A Question on Sundara Pandya

[Guest guest]

Namaste.

 

At the end of the Bhashya for the Brahmasutra 'tat tu samanvayAt' (1.1.4) the

Acharya quotes three verses teaching pure Advaita. Scholars have identified

these verses to be of one Sundara Pandya. Eminent Vidvan Sri Mani Dravid

Sastrigal said in his Sutra Bhashyam class that this Sundara Pandya has written

vyAkhyAnam for the Purva and uttara MImAmsA and that his verses are quoted even

in the pUrva mImAmsA bhashyam.

 

Who is this author? What is his period? What are his other works? Are any of his

works available in their complete form? Members may provide information on

these. That Bhagavatpada finds it fit to quote him shows that this author is no

mean authority. It also tells us about pre-ShAnkaran or even pre-Gaudapada

advaita, perhaps.

 

Someone who has direct access to Sri Mani Dravid Sastrigal in Chennai could

perhaps take up these questions with him and report.

 

Om Tat Sat

[Guest guest]

Namaste dear Subbuji:

 

Here are the information that I could collect from the Web Sources about

Sundarapandiyan a great King belong to the Pandya Dynasty who ruled from Madurai

during 500- 600 AD. Another Pandyian King who was a great Sanskrit

Scholar/Saint is the well known Kulasekara Alwar who wrote the treatise -

Mukundamala a master piece on Devotion.

 

One of the often quoted work of Sundarapandya is Nitidvisastika (Original

Sanskrit Text) which was translated by S. Jaysree which is available for the

price of Rs. 100 in India. (details provided below)

 

S. Jayasree (Ed.); Nitidvisastika of Sundarapandya; The Adyar Library Series-

No. 113; Madras; 1984

 

Nitidvisastika Of Sundarapandya by S. Jayashree

Format: Hardcover

Price: Rs.100

Seller: Manohar Publishers And Distributors

 

Free Shipping within India. Get it in 4 business days. (contact

http://www.Rediff.com)

 

The following link contains a book review published by the Journal of American

Oriental Society. review: http://www.jstor.org/pss/600361

 

Check also the Google Book (search through Google) - The state in Indian

tradition, Part 2

By Hartmut Scharfe contain reference to Nitidvishashtika

 

 

Two of former advaitin members – Vishal_Agarwal and Nanda Chandran have created

a homepage which contained the works of Sundarapandya. However the link that

they have provided didn't work. I don't have either the email address or other

contact information about them.

 

Though what I have provided in incomplete, there is no doubt that

Sundarapandiyan was a great Sanskrit and Vedantic Scholar. (see some example

excerpts from Nitidvishastika provided below)

 

With my warm regards,

 

Ram Chandran

 

 

Note: The following may provide a glimpse of the knowledge of Sundarapandiyan:

[sanskrit Proverbs-1 (Nitidvishashtika)

Sanskrit Proverbs from Nitidvishashtika (500 C.E.) The translation largely

follows that of Jayasree [1984], with minor changes and provide by Mr. Venkata

Vivek Ramisetty

Link: http://www.telugupeople.com/content/Content.asp?ContentID=21387 & catID=19

 

 

On Affection

 

" A creeper that has been cut can be made to grow again, but it will never look

as beautiful as it used to. Similarly, an affectionate relationship that has

been spoiled, can be revived again, but it will not have the same charm as it

used to. " Nitidvishashtika

 

On Charity

 

" A noble man makes a gift of charity respectfully and without publicity. Mean

men also practice charity, but they are guided by selfish motives and give away

with disrespect. " Nitidvishashtika

 

On Good Company

 

" Friendship with the good grows day by day just as the sap of from top to

bottom, joint by joint. Friendship of the wicked is opposite in nature to this. "

Nitidvishashtika 16

 

On Enmity

 

" Foolish people never give up enmity, just as a line drawn on a rock cannot be

erased. But the wise forgive and forget, their enmity is as ephemeral as a line

drawn on the surface of water. " Nitidvishashtika 64

 

On Fools

 

" Where fools pretend to be wise, the wise should pretend to be foolish. Under

the spell of ignorance ridicule even the wise sayings. " Nitidvishashtika 18

 

" Avoid even the sight of foolish men. If one does see them, then avoid their

company. If one does fall into the company of foolish men, then let him keep

silent. And if one does have to speak amongst them, then let him too speak like

them. " Nitidvishashtika 19

 

On Forgiveness

 

