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No. 8.1 SRIRANGAM PLATES OF MUMMADI NAYAKA : SAKA SAMVAT 1280. 85
Paradara Bhatta VII belongs to a very illustrious family of scholars of southern India. Srivataachihna-garu, or Srivatsachibna Miśra, as he is gonerally called, was the first or the founder of the family of Bhattars of Srirangam. He was the first and foremost disciple of Sri Ramanuja, the famous founder of the Visishtadvaita school of philosophy. In all the Srivaishnava chronicles and among the Srivaisbṇavas he is better known by the name of Kirattalvāp. He belonged to the Harita gotra and Apastambha Sutra and was of the Yajus takha. He was boru in the year Saumya, on a Thursday which was Pañchaini in the month of Pashya. He was & Vadama by sect and belonged to the village of Kuram near Chingleput. His wife was named Andāl. The early education of Karattālvan was undertaken by his own father; but he finished his studies during his stay with Ramanuja and under him. He was the chief assistant and the amanuensis of Ramanuja in the compilation of the Sribhashya. He was of the same gotra as Ramanuja.
The Srivaishnava Chronicles narrate the persecution of Ramanuja by the Chola sovereign. and assert that this king was a bigoted Saiva and consequently began to persecute the Vaishnavas. It was pointed out to this king that converting the common people by force was not in itself capable of augmenting the numbers to the Saiva faith, and, if such a great leader as Råmänoja were to be made to subscribe to the Saiva faith, his followers would join that sect in a body. Ramanuja was summoned before the king; Kurattālván, apprehending danger to his master, assumed the garb of a sannyāsin, proceeded to the royal court, and represented himself as the famous Vaishnava Acharya. The king then compelled him to sign a declaration that no god was superior to Siva. Kõrattālvāg boldly contradicted him by telling him that "larger than Siva was Dröna," (words which also mean two different measures, of which the latter was the bigger), thus playing upon the double meaning of the words Siva and Dröna. The king, enraged at the behaviour of Kürattalván, ordered both his eyes to be put out immediately, and the order was forthwith carried out. So throughout the remaining part of his life he lived a blind man.
Another important service which he rendered to his master was the conversion of Tiruvarangattamudanar, the hereditary trustee of the Ranganatha temple at Srirangam, to the Śrivaishňava faith. This neophyte made over the right of management of the temple to Kürattālvin, who in his torn handed it over to Ramanuja. Highly pleased with the devotion of his dear disciple, Rämānuja gave the paurðhitya of the temple and the right of reading the Purānas therein to the family of Kurattalván.
Karattālvan was the author of the Varadaraja-stava, Sundarabahw-stava, Atimanushyastava, Srivaikuntha-stava, Sri-stava, Yamakaratnākara and Gadyatraya-vyākhyāna.
Śrivatsachihna Misra had two sons, Parāśara Bhatta and Rāma Miśra. Of these the elder was the most distinguished scholar of the day; he was nominated to the pontifical seat by Ramānaja, and, when he succeeded the latter, he was comparatively & young man. In a short time, however, he was able to convert to his faith a great Vēdāntin named Madhava and made him his own disciple and successor under the name of Nanjiyar. He is believed by the Srivaishnavas to have died at the early age of 28 and without issue; but there are weighty
1 fwarequar me afer : CH'श्रौषमचिमिग्रेभ्यो नमक्किमधीमहि । यदुनयनपीकडे यान्ति मालसूचताम् । श्रीमत्कूरकुलाधीचं बोवत्सासमुपामहे ।
पग्य यतीन्द्र शिष्याचामाचं वेदान्तवेदिनाम् । . Some Srivaishnava chronicles assert that there were twins,
