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shrIman nigamAnta mahAdeshikai: anugrihItam
vairAgya panchakam

Shloka 4:

durIshvara dvAra bahirvitardikA
durAsikAyai rachitoyama~njali: |
yada~njanAbham nirapAyamasti me
dhana~njaya syandana bhUShaNam dhanam ||

Meaning:
Because I have (me asti) that eternal (nirapAyam) wealth (dhanam) which is as dark as the eyeliner (a~Njana Abham) and which stood as an ornament to the chariot (syandana bhUShaNam) of Arjuna (dhana~Njaya), a salute with folded hands (good bye) (ayam a~njali) is given to waiting (durAsikAyai) at the doorsteps (dvAra bahir vitardikA) of the lowly kings (durIshvara).

Here Vedanthavasiriyar is pointing out the fact that if one goes to see someone high then they are at the mercy of the door- keepers and have to wait at the doorstep. This is true apparently even for Sriman Narayana :-), as Andal too waits at the doorstep of Nandagopa - nAyaganAy pasuram - "thOraNa vAsal kAppanE, maNik kadhavam thAL thiRavAy". We may do that at His doorstep, but we will never stand at the doorsteps of anyone else.

So he is giving a big goodbye to even the possibility of such thoughts. We may not even go to His doorstep, but we certainly are not going to go to anyone else's doorstep. Pillai Lokacharyar too said "bhagavath sEshathvaththilum anya sEshathvam kazhigaiyE pradhAnam".

And when we have that wonderful wealth that made Arjuna's chariot beautiful (He adds beauty to anything; nothing adds beauty to Him - recall what Hanuman said when he first saw Rama; Perumal is described as "AbaraNangaLukku azhagu sErkkum perumAL"), why seek any other wealth or go stand in front of anyone else. As said before, it is the same Krishna standing on Hastigiri. We go to Him only and we ask for Him only ("enakkE thannaith thandha kaRpagam" says Azhvar; "unnai aruththiththu vandhOm" says Andal). Unlike the transient wealth of this world which typically tends to be pale, this wealth is dark and eternal.

Anjali is a beautiful word and it has been treated by our Acharyas in their works. Am jalayati iti anjali: - Some may state that our hearts melt when we fold our hands and that is Anjali; however, our acharyas show that it is He who melts seeing us with folded hands and that is the meaning of Anjali. Bhattar says, when He sees us with folded hands, His grace flows like a river from His eyes toward us. He also says that Thayar is unable to give anything to match the folded hands of a devotee. The 28th shloka of Alavandar's Stotra Ratnam shows the greatness of Anjali and Vedanthachariar has given a detailed commentary on this shloka and the vaibhavam of Anjali.

Vedanta Desikan Thiruvadigale Sharanam
Azhvar Emberumanar Jeeyar Thiruvadigale Sharanam

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