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The most revered Acharyar in Srivaishnava sampradayam was Swamy Srisailesar . Srisailer was disciple of the legendary revered  saint Swamy Pillai Loka Acharyar.

( The most respected and adored saint who played a very important role in Lord Ranganathar’s safety during the Turks invasion few hundred years back )

Check the appended post for more details ..

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Swami Srisailesar appeared in a illustrious village kunthinagaram   near  Madurai.        His parents named him as “Thirumalai azhwaar”.

A very intelligent and highly talented young lad who assimilated all types of knowledge including administration with dedication was loved by one and all . He had samashrayanam (initiation ) done from his Acharyar Swamy Pillai Lokacharyar and was given a name as Satagopa dasar.

Those were the times when the illustrious Pandyan Kings were ruling Madurai. King Kulasekhara Pandyan had two sons Sundara Pandyan and Veera Pandyan.

Contrary to tradition, the king proclaimed that his younger son would succeed him. Sundara Pandyan was agitated and by a coup occupied the throne .

The local chieftains swore allegiance to younger brother Veera Pandian and thus a civil war broke out . Sundara Pandyan was defeated and was forced out of the country. He sought help from Sultan Ala-ud-din Khilji who entrusted the task to General Malik Kafur to handle the problem .

With Sundara Pandyan’s assistance, the army entered Madurai and looted the city for their benefit . They plundered the wealth from all the temples .

The citizens were in fear and the threat of being killed by these ruthless invaders .

To their worst nightmare Sundhara Paandyan passed away . It was chaos all around the whole city of Madurai as the invaders looted the nearby areas and the people had to suffer in the enemy’s hands . Sundhara Pandyan legal heir “Paraakrama Pandya” who was very young occupied the throne . It was a tough task managing the kingdom in such a deep crisis . As the prince was too young to take up the responsibilities , the queen requested the learned Swami Srisailesar  to take care of the administration of the kingdom . 

Swami Srisailesar  understood it was need of the hour to protect the Kingdom. He took over the responsibilities as defacto King and as an able administrator was managing the show with long sighted acumen thus protecting the prince and the kingdom.

Years passed , Thirumalai azhwar was missing his favorite service of attending to the revered saints and Acharyas association in learning true knowledge . He developed deep interest in sampradayam and quenched his thirst by knowing several esoteric truths from scholars regularly by inviting them to the royal chambers .

Day by the day the thoughts to resign from the assignment given to him became stronger and love to the Lordships increased manifold. Over a period of time as things settled down , he decided to quit the job and seek Acharyar’s lotus feet once for all .

In the other part of the kingdom , Swamy Pillai lokacharyar instructed his chief disciple, Sri Koorakulothamadasar to enlighten Srisailesar by teaching our sampradayam who would be succeeding him in Acharya parampara.

(Similar to how Manakal nambi based on Nathamunigal’s instructions personally interacted with Yamunacharyar who was a king and taught him about our sampradaya and made him a prominent Vaishnava acharyar) .

Due to his advanced age, Sri Pillai Lokacharyar  attained Acharyar’s  lotus feet  ( leaving his mortal coils at Jyotishkudi near Madurai .

( The divine pastime is appended in the blog post url ..

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During the plundering expedition of Malik Kafur, one of the worst period in Srirangam, Sri Pillailokacharyar’s disciples took our adorable Lord Azhagiya Manavalan ( Namperumal ) to Thenaikidambai, a village near Kozhikode, Kerala from Jyotishkudi after Swamy PillaiLokacharyar’s heavenly sojourn.

In other part of the Kingdom , due to the invaders torture ,parallely to protect saint Nammazhwar’s deity , few devotees from Azhwar Thirunagari carried the Lordships and reached this place carrying swamy Nammazhwar…

 

May be It was Lord’s arrangement !!!

Lord Namperumal and Swamy Nammazhwar met at this very holy place .What else can be the divine plan when both the Lord and his dearest devotee move out from their respective abodes and purify the nearby places by giving opportunities to his dearest disciples to carry them .

Nammazhwar was duly honored with Lord’s (Perumal’s parivatam) royal clothes , (kavacham made of pearls) . Both the teams discussed about the future plans in protecting the Lordships . They had to part ways for further safety .

From this holy place the disciples carried Lord Namperumal towards Melkote and later to Tirumala…..

Lord Ranganathar enjoyed the company of Lord Venkateshwara for almost 40 years .

 

We can have the darshan of the divine abode Of that mandapa where Lord Ranganathar stayed at Tirumala .

The devotees led by Swamy Thozhappar carried Swamy Nammazhwar diety and proceeded towards Kerala and halted at a place ” Munthirupu” .

The revered Acharyar Thozhappar was carrying out the divine service for months traveling avoiding eye contact with the ruthless invaders carefully avoiding the army who were looting the temples and the Priests .

As it was too hectic and difficult to face the invaders they carefully had Azhwar’s diety put inside a well covered box hid the same in a valley. In the tough task being carried out by the team , Thozhapar attained Acharyar’s lotus feet .

With no other option left out , the disciples slowly proceeded towards  Madurai  to seek  Srisailesar’s help in safeguarding the deity .

 At  Madhurai  , Srisailesar  by Azhwar’s grace,  was now detached from the royal affairs Srisailer who had resigned from the ministerial post approached his Sri Koorakulothamadasa for receiving the instructions from Acharyar ….

As per Acharyar Swamy Pillailokacharyar’s orders and Koorakulothamadasar’s instructions, Srisailer approached Swamy  Pillailokacharyar disciples.

As similar how Swamy Ramanujar approached five Acharyas , Srisailesar also approached   .

Swamy Vilaancholai Pillai taught him the intricate meanings of Srivachana bhooshanam the magnum opus work by Swamy Pillai Lokacharyar at Thiruvananthapuram.

Swamy Thirukannangudi Pillai taught him the divine pasurams of Thiruvaimozhi .

Swamy Nalloor Pillai taught him the intricate meanings of 3000 vyakhyanam

Swamy Thiruputkuzhi Jeeyar taught him the intricate meanings Thiruvaimozhi

Nallooraachan pillai-the illustrious son of Nalloor pillai continued to teach him the meanings Eedu 36000 .

Thus another versatile Acharyar was guiding the sampradayam .

Thozhappar’s disciples reached Madurai  and approached Srisailer . The mission was divine . Srisailer was eager to have darshan of Azhwar .He  along with the disciples proceeded to Munthirupu and located the valley . With Azhwars grace , they were able to locate the deity .With all honors, the deity was safely kept at Thirukannambi.

  Time passed quickly , and one fine day, Lord appeared in Srisailer’s dreams and advised ,

My dear Thirumalai aazhwar , the temple near Thirukurugoor is in a dilapidated condition which needs to be attended immediately .

I am sure you would initiate action

Thirumalai azhwar understood Lord’s divine command …

He immediately started towards Thirukurugoor along with few disciples .Praying Lord for his mercy he started searching the village . Somewhere far , he felt there could be Perumal sannidhi and Nammazhwar sannidhi. But was not sure if he was at the right place. A barren and waste land nearby made him go closer . He was confused thoroughly because he did not even expect the place to be in such a poor condition.

He met the villagers and requested them to guide him in locating the temple of Azhwar and Perumal . The villagers were also in poor memory .They informed that due to the Moslem invasion in the Pandyan kingdom all of them were scattered and they were also cognizant of the poor state of azhwar and Perumal sannidhi.

They feared that due to invasion, the whole area became like a waste and barren land . One old villager came running and offering obesiances said ,

Revered swamin …….

From childhood I have been going to Azhwars temple for serving the Acharyas . I remember during the looting expedition by the invaders , the brahmins keeping the security of Swami Nammazhwar in mind, carried Lordships and Swamy Nammazhwar deity to a place in Kerala that was engulfed by forests.

I was told by my elders that they had kept azhwar’s vigraham in a cave in that forest. 

 Srisailer was overjoyed . Thanking Swamy Nammazhwar for his mercy he proceeded to Thiruvananthapuram (capital city of Kerala) and approached the king there.

The King was kind to receive the saint . He ordered his minister to extend all the help to Srisailer . Using their help,  he located the place where Swami Nammazhwar resided . The place was called “Thirukanaambi”.

 

The entire group was overjoyed having darshan of Swamy Nammazhwar who was safely residing in a small box inside a valley . Glorifying the Lordships and Azhwar the group lead by  Swamy Srisailer  proceeded towards Thirukurugoor.

Now the task as allotted by Lord himself was taken up enthusiastically . All the villagers started to clear off the engulfed forest like area. One day ,while  Srisailer  was passing on pitch dark night, with a small lamp in his hand, he saw the ( Tamarind ) “Urangaapuli” tree and also the surrounding vimanam around it .

  He was overjoyed . Realizing the importance of the holy place recollecting those divine pastimes of Swamy Nammazhwar and dear disciple Swamy Madhurakavi Azhwar, he called the villagers and explained the glory of the holy place . The mission was to make the divine place just like place it was during the heydays of Swamy Madhurakavi azhwar.

With the abundant grace of Ahzwar’s and Lord Polindha nindra piraan’s anugraham, the mission of renovating the temple was accomplished in grand scale .

Glad with the service of Srisailer’s services  and his recitation along with nectarine explanation of Thiruvaaimozhi, Swami Nammazhwar himself christened the name of “Thiruvaaimozhi pillai”.

Now , Thiruvaaimozhi pillai started to revive all the lost and hidden traditions of the great place called “Thirukurugoor” ( “Aazhwar Thirunagari”). He took interest in educating the villagers.

With their active cooperation he got  the forest area cleared  and constructed a temple for Swamy Ramanujar who is worshipped as “Bhavishyad Acharyar” which is know glorified as Chaturvedi mangalam (called “Raamanuja chaturvedhi mangalam” ).

 

Thiruvaaimozhi Pillai  used to contemplate on the divine pasurams of Thiruvaimozhi explanations always given in Eedu . 

His attachment to Thiruvaimozhi was so much that he instructed his prominent disciple, Sri Manavala Mamunigal to always contemplate on Thiruvaimozhi .

.

Sri Azhagiya Manavala Perumal (Manavala mamunigal) belonged to Azhwar thirunagari and  was  direct  disciple .He got his initiation from Srisailesar. Sri Azhagiya Manavala Perumal was Srisailesar’s favourite student who later on took sanyasam and came to be known as  Swamy “Manavala Maamunigal” who rendered EEdu vyakhyanam in the presence of the processional deities in Srirangam  (Azhagiya Manavalan/Namperuamal) for one full year .

The famous invocatory sloka rendered Supreme Lord Sriman Narayana residing as Sri Ranganathar in Srirangam which every Srivaishnava recites daily at the beginning and end of Thiruvaraadhanam starts with the words

SriSailesa Daya patram DhiBhakti Adi Gunarnavam

Yatindra pravanam Vande Ramyaja Mataram Munim

This invocatory verse was given to Swami Manavala maamunigal by Lord Ranganathar himself .

The Lord addresses Acharyar Mamunigal as “Srisailesa Dayaa paathram”-one who is the recipient of Srisailesa’s mercy.

Among-st the august gathering ,the Lord disguised as a boy came forward and gave the  glorification  verse (thanian.) ….through the Archaka .

He accepted  Swamy Manavala Mamunigal as HIS acharyar. The Lord also gave HIS serpent bed, Adiseshan to Swamy Manavala Mamunigal as aasanam.

The kalakshepa mandapam in Manavala Mamunigal’s Thirumaligai at Srirangam is called as “Thiruvaimozhi Pillai mandapam”

 

Swamy Manavala Mamunigal in his wonderful  work “Upadesa Ratnamala” starts the invocation verse ( thanian) as

“Yendhai Thiruvaimozhi Pillai Inn arulaal……”

He attributes everything to the lotus feet of his acharyar.

Upadesarathinamalai,’ has 74 verses.

As the name indicates it is a jewel of noble precept – gems, a treasure house of essential knowledge for Srivaishnavas. These verses are chanted by the congregation (goshti) in temples and all vaishnava homes .

Swamy  Mamunigal states in the very first verse that these essential precepts were received by the grace of Thiruvoimozhi Pillai, his preceptor-Acharya.

After explaining an authoritative chronology of the appearance of revered Azhwars into this world with their appearance day details and places of birth, the hymn introduces the greatest of our acharyas, Swamy Ramanujar..

Elucidating further the commentaries by our acharyas on the hymns of the Azhwars, the importance of Nammazhwar’s Thiruvoimozhi is brought out by an enumeration of the five commentaries, of different lengths, that have appeared for these eleven hundred verses and how the ‘Eedu’ (36,000) commentary came to be written and propagated.More emphasis on the precious jewel, ‘Srivachana Bhushanam’ and the greatness of this ‘secret’ document is glorified .

The conclusion of this great treatise is that the grace of the preceptor-Acharya is the surest-gateway to salvation .

The sacred verses concludes  that  a reverent study of ‘Upadesarathinamalai’ is certain to beget the generous grace of Swamy Ramanuja.

The final (74) verse  was an  addition by Erumbiappa disciple of Swamy Mamuni  that  the fortunates  heads who   seek the holy feet (Sandals) of Sri Manavala Mamunigal are certain to be touched by Amanava at Srivaikuntam . This contact would cleanse the emancipated soul of the last traces of karma and render it pure to enter the land of Bliss.

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Inspired from a discourse rendered by a revered   Acharyar

Pictures : Courtesy Google images

 

Lord Krishna’s appearance day (Aavani (tamil month) Rohini nakshatra ) also coincides with a very revered Acharyar Swami Periyavaachan Pillai appearance day .

Periyavaachan Pillai elucidates about a revered venerated great teacher .

We have glories to Periya perumal ( Lord Ranganathar) Peria Azhwar ( Bhattarpiran ) Periya Jeeyar ( Swamy Manavalamamuni) and Periyavaachanpillai ( our great teacher) .

Thirumangai Azhwar, the last Azhwar was affectionately called as Kaliyan . He was the valiant army chief of the then Chola King.

For his valour the king gifted him with a small territory to rule over. Hence, he was known as Thirumangai Mannan .

Thirumangai Azwar had initiated lot of services to our LORD at Srirangam. The hundred pillar mandapam for the yearly festival adhyayana uthsavam was his contribution .

He also built the north and south gopurams at Kulasekaran thiruveedhi ( streets ) the fourth compound wall ( Mathil suvar) which is called Maharlokam .

The outburst 1253 of HIS EMOTIONAL OUTPOURING BLISS was shared through the divine pasurams sung instantly during his sojourn to almost about 86 divyadesam temples.

His compositions were Periya thirumozhi ,Periya thirumadal , SiRiya thirumadal ,Thiru nedunthANdakam , Thiru KurunthANdakam , Thiru vezhuk kurrirukkai.

During his piligrimage to Divyadesams , one day Azhwar majestically marches to Thirukkanamangai a divine place located in Tanjore district of Tamil Nadu which is around 8 kms from Tiruvarur amidst a huge tank Darsha Pushkarini near Western banks.

This temple is 25 miles from Kumbakonam and is among the Pancha Krishnaraya kshetram. The others being Therazhandur, Thirukannapuram, Thirukanankudi, Thirukannamangai and Thiru kapisthalam. Few include Thirukolur.

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This holy place is also called as “Sapthamirtha Kshetram”

Azhwar offers poetic glorifications to Lord Bhakthavatsala perumal .Azhwar keeps comparing the Lordships here to the sugarcane and also refers to the village as the place where blue lotuses bloom.

Azhwar swooned in the beauty of Lord and both exchange words …

Lord speaks … My dear Azhwar !!

How is that you instantly pour the nectarine pasurams …?

For which Azhwar humbly submits ..Lord !!

ven cengamon erndiya kanna

nin tanakkum kurippakil

karkalam kaviyin porul taaney… ( 7-10-10 )

meaning .. Kanna ..the bearer of the white conch ..should you be so inclined …

You can also do that ….

