Sri Madhvacharya's Works

-taken from book "Madhvacharya" written by Sri Bannanje Govindacharya

Sri Madhvacharya after convincingly establishing Suprimacy of Sri Hari, position of Knowledge, Devotion and renuciation wishing his tatvajnana to be the guiding light for desrving people constructed more than 37 works. They are collectiviely called Sarvammulagranthas (The most original epics). All of them are in Saskrit and are not easily accessible to the general public. Recently H.H Sri Veishvesha thirta Swami has under taken huge task of translating the Acharya's work to Kannada. Already many of the books are available in the market. Here we would like to present the available english translations of theAcharya's work.

The Acharya has written four works on the Vedic school of Brahmasutra;

  1. Brahmasutra bhshya
  2. Sarva -shastra sangraha (Anubhasya)
  3. Brahmasutra-anuvyakhyana
  4. Brahmasutra-anuvyakhyana-vivarana

Two works are on Vedic school of the Bhagavad Gita

  1. Bhagavadgita- bhashya
  2. Bhagavadgita-tatparya-nirnaya

In the Vedic shool of the Upanishads, the Acharya has written bhasyas or authoritative commentaries on all the major Upanishads. But there is a notable uniqueness in respect of these also. While all the other have commented only on three chapters of the Aitareya Upanishad , the Acharya's bhasya covers the entire Upanishatkanada of the Aitareya Arnayaka.

  1. Mahaitareyopanishad-bhasya
  2. Brahadarnyakopanishad-bhashya
  3. Chandogopanishad-bhasya
  4. Taittiriyopanishad-bhasya
  5. Talavakaropanishad-bhasya (Kenopanishad Bhasya)
  6. Kathakopanishad -bhasya
  7. Atharvanopanishad-bhasya (Mandukopanishad -bhasya)
  8. Satprasnopanishad -bhasya
  9. Yajniya-mantropanishad -bhasya (Isavasyopanishad-bhasya)
  10. Mandukyopanishad - bhasya

Some of the verses of the Mandukyopanishat are mistakenly held to be Gaudapada's karikas. But Acharya Ramanuja has accepted that these form original portions of the Upanishad itself. But Madhva has rejected the old wrong notion once for all by writing bhasya on these verses also. In this connection it is noteworthy how senior Advaita scholars too like Brahmananda accept that these are original Upanisadic verses.

The Acharya not only blazed a new pathway of spiritual interpretation of the Veda by himself writing a commentariy on 40 hymns of the Rig veda but also showed the way leading to a synthesis of Samhita, Brahmana and Aranyaka texts by commenting upon some chapters of the Aitreya Brahmana and the Mahanamni-khanda of the same Arnyaka. These works are:

  1. Rig Bhasya
  2. Khandartha nirnaya (Karma-nirnaya)

So also, there are three works of his which lay bare the heart of the Mahabharata and Bhagavata in a bid to synthesize the teachings of Itihasa and Puranas:

  1. Mahabharata-tatparya-nirnaya
  2. Yamaka-bharata
  3. Bhagavata-tatparya-nirnaya

Nine topical treatises are concerned with determinig epistemology and ontology:

  1. Vishnu-tattva-nirnaya
  2. Vada (tattvoddyota)
  3. Mayavada-dusana (mayavada-khandana)
  4. Upadhi-dusana (Tattva-prakasika)
  5. Mithyatvanimana-dusana
  6. Tattva-samkhyana
  7. Tattva-viveka
  8. Pramana-lakshana
  9. Katha lakshana

Five works offer guidance regarding performance of ceremonials and rutuals as laid down in law-books, regarding building architecture, mantra and tantra and duties and practices of brahmacharis, hoseholders and medicants;

  1. Krishnamruta-maharnava
  2. Tantra-sara-sangraha
  3. Sadachara-smrti
  4. Jayanti-nirnaya
  5. Yati-pranavakalpa

In the filed of devotional literature, there are two works of his; one is a stotra or hymn of praise; the other is an anthology of compositions set to music and meant to be sung:

  1. Narasimha-nakastuti
  2. Dvadasha stotra

Further, there is a work which the Acharya is said to have composed in his boyhood while playing with the ball, it is a small work in a unique meter:

  1. Kanduka Stuti

1