A SanyAsi ascends the throne : Part 1

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Dear Sri Lakshmi Nrusimha Divya PaadhukhA sevakAs :

 

I will commence this series with a paasuram from

Sri Adhi VaNN SatakOpa Yatheendhra Maha Desikan

Adaikkala Patthu . This verse is part of a ten verses

performing prapatthi to the First Jeeyar of Ahobila Matam ,

who was initiated into SanyAsa Aasramam at Ahobilam

by Lord Narasimhan Himself . This verse is also one of

the verses used in the Sri Sannadhi Saatthumurai Kramam :

 

aadhimaraiuruvAna adhippuLL verpathanil

sodhiyenavulahelAm sukam peravE vandhutthittha

adhigurunarasinghan aruLAlEyogiyAna

adhivaNNseer SatakOpan adiiNaiyen mudimaNiyE

 

with the split of the compound words , the paasuram

flows this way for easy comprehension :

 

aadhi marai uruvu aana adhi puLL verpu tanil

sodhi yena ulahellAm sukam peravE vandhu udhittha

aadhi Guru Narasinghan aruLAlE yogi aana

aadhi vaNN seer SatakOpan adi iNai yen mudi maniyE

 

The paasuram refers to a wonderful evnt that happened at

Ahobilam some 598 years ago .

 

The first line of the paasuram refers to two of the three

mountains at Ahobilam . These three are known as

GarudAchalam , vEdAchalam and achalacchAya Meru .

The salutation in this paasuram is to vEdAchalam ,

or the ancient vEdAs that took the form of

the mountain named vEdAchalam( aadhi marai-

uruvu aana verpu ) and did penance and received

the boon of protection from Lord narasimhan . The

first line also refers to GarudAchalam ( PuLL =

Veda purushan , Garudan ) , where Garudan

performed tapas and got the boon of being the

vaahanam for the Lord . Achalaachala Meru is

the mountain between VedAchalam and GarudAchalam .

Thus all the three mountains of Ahobilam are covered

here as the sacred seat of BhagavAn Narasumhan .

 

The sacredness of these three mountains covered next by

the second line and most of the third line of the paasuram:

 

sOdhi yena ulahellAm sukam peravE vandhu udhittha

aadhi Guru Narasinghan

 

This hills are sacred because of the avathAram of the

resplendent jyothi ( JwAlA Narasimhan )in nine forms

(Nava Narasimhans ) for giving

comfort to the people of the world as the ancient

Guru . The poet states that Lord Narasimhan

vandhu udhitthAn. He chose the site , arrived there and

revealed His auspicious forms for saving PrahlAdhA

and the people of the world as the primordial Guru .

 

The rest of the pasuram deals with another miraculous

event that occured at Ahobilam some six hundred years ago

in Lord NarasimhA's role as the aadhi Guru :

 

---aadhi Guru Narasinghan aruLAlE yOgi aana

aadhi vaNN seer SatakOpan adi iNai yen mudi maNiyE

 

This portion of the paasuram celebrates the event , which

relates to the acceptance of SanyAsa Aasramam by a

young man in his early twenties by the name of Kidaambi

SrinivAsan born in ThirunArAyaNapuram . He was

commanded by BhagavAn Narasimhan to come to Ahobilam .

SrinivAsan arrived at Ahobilam and was met by Lord Narasimhan,

who appeared as a old sanyAsi and initiated SrinivAsan

into sanyAsa Aasramam at the sannidhi of Achaarya

RaamAnujA .The Lord appointed Kidaambi SrinivAsan

as the first peetthipathi of the Mutt revered as Ahobila Mutt

today . BhagavAn Narasimhan also gave the daasa naamam

for Srinivasan as Sri SatakOpa Jeeyar . This incident is referred

to in the paasuram as " aadhi Guru Narasinghan aruLAlE

yOgi aana aadhivaNN seer SatakOPan ".

 

This paasuram concludes with a salutation to the first jeeyar

of Ahobila mutt : aadhivaNN seer SatakOpan adi iNai yen mudi

maNiyE " . The poet and devotee of aadhivaNN SatakOpan

points out that the sacred pair of feet of his aachAryA rests

on his head as sirOrathnam or mudi maNi or the jewel on

the top of his head .

 

In the next posting , the sacrednes of AhObilam and the life

of Aadhi vaNN SatakOpa Yatheendhra MahA Desikan as the first

AchAryA of Ahobila Mutt will be covered .

 

peRRA thAyAi battharukku bedhamillA tanthaiumAi

maRRumuLLa suRRamumumAm manniya ponni raasiyumAai

yetthisaiyum yennudaya innuruvAm bhakkiyamAai

uRRamuni SatakOpa ! unn kazhalgal ahalEnE

 

(Meaning ) : Oh , Aadhi vaNN SatakOpA ! You are the bioogical

mother to Your devotees , the unquestionable father , the one

who exists as the rest of the relatives and the golden

auspiciousness that befall them . I have obtained as a

great blessing your beautiful body (subha tanu, subhAsrayam )

for my meditation . Oh , great AachArya ! Oh , my bhAgyam !

I shall never ever separate from your sacred feet .

 

Oppiliappan Kovil VaradAchAri Sadagopan