Search:
Bhakti List Archives

VirOdha ParihAram : Next Series for Saranagathi Journal

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sadagopan • June 20, 1998 


Dear BhakthAs : With Bhagavadh -BhAgavatha anugrahams
and AchArya AaseervAdhams, we are at the point of 
releasing the 20th issue of the First volume of 
SaraNAgathi Journal . A great series on AchArya Vamsa 
Vruksham by Anbil Swami , Adaikkala Patthu , NyAsa Dasakam , 
Parama Padha sOpAnam by adiyEn , Gadhya Trayams by
Sri Madhavak KaNNan and  PaancharAthram by Sri KrishNamAchAri , 
and the different esoteric aspects of SaraNAgathi by 
Sri Sampath Rengaraajan have been covered so far .
 
May I invite those , who are interested to engage
in a deeper study of our source granthAs to become 
members of the SaraNAgathi Journal and participate 
in the dialog on our siddhAntham and  enrich it ?

The archives of the curent issues are available thanks to 
the tireless efforts of Sri Venkatesh Elayavalli , 
who has designed a wonderful web site for the Journal . 
Please send your request to become a member to 
Saranagathi@hotmail.com 

I am attaching the first of the series of postings
on ViOdha ParihAram that will appear henceforth
in SaraNAgathi Journal .

NamO NaarAyaNA ,
V.Sadagopan   



VIRODHA PARIHARAM : PART 1 

SrimAn VenkatanAthArya: kavithArkika kEsarI
VedhanthAcharya VaryOmE SannidhatthAm sadhA Hrudhi 

RaamAnuja DayApAthram Jn~Ana VairAghya BhUshaNam 
Srimadh VenkatanAdhAryam VandhE VedhAnhta Desikam 

Dear Members of Bhagavadh RaamAnuja SiddhAntham :

Enormous and magnificent indeed are the granthams 
that Swami Desikan blessed us with for our ujjevanam
( uplift and salvation ) .They arose from him as 
UbhayaVedAntham , PrakaraNa granthams , SthOthrams , Rahasya
granthams , Kaavyams , Naatakam , Tamizh Prabhandhams ,
VyAkyAnams , Vaadha Granthams , RakshA Granthams and 
anushtAna granthams . His great upakAram to us flowed 
forth in four forms : Works in chaste Sanskrit , 
Sundara Tamizh , Sweet PrAkrutham and the MaNipravALam 
"language" used first by Thirukkuruhaip PirAn in 
his 6000 Pati . Swami Desikan's power of Jn~Anam 
Pravachana sakthi , anushtAna srEyas and 
debating skills are a direct result of the anugraham 
of Sri Hayagreeva BhagavAn .

In his ninth & final decade of life , after a rich life 
involved in grantha nirmANam , Sri Bhagavadh RaamAnuja 
SiddhAntha Pravachanam and Para matha Kantanam , Swami Desikan 
had a concern . He felt that he has left some thing undone .
This concern related to the creation of an all-encompassing 
grantham that dealt with :

1. a lucid explanation of Tattva-Hitha -PurushArthams
   at one site 
2. a detailed exposition there on the richness of the meanings 
   of the three rahasyams dear to Sri VaishNavAs
3. a grantham that incorporated all the hithOpadesams 
   for the chEthanAs in MaNipravALam format .

With the blessings of his AchaaryAs and Sri Hayagreevan
arose the magnificient and incomparable grantham of
SRIMADH RAHASYA THRAYA SAARAM (RTS ) . In its 32 chapters ,
the three TattvAs , the Three RahasyAs, the Artha 
PanchakA and Prapatthi are discussed . Today , it 
is one of the four granthams ( Grantha chathushtayam ) 
that Sri VaishNavAs have to learn thru KalakshEpam 
under their AchAryAs besides Sri Bhaashyam , GitA
Bhaashyam of AchArya RaamAnujA and the Bhagavad Vishayam by
KurkkEsA .

After completing this magnum opus of RTS ,
Swami went one step further out of his great compassion
for aRivilis ( ignoramus ) like us and created his final
grantham in his very last years of his life on earth .

This very last grantham given to us as Kula dhanam by
Swami Desikan is " VIRODHA PARIHAARAM " .This is the grantham
that clears the lingering doubts of a Mumukshu ( one who
desires Moksham thru an understanding and practise
of the three Rahasyams ). Swami Desikan achieved his goal 
through a list of 108 Questions and answers based on 
PramANa Vaakhyams .It is also written in MaNi pravALam , 
a  mixture of Sanskrit and TamiL .

