Guest guest Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 SrimatE Raamaanujaaya Namaha // SrimatE Nigamaanta Mahaa Desikaaya Namaha // SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya/ SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya// KAvEri VardhathAm kAlE, kAlE varshathu vAsava: / SrI RanganAthO jayathu Sri Ranga Sri cha VardhathAm// ====================================================== SRI RANGA SRI VOL.05/ISSUE # 14 dated 12th February 2004 ====================================================== EDITORIAL IN THIS ISSUE: 1. IMPORTANT DAYS IN MAASI (KUMBA) MONTH ---------------------- 2. GOTRAS AND PRAVARAS – AN OVERVIEW – PART 22 THE GLORY OF AANGIRASA GOTRAM – Part 6 (Anbil Ramaswamy) -------------------------- (Based on Monograph of MahaamahOpaadhyaaya Sri Srivatsanka chariar Swami, now Head of Dept. French Indolgical Research Institute, Pondicherry and “MaharishigaL Charitram” by Mimamsa SirOmaNi Mimamsa Vidvan Mimamsa Kovida, Ubhaya Mimamsa Saaragjna, Veda Vedanta ChooDaamaNi Sri N.S. Devanathachariar referred by Sri Srivatsankachariar Swami) -------------------------- 3. FROM MAHABHARATA: “YAKSHA PRASNAM” Part 39: Prasnam 100 by Sri M.K. Ramaswamy Iyengar Swami, Senior Officer of Govt. of India. -------------------------- 4. PAncarAtra – Part 4 By Sri N.Krishnamachariar Swami of Chicago ========================================================== 132 Regular issues have been released, so far besides several Special Issues) - - 27 Issues of Vol. 1 - 15 Issues of Vol. 2 - 42 Issues of Vol. 3 - 35 Issues of Vol. 4 & - 13 Issue of Vol. 5 These issues have been archived for public view at - by Sri DiwakarKannan (diwakark) You may also view the archives at http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia maintained by Sri Srinivasan Sriram (ajiva_rts) We strongly urge you to kindly peruse the "Regular Issues" archived in the “Files” Section and view the Contents at “srsindex.html” (Not the individual postings allowed encouraging "Reader participation"). We are sure that you will be convinced of the quality of the contents. IF you are satisfied with the quality and contents of “Sri Ranga Sri”- Tell your friends to join by sending an email to Srirangasri- IF not: Tell us, as to how we may improve. Ever at your service Dasoham Anbil Ramaswamy Editor & Publisher “Sri Ranga Sri” ============================================================== xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ============================================================== 1. IMPORTANT DAYS IN MAASI (KUMBA) MONTH ===================================== Star/ Hindu Date/ English Date/ Day Tirunakshatram of/ Authority ====================================== Mrigasirsham 17th 02/29/03 Sunday Tirukkachchi NambigaL (28#P) ====================== Punarvasu 19th 03/02/03 Tuesday Misc: Mudali AanDaan (Aniyarangan p.39) ===================== Pushyam 20th 03/03/04 Wednesday AM37.Sadagopa Viraragava SadagopaYMD (AVA p.251) --------------- Periyandavan SrinivasaMD (Vathal Swami) (PA9&PP(AVV Part 37 in SRS Vol.01/11) ------------------------ Siriya TiruvaDigal (28#P) ===================== Magham 23rd 03/06/04 Saturday 7.Manakkal Nambi (Ramamisrar) (p.327)BVP9 and(28#P & SrgmP) and Seva Diary Tirumaalai AanDaan (p.342) (28#P & SrgmP) AM19.Sadagopa Srinivasa YMD (AVA p.246) ========================= Swati 27th 03/10/04 Wednesday Panchamata Bhanjanam (AVV Part 33 in SRS Vol.01/07) ========================= Anusham 29th 03/12/04 Friday Agnihotram Tatadesika Tatachar (p.387) Annaavilappan (SrgmP) ========================= Puradam 05th 02/17/04 Tuesday Sozhasingapuram DoTTayaachariar (SrgmP) ======================== Avittam 08th 02/20/04 Friday KP II: Eechambadi Madurantakam Vira RaghavaaryaMD (p.476) and (Lifco p.198) + Seva Diary =============================== OTHER IMPORTANT DAYS IN MAASI MAASI Maasi Maasap pirappu 01st 02/13/04 Friday ASHTAKA SRADDHAM 01st 02/13/04 Friday ANVASHTAKA SRADDHAM 02nd 02/14/04 Saturday Krishna Paksha Ekadasi 04th 02/16/04 Monday Sravanam Vratam 07th 02/19/04 Thursday BODHAAYANA