This offer by Azhwar could not be accepted by Lord for the protocol of Archavatara ..

Thus after few years ,

Swamy Periyavaachan Pillai appeared in the same aster ism as Lord Krishna namely Rohini star in tamil month of Aavani

and the illustrious Acharyar Swamy Nampillai appeared in the same asterism of Thirumangai Azhwar namely Krittika asterism in the tamil month karthikai.

Periyavaachan Pillai appeared at Chenganoor near Thiruvelliyangudi divyadesam. At a very young age he went to Tirumala on piligrimage .He was blessed by Lord by giving him a deity of Lord himself which he carried and worshiped all through out his life.

Later he moved to Srirangam and became a direct disciple of the illustrious Acharyar Swamy Nampillai . Under his Acharyars care , he learnt several commentaries of Srimad Ramayana and sastras. He thus inherited the widest and richest legacy of srivaishnava sampradayam from his Acharyar . The desire was thus fullfilled by Perumal himself.

Swamy Periya vachan pillai is the only Acharyar who had written commentaries of all the 24 compositions of Naalayiram DivyaPrabhandam.

Pacurappadi Ramayanam is a great work which has not a single word of his own.

With sentences , phrases and divine words recognisably found in DivyaPrabhandam , Acharyar had reconstructed the whole Ramayana in just two pages without omission of any important incident .

The legacy was carried further to his disciple named varadarajan who was very ordinary person serving Acharyar in all means . Once few disciples of the celebrated poet “Appaya Deekshittar” an advaitik scholar reached Swamy’s Ashram .

They started discussing about the incidents of Srimad Ramayanam . The discussions attracted Varadarajan to come out of the kitchen and find out what was the discussion about .

He approached a vedantin and requested him to share the content of the topic being discussed . The Vedantin looking at ignorant cook , with arrogance replied .

Oh !! yeah … Its your content of work we are discussing …

Yes about Musalakisalayam…. ( The wooden pestle used for dehusking the grains )

The group left after meeting Acharyar .

Varadarajan was eager to know about the vedantin words .

He approached Acharyar and begged to know about the Musalakisalayam..

The Acharyar replied there was no book about Musalakisalayam .The group just made fun out of him . Varadarajan was deeply hurt. He wept and holding Acharyar’s feet seeked mercy to make him of some worth in understanding scriptures.

In course of time Acharyar with merciful attention taught him several topics and thus he became a revered scholar .

He was glorified as Vadikesari Azhagiyamanavalla Jeeyar .

Azhagiya Manavalla Jeeyar wrote commentaries on Thiruvamozhee called Pannirayarappadee which is an authority giving word by word meaning to the treasure given to us by Poorvacharyas ....

Swami also wrote a book naming it MUSALAKISALAYAM …

All glories to Acharyar Swami Periyavaachan Pillai

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics credits : Advanced devotees who have uploaded in Facebook, Google pics

 

srIshailEsha dayApAtram dhIbhaktyAdi guNArNavam |
yatIndra pravaNam vandE ramya jAmAtaram munim ||

lakshmI nAtha samArambhAm nAthayAmuna madhyamAm |
asmadAchArya paryantAm vandE guru paramparAm ||

The above sloka …. reverberates in all srivaishnava temples and homes glorifying the rich sampradaya we have inherited from our poorvacharyas …. Swamy  Nathamunigal and Swamy  Alavandar, the two great acharyas  have been pillars to Srivaishnava sampradayam, took their avatara at  the holy place Kattumannar koil, which is 25 kms from Chidambaram in Cuddalore district of Tamil nadu, South India.

Kattumannarkoil (situated on the banks of the vast Veeranam Lake) hallowed by the birth of these Acharyas is the only place with magnificent temples dedicated to Swamy Nathamunigal and Swamy  Alavandar.

Swamy Nathamunigal  was the  foremost Acharya  of Srivaishnava sampradaya .

Nathamuni mastered himself in Vedas at a  very young age.

He was devoted to Lord  Veera Narayana Perumal and spent most of his time performing daily                 ( aaradhanai) poojas for the Lord here.

One day, during his pilgrimage to Thirukudanthai ( present day Kumbakonam ) Temple  he was attracted to the Archakas chanting the divine nectarine verse …. Aaravamuthey song….

The  devotees ended  the song with the words… “ these 10 out of the 1000” verses .

“ Aaraavamudhe Adiyen Udalam,

Ninbaal Anbaaye

Neeraal Alainthu Karaiya Urukinra Nedumaale

Seeraar Sennel Cauvery Veesum,

SezhuNeerth ThiruKudanthai

EraarKolam Thigazhak Kidanthaai, Kanden Emmaane”

Swami Nathamuni was drawn to these songs and  pleaded them to sing the rest of the 990 verses.

However, they expressed ignorance and said they  knew only these 10 songs which they were reciting daily following their ancestors  .

Seeking to find  the remaining  of these  divine songs,  Swamy Nathamuni proceeded  from Kattu Mannar Koil and went to Kumbakonam, where Lord Aaravamudhan appeared before him and asked him to go to Thirukolur for  knowing more ..

Swamy proceeded to Thiru Kolur, where he got initiated with the great Acharyar  Madhura Kavi Azhvaar’s  holy verses of Kannin Siruthambinaal.

Madhurakavi Azhwar was a direct disciple of Swamy Nammazhwar .The divine pastime of Azhwar can be read in the below  appended post

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He came back to Thiru Kurugur and meditating  under the Tamarind tree,  recited these  divine verses 12000 times.  

On completion of which the all compassionate NammAzhvaar is said to have appeared before him and shared the entire 4000 songs the  “Divyaprabhandam” —Naalaayira Divya Prabandham which we are able to relish glorifying the LORDSHIPS .

Lord Veera Narayana Perumal is then said to have called Swami Nathamuni back to Kattu Mannar Koil where the Vaishnavite Saint  chanted and shared the “Naalayira Divya Prabandham”.

Thus, Nathamuni of Kattu Mannar Koil, was instrumental in bringing back to the world the 4000 verses of the Azhvaars.

He also initiated the Sri Vaishnava Sampradayam from here.

As Lord Narayana came here as ‘Mannan’ to wed  Mahalakshmi and  asked Nathamuni to share the Divya Prabandham and the Vaishnava Sampradayam to the world at large, he was referred to as ‘ Kattum’ ‘Mannan- Aanaar’ (the Lord who came aa kings and later presented the entire prabandham through Nathamuni).

In course of time, Kattum Mannan-Aanaar became Kattu Mannar.

Nathamuni’s grandson was named as ‘Yamunai Thuraivan’(Alavandar) .

Born in Kattu Mannar Koil, Aalavanthar would travel to Srirangam and spread the message of SriVaishnavism. Swamy Ramanuja was nominated by him  as the ’to be’  next Acharyar of the great sampradhayam  after his disappearance .

Alavandar’s  disciples include Periya Nambi, ThiruKoshtiyur Nambi, Thiru Kachi Nambi and Srirangam Araiyar.

A clip was taken during our in which Bhattar elaborately explains in tamil about the glorious Srivaishnava Sampradayam.

Swamy  Nathamuni set the 4000  Divya prabhandam to tune and music and taught to his dear disciples  Melai agatthazhwAn and Keezhai agatthazhwAn (his nephews) and propagated the divine nectar  in various divya desams.

Nathamuni re arranged 4000  nectarine verses equivalent to Vedas  into four parts and introduced the same as part of recitation in Divya Desams, as part of worship in all temples

During the period ,once , the  Chozha  King  got down  along with his wives to  have darshan of Lord at Viranarayanapuram temple at Kattumannar  .

Looking at the Royal couple  in such great ornaments, crown, and silk cloth,  Nathamuni who was a transcendental devotee , for a moment lost himself and thought  Lord Krishna with His devis would  have come from Dwarakai.

 

He fell at the feet of the king seeing him as  Lord Krishna .

The king was shocked and immediately sprung to lift  Nathamuni and  realized the deep devotion  the Sage  had .He immediately  submitted himself for his offense .

During  another occasion, the king had  just completed discussing with the Sage about Lordships  divine pastimes. He took Acharya’s permission to leave.

He started walking towards the chariot. When he was about to board, (as usual, the king used to call the chariot driver on whose shoulder he  used to set  his foot to jump into the chariot), the driver was there for the king to jump in.

After he jumped in, he saw below and it was  Nathamuni’s shoulder.

The king was shocked . He got down to apologize  for his grave offense .

He felt ashamed and said ! Swamin ….  “What have I done! Stepped on your shoulders! that too my Acharyar !!! 

I have committed  a great apacharam!”

Nathamuni thought it  was Lord  Rama who had come by the chariot along with Sumanthrar. 

Hence, he offered his shoulders for Lord  to step into the chariot. That was  Nathamuni’s unalloyed devotion who was always in transcendental bliss always seeing LORDSHIPS everywhere .

One day   Swamy Nathamuni was in  deep meditation .

The  Chozha  king  passed near Veeranarayanpura with his soldiers   after a hunting exercise.  

The sage,  interrupted in his meditations by the attendant bustle, opened his eyes and, construing the party to be the divine Lord  Rama and his brother in the streets ,( on whom  his thoughts were wholly bent in meditation )  followed the track of the party and walked with weary steps till the very gates of the Chozha capital Gangaikondapuram  from Kattumannar Koil  and went searching ..

Nathamuni  already in that bliss  imagined ” Lord Rama with his brother Lakshmana and  Mother  Sita  have come to  grace him .

He  fainted  at a place in a divine bliss  and  reached Lord’s abode  on an Ekadasi day.

All glories to Swamy Nathamunigal

Swamy Natha Munigals appearance day is  being celebrated  on  25-06-2018                  ( Aaani Anusham ) in all Srivaishnava temples .

All glories to the devotees participating in all the temples 

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics credits : Google images

Once the revered Acharyar Nadathoor Azhwan was on the way to  a nearby temple . He met a learned srivaishnava friend who had  come to  accompany Azhwan upto the  temple . En route they were discussing  the  divine experiences of Azhwars and Poorvacharyas .

Suddenly they  came across  another srivaishnava with Tilak but was belonging to a lower caste . As was the custom those days on seeing the two revered Acharyas he moved to  another side of the road and waited obediently for them to leave .

The learned vaishnava friend  who was accompanying Azhwan  looked at the passerby and started shouting at him for trespassing …….. and  was too harsh on him …..

Nadadoor Azhwan who heard his  shouts , fell down in a swoon . He was brought back to consciousness  . The learned Vaishnava asked Azhwan………………. If his health was fine and why did he swoon ?

Azhwan who was already in a deep shock explained ..

My dear scholar .. ………………..

Do you know , who  was that  srivaishnava  whom you misbehaved with ?  ……………….

——The learned vaishnava put a blank face .

Azhwan continued…. 

That great soul belonged to the family of Thiruppan Azhwar who with his just 10 verses of  Nectarine Amalanadhipiran pasurams   merged  in  Lord’s lotus feet and got liberated .

 My dear Swamin !!

It has been repeatedly said and  proved  that If one indulges in a transgression involving a devotee ( Bhagavatha Apachara ) even the brahmavidya will be rendered ineffective in combating the effects of the karma.

Among   the different  types of transgressions for a devotee  the first arise out of disrespectful reference to another’s birth .       It is a severe offense to brand a person for his low caste  as all are vaishnavas , without reference to caste are worthy of worship .

This vaishnava is also a great devotee who has qualities of abundant mercy and compassion  and that was the reason  he respected you and  just moved away .

Do you know ,

He can recite all the 4000 Divya Prabhandams pasurams .

He is so fortunate to be born between the two cauveries .

You have misbehaved with a great soul just because of his appearance and caste …..

Am I not a low caste person when I claim I am Independent dear scholar .. .. 

Azhwan listed out several pastimes from  ( Revered saints ) Poorvacharya’s works to drive his point  and   takes a verse from anthimOpAya nishtai………..

madh bhaktham svapachamvApi nindhAm kurvanthi yE narA: 

padhmakOti sathEnApi na kshamAmi kathAchana

Those men who insult  my devotees, even a chandala , are never  excused  by me even after the passage of  millions of years.

 

yA prIthirmayi samvruththA madhbhakthEshu sadhAsthu thE ……….                                   avamAnakriyA thEshAm samharathi akilam jagath

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan …

Pics credits : Google images

Video credits  : Sri Kuldeep pai

( Excellent recitation of Sri Annamaya kirtana by lovable kids )

Swamy  Parasara Bhattar, the famous acharya   in Srivaishnavam  Sampradaya was the eldest son of Swami  Koorathazhvan. .   Bhattar  was  the chief priest  at Srirangam temple and  appeared  out of the grace of the Lord of Srirangam. 

 Swami parASara bhaTTar  appeared  in this world through the divine aravanai prasadam (the prasadam that is offered to the Lord just before the nightly closing of the temple) of Namperumal, which was offered to Andal, the wife of swami Kurathazhvan.

Not only by birth did swami bhattar, as he is addressed by all, show his greatness, but also by his  sharp intelligence, kind actions and  inspiring  spiritual  practices throughout his life.

 A toughest  enemy would also  adore Bhattar on listening to him.  Bhattar’s  skill in answering a person’s question even before the questioner has finished asking the question was  marvelous, and offers food for our thoughts  , thus pondering the filthy mind which  always rests in the ocean of egoistic approach .

Two divine pastimes mentioned below awakens one to work on our approach and seek Lord’s lotus feet unconditionally .

 

Once Bhattar went to a  temple with his disciples to worship his beloved Lord Ranganatha .

Unfortunately, the shrine was closed to the general public. In those times, the closing of the shrine to the public was usually expressed through a divine servant shouting out the words “netrapaani, netrapaani”.

While this was happening, swami Bhattar was inside the enclosure created by the screen that separates namperumAL’s shrine and the outside.

One of the close servants  in the temple , without knowing the divine closeness of Bhattar with  Lord Namperumal, shouted at Bhattar and uttered inappropriate words  much to the surprise of the crowd ,

Bhattar simply smiled at him.  but , the  disciples of Bhattar  couldnt accept and hence started to shout back at  the person .

 Bhattar   looked at  his disciples and  politely asked them “Why are you taking revenge at me?”

 

The disciples were  shocked and  taken aback,. They were confused on hearing these  unusual words from  their guru Bhattar.

One of the disciples, with a bit of courage, asked Bhattar

“Swami, we are not taking revenge at you, but only at the person who inappropriately,  misbehaved  at you”.

 Bhattar explained to them “The person at whom you are shouting has done a great favour to me .

And by shouting at him, you are showing ungratefulness and are becoming a nuisance to him by shouting at him”.

All the disciples were stunned;

Bhattar simply continued –

“It is the duty of every Sri Vaishnava, while worshipping the Lord, to  speak out his own bad qualities  and the Lord’s kalyana guNas.

Our Namperumal is very busy with so many utsavams and does not find enough time to listen to my  bad qualities  which are innumerable to be told completely.

Given that this is the case, this swami  serving the LORD has indirectly  helped me and has taken up my task in his shoulder and put forth  the bad qualities   of me before the Lord and the Lord is also very pleased to hear.

Why are you disturbing him from doing a favor to me?”

  Swami Parasara bhattar,  simply smiled at that  person who committed the slip , took one valuable necklaces from his neck, and offered it to that swami and told him “Swami –

Even though this will not equal the favor done by you for me, it is my humble offering to you”.Please keep it with you …

 Once Swamy was proceeding to attend a festival in nearby temple away from Srirangam . He had to walk into deep bushes . 

  En route   he met a hunter. 

The hunter was spellbound looking at Bhattars composure and tejas . He immediately offered obesiances  to Swamys lotus feet  and offered  a seat to Swamin .

Srivaishnava acharyas had  the unique trait of looking at everyone with  respect and hence Bhattar also made him sit along with him . 

