My robes of Sannyasa

My robes of Sannyasa were not the result of any renunciation on my part, nor had I the advantage of living under a Guru for any length of time. I was surrounded from the very first day of Sannayasa by all the comforts and responsibilities of a gorgeous court.
But, it so happened that Tummuluru Rama Krishnayya and Adayapalam Pasupati Iyer both of them serving in the District Court of South Arcot and ardent disciples of my Gurus, were there in Kalavai when I took Sannayasa Asrama. Later, It became clear that they were determined to help me to mould my life in my youth.

Ramakrishnayya being worried by a lot of family burdens, in spite of his detached mentality, it fell to the lot of Pasupati to shoulder the task. Pasupati devoted most of his leisure to solitary meditation and reading Vedanta Prakaranas of Treatises of Sri Sankaracharya.

Such a man retired from Government service soon after my ascending the Gadi and lived with me always, watching my every action, speech and twinkling of the eye. He even curtailed his mediation in order to devote some time to the supervision of the secular administration of the Mutt.


He would meet me in private periodically, point out every item of weakness he had observed during the intervening period and implore me to heed to his suggestion to overcome them. When he had sometimes to be very harsh, he would tell me that for all these aparadhas he was committing towards one of a higher Asrama, he would make amends when I grew up as a full-fledged saint.

He used to persuade everyday every friend of his to turn his mind to self-introspection and would argue with him freely as to what permanent values he had gained by being materialistic and would bluntly point out to every one of them his points of weakness and ask him to ponder whether the remedies contained in the Upanishads and Sankara's Prakaranas might not be given a trial.

He would meet even unacquainted persons in the street and enquire into their worries and woes and would succeed in transforming them into true devotees of God, true followers of Vedanta and true sishyas of Sankara.

He lived close by me partaking in my Sankara Bhashya Patha till 1926, or a period of 18 years. He lived for my sake in Kumbhakonam famous for its mosquitoes and elephantiasis and became a victim of filariasis and fever. Nevertheless, he would not leave me.

When he was bed-ridden in his house at Cuddalore for some months, it so happened that I was received in Cuddalore in the course of my tour and when my procession was going on in the town, he patted the Mutt elephant. He breathed his last the same night.

His was a life lived with intense love for others without the least reaction of fear or favour.

On tour in Trichinopoly District in 1923, I halted at a village when I heard a girl of about 12 admonishing her younger brother for his having uttered an untruth. Her advocacy of truth and her love for her brother which prompted her to see that he was not spoiled, far surpassed a saint's direction. I cannot forget this incident after the lapse of so many years.

When touring in Kerala, I happened to camp in a public halting place where in one room some elderly Namboodri Brahmins were talking together. One of them opened his Puja box in order to begin his Puja, but, nevertheless, took part in the gossip. After some time he realized his mistake the turned his attention to the Puja, but would up the box and exclaimed that owing to his having taken part in the gossip, his inner efforts to secure the mental equilibrium required for God's Puja had failed and rather than making a show of Puja without inner equilibrium, he would not perform the Puja that day.

This incident which is fresh in my memory spells the need for honesty of purpose in one's own religious pursuits.

In 1929, I met a Sannyasi in a border village of North Arcot. He knew neither Tamil nor Telugu. He knew only Marathi and Hindi. He told us that he traveled to Rameswaram by Mail and lost his danda during the journey. He probably fasted till the taking of a new danda. He was duly given a consecrated danda. From that time he regarded me as his guru, because I saved his Asrama Dharma. He was then more than 80 years old. He refused to leave me till 1954 when he attained siddhi.

Soon after he joined us during the Chaturmasya of 1929, I was laid up with malaria fever for bout 40 days. Till then none was in the habit of touching me. But then I was not able to stand or walk without help. This old man, being a Sannyasi, took upon himself the duty of helping me.

He was a very hot-tempered man. His voice was authoritative. He was dread to all in the vicinity. He had been in the Revenue Department in the Dewas State in Central India. Neither Nanasaheb nor Jhansi Rani Could complete with him in his authoritativeness.

On no day would he fail to do Puja to my feet and none would deter him from his purpose. Tears would roll down his cheek during this Puja.

Once in Kanchi, a relative of his, who had been on yatra, came to me and after talking to him returned to me and took me to task. He expressed wonder how I could be so cold without the least reciprocity towards one, nearing the 100th year, who regarded me as his sole spiritual refuge high above any God. My natural superficiality did not react even to this admonition. Once we had been to Tirupati. The aged Swami was then in our camp. I went up the hill to worship Balaji. Just as I was returning from the temple after Balaji darsan, the aged Sannyasi who had managed to arrive at the top of the hill confronted us. The temple authorities, in deference to his old age, Asrama and connection with out Mutt, offered to arrange for his darsan of Balaji. he fell at my feet and exclaimed: "This is Balaji. Pardon me. I cannot accept your offer". He returned without Balaji's darsan.

I came into contact with two other persons, both of them quite in contrast with this old man. They were not acquainted with each other and were removed by 30 years of time; but they thought and acted on the same lines.

They were full of ecstasy in the adoration of my feet, absorbed in thought of me all day and night, which, they told me, gave them immeasurable strength to bear any calamity or temptation very lightly. But when they came to know of my shortcomings and natural unsteadiness, not only did they discontinue their worship of my feet but also did their best to prevent anyone from gaining access to my feet as they thought that adoration of my feet by devotees contributed in a degree to my limitation. They too renounced all other responsibilities of their life and resolved to spend the rest of their life in either entreating and imploring me or being engaged in austerities and prayers for my correction. Life has taught me only this. "God has created some souls to live for others only."



Courtesy: Periyava Devotees