CHAPTER - 3

 

PITRUDEVA BHAVA

Sri Anjaneyulu Garu

(The Blessed Father of VISWAMJI)

 

Sri Anjaneyulu Garu, the father of Sri Viswayogi Viswamjee was a man born for a purpose.  He was a Rishi, Goddess Saraswati in masculine form, an authority on Astrology and Vastu (the science dealing with the auspicious aspect of architecture).  At the age of 16 years only he exhibited the art of composing poetry of the highest order, extempore.  He is popularly known as "Apara Yagna Valkya."  Just like the flower from its very birth has its, smell, in his young age itself he stunned the people with his satirical acumen.  Immediately after the demise of his father at his ninth year, he stepped into the shoes of his father and worked in the elementary school.  Later he studied up to 8th class, underwent higher-grade training and settled as teacher at Chavallamudi.  While working as a teacher he did his Matriculation and Ubhaya Bhasa Praveena (equivalent to a Degree in Telugu and Sanskrit); F. A. and B. A. all in first class.  He acquired a working knowledge in Hindi, Urdu and Tamil.

 

Once, he read in newspapers about the performance of Avadhanam by the great 'Tirupati Kavulu' at Rajamundry and the laurels they won.  At once he wrote poems appreciating them and sent it to  them.  Appreciating his poetic composition, they sent by post the books, Srevanandam, Panigraheate etc., authored by them as presents.  Often he said that the encouragement of those great men had given him inspiration.  He had intimate contacts with the great Pandits like Sri Kasi Krishnamacharyulu, Sri Palle Poorna Pragnacharyulu, Sri Viswanatha Satyanarayana, Sri Viswanatha Venketeswarlu, Tummalapalli Seetaramanuja Choudary, Tripuraneni Ramaswami Choudary, Sri Konda Venkatappaiah Pantulu, Sri Jashuva, Prabhakara Umamaheshwara Pandit, etc.

 

Before he attained 16th year he wrote Dana Mahima (Dasara Poems); Sri Krishna Sankeerthanam, Yagnavalkya Satakam, Geometry  '(Palum Kolatalu)' and Gopala kalyanam ( a playlet). The first two works were published by Sri Pollisetti Somasundaram.

 

To bring it to the understanding of pupils class wise, he made them recite the poem in Sumati Satakam, Dasaradhi Satakam, Bhaskara Satakam, Rukmini Kalyanam, Gajendra Moksham, Andhra Nama Sangraham, Bala Ramanayam. He taught them some poems composed extempore, on the eve of the regular holidays.  In those days, full moon day , new moon day and their following days were declared as regular holidays instead of Saturday and Sunday as at  present.  People wrote such poems on their slates and recited them on the next working day.  In that way he taught several poems with the MAKUTAMS like "Chavallamudi Seetarama"; "Yagnavalkya Moundra Sarvagna Chandra", "Ramayaguna Sandra Kodanada Ramachandra".  Only "Yagnavalka Satakam" is available today for the reader.

 

He tried to instill in pupils the intense desire to know the greatness of our culture and the miserable downfall of it in the present day world and the need for its revival through several interesting puranic stories.  In the evening time while the villagers squatted on mats around him listening with rapt attention, he used to sit on a cot in the fore-yard of his house and read the news papers for their benefit with proper elaboration regarding news items, puranic highlights, scientific matters etc., He told them about the consequences of omens and moles.  Whenever persons asked questions, he told them the results of it by taking into account the time, place and the direction of the questioner, and the question.  They were proved to be true in letter and spirit.  He gave Vibhuti and sacred water sanctified with mantras for removing diseases and for easy delivery.  He fixed auspicious dates for marriages, house-warming ceremony and traveling.  He was an expert in casting horoscope and giving predictions basing on palmistry.  He never took a single pie for any of those things.  Wearing a white dhoti in the style of Indian priest with folding's at the backside, and upper cloth covering his shoulders with a tuft on the head, (the  mark of a brahmin) vibhuti spread on the forehead, a kumkum mark on the face, a big size book in one hand, holding the end corner of the dhoti with the other walking with a pair of tyre shoes through the streets, he was like a Saraswati in masculine form.  All the people stood and did Namaskar with folded hands, as mark of respect , alerting nearby people by saying "Pedapantulu garu is coming", " Peddapantulu garu is coming."

 

On every afternoon of the day before Vinayaka Chaturthi, he took along with him all the pupils to the fields and collected the various specimens of vegetation intended for the worship of lord Ganeswara.  In the course of this collection, he explained to the students, in details, the name of the plant, its features, qualities and usage as a medicine for different diseases.  "This is one of the best traditions of Indian Culture , to pass on from generation to generation the natural system of curing diseases with organic drugs or  (Mulika Viadhyam).  We have long forgotten it altogether.  As part of dead habit we somehow gather some leaves and worship lord Ganesh.  Lord Ganesh is not only a God to ward off the obstacles to the work we undertake but also like Goddess Saraswati removes our mental diseases and also acts as Dhanvantari to bestow good health.  He invoked the power in us and bestows us wisdom and perfection in achievement."  Saying thus he revealed to them several secrets.  In the play way method of teaching, he taught them poems extempore detailing the twenty-one varieties of vegetative specimens, intended for offering to the lord. 

                                                                                                                                                                                  

Before the completion of the fifth standard he taught them not only to read the poems in Bhagavatam, Bharatam with ease but also how to explain the meaning of it and equipped them with capacity to give exposition to those puranas in public.  He had the wonderful knack of teaching Sanskrit and could make the pupil acquire considerable knowledge in that language within one year.  Persons from the neighboring  villages Vallabhapuram, Pallapadu, Etukuru, Guntur, Valluru, Anantaradapadu, Showpadu et., approached him and learnt about kavyas from him.  Some of the many students got into prominence in later years the elder brother of Sri Nissankara Venkataratnam Ex-Speaker of A.P. Assembly, Sri Pitchiah, Sri Krishna Murthy, Sri Venkatappayya High court advocate from Katrapadu, Sri Meduri Nageswara Rao, Ex-Mayor of Vijayawada Sri T. Venkatasewara Rao, the prominent communist leader, Late Sri Kanaparti Nagaiah, Late Sri Polisetti Seetaramanjaneyulu, Late "Adivasi admabhushana" - Sri Tiruveedula Sambaiah, Master Ekkirala Krishnamacharyulu, Late Sri Kodali Venkaiah, Sri Divi Sreemannaryana etc.,  Master Ekkirala  Krishnamacharyulu learnt the rudiments of Sanskrit and Astrology at the feet of Sri Anjaneyulu garu.  In the later years whenever the mention of the name of Late Sri Anjaneyulu garu was made, Sri Ekkirala Krishnamachary, with great respect to that person and with humility, he used to say "Sri Anjaneyulu garu is an embodiment of Saraswati (the Goddess of learning).  On account of his blessing only I was initiated to Sanskrit and Astrology.  Rare are such specimens of gurus,  It is most unfortunate that the book "Jyotisha Marma  Deepika" written by him was not available."

 

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