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Re: Sri Garuda mantram

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vasanthi • March 15, 1997 


Dear bAgawathALs,
 In the past few days there were many postings on Sri Garuda and the need for
prayers asking for a specific boons from nitya suris etc. I thoroughly
 enoyed Sri Mohan Sagar's observation of Sri thrithandi jeers comment on 
when prapatti will occur and whether one can realise or not when one is 
pursuing the bhakti maargam. This is absolutely true. Even vadakalai
acharayALs think that when bhakti maargam is pursued prapatti is realised
sometime and all the angas arfe fulfilled at that time somehow. The only difference
is that as per vadaklais prapatti can also be performed at the feet of acharAryALs
who had the authirity to offer this when one is undertaking baranyAsam. Once
baranyAsam is performed one has to start and follow the codes of being a prapanna
 and that itself is enough to reach moksham at the end of this janman. Now there
are questions in one's mind can one follow the codes of a prapanna strictly and 
without any lapase ? When lapses occur invlantgarily there are prayachiththams
prescribed in our saathram. how many of those who had undertaken baranyasam are
conducting themselves as trye prpannaas. Many elders in our families do. This is where
the "maturity" aspect touched by Sri Viji comes into play. Most of the times
elders tell us to have our baranyAsam done at a late age. This is generally
conceived to let them (the children) enjoy for sometime and then get to this stage. No,
it is not true. The correct notion for doing at a later age is such that one will
be matured enough to follow the codes fully. There is a saying in tamil.
A man gets to become a full man only when hr reaches 40's and untill then everything
else is only aRaiyum kuRaiyum. I was thrilled by the explanatins of both Sri Viji
and Sri Mohan Sagar. I have had the oppurtunity to discuss with both of them
sometimes. I am amazed at the level of maturity these bhathaaLs possess. 
I am also thrilled to see that Sri Mohan Sagar's depth of knowledge and understanding is
 is so much for a person having been brought up here in north america. I feel that 
Sri Mohan Sagar must be encouraged for his knoweldge and growth. I Was about to 
request him to educate us on Sri ManavaLa maamunigaLs's aruLicheyaL and i found
that Sriman thirumalai is doing it. Thanks to him. I request Sri Mohan to step in when ever
needed
and expand on the same with his insights. Coming to Sri Garuda's mantram, 
the march 19,  kal garuda sErvai is performed in thiru naRaiyoor  and i intend to post some
on sri garuda on that day. I thank the generous sponsors Sri Dileepan, Sri Viji,
Sri Sadagopan, Sri Ramesh Sarangapani, Sri Jagan for the naachiyaar koil 
ursavams last year. Sri Murali's love for Sri Garuda is very great and i donot see
him getting upset over the remarks on the posts on Sri Gruda's vaibavam. When
Murali had some difficult times i was told his achryan asked him to chant garadu
thandakam and based on this background and Murali's soncerity in following his
acharyALs aruL mozhigaL he is perfectly right in getting disturbed at times when
such fundamental faiths of him are questioned. 

I thank most of those who posted
some "value" of information than passing general observations on who is at fault
etc. Observing the values of someone's post and *expanding*
 on it is also a value. I and many of us with whom i had talked
think that currently only 
Sri Sadagopan is the most matured person and thoroughly knowledgable in this
forum who can tell us as to
how we can conduct in this forum. All the others including me are evolving over
the last 2 years and while many are mellowed many are at times tempermental
and provocative. I am told by my mentor that a true bagwathAL
who had samAsrayEnam
should conduct themself as a true srivaishnava and not offend 
other bagawathALs. The
bagwatha uththama thuvam i was taught is such that by default a srivaishnava should concede
that
the other bagwatha is perumal's adiyar and ignore and condone all the 
differences if they cannot sort it out among themselves eye to eye. 
If this cannot be practiced then we must try to pratcise the same (I was told by my mentor).
ourselves before we preach to others. Sri Srikantha wrote to me a personal letter
and apologised to me (for what he has not done) and explained 
to me when he thought I am quitting because of his remarks. 
I never said I was quitting and it is almost not possible to upset me 
by any remarks in a casual argument. This may be the spirit of annyOnyam between us.
I liked his personal mail and i thanked him
for his explanations.  My mentor told me that it is ok as long as everyone try to conduct 
themselves the way they are suggesting others to conduct. 
Lately, I tend to avoid controversy and make it a 
point that IN EACH SINGLE POST THERE IS 
SOMETHING IS AVAILABLE as a contribution
for the net. Even in a a rejoinder for posts like Sri Garuda, I first try to
assemeble some valuable information than passing 
judgements. Thanks to Smt Vasudha narayan and 
score of others who poured their love
for the posts on thiru allik kENi. I think Sriman Mani may try to be the example
that Sri Sadagopan is suggesting in leading the group. This is not an advise. This
is just a request. Sri Mani is knowledgele in shastras and compared to him my knowledge
is very minimum.  I request Sri Mani and Sri Sadagopan
to agree among themselves and issue a code for all of us so that only a matured person
like Sri Sadagopan writes on the code of conduct. I have never seen Sri Sadagopna
offending anyone in the list so far. That is his "adakkam" and I salute him for
the same.

