Āṉma-Viddai: Tamil text, transliteration and translation
The path of self-investigation (ātma-vicāra) that Bhagavan taught us is the direct and easy means to eradicate ego, the root and foundation of all our troubles, but there is a widespread belief that it is a very difficult path and therefore suitable only for a few spiritually mature aspirants. Even among the devotees who lived with him this was a widely held belief, as Muruganar discovered to his surprise in the following way.
One day soon after he came to Bhagavan, Muruganar was sitting in his presence, but after a while Bhagavan went outside, and while Muruganar was waiting for him to return another devotee called Viswanathan approached and whispered in a secretive manner that Bhagavan is very great, but it is not possible to know anything from him directly, and he therefore offered to introduce him to Kavyakantha Ganapati Sastri, saying that if he were to take mantra-dīkṣā (initiation in a mantra) from him he would thereby gain the clarity to understand Bhagavan’s teachings. Seeing the surprise on Muruganar’s face, Viswanathan advised him to think about it, saying he would return later. Later that day Viswanathan approached him again and asked what he had decided, but Muruganar told him that he had come only for Bhagavan’s grace, so whether he was fit to receive it or not, he was not interested in seeking anything from anyone else.
Telling this to Sadhu Om many years later, Muruganar said with a smile that Kavyakantha’s followers must then have decided that he was a hopeless case, because they never again offered him such advice. He also said that this was one of the reasons why he decided a few years later to ask Bhagavan to write this song, Āṉma-Viddai.
That is, Muruganar knew from his own experience how easy this practice of self-investigation is, but he also knew that many other devotees wrongly believed it to be very difficult, so he wanted Bhagavan to write a poem to dispel this mistaken belief and thereby reassure sincere aspirants, and hence on the 24th April 1927 he composed the pallavi (refrain) and anupallavi (post-refrain or sub-refrain) for this kīrtanam and asked Bhagavan to compose the caraṇaṅgaḷ (verses) for it. Knowing why Muruganar made this request, Bhagavan immediately composed five caraṇaṅgaḷ to explain how easy this path is and why it is so necessary.
A kīrtanam is a musical composition consisting of a pallavi, an anupallavi and one or more caraṇams, in which the pallavi expresses the central theme of the song and is therefore repeated after the anupallavi and each of the caraṇams. This kīrtanam is composed in the style of a well-known and much-loved kīrtanam from Nandaṉār Carittiram, a kathā-kāla-kṣēpam (a form of musical story-telling) that Gopalakrishna Bharati, a popular 19th century Tamil poet and musician, composed on the life of Nandanar, who is one of the most revered and loved of the sixty-three Tamil Saivite saints, whose stories are narrated in the Periya Purāṇam. Nandanar was a paṟaiyar (an outcaste or ‘untouchable’), and in Gopalakrishna’s version of his story he worked as a bonded labourer for a cruel brahmin landowner, so Gopalakrishna composed a kīrtanam in which Nandanar addresses his master and sings in the pallavi, ‘ஐயே, மெத்தக் கடினம், உமதடிமை, ஐயே, மெத்தக் கடினம்!’ (aiyē, mettak kaḍiṉam, umadaḍimai, aiyē, mettak kaḍiṉam!), ‘Ah [or sir], very hard [or difficult], [being] your slave, ah, very hard’, in which ‘ஐயே’ (aiyē) can be taken to be either an exclamation, ‘Ah’, or an address to his master, ‘Sir’. Therefore in the same style Muruganar composed the pallavi for this kīrtanam: ‘ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ஆன்ம வித்தை, ஐயே, அதி சுலபம்!’ (aiyē, ati sulabham, āṉma-viddai, aiyē, ati sulabham), ‘Ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā [knowing oneself], ah, extremely easy’.
(Unfortunately, in Talks with Sri Ramana Maharshi, section 379 (1978 edition, page 344; 2006 edition, page 358), it is incorrectly recorded that Bhagavan said: “Chidambaram is the famous place of pilgrimage associated with Nandanar who sang that Atma Vidya is most difficult of attainment. Muruganar (a long-standing devotee of Sri Bhagavan) began however that Atma Vidya is the easiest of attainments”. Bhagavan of course would never have said that Nandanar ‘sang that Atma Vidya is most difficult of attainment’, because the song he was referring to was not composed by Nandanar but by Gopalakrishna Bharati in his Nandaṉār Carittiram, and in that song there is no mention of ātma-vidyā. Moreover, in the same passage of Talks it is incorrectly implied that after composing the pallavi and anupallavi Muruganar ‘could not pursue the theme further and laid the first four lines composed by him before Sri Bhagavan for completion’, whereas in fact Muruganar could very well have completed the song if he had wanted to, but he did not want to, because he had composed the pallavi and anupallavi with the intention to ask Bhagavan to compose the caraṇaṅgaḷ so that he could affirm that ātma-vidyā is extremely easy.)
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பல்லவி (pallavi): Refrain
- Verse 1: when thought is dissolved completely, the sun of pure self-awareness will shine spontaneously and the darkness of self-ignorance will cease
- Verse 2: since the thought ‘I am this body’ alone is the one thread on which all other thoughts are strung, if one investigates from where it spreads, thoughts will cease and ātma-jñāna will shine spontaneously as ‘I am I’
- Verse 3: knowing anything else without knowing oneself is worthless, and if one knows oneself there is nothing else to know
- Verse 4: more than any other path, this path is exceedingly easy, because if one remains without even the least action of mind, speech or body, in one’s heart the light that is oneself will shine forth
- Verse 5: if one investigates within without thinking of anything else, one’s real nature, which is called Annamalai, the eye to the mind-eye, will certainly be seen
அநுபல்லவி (anupallavi): Post-refrain
சரணங்கள் (caraṇaṅgaḷ): Verses
பல்லவி (pallavi): Refrain
ஐயே! யதிசுலபம் — ஆன்மவித்தைPadavurai (word-explanation): ஐயே (aiyē): ah, what a wonder {ai means wonder or astonishment, and aiyē is an intensified form of it, thereby serving as an expression of wonder} | அதி (ati): extremely, exceedingly {a Sanskrit prefix meaning beyond, over, more than, surpassing, excessive, superior, excellent, extremely, exceedingly, intensely, very} | சுலபம் (sulabham): easy, easily attainable {the Sanskrit verb labh means to get, gain, obtain, attain, achieve, acquire, take, catch, grasp, receive, find, have, possess, find out, learn or know, so labha means obtainable or achievable, and since the suffix su means good, right, excellent, well, very, exceedingly, much, properly, readily or easily, sulabha means ‘easily attainable’, ‘easily knowable’ or ‘easy’} | ஆன்ம (āṉma): self- {the form āṉmā takes when used as the first word in a compound, āṉmā being a Tamil form of the Sanskrit ātmā, the nominative (first case) singular form of ātman, which is both a pronoun that means ‘self’, ‘oneself’, ‘myself’, ‘yourself’, ‘himself’, ‘herself’ or ‘itself’, and a noun that means ‘spirit’ (namely ātma-svarūpa, the real nature of ourself, meaning ourself as we actually are) or ‘soul’ (namely ourself as ego or jīva)} | வித்தை (viddai): knowledge, science, art {a Tamil form of the Sanskrit vidyā; āṉma-viddai is therefore a Tamil form of the Sanskrit compound ātma-vidyā, which means ‘self-knowledge’ or ‘the science [or art] of self’, and therefore implies the science and art of knowing oneself} | ஐயே (aiyē): ah, what a wonder | அதி (ati): extremely, exceedingly | சுலபம் (sulabham): easy, easily attainable.
ஐயே! யதிசுலபம்.
aiyē! yatisulabham — āṉmaviddai
aiyē! yatisulabham.
பதச்சேதம்: ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ஆன்ம வித்தை, ஐயே, அதி சுலபம்!
Padacchēdam (word-separation): aiyē, ati sulabham, āṉma-viddai, aiyē, ati sulabham!
அன்வயம்: ஐயே, ஆன்ம வித்தை அதி சுலபம், ஐயே, அதி சுலபம்!
