Chapter V — Ramanuja's Birth and Early Studies

Yamunacharya was troubled in mind about finding a competent successor to whom he could hand down the torch of faith for posterity. His disciple Nambi — also known as Srisailapurna — had gone to the holy hills of Tirupati to serve Lord Venkatachalapathi for some time.

Srisailapurna had two sisters: Bhumipiratti and Periyapiratti — or Bhudevi and Sridevi. The elder, Bhudevi, was married to Asuri Kesavapperumal, the performer of many sacred yagas, who lived at Sri Perumbudur. Sridevi was married to Kamalanayana-Bhatta of the Vattamani clan, who lived at Madhuramangalam.

From Bhudevi was born Ramanuja — the great reformer and religionist of the 12th century — just as Rama was born of Kausalya and Krishna of Devaki. Of him it is written:

And this One was the great Ramanuja, born in the Kali age as the spiritual sun to dispel the darkness of sin and ignorance that reigned rampant, as the verse says:

To the sage Harita it was also foretold by God that the great luminary Ramanuja would come:

Thus was a great savior ushered into the world, in the fullness of his own age.

Tirumala Nambi — Srisailapurna — received news of this birth and hastened to Sri Perumbudur (about 10 miles from the Tiruvallur station on the Madras railway) to visit the child. Seeing his friend Asuri Kesava, he congratulated him on the auspicious event and said:

As the illustrious child grew, all the sacraments binding on the Brahmans were duly performed until he reached the age of sixteen. By that time he had completed the student's course — the learning of the Vedas and all that pertains to that study. He was then married; or, as the Vaidikas say, he entered the order of the householder after Brahmacharya.

He left home in search of a competent teacher who would teach him Vedanta, and found one in Yadava Prakasa, who lived at Tirupputkuzhi near Perumalkoil (Kanchipuram). There Ramanuja joined the other students.

Meanwhile, Kamalanayana-Bhatta at Madhuramangalam became the father of a boy, born to his wife Sridevi as mentioned above. Srisailapurna, hearing the news, hurried to Madhuramangalam. Congratulating Bhatta on the happy event, he foretold that the child was one of great promise — he would grow into one wise, good, unworldly, and an ardent champion of religion. He was to be named Govinda. All the Samskaras were duly administered. In time he came of age and entered the householder's order. Hearing that his cousin Ramanuja was studying under Yadava Prakasa, he gladly joined him to continue his own studies in good company.

In the course of their readings, Yadava came across the passage "Satyam Jnanam Anantham Brahma" (Taittiriya Upanishad II.1.1), and explained it in a way entirely repugnant to its plain meaning. The passage means:

But Yadava said that the attributes of Truth, Knowledge, and Infinity could not co-exist in Brahman — just as broken-hornedness, hornlessness, and full-hornedness cannot co-exist in a cow. A cow cannot have broken horns, no horns, and full horns at the same time; therefore, he argued, Brahman too cannot simultaneously possess various attributes. Brahman with attributes was therefore, he said, a logical impossibility.

Ramanuja protested that this Upanishadic passage could not be so twisted and tortured to suit Yadava's imagined Brahman. Challenged by the teacher to give his own explanation, Ramanuja argued as follows:

After hearing this, Yadava said only, with disdain, "You — to argue with me?" and fell silent.

On another day, Ramanuja was sincerely anointing his guru Yadava's head with oil when Yadava took it into his head to expound a Vedic verse from the Chandogya Upanishad (I.6.7):

He taught that the passage meant: "Brahman — He who is the golden-hued in the sun — has eyes red like the posteriors of a monkey."

When Ramanuja heard this, a pang shot through his heart at seeing the noble Vedic passages so abused and ill-treated. His grief was so keen that a hot tear stole into his eye and dropped onto Yadava's lap as Ramanuja bent over him to rub his head with oil. The drop scorched Yadava, who looked up in surprise.

Seeing Ramanuja troubled, he asked, "What is troubling you?"

"I am grieved," Ramanuja said, "that beautiful Vedic lines are so awkwardly construed."

"What is your interpretation, then?" Yadava vociferated angrily.

"Sir," Ramanuja cried, "can you not see? Ka means water, and pibati means to drink. Water-drinker is thus kapi — the sun, or the lotus-stalk. Asa means to open (as in vikasane) or to rest (upavasane). Pundarika is the lotus. Therefore 'God in the sun' is He whose eyes are like the lotus which blooms under the balmy beams of the sun — or like the lotus which rests on its stalk below. To deny God a Person is to repudiate Him; and when the Vedas declare such a personality, to read blasphemous similes into them — where reverential grandeur is intended — is doubly to repudiate Him. Such constructions betoken nothing short of heresy."

Yadava heard this irresistible reply and flared up:

Ramanuja spoke not a syllable in reply, and simply took his departure.

The surprising intelligence of Ramanuja, his original ways, and his divinely-disposed heart all set Yadava thinking. His reflections led him into vice. He came to believe that Ramanuja was a rival who would one day surpass him in learning, subvert his philosophy of advaita (non-dualism), be an oddity who would injure his reputation as the foremost teacher in the land — and a potential revolutionist whom it was expedient to put an end to.

