The following exhilarating incidents were mentioned by one of the
disciples of Sri Madhuramurali Swami. She spoke about the following
incidents from Kanchi Mahaswami’s life on her visit to Sydney.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *


The intensity and depth of Paramacharya’s memory is legendary.
Paramacharya was camping in MIT campus in Chennai and one day after
his lecture, he was offering prasadam including kumkum (vermilion) to
the students coming in a line.

One of the students was summoned back by the Acharya after he received
the prasadam. The Mahasvami asked him in Kannada language whether was
he from Dharwad – a place north of Bangalore in Karnataka. The student
replied in affirmative. He then asked the student per chance was his
name Chandrasekhar or Chandramouli. The student with an exclamation
said it was indeed Chandramouli. He also confirmed his age as 22 when
he was posed with that question by Mahasvami. Then Paramacharya
enquired about the welfare of his parents and blessed him again. The
entire dialogue was in Kannada.

Chandramouli hesitatingly informed Paramacharya that this was the
first occasion he was seeing him and how come Mahasvami knew so much
about him. Paramacharya told him that when he was camping in Dharwad
about 23 years ago, a couple came to him and sought his blessings for
a baby. Paramacharya blessed them. When he gave the prasadam to the
couple, the husband applied the kumkum in the forehead and then a
small bit of it on his right shoulder in a fast moving action.
Mahasvami told Chandramouli that he did the same kind of action after
receiving prasadam from him and Paramacharya was immediately reminded
of his father's similar action. Also remembering their pleas, He just
added the bits and derived his age too.

See even that small insignificant motion of hand has been captured in
his mental framework and recalled effortlessly after so many years.

*     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *     *

Paramacharya also possessed a great sense of humor. He once lamented
to one of the devotees, Sri Vedagiri that Adi Sankara was fortunate to
have an unquestioning disciple Sri Totaka and it is not easy to get
such disciples. Vedagiri in his earnest told Paramacharya that he will
do whatever Acharya says but the Mahasvami told him that it will not
be that easy. However Vedagiri was insistent.

Paramacharya then to pointed out to Vedagiri an old Brahmin widow in
the crowd of devotees assembled outside. True to the then prevailing
tradition, the old lady was dressed in a white sari with a shaven head
and shining vibhuthi in the forehead.
Paramacharya told Vedagiri to go to that lady and enquire whether she
was "Sumnagali" (Neengal Sumangaliya – in Tamil). Vedagiri was very
hesitant and reluctant to do so, as was naturally to be expected.

Paramacharya reminded him that it was not easy to be a Totaka. Not to
disown his own words in such a short time, Vedagiri summoned all his
courage and came before that old lady. She was with a few of her
family members who seemed able bodied too. Praying all the Gods he
could remember, Vedagiri feebly asked the lady "Neengal Sumangaliya?"
expecting a barrage of blows physically or verbally.

The lady's face brightened up immediately and she said with a glee
"Yes" and also wondered how Paramacharya knew about it. Confused of
the tilt, Vedagiri came back to Mahasvami and narrated him the entire
thing. Yet he could not figure out what had happened and how the lady
could agree with Paramacharya's poser. Paramacharya solved the mystery
by explaining that Sumangali is a village in Tanjore district and the
lady hailed from there (Tamil knowing friends, you can now read that
question again and appreciate the appropriateness).

Reply via email to