GADYA-TRAYAM OF SWAMI RAMANUJA - Part 3 (Who else but Sri Ramanuja is the author)

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Sri:

Adiyen's humble pranam to all devotees:

 

 

=============Part 3 ============================

The SaraNagati Gadyam is an exposition of all the ideas contained

above. Of the "nava nidhis"” (nine gems), the nine gem-like compositions

bequeathed to us by swami Ramanuja, the "Gadyatrayam" forms the

6th,7th, and 8th compositions, his last composition being the "Nityagranta".

 

There is reference to "saraNAgati" in all the compositions of swami

Ramanuja. In his first composition, VedArtha sangraha’ itself, he states,

 

"daivi hyEsa gunamayi…..mAmEva yE prapadyantE!!"

"iti tasyaitasyAtmanah karmakrtvicitra gunamaya prakrti samsargarupAt

samsAranmOksah bhagavat prapattim antarEna nOpapadyatE

ityuktambhavati nanyah panthA vidyatEyanAya"

 

In his Vedanta dIpa, starting with SriyahkAntOmE, he has prayed for

service stating "manasat pAdAbjE paricaranAsaktam bhavatu mE".

 

Sri BhAsya, swami Ramanuja's magnum opus itself strongly defends

pAncarAtra’ which is a SaranAgati shAstra.

 

Ramanuja's Gita bhAsya’closely follows ‘GitArta sangraha’

of AlavandAr, the author of AgamapramAnyam, etc. and pays obeisance

to him at the start of the work.

 

It is also stated in Periya Thirumudi AdaIvu’that Kurathazhvan

had written a commentary on Gadyatrayam though, unfortunately, this

work is lost to us now. There can be no doubt whatsoever that

these Gadyas are the works of swami Ramanuja.

 

Who else but swami Ramanuja could put such lofty ideas in such sweet

poetic prose! Only, unlike the earlier five compositions which are

vAdagrantAs’, to convince the outside world through only authorities

acceptable to them (vedic, upanishadic proofs), the Gadya-trayam and

Nityagrantha’ are for the practical guidance for all of man kind, every

one unwilling to turn away from the magnificent, yet simple idea of

surrender at the lotus feet of Sriman Narayana.

 

=================Continued on part 4 ===========

 

Sources:

GADYA-TRAYAM OF SWAMI RAMANUJA

Dr. V V Ramanujam, M. A., M. Sc., Ph. D., Editor, YatirAja

pAduka

 

(With the maNipravALa commentary by vyAkhyAna chakravathi swami

periyaAcchAn piLLai. Serialized with permission from the original publisher,

Sri Parampara Sabha, Bangalore)

 

This article appeared in Vedics Magazine: Sri Ramanuja Darsanam

http://www.vedics.net/magazine/index.html