அகர முதல எழுத்தெல்லாம் ஆதி
பகவன் முதற்றே உலகு.
Akara Mudhala Ezhuththellaam Aadhi
Pakavan Mudhatre Ulaku (1)
The alphabet begins with the “A” sound, so does the Universe begin with the universal consciousness.
अकारादेव निर्यान्ति समस्तान्यक्षराणि च ।
चराचरप्रपञ्चोऽय मीश्वरादेव जायते ॥ (१)
अक्षर सबके आदि में, है अकार का स्थान ।
अखिल लोक का आदि तो, रहा आदि भगवान ॥ (१)
ಅಕ್ಷರಗಳಿಗೆಲ್ಲಾ ಅಕಾರವೇ ಮೊದಲು, ಲೋಕಕ್ಕೆಲ್ಲಾ ಮೊದಲು ಆದಿ ಭಗವನ್ (೧)
Das “A“ ist der erste aller Buchstaben – Gott ist der Erste von allem in der Welt.
Tiruvalluvar begins with an invocation to God, the universal consciousness, the supreme being. The first 10 couplets of the Tirukkural can be seen to be praising God, but can also be thought of as an invocation to a higher power – a reminder that there are forces that we still do not understand.
This couplet mentions not the letter A, but the sound ‘a’. This sound is one of the primary sounds that make up any alphabet, and the first of all. The ‘a’ sound begins in the thoracic region – the other two primary sounds ‘u’ and ‘m’ originate in the throat and the mouth respectively.
Together, they form ‘AUM’, the primordial sound of the universe.
The ‘a’ sound accompanies and energises the other sounds, and serves not just as the beginning, but also the enricher and the cause of the integrity of all the other sounds.
In the same manner, the universal consciousness that is known by various names and forms, serves as the source of life, the origin of what we know as the Universe.
கற்றதனால் ஆய பயனென்கொல் வாலறிவன்
நற்றாள் தொழாஅர் எனின்.
Katradhanaal Aaya Payanenkol Vaalarivan
Natraal Thozhaaar Enin (2)
Of what use is learning and education, if they do not lead to one worshipping pure knowledge?
ईशस्य ज्ञानरूपस्य विना पादनिषेवणम् ।
सन्त्वधीतानि शास्त्रणि न तैरस्ति प्रयोजनम ॥ (२)
विद्योपार्जन भी भला, क्या आयेगा काम ।
श्रीपद पर सत्याज्ञ के, यदि नहिं किया प्रणाम ॥ (२)
ಪರಮ ಶುದ್ದಜ್ಞಾನ ಸ್ವರೂಪದ ಭಗವಂತನ ಸತ್ ಪಾದಗಳಿಗೆ ನಮಿಸದಿದ್ದರೆ ಕಲಿತಂದರಿಂದಾದ ಫಲವೇನು ? (೨)
ಮಳಲು ತೋಡಿದ ಪ್ರಮಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ಬಾವಿಯಲ್ಲಿ ನೀರು ತುಂಬುವಂತೆ ಮನುಷ್ಯರು ಕಲಿತ ವಿದ್ಯೆಯ ಪ್ರಮಾಣಕ್ಕೆ ಅರಿದು ಸಂಪಾದಿಸುತ್ತಾರೆ (೩೯೬)
Verehrt jemand nicht den guten Fuß Dessen, der das reine Wissen ist – was nützt alles Lernen?
Reaching the height of knowledge, which is awareness, should be the goal and culmination of education. The goal of knowledge is steadfastness, a stillness that leads to clarity and abolishing of the “I”, which is our ego. A person who’s humility does not increase as his learning increases, will not reach anywhere.
As we learn more, as we gain more knowledge, we realise that we are not different from each other – be it humans, animals, nature or anything else in this Universe.
वशे हि यस्येन्द्रियाणि तस्य प्रज्ञा प्रतिष्ठिता – The steadfast, having controlled all his senses, sits focused on me (the universal consciousness), so says the Bhagavad Gita. Our education should make us humble, focused on eliminating barriers of race, religion and species, and worshipping the good in us all – so says Tiruvalluvar.