The last section of the poem is a gradual and provocative entry into the god’s inner world—one might almost imagine, entering a temple, moving past the door—guardians (dvraplas), and the directional deities (dikplas), until one reaches the sacred womb—where the great god awaits. Here, the gops pause at the very threshold of Ka’s bedroom, peering in, asking to be let in. When they finally do gaze upon Ka, it is to witness a moment of profound intimacy: Ka is with his wife Nappiai, the woman for whom he subdued the seven bulls. It is this intimacy, and it is just such a special place that the gop girls desire, and indeed boldly claim in the penultimate verse of the Tiruppvai (29).

In the general introduction to each of the three sections of the poem, I discuss ’s use of the categories of akam (interior) and puam (exterior) in the Tiruppvai. In the Ncciyr Tirumoi, time (for example, dream time, mythic time, poetic time) and space (for example, interior/exterior, mythic, geographic) constantly intersect and collide to create a fluid, non-linear and, in many ways-disorienting narrative. In the introduction, I have unpacked the play of interior and exterior places/time, mythic and dream spaces/time, contrasting their use in the Tiruppvai and Ncciyr Tirumoi.

The Tiruppvai has a rich and very deep history of rvaiava commentary, rivaling that of Nammvr’s Tiruvymoi. The most significant of the Tiruppvai commentaries, composed in the hybrid commentarial prose language Maiprava, are Periyavcc Piai’s Mvyirappai, the ryirappai of Aakiya Maava Perum Nyar, the Nlyirappai and the ryirappai. In addition, Ragarmnuja composed an important Sanskrit commentary to the Tiruppvai. Several contemporary traditional scholars of the two major rvaiava schools have added to this collection of Tiruppvai commentaries. These include Uttamur Veeraraghavachariar and Annangarachariar, among others. In addition, one can find any number of Tiruppvai explications composed in Tami and English by lay practitioners who have a lifelong love for this text.

Similar to other vr poems, traditional commentaries identify two layers of meaning in the Tiruppvai. The first layer is referred to as anypadertha (literal meaning), while the second meaning is known as svpadertha (esoteric meaning). According to this framework, to grasp just the anypadea meaning of a poem is to miss the point. In unpacking a poem’s esoteric meanings, the commentator skillfully incorporates into his interpretations the qualified non-dualist philosophy (viidvaita) of Rmnuja, especially as it pertains to the role of the teacher or other mediators in guiding one’s surrender to god, the nature of god’s grace, and what the very act of surrender constitutes.

The recitation of the names of Viu (Hari nmasakrtana) is a central theme in the Tiruppvai and is referred to in verses 2–3, 5–8, 11–16, and 25. The commentators also stress the efficacy of this mode of worship and offer a few detailed comments on the idea in Tiruppvai 2. The commentaries to the Tiruppvai are rich in allusions to epic and Puric sources, namely the Rmyaa, the Bhagavad Gt, and the Bhgavata Pura. In addition, the commentators also reference other vr poets like Nammvr. Allusions to and quotations from any other Tami literary sources are quite rare.

These notes are meant to offer a taste of the craft of rvaiava exegesis. They are not a translation of any single commentary. Rather, they represent a synthesis of the major interpretations associated with the Tiruppvai verses, while still pointing out differences in interpretation. I have relied on the following commentators who wrote in Maiprava and Tami—Periyavcc Piai, Uttamur Veeraraghavachariar, Annangarachariar, and Srinivasa Aiyyankar Swami. In English, I have relied on C. Jagannathachariar and Oppiliappan Sri Varadachari Sathakopan. In the notes below, I clearly indicate where I follow the commentators by referring to them individually or as a group. Where there is no such marker, the interpretation is my own.

Note: In the notes below I have used Ka and Viu-Nryaa interchangeably. In the Tiruppvai, does not make a clear distinction between these two forms and in fact frequently equates the two. The commentators follow her lead and use Ka and Viu-Nryaa as synonyms.

Tiruppvai 1–5: A General Introduction

The first five verses of the Tiruppvai are referred to as pyiram (preface) or mahpraveam (grand entry). In these introductory stanzas, the poem introduces the pvai npu, the vow the young gop girls of yarpi are about to undertake. As such, it lays out the time of the year that this vow is practiced, the goal of this vow, its requirements, and its benefits (see introduction for a discussion of the pvai vow and its literary antecedents in the Tami Cakam literary corpus).

These opening verses call out to the gop girls of yarpi to join in the quest for the paai-drum. While paai literally means drum, the rvaiava cryas interpret it variously. It can refer to pururtha (the goals of life), kaikarya (loving service), goal, divine grace, favor, and intimacy. Outside of the rvaiava doctrinal universe, the paai plays with several registers of meaning including sacred power, sacred time, and of course its Cakam association with the king and his all-important drum. I half-translate it as paai-drum, foregrounding its literal meaning, while allowing its multiple (theological) meanings to resonate.

In each of the five verses that comprise the pyiram, rvaiava commentators read each of Viu’s names mentioned there in and its attendant quality (gua) as central. In verse 1, he is referred to as Nryaa, in verse 2 as Parama, in verse 3 as Uttama, in verse 4 as Padmanbha and finally in verse 5 as Dmodara.

Tiruppvai I (Mrkai Tika)

The first song of the Tiruppvai establishes the locale: it transports the audience to yarpi (Sanskrit: Gokula) the mythical world of Ka. Though the transparent poetics of bhakti (discussed by Norman Cutler in Songs of Experience) allow one to insert into the poem, specifically as the leader of the retinue of questing girls, it is actually unclear where the poet has positioned herself in the poem. That is, has (as the final verse seems to indicate) imagined a situation where gop girls undertook such a quest? Or is she imagining herself as one of the questing girls? Or is she describing a vow that she actually undertook? Yet, despite the poem’s deep ambiguity, oral narratives, hagiographies, and the ritual culture of ’s temple in rvilliputtr, understand the Tiruppvai to recount and authentically report a real pvai vow undertaken by in order to win her lord. Still, it would be disingenuous to suggest that commentators beginning with Periyavcc Piai are unaware of the poem’s rhetorical complexity. Periyavcc Piai frames the question of voice and the Tiruppvai’s authenticity in terms of caste, wondering how a Brahmin girl like (for she was the foster daughter of the Brahmin garland maker, Viucitta) could practice a vow meant for cowherds. He answers his self-imposed query—no doubt anticipating his medieval interlocutors—saying that simply imagined herself as a gop, because her love for Ka was so profound. According to Piai and the commentators that follow, ’s imagination was so fertile, and her transformation complete, that she began to smell of milk and curds, like “real” cowherds.

Mrkai, the first word of the Tiruppvai, is of great import for it situates the poem not only temporally in the month that falls between December and January in the Tami calendar, but also embeds it within its very specific ritual associations. This month, the ninth month of the Tami calendar, is considered especially favored by Viu/Ka, as specified in Bhagavad Gt 10.35 (“I am the great ritual chant,/the meter of sacred song, the most sacred month [Mrgaira] in the year, the spring blooming with flowers.”).¹ The reason for the particularity of Mrkai (Tami form for the Sanskrit month Mrgaira) is that it too like Viu is neither too hot, nor too cold. In conjunction with the ritual weight of Mrkai, the poem asserts the auspiciousness of the full moon. The evocation of the moon resonates on multiple levels. The gops are imagined as having faces bright and beautiful as the full moon. Further, it anticipates the final lines of this opening verse, where Ka’s face reconciles duality, being described as both the sun and the moon. As the commentators frequently point out, while Viu is like fire to enemies, his love for his devotees is cool as moonlight.

The quest of the Tiruppvai is a communal one and the opening verse stresses this idea. It is not sufficient to approach god individually, but one must do so in the company of like-minded beings. Here the like-minded are the crowd of gop girls, who are exhorted to bathe during the auspicious hours of the brahmamuhrta, which occurs approximately two hours prior to sunrise. The word nra (infinitive, to bathe) is used in this verse to signify both a literal bath and a figurative one. Taking their cue from similar usage Cakam akam poems, commentators interpret nra in the poem to mean union, specifically, sexual union, or in theological terms knubhavam (the enjoyment of Ka) or kasalea (union with Ka). Alternately, bathing in the cool waters with the chill of the early dawn still in the air can also be understood as damping the fire of separation that burns these questing gop girls. I have translated nra as bathe to convey both the literal and figurative meanings. The word nra literally means to play (ta) in the water (nr).

The opening verse of the Tiruppvai constantly juxtaposes images of fire with those of coolness, realized most fully—as mentioned above—in the description of Ka as one whose face is both the sun and the moon. The verse relishes other kinds of juxtapositions as well, particularly in its description of Ka’s foster-parents: Nandagopa and Yaod. Nandagopa is described as the “one with a sharp spear,” while Yaod is the lady with matchless eyes. Commentaries understand the above description to allude to the fierce love that protects Ka in Gokula. Nandagopa, terrifying as any Tami warrior, holds enemies at bay with his terrible weapon. But for Yaod, her eyes, sharp as spears (in Tami poetry, women’s eyes are often compared to spears), are her defense against all adversity that might touch her son. The commentators note that these eyes are matchless because they gaze continually upon the lovely form of Ka.

For the commentators, the penultimate line of this first verse (nryaa namakk paai taruv: Nryaan alone can give us the paai-drum) holds the key to the entire Tiruppvai. I briefly sketch below their reasoning. Even on a literal level, the line above encapsulates the reward for the vow (the paai-drum) and from whom the girls receive that reward (Nryaa). Rather than choose any of the thousand names of Viu, begins her poem by addressing the supreme lord (sarvevara) as Nryaa. Nryaa is both the one who contains all sentient things (nra), as well as the refuge (ayana) for all sentient things (nra). Thus, the name itself distills for the rvaiava commentators one of the key ideas of viidvaita philosophy (qualified nondualism). That is, Viuryaa is both what is desired (prpya) and the means to that desire (prpaka). That is, he is both the way (upya) and the goal (upeya). Finally, the commentators note that has placed an emphasis on two very significant words in this line—Nryaa: (Nryaa alone) and namakk (for us alone), suggesting both the supremacy of Viu-Nryaa, and the uniqueness of the devotee who has surrendered to him.

Mrkai: The winter month that falls between December 15–January 15.

yari: Land of the cowherds. The place of Ka’s childhood.

Tiruppvai 2 (Vaiyattu Vvrk)

If the opening verse locates the poem temporally and spatially in the month of Mrkai and in the mythical world of yarpi, the second verse acts as a veritable guide to the actual performance of the vow. The verse alternates between two lists of ritual obligations that index both what the girls must do and what they must avoid to ensure the successful completion of their quest. They must sing Viu’s praises; they must abstain from ghee or milk. They must bathe daily, but refrain from adorning themselves in any way. They must not gossip or speak ill of anyone and instead ought to give alms to those in need. The verse ends on a positive note, asserting once again the significance of singing the praises of Ka in a community of devotees. In its final lines encouraging charity, the commentators note that draws a distinction between aiyam—understood as generosity to deserving people—and piccai, which is specifically bhika (alms) given to Brahmins and sannysis (renunciants).

Any vow requires renunciation, and the pvai npu is no exception. Periyavcc Piai and others points out that a vow such as this one undertaken to achieve union with Ka requires that one renounce (vairgya) worldly objects that intoxicate the senses, in order to obtain the incomparable intoxicant (paramabhogya) that is god. Nevertheless, in verse 27 of the Tiruppvai these very relinquished objects—milk, ghee, and adornment—are actively sought and understood as integral to achieving Ka’s grace. The Tiruppvai plays with the tension between the desires of this world and those associated with eternal union with Viu. The quest for Ka is the quest for a drum, a symbol that is eventually rejected in the final verses of the Tiruppvai as a suitable reward. It is also a vow undertaken for the prosperity of the land made manifest in plentiful rain, but also expressed as the desire for eternal service to Ka.

