Nerelge

Narsim sings at nerelge.

 

Kritagnya

 https://youtu.be/CppKpIPJeI4

Here is a small clipping of what was uniquely taught to us by our great acarya sri Ramanujacharya. Beautifully explained by cjs to the children and adults alike. The purpose and meaning,  the cause and goal, of life and what life means. Nothing can be more simpler than this.

Wish it was in English. He does use a lot of English but if one knows and understands telugu one enjoys the puns a little more. 

Javgal 2022

 

 

For little children.

 Can't have a better explanation. Children will understand perfectly.

https://youtu.be/wtsYqt0zV7k

Centers of learning.

 Even today it surves as a means of livelihood for the community at large. A must visit place of 11th century. Its a university by itself. Be it art science any field its plain rock proof of the greatness of the architect his knowledge imagination attention to details mind boggling can spend a life line learning here.

Must visit. And take back the little we are blessed to learn.

Bellavare Ballaru Bella Sawaiya is the only attraction of the Belur Temple that is known for its magnificent architecture. Here is a description of what is special about this Belur Chennakesava Temple ..

The temple was built for 103 years. The beauty of the temple is that it still reflects all the years of hard work and the sweat of the sculptors. 

Yes, the Belur Chennakeshava Temple is a great exhibition of Hoysala sculpture. Belur Chennakeshava Temple is the dream home of Raja Vishnuvardhana who ruled the Hoysala in the 12th century. Belur was the capital of Hoysala at that time. Even today, the temple stands with gorgeous sculpture and architectural style to express the royal charm of the day. Here are some interesting things about this temple.

The Belur

Temple in the Hassan district of the state is located at a distance of 220 km from Bangalore. Standing at the entrance of the temple are two beautiful stone elephants. Its architecture is remarkable. There are many small shrines inside this entrance. There is a pushchair next to it.

High Lamp Post In

the center of the temple premises is a 42 meter high stone flag with a stellar base. The specialty of this pillar is that its base has no basis. It is very special to stand for a long time without the slightest distraction of nature. 

The Star Shape is

not just the base of the flag, but the entire temple is built on top of the star. This star is representative of Hoysala's architecture. 

The carvings of animals

are the beauty of stone carvings in the temple exterior. A lot of animals can be found in this stone. Elephants, lions, and horses are very much carved in the image of strength, courage and speed. In addition, the Mahabharata and Ramayana scenarios related to animals are also depicted. There are more than 600 elephant carvings. 

The Hoysala emblem is the image of a man fighting a Hoysala lion. The history of this logo is as follows. One day, when a lion rushes into a village and kills people, a common man who dies is fighting it. On this occasion, all the people who were there were shouting 'Hoi Sala'. It means kill. It was from this event that the Hoysala Empire was created. 

Madanaikas

Belur is very popular among the rock artisans here. The walls of the temple have a lot of charm and look. The most famous of these is Darpana Sundari. In addition, the dancing boys and the young girls playing the musical instruments can be seen. 

Mohini

Chennakeshava means the beautiful Vishnu. It is the temple of Vishnu. There is a sculpture of Lord Vishnu on the siren. Its special features are the captivating details of the siren. 

Universities of learning.

learning emphasizing the amazing heritage we had and deep knowledge our forefathers had on architecture, scuplture, geometry, mythology and mathematics, symmetrical knowledge, proportion, jewellery hair fashion, beauty accessories, culture, and tradition, the engravings tell us about the rich history from how intricate designs were carved, uniqueness of each sculpture, science and technology 1000's of years back - hardly any country can match it.

keep 2 hours of time on the way to Chikkamagalur for this, hire a guide - there are english/hindi speaking ones.

16 guides are there who are given turns  in rotation. Every thing seems organized. 

hire a guide - there are english/hindi speaking ones also. they will give a receipt and standard charges based on group size (starts at 300 rs), but without a guide its worthless to visit.

the beauty of dances, facial expressions is visible so many years after the construction. the temple consturction itself took 103 years, which means that few generations of artisans worked on the temple itself. it has a unique interlock mechanism for construction and typical hoysala architecture. on the way back visit Halebidu and Belavadi (sri Veeranarayana temple) and witness the exquisite hoysala architecture.

