Ramanuja

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Ramanuja bigraphy, stories - Indian philosopher

Ramanuja : biography

1017 – 1137

Ramanuja (traditionally, 1017–1137 CE) was a Hindu theologian, philosopher, and scriptural exegete, born in a Tamil Brahmin family in the village of Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu. He is also known as Sri Ramanujacharya, Udayavar, Ethirajar (Yatiraja), Emberumannar and Lakshmana Muni. He is seen by Sri Vaishnavism as the most important acharya (teacher) of their tradition who followed Nathamuni and Yamunacharya, and by Hindus in general as the leading expounder of Vishishtadvaita, one of the classical interpretations of the dominant Vedanta school of Hindu philosophy.

Historical background

By the 5th century, the South Indian religious scene was diverse, with popular religion existing alongside Vedic sacrifice and non-Vedic traditions like Buddhism and Jainism. Indeed, the title character of the sixth century Tamil Buddhist epic Manimekalai is advised at one point to study the various Hindu schools of philosophy, such as Sankhya and Vaisheshika as well as Buddhism, Ajivika, Cārvāka, and Jainism. It was in this context that fears of a Buddhist or Jain takeover spurred a large Hindu revival that reached its peak in the 7th century and continued nearly into the 2nd millennium.

The popular aspects of this revival took the shape of several mystical and passionate bhakti movements, represented on the Sri Sampradaya side by the twelve alvars. The alvars came from a variety of social strata; their ranks include shudras (persons from the lowest castes) and one woman. The intense devotionalism of their poetry and insistence that caste and sex are no barrier to a relationship with the Divine is uncharacteristic of classical Vedic thought, which laid a strong emphasis on the performance of the social and religious duties proper to one’s place in the social structure. Some of these were collected into a definitive canon known as the Nālāyira Divya Prabandha ("divine composition of 4000 verses"), by Nathamuni in the 10th century, and came to be seen as a source of revelation equal in authority to the Vedas in the community.

On the philosophical side, this period saw the rise of the Vedanta school of philosophy, which focused on the elucidation and exegesis of the speculative and philosophical Vedic commentaries known as the Upanishads. The Advaita, or non-dualist interpretation of Vedanta was developed in this time by Adi Shankara and later by Maṇḍana Miśra. It argued that the Brahman presented in the Upanishads is the static and undifferentiated absolute reality, and that the ultimately false perception of difference is due to avidyā, or ignorance.

The goal of proving the Vedantic legitimacy of the popular conception of a personal deity and a genuine personal identity essentially characterizes Ramanuja’s project, and the Advaitin school presents a natural object for his polemics. It is this synthesis between the classical Sanskrit writings and the popular Tamil poetry that is the source of one of the names of Ramanuja’s system: Ubhaya Vedānta, or "Vedanta of both kinds."

Five acharyas

Swami Ramanuja incorporated teachings from 5 different people who he considered to be his acharyas

  1. Peria Nambigal (Mahapurna) who performed his samasrayana,Dvayam,
  2. Thirukkotiyur Nambigal (Ghoshtipurna) : who revealed the meaning of the Charama Shlokam and Ashtakshari to swami on his 18th trip
  3. Periya Thirumalai Nambigal (Shailapurna) : Ramayana
  4. Tirumālai Aandaan (Maladhara): Bhagavad Vishayam (Śrī Thiruvaymozhi)
  5. Azhwar Thiruvaranga Perumal Arayar (Vararanga) : Remaining 3000 verses of Arulichcheyal(works of Azhwars) and Sandhai

Thirukachchi Nambigal (Kanchipurna) : The 6 sentences or PErarulAlan, and many others

Notes

Disciples

  • Koorathazhwan
  • Mudaliyandan

Formative years

Ramanuja was born Ilaya Perumal in a Brahmin family in the village of Perumbudur, Tamil Nadu, India. His father was Asuri Keshava Somayaji Deekshitar and mother was Kanthimathi.