AcArya rAmAmRtam - (from SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA dt. Sept 07 Part 2)

[Guest guest]

SrI:

SrImate ra’ngarAmAnuja MahA deSikAya nama:

SrImate SrInivAsa rAmAnuja MahA deSikAya nama:

SrImate VedAnta rAmAnuja MahA deSikAya nama:

SrI ra’nganAtha divya maNi pAdukAbhyAm nama:

 

AcArya rAmAmRtam - (from SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA dt. Sept 07 Part 2)

 

English Translation of

SrImad rAmAyaNa upanyAsam in tamizh by SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan

 

As published in SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA by

SrI u.ve. nATTEri KiDAmbi rAjagopAlAcAriyAr (Editor of SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA)

 

SrImad ANDavan tiruvaDi,

kalyANi kRshNamAcAri

 

=====================================

SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan’s SrImad rAmAyaNa upanyAsam

 

I will give you an example for this. This should not be told, but still I will

tell you the example -“sonnAl virodham idu, Agilum Solluvan kENminO!” What

is that? This should not be said; that too, a sanyAsi definitely cannot say

this. But, I will tell you, listen.

 

There was a lady. She was not of good character. She had bad conduct. I will

try to say this as respectably as possible. Her conduct in life was not good.

Her husband did not know this for a long time. He was a wealthy man. Somebody

told him, “What kind of a man are you? Your wife is like this. Bad history.

You are going around not knowing anything!” What did the husband do? One day,

he put on make-up as his wife’s friend and came to his wife on a new moon night

around 8 o’clock to the garden and started talking secrets with her. That

woman used to tell the friend all her secrets. She told her secrets that night

also. She narrated all the bad things she did. It was the husband who was

listening to all this. He was only wearing a make-up. His face started

showing anger and his eyes became red. He thought, ‘After all, what my friend

said is all true. She herself tells everything. Everything is coming out.’

 

She was continuing. But that lady was very smart! She was not the ordinary

kind of woman. She thought: “This friend does not behave like my friend

behaves. My friend will always listen to what I say and will reciprocate with

approval. Today, the face and the eyes don’t look normal! So, I should not be

fooled.” So, after saying all her story, she said, “As all this was going on,

suddenly I woke up! I did not understand anything”.

 

She said - prabuddhA’smi ….- [i have woken up/I have become smart] “I was

dreaming, and suddenly woke up. There was nothing”. Immediately, the husband

got up and said, “My dear! I am your husband! I thought wrongly about you.

You are a great pativratai (devoted only to me)” and prostrated before her.

prabuddhA’smi … this has been said in one of the ala’nkAra-s in kuvalayAnandam.

Is that correct?? (AcAryan asks one vidvAn in the audience).

 

ViSvAmitrat said: “tvam anAdih anirdeSyah tvAm aham SaraNam gatah

(bAla.29.12) - You are the most ancient One; anirdeSyar (cannot be described

through words); I do SaraNAgati to You”, but immediately added, “So saying,

the siddha-s, yaksha-s and gandharva-s surrendered to PerumAL” - siddha

gandharva yakshAh te evam SaraNam gatAh | ViSvAmitrar said – “I am talking to

You about the siddha-s, yaksha-s and gandharva-s surrendering to PerumAL”.

rAma felt: “Okay! I will let it go”. In other words, ViSvAmitrar very much

wanted to do SaraNAgati; he very much desired to perform surrender to Him.

 

PerumAL also wanted to do SaraNAgati. That is why He took the rAma incarnation.

He could not do SaraNAgati to anyone in vaikuNTham. Every one is very

knowledgeable. He wanted to fulfill His desire somehow. So, He took the

incarnation.

 

[When kaSyapa, who had accompanied the yaksha-s, gandharva-s, etc., prostrated

to bhagavAn as described above, bhagavAn asks KaSyapa]:

 

tamuvAca harih prItah kaSyapam dhUta kalmasham |

varam varaya bhadram te varArho’si mato mama || (bAla.29.15)

 

PerumAL asked kaSyapar what He needs to do. kaSyapar said, “MahAbhali

cakravarti is doing yAgam. Before that yAgam is completed, You have to be born

as my son and do good to the devatA-s.” Immediately, PerumAL took vAmana

avatAram.

 

He appeared with the most beautiful form. He appeared as a five-year old child

to KaSyapar and Aditi. He is being described thus. “When that child appeared

in that forest, His splendor shone brilliantly; all the Rshi-s came to see…”.

