Acharya vaibhavam - 64- Sri Poundarikapuram Andavan Sri Srinivasa Mahadesikan Swami- One of the Greatest Acharyas of our Sampradaya! read at your leisure

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SrI:

SrImathE Goapladesika mahadesikaya namah:

SrImathE Srinivasadesika Mahadesikaya namah:

SrImathE Ranganathadesika Mahadesikaya namah:

SrImathE Srinivasadesika Mahadesikaya namah:

SrImathE Gopalarya Mahadesikaya Namah:

 

Sri Narayana Yogindra Varadaarya Kripaasrayam /

Rangesa Paada Vinatham Srinivaasa Munim Bhaje //

 

(meaning)

I hail Srinivasa Muni who obtained the full grace of

Sri Narayana Yogindra Varadaarya, who always bowed at

the feet of Lord Ranganatha.

 

About this Great mahaan, there are two slokas composed

by Sri RV Krishnamachariar:

I am giving only the translation (Please forgive my

translation as well):

 

For those who take to sanyaas (renunciation), there

could be many reasons. Poverty, disinterest in

samsaaric afflictions, mental worries, non-cooperation

from spouse etc. For this Swamy (Sri Poundarikapuram

Andavan Swamy), lot of wealth (inherited), extremely

cooperative Pathivratha dEvigaL (spouse),; a great

vidwAn of the first kind. Simply due to his vairAgyam

alone, he took to sanyaasaasramam.

 

What kind of vidvathvam he has!

He is PaNinI in vyAkaraNam.

GaNAdhar in mImAmsA.

Vedantha Desikan in Vedantha!

 

Those vidwAns and scholars who acknowledge the above

whole heartedly also do not speak in front of Him

(with respect and fear- bhayam kalandha mariyAdhai)

 

May He reside (as always) forever in the hearts of

such Great scholars and vidwAns! (in order to bless

them as he does always!)

 

This day about one hundred and sixty years ago,

our land witnessed the holy birth of a mahaan in

Poundarikapuram; truly it was an avtaar of Sriman

Narayanan Himself, who out of His benevolence, and

sincere determination, Dhrida vratha, to save all

human beings comes into this world. And the Lord

also chooses the time, the place and the parents to

take birth from it is all preordained by Him.

 

It was the day of days- Adi PoorAdam- Sowmya year,

August 1847, a child-prodigy was born in

poundarikapuram village. This village with its

sylvan surroundings is very near to the famous

Oppiliappan Koil Divya Desam, whose praise has been

sung by Peyazhwar, Nammazhwar and Thirumangai

Azhwar. Enjoying, so to say, the Divya kataaksha of

the Lord, this cozy village has been the birth of many

great personages. Among them were the

couple- Sri Singaperumal Ayyangar, an effulgent

scholar and a man of unswerving principles of personal

practice and conduct and Smt Senkamalam

Ammal, his wife. No wonder that Sriman Narayanan chose

to take His birth from this noble couple as their

seventh son and was named after Lord Srinivasan. How

so true this about Srimad Andavan Poundarikapuram

Srinivasa Mahadesikan needs no elucidation to the

Srivaishnava world, more so to those unnumbered

beneficiaries.

 

This multifaceted genius was a repository of erudite

scholarship endowed with an uncommon acumen, which

helped not only of acquisition of knowledge of

Kaavyarthas, Saasthras, Vedanthaarthas,

Granthachathushtayam, besides the Vedas and the Divya

prabandhas but also in the exposition of these to an

never ending chain of disciples who flocked to him all

the year around and down the years.

 

A quick review of his biographical details will inform

us how great personages (in our Acharya parampara) are

born great and tower far above the commonality!

 

Young Srinivasan was given in adoption to his father’s

younger brother. After his upanayanam at 7, he

promptly sought to learn Sanskrit from illustrious Sri

Rangachariar Swami, father of reputed

Tharka scholar Sri Narasimhachariar. Soon followed his

higher education from mahavidwans like Ghattam

Varadachariar Swamy, Sogathur Vijayaraghavachariar

Swami, Perumal koil Thirupputkuzhi Swami, Kuricchi

Rangachariar Swami at Mannargudi, and in matter of

time, he became an accomplished scholar, a mahaa

vidwaan himself., having mastered Alankaara saasthra,

Tharkaam, vyAkaraNam, and mImAmsa besides the Vedas

and Prabandhams. He had his Pancha samskaaram from Sri

Ghattam Varadachariar Swami and Vedantha Grantha

kaalakshepam and BharasamapraNam at the feet of Srimad

Andavan VeliyanallUr Narayana Mahadesikan Swamy, an

act indicating possibly things to come, as later he

succeeded Sri Narayana Desika Mahadesikan Swamy.