A srivaishnava is  a person who  never cast anyone as low or high by how he looks or where he lives.

The instinctive prejudice that has diseased the society was never in their midst and hence the respect and love from the common folk was visible .

 Having taken his seat, Swamy, with his usual inquisitiveness, asked  the hunter of the daily routine in and  around the forest.

The hunter  was excited to have the audience of  the distinguished seer and sharing dais with his holiness .

He mentally rehearsed what  he can  reveal and decided to tell a strange  incident that he came across . 

He  humbly  said  ..

“Swamy, a few days back, I did not get food throughout the day.  Due to pangs of hunger ,  

I decided to find food at any cost and headed towards a rabbit habitat. 

I  was overjoyed when I found a little baby rabbit . 

Holding it by the ears, I  started walking home.

Having walked a few steps, I sensed something nibbling at my feet.

To my surprise, I found the mother of this rabbit  was at my feet.

Its behavior was very strange.

It kept nibbling at my toes and quickly ran around my feet and came back to the toes.

This kept  on happening for some time and I couldn’t put a foot forward. 

A strange feeling  entered  in my heart.  Feeling pity  at the behavior of the Mother rabbit 

I suppose , my heart felt for the little one and her mother……

  My mind stubbornly directed me to make my supper with the rabbit  BUT  my heart  overruled  the mind and demanded the release of the little rabbit.

I was  overcome with compassion and remorse that I put down the child rabbit. Both the rabbits went around me a couple of times and  merrily jumped may be  blessing me  for letting them go safely .

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And to my surprise, this feeling overpowered my hunger and I was feeling my stomach seemed full.

The Acharya listened to the entire narration with eyes wide open and exclaimed

“Oh  Lord Ranga!  My Swamin ….

How can we narrow down the concept of Surrender  to a certain set of rules?

This small incident  where  a  man devoid of any shastric learning melts down to the surrender of a rabbit and forgoes his hunger.

A rabbit, absolutely devoid of any sort of tatva gnyanam instinctively surrenders at the feet of the hunter and seeks the release of its child!

How can  unconditional surrender have stringent rules?

It is a simple yet highly effective concept for  the mankind to  learn   from the rabbit to surrender  seeking Lords Lotus Feet  unconditionally .

 Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics credits : Google images uploaded by several advanced devotees

 

 

The King was stunned to see Kaaladhooshakan  . 

The bewitching smile and the magnetic aura he carried made the entire court spellbound  .The eyes carried a special  effect. 

The King was just watching his glowing face .Meanwhile ,  the minister  questioned  him for  the reason his stealing .

  The thief ( LORD ) said I have stole that part of the wealth  which is as per dharma. Your majesty has not protected the dharma as a King and hence we had to interfere .

The King was shocked to hear Kaaladhooshakan quoting vedic scriptures and thus proving his innocence .

The spark in the eyes of Kaaladhooshakan made the King keep looking at him without any whisper .He realized  he was not an ordinary thief but LORD himself  who had come to enlighten him .

He immediately ordered his minister to renovate the temple and  release Kaaladhooshan and his friends and  ensure  they had  a decent living .

For the divine leela enacted ,Lord  is glorified as Kallar –piran/Chora-nathar(head of thieves) A rare incident happens during the 6th day of Chithirai month .

Sun rays falls directly on the  lotus feet of Lord Vaikuntanathar .

Lord is also glorified as Paal pandiyan as a  token of acceptance from the  pandyan  king who had  constructed this  temple  and arranged for daily milk  abhishekam  to the Lordships.

This temple  Lordships is glorified by our Nammazhwar .The temple is one of the 108  srivaishnava divya desams .

The temple is also classified as a  Navatirupathy , the nine temples revered by Nammazhwar located in the banks of  Tambaraparani  river.

There are as such Eight Divyadesam but nine temples called as  Navathirupathi which are situated at north bank of tambarabarani river and last three divyadesams are situated at south bank

1. Srivaikuntam
2. Varagunamangai
3.Thirupuliyangkudi
4.Tholaivillimangalam(Irattai thirupathi,two temple)
5.Perungulam
6.Thenthiruperai
7.Thirukolur
8.Alwarthirunagari.

Nava Garuda sevai post appended below describing the grand event

https://atomic-temporary-2692795.wpcomstaging.com/2016/05/16/nava-garuda-sevai-vaibhavam-at-azhwar-thirunagari/

The glory of Thirukkolur appended in the below post

https://atomic-temporary-2692795.wpcomstaging.com/2015/06/14/the-glory-of-thirukkolur/

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics : Courtesy google images

 

Once , Swamy Ramanuja proceeds  along with his disciples to Azhwar Tirunagari near Thirunelvelli ,   the appearance place of Swamy Nammazhwar and  offers  his obeisances to Lord Aadi deva perumal .  

Further he proceeds  towards  Thirukkolur with the object of having darshan of Lord Vaithamanidhi Perumal . Divyakavi Pillai Iyengar in 108 Tirupati Andhadhi  reveals  that it is of no use enjoying luxurious life and eating good food if the tongue does not utter the word “Thirukurugoor” atleast once in a lifetime.  Blessed are those who utter this  sacred word  Thirukurugoor and attain “moksha”

Being the appearance place of Madhurakavi Azhwar it had special significance  and  is believed that one who reaches this place and has  darshan  of the Lord here seldom wishes  to leave the place  due to the incomparable divine beauty of the  LORD at this place .

This is the place where Nammazhwar imagined himself as a beautiful maiden and sings the wonderful pasuram ..

Unnum sorum..  pasuram ……..

Recollecting the  below sweet verses Swamy Ramanuja  walking along  with his disciples  to have Lord’s darshan .  En route , all people from the  nearby  villages  had arrived to seek  Jagathacharyar blessings  .

Among them a  lady humbly   prostrated and offered obeisances .  Swamy Ramanuja  pleased with her devotion asked her as to where was she coming from.

The lady  replied that  she was leaving  Thirukkolur once for all .  Swamy Ramanuja smiled and quoted a line from Nammazhwar’s paasuram

 

and said  my child !!

how is  that when all women are waiting  here to go to Thirukkolur whereas  you have  decided to leave the  divine  place…

 

My child !!  You know ….Thirukkolur is a holy place and most sought by the devotees who rush to be among the wonderful people there worshiping the Lordships .

The lady who was glowing with effulgence  replied eloquently in a free flowing and unimpeded manner   a set of eighty rhetorical questions, which referred to various  divine incidents in the lives of sages, saints and the Lordships  on her eligibility to stay at Thirukolur  .

In each of the questions  she compares the depth of devotion displayed by the  immortal characters  and thus   submits  her ineligibility  to  worship the Lordships  and had no right to expect that Lord  would treat her in a special way.

This  great  work is called ” Thirukkolur Pen Pillai Rahasyam”  written by  the great Acharyar Swamy Thiruvaimozhi Pillai  provides deep insights for a aspiring devotee to spiritually progress in a material world.

The 81 questions referred have been briefly reflected  below along with english translations .

( The inner meanings  and reflections shared by advance devotees in their discourses shall be shared separately in the coming posts )

The Thirukkolur Pen Pillai Ammals questions …….

Holy sire !!!

What is my eligibility in staying at this holy place …??

Did  I go on a holy mission like  the great devotee Akrura ?

Azhaiththu varugiren endreno akroorarai pOle…

Did I entertain Vidhura in my home ?

Agamozhiththu vitteno vithurarai pole…

Did I cast off my body like the Rishi’s wife ?

Dhegaththai vitteno rishi paththiniyai pole…

Did I cause a  demon Ravana to be killed like Sita

Dhasamuganai setrenO piraattiyai pOle…

Did I raise like the dead like Tondaman Chakravarthy

PiNam ezhuppi vittenO thoNdaimaanai pOle…

Did I offer a corpse like Ghantakarana

PiNavirundhittenO gantaakarNanai pOle…

Did I adorn   Goddess Sita like Anusuya

ThaaikkOlam seydhenO anasooyaiyai pOle…

Did I seek a father like Dhruva

Thandhai engE endREnO Dhruvanai pOle…

Did I repeat the 3 lettered  name like Kshatrabandhu

Moondrezhuththu sonneno kshathra bandhuvai pOle…

Did I get trodden like Ahalya

Mudhaladiyai petREnO agaligaiyai pOle…

Did I ripen while yet raw like Andal

Pinjaai pazhuththEnO aaNdaaLai pOle…

Did I  glorify Lord Narayana like Peria Azhwar

Did I ransack religions like Thirumisai Azhwar ?

Aaraaindhu vittEnO thirumazhisaiyaar pOle

Did I realise  LORDSHIPS  as the subtlest like Nammazhwar

Avan (Naan) siriyan endREnO aazhwaarai pOle

Did I say anything like Kulasekhara Azhwar

Edhenum endreno kulasekararai pOle…

Did I say  !  I pledge my word like little krishna

Yaan saththiyam endreno krishnanai pOle…

Did I give clues to  Lord Rama like Kabandha

Adaiyaalam sonneno kabandhanai pOle…

Did I reveal secrets like Trijatha

Andharangam sonnenO thirijadaiyai pOle…

Did I recognize LORD like Mandodari

Avan dheivam endREnO mandodhariyai pOle…

Did I say   know thee like sage Vishwamitra

Aham vEdhmi endREnO vishwaamiththirarai pOle…

Did I say I know “No god”  like Madhurakavi Azhwar

ThEvu matRaRiyEnO madhurakaviyaarai pOle…

Did I give birth like Devaki

Dheivaththai petREnO dhEvakiyai pOle…

Did i say conceal thy discuss like vasudeva

Aazhi marai endREnO vasudhevarai pOle…

Did I bring up the cowherd like Yasoda

Aayanaai (Aayanai) valarthEno yasodhayai pOle…

Did I do a mite of service like the squirrels..

Anuyaathirai seydheno anilangalai pOle…

Did I take beaten  rice like Kuchela

Aval poriyai eendhEnO kuchelarai pOle…

Did I bestow weapons like Agastaya

Aayudhangal eendheno agasthiyarai pOle…

Could I enter the  war mentally  like sanjaya

Andharangam pukkeno sanjayanai pOle…

Could I by works obtain bliss like Janaka

Karmaththaal petREnO janakarai pOle…

Did I bite the toe and see HIM like Kaliyan ( Thirumangai Azhwar )

Kadiththu avanai kandeno thirumangaiyaarai pOle

Did I become an Umbrella like Adhisheshan

Kudai mudhalaanadhu aaneeno ananthaazhwaanai pOle…

Did I carry HIM like Garuda

Kondu thirindhEno thiruvadiyai pOle…

Did I keep up the promise like Nampaduvan

Ilaippu vidaai theertheno nampaaduvaanai pOle…

Did I behold HIM in a nook like the foremost Azhwars

Idai kazhiyil kandEnO mudhalaazhwaargalai pOle…

Did I guard the two princess like sage valmiki

Iru mannarai petREnO vaalmeekarai pOle…

Did I offer the two garlands like Tondaradipodi Azhwar

Iru maalai eendhEno thondaradipodi Aazhwaar pOle…

Did I obtain truths like Thirukachi Nambee

Avan uraikka petREnO thirukkachchiyaarai pOle…

Was I absorbed into God like Tiruppan Azhwar

Avan mEni aanEno thiruppaanarai pOle…

Did I say send them  like vashista

Anuppi vaiyum endREnO vasishtarai pOle……….

Did I worship sandals like Kongil Piratee

Adi vaanginEno kongil piraattiyai pOle…

Did I offer clay flowers like Kuruva Nambi

Mann poovai ittEno kurava nambiyai pOle…

Did I exclaim Oh ! The originator like Gajendra

Moolam endru azhaithEno gajaraajanai pOle

Poosa koduthEno kooniyai pOle…

Did I offer wreaths like Malakara

Did I keep my assigned place like Bharata….

Vaiththa idaththu irundhEno bharathanai pOle…

Did I serve on the way like lakshmana

Vazhiyadimai seydhEno lakshmananai pOle…

Did I land on the other shore like Guha..

Akkaraikke vittEno guhaperumaaLai pOle…

Did I fight with the demon Jatayu ?

Arakkanudan porudhEno periyavudaiyaarai pOle…

Did I land on this shore like Vibhishina

Ikkaraikke sendrEno vibheeshananai pOle…

Did I offer sweet fruits like Sabari

Iniyadhendru vaiththEno sabariyai pOle

Did I say Here he is like Prahalada

Ingum undu endrEno prahlaadhanai pOle…

Did I hide Little Krishna like  Dhadhibandha the cowherd

Ingillai endrEno Dhadhipaandanai pOle…

Did I go to the forest like Lord Rama’s followers

Kaattukku pOnEno perumaalai pOle…….

Did I proclaim discovery of Mother Sita like Hanumanjee

Kandu vandhEn endrEno thiruvadiyai pOle…

Did I relinquish both hands like Draupadi

Iru kaiyyum vittEnO Dhraupadhiyai pOle…

Did I say the excuse Milk boils over like Vaduga nambee

Ingu paal pongum endrEno vaduga nambiyai pOle…

Did I hold my throat like Selva pilai

Iru midaru pidiththEno Selva pillaiyai pOle…

Did I deserve the command STOP HERE as Idaiyaitrukkudi nambi..

Nillena petrEno idaiyaatroor nambiyai pOle…

Did I carry the message He is dead like Marutiyandan

Avan pOnAn endrEnO maaruthi AndAnai pOle…

Did I go in pursuit like Nathamiunigal

Nedundhooram pOnEno naatha munigalai pOle…

Did I say I want HIM not like kuresa

Anukoolam sonnEno maalyavaanai pOle………

Did I refute Advaita like swamy Ramanuja

adadhwaitham vendrEnO emperumAnArai pOle…

Ananthapuram pukkEno aaLavandhaarai pOle…

Did I go to Anantapuram like Alavandar…

Did I feel separation like Teyvavariyanden

Aariyanai  pirindhEno dheivaari aandaanai pOle…

Did  I compose Andhadee like Malyavan

Andhaadhi sonnEno amudhanaarai pOle…

Did I opine mere ocean roar like Mahapurna

SooLuravu kondEno thirukkottiyooraarai pOle…

Did I exact promise like Goshtipurna….

yaan siriyan endrEnO Thirumalai nambiyai pOle…

Did I obtain mercy like a dumb person

Uyiraaya petrEno Oomaiayai pOle…

Did I give up my body like Tirunariyurariyar

Udambai veruththEno thirunaraiyooraararai pOle…

Did I profuse insignificantly like srisailapurna

Sutri kidandhEno thirumaalaiyaandaanai pOle…

Did I  force my finger into snakes mouth like Embar

Vaayil kaiyittEno embaarai pOle…

 

Did I vanquish a pundit by showing marks on arm like Bhattaraya

ThoL kaatti vandhEno battarai pOle

Did I seek secluded spot like Villiputhur bhagavathar

Turai veru seydhEno bagavarai pOle…

Did I jump into water like kannapurattammal

On hearing these questions and her deep understanding  , Swamy Ramanuja was thunderstruck. Swamy Ramanuja  delivered a sweet discourse that made her reconsider her hasty decision in leaving the holy place .

The lady very respectfully offered obeisance’s to Swamy Ramanuja and requested Swamy to initiate a system to be adopted at the temple where the Lord is  offered traditional poojas daily ,  fortnightly ,monthly and annual festivals with pomp and show . This would increase the glory of the holy place and force the people to stay there forever .

Swamy Ramanuja ,Ammai along with the disciples entered the holy place  Thirukolur The pious  lady invited Swamy Ramanuja to her house and offered prasada to be honoured by Jagathacharya  . Swamy gladly accepted the same .  Later all of them went to the  temple at Thirukoloor and offered prayers to the Lordships.

