Respected sir,
Since my name is also included in the address bar, I have the follwing to
comment on Mr Rajaram's posting under reference. I am not sure whether the
following last lines are of his own or copied, which is reproduced below:-
"I also think gotram tends to set apart brahmins from non-brahmins,a vestige of
an often distasteful social past that I would rather move away from. For this
very reason, I avoid reference to it, as wellas to the term "Iyengar", whose
meaning is shrouded in confusion".
Sir, The above lines totally wrong. Kshathrias, Vaisyas are also having
Gothram. They talk about the Gothram on important samskaras.
I am reproducing a google search result about royal families of Kerala. I
belong to Pandalam, so the search was with Pandalam royal family.
It is believed that the royal family of Pandalam belonged to the Bhargava gotra
while other royal families in Kerala were included in the Viswamitra gotra
Similarly the chettiar community,Pilli are also having Gothra.
Gopalakrishnan
On Monday, 27 May, 2024 at 08:52:47 am IST, Bala N. Aiyer <[email protected]>
wrote:
Wonderful article - Thank you for sharing this information.
With kind regards & best wishes,
Bala N. Aiyer
On Sunday, May 26, 2024 at 10:21:23 PM CDT, Bala N. Aiyer
<[email protected]> wrote:
Wonderful article - Thank you for sharing this information.
With kind regards & best wishes,
Bala N. Aiyer
On Sunday, May 26, 2024 at 09:52:47 PM CDT, Rajaram Krishnamurthy
<[email protected]> wrote:
Pitu Gotra KR IRS 26524 27524 contd
Hinduism owes a great deal to the Samkhya (Sankhya)philosophy or the Samkhya
Darshana. Samkhya means number. The Samkhyaphilosophy deals with the number of
realities that are present in existence. Itexerted a profound influence on many
scholars in ancient India, China, and,according to some, even in Greece. Even
today, it attracts the attention ofmany scholars, although it is not a living
philosophy and has no activefollowers. However, aspects of its original
doctrine survive in present-dayHinduism as a reminder of its ancient glory.
According to the Samkhya philosophy, Prakriti or Nature isresponsible for all
manifestation and diversity, while the individual souls(Purushas), which are
eternal, remain passive. When they come into contact withNature, they become
subject to its influence and are embodied by its realities.Prakriti is an
eternal reality and the first cause of the universe. In its pureand original
form, it is the unmanifest (avyaktam), a primal resource, the sumof the
universal energy. It is without cause but acts as the cause and sourceof all
effects and "the ultimate basis of the empirical universe.”
Prakriti manifests things by modifying or transforming thecauses into effects
that are already hidden in them. Thus, the school believesin the theory of
evolution or transformation (parinama vada), with Prakritiacting as the
pre-programmed supreme intelligence (Mahat). Using the triplegunas and its
various realities (tattvas), it creates the diversity of numerousbeings and
objects. However, Prakriti has no power or control over the souls(Purushas),
which are eternal, numerous, independent, and immutable. It cannotalso create
life forms without the participation of the souls. Creation(Shristi) begins
when the equilibrium of the gunas (modes) in Prakriti becomesdisturbed, and its
realities (tattvas) manifest as organs in the beings(jivas). According to the
school, all 24 realities (tattvas) emerge or evolveout of Nature, each having
the predominance of one or more gunas. The 24 tattvas are listed below.
Prakriti, the Primal Nature (1)
Mahat, the GreatOne, The first evolute of Prakriti (2)
Buddhi,discriminating, reasoning, and causative intelligence (2)
Ahamkara, ego orego-principle (3) allthese made to:
Manas, the physicalmind or brain (4)
The five panchendriyas,sense organs (9)4+5
The five karmendriyas,the organs of action (14)9+5
The five Tanmatra,subtle elements or sense perceptions (19)14+5
The five Mahabhutas,gross elements, namely the earth, water, air, fire, and
ether (24)19+5
These tattvas arethe evolutes of Nature. The Mahat (the Great One) is the
first reality toemerge from Prakriti when sattva is predominant. Hence, it is
also known as theSambhuta (the manifested). It has a universal aspect as the
intelligence of theworld and a subtle aspect as the intelligence, buddhi, or
the thinking mind inliving beings. It is responsible for their rationality and
discriminatingawareness but remains mostly clouded due to the triple gunas.
From Buddhi,ahamkaram, the self-sense, or the feeling of individuality, evolves
andstrengthens through desires and attachments induced by the gunas. It
isresponsible for the self-sense (ego) or the state of being (anavatva). From
theego evolves the brain or the memorial mind (manas), which is a repository
ofall perceptions, memories, and mental impressions and objects. Up to now,
thetattvas we mentioned are subtle, but from here on, those we are going
tomention are gross. They are the five senses (jnanedriyas), the five organs
ofaction (karmendriyas), the five sense perceptions (tanmatras) or objects of
thesenses, and the five gross elements (mahabhutas).{ Except Manas 23elements
make a DNA chain of opposites=46}
They constitutethe 24 tattvas. Together with Purusha(individual soul), who
is an eternal reality, thenumber becomes 25.***** Nature uses them to produce
the diversity in theworld. Of them, Prakriti is without a cause. Mahat,
ahamkara, and the five Tanmatraare both causes and effects. The rest are
effects only. Purusha is neither acause nor an effect. It is eternal, without a
cause and effect, and immutable.
The Natural evolution of things and beings, as suggestedby the Samkhya, has
many parallels with the modern theories of evolution.However, while modern
theories focus mainly on the evolution of physical bodiesand organs, the
Samkhya doctrine proposes physical, mental, and spiritualevolution and
transformation of beings over many lifetimes. Further, it viewsevolution, or
the transformation of causes into effects, not as the miraclework of a
Universal God but as a transformative process within Nature thatprogresses
through different phases and in predictable patterns until the soulsescape from
the mortal world.
The Samkhya school was founded by Kapila, who probablylived in the Vedic period
before the composition of principal Upanishads suchas the Svetasvatara, Katha,
Prasna, and Maitrayani Upanishads. The earliestknown text of the school is the
Kapila Sutras, or Samkhya Sutras, ascribed to sage Kapila (6thor 7th Century
BCE), also considered the school's founder.
In the second chapter,the Bhagavadgita presents its owntheistic version of
Samkhya. It has a few features in common withthe original school but is
essentially theistic. While Samkhya recognizesNature as the source of all
creation, the Bhagavadgita identifies Brahman asthe first cause of creation and
Nature as a dependent reality, which manifeststhe worlds and beings under the
will of God.{KR: One ofthe Gita yoga is samkya yoga}
In some respects, theYogasutras of Patanjali is both an extension and an
exposition of the ClassicalSamkhya and Yoga schools. The Samkhya yoga of the
Bhagavadgita is but a subtle refutation ofthe fundamental doctrines of the
Samkhya philosophy about Brahman or Purusha asthe primary and efficient cause
of all creation. However, interestingly, itaccepts many concepts of the school,
such as the division of the gunas andtattvas, the bondage of the embodied
souls, the relationship between Prakritiand Purusha, the modifications of the
mind, the binding nature of karma arisingfrom desire-ridden actions, and the
liberation of the jivas through yoga,renunciation, detachment, and
self-transformation.
As in the Vedanta, the Samkhya school suggests that soulsbecome bound when they
are enveloped and embodied by Prakriti, and theresulting jivas fall into
delusion and ignorance. When they realize that theirattachment to Nature (the
mind and body) and to worldly things is responsiblefor their bondage and that
they are pure souls with an independent and eternaland indestructible existence
of their own, independent of Prakriti and hertattvas and modes, they strive for
liberation and achieve release or freedomfrom the cycle of births and deaths.
Xxx
***** chetanam means: YOGA VASISHTAM
Vasishtha replied:—
2. ### ThisGod of whom I spoke, is not at a distance from us. He is situated in
these ourbodies, and is known to be of the form of mere Intellect (chinmatra)
to us.So says Fichte: The Infinite Reason (chit) alone exists in himself—the
finitein him. Lewis vol. II. p. 563.
