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"dhATee-panchakam" tribute to Sri Ramanuja.

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Tirumanjanam Sundara Rajan • October 27, 2001 


Sri Sadagopan svAmin,

The 'pUrvAchArya-stOtra-mAla' printed (1949) by Prativadi-bhayankaram
Annangaracharya Svami carries a one-line credit of 'dhATee-panchakam' to
Sri kUrattAzhvAn [and, reportedly, others]
~~ Srivatsachihna-miSrAdibhi: anugr.heetam iti prathitam.

In his subsequent comprehensive commentary, Anna Svami makes the
following opening observations:--

"Some hold this five-verse tribute as composed by kUrattAzhvAn;  there
are otbers who consider that this was strung together with a verse
authored each by AzhvAn, ANDAn, embAr etc.   Be it as it may, this
'stOtram' is dulcet to the ears and has long been included in the
protocol of daily recitation. The name "dhAtee-panchakam" is quite
appropriate to this five-verse tribute to the verity [of the theology
and philosophy] of emperumAnAr."        (Added: 'dhATee' meaning
victory.)
  
On a personal note it occurs to me that, going by the unity of its
diction, this could just be a single-author composition.  It shares 
the unique characteristics AzhvAn's "pancha-stavam", namely, the vedic
flavour, strident phrasing, specific allusions,  and the emotional
richness of references to the noble AchArya.  

The succinct delineation of Ramanuja's exposition of the
'vEdAnta-sUtram' as contained in the 'panchakam' could have come only
from someone like AzhvAn who had  intimate seminars with the AchArya
even as he spoke out his unrivalled SribhAshyam to his privileged
amanuensis. [EngaL AzhvAn ~~ vishNuchitta, the AchArya of naDatUr ammAL 
~~ too had a like privilege subsequently when he was commissioned by
Emperumanar to assist him in writing out the concluding part of
SribhAshyam, after Emperumanar returned to Srirangam from Tirunarayana
Puram, and found that AzhvAn had gotten blinded by the rabid Saiva
chOzha.  Nevertheless, Engal AzhvAn's assitantship in SribhAshyam
composition was of shorter duration than that of AzhvAn.]

It is important to remember that our AchArya personages did not give
room to wasting emotions when their protocol and place of worship
suffered  disturbance and, instead, concentrated on alternative positive
programmes. Thus, during his 'exile' to Tirunarayanapuram, Ramanuja got
the 'pancha nArAyaNa pratishThA' executed by mudali-ANDAn, with the
support of the hoySaLa ruler vishNu-vardhana.  Parasara-bhattar gave us
the enchanting Sriranganatha stotram [beginning,
"sapta-prAkAra-madhyE..."] while he had to leave Srirangam for
tirumAl-irum-SOlai.   Vedantacharya devised his protective incantation
'abheeti-stavam' when he had to seek shelter in Satyamangalam during the
savagery of Malik Kafur's brutes in Srirangam during 1310-1320(?).    

During his long years in Tirunarayanapuram, it was a routine with
Ramanuja incessantly to recite his incantation,

"Sriman ! Sriranga-Sriyam, anupadravAm, anu-dinam samvardhaya!" 

as the standard invocation for the well-being and security of the holy
city of Srirangam [and all the other divya-dESam and the surpassing
values associated with them;  this connotated by the expression
'Sriranga-Sri'].   AzhvAn had possibly composed the 'pancha-stavam'
after he was disabled from the SribhAshyam assistantship, and as he kept
emitting his 'Arti' (distress and deprivation in being separated from
Ramanuja) in the direction of Tirunarayanapuram where his AchArya had
reached. This is my own surmise on a re-reading of the famous 'taniyan'
~~ "yO nityam achyuta-padAmbuja-yugma-rukma-vyA-mOhata:" ~~ 
which happens to be the opening verse of AzhvAn's
'Sri-vaikuNTha-stavam'. It is possible that the phrase
"jainEma-kanTheerava:" (in the 'dhATee-panchakam') is a specific
glorification of Ramanuja's prevailing over the horde of Jaina debaters
in Tondanur.  

It is thus plausible that the 'dhATee-panchakam' could well have been
the tribute paid by AzhvAn to his AchArya, composed during his
separation from him, and being excited by reports of Ramanuja's
conquests in the 'foreign' territory of Hoysala.  

aDiyEn rAmAnuja-dAsan
T.S. Sundara Rajan 
at Srirangam.

=======================================================================
Sadagopan wrote Tue, 9 Oct 2001 08:35:29 -0400 (EDT):

Dear Sri Sunder Kidambi:
I am requesting Sri Thirumajnam Sundararajan Swamy of Srirangam
to shed light on this subject of authorship of Dhaattipanchakam (Swamy
MudaliyANDaa or Not).   Sriman Sundararajan Swamy is a highly regarded
scholar on Srirangam traditions in general and Mudali Andan Vamsam in
particular.

>Dear Sri Sadagopan Swamin,
> As mentioned in my email to Sri Anand my source is a text published 
>in the Sri Ramanuja Vani. However if you are of the opinion, which I >thoroughly respect, that Sri Dhaatiipanchakam is the work of Sri >Mudaliaandaan, I would be more than happy to change it. 
>Sunder Kidambi >www.prapatti.com

> >----- Original Message -----
> >From: "Sadagopan" 
> >To: "Anand Rangarajan" 
> >Cc: ; 
> >Sent: Saturday, October 06, 2001 8:27 PM
> >Subject: Re: Fwd: Re: Dhaattipanchakam>
> >> Dear Anand:
> >> Dr.M.N.Ramanuja has included this Panchakam at his web site.
> >> By copy of this note, I am requesting him to comment
> >> on your query.   If I remember correct,he belongs to
> >> the Mudali AaNDAN AchArya paramparai.
> >>
> >> BTW, Dr.Ramanuja is at the Physics Dept at IISC, Bangalore.
> >> Best Wishes,
> >> V.Sadagopan
> >>
> >> At 09:45 PM 10/3/01 -0700, you wrote:
> >> >Dear Sri Sadagopan mama,
> >> >I am sure I have heard on two occasions that Dhaati panchakam is on
> >> Ramanuja's defeat of some people in a discussion, and was written by
> >> MudaliAndaan. Can you clarify?> >> >
> >> >anand
> >> >
> >> >------- Start of forwarded message -------
> >> >To: "Anand Rangarajan" 
> >> >Subject: Re: Dhaattipanchakam
> >> >From: "Sunder Kidambi" 
> >> >Date: Wed, 3 Oct 2001 06:02:39 -0400
> >> >Dear Sri Anand,
> >> >Greetings and thank you very much for your note. I have commentary on Dhati Panchakam. The title of the article is "Dhati Panchakam of Kuratalvan" by (Late) Sri. S. Satyamurthi Ayyengar.   This article appeared in Sri. Ramanuja Vani in 1998.
If you feel your source is authentic, I would be more than happy to
change the author. Please let me know.  
Adiyen > >> >Sunder Kidambi > >> >www.prapatti.com
> >> >----- Original Message -----
> >> >From: "Anand Rangarajan" 
> >> >To: 
> >> >Sent: Wednesday, October 03, 2001 2:10 AM
> >> >Subject: Dhaattipanchakam.
> >> >> Dear Sri Sunder Kidambi,
> >> >> I think this particular sthothram was written by MudaliAandaan 
and not Kuresa as your 
webpage at http://www.prapatti.com/slokas/mp3.html
indicates.          > >> >> anand > >> >>


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