srIvaishNava guru paramparai thaniyans

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 Preface
sri:
srimathE rAmAnujAya nama:
srimadh varavaramunayE nama:
sri vAnAchala mahAmunayE nama:

lakshminAtha samArambhAm nAtha yAmuna madhyamAm

asmadhAchArya paryanthAm vandhE guru paramparAm

I worship the glorious guru paramparai which starts with sriman nArAyaNan, has
nAthamuni and yAmunAchAriar in the middle and ends with my Acharyan.

This divine slOkam was rendered by kUrathAzhwAn to glorify our guru paramparai.
According to him, asmadhAchArya means emperumAnAr because emperumAnAr was
his AchAryan. But in general, asmadhAchArya means ones own AchAryan.

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Our dharisanam is called emperumAnAr dharisanam by namperumAL as maNavALa
mAmunigaL identifies in upadhEsa rathina mAlai. It was emperumAnAr who re-
established the sanAthana dharmam (eternal way of life) during his life time. He took
the message from his predecessors nAthamuni, ALavandhAr, etc and presented it to
everyone in a very simple manner.

Guru and AchArya are synonyms. Guru means one who clears the ignorance. AchArya
means one who has learnt sAsthram, follows it himself and also makes others follow the
same. Guru paramparai means unbroken lineage of AchAryas. Our srivaishnava guru
paramparai starts with none other than sriman nArAyaNan himself as we see in this
lakshminAtha samArambhAm slOkam. It is out of the unbounded mercy of sriman
nArAyaNan, he himself takes up the responsibility of clearing the ignorance in the minds
of samsAris (jIvAthmAs who are bound in this material world) to rescue them and give
them the ever lasting blissful life in paramapadham. So he became the first AchArya in
our guru paramparai and taught the valuable meanings in sAsthram.

thaththva jnAnan mOksha lAbha: declares sAsthram. By acquiring real knowledge we

get liberated. All the real knowledge we have now, has been received through this
unbroken chain of spiritual teachers. So, it is very appropriate to know more about our
AchAryas and discuss about their lives and instructions all the time.

This is a humble effort from adiyen to list out the thaniyans for all the AchAryas of our
glorious guru paramaparai. It is in practice of elders that the thaniyans of OrAN vazhi
AchAryas are recited everyday after applying Urdhva puNdram and other AchAryas
thaniyans are recited atleast during their monthly/annual thirunakshathram days.

adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan

Email: sarathy.thothathri@gmail.com
Web: http://ponnadi.blogspot.com , http://guruparamparai.wordpress.com
kArthigai swAthi (November 30, 2013) (3rd release)

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 thaniyans
thaniyan is an invocatory verse of glorification to an AchArya which is usually
composed/submitted by a sishya. kUrathAzhwAn explains our guru paramparai in a
beautiful slOkam (which is recited as part of our nithyAnusandhAnam).

lakshmInAtha samArambAm nAtha yAmuna madhyamAm

asmadhAchArya paryanthAm vandhE guru paramparAm

Simple translation: I worship our guru paramparai which starts with srIman nArAyaNan
(who is the husband of srI mahAlakshmi), has nAthamunigaL and yAmunAchAryar in
the middle and ends with my own AchArya. For AzhwAn, asmadhAchArya means
emperumAnAr (srI rAmAnujar) who was his own AchArya and for all of us its own
samAsrayaNa AchAryan (the one who performs pancha samskAram to us).

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Let us see the thaniyan for all our pUrvAchAryas. We will start with the OrAN vazhi guru
paramaparai (which starts with periya perumAL and ends with maNavALa mAmunigaL).
Subsequently, we will see the thaniyans for AzhwArs and all other pUrvAchAryas in our
sath sampradhAyam.

periya perumAL (AvaNi rOhiNi)

srI sthanAbharaNam thEja: srIrangEsayam AsrayE

chinthAmaNi mivOthvAntham uthsangE ananthabhOgina:

:
:

I reach out to srI ranganAthan who is a beautiful ornament decorating srI

mahAlakshmis breasts, who is a great radiance himself, who is resting in srI rangam
and who is like a crown jewel on the lap of Adhi sEshan.

periya pirAtti (panguni uthram)

nama: sriranga nAyakyai yath brO vibhrama bhEthatha:

IsEsithavya vaishamya nimnOnnatham itham jagath

: :

I worship srI ranganAchiyAr whose eyebrow movements (her desire and reaction
revealed through that) determines the fate of jIvAthmAs (whether one is rich or poor,
learned or illiterate, etc).

sEnai mudhaliAr (ippasi pUrAdam)

srIrangachandhramasam indhirayA viharthum

vinyasya visvachidha chinnayanAdhikAram
yO nirvahathya nisamanguLi mudhrayaiva
sEnAnyam anya vimukAs thamasi sriyAma

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vishwaksEnar is the one who controls all jIvAthmAs and achEthanams (matter) through
the powers given by emperumAn, after letting the beautiful moon of srI rangam (periya
perumAL srI ranganAthan) enjoy divine pastimes with srI ranganAchiyAr. We accept
such vishwaksEnar as our sole refuge.

nammAzhwAr (vaikAsi visAkam)

mAthA pithA yuvadhayas thanayA vibhUthi:

sarvam ya dhEva niyamEna madh anvayAnAm
Adhyasyana: kulapathEr vakuLAbhirAmam
srImath thadhangri yugaLam praNamAmi mUrdhnA