AMAVASYA 07th 02/19/04 Thursday Amavasya 08th 02/20/04 Friday Sukla Paksha Ekadasi 19th 03/02/04 Tuesday KULASEKARA AZHWAR TN 20th 03/03/04 Wednesday SIRIYA TIRYVADIGAL 21st 03/04/04 Thursday (28#) Pournami 23rd 03/06/04 Saturday =================================================================== xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx =================================================================== 2. GOTRAS AND PRAVARAS – AN OVERVIEW – PART 22 THE GLORY OF AANGIRASA GOTRAM – Part 6 (Anbil Ramaswamy) -------------------------- (Based on Monograph of MahaamahOpaadhyaaya Sri Srivatsanka chariar Swami, now Head of Dept. French Indolgical Research Institute, Pondicherry and “MaharishigaL Charitram” by Mimamsa SirOmaNi Mimamsa Vidvan Mimamsa Kovida, Ubhaya Mimamsa Saaragjna, Veda Vedanta ChooDaamaNi Sri N.S. Devanathachariar referred by Sri Srivatsankachariar Swami) ------- THE FOUR BROTHERS Throughout the Vedas, the names of Brighu and Angeeras are mentioned together (e.g) BrighooNaam aangeerasaam tapasaa tapyatvam” (Taittriya Samhita 1.1.7.2). This is because they were brothers. Brighu emerged out of the flames. The very flames became Brighu. The flame when cooled down became glistening cinders. This glowing, burning coal became Aangeeras. In fact, we saw that this burning coal is known as Angaara. There were two others who became their brothers. Who are they? AitarEya BraahmaNa explains this through a short story. When the creator of the world, Prajapati offered his vitality (veeryam) into the fire, a flame arose and this flame transformed itself into a Maharishi. This was Brighu. When the flames subsided, the live embers of burning coal transformed itself into another Maharishi. This was Aangeeras. We saw this already. Those who were witnessing this phenomenon spotted one more Rishi emerging out of the cinders of the burnt down coal. The words mentioned in this connection “Here is a third one” (atra triteeyOpi asti). This word itself became the name of the third Rishi. This was “Atri”. They exclaimed “it does not stop with three” meaning there was a fourth also (a-tri also means “Not three) which meant four. Who is this fourth person? They dug the coals and there came out one whose name means “One who was dug out” (vikanas). What was dug out? It is the cooled down cinders (KarikkaTTi). He was “Vikaanasa” the originator of “Vaikhaansa Aagama”. We find in the Vedas that though all the four were brothers, there was special bonding between Brighu and Aangeeras and between Atri and Vikhaanas. (cf Rama and LakshmaNa on the one hand and Bharata and Satrugna on the other) How the name “Angaara” came into being? When embers of burning coal are kept in a place, it would scar and leave a mark at the spot. That which makes a mark is itself called “Angaara”. Aangeerasa Maharishi had a son “GhOra:” ChaandOKhya Upanishad of Saama Veda mentions a special Upaasana called “Purusha Vidya”. It also says that it is this “GhOra;” who instructed Lord KrishNa himself in this “Purusha Vidya”. >From this, it appears that he was a contemporary of Lord KrishNa. Tadvaitad ghOra aangreerasa: krisNaaya dEvakee putraaya uktvOvaacha/ apipaasa eva sa bhaboova/ sOntavElaayaam etat trayam pratipadyEta, akshitamasi, achyutamasi, praaNa samsitamasi, iti” (ChaandhOKhya Upanishad 3.17) The name of this “GhOra:” is mentioned in several other contexts in the Vedas, Kalpa sootras etc. The word has several meanings, one of them being “One who is fit to be revered”. If a Maharishi could instruct Gitachaarya himself a vidya, it goes to show how venerable this “Aangeerasa putra” should have been. What is this “Purusha Vidya”? It is an Upaasana in which the various limbs of a person (purusha) are deemed to be the sacrificial offerings. This Vidya has been glorified in the later part of Taittriya Upanishad of KrishNa Yajurveda and in the 3rd Adhyaaya of Brahma Sutra in a separate AddhikaraNa. DEAD MAN WALIKING! We see several references in our Puranas about “Coming back to life” of persons who have died. One relates to