P20223E.htm-E

   There are numerous references to Vedic religion in sangam literature. The Saivite நாயன்மார்கள் and Vaishnavite ஆழ்வார்கள் visited various temples and sang the praise of God. Bhakti and Tamil fostered each other. Poets who used to sing about human kings for material gains, now turned to God and introduced new  genres  in  Tamil  literature.  பொய்கையாழ்வார், பூதத்தாழ்வார் and பேயாழ்வார் are known as முதல் மூவர் (The First Three) as they belonged to the early period.

   பொய்கையாழ்வார், born in Kanchipuram sang 100 poems in முதல் திருவந்தாதி. He envisages the world as a lamp, the oceans as the ghee for the lamp and the sun as the light. பூதத்தாழ்வார் begins his இரண்டாம் திருவந்தாதி in a similar manner. For him love is the lamp, devotion is the ghee and loving thoughts are the wicks for the ஞான விளக்கு (the Lamp of wisdom). The Lord is conceived of as the embodiment of the five senses, five elements, knowledge, sacrifice and righteousness.

   பொய்கை ஆழ்வார்’s song describes how people worshipped God in the fifth century - by drawing his picture on the wall or praying to the Idol, There are songs praising the Lord’s feet, ஆதிசேடன் (the snake-bed of திருமால்), and Avataras like Narasimha, Rama and Krishna.

   பொய்கையாழ்வார் narrates his divine experiences and exhorts people to pray to திருமால்.

   பூதத்தாழ்வார் sings about கிருஷ்ண, ராம, வாமன and நரசிம்ம avataras. After praying to திருமால் he says he needs nothing - even ruling over this world or the heavens is rejected by him.

   The ஆழ்வார்கள் sang the praise of the Lord to gain happiness in this life as well as the next. Transforming themselves into self-effacing candles they inspired people to devote themselves to God.

   பேயாழ்வார் begins his song by describing how the sight of the Lord helped him to get rid of the seven births. To him, every day we pray to திருமால் is a good day. There is no need to observe religious fasts. We should attain the lotus feet of the Lord, who can remove our sorrows. He sings about Rama, the story of the lord saving Gajendra from the crocodile, திருவேங்கடமலை, the colour of the Lord, the way to capture Him in our hearts and Krishna avatara.

   திருமழிசை ஆழ்வார் has  authored  நான்முகன்  திரு அந்தாதி and திருச்சந்த விருத்தம். The way to salvation does not lie in tormenting oneself through penance; Narayana will grant it to us easily. The whole world is a manifestation of the Lord. He wonders why people do not pray to திருமால், even after knowing about the impermanence of life.

   The four ஆழ்வார்கள் sowed the seeds of vaishnavite Bhakti literature in Tamil.