MADHVA AVATAR - PART 1

dAnavaru kaliyugadoLavatarisi vibhudaroLu

vEnana matavanaruhaladanaritu

gyAni tA pavamAna bhUtaLadoLavatarisi

mAnanidhi madhvAkhyanendenisida ll23ll

dAnavaru = demons or wicked people

kaliyugadoLavatarisi = taking birth in kaliyuga

vibhudaroLu = amongst good people

vEnana = bad or wicked (named after a king of that nature)

matavanaruhaladanaritu = matavanu + aruhalu + adannu + aritu

= on realizing that they were preaching a false doctrine

gyAni = the wise or all-knowing

pavamAna = vAyu

bhUtaLadoLavatarisi = bhUtaLadoLu + avatarisi = incarnating on Earth

mAnanidhi = the highly revered and respected

madhvAkhyanendenisida = became famous or well-known as madhva

When evil people incarnated in kaliyuga and started spreading an inferior and

evil philosophy, pavamAna (vAyu) incarnated on earth and became famous as

madhwa.

vEnana mata

Our purANas talk of an evil king called vEna who spread a vile and wicked

doctrine; he forced his people to worship him as God and ruled that all

religious activities like yagnas were to be submitted to him. Finally, all the

sages got together and punished him. Out of his body they magically extracted a

baby, who was named as pRuthu, and who went on to become a very righteous and

respected ruler (since Earth was ruled by him, it got the name prithvi).

dAnavaru kaliyugadoLavatarisi

Many asuras and rAkshAsas (demons) were vanquished and killed by hanumanta and

bhIma during their incarnations. Unable to match vAyu in strength, they decided

to take revenge by spreading false knowledge amongst humans. The idea was that

if good people were led astray (morally questionable behavior),

 then as jIvattoma and the leader / preceptor of

good souls vAyu would be effectively humiliated. With this end in mind they

incarnated in kaliyuga and assuming the garb of ascetics, started spreading

false philosophies. One of their leaders was a very vicious and powerful demon

called maNimanta who had been killed by bhIma (for more details refer to posting

21 - this describes bhIma's acquisition of sougandhikA pushpa).

The wrong philosophies and doctrines propogated by asuras was based on a

deliberate misinterpretation of our holy scriptures. The one propogated by

maNimanta was based on the concept that everything is unreal, all jIvas are the

same as parabrahma (hari), who is totally attributeless and formless. The term

"vEnana" has been used to indicate that this doctrine is conceptually similar to

the one propogated by King vEna, and is equally worthy of disapproval.

Normally, many are under the impression that all doctrines ultimately lead to

the same noble end, and/or that the differences between them are too mysterious to

be realized by persons like oneself who do not have a deep understanding of the

texts, their rules of interpretation, etc. In order to enable even the dull to

have some appreciation of the correct positions, Vishnu incarnated as Vyasa:

nashhTadharmaj~nAnalokakR^ipALubhiH brahmarudrendrAdibhirarthito

j~nAnapradarshanAya bhagavAn.h vyAso.avatatAra |

(gItAbhAshhya)

The Mahabharata, and the Puranas, which are of His composition, convey in simple

story form great truths that persons such as oneself could not otherwise

appreciate. For instance, the complete story of the Mahabharata conveys the

message that ill-treatment of women is not to be taken lightly. Any wrongdoer

guilty of such, and any of his supporters, or even any neutral bystanders who refuse

to take an adverse position as required, will have to face the anger of the

Supreme, who will thrash the evil one and all that is his. If a man were to

take this message to heart and moderate his conduct accordingly, he could surely

be said to have gained something, regardless of his lack of scholastic ability.

