The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

Dear All,

This newsletter contains the following sections and articles.

Prahalada Charitram.

Book Release Announcement – Thiruppavai Goda’s Gita Vol 3

Short Story Release Announcement – Fortitude and Country Bumpkin

Sathyabhama Kalyanam

Footprints of Ramanuja in Melnadu By Sri Lakshminarasimhan Sridhar, Bangalore

History Of Vedic Civilization – Vedic Influence in Greece

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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

Games

The Story Of Puranjana

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favourite edition/article? What are some features you would like to see in the newsletter?
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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
Unlike Bagawatham, Vishnu
Puranam composed by Sage
Parasarar doesn’t elaborate
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about Lord Narasimha’s
appearance from the pillar or
his fight with Hiranyakashipu
but tells us about the difficulties
endured by Prahalada in order
to motivate us. This charitram
is the heart of Vishnu Puranam.
Daksha Prajapati’s daughters
Diti and Aditi married sage
Kashyapa. Hiranyakashipu and
Hiranyakshan were the sons of
Diti and Kashyapa.
Entering the palace,
Hiranyakashipu found
Subhanumat the wife of his
brother Hiranyakshan in tears.
The attendants were all quiet.
His own wife Kayathu was
sitting next to Subhanumat
trying to console her.
Hiranyakashipu knew the
reason for the sombre mood.
His brother Hiranyakshan had
been killed by Lord Vishnu in
the form of Varaha.
‘Wipe your tears,’ said
Hiranyakashipu looking at
Subhanumat. ‘I vow to you that
I will avenge the death of
Hiranyakshan by making
Vishnu who killed my brother
non-existant!’
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
‘This is not an easy task! In fact,
it is an impossible task!’ said
Hiranyakashipu’s minister.
‘No task is impossible. I know
the source of Vishnu’s powers!
Torment all Brahmins who
practise the Vedas, not a single
verse from the Vedas should be
uttered! Make sure no one
follows their varnashrama
dharma. You have my standing
instructions to torment anyone
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who disobeys my decree. I will all those people who were the
do severe penance to obtain supporters of Hiranyakashipu
special boons from Lord as prisoners. Along with the
Brahma which will benefit us.’ prisoners they dragged the wife
of Hiranyakashipu as well.
Hiranyakashipu soon left to the
forest to do severe penance.
Hiranyakashipu’s men started
to torment people per his To Be Continued
decree. The Devas in the
meantime invaded the kingdom
of Hiranyakashipu. They soon
captured everyone and dragged
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
I am pleased to announce that
Thiruppavai – Goda’s Gita Vol 3
was released on the day of Sri
Hayagriva Jayanthi. The book is
available in both paperback and
ebook from many retailers like
Amazon, Apple, Scribd to name
a few. Please visit
https://books2read.com/u/3R
az5j
A preview of the book was
published in the July 2019 and
Aug 2019 Newsletters and is
also available from the
following link
http://tiny.cc/2kw5cz
After publishing the books, I
was trying the search results in
Google when I came across
positive reviews for
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Thiruppavai – Goda’s Gita Vol 1
& 2 by an online book reviewer.
Following is a snippet of the
reviews. Please see the
following links to read the full
reviews. Vol 1:
http://tiny.cc/68v5cz and Vol
2: http://tiny.cc/vaw5cz
“I liked all the connected
stories that are displayed like a
bouquet of fragrant flowers.
The stories brought back
childhood memories of how
the story used to be
told………
.
. “The Volume 2 stories are as
.
I feel this volume was such a
pleasure to read for two main
reasons. One reason is that the
small and big stories about
Lord Vishnu and his many
avatars were simply superb to
read. The other reason being
that I got to know so many
unknown stories and the
wonder of it is present like
nectar consumed in Godai’s
Vrindavan along with the
Gopikas as another Pillaiy.”
compelling as those from the
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

