ஸ்ரீ ஜெயந்தி vs கோகுலாஷ்டமி

Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Krishna, an Avatar of the Hindu deity Vishnu. This avatar let us have a darshan of an adorable, lovable child who’s stories would be told to kids for several thousands of years to come! And as an adult, Sri Krishna Perumal gave us the Bhagavad Gita, the treasure of spiritual knowledge.

There seems to be some difference among communities on the day observed as the birth of Sri Krishna.

With respect to the specific case of Lord Krishna's birth, Sri M.N.Ramanuja writes:

Regarding SriJayanthi Adiyen has this to say Five thousand years ago, when Srikrishna was born, the day was

Simha masam (Avani), Sravana masam, Bahula, Ashtami. and Rohini star.

Hence ideally all these conditions have to match to celebrate Srijayanthi.

Sri M.N. Ramanuja has succinctly described the problem.

Different interpretations of the texts that describe Sri Krishna's birth lead to different conclusions as to when to celebrate it.

The factors are:

1) Solar month

2) Lunar month

3) Nakshatra (constellation aligned with the moon)

4) Tithi (loosely, phase of the moon)

5) how to determine these when combined with other factors such as sunrise or moonrise

(In a nutshell, the difference stems from lunar vs. solar month and whether to take sunrise or moonrise into consideration for determining jayantI. this will be explained below.)

அஷ்டமி திதி (Ashtami Thithi)

ரோகினி நக்ஷத்திரம் (Nakshatram)

1. Gokulashtami for Smarthas

2. Sri Jayanthi for Vaishnavas belongs to Vaikanasa & Munithraya

3. Sri Jayanthi for Vaishnavas belongs to Pancharatra

The Smartha tradition generally observes the birth of Sri Krishna on SrAvaNa-krishna-ashTamI, giving importance only to the tithi. They also generally follow the lunar calendar for this observance and celebrate it in SrAvaNa (lunar month), without paying attention to the nakshatra or the solar month.

Most other religious traditions in the country have followed this practice. Since for all these traditions the tithi is given importance, those who follow this reckoning call the day (Sri Krishna) janmAshTamI or gokulAshTamI

Broadly, there are two different opinions within the Sri Vaishnava tradition concerning this matter. One can be called the 'mannAr' tradition, the other the 'tOzhappar' tradition. (In a nutshell, the difference stems from lunar vs. solar month and whether to take sunrise or moonrise into consideration for determining jayantI. this will be explained below.).

2. Vaishnavas belongs to Vaikanasa & Munithraya

There are groups of Vaishnavas people who belongs to Vaikanasa observe the birth celebration on the evening - night time for the thithi and star combination  Rohini nakshatram.

3. Sri Jayanthi for Vaishnavas belongs to Pancharatra

Pancharathra temples observe the combination at day time. 

The mannAr tradition is followed by Sri Parakala Matham and 'munitraya' tradition Sri Vaishnavas such as both Andavan Ashramams and most Vadagalai acharya-purusha families. It is named after one mannAr svAmi of unknown date who is the first extant authority arguing for this calculation.mannAr svAmi is known to have very eminent predecessors who shared his opinion, such as the Upanishad Bhashyakara Ranga Ramanujacharya.

The tOzhappar tradition is followed by Sri Ahobila Matham and Thengalai Sri Vaishnavas. It is named after Sri Vaidika Sarvabhauma Swami, also known as Kidambi Thozhappar, who wrote a detailed text establishing the reasoning behind his tradition. He was a disciple of the founding Jeeyar Swami of Sri Ahobila Matham.

Having briefly laid out the history, here are the differences themselves. The tOzhappar tradition is simpler so I will lay it out first.

tOzhappar SrI jayantI:

1) Only the solar month is taken into account. So it must be in simha (AvaNi) mAsam, which is mid-August to mid-September.

2) The target date in this month is kRshna-ashTamI (8th day of the waning phase of the moon) in conjunction with rOhiNI. However, on that day, not even a tiny bit of saptamI should exist post-sunrise, nor should there be any kRttikA nakshatram.

3) If there is no pure ashTamI-rOhiNI conjunction as described in (2), navamI-rOhiNi is the next preferred conjunction, with once again a pure rOhiNi mandatory.

4) If (3) is not possible, mRgaSIrsha nakshatra combined with navamI or daSamI is the next preferred choice.

5) If this observance of SrI jayantI does not fall on ashTamI, the ashTamI is treated as any other day and requires no special observance.

Mannar SrI jayantI:

1) The ideal date is the conjunction of rOhiNI and kRshNa-ashTamI that lasts from sunrise through the night. (This need not happen in the solar month of AvaNi. Lunar month of SrAvaNa before AvaNi begins is also okay.)

2) If (1) is not possible, if at moonrise it is rOhiNI as well as ashTamI, that date should be taken. Neither the rOhiNi nor the ashTamI need be pure as in the tOzhappar tradition.

3) If (2) is not possible, if there is any conjunction of ashTamI and rOhinI day or night, that calendar day should be taken as SrI jayantI.

There are 12 more cases in the mannAr tradition which get quite complicated. But the primary focus in all is some occurrence of rOhiNI. In no circumstance should navamI without rOhiNI be taken as SrI jayantI. (Some other circumstances such as being on a Wednesday Sri Krishna is said to be born on this day of the week] push the date in one direction or another.)

The key is that in neither mannAr nor tOzhappar is the tithi given preference. This is why only rarely does the Sri Vaishnava date coincide with the smArta date.

This should explain why the mannAr tradition sometimes observes SrI jayantI as much as a month before the tOzhappar tradition. Since the latter exclusively prefers the solar month, their date often falls several weeks later. Further, it also explains why the mannAr observance is often just a day before the tOzhappar date. This is because the mannAr tradition takes into account moonrise whereas the tOzhappar tradition only takes into account sunrise.

Occasionally, mannAr tradition Sri Vaishnavas have to observe two days of fasting in a row -- janmAshTamI as well as SrI jayantI. This is when the ashTamI and

rOhiNI simply do not coincide at all and fall one after another in the solar month of AvaNi. Note that this janmAshTamI is not the same as the smArta calculation of janmAshTamI.

Note: texts consulted:

o 'SrI jayantI nirNaya' by Sri Gopalarya Mahadesika

o 'Ahnika granthaH' of Sri Villivalam Krishnamacharya

(present Sri Azhagiya Singar in pUrvASrama)

Under Pancharathram, temples are constructed away from towns, on hills and on river banks. All who get dheekshai are equal. Andal is worshipped equal to Lakshmi. Azhwars are also installed in temples and worshipped. The same five states of Sriman Narayanan are worshipped in Pancharathram as in Vaikansam. Srirangam, Kanchi, Melakkottai, Tiruvallur etc are pancharathra temples.

Glorified in death: Why companies love Abhimanyus who die young...

Everybody loves the story of Abhimanyu in the Mahabharata. This son of Arjuna and Subhadra was a young lad who knew how to enter a battle formation called Chakravyuha but did not know how to get out, yet he plunged himself into war to save his family, and in the process got himself killed. The corporate world is full of seductive Chakravyuhas that enchant and entrap ill prepared but valorous and impressionable Abhimanyus. We find ambitious young men with little skills believing they can solve any
problem in the world and then finding themselves in tricky situation they cannot escape from. While the company, which has bet on them, cannot let them go despite recognizing their shortcomings, the Abhimanyus find themselves choked because they bit off more than they could chew, unable to cry out for help.

In a folktale, when Arjuna blames his incompetent brothers and his vile enemies for the death of his son, Krishna says, "Perhaps you should consider blaming yourself too. You always admired brave heroes who dared to do the impossible. Your son wanted to be the hero that you would forever admire, even if it meant taking foolhardy risks. Now he is a great hero you can admire. But he is a dead hero."





