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SriRangaSri List Archive: Message 00049 Mar 2009

 
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SrI:
SrImathE Gopaladesika mahadesikaya namah:
Dearest Srivaishnavas,

Today is the Thirunakshathram of SRIMAD PERIYA ANDAVAN
a.k.a VATHAL SWAMI (Masi- Pushyam) (1801 - 1886 CE) 

Let us pay our obeisance to him by enjoying his divine life history written by 
Sri Anbil Ramaswamy Swami in his Acharya Vamsa vriksham series)

Periya Andavan, as he has come to be familiarly known
is the real architect of the Andavan Paramparai, for
he laid it on firm foundation. He lived during the
19th Century CE- a most disturbed period in the
history of Vaishnavism, when the Southern part of the
Tamil country became a hotbed of internecine wars.
Carnatic Wars (1743-1767 CE) broke out between the
English and the French and both the temple and the
town of Srirangam suffered much. The pilgrim town and
the center of Vaishnavism became an occupied
territory. The Nawab_s army took shelter in the
Srirangam temple. The military fortunes of the
contending parties were fluctuating until the English
won the war and seized Tiruchirappalli and the
surrounding regions. 

In his Poorvasrama, Periya Andavan was called Sri
Srinivasa Raghavachariar. The son of one
Krishnamacharya Swami, he belonged to the village,
Pillaiyaranai near Kanchi. He was born in the Kali
year Roudri in the month of Maasi when the star
Pushyam was in the ascendant and this corresponds to
25-2-1801. He came from a distinguished Dipa- Pradipa
family who were entitled to some special honors at the
Kanchi Perarulaalan temple. After Brahmopadesa at the
age of 8, his father himself instructed him in the
Vedas and Divya Prabhandam. He also administered the
Sudarsana Maha Mantram. He received his Pancha
Samskaram from one Sama Periyappan Swami, a descendent
of Tata Desika. In the course of a pilgrimage, Sri
Krishnamachariar and his family worshipped at the
Aravamudan Sannidhi at Kumbakonam, where he met one
Navalpakkam Raghavachariar Swami, an erudite scholar
and previous acquaintance. At the latter_s request,
Sri Krishnamachariar and his family stayed with him
for some years as his guest. At his departure, he left
his son to be instructed in Kavyas and Tamil lore at
the feet of Navalpakkam Swami. Later, Srinivasa
Raghavachariar studied Vyakarana and Mimamsa Sastras
at the feet of his paternal uncle. Goaded by an
intense urge to seek the feet of Sri Vedanta Ramanuja
Maha Desikan, he arrived at Srirangam and prostrated
himself before the Acharya. From him he sought and
received Bharanyasam at the Sannidhi of Lord
Ranganatha. Discovering in the Prapanna, the potential
Acharya, Srimad Andavan directed him to get instructed
in all Rahasya Granthas by Tirutturaip Pundi Andavan. 

Soon, he became a scholar in all Vedaanta Sastras and
won the appreciation of the two Acharyas and their
disciples. He visited the Navalpakkam village six
months after his marriage and on that occasion, his
father-in-law presented him a gold ring. Srinivasa
Raghavachariar is said to have made golden image of
Swami Desika out of the ring and installed it in the
local temple. With an intense longing to become a
Sannyasi, he came back to Srirangam but both his
mother and wife pleaded with him not to take to holy
orders. Sensing the domestic compulsions, the Acharya
advised him to remain a householder till such time as
he is blessed with a child. With the birth of a
daughter, a few years later, Sri Srinivasa
Raghavachariar decided to take the Sannyasa Asrama. 

But, still his mother would not allow him to do so.
Assuring his mother that he would not become an
ascetic unless he saw auspicious signs, he proceeded
to Srirangam. On the way, he encountered an astrologer
who predicted that he would turn either a great king
or a saint destined to blaze a new trail. Just about
the same time two Garudas were seen hovering in the
sky. The green signal for the new course of life was
given and his mother reconciled herself to the
inevitable and blessed her son. Taking leave of Lord
Devaraja, Sri Srinivasa Raghavachariar reached
Srirangam and received the ochre robes from Tirutturap
Pundi Andavan. Assuming the name of Srinivasa Maha
Desikan, he entered the holy order of ascetics at the
age of 30 in the year 1831 CE. 

