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Sarvatantra Svatantraya SimhAya Kavivaadinaam

Vedantacharya Varyaya Venkateshaya Mangalam.

 

Dear Friends,

 

I am sharing a brief summary on the life and works of Swami Vedanta

Desikan for the occassion of his Tirunakshatram. Swami Desikan

was born at Tuppul under the asterism of TiruvoNam in the month of

Puratasi (Sept 15-Oct 15) in 1268 AD to Ananta Suri and Totaramba.

Swami Desikan, who incarnated as the Ghanta Nada Swaroopi of the Lord of

Seven Hills, shares the janma Nakshatram of Lord Srinivasa. The holy

collects (Prabhandam) were founded by Sri Nathamuni, propounded by Sri

Yamunamuni, expounded by Sri Ramanujacharya and systematized into a

science by Swami Vedanta Desikan. The dynamic range of Swami Desikan's

works bears testimony to his genius which helped establish on firm

ground the philosophy of Bhagavad Ramanuja. Swami Desikan's

contributions to our Sampradayam are best summarized by the following

quote of Sri Appayya Dikshitar (a noted critic): "But for the

impregnable fortress of logic erected by Vedanta Desikan, the lush green

pastures of Vishistadvaita would have been devoured by Adavitins like

grass by hungry cows."

 

Swami Desikan received his education and training under his

maternal uncle, Sri Kidambi AppuLLar, who was a noted Shishya of

Sri Nadatur Ammal. By the age of twenty, Swami Desikan had mastered

the Sri Bhashya, and other pertinent Vaishnava Granthas and religious

texts. Since then he regularly gave discourses on Bhagavad Ramanuja

Siddhantam and by the age of 41 he had performed Kalakshepam of the Sri

Bhashya 32 times.

 

Swami Desikan is a unique phenomenon in that he was a philosopher par

excellence, an extraordinary poet, a supreme devotee of Lor Narayana, a

voracious writer, the foremost practitioner of what he preached and

above all a person of rare humility and extreme contentment. He has

authored over a hundred works in Sanskrit, Tamil, Manipravala (a

mixture of Sanskrit and Tamil) and Prakrit comprising poems, hymns,

dramas, treatises and commentaries. His works truly represent an

ocean and diving anywhere in this ocean not only cleanses an individual

but also enables them to come up with rare treasures. Each

work of our Paramacharyan invariably produces a gem of a thought, a

capsule of wisdom or a brilliant ray of insight, which greatly

enriches one's life. In the Krithi Etiruga Nannu, Bhadrachala

Ramdas asks Lord Rama "O Lord! I do not know which way you are

going to come to my succour to rescue me from the stormy waters of

Samsara". Swami Desikan arrived as the ray of hope and the bacon of

light to keep us afloat in the stormy waters through his incomparable

works.

 

The Stotras of Swami Desikan contain the quintessence of the teachings

of the Vedas and the divine mysticism of the Azhwars. They also contain

extremely powerful Mantrams to mitigate any form of suffering.

Swami Desikan lived for considerable amounts of time in Kanchipuram,

Tiruvaheendram and Srirangam. He was bestowed with the titles of

Kavitarkika Simha and Sarvatantra Swatantarar by Lord Ranganatha and

Ranganayaki Thayar. The title of Vedantacharya was later on conferred

upon him by Lord Ranganatha. Prior posts in this forum by Sri

Sadagopan, Sri Anbil Ramaswamy, Sri Sampath Rengarajan and myslef

have presented in considerable detail the special relationship between

Garuda Bhagavan, Hayagriva Bhagavan and Swami Desikan as well as

their blessings on Swami Desikan. As a result, Swami Desikan composed

many devotional lyrics and philosophical treatises. He engaged in

debates with several scholars from other faiths and successfully

conquered them by the forceful power of argument and single minded

devotion (Mahavishvasam) to Lord Narayana.

 

Swami Desikan travelled extensively in South India. In the Hamsa

Sandesham, he demonstrates his mastery over geography by describing

the path to be taken by a swan to convey Lord Rama's message of

grief to Sita. In it Swami Desikan discusses in great detail the

area around the shores of the Cauvery river and identifies the future

home of Lord Rama's Kula Dhanam (the idol of Ranganatha was a cherished

family possession of the Ikshvaku race). During the

invasion by Malik Kafur, Swami Desikan left Srirangam for Satyamangalam

and saved the Srirangam Temple idol and Sri Sudarshana Bhattar's

Srutaprakashika (a commentary on the Sri Bhashya of Ramanujacharya). For

this service alone, the entire Sri Vaishnava community is indebted to

him. Swami Desikan returned to Srirangam after the invaders were driven

out and restored the Temple of Lord Ranganatha to its pristine glory. A

list of his works under various

categories is provided below.

 

(1) Drama-1

(2) Poetical Works -6

(3) Philosophical Texts-14

(4) Commentaries-10

(5) Esoteric Works-2

(6) Manuals of Practice-3

(7) Devotional Sanskrit Poems-28

(8) Small Treatises-28

(9) Poems in Tamil-24

 

One of the most important contributions of our Paramacharyan is

the establishment of the importance of Prabandham and

instituting the practice of Prabandham chanting in Sri Vaishnava

Temples.

 

Kavitarkika Simhaya Kalyana GunashalinE

Srimathe Venkateshaya Vedanta GuravE Namaha

 

Everything correctly stated is entirely due to the grace of my Acharyan.

All errors and shortcomings are mine alone.

 

Namo Narayana,

 

Muralidhar Rangaswamy

 

 

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