This coming from Krishna is significant as Krishna is called Ran-chod-rai, he who ran away from the battlefield. The story from the Bhagavat Purana goes that when it was clear that Jarasandha's general, Kal-yavan, would burn down the city of Mathura, Krishna simply gave Kal-yavan the slip and ran away to distant Dwarka. He returned only after he had befriended the Pandavas and was able to defeat Jarasandha using trickery rather than strength. The temple of Ranchod-rai is located in Dwarka and Dakor in Gujarat and is ironically patronized by Rajputs or warrior communities popular for preferring death to dishonor. It is also popular amongst Banias or trading communities who are often told by their elders, "To succeed in the marketplace, leave your nose (symbol of ego) behind at home."

In the corporate world, we often glamorize high risks and hard work. So people work crazy schedules doing ridiculous tasks. Sales guys chase unbelievable targets, way above market growth, and believe that by staying in the office late at night they will solve the problem. Marketing guys spend hours going over strategies, editing them endlessly, preparing charts after charts, trying hard to mask their confusion and cluelessness.

Often people start assuming that ignoring family life will somehow make them successful, as they will be rewarded for this 'sacrifice'. Those who work odd hours, refuse to sleep or eat or rest, become heroes in the workplace. They are seen as displayers of true integrity. Anyone who is smart and organized, who balances work and life, is seen as selfish, cunning and not committed to the task at hand. This is especially seen in jobs related to strategy, creativity, and marketing, where the endpoint is not clearly measurable, people compensate and justify their salary by overworking, by creating problems and investing time and resources at solving them. We live in a world where bards sing about Abhimanyus who die young not Ranchodrais who live to fight another day.

The thing is business is uncertain but shareholders demand certainty. We plan, we strategize, but the market constantly takes us by surprise. Our assumptions turn out to be wrong. Our risks do not always work out. This creates stress as
the world only values winners. We try to increase the probability of victory through overwork and even foolhardy work. We are afraid to leave the battlefield and come back refreshed the next day. We bravely put ourselves in situations and find ourselves ill-equipped to handle the tasks at hand.

We overestimate ourselves and underestimate the problem that needs to be solved. We are too proud to admit mistakes or shortcomings. We always have hope - things may just work out. And so we continue, entrapped by valor and glamour, even
when chances of success look bleak. 

Pañcaratra Agamas

Pāñcarātra are the Vaishnava Sanskrit texts dedicated to worship of Narayana and form part of the Agamas.

Unlike Vaikhanasa tradition, the Pancaratric tradition of Agamas prescribe image worship in the place of rituals like Yajnas, mentioned in the Vedas. Agamas cover areas of worship inclusive of construction of the temples; the rules for installation and consecration of the deities; the methods of performing pujas in the temples; philosophy; recitation of mantras; worship involving figures or yantras; bhakti yoga; domestic rituals samskaras; rules of varnasrama-dharma and public festivals. Various Vaishnava traditions have different degree of adherence and various lists of texts included under the overall concept.

Vishnu worshipers of today, represented in a wide spectrum of traditions, are generally following the system of Pancaratra worship. The concept of Nada and Nada-Brahman appear already in Sattvata Samhita or Sattvata Tantra and in Jayakhya Samhita, two texts considered most canonical of Pancaratra texts.

Ananda Tirtha the founder of Madhva line has written in his commentary on Mundaka Upanishad: ^[1] "In Dvapara-yuga, Vishnu is exclusively worshiped according to the principles of the Pancaratra Scripture, but in this age of Kali-yuga, the Supreme Lord Hari is worshiped only by the chanting of his Holy Name."

Jiva Gosvami had stated in his Paramatma Sandarbha, forming part of six principal Sandarbhas, or philosophical treateses of Gaudiya Vaishnavism, that, "Seeing that the imperfect scriptures in the modes of passion and ignorance bring only a host of troubles, and also seeing that the original Vedas are very difficult to follow properly, and thus being very dissatisfied with both of these, the all-knowing scripture authors affirm the superiority of the Pancaratras, which describe the pure absolute truth, Narayana, and the worship of the Lord, which is very easy to perform."^[2] In the same Sandarbha Jiva Gosvami states^[3] that god himself,Svayam Bhagavan, had spoken the Narada Pancaratra, which is accepted as a pramana byGaudiya scholars.