Chennakeshava Temple

Chennakesava ("handsome Kesava") is a form of the Hindu god Vishnu. The temple is dedicated to Vishnu and has been an active Hindu temple since its founding. It is reverentially described in medieval Hindu texts, and remains an important pilgrimage site in Vaishnavism. The temple is remarkable for its architecture, sculptures, reliefs, friezes as well its iconography, inscriptions and history. The temple artwork depicts scenes of secular life in the 12th century, dancers and musicians, as well as a pictorial narration of Hindu texts such as the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the Puranas through numerous friezes. It is a Vaishnava temple that reverentially includes many themes from Shaivism and Shaktism, as well as images of a Jina from Jainism and the Buddha from Buddhism. The Chennakeshava temple is a testimony to the artistic, cultural and theological perspectives in 12th century South India and the Hoysala Empire rule.

https://youtu.be/1jJXqOTHnOc

The Belur temple complex along with the nearby Hindu and Jain Temples at Halebidu have been proposed to be listed under UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

The Chennakeshava complex at Belur consists of a 443.5 feet by 396 feet court with several Hindu temples and minor shrines inside a walled compound. The compound is entered from the east through a Gopuram added during the repairs of the Vijayanagar empire era.[23] The temples and monuments found inside the walled complex are:

Ramanujacharya sannidhi the 12 alwars have each a separate enclosure here. Garudalwar is very impressive too.

Chennakesava temple, also called as Kesava temple, is the main temple. It is in the middle of the complex, faces east, in front of the gopuram. Including the improvements added later, it is 178 feet by 156 feet. The temple stands on a wide platform terrace (jagati) about 3 feet high. The temple is dedicated to Vishnu in the form of Kesava.To the south of the Kesava temple is the Kappe Chennigaraya temple measuring 124 feet by 105 feet. It has two sanctums inside, one dedicated to Venugopala and the other to Chennigaraya (local popular name of Chennakeshava, Vishnu). The temple is called Kappe Chennigaraya because, according to a local legend, a Kappe (frog) was once found near its navel. This smaller temple was built by the queen concurrently with the main temple, and is believed to be similar smaller version.A stone slab with a couple standing side by side in a namaste posture under a canopy. The monument is damaged.

To the west of the Kesava temple is the Viranarayana temple measuring 70 feet by 56 feet. It is a small but complete temple with a navaranga (nine square hall) and a garbha griya (sanctum) with 59 large reliefs on the outer walls. These reliefs are dedicated to Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, Bhairava (angry Shiva), Lakshmi, Parvati, Saraswati and others. Some panels depict the Bhima story from the Mahabharata. The temple is also dated to the 12th century.To the southwest of the Kesava temple is a small temple to Somyanayaki (form of the goddess Lakshmi), also dated to the 12th century. However, the temple was expanded and enhanced later. This temple is notable because the local tradition holds that its tower is miniature version of the major tower that once rose above the main Kesava temple.[26]The Andal temple, also called Ranganayaki shrine, is to the northwest of the Kesava temple. Its outer wall are decorated with artwork such as elephants and nature. It also displays 31 large images of deities from the Vaishnavism, Shaivism and Shaktism traditions of Hinduism. It also has intricately carved Venugopala, Mohini and Lakshmi, as well as friezes showing legends in the Puranas.The complex has a number of small shrines. To the east of Kappe-Chennigaraya temple are shrines for Narasimha, Rama, Jiyar and Alvars of the Bhakti movement fame. To the east of Andal temple are shrines for Krishna, and Vaishnavism scholars Desikar, Bhashyakara and Ramanuja of Vishishtadvaita Vedanta fame. On the base of the shrines for Alvars are friezes showing stories from the Ramayana. Some of these shrines were added later because few of these scholars such as Desikar lived after the 12th century]Two main sthambha (pillars) are found in the temple complex. The pillar facing the main temple, the Garuda (eagle) sthambha was erected in the Vijayanagar period while the pillar on the right, the Deepa sthambha (pillar with lamp) dates from the Hoysala period. Near the Viranarayana temple is a mandapa where annual procession ratha and temple vehicles have traditionally been stored. It is called vahana mandapa.The complex also has a kalyana-mandapa in the southeast corner for ceremonies. It was added in the 17th centuryA granary for storing food reserves is found in the northwest corner of the complex. There is smaller northern gate to the complex, near which is a pakasale or community kitchen built in the 13th century. A stepped water tank, called kalyani or Vasudeva-sarovara in inscriptions, is found in the northeast corner with two stone elephants on its side

