Introduction to Tirtha Prabandha

दानतीर्थतपोयज्ञपूर्वाः सर्वेsपि सर्वदा |

अङ्गानि हरिसेवायां भक्तिस्त्वेका विमुक्तये ||

Sri Madhwacharya, in the very beginning of his mahabharata tatparya nirnaya, has declared, on the basis of the shlokas in the bhavishyat purana, that daana, tapas, yajna and tirthayatra are very important components in the life of a sadhaka in performing hariseva. These help him in improving his dhyana and increase bhakti in him – eventually leading to moksha.

Sri Madhwacharya himself undertook tirthyatras throughout his stay on earth. He visited uttara badari twice and also visited all the important kshetras in bharata. In keeping with this direction given by the venerable Acharya, numerous yatis who have come in the madhwa lineage have, by virtue of their personal examples and through their preachings, have reiterated the importance of tirthayatra in sadhana. Sri Jayatirtha, Sri Vyasaraja, Sri Raghavendra Tirtha and many others had also undertaken extensive teerthayatras.

Taking this one step further, Sri Vadiraja Tirtha went one step ahead and decided to bestow a great favor on all sadhakas by creating a compendium of the various vaishnava tirthakshetras in the four corners of bharata. The result of this effort is the excellent ‘Tirtha Prabandha‘.

This work of Sri Vadiraja, written in padya style, contains 235 shlokas and covers more than 100 kshetras. The kshetras covered include rivers such as Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari and Kaveri, the mahakshetras such as Udupi, Badarinatha, Tirupati, Srirangam and Dwaraka, and also numerous other vaishnava kshetras which have very high spiritual value, but perhaps are not well known in today’s times. The book contains four chapters or prabandhas – paschima prabandha, uttara prabandha, poorva prabandha and dakshina prabandha – thus covering the entire country in clockwise fashion – as if performing a ‘pradakshina’ to this sacred land of bharata khanda.

With the help of Sri R Rao (@Madhvahistory on social media), we are able to ascertain – from the records of the Sode Matha and a few publications – that Sri Vadiraja Tirtha undertook six major travels during his lifespan.

The yatras undertaken by Sri Vadirajaru – Image courtesy Sri @Madhvahistory

The shlokas on the numerous kshetras covered in this work were composed during these travels. The shlokas praise the kshetra and the main dieties of each of these kshetras. They give enormous information from a vedic, puranic and historic angle. For e.g. when describing the maha kshetra of Ayodhya, Sri Vadiraja Tirtha gives an important hint about the destruction of the Rama Janma Bhumi temple in the first half of the 16th Century. While describing the murthy of Sri Vittala at Hampi’s Vijaya Vittala temple, Sri Vadiraja Tirtha gives clues about how the murthy came into the acquisition of the Vijayanagara rulers. Similarly, while describing the kshetra of Kukke, he confirms that the practice of made-snana has been in vogue since centuries now. Thus, the entire composition is a treasure-house of valuable information from multiple angles.

As it gets increasingly difficult to undertake extensive tirthayatras due to lifestyle issues of people, Sri Vadiraja’s Tirtha Prabandha comes to our rescue. He declares at the end of the work that those who even merely chant or listen to the shlokas of this work get immense punya. It is no wonder then that many devout madhwas make it a point to chant this work regularly – to aid their spiritual progress and hariseva through ‘tirthayatra’.

Sri Narayanacharya, one of the direct disciples of Sri Vadiraja Tirtha, has written a commentary on Tirtha Prabandha called as Guru-Bhava-Prakashika. It gives lucid explanations of many of the shlokas. The author has declared that the explanations were personally give by Sri Vadiraja himself. Thus, this ‘vyakhyana‘ assumes a lot of significance in understanding and interpreting Tirtha Prabandha.

It is sincerely hoped that the present work – the English translation of the Tirtha Prabandha – will be of use to those pursuing spiritual progress – and will aid them in understanding the significance of the tirtha kshetras covered.

May hari vayu guru bless all!

Sri Vadiraja Tirtha

Sri Vadiraja Tirtha is one of the most eminent saints in the tattvavada sampradaya of Sri Madhwacharya. Excluding Srimadanandatirtha himself, he is undoubtedly amongst the top four in the mAdhwa lineage, the other three being Sri Jayatirtha, Sri Vyasatirtha and Sri Raghavendra Tirtha. His contributions to Dvaita literature, in terms of original works, commentaries on the works of predecessors, literary works, stotras and theological writings are unmatched in the entire parampara. This, along with numerous theological and cultural contributions he made, give him an outstanding position in the Dvaita hierarchy.