     When
almost everyone accpets that we can pray to these adiyyars of the Lord , there
are other aspects of Sri Garuda worshiping that is not commonly known. I want to
share them now. Thanks to Smt Nagu and her mother for all the encouragement and
enthusiasm in sharing their anubavams with us. There are more such exists. A station
master in our main line near kumbakonam was capable of treating any poison that
was put in a human's system due to a snake bite. people just used to goto their
railway station and tell their station master who will call this person in his
station and he will immediately take bath and chant and where ever the suffering 
person is there the visham or poison will come down in minutes. This is applicable
for persons suffering even miles away ! I have some experience with Sri garuda
mantram. Sri Garudawaar is in my car as I named my car after him. When i was driving
one day the roof of a van ahead of me in the next lane took off flying  in the
direction of my car. I had only a fraction seconds to decide if i must brake or not. 
I did look at the Sri Garuda's picture in front of me and chanted and braked my car.
the roof came flying at my front wind sheild but landed vertically down at the fron of
my car and without making any scratches into my car. All the other behind me braked
and everyone stopped (HIGH WAY !) and people came to me to ask if i need to call
the cops. As nothing happend to me or anyone we didnot call and my wife and children
witnessed this wonder as many others who thought we had taken the  the hit from this
flying roof coming at a very high speed. Sri Garuda mantram saved me that time.
There are several garuda mantrams that have unique features offered 
from each of such matrams.. 

Sri Garuda panchmai 
is for poison removing and Sri Garuda mantram Swami desikan chanted
is for everything. There is also one powerful garuda mantram known as Sri Garuda
kavacham told by Sri Naradhar is available now from 1963 ie after swami desikan's
7 th centinary. Prior to this it was not heard of in this century. It was digged
from the archives of Raja saraboji library in Tanjore that time by LIFCO. When there
is a debate as to whetehr we can seek prosperity and other material boons from
Lord and his adiyaars, there is also a case when we goto a doctor as we donot wait
for Sriman Narayana to *directly* cure our fever saying it is our karma. ie when the
fever or disease is a hinderence to our spiritual growth we seek to remove it
through other adiyars (Doctos) sriman narayana sent to serve us. I have 
heard from my mentor that there
are powerful mantrams that has cured cancer absoluetley. Can we take this
descretion of taking a medicine or cure, into our hands and seek intermediate releif
? Why not if our ultimate goal is to serve Sriman narayan only. More than diseases
some time certain peole get into trouble when they are not at fault. It may be a
karmic act. If the karma is very severe it will make them go through it and even
without giving them the clarity of the mind 
that there is solution to it and that they can seek refuge at the
feet of adiyaars and get this cured. If our karmic screen is wading due to 
our mantra sidhdi and athma sudhdh swaroopam by doing nitya kaimkaryam like
gayathri jabapam, we come to know that there are cures available and seek to
it sometimes to serve our ultimate goal. When a bagwathal ( is it kanthaadai swamigal's clan)
committed apachzram to Swami Desikan, he was
cured by consuing the sri paath theerthahm of swami desikan ! When thirumalai
swamigaL refused to sing on Lord venkateswara even after venkateswra requested him,. 
it is said that he got into a kaachchal or some disease due to this bagwatha\
 apachAram. ie he said
"aranganai paaadiya vaayaal oru kuranganai paaduvEnaa ?" Later he sang on lord of
thiruvenkadan and got his disease cured. Emperumanaar advised Sri Kooraththazwaar to
pray to Lord of Kanch to get his eye sight back. There are many citations in our
guruparampariyam where our poorvachaaryaaLS themselves had sought certain
relief in material aspects that are hinderance to their spiritual path.
when chanting garuda mantram  as a prayer on adiyaar is wrong how can chanting
acharyaa thaniyan be correct as acharyaa is also an adiyaar for the lord only. 
If worshipping adiyar's are wrong then why did Sri Ramanuja meditated at HIS acharya's feet
at the
time of HIS departure to paramapatham.

Coming to Sri Garuda kavacham,  the speciality
of this mantram as per acharyaals is that when one is accused for a crime that
he is not committed and facing penalty or imprisonment, this mantram is supposed
to get them the relief from the situation. For those living in US they know how
people sue each other for many things in the name of freedom. If anyone has any such 
experience and really think that they need to get them out by seeking sri garudazhawaar's
blessing they can chant it. I cannot post this clokam in the net. However please keep
in mind and if you need, please request me and i can send you the slokam. 

Sri Garudaazwaar thiruvadikaLE charaNam
Sampath Rengarajan