Pasuram 4.1.1

Tamil text and transliteration:

ஒரு நாயகமாய் ஓட உலகு உடன் ஆண்டவர்,
கரு நாய் கவர்ந்த காலர் சிதைகிய பானையர்,
பெரு நாடு காண இம்மையிலே பிச்சை தாம் கொள்வர்,
திருநாரணன் தாள் காலம்பெறச் சிந்தித்து உய்ம்மினோ.

oru nāyakamāy ōṭa ulaku uṭaṉ āṇṭavar,
karu nāy kavarnta kālar citaikiya pāṉaiyar,
peru nāṭu kāṇa immaiyilē piccai tām koḷvar,
tirunāraṇaṉ tāḷ kālampeṟac cintittu uymmiṉō.

English translation of verse 4.1.1:

The monarchs great who did once hold sway supreme,
Will, under the nose of the worlds they ruled, seek alms
With broken bowls in hand, on legs by black dogs bitten.
Be quick, therefore, ye, men, to meditate on the feet
Of Tirunāraṇaṉ where indeed lies your salvation.

Notes

(1) The first three lines speak about the ephemeral wealth while the remaining lines deal with Eternal wealth. That the earthly riches, whatever their magnitude, are evanescent, has been brought out by citing the well-known example of mighty monarchs being reduced, in one and the same span of life, to abject poverty, seeking alms under cover of night. Treading upon black dogs during nights, the distinguised beggars get bitten of them but desist from crying out their pain for fear of attracting public attention. But then, the earthen begging bowls drop down from their hands and the resultant noise draws huge crowds witnessing the pathetic plight of their erstwhile monarch. Oh, what a pitiable contrast between these broken earthen bowls and the decorated bowls of gold they ate from before; people who couldn’t have dreamt of coming face to face with the monarch or would have to wait for months before gaining entry into the Palace gates, could now see him right on the road, with an apology of a begging bowl held by the hand which once doled out large territories to petty princes and nobles. So then, the Āḻvār exhorts the men around to adore the feet of Śrīman Nārāyaṇa, the Donor, par excellance and attain salvation, the everlasting opulence of Divine Service.

This decad is in propitiation of the Deity, known as ‘Veda Nārāyaṇa’, enshrined in Toṭṭiyam Tirunārāyaṇapuram, in Musiri Taluk, Tiruchirapalli District, in Tamil Nadu. Tradition has it that, during his slay of twelve years in Tirunārāyaṇapuram (Melkōṭ), in Karnāṭaka State, Śrī Rāmānujācārya affectionately bestowed this decad unto the Deity of that pilgrim centre, going by the name ‘Tirunārāyaṇaṉ’.