Veera Matha--‘Mother of Heroes’ in the Vedas and Tamil literature

[london swaminathan]

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Veera Matha--‘Mother of Heroes’ in the Vedas and Tamil literature

Picture: Greatest of the Hindu Heroines Rani Padmini of Chittoor. When lustful Alauddin Khilgi wanted to take her she entered fire with hundreds of women to save her honour in 1303 AD.

Rig Veda, the oldest religious book in the world, and the 2000 year old Sangam Tamil books praise Hindu women as mother of heroes- Veera Matha. They agree on one more point. They say that those who die in the battle field will go to heaven. Bhagavad Gita and Purananuru are very clear about it. Women are blessed with Vedic mantras to give birth to heroes. Lalitha Sahasranama praises Goddess Sakthi as Veera matha. Tamil poet Bharathi goes one step further and says this country will call a woman Maladi (infertile woman) only if she doesn’t give birth to heroes. This is a novel concept.

They were all forerunners to Swami Vivekananda who thundered that Fear and Cowardice are to be shunned most. He always advocated youths to go forward by quoting the Upanishad mantra, “Uhthishta, Jagratha, Prapyavaran Nibodhatha”-Arise, Awake, Stop not till the goal is reached!

Poet Kalidasa says in Kumara sambhava (Canto VII-87):
“The bride was greeted by the Creator with the words: “Blessed one, be you the mother of a Hero” (In Sanskrit : Veeraprasavaa Bavethi).

A Tamil poet puts it beautifully in a verse in Purananuru:
What a Hero’s Mother (Veera Thay in Tamil) said:
“ You stand against the pillar
Of my hut and ask me:
Where is your son?
I don’t really know.
My womb is only a lair
For that tiger.
You can see him now
Only in the battlefields” —(Purananuru Verse 86 by Kavarpendu)
(Purananauru is part of Sangam Tamil Literature. It is an anthology of 400 poems).

There a hymn in the Rig Veda praising Veera Matha:
Rig Veda: Tenth Mandala ,Hymn 86
10-86-43
So may Prajapati bring children forth to us; may Aryaman adorn us till old age come nigh.
Not inauspicious enter thou thy husband’s house. Bring blessings to our bipeds and quadrupeds.
10-86-44
Not evil eyed, no slayer of thy husband, bring weal to cattle, radiant, gentle hearted;
Loving the gods, delightful, bearing heroes, bring blessing to our quadrupeds and bipeds

Picture of Jhansi Rani Lakshmibhai

Heroes go to Heaven

Krishna in Bhagavad Gita (II-37) says:
“Either slain thou shalt go to Heaven; or victorious thou shalt enjoy the earth; therefore arise, O son of Kunti, resolved on battle.
Puram verses 26, 62, 93, 287, 341, 362;PathiRRu Pathu 52 give the same message to the heroes. There are more Tamil verses where in the poets talk about kings reaching heaven after dying. There are even special funeral ceremonies conducted by Brahmins for the kings who die elsewhere. If the kings die due to natural causes Brahmins spread the dharba grass under the king’s body and cut them into pieces by saying ‘let you go to heaven where the heroes go’. Avvaiyar describes this ceremony in a praise to Athiyaman Anji (Pura Nanuru verse 93): you escaped from this ceremony because you are a hero wounded in the battle field.

All these are echoes of Kalidasa who lived a few centuries before the Sangam poets. Kalidasa sings about wounds that happened in the battle fields throughout his works. In Raghuvamasam 14-4 he says Kausalya and Sumitra were fond of the word ‘Veeramatha’. But having seen the wounds inflicted by the Rakshasas on young Rama and Lakshmana , their mothers Kausalya and Sumithra did not want to hear that sound of Veera matha.

