Sri Raghunatha Teertharu
Sri Raghunatha Teertharu
Malkhed....Aaradhana - Margashirsh Krishna Pratipada (1)
Period – 1444 – 1502ADVrundavana @ MaLaKEDaAshrama Gurugalu – Sri Vidyanidhi Tirtharu (YaragoLa)Ashrama Shishyaru – Sri Raghuvarya Tirtharu (Navavrundavana)raGunaathagurum noumi vidyaanidhikarOdbhavam |kUrmO varuNagangE cha yasya pratyakShataam gataa: |
ರಘುನಾಥಗುರುಂ ನೌಮಿ ವಿದ್ಯಾನಿಧಿಕರೋದ್ಭವಂ |ಕೂರ್ಮೋ ವರುಣಗಂಗೇ ಚ ಯಸ್ಯ ಪ್ರತ್ಯಕ್ಷತಾಂ ಗತಾ:
|रघुनाथगुरुं नौमि विद्यानिधिकरोद्भवं ।कूर्मो वरुणगंगे च यस्य प्रत्यक्षतां गता: ।
He is the 12th Yati from Srimadacharyaru and 7th Yati from Sri Jaya Tirtharu.Contemporaries - Sri Purandaradasaru, Kanakadasaru, Sri Vibudendra Tirtharu, Sri Sripadarajaru, Sri Vyasarajaru, Sri Raghottama Tirtharu, etc.Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu gave the title “Sripadaraja” to Sri Lakshmi naaraayaNa Tirtha” -
Once Sri Vibudendra Tirtharu, was staying in Koppara Narasimha kshetra. He was doing Srimannyayasudha paata to Sri LakshminarayaNa Tirtharu. Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu came there on tour and stayed there for some time. Sri Lakshminarayana Tirtharu had the opportunity of presenting the anuvada of Srimanyaya sudha in front of Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu and vidya guru Sri Vibudendra Tirtharu. Overwhelmed with joy, Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu felt happy and praised Lakshminarayana Tirtharu and gave the title “Sripadaraja” in front of Sri Vibudendra Tirtharu. That was the vidyaa pakshapatitva of Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu.
Miracle by Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu -
Once Srigalu had visited a village. There one of the brahmana had died. The wife of the brahmana came to Srigalu for permission for sahagamana and did the namaskara. Not known about the death of the brahmana, and without being asked by her, he gave the blessings that she shall have eight children “asta putrO bhava”. All were surprised. The woman was shocked and surprised to hear the swamiji’s blessings. The shishyaas informed the swamiji what had happened to the brahmana. Swamiji told that those are the words of Sri Ramachandra and not mine, and that can’t be untrue. It so happened that the dead brahmana got up, and he lived for long time, and he got eight children as blessed by the swamiji. The same has been explained in Satyanidhi Vilasa as follows :
prashaanta kaantaanugamOdyaa taanataa bhavaaShTa putrEShTa munOditaa sati |sutaana vaa paaShTha dhavEna jIvataa dadhEShTha putryaaKya mapisvamanvayaM
|प्रशांत कांतानुगमोद्या तानता भवाष्ट पुत्रेष्ट मुनोदिता सति ।सुतान वा पाष्ठ धवेन जीवता दधेष्ठ पुत्र्याख्य मपिस्वमन्वयं ।
ಪ್ರಶಾಂತ ಕಾಂತಾನುಗಮೋದ್ಯಾ ತಾನತಾ ಭವಾಷ್ಟ ಪುತ್ರೇಷ್ಟ ಮುನೋದಿತಾ ಸತಿ |ಸುತಾನ ವಾ ಪಾಷ್ಠ ಧವೇನ ಜೀವತಾ ದಧೇಷ್ಠ ಪುತ್ರ್ಯಾಖ್ಯ ಮಪಿಸ್ವಮನ್ವಯಂ |
Vyasarajaru met Raghunatharu @ YeragoLa –
Once Sri Vyasarajaru wanted to have the darshana of Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu, when he was in Yerogala. Raghunatha Tirtharu arranged for separate bhiksha in one of the shishyaa’s house, having known of the fact that Vyasarajaru is the shishya of Sripadarajaru. But Vyasarajaru insisted for saha pankthi bhojana with the great yati, Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu and both agreed for that. After the bhojana, Sri Vyasarajaru showed the TippaNees prepared by him to Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu and he was very much pleased by the work. Vyasarajaru also did the samarpaNa of survarNa nirmita kaTaaha, to be used by Sreegalu for filling water and doing the naivedya. Thus Sri Vyasarajaru, who was even honoured by many kings, many vidwat panditaas, honoured Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu.
