Bhagavan and Nayana

Kavyakantha Ganpathi muni was one of the foremost devotees of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi. He was an unrivalled scholar of Sankrit, the Vedas and Upanishads. He was also a great tapasvi (ascetic) who lived and breathed the essence of Sanatana Dharam.

This book chronicles the amazing details of the relationship between these two great spiritual personalities. It also provides a complete account of the great Muni's inspired Sanskrit Compositions. In this book we learn the details of guru – sishya relationship that naturally blossomed between Sri Bhagavan and Nayana. Interestingly Bhagavan used to refer to the Muni as Nayana, just as Muni's disciples used to address him endearingly.

Kavayakantha Ganapati Sastri, famed as vasistha Ganpati Muni, played much the same role in the life and teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi as Swami Vivekananda did in that of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. Sri Vasistha Muni was a mighty spiritual personality in his own right and had a large following of illustrious disciples. It is a standing testimony to his spiritual sincerity and intellectual honestly that he recognised the uniqueness of Bhagavan's teaching, accepted him as his Guru and proclaimed him as the Maharshi to the whole world. Those who want to understand the message of the Maharshi in its pristine purity, have to study the Muni's redaction of the Master's teachings like Saddarsanam and Sri Ramana Gita.

Sri Bhagavan used to refer to the Muni as Nayana, just as his disciples used to call him endearingly. Fortunately still amongst us are a few who had known Nayana and Bhagavan and their mutual esteem and who had been the recipients of their Grace.

As a centenary Tribute to the sacred memory of Nayana, the Mountain Path published in 1978 in its issues, four articles by Sri S. Shankaranarayanan, bringing out the mutual association between Bhagavan and Nayana. These articles provided a lot of interest in the Personality and teachings of the Maharshi and the Muni and there have been persistent demands from earnest aspirants for a treatment of the whole subject by the same author.

Sri Shankaranarayana, being a disciple of Sri Kapali Sastriar and a recipient of Bhagavan's Grace, readily agreed and the outcome is the present book Bhagavan and Nayana.

The four articles that appeared in The Mountain Path are reproduced in Part 1 of the Book. All the other articles except "A Sloka for invoking the Presence" which had already appeared in The Mountain Path, have been written specially for this publication. part II deals with Nayana's writings on the Maharshi Upadesa Saram, Sad Darsanam and Sri Ramana Gita dealing with the Teaching and the Vision, the sloka of Invocation as an aid to the actual Practice, Sadhana. Drawing much of his material from Sri Vasistha Vaibhavam, an commentary in Sanskrit both by his illustrious disciple, Sri Kapali Sastriar, the author in Part III deals with the Muni's life sketch, his style and his works. Also, a rare Sanskrit commentary of the Muni on the intricate Isopanisad in the light of the Maharshi's teaching is published for the first time with an English translation of the author.