The image of Rayaru in a matha

These are some photographs of the Raghavendra Swamy Matha in Kalyani Gardens in Ashoknagar just off Thyagarajanagar. It is popularly called Kalyani Rayara Matha. An image of Rayaru is coming up on the left outer wall of  the Prakara housing the Brindavana of  Rayaru. Here are some pictures of  the manifestation. No other matha has reported such an event.     

A sole bulb illuminates the face of Rayaru which can be seen evolving.

The image of  Rayaru is garlanded with flowers. 

The image is now encased within a wooden frame with glass.

One can see the image slowly taking shape

The entrance to the Kalyani Rayara Matha 

Another view of the entrance of the Rayara Matha

There are scores of  Raghavendra Swamy Mathas in Bangalore. 

One such Matha and it is also among the oldest is the one at Kalyani Gardens in Ashoknagar just off Thyagarajanagar. This Matha is popularly called the Kalyani Raghavendra Swamy Matha or the Sathyabama Seethamma Kalyani Sri Raghavendashrama.   

The Kalyani Raghavendra Swamy Matha it is located next to the Madhwa Patashala and both are near Vidyapeetha.

The Matha has been drawing visitors and devotees because of a unique phenomenon. An image of Raghavendra Swamy is manifesting itself on the left outer wall of the Prakara housing the Brindavana of Raghavendra Swamy.

The image is slowly becoming more and more visible each day and the outlines of the face with eyes and nose can clearly been seen. There is no doubt that the image on a wall is that of our beloved Rayaru.

Till a few days ago, the image was left as it is on the wall. When the image was touched, the concrete surface was smooth than the rest of the wall. Many devotees and the priests told us that when they reverentially touched the image, it felt soft.

The image is developing by the day and as many people were touching it, the temple management decided to protect it by encasing it in a wooden frame with a glass front.

So if you go to the Matha, you can see the outlines of Rayaru through the glass. This is perhaps the first time in Bangalore that any such image of our Rayaru is manifesting on its own. 

The Kalyani Rayaru Matha is one of the oldest in Bangalore and it was established almost 70 years ago.   

It was Mrs. Seethamma and Ananda Tirthachar Kalyani who had built the Temple, performed Pratishtha and Utsarga of  Raghavendra Swamy at this very place (where the Brindavana is located) in 1942-43.

Thereafter, Mrs. Seethamma and Mr. Kalyani were functioning as Dharma Karthas of the temple. In 1953, the whole establishment was transferred to Mr. A.V. Krishna Murthy. However, in 1957 Mr. A.V. Krishna Murthy re-transferred the Temple Mutt and Pathasala to Mrs. Seethamma Kalyani requesting her to manage the Temple poojas and kattales

The Kalyani Gardens is a small industrial area that lies between Banashankari 1^st Stage and N. R Colony.

The temple of Raghavendra Swamy is off  the 6^th Cross and one can easily access this road from Chennammana Kere road and from Vidyapeetha on one side and N.R. Colony-Thyagarajanagar-Ashoknagar on the other.  

The temple is located just off a 30 feet road which is open to both way traffic. Since there are several industries, business and commercial establishments in and around the vicinity, the road has traffic. All the above photos were taken by us and they depict the image of Rayaru. The last two photos are that of the Kalyani Rayara Matha Brindavana.    

The Rg Bhashya of Madhwacharya

This is a work wherein Madhwacharya has interpreted the first forty slokas of the Rig Veda. According to the Acharya, each sloka and statement in the Vedas has at least three meanings.

Elaborating further on the etymology of the words used in the Rig Veda, he says the underlying meaning when he reads the slokas is that they are all in praise of Vishnu or Hari, who according to him is supreme.

The three levels of understanding are  Adhibhautic, Adhidaivic and Adhyatmic.

The first level or Adhibhatic or agryadidevataparatvene-meaning looking at the slokas from the physical level. The second also called tadantargatavisnuparatvena  is to understand them as a praise to the Abhimana devethes or gods who dwell within us. The final level or adhyatmaparatvena is interpreting them as the Supreme being or Vishnu. All the three levels of meaning is contained in this sloka,

 “tryo'rthah sarvavedesu dasarthah sarvabharate,

Visnoh sahasranamapi nirantarasatarthakam. ”

He commences his brilliant work by starting with “AgnimeelE purOhitam”. He shows us how the words in these forty lines are nothing but a prayer to Vishnu and his glory. Vishnu is supreme and the other gods are dependent on him.

He bases his argument that the Rg Veda means Vishnu on two main planks or doctrines. The first is the repeated use of Omkara as conveying a Brahaman and this means Vishnu and Vedas.

