Sri Vilakkoli Perumal, Thoopul/ThirutthaNkA dhivya Desam: Nithya AarAdhana kaimkaryam for VilakkoLi PerumAL and Swamy Desikan : Part IV (The content of SaraNAgathi DhIpikai ).

From the Bhakti List Archives
Sadagopan • December 9, 2001
SrI:

Dear BhakthAs:

adiyEn will start with the first of 
the 59 slOkams now:

PadhmApathE: Sthuthi-padhEna vipachyamAnam
  pasyanthviha prapadhana-pravaNA mahAntha:
madh-vAkya samvalithamapi ajahath-svabhAvam
  mAnyam YathIsvara MahAnasa sampradhAyam 

(meaning): My speech with blemishes is admixed with
the blemishless and sacred fragrance of the samprahdAyam of 
Prapatthi VidhyA ;that fragrance arises from my connection
to the MaDappaLLi AaacchAn (PraNathArthiharar) , who learnt 
sakala  Saasthra arthams from AchArya RaamAnujA Himself , while 
serving as the kainkaryaparar at His kitchen (MadapaLLi).
The essence of that MadapaLLi AacchAn SampradhAyam 
has been included in this sthOthram about ViLakkoLi PerumAL.
It is fair to say that the MadapaLLI AacchAn SampradhAyam 
has taken the form of this sthuthi. Even if this sthuthi is
made up of passages associated with my imperfect speech , 
the glory of this eulogy however is not diminished.
May the great ones , who have unshakable faith in
Prapatthi as the means for Moksham , recognize and
celebrate the sacrd MadapaLLi SampradhAyam !

Additional Comments :
*********************
FIRST LINE: " PadhmaapathE: Sthuthi-padhEna vipachyamAnam
**********************************************************
Swamy Desikan starts the sthOthram is with a statement 
that it is a sthuthi about the consort of MahA Lakshmi 
( PadhmA PathE: sthuthipadham ). PadhmA is Sri Maragathavalli 
ThAyAr and Her Pathi(Lord ) is DhIpaprakAsan . Swamy Desikan
says that the Sriya: Pathi blessing us with His archA form 
at ThirutthaNkA is the  focal point of this sthuthi. To remind us
the dhvaya manthram and the rich relationship signified by
that manthra rathnam , Swamy chooses to address the Lord as
PadhmA-Pathi . 

The Nithya SamyOgam of Periya PirAtti (MahA Lakshmi)
with her Lord is behind all the anugrahams of Prapatthi. 
The significance of SrI sabdham ( PadhmA here) preceding
the Lord or qualifying the Lord is seen from the Sri VishNu
SahsranAmams ( 612-621) that celebrate the power of this 
Nithya Yogam of PadhmA and Her Pathi :

Sridha: SrIsa: SrinivAsa: SrInidhi: SrivibhAvana:
Sridhara: SrIkara: SrEya: SrImAn lOkathrayAsraya:

The importance of Sri Devi in our sampradhAyam is
pointed out by the AchAryan of GhaDAmBi AppuLLAr ,
Sri NadAthUr AmmAL in His magnum opus , Prapanna PaarijAtham
to underscore the importance of PrapannAs performing
AarAdhanam for Sri Devi:

GurUNAm Visrama SthAnam IsAnAJagathOsya cha
MahishI DevadEvasya dhivyA NithyAnapAyini 

Elaborate commentary on this important slOkam
on LakshmI Tatthvam has been provided by 
Srimath U.Ve. V.S.KaruNAkarAcchAr Swamy in
the special issue of Sri HayagrIva PriyA
(October 2001).The five reasons for such
AarAdhanam are covered here.

Swamy Desikan also of the MadaipaLLi AacchAn 
sampradhAyam salutes the Dhivya Dampathis 
as being at the very top of AchArya paramparai:

Gurubhyasccha Tath Gurubhyasccha namOvAkamadhImahE
vruNImahE tathrAdhyou DAMPATHI JAGATHAAM PATHI 

Padhmaa Pathi united with Her Lord as dhivya Mithunam 
are recognized and saluted as the joint heads of 
this universe .  

To pay obescience to Sri Devi directly or indirectly is
SadAchArya SampradhAya kramam . This we see it in 
AchArya RaamAnujA's SaraNAgathi Gadhyam , KurEsar's as well as 
in PrAsara Bhattar's sthOthra granthams.Swamy Desikan seems
to be following this ancient tradition of AchAryAs as
he starts this sthOthram with reference to LakshmI first
and Her Lord next.

Swamy Desikan reveals another important aspect of 
this sthOthram. He says: " PadhmA PathE: sthuthipadhEna
VipachyamAnam " . He points out that this sthOthram
about the Lord of Sri Devi ( PadhmA) is the embodiment of
MadaipaLLI SampradhAyam ( PadhmA PathE: sthuthipadhEna
vipachyamAnam MahAnasa SampradhAyam ).That sampradhAyam
(ancient tradition ) is all about SaraNAgathi Saasthram .

