Introduction to Section 7.10

In the last decad, the Āḻvār, who thought in terms of repaying the Lord’s kindness in choosing him, of all persons, for the sacred mission of singing ‘Tiruvāymoḻi’, was bewildered on finding nothing, he could offer unto the Lord, for there wasn’t anything he could call his own and the Lord, who is above wants of any kind, would need anything from him either. The merciful Lord would not, however, keep a devotee of such a high order in a state of mental torture. And so, He told the Āḻvār that he too would be given a chance to fulfil his desire by singing this hymnal in the pilgrim centre, called ‘Tiruvāṟaṉviḷai’ (Kerala State), unto Him and His Divine Consorts, much to Their delectation. It may be recalled, at this stage, that Śrī Rāma listened to His own story, Rāmāyaṇa, sung by Kuśa and Lava, the Divine lads, His own progeny. Even so, it was not on all fours with the assignment currently given to the Āḻvār by the Lord. There Śrī Rāma was alone when He granted audience to the young minstrels, having got separated from Sītā, the Divine Mother, whose story, (Sītāyāścaritam mahat) Rāmāyaṇa virtually is. But here, the Lord in His Iconic form, is looking forward to the ecstatic experience of listening to the rapturous songs of Tiruvāymoḻi, sung by the love-intoxicated Āḻvār, in the company of His Divine Consorts. The Āḻvār leaps with joy, finding that the Lord not only got the hymns sung by him but was also intent upon listening to his chanting them. How gracious of Him indeed! The Āḻvār, therefore, attempts to render the service assigned to him, at Tiruvāṟaṉviḷai in this decad, looking upon that holy place as his final goal, to the exclusion of all else, even as Hanumān said ‘Bhāvonānyatragacchati’, thereby expressing his stout determination not to forsake this land trodden upon by Lord Rāma and go elsewhere, not even the much-coveted Heaven. As a matter of fact, God would have nothing of our own and there is nothing we can call our own either. All that He expects from us, in return for all that He does, is to do His bidding and this is taken by Him as adequate expression of our gratitude.