The second is that the entire Vedas and its study is meant to provide us a vehicle to move away from the worldly  to the holy and from the materialistic to the spiritual. Only the supreme being or Vishnu ca help us attain this goal and nobody else. Since Vishnu is supreme and all other gods subordinate, the Rg Veda is an exposition of Vishnu himself. The niruKti of the vedic deities and the adjectives given to them are explained. We can also find a similar explanation in the work or teeke of Jayatheertha and Mamtrartha Manjari of  Raghavendra Swamy

This is not a very big text. There is no colophon or closing notes at the end of the book and, hence, we are unsure whether the Acharya commented further and whether this was among the many parts that he wrote. As even Jayatheertha or Teekacharya wrote his commentary or Teeke on these forty lines only, we can surmise that this is all that has survived.

The text is important from two points. The first is because Madhwacharya shows us how the Rg veda can be interpreted to highlight the supremacy of Vishnu. The second is because he becomes the first saint-philosopher to directly refer and touch upon the Rg veda and comment on it. He is also the first to interpret the Veda, which is among the earliest religious texts of India.

Madhwacharya, here, adopts a poetical form to point out, the supremacy of Vishnu. He thus becomes the first religious leader to give us a totally spiritual meaning of the Rg Veda. 

Madhwacharya draws upon his vast repertoire of Sanskrit and he used many Sanskrit phrases and idioms to buttress his argument. We find that he follows the ancient rhythmical patterns while composing the Rg Bhashya.

Raghavendra Swamy too wrote a commentary on the Rg Bhashya but the text is no longer available. However, we have an oral tradition of this work. But it remains to be seen how authentic this can be.

The first to write a commentary on this work was Narahari Theertha, one of the four direct disciples of  Madhwacharya. Jayatheertha has written an excellent commentary on this text and to date it remains the most outstanding interpretation and commentary of Madhwacharya’s work.

Jayatheertha has written a detailed commentary on Rg bhasya and he explains each hymn of Rg veda and gives their meaning word by word. He also gives us grammatical explanation of the words, Risi, devata, Chandas and also the three levels of meaning.

The Mantrarthamanjari of Raghavendra Theertha is much more simple in style and Rayaru explains the importance of each hymn and he adheres to the interpretation offered in the Bhasya by Madhwacharya and Jayatheertha’s Teeka.  

Another excellent treatise on the Rg Bhashya is “Rgbhasyatika vivrti Padartha Prakasika” by Srinivasa Theertha (1590 – 1640). A disciple of  Yadavarya, some of his works supplements the work of his guru.

His commentary is rather elaborate. He explains the grammatical points in detail by liberally quoting the relevant sutras of Panini and a few other texts of Vyakarana shastra.

The “Rgbhasya Tippani Padartha Deepika by Pandurangi Kesavacharya (1580-1640) is another scholarly book. He was the younger brother of Vidydeesha Theertha who headed the Uttaradi Matha from 1619 to 1631.

His commentary on Rg Bhasya is a magnificent example of  giving  grammatical explanations for the Vedic words occurring in the hymns. He quotes extensively from Vyakarana shastras.

Chalari Narasimhachar (1620-1674) also has given us a commentary on Rg bhasya. He was a contemporary of Satyanatha Theertha of Utaradhi Matha.

When Rayaru blessed an African

Who has not heard of the story of  Nawab Siddi Masud Khan and Raghavendra Swamy or Rayaru of Mantralaya.

Siddi Masud Khan (1662-1687) was the Governor of Adoni (Adwani), now in Andhra Pradesh, and he held the province as part of the Adil Shahi dominion.

It was at Adoni itself that Siddi Masud Khan first met Raghavendra Swamy and tried to test him by offering him meat on a plate covered with a clothe. Siddi Masud realized the greatness of Raghavendra Swamy when the meat turned into fruits and flowers.

Siddi Masud later gifted Raghavendra Swamy the land at Manchale, which is now better known as Mantralaya. All these facts are more or less well-known as is the fact that Venkanna Pant, a devotee of  Rayaru, was the Dewan of Adoni.

Venkanna had been appointed to the post by Siddi Masud Khan and he continued in the same position even when the Khan went to Bijapur to discharge his duties.

However, not much is known about Siddi Masud Khan or his rule over Adoni. Records available at Bijapur, the Adil Shah chronicles and even Maratha texts when pieced together give a fascinating account of  Siddi Masud Khan, his life and times.

Siddi Masud Khan was not an Indian. He was an African and he belonged to the Siddi tribe.

