VEDANTA DESIKA SWAAMI

an extract from swaami DESIKAN BHAGAWAN'S most pleasant narration

by:http://etemples.net/kancheepuram/index.htm

Saturday, 15 June 2013 at 23:19 UTC+05:30

Desikan was born in TOPPUL near kancheepuram. He was educated and trained by a scholarly maternal uncle of his, Kidambi Appullalar (who was a direct disciple of RAMANUJA. Vedanta Desikan is the incarnation of the ghanta (bell) of the Lord of TIRUPATI. On initiation of "Garuda Mantram" by celestial sage Narada, Desikan went toTiruvaheedrapuram and performed penance chanting the mantra. Garuda appeared before him and taught him the "Hayagriva Mantra". Hayagriva represents knowledge. Lord Hayagriva appeared before him and presented an idol of himself to Desikan. It is for this reason that, almost in all Desikan temples, there will be an idol of Hayagriva adjacent to the Desikan idol.The eight-lettered mantra -In talking about the eight-lettered mantra (Ashtaksharam) of NARAYANA , he mentioned several things which can also have an eightfold classification – like, eight kinds of devotion, eight siddhis, eight functions of the intellect and so on. In the same strain he described eight flowers for the worship of God; these are: non-violence; sense-control; universal compassion; infinite patience; wisdom; austerity; meditation; and truth. Transcendence and immanence of God - His explanations of the Transcendence and Immanence of God are illuminating. Transcendence ( bahir-vyApti) means: He is there even where Matter and Spirit are not there. Immanence ( antar-vyApti) means: He is inherent in Matter and Spirit in such a way that you can never say He is not there.Prapatti - he analyses the situation of man’s SINs vanishing after the surrender. The sins acquired before surrender vanish at the point of surrender. Afterwards, sins done because of inevitability will not accrue to the doer. Sins done involuntarily or unconsciously certainly will not accrue to him. On the other hand, sins done consciously, in the sense they were not inevitable, will vanish in the following manner: one-fourth of them by a proper remorse; one-fourth by a determination not to repeat the sin; one-fourth by a preparation to do the regretful ritual ( prAyshcitta )and the last one-fourth by the actual doing of that ritual! let my friends and others take the prasaadam. refer the follwind address for full enlightenment.