Tiruppāvai — Pāsuram 29
Recap (Context Leading into Pāsuram 29)
By Pāsuram 27, longing has dissolved into rest, and what was renounced has returned—not as temptation, but as grace.
Pāsuram 28 then shows life after fulfillment: devotion lived quietly, without ritual strain, fear, or self-conscious effort.
Now, in Pāsuram 29, the sakhīs speak not to seek acceptance, but to affirm irrevocable belonging.
This verse seals prapatti—not as theory, but as a lived, communal vow.
Tamil Text
சிற்றஞ்சிறுகாலே வந்துன்னைச் சேவித்துன்
பொற்றாமரையடியே போற்றும் பொருள்கேளாய்!
பெற்றம் மேய்த்துண்ணும் குலத்தில் பிறந்து நீ
குற்றேவல் எங்களைக் கொள்ளாமற் போகாது
இற்றைப் பறைகொள்வான் அன்றுகாண் கோவிந்தா!
எற்றைக்கும் ஏழேழ் பிறவிக்கும் உன்தன்னோடு
உற்றோமே யாவோம் உனக்கே நாம் ஆட்செய்வோம்
மற்றை நம் காமங்கள் மாற்றேலோர் எம்பாவாய்
Transliteration
Siṟṟañ siṟukālē vandhu unnaich sēviththu
Poṟṟāmaṟaiyaṭiyē pōṟṟum poruḷ kēḷāy!
Peṟṟam mēyththu uṇṇum kulattil piṟandhu nī
Kuṟṟēval engaḷaik koḷḷāmaṛ pōkādu
Iṟṟaip paṟaikoḷvān aṉṟukāṇ Govindā!
Eṭṟaikkum ēḻ ēḻ piṟavikkum un taṉṉōdu
Uṟṟōmē yāvōm unakkē nām āṭcēyvōm
Maṭṟai nam kāmaṅkaḷ māṟṟēlōr em pāvāy
Line-by-Line Meaning and Expansion
Line 1
Siṟṟañ siṟukālē vandhu unnaich sēviththu
Having come very early at dawn, we served You.
The sakhīs begin not with emotion, but with discipline remembered.
Their coming at the earliest hour recalls the vow—not as hardship now, but as completed obedience.
Service here is not ritual performance; it is presence offered without hesitation.
Line 2
Poṟṟāmaṟaiyaṭiyē pōṟṟum poruḷ kēḷāy!
Hear the matter we praise—Your golden lotus feet.
They ask Krishna to listen—not because He does not know, but because love seeks acknowledgment.
The lotus feet, praised as one would adorn with a garland, stand for refuge already taken.
This is not an introduction; it is an affirmation.
Line 3
Peṟṟam mēyththu uṇṇum kulattil piṟandhu nī
You were born in the cowherd clan that grazed cattle and lived on milk.
Krishna is recalled not as a cosmic ruler, but as one who chose simplicity.
This memory grounds intimacy: He is approachable because He once lived among them.
Grace is remembered as nearness, not grandeur.
Line 4
Kuṟṟēval engaḷaik koḷḷāmaṛ pōkādu
You will not abandon us; You will not refuse us.
This is not a request—it is a confident statement.
The sakhīs speak from the assurance that acceptance, once given, does not waver.
Prapatti has crossed from hope into certainty.
Line 5
Iṟṟaip paṟaikoḷvān aṉṟukāṇ Govindā!
O Govinda! On that day when the pārai is granted…
The pārai is recalled not as an object, but as a moment of recognition.
It marks the public acknowledgment of belonging already secured.
Joy has become a festival, not a transaction.
Line 6
Eṭṟaikkum ēḻ ēḻ piṟavikkum un taṉṉōdu
For countless births—seven times seven—with You alone…
Devotion now stretches beyond a single lifetime.
This is not fear of rebirth, but fidelity across time.
Belonging is no longer provisional.
Line 7
Uṟṟōmē yāvōm unakkē nām āṭcēyvōm
We will remain with You; indeed, we will serve You alone.
Service here is not an obligation—it is chosen permanently.
The plural voice matters: surrender is communal, not heroic.
They remain not because they must, but because they cannot imagine otherwise.
Line 8
Maṭṟai nam kāmaṅkaḷ māṟṟēlōr em pāvāy
May no other desires take root in us—O our Lord.
This final prayer does not reject the world.
It asks only that nothing regain the power to displace Krishna.
Desires may exist, but none may rule.
From Renunciation to Restored Joy — Pāsuram 29 as Completed Prapatti
In Pāsuram 29, Āṇḍāḷ does not rise above the sakhīs; she remains entirely among them.
Every verb is plural. Every vow is shared. There is no elevation, no instruction, no authority claimed.
This restraint is the pāsuram’s strength.
Here, prapatti is not explained—it is enacted.
The sakhīs recall their discipline, affirm Krishna’s acceptance, and pledge exclusive service across births.
What was renounced earlier is no longer feared, because its power has dissolved.
The prayer is no longer for gifts, but for constancy.
Crucially, the final request—“may no other desires arise”—does not negate joy.
It safeguards joy by ensuring that nothing competes with the One who now defines meaning.
This is why Pāsuram 29 is indispensable.
It is the last place where Āṇḍāḷ speaks only as one among the devotees—human, communal, dependent.
Only after this vow is spoken without residue can she step beyond the circle in the final pāsuram.
Prapatti is complete here—not because nothing more is said, but because nothing more is needed.
Closing Summary
Pāsuram 29 seals the Tiruppāvai journey by transforming earlier seeking into irrevocable belonging.
The sakhīs come not to negotiate, but to affirm trust; not to ask for favor, but to promise fidelity.
Service becomes permanence, devotion becomes identity, and renunciation becomes inner freedom.
Nothing is rejected—only displacement is forbidden.
This is bhakti that has crossed the point of return.
Āṇḍāḷ Tiruvadigaḷē Śaraṇam
I take refuge at the sacred feet of Āṇḍāḷ.
Disclaimer
The Tiruppāvai verses quoted here are part of the public-domain Divya Prabandham tradition.
Textual readings have been cross-verified with standard traditional sources.
All interpretations, expansions, and devotional reflections presented above are the author’s own.
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