Birth and Childhood

Sri Vadiraja Tirtha was a native of Kumbhasi, near Kundapura, Karnataka. He was born in a village called Hoovinakere, to Sri Ramacharya and Smt Gauri in the year 1480 C.E. He was born due to the blessings of Sri Vagisha Tirtha, the 19th pontiff of the (then) Kumbhasi Matha, one of the 8 mathas of Udupi given charge of the worship of the Krishna temple at Udupi by Sri Madhwa. His biographies narrate an interesting incident leading to him being handed over to the matha at an early age. Sri Vagisha Tirtha had predicted that the first child of the Ramacharya couple would turn out to be a sanyasi, to which the pious couple expressed great resentment. An agreement was then reached according to which the child would be handed over to the matha if he were to be born outside the house.

As fate would have it, on the day of the delivery, Gauri saw some cattle straying into their field and rushed to chase them away. She could not manage to reenter the house due to labor pains and delivered the child in the field itself. The couple named him Varahacharya and at the age of five performed his upanayana and soon handed him over to the matha. Varahacharya was ordained as a sanyasi and was given the ashrama name of Sri Vadiraja. Upon taking over as the uttaradhikari of the matha, he became Sri Vadiraja Tirtha. Sri Vagisha Tirtha had a junior sanyasi called Sri Vidyanidhi who was the initial tutor of Sri Vadiraja. However, he passed away after a few years and Sri Vadiraja then studied under Sri Vagisha Tirtha directly, and also succeeded him as the pontiff of the matha.

Theological contributions

Sri Vadiraja Tirtha’s lifetime on earth lasted a full 120 years, from 1480 C.E to 1600 C.E. He was instrumental in bringing a spiritual and cultural revolution in the region, and indeed in the entire Dvaita parampara. His tapashakti, mantra siddhi and knowledge of shastras is legendary. There are innumerable miracles associated with him during his lifetime. Even today, it is a common practice amongst madhwas to visit his brundavana at Sode, Uttara Kannada and perform ‘seva‘ for a number of days praying for material and spiritual benefits.

Sri Madhwacharya had mandated that the worship of the Udupi Krishna be performed by the 8 sanyasis he anointed taking turns every two months. Sri Vadiraja Tirtha performed the same for a number of years. However, in the early 16th century, he undertook the decision to change the system of ‘paryaya‘ from 2 months to 2 years. This tradition is being continued even today. After changing the system, he himself performed the paryaya for another 5 times!

Closely associated with him is a member of the ‘bhuta‘ gana known as ‘Bhutaraja‘. With the aid of Bhutaraja, Sri Vadiraja Tirtha brought the entire garbha gudi of a Trivikrama temple from Uttara Badarinath. This temple is established at Sode and the worship of ‘Ramaa Trivikrama‘ happens with great devotion till date. Bhutaraja also continues to be worshipped at the Sode matha, with a separate temple built for him inside the matha premises itself.

Sri Vadiraja Tirtha was also closely associated with many rulers of South India. His lifetime spanned 14 rulers of the great Vijayanagara empire. He received royal patronage from Sri Krishnadevaraya and Sri Achyutaraya. In fact, during one of his paryayas, Achyutaraya visited Udupi and rebuilt the ‘Madhwa Sarovara‘ adjoining the Krishna matha. The Nayakas of Sode, the rulers of the Keladi kingdom, were great patrons of Sri Vadiraja. Arasappa Nayaka, one of the rulers of Sode, made a liberal grant to Sri Vadiraja in 1593 C.E due to which the Trivikrama temple came to be constructed at the location where it exists today.

Sri Vadiraja Tirtha established the Shiva idols at Dharmasthala and another one at Sode itself. He brought the Svarnakara (goldsmith) community and the Koteshwara communities of coastal Karnataka into the Madhwa fold by giving them the Vaishnava deeksha. The descendants of these communities are, even today, staunch followers of the Sode matha.

He toured the entire country over many decades and visited almost all the important tirthakshetras in bhArata. The vrttasamgraha talks about Sri Vadiraja winning over many converts in Gujarat and other places. He had numerous debates on siddhanta with Advaitins, Jainas and Saivas during his lifetime. Many of his literary works focus on refuting the philosophy of these three traditions.