The complex has many other small monuments and features, such as the ane-bagilu or "elephant's gate" just south of the gopuram and a memorial of past destruction in the form of pillars and statues in the northwes..tern part of the complex.

The temple is a ekakuta vimana design (single shrine) of 10.5 m by 10.5 m size. It combines elements of North Indian Nagara and South Indian Karnata style architecture.[4] The temple stands on an open and wide platform designed to be a circumambulatory path around the sanctum. The temple and platform were without walls and the platform surrounded an open mantapa, following the contour of the temple. A visitor would have been able to see the ornate pillars of the open mantapa from the platform.Later walls and stone screens were added, creating an enclosed vestibule and mantapa, providing security but creating too much dark to appreciate the artwork inside. The vestibule connects the circumambulatory platform to the mandapa (hall). There is intricate and abundant artwork both on the outside and inside the temple

The temple has a simple Hoysala plan and features one sanctum. The building material used in the Chennakesava temple is chloritic schist, more commonly known as soapstone. It is soft when quarried and allows artists to more easily carve details. Over time the material hardens.This Hoysala temple, according to the art critic and historian Settar, deployed the Western Chalukyan artists and their tradition that originally developed in Aihole, Badami and Pattadakal. It is simpler than later Hoysala temples (including the Hoysaleswara temple at Halebidu and the Keshava temple at Somanathapura).

The temple is built on a jagati (literally, "worldly"), a symbolic worldly platform with a wide walking space for circumambulation (pradakshina-patha) There is one flight of steps leading to the jagati and another flight of steps into the mantapa. The jagati provides the devotee the opportunity to do a pradakshina around the temple before entering it. The jagati carefully follows the staggered square design of the mantapa[35] and the star shape of the shrine.

Exterior walls.

The visitor sees numerous artwork during the circumambulation of the temple over the jagati platform in horizontal bands. The bottom band is of elephants with different expressions, as symbolic supporters of the entire structure.Above it is an empty layer, followed by cornice work with a periodic lion face. Above it is another band of scroll and then cornice band, except at the back of the temple where a row of horsemen in various riding positions are depicted.

The fifth carved band is of small figurines, mostly females with various expressions facing the viewer, while periodically the band includes Yakshas who face towards the inside of the temple. This layer also has numerous dancers and musicians, as well as professionals with their tools.The band above has pilasters between some of which are carved secular figures mostly females and couples. A nature and creepers band wraps the temple above the pilaster band, with scenes of the Ramayana epic included in this band. Above this layer are scenes from common life depicting kama, artha and dharma. Economic and festive activities Towards the north outer wall, friezes with scenes from the Mahabharata are portrayed.

Above these bands is later construction that added 10 perforated stone windows and screens to north side and 10 to the south side of the temple. The later artists engraved Purana scenes in ten of these later additions, and the other ten have geometric floral designs.The perforated screens with characters show:

Hoysala court scene, with the king, queen, officers, attendants and two gurus with their studentsKesava with Hanuman and Garuda,the Vamana dwarf, Bali and Trivikrama legend,the Krishna Kaliyamardana legend, Shiva on Nandi with Ganesha and Kartikeya,the Prahlada, Hiranyakashipu and Narasimha legend (notable for Thenkalai namam style Urdhava pundra symbols on Prahlada's forehead),Yoga-Narasimha with Hanuman and Garuda,the Samudra manthan legend,the Krishna killing Kamsa legend,Ranganatha reclining on Sesha,the Hanuman and Garuda fighting over Shiva linga legend.

