Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.1 · verse 968 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before you grow utterly old, leaning on a stick for company, bent over and peering at the ground before your feet, shuffling slowly along as if your legs were broken, and sinking down there, worn out: let us worship at Vadari, Badrinath, the home of the Lord whose mouth drew out and drank dry the life of the demoness Putana, through her great breast, when she came to Him like His own mother.
Word by word
- muṟṟa mūttu
- grown utterly old
- kōl tuṇaiyā
- with a stick for company
- iṟṟa kāl pōl
- as if the legs were broken
- iḷaiyāmuṉ
- before you are worn out
- peṟṟa tāy pōl vanta pēycci
- the demoness who came like His own mother, Putana
- uyirai vaṟṟa vāṅki uṇṭa vāyāṉ
- whose mouth drew out and drank her life
- vatari vaṇaṅkutumē
- let us worship at Vadari, Badrinath
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.2 · verse 969 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before the young ones jeer, "Look how our father has grown old!", as you hold your back, plant a stick before you with your hand, tremble and shake, roll your eyes, and cough and heave: let us worship at Vadari, where bees drunk on honey sing their melodies.
Word by word
- mutuku paṟṟik
- holding one's back
- muṉ oru kōl ūṉṟi
- planting a stick in front
- vitir vitirttu
- trembling and shaking
- kaṇ cuḻaṉṟu
- eyes rolling
- iḷaiyavar ēcāmuṉ
- before the young ones jeer
- matu uṇ vaṇṭu paṇkaḷ pāṭum
- where honey-drinking bees sing melodies
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.3 · verse 970 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before the veins stand out on your body like the cords of a hanging sling, before your flesh sags and your mind shrinks, before you stand trembling, eyes rolling as you peer at the path: if you know what is good, O heart, then with love let us say His thousand names and worship at Vadari, where bees drunk on fragrance sing their melodies.
Word by word
- uṟikaḷ pōl
- like the cords of a hanging pot-sling
- meyn narampu eḻuntu
- the body's veins standing out
- ūṉ taḷarntu
- the flesh sagging
- niṉṟu naṭuṅkāmuṉ
- before you stand trembling
- aṟiti ākil neñcam
- if you know what is good, O heart
- āyiram nāmam coli
- saying the thousand names
- veṟi koḷ vaṇṭu
- bees drunk on fragrance
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.4 · verse 971 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before your eyes shrink and ooze, before you grow old and dazed and coughing, before your aching legs knock against each other as you stumble along: let us worship at Vadari, ringed by cool tanks where the valai fish leap, the home of the Lord who as a strong young cowherd grazed the calves and that day stood holding up the hill.
Word by word
- pīḷai cōrak kaṇ iṭuṅki
- eyes shrunken and oozing
- pittu eḻa
- as the mind grows dazed
- tāḷkaḷ nōvat tammil muṭṭi
- aching legs knocking together
- kāḷai āki kaṉṟu mēyttu
- as a strong youth, grazing the calves
- kuṉṟu eṭuttu aṉṟu niṉṟāṉa
- who that day stood holding up the hill
- vāḷai pāyum taṇ taṭam
- cool tanks where valai fish leap
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.5 · verse 972 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before you tell everyone, between coughs, how you were once a great lover, how you drank the nectar of young women's lips, and how grandly you lived; before you take a staff for a leg and stumble along, planting it again and again: let us worship at Vadari, the home of the Lord with the cool tulasi where the bees sing.
Word by word
- paṇṭu kāmar āṉa āṟum
- how once you were a lover
- pāvaiyar vāy amutam
- the nectar of young women's lips
- okka uraittu irumi
- telling it all, coughing
- taṇṭu kālā ūṉṟi ūṉṟi
- planting a staff as a leg, again and again
- vaṇṭu pāṭum taṇ tuḻāyāṉ
- the Lord of cool tulasi where bees sing
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.6 · verse 973 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before your speech grows faint, before you wheeze with phlegm and cough and your body wastes away, before your mind wanders like a madman's and you babble and collapse: let us worship at Vadari, the home of our Lord, my Father, my Master, the First Form, the dark radiance who churned the deep sea.
Word by word
- eytta collōṭu
- with faint, failing speech
- īḷai ēṅki
- wheezing with phlegm
- pittar pōlac cittam vēṟāyp
- the mind wandering like a madman's
- āti mūrtti
- the First Form
- āḻ kaṭalaik kaṭainta
- who churned the deep sea
- maitta cōti
- the dark radiance
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.7 · verse 974 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before the lovely women with soft breasts like little round caskets laugh at you, saying, "Look how the old man has aged! See your kinsman, spitting out phlegm like clots of pus!": let us worship at Vadari, the home of the Lord who is our stored-up treasure and our very life.
Word by word
- appar mūtta āṟu
- how the old man has aged
- cīt tiraḷai oppa
- like clots of pus
- aikkaḷ pōta unta
- spitting out phlegm
- uṉ tamar kāṇmiṉ
- look at your kinsman
- ceppu nēr meṉ koṅkai
- soft breasts like little caskets
- vaippum naṅkaḷ vāḻvum āṉāṉ
- who is our treasure and our life
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.8 · verse 975 of the four thousand
Meaning
"Ugh, go away! Don't stay here! You cough and you are worn out; you make us shudder!" So say the women with eyes like blue lilies. If you would give up your ruinous attachment to them and look towards the good path, let us worship at Vadari, the home of the Lord with the cool tulasi, rich in fragrance.
Word by word
- īci pōmiṉ
- ugh, go away
- īṅku irēlmiṉ
- do not stay here
- uḷḷam kūci iṭṭīr
- you make us shudder
- kuvaḷai am kaṇṇiyar
- women with eyes like blue lilies
- nācam āṉa pācam viṭṭu
- giving up ruinous attachment
- nal neṟi nōkkal uṟil
- if you would look to the good path
- vācam malku taṇ tuḻāyāṉ
- the Lord with cool, fragrant tulasi
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.9 · verse 976 of the four thousand
Meaning
Before your senses fail and your body grows old, before you go and sit down with your mind shrinking and troubled, phlegm heaving up, babbling of whatever you see: let us worship at Vadari, where devotees, bearing garlands of cool tulasi, go round the shrine saying His thousand names, singing and dancing.
Word by word
- pulaṉkaḷ naiya
- the senses failing
- meyyil mūttu
- the body grown old
- kaṇṭa pitaṟṟāmuṉ
- before you babble of whatever you see
- alaṅkal āya taṇ tuḻāykoṇṭu
- bearing garlands of cool tulasi
- valaṅkoḷ toṇṭar
- devotees who go round the shrine
- pāṭi āṭum
- singing and dancing
Periya Tirumozhi 1.3.10 · verse 977 of the four thousand
Meaning
Kaliyan, Thirumangai Alwar, king of Mangai with its hedges of kandal, made this resounding garland on the great loving Lord of Vadari, where bees live on cool honey. If devotees gather to sing and dance it, we know of no other realm for them to rule than the world of high heaven.
Word by word
- vaṇṭu taṇ tēṉ uṇṭu vāḻum
- where bees live on cool honey
- vatari neṭu mālaik
- the great loving Lord of Vadari
- kaṇṭal vēli
- hedged with kandal shrubs
- maṅkai vēntaṉ kaliyaṉ
- Kaliyan, king of Mangai
- oli mālai
- resounding garland of verses
- nīḷ vicumpil aṇṭam
- the world of high heaven
- āṭci aṟiyōmē
- we know of no other realm to rule
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.