Pitamahasyapi Pitamahaya...

[Guest guest]

A few more notes on Srisaila Purna, more commonly known

as Periya Thirumalai Nambi, disciple of Yamunacharya and

the acharya who taught Ramanuja Sri Ramayanam.

 

Periya Thirumalai Nambi was one of the few people who

lived on top of Thirumalai itself in the vicinity of

the Venkatesvara temple. In those days, the Thirumalai temple

complex was a far cry from the busy, populated town it is now.

Aside from the Vaikhanasa priests and their families, very

few others lived on Thirumalai -- the conditions just did

not permit it.

 

Periya Thirumalai Nambi performed the kainkaryam of tending

the flower garden (nandavanam) for Srinivasa PerumaaL. To

maintain the garden properly, he also constructed a tank

which was fed from naturally occurring groundwater. These

can still be seen today, according to books on Thirupathi.

 

As mentioned by others, Periya Thirumalai Nambi would come

down daily to teach Sri Ramayanam to Ramanuja, who lived at

the base of Thirumalai. He would have to leave well before

sundown so he could make the trek back up the hill to perform

his evening kainkaryams. The site where he and Ramanuja

would discuss the Ramayanam is apparently still preserved

to this day. I forget the name of it -- aazhvaar mantapam

or nammaazvhaar mantapam, something like that -- but it is

not on the path up Thirumalai that most people travel these

days.

 

This acharya also engaged himself in various other kainkaryams

for ThiruvEngada PerumaaL. This is why one of the biggest

sannidhis (outside of PerumaaL and Thaayaar, of course) in

keezh thirupathi (lower thirupathi -- Govindaraja PerumaaL temple,

established by Ramanuja) is dedicated to him.

 

Mani