SARVARTHA SIDDHI _OF ' _ SRI VEDANTADEéIKA ASrudy By Late Dr V.N. SESHADRI ACHARYA (of Oppiliappan Sannidhi) Formerly of Annamalai University Editors Dr V.K.S.N. RAGHAVAN and Dr S. PADMANABHAN (University of Madras) SRI VISISHTADVAITA RESEARCH CENTRE Madras 1993 copy rights Sri Visishtadvaita Research Centre First Edition : 1993 Published by .' Sri Visishtadvaita Research Centre 66,- Dr. Rangachari Road, Mylaporc, Madras-600 018. Price .' Rs. 125/ - Printed by .' M/s Avvai Achukkoodam Madras—600 013. INTRODUCTION Dr. V. N. Seshadri Acharya, a scion of a highly learned family, devoted to the propagation of Sanskrit and Vaishnavite philosophy over the past one century was, by profession, a professor of Sanskrit in Anna- malai University for al out three decades. The world of Vaishnax ism has known of the distinct contribution made towards our religion by his father Sri Navanitam Swami. and by his elder brother Sri V. N. Sriramadesi- kacharya. For his own part. Dr. Seshadriacharya has written a monumental work on the Sarvdrthasiddhi of Sri Desika. It is the commentary on his verse work, the Tattvamuktdkaldpa. Praised by pandits, this polemic work is. however, hardly studied or expounded, be- cause ofits erudition and intricate dialectics. It is such a work that the author took up for deep research and has presented an academic thesis on diverse systems and Sri Desika's defence of Visishtadvaita against them. The book consistently summarises the paths of Bhakti and Saranagati as issuing from the Visish- tadvaita concept of the Jiva Iswara relationship. We were fortunate to secure the services of two competent scholars to edit this book so as to make it of usefulness to students of Indian Philosophy. Dr- V. K. S. N. Raghavan (Dept. of Vaishnavism) and Dr. S. Padmanabhan (Dept. of Sanskrit) of the Univer- sity of Madras have done an admirable job. diligently ind enthusiastically. They have made the book more meaningful and more relevant by editorial touches on 4 ii the style and presentation. To these editors, we express our heartiest thanks. Dr. V. Varadachariar. a leading authority in the field of Visishtadvaita philosophy, was kind enough to provide a foreword to the book. As readers go through it, they would find this to be a unique fore- word. It is an essay on Indian Philosophy, to serve as a preliminary outline to enable a reader to follow the contents of the thesis and also the author’s original contribution on the subject. The readers should then become quite familiar with the abstruse concepts of the different schools of thought and appreciate the worth of this publication. Sri Visishtadvaita Research Centre has great plea- sure in. and feels proud of, bringing out this volume in its programme of useful publications. We wish to record our sincere thanks to The Dr. G. Srinivasamurti Foundation, Adyar, Madras for evincing interest to publish a book on Visishtadvaita Philosophy and rendering financial assistance for this publication. Our thanks are also due to Sri C. Rama- swami (author's brother-in-law), Madras who took special interest in the early release of the book and to M/s. Sundaram Charities. Madras for their financial assistance. In fine, we thank M/s. Avvai Achukoodam, Madras-13. for the neat printing and fine execution of this book. S. V. S. RAGHAVAN President Sri Visistadvaita Research Centre Madras-18 PREFACE {sushi} alfisanfimea' {as sang—2353:1121 a}: | 35mm sngfr nagfi Gained aaagaralasafi II The Saptatz'ratnamdlikd (45) of Prativadibhayankaram Annan Our father, the late Dr. V. N. Seshadri Acharya, a Siromani and M.A. pursued philosophicalresearch as his lifebreath tenaciously for years even while in fail- ing health with a weak heart. he having mastered Vedanta Sastra after his study of granthacatusgaya (the four masterworks to be studied by every Vaishna- Vite) under his father and Acharya. Sri Navanitam Swami who is our Acharya too. Having served a few years in schools and from 1940 in the Annamalai University. propagation of Sanskrit was his zealous goal. Piously disposed and spending all the waking moments, so to say, in useful work, his tongue constantly used to revel in revolving sweet verses ofthe Azhwars, Kurattazhvan, Bhattar or Dcsika with an inner mental delectation. He wish'ed only to spend his retired life in a silent environment at his native place rendering services to Lord Oppiliappan like his own father teaching Sanskrit and Sastras to yearning students coming forward to him. iv While he was working on this project on the Sandr- thasiddhi. he received encouragement and helpful sug- gestions from several scholars of that time, such as Sri A. V. Gopalacharya, Advocate. Trichy, Panditaraja Sri D. T. Tatachariar of Tirupati, Rao Sahib Profes- sor M. R. Rajagopala Iyengar and Professor