While writing about RAmAnujA in AachArya Vaibhavam, I could not but stop to think to fill the gaps regarding topics I did not understand:
I always knew that as ShrI Vaishnavaite, we follow the principle of VishishtAdvaitA, but have never tried to find out what it really means until now. Compiling a gist of what I have heard about it, thanks in part to the discourses of Velukkudi SwAmi. As he rightly says, the concept is very simple and easy to understand when it is being explained; but also equally easy to forget when you walk out of the room. So I think putting it down in written form thus will enable me to refer to it whenever I seem to forget what it entails.
3 AachAryas have written commentaries on VEda VyAsA's Brahmma SUtram. RAmanujA's is called ShrI BhAshyam. ShankarAchAryA founded the advaitA philosophy, RAmAnujA VishishtAdvaitA and MAdhvA propounded the DvaitA philosophy.
First and foremost: We have to differentiate between philosophy and faith. When we talk about someone's faith, we say that (s)he is a Vaishnavaite, a Shaivaite and so forth. When we talk about philosophies, we talk about VishishtAdvaitam, Advaitam and Dvaitam among others. So faith is also the God who I believe and hence, religion.
Today, the concept of of philosophy vs. religion has gotten distorted a bit. We think that ShankarAchAryA being an advaitin is not a Vaishnavaite. In fact all the above 3 AachAryAs as 100% evident from their work, claim Vishnu to be their Lord. Since one who accepts Lord Vishnu as the supreme is a VaishnavA, MadhvA and Adi ShankarAcharyA are definitely in that category.
All 3 Gurus differ when it comes to the ways and means available to reach this supreme being (para bhrahmam). Again, all 3 philosophies agree to the basic concept that the JIvAtmA reaches the ParamAtmA and that the ParamAtmA is NArAyaNA. There is no difference between the schools of thought on this concept. Where is the difference then? Some of them lie in: What is the way available for salvation? Where do I reach? What do I do after reaching there?
All 3 philosophies are based on the VEdAs only. The VEdAs (Rig, SAma, Yajur and AtharvaNa) are age old. They are defined as anAdhi and apourushEya. AnAdhi means it does not have a beginning, it was not born on any particular day. It is eternal. ApourushEya means that it is not propounded by any human and is the word/ruling of the BhagavAn himself. No hand of any human is laid on the ShAstrAs. All philosophies culminate from this ShAstrA and all 3 philosophers based their arguments on the VEdAs and the Upanishads.
VEdAs are regarded as the PUrva BhAga and the Upanishads as the Uttara BhAga. The PUrva BhAgA talks about the karmA or rituals to be performed. But the rituals awe not an end in themselves - they need to take us somewhere; and this is dealt with in Uttara BhAgA.
When people started interpreting the Upanishads, they started doing so in a way they saw fit to them. NammAzhvAr in his TiruvAimozhi says:
Avaravar thamathamadhu aRivu aRi vagai vagai
Avaravar iRaiyavar ena adi adaivargaL
Avaravar iRaiyavar kuRaivu ilar iRaiyavar
Avaravar vidhivazhi adaiya ninRanarE
which means:
Every individual is intelligent and has a different way of interpreting things. Each one's will will reach his own (perception of) God. Each one's God is full in every way. Each one will reach a destiny as per fate.
The more the scholars learnt, the more they started quarreling amongst themselves. They started interpreting the sacred texts in their own way. Hence we have many interpretations, but 3 of them are the most recognized.
Given that the basis for all these interpretations were the VEdAs and the Upanishads, how could we have 3 explanations stemming from one source? Shouldn't it all culminate in 1 philosophy? There is an answer to this basic question: The shAstrAs encompass 3 categories of text: BhEda shruti, AbhEda shruti and Ghataka shruti. BhEdA advocates absolute dualism. Everyone is different; ParamAtmA is different from JIvAtmA and very separable. There is no connectivity between the two. All the textual parts in the VEdAs advocating said dualism is BhEda shruti. If the VEdAs had stopped here, we would only have had Dvaitam. But the VEdAs also had AbhEda shruti: Absolute non-dualism which states that the ParamAtmA and JIvAtmA are the same. Even between JIvAtmAs, there is no distinction: an animal JIvAtmA is same as a human JIvAtmA. Anyone who looks at JIvAtmAs differently will never get mOksham but will only be going round and round in circles in samsArA. From these parts, stems Advaitam. Why would the VEdAs contradict themselves this way by stating something in one shruti and the opposite in another? They do not. Incorrect interpretations will cause us to think that way or devise philosophies based only on one particular shruti. The right shruti to be considered is the Ghataka shruti which reconciles both BhEdA and AbhEdA. It lays a bridge between the two and explains why what is said in both lights are true and why we cant just choose one over another. It is on this Ghataka shruti that RAmAnujA based his VishishtAvaitA philosophy. Thus, the VEdAs are not fools to ask us to practice a different view at different times. It is just our foolishness in interpretation that leads us to believe so. The difference between the 2 shrutis is clearly ironed out in Ghataka shruti. SankarA focused on AbhEdA, MadhvA on BhEdA and RAmAnujA on Ghataka. This is how 3 philosophies took birth from the same text.