I bow my head down at the lotus feet of nammAzhwAr who is our

(srIvaishNavas/prapannas) leader and the head of our clan, who is decoared with
maghizham flowers and whose lotus feet are filled with srIvaishNava srI (divine wealth).
For my descendants, he is everything mother, father, consort, children, great wealth
and everything else.

nAthamunigal (Ani anusham)

nama: achinthya adhbudha aklishta jnAna vairAgya rAsayE

nAthAya munayE agAdha bhagavadh bhakthi sindhavE

I offer my obeisances to nAthamunigaL who is filled with knowledge about bhagavAn

and detachment from wordly matters that cannot be quantified and are extraordinary,
who is constantly meditating on bhagavAn and is an ocean of deep devotion towards
bhagavAn.

uyyakkondAr (chithrai kArthigai)

nama: pankaja nEthrAya nAtha: sri pAdha pankajE

nyastha sarva bharAya asmath kula nAthAya dhImathE

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 : :

I offer my obeisances to puNdarikAkshar who was totally surrendered to

nAthamunigaLs lotus feet, who is the leader of our prapanna kulam and who is most
knowledgable.

maNakkAl nambi (mAsi magam)

ayathnathO yAmunam Athma dhAsam alarkka pathrArppaNa nishkrayENa

ya: krIthvAnAsthitha yauvarAjyam namAmitham rAmamEya sathvam

I worship maNakkAl nambi who is named srI rAma misra and was greatly intelligent in
easily reforming the princely yAmunAchArya simply by giving him thUthuvaLai leaves.

ALavandhAr (Adi uthrAdam)

yath padhAmbhOruhadhyAna vidhvasthAsEsha kalmasha:

vasthuthAmupayA dhOham yAmunEyam namAmitham

I worship yAmunAchAryar by whose mercy my defects have been removed and I have
become an identifiable object, i.e., previously I was like asath (matter) and now I have
realized that I am sath (soul) after meditating on the lotus feet of yAmunAcharya.

periya nambi (mArgazhi kEttai)

kamalApathi kalyANa guNAmrutha nishEvayA

pUrNa kAmAya sathatham pUrNAya mahathE nama:

I offer my obeisances to mahA purNa who is always self-satisfied by constantly enjoying

the divine auspicious qualities of srIman nArAyaNan.

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 emperumAnAr (chithrai thiruvAdhirai)

yOnithyam achyutha padhAmbuja yugma rukma

vyAmOhathas thathitharANi thruNAya mEnE
asmadhgurOr bhagavathOsya dhayaikasindhO:
rAmAnujasya charaNau sharaNam prapadhyE

I take shelter at the lotus feet of srI rAmAnuja who out of great attachment for the
lotus/golden feet of achyutha (srIman nArAyaNa) considers everything else as a blade
of grass (not worthy), who is my AchArya, who is perfect in divine qualities such as
knowledge, devotion, etc., and who is an ocean of mercy.

embAr (thai punarpUsam)

rAmAnuja padha chAyA gOvindhAhva anapAyinI

thadhA yaththa svarUpA sA jIyAn madh visramasthalee

gOvindha bhattar who is inseparable from srI rAmAnuja like the shadow of the lotus feet
and the one who realised his true nature by taking refuge at srI rAmAnujas lotus feet, is
the shade giving abode for me (where I can be relieved from my miseries). Let that
embAr be victorious.

bhattar (vaikAsi anusham)

srI parAsara bhattArya srIrangEsa purOhitha:

srIvathsAnga sutha: srImAn shrEyasE mEsthu bhUyasE

:
:

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Let srI parAsara bhattar bestow me with all auspiciousness. He is the purOhith of srI
ranganAthan, the son of srIvathsAngar (AzhwAn) and is greatly filled with kainkaryasrI
(wealth of servitude).

nanjIyar (panguni uthram)

namO vEdhAntha vEdhyAya jagan mangaLa hEthavE

yasya vAgAmruthAsAra bhUritham bhuvana thrayam

My obeisances belong to vEdhAnthi nanjIyar whose nectarean words have filled the 3
worlds and who brings auspicious to all 3 worlds.

nampiLLai (kArthigai kArthigai)

vEdhAntha vEdhya amrutha vArirAsEr

vEdhArtha sAra amrutha pUramagryam
AdhAya varshantham aham prapadhyE
kAruNya pUrNam kalivairidhAsam

I take shelter of kalivairidhAsar (nampiLLai) who extracted (and is teaching) the glorious
essence of the nectarean vEdham from vEdhAnthi nanjIyar who himself is an ocean of
nectarean principles, who is filled with mercy (like a cloud filled with water).

vadakku thiruvIdhi piLLai (Ani swAthi)

sri krishna pAdha pAdhAbjE namAmi sirasA sadhA

yath prasAdha prabhAvEna sarva sidhdhirabhUnmama

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I constantly bow down at the lotus feet of srI krishNa (vadakku thiruvIdhi piLLai) through
whose mercy I acquired knowledge, devotion, detachment, etc.

piLLai lOkAchAryar (ippasi thiruvONam)

lOkAchArya guravE krishNa pAdhasya sUnavE

samsAra bhOgi santhashta jIva jIvAthavE nama:

I offer my obeisances to piLLai lOkAchAryar who is the son of srI krishNa (vadakku
thiruvIdhi piLLai), who has a fully qualified AchArya, who is the medicine for the
jIvAthmAs who are bitten by the poisonous snake called samsAram.