" If one is censured for a genuine fault of his, then he should endure that

rebuke. And if he is censured for no fault of his, he should forgive the other

person thinking that the censure did not occur at all. " Nitidvishashtika 66

 

" If a dog bites a man, he does not bite the dog back. Therefore, if a wicked man

humiliates a virtuous one, the latter should not seek revenge. " Nitidvishashtika

68

 

On Friendship

 

" Following are the characteristics of a bad friend- making fun of their friend

in public, showing friendship only as long as some benefit is obtained from the

relationship, and not forgetting the bad deeds of his friend towards him. "

Nitidvishashtika 46

 

" One should retain formal courtesy only as long as friendship has not been

achieved. Once friendship is acquired, formal courtesy is a sign of deceit. "

Nitidvishashtika 53

 

On Knowledge

 

" Just as female bees gather so much honey little by little that it can fill

several pots. Likewise, wise men gather knowledge, religious merit and penance

little by little continuously, without ever giving up. " Nitidvishashtika 36-37

 

" Even old men should humbly approach younger men with reverence for

clarification of their doubts, just as they would approach their teachers with

respect. " Nitidvishashtika 33

 

" One should strive to become learned and not hanker after wealth alone. It is

common to find a wealthy man, but rare indeed is he who has erudition. "

Nitidvishashtika 92

 

On Longevity

 

" Of what use is a long life to those whose minds are blemished with lust and

jealousy, who work inefficiently and who feel insulted at slight pretexts? "

Nitidvisastika 60

 

On Merit

 

" Although dim, the rays of moon falling on the snow clad peaks of the Himalayas

look resplendent and illuminate entire mountain ranges. Likewise, even a few

good qualities become abundant in persons who are lofty with merit. "

Nitidvishashtika 55

 

On the Miser

 

" The wealth of a man who merely hoards riches, but does not want to enjoy them

is like someone else's wealth lying in his house. It is the like a daughter who

is brought up (with love and affection), only to be given away at the time of

her marriage. " Nitidvishashtika 22

 

" No purpose of existence and no object of human life is attained by him, who

turns miserly at the sight of a needy man and turns him away. " Nitidvishashtika

23

 

" That man's life along is meaningful who sustains and nourishes vast multitudes

of men from his provisions. And he, who does not sustain his dependents is

indeed dead, even if alive. " Nitidvishashtika 25

 

On Purity

 

" They who are pure at heart are pure even if impure externally. And they whose

hearts are impure are impure even if they be clean from outside. "

Nitidvishashtika 44

 

On Sweet Speech

 

" A wise man should not speak ill of others in an assembly. Even that truth

should not be uttered, which, if expressed, becomes unpalatable. "

Nitidvishashtika 4

 

" Why should men endowed with good sense speak harshly, when sweetness is within

their own power and when sentences can be composed with sweet words? "

Nitidvishashtika 6

 

" When a person is addressed harshly, he responds in a doubly harsh manner.

There, one who does not wish to hear unpleasant words must not use such language

himself " Nitidvishashtika 7

 

" He is an eloquent speaker who speaks with brevity, but whose speech is sweet.

One who speaks a lot but speaks with little sense is nothing but a prattler. "

Nitidvishashtika 8

 

" As a fire is extinguished only by water, similarly, the anger caused by harsh

speech can be pacified only by the words of wisdom spoken by the virtuous. "

Nitidvishashtika 11

 

On Virtue

 

" Learning, Vedic study, penances, prosperity, fame and splendor--all these in

one who is devoid of good character are like the bath of an elephant (an

elephant throws dust on his body after bathing) " Nitidvishashtika 38

 

" Pilgrimages to holy places for ablutions, gazing at the hot blazing sun as a

penance, standing in water in winter--all these cannot take a man to heaven if

he were devoid of good character. " Nitidvishashtika 39

 

" Of what use are garlands and perfumes to the man, the fragrance of whose noble

qualities has permeated all the directions? " Nitidvishashtika 40

 

" Although born in a family of Brahmins, a man who is proud, hypocritical,

harmful to others, evil-tongued, boastful and slanderous is but a lowly Chandala

(outcaste) " Nitidvishashtika 43

 

" The following virtues are inborn and natural in noble persons- appreciation of

merits of others, concealing one's own merits and not publicizing them for fame,

not criticizing the faults of men in front of others to defame them, sweet

disposition and straightforward speech. " Nitidvishashtika 34

 

" An ignoble man, though born of a noble lineage, endowed with eloquence, a

handsome appearance and adorned with garlands is like the Palasa (Flame of the

Forest) tree which blooms but does not yield any fruit. " Nitidvishashtika 32

 

On Virtuous Men

 

" A wicked man feels elated when he has hurts others with his unkind words. On

the contrary, a good man repents immediately even if he makes an unkind remark

out of carelessness. " Nitidvishashtika 67

 

" Even at times of calamity, a noble man should desist from harboring ill-will or

enmity towards others. He is like the sandalwood tree that imparts its fragrance

even to the axe blade that strikes it down. " Nitidvishashtika 78

 

" A small good done to the virtuous bears great results, while even great help

extended to the wicked begets only sorrow. Behold- even grass fed to cows turns

into milk, whereas if milk is fed to snakes, it becomes deadly poison. "

Nitidvishashtika 109

 

" The anger of virtuous men is pacified easily but the wicked never give up their

grieviences. After all, gold can be melted, but who can melt mere grass? "

Nitidvishashtika 106

 

On Wicked Men

 

" Just as a chameleon changes colors, the low and wicked too put on three

different colors. At first, he acts as relative, next as a friend and at the

end, he turns out to be a enemy. "

Nitidvishashtika 47

 

" Even when honored, rogues do not forgo their wickedness. Does a crescent become

round even after residing on the head of Lord Shiva? " Nitidvishashtika 114

 

On Wise Men

 

" The characteristic of a wise man who has knowledge and wisdom in the right

measure is this- he does not become despondent in adversity, and does not become

arrogant in times of prosperity. " Nitidvishashtika 85

 

On Wealth

 

" Virtuous conduct, cleanliness, patience, courtesy, sweet disposition and noble

birth--all these do not shine in a person who does not possess wealth. "

Nitidvishashtika 29

 

" Honor, self respect, knowledge, bravery, high ideals--all these are fruitless

in one who does not have wealth. " Nitidvishashtika 30

 

 

 

 

advaitin , " subrahmanian_v " <subrahmanian_v wrote:

>

> Namaste.

>

> At the end of the Bhashya for the Brahmasutra 'tat tu samanvayAt' (1.1.4) the

Acharya quotes three verses teaching pure Advaita. Scholars have identified

these verses to be of one Sundara Pandya. Eminent Vidvan Sri Mani Dravid

Sastrigal said in his Sutra Bhashyam class that this Sundara Pandya has written

vyAkhyAnam for the Purva and uttara MImAmsA and that his verses are quoted even

in the pUrva mImAmsA bhashyam.

>

> Who is this author? What is his period? What are his other works? Are any of

his works available in their complete form? Members may provide information on

these. That Bhagavatpada finds it fit to quote him shows that this author is no

mean authority. It also tells us about pre-ShAnkaran or even pre-Gaudapada

advaita, perhaps.

>

> Someone who has direct access to Sri Mani Dravid Sastrigal in Chennai could

perhaps take up these questions with him and report.

>

> Om Tat Sat

>

[Guest guest]

Dear Subbuji,

 

Namaste.

 

Let me also add my small contribution about a sloka supposed to be

written by Sundarapandiyan:

 

 

In the Vedanta Paribhasha a sloka has been quoted by DA (which Sri

Sada ji discussed in the Knowledge series) It is:

 

dehaatmapratyayo yadvat pramaaNatvena kalpitaH |

laukikam tadvadevedam pramaaNam tu aa,aatmanishchayaat ||

 

This one is also written by Sundarapandiyan. I do not know if the

same has been quoted in the Brahma Sutra also.

 

With regards,

Anupam.

[Guest guest]

advaitin , anupam srivatsav <anupam.srivatsav wrote:

>

> Dear Subbuji,

>

> Namaste.

>

> Let me also add my small contribution about a sloka supposed to be

> written by Sundarapandiyan:

>

>

> In the Vedanta Paribhasha a sloka has been quoted by DA (which Sri

> Sada ji discussed in the Knowledge series) It is:

>

> dehaatmapratyayo yadvat pramaaNatvena kalpitaH |

> laukikam tadvadevedam pramaaNam tu aa,aatmanishchayaat ||

>

> This one is also written by Sundarapandiyan. I do not know if the

> same has been quoted in the Brahma Sutra also.

>

> With regards,

> Anupam.

>

 

Namaste Anupam ji,

 

The above shloka is one of the three verses quoted by Shankaracharya at the end

of His Bhashyam to the Brahmasutra 'tat tu samanvayAt' 1.1.4.

