Narayaneeyam

bhattathiri

Tamarapu Sampath Kumaran

 About the Author:

Mr T Sampath Kumaran is a freelance writer. He regularly contributes articles on

Management, Business, Ancient Temples and Temple Architecture to many
leading Dailies and Magazines. His articles for the young is very popular in “The
Young World section” of THE HINDU. His books on Hindu Saints, and Temples
of Pilgrimage centers have been well received in the religious circle.
He was associated in the production of two Documentary films on Nava Tirupathi
Temples, and Tirukkurungudi Temple in Tamilnadu.

Acknowledgement:
Inspired by listening to the discourse of Sri Sengalipuram Anantharama
Deekshitar, and the musical presentation of Narayaneeyam by Srimathi Meena
Vaikunt, I am motivated to present this e-book to the benefit of the younger
generation.
Google for the pictures and several authors for the information of the temple.
 There are many spiritual and religious books of
significance in the Hindu religion. One such book is the Narayaneeyam
written by Melpatoor Narayana Bhattathiri. Born in a small village of the state
of Kerala, Bhattathiri was a great devotee of Lord Krishna of Guruvayur
Temple. In his devotion, he created the most heart-touching and soothing
version of the Srimad Bhagvata Purana.
Narayaneeyam is the story of Lord Narayana, consisting of 1034 slokas or verses,
divided into 100 dasakams or chapters, each dasakam consisting of approximately
10 slokas. It is a condensed version of Bhagavata Purana, which consists of 18,000
slokas authored by Veda Vyasa. It is said that the work has the blessings of Lord
Krishna or Guruvayurappan, the presiding Deity of Guruvayur.
Narayaneeyam narrates a series of episodes from the Bhagavata Purana, choosing
the most pious of the lot. The incarnations of Vishnu are traced with piety.
Bhattathiri transforms the episodes into solemn prayers, pouring out his soul in total
supplication before the Lord. The final dasaka, “Kesadipaada Varnanam”, embodies
top-to-toe picture of little Krishna in all grace and glory.
Both as a poem and as a devotional hymn, Narayaneeyam occupies a very high
place in Sanskrit literature.
Narayaneeyam is famous for its capability to cure diseases. The "Parayana" of
Narayaneeyam is believed to possess the wonderful power of healing afflictions,
both mental and physical, of the devotees. The "Nithyaparayana” of Narayaneeyam
will enable the devotees to attain " Ayurarogyasoukhyam”
Legend of Guruvayur Temple

Guruvayurappan is the presiding deity of Guruvayur temple, who is being

worshiped as Shri Krishna in His child form, also known as “Guruvayur
Unnikkannan.” Even though the deity is that of chaturbahu Vishnu, the concept of
the people is that the deity is the infant form of Lord Krishna. The deity represents
the full manifestation revealed by baby Krishna to his Parents Vasudeva and
Devaki immediately after His advent in the prison.
The word Guruvayurappan, meaning Lord of Guruvayur, comes from the
words Guru referring to Brihaspati, the Guru of the Devas, and Vayu, the God of
Wind and Appan , meaning 'father' or 'Lord' in Malayalam. Since Guru and Vayu
installed Krishna's deity, the name Guruvayurappan was given to the deity.
It is believed that the idol of Guruvayurappan was worshipped by Vasudeva and
Devaki, the parents of Krishna, and represents the full manifestation of Vishnu,
and later was worshipped by Krishna, an Avatar of Vishnu Himself.
Legends have it that the deity is 5000 years old although there are no historical
records. The story goes that the idol, carved out of a sacred material
called “Pathalanjana Sila” was once worshipped by Maha Vishnu and handed over
to Brahma. After many generations it was worshipped by Sri Krishna’s parents
Vasudeva and Devaki and later installed in Dwaraka and worshipped by Krishna
himself.

Before giving up his body Krishna handed over this Idol to his foremost disciple
Uddhava and instructed him to hand it over to Brihaspati, Guru of the Devas so
that it may be installed in a suitable place and worshipped during Kaliyuga. While
Dwarka was submerged in a deluge, Brihaspati with his prime disciple Vayu, the
lord of the wind managed to retrieve the idol.

