SRI RAMACHARITRA MANJARI

SRI RAMACHARITRA MANJARI

(In this episode, birth of Kartikeya has been narrated. In the next episode, birth of Ganga will be explained. Please read, comment and share. SDN)

Lord Rudra, who was the supreme commander of the armed forces of the gods and deities till then, went away to Kailasa to do penance. The post of supreme commander of the celestial armed forces fell vacant. The deities appealed to Lord Brahma to immediately appoint a supreme commander of their army. Lord Brahma told the deities that the semen ejected by Lord Rudra and Uma Devi had been submitted to Ganga, who will deliver a baby boy soon. That boy would be the next supreme commander of the celestial armed forces. Goddess Uma Devi, who became angry with Mother Earth, would not get angry with Ganga for conceiving the semen of Lord Rudra, he said. Fire God, Lord Agni, pushed the spirit of the semen of Lord Rudra, which was lying in the shape of a hill, into the Ganga for two reasons. He had been directed to do so by Lord Brahma. Secondly, he was incapable of carrying or keeping the spirit of semen of Lord Rudra as it was so powerful and hot. The spirit of semen of Rudra let out by Agni Deva started spreading into Ganga River. Even Ganga Devi was unable to bear the heat of that spirit and therefore, she sought the permission of Agni Deva and dropped it by the side of Himalaya Mountain. The semen fell out of the hands of Ganga Devi in the form of Gold. While falling on to the ground, it came in contact with the Holy Grass Darbha and got precipitated into six parts. From those six parts was born a six-faced baby boy. Since he baby boy had six faces, it came to be known as Shanmukha, where Shat or Shashti means six and Mukha means faces. He became the supreme commander of the Gods’ Army or the divine army. Since he grew up with the breast-feeding of six deities, who are together called as Krithika Star, he came to be known as Kartikeya.  Since he was born out of the ejection, which is the meaning of Sanskrit word Skhalana, of semen, he is called as Skanda and by virtue of being the son of Agni Deva, he is called as Agneya.   

SRI MADHWAVIJAYA CHATURTHAHA SARGAHA SHLOKAS 7 AND 8

(In these stanzas, the past history of Sri Achyuta Preksha, Guru or master of Vasudeva, has been narrated. Scholars have provided deeper interpretation for these stanzas. Please read, comment and share. SDN)

PuraiSha kruShNAkarasidDhashudDhimadvarAnnaBhuktyA kila pAnDavAlayE|

VishOBhitAtmA maDhukrutpravruttimAmshchachAra kAmshchit parivatsarAn mudA||7||

SUMMARY: Earlier, this Achyutapreksha was a nomadic ballad (travelling continuously, begging only to satiate the hunger and singing instantly self-composed devotional songs, who were called as Dasas and their profession was being called as Madhukara. Purandara Dasa, Kanakadasa and other Dasas are the latest examples, who followed this trait) in his previous birth (during Dwaparayuga); for a few years, he was a recipient of food given by Draupadi; by consuming the purest and greatest food Draupadi was personally preparing, he had purified his mind and heart to the fullest possible extent.

In his book of commentaries, Sri Chalari Achar states: ….PUrva janmani yatirEShahaBhikShAcharaNa niyamavAn san DraupadeedattaBhikShAnnaBhOjanEna nirmaleekrutadEhAntahkaraNaha san katipayavarShEShU mudA PAnDavadEshE sanchAram kurvannaBhUditi BhAvaha|

Meaning: In his previous birth, Achyutapreksha was a saint living on alms given in the form of food and while begging, he was consuming the food that Draupadi was providing him with as charity. Having lived on those beggings given by Draupadi, his body and mind had been totally purified and sanctified. He was living in the country of Pandavas for a few years as a nomad.

There are references in Mahabharata, Bhagavata and Bhagavata Tatparya Nirnaya that Pandavas were donating food to several saints and ascetics.      