Thus, the same VEdAs gave birth to 3 principles. Each principle was dictated by which shruti it was taken from. RAmAnujA alone focussed on all 3 truths and especially on Ghataka Shruti to formulate VishishtAdvaitam. He recognized that GhatakA was especially important as a bridge. BhEdA or AbhEdA alone won't flourish without it. VishishtAdvaitam is an offshoot of all these GhatakA truths in the VEdAs.
Here is an illustration of the 3 shrutis:
Absolute non-dualism - Section 14 of Chapter 3 of the Upanishads: "Sarvam khalvidam BhahmmA tajjalAn". Whatever you see in the universe is bhrahmmam. Do not look at differences.
BhEdA: Section 12 of Chapter 1 "BhOktA BhOgyam PrEritAramchya matvA". BhOktA is the JIvAtmA that enjoys something. BhOgyam is the knowledge-less thing that is enjoyed. In fact there is a third force that directs the BhOktA to enjoy the BhOgyam at a specific place and time and this is the IsvarA, without which the BhOktA cannot enjoy the BhOgyam.
Both the above principles are different - how are they reconciled in the VEdAs? "Tattvatraya". Vaishnava sanyAsIs have 3 sticks tied to a knot; represent chit, chit and IsvarA. Other sanyasIs have only 1 stick in their staff. Achit is that which is enjoyed and doesn't have any inherent knowledge. The JIvAtmA is the chit. It possesses knowledge and enjoys the chit. IsvarA is the director. AbhEdamE siddhAntam s Advaitam (one atom, none second to it) but "Yam AtmAnavEda Yasya AtmA sarIram" is VishishtAdvaita. It is the most important verse in the upanishads. The JIvAtmA is the body of the ParamAtmA; but it never recognizes it as its' master. Everything is the body of the ParamAtmA, which is the soul. The body does not recognize the ParamAtmA as its' soul.
Hence we have a case of 3 real entities with 2 distinct identities (chit, chit and IsvarA are the entities; the identities are body and soul). We need to connect 2 to 1. Chit and Acit need to be connected to IsvarA? How? As SarIrA and AtmA. This sarIrAtma BhAvA, the body-soul relationship is the crux of VishishtAdvaitA.
To be continued ...
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Sunday, March 6, 2011
VishitAdvaitam
Taking a break from AachArya Vaibhavam to compile some definitions for VishitAdvaitam. Lots of information out there, so please bear with me.
Friday, March 4, 2011
Chapter 6 - EmperumAnAr Part 8
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.
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.
Tuesday, March 1, 2011
Chapter 6 - EmperumAnAr Part 7
YAdavaprakAsar as disciple
YAdavaprakAsar's mother was very devout and prayed religiously to the Lord. She heard about RAmAnujar's merits every single day and one day wished fervently that YAdavaprakAsar reacquaint himself with RAmAnujar and become his disciple. As she was thinking this, she heard voices that seemed to confirm that it was a ferry good thing. She immediately summoned her son and told him about what she felt and what had happened just then. She requested that he go and join RAmAnujar and embrace the sigai, tridandam and yagnyopavItam. YAdavaprakAsar was very much opposed to the idea as he ran all the previous disputes between them in his mind. However, he also started recounting the greatness and miracles of RAmAnujar. It did not take him very long to get convinced that he should indeed join him as his disciple. But as was the custom of AachAryAs following Advaita, he did not have a kudumi or yagnyopavItam. So in order for RAmAnujar to accept him, he would have to go around the whole earth once. But he was riddled with old age and felt that it would not be possible for him to undertake a journey of such magnitude. That night, PEraruLALan appeared in his dream and conveyed that going around RAmAnujar once was equivalent to going around the entire world.
Accordingly, the next morning YAdavaprakAsar went to Tirukkachchi Nambi and narrated his desire and the Lord's solution to attain it. Nambi went to Arul Varadan's sannidi to confirm that going around RAmAnujar once would suffice and PEraruLALan came back with the same notion. YAdavaprakAsar hastened to RAmAnujar and conveyed his wishes to him. RAmAnujar was pleasantly surprised and did the needful for him. He named him "GOvinda JIyar" and gave him the tiridantam, yagnyOpavItam and the saffron clothing of an ascetic. He asked a favor of the newly appointed GOvinda JIyar - and that was to write a narrative for Yuti darmam. According to his wishes, he wrote "Yatidharmasamuchchayam" and offered it to the feet of YatirAjan. RAmAnujar blessed him in every way.
In KAnchI, YatirAjan taught MImAmsA and the SAshtrAs to the disciple who embraced him; namely KUraththAzhvAn and MudaliyAndAn among others. All the Vaishnavaites in SrI Rangam were very happy on hearing this. Under the supervision of Periya Nambi, it was decided that RAmAnujar should be brought to the periya kOil to carry out his immense services to mankind. TiruvarangaperumAL Arayar was chosen for this purpose.
Arayar agreed to carry out this task and left for PerumAL kOil. He reached KAnchI in a few days. He had the good fortune of getting the darshan of "VENdubavar VENdiyadai VIzhaindaraulum" Arul Varadan in the midst of the PuNyakOti vimAnam at kachchivAiththAn mandapam.Here he started reciting AalavandAr's sostraratna ShrI Sukti. In a melodious voice, he sang AazhvAr's compositions like "En NenjamE YAn". The Lord was moved by his bhakti and appeared before him and asked him what he wished. Arayar indicated that he'd very much like for RAmAnujar to come and stay in ShrI Rangam and bless his disciples from there. PEraruLALan agreed and ordered RAmAnujar to do the same.
