This morning “Eepa” — a doyen of Tamil literature known for his Sahitya Akademi Award-winning novels and plays — Indira Parthasarathy sent me a sharp question as a WhatsApp message. It tested my familarity if not knowledge, as a Sri Vaishnava (albeit an “Unknown and Unusual” one!), of age-old temple customs and traditions in theContinue reading “Bhakti’s triumph over plunder and mayhem: revisiting the legend of Sri Rangam “thulaka naachiyaar” with “Eepa””
Tag Archives: melkote
The “Tolkappiyam” and Melkote Tirunarayanapuram: sombre thoughts
In 2017 , I had darshan of Lord Narasimha the deity on the sacred hill of Melkote . From the ramparts of the temple I took the opportunity to shoot a video clip of the lush green and vast landscape around Tirunarayana Puram. What a marvellous panoramic breathtaking scenery! In Sri Vaishnava sampradayam we callContinue reading “The “Tolkappiyam” and Melkote Tirunarayanapuram: sombre thoughts”
குயில் நின்றார் பொழில் சூழ் குருகூர்: Part-4: A pilgrim’s jottings at “Azhwar Tirunagari Kshetra”
A pilgrim’s jottings on a 3-day whirlwind pilgrimage, May 4th, 2024 (Tirunelveli-Tuticorin) of Nava Tirupati temples ************ The summer heat-wave was rising, and on my journey by road towards Azhwar Tirunagari, the mid-morning hour seemed to send torrid blasts from a furnace towards us. Thankfully, Rajah, my thoughful rental-car cab-driver, turned up the vehicle airconditioning.Continue reading “குயில் நின்றார் பொழில் சூழ் குருகூர்: Part-4: A pilgrim’s jottings at “Azhwar Tirunagari Kshetra””
The splendour of the Melkote “Vairamudi” diamond-studded crown of Sri Tirunaaraayana Selva Perumal !
In March earlier this year (2023) I had the privilege of visiting Melkote and for the first time ever in my life , I witnessed and worshipped the “Vairamudi utsavam” of Sri Chelluva Narayana Perumal . It was a wonderful, unforgettably joyous experience for me! I could not help sharing the experiences in a blogpostContinue reading “The splendour of the Melkote “Vairamudi” diamond-studded crown of Sri Tirunaaraayana Selva Perumal !”
A Pilgrimage to end the old “shubhakrit” and ring in the new “shobhakrit samvatsara”!
Sudarshan Madabushi
The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedantins”: Part-55
In this section in the little-known c.1960s pamphlet titled “Ramanuja and Sri Vaishnavas” the subject dealt with by Doraiswami Iyengar is the rather delicate and controversial question of Idolatry which according to him has become almost a defining characteristic of the modern Sri Vaishnava identity. Once again a brief explanatory note is being penned belowContinue reading “The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedantins”: Part-55″
The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedantins”: Part-53
Concoction of undesirable biography of Ramanujacharya. The harshest criticism against Sri Vaishnavas found in the Doraiswamy Iyengar-pamphlet has been reserved for vast body of the community’s canonical literature developed and written over half-a-century since the time of Ramanujacharya, Vedanta Desika and Manavaala Maamuni. The literature is available even today in Sanskrit, Mani Pravalam and TamilContinue reading “The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedantins”: Part-53″
The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedaantins”: Part 13
“SrIranga-mangaLa-nidhim karuNAnivAsam SrIvenkaTAdri-SikharAlaya-kAlamegham | SrIhastiSaila-Sikharojjvala-pArijAtam SrISam-namAmi SirasA yaduSaila-dIpam || It is an observable fact of history that at three of the above four great capital temple-towns of Sri Vaishnavas the above shloka names — viz. Tirumala, Sri Rangam and Melkote –Sri Ramanujacharya, personally undertook the responsibility for reforming the then prevailing and later institutionalizing aContinue reading “The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedaantins”: Part 13″
The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedaantins”: Part 12
The second of the major dissonances amongst the Tenkalai and Vadakalai versions of the history of the Kanchi Sri Varadaraja Perumal temple is related to “POWER AND LEGITIMACY” and how each sect reacts to both. It is going to need explication at quite some length because it is perhaps the chief reason why the manyContinue reading “The Decline and Fall of the “ubaya-vedaantins”: Part 12″