Thus the glory of Thirukolur spread and the great spiritual treasure……

Thirukolur Penpillai rahasyam (Thirukkolur Ammal Varththaigal ) became a legendary guideline  for ardent devotees   seeking Lords lotus feet .

He blessed her and saw to  that the due performance of all festivals connected with LORDSHIPS and Madhurakavi Azhwar are celebrated grandly as emphasised by shastras .

( The inner meanings  and reflections shared by advance devotees in their discourses shall be shared separately in the coming posts in detail very soon by Acharyar’ s abundant mercy )

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

 

Photos credits :   Google images

Video credits :   Thanks to  “Sharp videos” / Thirukoshtiyar Vembu/                                     4000 divyaprabhandam/ Sriman Udaykiran for telugu Swami Ramanuja’s song

 

 

 This  Vaishnava Divya desam temple is believed to have been built during the 7th century by the Pandyas . A granite wall surrounds the temple, enclosing all its shrines. The temple has a five-tiered  gopuram and  the gateway tower is  located behind a fort .

Thirumeyyam is one of the eighteen Pandya nadu divya desams located near Tiruchirapally . It is about  13 miles from Pudukkottai on Pudukkottai-Karaikudi route and takes about  two  hours car drive from srirangam to reach this place.  

As the temple opens late around 7.30- 8.00 a.m., one can plan to have Viswaroopa darshan in Srirangam in the early hours and reach this place. The temple is administered by Pudukottai Endowment Department whereas the fort is under the control of Archeological Department.

This cave temple  is slightly older and dated to closing decades of seventh century. The temple has a main gateway on the east in the lowermost wall with shrines for guardian deities like Ganesa, Hanuman and Bhairava.

There is a moat around the lower wall. On the top of the rock is bastion with cannon of british origin.

The other side of the  Fort has three rock-cut temples, two of them dedicated to ParamaSivan and the third to  Sri Maha Vishnu

 Lord ( Perumal)  in this big temple is glorified as Meiyappar/Sathyamurthy  and Goddess   ( Thayar) as  Ujjevana Thayar

Lord MahaVishnu who protected Satya devathai from asuras’ atrocities- the Lord  who answered Adiseshan’s prayers in removing his tamasic qualities- the Lord who blessed Chandran and consented to prevail over Chandra mandalam,- the Lord of Lords who granted Garudan’s wish to remain as the divine vehicle for the Lord, the Lord with whose cool benevolent grace Dakshagan was redeemed from curse,  the Lord who bestowed moksha to Satyavratha rishi and King Pururuvas- the Lord who appeared to King Indradyumna ordering him to construct a temple for HIM resides at this holy place 

Divya desam Perumal gives darshan in two forms  as Meiyappar also known as Adi Ranganathar in Sayana Thirukolam (sleeping posture) and as Satyamurthy in Nindra thirukolam(standing posture) under Satyagiri vimanam on the banks of Satya theertham /Kadamba pushkarini) a satyavanam (venu vanam).

As the Lord is the personification of truth, HE is  glorified as Meiyappar/SAtyamurthy and the place came to be known as Thirumeyyam.

 The temple consists of an ardha-mandapa in front of  the rectangular sanctum Along with the LORD  , other deities like Garuda, Chitragupta, Markandeya, Brahma, the Devas, the Vasus, and the Kinnaras give darshan . There are two demons near the  lotus feet of the Lord .

Legend reveal that Lord Ksheerabhidhinathar in  sayana thirukolam ( sleeping posture )  at this temple.   Thirumeyyam is considered to be the largest and older than Sri Ranganathar at Srirangam.  Hence the Lord is also known as Adi Rangan.

While Lord was in Yoga Nidarai(yogic sleep), two demons  named Madhu, Kaitapa were creating trouble .Goddess Sridevi took asylum in Perumal’s chest while Bhudevi resorted to Perumal’s thiruvadi ( lotus feet ) .

 Adiseshan who did not want Perumal’s slumber to be disturbed, chased away the rakshasas by emitting   poisonous fumes  which is beautifully depicted on the wall behind the deity   .

The      ( demons )  rakshasas are seen fleeing away near Perumal’s feet.  

Adiseshan apologized to Lord ( Perumal)  as  he felt guilty for having done this act without Lord’s  permission.  The compassionate Lord  placed HIS right hand on Adiseshan as a mark of gesture and love   . 

A lotus stalk emerging from the navel of Perumal and on the lotus ,chatur mukha Brahma seated on along with  33 crore devatas worshiping the Lord is beautifully depicted on the walls.

Apart from the above , Chitraguptan, Markandeyar, Brahma, Madhu, Kaitapar along with devatas can be seen inside  while having darshan of Lordships . 

There are  deities  of  Sudarshanazhwar , Andal, Narthana Krishna on the left side and Sri Lakshmi Narasimhan on the right side in the Moolasthanam.

UTSAVA MURTHY-SATHYAMURTHY WITH SRIDEVI,BHUDEVI, ANDAL

 The utsava murthi-Lord Meiyappar along with ubhaya nachiyars  give darshan in the Moolasthanam.  The Moolasthanam is on a pedastal and one has to climb about 4 steps to have a closer view of the  ever compassionate gigantic Perumal.

 

 For devotees Lord ‘s  thirumukham(face) and Thiruvadi(feet) can be viewed from outside through two small window  openings.

 

Lord Satyamurthy’s sanctum is to the right side of Lord  Meiyappar sannidhi.  The utsava murthi  gives darshan along with Sridevi,Bhudevi and Andal.

LORD MEIYAPPAR ALONG WITH SRIDEVI,BHUDEVI INN STANDING POSTURE

Ujjevana Thayar has a separate shrine.  As the name depicts, the goddess gives ujjeevanam to the devotees.  The childless couple offer special prayers to this Goddess  for progeny . 

Opposite to Satyamurthy’s sanndihi is Garuda bhagavan’s sannidhi.

GARUDAZHWAR SANNIDHI OPPOSITE TO MEIYAPPAR SANNIDHI, THIRUMEYYAM

 On the right side , we can have darshan of Sita-Ramar along with Lakshmanan in a separate sannidhi opposite to which is Hanuman’s sannidhi.  Andal gives darshan on the left side in a separate shrine.

Brahmotsavam is performed for 10 days during Vaigasi(*May-June) culminating on Visagam (10th day with Theerthavari on that day).  

Garuda utsavam on 4th day of Brahmotsavam attracts huge crowds.  

The Thiru-ther utsavam on 8th day is equally important.  

Perumal appeared to Satya maharishi on Vaikasi-Pushyam day.

Thiruaadipooram, Adhyayana utsavam during Margazhi(Dec-Jan), Sri Krishnashtami are few festivals which are performed grandly. The temple follows vaikhanasa agamam .

  STHALAPURANAM

• Sathyagireeswaran( ParamaSivan) and Satyamurthy(Vishnu) temples are carved out of a single rock within the fort.

Asuras  defeated the  devas and started ruling the world inflicting troubles on  all living beings. There was no place for sathyam(truth) and dharmam(righteousness). Dharma devathai took the form of a bull and reached Azhagar koil for prayers while Satya devathai took the form of a deer and entered venu vanam(as this place was full of bamboo trees) and meditated on Lord Vishnu for help. 

Lord  Maha Vishnu appeared before Satya devathai and promised to annihilate the asuras and restore satyam and dharmam.  Satya devathai prayed to Perumal to stay at this place forever.  Hence, we see the Lord here as Truth personified. HE is known as Satyanathan and the utsavar is known as Mei-appan(Mei in tamil means truth)……

  Adisesha, the foremost servitor of the Lord assumes various forms and does kainkaryam to Perumal and Thayar eternally.

 A verse in Prabhandam  goes like ….

Sendral kudaiyam,

Irundhal sinhAsanamam,

nindral maravadiyam,

 neelkadalul endrum punaiyam

(, manivillakkAm ,

poompattAm,  

pulgum anaiyam thirumArvukku aravu).

Freely translated,

Adisesha acts as Umbrella when the Lord walks, he becomes simhasanam for the Lord to sit, he becomes padhukas to hold the tender lotus feet of the Lord when HE walks, he is the cosy bed and pillow  on which the Lord rests in Vyuha form in Thirupaarkadal , he acts as light to the Lord and as silk cloth for the Lord.  As Lakshmana , the service what he rendered to Sri Rama is remarkable.

The thousand hooded Adisesha came down from Ksheerabdhi and traversing through the bowels of earth reached this place. 

Assuming the five hooded form , Adisesha contemplated on the Lord at this place .Lord  appeared  and granted his wish to give darshan in Sayana Thriukolam as HE is in Thirupaarkadal.

Hence,we  have darshan of  the  Lord as Ksheerabdhinathan.

 Legends reveal that once , Sathyavatha Maharishi  was doing penance sitting on Chithrasilai under a banyan tree named Pathiravadam near Pushpathirai river at the foot of the Himalayas.

 He went into the woods for collecting sticks for daily  homam ( havan ) .

  He unknowingly cut his finger in the process , which he was unaware as it did not cause any pain or blood oozed. 

By the time he returned to his hermitage, the finger grew . 

Gandharvas observed this strange incident  to Indran.

Indran and his brother,Upendra  disguised as hunter and a boar  came into the vicinity of the Rishi’s ashram . 

Mahavishnu who had taken the form of boar appeared as if he was hit by the arrow reached  the ashram and sought asylum. 

Tracing the foot prints of the boar,  the hunter approached the rishi and requested him to tell him about the whereabouts of the boar so that he could save his family who were on the verge of death due to starvation. 

The rishi was in a dilemma because if he told the hunter  about the boar’s hiding place, the hunter would kill the boar and he would not be able to keep up his promise of protecting the boar. 

The rishi ,who was an embodiment of knowledge, philosophically explained the actual truth and advised the hunter to refrain from this crime.

  Lord Vishnu and Indra appeared in their true forms before the rishi and praised him for his devotion.  Lord Vishnu advised him  to go to Sathya kshetram and continue his penance and  assured him of salvation along with Pururavas Chakravarthi.

 The rishi expressed his gratitude towards the rock named Chithrasalai on which he sat, the banyan tree which gave him shelter and the river Pushpathirai in which he had bath.  Perumal replied that the rock  and the banyan tree would be transported on Iravatam, Indra’s elephant to Satya kshetram and the river would appear there as theertham.  River Pushpathirai now flows as Satya Pushkarini, the rock is now the big cave in which the temple is built and the banyan tree is the sthala vruksham.

Thirumangai azhwar has composed  several pasurams on great Lord in Peria Thirumozhi  . Azhwar  quotes LORD of Thirumeyyam in several pasurams while glorifying the LORDSHIPS in other divya desams which shows is deep affection to our LORD here . Azhwar  refers our Lord at Thirumeyyam  as  Lord Rama . 

Lord holding  the Kodandam Bow that  pierced seven sala trees  is memorable . Azhwar has a deep desire  to hug the Lord’s broad chest at least once for his valor .

In another pasuram , while glorifing Srinivasa Perumal at Thirunaraiyur who happens to be Azhwar’s acharyar,   Azhwar glorifies the Lord at Thirumeyyam as the one who in  Krishnaavataram  burnt the Kandava vanam. In  another pasuram Azhwar takes the role of a mother whose daughter is in  deep love with Perumal and  suffering from pangs of separation. 

The mother  says that her daughter is lamenting by taking the names of Lord of  Thiruvenkatam, Thiruneermalai,Thirukannapuram, Thirumeyyam and  asking the whereabouts about Thirumeyyam.

In another  pasuram  , Azhwar compares the dark complexioned  Lordships residing at Thirumeyyam to the dark sea, mountain, dark clouds ready to pour rain,  compares to Kuvali flower(dark flower) and says that the hands which do not fold in front of Thirumeyyam Perumal are not considered to be hands at all. 

 

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics credits : Google images /All advanced devotees who have uploaded the same .

                    The gem of a work presented to us by Jagath Acharyar Swamy Ramanujar is        ” SRI BHASHYA”.  

The illustrious Sri Vaishnava preceptor  Swamy Alavandar  wanted  Swamy Ramanujacharya to take over spiritual leadership of the Sri Vaishnava community.

Swamy Ramanuja set off to meet Alavandar as per the instructions , but before the meeting could materialize,  Swamy Alavandar departed from this world.  Swamy Ramanuja  was sad  for the sudden turn of events .

He noticed that three of  Swamy Alavandar’s fingers remained folded.  Swamy Ramanuja asked the  Elders  assembled there why  was  it  so.   They  replied that Swamy Alavandar had three unfulfilled wishes. On inquiring further it was revealed that the great Acharyar  Alavandar wanted to write a commentary for Brahmasutra, but he could not get round to doing it because of his  busy occupations .

Hence the first folded finger indicated this unfulfilled desire. Secondly, he wanted to do something to honor the contributions of the revered  sages Vyasa and Parasara and thirdly, he wanted to write a commentary on Nammazhvar’s Thiruvaimozhi.

Swamy  Ramanuja instantaneously  promised to carry out all  the three wishes unfulfilled by Swamy  Alavandar.   Miraculously , all the  fingers  restored its normal course  .

Swamy  Ramanuja’s Brahmasutras   is glorified  as Sri Bhashyam.   Ramanuja named  his disciple Kooratazhvan’s sons Parasara Bhattar and Vedavyasa Bhattar, thus  the second wish of Alavandar was fulfilled. Upon the command of  Swamy Ramanuja, his disciple Sri Kurukesa (Pillan) wrote a commentary for Thiruvaimozhi. Thus  Swamy Ramanuja ensured that all of  Acharyar Alavandar’s   three wishes were fulfilled.

 The efforts made by Swamy Ramanuja to take up the important task of his Acharyar must be cherished by every vaishnava . The comprehensive commentary of this outstanding work was given the name Srutha Prakashika. 

The legendary Acharyas after our Jagath Acharyar who explained this beautiful commentary were    Kurukeshwaran disciple of Swamy Ramanuja  , Vishnuchittar disciple of Swamy  Kurukeshwaran  , Varadacharyar disciple of  Vishnuchittar and Sudarshana bhattar disciple of  Varadacharyar ( Nadaadhoor Ammal)

 The great devotee  of Lord Varadarajar of Kancheepuram ” Swamy Nadaadhoor Ammal wrote a book with all the understandings gained from the Elders in the form of arguments answers and counter arguments about the great work Sri Bhashya.

This work was called as PRAMEYAMALA .

He continued his writing with monumental works like Tatwa sara and Prapanna Parijata.  Swamy was respected as  the most authoritative commentator on Sri Bhashya and several disciples used to approach him for learning the esoteric truths .

A great devotee and an obedient disciple Sudarshana suri was keen to meet the Acharyar for the same . He traveled to Kancheepuram after taking permission from his  aged mother . Always attentive and serving his Acharyar Ammal he was learning the rich truths from the commentaries daily.  He was always  there  to attend the class , no matter even If he  had already attended the same .That was his interest . He was always in the mood of being near to his Acharyar serving him .

One day  it so happened all the disciples were awaiting for the class to begun . Acharyar also had come . But he was waiting for Sudarshana  arrival . The disciples were upset for the special care given to Sudarshana  The disciples expressed their unhappiness for the special care given to Sudarshana  as they found him to be a dull witted person attending  the  same classes repeatedly  without any knowledge.

The next day Ammal conducted the class as usual . He paused at a verse … and looked at Sudarshana  and said ……..

My Child !  Please repeat what was explained  about  this verse  . Sudarshana bhattar obediently  got up and with folded hands  replied ..

Acharya … Please command me !!!  Which adhikarna  ? This verse was given wonderful explanations in every discourse .Please tell me which explanation are you seeking ? The first class OR the last class ?

The disciples were dumb folded . Ammal continued . My child ! Please tell me both of them ..

Sudarshana   explanations was a continuous flawless flow of words that mesmerized all the disciples .He was simply excellent in reproducing the content as explained by his Master ..