He was of African descent, a Habshi. He was the son-in-law of Siddi Jahaur, a front-ranking general and commander of the Adil Shahis.  Siddi Jahaur was also the governor of Kurnool, now in Andhra Pradesh. Interestingly, both Siddi Jahaur and Siddi Masud fought Chatrapathi Shivaji as did other Adil Shahi Generals, Afzal Khan and Ranadulla Khan.

Siddi Jahaur was one of the few Bijapur Generals to treat Shivaji with respect. Siddi Masud too was friendly with Shivaji and thanked him when he came to his aid when the Mughals invaded Bijapur.

There is a painting in England of Siddi Masud Khan which is part of the Golconda series of portraits of eminent men.

Masud Khan remained in power until 1683 and he was also the Regent of  the King, Sikander Adil Shah. However, he was disgusted with the internal politics in Bijapur and he returned to Adoni where he soon asserted his independence.

At Adoni, he built a mosque and also a well. Both these structures exists even today. This is the Shahi Jamia Masjid and its architects were Iranian engineers headed by Mallik Sandal. The area of this masjid is as same as of Holy Kabba in Mecca.

The well is called Kamam Bhavi and it was also used for irrigation purposes.

A little known fact about Siddi Masud Khan is that Bijapur would have fallen to the Marathas under Shivaji much before Aurangzeb could conquer the Adil Shahi Kingdom.

It was December 23, 1677 and the Regent of Bijapur, Bahlol Khan, died. His slave and close confidant, Jamshed Khan, seized the reigns of power in Bijapur.

Sikander Adil Shah was then barely nine years of age and he was a mere puppet in the hands of his powerful nobles. Jamshed entered into a secret pact with Shivaji. He agreed to hand over Bijapur to Shivaji and also deliver the boy King to the Chatrapathi for six lakh pagodas.

News of this plot leaked to Siddi Masud Khan and he immediately made plans to safeguard the Bijapur Kingdom. He himself spread a rumour of his death and directed four thousand of his elite troops to go over to Jamshed and seek employment.

Jamshed was only too happy to oblige. Jamshed was a weak and timid person and the arrival of battle-hardened troops were a God send. He recruited all of them. The troops cleverly trapped Jamshed and killed him and Siddi Masud Khan entered Bijapur triumphantly.

Siddi Masud Khan then took over as the Regent of Bijapur and strengthened its defences. Meanwhile, the Mughals under Diler Khan invaded Bijapur and laid a siege of the city. Masud appealed to Shivaji for help, saying that he and Shivaji both had eaten the salt of Adil Shah and that they should form a common front against the Mughals.

The valiant Shivaji agreed at once and he arrived at the gates of Bijapur and began harassing the troops of  Mughals, who subsequently withdrew. A grateful Masud Khan thanked Shivaji for his gesture. Masud Khan, however, withdrew to Adoni and left Bijapur to its fate when he realised that he was no longer welcome in Kingdom. He retired to Adoni on November 21, 1683 on the pretext of visiting his jagir. He left Bijapur, never to come back. He then sent in his resignation to Sikander Adil Shah who then appointed Agha Khusro as the Wazir. However, the Mughals were already knocking on the doors of Bijapur and on September 13, 1686, Sikander Adil Shah walked out of the fort and handed over the keys of Bijapur and the royal insignia to Aurangzeb.

Sikander Adil Shah became a Mughal prisoner and died in captivity in Daulatabad in 1700.

Coming back to Siddi Masud, the Mughal General Firuz Jang on January 25, 1688 attacked Adoni with a head of 25,000 cavalry. On August 6, 1688, Siddi Masud surrendered to the Mughals and he was enrolled as a high ranking commander along with his sons. 

Siddi Masud had thus a meteoric rise and Venkanna attributed it to the blessings of Rayaru.    

Rayaru gave darshana to this Prof

This post is in response to queries by people to one of  the replies that I had written in the blog Samyuktha Harshita in an article called “The Speaking Brindavana”. In that post, I had mentioned the name of Prof M S Anantha.

Many readers wanted to know who this Professor is and what is the story behind the Rayaru Mahime.

Well, here goes the story and I can personally vouch for its authenticity.

The professor and his wife stay on Bangalore along with their son, daughter-in-law and grandson. This episode happened three years ago.

The family of the Professor decided to visit Mantralaya. The Professor had been particularly desirous of seeing Rayaru at Mantralaya for a particular reason.

Every year, on a particular day, when the Professor went to sleep, he would wake up sweating. Sometimes, he would be talking in his sleep and this would wake up his wife. He would then lapse back into deep slumber.

