You are here: SriPedia - Ramanuja - Archives - Sep 2002

Ramanuja List Archive: Message 00049 Sep 2002

 
Sep 2002 Indexes ( Date | Thread | Author )
[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next]


Sri:
Srimathe Ramanujaya nama:

Dear Smt Sumitra,
adiyAl feels that you have mixed up the views of the 
two schools. Vinjamoor Venkatesh's post is very clear from the 
standpoint of Srirangam AchAryAs/TennAchArya sampradAyam. 
This is an addition to his reply.

Srirangam AchAryAs:

Insist that living with the bhAgavatAs is essential for a 
prapanna. The virtues of bhAgavatAs and the benefits of contact with 
them are praised in superlatives which rival the value of the vEda 
sAstrAs in MaNavaLa mAmunigaL's jnAna sAra [JS 40]. According to 
AchArya Hrdaya, MM says that sAstric karmAs are inferior and might be 
dropped in favor of archAvatAra. The superiority of prapanna, over 
the followers of other upAyAs who abstain themselves from prohibited 
objects,is in abstaining even from "permitted" obejcts[SVB 101]. For 
a prapanna,cultivation of virtues should be left to the Grace of the 
Lord,who works through the AchAryA and the contact with the 
bhAgavatAs to instill in the soul, the knowledge,devotion,aversion to 
wordly pleasures,non-egoism than trying to cultivate on his own[SVB 
177]. It is similar to PiLLAn's milk analogy:"the goodness one 
cultivates for oneself(self-eefort)is like milk bought from the store 
but the goodness, the Lord fosters in the soul is natural like 
mother's milk. 

KAnchi AchAryAs/vEdAnta Desikan:

All the daily(nitya)and occasional(naimmittika)rites 
enjoined in the sAstrAs according to varNAsrama are obligatory and 
can not be omitted except in extreme cases without incurring the 
Lord's anger. On the other hand, temple services(like offering 
garlands,sweeping,chanting etc)are optional and may be done when time 
permits to heighten the Lord's pleasure. 


Swami Desikan makes it clear that the service which the prapanna does, must be 
within the limits of varNAsrama dharmA[RTS 15]. Scriptural passages which 
praise sUdrA devotees as brahmins and call brahmin non-devotees as sUdrA are 
not to be interpreted to mean that "there is no distinction of varNa/jAti 
among the devotees of the Lord" [RTS 25]. Further he says:

It is not proper to interpret the lives of the AzhvArs or incidences in 
the itihAsa purANas as normative;sAtrA is to be the primary guide to conduct;
it is inappropriate to make the deeds of AzhvArs as examples 
for our performance and even so, if we examine their behavior we find 
no transgression of the rules of their own jAti[RTS 25]. As far epic 
and purANic incidences,which apparaently conflict with sAstrA, are 
concerned, Desikan claims that some people(srirangam AchAryAs) unable 
to grasp the essential meaning of these various anecdotes have 
exaggerated the tumultuous sport of the Lord of Lakshmi in the 
kaliyugA[RTS 29].

NOTE:Desika's position is very clear and directly conflicts with the 
arguments of AchArya Hrdaya. Rahasya Traya Sara(RTS),Desika's magnum 
opus, was his last work. 

[Moderator's note: Even though there were small Abhipraya Bhedam 
(Differrences of opinion) after/during Swami Pillai LokaCharyan's time
esp. With Swami Desikan, there were no two Kalai's etc at that time,
There was only one Ramanuja Sampradaya at that time.]

WRT Ramanuja doing nitya karmAs:SBh 1.3.39

When a competent and trustworthy person asserts that what 
was mistaken for silver is merely a sparkling shell,the error of a 
sUdrA no less than of a brAhmaNA comes to an end;in the same way a 
sUdrA also will free himself from the great cosmic error as soon as 
the knowledge of the true nature of things has arisen in his mind 
through a statement resting on the traditional lore of men knowing 
the vEdA. Nor must you(all the previous bhASyAs written by different 
people including Sankara)object to this on the groung that men 
knowing the vEdA do not instruct sUdrAs and so on,because the text "he
(brAhmaNA) is not to teach him(sUdrA) sacred things" forbids them to 
do so; for men,who have learned- from texts such as "Thou art that
(Tat tvam asi-Ch Up)"- that Brahman is their Self,and thus standing 
on the very top of the vEdA, move no longer in the sphere of those to 
whom "injunctions and prohibitions" apply,and the prohibition quoted 
does not therefore touch them. Knowledge of Brahman may thus spring 
in the mind of sUdrAs and the like,owing to the instruction recieved 
from one of those men who have passed beyond all prohibition.