Acharyar praised him for his comprehension  diction and dedication . All the disciples rushed towards Sudarshana and requested him to elucidate all the meanings .

 

Sudarshana attempted to codify all the texts and bring together the various commentaries of  Elders  as the gem Sri Bhashya.. The disciples all together edited the various commentaries of the Acharyas and hence the name   …

 

                                                  SHRUTA PRAKASHIKA  ….…

                        THAT WHICH IS HEARD HE MOST AUTHORITATIVE

This treasure is considered as a full mail of diamonds for Sri Bhashya like a kavacham ( shield )  This great commentary has provided answers to various onslaughts made on it in the form of questions and the doubts raised by people with limited vision .Because of this lovely work Sri Bhashya withstood firmly the many arguments and counter arguments of mayavadis  .

Once this wonderful work was completed Sudarshana seeking blessings of Acharyar  returned to Srirangam . He was shocked to see the tyranny of Ulugh Khan  the Moslem rulers . There was chaos everywhere  .

The tyrants were pulling down the towers of the mandapams .The people were living in deep fear .The palm leaf manuscripts stored in the houses of advanced  srivaishnavas were being burnt .

Many elders lost their lives saving the treasures of commentaries .  Sudarshana  was sad . He carried the manuscripts to his aged mother and pleaded her to save this jewel  which was his life breath .   He approached the elders to contribute his services in protecting the LORD ..

 The young Swamy Desikar , Swamy Sudarshana  and other Acharyas assembled , and met Swamy Pillai Lokacharyar  inside the  Srirangam temple .They all  concluded it was  Ulugh Khan  the army commander sent by Tuglak who was creating this  tyranny to loot the temple   . They had to take a quick decision  .

All of them informed the  temple priests for staying beside the deities at all cost , and gave some important  tasks to be completed without any delay . 

.Swamy  Lokacharyar called the Chieftain and the Elders  of the temple and  advised them what could be the steps  that  may have to take facing the invader inside the temple .The   objective was not to confront the enemy but to focus their efforts to ensure that the moola virat  was not desecrated.

All of them decided that they shall form three groups . One group shall be headed by  the eldest  Swamy Pillai Lokachariya,   who shall carry the deities of Lord Ranganatha and His concerts in a covered palanquin and proceed southward with few disciples .

Sudarshana  who had just arrived  took up the task of erecting a stone wall in front of the  main sanctorum to  misguide the invaders . Thus a  stone wall was constructed with support of many disciples in a short time  .

The third team was to provide cover for the team lead by Swamy Pillai Lokachariya [the team with the deities  of our lord and his consorts so that swami had enough time to maintain safe distance from the enemy.

Swami Desika who was the youngest among the Acharyas was requested  by Shri Sudarsana  to go with the third party and somehow save himself so that he at least might be left to propound Sri Vaishnavism and the teachings of Jagatha Acharya Shri Ramanuja.

There was not much time left . Sudharsana  entrusted his two  young  sons and manuscript “Sruta prakaasikA” to  Swami Desika asking him to save this treasure for future generations    Swami Desika earnestly    prayed LORD that this great work  must at any cost  be saved . Swami  as instructed immediately took up the directions from Sudharsana Suri and was about to leave  towards northward with the little boys . 

At the temple town , all of them decided in one voice that  they will not oppose the army  , but behave as if nothing is so serious ..   There was a regular update about the Invaders  who were approaching . The people  were in two moods  whether they should remain in town or flee. 

Who was to decide and advise them? The people  were utterly confused .They decided to take counsel from Lord Ranganatha himself then decided to appeal to the LORD  Himself  . They all dropped chits (Tiru Ulla seettu) expressing their opinion and  with  devotion they drew up one chit which said that all could remain at Srirangam  itself.

They decided in was the Lord’s order and remained facing the situation bravely.The same evening, the  invaders marched inside the  Srirangam town from Samayavaram  . Thousands of the town’s  citizens were  harassed and injured .The terror in which  the enemy looted the prosperous town   speaks about the bravery of the srivaishnavas there  .

It was a very sad plight and the  bloodbath that followed who resisted will make one cry  for our great forefathers who sacrificed their lives . This had been recorded in the History of Srirangam Temple known as Koil-Ozhugu . The  sad  bloodshed of 12,000 Sri Vaishnavas at  Sri Varahaswamy Sannidhi makes it the worst day in the temple town .

Inside the Hall , Swamy Desikar  saw heaps of corpses lying around . He somehow braved the boys to lie down unnoticed to give an impression that no one survived . The little boys stretched underneath  along with some of them and our dear Swami also lay down next to them along with the holy book.

Swamy Desikar thus concealed the two boys and himself amidst a heap of corpses and passed the night with caution . The enemy troops assumed that they were corpses and did not bother to probe. Observing the enemy troops moving away , Swamy  Desikar slowly took the frightened boys before dawn unnoticed in North-Westerly direction .

He suddenly saw some gaurds chasing them. He managed to  hide near the mud rocks at the banks of river kaveri. With caution ,  hiding the young boys beneath the mud rocks he dug one yard deep pit in the sands of the river and buried the great work  giving mother kaveri a rare tribute .

He somehow managed to lay down covering himself with the kaveri sand escaping any detection . When the gaurds moved  he regained his position  and quickly moved away to Satyamangala  with  the treasure book and the small kids . He made few copies of the manuscripts and taught the contents to all his disciples .

 Our Poorvacharyas have struggled to give us this treasure and hence It is the bounden duty of every vaishnava to proudly say….. 

                                                      Adiyen Ramanuja dasan …..    

 

  I am Ramanuja dasan … and thus protect /propogate the works of our Poorvacharyars and our sampradaya ..saying .

All glories to Swamy Pillai LokaAcharyar

All  glories to Swamy Sudarshan suri

All glories to Swamy Vedanta  Desikar…………

All glories to Poorvacharyas for their abundant mercy …

“shrImAn venkaTa-nAthAryaH kavitArkika-kesari |
vedAntAcharya-varyo me sannidhattAm sadA hridi |
kavithArkika simhAya kalyANa guNa Saline
Srimathe vEnkateSAya vEdhAntha guravE namaha

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan …..

Adapted from a discourse shared by an advanced devotee .

Pics Credits : Google images/sri varavara muni /All devotees of Lord 

Few hundreds year ago at Srirangam  inside  an Ashram , the  revered Srivaishnava  Acharyar Swamy Aaachaan was delivering a discourse to his disciples .

Trailokyai Ammal  happened to be there  hearing the Master speak .

Acharyar begun .. My dear children ……

The best means to salvation is LORD himself and to attain  is two fold .

 

One by Bhakthi or loving him with all the energy of ones own will and the other,  is Prapatti   loving him with all the force derived from the Supreme LORD himself …

When you resign from your own will and place all your hopes in the sweet will of the providence the process  of change begins  .

Many spiritual texts advises that surrender to the lotus feet of the Supreme is the best means to attain Moksha .  

The Taitriya Upanishad explores the  different paths and the effectiveness for attaining  Moksha ..

Srirangam Sri Ranganathaswamy Kovil

Satyam     Practice of Truth

Tapas     Reducing  bodily needs

Damas   Control of one’s senses

Sama   Control of inner senses

Daanam   Giving liberally

Dharma  Practice of duties

Agneyah  tending sacred fires

Agnihotra  offering to devas through fire

Yagna    sacrifices

Maanasa   meditation

Nyaasa   surrender

Among all the above paths Surrender is the Ultimate . Bhakthi needs to be practiced for a long duration until the prarabdha karma gets exhausted .

Bhakthi needs Jnana and shakthi and its a continuous sustained attempts whereas Prapatti is total surrender  to LORD in any state .

Trailokyai Ammal liked the  discourse  .

She sincerely approached  Master and requested him to allow her to attend classes . Acharyar allowed her for the dedication .

Ammal served the disciples and the Master with care and affection simultaneously listening to the esoteric truths ..

One day,  it was informed that a revered Acharyar from Tirumala had arrived .

Ammal loved Tirumala very much .

The hymn of Nammalvar on Tirumala always made her swoon in imagination  to the holy place .

She took  permission from her Acharyar to take blessings from the Acharyar who had arrived .  With great anxiety she met the revered  master .

Offering obeisances repeatedly she seeked a favor to serve him all the while  during his stay .The Master was none other than the great Swamy AnanthAzhwan who had spontaneously agreed to leave to Tirumala to serve Lord Venkateshwara as per Jagath Acharyar Swamy Ramanuja’s  command .

Days passed , Ammal was taking care of all the needs of Acharyar and had to take leave when Swamy proceeded back to Tirumala. 

Aaachan looked at Ammal and asked her ,

My Child ….

Tell me ….whether Swamy taught you  lessons which was not covered by me  past so many years.  Ammal responded ..

Yes ! Master …

I learn t the most important lesson from Swamy Anantha Azhwan. Seeking  refuge from the lotus feet of Acharyan. is ultimate , whereas your  honor  said we need to seek lotus feet of Supreme Lord .

She continued … trust at the lotus feet of the savior my Acharyar will give sure protection and hence decided to seek the lotus feet of Acharyar who she could directly see .

She elaborated …Master !!! Should I let go the water in my palm looking at the clouds for the water ? Achaan agreed with her innocent talk  and praised her devotion …

Another incident took place  in Srirangam ….

It so happened a dumb and deaf person approached Swamy Ramanujar and appealed in a moving manner unable to utter a single word .

The ever merciful Acharyar was moved .

He  clasped his hand with the person and both proceeded inside the Ashram. He closed the doors of his personal room. All the disciples were wondering who could  be the new person  ? There was  silence ….

Swamy Kooresa arrived to find out who was the person Acharyar clasped his hands with Noticing he has gone inside the private chambers of Acharyar he felt he was a great Mahaan . It took some time .

Very inquisitively he peeped inside the chambers from the key hole.

Inside Jagath Acharyar Swamy Ramanuja in sign language was asking the dumb person what was his desire . It looked the person was holding swamy’s feet tightly with tears seeking refuge and pleading Acharyar to place his feet on his head and bless him . Acharyar with compassion placed his lotus feet on his head and blessed him .

Koorath Azhwan observed this . He bemoaned that he was not as fortunate as the deaf dumb person to get that total grace of Jagath Acharyar Swamy Ramanuja…

There is a beautiful saying in tamil ……………………………….                              

 ‘Uyiya oreyy vazhi Udayavar thiruvadi’

meaning …..

..‘To achieve salvation the surrender at the  lotus feet of  Swamy Ramanuja is the only way’.

Swamy  Pillai Lokachariar  says in his wonderful work…..

” Sri Vachana Bhushanam ……….. ‘Acharya Abimaname Uththaragam’ –

meaning … 

“Acharyan feeling happy about his disciple  and  showering  his grace can be the Saviour of the highest kind”.

 

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics credits : Google images/  Sri varavaramuni group 

Swamy Parasara Bhattar the great successor of Jagath Acharyar Swami Ramanuja was a prolific writer of great distinction.

Acharyar’s works in Sanskrit and tamil bear amazing scholarship and command . Swamy’s works in Sanskrit include Ashtasloki, BhagavadgunaDarpanam , SriGunaRatnakosam, SriRanganathaStotram, Sri Ranganatha Stavam.

Swamy Parasara bhattar was officiating as the chief-priest in SriRangam temple, and hence was known as Purohita of Lord Ranganatha, SriRangesa Purohitah.

Swamy’s transcendental life was full of divine incidents and anecdotes, which are cherished by all .

The below mentioned incident happened a few hundred years ago at Srirangam the capital of Srivaishnavas .

The Sastras proclaim that whenever there is a transit of a planet from one sign to another sign of the zodiac , it is necessary to perform holy bath ( Abhishek ) to the Lordships .

Accordingly all arrangements were being made inside the temple .

A vedantin who had several doubts on srivaishnava mode of worship happened to enter the temple to offer respects to the Lordships to have darshan of Lord Ranganatha .

Inside the temple , Swamy Parasara bhattar was in ecstatic mood .

While having darshan he noticed the revered Acharyar Swamy Parasara bhattar was reciting a verse which kept all the devotees spellbound . The verse was new to his disciples . They were very eager to learn about the meaning of the divine verse .

The curtains were drawn . The Lordships were being dressed with royal garments amidst divine fragrance. The disciples approached Acharyar and submitted .

Acharya …

The sloka which was recited was very new to us .

Kindly explain us the content for us to recite .The vedantin also was keen to hear the commentary .

Acharyar replied ,

My dear children ……..

that was an emotional outpour having darshan of our LORD .

Tvamme , ahamme kutastat tadapikutah….

yetachanaadi siddaaanubhava vibhavaat tarhi saakrosha yeva

kvaakrosah kasya gitaadishu mama viditah kotrasaakshi sudheeh syat hanta

tvat pakshapaateesah iti nrukalahe mrigyamadhyastavattam…….

The divine verse interpretation attracted the vedantin closer .

He had several doubts to be cleared and by the discourse he could understand the esoteric truths from the legend himself.

Acharyar words were crystal clear .

Swamy began …………

My children ..

There is always a tussle going on time to time immemorial between the Jiva and Paramatma .

Though the absolute truth is “LORD is independent ” and ” we jivas are beholden in him and dependent” , ,……..

this jiva ……………….is infatuated with material pursuits which makes him ignore the subtle truth .

Due to sheer ignorance and blinded by the three gunas he oversees the truth .

And, due to his arrogance, boasts about his independence , thus suffers succession of sorrows.

The all compassionate Lord feels sad for him ( jiva ) and says

Tvamme..

YOU ARE MINE … and YOU ARE MY FAVORITE…

If you recognise this truth …I WILL TAKE CARE OF YOU …

The arrogant Jiva replies …

How can I be yours ?

I cannot be yours and

I cannot be dependent on you and……………………….

at NO TIME ..I can be your servant ..

I AM TOTALLY INDEPENDENT ……………………

Lord out of abundant love smiles and asks ………. Kutastat ?

How is that ?

and ...how did you arrive at that conclusion ?

The Jiva due to his unlimited arrogance replies ..

OK…………………….. Fine ..then ……

Now how would you answer the same question if it was from me ?

that you are my Lord and I am yours ..???

The Ocean of Mercy LORD smiles and replies

...Yes ………..My child …

For my statement the vedas are the authority ..

pathim visvasyaa…daasa bhootah svaiah sarve…

The Jiva argues again  without understanding the subtle truth …

From Time immemorial I lived as an INDEPENDENT PERSON …

and I continue to live and thus quoting vedas written in old palm leaves manuscripts are no longer valid for me to be convinced ….

Tarhi saakroshayeva …

Once again LORD out of abundant compassion replies …….

My dear child …..

Are you advancing with false arguments , though you do not have proper knowledge ?

I have always taken care of you ….

I have always been there ……..and objected independence for your own good …..

my dear ……

kvaa krosah kasya ..

The jiva with no remorse once again out of pride replies

NO ONE HAS RAISED ANY OBJECTION AT ANY PLACE ABOUT MY FREE WILL AND INDEPENDENCE

..(including the court) ..

Gitaadishu mama viditah ..

Lord smiles at the ignorant jiva and …replies patiently ..

My dear child ..

In this world there are two kinds of sentient beings ..

Atma quality-less and attribute-less gets combined with this prakruti, and forms different senses (both subtle and gross) and thus gets different material natures.

This combination of atma and qualities arising from prakruti is you the jivatma…..

apareyam itas tv anyāṁ prakṛtiṁ viddhi me parām
jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat BG – 7.5

mamaivāṁśo jīva-loke jīva-bhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ
manaḥ-ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati BG – 15.7
and all the living entities in this conditioned world are my eternal fragmentation parts.

Due to conditioned life, the struggle is felt .

