Sri Vaishnavism

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Sri Vaishnavism is a Vaishnava sect of Hinduism centered around a temple at Srirangam, and a philosophical system of thought culminating in the philosophy of Visishtadvaita espoused by Ramanujacharya.[1]

Followers of Sri Vaishnavism, as Vaishnavas, generally worship Vishnu as the supreme God.[citation needed] The prefix Sri is used for this sect because they give special importance to the worship of the Goddess Lakshmi,[citation needed] the consort of Vishnu, who they believe to act as a mediator between God and man. A major portion of Sri Vaishnava theology is based upon this tenet.[citation needed]

Contents

[edit] The origin

Earlier sources do not mention Sri, the consort of Vishnu. Sri becomes part of Vishnuism at a later stage and apparently Sri was worshiped independently before her cult was integrated into Vaishnavism. Now she is considered inseparable from Vishnu, who carries the mark of sri-vasa, ineradicably representing Sri, his consort. In later Gaudiya traditions she is identified with Radha. This most prominent form of South Indian Vaishnavism is called Sri Vaishnavism, because of its strong emphasis on the role of Sri, drawing largely from alvars popular goddess roots.[2] Sri Vaishnavism is believed to have originated in the devotional hymns and songs of the said Alvars, a group of saints of the medieval Bhakti movement in South India. All such hymns and songs were organized by Nathamuni, who is considered as the first guru of the sect. His work was consolidated and expanded by Yamunacharya, who is believed to one of the grandsons of Nathamuni. Thereafter, Ramanujacharya continued to develop the theology of Sri Vaishnavism. The theology centers primarily around the belief that devotion to, and worship of, Vishnu is the only way to Moksha (salvation), but Sri (a reference to Lakshmi) is the link or medium between the devotees and Vishnu.[citation needed] If humans can win the compassion of Sri, the salvation and forgiveness of the devotees will be ensured, according to the belief.[original research?]

[edit] Philosophy

Most of the people belonging to Sri Vaishnavism follow Vishistadvaita philosophy, although it is not implied that every Sri Vaishnavaite has to be a Vishistadvaitin. Sri Vaishnavism is characterized by various distinct beliefs. One of them is the role of a guru or acharya in the attainment of the Paramapurushaartham (a name given to Moksha). Also, the followers have a special place for the 4000 divya prabandams (sacred hymns) written by the Alvars, along with the Vedas.

[edit] The schools

There are two primary subsects of Sri Vaishnavism: the Vadagalai and Tenkalai. After continuing as a single sect for over three hundred years, the sect split into two major branches around the 14th century.[citation needed]

  • The Markatanyaya branch, or "school of the monkey", believes that just as young monkeys cling to the bodies of their mothers for safety, human beings endeavoring to seek God's blessings should likewise actively cooperate and strive to come closer to God, and cling to Him for safety. This branch is said to have followed classical tradition, and was headquartered at Kanchipuram, one of the seven holy cities of the Hindus. The most prominent exponent of this view is Vedanta Desika of 13th century. This school accords equal pride of placement to Sri (Lakshmi) and Vishnu.
  • The Marjaranyaya branch, or "school of the cat", believes that as the mother cat carries her kittens around without asking anything in return from the kittens, God showers His benevolence and blessings on the devotees without any active action on the part of the devotees. The most prominent exponents of this view are Pillai Lokacharya and Manavala Mamuni. This school treats Sri or Lakshmi as dependent on Vishnu.

[edit] See also

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Sri Vaishnavism Home Page. Retrieved on 2006-09-24.
  2. ^ KLOSTERMAIER, Klaus K. (2007). A Survey of Hinduism. State University of New York Press; 3 edition, p.206. ISBN 0791470814. “There is not even a mention of Sri, the consort of Vishnu in the earlier sources...” 

[edit] Further reading

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Four sampradāyas of Vaiṣṇavism
Traditions
Philosophies