Madhwa Vijaya - 16

Sarga 8 Part 1

Poornapragnya, whose intellect and vitality were deeply appreciated by the residents of the ashrama, approached Vedavyaasa in an isolated place in the forest.

Then Vedavyaasa imparted the knowledge which was hitherto not revealed to anybody. Poornapragnya grasped Vyaasa’s words effortlessly. This interaction between the two, made the gods exclaim that, “Poornapragnya was the perfect pupil of Vedavyaasa and Vedavyaasa was the perfect teacher of Poornapragnya!”

Krishna (Dwaipayana)* thus managed to impart ‘tattva-gnyaana’** to Madhwa, whose vessel of knowledge was already full and overflowing, like how Krishna (Vaasudeva) had managed to fill in riches in the city of Dwaraka, which was already bursting at its seams with wealth.

*Vedavyaasa

**most profound spiritual knowledge

And thus Achaarya became privy to the supreme knowledge of the Vedas with their deepest and truest meaning, the better ones among the puraanas, itihaasa, and the Bramhasutras.

Vedavyaasa refreshed the knowledge that in the innumerable past lives had been naturally present in the mind of Madhwa, the foremost among the Rujus*.

*the highest among the jeevas, next only to Maha-lakshmi

Along with Baadaraayana, Poornapragnya set forth to another hermitage where dwelt another form of Naarayana*.

*Nara-Naarayana are two beings, considered to be ‘amshas’ of Vishnu, also called sons of Dharma. In the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna tells Arjuna that they had incarnated earlier as Nara and Naarayana, the difference being God remembers all his lives, men don’t.

There he beheld the divine figure glowing like a fire without smoke, with a covering of bark of a tree tied around his waist and with radiant matted locks.

It seemed as if this being was indifferent to the matters of the world and was performing penance to conquer the unconquerable senses, so immersed in joy was he.

When Poornapragnya beheld this attractive figure, the son of Dharmaraaya, who would never be sighted by the undeserving, he thought:

‘Is this not the Parama-purusha Naarayana? The one who is the consort of Ramaa? The one who nurtures the fourteen worlds through Bramha and others?’

‘Through the primordial attributes of the three gunas, he created the foremost guru, Bramha. Through him, he created the abhimani devathe of the three types of ahankaara, Rudra devaru. Then he created the five elements, the five senses and then the cosmos, the worlds within it and finally the jeevas and jada (inert things).*

*Please see HKS for more on this

‘His leele is responsible for the creation, nurture and finally destruction of everyone from those at the apex of creation, like Bramha, Vayu, Garuda, Rudra, Shesha, Indra and so on, the celestial beings like the Devas, the Asuras, the Gandharvas, to lowly mortals and other animals. He bestows salvation to the deserving’.

‘He is blemishless and possesses attributes beyond description, he dons various forms as avataaras, for the upliftment of those who constantly bear him in their thoughts and actions’.

‘This supreme being in the form of a fish (Matsya-avataara) killed the demon with a horse-face (Hayagreeva-asura) and then in the form of a horse-faced God (Hayagreeva-avataara) killed the demon Madhu, and restored the four Vedas, which they had appropriated, to Chaturmukha Bramha’.

‘This supreme being lifted the mountain Mandara which was sinking in the ocean of milk when being tugged by the powerful arms of the Devas and the Asuras, by supporting it from the base in the form of a tortoise (Koorma avataara). When the foe of the Devas, Hiranyaaksha, pulled away the earth from her orbit, with his powerful arms, and dunked her in the cosmic ocean, he lifted her up and placed her back before killing Hiranyaaksha, in the form of a wild boar (Varaaha-avataara), just as he rescues the devout from the ocean of the samsaara’.

‘The one who grants fearlessness to the devout, in the form of an angry lion-faced being (Narasimha avataara) tore open the trembling body of the powerful and cruel Asura, Hiranyakashipu, with his mighty nails.

In the Taapasa Manvanthara, he (Hari-avataara) flew down on Garuda and slew the gigantic crocodile with his discus, to release his devotee, Gajendra, from its clutches’.

‘Dazzling onlookers in the form of a little boy (Vaamana-avataara), he crushed the enemy of Indra, Bali, and sent him down (to Paatala-loka) and again, the beauteous baby (Buddha-avataara) grew up to lead the undeserving away from the path of salvation, thus establishing time and again, that he protects the righteous only’.

‘They call him the one who brought comfort to the world by dispelling the darkness caused by tyrannical rulers by annihilating them with his battle-axe and its gleaming blade (Parashuraama-avataara), born in the illustrious lineage of ascetics like Bhrigu. Then there was one born in the race of eminent sages, the grandson of Shakthi, who with the light of his incomparable knowledge dispelled the darkness of confusion and ignorance from the minds of the Devas and the humans (Baadarayana*-avataara)’.

*Vedavyaasa

‘The compassionate supreme being incarnated in the solar dynasty (Surya-vamsha), to the delight of the gods (Raama-avataara), and again incarnated in the lunar dynasty (Chandra-vamsha), to the delight of Vasudeva (Krishna-avataara). While the former’s father Dasharatha, slew his enemies by driving his chariot in ten directions, the latter’s chariot defeated formidable foes in ten directions and amassed riches’.

‘The cherished Shesha took birth on earth (Lakshmana and Balaraama-avataara) as did the conch and discus (as Bharatha-Shatrugna and Pradyumna-Aniruddha), striking fear in the hearts of the wicked. The resplendent Raama (and Balaraama) is known as the elder brother of Lakshmana (and Krishna)’.

‘Even as the father’s (Dasharatha) eyes thirsted for the sight of his beloved Raama, the sage Vishwamitra troubled by demons took away Raama to the forest. The father (Vasudeva) scared for the life of his child due to evil Kamsa, thirstily looked at the baby Krishna, even as he made his way to the forests of Nanda-gopa. Both Raama and Krishna put an end to the ones who moved around at twilight (demonesses, Tatka and Puthani)’.

‘Thus did Raama and Krishna destroy the demons Subahu, who came prepared to trouble the ascetics, and Keshi-Arishta in the forms of a horse and a bull, respectively’.

‘The rishis who were grateful to Raama for protecting them against the onslaught of demons, spoke sweet words praising him, which Raama acknowledged. Amid the melodious chirping of birds in the forests of Gokula, the favourite of all, Gopalakrishna, enchanted the gopis with his sweet words’.

To be continued