The key words of this slOkam are: “KuhanA pOthree Jaganthy aniSam gOpAyEth” May this KapaDa VarAha PerumAL protect all the worlds and their beings always”.
EXTENDED MEANING OF THIS SLOKAM:
During the time of the great PraLayam, BhUmi had sunk into the oceans. Our Lord incarnated as a gigantic Boar to retrieve BhUmi from the Ocean. The loud sounds of “Ghur, Ghur” arose from the Lord’s nostrils as He dived in and swam about searching for His Devi. Those sounds matched with the sounds made by the waves of the ocean colliding with each other mighty forcefully. The sounds made by the Lord spread all around the world and consecrated the world. Our Lord found His Devi in the depths of the Ocean and He lifted upwards carrying His dear consort on His tusker (canine teeth). There BhUmi Devi appeared like a tuber attached to the canine teeth (Korai tooth of a VarAham). Our Devi is holding tightly to those canine teeth of Her Lord as He accelerates upward from the interior of the ocean with great speed. Thus She stays motionless during the ascent. This BhUmi DEvi is the cause for the creation of all beings from the smallest blade of grass to the mighty Brahma. May the sounds emanating from the nose of this MaayAvi VarAhan protect always the entire world and its beings!
COMMENTS:
VarAhAvatharam is known for BhUmi DhAraNam (Holding aloft BhUmi Devi proudly on His shoulders and the Singappal (Protruded teeth of a Lion). BhUmi Devi is addressed by Swamy Desikan as Bhagavathy with Six guNams that she shares with BhagavAn. As our Lord travels inside the ocean, He is generating the sounds of “ghur, Ghur” from His nostrils. With those sounds, He cleanses the universe and its beings of all dhOshms and sins. Such is the sacred nature of this GrANa dhvani, which is louder than the sounds of the waves of the PraLayam waters colliding with one other. The world becomes “pavithree krutham”. Sri Raghava PaatrAcchAr cites this purificatory process as an act of “avyAja karuNA” by the Lord. After all, He is a MaayAvi (KuhanA Pothri / Kaithava VarAhan). He is easily accessible and yet profound in His Vaibhavam. He blessed us with the VarAha Charama SlOkam to save us from the horrors of SamsAram. He protects the beings of the world with that anugraham at the request of BhUmi Devi. That shows Bhaktha Vaathsalyam. He is carrying the gigantic Bhumi DEvi on His tusk as a small tuber that a Varaham has just dug out from the ground below. Such is His unimaginable size. He is the PruTveedharan. He looks like a giant sized blue mountain lifting out of the depths of the Ocean.
Anbil GopAlAcchAr Swamy has the following observations: Sri Devi was gained through KoormAvatharam. He united with BhUmi DEvi, who was stolen by HiraNyAkshan by taking VarAhAvathAram. He shows His great affection for BhUmi Devi by placing her over His chest, where MahA Lakshmi resides. He has the unimaginable hugeness in size as a VarAham (niradhisaya Bruhathvam). His sacred form was not only to bless the chEtanams at the time of avathAra kaalam but also for all times to come. That roopam of the Lord as Kola VarAhan is the embodiment of Vedams and Yaj~nams (“Thrayeemayam roopamidham Soukaram” as well as Yaj~na VarAha Roopam). He is the Aadhi VarAhan and BhU VarAhan as at Sri MushNam, Thiruvidaventhai dhivya dEsams He is Jn~AnappirAn. At VarAha KshEthrams, Our Lord holds aloft “Bhagavathy Viswambhari” to let the world know the treasure He retrieved her from the bottom of the Ocean with great pride. The Sahaja VarAha Moorthy making sounds typically associated with a VarAham (gONAravai: ghurgurai:) and holds with His Koraippal (DhamshtAnkuram) His divine consort. BhUmi Devi has a firm seat there. This MaayAvi VarAham has been described as a VarAham with a single horn (yEka Srunga VarAham).
The relation between Bhumi (Earth) and BhUmA DEvi, its Mother has been visualized by Swamy Desikan as BhUmA DEvi blessing us with Bhumi (this verdant Earth) through sukha Prasavam during the VarAhAvathAram. Dr. V.N. VedAntha Desikan has a striking description of all what happened during the VarAhAvathAram: “Thus the (divine ) Boar (VarAham) “bore” one, who bears all from Brahma downwards”.
Commentary by: Sri Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan
to be continued…
