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Re: Axiamatic principle

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Parthasarati Dileepan • March 22, 1998 


At 07:41 PM 3/21/98 +0000, Chandrasekaran. V wrote:
>Dear members,
>   Please accept my heartfelt apologies for posting the mail
>regarding the 'supremacy of deities' by which I seem to have 
>unknowingly offended some members of this mailing list.


You are gracious in extending an apology.  However, my post
was not intended as a rebuke against you or any other individual.
It was meant to reiterate one of the important principles Sri
Vaishnavas hold dear.  This principle often gets forgotten or
misunderstood even by Sri Vaishnavas.




>   I forgot about the principles of this list when I realised
>the Truth that God is one and only one.  As a matter of fact I
>didn't have any intention of starting an argument on that matter
>by that post. I felt it could bring in some thought into the
>Universal Truth. Personally I think I didn't give any impression
>in that post in the lines of arguing supremacy. I was actually
>only questioning the argument about Supremacy itself. If I 
>didn't make my point clear and had offended the members, again
>I feel sorry.


>From an Advaitic POV it may be presented that all deities
are really one and therefore all deities can be equally revered.  
As you know, Sri Vaishnavas do not accept this.  Thus, if 
equality of deities is presented in this forum, someone or 
another is bound to respond.

Further, I see nothing wrong in freely declaring the unique 
supremacy of Sriman Narayana relative to other deities,
here in this forum.  While I may not make a daily habit of 
it, but in principle members of this list must not feel inhibited 
to make such declaration if they feel like it.   After all, the 
Azhvaars have routinely done this.  Thondaradippodi 
Azhvaar goes to the extent of offering his very head to do 
this.  "thalai aRuppundum saavEn saththiyam kANmin aiyaa,
silaiyinaal ilangai seRRa dhEvanE dhEvanaavaan."



>   Again the example of "expressing absence of desire for 
>the royal crown" Sri Parthasarathy had mentioned only goes along 
>with what I had opined in the post. ie. when one has purest, 
>unshakeable faith in his bosom for his Supreme Lord why should 
>he even ponder over/ reassure/ think and compare with other 
>deities?  Why should he in other words express the obvious 
>explicitly by say, eliciting instances of his Lord establishing 
>Supremacy over other deities.


Again, I submit to you that Azhvaars have routinely done
exactly this.  In any case, your complaint is valid only if 
comparison is the only mode of worship.  That is clearly 
not the case here.  To my knowledge comparisons have 
occurred in the most part only as responses.

Please realize, when equality of all deities is presented it is
not unreasonable for someone to correct that misconception.  
Further, I don't know how equality of all deities and the unique 
supremacy of Sriman Narayana can coexist for Sri Vaishnavas
as you seem to wish.  In other words, how could one expect 
an Advaiti to accept sEsha/sEshI relationship while still 
maintaining the essence of his/her advaitic belief?


>One can, I strongly believe, meditate upon the glories of his Lord and crave 
>for his pAdAra vindham without diminishing the glories of other deities. I
sincerely
>believe so.


Sri Mohan Sagar's post answers this concern very nicely.



-- adiyEn