kaNNan piRandhAn!

[Guest guest]

Dear Bhagavathas, 08/15/98

My namaskArams.

 

paramAtmA took avathAram to save the jIvans. abhayam enRa

alaRalaik kEttu maNNuyir kAkkap piRandhAn;

 

Om srIkrishNa parabrahmanE nama:

 

dEvargaL magizhndhanar, mahEsvaran pUritthAn,

pUvulagam sezhikkak kaNNan avadharitthAn! (1)

 

sarvalOka rakshakan, dharmatthin kAvalan,

asurar kulam kedukkap puviyiR thOndRinAn! (2)

 

satthiyamE nitthiyam enRa punidha vidhiyai

edutthuNarttha vandhanan para vAsudEvan! (3)

 

nAnmaRai thORRinan, maRaiyadhu kAtthida

vAnOr nilaipeRa innaruL pozhindhanan! (4)

 

nallOr, punidhar, yOgiyar sindaiyil

oLirbavan in~gE nEril vandhanan! (5)

 

dharma sindhanai yAn~n~anum thazhaitthidap

poimaRai azhitthidap pAril udhitthanan! (6)

 

gIdhai ennum thonmaRai mozhindhu

abhayam aLitthida vandhanan mannavan! (7)

 

piRappenum punmai mAitthida vandhAn!

karmak kayiRRai aRutthida vandhAn! (8)

 

vAnam avanadhu vaNNam pUNdadhu;

"aiyanE! aNdatthin mUlamE!" enRu thozhudhadhu; (9)

 

kARRu kuLirndhadhu! pAdith thirindhadhu!

parandhAman varavai eNNi ugandhadhu; (10)

 

agniyO yagn~a mayamAna hariyin pErai

saRRi sARRip pudhu oLi kaNdadhu; (11)

 

aNdamE magizhchchik kOlam pUNdirukkaiyil

mAri pozhindhu "hari! hari!" enRadhu; (12)

 

n~yalatthai anRu aLandhavan inRu

kuzhandhaip pAdhangaL koNdu piRandhAn! (13)

 

"andhach chinnanchiRu padhangaL enmEl

padumE AhA!" enRu nilam thannilai maRandhadhu; (14)

 

"bhavappiNi ozhindhadhu, pudhunilai piRandhadhu"

enRE munivOr agam magizhndhanar; (15)

 

avanE endhan uLLathu iRaivan

"achyuthA! ananthA! gOvindhA!" ennum,

 

adiyArkku adiyavan,

chandrasekaran.

[Guest guest]

Dear Sri Chandrasekhar :

 

Thanks for your note . I guess you intended to

copy your note to the other members .Hence I

am copying them .I am delighted to know that

the Bangalore ISKON temple has the ArchA Murthys of

Prahlada Varadan , Srinivasan besides Sri Krishnan ,

RaadhA RaaNi and Gauranga DevA .That is rather unique

combination for an ISKON temple .

 

You had asked as to who this Gauranga DevA is .

Number of our members following the Gaudiya VaishNavA

tradition would have lot more precise information on this subject .

I will say a few words based on my limited understanding .

 

For the Gaudiya VaishNavAs , Sri Guru and Gauranga are very

important tattvams . A Gaudiya VaishNavA beleives that his/her

only hope in approaching RadhA KrishNA is by surrender at

the lotus feet of Guru and Gauranga . BhakthAs of this faith

beleive in SaraNAgathi and they beleive further that "slavery"

(nithya Kaimkaryam ) to the Infinity is the highest freedom

( Muktha Jeevan ) . To them KrishNA is Maadhurya LilA ,which

is one step below audhArya Lila or Gaura LilA , which is recognized

as " the whole sale distribution of KrishNa prEmA " .In Brindhavanam ,

the "highest person " or position is held NOT by KrishNA ,

but by Sri RadhA RaaNi .The PrayOjana TattvA for the Gaudiya

VaishNavites is to be engaged in Her service ( Position of Sri

Devi and Her relationship to the Lord in our darsanam).

