Vaishnavism:Basic Tenets-Sunday,7PM CST Velukkudi Swami in English

[Guest guest]

srimathE rAmAnujAya namaha:

With the divine blessings of Lord Sriman Narayana, U.Ve Sri Velukkudi

swami's English lecture series have started (Last Sunday of the Month)

 

These lectures are targetted towards the questions that we all have, but

are voiced more openly by the young minds. Please encourage all the

younger minds in your area to make use of this wonderful

and unique opputunity to listen, understand and improve our lives.

 

Next lecture info (7PM CST, Sunday Feb 25th)

http://www.srivaishnava.org/talks/velukkudi/vk_sponsor.htm

 

For detailed text:

http://www.radioramanuja.com/talks/velukkudi/basics1.htm

 

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BASIC TENETS OF SRI VAISHNAVISM

Per the tele-Upanyasam of U. Ve Sri Velukkudi Swami

 

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Tenet 1. Tiruvaradhanam (Daily Pooja) for at least 15 minutes. On week

ends, festivals and alwar acharya tirunakshatram without fail.

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Question: Why do we have to do this, How does it help?

What is special about doing Tiruvaradhanam on certain days?

 

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Tenet 2. Any thing you eat only after offering it to the Lord.

- this would restrict/guide you in what you consume.

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Question: Does the Karma Theory work here: i.e: The farmer grows the

grain, the businessman trade the grain, the karmas of the farmer &

businessmen etc are associated with the grain, and a part will come to you

if you eat it. (By offering food to god, it becomes Perumal's grain. After

perumal has had it, it becomes prasadam and no karma is attached to it.)

 

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Tenet 3. Recite nitya anusandhanam and sahasranamam - it might take about

30 minutes. It can be any time of the day. Recite rahasya trayam

especially dvayam as many times as possible. Meditate on our guruparampara

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Question: Why should we do this? How does it help today's

working/material based society.

 

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Tenet4. Under any circumstances - bhagavata apacharam koodadu. This is an

irrepairable fault. Never tread away from the path which our

poorvacharyas have prescribed.

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Question: Poorvacharyas never asked us to come to the US, why do we even

come here. Acharyas never asked us study Engineering etc... why do we do

this? Who is the Bhagavata to whom we should not do apacharam (The priest

who looks all Holy and nice, but has hidden agendas etc etc...) So can we

can do apacharam to non-bhagawatas?

 

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Tenet5. You can earn to live, to educate , to get married

- but not for the sake for earning.

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Question: So are we supposed to give extra earnigs? towards whom & why

should we give? Are we not interefering with the receiver's Karma & Lord's

ways by trying to help/interfere in others problems.

 

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Tenet6. Donate a portion - however little it may be - to noble causes. I

am not only mentioning temples here. It may be for hospitals, poor

education, poor feeding and any social service.

 

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Question: How can we donate "selflessly" when we can think of of the

better car & better house, and have the feeling that the money/its fruits

are ours. Where is the limit and houw do we get to the point of parting

with perumal's money that we have received (But perceive it as ours).

How do we even come to feel that in the true sense thatnothing is ours to

begin with?

 

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Tenet7. Be happy and proud that you belong to the most logical and great

philosophy and thank your preceptors atleast once a day for blessing you

with this.

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Question: If it is the most logical and great as you say, how come

SriVaishnavas are a minority, and the numbers are decreasing. How come we

have not successfully converted the whole world to Sri Vaishnavism?

 

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Tenet8. For good qualities and knowledge look at people above you and try

to reach them. For money and standard of living look at people below you

and be satisfied.

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Question: Whom do we consider above & whom below....?

 

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Tenet9. Have absolute faith on Sriman Narayana and be firm that anyone

with Ramanuja sambandham is confirmed of a berth in Paramapadam.

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Question: Just from Saranagathi Gadyam " Thayar's response to srI

Ramanuja" or is there any other reason for Paramapadam to all with

Ramanuja Sambhandam. (What is this sambhandam & how to keep it)

 

Please explain how we are confirmed of a berth?

 

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Kesavan Srinivasan and myself are honored to be of

service in re-writing the upnanyasam.

 

 

 

AzhwAr EmberumAnAr Jeeyar ThiruvadigalE saranam

 

adiyEn rAmAnuja dAsan

Mukundan Vankipuram Pattangi