SrI: SrImathE Gopaladesika mahadesikaya nama: Dearest all, Kulasekara AzhwAr had declared his great love and reverence for the devoted and pure bhakthas of Srirangam, the ParamaikAnthi bhAgawathAs, said that his mind will ever be blessed to have love and affection and have highest regards for the bhAgawathas of Srirangam. Now he starts to look and notice the other people, the worldly ones (like me) who run amuck after material pursuits, and sensual and carnal desires. He feels bad and disgusted about them. He wants to dissociate himself from them completely in order not to get even an iota of their influence. They are under the misconception and illusion that this body is their soul itself; dhEhaAthma bhramam; and consider that the sensual pleasures are the ultimate in life and there is no other bliss in life except eating, sleeping and mating. AzhwAr feels that it is not right and appropriate for him to see them; talk to them or associate themselves with them. Now let us enjoy the wonderful verses of the 3rd decad. meyyil vaazhkkaiyai meyyenak koLLum_iv vaiyan^ thannodum kooduva thillaiyaan aiya NnEaraNG kaaenRa zhaikkinREn maiyal koNdaazhin^ thEnenRan maalukkE 3.1 The fleeting temporary lives are considered permanent by these worldly folks. I would never ever associate with them. Swami! I am calling You as Rangaaa! I am now blessed to be in love with the most loving Lord my Master, my PerumAL whose care and vaathsalyam is towards me. This feeling of ?bhayam? [fear] about being associated with the worldly folks and a desire to stay from them is the quality every Prapannan must possess. Sri Ramanujacharya was about to attain Acharyan ThiruvaDi and he was completing his mission on the earth. He gave his last final words for his sishya kOti.. He refers to this kind of people whom every prapannan should stay away from. Let us hear from our Sri Sadagopan Iyengar?s wonderful and inimitable narration. Having told the listeners about the different types of kainkarya that prapannas should perform, depending on their capability and aptitude, Sri Ramanuja went on to classify the three categories of people (anukoolar, pratikoolar and anubhayar) that a prapanna encounters in this world, and the standard of behaviour that he should adopt towards each of them. Elaborating, the master said that all Sri Vaishnavites came under the category of ?anukoolar?. At the sight of such bhagavatas, a prapanna should rejoice as at the cooling touch of sandal paste, fragrant flowers, full moon and balmy breeze. (?anukoolarai kandAl chandana kusumAdigaL pOlavum nilavu tendral pOlavum abhimata vishayangaL pOlavum ugandu vartthippAn?). Fortifying the Acharya?s words, Sri Desikan points out, quoting the Chandilya Smriti, that the Lord is not pleased with those who do not favour His bhaktas ??anarchita tadbhaktam Bhagawan nAbhinandati?. Exactly the opposite type of behaviour was recommended by the Yatiraja towards the second category of people- the Pratikoolar or enemies of the Lord and His devotees. These should be shunned as if they were venomous snakes or a raging fire. The Mahabharata emphasizes this thus- ?yE dvishanti mahAtmAnam na smaranti cha Kesavam na tEshAm puNya teertthEshu gati: samsargiNAmapi.? Bathing in the holiest of rivers would not benefit those who have hate for the Lord in their minds. The same fate awaits people who are cohorts of such sinners. The company of such people destroys what little love we have for God.( ?pratikoola samsargam bhagavat preEmatthai azhikkum?). The third type of people, ?anubhayar?, are those who have neither love nor hate for the Lord, and are just indifferent, engaged in their pursuit of mundane pleasures, with little time to spare for the Creator. A prapanna should treat such people as if they were worthless inanimate objects like pieces of wood or rubbish. (?anubhayarai kaNdAl kAshta lOshtAdigaLai kandAl pole triNavatkarippAn?).If they display a positive attitude, the prapanna should try to help them to acquire spiritual knowledge, and if they don?t, he should pity them for being beyond redemption. This is brought out by this beautiful sloka, quoted by Swami Desikan- ?adya prabhruti hE lOkA! Yooyum yooyum vayam vayam arttha kAma parA yooyum nArAyaNaparA vayam nAsti sangati:asmAkam yushmAkam cha parasparam vayam tu kinkarA VishnO:yooyum indriya kinkara:? Oh residents of this material world! You hanker after material riches and other mundane pleasures, while we crave only for the Lord?s mercy. You are slaves of your indriyAs, while we are the Lord?s slaves. Hence there is absolutely no meeting point between us.(?And never shall the twain meet?, as Kipling said.). Having laid down the kainkaryas to be performed and the type of behaviour to adopt towards various types of people, Sri Ramanuja also warned disciples of the impediments in the way of rightful conduct- indulgence in materialistic pleasures. If a prapanna were to disregard Sri Vaishnavas on materialistic grounds, he would surely incur the Lord?s displeasure, just as indifferent conduct towards the Crown Prince would anger the King. If one were to befriend the ?pratikoolars? for ephemeral benefits, it would be akin to the Queen of a vast kingdom seeking alms like a common beggar, while her husband is the all-powerful King, with vast riches at his command. If, for material benefits, one were to cohort with ?anubhayar?(who are indifferent to the Lord) the Lord would surely disregard such a prapanna, for he knows not how to discern a precious diamond from a worthless stone. Kulasekara PerumAn ThiruvaDigaLE SaraNam Regards Namo narayana dAsan ____________________________________________________________________________________ Bored stiff? Loosen up... Download and play hundreds of games for free on Yahoo! Games. http://games.yahoo.com/games/front Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Oppiliappan/ <*> Your email settings: Individual Email | Traditional <*> To change settings online go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Oppiliappan/join (Yahoo! ID required) <*> To change settings via email: mailto:Oppiliappan-digest@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx mailto:Oppiliappan-fullfeatured@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: Oppiliappan-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
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