how Lord Sri KrishNa accompanied by Arjuna brought back to life the still born children of a Brahmin; another relates to how Lord Sri Rama brought back to life the son of another Brahmin who blamed it on the lawlessness in the very “Ram Rajya”! In the same way, Rishi Aangeeras, accompanied by Sage Narada, is known to have brought back to life the son of a king. But, lo and behold! The son refused to live in the mortal coil that he had given up earlier and returned to the kingdom of death. This strange story is mentioned in Sri Bhaagavata PuraaNa. We will see this story in our next posting. ---------------------- To Continue ===================================================================== xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ===================================================================== 3. FROM MAHABHARATA: “YAKSHA PRASNAM” Part 39: Prasnam 100 by Sri M.K. Ramaswamy Iyengar Swami, Senior Officer of Govt. of India. ----- PRASNAM 100 YAKSHA: “KIM CHA DHAIRYAMUDAAHRITAM?” “WHAT IS COURAGE?” YUDISHTIRA: “DHAIRYAM INDRIYA NIGRAHAH” “COURAGE OR GREAT FORTITUDE IS THAT QUALITY OR ABILITY WHICH KEEPS THE SENSES FIRMLY IN CHECK” NOTES: The senses are comparable to horses. Even a trained horse can turn wild due to extreme curiosity, by taking fright or due to anger and irritation. The mind is a rider and has the role of keeping the senses under check and not get wayward and out of hand. But, when the senses turn into wild horses, the mind may get reduced to the level of an inexperienced rider or a confused one and may become like a spectator. Sometimes, the senses in their wildness may drag the mind along in their frenzied gallop. The mind too may get so influenced by the 5 senses like 5 “horses” and become like a sixth horse. While ordinarily, the load is set in such a state by the Karmendriyas, the organs of action (hands, feet, speech, the excretory and reproductive organs) when the reins of the mind have become slack or have been thrown off, the Jnanendriyas, the organs of knowledge (eyes, ears, nose, tongue, and the sense of touch) add fuel to the fire, by feeding the action with unscreened perception. The mind’s function having been reduced to a nullity, a short circuit occurs, as it were, and the Jnanendriyas too join the frenzy. In such a situation, there is little to differentiate between an evolved human being and the animal in the lower end of the scale. Order has to be restored by the will or intellect which is endowed with a sense of discrimination. However, in the scenario of frenzied excitement, instant sense of achievement and sensuousness, the will may vacillate or get impaled in either of the horns of dilemma. Then it will be for the Jnaana, the repository of wisdom, that layer of mind which lies deep, in a turbulent free stillness, to intervene. Jnaana is ever poised, unflappable and calmly goes about doing the right thing. It revitalizes the will and restores to it, the courageous capacity to spurn inappropriate action and choose the appropriate action. The will, in turn, helps the mind to come to its own, gather the reins of control, bring the wild horses to heel. Cannot the mind redeem itself, on its own? Cannot the senses lead the mind towards light and knowledge on their own? The answer is in the negative. Indriyair manasah siddhi na buddhim budhyatE manah (Santi Parva Ch. 197.20) If it follows the ways of the senses, the mind cannot make any progress or achieve anything. Left to itself, the mind is not conscious of the intellect. Why should it be so? IndriyEbhyO manah poorvam buddhih parataraa tata: / buddhEh parataram jnanam jnaanaat parataram param // (Santi Parva Ch.197.10) The mind is superior to the senses. But, the intellect is superior to the mind and the wisdom or Jnaana is superior to the intellect. There is something superior to Jnana. That is none other than the transcendent Supreme. Why should the senses be under firm check? Why should such a control be so important? It is so because otherwise, there can be no righteousness. Uncontrolled senses and righteousness are mutually exclusive. There are many ways to establish righteousness. But, the most salutary method is by controlling the senses. Dharmasya vidhEyO naikam tE tE prOKaa maharshibhih damas tEshaam paraayaNam (Santi Parva Ch.154:6) Even the wise sages are not agreed that there is a single means to righteousness. But, they are agreed on one thing! Controlling the senses is the one method best recommended for adoption. Damah nihsrEyasam praahuh vriddhaa nischaya darsinah (Santi Parva Ch.154. 