Nakulan (a) Dr.Sreeram Jaganathan Setlur
आवयोरस्ति साधर्म्यं यद्यपि परपीडने ।
शिरस्तमसि ते यूक! तमश्शिरसि मे गतिः ।। 1 ।।
Hey louse! You and I share the nature of bugging others. You, being on the darkness at a high place (head) and I, being in the height of darkness.
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तामसेपि शरीरे च राजसलोचने किल |
आवां समौ तथापि त्वं कोकिल सात्त्विकस्वरी ।। 2 ।।
Hey cuckoo! We are same in having a taamasa body (you being black and i being lazy), and raajasa eyes (you having red and i having passionate). But you have a saatvika voice (good or sweet) which i don’t.
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सत्यमेतच्च कालोद्य कलिरेव न संशय: |
इह सर्वे मनुष्यास्तु सपादा अपि पन्नगा: ।। 3 ।।
सत्यमेतच्च (this is true indeed) कालोद्य (the present age) कलिरेव (is Kali only) न संशय: (no doubt) इह सर्वे (here all) मनुष्यास्तु (people) सपादा (are endowed with feet / legs) अपि (even then) पन्नगा: (are snakes) || how?
pannagaah – means which do not move with feet but crawl etc like snakes. Snakes are generally referred to as pannagas. Since people no longer walk they have also become pannagaah. They are not crawling but are on bikes, cars etc.
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आवयोरस्ति सादृश्यं पुस्तकगोचरे किल ।
तद्गतकीट! किंतर्हि पाकशक्तिस्तु ते न मे ।। 4 ।।
Hey bookworm! There is similarity between you and me in as far as being after books. But you have the power to digest whereas I don’t.
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भोक्तुं त्वं यतसे सर्वं दन्तहीने! पिपीलिके! ।
दंशयसेऽपि विघ्नाञ्च नूनमिव मनो हि मे ।। 5 ।।
Hey toothless ant! you try to taste/eat everything (always). If there is an obstacle in the way, you bite it (sting) even without teeth. In this you are indeed like my mind (which wants to enjoy everything and cannot handle obstacles)
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This one is addressed to a Snake (and similar creatures). I have always wondered at how fast they move even without feet or wings! Indeed, their will power is bigger compared to others that have feet or wings!
पद्भ्यां न चापि पक्षाभ्यां गमनं वेगवत्तु ते ।
संकल्पेनैव नूनं मे मन इव सरीसृप! ।। 6 ।।
Hey Snake! Not by feet and not by wings as well, you move very fast but; indeed, this is through your will alone and in this you are like my mind!
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आवाभ्यां ध्रियते दन्ते पन्नग! सर्वदा विषम् ।
सर्वथा जायते बाधः तेनैव मे तु नैव ते ।। 7 ।।
Hey Snake! We both hold poison in our teeth. You don’t get affected by it whereas I get into trouble only because of that. The alliteration in the last pada may be enjoyed along with other if any.
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अल्पलालारजोभ्यां तु सुकृतं जालबन्धनम् ।
कल्पते साधनायेह किमपि वै मनस्विनाम् ।। 8 ।।
A web is being well made with just saliva and dust! (by spiders). (Or) anything becomes a means for resolute people!
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This one is on a lighter vein! This morning I was astonished to witness a cockroach shedding it’s outer layer in a few minutes and coming out in pure white! My God! Then this idea struck my mind. I chose to write on a snake though!
तत्त्वमपादगामीति न मे तु नाग! विस्मय: ।
विना करं नु तस्मिन् ते वसनपरिवर्तनम् ।। 9 ।।
तत् that त्वम् you (are) अपादगामी moving without feet इति in that न not मे to me तु
but नाग Snake! विस्मयः surprise विना without करं hands नु indeed तस्मिन् in that ते your वसन dress परिवर्तनम् change
Hey Snake! I am not surprised by the fact that you move about without legs. But without hands you change your dress! In that I am indeed surprised!
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Beauty lies everywhere. Somehow, we term only somethings to be beautiful. In reality all are beautiful but some are more beautiful!
भाति सर्वेषु शोभा वै चाधिक्येन तु केषुचित् ।
काकस्यापीह मव्तव्यं पूर्वं तु शुकदर्शनात् ।। 10 ।।
Beauty lies everywhere or in everything indeed but in some it is exceedingly present. It has to be accepted that even a crow is beautiful, atleast until a parrot is seen!
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This one draws a comparison between cattle, which keep on grazing only to be milked by others, and the ignorant who spend their lives only to enjoy (with mistaken notion) and are consumed by fire, at the end, only to be reborn again and again! Or they lead a life (without discriminatory knowledge) which is consumed by the fire called desire of others (including the body)! Like Thirumangai azwar says ‘pirarkke uzhaithu ezhaiyanen’
चरन्निह पशुर्नित्यं लोकेन किल दुह्यते ।
भुञ्जानोऽज्ञनरो हन्त कालाऽनलेन दह्यते ।। 11 ।।
Animal, say a cow, which keeps on grazing, is indeed milked by the world / man. Alas! an ignorant man who spends his life only for the sake of enjoyments is consumed by fire (at the end) always (he is born again and again)!