Similarly, also, it is to be noted that if difference between the individual and

the Supreme is not accepted, then persons such as Vena and Paundraka must be

considered highly realized and gifted individuals, for declaring their

identity with the Supreme. However, these individuals are described as

scoundrels of the first rank who met with an ignoble fate, but never as people

worthy of imitation. Thus, once again, regardless of the rareness of one's abilities,

one is led to understand that it is not the message of the shaastra-s

that one follow the lead of Paundraka, etc., regardless of all arguments to the

contrary.

gyAni tA pavamAna bhUtaLadoLavatarisi

The state of affairs prior to the advent of vAyu is beautifully captured in the

shri harivAyu stuti ("dEhAdutkrAmitAnA ....jivatAm chAdhikRutya) and in the

sumadhava vijaya (Canto 2, Verse 1).

As the sun of correct knowledge was setting due to the influence of kali, the

darkness created by the confluence of wrong interpretations blinded good souls

and lead them away from the path of true knowledge. The gods lead by brahma were

disappointed by this and approached mukunda (Lord viShNu) for relief.

Since the Lord does not incarnate during kaliyuga, and because brahma never

incarnates, He directed vAyu to incarnate and show worthy and deserving souls

the correct path to salvation. Accordingly vAyu took birth as the son of a devout

couple in Udupi and the rest is history.

The way in which shrI madhvAchArya took his birth is beautifully described in

the sumadhava vijaya (Canto 2, Verse 25).

"sampUrNa lakshaNachaNam ........bhagvAn vivEsha"

vAyu, the master of the three worlds, entered the body of the embryo that was

present in his mother's womb, expelling the existing jIva. This body, gifted

with 32 marks of excellence and 9 glowing exits, was like a temple, ready for

his arrival. vAyu's action resembled that of a victorious king who expells an

existing ruler and making his way through his lovely city, enters his

splendid palace, exaggerated with well decorated doors.

mAnanidhi madhvAkhyanendenisida

The baLitTha sUkta very clearly identifies shrI madhvAcharya by name as the

third incarnation of vAyu. The name "madhvA" literally means one who distributes

happiness; incidentally, this is the same as Ananda tIrtha, the ashramanAma

(name taken after becoming an ascetic) of shrI madhvAcharya. Here happiness

means true and everlasting happiness, viz., liberation. As the one who showed

the correct path to liberation, and thus helped good souls realize their innate

happiness, the name "madhvAcharya" is very appropriate.

arbhakatanadoLaidi badariyali madhvamuni

nirbhayadi sakala shAstragaLa paTisida

urviyoLu mAye bIralu tatvamArgavanu

(mAye bIralu tatvamArgavanu)

Orva madhvamuni tOrda sujanarge ll24ll

arbhakatanadoLaidi = (he) reached in a young age

badariyali = in badari (the place where Lord vEdavyAsa resides)

madhvamuni = sri madhvAchAryanirbhayadi = without fear (confusion, ambiguity)

sakala = all

shAstragaLa = scriptures

paTisida = recited

urviyoLu = in the world

mAye = illusion

bIralu = spread

tatvamArgavanu = the path of true knowledge

Orva = one (and only one)

madhvamuni = sri madhvAchArya

tOrda = showed

sujanarge = to good people

At a very young age, he went to badari without fear and learnt all the shAstrAs

(in vEdavyAsa's presence). When a fake philosophy started flooding the

earth, only madhwamuni showed the correct path to good people.

arbhakatanadoLydi badariyali .... paTisida

shrI madhvAchArya went to badari twice. This verse refers to the first visit.

[The author of the reference book claims that shrI madhvAchArya visited badari

once in his boyhood, before taking up sanyAshrama. This is not explicitly

supported by the sumadhvavijaya or the harivAyustuti, nor is it ruled out. It is

claimed that the tIka on harivAyustuti by shrI vishvapati tIrtharu describes

this event. We would like to continue without further comment].

