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DISAPPEARANCE OF YAMUNACARYA
A few days after the departure of
Mahapurna, Alabandara's body was afflicted with sickness once more. Despite the
intense pain he had to undergo, he still took his bath and went to the temple
to see Lord Rahganatha, the Lord of his
heart. He took a little mahd'prasdda and then returned to the dsrama, where he
called for all of his householder disciples to come to him.First of all, in a
mood of great humility, he begged them to forgive any offense that he
might have made towards them. He then
asked them to take care of the brahmacdrx and sannydsl disciples who were
living at the dsrama. Finally, Yamunacarya gave his last instruction to his
householder disciples. "Every day you
should rise early and go to the temple to worship Lord Rahganatha,
smelling the flowers that have been offered to His lotus feet. In this way your
mind and intelligence will become purified, and you will become fixed in your
devotion to Lord Narayana. In addition
you should always be devoted to your spiritual master and be attentive in
serving guests.When the householder disciples had left, Alabandara sat in a
lotus position and concentrated his mind on the
feet of Lord Hari. The remaining disciples began to chant the holy name
of Lord Narayana in congregation, accompanied by the sweet sounds of the flute
and other instruments. As Yamunacarya became even more deeply immersed in thoughts of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead, tears of ecstasy ran down his cheeks and his body began
to tremble. In this ecstatic state of devotional love the great dcdrya gave up
his body and returned to the lotus feet
of the Supreme Lord, his eternal, beloved master.Immediately the kirtana
stopped, and many of the disciples began to cry aloud in lamentation, while others
fainted and fell unconscious to the ground. After some time the sannydsis and Yamunacarya's son, Purna,
collected themselves and began to make preparations for the funeral ceremony.
The body was washed and dressed in new clothes before being placed on a
decorated pa¬lanquin. Then, in slow
procession, they carried the palanquin down to the banks of the Kaveri River,
followed by almost all the inhabitants of Sri Rahgam. There, amidst great
lamentation, the body of the pure devotee was buried, as is the custom for those who have achieved the
perfectional stage of devotional service.