Sri:
SrimatE Gopaladesika MahadesikAya Namaha,
Dearest Sriman Madhavakkannan Swamin,
Thank you for your superb posting highlighting the greatness of the
mahan-Srimad Poundarikapuram Andavan Swamy. Another important
Kaimkaryam undertaken by this mahan was the clearing of the
precincts of Oppiliappan Koil, which was infested with wild bushes,
shrubs, and thorns, so that Sevarthis could circumambulate the
prakaram of the Temple in comfort. His compassion is indeed
limitless!
Namo Narayana,
SriMuralidhara Dasan
--- In Oppiliappan@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, Madhavakkannan V
<srivaishnavan@...> wrote:
>
> SrI:
> SrImathE Gopladesika 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 a 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 alwayts) 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 two 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 fatherâ??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 â??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 discipleâ??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
Asramamâ??, 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 Acharyaâ??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 discussions. 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 Acharyaâ??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 81st
Thirunakshathram is being celebrated.
>
> While this was the Great Acharyaâ??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 â?" the Granthas he brought out
and the vidwath sadhas he instituted standing â??concretizedâ?? 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 â?"
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
Kannasa Desa sishyavarga so dear to Srimath Bhashyakarar and Swamy
Desikan.
>
> Equally great was the life of Sri CM Vijayaraghavachariar of
Bangalore. Itw as 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 Acharyaâ??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, â??Is this
what you have learnt and understood me?â??. The disciple persisited
in offering it as a token of his gratitude.
>
> The Acharya consolingly told him, â??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 tooâ??. The disciple knew that the
Acharya was sincere but still he persisted. Now the Acharya spoke-
â??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 futureâ??. 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 â?" 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
â?" 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 Swamyâ??s depth of
knowledge and a wealth of interpretations whether it be Swamy
Desikanâ??s Srisukthis or Bhagavath Bhashyakararâ??s Sri Bhashya or
Gita Bhashya or any grantha whatsoever. The article will remain
incomplete without recalling these incidents. One relates to Sri CM
Vijayaraghachariarâ??s personal experience. Late one night at
Srirangam, East Utthara Veedhi Sri Vijayaraghavachariar â?" while
bringing back to his mind the explanation of Acharya Srimad Andavan
on the Abheethi sthava sloka 7:
>
> ramaa dhayitha rangabhUramaNaâ?¦ na thasya yamavasyathaa
narakapaatha bhIthi krutha:
>
> It proclaims Swamy desikanâ??s declaration of Lord Ranganathaâ??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 Desikanâ??s
abhIthis sthavam.â?? â?" thus, he was pondering and was having a
sleepless night.
>
> Srirangam Divya Dampathi appeared in Acharya Srimad Andavanâ??s
dream and said, â??Your sishya has got a doubt on SrI Vedantha
Desikanâ??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 â?"
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, â??un peyar enna?â?? (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
â??aksharaabhyaasam,â?? 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 swamyâ??s
merciful kataaksham. Today that boy has grown to His Holiness Sri
Rangapriya Mahadesikan Swamy of Bangalore. (Read Sri Srinath
Chakravarthyâ??s excellent posts on this Swamy).
>
> 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 162nd
Thirunakshathram, today.
>
> Acknowledgement:
>
> 1. Biography of Srimad Andavan Poundarikapuram Srinivasa
Mahadesikan- by Prof. P.R. Srinivasan, Perugavazhndhan, Bangalore.
> 2. Sri Anbil Ramaswamyâ??s write up 'Acharya vamsa vriksham
> 3. Dr. Sri VN Vedantha Desikan Swaminâ??s article
> 4. Sri Delhi Hari Nagar Rajagopachariar Swamyâ??s article
>
> AchAryan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam
>
> Regards
> namo Narayana
> aDiyEn Narayana Dasan Madhavakkannan
>
------------------------------------
Oppiliappan Koil Varadachari Sadagopan
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