Sri Ramanuja and Sri Andal

[Guest guest]

I returned from India last week. Among other things, I met the

Dr.M.A.Venkatakrishnan (who had written a criticism on G.V.Iyer's

movie on Sri Ramanuja. Mani has a copy.). It was by a coincidence.

His wife was travelling in the next seat from Trichy to Madras.

 

She herself has written a book and some articles and is completing

her Ph.D in Vaishnavism soon. Since Madras University does not

permit Tamil to be used for theses, her husband, who is a Professor

of Sanskrit, had to fight all the way to the Vice Chancelor to get

her special permission to submit the thesis in Tamil.

 

They run a Vaishnava magazine called "geethacharyan" from

thiruvallikEni Madras, in Tamil. They are Mandyam Iyengars

 

In this trip, I had the occasion to visit two of the three

"mEni"(body) of Sri Ramanujar.

 

thaan-ugandha-mEni at mElkOttai, Karnataka

thaan-aana-mEni at Sri Rangam.

The third is the "thamar-ugandha-mEni" at Sriperumbudhoor.

 

About Sri Ramanuja being called elder brother of Andal, these are

my thoughts. Andal became immortal at an young age, 12 or so, I think.

So she is always considered as an young girl. Since Ramanujar is

pictured as an elderly person, it seems proper to call him as

"elder brother" for having fulfilled an young girl's wish.

 

om namo narayanaya

 

 

Srinivasan K