VirOdha ParihAram has the following four chapters:
(1) Moola ManthAdhikAram (2) DhvayAdhikAram
(3) Sarama slOkAdhikAram and (4) NigamanAdhikAram .

There are a total of 108 doubts that Swami Desikan 
anticipates from the Mumukshu and answers them one
by one under the headings of the above four chapters . 
The largest number of doubts that he answers , Eighty ,
pertain to Mula Manthram ; the number of doubts addressed
in the Dhvaya , Sarama and Nigamana adhikArams are Ten ,
Ten and Eight respectively adding upto the grand total of 
108 doubts and corresponding answers for those doubts .

Swami Desikan's VirOdha ParihAra Grantham was translated 
and annotated by Oppiliappan Koil Navaneetham SrirAma 
DesikAcchAr Swamy , my manaseeka AchArya . Few months 
back , the prakrutham Pundareekapuram Andavan brought 
out a new edition of this grantham commented by 
Navaneetham Swami , which had been out of print for a while . 
Number of BhaskthAs of the Bhakthi List contributed funds 
for this effort and have become blessed . I will be following 
this recent edition of VirOdha ParihAram for a series of 
postings in SaraNAgathi Journal as it starts on its 
second decade of issues . May Swami Desikan's and his
UpAsanA murthy"s blessings be with us as we engage in 
studying together the most magnificient rahasya grantham
conceived as a sequel to Srimadh Rahasya Traya Saaram 
and try to prepare it for SamarpaNam for the BahudhAnya 
samvathsara Thirunakshthrams of Swami Desikan (October 1 )
and the First Jeeyar of AhObila Mutt , AdhivaNN SatakOpa
Yatheendhra MahA Desikan , whose 600th aaniversary of 
the establishment of Ahobila Mutt that we will be 
celebrating on September 11 ( Kettai ) .

Mangala SlOkams in Sanskrit and Tamil for VirOdha ParihAram
************************************************************

SlOkma 1 
********
Sriman NaarayaNa: Swaami SaraNya: SarvadEhinAm 
bhUyAnn nijapadha prApthi VirOdhi vinivAraka: 

( Meaning ) : May Sriman NaarAyaNan , who is the protector
of all Janthus and who is the Master of all the Jeevans 
chase away all the obstacles and enemies in your efforts
to reach His aasthAnam , Sri Vaikuntam .

slOkam 2 
********

udhitham bhavatha: pAyAth OushadhAdhri sameepatha:
Oushadham chEthasA sEvyam apuna: sthanya paayinAm 

(Meaning ) : Our Lord Hayagreevan appeared near 
the Hill of Medicinal plants ( Oushadha Giri ) at 
Thiruvahendhrapuram and He is the Oushadham (Medicine)
for those , who want to  be cured of the afflictions 
of SamsAram . May that Lord , who is the nectar for dhyAnam 
by the mind ,protect you all , who wish not to drink again 
mother's milk ( not to be born again in this earth ) .
ApunarArvruthti is hinted here . The very last Brahma
sUthram asserts : AnAvrutthi SabdhAth , AnAvrutthi SabdhAth
{ There is no return (for these released souls ) because
the scriptures say so }. That is what Swami Desikan 
is requesting the Lord as a boon for us .

SlOkam 3 :

prapadhanamayE vidhyAbhEdhE prathishtitha chEthasa:
  prathipadhamiha praj~yA dhAyam disanthu dayA dhanA :
Sataripu sukha vyAsa prAchEsAdhi nibhandhana
  sramapariNatha suddhA-suddhAsayA mama DesikA : 

May my AchAryAs , who are profoundly conversant with
the different aspects of Prapatthi Vidhyai serving as
the means for Moksham , who have the sraddhA ( faith 
and deep trust ) in Prapatthi arising from their 
tireless study and clear understanding of the granthams 
of NammAzhwAr , Sukhar , VyAsar and VaalmIki , 
who have the purest of hearts brimming with compassion 
for us as their wealth , May those revered AchAryAs 
of mine bless every word of this grantham , VirOdhi ParihAram 
with the wealth of true knowledge ( JN~Ana Sampath ) . 

Srimadh VenkatanAthArya nandhanAn PraNamAmyaham 
SeshasAyI padhAmbhOja sEshathva jn~Ana nirmalAn 

Swami Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam ,
DaasOham , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan