Vaishnavism and Azhwars

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Sri Vaisnavism does not, however, base its authority solely on the Sanskrit Vedas, Agamas and smrti texts, but also on the Tamil writings of the Alvars. The twelve Alvar saints were born in different parts of south India and appear to span the dates 200 AD to 800 AD. Orthodox tradition, however, places the earliest Alvar saints at 4203 BC and the latest at 2706 BC. The Alvars were mystic saints who immersed themselves in devotional experiences and expressed their divine experiences in Tamil verses that have been collection into 4000 stanzas call the Divya-prabandha or

Divine Hymns. These sacred writings contain rich philosophical and religious material taken from the Upanisads, the Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puranas and are accepted by many Sri Vaisnavas to be on par with the Vedas themselves. The main teachings of the Alvars assert 1) that Sri Visnu along Sridevi forms the basis of ultimate reality 2) that self-surrender (prapatti) through acts of devotion (bhakti) is the means to attain salvation (moksa) 3) that service to God and godly souls is an essential duty for Vaisnavas 4) and that moksa or salvation from rebirth is the supreme goal of life. Amongst the 4000 verses of the Divya-prabandha, the 1102 verses attributed

to Namma Alvar are often considered the most important and are sometimes called the Tamil Veda. Based on the teaching of the Upanisads, these verses have inspired their own set of commentaries and sub-commentaries and have played a major role in the development of Sri Vaisnavism down to the present day. Padmashri Sampathkumar

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Very rightly said. There is a unique greatness about AzhvArs' Divya Prabandam. They give us the leelaas of the Lord in all His avataarams at one place so that we need not refer to various Itihasas and puranas. If we recite the Prabandam regularly it is equal to reciting from Ramayana, Mahabharatha and other puranas including Sri Vishnu Puranas which will be impossible for most of us who are burdened with various responsibilities in this modern world. dAsan Anbil SrInivAsan Padmashri Sampathkumar <s.padmashri wrote: Sri Vaisnavism does not, however, base its authority solely on the Sanskrit Vedas, Agamas and smrti texts, but also on the Tamil writings of the Alvars. The twelve Alvar saints were born in different parts of south India and appear to span the dates 200 AD to 800 AD. Orthodox tradition, however, places the earliest Alvar saints at 4203 BC and the latest at 2706 BC. The Alvars were mystic saints who immersed themselves in devotional experiences and expressed their divine experiences in Tamil verses that have been collection into 4000 stanzas call the Divya-prabandha or Divine Hymns. These sacred writings contain rich philosophical and religious material taken from the Upanisads, the Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puranas and are

accepted by many Sri Vaisnavas to be on par with the Vedas themselves. The main teachings of the Alvars assert 1) that Sri Visnu along Sridevi forms the basis of ultimate reality 2) that self-surrender (prapatti) through acts of devotion (bhakti) is the means to attain salvation (moksa) 3) that service to God and godly souls is an essential duty for Vaisnavas 4) and that moksa or salvation from rebirth is the supreme goal of life. Amongst the 4000 verses of the Divya-prabandha, the 1102 verses attributed to Namma Alvar are often considered the most important and are sometimes called the Tamil Veda. Based on the teaching of the Upanisads, these verses have inspired their own set of commentaries and sub-commentaries and have played a major role in the development

of Sri Vaisnavism down to the present day. Padmashri Sampathkumar Be a better friend, newshound, and know-it-all with Mobile. Try it now.

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