Post by saidevo on Oct 8, 2012 8:00:25 GMT 5.5
Pages 166-169
How much zeal did he have in performing pujas! Love and duty, both these senses made him give it this much of importance. Duty? Yes, he would say that Parameswara Himself directed (Adi Sankara) AcharyaaL to perform for loka kSemam (welfare of the world) saparivAra pUja (elaborate puja) to the Shiva-Shaktis who are the mother-father of all the Lokas (worlds), AcharyaaL did the puja as directed and bestowed it as a duty prescribed by Ishvar plus Guru for the descendants of his MaThams. Our Munivar Piran who was immersed in viSva prema (love for the world) is one who considered that the puja performed for the parents of the world is to make all the people of the world remain in harmony as children of the same parents and bhaji (worship) the maitrI (friendship) in them, as sung in SriCharaNar's lokopadesha (advice to the world) song ('maitrIm bhajata').
How many are the times has he done viSTAra pUja (extensive pujas) even when he was suffering from severe fever and going without jala pAnam (water to drink)!
(An incident is reported that) once during the time of PeriyiavaaL's madhyama prAyA (stage of being middle aged), when someone went near him, the person felt a heat wave as from a kiln of bricks! Even at ten in the morning the sage was lying stretched out with no awareness about his body! Inexpressible vicAram (worry) for the MaTham people. After ten o' clock with a sort of vajra saMkalpam (might of will power) he gets up. Adamantly managing to come over the swerve and stagger of his body, with no possibility of anyone getting the courage to halt him, with a dhIra gaMbhIram (fierce majesty) he goes to the Kaveri (river). Comes back klupta (determined) after a bath. Sits for the puja. Performs the puja very elaborately.
There would be no bhikSA (food) after the puja. Still, without any vishrAnti (rest) he comes down to give interviews to the devotees. Now the MaTham people halt him. Supplicate to him. But this man says, "If I sit for vishrAnti, joram (fever) will come and catch me up. If I strive without stopping my duty, Swami will take care of my joram. Even if my prANA (breath) goes away in duty and reaches him, it would be still visheSam (special)!"
We see here two branches of the same duty. The duty of performing puja for the sake of the people; the duty of the direct interview that he grants to the people! He considered the latter also as a puja! To say more of it--it should of course have been based on Adesha (divine directive)--even that 'parents' puja he entrusted one day to his vArisu (descendant) and for a good quarter century continued the latter 'peoples' puja!
During the puja, a small piple instrument called Timiri that resembles the Nadasvara and is pratyeka (singular) of its kind, would be played.
After the puja, those who are to do bhikSA on that day would have their bhikSA vandanam done. The man who performs the bhikSA would place the pUrNa kumbham on the head of the MaTham's elephant, his wife would place the plate of country sugar with a bowl of honey atop it, get them back and submit them before SriCharaNar. Friends and relatives of the bhikSA performer would carry the bhikSA money exchanged into silver coins, and then fruits, flowers, vegetables, raisins and cashews and submit them before our Gurunathan. It is a custom followed in the MaTham for a few years now that instead of the donor saying that he does the bhikSA for the Acharya, he would say that he does it as an upahAra (offering) to ChandraMauleesvara Puja. Our Gurunathan is following the yati dharma (dharma of ascetics) so blemishlessly. What are the money and coins and fruits and flowers for a turavi (ascetic)? He accepts them remaining as the Pujari of Ishvara!
After the bhikSA vandanam is over, Gurunathar would retire to ekAntam (privacy) and read Vishnu Puranam in accordance with his svadharma niyati (personal duty); he would also recite the Gita. Though SriSankara maThadhipatis (pontiffs) appear as Shaivas by the name Sankara, vhibUti dhAraNam (wearing the holy ash) and ChandraMauleesvara Puja, Narayana upAsanam (worship) is also very important for them. Their words of blessings, giving SRImukam (introductory/recommendatory letters) are all with only Narayana smaraNam (memory of)! In that way, he used to hold Vishnu Sahasranama pArAyaNam (recitation) in his presence. (In addition, at that time, he would also do pArAyaNam, shravaNam (chanting and listening) of Indrakshi Kavacham and the Siva Kavachams.)
One night it was beyond midnight when SriCharaNar returned to MaTham after his tiruvIdi ulA (procession round the place). The door of the mEnA (palanquin) where he slept that night did not open even at five the next morning. Thinking 'What, even PeriyavaaL had AyAsam (fatigue) and gone into nidrA (sleep)?', the pAriSada (attendant) peeped in through a gap in the mEnA.
Glossary:
klupta - done, prepared, cut, pared, produced, strengthened, fixed, settled, determined, thought of, invented.