In Tiruppvai 2, Viu is addressed as parama (The Supreme One). If the first verse figured Viu as the transcendent, inaccessible lord in his heaven, Vaikuha, this verse places him on the ocean of milk (p kaal), where he manifests, according to the commentators, out of his desire to help sentient beings. Vaikuha is far away, while the ocean of milk is somehow closer. As he reclines on his thousand-headed serpent on the ocean of milk, Viu practices a profound yoga nidra (meditation), contemplating all the ways that he can help those who need him. So, although he is without comparison (parama), he is also accessible and immanent.

Tiruppvai 3 (ki Ulakaanta)

This third verse develops several central themes laid out in the opening two verses. It focuses primarily on the rewards from the observance of the vow. These blessings are manifest in laukika (worldly) things: plentiful rain, unstintingly generous cows, and an abundant harvest. At the center of the observance of the vow is the ritual bath at the break of dawn, and the communal singing of Viu’s glories. These glories however are expressed not through reliving his wondrous deeds, but by remembering Viu’s names (uttama pr pi: singing the names (pr) of Uttama). Periyavcc Piai stresses the point that reciting Viu’s names is utterly egalitarian, available to one and all, regardless of gender, birth, or caste.

The poem begins with an allusion Viu’s avatra as Vmana, evoked through the use of the adverbial participle ki (stretching/spanning). This word is echoed later in the poem in the adjective, ku (tall) to describe the copious harvest. Periyavcc Piai’s commentary explicates that the poet chooses to describe the grain as tall to drive home the gops’ single-minded devotion to Ka in his form as Vmana; everywhere they look, they witness his great deeds.

In Tiruppvai 3, Viu is addressed as uttama (lit. excellent one). Periyavcc Piai and others following his lead explicate the use of this name in the following ways. First, they contextualize who qualifies as an uttama. Following well-established guidelines in Sanskrit treatises for categorizing men according to their behavior and actions, the commentators identify an uttama as one who performs good deeds without expecting a reward. This is unlike an adamtma, who does evil things in return for the good that is done to him; or the atama, who does nothing in return for a service done for him; or the madhyama, who only does what is required of him in response to any aid he is given. The commentators further assert, even the first level of interpretation—the word gloss—that Viu is not just an uttama, but Purusottama (Supreme/most excellent among men).

kayal: A carp fish, Cyprinus fimbriatus.

kuvaai: Indian purple water lily.

Tiruppvai 4 (i Maai Ka)

Tiruppvai 4 is exemplary of ’s dexterity as a poet. It focuses on an extended simile that compares the gathering rain (god of rain) to the body of god. Usually, as in verse 1 of the Tiruppvai, Viu’s body is compared to the dark rain clouds, but here that comparison is reversed. Both logic and poetic theory demand that a known object (upamna) is employed to describe an unknown entity (upameya). Therefore god (Viu/Ka) who is indescribable and unknowable is usually described as dark as the rain clouds. In this verse, reverses this correspondence, such that Ka is the upamna and the landscape (here, the rain clouds) is the object to be described (upameya). Tiruppvai 4 is not the only instance of ’s use of this particular rhetorical technique; it occurs frequently in the Ncciyr Tirumoi, most notably in that poem’s tenth decad, where various plants, flowers, and birds are chastised for assuming the form of the heroine’s divine lover.

This verse begins with a vocative, where the lord of rain is addressed with the endearment ka. Because, ka is also the Tami version of Ka, commentators interpret the line to indicate that for the gops god is everywhere. Ultimately, then this is no simple simile; the landscape is not just a suggestion of embodiment, but is itself the embodiment of divinity. Paradoxically, the speaker(s) of the poem also scold the clouds for trying to imitate god. The commentators elaborate the above point as follows: while the clouds can turn dark like Ka, and the sky can thunder like his conch, and lightning can flash like his cakra, the rain can never be full of love like god. To illustrate the point of Viu’s unwavering love when one takes refuge in him, Periyavcc Piai draws a lovely comparison. Unlike the plants that look to the sky, dependent on rain for their nourishment, a devotee who has taken refuge in him is like the field through which a river runs, unbidden.

In this verse Viu is described as i mutalva padmanbha (Padmanbha who is the cause/first of all time). The word mutal means both cause and first. The commentators gloss the phrase as the lord who is the eternal cause of all things, parsing (lit. a very long time; the final deluge, final destruction) as the one who exists eternally. As the commentators note, describing Viu as Padmanbha and as the primordial cause of the world is particularly effective. He is the cause of time (i) and stands beyond time as the primordial one. He is the cause (mutal) of the final destruction, but as the foremost divinity (mutal) is also the one who protects the world in his belly in the final deluge. And then, through Brahm, who rises from the lotus that emerges from his belly, he creates that world once again.

Commentators argue that the svpadertha (esoteric meaning) equates the rain clouds to the great teachers of the rvaiava lineage. In this interpretation, the rain/rain clouds are the teacher’s (crya) compassion (day) and knowledge (jñna), which guide the devotee to Viu.

valampuri: lit. right turning. The name of Viu’s conch. rga: the name of Viu’s bow.

Tiruppvai 5 (Myaai Mau)

This is the final verse of the pyiram and like Tiruppvai 3 and 4, describes the benefits of undertaking the pvai vow. It also represents a turn away from the worldly rewards that the gops requested in the previous two verses. Instead, Ka is enjoined to burn away all of the gops’ past misdeeds and in a sense prepare them for eternal service to him.

Much of the commentary for this verse focuses on the word tya, “pure,” which uses to describe the Yamun, the gop girls, and the flowers that they bring to Ka as an offering. According to the commentators, the Yamun attains its purity for several reasons. First, she parted of her own volition on the night of Ka’s birth, so that Vasudeva might cross her and spirit the child Ka to safety. Second, she had the unique privilege of touching and being touched by Ka, because he bathed and played in her waters during his childhood in Gokula. To further stress the unrivaled purity of the Yamun, the commentators offer a contrast, with an explication of an episode taken from the Rmyaa. Here, they allude to an episode in Rmyaa where St, abducted by Rvaa, beseeched the river Godvar to report it to Rma. The river, fearing Rvaa’s wrath, failed to do so. The Yamun, on the other hand, was fearless of Kasa’s wrath, though she flowed right beside his dominion and aided Vasudeva and saw Ka to safety.

The commentators begin a meditation on “purity” in order to explain how the gop girls claim such a state, especially when they have yet to bathe. Their rhetorical question asserts that the purity referred to here is not ritual purity, but the purity of intent and love for god. To drive home the point, the commentators offer several paradigmatic examples. In the Rmyaa, Rvaa’s brother Vibhaa’s did not bathe before surrendering (aragati) to Rma. In the Mahbhrata, Ka’s great friend and disciple Arjuna did not bathe before he heard the Bhagavad Gt from Ka. And finally Draupad, the Mahbhrata’s heroine, sought Ka’s aid when she was menstruating.

The commentators elucidate that describes the flowers as pure (tmalar) because their final destination is Ka’s feet. Just as the Yamun attained her purity through association with Ka’s divine body, and just as the gop girls are purified by their abiding love for Ka, so too are ordinary flowers transformed by the intent of their worshippers and their use in the service of Ka.

In this verse, Ka is addressed as Dmodara (the one who bears the [scar] left by the rope). The name refers to an episode from the childhood days of Ka, when his foster-mother Yaod bound him to a grinding stone with a rope (Dma) as a punishment. This name, perhaps above all, serves as an eternal reminder of Ka’s love for his devotees, and the commentators understand it to encapsulate Viu’s attribute as rita paratantra (devotion to his devotees).

Mya: lord of mystery, cunning one. A name of Ka.

Mathur of the North: the city of Ka’s birth. refers to it as such to distinguish it from the southern city of Maturai.

Tiruppvai 6–15: General Introduction

The next ten verses comprise the tuyileai (waking-up) section of the Tiruppvai. In each verse the gop girls rouse a friend and encourage her to join their quest. This rhetorical strategy is successful in asserting the inherent superiority of a communal devotion to god. The community of questing girls embodies the principle of loving god in the company of good, like-minded people. Though each of the awakened girls is eventually absorbed into the ubiquitous group, each of them in their role as the sleeping girl retains a distinctive personality, most clearly in evidence in the fifteenth verse that closes the section.

These ten verses also signal the beginning of the journey into the interior that reaches its fruition between verses 16–20 of the Tiruppvai. The girls call out to their friends poised on the threshold of their homes; they never actually enter their houses, but stand on the porch, the threshold or the doorway. This reticence to engage spatially the inner space of the devotee suggests that it is a privilege reserved for the private, but joint, enjoyment of Ka in his home.

In an anachronistic reading, Vanamamalai Jiyar and other later rvaiava commentators have argued that each of these ten verses alludes to the awakening of one of the other eleven vr. The correspondences are as indicated in table 2:²

TABLE 2. Tiruppvai Verse and vr Concordance

There is an additional tradition that associates each of these verses with one of the ten cryas in the order listed in the rvaiavas’ crya parampar (lineage of teachers).

The commentaries for many of these next ten verses are interspersed with lively and imagined dialogue between the gop girls and the sleeping friends, though only one verse (verse 15) in the Tiruppvai takes that form. In the notes below, I have replicated the dialogic format only for the opening phrase of Tiruppvai 6 in order to give a sense of the commentaries’ form. It must be noted that this kind of imagined dialogue is a regular feature of rvaiava commentary. Sometimes the dialogue is introduced to provide context for a particular theological exposition. In other cases, it is interjected in response to a silent question asked by an imaginary audience, and occasionally, the commentator provides both the question and the answer.

Tiruppvai 6 (Puum Cilampia K)

The verse inaugurating the second section of the Tiruppvai aptly begins with the chirping of birds to signal the dawn and the subsequent arrival of the dawn. The urgency of the moment is conveyed through the addition of the particle pu(um)—even the birds are awake. But when the girl who was already supposed to be awake remains slumbering and refuses to acknowledge the signs of dawn, the group of girls roundly scold her thus:

“Were you not supposed to be awake at the crack of dawn? Why are you
still asleep?”
“O, but it is not dawn as yet.”
“No, it is already morning.”
“So, what is the proof that it has in fact dawned? I can’t accept that it is morning simply because you say it is so.”
“Isn’t it enough that we have experienced it?”
“The rest of you just don’t sleep. So, how do know it is dawn?”

It is to this final question that the girls answer:

“Listen, even the birds are chirping.”

The dialogue continues in much the same vein as the gop girls try various arguments to cajole their reluctant friend out of bed. They allude to Ka suckling at the breast of the demoness Ptan, in the hope that fear for the safety of the child will hasten the girl out of sleep. Next, they gesture to the exemplary muni and yogi (translated as sages and ascetics) who always hold Viu in their hearts. Here the commentaries take note of the fact that the poet appears to make a distinction between muni (sages) and yogi (ascetics), a distinction which is similar to the different kinds of charity and philanthropy (aiyam, piccai) that alludes to in Tiruppvai 2. In this case, the commentators explain that the former (muni) are those who continuously contemplate Viu, while the latter are those, like Rma’s brother Lakmaa, whose austerity (yogbhysa) is to be in god’s eternal service. The implication of the commentators’ interpretative move is that the girls who remain asleep are the muni, and those who hasten to awaken them in order that they too may join the quest are like the yogi. While both kinds of spiritual activity are valued and necessary, the commentators subtly suggest that loving service (kaikarya) such as that of the exemplary Lakmaa is preferable.