7) Wise old men whose vision never gets clouded uphold that control of the senses is most beneficial always. Thus, control of the senses is so important if righteousness has to prevail. At the same time, control of the senses is most difficult because they have the capacity to drag in the mind as well as the intellect in the maelstrom of emotions and it is left only for Jnaana to act single handedly with great courage and unyielding fortitude to restore order. To understand the full import of YudishTira’s reply, it is just as well to remember that if the senses are to fight with fortitude and brought under control, a greater degree of sustained courage and resolution is required to reject the instant pleasures offered by the senses and turn the face of the mind away from them. ---------------------------- To Continue ==================================================================== xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ==================================================================== 4. PAncarAtra – Part 4 By Sri N.Krishnamachariar Swami of Chicago pA'ncarAtra - An Overview - Part 4 ---- Other Opposition to pA'ncarAtra: Other main points raised by the vedAntin-s were: 1. The pA'ncarAtra prescribed, or required, a special initiation called dIkshA for anyone to be qualified for performing temple worship (the equivalent of priests in the temple). dIkshA was not explicitly mentioned in the veda-s, and so the argument was that pA'ncarAtra was non-vedic. 2. Unlike the pA'ncarAtra system whose authorship was not ascribable to any human source, the vaikhAnasa school was initiated by a vedic sage by name vikhanas, and so it was easier to accept the vaikhAnasa system's known vedic basis. 3. A very well known mImAmasaka by name kumArilabhaTTa (around 800 A.D) published his work titled tantravArtikA, in which he included the pA'ncarAtra as a non-vedic Agama. Because of his popularity, the confidence of the people in the vedic origin of pA'ncarAtra was put under severe test. 4. The interpretation of four aphorisms of the brahma sUtra-s considered to deal with the pA'ncarAtra system by the well-known Adi Sa'nkara led him to conclude that the pA'ncarAtra was non-vedic. (We have covered the details of this earlier). 5. In one of the pA'ncarAtra samhitA-s (parama samhitA), SANDilya is quoted as saying that he has studied all the four veda-s but has not been able to find beyond all doubt the road to bliss, and so he undertook the study of pA'ncarAtra. This has been quoted by the advaitin-s as proof that the pA'ncarAtra undermines the veda-s by saying that they are incapable of revealing the truth. 6. The term sAttvata refers to a class of low-born people called vrAtya-s according to manu-smRti. The vrAtya community is decidedly non-vedic. Since the pA'ncarAtrin-s are referred to as sAttvata-s, it was argued that they must be the same class of low-borns that is referred to in the smRti, and so pA'ncarAtra is non-vedic, and the bhAgavata-s (sAttvata-s) are not even brAhmaNa-s. 7. Partaking the food offered in worship is forbidden in smRti, and since the people who do temple worship in the pA'ncarAtra tradition partake in the food offered to the Lord, they are in violation of smRti-s. 8. The people who do temple worship should not benefit by this activity, and some of the people who do pA'ncarAtra worship have their livelihood from this. 9. vAsudeva, the person from whom the pA'ncarAtra is said to have originated, is known to have deceived the asura-s in His mohini incarnation, deceived mahAbali in His trivikrama incarnation, etc., and so He is unreliable, and could have also deceived people by creating the pA'ncarAtra. 