Source: TW
Preface
Honoring the Vedic Stalwarts in Our Midst: Vidvan Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma
A profile of Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma, a true Vedic stalwart in our midst. This is a translation of Shatavadhani Dr. Ganesh’s brilliant portrait of this eminent Vedic Pundit and scholar.
ONE OF THE AGELESS GEMS in the cinematic universe of K. Viswanath is the memorable scene from Swarnakamalam featuring an aged Ghanapati and a haughty bureaucrat. In less than four minutes, Viswanath brings alive the tragic history of the downfall of the Vedic culture in the very land it was birthed. It is an excruciating scene executed not in a revolutionary or reactionary manner but in a spirit of pure Sattva. It also accomplishes several things at the same time. It exposes the enduring thrall of the psychological colonisation of the Hindu mind. The bureaucrat who humiliates the Ghanapati is one of the most powerful symbols of the ugliness called Nehruvianism. In fact, he is the very creation of the corrosive Nehruvian state. Like Nehru, he is haughty because he’s petty. But this is no ordinary pettiness. It is a pettiness imbued with spite, which actively seeks to annihilate all that is noble, lofty, and virtuous. And thus, there’s no better — or worse — form of annihilation than reducing a Ghanapati to a beggarly status.
Beyond a minuscule section of the Sanatana society, the ideals, values, but above all, the lifestyle of our traditional Vaidikas largely remains unknown to this day. Perhaps the recent work of value that describes them is Sri D.V. Gundappa’s Vaidikadharma-Sampradayastharu in Kannada. But that was written more than half a century ago. And now, Shatavadhani Dr. Ganesh’s extraordinarily vivid and heartfelt portrait of a lineage of Ghanapatis shares the same Gundappan rank.
To our great fortune, a Ghanapati belonging to that lineage still lives in our midst. His name is Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma. And it is both our duty and our Rna to celebrate such luminaries, the real torchbearers who continue to exude and spread the resplendence of the Vedic culture. In today’s time, this flame may be feeble but the alternative is darkness.
Dr. Ganesh’s portrait of Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma occurs as part of his reminiscences of his days at the Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan. The original essay series in Kannada can be read here. The following is my adapted translation of the aforementioned portrait of the Ghanapati.
Intro
OLDER TO ME BY ABOUT FOUR OR FIVE YEARS, Rajagopala Sarma is truly a special personality. He was working as a researcher in the Bhavan’s Gandhi Centre under Raja Ramanna. He was originally from Tamil Nadu. A thorough Vaidika. He had learned the Krishna Yajurveda including its Ghanapāṭha recitation and was a Vidvan in both the Pūrva and Uttara Mīmāmsā. But just this bit of information is insufficient to clearly delineate his full personality. This is because, like him, there are any number of Vedic Vidvans and Sastra scholars among us. I am also acquainted with numerous such Vidvans.
Self assurance
The marked virtue that I have observed in Sri Rajagopala Sarma is his self-assurance and magnanimity. Self-assurance in the sense of being non-needy. In general, position, status and the pride and showoff that they beget are the accomplices of “modern” education. A good chunk of traditional Vaidikas who are completely unexposed to this “education” often feel a sense of inferiority before such flaunting. It appears that the non-Brahmin sections of the Hindu society have largely not observed this psychological phenomenon. The humiliation that such Vaidikas face is comparable to that faced by the lower classes of the Hindu society — those who are known as backward classes and Dalits. And so, these Vaidikas, almost without exception, are eager to get “modern” education for their children, the ticket for their entry into the contemporary materialistic world. It is unnecessary to discuss the merits and demerits thereof in this space. However, it is undeniable that the present day Bharatavarsha is experiencing the fruits of this phenomenon.
RAJAGOPAL WAS NEVER afflicted by this inferiority. On the contrary, he had justifiable pride. I had never seen any such Śrōtriya until I met him. Together with this virtue, he also possessed admirable magnanimity. Without worrying too much about tomorrow, he set aside his earnings in service of the values and people he esteemed.