 

He undertook pilgrimages to all divya desas from

Tirupathi to Thiruvananthapuram. In due time, he

married Smt Komalavilli Ammal hailing from Vagarai, a

nearby village and led his grihasthAsramam at

Poundarikapuram in a manner that was remarkable for

its simplicity and austerity in spite of belonging to

a family as affluent materially as erudite in

scholarship.

 

When his (adopted) mother Srirangammal passed away, he

migrated to Srirangam and settled down there. He led

his life strictly as ordained by the elders,

performing Pancha kaala kriyas, the observance of

which gives no room for accepting any material gift

whatsoever it be nor aspire of ill-gotten wealth. His

scholarship and mastery in Sahithya, Alankara,

Tharkka, mImAmsA, Sri Bhsahya and vyAkaraNa was

legendary and little wonder that those who

aspired to gain knowledge of these sought after him

and learnt at his Feet.

 

In good time, he heard the call, the divine call for

taking up sanyaasa Ashramam and to become a “light

house:, guiding the parched souls tossed

about the samsaara saagara. It was a definite call and

he went and prostrated repeatedly at the feet of

Srimad Andavan Veliyanalloor Narayana

Mahadesikan who after thorough scrutiny of his

disciple’s genuineness, offered him upadesa of Preksha

mantra and Prapatti Prayoga and admitted him

to Sanyaasa Asramam, more fittingly called ThurIya

Asramam (the fourth stage). Thereafter he went to live

in the Srimad Andavan Asramam at Srirangam hallowed by

the footprints of Srimad PeriyANdavan and spent years

there offering Samasrayanam, BharaNyAsam, and daily

kaalskhepa Goshtis to the innumerable disciples

thirsting spiritually. But as there were hindrances to

the peaceful functioning of Asramam, he decided to

move out of Srirangam itself so as to more effectively

carry on with his spiritual mission. When

the disciples came to know of this, they prevailed

upon him to continue his stay at Srirangam. Through

their efforts, a separate Asrama was set up and it

came to be known as the " Sri Poundarikapuram Andavan

Asramam”, in the same line of Srimad Periyandavan

Guruparampara, verily because Sriman Narayana willed

it so there shall be another illustrious seat of

munithraya Sampradayam, to cater to the spiritual

needs of the ever growing Sishyavarga, ever seeking

new nuances and creeping in to the crevices of the

Sampradaya.

 

And so from this center this great Acharya

traveled on foot across South India at the request of

countless disciples who considered that their places

became sanctified by the very touch of the Acharya’s

feet. Eventually he stayed at Srirangam itself

following the footsteps of Emeprumaanaar Sri

Ramanujacharya.

 

Thus started a great era, a Saga of monumental service

to the Lord. Not a day passed without a Kaalakshepa

Goshti in the Asramam. It became the

confluence of great minds seeking more and more

scholarship in Sribhashyam, Bhagavath vishayam, and

all else with a thirst and enthusiasm as witnessed

never before.

 

Sri Poundarikapuram Swami had a large stock of

affluence in his grahasthAsramam. He left off all in

his supreme self-denial and became an ascetic by

almost compelling his preceptor to grant him the

saffron robe. He swayed, as spiritual king, the

Srirangam town for almost five decades. He was no

ordinary scholar, nor an ordinary ascetic, nor even an

ordinary pontiff at that. He taught many; taught Sri

Bhashya every day; believed that it was his chief goal

and inaugurated the present headquarters of the

Asramam on the banks of the Coleroon river, a few

yards west of Sri Dasavatharam Sannidhi (of Sri

Ahobila Mutt).

 

A special kind of link between the Ahobila Mutt and

Sri Poundarikapuram Andavan Asramam deserves mention

in this connection. Down from 1750 to this day the

Acharya hierarchy is unbroken, uniquely continuous in

this Asramam. The Acharyas are also native to the

school; inbred and brought up by Kalakshapam /

invitation by earlier Pontiffs at some time. Once a

gap occurred in the Ahobila Mutt; for some five years

(1900-1905). The Poundarikapuram Andavan of this

Asramam had proudly helped in securing a deserving

candidate and giving him Sannyasa order and installing

him as the Pontiff (the 38th). This happened in 1905.

 

Thus, from Srirangam, he continued his mission. The

Asramam under Sri Srinivasa Maha Desikan was a center

of religious activities and philosophical iscussions.

The Acharya was an erudite scholar in Vedaanta

Sastras; he possessed an extraordinary power of mind

by which he could accurately recall any passage, sloka

or Sutra with ease. Many learned scholars came to

study Adhyatma Sastras under his feet. Apart from the

saamaanya sishyas and countless extraordinary sishyas,

mention must be made of a few outstanding sishyas who

distinguished themselves by their startling mastery of

the sampradaya granthas in all their facets and left

an indelible mark in the form of permanent

contributions to the growth and spread of

the Munithraya sampradayam.

 

And thus the three Acahrays who succeeded him after,

Srimad Ranganatha Mahadesikan, Srimad ViNNaRRankarai

Srinivasa Mahadesikan and Sri Gopaladesika Mahadesikan

are manifestations of the Great AchArya Himself as

they follow his footprints in the sands of time,

offering spiritual succour to the ever growing

disciples. In their succession lies the clue to great

Acharya’s prophetic gift, the Visionary that he was.

 

In 1934, in the month of Vaikasi on Pornami day, the

AchArya's look finally fell kindly on the great

scholar disciple from Mannaargudi as he had decided

that he should succeed him and carry forward the

intellectual and spiritual service that he had so

deftly given a new dimension to. Thus Sri Mannargudi

Anadavan, (followed then by sri ViNNaaRRankarai

Andavan) succeeded Sri Srinivasa Mahadesikan

(Poundarikapuram Anadavan). And Prakritham Andavan is

Srimad Andavan ParavaakkOttai Gopaladesika

Mahadesikan, whose 85th Thirunakshathram was

celebrated in last Panguni [March]

 

While this was the Great Acharya’s work to keep the

line of succession continuous, he did not rest content

there; he knew the coming days would

demand more than this. While this was the Great

Acharya Srimad Poundarikapuram Andavan Sri

Srinivasadesika mahadesikan's work to keep the

line of succession continuous, he did not rest content

there; he knew the coming days would demand more than

this, that the future upkeep of our

sampradaya would need not merely " ships " and " light

houses " , but also, pillars and foundation Structures.

Among the many hundreds of Ashthikas/Sishyas, mention

should be made of Sri A.V Gopalacharyar of Anbil,

of Sri Krishna thathachariar Swamy of Bangalore, and

of Sri C.M Vijayaraghavachariar Swamy also of

Bangalore, not because others were less equal, but

because these scholar disciples carved for themselves

a unique position.

 

Sri A.V Gopalacharyar was at the feet of this great

Acharya for 42 years of his life, practically everyday

learning the nuances of our sampradayam. A

man of shrewd intellect, a lawyer matchless in his

profession at Tiruchi and affluent, learned in

Poorvapaksham forms of Advaita found full

enlightenment from Acharya's responses and answers to

his full load of doubts and questions. Srimad Andavan

well versed in the intricacies of Advaita completely

and fully satisfied the disciple's lurking doubts so

well that Sri Anbil Gopalcharyar Swami was enabled to

author many books in elucidation of Advaitha

philosophy, - a contribution of very crucial

importance for the very understanding of Greatness of

unparalleled and unambiguous Visishtadvaita; he also

brought out a few other granthas.

 

He perpetuated the memory of this great mahan thus, in

the form of granthas and idealized it by instituting

the " Srinivasa Mahadesikan Vidhwath Sadhas " ,

munificently endowing for its conduct.

 

It is an annual feature since then, in this ashramam

that brings in congregation scholars of repute for

intellectual and philosophical discussion, disputation

and authoritative assertion of our

sampradaya Gnana.

 

What Sri AV Gopalchariar had done – the Granthas he

brought out and the vidwath sadhas he instituted

standing “concretized” in the form of an elegant front

mandapa named after the great Savant, reverberating

with the sonorous voices of the great scholars who

congregate there- will for ages

speak of the glory of his master – Srimad Andavan

Poundarikapuram Swamy.

 

So was the great scholar from Bangalore, Sri Krishna

Thathachariar who sat at the feet of the great Acharya

for several years and in turn in

multiplication of those years, imbibed with a sense of

purpose and mission, he enthusiastically undertook the

propagation of our Munithraya Sampradaya

by teaching many disciples in and around Bangalore- a

contrbution of great value requiring Bhashanthara

Gnana to cater to the Spiritual well being of the

Kannada Desa sishyavarga so dear to Srimath

Bhashyakarar and Swamy Desikan.