volume 1. These are small Goda’s list of missing girls is arguments with the Goda and
incidences picked from well spent on learning so many her friends to wake the
various Puranas and Vedic interesting news bites about missing girls, the internal
time stories. She also picks up the Lord and His gracious thought is cleared and focused
stories from the contemporary benevolence towards His on Lord Krishna and his many
devotee
avatars.”
era too, when she talks about
the Alwars who lived before
her and their life stories. The .
never-ending link of stories
and facts of the rites provides .
for an entertaining
conversation among the girls.
.
The Volume 2 keeps the
. interest going while providing
new information about where
. the Pavai Nombu gathering
. has arrived at. This volume
may be spent on waking up
The stories felt like an ambling the girls, but at the same time,
aging river carries with slush there is a lot happening with
pile of silt in its bed. The time the internal cleansing process.
spent on the three girls in With every discussion and

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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
Fortitude is a short story
about suicide prevention. Life is
not a bed of roses may be a
cliché, but it is the crux of our
experience in this world. Our
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experience in this world is
cyclic; we feel the twins of joy
and sorrow, pain and pleasure,
heat and cold and so on. Our life
is like a pendulum that swings
both ways. Often at times of
crisis, it is important to know
that our life will definitely
return to normal. We need to
know that the Sun always
shines at the end of the night.
We are here for a purpose and
that purpose is to spend our
karma whether it is our punyas
or papams. It is essential that
we have fortitude when facing
tough times. Fortitude is
termed as “Dhairyam” in
Sanskrit. We have heard people
say that those who committed
suicide lacked “dhairyam” i.e
they lacked the patience to
endure the tough times. If they
had been patient, they would
have been rewarded with
better things in life. By
committing suicide people do
not evade the sins because one
can never escape the
accumulated karmas. Whether
in this world or the other,
karma will always catch up with
us. Suicide only adds additional
sins to the karmic account; after
all, every action has an equal
and an opposite reaction. One
cannot avoid the consequences
of one's acts.
Suicide is prohibited because it
stems from a person’s
ahamkaram. Those people who
realise that they are
subservient to Perumal will not
take their life because we do
not have a right on our life. We
belong to Him and only Him.
Tough times are for our own
ultimate good as they help
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
reduce the multitude of papams
we have committed. By
enduring tough times and by
focusing on serving Perumal,
we come out with flying
colours.
Fortitude is a short story on
suicide prevention. After seeing
his final exam results, Raj finds
himself spiralling down the
vortex of self-pity and considers
the unthinkable when after
visiting the temple of Lord
Krishna, he meets a stranger
who changes his life.
To read Fortitude visit
https://www.amazon.com/Fortitude
-Swetha-Sundaram-
ebook/dp/B081XCZV7L/ref=sr_1_1?
keywords=fortitude+swetha&qid=15
75167543&sr=8-1
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Sometimes a person may not
have credentials , but they may
have the ability to offer the
correct advise from their
experiences. Society tends to
ignore or even look down upon
traditional village practitioners
because they may not have the
right “credentials”. Traditional
wisdom (this is different from
superstition) cannot be earned
through University degrees;
this is something which is
passed on from one generation
to the next and often,
traditional wisdom can trump
modern research.
Rani, a village girl is hired by a
couple to take care of their
child. Rani's employers
constantly mock her and don't
take her advises regarding their
