The Four Thousand Sacred Hymns
Nālāyira Divya Prabandham (Tamil: நாலாயிர திவ்ய பிரபந்தம்) — 'the sacred prabandham of four thousand' — is the complete corpus of 4,000 Tamil verses composed by the twelve Āzhvārs across several centuries (approximately 4th–9th century CE). These hymns constitute the primary devotional scripture of the Śrī Vaishnava community, considered equal in authority to the Sanskrit Vedas.
Collection and Organization
Nāthamuni (9th–10th century CE) is credited with collecting, organizing, and setting these verses to music after they had been scattered and partially forgotten. He divided them into four thousand verses across twenty-four works (divya prabandhams). The most important of these is Nammāzhvār's Tiruvāymozhi (1,102 verses), which occupies pride of place as the 'Tamil Vedas.'
Structure
You are completely right, and I apologize for that fundamental error. I incorrectly placed the Mudalāḻvārs' Tiruvandhādhis in the Mudalāyiram, when they are categorically the foundation of the Iyarpa.
Here is the strictly accurate, canonical breakdown of the Nālāyira Divya Prabandham as per Śrī Vaiṣṇava sampradāya, correctly placing the Iyarpa and the works of the Mudalāḻvārs.
English Version: Structure of the Divya Prabandham
The 4,000 verses are organized into four major divisions. According to the precise canonical arrangement, the texts are distributed as follows:
1. Mudalāyiram (First Thousand — 947 Verses)
This section contains the early devotional works, but not the very first works historically (which fall into Iyarpa). It includes:
- Periyāḻvār: Tiruppallāṇḍu (12) & Periyāḻvār Tirumoḻi (461)
- Āṇḍāḷ: Tiruppāvai (30) & Nācciyār Tirumoḻi (143)
- Kulaśēkhara Āḻvār: Perumāḷ Tirumoḻi (105)
- Toṇḍaraḍippoḍi Āḻvār: Tirumālai (45) & Tiruppalliyeḻucci (10)
- Tiruppāṇāḻvār: Amalaṉādhipirāṉ (10)
- Madhurakavi Āḻvār: Kaṇṇinuṇ Ciṟuttāmbu (11)
2. Iraṇḍām Āyiram (Second Thousand / Periya Tirumoḻi — 1,134 Verses)
Dedicated exclusively to the musical prabandhams of Tirumaṅgai Āḻvār:
- Periya Tirumoḻi (1,084)
- Tirukkuṟuntoṇḍagam (20)
- Tiruneḍuntoṇḍagam (30)
3. Mūṉṟām Āyiram (Third Thousand / Iyarpa — 709 Verses)
This division comprises non-musical, literary verse compositions (iyarpā) set in veṇbā and other meters. It is here that the foundational Tiruvandhādhis of the Mudalāḻvārs reside:
- Poigai Āḻvār: Mudal Tiruvandhādhi (100)
- Bhūtathāḻvār: Iraṇḍām Tiruvandhādhi (100)
- Pēyāḻvār: Mūṉṟām Tiruvandhādhi (100)
- Tirumaḻisai Āḻvār: Nāṉmugaṉ Tiruvandhādhi (96)
- Nammāḻvār: Tiruviruttam (100), Tiruvāśiriyam (7), & Periya Tiruvandhādhi (87)
- Tirumaṅgai Āḻvār: Tiruveḻukūṟṟirukkai (1), Siṟiya Tirumaḍal (40), & Periya Tirumaḍal (78)
4. Nāṅgām Āyiram (Fourth Thousand / Tiruvāymoḻi — 1,210 Verses)
Dedicated entirely to the magnum opus of the corpus, containing the essence of the Sāma Veda:
- Nammāḻvār: Tiruvāymoḻi (1,102)
- Thiruvaraṅgattu Amudaṉār: Rāmānuja Nūṟṟandādi (108)
The arrangement was designed to mirror the four Vedas.
Daily Recitation
The Divya Prabandham is recited daily in Śrī Vaishnava temples alongside Sanskrit Vedic hymns — a practice called sevakāla-anusandhānam (attentive recitation during worship times). Committing portions to memory (especially Tiruppāvai and Tiruvāymozhi) is a cherished practice for devotees.