1. Vedanta Desika was an Indian philosopher, Sri Vaishnava guru, and one of the most brilliant stalwarts of Sri Vaishnavism in the post-Ramanuja period.
15 Facts About Vedanta Desika
1. 2.
Vedanta Desika was a Hindu devotee, poet, Master of Acharyas and a logician and mathematician.
3.
Vedanta Desika was the disciple of Kidambi Appullar, known as Athreya Ramanujachariar, who himself was of a master-disciple lineage that began with Ramanuja.
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Vedanta Desika is considered to be avatar of the divine bell of Venkateshvara of Tirumala by the Vadakalai sect of Sri Vaishnavism.
5.
When Vedanta Desika turned seven, Kidambi Appullar accepted Venkatanaathan as his disciple, and taught him arts, sciences and scriptures.
6.
Vedanta Desika undertook a vow called uchhavritti, whereby he depended wholly on the Supreme Lord for his household needs by accepting grains and vegetables donated by disciples voluntarily, without actively seeking it.
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Vedanta Desika stayed in several cities and towns through his life such as Thiruvaheendrapuram, Kanchipuram, Srirangam, Sathyagala, and Melkote.
8.
Vedanta Desika significantly shaped Vishishtadvaita Vedanta by integrating the philosophical insights of Purva Mimamsa and Uttara Mimamsa, aligning ritual and metaphysics within Vedic orthodoxy.
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Vedanta Desika positioned Purva Mimamsa as foundational to Uttara Mimamsa, thereby bridging ritual practice with philosophical insight.
10.
Vedanta Desika used Mimamsa's interpretive methods to blend Vedic and Pancharatra traditions, showing them as unified expressions of one truth.
11.
Vedanta Desika upheld the Alvars' devotional elements by incorporating Tamil hymnology and Pancharatra theologies, making devotion a central aspect of philosophical discourse.
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Vedanta Desika's work solidified and expanded Ramanuja's teachings and refined Vishistadvaita as a balanced system of metaphysics, devotion, and ritual continuity.
13.
Vedanta Desika composed many different works in languages such as Tamil, Sanskrit, Prakrit, and Manipravalam.
14.
Vedanta Desika composed over a hundred works in the following genre:.
15.
Vedanta Desika has employed 22 metres in the 862 verses he composed on presiding deities of various temples in India.