Thiru Arangan Ula- the sojourn of the Lord. – 7. SwAmi lOkAchAryan attains parama padam.

[Guest guest]

Thiru Arangan Ula- the sojourn of the Lord. – 7. SwAmi lOkAchAryan attains

parama padam.

 

PiLLai lOkAchAryAr was now really tired, yet he had to proceed in order to

avoid the advancing Islamic forces. He proceeded to a village called

jyothishkudi, which was surrounded by the Anamalai mountains adjoining thick,

dense forests. They found a dilapidated mandapam (ceremonial hall), and decided

to retire for the night. piLLai lOkAchAryar was really sapped- the age of his 95

years old body is catching him on. He knew it was time for him to leave his

body. He was surrounded by his great disciples: vilAnchOlai piLLai,

koorakulOthunga dAsar,thirukkannangudi pillai, thiruputkuzhi jeeyar, nAloor

piLLai and the old lady- mother of Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn, who was later famously

known as ThiruvAimozhi piLLai. He asked the old lady to fan namperumAL since he

was sweating. What a striking example of devotion, even during his last

moments!! He meditated on his Guru and father, Swami vadakku thiruveedhip

piLLai; he observed numerous ants in the place and he touched all of them, for

the

sAstrAs say that any living being touched by the hands of a vaishnavA is

assured mOkshA (salvation). Ladies and gentlemen, piLLai lOkAchAryan once again

justified his name as the universal guru, for he delivered even ants and insects

until his last moment!!

 

Where exactly is jyOthishkudi? I am trying to present Sri ArangarAjan swAmins

VERY INTERESTING memoir (It is important to know that Sri ArangarAjan swAmin is

not only a scholar, but also a researcher/historian -as a professor in a big

university):

 

“Where is jyOthishkudi?? For generations, historians and Sri vaishnavAs have

spoken about the place but none have taken the effort to spot it accurately.

There have been guesses and assumptions, which are seldom accurate. I tried to

locate that special place. I happened to chance upon a small village filled with

trees called “jyOthi vruksham” that have fluorescent leaves which glow in the

night. The air in the village is filled with holiness, and it gives one a

special feeling just to be in that village – very serene, peaceful and divine.

The name of the village is now ‘kodikkuLam’; when I spoke to the village elders,

it was confirmed that this town is indeed jyOthishkudi, as the word ‘jyOthi’

means light, and this village glows in the night because of the fluorescent

trees.

 

Further, there was a region in the town where people are not allowed to use

any footwear, and no lady was allowed to enter. When enquired, the villages

replied that an ancient saint was cremated in that area in those days – the

information has been passed down generations. The village is surrounded by

beautiful mountains, and the local folklore is that a group of saintly men

arrived at the village carrying an idol of God by trekking over those mountains.

I observed an old mandapam (ceremonial hall) behind which they have a small

Vishnu temple. We proceeded to the temple, where the name of the deity is called

‘vedanArAyana perumAL’.

 

We were amazed to see that the deity appeared almost to be a clone of

namperumAL!! In front of this deity, there was an idol of another personality.

The locals believed that it was Lord Brahma. But it cannot be Brahma, for he is

always depicted as the four-headed one. With the permission of the kind priest,

we sought to enter the sanctum sanctorum of the small temple; I cleaned my hands

and legs with water before entering. When we observed the idol up close, we were

surprised to see that the dhoti of the idol was in the brammacharya (worn by

celibates) style, and not the pancha-kaccham style worn by the married. It

strengthened our conviction that it was indeed Swami PiLLai lOkAchAryan himself.

More, the sacred thread worn by the deity was just one in number (married

brahmanAs wear two) – confirming that it was Swami piLLai lOkAchAryan. The most

amazing incident was when we observed millions of ants in that region; we

thought of them to be the descendants of the ants that Swami

piLLai lOkAchAryan delivered by his touch.

 

Hence, the place where Swami piLLai lOkAchAryan breathed his last is now

called, ‘kodikkuLam’.

 

Back to the story, as SwAmi piLLai lOkAchAryan was nearing his end, he could

premonition the rise of Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn and his great services to come and

he gave instructions to his disciples- all instructions focused only on Sri

Thirumalai AzhwAn, (who was later glorified as Sri Sailesar, ThiruvAimozhi

piLLai, Sri SailanAthar. He was also the guru of the Lord’s AchAryA – Swami

manavALa mAmunikaL):

 

 

koorakulOthunga dAsar to bring Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn, the minister of Madurai

into the Sri VaishnavA fold for he is a great scholar and a very able

administrator, and a person of his caliber can do a lot for the Sri Vaishnava

Movement.

He instructed Sri Thirukkannangudi piLLai and Sri Thirupputkuzhi Jeeyar to

teach the meanings of ThiruvAizmozhi to Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn.

He instructed Sri nAloor piLLai (who was from Kanchipuram) to teach the

meanings of the remaining 3000 pasurams of the divya prabandam to Sri Thirumalai

AzhwAn who was a great scholar in VedAs and Smrtis, but yet to master the

divyaprabandam.

Last, he called upon the great vilAnchOlai piLLai. “Please get to

Thiruvananthappuram and mediate upon me. When Thirumalai AzhwAn comes looking

for you, please teach him the meanings of Sri Vachana Bhooshanam and instruct

him with your divine work of sapta kAdhai”

 

Hence, before he left, he gave clear instructions to all his disciples in

order for the sampradayam to continue with its divine glory. He attained parama

padam in the tamil month of Adi, on the dwAdasi day.

 

aththigiri aruLALar anumathiyOn vAzhiyE

aippasiyil thiruvONaththavathariththAn vAzhiyE

muththi neRi maRaith thamizhAl mozhintharuLvOn vAzhiyE

mUthariya maNavALan munbuthiththAn vAzhiyE

niththiyam nampiLLai patham nenjchil vaippOn vAzhiyE

nIL vachana bUdaNaththil niyamiththAn vAzhiyE

uththamamAm mudumbai nagar uthiththa vaLLal vAzhiyE

ulagAriyan pathangkaL UzhithoRum vAzhiyE

 

 

(to be continued……..)

 

 

 

 

FareChase - Search multiple travel sites in one click.