thiruvAimozhi piLLai (vaikAsi visAkam)

nama srIsailanAthAya kunthI nagara janmanE

prasAdhalabdha parama prApya kainkaryasAlinE

My obeisances belong to srIsaila nAtha (thirumalai AzhwAr thiruvAimozhi piLLai) who

was born in kunthI nagar, one who achieved the ultimate kainkaryam (by the grace of
his AchAryan).

azhagiya manavALa mAmunigal (ippasi thirumUlam)

srIsailEsa dhayA pAthram dhIbhakthyAdhi guNArNavam

yathIndhra pravaNam vandhE ramya jAmAtharam munim

I glorify azhagiya maNavALa mAmunigaL who is the target of thirumalai AzhwArs

mercy, who is an ocean of auspicious qualities such as knowledge, devotion, etc. and
who is greatly attached to yathIndhra (srI rAmAnuja).

AzhwArs and several other AchAryas also are considered to be part of our srivaishnava
guru paramparai.

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The AzhwArs in order are:

poigai AzhwAr (ippasi thiruvONam)

kAnchyAm sarasi hEmAbjE jAtham kAsAra yOgiNam

kalayE ya: sriya:pathi ravim dhIpam akalpayath

: :

I meditate on poigai AzhwAr who was born in the pond in thiruvekkA (kAnchIpuram) out
of a golden lotus flower and who lit the divine lamp using the radiant sun to have the
vision of srIman nArAyaNan.

bhUdhathAzhwAr (ippasi avittam)

mallApura varAdhIsam mAdhavI kusumOdhbhavam

bhUtham namAmi yO vishNOr gYAnadhIpam akalpayath

I worship bhUthathAzhwAr who is the leader of thirukkadalmallai (mAmallapuram) and

was born out of a mAdhavI (spring) flower and who lit the lamp of knowledge to have
the vision of the supreme lord.

pEyAzhwAr (ippasi sathayam)

dhrushtvA hrushtam thadhA vishNum ramayA mayilAdhipam

kUpE rakthOthpalE jAtham mahathAhvayam AsrayE

I surrender unto pEyAzhwAr who is the leader of mylApUr and was born out of a red lilly
flower in a well and who attained great bliss by having the divine vision of srIman
nArAyaNan with srI mahAlakshmi.

thirumazhisai AzhwAr (thai magam)

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sakthi panchamaya vigrahAthmanE sUkthikArajatha chiththa hAriNE
mukthidhAyaka murAri pAdhayOr bhakthisAra munayE namO nama:

My obeisances unto thirumazhisai AzhwAr who resembles the essence of bhakthi

towards the lotus feet of murAri (emperumAn who killed mura) who can bestow us the
divine mOksham. He holds the divine form of emperumAn which is made of divine
matter (In this material world, our form/body is made of pancha bhUthams earth,
water, fire, air and ether. But bhagavAns form is made of pancha upanishadh
vishwam, nivruththa:, sarva:, paramEshti, pumAn) in his heart and is most attractive to
view. Another interpration is, the one wearing the necklace won over from king sUkthri
hAran.

madhurakavi AzhwAr (chithrai chithrai)

avidhitha vishayAntharas chatArEr upanishadhAm upagAna mAthra bOga:

api cha guNa vachAth thadhEka sEshi madhurakavir hrudhayE mamAvirasthu

Let madhurakavi AzhwAr be firmy established in my heart. He did not know any one
other nammAzhwAr, considered singing nammAzhwArs pAsurams as the only
enjoyable activity and naturally considered nammAzhwAr as his only master.

nammAzhwAr (vaikAsi visAkam)

mAthA pithA yuvadhayas thanayA vibhUthi:

sarvam ya dhEva niyamEna madh anvayAnAm
Adhyasyana: kulapathEr vakuLAbhirAmam
srImath thadhangri yugaLam praNamAmi mUrdhnA

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I bow my head down at the lotus feet of nammAzhwAr who is our
(srIvaishNavas/prapannas) leader and the head of our clan, who is decoared with
maghizham flowers and whose lotus feet are filled with srIvaishNava srI (divine wealth).
For my descendants, he is everything mother, father, consort, children, great wealth
and everything else.

kulasEkarAzhwAr (mAsi punarpUsam)

gushyathE yasya nagarE rangayAthrA dhinE dhinE

thamaham sirasA vandhE rAjAnam kulasEkaram

I bow my head down and worship kulasEkara AzhwAr in whose capital city there is
constant hailing about srIranga yAthrai (travelling to srIrangam).

periyAzhwAr (Ani swAthi)

gurumukam anadhIthya prAhavE thAn asEshAn

narapathi parikluptham sulkamAdhAthu kAma:
svasuram amara vandhyam ranganAthasya sAkshAth
dhvija kula thilakam vishNuchiththam namAmi

I worship periyAzhwAr who proclaimed the essence of vEdham (without learning it from
an AchArya methodically he was directly blessed by bhagavAn with divine
blemsishless knowledge) to win over pouch containing gold at the pAndiya kings
assembly and who is the direct father-in-law of srI ranganAthan (due to him being the
father of ANdAL nAchiyAr) and who is the leader of brAhmaNas.

