Golden Lay Verses

Verse 24 (பீட வைப்பு)

தமிழ் பாடல்

இலங்கையா னிளையா னிலக்கமே ராமன்

ராமனார் பாதம் ரஸனைசவ் வீரம்

சவ்வீரம் சவ்வாது சார்ந்துவரும் கோக்கன்

கோக்களிடைக் குன்றேறும் கோமகனாம் பாலன்

பாலனவன் பாடியதோ காலமி லவங்கம்

லவங்கமுறு லங்கணமின் சங்கமணி வேனன்

ன்னென்னும் முடியேறி மண்மகிழ ஊதே

Transliteration

ilangaiyaa nilaiyaa nilakkame raman

ramanar paatham rasanisaiv veeram

savveeram savvaathu saarnthuvarum kokkan

kokkalidaik kundraerum komaganaam paalan

paalanavan paadiyatho kaalami lavangam

lavangamuru langanamin sangamani vaenan

nnennum mudiyaeri manmakizha oothe.

Literal Translation

“The younger one of Lanka—his aim itself is Rama.

At Rama’s feet: rasa; (and) the ‘sav-vīram’.

That sav-vīram, not decaying, (as) the kokkan comes clinging/arriving.

Among the kokkals, the prince who climbs the hill is (that) child.

Was what that child sang: time—(and) ilavaṅgam (clove)?

With clove attained; without ‘laṅgaṇam’/‘laṅghanam’, (he is) the king with the confluence-jewel.

Saying ‘nn-ennum’, mounting to the topknot/crown, he blows—so that the earth rejoices.”

Interpretive Translation

The verse can be read as an inner Ramayana coded into yogic–alchemical language: the “younger one of Lanka” (the discerning force that turns away from Ravana-like ego) fixes Rama (right order, pure awareness) as the sole target. At Rama’s “feet” (the foundational base) lies “rasa”—which may be both nectar/essence and mercury—together with “vīram,” hinting at a mineral agent used in Siddha rasavāda.

The “kokkan” (crane/heron, or the mind–breath that stands poised and still) does not rot or waver; attached to that essence, it “comes” and then “climbs the hill” (the spinal axis/inner mountain). The “child prince” is the rising inner potency—prāṇa/kundalinī/bindu—ascending through the inner peaks. Its “song” is about Time (kāla): either measuring it precisely through breath-retention or transcending it. “Clove” (ilavaṅgam) suggests the sharp, preservative heat/fragrance of ripened practice and medicine.

Without mere external ‘laṅghanam’ (fasting) or by truly completing the required discipline, the practitioner becomes the “king” bearing the “confluence-jewel” (a secret ‘maṇi’ at the meeting-point—often read as bindu/nectar at ājñā–sahasrāra). The repeated sound (“en… en…/nn-ennum”) and the ascent to the crown indicate the final raising to the head-center; the “blowing” points to controlled breath (or nāda) that makes the embodied earth (the body itself) rejoice in stabilized bliss.

Philosophical Explanation

1) Ramayana as inner allegory: “Lanka” commonly stands for a fortified, sense-bound embodiment; its “younger one” can signify the capacity for discrimination and surrender (often mapped to Vibhīṣaṇa in later readings). “Rama” then is dharma/awareness, the true “mark” (ilakkam) of practice.

2) Feet/base symbolism: “Rama’s feet” can mean refuge, but in yogic coding it also implies the foundation (mūlādhāra / the ground of practice). Siddhar verses often place the ‘medicine’ at the “feet,” i.e., at the base where transformation begins.

3) Rasa–vīram language: “rasa” can mean taste/tongue, essence/nectar, or mercury (rasam). “vīram” can mean valor, potency, or a specific mineral/chemical agent in Siddha pharmacy and alchemy. Their pairing strongly invites a rasavāda reading: a compound/operation that becomes “non-decaying” (sāvātu / does not spoil), echoing the Siddha aim of stabilizing body and consciousness.