child's nutrition seriously
because she lacks credentials.
Will Rani be proved wrong? To
read Country Bumpkin visit
https://www.amazon.com/Country-
Bumpkin-Swetha-Sundaram-
ebook/dp/B081XNC9DZ/ref=sr_1_1?
keywords=country+bumpkin+sweth
a&qid=1575167596&sr=8-1
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
In the previous issue, we
covered the wedding of
Sathyabama Piratti with Lord
Krishna.
Satrajit gave the hand of
Sathyabama in marriage to
Lord Krishna although he had
promised to give her in
marriage to Akrurar,
Kritavarma and Shatadhanva.
Hurt by the promise broken by
Satrajit; Akrurar, Kritavarma
and Shatadanva decided to seek
revenge as they felt cheated.
Even Akrurar who was a
devotee of Lord Krishna was
ready to seek revenge.
Around this time, news of the
demise of the five Panadavas in
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the wax mansion reached
Dwaraka. Lord Krishna was
well aware that, the five
brothers and their mother
Kunti had escaped fiery death.
Although He had also received
confirmation from Vidura, that,
the Panadavas were safe, to
prevent any doubts in
Duryodana’s mind and to
prevent stop him from
harassing the Panadavas, Lord
Krishna decided to travel to
Hastinapuram to offer His
condolences to the Kuru family.
As soon as Lord Krishna left
Dwaraka, Akrurar, Kritavarma
and Shatadanva decided that it
was the best time for them to
act against Satrajit. They
plotted to kill Satrajit. The three
of them reached the mansion of
Satrajit at night. Akrurar
guarded the back entrance
while Kritavarma watched over
the front entrance. Shatadanava
entered the mansion stealthily.
He went inside Satrajit’s bed
chamber and stabbed the
sleeping Satrajit to death.
Before leaving, he took the
Syamantaka gem from Satrajit’s
neck. The three friends decided
that the gem would be safe with
Akrurar. They parted company
after making a vow to each
other that they will not speak
about their involvement in the
death of Satrajit to anyone.
The next morning, Sathyabama
discovered the fate of her
father. She immediately rode
her chariot to meet Lord
Krishna at Hastinapuram. Even
though Lord Krishna felt happy
that Satrajit who was an asura
by nature had been removed
from this Earth, He consoled
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
Sathyabama and grieved for His
father-in-law. He left with
Sathyabhama for Dwaraka.
Piratti told Lord Krishna about
her suspicion that, her father’s
murderer must be Shatadanva.
In the meantime, Akrurar felt
apprehensive that his
involvement in the death of
Satrajit would come to light. In
order to allay his fears, he
decided to leave Dwaraka with
the gem. He went to Kasi where
he started conducting many
yagams by utilizing the gold
generated by the gem.
Lord Krishna and Lord
Balarama decided to bring
Shatadanva to justice. Piratti
asked Lord Krishna to retrieve
the gem which belonged to her
father. As Lord Balarama too
had his eye on the gem, he
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accompanied Lord Krishna to down dead. Shatadanva jumped
confront Shatadnva. The two from his horse and ran away on
brothers left for Shatadanva’s foot. Lord Krishna asked Lord
home but, as soon as Balarama to wait on the chariot
Shatadanva noticed them step while He followed Shatadanva.
on his property, he ran away ‘I don’t think the marsh land is a
from his home on horseback. safe place for the horses. We
Lord Krishna and Balarama just saw Shatadanva’s horse
pursued Shatadanva. drop dead. It is better if I track
Shatadanva on foot while you
Shatadanva left Dwaraka and wait here.’
reached the mainland. From
there, he drove to the kingdom (To Be Continued)
of Mithila. Shatadanva’s horse
had the ability to travel 800
kms without rest. Lord Krishna
and Balarama chased
Shatadanva across many
kingdoms on Lord Krishna’s
chariot. They soon arrived at
the borders of Mithila and
watched Shatadanva ride
across a marsh land. The
moment Shatadanva entered
the marsh land, his horse fell
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

