Search:
Bhakti List Archives

The Name Vemkateshwara

From the Bhakti List Archives

TV.Venkat • August 21, 1998 


On Date:    8/20/98 11:28 PM
Sri Gopal wrote :-

___________________________QUOTE__________________________________________

On Thu, 20 Aug 1998 Ramanbil@aol.com wrote:

Dear members,

Can someone please tell me where in writing is Venkateswara ever written
as Vemkateswara (in any Indian script). Some confusion can result because
of the recent incorrect rendering of the word in Telugu/Kannada scripts -
using a '0' ('sunna') instead of the '~Nk' or as in tamil '~Ng'. The name
is a reference to the 'Lord of the Tiger infested hill' and I don't think
it can admit of some other meaning unless the word itself is changed to
'Vemkateswara'

gopal

___________________________UNQUOTE_________________________________________

     While I am in noway an expert in establishing the correctness of the
     name "Vemkateshwara", I will try to do it as per what I have studied
     in my regular School Tamil.

     As aptly pointed out by Sri Anbil Swamy, vEnkatam has to be split as
     "vEm" and "katam". This basically is a Tamizh word. Forget not that
     Tamizh was the most prominent and older language than Telugu or
     Kannada(Oops! I am not trying to start another debate. What ever I
     have written about the Tamizh as the oldest language is as per what I
     have studied and heard). So the name of the perumAL was
     "vEmkatEswaran" as he is the one who helps us get rid of all the sins
     that we have made.

     Now in the due course people used to address the name as
     vEnkatEswaran. In Tamizh grammar they call this as "maruvu". That is a
     word which has obtained a difference in sound due to the local usage
     of the word.

     As Telugu and Kannada came into existence at a later date, they have
     started writing the name as vEnkatEshwaran with the 'O' sound
     representing 'nk' instead of 'mk'.

     Also even in the recent past, until Andhra was separated,
     ThiruvEngadam used to be in Tamizh Nadu only.

     Well whatever I have written above is to the amount of my
     understanding about the Tamizh. I request the great  Scholars in the
     list to confirm the correctness of what I have written and correct me
     if I am wrong.

     vAsaka dOsham kshandavyaha

     adiyEn RAmAnuja dAsan

     Thirumalai Vinjamoor Venkatesh