Slogans on the Flags

“The kings of Surya Vamsa (solar race) Raghu and Ajan took all your name and fame, but not your lives-- were written with blood on the flags with arrow heads”. That is, out of mercy, Raghu and Aja let you all run alive. The interesting message Kalidasa gives in this sloka (Raghu.7-65) is that devoted workers of politicians (Kings) wrote slogans like this 2000 years ago!

So political workers writing with their blood for their leaders is nothing new!
Ascetics bless Sakuntala Veera Prasavini Bhava (Be a mother of heroes)”.
In Sakuntala 7-28, Sakuntala was blessed by the elders:
“ With a husband the equal of The Breaker of Dark Clouds (Indra)
With a son like his son, Jayanta, no other blessing fits you but this;

Ravana was equal to Rama

Rama was so happy to meet a great hero like Ravana in the battle field, says Kalidasa in Raghu 12-89. Heroes never favour unequal fights.
Like Tamil poets Kalidasa used words like battle wounds on the chest (not on the back), wounds or injuries due to arrow and bow in the hands in several places (Raghu III-68, II-64, 18-48, 16-84, VII-65, 12-89, 13-73, 16-1).

In the Asvameda Yagna (Horse Sacrifice), Kshatriya women(Kings’ wives) have to cut the horse into pieces.

தமிழ் REFERENCES:

1.பாரதி பாடல் Bharathi Poems:
“வீரரைப் பெறாத மேன்மைதீர் மங்கையை
ஊரவர் மலடி என்று உரைத்திடு நாடு”---பாரதி
***

2.புறம் 86 (காவற்பெண்டு)
சிற்றில் நற்றூண் பற்றி, ‘நின் மகன்
யாண்டுள்ளனோ? என வினவுதி; என் மகன்
யாண்டு உளன் ஆயினும் அறியேன்;ஓரும்
புலி சேர்ந்து போகிய கல் அளை போல
ஈன்ற வயிறோ இதுவே;
தோன்றுவன் மாதோ, போர்க்களத்தானே!

***
3.Lalitha Sahsranama லலிதா சஹஸ்ரநாமா
Praneswari pranadatri panjasatpeedarupini
Visrungala vivikthasdha veeramatha viyathprasuhu:
ப்ராணேச்வரி ப்ராணதாத்ரீ பஞ்சாசத்பீடரூபினி
விஸ்ருங்கலா விவிக்தஸ்தா வீரமாதா வியத்ப்ரஸூ:

Picture of Kittor Rani Chennamma

****************

 

[nannilam_balasubramanian]

It may be out of place to mention the following information. Since you are writing
lot of interesting articles about various aspects including about temples, I thought
it may be an information, if it is posted here. Please do not mistake for bringing this
information to you through this thread.

Sri Mathurakali amman temple is situated at Siruvachoor, which is on the Trichy - Chennai National highways. It is about 8 km before Perambalur. From the national highways, the temple is at a distance of 1 km. Surrounded by hills, lake, gardens and pond, the temple gives feast to the eyes as well as the mind.

[h=2]Deities of the temple[/h]
At first, the main deity in this temple was Sri Selliamman. It is said that Kannagi came here to stay on a Friday night and asked permission of the goddess Selliamman. It is also said that goddess Mathurai Kali, i.e goddess Kaliamman at Madurai who helped Kannagi, came and stayed here. Sri Selliamman told her that she was under the control of a magician. Sri Mathurakali amman assured her that she would relieve her from that magician. When the magician came, Sri Mathurakali amman killed him. As per the last wish of that magician, his body was buried at the place, where the devotees would come to worship Sri Mathurakali amman. Later, Sri Selliamman requested Sri Mathurakali amman to bless the devotees by staying in that temple and also added that she would go to Periasamy hills nearby.

Sri Mathurakali amman agreed to it and said that first respect would be given to Sri Selliamman. She also said that she would come to this temple on Fridays and Mondays, staying on other days with Sri Selliamman at Periasamy hills. Even today, first respect is being given to Sri Selliamman at Periasamy hills before poojas.

