Naraharitirtha

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Narahari Tirtha
Religion Hinduism
Order Vedanta
Philosophy Dvaita
Personal
Born Shyama Shastri [1]
Kalinga, modern day Odisha or Andhra Pradesh
Guru Madhvacharya
Disciple(s) Madhava Tirtha

Narahari Tirtha (d. 1333 CE)(officially known in Madhva Parampare as ಶ್ರೀ ಶ್ರೀ ೧೦೦೮ ಶ್ರೀ ನರಹರಿತೀರ್ಥ ಶ್ರೀಪಾದಂಗಳವರು) was a scholar and one of the disciples of Madhvacharya and the 3rd pontiff of Uttaradi Math. He is considered to be the progenitor of the Haridasa movement along with Sripadaraja. [2] Though only 2 of his scholarly works are extant, they are characterised by their verbosity and lack of digressions. [3] A few songs of his survive under the nom de plume Raghukulatilaka. As a minister of considerable influence to the Eastern Ganga rulers and later as the pontiff of Madhvacharya mutt, Narahari converted the Simhachalam temple into an educational establishment of renown and a religious centre for Vaishnavism. [4]

Madhvacharya Hindu philosopher who founded Dvaita Vedanta school

Madhvacharya, sometimes anglicised as Madhva Acharya, and also known as Pūrna Prajña and Ānanda Tīrtha, was a Hindu philosopher and the chief proponent of the Dvaita (dualism) school of Vedanta. Madhva called his philosophy Tatvavāda meaning "arguments from a realist viewpoint".

Haridasa

The Haridasa devotional movement originated in Karnataka, India, after Madhvacharya, and spread to eastern states such as Bengal and Assam of medieval India. Over a span of nearly six centuries, several saints and mystics helped shape the culture, philosophy and art of South India in general and Karnataka in particular by exerting considerable spiritual influence over the masses and kingdoms that ruled South India.

Sripadaraja Incarnation of Dhruva

Sripadaraya or Lakshminarayana Tirtha (c.1422-c.1480) was a Dvaita scholar, composer and the pontiff of the Madhvacharya mutt at Mulbagal. He is widely considered as the founder of Haridasa movement along with Narahari Tirtha. His songs and hymns, written under the nom-de-plume of Ranga Vitthala, contain the distillation of Dvaita principles infused with mysticism and humanism. He is also credited with the invention of the suladi musical structure and composed 133 of them along with several kirtanas. He was the advisor of Saluva Narasimha Deva Raya and mentored the young Vyasatirtha. He has also authored a commentary on Jayatirtha's Nyaya Sudha called Vagvajra.

Contents

Life

Nothing is known about his early life except that he served as a minister in the Eastern Ganga Kingdom in Kalinga (modern day Odisha) and later as a regent in the stead of Narasimha Deva II before his ordination as a monk. Information about his life is derived from a hagiography called Narahariyatistotra, Narayana Pandita's Madhva Vijaya and inscriptions from the Srikurmam and Simhachalam temples, all of which attest to his regency. The inscriptions also allude to his expertise in scriptures and swordsmanship. [5] Sharma conjectures from the presence and contents of the inscriptions that post 1281 C.E he was "the virtual overlord of the country". [6] At the height of his power, he built the Yogananda Narasimha Temple in Srikurmam and defended the city from attacks of vandals. [7] There is also evidence that he was patronised by Bhanudeva I and his ward Narasimha Deva II and also that he disseminated the philosophy of Madhva throughout Kalinga. [8] His mortal remains rest at Charkratirtha near Hampi.

Odisha State in Eastern India

Odisha is one of the 29 states of India. Located in eastern India, it is surrounded by the states of West Bengal to the north-east, Jharkhand to the north, Chhattisgarh to the west and north-west, and Andhra Pradesh to the south. Odisha has 485 kilometres (301 mi) of coastline along the Bay of Bengal on its east, from Balasore to Ganjam. It is the 9th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. It is also the 3rd most populous state of India in terms of tribal population. Odia is the official and most widely spoken language, spoken by 36.6 million according to the 2016 Census.

Hagiography biography of a Christian saint

A hagiography is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader. The term hagiography may be used to refer to the biography of a saint or highly developed spiritual being in any of the world's spiritual traditions.

Sri MadhwaVijaya

Madhwa Vijaya or "The story of the victory of Madhva" is a biography of the great Dvaita philosopher Sri Madhvacharya. It is authored by Sri Narayana Panditacharya, who was the son of Sri Trivikrama Panditacharya, one of the direct disciples of Madhvacharya. Sri Trivikrama Panditacharya was a famous advaita exponent of his time and converted himself to the Madhva faith after disputation with Sri Madhvacharya himself for 7–8 days in Kasargod of Kerala. He is also the author of the famous "Vayu Stuti" which is recited by all devote Madhvas, daily, till date.

Works and Legacy

Narahari's treatise on the Gita Bhashya of Madhva called Bhavaprakashika is considered to be an important work in the Dvaita Cannon, being referenced by Jayatirtha and Raghavendra Tirtha. Sharma notes that Narahari expands upon the obscure passages in the source text and directs polemical barbs against the commentaries by Sankara and Ramanuja. [9] Though presumably not of Kannada origin, many of his works were in that language although only three of his compositions in Kannada survive . Narahari and Sripadaraja are considered to be the forerunners of the Haridasa movement by penning songs and hymns, mostly containing the teachings of Madhva in simplified terms and set to music in the vernacular Kannada language. Traditionally, Narahari is also considered to be the founder of Yakshagana and Bayalaata, a dance form which still flourishes in parts of Karnataka and Kasargod in present-day Kerala.

Jayatirtha Dvaita seer

Sri Jayatirtha or Jayateertharu, also known asTeekacharya was a Hindu philosopher, dialectician, polemicist and the sixth pontiff of Madhvacharya Peetha. He is considered to be one of the most important seers in the history of Dvaita school of thought on account of his sound elucidations of the works of Madhvacharya. He is credited with structuring the philosophical aspects of Dvaita and through his polemical works, elevating it to an equal footing with the contemporary schools of thought. Along with Madhva and Vyasatirtha, he is venerated as one of the three great spiritual sages, or munitraya of Dvaita.

Raghavendra Tirtha Hindu guru

Shri Raghavendra (c.1595–c.1671) was a Hindu scholar, theologian and saint. He was also known as Sudha Parimalacharya. His diverse oeuvre include commentaries on the works of Madhva, Jayatirtha and Vyasatirtha, interpretation of the Principal Upanishads from the standpoint of Dvaita and a treatise on Purva Mimamsa. He served as the pontiff of the Madhvacharya Mutt at Kumbakonam from 1624 to 1671. Raghavendra was also an accomplished player of the Veena and he composed several songs under the name of Venu Gopala. His shrine at Mantralayam attracts thousands of visitors every year.

Adi Shankara Hindu philosopher monk of 8th century

Adi Shankara was an early 8th century Indian philosopher and theologian who consolidated the doctrine of Advaita Vedanta. He is credited with unifying and establishing the main currents of thought in Hinduism.

Notes

1. ^ The songs are yanthu marulade nanenthu, hariye idu sariye and hariye idu sariye

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References

  1. ↑ Sharma 200, p. 297.
  2. ↑ Rice 1982, p. 77.
  3. ↑ Sharma 2000, p. 299.
  4. ↑ Sundaram 1969, p. 77.
  5. ↑ Sharma, p. 296.
  6. ↑ Sharma, p. 298.
  7. ↑ Banerji, p. 271.
  8. ↑ Rao 1901, p. 44.
  9. ↑ Sharma, p. 299.

Bibliography

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