Finally, when all these arguments fail to rouse the girl, her friends gathered together outside her door remind her that the “great sound Hari” (praravam) reverberates through the morning air, beckoning devotees toward contemplation. The phrase praravam (great sound) is used to describe both the sound of the conch and the sound of the name of god. Given the Tiruppvai’s emphasis on the recitation of god’s names, it is no surprise that the first verse in the poem’s second section evokes this central rite of Viu worship.

Garua: the divine eagle, Viu’s vehicle.

akaa: the demon who assumed the form of a cart.

Tiruppvai 7 (Kcu Kcu)

For the commentators, the theological implication of this verse is located in the figure of the still-sleeping girl, who is described in contradictory terms. In the verse’s opening lines, her friends call out to her as “py pe,” which literally means “ghost (py) girl.” As the verse reaches it conclusion, these same friends address her as nyaka pe piy, literally, “the girl who is the leader.” The word py has connotations of possession, and according to traditional interpretations, indicates that the girl has been taken over by Ka and has lost all associations with this world. Yet, there is also a keen sense that the girl is still sleeping and haunts the realm of dreams. It is for this reason that I have chosen to translate the phrase as “witless girl ghost of a girl” to connote the insensate state of sleeping as well as possession.

According to Periyavcc Piai and other commentators, the latter phrase nyaka pe piy suggests that the girl is well versed in mystical knowledge. The juxtaposition of these two diametrically opposed descriptives implies that it is unbecoming of a girl who has experienced Ka (viu-Nryaa) to continue to sleep. This is a line of reasoning that the retinue of gop girls continually employ in the “waking-up-the-girls” section of the Tiruppvai. We can also interpret the mild insult dealt to the sleeping girl to argue for the primacy of loving god with a community of devotees as opposed to individually. This certainly is in keeping with the general theme of the Tiruppvai.

In the Tiruppvai, Ka is often identified or collapsed with ViuNryaa; in this verse, Ka is referred to as mrti (embodiment) or avatra of Viu. The phrase - nryaa mrti is interpreted in the commentaries to indicate both Viu’s embodiment as Ka and his form as the god who dwells in all sentient things (antarymin). The feats of Ka alluded to in the above verse are understood to signify specific attributes of god. In his defeat of the demon Kei, Ka demonstrates unhesitating and maternal protection (vtsalya) for his devotees; in his descent as Ka, he demonstrates his limitless compassion, as well as his immaculate nature (saulya).

aicctta: King crow.

Tiruppvai 8 (Kvam Veeu)

Each verse in this section of the Tiruppvai can be read as marking the gradual progression of the dawn. In the previous verse, one can imagine that the sky is still dark and the still, crisp early-morning air is broken by the piercing calls of birds. This verse opens with the beginnings of first light. A line of light on the horizon breaks the darkness of the sky; the buffaloes have begun to stir. The buffaloes have been let out to graze for a short time in a contained area (ciu vu), prior to being allowed to roam freely late in the day, a practice common among cowherds. Periyavcc Piai suggests that ’s use of this detail is evidence of her complete identification with the cowherding community, contrary to her status as a Brahmin girl. In exegetical moments such as these the ambiguity of the speaker of the poem and the poet comes to the fore. The commentators not only insert into the poem, but also collapse the plural voices of the gop girls to ’s singular voice. In a sense—and paradoxically so—a poem that exalts communal worship becomes reflective of a particular and individual experience.

Tiruppvai 8 builds on the significance of approaching Ka accompanied by fellow devotees. The girls insist that they wait for their still-sleeping friend, demonstrating the importance of communal devotion toward Viu. The act of going to god is itself understood as consequential. To illustrate this point, the commentators offer a reference to Akrra, one of Ka’s devotees, who was sent as a messenger to Ka by the evil Kasa. The significance of this allusion is that Akrra’s devotion, and the very act of journeying toward Ka, even if on a nefarious mission, is sufficient to elicit Viu’s grace.

The gops’ single-minded goal of going to Ka implies that they are not content to wait passively for their beloved to return to them; rather, they have seized the initiative to make him accept them. Periyavcc Piai interprets this act of going (ceu) to Ka to emphasize the intimacy of the bond between god and devotee. He says that the girls go to Ka to display their bodies grown emaciated from their separation from him. Up until this point, each girl has experienced Ka internally, individually, and in secret. This is suggested by how the girls have been addressed thus far: nyaka pe piy (leader among the girls), ktukalam uaiya pvy (joyous girl), py pe (witless ghost of a girl). Now, the opportunity, under the pretext of the pvai vow, to experience Ka publicly, with no secrecy, and in the company of fellow devotees presents itself and each girl is urged not to squander it.

The sleeping girl (pvy) in Tiruppvai 8 is described as joyous (ktukalam uaiya), which the commentators attribute to her having already experienced and enjoyed Ka. But this in itself is not sufficient in their minds to merit such an extravagant description. They opine that she is joyous because she is dear to Ka. Alternately, the word pvy is interpreted as encapsulating a rhetorical question: will you also be like the great lord who does not understand the suffering of women?

Tiruppvai 9 (Tmai Mattu)

In the concluding phala ruti verses of the Tiruppvai and Ncciyr Tirumoi, constantly stresses the wealth and prosperity of Putuvai (lit. New Town, identified with contemporary rvilliputtr), a city crowded with resplendent, towering mansions, beautiful women, and perfect priests. Some of the grandeur of ’s Putuvai infiltrates her dense description of the slumbering maiden’s home. The sleeping girl’s mansion is studded with gems that the commentaries assert are naturally pure and without blemish: for them it is a mansion fashioned after ’s own home in rvilliputtr. The brilliant gems so refract the light of the single lamp inside her home that it seems to the girls standing outside that her home is filled with lights. It is in such a spectacular setting that the girl continues to sleep despite her companions’ entreaties. Her bed is so luxurious that it coaxes even one who has no wish for rest into a deep slumber. The girls are nevertheless baffled: after all, how can one continue to sleep, when the anguish of separation from Ka makes it seem a bed of fire or of thorns? Simply put, sleep is antithetical to the experience of love, especially when separated from one’s beloved. Therefore, how can this girl continue to sleep? The above is the context commentators provide for the question the gops address to the girl’s mother:

“Is she mute that she cannot answer our summons? Even if she cannot
respond, can she not hear us calling? Or is she bewitched by the
enchanting name of Ka?”

Ncciyr Tirumoi 2.1, spoken in the voice of young gops building sandcastles, expresses and expands on a similar notion. The young girls tormented by a mischievous Ka who insists on kicking down their fragile sandcastles say:

O Nryaa! Praised with a thousand names!
O Nara! Raised as Yaod’s son!
We are unable to escape the troubles
you inflict upon us.

In Ncciyr Tirumoi 2.4, these same girls insist that they are entranced by Ka despite themselves, and despite his many torments:

Lord, dark as the rain clouds
your charming words hold us in a thrall,
your endearing ways captivate us
your face bewitches us like an incantation.

In Tiruppvai 9, Ka is addressed by three names: Mmya, Mdhava, and Vaikuha, which are interpreted in the commentarial traditions as reflecting Viu’s essential qualities (guas). Mmya (lit. Great Mysterious One) signifies the lord’s saulabhya (accessibility), for he deigned to descend to earth, mingle with his devotees, and astonish them with his wondrous feats. The name Vaikuha (lit. Lord of Vaikuha) indicates his paratva (transcendence), for this supreme lord (paradevata/jagatsvmin) is the one who resides in Vaikuha surrounded by the nityasris (eternal beings), bhaktas (devotees), and bhgavatas (those who worship Viu). Mdhava is interpreted to indicate his inseparability from Lakm (M), who as St, Rma’s wife in the Rmyaa, was compassionate even to the rkasas that enforced her imprisonment in Laka and tormented her for sport.

Tiruppvai 9 also ends with a call to the slumbering girl to join the questing group of gops in singing the many names of Viu.

Mmi: lit. Aunt.

Tiruppvai 10 (Nvuccuvarkam)

The girl in this verse is addressed in the vocative as the girl who wishes to enter heaven (cuvarkam/svarga) through the observance of rituals and vows (npu). While this is a laudable goal, it remains unrealized because she continues to sleep and does not join her friends. In the commentaries, this opening line is also interpreted to imply that it refers to a girl who enjoys the uninterrupted pleasure of Ka (knubhavam) both in her sleep and through the observance of her vows. Certainly, in the latter interpretation one is expected to read the waiting girls’ praise as sarcastic, so that the poet and the commentators may once again assert the importance of undertaking the vow jointly.

According to the commentators, the girl is chastised for two reasons. First, she did not wait to observe the vow along with her friends and second, she enjoys Ka privately. In either interpretation, cuvarkam (Sanskrit svarga) is understood to refer to the enjoyment of Ka (knubhavam) or more generally as the enjoyment of god (bhagavat-anubhavam).

How the traditional commentaries unfold for the rest of the verse hinges on the opening line discussed above and attempts to answer the questions: why does the girl continue to sleep? Is she asleep or simply immersed in the experience of Ka? The answer to both questions emerges in the commentators’ meditation on the phrase: “Nryaa/whose dark curls are fragrant with tulas (nattuy mui nryaa).” The commentators develop a delightfully imaginative scenario to explicate this phrase. First, they point out that the questing gops describe Viu as “one whose dark curls are fragrant with tulas” only after arriving at the young girl’s door. Why is this, the commentators wonder? They suggest an ingenious answer: that the fragrance of tulas must still hang in the air, causing the girls to speculate that Ka had visited the sleeping girl on the previous night. This then leads the gops to wonder how long the fragrance of the tulas entwined in Ka’s hair actually lasts. Finally, the gops conclude that since the fragrance of tulas is so heady, Ka must actually still be inside with their friend in her bedroom. And to these imagined arguments from her friends, the sleeping girl of Tiruppvai 10 is (according to the commentators) thought to respond, “How is it possible that he came here, when you have all been standing guard at my door since before daybreak? But, it is true,” she continues, “He was here several days ago and he embraced me then. It is the fragrance of the tulas from his visit so long ago that still lingers.”

While the aforementioned interpretation suggests that the girl is immersed in Ka, commentators also accommodate the irony and humor inherent in this verse. The latter understanding of the opening line that the girl cannot fulfill her desire to enter heaven (here: the enjoyment of Ka/god) because she continues to sleep is taken up in the exposition of the line where she is compared to Rvaa’s brother Kumbhakara who slept six months of the year. In another apocryphal conversation, the gops say, “While Kumbhakara’s sleep was merely sleep (tuyil), yours is a great sleep (peruntuyil). We have no further need to proceed to Ka’s house to awaken him, for your sleep is so deep that it may as well be that we are waking him.”

tulas: Indian basil, Ocimum sanctum.

Tiruppvai 11 (Kaukkaavai)

In this verse, the group of questing gops describe their sleeping friend in three distinctive ways: she is a golden creeper (pokoi), she is a peacock (puamayil) and finally she is precious (celva-p-pei). For the commentators each of these descriptives indicates her exemplary status both in the community of cowherds and as a devotee (pokoi), her extraordinary beauty (puamayil), and her immaculate virtue (celva-p-pei). If Ka is the light of the cowherd clan (Tiruppvai 1), this girl is the golden creeper of the cowherds (kvalar pokoi). If this girl is a lovely peacock, then Ka is the one dark as the rain clouds (mukil vaa). She is Ka’s equal in every way. And just as men become women so that they may enjoy Ka, her beauty is so profound that even women wish to become men so that they may enjoy it. Nonetheless, her chastity remains unsullied—her alkul (mound of Venus) is like a cobra still in its pit, indicating that it is untouched by the grime of the outside world. According to the commentators, just as a peacock lends beauty to a garden, so too would this girl enhance their group if only she would awaken and join the girls on their quest for Ka.

