Gita Jyothi week No.33 Sloka (Part #3 )

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Sri Krishna Parabrahmane Namaha:

 

[ This is the translation of Gita Jyothi Week No.33 Sloka graced by our Sri Sri

Sri Tridandi Chinna Jeeyar Swami Varu in Bhakthi Nivedana ]

 

Kure:sa misrulu also known as Kurathalwan was Ramanuja's ardent disciple. He was

elder to Bhagavath Ramanuja and had boundless affection for Ramanuja. Once the

Raja of Chola, who couldn't bear the Pravachanams being delivered by Ramanuja,

wanted to harm the seer. With an intention of saving Bhagavath Ramanuja,

Kurathalwan put on the Kashayam robes, and holding the Tridandam posed as

Ramanuja and walked into the kings palace. The king asked Kure:sa to convert

himself into a faith that he believed in. However Kuresa gave numerous

explanations and proofs from Sastras to convince the king that he was on the

wrong path. But the king was an obstinate person, he tried to remove the eyes of

Kure:sa as a punishment. Kure:sa didn't want to get his eyes removed by such a

lowly king and hence plucked away his own eyes.

 

Later he came back to Sriranga Kshetram in a very pitiable state. Since Chola

Bhupa:La was a king, he passed an order prohibiting all of Ramanuja's devotees

from entering the temple. Kure:sa, ignorant of the kings' orders, went to the

Srirangam temple to have Darshan of Lord Ranganatha. He was stopped at the

entrance of the temple by one of the guards. Soon he overheard another guard

saying - "Why are you stopping this great person ? Let him go. He can never have

ill intentions towards anyone. Once he cut a banana leaf from a tree and the

tree starting oozing a milky liquid. Unable to bear the feeling that he had

caused a lot of pain to the tree he collapsed. Such is his compassion for all

the beings. Similary once when a snake was suffering with a thorn pricking its

tongue, inspite of the unbelievable risk, he removed the thorn with his hand and

let it go. He is a man who has genuinely learnt how to love all beings."

 

Sir Ramanuja's association was of prime importance for Kure:sa, not the relation

with Sri Ranganatha. To reach Sri Rangnatha, its only through the association

and blessing of the Acharya, it becomes feasible.

 

Kure:sa thought "If one suggests that I should leave the association of the

Acharya and directly approach Lord Ranganatha, its a very dangerous thought. The

relationship with Acharya is like the one that a Lotus flower has with water. As

long as the Lotus flower is in water it blooms with the Sun's

exposure. Without the sun it shrivels up. However if the Lotus thinks thats it's

blossoming only because of the sun and hence tries to move out of water, or if

its kept on the ground away from the water, the same rays of the sun will dry it

up. All the Jeevas are all like a Lotus flower, and if we want

to blossom our lotus like hearts, we need Acharya's Krupa to support it. If we

diassociate ourselves from our Acharya, the Paramatma ( Sun) will not blossom

our heart -

 

"ravihi so:shayathi na Tho:shayathi"

 

It's enough if there is water that supports me. Its ok even if I don't fly into

the skies. I don't need an association with Lord Ranganatha without the

association of Ramanuja." Thinking thus, kuresa left without entering the

temple. Such was his staunch belief in Acharya. Thats the reason he is held in

such high esteem by one and all. He never caused any harm to others. Hence none

had an inclination to cause him any harm.

 

This is a great quality that is worth cultivating and practising by one and all.

 

Jai Srimannarayana,

adiyen ramanuja dasaha

Vamsi Mudumbai