While looking for a suitable place to install the idol they met Parasuram who was
also searching for the idol. Parasuram led Guru and Vayu to a lush green spot
behind a beautiful lake. The Yogi God Shiva and his consort Parvati who were
spending time there in contemplation permitted Guru and Vayu to install and
consecrate the idol there. From then on, the place came to be known as Guruvayur.

After hearing this, Brihaspati called Viswakarma, the divine architect and told him
to construct a temple for the deity. Vishwakarma constructed the temple within
minutes, with all the necessary components. Brihaspati and Vayu installed the idol
with all necessary rituals. Lord Shiva performed the first pooja to the deity.
Demigods headed by Indra showered flowers. Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati,
who were present throughout the divine moment, later shifted themselves
to Mammiyur, a place on the opposite bank of the lake, where they appeared as a
Swayambhu Linga. Since the idol was installed by Brihaspati and Vayu, the place
came to be known as Guruvayur, and the deity came to be known as
Guruvayurappan, meaning 'The Lord of Guruvayur'. It is considered that Lord
Vishnu resides here with his full power as in Vaikunta, and thus the place is called
'Bhooloka Vaikunta'. A darshan here is complete only by worshipping Lord Shiva
in Mammiyur.
The story is told in detail in the section 'Gurupavanapura Mahatmyam'
from Narada Purana.
King Parikshit, the grandson of Arjuna and the son of Abhimanyu, died of a bite by
the poisonous snake Takshaka, due to a curse which fell upon him.
King Janamejaya, his son, wanted to avenge his father's death by killing all the
snakes, including Takshaka, and for that, he conducted a fierce yajna called
'Sarpastra' (Snake sacrifice). Thousands of innocent snakes died in the yajna fire,
but Takshaka could not be killed because he had drunk “amrit”. Due to this act,
Janamejaya was affected by the curse of snakes, and got affected by leprosy. He
tried numerous ways to cure his disease, but none of them worked. He lost his hope
to live. At that time, sage Atreya came to visit him and told him to worship Lord
Mahavishnu in Guruvayur, reveling him the glory of the temple.
Upon this Janamejaya proceeded to Guruvayur along with his family and stayed
there worshipping the Lord and also Lord Shiva at Mammyur with deep
obeisances. Finally, on the day before the end of his worship, he had a darshan of
Lord Krishna, after which his disease was cured.

Construction of the temple

Once an astrologer told a Pandya king that he was destined to die from a cobra bite
on a day. He also advised the king to go and pray before Guruvayurappan. The
king spent years in meditation and prayer at the feet of the deity. One day, the King
realized that the time of his death had passed. He came back to his palace and
asked the astrologer why the prediction was wrong. The wise man showed the king
the mark on his left foot where the cobra had bitten him. Since the king was wholly
absorbed in the Lord, who alone can dispense with fate, he did not feel the sting. In
gratitude, the King built the temple at Guruvayur and set apart funds for the daily
routine of the temple. Most of the current temple building dates to the 16th and
17th centuries, although rich devotees funded extensions and additions later. The
deepastamba (column of lights) was erected in 1836 by a devotee from
Thiruvananthapuram. The temple has gopurams in the east and the west. The
eastern gopuram has an inscription which refers to the town as "Gurupavanapura".
The western gopuram was built in 1747.

Legend has it that, the rites in the temple were originally prescribed by Sri Adi
Shankaracharya. The most striking thing about the temple is that elephants are
still an integral part of the regular rituals while in the other temples of Kerala,
they are used only at the time of festivals.
The 10-day Guruvayur festival signifies the occasion of restoration of divine
Chaitanya (conscious). An elephant race inaugurates the festival. This is a unique
event. The winning elephant is conferred with the honor of carrying the idol of
the deity. The Guruvayur festival also showcases the cultural heritage of the
region as the locals perform the traditional dances and music. The enticing dance
dramas based on the myths and legends of Lord Krishna's life are regular
proceedings during the festival days.

The sahasra deepa alankaram and the floral decoration during “onam” are major
attraction to the devotees.