Even in the previous stanza, the credentials of Achyutapreksha have been clearly stated. The Chalari Vyakhyan, a book of commentaries, describes Sri Achyutapreksha as follows: “AchyutaprEksha iti DitThAdishabdavat sAnkEtikam nAma tasya na Bhavati| Kintu Achyutasya HarEhe prEkShA jnAnam yasya sa AchyutaprEkSha iti sArThakam nAma tasya yatEriti BhAvaha| AnEna shudDhatwam manOnihrahaha vairAgyam BhagavajnAnam ityEtE sannyAsinO vihitaguNAha asmin AchyutaprEkShE santeeti tasya sannyAsam aDhikArO(a)steeti uktam Bhavati|

He was not Achyutapreksha merely for name’s sake. He had imbibed all the attributes that are essential to be called as Achyutapreksha and that is why he was also being called Achyutaprajna. His name was not just a symbol but it was highly deserving and meaningful. He had secured all the knowledge by truly seeing Sri Hari. He had inculcated rare and valuable attributes such as purity of heart and mind (ShudDhatwam); true control over his mind (manOnigrahaha); occult aversion to worldly pleasures (Vairagya); knowledge of the Lord (BhagavajnAnam) and others that have been prescribed for an ascetic. Therefore, he was the most eligible person to ordain a divine person like Vasudeva, who was an incarnation of Lord Vayu.

The name of Achyutapreksha has been mentioned in Skanda Purana:

SanakAdi mahAyOgisampradAyakarO yatihi|

AchyutaprEkShanAmA(a)sau mAyiBhihi parivEShTitaha||

Achyutapreksha is an ascetic in the lineage of such great saints as Sanaka and others.

ABhUt kushAstrABhyasanam na pAtakam kramAgatAdwipratisAratO yatEhe|

YaThA kushastrADhyasanam muradwiShaha padAmbujE vyADhavarasya garhitam||8||

Later, he had systematically repented for having studied till then the texts of Mysticism (Mayavada), which was not an acceptable or worthy theosophy. Therefore, his reading or practising of unworthy theosophy did not rank as a sin just as a hunter named Jara attract any sin after inadvertently hitting Lord Krishna with an arrow that actually became instrumental for the Lord to conclude his incarnation on Earth since he virtually repented for his mistake.

This stanza signifies that human thoughts are purified by human acts and in turn, they are purified by the food consumed.

The moral of this stanza is that perverted, antagonistic and misleading philosophy should not be studied nor can one abstain from studying them; therefore, what one can do is to study such material but repent for studying them. Reading bad texts paves the way for hell.

The incident related to hunter Jara has been mentioned in Mahabharata, Bhagavata, Harivamsha and Tatparyanirnaya. Sage Bhrugu had committed a serious crime by kicking Lord Vishnu at the navel and as a token of repentence, he was born a hunter named Jara during Dwapara Yuga and ended the tenure of Lord Krishna on Earth. Both Bhrugu and Jara repented for their acts and that is why, their acts were not considered as sins or crimes.  

SRI MADHWAVIJAYA CHATURTHAHA SARGAHA SHLOKAS 4, 5 AND 6

SRI MADHWAVIJAYA – CHATURTHAHA SARGAHA SHOLKAS 4, 5 AND 6

(In these stanzas, the poet tells us how Vasudeva decided to renounce everything and become a saint. Please read, comment and share. SDN)

VichintayannitThamanantachintakaha samastasannyAsanibadDhanishchayaha|

AsAvanujnArThamaThAnamadDharim samastasamvyApinamAtmadAyagam||4||

SUMMARY: Sri Vasudeva, who was incessantly doing meditation on infinite Sri Hari, thought this way and decided to renounce everything; he kept saluting Sri Hari, who is omnipresent and was there in his own self, again and again, seeking his permission to get ordained into sainthood.

NijE janE kim namaseeti pruchChati bruvan swavastupraNatim vyaDhAmiti|

GurOho kilAnvEShaNavAn jagadgurustadA jagAmAKhilalOkashikShaNaha||5||

SUMMARY: When his relatives asked “What are you saluting to?” Vasudeva replied “I am saluting my object (Sri Hari). Although he was Universal Master, he started searching for a suitable Master for himself with an intention to show the right path, the culture, to the people.

The intrinsic message that Vasudeva intended to give to the world was that for anyone in search of the ultimate truth or the path of realisation, it is essential to first have guidance from a real Guru. He did not want to leave a wronge precedent or give wrong signals to society.

The word “Swavastu” in this context is a symbolic expression meaning Sri Hari. This has been substantiated in Bhava Prakashika: “Swavastu swaswAminam nityApratihaam Brahma|

Even though Sri Hari is a common object of all, he is specially so for Rujus, the celestial beings.

YatiryatAtmA Bhuvi kashchanABhavadviBhUShaNO BhUriviraktiBhUShaNaha|

Na nAmamAtrAchChuchimarThatO(a)pi yam janO(a)chyutaprEkShamudAharatsPhuTam||6||

SUMMARY: During that special period, a saint, who had shed all decoration but was adorned with a special dress called renunciation and had secured total control over mind, was present on earth; embodiment of purity not merely by his name but also by his characters was he being called by people “Achyutapreksha”.  