Anvayam (words rearranged in natural prose order): aiyē, āṉma-viddai ati sulabham, aiyē, ati sulabham!
English translation: Ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā, ah, extremely easy!
Explanatory paraphrase: Ah [what a wonder], knowing oneself is [so] extremely easy, ah, [so] extremely easy!
Explanation: ‘ஆன்ம வித்தை’ (āṉma-viddai) is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit term ‘आत्मविद्या’ (ātma-vidyā), which means self-knowledge or the science of self, because विद्या (vidyā) means knowledge in a broad sense that includes science, learning, philosophy or any practical skill or art. In this context we can interpret āṉma-viddai or ātma-vidyā to mean the art and science of self-knowledge, so the import of this pallavi, and hence of this entire kīrtanam, is that knowing oneself is extremely easy.
Other explanations and discussions:
2023-11-08: In the first sentence of verse 4 Bhagavan explicitly confirms the central import of this song, which Muruganar expressed in this pallavi, namely that knowing oneself is extremely easy
2022-02-08: As Bhagavan says in the second sentence of the first verse, all that is required to reveal our real nature is that thought must be dissolved in such a manner that it can never revive even an iota, so knowing ourself is extremely easy
2020-03-12: Just being self-attentive is extremely simple, because it is a state of perfect oneness, in which one thing is attending to nothing other than itself, and also extremely easy, so if it seems difficult, that is only because our liking to attend to other things is still much stronger than our liking just to be self-attentive
அநுபல்லவி (anupallavi): Post-refrain
நொய்யார் தமக்குமுளங் கையா மலகக்கனிPadavurai (word-explanation): நொய்யார் (noyyār): those who are simple-minded {a personal noun derived from noymmai, which means lightness, softness, looseness, flimsiness, weakness, poverty or weakness of mind, so in this context it implies those who are weak-minded, simple-minded or lacking in intelligence} | தமக்கும் (tamakkum): even to them {tamakku is a dative (fourth case) form of tām (a plural form of the generic pronoun tāṉ), ‘they’, serving as a suffix marking the case of noyyār, so noyyār-tamakku means ‘to [or for] those who are simple-minded’, and in this context the suffix um implies ‘even’} | உளங்கை (uḷaṅgai): palm {a poetic abbreviation of uḷḷaṅgai, which is a compound of two words, uḷḷam, ‘heart’ or ‘what is inside’, and kai, ‘hand’, so uḷḷaṅgai means ‘inside hand’ or ‘palm’} | ஆமலக (āmalaka): a spherical, grape-sized fruit known variously as āmala, nelli, emblic, emblic myrobalan, phyllanthus emblica and Indian gooseberry | கனி (kaṉi): fruit | பொய் (poy): unreality, unreal, untrue, false, illusion, illusory appearance {a noun often used as an adjective, opposite of mey} | ஆய் (āy): being, as {adverbial participle} | ஒழிய (oṙiya): to cease, stop, finish, end, become extinct, die, perish, decline, fade away {the infinitive of oṙi, used here in the sense ‘so that [it] ends’ or ‘so that [it] declines’} | மிகு (mihu): exceedingly, so much, so very {used here as a word of comparison} | மெய் (mey): reality, real, true, actual {a noun often used as an adjective} | ஆய் (āy): being, as | உளது (uḷadu): is, exists {a poetic abbreviation of uḷḷadu, which in this case is the neuter third person singular form of uḷ, a tenseless verb that means to be or to exist} | ஆன்மா (āṉmā): oneself {a Tamil form of the Sanskrit ātmā, the nominative (first case) singular form of ātman, which is both a pronoun that means ‘self’, ‘oneself’, ‘myself’, ‘yourself’, ‘himself’, ‘herself’ or ‘itself’, and a noun that means ‘spirit’ or ‘soul’}.
பொய்யா யொழியமிகு மெய்யா யுளதான்மா. (ஐயே)
noyyār tamakkumuḷaṅ gaiyā malakakkaṉi
poyyā yoṙiyamihu meyyā yuḷadāṉmā. (aiyē)
பதச்சேதம்: நொய்யார் தமக்கும் உளங்கை ஆமலக கனி பொய் ஆய் ஒழிய மிகு மெய் ஆய் உளது ஆன்மா. (ஐயே, அதிசுலபம், ...).
Padacchēdam (word-separation): noyyār tamakkum uḷaṅgai āmalaka kaṉi poy āy oṙiya mihu mey āy uḷadu āṉmā. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
அன்வயம்: உளங்கை ஆமலக கனி பொய் ஆய் ஒழிய நொய்யார் தமக்கும் மிகு மெய் ஆய் ஆன்மா உளது. (ஐயே, அதிசுலபம், ...)
Anvayam (words rearranged in natural prose order): uḷaṅgai āmalaka kaṉi poy āy oṙiya noyyār tamakkum mihu mey āy āṉmā uḷadu. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
English translation: Oneself exists as so very real even for those who are simple-minded that an āmalaka fruit on the palm ends as unreal. (Ah, extremely easy, ...)
Explanatory paraphrase: Oneself exists as so very real [and clear] even for those who are simple-minded that [in comparison] [even] an āmalaka fruit on the palm ends [declines or fades away] as unreal [and unclear]. ([Therefore] ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā, ah, extremely easy!)
Explanation and discussion: There is an expression in Tamil, ‘உள்ளங்கை நெல்லிக்கனி’ (uḷḷaṅgai nelli-k-kaṉi), which literally means ‘palm āmalaka fruit’, and which is used to describe anything that is as clear and certain as an āmalaka fruit on the palm of one’s hand. Referring to this, in this anupallavi Muruganar implies that oneself (ātmā) is so very clear, certain and real that in comparison even an āmalaka fruit on the palm of one’s hand seems unclear, dubious and unreal. That is, there is nothing that is as clear and indubitably real as our awareness of our own existence, ‘I am’.
Since we are always so clearly aware of ourself, knowing ourself as we actually are cannot be difficult. If it seems difficult, that is because we do not yet want it strongly enough, and the reason we do not want it strongly enough is that in order to be aware of ourself as we actually are we must give up forever being aware of anything else, so to the extent we have any desire for or attachment to anything other than ourself we do not wholeheartedly want to be aware of ourself as we actually are. In other words, though we may have a certain degree of love to know what we actually are, we are not yet ready to pay the price that must be paid for it.
The need for us to give up being aware of anything else in order to know ourself as we actually are is explained by Bhagavan in the verses (caraṇaṅgaḷ) of this song.
Other explanations and discussions:
2022-02-08: Bhagavan starts the first verse by confirming what Muruganar wrote here, namely that we ourself always exist and are indubitably real
2022-02-08: What Muruganar means here by ஆன்மா (āṉmā) is only oneself and not any other thing called ‘the self’, so what he implies is simply that for each one of us we ourself are always indubitably real and clearly known
2019-12-24: Our own existence and our awareness of our existence (sat-cit) is self-shining (svayam-prakāśa), so it can never be unreal or illusory
சரணங்கள் (caraṇaṅgaḷ): Verses
Verse 1:
மெய்யாய் நிரந்தரந்தா னையா திருந்திடவும்Padavurai (word-explanation): மெய் (mey): reality, real, true, actual {a noun often used as an adjective} | ஆய் (āy): being, as {adverbial participle} | நிரந்தரம் (nirantaram): without interval, uninterrupted, continuous, constant {used here as an adverb meaning uninterruptedly, incessantly, continuously, constantly, always, eternally} | தான் (tāṉ): oneself {nominative (first case) singular generic pronoun} | ஐயாது (aiyādu): not doubting, without doubting, without doubt, indubitably {a poetic abbreviation of aiyuṟādu, a negative adverbial participle; alternatively, instead of tāṉ aiyādu, tāṉaiyādu can be split as tāṉ naiyādu, in which naiyādu is a negative adverbial participle that means not perishing, without perishing, imperishably} | இருந்திடவும் (irundiḍavum): though [oneself] is, though [oneself] exists | பொய் (poy): unreality, unreal, untrue, false, illusion, illusory appearance {a noun often used as an adjective, opposite of mey} | ஆம் (ām): which is, which are {adjectival participle} | உடம்பு (uḍambu): body | உலகம் (ulaham): world | மெய் (mey): real | ஆ (ā): being, as {the root of this verb, meaning ‘be’, used here in the sense of the adverbial participle āy} | முளைத்து (muḷaittu): sprouting, springing forth, appearing {adverbial participle} | எழும் (eṙum): rise, arise, appear || பொய் (poy): unreal | மை (mai): black, blackness, darkness | ஆர் (ār): become full, pervade, spread over {the root of this verb, used here as an adjectival participle, so mai-ār implies ‘darkness-pervaded’ or ‘which darkness pervades’} | நினைவு (niṉaivu): thought {singular noun used in a collective sense, thereby implying ‘all thoughts’, in which ‘thought’ means mental phenomena or mental impressions of all kinds, including both the subject or knower, namely ego, and all objects or things known by it} | அணுவும் (aṇuvum): even an atom, even an iota {aṇu means an atom, iota or anything extremely small, and in this context the suffix um means ‘even’} | உய்யாது (uyyādu): not living, not being saved, not escaping, not reviving {negative adverbial participle} | ஒடுக்கிடவே (oḍukkiḍavē): when it is dissolved, destroyed {an intensified form of oḍukkiḍa, an infinitive that literally means ‘to dissolve’ but that is used here idiomatically to mean ‘when [it is] dissolved’} | மெய் (mey): reality | ஆர் (ār): pervade {the root of this verb, used here as an adjectival participle, so mey-ār implies ‘reality-pervaded’ or ‘which reality pervades’} | இதய (idaya): heart {idayam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit hṛdaya, and idaya is the form idayam takes when used as the first word in a compound} | வெளி (veḷi): space {idaya-veḷi is a compound that means ‘heart-space’, and though it is nominative (first case) in form, it is used here in a locative (seventh case) sense, so it implies ‘in the heart-space’} | வெய்யோன் (veyyōṉ): sun | சுயம் (suyam): oneself, by oneself, of one’s own accord, spontaneously {a Tamil form of the Sanskrit svayam} | ஆன்மா (āṉmā): oneself {a Tamil form of the Sanskrit ātmā, the nominative (first case) singular form of ātman, which is both a pronoun that means ‘self’, ‘oneself’, ‘myself’, ‘yourself’, ‘himself’, ‘herself’ or ‘itself’, and a noun that means ‘spirit’ (namely ātma-svarūpa, the real nature of ourself, meaning ourself as we actually are) or ‘soul’ (namely ourself as ego or jīva)} | விளங்குமே (viḷaṅgumē): will certainly shine {viḷaṅgum means ‘will shine’, and the suffix ē in an intensifier that in this context implies ‘certainly’} || இருள் (iruḷ): darkness | அடங்குமே (aḍaṅgumē): will cease, subside, disappear || இடர் (iḍar): suffering, affliction, distress, trouble, poverty | ஒடுங்குமே (oḍuṅgumē): will cease, end, subside || இன்பம் (iṉbam): happiness, joy, delight, bliss | பொங்குமே (poṅgumē): will surge, swell, expand, increase, boil over.
பொய்யா முடம்புலக மெய்யா முளைத்தெழும்பொய்
மையார் நினைவணுவு முய்யா தொடுக்கிடவே
மெய்யா ரிதயவெளி வெய்யோன் சுயமான்மா —
விளங்குமே; இரு ளடங்குமே; இட ரொடுங்குமே;
இன்பம் பொங்குமே. (ஐயே)
meyyāy nirantarandā ṉaiyā dirundiḍavum
poyyā muḍambulaha meyyā muḷaitteṙumpoy
maiyār niṉaivaṇuvu muyyā doḍukkiḍavē
meyyā ridayaveḷi veyyōṉ suyamāṉmā —
viḷaṅgumē; iru ḷaḍaṅgumē; iḍa roḍuṅgumē;
iṉbam poṅgumē. (aiyē)
பதச்சேதம்: மெய் ஆய் நிரந்தரம் தான் ஐயாது [அல்லது: நையாது] இருந்திடவும், பொய் ஆம் உடம்பு உலகம் மெய் ஆ முளைத்து எழும். பொய் மை ஆர் நினைவு அணுவும் உய்யாது ஒடுக்கிடவே, மெய் ஆர் இதய வெளி வெய்யோன் சுயம் ஆன்மா விளங்குமே; இருள் அடங்குமே; இடர் ஒடுங்குமே; இன்பம் பொங்குமே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Padacchēdam (word-separation): mey āy nirantaram tāṉ aiyādu [or: naiyādu] irundiḍavum, poy ām uḍambu ulaham mey ā muḷaittu eṙum. poy mai ār niṉaivu aṇuvum uyyādu oḍukkiḍavē, mey ār idaya veḷi veyyōṉ suyam āṉmā viḷaṅgumē; iruḷ aḍaṅgumē; iḍar oḍuṅgumē; iṉbam poṅgumē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
அன்வயம்: நிரந்தரம் தான் ஐயாது [அல்லது: நையாது] மெய் ஆய் இருந்திடவும், பொய் ஆம் உடம்பு உலகம் மெய் ஆ முளைத்து எழும். பொய் மை ஆர் நினைவு அணுவும் உய்யாது ஒடுக்கிடவே, மெய் ஆர் இதய வெளி வெய்யோன் ஆன்மா சுயம் விளங்குமே; இருள் அடங்குமே; இடர் ஒடுங்குமே; இன்பம் பொங்குமே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Anvayam (words rearranged in natural prose order): nirantaram tāṉ aiyādu [or: naiyādu] mey āy irundiḍavum, poy ām uḍambu ulaham mey ā muḷaittu eṙum. poy mai ār niṉaivu aṇuvum uyyādu oḍukkiḍavē, mey ār idaya veḷi veyyōṉ āṉmā suyam viḷaṅgumē; iruḷ aḍaṅgumē; iḍar oḍuṅgumē; iṉbam poṅgumē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
English translation: Though oneself exists incessantly and indubitably as real, the body and world, which are unreal, arise sprouting as real. When unreal darkness-pervaded thought is dissolved without reviving even an iota, in the reality-pervaded heart-space oneself, the sun, will certainly shine by oneself; darkness will cease; suffering will end; happiness will surge forth. (Ah, extremely easy, ...)
Explanatory paraphrase: Though oneself exists incessantly and indubitably [or imperishably] as real, the body and world, which are unreal, arise sprouting [springing forth or appearing] as [if] real. When thought, which is pervaded by [or full of] unreal darkness [the darkness of self-ignorance, namely ego, which is the cause for the appearance of the body and world], is dissolved without reviving even an iota [in other words, when it is dissolved in such a manner that it does not ever revive even an iota], in the heart-space, which [alone] is real, oneself, [who is] the sun [of pure awareness], will certainly shine by oneself [spontaneously or of one’s own accord]; darkness [self-ignorance in the form of ego] will cease; suffering will end; happiness will surge forth. ([Therefore] ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā, ah, extremely easy!)
Detailed explanation and discussion:
2022-02-08: Āṉma-Viddai verse 1: thought is what causes the appearance of the unreal body and world
Video discussion:
Other explanations and discussions:
2023-11-08: What he implies in verse 4 by ‘சிறிது’ (siṟidu), ‘the slightest’ or ‘the least’, is not that all action should cease just temporarily but that it should cease in such a way that it never revives even to the slightest extent, as he indicated by the words ‘அணுவும் உய்யாது’ (aṇuvum uyyādu), ‘without reviving even an iota’, in the second sentence of this verse
2023-07-27: If we attend only to ourself and thereby put an end to all thinking, the appearance and seeming reality of all other things will be dissolved along with all the thoughts that it consists of
2023-05-16: The only means to bring about the permanent dissolution of all thoughts is to eradicate ego, because ego is the first thought and root of all other thoughts, so the means to eradicate ego is explained by him in the second verse
2019-12-24: Our own existence and our awareness of our existence can never be an illusion, because in order to be aware of anything, whether real or illusory, we must exist and be aware
Verse 2:
ஊனா ருடலிதுவே நானா மெனுநினைவேPadavurai (word-explanation): ஊன் (ūṉ): flesh, meat | ஆர் (ār): become full, pervade, spread over, abide {the root of this verb, used here as an adjectival participle, so ūṉ-ār means ‘flesh-pervaded’ and implies ‘composed of flesh’ or ‘fleshy’} | உடல் (uḍal): body | இதுவே (iduvē): this alone {idu is a proximal demonstrative pronoun, ‘this’, referring here to uḍal (body), and the suffix ē is an intensifier that here implies ‘only’ or ‘alone’} | நான் (nāṉ): I {nominative (first case) singular form of the first person pronoun} | ஆம் (ām): is | எனும் (eṉum): saying, which says {adjectival participle, which in this case serves the same function as inverted commas in English} | நினைவே (niṉaivē): thought alone {niṉaivu means ‘thought’ and the suffix ē is an intensifier that here implies ‘only’ or ‘alone’} | நானா (nāṉā): various, different, diverse, manifold, many {a Tamil form of the Sanskrit nānā} | நினைவுகள் (niṉaivugaḷ): thoughts {plural of niṉaivu} | சேர் (sēr): join, connect {the root of this verb, used here as an adjectival participle meaning ‘which joins [the various thoughts] together’ or ‘to which [they] are joined’, thereby implying ‘on which [they] are strung together’} | ஓர் (ōr): one | நார் (nār): fibre, thread, string, rope, cord | எனும் (eṉum): which says {adjectival participle} | அதனால் (adaṉāl): by that, because of that, since {instrumental (third case) form of the distal demonstrative pronoun, adu, ‘that’, so eṉum adaṉāl literally means ‘by that which says’, thereby implying ‘because of that which says’ or simply ‘since’} | நான் (nāṉ): I | ஆர் (ār): spread out {the root of this verb, used here as an adjectival participle, so nāṉ ār means ‘from which I spread out’, implying ‘from which I rise’; alternatively, ār can here be taken to be an interrogative pronoun meaning ‘who’, in which case nāṉ ār means ‘who am I?’} | இடம் (iḍam): place {as he often did, Bhagavan here uses iḍam, ‘place’, metaphorically to refer to the source from which ego rises and in which it is always rooted, namely sat-cit, pure being-awareness, ‘I am’} | எது (edu): what {interrogative pronoun} | என்று (eṉḏṟu): thus {literally ‘saying’, an adverbial participle that generally serves the same function as ‘that’, ‘thus’, ‘as’ or inverted commas in English, or iti in Sanskrit, and which in this context implies ‘investigating’} | உள் (uḷ): inside, within | போனால் (pōṉāl): if going {conditional form of the verb pō, here implying ‘if [one] goes’} | நினைவுகள் (niṉaivugaḷ): thoughts {plural of niṉaivu} | போய் (pōy): going, departing, leaving, perishing {adverbial participle} | நான் (nāṉ): I | நான் (nāṉ): I {nāṉ nāṉ means ‘I am I’, just as nāṉ idu means ‘I am this’ and nāṉ ār means ‘I am who?’} | என (eṉa): as {literally ‘to say’, an infinitive that is often used in the sense of the adverbial participle eṉḏṟu, ‘saying’, which generally serves the same function as ‘that’, ‘thus’, ‘as’ or inverted commas in English} | குகை (guhai): cave | உள் (uḷ): inside, within | தானாய் (tāṉāy): spontaneously {tāṉ is a generic pronoun that means ‘oneself’ or ‘itself’, and āy is an adverbial participle that means ‘being’ or ‘as’, so tāṉāy literally means ‘being [or as] oneself [or itself]’, but here implies ‘by itself’ or ‘spontaneously’} | திகழும் (tihaṙum): shines | ஆன்ம (āṉma): self- {the form āṉmā takes when used as the first word in a compound, āṉmā being a Tamil form of the Sanskrit ātmā, the nominative (first case) singular form of ātman, which in this case refers to ourself as we actually are} | ஞானமே (ñāṉamē): awareness alone {ñāṉam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit jñāna, which means ‘knowledge’ or ‘awareness’, and the suffix ē is an intensifier that can be taken to mean ‘only’, ‘alone’, ‘indeed’ or ‘certainly’} || இதுவே (iduvē): this alone {idu is a proximal demonstrative pronoun, ‘this’, referring here to āṉma-ñāṉam (awareness of ourself as we actually are), and the suffix ē is an intensifier that here implies ‘only’ or ‘alone’} | மோனமே (mōṉamē): silence {mōṉam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit mauna, and here the intensifying suffix ē has no specific meaning} | ஏக (ēka): one | வானமே (vāṉamē): space | இன்ப (iṉba): happiness, joy, bliss {the form iṉbam takes when used as the first word in a compound} | தானமே (tāṉamē): place, abode {tāṉam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit sthāna, and here the intensifying suffix ē has no specific meaning}.
நானா நினைவுகள்சே ரோர்நா ரெனுமதனா
னானா ரிடமெதென்றுட் போனா னினைவுகள்போய்
நானா னெனக்குகையுட் டானாய்த் திகழுமான்ம —
ஞானமே; இதுவே மோனமே; ஏக வானமே;
இன்பத் தானமே. (ஐயே)
ūṉā ruḍaliduvē nāṉā meṉuniṉaivē
nāṉā niṉaivugaḷsē rōrnā reṉumadaṉā
ṉāṉā riḍamedeṉḏṟuṭ pōṉā ṉiṉaivugaḷpōy
nāṉā ṉeṉakkuhaiyuṭ ṭāṉāyt tihaṙumāṉma —
ñāṉamē; iduvē mōṉamē; ēka vāṉamē;
iṉbat tāṉamē. (aiyē)
பதச்சேதம்: ‘ஊன் ஆர் உடல் இதுவே நான் ஆம்’ எனும் நினைவே நானா நினைவுகள் சேர் ஓர் நார் எனும் அதனால், ‘நான் ஆர் இடம் எது?’ [அல்லது, ‘நான் ஆர்? இடம் எது?’] என்று உள் போனால், நினைவுகள் போய், ‘நான் நான்’ என குகை உள் தானாய் திகழும் ஆன்ம ஞானமே. இதுவே மோனமே, ஏக வானமே, இன்ப தானமே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Padacchēdam (word-separation): ‘ūṉ ār uḍal iduvē nāṉ ām’ eṉum niṉaivē nāṉā niṉaivugaḷ sēr ōr nār eṉum adaṉāl, nāṉ ār iḍam edu eṉḏṟu uḷ pōṉāl, niṉaivugaḷ pōy, ‘nāṉ nāṉ’ eṉa guhai uḷ tāṉāy tihaṙum āṉma-ñāṉamē. iduvē mōṉamē, ēka vāṉamē, iṉba-tāṉamē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
அன்வயம்: ‘ஊன் ஆர் உடல் இதுவே நான் ஆம்’ எனும் நினைவே நானா நினைவுகள் சேர் ஓர் நார் எனும் அதனால், ‘நான் ஆர் இடம் எது?’ (அல்லது, ‘நான் ஆர்? இடம் எது?’) என்று உள் போனால், நினைவுகள் போய், குகை உள் ‘நான் நான்’ என ஆன்ம ஞானமே தானாய் திகழும். இதுவே மோனமே, ஏக வானமே, இன்ப தானமே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Anvayam (words rearranged in natural prose order): ‘ūṉ ār uḍal iduvē nāṉ ām’ eṉum niṉaivē nāṉā niṉaivugaḷ sēr ōr nār eṉum adaṉāl, nāṉ ār iḍam edu eṉḏṟu uḷ pōṉāl, niṉaivugaḷ pōy, guhai uḷ ‘nāṉ nāṉ’ eṉa āṉma-ñāṉamē tāṉāy tihaṙum. iduvē mōṉamē, ēka vāṉamē, iṉba-tāṉamē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
English translation: Since the thought ‘this, the body composed of flesh, itself is I’ alone is the one thread to which the various thoughts are joined, if one goes within thus: what is the place from which I spread out, thoughts ceasing, in the cave ātma-jñāna alone will shine spontaneously as ‘I am I’. This alone is silence, the one space, the abode of bliss. (Ah, extremely easy, ...)
Explanatory paraphrase: Since the thought ‘this, the body composed of flesh, itself is I’ alone is the one thread to which [all] the various thoughts are joined [or on which they are all strung together], if one goes within [investigating] what is the place from which I spread out [or: who am I, what is [my] place], [all] thoughts [including the root thought, ‘I am this body’] will cease [or depart], and in the cave [of one’s heart] ātma-jñāna [pure self-awareness] alone will shine spontaneously [or as oneself] as ‘I am I’ [that is, as awareness of oneself as oneself alone]. This alone is silence, the one space [of pure awareness], the abode of bliss. ([Therefore] ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā, ah, extremely easy!).
Detailed explanation and discussion:
2023-05-16: Āṉma-Viddai verse 2: the thought ‘I am this body’ is what supports all other thoughts
Video discussion:
Other explanations and discussions:
2023-07-27: The subject that is aware of all objects is what is aware of itself as ‘I am this body’, namely ourself as ego, and without this subject no objects would seem to exist
2022-02-08: Since thought alone is the obstacle that stands in the way of our being aware of ourself as we actually are, as soon as all thoughts (including the primal thought, namely ego) are dissolved in such a manner that they can never reappear, our real nature will shine forth spontaneously, just as the sun appears spontaneously as soon as the clouds that concealed it are blown aside
2022-02-08: The one thread on which all the many and various thoughts are strung is ego, the thought or false awareness ‘I am this body’, so if one goes within investigating what is the place or source from which ego spreads (namely our real nature, which is our fundamental awareness of our own existence, ‘I am’), thoughts will cease and pure self-awareness (ātma-jñāna) will shine spontaneously as ‘I am I’
2021-11-26: The Ramaṇa mahāvākya: ‘நான் நான்’ (nāṉ nāṉ) or ‘अहम् अहम्’ (aham aham), ‘I am I’
2020-06-21: Bhagavan used the term ‘நான் நான்’ (nāṉ nāṉ), ‘I am I’, to distinguish our real adjunct-free self-awareness from our false adjunct-mixed self-awareness, namely ego, which he referred to as ‘நான் இது’ (nāṉ idu), ‘I am this’, because ‘நான் இது’ (nāṉ idu), ‘I am this’, denotes a false identity, since it is an identification of ourself with something other than ourself, namely a body consisting of five sheaths, whereas ‘நான் நான்’ (nāṉ nāṉ), ‘I am I’, denotes our real identity, since it is an identification of ourself with ourself alone
2020-04-15: All other thoughts are objects perceived by ego, whereas ego is the subject, the perceiver of them all, so no other thoughts can exist without ego, and hence ego is the one constant thought, the thread on which all other thoughts are strung
2019-09-22: ‘I am I’ is not a circular definition of ‘I’, because it refers to the clear awareness that I am nothing other than I, which is what shines forth when ego, the false awareness ‘I am this’, is destroyed
2019-08-28: ‘நான் நான்’ (nāṉ nāṉ), ‘I am I’, expresses recognition of the fact that I am nothing other than I, because when ego is eradicated, what remains in its place is just pure self-awareness (ātma-jñāna), which is never aware of itself as anything other than itself
2016-10-02: Āṉma-Viddai verse 2: what shines as ‘I am I’ is the one silent and blissful space of pure self-awareness
2016-06-19: The primary adjunct that is mixed with self-awareness to form ego is a body, so though ego is sentient and a body is an insentient thought, ego is always aware of itself as ‘I am this body’
2016-02-08: We cannot be anything that we do not experience permanently, so ‘I am only I’
2015-11-11: Āṉma-Viddai verse 2: our primal thought called ‘I’ is just the illusory experience ‘I am this body’
2014-08-15: Since we never experience the mind without experiencing ourself as a body, Bhagavan often described our primal thought called ‘I’ as the thought ‘I am this body’ (in which ‘this body’ refers to whatever body we currently experience as ourself, whether in waking or in dream)
2014-05-25: Bhagavan describes ego (this thought called ‘I’) as a thought because it is a confused mixture of what ‘I’ actually is and of various adjuncts that it (ego) now experiences as ‘I’, and all such adjuncts (beginning with the body that now seems to be ‘I’) are mere thoughts, so he also described ego as the thought called ‘I am this body’
2011-10-07: What Bhagavan means by ‘the thought called I’ is the thought ‘I am this body’
Verse 3:
தன்னை யறிதலின்றிப் பின்னை யெதறிகிலென்Padavurai (word-explanation): தன்னை (taṉṉai): oneself {accusative (second case) form of the generic pronoun tāṉ, referring here to ourself as we actually are} | அறிதல் (aṟidal): knowing {verbal noun} | இன்றி (iṉḏṟi): without | பின்னை (piṉṉai): after, further, more, besides {thereby implying ‘else’ or ‘other’} | எது (edu): which thing, what, whatever {piṉṉai edu literally means ‘what thing further’, thereby implying ‘anything else’ or ‘anything other [than oneself]’} | அறிகில் (aṟihil): if knowing {implying ‘if one knows’} | என் (eṉ): what {interrogative pronoun, used here in the sense of ‘so what?’, thereby implying ‘what is the use or value [of such knowledge]?’} || தன்னை (taṉṉai): oneself {as explained above} | அறிந்திடில் (aṟindiḍil): if knowing {implying ‘if one has known’} | பின் (piṉ): after, subsequently, then | என்னை (eṉṉai): what | உளது (uḷadu): is, exists {a poetic abbreviation of uḷḷadu, which in this case is the neuter third person singular form of uḷ, a tenseless verb that means to be or to exist} | அறிய (aṟiya): to know {infinitive of aṟi} || பின்ன (bhiṉṉa): divided, separate, different, distinct {bhiṉṉam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit bhinna, which means broken, split, torn apart, divided, separated, different, distinct or other, and bhiṉṉa is the form that bhiṉṉam takes when used as the first word in a compound} | உயிர்களில் (uyirgaḷil): in living beings, sentient beings, souls {locative (seventh case) form of uyirgaḷ, the plural form of uyir} | அபின்ன (abhiṉṉa): undivided, not separate, not different, not distinct {abhiṉṉam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit abhinna, which means unbroken, undivided, not separated, not different or not other, and abhiṉṉa is the form that abhiṉṉam takes when used as the first word in a compound} | விளக்கு (viḷakku): light, lamp | எனும் (eṉum): called, which is called {adjectival participle, in this case implying ‘which is’} | அ (a): that {distal demonstrative prefix} | தன்னை (taṉṉai): self {accusative (second case) form of the generic pronoun tāṉ, referring here to ourself as we actually are} | தனில் (taṉil): in oneself {locative (seventh case) form of the generic pronoun tāṉ} | உணர (uṇara): when one knows {literally ‘to know’ or ‘to be aware’, an infinitive that is here used idiomatically to mean ‘when [one] knows’} | மின்னும் (miṉṉum): will shine, flash, flash forth [like lightening] | தனுள் (taṉ): within oneself {taṉ is the inflectional base of the generic pronoun tāṉ (and also the form it takes when used as the first word in a compound), and uḷ is both a word that means ‘inside’ or ‘within’ and a locative (seventh case) ending meaning specifically ‘inside’ or ‘within’} | ஆன்ம (āṉma): self- {the form āṉmā takes when used as the first word in a compound, āṉmā being a Tamil form of the Sanskrit ātmā, the nominative (first case) singular form of ātman, which in this case refers to ourself as we actually are} | ப்ரகாசமே (prakāśamē): shining alone {prakāśam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit prakāśa, which means ‘shining’, ‘brightness’, ‘clarity’ or ‘light’, and the suffix ē is an intensifier that here implies ‘only’ or ‘alone’} || அருள் (aruḷ): grace, compassion, kindness, tenderness, love, benevolence {a Tamil equivalent of the Sanskrit terms karuṇā, kṛpā and anugraha} | விலாசமே (vilāsamē): shining forth, appearance, manifestation, amorous play, playfulness, flirtatiousness, seductiveness, enjoyment, beauty {an intensified form of vilāsam, a Tamil form of the Sanskrit vilāsa} | அக (aha): I, ego {the form aham takes in Tamil when used as the first word in a compound} | விநாசமே (vināśamē): complete destruction, utter annihilation {an intensified form of vināśam, a Tamil form of the Sanskrit vināśa, an intensified form of nāśa, ‘destruction’ or ‘annihilation’} | இன்ப (iṉba): happiness, joy, bliss {the form iṉbam takes when used as the first word in a compound} | விகாசமே (vikāsamē): blossoming, blooming, expanding, opening {an intensified form of vikāsam, a Tamil form of the Sanskrit vikāsa}.