Sri GaurangA is the SOLE access to that plane of service .

 

Chaithanya MahA Prabhu born in Bengal ( 1486 AD ) was given

the name of GaurangA after his Upanayanam ceremony . A dear

fellow bhakthA by the name NithyAnandhA Prabhu preached

about the greatness of Gauranga LilA .

 

In summary , GaurangA is the Combined form of

Sri KrishNA ( VrajEsvarA ) and Sri RadhA RaaNi( Nappinnai?).

The supreme Lord combined with His inner pleasure

potency ( HlAdhini Sakthi ? ) appears in this world

according to Gaudiya VaishNavAs as " the most merciful

manifestation of God to distribute pure love for God

to the most fallen souls of this present age " .

 

RadhA and KrishNA have in short come to this world

in the form of Gauranga to "destroy the material world " .

 

I request my Gaudiya ViashNava friends to correct any

inaccuracies in this summary .

 

V.SadagOpan

 

 

>The vigrahams on the right side were "Sri Krishnan

>and Sri Balaraman", the left ones are those of Sri Gauranga

>lifting both his arms above his head (other one I don't know;

>also I don't know who this Sri Gauranga is) . Is he a saint

>from Bengal?).

> adiyEn,

> chandrasekaran.

[Guest guest]

Sri :

Srimate Sri Lakshmi Nrusimha Para Brahmane Namaha

Srimate Sri Lakshmi - Nrusimha Divya PAdukA Sevaka -

Srivan Shatagopa Sri NArAyana Yateendra MahAdesikAya Namaha

 

Dear devotees,

Namo NArAyanA . pranAmams.

 

On Sat, 22 Aug 1998, Sri Sadagopan wrote:

> For the Gaudiya VaishNavAs , Sri Guru and Gauranga are very

> important tattvams . A Gaudiya VaishNavA beleives that his/her

> only hope in approaching RadhA KrishNA is by surrender at

> the lotus feet of Guru and Gauranga . BhakthAs of this faith

> beleive in SaraNAgathi and they beleive further that "slavery"

> (nithya Kaimkaryam ) to the Infinity is the highest freedom

> ( Muktha Jeevan ) . To them KrishNA is Maadhurya LilA ,which

 

" SaraNAgathi " ie. "prapatti" as explained by SwAmi Desikan

is very much different from the "SaraNAgathi" that is referred

above as the action of Gaudiya VaishnavAs.

 

From SwAmi Desikan's exposition :

Prapatti has angAs & angIs , performed exactly once (with regard to a

particular goal) & is basically a Shadanga yogA . The science of

prapatti can be understood only after the thorough knowledge of the

invaluable meanings of the most sacred "rahasya traya mantrAs" .

 

Prapatti is neither mere faith in the saving grace of Sriman nArAyaNA

nor a mere prayer to Him for protection/moksha . Prapatti doesn't mean

merely a surrendered life centred around serving Sriman nArAyaNA .

Prapatti encompasses all of this & is much much more .

 

Though "SaraNAgathi" is in general used for denoting "surrender" ,

what all things that needs to be fulfilled in that surrender (for

moksham) is another issue .

 

Prapatti is a SAdhya upAyA which needs to be done by a baddha jIvAtmA

(through an AchAryA in most cases for lack of qualification ) which

becomes a vyAjA for Sriman nArAyaNA , the Siddha upAyA, to grant

moksham . It is very important to understand that it is Sriman

nArAyaNA's mercy (Siddha upAyA) that is the reason for moksham & not

the mere act of prapatti ie. In front of Siddha upAyA , SAdhya upAyA

is _nothing_ & can't even be compared. Neverthless , SAdhya upAyA needs

to be performed since thats the way Sriman nArAyaNA has ordered ( in

Sruti & Smruti) to have a vyAjA for Him.

