Goddess Goda Devi, the Mother of Tiruppavai ..... And the Sacred Divine Wedding of Dhanurmasa : By Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

Goddess Goda Devi, the Mother of Tiruppavai

And the Sacred Divine Wedding of Dhanurmasa

By Vanam Jwala Narasimha Rao

This offering reflects our family’s living devotion to Goddess Goda Devi, illuminated by Tiruppavai and Amuktamalyada, uniting personal tradition with sacred history, poetry, and surrender across generations and enduring faith. In our ancestral revenue village of Muttaram, located adjacent to the Hamlet, and my native place, Vanamvari Krishnapuram, the divine wedding of Goddess Goda Devi and Lord Ranganatha (Venu Gopala Krishna Murthy) is not merely a festival, but it is a living spiritual inheritance. For generations, this sacred celebration has been conducted with unwavering faith, devotion, and continuity. For us, this divine wedding is not symbolic alone, but it is a reaffirmation of faith, continuity, and grace.

Following the firm instruction and spiritual resolve of my late father Srinivasa Rao, our family has upheld the tradition of performing the divine wedding on Bhogi day, the auspicious threshold of the Sankranti festival. The ceremony is conducted with great solemnity and Splendour by the revered temple priest Sri Borra Vasudevacharya, drawing devotees from surrounding villages who gather with heartfelt devotion. On that day, the temple becomes a sacred space where time seems to dissolve. The chanting of mantras, the fragrance of flowers, the rhythmic cadence of rituals, and the collective faith of the villagers transform the celebration into a shared spiritual experience.

Devotion is not merely an act of supplication. it is an intimate bond between the soul and the Supreme. Separation is not simply sorrow. it is a sacred discipline that refines love into surrender. The life of Goddess Goda Devi stands as a luminous embodiment of these eternal spiritual truths. Born of the earth and ultimately absorbed into the Divine, her story unites the Grandeur of the Puranas, the Sweetness of Devotional Poetry, and the deepest longings of the human heart. Every year, during the sacred month of Dhanurmasa, when the hymns of Tiruppavai reverberate through Vaishnava Temples and Households, the presence of Goda Devi is felt anew. Her verses do not merely praise the Lord, but they awaken the soul and guide it gently toward divine union. Her life is not confined to ancient lore, but it continues to live in ritual, memory, and lived devotion.

Devotees believe that witnessing or sponsoring this wedding brings marital harmony, prosperity, and spiritual well-being. More profoundly, it is believed that performing this sacred rite during Dhanurmasa bestows the grace of Vaikuntha itself. The origins of this divine episode are eloquently narrated in the Amuktamalyada of Emperor Krishnadevaraya. Vishnu Chitta, later revered as Periyalvar, was a devout Vaishnava of Srivilliputhur, wholly immersed in the service of Lord Vatapatrasayi. His life was marked by humility, discipline, and unwavering devotion.

One day, while tilling the land to cultivate a sacred Tulasi garden for the Lord, Vishnu Chitta discovered a radiant infant emerging from the earth, and located in the Tulasi Plants. Recognizing this as divine grace, he lovingly adopted the child and named her Goda Devi, meaning ‘The one born of the earth.’ From her earliest years, Goda Devi displayed extraordinary devotion. Her heart instinctively turned toward Lord Narayana, and as she grew, her devotion matured into intense love for Lord Krishna, whom she regarded as her eternal consort. Firm in her conviction, she resolved never to marry a mortal.

Like Goddess Sita, who emerged from the earth during King Janaka’s ploughing, Goda Devi too was believed as an Ayonija, earth-born and divinely destined. Just as Lord Rama is never worshipped without Sita, Vaishnava Tradition holds that no temple of Vishnu is complete without Andal. Goda Devi came to be known as Choodi Koduththa Nachiyar, the one who first wore the garlands before offering them to the Lord. Secretly adorning herself with the flower garlands meant for Vatapatrasayi, she gazed upon her reflection, experiencing both joy and the spasms of divine longing.