Eating out
When I newly joined the Bhavan, I continued to sport the residues of my college life: shirt and trousers, and my hair was crop-cut as usual. However, Rajagopal looked resplendent in his Kacce-pan̄ce, Kurta and Uttarīya. Additionally, his head overflowed with an abundance of Śikhā enough to make two garlands. Because he would shave based on the appropriate Tithi, day, and star, his face was perpetually tyrannised by a beard and moustache. This day this Śrōtriya saw me, he exclaimed, “vaango, Samrat poi tiffin saapt varlaa!” — Come sir, let’s go to Samrat and eat some tiffin! An invitation to eat in a restaurant!
I had a brief acquaintance with Rajagopal earlier. His uncle’s daughter’s house was right behind my house. Her father was the renowned Vedic Pundit, R. Krishnamurthy Sastri. He was the head of the Sanskrit college in Chennai. Everyone in their family was well-versed in Sanskrit. As his younger sister by relation, Rajagopal would often visit Srividya’s home. He had stayed in that home before he got married. Additionally, he had learned the Pūrvāpara-prayōga (Pūrva= Vedic ceremonies performed during various stages of a human’s life. apara=those performed at death and thereafter) under the tutelage of Srividya’s father-in-law. This was how I got acquainted with him, an acquaintance that matured into familiarity at the Bhavan.
Although Rajagopal knew Kannada, I spoke to him in Tamil in order to sharpen my own hold on the language. The moment I heard him invite me to the restaurant, I said in alarm, “idenna! Neengo hotelkku poharadu! — what is this! Even you go to hotels!” Completely nonplussed, he said, “naan verum vaidikanillai; Vedanti kooda — I am not merely a Vaidika; I’m also a Vedantin.” This reveals his innate temperament.
On one occasion, the Mumbai centre of the Bhavan had organised a national seminar on Vedanta. Both of us had to participate in it. That was my first ever flight journey, not his. When the air hostess began to serve snacks, I refused to accept it owing to my notions of purity. My anxiety was rooted in my inability to distinguish vegetarian from non-vegetarian. However, Rajagopal unsuspectingly ate the vegetarian fare that was offered. And to top it, he teased me, “kuduttadellam eduttukongo! ‘Enna inda kudumi ayya ella tingaraan; inda cropu ayya mattume eduvume tinga maattaan!’ Annutu inda gagana-sakhigalella sirikka poraa — Eat everything they offer. Else, the air hostesses will laugh at you saying, ‘that traditional tuft-guy eats everything but this crop-cut guy refuses to touch anything.’”
But I remained obstinate. Finally, an air hostess took pity on me and gave some fruits. On our return journey, I had reformed a wee bit.
Salary
BECAUSE THE BHAVAN was not a commercial enterprise, the salary and allowances it paid its staff was not much. Rajagopal would take potshots at it in a lighthearted manner. When H.K. Ranganath — the then head of the Bhavan — heaped more work on Rajagopal, he would taunt him in a friendly way, “Sir, the salary you pay is pocket money for me. Your salary is akin to Dakshina for Veda Vidvans like us. It is sufficient to meet the cost of coming all the way here and signing the attendance register. If you need me to do more work than this, a different salary structure is required.” If the conversation was prolonged, Rajagopal would humorously overwhelm him with this retort: “I will pay you a salary. You do this work yourself! This kind of work should not be assigned to Pundits like us. We have to do academic work alone.”
Source: TW
The Ennobling Vedic Life and Lifestyle of the Elder Vidvan Rajagopala Sarma
Shatavadhani Dr. Ganesh paints an intimate picture of the ennobling Vedic life and lifestyle of the elder Vidvan Rajagopala Sarma.
Grandfather
Foster children
GHANAPATI RAJAGOPALA SARMA had never seen school, never learned English. He was a thorough student of a Gurukula. His grandfather had served as a judge in Tamil Nadu. The grandfather’s younger brother was not only deeply learned in Veda and Sastra, he lived as a Vaidika. His name too, was Rajagopala Sarma. The judge passed away at a young age. Rajagopala Sarma brought up his orphaned children. Although he imparted Vedic lessons to them, he eventually put them in worldly professions and jobs. However, he brought up his own children in his mould. He gave them a thorough traditional Vaidika education and put them in his path.