 

So , if someone asks the reason for ones moksham , without any

hesitation ,it is the siddha upAyam Sriman nArAyanA . The Divya

Dampati is both the upAyA (means) & the upEyA (end) . SwAmi Desikan

beautifully portrays the state of a prapannA while performing

prapatti in the best & unparalleled pAsuram :

"nin aruLAm gadhi inRi mattRonRu illEn ....." (ie. There is No other

refuge for a prapannA other than the aruL (mercy) of Sriman nArAyaNA ,

<since he has realized that he has no capacity to perform bhakti

yogA>....) . This is a very very highly moving & heart melting

pAsuram, explained well by Sriman Sampath in the SaraNAgathi Journal .

So , it is the "aruL" of Sriman nArAyaNA that is responsible for one's

moksham.

 

It is also very important to understand that "Prapatti" is the way

through which Sriman nArAyaNA grants moksham . He doesn't give it

by His own whims & fancies . He does it according to Sruti & Smruti.

 

There are _only_ two ways for attaining moksham . It is "Bhakti"

(ie. "Bhakti yogA" alias "ashtAnga yogA" ) & "prapatti" ie. these two

are the vyAjAs for Sriman nArAyaNA, the siddha upAyam to grant moksham.

 

nArAyaNA Himself, in Ahirbudhnya samhitA categorically declares :

" bhaktyA paramayA vA-pi prapattyA vA mahAmathe

prApyoham na anyathA prApyO mama kainkarya lipsubhihi "

 

nArAyaNA here clarifies that these two are the only means & by

_no other_ means will He grant moksham .So , all other processes

like Bhagavad kalyAna guna Sravanam , nAma sankeertanam , living

at a Divya desam , bathing in pushkarinIs & sacred rivers etc should

culminate in either "bhakti" or "prapatti".

 

" Svanishta Prapatti" is the culmination of the fully blossomed

Bhagavad PremA . For performing Svanishta prapatti (ie. on one's own,

without the aid of the AchAryA , though the prapatti sAstrA as such

would be learnt from an AchAryA ) one needs to have Very high

qualification - likes of Bhagavad RAmAnujA & SwAmi Desikan . The

most important ingredient for Svanishta prapatti is the IN & OUT

knowledge of the meanings of the three rahasya mantrAs apart from

other scriptural knowledge which exactly aids in completing _all_ the

requirements for a fruitful prapatti in a _proper_ order / way .

Even if one of the requirements gets unfulfilled , Prapatti is not

complete & moksham won't be granted by Sriman nArAyaNA.

 

Thats why , Ukti nishtA & AchArya nishtA is followed even by

AchAryAs for their prapatti. Infact , the exact modulus operandi of

prapatti won't be revealed to a sishyA & a sishyA can possibly know

it only during his prapatti & that too if it is in Ukti nishtA . In

AchArya nishtA , that also is not possible . AchAryA passes on the

upadesam to his select disciple whom he likes to continue performing

"prapatti" for others. In ukti nishtA ,since the sishyA repeats

whatever the AchAryA says , he fulfills all the requirements of

prapatti . In AchArya nishtA , ofcourse all the requirements are

taken care by AchAryA himself.

 

Again , its upto Sriman nArAyaNA, the siddha upAyam, to either grant

moksham or not. If He makes the sankalpam to grant moksham to a

particular jIvAtmA at that time of the performance of its prapatti(

in whatever type of nishtA), then moksham is assured 100% , since

nArAyanA doesn't take back His sankalpam .

 

Qtn : How can one be assured that NArAyanA made the sankalpam to give

moksham at the time of prapatti ( for esp. AchArya & ukti nishtAs )?

