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| Śrī. N. Somasundara Dikshitar |
A brief biographical sketch by
Ramanathan P S
Along with
the group migration from Tamil Nadu during the medieval period a Dikshitar
family belonging to the Saṅkṛti-Gotra too reached Palakkad and settled down in
the Nurani Agraharam in Kerala. They were Śrī. Narayana Dikshitar (Somayāji) and
his Patnī, Smt. Eswari Somapīthinī. An expert in the Śrauta ritualistic
traditions, this family came with their tretāgnis, which tradition they had
kept alive with great reverence. Śrī. Somasundara Dikshitar also known as
Picchan Dikshitar was born to this couple in the year 1902. His paternal
grand-parents were Śrī. Parasurama Dikshitar and Smt. Sitalakshmi Somapīthinī.
Young Somasundara was initiated into Brahmacarya by his father at the garbhāṣtama
age. He commenced adhyayana of the Taittirīya Yajurveda under his father’s tutelage and it ended up with krama-pāṭha. Simultaneously he was introduced to
the basic texts in Sanskrit literature and smārta prayogas.
Somasundara had an instinctive aptitude for advanced studies and with this aim proceeded to Calcutta to join the Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta courses offered by the Calcutta Sanskrit Association. He came out successful in these examinations obtaining high marks and the title “Mīmāṃsā Tīrtha” with certificates for passing out the first and second examinations in Vedānta. While in Calcutta, he received the hospitality and help from Svargīya Mahāmahopādhyāya Nurani Śrī. Ananthakrishna Śāstrī who was then the Professor of Vedānta and Mīmāṃsā at the University of Calcutta. For some time he had assisted him in collating various manuscripts. Finally landing at Madras he joined the Sanskrit College for Śiromaṇi course, which he passed out with flying colors and qualified as “Mīmāṃsā Śiromaṇi.” In the meanwhile he took up a rigorous study of the Vedabhāṣya and Āpastambīya-Śrauta from the stalwarts of Kumbhakonam and became proficient in these branches of learning.
Somasundara had an instinctive aptitude for advanced studies and with this aim proceeded to Calcutta to join the Mīmāṃsā and Vedanta courses offered by the Calcutta Sanskrit Association. He came out successful in these examinations obtaining high marks and the title “Mīmāṃsā Tīrtha” with certificates for passing out the first and second examinations in Vedānta. While in Calcutta, he received the hospitality and help from Svargīya Mahāmahopādhyāya Nurani Śrī. Ananthakrishna Śāstrī who was then the Professor of Vedānta and Mīmāṃsā at the University of Calcutta. For some time he had assisted him in collating various manuscripts. Finally landing at Madras he joined the Sanskrit College for Śiromaṇi course, which he passed out with flying colors and qualified as “Mīmāṃsā Śiromaṇi.” In the meanwhile he took up a rigorous study of the Vedabhāṣya and Āpastambīya-Śrauta from the stalwarts of Kumbhakonam and became proficient in these branches of learning.
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| Śrī. Somayājī with Śmt. Marakatāmbāl Somapīthinī |
Coming back
to his native place, he married Smt. Marakatambal. He did not wish to
discontinue the unbroken tradition of Agni Upāsanā and so performed soon the
Agnyādhāna and got set up the tretāgnis for himself. Natural for a person, the
thoughts of seeking a job and earning started popping up in his mind in order
to meet additional expenses connected with running the joint family as well as
smooth conduct of the Agnihotra and Darśa-iṣtis. Teaching was his chosen
profession and he became an Adhyāpaka in the Nurani Veda Dharma Pāṭhaśālā.
After serving the institution for 3 years he joined the Chittur Veda Pāṭhaśālā
for a better earning and served the institution for 10 years. Family
responsibilities necessitate a person to seek paying jobs and Dīkṣitar had to join
another Institution – M. N. Krishna Iyer Memorial High School, Chittilanchery as
Sanskrit Pundit. There he put in a long 17 years of service until attaining
superannuation. By this time he had earned a name in the scholastic world which
prompted the trustees of the Kalyanarama Iyer Charities, Kumbhakonam to invite
him and to take charge as the Principal of the Śrauta Pāṭhaśālā in the year 1964.
At Kumbhakonam he trained a few vidyārthīs in Śrauta for about 12
years who later became experts in the field. Coming back to his native village
in 1977 he continued his ordained duty of adhyāpana to the young children
of the Agrahāra.
