இறைவனைக் காக்கும் தாய்மை: பெரியாழ்வார் பாசுரங்களில் வாத்சல்ய பக்தியும் பராமரிப்பு அறமும்: Motherhood that Protects God: Vatsalya Bhakti and the Ethics of Care in the Pasurams of Periyalvar

Abstract

In Periyalvar's pasurams the Lord stands not only as the protector; he also stands as one who must be protected. This inverted relationship is the central hypothesis of the article. Taking the Tiruppallandu (12 pasurams) and the Periyalvar Tirumozhi (461 pasurams) as primary sources, the article examines the 'ethics of attentiveness' expressed in four acts: raising Krishna, protecting him, lulling him to sleep and singing pallandu (benediction). The study compares and brings together vatsalya bhakti, an Indian theory of devotion, and the ethics of care developed in Western thought. Through close textual reading, it shows how the elements of care (attentiveness, responsibility, competence and responsiveness) operate in Periyalvar's Yashoda-voice. The study concludes that Periyalvar's bhakti is not merely an emotional state; it is a practical ethic. Everyday acts such as bathing, feeding, applying protective charms, warding off the evil eye and putting the child to sleep are elevated into worship. In the Tiruppallandu this care moves beyond the individual and expands into a communal ethic of protection that unites the entire assembly of devotees. In this way, the Tamil bhakti tradition makes a distinctive contribution to the global thought on the ethics of care.

Keywords

• Periyalvar
• Tiruppallandu
• Periyalvar Tirumozhi
• vatsalya bhakti
• ethics of care
• mangalasasanam
• lullaby (talattu)
• Pillaittamil
• Alvar literature