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The Life of Kuresan-2

From the Bhakti List Archives

sampath kumar • January 23, 2000 


Dear friends,

With the departure of his guru Ramanuja to SriRangam,
Kuresan and his wife AndAlamma returned to their
good,uneventful lives in Kura.

One evening, after they had completed their daily
routine of feeding the poor at dusk, they retired for
the day. They clanged the big brass doorway to their
home shut. 

This clanging of the brass door was so loud in the
quiet of the night that it was heard some distance
away in Kanchi. Lord Varadaraja and Perundevi thAyyAr
too were a little startled by it. ThAyyAr queried the
Lord as to the cause of the gong reverberating through
the night air. The Lord turned to his chief priest,
Kanchipurna or Tirukacchi-nambi (also one of the
several mentors of Ramanujacharya) and asked,"Pray
tell Us, wherefrom this sound of the night, O Sire?". 

Kanchipurna replied,"Lord, it is the doorway of our
dear Kuresan's home being shut for the day after the
daily alms-giving."

The Lord and Perundevi-pirAtti, very pleased to know
of Kuresa and his piety and charity, commanded that
Kuresan be brought to their Presence. Kanchipurna
hastened to Kura to beckon Kuresan to Kanchi.

At Kura, when Kuresan came to know from Kanchipurna
the purpose of his visit, he became extremely
indignant with himself. "What?! Did the clanging of my
doorway disturb the Lord and His Consort in Kanchi?!
What a conceited wretch am I that I should let my
charity be announced thus to the whole world! What a
vain sinner am I!".

The incident seemed to rudely awaken Kuresan out of a
strange spiritual torpor. He realized that a choice in
life had been staring him in his face but which he had
been subconsciously avoiding all the while since
Ramanuja's departure: Either he could continue to live
in Kura and lead a life of pious, vain but ineffectual
charity or, he could pursue his guru Ramanuja to
SriRangam and serve him in his life's great mission.

Kuresan made his choice instantly!

He dispatched Kanchipurna back to Kanchi. He told his
wife AndAlammA to immediately renounce all their
wealth and belongings and to join him in migrating to
SriRangam and wedding themselves forever in the
service of SriRamanuja.

It was a turning point in the life of Kuresan.

The same night husband and wife walked out of their
homes with nothing but the clothes they wore. They set
out for SriRangam by foot.

Along the way, Kuresan and AndAlamma had to journey
through jungle infested with wayside brigands.
AndAlamma was mortally afraid of nocturnal robbers and
made no secret of her fears to her husband. WHen he
heard of his wife's anxieties Kuresan quickly
replied,"AndAl, watching your agitation I suspect that
your fears are founded in something you have not fully
disclosed to me. I asked you to renounce all our
belongings back in our village of Kura. Have you
renounced everything? I mean really EVERYTHING?".

When questioned so intensely by Kuresan, AndAlamma had
no choice but to confess,"My Sire, I did renounce
everything save for this little golden goblet which I
secreted in the folds of my saree. I thought I would
need it during the journey to serve you some beverage
and relieve you of weariness".

Kuresan looked at the golden goblet that his wife
pulled out from her saree-folds and then mildly chided
her,"My dear woman, when I wanted you to renounce
everything I meant this little goblet too!".

So saying Kuresan took the vessel from AndAlamma's
hands and threw it away into the night and deep into
the forest shrubbery.

"There now!", he said turning to his wife, "There now,
my dear wife, has been cast away the source of all
your fears".

********      *********      ********

Kuresan and AndAlamma were received into Srirangam
with great joy and fanfare by SriRamanujAchArya. He
welcomed them as if they were his own children, put
them up in his quarters and quickly settled them into
the life and society of Srirangam.

Kuresan started a new chapter in his life in SriRangam
as one of the closest disciples of SriRamanuja. He
assisted Ramanujacharya in all aspects and affairs of
his ministry... the temple of SriRanganatha and the
SriVaishnava community. He was Ramanuja's aide in
scriptural study, disputations and exegesis. He was at
his beck and call. He tended to his minutest needs. He
was his factotum. His amanuensis. His valet. His eyes
and ears. His conscience keeper. His alter ego....

Kuresan soon became his Master's faithful shadow.

(contd)

dAsan,
Sampathkumaran
  

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