By and large if any one asks about the reason for our living we will say that we are living because we were born in this world. There is no answer to why we were born. We also don't know where we came from and neither do we know where we may be going to. Someone gives us a very interesting novel and when we open to read it, say we find that there are some pages missing from the front and likewise there are some pages missing from the back and we only seem to find a few pages in the middle. Just like these pages in the middle so is our life too.
We only know the fact that we are living. Also nowadays with modern technology they can show how we look when we are inside the mothers womb. In the Srimad Bhagavatham, Sage Kapila tells Devahuthi how the growth of a being occurs within the womb. We are not sure which - if the life within the womb is pleasurable or the life we live in the world is? While being in the womb we have no responsibility and we are just staying inside the mothers womb. Even if we are hungry we need not search for food on our own and we think we dont fear anything being safe inside. But the reality is that when we are in the womb there is water all around us. Even in that water itself there are some urine and faeces being deposited. As it gets mixed with the water there are some bacteria that get formed. These touch the skin of the baby. If the mother takes hot food or cold food the baby inside gets affected. If the mother gets afraid due to any fear or gets shaken the baby inside feels the same. What sensations the baby feels inside has described in the Srimad Bhagavatham.
The baby inside now thinks of its past life and remembers that many mahans had told that in order not to be reborn you will have to chant the namasankeerthanam and we did not listen. Because of not having listened to the mahans I am now facing this torture in the womb, the baby thinks. The baby worries where it will be born to which parents and hopes that atleast in this life its parents will hold the small tender hands and teach it to clap saying “Krishna Rama Govinda“.
But unfortunately as soon as it comes to the world from the womb it forgets everything. Nobody knows what difficulties they faced nor know what they were doing while being inside the womb. As soon as the baby is born it should cry which is what both the doctors and the people surrounding would expect. If the child does not cry they will try and do something to make the child cry. The small child will cry out making the sounds “Kwa Kwa“. What's the meaning of this Kwa - it means where? Basically it wants to know where there is “anandam“. It is because the baby has come from anandam only and its natural for it to seek going to anandam again. One who has originated from one point has to reach that point again. Even for us when we go to many foreign places, its only after we reach our own home we feel the relief and satisfaction. However far we may have gone, we feel satisfied only if we reach our own home. The baby first things it will get that anandam from mothers milk and finds that's not enough, it tries eating nicely even then it did not get that anandam. Then it tries to play with toys to get that anandam even then it does not get it. When the babys parents then sent it to the school even then it did not get the anandam. Studying for 10th standard he thinks that once I select the right group I will get into +2 and score good marks. Finishing +2 and getting the marks he expects to get the coveted degree. It looked as if the anandam had come now but it has gone again. Until the desired course has been got he keeps waiting for the anandam. After joining the course he thinks that only if high marks is got then only he can get selected in a campus interview. So he thinks only if he gets selected he can get the right job. Having got the job he now thinks if he got a good foreign assignment it will be great.
Once he is in a foreign assignment the parents decide to get him married but if the attempt does not materialize sooner there is no peace for him. He thinks that once he is settled with a suitable bride it will be anandam. Then once married he expects to have a child which he thinks that he will beget within 1 year or 2 years or 3 years even. Then he goes to a doctor, astrologer, does prayascittams and he thinks anandam will be got only if he has a child. Finally he gets a child but contrary to his expectations the child is born with a disease and he loses peace again. Then he worries that his child will need to study well and if his child is not studying well he loses peace. He then thinks that his son has to get a good job and then worries about the marriage of his son. Then after that he worries that his grandson has to be born. He also worries that his son is not like before, not talking nicely with him and has deserted him. In the meantime there is this disease overtaking him. Then fear grips him thinking he may be bed ridden. We can live or aspire to live for 100 or 120 years but we need to see if there is someone to take care of us until then. Because after a certain age you cannot live independantly because for everything you will need the support of others. They will treat you as a nuisance. If we have long term association with someone he may also get fed up with you.
