Speech of HH Sri Datta Vijayananda Teertha Swamiji – Sri Narahari Teertha Swami Aradhana – July 30, 2017 – Mysore
Compiled by Smt Hira Duvvuri
Jaya Guru Datta
Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Sadgurubhyo Namo Namaha
Sri Narahari Teertha Swamine Namaha
Sri Jayalakshmi Matre Namaha
Sri Ganapathy Sachchidananda Sadgurubhyo Namaha
Sri Swamiji’s father, before Swamiji became an Avadhoota, whom we used to affectionately address as ‘Thatha’, received Sanyasa Deeksha in his later years, and took the formal name as Sri Narahari Teertha Swami. Today we are celebrating his 26th Aradhana Utsava (Anniversary of his merging in the Almighty). We have witnessed Sri Swamiji perform the ceremony here and are overjoyed at the experience.
The devotees from Akiveedu are taking the lead in conducting this ceremony every year, with help from all other devotees. A large number of Vedic scholars and priests from Mysuru city are here today to attend these festivities. Swamiji is extremely happy that you are all present here.
Sri Narahari Teertha Swami was a great scholar. His knowledge of Telugu literature and Vedas and Shastras was remarkable. Such a pundit could easily have earned his living, practicing his profession as a priest in the city of Anantapur. But, his intention was to make himself useful to poor folks living in villages. Therefore, he made Bommeparti near Anantapur his home and he served about forty nearby villages as priest, performing the required rituals in people’s homes. If anyone offered him out of their generosity any gratuity or gifts he accepted them. He never made any demands for compensation, nor did he put any price for his services. If at any time, in any nearby temple, the priest was absent or unavailable for any reason, he volunteered his services there to fulfill the daily ritual requirements. He was such a great soul with a helpful and generous attitude. His name then was Sri Gandluru Narasimha Sastry.
Today, what used to be Bommeparti, is called Jayalakshmipuram, in recognition of Sri Swamiji’s reverence for his mother. The government has officially changed the name of the village, which is just two hours away from Bengaluru. There, is located the Adhishthana (memorial) of Sri Narahari Teertha Swami, with a Siva Linga consecrated by Sri Swamiji in the name Sri Narahareeshwara. This year, Sri Swamiji originally intended to do this ceremony there. He had decided thus, fifteen days ago. However, since he is currently racing against time to complete the recording of the Bhagavatam episodes for ETV in Telugu language, he has decided to stay back and continue that effort uninterruptedly.
He is spending a minimum of four hours each day in the recording studio. This work is happening by the grace of Sri Narahari Teertha Swami, is Sri Swamiji’s belief. Therefore, he felt that the continuation of this duty is more important now, than traveling to Jayalakshmipuram. Every Saturday and Sunday, Sri Swamiji is giving a summary of the Bhagavatam episodes in Kannada.
Sri Narahari Teertha Swami was engrossed in the study of Bhagavatam. He would recite from memory at least two thousand verses from the Telugu Bhagavatam translated by Potana. Even at the age of eighty, he could readily recall any specific verse from the epic. His memory was prolific. When I was young, I remember Sri Swamiji longing to hear the recitation of those verses and inviting Sri Narahari Teertha Swami to come to the ashrama from Vidyaranyapuram, where he used to reside at that time. Age was never a hindrance to him. His mind was very alert.
Sri Swamiji, who should have been in Jayalakshmipuram today, is here instead, and is very happy to be amidst all the Vedic practitioners and the assembled devotees.
In this instance, I remember one mantra from the 5th Kanda of Yajurveda. Kadru…
Sri Swamiji reminds me of Garuda. The reason is:
Kashyapa Prajapati had two wives, Kadru and Vinata. They once took a bet on who was more beautiful among the two. They appointed judges. The loser had to become the servant of the winner. The judges voted Kadru to be the winner. Hence, Vinata, the mother of Garuda and others had to serve Vinata. The job of serving Kadru became unbearable for Vinata. She requested her sons to use their might to please relieve her of this obligation.
