THIRUVALLIKENI KANDENE   

  BRINDARANYA NIVASAYA BALARAMANUJAYACHA RUKMINI PRANANADHAYA PARTHASOODHAYA MANGALAM

                      THIS SITE IS SUBMITTED TO THE HOLY FEET OF SHREE PARTHASARATHI EMPERUMAN

                                                                          Sri Parthasarathi thunai

                                                                        Srimathe Ramanujaya Namaha

                                                                        Sri Vara Vara MunayE Namaha

                                                                    Sri VanAchala mahA munayE Namaha

                                                           SrisailEsa dayA pAthram deebhakthyAdhi gunArnavam

                                                          Yateendra pravanam vandhE ramya jAmataram muni

                                                          RamyajAmatru yOgeendra pAdha rEkhA mayam sadhA

                                                          thathAyath thAthma sadhdhAthim rAmAnuja munim bhajE

                                        VANAMAMALAI SWAMI’S DINACHARYA (DAILY ROUTINE)-2

5.             After the kalashepam, swamy blessed the disciples with his sripAda theertham.  When the time for thiruvArAdhanam to aranganagarappan came, swamy did thiruvArAdhanam and offered fruits, a lot of prasadam along with pAyasam (a grand meal) to perumal and then according to the procedures of his acharya, did sattrumurai (completion of pooja).

6.             Swamy then distributed the perumal theertham to all and did bhagavata dhadheeyArAdhanam and accepted some prasadam himself.  Then swamy stood in front of perumal with folded hands and recited the manthra ratnam.  As per the verse, “gurO: pAdhAmbhuja dyAyEth gurOr nAma sadhA jabhEth” swamy mentally always meditated on the divine feet of his acharya and always kept saying, “Jeeyer thiruvadigalE sharanam” and there by remained for many years.

7.             Swamy then delivered kalashepam on Sri Ramanayana and also continued his sannadhi kainkaryams without any shortcomings.  In his leisure time, swamy similar to his acharya, mAmunigal discussed many sath vishayams with elders and other srivaishnavas interested in bhagavat vishayam.  Swamy used to tell them a number of interesting vishesha arthas and words of poorvacharyas during those discussions.

8.             Meanwhile, one fine day the topic of discussion happened to be about bhAgavata prAvanyam.  Swamy immediately remembered the thirukkOloor vriththAntham in the life history of Sri ethirajar and told it to the collected bhagavatas as follows:

When emperumAnAr visited thirukkOloor, he met a lady on the way, who payed her obeisance to emperumAnAr.  Ethirajar asked the lady, “Oh! Lady From where are you coming?” The lady promptly replied, “I started my journey from thirukkOloor” EmperumAnAr shocked with the reply said, “How is that the place where everyone has to go and settle became the place for you to start from?  Shouldn’t you stay in thirukkOloor even if you have to share a single dress with 7 others and get only a few vegetables or fruits to eat?”  As per alwar’s words, “thinna ennilamAn pugumoor” thirukkOloor is the place of refuge for everyone” The intelligent lady replied in the form of 82 questions, which showed her great knowledge in puranas, itihasas, guru paramparai and in sampradaya vishayams.  We will just see a sample of 10 questions and reserve the whole lot for a separate posting since it is a very very interesting topic to elaborate on.

 ThirukkOloor ammal’s reply:

Adiyen nAyindhE! NAyindhE! (I am right over here at your service)

 1.      Did I say I would bring him like akroora?

2.      Have I shed my ego like vidhura?

3.      Did I leave my body like the rishi pathni?

4.      Did I curse dashamukan like piratti?

5.      Did I wake a corpse like thondaimAn?

6.      Did I serve a treat of deadbody like kandAkarnan?

7.      Did I take the part of a mother like anasooya?

8.      Did I ask where my father was? like druvan?

9.      Did I utter the three letters like kshatrabhandu?

10. Did I get the first step like akalya?

And thus the questions continue.  Finally thirukkOloor ammal ended saying that I do not possess the greatness of any of the above so what difference does it make whether I stay in thirkkOloor or elsewhere?  I am like the remains of a rabbit, it never matters whether I am in the field or outside.  You continue your journey and go and do mangalasasanam to vaiththamAnidhi and madurakavigal so that they celebrate nithyOtsava, pakshOtsava, mAsOtsava, samvatsarOtsava without any hinderence forever.  Highly pleased with the reply of the lady ethirajar visited her house and asked her to cook and ate the food made by her.  He also blessed her with his SripAda theertham and prasAdam.  In this way my paramAcharya, Sri ThiruvAimozhi pillai used to say and enjoy line by line, the greatness of the intelligent bhagavatai’s words. 

 Saying all these to his shisyas, vanamamalai Jeeyer swamy spent his daytime.

  We will see the evening anushtanams of swamy in the next posting and also his acharyAbhimAnam.

 (To be continued)

 Alwar EmperumAnAr jeeyar thiruvadigalE sharaNam

 Adiyen Ramanuja dasyai

Sumithra Varadarajan