Vishnu
Chittar (Periyazhwar) dedicated his entire life in the service of God. Once
Pandya King Vallabha Deva of Madurai, was troubled by the thought — ‘What you
want after death should be accumulated in this life itself.’ He summoned his
chief priest Selva Nambi to find an answer for it. The
answers of most of the scholars were less satisfactory. And when it was Vishnu
Chittar’s turn, he stunned the Pandya King with his description on the
greatness of Lord Narayana by citing various references from Vedic scriptures.
Pleased with this explanation Vallabha Deva gave him the prize money and
conferred the title of ‘Bhattar Piran.’ He was also taken out on a royal procession
on the Elephant mount around the streets
of Madurai. As he moved along the procession, Vishnu Chittar had darshan of the
Sriman Narayana on Garuda vahana and he sang ‘Thirupallandu’.
Sri Krishnadevaraya
(1471 – 1529) was the emperor of Vijayanagara Empire from 1509 to 1529. He was the third ruler of the Tuluva Dynasty.
Presiding over the empire at its zenith, he is regarded as an icon by many
Indians. Krishna Deva Raya earned the titles Kannada Rajya Rama Ramana, Andhra Bhoja and Mooru Rayara Ganda (lit,
"King of three Kings"). He became the dominant ruler of the peninsula
of India by defeating the Sultans of Bijapur, Golconda, the Bahmani Sultanate
and the Raja of Odisha.
Portuguese travellers
Domingo Paes and Fernao Nuniz visited
the Vijayanagara Empire during his reign. Krishna Deva Raya benefited from the
able prime minister Timmarusu, who was regarded by the emperor as a father
figure and was responsible for his coronation. He built a beautiful suburb near Vijayanagara
called Nagalapura. He patronized many temples and his rule is vastly celebrated
as good for all the people.
Krishnadevaraya’s
literary fame rests on Amukta Malyada. Traditionally this work has been
included among the five great classics of Telugu literature. It shares the
limelight along with Allasani Peddanna’s Manucharitramu, Ramaraja Bhushana’s
Vasucharitramu, Pingali Surana’s Raghava Pandaviyamu and Srinatha’s Sringara
Naishadhamu. Amukta Malyada is
considered complex and difficult to
master, due to its erudition. In Amukta Malyada, Krishnadevaraya describes
the events that led him to undertake composition of the work. Sriman Narayana appeared in his dream and
ordained him to write about the maiden who used to offer Him garlands, after
wearing them herself first, i.e, Kothai Piratti - Goda Devi [Sri Andal]. The story is set at Srivilliputtur in the
Pandyan kingdom. The poet gives a vivid description of the temple town and the
life of its inhabitants. Vishnuchitta, an ardent devotee of Lord Vishnu, served
as a personal attendant at the local shrine of Vadabathrasayee, manifestation of Sriman Narayana. Goda Devi
has the unique distinction of being the only female among the twelve highly
venerated Alwars, saint composers and devotees of Sriman Narayana.
Amukta Malyada is a
prabhanda and, true to its character, deals with fervour the romantic theme of
Goda Devi’s love for Sri Ranganatha of
Srirangam and their marriage. The name
Amukta Malyada means the woman who offered garlands once worn by herself. This
is Sanskrit equivalent of her name in Tamil `Soodi-koduttha Nachiyar’.
In my recent visit to
the SriVilliputhur divyadesam, had the fortune of darshan of Sri Andal, Sri
Rangamannar with Garudalwar ~ and infront of the temple stood majestically, the
temple elephant. The female elephant is
named ‘Jayamalyatha’ [probably conjoining Ex CM Ms Jayalalithaa who visited
this temple often and the work of Sri Krishna Devaraja – aamuktha malyatha]
With regards – S.
Sampathkumar
23rd Sept.
2017.
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