After his elder brother’s children got married and became householders and fathers, he called them all one day and addressed them: “Following your father’s wishes, I brought you up in the worldly fashion. I did not have your father’s permission to have the freedom to sculpt your destiny in the way I thought fit. Now I ask you this. If I have your permission, please give me one son from each of your respective families. Your permission should come out of a spirit of joy. I will bring them up in my mould.” The fact that they all agreed is not the special element in this episode. His force of personality was such. This is how Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma came under the tutelage of his younger grandfather and became a Vaidika.
Mobile gurukula
The elder Rajagopala Sarma never settled in one place. His was a mobile Gurukulam. He travelled across scores of villages and towns with his compact retinue of disciples and boys. His wife took care of cooking. He would travel to every city and town and village in Tamil Nadu and rent a house there. After that, he would teach Veda, Sastra, Purana, and Itihasa to the people according to their expectation and ability. Whatever he got from these students as fees would go towards maintaining his family. Above all, Sri Rajagopala Sarma had special enthusiasm for Ramayana-Parayana (recitation). This Parayana had to take place in every village and town. The whole village had to participate in it. The festivity had to culminate in the auspicious event of Sri Ramachandra’s coronation. The Mangalam would be sung then. He would procure sacred waters from various rivers for this purpose. Veda-Parayana and Sankara-Bhashya discourses formed essential ingredients of this celebration. If devotees wished to coronate Sri Ramachandra, they had to compulsorily grow the Shikha. This was a non-negotiable condition. It is said that scores of people grew Shikhas just to undergo this divine experience of coronating Sri Rama and after coronating him, they remained Shikha-dharis (i.e., they did not cut it) for the rest of their lives.
This was the atmosphere in which Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma grew up.
Lessons
THE CHILDREN WHO LIVED in the elder Rajagopala Sarma’s mobile Gurukulam had to wake up at the Brahma-Muhurtam (typically from 3:30 - 5:30 am). The first round of their lessons would begin at this hour. Around seven or seven-thirty, some basic Veda mantras would be imparted to the people of the village or town. In parallel, the Antevasins (students who lived in his Gurukulam) would have their bath, perform the Sandhyavandanam and eat breakfast. After this, a rigorous teaching regimen would begin from nine and end at twelve. Subjects included the Veda, Sanskrit, Tamil and mathematics. Lunch was at twelve.
Post-lunch period was the Guru’s rest hour. However, there was no respite for the disciples. They had to sit around the Guru’s bed in a circle and revise their earlier lessons. If someone made a mistake, the Guru would instantly correct it even in his slumber!
Sports hour was in the evening. After this, they had to accompany the Guru on a Yatra to the market for buying provisions or go along with him to temples in the area. Around the same time, he would impart another round of lessons to the people of that town or village or deliver discourses from our Purana and Itihasa. Dinner was at eight followed by another round of Veda lessons to his disciples.
This was Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma’s education for twelve years. After this, he enrolled at the Mylapore Sanskrit College and studied both the Purva and Uttara-Mimamsa under the guidance of his uncle, Sri Krishnamurthi Sastri. He often rued that his discipline had slackened by this time. He earned the Shiksha-Sastri title at Tirupati. However, what firmly remained with him throughout his life was the solid Vedic education that he learned at the feet of his grandfather.
Abroad
Grandfather (G): “Why do you even want to go abroad?”
Rajagopal (R): “Our people out there want me to come. They need guidance on the Vedic way of life.”
G: “In that case, you think you have given that guidance to all our people out here? Has Dharma been fully established in this land?”
R: “I didn’t mean it like that. Our people living there must not go astray.”
G: “They aren’t going astray. You are. Your desire to go to America is making you utter lofty words. When it is possible for you to pursue the Vaidika profession out here, why do you need to go behind all these unnecessary things?”
Rajagopal bowed before this crystal clear opposition and joined the Academy of Sanskrit Research at Melukote. He received several offers from America later as well. His grandfather had passed away by then and he had no one to stop him. But he never went.
I asked him about this: “Why didn’t you use your freedom?” He laughed and replied, “Yes, my grandfather is not alive now. But his words are. How can I transgress that?” Ghanapati Rajagopala Sarma is still with us. Like his Guru, he has provided shelter to several students in his home. Even as his wife feeds them with food cooked by her own hands, he teaches them the Veda.