Sri Ramanaujacharya 7

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April 7th, 2003, Monday (Pancami)Appearance day of Sri RamanujacaryaINITIATION

FROM GOSTHIPURNA After coming to Sri Rangam, Ramanuja was very pleased to resume

hisrole as the disciple of Mahapurna: through this relationship he felt

relieffrom the sadness that had afflicted him since the disappearance

ofYamunacarya. By his behavior toward Mahapurna, he set the example for

alldisciples to follow in rendering service to their spiritual master. Underthe

expert guidance of Mahapurna, he resumed his study of the revealedscriptures.

Mahapurna was so impressed by the incomparable genius andVaisnava qualities of

his disciple that he gave his son, Pundarikaksa, to bethe disciple of Ramanuja.

One evening, when they had completed their studies for the day,Mahapurna said to

Ramanuja, "Not far from here is a prosperous town known asTirukkotiyur. Living

there is a great scholar and devotee, Gosthipurna byname, who was born in the

Pandya country. It is no exaggeration to say thatthere is no other Vaisnava like

him in this part of the country. If youdesire to fully learn the meaning and

significance of the Vedic mantras,then there is none but he who is qualified to

teach you. I advise you to goto Tirukkotiyur without delay and receive the

mantra from Gosthipurna." Having received this instruction from his guru,

Ramanuja went toTirukkotiyur a few days later to see Gosthipurna. In the

presence of thatfamous devotee, he offered his prostrated obeisances and begged

for theVaisnava mantra to be bestowed upon him. Gosthipurna, however, was

veryreluctant to impart the secret of the mantra and replied, "You may come

heresome other day, and I will consider your request." Ramanuja felt

verydejected at this reply, and with a heavy heart he returned to Sri Rangam. A

few days later a big festival was held in honor of LordRanganatha, and

Gosthipurna came there to take part in the worship. At thattime one of the

priests in the temple was inspired by Lord Ranganatha, andhe spoke as follows to

Gosthipurna, "You should bestow the mantra on Mydevotee, Ramanuja, who is most

worthy to receive it." Realizing that the Lord was speaking to him through His

servant,Gosthipurna replied, "But my Lord, is it not true that the mantra may

onlybe given to one who has completely purified his mind by long austerities?How

can the mantra, which is nondifferent from Yourself, reside in the mindof one

who is not pure?" To this the priest replied, "You do not understand the purity

ofthis devotee. He is able to deliver all of humanity." After this incident,

Gosthipurna began to consider the matterdeeply, but still he was unwilling to

give the mantra to any other person.Time and again Ramanuja approached him, but

repeatedly Gosthipurna refusedhis request. When his appeals had been denied on

eighteen separateoccasions, Ramanuja began to feel that there must be some great

impurity inhis heart and that it was for this reason that Gosthipurna would not

bestowhis mercy upon him. In this state of dejection, Ramanuja began to shed

tearsof despair. When some people informed Gosthipurna of Ramanuja's condition,

hewas moved by pity for the young devotee. Therefore, when Ramanuja camebefore

him again, he spoke to him in a kind way. "Only Lord Visnu Himself isaware of

the glories of this mantra. Now I know that you are worthy toreceive it, for you

are pure and firmly fixed in devotion to the lotus feetof the Lord. At the

present time I can find no one but yourself who is fitto receive the mantra, for

whoever chants it is certain to go to Vaikunthaat the time of death. Because

this mantra is so pure and sacred, it mustnot be touched by the lips of anyone

who has material desires. Therefore,you must not disclose the mantra to any

other person" Having thus instructed Ramanuja, Gosthipurna initiated him into

thechanting of the mantra of eight syllables. Ramanuja was filled with ecstasyto

chant this wonderful vibration, and his face began to glow with

spiritualeffulgence. He considered himself the most blessed of all beings and

bowedagain and again at the feet of his guru.REVEALING THE SECRET MANTRA Having

taken leave of Sri Gosthipurna, Ramanuja, in a joyful mood,began to return to

Sri Rangam. But as he was walking, he began to thinkabout the potency of the

mantra that had been given to him. While thinkingin this way, he became filled

with feelings of compassion for the sufferingsof all living beings in this

material world. Then, as he was walking nearthe walls of the Visnu temple in

Tirukkotiyur, he began to call out to allthe people who were passing by,

"Please, all of you, come near to LordVisnu's temple, and I will give you a

priceless jewel!" Attracted by his pure expression and unusual words, a large

