07 February 2022, Plava varusha, Thai-25, Monday ;
SLOKA-37
37. ACHARYA KRUTHYADHIKARAM: THE UPAKARAM GIVEN BY ACHARYAS
MEANING: Our SadAchAryAs known for their freedom from even a trace of ajn~Anam protected the meanings of the three rahasyams from falling in the hands of the undeserving. When the time for them to ascend to their Lord’s Supreme Abode, they had the merciful thought to banish the ajn~Anam of the SamsAris and decided that latter group should perform prapatthi at the sacred feet the Lord and get uplifted. They chose a select list of sishyAs known for their discriminating intellect (vivEkam) and taste (ruchi) for Bhagavath Kaimkaryam and lit in their minds, the auspicious dheepam of Sath SampradhAyam and caused the spread of this sampradhAyam around the world. The key passage in this paasuram is: “maruL aRRa Desikar aruL uRRa chinthainAl teruL uRRa siRanthavar paal azhiyA viLaku yERRinar” (Our SadAchAryAs untainted by ajn~Anam lit the ever shining lamp of sath sampradhAyam in the minds of the special sishyAs known for their VivEkam, Sraddhai and Kaimkarya ruchi to the Lord and His BhAgavathAs).
SLOKA-38
38) SISHYA KRUTHYADHIKARAM: DUTIES OF A SISHYAN
MEANING: A SadAchAryan instructs his sishyan on the three Tatthvams (ChEthanam, achEthanam and Iswaran), UpAyam (means) and PurushArTam (ultimate goal) and lights up the dheepam of Jn~Anam to banish the darkness of ajn~Anam. There is no way in which one can repay the AchAryan for his matchless upakAram. Even the omniscient (Sarvaj~nan) Lord can not describe the right way to repay the SadAcAryan for his mahOpakAram. If this were to be so for the omniscient Iswaran, then how would it be possible for lesser beings (humans) to suggest the methods to pay back the debt of gratitude of Sishyans to their AchAryans? Inspite of it, sishyAs delight in praising their AchAryans. They meditate on the AchAryan’s glories. The Sishyans spread the reputation of the AchAryans by praising him. All of these attempts of sishyAs to eulogize and celebrate their AchAryans is an expression of their affection and reverence and will never ever compensate for the abundant help that they have received from their most merciful AchAryAs.
The two key passages from this paasuram are: 1. “Manatthu yezhil jn~Ana viLakkai yERRi iruL anaitthum mARRinavarkku oru kaimmARu Maayanum kaaNahillAn” (For the AchAryan, who lit the lamp of true knowledge and banished all the darkness that existed before, even the all-knowing Lord Himself can not come up with a way to pay back for the upakArams received). 2. “(Aathalin nAmm) pORRi uhappathum punthiyil koLvathum pongu puhazh sARRi vaLarppathum, munnam peRRathaRkku saaRRu allavO?” (Therefore, what we do in terms of praising the aathma guNams of the AchAryan, meditate on him and spread his glory in the world by talking about it are insignificant acts compared to the greatest of help received from that AchAryan earlier).
SLOKA-39
39) NIGAMANADHIKARAM: THE FOUR PARTS OF SRTS
MEANING: We composed the grantham of SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram to bless Aasthika sishyAs with vivEkam about their AchAryans, who instruct them (the sishyans) about the glories of Prapatthi yOgam. First, we explained the svaroopams and svabhAvams of Tatthva Thrayam, UpAyam and PurushArTam as we learnt from our AchAryAs. Second, we answered the objections raised about them and established their unshakable validity. Third, we explained the ways to gather the meanings of the three rahasyams and pointed out the essence of such meanings is that the Jeevan has no independence of its own and is the property of the Lord, the sarva Seshi and he (the jeevan) is His unconditional, eternal servant (Sesham). Fourth, we explained the greatness of the most merciful SadAchAryAs, who bless the qualified sishyAs with sath sampradhAya Jn~Anam. Therefore, it is futile to spend one’s life on this earth chasing evanescent pleasures instead of enjoying the SrI Sookthi of SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram.
Swamy Desikan states that he covered the four topics outlined above in his SrI sookthi (ivai seppinam). What is the purpose of wasting one’s life pursuing trivia instead of learning about the lofty and rejuvenating concepts housed in SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram? (Chinn paRRi yenn payan?). There is the learned AchAryan (MaRayavar), who instructs us on the glories of SaraNAgathy at the Lord’s feet, who is Jagadheesvaran (mann paRRi ninRa vahai uraikkinRa maRayavar). Here, we are as discerning sishyAs, who approach the AchAryan to gain the Jn~Anam about the true meanings of VedAntham. We composed this Sri Sookthi of SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram to focus on the VivEkam acquired by the Sishyan from the AchAryan and the resulting clearance of doubts as well as the attainment of realization that he (the jeevan) has no independence whatsoever and as a jeevan he is totally dependent on the Lord, his Master at all times, places and conditions.
SLOKA-40
40) NIGAMANADHIKARAM: PART II: THESE PAASURAMS BEAUTIFY TAMIL LANGUAGE
MEANING: BhagavAn and His BhAgavathAs bless with delight the qualified persons, who possess aathma guNams and do not swerve from the Saasthrams. We composed the paasurams of this Prabhandham with the benedictions of BhagavAn and His BhAgavathAs after familiarizing ourselves with the VedAnthic doctrines. These paasurams serve as nectar to the ears of the listeners even if they do not understand their meanings. These 32 paasurams about SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram set in the andhAthi format is alankArams (decorative objects) for the language of Tamil constituting Iyal, Isai and Naatakam (prose, sangItham and drama).
The key passages of this Paasuram are: “ivai muppatthiraNDu muttamizh sErntha mozhi ThiruvE”. “Mutthamizh sErntha Mozhi” refers to three sets of triads characterizing these paasurams: A. (1) delectable taste of the chosen words (2) deep meanings of the thoughts housed in these paasurams and (3) appropriateness to set them to most enjoyable music. B. (1) the reputation of the composer (2) the glory of the topic and (3) the beauty of the passages of the Paasurams. C. (1) Aasu Kavi (the instantaneous and fluent) composition (2) the intricate geometric patterns found in the paasurams and (3) sweetness associated with them.
With the above Paasuram of AdhikAra Sangraham, the 32 paasurams on SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram set in the andhAthi format comes to an end.
Photo courtesy: Oppiliappan Koil Sri V. Sadagopachariar
