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Fwd: Sharanagathi Gadyam article

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Sadagopan • March 18, 2003 


ShrImathi Usha Narasimhan's informative
posting on SaraNAgathy Gadhyam of 
Bhagavad RaamAnujA on this sacred day of
Panguni Uttharam . SrImathi Usha Narasimhan
is the daughter in law of Dr.NSA Swamy of
Bangalore. 

V.Sadagopan 
  
Shri:
Shrimathe raamaanujaaya namaha


Sukhamaasva - You shall attain peace !


Lord's assurance in Sharanaagathi gadyam

As if in answer to the quest for that elusive peace of mind, The Lord poured
out the Sharanaagathi gadyam from Bhagwan Raamaanuja's longing heart. The
last setence in the
gadyam, a complete assurance from the Lord to Bhagwan Raamaanuja, granting
him eternal 
peace and complete freedom from all fears and anxieties, runs as follows :-

Athastvam tava tatvatho math gnaana darshana praaptishu nissamshayaha
sukhamaasva

May you rest, free of doubt and fear in the matter of obtaining knowledge
about Me, True realization and Attainment of Me. 

This was in answer to Bhagwan Raamaanuja who, overcome by the fears of
samsaara, pleaded for refuge at the feet of the Lord. This is also an
indirect assurance from the All-Merciful Lord that whosoever treads this
path of surrender, shall beget eternal peace and a mind free of all fears
and anxieties. The Lord grants the three steps to supreme bliss, that
Bhagwan Raamaanuja pleads of Him. The first step is the removal of all
traces of sorrows of this world, leading to eternal peace; this is achieved
by obtaining from an aachaaraya, true knowledge about the supreme Lord , the
totally subservient self and the ostentatious prakruti that we see around us
- in short, knowledge of Man, matter and God. The second step is that of
constant reminiscence of the teachings of the aachaaryas, which results in
moments of Darshana Samaanaakara or Direct vision of the Lord;  these are
moments of supreme bliss. As the third and final step, the Lord grants
Himself  and His abode of eternal and ever lasting supreme bliss viz.
Vaikuntam. These three steps are termed as Parabhakti , paragnaana and 
paramabhakthi respectively, by Bhagwan Raamaanuja. The Lord's injunction is,
'Treading this path of eternal peace studded with moments of bliss, Bhagwan
Raamaanuja and all other prapannas  shall reside in Divya deshams - places
where the Lord is adored and His indescribable qualities are constantly
discussed and admired'.

The Lord's injunctions on how to lead a peaceful post-prapatti life.

Aadhyaathmika Aadhibhouthika Aadhidaivika dukhkha vigna gandha rahithaha 
Dwayam arthaanusandhaanena saha sadaiva vakta , yavath sharira patham
Athtraiva shri rangae sukhamaasva

Chanting the Dwaya Mantra constantly, reminising its connotations,  you
shall be relieved of and not troubled by those obstacles in least degree,
which are the causes of both wordly and divine griefs and sorrows; you shall
reside in Shrirangam - a divya desham- with total peace of mind, until the
mortal coil falls.

This is the Universal doctor's prescription for curing the illnesses of this
world and remaining hale and hearty till demise. The first advice of the
Lord is to Chant the Dwaya mantra incessantly. Mere utterance of the dwaya
is tantamount to prapatti and grants moksha if it is said once. Repetition
of the dwaya mantra is prescribed for avoiding building up of attachments
with this material world. Incessant recitation of the Dwaya is advocated by
the Lord, for even a minute's break would give room for the three kinds of
afflictions to take their toll. The three afflictions are :- aaddhyaathmika
physical and mental diseases of  the body, aadhibhouthika - hazards from
animals, birds, other men etc.and aadhidaivika - natural calamities like
floods, famine etc. Thus constant 
utterance of the Dwaya mantra wards away the inevitable sorrows of this
material world and destroys all obstacles that dimune the capacities of
consciousness of the right desires viz. to attain godhead. 

In return for the incessant recitation of the Dwaya, the Lord not only
provides cover from the all grievances but also grants access to true
knowledge by fostering a student-teacher relationship with a Sadhaacharya -
a befitting aacharya. 

The second advice of the Lord is to Constantly reminise the connotations of
the Dwaya mantra. This is not compulsory for moksha but is a sure pill for
bliss. Thinking over and over again the teachings of the aacharya, the soul
enters the journey towards Ishwara by the light shown by His natural
personality, resplendent form, His attributes and His vibhavas; the Lord
then grants the aspirant moments of supreme bliss caused by full
undiminished impressions on the memory produced by the teachings of the
Acharya - glimpses or Direct vision of the Lord termed as Darshana
samaanaakara. These moments of Ultimate Happiness are for the prapanna to
obtain here and now itself, by performing constant continuous concentrated
reminiscence of the teachings of the aacharya ! 
This life of eternal peace interspersed with moments of bliss culminating in he 
casting off of the mortal coil and attainment of the Lord, has to be enjoyed
in a Divya Desham, in the company of other bhaagavathaas;  this can be
understood from the fact that the Lord commands the pleading Bhagwan
Raamaanuja to reside there itself, at Shrirangam, till the time of shedding
his body.