Thus, by the will of God, YatirAjar decided to go to Tiruvarangam. He appointed KUraththAzhvAr and MudaliyANdAn t take care of the daly rituals for the Lord. As soon as they came to the temple, he left directly for ShrI Rangam without even going back to his matam one last time. Tirukkachchi Nambigal saw them off.
Becoming Udayavar
RAmAnujay settled in Tiruvarangam, thus. He finished anushtAnams in Vada Tiru KAvEri and wanted to do mangaLAsAsanam for Periya PerumAL. HEaring of this intent, the Vaishanavaites who were around rejoiced and brought Periya Nambigal there. RAmAnujar received all the blessings of the Lord, including TIrtam and SadAri. From there he went to the temple and sought blessings from SrI Ranga NAchchiyAr, Azhagiyasingar and finally went to Azhagiya MaNavALan sannidi. Near the TirumaNa pillars, he narrated AmalanAdipirAn's pAsurams and was very happy in holy bliss.
PerumAl appeared before him that very instant and gave him the gift of "Upaya VibhUti Aishvaryam" (The wealth of knowledge in this world and the one beyond) and commanded him to take control of the temple activities from then on. HE gave him the special title of "Nam Udayavar". Udayavar went to Periya Nambi and thanked him after acknowledging that it was by his grace that he received all these chpoicest blessings. "PeriyAk KAtpattakAl PerAda paean PeralAmandro"? He owed his gift of LilA VibhUti and Nitya VibhUti to Nambigal. The daily proceedings in the temple went on very smoothly from that day on. He appointed AgaLanganAttAzhvar as his disciple at the temple for carrying out these daily duties.
YAdavaprakAsar's mother was very devout and prayed religiously to the Lord. She heard about RAmAnujar's merits every single day and one day wished fervently that YAdavaprakAsar reacquaint himself with RAmAnujar and become his disciple. As she was thinking this, she heard voices that seemed to confirm that it was a ferry good thing. She immediately summoned her son and told him about what she felt and what had happened just then. She requested that he go and join RAmAnujar and embrace the sigai, tridandam and yagnyopavItam. YAdavaprakAsar was very much opposed to the idea as he ran all the previous disputes between them in his mind. However, he also started recounting the greatness and miracles of RAmAnujar. It did not take him very long to get convinced that he should indeed join him as his disciple. But as was the custom of AachAryAs following Advaita, he did not have a kudumi or yagnyopavItam. So in order for RAmAnujar to accept him, he would have to go around the whole earth once. But he was riddled with old age and felt that it would not be possible for him to undertake a journey of such magnitude. That night, PEraruLALan appeared in his dream and conveyed that going around RAmAnujar once was equivalent to going around the entire world.
Accordingly, the next morning YAdavaprakAsar went to Tirukkachchi Nambi and narrated his desire and the Lord's solution to attain it. Nambi went to Arul Varadan's sannidi to confirm that going around RAmAnujar once would suffice and PEraruLALan came back with the same notion. YAdavaprakAsar hastened to RAmAnujar and conveyed his wishes to him. RAmAnujar was pleasantly surprised and did the needful for him. He named him "GOvinda JIyar" and gave him the tiridantam, yagnyOpavItam and the saffron clothing of an ascetic. He asked a favor of the newly appointed GOvinda JIyar - and that was to write a narrative for Yuti darmam. According to his wishes, he wrote "Yatidharmasamuchchayam" and offered it to the feet of YatirAjan. RAmAnujar blessed him in every way.
In KAnchI, YatirAjan taught MImAmsA and the SAshtrAs to the disciple who embraced him; namely KUraththAzhvAn and MudaliyAndAn among others. All the Vaishnavaites in SrI Rangam were very happy on hearing this. Under the supervision of Periya Nambi, it was decided that RAmAnujar should be brought to the periya kOil to carry out his immense services to mankind. TiruvarangaperumAL Arayar was chosen for this purpose.
Arayar agreed to carry out this task and left for PerumAL kOil. He reached KAnchI in a few days. He had the good fortune of getting the darshan of "VENdubavar VENdiyadai VIzhaindaraulum" Arul Varadan in the midst of the PuNyakOti vimAnam at kachchivAiththAn mandapam.Here he started reciting AalavandAr's sostraratna ShrI Sukti. In a melodious voice, he sang AazhvAr's compositions like "En NenjamE YAn". The Lord was moved by his bhakti and appeared before him and asked him what he wished. Arayar indicated that he'd very much like for RAmAnujar to come and stay in ShrI Rangam and bless his disciples from there. PEraruLALan agreed and ordered RAmAnujar to do the same.
Thus, by the will of God, YatirAjar decided to go to Tiruvarangam. He appointed KUraththAzhvAr and MudaliyANdAn t take care of the daly rituals for the Lord. As soon as they came to the temple, he left directly for ShrI Rangam without even going back to his matam one last time. Tirukkachchi Nambigal saw them off.
