Memories flooded through the mind of a newborn fawn in the terrains of the Kalanjara mountain. He left his mother and slowly began walking North to the forest of Shaligrama. By no means could he let himself repeat the mistakes of his previous birth. Even after renouncing life as a king in pursuit of Sriman Narayana, he had fallen prey to attachment for an animal. A deer! He was devastated.
Maha Purna had no time to waste. He had to get to the city of Kanchipuram as quickly as possible. Purna’s acharya—the esteemed Yamunacharya himself—had instructed him to bring some young man named Ramanuja to Srirangam.
The deafening roar of a raging lion filled the vicinity of the riverbank. A heavily pregnant doe felt as if her heart had plummeted into her stomach. Her breathing became heavier every second. Overcome with panic she spontaneously leapt across the Gandaki River to escape. As she flew midair, her premature fawn fell out, landing in the caressing water. But as the exhausted and depressed doe’s black hooves met the river’s other bank, she released her final breath.
In the simple town of Sriperumbudur, the house of Keshavacharya and Kantimati was lit up in celebration of their radiant newborn child. Kantimati’s brother Srishaila Purna, the direct disciple of Yamunacharya himself, came to adorn the baby boy with the name Ilayazhvan, who would later be revered as Bhagavad Ramanuja.
Welcome to Bhakti Stories! On this auspicious day of Vijayadashami, we are delighted to launch https://bhaktistories.com – a carefully curated collection of devotional short stories. Whether you are looking for a bedtime story to tell your children or the child within you is eager to learn more about the true stalwarts of our rich heritage,…
The words of his guru, Uyyakondar, reverberated in Manakkaal Nambi’s mind.
“My own guru, Nathamuni, has a grandson living in the Pandya kingdom,” Uyyakondar had said. “It is your duty to bring him back to our Srivaishnava fold when the time is right.”
Knock. Knock.
Yamuna was puzzled. His teacher Bhashyacharya was away, and all his classmates had gone home. He was the only student at the school. Who could be visiting at this inconvenient time?
He went forward and opened the door, anyway. The person on the other side glared at him.
“It was you?” Devala asked, his fingers flying to his chin. “I thought a crocodile had caught hold of me. What were you thinking?”
Gajendra charismatically ushered his herd to the nearby river. Like any honorable leader, the elephant king patiently waited for each one of his subjects to quench their thirst.
At last, Gajendra waded in and began drinking. As he gleefully frolicked in the river, he suddenly felt something sharp in his feet.
Indradyumna had experienced enough of his worldly and materialistic life as a king. The Pandya ruler wanted to spend the remainder of his life immersing himself in the worship of Sriman Narayana.