VyasamusTi turned Koormaroopi saaligrama :
Once Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu was on digvijaya tour, came to pampakshetra. There he was welcomed by Sri Vyasarajaru, Vijayanagara king. Swamiji told that he is on tour and he is going to Kashi for ganga snaana. It was on pingaLanaama samvatsara, phalGuna shudda saptami day, during aruNodaya kaala gangadevi came in the form of pravaaha. Sri Vyasarajaru, Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu, Sri Raghuvarya Tirtharu, and Vijayanagara king all had the snaana, daana and other kriyaas. Sri Raghuvaryaru requested Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu that Ganga has come here itself and that there is no necessity of going to Kashi. Swamiji replied that Ganga might have come for having the darshana of Sri Ramachandra devaru. Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu was doing the nirmalya visarjana, the vyasamushTi rolled out and reached the river but could not be traced. Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu observed fasting for seven days and was staying near the river only and on the seventh day, the vyasamusti came out floating and came in the form of korma roopa. Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu did the kshera abhisheka of koormaroopi Sri Vedavyasa devaru and even today it is being worshipped in Uttaradimutt. Further, the saligrama will be rotating as long as it in ksheera (milk).
Paadodaka mahime – as per Sripadaraja stotra
paatu shrIpaadaraaja: saKivararaGunaathaaryayukta: kadaa |gaMgaasnaanaaya gachChan pathinRupasadanaM praaShyachit bhaikShyaM ya yaache |paadaprakShaaLanaarthaM sthitavatiyatipe bhartsanaadyasyakOpaat |gEhEdagdhEtina mRuMpadayugaLagataM yOrarakShaavanIshaM |
ಪಾತು ಶ್ರೀಪಾದರಾಜ: ಸಖಿವರರಘುನಾಥಾರ್ಯಯುಕ್ತ: ಕದಾ |ಗಂಗಾಸ್ನಾನಾಯ ಗಚ್ಛನ್ ಪಥಿನೃಪಸದನಂ ಪ್ರಾಷ್ಯಚಿತ್ ಭೈಕ್ಷ್ಯಂ ಯ ಯಾಚೆ |ಪಾದಪ್ರಕ್ಷಾಳನಾರ್ಥಂ ಸ್ಥಿತವತಿಯತಿಪೆ ಭರ್ತ್ಸನಾದ್ಯಸ್ಯಕೋಪಾತ್ |ಗೇಹೇದಗ್ಧೇತಿನ ಮೃಂಪದಯುಗಳಗತಂ ಯೋರರಕ್ಷಾವನೀಶಂ
|पातु श्रीपादराज: सखिवररघुनाथार्ययुक्त: कदा ।
गंगास्नानाय गच्छन् पथिनृपसदनं प्राष्यचित् भैक्ष्यं य याचॆ ।
पादप्रक्षाळनार्थं स्थितवतियतिपॆ भर्त्सनाद्यस्यकोपात् ।
गेहेदग्धेतिन मृंपदयुगळगतं योररक्षावनीशं ।
- Once Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu on his way to Dwaraka met Sri Sripadarajaru in one village. The king of that place invited the yatidwayaru for paada pooja. Sripadarajaru told the king to do the bhiksha first to Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu, but the king was reluctant to do so. He wanted to do it to Sripadarajaru. So, Sripadarajaru also refused his paadapooja and both the yatees went off that house. Immediately that house got fire and was burning with the agni jwaala. Repenting for his durahankara, the king fell on the paadakamala of the yatigalu for excusing his deeds. Then the Yatidwayaru accepted the paadapooja and ordered the king to do the prokshane of the paadOdaka on the house. The king did like that and got his abheeshasiddhi.Gave darshana to Sripadarajaru on his way to devaloka:On the day of his exit from the bhooloka, Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu, was travelling in a beautiful vimaana to devaloka. Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu threw a devaloka pushpa on Sripadarajaru from the vimaana (aeroplane). Sripadarajaru was doing sarvamoola paata to his shishyaas. Immediately, Sripadarajaru took that flower and had a touch of that flower on his eyes and kept it on his head. Unknown about what had happened, the shishyaas asked as to what had happened, then Sripadarajaru told them that Sri Raghunatha Tirtharu has departed from this bhooloka and he had thrown that flower on him. This can be seen from the shloka by Sri Nidhi Tirtha Virachita Sripaadaraja stotra :
shrImadyashIsha raGunaathamunErvimaanaat |puShTEsvamUrdhnipatatiprasamIkShachOktvaa |saMprEritOru raGunaathamunIshvaraama |shrIpaadaraaja guruvEstu nama: shubhaaya
|श्रीमद्यशीश रघुनाथमुनेर्विमानात्
पुष्टेस्वमूर्ध्निपततिप्रसमीक्षचोक्त्वा ।संप्रेरितोरु रघुनाथमुनीश्वराम श्री
पादराज गुरुवेस्तु नम: शुभाय ।
ಶ್ರೀಮದ್ಯಶೀಶ ರಘುನಾಥಮುನೇರ್ವಿಮಾನಾತ್ ಪುಷ್ಟೇಸ್ವಮೂರ್ಧ್ನಿಪತತಿಪ್ರಸಮೀಕ್ಷಚೋಕ್ತ್ವಾ |ಸಂಪ್ರೇರಿತೋರು ರಘುನಾಥಮುನೀಶ್ವರಾಮ ಶ್ರೀಪಾದರಾಜ ಗುರುವೇಸ್ತು ನಮ: ಶುಭಾಯ |
“Source – Srisudha”
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Sri Raghunatha Tirtha
|| Shri Raghunatha Teertha Gurubhyonamha ||
|| Shri Gurubhyonamaha ||
|| Shri Hari Om ||
रघुनाथगुरुं नौमि विद्यानिधिकरोद्भवम्।कूर्मो वरुणगङ्गे च यस्य प्रत्यक्षतां गताः॥
|| raghunAthaguruM naumi vidyAnidhikarodbhavam .kUrmo varuNaga~Nge ca yasya pratyaxatAM gatAH ||
Introduction to Shri 1008 Shri Raghunatha Teertharu:Shri Raghunatha Teertharu was eleventh great scholar and saint of Shri Uttaradi Matha who received the patronage of Shri Krishnadevaraya of the Vijayanagar. This was an eventful epoch in the history of the Matha, when several incidents revealing the highest status of Shri Uttaradi Matha occurred. The outstanding personality of Sri Raghunatha Teertharu among the Vaishanava pontiffs of the school of Madhvacharya heralded a glorious renaissance in the religious history of the Vijaya Nagar empire and also constituted an important landmark in the histroy of Dwaitha vedantha. He was a contemporary of Shri Vibhudendra Teertharu and Shri Lakshminarayana Teertharu alias Shripadaraju, Shri Vyasrayaru and Shri Purandara Dasaru. He was like an emperor in the spiritual realm of unlimited prowess.
Shri Raghunatha Teertharu, the immediate disciple and successor of Shri Vidyanidhi Teertharu, was ordained to Vendantha Samrajya at Yaragola. He was formerly known as Vishnu Shastri. He was an embodiment of vyragya and travelled all over India on foot by carrying his samsthana deities on his shoulders. He toured extensively and defeated many a scholar in scholarly dispute and strengthened the cause of Madhva Vaishnavism. He had under his tutelage as many as twenty eight monks who were called Shripadas. This was the most illustrious period of the Uttardi Matha. Re-emphasising the divine message of Shri Madhvacharya the exponent of the Dwaitha Philosophy, Shri Raghunatha Teertharu exhorted the devotees to love Shri Hari and live happily.
Shri Raghunatha Teertharu was the leading figure in the social and religious revolution of the times. His magnetic influence spread to all classes of people, By severe penance and high learning His Holiness developed mystical power and became honored everywhere by all classes of people including the great saints who lived during his regime.