What were the prayers of Bhagwan Ramaanuja, in return for which the Lord
grants eternal peace?

The All-Merciful Bhagawan Raamaanuja as a role model for his followers,
makes three fervent prayers to the Lord to secure the above mentioned
eternal peace and bliss, thus demonstrating a clear and easy path for all
prapannas to take in order to secure the grace of the Lord.

First and foremost prayer Bhagawan Raamaanuja makes after having surrendered
at the feet of the Lord is for purification of the self; he prays to the
Lord for destruction of all evil in the form sins committed towards the
Lord, His devotees and His most loved devotees i.e. Aacharyas; he prays to
the Lord to forgive all his actions that were self-centered and those that
exhibited vipareetha gnanam - false knowledge-  of the independence of the
soul. Pleading with the lord for protection from the illusions of prakruti,
Bhagwan Raamaanuja prays that all his sins of the past, present and the
inevitable forthcoming 
ones, committed due to the invincible maayaa of the prakruthi, be absolved.
As a second prayer, Bhagwaan Raamaanuja prays to be saved from the currents
of karma which carry him towards the Moolaprakruthi which, with its three
gunaas - rajas, tamas and satwa- casts spells on him, giving him perverted
knowledge about himself. At this point the urgency of Bhagwaan Raamaanuja is
so high that he surrenders at the feet of the Lord once more, begging for
protection from maayaa - the illusions of prakruthi. As a final prayer,
Bhagwan Raamaanuja requests the Lord to crown him with His service, service
of all forms suited to the conditions and circumstances of the moment,
services which are performed 
out of unlimited love and devotion to the Lord, arising out of the three
step experience of the Lord viz. Parabhakthi, Paragnaana and Paramabhakthi.
Bhagwaan Raamaanuja prays to the Lord that He grant him knowledge which
would endear him to the Lord so much that He treats him as His innerself;
knowledge that would make him a mahaatma in the words of the Lord - one who
is rare to find and one who takes to Vaasudeva and Him only at the end of
his birth. Bhagwaan Raamaanuja prays for Parabhakthi that would bind the
Lord to him and paragnaana that would grant him a vision of the Lord and
Parama bhakthi which is for attainment of the Lord.

These were the three prayers made by Bhagwaan Raamaanuja as he surrendered
at the feet of the Lord; in return the Lord grants him a life devoid of all
fears and anxieties, filled with peace interspersed with moments of supreme
bliss, culminating in eternal supreme bliss by the attainment of the Lord.

In what manner did Bhagwaan Raamaanuja put forth his prayers to the Lord?

As a prerequisite to surrendering at the Lord's feet and expressing his
prayers, Bhagwaan raamaanuja expresses his utter helplessness in protecting
himself and supreme confidence in the Lord's overwhelming strengths and
boundless compassion. Discarding his attachments that have arisen due to
karma  viz. Relationships such as father, mother, kith and kin, spouse,
friends, material possesions, poperty and even teachers, Bhagwaan Raamaanuja
hails the Lord to be his real father, mother, brother, sister, friend,
spouse, teacher and all; further he hails the Lord to be the Universal
father, sole protector of all. 
Thus having abandoned faith in all his worldly relationsips including
himself, Raamanuja places hmself at the feet of the Lord, begging for mercy.
This again is a demonstration of the manner of  putting forth ones prayers
to the Lord, done by the compassionate Acharya for his ignorant followers to
emulate.

How does Bhagwaan Raamaanuja assure himself of success right at the
commencement of his pratyers ?

In the very beginning of his prayers, Bhagwaan Raamaanuja wins the heart of
the Lord and assures himself of success, by surrendering at the feet of the
Mother MahaLakshmi, who is compassion personified and who overlooks all
blemishes in Her children and secures them their prayers by overpowering the
Lord Her spouse, with love. Being filled with the quality of vaatsalya, She
overlooks all the misdeeds of Her devotee children and thus forgives them
even without their asking for forgiveness. She then recommends to the Lord
to pardon the misdoings of their children and shower His grace on them. The
aspirant thus has the courage to go upto Her and voice his prayers rather
than approach directly the 
Lord who is a Dandadhara - doles out punishments. Hence, Bhagwaan Raamaanuja
surrenders first at Her feet and prays that the All-Mighty Lord accept Him
and grant him supreme bliss in the form of eternal service to the divine
couple. The Mother grants The aacharya his prayers and make over Her
recommendation to the Lord, thus securing success for Bhagwaan Raamaanuja.

Adiyen also surrenders at the feet of Mahalakshmi and Lord Hayagriva that
this outpouring of His thru adiyen's hands may serve to provide unending joy
to all of us prapannas who have surrendered at the feet of the Lord.

References :

1. Sarangathi gadyam - english Translation by K.Bhashyam under the guidance
of Uttamur 
   Swami

2. Telelecture on Sharanaagathi gadyam with three commentaries by
Dr.N.S.AnanthaRangachar

Shrimaan anantharangaaryaha lekhopnyaasa kesari
Vedanthaacharya varyo me sankalpaasthu sadhaa hrudhi



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