 

If the seeker atleast knows that Sriman NArAyanA is the supreme Lord

& the granter of moksham ( ie. Supremacy over demigods ) & wants to get

out of samsArA , his plea through prapatti( in appropriate nishtA ) for

the seeker is granted by Sriman nArAyanA . If the seeker doesn’t have

faith in nArAyanA / prapatti & also has demigod worship ( thinking

that all demigods , nArAyanA are same etc ) , nArAyanA may reject the

plea of AchAryA for that seeker .

 

Eventhough the seeker of moksham had connections with demigods etc

(ie. Doesn’t knew about the supremacy of nArAyaNA at the time of

prapatti) if he changes after prapatti ( any time before his

death ) & recognizes nArAyaNA as supreme & starts following Sri

Vaishnavam with great respect for AchAryA ,developed mahA visvAsam

(ie.supreme faith) on Sriman nArAyaNA's saving grace etc, then it is to

be understood that Sriman nArAyaNA had made the sankalpam to grant

moksham for him , when AchAryA pleaded . If even after undergoing

prapatti, one doesn’t have faith in nArAyaNA & resorts to

something like demigod worship (thinking that they all are same ) &

this was the case till he died , then it is understood that

nArAyaNA hasn’t accepted the prapatti.

 

 

Further clarifications :

 

The reason for moksham is Sriman nArAyaNA's sankalpam to grant it for a

jIvAtmA . So, nArAyaNA has to be pleased with a jIvAtmA in order

to make that sankalpam . That category of "pleasing" arises to

Him, when the baddha jIvAtmA perfects "bhakti" (ie. bhakti yogA).

This is because He acts according to Sruti & Smruti (His commands)

which categorically states that "bhakti yogA" is the only way for

moksham ie. we get to know that "bhakti yogA" is the only way to

please nArAyaNA to make Him grant moksham .

 

But , for all those who cannot follow Bhakti yogA , nArAyaNA still

says that if such jIvAtmAs performs prapatti unto Him , He will

grant the moksham .

 

Qtn : Does it mean that "prapatti" that is performed pleases the Lord

to the same extent as that of "Bhakti yogA" ? The yogI performing

Bhakti yogA has extreme & unsurpassed love for Sriman nArAyaNA &

is uninterruptedly meditating upon Him to obtain moksham which is

permanent bhagavad anubhavam & kainkaryam to the Divya Dampati at

Sri VaikuNTham.So it is obviously logical for Sriman nArAyaNA to

grant him moksham & thats the way Sruti & Smruti also says. What

is the case of "prapatti" ?

 

Ans : First of all, "prapatti" as nyAsa vidyA is enshrined in

upanishads. Its modulus operandi is explained in a detailed

manner in Ahirbudhnya samhitA , Lakshmi tantrA & other pramAnams.

IthihAsa purAnams also have lot of references to prapatti.

Ofcourse ,AzhwArs advocate Prapatti . KrishnA Himself in the

famous charama slokam "sarva dharmAn...." says "Having

already given up Bhakti yogA, due to inability , you seek refuge

in Me alone ". Similarly , Sriman nArAyaNA advocates prapatti

in His varAha avatAram & rAma avatAram through His varAha

charama slokam & rAma charama slokam .

 

The greatest burden for a baddha jIvAtmA is "bhakti yogA".Though

the jIvAtmA wishes to meditate continuously on nArAyaNA , it

is not able to do so primarily because of its karmA.It is not

able to develop so much love towards Sriman nArAyaNA. Also , not

all are eligible for Bhakti yogA . Only dvijAs can start

performing it . Moreover , one cannot be sure of the number of

future births that is needed to be taken in the case of bhakti

yogA.