றன்னை யறிந்திடிற்பின் னென்னை யுளதறிய
பின்ன வுயிர்களில பின்ன விளக்கெனுமத்
தன்னைத் தனிலுணர மின்னுந் தனுளான்ம —
ப்ரகாசமே; அருள் விலாசமே; அக விநாசமே;
இன்ப விகாசமே. (ஐயே)
taṉṉai yaṟidaliṉḏṟip piṉṉai yedaṟihileṉ
ḏṟaṉṉai yaṟindiḍiṟpiṉ ṉeṉṉai yuḷadaṟiya
bhiṉṉa vuyirgaḷila bhiṉṉa viḷakkeṉumat
taṉṉait taṉiluṇara miṉṉun taṉuḷāṉma —
prakāśamē; aruḷ vilāsamē; aha vināśamē;
iṉba vikāsamē. (aiyē)
பதச்சேதம்: தன்னை அறிதல் இன்றி, பின்னை எது அறிகில் என்? தன்னை அறிந்திடில், பின் என்னை உளது அறிய? பின்ன உயிர்களில் அபின்ன விளக்கு எனும் அத் தன்னை தனில் உணர, மின்னும் தன் உள் ஆன்ம ப்ரகாசமே. அருள் விலாசமே, அக விநாசமே, இன்ப விகாசமே. (ஐயே, அதி சலபம், ...)
Padacchēdam (word-separation): taṉṉai aṟidal iṉḏṟi, piṉṉai edu aṟihil eṉ? taṉṉai aṟindiḍil, piṉ eṉṉai uḷadu aṟiya? bhiṉṉa uyirgaḷil abhiṉṉa viḷakku eṉum a-t-taṉṉai taṉil uṇara, miṉṉum taṉ uḷ āṉma-prakāśamē. aruḷ vilāsamē, aha vināśamē, iṉba vikāsamē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
அன்வயம்: தன்னை அறிதல் இன்றி, பின்னை எது அறிகில் என்? தன்னை அறிந்திடில், பின் அறிய என்னை உளது? பின்ன உயிர்களில் அபின்ன விளக்கு எனும் அத் தன்னை தனில் உணர, தன் உள் ஆன்ம ப்ரகாசமே மின்னும். அருள் விலாசமே, அக விநாசமே, இன்ப விகாசமே. (ஐயே, அதி சலபம், ...)
Anvayam (words rearranged in natural prose order): taṉṉai aṟidal iṉḏṟi, piṉṉai edu aṟihil eṉ? taṉṉai aṟindiḍil, piṉ aṟiya eṉṉai uḷadu? bhiṉṉa uyirgaḷil abhiṉṉa viḷakku eṉum a-t-taṉṉai taṉil uṇara, taṉ uḷ āṉma-prakāśamē miṉṉum. aruḷ vilāsamē, aha vināśamē, iṉba vikāsamē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
English translation: Without knowing oneself, if one knows whatever else, what? If one has known oneself, then what exists to know? When one knows in oneself that self, which is the undivided light in separate sentient beings, within oneself the shining of oneself alone will flash forth. The shining forth of grace; the annihilation of ego; the blossoming of happiness. (Ah, extremely easy, ...)
Explanatory paraphrase: Without knowing oneself, if one knows whatever else, [so] what? [That is, how can such knowledge be reliable, so how can it have any real value?] If one has known oneself, then what [else] exists to know? When one knows in oneself that self [one’s real nature], which is the undivided light [the light that shines without bhinna: division, separation, difference or distinction] in separate [divided, different or distinct] sentient beings [or souls], within oneself ātma-prakāśa [the shining, clarity or light of oneself] alone will flash forth [like lightening]. [This is] aruḷ-vilāsa [the shining forth, amorous play or beauty of grace], aha-vināśa [the annihilation of ego], iṉba-vikāsa [the blossoming of happiness]. ([Therefore] ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā, ah, extremely easy!)
Detailed explanation and discussion:
2023-07-27: Āṉma-Viddai verse 3: knowledge of all other things is caused by ignorance of ourself
Video discussion:
Other explanations and discussions:
2023-05-16: There is no real value in knowing anything other than ourself, particularly when we do not even know what we ourself actually are, and when we do know ourself as we actually are, nothing else will exist for us to know, so since all thoughts are about things other than ourself, they must all cease in such a way that they never rise again in order for us to know ourself as we actually are and thereby to experience the infinite happiness that is our own real nature
2022-03-31: Separation and differences are not real, because they seem to exist only so long as we look outwards, away from ourself, but they all disappear when we turn our entire attention back within to see what we actually are
2020-03-09: So long as we are aware of anything other than ourself, we are not aware of ourself as we actually are, because what we actually are is just pure awareness, other than which nothing exists for us to know or be aware of
2020-01-16: When we are aware of ourself as we actually are, nothing else will exist for us to perceive, as Bhagavan clearly implies in the second sentence of this verse
2019-01-31: Without knowing the truth of ourself, the perceiver, how can we know the truth of whatever we perceive?
Verse 4:
கன்மா திகட்டவிழ சென்மா திநட்டமெழPadavurai (word-explanation): கன்மாதி (kaṉmādi): action-beginning, what begins with action, beginning with action, action and so on {a compound of two words: kaṉma, a Tamil form of the Sanskrit word karma , ‘action’; and ādi, ‘beginning’, which at the end of a compound means ‘what begins with’, ‘beginning with’, ‘and so on’ or ‘and such like’} | கட்டு (kaṭṭu): bond, tie, binding | அவிழ (aviṙa): to be loosened, to be untied, to be opened, to soften, to melt {infinitive of aviṙ, used here to express purpose: ‘for the bonds to be untied’} | சென்மாதி (jeṉmādi): birth-beginning, what begins with birth, beginning with birth, birth and so on {a compound of two words: jeṉma, a Tamil form of the Sanskrit word janma, ‘birth’; and ādi, ‘beginning’} | நட்டம் (naṭṭam): loss, ruin, devastation, destruction {a Tamil noun formed of the Sanskrit past participle naṣṭa, ‘lost’, ‘ruined’, ‘spoilt’, ‘destroyed’} | எழ (eṙa): to rise, to ascend, to arise, to rise from, to come back to life, to be revived, to be resurrected {infinitive of eṙu, used here to express purpose} | எ (e): what, which {interrogative prefix, used here in the sense of ‘whatever’, ‘whatsoever’ or ‘any’} | மார்க்கம் (mārggam): path, track, road, way, means {a Tamil form of the Sanskrit word mārga} | அதனினும் (adaṉiṉum): than that, rather than that, more than that {a comparative form of the distal demonstrative pronoun adu, ‘that’, appended here to e-m-mārggam to form a compound meaning ‘than whatever path’ and implying ‘rather [or more] than any other path whatsoever’} | இ (i): this {proximal demonstrative prefix} | மார்க்கம் (mārggam): path | மிக்கு (mikku): very, exceedingly, extremely | எளிது (eḷidu): what is easy || சொல் (sol): word, speech | மானத (māṉada): mind | தனுவின் (taṉuviṉ): of body {sol-māṉada-taṉuviṉ is a genitive (sixth case) form of the compound sol-māṉada-taṉu, ‘speech-mind-body’, so it means ‘of mind, speech or body’} | கன்மாதி (kaṉmādi): action-beginning, what begins with action, action and so on {a compound of two words: kaṉma, ‘action’; and ādi, ‘beginning’; but in this context kaṉmādi implies ‘action of any kind’ or ‘any action whatsoever’} | சிறிது (siṟidu): what is small, what is slight, the least | இன்றி (iṉḏṟi): without | சும்மா (summā): just, merely, quietly, silently, calmly, peacefully, restfully, leisurely, without rising, without doing {adverb} | அமர்ந்து (amarndu): resting, reposing, settling, abiding, remaining {adverbial participle} | இருக்க (irukka): when one is {literally ‘to be’, an infinitive that is here used idiomatically to mean ‘when one is’} | அம்மா (ammā): ah {exclamation} | அகத்தில் (ahattil): in the heart {locative (seventh case) form of aham, ‘inside’, ‘heart’, ‘home’} | ஆன்ம (āṉma): oneself {a Tamil form of ātma, which is the form ātman takes when used as the first word in a compound} | சோதியே (jōtiyē): light alone {an intensified form of jōti, a Tamil form of jyōti, ‘light’} || நித (nita): constant, continuous, perpetual, eternal, everlasting {a Tamil form of nitya} | அனுபூதியே (aṉubhūtiyē): experience, awareness, knowledge {an intensified form of anubhūti} || இராது (irādu): is not, does not exist {third person singular tenseless negative of iru, ‘be’ or ‘exist’} | பீதியே (bhītiyē): fear {an intensified form of bhīti} || இன்ப (iṉba): happiness, joy, bliss {the form iṉbam takes when used as the first word in a compound} | அம்போதியே (ambhōdhiyē): ocean alone {an intensified form of ambhōdhi, ‘ocean’}.
