Salutations to AchArya RaamAnujA on His Thirunakshathram

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SrI:

 

SrImathE RaamAnjAya Nama:

 

Dear Fellow RaamAnuja DaasAs:

 

This is one of the greatest days in our sampradhAyam.

AchArya RaamAnujA was born in the year 1017 C.E at

the hamlet of SrI PerumbhUthUr for saving us from

the horrors of SamsAric afflictions.He lived an exemplary

life as a ParamAchAryan and reached Parama Padham

in 1137 C.E. after completing the tasks assigned

to Him by the Dhivya Dampathis.

 

His First Millenium celebrations will start 15 years

from now ; the preparations are underway to establish

a most appropriate and enduring monument is to grow

further the great legacy He left behind through His

Nine SrI sookthis for the benefit of humanity in general

and SrI VaishNavA community in particular.

 

AchArya RaamAnujA expounds the philosophical

doctrines of VisishtAdhvaitham following

the Sidhditrayam and Aagama PrAmANyam of

Swamy AaLavanthAr and the teachings of

His five AchAryAs :Periya Nampi,Goshti PoorNa,

MaalAdhAraa/ThirumAlai AaNDAn, AaLavandhAn

AaLvAN and Thirumalai Nampi/SrI Saila PoorNa.

 

Thiruvarangatthu AmudanAr's RaamAnuja NooRRandhAthi,

Swamy Desikan's YathirAja Sapthathi, SrI MaNavAla Mamuni's

YathirAja Vimsathi extoll in great detail about the life ,

Vaibhavam and the anugraham of AchArya RaamAnujA. AchArya

RaamAnujA's scholastic genius , AchAryakathvam, administrative

skills are legendary. A small attempt has been made to capture

the Vaibhavam and contributions to the growth of SrI VaishNavam

in the form of an Interactive Multimedia CD ROM .

 

Today , adiyEn will attempt to reflect on the glories of

His SrI sookthis very briefly. These are nine in number:

(1) VedArtha Sangraham composed in front of Lord SrinivAsan

of Thirumalai (2)Vedaantha DhIpA (3) VedAntha SaarA

(4) SrI Bhaashyam (5) SaraNAgathy Gadhyam (6)SrIranga

Gadhyam (7) SrI Vaikunta Gadhyam (8)GitA BhAshyam

and (9) Nithya grantham/Bhagavad AaarAdhana PrayOgam.

 

1. VedArtha Sangraha

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

This first SrI sookthi of AchArya RaamAnujA is an elaborate work

focusing on the contents and meaning of the important texts

of VedAs and Upanishads .It also elaborates on the tenets of

VishitAdhvaitham and criticizes soundly the views of rival

Schools like AdhvaithA , Bhaskara , YaadhavaprakAsA. He

summed up brilliantly the Tatthva-Hitha-PurushArTams

from the VisishtAdhvaitha point of view .

 

VedAntha DhIpA and VEdAntha SaarA

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

These two works are brief commentaries on

Brahma SoothrAs. Out of compassion for aspirants

like us of average intellect , AchArya RaamAnujA

blessed us with these two simpler commentaries on

Brahma SoothrAs.

 

2. VedAntha DhIpam

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

VedaAntha DhIpa is a shorter version of the complex

magnum opus of SrI BhAshyam , where much of the elaborate

arguments are eschewed for easy comprehension.

 

The invocatory slOkam of VedAntha DhIpa is a beautiful

salutation to SrIman NaarAyaNA as translated by

Vaikunta Vaasee SrImAn K.BhAshyam from the commentary of

SrI UtthamUr Swamy :

 

" May my mind be devoted to the service at the lotus

feet of Him , who is the First of Primeval Being ,

the Lord of SrI , the Immeasurable , the abode of

excellent qualities, the Destroyer of all evil ,

the Dweller of parama Padham (Vaikuntam) and who

is beyond the reach of speech or mind , but within

the range of vision of His Devotees" .

 

Every thing that is needed to characterize SrIman

NaarAyaNan with His Ubhaya Lingathvam in all His

majesty is right here in this MangaLa SlOkam.

 

3. VedAntha Saaram

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

VedAntha SaarA brings out the essence of Brahma SoothrAs

in a very concise manner .It begins with this benedictory

verse:

 

Samastha chidhachith vasthu sarIrAyaakhilAthmanE

SrImathE niramlAnandhOdhanvathE VishNavE nama:

 

(Meaning): " I bow unto VishNu , who has as His body

all the sentient and non-sentient beings , who is

the Self of all objects , who is associated with

SrI Devi and who is the ocean of bliss untainted

by impurity(of any kind)".

 

AchArya RaamAnujA postulates a personal God and

defines Brahman thus: By the word Brahman is denoted

the highest person , devoid of all blemishes and

is the abode of all kalyANa gunams , which are

countless and unsurpassable in their excellence.

He establishes a world that is real as opposed to

the world of illusion of advaithins. AchAryA

RaamAnujA accepts Both Bhakthi ( devout and

intense meditation on Brahman) and Prapatthi

as the means for gaining Parama PurushArTam

of Moksham.The definition of Brahman is handled

elaborately in SrI BhAshyam with powerful PramANams.

 

4.SrI BhAshyam

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

AchArya RaamAnujA prepared Himself to write

this Magnificent and brilliant SrI Sookthi

for more than half of His long life. At the outset ,

The Benedictory slOkam sets the tone for this

great SrI sookthi:

 

Akhila-bhuvana-janma-sTEma-bhangAdhi-leelE

vinatha-vividha-bhUtha-vrAtha-rakshaika DhIkshE

Sruthi-Sirasi VidhIpthE BrahamaNi SrInivAsE

bhaavthu mama parasmin sEmushI Bhakthi-roopA

 

The extraordinary references to Brahman in this

MangaLa slOkam has been commented upon by

U.Ve Saaraj~na SirOmaNI ChakravarthyAchArya

in three pages of chaste Sanskrit. The main

thing for us to remember is the Passage in

this SlOkam: "Sruthi-Sirasi VidhIpthE

BrahMaNi SrInivAsE". Brahman with anantha

KalyANa GuNams and as Sriya: Pathi is

recognized as the Supreme Reality , which

is specifically and pre-eminently revealed

in Upanishads.

 

In His commentary on the second Soothram

( JanmAdhyasya Yatha:) , AchArya RaamAnujA

defines this Brahman further :

 

Asya- achinthya-vividha-rachanasya niyatha-dEsa-kaala-

phala-bhOga BrahmAdhi Sthambha-paryantha-KshEthaj~na-

misrasya jagatha: , Yatha: -YasmAth SarvEsvarAth nikhila-

hEya-prathyaneeka-svaroopAth , sathya sankalpAth,

Jn~AnandhaAdhya-anantha-kalyANa guNAth , Sarvajn~Ath

sarva-sakthE: parama kaaruNikAth ParasmAth Pumsa:

Srushti-STithi-PraLAyA: pravarthanthE Tath BrahmEthi

SoothrArTa:

 

(Meaning): " That Supreme Person , who is the ruler of

all; whose nature is antagonistic to all evil; whose

purposes (always)come true; who possesses infinite auspicious

qualities such as knowledge, bliss and so on ; Who is

omniscient , omnipotent, supremely merciful ; from whom

the creation , sustenance and re-absorbtion of this

world-- with its manifold wonderful arrangements ,

not to be comprehended by thought , and comprising

within itself the aggregate of souls from Brahman

downwards to blades of grass , all of which experience

the fruits (of their previous deeds) in definite

points of space and time --That is Brahman. Such is

the meaning of this SoothrA"(SrImAn RaagavachAry's

translation).

 

Tatthva-Hitha -PurushArtam in SrI BhAshyam

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

>From there on , AchArya RaamAnujA goes on to establish

Brahman as the Supreme Tatthva. He successfuly differentiates

in the MahA SiddhAntha section of SrI BhAshyaa VisishtAdhvatha

doctrines , which constitute the SrI RaamAnujA school of

vedAnthA. He opposed the illusionstic Monism (advaitham) ,

the grosser forms of BhEdhAbhEdhA and also Dhavitham.

 

Regarding Hitham or Means , first , AchArya RaamAnujA

establishes the nature of Jivan or individual soul.

He defines that Jivan is neither separate from Brhaman

nor wholly identical with Brahman.Jivan is established

as an amsam or part of Brahman (in the sense of forming

an adjectival mode). The travails of the Jivan in this

mundane world and its search for the road to perfection

by seeking the Lord as means and upAyam for liberation

are excellently described with pramANams.Various VidyAs

to gain the anugraham of the Supreme Being are covered

as a part of these discussions.

 

In the Fourth and final chapter of His SrI BhAshyam ,

AchArya RaamAnujA defines the nature of Moksham.

He points out that (1) Moksha is a deliverance from

all the binding Paapams and PuNyams (2) release of

the Jivan into the magnificence of its innate nature

and (3) the phalan and fulfilment of its svabhAvika

tendency through the blissful experience of Brahman,

its innermost soul ( paripoorNa BrahmAnandham of

anantha klayANa guNa Brahman).This RaamAnujA identifies

as the destiny of the Jivan as revealed by Swamy

NammAzhwAr.

 

adiyEn will conclude here the tribute to AchArya RaamAnujA

on this wonderful day devoted to the celebration of

His Vaibhavam and anugraham to us .

 

Sri Raamauja Charanou SaraNam prapadhyE

RaamAnuja Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil SaThakOpan