Six aspects of surrender in the      Pāñcharātra

Surrender to god is one of the core teachings of Pancharatra. The six aspects are explained below in brief:

i) Atma-nikshepa or nyAsa - placing oneself completely and directly under God's care. This involves giving up independent ownership in matters of actions or fruits thereof. This in fact is the real SaraNAgati. The subsequent five are to be regarding as assisting this. The obstacle to nyAsa is phalepsA or the desire for mundane benefits,which should therefore be avoided.

ii) kArpaNya - This refers to absolute humility bordering on lowliness and honest awareness of one's own natural ignorance, impurity etc., partly because of stains acquired through countless births. We all know the enormous feeling of kArpaNya that our AzhvArs have expressed through their compositions. This leads to ridding the arrogance that one may have because of parentage, learning, wealth, etc., and to get the sense that without the aid of Godhead, whatever we undertake on our own is bound to fail. The enemy for kArpaNya is the feeling that one is free, independent,and competent to do whatever he likes (sva-svAtantryAvabodha).

iii) mahA-viSvAsa - irrepressible and great faith in Godhead. Involves the understanding that God is the benefactor of all beings, and His compassion is always and readily available. The firm conviction that He will not fail to protect us is 'viSvAsa'. This by itself is capable of eradicating all sins.

iv) goptR - The deliberate choice of bhagavAn SrIman nArAyaNa as the sole Protector. Even when it is granted that anyway He is the sole protector, lakshmI-tantra points out that what is involved in this a'nga is the conscious and mindful selection of Him, the acknowledgment that we need protection, and that He and only He can protect us.

v) prAtikUlya-vivarjana - giving up whatever is antagonistic to any of His creations or to Him. A devotee must realize that all beings are like himself.

vi) AnukUlya-niScaya - The resolve to do good to all beings. The realization that all beings are in actuality the body of God, and the resolve to live in accordance with the will of God. Ahirbudhnya samhitA gives a beautiful illustration of SaraNAgati using a passenger who wants to cross a river in a boat. It is the passenger's responsibility to go and sit in the boat, and that is the end of his responsibility; the job or rowing the boat is not his, but that of the boatman (in this case God Himself).

Six aspects of surrender are described in many PancarAtra samhitas such as Ahirbudhnya Samhita, Lakshmi Tantra etc., thought the order of importance may vary. Lakshmi Tantra give the following:

"AnukUlyasya samkalpah prAtikUlyasya varjanam |
rakshishyatIti viSvAso goptRtva varaNam tathA ||
AtmA nikshepa kArpaNye shadvidhA SaraNagatih || (Lakshmi Tantra 17, 59-61)

Thus the order of the limbs given in Lakshmi Tantra is: Anukūlya Samkalpam, Prātikūlya Varjanam, Mahā Viṣvāsam, Goptṛtva VaraNam, Atma Nikshepam, and kArpaNyam. In Ahribudhnya Samhitā, the order given is: Atma Nikshepam or Nyāsam, KārpaNyam, Mahā Viṣvāsam, Goptṛtvam, Prātikūlya Varjanam, and Anukūlya Sampakpam. Svāmi Deṣikan has addressed these confusions in his Nyāsa VimSati (Slokam 12), and concludes that those who know Prapatti Sāstra well agree that there are five anga-s to Prapatti, and the different positions taken in respect of the number and sequence of importance etc. of the aspects of Prapatti really say the same thing in the end (sarva vākya eka kaNThyam).

Atma Nikshepam or nyāsam is considered the main ingredient of Prapatti - the conviction that one's own effort in attaining Him will not bear fruit, and placing oneself directly under His care and giving up ownership of one's own protection or the benefits from any actions to Him. The other five are then the limbs for Nyāsa, that are of equal importance as conveyed to us by Svāmi Deṣikan. Thus, for performing surrender or Atma Nikshepa or Nyāsam, one needs absolute humility (KārpaNyam), Anukūlya Samkaplam, Prātikūlya Varjanam, etc.

