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Oppiliappan List Archive: Message 00164 Nov 2005

 
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  Thiru Arangan Ula- the sojourn of the Lord. ? 7. SwAmi lOkAchAryan attains 
parama padam.
   
  PiLLai lOkAchAryAr was now really tired, yet he had to proceed in order to 
avoid the advancing Islamic forces. He proceeded to a village called 
jyothishkudi, which was surrounded by the Anamalai mountains adjoining thick, 
dense forests. They found a dilapidated mandapam (ceremonial hall), and decided 
to retire for the night. piLLai lOkAchAryar was really sapped- the age of his 
95 years old body is catching him on. He knew it was time for him to leave his 
body. He was surrounded by his great disciples: vilAnchOlai piLLai, 
koorakulOthunga dAsar,thirukkannangudi pillai, thiruputkuzhi jeeyar, nAloor 
piLLai and the old lady- mother of Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn, who was later 
famously known as ThiruvAimozhi piLLai. He asked the old lady to fan namperumAL 
since he was sweating. What a striking example of devotion, even during his 
last moments!! He meditated on his Guru and father, Swami vadakku thiruveedhip 
piLLai; he observed numerous ants in the place and he touched all of them, for 
the
 sAstrAs say that any living being touched by the hands of a vaishnavA is 
assured mOkshA (salvation). Ladies and gentlemen, piLLai lOkAchAryan once again 
justified his name as the universal guru, for he delivered even ants and 
insects until his last moment!! 
   
  Where exactly is jyOthishkudi? I am trying to present Sri ArangarAjan swAmins 
VERY INTERESTING memoir (It is important to know that Sri ArangarAjan swAmin is 
not only a scholar, but also a researcher/historian -as a professor in a big 
university):
   
  ?Where is jyOthishkudi?? For generations, historians and Sri vaishnavAs have 
spoken about the place but none have taken the effort to spot it accurately. 
There have been guesses and assumptions, which are seldom accurate. I tried to 
locate that special place. I happened to chance upon a small village filled 
with trees called ?jyOthi vruksham? that have fluorescent leaves which glow in 
the night. The air in the village is filled with holiness, and it gives one a 
special feeling just to be in that village ? very serene, peaceful and divine. 
The name of the village is now ?kodikkuLam?; when I spoke to the village 
elders, it was confirmed that this town is indeed jyOthishkudi, as the word 
?jyOthi? means light, and this village glows in the night because of the 
fluorescent trees. 
   
  Further, there was a region in the town where people are not allowed to use 
any footwear, and no lady was allowed to enter. When enquired, the villages 
replied that an ancient saint was cremated in that area in those days ? the 
information has been passed down generations. The village is surrounded by 
beautiful mountains, and the local folklore is that a group of saintly men 
arrived at the village carrying an idol of God by trekking over those 
mountains. I observed an old mandapam (ceremonial hall) behind which they have 
a small Vishnu temple. We proceeded to the temple, where the name of the deity 
is called ?vedanArAyana perumAL?. 
   
  We were amazed to see that the deity appeared  almost to be a clone of 
namperumAL!! In front of this deity, there was an idol of another personality. 
The locals believed that it was Lord Brahma. But it cannot be Brahma, for he is 
always depicted as the four-headed one. With the permission of the kind priest, 
we sought to enter the sanctum sanctorum of the small temple; I cleaned my 
hands and legs with water before entering. When we observed the idol up close, 
we were surprised to see that the dhoti of the idol was in the brammacharya 
(worn by celibates) style, and not the pancha-kaccham style worn by the 
married. It strengthened our conviction that it was indeed Swami PiLLai 
lOkAchAryan himself. More, the sacred thread worn by the deity was just one in 
number (married brahmanAs wear two) ? confirming that it was Swami piLLai 
lOkAchAryan. The most amazing incident was when we observed millions of ants in 
that region; we thought of them to be the descendants of the ants that Swami
 piLLai lOkAchAryan delivered by his touch. 
   
  Hence, the place where Swami piLLai lOkAchAryan breathed his last is now 
called, ?kodikkuLam?.
   
  Back to the story, as SwAmi piLLai lOkAchAryan was nearing his end, he could 
premonition the rise of Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn and his great services to come 
and he gave instructions to his disciples- all instructions focused only on Sri 
Thirumalai AzhwAn, (who was later glorified as Sri Sailesar, ThiruvAimozhi 
piLLai, Sri SailanAthar. He was also the guru of the Lord?s AchAryA ? Swami 
manavALa mAmunikaL):
   
    
   koorakulOthunga dAsar to bring Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn, the minister of 
Madurai into the Sri VaishnavA fold for he is a great scholar and a very able 
administrator, and a person of his caliber can do a lot for the Sri Vaishnava 
Movement.   
   He instructed Sri Thirukkannangudi piLLai and Sri Thirupputkuzhi Jeeyar to 
teach the meanings of ThiruvAizmozhi to Sri Thirumalai AzhwAn.   
   He instructed Sri nAloor piLLai (who was from Kanchipuram)  to teach the 
meanings of the remaining 3000 pasurams of the divya prabandam to Sri 
Thirumalai AzhwAn who was a great scholar in VedAs and Smrtis, but yet to 
master the divyaprabandam.  
   Last, he called upon the great vilAnchOlai piLLai. ?Please get to 
Thiruvananthappuram and mediate upon me. When Thirumalai AzhwAn comes looking 
for you, please teach him the meanings of Sri Vachana Bhooshanam and instruct 
him with your divine work of sapta kAdhai?
   
  Hence, before he left, he gave clear instructions to all his disciples in 
order for the sampradayam to continue with its divine glory. He attained parama 
padam in the tamil month of Adi, on the dwAdasi day. 
   
                   aththigiri aruLALar anumathiyOn vAzhiyE
                   aippasiyil thiruvONaththavathariththAn vAzhiyE
                   muththi neRi maRaith thamizhAl mozhintharuLvOn vAzhiyE
                   mUthariya maNavALan munbuthiththAn vAzhiyE
                   niththiyam nampiLLai patham nenjchil vaippOn vAzhiyE
                   nIL vachana bUdaNaththil niyamiththAn vAzhiyE
                   uththamamAm mudumbai nagar uthiththa vaLLal vAzhiyE
                   ulagAriyan pathangkaL UzhithoRum vAzhiyE
   
   
                                                                                
          (to be continued??..)


                
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