Can any of us declare that we will experience only joy from this day forward? We can probably improve our perception towards what joy means and thereby handle any sad situation with much more matured state of mind. That is good. But, that is not the same as experiencing true joy. Upanishad clearly mentions that the true state of ‘joy’ is attainable only when one can live independent from this body!

అ శరీరం వా వసంతం ప్రియాప్రియ న స్పృశత:

Is that possible? Nammalwar is a great example for this actualisation of true joy. He took birth in a body like that of ours, however – During the entire length of his life (32 years), he remained disconnected from the impacts or desires that the normal body demanded. The only connection he continued to keep was with the ultimate thatvam, Lord Srimannarayana!

Nammalwar delved into the ocean of oneness with Lord and travelled with Him in the waves of Lord’s innumerable divine qualities.

One such beautiful quality of Lord is ‘aparadha sahatvam’, meaning that Lord has immense compassion towards every soul and therefore He is able to tolerate the mistakes or sins one has committed.

Nammalwar thinks about this quality so deeply that his heart begins to melt down into an inseparable state with Lord. Bhagavad Vishayam, the scripture talks about the extent to which Nammalwar actualises Lord’s qualities.

To understand the extent of this actualisation, let’s take some mixtures and observe the strength of the bond between the constituents.

  • Different types of grains such as rice, lentils, etc mixed together can be separated with some manual effort.
  • Mixture of milk and water can be separated into their constituents with either some scientific technique or through a Swan from ancient times which is known to have the ability to separate the two.
  • We may be able to separate two flours mixed with each other back into their own stacks, probably with even more advanced techniques.

But, imagine you took two types of flours, added some salt and water to make dosa batter, used oil and made a yummy dosa!  Can you now separate the two flours from each other? No, we cannot. We can only relish its taste and experience it.

Similarly, Nammalwar’s heart broke down and melted itself into the divine qualities of Lord so deeply that it no longer can be seen separate from them! His heart became the happy home for Lord!

That is why, whatever his heart spoke became the essence of Veda, the walk and talk of Lord! And is preached by great scholars and acharyas!

We may now be thinking about how do we carry on with our duties and responsibilities if we keep meditating on Lord like Nammalwar did.

Firstly, getting into that state is possible but not easy. It requires immense love towards Lord and His grace. But, even a single second spent genuinely on listening or reading about Lord’s qualities will save hundreds of hours in carrying out our responsibilities. We will know the priorities right, become more efficient, make wiser decisions and handle situations with much more strength. We will become happier and enjoy the glory of Lord in everything we see and in all activities, we do.

– From the discourse of Sri Chinna Jeeyar Swami, Bhagavad Vishayam, JIVA Asram!