Above the perforated screens, on capitals of the supporting pillars, are madanakai (Salabhanjika) figures. There were originally 40 madanakai, of which 38 have survived in damaged or good form. Two of these are Durga, three huntresses (with bow), others are dancers in Natya Shastra abhinaya mudra (acting posture), musicians, women dressing or doing make up, a woman with a pet parrot, men making music. A majority of these madanakai figures are also carved into miniatures in the sixth band of the outer wall around the pradakshina patha.

The wall also features 80 large reliefs around the temple. Of these 32 are of Vishnu, 9 of his avatars (Narasimha, Varaha, Vamana, Ranganatha, Balarama); 4 of Shiva in various forms including Nataraja (with or without Parvati); 2 of Bhairava (Shiva); 2 of Harihara (half Shiva, half Vishnu); 4 of Surya (Sun god); 5 of Durga and Mahishasuramardini; 1 of Kama and Rati; 1 of Ganesha, Brahma, Saraswati, Garuda and Chandra. Other major reliefs are of Arjuna shooting an arrow to win Draupadi; Ravana lifting the Kailasha; Daksha, Bali and Sukracharya.

Some of the statues present exceptional details. For example, one madanakai figure is shown with a fruit tree canopy, where a small fly is shown sitting on the fruit and nearby a lizard is preparing to pounce on the fly. In another, an eagle is shown attacking a sarabha, which in turn is attacking a lion, which in turn is pouncing on an elephant, which itself is seizing a snake, which in turn is shown in the act of swallowing a rat – a sight that includes a pondering sage.Secular life is shown in these images, such as an artist making a drawing or musicians lost in their music. A notable image is the depiction of 12th century Rudra-vina and a Lasya dance posture.Also included is the image of a Jina of Jainism.

The outer wall on the side of the eastern entrance into the temple inside shows Bhairava and Durga. The outer wall on the side of the southern entrance into the temple shows Tandavesvara and Brahmani. The outer sides at the northern entrance into the temple show Vishnu and Mahishasuramardini.

InteriorEdit

The Chennakesava temple has three entrances and their doorways have decorated sculptures called dvarapalaka (doorkeepers) on either side.The central hall (navaranga) was originally open on all sides except the west where the sanctum is, but all sides were later closed with perforated screens. This reduced the amount of light significantly and the intricate art work is difficult to appreciate without secondary light. The artwork starts on entry to the three entrances to the hall. Each leads to raised verandas on both sides. The hall has carved pillars with a large domed ceiling in the center.The mandapa has 60 "bays" (compartments).

The navaranga in Kesava temple at Belur is the largest of any Hoysala temple, is of triratha diamond-shaped layout, according to James Harle.

Pillars and ceilingEdit

The navaranga hall has forty eight pillars. All except the central four are carved in a unique way. The central four are later additions, added in 1381 CE during the Vijayanagara Empire era, to support the internal structure of a damaged temple. The pillars are of three sizes. Two pillars are particularly notable. One is the so-called Narasimha pillar which is carved with miniature figures from top to bottom, such as a tiny bull (kadale basava). The local legend states that this pillar once could rotate because of how it was supported, but it no longer can be rotated.The other pillar is the Mohini pillar.Other than the female avatar of Vishnu, the pillar has eight bands of carvings, including those of Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, then ten avatars of Vishnu, the eight direction deities, mythical animals with the body of a lion but the face of other wildlife. The four central pillars are notable for having been hand carved while the others were lathe turned

In the center of the hall is a large open square, above which is a domed ceiling about 10 feet in diameter and 6 feet deep At the top is a lotus bud with Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva carved on it. At the bottom of the dome is a series of friezes with the Ramayana story.On the capitals of the four pillars are madanikas (Salabhanjika). One represents dancing Saraswati, the Hindu god of knowledge, arts and music. The others are regular dancers, but with different expressions. One is dressing her hair, the other in a Natya posture, and the fourth has a parrot seated on her hand. The head and neck jewelry made of rock are freely mounted and can be moved. The bracelets similarly are moveable. The design of the ceiling follows the Hindu texts, and is a modified utksipta style with images placed in concentric rings

Other reliefs inside the hall include large images of Vishnu avatars, friezes of the Vedic and Puranic histories, and more scenes of the Ramayana.