10. While the veda-s have got a particular sequence (krama) – (I presume the reference here is to the intonations), there is no such krama for pA'ncarAtra texts, and so pA'ncarAtra is non-vedic in character. 11. For the same rite, there is a vedic and a tantric rite, and this again establishes that Agama-s are opposed to, and different from the veda-s. The defense of pA'ncarAtra - Continued: Sa'nkara's interpretation of the pA'ncarAtra section of the brahma sUtra-s and the responses from the SrIvaishNava AcArya-s has been covered earlier. Some of the additional objections raised and identified in the previous section are addressed below. There is an excellent English summary of the specifics that yAmunAcArya used in defending the pA'ncarAtra in the book titled AgmamprAmANya of yAmunAcArya by M. Narasimhachary and published by the University of Baroda. The following is an extract from this reference. 1. Response to the Objection of dIkshA being required for Temple Worship: yAmunAcArya replies that the requirement of dIkshA for performing temple worship is not non-vedic. He points out that special sacraments are ordained in the veda-s as and when necessary, to qualify one to perform particular duties. Thus, for instance, for performing the jyotishToma rite, special dIkshA is ordained by the injunction "AgnAvaishNavam ekAdaSa kapAlam puroDASam nirvaped dikshishyamANah", on a person who has already been initiated by upanayana. This is a vedic passage, and so it is authoritative by the standards of the vedAntin-s. 2, 3. Authorship, vedic vs. non-vedic character: yAmunAcArya points out that if the mimAmsaka does not have a problem accepting the authenticity of the veda-s, then he should not have problem with the authenticity of the pA'ncarAtra. The mImAmsaka would say that the veda-s are a-paurusheya (impersonal in character), and therefore their validity is unquestionable. So also the pA'ncarAtra Agama-s are the direct utterances of the Omniscient and Merciful vAsudeva, and are therefore unquestionable. 4. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation of the four brahma sUtra aphorisms related to the pA'ncarAtra and the responses by our AcArya-s have been covered in an earlier write-up. 5. Defense of SANDilya's words that from the veda-s he could not find the road to bliss: yAmunAcArya points out that SANDilya's statement does not mean that there is no human end in the veda-s. It only means that he could not find the human end in the veda-s, because of their vastness. In fact, this only means that the purport of the Agama-s and the veda-s is one and the same and there is no contradiction between them. Both rAmAnuja and deSika point out that what is meant here is that it is difficult for everyone to understand the veda-s, and the style of the pA'ncarAtra texts is more easily grasped. So this statement is not meant to be anti-vedic in any sense, but is only meant to emphasize the easy style of the pA'ncarAtra texts. 6. Refutation of the contention that the bhAgavata-s were not brAhmaNa-s: Regarding the argument that "bhagavata-s" who practiced pA'ncarAtra during the mImAmsaka's times did not belong to any one of the three higher castes, yAmunAcArya points out that they are in every sense brAhmaNa-s. This is evident both by the fact of ocular perception (pratyaksha) of their practices and observances, and also by the fact that there is the practice of remembering the gotra from which they come. There is no reason to doubt their brAhmanical status. Then yAmunAcArya deals with the statement by the opponents that manu smRti (10.23) says the term sAttvata refers to people from a community called vrAtya-s who are decidedly non-vedic, and since the sAttvata-s practiced pA'ncarAtra, pA'ncarAtra is non-vedic by the fact of being practiced by a non-vedic group. yAmunAcArya points out that the term sAttvata as used in pA'ncarAtra context need not refer to the same group