### सहस्रशीर्षा । पुरुषः । सहस्रअक्षः । सहस्रपात् । सः । भूमिम् । विश्वतः
।वृत्वा । अति । अतिष्ठत् । दशअङ्गुलम् ॥
sahasra-śīrṣā | puruṣaḥ | sahasra-akṣaḥ | sahasra-pāt | saḥ| bhūmim | viśvataḥ
| vṛtvā | ati | atiṣṭhat | daśa-aṅgulam
“Puruṣa, who has a thousand heads, athousand eyes, a thousand feet, investing
the earth in all directions, exceeds(it by a space) measuring ten fingers.”
Commentary by Sāyaṇa: Ṛgveda-bhāṣya
Puruṣa = embodied spirit; or, virāj, theaggregate ofall living beings, spirit
embodied in the egg of Brahmā, i.e., theuniversal spirit animating all
creation. Thousand= an infinite number; thehuman soul, extending ### from
thenavel, takes up its abode inthe heart or the human breast; the supreme soul,
having animated theuniverse, is present in man, either in a minute form or of
definite dimensions
3. He is all in all, though all this world is not theomnipresent Himself. He is
one alone and is not termed the all that is visible(to us). So Fichte: God is
infinite and embraces the finite, but the finite cannot encompass the Infinite.
Lewis vol. II. p. 573.
4. It is this Intellect which is in Siva, that wears thecusp of the moon in his
crest; the same is in Vishnu that rides on his eagleGaruda, and in Brahma that
is born of the lotus. The sun also is a particle ofthis Intellect; (but they
are not the self-same Intellect themselves).
Rama rejoined:—
5 So it is; andeven boys say this also, that if the whole world is mere
Intelligence (chetana matrakam); then whycall it by another name (as the
world), and what is the use of givingadmonition of it to anybody, (when
everyone is full of intelligence).
Verse 3.7.5Chapter VII
श्रीराम उवाच ।
बाला अपि वदन्त्येतद्यदि चेतनमात्रकम् ।
जगदित्येव केवात्र नाम स्यादुपदेशता ॥ ५ ॥
śrīrāma uvāca |
bālā api vadantyetadyadi cetanamātrakam |
jagadityeva kevātra nāma syādupadeśatā || 5 ||
Rama rejoined: —So it is; and even boys say this also,that if the whole world
is mere Intelligence (chetana matrakam); then why call it by another name(as
the world), and what is the use of giving admonition of it to anybody,
Vasishtha replied: —
6. If you have known the mere Intellect (Chinmatram), to be the same with
theintelligent world (chetanaviswa), you have then known nothing for getting
rid of this world.
श्रीवसिष्ठ उवाच ।
चिन्मात्रं चेतनं विश्वमितियज्ज्ञातवानसि ।
न किंचिदेव विज्ञातं भवता भवनाशनम् ॥ ५ ॥
śrīvasiṣṭha uvāca |
cinmātraṃ cetanaṃviśvamiti yajjñātavānasi |
na kiṃcideva vijñātaṃ bhavatā bhavanāśanam || 5 ||
Rama rejoined: —So it is; and even boys say this also,that if the whole world
is mere Intelligence (chetana matrakam); then why callit by another name (as
the world), and what is the use of giving admonition ofit to anybody,
7. Theworld is verily intelligent, O Rama, (with the mundane soul); but the
animalsoul-PASU (Tirumular and tamil saiva siddantham speaks only as
pasu-pathy=Jeevatma paramatma; (Jiva) iscalled pasu or brutish observer of
things pasyati, on account of its lookingafter sensual gratifications only as
brutes, and giving rise only to the fearsof disease, decay and death (from its
love of itself, and care forself-preservation).{Pashyat tosee is PASU, which
changed in translation by some as animal etc }
Verse 3.7.7Chapter VII
चेतनं राम संसारो जीव एष पशुः स्मृतः ।
एतस्मादेव निर्यान्ति जरामरणभीतयः ॥ ७ ॥
cetanaṃ rāmasaṃsāro jīva eṣa paśuḥ smṛtaḥ |
etasmādeva niryānti jarāmaraṇabhītayaḥ || 7 ||
The world is verily intelligent, O Rama, (with the mundanesoul); but the animal
soul (Jiva) is called pasu or brutish observer of thingspasyati, on account of
its looking after sensual gratifications only as brutes,and giving rise only to
the fears of disease, decay and death.