Besides the (insentient matter), O mighty-armed Arjuna, there is another, superior energy of Mine, which comprises the living entities who are exploiting the resources of this material, inferior nature.

Unperturbed , with a casual approach the jiva demands proof and objects the statements of LORD ….

The jiva seeks for witness to claim his argument ..

Sudheeh syaat …

Paramatma once again replies stating everyone who read Srimad Bhagavad Gita are his witness

Hasta tvatpakshapaate sah ….

The Jiva replies that

It cannot accept the witness as the so called readers of Srimad Bhagavad Gita ,would just go around seeking livelihood by mentioning your name only ?

The argument goes to no end due to the jiva’s arrogance and false illusion …

The all compassionate LORD thinks that there can be only one alternative left for him …

Generally in this material world .. when arguments and counter arguments go on between two persons , one of the person to prove his statements , indicates he would wear a wet cloth and stand before a tree and take an oath stating that he was speaking ONLY truth

Lord thought that as there was no other alternative to convince his children …

.takes the ultimate step to be in wet clothes ….

Mrugyamadyasthharat tvam ….

Acharyars in his deep musings with tears looking at LORD in wet clothes submits ..

Oh ! Supreme Lord !! Not able to convince obstinate people with your explanations …

My LORD ..Are you adoring yourself with wet clothes to convince this fallen jiva ….

Mruya madhyastha ……..

and thus Acharyar shares his emotional musings …..

which enlighten their opinion ..

The vedantin approaches the Acharyar and humbly submits ….

Swamin ..Just give me a gist of the summary ….

Acharyar replies ……

Swamin ….It is not really essential for a person to take a dip in the Holy rivers like ganges and visiting pilgrim centers .. …

 

It is enough if one doesn’t doubt the LORD who is the in dweller in the heart and functions in a manner of being beholden to him ..

When knowledge of self arises in one , like the rising sun , the arguments which one advances due to ignorance would abrade..

The innumerable references to the interpretations Swamy Parasara Bhattar to azhwar’s hymns and his wonderful repartee to his disciple Nanjiyar’s questions are source of immense delight to all devotees ……

Another divine musings about his pangs of separation with LORD is appended in the below mentioned url post …where he mentions …

He was explaining the three stages of love to LORD …

Recollection , Trance and Rallying …

Recollection is recollection of all the past ravishments of soul ..vouchsafed by LORD

Trance or Fainting is consequent on desolation at this recollection not yielding to the present enjoyment

Rallying is the sudden lucidity whilst in this state of trance which is considered as a extreme advanced state in devotion which our Azhwar’s possessed..

https://atomic-temporary-2692795.wpcomstaging.com/2016/08/30/day-and-night-she-doesnt-sleep-in-floods-of-tears-her-eyes-swim/

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics : Credits Google images

Adapted from a discourse from an advanced devotee

Swami Thiru-kachchi Nambi occupies a very unique position, both as an Acharyar, and as an advanced devotee in srivaishnava guru parampara .
Swamy Nambi is one of the very few devotees with whom the Lord Himself conversed regularly.
Swami Thirukkachchi nambi appeared in a place called poo irunda valli (currently called poonamallee, near Chennai ) which falls on 19th Feb 2024 Maasi Mrigasira Nakshatra this year .
Swamy moved to kAnchIpuram, and started performing devotional service to LORD Varadaraja at Kancheepuram templ.
His unique service was to fan the Lord of Kanchi, Swami Varadaraja, everyday in the late morning-early afternoon, and in the night before Lord takes rest .
While doing the fanning service (called thiru-Ala-vatta Kainkaryam in tamil), Lord Varadaraja used to converse with Swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi about the happenings around the world.
The topics used to be anything from how the temple was being run, to the happenings in the city of Kanchipuram and esoteric topics about philosophy.
The Lord considered swami thiru-k- kachchi nambi as His closest friend, and talked to him just like any friend would.
All this was due to the great qualities of swami thiru-k- kachchi nambi – his supreme devotion to Lord Varadaraja, his being devoid of any ego, and his being a true servant of the Lord, wanting no other thing but service to the Lord.
One incident in his life is used to show how much Lord cared for him.
One morning, after the morning holy rituals were completed in the temple, everyone left as usual. Lord Varadaraja and Swami thiru-k- kachchi nambi were discussing , with Swami thiru-k-kachhci nambi performing the usual Kainkaryam of fanning the Lord. They were immersed on some interesting topic, and time passed without both of them noticing. Suddenly , It began to rain very heavily.
The time for thiru-k- kachchi nambi to go home for his afternoon prasadam arrived, and Lord seemed to be resting.
So, swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi took leave from Lord, and went outside the covered Mantapam.
It was raining very heavily, and hence he could not move out . He was getting concerned that if he is delayed now, then he will be delayed coming back to the temple for evening services.
Suddenly, an aged Sri Vaishnava person appeared with an umbrella, and told swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi that Lord Varadaraja had instructed him to accompany swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi to his home with the umbrella, and bring him back.
Swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi was very moved with this kindness, and thanked the Sri Vaishnava and the Lord for the great help …
Evening came, and swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi was delayed a little bit in starting for the temple.
The Sri Vaishnava who accompanied him to his house was still there, waiting for him, so that he could accompany him back to the temple.
Meanwhile, in the temple, the priests arrived to start performing the evening rituals.
When they entered the sanctum sanctum, they were shocked and taken aback.
The Lord was not there in the temple!
They looked everywhere, and the Lord was not there!
They were much worried, and were waiting for swami thiru-k- kachchi nambi to come back so that they can ask him if he knew where the Lord went, or if the Lord was upset with some mistake that might have happened.
After sometime, Swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi came along with the SriVaishnava.
The priests immediately went to him, and explained the situation, and asked him with great concern if he knew anything. Swamithiru-k-kachchi nambi told them he had no idea about what might have happened, and immediately started shedding tears .
After all, Lord Varadaraja was not just the Supreme Being to him…
He was also his closest friend.
Swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi was anxious about the sudden happenings .
Offering prayers silently he attempted to check all the places he was familiar inside the temple ,like how a father would search for his lovable child so as to get any clues from there.
He went to the usual place of the Lord, and lo and behold, the Lord was there,smiling and with a very satisfied look on His lotus face!

Immediately, swami thiru-k-kachci nambi rushed to the priests and conveyed the happy news about the great Lord arrving …
Everyone wanted to celebrate, and looked for the Sri Vaishnava who had accompanied swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi so that they could invite him to join the celebrations too.
They could not find him.
He had vanished.
When the priests went near the Lord to start performing the services ,they saw water droplets on Him!
Everyone now realized what had happened.
The Lord Himself, unable to bear the thought of swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi getting wet by the rain, had accompanied him to his home.
Not only that, He waited there so that He could accompany swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi back to the temple!
Such was the greatness of the revered Acharyar Swami thiru-k-kachchi nambi…
Later during his last days , once Swamy Thirukachi nambhigal while continuing his fanning service to Lord Sri Varadaraja Perumal his aalavattam (fan) slipped and fell down….
Very disturbed he realized his body was not supporting his most blessed kainkaryam ….
Thirukachi Nambh was sad ..
He realized that the time for him to leave this materialistic world had come as the body was not serving its purpose of serving the Supreme Lord
Nambhi offers obeisances and submits to LORD and requests Perumal to grant him liberation as he is not able to be of any use to Lord with his physical body .
Lord Varadaraja Perumal smiles and replies
My dear Nambee !!…
granting Moksham needs
“Bhaagavatha Sambhandham”.
Your fanning made me speak to you ..
“Neer Veesiner, Naan Pessinen”.
Thirukachi Nambhigal understands that devotees association is paramount in the process of Moksha.
He decides to “earn” some Bhaagavatha Abhimaanam by serving the pure devotees .
He takes permission from Lord Varadaraja and proceeds to the home of the great Acharya Thirukostiyur Nambhi at Thirukoshtiyur a place near to Madurai
He realises that Thirukostiyur Nambhi (Swami Ramanuja’s acharya) would not accept as a domestic help someone whom Lord Varadaraja himself had conversed with.
So Thirukachi Nambhigal under the guise of a common peasant meets some of his disciples and introduces himself as Gajendra Dasan (his Birth name) and requests for some small work at their ashram …
Unaware that he was the great devotee , Thirukostiyur Nambhigal asks his disciples to engage him to take care of his cows and bullocks in the Goshala .
Always in the mood of serving Lord Varadaraja he takes up the new service of go seva
Thirukachi Nambhigal was relieved and happy that he has had got an opportunity to serve a great Acharya.
Days pass …

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The routine service in the Goshala , grazing the cows , fetching fodder , milking the cows , farming with bullock by the disciples was supervised by Nambhigal ..
One rainy day the Goshala boys report to Thirukostiyur Nambhigal about few cows missing from the cow shed due to thunder and unexpected rain .
Acharyar asks for Thirukachinambi as he doesn’t want the boys to get drenched in the heavy rains and blowing winds.
Thirukostiyur Nambhi decides to look for the cows by himself .
Thirukachi Nambhigal very eager to serve Acharyar , instantly replies ..
“Adiyen”…
your servant is awaiting for your instructions ….
Thirukostiyur Nambhi is surprised as the voice is unique …and looks in the direction of the voice.
To his wonder, Thirukachi Nambhigal had already brought the cows home and covered them with his own clothes .
Thirukoshtiyur Nambhi is instantly pleased at Thirukachi nambhigal’s devotion . He calls his wife and advises her to honor the disciple with prasad….
Since his Master had called him as his own disciple he is overjoyed that signifies a relationship ….and hence Bhagavatha Sambandham Nambhi is overjoyed ….

Thirukoshtiyur Nambi is shocked to see Nambigal real identity .
He honours him and discuss esoteric truths.
He reveals his identity and narrates the sequence of incidents that led him to coming as Gajandra dasan to Thirukostiyur Nambhigal.
Thanking his Acharyar for the association he takes leave to Kancheepuram.
Lord Varadaraja is happy to see his dear devotee friend .
Like an eager mother expecting her child back, Lord Varadaraja with open arms welcomes Nambhigal right at the steps and praises Thirukachi Nambhigal’s steadfast devotion and affection.
The emotional outpour “Devaraja Ashtakam”, glorifying the Lord’s boundless love for His Bakthas is revealed ……and the pains of this materialistic world!

Swamy Nambhigal attains moksham to serve Sriman Narayana in Sri Vaikuntam permanently .
19-2-24 is
Swamy Thirukachi Nambi 1015 th appearance day ( Thirunakshatram) ….
lets pray for steadfast devotion from our revered Acharyar …
Adiyen Ramanuja dasan
Pics : Courtesy Google images and several advanced devotees
Videos : Sri Devanathan & Sri Padmanabhan..

Acharyar Varadaguru   the  revered  Acharya had the deepest bhakti to Lord Varadaraja. At Kanchipuram , one  evening  Varadaguru  was serving  ” LORD”  in an ecstatic mood.   As a part of the regular service , the  temple priest brought very hot milk to the Lord as offering .

 Acharyar Varadaguru was deeply distressed  looking at the boiling milk . He  was  disturbed  as he felt  , offering the hot milk would burn the tender tongue of the Lord!

He stopped the priest from offering the hot milk. He pleaded him to wait .He  began cooling it down until it was warm enough to be offered to the Lordships.

The Lord himself was moved by the Vatsalya bhava of Varadaguru  and called him ‘Amma’ – my mother!

From then onwards Varadaguru became Nadadoor Ammal….

After this episode, in a dream one night, Lord Varadaraja commanded Ammal to erect a Mantapam for conducting  Vasantotsavam.

Accordingly Ammal fulfilled the Lord’s desire, just as a mother would fulfill the wishes of her son in spite of  unexpected difficulties.

Another glorious pastime remains to be cherished .

Once Ammal and his disciples undertook a pilgrimage to Tirumalai hills. The  graceful personality and humility  of Acharyar attracted the people there..

A Chieftain Kandavaran was the leader of that Lada  race . He was annoyed and irritated to see the crowd falling the the feet of Acharyar. 

He decided to disturb them. With his mantric power he made the disciples unconscious. Ammal meditated and chanted the Sudarsana maha mantra

and his own composition ‘Hetipungavastotram’ and broke the spell.

The angry Kandavaran called Ammal for a debate and when defeated surrendered to the Acharya himself. The benevolent guru not only excused him but also made him a Srivaishnava by offering him Panchasamskaras.

With the money offered by Kandavaran, Ammal established a beautiful village and named it ‘Ladagraharam’ and continued his journey. On the way, the Lord himself came as a young brahmachari and appeased the hunger of the pilgrims with curd and rice. At the same time, there was a big commotion in the temple as the silver vessel with the naivedyam had suddenly disappeared.

Lord Venkateswara Himself announced to the temple authorities that He Himself fed his dear Ammal and his disciples and that they should receive Ammal with all temple honours who will be arriving shortly .  Swami Engalazhwan was  Acharya of Nadathur Ammal ,  who was the direct disciple  of Thirukkurukaippiran Pillan .

Acharya Nadadoor Thiruvadigale sharanam
Srimathey Ramanujaya namah

Pics credits : Google images uploaded by several devotees

The month of  ( March – April )   in tamil (Panguni )  is sacred  as it is the appearance month of –  Lord Ranganatha  on Panguni Revathi and Goddess  Sri Ranganayaki Thayar on Panguni Uthiram both occur during this month.

 This is the only day on which the Divya  Dampatis of Srirangam are seen together in Utsavam.

The Utsavam  takes place at the royal court located at the western entrance of  the great Temple of Lord Ranganatha.

Interestingly, this is the only  entrance which does not have a Rajagopuram.

Incredibly Swamy Ramanuja  chose this blessed day for reciting the wonderful hymns  the Gadya  Trayam- Saranagathi gadyam, Sriranga gadyam and Vaikunta gadyam, unambiguously outlining the doctrine of  Surrender .

(SharaNagati-which is  atma Vivaham) wedding of the jivAtma to the paramAtma.

On this day Panguni Uttaram , Swamy  Ramanuja gathered  all his  disciples and  approached  the great Temple of Lord Ranganatha.

Our Paramacharya was greatly moved by the majestic sight of the Divya Dampatis beautifully decorated in Utsavam at the Royal Court .

 

As a result of this Anubhavam, Swamy  Ramanuja  poured out his heart in an extremely soulful, highly intimate, and deeply intense SharaNagati  ( TOTAL SURRENDER ) in the Sharanagati Gadyam and the Sri Ranganatha Gadyam.

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The most important and the oldest Brahmotsavam called as “Adi Brahmotsavam” is performed during this month for 10 days and culminates on the next day of Panguni Uthiram.

 During this brahmotsavam, Lord Ranganatha marries Kamalavalli Nachiyar of Uraiyur  divyadesam.

Many devotees make it a point to have darshanam of Lordships on this day specially to have kataksham by Divine Parents .

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Few days before Panguni Uthram(when Asilesha star is in ascendant),  Lord Namperumal visits  Goddess Kamalavalli Nachiyar at Uraiyur and marries the princess..

And , only on this day, Perumal gives darshan with Kamalavalli Thayar  at Uraiyur for one full day.  

 Incidentally this is the place where our  great  Thiruppan Azhwar appeared .

On the 9th day of Brahmotsavam, the serthi (divine union) takes place at Srirangam.  

On this day alone, Namperumal gives darshan along with Ranganayaki Thayar.  

An  interesting event cherished as  ” Pranaya Kalagam Uthsavam ”  takes  place on Panguni Uthiram  day morning and in the night , Gadyathrayam  (threee gadyams) are recited in presence  of the Supreme  Lordships which is followed by Thirumanjanam (Holy abhishekam) to Namperumal and Ranganayaki Thayar .  

 

Thirumanjanam is performed for 18 times reminding us of Swamy  Ramanujar’s visits to Thirugoshtiyur.  which  are sequel to this  sweet visit.