Krishna Jayanthi

சோழ மன்னர்களின் தலைநகர்! " தஞ்சாவூர்"

ஆதி அந்தமில்லாத கால வெள்ளத்தில் கற்பனை ஓடத்தில் ஏறி நம்முடன் சிறிது நேரம் பிரயாணம் செய்யுமாறு நேயர்களை அழைக்கிறோம். விநாடிக்கு ஒரு நூற்றாண்டு வீதம் எளிதில் கடந்து இன்றைக்குத் தொள்ளாயிரத்து எண்பத்திரண்டு (1950ல் எழுதியது) ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முந்திய காலத்துக்குச் செல்வோமாக. 

குடகு நாட்டில் பிறந்து வளர்ந்த பொன்னி நதி கன்னிப் பருவம் கடந்ததும் தன் மணாளனாகிய சமுத்திர ராஜனிடம் சென்றடைய விரும்பினாள். காடும் மேடும் கடந்து பாறைகளையும் பள்ளங்களையும் தாண்டிக் கொண்டு விரைந்து சென்றாள்.

	மருங்கு வண்டு சிறந்து ஆர்ப்ப, 

	    மணிப்பூ ஆடை அதுபோர்த்துக் 

	கருங்கயற்கண் விழித்து ஒல்கி 

	    நடந்தாய் வாழி! காவேரி ! 

	

	கருங்கயற்கண் விழித்து ஒல்கி 

	    நடந்த எல்லாம் நின்கணவன் 

	திருந்து செங்கோல் வளையாமை 

	    அறிந்தேன் வாழி காவேரி !

	

	பூவர் சோலை மயிலாடப் 

	    புரிந்து குயில்கள் இசைபாடக் 

	காமர் மாலை அருகசைய 

	    நடந்தாய் வாழி காவேரி ! 

	

	காமர் மாலை அருகசைய 

	     நடந்த வெல்லாம், நின் கணவன் 

	நாம வேலின் திறங்கண்டே 

	     அறிந்தேன் வாழி! காவேரி! 

சமுத்திர ராஜனை நெருங்க நெருங்க, நாயகனைக் காணப் போகிறோம் என்ற குதூகலத்தினால் அவள் உள்ளம் விம்மி உடல் பூரித்தது. இன்னும் சற்றுத் தூரம் சென்றாள், காதலனை அணைத்துக் கொள்ளக் கரங்கள் இரண்டு உண்டாயின. இரு கரங்களை விரித்தவாறு தாவிப் பாய்ந்து சென்றாள். ஆனால் உள்ளத்தில் பொங்கிய ஆர்வ மிகுதிக்கு இரு கரங்கள் போதுமென்று தோன்றவில்லை; அவளுடைய ஆசைக் கரங்கள் பத்து, இருபது, நூறு என்று வளர்ந்தன. அவ்வளவு கரங்களையும் ஆவலுடன் நீட்டிக் கொண்டு சமுத்திர ராஜனை அணுகினாள். இவ்விதம் ஆசைக் கணவனை அடைவதற்குச் சென்ற மணப் பெண்ணுக்குச் சோழ நாட்டுச் செவிலித் தாய்மார் செய்த அலங்காரங்கள்தான் என்ன? அடடா! எத்தனை அழகிய பச்சைப் புடைவைகளை உடுத்தினார்கள்? எப்படியெல்லாம் வண்ண மலர்களைச் சூட்டினார்கள்? எவ்விதமெல்லாம் பரிமள சுகந்தங்களைத் தூவினார்கள்? ஆஹா! இரு கரையிலும் வளர்ந்திருந்த புன்னை மரங்களும் கடம்ப மரங்களும் ரத்தினப் பூக்களையும் வாரிச் சொரிந்த அருமையை எவ்விதம் வர்ணிப்பது? தேவர்கள் பொழியும் பூமாரியும் இதற்கு இணையாகுமா?