8. The animal soul (Jiva), though an incorporealsubstance, is an ignorant thing
and subject to pain and sorrow. The mind manasalso, though it is capable of
intelligence—chetaniyam, has become the root of all evils. (i. e. With its
power of intellectionand nature of intelligence (chetanam), it is yet ever
inclined to the wrongside by itself).
पशुरज्ञो ह्यमूर्तोऽपि दुःखस्यैवैष भाजनम् ।
चेतनत्वाच्चेतनीयं मनोऽनर्थः स्वयं स्थितः ॥ ८ ॥
paśurajño hyamūrto'pi duḥkhasyaivaiṣa bhājanam |
cetanatvāccetanīyaṃmano'narthaḥ svayaṃ sthitaḥ || 8 ||
The animal soul (Jiva), though an incorporeal substance, is an ignorant thing
andsubject to pain and sorrow. The mind manas also,though it is capable of
intelligence—chetaniyam, has become the root ofall evils. (i. e. With itspower
of intellection and nature of intelligence.
9. Intellectual liberation (chetya mukta) from thoughts ofthe world, is one
state (of the soul), and unintelligent gazing (unmukhata) atit, is another. He
who knows the better of these two the states of the soul,has no cause of
sorrow, (i. e. the rational from the irrational soul).
चेत्यनिर्मुक्तता या स्यादचेत्योन्मुखताथवा ।
अस्य सा भरितावस्था तां ज्ञात्वा नानुशोचति ॥ ९ ॥
cetyanirmuktatā yā syādacetyonmukhatāthavā |
asya sā bharitāvasthā tāṃ jñātvā nānuśocati || 9 ||
Intellectual liberation (chetya mukta) from thoughts ofthe world, is one state
(of the soul), and unintelligent gazing (unmukhata) atit, is another. He who
knows the better of these two the states of the soul,has no cause of sorrow,
10. He who has seen the all surpassing Supreme Being, hashis heartstrings all
cut asunder, and the doubts of his mind all driven away.The sequences of his
acts are washed away, (and leave no fear of histransmigration).
KR: Smarta Sankya has only 23 elements fromBrahmam without Prakriti and
Purusha.
XXXX
Generally, visishta dvaithis(those who follow Visishta Dvaitham) or
Srivaishnava Brahmins are called Ayyaangar.Let us see how this term came to
denote them. We can split the term asAyy+anga+ar; i.e ay (pronounced as I in
English) is the shortened form of ainthumor five; anga refers to the five items
or segments each containing in itselffive elements thus making a total of 5
times 5 or 25. The 25th principle in ourphilosophy refers to the chetanam; so
we can say that a chetanam is rightly called ayyaangar.{KR in one way
intelligence but in another way asfrom the Vasishta yoga, that which is down
felling the earth or determining thedestruction through the intelligence; BUT
HERE INTELLIGENCE @ CHETANAM ISNOT”MIND” that survives along with the SOUL
JEEVA.
Let us now see briefly, what are the major five segmentsand the other five
elements in each of them. The five major segments are:
1.PANCHANGAM
2. PANCHA KALA PARAYANAM
3. SAMSKARAM
4. ARTHA PANCHAKAM
5. BARA SAMARPANAM.
1. panchAngam: Srivaishnavites are enjoined to start alltheir rituals or karmas
with sankalpam (vow) and conclude with sAdhvika thyAgam(sacrificial offering to
God). In the sankalpam or invocatory statement at thebeginning, we need to
mention and follow for that particular day, its
thithi (the religious date-order from amavAsya/ pournNami,prathamai,…. to
chathurdasi : 15 in all),
the day of the week (in Sanskrit, such as bhAnu vAsara,sOma vAsara etc. 7 in
all),
the star (asvini to rEvathi, 27 in all),
yogam (sidhdha, amirtha, maraNa: 3 in all),
And
karaNam (11 in all).