Literary contributions

In terms of both variety and style, there is no match for Sri Vadiraja Tirtha in the Vedantic world. His works display a combination of fine poetry, sharp wit and humour, abundance of analogies and amazing logic. His works are in every possible form – kavya, khandana, mandana, teeka, tippani, gadya, padya and others. He composed more than 100 works in Sanskrita, Kannada and Tulu. About 20 of them are major works. More than 50 of them are devotional stotras, many of which are chanted daily by devout madhwas.

His magnum opus is undoubtedly the ‘Yukti Mallika‘. This grantha, in padya form, has 5379 shlokas and elucidates the works of Sri Madhwacharya, Sri Jayatirtha and Sri Vyasatirtha on the Brahmasutra, and its entire family of commentaries (in the Dvaita tradition). An outstanding aspect of this work is the strong reliance on logic, and simplicity of presentation. It would not be wrong to say that Yukti Mallika is the work that made it possible for a common mAdhwa to grasp the essentials of Brahmasutra and its Dvaita–Bhashyas. This work contains 5 chapters – Saurabhas – namely Guna, Shuddhi, Bheda, Vishwa and Phala – which cover the 4 chapters – or Adhyayas –  of Brahmasutras (Samanvaya, Avirodha, Sadhana, Phala).

He has composed glosses on two of Sri Jayatirtha’s important works – the Nyayasudha and the Tattvaprakashika. These are known as the Nyayasudha-Gurvarthadeepika and Tattvaprakashika-gurvarthadeepika respectively and contain 6000 and 3000 shlokas. In these works, Sri Vadiraja makes fine commentaries on critical issues that come up in the original Sutra, Bhashya and the Tikas.

Nyayaratnavali, containing around 900 shlokas, Haribhaktilata, of nearly 400 shlokas, Shruti-tattva-prakashika, of 500-plus shlokas, Ekadashi nirnaya, with 55 shlokas and Pashandamatha-khandana containing around 130 shlokas are his important granthas on shastra written in padya form.

In line with the importance given to the Mahabharata by Sri Madhwacharya, Sri Vadiraja has composed two granthas on this epic. In a first of its kind in the mAdhwa parampara, he composed an elaborate commentary on the Mahabharata called as the Lakshalankara which is notable for its numerous references. This grantha was composed by Sri Vadiraja in order to fulfil the wishes of his mother who had taken a vow to offer a garland containing a lakh jewels to paramatma if she got a worthy son. The words of this work are considered equivalent to jewels thus fulfilling the vow of the mother. He has also composed a commentary on the Mahabharata Tatparya Nirnaya of Sri Madhwacharya. This grantha is known as the Mahabharata-Bhavaprakashika.

Among his poetic works, the one that stands tallest is the ‘Rugminishavijaya’. This poem, containing 19 cantos, is a description of Krishna’s story, specifically revolving around the Rukmini swayamvara and subsequent eloping of her with the Lord. It was composed over 19 days in Pune, in the midst of a vidwat-sabha, as a challenge to the supremacy accorded to Magha’s Shishupala Vadha. Rugminisha vijaya then received great honours in that sabha and was paraded on the streets after being kept on a royal elephant. He has composed another work called as the Sarasa-Bharati-Vilasa which contains 696 shlokas. This work establishes the supremacy of the para-shukla-trayas or Sri-Brahma-Sarasvati-Vayu-Bharati in the hierarchy of Devatas.

As a result of more than 6 tirtha yatras he undertook during his lifetime, Sri Vadiraja composed a metrical work called Tirtha Prabandha, comprising 235 shlokas. This grantha contains 4 Prabandhas covering the whole of bhArata in a circular fashion. Numerous kshetras, acceptable in the mAdhwa tradition, are covered in this work. Beautiful shlokas describing Badarinatha, Udupi, Srirangam, Tirupathi, Dwaraka, Ganga, Kaveri and Tungabhadra adorn this work.

Among the many tens of stotras composed by him, the Dashavatara Stuti composed in the Ashwadhati metre, Krishnashtaka, Mangalashtaka, Navagraha Stuti, Hayagriva panchaka, Prarthana-Dashaka-Stotra and the Vaikunta-Varnanam are the most well known.

