Chapter 6 – The Story of Narasāvadhāni
Next day, after finishing meditation and worship, Tirumala Das began to narrate. “Sir, Srīpāda Srīvallabha is the origin for everything that is movable and immovable in Creation. He is like a banyan tree. His partial incarnations[1] are like its hanging roots. The roots grow down from the branches of the banyan tree, though appearing to have an independent nature, their base is the banyan tree only. He is the source and refuge of all, from gods and demons to all living beings. All forces emanate from Him and again they merge in Him. For a person who reaches the peak of a mountain, all paths appear the same. In the same way, people of different traditions find synthesis in the philosophy of Datta. All beings are surrounded by an aura. When I was in Pīthikapuram, a yogi came there. He was indicating how much aura was around a particular statue or how long the aura of a particular person was and in which particular colour the aura extended. He visited Srī Kukkuteswara temple[2] and wanted to test the length and the colour of the aura of the self-manifested Datta. He had the vision of Srīpāda Srīvallabha in the place of Swayambhū Datta[3]. Profuse white light resembling lightnings spread around His head. Encircling this white light, a blue light was visible spreading in all directions. That divine personage said to the yogi, ‘My dear, you are wasting valuable time in mad pursuits to reckon the lengthwise expansion of the subtle bodies of others. First you think about yourself. Death is imminent to you in a few days. So, think of the ways to get salvation. Verily, I am Datta who is the origin of all doctrines and all truths! When great siddhas, great sages and great devotees invited Me with love, I incarnated in this Kali Yuga[4] in Pādagaya kshetra[5].’
“On hearing the preachings of Swamī, old tendencies of the yogi got extinguished. His power of knowing the aura of the subtle body merged completely in Srīvallabha. Later, he had dārshan of Srīpāda Srīvallabha in His house and got blessed. The yogi said, ‘The pure white light spread around Srīpāda indicates that Srīvallabha is very pure and is a complete yogāvatar. The blue light shows that He is filled with infinite love and mercy.’
“After the yogi left, an interesting discussion took place. ‘How should the division of four castes be decided? Is it according to the differences in the aura of subtle bodies? Or is it according to the consideration of caste and gotra[6]? Which caste is eligible for the upanayanam[7] ritual according to the method described in Vedas? Which caste is eligible for upanayanam according to the method described in Purānas[8]? Is upanayanam related to the third eye located in the centre of the eyebrows? Or is it some other special thing? What is medhajanam[9]?’ Such discussion continued very heatedly. The pandits could not arrive at a unanimous opinion.
“Srī Malladi Bapannāvadhanulu, famous as a true saint, was the president of the Brahmin Society of Pīthikapuram[10]. He was also called Bāpanāryulu. He was mainly worshipping Sun and Fire. He was invited to preside over a sacrifice that took place at Pīthikapuram. At the end of the sacrifice, there was torrential rain. All people were elated. Srī Vatsavāyi Narasimha Varma, a Kshatriya, requested Srī Bapannāvadhanulu to reside in their village. He refused Srī Varma’s offer. Srī Bāpanāryulu used to accept only the honorary remunerations given during sacrificial rites. If that money was tainted, he was not accepting it. Srī Varma had a kapila cow[11]. He was very fond of it. Its name was Gayatri. That cow was giving abundant milk. It was very gentle in nature. Srī Varma came to know that Gayatri was missing. Srī Varma questioned Bāpanāryulu, who was an astrological pandit, about the cow. Srī Bāpanāryulu disclosed that the cow was with Khan Saheb, a butcher in Syamalāmbapuram[12]. He also said that one should immediately go there and recover the missing cow since it would be killed. While sending a person to Syamalāmbapuram, Srī Varma laid a condition to Bāpanāryulu that, if Gayatri would come back according to the words of Srī Bapannāvadhanulu, he had to accept three putlu[13] land and a good house as gifts to the pandit. Bāpanāryulu was in a dilemma. If he would not accept the gift, Srī Varma would allow the cow to be killed. Then the sin of killing a cow[14] would fall upon him. He thought that accepting the gift was better than becoming exposed to the sin of cow slaughter. Gayatri was rescued. The residents of Pīthikapuram were fortunate. Srī Bapannāvadhanulu became the owner of a land and he also received as a gift a house for living. Srī Bāpanāryulu had a son by the name of Venkāvadhani and a daughter by the name of Sumatī. The horoscope of Sumatī had all auspicious features and her gait resembled the royal walk of an empress. So, she was named as Sumatī Maharani. The name and fame of Srī Bāpanāryulu spread in all directions.
