sri:
srimathE rAmAnujAya namah
Ramanuja sambhandam leads to Moksham - Part 3
** So who is the Acharya **
We again resort to Aptha Vakhyam to prove that the archarya being referred
is indeed Swami Ramanuja. Now, the greatness of Vedas lies in the fact
that they have been given by Sriman Narayana. They are not themselves
glorified. Sriman Narayana Himself says that "I am the only one who knows
Vedas in its entirety. I am the one Who gave Vedas" (VEdaishcha sarvahi
AhamEva vEdyAh. VedAntagrku VedavidhevachAham). Any Grantham (work) given
by Sriman Narayana can then be equated to Vedas. One thing that
immediately comes to our mind is that Sriman Narayana incarnated as
Bouddha, giving birth to Bouddha sect. Nothwithstanding this fact, we
still do not recognize or embrace it Therefore the additional condition is
that our apthas, that is poorvAchAryAs should bear testimony to its
authenticity. In TiruppAvai verse 26, Andal avers the same ("Melayar
cheivanaigal"). The following paragraphs focus on this aspect.
In every archAvatara, Sriman Narayana stamps with authority that it is
Ramanuja who is the Acharya. When Ramanuja prostrated before Sri
Ranganatha in Srirangam, He pledged His wealth to Ramanuja and gave him the
name "UdayavarE (One who holds this world and the deva loka").
"Henceforth I am not the one who is going to take the burden of giving moksham
and it is only Ramanuja who can give it".
In Ramanuja Nootrandadi, verse 66, TiruArangathAmudanAr says that it is
MadhavA Who gives moksham to people who are qualified to do Gnana and
Bhakti yoga. But it is swami Ramanuja, who wipes off the sins of
unqualified people(ValvinayEn manatthil ) like me and grants moksham.
Pillai Lokam Jeeyar, in his commentary on Ramanuja Nootrandadi avers that
Ramanuja's power to give moksham is well brought out in the above verse.
TiruMangai Azhwar in TirunEdunthAndakam, says- "Veda Nangai" (He is the one
Who gave us the Vedas and the purport of Vedas).
Swami Manavala Mamunigal says- On reaching paramapadam, the jeevatma enjoys
the eternal pleasure sitting on Sriman Narayana's lap. This has been made
possible Swami Ramanuja (MamalarAl pon madiyil vAitthu uraikkum vAzhvu
namakku yEthirAjan arulum vAzhve).
Kidambi swami, a great saint started singing the verse "Aparadha sahasra
Bhajanam?"(Alavandar's strotra ratnam) to the Lord Thirumalirin cholaimala
Azhagar. The lord became furious and told Kidambi swami that this
statement holds good, before Ramanuja and not after. For everyone who has
taken and will take birth after Ramanuja, he is a sanatha and has a gathi
and the only gathi is Ramanuja's thirvadi (lotus feet).
All the above statements bear testimony to the fact that it is indeed
Ramanuja who is our Acharyan- so emphatically stated by Sriman Narayana
Himself and tirelessly reiterated by our illustrious preceptors in their
lofty works.
There are numerous other instances that vouch for Swami Ramanuja's unique
position in SriVaishanavism.
To be continued ....
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You can hear the upanyasam on-line at:
http://www.radioramanuja.com/live.htm
azhwAr emberumAnAr JeeyAr thiruvadigalE saranam
Vedics Documentation Team http://www.radioramanuja.com/docs.htm
Basic Tenets of SriVaishnavism
adiyEn rAmanuja dAsan - Kesavan Srinivasan
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