Gratitude

Thiruppallāṇḍu & Periyāzhvār Thirumozhi

Periyāzhvār was a humble gardener of Srivilliputhur who wove garlands for the Lord each day. When he was honoured before a king, his first instinct was not pride but fear — fear that the world's evil eye might fall on his beloved God. So he sang the Thiruppallāṇḍu, a blessing upon the Lord himself: “Many, many years to you!” It is the rare hymn where the devotee, like a doting parent, worries for the safety of the Divine. The Periya Thirumozhi that follows watches Krishna grow up through a mother's eyes — his cradle, his mischief, his first steps.

Kaṇṇinuṇ Siṛuthāmbu

Madhurakavi Āzhvār is unique among the Alvars: he sang not of the Lord but of his teacher, Nammāzhvār. Eleven verses pour out a disciple's gratitude — that through his master's grace alone the divine became real to him. It is the Prabandham's quiet teaching that the way to God runs through the one who shows him to you.