Much blood has flown ~ sordid
Pahalgam ! some spiritual history of valley
–Swami Ramanujar connection.
Much
blood (not water) has flown under the bridge .. .. ! the Lidder river is a 73 km
(45 mi) river situated in the Kashmir Valley of Jammu and Kashmir – originating
from the Kolahoi Glacier and feeding the
Jhelum River in Mirgund Khanabal, at an altitude of 1,615 metres (5,299
ft). Lidder is a corruption of the local
Sanskrit name Lambodari (लम्बोदरी) meaning 'long bellied
goddess'. The river
originates from Kolhoi Glacier near Sonamarg and gives rise to Lidder Valley.
It runs southwards through the alpine meadows of Lidderwat in the region of
Aru, from which it got its name. It covers 30 kilometres (19 mi) before
reaching Pahalgam where it joins the major
tributary of the East Lidder from Sheshnag Lake. The waters of the river are mainly used for
irrigation purposes through different canals and as drinking water processed by
water treatment plants.
On 22
April 2025, a terrorist attack at Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam in the Anantnag
district of Jammu and Kashmir killed at least 26 tourists and injured more than
20 others. The attack, the deadliest of
its kind in India since the 2008 Mumbai attacks, specifically targeted Hindu tourists, aimed at resisting
demographic changes in the Kashmir Valley. The Resistance Front (TRF), an
offshoot of the Pakistan-based, UN-designated terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba,
claimed responsibility for the attack.
The horrific killing
of tourists that has left the meadows of Pahalgam stained with the blood of
more than two dozen corpses produces a sickening sense vertigo — like the fall
of the falcon, “turning and turning in the widening gyre.” Gory, gruesome, heinous crime on humanity as people were targeted for their religion.
Pahalgam is a town in Anantnag district of Jammu
and Kashmir. It is located on the banks of Lidder River at an altitude of 2,200
m (7,200 ft) in the Vale of Kashmir. Pahalgam is the headquarters of the
Pahalgam tehsil, one of the eleven tehsils in Anantnag district. Located about 45 km (28 mi) from Anantnag,
the town is a popular tourist destination and hill station. The town is the
starting point of the annual pilgrimage to the Amarnath Temple, which takes
place in July–August. Pahalgam literally
means "village of the shepherds" in Kashmiri, with "Puheyl"
meaning shepherd and "goam" meaning village. In Hindu literature, the region is mentioned
as "Bailgaon", meaning "village of the bull", to indicate
where Lord Shiva left his bull on the way to Amarnath.
Anantnag is the
administrative headquarters of Anantnag district located
at a distance of 53 kilometres (33 miles) from the capital
Srinagar. "Anantnag" derives
from the name of the spring at the southern end of the town, whose Sanskrit
name Anantanāga was mentioned in the Nilamata Purana and other texts. According to the Gazetteer of Kashmir and
Ladak, it is named after Ananta, the great serpent of Vishnu and the emblem of
eternity. It is also called –
Islamabad derived from the name of a Mughal governor
Islam Khan who built a garden in the area.
The
gruesome attack makes the State take whatever action is necessary to bring the
perpetrators, and those who aid them, to justice. Yet, as India chooses the
next course of action, it will be difficult to shake off the sense of despair
this kind of terrorism produces. A successful military operation might be an
act of justice. It would restore a sense
of confidence in the capabilities of the state, and, in some quarters, satiate
a desire for revenge. The tragedy of the moment is that the bloody
frontier this act in Pahalgam has drawn will still shadow our political destiny.
Vedas are classified into two parts - Karma Kanda
and Brahma Kanda. Karma Kanda, due to its vastness needed a briefing. Jaimini
wrote Suthras (aphorisms) for the same. It was called as Purva Mimamsa. Similarly
Brahma Kanda, due to its complexity, needed a briefing, as it might have
resulted in misinterpretations. Veda Vyasa wrote aphorisms for the same. This
is called as Brahma Sutra. Both Purva Mimamsa and Brahma Sutra needed further
explanations. Thus came the Vritti(explanation) from Bodhayana for the Brahma
sutra. A Vritti is a short gloss explaining the aphorisms in a more, elaborate
way, but not as extensively as a Bhashya. Bodhayana Vritti had the reputation
of being the most authoritative explanation of the Brahma Suthras.
Our greatest Acarya Swami Ramanuja wanted to write
Bhashyam to Braham sutra or Sage Veda Vyasa and wanted to read Bodhayana
Vriti. 1000 years ago, only one
copy was available and that was
in Kashmir. Emperumanar Ramanujar along
with his disciple Kuresa
visited Kashmir for Bodhayana Vritti. The pundits of Kashmir allowed him to read but not take away nor take
any notes. Kuresha who had photographic
memory was able to repeat the contents of the book .Using it Ramanujar
gave us “Sri Bashyam”. That is the spiritual connect of Kashmeeram
land with our Sampradhayam and our Acharyar.