வெம்மார்க் கமதனினு மிம்மார்க் கமிக்கெளிது
சொன்மா னததனுவின் கன்மா திசிறிதின்றிச்
சும்மா வமர்ந்திருக்க வம்மா வகத்திலான்ம —
சோதியே; நிதானு பூதியே; இராது பீதியே;
இன்பவம் போதியே. (ஐயே)
kaṉmā dikaṭṭaviṙa jeṉmā dinaṭṭameṙa
vemmārg gamadaṉiṉu mimmārg gamikkeḷidu
soṉmā ṉadadaṉuviṉ kaṉmā disiṟidiṉḏṟic
cummā vamarndirukka vammā vahattilāṉma —
jyōtiyē; nitāṉu bhūtiyē; irādu bhītiyē;
iṉbavam bhōdhiyē. (aiyē)
பதச்சேதம்: கன்மாதி கட்டு அவிழ, சென்மாதி நட்டம் எழ, எம் மார்க்கம் அதனினும் இம் மார்க்கம் மிக்கு எளிது. சொல் மானத தனுவின் கன்மாதி சிறிது இன்றி சும்மா அமர்ந்து இருக்க, அம்மா, அகத்தில் ஆன்ம சோதியே; நித அனுபூதியே; இராது பீதியே; இன்ப அம்போதியே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Padacchēdam (word-separation): kaṉma-ādi kaṭṭu aviṙa, jeṉma-ādi naṭṭam eṙa, e-m-mārggam-adaṉiṉum i-m-mārggam mikku eḷidu. sol māṉada taṉuviṉ kaṉma-ādi siṟidu iṉḏṟi summā amarndu irukka, ammā, ahattil āṉma-jyōtiyē; nita āṉubhūtiyē; irādu bhītiyē; iṉba ambhōdhiyē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
அன்வயம்: கன்மாதி கட்டு அவிழ, சென்மாதி நட்டம் எழ, எம் மார்க்கம் அதனினும் இம் மார்க்கம் மிக்கு எளிது. மானத சொல் தனுவின் கன்மாதி சிறிது இன்றி சும்மா அமர்ந்து இருக்க, அம்மா, அகத்தில் ஆன்ம சோதியே; நித அனுபூதியே; பீதியே இராது; இன்ப அம்போதியே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Anvayam (words rearranged in natural prose order): kaṉma-ādi kaṭṭu aviṙa, jeṉma-ādi naṭṭam eṙa, e-m-mārggam-adaṉiṉum i-m-mārggam mikku eḷidu. māṉada sol taṉuviṉ kaṉma-ādi siṟidu iṉḏṟi summā amarndu irukka, ammā, ahattil āṉma-jyōtiyē; nita āṉubhūtiyē; bhītiyē irādu; iṉba ambhōdhiyē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
English translation: For the bonds beginning with action to be untied, to rise from the devastation beginning with birth, more than whatever path, this path is what is exceedingly easy. When one just is, resting without the least action of mind, speech or body, ah, in the heart the light of oneself alone. The eternal experience. Fear does not exist. The ocean of bliss alone. (Ah, extremely easy, ...)
Explanatory paraphrase: For the bonds beginning with karma [that is, the bonds of action and of all that results from it] to be untied, and to rise [or be resurrected] from the devastation beginning with birth [that is, to transcend and become free from the miseries of embodied existence, which begins with birth and ends with death], more than whatever [other] path, this path [of ātma-vicāra] is what is exceedingly easy. When one just is, resting [calmly as pure awareness] without the least karma [action] of mind, speech or body, ah, in [one’s] heart the light of oneself alone [will shine forth clearly as ‘I am I’]. [Having thereby drowned and lost oneself (namely ego) forever in this perfectly peaceful and infinitely clear state of pure awareness, it will be clear that this is one’s] eternal experience. Fear does not [or will not] exist. The ocean of [infinite] bliss alone [will remain]. ([Therefore] ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā, ah, extremely easy!)
Detailed explanation and discussion:
2023-11-08: Āṉma-Viddai verse 4: self-investigation is the easiest of all paths, because it is not doing but just being
Video discussion:
Other explanations and discussions:
2023-12-07: Nothing can be easier than just being as we actually are, because in order to see that we are always as we actually are, all we need do is look at ourself very carefully
2023-12-07: Since grace is always shining in our heart as our own being, ‘I am’, all that is necessary is for us to avail ourself of its ever-available help by yielding ourself to its inward pull and thereby just being as we actually are, resting without the least action of mind, speech or body, so ‘more than whatever path, this path is exceedingly easy’
2020-03-31: Āṉma-Viddai verse 4: how can we just be without even the least action of mind, speech or body?