 

Neverthless , a mumukshu , who has the burden of bhakti

yOgam wants moksham. So , during prapatti , "bhara samarpanam"

is done ie. Sriman nArAyaNA Himself is pleaded to be present in

the "place"(sthAnA) of bhakti yOgA , since the mumukshu is not

able to perform it. Sriman nArAyaNA who is pleaded to be in the

sthAnA of bhakti yOgA is thus pleaded to give the fruit of bhakti

yOgA ie.the level of "pleasing" He will obtain if one approached

Him through "Bhakti yOgA" => He will grant moksham. This is the

way sAstrAs teaches one to perform prapatti to Sriman nArAyaNA &

thus it is the way it is done. So during prapatti , Sriman

nArAyaNA Himself is present in the sthAnA of bhakti yOgA & gets

as much pleasure as one would have approached Him through

"bhakti" & grants moksham to the mumukshu .

 

Ofcourse, there are three angIs to prapatti namely Atma

samarpanam, bhara samarpanam & phala samarpanam which needs to be

done . It is however important to understand that "prapatti" is

not some mechanical process that fulfills some conditions . It is

the fully blossomed stage of complete understanding of the

tattva, hitam & purushArtam . sAstrAs are very merciful in

enlisting various things that one would perform in that state of

surrender thereby giving rise to its modulus operandi . Ofcourse,

for mumukshus performing through ukti & AchArya nishtA , such

thorough knowledge of sAstrAs & rahasya mantrAs is not

neccessary. AchAryA takes care of all the requirements for

pleasing Sriman nArAyaNA . This is also taken as a vyAjA (for

granting moksham) by Sriman nArAyaNA as enshrined in scriptures .

Thats why , the adoration of AchAryA is even more important

than the adoration of Sriman nArAyaNA for a baddha jIvAtmA .

There is no possiblity for a baddha jIvAtmA who doesn't have

the capacity to perform bhakti yogA , to ascend to Sri VaikuNTham

other than to fully depend on the mercy of his AchAryA who knows

the way of performing Prapatti for him. To repay one's AchAryA

for either blessing one with the true & divine knowledge or

initiating him/her into Sri Vaishnavam (pancha samskAram) or

performing prapatti for him/her is an impossibility. To be in

accordance with one's svaroopam (nature) , one has to perform

AchArya ,BhAgavatha & PerumAL kainkaryam in that order of

priority & these things doesn't mean that one is repaying

something to the debt one owes to his/her AchAryA .

 

Qtn : Why is Sriman nArAyaNA advocating only two ways for granting

moksham ? What will happen to a person who is very devoted ?

Eventhough that devoted person didn't perform either prapatti

or bhakti yogam , why is not nArAyaNA granting him moksham on

the grounds that he is devoted to him ?

 

Ans : It is not that such a devoted person would be deprived of

moksham by Sriman nArAyaNA. Such a devotee would be guided by

Sriman nArAyaNA to end up with either "bhakti" or "prapatti" .

So , its just a matter of time -may be within that life time or

in the next few births .

 

Its Sriman nArAyaNA's sankalpam that He would grant moksham for

those who perform only either "bhakti" or "prapatti" . sAstrAs

amply support this & He Himself says so in Ahirbudhnya samhitA.

One can't question either sAstrAs or Sriman nArAyaNA's sankalpam.

sAstrAs are the rules that govern the baddha jIvAtmas in the

leelA vibhUti & for a Lord to be impartial & to rule the world ,

these framework of rules are needed to be followed strictly by

Him.

 

final comment : To understand Prapatti properly , one needs to perform

kAlakshebam under the lotus feet of a sadAchAryA & only by his blessings

through the exposition of granthams like Srimad Rahasya Traya sAram can

one can know about the unsurpassed glories of Prapatti . A sadAchAryA

teaches such grantham only to those who have undergone Pancha samskAram

since this gives the sishyA the eligibility to learn esoteric topics &

it also acts as a measure of the sincerity from the part of a sishyA to

committ himself/herself for following the divine sampradAyam .

 

Namo NArAyanA

Adiyen

Anantha PadmanAbha dAsan

Sarvam Sri KrishnArpanamastu

[Guest guest]

> Dear devotees,

> Namo NArAyanA . pranAmams.