Kadru made a provision that if Vinata could fetch for her Soma Rasa or Amrita, the nectar of immortality, from Dyuloka, a plane of existence far away from the earth, then, she would relieve Vinata from servitude.
Why do parents wish for progeny? They hope and believe that children, when they grow up, will be sensitive to the needs of their parents, and will satisfy them. Parents trust that children will be useful to society and will also take good care of their parents.
The way Vinata requested her children to bring Amrita to relieve her from bondage, Sri Narasimha Sastry requested Sri Swamiji to initiate him into Sanyasa and release him from worldly bondage and grant him immortality. Father begged Swamiji, not as son, but as Lord Dattatreya Himself, to give him Sanyasa. The elders around Swamiji, Mr. Thimmappa and others, advised that it was not permitted by Shastras for a son to initiate his father into Sanyasa.
Therefore, Swamiji excused himself, and instead, gave the Panchakshari mantra and told him to keep doing its Japa. We even saw a video last year where Sri Narahari Teertha Swami referred to Swamiji as none other than Lord Dattatreya.
The yearning for release from worldly bondage was so strong in him that he performed Japa in counts of millions. He would frequently visit the ashram and in the presence of others announce that he has come to give a few millions to Swamiji. Others would wonder if the old man was bringing in his bag huge amounts of cash to give to Swamiji. He would ask whether he should give it in public or in private. Swamiji preferred to receive the gift in private. When the two of them went inside the room, the father would open his bag, take out his pot of sacred water, and ritualistically surrender the fruits of his penance to Sri Swamiji, insisting that it is better utilized by him, since he travels the world and benefits millions of people. Such was his generosity. He never kept the merit of his penance for himself. Each time, he would donate the reward of Japa done for tens of million times (several crores). His Japa was so intense that the Trinity would certainly have come down from their Lokas (abodes) to bestow him with their divine grace. Because this is Kali Yuga, we cannot see the Trinity with our eyes. But the severity of his penance certainly would have made the Trinity appear before him.
Swamiji often remembers jocularly such visits with the offer of a few crores, and devotees wondering why Swamiji finds it difficult to run the ashram, when he is receiving such ample funding.
One day, Swamiji arranged for his father’s Sanyasa Deeksha on the banks of Kaveri river. He was initiated formally by a blind Sanyasi who lived in a forest, belonging to the lineage of the Sringeri Peetha.
Swamiji had received his Sanyasa Deeksha in Srisailam at the Krishna river, when all the required materials for a Sanyasi, such as the Deeksha clothes, the sacred staff, and so on, came floating on a raft to him, on their own. Swamiji had been accompanied by two elderly devotees on that trip.
Swamiji briskly walked a distance of over a kilometer along the river bank to receive his Deeksha Vastrams, and the devotees could not keep pace with him. Hence, Swamiji was alone, with no witnesses, when Sri Abhedananda Swami initiated him into Sanyasa (to become an Avadhoota) in the formal procedure. Therefore, there were no witness to the event to give an endorsement.
Sri Swamiji said, father is always Guru to son, and therefore, he is ineligible to give Deeksha to Sri Narasimha Sastry.
The way Garuda, the Veda Purusha brought and gave Amrita to his mother to relieve her from bondage, Swamiji arranged to get Amrita to his father, who yearned for release from worldly bondage.
Sri Swamiji had us do some research recently, about Sri Narahari Teertha Swami’s age. People of that generation never celebrated birthdays, and no one knew his exact date of birth. True to his name, Sri Narasimha Sastry was hot tempered. So, we were scared to ask him while he was living, how old he was. Swamiji gave us a few helpful hints and clues for us to calculate and figure out when he was born. Had he been living, now he would be in his 111th year. We are therefore, also celebrating that today.
I pray that everyone should be abundantly blessed on this very auspicious occasion of the 26th Aradhana of Sri Narahari Teertha Swami, by him, and by Sri Swamiji.
Although this is a Sunday, and there are many marriage ceremonies being performed in town today, and there are other events afoot, you are all here. It makes Swamiji very happy. You have come, considering the grace of Sri Swamiji to be more important than anything else.
Victory to Sri Narahari Teertha Swami.
Sri Guru Datta