Yamunacharya accepts the challenge
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.
“Is Bhashya here?” the visitor inquired.
“He is away on a business trip,” Yamuna responded politely. “I’m his student. Do you need anything, sir?”
“I am the disciple of the famous Akkiazhvan,” the visitor declared. Then, seeing the confusion on Yamuna’s face, he explained, “He is the royal pandit of the Pandya king himself. He has left no scholar in the kingdom undefeated, including your teacher. Everyone my teacher defeats must pay a yearly penalty of taxes. And your Bhashya has not done so for the past few years.”
Yamuna nodded. He knew how poor his teacher was. “Hmm… okay. But I have not yet met this teacher of yours. Let me first debate with him, and then we’ll see if anyone at all needs to continue paying taxes to him.”
The visitor was enraged. But since the boy had made a challenge, they had to accept it.
Pandya king’s wager and the queen’s counter
So that very day, Yamuna left for Madurai, the Pandya capital. In spite of the radiance on his face, most of the ministers and spectators laughed at him and rolled their eyes as he entered the court. None of them could believe how such a young boy could even stand a chance against the kingdom’s greatest scholar.
On the other end of the court, however, the queen was mesmerized by Yamuna’s effulgence. She tapped the king’s shoulder and told him that she was certain the boy would win. The king remained unconvinced and a quiet argument erupted between them.
The king was so certain of Akkiazhvan’s victory that he proposed, “If your little boy emerges victoriously, then I will give him half my kingdom.”
The queen had her own comeback. “Fine,” she said. “If your proud scholar wins, then I will become a maid in your palace.”
The couple had no more time to argue. The debate was starting.
Yamunacharya conquers Akkiazhvan
Akkiazhvan looked upon the young Yamuna with pity. “Young boy, you may have the first word.”
Not wasting a moment, Yamuna made a challenge. “Okay, sir. I am going to make three statements. If you can refute them, you win. One: the Pandya king is righteous. Two: our queen is married only to the king. Three: your mother is not a barren woman. Remember, if you cannot refute these statements, then I win.”
Akkiazhvan was shocked. How could he, or anyone for that matter, call the king is unrighteous or the queen unchaste? And declare his own mother to be a barren childless woman?
“What-what? You can’t say just anything ridiculous and expect me to refute. Show us that you can refute them before claiming victory.”
Yamuna remained calm. “Of course. Our scriptures declare that a woman with only one child is considered barren, and you are an only child. A king receives a share of all the sins and unrighteous acts committed by his subjects. Finally, our scriptures say that a king is the embodiment of the eight digpaalakaas, or guardians of the eight directions (Agni, Vayu, and so on). So, the queen is technically married to all eight of them.”
With the bountiful and accurate scriptural evidence Yamuna provided, Akkiazhvan was forced to admit defeat. And because of his elegant victory, he was crowned king of half of the Pandya realm, and he ruled his kingdom diligently and responsibly.
Continue reading the story! Yamunacharya: From King to Acharya