The next morning, when the Professor woke up, he would feel very tired and the head would feel very heavy. (Tale Bhara in Kannada). After he got up from bed, he would find Mantrakshathe either in his palms or beneath his pillow. This Mantrakshathe is not red in colour but yellow.

The Professor told me that he saw Rayaru in his dream. Rayaru would beckon to him, bless him and then hand over the Mantrakshathe to him personally. Rayaru then asked the Professor to keep the Mantrakshathe safe and in the pooja room and worship it.

This has been happening for several years now and the Mantrakshethe is collected and kept in a small box in the pooja room alongside idols. A similar incident of Mantrakshathe had triggered the wish of the Professor to make a trip to Mantralaya.

The Professor and his family left in their car and reached Mantralaya.

On the second day of their visit, the Professor and his family were sitting along with hundreds of people in the Rajangala of the Matha and watching the Raghavendra Swamy Matha seer performing the pooje.

All the people were absorbed in watching the pooje and so was the Professor and his family. Suddenly, the Professor felt and even sensed someone putting a hand in the pocket of his Jubba (long coat). He informed about it to his son who laughed it away. He said how could anyone come near when so many people were gathered at one place.

Moreover, neither the Professor’s wife nor his son and daughter-in-law had seen anything. The Professor, however, was adamant that he had sensed something. He put his hand in the pocket and when it came out, it had a fistful of Mankrakshathe.

Remember, the pooje was still on and the venerable Mantralaya seer had not yet distributed Phala Mantrakshathe to the devotees.

A little later, when the Professor was walking around the Brindavana complex, he was accosted by a aged bearded man wearing holy robes. This holy man walked him around the Brindavana and spoke to him. The Professor, told me that he felt he was in a trance and, therefore, could not speak to the old man. When he completed the Pradakshine and stood before the Brindavana, the old man had vanished. It was only much later that the Professor came to know that he had been escorted around by Rayaru himself.

Two years later, the Professor had a scary encounter with death. One day, he felt he was moving out of his body. He experienced great pain and discomfort when he came out of the mortal frame. His wife and daughter-in-law rushed him to a nearby hospital where his condition was stated to be serious.

All the while the Professor’s wife was loudly asking her husband to come back. Vaapas Banni-come back, she was repeatedly saying. To the astonishment of the doctors, para medical staff and the emergency team of  the ICU, the Professor revived without any medicine.

The Professor told me he floated back into the body. Subsequent tests by the doctors indicated nothing amiss and the Professor in pink of health. Even today, the doctor on duty and doctor at the ICU in the star hospital scratch their head, not knowing how to explain this phenomenon.

They say a person being brought into the hospital in an ambulance with almost no breath and no heart beat. Though, they had told the professor’s wife to expect the worst and had asked her to call her dear and near ones, the expected never happened and  the Professor got up and walked away to perfect health.

This, the Professor later noted, as due to Rayaru, his anugraha and the Mankrakshathe.                                 

When Rayaru gave moksha to Kanaka

Well, this incident happened in Hampi or Vijayanagar sometime in the early years of the 16^th Century.

Hampi was one of the greats cities of its time and its fame had spread far and wide. Foreign travelers and historians made a beeline to Hampi and went into raptures describing the beauty of the city.

The glory of Hampi  was not only due to the deeds of the Vijayanagar Emperors but also due to the unmatched growth in art, literature, religion and philosophy.

One of the shining lights of the Vijayanagar period Was Vyasa Raja or Vyasa Theertha. Almost all the foreign travelers such as Nuniz, Domingo Peas and even Razak have spoken glowingly of this seer and his achievements.

Vyasa Raja had gathered a galaxy of shishyas each outdoing the other. Some of the Shiashyas were Vijendra Theertha, Sudhindra Theertha, Vadiraja Theertha, Purandara Dasa, Kanaka Dasa, Vaikunta Dasa and many others.

If Purandara was the master of Carnatic music, Vadiraja Theertha was God personified. Vijendra Theertha was an embodiment of  the 64 arts.

Many of the disciples, including the above mentioned greats met Vyasa Theertha, also called Vyasa Raja or Vyasa Raya at Hampi.

On one particular occasion, Vysaa Raja asked all his disciples to get together. The meeting took place at the Vijayanagar Vishwa Vidyalaya, of which Vyasa Raja was the Chancellor.

Even as the gathering watched, Vyasa Raja called all the three-Vadiraja Theertha, Purandara Dasa, Kanaka Dasa- and discussed some aspects of the shastras and Vedas with them. The gathering was spell bound as they realized that they had in their midst four persons who had seen Sri Hari with their own eyes.  