Narayana Bhattathiri
Narayana Bhattathiri, was born during 1560 A.D. in a Namboothiri Brahmin family
of Kerala, at a place close to the famous temple at Tirunavayi, on the banks of river
Bharatpuzha. His father taught him the Mimamsa and the various Sastras, and he is
said to have mastered the ancient Hindu scriptures, Vedas, Vedangas, etc and studied
Mimamsa, Vyakarana (grammar), Tarka (logic), and other subjects, all by the age of
sixteen years. He married at the age of 18, the niece of Achuta Pisharadi, a celebrated
grammarian.
Bhattathiri after marriage became very lazy and ignored even his Nithya Anushtana
– the daily rituals, and it was surprising to find his attitude by Pisharadi. Bhattathiri
would be sleeping when Pisharadi’s classes were going on. One day Achyuta
Pisharadi scolded Bhattathiri in the presence of his students for his irreligious life. It
touched his heart very much and as a result, he then and there accepted Achyuta
Pisharadi as his Guru. He learnt from him Sanskrit Grammar. This was a turning
point in Bhattatiri's life. His outlook in life changed completely and he became a
serious student.
During this time Achyuta Pisharadi fell a victim to a severe attack of paralysis and
suffered unbearable pain. Bhattathiri, the devoted disciple could not bear the
suffering of his Guru. He, therefore, fervently prayed that the disease may be
transferred to him and his Guru freed of suffering. Bhattathiri accepted the
"Karmavipaka Dana" by which the sins of his Guru were transferred to him. It
happened as he wanted and soon while Pisharadi recovered, the disease made
Bhattathiri a cripple. Since a "Bhajanam" in the temple of Guruvayur was considered
as a sure cure for paralysis, Bhattatiri went to Guruvayur to conduct “Bhajanam" for
100 days of along with his younger brother, Mathrudatta. Before he went the famous
Malayalam writer Tunchat Ezhuthachan advised him "to start with the fish".
Bhattathiri understood the inner meaning of this advice. He wrote the famous hymn
"Narayaneeyam" describing the Avatars of Vishnu starting with "fish",i.e. Matsya
Avatar.

He chose to write poetry eulogizing the Glory of Lord

Narayana. His Sankalpam was to write in brief the entire Vyasa’s Srimad
Bhagavatham which contained 18000 slokas. As he was a scholar in Rig Veda he
chose to write his poetry with different chandas, swaras. meters, and with each
block containing 10 slokas in general. Though with enthusiasm he completed the
first two dasakams, his crippling disease prevented him from continuing. It is
reported that his young brother Matru Dattan Namboodiri who was nursing him,
helped him in writing and copying the slokas. From the third Dasakam onwards in
each of the Dasakam, Bhattathiri’s prayer to God to cure his disease was included.
Bhattathiri, completed condensed version of the Srimad Bhagavatham in 100 days
in 1034 slokas. Soon he completed this beautiful Sanskrit literary work with all the
ingredients such as Sthoola Sooshma meanings, Roopa, Bhava, different Chandas
and Sabdha Silpams etc. and submitted to the Lord of Guruvayur. During the
hundred days of his Bhajanam at the temple of Guruvayur he summarized the entire
Bhagavata Purana in 1034 verses at the rate of one Dasaka consisting generally of
ten verses every day. Each Dasaka ended with a prayer to the Lord of Guruvayur to
cure him of his illness. It is reported that Narayana Bhattathiri had a vision of the
Lord, on the hundredth day in the form of Venugopala. The 100th canto composed
on that day gives a graphic description of this form of the Lord from the head to the
foot. Seeing the Lord before him he chanted the last 10 slokas glorifying His each
and every part of body which is called KESADI PAADA VARNANA.
Legend has it that the Lord signified his approval and acceptance of the poem by
providing inspiration to the poet whenever he was at a loss for words. While
dealing with the Lord's incarnation as Narasimha, the poet could not visualise his
form. There upon the Lord himself took the form as Narasimha, springing out of a
pillar. The Lord himself enacted Krishna dancing on the Kaliya, and the Kaliya
mardhanam slokas in the Narayaneeyam are set to the same tempo as Sri Krishna's
dance. According to Bhagavatham, Sri Krishna, as a child, broke a pot with a
grinding stone whereas Bhattathiri wrote that Sri Krishna had broken it with a
churning stick. While he was grieving that he got it wrong, the Lord himself said
that he had broken the pot both with the churning stick and the grinding stone.
In the last dasaka,"Agre pashyami" (HIM I SEE BEFORE ME), on the Ekadasi
day the poet has given an inspired and inspiring vision of Srikrishna as Venugopal
shown to him by the Lord.
This Great Kavya of Naarayaneeyam was completed by him in 100 days at the age
of 27, in the year 1587. That day was 27th day of Vruchikam month corresponding
to (Karthika Masa). On that day he became completely cured of his disease. This
immortal composition, Narayaneeyam, is so named for two reasons as mentioned by
the poet himself in the 100th canto. It is about Lord Narayana and secondly because
it was composed by Narayana Bhattatiri.
Bhattathiri’s end came in the year 1646 at the age of 86. while praying at Mukkola
Bagavathi Temple.