We know about these five elements for any particular dayonly from our
panchAngam or almanac. Hence it is important for us to see thepanchangam daily
as soon as we get up in the morning. We are aware that it isdifficult for
common people like us to remember the 3 yogams and 11 karanamswhich are always
changing in some order; hence our ancestors prescribed that westate this as Sri
Vishnu yOga and sri Vishnu karana. Thus we see that the firstmajor segment
ayyangArs need to know about is the panchAngam.
2. next comes pancha kAla parAyaNam. Our ancestors divideda day into five
periods; these are:
A. ABIGAMANAM, B. UPADHANAM, C. IJYAI, D. SVADHYAYAM ANDE. YOGAM.
We are to follow the prescribed duties assigned to each ofthese five periods as
each has a different purpose and work to perform.However, in a lighter vein we
may state that in the mechanical present day, noone finds time to perform these
five duties and there is dearth of time and soinstead of being pnacha kAla
parAyaNam (five time duties), this has becomepanja kAla parAyaNam (time-drought
duties). So the second major segment ispancha kAla parayaNam or doing the five
duties as prescribed for the fiveperiods of the day.
3. samskAram: there are several rituals or ceremoniesprescribed to be
performed, from the time a human being is conceived inmother’s womb, till its
death. Of these, the one called pancha samskAram is theone which makes one a
Srivaishnavaite. This is performed as per the usualcustom and practice in vogue
in each family. This consists of
A. THAPAM, B. PUNDRAM, C. DASYA NAMAM, D. MANTHRAM AND E.YAGNAM.
a. thApam: this is the process of having the figures ofthe wheel (sudharsana
chakram) and the conch (pAncha janyam) embossed on one’sright and left
shoulders respectively. These metallic symbols are heated in asacred fire and
when tolerably hot, the preceptor or the AchAryan embosses theimage on our
shoulders as mentioned above.
b. pundram is the process of the preceptor teaching usabout wearing the 12
sacred marks of white (thirumaN) and red/yellow (srichUrNam) in the 12
prescribed places in our body by drawing vertical lineshence called dwAdasa or
twelve, urdhva or vertical and pundram or marks). Thepreceptor tells us where
and how to wear these. There are slokas telling us howto do/ remember this :
panniru nAmam by Swami Desikan; the sanskrit slokabeginning with chathus…).
c. dAsya nAmam: the preceptor gives us a name adding dAsaafter our usual name;
this indicates: dAsa asmi or I am the servant of the lordand I am not
independent; if one’s name is Krishnan, he will thereafter callhimself Krishna
dAsan)
d. manthram: this is the process of learning from thepreceptor, the rahasya
thryam (the holy secret triad) of thirumanthiram, dwayam(the two liner) and
sharama sloka (the final sloka).(from B G)
e. yagnam: this is the way thiruvArAdhanam (sacredofferings to God) is to be
performed; the preceptor teaches us this and afterthis we start doing this in
our daily pooja.
As mentioned before, it is only after a Srivaishnavaiteundergoes saAsrayaNam,
that he becomes an ayyangAr. It is only after this thathe becomes fit for doing
bhagavadhArAdhanam or worshipping god In theprescribed manner.
4. artha panchakam: those who seek for eternal salvationor attain moksha are
known as mumukshus. Srivaishnavas are mumukshus and areenjoined upon to learn/
know/ understand five aspects. These are:
A. OUR DESTINATION OR GOAL OF REACHING THE PARAMATHMA
B. THE ONE WHO REACHES THERE/ ATTAINS THAT, I.E. THEJEEVATHMA
C. THE WAY TO ATTAIN/ ACHIEVE IT
D. FORCES WHICH ARE INIMICAL TO OUR ATTAINING THE ABOVEOBJECTIVE, I.E. OUR PAST
SINS
E. THE FRUIT OF OUR ATTAINING THAT GOAL OR PARAMATHMA.
a. paramAthmA: is the one who creates, preserves and whenthe time comes,
destroys and He does it in his divine play or game. He haslimitless knowledge,
happiness, the one without any blemish or bad qualities,one with boundless good
aspects. He is the one desired target for the entireworld, is perennial or
endless, with His own beautiful image and form. He hasfor His body the twin
vibhUthis of leela and nithya vibhudis. He never is awayeven for a moment from
his divine consort, pirAtti. He is the guide, master andthe one who appoints
for everything. He is the one whom we aspire to be with inthe moksha world.
This is all what we have to know as the first aspect to knowabout the
paramAthma.
b. jeevAthmA or the one who is the complement of what wesaw above, i.e.
jeevAthmA is also a happy form, a miniscule, not independentbut with servitude
as his attitude, the one who is borne by and the one who isappointed and the
one who has none but the lord as his boss/ master. Thejeevathma is of three
kinds: bhakthar, nithyar and mukthar. Bhakthas are thosewho because of their
acts of sins and good deeds are born again and again invarious forms including
the grass, the stone or the mankind. Mukthas are thosewho because of their
following what is laid down by the sAstras and hence arerelieved from the
trials and tribulations undergone usually by the familypeople and hence they
rejoice in the thought about the company of the lord.Nithyas are those (such as
VishvaksEnar, garudan et al) who do not have familyties and worries and hence
are able to enjoy the blissful company of our lordand having the blessing of
living for ever in His world. This is the knowledgewe have to have about
jeevAthma.
c. the way to reach/attain Him: to reach our lord inVaikuntam the ways are only
through devotion and surrender. We cannot dobhakthi yOga or the path of
devotion and hence prapathi or surrender is theonly way to reach Him. This is
the knowledge we need to have about the way toattain Him.
d. the obstacle due to our past sins, to reach Him: notworshipping is the chief
sin. By not obeying what the sAstras have ordained andby following courses
exactly opposite to the prescribed rules due to ignorance,habits, desire to do
so etc. due to these sins, human beings are born and dieagain and again. If we
know this, it is the fourth important element.
e. the fruit/ benefit of attaining Him: after our lifeleaves our body, our soul
travels through what is known as the archirAdhi margaor the heavenly path to
reach Sri vaikuntam and there do for ever and ever, oursacred duties to our
lord. This is the fifth element of artha panchakam.
5. prapaththi: when once the jeevAthma becomes aware ofthe artha panchakam it
endeavors to discard its past sins of not thinking aboutgod, nor following His
path; so it starts eschewing its past evil ways asjeevathma is scared of the
three types of sins (praraptham, sanchitham andAgAmi) : those which come from
earlier births, those which we commit now and toovercome this, the way is to
seek salvation by going to a preceptor and doingprayaschitham or expiation and
does baranyAsam or barasamarpaNam. This iscalled prapaththi, which, again, has
five elements:
A) ANUKULYA SANKALPAM
B) PRATHIKULYA VARJANAM
C) MAHAVISVASAM
D) KARPANYAM
E) KOPRUTHVAVARANAM.
a) AnukUlya sankalpam: To make a vow to god that he willthereafter do
everything as prescribed by Him is what this means. He does theprescribed
duties and rituals with the 3 types of thoughts always in him; theseare:
he does everything only to please our lord and not for hisown pleasure;
karthru thyAgam or the consciousness that he doeseverything not because it is
by him but because it is by Him,
mamatha thyAgam i.e. the god gets things done and phalathyAgam or the fruit of
whatever we do is for the lord and not for us.