His tirumEni was so beautiful.

 

The Rshi-s looked at Him and thought, “Already, this boy is shining with

brilliance. If this brilliance can be enhanced, it will be even more beautiful.

Why don’t we perform upanayanam for Him right now?” brahma varcasa kAmo pa’nca

varsham upanayIta – the sacred thread ceremony must be done for a boy at the

age of five if one wants the child to shine with the full brilliance associated

with sacred knowledge. If not, it should be done in the seventh year –

garbhAshTamam – ashTAvarsham brAhmaNam upanayIta. If there is no time and it is

not convenient, AshodaSAt apatitA gAyatrI – it should be done within the

sixteenth year. If upanayanam is done after that, gAyatrI will not stay [the

benefit of the gAyatrI will not be derived]. If even that is not possible,

upanayanam should be done at least before the marriage is done - if there is no

other way. It is said - AshodaSAt apatitA gAyatrI.

 

Everybody said upanayanam may be performed right away for VAmana.. KaSyapar

said, ‘I do not have anything to perform upanayanam. I have no money. I do

not even have the sacred thread’. Everyone said, ‘We will contribute whatever

is needed’.

 

karmANi kArayAmAsuh puraskRtya prajApatim |

 

tasyOpanIyamAnasya sAvitrIm savitA’bravIt || (bhAgava. 8.18.13-14)

 

If upanayanam is done and gAyatrI is taught, the person giving the

brahmopadeSam loses the power equivalent to 12,000 gAyatrI-s. It gets used up.

As it is being taught to the boy, the power of 12,000 gAyatrI-s is lost for the

one who teaches. It should be earned again. That is why it is said that a

second brahmopadeSam must not be done by the same person within a month of the

first brahmopadeSam. What is lost must be gained before the next brahmopadeSam.

That is why brahmopadeSam is not done for two sons at the same time by the

father; the power of 24,000 gAyatrI-s will be lost. One might ask if the

father has accumulated that much power to start with – that is a question by

itself. 24,000 gAyatrI-s will be lost. That is why traditionally a younger

brother or an elder brother is requested to ‘help out’ by doing the

brahmopadeSam for one of the sons, when two sons’ upanayanam-s are performed at

the same time. If the in-law’s side brings a lot of saris, dhotis etc, the

brother-in-law gets requested to do the brahmopadeSam instead.

 

KaSyapar said that he did not have enough gAyatrI-power in store to do the

brahmopadeSam. The Sun god said that he will perform the upadeSam - .

sAvitrIm savitA’bravIt.

 

KaSyapar said that he did not have the sacred thread. bRhaspatih brahmasUtram

– this is not in rAmAyaNam; I am saying from a different source. I hope it is

okay to draw from other sources - or should it be only from rAmAyaNam?

(AcAryan is asking the audience).

 

When kASyapar said that he did not have the sacred thread, bRhaspatih

brahmasUtram – bRhaspati said, “I am the bRhaspati for the deva lokam; I have

prepared good sacred thread. It was not spun on ashTami day. It was not done

on caturdasI or paurNamI or prathamai. I did not do it after having taken

food. I did not do it as they do it on the evening before AvaNi aviTTam. I

did not do it in the evening. I have done it on a good tithi and have prepared

the sacred thread as it should be prepared and have done the consecration.”

What is the sign that shows that it has been consecrated properly? Turmeric

powder will be applied to the knot. (Nowadays some people think that as long

as turmeric is applied, the thread becomes sacred; AcAryar is showing that

humor here). That was taken care of.

 

bRhaspatih brahma sUtram… - You may ask how I know all this. It is because I

have also been a bRhaspati. Otherwise, I would not have known. mekhalAm

kaSyapo’dadAt – mu’nja grass – the grass that is tied around the waist with

the mantra - subhagA mekhalA iyam… iyam duruktAt paribAdhamAnA Sama varUtham

….is the mantra. Father [KaSyapar] gave mekhalai [the waist band made of

mu’nja grass]. kRshNAjinam is needed to do japam. dadau kRshNAjinam bhUmih -

bhUmi devi gave kRshNAjinam. A staff (stick) was needed. (the mantra suSrava:

suSravasam mA kuru etc.)- That pAlASa daNDam was given by candran (Moon) –

daNDam somo vanaspatih. dIkshA vastram [the cloth appropriate for the

consecration] is needed – kaupIna AcchAdanam mAtA – aditi devi gave kaupIna

AcchAdanam.