The girl’s lineage is also emphasized as the cowherds are fearless, seeking out the enemy or routing them when they seek to conquer them. To illustrate the above point, the commentators turn to the Rmyaa. The commentators compare the girls to Rma, who when provoked went to Laka to vanquish Rvaa. The enemies of the cowherds are anyone who wishes ill on Ka, just as Rvaa who was Rma’s enemy became an enemy to the monkey-prince Agada.

The adverbial participle ceu (having gone/going) is used to describe the cowherds’ fearless nature. Just like the gops in verse 8, who boldly grabbed the initiative to present themselves before Ka, the cowherds too do not docilely wait for someone to make war on them. Instead they destroy those who would seek to harm them and Ka.

The girl is finally addressed as “precious girl” (celva-p-pei) to indicate that she possesses the greatest wealth: the enjoyment of Ka. Furthermore, she is also the wealth of the cowherd clan, for she embodies the gops’ desire fully realized.

alkul: the mound of Venus, which is often compared to the hood of a snake in
Tami literature.

Tiruppvai 12 (Kaaittia Kaerumai)

This verse begins with a striking image—the buffaloes, hearing the hungry cry of its calf, unhesistatingly produce an abundance of milk. The commentators interpret this image in two ways. On the one hand the image conveys causeless maternal love (vtsalya). Alternately, the image raises a question on the nature of duty. That is, had the cows been milked in a timely fashion, the floors of the homes would not be drenched with milk, which is for these traditional interpreters an oblique way of asking the question: is it better to do one’s duty (milk the cows in a timely manner) or is it better to act in the service of god and forget everything else (bhagavat kaikarya)? The exegetical conclusion is of course that loving service to god is a superior form of action.

Such commentarial gymnastics aside, buffaloes, cowherding and milking figure prominently in the Tiruppvai, set as it is, in the imagined world of Ka and his gops. The cows and buffaloes most often are used to signal abundance, prosperity and generosity, as in this case, where the generosity of the mother buffaloes is mapped on to the sleeping girl’s household. The unstinting and spontaneous production of milk is like that of the rain clouds that had scooped up the sea (Tiruppvai 4), and thus nourish the earth.

But unlike these buffaloes that feed their hungry calves, the gops accuse their friend in her refusal to awaken, of lacking even this compassion; they are after all standing outside her door with the cold morning dew drenching them. At the end of the verse, the gops exclaim that their friend continues to sleep. Periyavcc Piai and commentators following his lead suggest that there are two kinds of sleep: a worldly sleep and meditative sleep (yoga nidr). It is clear to the gops that their friend’s is a dense, worldly sleep. The commentators develop this idea further by wondering how it is that when Viu can be roused from his profound yoga nidr to run to the aid of his devotees, his devotee can continue her mundane sleep, even when her friends eagerly call her to join their quest.

Viu is characterized in two important and distinct ways in this verse, both of which illustrate his profound love for his devotees. First he is praised as Rma, who because of his terrible anger at Rvaa for abducting St destroyed him (ciattil . . . kmai cea: lit. because of anger, destroyed the king [Rvaa]). Viu’s (as Rma) anger is not without proper cause or reason, but is aroused on behalf of the devotee, here St.

As the verse ends, the poet employs a radically different image to invoke a similar theme. Viu who in his anger destroys those who dare endanger his devotees, is described as sweet to the heart (maattukku iiy). To the gops he is akin to the cool breeze, to the moon, to sandalwood. He is the lord who makes women suffer, only to eventually remove that suffering with his presence.

Tiruppvai 13 (Puivy Kai)

The verse begins with allusions to two of Viu’s heroic feats undertaken in his avatras as Ka and Rma. The first is a reference to Ka’s defeat of the stork-demon Baksura, whom he vanquished by splitting open his beak. The second, builds on the reference to Rvaa in the previous verse, and obliquely evokes him with the phrase poll arakka: cruel rkasa. While the aforementioned generic phrase could apply to any number of Viu’s many demon antagonists, according to the commentators, only Rvaa, who separated St from Rma could be condemned in such stark terms. To further stress this point, they marvel that Rvaa’s unforgivable and terrible deed left even one with ’s poetic virtuosity bereft of words.

The commentators provide an additional explication for the phrase poll arakka (cruel rkasa), beginning by posing the question: “Are not all rkasas cruel?” Why does describe rkasa as cruel? Once again, they turn to the Rmyaa to provide an answer. Not all demons are cruel or evil—Vibhaa, Rvaa’s brother is the exemplar in this regard; despite being a demon he surrendered to Rma and was therefore redeemed.

The girls who are already gathered and who have made their way to the banks of the pond are described as piai (young girls/children). This description is interpreted in the commentaries as an attempt to shame the sleeping girl into wakefulness: “even the young girls that you were supposed to wake up, have already begun the vow. Yet, you continue to sleep!”

uses a beautiful image in this verse to describe the sleep girl, addressing her as ptarikkaiy, a phrase that can be interpreted multiple ways. It can be read as, “she whose eyes (kai) are like the deer (ari) and the kuvaai flower” (ptu: lit. bud); “she whose eyes are like the bee (ari) nestled in the kuvuai flower (ptu)”; lastly as, “she whose eyes exceed the beauty of flowers.” Regardless of which of these interpretations one favors, in the final sum, for the questing gops the purpose of her beautiful eyes, are that they might act as a snare to capture Ka.

A phrase puum cilampiak (listen, the birds are chirping) is repeated from Tiruppvai 6, which begins with this very phrase. While this repetition could be read as poetic redundancy, it is worth noting that in this instance, the phrase is creatively juxtaposed with this verse’s opening words, puivy kai (he who rent open the mouth of the bird), referring of to Ka’s defeat of the stork-demon Baksura. Furthermore, the second occurrence of the word pu (bird) in the verse is at the exact mid-point of the eight-line stanza (line 5) and is paired with the lovely image ptarikkaiy, discussed above. The repetition is ultimately ingenious, for it becomes loaded and polyvalent, invoking on the one hand terror and god’s heroism, and on the other, a sense of urgency and camaraderie for fulfilling the vow. The commentators also assert—to absolve of the blemish of repetition—that the chirping of birds in Tiruppvai 6 signaled the dawn, but in this case, the chirping suggests that the birds are foraging for food. As such it marks the passage of time, making the point that the sleeping girl has already slept far too long.

This verse is unique in the “Waking Up the Girls” section of the Tiruppvai, because it provides the only reference to the site of the ritual bath. Unlike its aiva counterpart, Tiruvempvai, the Tiruppvai does not focus on the central ritual action of the vow: the bath. However, the poem is littered with references to the bath, to bathing and to being bathed. Here, the actual site of the bath is referenced as a means to mark the passage of time—all the girls have already entered the bathing pond (piaika ellrum pvaikkaam pukkr). It is the only mention of the actual act of bathing at the site of the vow in the entire poem.

The thirteenth verse includes an astronomical reference, which has been used to determine that ’s lived in the mid-eighth century. The speculation (discussed in detail by Vidya Dehejia in and Her Path of Love) centers on two lines in the Tiruppvai. The fourth line of this verse states, “Venus (vei) has risen and Jupiter has slept (viya),” and the opening line of the Tiruppvai, states that it is the full moon in the month of Mrkai. According to astronomical calculations, the planets Jupiter and Venus align in Mrkai as described in the poem on a number of occasions, three of which provide possible dates for : 731 C.E., 850 C.E., or even 1205 C.E. (Dehejia 3). For a detailed discussion of dating , please see the introduction to this book.

rkasa: demon.

Tiruppvai 14 (Uka Puaikkaai)

In this verse, fresh images to invoke the dawn are introduced to augment the chirping birds and slowly brightening horizon. The chirping birds of Tiruppvai 6 and 13 are left behind, and instead the gops announce that the conches resound everywhere, the temple doors have been opened and that sages and ascetics have begun their ritual day. These ascetics (tavattavar) are described as wearing brick red garments (cekal poikkai) and having bright white teeth. Commentators take this specific description and the othering of their ritual activity—going to their temple (taka tirukkyil)—to imply that these renunciants are devotes of iva. Furthermore, the sound of the conch stands for the beginning of all ritual activities of the day. For the commentators, the gop girls evoke these as markers of the passage of ritually efficacious time. The commentators imply that when even aiva ascetics have begun their ritual day, it is unbecoming for a girl immersed in Ka to continue to sleep.

For the gops, the evidence of the encroaching dawn and the sleeping girl’s reluctance to awaken is found in her very backyard. Parallel to the planetary references of the previous verse, here two flowers are employed to signal the passage of time. The girls announce that the morning flowers (cekaunr) have bloomed, while the night-flowering mpal has closed its petals. But when the gops announce that the dawn had arrived because the flowers have bloomed, the still-sleepy young girl is imagined to retort that they have mistaken their own eyes for the flowers, and that she cannot be fooled with clever punning. The commentaries’ unique interpretation of the motif recalls the metaphor used to describe the sleeping girl in the previous verse (ptarikkaiy). It would appear that the drowsy protagonist of this stanza appropriates the metaphor in order to steal a few more precious moments of rest!

Like in Tiruppvai 11, the girl in this verse is described in three distinct ways: as vy pcum naky (woman who speaks well), nty (one without shame) and nvuaiyy (eloquent one). The first and the last description of the girl stress her eloquence as well as what is perceived to be her “forked” tongue. On the other hand, her felicity of speech is interpreted as the girl whose words and actions are contrary. This is the girl that claimed that she would be the first to be up, but instead she continues to sleep and has therefore gone back on her word. She continues to sleep shamelessly, heedless of her friends who wait outside calling to her and providing all the necessary evidence of daybreak.

cekaunr: a kind of red/purple water lily, Nymphaea odorata
mpal: Water lily, also known as alli, Nymphaea lotus.

Tiruppvai 15 (Ell Iakiiy)

This verse is singular in the Tiruppvai for its lively and almost colloquial dialogue between the recalcitrant girl and her waiting gop companions. While the previous verses only supply the gops’ insistent questions, here we are privy to the answers as well, which the sleeping girl often cleverly phrases as a question.

On account of her great love Ka, the girl in this verse is distinguished by her desire to see all her fellow devotees assembled outside her door. It is for this reason that she asks in the verse, “Has everyone gathered?” The commentators provide the following context for this verse. Hearing the previous song that described Ka as holding aloft the conch and the discus, this girl is believed by her friends to have succumbed to his beauty. In ecstasy, she joined the girls’ chorus, and hence she is first addressed, as “Parrot,” to attest to the sweetness of her voice. But the girl absorbed in enjoyment of Ka finds her friends’ summons a harsh interruption and retorts cuttingly saying, “I am coming, do not call so shrilly.” Though her friends appear to recognize her special relationship to Ka, they also serve to remind her that private and individual service to the lord is only secondary to communal devotion. This devotion expresses itself in song and through the recitation of the names of god. The girls extol Ka, who killed the elephant sent by Kasa (Kuyalaypa) but rescued another (Gajendra). This very Ka who ruthlessly destroys his enemies allows himself to become beholden to his devotees, in this instance, the gop girls.

Tiruppvai 16–29: General Introduction

The first five verses that comprise the next section of the Tiruppvai are devoted to awakening Ka and his family (16–20), and they artfully play off similar metaphors from the preceding section. Unlike Mikkavcakar’s Tiruvempvai, the Tiruppvai skips a description of the bath crucial to the successful observance of the Mrkai vow. The girls arrive at Ka’s doorstep having already completed the requisite rituals. Commentators read the absence of a description of the bath in the Tiruppvai as an indication that the girls did not complete the ritual bath. They offer the explanation that the gops in their eagerness to see Ka failed to observe this ritual activity. Though does not exploit the full potential of bathing as a metaphor for sexual union as Mikkavcakar does in his Tiruvempvai, she alludes to it in Tiruppvai 20 when the gops request the ritual accessories necessary to complete the vow from Ka. The metaphor of union with god as sexual union is embodied in the intimacy shared between Ka and Nappiai, which is the poem’s focus in verses 17–20.

