AaNDaaL – (7th century A.D.) She was the only woman among the 12 Vaishnava (believers in Vishnu) Saints known as Aazhvaars. Her Tiruppaavai consists of 30 very devotional songs, regularly sung early in the morning during the Tamil month of Maargazhi (December-January) in Tamil NaaDu.
Also known as “SoodikkoDuta Naaciyaai,” she was determined all her life to marry only Lord Vishnu, the Lord of Shreerangam. The story goes that her father, a priest, was keeping aside flower garlands for the Lord, only to find that the garlands had long black hairs in them. Of course, they couldn’t be used to garland the Lord in the temple, and the priest was distraught. One day the garland was actually missing, and when he went home, to his surprise, AaNDaaL was wearing the garland and admiring herself in the mirror shyly – if she is Lord Vishnu’s beloved, they are one, and the garland was hers.
AaNDaaL’s 30 songs express the desire of unmarried young women to get suitable bridegrooms. Considering herself one of the unmarried shepherdesses, she desires Krishna for her husband, and hence portrays herself going out to meet him after taking an early morning bath along with the other shepherdesses. She also includes beautiful descriptions of nature.
She also composed another 143 songs called “Naaciyar tiru mozhi,” which describe her intense love for Krishna. Her life is said to have been an inspiration for “Tiruvempaavaai” by MaaNickavaasagar.
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