Pasuram 5.8.2

Tamil text and transliteration:

எம்மானே! என் வெள்ளை மூர்த்தி! என்னை ஆள்வானே
எம் மா உருவும் வேண்டும் ஆற்றால் ஆவாய் எழில் ஏறே
செம் மா கமலம் செழு நீர்மிசைக்கண் மலரும் திருக்குடந்தை
அம் மா மலர்க்கண் வளர்கின்றானே! என் நான் செய்கேனே! (2)

emmāṉē! eṉ veḷḷai mūrtti! eṉṉai āḷvāṉē
em mā uruvum vēṇṭum āṟṟāl āvāy eḻil ēṟē
cem mā kamalam ceḻu nīrmicaikkaṇ malarum tirukkuṭantai
am mā malarkkaṇ vaḷarkiṉṟāṉē! eṉ nāṉ ceykēṉē! (2)

English translation of verse 5.8.2:

You are the immaculate One that made me Your vassal,
Oh, charming Lord, assume You do any Form at Your sweet will;
In Tirukkuṭantai red lotus flower large blooms everywhere.
But You repose with Your lotus eyes closed; how can 1 endure?

Note

The Āḻvār sees the red lotus flowers in full bloom in the ponds of Tirukkuṭantai. But the lotus-eyed Lord doesn’t open His eyes yet and greet the Āḻvār with sweet glances. This is more than the Āḻvār can bear. The Saint would expect quite a lot of favours from the Lord besides those already heaped on him. Although the Lord, in His iconic Form, does not, as a rule, open His mouth and speak or embrace the yearning devotee, yet the Āḻvār would want Him to make an exception in his case. If He could at least open His lotus eyes and look at the Āḻvār, it would be some consolation for the latter. Otherwise, the Āḻvār cannot sustain himself. In the ponds, where the lotus flowers are in full bloom, the bees are feeding themselves sumptuously with honey but here is a bee (Āḻvār) languishing without food because the Lord’s lotus-eyes still remain closed.