If the preceding set of ten verses stress the importance of communal worship, theologically, these set of verses emphasize the necessity for the intermediary figure (puruakra) to facilitate one’s union with god. While the gatekeepers Yaod, Nandagopla and Balarma have a place in guiding the girls’ quest, pride of place is reserved for the beloved consort Nappiai, who, because of her cherished relationship, has a special accessibility to Ka. Such an interpretation is not unique to this set of verses in the Tiruppvai; it is already introduced as a possible exegesis for Tiruppvai 4, where the rain is understood as being the grace of the crya (teacher). However, it is only in these five verses that the idea receives a sustained exposition in the commentaries to the Tiruppvai.

Not only do these verses emphasize the significance of the intermediary, known as the puruakra, they also accentuate the importance of approaching Ka in a group of like-minded devotees, a theme that is not new to the Tiruppvai. In this section, all the distinctive sleeping girls of the preceding ten verses have been happily subsumed into a questing collective “we,” who assertively demand entrance into Ka’s home. In this last regard the Tiruppvai is fundamentally different from the Ncciyr Tirumoi, which especially in its latter sections expresses a firmly individual and lonely path to Ka. While intermediaries do make their appearance in the Ncciyr Tirumoi in the form of birds, clouds, and conches, god is often addressed, scolded, chastised, and scorned directly, and usually in a singular voice (except Ncciyr Tirumoi 2, 3, 4, and 14).

In these next several verses of the Tiruppvai, fully exploits the spatial and poetic categories of akam and puam. In the previous verses, the girls stand at the threshold of their friends’ homes and attempt to awaken them. Often the commentary will insert Ka’s presence inside the girl’s house, which is understood as the implied reason for her desultory state. In the section that follows, which can be read as “the attainment of the goal/fruit of the vow,” the girls, en masse seek permission to enter Ka’s home. It is a communal move from the external world of vows and public sentiment to the internal world of love, intimacy, and loving service. This idea—the centrality of the genre of love and the interior world (akapporu)—is embodied in the inseparability of Ka and his consort Nappiai. It is finally at the threshold of their bedroom that the girls pause and make a bold request to not just be allowed in, but to actually share in the special intimacy of Ka and Nappiai.

While verses 16–20 celebrate the inner world, verses 21–29 of the Tiruppvai are entirely devoted to Ka as a king, dispensing justice, ruling with compassion and grace. In these final verses, as Ka awakens from his slumber and emerges from the embrace of Nappiai, he simultaneously enters the external and public world. In Tiruppvai 23, makes this outward movement literal. She uses the verb puappu (to set out) to describe a lion rousing itself from its sleep and compares Ka to the same. Ka here is figured as the Tami king of the Cakam poems, and the gops are much like the wandering bards of those poems, singing the praises of the king in order to secure their future. While in those early secular Tami poems, the bards received patronage, and gifts in gold and kind, in the Tiruppvai, the gops’ desired reward for singing the divine king’s praise is the symbolic paai-drum and the immeasurable blessing of eternal service.

Tiruppvai 16 (Nyakaai Nia)

This verse is addressed to the gatekeepers of Nandagopla’s mansion, whom the commentators point out are blessed to serve Ka even though they are only guarding his father’s house. But for the commentators, the question inevitably arises as to why god who is the nyaka (leader/lord) of the entire universe requires a guard. Furthermore, why does the poet address him as the guard of Nandagopa’s mansion rather than that of Ka’s? The commentators answer both questions by pointing to god’s immense love for his devotees. Viu who is lonely in his svtantriya (quality of independence) in Vaikuha, enjoys the pleasure of his dependence on his devotees in yarpi. Next, though god is omnipotent, he nevertheless indulges his devotees’ love for him and allows himself to be protected from Kasa’s evil demons. In Tiruppvai 1, the phrase “Nandagopa with his sharp spear” is interpreted similarly to indicate both god’s dependence on his devotees and Nanda’s fierce guardianship of Ka.

In this verse, the girls identify themselves as the young girls of yarpi (yarpi ciumiyarm), which in the commentaries is interpreted as the young and innocent girls of yarpi. The commentators offer this reading for several reasons. First, they point out that the girls desire to distinguish themselves from the demons that Kasa might send to harm Ka. They thus seek to convince the gatekeeper to allow them entry on the basis of their youth and their obvious sincerity. But, in yet another imagined conversation, the gatekeeper reminds the gop girls of the actions of the demoness Ptan, who disguised herself as a beautiful cowherdess in order to infiltrate Ka’s home. It is to this query that the girls assure the watchmen that they are too young and naïve (yar ciumiyarm) to assume a disguise or to plot such evil designs against their beloved Ka.

Tiruppvai 17 (Amparam Tare)

In this verse, three intermediaries—Nandagopla, Yaod, and Baladeva—are awakened and obliquely exhorted to aid the girls in their quest for Ka. In the previous verse, the girls begged the guard “Please open these doors.” Presumably, their entreaties were answered and they have won entry into Nandagopa’s home. Rather than devote a verse each for Ka’s parents and his brother, they are all awakened together. Nandagopa is roused first, then Yaod, and finally Baladeva, in the order in which, according to the commentaries, the gops encounter them.

In the commentaries, each of the three characters of the poem is interpreted as embodying a particular quality that highlights their relationship to Ka. Like in Tiruppvai 1, Nandagopa stands guard over Ka, however not in fear of Kasa’s demons but in concern that the gop girls overcome by his son’s beauty might abduct him. To illustrate that Nandagopla’s concern is not unwarranted, the commentators offer the example of Ka’s grandson Aniruddha, who was abducted by a lovesick maiden. In the verse, Nanda is praised as one who practices a king’s most important dharma (aam) of gifting clothes (amparam), water (tar) and food (cu) to his dependents. The implication is that such a just and noble leader has no cause to remain asleep and hinder the gops’ quest, and in fact must wake up in order to protect his name.

While Nandagopla guards Ka, Yaod protects the virtue of the cowherds. The girls address her as our lady/our “queen” (emperumi) to assert her alliance with their cause. As a woman, she can fully appreciate the pain of separation and will undoubtedly aid them on their quest. Moreover, she is the guardian of the cowherd clan’s good fortune and steadfastness. Yaod is therefore also described as “immaculate as a tender leaf,” because—as the commentators are quick to point out—if a plant is sick, it is always the fresh leaf that withers first.

Baladeva, Ka’s brother, is awakened next, through the use of the vocative, celv. Much of the commentary centers on unpacking and providing reasons for why Baladeva is addressed as celva(). He is both wealthy and dear (celv) for it is his great fortune to be of eternal service to Ka. The commentators turn to the Rmyaa for an appropriate parallel that also exemplifies this idea. Lakmaa, Rma’s younger brother, stood resolutely by his elder brother, even going into exile along with him. Just so, in the Ka avatra, though older, Baladeva nonetheless serves and watches over Ka. Like Lakmaa, Baladeva is considered an aa (emanation) of diea, Viu’s thousand-headed serpent. The commentators inject a bit of humor, as they envisage the girls teasing Baladeva by saying that while it is usual for one to sleep on a bed, it is surprising that the bed (Baladeva as diea) is itself asleep!

Despite the girls’ entreaties to these three intermediaries, Ka remains silent and unmoved, which gestures toward the significance of his consort to the successful completion of their vow. The next two verses are devoted to Nappiai, Ka’s wife, who plays a role similar to Viu’s other exemplary consorts—Lakm, Rukmi, and St. According to rvaiava theology, god’s love is like that of a father’s and is characterized by “divine justice.” On the other hand, the goddess, embodied here in the figure of Nappiai, is like a mother, and represents divine compassion. It is this fundamental trait along with her inseparable closeness to Viu that makes her such an effective mediator or puruakra.

Tiruppvai 18 (Untu Mata Kaia)

The next two verses are addressed to Nappiai, though the girls in their eagerness to be with Ka forget themselves and call to him directly first. When their direct appeal fails, they recall themselves and entreat her, focusing on the relationship she shares with Ka, symbolized by their sexual union. It is, after all, poised at the threshold of their bedroom that the girls eventually find themselves (Tiruppvai 18 and 19).

The girls call to Nappiai in the vocative—“O Nappiai whose hair fills the air with fragrance”—to point out that she cannot pretend to be absent from the room, for her hair’s unmistakable fragrance gives her away. This interpretation is similar to the argument that the group of girls makes to one of their sleeping recalcitrant friends, accusing her of having, the previous night, enjoyed Ka for herself (Tiruppvai 10). When this tactic fails, they once again rehearse the arguments for the evidence of daybreak (for example, the birds are singing, the cows are out grazing) and urge Nappiai to no longer linger in bed.

In order to assert the interdependency of Ka and his consort, the commentators focus on the description of Nappiai as one who is “adept at playing ball.” Nappiai is imagined to have defeated Ka in a game of ball throwing; in actual point of fact, Ka, out of his abiding love for his beloved, allowed himself to be so defeated. Periyavcc Piai elucidates this notion further, suggesting that Ka is meant to be enjoyed both through Nappiai and by Nappiai. As the goddess, she is in the enviable position of holding both the contained (nram; here the ball) and the container of all things (Nryaa). Nappiai is described as wearing beautiful bangles, which indicates her inseparability from Ka. Because she is always with Ka, she never needs to grow frail from lovesickness, causing her bangles to grow loose around her wrists. Though Lakm is the foremost puruakra (pradhna puruakra), in the Tiruppvai Nappiai occupies that place, because in the kvatra, especially in yarpi, she is his beloved and inseparable consort.

It is both the motif of Nappiai with her lotus-like hands and that of her wrists adorned with bangles that become crucial in an important apocryphal story associated with this verse. Rmnuja, who was known as Tiruppvai Jyar, is the chief actor in this famous narrative, which rvaiavas often retell to impress his particular attachment to the Tami vr poems in general, and the Tiruppvai in particular. It is impossible to prove the validity of this story. In keeping with his lively style, Periyavcc Piai’s commentaries are filled with many such anecdotes, which he often evokes to illustrate the power of a particular a verse, or a famous rvaiava personage’s intense enjoyment of an vr poem. The Rmnuja story associated with this verse goes something like this.

Rmnuja was begging for alms while contemplating the verses of the Tiruppvai. As he was reciting the eighteenth verse, he found himself outside the closed door of his teacher, Periya Nampi. When he uttered the line centmarai kaiyl . . . (with your lovely lotus hands . . .), the door was opened suddenly by Nampi’s daughter Attuy. Rmnuja was so immersed in the beauty of the Tiruppvai verse he imagined Attuy to be Nappiai and fainted. When Rmnuja’s strange reaction was reported to Periya Nampi, he identified it at once as the verse that began with the words, untu mata kalia (one fierce as a rutting elephant, referring to Nandagopa).

mtavi: a type of tropical creeper, Hiptage benghalensis.

Tiruppvai 19 (Kuttu Viakkeriya)

In the commentaries, another imagined scenario provides the context for this verse, which is generated in response to the question: why does Nappiai not open the door immediately? If Nappiai is compassion itself, and the ideal mediator, why do the girls need to plead with her again? And more importantly, why do the girls forget Nappiai’s role as the mediator and approach Ka directly?