With the permission of Sri Lakshminarasimhan Sridhar of Bangalore, his excellent book, “Footprints of
Ramanuja in Melnadu” is showcased in this newsletter as a series starting from January 2019.

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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
This is a series on the history
of civilizations and the Vedic
Origins of civilizations on Earth.
Vedic Influence In Greece:
In the Greek Mythology, we can
find the following names for
Dionysus. He is called as Phanes
because he provides
illumination. The name
Bhaskara for Rudra means
luminous. Rudra is called as
Prathamaja or the firstborn.
The equivalent name assigned
to Dionysus is Protogonos
which means the firstborn. The
benevolent aspect of Rudra is
called as Shiva and in Greek the
benevolent aspect of Dionysys
is Meilichios. Shiva is Bhairava
the terrible and Dionysus is
Bromios. Shiva’s feminine
aspect is Parvati Devi, the
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Goddess of the mountain and the Greek name Choreagos of
the counterpart of Dionysus, Lord Krishna!
who is also a Goddess of the
mountain is, Rhea or Cybele. The Greek ambassador
Rudra is also Kumara the child Heliodorus erected a stone
and Dionysus is Kouros which pillar in Central India and
means the boy. Like Lord Siva, dedicated it to the court of the
Dionysus is depicted as wearing Sunga king Bhagabhadra in 110
a snake as his necklace. He is BCE. The pillar was
present in the forest and in the surmounted by a sculpture of
funeral pyre. Garuda and was dedicated to
Lord Vasudeva an avatar of lord
Radha Krishna worship was Vishnu. The pillar had the
quite prominent in ancient following inscription.
Greece. The Greek name for
Krishna was Kouros and the “Devadevasa Vasudevasa
name for Radha was Rodha. He Garudadhvajo ayam
is portrayed as dancing with karito i[a] Heliodorena bhaga-
Rhoda in a circle dance which vatena Diyasa putrena
was named after him. The Takhasilakena
dance was called ‘Chorus’. He Yonadatena agatena
was revered as the Lord of the maharajasa
Dance giving him the name of Amtalikitasa upa[m]ta
Choreagos. The modern word samkasam-rano
‘choreagraphy’ is derived from
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
Kasiput[r]asa [Bh]agabhadrasa
tratarasa
vasena [chatu]dasena rajena
vadhamanasa"
Which means, “This Garuda-
standard of Vasudeva, God of
Gods was erected here by the
devotee Heliodoros, the son of
Dion, a man of Taxila, sent by
the Great Greek (Yona) King
Antialkidas, as ambassador to
King Kasiputra Bhagabhadra,
the Savior son of the princess
from Benares, in the fourteenth
year of his reign." Ref:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H
eliodorus_pillar
The Bactrian King Agathocles
was also known to have issued
coins depicting the avatars of
Lord Vishnu.
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The Vedic mythologies had
transformed into the regional
beliefs of the Greeks &
Egyptians. The early
proponents of the “Aryan
invasion theory” claimed that
the Vedic religion was first
propounded by Greeks; it is
very evident that the Greeks
were the ones who had
borrowed concepts from the
Vedic people and not the other
way around as, while the Greek
religion is now dead the Vedic
religion is still standing. The
root has survived, whereas the
various branches, like the
Egyptian and the Greek
religions, have died.
We find many similarities
between the Greek Legends and
Vedic legends. We will look at a
few legends as examples. We
won’t be able to analyze every
single Greek legend due to the
constraints we face in our lives
because of time and resources.
To get an idea about the similar
thread of thought between the
two cultures, analyzing few of
the legends is sufficient.
The Legend Of Phaethon:
Phaethon was the son of Helios.
He was very proud of his father.
Helios had the job of driving the
Sun’s chariot. It was Helios who
was responsible for making the
Sunrise or set. Phaethon nagged
his father to allow him to drive
the chariot of the Sun for just
one day. Helios loved his son
very much; in order to indulge
Phaethon, he allowed him to
drive the Sun’s chariot for a
day. Phaethon wished to
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
impress his friends. He drove
the chariot too close to Earth as
a result of which he lost control
of the chariot. Zeus came to
know that Helios had handed
over such an important task to
his young son. In order to teach
Phaethon a lesson, Zeus hit him
with his thunderbolt. Phaethon
fell off of the chariot and fell
right into the ocean.
We have a mixture of two Vedic
stories in the above legend.
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Phaethon is the son of Helios hit Lord Hanuman with his
and he is seen to drive the Vajra weapon making him fall
chariot of the Sun. In the Vedic down.
legend, the Sun’s charioteer is
Aruna. The second part of the
story is from the history of Lord
Hanuman. We all know that TO BE CONTINUED
Lord Hanuman as a child, flew
towards the Sun, thinking that
it was a fruit. He looked like
another Rahu in the pursuit of
the Sun. To prevent Hanuman
from swallowing the Sun, Indra
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

The story of Puranjana will appear every month for the benefit of newcomers. This story is repeated every
month to emphasize the importance of prapatti.

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The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
There were two best friends
called Purañjana and Avignatha.
Purañjana wished to settle
down in life and went on a
journey with Avignatha looking
for the best city to start his life.
After journeying throughout the
country, they arrived at the
Southern side of the Himalayas.
There, built on the sides of the
mountain, they saw a beautiful
fortress-city. The city was
surrounded by walls and they
could see tall spires and houses
with domes of gold. They could
see parks with canals and
neatly cultivated gardens.
There were market squares,
rest-houses and hanging
gardens. The air reverberated
with the chirping of birds and
humming of bees.
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‘Dear friend,’ said Purañjana.
‘This looks like a charming city
to live in.’
‘Come, ‘ said Avignatha. ‘Let us
find you a home.’
As they entered the city
admiring the charming
surroundings, they saw a
woman walking down the
street towards them. She was
followed by eleven servants and
a giant five-headed cobra which
held its hoods over her head,
shielding her from the Sun. She
was young and beautiful, with a
beautiful nose and attractive
smile. With her yellow silk
garment and golden jewellery,
she appeared like a celestial
being.
Struck by Cupid's arrow,
Purañjana addressed her. ‘Who
are you? You have beautiful
eyes! You look like a celestial
damsel. Who are you and what
are you doing here? Who are
these eleven who surround you
and this giant snake which is
guarding you? What are you
doing in this city and who built
this fine-looking city? ’
‘I don’t know who built this
city,’ answered the woman.
‘These eleven are my friends
and they always serve me. This
snake guards the city against
danger. This city has nine gates.
There are seven gates above
ground and two below ground.
There are five gates facing East,
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
one facing South, two facing
West and one facing North. Of
the five gates on the Eastern
side, there are two gates called
Khadyotā, “glowworm” and
Āvirmukhī, “Torchlight”. These
gates are used to go to the
portion of the city called
Vibhrājita which is a viewpoint.
If you go to Vibhrājita, you will
be accompanied by Dyuman,
the Sun. The other two gates in
the East are called Nalini. You
will be guided by Avadhuta
through these gates if you wish
to reach the region called
“Saurabha” filled with aroma.
The fifth gate on the East is
called “Mukhya” and you will be
accompanied by the taster
called Rasajña and Vipana the
orator. The Southern gate is
used to invoke the ancestors
and is called Pitṛhū. The
Northern gate is Devahu and
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accompanied by Śrutadhara is
used to worship God.
Of the two below ground gates,
Āsurī on the Western Side
means one devoid of light, and
together with Durmada, leads
to the city of pleasure called
Gramaka which is actually a
small place. The other Western
gate called Nirṛti, i.e dissolution
under the guidance of
Lubdhaka the covetous one,
leads to the slaughter-houses.
Oh, hero, now that you have
arrived at this city, stay here. I
have been in search of a
husband and have been
wandering these streets in
search of an able man when I
met you with your strong arms
and a pleasant smile.’
Purañjana happily married the
woman. Avignatha decided to
leave the city. ‘I have to leave
now,’ declared Avignatha. ‘I
wish you well but be wary of
your new surroundings!’
warned Avignatha before taking
leave of his friend. ‘Take control
of your life and be cautious that
you are not enslaved by your
wife. If you are in trouble,
remember me and I will be by
your side.’
Purañjana settled down happily
and started to explore the
beautiful city but he never went
anywhere without his wife. He
became so attached to her that
he ate when she ate and drank
that which she drank. If she
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
laughed he laughed and danced
when she danced. He soon
forgot the warning of his best
friend Avignatha and became
like a puppet dancing to the
tune played by his wife.
One fine day, he decided to visit
the forest called Pañca-Prastha.
He adorned himself in golden
armour and took his bow with
his inexhaustible quiver bag. He
mounted his swift golden
chariot drawn by five horses.
Along with his eleventh
commander and one charioteer,
he proceeded to Pañca-Prastha.
He felt very happy to break free
from his wife. Using his sharp
arrows, he killed the animals