How much zeal did he have in performing pujas! Love and duty, both these senses made him give it this much of importance. Duty? Yes, he would say that Parameswara Himself directed (Adi Sankara) AcharyaaL to perform for loka kSemam (welfare of the world) saparivAra pUja (elaborate puja) to the Shiva-Shaktis who are the mother-father of all the Lokas (worlds), AcharyaaL did the puja as directed and bestowed it as a duty prescribed by Ishvar plus Guru for the descendants of his MaThams. Our Munivar Piran who was immersed in viSva prema (love for the world) is one who considered that the puja performed for the parents of the world is to make all the people of the world remain in harmony as children of the same parents and bhaji (worship) the maitrI (friendship) in them, as sung in SriCharaNar's lokopadesha (advice to the world) song ('maitrIm bhajata').
How many are the times has he done viSTAra pUja (extensive pujas) even when he was suffering from severe fever and going without jala pAnam (water to drink)!
(An incident is reported that) once during the time of PeriyiavaaL's madhyama prAyA (stage of being middle aged), when someone went near him, the person felt a heat wave as from a kiln of bricks! Even at ten in the morning the sage was lying stretched out with no awareness about his body! Inexpressible vicAram (worry) for the MaTham people. After ten o' clock with a sort of vajra saMkalpam (might of will power) he gets up. Adamantly managing to come over the swerve and stagger of his body, with no possibility of anyone getting the courage to halt him, with a dhIra gaMbhIram (fierce majesty) he goes to the Kaveri (river). Comes back klupta (determined) after a bath. Sits for the puja. Performs the puja very elaborately.
There would be no bhikSA (food) after the puja. Still, without any vishrAnti (rest) he comes down to give interviews to the devotees. Now the MaTham people halt him. Supplicate to him. But this man says, "If I sit for vishrAnti, joram (fever) will come and catch me up. If I strive without stopping my duty, Swami will take care of my joram. Even if my prANA (breath) goes away in duty and reaches him, it would be still visheSam (special)!"
We see here two branches of the same duty. The duty of performing puja for the sake of the people; the duty of the direct interview that he grants to the people! He considered the latter also as a puja! To say more of it--it should of course have been based on Adesha (divine directive)--even that 'parents' puja he entrusted one day to his vArisu (descendant) and for a good quarter century continued the latter 'peoples' puja!
During the puja, a small piple instrument called Timiri that resembles the Nadasvara and is pratyeka (singular) of its kind, would be played.
After the puja, those who are to do bhikSA on that day would have their bhikSA vandanam done. The man who performs the bhikSA would place the pUrNa kumbham on the head of the MaTham's elephant, his wife would place the plate of country sugar with a bowl of honey atop it, get them back and submit them before SriCharaNar. Friends and relatives of the bhikSA performer would carry the bhikSA money exchanged into silver coins, and then fruits, flowers, vegetables, raisins and cashews and submit them before our Gurunathan. It is a custom followed in the MaTham for a few years now that instead of the donor saying that he does the bhikSA for the Acharya, he would say that he does it as an upahAra (offering) to ChandraMauleesvara Puja. Our Gurunathan is following the yati dharma (dharma of ascetics) so blemishlessly. What are the money and coins and fruits and flowers for a turavi (ascetic)? He accepts them remaining as the Pujari of Ishvara!
After the bhikSA vandanam is over, Gurunathar would retire to ekAntam (privacy) and read Vishnu Puranam in accordance with his svadharma niyati (personal duty); he would also recite the Gita. Though SriSankara maThadhipatis (pontiffs) appear as Shaivas by the name Sankara, vhibUti dhAraNam (wearing the holy ash) and ChandraMauleesvara Puja, Narayana upAsanam (worship) is also very important for them. Their words of blessings, giving SRImukam (introductory/recommendatory letters) are all with only Narayana smaraNam (memory of)! In that way, he used to hold Vishnu Sahasranama pArAyaNam (recitation) in his presence. (In addition, at that time, he would also do pArAyaNam, shravaNam (chanting and listening) of Indrakshi Kavacham and the Siva Kavachams.)
One night it was beyond midnight when SriCharaNar returned to MaTham after his tiruvIdi ulA (procession round the place). The door of the mEnA (palanquin) where he slept that night did not open even at five the next morning. Thinking 'What, even PeriyavaaL had AyAsam (fatigue) and gone into nidrA (sleep)?', the pAriSada (attendant) peeped in through a gap in the mEnA.
Glossary:
klupta - done, prepared, cut, pared, produced, strengthened, fixed, settled, determined, thought of, invented.