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SRI VIJAYINDRA TIRTHA & HIS PROPHECY ON BATTLE OF TALIKOTA

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Sri Vijayindra Tirtha is the bulwark of Dvaita Vedanta from post-Vyasatirtha period. 

This write-up is a humble contribution about a great yati who foresaw the difficult times for Vijayanagara Empire & forewarned Ramaraya to take measures.

 

 
Vijayindra was born in c.1514 as ‘Vitthala.’ Got initiated into sanyAsa by Vyasatirtha as ‘Vishnutirtha.’ But subsequently passed on to Surendra Tirtha as his successor & got renamed as ‘Vijayindra Tirtha.’
 
Aliya Ramaraya, the de-facto ruler of Vijayanagara, was upholding the Vijayanagara tradition of honouring the spiritual leaders of Vedic & non-Vedic sects. Likewise, he respected mAdhva yati-s of his times.
 
Sri Surendra Tirtha, guru of Vijayindra, has been attested by couple of copper inscriptions bearing Ramaraya’s name. This inscription from c.1553 talks about certain donations made by Ramaraya to Surendra Tirtha. Ramaya made these donations at Vijaya Vitthala temple, Hampi.
 
As regard to the influence of Vyasatirtha, the Ashrama guru of Vijayindra, there are dozens of inscriptions, plates, scriptural & archaeological evidences to gloss over & measure his impact on Vijayanagara’s royal houses particularly Saluva & Tuluva dynasties. As an illustrious successor of both Vyasatirtha & Surendra Tirtha, Vijayindra too has inscriptions issued by the kings & nobles of his times. Arivimangalam plates of Tanjavur Sevvappa Nayaka [1533-80] testify the same. This donation is dated 20/06/1575.
 
 
 
Both Vyasatirtha & Surendra Tirtha renounced the mortal world in the same year i.e. c.1539. And Vadiraja & Vijayindra are the two yatis who saw the destruction of Hampi after Battle of Talikota & continued their Dharmik activities with Aravidu & Nayaka kings.
 
Raghavendra Vijaya, biography of Sri Raghavendra Tirtha, mentions that Vijayindra was honoured by Aliya Ramaraya with ‘ratnAbhishEka’ at Hampi. However, there is no recorded evidence to access the timeline of this event. (NOTE This biography was written when Gururaya was alive.).
 
 
 
But the close proximity that his Gurus (Vyasatirtha & Surendra) had with the emperors & nobles of Vijayanagara evinced by inscriptions & other contemporary sources could help in considering ‘ratnAbhishEka’ by Ramaraya to Vijayindra as a believable incident.
 
Vijayindra Vaibhava, a biography written by Madhva Kavi [believed to be a disciple of Sri Vadiraja], is another source from which the life events of the saint can be gleaned through. [I don’t have the copy hence relying on other books having excerpts of it]. There come a string of intriguing incidents from his life history that few years before Talikota battle, Vijayindra visits Hampi on hearing the unhappiness of the nobles regarding Ramaraya’s behaviour & his new found love with a Muslim captain.
 
As per the hagiography, one Ranaduhalla Khan, a captain of a cavalry (composed of Muslim mercenaries) became a close friend of Ramaraya & was growing in influence with the de-facto ruler. This made the Hindu nobles bitter. Some of them approached Vijayindra for guidance. After reaching Hampi, Vijayindra sends for Ramaraya but the raya sends back the messenger with an assurance he would come. After waiting for couple of months & not seeing the Raya coming Vijayindra himself reaches palace to find raya having fun time with Ranaduhalla Khan. Shocked with the unexpected appearance of the revered yati, Raya asks the Khan to leave the palace immediately & receives the saint. At this juncture, Vijayindra forewarns the Raya about the bad omens that he encountered during his stay at Hampi.
 
Vijayindra advises Ramaraya to forego his friendship with the mlEchChA-s & heed to the advises of Hindu nobles. Else, the yati warns raya that “Your adharma can undo the efforts put in by his predecessors & nullify the puNya imparted by Dharmik gurus of Vedic pantheon.”
 
He also says that the Raya has the responsibility to fructify the puNya phala imparted by the Dharmik Gurus by not rubbing the shoulders.with Avaidik forces. Ramaraya begs forgiveness & requests the yati to stay at Hampi for some more time.Vijayindra refuses the request. Says that he has decided to move to Kumbhakonam & wish to stay there for the rest of his life. Ramaraya expresses his regret for insulting the yati by making him wait for months to meet & assures of following the advises given. After this final meeting with Ramaraya, Vijayindra moves out of Hampi & settles down at Kumbhakonam. He enters the brindAvana in c.1595 after appointing Sudhindra Tirtha as his successor.
 
In contrast to Vyasatirtha & Surendra whose inscriptions can be found at Hampi, the inscriptions & plates of donations made to Vijayindra are almost from Tamil country only. This peculiarity may support the above said incident of Vijayindra moving out of Hampi permanently. Similarly, the narratives of Fr. Heras in his ‘Aravidu Dynasty’ about two Muslim generals employed with Vijayanagara army & their deception at Talikota also support the legend wherein Vijayindra warned Ramaraya against his over indulgence with Muslims. Gazetteer of Gadag district mentions that Ramaraya has adopted Ali Adil Shah of Bijapur as his son can also be considered as a pointer towards Ramaraya’s inclination towards Muslims. His refusal to stop cow slaughter in Hampi is another irrefutable evidence.
 
There are good number of references available for Ramaraya’s involvement in the affairs of Sultanates apart from keeping a close company of Muslims at home. All these may be considered as sources for validating the legend narrated above. If the legend of Vijayindra forewarning Ramaraya about the impending catastrophe (Talikota battle) could be supported by direct references then it would become the most critical development that changed the fortunes of greatest Hindu empire of medieval times.

My humble obeisance to this mahAn yati who was known for his skill in 64 crafts.

भक्तानां मानसांभॊज भानवॆ कामधॆनवॆ
 नमतां कल्पतरुवॆ जयींद्रगुरवॆ नमः

 
References:
  1. Ajayya Vijayindraru by Raja S. Gururajacharya
  2. E.C. Vol 12, Madhva Mathagala Shashanagalu Vol. 1
  3. History of Dvaita School of Vedanta & Literature by Dr. BNK Sharma
  4. Lectures & articles of contemporary scholars
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