Today is Vijayadasami.
Wishing everyone a blessed Navarathiri. On this very auspicious day, I am posting the final part of the 3-part
biography of taatha, compiled from edited extracts from the "Venkatesa
Iyer and Poornambal Memorial Trust" booklet and also the centenary
celebration souvenir. I also plan to start a new series titled "Thus Spake Venkatesa Iyer", where i intend to post the taatha's thoughts/views on several topics, religious and otherwise.
The spiritual side of Sri Venkatesa Iyer's life was crystallised when he met two great Swamijis; the first in 1922 when he met Swami Yogeswaranandaji, and then in 1934, when he met the Paramacharya of Kanchi.
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| HH Swami Yogeswaranandaji of the Ramakrishna Math |
Swami Yogeswaranandaji was a M.A. from Calcutta University and a direct disciple of Swami Vivekananda and Ramchandra Dutta. Swamiji wanted to put into practice all that Vivekananda stood for. He wanted some young persons to assist him and he chose Venkatesa Iyer and Brahmachari Atmajnanananda for the work. He wanted to establish a branch of the Ramakrishna Math in the Hyderabad region. A seven-acre land was selected in Begumpet, away from the twin cities. Venkatesa Iyer used to meet Swamiji every Sunday by walking most of the 10km distance from Narayanguda to Bournpally village and back due to irregular bus service. Funds were raised and a math was built at Begumpet, with Venkatesa Iyer serving as secretary and treasurer for a long time. Of his efforts, Swami Ranganathananda (Vice President) said
Venkatesa Iyer bore all the trouble just as Lord Shiva contained the Ganga in His head
Many activities were started/run by the Math, including a school for poor students, a homeopathy clinic (see next paragraph), bhajans every Sunday, and a library. The Math was shifted to its present location in Domalguda in 1968.
Sri Iyer was also initiated into the practice of homeopathy by Swami Yogeswaranada. His efforts in administering and teaching this system to his children, and also many of his patients was an outstanding success. Today, this system is accepted to such an extent in Hyderabad that there are many colleges teaching courses on it. All the old teachers of this system in Hyderabad were Sri Iyer's students.
When Sri Venkatesa Iyer proposed that his son and daughter-in-law be initiated to the monastic order, the (then, in 1968) tenth President of the Ramakrishna Math Swami Veereswarananda said in Hyderabad that "the most fittest person to take sanyasa of the Ramakrishna order is Venkatesa Iyer, who has done yeoman service to the Math", and without any thinking, he initiated Venkatesa Iyer's son and daughter-in-law the very next day. The effect of Swami Yogeswarananda's advice of nara-sEvA (service to humanity) was so deep in his mind that he put it into practice till he breathed his last in 1990.
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| श्री काञ्ची कामकोटिपीठ जगद्गुरु श्री चन्द्रशेखरेन्द्रसरस्वती |
The Paramacharya of Kanchi came to Hyderabad in 1934. Sri Venkatesa Iyer's initial contact was then a formal affair but after 1943, his meetings with His Holiness were very regular. The Mahaswamigal entrusted to him the responsibility of constructing a Sankara Pathashala in Hyderabad. He was so pleased with the efforts of Venkatesa Iyer hat he initiated him with Mantra Deeksha in Ambi Village near Kanchipuram on 18 June 1964. Today, we see a magnificent temple in Skandagiri, Secundarabad, which is a culmination of Sri Venkatesa Iyer's initiative and dedication in the initial years.
The meeting and association of the two great Swamijis made Venkatesa Iyer learn all aspects of the glorious sanatana dharma. He had a religious bent with practical vision. His ideas were very clear and he used to give lectures at the Ramakrishna Math and other places for over 40 years. He followed the noble path of high thinking and simple living. When the Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi called for the swadeshi movement, Sri Iyer discarded western clothes (from the age of 16 until the end of his life). He used to go to his office in Hyderabad (then a Muslim state, in pre-Independence years) in native dress, which required tremendous courage/conviction.
Venkatesa Iyer believed in helping others to educate themselves. He also took interest in the development of art and culture. He brought a number of great religious leaders to Secunderabad. He felt that the vEdA-s and sangIta should be taught in the gurukula system, in which the shishya learns directly from a guru. He was a founder member of the South Indian Cultural Association, and arranged for the teaching of sangIta in his house, with many students (not only his family members) attending.
He and his wife Smt. Poornambal were a great source of support/strength to many newcomers to the city, and the tamizh-speaking population of the Twin Cities honoured them in a special function arranged for the same. In view of his contributions, the Indian National Conference [sic] considered him for the award of National Integration in 1990. Venkatesa Iyer was not for any award and he declined to accept this offer. His family members started the Venkatesa Iyer and Poornambal Memorial Trust in their memory in the year 1995, the details of which will be mentioned in a future post.
=*=*=*= ॐ तत् सत् =*=*=*=
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