ANdAL (Adi pUram)

nILA thunga sthanagiri thatI suptham uthpOdhya krishNam

pArArthyam svam sruthi satha siras sidhdham adhyApayanthI
svOchishtAyAm srajinikaLitham yAbalAth kruthya bhungthE
gOdhA thasyai nama itham itham bhUya EvAsthu bhUya:

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 :

I offer my obeisances to gOdhA dhEvi again and again. She is the one who woke up
krishNa who was resting on the breasts of nILA dhEvi, the one who announced her
pArathanthriyam (which is the ultimate principle highlighted in vEdham) to bhagavAn
himself and the one who fully enjoyed emperumAn who wore the garlands that were
once worn by her.

thondaradippodi AzhwAr (mArgazhi kEttai)

thamEva mathvA paravAsudhEvam rangEsayam rAjavadharhaNiyam

prAbhOdhikIm yOkrutha sUkthimAlAm bhakthAngrirENum bhagavanthamIdE

I glorify thoNdaradippodi AzhwAr who composed thiruppaLLiyeLuchi to awake srI

ranganAthan considering him the same as paravAsudhEvan and who is to be pampered
like an emperor.

thiruppANAzhwAr (kArthigai rOhiNi)

ApAtha chUdam anubhUya harim chayAnam

madhyE kavEra hithur mudhithAnthrAthmA
adhrashtruthAm nayanayOr vishayAntharANAm
yO nischikAya manavai munivAhananm tham

We meditate on thiruppANAzhwAr who is named munivAhanar (one who was carried by

lOka sAranga mahAmunivar on his shoulders), who acquired great bliss by enjoying srI
ranganAthan who is resting in srIrangam that is covered by the two cauvery rivers

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(kAviri and koLLidam) and who proclaimed that his eyes would not see anything other
than srI ranganAthans divine form.

thirumangai AzhwAr (kArthigai kArthigai)

kalayAmi kalidhvamsam kavim lOka dhivAkAram

yasya gObi: prakAsAbir Avidhyam nihatham thama:

: :

I meditate on thirumangai AzhwAr who is named kalikanRi, who is a radiant sun among
poets and through whose radiant words the ignorance in the mind was dispelled
completely.

The AchAryas (who are not in OrANvazhi guru paramparai) include (but not limited to):

kurugai kAvalappan (thai visAkam)

nAthamauni padhAsaktham gyAnayOgAthi sampadham

kurukAthipa yOghIndhram namAmi sirasA sadhA

I constantly bow down at the lotus feet of kurugai kAvalappan who is greatly attached to
the lotus feet of nAthamunigaL, who has the great wealth of gyAna yOgam and bhakthi
yOgam and who is the best amongst yOgis.

thiruvarangapperumAL arayar (vaikAsi, kEttai)

srIrAmamisra padha pankaja sancharIkam

srIyAmunArya vara puthram aham guNAdyam

I glorify thiruvarangapperumAL arayar who stayed like a beetle in the lotus feet of
maNakkAl nambi, who is the divine son of yAmunAchAryar, who is filled with auspicious
qualities, who was born by the divine grace of srI ranganAthan and who had srI
bhAshyakArar as his sishya.

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 thirukkOshtiyUr nambi (vaikAsi, rOhiNi)

srIvallabha padhAmbhOja dhIbhakthyamrutha sAgaram

srImadhgOshtIpurIpUrNam dhEsikEndhram bhajAmahE

We take refuge at the lotus feet of thirukkOshtiyUr nambi who is an ocean of nectar for
knowledge and devotion at the lotus feet of srIman nArAyaNan who is the consort of srI
mahAlakshmi and who is best among AchAryas.

periya thirumalai nambi (vaikAsi, swAthI)

pithAmahasyApi pithAmahAya prAchEthasAdhEchapalapradhAya

srIbhAshyakArOththama dhEchikAya srIchailapUrNAya namO nama: sthAth

I repeatedly worship srIsaila pUrNa who is the grand father of brahmA who is the grand
father of the entire creation (as nambi was called father by thiruvEnkatamudaiyAn who
is the father of brahmA), who is a wonderful AchArya for srI bhAshyakAra and who
instructed the deep meanings of vAlmIki rAmAyaNa to srI bhAshyakAra.

thirumAlai ANdAn (mAsi, magam)

rAmAnuja munIndhrAya dhrAmidI samhithArththadham

mAlAdhara gurum vandhE vAvadhUkam vipaschitham

I worship the AchArya named thirumAlai ANdAn who expertly explained the divine
meanings of thiruvAimozhi which is hailed as dhrAvida vEdham to srI rAmAnuja muni
and who was most intelligent.

thirukkachi nambi (mAsi, mrugasIrsham)

dhEvarAja dhayApAthram srI kAnchi pUrNam uththamam

rAmAnuja munEr mAnyam vandhEham sajjanAsrayam

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I worship thirukkachi nambi who is the object of srI varadharAjas mercy, who is best
among vaishNavas, who was greatly respected by srI rAmAnuja muni and who was
flocked by many srIvaishNavas.

mARanEri nambi (Ani, Ayilyam)

yAmunAchArya sachchishyam rangasthalanivAsinam

gyAnabhakthyAdhijaladhim mARanErigurum bhajE

I worship mARanEri nambi who is a dear sishya of yAmunAchArya, who lives in

srIrangam periyakOil and who is an ocean of knowledge, devotion, etc.

kUrathAzhwAn (thai hastham)

srIvathsa chinna misrEbyO nama ukthima dhImahE:

yadhukthayas thrayi gaNtE yaanthi mangaLa sUthradhAm:

:
:

We offer our obeisances towards srIvathsAnga misra whose divine sthOthrams are like
mangaLasUthram for vEdham, i.e., they reveal that srIman nArAyaNan is the supreme
clearly.

mudhaliyAndAn (chithrai punarpUsam)

pAdhukE yathirAjasya kathayaNthi yadhAkyayA

thasya dhAsarathE: pAdhau chirasA dhArayAmyaham

I decorate my head with mudhaliyANdAns lotus feet. He is named dhAsarathi and srI
yathirAjas sandals are named after him as mudhaliyANdAn.

