Vedanta Desika- The Peerless Poet-Preceptor

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Sri Dushyanth Sridhar is one of the most sought after public speakers in Sanatana Dharma who renders discourses in English and Tamizh on a variety of topics like Ramayana, Bhagavata, Vishnu Purana, Mahabharata, Bhagavad Gita, Vishnu Sahasranama and Divya Prabanda He has learnt the esoteric scriptures such as Sri Bhashya, Gita Bhashya, Rahasya Traya Sara and Bhagavad Vishaya under revered preceptors. He has rendered over 3000 discourses in 14 countries (Sri Lanka, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Myanmar, Nepal, China, Cambodia, UAE, Kenya, New Zealand, Australia, Canada, USA) besides India. He is well-known in households through his talks in leading television channels and has a wide spectrum of audience following on YouTube with content that runs for over 1000 hours. He organizes religious tours to ancient temples in India as well as abroad, and conceptualizes classical dance ballets with leading dancers. He has received awards and coveted titles for this service of his, and runs a charitable trust called Desika Daya to serve the society, at large. He is an alumnus of BITS, Pilani with over 10 years of corporate and teaching experience. He lives with his wife, kid and parents in Bengaluru.

Srome Vinkatentry the very first verse I was taught as a toddler by my teacher, Indira Rajagopalen. I barely understood what the verse actually meant gradually, my formative years were spent in learning the works of Vedanta desika. I undeniably felt the vibrations around me when I memorized the verses, but seldom took efforts to know their purport. It was later that I had the opportunity to attend the Atlakshept sessions of the 45 pontiff of Sri Ahobila Mutt, Villicalam Azhagiya Singar. His talks on Tirumangai Azhat's composition Tiruneduntändagam in chaste Tamil interlaced with relevant references from Desila's works, gave me an opportunity to relish Desa's devotion. This furthered me pursue kalakshepa sessions on Delika's magnum opus on saranagati called Rahasya Traya Sara under two stalwarts Neltey Soumyandrayanachar Susami and Devanarvilagam Saranathachar Sustmi. While studying the scholarly commentaries on this revered work, my admiration for Delila grew multifold. I used to passionately wait for the verses of Dramidopanishad Tatparya Ratnavali to be read when Bhagavad Vishaya classes were held by Saranathachar Sustmi. This quickly kindled the interest in me to know more about his contributions. When I travelled to Chennai, Payyampadi Srivatsangachar Sustmi, the living legend, graciously rendered kalakshepa on Gita Bhashya. And thereby I could relish Desika's Tatparya Candrika. While I am still pursuing classes on Sri Bhashya from Nadadur Karunakarachar Swami, a renowned and an erudite scholar of our times, the frequent references to Desika in the sessions, have made me subservient to Desika's devotional and scholastic poetry. I mustered courage to approach the luminary of this century, Navalpakkam Ramanuja Tatachar Swami in Mumbai. He benevolently taught me two chapters from Satadushani, another masterpiece of Desika, but his advanced years put an end to my learning with him. Finally, I realized in this eventful journey that Desika was my mother, father and preceptor. I started marrying all my discourses to content from his works. Today, I breathe in and breathe out, his name. Only his name. This influence was so much that I told my parents who are my pillars of strength that I was marrying Sumitra (now my wife), for the sole reason that she belonged to the same hamlet as Desika and shared the gotra of Dešika; Toopul and Vilnikimitra, respectively. Today she is my better-half, in every sense.