As everybody knows, the trek to badari is not an easy one; it is difficult and

hazardous at every step. However, shrI madhvAchArya undertook this trip with

absolutely no fear or reservations. The Sumadhvavijaya provides a nice

description of the first visit. The travel was very pleasant, with a symbolic

cool breeze because shrI MadhvAchArya (shrI VAyu himself) was leading the

followers. He reached Badari and offered his salutations to shrI NArAyaNa. He

sent his disciples away and presented his commentary on the gIta to God. He told

God that he had created this commentary to the best of his capability. To this

God replied, "Not really, you have more capability but have written only a

little, you could do even more ". To this end, He asked shrI MadhvAchArya to

substitute one word in the commentary, from 'shaktitah' (to the best of my

ability) to 'lEshatah' (lightly, or not at great depth). On the same night, God

woke shrI madhvAchArya and asked him to present his commentary again. This shows

how happy the Lord was with this work.

shrI madhvAchArya learnt the essence of all shAstras from the Lord Himself. Even

though he had been already blessed with this knowledge by the grace of hari, he

went through the learning process for a variety of reasons. Primarily, because

the act of listening to his Lord and Master gave him a lot of pleasure. Also, to

emphasize the fact that true knowledge has to be learnt from a guru. And finally

because he wanted the world to know that his knowledge of scriptures had been

imparted to him by the Lord Himself.

urviyoLu mAye bIralu tatvamArgavanu Orva madhvamuni tOrda sujanarge

Let us take a quick look at the state of affairs prior to the advent of shrI

madhvAchArya.The thirteenth century was a period of great confusion in India's political and

religious history. On the philosophical front, Buddhism and Jainism had taken

birth and were spreading their roots. In addition, Saivism was also on the rise

in parts of Tamilnadu and Karnataka.

Among vedantic philosophies, shrI Sankara's Advaita (monism) was the dominant

one. Its central theme is mAyavada (Theory of illusion) which states that the

whole world is unreal and there is only one real substance called Atman or

Brahman. Brahman is supposed to be nirguNa (without any attributes). shrI

Ramanujacharya did give a theistic rebuttal to Advaita, but it was not complete.

There were 21 commentaries on the brahmasUtras, and none of them exactly

captured what the sUtrakAra (vEdayvyAsa) had in mind.

This state of affairs is summarised beautifully in the shri harivAyu stuti Verse

29 ("dEhAdutkrAmitAnA ....jivatAm chAdhikRutya) and the sumadhava vijaya (Canto

2, Verse 1) as follows:

"vig.yAnabhAnumati ..........sharaNam prajagmuhu"

"As the sun of correct knowledge was setting due to the influence of kali, the

darkness created by the confluence of wrong doctrines blinded good souls and

lead them away from the path of true knowledge. The gods lead by brahma were

saddened by this and approached mukunda (Lord viShNu) for succour."

Since the Lord does not incarnate during kaliyuga, and because brahma never

incarnates, He directed vAyu to incarnate and show worthy and deserving souls

the correct path to salvation. Accordingly vAyu took birth as the son of a pious

couple in Udupi and the rest is history.

sarvEsha hara, vishwa ella tA pusiyemba

durvAdigaLa matava nere khandisi

sarvEsha hari, vishwa satyavendaruhida

sharvAdigIrvaNa santatiyali ll25ll

(in most published works, the first line begins as "sarvesha hari", but that is

wrong as the context clearly indicates).

sarvEsha = Lord of everything (and everybody)

hara = shiva

vishwa all = the entire universe (and everything else)

tA pusiyemba = is false or a myth

durvAdigaLa = people propounding wrong or bad doctrines

matava = philosophy

nere khandisi = condemn totally

sarvEsha = Lord of everything (and everybody)

hari = hari or nArAyaNa

vishwa = the universe

satyavendaruhida = he averred that it is true

sharvAdigIrvaNa santatiyali = in accordance with ancient scriptures

"Hara (shiva) is the supreme Lord, the entire universe is a myth or illusion".

The essence of this wrong or bad doctrine was disproved by shrI madhwAchArya who

declared that "Hari is the supreme lord, and the universe is true" in accordance

with our ancient and sacred scriptures.

sarvEsha hara, vishwa ella tA pusiyemba

Demons who hated hari and vAyu took birth during kaliyuga and propogated their

false doctrines, concealed as ascetics. They wilfully misinterpreted the

vEdas, wrote wrong and misleading commentaries on the brahmasUtras, and

propogated their own doctrines, with the sole intention of misleading good

souls. Chief amongst these doctrines was (or continues to be) mAyAvAda. Its main

tenets are "brahma satyam, jagan mithyam, aham brahmAsmi" i.e., only parabrahma

is true, everything else is an illusion, there is no difference between

parabrahma and other souls. In addition, they consider the parabrahma to be

devoid of all attributes ("nirguNa") and hold shiva & parvathi to be superior

to viShNu.

