Page 11 - Ramanuja and Equality Book.pmd

eye to be “superior” to the left eye, or the hand to be “superior”
to the leg. All parts of the body have their own special function
and are essential and equal. Together, they make the body work.
The same is the case for the Universal creation. The diverse
beings, nature and driving force behind them all are essential.
They need to work together in harmony for the betterment of
society as a whole.

Here are some incidents from Ramanuja’s life, which show us His
teachings and practicing of equality.

Equality of caste, creed, age, religion, gender

Any knowledgeable person is eligible to guide

Community of birth is not a factor to guide: Ramanuja lived in
Kanchipuram, the abode of Lord Varadaraja, when he was a youth.
During that time, there lived a great devotee of Lord Varadaraja by
the name Kanchipurna. He used to perform the service of fanning
the Lord. Kanchipurna belonged to the merchant community by
birth, and he was immersed in devotion to the Lord. It is said that
his devotion was so great that the Lord used to talk to him while
he was performing the fanning service, just like two friends talk
to each other. Kanchipurna was also a student of Yamunacharya,
the renowned acharya and was a scholar himself.

Ramanuja, due to differences with his then-teacher Yadavaprakasa,
had to discontinue his studies. He went to Kanchipurna and
requested him to be his acharya. At that time, it was exceedingly
rare for a person who was born as a brahmin to approach
someone born in another community to learn spirituality from
them. However, Ramanuja only saw Kanchipurna’s greatness,
knowledge, and devotion. Birth was not a consideration at all
for Ramanuja. When Ramanuja had deep questions on the
Vedanta philosophy, he went to Kanchipurna to get his questions
answered. It is said that Lord Varadaraja answered these questions
to Kanchipurna, who then conveyed them to Ramanuja. Both the

10