Verse 18 ends with the girls pleading with Nappiai to open the door, and hearing their entreaties she is ready to open the door. However, Ka is hesitant to allow Nappiai to be the one to grant them their wish and detains her. It is for this reason, the commentators explain, that the gops turn to Ka once again, abandoning the requisite appeal to the consort. But Nappiai, unhappy with Ka’s interference in her role, asserts her authority and disallows him from opening the door, thereby forcing the girls to once again turn to her for assistance in their quest.

This verse stresses the inseparability of Viu and his consort, here Nappiai, and more specifically, the importance of approaching god through the consort, contending that no good can come of the devotees’ attempts to circumvent her. The commentators provide several examples to prove this point. It is no surprise, especially where Periyavcc Piai is concerned, that the examples are from his beloved Rmyaa. He offers the instance of the demoness rpaakh, who suffered mutilation because she not only desired Rma, but also sought to harm St. Rvaa abducted St, committing the awful deed of separating Viu from his beloved. Kksura, the terrible “crow-demon,” was saved because Rma and St were together during his ill-conceived attack on St.

The inseparability of Ka and Nappiai is emphasized in the lovely image of Ka who rests with his head on Nappiai’s breast (nappiai kokai ml vaittu kianta malarmrp). The image thus beautifully reverses conventional iconography that locates r on Viu’s chest, a rhetorical move that exalts Nappiai to a place of prominence and as the agent of action. That is, rather than Viu who contains all things including r, here through this innovative reversal, it is Nappiai who holds the lord close to her. It suggests his dependency on his consort and provides a reason for her preeminence as a puruakra. It must be noted that the same phrase (nappiai kokai ml) is also glossed in the commentaries as “the lord reclines with Nappiai’s breasts pressed to his chest,” though it is clear from the explication of the phrase that it is the former meaning that is preferred.

In the verse Nappiai and Ka recline on a bed described ambiguously as resting on a pañca cayaam. This phrase can be interpreted in a number of ways. It can refer to a bed possessed of five fine qualities (beauty, coolness, whiteness, softness, and fragrance), a bed made of cotton (pañcu), or a bed composed of the five suitable substances (leaves, flowers, cotton, soft wool, and silk). In the commentaries, the bed is a metaphor for the ll vibhti—the material world of play—and its four legs are the four pururthas (the goals of life), which guide one to Viu. The bed may also be understood as the artha pañcaka or the five truths that seek to explain the form of god, the form of the soul, and the means to reach god.

In the previous verse, Nappiai’s inseparability from Ka was marked in the bangles that tightly encircle her wrists. In this verse that same theme is emphasized through the motif of her eyes encircled with kohl. While the questing girls have eschewed any form of personal adornment (Tiruppvai 2), Nappiai, always with Ka, does not need to undertake any such vow; her beauty remains unfaded because her beloved remains a constant companion. The verse ends with the girls mildly chastising Nappiai for keeping them from Ka. They assert that this is without merit or precedence and is unbefitting of Nappiai’s svarpa, nature/status, as the intermediary or puruakra.

This verse is the focus of an elaborate adornment (alakra) at the temple in rvilliputtr. The alakra is called the ayana Tirukklam (The Sacred Attitude of Repose), and takes place annually on the seventh night of the rvilliputtr temple’s festival in the month of (mid-July–mid-August). The alakra is staged so that the bronze festival image of is seated, while the image of Viu’s reclines with his head resting on her lap—hence the name ayana Tirukklam. While there are certainly number of possible interpretations for this alakra, it is clear that it is meant to allude to this particular verse of the Tiruppvai, while more overtly it is said to enact the incident of the crow-demon Kksura’s attack on St.

Tiruppvai 20 (Muppattu Mvar)

The commentaries for this verse begin with an imaginative prologue that provides its “missing” context. The girls end their previous appeal to Nappiai (Tiruppvai 19) by chastising her reluctance to share Ka with them. The gops assume that she failed then to act on their behalf because she was hurt by their unfound accusations, namely that her actions do not befit her nature or her stature (Tiruppvai 19). So in this verse the gops once again begin pleading with Ka in a lengthy panegyric directly addressed to him. The young girls assert their utter dependence on Ka for grace, and suggest that while he was completely willing to save the gods (devas), he remains unmoved by the plight of innocent, young girls. However, Ka continues to remain unmoved by their pleas, angry now on Nappiai’s behalf. This requires the girls to redouble their efforts toward winning Nappiai’s favor. According to the commentators, it is for this reason that Nappiai becomes the focus of the gops’ appeal in the latter half of the verse (lines 5–8).

In this verse Nappiai is addressed with the epithet Tiruv (Skt. r), which the commentators interpret in a number of ways. It indicates that Nappiai is possessed of rtvam (the character of r), she is equal to r, or is an embodiment of r. She is also the one who lends auspiciousness (r) to Ka. Nappiai is also blessed by the auspiciousness that can only come from union (sambhoga). The gops use this final meaning (eternal union with Ka) for the vocative tiruv to argue that Nappiai cannot remain asleep like Ka who as a man cannot understand the suffering of women.

If Nappiai is addressed as r in this verse, Ka is extolled using a string of four powerful vocatives (kaliy, ceppam uaiyy, tial uaiyy, and vimal). Each of these words are read in the commentaries to indicate the central attributes of Viu, the very attributes that make him the god of gods (sarvevara).

The first name is kaliy, which is glossed by commentators as “Ka of great strength,” because he anticipates the fears (kappam) of the thirty-three crore gods (muppattu mvar amarar), and quells their shivers (kappam).

The second phrase is ceppam uaiyy (lit. one who is impartial) indicates Viu’s impartiality in rescuing all those who are dependent on him.

The third phrase, tial uaiyy, literally means “one who has strength.” I have translated it as invincible—to highlight the adjective uses in the previous lines to denote the awesome power of Viu as well as to foreshadow what is to come in the following line.

The last phrase, cerkku veppam koukkum vimal (immaculate one who terrifies enemies), is a delicate counterpoint to the opening line of the verse, which portrays the gods quaking with fear, presumably because of the harassment from some unknown (or known) demon. Here, it is the enemy that is terror-struck. The commentators note that in this instance, it does not refer to Viu’s enemies, but to the enemies of his devotees.

Both Nappiai and Ka are urged to awaken with the use of the refrain tuyil ey, which I have translated as “abandon your sleep.” The phrase occurs several times in the Tiruppvai, notably in the preceding verse (in reference to Nappiai) and in the verse that follows Tiruppvai 21, where it is used in reference to Ka.

At this point, the commentators provide further context to assert that Nappiai has indeed heeded the girls’ request. At the girls’ fervent calls, Nappiai announces that she is awake and ready to hear their entreaties. The girls then request from her two ritual implements—the fan and the mirror—that are necessary for the completion of their vow. In addition to these ritual objects, the girls also petition Nappiai to beseech Ka, on their behalf, to bathe them.

The act of bathing is an important component of the vow itself, though any description of the ritual act is absent from the poem. In addition, bathing (nirutal), from as far back as the Cakam poems, is clearly a metaphor for sexual union. Here sexual union becomes a further metaphor for union with god. The verb nral (bathing) is used several times in the Tiruppvai, most notably in verses 1, 2, and 3, and is interpreted in the commentaries in each of these instances as symbolic of immersion in Ka (knubhavam). But Tiruppvai 20 is the only instance that it occurs in relation to Ka in so direct a manner.

The commentators also put forth other possible interpretations for nral in this instance. The phrase “command your beloved to bathe us . . .” may be directed at Nappiai, who is asked to bathe Ka with the sweetness of her words, thereby dispelling his anger towards the girls. It is also read as “bathe us in the grace that both of you shower upon us.” The request is for a collective union (emmai: us), indicating that there is no differentiation once the girls have arrived at Ka’s doorstep. While they may have been individual (pype, pokoiy, nyaka pe piy, etc.) when being awakened, in their quest for Ka, suffering the pangs of separation, manifesting in their emaciated bodies, they are all equal. The girls are at death’s door and only union with Ka can save them.

Periyavcc Piai understands the metaphor of bathing as clearly signifying sexual union. He compares Nappiai’s role as the intermediary (u maaai: your groom/your beloved) to that of a priest in a wedding ceremony, who accrues the merit for performing the ritual. Though it is Ka who ultimately fulfills the gops’ desires, Nappiai is credited with their success because she intercedes on their behalf.

Tiruppvai 21 (a Kalaka)

Tiruppvai 21 may be read as inaugurating a fourth section of the Tiruppvai, one devoted solely to Ka’s praise. With this shift one can assume (as the commentators do) that Nappiai heeded the girls’ appeal and acceded to their wishes. In fact the commentators go so far as to assert that overcome with benevolence, which is after all Nappiai’s nature, she insists that as a woman she too join the gops in awakening Ka. This suggests that her role is more than just allowing access to her beloved, but that she is actively invested in securing the girls his favor.

With the above context established in the commentaries, it is understood that the gops have an unmediated access to Ka. In this section of panegyric verses (Tiruppvai 21–29), the relationship between Ka and the gops undergoes a fundamental change. Spatially the poem moves outward again and Ka, quintessential Tami lover of the interior landscape (akam), is portrayed in the last series of verses as also the quintessential Tami king, watching over his domain (puam), protecting his subjects, and guaranteeing his generosity. The relationship between the gops and Ka therefore subtly alters; the intimacy signaled by the metaphor of bathing/sexual union is replaced with a more direct demand to be beholden to him in eternal service.

In the verse that inaugurates this section, Ka is characterized as having descended from Vaikuha to earth in order to help his devotees. But his unhindered sleep is contrary to such a promise. The gops’ initial belligerence at Ka’s recalcitrance is replaced with a deep reverence. In this verse, Viu is described variously as the lord who is unknowable (am uaiyy), supreme (periyy), and [brilliant as] a flame (cuar).

The first phrase (am uaiyy) is glossed in the commentaries as the god spoken of in the Vedas and yet is beyond them. He is foundational to the world, yet embodies himself through his avatras for the sake of his devotees.

The second descriptive (periyy) is interpreted to suggest that Viu is beyond thought, and beyond knowing. He is larger than the antarka (the heavens), and the devaloka (the world of the gods), although he nevertheless resides in the heart of all sentient things as an antarymin (in-dweller).

In elucidating the implications of the epithet cuar (lit.O Flame), the commentators turn to Ka’s unshakable devotion to his devotees. The first demonstration of this love is that he takes birth in this world as Rma and Ka. They turn to the Rmyaa to provide another instance of Viu’s unstinting love for his devotee. It deals with Vibhaa’s surrender to Rma. When several of Rma’s most trusted allies warned Rma of Vibhaa’s rkasa antecedents, he ignored their advice, arguing that he could not reject even an enemy in the guise of a friend, if he had sought his protection. It is this love (vtsalya) that gives Viu his radiance (cuar), and he demonstrates his ritapakapdam (impartial protection), appearing brilliant as a flame (tum cuar) in this lowly world that even the ordinary people loathe. His protection is not just limited to devotees, but he is equally cognizant of enemies like Rvaa of the Rmyaa, and Duryodhana of the Mahbhrata and iupla of the Bhgavata Pura.

The commentators’ evocation of vtsalya (maternal love) in the context of this verse is particularly appropriate, because it begins with a description of the great, generous cows of yarpi. Ka like the cows that he tends is full of unhesitating, spontaneous, and causeless love (nirhetuka kp) for his devotees. It is such a love that prompts his birth into the endless world of sasra, for example, as Ka in yarpi, among the humble cowherds. This last interpretation is of special significance to the Tiruppvai, because it is precisely his embodiment as a cowherd in yarpi that is the focus of the final verses of the poem.

