VirOdha ParihAram : Next Series for Saranagathi Journal

[Guest guest]

Dear BhakthAs : With Bhagavadh -BhAgavatha anugrahams

and AchArya AaseervAdhams, we are at the point of

releasing the 20th issue of the First volume of

SaraNAgathi Journal . A great series on AchArya Vamsa

Vruksham by Anbil Swami , Adaikkala Patthu , NyAsa Dasakam ,

Parama Padha sOpAnam by adiyEn , Gadhya Trayams by

Sri Madhavak KaNNan and PaancharAthram by Sri KrishNamAchAri ,

and the different esoteric aspects of SaraNAgathi by

Sri Sampath Rengaraajan have been covered so far .

 

May I invite those , who are interested to engage

in a deeper study of our source granthAs to become

members of the SaraNAgathi Journal and participate

in the dialog on our siddhAntham and enrich it ?

 

The archives of the curent issues are available thanks to

the tireless efforts of Sri Venkatesh Elayavalli ,

who has designed a wonderful web site for the Journal .

Please send your request to become a member to

Saranagathi

 

I am attaching the first of the series of postings

on ViOdha ParihAram that will appear henceforth

in SaraNAgathi Journal .

 

NamO NaarAyaNA ,

V.Sadagopan

 

 

 

VIRODHA PARIHARAM : PART 1

 

SrimAn VenkatanAthArya: kavithArkika kEsarI

VedhanthAcharya VaryOmE SannidhatthAm sadhA Hrudhi

 

RaamAnuja DayApAthram Jn~Ana VairAghya BhUshaNam

Srimadh VenkatanAdhAryam VandhE VedhAnhta Desikam

 

Dear Members of Bhagavadh RaamAnuja SiddhAntham :

 

Enormous and magnificent indeed are the granthams

that Swami Desikan blessed us with for our ujjevanam

( uplift and salvation ) .They arose from him as

UbhayaVedAntham , PrakaraNa granthams , SthOthrams , Rahasya

granthams , Kaavyams , Naatakam , Tamizh Prabhandhams ,

VyAkyAnams , Vaadha Granthams , RakshA Granthams and

anushtAna granthams . His great upakAram to us flowed

forth in four forms : Works in chaste Sanskrit ,

Sundara Tamizh , Sweet PrAkrutham and the MaNipravALam

"language" used first by Thirukkuruhaip PirAn in

his 6000 Pati . Swami Desikan's power of Jn~Anam

Pravachana sakthi , anushtAna srEyas and

debating skills are a direct result of the anugraham

of Sri Hayagreeva BhagavAn .

 

In his ninth & final decade of life , after a rich life

involved in grantha nirmANam , Sri Bhagavadh RaamAnuja

SiddhAntha Pravachanam and Para matha Kantanam , Swami Desikan

had a concern . He felt that he has left some thing undone .

This concern related to the creation of an all-encompassing

grantham that dealt with :

 

1. a lucid explanation of Tattva-Hitha -PurushArthams

at one site

2. a detailed exposition there on the richness of the meanings

of the three rahasyams dear to Sri VaishNavAs

3. a grantham that incorporated all the hithOpadesams

for the chEthanAs in MaNipravALam format .

 

With the blessings of his AchaaryAs and Sri Hayagreevan

arose the magnificient and incomparable grantham of

SRIMADH RAHASYA THRAYA SAARAM (RTS ) . In its 32 chapters ,

the three TattvAs , the Three RahasyAs, the Artha

PanchakA and Prapatthi are discussed . Today , it

is one of the four granthams ( Grantha chathushtayam )

that Sri VaishNavAs have to learn thru KalakshEpam

under their AchAryAs besides Sri Bhaashyam , GitA

Bhaashyam of AchArya RaamAnujA and the Bhagavad Vishayam by

KurkkEsA .

 

After completing this magnum opus of RTS ,

Swami went one step further out of his great compassion

for aRivilis ( ignoramus ) like us and created his final

grantham in his very last years of his life on earth .

 

This very last grantham given to us as Kula dhanam by

Swami Desikan is " VIRODHA PARIHAARAM " .This is the grantham

that clears the lingering doubts of a Mumukshu ( one who

desires Moksham thru an understanding and practise

of the three Rahasyams ). Swami Desikan achieved his goal

through a list of 108 Questions and answers based on

PramANa Vaakhyams .It is also written in MaNi pravALam ,

a mixture of Sanskrit and TamiL .

