SrI: SrImathE SatakOpAya nama: SrImathE rAmAnujAya nama: SrImadh varavaramunayE nama:
One day, nampiLLai, after completing his daily routine of kAlAkshEpam (discourse), was resting alone when ammi, the mother of his disciple vadakkuth thiruvIdhippiLLai, prostrated before him and stood aside. He looked at her mercifully and asked about her and her family’s well-being. Following is their conversation:
“What am I going to appeal to you? My son is intractable”
“Why is that?”
“You got him married to a girl, do you remember? She has attained puberty. We arranged nuptials for them. He cried out. We went inside and saw him in complete perspiration and in sobbing condition. When asked about what had happened, he said ‘Oh mother! This girl appears like a snake to me. I got scared. She is still like that only’. I was stunned and told the girl to leave. On another occasion too, the same sequence repeated”
“How does it affect you?” piLLai asked her, after having a hearty laugh.
“Could you be like this? Should that girl not live comfortably? Should there not be a son for carrying forward the lineage?” Asking this, she fell at his feet again and was sorrowful.
piLLai mercifully told her “ammI! Get up. Do not grieve. Bring your daughter-in-law at an appropriate time”. She too brought her daughter-in-law to his assembly one day. nampiLLai touched her stomach with his divine hands and told her “May you give birth to a son like me” He then called vadakkuth thiruvIdhippiLLai and told him “Your fear has now gone. There will be no shortcoming to your detachment towards matters which are allowed by our SAsthrams (sacred texts). Be with her tonight, upholding my words”
The daughter-in-law duly conceived and gave birth to a son in the month of aippasi, on the day of thiruvONam nakshathram. On the twelfth day after the son was born, he was given the divine name of “lOkAchAryar piLLai” in line with the distinguished name of nampiLLai (lOkAchAryar). When the son completed one year, he was taken to the temple in order to worship namperumAL, with all grand celebratory accompaniments such as palanquin, nAdhaswara music etc. namperumAL was very happy to see them and offered his divine sacred water, SrI SatakOpan (symbolising the divine feet of namperumAL), sandalwood paste, garland etc and told nampiLLai, through the archakar (temple priest) “You have bestowed him a son like you; now, bestow him a son like us” nampiLLai readily agreed and thus, azhagiya maNavALap perumAL nAyanAr was born mercifully.
Thus piLLai lOkAchAriyar, who incarnated with the grace of one who had such greatness [nampiLLai], and his younger brother who grew up sustaining on his [piLLai lOkAchAriyar] grace, were brought up together. When they walked together, people of SrIrangam would wonder whether they were SrI rAma and lakshmaNa walking together or balarAma and krishNa walking together. This meaning has been beautifully brought out in a veNbA (a type of poem in thamizh) by piLLai lOkam jIyar
thambiyudan dhASarathiyAnum sangavaNNa
nambiyudan pinnadandhu vandhAnum – pongupunal
Ongu mudumbai ulagAriyanum aRan
dhAngu maNavALanumE thAn
(piLLai lOkAchAriyar and his younger brother azhagiya maNavALapperumAL nAyanAr, hailing from the exalted clan of mudumbai, were walking like SrI rAma and lakshmaNa as well as krishNa and balarAma, who is having the complexion of conch)
adiyEn krishNa rAmAnuja dhAsan
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