When Vishnu Chitta once refrained from offering those garlands, believing them to be impure, the Lord Himself appeared in his dream and declared that He desired only the garlands worn by Goda Devi. He revealed that she was none other than Goddess Lakshmi Incarnate. By divine command, Vishnu Chitta was instructed to take his daughter to Srirangam, where Lord Ranganatha awaited her.

In a divine vision, Lord Ranganatha assured Vishnu Chitta that He would accept Goda Devi as His eternal consort. In due course, the Celestial Wedding was celebrated with Unmatched Splendour, attended by Brahma, Shiva, Indra, and the hosts of heaven. Following the sacred rites, on the very same auspicious day, Goda Devi merged into the deity of Lord Ranganatha in the Sanctum of Srirangam, becoming eternally inseparable from Him. Thus, she came to be revered as Andal, the divine bride, and the Ardhangi, the inseparable half of Lord Ranganatha.

Among the twelve Alvars, Goda Devi occupies a unique position as the only female saint. Her Tiruppavai, comprising thirty hymns composed during Dhanurmasa, has attained universal renown. These verses are not mere poetry. They are profound spiritual instructions clothed in simplicity. During the entire month of Dhanurmasa, devotees rise in the sacred Brahma Muhurta and chant the Tiruppavai Hymns, as a sacred vow, meditating upon Goda Devi as the very embodiment of Mahalakshmi and seeking the compassionate grace of Lord Ranganatha.

The Tiruppavai teaches humility, surrender, discipline, and the truth that divine grace alone leads the soul to liberation. It is a firm and time-honored belief that the observance of the Dhanurmasa Vrata bestows marital harmony, prosperity, auspiciousness, and both worldly and transcendental well-being. It is for this reason that Goda Devi, the only female among the twelve Alvars, ascended to the highest spiritual stature through her unmatched devotion, her sacred experience of divine separation, and her absolute surrender.

The Tiruppavai, revered as a Divine Divya Prabhanda, is not merely recited but worshipped as a garland of immortal wisdom that leads the soul toward the path of Vaikuntha. Scriptures affirm that those who chant her name and recite her hymns during Dhanurmasa are assured of nearness to the feet of Sri Hari. Dhanurmasa Vrata is not confined to ritual bathing or hymn recitation alone. It is a profound spiritual discipline in which the individual soul relinquishes ego and offers itself entirely at the feet of the Supreme.

Discipline, restraint, and unwavering devotion walk together in this sacred observance. Goda Devi transformed her very life into a living vow, and the path she revealed stands as the ideal model of Dhanurmasa Vrata. Her Tiruppavai hymns are its very life-force, each verse concealing a deep spiritual truth and a timeless message of surrender meant for every soul. Her other work, Nachiyar Tirumozhi, reveals the intensity of divine longing, where devotion transcends fear and ritual to become intimate love.

Together, these works form a spiritual bridge between the individual soul and the Supreme. In an age where love is often entangled with possession, expectation, and ego, Goda Devi’s love offers a luminous alternative. She did not seek to possess the Lord, and instead she sought to dissolve herself in Him. Hers was not a love that demanded, but a love that surrendered. Her experience of separation was not despair but transformation. She converted longing into devotion and suffering into spiritual strength.

For the modern seeker, her life teaches that loneliness can deepen contemplation, struggle can refine surrender, and love, when purified, can lead to liberation. The life of Goddess Goda Devi unfolds as a divine epic, where devotion, separation, and surrender merge into eternal unity. Her story does not end with her absorption into the Lord. It begins there. Every Dhanurmasa, when Tiruppavai echoes through temples, streets, and homes, Goda Devi lives on, not merely as the consort of Lord Ranganatha, but as an eternal guide leading humanity toward pure love, divine grace, and ultimate freedom. 

{{Photographs courtesy Rama Bhakta JOGESH}}