R. Ramanujachariar. We are very much indebted to Dr. V. Varada— chariar for his admirable Foreword. May the Lord be pleased with what little service has thus been done at His Feet. ll Haiaifiqfizz Hi"! nag 83mg ll Madras V. N. Vedanta Desikan V. N. Srinivasa Desikan V. N. Venkatanathan FOREWORD Dr. V. Varadachar} French Institute of Indology Pondicherry Since the early times man inhabited earth, he noticed the surroundings, learnt about them and began making use of them for his own purpose. All men are not of the same kind. They differ from each other, in thought, word and deed. They display not only diffe— rences but variations and gradations. When more than one among them get together and give expression to their observations and the usefulness ofthings. they ex- hibit, such marked inclinations that very often, there is no agreement or unanimity in their views. It is in this manner man began to adopt reason as a means to argue with others on topics concerning their welfare and __well—being. There is no means to find out whether men had any concept ofsoul or its destiny. The word God was not used by them but they believed in some super-human power which controlled them and their activities. As years rolled by. inquiries started as to their own way of living and the mi3eries which afllicted them from time to time. They turned to a few pious men who were then near them and got advice and counsel on the concept of soul and the need to realise its nature. Filled with knowledge, feelingand ability to convey them to others they realised that the souls are animate. The bodies of human beings and non-human beings are made of matter which is inert and dull but vi gives the feeling ofbeing animated. This must be due to the soul’s presence within the" body. Many of such concepts and theories are found in the Vedas which are the oldest literature in the world. Especially. the Upanisads deal with them. The treat- ment of these matters is not in a particular order and is generally found in more than one Upanisad. At this distant modern period, it is impossible to indicate whe- ther these theories were pre-Vedic. Indian tradition however admits the Vedas as the most ancient literature, and beginningless and eternal. It is implicitly autho- ritative by not being the composition of any person. There are of course exceptions even among sections of Indians which hold that the Veda is the composition of God and therefore valid. Modern scholars are of a different View taking it to contain many parts which were composed by different authors called seers (mantra- drastdrab) at different periods. Apart from the seers who are mentioned in the Vedas as visualisers of the mantras, there were many spiritually eminent sages who dived into the nature of reality and found the solutions, in the Vedas. for many problems which man has to face but from which he has to bear sufferings. Hopes were also shown to men but they were not final. It is in the light of these general observations that we find the beginnings of systematic and reflective pro- cesses to know the mysteries of life The findings were many and mutually disparate. Canons of interpreta— tion of the Vedic passages were evolved. Prima facie views and settlements of the issues required a well- arranged procedure. More than one system arose to vii accommodate all these. The adherents of the Vedic tradition devoted themselves to the recitation of the Vedic passages. Formulae were framed to find their use in performing the rituals in honour of deities who were many but were propitiated not all at a time but on occasions when the performers chose to worshipthem to gain particular ends. Notwithstanding the abiding religious fervour which permeated the entire society, sufferings, trials and tribulations assailed people who were then helpless without any one to give them succour. It is at this period that Jainism and Buddhism arose. Neither of the founders of these two religions left behind them any written record as to what they preached. The Jains were realists and the Buddhists idealists. While attempting to stress on the need to avoid misery, they had to warn their followers of the danger ofindulging in the performance of acts which bound them to attachment for the world. This was interpreted by their followers as refraining from doing the rituals and rejec- ting the authority of the Vedas. This tirade did cause unrest among the traditiona. lists who began to condemn the tenets and practices of the followers of these two religions. The arguments and counter-arguments on both sides found their record- ings in literature. About the beginning of the Christian era, there was the rise of the systems of thought which came to be called darSanar. The tenets of each darsana assumed the form ofsmras.