 

Equally great was the life of Sri CM

vijayaraghavachariar of Bangalore. It was all a divine

dispensation; how else could a retired police circle

inspector who had casually gone to prostrate at the

feet of this Acharya,get transformed, metamorphosed,

so to say into an erudite scholar with such depth,

thorughness and accuracy of knowledge as to be able to

write and publish many of our sampradaya granthas in

Kannada language for the

invaluable benefit of the disciples in kannada desa.

 

And you will be wonderstruck when known how did it

happen. This Swami, after ten interesting and

enlightening years of Gurukulavasam, at Srirangam

Poundarikapuram Ashramam and gratified at the

Acharya’s commitment with which he taught him all

these years right from Sanskrit alphabet to

Vedanthas and Saathras in great depths, offered even

in those days, an enticing Rs 10,000 as Guru

dhakshiNa. Srimad Andavan looked up and asked

him, “Is this what you have learnt and understood

me?”. The disciple persisited in offering it as a

token of his gratitude. The Acharya consolingly told

him, “If I accepted this from you, great harm will

follow- in future, our disciples may stop coming to

mearn from me unable to make a GurudhakshiNa; also

this may incite me an expectation of the same too”.

The disciple knew that the Acharya was sincere but

still he persisted. Now the Acharya spoke- “Think what

one in my state can do with this money; with you

perhaps, it may find immense use in making our

Sampradayam Granthas so much needed for the future”.

This was the divine spark that impregnated in the

mind of Sri CM Vijayaraghavachariar the passion and

the spirit for writing many books in kannada language

which are available even today as source books for

reference and research in Karnataka – something which

Bhagawan Ramanuja would have approved of. Words do not

suffice to extol the importance of this service to

Srivaishnava community. Srimad Andavan was

noted for his vairAgya – inassailable spirit of total

renunciation of worldly, material things. It was

Bhagawath Sankalpa, that in this manner a

whole range of our Samparadya Granthas should be born

in Kannada language.

 

It is pertinent to mention here of just two sweet

anecdotes illustrating Srimad Andavan Poundarikapuram

Swamy’s depth of knowledge and a wealth of

interpretations whether it be Swamy Desikan’s

Srisukthis or Bhagavath Bhashyakarar’s Sri Bhashya or

Gita Bhashya or any grantha whatsoever. The

article will remain incomplete without recalling these

incidents. One relates to Sri CM Vijayaraghachariar’s

personal experience. Late one night at Srirangam, East

Utthara Veedhi Sri Vijayaraghavachariar – while

bringing back to his mind the explanation of Acharya

Srimad Andavan on the Abheethi sthava sloka 7:

 

ramaa dhayitha rangabhUramaNa… na thasya yamavasyathaa

narakapaatha bhIthi

krutha:

 

It proclaims Swamy desikan’s declaration of Lord

Ranganatha’s certain protection to Prapannas from

falling into the clutches of Yamakinkaras if

they chant this sloka. Sri CMV Swamy could not digest

it. He found it difficult to understdnmand as

to how one sloka could be so specific to Sri

Ranganatha;s protection! Perhaps, swamy would have

said this due to Bhagavath Abhimaanam and abhimaanam

towards Swamy Desikan’s abhIthis sthavam.” – thus, he

was pondering and was having a sleepless night.

 

Srirangam Divya Dampathi appeared in Acharya Srimad

Andavan’s dream and said, “Your sishya has got a doubt

on SrI Vedantha Desikan’s sthuthi on Us.

Go and explain the greatness and speciality of this

sloka. Within an hour, Srimad Andavan knocked at the

dorr of Sri CM Vijayaraghavachariar and right there at

the door step, explained the meaning of sloka and

greatness of the compassion of Divya Dampathi with

tears rolling down his cheeks. This is a proof of his

depth and clarity and explains how Lord Himself was

prathyaksham (visible to his eyes) to him. Swamy

desikan has packed into this sloka all the

Beejaaksharaas contained in the Praanaprathishta

Manthra and Saannidhyaachana manthra – installation of

energizing mantras pertaining to Lord Ranganathan.