Becoming Udayavar
RAmAnujay settled in Tiruvarangam, thus. He finished anushtAnams in Vada Tiru KAvEri and wanted to do mangaLAsAsanam for Periya PerumAL. HEaring of this intent, the Vaishanavaites who were around rejoiced and brought Periya Nambigal there. RAmAnujar received all the blessings of the Lord, including TIrtam and SadAri. From there he went to the temple and sought blessings from SrI Ranga NAchchiyAr, Azhagiyasingar and finally went to Azhagiya MaNavALan sannidi. Near the TirumaNa pillars, he narrated AmalanAdipirAn's pAsurams and was very happy in holy bliss.
PerumAl appeared before him that very instant and gave him the gift of "Upaya VibhUti Aishvaryam" (The wealth of knowledge in this world and the one beyond) and commanded him to take control of the temple activities from then on. HE gave him the special title of "Nam Udayavar". Udayavar went to Periya Nambi and thanked him after acknowledging that it was by his grace that he received all these chpoicest blessings. "PeriyAk KAtpattakAl PerAda paean PeralAmandro"? He owed his gift of LilA VibhUti and Nitya VibhUti to Nambigal. The daily proceedings in the temple went on very smoothly from that day on. He appointed AgaLanganAttAzhvar as his disciple at the temple for carrying out these daily duties.
Saturday, February 26, 2011
Chapter 6 - EmperumAnAr Part 6
3 mistakes
IlayAzhvAr habitually took an oil massage and had a ShrI Vaishnavaite be his masseuse. One day, as usual the helper came to assist him with this task. He said that he was hungry and that he would appreciate if he could have something to eat before starting on his task. RAmAnujar went and asked his wife if there was anything to eat and she replied that there wasn't anything. Incidentally RAmAnujar went into the kitchen to wash his hands and he saw that there was indeed some food left over. He took it and served it to the helper and chided his wife for hiding the truth from him.
On another occasion, he had to go to ShrI PerumbUdUr. He got the blessings of his AachAryan and left. When he had gone, a dispute ensued between his wife and Periya Nambi's wife: they fought over a silly pot used to draw water from the well. When Periya Nambi came to hear of this, he got angry with his wife and scolded her for picking a fight. He decided that it was not wise for them to stay there anymore and before RAmAnujar could come back from his trip, he vacated the house and left for SrI Rangam periya kOil. When RAmAnujar came back, he was distraught to find his AachAryan missing. He asked his wife what the matter was and she told him about the fight that had ensued between them. RAmAnujar did not want to hear those words and the anger towards his wife was limitless. He then told her that she should leave him immediately and go back to her parents' house. He explained that she had committed 3 grievances:
1. Cleaning up the area that Tirukkachchi Nambigal sat on
2. Refusing to offer food to a hungry Vaishnavaite when there was food available
3. Not respecting AachArya patni and picking a fight with her
So saying, he asked her to pack all her belongings and saw to it that she left immediately.
RAmAnujar becomes YatirAjar
Once he separated from his wife, RAmAnujar decided that it was a good idea for him to take up sanyAsam. He went before PerumAL's sannidi and asked for his orders to do so. He then bathed in the waterbody nearby and uttered the "PrEsha" mantram that had been taught to him previously and embraced asceticism.
"Tridandam UbavIdamsa VAsaha GoupInavEshtanam
Sikyangkavasa MityEtat PipruyAt yAvatAyusham"
According to those lines, he embraced the tridandam and the yagnyopavItam. PEraruLALan blessed him with the name of YatirAjar as his "Archchaka mukam".
According to the wishes of Yatigal, YatirAjan carried out his rituals dutifully. He them remembered the wishes of AalavandAr and wished to carry them out. He wanted someone to aid him in these tasks and his cousin GOvinda Battar came to mind immediately. He remembered that he had done good by him and was not materialistic and wished to get him to join as his aide immediately. The only person who could correct Govinda Battar, according to him was Tirumalai Nambi. He sent a Vaishnavar who was known to him to Tirumalai Nambi for this purpose who explained that "Govinda Battar is perfect to study the Sashtrams with me and help me carry out all my tasks. He has fallen prey to some illusion and is now doing DEvatAntram. You have to show him compassion and correct his ways".
On hearing that RAmAnujar was now a sanyAsi, he was approached by NadAtUr AazhvAn, KUraththAzhvAn and MudaliyAndAn who joined him. RAmAnujar did the 5 samskArams for them. They were all very loyal and stayed with AachAryan and helped him out in his daily duties.
IlayAzhvAr habitually took an oil massage and had a ShrI Vaishnavaite be his masseuse. One day, as usual the helper came to assist him with this task. He said that he was hungry and that he would appreciate if he could have something to eat before starting on his task. RAmAnujar went and asked his wife if there was anything to eat and she replied that there wasn't anything. Incidentally RAmAnujar went into the kitchen to wash his hands and he saw that there was indeed some food left over. He took it and served it to the helper and chided his wife for hiding the truth from him.
On another occasion, he had to go to ShrI PerumbUdUr. He got the blessings of his AachAryan and left. When he had gone, a dispute ensued between his wife and Periya Nambi's wife: they fought over a silly pot used to draw water from the well. When Periya Nambi came to hear of this, he got angry with his wife and scolded her for picking a fight. He decided that it was not wise for them to stay there anymore and before RAmAnujar could come back from his trip, he vacated the house and left for SrI Rangam periya kOil. When RAmAnujar came back, he was distraught to find his AachAryan missing. He asked his wife what the matter was and she told him about the fight that had ensued between them. RAmAnujar did not want to hear those words and the anger towards his wife was limitless. He then told her that she should leave him immediately and go back to her parents' house. He explained that she had committed 3 grievances:
1. Cleaning up the area that Tirukkachchi Nambigal sat on
2. Refusing to offer food to a hungry Vaishnavaite when there was food available
3. Not respecting AachArya patni and picking a fight with her
So saying, he asked her to pack all her belongings and saw to it that she left immediately.
