Swami Sri Manaval Mamunikal?s YATHIRAJA VIMSATI
Vyakhyanam in English: Sri U.Ve. S.Satyamurthi Iyengar Swami
Introduction
Saint Vara Vara Muni, the last of the ?poorvacharyas?, that grand galaxy of
preceptors, was known as azhakiya maNavALa nAyanAr, before he took the holy
order of Sanyasa. One day, his immediate preceptor (Acharya)
thiru-vaimozhip-pillai (Sri sailEsar), while meditating on the great qualities
of saint Ramanuja, pondered over those stanzas of Thiruvarangath-amudanar
(Amudanar of Arangam) depicting Ramanuja as a staunch devotee of Saint
Nammazhvar (Maaran), proclaiming to the inhabitants of this wide world, end to
end, the great glory of the Azhvar?s hymns and running riotous with the joy
spouting from those hymns like unto the intoxication of an elephant in rut.
This, in turn, led Srisailesar to think in terms of raising a fitting memorial
for Sri Ramanuja, right in the birthplace of Nammazhvar (Azhvar Thirunagari).
This took concrete shape soon thereafter. A temple was built and the image of
Ramanuja installed therein, duly consecrated. The surrounding streets, named
as ?Sri Ramanuja Chaturvedi Mangalam?, were permanently inhabited, exclusively
by the ardent worshippers of Ramanuja.
The zealous disciple, Azhakiya Manavala Nayanar, was called upon by Srisailesar
to stay in this new colony and look after the daily routine of the temple.
Nayanar?s extra-ordinary devotion to this great cause earned the unstinting
approbation of Srisailesar, who started calling him a ?Yateendra Pravanar?,
signifying the enormous love and devotion borne by him for Saint Ramanuja, the
Prince of ascetics- a name which soon gained currency and became widespread.
Srisailesar did not stop at that. At his behest, Nayanar composed twenty
Sanskrit slokas in adoration of Ramanuja, known as ?yatiraja vimSati?. In the
penultimate sloka, ?Sreeman Yateendra! tava divya padaabja sevaam?, the author
has gratefully acknowledged the grace galore of his loving Master
(Srisailanatha), which alone enabled the former to worship the lotus feet of
Sri Ramanuja unremittingly. The author?s profession of love and depth of
devotion for Saint Ramanuja are very much in evidence in the fourth sloka,
which keeps the hymnographer riveted to the Great Acharya by word, deed and
thought.
Nayanar?s co-disciples composed a verse to commemorate the birth of these
twenty slokas, eulogizing the hymnographer and his hymns, which could sustain
the vast multitude of devotees and make them flourish. As regards the grace
and sweetness of these slokas, the reader will, apart from his or her own
enjoyment, do well to refer to Sri Prativadi Bhayankaram Anna?s Varavaramuni
Satakam wherein he has paid glowing tributes to the grandeur of these laudatory
hymns. Some might, however, question the propriety of Nayanar, himself an
incarnation of Ramanuja, extolling Ramanuja and reducing himself to abject
humility c.f. slokas 6 to 15. The answer to this is that this is quite in
keeping with the tenor of any Avatar c.f. Sri Rama, an incarnation of Bhagavan
Narayana, worshipping the idols of Narayana (i.e.,) Lord Ranganatha ?
?Sahapatnya Visalakshi Narayanamupagamat?. It is noteworthy that the author
desires to move from one extreme to the other, that is, from the utter
distraction of sensual pleasures to utter devotion unto the one who stands last
in the chain of Sri Ramanuja's devotees, vide sloka 16. The author?s implicit
faith in Saint Ramanuja, as the sole Support and the great Redeemer, is fully
reflected in the last three slokas,
Here then is a string of stanzas twenty,
Hymns bespeaking the sweet bounty
Of Sri Ramanuja, the ascetic Prince,
Deep from the heart that doesn?t mince,
Of Manavala Mamuni, the votary par excellence.
=============================================================================================================================Retyped
from the book by Sri Kesavan Srinivasan of Chicago
(The Grandson of Sri U.Ve. Satyamurthi Swami.)
=============================================================================================================================
"Come and celebrate Azhvar and Acharya Thirunakshatrams"
"in Washington DC. November 05th and 06th 2005"
"Register at http://www.vedics.net/utsavam"
Azhvar Emberumanar Jeeyar ThiruvadigalE Saranam
adiyEn rAmAnuja dAsan
Mukundan Vangipuram Pattangi
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