The ‘Parayana' of Narayaneeyam is believed to possess the wonderful power of

healing afflictions, both mental and physical, of the devotees. The personal
experiences of the poet himself have proved this beyond doubt. The
"Nithyaparayana” of Narayaneeyam will enable the devotees to attain
“Ayurarogyasoukhyam”.

" OM NAMO BHAGAVATHE VAASUDEVAYA "

Miracles of Guruvayoorappan

Krishnanattam

King Manaveda told Vilwamangalam about his ambition to view Krishna. The
next day the Swamy told him that Guruvayurappan has given his consent and
Manavedan can see Guruvayurappan playing in the early hours of the morning at
the platform of the Elanji tree. He could only see and not touch Krishna. As per
this agreement, Manavedan saw Guruvayurappan in the form of little child Sri
Krishna, he was so excited that he forgot himself and, rushed to embrace little
Krishna. Guruvayoorappan immediately disappeared saying, “Vilwamangalam did
not tell me that this will happen “. However, Manavedan got one peacock feather
from the head gear of Bhagavan Krishna.

The peacock feather was incorporated in the headgear for the character of Sri
Krishna in the dance drama Krishnanattam based on his own text krishnageeti
which is composed of 8 chapters viz, Avatharam, Kaliyamardanam, Rasakrida,
Kamsavadham, Swayamvaram, Banayuddham, Vividavadham and
Swargarohanam. It was performed near the sanctum sanctorum of the Guruvayur
Temple. On the ninth day, Avatharam was repeated as the Samoothiri felt that it
was not auspicious to end the series with the demise of Lord Krishna. The blessed
art form is still maintained by guruvayur devaswom and staged as an offering by
devotees.

Poonthanam Namboodiri

Poonthanam Namboodiri was a humble devotee of Lord Guruvayurappan. He

wrote a Malayalam lyric “Jnanappana” in praise of the Lord. He was not erudite
like Bhattathiri but his lyrics were noted for their simplicity and devotional fervor.
He requested Bhattathiri to revise it, but Bhattatiri lacked humility and looked
down upon Poonthanam’s knowledge of Sanskrit. Poonthanam went home and
wept bitterly before the Lord. That night a boy appeared at Bhattathiri’s house as
he was preparing to recite Narayaneeyam. Seating the boy at his side, he started to
recite. The boy pointed out an error in the very first verse. The poet admitted it and
proceeded with the next verse, and the boy pointed out two mistakes. In the third
verse, he pointed out three mistakes and so on. After the tenth verse, Bhattatiri
realised that the boy was the Lord himself, and understood that Poonthanam’s
bhakti was more pleasing to the Lord than his own superior knowledge of Vibhakti
(Sanskrit grammar) and learning. He rushed to Poonthanam and sought his
forgiveness. When he read the Jnanappana, he found that it was flawless.

