The only decad in the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham that is entirely dedicated to the ‘People of a Town’
Benchmark on how to live life - Their generosity was a standout feature
Even the Asuras would feel ashamed to steal here
Thiru Kottiyur stood for JUSTICE
People always spoke the truth
For ever they performed selfless service
Always welcomed guests with honour
Developed good habits and noble thoughts
Youngsters wanted to emulate their Preceptors
In the entire Periyazhvar Thirumozhi comprising of 473 verses, the people of Thiru Kottiyur get the highest form of praise from Periyazhvar. While he has praised Srirangam and Thiru Maliruncholai in multiple decads with far more number of verses, in his praise of Thiru Kottiyur in the fourth Canto comprising of 10 verses, he cites the people of Thiru Kottiyur as the ‘Gold Standard’ for living our lives.
The verses on Srirangam and Thiru Maliruncholai are more about the greatness of the Lord and what he offers his devotees. The one on Thiru Kottiyur is about how one should live life showcasing several examples of how the residents were a benchmark in the art of a Noble Life.
These 10 verses are a beautiful mix of showcasing the greatness of the sacred town through a negative connotation. The residents were seen as people with the greatest of qualities. Even in the most testing of times, their character stood out.
Periyazhvar is so pleased with the way the Thiru Kottiyurans lived life that he even talks about the kind of punishment that should be meted out to those (thankfully they were in the minority- he does not even mention that there were a few, he only questions if there is a possibility of any existing) who strayed away from the normal way of life of the people of Thiru Kottiyur.
The people of Thiru Kottiyur always spoke the truth. They welcomed guests with honour. They performed selfless services to the Lord. Youngsters learnt the Vedas all the time and tried to perfect it through their life time, such was their dedication.
If ever there was anyone away from the aforementioned qualities, he wonders as to why the lord created them at all in the first place(முதல்வனைச்சிந்தியதைஅப்பாவகாரிகளைப்படைத்தவன்எங்ஙனம்படைதான்கொலோ).
Blemish-less People
They were blemish-less with almost no faults. From a young age, they cultivated good habits. You could find no one with malice. Their generosity was a stand-out feature. The youngsters always wanted to emulate their preceptors and each one of them strived to perfect the Vedas.
If ever there is anyone from Thiru Kottiyur who does not offer worship to this Lord and who strays from the above qualities, he is likely to cause unbearable pain in the womb of his mother for having been born here(தன்னைத்தொழாதவர்பெற்றதாயார்வயிற்றினைப்பேருநோய்செய்வான்பிறந்தார்களே).
Blessed to Sing Praises
Periyazhvar then describes the physical structure of the place. Big mansions and Gem Studded porticos used to cast shadows by their light of brilliance. Those destined to be born at Thiru Kottiyur were blessed to sing praise of his names.
The Lord gave us fingers to use them to count his names. If ever there remained a person who did not understand this wish of the lord even for a moment and who thought that his only job in life was to push food down his throat to create a bad odour, it is unfortunate to have someone like that(உன்னைகண்டதம்ஊத்தைவாய்குக்கவளமுந்துகின்றார்களே).
A pity if the tongue does not utter HIS Names
He describes it further. Rows of swans rise over the fertile fields that are abound with red lotus. Having been blessed to have obtained a birth at Thiru Kottiyur it would be such a pity if his tongue does not utter the Lord’s name.
If he did not use this blessed life of being born at Thiru Kottiyur to utter the Lord’s name, then the water he drinks and the clothes he wears must have sinned, for him to be so (நரகநாசனைநாவில்கொண்டுஅழையாதமானிடசாதியர்பருகுநீரும்உடுக்குங்கூரையும்பாவம்செய்தனதாங்கொலோ).
In addition to the swans, Thiru Kottiyur had large number of fishes that jumped on the back of turtles and then on to the fresh lotuses and moved around playfully.
Log of Dead Wood
Periyazhvar compares the devotion-less people to dead wood.
If ever any person from Thiru Kottiyur did not invoke the blessings of the Lord, he is like a log of dead wood and a burden on the entire earth. His anger rises and he even contemplates taking away the food from their mouth and replacing it with grass(நேமிசேர்தடங்கையினானைநினைப்பிலாவலிநெஞ்சுடைப்தூமிபாரங்களுண்ணும்சோற்றினைவாங்கிபுல்லைத்திணிமினே).
He praises that a majority of them as being generous, blemish-less and without enemies. He goes to the extent of saying that when their feet touch the ground, the earth gets sanctified and becomes purer (பாததூளிபடுதலால்இவ்வுலகம்பாக்கியம்செய்ததே).
The seers at Thiru Kottiyur unmindful of their health recite the four Vedas day and night praising their Lord offering their heart and soul. Periyazhvar wonders what penance they would have done in their previous birth to have been blessed with a life in Thiru Kottiyur.
Thiru Kottiyur is a place that provides highest form of justice. Lord has himself assigned Selva Nambi to serve him and chant his names. He praises Selva Nambi as one who has excellent qualities, brings people together, is highly compassionate and sings praise of the Lord of Thiru Kottiyur.
Even Asuras won’t steal here
In the last two verses, Periyazhvar places Thiru Kottiyur as an ultimate place to be for noble people and takes the sanctity of Thiru Kottiyur to a different level. He says that such is the purity of the place thanks to the reverberation of the sacred chants that even Asuras won’t steal grains at Thiru Kottiyur (விளைத்ததானியமும்இராக்கதர்மீதுகொள்ளகிலார்களே).
Even the cuckoos sitting along the huge trees seem to be singing praise of the Lord with their cooing. These cuckoos and the noble beings that he sees at Thiru Kottiyur symbolise the qualities of the Lord. Just seeing them fills one’s hearts with good thoughts.
Do such people exist now?
Periyazhvar has reserved showcasing the greatest quality of the residents of Thiru Kottiyur for his concluding verse.
During famine, grains sell at such a premium that even a handful of grains cost a gold coin. But even during these most testing of times, the people of Thiru Kottiyur, known for their extra ordinary generosity, feed the guests with honour as if everything was normal. They do not use such tough times to hide their stocks and claim shortfall to their guests. Would you not sell yourselves as bonded slaves to such high quality people, asks Periyazhvar
(காசின்வாய்க்கரம்விற்கிலும்கரவாதுமாற்றிலிசோறிட்டுதேசவார்த்தைபடைக்கும்வண்கையினார்கள்வாழ்திருக்கோட்டியூர் ...........அடியார்கள்எந்தம்மைவிற்கவும்பெறுவார்களே).