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Maddulapalli Dattatreya Sastry
`The vedas are treasure-troves not only of unwithering seeds of all knowledge but also the divine enunciations and commandments which define and divulge the fruitfulness of being born human beaconing the path of ultimate attainment of eternal bliss. Hence they stand recognised Prabhu-Sammithams. The upanishads are erudite commentaries that could only be understood by the highly learned, while the puranas replete with absorbing stories of exalted characters narrated in the simplest way, serve as paradigmatically guiding friends in deed and need, are categorised Mitra-sammithas. The Kaavyas known for being filled with aesthetically romantic expressions of the same values in poetic idiom, the charm of which could be likened to the enticing romance of a lovely paramour, have come to be known Kaantha-Sammithams, enucleated the philomathic scholar in Sanskrit, Dr. Maddulapalli Dattatreya Sastry, in his prelude set to go on delivering a series of lectures on Siva Puraanam at Sankaramatham.
Regarded the lode-star of a family of litterateurs of high esteem and the son of the renowned scholar in scriptural literature Maddulapalli Manikhya Sastry, Dattatreya Sastry was born in May 1957. His flair with penchant for ancient literature, Sanskrit in particular, even as a child landed him in the Municipal Oriental College in Vijayawada fetching him the Bhashapraveena in 1975. Not satisfied, he went on with his studies obtaining Sahityavidyapraveena and POL in 1978, M.A. in Telugu and Sanskrit consecutively in 81 and 82, Nyaya Vidya Praveena (Sanskrit) in 1983, Ph.D in Sanskrit in 1998, and finally again a I class in the Tarka and Vedantha examination of Sastravidwan Mahasabha of Kanchi Kamakoti Peetham, Vijayawada, the next year. No wonder, the prestigious Advaitha Siddhi Ratnakara-Madhusudana Saraswathi Puraskar and the best thesis award (Ph.D. Sanskrit) adorned him. Being highly specialised in Nyaya, Vedantha, Vyakarana and Sahitya in Sanskrit besides Telugu literature and grammar coupled with experience teaching Vyakarana Special to Post-graduate students in Sanskrit during 1995-99 as a research associate at Andhra university, he was taken in to the teaching faculty on regular basis in the cadre of Assistant Professor in 1999. Credited with a number of research papers (either already published or presented at national seminars) especially on philosophy, religion and spiritualism, Sastry also endowed with commendable oratorial skill and pleasing disposition, has come to stay in popular demand all over the state for delivering discourses on the subjects. No exaggeration, he achieved the distinction of being a household name in the families of scholars, connoisseurs and lovers of such exalted literature and avocation in the city.
Back to the discourse, Sastry apprised the listeners that Sivapuranam in its present form is one among the 18 Mahapuranas scripted by the Maharshi Vedavyasa. Comprising of 24,000 slokas in seven Samhitas, it is supposed to be an abridged version of the original rendered by Paramasiva in 12 Samhitas comprising over a lakh of slokas in all. The seven Samhitas go under the names - Visweswara, Rudra, Satarudra, Kotirudra, Uma, Kailasa and Vayu. Starting on an attractively absorbing note in the form of a narration by Soothamaharshi to the Sounakaadi munis, the first Samhita is an elaboration of the multifarious ways of Sivopasana of which the Linga puja is considered to be the supreme. It induces the much needed equanimity of mind, the first and most essential step going in for treading the path of realisation of the real self inside, Sastry concluded the first part of the series of lectures on an elightening note.
A. RAMALINGA SASTRY.
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