SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavaramunayE nama:
thirumalaiozhugu, a treatise maintained and updated by thirumalai temple on the events and practices at the temple, has given an account of this appointment [of siRiya kELvi jIyar by maNavALa mAmunigaL]. During the time of rAmAnujar, in order to protect and administer the wealth of thiruvEngadamudaiyAn, rAmAnujar had appointed an ascetic for this purpose, with the title of SrIsEnApathi jIyar. This has been mentioned in SrI vEnkatAchala ithihAsamAlai by ananthAchAryar. Later, rAmAnujar himself gave that ascetic sanyAsASramam [one who has renounced everything], gave him the divine name of appan thiruvEngada SatakOpa jIyar and made him to look after the temple. He also appointed four EkAngis (ascetics) to help the jIyar in this kainkaryam, as per this ithihAsamAlai. This jIyar was also given the title of kOyil kELvi jIyar. Later, it appears that there were two jIyars, periya kELvi jIyar (senior jIyar) and siRiya kELvi jIyar (junior jIyar), with the junior acting like a crown prince to the king. yathIndhra pravaNa prabhAvam says that maNavALa mAmunigaL stayed for some time in thiruvEngadam. That time frame could be one to two years. After the time of piLLai lOkAchAriyar, the orderly way of administering temples such as SrIrangam, thiruvEngadam under the guidance of rAmAnujArya dhivyAgya (the divine order of rAmAnujar) was lost due to invasions of foreign forces in these places. Later, during the time of maNavALa mAmunigaL, rAmAnujArya dhivyAgyA was reestablished as varavaramuni dhivyAgyA (the divine order of mAnavALa mAmunigaL). In the stone inscriptions inside the temple, there is a reference to “kOyil kEtkum emperumAnAr jIyar” (emperumAnAr jIyar who is listened to by the temple) in the year 1445 CE. It is clear that this is the jIyar appointed by maNavALA mAmunigal whose period is 1371-1443 CE. Since he was the trustee of thirumangai AzhwAr kOyil, it could be guessed from the inscription that he himself was the chinna jIyar (junior jIyar). In thirumalaiyozhugu also known as thirumalai thiruppathi aithihyamAlai published by thirumalai thiruppathi dhEvasthAnam in 1953, it is said that “in SakAbdham 379, vikAri varusham, thai mAsam, bhagavadh rAmAnujar coronated appan satakOpa jIyar as kOyil kELvi jIyar” and that he was carrying out kainkaryam to the temple for 45 years. Subsequently, in the varusham jaya, azhagiya maNavALa jIyar was appointed as his assistant (page 125 of this publication). In this same book (in page 104) it is written: “In earlier days SrI rAmAnuja dharSana pravarthakar maNavALa mAmunigaL had mercifully come to thiruppathi, met the king of that country and blessed him. Thinking within himself that the temple (at thiruvEngadam) needs an uththamASrami (a sanyAsi) as sthalAdhipathi (head of the place) who will be able to ward off the hurdles from people of other religions, just as his Sishya, SrIranganArAyaNa jIyar, was functioning in SrIrangam as in-charge of the stores there, he wanted a jIyar who will be favourable to the devotees and unfavourable to other religious people. He took the consent of the king of that place and appointed kOyil kELvith thiruvEngada jIyar, making archakar, all the temple employees and the sthala nirvAgi (controller of the place) AzhwAr gOvindha jIyar, an EkAngi, to be under his [the appointed jIyar’s] control. He was the Sikshaka (instructor), rakshaka (protector) for those who were under him, varthaka (one who expands) for the wealth of thiruvEngadam and dharmOpadhEshtA (one who leads in the path of righteousness) for the king of the place. He gave the divine image of emperumAnAr, made in the form of a ring, as the official stamp for the jIyar and made him wear it. He made the [temple] bell, cows and flags to be under the jIyar’s control. He also told the jIyar to go along with the bell and the flag during the times that he went for kainkaryam or travel [to other divine abodes]. He also built a matam (residence) at SrIrAmAnujapuram for the jIyar’s use. Later maNavALa mAmunigaL mercifully left for SrIrangam.
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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