Ramanujacarya (Part 1)
tundira-mandale sesa-murtim ramanujam bhaje
“I worship Sripad Ramanuja, the incarnation of Ananta, who took birth in the month of Caitra (April-May) under the sixth lunar mansion in the Tundirades, and who came upon this earth to establish the philosophy of Sri Visnu.”
Four major schools or sampradayas of Vaisnavism are considered authorized by Vaisnavas everywhere: the Brahma, Sri, Rudra, and Kumara Sampradayas. While Gaudiya Vaisnavas follow the disciplic line of Visnu worship originating with Brahma, Sripad Ramanujacarya is the founder-acarya of the Sri Sampradaya, the school of Vaisnavism or Visnu worship descending from the eternal consort of Visnu known as Laksmidevi or Sri. His commentaries on Vedanta rival those of Sankaracarya, especially in Tamil-speaking South India, where Sri Vaisnavism is prominent to this day. He propounded the Vedantic philosophy known as Visistadvaita-vada or qualified monism. The most famous among his numerous writings are his commentary on Vedanta (Sri Bhasya), his commentary on Bhagavad-gita, his Vedanta-Sara, and the Vedartha-Sangraha.
Many biographies of Ramanuja were compiled shortly after his passing, including the Sanskrit Prappanamrtam of Anantacarya and various Tamil works. These authorized sources provide quite a detailed portrait of Ramanuja's life and teachings. Before we consider Ramanuja's importance in the development of Vaisnava philosophy and practice, however, we must first consider the South Indian Vaisnava traditions from which Ramanuja came and which influenced him.
THE PREVIOUS ACHARYAS- NATHAMUNI
The first prominent acarya of the Sri Vaisnava school to formulate a systematic theology of devotion was Sri Nathamuni who appeared as the son of a scholarly South Indian brahmana in the year 908 A.D. Nathamuni was the first important teacher to bring together the teachings of the Vedic Sanskrit texts and the ancient Tamil hymns of the Alwars, (South Indian saints who are famous as incarnations of the divine paraphernalia of Visnu, such as his disc, conch, lotus, wheel, garland and so on). Nathamuni was responsible for compiling the “Tamil Vedas.” These were a collection of prayers, devotional songs, and hymns to Visnu written by the Alwars in the Tamil language. These hymns, known as the Prabandha, are sung to this day before the deity of Visnu in the templeat Sri Rangam, the traditional headquarters of the Sri Vaisnavas and the most famous temple in South India. At the end of his life, Nathamuni was the temple commander at the Sri Rangam temple.
Nathamuni's son, Isvaramuni, died at an early age while his wife was still pregnant. Her child, Nathamuni's grandson later became famous as Yamunacarya, the direct spiritual precursor of Ramanuja himself. After the death of his own son, Nathamuni took sannyasa. Because of his vast learning, he was given the name “Muni” and because of his development in yogic perfection, he was famous as “Yogindra.” His systematic philosophy of Sri Vaisnavism is formulated in his treatise on logic, Nyaya-tattva, and his views on the relationship between bhakti and mystic yoga are given in his book Yoga-rahasya.
Four major schools or sampradayas of Vaisnavism are considered authorized by Vaisnavas everywhere: the Brahma, Sri, Rudra, and Kumara Sampradayas. While Gaudiya Vaisnavas follow the disciplic line of Visnu worship originating with Brahma, Sripad Ramanujacarya is the founder-acarya of the Sri Sampradaya, the school of Vaisnavism or Visnu worship descending from the eternal consort of Visnu known as Laksmidevi or Sri. His commentaries on Vedanta rival those of Sankaracarya, especially in Tamil-speaking South India, where Sri Vaisnavism is prominent to this day. He propounded the Vedantic philosophy known as Visistadvaita-vada or qualified monism. The most famous among his numerous writings are his commentary on Vedanta (Sri Bhasya), his commentary on Bhagavad-gita, his Vedanta-Sara, and the Vedartha-Sangraha.
Many biographies of Ramanuja were compiled shortly after his passing, including the Sanskrit Prappanamrtam of Anantacarya and various Tamil works. These authorized sources provide quite a detailed portrait of Ramanuja's life and teachings. Before we consider Ramanuja's importance in the development of Vaisnava philosophy and practice, however, we must first consider the South Indian Vaisnava traditions from which Ramanuja came and which influenced him.
THE PREVIOUS ACHARYAS- NATHAMUNI
The first prominent acarya of the Sri Vaisnava school to formulate a systematic theology of devotion was Sri Nathamuni who appeared as the son of a scholarly South Indian brahmana in the year 908 A.D. Nathamuni was the first important teacher to bring together the teachings of the Vedic Sanskrit texts and the ancient Tamil hymns of the Alwars, (South Indian saints who are famous as incarnations of the divine paraphernalia of Visnu, such as his disc, conch, lotus, wheel, garland and so on). Nathamuni was responsible for compiling the “Tamil Vedas.” These were a collection of prayers, devotional songs, and hymns to Visnu written by the Alwars in the Tamil language. These hymns, known as the Prabandha, are sung to this day before the deity of Visnu in the templeat Sri Rangam, the traditional headquarters of the Sri Vaisnavas and the most famous temple in South India. At the end of his life, Nathamuni was the temple commander at the Sri Rangam temple.
Nathamuni's son, Isvaramuni, died at an early age while his wife was still pregnant. Her child, Nathamuni's grandson later became famous as Yamunacarya, the direct spiritual precursor of Ramanuja himself. After the death of his own son, Nathamuni took sannyasa. Because of his vast learning, he was given the name “Muni” and because of his development in yogic perfection, he was famous as “Yogindra.” His systematic philosophy of Sri Vaisnavism is formulated in his treatise on logic, Nyaya-tattva, and his views on the relationship between bhakti and mystic yoga are given in his book Yoga-rahasya.
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