Ramanujacharya – Biography - ebooks - ISKCON desire tree

THE GREAT DEVOTEE TIRUMANGAIOf all the temples in India, that of Lord Ranganatha,situated on an island in the Kaveri River, is certainly thelargest. The story of how this temple came to be built isvery interesting.About three hundred years before the birth ofRamanujacarya, which was in AD 1017, there lived in southIndia a devotee named Tirumangai. His heart was alwaysfilled with devotion for Lord Visnu, and in this mood ofpure love he would compose beautiful poetic prayers.From the time of his youth he was in the habit oftravelling throughout the country to visit the various holyplaces of pilgrimage. In the course of his travels fourgreat mystics had become attracted by his exalted nature andhad become his disciples. Each of these disciples had aparticular ability that set him apart from ordinary men.The first disciple was named Tola Vazhakkan, and hewas famous for his ability to vanquish any opponent in adebate. The second disciple was named Taluduvan, and he hadthe ability to open any lock without the need of a key. Thethird and fourth disciples both possessed most unusualtalents. The third, Nizhalai Mithippan, could force any manto remain still simply by stepping on his shadow, while thefourth, Nirmal Nadappan, had developed the laghima siddhi,which enabled him to walk on water.TIRUMANGAI'S VISIT TO SRI RANGAMAfter touring many holy places of pilgrimage,Tirumangai at last came to the temple of Lord Ranganatha.The Deity of Ranganatha had originally been installed byVibhisana, the brother of Ravana, but at the time ofTirumangai the temple was completely dilapidated and filledwith bats. Once a day a priest would come there to offer afew flowers and a little water to the Deity before hurryingaway out of fear of the wild animals that dwelt in thesurrounding forest.When he saw this unhappy state of affairs, a strongdesire arose in the mind of Tirumangai to build a beautiful,opulent temple for Lord Ranganatha. However, he did not havea penny to his name and no more did any of his disciples.After consulting together they decided to approach everyrich man they could find and beg him to give money for thebuilding of a temple. Unfortunately, the effects of Kaliyugahaving set in, not one of these rich men would giveeven a small coin and they frequently blasphemed thedevotees by calling them rogues or thieves.59