Golden Lay Verses

Verse 314 (மந்திர வைப்பு)

தமிழ் பாடல்

மூலச்சி மூலத் துருக்கச்சிமும்

மூலக்க ருச்சிசம் மூல வாச்சி

காலக்க ணிச்சிசக லச்சி மூன்று

கண்ணிச்சி கொங்கைச்சி கற்பகச்சி

வேலச்சி மேலச்சி வெளி இடைச்சி

வேதாந்த மானபாப் பாத்தி கன்னிக்

கோச்சி யைம்பிள்னைத் தாச்சிகும்ப

கோணச்சி மாணிச்சி யம்மணச்சி

Transliteration

Moolachchi moola th thurukkachchimum

Moolakka ruchchicham moola vaachchi

Kaalakka nichchisaka lachchi moonru

Kannichchi kongaichchi karpagachchi

Velachchi melachchi veli idaichchi

Vedaandha maanabaab paaththi kannik

Kochchi yaimbilnaithe thaachchikumba

Konachchi maanichchi yammanachchi

Literal Translation

“Mūlācci; and the Root-Durukkācci too;

Mūla-karuccicam; Mūla-vācci;

Kāla-kkaṇicci; Sakalacci—three;

Kaṇṇicci; Koṅgaicci; Karpakacci;

Vēlacci; Mēlacci; Veli-iṭaicci;

Vēdānta-māna-bāp; Pātti-kanni;

Kōcci; the ‘tācci’ (nurse/mother) of five children; Kumpa;

Kōṇacci; Māṇicci; Ammaṇacci.”

Interpretive Translation

A coded litany of feminine powers (“-acci” as ‘mother/queen/śakti’) is given, beginning from the “mūla” (root/base) and moving through successive stations—some marked by “mēl” (above) and “veli-iṭai” (outer/intermediate space). The verse hints at a triad (“three”) and a quintet (“five children”), suggesting inner yogic groupings (three channels/three śaktis; five elements/senses/breath-functions). Through (or as) “Vedānta,” these named śaktis are to be recognized as operative principles within the practitioner’s body-mind, culminating in the jewel-like, all-encompassing “Ammaṇacci” (Mother-Power).

Philosophical Explanation

1) Form and function of the list The verse is dominated by repeated “-acci” endings. In Tamil Siddhar and folk-Śākta registers, this suffix can function like “ammā/acci” (mother, matron, queen, female presiding power). Read this way, the lines are not ordinary narration but an inventory of presences/potencies.

2) “Mūla-” as yogic/medical code “Mūla” literally means “root.” In Siddhar idiom it can simultaneously point to (a) the root/base of the subtle body (mūlādhāra), (b) the root-cause of karma/avidyā, and (c) medicinal “roots” (mūlam) used in kāyam (body) work. Placing multiple names under “mūla-” can therefore encode: root-chakra śakti(s), foundational energies, and/or root-drugs in a regimen.

3) Durga-like reference “Turukkācci/Durukkācci” is plausibly a Durgā/Durgā-śakti reference. Durgā at the “root” fits a common yogic logic: fierce protective power guarding the threshold where kuṇḍalinī is said to be coiled.

4) The numbers: “three” and “five” The explicit “mūnru” (three) and “aim-piḷḷai” (five children) are typical Siddhar compression devices. - “Three” can indicate: iḍā–piṅgalā–suṣumṇā (three nāḍīs), the three guṇas, or three śaktis/states (waking–dream–sleep), depending on the surrounding teaching. - “Five children” can indicate: pañca-bhūta (earth, water, fire, air, space), five senses, or five vital winds (prāṇa-vāyus). Calling them “children” makes the śakti the “mother/nurse” that births and regulates these functions.

5) Directional/vertical movement and “kumbha” Terms like “mēl” (above) and the appearance of “kumpa” (pot) invite yogic readings: “kumbha” can hint at kumbhaka (breath-retention, where prāṇa is ‘held like a pot’) and also at the body-as-vessel used in Siddhar alchemy (the practitioner’s body as the kumbha in which transformation ‘cooks’).

6) Vedānta marker The insertion of “Vēdānta” amid goddess-like names suggests a bridging move: the many named powers are ultimately to be understood not merely as external deities but as expressions of a single non-dual ground (or as steps that culminate in such recognition). This does not erase plurality; Siddhar speech often retains both levels—practical multiplicity for sādhana and a final Vedāntic/Śiva-Śakti identity.

Because the text is cryptic and orthographically uncertain, the safest reading treats the verse as an intentionally compressed mantra-like enumeration: names as “handles” for inner operations (chakra/naḍi/breath), possibly doubled as medicinal/alchemical categories.

Key Concepts

  • Śakti (“-acci” as mother/queen/presiding power)
  • Mūla (root): root-chakra, root-cause, medicinal roots
  • Possible Durgā/Durga-śakti reference
  • Triad symbolism (three nāḍīs/guṇas/states)
  • Quintet symbolism (five elements/senses/prāṇas)
  • Kumbha: kumbhaka (breath-pot) and alchemical vessel/body-as-vessel
  • Vertical ascent (mūla → mēl) and inner space (veli-iṭai)
  • Vedānta framing (many powers → non-dual ground)

Ambiguities or Multiple Readings

  • The Tamil appears textually unstable/garbled in places (e.g., ‘karuccicam’, ‘vācci’, ‘māna-bāp’, segmentation of compounds), so some items may be mis-copied names or mis-divided words.
  • “-acci” can be read as a feminine honorific (‘mother/matron/queen’), but in a highly coded Siddhar lexicon it could also be part of technical terminology or plant/mineral names now obscured by transmission.
  • “Mūla-” may indicate the mūlādhāra (yogic base), but equally can indicate medicinal ‘roots’ or foundational causal layers in philosophy.
  • “Three” (mūnru) can refer to nāḍīs, guṇas, states of consciousness, times (past/present/future), or three śaktis—no single identification is forced by the verse alone.
  • “Five children” (aim-piḷḷai) can map to five elements, five senses, or five vital winds; ‘tācci’ as ‘nurse/mother’ strengthens but does not fix the mapping.
  • “Kumpa” can be the breath ‘pot’ (kumbhaka), an alchemical vessel, or a zodiacal/ritual ‘kumbha’ signifier; Siddhar verses often let these readings coexist.
  • Several names (e.g., Karpakacci ‘wish-fulfilling’, Māṇicci ‘jewel’) can be read literally as epithets of goddesses or symbolically as siddhi-yielding states/substances.