Our Mother Sr Ranganayaki comes to know of  LORDs  visit to  Uraiyur  nachiyar and gets upset. ( a vatsalya bhava )

The dramatic events on the Panguni Uthiram day unfold as Sri Ranganachiyar vents her Pranaya  Kobam  on Lord  Namperumal and how Lord  pacifies her and how in the end the divya dampathis join together to bless the devotees makes this festival a feast to the soul  .

 In the morning hours  , Lord aware of Goddess mood goes around the four mada streets without any  musical instrument being played ( Nadaswaram )  to collect  kanikai ( gifts )  from devotees and  thus gives darsanam to everyone   .

 The devotees are given an opportunity to serve Rajadhirajan (Lord of the Universe) with offerings . He stops at every house asking His  devotees  to support Him when He faces the queen   Goddess Sri Ranga Nachiyar.

With the temple elephant (Andal) leading the way followed by the vedic pundits reciting  dhivya prabhandha goshti  LORD  enters the temple and walks towards the  sanctorium (sannidhi)  of Goddess (Thayar)  after literally moving around  for  three hours  around the prakarams.

When Sri Ranga Nachiyar understands that  Lord Ranganatha coming towards Her, the temple  doors  are  shut.

For the next couple of hours, Pranaya Kalagam Uthsavam (household quarrel between the Lord and His consort) takes place that is wonderfully enacted by Arayar swamy..

The conversations  between Namperumal and Ranganayaki Thayar are  communicated through Arayar swami (for Namperumal) and through Pandari swami (for Ranganayaki Thayar) and they never face each other during this  kalagam Utsavam .  

The Lord pleads innocence  and tries to appease  the goddess  in many ways but all his submission is out rightly rejected .   

Few questions asked by Goddess  make this  utsavam very interesting …

Goddess questions  Lord  about  his scratch marks on His Thirukkazuthu (neck) and  reason for  His Thirukkangal (eyes) becoming  so red.

She also asks why His Thiruman kappu  ( Tilak ) and His Thirukkuzal (hair) are all messed up.

She also goes on to ask Him why His Thiruvadharam (lips) are white and  ……

why He has kungumappoo (Saffron powder) all over his Thirumeni (body),

His ThiruvadigaL (lotus feet) are red.

Hence,  She was very unhappy because of HIS indifference to her .

The Lord  out of divine love  responds back to each question.

 My dear …. Listen …

Being   the protector of the universe (Jagadhrakshakan),   riding the horse  in the night   and fighting against all evil  forces to protect my  devotees I had to be awake  and  thus the  eyes  have become  red.

These Hair locks are messed up because of the fierce winds  which faced me while I was  galloping on the horse.

And listen dear  ….

This  Thiruman kappu had dissolved because of the harsh sun rays during my horse ride

And my  lips are  white because  i was   fighting  against the asuras (demons)  with single pointed concentration

My  neck was   scratched by  those thorns while  I  was riding through thick forests to fight the same  Asuras.

Lord further continues .. my .dear Listen   , these  legs were red because I  had to ride the horse with  the  feet tightly hooked  in the stirrup and finally this  kungumappoo  is all over my  body because the Devathas  were happy and praised us  after the victorious campaign by showering me  with flowers.

Thus,  Lord   submits to Goddess  that He was late because of all the battles he  had to wage with the Asuras and due to this calamity  he had   lost the ring in the river Kollidam while   returning.

And  had to get a new ring and some flowers before he  meets  Her.

This caused Him to be late.

Goddess    is still not convinced and   refuses all His gifts and flowers and  commands  him to never come inside and return back to Uraiyur  where HE had been  a couple of days ago.

Lord Namperumal with a very innocent look replies saying that He doesn’t know  the place called Uraiyur and has never been there. Ranganayaki Thayaar asks the Lord to prove His statements.

To prove his innocence  Lord offers to put His hands in a vessel full of snakes ,

cross any ocean  of Goddess choice ,

and offered to promise on His devotees that He has never seen Uraiyur.

Sri Ranga Nachiyar rebukes HIS explanations.   She replies /.

He, the one who sleeps on a bed of Adhi Sesha  ( Serpent bed ) would never be harmed by any snakes. He, the one who lies in the great milk ocean (ThiruppArkadal) and for whom the river Yamuna parted to let Him through as baby Krishna will have no problem crossing any ocean. Also, HE, whose lotus feet are sought after by all His devotees would never be betrayed by them. Unmindful , she exhibits her  annoyance of Pranayakalpa by  throwing  milk, curd, butter and flowers on Him .

Lord Ranganatha now pleads  innocently then says that He has come to meet Her after going through such difficulties and She is not letting Him in. He says He feels very depressed and embarrassed as She shut the door in His face. The Lord says – “andha avamanam umakku andri yamakku illai” meaning “this embarrassment is not for me but for you.”

Seeing the Lord is feeling very sad,  our  great  Nammazwaar, acts as the mediator and approaches  mother Sri Ranganayaki and says that if the supreme Lord and Goddess  are upset against each other, then that would be the end of all known universe (Pralayam).

He requests  Mother and  prays that  the Lord is for all and She has to understand that He is sought after by all and so She should be able to let Her Azhagiya MaNavalan go to His devotees too  as well for granting their prayers  and uplift them finally  So, He humbly requests that Sriranganachiyar forgive the Lord and allow Him to enter Her premises.

Goddess Ranganayaki   understands Nammazwars reasoning and commands Her assistants to let Her Lord  enter inside.  Lord Ranganatha and Ranganayaki come together and exchange garlands, Kasturi Thilakam, turmeric and necklaces  making a benchmark of a  divine couple .

As soon as the door is opened, Lord  Azhagiya Manavalan is delighted and rushes  in to be with His consort. A beautiful scene transpires here.

The Lord does not go immediately to our Sri Ranganayaki  sannidhi . But rather goes to the mudhal mandapam and stands there, as if to ascertain whether our Thayar has really accepted and forgiven him.

 Lord sends his vastram  across to Thayar, which is accepted  by the Thayar. After this the Lord then directly heads towards and Thayar Sannidhi and then he seats directly across Sri Ranganayaki Thayar.

Now our Aranganathan looks at our Lokamatha  Thayar’s eyes directly as if to ask “why did you make me go through this struggle” and Thayar in turn asks him “Why did you go away without telling me”.

At this point of time other than the Sri Ranganayaki’s Archakas and our Sriranganathan’s Archakas, no one is allowed to be present. 

Thus sweet conversation takes place between our  Lord Aranganthan and Ranganyaki Thayar as it would take place between any husband and wife.

After they have talked for a long time, our Azagiya manavalan asks Thayars permission to go and complete the Panguni uthram thirunal as several devotees are waiting.  Thayar replies that how can she let him without having performed any upacharam. She then gets delicious and sumptuous “Akkara adasil” ( Sweet pudding )   prepared for him, with copious amount of milk, rice, dhal ( lentils ) , jaggery and lots pure ghee.

Both our  Lordships now grace  together and have the delicious “Akara adisil” ! The happiness of the Lord and   Thayar can be seen in the eyes of lord who cannot take his eyes away from the Thayar! After this beautiful sight, the lord then decides to head towards the beautifully renovated Panguni Uthram mandapam. As soon as our Azagiya manavalan reaches the mandapam in the afternoon, our Thayar immediately, but silently and surreptitiously enters the mandapam as if she doesnt want anybody to talk about or ask her about what  had happened .

After this the Lord and Ranganayaki Thayar  give darsanam to several devotees who have thronged to see them. It has to be mentioned that here only the Thayar is adorned with a garland and not then Lord himself!

Also, Namperumal doesn’t face the audience but looks uninterruptedly at Thayar.

The  recitation of the Gadhya Thrayam begins at about 11 P.M. . Those heavenly chants fill the air with beatitude and immense happiness. At this time the whole srirangam is very festive and people make sweets and savories as if there is a marriage in their own house.After all, it is a happy and beautiful unification between the Royal couple! The Gadhya Thrayam starts with the chant of “Vaikunta Gadhyam” and then proceeds with the “Sri RangaGadhyam” and at last ends with the beautiful chant of the “Sarangadhi gadhyam”!

Lord Namperumal (Sri Ranganathar) and Peria pirattlar (Sriranga nachiar) are seated together. Lord (naMperumAL) is standing majestically as usual and more beautiful and graceful today due to the compassionate looking pirAtti and is enjoying the beauty of Her Lord without taking Her eyes off Him even for a second This was the right opportunity for LokaAcharyar Swami Ramanuja to ask for favors from our DIVINE PARENTS.

He submits to the LOTUS FEET through his divine outpourings Gadyatrayam. Swamy Ramanuja worshipping them, submits his deep fear of samsara (association with the body in a cycle of births) and begs the Lord to save him. Swamy Ramanuja surrendered his all to the Lord and begged Him to be his sole savior. In the Three Gadyaas, Swamy Ramanuja’s prayed swamies innermost feelings of deep devotion to the Lord break all restrictions and flow freely towards the Lord and His consort.

https://wn.com/vaikunta_gadyam

These are prima facie a spontaneous outburst of devotional experience and not coldly labored compositions. The inner voice of the devotee addresses Sri and the Lord and they do reply clearly through the same inner voice.

In the Saranagati gadya, Swamy Ramanuja first addresses Sri as the mother of the Universe, as his own mother, and as the loving consort of his Lord, and seeks her intercession on his behalf. This is itself a saranagati addressed to the mother.

Happy at being addressed this, Sri replies ‘So be it’; “let your prapathi bear the proper fruit of being accepted as a devoted servant” The commentators have it that this assurance is not only for the Acharya but for all his spiritual progeny. The boon that Lord granted to Swamy Ramanuja applies to his spiritual heirs. It is worth noting that once he gets the assurance from Sri of her sure mediation, he addresses himself directly to the Lord seeking Him as the sole savior.

The LokAcharya then addresses the Lord speaking of His incomparable glory, “His immense wealth, His power, His retinue, His divine weapons, His beautiful ornaments, His loving consorts, of His infinite compassion and other admirable qualities words which are a rhapsody of devout fervor which can come only from the very depth of a realized soul. Swamy Ramanuja holds out prapathi as the highest message he had for his followers.

The Sriranga gadyam is a shorter piece and is essentially the same as the Saranagati gadyam.

It is addressed directly to Sriranganatha.

” Sriranganatha!

mama natha!

namostu te”

are the words of the acharya.

To the seeker of salvation who has taken to the path of Prapathi, it is essential that he should spend his time in devoted service of the lord; in serving his devotees; by meditating on Him and singing His praise; by repeatedly uttering the Dvaya mantra (this is an enjoyable and sweet pastime).

The acharya gives expression to all these, briefly, in confidence to the lord at Srirangam. His intention is that this short text may be repeated easily in the presence of the Lord by devotees intent on the fruit prayed for.  

 Immensely pleased , Lord assures Swamy Ramanuja that  He and all his disciples will be surely uplifted for attaining the paramaporul Moksha for sure . Later, Thirumanjanam to Namperumal and Thayar are performed for 18 times.  This signifies Sri Ramanujar’s visit to Thirugoshtiyur to learn the dwayam mantra artham.  All the upacharams are performed for 18 times.

 Later, saatrumarai goshti is done at Udayavar (Ramanujar’s )sannidhi in the early hours.  At about 7 A.M. the next day, Perumal reluctantly leaves thayar and goes back on Goratham.

After all this, the Lord then requests Thayar’s permission to go and complete the remaining procession. At this request, our Ranganayaki thayar’s face drops and looks downcast, which indicates her reluctance to part with  the Lord at this point of time. But ,  thayar then mentions that First she will leave and return back to her Moolasthanam after which the Lord can start.

This shows the patience, forbearance and the humility of our beloved Thayar. The Lord then starts to leave towards the “Goratham (Chariot), before which  he peeps into Sri Ranganyaki Thayrs sannidhi, as if to take a glimpse of his beloved wife and say “Bye” before proceeding . After this the Lord starts for the procession.  Anywhere in the world a woman has to undergo lot of troubles and hardships and still put  up a smile to make everyone in her family happy.

 On Panguni Uthiram day, only Thayar sannidhi is kept open and it is not possible to have Sri Ranganathar(moolavar) darsanam on that day.

All adiyars know that the Lord and Thayar are above all such domestic quarrels taking place in our lives all the time. We also know that He is the fountainhead of all things in the universe and there is nothing like He  should  be going after several  women  etc. when He himself is paramporul ( The ultimate )  . Secondly  the big question  will Thayar ever quarrel with the Lord? So what is the significance ??

Elders clarify that  the significance of all this drama is that Namperumal and Thayar are doing a play act to demonstrate to ordinary mortals like us how to run the household with harmony in the face of upsets. They also show the deep love ,  mercy  and  compassion  true ladies have and why we have to give the ladies great respect and exalted position in our society. Azhwar describes Srirangam as the abode of the supreme Lord who had sixteen thousand devi’s (as he married all of them in His Krishnavataram by their  deep devotion and request ). When he has already taken sixteen thousand consorts which Sri Rukmini Devi whole heartedly accepted, where is the question of getting upset about one Kamalavalli nachiyar? of Uraiyur . Our   Perumal is Paramatma and the jivatmas represented by Thayar are all wedded to Paramatma with Thayar doing the purushakaaram(bridge between Perumal and the fallen souls)

Andal nachiyar explains:-
“Peyyu ma mukil pol vanna, un pechum seikaium engalai
Maiyal erri mayakka un mukam maya mandiram than kolo”

Hey, dark skinned Lord, your words, acts and your innocent looking face are all designed to cast a spell over us. The Lord will always cast his spell over His devotees to protect them. And Maya Jagan Mohini Thayar always  assists Him in his spell!

When the Lord knows that Nachityar is upset with him, He is planning to pacify her indicating thereby that all of us should try earnestly to take care of the ladies’ concerns.

In this entire drama, what stands out is the “Paraspara Anyonyam” of the Divya Dampathis.

When Thayar is angry Lord understands and adopts a seemingly submissive posture. And Thayar relents when overlooking the fact that it is the only day in a year she is with Him and He has been to another nachiyar. She sets an example of kindness and  forgiveness  for all the womenfolk.

When Thayar allows Lord  to enter Her Sannadhi, He at first stops at first mantapam and sends His Vastram to her. He does not rush in all the way. Thayar also understands His intention and accepts the vastram.

She knows He will be hungry and gets a sumptuous Akkara Adisil  ( sweet pudding) prepared for Him. In these days of hurried life when both the partners sometime go to work, can you imagine such understandings  . Later She silently follows Him so that the devotees do not smell any difference between them! It is truly amazing that Divya Dhampathis had set examples which are relevant even today………

Arangan Vazhga,     Arangamaanagar Vazhga

Let Lord Ranganatha protect us    Let Shri Ranganachiyar bless us always …

Sri Ranga MangaLa nidhim karuna nivAsam
Sri Venkatadhri SikharAlaya KaaLamegham
Sri Hastigiri Siksrojvala Paarijatham
Sreesam namAmi Sirasa yadhusaila dheepam
Seeking the Lotus feet of Narayana

Kaveri Viraja Seyam Vaikuntam Rangamandiram,
Sri Vasudevo Rangesaha, Prathyaksham paramam patham
Vimanam Pranavakaram, Vedasrungam mahadbhutham
SriRangasayi bhagavan pranavaartha prakasakaha!

May the Lord and Thayar bless all devotees with such anyonyam. Let the  eyes which had darshan of the Supreme Lord who ate plenty of butter and who has conquered my heart view nothing else.

All glories to devotees who are having darshan on the auspicious day 30.03.2018 in several divya desams

Adiyen must have committed apacharas in expressing this wonderful utsavam which is due to adiyens mandha budhee and seeks forgivance to all the bhagavathas who are reading this ..

Vachaka Dhosham Kashamikkavaum………….