RAmAnujar becomes YatirAjar
Once he separated from his wife, RAmAnujar decided that it was a good idea for him to take up sanyAsam. He went before PerumAL's sannidi and asked for his orders to do so. He then bathed in the waterbody nearby and uttered the "PrEsha" mantram that had been taught to him previously and embraced asceticism.
"Tridandam UbavIdamsa VAsaha GoupInavEshtanam
Sikyangkavasa MityEtat PipruyAt yAvatAyusham"
According to those lines, he embraced the tridandam and the yagnyopavItam. PEraruLALan blessed him with the name of YatirAjar as his "Archchaka mukam".
According to the wishes of Yatigal, YatirAjan carried out his rituals dutifully. He them remembered the wishes of AalavandAr and wished to carry them out. He wanted someone to aid him in these tasks and his cousin GOvinda Battar came to mind immediately. He remembered that he had done good by him and was not materialistic and wished to get him to join as his aide immediately. The only person who could correct Govinda Battar, according to him was Tirumalai Nambi. He sent a Vaishnavar who was known to him to Tirumalai Nambi for this purpose who explained that "Govinda Battar is perfect to study the Sashtrams with me and help me carry out all my tasks. He has fallen prey to some illusion and is now doing DEvatAntram. You have to show him compassion and correct his ways".
On hearing that RAmAnujar was now a sanyAsi, he was approached by NadAtUr AazhvAn, KUraththAzhvAn and MudaliyAndAn who joined him. RAmAnujar did the 5 samskArams for them. They were all very loyal and stayed with AachAryan and helped him out in his daily duties.
Friday, February 25, 2011
Chapter 6 - EmperumAnAr Part 5
Opening of 3 fingers
MEanwhile, Periya Nambigal showed great haste in bringing RAmAnujar to see the AachAryan. As they approached SrI Rangam, at TirukkarambanUr turai, they saw a big congregation of ShrI Vaishnavaites. They enquired what the crowd was all about and on finding out that the AachAryan had passed away, they burst into tears and sobbed loudly. After a while, Periya Namabigal first steadied himself and then comforted RAmAnujar to make way to see the AachAryan for one last time. RAmAnujar prostrated before AalavandAr's body many times. On noticing the 3 fingers, he enquired what that was about or if it had always been that way. The disciples who had heard AalavandAr's 3 desires earlier in the day explained it to him. Immediately RAmAnujar vowed that "As the selected one of the Aacharyan, PEraruLALan will carry out all these 3 tasks through me". At that very instant, the 3 fingers of the Aacharyan relaxed on his departed body! Everyone who witnessed this was astounded. They realized that RAmAnujar was indeed the chosen one. They performed the necessary rites for AAchAryan and went back to their houses to take a shower. RAmAnujar, under the guidance of Periya Nambi went to the PerumAL temple.
Tirukkachchi Nambi and RAmAnujar
In Kachi, Tirukkachchi Nambi came to hear of the news of AalavandAr's passing in ShrI Rangam. He was deeply saddened by the news and paid his obesciences from afar.
RAmAnujar came to hear all about Tirukkachchi Nambi: how he was reforming daily rituals for PEraruLaLan and that he was a devotee of AalavandAr and hence invited him over to his house. He offered Nambi a place to sit and wanted to prostrate him at that very moment. But Nambigal prevented him from doing so. He said that RAmAnujar was a chosen one; chosen none other than AalavandAr himself and he said that he should not forego his VarNAsrama duties. He recounted the story of how NAdamuni went behind the king and started singing his praises but was reminded by his disciples that we should not sing praises of mere humans when it is our prime duty to serve the Supreme Lord. Accordingly, RAmAnujar did not prostrate him. Instead, he asked him a few questions that were on his mind and requested that Nambi pass on the word of PEraruLAlan to him. When it was time for Nambigal to leave, he escorted him to his destination for a short distance and came back home. Unbeknownst to him, his wife, in the meantime had cleaned out the spot occupied by Nambi with "GOmeyam". RAmAnujar was enraged at her ignorance and left her then and there itself to be permanently under the service of PEraruLAlan.
6 words
The next day, Tirukkachchi Nmabi was in the KachchivAzhththAn mandapam, fanning PEraruLALan when he approached the Lord with all the doubts that RAmAnujar had and AruL Varadan gave him the following 6 pearls of wisdom:
1. SrIman NArAyaNa is the supreme and only Lord
2. The discrepancy between Advaitam and VishitAdvaitam
3. The only way to mOkShA at the lotus feet of the Lord is by CharaNAgati
4. Once charaNAgati is done, it is not necessary to utter/think of the Lord's name during the last moment of life
5. MOkshA is not instantaneous upon charaNAgati: until the body lives, the soul lives in it. The should departs for mOkshA only when the body dies.
