Yamunacharya

Samkhya	Kapila;
Yoga	Patanjali;
Vaisheshika	Kaṇāda, Prashastapada;
Secular	Valluvar;

Yamunacharya
Yamunacharya
	Statuette of Yamunacharya
Personal life
Born	Kattumannarkoil, Tamil Nadu, India
Died	Srirangam
Religious life
Religion	Hinduism
Denomination	Sri Vaishnavism
Philosophy	Vishistadvaita

Yamunacharya (IAST: Yāmunāchārya), also known as Alavandar^[1] and Yamunaithuraivan, was a Vishishtadvaita philosopher based in Srirangam, Tamil Nadu, India.^[2] He is best known as a preceptor of Ramanuja, one of the principal leaders of the Sri Vaishnava tradition.^[3] He was born in the early 10th century CE and was the grandson of Nathamuni, a famed yogi who collected the works of the Tamil Alvars.^[4]

Life

Debate and Royal Patronage

Yamunacharya lived from around 918–1038 CE^[5] and grew up studying Vedic texts under Rama Misra, developing great skill in the mimamsa philosophy. According to Sri Vaishnava tradition, as a teenager he challenged Akkiyalvan, the court scholar of the Pandya king, to a debate. Upon seeing the youth's age, Akkiyalvan sarcastically asked, "Aalavandharaa?" (meaning "Has he come to rule me?"). He defeated Akkiyalvan by logically proving that Akkiyalvan's mother was barren, the king was not righteous, and the queen was unchaste. The king and queen, impressed that the boy had understood the shortcomings of logic, adopted him. The queen hailed the youth with the title "Alavandar" ("one who came to rule"). In other versions of the legend, he was given half the kingdom. There is no historical record documenting his rule, suggesting that this event may have occurred in a local chieftaincy rather than the main Pandya kingdom.^[6]

Renunciation and Leadership at Srirangam

After years of royal life, Rama Misra led him into visit the Ranganathaswamy Temple in Srirangam. There, he experienced a spiritual awakening, renounced his royal duties, and became a sanyasin, embracing the path of sharanagati (total self-surrender). He is believed to have composed the Chatushloki and Stotra Ratna at that moment. Rama Misra entrusted the leadership of Nathamuni's monastic institution to him, along with the Naalayira Divya Prabandham, bestowing upon him the name Yamunacharya.

Following the passing of Alavandar, the community at Srirangam was led by his son, Thiruvarangan. According to a legend, the deity Ranganatha himself instructed Yamunacharya to go to Kanchipuram and invite Ramanuja to Srirangam.^[7] Yamunacharya is traditioned to have expressed three last desires prior to his death:

To commemorate the names of Sage Parashara and Veda Vyasa by bestowing them upon worthy desciples.
To compose a comprehensive commentary on Tiruvaymoli of Nammalvar.
To compose commentaries on Upanishads, Vedanta Sutras, and Bhagavad Gita.

Works

Alavandar, like his successor Ramanuja, focused both on philosophical debates defending Vishishtadvaita against Advaita and rival doctrines.^[8] His bhakti (devotional) prayers and philosophical works are written in Sanskrit, although he systematically preserved and codified the heritage of the Tamil Alvars.^[9] The major works attributed to him are:

Chatuh Shloki – A four-verse hymn in praise of the goddess Lakshmi and her divine attributes.^[10]
Stotra Ratna – A 65-verse devotional hymn ("Gem of Hymns") in praise of Narayana (Vishnu).^[10]
Siddhitraya – A foundational philosophical treatise comprising three parts: Ātmasiddhi (demonstration of individual self), īśvarasiddhi (demonstration of God), and Saṁvitsiddhi (demonstration of real empirical perception).^[11]
Agama Pramanya – A work establishing the canonical authority and the Vedic validity of the Pancharatra agama scriptures.^[12]
Maha Purusha Nirnayam – A now-lost treatise extolling the divine couple Lakshmi-Narayana as the Ultimate Reality.^[13]
Gitartha Sangraha – A 32-verse summary and commentary outlining the central themes of the Bhagavad Gita.^[14]
Nityam – A short liturgical manual detailing daily ritual worship duties.^[13]

