Copy of: SarvArtha Siddhi of Swami Desikan

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Dear Members of the Bhakthi group :

This article might be of some interest

to you . Hence I am copying you on this

article .

V.Sadagopan

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V. Sadagopan, 75041,3037

TO: AR, INTERNET:vvijay236

CC: SR, INTERNET:Srengara

vas, INTERNET:vasanthi

DATE: 11/15/97 7:08 PM

 

RE: Copy of: SarvArtha Siddhi of Swami Desikan

 

During August 1996 , Sri V.N.Venaktanathan ,

the grandson of the illustrious AchArya ,

Oppiliappan Koil Navaneetham Swamy

( Vangipuram Navaneetham Sri KrishnamAchArya

Swamy ) and I met at Madras . Our families have

been neighbors for many decades going back to

his grandfather and my grandfather at Oppilaippan

Koil Sannidhi Street .

 

The occasion was a farewell meeting in Madras

at my sister's house prior to my return to USA after

the conclusion of a major festival relating to

a Bhagavadh Kaimkaryam at Oppilaippan Sannidhi .

 

Both Sri V.N.Venkatanathan and I were members of

the Oppiliappan Kaimkarya SabhA in 1995-96 time period

and we had the privelege of working together on

the samarpaNam of RathnAngi for Uthsavar

( Ponnappan ) and Mutthangi for Moolavar

( ThiruviNNagarappan ) . Thanks to the

participation by many aasthikAs from USA

( Bhakthi Group members ) and India ,

this Kaimkaryam was a resounding success due to

the blessings of SaraNyan . We were elated that

the kaimkaryam was accepted by Sri Oppiliappan

and as I was taking leave of Sri V.N . Venakatanathan ,

he presented me with copies of two monographs and

asked me to introduce them to the Sri VaishNavA

community in USA . I agreed and then I looked at

what he had charged me with .

 

The first monograph was the brilliant scholarly

commentary on NammAzhwAr's Thiruvaimozhi

by his elder brother , Dr.V.N.VedAntha Desikan ,

a retired professor of Chemistry at Madurai College

and the scion of the illustrious paramparai of

Sri Navaneetham Swamy of Oppiliappan Koil .

The title of that monograph is " AzhwAr ThiruvuLLam ".

This scholarly monograph is a book that every

Sri VaishNavA home MUST have and is the distilled

essence of all the purvAchAryA's commentary (eedu

granthAs ) on Thiruvaimozhi . Sri VisishtAdvaitha

Research Center Of Madras has released these two

volumes of " AzhwAr ThiruvuLLam " and can be acquired

from the Research Center in Madras or from

The AhObila Mutt of North America headquarterd

in Hixson , Tennessee .

 

The second monograph is the subject of this posting.

It is the Doctoral thesis of his illustrious father ,

late Professor V.N. SeshAdri AchAryA on SarvArtha Siddhi ,

Swami Desikan's own commentary on his own supremely

brilliant work known as TattvamukthAkalApa , which has been

saluted as a " Marvellous production of a mature genius "

intent on establishing the supermacy of Sri VisishTadvaitham

over other sysyems of philosophy . SarvArtha Siddhi is an

exposition/commentary of the 500 slOkAs

of TattvamukthAkalaapa .

 

SarvArtha Siddhi and Satha DhUshaNI go together .

These two works of " the polymath poet-logician ,

VenkatanAthan otherwise known as Swami Vedantha-

Desikan " are great pillars supporting the citadel of

Sri VaishNavism in the sampradhaayam built

brick by brick by Naatha Muni , ALavandhAr

and RaamAnuja .

 

The TattvamukthAkalApa with its assoicated

commentary , SarvArtha Siddhi serves Swami

Desikan's purpose for them to serve as an armor

to defend against the criticisms that may be levelled

against it by rival darsnams ( karsanam darsanam na : ) .

 

The SathadhUshaNi has served as a powerful

criticism of the deficiencies of Advaitha VedAntham .

Thus together , these two brilliant works emanating from

the supreme genius , Swami Desikan establish

clearly the supermacy of VisishtAdvaitham as

developed by AchArya RaamAnujA and his prAchAryAs .