LINE 2: INVITATION TO MAHAANS
******************************
" Pasyanthu iha prapadhana pravaNA MahAntha:"
*********************************************
Here Swamy Desikan humbly invites all scholars
and pious ones to come and enjoy this SthOthram about
SrI DhIpaprakAsan as the distillation of the essence 
of SaraNAgathi tatthvam that has come to him via 
the MadaipaLLI SampradhAyam. He says: Let these great 
souls look into this sthOthram as such. 

Who are these great Ones (MahAntha: ), whom he invites
for examination of His sthOthram ? These are "Prapadhana
PravaNA: ". They are authorities in understading Prapatthi
Saasthram and have already performed Prapatthi and are living 
their lives as post-prapannA: as instructed by SaasthrAs.
He invites them: " Oh revered Ones who fully comprehend and
practsie SaraNAgathi Saasthram ! May You all look at this
sthuthi as that which arose out of the sacred MahAnasa SampradhAyam ".
The great ones  revel in reflection on the upadEsam of GithAchAryan 
" SaraNya Saarathi girAm anthE ramanthE "--UpAya vibhAdhigAram
of Srimath Rahasya Thraya Saaram ).They are experts about
Prapatthi Yogyathai (aakinchanya , anya gahtithvams).
Following Swamy ALavanthAr , they have declared:

na dharma nishtOsmi nachAthmavEdhi
na Bhakthimamsthava CharaNAravindhE
akinchanO anyagathi: SaraNya !
thvath-paadhamoolam SaraNam prapadhyE
--SthOthra rathnam : slOkam 22

Such MahAthmAs are experts on the five angams of
Prapatthi and have practised Praatthi with
all those five angams without any lapses.
They have thus achieved the goals of 
Svaroopa SamarpaNam , Aathma RakshA SamarpaNam
and Phala SamarpaNam .As a result they are
Krutha Kruthya MahAnthA: 

These great souls stay in a comfortable and
contented state of mind with the thought :
" Paaram ganthum Bhara-NyAsam krutham "
(We have performed Prapatthi at the feet of 
PadhmA Pathi to get to the other side of 
terrible and vast SamsAric Ocean ). 

These great souls are going to be described later by 
Swamy Desikan as "mEdhini mEviya ViNNavar " in
the SvabhishtAbhijn~AnAdhikAram of Srimath Rahasya
Thraya Saaram . They are the Nithya Sooris residing
on this earth. Swamy Desikan's invitation to look
at his SthOthram as the essence of the venerable 
(maanyam ) MahAnasa SampradhAyam (MadaipaLLI tradition).

THIRD & FOURTH LINES:
********************* 
MADH-VAAKYA SAMVALITHAM API AJAHATH SVABHAVAM
MAANYAM YATHEESAVARA MAHAANASA SAMPRADHAAYAM 

Here Swamy Desikan says that the most revered 
MahAnasa sampradhAyam with its vital links to 
the MadaipaLLi of YathirAjar (Udayavar) has
undisputed glory and this sthuthi based on it 
will stay glorious inspite of the admixture with
his vaak with blemishes.According to Swamy Desikan ,
The power of the content of this sthuthi linked to 
the most sacred MahAnasa sampradhAyam will quench 
and quell all the blemishes and sublimate the sthuthi 
on PadhmA Pathi to the lofty level befitting  
the theme of the Sthuthi and its origin.

MahAnasa sampradhAyam
***********************
Mahaanasar is the Sanskrit name for PraNathArTiharar ,
who was the intimate sishyar of AchArya RaamAnujA. 
He was selected by ThirukkOshtiUr Nampi , the AchAryan
of Udayavar to perform maadhukaram . He belonged to
AthrEya GOthram . The third sishyar in the AchArya
Paramaparai of AathrEya PraNathArTiharar (MadaipaLLI
AacchAn ) is AathrEya AppuLLAr , the AchAryan of Swamy 
Desikan. This line of succession of AchAryAs that 
treasured the upadEsams of AchArya RaamAnujA on
saraNAgathi is the madaippaLLI SampradhAyam .The essence
of that SampradhAyam is housed in Sri SaraNAgathi DhIpikai.
Swamy Desikan invites the attention of great ones to
look at this aspect in His sthuthi of Sri DhIpa PrakAsan
in the very first slOkam. 

Sri DhIpa PrakAsa MahishIm Srayam AasrayAma:
Swamy Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam
Daasan, Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SatakOpan

 

 
 






Sri DhIpa prakAsa MahishIm Sriyam AasrayAma:
 
Swamy Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam ,
Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil Varadachari SatakOpan 



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