 

As soon as one has entered the brahmacarya ASramam, one should go for getting

alms – bhavati bikshAm dehi. Why should He walk in the sun? dyauh chatram

jagatah pateh. dyauh – the devatA for the skies provided the umbrella to

jagat-pati. Then, He has to start doing sandhyAvandanam from that same day.

In order for Him to start sandhyAvandanam from that day onwards, the veda

garbha maharshi gave kamaNDalu [container for water] – kamaNDalum veda

garbhah. kuSAn sapta Rshayo daduh – darbham is needed for anushThAnam. The

sapta Rshi-s gave darbham [grass]. Bead garland is needed for doing the

counting for japam. akshamAlAm maharaja sarasvatI avyayAtmanah - sarasvatI

brought japamAlai for that eternal paramAtmA .

 

tasmA ituypanItAya - upanayanam was done. He should go for alms saying,

‘bhavati bikshAm dehi’. He needs a vessel for that. Silver vessel, coconut

and tumbler are needed –[one would take the rice in a tumbler and give alms].

Yaksha rAT pAtrikAm dadau – kuberan gave a vessel. Who is going to give alms?

bikshAm bhagavatI sAkshAt umA adAt ambikA sati - pArvatI herself gave alms.

Sister has to give alms. So, she gave.

 

upanayanam was over. perumAL started from there. He took the umbrella. He

went towards the place where mahAbali was doing yAgam. He shone brilliantly.

yAgam was over; they were going to go for avabhRta snAnam. They asked, “What

do you want? What have you come for?” He said, “yAgam is being done; I came

to ask for alms. I came to ask for dakshiNai”. “What dakshiNai do you want?”

“I have to chant gAyarI. I have to do penance. It is said that if japam or

penance is done in another person’s ground, part of the benefit goes to that

person. So, I need my own place.

 

ennuDaiya pAdattAl yAnaLappa mUvaDi maN

mannA taruga enRu vAi tiRappa – maRRavanum

ennAl tarappaTTadu ennalumE (periya tirumaDal).

 

So, I need three measures of land measured with my foot”. Many svAmigaL,

saints etc, when they go to a city, they build an ASramam or maTham there,

right? Why do they need this maTham? If japam is done there, the benefit will

go to them. People like me do not need it. It is needed only if we do japam.

I have stayed in deSika bhavanam for three months. Did I do japam, for the

benefit to go to you? Only if japam is done, we can talk about benefit going

to somebody else! If I had done, it would have gone to the owners! {AcAryan’s

strict anushThAnam is known all over the world. Still, he is displaying humor

here}.

 

VAmana mUrti continued: “For that purpose, if I have my own land, the benefit

will come to me. So I would like to have my own land. That is why I am asking

for three feet of land”.

 

ennuDaiya pAdattAl yAnaLappa mUvaDi maN

mannA taruga enRu vAi tiRappa – maRRavanum

ennAl tarappaTTadu ennalumE -

 

MahAbali had watched Him as He was walking in. He had already made up his mind

that he will give anything that this person asks for. Vamana mUrti asked for

three feet of land measured by His feet, and mahAbali said: “Granted”.

AcAryan SukrAcAryar saw all this. He said: “It is none other than BhagavAn

Himself who has come and asked like this. Why did you respond like this?”

MahAbali was wonderstruck. He said: “svAmi - His gait was so amazing; being

impressed by that, I felt like giving anything. It is fine”

 

bhikshAm apekshya danujendra gRham prayAtu:

guptyai gavAm viharato vahataSca dUtyam |

tattAdRSAni caraNAvani! ra’ngabhartuh

tvat sa’ngamena subhagAni viceshTitAni || (SrI pAdukAsahasram – 297)

 

ViSvAmitrar continued: “Accordingly, mahAbali gave three feet of land.

BhagavAn accepted the offer and measured the whole lokam. This is the place

where perumAL who took VAmana avatAram is; saishA vAmanasya upabhujyate – I

stay here because of my devotion to VAmana mUrti.”

 

maNNai irundu tuzhAvi vAmanan maN iduvennum (tiruvAimozhi 4.4.1)

 

===========

To be continued …..

 

 

 

 

______________________________\

____

Never miss a thing. Make your home page.

http://www./r/hs