When great souls appear on Earth, they do so for our own well-being. We celebrate these days as their appearance, their avatar days, as opposed to simply “birthdays”. People like us came to this planet with Karma. The great souls came to heal our defects, our flaws, with the ultimate mission of reuniting us with our eternal place: in an eternal, blissful state of service to every universal being.
111 years ago, our Pedda Jeeyar Swami graced the Godavari River with his appearance, taking birth in 1909. On the Uthara:bha:dra star during Sra:vana month, we celebrate this day that the world was given a chance to know what our Vedic dharma, our sampradaya, and what it means to be a Vaishnava. Swamiji gave us the confidence to follow our customs and sing the Lord’s name without fear.
These days, working people might get 1-2 holidays per week. Most office professionals get 2 holidays per week. These days are designed to refill and recharge lost energy. For 70 straight years without a single day of break, our Pedda Jeeyar Swami was constantly holding events for the benefit of the world. Even on so called “rest-days”, huge events would happen for the upliftment of society. Let’s look at a few examples.
In 1971, as Swamiji crossed the age of 60, the senior Vaishnavas of South India urged Swamiji to take rest at Sri Ranga Kshethra for 1 year. During that one year, Swamiji revived the surrounding temples of the area and revived the glory of the famous Sri Ranga temple.HH performed yajnas and conducted lectures on the significance of Vedic culture on a daily basis for the benefit of the world. This was supposed in a time of recharge and rest.
During Swamiji’s last Chatturmaasa on this planet in 1979, Swamiji was at Thirumangai Alwar’s kshetramin South India. In those 2 months, Swamiji completed the renovation of 12 famous Divya Desams in the area. This kind of monumental task would take several years even in the modern day. Pedda Jeeyar Swami was able to do this without the internet, social media, mass press, or global support.
In the 1950s, India was a recently independent country. There was a dire need to unite a nation that was recently split by political, economic, and spiritual ideals. When the Sri Badarinath mountains were not accessible by vehicle, Swamiji trekked 80 km with 400 staunch devotees by foot to perform a spiritual revival of the area by chanting the Ashta:kshari Maha:mantra 10 crores times, performing 1 crore havanas (oblations to the lord in the form of fire), 10 lakh offerings of milk and yogurt, 1 lakh offerings of flowers infused with divine names, and feeding 10,000 pilgrims on a daily basis. Today, we are attempting to re-create that monumental service at 1/10 of the scale.
Countless scholars and Vedic stalwarts draw inspiration from HH Pedda Jeeyar Swami. Only a few examples of Swamiji’s tremendous work are noted here, but we look forward to continuing to grow and develop our physical, mental, and spiritual lives with the presence of this great soul.
Let’s celebrate this 111th appearance day anniversary with the celebratory sloka of his appearance day.
Uthara:Bhadra nakshatre Sra:vane: somya vatsare
A:vira:sith gurus Sri:man, Na:rayana Yathi:swaraha
– From the discourse of Sri Chinna Jeeyar Swamiji
– August 8 th, 2020 on the 111 th appearance day of Sri Pedda Jeeyar Swami
– Nadigeddapaalam Ashram