[h=2]Specialities of Siruvachoor temple[/h]
•Temple will remain open on Mondays and Fridays from 8.00 AM to 8.00PM. Abishegam to Sri Mathurakali amman takes place at 11.00 AM, after which Amman is adorned with thanga kavacham. Before Mahadeeparadhanam, two persons call Ammaan and other deities by striking drum (udukai). It is believed that at this time Amman comes from the Periasamy hills to the temple.

•Other days on which the temple will remain open are
•New year day (Jan 1)
•Tamil New Year day
•13 days festival (Apr/May)
•Adi perukku
•10 days during Navarathiri
•Deepavali
•Karthigai Deepam
•First day of the tamil month Margazhi
•Vaikuntha Ekadasi
•Pongal
•Thaipoosam
•Maha Sivarathiri

•Sri Mathurakali amman is in sitting posture facing north. She hold weapons and akshaya pathram in her four hands. Her left leg is folded and her right leg is placed on a lion.

•Devotees perform Angapradhashinam (rolling around the temple) and also lit Mavilakku. Flour for Mavilakku is prepared manually within the temple by the devotees.

•As Sri Mathurakali amman destrroyed the magician, people affected by evils and wicked magics come here and get relief from that by the grace of Amman.

•Mathuram means sweetness. As the Amman is so kind and sweet like a mother, she is called as Mathurakail amman.

•Sthala virusham is Marutham. There is also a pond.

This temple is very famous because Shri Adhi Shankaracharyar visited this temple and installed a Sri Chakram.
Shri Sadasiva Brahmendrar has done pooja here because of HER cosmic power. This is the Kula Deivam of
ofMaha Periyaval Shri Chandrasekarendra Saraswathi, who has also visited this temple.Balasubramanian
Ambattur

 

[london swaminathan]

Dear Balasubramaniam

Thanks for very interesting stories and legends about Mathura Kali Amman. I think every temple in Tamil Nadu has a sthala puranam (local history). They are all true episodes of that area. We have to preserve them. In the olden days there was not much written materials. So the stories got distorted or mostly exaggerated. Now we can preserve them in writing so that there wont be any changes. People who believe in different deities go to those temples and achieve what they want. That is how all the temples and temple staff thrive. We must preserve that tradition.The temples are our spiritual,architectural and historical treasures.

 

[nannilam_balasubramanian]

Dear Balasubramaniam

Thanks for very interesting stories and legends about Mathura Kali Amman. I think every temple in Tamil Nadu has a sthala puranam (local history). They are all true episodes of that area. We have to preserve them. In the olden days there was not much written materials. So the stories got distorted or mostly exaggerated. Now we can preserve them in writing so that there wont be any changes. People who believe in different deities go to those temples and achieve what they want. That is how all the temples and temple staff thrive. We must preserve that tradition.The temples are our spiritual,architectural and historical treasures.

This temple is more than 500 years old. Besides, actually the temple was constructed
by a King who had no issue and on his successful mission, he directed for the construction
of the temple. Siddhars have done puja in this temple. There is a mountain behind the
temple where still pujas are being performed. Only male members are allowed to visit that
area. People who visit this temple are attracted to visit again because of the cosmic power
of the Goddess.

Balasubramanian
Ambattur

 

[Ramacchandran]

The other name of samayapuram Mariamman is Celli amman

 

[london swaminathan]

In Madurai we have Sellaththamman, Mari amman, Kali Amman and Pechi amman.

What is the meaning of Selli amman?
Are Sellath Amman and Selli Amman same?
Can anyone throw some light on it?

 

[nannilam_balasubramanian]

Selli means Younger girl and the youngest of the Saptha and hence SHE is known
as Selli Amman. In fact, prior to installation of Shri Mathura Kaliamman at Siruvachur
by Adi Shankara, Selli Amman was in the Temple and now the Goddess is in the Hills.

Balasubramanian
Ambattur