Srimad Srinivasa Maha Desikan led a simple, austere
life on the banks of Kollidam. Every day he would go
round the streets of Srirangam and accept alms from
the houses of only those who lived a pure life,
reciting and teaching Vedas. It is said that after
receiving the cooked rice, he would go to the river
and wash it so as to rid it of all fat and oil
content. The meager food he took lacked the vital fat
content rendering him frail and he was, therefore,
called _Vathal Swami_. He was a self-denying saint, a
Jithendriya who bent his Thirumeni to the service of
his soul. He taught rather by his practice than by
precept. He wielded such influence on his disciples
that they hailed him _Periya Andavan_. When
Tirutturaip Pundi Andavan attained his Acharya_s feet,
Periya Andavan became the Acharya in due course. On
hearing about his succession,, learned scholars of the
day came to see him and obtain his grace. A brilliant
galaxy of distinguished scholars flocked to his feet
and the Goshti consisted of such eminent persons as
Vedaanta Tatachariar Swami of Sankarapuram (who later
became Veliyanallur Andavan of this Asramam), Sri
Tirupput Kuzhi Tatachar Swami, Gopala Samudram Vidwan
Sri Narayanachar Swami, Mannargudi Vyaakarana
Narasimhachar Swami ( who late became the 39th Jeeyar
of Ahobila Mutt), Agnihotram Srinivasa Tatachar Swami,
Vidwan Paravastu Venkatachar of Srivilli puttur,
Tiruvaheendrapuram Ashtaavadhaanam Anantachar Swami (
who later became Tiruk Kudanthai Andavan) etc. etc.
Periya Andavan was a logician of great repute and many
of his disciples also excelled in this art. One
Govardhanam Rangachariar, a reputed logician of the
North arrived in Srirangam and challenged the scholars
of the day to a dialectical debate. 

Mannargudi Rajagopalachariar, nominated by Srimad
Periya Andavan to accept the challenge defeated the
visiting scholar after several days of debate. The
vanquished gracefully accepted defeat and requested
Periya Andavan to spare Raj agopalachariar Swami for a
brief period , so that he could get further
instructions from him in Vedanta. At the end of the
period, he honored Mannargudi Rajagoplachariar and
conveyed his gratitude to Periya Andavan for putting
him in the right path of knowledge. 

He set up the Asrama on the lands donated by a patron
and continued his Kalakshepam classes there
uninterrupted in the sylvan environment. He conducted
classes in Sri Gita Bhashya, Sri Bhashya, Rahasya
Traya Sara and Bhagavad Vishaya more than 30 times to
hundreds of disciples. His Sishyas listened entranced
wondering that so much Vedantic wisdom emanated from
so frail a body. He framed a code of conduct to be
strictly adhered to by his disciples. He undertook a
pilgrimage which took him to Tiruk Kudanthai,
Mannargudi, Vaduvur and other places. Whatever he
touched he enriched and he left behind a tradition of
excellence, a spiritual touch for his worthy
successors to cherish and carry forward. 

Such indeed is the glory of Periya Andavan. He
observed 55 Chaturmasya austerities (58 according to
SRP) during the span of 85 years. He attained the
lotus feet of his Acharya in the year 1886 that is the
Krishna Trayodasi in the month of Makara_. 

His Tanian reads as follows:- 


Sri Rangesa Pathe Samarpitha Bharam Srutyanta Raamaanuja 
Sri Yogeendra Guroothamena Yaminah Srutyanta Vidyaatmanah / 
Praaptha Srutya vathamsa Yugma Hridayam Sri Vaasa Raamaanujaath 
Sri Srivaasa Muneendra Desika Manim Sreyonidhim Samaasraye // 

(meaning) _ I resort to Srivasa Munindra Desika who is
the gem of Sreyas, who did his Bharasamarpanam at the
feet of Rangesa, who had learnt all about Ramanuja
darsanam from his Guru, to whose heart resort all the
Srutis_ 

Acharyan ThiruvaDigaLE SaraNam
Regards
Namo narayana
dAsan


      


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