Amalanadipiran is a devotional hymn of ten verses by Tirupaanazhvar (Tiruppan Alvar). It is included in the first section called Mutalayiram of Sri Vaishnava canonical text, Nalayira Divya Prabandham, also called Arulicceyal.
In this hymn, Tirupaanazhvar (one of the twelve Sri
Vaishnava devotees of Bhagavan Vishnu) celebrates his intense fascination for
the beauty and charm of the archa form of Bhagavan Ranganatha, lying on his
serpent couch in the great temple of Srirangam and speaks of his attractive
form from the foot to head. In the tenth verse, the Alvar says that his eyes
which had witnessed Ranganatha would look on no other object thereafter.
Tirupaanazhvar associated the beauty of each part of the
form of Ranganatha with his transcending glories. The poem progresses from one
state of absorption to another. Two acharyas have composed long commentaries on
the poem. They are Periyavaccan Pillai and Alagiya Manavala Perumal Nayanar.
Vedanta Desika has also interpreted it as conveying the Vaishnava rahasyas
(secret of the doctrine) in his Munivahana Bhogam.
Amalan means the spotless; therefore, it is the ‘opposite number’
of all unlovely things, and the resort of all kalyana gunas (auspicious
attributes). He is naturally opposed to all things evil. This purity is not
limited to Bhagavan’s self but extends to all connected with him. Vimalan (the
pure one) is full of bliss and joy because he had place the Alvar in the
service of his devotees and thereby made him his own man.
Bhagavata Seshatva (service to devotees of Bhagavan), is
even more important to a Vaishnava than just Bhagavat Seshatva (service to
Bhagavan), as it fortifies the individual’s consecration to Bhagavan and leads
him to the inner shrine. Just as Vibhishana in the Ramayana got the favor of
the monkey leaders as a preliminary to his acceptance by Rama, Ranganatha made Tirupaanazhvar
a bondsman of his liege. The poem has also been interpreted by the commentators
as conveying the Vaishnava core-doctrines of arthapancakam, ashtaksharam (eight
syllables) and dvayam (the two). So far as the five points of artha-pancakam (God,
soul, way, obstruction, release) are concerned, the Alvar implies that all
these are to him centered in his Bhagavan in the archa (worshipped deity) form
at Srirangam. The high regard in which this poem is held is seen from its inclusion
in the daily recitals of Vaishnava worship (nityanusandhanam) in temples and
homes. It also figures in special recitals of his hymns on the Alvar’s birthday
and as part of the Adhyayana festival when Divya Prabandham is recited.