The sumadhva vijaya (Canto 1, verse 55) captures this very poetically "vishavam

mithyA ..... nUnam tirOabhUt". It says that the asuras propogated their doctrine

in all directions, stating that brahman is without attributes, there is no

difference between parabrahman and ordinary jIvas. Alas, as a consequence, the

supreme Lord nArAyaNa who is full of knowledge and bliss, started fading from

the minds of the virtuous.

durvAdigaLa matava nere khandisi

The Lord is full of countless auspicious attributes, without any trace of a

flaw. His power is infinite and unlimited; only an minute part of His

nature and greatness can be grasped by humans, and that too only through good

scriptures - the vEdas, mahAbhArata, bhAgavata, mUla rAmAyaNa and pancharAtra.

Other purANAs that do not conflict with the basic doctrines enunciated by the above

- - may also be considered good scriptures.

Lord vEdavyAsa composed the brahmaSutras to help the virtuous grasp the import

of the vEdas correctly and unambigously. Consequently, they occupy a very high

position in our religious hierarchy, and anybody who wishes to start a school of

thought has to necessarily begin with a commentary of the brahmasUtras and show

how they support his/her conclusions.

Before the advent of shri madhvAchArya, there were 21 improper or misleading

commentaries on the brahmaSutras. He critically evaluated each of them, and

pointed out all their inconsistencies and flaws, in a precise and logical

manner, using references from scriptures. No commentary was able to stand up to

his perceptive scrutiny.

sarvEsha hari, vishwa satyavendaruhida sharvAdigIrvaNa santatiyali

Using references from scriptures and arguing strongly, shrI madhvAchArya was

able to show that all scriptures, as well as the brahmasUtras enunciate the same

basic tenets - supremacy of Lord viShNu, reality of the world, 5-fold

differences, hierarchy of souls in sansAra and in mukti etc. The essence of his

thinking is captured in the Prameya shloka by shrI vyAsa tIrtha.

There are 3 features that distinguish shrI madhvAchArya's approach - usage of

supporting references, consistency in approach and themes, and resolution of

contradictions.

He rarely makes a statement without giving supporting references, underscoring

the fact that the concepts put forth by him are eternal and timeless, not

something that he discovered or invented like other philosophers before him.

When one goes through his works the thing that immediately stands out is the

remarkable consistency of approach and clarity of thought. There is one central

theme that runs through all of his works - the supremacy of ViShNu and the

dependence of other entities on Him for sustenance. Everything else is woven

around this theme and flows from it. One does not find this kind of consistent,

coherent thinking in the works of any other vedanta philosopher.

He was the first one (and perhaps the only one) to resolve seeming

contradictions within the scriptures themselves. Everybody else either ignored

them or discarded one in favor of another.

"When two very young cows (each having only one calf) are fighting without any

relief, who except a Mleccha boy will kill one and end the fighting. He will

try to tempt one or both of them by offering young green grass, fodder etc.,

make it interested in some other object and stop the fighting, even if they are

still angry with each other. Similarly, when two Vedic texts appear to make

opposite statements, they should be reconciled with each other by interpreting

the one which is NiravakAsha (can only be interpreted in one manner) and then

interpreting the other which is SAvakAsha (can be interpreted in more than one

manner) according to the first text, to remove the conflict in meanings.

