Ramanujacharya's Nitya and Related Matters

[Guest guest]

Dear Prapatti Group Members:

 

I wish to dwell on a subject that I think had a far reaching effect on the

lives of Sri Vaishnavas since the very advent of our Siddhanta. The brilliance

of our poorvacharyas did not just stop with philosophising reality. Our

acharyas strove to percolate a philosophical outlook into daily-living so that

life itself might become divine. Nitya covers the daily routine according to

our beloved Yatirajar. In the present work-a-day world, eventhough many of us

may feel that it is difficult to follow the daily routines prescribed in Nitya,

a knowledge of Nitya which is the ideal for a Sri Vaishnava, may well remind us

of our duties and if the Lord wills, we may in the course of time develop an

inclination for such a living and thus take some steps to prepare for it.

 

It is recorded that Ramanujacharya even on his final days of his sojourn on

this earth offered the argyam in the standing posture. As you all know, in the

system of our acharya, Karma, Jnana, and Bhakti go hand-in-hand. At no point

one discards karma but performs it only as a service to the Lord. Spiritual

progress is made through the triadic process of karma, jnana and bhakti set

forth in the Vedanta and this process is finally crowned with prapatti and the

spiritual aspirant (after completing his/her veda prayam) without any delay

finds his home in the absolute.

 

Nitya is a grantha that elaborates and provides guidelines as to how a

SriVaishnava should conduct his/her day-to-day activities. Vedanta Desika while

explaining the Nityagrantha aspect in his work called Paancharaatra Raksha says

"... All this must be done with zeal and interest. It must be done with full

pleasure. A person of this stature will be afraid of none. Realising that his

life is only by His Grace, he must deploy all his sense organs only to His

service. This attitude must be from waking up from the bed to late in the

night as one goes to sleep."

 

The day according to Nitya (taken from Pancharatra) is divided into five major

segments. These are abhigamana, upaadhaana, ijya, svaadhyaaya and yoga. It

begins with the rising up from sleep and it encompasses all the 24 hrs. of a

day and therefore the activiities of a particular day are linked to the

activities of the previous and subsequent days like the "links" in a chain.

The objective is to conduct our lives in such a way that the chain is linked in

an unbroken fashion.

 

As soon as we wake up, the period called "Abhigamanam" commences. The meaning

of abhigamanam is (in tamil:Yedhir Nokky Chelludhal) to go in anticipation,

i.e. in anticipation to meet the Lord. Seated in the bed itself, abhigamanm

starts with a prayer (Mella ezhundhu Hari endra peraravam) and a sankalpam.

After offering an apology to Bhoo-Devi and meditating on Lord Tri-Vikrama one

steps out of the bed with his/her left foot on the floor. One then prepares

for the morning ablutions. Activities like Dhantha Dhavanam, Snanam, Vastra

Dharanam, Urdhva-Pundra Dharanam, Mantra Snanam, Manasika Snanam, Sandhya Vandh

anam, Ashtakshara Japam, Adhara Shaktyadhi Tarpanam, Deva-Rishi-Kanda

Rishi-Pitru Tarpanam, Brahma Yagnam, Aaupasanam, and Abhigamana kala bhaghavat

aradhanam are done. There is a proper vidhi for each of these activities. In

my next posting I hope to cover the most important aspects of performing the

above activities and continue on describing other parts of the daily routines.

 

 

Vijayaraghavan Srinivasan