Nenmini Unni: Once a Nenmini Namboodiri, the main priest (melsanthi) at the
Guruvayur temple, instructed his twelve-year-old son to offer the Nivedyam to the
Lord. There was no assistant priest (keezhsanthi) on that day and the Nenmini
Namboodiri had to go out on an urgent engagement, as called by a devotee. The
son, Unni, offered a Nivedyam of cooked rice to the Lord; in his simplicity, he
believed that the deity would eat the food, but the deity did not move. Unni bought
some salted mangoes and curd from a neighborhood vendor, thinking that the Lord
would prefer this, mixed the curd with rice and offered it again. The deity again
remained unmoved. Unni cajoled, requested, coaxed and in the end threatened, but
the deity remained unmoved. He wept because he believed he had failed and
shouted at the Lord, exclaiming that his father would beat him. The Lord could not
bear it anymore and made the Nivedyam disappear. The boy left the temple
satisfied. Unni did not know that the Nivedyam offered to the Lord was the
Variyar's prerequisite. When Variyar returned to the temple, he saw the empty
plate and became very angry with Unni, but Unni insisted that God had, in fact,
eaten the offering. Unni's innocent words made Variyar furious, as he believed the
boy had eaten the offering himself and was lying. His father was about to beat
Unni, but just then an Asareeri (celestial voice) was heard saying, "What Unni told
is right. I am guilty. Unni is innocent. I ate all the food that he had offered me.
There's no need to punish him". Nenmini family is still there in Guruvayur, and
has lots of wealth attached to it. It also sponsors the Saptami (7th day) Vilakku
during the annual Ekadasi festival in the Malayalam month of Vrischikam.
The Garland of Manjula : There is a banyan tree a few metres away from the
temple on the East Nada. A young Varasyar girl would make a garland every day
and offer it to the Lord in the night. The Mel Shanti (Chief Priest) would adorn the
idol with it. One day she was late and the Sri Koil was closed. Manjula stood near
the banyan tree crying and Poonthanam who passed by told her “Guruvayoorappan
knows what’s in your heart, keep the garland on the banyan tree and he will take
it”. The following morning, when the Mel Shanti began to remove the nirmalyam,
one garland stuck to the idol and would not come off. When Poonthanam saw this,
he called out to the Lord saying “That’s Manjula’s Garland, let it also fall”. The
garland fell and the devotees were awestruck and started chanting the Lord’s name.
From that day the banyan tree is called Manjula.

Shopkeeper and boy: Once, a poor little boy could not get even a morsel of food
to appease his hunger, and stole a banana from a nearby fruit shop. Being a devotee
of Lord Guruvayurappan, he dropped half the banana into the 'hundi' and he ate the
other half. The shop-keeper caught hold of the boy and accused him of the theft.
The boy admitted his guilt. The shop-keeper did not have the heart to punish this
innocent boy, but to teach him a lesson, he ordered him to walk around the temple
a certain number of times. The shop-keeper was aghast when he saw Lord
Guruvayurappan follow the little boy around the temple. That night the Lord came
to the shopkeeper in a dream and explained, "Since I have also had a share in the
stolen banana I am bound to share the punishment, too. So, I followed the boy
around the temple."
Coconut with horns: A villager had planted a number of coconut saplings and had
promised himself that he would offer the ‘first coconut’ from each of his coconut
trees to “The Lord Guruvayoorappan”. When the trees started to yield coconuts, he
collected the first coconut from all the trees in a sack and set forth to Guruvayur.
On the way he was stopped by a robber and asked to part with the items in the
sack. The villager told the robber that the coconuts in the sack belonged to
Guruvayoorappan and so he was unable to hand it over. The robber disdainfully
asked the villager “Is Guruvayoorappan’s coconut any different? Does it have
horns?”. When the robber pulled the sack forcefully out of the villagers hands, the
coconuts spilled out. To their astonishment each and every coconut in the sack had
horns! Even today, the coconut with horns are displayed in the temple for devotees
to see.

Sengalipuram Anantharama Dikshitar : In modern times, the well-known

scholar and Upanyasa Chakravati was cured of his leprosy by praying to Lord
Guruvayurappan. His disease was advanced that the watchman did not allow him
to take bath in temple tank. Years later, Dikshitar came to pray to
Guruvayoorappan to the amazement of all. The miracle was due to his faithful
recitation of Narayaneeyam.

Chembai Vaidyanatha Bhagavatar : The great Carnatic musician, lost his voice
suddenly at the peak of a concert he was giving at Suchindram. Several doctors
tried to cure him but to no avail. He went to Guruvayur and cried out to the Lord.
He regained his voice and lived many more years to take part in concerts.