The underlying principle is just as cows should not be killed to remove conflict

among them, Shruthi texts cannot be discarded by calling some of them as

AthathvAvedaka - not conveying absolute truth and accepting as valid only some

of them, which may superficially appear to support a particular doctrine - as

Advaitha does. The Vedas being ApaurushEya and free of all defects cannot be

treated in this manner - as there will always be the doubt as to which set of

texts should be treated as valid (why not the other set? etc) and the very

reasonable question that if some part of the infallible Vedas is saying

untruths, why not all of them?. Even if it is assumed that some part of the

Vedas do tell the absolute truth, it will be impossible to decide which part,

unless we have some other pramana to judge their validity. In the case of

nonsensory objects like Dharma, God etc. it is apparent that there is no other

such pramana, unless one chooses to accept somebody's statements - as in all

Paurusheya texts. The only source which is known to be Apaurusheya and

infallible is thus rendered totally useless, if the absolute validity of ALL

Apaurusheya texts is not fully accepted without any reservations. It is very

important to understand that Acharya Madhva alone has stressed the inescapable

necessity of accepting ALL the Vedas as the fountainhead of valid tatvas and has

been extremely rigorous in reconciling all of them to show that his Thathvavada

is the essence of the Vedic religion, unlike other schools which while accepting

Apaurusheyathva of the Vedas, also postulate the unreality or invalidity of some of them.

The question of discarding or referring to a secondary level any

statement like "Aham BrahmAsmi" on the plea that it appears to go against our

doctrine JUST DOES NOT ARISE, in Madhva philosophy"

Shri Madhvacharya 

Ekavimshati kubhAshyagaLa bEranu taridu

shrIkarArchitanolume shAstra rachisi

lOkatrayadoLidda suraru Alisuvante

A kamalanAbhayati nikaragoreda ll26ll

Ekavimshati = one plus twenty = twentyone

kubhAshyagaLa = wrong explanations of brahmasUtra

bEranu taridu = uproot completely

shrIkarArchitanolume = pleasing to Him, who is served by Lakshmi

with her own hands

shAstra = philosophy

rachisi = created or developed

lOkatrayadoLidda = the three worlds

suraru = gods

Alisuvante = (so that they) could listen

A kamalanAbhayati = saint named padmanAbha (could mean Lord vEdavyAsa

or padmanAbha tIrtha - madhvAchArya's first disciple)

nikaragoreda = went close to or gathered

He completely uprooted the 21 bad commentaries (on the brahmasUtras) and

composed a philosophy that pleased the Lord, who is served by shrI Devi

(lakshmi) with her own hands, viz., nArAyaNa. His discourses were heard with

captivated attention by gods residing in the three worlds. Having done this, he went

close to (or stayed) with Lord vEdavyAsa. [Or, another interpretation, he

gathered a band of saints headed by padmanAbha tIrtha - his first disciple].

Ekavimshati kubhAshyagaLa bEranu taridu

There were 21 commentaries on the brahma sUtras before the advent of shri

madhvAchArya. These were by: bhArati vijaya, sachchidAnanda,

brahmaghOsha, shatAnanda, uddhRuta, vijaya, rudrabhatta, vAmana,

yAdava prakAsha, mAdhava dAsa, bhaRtru prapancha, drAmida, brahmadatta,

bhAskara, pishAcha, vRuttikAra, vijaya bhatta, viShNu krAnta, vAdIndra,

shankara, ramAnuja.

shrI madhvAchArya critically evaluated each of them and pointed out the flaws,

misconceptions and errors in them. His analysis was so thorough and logical that

none of them could stand up to scrutiny again. That is why shrIpAdarAjaru uses

the term 'bEranu taridu'.

shrIkarArchitanolume shAstra rachisi

shrI madhvAchArya wrote 4 works on the brahmasUtras. These are BrahmasUtra

bhAshya, AnUbhAshya, AnuvyAkhyAna, NyAyavivarana. These four works

together are known as 'sUtra prasthAna'. A quick overview is presented in the final part of

this posting.

His works were appreciated by everybody who had an open-mind and the intellect

to appreciate his superior thought process.

