The Icon of Thirumalai Nayak, Hindu Bakthi Revival: A Study

Abstract

As we have seen above, Hinduism was the religion of the Vijayanagar kings, and their cultural mission was to promote it in order to restore it from the devastation it had suffered during Islamic dominion. The majority of the Vijayanagar emperors were Vaishnavites, and the Nayaks were mostly Vaishnavites as well, but there is no evidence that the other Hindu religions were harmed in any way. They built both Saiva and Vaishnava temples, and both were equally well equipped. The Vaishnava schism – Vadakalai and Tenkalai – emerged during this time, culminating in the teachings of Tenkalai Acharya Manavala Mamunigal (late 14th century), who was inspired by Pillai Lokacharya in the 13th century. With its denominational and doctrinal distinctions from the other school (the Vadakalai), the Tenkalai tradition has been more Catholic and less orthodox, and has aided in the universalization of Vaishnavism.