82 GOLDEN RULES OF SRI RAMANUJACHARYA In his death bed Sri Ramanuja is said to have articulated 82 statements to his disciples. It is not an exaggeration to present these statements as the essence of Sri Vaishnavam. To our understanding, they were meant to be moral aids to his disciples in their relations to God, men and devotees. Golden Rule 10 - Believe that keeping company with and serving devotees are the chief means of gaining heaven, obey their commands Swami Ramanuja directs the attention of his hearers to the importance of associating themselves with devotees who possess divine knowledge. Adi Sankaracharya also laid down “good company” as the cause of extinction of desire. Swami Ramanuja freely mingled with true devotees of God, irrespective of their caste. He washed their feet, ate food left over in their plate, held them with great reverence, and popularized their works. When Kanchi Purna, a great devotee of God, did not let Ramanuja to wash his feet, saying that he is from a low caste, Ramanuja says, pray , noble Sir, is it the wearing of the sacred thread that makes one a Brahmana? He who is devoted to God, he alone is a genuine Brahmana. At another instance, Kanchi Purna refused to accept Ramanuja as his disciple, stating that Ramanuja was a Brahmin well versed in the shatras, while Kanchi Purna was just an ignorant old Sudra. To this Ramanuja replied, If the knowledge of the Sastras only brings about pride instead of devotion to God, then it is false knowledge, better is ignorance than this. You have verily tasted the real essence of the Sastras; other scholars merely carry the burden, like the ass that carries the load of sandalwood. So saying, he fell at the feet of Kanchi Purna and began to weep. Development of character and acquisition of spiritual knowledge are the two essential requirements of a purposeful life. Swami Ramanuja emphasizes the fact that the human beings possess the wisdom to take correct decisions and this in turn is possible only because of his association with pious men. The teachings of such pious men, according to him, demands and deserves our prompt obedience.
Posted on: Thu, 02 Oct 2014 17:49:11 +0000
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