6. RAmAnujar should stay by Periya Nambi's side and gain his tutelance.
Joining Periya Nambigal
Back in SrI Rangam, all of AalavandAr's disciples approached Periya Nmabigal with a request: They wanted that RAmAnujar, chosen by none other than the departed AachAryan, come on to take over the now empty post as the rightful successor. Periya Nambigal agreed to take on this endeavor. He left with his wife on a journey to PerumAL kOil enroute a few divvy kshEtrams. At one point, he reached MadurAntagam and sought the blessings of "Aeri KAththa RAmar".
Meanwhile, according to the wishes of PEraruLaLan, RAmAnujar was enroute from PerumAL koil to periya kOil and by sheer coincidence, happened to be in MadurAntagam at the same time! He was overjoyed to find Nambigal there and immediately prostrated him with the following lines: "Sishyas DEhamsAdimAm TvAm prapannam" which meant "Your slave, accept my surrender and bless and protect me". Periya Nambi offered to discourse him at PEraruLALan's sannidi but RAmAnujar did not wish to put it off and he asked that it be done right there and then. In Aeri KAththa RAman's sannidi, under a Magizha tree, Periya Nmabi revealed the Pancha SamskAram to RAmAnujar. He expounded all the shlOkAs and the meaning of every Dvayam. They both them offered their respect and gratitude to Lord RAmA for the unexpected meeting under his guidance.
(For these reason,s MaturAntagam is also known as "Dvayam viLainda KshEtram". He can be found here next to RAmA as a grihastar, i.e. not yet as a SanyAsi. Behind the AndAL sannidi, alongwith the Magizha tree, there is platform on whose walls there is a sculpting to this upadEsam taking place. A festival to commemorate this event occurs every Aavani month on sukla Panchami. In the lake, there are some steps called "BhAshyakArar padiththurai" where daily rituals are performed to this day.)
From there, they went back to PerumAL kOil and RAmAnujar gave up a portion of his house for Periya Nambigal to reside in. He provided him with everything needed for his rituals and was very devoted to him. Periya Nmabi transferred a lot of knowledge to him, including that of the tiruVai mozhis and Divyaprabandams.
MEanwhile, Periya Nambigal showed great haste in bringing RAmAnujar to see the AachAryan. As they approached SrI Rangam, at TirukkarambanUr turai, they saw a big congregation of ShrI Vaishnavaites. They enquired what the crowd was all about and on finding out that the AachAryan had passed away, they burst into tears and sobbed loudly. After a while, Periya Namabigal first steadied himself and then comforted RAmAnujar to make way to see the AachAryan for one last time. RAmAnujar prostrated before AalavandAr's body many times. On noticing the 3 fingers, he enquired what that was about or if it had always been that way. The disciples who had heard AalavandAr's 3 desires earlier in the day explained it to him. Immediately RAmAnujar vowed that "As the selected one of the Aacharyan, PEraruLALan will carry out all these 3 tasks through me". At that very instant, the 3 fingers of the Aacharyan relaxed on his departed body! Everyone who witnessed this was astounded. They realized that RAmAnujar was indeed the chosen one. They performed the necessary rites for AAchAryan and went back to their houses to take a shower. RAmAnujar, under the guidance of Periya Nambi went to the PerumAL temple.
Tirukkachchi Nambi and RAmAnujar
In Kachi, Tirukkachchi Nambi came to hear of the news of AalavandAr's passing in ShrI Rangam. He was deeply saddened by the news and paid his obesciences from afar.
RAmAnujar came to hear all about Tirukkachchi Nambi: how he was reforming daily rituals for PEraruLaLan and that he was a devotee of AalavandAr and hence invited him over to his house. He offered Nambi a place to sit and wanted to prostrate him at that very moment. But Nambigal prevented him from doing so. He said that RAmAnujar was a chosen one; chosen none other than AalavandAr himself and he said that he should not forego his VarNAsrama duties. He recounted the story of how NAdamuni went behind the king and started singing his praises but was reminded by his disciples that we should not sing praises of mere humans when it is our prime duty to serve the Supreme Lord. Accordingly, RAmAnujar did not prostrate him. Instead, he asked him a few questions that were on his mind and requested that Nambi pass on the word of PEraruLAlan to him. When it was time for Nambigal to leave, he escorted him to his destination for a short distance and came back home. Unbeknownst to him, his wife, in the meantime had cleaned out the spot occupied by Nambi with "GOmeyam". RAmAnujar was enraged at her ignorance and left her then and there itself to be permanently under the service of PEraruLAlan.
6 words
The next day, Tirukkachchi Nmabi was in the KachchivAzhththAn mandapam, fanning PEraruLALan when he approached the Lord with all the doubts that RAmAnujar had and AruL Varadan gave him the following 6 pearls of wisdom:
1. SrIman NArAyaNa is the supreme and only Lord
2. The discrepancy between Advaitam and VishitAdvaitam
3. The only way to mOkShA at the lotus feet of the Lord is by CharaNAgati
4. Once charaNAgati is done, it is not necessary to utter/think of the Lord's name during the last moment of life
5. MOkshA is not instantaneous upon charaNAgati: until the body lives, the soul lives in it. The should departs for mOkshA only when the body dies.
