Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.1 · verse 162 of the four thousand
Meaning
(Yashoda, combing the child's hair, calls the crow.) He is the bridegroom of Nappinnai, He who lies at Thirupper, the one unique seed from which the ancient immortals first came, the King who has taken me and my whole clan as His own. Come, crow, and comb His hair! Come, crow, and comb Madhava's hair!
Word by word
- piṉṉai maṇāḷaṉai
- the bridegroom of Nappinnai
- pēriṟ kiṭantāṉai
- who lies at Thirupper, Koviladi on the Kaveri
- mutaṟ taṉi vittiṉai
- the first, unique seed, cause of all
- eṅkaḷ kuṭi muḻutu āṭkoṇṭa
- who took our whole clan into His service
- kuḻalvārāy
- come and comb His hair
- akkākkāy
- O crow
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.2 · verse 163 of the four thousand
Meaning
This is the child who drank at the demoness's breast, who long ago broke the magic cart and the marutha trees. Come, crow, and comb clean the dark hair of Kannan, coloured like the kaya flower! Come, crow, and comb the hair of Him whose colour is a flawless sapphire!
Word by word
- pēyiṉ mulai uṇṭa piḷḷai
- the child who drank the demoness's breast
- māyac cakaṭum marutum
- the magic cart and the twin marutha trees
- kāyāmalar vaṇṇaṉ
- coloured like the dark blue kaya flower
- karuṅkuḻal
- dark hair
- tūytu āka
- so that it is clean
- tūmaṇi vaṇṇaṉ
- He whose colour is a flawless gem
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.3 · verse 164 of the four thousand
Meaning
He gulps the butter kept in a sturdy pot in the covered hanging sling, and then quickly falls asleep: the great one, Lord of the immortals, the Kannan of the cowherds. Come, crow, and comb His hair! Come, crow, and comb the hair of Him who is coloured like a dark rain-cloud!
Word by word
- tiṇṇak kalattiṟ
- in a sturdy pot
- tirai uṟimēl
- in the covered hanging sling
- viraiya uṟaṅkiṭum
- quickly falls asleep
- aṇṇal
- the great one, the master
- āyartam kaṇṇaṉai
- the cowherds' own Kannan
- kārmukil vaṇṇaṉ
- coloured like the rain-cloud
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.4 · verse 165 of the four thousand
Meaning
When the deceitful demon came in the shape of a bird that feeds in the marshes, the child saw him, said, 'Here is a bird,' and tore its beak apart. Come, crow, and comb that child's hair! Come, crow, and comb the hair of Him who drank at the demoness's breast!
Word by word
- paḷḷattil mēyum paṟavai
- a bird that feeds in the marshes, a crane
- kaḷḷa acuraṉ
- the deceitful demon, Baka
- puḷ itu eṉṟu
- saying, 'this is a bird'
- vāy kīṇṭiṭṭa
- who tore its beak apart
- pēy mulai uṇṭāṉ
- He who drank the demoness's breast
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.5 · verse 166 of the four thousand
Meaning
He grazed the herds of calves, and once seized a calf and flung it up at a fruit tree: He is the Supreme One. Do not go flying about, chattering whatever comes to you; come now, crow, and comb the hair on His sacred head! Come, crow, and comb the hair of Him who holds the discus!
Word by word
- kaṟṟiṉam mēyttuk
- grazing the herds of calves
- kaṉikku oru kaṉṟiṉaip paṟṟi eṟinta
- who seized a calf and flung it at the fruit
- paramaṉ
- the Supreme One
- uṟṟaṉa pēci
- chattering whatever comes
- ōṭit tiriyātē
- do not go roaming about
- āḻiyāṉtaṉ
- of Him who holds the discus
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.6 · verse 167 of the four thousand
Meaning
He resolved to destroy the kings of the eastern clans, kings who had never known defeat, and with that discus of His He cut them off at the root in the blink of an eye. Come, crow, and comb His hair so it becomes an ornament to Him! Come, crow, and comb Govinda's hair!
Word by word
- kiḻakkiṟ kuṭi maṉṉar
- the kings of the clans of the east
- kēṭu ilātārai
- who had never known ruin
- av āḻiataṉāl
- with that discus
- viḻikkum aḷavilē
- in the blink of an eye
- vēr aṟuttāṉaik
- Him who cut them off at the root
- kuḻaṟku aṇi ākak
- so it becomes an ornament to His hair
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.7 · verse 168 of the four thousand
Meaning
Do not go flying about, hungry for the rice balls offered to the ancestors and the watery rice left out for the spirits. Come, crow, and comb the hair, dark as bees, where beauty dwells, of the Lord of the immortals of all the worlds! Come, crow, and comb the hair of Mayavan, the wondrous one!
Word by word
- piṇṭat tiraḷaiyum
- the rice balls offered to the ancestors
- pēykku iṭṭa nīrc cōṟum
- the watery rice set out for the spirits
- aṇṭattu amarar perumāṉ
- Lord of the immortals of the universe
- aḻaku amar
- where beauty dwells
- vaṇṭu ottu iruṇṭa kuḻal
- hair dark as bees
- māyavaṉtaṉ
- of Mayavan, the wondrous Lord
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.8 · verse 169 of the four thousand
Meaning
He created four-faced Brahma, master of the measured Vedas, on the lovely lotus that rose from His navel. Rub tamarind into His thick, clustered curls and comb them with an ivory comb: come, crow, and comb His hair! Come, crow, and comb Damodara's hair!
Word by word
- unti eḻunta uruva malar
- the lovely lotus that rose from His navel
- cantac catumukaṉ
- four-faced Brahma of the Vedic metres
- kontak kuḻalaik
- the thick, clustered hair
- puḷi aṭṭit
- rubbing in tamarind, to cleanse it
- tantattiṉ cīppāl
- with an ivory comb
- tāmōtaraṉtaṉ
- of Damodara
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.9 · verse 170 of the four thousand
Meaning
Long ago He measured the whole of this world, and the queens of the king watched and rejoiced. Lay His golden head on a flower cushion, sit behind Him and comb His hair: come, crow! Come, crow, and comb the hair of Him who has a thousand names!
Word by word
- maṉṉaṉtaṉ tēvimār
- the queens of the king
- muṟṟum aḷantavaṉ
- He who measured it all, as Trivikrama
- poṉṉiṉ muṭiyiṉaip
- His golden head
- pū aṇaimēl
- on a cushion of flowers
- piṉṉē iruntu
- sitting behind Him
- pēr āyirattāṉ
- He of the thousand names
Periyalwar Tirumozhi 2.5.10 · verse 171 of the four thousand
Meaning
'Come, crow, and comb the bee-filled hair of the cloud-coloured one, so that no one who sees Him can find fault': these are the words of the cowherd mother. Bhattan, lord of Villiputtur with its sky-touching walls, set them down. Those who sing them with delight will find that their past deeds cannot come near them.
Word by word
- kaṇṭār paḻiyāmē
- so that those who see Him do not find fault
- kārvaṇṇaṉ
- the cloud-coloured one
- vaṇṭu ār kuḻal
- hair full of bees, drawn by its fragrance
- viṇ tōy matil
- walls that touch the sky
- paṭṭaṉ
- Bhattan, Periyalwar
- kuṟukā viṉai
- past deeds will not come near
Verse text: the word-separated e-text of the Nalayira Divya Prabandham by Project Madurai, checked verse by verse against its second edition. Meanings are simple renderings in the light of the acharyas' commentaries, written for this site, and are awaiting a scholar's review.