This feature is called the sAthvikathyAgam and he shouldalways think that he
will do everything that gives happiness to our lord.
b) prAthikUlya varjanam is to make a vow that he will notact against His will
or dictates and not to do what are proscribed by thesAstrAs
c) mahAvisvAsam is the abiding unswerving faith in Himthat Sriman Narayana will
deliver us at the end of this life and take us intoHis fold and hence not
seeking other lesser gods to satisfy our petty needs anddesires.
d) kArpaNyam is the consciousness knowledge that we do nothave the capital (to
invest) in the form of bhakthi yOgam and hence eschew/give up ahnkara, mamakara
(the proud and vainglorious I and ME of everything wedo) and hence with this
humility, bow before Him for his grace.
e) kopruthvavaraNam is the plea we make to our lordexpressing our inability to
do bhakthi yoga and hence pleading for his graceand pity to give us salvation
from the cycle of births and deaths and to retainus for ever with Him.
‘Aar’ in Tamil is added at the end of anyword as a mark of respect. If we, the
jeevAthmA observe all the 25 aspectsstated above, then the 25th letter of ‘ma’
or jeevAthmA practicing the above 25attributes/aspects, becomes fit to be
called ayyangAr. As these are allpossible by us, let us all make a determined
effort to live as real ayyangArsby following whatever is ordained for us and
live happily in this world and theother world and not be merely namesake
ayyangArs!
-------------------------------------------------------
>From a sociological standpoint, gotrams for most southIndian brahmins (and for
>that matter, probably all brahmins), are probablyuseless, since each gotram by
>now has probably assimilated countless numbers ofnon-brahmins, or was a
>concoction from the very beginning.
Many brahmins ofSouth India, particularly Sri Vaishnava brahmins, are of
mixed origin. This can be gleaned from the very early daysof the movement,
when accusations were made by other brahmins that Pancaratra Vaishnavas (i.e.,
Sri Vaishnavas) were not"true" brahmins. This contentionis discussed in detail
by Yamunacharya {low caste arose to higher KR} in his Agama PraamaNya. The
fact that he needs to defend the Brahminical origin of Vaishnavasimplies that
the movement had a great deal of social fluidity. Dr. Srinivasan also has
someother speculations in this regard.” I am nominally of Srivatsa gotram, but
Idoubt if I have any real connection to Bhargava, Chyavana, and other rishis.
My connection with Nammalwar and Ramanuja on botha psychological and social
level is probably much more direct.
Speaking of gotram concoction,I surmise that the "SathamarShaNa"gotram
that is so common among Sri Vaishnavas (my mother's side included) is because
of Nathamuni andYamunacharya's direct spiritual connection with Nammalvar, who
is called"Sathakopa" in Sanskrit.
I also doubt if they are direct descendants of the Vedic rishis;they may have
adopted sathamarshana as their gotram to indicate greaterconnection with the
Alvar.
The gotrams themselves are regionalized, indicating a laterorigin to the
separate gotrams. Dr. G.S Ghurye, a prominent Indian sociologist,has noted that
many gotrams are exclusive to a particular region. The implicationsof this are
pretty obvious. An isolated groupof people could easily invent or assimilate
into a gotram, a very valuablething considering the status that
Brahminhoodconveyed.
From aVaishnavite standpoint, gotrams are in the end to be transcended and
avoided.There is a verse:
ekaanti vyapadeshtavyo naiva graamakulaadibhih
vishnunaa vyapadestavyo ... Unfortunately, I cannot remember the
lastpaadam of this verse, but it is quoted by Azhagiya Manavaala Perumal
Nayanaarin the Acharya Hridayam. The verse meansthat a "ekaanti", a
single-minded Vaishnava, should not adorn himselfwith connections to his
village or his kula (gotram). Rather, he should recognize himself asVishnu's
and Vishnu's alone, and call himself Ramanuja-daasan, Sri Vaishnava
Daasan,Ranganaatha Daasan, and refer to a divya-ksetra as his town.
I believe Desikar replaces his standard"abhivaadanam" in his Prabandhasaaram
with references to the Azhvaarsand the Prabandham, since they are his more
significant spiritual forebears.
I also think gotram tends to set apart brahmins from non-brahmins,a vestige of
an often distasteful social past that I would rather move away from. For this
very reason, I avoid reference to it, as wellas to the term "Iyengar", whose
meaning is shrouded in confusion.
The term "Sri Vaishnava" is so much moreappealing.
K Rajaram IRS 26524 27524
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