It was then Vyasa Raja revealed a side he had never before shown anybody. Turning to Vadiraja Theertha, he said you will continue to live for many more years. (Vadiraja Theetha outlived Vyasa Raja and entered Brindavana only in 1600. By the way, Vyasa Raja entered Brindavana in 1536).

He then spoke lovingly to Purandara his favourite disciple. He said, Purandara you shall live longer than me but you have sic more births to go before attaining Moksha.

Vyasa Raja then astonished the gathering by telling Kanaka Dasa that he would meet him in the next birth. Vyasa Raja had given the Ankita Nama Kanaka to Thimappa Nayaka.

This was the first indication that Vyasa Raja gave to his devotees about his coming avatar as Raghavendra Swamy.

Vyasa Raja passed away in 1536 and took rebirth as Raghavendra Swamy in 1571.

By then, Purandara had died (in 1564 in Hampi) and Vadiraja Theertha was staying at Sode near Sirsi.  Kanaka Dasa was wandering around Karnataka and other places singing the glory of Hari. He died in 1609.

Raghavendra Swamy once came to Bellary and stayed at a Hanuman Temple on the banks of the Tungabhadra. Rayarui went to the river and had a bath. He then was about to enter the temple for performing the Moola Rama pooje when he noticed a person belonging to a lower caste standing nearby..

Rayaru looked at the person and spoke as if he had known him all his life.

“What, Kanaka. How are you. What are you doing here”, asked Rayaru.

The person called Kanaka relied. “I am as you see me. We meet again. I do not want to live anymore. I should be allowed to leave.”

Rayaru smiled at the answer and retorted, “If so what will you offer to my lord”.

The person said he would bring something and vanished from the place. He came back and gave a packet to Rayaru. The packet has mustard seeds, he said.

Rayaru did not say anything but handed over the packet to the cook and asked him to use it for the day’s cooking. This astonished everybody present there as it was Chaturmasa (October to January) and mustard seeds were Nishida or banned.

All the while, the person sat outside the temple watching the proceedings. When Rayaru finished the Moola Rama Pooje, he turned towards the person who then burst into a melodious song praising Moola Rama.

The moment the song ended. The person gave up his life and fell down dead. Even as the other devotees stood around the body anxiously, Rayaru did not show any emotion. Instead, he smiled and said,  “You have attained salvation or Moksha. Peace be with you.”

The perplexed devotes did not understand. It was then some persons in the matha where Rayaru was staying confirmed that Rayaru was Vyasa Theertha in his previous birth and he had just met Kanaka Dasa as a low caste person and helped him attain Moksha.

One of the eye witnesses to this entire episode was Krishna Swamy, a businessman.

Vyasa Raja had ruled over the Dharmic kingdom of Vijayanagar. However, Vijayanagar was shattered after the battle of Talikota in 1565. When Raghavendra Swamy visited Hampi, Nava Brindavana and Hospet, the Vijayanagar empire had practically vanished from the scene and all he saw was utter ruin and desolation.

Yet, not for a moment or even a day did Raghavendra Swamy allude to his glories during his past incarnation as Vyasa Raja. The only physical evidence he gave to his disciples was when he sat and meditated in front of the Brindavana of Vyasa Raja in Nava Brindavana.

The devotees could not contain their curiosity and some among them wanted to know why the venerable Vyasa was visible only to their Guru. It was then Raghavendra revealed that he was born as Vyasa Raja in his previous incarnation and he was only speaking to him.    

A grandmother's tale of Rayaru

In one of my earlier articles, I had written about how Rayaru made my grandfather walk.

Now please allow me to relate a few incidents from the life of  my grandmother.

My grandmother, Sharadamma, is 95. She is absolutely hale and hearty for her age. She is now in Bangalore and she has traveled with her son and daughter-in-law by car from Mysore where she lives.

My grandmother was the first women in my grandfather’s house. My grandfather had two brothers and their mother had died when Bangalore witnessed a plague in the early 1900s. Since then they had been brought up buy their father and there was no woman in the house.

The first rules of the house, the way Pooje should be performed and other daily rituals were laid down by my grandfather. She was not only the sister-in-law to two brothers of my grandfather but also their well-wisher and guardian.

My grandmother went to Purana every day in the evening at Krishna Mandira in Shivaramapet, Mysore. I cannot recall a single day when she bunked the Purana. It was her calling every evening and she attended it come rain or hailstorm.

She was a great devotee of Raghavendra Swamy, Chamundi  and of course Ranganatha of Srirangapatna. Many were the days when I boarded the passenger train from Mysore to Srirangapatna along with her  for taking a dip in the Cauvery every Karthika Masa or any other special occasion.

My grandmother had a special knack of  learning mantras. I was once bitten by a scorpion and even as my grandfather went to get some medicines, my grandmother recited mantra and the pain and swelling went away. Years after the incident I tried all my tricks to ensure that she blurted out the mantra. She, however, refused, saying that she had been taught the Mantra by a holy man during one of her visits to Srirangapatna and that she had been told not to reveal it to anybody.

Grandmother was had a bedtime tale to tell-they all dealt with the Puranas and Shastras. These stories have remained with me and given me an everlasting interest in religion and philosophy. She was also an excellent singer and she could sing many Devaranamas.

A devotee of Mantralaya Prabhu, she fated frequently and always for others and never for herself. The first time she fasted was when my mother was in the maternity ward KR Hospital almost four decades ago. Rayaru gave my grandmother Mantrakshate and told her not to worry. A girl child was born and there was a great deal of rejoicing at home. Grandfather ordered masala dosas and my uncles whooped with joy. All my grandmother did was to go to the Pooja room and light a lamp and pray for the mother and daughter.

Another time, my grandmother ordered her younger son back home from an assignment in Sandur. She did not want her son to be so far away. My uncle came back and grumbled about how he had lost a job.

My grandmother did not reply. She fasted for three days and Rayaru gave her bananas and told her son would get a job at Mysore. My uncle got that job and he stayed on there till he retired, one of the best in his field.

When one of her daughters was suffering from kidney failure, she prayed to Rayaru to relieve her of pain and take away her life quickly. My aunt, that is the other daughter of my grandmother, passed away without much suffering two years ago.

My grandmother told me she has full faith in Rayaru and the last time he gave her mantrakshate was when she was in the house of her granddaughter near Vidyapeeta in Bangalore a few weeks ago.

My grandmother prayed for me and my sisters and her other grandchildren every time they had examinations, interviews or faced some problems or the other. She has always been sending money to perform seva to Rayaru, Vadiraja Theertha and Anjeneya.

Even today, she is an ardent devotee of Rayaru and her vast knowledge of Rayaru would put us all to shame. While I gave excuses to my wife today for not taking her to the Raghavendra Swamy Temple today, my grandmother who came home insisted that she wanted to visit both the Raghavendra Swamy Temples in Jayanagar and she did so in an autorickshaw.

She says she will be back home tomorrow and she wants to visit the Srinivasa and Narasimha Temple in Jayanagar. It is, after all, Rayara Krupe.       

Rayaru made my grandfather walk

I am one of the contributors for the blog Samyuktha Harshitha.

I read with interest the two articles on Raghavendra Swamy. I decided to write the third about a miracle that occurred in our own house.

My grandparents are from Mysore. My grandfather was a doctor. His name was Dr. M.S. Seebanna. My grandmother is Sharadamma and she is 95 years of age. This story is about how Rayaru helped my grandfather during a period of difficulty.

This incident happened during the early 1970s. My grandfather had a dispensary called Lokamba in Mysore. He was one of the first doctors to set up a dispensary in Mysore. He was a very tall and handsome man. He was extremely fond of Masala Dosas and he offered them generously to anyone who came to visit him. These masala dosas from Raju Hotel in Mysore were famous and I had the privilege of tasting them sitting on the lap of my grandfather.

Grandfather had a daily routine which was set for decades. People on the road in Shivarampet where my grandparents lived set their clock by grandfather’s walk to and from the dispensary. I always saw him in a huge Jubba and White Panche. He never wore lungi.

I once asked my grandfather why he did not wear suits. He smiled and told me this story which my grandmother collaborated with more details.

One day, my grandfather and his friends went to Fountain Hotel in Mysore for a cup of coffee. On the way back, my grandfather lost mobility on both his legs. He was unable to even keep his feet on the ground. His friends initially thought it might be some minor problem and brought him home.

A doctor was called and his prognosis of the sudden loss of mobility in the legs was not good. My grandfather, who was always seen in perfect English dress of  coat, pant and hat was deeply disappointed.

He had always been a follower of Rayaru and remembered him often. He turned to Rayaru for help. He performed seva for five days and requested Rayaru to give him back the mobility in his legs. In the meanwhile, the doctors were doing their best to unravel what had happened to my grandfather but to no avail

On the fifth day, Rayaru appeared in my grandfather’s dreams and gave him a silver cup full of  Panchamruta. “Drink this and get up and walk. Do not worry”, Rayaru said.

The next day, when my grandfather awoke, he felt some sensation in his legs and during the next few days he managed to get back the mobility in his legs. He then once again began his clockwork like walk from home to the dispensary but by then he had decided to give up Western clothes and settled for a Jubba with White Panche.

The Lokamba Dispensary once again opened and Grandfather once again began treating patients. He continued treating patients for several years before calling it a day.

Most of the patients who came to him for treatment did not have money for payment. Instead, they paid him in kind-some gave him fresh bananas, while others offered vegetables they had brought to Mysore for selling form their villages. Grandfather accepted them happily, without a murmer.

Whenever I visited the clinic, which was very often, he would speed me off to Raju Hotel, ordering Masala Dosas. My grandfather died of cancer several decades ago. However, my grandmother is still going strong at 95. She too is a devotee of Raghavendra Swamy.

My next article on the miracle of Raghavendra Swamy will be on my Grandmother.       

The Brindavanas that shook

It was sometime in mid 1750s. The pontiff of the Raghavendra Swamy Matha was Vadeendra Theertha. He was the great grandson of Raghavendra Swamy who had entered Brindavana in Mantralaya in 1671.

Vadeendra Theertha was the son of Purushottamacharya who in turn was the son of Lakshminarayana, the only son of Raghavendra Swamy. In his Poorvashrama, Vadeendra Theerta was called Srinivasacharya. 

Vadeendra Theertha had finished composing Guru Guna Sthavana, a beautiful work, praising his ancestor Raghavendra Swamy and also detailing his works.

Vadeendra Theertha decided to dedicate the work to Rayaru and he went to Mantralaya and stood before the Brindavana and began reciting the composition. He was the Peetadhipathi of the Sri Raghavendra Swamy Matha from 1750 to 1761.

Minutes went by and the melodious voice of  Vadeendra flowed around the Brindavana attracting devotees and pilgrims who also stood respectfully in front of the Moola Brindavana of Raghavendra Swamy.

When Vadeendra Theertha completed reciting the works, the Brindavana of Raghavendra shook and nodded its approval. Even to this day, the Brindavana of Raghavendra can be seen titled to one side. This is because of this incident.

Guru Guna Sthavana is a work of 36 verses in honor of Rayaru. It gives us the dates chronologically of the compositions of Rayaru and also the circumstances under which these works came to be written.

Incidentally, Vadeendra Theertha was just two years old when Raghavendra Swamy entered Brindavana in Mantralaya. Vadeendra Theertha entered Brindavana in a structure that was originally constructed by Diwan Venkanna for Rayaru.

Rayaru wanted a much simpler Brindavana and predicated that another holy saint would be entitled to sit in the Brindavana meant for him a few decades later.  

If you look closely at the Brindavana, you can see a small crack on top.  A popular story is that a woman flung a stone in anger when Rararu did not appear in her dreams and fulfill her wishes. The same night, Rayaru came in her dreams and told her he would have appeared in her dreams that night and given her his blessings.

The Brindavana of Raghavendra Swamy is also supposed to have nodded its approval to the Harikathamrutasara composed by Jagannatha Dasa.

Another Brindavana is also supposed to have shaken itself  when a Pravachana was being conducted before it decades before the Rayaru miracle.

Satyasandha Theertha of Uttaradhi Matha had come to Sangli in Maharashtra. He visited the Brindavana of  Satyavrata Theertha (1635-1638) and began a Pravachana on Nyaya Sudha after completing the pooje to Moola Rama.

Even as scores of people, devotees and matha officials looked on, the Brindavana of  Satyavrata Theertha shook from side to side several times after the Pravachana was completed.

One of the witnesses to this incident was the king of Sangli, Balraj Urs. Both these saints entered Brindavana when alive. Another similarity between the two saints is that after Rayaru, the Sri matha came to called as Raghavendra Swamy Matha. The Uttradhi Matha name continued but all seers occupying the peeta after Satyavrata Theertha took the prefix Satya in honour of the immense contribution of  the saint to the matha and to Dwaitha Parampare.

There is another saint in the Uttaradhi Matha parampare called Satyavara Theertha. His Brindavana is at santebidanoor. His name so closely resembles to that of Satyavrata Theertha that there is confusion between the two saints.

Guru Raya and his Mrithike

There are innumerable instances of the miracles performed by Raghavendra Swamy or Rayaru as he is more popularly known. He has been performing miracles from the Brindavana too.

This is an article about the miracle that Raghavendra Swamy did when he was to touring Bijapur district. I do not know the place where this miracle took place. All I have read about it is that it took place in Bijapur district where a river was flowing nearby.

This miracle is narrated by a cook who used to accompany Raghavendra Swamy everywhere during his sanchara.

Needless to say, the cook was a Brahmin and he was an eye witness to this incident.