References

↑ "Details of Sri Vaishnavism, Guru Krupa Foundation" (PDF). guru-krupa.org. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
↑ www.wisdomlib.org (1 May 2022). "History of Theism [Chapter 6]". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 21 September 2022.
↑ www.wisdomlib.org (24 June 2022). "Chapter 1: Introduction". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 21 September 2022.
↑ Jones, Constance (2007). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. New York: Infobase Publishing. p. 490. ISBN 978-0-8160-5458-9.
↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath (1940). A History Of Indian Philosophy Vol. 3. p. 97.
↑ Venkatadriagaram Varadachari (1984), Yamunacharya, Memorial Trust
↑ "Life History of Bhagavad Ramanuja for Children". SriVaishnavam. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
↑ Chari, S. M. Srinivasa (1994). Vaishnavism: Its Philosophy, Theology and Religious Discipline. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 24–28. ISBN 978-8120810983.
↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath (1991). A History of Indian Philosophy, Volume 3. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 97–105. ISBN 978-8120804142.
1 2 Chari, S. M. Srinivasa (1994). Vaishnavism: Its Philosophy, Theology and Religious Discipline. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 25–26.
↑ Dasgupta, Surendranath (1991). A History of Indian Philosophy, Volume 3. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 98–102.
↑ van Buitenen, J. A. B. (1971). Yamuna's Agama Pramanyam. Ramanuja Research Society. pp. 1–12.
1 2 Chari, S. M. Srinivasa (1994). Vaishnavism: Its Philosophy, Theology and Religious Discipline. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 28.
↑ Sampatkumaran, M. R. (1954). The Gitarthasangraha of Yamunacharya. Educational Publishing Co. pp. 5–10.

External links

Media related to Yamunacharya at Wikimedia Commons
Yāmuna’s doctrine of Soul contrasted with those of others, Surendranath Dasgupta, 1940
Kattumannarkoil Temple, Sriman Nathamunigal and Sri Aalavandar life history by Sri U.Ve.Asthagothram Kachi Kidambi T.Sreenivasachari Swamy
Bibliography of Yamuna Acharya's works, Item 580 Archived 13 November 2021 at the Wayback Machine, Karl Potter, University of Washington
The Philosophy of Yāmunācārya, by Surendranath Dasgupta From: A History of Indian Philosophy Volume 3
Works of Yāmunaacharyar - acharya.org

[1] "Details of Sri Vaishnavism, Guru Krupa Foundation" (PDF). guru-krupa.org. Retrieved 7 November 2018.

[2] www.wisdomlib.org (1 May 2022). "History of Theism [Chapter 6]". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 21 September 2022.

[3] www.wisdomlib.org (24 June 2022). "Chapter 1: Introduction". www.wisdomlib.org. Retrieved 21 September 2022.

[4] Jones, Constance (2007). Encyclopedia of Hinduism. New York: Infobase Publishing. p. 490. ISBN 978-0-8160-5458-9.

[5] Dasgupta, Surendranath (1940). A History Of Indian Philosophy Vol. 3. p. 97.

[6] Venkatadriagaram Varadachari (1984), Yamunacharya, Memorial Trust

[7] "Life History of Bhagavad Ramanuja for Children". SriVaishnavam. Retrieved 15 July 2018.

[8] Chari, S. M. Srinivasa (1994). Vaishnavism: Its Philosophy, Theology and Religious Discipline. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 24–28. ISBN 978-8120810983.

[9] Dasgupta, Surendranath (1991). A History of Indian Philosophy, Volume 3. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 97–105. ISBN 978-8120804142.

[“CSSR”-10] 1 2 Chari, S. M. Srinivasa (1994). Vaishnavism: Its Philosophy, Theology and Religious Discipline. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 25–26.

[11] Dasgupta, Surendranath (1991). A History of Indian Philosophy, Volume 3. Motilal Banarsidass. pp. 98–102.

[12] van Buitenen, J. A. B. (1971). Yamuna's Agama Pramanyam. Ramanuja Research Society. pp. 1–12.

[:0-13] 1 2 Chari, S. M. Srinivasa (1994). Vaishnavism: Its Philosophy, Theology and Religious Discipline. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 28.

[14] Sampatkumaran, M. R. (1954). The Gitarthasangraha of Yamunacharya. Educational Publishing Co. pp. 5–10.

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