Ayyala Somayajula Surya Ganapati Sastri (1878-1936), popularly known as Kāvyakānta Vasistha Ganapati Muni was a Yogi, scholar of traditional Hinduism, expert in mantra sashtra, poet, writer, social reformer all rolled into one.
Ganapati Muni was born on 17th November 1878, in Kalavarayi near Bobbili in Andhra Pradesh to Śri Narasimha Sastry and Narasamamba, a devoted Brahmin Family.
His parents had three sons, Ganapati being the second one. Nearly a year before his birth, on the holy day of rathasaptamī, his mother had been to the famous Sūrya (Sun) temple at Arasavalli (near Srikakulam in Andhra Pradesh) to offer her prayers and worship. She had a dream in which a beautiful woman with golden divine radiance emerged from the corridors of the temple, approached her with a shining pot of fire and giving it in her hands and dispaaeared. Soon after her return to home from Arasavalli, Narasamamba showed signs of pregnancy. She believed that her child was a divine gift of God Agni (fire). While she was waiting to deliver the child, her husband, Narasimha Sastry, had gone to the holy city of Kashi (Benares) in November 1878, where he also had a unique experience. When he was performing tapas in the Dhuṇḍi Gaṇapati temple (near Visweswara Ghat) he had the vision of a little child emanating from the Deity and coming near him. After these wonderful experiences by both parents, Ganapati was born in the parental home of his mother on 17th November 1878. The father appropriately named his second son Ganapati, rooted in his conviction that the child was an emanation of God Ganapati himself. In the Vedic deity Agni (Fire) is none other than Gaṇapati described in the purāṇas and worshipped in the tantras. Up to six years Ganapati was dumb and could not speak. The parents tried several ways and finally Ganapati started speaking when he was six-year-old.
Brought up in a deeply religious family, Ganapati was traditionally trained in several subjects. Along with scholarship his focus remained on spiritual seeking. Ganapati Muni was educated at home by his father, who, like his ancestors, was well versed in Mantra Shastra, Astrology and Ayurveda. It is said that he could prepare a panchangam (almanac) at the tender age of ten. After studying classical Sanskrit poems, he devoted himself to the study of grammar and poetics. He completely immersed himself into the writings of Vyasa and Valmiki and read their works repetitively. This gained him deep insights in the study of the Mahabharata.
He was married at an early age of 12 years to Srimati Vishalakshi who was 8 years old. He wrote “Bhrunga Sandesam” a romantic poetic composition on his wife. However, marriage did not stop him from pursuing his spiritual and scholarly expedition. He used to visit one sacred place after another, and stayed there for some period, to pursue his tapasya even when he was just 18 years of age. On one such visit to Bhubaneswar, in Orissa, at the famous “Lingaraj” temple of Lord Siva, during his tapas, Ganapati had a vision, in which Goddess Lalitambika (Bhubaneshwari) appeared before him, offering divine nectar. After this incident, Ganapati’s intellect developed a rare sharpness and he attained complete mastery over poetry. Indeed, the literary works composed after this incident are endowed with a distinct sweetness and grace.
It was in Kashi that Ganapati came to know that an assembly of scholars (harisabha) is going to be organised in the city of Nabadwip in Bengal. The assembly was meant for scholars to showcase their scholarship. Ganapati’s friends advised him to obtain a letter of introduction and participate in the assembly. The twenty-two-year-old Ganapati attended the assembly conducted in June, 1900 after taking a letter of introduction from a scholar in Kashi by name Shivakumar and proved himself to be the best among them. He was honoured with the title of ‘Kavyakanth’ by the eminent scholars who attended the harisabha. Kavyakanth can be translated as the one who has a poetic voice that is extempore.
Ganapati extensively travelled during 1896 to 1902 several pilgrim places across the country and reached Arunachalam in 1903 from Kanchipuram to perform tapas. He visited twice Sri Brahmana Swamy at Arunachalam before he accepted teacher’s job at the prestigious Voorhees College, Vellore in 1904. Later in 1907, he resigned his job at Vellore and returned to Arunachalam.
On 18th February, 1907 Ganapati approached Brahmana Swamy for his grace and to gain inner realization, peace and the true import of tapas that he still lacked. Brahmana Swamy, who was staying in the Virupaksha cave broke his 11 years of long silence and spoke gently, “If one watches where his notion of “I” springs, the mind will be absorbed into that. That is tapas. If a mantra is repeated and attention is directed to the source where the mantra sound is produced, the mind will be absorbed in that. That is tapas.” Ganapati was filled with joy to have found his guru. He conferred the full name of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi to Brahmana Swamy, whose original name was Venkataraman.