mercilessly. After sporting in
the dark jungle for many hours,
Purañjana finally returned
25 | P a g e o f 3 0
home. After bathing and
adorning himself with sandal
paste, he went in search of his
beautiful wife but was
distressed when he couldn’t
find her. When he asked the
maids, they replied that his wife
was in the “kopa gruham”, the
place where people go when
they are angry. Purañjana felt
unhappy to see his wife lying on
the floor in the “kopa gruham”
having castaway her fine
jewellery. He went near his wife
and cajoled her.
‘My sweetheart, why are you
angry?’ he asked her. ‘Tell me
who has disappointed you and I
will make sure that you get
justice.’
His wife threw a temper
tantrum and scolded him for
going to the forest without her.
Purañjana coming under her
sway promised never to go
anywhere without her. From
that day, he became completely
attached to his wife and never
left her side.
In the meantime, a woman
called Kālakanyā, the daughter
of Time was searching for a
suitable husband. As she was
Jara, old age, she couldn’t find
anyone who accepted her
proposal.
At this time, a Yavana king
called Candavega led his army
to capture the fortress of
Purañjana. Caṇḍavega brought
with him 360 able men; 180 of
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
these men were white in colour
and the other 180 were very
dark. They surrounded the
beautiful city and broke
through the ramparts and
started pillaging. The five-
headed snake guarding the city
tried in vain to defend against
the plundering forces.
Purañjana ordered his
commander Prajakaran to
defend the city against the
Yavana force but, he too was
defeated.
Kālakanyā arrived on the scene.
She approached Caṇḍavega and
implored him to help her find a
husband. The Yavana king who
was also called Bhaya gave to
her his brother called Prajvāra
(fever). Kālakanyā, in the
company of Prajvāra, roamed
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through the city causing more
havoc. With the help of
Prajwaran and his army, the
woman completely destroyed
the city. Purañjana felt helpless.
Kālakanyā tracked down and
embraced Purañjana. Feeling
helpless in her arms, Purañjana
lost his handsome looks and felt
weakened. He felt his town fall
apart. Prajvara set fire to the
city and Purañjana was
engulfed by the intolerable heat
on all sides. The serpent which
guarded the city was arrested
and drawn outside the city by
the hostile forces. The moment
the serpent was drawn away
from the city, the fortress
crumbled to dust. The Yavana
forces turned their attention
towards Purañjana. They
dragged him as if they were
dragging an animal. Purañjana
felt depressed and sad. Clouded
by the darkness of depression,
he couldn’t remember his best
friend Avignatha who had
promised to rush to his side
whenever Purañjana
remembered Him. Thus,
Purañjana died.
He took many births and after
many births, he took birth as
the daughter of the King of
Vidharbha. The princess wed
the king of Pandyas
Malayadhvaja who was a great
devotee. After ruling the
Pandya kingdom for many
years, King Malayadhvaja
retired to the banks of the
Tamaraparani River and spent
the rest of his life in meditation
while his wife (Purañjana)
served him. One fine day, King
Malayadhvaja shed his mortal
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
coils and his wife (Purañjana)
lamented. She felt helpless and
she herself was on her
deathbed when because of the
good deed performed by her,
she remembered her long-lost
friend Avignatha. The moment
she recalled her friendship with
Avignatha, He appeared before
her, grasped her hand and
rescued her from the never-
ending samsaric life and took
her to His divine abode.
Esoteric Meaning:
Purañjana is the jeevatma while
Avignatha is Perumal.
Avignatha is one of the names
in the Sri Vishnu
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Sahasranamam. The name
means that no one knows when
Perumal will appear or help us
since He does everything
according to His sankalpam.
The jeevatma’s true friend is
Paramatma and hence the two
are described as friends in this
narration. Perumal helps the
jeevatma find a body to live in.
This body is the city with nine
exits ( 2 eyes, 2 ears, 2 nostrils,
1 mouth, 2 excretory organs).
The beautiful maiden is Budhi
(intellect). The five-headed
cobra is the five Prana Vayus;
Prana, Apana, Vyana, Udana and
Samana. Her 11 servants are
the ten sense organs (5
gnanendriyams + 5
karmendriyams) along with
with with their chief the mind.
The jeevatma is under the
influence of Budhi and
