The muslim connection

[Guest guest]

>"I.K. Rengarajan" <renga

>Dear venerable members:

>Speaking of the blasting sound emanating from the tall domes of the

>mosques five a times a day, sometimes a nuisance breaking into the

>serenity of the atmosphere and some times a pleasant reminder of our

>spirutual chores as pointed out by Sri Sudarshan, there is an invisible

>link between muslims and sri vaishnavas especially in the Ramathapuram

>area in Tamilnadu.

>I don't know how many of you have noticed the fact that in many major

>Muslim business houses, the key person would be a sri vaishnava. The

>major muslim pockets of Kizhakarai, Ramanathapuram, Thondi etc. both

>these groups go hand in hand despite the vast differences in the habits

>and cultures. I know several of the muslims who would avoid doing things

>during Raghu kalam.

>The reason quoted is that several decades ago when the muslim invaders

>were doing their " business " among other things they gave the option of

>"Quran" or the " dagger" and some of the sri vaishnavas chose to live as

>muslims. I remember my uncle talking about atleast one muslim guy whose

>grandfather was a sri vaishnava.

>All said and done, the destination is the very same for all of us

>regardless of the route we take.

>Subham

>I.K.Rengarajan

 

Similar connections exists in Kumbakonam also where the utsavar

pays a visit to a mosque, and of course in Sri Rangam and

Sri Ranga patnam with thulukka naaciyaar etc.. I think

there is some connection in thiruvallikENi also.

 

The other thing that only an expert in Quran can qualify is that:

Several statements in Quoran express some of the Visitaadvaita

concepts. Example the Supreme Soul: soul :: soul:physical body,

Thondarukku thondu etc..

That apart, in the earlier days (not now), perhaps Sri Vaishnavism was

the least rigid and compassionate of the Hindu philosophies

regarding other religions. There has been no reported massacre of

people because they did not agree with them. (There are reported

massacre of Jains by Adavitins etc..)

 

K. Srinivasan

[Guest guest]

On Mon, 14 Apr 1997, K. Srinivasan wrote:

 

[...]

> That apart, in the earlier days (not now), perhaps Sri Vaishnavism was

> the least rigid and compassionate of the Hindu philosophies

> regarding other religions.

 

Quite possibly, yes.

> There has been no reported massacre of

> people because they did not agree with them. (There are reported

> massacre of Jains by Adavitins etc..)

 

This is not true. The reports of massacres of Jains refer not to advaitins

but to Saivas. Appar, Sundarar, Manikkavachagar and others were not

advaitins in any sense of the term. In Karnataka, the battles were between

Virasaivas (followers of Basava) and Jains, not between advaitins and

Jains. Manikkavachagar criticizes Sankaracharya's views. So do Srikantha

Sivacharya and Sripati Pandita, who both wrote Brahmasutra bhashyas from

the point of view of Saivism.

 

Nowadays, it is generally assumed that all advaitins are and have always

been Saivas, and the sins/virtues of each group are mutually transferred

to the other. This is just not the case. Saiva groups all over south India

have aligned themselves culturally with the advaita mathas more or less.

This may be due to the historic influence of Appayya Dikshitar, but this

still does not make Saivas out of advaitins, nor advaitins out of Saivas.

 

S. Vidyasankar

[Guest guest]

At 09:58 AM 4/14/97 -0500, Sri.K.Srinivas wrote:

>The other thing that only an expert in Quran can qualify is that:

>Several statements in Quoran express some of the Visitaadvaita

>concepts. Example the Supreme Soul: soul :: soul:physical body,

>Thondarukku thondu etc..

>K. Srinivasan

 

Being a resident of Bahrain I take an academic interest in the religion

being practised around me.

>From the little I have gathered from my many Muslim friends and co-workers

-- many of whom are devoutly religious -- I can say that at a purely

ideological level there are a lot of apparent -- I stress, apparent --

similarity of views between Islam and SriVaishnavism.

 

The world "Islam" itself in Arabic, they say, denotes "SURRENDER" !

SriVaishnavism's central tenet too, as we all know, is "prappathi" ie.Surrender!

 

Everywhere you go in the Islamic world you will find the phrase "IN THE NAME

OF ALLAH, THE MERCIFUL, THE COMPASSIONATE" being used on letter-heads,

wall-hangings and desk-top messages !

 

For the Muslim the idea of Godhead is associated primarily not with a

"Powerful Almighty" but with Extreme Compassion ("dayA") ! Which is why in

this religion the concepts of "Punishment" and "Evil", "perdition" and

"Hell" are not so well defined as, perhaps, in Christianity.

 

"Punishment" and "Evil" in Islam are dealt with in greater detail in what

are called "shariat" laws which, though a sub-set of Islam, are nevertheless

social/secular documents more than being truly "religious" speculations on

personal faith! They are a bit --- only a tiny bit --- like our own Laws of

Manu.

 

At a purely philosophical level the tenets of Islam too firmly emphasise "A

Great Personal God" who is Compassionate and Forgiving if anything at all !

There is comparatively very little in Islamic Faith about HELL-FIRE and

ETERNAL DAMNATION although the Religion itself, as we all know, has had many

bloody and painful chapters in its proselytizing march through the pages of

History !

>From what little I have gathered from my Muslim friends here in the Arabian

Gulf they, too, believe in something like what our Saint Tondar-adi-podi (my

own favourite "AzhwAr") has sung :

 

"arivilA manisarEllAm arangam-enru azhaippar Agil

poriyilvAzh narakam ellAm pUllEndh~ozhiyUm anrE !! (from the "tirUmAlai")

 

The only change Islam prefers is that for "arangan" it would rather insert

"Allah" ! Even there, both appellations have the primordial and hallowed

"akAra-shabdam" in common!

 

adiyEn,

sudarshan