6. RAmAnujar should stay by Periya Nambi's side and gain his tutelance.
Joining Periya Nambigal
Back in SrI Rangam, all of AalavandAr's disciples approached Periya Nmabigal with a request: They wanted that RAmAnujar, chosen by none other than the departed AachAryan, come on to take over the now empty post as the rightful successor. Periya Nambigal agreed to take on this endeavor. He left with his wife on a journey to PerumAL kOil enroute a few divvy kshEtrams. At one point, he reached MadurAntagam and sought the blessings of "Aeri KAththa RAmar".
Meanwhile, according to the wishes of PEraruLaLan, RAmAnujar was enroute from PerumAL koil to periya kOil and by sheer coincidence, happened to be in MadurAntagam at the same time! He was overjoyed to find Nambigal there and immediately prostrated him with the following lines: "Sishyas DEhamsAdimAm TvAm prapannam" which meant "Your slave, accept my surrender and bless and protect me". Periya Nambi offered to discourse him at PEraruLALan's sannidi but RAmAnujar did not wish to put it off and he asked that it be done right there and then. In Aeri KAththa RAman's sannidi, under a Magizha tree, Periya Nmabi revealed the Pancha SamskAram to RAmAnujar. He expounded all the shlOkAs and the meaning of every Dvayam. They both them offered their respect and gratitude to Lord RAmA for the unexpected meeting under his guidance.
(For these reason,s MaturAntagam is also known as "Dvayam viLainda KshEtram". He can be found here next to RAmA as a grihastar, i.e. not yet as a SanyAsi. Behind the AndAL sannidi, alongwith the Magizha tree, there is platform on whose walls there is a sculpting to this upadEsam taking place. A festival to commemorate this event occurs every Aavani month on sukla Panchami. In the lake, there are some steps called "BhAshyakArar padiththurai" where daily rituals are performed to this day.)
From there, they went back to PerumAL kOil and RAmAnujar gave up a portion of his house for Periya Nambigal to reside in. He provided him with everything needed for his rituals and was very devoted to him. Periya Nmabi transferred a lot of knowledge to him, including that of the tiruVai mozhis and Divyaprabandams.
Wednesday, February 23, 2011
Chapter 6 - EmperumAnAr Part 4
ShrI AalavandAr's last upadEsam
As we saw in the last chapter, in SrI Rangam, AalavandAr was plagued by the ills of old age. He was surrounded by his worried disciples. Then he was approached by TiruvarangaperumALarayar, Periyanambigal and TirukkOttiyUr Nambigal who pleaded with him to impart his knowledge of something special and dear to him. Aalavandar had the following orders for them: "By the grace of a good AachAryan, you have all done ChanaNAgati and are leading a good life. Continue in the tradition of an AAchAryan and serve the Lord thus. Perform all those duties that have to be carried out without fail (like SanDhyAvandanam). Such duties are called AajnyA kaingaryam. On the other hand, Anujnya kaingaryam comprises of those duties that should be carried out if they can; but is not a great sin if it cannot be kept up with. Exampls of such duties are going with God in proession, lighting lamps in the temple and doing the utsavAdigal in the temple. This is what BhAgavata AachArya kaingaryam is all about. Make it known to all your disciples".
The news that AalavandAr was sick spread all over the country. On hearing it, 2 vaishnaNavAs from PerumAL temple came to see him in SrI Rangam. While paying obeisance to him, they narrated the account of the dispute between RAmAnujar and YAdavaprakAsar in the interpretation of the line "Sarvam Kalu Idam Bhrahmma". They indicated that the Guru banished him from his service and that he was performing daily duties for PEraruLALan in his temple. AalavandAr was happy on hearing it and felt that PEraruLALan carried out his wishes for him. He called upon Periya Nambi and asked him to go to KAnjI and bring RAmAnujar to him.
Periya Nambi in PerumAl temple
According to AachAryan's wishes Periya Nambi came to PerumAL temple in a few days. He prostrated before the lotus feet of PEraruLALAn and PerundEvi ThAyAr. He met Tirukkachchi Nambi and conveyed the news of AalavandAr's health and his wishes to bring RAmAnujar to him. He was waiting for RAmAnujar's arrival from SAlak KiNar because he knew that he would be bringing the tirumanjana tIrtam for the Lord. At that time he was reciting the following mantrA: "BhrahmmA Sivaha Satamakaha ParamasvarAdityEtEpu Yasya MahimArNava ViprushahatE". RAmAnujar was thrilled on hearing it and asked who Periya Nambi about who wrote those verses. Periya Nambi indicated that it was none other than AalavandAr and RAmAnujar desired to see him immediately. Periya Nambi gladly agreed to take him. After getting the blessing of the Lord and DEvi, the pair made their way back to SrI Rangam.