performs tasks as per the input
obtained from Budhi & mind.
Thus, the jeevatma goes
wayward and forgets about his
friend Avignatha. Purañjana’s
hunting trip denotes the
dreams dreamt by a jeevatma.
Budhi and mind are not
involved in the dream state
thus they urge the atma to
return to reality. In dreams,
Perumal metes out minor
rewards and punishments
according to our karmas.
Nightmares are the result of the
minor sins we have
accumulated and good dreams
are the reward granted for the
small merits we have
accumulated.
The Yavana king Chanda Vegan
represents the passing of years.
His soldiers are exactly 360 in
number with 180 white and
180 black soldiers representing
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
days and nights. The
commander who fights against
Chanda Vegan is Pranan which
refuses to accept defeat even
when the body ages. Finally,
Pranan too is defeated.
Old age enters the body city in
the form of a lady and proposes
marriage to Mrithyu. Mrithyu
will never marry old age but he
introduces her to his brother
fever and along with an army of
mental as well as physical
diseases, old age completely
destroys the body-city.
As the atma wasted its time in
the city and it never sought
Avignatha, it takes many, many
births. Finally at the end of one
of its births, due to the good
deed performed by it
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(bagawatha sambandham), it
remembers Avignatha. Thus,
the jeevatma is blessed by
anthima smruthi and is
immediately rescued by
Paramatma and is taken to the
eternal abode of Sri
Vaikuntham.
Summary:
Makara Sankaranthi is
celebrated as this day marks
the arrival of Uttarayana Punya
Kalam, the time when the Sun
begins its journey northwards.
The aged population looks
forward to this punya kalam as
leaving one’s mortal coils
during this period blesses one
with heavenly abodes. The
elderly eagerly await this punya
kalam. Heavenly abode is
granted if one sheds their
mortal coils during this punya
kalam and during daytime and
during the bright lunar phase
(note, “and” conditional logic
clause is used). The one
certainty in our life is that we
must shed our mortal coil
someday but, the uncertainty is
that we don’t know when that
day is. Even though many await
the birth of the Uttarayana
Punya Kalam, they cannot
control the day or the time
when they can abandon their
body. On top of the above
conditions, salvation is granted
only to those who are able to
meditate upon Perumal on their
deathbeds.
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019
Sri Bhumi Piratti understood
our helplessness in meditating
upon Perumal on our deathbed
when we are akin to a log in our
comatose state. She urged Sri
Varaha Perumal to show us the
laghu-upayam, the easy means
by which we can be freed.
Varaha Perumal urged by our
compassionate mother, uttered
the Varaha Charama Slokam.
sthithE manasi susvasthE
sarIrE sathi yO nara:
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dhAthusAmyE sthithE smarthA
visvarUpam cha maamajam (1)
tathastham mriyamANam thu
kAshtA paashaNa sannibham
aham smarAmi madh bhaktham
nayAmi paramAm gathim (2).
Varaha Perumal said, ‘They
must perform jnana yagnam i.e
perform prapatti. They must
surrender to me with faith and
firmly believe that I will
definitely protect them. If they
think about me with love when
they are young, healthy, offer
me even a single flower and
utter my name with love, I
promise that when they are on
their deathbed and even when
they are incapable of thinking
about me, I will remember
them and when it is time for
them to die, I will take them
away from samsara to Sri
Vaikuntam.'
Goda Piratti, the incarnation of
Sri Bhumi Piratti taught us the
Prapatti Margam in
Thiruppavai.
he Uttarana Punya Kalam takes
birth after the completion of
Thiruppavai Nombhu. Adiyen
urges those who have not yet
performed prapatti, to
approach your acharyans
immediately and request
The Butter Bandit – Saturday, November 30, 2019

prapatti anugraham. The story
of Purañjana is given here to
highlight our helplessness. The
easiest way to get the help of
our true friend Avignatha is by
performing prapatti. Instead of
making hundreds of resolutions
during the Gregorian New Year which will yield the Supreme
which will not help us achieve Fruit.
the true purpose of our life,
take up the main resolution of [This story is from the Srimad
obtaining prapatti anugraham Bhagavatam. Sage Narada
which is the only resolution narrated this story to King
Prachinabarhis.]

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