Being an Āhitāgni already by
this time, Śrī. Dīkṣitar had planned an Agniṣṭoma (Somayāga) which
he could conduct at the Śivan Kovil premises at Nurani in the year 1947.
It was performed with utmost care and in strict accordance with the
Sūtras. Thus he
became a “Somayājī” and his wife, a “Somapīthinī” but was known only by
his
former surname of “Dīkṣitar”. He had undertaken, the performance of the
Pañca-Kāṭhaka-Cayanas, viz., the Sāvitra, the Nāciketa, the Vaiśvasṛja, the Cāturhotra and the Āruṇa-ketuka, twice. Apart from these, minor yajñas like
the
Cāturmāsya, the Nakṣatra-iṣti, the Divaḥśyenī-iṣti and the Apāghā- iṣti, etc.
had also been conducted mostly at Kumbhakonam, except the Cāturmāsya
which was
performed at Melarcode (Palakkad Dt).
Śrī.
Somasundara Dikshitar’s family consisted of 3 sons and 3 daughters. Till his last breath he lived the life of a nitya-agnihotrī. Living fruitfully in this world
for 78 years, he passed away peacefully in the year 1980 at Nurani Agrahāram.
His antyeṣti was performed according to the Āhitāgni-samskāra rites by the
Smārta-karma-prayoga expert, Svargīya
Śrī. Sundara Vādhyār of Nurani. The Śrauta world thus lost a great Śrotriya.
Besides being a strict and disciplined anuṣṭhātā, he found time to edit, translate and write a few books:
Besides being a strict and disciplined anuṣṭhātā, he found time to edit, translate and write a few books:
- Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam – Sanskrit Text with Tamil tr., 7 vols, The Ramayana Publishing House. Reprinted 2005, 2008, 2010 and 2011.
- Śrīman-nārāyanīyam – Sanskrit Text with Tamil tr., Mahārāja Saheb Śrī Govinda Dīkṣitar Puṇya Smaraṇa Samiti, 1954, 448pp. Reprinted: Sriram Publishers, 1964, Madras (?)
- Devīmāhātmyam – Sanskrit Text with Tamil tr., The Ramayana Publishing House. Reprinted : Aparna Publishers, 1993, 228 pp.
- Bhagavad-gītā – Sanskrit with Tamil tr.
- Yāga-Paricayaḥ, Part I : Vājapeyaḥ – Sanskrit with Tamil tr. (Booklet)
- Yāga-Paricayaḥ, Part II : Cāturmāsyāni – Sanskrit with Tamil tr. (Booklet)
- Yāga-Paricayaḥ, Part III : Agnicayana – Sanskrit with Tamil tr. (Booklet)
- Yāga-Paricayaḥ, Part IV : Śrautam – Sanskrit (Booklet)
- Yāga-Paricayaḥ, Part V : Somapravāka – Sanskrit (Booklet)
- Vicāratrayī (on Vedabhāṣya)
- Agnihotram
- Pictorial presentation of Puruṣasūkta-yantra
- Table showing Japa-saṅkhyā for Rudra-Ekādaśinī, Mahārudra and Atirudra. (Booklet)
नमो महद्भ्यः।
(Thanks are
due to Sri. N. S. Yajnesvara Sarma aka N. S. Krishnan (Delhi), son of Svargīya Śrī Somasundara Dikshitar, for providing the
biographical information.)
There is a mention of one "Somasundara Dikshitar" under Kalpati (Kalappatti) P.O. Vedakkenturai, (No.303) in "A Catalogue of Ahitagnis and Srauta Sacrifices in Recent Times" by C. G. Kashikar & Asko Parpola : Srauta Traditions In Recent Times, under Aiyar Ahitagnis of the Palghat Dt. in AGNI, The Vedic Ritual of the Fire Altar by Frits Staal, Volume II, Berkeley, 1983. p. 226.
[Note : Name and place have been mis-spelt in the book. It is copied as it is.]
There is a mention of one "Somasundara Dikshitar" under Kalpati (Kalappatti) P.O. Vedakkenturai, (No.303) in "A Catalogue of Ahitagnis and Srauta Sacrifices in Recent Times" by C. G. Kashikar & Asko Parpola : Srauta Traditions In Recent Times, under Aiyar Ahitagnis of the Palghat Dt. in AGNI, The Vedic Ritual of the Fire Altar by Frits Staal, Volume II, Berkeley, 1983. p. 226.
[Note : Name and place have been mis-spelt in the book. It is copied as it is.]
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friends who know any further data on Śrī Somasundara Dikshitar and his works
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