 

VirOdha ParihAram has the following four chapters:

(1) Moola ManthAdhikAram (2) DhvayAdhikAram

(3) Sarama slOkAdhikAram and (4) NigamanAdhikAram .

 

There are a total of 108 doubts that Swami Desikan

anticipates from the Mumukshu and answers them one

by one under the headings of the above four chapters .

The largest number of doubts that he answers , Eighty ,

pertain to Mula Manthram ; the number of doubts addressed

in the Dhvaya , Sarama and Nigamana adhikArams are Ten ,

Ten and Eight respectively adding upto the grand total of

108 doubts and corresponding answers for those doubts .

 

Swami Desikan's VirOdha ParihAra Grantham was translated

and annotated by Oppiliappan Koil Navaneetham SrirAma

DesikAcchAr Swamy , my manaseeka AchArya . Few months

back , the prakrutham Pundareekapuram Andavan brought

out a new edition of this grantham commented by

Navaneetham Swami , which had been out of print for a while .

Number of BhaskthAs of the Bhakthi List contributed funds

for this effort and have become blessed . I will be following

this recent edition of VirOdha ParihAram for a series of

postings in SaraNAgathi Journal as it starts on its

second decade of issues . May Swami Desikan's and his

UpAsanA murthy"s blessings be with us as we engage in

studying together the most magnificient rahasya grantham

conceived as a sequel to Srimadh Rahasya Traya Saaram

and try to prepare it for SamarpaNam for the BahudhAnya

samvathsara Thirunakshthrams of Swami Desikan (October 1 )

and the First Jeeyar of AhObila Mutt , AdhivaNN SatakOpa

Yatheendhra MahA Desikan , whose 600th aaniversary of

the establishment of Ahobila Mutt that we will be

celebrating on September 11 ( Kettai ) .

 

Mangala SlOkams in Sanskrit and Tamil for VirOdha ParihAram

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

 

SlOkma 1

********

Sriman NaarayaNa: Swaami SaraNya: SarvadEhinAm

bhUyAnn nijapadha prApthi VirOdhi vinivAraka:

 

( Meaning ) : May Sriman NaarAyaNan , who is the protector

of all Janthus and who is the Master of all the Jeevans

chase away all the obstacles and enemies in your efforts

to reach His aasthAnam , Sri Vaikuntam .

 

slOkam 2

********

 

udhitham bhavatha: pAyAth OushadhAdhri sameepatha:

Oushadham chEthasA sEvyam apuna: sthanya paayinAm

 

(Meaning ) : Our Lord Hayagreevan appeared near

the Hill of Medicinal plants ( Oushadha Giri ) at

Thiruvahendhrapuram and He is the Oushadham (Medicine)

for those , who want to be cured of the afflictions

of SamsAram . May that Lord , who is the nectar for dhyAnam

by the mind ,protect you all , who wish not to drink again

mother's milk ( not to be born again in this earth ) .

ApunarArvruthti is hinted here . The very last Brahma

sUthram asserts : AnAvrutthi SabdhAth , AnAvrutthi SabdhAth

{ There is no return (for these released souls ) because

the scriptures say so }. That is what Swami Desikan

is requesting the Lord as a boon for us .

 

SlOkam 3 :

 

prapadhanamayE vidhyAbhEdhE prathishtitha chEthasa:

prathipadhamiha praj~yA dhAyam disanthu dayA dhanA :

Sataripu sukha vyAsa prAchEsAdhi nibhandhana

sramapariNatha suddhA-suddhAsayA mama DesikA :

 

May my AchAryAs , who are profoundly conversant with

the different aspects of Prapatthi Vidhyai serving as

the means for Moksham , who have the sraddhA ( faith

and deep trust ) in Prapatthi arising from their

tireless study and clear understanding of the granthams

of NammAzhwAr , Sukhar , VyAsar and VaalmIki ,

who have the purest of hearts brimming with compassion

for us as their wealth , May those revered AchAryAs

of mine bless every word of this grantham , VirOdhi ParihAram

with the wealth of true knowledge ( JN~Ana Sampath ) .

 

Srimadh VenkatanAthArya nandhanAn PraNamAmyaham

SeshasAyI padhAmbhOja sEshathva jn~Ana nirmalAn

 

Swami Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam ,

DaasOham , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan