The miracle by Vadiraja Theertha

This post is about the miracle performed by Vadiraja Theertha, one of the most important saints of the Madhwa parampare.

The famous Dwaitha scholar, BNK Sharma, ranks Vadiraja Theertha next to Madhwacharya in the Madhwa pontificate alongside Jaya Theertha or Teekachara. This is because of the influence that this saint from Sode wielded over his period, his works, his scholastic ability and his miracles.

Vadiraja Theertha had the longest life among the Madhwa saints. He lived for 120 years. He was born at Huvina Kere near Udupi in 1480 and he entered Brindavana Sajeeva (alive) in 1600. He took Sanyasa at the age of eight. His Poorvashrama name was Bhuvaraha.

During his lifetime, he composed many Devara Namas. He was also a historian in the sense that his work Theertha Prabhanda gives us a graphic and accurate description of the pilgrim places  he visited during his Sanchara.

A disciple of  the redoubtable Vyasa Theertha, he was instrumental in reforming the Paryaya syatem of worship in the Udupi Temple of  Sri Krishna. He also helped the Vijayanagar Emperor Devaraya financially by helping him obtain the wealth secreted within a huge boulder by Sugreeva and the other Vanaras of  Kishkinda.

Kishkinda is near Hampi and it was the capital of the Vijayanagar emperors.

The Brindavana of this great saint is in Sode or Sonde which is near Sirsi. Vadiraja Theerha is known to have performed many miracles from within the Brindavana.

This is also the only Brindavana that is surrounded by four smaller brindavanas-each representing a God.

This article is about one such miracle.

 A relative of  mine was an ardent devotee of  Vadiraja Theertha. She was a resident of Brahamanara Beedhi in Shimoga. She used to go several times an year to Sode. She once went to Sode to ask for a healthy baby for her son who had been married for some time.

Seeing her planning to go to Sode, her sister too decided to accompany her. The sister was middle aged and this was her first visit to Sode.

My relative decided to perform Kai (coconut seve) to Rajaru (While Raghavendra Swamy is better known as Rayaru, Vadiraja Theertha is known as Rajaru). She performed the seve for three days.

This is how the Kai seve is performed. You have to buy a coconut and hand it over to the priest of the Vadiraja Matha. The priest will place it before the Brindavana of Vadiraja Theertha and after obtaining the saint’s blessings hand it over to the person who wants to perform the Kai Seva.

The person who performs the seva should circumbulate the Prakara around the Brindavana, the Daula Gange (pond which is supposed to contain the waters of the Ganga river) and the Trivikrama Temple twice a day-once early in the morning and another time in the afternoon.

This ritual can be performed for a day, three days or seven days. After each circumbulation,  you have to take a bath in the Daula Ganga. The day the seve is finished, either the priest or the Sode Matha seer of he is there will give the Kai and prasada to the person.

My relative performed the Kai seve with all devotion and fervor. The then Seer of Sode Matha, Vishwottama Theertha, gave the Kai to my relative. Her sister, who did not perform the Kai seve, pestered my relative for the Kai (coconut-Mantrasidha Thenganakai).

However much my relative trued to dissuade her sister, she refused to listen and demanded that she be given the Kai. My relative said she had performed the Seve in the name of her daughter-in-law for getting a healthy baby. Her sister had come to seek the saint’s blessings for getting the slightly deformed hand of her daughter corrected.

My relative reluctantly handed over the Kai to her sister and both left for Shimoga. A few months later, my relative was stunned when her sister came running to her and in hushed tones told her she was pregnant.

When asked how this could happen at her age, my relative’s sister said she had prepared sweet pongal from the coconut and eaten it a day after she came back from Sode. The doctor, who finally terminated the pregnancy, could not believe his eyes that a middle aged woman had become pregnant.

My relative then sent her son and daughter-in-law to Sode to obtain the anugraha of Rajaru. The couple are now parents of a handsome boy. His name: of course- Vadiraja.

This incident occurred two years before Vishwottama Theertha entered Brindavana.