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HH Sri Tridandi Jeear's Net Chat

From the Bhakti List Archives

Mohan R Sagar • October 11, 1999 


The following is my rough attempt to summarize HH
Sri Tridandi SrimanNarayana Ramanuja Jeear Swamy's
net based upanyAsam, which took place on Sunday,
October 10. Any mistakes are my own, and all that
is correct is due to Sri Tridandi Jeear's
mangalAsAsanas.

Sri Jeear Swamy began his discourse by describing
how during these 10 days prior to Vijaya Dasami,
SriVaishnava scholars from all over the state of
Andhra Pradesh are gathering at his Ashram to
discuss issues from both Sanskrit and Tamil vEdam,
as well as to test and award the religious
students in his vEda pAthasala.  The gathering is
being called the ubhaya vEdanta pandita sabha, and
includes 16 renowned scholars in Sanskrit vEdam
and 14 in nAlAyira divya prabhandam.  A grand
sahasra kalasa thirumanjanam to Sri Ramar, the
presiding Deity of Sri Tridandi Jeear's Ashram,
will be taking place on Vijaya Dasami.

Addressing the primarily Telugu speaking group of
devotees in this net chat,  HH utilized the above
mentioned gathering to stress the importance of
the tamizh vEdam in our sampradAyam.   HH told the
story of a very great and respected king who
strictly adhered to the dharma in accordance with
sAstra.  But, his respect for Sanskrit Vedam
biased him towards Sanskrit alone as the medium of
communication with the Divine.  One day while
visiting a temple, the king noticed a poet singing
to the god of the temple in Tamil.  Fearing that
the gods would be insulted by the use of a
language other than Sanskrit, the king, in his
rage, banished this poet from his kingdom.  The
pious and humble poet merely followed the king's
orders and left the kingdom for a nearby forest.

The king had always thought of himself as a good
and virtuous man.   But, much to his surprise, he
found himself in narakam after leaving his mortal
coils.  The king approached and pleaded with Yama
to explain the reason for such punishment.  How is
that a good and noble king, one who worshipped the
gods, cared for the Brahmins, and who performed
all actions in strict adherence to vEdic
priniciples should wind up in hell?

Yama reminded the king of his only sin.  The king
had banished a bhAgavatha from his kingdom, and as
a result reaped a sin that would far outweigh all
his virtues.  The King replied in defense that the
man was merely reciting in Tamil, not the sacred
language of the gods, Sanskrit.  Yama replied that
it was what was being recited, not the language,
that was of importance.  The person was singing
verses in Tamil that were praising Sriman
Narayana, whose praise is sacred in whatever
language it is being recited.

HH went on to point out that our Acharyans have
shown that even Sanskrit texts  are  irrelevant if
they do not promote and praise the Supreme Lord
Sriman Narayana.  There are many Boudha and Jain
texts that are written in Sanskrit, but our
Acharyans have rejected them.

The world did not know about the tamizh vEdam for
centuries, consequently many people see it as
being a relatively new concept compared to the
antiquity of the 4 Sanskrit books.  But, HH
stated, the tamizh vEda is just as eternal as the
Sanskrit vEda, and indeed contains the
quintessence of all vEdic knowledge.  By the grace
and effort of emperumAnAr Sri Ramanuja, the
nAlAyiram has spread throughout all of South
India.  It is only for all of us to put aside our
linguistic and cultural biases, learn the Divya
Prabhandam, and share the profound wisdom of the
Dravida Saints with everyone.  Sadly, a few Tamil
speaking people have put up a protective wall
around the tamizh vEdam, claiming it to be only
for the own.  It is up to all bhAgavathas to tear
down this wall by recognizing that the universal
messages of our azhwArs belong to everyone.  Not
only should transliterations of nAlAyiram be
provided to all SriVaishnavas, but each and every
devotee must make an effort to learn the deeper
meanings of at least a few of the more important
pAsurams in the Divya Prabhandam, such that the
beauty and profound wisdom of AzhwArs can be
known.  A little bee goes to several different
flowers to collect the nectar from each.
Similarly, we should go to each other's cultures,
languages and AchAryans to receive the nectar of
instruction that leads us to His Lotus Feet.

As per the divine orders of HH, a group of
devotees of Telugu origin will be attempting to
translate one beautiful pAsuram from
ThiruvAymozhi, "Pattudai Adiavarku," for the next
net chat, which will be taking place on October 17
beginning at 8:30 PM IST (11:00 AM Eastern).  In
addition to providing his profound insights on
ThiruvAymozhi, HH will also be addressing the the
importance of AzhwArs and AchAryans.

Information on how to join Sri Tridandi Jeear
Swamy's net chat can be found in his web page:
www.chinnajeeyar.org

adiyEn rAmAnuja dAsan,

Mohan