Following this momentous meeting, Ganapati composed a great devotional poem, Umasahasram, a thousand verses in praise of Uma, the Divine Mother, in gratitude to the great Goddess for having given him Ramana Maharshi as his Guru (Master). This work is the magnum opus of Sri Vasishtha Ganapati Muni. Ganapati wrote Ramana Gita that contains the questions put forth by disciples and the answers given by the Ramana Maharshi. Saddarshanam is the Sanskrit translation of Sri Maharshi’s Tamil writing, Ulladu Narpadu (Forty Verses on Reality) by Ganapati Muni on which his disciple, Sri T.V. Kapali Sastri, has written a commentary in Sanskrit, reflecting the spirit of Sri Maharshi’s original teachings.
Ganapati Muni’s Dashamahavidyasutram (the ten cosmic powers of the Divine Mother as described in the tantras) brings out the association of these ten cosmic aspects of the Mother as described in the Tantra with the corresponding Vedic deities, thereby, establishing a link between the Vedas, Upanishads and Tantras, a unique approach. His works Mahā Vartikam and śabdaPramāna Carca argue that Vedas are the works of seers as against the conventional thought that they are Apaurusheya. Ganapati Muni had the unique experience of kapālabheda. In the summer of 1922 at the Mango cave of the Arunachala hills. As the result of intense tapas, the subtle knot in his head was cut and his cranium split. His most compassionate Master, Sri Ramana Maharshi, blessed him and on the very night, he had the experience of the culmination of kuṇḍalinī sādhanā, resulting in the most unique experience of kapālabheda.
In his works Pancama Mīmāmsa and Pancajana Carca, Ganapati Muni strongly opposes untouchability. Ganapati Muni went one step ahead and initiated several Hindus from all communities into Mantra Sadhana.
In 1923 Ganapathi Muni joined Congress party and in 1924 became president of Dravida (Tamilnadu) State Congress Committee and actively propagated eradication of untouchability and equal rights for women in the society. He also advocated for Sanskrit as the national language. Pleased with his initiatives and contributions, the Ādi Hindu Society, a Dalit Hindu community in Hyderabad conferred on him the title “Muni” on 25th February, 1927.
His Bharata Caritra Mīmāmsa is a seminal work that proposes Mahābhārata to be contemporary with one phase of the Vedic period, and traces Mahābhārata characters in the Veda-Purāna literature right from Rig Veda.
His other important works in Sanskrit are:
- INDRANISAPTASATI: A laud of 700 verses cast in the various metrical moulds derived from the 7 chandas of Veda. Each verse of chiselled beauty like a crystal reflects the glory of the Goddess Indrani.
- PRACHANDACHANDI TRISATI: A composition of 300 verses in praise of Goddess Prachandachandi.
- UMASATAKAM: 100 verses in praise of Goddess Uma, the consort of Lord Siva.
- SIVASATAKAM: 100 verses in praise of Lord Siva.
- UMATRISATI: 300 names of Goddess Uma for daily recital composed as stotras.
- INDRASAHASRANAMA: 1000 names of Indra as occurring in the Veda called and made into a powerful stotra. This is a unique composition conferring all the benefits of Veda adhyayana on the reciter.
- GITAMALA: A garland of stotras on the Vedic deities like Agni, Vayu, Chandra, and Surya.
- SRI-RAMANA-CATVARIMSAT: 40 verses in praise of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi which are recited daily at Sri Ramanasramam.
- HERAMBOPASTHANAM: Stotras dealing with the worship of Lord Ganesha.
- VISVAMIMAMSA: This deals with the principle of Iswara, Sakti, all the gods and goddesses, the individual soul, the divine descent and the means of worship as propounded in the Upanishads. It also deals with the concepts of Heaven, Hell, various lokas and the final liberation.
- TATVAGHANTASATAKAM: 100 verses composed extempore in one hour as a part of avadhana near Udupi. A good example of the Muni’s metaphysical writings.
- RAJAYOGASARASUTRAM: On the essence of Raja Yoga, these Sutras are composed.
- VIVAHADHARMASUTRAM: On marriage as a sacrament.
- ISOPANISHAT BHASHYA: A simple and lucid commentary on the intricate Upanishad, that contains the original views of Ganapati Muni in spiritual interpretation of the Upanishad.
