The Chandrasekhara of Kanchi and The Chandrasekhara of Sringeri Ra. Ganapati -- Part-- 3 -- http://www.kamakoti.org/souv/5-59.html

   

      The Chandrasekhara of Kanchi and The Chandrasekhara of Sringeri 

                                                        Part-- 3

Ra. Ganapati

In 1935, Maha Periyaval went to Calcutta and performed the Navaratri Puja there. Sri Mantreswara Sarma, a deep devotee of the Sringeri Math, was one of the members of the Puja Committee. He helped in the organisaton of the Puja up to the fourth day. Then he thought, "Could this Puja compare with the once at Sringeri?", and could no longer contain himself at Calcutta. Travelling all the way he reached Sringeri.

Bharati Svamigal eyed him in an unusually harsh manner. "You have notions of difference between us and left that Puja in the middle to come here. Very wrong. Don't stand here even for one second. Go back" he said unrelentingly.

As Sharma was a mature person he learnt a lesson and his mind was cleansed.

In those days when there were no proper means of travel like today, he somehow managed to reach Calcutta right on the concluding Vijayadashmi day and fell at the felt of Periyaval. He conveyed the message of Bharati Svamigal and submitted that his idea of difference had been erased. Periyaval laughed in joy and gave him Navaratri prasadam in `extra dose'.

Maha Periyaval was camping at Mylapore, Mysore, in February 1966. Sri K. Chandrasekharan, the well-known connoisseur of arts, was expressing his anguish regarding some derogatory article or letter written by Math! I wondered at the equanimity of the Jnani, the Samadarsana, equi-vision.

Periyaval looked at me, gesturing with his hands fist-fighting, and asked "Do you follow all this?"

I replied, "I do not follow with intention or relish. But I get to know the details to some extent by reading the article of Polagram Sastrigal in Pradeepam4. I feel sad".

He pursued, "Are you sad only? Don't you get angry with Krishnaswami Iyer?" Periyaval uttered "Kom" instead of Kopam, the Tamil word for anger, in the way a child would pronounce that word! That very manner of expression indicated that the entire arguments and counter-arguments were childish!

As a matter of fact, I was angry with that person - angry because he was diverting the attention of the devout to matters not concerning spirituality and furthering the existing differences. I feel the same way about the `ultra'-devotees of the Kanchi Math also.

I kept quiet, abashed to tell him, the embodiment of Sattva (the goodness of composure), that I really got angry with K. Iyer.

Periyaval himself, an amalgam of the child and divinity, added, "This quarrel is not going to end in my life time5. I don't seem to have the capacity to achieve that. So there is no point in your getting worked up. But no I am keen that your angry towards Krishnaswami Iyer should end. I also feel that I can achieve that. will you do what I say? He has written a book, The saint of Sringeri. Get a copy at once and read it. Say, will you?

Can one disobey such a command?

Like this, thanks to K. Chadrasekharan, Kanchi Chandrasekhara made me get into touch with the other Chandrasekhara, `The Saint of Sringeri'.

After reading that wonderful book, my "Kom" towards the author vanished completely! I understood him to be a person of total devotion to the Guru and a great scholar well informed in the Sastras. If such a one should indulge in controversies - it was clear that it was nothing but the handiwork of the Great Dama Illusion, Maha Maya.

That part, I developed devotion towards that Saint of Sringeri, the central figure of the book. While reading it there were many places where I actually felt as if I were reading about the Saint of Kanchi.

4. The monthly Kamakoti Pradeepam dedicated to the Kanchi Math. It carried a series of articles by the Sanskrit scholar Polagam Rama Sastrigal attesting to the antiquity of the Math and countering the arguments to the contrary.

5. For once the Prophet's words were belied to our and his own joy in May 1993, when the present head of both the Matas met in a conclave of all the five Sankaracharyas at Sringeri in mutual friendship. Coming out of his total withdrawal from the world of action for the none, the Sage directed his successor to offer silks and jewel to the Divine Mother Sarada at Sringeri. The Great Unifier of the Century, he must have felt fulfilled to hear from the successor the soothing report of the happenings at Sringeri on his return. It is the conviction of the devotees that this happy turn of events was brought about by the soul-force of the Sage himself in his centenary year.