A story goes that once in a village on the bank of River Krishna, a lady whose husband was hopelessly ill, desired to die along with her husband. At that time she heard the greatness of Shri Swamiji who is having extraordinary spiritual power and divine vision and who is touring in the surrounding places. She immediately rushed to the place where Shri Swamiji was camping and had the darshana of His Holiness. He blessed her to have eight children. With the divine blessings of the Swamiji her dying husband fully recovered and she had eight children by him.
In the process of his regular tour, once he came to Koppara in Karnataka, a place of worship of Lord Narashima swamy. There he camped for some time. Shri Vibudendra Teertharu met Shri Raghunatha Teertharu and presented his pupil, Shri Laxminarayana Teertharu in order to obtain recognition by the highly learned Swamiji. Shri Vibhudendra Teertharu ordered his student to submit an exposition of the first Adhikarana of Shriman Nyaya Sudha. Shri Swamiji was pleased at exposition of Shri Laxminarayana Teertharu and bestowed on him the title Shripadaraja.
Later, Shri Raghunatha Teertharu went towards "Nivritti Sangama", where His Holiness spent some time. When Swamiji grew very old, he ordained Shri Raghuvarya Teertharu on the pontifical throne of the Shri Uttaradi Matha and made him his assistant. He visited Navabrindavana situated on a rock in the middle of the river Tungabhadra. Shri Raghunatha Teertharu worshipped the samsthana idols with the help of Shri Raghuvarya Teertharu on a rock. At the time of Nirmalya Visarjana, one of the five Vyasa mushties fell in the river. All efforts were made to recover the Vyasa mushti but it was not recovered. He fasted for seven days. On the night of the seventh day Lord Vedavyasa comforted him in a dream saying that many stones in the form of tortoise will come up in the water and that form of tortoise which will revolve while pouring milk on it is the Vyasa mushti which fell into the water. Accordingly, the next morning many Kurma shaped stones were floating in the river and out of them Shri Raghunatha Teertharu took the one which revolved, while performing the Kshiraabhisheka. Thus he restored the lost Vysa mushti, that is the Kurma Saligram for which Abhishekam with milk is being done even today in the Matha.
This strange movements of the tortoise were witnessed by Shri Vyasarayaru, Shri Purandara Dasaru, Shri Raghuvarya Teertharu, and the king of Vijayanagar Shri Krishana Devarya. They were struck with wonder that he was such a mystic pontiff. On this occasion Shri Krishana Devarya honoured his Holiness Shri Raghunatha Teertharu.
Shri Purandara Dasa in one of his kirtanas gives an account of the pooja of Shri Raghunatha Teertharu. How devoted was Shri Raghunatha Teertharu towards God, how great a mystic of unflailling penance swamiji was, how fortunate the swamiji was in his devoted worship of Shrimad Acharya's devatarchana containing the 28 sacred Murthi's in the following verses:
Madhvarayara Devatarchaneyu (Pallavi)
Prasiddha Raghunatharu Pujisuva Sobaga (anupallavi)
The pooja box of Shrimad Acharya, containing 28 sacred Murthi's is being possessed and adored by the saints of Shri Uttaradi Matha in succession till this day.
Thus Shri Raghunatha Teertharu stands as the most ruling guru of all vaishanava in particular and of all satwic adhikari in general. He enjoyed a long and eventful pontificate throne of Shri Uttaradi Matha for 59 years and entered the Brindavana near the Brindavana of his beloved guru Shri Jayateertharu at Malkhed, Gulbarga Dist, Karnataka.
How to visit Malkhed?
Malkhed comes under Gulbarga District. It is 40 kms away from Gulbarga. There is sufficient bus facility to Malkhed from Gulbarga. It is situated in between Gulbarga and Sedam, 12 kms away from Sedam.
Contact Information:
Shri Venkannachar Pujar,
Shri Jayateertha Brindavana,
Malkhed, Sedam Taluk,
Gulbarga Dist-585 317,
Karnataka
Ph : 08441-680343.
Info Courtesy - Diipak RAO
Uttaradhi Mutt
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|| Shri Digvijaya Rama Vijayate ||
|| Shri Krishanarpanamstu ||::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
HSVJ