Andal - Medium

Goddess Andal

Andal is one of the most extraordinary personalities in religious history. She is known in her native tongue of Tamil as an Alvar, one who is "immersed" in the depths of enjoyment of God, the  omnipresent mysterious One. Tradition reckons 12 Alvars, of which Andal is the only female. Between the fifth and ninth centuries, in the Tamil-speaking region of South India, these saints revitalized the Indian religious milieu, sparking a renewal of devotional worship throughout the subcontinent. 

Traveling from place to place, from temple to temple, from holy site to holy site, they composed exceedingly beautiful poetry to their Divine Beloved, Vishnu, as an expression of their love for Him. Anyone can see why their poetry was so attractive; at once both impassioned and philosophical, their words cut across all barriers of caste and class, attracting all to their faith. In doing so, they sculpted a new religious heritage of intensely emotional bhakti, or love of the Divine, whose impact is still felt today in the Indian religious life. Andal, whose life and poetry are celebrated every December-January, is the most visible contributor to this heritage. 

A devout brahmin named Vishnucitta (Also called as Periyalvar) lived in Villiputtur, a town near Madurai saw a beautiful girl baby in his flower garden, under Tulasi plant. Having no family of his own, Vishnucitta felt it was God's grace that gave him this child and named her Godai, or "gift of Mother Earth." Filled with joy, he took her home and raised her as his own. "Godai" became one of the famous Alvars and was later called as "Andal". Meaning of "Andal" is, the girl who "ruled" over the Lord


Andal composed two works in her short life. Both are in Tamil and are unique in their literary, philosophical, religious, and artistic content. Her contribution is even more remarkable considering that she was a teenage girl when she composed these poems, at a time when there is no other record of Tamil women composing poetry. They are Tiruppavai and Nacciyar Tirumoli.

Goddess Andal Gayathri :

Om Vishnu Chiththa-maajaya Vidhmahe
Ranga Pathniyaicha Dheemahe
Thanno Godha Prachodayath