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A Family of Great AchAryAs Of Ahobila Mutt

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sadagopan • Wed Jul 15 1998 - 09:11:38 PDT 


Dear Sriman NaarayaNa BhakthAs :

Sriman Dileepan posted an informative note on
the 600th anniversary of Founding of the AhObila Mutt
planned for September , 1998 . I will amplify on that
theme on this special day .

The Thirunakshathram of the 25th Jeeyar 
*************************************** 

Today is Aani UtthirattAthi . The Thirunakshthram
of the great scholar and savant , the 25th Jeeyar 
falls on this day . He reigned as H.H Sri Srinivasa
Yatheendhra MahA Desikan for 35 years and 8 months 
This is one of the longest reign as a pontiff 
and his reign was marked by one of the greatest 
spurt of growth in our SampradhAyam .He was revered as
Periya Srinivasa MahA desikan and also as 
SaapAnugraha Swami . I will provide some more details
about his holy life after saluting his santhathis .

The 26th and the 27th Jeeyars of Ahobila Mutt 
*********************************************

The 25th jeeyar was succeeded by his scholarly son 
as the 26th Jeeyar of Ahobila Mutt , Sri Ranganatha 
Yatheendhra MahA Desikan .He presided over the Ahobila Mutt 
for 17 years and 1 month .

The 27th Jeeyar was Sri VeerarAghava Vedantha 
Yatheendhra MahA Desikan . He reigned only for 
2 years and 7 months .

This triad of remarkable scholars (25th, 26th qand 27th ),
 who occupied the throne of Ahobila Mutt Peetam guided 
the destinies of this sampradhAyam altogether for
a total of 54 years and 4 months (i-e) ., 9% of the 600
Years of the founding of the Mutt by Adi VaNN 
SatakOpa Yatheendhra MahA Desikan at Ahobilam in 1398 .
 
These three AchAryAs reigned from March 1776 , when America 
became an independent Nation to August 1831 , when the British 
still ruled over India  . 

Their BrindhAvanams are at Nrusimhapuram not far from
the Divya Desam of AathanUr .Their Vamsam is known
as Ilanagar GathAdharapuram vamsam .

The 37th Pattam Jeeyar of Ahobila Matam
****************************************

The three Ilanagar Azhagiyasingars were joined at 
Nrusimhapuram by a fourth Azhagayiasingar
in the year 1900 . He was the great scholar and 
grantha kartha who gave us 26 Granthams on 
Sri vaishNavA doctrines in his 55 years of life 
on this earth . 

He occupied the throne of Ahobila Mutt 
for only one year and he had already entered
the SanyAsramam at the time of his sveekAram 
of the Peetam as the 37th Jeeyar .In the year 1899 ,
he arrived at Nrusimhapuram to pay his homage
to his predecessors and when he opened his eyes 
from DhyAnam at the BrindhAvanam ,some one standing 
nearby said that there is room for another BrindhAvanam
at the site . He looked up the skies and had the darsanam
of three Garudans circling over the site . He decided that it
was the AchArya Niyamanam for him to join his three
successors at Nrusimhapuram and today we have 4 sacred
shrines there .

The 37th Jeeyar , Atthipattu Azhagiyasingar 
was a great devotee of ThiruveLLUr VeerarAghavan for all of
his life . He is the one , who responded to the call 
of Moolavar at ThiruveLLUr to fix His "ill" right hand resting
over SaalihOthra Maharishi and performed MahA samprOkshaNam
and Sahasra KalasAbhishEkam in the third quarter of the 
Ninteenth Century . A little over 100 years later ,
the devout bhakthAs of Sri Veeraraghavan from 
the Bhakthi List joined in a similar set of Kaimkaryams 
in 1998 and received Sri VeerarAghavan's blessings .

Since the 37th Jeeyar reached ParamaPadham without 
nominating his successor , there was no one to
succeed him immediately . Number of great scholars 
wanted to succeed the 37th Jeeyar and after five and
half years , there was an empty seat at Ahobila Mutt .
AarAdhanam for Sri Lakshmi Nrusimhan were carried out by 
AaradhakAs without a reigning Azhagiyasingar .

There was an "election ' for the sacred peetam 
on 1905 and Thirukkudanthai Sri Chakravarthi Swamigal 
won the majority of votes from the sishyAs of 
the mutt and ascended the throne on July 17 , 1905 
and reigned for a short period of 3 years
and 10 months .

The 38th Jeeyar of Ahobila Mutt (1860-1909)
*********************************************

He was succeded by the 38th Jeeyar revered as 
Thirukkudanthai Ilanagar GadhAdharapuram Sri Chakravarthi
VenkatAchhArya Swami .His Ashrama Naamam was Sri Srinivasa 
SatakOpa Yatheendhra MahA desikan . It was from his successors
adiyEn had the Sri Hayagreeva manthrOpadEsam that came 
via the generations at DevanArviLaagam , the birth
place of the 43rd Jeeyar( 1901-1957) .
  
The SaapAnugraha Azhagiyasingar of the 25th Pattam(1776-1811) 
*************************************************************

He is the main thrust of this note , since it is his 
birthday that we are celebratiing today . He is considered 
as the amsam of VynathEyA .A village in SarabhOji MaharAjA
( 1798-1833 ) was ceded to this Jeeyar as a result of a
dream of the king , when Lord Lakshmi NrusimhA commanded 
the king to cede a village to the Jeeyar. The king
was thrilled to make the deeds and thus originated 
Nrusimhapura AgrahAram named as such by the 25th Jeeyar.
This is the same king , who was the cause of Saint
ThyagarAjA's KalyANi krithi, Nidhi saala SukhamA ? "
 
As in the case of AchArya RaamAnujA , those who were jealous 
of this AchAryA tried to poison him as well by mixing visham 
in his food. When he came to know of it indirectly , 
he consumed the food and recited the powerful NrusimhAnushtup
manthram  and the Mrthyu Mruthyu , Sri Lakshmi Narasimhan ,
his aaradhana mUrthy countered the poison and the AchAryA 
returned to his KaalakshEpam and Aaradhanai .Great events
took place in his reign that enhanced the Sri VaishNava Sri .

Inview of the shortness of space and time , I will just 
recite his Taniyan and conclude this note with a prayer 
to this Vara PrasAdhi Jeeyar to bless us all "the neophytes "
to enhance our Bhagavadh-AchArya and Bhaagavatha Bhakthi .

SrivAsa Veeraraghuvarya ParAnkusAdhi
  RaamAnujArya Munibhi: Guru Saarvabhoumai : I
samprEkshitham karuNayA paripUrNa bhOdham 
  Sri SrinivAsa YathisEkharam aasrayAma : II

Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaraDaachAri Sadagopan