Tiruppvai 22 (Akam Ñlattu)

If in the previous verse, Ka vanquished even his enemies who surrendered to his protection, here it is the kings of the world who humble themselves before him. The gops request that Ka glance at them, and thus destroy all their sorrows. In doing so, the commentaries assert, the gops declare themselves ananyrha ea bhtas, beings who are exclusively devoted to Ka.

Beginning with this verse, Ka is firmly placed in a puam context, wherein he enacts his role as king. Although the verse only refers to the kings of the beautiful, vast earth (aka m ñlattu aracar), in the commentaries, the phrase is interpreted as referring to Ka’s divine sovereignty over both gods and men. The kings from every corner of the world congregate at Ka’s feet, suppressing their pride, because their dominion over a small area might beguile them into delusions of grandeur. As the commentators are quick to point out, the pitfall of kingship is that it exaggerates one’s sense of self-importance (ahakra). As a result, kings—despite their lofty social position—are in fact the lowliest creatures. Several, recurrent births are needed to erase the stain of such self-delusion. However, the mere glimpse of Ka absolves these kings, who arrive surrendering their arrogance (apima pakamy vantu) of such a painful punishment.

So, why is it that the gops compare themselves to these great kings? Commentators point out that they do so to emphasize the supremacy of their quest. While these kings only abandon their pride, the gops in seeking Ka out boldly and directly have surrendered their - strtvam (womanly nature); while these kings seek Ka as a final refuge, the gops desire to be of eternal service to him. Thus, in all regards, these simple gops are in fact superior to the great kings of yore, who only surrendered their pride.

The poetic and commentarial center of the verse lies in a striking simile used to describe Ka’s half-closed eyes: half-open lotuses shaped liked kikii bells (kikii vy-c-ceyta tmarai-p-p-p-pl). The first implication of the simile is that the gops simply wish to enjoy the beauty of his eyes, these eyes that brim with vtsalya.

In analyzing the comparison, the question arises as to why Ka’s eyes are half-open/closed, which in turn gives rise to a number of rich interpretive possibilities. First, the commentator suggests that Ka’s independence (svtantriya) prevents him from opening his eyes at the devotees’ pleas. But, he cannot resist the gentle persuasion of Nappiai who intercedes on their behalf and is finally forced to open his eyes. While the devotees’ many transgressions make him close his eyes, his compassion (kp) also impels him to open them.

The girls urge him to open his eyes slowly, not all at once, for they cannot bear the full force of his divine gaze. In yet another imagined dialogue generated by the commentator, Ka forestalls the gops’ request saying, “You have already attained your goal and should therefore have no regrets.” The girls quickly respond, “Yes, we may have reached you, but we have yet to enjoy the fruit of the experience of attaining you. Give that to us.” It is in this context, then, that Ka is urged to open his eyes and glance at them.

In Tiruppvai 1, Ka’s eyes are described as the sun and the moon, which is interpreted as bringing the heat of the sun to burn the residues of their past actions away (cpam), while the coolness of the moon comforts the girls. The poem ends with the phrase cpam iantu (which literally means forfeiting/ losing an imprecation or curse (cpam, Skt. pa). In the commentaries cpam is interpreted as transgressions, and specifically those associated with living through the endless cycles of birth and death (sasra). This interpretation is certainly a derivative meaning, because living in sasra is a curse, which produces unending sorrow. Taking my cue from the commentaries, where cpam is glossed as tukkam (Skt. dukha, sorrow), I have rendered it as “sorrow” in my translation.

kikii: small bells that adorn anklets or an ornament worn around the waist.

Tiruppvai 23 (Mri Maai Muañcil)

Much of this verse is an extended metaphor that compares Ka to a hibernating lion that has just come awake. It begins with an extravagance of alliterative “m” sounds (mri maai muañcil) coupled with alternating hard and soft sounds (mai-k-kiantu uakum) that convey both the gentleness of the rain as well as the fiery nature of the awakening lion. His full-throated roar shatters the stillness of the surrounding forests, while his fiery gaze is fixed on the horizon. The opening image of the lion is striking and evocative and is then carried over to the end of the verse, where Ka is imagined seated on a lion throne (cikcaam). This comparison also recalls the opening metaphor of the Tiruppvai, where Ka is described as Yaod’s young lion cub (ilañ cikam). Here, however, he is full-grown and no longer the mischievous boy playing tricks, but a virile king dispensing justice, compared to a majestic lion (criya cikam). The word criya (crmai) is glossed in the commentaries as bravery and virility, but—in a stretch—also as that which is possessed of r (auspiciousness).

The literary move from the interior world of love and intimacy (akam) to the external realm (puam) of justice is marked spatially. The leonine Ka is bid to leave the mountain cave (understood in the commentaries as Nappiai’s breasts—Tiruppvai 19) and seat himself as a king on the lion-throne. The young lion cub of Tiruppvai 1 doted upon by his parents is imaged in this verse as a fully grown and fully capable king.

Therefore the girls feel obliged to awaken their divine king before he is derelict in his obligations to them. After all, during the cold winter months when animals retreat to hibernate, the girls have awakened at the crack of dawn, bathed in the cold waters of their local pond, and have seriously undertaken their quest. To emphasize the stupor-inducing effects of the cold winter months, the commentators turn to the Rmyaa. They cite the example of Rma’s monkey ally Sugrva, who was devoted to Rma, but forgot himself and his duties because of the unbearable cold.

The season of the rains also characteristically celebrates the meeting and union of lovers; so too is it with Ka. The gops believe that captured in the blissful embrace of Nappiai he forgot his duties to his devotees. uses the rain (and the season of the rains) extensively in her poetry. In Tiruppvai 4, the rain is compared to Ka (addressed with the endearment Ka, which is also the Tami version of his name). In that verse the rain brings good fortune and abundance to the cowherds and is urged to do so for its form is like their beloved lord. Theologically, in that instance, the rain is a metaphor for the grace and intervention of the teacher. In the eighth section of the Ncciyr Tirumoi, the rain and, more specifically, the rain clouds are summoned as messengers and the opening verse accuses the “lord of Vkaam” of having destroyed her womanhood (pe nrmai).

O clouds, spread like blue cloth
across the vast sky—
Has Tiruml my beautiful lord

of Vkaam, where cool streams leap

come with you?
My tears gather and spill between my breasts
like waterfalls.
He has destroyed my womanhood.
How does this bring him pride?

Ncciyr Tirumoi 8.1

pvai: the flowers of a kind of hardy evergreen tree that produces very dark flowers. Memecylon edule.

Tiruppvai 24 (Aivvulakam)

This verse can be seen as ushering in what we can argue is the final section of the Tiruppvai. If the previous verse moves spatially from the akam to the puam, this verse is framed temporally. The verse’s opening line begins with au (then) while the last line begins with iu (here/now). Au indexes Ka’s feats undertaken on behalf of his devotees over the course of time. It commences with a reference to his avatra as Trivikrama—rendered here as the one who measured this world (aivvulakam aanty). But the focus is not on his action, but the instrument of the action—Viu’s feet, which are singled out for praise. Rather than take the line as straightforward praise of Viu’s feet, the commentators imagine that the gops wonder how Viu could forcibly place his feet on the heads of those who undertook no vows, but refrain from blessing them, who have observed the pvai vow so scrupulously. As if to assert the commentators’ point, the last line of the verse begins with the word iu (now/today) to impress two things upon an apparently indifferent god. First, Viu is once again faced with devotees who expect and need his protection, compassion, and guidance, and second that their appeal is an urgent one and cannot be deferred.

This verse takes the form of a panegyric, or a magalsanam, with every line save the final two, ending with the word pi (praise, hail). Much like Periyvr’s Tiruppallu that also extols Viu, here the omnipotent deity is offered both praise and protection. Like the Tiruppallu, this Tiruppvai verse falls into a category of poem that acts like a protective amulet (kppu) for the deity. The Tiruppallu is mentioned by name only once—in Tiruppvai 26—but here, the commentators suggest it is imitated in form and content.

The verse may also be read as reflecting the almost familial intimacy shared by the gops and Ka. But this does not necessarily explain why the girls (or ) feel the need to sing a praise-poem, a protection for an omnipotent, all-powerful god. The commentators present an interesting answer to this question. They suggest that Rma, as the son of kings, was tutored by priests like Vasiha and warrior sages like Vivmitra, and was therefore capable of protecting himself. Ka, on the other hand, is the son of simple cowherding folk. It is for this reason that he is far more in need of protection and blessings than the heroic Rma.

There are six aspects of god praised in the verse, which are likened to the aucuvai (six essential flavors) of food: bitter (kaippu), sweet (iippu), sour (puippu), salty (uvarppu), acidic (tuvarppu), and pungent (krppu). The six attributes are Viu’s feet, his valor, his fame, his anklets, his virtue, and finally, his spear.

In the opening verse of the Tiruppvai, Nandagopa and Yaod are portrayed as their beloved son’s fierce guardians. In Tiruppvai 1, Nanda is described as carrying a spear, and here, Ka wields that very spear, a weapon appropriate to a cowherd. Ironically, the gop girls choose to protect Ka by praising deeds that display his extraordinary valor. Such an approach illustrates the intimacy of their bond with Ka while also highlighting his character—while he is ruthless with his enemies, he protects those dear to him. An apt example of Ka’s compassion is alluded to in line 5 of this verse: when Ka lifted the Govardhana mountain as an umbrella to shield the entire population of yarpi from a devastating rainstorm.

Tiruppvai 25 (Orutti Makay Piantu)

The opening lines of this verse summarize the myth of Ka’s birth. Both his mothers are nameless but are described as orutti (one, singular, or unique). The literal translation of the line is “born as the son of one, you were raised as the son of another.” But for the commentators, the subtext is clear: both these women are deeply fortunate. In this interpretation, orutti is taken to mean singular or unique. As the commentators point out, one woman (Devak) had the blessing of giving birth to Ka (avatra rasa) and the other (Yaod) had the blessing of witnessing his play (ll). Spirited away into hiding from Mathur to yarpi, one would expect Ka to live freely in his new home on the opposite back of the Yamun. However, the ever-present threat of his wicked uncle, Kasa looms over the child Ka. Thus, Ka, the one who abides in all things and is omnipresent, is born and reared in hiding. All the while, Kasa dreams up ways to destroy the young child. The gops are unable to articulate Kasa’s many atrocities, and simply say, tku nianaita (he thought evil things). Characterizing Kasa in this way is similar to Tiruppvai 13, where Rvaa is simply referred to as poll arakka—his deeds are so terrible that they do not bear mentioning.

In the sixth line of this verse, the girls ask Ka directly for the paaidrum, citing it as the central purpose of their quest. Winning the drum from Ka will assure them wealth, good fortune, and the end to all their sorrows. Nonetheless, there appears to be some confusion about the purpose of their visit. In Tiruppvai 24 the gops seem to insist that all they want from Ka is the paai-drum (paai kov ym vandm: lit. we came to secure the paai-drum). In this verse the girls insist that they not only need the paai, but also desire to serve him. The commentators resolve this tension by suggesting that both the vow and the paai are simply pretexts (vyjya) that have allowed the gops access to Ka. It is for this reason that the girls insist that if Ka grants them the paai, they will sing his praise always, thus enacting their eventual goal—eternal service to him.

In their commentaries on the previous verse, the commentators point out that the gops were overwhelmed by Ka’s presence and offered their praise as a protection (kppu). This verse articulates the precise reasons that Ka requires such protection. In the commentators’ readings, this verse is a play of paradox. On the one hand, the girls are here to request the drum from Ka in order to assure themselves of their eternal service to him. Yet, they also need to protect him from the evil designs of Kasa. Thus the god who is everywhere and transcends the material world, is born into it in the dead of night and in secret.

