TheAhobila Matha is aHindu monastery located atAhobilam in Andhra Pradesh,India, following the Vadakalai—Sri Vaishnava tradition ofVedanta Desika. It was founded by Adivan Satakopa Jiyar in the year 1398 CE.[1]
Adivan Satakopa Jiyar, a Vadakalai saint and disciple of Ghatikasatham Ammal, established thematha in line with thePancharatra tradition. Ammal himself was the successor of the noted Sri Vaishnava teacher, Nadadoor Ammal. The founder is also regarded in some accounts as the direct preceptor of the 74simhasanadhipatis (heads of the Narasimha monastery) originally instituted byRamanuja.
According to Professor Srilata Raman, thematha was probably originally founded inTirumala, the jiyars (pontiffs) later moving to Ahobilam due to the increasing prestige of the competing Tenkalai sect in the same region. Through the 15th and 16th centuries, the institution maintained contacts withVijayanagara, and during this period, it strove to spread Sri Vaishnavism in theTelugu-speaking regions.[2]
The present pontiff is the 46th jiyar, Srivan Satakopa Sri Ranganatha Yateendra Mahadesikan, who succeeded the 45th jiyar, Sri Lakshmi Nrsimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yateendra Mahadesikan, after his passing in May 2013.
According to legend, Malola Narasimha, one of the nine forms ofNarasimha at Ahobilam, leapt into the hands of Adivan Satakopa Jiyar, and commanded him to travel across the length and breadth of India. As a result, thematha came to hold authority over the Nava Narasimha temples of Ahobilam.
The pontiffs of thematha are known for writing numerous works:
Adivan Satakopa Jiyar instructed his disciple Narayana Muni (later the 2nd pontiff) to compose more than sixty works. Narayana Muni’s writings includeYajussandhyavandana Bhashya,Rahasya-traya Jīvātu,Rahasya-trayārtha-vicāra,Puruṣārtha Sudhānidhi,Nyāsa-viṃśati Vyākhyāna,Stotra-ratna Bhāṣya, andTattva-traya. These works became firmly established in the Vadakalai tradition.[3][4]
Another disciple, Toḻappar, wrote theDaśa Nirṇayī, a treatise on Sri Vaishnava religious practices, earning him the titleVaidika Sarvabhauma from his teacher.[5]
The 7th jiyar authored theVasāntikā-pariṇaya, a drama describing the divine wedding of the deity of Ahobilam with Chenchu Lakshmi. This work provides early references to the origins of thematha and its royal patronage.[6]
The 14th jiyar is known for his works such as theīśāvāsyopaniṣad bhāṣya, māṇḍūkyopaniṣad bhāṣya, bhagavadgītārthasaṃgraha vibhāga, aṣṭaślokī bhāṣya, jijñāsasūtrabhāṣya-bhāvaprakāśikā, and puruṣakāramīmāṃsā,[7] which aimed at expounding the tenets of Ramanuja and Vedanta Desika.[8]
The 24th jiyar wrote works such asśrīstava andśrīpañcāśat, establishing the supremacy of Lakshmi.[9]
Several temples such as the Nava (nine) Narasimha temples ofAhobilam,Veeraraghava temple inTiruvallur and Valvil Rama temple, Aandalakkum Ayyan temple in the outskirts ofKumbakonam (Pullaboothankudi), the Sri Vedanta Desikan sannidhi inside the premises of theSrirangam Temple, Sri Dasavathara sannidhi established byTirumangai Alvar in Kollidaikarai, and the Sri Nava Narasimha Temple in Naimisharanya, are administered by Ahobila Matha.
Thematha also has several branches across India, including the Ahobila Matha Lakshmi Narasimha Lakshmi Narayana Temple on Ahobila Matha Marg in Chembur, Mumbai, established in 1968. These branches, such as the Tirumala Ahobila Matha, Bhadrachalam Ahobila Matha, Tirupati Ahobila Matha, Thiruvallur Ahobila Matha, Veeraraghava Temple, Srirangam Dashavatara Sannidhi, and the Nava Narasimha Temple in Naimisharanya, seek to replicate the model of worship established at Ahobilam. The institutions are intended to make the worship ofLakshmi Narasimha accessible to devotees unable to visit the original shrines. Thematha emphasises Narasimha devotion, and formal initiation involves the ritual surrender of theātman to Malola Narasimha.[10]
The Ahobila Matha has several religious and educational institutions in India, which are:[11]