Kanchipuram #59Divyadesam@Statue of Equality

Hi Friends, we are now entering a very, very, very prominent sacred place—Kanchipuram—which can be regarded as the 59th Divya Desam at the Statue of Equality. What is the significance of this sacred site? Let us explore some key aspects of this revered place known as Kanchipuram. There was a well-known devotee in Kanchipuram named Tirukocchanambe. There he had direct interaction with Perumal known as Varadaraja Perumal in Kanchipuram. Thus, Ramanujacharya came to that place upon being advised by his mother. His mother advised him to go there because many assassination attempts had been made on Ramanujacharya. So she advised him to go and take Tirukocchanambe as his Guru. So he came to that place, but Tirukocchanambe did not wish to become the Guru of Ramanujacharya. because he thought Ramanujacharya belonged to a Vaishnava family and he himself was from the Vaishya community. But Ramanujacharya resolved to make him his Guru. And he expressed his six doubts and asked him to obtain clarifications regarding those six doubts from Perumal. As Ramanujacharya said, he asked all those questions to Perumal, and Perumal answered all six of them. In that way, Ramanujacharya received answers, and he wished to make him his guru, but he did not want to. He said that I am not a suitable person for you to have as your Guru. And even Varadaraja Perumal said that you must take Mahapurnaswamy as your Acharya. That is the foundation that was laid at this site. And Ramanujacharya served Varadaraja Perumal in Tirthankariyam. He used to draw water from that well there for his Abhishekam and other rituals. Another important aspect here is that his childhood and his younger years were spent entirely in Kanchipuram. And it is also called Chagamandapam. Why is it called Chagamandapam? Once Sri Ranganatha instructed Kanchi Varadaraja Swamy to send Ramanujacharya to Sri Rangam. And he sacrificed Ramanujacharya to Sri Ranganatha. That is why this is also known as Chagamandapam. "Chagam" means sacrifice. That is one of the reasons. A few years back, people were flocking to that place. Why were they going to that place? Once, Ramanujacharya's guru, Yadav Prakasha, conspired with his other disciples to kill Ramanujacharya. And upon being advised by his cousin Ramanujacharya, he left the place, and on the way he had to cross a forest, a jungle. And in the jungle he met a couple. Those were a tribal couple. And that tribal couple, it was so dark, and he was only sixteen years old, and he couldn't cross the forest at midnight. And he slept there. When advised by that tribal couple, they said, "We will take you." We will take you to Kanchipuram as you wish. And our hometown is Kanchipuram, so we will take you there. And when he opened his eyes, he found himself in Kanchipuram. He did not know how he had come to that place. Then he realized that the couple who had come to save his life were none other than Kanchi Varadaraja Perumal and Thayathalli. That is the significance of this place, Kanchipuram. Ramanujacharya took Sanyasa Ashram at this sacred place known as Kanchipuram. Kanjamamba, the wife of Ramanujacharya, was not as broad-minded as Ramanujacharya. Ramanujacharya believed there was a purpose to coming into this world. If his wife was standing in the way of achieving his goal, how could he possibly fulfill all his wishes? Then he came to the temple, meditated upon the Lord, and asked Him to show him the way. After some time, when he opened his eyes, he found the saffron clothes and the trident at that place. Upon seeing the saffron clothes and the Tridanda before him, Ramanujacharya realized that Varadaraja Perumal had shown his acceptance. In this way, Ramanujacharya took Sanyasasramam at this sacred place known as Kanchipuram. This was the sacred place where Yamanacharya blessed Ramanujacharya, who was destined to become the pathfinder for all Vaishnava devotees, and called him Amudhalvan. Once Ramanujacharya's guru, the teacher known as Yadoprakasha, arranged a trip to Kashi solely to get rid of Ramanujacharya. Ramanujacharya's cousin overheard the guru's conversation with the other disciples, learned of the conspiracy, and advised him to flee from that place. Ramanujacharya was walking through the jungle when he met a couple of tribal people. Then the tribal people asked, "Where are you going now?" Then Ramanujacharya said, "I am going to Kanchi, but I do not know the way." For that, the tribal people said, we are also going to Kanchi; that is our native place. So let us stay here tonight; we cannot go during this nighttime. Then Ramanujacharya slept there. When he opened his eyes, he found himself in Kanchi. He didn't know how he got there. Then he realized that the tribal couple were none other than Kanchi Varadaraja Perumal and Thayathalli, the very ones who had saved his life in that manner. There was a great devotee in Kanchipuram named Kanchipurnulu or Tirukkachinambi. who had direct interaction with Varadaraja Perumal. Ramanujacharya said to him, "Swami, I have six doubts. Can you obtain answers from Perumal?" Then he asked those questions, and Perumal answered all six of them. He also foretold that Mahapurna Swami Thirenambi would become his Acharya. Thus, Ramanujacharya had undergone the Pancha Samskaras from Mahapurna Swami. Only at this sacred place did Ramanujacharya take up the Sanyasa Ashrama. This Perumal is also known as Atthivardhan. Recently, hundreds of thousands of devotees visit this place to catch a glimpse of him for a fraction of a second. Now let us chant his divine mantra. Om Kanchipuravasaya Perundevi Sametaya Varadarajaya Namaha Jai Srimannarayana