Thus the man who called out “kwa kwa“ since his birth, at the time of death he did not get anandam. Not even after death and being reborn again he did not get anandam again as the cycle continued. Not one janma, many janmas or even with koti janmas he does not get that anandam reason being he is searching for the anandam
in the worldly things. Until he leaves the search for worldly happiness, the eternal anandam is not there for him. The day he realises that at the lotus feet of Sri
Ranganathar that anandam is present that day only does he get eternal anandam. Is Anandam present in dress, things, food, power, wife, children? like this if he keeps on searching the worldly things for anandam in one, hundreds or many crore janmas, he is never going to attain it. Only and only if he gets shelter from the lotus feet
of Sri Ranganathar will he get this anandam.
I mentioned earlier about the beautiful uthsavam of Navarathri in Srirangam. On the day of Saraswathi pooja there will be the Kasthuri thirumankappu of Namperuman. The archakar will bring the dresses, garlands in a sahasradara plate placed on his head, he will give it to the archakar in the mothers shrine. The Archakar in the thayyar sannadhi will offer this to nacchiAr, taking all this garlands he will offer it as prasadam to the sthAnikar. This is how the Saraswathi Pooja will be celebrated in Srirangam temple. The day next to Saraswathi pooja is called Viajayadasami. Vijayam means "vETRI" - Win. The day that will give one all the wins. On this day especially the kings of yonder days will go out to wage wars. Even the Ranganathar in our Srirangam temple is a ranga raja, here also on the day of Vijayadasami our ranga raja will go to war. Ranganathar will start from the 4 pillar mantam, near the shrine of azhagiya shringar. The archakar will hold the hand of Ranganathar and will send arrows in the 4 directions symbolically. After that near the vanni tree closeby, the thiruvAradhanam will take place. Then perumal will march rapidly in a fighting position upto the raya gopuram and then go on to the chandana mantapam. This uthsavam called "arrow" uthsavam is a great sight to behold in the Sri Ranganathar temple.
Knowing very well and realising, one should search for this anandam at the lotus feet of Sri Ranganathar.
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We desire we need something. What we should know for that?
Its not enough if we just know what is that thing we desire, we should also find
out where we will get it. Not only finding out, the next thing we need to do is to
find out what is the method or way to get that as well.
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Therefore the way to get that eternal anandam in a simple way is bhagavannamakeerthanam.
This greatness of the namakeerthanam is what azhwar keeps telling in the tirumalai. Whatever be the type of jeevan, even if he is dirty and had several sins, what is the greatness with the namakeerthanam is that it will cleanse him, give him kripa and also grant him moksha. You dont have to search for methods to cleanse yourself, remove your sins and attaining mukthi. Namakeerthanam is to cleanse your mind as well as to attain Mukthi. One is very thirsty and desiring for water and say if this is not given to him, he will lose his life and just to preserve his life and breathing he needs water. But with he same water when he returns from outside back to his home, he cleans himself with the same water. He takes a bowl of water, washes his legs, washes his hands, washes his face, washes his eyes, washes his mouth and then drinks the same water also and says "appada!" and gets back his life again. Will we say that the water is different for the one he used fir washing his hands and legs and the other he drank. Both are essentially water.
What water purified him was also gave him life.
=== "Likewise the namakeerthanam purifies yourself as well gives you mukthi" ====
Whether you do Dhyana Yogam, Karma Yogam, Gnana Yogam its fine but namakeerthanam is MANDATORY.
In South India we have sambar, rasam as our food, whereas in North India they eat chukka roti, in foreign they may eat bun or something. So in the food we eat they may have different names but while consuming this food they also drink water. But this water is not called differently as India water, America water, Australia water, Canada water, Indonesia water or North India water etc. Just as the water is common to all,
=== "Likewise if you do dhyana, yoga, karma whatever bhakthi to bhagavan needs to be done" ===,
"BHAKTHI IS NAMAKEERTHANAM and NAMAKEERTHANAM IS BHAKTHI"
Radhe Radhe!!
