Chapter 83 - Thirukodikkuzhagar or Tirukkotikkulakar (Hymn 32)

I

The poet’s mind is now fully immersed in the temple cult and he speaks to the God there, in an intimate way. This temple—one cannot be sure whether there was a temple there—is at the place which is now known as Pt. Calimere, a kind of small cape and, therefore, it is called ‘Koti’. The God of the temple is known as ‘Kulakar’ or the youth. Without using the epicene plural, our poet endearingly addresses the Lord ‘Kulaka’ (2, 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8) but the first verse addresses Him as ‘Kulakir’; the ninth verse addresses Him as ‘Atikel’ while the 5th verse contains no address whatever; the last verse mentions the Lord merely as ‘Kulaku’. He is surrounded by Bhaktas who sing about Him (3). Our poet describes the Lord as ‘Parama’ (3), the Supreme; and ‘Empiran’ (3, 6, 7 and 8) ‘Our Patron’. He is also addressed as ‘Iraiva’ (7) ‘the King or the All Pervasive’, and ‘Amute’ (7) ‘the nectar’.

II

Our poet refers to the Puranic descriptions of the Lord referring to His feast of poison (2), His rendezvous of a graveyard (4), His company of the Mother (4, 5, 6), of the Ganges (5) and the Lady of the Forest (5), His dance (7), His crescent moon (8), His begging (9) and His being beyond the reach of Visnu and Brahma (9). Our poet refers to ‘Otriyur’ and ‘Arur’ punning on these names as usual (8).

III

This Koti is also described. The Koti is surrounded by gardens which never lose their greatness (2), which never get reduced in beauty which are full of bunches of flowers (3), of ‘kurava’ (6) and full of beauty. This place is to the south of Maraikkadu (3, 6, 10) which is surrounded by very many cities of this world (10). This Maraikkadu is surrounded by ‘Umattam’ flowers (3) and full of the fragrance of ‘marava’ flowers. (6). Our poet brings about the desolation of the place. The sea wind comes and dashes on the shore with cruel force (1). Many cruel hunters live on that shore (9). The slaves, these hunters, are great sinners and wicked people (4) and there is not a good citizen nearby (1, 2, 3, 7, 8). Compared to this place, the graveyard is pure, holy and great (4). The owls, the big owls, creep inside the holes of trees (4).

IV

The temple and the idol appear to him the very incarnation of God and this is made clear by the pang of exclamation proceeding from his heart at the sight of the Lord being in a desolate place (1, 2, 3, 7, 8) of hunters (4, 9). “Ah! I a cruel person! Alas! My eyes have seen this, Your residence in this desolate place where the sea-wind plays havoc. Will that be a great fault, if there were to be citizens residing nearby. O, Lord! With whom as help do you stay here?” (1). “Why are you, our patron, all alone! Is it because you once feasted on the poison yielded by ‘paravai’— the sea, that later you helped its namesake ‘Pararai’ (my consort)?” (2). “On what account are you alone?” (3). “The graveyard is purer and greater. Ah! You have enshrined yourself in this place with the shrieking omenous owls (4) to the great fright of the damsel of your wife” (5, 6). “You are there with darkness alone as your help (6) (or alms alone as your food—6). O, Lord! You are all alone” (7).

V

After a while the mental shock disappears and his tension is relieved. Our poet gets into a jocular mood as well. “O, Lord! Sharing your form with the damsel, even Ganges is inside your form. There is no other place for the bangle bedecked Lady of the Forest. Therefore, you have enshrined yourself in this Point Calimere of groves” (5). “Why do you reside all alone here, leaving all other places? Is it because you deem it a shame that Otriyur is a mortgaged city? Have you left away Thiruvarur because the name suggests it is the city of some one else?” (8).

VI

In singing this hymn, our poet has reached a divine calmness and bliss which characterize the supreme state of Shivaloka. Here is a development of his mind proceeding from anxiety and grief to laughter and joke and finally to the final, of joy of love. In the ninth verse he states, “My Master, You have enshrined yourself with all love (anpu is the reading) or bliss (if inpu is the reading)” (9). Having experienced thus, our poet assures the readers—those who master this hymn—that they will be those who reside in the Shivaloka of great fame. He refers to the Lord as the Supreme One, being there in the desolate place even there being surrounded by innumerable Bhutas (like him) singing His praises (10).