kOyil aNNan tiru-nakshatram.

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The 614th birthday (tiru-nakshatram) anniversary of

 

Sri kOyil GandhADai vAdhUla-dESika

kOyil aNNan varada-nArAyaNa-guru

 

would be observed from September 29 (Monday) onwards, starting with GOshThee

recital of periyAzhvAr tirumozhi. The SAttu-muRai on his tiru-nakshatram (kanyA

/ puraTTASi pooraTTAdi / poorva-prOshThapadA) day (October 8 Wednesday) marks

the concluding recital of tiru-vAi-mozhi, irAmAnuSa nooRRantAdi and

upadESa-ratnamAlai.

 

Sri aNNan was the eighth generation descendant of Sri mudali ANDAN (dASarathi),

the nephew of uDaiyavar. ANDAN had been appointed by uDaiyavar, and had

functioned with great distinction, as the sEnApati-dhurandhara (principal

administrator) of the Great Temple (periya kOyil) of Lord Sriranga-nAtha in

Srirangam. It was ANDAN

who accompanied Sri Ramanuja on his exile from Srirangam (occasioned by Saiva

persecution), and had neatly carried out the pancha-nArAyaNa-pratishThA (raising

of 5 nArAyaNa sannidhi-s) in the kannada region of the hoiSala ruler Bitti-deva

alias Vishnu-vardhana.

 

The family name of GandhADai (Gandha, meaning fragrant; ADai, meaning vastram)

attached to the son of ANDAN, who as infant exuded the aroma of the cloth on

which the Lord's food offering was brought.

 

kOyil aNNan, deriving from such distinguished ancestry, had lived a blessed life

of service to the Lord so single-mindedly that he never went out of Srirangam on

visits at all. For this reason, he came to be reverenced as

 

'kAviri kaDavAda GandhADai aNNan'

(aNNan who never crossed the river kAviri, which embraces Srirangam on the north

and the south).

 

Sri maNavALa-mA-muni appreciated the eminent position of the GandhADai clan in

our sampradAyam, and issued a special SlOkam-taniyan in favour of kOyil aNNan

who came to be reckoned among the ashTa-dik-gajam (the guardian elephants of the

eight directions) of mA-munikaL.

 

As of now, the Great Temple honours for vAdhUla-dESika representing

mudali-ANDAN, are rendered by turn to Sri kOyil aNNan svAmi and appan

Sri-ranGAcharya svAmi. The other sthala-AchAryas are Sri uttama-nambi,

Sriranga-nArAyaNa jeeyar svAmi, and bhaTTar (Sri parASara bhaTTar and Sri

vEda-vyAsa bhaTTar, by turn).

 

aDiyEn rAmAnuja-dAsan

tirumanjanam sundara rajan,

in Srirangam.

 

***************************************

 

The kOyil aNNan tiru-mALika finds itself short of funds for proper rendering of

the daily worship to the presiding deity, azhakiya SinGar.

 

An appeal is accordingly carried in the aNNan tiru-nakshatram programme,

 

for contributions from the disciples, as well as those who rightly revere aNNan

as an important personage of the sampradAyam.

 

A deposit of Rs.2000/- will take care of the expenses of a day's tiru-ArAdhanam

thro' the interest realised. Inquiries at ~~

 

Sri K.K.V. Annan Srinivasacharya Svami,

206 Annan Tirumaalikai,

East Uttara Street,

SRIRANGAM - 620006

(Tiruchi) Tamil Nadu.

 

Phone 0431 - 243.56.93.