Vaishnavite Acharya Vedanta Desika wrote a work titled ‘Mummani Kovai’ in praise of Lord Devanatha, the presiding deity of the Tiruvahindrapuram temple in Tamil Nadu. It is believed that the work had 30 verses, but only 10 are available now.
These 10 verses give us an insight into Visishtadvaita philosophy, said M.K. Srinivasan, in a discourse.
The Lord is dear to His devotees, but more importantly, they are dear to Him, and this is emphasised throughout the work.
In the very first verse, the importance of the archa (idol) form of worship is shown. The Lord gives jnana to those who seek Him. But what of the many simple people, who visit temples? They come because of their bhakti, and may not be seekers of jnana. But jnana is guaranteed to them too when they worship Him in temples.
The Lord is a treasure, which is put within our reach when He assumes the archa form. He does it for our sake. His Consort is a light that dispels the darkness of ignorance.
When a person has the Goddess to help him, he needs to seek no other means to obtain jnana. Her mercy ensures that jnana automatically comes to the recipient of Her mercy.
Through the use of just one word, Vedanta Desika indicates the manifold roles of the Divine Mother. She pays heed to our prayers and passes on our requests to the Lord. His expectations regarding our conduct are also conveyed to us by Her. And thirdly, whenever it seems as if the Lord might be harsh to us, She reminds Him of His commitment to save us.
It is in order to save us that She remains by His side all the time, and is never parted from Him.