- Vadakalai
Vadakalai is one of the two
Iyengar subsects.Iyengars are a sect of
Brahmin s that predominantly worship Lord Vishnu, one of the three leading deities of theHindu religion. Brahmins originated as the priestly class in ancientIndia and, to a large extent, still continue to do so.Iyengars in particular are Brahmins who have settled in the Southern States of
Tamil Nadu ,Karnataka ,Kerala andAndhra Pradesh , but predominantly in Tamil Nadu.Vadakalai Iyengars sport the U naama, rather than the Thenkalai Y
naamam . Compared to theThenkalai Iyengars who thrived in Srirangam, their tradition developed around Kanchi. The differing intellectual environments results in the stronger emphasis on Tamil literature among the Thenkalai and the stronger emphasis on the Sanskrit literature amongst the Vadakalai. Unlike the Thenkalai, who follow the doctrines ofManavalamamuni , the Vadakalai follow the doctrines ofVedantadesika .The monasteries which follow this tradition are
Srirangam Srimadh Andavan Ashramam , SriParakala Matam ,Ahobila Mutt and Sri Powndareekapuram Andavan Ashramam.Line of Acharyas
Sriman Narayana
The Supremely merciful Lord Sriman NArAyanA reveals the spiritual knowledge to His most ardent devotees. They in turn instruct others. This is called a "ParamparA". Thus, NArAyanA Himself becomes the first AchAryA and the knowledge revealed in the paramparA is nothing but what NArAyanA Himself has revealed. This chain of tradition beginning from Sriman NArAyanA is also known as the"Sat SampradAyam".
ee also
*
Thenkalai
*Forward Castes
*Brahmins External links
* [http://members.tripod.com/~sriramanujar/tVsv.html Vadakalai Vs Thenkalai]
* [http://www.tamilbrahmins.com Tamil Brahmins]
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