 

 

Swami Desikan has used these two brilliant works

to give " a constructive and critical-acritical account

of rival darsanAs " and has presented lucidly

the doctrines of such darsanAs to establish

the supermacy of the VisishtAdvaithA philosophy

over all of them in an unambiguous manner .

 

In his concluding remarks of SarvArtha Siddhi ,

Swami Desikan has summarized the salient

features of VisishtAdvaithA and has compared

the unique aspects of Bhakthi yOgam and

Prapatthi yOgamas the two sAstraic ways

to seek and attain Moksham .

 

So, this was the book that I was blessed to

receive from Sri V.N. Venkatanathan , who carries

the name of Swami Desikan . It is my great

pleasure and privelege to introduce these two

monographs to those , who may not be familiar

with them and request you to acquire them for your

own libraries on Sri VaishNavism . These monographs

are in English and should make it easy for those not

conversant with Tami or Sanskrit to read and derive

benefits of access to these two source granthAs .

AzhwAr ThiuvuLLam has the pasurams and

comments in Tamil to go along with the English text .

 

As quick summary of the content and scope of

SarvArtha Siddhi , one can refer to the folowing list

that covers the principal topics of the Doctoral

thesis of Sri V.N. SeshAdri AchAryA , as summarized

by him in the book released by Sri VisishtAdvaitha

Research cente rin the year 1993 :

 

A . Buddhism

****************

1. Budhist view of momentariness of all things

and the theory that the substratum is no more than

an aggregation of Qualities .

 

2. SautrAntikA's representation : things being imperceptible

are inferred by their forms imprinted in the cognitions .

 

3. The YogAchAryA's theory of the phenomenality of the world .

 

4. MaadhyamikA's sUnya VaadhA .

 

B. Saankhyam

****************

 

5 . SathkArya VaadhA of SaankhyA and of the VisishtAdvaithA .

 

6 . SankhyA's reliance upon inference .

 

7 . The SankhyA conception of evolution of the universe

from prakrithi .

 

C. NyAya-VaisEshikA

*************************

 

8 . The NyAya-VaisEshikA theory of evolution of

the universe from atoms .

 

9 . The NyAyA -VaisEshikA conception of the whole

and parts as different entities .

 

10 . The NyAya-VaisEshikA view of the soul

and its liberation .

 

D Advaitham

***************

 

11. The AdvaithA doctrine of non-dualism

 

12 . principles of Apacchedha , Upakrama or

uthsargaapavAdha as applicable in the context of

SaguNa -Sruthi and NirguNa -sruthi .

 

13 . Appearance of indefinable object during the illusions .

 

14 . PrabhAkarA's and VisishtAdvaithA's explanation

of illusion .

 

15 . Advaitin's view on indeterminate cognition .

 

E . VisishtAdvaitham

***********************

 

16. VisishtAdvaitin's conception of TatthvA , HithA

and purushArthA .

 

17 . Brahman as being both the material and the

efficient cause of the universe .

 

18 . The Relation between Brahman and the Universe

is similar to the body-soul relation .

 

19 . The two means of liberation : Bhakthi& SaraNAgathi

 

20 . The state of liberation ( Moksham ) .

 

This Monograph of Sri V.N. Seshadhri AchArya is

a treasure house for understanding the doctrines

of the different darsanams and the scholarship of

our Sarvathanthra Svathanthra , KavithArkika Simham

to establish VisishtAdvaitham as the supremely satisfying

system among the various darsanams in the manner

revealed by AchArya RaamAnujA through his Sri Bhaashyam .

In Sri Bhaashyam , Achaarya RaamAnujA performed

the supreme kaimkaryam of reconciling the abhEdha - ,

bhEdha -and ghatakha sruthis the Sareera- Sareeri bhava

realtion between the world of Jeevans and Brahman .

 

It is my hope that my short introduction to these

works by the two great scholars of the kulam of

Navaneetham Swami would be helpful for you

to acquire these two most important monographs

on Sri VaishNavism .

 

Swami Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan