Mugathai Kaatiya Dhéham

Pallavi: My lord! You show only your face to me but not your whole body. Why are you adopting this secret ruse?
Anupallavi: Lord TyAgEsarE, you are dwelling in this town of tiruvArUr (the best place in the world). Is there any blemish in your otherwise splendorous body (which makes you hide your body from me)?
CaraNam 1: When I think of coming in the evening pUjA time to view leisurely, you are completely smeared with sAndu (a black concoction made with charred rice mixed with camphor, saffron, and oil) and you deflect my attention by showing your charming ear stud decorated with marigold flowers. With your charming smile you also attempt to hide your hand that carries the deer and the ax.
CaraNam 3: During the ablution time, your body cannot be seen either since you make us concentrate our attention on your ear stud. You provide us with prosperity and quell our sins with your auspicious form.
In tiruvarUr temple, only the face of lord tyAgarAja is displayed most of the time while the rest of the body is covered with cloth, flower garlands and ornaments. Even the feet are covered. His right foot is revealed during MArgazhi tiruvAdhirai and left foot during Panguni utthiram. Other portions of his body are never shown. The song is based on this regimen. It also refers to the hoary details of the deity in the sanctum. There are 5 regular pUjA rituals as a daily routine. One cannot see the whole body of the lord at any time, not even during ablution which is done only six times a year. Even then they place a cloth screen in front and do the ritual. The daily ablution is performed only for the emerald lingam kept in a box near the base of the idol
During the rare ablution for the idol only the ear stud gains prominent attention. The composer still is enamored of the lord and is appreciative of the auspicious nature of the lord in the sanctum and is grateful for the boons the lord showers on his devotees. He says the lord quells all the sins of the devotees by saying “pApavinAsarE” which incidentally is the signature of the composer (PApanAsa mudaliyAr).
While the composer appears to chide the lord for not showing his full body there is an implied praise of the lord and his bounty to his devotees. He relishes the special decoration of the idol while making fun of all the “cover-up”. This genre of composition is called “nindAstuti” in Sanskrit and “vanjacap pugazhcchi aNi” in Thamizh. While the words appear to take issue with the lord’s deceptive practices, the lord’s boon-giving nature is implied.