“A Brahmin boy named Appala Lakshmi Narasimha Raja Sarma with the surname Ghandikota came to Pīthikapuram from Ayinavilli, a village in Godavari region. He hailed from the lineage of sage Bharadwaja, Apasthamba Sutra[15] and belonged to Velanati Vaidika sect. There was the idol of Kālāgni Shamana Datta[16] in his house. During the time of worship, that idol was talking to Raja Sarma, and was giving him instructions. Appalaraja Sarma lost his parents in his childhood. One day while worshipping, Kālāgni Shamana directed Raja Sarma to complete his education under the guidance of Malladi Bapannāvadhani belonging to Haritasa gotra, Apasthamba sutra and Vaidika Velanati sect. So, Raja Sarma came to Pīthikapuram. As per Datta’s order, Srī Bāpanāryulu provided boarding facilities in his house to Raja Sarma who came to him as a student. He did not allow Raja Sarma to beg for food in various houses. Srī Bāpanāryulu used to worship Lord Shiva during the time of Sani-pradosha[17]. The ladies of the house were performing religious ceremonies to Lord Shiva during the time of Sani-pradosha. In ancient times Nanda and Yashoda[18] performed worship of Shiva during the time of Sani-pradosha. As a result, they were blessed with the fortune of bringing up Srī Krishna. Srī Narasimha Varma, Srī Pynda Venkatappayya Sreshti and some other prominent Vaishyas[19] were participating, unfailingly, in the worship of Shiva along with Srī Bāpanārya.
The voice that came from Srī Kukkuteswara Shiva lingam. The marriage of Sumatī and Appalaraja
“Once during the Sani-pradosha time, after the worship of Lord Shiva, a brilliant electric lustre beamed from Srī Kukkuteswara Shiva lingam[20]. Then a profound voice was heard saying, ‘My dear Bāpanāryā! Give your daughter Sumatī Maharani in marriage to Appalaraja Sarma without any hesitation. It will be beneficial to the universe. No individual in this animate or inanimate Creation has any authority to violate this great decision. This is the decision of Lord Datta.’
“This voice was heard by Pynda Venkatappayya Sreshti, Narasimha Varma and all those who were present. All of them were astonished. Information was sent to relatives, kith and kin of Raja Sarma in Ayinavilli. The marriage of Raja Sarma with Sumatī Maharani was decided. It was a regrettable matter that Raja Sarma did not even have a house. Srī Pynda Venkatappayya Sreshti said that he had many houses and that he would offer one of them to Raja Sarma. However, Raja Sarma would not accept any donation. Shreshti spoke with Raja Sarma’s relatives and arranged for the evaluation of the worth of that part of the house in Ayinavilli that Raja Sarma would own as an inheritor. It was valued as worth one varahā[21]. The house of Sreshti was valued at a minimum of twelve varahās. Raja Sarma expressed his inability to pay the difference of eleven varahās. Then Sreshti stated that he would sell his house to Raja Sarma for one varahā only. Sreshti said, ‘If you object to take the house as a gift, you take the house by paying one varahā.’ All of them agreed that what Shreshti said was in accordance with the dharma.
“The marriage of Sumatī Maharani and Appala Lakshmi Narasimha Raja Sarma took place amid the chanting of Vedas by great Vedic scholars. The marriage was conducted in a grand manner with the accompaniment of auspicious melodies from musical instruments. The incarnation of Srīpāda Srīvallabha came to dispel the darkness of ignorance. He arrived to remove the limping progress of people in physical and spiritual matters. Therefore, Lord Datta commanded the deity of time[22] and the deity of action[23]. In pursuance of His command, a blind boy representing gloomy ignorance[24] and a lame boy representing the halting progress in worldly and supra-worldly spheres were born to Raja Sarma. Sumatī and Raja Sarma were greatly dismayed that their two children were disabled. There is a famous Vigneswara[25] temple in Ayinavilli. Once their relatives brought the holy offering[26] of that Lord Vigneswara to Pīthikapuram. Sumatī and Raja Sarma received the maha prasād. On that night, Sumatī Maharani had the dārshan of Irāvata[27] in a dream. Over the next few days, a conch, a wheel, a mace, a lotus, a trident, various deities, sages, siddhas, yogis and other similar holy persons appeared in her dreams. After few days, she experienced divine revelations even in her wakeful state. Upon closing her eyes, yogis in samadhi and munis with divine glows and different lights were giving dārshan like figures on a screen.
“When Sumatī Maharani consulted her father Bāpanārya, he said that all those signs indicated the birth of a great person[28] with complete auspicious features. The uncle of Sumatī Maharani, Srīdhar said, ‘Sumatī,
• there is a relationship between Visakha[29] — the birth star of Ravi[30] — and the incarnation of Srī Rama.
• similarly, there is a relationship between Krittika — the birth star of Chandra[31] — and the incarnation of Srī Krishna.
• there is a relationship between the planet Mars, born in Pūrvāshada star, and the incarnation of Srī Lakshmi Narasimha.
• there is a relationship between the planet Budha[32], born in Sravana star, and the incarnation of Buddha.
• there is a relationship between the planet Jupiter, born in Pūrvaphalguni star, and the incarnation of Vishnu.
• there is a relationship between the planet Venus, born in Pushyami star, and the incarnation of Bhargava Rama[33].
• there is a relationship between the planet Saturn, born in Rēvati star, and the incarnation of Kurma[34].
• there is a relationship between the planet Rāhu[35], born in Bharani star, and the incarnation of Varāha[36].
• there is a relationship between the planet Ketu[37], born in Aslesha star, and the incarnation of Matsya[38].
The time you asked me was a time of divine secrecy. I presume that Lord Datta, who controls the existence and fate of crores[39] and crores of planets, stars and greater universes, may Himself be born.’
Word References
[1] Amsa Avatars; a part of God that has descended and taken to form
[2] Temple in Pithapuram mainly dedicated to Lord Shiva
[3] Self-born form of Lord Dattatreya
[4] Dark age
[5] Pithapuram, as the place where the feet of the asura (demon) Gaya fell
[6] Lineage
[7] Initiation into Gayatri; the Vedic investiture of the sacred thread
[8] Quasi-religious legendary accounts
[9] Brainy, intellectual type of people
[10] Here: Pīthikapura Brahmana Samājam
[11] According to the Indian scriptures offsprings of the divine cow Kamadhenu, also called the Mother of the World
[12] Today the town of Samalkota/Samalarkota near Kakinada, in Andhra Pradesh
[13] A measure for a unit of land that produces an equal amount of grain for 2,400 to 3,000 seers
[14] Here: Gohatya
[15] The branch of the Dharma Sastras (Hindu law books) to which a particular individual Brahmin owes his lineage to
[16] One of the sixteen Avatars of Lord Dattatreya, as the fire of time
[17] 5 Worship of Sani (the embodiment of Saturn) or Lord Shiva on Saturday evening
[18] Foster parents of Lord Krishna
[19] Members of the merchant community
[20] A self-manifested Shiva lingam
[21] A coin of money that equals to four Indian Rupees.
[22] Kāla
[23] Karma
[24] Ajnana
[25] Name of the elephant-headed god Ganesha
[26] Maha Prasād
[27] The elephant of Indra
[28] Here: Maha Purusha
[29] One of twenty-seven star constellations (Nakshatras), like the following birth stars
[30] The Sun
[31] The Moon
[32] Mercury
[33] Parashurama, the 6th avatar of Vishnu
[34] The 2nd avatar of Vishnu as a tortoise
[35] North Node, ascending node of the Moon
[36] The third avatar of Vishnu as boar
[37] South Node, descending node of the Moon
[38] The first avatar of Vishnu as fish
[39] Indian number; a crore corresponds to ten millions
Video of Part 1 Chapter 6 of The Story of Narasāvadhāni – Sripada Srivallabha Charitramrutam (English)
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Video of Part 1 Chapter 6 of The Story of Narasāvadhāni – Sripada Srivallabha Charitramrutam (Telugu) – Coming soon
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