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Ramanuja List Archive: Message 00137 Sep 2002

 
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Sri:
Srimathe Ramanujaya nama:

Dear devotees,
Salutations to all. Once in a while writing a post on 
Ramanuja and his successors is a good idea. It may not be in order!

Srirangam temple was the first SrivAiSNava shrine to 
incorporate the Hymns of AzhvArs into its religious worship. 
YAmunAchArya/ALavandAr and Ramanuja used to give regular discourses 
on NAlAyira Divya Prabandham to an audience of devotees,a tradition 
that continues to this day. This is open to all kinds of audience 
including women,children and people from all varnas, 
all ashramas. 

The AchAryAs of Srirangam specialized in the interpretation of 
the AzhvArs' hymns in oral discourse and written commentaries.

Once Ramanuja was meditating on some AzhvAr 
pAsurams/hymns. When his disciple,Tirukurukai PirAn PiLLAn disclosed 
it(what Ramanuja was thinking),Ramanuja was startled and immediately 
embraced PiLLAn saying "you are NAthA's clan","you are my jnAna putra
(son of mind)". NAthA/Nathamuni was a predecessor of YAmunA(right now 
don't want to introduce too many names).

"Why Ramanuja didn't write a commentary on NammAzhvAr's 
TiruvAymozhi?". Sri MA Venkatakrishnan,in one upanyAsam gave the 
reason.

"If I(Ramanuja) write a commentary on TiruvAymozhi,I will create an 
impression among the people that this is the "final word" on it. Such 
a thing should never happen to Divya Prabandham. Based on the 
individuals taste,anubhava,love for the God,TiruvAymozhi's greatness 
also will grow. So I appoint you,KurukEsA(PiLLan) to write a 
commentary on TiruvAymozhi". So the first commentary(as YAmnuna 
wished)was written by PiLLAn and it's called "Six 
Thousand/ARAyirappadi". In paraphrasing NammAzhvAr,PiLLAn 
uses "nirhEtuka" frequently and says only God's "grace" can effect 
salvation. 

Azhagiya MaNavALa PerumAL NAyanAr[AD 1207-1309],the 
author of "AchArya Hrdayam" was very famous for his mastery of 
NAlAyira Divya Prabandham,had a unique writing style,he interprets 
and defends the importance of NammAzhvAr's thoughts and affirms the 
spontaneity of Lord's Grace for salvation. AchArya Hrdayam is the 
essence of the teachings contained in Idu/MuppaththARAyirappadi. The 
author of Idu is Vadakku TiruvIdi PiLLai(father of the two brothers 
PiLLai LOkAchArya and Azhagiya MaNvALa PerumAL NAyanAr)who was a 
disciple of NampiLLai,and recorded his guru(nampiLLai)'s lectures on 
TiruvAymozhi in Idu. NampiLLai's two great disciples are Vadakku 
TiruvIdi PiLLai and Periya VAchchAn PiLLai.

BTW Ramanuja and NampiLLai said to have routinely used the touch of 
non-brahmin bhAgavatAs for purifying their body as ritual[AchArya 
Hrdayam 85]. So let's all enjoy AchArya Hrdayam by reading Sri 
PadmanAbhan's posts on Lord's kalyANa guNAs as NammAzhvAr sees. 

AzhvAr EmperumAnAr Jeeyar TiruvadigaLE saraNam
nappinnai 






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