When his most famous work was complete, Udayavar again visited Kashmir to dedicate ‘Sri Bhasya’
to Maa Sharda, the goddess of Learning.
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Recently in Oct 2023, Jammu and Kashmir Lieutenant Governor Manoj
Sinha while inaugurating a branch of the Sri Yadugiri Yathiraja Mutt
in Srinagar talked in detail about Ramanujacharya’s Kashmir connection while referring to latters philosophy of ‘Vishishtadvaita’ which preached love, peace, compassion,
universal brotherhood and social equality.
He drew reference to the 11th century visit of
Ramanujacharya.. Acharyar with his disciple came on foot to Kashmir. Upon
receiving them ,the King of Kashmir and his court-scholars were astounded by
Ramanuja’s profound knowledge but
expressed their reservations to even permit Ramanujacharya to make a
copy of the text. It was after a long
persuasion that Kashmir scholars, who possessed the only copy of this book in their library had
allowed Ramanujacharya to merely thumb through the pages of the
book. Kooresha is believed to have read
it aloud from cover to cover and Ramanujacharya listened in silence. With the prodigious memory of Kuresar, began the composition of Sri Bhashya, the
commentary on Bramha Sutras. The guru dictated and the disciple wrote it
down. Ramanujacharya later came to be
called ‘Sribhashyakara.’ After the completion of the work, students of
Ramanujacharya wanted to fulfill their teacher’s mission to visit pilgrim
centers. They visited distant holy places like Dwaraka and Badari and reached Kashmir. At the valley, Mata Sharda– the
Goddess of learning is believed to have blessed him by presenting an icon of
Hayagreeva.
Unbroken tradition (according to Parakala Mutt) has it that Sri Ramanuja got the gift of Sri
Lakshmi Hayagriva’s image, worshipped in the Brahmatantra Parakala Matha of Mysore,
directly from Sri Saraswati in recognition of the expounding of the
Vishistadvaita system of philosophy before the assemblage of Pandits of Kashmir
“Saraswati Peetham” about the beginning of the twelfth century, during his
visit to that country, even as Sri Sankaracharya, under similar circumstances,
got the image of Sri Sharada herself three centuries earlier. From Sri Ramanuja the image
of §ri Hayagriva and, with it, the
spiritual succession, passed on to Tirukkurukkaippiran Pillan. From Sri Pundarikaksha,
a scion of that distinguished saint, who also had become the Rajaguru to the
Vijayanagara Emperor, the image, with all attendant Imperial paraphernalia,
passed on to later occupants of the Mutt.
On October 05, 2023 , Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha inaugurated Jagadguru Sri Ramanujacharya
Saraswathi Bhandaram Digital Library and Sri Yadugiri Yathiraja Mutt Branch,
Kashmir at Shivpora, Srinagar. In his address, the Lt Governor congratulated
the Sri Yadugiri Yathiraja Mutt and followers of Jagadguru Sri Ramanujacharya. The Lt Governor recalled the immense
contribution of Jagadguru Sri Ramanujacharya to the society. “Sri
Ramanujacharya through his philosophy of vishishtadvaita preached love, peace,
compassion, universal brotherhood and social equality. He showed the society
path of righteousness, virtue and devotionalism that influenced 'Bhakti
Movement',” the Lt Governor said. The Lt Governor also highlighted Sri
Ramanujacharya ji’s deep spiritual connect with Kashmir. He said the Mutt's
Kashmir Branch and treasure of eternal wisdom being made available through
digital library will inspire us in building a peaceful and harmonious society. The
Lt Governor commended the noble initiative to provide medical services at the
Mutt’s Kashmir Branch.
H.H Sri Sri Yadugiri Yathiraja Narayana Ramanuja Jeeyar
Swami Ji of Sri Yadugiri Yathiraja Mutt, on behalf of the Mutt, expressed
gratitude to Lt Governor and the UT Administration for the support to the Mutt.
Senior officers of Army, Civil & Police administration, members of Sri
Yadugiri Yathiraja Mutt, Saints and followers of Jagadguru Sri Ramanujacharya
were present.
The
beautiful valley Kashmeeram has been associated with Acaryas Shankaracharya and
Swami Ramanujacharya and we pray that peace lives in the valley and it returns
to its original glory. Here are some photos of Swami Ramanujar on day 3 of Thiruvavathara
uthsavam at Thiruvallikkeni divyadesam.
adiyen
Srinivasa dhasan
Mamandur
Veeravalli Srinivasan Sampathkumar
25.4.2025
Biblio
:
https://kashmir-rechords.com/ramanujacharyas-deep-spiritual-connect-with-kashmir/
https://brighterkashmir.com/sri-ramanujacharya-had-deep-spiritual-connect-with-kashmir-lg-sinha
Origin-And-Growth-Of-Sri-Brahmatantra-Parakala-Mutt_djvu.txt
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