In Kannada, he has composed around 8 works including Vaikunta-Varnane, Gundakriye, Svapnapada and Keshavanama. His most famous work in Kannada is the Lakshmi Shobhane. This is a poem describing the appearance of Lakshmi during the Samudramanthana, is known for its miraculous powers, and is compulsorily chanted in all mAdhwa marriages since the days of Sri Vadiraja.

He has also composed several paad-dana (folk-songs) in Tulu, with the ‘le-le-le’, describing the Dashavataras of Vishnu being the most well-known amongst them.

Brundavana

After a long lifespan of 120 years, Sri Vadiraja Tirtha entered the brundavana ‘sa-shareera’ at Sode, Uttara Kannada in 1600 C.E. His brundavana is of a unique style, comprising 5 upa-brundavanas. It is a sacred pilgrimage place for mAdhwas. It is on the banks of the Shalmalee river, close to the place where he regularly performed his tapas.

The Dvaita, and indeed the Vedantic, tradition of bhArata had never seen a more versatile yati prior to Sri Vadiraja Tirtha. It is unlikely to see another one in the future!

tapOvidyA viraktyAdi sadguNaughAkarAnahaM |

vAdirAja gurUn vandE hayagrIva padAshrayAN ||

shrI krishNArpaNamastu

Upasamhara and Mangala

नानावृत्तं स्वयात्राक्रमपरिचितसुक्षेत्रमाहात्म्ययुक्तं

शब्दालङ्कारबद्धं शमलकुलहरश्लाघनीयर्थाहृदयम् |

श्रीनाथप्रीतिहेतोर्हयवदनकृपाम्बोधिसम्भूतरत्नं

चक्रे तीर्थप्रबन्धं बहुगुणभरितं वादिराजो यतीन्द्रः || ४६ ||

The best amongst the yatis, by the name of vadiraja, composed the work called tirthaprabandha – containing numerous vruttas, narrating the greatness of the kshetras that became known due to his own planned sanchara, including many alankaras of the words, containing enchanting meanings that can destroy the entire mound of sins, which is like a jewel that was born in the ocean of the compassion of lord hayagriva, and full of auspicious guNas – to earn the love of srinatha!

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha has composed mangala shlokas to offer his great work at the feet of lord srinatha. He reconfirms through this shloka that he has taken great care to ensure all the shlokas are conformant to the rules of sanskrita grammar and poetry.

lord hayagriva is the upasya devata of sri vadiraja tirtha. Hence he invokes the name of this avatara of paramatma in these concluding shlokas.

पद्यानि प्रथितापगाच्युतयशोहृद्यानि तत्खण्डिता

वद्येनामलवादिराजयतिना मध्वोक्तिशुद्धात्मना |

बद्धान्यध्वरसिद्धसत्कृतचयोद्रिक्तोरुपुण्यप्रदा

न्यद्धा यः पठते श्रुणोति स भवेदुद्धामधाम श्रियः || ४७ ||

Whoever chants, or listens to, with bhakti, these shlokas – composed by the pristine vadiraja yati whose mind is (always) in the shastra composed by sri madhwacharya that has the enchanting glory of ganga and other rivers and lord achyuta, and which gives punya  exceeding that given by great yajnas (such as ashwamedha and others) – such a person will become the very abode of material and spiritual wealth!

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha declares the phala of chanting or listening to the tirthaprabandha. A person who does with devotion shall obtain all types of wealth in this world, and shall also obtain knowledge and devotion that constitutes spiritual wealth which will be useful in the after-life!

|| इति श्रीवादिराज श्रीचरणकृत तीर्थप्रबन्धे दक्षिण प्रबन्धः ||

|| Thus ends the southern (fourth) prabandha in teerthaprabanda, composed by sri vadiraja tirtha sricharana ||

|| इति श्रीवादिराजश्रीपादकृततीर्थप्रबन्धः ||

|| श्री कृष्णार्पणमस्तु ||

Anantashayana Kshetra

श्रीभूभ्यां कृतपादसेवनमनर्घ्योरुस्फुरद्भूषणं

शेषाङ्गे सततं शयानमुदरप्रोद्भासिपद्मं प्रभुम् |

धात्रा स्तोत्रचयैः स्तुतं फणिफणैश्छत्रोपमैर्मन्डितं

सेवेsनन्तपुरेश्वरं मुनिवरप्रेमाकरं श्रीकरम् || ३९ ||

I worship that hari, the lord of anantapura, whose feet are being served by sridevi and bhudevi, who possesses numerous shining and exquisite ornaments, who is resting on the body of shesha, who has a splendid lotus emanating from his navel, who is most capable, who is being praised by the one who is borne by him (brahma), who looks resplendent under the umbrella like hoods of shesha, who is the subject of the devotion of the best of rishis, and who bestows wealth (to his devotees).

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha concludes his work by composing some shlokas in praise of lord anantashayana who is present at Tiruvananthapuram, Kerala.

Tiruvananthapuram is located about 85kms from Kanyakumari. This place is mentioned in numerous puranas and also in the mahabharata. The murthy here is very large necessitating three doors to view the same.

The murthy also has brahma sitting on a lotus whose roots are in the navel of anantapadmanabha.

sri madhwacharya had visited this place as part of his southern digvijaya.

किं लोकात्मकपद्मकम्पनभिया पुत्रप्रियेणाथवा

नागाग्रेसरभोगसौभगकृतस्नेहेन वाsहर्निषम् |

किं वा श्रीश निजार्पितोरुविधसुस्वाद्वोदनास्वादना

च्छेषेsनन्तपुरेश शेषवपुषि श्रीसेवया वाsग्र्यया || ४० ||

O lord srisha, the lord of anantapura! are you sleeping, day and night, on the body of shesha due to fear that the (fourteen) worlds placed in the lotus (coming out of your navel) might quake? Or is it due to extreme love towards your son (brahma who is seated in the lotus)? Or is it because you possess great likeness towards the tender body of the king of snakes (shesha)? Or is it due to overindulgence in the variety of tasty food offered by your devotees? Or is it due to the service of sri?

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha brings out the fact that lord narayana has no need for being in the resting position at all. It is only to bless all others that he has taken this position. He is completely defectless, including the defect, or dosha, of nidra.

त्रीणि त्रयि परिजगाद यदात्मदृष्टि

द्वाराणि चारुतरशीलनरोचितानि |

प्रत्यक्षमेतदनुभावयति प्रमेयं

प्रौडप्रजाः प्रभुरनन्तपुरेsब्जनाभः || ४१ ||

Lord padmanabha, the most capable one, is teaching the truth that – “shruti, in the form of various upanishads propagates shravana, manana and dhyana as the three instruments of obtaining the realisation of paramatma to those deserving noble humans who have extremely endearing character” – directly to scholarly devotees!

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha indicates in this shloka that the reason lord anantapadmanabha is visible through three doors at tiruvananthapuram is to convey the message of the upanishads – “atmaa vaare drashTavyaH shrOtavyO mantavyO nidhidhAsitavyaH” – directly to the devotees himself so they can constantly engage in shravana manana and dhyana in order to eventually realise him.

या तैत्तरीयनिगमान्तगकिंवदन्ती

सेवात्रयोचितफलत्रितयं वदन्ती |

तत्रत्य संशयमपाकुरुतेsन्घ्रिमध्य

वक्त्रं क्रमेण घटयन् दृशि पद्मनाभः || ४२ ||

Lord padmanabha, by showing the three parts of his body – viz feet, mid-region and face, (through the three doors) respectively, is clearing any doubts with respect to the analogy in the taittareeya upanishad which states that the result for worshipping the three regions of the paramatma’s body is the darshana of those very parts of his body in moksha.

Notes:

The taittareeya upanishad declares that the phala for a devotee for concentrating on the feet, mid-region and face of paramatma is to obtain the darshana of those very organs in the state of moksha. In tiruvanantapuram, those three regions of the lord’s body are visible through the three doors. The entire murthy cannot be viewed from any one door. Hence the devotee has to focus on, and meditate on, those particular parts. sri vadiraja tirtha indicates that the lord grants the results as declared in the shruti by ensuring this pattern of darshana and consequent dhyana in the temple.

पास्यनन्तपुरेश त्वमशेषं शेषशाय्यपि |

तथा हि करुणावन्तः परकार्यधुरन्धराः || ४३ ||

O lord of anantapura! Although you are sleeping on shesha you are taking care of ashesha (the entire world); Indeed this is appropriate! (because) those who are compassionate always manage others’ works, don’t they?

Notes:

Lord vishnu is the controller of everything in this Universe and he does it effortlessly although he appears to be sleeping. That is a proof of his infinite ability and strength.

यथा गुहामुखे नाथ शेषे शेषे रमापते |

तथा हार्दगुहामध्यमध्यासीनो रमस्वमे || ४४ ||

O lord! the husband of ramaa! Just as you are resting on shesha at the entrance of the guhaa, so you kindly reside in the guhaa of my heart and enjoy (there)!

Notes:

puranas document that the anantapadmanabha murthy at tiruvanantapuram is at the entrace of a cave. sri vadiraja tirtha uses this fact to pray to paramatma to also reside in the hearts of the devotees.

सुरगणपरिवारः शोभमानोरुहारः

करिकरसमहस्तः काञ्चनोद्दीप्तवस्त्रः |

शुभजनकृतगानः शेषभोगे शयानः

प्रभुरयमविनाशः प्रीयतामिन्दिरेशः || ४५ ||

May this lord (anantapadmanabha), the lord of indira – who has the entire clan of devatas as his family, who has many shining resplendent garlands, whose hands are like the trunk of elephants, whose clothes are shining like gold, who is always praised by noble people, who is resting on the body of shesha, who is most capable, who is without destruction (end) – be pleased (with us)!

Notes:

With this shloka, sri vadiraja tirtha offers the entire tirthaprabandha work at the holy feet of sri anantapadmanabha.

|| sri vadiraja tirtha gurvantargata sri raghavendra tirtha gurvantargata sri bharati ramana mukhyapranantargata sri moolaramachandra priyatam | sri krishnarpanamastu ||

Ghrutamala nadee

रूक्षापापाटवीदाहदक्षज्ञानानलोन्नतेः |

सततं हेतुभूतेयं घृतमाला विराजते || ३८ ||

The ghrutamala river – which is always acting as a root cause in lighting the fire of perfect knowledge that leads to the destruction of the forest that are (nothing but) our cruel sins – is resplendent!

Notes:

The ghrutamala river flows near anantashayana in Kerala. It grants immense knowledge to those who take bath in it. Hence it acts like ghruta (ghee) in lighting the fire of knowledge that alone can destroy our sins.

This river is also known as the tamraparni river.

Tiruvattar

शेषे शयान शरदिन्दुसमानवक्त्र

श्रीशादिकेशव सितोदकजातनेत्र |

दोषातिदूर गतपार गुणाम्बुराशे

दासे दयां कुरु मयीश गतेतराशे || ३७ ||

O lord adikeshava (adi-anantashayana), who is resting on shesha, whose face is like the moon in sharad ritu, who is the lord of shri, whose eyes are lotus-like, who is extremely distant from any kind of defect (completely free of doshas), who is the ocean of all auspicious attributes, who has no end, who is most capable – please have compassion on me, who has given up on all other desires!

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha describes the murthy of sri anantashayana at tiruvattar, who is about 20kms from anantashayana kshetra in Kerala. The murthy at this place is about 18 feet long and is visible through three doors. There is an idol of an annihilated rakshasa near the feet of the lord.

Shuchindra Kshetra

इन्द्रशौचविधानात् ते न शुचीन्द्रातिपौरुषम् |

अनिन्द्रस्य मनःशौचं मम कृत्वा तदार्जया || ३६ ||

O shuchindra (kshetra)! by cleansing Indra you did not get any great fame; (therefore) by cleaning the antahkarana of an incapable person like me (who is not Indra) please obtain the same (great fame).

Notes:

This shloka is describing the greatness of shuchindra, a place which is about 10kms from kanyakumari. It is at this place that Indra had been purified after he was cursed by gautama muni. Indra had to perform a dana of his ring dipped in ghee that was heated due to the rays of the sun during the afternoon of mesha masa at this place. Since this place purified Indra, it is known as shuchindra.

sri vadiraja tirtha says that greater fame can be obtained by cleansing an ordinary person than someone like Indra who is already a big devata. Doing good to the ordinary is that much more challenging, and greater good, than doing the same to a capable person.

Kanyakumari Kshetra

या सूते सेवमानानां भाग्यारोग्यापुनर्भवान् |

कन्या किलेयं तीर्थं च कन्यातीर्थमिदं किल || ३२ ||

She, who delivers wealth, health and moksha to those who worship her, is supposedly a kanya, and this tirtha is supposed to be a kanyatirtha!