  வட காவேரி என்று பக்தர்களாலும் கொள்ளிடம் என்று பொது மக்களாலும் வழங்கப்பட்ட நதியிலிருந்து வடவாற்றின் வழியாகத் தண்ணீர் வந்து வீர நாராயண ஏரியில் பாய்ந்து அதை ஒரு பொங்கும் கடலாக ஆக்கியிருந்தது. அந்த ஏரியின் எழுபத்து நான்கு கணவாய்களின் வழியாகவும் தண்ணீர் குமுகுமுவென்று பாய்ந்து சுற்றுப் பக்கத்தில் நெடுந்தூரத்துக்கு நீர்வளத்தை அளித்துக் கொண்டிருந்தது. அந்த ஏரித் தண்ணீரைக் கொண்டு கண்ணுக்கெட்டிய தூரம் கழனிகளில் உழவும் விரை தௌியும் நடவும் நடந்து கொண்டிருந்தன. உழுது கொண்டிருந்த குடியானவர்களும் நடவு நட்டுக் கொண்டிருந்த குடியானப் பெண்களும் இனிய இசைகளில் குதூகலமாக அங்கங்கே பாடிக் கொண்டிருந்தார்கள்.

"வடவாறு பொங்கி வருது 

	வந்து பாருங்கள், பள்ளியரே! 

	வெள்ளாறு விரைந்து வருது 

	வேடிக்கை பாருங்கள், தோழியரே!

	காவேரி புரண்டு வருது காண

	வாருங்கள், பாங்கியரே!" 

 சோழ மன்னர்களின் தலைநகர்! பூம்புகாரையும் உறையூரையும் சிறிய குக்கிராமங்களாகச் செய்துவிட்ட " தஞ்சாவூர்"
அந்நகரிலுள்ள மாடமாளிகைகளும் கூட கோபுரங்களும் படை வீடுகளும் கடைவீதிகளும் சிவாலயக் கற்றளிகளும் திருமாலுக்குரிய விண்ணகரங்களும் எப்படியிருக்கும்? அந்த ஆலயங்களில் இசை வல்லவர்கள் இனிய குரலில் தேவாரப் பாடல்களையும் திருவாய்மொழிப் பாசுரங்களையும் பாடக்கேட்டோர் பரவசமடைவார்கள்

                               

                                 மாடமாளிகைகள்

                                  வீடுகள்

                               கடைவீதி

 இன்றைக்கு பல நூறு ஆண்டுகளுக்கு முன்னால் விஜயாலய சோழர் முத்தரையர்களை முறியடித்துத் தஞ்சாவூரைக் கைப்பற்றினார். திருப்புறம்பியம் போரில் பல்லவ சைன்யத்துக்குத் துணையாக நின்று மதுரைப் பாண்டியரின் படையை நிர்மூலமாக்கினார். அதுமுதலாவது சோழ ராஜ்யம் நாளுக்கு நாள் பெருகி விஸ்தரித்து வந்திருக்கிறது. காவேரி நதிக்குக் கரையெடுத்த கரிகால் வளவர் காலத்திலேகூடச் சோழ ராஜ்யம் இவ்வளவு மகோன்னதத்தை அடைந்தது கிடையாது. இன்றைக்குத் தெற்கே குமரி முனையிலிருந்து வடக்கே துங்கபத்திரை - கிருஷ்ணை வரையில் சோழ சாம்ராஜ்யம் பரந்து விரிந்து கிடக்கிறது. பாண்டிய நாடு, நாஞ்சில் நாடு, யாருக்கும் இதுவரையில் வணங்காத சேர நாடு, தொண்டை மண்டலம், பாகி நாடு, கங்கபாடி, நுளம்பபாடி, வைதும்பர் நாடு, சீட்புலி நாடு, பெரும்பாணப்பாடி, பொன்னி நதி உற்பத்தியாகும் குடகு நாடு ஆகிய இத்தனை நாடுகளும் சோழ சாம்ராஜ்யத்துக்கு அடங்கிக் கப்பம் செலுத்தி வருகின்றன. இவ்வளவு நாடுகளிலும் நம் சோழ நாட்டுப் புலிக்கொடி பறக்கிறது.

 பெருவுடையார் கோயில்

Sri Velukkudi Krishnan swamy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GsYPZO2ZP6A&feature=player_embedded#at=148

Amaruviappan at Therazhundur Temple Poornahuthi