Avathārikai (Introduction)
In the profound state of separation from her beloved Nāyakan, the Nāyakī (the Āzhvār in a state of feminine emotion) sought to sustain her very life by gazing upon those objects in the world that bore some resemblance to Him. However, as this state of viraha-tāpam (the anguish of separation) intensified, the oppressive darkness of