Pics : Courtesy Google images /and all the great devotees who shared in social media

Adapted from Sriman Narasimha bhattar article ..
Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

 

Thirumazhisai is a holy place located equidistant to Kancheepuram , Mahabalipuram and Mylapur in the present  chengelpet district ( Tamilnadu) . This place is very famous for  Lord Jagganatha Perumal temple . 

The holy place  has  cool streams  fruit and flower grooves yielding abundant fruits.  The  blossoming flowers all through makes it  a  perfect place for a  nature  lover .

Several seers , sages , nomadic saints , bhikshukas relax and perform penance at  this place for eternal peace .

In such an wonderful place , Thirumazhisai Azhwar appeared  much earlier than the advent of Kaliyuga .( The appearance day being  ( Thai  Magam ) 

 It is believed , Azhwar lived for almost 400 years glorifying the Lordships .

Thirumazhisai Azhwar was a junior contemporary of the foremost Azhwars Pogai , Pey and Bhudath Azhwar  who laid a solid foundation for vishistadvaita long long ago .

 

Azhwar was brought up by his foster parents at Thirumazhisai . It is believed Azhwar left them at a very young age  and practiced Ashtanga Yoga .

With the main aim of seeking absolute truth  he performed severe austerities and penances . 

He studied and practiced  all religious ideas  existed during those days  Jainism , Buddhism , Carvaka etc one by one until he got disillusioned with each of them . Slowly he came into the fold of saivism through a siddar and  started practicing their faith .  He was given a name Sivavakyar . However his search to the absolute truth was not finished . It so happened  by divine will he happened to see the effulgence of  Pey Azhwar  at Kanchipuram.

Peyazhwar was maintaining a garden and  Siva Vakyar used to pass that way. Keen to know the secrets of the divine knowledge , both used to discuss about the faith they followed and wanted to conclude  about the ultimate truth . Peyazhwar decided to practically demonstrate the absolute truth to his friend .

One day Peyazhwar took a weak rope with knots and a pot with holes .He drew water from the well through this pot  and poured it to the  plants that he planted upside down.

Siva Vakyar  saw this  strange act and was surprised to see PeyAzhwar’s behaviour  . Peyazhwar asked him why  was he disturbed  . 

Thirumazhisai  replied   Holy Sire ! I am surprised with your strange act!  being so learned  ,  How will the purpose of watering the plants serve in this method , as the plant is planted upside down and the pot that contained  holes will water the plants?

 Peyazhwar  was glad  that he had started pondering over the truth   .Peyazwar told him that the rope was the example for his Atma which is searching through different faiths  to find the Absolute truth ,  but  has not succeeded in its search for the truth and still going on searching wasting precious time .

  Peyazhwar further explained , My dear young man , Our ancestors had explained in the following verse“ Thirumaal is like the root of the plant and is  the only ParamporuL.

From the root only , the  leaves, branches, flowers and fruits appear . Similarly all the demigods  took forms only from the root and so they might wither away at some time or other.

Hence it is poor understanding  to think that the other parts of the plant are superior to the root, meaning without the root the plant cannot survive.  “Persons engaged in the worship of demigods are not  clear , although such worship is indirectly offered to Me.” For example, when water is poured  on the leaves and branches of a tree instead  on the root, he does so without sufficient knowledge or without observing regulative principles. 

The process of watering a tree is to pour water on the root. Similarly, the process of rendering service to different parts of the body is to supply food to the stomach. The demigods are, so to speak, different directors in the government of the Supreme Lord. One has to follow the laws made by the government only , not by the others . Similarly, everyone is to offer his worship to the Supreme Lord only. That will automatically satisfy the different  demigods who are working under the  the Lord.

Peyazwar’s explanation put Siva Vakyar in deep thought. He realized that he was still searching for the true knowledge , but couldn’t find it. He requested Peyazhwar to accept him as his disciple.  Peyazhwar  named  him Bhaktisaara .

 

He started following vaishnavism and serving Peyazhwar  for more lessons  .

Later he took leave of Peyazhwar and went on divya desa yathra. After visiting few divya desams he went  back to Thiruvekka ( Kancheepuram) and stayed there. Kanikannan  a devotee , requested  Bhaktisarar  to accept him as his disciple. Azhwar accepted him as his disciple.

 It so happened  at Thiruvekka in his ashram an old lady used to come and clean his place, and perform small service to him. One day she prayed him that being old she felt that she may not be able to serve him longer and regretted for joining this pious service after becoming old.

Azhwar was touched with her devotion and sincerity and blessed her regain her youth .

One day the king of  Kanchi happened to see this lady who was so beautiful after Azhwars blessings. He instantly fell in love with her.

He married her and took her to his palace.

As years rolled by the king was becoming old, but his wife was as young as she was when he got her married. He asked her what was the secret and she  revealed about Azhwar’s blessings.

.She suggested the King to ask  the disciple KaNaikaNNan to request Azhwar  to be invited to the palace. . The king sent for KaNIkaNNan and told him to summon  Azhwar and compose a verse in his praise and to restore his youth.

KaNikaNNan  replied .. Oh  King …. Azhwar would never  compose verses praising mortals. Azhwar will only glorify the   Lordships and no one else ..and cannot  accept his request ..

 The King  orders both of   them  to leave the kingdom immediately. KaNikaNNan informs  Azhwar all that had happened.  Azhwar decides to leave the kingdom with his disciple . He submits to   Lord  to join along with them . He prays with the verse ….

kanikannan pogindran kamuru punkachi

Manivanna Ni kidaka Vendi Thunivudaya

Chennapulaven naanum Poogindren Neeyum

Undan Pinaga payeyi Churuttikoll…..

meaning … Kanikannan is going out of Kanchi O! Manivanna, You don’t have to lie here anymore. Since, as the fluent poet that I am also leaving with him, you also roll your serpent bed and follow me” And, accordingly all of them left Kanchipuram and  stayed at Orikai for one night.

Lo presto! What a surprise! The Lord obeyed his true devotee’s order, He got up and followed his devotees out of the city, folding His snake-bed and sticking it under arm.

The next moment the whole city  is plunged into darkness .. The king is  frightened  with the calamities about to happen . He quickly summons  his ministers for immediate remedy. The ministers explain his blunder in committing a grave offense on an advanced  devotee  and said  it was a grave sin expelling the saint .  

They advised there  was no other alternative, but to go and ask for his pardon and beseech him to come back.

The king along with his courtiers reached the place Orikai  where Azhwar and KaNikaNNan were staying for the night.  The King  fell at their feet and begged them to return to the city.

Azhwar forgiving the king accepts to return back . He once  again requests  the Lord to return….

Kannikannan pokoindan kamaru punkachi

Manivanna Ni kidaka Vendi Thunivudaya

Chennapulavan Nanuum pokoindan Neeyum

Undan Pinaga Payeyi Virithu Koll…..

Meaning …. ” Kanikannan has changed his mind and rescind his decision to leave Kanchi. Since, as the fluent poet that I am also returning with him, You may also return and lie down on your serpent bed as before.

All of them return accordingly and Kanchipuram regains its lost glory.

Since the Lord obeyed  as he was told by the Azhwar, he  is glorified as  ‘Yatotkari’ and ‘Sonna vannam Seitha Perumal’-meaning ‘the Lord who acted as told’

 From then onwards the Lord got the name Sonna VaNNAm Seytha Perumal and in Sanskrit Yathokthakari.  This divine incident had been glorified by Arunagirinatar and Kumaragurupanar both devotees of Paramasivan and Skandar in their works  .

The place they stayed for the night got the name…(Orikkai ) Oriravu Irukkai and at present is known as Orikkai where a Mani Mandapam is erected. 

Poigai Azhwar, Peyazhwar,Thirumzhisai Azhwar, Nammazhwar and Thirumangai Azhwar have sung in praise of the Lord here. KOMALAVALLI thayar is the consort. Sri Vedantha Desikar had composed his VEHHA SETHU STOTRAM glorified the Lord here.

 It is said , Swami Manavala Mamunigal gave discourses on Sri Bhashyam in this beautiful  temple for one  year.  Swamy  in  preaching posture graces the devotees .

 

 A special feature of Thirumazhisai Azhwar at the Jagannatha Perumal temple in Kancheepuram is that he is seen with a third eye.

Thirumazhisai Azhwar  later  moved to Thiru Kudanthai ( Kumbakonam ) and glorified the Lord there .

 

 Thirumazhisai Azhwar’s contribution to the Nalayira Divya Prabhandham includes over 200 verses (Naanmugan Thiruvanthaathi and Thiruchandha Viruththam) of praise. 

It is construed , Azhwar expresses after thoroughly convincing himself about the futility of all the other faiths of his first hand experience and affirms LORD  SRIMAN NARAYANA is the supreme and absolute reality .

The second composition “Thiruchandha Viruththam” has 120 pasurams which is included in the first thousand of the DivyaPrabhandam . 

The composition is so charming that the chanter is tempted to swoon himself to the lilting chants coming out naturally in the divine composition .

The rhythm goes like  tana tana tana tana tana tana Tanana…

 

Makhayam makare mase     Chakramsam bhargavodbhavam

Mahisara puradhisam     bhakthisara maham bhaje

Azhwar Thiru adigale sharanam
Sonna VaNNam Seytha PerumaL ThiruvadikaLe SaraNam!

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics : Credits Google images

Thiru Adhyayana Utsavam  is  an enlightening  festival  for all  vaishnavas   and is  an assembly of devotees   reciting of Vedic Verses.  This  divine incident is celebrated as the  Thiru Adhyayana Utsavam in all the  Sri Vaishnava temples  starting on Margazhi Amavasai  ( Dec-Jan ) with the Divya Prabhandam pasurams of  Thirunedunthandakam (10 days before Vaikunta Ekadashi).

The 4000 Divya Prabandham  are the out pouring of the Azhwars who appeared in various divyadesams   few  thousand  year ago as per the divine command  of Lord Sriman Narayana  and composed the divine pasurams which all srivaishnavas make it a law  to recite .

The  Divya Prabhandham has 4000 divine verses (Pasurams) and is  the Dravida Vedam   popularly glorified  as “Nalaayiram Divya Prabhandam “  in Tamil.  It is also  glorified as  Dravida Tamil Veda.

 Once at Srirangam the capital of Srivaishnavas , the last of twelve    Azhwars ,  Thirumangai Azhwar sang one of his divine prabhanda       (Thiru-Nedun-Thaandakam ) glorifying Lord Ranganathar .

 Lord  was pleased by  Azhwar’s recitation and thus  granted two boons to Thirumangai Azhwar.

The Azhwar  overjoyed ,  prayed Lord Ranganatha for his  grace  in giving equal status  to the 4000 Divya Prabhandams in terms of authority as Vedas.  He also pleaded audience in listening to the divine pasurams of   Swami NammAzhwar  which was granted .

 Azhwar  overjoyed  with Lord Ranganathar’s command proceeded to Azhwar Thirunagari from Srirangam with his followers  on Thirukarthigai in Karthika month(Nov-Dec) to Azhwar Thirunagari    to invite Swamy Nammazhwar to srirangam. 

It was almost 350 kms travelling from Azhwar Thirunagari (which is in Tirunelveli) to Srirangam  .

The day  when Thirumangai Azhwar along with Swami Nammazhwar arrived  at Sri Rangam was  Vaikunta Ekadasi.

 Swamy Nammazhwar was received with due honors   and  was  adorned with Muthangi seva and  Namperumal with Rathnangi.  Thus this divine festival was conducted with pomp and show  singing  Lord’s kalyana gunas .

Starting from  Vaikunta Ekadasi  succeeding   next nine days, Azhwar along with the devotees  recited Swami Nammazhwar’s  Thiruvamozhi  in  the royal presence  of  Lord Ranganathar. This was followed for several years…

However after Thirumangai Azhwar disappearance , the practice was slowly  overlooked  .

It was  JagathAcharyar Swami Ramanujar, who started the practice  once again.  And as the practice of welcoming  Swami Nammazhwar’s Thirumeni from Azhwar Thirunagari was cumbersome ,

Swamy Nammazhwar Thirumeni  ( deity ) was installed  with all the purificatory rites  at Srirangam itself  .

Swamy Ramanujar  further   advised  to glorify Lord’s Kalyana gunas by reciting the entire Naalayirum Divya Prabhandam  and hence added ten days before the Ira Paththu and called them Pagal Paththu.    These ten days, the divya sukthees  of other Azhwars  are  recited.

As a mark of recognition to Thirumangai Azhwar’s divine service , the day before the Pagal Paththu Uthsavam first day, Namperumal listens to Thirumangai Azhwar’s  ThiruNedunthandagam pasurams .

 It is also said that  Swamy Parasara Bhattar in the process of  bringing  the great Vedanti Madhavacharyar  in  srivaishnava fold won a debate and  thus convinced him  joining  our sampradaya by   the  esoteric truths contained in the thirty verses of Azhvar’s “thirunedundhaaNdhakam”.

Upon Bhattar’ triumphant return to Srirangam, Lord Ranganatha asked Bhattar how he was able to defeat the great  scholar . Bhattar explained that it was through the Thirunedundhaandakam.  

It happened to be one day before the pagal patthu arambham,  and hence  in Srirangam, there is a special recitation of the Thirunedundhaandakam before the regular Adhyayana utsavam begins, because of Bhattar’s great service in  bringing  “Nanjeeyar” to our sampradaya .

The great festival started as ten days festival by Azhwar and was later  celebrated  as Twenty one day festival  (+one day for ThiruNedunthandagam) by  Swami Ramanuja.

Unlike other Divyadesams Thiru Adhyayana Utsavam is celebrated for  23 days in Tirumala. This is  usually held from the night of AmAvAsya preceding Vaikunta Ekadasi in Dhanurmasa.  

In the absence of  Swamy Nammalwar’s deity  at Tirumala, the vigraha of Nammalwar’s Acharya Sri Senapathi Alwar  along with Swamy Ramanuja conduct this festival . 

Lord  Venkateshwara  exclusively listens to Ramanuja Nootrandhadhi on the last day as a mark of respect to the great acharyar who offered Thiru sankhu chakram to the Lord of the Universe and thus re-established  sri vaishnavism.

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The Lord thus fulfilled Anantazhwan’s, (the dearest disciple of Swamy Ramanuja) desire to have sannidhi for Ramanujar and honour our JagathAcharyar .

To  equate the Divya Prabhandams with the Vedas Adhyayana and Anadhyayana kalams are issued as in the Vedas and   during a specific period (during a year) they are not chanted  and this period is  called Anadhyayana kalam .

Also another reason cited by elders is that during  Swami Nammazhwar  journey from Azhwar Thirunagari to Sri Rangam most of the devotees were in the process of welcoming  Nammazhwar and the troupe carrying the Lordships and the euphoria was focused at one place .

The devotees of  Azhwar Thirunagari  waited for Swamy Nammazhwar to  return from Srirangam before they resumed the chanting of  the divya prabhandam  which happened to take some time and when they arrived it was almost  one month Thai Hasta Nakshatra  the appearance day of the most advanced srivaishnava Acharya Sri Koorathazhwan.

The Anadhyayana kaalam (period of non-recital of prabhandham) is observed from Karthigaiyil Karthikai(from Karthika Pournami) to Thai Hastam(which happens to be Sri Kooratazhwan’s appearance day).  

This is observed   in houses of  all Sri vaishnavas . During the 21 days around Vaikunta Ekadasi, prabhandham is recited in temples only.

 During this time, srivaishnavas at home glorify acharyars works like Naalayira Thanians, Desikar prabhandam , upadesarathinamalai , thiruvamozhi nootrandadi, Aarthi prabhandham etc.

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Photos  credits : Sri Vakulabharan ,  Sri kesava bhasyam and other advanced devotees

video  credits :   with humble  obeisances to sri kesavabhashyam