Miscellaneous - Religion   

Acharya Bhakti

CHENNAI : Acharya Bhakti is central to spiritual tradition and promises a sure way to salvation. The Acharya enlightens not merely his immediate disciples but also posterity through his austere way of life, and his knowledge and experience of God that gets transmitted through his teachings.

The guidance of a preceptor is necessary to understand the truth that the Lord's grace is necessary to seek Him and that He is the means and the goal in this effort. The preceptor enables one to experience the greatness and infinite compassion of the Lord, by extolling His auspicious qualities. Among the Azhwars, Madhurakavi Azhwar occupies a distinctive niche since he exemplifies the essence of this Acharya Sishya relationship and his exemplary love and devotion to Nammazhwar illustrates that he had beheld a perfect Acharya in him, pointed out Natteri Sri Rajagopalachariar in a lecture.

The Mundakopanishad says that if one is to know about the self, the best way is to approach one who has known it. For such a knower firmly grasps the Truth and is capable of conveying it to others. Likewise, when Madurakavi Azhwar saw Nammazhwar and subsequently had opportunity to know him, he recognised that Nammazhwar had realised God and that his divine hymns are capable of removing ignorance regarding the ultimate truth and showing the way to divine bliss. Madhurakavi Azhwar gained the knowledge of the Supreme Being through association with Nammazhwar.

Madhurakavi Azhwar's only hymn "Kanninun Siruthambu" extols the greatness of Nammazhwar and claims that devotion to Acharya is a step higher than devotion to the Lord Himself. One can attain the Lord by following the Acharya's ways. Incidentally, in another context, this hymn became a crucial key to unlock the Vedic truths in the Divya Prabandhams.

Nammazhwar's hymns reveal that worldly possessions and relations are neither capable of real help nor can impart divine knowledge. An Acharya is needed for this purpose.

The truth of the Absolute cannot be taught but has to be caught through experience.

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