 

Regards,

subbu

[Guest guest]

advaitin , " Ram " <ramvchandran wrote:

>

> Namaste dear Subbuji:

>

> Here are the information that I could collect from the Web Sources about

Sundarapandiyan a great King belong to the Pandya Dynasty who ruled from Madurai

during 500- 600 AD. Another Pandyian King who was a great Sanskrit

Scholar/Saint is the well known Kulasekara Alwar who wrote the treatise -

Mukundamala a master piece on Devotion.

 

 

Namaste Ram ji,

 

Thank you for the effort in searching for information. I was informed of this

URL:

 

http://vishalagarwal.voiceofdharma.com/articles/acharyas/sundarapandya/index.htm

 

Maybe this is the one you had referred to in your post.

 

Best regards,

subbu

 

(This reply-post I sent (along with my reply to Anupam ji) did not appear on the

list; hence I am re-sending it.)

[Guest guest]

Namaste Subbuji:

 

Yes and this is a new link (probably the materials in the original link were

transferred to this link). It seems that Madurai in addition to the famous

Meenakshi temple has contributed many stalwerts that include great musicians,

Nayanmars (who have contributed many philosophical works based on the

Shiva-siddhantham), and the great Sundara Pandiya. If the king himself was a

great scholar, it implies that there should have been many others scholars

during his time.

 

There are several Sundara Pandiyans mentioned while browsing through the history

of Sera/Chola/Pandiya Dynasties: Jatavarman Sundarapandiyan is mentioned as one

of the great kings who ruled around 1200 AD whose kingdom expanded from Srilanka

to Cuddaph in Andhra Pradesh.

The link contains many other interesting details:

http://www.indianetzone.com/40/pandya_dynasty.htm

 

After reading all these, I am proud to be someone born and lived in the great

city of Madurai for more than two decades of my early life!

 

Warm regards,

 

Ram Chandran

 

advaitin , " subrahmanian_v " <subrahmanian_v wrote:

>

>

> Namaste Ram ji,

>

> Thank you for the effort in searching for information. I was informed of this

URL:

>

>

http://vishalagarwal.voiceofdharma.com/articles/acharyas/sundarapandya/index.htm

>

[Guest guest]

Well. Atleast according to Padma Vibhushan Sri Srinivasan, Retired Director of archelogy GOI, the author of Mukunda Mala was a Keralite not from tamil naduThanks & Regards,Venkat.Sadgurubhyo Namah.--- On Wed, 17/3/10, subrahmanian_v <subrahmanian_v wrote:

subrahmanian_v <subrahmanian_v Re: A Question on Sundara Pandyaadvaitin Date: Wednesday, 17 March, 2010, 4:18 PM

advaitin@ s.com, "Ram" <ramvchandran@ ...> wrote:>> Namaste dear Subbuji:> > Here are the information that I could collect from the Web Sources about Sundarapandiyan a great King belong to the Pandya Dynasty who ruled from Madurai during 500- 600 AD. Another Pandyian King who was a great Sanskrit Scholar/Saint is the well known Kulasekara Alwar who wrote the treatise - Mukundamala a master piece on Devotion. Namaste Ram ji,Thank you for the effort in searching for information. I was informed of this URL:http://vishalagarwa l.voiceofdharma. com/articles/ acharyas/ sundarapandya/

index.htmMaybe this is the one you had referred to in your post.Best regards,subbu(This reply-post I sent (along with my reply to Anupam ji) did not appear on the list; hence I am re-sending it.)

Your Mail works best with the New Optimized IE8. Get it NOW!.

[Guest guest]

Namaste dear Venkatji:

 

The issue on the authorship of Mukunda Mala (same thing is true with respect to

the authorship of many other great works) can never be resolved. Kulasekara

Alwar most probably come from the Malayalam speaking area of the Chera Dynasty

which spread across the parts of Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Kerala. Whether

Kulasekara Pandiyan (does not necessarily mean that he comes from Tamil Nadu)

and Kulasekara Alwar are the same person couldn't be authentically verified. To

me, Mukundamala is one of the cherished poetic philosophical work admired and by

all the Vedantic schools - advaita, dwaita and visitadvaita. Even to those who

can't understand the meaning, the chanting and hearing will certainly bring

peace and tranquility.

 

With my warm regards,

 

Ram Chandran

 

 

advaitin , Venkata Subramanian <venkat_advaita wrote:

>

> Well.  Atleast according to Padma Vibhushan Sri Srinivasan, Retired Director

of archelogy GOI, the author of Mukunda Mala was a Keralite not from tamil nadu

>

> Thanks & Regards,

> Venkat.

>