The next time I met Priyaval I told him that my "Kom" had disappeared. I also added "At many places, I felt I was reading about Your Holiness".

Even now my heart melts when I recollect what that Child-divinity said in utter simplicity. "Is that so? I really become so afraid after asking you to read the book. Because, I thought that after reading the book you may think, `well, this person ever focused on the Pratyagatman (the soul inward) is sure a Svamigal, How to stay the same of that person, ever-paraak (turned outward) and dabbling on all subjects under the sun? (Periyaval himself used the English expression `under the sun'. That was my fear! Bud did you feel as if reading about me?"

Tears filled my eyes as my mind amused, "Oh Mother Kamakshi! What is this play-acting of yours!"

My thoughts revolved around the pratyak and paraak aspects of the Acharyas. In fine, I came to the following revelatory conclusion. That one is Bharati, this one, Sarasvati. `Bharati' means `one delighting in light' - the light of the Self, the light of knowledge, like a flame steady and one-pointed. Bharati Svamigal personifies that `Sarasvati' means `residing in the waters', the waters of grace flowing in all directions, imparting new life and inspiring all kinds of produce. Sarasvati Svamigal personifies this.

As I felt shy to tell this by word of mouth to Periyaval I wrote it out and sent the letter to him.

The next time I went for darsan - it was a morning - my mind was all agog to know how he felt about the letter. He was not present in the camp and had gone to nearby places. I waited eagerly, impatiently. The waiting dragged on and on. I was a tenterhooks because I had to return to my office.

Periyaval came back at the nick of time, at noon. But, straight he went for a bath to the well. Maybe for some pollution he had inadvertently contracted in his visits.

The attendant was letting the pitcher down the well.

Periyaval asked him, Can you see the sun in the well?"

He said "Yes".

"Does anything strike in your mind?" he asked me.

There are two concepts in Advaita. One is Patimba-vaada, which holds that just like the one sun reflected in many drops of water, the one Chaitanya (Consciousness) is reflected in many antahkaranas (inner faculties) of the jivas (individual souls). The other concept holds that it is not the reflection but the selfsame Chaitanya which indwells in all the jivas. It gives the example of the wide open sky which is omni-spread and is, therefore, indwelling inside all empty vessels. The very consciousness itself fills up the antahkarana just as the very waters of the well outside fills the inside of the pitcher immersed in it. This concept is called Avaccheda-vaada. Now I saw before me the sun reflected in the water and also the attendant letting down the pot into the well.

Putting things together I said, "I see simultaneously examples for both the Pratibimba and Avachheda - vaadas."

Periyaval shook his head negatively indicating that was not what he wanted `to strike in mind."

He looked at the well; and at the sun. He looked at me meaningfully and said "Bha is saras (Light in the water.)"

With this cryptic observation he began his bath.

My hairs stood on end. I at once saw Bharai Svamigal, the sun of knowledge, immersed in Periyaval, the waters of Karuna, Grace.

It also struck upon me that the vice versa was also true. yes, the Light of knowledge too exudes the waters of Grace within. Was not the reflected sun within the well full of water?

Yes, the two Chandrasekharas are a conjoined single entity like a Sankara-Narayana and concretely illustrate the words of Paygai Azhvaar:

Tho' the twine in different roles do move about, part and parcel each is of the other of aye.

COURTESY : http://www.kamakoti.org/souv/5-59.html

KODI KODI NAMASKARAMS
TO KANCHI MAHAPERIYAVA , PERIYAVA AND ALSO BALA PERIYAVAR  

AND ALSO SRINGERI ACHARYAS

Thanks for the photos posted in the internet by both Kanchi acharya bhaktas and also to Sringeri  acharyas bhaktas