(composed in Tillai, tiru vatavurar puranam, v. 62)
The sacred foot that danced in Tillai’s city old
Is His, Who in all varied lives has energized;
Revealed in beauty of innumerous, varied qualities;
In earth, in sky, and in celestial worlds.
All ordered lore hath He revealed, and He made void. || 5 ||
My darkness hath He driven for aye far off.
Within His servants’ inmost soul that love o’erflows
He dwells, – His glory and His choice.
On great Mahendra’s biding hill
In grace He caused the uttered Agamas appear. || 10 ||
He came with the good goddess,
Pleasant and gracious, mingling with men at Kalladam.
With her whose words are milk in the ‘fivefold couch,’
He caused sweet grace, that unfailing accumulates, to grow.
In guise of a woodman, of her whose lips are crimson, || 15 ||
He sank in the lovely expanse of the swelling breast.
Becoming a fisherman He caught the shark.
And he received the Agamas, a rich spoil.
Moreover, on Mahendra seated, the self-same Agamas
From His five mouths He graciously spake forth. || 20 ||
In our abode a Brahman He became,
And as a deathless Guru dwelt in grace.
Assuming diverse forms, and diverse habitudes,
As hundreds of hundreds of thousands of natures,
I Can, Lord of the bull, that the world might be saved, – || 25 ||
He and the Lady, His partner, – came in grace.
Bringing horses, in the Western land,
Right royally He rode in state.
In fair Puttur, town of the dart, upon the bull He rode,
Made manifest His state and glorious pomp. || 30 ||
In a mirror, at Puttur of the santhal-wood,
Gave increase to the woodman armed with bow.
His form all flame, that held the ‘gram-bag’,
In magic beauty exquisite, of old he showed.
He whose extent to Hari and to Brahma was not known, || 35 ||
In goodness jackals into horse made,
To make him His, He of the sacred foot,
The chargers to the Pandiyan sold,
Nor deigned to take the heaped-up gold.
Our King made me His slave, and in the path of grace to keep, || 40 ||
Made manifest the ancient brightening ray.
Becoming a Brahman, graciously making me His own,
He showed the magic illusion.
Coming to Madura, the city great and fair,
He became a horse’s groom. || 45 ||
And therein too, for the female devotee
He condescended to carry earth.
In Uttara-Koca-Mangai abiding
He showed His special form.
In Puvanam he vouchsafed to appear in beauty, || 50 ||
And showed His ancient spotless form.
In VAthavur he came sweetly gracious
And caused the sound of His tinkling anklets to be heard.
In Perun-turrai’s blissful home, a Blessed One He dwelt,
And guileful, in undimmed lustre hid Himself. || 55 ||
In Puvalam, beauteous, sweet and gracious,
He sin destroyed.
A water-booth he placed, to gain the victory,
And graciously became an attendant who serves water.
He came a guest to Venkadu. || 60 ||
Beneath the Kurunthu tree He sat that day.
In royal Mangai, in fair beauty throned,
The eight great mystic powers in grace He gave.
Becoming a hunter, and assuming the form He desired,
In the forest with guile He lay hid. || 65 ||
Exhibiting a body, assumed at pleasure,
He bore the fitting form.
In Jackal-town well pleased in grace
He became an earthly babe.
In Pantur He came to dwell. || 70 ||
In the resplendent island, in the south of Devur,
He assumed kingly state.
In sacred ArUr, famed for its honey-dripping groves,
He bestowed the gift of wisdom.
In Idai-maruthu, by hosts attended,
He planted His pure foot. || 75 ||
Assuming the nature of Ekambam,
He became partner with his never-sundered queen.
In glory He dwelt in sacred Vanjiyam,
And delighted in the society of her of perfumed locks. || 80 ||
He became an attendant bearing a mighty bow,
And assumed many various appearances,
He dwelt in a spacious home in Kadambur;
And showed Himself in beauty in the hill Ingoy.
He became a Caivan in Aiyaru. || 85 ||
He abode with desire in Turutti.
In the ‘town of the sacred palm’ He dwelt desired.
In Karumalam He manifested His presence.
In the ‘Vulture’s Hill’ He dwelt without a flaw.
In Purrambayam He taught virtues manifold. || 90 ||
In KutRAlam He was for a sign.
Concealing His endless greatness in form of fire,
In beauteous disguise the only primal One assumed a form,
In magic splendor came in grace,
Took each one’s nature into Himself,- || 95 ||
Being the infinite Lord of grace, our king,-
Became a Sage as moonlight bright.
Thro’ upper air descending to the beauteous LAND
He came in fairest form and filled with grace,-
Lord of the HILL Mahenthiram, mountain of mystic lore, || 100 ||
The King of grace, immeasurably great !
If one could tell the way He made me His:
He showed His sacred form of power and grace;
He exhibited His BANNER of sacred ashes;
The RIVER of rapture that straightway || 105 ||
All human vileness sweeps away, in grace He gave:
The Partner of the DAME, in mercy great !
While the great NATHA-DRUM spake loud
He made me His, so that impurity touches not.
He bears the mystic SPEAR, || 110 ||
The splendor He whose flame pure light emits,
Who cuts away the primal threefold bond;
A loving one, the lotus GARLAND blue
In fragrant loveliness He wore;
Hari and BrahmA knew not Him to mete; || 115 ||
On prancing charger forth He rode.
He shows in grace the way knows no return;
The old dominion of the Pandi LAND is His;
He bears to bliss supern His pious saints
Uttara-Koca-Mangai is His TOWN; || 120 ||
To the primeval Beings He gives grace,
The GOD OF GODS His sacred NAME;
His VEHICLE is gift of joy dispels the dark;
His the MOUNT of grace that greatness gives,
Fitted to each one’s lofty nature, each one’s power; || 125 ||
Meetly in love He makes them His;-
Me, cur, in Tillai filled with good,
He bade draw nigh th’all-glorious company;
Yet, Ah ! He left me here.
That day His servants who gained grace to go with Him, || 130 ||
Mingled in perfect union with Himself,
While those that gained it not leaped on the fire !
Then did bewilderment come over them,
On earth they rolled, they fell, they wailed,
They rushed with eager foot to reach the sea; || 135 ||
‘Our Lord, Our Lord’, they wept and called.
While those who gained His foot pressed near,
And cried, ‘Celestial Dancer, who to Patanjali gave grace,’
And yearned to gain satiety of bliss,
He dances ‘mid the company of beauteous ‘Tiger-town’, || 140 ||
That golden beauty like HimAlaya wears,
There to Umai, whose roseate mouth is filled with sweetness,
And to Kali grants the beauteous smile of His blest countenance.
Thus the King with His assembled saints
Joyous hath entered ‘Tiger-town,’ with garners filled, || 145 ||
High Lord of Kailai that resounds with rapturous song.