Sanctum

The mandapa leads to the garbha griya past the pillars and a doorway. The door is flanked by dvarapala, Jaya and Vijaya. Its pediment has Lakshminarayana in center. Below it are musicians playing 12th-century musical instruments. On the side are two makaras with Varuna and Varuni together riding on them. Inside the square sanctum is the image of Keshava, or as inscriptions call it "Vijayanarayana". It stands on a 3 feet high pedestal, is about 6 feet high with a halo.[47] It has four hands, with chakra and shankha in the upper hands and a gada and lotus in his lower hands. The halo has cyclical carving of the ten avatars of Vishnu – Matsya, Kurma, Varaha, Narasimha, Vamana, Parasurama, Rama, Krishna, Buddha and Kalki. The temple is active house of worship, with Keshava dressed and decorated, priests present and devotees doing darshana.

The temple had a tower, which was repeated damaged and destroyed, rebuilt and restored. In the 19th-century restorations, the temple was left without a tower. According to Foekema, the tower when it existed would have been of the Bhumija style when it existed and not the regular star shaped tower that followed the shape of the vimana. The Bhumija towers, which are intact on the miniature shrines at the entrance of the hall are actually a type of nagara (North Indian) tower, being curvilinear in shape.This shape of tower is quite uncommon in pure dravidian architecture.

Some of the Hoysala artists signed their work in the form of inscriptions. In doing so, they sometimes revealed details about themselves, their families, guilds and place of origin. Stone inscriptions and copper plate inscriptions provide more information about them. Ruvari Mallitamma was a prolific artist to whom more than 40 sculptures are attributed. Dasoja and his son Chavana who were from Balligavi in modern Shimoga district made important contributions. Chavana is credited with the work on five madanikas and Dasoja accomplished four of them. Malliyanna and Nagoja created birds and animals in their sculptures. Artists such as Chikkahampa and Malloja are credited with some of the sculptures in the mantapa. These artists also contributed to the artwork found in other major Hoysala temples found within 50 kilometers of Belur like javgal etc.

Haladini shakti.

Haladini Shakti" literally means Joy-rendering power. In Hindu scriptures it is used for Shri Radha who , it is believed, is the manifestation of this power by which Lord Krishna is all-joy and gifts joy to His devotees.

Radha is considered as a metaphor for the human spirit  her love and longing for Krishna is theologically viewed as symbolic of the human quest for  union with the divine. She has inspired numerous literary works.

Radha is an important goddess in the Vaishnavite traditions of Hinduism. Her traits, manifestations, descriptions, and roles vary by region. Radha is intrinsic with Krishna. In early Indian literature, mentions of her are elusive. The traditions that venerate her explain this is because she is the secret treasure hidden within the sacred scriptures. During the Bhakti moment era in the sixteenth century, she became more well known as her extraordinary love for Krishna was highlighted.

Radha's first major appearance in the 12th-century Gita Govinda in  Sanskrit by Jayadeva as well as Nimbakaracharya's philosophical works.Thus in the Gita Govinda Krishna speaks to Radha:

O woman with desire, place on this patch of flower-strewn floor your lotus foot,
And let your foot through beauty win,
To me who am the Lord of All, O be attached, now always yours.
O follow me, my little Radha.

— Jayadeva, Gita Govinda

However, the source of Jayadeva's heroine in his poem remains a puzzle of the Sanskrit literature. A possible explanation is Jayadeva's friendship with Nimbarkacharya, the first acharya to establish the worship of Radha-Krishna Nimbarka, in accordance with the Sahitya academy 's Encyclopaedia, more than any other acharyas gave Radha a place as a deity.

Prior to Gita Govinda, Radha was also mentioned in text Gata saptasati which is a collection of 700 verses composed in Prakriti language by King Hala The text was written around 1st-2nd century AD. Gatha Saptasati mentioned Radha explicitly in its verse.

Mukhamarutena tvam krsna gorajo radhikaya apanayan | Etasam ballavinam anyasam api gauravam harasi ||

"O Krishna, by the puff of breath from your mouth, as you blow the dust from Radha's face, you take away the glories of other milkmaids."

Radha also appears in the Puranas namely the Padma purana (as an avatar of Lakshmi), the Devi bhagvata purana (as a form of Mahadevi), the Brahma Vaivarta Purana   (as Radha-Krishna supreme deity), the Matsya purana(as form of Devi), the Linga purana (as form of Lakshmi), the Varaha purana(as consort of Krishna), the Narada purana(as goddess of love), the Skanda purana and the Shiva purana The 15th and 16th century Krishnite bhakti poet-saints Vidyapati, Chandidas, Meera bai, Surdas, Swamy Haridas, as well as Narasi mehta (1350–1450), who preceded all of them, wrote about the romance of Krishna and Radha too. Thus, Chandidas in his Bengali-language Shri Krishna Kirtana, a poem of Bhakti, depicts Radha and Krishna as divine, but in human love. Though not named in the Bhagavatha purana, visvanath chakravarthy (c. 1626–1708) interprets an unnamed favourite gopi in the scripture as Radha. She makes appearances in Venisamhara by Bhata narayana (c. 800 CE), Dhvanyaloka by Anandavardana (c. 820–890 CE) and its commentary Dhvanyalokalocana by Abhinava gupta(c. 950 – 1016 CE), Rajasekhara's (late ninth-early tenth century) Kāvyamīmāṃsā, Dashavatara-charita (1066 CE) by kshemendra and Siddhahemasabdanusana by Hemachandra(c. 1088–1172). In most of these, Radha is depicted as someone who is deeply in love with Krishna and is deeply saddened when Krishna leaves her. But, on contrary, Radha of the Rādhātantram is portrayed as audacious, sassy, confident, omniscient and divine personality who is in full control at all times. In Rādhātantram, Radha is not merely the consort but is treated as the independent goddess. Here, Krishna is portrayed as her disciple and Radha as his guru.

Charlotte Vaudeville theorizes that Radha may have inspired by the pairing of the goddess Ekanamsha (associated with Durga) with Jaganatha (who is identified with Krishna) of Puri in Eastern India. Though Chaitanya mahaprabhu (15th century, the founder of Gaudia vaishnavism) is not known to have worshiped the deity couple of Radha-Krishna, his disciples around the Vrindavana region, affirmed Radha as the hladini shakti ("energy of bliss") of Krishna, associating her with the Primordial Divine Mother. While the poetry of Jayadeva and Vidyapathi from Bengal  treat Radha as Krishna's "mistress", the Gaudiya poetry elevates her to a divine consort. In Western India, Vallabhacharya's Krishna-centric sampradaya Pushtimarg had initially preferred Swaminiji as the consort, who was identified variously with Radha or Krishna's first wife Rukmini. Modern Pushtimarg followers acknowledge Radha as the consort.

According to Jaya Chemburkar, there are at least two significant and different aspects of Radha in the literature associated with her, such as Sri Radhika namasahasram. One aspect is she is a milkmaid (gopi), another as a female deity similar to those found in the Hindu goddess traditions. She also appears in Hindu arts as Ardanari with Krishna, that is an iconography where half of the image is Radha and the other half is Krishna. This is found in sculpture such as those discovered in Maharashtra and in texts such as Shiva puranaand Brahma vaivarta purana In these texts, this Ardha Nari is sometimes referred to as Ardharadhavenudhara murti and it symbolizes the complete union and inseparability of Radha and Krishna.

D.M. Wulff demonstrates through a close study of her Sanskrit and Bengali sources that Radha is both the "consort" and "conqueror" of Krishna and that "metaphysically Radha is understood as co-substantial and co-eternal with Krishna." Indeed, the more popular vernacular traditions prefer to worship the couple and often tilt the balance of power towards Radha.

Graham M. Schweig in his work "The divine feminine theology of Krishna" in context with Radha Krishna stated that, "The divine couple, Radha and Krishna, comprise the essence of godhead. Radha is therefore acknowledged by Chaitanyaite Vaishnavas to be part of very center of their theological doctrine. Sacred images of the forms of Radha Krishna, standing together side by side, are elaborately worshiped in the Indian temples. Through her image, her divine character and her amorous and passionate relations with Krishna, Radha is the constant meditation of practitioners.