2020-03-12: Just being self-attentive is extremely simple, because that it is a state of perfect oneness, in which one thing is attending to nothing other than itself, and also extremely easy, so if it seems difficult, that is only because our liking to attend to other things is still much stronger than our liking just to be self-attentive
2014-04-11: What one really is is something that is clearly and perfectly self-aware, so ‘remaining still and being simply what one really is’ means just being calmly and clearly self-aware without any action of mind, speech or body
2014-03-20: Bhagavan taught that ātma-vicāra is not only the only means by which we can experience ourself as we really are, but is also the easiest of all kinds of spiritual practice, so it is suitable for anyone who genuinely wants to know what they really are
Verse 5:
விண்ணா தியவிளக்குங் கண்ணா தியபொறிக்குங்Padavurai (word-explanation): விண் (viṇ): sky, space | ஆதிய (ādiya): beginning with, what begins with | விளக்கும் (viḷakkum): which illumine, cause to shine, make clear, make known {adjectival participle} | கண் (kaṇ): eye | ஆதிய (ādiya): beginning with, which begin with | பொறிக்கும் (poṟikkum): to all the sense organs {poṟikku is a dative (fourth case) form of poṟi, ‘sense organ’, and in this context the suffix um implies ‘entire’, ‘complete’ or ‘all’} | கண் (kaṇ): eye | ஆம் (ām): which is {adjectival participle} | மன (maṉa): mind {maṉam is a Tamil form of the Sanskrit manas, ‘mind’, and maṉa is the form it takes when used as the first word in a compound, so maṉa-k-kaṇ means ‘mind-eye’, implying the ‘eye’ that is mind} | கணுக்கும் (kaṇukkum): even to the eye {kaṇukku is a dative (fourth case) form of kaṇ, ‘eye’, and in this context the suffix um implies ‘even’} | கண் (kaṇ): eye | ஆய் (āy): being, as {adverbial participle} | மன (maṉa): mind | விணுக்கும் (viṇukkum): even to the space {viṇukku is a dative (fourth case) form of viṇ, ‘space’, and in this context the suffix um implies ‘even’} | விண் (viṇ): space | ஆய் (āy): being, as | ஒரு (oru): one | பொருள் (poruḷ): substance {a Tamil equivalent of the Sanskrit vastu, which means ‘substance’ in the sense of the real and ultimate substance or fundamental reality, the only thing that actually exists, from which all other things borrow their seeming existence} | வேறு (vēṟu): what is other, different, separate | எண்ணாது (eṇṇādu): not thinking {negative adverbial participle} | இருந்தபடி (irundapaḍi): as it was, as it is | உள் (uḷ): inside, within | நாடு (nāḍu): investigate {the root of this verb, used here in the sense of an adjectival participle and therefore implying ‘investigating’ or ‘which investigates’} | உளத்து (uḷattu): in the heart, in the mind {the inflectional base of uḷam, a poetic abbreviation of ulḷam, ‘heart’ or ‘mind’, used here as a locative (seventh case) form of it} | ஒளிரும் (oḷirum): shining, which shines {adjectival participle} | அண்ணாமலை (aṇṇāmalai): Annamalai {a Tamil name of Arunachala} | என் (eṉ): say {the root of this verb, used here in the sense of an adjectival participle and therefore implying ‘called’ or ‘which is called’; eṉ is also the inflectional base of the first person singular pronoun and is often used as a genitive (sixth case) form of it, so it can also mean ‘my’} | ஆன்மா (āṉmā): self, oneself {a Tamil form of both ātman and ātmā (the nominative singular of ātman)} | காணுமே (kāṇumē): will certainly be seen {kāṇum means both ‘it will see’ (active voice) and ‘it will be seen’ (middle voice), and the suffix ē is an intensifier that in this case implies ‘certainly’, ‘actually’ or ‘indeed’} || அருளும் (aruḷum): grace also {aruḷ means ‘grace’, and in this context the suffix um implies ‘also’ or can be taken to be a poetic expletive} | வேணுமே (vēṇumē): is certainly necessary {vēṇum means ‘it is necessary’, and the suffix ē is an intensifier that in this case implies ‘certainly’} || அன்பு (aṉbu): love | பூணுமே (pūṇumē): wear, put on, be adorned with, be bound with, be possessed of, undertake || இன்பு (iṉbu): happiness, bliss, joy | தோணுமே (tōṇumē): will certainly appear.
கண்ணா மனக்கணுக்குங் கண்ணாய் மனவிணுக்கும்
விண்ணா யொருபொருள்வே றெண்ணா திருந்தபடி
யுண்ணா டுளத்தொளிரு மண்ணா மலையெனான்மா —
காணுமே; அருளும் வேணுமே; அன்பு பூணுமே;
இன்பு தோணுமே. (ஐயே)
viṇṇā diyaviḷakkuṅ kaṇṇā diyapoṟikkuṅ
kaṇṇā maṉakkaṇukkuṅ kaṇṇāy maṉaviṇukkum
viṇṇā yoruporuḷvē ṟeṇṇā dirundapaḍi
yuṇṇā ḍuḷattoḷiru maṇṇā malaiyeṉāṉmā —
kāṇumē; aruḷum vēṇumē; aṉbu pūṇumē;
iṉbu tōṇumē. (aiyē)
பதச்சேதம்: விண் ஆதிய விளக்கும் கண் ஆதிய பொறிக்கும் கண் ஆம் மனக் கணுக்கும் கண் ஆய், மன விணுக்கும் விண் ஆய் ஒரு பொருள் வேறு எண்ணாது இருந்தபடி உள் நாடு உளத்து ஒளிரும் அண்ணாமலை என் ஆன்மா காணுமே. அருளும் வேணுமே. அன்பு பூணுமே. இன்பு தோணுமே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Padacchēdam (word-separation): viṇ ādiya viḷakkum kaṇ ādiya poṟikkum kaṇ ām maṉa-k-kaṇukkum kaṇ āy, maṉa-viṇukkum viṇ āy oru poruḷ vēṟu eṇṇādu irundapaḍi uḷ nāḍu uḷattu oḷirum aṇṇāmalai eṉ āṉmā kāṇumē. aruḷum vēṇumē. aṉbu pūṇumē. iṉbu tōṇumē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
அன்வயம்: வேறு எண்ணாது இருந்தபடி உள் நாடு உளத்து, விண் ஆதிய விளக்கும் கண் ஆதிய பொறிக்கும் கண் ஆம் மனக் கணுக்கும் கண் ஆய், மன விணுக்கும் விண் ஆய் ஒளிரும் ஒரு பொருள் அண்ணாமலை என் ஆன்மா காணுமே. அருளும் வேணுமே. அன்பு பூணுமே. இன்பு தோணுமே. (ஐயே, அதி சுலபம், ...)
Anvayam (words rearranged in natural prose order): vēṟu eṇṇādu irundapaḍi uḷ nāḍu uḷattu, viṇ ādiya viḷakkum kaṇ ādiya poṟikkum kaṇ ām maṉa-k-kaṇukkum kaṇ āy, maṉa-viṇukkum viṇ āy oru poruḷ oḷirum aṇṇāmalai eṉ āṉmā kāṇumē. aruḷum vēṇumē. aṉbu pūṇumē. iṉbu tōṇumē. (aiyē, ati sulabham, ...)
English translation: In the heart that investigates within, as it is without thinking of anything other, oneself, which is called Annamalai, the one substance, which shines as the eye even to the mind-eye, which is the eye to all the sense organs beginning with eyes, which illumine what begins with space, and as the space even to the mind-space, will certainly be seen. Grace also is certainly necessary. Be adorned with love. Happiness will certainly appear. (Ah, extremely easy, ...)
Explanatory paraphrase: In the uḷḷam [heart or mind] that investigates within, [just being] as it is without thinking of anything other [than itself], ātmā [oneself], which is called Annamalai, the one poruḷ [real substance], which shines as the eye even to the mind-eye, which is the eye to all the [five] sense organs beginning with eyes, which illumine [the five elements] beginning with space, and as the space even to the mind-space, will certainly be seen. [For one to see oneself as one actually is] grace also is certainly necessary. [In order to be a suitable receptacle to imbibe grace, one should] be adorned with [bound by or possessed of] love [for seeing and thereby just being as one actually is]. [Infinite] happiness will [then] certainly appear [or be experienced]. ([Therefore] ah, extremely easy, ātma-vidyā, ah, extremely easy!)
Detailed explanation and discussion:
2023-12-07: Āṉma-Viddai verse 5: in the heart that looks within without thinking of anything else, oneself will be seen
Video discussion:
Other explanations and discussions:
2022-10-27: Since the mind is able to perceive the world through the eyes and other sense organs only because it is endowed with a semblance of awareness, and since it is endowed with such awareness only because it is illumined by the original light of pure awareness, which is Arunachala, he describes Arunachala (Annamalai) in this verse as ‘மனக் கணுக்கும் கண்’ (maṉa-k-kaṇukkum kaṇ), ‘the eye to the mind-eye’
2022-03-10: ‘Grace also is certainly necessary. Be adorned with love. Happiness will certainly appear’, and as he often said, ‘Bhakti is the mother of jñāna’, which implies that all-consuming and heart-melting love (bhakti) is the sole means by which we can know and be what we actually are
2020-01-16: Āṉma-Viddai verse 5: mind (in the sense of ego) is both the space in which all phenomena appear and the eye in whose view alone they appear
2020-01-16: The ‘மன விண்’ (maṉa viṇ) or ‘mind-space’ that he refers to here is the mind’s field of awareness, into which it projects all phenomena, so its projection and perception of them are one and the same thing, which is why he taught us dṛṣṭi-sṛṣṭi-vāda, the contention (vāda) that perception (dṛṣṭi) itself is creation (sṛṣṭi)
2019-08-01: Āṉma-Viddai verse 5: grace is also necessary, but it is already inside us, so it is always available to us if we have sufficient love to surrender ourself to it
2016-03-01: To experience ourself as we actually are is extremely easy, but we must cultivate all-consuming love in order to succeed
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