- UPADESASARA BHASHYA: A commentary on the Ramana Maharshi’s upadesa saram.
- CHIKITSANUSASANAM: Work on medicine.
- AYURVEDASANGRAHAH: Work on medicine.
- PRANATOSANAM: Work on medicine.
- SODASASLOKI: Work on astrology.
- HORANIRNAYASANGRAHAH: Work on astrology.
- TRIBHAVAPHALACHANDRIKA: Work on astrology.
- INDRAGITAMU: Book in Telugu dvipada, a stotra on Indra.
His commentaries on Rigvedic mantras and the ishopanishad, though brief, Ganapati Muni has given his own original spiritual interpretation of the Mantras, and he was highly critical of the ritualistic interpretation of the Rigvedic Mantras by Sayana, a 12th Century commentator on the Vedas. Ganapati Muni had a rare combination of traditional scholarship, reformatory zeal, patriotism, spiritual sadhana and original thinking.
Ganapati Muni’s original contributions also include his correlation of Reṇukā (mother of Paraśurāma and wife of Riṣi Jamadagni) story of Purāna with Chinnamasta a Śakta Mahāvidya. He also wrote an incomplete historic novel “Pūrna”, woven around the story of Satyasena and Pradyodana the rulers of Anga and Magadha. Subsequently this novel was completed by his son Mahadeva Sastri and was published as a serial novel titled ‘Satyaprabha’ in Andhra Prabha Telugu weekly in 1964.
Most of Ganapati Muni’s works are in Sanskrit. This is one of the primary reasons for his limited fame, in spite of his vast knowledge on the Vedas, Tantra shashtra, progressive views on several issues concerning the society such as caste discrimination, and untouchability.
In 1934 he prepared the constitution for India in Sanskrit titled, “samrajya-nibandhanam”. This work has five hundred and sixty sutras with the belief that the future of India rests on a complete revival of the Vedic truths. He also wrote “lalibhashopadesha, a new language for the people of India, with the objective of having a common language once India gets independence.
The poet seer Kavyakantha Ganapati Muni met Sri Aurobindo on 15th August 1928. He stayed at the Sri Aurobindo Ashram for about a fortnight. During this stay at the Ashram, the Muni meditated with The Mother a few times. After one such meditation, The Mother expressed that the Muni was a real yogi who could plunge into great depths the moment he started meditation and that she had not so far found any person who reached such a stage in meditation like Ganapati Muni did.
Though Ganapati Muni was an eminent personality, he remained humble and accommodative. The Muni and his beloved disciple Daivarata did tapas in Padaivedu, near Vellore, in the year 1917. As a result of these tapas certain mantras were revealed to his disciple Daivarata. Ganapati Muni immediately noted down those words and grouped them as per Mantra, Devata and Chandas and added a lucid commentary to it under the title anvayabhāshya. The book was published by Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, Bombay. During the same period he himself also received few mantras and again in 1934 when he was in Gokarna he received two mantras, all with divine blessings. These were recorded under the title Chandostavam. Ganapati Muni even readily blessed one of his dearest disciples, Kapali Sastri, when he wished to become a disciple of Sri Aurobindo.
In 1934 Ganapati Muni went to Kharagpur and resided there till his death. On 25th July, 1936 Bhagavan Ramana Maharshi did not take any food nor allowed anyone else to do so at Ramanashramam, Tiruvannamalai. At about 5 pm that day Bhagavan told everyone that Ganapati Muni is no longer in this world. Right after that, the news came from Nimpura, Kharagpur, that Kavyakanta Ganapati Muni has attained Siddhi.
This author happened to read in his childhood around 50 years ago the life history of Ganapati Muni in Telugu written by Gunturu Lakshmikantham that has created a lasting impact. Nearly a decade after that the author received Mantropadesha from a Guru which invokes the Lord Indra (a Rigveda mantra) for the one’s wellbeing and welfare. The author now realises that the 23 rd Shloka of Ganapati Muni’s “Indrani Saptasati” has reference to a Rigveda mantra, which is the same as the mantropadesha the author received nearly four decades ago. Writing of this article is made possible only by the divine blessings and not due to the efforts of the author.
-Dr. B.N.V. Parthasarathi
Reference:
https://www.myramanamaharishi.com/kavyakantha-ganapati-muni/
It is a blessed write up from Dr Parthasarathi that makes the readers to understand the principled life with devotion and dedication.
I am grateful to the writer for exhaustive inputs on the life of Sri Ganapati Muni. Thanks to Hindu Post for bringing out such valuable posts.