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha praises the mahalakshmi devi at kanyakumari with a slight tinge of sarcasm. It is well known that kanyakumari grants wealth and health to devotees. It is also well known that a snana at kanyatirtha grants moksha. sri vadiraja tirtha uses the word “deliver” just to drive home the point that the devi here is a kannika and yet an all powerful giver!

kanyakumari is at the southern most part of bharata khanda where the bay of bengal, arabian sea and the Indian ocean meet. Along with kanyatirtha, many other tirthas such as savitri, gayatri, saraswati and papanashini are present here.

In order to kill a rakshasa called bana, durga devi took avatara as a kanya since he had a boon that he cannot be killed by anyone other than a kannika. Sri madhwacharya had visited this place during this southern tirthayatra.

This sacred place is mentioned in the mahabharata several times. It also finds mention in several puranas.

सहधर्मं विदधतीमिव बाणान्तकारिणीम् |

वार्धौ स्निग्धामिमां रम्यां कन्यां मन्यामहे रमाम् || ३३ ||

We shall understand kanyakumari, one who is enchanting, who destroyed an asura named bana and who has great friendship with the ocean, as being ramaa herself who is engaged in performing sahadharma (along with her husband narayana).

Notes:

As noted above, mahalakshmi devi destroyed an asura named bana at this place. It is also said that the arrow which lord krishna released to kill another asura named banasura eventually landed at this place. Hence sri vadiraja tirtha states that devi ramaa killed an asura by the same name – as if to show how she performs her dharma in accordance with what her husband lord narayana does.

असि मन्मथमाता त्वं कन्ये मान्यतमे सताम् |

न् चेत् सौन्दर्यमाश्चर्यं कथमेतत् तनौ तव || ३४ ||

O kanya! one who is most venerable to sajjanas – you are indeed the mother of kama – otherwise how else can your body possess such amazing beauty?

Notes:

sri vadiraja tirtha, through these shlokas, stresses the point repeatedly that the murthy at kanyakumari is that of mahalakshmi and not of parvati, as some would believe.

lakshmi is the mother of kama. Hence it is no surprise that she possesses exquisite beauty herself.

sri vadiraja tirtha also subtly brings out another aspect that lakshmi (just like narayana) can possess opposite attributes at the same time – like how she is still a kanya in spite of being the mother of kama.

अगस्त्यो मुनिशार्दूलो भवाब्धेर्नः समुद्धरेत् |

चुलकीकृतगम्भीरजृम्भिताम्भोधिडम्भरः || ३५ ||

May sage agastya – who consumed the deep and immensely large ocean in just one aposhana – who is the best amongst munis – lift us out of this ocean of samsara.

Notes:

Near kanyakumari, there is a hill known as vyasaparvata. Sage agastya had stayed here and performed tapas as well.

Once when a number of evil rakshasas had taken shelter in the ocean, sage agastya had gulped the entire ocean in just one sip, upon the request of devatas. Thereafter, the rakshasas who were exposed were all killed by the devatas.

Keeping this incident in mind, sri vadiraja tirtha prays to sage agastya to similarly rid us of the cycle of birth and death by consuming our ocean of samsara.

Mahendra Parvata

तरणिरिव हनूमान् प्राप लङ्कां दिद्रुक्षु

र्धरणि तव तनूजां नैव भेतव्यमम्ब |

इति गदितुमिवान्तःप्रापितो भाति भूमेः

पवनसुतजवेनामन्दमाहेन्द्रशैलः || ३१ ||

“O bhudevi! in order to meet your daughter (sita devi) hanuman has reached lanka just like the sun. Therefore, you need not fear, O mother!” – as if conveying such a message, the excellent mahendra mountain, that was sent inside the earth, is resplendent.

Notes:

mahendra parvata was the hill on which hanuman stood before launching himself into the sky to reach lanka. Due to the force applied by him, most of the hill sunk into the earth. sri vadiraja tirtha explains the incident beautifully by saying the mountain went inside of the earth to convey a message to bhudevi about her daughter sita.

Tamraparni nadee

ताम्रपर्णीसरित्तोयं सेवनीयं मुमुक्षुभिः |

मुक्तीकरोति तत्रत्या शुक्तिश्च पतितं जलम् || ३० ||

Those desirous of moksha should definitely have the tirtha of the tamraparni river (because) even a shell that is present in that (river) provides liberation to the water that’s fallen inside it.

Notes:

tamraparni river flows near Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu. This sacred river is mentioned in several puranas including the bhagavata and kurma puranas.

The bhagavata mentions that having the water of this river increases bhakti in lord hari.