When shrI vidyAraNya visited shrI jayatIrtha he is supposed to have look at shrI

madhvAchArya's original text and said that it was bAlabAsha (the language of

children). However, after seeing the commentary by jayatIrtha he is supposed to

have realized the wealth of meaning hidden in those simple words.

lOkatrayadoLidda suraru Alisuvante

There are 2 aspects to this statement, one straightforward and one fairly

involved. The former is that gods in the three worlds listened to his teachings

with respect; that is not very surprising since they knew who he was and the

worth of his words.

To understand the involved aspect, ponder on the fact that he was no ordinary

philosopher, trying to peddle his own brand of philosophy. As vAyu, the

regulator and controller of all jivas, he could have easily converted every

single person he came across, completely destroying every other religion and

philosophy. Yet, he did not. Why? Because that was not the Lord's will. shrI

madhvAchArya's arrival was only for the emancipation of worthy souls, and not

everybody. When the gods lead by brahma approached Lord viShNu for help, it

was not so much because the scriptures had been misinterpreted but that truely

worthy jIvAs were being led astray by such misinterpretations.

That is why shrIpAdarAjaru used the terms "suraru Alisuvante", and not "ellaru

Alisuvante". Here one needs to widen "suraru" to include "bhUsuraru" (gods on

earth) i.e., truely worthy souls. That is why he focussed on only truely

enlightened people like shObhana bhatta (who later became padmanAbha tIrtha),

trivikramapanDitAchArya, narahari tIrtha etc ignoring the unworthy ones.

This fact will not be palatable to anybody who does not believe in his

classification of souls.

A kamalanAbhayati nikaragoreda

This can be interpreted in 2 ways. The first one is that after completing the

tasks that he had set out to achieve, he vanished from our midst (on madhva

navami), and went to badari to stay in close proximity to vEdavyAsa (kamalanAbha

yati).

The second interpretation is that having provided a solid foundation for his

philosophy through his writings, he set up a group of faithful followers to

propogate these concepts in all directions. This group was led by shri

padmanAbha tIrtha (kamalanAbha yati).

Overview of 'sUtra prasthAna'

The BrahmasUtras are a collection of 564 short phrases by shrI VEdavyAsa. They

form the basis for interpreting the VEdas. They have been grouped into four

chapters or adhyAyas with 4 sections in each chapter. The adhyAyas are

Samanvaya, avirodha, sAdhana and phala adhyAya.

BrahmasUtra BhAshya : This is the primary work in the prathAna.

It contains a detailed interpretation of each 'sUtra' and establishes the main tenets of

dvaita. Some of the key ideas are as follows:

shrI NArAyaNa is ParaBrahma, and that all names (including names of other

devatas etc.), all words, and even all sounds are primarily His names and so

apply to Him primarily.

The Lord can be pleased only by devotion combined with right knowledge, and

complete attachment to Him.

The result of 'sadhana', is moksha or freedom from the bondage of this world.

jIvas have a hierarchy amongst them commonly known as 'taratamya'

AnubhAshya: shrI MadhvAchArya composed this work when he heard that his

Ashramaguru shrI achyutapreksha, who was reciting the BrahmasUtra bhAshya daily

before taking food, was finding it difficult to do so on dvAdashi.

NyAyavivaraNa: This work also summarizes the brahmasUtra bhAshya, incorporating

the points made out in anUvyAkhyAna.

anuvyAkhyAna : This was written in response to the request by shrI trivikrama

panDitAchArya. It is said that shrI madhvAchArya dictated the four chapters of

this work simultaneously to four of his sishyas. In order to fully understand

this work, it is necessary to study it along with its commentary by shrI

Jayatirtha - 'shrIman Nyayasudha'.

badarikAshramake punarapiyiedi vyAsamuni

padakeragi akhila vedArthagaLanu

padumanAbhana mukhadi tiLidu brahmatvavye

dida madhwamunirAyagabhivandipe ll27ll

badarikAshramake = the hermitage in badari

punarapiyiedi = went again

vyAsamuni = saint vEdavyAsa

padakeragi = prostrated

akhila = all or entire

vedArthagaLanu = meaning of the vEdas

padumanAbhana = badarinArAyaNa

mukhadi = from His own mouth

tiLidu = having learnt

brahmatvavyedida = attained the post of brahma

madhwamunirAyagabhivandipe = I prostrate with deep respect

to saint madhvAchArya, the king amongst all saints

We salute with deep respect madhwamuni, the king of all saints, the one who went

to badari again and prostrated at the feet of vyAsamuni, and learnt the meaning

of all shAstras directly from the mouth of padmanAbha.

badarikAshramake punarapiyiedi vyAsamuni padakeragi

shrI madhvAchArya toured North India twice. The reference in this verse is to

the second one ("punaripieldi").