According to William archer and David Kinsley, a professor of Religious Studies known for his studies on Hindu goddesses, the Radha-Krishna love story is a metaphor for a divine-human relationship, where Radha is the human devotee or soul who is frustrated with the past, obligations to social expectations, and the ideas she inherited, who then longs for real meaning, the true love, the divine (Krishna). This metaphoric Radha (soul) finds new liberation in learning more about Krishna, bonding in devotion, and with passion.

An image of Radha has inspired numerous literary works. For modern instance, the Shri Radhacharita Mahakavyam—the 1980s epic poem of Dr. Kalikal Prasad shukla that focuses on Radha's devotion to Krishna as the universal lover—"one of the rare, high-quality works in Sanskrit in the twentieth century."

 This is taken from the net.

An opportunity.

The Vedas, the Itihasas and the Puranas attempt to sing aloud the praises of the Supreme Lord, of His ineffable greatness. In the Gita, Arjuna is given the divine sight to enable him to witness the cosmic form of the Lord. Arjuna is overwhelmed and the Lord tells him that what has been revealed is only a very small portion of His limitless transcendence. But that the same Lord of such divine glories is also available for every ordinary jivatma who approaches Him with devotion and humility is the strong message conveyed in the hymns of the Azhwars, pointed out Sri A. K. Sundarrajan in a discourse.

In our Vaishnava sampradaya, azhwars and acharyas have shown that it is a delight to savour the Lord’s auspicious qualities such as His extraordinary Vatsalya, Saulabhya, Saushilya, etc though there is no end to His innumerable auspicious qualities. It is these qualities that bring the jivatma closer to the Lord and also give him the confidence that by seeking His feet, we can attain salvation from samsara. Andal’s Thiruppavai which is considered the essence of the Vedas is clear about the supremacy of Narayana and His sole prerogative to grant salvation to all.

The aim of the Rama avatar, besides the killing of Ravana, is to establish dharma. During the first ten years of His forest life, Rama enjoys the association with the holy sages. Even as Valmiki captures the serene atmosphere of austerities and rituals in the ashrams of the sages, he also highlights with equal felicity the constant presence of the rakshasas who are a threat to their penance, pointed out Sengalipuram Sri Balaji Bhagavathar in a discourse.

Rama visits the ashram of sage Agastya, the great sage known for his spiritual wisdom and penance. It is held that once the Vindhya mountain ranges had started to grow and obstruct the sun’s passage between the north and the south hemispheres. But at the orders of Agastya, the mountain had bent low and has remained so till date. There is also the story of how Agastya put an end to the atrocious behaviour of the two rakshasas, Vatapi and Ilvala. Vatapi had obtained a boon by which his body would always remain strong and intact even if he was cut into pieces.

Ilvala, in the guise of a brahmana, would invite the sages in the ashram one by one to partake of the food for the manes. He would cook the body of Vatapi and offer it to the unsuspecting sages. Once they are done with it and the formalities are over, Ilvala would ask Vatapi to come out and the rakshasa would come out tearing the stomach of the sages. Many rishis had died in this way. But this trick did not work on Agastya as he digested the food which was actually the rakshasa and thereby put an end to this. He also reduced to ashes Ilvala who rushed at him with anger. Rama is welcomed by the sage. He gives Rama many weapons that would be useful to destroy Ravana. He advises them to stay in Panchavati.

Vedanta Desika’s contribution to Visishtadvaita is immeasurable. His works set forth the tenets of Visishtadvaita clearly. His Tamil works have a special place, and among these, Prabandha Saaram, which deals with the pasurams of the Azhvars is particularly important, said Koothapakkam Chakravarthi Ranganathachariar, 

Divya Prabandham, as the collection of the pasurams of the Azhvars is called, gives us the essence of the Vedas. So the Divya Prabandham puts within our reach philosophical concepts which we would not have otherwise understood. Prabandha Saaram is a celebration of the Azhvars, whose works made such comprehension by us possible. Vedanta Desika always followed in the footsteps of great sages and Acharyas. And in the Prabandha Saaram, he gives details about the Azhvars — the stars under which they were born and the number of verses in the works of each. In giving such details, Desika was doing what Sage Saunaka had done for the Rg Veda. Saunaka in his Rg Veda anukramaanika gave the total number of mantras in the Rg Veda, the number of chapters and so on. In short, like the contents given at the beginning of a work, Saunaka gave the contents of the Rg Veda. Desika does for the Divya Prabandham what Saunaka did for the Rg Veda. In verses 15 and 16 of Prabandha Saaram, Desika tells us how many pasurams each Azhvar has to his credit.

