Nammalvar

Here are three poems from A. K. Ramanujan's Hymns for the Drowning: Poems for Vishnu by Nammalvar. Nammalvar (approx. AD 880-930) was one of the twelve Alvars, Tamil saint-poets devoted to Vishnu. They wrote the earliest devotional poetry in any Indian language. (I have already posted a couple of poems from this book here.)

Poets,
beware, your life is in danger:

the lord of gardens is a thief,
a cheat,
master of illusions;

he came to me,
a wizard with words,
sneaked into my body,
my breath,

with bystanders looking on
but seeing nothing,
he consumed me
life and limb,

and filled me,
made me over
into himself.

(10.7.1)


My lord
who lives in the city
of names
came here today

said he'd never leave
entered me
filled my heart

I've caught him
the big-bellied one
not content yet
with all that guzzling
on the sevenfold clouds
the seven seas
the seven mountains
and the world that holds them all

I've caught him
I contain him now.

(10.8.2)


Instead of getting his praises
sung by the great poets

he
comes here today,
gently

makes me over into himself
and gets me to sing of him,

my lord of paradise.

(7.9.6)