SrI AalavandAr's desire
Meanwhile AalavandAr's health was deteriorating by the day. He wished to get the blessings of Periya PerumAL one day so he was helped up to his sannidi to get tIrtam and prasAdams. When he was standing before the Lord, he could not contain the discontent in his heart and burst into tears. The disciples surrounding him were shocked and wished to know what was ailing his mind that would upset him to this extent. AalavandAr revealed it to them along with the fact that he was upset about not having met RAmAnujar:
1. Writing a commentary for VyAsa SUtram
2. The names of ParAsaran and VyAsan who ruled that SrIman NArAyaNA was the supreme Lord be granted to 2 VaishNavAs worthy of the name
3. Write a commentary for NammAzhvAr's divya prabandham
He then folded his fingers to reveal the number 3 to indicate 3 of his unfulfilled desires. His disciples tried to reassure him that by the grace of the Lord, all these would be fulfilled eventually and asked him how they could be of his aid for that moment. Aalavandar expressed his wshes to pray before NAdamunigals slippers and get his blessings and TIrtam. Accordingly, NAdamuni's PAdukai was brought before. The AachAryan prayed to it heartily and revealed that as Abijit MuhUrtam closed in on them, he would make his way to the lotus feet of the Lord in paramapadam. He sat in a perfect PadmAsanam position with NAdamuni's pAdukais on his head chanting the names of ManakkAl Nambi and UyyakondAr and passed away thus. All his disciples including Tiruvarangap PerumALarayar stood like uprooted trees without their roots. Then they steadied themselves and started prepping to perform the last rites for the AachAryan. They called upon his son PillaikkarasuNambi to perform his duties thus. They adorned his body with garlands from Periya PerumAL and hoisted him upon a Bhramma chariot and took him to TirukkarambanUrturai for his final resting place.
As we saw in the last chapter, in SrI Rangam, AalavandAr was plagued by the ills of old age. He was surrounded by his worried disciples. Then he was approached by TiruvarangaperumALarayar, Periyanambigal and TirukkOttiyUr Nambigal who pleaded with him to impart his knowledge of something special and dear to him. Aalavandar had the following orders for them: "By the grace of a good AachAryan, you have all done ChanaNAgati and are leading a good life. Continue in the tradition of an AAchAryan and serve the Lord thus. Perform all those duties that have to be carried out without fail (like SanDhyAvandanam). Such duties are called AajnyA kaingaryam. On the other hand, Anujnya kaingaryam comprises of those duties that should be carried out if they can; but is not a great sin if it cannot be kept up with. Exampls of such duties are going with God in proession, lighting lamps in the temple and doing the utsavAdigal in the temple. This is what BhAgavata AachArya kaingaryam is all about. Make it known to all your disciples".
The news that AalavandAr was sick spread all over the country. On hearing it, 2 vaishnaNavAs from PerumAL temple came to see him in SrI Rangam. While paying obeisance to him, they narrated the account of the dispute between RAmAnujar and YAdavaprakAsar in the interpretation of the line "Sarvam Kalu Idam Bhrahmma". They indicated that the Guru banished him from his service and that he was performing daily duties for PEraruLALan in his temple. AalavandAr was happy on hearing it and felt that PEraruLALan carried out his wishes for him. He called upon Periya Nambi and asked him to go to KAnjI and bring RAmAnujar to him.
Periya Nambi in PerumAl temple
According to AachAryan's wishes Periya Nambi came to PerumAL temple in a few days. He prostrated before the lotus feet of PEraruLALAn and PerundEvi ThAyAr. He met Tirukkachchi Nambi and conveyed the news of AalavandAr's health and his wishes to bring RAmAnujar to him. He was waiting for RAmAnujar's arrival from SAlak KiNar because he knew that he would be bringing the tirumanjana tIrtam for the Lord. At that time he was reciting the following mantrA: "BhrahmmA Sivaha Satamakaha ParamasvarAdityEtEpu Yasya MahimArNava ViprushahatE". RAmAnujar was thrilled on hearing it and asked who Periya Nambi about who wrote those verses. Periya Nambi indicated that it was none other than AalavandAr and RAmAnujar desired to see him immediately. Periya Nambi gladly agreed to take him. After getting the blessing of the Lord and DEvi, the pair made their way back to SrI Rangam.
SrI AalavandAr's desire
Meanwhile AalavandAr's health was deteriorating by the day. He wished to get the blessings of Periya PerumAL one day so he was helped up to his sannidi to get tIrtam and prasAdams. When he was standing before the Lord, he could not contain the discontent in his heart and burst into tears. The disciples surrounding him were shocked and wished to know what was ailing his mind that would upset him to this extent. AalavandAr revealed it to them along with the fact that he was upset about not having met RAmAnujar:
1. Writing a commentary for VyAsa SUtram
2. The names of ParAsaran and VyAsan who ruled that SrIman NArAyaNA was the supreme Lord be granted to 2 VaishNavAs worthy of the name
3. Write a commentary for NammAzhvAr's divya prabandham
He then folded his fingers to reveal the number 3 to indicate 3 of his unfulfilled desires. His disciples tried to reassure him that by the grace of the Lord, all these would be fulfilled eventually and asked him how they could be of his aid for that moment. Aalavandar expressed his wshes to pray before NAdamunigals slippers and get his blessings and TIrtam. Accordingly, NAdamuni's PAdukai was brought before. The AachAryan prayed to it heartily and revealed that as Abijit MuhUrtam closed in on them, he would make his way to the lotus feet of the Lord in paramapadam. He sat in a perfect PadmAsanam position with NAdamuni's pAdukais on his head chanting the names of ManakkAl Nambi and UyyakondAr and passed away thus. All his disciples including Tiruvarangap PerumALarayar stood like uprooted trees without their roots. Then they steadied themselves and started prepping to perform the last rites for the AachAryan. They called upon his son PillaikkarasuNambi to perform his duties thus. They adorned his body with garlands from Periya PerumAL and hoisted him upon a Bhramma chariot and took him to TirukkarambanUrturai for his final resting place.
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