The hidden message of this stanza is that only those endowed with divine devotion and knowledge can ordain another person into sainthood.

Achyuta means that which does not deteriorate or decay or get destroyed. This quality is only attributable to Lord Vishnu. Preksha may mean one who has seen or Prajna, which means one who has complete and comprehensive knowledge. Therefore, Achytaprekasha, which means a person whose thoughts, mind and heart are always immersed in devotion to Sri Hari, was true to every syllable of his own name.

Vasudeva, who was destined to get noticed as Jagadguru, belongs to the dynasty of Paramatma called “Hamsa”.

SRI RAMACHARITRA MANJARI

SRI RAMACHARITRA MANJARI

(In this episode, sage Vishwamitra continues to narrate his own story to Sri Rama. Further, Vishwamitra explains about the origin of Ganga. Please read, comment and share. SDN)

“Oh Ramadeva, I am the son of Gadhi. My elder sister Satyavati had married Brahmarishi Rucheeka. She was living with her husband in Himalaya Mountain. When her husband, who doing penance there, demised, she sacrificed her life too in his pyre and went to Satya Loka, along with her husband. Having born in the dynasty of Kusha, her body was transformed into a river called Kaushiki, which originated from Himalaya Mountains. Till then I was living here and because of my reverence for my elder sister, I shifted to Himalayas and started residing on the banks of Kaushiki. Now, with a view to attain the Siddhi through penance, I returned from there and arrived at this Siddhashram. I have attained the Siddhi because of your services.”

Next day, Vishwamitra, along with Rama, Lakshmana and other disciples, started off from Siddhashram and by afternoon arrived at the banks of Ganga, where sage Vishwamitra narrated the origin of Sri Ganga. “Oh Ramadeva, Himavanta had a wife called Menadevi, who was the daughter of Sumeru. From Menadevi, Himavanta had two daughters named Ganga and Uma. Of them, Lord Rudra married Umadevi and spent 3,60,000 years with her, roaming about and romancing with is wife in Kailas Mountain. Yet, his semen did not eject. The deities became worried and scared about the prospects of anyone taking birth from that semen of Rudra. All the deities came to Rudra and said: “Please stop this romance as we will not be able to bear the spirit of a son who might be born out of your semen. Please do penance with Umadevi.” Impressed with the appeal of deities, Rudra and Umadevi blessed them and assured them that they would not eject their semen. The semen that had moved from its original place till then was spilled out into the ground, as per the request of deities. High flames which started emanating from that semen began engulfing the forests and hills all over the earth. Prompted by the deities then, Fire God crashed into that semen, along with Lord Vayu. Due to the association with Fire God, that semen transformed into a white hill called Sharavana and it was sparkling like Sun and Fire.     

Umadevi was enraged since the deities had disturbed her romance with Lord Rudra. She was also angry with Mother Earth for conceiving the semen, which was actually her (Umadevi) right. Umadevi cursed the deities: “Since you have deprived me of the opportunity of becoming a mother, none of you will ever beget a progeny.” Umadevi went on to curse the Earth: “Since you have acted like a concubine by conceiving the semen I had to conceive, you will be owned by several men. As you have snatched my happiness of being a mother, you will never have the joy of having children.” Having watched all these scenes, Lord Rudra retired to Kailas Parvat, along with Umadevi, and did a fierce penance.          

SRI MADHWAVIJAYA - CHATURTHAHA SARGA SHLOKAS 1 TO 3

SRI MADHWAVIJAYA – CHATURTHAHA SARGAHA SHOLKAS 1, 2 AND 3

(In these stanzas, Vasudeva gets ready to enter sainthood. Please read, comment and share. SDN) 

AThaiSha sallOkadayAsuDhArdrayA sadAgamastEna nirAsakAmayA|

RamAvarAbAsaBhuvA vishAradO vishAla(a)chintayadAtmanODhiyA||1||

SUMMARY: After completing the term of his stay at the Gurukul, Vasudeva, who was soaked in empathy towards the virtuous, who wanted to destruct the thugs of sacred Scriptures, thought in this manner in his broad mind where Lord Sri Hari always resided.

