Ramanujacharya â Biography - ebooks - ISKCON desire tree

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"Over there," replied Dasarathi, "is Yatiraja, thegreat devotee of Lord Narayana, and he wishes to speak withyou. Please come with me for a few moments."On hearing the name of the famous acarya, the youngman took his leave of the lady and went with Dasarathiacross the s<strong>tree</strong>t to where the devotees were standing.Having bowed down at Yatiraja's feet, he stood in silencebefore him, wondering why it was that this famous sadhushould want to talk with him. At last Ramanuja said, "Whatnectar have you found in that young lady that - giving upall hatred, shame, and fear - you think nothing of makingyourself a laughingstock throughout the whole city of SriRangam by acting in such a way?""0 Mahatma," the young man replied, "I have seen manybeautiful sights on this earth, but nothing which came evenclose to matching the entrancing beauty of the bright eyesof that young lady. When I see them, I become so captivatedthat I cannot look away.""Is she your wife?" Yatiraja inquired."No, she is not married to me," the man replied, "butI am certain that, even though she is not my wife, I willnever love any other woman.""What is your name," asked Yatiraja."I am known as Dhanurdasa," came the response, "and Icome from the town of Nichulanagara, where I am famous formy ability in wrestling. The lady's name is Hemamba.""Dhanurdasa," said Yatiraja, "if I can show you apair of eyes even more beautiful than those of your beloved,will you give up this lady and love the other?"The wrestler replied, "0 great soul, if it werepossible to discover a pair of eyes filled with a morehaunting beauty than those of my Hemamba, then surely Iwould leave her and worship instead that lady who possessedthem.""Then come to me this evening at my asrama,"concluded Yatiraja, "and perhaps we can resolve thismatter.""At your command," was Dhanurdasa's respectfulresponse. He then returned to where the lady was waiting forhim and continued walking with her, still holding theumbrella over her head.DELIVERANCE OF DHANURDASAThat evening Ramanuja left the asrama accompaniedonly by Dhanurdasa and walked with him the short distance tothe outer gate of Lord Ranganatha's temple. Having passedthrough all of the outer gates, the two of them stood atlast before the Deity of the Lord. At that time the aratihad just begun, and the priest was offering a fragrantcamphor lamp to the Lord and His consort Laksmidevi.Although the inner room of the temple was dark, being87
enclosed by walls on all sides, as the lamp was presentedbefore Sri Ranganatha, its flaming effulgence lit up histranscendental features and shimmered on His beautiful,golden, lotus-like eyes.When he saw this revelation of the divine form of theLord, Dhanurdasa stood as though transfixed, looking withoutblinking at the eyes of Sri Visnu, who is known asAravindaksa. All at once tears of love began to roll downhis cheeks as he experienced a taste of the real enjoymentthat is found only in the spiritual world. In an instant allhis attraction to the pale pleasures of this mundaneexistence began to fade, like the stars at sunrise.After some time Dhanurdasa regained his composure andturned towards Ramanuja, falling at his feet saying, "Byyour causeless mercy, you have given to this most lusty ofmen pleasures that are sought after even by the demigods inheaven. I am your servant forever. Like an owl of the night,I had turned away from the sun and had become infatuatedwith a glowworm. Now you have opened my eyes, and thus youalone are my master"Ramanujacarya then raised Dhanurdasa from the groundand firmly embraced him. From that moment, the youngwrestler from Nichulanagara gave up his entanglement inmaterial affairs and became a pure-hearted devotee of LordNarayana. Hemamba, although a courtesan by profession, hadlong regarded Dhanurdasa as her husband. Despite her sinfulengagement, she was at heart a devotee of the Lord.Therefore, upon hearing of the great transformation thatDhanurdasa had undergone, she was filled with happiness andcame also to surrender her life at the feet of the mercifulacarya.Yatiraja arranged for them to be properly married asman and wife, and by his pure instructions he removed thecontamination of lust from their hearts. They leftNichulanagara and moved to Rangaksetra, where they rented ahouse close by Ramanuja's asrama. In this way they were ableto associate with their spiritual master and hear thenectarean Vaisnava teachings from his lips.THE ENVY OF THE BRAHMANADISCIPLESBecause of his devotion to his guru, his humility,honesty, and gentle speech, all people came to respectDhanurdasa. In order to show that it is a person's behaviorthat should be considered and not his birth, Ramanuja wouldhold Dhanurdasa's arm while returning from the Kaveri,although he would hold the arm of Dasarathi, a brahmana bybirth, while walking to the river. When Yatiraja's youngbrahmana disciples observed their gurus intimate dealingswith a person of lower birth, some of them were disturbedand even dared to say that his behavior was not befitting.88
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The Life ofRamanujacaryaTABLE OF CO
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egan to learn the wonderfully instr
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Ramanuja. Despite some minor philos
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For the devotees, Hi manifests His
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YAMUNACARYAIn the south of India ma
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furious rage to inform his teacher
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and faithful to her husband as was
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that there was little chance of his
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all the pleasures of my worldly lif
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with his wife to the temple of Sri
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THE FIRSTCONFRONTATIONOne day when
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"Sir, surely you could just forbid
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quickly dispelled all the misgiving
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shrine of the Saivites and dedicate
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was on everyone's lips. Yadavapraka
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Having given this advice to the you
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ahmanas were from Kancipuram, he im
Page 35 and 36: "My master wishes to see you, and i
Page 37 and 38: long periods he would remain alone,
Page 39 and 40: KANCIPURNA'S VISIT TO TIRUPATIMeanw
Page 41 and 42: ‘All of you may recall how, just
Page 43 and 44: departed for Sri Rangam. While Maha
Page 45 and 46: RAMANUJA BEGINS HIS TEACHINGAll the
Page 47 and 48: Seeing the devotional sentiments in
Page 49 and 50: When the discourse was completed an
Page 51 and 52: To this the priest replied, "You do
Page 53 and 54: to your words, so many people are n
Page 55 and 56: DASARATHI'S HUMILITYDasarathi then
Page 57 and 58: great attention. When he heard Rama
Page 59 and 60: ADOPTING THE WAYS OF ROBBERSBeing a
Page 61 and 62: of the huge boat as it moved slowly
Page 63 and 64: THE PRIEST'S REPENTENCEHowever, in
Page 65 and 66: he walked over to the monastery whe
Page 67 and 68: make a flower garden and serve Lord
Page 69 and 70: However, when he heard about the wo
Page 71 and 72: offense, they all submitted a petit
Page 73 and 74: RETURNING TO KANCIAfter thus passin
Page 75 and 76: "That woman was singing the tales o
Page 77 and 78: However, that night as he was lying
Page 79 and 80: challenged by some of the local sch
Page 81 and 82: the birthplace of Nathamuni, Yamuna
Page 83 and 84: and so he and his wife were fasting
Page 85: from His temple, the throng of peop
Page 90 and 91: considering him fallen, and that he
Page 92 and 93: and the other devotees also left th
Page 94 and 95: However, the atrocities that Kulott
Page 96 and 97: just by looking at the girl's face.
Page 98 and 99: festival days. This form of the Lor
Page 100 and 101: up her body. Being immersed in cont
Page 102 and 103: heard Lord Varadaraja speak to him
Page 104 and 105: take part in the festivities. Many
Page 106 and 107: At about the same time the devotees
Page 108: When Ramanuja had finished speaking
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