Why Srirangam is the first of the 108 Divya Desams
The 108 sacred abodes of Vishnu, the Alwars who sang of them, and the reasons Srirangam has always stood at the head of the list.
No figure after the Alwars shaped Srirangam more than Ramanuja, known in the temple as Udaiyavar and Emperumanar.
About our sources. Ramanuja's life is known mainly through traditional Sri Vaishnava biographies written after his death. This article relies on general references that summarise both those traditions and modern scholarship. We label which is which, and we have not yet consulted the primary hagiographies directly.
When did Ramanuja live?
Scholarly interpretation
The traditional biographies date Ramanuja's life to 1017–1137, a lifespan of 120 years. Many modern scholars, working from temple records and regional literature, place him around 1077–1157. Either way, his life at Srirangam falls in the late eleventh and twelfth centuries.
Coming to Srirangam
Traditional account
Ramanuja was born at Sriperumbudur, in present-day Tamil Nadu. Yamunacharya (Alavandar), the leader of the Srirangam community, hoped to make him his successor but died before they could meet. Tradition holds that Ramanuja vowed to fulfil Alavandar's unfinished wishes, and that he later came to Srirangam at the invitation of Mahapurna (Periya Nambi).
Reforming the temple
Historical record
Both traditional and scholarly accounts agree that Ramanuja became instrumental in managing the Ranganathaswamy temple and reformed the temple complex. He wrote the Sri Bhashya, his commentary on the Brahma Sutras setting out Visishtadvaita (qualified non-dualism), at Srirangam.
Years in the Hoysala country
Traditional account
The biographies relate that during persecution by a Chola king, his disciple Koorathalwan persuaded Ramanuja to leave Srirangam. He spent many years, fourteen in one account, in the Hoysala kingdom in present-day Karnataka, where he helped build the Thirunarayanaswamy temple at Melukote, before returning to Srirangam.
The Udaiyavar shrine
The HR&CE portal lists the Emperumanar (Udaiyavar) shrine among the temple's sub-shrines. A figure of Ramanuja in this shrine, seated in the teaching gesture (upadesa mudra), is believed by devotees to be his preserved mortal remains.
Devotional tradition
For devotees, visiting the Udaiyavar shrine is part of a complete darshan at Srirangam. See the other shrines within the temple.
A living legacy
The teachers who followed Ramanuja, among them Pillai Lokacharya and Vedanta Desika, are also honoured with shrines at Srirangam, listed on the HR&CE portal as the Pillailogachchariyar and Desikar sannidhis. To place Ramanuja in the temple's longer story, read our history of the acharyas.
Sources and references
Official and primary
- Shrines & Deities: list of sub-shrines. HR&CE Department, Government of Tamil Nadu. Consulted 2 October 2026.
Secondary and general reference
- Ramanuja. Wikipedia. Consulted 2 October 2026. General reference summarising traditional and scholarly datings.
- Ranganathaswamy Temple, Srirangam. Wikipedia. Consulted 2 October 2026. General reference used as a starting point; claims cross-checked where an official source exists.
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