The thugs in this context means those who had been misinterpreting the Scriptures and diverting the minds of good people from the real truth that Sri Hari alone is the supreme God. It is also indicated in this stanza that there was no room for confusion in the Scriptures. The confusion was created by exploiting the innocence and ignorance of masses. Vasudeva thought of lighting the light of true knowledge and re-establish the glories of Lord Vishnu.  

AnanyasangAdguNasangitA harErjanasya mAnam tu vishiShTachEtiShTitam|

AsangamasmAt prakaTeekarOmyaham nijam Bhajan pAramahamsyamAshramam||2||

SUMMARY: “It’s only when one departs from the association of bad people that a passion and compassion towards the infinite attributes of Lord Vishnu. For the present generation, the life style of ancestors is the lone model and proof. Therefore, by embracing the sainthood, I will exhibit my natural, instinctive and inherent quality of being an ascetic.”

‘Association with bad people’ in this context refers to the passion for worldly pleasures. General people lend their ears only to such a person who enters sainthood by sacrificing the family life and only then people will recognise the value of devotion to Lord Vishnu and the futility of worldly life. This is what Vasudeva was aware of and put the right step forward, say the scholars.

During his previous incarnation as Bheema, a Kshatriya, Vasudeva, who is another incarnation of Lord Vayu, had established the power and spirit of Kshatriyas by killing Duryodhana and other Daityas. It was Dwaparayuga. In Kaliyuga, the scenario was different. As many persons, who had no real control over their senses, had devalued and derailed the status, sanctity and spirit of sainthood. Vasudeva took it upon himself the task of reviving those lost grounds of sainthood by embracing that state himself.  

Mama praBhOrnAparaThA hi shOBhatE dwiShatu ViShNum yadadanDaDhAraNam|

HariswasA nanvachirAdasadBhidE BhavEdatO nAsmi cha danDaDhArakaha||3||

SUMMARY: “Having born as a capable person, it is improper to leave the antegonists of Lord Vishnu unpunished. Yet, until Goddess Durga, a sister of Lord Krishna, who is about to descend as an incarnation to punish the illicit, descends on earth, I will not behold the sacred club.”

What is implicit in this stanza is that saints are not ‘authorised’ by Scripture to physically punish the sinners. Moreover, it had already been decided that Goddess Durga would take birth on earth only to physically assault and assassinate the Asuras. Vasudeva decides to set right the psyche of pretentious saints by logically disproving their reasoning and by gaining the confidence of ordinary people, he wanted to breathe a fresh lease of life.

SRI RAMACHARITRA MANJARI

SRI RAMACHARITRA MANJARI

(In this episode, Vishwamitra starts narrating details of his own birth. Please read, comment and share. SDN)

Sage Vishwamitra, who began his journey from Siddashram, reached the banks of Shonabhadra River by the evening. He decided to stay there overnight and started narrating the past history of that country: “Oh Lord Sri Rama, Kusha, a son of Lord Brahma, married Vaidarbhi and begot four children named as Kushamba, Kushanabha, Amoortaraja and Vasu. Judging those children as pious and righteous, he directed them to look after the subjects. Accordingly, they created four separate cities and were looking after citizens well. Of them, Vasu established two cities called Girivraja and Vasumati on the banks of this Shonabhadra River. The Vasumatipur is magnificently placed in the middle of five mountains and is adorned with a river called Magadhi. For Kushanabha, one hundred most charming baby girls were born from an Apsara called Ghrutachi. Lord Vayu saw those girls, who were highly virtuous. He made up his mind to make them very popular. Pretending to be a romantic person, he sought their love and they replied that without their father’s consent, they would not do any such thing. Lord Vayu again pretended as though he was angry and slowly entered through their bodies. He made them hunch backed and awkwardly shaped. On hearing what transpired between his daughters and Lord Vayu, he became proud as he conceived that his daughters had great reverence for him. He discussed the matter with his ministers.

At that point of time, a Brahmarishi called Chooli was doing penance. A girl named Somada, who was the daughter of a female Gandharva called Urmila, was serving that save with compassion, dedication and reverence. She thought that Brahmarishi Chooli was highly impressed by her services and asked him to bestow a vibrant and radiant son. She confessed that she was unmarried. Chooli obliged her and wished that she got a good son. With his wish alone, Somada gave birth to a very bright son called Brahmadatta, who was ruling over the country called Kampilya.