crowd ofmen, women, and children began to follow him. A rumor began to spread

allover the town that a prophet had appeared who could fulfill all of

one'sdesires. Within a short time a huge crowd had assembled outside of

thetemple. On seeing this mass of humanity, Yatiraja's heart swelled with joy.He

embraced the two disciples who had accompanied him, Dasarathi and Kuresa,and

then climbed up the tower of the temple. In a loud voice he began to address the

gathering: "All of you aremore dear to me than my own life. Therefore I have a

strong desire todeliver you from the torments and sufferings all of us must

undergo in thistemporary world. Please recite this mantra which I have obtained

for you. Dothis, and the Lord's mercy will be upon you." When they heard

Ramanuja's words, all the people in the crowd calledout, "Please tell us the

mantra. Shower the Lord's blessings upon us!" Then Yatiraja called out in a deep

resounding voice the mantra hehad just received from Gosthipurna; om namo

narayanaya. Immediately thecrowd responded, everyone calling out the sacred

words together, producing asound like thunder. Twice more Ramanuja called out

the mantra, and twicemore the thunderous response resounded from the crowd.

Every person became silent and looked at one another with feelingsof deep

ecstasy in their hearts. At that time it seemed that the earth hadbecome

Vaikuntha. The faces of the men, women and children were flushed withjoy and it

seemed that all miseries were gone from the earth. Those who hadcome running to

the temple hoping to receive gold or jewels, immediatelyforgot their worldly

desires, feeling as if they had been given a diamond inplace of a piece of

broken glass. As the joyful crowd melted away, men and women came and

prostratedthemselves before Yatiraja, considering themselves most blessed to

havereceived such a benediction from that great soul. Ramanuja then climbed

downfrom the tower and began walking towards Gosthipurna's residence to

worshipthe feet of his guru.GOSTHIPURNA'S ANGER By this time Gosthipurna had

come to hear in detail of everythingthat had taken place outside the temple and

was extremely angry, feelingRamanuja had betrayed his trust. When Ramanuja

approached him with his twodisciples, the aged acarya addressed him in a voice

that trembled with rage.'Get out of my sight, O lowest of men! I have committed

a great sin byentrusting the most precious gem to such an untrustworthily person

asyourself. Why have you come here again, forcing me to commit the sin oflooking

at your face? Surely you are destined to live in hell for countlesslifetimes.''

Without any sign of remorse, Ramanuja replied to his guru in a mosthumble

manner, saying, ' It was only because I am prepared to suffer in hellthat I

dared to go against your order. You told me that whoever chanted themantra of

eight syllables was certain to be liberated. Thus, according toyour words, so

many people are now destined to find shelter at LordNarayana's lotus feet. If an

insignificant person like me has go to hell, itis off no great importance if so

many others thereby attain the mercy ofLord Narayana.'' On hearing these words,

which fully revealed the depth of thedevotee's compassion , Gosthipurna was

completely stunned and filled withgreat wonder. All his fierce anger disappeared

in an instant, like thepassing of violent storm, and he embraced Ramanuja with

profound affection.Everyone who was able to witness this transformation was

filled with joy andastonishment. Gosthipurna then addressed Ramanuja with folded

palms, 'My child, Ihave never known anyone so magnanimous as yourself. From this

day you are myguru, and I am your disciple. There is no doubt that you are a

most intimateassociate of the Lord, whereas I am nothing but a common man. How

can Icomperhend your greatness? Please forgive all of my offenses.'' Ramanuja

fell to his knees and clasped the feet of his guru. Withhis head bowed in

humility, he said, 'You are my eternal guru. The perfectmantra has become even

more potent because it has emanated from your lips.Thus today it has burnt to

ashes the miseries of so many thousands ofpeople. Although I committed the

offense of transgressing the order of myguru, I have become eternally fortunate

by receiving your embrace, which isdesired even by the gods. My prayer is that,

regarding me as your son andservant, you will eternally bestow your mercy upon

me.'' Being highly pleased by Ramanuja's humility and gentle

behaviour,Gosthipurna asked him to accept his son, Saumya-narayana, as his

disciple.Then, with permission of his spiritual master, Ramanuja returned to

SriRangam. After this incident Yatiraja's fame expanded even further, and

forseveral weeks it seemed the local people could speak of nothing but thisgreat

devotee who had come into their midst.