Andavan Ashramam Acharya Guru Parampara - 11

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Srimathe Ranga Ramanuja Maha Desikaya NamahaSri Ranganatha Divya Mani Padhukabhyam Namaha

Acharya parampara of Srimath Andavan Ashramam continues in this

posting with Srimath Mysore Andavan - Sri Srinivasa Ramanuja

Mahadesikan

 

Srimath Mysore Andavan: Thirunakshatram: Avani - Uthiram

 

Thanian:

Srimath Srivasa yOgeeswara munikarunAlabdha vEdhantha yugmam

Srimath vEdhantha rAmAnuja gurupadhayorarpitha swAthma bhAram

Srimath srudhyantha rAmAnuja yathi nrupathE:prAptha mOkshasramam tham

Srimath SrivAsa rAmanuja munimaparam samsrayE gnanavArthim

 

Parthipa-Avani Uthiram is the 97th thirunakshatram day of Srimath

Mysore Andavan Sri SrinivAsa RAmAnuja MahA dEsikan ,who adorned

Acharya peetam as the 10th Andavan in the Andavan Periashramam

Munithraya Sampradayam AchArya Lineage.

 

AdiyEn is transmitting the source material provided by:-

Sri. Sunder KidAmbi(of Boston,USA–purvAsrama grand son of Srimath

Mysore Andavan and Sri R. Rajagopal in his article ”Looking back and

Looking forward-III” in the September issue of 2004,(Dharana

varsusham –Purattasi madham) as a life history of Kaviratna, Vedanta

Vibhushana, Vedantasara, Pravachana Kalanidhi, Sri U Ve Vidwan

Hariharapuram Gopalacharya (in his purvAsramA) and as Srimath Mysore

Andavan, Sri Srinivasa Ramanuja Mahadesikan ( in ThuriyAsramA).

 

An elderly scholar of vidwat scholarship in Sanskrit, Tamil, Kannada

and Hindi, Sri Hariharapuram Gopalacharya was born on 19.08.1909 (

Soumya Varusham –Avani Madham Uthira Palguni Nakshathram) to Sri

Krishnamaachaarya and Smt. Ranganaayakamma (Gowri festival day,

Sosale village, T. Narasipura Taluk on the banks of Cauvery near

Sangamam of Cauvery and Kapila rivers, Mysore district) who belonged

to an orthodox Srivaishnava family which had a scholastic background.

Other members of the family included two brothers and two sisters.

 

During his childhood, due to epidemic plague that spread widely,

swAmi's father passed away, following which, the family's financial

position was not sound. He lived in Sosale village and studied in a

higher primary school there. Knowing the budding scholar in swAmi,

the scholars persuaded him to join Mysore Maharaja Samskruta

Paathashaala and continue his studies. Accordingly, swAmi came to

Mysore, joined the Sanskrit college, completed his further studies in

Saahitya and Vyaakarana and became Vidwan.

 

During the student days, he had to depend for his daily food in Sri

Parakaala mutt, where the then Aacharya Sri Abhinava Ranganaatha

parakAla mahA dEsikan who adorned the peetam, noticed the brilliant

boy and provided him necessary facilities. By the grace of lord

Hayagreeva, he also brought his brothers and used to help them by

giving good education and food (padi) that he received in the

Parakaala mutt and there by facilitated their studies also.

 

Having completed matriculation, Sanskrit (vidwat degree), Kannada

Pandit and Hindi Pandit exams, he attained proficiency in 'Naalaayira

Divyaprabhandam' (Tiruvaymozhi), chanting of vedas, literature and

grammar. He passed all higher examinations of philosophy (Vedanta

Shastra) and obtained Vidwat Prashasti. In his 14th year, he had the

blessings of Srimath NammAndavan and with Pancha Samskaaras and

Bharanyasa. At that juncture, he composed a beautiful collection of

134 poems (Srimad Aandavan Vaibhavam) and visualizing the scholar in

him, Srimad Aandavan blessed the boy immensely and he came to be

known as Mysore Vidwan Gopu.

 

Regarding discharging duties and responsibilities, Sri Gopaalaachar

married Smt Jayalakshmi from Talkad who belonged to a respectable

family. The couple were blessed with six daughters and two sons.

 

Srimath Mysore Andavan was famous amongst the other scholars from

Sosale. He worked hard towards the improvement of the Sri

Venugopalaswamy temple at Sosale. He was an ardent devotee of Srimath

Aandavan, all through. He was a beloved disciple of many great

scholars and he successfully completed the studies of and Upanishads

and grantha chathushtya kAlakshEpams under Srimath Akkur Andavan

 

In his efforts to invite Srimath Aakoor Andavan to Karnataka, his

journey on cycle to Chamarajanagar, Sathymangalam, Erode and

Srirangam to arrange for the stay of Andavan was commendable. With

all these devotional services to Sri Aacharya, he obtained the

blessings of Srimath Aakoor Aandavan. Sri Gopalacharya served in a

high school at Sakaleeshpuar (Karnataka) and thereafter he came to

Mysore and served as Sanskrit teacher in Mahajana high school (1945

to 1975).

 

Srimath Thembarai Andavan became weaker as the days passed by and

gave upadesam on “Preksha manthram” and “Mokshasrama Ahnika

Anushtanam” to three vidwans of the Asramam - U.Ve. Sri. Kannan swami

(who later became Thirukkudanthai Andavan), U.Ve. Sri. Mysore

GopalachAr swami and Mannargudi Ganapadi vidwAn U.Ve. Sri.