Prompted by his ministers, Kushanabha got all his one hundred daughters married to Brahmadatta. Lord Vayu appreciated the reverence those girls displayed towards their father, the devotion Chooli had towards Lord Sri Hari, the power of penance that Brahmadatta had inculcated and also the good qualities of Kushanabha. He withdrew his power from the bodies of one hundred girls, who had then married Brahmadatta. Instantaneously, all the girls got back their original shape, brightness and qualities.

After marrying off his daughters, Kushanabha performed Putrakameshti Yaga with the intention of begetting a son and promptly got a son, who was named Gadhi.                        

SRI MADHWAVIJAYA - TRUTEEYAHA SARGAHA - SHLOKAS 54, 54 AND 56

SRI MADHWAVIJAYA – TRUTEEYAHA SARGAHA SHOLKAS 54, 55 AND 56

(In these concluding stanzas of the third Sarga of this great work “Sri Madhwavijaya, the manner in which Vasudeva paid his Gurudakshina has been touchingly explained. Please read, comment and share. SDN)

ADhigatOpaniShachcha sakruchChutA prakaTaBhagavateeti na vismayaha|

ADhigatA nanu jAtwapi na shrutAha pratiBhayA shrutayaha shatashO(a)munA||54||

SUMMARY: It isn’t surprising that Vasudeva learnt the entire Sreemannarayanopanishat after hearing it only once because is it not more surprising that he could learn thousands of Shrutis without hearing any of them even once.  

PrakaTaBhAgavatee means SreemannArAyaNOpaniShat as mentioned in Bhava Prakashika:

“PrakaTaBhAgavatee - SreemannArAyaNOpaniShat|

SAkShAdaThOpaniShadO viBhuraitarEyyAha

pAThachChalEna vijanE(a)rTha rasAn bruvANha|  

ADhyApakaya vitatAra vimOkShabeejam

GOvindaBhaktimuchitAm gurudakShiNAm saha||55||

SUMMARY: Once in tranquillity, by explicitely explaining the special, rare and hidden meaning of AitarEyOpaniShat, which is embryonic of the path of devotion to Lord Hari which drove him towards salvation or Moksha, Vasudeva paid the Gurudakshana (tution fee) to his Master in a very distinct manner.  

The commentary Sri Madhwacharya has provided to Aitareyopanishat is even today considered a rare treasurehouse of excellent interpretation. In this sense, this can be considered as the first work authored by Sri Madhwacharya.

The place where Vasudeva spent his days in the hermttage of his Master Totantillaya is now popular as Danditeertha, which is about eight miles away from Udupi on the highway to Mangalore. A large building there has been identified as a Mutt. A pond called Dandateertha is there. This pond had been created by Vasudeva for feeding water to the nearby paddy fields. A heap of stone blocks, which Vasudeva is said to have been using in weight lifting exercises, also exists in this place. Those ascending the Paryaya Peetha first take a dip in this Dandateertha before reaching Sri Krishna Mutt, even today.

Sri Vishwapati Tirtha, in his critique on Sri Vayu Stuti, has cited a statement from a Purana that states that Vasudeva, immediately on attaining the age of seven years, had gone Badari, met Sri Vedavyasa there and learnt all the Shastras from him.

The stanza is as follows:

SaptasamvatsarAdUrDhwam gatvA BadarikAshramam|

PrapEdE sarvashAstrANi vEdAmshchaivAvyayAnapi||

ItTham hi sarvavidyAshcha VyAsadEvAnmahAtmanaha|

AvAptasarvashAstrO(a)sau vaTustadidamabraveet||

This information confirms that Sri Madhwacharya visited Badari thrice.       

Ayi swAmin duShTAn damaya damaya vryaktamachirAdguNAn

gUDhAn ViShNOho kaThaya swAn pramadayan|

TadA(aa)nandam tanwanniti sumanasAm

sO(a)nusaratAmanujnAmAdatta

triBhuvanagururbrAhmaNagurO||56||

SUMMARY: The deities serving Vasudeva told him: “Oh Swamiji, please punish the guilty, punish the bad pesons; please let us know, let us know the great attributes of Maha Vishnu, which have disappeared from this world. Please make your devotees happy.” With a view to fulfil their desire, Master of three worlds, Vasudeva, secured the permission from that Brahmin Guru to accomplish the task ahead.

There is an indication in this stanza that Lord Vayu took the incarnation of Sri Madhwacharya as per the wishes of deities.

Iti Sreematkavikulatilaka SreemattrivikramapanDitAchArya sutasreemannArAyaNa panDitAcharya virachitE SreematsumadhwavijayE

mahAkAvyE AnandAnkE Triteeyaha Sargaha|