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 aruLaLa permAL emperumAnAr (kArthigai bharaNi)

rAmAnujArya sachchishyam vEdhasAsthrArtha sampadham

chathurthAsrama sampannam dhEvarAja munim bhajE

I take refuge of dhEvarAja muni (aruLALa perumAL emperumAnAr) who is a dear

sishya of emperumAnAr, who has the great wealth of having understood the in-depth
meanings of vEdham and who is situated in sannyAsAsramam.

kOil komANdUr iLayavilli AchAn (chithrai Ayilyam)

srI kausikAnvaya mahAmbhuthi pUrNachandhram

srI bhAshyakAra jananI sahajA thanujam
srIsailapUrNa padha pankaja saktha chiththam
srIbAladhanvi guruvaryam aham bhajAmi

I worship srI bAladhanvi guru who is like a shining moon for the ocean of kausika clan,
who is the son of srI bhAshyakAras mothers sister, who has his mind fully attached to
the lotus feet of srI saila pUrNa.

kidAmbi AchAn (chithrai hastham)

rAmAnuja padhAmbhOjayugaLI yasya dhImatha:

prApyam cha prApakam vaNdhE pranNathArththiharam gurum

I worship the most intelligent praNathArthihara guru who considered the lotus feet of srI
rAmAnuja as his means and ultimate goal.

vaduga nambi (chithrai aswini)

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rAmAnujArya sachchishyam sALagrAma nivAsinam
panchamOpAya sampannam sALagrAmAryam AsrayE

I take shelter of vaduga nambi who is a dear sishya of emperumAnAr, who lived in
sALagrAmam and who was an expert in panchamOpAyam (AchArya nishtai).

vangi purathu nambi

bhArathvAja kulOthbhUtham lakshmaNArya padhAsritham

vandhE vangipurAdhIsam sampUrNAyam krupAnidhim

I worship vangi purathu nambi who is born in bhArathwAja clan, who has taken shelter
of srI rAmAnuja, who is filled with mercy and who is the leader of vangipuram.

sOmAsi ANdAn (chithrai, thiruvAdhirai)

naumi lakshmaNa yOgIndhra pAdhasEvaika dhArakam

srIrAmakrathunAthAryam srIbhAshyAmrutha sAgaram

I worship sOmAsiyANdAn who performed menial services (with great joy) to srI
rAmAnuja to sustain himself, who is an ocean of knowledge in srIbhAshyam and who is
named srI rAma.

piLLai uRangAvilli dhAsar (mAsi Ayilyam)

jAgarUga dhanushpANim pANau katgasamanvidham

rAmAnujasparsavEdhim rAdhdhAnthArththa prakAsakam
bhAginEyadhvayayutham bhAshyakAra bharamvaham
rangEsamangaLakaram dhanurdhAsam aham bhajE

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I take shelter of piLLai uRangAvilli dhAsar who never sleeps, who holds bow in one
hand, who holds sword in another hand, who is like a magical pill (which converts iron
into gold when touched), who revealed the essential principles during his lifetime, who
has two nephews (who were great devotees), who managed srI rAmAnujas mutt and
who performs mangaLAsAsanam to srI ranganAthan.

thirukkurukaippirAn piLLAn (ippasi pUrAdam)

dhrAvidAgama sAragyam rAmAnuja padhAsritham

sudhiyam kurukEsAryam namAmi sirasAnhavam

I worship kurugEsAchArya (everyday) who is a well-versed in the essence of dhrAvida

vEdham, who took shelter of srI rAmAnujas lotus feet and who is most intelligent.

engaLAzhwAn (chithrai rOhiNi)

srIvishNuchiththa padha pankaja samsrayAya chEthO mama spruhayathE kimatha:

parENa
nOchEn mamApi yathisEkarabhArathInAm bhAva: katham bhavithumarhathi
vAgvidhEya:

My heart desires to become attached to srI vishNuchiththa. What is the use of anything
but those lotus feet? How would I have mastered yathirAjas divine words had I not
taken shelter of those lotus feet of engaLAzhwAn?

ananthAzwAn (chithrai chithrai)

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akilAthma guNAvAsam agyAna thimirApaham
AsrithAnAm susaraNam vandhE ananthArya dhEsikam

I bow down to the AchArya named ananthAzhwAn who is the abode of all auspicious
qualities, who is the one who dispels the darkness of ignorance and who is the means
for the ones who have taken shelter of him.

thiruvarangathu amudhanAr (panguni hastham)

srIrangE mInahasthE cha jAtham rangAryanandhanam

rAmAnujapadhAskandham ranganAthagurum bhajE

I take shelter of srIranganAtha guru (amudhanAr) who was born on panguni hastham as
the son of rangAryar (aNi arangathamudhanAr) and who has taken shelter of srI
rAmAnujas lotus feet.