The cook was one day conversing with his neighbours in Kumbakonam and during the course of the conversation he mentioned how Guru Raghavendra managed to get one of his devotees married without even bringing the bride and groom face to face.

This is how the incident occurred.

During one of his visits to north Karnataka,  Rayaru halted at a place near Bijapur. Rayaru decided to take bath in the river and then offer pooje to the idol of Moola Rama Devaru.

The rest of the followers too decided to take a dip in the river. Among them was a simpleton called Venkanna. The followers came across Venkanna’s father and asked him why Venkanna was still not married.

Venkanna’s father replied that his son was mentally unsound and that nobody would gave their daughter in marriage to such a person. Some of the followers found that Venkanna was not in his right senses and that he was prone to talking nonsense incessantly.    

That day, Venkanna got an idea that he should marry. He then began broaching the topic of his marriage with the rest of the group. Several members on the group made fun of Venkanna while some humiliated him.

When Venkanna was told that there was nobody to give their daughter in marriage to him, he approached the Brahmin cook and sought his help.

The cook told his listeners that he too made fun of Venkanna. “When you  do not have any money to survive, who ill give you a bride?, he asked.

Venkanna did not know what to do and he innocently asked the cook to tell him the next course of action. The cook really did not have any answer and tried to wriggle out of the problem by asking Venkanna to approach Guru Raghavendra for help.

“Go to Guru Raghavendra and pose your problem to him”, the cook told Venkanna. The answer did not fully satisfy Venkanna and he once again asked the cook what to do if Guru Raghavendra too cannot help him.  The cook was irritated by the question and asked Venkanna to approach Rayaru himself.

Venkanna was so simple and pure at heart that he straightaway walked to the river where Rayaru was taking bath. He stood looking at Rayaru and then made up his mind to seek help from Rayaru.

Venkanna then walked upto Rayaru and said he wanted to tell Rayaru something. Rayaru smiled and told him to go ahead. Venjanna then revealed his wish, Rayaru smiled.

Venkanna appeared dissatisfied with the reaction and once again broached the topic of  his marriage. Rayaru then blessed Venkanna.

Venkanna still stood his ground. Rayaru understood his predicament and spoke to him. “I am a sanyasi. I have given up all worldly things. What can I give you”, he asked. Venkanna summoned courage and exclaimed, “Give me whatever you have.”

Rayaru then gave Venkanna the Mrithike he was holding in his hand when he had come out of the river. Venkanna was overcome with joy and reverentially put the Mrithike in a clothe and held on to it tightly.

Venkanna thought that the Mrithike was very powerful and that it would help him get married. He told everybody about the Mrithike and left the group to search for a women whom he could marry. Venkanna said he would return to the group only after he married.

He began walking and after some time he grew tired. He saw a house of a Brahmin and decided to sleep there itself. He saw that the house had a small balcony and he decided to make a bed for himself there.

He made his bed and was about to sleep when he heard sounds coming from within the house,  He could only sleep fitfully. During the dead of night, Venkanna woke up to find a huge figure standing before him.

Venkanna looked at the figure with sleep in his eyes. He ignored the presence of the figure and decided to go back to sleep. The figure shouted and woke up Venkanna again. It asked him to throw away the clothe as it had some fire in it,  The figure said it was not able to gain access to the house as the clothe was coming in the way. “Throw it away so that I can enter the house”, it said.

Venkanna then opened the bag and found that it contained the  Mrithike Rayaru had given him. As if in a trance, he took a little Mrithike in his hands and put it on the door step. The huge figure asked to be let in. “I am a demon and I have come here to eat the child that was born today”, it tells Venkanna.

The demon tells Venkanna that it will give him anything if he removes the Mrithike. Venkanna asks for gold and the demon brings it.

Venkanna then sprinkles Mrithike on the demon. The demon is freed of the Rakshasha dosha and obtains salvation.

Venkanna then goes to sleep. The next day, when the Brahmin comes out, he sees Venkanna who tells him everything that happened .

The Brahmin realizes that Venkanna has saved his child, He says his children used to die soon after his wife gave birth. Priests had informed him  that some evil spirits were talking away all his new born children.

Venkanna then narrated the reason for his halt. The Brahmin realised that his brother had a daughter Radhamma who was of marriageable age . He immediately decided to get Radhamma married to Venkanna.

Venkanna was overjoyed and he came back to the group and informed them of the events.  The cook then informed Venkanna’s father.

When Rayaru was informed, he merely smiled. He once again turned to Venkanna and smiled at him. This smile and the  Mrithike transformed Venkanna into a normal human being who got married and lived a normal life.

This is the power of Rayaru’s Mrithike. If you believe in it, it will always be there to help you.