Margazhi Thingal (Thiruppavai 1)
மார்கழித் திங்கள்
Margazhi Thingal is the opening verse of the Thiruppavai, thirty Tamil hymns by Andal, the only woman among the twelve Alvar saints. Every year during the Tamil month of Margazhi it is sung at dawn in homes and temples across Tamil Nadu and beyond.
- Written by
- Andal
- In the video
- M. L. Vasanthakumari
- Context
- Thiruppavai, pasuram 1, from the Nalayira Divya Prabandham
- Year
- 8th century CE
- Language
- Tamil
Margazhi Thingal (Thiruppavai 1) lyrics with English translation
Verse 1 of 30. The source's bracketed word glosses and the verse number are omitted; the verse text is unchanged.
மார்கழித் திங்கள் மதிநிறைந்த நன்னாளால் நீராடப் போதுவீர்! போதுமினோ ,நேரிழையீர்! சீர்மல்கும் ஆய்ப்பாடிச் செல்வச் சிறுமீர்காள்! கூர்வேல் கொடுந்தொழிலன் நந்தகோ பன்குமரன் ஏரார்ந்த கண்ணி யசோதை இளஞ்சிங்கம் கார்மேனிச் செங்கண் கதிர்மதியம் போல்முகத்தான் நாரா யணனே நமக்கே பறைதருவான் பாரோர் புகழப் படிந்தேலோர் எம்பாவாய்!
Maargazhith thingal mathiniraintha nannaalaal Neeraadap pothuveer! pothumino, nerizhaiyeer! Seermalgum aaippaadich selvach chirumeergaal! Koorvel kodunthozhilan nandhago pankumaran Eraarntha kanni yasodhai ilanjingam Kaarmenich chengan kathirmathiyam polmugaththaan Naaraa yanane namakke paraitharuvaan Paaror pugazhap padinthelor empaavaai!
In the month of Margazhi, on this fine day of the full moon, you who wish to bathe, come! come along, girls in fine jewels! Rich young daughters of Ayppadi, the cowherd village overflowing with plenty! The son of Nandagopa, whose sharp spear does fierce work, the young lion of Yashoda of the lovely eyes, dark as a rain cloud, red-eyed, his face like the radiant moon - Narayana himself will give the drum to us alone; so that the world may praise us, come and bathe, our Pavai!
Translation: Lyriccs (original translation). Transliteration: Lyriccs.
The story behind Margazhi Thingal (Thiruppavai 1)
Andal, also called Kodhai, was active in the eighth century CE and was raised by the Vaishnava saint Periyalvar in Srivilliputhur. Her two works, the Thiruppavai and the Nachiyar Thirumozhi, form part of the Nalayira Divya Prabandham, the canon of four thousand verses by the Alvars.
The Thiruppavai takes the form of a vow observed by young girls of the cowherd village, who rise before dawn in Margazhi (mid-December to mid-January), bathe and go together to worship Krishna. Its thirty verses are recited one a day through the month, and Carnatic musicians have set them in a range of ragas; the first verse is among the most widely known.
What Margazhi Thingal (Thiruppavai 1) means
The verse opens on a full-moon day in Margazhi, as the speaker calls her friends - finely adorned girls of the prosperous cowherd settlement - to come and bathe. The bath is the start of the pavai nonbu, the girls' devotional vow.
She then describes Krishna through the people of the village: the son of Nandagopa, whose sharp spear guards the herds; the young lion of Yashoda; dark as a rain cloud, with reddish eyes and a face like the moon. This Krishna, she says, is Narayana himself, and he will give them the parai, the drum that symbolises the fulfilment of the vow and, for devotees, his grace. The closing refrain, Elor Empavai, recurs at the end of every verse of the Thiruppavai.
Quick facts
- First of the thirty verses of Andal's Thiruppavai.
- Andal is the only female poet among the twelve Alvars.
- The Thiruppavai is part of the Nalayira Divya Prabandham.
- Traditionally recited one verse a day during the Tamil month of Margazhi.