nadAthur ammaL (chithrai chithrai)

vandhEham varadhAryam tham vathsAbi janabhUshaNam

bhAshyAmrutha pradhAnAdhya sanjIvayathi mAmapi

I offer my obeisances to varadhAchAryar (nadAthUrammAL) who is the shining jewel of

srIvathsa clan and who awakened my true spirit by teaching me the nectar of
srIbhAshyam.

vEdha vyAsa bhattar (vaikAsi anusham)

pauthram srIrAmamisrasya srIvathsAngasya nandhanam

rAmasUrim bhajE bhattaparAsaravarAnujam

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I take shelter of srI rAma piLLai (vEdha vyAsa bhattar) who is the grand son of srI rAma
misra (kUrathAzhwAr AzhwAns father), who is the son of srIvathsAngar (AzhwAn)
and the younger brother of srI parAsara bhattar.

kUra nArAyaNa jIyar (mArgazhi kEttai)

srIparAsarabhattArya sishyam srIrangapAlakam

nArAyaNamunim vandhE gyAnAdhiguNasAgaram

I worship srI nArAyaNa muni who is a sishya of parAsara bhattar, who protects
srIrangam and who is an ocean of gyAnam (knowledge), bhakthi (devotion), vairAgyam
(renunciation), etc.

srutha prakAsikA bhattar (sudharsana sUri)

yathIndhra krutha bhAshyArthA yadh vyAkyAnEna dharsithA:

varam sudharsanAryam tham vandhE kUra kulAdhipam

I offer my obeisances to sudharsana bhattar who is a leader among the descendants of

kUrathAzhwAn, in whose sruthaprakAsikA vyAkyAnam (commentary) yathirAjas srI
bhAshyam meanings are fully explained and who is glorious.

periyavAchAn piLLai (AvaNi rOhiNi)

srImath krishNa samAhvAya namO yAmuna sUnavE

yath katAkshaika lakshyANam sulabha: srIdharas sadhA

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My worships belong to srI krishNa (periyavAchAn piLLai) who is the son of
yAmunAchArya and by whose mercy srIman nArAyaNan is easily achievable.

eeyuNNi mAdhava perumAL (kArthigai bharaNi)

lOkAchArya padhAmbhOja samsrayam karuNAmbhudhim

vEdhAntha dhvaya sampannam mAdhavAryam aham bhajE

I worship (eeyuNNi) mAdhavAchAryar who has taken shelter at the lotus feet of
lOkAchArya (nampiLLai), who is an ocean of mercy and who has the great wealth of
both samskritha vEdhAntham and dhrAvida vEdhAntham.

eeyuNNi padhmanAbha perumAL (svAthi)

mAdhavAchArya sathputhram thathpAdhakamalAsritham

vAthsalyAdhi guNair yuktham padhmanAbha gurum bhajE

I worship (eeyuNNi) padhmanAbhAchAryar who is a good son of mAdhavAchAryar,

who has taken shelter of mAdhavAchAryar and who is the abode of auspicious qualities
such as vAthsalyam (motherly forbearance), etc.

nAlUr piLLai (pUsam)

chathurgrAma kulOdhbhUtham dhrAvida bhrahma vEdhinam

yagyArya vamsathilakam srIvarAhamaham bhajE

I worship srI varAhar (nAlUr piLLai) who is a descendant of nAlUrAn (kUrathAzhwAns

sishya), who is an ornament among the descendants of echchAn (emperumAnArs
sishya) and who fully knows the essence of dhrAvida vEdham.

nAlUrAchAn piLLai (mArgazhi bharaNi)

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namOsthu dhEvarAjAya chathurgrAma nivAsinE
rAmAnujArya dhAsasya suthAya guNasAlinE

I offer my obeisances to dhEvarAjar (nAlUrAchAn piLLai) who lives in chathurgrAma

(nAlUr), who is the son of rAmAnujArya (another name of nAlUr piLLai) and who is filled
with auspicious qualities.

naduvil thiruvIdhi pillai bhattar (ippasi avittam)

lOkAchArya padhAsaktham madhyavIdhi nivAsinam

srIvathsachihnavamsAbdhisOmam bhattAryamAsrayE

I take shelter of naduvil thiruvIdhi piLLai bhattar who is greatly attached to the lotus feet
of nampiLLai, who lived in naduvil thiruvIdhi (a street in srIrangam), who is like a moon
for the ocean of kUrathAzhwAns clan.

pinbhazhagiya perumAL jIyar (ippasi sathayam)

gyAna vairAgya sampUrNam paschAth sundhara dhEsikamm

dhravidOpanishadh bhAshyathAyinam madh gurum bhajE

I worship my AchArya paschAth sundhara dhEsika (pinbhazhagiya perumAL jIyar) who

is filled with knowledge and detachment (from worldly matters), who explained the
principles of thiruvAimozhi which is called dhrAvida vEdham.

azhagiya manavALa perumAL nAyanAr (mArgazhi avittam)

dhrAvidAmnAya hrudhayam guruparvakramAgatham

ramyajAmAthrudhEvEna dharsitham krishNasUnunA

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azhagiya maNavALa perumAL nAyanAr who is the son of srI krishNa (vadakku
thiruvIdhi piLLai) revealed the divine meanings of thiruvAimozhi (nammAzhwArs divine
heart) which are received through the AchArya paramparai.