Activities like crossing deep, overflowing rivers, bypassing hostile armies,

climbing high mountains were performed with ease and he finally reached lower

badari. He left behind his disciples there and climbed the mountains to reach

badarikAsharama of vEda vyAsa. He felt overjoyed on seeing vEda vyAsa, along

with his disciples. Heart overflowing with joy and devotion, he prostrated at

vEdavyAsa's feet. The Sumadhva vijaya describes this encounter between paramAtma

and jIvOttama as follows:

" munimanDala madhyavartinam trijaganmanDala manDanAyitam

eha satyavatI sutam harim paripUrNapramatih samaikshata"

hari(vEdavyAsa), the son of satyavati, provides lustre to the three worlds. The

sight of vEdayvyAsa sitting in the midst of other saints was seen by

paripUrNapramati (the one whose knowledge is complete - a description used for shrI

madhvAchArya) with a full heart.

Some of the highlights of the second trip to badari were:

- Meeting Lord BAdarayana at Badari, and receiving eight Saligramas from

Him. Incidentally, these sAligrAmAs are called VyAsa Mushtis.

- Writing of shrIman MahAbhArata Tatparya Nirnaya, the great epitome of

MahAbhArata.

- Conducting tapas (meditation) under a tree near GangA river for four

months.

- Crossing the river GangA, defying physical and political limitations.

- Drawing attention of his disciples to some of the key incidents of the

mahAbhArata war, including his exploits as bhImasEna

akhila vedArthagaLanu padumanAbhana mukhadi tiLidu brahmatvavyedida

The straightforward meaning is that shrI madhvAchArya, who is destined to become

the next brahma, learnt the shAstras from Lord vEdavyAsa. However, there is a

subtle meaning hidden in the words used.

At the beginning of creation, a golden lotus sprung out from the navel of the

Lord. brahma took birth in this lotus. The Lord then proceeded to impart

knowledge to brahma. That is why our scriptures regard the Lord as the 'Adi

guru' (the first preceptor) and brahma as the 'Adi sishya' (the first disciple)

and the guru for the rest of creation. Incidentally, this is the origin of the

terms 'hiraNya garbha' (golden womb), 'padmanAbha'. By using these terms,

sripAdarAjaru is drawing our attention to this incident, and the fact that vAyu

is 'bhAvi brahma' (future brahma).

madhwamunirAyagabhivandipe

The usage of the term "minurAya" is very meaningful. It has several interesting

interpretations.

Amongst all creatures, humans are supposed to be a very high form because of

their ability to think. Amongst humans, saints are worthy of respect because

if they have rejected ordinary life and focused their life around the

 almighty. A king amongst such saints must then be worthy of the highest form of reverence.

It also follows that this person must be very high amongst all creation i.e.

jIvOttama.

A king's word is supposed to be law (or at least it used to be!). Similarly, a

saint's saying must be adhered to with reverence. Then it follows that the word

of a king amongst saints must be treated with the highest degree of reverence.

That is why the sumadhvavijaya says that when our shrImadAchArya conducted his

discourses, gods would assemble in the sky and hear him with reverence. No

wonder our haridAsas have compared the teachings of shrImadAchArya to smruti and

purANa vAkyas.

That is why sripAdarAjaru uses the term 'abhivandipe' rather than a simple

'vandipe' - to denote the deep respect and reverence that he has for

shrImadAchArya. Such being the case, aren't you glad that "A vAyu namma kula

gururAyanu"?