Thinking thus, Yadava called together those disciples who were loyal to him and said:

They suggested many ways, but none appealed to Yadava. They involved sin, for which the Sastras declared expiation was required. And in whatever way Ramanuja was to be disposed of, the act must be above suspicion.

After much consultation, they settled on a plot: they would invite Ramanuja back into their fold and treat him as their best friend, one without whom they could not live. When they set out on a holy pilgrimage to Varanasi (Kasi), they would drown Ramanuja in the Ganga at Manikarnika-ghat. The apparent purpose being pilgrimage, and the real object being murder, they believed that because his death took place in the holy Ganga, it would be counted as an act of merit — not involving the actors in sin!

What a travesty of spiritual ethics, by Yadava! A veritable whited sepulchre he must have been.

Yadava and his accomplices entered into this hellish conspiracy — just as Duryodhana did with Dharmaputra and his brothers, whom he plotted to kill in a wax house. They invited Ramanuja back, saying they felt lost without him, and begged him to resume his studies undisturbed. Some time passed.

Yadava now announced his intention of going on a pilgrimage to Kasi (Benares). Making the preparations, he set out on the journey — with Ramanuja, of course. Among the travelers was Govinda-Bhatta, Ramanuja's maternal cousin.

Govinda somehow caught wind of Yadava's evil designs on Ramanuja. The other disciples suspected this and took care to keep Govinda and Ramanuja apart as much as possible. They had now reached the Vindhya range of hills. While crossing a valley, Ramanuja fell a little behind for reasons of nature, and Govinda contrived to tarry with him. The others were a little ahead. Taking advantage of this seclusion, Govinda quickly revealed Yadava's plan to Ramanuja in as few words as possible, urged him to escape, and left him.

Ramanuja took the warning. Leaving the main path, he turned aside and soon hid himself in the wilderness of the Vindhya. He wandered in the jungle aimlessly — the fierce sun beating on his head, stones and thorns hurting his feet until they bled. After wandering into unknown regions for some time, he was completely exhausted. Hungry, thirsty, and footsore, Ramanuja could go no further.

"Only the greatest sinners," he cried, "deserve this fate. Hence it is written:

He was bewildered — not knowing where to go or what to do. He looked around for help, mind troubled and heart sick. Just then, a fowler and his wife suddenly appeared before his sight.

God has defined Himself as One who can have no joy without His faithful ones, and One who incarnates — with bow, arrow, sword, and even a wife — to befriend His faithful in times of peril.

Seeing them, Ramanuja heaved a sigh and took comfort at the thought that someone had come, or had been sent by God, to rescue him. He accosted them:

"We are fowlers coming from Siddhasrama in the North, and we are making our way to Satyavrata-Kshetra (the Puranic name of Kanchi) in the South," they replied.

"May I accompany you to that holy shrine?"

"Most willingly," they said. "Follow us."

With them leading, Ramanuja trudged on until the Vindhyas were out of sight and the sun was setting. Ramanuja performed his evening prayers. As it grew dark, the three sat down under the shelter of a large tree and were sinking into sleep. The fowler's wife said to her husband:

"Wait a little," answered the husband. "As soon as it dawns, I promise to find you a beautiful pond close by, full of cool and fragrant water."

Ramanuja overheard this and thought: "Oh, if only it were in my power to do this kind pair a service — at least as a return for their kindness to me! But I am in unknown regions." And he dozed off with such reflections.

The night was nearly spent. A flush suffused the east and a morning breeze began to blow. Ramanuja rose with thoughts of God in his breast and offered his morning prayers. Then he looked about for his guides, intending to resume the journey — but to his amazement he could not find them. He called aloud and searched in every direction, to no purpose.

He went a few steps in alarm, not knowing where he was going. By this time the sun had risen above the eastern horizon. Ramanuja could now see his surroundings better, and heard human voices. Taking heart, after a few more steps he discovered a pleasant garden, a pond, and a few men standing by.

The people gazed at him wonderingly: "Are you mad, Brahman? Do you not see before you the bright Punyakotivimanam?"

At this Ramanuja looked up and saw the tall Gopuram (cupola) of the temple of Lord Varadaraja, the worshipful deity of Kanchipuram. He was struck dumb with delight and astonishment. It dawned upon him that He who had directed his steps in the Vindhyan wilds was none other than God Himself — who not only guided him but had miraculously transported him nearly a thousand miles in a single night!

Like the joy that thrilled Sita when she heard of Ravana's fall; like the joy that ravished Rama when Hanuman said, "I have found Sita"; like the joy of Hanuman when he entered the Madhuvana on his return from Lanka — such was Ramanuja's joy after these wonderful adventures.

He simply fainted away with delight, especially when he reflected how God descends even to the weak and helpless — just as Saint Parankusa (Nammalvar) fainted when he reflected on how Krishna, though God, submitted to be bound by a rope by Yasoda.

Charmed into ecstasy, Ramanuja cried:

Ramanuja was drowned in rapturous delight after these wonderful experiences. Out of sheer joy he fell prostrate, rose, fell again, shed tears of joy, and was bathed in perspiration — in short, his whole being was divinely transported beyond itself. From that day on, he carried water daily from the holy well (Salaikkinar) to the Lord Varadaraja.

Jai Srimannarayana.