nAyanArAchAn piLLai (AvaNi rOhiNi)

sruthyarthasArajanakam smruthibAlamithram
padhmOllasadh bhagavadhangri purANabhandhum
gyAnAdhirAjam abhayapradharAja sUnum
asmath gurum paramakAruNikam namAmi

I worship my most merciful AchAryan who extracts the essence of vEdham, who is like
a sun for the lotus of smruthi, who is eternally related to the lotus feet of srIman
nArAyaNan, who is an emperor of knowledge and is the dear son of abhyapradha rAjar
(periyavAchAn piLLai).

vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar (Ani swAthi)

sundharajAmAthrumunE: prapadhyE charaNAmbhujam

samsArArNava sammagna janthu santhArapOthakam

I surrender unto the lotus feet of vAdhi kEsari azhagiya maNavALa jIyar whose lotus
feet are like a boat that will deliver the jIvAthmAs who are drowning in the ocean of
samsAram.

kUra kulOthama dhAsar (ippasi thiruvAdhirai)

lOkAchArya krupApAthram kauNdinya kula bhUshaNam

samasthAthma guNAvAsam vandhE kUra kulOthamam

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I worship kUra kulOthama dhAsar who is the target of the mercy of piLLai lOkAchAryar,
who is a crown jewel that decorates the kauNdinya clan and who is the abode of all
auspicious qualities.

viLAn chOlai pillai (ippasi uthrattAdhi)

thulAhirbuDhnya samBhUtham srIlOkArya padhAshritham

sapthagAThA pravakthAram nArAyaNamaham bhajE

I worship nArAyaNa (viLAnchOlai piLLai) who was born on thulA (aippasi) month
ahirbhudhnya (uthrattAdhi) nakshathram, who is surrendered to piLLai lOkAchAryar and
who composed saptha kAthai (which is the essence of srI vachana bhUshaNam).

vedhAnthAchAryar (purattAsi thiruvONam)

srImAn vEnkatanAthArya: kavithArkkika kEsarI

vEdhAnthAchAryavaryO mE sannidhaththAm sadhA hrudhi

Let vEdhAnthAchArya live in my heart eternally. He is like a lion for the (opposing) poets
and debators, abode of knowledge, devotion, detachment (from worldly pleasures), etc.
and is known as vEnkatanAtha.

thirunArAyaNapurathu Ay jananyAchAryar (ippasi pUrAdam)

AchArya hrudhayasyArththA: sakalA yEna dharsithA:

srIsAnudhAsam amalam dhEvarAjam thamAsrayE

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After (and during) the period of ManavALa mAmunigal, many glorious AchAryas lived in
our sampradhAyam including (but not limited to):

I take shelter of thirunArAyaNapurathu Ay who explained all the divine meanings of

AchArya hrudhayam, who is blemishless and is also known as srIsAnu dhAsa and
dhEvarAja.

AchAryas after mAmunigaLs time period.

ponnadikkAl jeeyar (purattAsi punarpUsam)

ramya jAmAthru yOghIndhra pAdharEkhA mayam sadhA

thathA yaththAthma saththAdhim rAmAnuja munim bhajE

I worship vAnamAmalai jIyar who is like the imprints of mAmunigaLs lotus feet and who
fully depends on mAmunigaL to establish his true nature (as a servant of mAmunigaL),
sustenance, activities, etc.

pathangi paravasthu pattarpirAn jIyar (kArthigai punarpUsam)

ramya jAmAthru yOgIndhra pAdha sEvaika dhArakam

bhattanAtha munim vandhE vAthsalyAdhi guNArNavam

I worship bhattanAtha muni (paravasthu pattarpirAn jIyar) who sustains himself by

serving mAmunigaLs lotus feet and who is an ocean of auspicious qualities such as
vAthsalyam (motherly forbearance), etc.

kOil kandhAdai aNNan (purattAsi pUrattAdhi)

sakala vEdhAntha sArArtha pUrNAsayam

vipula vAdhUla gOthrOdhbhavAnAm varam
ruchira jAmAthru yOgIndhra pAdhAsrayam
varadha nArAyaNam madh gurum samsrayE

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I take shelter of my AchArya srI varadha nArAyaNa (kOil kanthAdai aNNan) who
beholds all the principles of vEdhAntham in his heart, who is best among the
descendants of the great vAdhUla clan, one who take shelter of the lotus feet of
mAmunigaL.

prathivAdhi bhayankaram aNNan (Adi pUsam)

vEdhAntha dhEsika katAksha vivrudhdhabhOdham

kAnthOpayanthru yamina: karuNaika pAthram
vathsAnvavAyamanavadhya guNairupEtham
bhakthyA bhajAmi paravAthi bhayankarAryam

With devotion, I take shelter of prathivAdhi bhayankaram aNNA whose knowledge

blossomed by the grace of vEdhAntha dhEsika, who is full target of mAmunigaLs
mercy, who was born in srIvathsa clan and who has blemishless and auspicious
qualities.

eRumbiappA (ippasi rEvathi)

saumya jAmAthru yOgIndhra sharanAmbhuja shatpadham

dhEvarAja gurum vandhE dhivya jnAna pradham shubham

I worship dhEvarAja guru who is like a beetle in the lotus feet of mAmunigaL, who
blesses us with divine knowledge and is most auspicious in nature.

appiLLai

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kAnthOpayanthru yOgIndhra charaNAmbhuja shatpadham
vathsAnvayabhavam vandhE praNathArrhthiharam gurum