 

Another famous anecdote: Srimad Andavan had tremendous

Sri Hayagriva Mantrasiddhi. One there was a young Boy

of five years walking in front of

Swamy when the parents of the boy came to the Ashramam

for offering their obeisance and dhaNdavath praNamams

to swamy. The boy walked towards where

Swamy was delivering his kaalakshepam. Swamy looked at

the child, pausing the kaalakshepam and aksed him, “un

peyar enna?” (what is your name?) The

boy did not utter a word. The Father of the boy told

Swamy that he is born dumb (mute). Immediately Srimad

Andavan asked the boy to come near and asked

him to sit in front of him. He taught him

“aksharaabhyaasam,” and recited,

 

SrImAn venkatanAthAryaH kavitArkika kesarI |

vedAntAcArya-varyome sannidhattAm sadA hRdi ||

 

(May the glorious Venkatanatha, the greatest of

teachers of Vedanta, and the lion among poets and

debaters, reside forever in my heart.) and

 

jnAnanda mayamdEvam nirmalaspaTikAkruthim |

AdhAram sarva viganAnAm hayagrIvam upAsmahE ||

 

The five year old boy repeated both slokas. The one

who did not speak a single word in his past five years

spoke due to swamy’s merciful kataaksham.

Today that boy has grown to His Holiness Sri

Rangapriya Mahadesikan Swamy of Bangalore.

 

The Great Sri Kozhiyaalam Raghavachariar Swami came to

Srirangam and sought Sannyaasa Sweekaranam at the feet

of Srimad Poundarikapuram Andavan who initiated him

into the Sannyaasa Asrama in 1920 in the year Roudri-

Aani- Pournami day. The Aasthaana Vidwan of Tirumalai

Tirupati Devasthanam, Kapisthalam Desikaachaarya

submitted to Swami for approval his Grantha

" Adhikarana Ratna Maalai " . The Swami accorded his

approval.

 

When the affluent devotees of Poundarikapuram village

nevertheless not his disciples had arranged for

renovation and consecration, It was H H Sri

Poundarikapuram Andavan who was invited to lend the

'holy hand' for karasparsam (by a great man). With

what results! All can see today how the small shrine

of Oppiliappn has grown as Southern Thiruppathi, with

gala and festivity, fund-flow and pomp and fame and

attraction, all after 1928!

 

The event has a precedent in Thirukkudanthai Desikan

lending his 'kara-sparsam' to Araavamuthan some 200

years back!

 

This was Srimad Andavan Poundarikapuram Srinivasa

Mahadesikan, a creative genius, a perennial spring who

made himself an institution and a legend with

his many sided qualities. He was a great servant, a

teacher unsurpassed, an organizer with an eye for

protection, a missionary with a vision and a

visionary with a mission. No wonder that he was known

as Gnana Vairagya Anusntana Sampanna. A little known

truth about this unassuming practitioner mentioned by

Sri Navalpaakaam NS Devanathachar who got it

authoritatively from Srimad Andavan ViNNARRankarai

Swami. This mahaan made it a daily practice to chant

praNavam even during brief leisure hours following the

precepts of Upanishads, thereby experiencing the

thrill of the union of JivAthmA with the ParamAthmA.

That he was practicing this was not known to

anybody. It was not necessary to inform anyone, it

being the individual communion of Jivan with Sriman

Narayanan. How did then others come to know of? It was

the custom to invite four Srivaishnavas and feed them

in the Ashramam on the completion of every one crore

(ten millions) of PraNava japam. Such was his accuracy

in keeping count of a small GREAT mantra. Sri

VennaaRRankarai Andavan Swami chanced to notice

this and humbly enquired and got to know the truth.

 

Does this not testify to the unassuming nature and

greatness of the AchArya, his gnAna, anushtAnam and

VairAgyam?

 

Whenever there were doubts on sri Bhashyam Grantham

and its interpretations, Srimad Andavan was always the

Judge to pass his final judgement as to who is right.

- " was the statement of Srimad Azhagiyasingar

(41st Pattam).

 

What a wonder! He attained the everlasting Bliss of

AchAryan Thiruvadi on 20th October 1934, a day after

completion of one of the many Sri Bhashya Grantha

saaRRumuRais, signifying Sri Bhashya Bhakti.

 

Let us pay our obeisance to this Great Acharyan His

Holiness Srimad Andavan Sri Poundarikapuram Swamy on

His 155th Thirunakshathram, today.

 

Acknowledgement:

1. Biography of Srimad Andavan Poundarikapuram

Srinivasa Mahadesikan- by

Prof. P.R. Srinivasan, Perugavazhndhan, Bangalore.

2. Sri Anbil Ramaswamy’s write up.

3. Dr. Sri VN Vedantha Desikan Swamin’s article

4. Sri Delhi Hari Nagar Rajagopachariar Swamy’s

article

 

AchAryan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Regards

Namo Narayana

Achaarya paadhaaangri rEnu:

 

 

 

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