Narasimhacharya swami to be ready and take up sanyasam any time when

called.

 

when the health condition of His holiness Srimad Tembirai Andavan was

badly affected, Vidvan sri Gopalachar Swamy was the alternate

candidate to become ninth peetathipathi to succeed His holiness

thebirai Andavan Himself in April 1963,had not sri Kannan swamy

turned up for taking up sanyAsam for any reason. Sri kannan swamy

entered Thuriyasramam on 5th of April 1963 as 9th peetadhipathy with

the name Srimath Vedhantha Ramanuja Maha Desikan.(SRP-sep-2004)

 

Sri Chitrakoodam Vijayaraghavachariar was the srikaryam till late

60s.Then, Sri Mysore Gopalachar became Srikaaryam of the Srimad

Andavan Ashramam , and continued as srikaryam for almost 2 decades.

As srikaryam of Srimath Andavan asramam, He travelled all along

with the then pontiff H.H.Thirukkudanthai Aandavan and undertook

paadayatra all over India and specially Badrikasramam. He was

respected for his devotion, dedication, commitment to Srivaishnavism

(Sri Ramanuja Darshanam) and his wide scholarship in all shastras. He

was a good swimmer too.

 

Scholarly works:

 

Srimath Andavan has contributed many works of scholarly nature. They include;

1. Ramanuja Noothandadi (1959) a translatory work (with commentary in

Kannada) from Tamil to Kannada.

2. Sri Ramanuja Panchashat in Sanskrit

 

His master pieces :

 

1. A complete translation of 'Sri Paadukaasahasram' with scholarly

commentary in Kannada (1969). This work of 465 pages, was published

at Sri Parakaala mutt Mysore.

2. A translation of 'Deshika prabandham' from Tamil to Sanskrit and commentry in Kannada.

3. Srimad Aacharya Parampara Prabhavam in Sanskrit.

4. Shaattumurai Kramam and Aacharya Thanian

5. A beautiful work about Vishnusahasranama

6. Sragdharaa Shatakam in Sanskrit

7. Sri Rahasyatraya Saara Sangraha of Vedanta Deshika in poetry (sanskrit version)

8. Sri Mahaalakshmi Stuti, a fine stotram about Goddess Lakshmi of 108

Divyadeesha (at the time when Sri Tirukkudanthai Andavan was ill and

bedridden)

9.A commentary to 'Tiruvaimozhi', following the lines of Poorvaachaarya's commentary.

10. Translated works of Sri Vedanta Deeshika to Kannada.

 

swAmi was an Aashu Kavi of a very high caliber, and used to compose

Padabandhams spontaneously. SwAmi has also written numerous articles

about Sri Ramanuja philosophy. Following his contribution to Sanskrit

literature, SwAmi was recognized as an outstanding scholar both by

state and center, and was given an honorarium (President's Gold

Medal).

When Srimad Thirukkudanthai Andavan’s health was very much affected,

His holiness gave sanyasam to Vidwan Mysore Gopalachar on

11.04.1988 (PRABHAVA VARUSHAM-PANGUNI MADHAM –Sravana Nakshathram)

and HH became the successor of Thirukkudanthai Andavan and 10 th

peetathipathi of Srimadh Srirangam Andavan Ashram at the age of 79

years. Since then he was popularly called as Mysore Andavan.

 

The health of His holiness was also very much affected in 1988/89 by

repeated debilitating strokes of cerebral thrombosis .Even then, His

holiness used to remember and recite fluently the verses that He

composed more than six decades earlier. And yet Padukas Saw to it

that HH Srimad Mysore Andavan’s mental faculties and speech was not

affected (excepting for a minor loss of recent memories!)When not

bedridden, HH could move about freely and perform Perumal and Paduka

Aradhanam daily and recite the Seva Kalams fluently (when the senior

Acharya Srimad Thirukkudanthai Andavan was too much indisposed to do

so.) HH srimad Mysore Andavan’s Kalyana Gunas were many .Indeed a

rare combination of of Gnanam Santham ,Virakthi, Vairakyam,and Anagam

(blemishless or Faultless) and above all an unshakeable Acharya

Bhakthi that had to be seen to be believed).

 

Both the Acharyas,Srimad Thirukkudanthai Andavan and Srimad Mysore Andavan were

together for a period of exactly one year. His holiness Srimad

Thirukkudanthai Andavan adorned the Thirunadu on 10-04-1989.Within a

short period of 42days His holiness Srimad Mysore Andavan also

attained Paramapadam at Srirangam Ashramam -Dwidhiyai on 22 -05-1989

( @ 3:10 AM on a Monday, SUKLA VARUSHAM –VAIKASI MADHAM_-Krishna

Paksham thithi ) thus becoming an illustrious ardent devotee of Sri

Ramanuja. Words cannot explain the saintly nature of Srimath Mysore

Andavan, but it could only be felt by the disciples who loved and

adored him with

devotion.

 

With Obeisance to His Holiness Srimath Andavan, Sri SrinivAsa RAmAnuja mahA DEsikan.

 

In the next posting adiyen will continue with the history of acharyas

covering the history of Current Pontiff of Srimath Andavan

Periashramam, Srimath Srimushnam Andavan.

Srimath Andavan Thiruvadi

Perungadambanur Parthasarathy Sreenivasan

(of Besant Nagar)

 

Adiyen has attached a photo of Srimath Mysore Andavan taken just

before His Holiness took sanyasashramam in Srirangam (Courtesy-

www.prapatti.com)

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