In this verse Ka is described as neuml, literally “tall lord,” which picks up on the allusion to the Trivikrama avatra (where he spanned the worlds) in the previous verse. It is a particularly apt characterization, for it reiterates the aforementioned tension—the lord who contains the world, and encompasses it, is nevertheless born into it as an apparently defenseless child. Neuml is also interpreted to mean the lord who is filled with love (apu), but also as the lord who is great (periyava).

Neuml is further qualified with the phrase kañca vayiil nerupea nia neuml()—literally, the tall lord who stood like a fire in Kasa’s belly. The most obvious meaning of this colorful phrase is that Ka was a profound and persistent irritant to Kasa. The commentators explicate the phrase further to say that when Ka vanquished his evil uncle he inflicted upon him the suffering that his devotees had endured on his behalf.

Tiruppvai 26 (Ml Maiva)

The verse begins by addressing Ka with two vocatives: ml (great one) and maiva (one who is the color of a dark gem). The first of these descriptives captures the twin attributes of Viu: his transcendence (paratva) and his accessibility (saulabhya). The lord who is great and beyond comprehension is manifest and embodied before these gops. It is from this latter meaning that the word ml is also glossed in the commentaries as the one who is filled with love, because it is his boundless love for his devotees that causes him to be born into this world. In the opening verses of the Tiruppvai, the girls refer to Viu in ways that emphasize his transcendence. He is Nryaa (Tiruppvai 1), Parama (Tiruppvai 2), and Tvti Tva (Tiruppvai 8). Each of these epithets—Nryaa, Supreme Lord, Lord of Gods—underscore his nryaatvam (the quality of being Nryaa) and his paratva (transcendence). However, here for the first time in the Tiruppvai, the girls address him simply as Ml. Note that even in the previous verse he is referred to as neuml (Tall Lord). This shift indicates a renewed intimacy between the girls and Ka. The gops come to understand that it is Viu’s saulabhya (accessibility) and vtsalya (maternal love) that are his defining characteristics rather than his paratva (transcendence). To the gops he is the very embodiment of love.

The second vocative, maiva (lit. the color of a [dark] gem), is meant to evoke his unparalleled beauty. It is a beauty that beguiles even his enemies. Periyavcc Piai turns to the Rmyaa to provide the example of the demoness rpaakh, who was unable to resist Rma even after she was mutilated. Like an immaculate gem (mai), Viu’s beauty is radiant, multifaceted, and mesmerizing. These are the qualities that draw both devotee and enemy alike toward him.

In Tiruppvai 20 the girls request two ritual items from NapPiai and Ka that are necessary for the completion of their vow. Here, too, they petition Ka for additional ritual necessities—conches like the pñcajanya, the ubiquitous paai, lovely banners, lamps, and a group of singers reciting the pallu. The commentators identify that these five objects (although there are six objects mentioned in the verse) signify the artha pañcaka, which according to rvaiava theology are the five doctrines that one needs to understand in order to achieve moka. The five doctrines laid out in a work of the same name by Piai Lokcrya (1205–1311 C.E.) are as follows: 1. sva svarpa (the nature of one’s self), 2. para svarpa (the nature of god), 3. pururtha svarpa (the nature of the goal), 4. upya svarpa (the nature of the means), and 5. virodhi svarpa (the nature of an antagonist).

One can safely conclude that the pallu mentioned in this verse is a reference to Viucitta’s Tiruppallu, where he sings Viu’s praise as a blessing and a protection (kppu). The subtle allusion establishes a relationship, however ambiguous, between and Viucitta. It also connects her version of this kind of protective song (Tiruppvai 24) with Viucitta’s, indicating the impact that his short poem had already achieved. Both songs seek to establish an intimate relationship with god, pointing to his transcendence and inaccessibility as well as his immanence, which allows the devotee to reverse the hierarchical relationship.

The Tiruppvai repeatedly highlights the significance of communal worship, whether it is in the rousing of sleeping girls or in gesturing to exemplary groups of worshipers. This central idea is evoked once again and cast as one of the elements crucial to the successful completion of the gops’ vow. The girls further bolster their argument by citing the vow’s antiquity as something performed even by their ancestors (mlaiyr). However, it is unclear as to precisely what shape the ancestral ritual observance took. The pvai vow dates back to the Cakam period, and as discussed in the introduction, makes a number of alterations to the form of the vow. Whether the girls here refer to the pvai vow as described in the Cakam poems and in the Bhgavata Pura, the tai nral, or its adaptations to Ka worship is ambiguous.

This particular verse is of special ritual and liturgical significance during the ten-day Mrkai Nra Utsavam (Festival of Ceremonial Bathing in Mrkai) celebrated for at rvilliputtr. During this festival, is imagined to be undertaking the pvai vow and every morning, her image, adorned in various costumes, appears at the gateway of the adjoining Viu temple. The Araiyar (a member of a special category of ritual performers) assumes ’s identity and recites this particular verse, calling out to the god slumbering inside to hear her plea. The verse is chosen only because it mentions Ka as the “lord who floats upon a banyan leaf.” In an interpretation specific to rvilliputtr, it is taken as a direct reference to the deity enshrined as Vaapatrayi (lit. the lord who reclines on a banyan leaf) at their local Viu temple, the very temple at which, in local lore, is said to have worshipped.

pñcajanya: the name of Visnu’s conch.

Tiruppvai 27 (Krai Vellum)

This verse is one of the most important in the cycle of thirty that make up the Tiruppvai. It depicts the conclusion of the vow and is parallel to verse 4, where the gops enumerate the goals of and their gains from observing the vow. As in its earlier counterpart, their successes are measured in terms of material gains—agrarian and material abundance—and symbolic ones—in the acquisition of the paai-drum. In the second verse of the poem, the girls are unadorned and abstaining from rich foods. Here, to celebrate their success, they are fully adorned and partaking of a rich and delicious meal. The girls, having won Ka, can once again beautify themselves, unlike St who when separated from Rma shed all her jewels.

In Tiruppvai 26 the gops enumerated the various ritual objects they required in order to complete their vow successfully. But in the commentaries, Ka is imagined to add to their requests, for he is unable to provide them with anything that equals either Nappiai (kla viakku: beautiful lamp), or the Garua banner, both of which the girls requested in Tiruppvai 26. In interpreting verse 26, commentators offer a metaphorical explanation for each of the ritual objects that the girls request on that occasion. To make this point, the commentators compare the singing of the pallu to the great vr poet Nammvr, who in his Tiruvymoi, sang polika, polika, polika (May you shine) in praise of Viu. The phrase polika occurs in Tiruvymoi 5.2.1, which rejoices in the accessibility of the ocean-hued lord (kaal vaa) who has descended on earth in his many forms.

Tiruppvai 27 ends with the assertion of togetherness. The quest was communal, and fittingly its culmination in the joy of union with Ka is also celebrated with friends. The girls are neither separated from each other, nor from Ka. Their enjoyment of Ka is a joint one, and the fever of longing is cooled once they experience the joy of their union with him. In verse 5, the girls beseech Ka to accept their vow and to turn their transgressions into ash. Now, because of the success of their vow, those violations have indeed turned to ash and the girls are cooled.

The commentaries for this verse return to a familiar theme: that of a god who charms even his enemies. The opening phrase of this verse signals the possibility of such an interpretation. Ka is described as krai vellum cr govind—(lit. he splendid Govinda who defeats enemies) because his victories are achieved through his valor and his beauty.

In the commentaries Ka is imagined to tell the gops that they triumphed over him by declaring that they simply wanted to praise his feet (Tiruppvai 21, 24). The gops respond by saying that it is his nature (svabhva) to defeat his enemies who refuse to come together (km), but is defeated by those who wish to be with him (kuvm). To illustrate this difference, the commentators offer several examples. Here I offer two such citations—one from Periyavcc Piai’s dear Rmyaa and one from the Mahbhrata. While Rma punished the demoness rpaakh, who attempted to separate him from St, he suffered from love for St, who was forcibly taken from him. In the great Mahbhrata war, Ka punished Duryodhana and the Kauravas, but acted as Arjuna’s charioteer and guide.

In a move similar to the previous verse, the commentaries place an emphasis on the beguiling beauty of god. Viu conquers his enemies with his irresistible beauty and wins them over because of his accessibility (saulabhya), his graciousness (saulya) and his kalya gua (auspicious qualities). Sometimes his beauty overcomes all resistance, as in the case of the gops, who abandon their virtue and their modesty in order to be with Ka.

In the opening line of this verse, Ka is addressed in the vocative as “O Splendid Govinda who defeats your enemies” (krai vellum cr govind). According to the commentators, the name Govinda exemplifies Ka’s compassion, because he undertakes the tasks of those who are weak (akti aavar). It is for this reason that he leaves behind his heavenly abode of Vaikuha to become a humble cowherd. Though he protects all his cows, he is gentler with the young calves that are incapable of even grazing.

One of the most striking images of extravagant abundance in the Tiruppvai occurs in this verse. In describing their feast, says that the gops “sit down for the rice steeped in milk/ smothered in so much butter/that it drips down [their] elbows.” Periyavcc Piai narrates an interesting anecdote with regard to this line. When listening to Parara Bhaar’s exposition of Tiruppvai 27, one Tiruvauti Valandu Dsa queried if the abundance of butter in the rice would not have overwhelmed one’s taste and have been unpleasant to eat. To this, Bhaar replied that the gops were so ecstatic at being in the presence of the god, they would not have tasted their food. After all, god is everything for them. In keeping with this, Jagannathachariar notes that the finite verb “we will eat” (upm) does not occur in the verse, although every other action carries its finite verb—that is: we will wear clothes, we will adorn ourselves, and so on. The transition between the last action of eating and the final line of the verse, “And in this way we come together/and we are cooled,” is abrupt. In trying to mirror this in my translation, I have not included the verb “to eat” and left the action of partaking of the food unfinished.

Tiruppvai 28 and Tiruppvai 29 (Kaavaika Pi Ceu and Ciañciukl)

In Tiruppvai 26 and 27 the gops receive ritual items such as conches and banners from Ka to mark the successful completion of their vow. The commentaries in contextualizing Tiruppvai 28 insist that these rewards were won on behalf of the larger community of cowherds. It is only in the last two verses that the girls request something for themselves—and in Tiruppvai 28 it is symbolized by the paai. In response to their request Ka is believed to ask the girls “what practices and austerities have you undertaken that you merit such a gift.” Rather than reply directly to his rather redundant question, the gops offer a clever retort. They ask Ka what causes him to doubt their actions, when he has already seen evidence of their aivu (knowledge/wisdom) and their ritual observance. Furthermore, they insist that they only have the ability to perform rituals, but the granting of grace is completely in his hands. In pursuing this line of interpretation, the commentators seek to assert that the essence of Tiruppvai 28 (and indeed, the entire Tiruppvai) is that the true nature of the goal (prpya) is Viu and not the paai. Despite being born amongst simple cowherding folk, the girls require no other path or aids (upya) when Ka, by being born among them, himself acts as such.

The last two verses (28 and 29) of the Tiruppvai are its climax, because they culminate in the dramatic rejection of the paai-drum. In the previous verse, the vow has been completed, the drum won, and union with Ka achieved. The two verses that end the poem cement the last of these ideas, with the girls insisting that the only goal they desired was Ka. If verse 2 and verse 3 of the poem were concerned with the path of the vow and its expected rewards, these final two verses reframe those early claims and insist that the way and the goal are both realized in and through Ka. Ultimately, the vow is inefficient and its material rewards transitory. It is Ka/Viu who acts as the way and the goal, and the means and the ends of their efforts. The rejection of the paai in verse 29 is therefore understood as a declaration of this fundamental truth.