4) Crane (kokkan) imagery: A crane stands motionless on one leg; Siddhar idiom uses such birds to indicate steadiness, vigilance, and the poised, selective mind. It may also encode prāṇa held in kumbhaka—still, alert, and “clinging” to the essence.

5) Hill-climbing: “Kundru” (hill) regularly functions as a metaphor for the inner mountain/spine; “climbing” implies upward movement of prāṇa/kundalinī through subtle centers.

6) Child–prince motif: The “child” (bālan) in Siddhar poetry can be (a) the inner embryo of realization, (b) kundalinī as a young royal force, or (c) the jīva that becomes sovereign when it reaches the crown. The princehood (kōmakan) marks rightful rule—mastery over senses.

7) Kāla and fragrance/heat: “Time” (kālam) is both the life-span measured by breath and the cosmic devourer to be overcome. “Clove” (ilavaṅgam) can indicate pungent medicinal heat, preservation, and fragrance—signs of ripening and stabilization, while also remaining intentionally cryptic.

8) Crown/topknot: “Mudi” signals sahasrāra or the summit of the subtle body. Reaching it suggests union (sangam) of currents, emergence of bindu/nectar (“maṇi”), and embodied joy (“earth rejoices”). “Blowing” indicates breath-technique, inner sound, or the final outward manifestation of an inward attainment—left deliberately double-edged.

Key Concepts

  • Lanka as symbol (body/ego-fortress) and the “younger one” as discrimination/surrender
  • Rama as target (ilakkam): dharma, pure awareness, refuge
  • “Feet” as base/foundation (mūla) and locus of the work
  • Rasa (essence/nectar/mercury) in Siddha alchemy and yoga
  • Vīram as potency/valor and possible mineral agent in Siddha medicine
  • Non-decay/imperishability as goal of rasāyana and siddhi
  • Kokkan (crane) as steadiness, vigilance, or prāṇa in retention
  • Hill-climbing as ascent of prāṇa/kundalinī through the spine
  • Child-prince (bālan/kōmakan) as inner royal power or realized jīva
  • Kāla (time) as breath-measure and as transcendence
  • Ilavaṅgam (clove) as heat/fragrance/preservative symbol and medicinal hint
  • Mudi (crown) as sahasrāra culmination; “maṇi” as bindu/nectar-jewel

Ambiguities or Multiple Readings

  • “இலங்கையான் இளையான்” could be Vibhīṣaṇa specifically, or any ‘younger/lesser’ principle within ‘Lanka’ (the embodied, egoic domain) that turns toward Rama.
  • “ரஸனை” can be read as ‘tongue/taste’ (discipline of speech and desire) or as ‘rasa’ (essence/mercury) in alchemical code.
  • “வீரம் / சவ்வீரம்” may mean valor/power, or a named medicinal/alchemical substance (mineral salt/metallic preparation). The exact identification is uncertain without a glossary from this lineage.
  • “சவ்வாது” can mean ‘does not spoil/rot’ (imperishable medicine) but may also imply moral steadfastness (‘does not waver/corrode’).
  • “கோக்கன் / கோக்கள்” is literally a crane/heron and plural birds, but may conceal yogic shorthand for the poised mind, prāṇa, or a clan/adept-group.
  • “குன்றேறும்” may be literal mountain imagery, or a standard metaphor for ascent through suṣumnā and inner centers.
  • “காலமி லவங்கம்” is syntactically opaque: it can mean ‘time (is) clove,’ ‘time and clove,’ or ‘in time, (comes) clove/fragrance,’ preserving deliberate crypticness.
  • “லங்கணமின்” can mean ‘without laṅghana/fasting’ or ‘without crossing/leaping’ (laṅgaṇa), yielding opposite emphases (inner discipline vs. no need for outer austerity).
  • “சங்கமணி” can be a literal ‘union-jewel/bracelet-gem’ or a technical ‘maṇi’ at the confluence of nāḍīs (bindu/nectar locus).
  • “ஊதே” can mean ‘blow (the breath),’ ‘inflate,’ or ‘sound out,’ allowing both breath-technique and nāda (inner sound) readings.