>

>On Sat, 22 Aug 1998, Sri Sadagopan wrote:

>

>> For the Gaudiya VaishNavAs , Sri Guru and Gauranga are very

>> important tattvams . A Gaudiya VaishNavA beleives that his/her

>> only hope in approaching RadhA KrishNA is by surrender at

>> the lotus feet of Guru and Gauranga . BhakthAs of this faith

>> beleive in SaraNAgathi and they beleive further that "slavery"

>> (nithya Kaimkaryam ) to the Infinity is the highest freedom

>> ( Muktha Jeevan ) . To them KrishNA is Maadhurya LilA ,which

>

> " SaraNAgathi " ie. "prapatti" as explained by SwAmi Desikan

> is very much different from the "SaraNAgathi" that is referred

> above as the action of Gaudiya VaishnavAs.

>

> From SwAmi Desikan's exposition :

> Prapatti has angAs & angIs , performed exactly once (with regard to a

> particular goal) & is basically a Shadanga yogA . The science of

> prapatti can be understood only after the thorough knowledge of the

> invaluable meanings of the most sacred "rahasya traya mantrAs" .

>

> Prapatti is neither mere faith in the saving grace of Sriman nArAyaNA

> nor a mere prayer to Him for protection/moksha . Prapatti doesn't mean

> merely a surrendered life centred around serving Sriman nArAyaNA .

> Prapatti encompasses all of this & is much much more .

>

> Though "SaraNAgathi" is in general used for denoting "surrender" ,

> what all things that needs to be fulfilled in that surrender (for

> moksham) is another issue .

 

Dear BhakthAs : It is not clear to me as to what

the purpose of this posting is in the context of my

response to another member regarding what the

Gaudiya VaishNavA believes and wh is Gauranga

in their system .If this posting by Sri Anaantha

PadmanAbhan is for my educational benefit on

Sri VaishNavite SaraNAgathi Tattvams ,I welcome it

as input form a knowledgable person . One can and has

to learn thru out one's life from scholars. I am sure that

I did not suggest that the "SaraNAgathi" concept in

Gaudiya VaishNavism is the SAME as that of Sri ViashNavAs

of one kalai or other believe in .If this posting is out of

concern for those , who may be misled or confused ,

that is a noble act worthy of thanks.

 

Either way , it is a thoughtful note like many

other notes by Sriman Anantha Padmanaabhan

to help all of us understand precisely the esoteric

aspects of our SiddhAntham .

 

V.Sadagopan

[Guest guest]

namo bhagavate vaasudevaaya,

 

Dear vaishhNava-s,

 

Thanks to our dear shrii. ananta-padmanaabha-daasan and shrii. V.Sadagopan

for their excellent vaishhNava writings.

 

gauDiya vaishhNava's concept of sharaNaagati seems similar to that of

shrii-sampradaaya in some respects.

 

Though I (unfortunately) am not yet a real practitioner of either sampradaaya

, from the gauDiya literature I have, I can tell that, like vedaanta-deshika,

shriila sanaatana gosvaami (one of the principal gauDiya vaishhNava aacaarya-s)

in his work, "hari-bhakti-vilaasa" (11.417) also emphasises sharaNaagati

with six anga-s:

 

"aanukuulyasya sankalpaH praatikuulyasya varjanaM

rakshishhyatiiti vishvaasaH goptR^tve varaNaM tathaa

aatma-nikshepa-kaarpanye shhaD-vidhaa sharaNaagatiH "

 

Translation by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedaanta svaami shriila

Prabhupaada,

" The six aspects of full surrender to KR^ishhNa are

(1) accepting things favourable for devotional service,

(2) rejecting things unfavourable for devotional service,

(3) believing firmly in the Lord's protection,

(4) feeling exclusively dependent on the mercy of the Lord for

one's maintenance,

(5) having no interest separate from that of the Lord, and

(6) always feeling meek and humble before the Lord. "

 

 

-Ram