I worship praNathArthiharar (appiLLai) who is like a beetle at the lotus feet of

maNavALa mAmunigaL and who is born in srIvathsa clan.

appiLLAr

kAnthOpayanthru yOgIndhra sarva kainkaryadhUrvaham

thadhEka dhaivatham saumyam rAmAnuja gurum bhajE

I worship rAmAnujar (appiLLAr) who performed all kainkaryams to mAmunigaL and who
considered mAmunigaL as the only Lord and master.

kOil kandhAdai appan (purattAsi (kanni) magam)

varadhaguru charaNam varavaramunivarya ganakrupA pAthram

pravaraguNa rathna jaladhim praNamAmi srInivAsa guruvaryam

I worship srInivAsAchAryar (kOil kanthAdai appan) who considers the lotus feet of
varadha nArAyaNa guru (kOil kanthAdhai aNNan) as the only means, who is the target
of the great compassion of mAmunigaL and who is an ocean of many auspicious
qualities which are like gems.

srIperumbUthUr Adhi yathirAja jIyar (aippasi pUsam)

srImath rAmAnujAngri pravaNa varamunE: pAdhukam jAthabrungam

srImath vAnAdhri rAmAnuja gaNaguru sathvaibhava sthOthra dhIksham
vAdhUla srInivAsArya charaNasharaNam thath krupA labhdha bhAshyam
vandhE prAgyam yathIndhram varavaradhagurO: prAptha bhakthAmruthArththam

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I worship the most intelligent Adhi yathirAja jIyar who was like a beetle at the lotus feet
of yathIndhra pravaNar (mAmunigaL), who was constantly glorifying the greatness of
vAnamAmalai (ponnadikkAl) jIyar, who learnt srI bhAshyam by the mercy of vAdhUla
srInivAsAchAryar and who learnt thiruvAimozhi (and its meanings) from vAdhula
varadhAchAryar (kOil aNNan).

appAchiyAraNNA (AvaNi hastham)

srImath vAnamahAsaila rAmAnuja munipiryam

vAdhUla varadhAchAryam vandhE vAthsalya sAgaram

I worship vAdhUla varadhAchArya (appAchiyAraNNA) who is very dear to

vAnamAmalai rAmAnuja jIyar (ponnadikkAl jIyar) and who is an ocean of vAthsalyam
(motherly forbearance).

piLLai lOkam jIyar (chithrai thiruvONam)

srIsatAri gurOrdhivya srIpAdhAbhja madhuvratham

srImathyathIndhrapravaNam srI lOkArya munim bhajE

I worship piLLai lOkAchArya jIyar who is like a beetle at the divine lotus feet of srI
satagOpa guru and who is the author of yathIndhra pravaNam (which fully elaborates
the history of maNavALa mAmunigaL).

thirumazhisai aNNAvappangAr (Ani avittam)

srImadh vAdhula narasimha gurOsthanUjam

srImath thadhIya padhapankaja brungarAjam

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srIrangarAja varadhArya krupAththa bhAshyam
sEvE sadhA raguvarAryam udhAracharyam

I constantly serve raghuvarArya (vAdhUla vIra rAgavachAryar aNNAvappangAr) who

is the son of vAdhUla narasimhAchArya, who is always focused on the lotus feet of
narasimhAchArya like a beetle, who learnt srI bhAshyam under both srirangarajAchArya
and varadhAchArya and who is most generous (in blessing others).

appan thiruvEnkata rAmAnuja embAr jIyar

srIvAdhUla ramApravALa ruchira sraksainya nAthAmchaja

srIkurvIndhram mahArya labhdha nijasath saththam chruthA bhIshtatham
srIrAmAnuja mukya dhEsikalasath kainkarya samsthApakam
srImathvEnkatalakshmaNArya yaminam thamsathguNam bhAvayE

I relish in my heart the auspicious qualities of thiruvEnkata rAmAnuja jIyar who is a

brilliant pearl in the garland of srI vAdhUla AchAryas and an amsam of sEnai
mudhaliyAr (it can also be understood as a brilliant AchArya of vAdhUla clan as an
amsam of sEnai mudhaliyAr who is part of the beautiful AchArya rathna mAlai), who is
best among the AchAryas who can bestow whatever is desired by the ones who
approach them and who firmly established many kainkaryams (like thirumanjana
kattiyam, nithya/leelA vibhUthi proclamation during chithrai thiruvAdhirai uthsavam, etc)
for srI rAmAnuja who is the chief among our AchArya paramparai.

bhagavath vishayam thaniyans (thaniyans to be recited during bhagavath vishaya

kAlakshEpam) can be viewed at http://divyaprabandham.koyil.org/?p=1779.

adiyen sarathy ramanuja dasan

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Sources: 6000 padi guru paramparA prabhAvam, yathIndhra pravaNa prabhAvam,
periya thirumudi adaivu

Sincere gratitude to puthUr srI .U.vE. krishNaswamy iyengar for thaniyan translations
(all of thaniyans with simple thamizh meanings are present in a his 6000 padi guru
paramparA prabhAvam, periya thirumudi adaivu and AchAryargaL vaibhavam
publishings). Thanks to srIperumbUthUr Nandakumar swamy for helping in
thirumazhisai aNNAvappangAr and srI perumbUthUr thiruvEnkata rAmAnuja (embAr)
jIyar thaniyans.

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