Pasurams of the first three Azhvars add up to 300 (100 each); Thirumazhisai Azhvar 216; Nammazhvar 1,296; Madhurakavi 11; Kulasekara Azhvar 105; Periyazhvar 473; Andal 173; Thondaradippodi Azhvar 55; Thirupaan Azhvar 10; Thirumangai Azhvar 1,253; Thiruvarangathamudanar’s verses in praise of Ramanujacharya - 108. All of these add up to 4000, the collection known as Nalayira Divya Prabandham.

Yasoda tied Krishna to a mortar to punish Him for stealing butter. Krishna willingly accepted this punishment. He had stuffed Himself with butter, and His tummy was bulging. Although Yasoda had tied the rope loosely, it was now tight, leaving marks on His waist. Nammazhvar, marvelling at this incident, uses the word “nova”, meaning hurt. But Krishna was not the One who felt the hurt, Supreme One that He was. The pain was Nammazhvar’s, said V.S. Karunakarachariar in a discourse. Nammazhvar could not bear to think of Lord Krishna being tied. When he thought of this incident, Nammazhvar fainted.

But while Krishna allowed His mother to tie Him up, there was the need for Him to move, to fulfil Narada’s words. Narada had once come upon the sons of Kubera in a state of drunkenness on the banks of the sacred river, Akasa Ganga. Narada cursed them and said they would be born as marudhu trees (Terminalia Arjuna). They would take birth in Nandagopa’s garden and would be liberated when they were touched by the rope that tied Krishna to a mortar. The sons of Kubera — Nalakubera and Manigriva, were accordingly born in Nandagopa’s garden as trees. Now, at last Krishna had been tied up, and their moment of release was near. So Krishna moved, dragging the mortar with Him, and when the rope that was around His waist touched the trees, Nalakubera and Manigriva got their promised release.

Krishna did not touch the trees, but the rope that touched Krishna saved them.

The message for us is that our connection to those devoted to Him is as life saving as a connection to Him. Just as the rope connected to Krishna saved the sons of Kubera, so also our connection to Acharyas, who in turn are connected to Lord Narayana, will liberate us.

Lord Narayana is the sole protector not only for all beings in distress but He alone removes the woes of even the celestial beings such as Brahma, Rudra, Indra and others, says Tirumazhisai Piran in a verse in the famous Nanmukan Tiruvandadi. There are many purana stories that show how He has unfailingly come to the rescue of the devas in their frequent clashes with the asuras or when they are involved in infighting. In this particular verse, Azhwar refers to the purana story about how once Rudra plucked out one of Brahma’s heads. It was an act done in a fit of anger. Brahma, his father, cursed that the skull should get stuck in his hand. Rudra sought Narayana’s help and eventually came out of this curse. So, Azhwar advises us who are caught in samsara and have to face the sorrows, broadly classified as Adidaiva, Adi Boudika and Adhyatmika, to seek the feet of the Lord for relief from all distress, pointed out Sri A. K. Sundarrajan in a discourse.

Azhwar compares the pitiable tale of every jivatma during the endless travel through the cycle of birth as somewhat similar to another Mahabharata story with all kinds of complications, twists and turns. The jivatma is exhausted by taking repeated births as he is forced to undergo the painful garbha vasa experience. All this is owing to our individual karma. Karma theory implies that every action has a result or consequence. Every deed, good and bad, of every jivatma is governed by the ‘cause and effect’ theory. Each one’s life is thus constituted of good and bad experiences depending on one’s past deeds. The only way out is by diverting our thoughts to God and meditating on His auspicious qualities with absolute faith. Out of His compassion God gives the jiva the chance to get rid of his sins and seek salvation. Human birth is thus an opportunity.