of sAttvata-s as referred to in manu-smRti. He illustrates this by pointing out that the same manu-smRti (10.23) also uses the term AcArya to refer to the low born belonging to the vrAtya community. vaiSyAttu jAyate vrAtyAt vrAtyAt sudhanvAcArya eva ca/ kArushSca vijanmA ca maitrah sAttvata eva ca// But no one disagrees that the term AcArya does not only refer to the person of the vrAtya community, but also refers to a learned brAhmaNa teacher. yAmunAcArya points out that when the etymological meaning for the words bhAgavata and sAttvata are available, indicating that these terms refer to the devotees of the Lord, there is no need to reject these and resort to some other meaning. By profession, vrAtya-s look after the temple, but bhAgavata-s perform the five-fold activities for bhagavAn, and these are not comparable and identical. The atharva veda also mentions a class called vrAtya-s who are naturally pure and thus need no samskAra. In praSnopanishad, prANa is referred to as vrAtya - “vrAtyatvam prANaikarshirattA”…(2.11), which is interpreted as "prANa is vrAtya - One born first, and so not needing purification etc". In the atharva veda (15-11) it is said that anyone who entertains a vrAtya will gain the road that gods travel etc. 7. naivedya offered to Lord vishNu is holy: On the objection that the bhAgavata-s partake in the food offered to the Lord in violation of the smRti-s, yAmunAcArya gives evidence from many samhitA-s and smRti-s and points out that this applies only to the food offered to other gods, and not to the sacred prasAdam offered to Lord vishNu. The naivedya offered to bhagavAn is holy, and there is nothing to dispute this. 8. Brahminical character vs. earning livelihood: On the contention that the bhAgavata-s are not orthodox brAhmaNa-s because they worshipped the Lord for their livelihood, yAmunAcArya points out that except under dire financial conditions, this is not the case, and even when this is the case, this has nothing to do with their brAhmanical character. It is only when worship is done with greed as the motive, that this is unacceptable. 9. Refutation of mimAmsaka's position on VAsudeva Being Deceitful: yAmunAcArya points out that until there is reason to believe beyond doubt that a certain utterance is not dependable, there is no reason to doubt its validity. Since the upanishad-s glorify the author of the pA'ncarAtra as Omniscient and Merciful, there is no reason to assign any evil designs in Him in composing these Agama-s. 10, 11. Response to the Objection that a Tantric Procedure is Specified for a Karma when a Vedic Procedure already exists, and So Agama is Anti-vedic: Regarding the objection that for the same karma, pA'ncarAtra provides for a tantric rite when there is a prescribed vedic rite and so pA'ncarAtra is anti-vedic, I did not find a direct explanation. However, based on SrI deSikan's nyAsa vimSati and other writings, I feel that a justifiable explanation is that the veda-s limit the vedic rites only to those who are qualified to perform these by their varNa etc., whereas the tantric rites are open to anyone without these restrictions. An example is the prapatti or bhara-nyAsa, for which svAmi deSikan clearly points out that those who cannot utter the vedic mantra-s required for the vedic procedure should follow the tantric procedure. So it is purely because of His infinite Mercy or karuNA that SrIman nArayaNa gave the pA'ncarAtra Agama so that people who cannot perform the vedic rites can still perform the same rites using the Agama or tantric procedure. ------------------------------- To Continue ===================================================================== xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx ===================================================================== _______________ Check out the great features of the new MSN 9 Dial-up, with the MSN Dial-up Accelerator. http://click.atdmt.com/AVE/go/onm00200361ave/direct/01/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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