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| Ariyar sevai at Srirangam temple, TN facebook.com |
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| Tamil Azhwar Vaishnavite saints indiadivine.org |
The performers and their families who belong to a hereditary institution retain the rights. It is said, they claim their lineage from the first exponent of Sri Vaishnavism. These hereditary performers, I understand, may be IT professionals, engineers, civil servants or teachers, et.c and they do the service to the lord during the festival, not deviating from their family's duty. Many work as priests in the temple and do kaingarya to the lord. These people are the torch-bearers of the centuries old bhakti tradition in this modern world and take credit to keep it going down the ages.
It is quite sad, this Araiyar Savai, an intense form of worship with deep devotion that was widespread way back in the past several decades ago, is slowly dying. The reason attributed by them is some HR & CE ( State Govt. Agency) officials at some temples do not let the hereditary performers conduct the seva, overlooking their rights, and instead bring in performers from outside the families. These people have neither experience nor do they belong to the Araiyar families. The department is getting huge revenue from various temples across the state and the fund is not properly spent on temple administration, repairs, adequate salaries for the hereditary priests (in Vishnu, Shiva and other temples),etc. They get the lowest salary among the people working in the temple. Why this disparity?
Consequently. many temples are in a state state of neglect and there are complaints of thefts of age-old valuable bronze idols of deities in the media. Of late, complaints are fresh in the air that presently the regular worship protocols are not followed as per temple norms at Sri Ranganathar temple, Srirangam during this 2020-21 festival period!! On account of sheer neglect, temple mismanagement and irresponsible attitude of certain higher officials, temple worship norms, traditional fine arts practiced for centuries there, etc., are slowly becoming things of the past.
At present, besides Sri Ranganathat temple, Srirangam, Azhagiya Manavala Perumal Temple, Azhvar Tirunagari and the Andal Temple at Srivilliputhur in Tamil Nadu and at the Melkote (ThiruNarayanapuram, Karnataka) Araiyar sevai is conducted with religious fervor.
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| Ariyar Sevai, arayasamajam.blogspot.com |
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| Ariyar sevai at Srirangam temple, TN facebook.com |
In the last one, this Sevai is performed in a different form; the Divya Prabhandham verses are sung but not enacted. Sarangapani Koil, Nachiyar Koil, Thiruchcherai, Azhagar Koil and Thiru Nagai and Sri Parthasarathy Swami temple in Triplicane, Chennai were known for Araiyar sevai, but not any
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| Devotee of Vishnu, Nathamuni. geni.com |
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| Nathamuni, Vaishnava savant. am.oranudinam.org |
Above images: Nathamuni (823 AD (?) to 951 AD (?); birth name: Aranganathan is known to have been a great savant of God Vishnu. Nathamuni meaning the Saint lord (Nathan-lord, muni-saint) was instrumental in popularizing Naalaiyera Divya Prabhdam in all Divyadesam shrines. It is said that he recited 12000 times, Kanninun Siruthambu, a poem in Tamil in praise of saint Nammazhwar (born in 3059 BCE in Alwarthirunagiri) who, as a token of his appreciation, appeared and gave the 4000 divine verses (Nalayira Divya Prabhandam). Not satisfied Nathamuni wanted to read the work thoroughly so that he could understand their meaning and spiritual implication. Nathamuni breathed life into this rare voluminous work by teaching them to his relatives in Srirangam and introducing them as an integral part of Vishnu worship at Srirangam Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple and elsewhere. To make it more divine and bring out bhakti, he set the hymns to music in a Vedic way matching the relevant ragas.. Now, Divya Prabhandam is called Tamil Veda. Nathamuni practiced Ashtanga yoga. and introduced Guruparampara tradition .......https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nathamuni
The great Vaishnavite Savant Nadhamuni, (9th-10th Century A.D) was the one who introduced the Araiyar sevai at the Divadesam shrines for a few reasons:
01. The bhakti tradition of singing, etc., had to be preserved.
02. He was very particular about preservation of the divine hymns of Naalayira Divya Prabandham,
03. Divya Prabandam hymns had to be sung in all Divyadesam shrines across the land, so that the ritual would continue for centuries down the ages.
04. A way to get the attention of devotees and instill devotion in them, rendition of sacred hymns in a musical form accompanied by simple dancing and gestures by a performer or a group is a must and will have a lasting impact on the devotees
To accomplish this new way of invoking God Vishnu, Nadhamuni sought the help of his nephews, Keezhaiyagath Azhwar and Melaiyagath Azhwar,.Nadhamuni also introduced special ragas and talas for the paasurams. This, way over a period of time, Araiyar Sevai evolved. Tradition has it Araiyars (Kings of Music) wear the cone-like cap, two cymbals and a sacred garland around their neck during performance.
To become an Araiyar a person needs devotion, patience and commitment. The learning process is a time-consuming one spanning more than 10 years minimum, mastering the art of singing the paasuram with the relevant raga, abhinaya and presenting the Vyakyanam. The practice starts in every morning at 4 and again in the evening till 9 pm. The student or vidhyarthi has to memorize and understand the meaning of the 4000 verses and the gist of each one and the ability to put it across the audience. The Vyakyanam for the Thiru Pallandu verses alone covers 70 pages! The Arayar, besides gestures must explains the verses in Manipravalam, a combination of Tamil and Sanskrit words.
We need to understand why this visual enactment and recitation expressing passion and devotion by Vaishnavite scholars has become an integral part of Vishnu worship. About one thousand years ago, in the absence of printing press and other gadgets, valuable work of art, divine hymns, verses, etc were preserved in the palm leaves in the form of manuscripts. Care must be taken to preserve them for the posterity against moth and termite attacks that were common in those days. The recitation of such verses along with singing, commentaries and abhinaya was a unique way of preserving them and passing them on to the next generation. This way this age old tradition won't fade away. In the state of Tamil Nadu, the performing art form and certain Thirukoothu like Myilattam, Karagattam, Thirukoothu, etc are already on the decline.
https://www.thehindu.com/features/friday-review/dance-of-devotion/article5003192.ece
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Araiyar_Sevai
https://navrangindia.blogspot.com/2018/12/some-interesting-facts-on-vaikunta.html
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