EmbAr returns
One day, the Vaishnavaite who was sent to deliver news to Tirumalai Nambi about correcting EmbAr and bringing him back to the right path com back to RAmAnujar. On seeing the happiness in his face, Udayavar sensed that he had succeeded in his task. He asked him to narrate the sequence of events in detail.
"I conveyed your orders to Tirumalai Nambi. He indicated that he himself had been thinking about this for a long time and was very happy to receive your orders to do so. He took me and a bunch of his disciples to KAlahasti. He crossed ULangai konNarnda NAyanAr's path and made AaLavandAr's shlokam fall on his ears: "SvAbhAvikAnavatikAtisayEchitrutvam". Something in NAyanAr's mind stirred when he heard those words and he became disturbed. On another occasion, Nambigal went and sat under the tree from which NAyanAr used to pluck flowers everyday and started teaching the meaning of TiruvAimozhi to his disciples. NAyanar forgot his task of gathering the flowers and stood there mesmerized. Nambigal explained the meaning of 3 pAsurams. The fourth one contained the following lines: "EmperumAnukkallAmal PUvum PUsanaiyum TagumE". On hearing those words, NAyanAr threw the basket and the flowers and said that it was not right. He fell at Nambigal's feet and asked for forgiveness and asked for his blessings and protection. He sobbed loudly and lamented his wasted time all these past years. Nambi consoled NAyanAr. The local Saivaites on hearing this news surrounded Nambigal, and fought with him while questioning if this behavior was okay. Nambigal redirected them to NAyanAr, who promptly disowned them and did not want to have anything to do with them. He gave them back the key and the ring that had been given to him. Nambigal took him to Tirupati and performed some cleansing rituals on him and did pancha samskAram too. He then started teaching him all the prabandams starting with "tirup pallANdu" and that is where they are at today".
RAmAnujar went straight to Periya Nambi's hose from there and conveyed his respects to him. He had one request of him - "Please teach me all the valuable things that you know and believe in. Let me not feel robbed at never having met AaLavandAr". Nambi taught him some of the things for a few days and bade him to go learn TirumantrArtham and Sarama slOkArtham from TirukkOttiyUr Nambi.
Becoming EmperumAnAr
According to the orders of Periya Nambi, RAmAnujar approached TirukkOttiyUr Nambi after finding out where he resided. He prayed in the direction of his residence. Then he went and met him and offered his respects to him and conveyed Periya Nambi's wishes. He wanted the world to know the greatness of the two works. But all Nambigal told him was to go and come back another time when he would teach him everything. Thus RAmAnujar came back to SrI Rangam and tried to learn from Nambigal 17 times.
Once Nambigal himself came to SrI Rangam and some elderly Vaishanavaites who resided there asked him why he was being so hard on Udayavar. Nambigal did not give them a response but went back to TirukkOttiyUr. He sent word through a Vaishnavaite to go bring RAmAnujar to him. Udayavar was thrilled on hearing this news.
He summoned KUraththAzhvar, NadAthUrAzhvAn and MudaliyAndan and went to TirukkOttiyUr. He had the three of them wait some distance away from Nambi's house and approached Nambi alone. Nambigal agreed to impart the knowledge to him with the warning that it was not meant to be shared with anyone else. Udayavar agreed and absorbed all that Nambigal had to say. the net morning, at TerkAzhvAn TiruvOlakkam, he taught the same to the three disciples who accompanied him. Nambigal was enraged on hearing this and summoned YatirAjar right away. He was very upset and angry and asked RAmAnujar if he knew what the penalty was, for disobeying the teacher's direct order.
Udayavar replied that he knew he was going to hell for disobeying the teacher's order. Nambigal was stunned and asked him "Even after knowing the consequence, why would you do something like this?" RAmAnujar replied that even though it meant that he was going to hell, he wanted that the secrets not be lost and be preserved in the willing minds of more than just one. Nambigal was moved by this explanation. He blessed him that no woe would befall him. EmperumAn is known for his compassion and on those lines, he gave RAmAnujar a new name: EmperumAnAr. He also revealed that the sampradAyam that was thus far known as Parama vaidIga SiddhAntam would henceforth be termed as "RAmAnuja darshanam or EmperumAnAr darshanam".
Listening to words of wisdom
EmperumAnAr got the blessings of TirukkOttiyUr Nambi and proceeded to Tiruvarangam. He reported to Perya Nambigal there and narrated all the happenings at TirukkOttiyUr to him. He asked that the TiruvAimozhi be imparted to him. Periya Nambi was very happy and directed him to Tiruvaranga PerumAL Arayar for this purpose. Uatirajar, accordingly went to Arayar. He confided the purpose of his visit to him. He steed on for about 6 months doing kainkaryams for him.
One day, he applied a soothing turmeric paste for Arayar as a pre-bath time ritual and Arayar was very comforted by it. He said that on account of making him so much relaxed and at ease, he would indeed impart the TiruvAimozhi along with other words of wisdom to him.
The words of wisdom thus imparted were: "AachAryaha sa Harihi SAkshAt SararUpI Na Samsayaha". And he also narrated the story of how PItakavAdaip PirAnAr came as the primary Guru. He confirmed that the sleeping Lord comes on earth as a live being in the form o AAchAryAs. One has to learn wise things from the AachAryan, like mantrAs and their meanings and the sarama SloKam that Lord Krishna expounded at the end of the Bhagavat GItA. He said that the way to goodness in this world and the other is obtained by AAchAryan's anugraham and being loyal to him is the sign of such goodness in a man. As an example for these words of wisdom, he cited Madurakavi's "KaNNinuN SiruththAmbu" and its meaning and explained that VaikuNtA was destined for those who believed the words of Madurakavi as lovingly said to Ten KurugUrNambi. He then went on to teach him the TiruvAimozhi. YatirAjar was boundlessly ecstatic on receiving all this information. He sought Arayar's blessings and went and reported back to Periya Nambi. According to his wishes, he went to learn the meaning for the TiruvAimozhi from TirumAlai AandAn.
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