Golden Lay Verses

Verse 41 (பீட வைப்பு)

தமிழ் பாடல்

அத்தானே அதிலதிலே யனைத்து மாகும்

அத்திப்பா லரைக்கீரை வித்தைத் தள்ளிச்

சத்தார மதைச்சொன்னேன் தாமம் சொன்னேன்

தான்சுத்த ஜலம்சொன்னேன் தழைவும் சொன்னேன்

முத்தர்ர மண்டபிண்டச் சுண்ணம் சொன்னேன்

முப்பூவின் முறைசொன்னேன் முழுதுஞ் சொன்னேன்

சித்தான குருமூலிச் சிறப்பும் சொல்வேன்

செப்பரிதாம் மெய்ப்பொருளைச் செப்பு வேனே

Transliteration

aththaanE athilathilE yanaiththu maagum

aththippaa laraikkeerai viththaith thallis

saththaara mathaichchonnEn thaamam sonnEn

thaan suththa jalam sonnEn thazhaivum sonnEn

muththarr mandapindach chunNam sonnEn

muppoovin muRaisonnEn muzhuthunj sonnEn

siththaana kurumoolich siRappum solvEn

sepparithaam meypporuLai cheppu vEnE.

Literal Translation

“That itself—within that, within that—becomes everything.

Casting aside the ‘trick/recipe’ of fig-milk (latex) and arai-kīrai (a green herb),

I spoke of sattāram; I spoke of thāmam (copper).

I spoke of pure water; I spoke also of tender leaves/greens.

I spoke of the chūṇṇam (calcined lime/ash) of muttaram and maṇḍa-piṇḍam.

I spoke of the method of the ‘three flowers’; I spoke it completely.

I will speak too of the excellence of the siddha-like guru-mūli (the guru-root/herb).

I will utter the true substance/reality, hard to articulate.”

Interpretive Translation

All multiplicity is said to arise within “That” alone. The speaker then lists a catalogue of teachings—some sounding like concrete siddha-medical/alchemical items (latex, greens, copper, purified water, calcined powders, a triadic method), and some sounding like esoteric instructions—before promising to disclose the “guru-root” (the foundational principle/medicine received from the Guru) and, beyond these preparations, the inexpressible “true reality” that is difficult to put into words.

Philosophical Explanation

This verse works like a self-attestation of completeness: “I have spoken of everything”—yet it ends by pointing to something that is still “hard to speak.” That tension is typical of Siddhar discourse.

1) Nondual framing (metaphysical claim): The opening line (“That itself… becomes everything”) places all subsequent “recipes” inside a single ontological ground. It can be read as a Siddha-style nonduality: the many operations of medicine/alchemy/yoga are secondary expressions of one underlying reality.

2) Alchemical/medical register (technical claim): The middle lines resemble an inventory of materia and processes: - latex/milk, greens/leaves, “pure water” suggest solvents, juices, decoctions, or purification media used in śuddhi (cleansing) steps. - thāmam is commonly copper in Siddha metallurgy; copper preparations require elaborate purification and calcination. - chūṇṇam (calcined ash/lime) is a standard siddha pharmaceutical outcome (incinerated/calcined form), often implying repeated heating, grinding, and “killing” the raw substance to make it assimilable. - “muttaram” and “maṇḍa-piṇḍam” sound like named ingredients or intermediate products; they may indicate a specific class of calcined preparation. - “three flowers” may be a cryptic tag for a triadic procedure or catalyst (possibly echoing the famous muppu tradition in Siddha alchemy, though the word here is “muppū/three-flowers,” not explicitly “muppu/tri-salt”).

3) Yogic/inner-alchemical register (symbolic claim): Siddhar texts frequently let outer pharmacy mirror inner transformation. - “pure water” can also signify clarified awareness, prāṇa, or the internal “cool” principle that stabilizes heat (tapas/inner fire). - calcination can symbolize the burning away of impurities/ego and the conversion of “gross” tendencies into a subtle, usable essence. - a triad (“three flowers”) can map onto yogic triads (iḍā–piṅgalā–suṣumṇā; three guṇas; three doṣas), without fixing a single referent.

4) Guru-mūli and the unsayable: The “guru-root” suggests that the decisive ingredient is not merely a plant root but the foundational transmission/secret principle that makes the work effective. The final claim—speaking the “true substance” that is “hard to say”—signals that even after listing many technical details, the core realization remains partially ineffable and deliberately guarded.

Key Concepts

  • Nonduality: “That itself becomes everything”
  • Siddha alchemy and pharmaceutics
  • Śuddhi (purification) and chūṇṇam (calcination/incineration)
  • Thāmam (copper) and metallurgical preparation
  • Solvents and media: latex/milk, greens/leaves, “pure water”
  • Triadic method (“three flowers”) as an esoteric procedure/catalyst
  • Guru-mūli (guru-root): initiatory/secret foundation
  • Ineffability and intentional cryptic speech

Ambiguities or Multiple Readings

  • “அத்தானே” can be read as emphatic “that itself/indeed that,” but in colloquial Tamil it can also be a vocative (“O father/kinsman”), shifting the tone from metaphysical to devotional/addressive.
  • “அத்திப்பால்” is literally fig latex/milk, yet it could also be heard as “athi-pāl” (a ‘supreme milk’), allowing an inner-yogic reading as amṛta-like secretion rather than botanical latex.
  • “அரைக்கீரை” may be a specific herb (identity uncertain) used in Siddha practice, or it may function generically as “greens,” so the technical recipe cannot be fixed without a commentary tradition.
  • “சத்தாரம்” is unclear: it may denote a particular salt/compound, a preparation-name, or a coded term; multiple identifications exist across Siddha vocabularies.
  • “தழை” can mean leaf/foliage (a medicinal component) or figuratively “fresh growth/green-ness,” implying rejuvenation/renewal.
  • “முத்தர்ரம் / மண்டபிண்டம்” are opaque: they could be named ingredients, intermediate pellets/cakes (piṇḍam), or coded bodily substances; the verse does not disambiguate.
  • “முப்பூவின் முறை” literally reads “method of the three flowers,” but it may cryptically point to the famed alchemical catalyst muppu (tri-salt) or to yogic triads; the text preserves deliberate ambiguity.
  • The repeated “I said/I spoke” can be taken literally (the author has already taught these procedures) or rhetorically (a claim of mastery that precedes disclosure of a deeper, guarded principle).