Glories of Srimad Narayaneeyam Day … Dec 14 th 2022

Chinni  Krishna is  worshipped  at  Guruvayur temple in  Kerala  for ages.

HE  is the same    LORD  whom  Vasudeva worshipped as per  the puranas  at  Mathura. The holy town of Mathura has the presence of Lord Sri Hari always.

  

Chinni Krishna who  graces us  in Guruvayur was originally   at Adikeshava temple before arriving to Guruvayur.

  
It is verily the  Aradhanai performed to  Chinni  Krishna that Lord  appeared  to Vasudeva and Devaki. In other words, the Guruvayur  Chinni Krishna bestowed us with Lord Sri Krishna ,  Srimad Bhagavatam and Narayaneeyam . 

 Vasudeva continued  worshipping  this LORD  in Adikeshava temple along with chinni krishna .   It was during Jarasandha adventure , the denizens of Mathura along with  Lord Krishna vacated Mathura and settled in Dwaraka .

Vasudeva couldn’t part with  Lord Adikeshava  .  Hence he took the Lordships  along with him  to Dwaraka and established a temple for his worship . When Lord Sri Krishna was about to depart from his earthly sojourn, he  advised   his dear friend Uddhava that Dwaraka would be submerged in the sea soon after his departure and instructed him to  worship  Lord  Adikeshava ( Krishna). As per Krishna’s ordinance, Uddhava was worshipping the Lordships . That is verily the reason why the Lord in Guruvayur is a connoisseur of Srimad Bhagavatam.

Uddhava  proceeded  to Bhadrikashrama   as Dwaraka was getting submerged in the  sea waters . Guru and Vayu  on a divine  command  carried   the  Lordships to Narayana Saras where ParamaShivan was  residing  and meditating  in a temple. On seeing  the Lordships , it is said that  ParamaShivan moved out of the temple and shifted to a place called Mammiyoor.

So  ParamaShivan  gave his own place to Lord Krishna and that is verily where Guru and Vayu consecrated Krishna.  Lord  has  bestowed HIS grace to several devotees  and their life stories inspire us to seek HIS mercy to swim out from this mundane life .  

 Narayaneeyam, considered to be a magnum opus of  the great devotee  Sri Meppathur Narayanabhattathiri,  is a masterly summary of  Srimad Bhagavatam in 1034 sanskrit slokas of great poetic merit.

The great devotee  Sri Narayana Bhattadri  appeared  in a Namboodri family in a place near Shoranoor  four hundred years ago  .

His Guru  Achyuta Pisharodi  was suffering from severe arthritis.  The obedient disciple he was , could not see his Acharyar with the pain .

With  humility , Narayana Bhattadri took upon himself the disease of his Guru as Guru Dakshina. 

Bhattadri could not bear the  chronic pain . He approached Ramanuja Ezhuthachhan another blessed devotee  for a remedy .

 Ezhuthachhan advised him to go to Guruvayoor and  submit to the LORDSHIPS  and glorify HIS divyaleelas .

Bhattadri who was in early thirties   shifted to Guruvayoor and started his  divine work  and aptly named  the epic Narayaneeyam.

Recollecting the divine leelas from the Srimad Bhagavatha Purana  he composed the  nectarine  work .  

 

With the chronic arthritis pain he used to walk up to the temple and in a day he would  compose  10 verses .  

The grand epic  took  the ardent devotee quiet some time   .

As per the legend , the work  was started  during  1584 and  almost took three years .

Bhattadri had an understanding with Lord  Guruvayoorappan that unless and until HE nodded in ascent about his composed work  recited, he would not go to the next verse.

Thus this work is what LORD  himself has approved and that is why the greatness of the work. 

The nectar “Narayaneeyam”  comprises of 1034 verses in Sanskrit.

It is Bhagavata Saram.

 Vishnu Sahasranamam was recited in presence of Lord  Krishna by Bhishma lying on the bed of arrows  and  Narayaneeyam got  LORD’s sanction .

 The Holy epic  ” Narayaneeyam”   has detailed the descent of the Lord from Hamsa Avatar, Marichi, Brahma, Devas, Rishis Kapila, Koorma,  Parasuramar along with  the Poorna Avatarams  Sri Rama and Sri Krishna.

The work can be read as poetry or recited as slokas or can be set to music.

 It is believed that the Lord gave darshan to Bhattadri as  Lord Narasimhan and   Lord Venugopalan.

The Bala Leela of Sri Krishna infatuated him and his verse starting with “Kesha Pasha” is the most enticing sloka.

While describing  Lord  Narasimha avatar, he was so much in awe and wonder that after stating “Sthambe Kottayathi” he could not proceed further on this  wonderful avatar. He proceeded to sing in praise of Lord Guruvayoorappan.

During the Vamana avatar, when Brahma, Sooryadeva , Kubera and others had gifted many things necessary for a Brahmachari mother Aditi not knowing what to give, finally gave him a Koupikam  ( piece of cloth made of red cloth to HIM).

During the nirmalya seva even today  Lord  Guruvayoorappan gives darshan to HIS devotees in this piece of red cloth bereft of all HIS accessories. ( This  divine pastime shall shared  in  a separate  post soon  ) 

While  he was contemplating on   Lord  Krishna avatar, Bhattadri asks Guruvayoorappan ……..

Oh Lord !! “ Did you appear  with Shanku, Chakram and Mahalakshmi on your Vakshasthala on a rainy day at midnight with your neelamegha shyamala  complexion?” Oh Lord !!!  When you gave darshan to Vasudevan and Devaki with your Sarva alankara was not the jail lighted because of the bright complexion of Mahalakshmi? …

The mood of  Bhattadree takes us into the deep insights of a craving soul to have his divine company …

  It  is confirmed that after he completed Narayaneeyam, he got cured of his chronic  arthritis.

Another contemporary of Bhattadri was one Poonthanam (author of Gnana Paana) in Manipravalam (Malayalam). He also hailed from Shoranoor. Poonthanam used to visit Guruvayoor on every Ekadasi and he watched Bhattadri writing about Guruvayoorappan.

He had also heard about the greatness of this great disciple . On one such occasion, Poonthanam with all humility approached Bhattadri with his work Gnana Paana to go through the same and offer his comments.

Bhattadri in his arrogance would not touch the work of Poonthanam as it was in Malayalam and not in Sanskrit.  

Poonthanam dejected went back to Shoranoor. Next day when Bhattadri sat down to continue his Narayaneeyam, to his surprise he realized he could not do so.

He asked Guruvayoorappan the reason for the same.

The Lord replied

“You have insulted my devotee yesterday and unless you go ask Poonthanam for his pardon and read his work, you will not be able to continue your work!”

Lord continued “Language is no barrier to Bhakti”.

 Bhattadri went to Poonthanam’s house and apologized  for the  offense . 

In Kerala it is a practice to recite Narayaneeyam at a stretch in one day and  the  devotees get dressed as per the avatar that was being recited .

The Priest  informed that the  28th Vrichikam is that glorious day  when  the nectarian  “Narayaneeyam” was completed few hundred years ago and  is celebrated at  Guruvayoor Temple   as “Narayaneeyam Day” and this year on Dec 14th 2019  Discourses on Narayaneeyam  is  given by eminent scholars .

Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Pics credits : Google images and advanced devotees

video credits :  Om shantih ,zeereddy

 Adiyen Ramanuja dasan