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Re: Digest bhakti.v003.n309

From the Bhakti List Archives

Jayanthi Raghavan • March 24, 1999 


Shree Rama to all
    I would just like to say that i have been following this discussion on Soundharya Lahari and the Shree Lakshmi Narasimha Strotra and
that i have some input if it seems acceptable.  So if i say anything that may offend anyone in anyway please forgive me.  It has been my
personal belief that saying prayers on Sri Lakshmi Narayana written by a non-srivaishnava is okay because the way we say it is with
divine surrendering unto His Lotus Feet.  In regard to Sri Sadagopan's post i will like to make a few personal statements and please
once again excuse them if they are out of place or wrong.  I personally find no solace in any other deity except for Lakshmi, Narayana,
Nitya Suris, Hanuman and any other bhagavatha.   I only pray to Lakshmi Narayana as supreme and the indwelling soul in all souls and in
their many forms.  But this is not to say that offering homage unto other deities is wrong or sinful.  It is only that if we do offer
homage to these deities we must be prepared to accept the good and the bad that comes with it, unlike The Divine Couple who only give
out the good.  But if we pray to the other deities as possessing Lakshmi Narayana as their inner lord and controller then it is okay, at
least this is my take on it.  I for example do the Adityahrydayam on every Sunday but in no way do i take Surya to be the Supreme Being,
i pray to him as a servant under Narayana or as Surya-Narayana.  I don't know any Shiva prayers but once in a while i ask him to make me
a better devotee of Narayana because i have always held Shiva to be the paramavaishnava.  Now please bear with me, i have a few
questions which will be made evident in a few lines.  What is our(srivaishnava) stance on other bhaktas of other sampradyas?  Also do we
hold the attitude that only those who pass through our sampradya gain or recieve moksha or can other people in other sampradya who have
surrendered unto Lakshmi Narayana's feet also recieve moksha?  I mean that many great bhaktas have surrendered to The Divine Couple's
feet but did not formally perform prappati throught a sri-vaishnava acharya are they denied moksha in this life?  Those saints not from
our sampradya who have surrendered to the feet of Lakshmi Narayana have devoted themselves to the Divine and know nothing else, like
Purandhara Dasa, Jnanaeshwar, Tukaram, Mirabai, Thygaraja, Ragavendra and so on but are they denied moksha even though in essense they
did perform prappati(surrender) but not the formal way?  I personally believe that they were not denied moksha in their live because
doing so limits the infinite compassion of the Divine Couple.  I personally also believe that the path and sampradya we are all
following is the best and the representative of the vedas but i also believe the other paths or sampradya's (except for maybe advaita
because of the fact they in the ultimate level equate themselves with the Supreme) are valid in that they promote devotion to Narayana
who is the Supreme Being and Goal but since they don't possess the actual doctrine of prappati it is much harder for them.
Thank you for your time.
Shree Rama
Shree Ramanuja Dasan
Shree Lakshmi Narayana Dasan
Mukunda Vijaya Raghavan