Ramanuja's explanation(above text)must have been influenced by his 
own experiences with kAnchipUrNA(Tirukkachi nambi),who was not well 
versed in vEdAntic studies but had a clear knowledge of the 
conclusion based on it. Yet Ramanuja did nitya karmAs because his 
time period was dominated by the brahmin communtity which had an 
upperhand in most of the socio-religio matters. He must have had the 
real courage and audacity to introduce revolutionary changes in 
TirunArAyaNapuram temple. Why did he insist that every srivaiSNava 
should stay in TiruNArAyaNapuram atleast for some time? Because it's 
jnAna mandapam/house of knowledge(in the eyes of God,all are equal. 
How can there be distinctions among His devotees which is above the 
level of varNAsrama! But in RTS,Desika clearly says there is a 
distinction between a brahmin and sUdra devotee. RAmAnujA didn't care 
about caste etc,he was all set for samAsrayaNam under Tirukkachi 
Nambi. But it's Tirukkachi nambi out of humbleness and egolessness 
says that the society will not accept and he is not the person to do 
the same for RAmAnujA. No wonder PiLLai LOkAchAryA claims that a 
lower birth is superior because it's more conducive to sEshatva and 
less prone to egoism than a superior birth which is prone to egoism
[SVB 208-10,241-2]. A prapanna's stand is similar to this and above 
the varNAsrama. Even if a prapanna commits sins by not doing nitya 
karmAs,like Tirumazhisai,he can offer the sins as merits to the Lord.

Another angle to look at: Ramanuja did nitya karmAs out of compassion
(lOkasangraha)to uplift the disciples and sons etc. Only when the 
karmAs are done for selfish purposes that it becomes contrary to the 
soul's true nature of dependence. 

Whatever it's the acceptance(to do nitya karmAs or not)has to come 
from Him. The paradox of extremes of the Lord's Supremacy(paratva)on 
one side and His accessibility(saulabhya)on the other side,is the 
central feature of Ramanuja's conception of Deity. 

Both in RAmA and KrSNAvatAra,HE failed miserably to uplift all the 
jivAtmAs. Did everybody realize RAmA/KrSNA as God? NO.

The unpredictability of the autonomous Lord motivates srirangam 
acharyas to seek a safer means of salvation through the "AchAryA". 
PiLLai lOkAchAryA says that only when the Lord is chosen as the upAya 
that the soul alternatively exxperiences fear(from karmA)and non-fear
(from Lord's Grace)[SVB 406-7]. MaNavALa mAmunigaL explains that when 
the unpredictable Lord and Judge of karmA is chosen as the 
upAya,there is the possibility to think that He may,at any 
point/time,reject the soul on account of his sins. But AchAryA is all 
merciful with no autonomous power to punish the soul for his sins and 
hence salvation through his love is without the fear of karma. 

It's precisely due to these reasons, "AchArya abhimAnam/bhakti" had 
such an impact on Ramanuja's disciples that they strongly believed in 
Ramanuja's power to grant salvation(AchAryA as the "sole" means of 
salvation) whoever was connected with him and Ramanuja's prapatti to 
the Lord(SriRanganAthA)extended over even to future generations of 
srivaiSNvAs. One group, with PeriavAchchAn piLLai of srirangam,[AD 
1167-1262]as head, strongly believed in the above while the other 
group,with NadathUr ammAL of kAnchi[AD 1181-1275]as head,apart from 
believing in AchArya abhimAnam,stressed the importance of individual 
efforts/human endeavor in attaining the same(salvation). This rift 
grew wider and wider and deepened in the writings of PiLLai lOkAchAryA
[AD 1205-1311]and Vedanta Desikan[AD 1270-1368]. The two groups had 
differences of opinion on the issues of human initiative,Divine Grace 
and also prapatti and finally spilt into two sects. 

This post should also set up the background for carama slOkam and 
pardon for such a lengthy mail.

AzhvAr EmperumAnAr Jeeyar TiruvadigaLE saraNam
En iniya rAmAnujan tiruvadigaLE saraNam
nappinnai




[Date Prev][Date Next][Thread Prev][Thread Next] [Date Index ] [Thread Index ] [Author Index ]
Home Page
http://www.ibiblio.org/sripedia
ramanuja-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
To subscribe to the list