( Sundarar at his wedding )
Among the Saivite Triad who contributed to the growth of Saiva Siddhanta as a powerful metaphysical system that displaced the then prevailing belief systems that is NOT simply an arid intellectual exercise but rather something that illuminates existence itself, Sundarar comes the third and the last and is dated around the 8th cent A.D.
He stands unique for unlike the Appar who lauded and led an ascetic life and Sambantar who, though not opposed to married life but never enjoyed it (probably burnt to death before it in the religious clashes of the times) Sundarar was not just simply married but married twice to TWO celestial-earthly women, Paravai and then later Sangkili and
hence someone very close to most of us ordinary mortals who are caught up in the web of family life. He also earned the rights from Siva Himself to move around not in loin clothes but rather as the handsome bridegroom in which form he is known to this day.
Thus it is BEING who shows that the metaphysical life is NOT inconsistent with married life and that it does not mean one must be attired in rags to show one's metaphysical or spiritual inclinations. His verses too are profoundly human, discloses the wars he waged with his own sexuality to which he lost several times and which constitute the essence of the existential struggles of many mortals to this day. His greatest contribution was verses outlining briefly the hagioraphy of the Nayanmars and because of which Sundarar became the HERO of the PeriapuraNam of Cekkizar ( 12th cent) that elaborates it to an epic level, a honour that was denied even to Appar and Sambantar.
It is with great pleasure that I present now the following verse of his in English so that we can compare our struggles with his and where possible benefit from it as well.
Sundarar 1-1
pittaa piRaicuudi perumaaLee aruLaaLaa
ettaan maRavaatee ninaikkinReen manattunnai
vaittaay peNNait tenpaal veNNey nalluur aruTtuRaiyuL
attaa unakkaaLaay alleen enalaamee
How can I deny being in service to you Oh BEING the Uncanny
and wearing the crescent moon is the Great One , a Person Full of Grace
And how can I ever become forgetful of this oh BEING who also emplaced Thyself
in Grace-Ground at the southern corner of TiruVeNNai Nalluur for
I think of You always deep in my heart not forgetting at all no matter what
pittaa piRaicuudi : Oh BEING the Uncanny and wearing the Crescent Moon
perumaaLee aruLaaLaa: the Great One and the Person Full of Grace
ettaan maRavaatee ninaikkinReen manattunnai: think of You always deep in my heart not forgetting at all no matter what
vaittaay peNNait tenpaal veNNey nalluur aruTtuRaiyuL: have emplced Thyself in Grace-Ground at the the Southern corner of Tiru VeNNai Nalluur
attaa unakkaaLaay alleen enalaamee: How can I ever deny being in service to you?
Notes:
The most crucial terms in the whole corpus of the hymns of Sundarar is the term "Pittaa!" said to be the divinely inspired first word of this first Patikam of Sundarar. I have translated it as "being uncanny" but it has also such meanings as "unpredictable, supremely crazy, almost mad" and so forth. The enormous importance of this term will be lost unless
we also recall that Sundarar was a RELUCTANT servant of BEING and who was forcibly DRAWN to divine service by an uncanny Play of BEING.
Consistent with his youthful and manly desires he was about to get married but the marriage could NOT be solemnised because BEING interrupted it in the guise of a Saivite Yogi who claimed that he was already bonded to serve him by his ancestors. Whatever the truth of this account , it is clear that his first attempt to get married and get into into the ordinary family was interrupted most unexpectedly and to the utter bewilderment and disappointment of Sundarar who protested bitterly at this divine interference. It is while in this angry mood that he calls BEING the Pittan, the Crazy meaning actually the Uncanny, the Unpredictable, the most Unscrutable
What is communicated by this description is that the workings of BEING are NOT rule-regulated but rather supremely psychical and hence not at all mechanical. We cannot wrest out from brute nature the RULES in accordance with which BEING functions for plainly there are NO SUCH RULES. BEING is UNCANNY in this being outside any rule governed behaviour and entirely spontaneous and hence supremely UNPREDICTABLE. For which reason HE is known as the PERSON full of Grace, the aruLaaLan for this is how aruL, the GRACE functions in the world, BEYOND the reach of the nasty hands of the rationalist who would try their level best to catch BEING in the network of LAWS so that His behaviour becomes PREDICTABLE , just like everything in the mechanical nature. No, BEING is NOT a fish to be caught in this net, HE transcends whatever such feeble human attempts. It is the DAWN of this understanding that captivates the experience of BEING that became available for Sundarar and which he articulates most movingly and unfailingly in this and several other of his verses.
Now having seen HIS uncanniness, he cannot forget it ever no matter what and along with that the fact that his TRUE vocation is to be in service to BEING to which he is ALREADY committed. Though the story of documented slavery as written by his ancestors is brought in to explain this and hence merge the metaphysical with historical, the TRUTH is that all anmas are already destined to be IN SERVICE to BEING and that we are forgetful
of it only because we are drawn to earthly life which makes us forget it.
Sudarar was rudely awakened to this TRUTH already in the UNCONSCIOUS and hence made CONSCIOUS of it forever which makes him wonder how can he ever become forgetful of it again. No, he will not. It becomes now the most dominant element of his CONSCIOUS LIFE and hence that which would determine the nature of actions he would enjoy doing, here being a servant of Siva, the Radiant BEING.
ULLAGANAR
( editing and re-paragraphing by his student )
( photo taken from https://www.dharisanam.com/pages/sundaramurthy-nayanar , with thanks )
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