Thiruvaymozhi 8.8.3 & Mumuksupatti

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Vijay Triplicane writes:

>In his very first paasuram, aazhwaar says perumaaL's sacred feet

> "came" towards him. (He didn't go for it.) It is perumaaL's wish and

> His happiness and thats why HE sent his thiruvadigaL to the

> aazhwaar. Upon receiving it only did aazhwaar's thoughts "Go"

> towards him. By this our poorvaachaaryars explain that perumaaL is

> the one who initiates this devotion in us. He is more interested in

> coming to us and getting us to Him!!

>

> In thiruvaaymozhi 8.8.3, nammaazhwaar says

> uNarvi lumpa roruvanai

> avana tharuLaa luRalporuttu,en

> uNarvi NnuLLE yiruththinEn

> athuvum avana thinnaruLE,

>

>

> aazhwaar says in the last two lines from above

> uNarvin uLLE iruththiNnENn

> => i held Him in my heart/soul

> Then quickly aazhwaar points out that it is not as if he (aazhwaar)

> out of his effort did this ... and says

> adhuvum avaNnadhu iNnNnaruLE

> => That is also because of HIS grace.

> HE (the perumaaL) is the one who wants to be in the heart of His

> bhakthaas..

>

 

It is interesting to note how this very verse is cited in Mumuksupatti's

discussion on the Lord's exclusivity as the Upaya("ekam" in "...mam ekam

saranam vraja...") Manalavamamunigal elaborates on how our simple acceptance

through prapatti becomes insignificant when compared to the Lord's "labors"

to bring us to Him. For it is the Lord Who, out of His Boundless

Compassion, provides us with the gifts of life and conscience, and Who

reveals His Kalyana Gunas through His Avatharas and as the Archa,

cultivating in us such devotion as to guide us to Him.

 

Because of this, the Srirangam Acharyas state, prapatti cannot be considered

to be an act, i.e. an upaya. For in actuality, the realization of Him as

the Upaya and Upeya "is also because of His Grace."

 

Daasanu Daasan,

 

Mohan

[Guest guest]

h

 

 

Mohan wrote:

> Manalavamamunigal elaborates on how our simple acceptance

> through prapatti becomes insignificant when compared to the Lord's "labors"

> to bring us to Him.

 

How true! Vedanta Desika says the same exact thing in many

of his works, particularly in the Rahasya Traya Sara. Of course,

there is a distinction as to whether prapatti is technically

an action or not, but Desika is emphatic that the Lord alone

accomplishes the liberation of the individual. He is the siddhopAya,

the prapatti being a mere pretext for Him to shower His grace

on the individual.

 

While there are doctrinal differences between the teachings

of these acharyas (human beings are bound to differ now and then),

in actuality, the spirit and tenor of their teachings tend

to lead us the same way. Even though Swami Pillai Lokacharya

and Manavala Mamunigal are emphatic on prapatti not being an

action, are we not all called prapannas ("those who have

surrendered"), and don't these acharyas also exhort all

surrender ourselves to him?

 

Even though

Swami Desika calls prapatti a means for winning the Lord's

grace, does he not also state that reliance on His grace

through faith is what actually accomplishes the liberation?

 

Mani