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Iyer/Iyengar

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Venkatesh K. Elayavalli • May 5, 1999 


>From  reading Sri Anand KaraLapAkkam's  write up on Samashrayanam,
( http:/www.srivaishnava.org/customs/samash.htm )

"IyengAr" means 'Iyndu angam Udayavar'or'Iyndu kAryangaL
Udayavar'. These five refers to the 'Pancha SamskAram'. It also
means the fiva angAs of prapatti. We can in general say that this
PanchaSamskAram gives one the name "IyengAr".

So an Iyer/smartha by birth can become an Iyengar via this process
(which  is what all our acharyas went through).

The question then is: How old is this tradition of Samashrayanam,?

we can conclude that Sri Nammalvar initiated Sri Madurakavi Azhvar
and Sriman Nathamuni.  But who might have initiated other Azhvars?

Is Samashrayanam part of the Pancharatra system? if so, can we  conclude

that Sri Vaishnavam (which is based on Pancharatra system) is as old.

Sorry if I digressed too much.

Adiyen



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