Thuppul PiLLai- 17- Swamy Desika- a gift of natural talent- memory and intellect

[Guest guest]

SrI:

SrImathE Nigamantha Mahadesikaya namah:

SrImAn venkatanAthAryaH kavitArkika kesarI |

vedAntAcArya-varyo me 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.

 

Dearest Srivaishnavas,

 

The century and a half- which passed after Sri Ramanuja produced many

critics of his system, who brought to bear against it all the skill and

learning of which they were capable. Then there descended in to this world,

the great Acharya, Sri Vedantha Desika, [1268 CE] the greatest among the

master intellects ever produced. The gifts of natural talent, memory and

intelligence with which he was endowed with were of such highest order that,

by the age of twenty, he attained mastery of all vidyas and thereby acquired

intellectual equipment covering the entire range of literary, ethical and

religious wisdom handed down from the past. Such was the superhuman

pre-eminence to which he quickly rose among the scholars of his age and

that, in every field of knowledge, poetic, dialectics, religions, logic and

philosophy, that he was acclaimed and accepted as an Avatara purusha by

almost all his contemporaries.

 

The dizzy eminence he reached in the domain of philosophy and dialectics is

only matched by the brilliance of his intellectual energy exhibited in every

one of his writings. [we will see and enjoy them all briefly] It is no

exaggeration to say that the moral and intellectual forces that radiated

from the long line of great poorvacharyas of the Visishtadvaita School were

all more genuinely and actively embodied in him that in any other religious

teacher known to history. The powerful influence that he exercised, as much

during his life as after, is in no small measure due to the fascination of

his great and attractive personality which was an embodiment of uprightness

and nobility, simplicity and wisdom. No frame work in which we try in words

to enclose this towering personality, can do justice to the varied powers of

his intellect, the wide range of his knowledge, or the burning faith of his

simple life. No wonder than eminent scholars even of divergent faiths and

religious thoughts joined in paying their unstinting homage to his greatness

as a thinker, writer and poet. He built a fortress for Ramanuja drasanam so

that no other non vedic religious scholars can destroy the green fertile

fields of Ramanuja siddhantham.

 

Among the renowned acharyas who have been born in the Great Bharatha varsha,

the unquestioned and unquestionable pre-eminent place belongs to

Acharyavarya, Swami Nigamantha Mahadesikan, the luminary among Acharyas.. If

all other sthothras (verses) shine forth because of their literary merit,

devotional involvement and mantric qualities, the sthothras by Swami Desika

stand apart and distinct on a much higher pedestal. Swami Desika whose

erudition, ease of flow of language, command in diction and inherent power

to mix the Bheejaaksharams in them are unexcelled. In such circumstances, it

is no wonder that the best religious literature in Sanakrit and Tamil

pertaining to Vishsitdavita are those bestowed on us by Swami Desika. Let us

glean the various incidents of Swami’s life in detail before looking at the

sthothras.

 

Let us enjoy the life history now from tomorrow.

 

Swamy Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam

Regards

Namo narayana

dAsan

kavi-tArkika-simhAya kalyANa-guNa-SAline |

Srimate venkateSAya vedAntagurave namaH ||

 

Salutations to Sri Venkatesa, in whom all perfections reside, who is the

teacher of Vedanta and the lion among poets and debaters

 

_______________

Get 10mb of inbox space with MSN Hotmail Extra Storage

http://join.msn.com/?pgmarket=en-sg