Part 1

Shri guru ShripAdarAja virachita MadhvanAma

jaya jaya jagatrANa jagadoLage sutrANa

akhiLa guNa sadhdhAma madhvanAma

jaya jaya = (a prayer to) cause good fortune for all of us

jagatrANa = the sustainer of the world

jagadoLage = in the world

sutrANa = most powerful

akhiLa = all

guNa = (good) qualities

sadhdhAma = good residence

madhvanAma = the one bearing the name of madhva

Victory (or Hail) to the one who provide sustenance to the world, who is the

most powerful amongst all jIvas, the abode of all (good) qualities, the one

bearing the name Madhwa. May he grant us good fortune.

It is captivating why shrIpAdarAjaru has used the name "madhva" instead of

other equivalent terms. This is to draw our attention to the baLitthAsUkta

"niryadIm budhnAnmahiShasya varpasa IshAnAsah

shavasA kranta sUrayah yadimanu pradivO madhva AdhavE

guhA santam mAtarishwA mathAyati "

It was from this wise vAyu that rudra and other gods easily learnt about the qualities of the

supreme lord hari and obtained liberation from bondage. Madhva churned the scriptures and

showed us the supremacy of hari, who resides in the hearts of everybody.

Ava kachchhapa rUpa dinda lanDOdakava

Ovi dharisida shEShamUrutiyanu

Avavana baLiviDidu hariya suraraiduvaro

A vAyu namma kula guru rAyanu I1II

Ava = by which

kachchhapa = tortoise

rUpa = form or shape

dinda = from

lanDOdakava = the fluid that fills brahmAnDa (universe)

Ovi = easily

dharisida = he carried

shEshamUrutiyanu = the form of shEsha

Avavana = whose

baLiviDidu = by staying near

hariya = Hari

suraraiduvaro = the gods reach or attain

A = that

vAyu = vAyu (is)

namma = our

kula = sect

guru = guru or preceptor

rAyanu = king or chief

The one who took  the shape of a tortoise and supported Sesha, by staying near

whom lesser gods reach hari, that vAyu is the chief amongst the gurus of our

sect or lineage.

According to the shAstrAs, the lord is holding up the whole universe as vishnu

kUrma. The fluid  is filled within brahmAnDa, vAyu is also present as vAyu kUrma,

holding on to the tail of vishnu kUrma. sEsha is hanging to the tail of vAyu and

is supporting the Earth on his hood. "staying near vAyu" can be interpreted

as "staying on the path laid down by vAyu or staying close to the principles dear

to vAyu" then it follows that having faith in and following madhva shAstra 

 is the right royal road to hari, i.e., moksha or liberation!

Kurma Avatar

Avavanu dEhadoLagiralu hari tA nelesihanu

Avavanu tolage hari tA tolaguva

Avavanu dEhadoLahorage niyAmakanu

A vAyu namma kula guru rAyanu l2ll

  

Avavanu = he who

dEhadoLagiralu = when he stays in the body

hari = Hari

tA nelesihanu = he stays

Avavanu = he who

tolage = when (he) departs

hari tA tolaguva = hari also departs

Avavanu = he who

dEhada = the body

oLahorage = inside and outside

niyAmakanu = controller or regulator

A = that

vAyu = vAyu (is)

namma = our

kula = sect

guru = guru or preceptor

rAyanu = king or chief

As long vayu resides in the body, Hari remains or resides in the body, as soon as

he departs, Hari departs from the body. He (vAyu) is the controller or regulator

inside and outside the body; he is the chief amongst the gurus of our sect.

Lets consider that as long as vAyu is in the mind, hari is there too, and once vAyu

leaves the mind, hari leaves too.

What exactly does "vAyu in the mind" mean? It means the

following:

• constantly meditating on vAyu, his glory and greatness

• believing with heart and soul the fact that he is jIvOttama (and his position

in the hierarchy)

• following the principles enunciated by vAyu (madhva) himself, i.e., following

tattvada/dvaita concepts in letter and spirit, in thought and action, in the

manner

From the above it follows that tattvada/dvaita is the correct and most practical

approach to achieving hari's grace, and more importantly, hari abandons

everybody who abandons vAyu.

Everything (apart from natural exclusions like hari, lakshmi, brahma) is in

the control of prANA (another name for vAyu). In turn, prANa is under the

control of hari. hari is under nobody's control, even to a small degree, and

this has always been the case.

karaNAbhimAni suraru dEhava biDalu

kuruDa kivuDa mUkanendenisuva

parama mukhyaprANa tolagalA dehavanu

aritu peNanendu pELvaru budhajana l3ll

karaNAbhimAni = regulators or patrons of senses

suraru = gods

dEhava = the body

biDalu = depart from

kuruDa = blind

kivuDa = deaf

mUka = dumb

nendenisuva = to be called or named

parama = supreme or the main

mukhyaprANa = the primary life breath

tolagalA = (when) departs

dEhavanu = the body

aritu = knowingly

peNanendu = as a corpse

pELvaru = to say

budhajana = wise or knowledgeable people

 When gods who regulate the senses and organs depart from a person's body, that

person becomes impaired in that sense or organ, and is accordingly called

blind, deaf or dumb. However, when mukhyaprANa leaves the body, the wise call

such a body a corpse.

shrIpAdarAjaru is drawing our attention to the aitarEya upanishad statement:

"tA ahimsant ahamuktha masmaihamukthamasmIti tA abruvan

hantAsmAchCharIrAdutkrAmAma tadyasmin

na utkAnta idam sharIram patsyati taduktham bhaviShyatIti vAgudakrAmad

avadannashnan pibannAstaiva

chakshurudakrAmad apashyannashnan pibannAstaiva"

Once the gods had a dispute amongst themselves as who was the greatest. They

decided that the best way to judge the issue was to observe the impact on the

body. The gods started entering a lifeless body one-by-one. None of them made an

impact, the body remained as it was. As soon as vAyu entered the body, it perked

up. Now the whole thing was reversed, and the gods started leaving the body one by-one.

As each god left, the sense or organ he/she regulated failed. Yet the

body was alive and continued to eat and drink. When vAyu left the body, it

collapsed. This conclusively established the total dependence of the jiVa on

vAyu, and thereby his superiority to other gods, making his title of

'jIvOttama' appropriate.

When this verse is read along with the previous verse (i.e., as long as vAyu

resides in the body, hari also resides, when vAyu leaves hari also leaves), it

really shows the position of vAyu in the hierarchy of gods, and how much hari

cares for him.

suraroLage nararoLage sarvabhUtagaLoLage

parataranenisi nEmadi nelesiha

hariyanallade bageyanannyaranu lOkadoLu

gurukulatilaka mukhya pavamAnanu l4ll

suraroLage = amongst gods

nararoLage = amongst humans

sarvabhUtagaLoLAge = amongst all elements

parataranenisi = to be known as the most important

nEmadi = in strict order

nelesiha = to stay or reside

hariyanallade = other than Hari

bageyanannyaranu - bageya + annyaranu = does not submit or defer to others

lOkadoLu = in the world

gurukulatilaka = guru + kula + tilaka = crown jewel in the line of preceptors

mukhya = chief

pavamAnanu = pavamana (a name for vAyu)

Amongst gods, amongst humans, amongst all elements, he resides as the controller

and regulator. He does not respect or defer to anybody other than Hari (and

lakshmi, of course) in the world. He is mukhya pavamAna, the crown jewel amongst

preceptors.

Other than vAsudEva (hari), bhImasEna has never prayed to any other god, even

once. [This would be true for all incarnations of vAyu].

How does one reconcile this with instances in rAmAyaNa and mahAbhArata where

incarnations of vAyu respect or obey people other than hari and lakshmi (for

example sugrIva, bhIshma, drONa, etc)? There is an important concept behind this

behavior. Since vAyu is jivOttama, he has to set examples of appropriate

behavior for lesser jIvas to follow. Thus he shows respect to his king/leader

(sugrIva), his teacher (drOna) and his great-grand uncle (bhIshma) etc.

Hari is the Adi (first or primary) guru; he is the guru of all gurus, for all of

creation, in the past, present and future. His immediate disciples are vAyu and

brahma (and their spouses wives saraswati and bhArati), in turn, these two are the gurus for garuda, sEsha,

rudra (and their spouses souparaNi, vAruNi

and pArvati), and so on. Thus, as stated in the previous verse,

vAyu may be considered the primary guru for all sAtvikas (good souls).

shrIpAdarAjaru has put it poetically by calling him the the crown jewel of the

line of preceptors (gurukula tilaka).