She first spoke about Ayyaval, who was a contemporary of Bodhendral Swamigal. He established the Nama Siddhantham, like Bodhendral. He wrote lot of Granthams (books) including Bhagavan Nama Bhooshanam. Ayyaval was a great scholar who came from Mysore and settled in Thiruvisainallur. Because of his Bhakthi (devotion), Ayyaval was closely attached to the Lord. She narrated many incidents that showed how Ayyaval was merited by his faithfulness. One such incident was when Lord Mahalingam himself came to Ayyaval's house to give Prasadam (food) to him. Ayyaval's most exemplary work was bringing the Ganges River, from North India, to his house well. Even today, we can see the Ganges River flowing in the well in the month of Karthikai (November-December) on an Ammavasya (full moon) day. Finally, he emerged with the Lord Mahalingam himself at Thiruvidaimarudhur.
Afterwards, she spoke about Marudhanallur Sathguru Swamigal. He is the incarnation of Rama himself. Both Bodhendral and Ayyaval showed us the Nama Siddhantham's Mahimai, or the greatness of the chant of Rama's name. But, Sathguru Swamigal introduced the musical aspect of the recitation of the Namam. We call this way of expressing our worship Bhajana Sampradhayam. She narrated many incidents showing how Sathguru Swamigal achieved three of his main missions. One of these missions was to commence Bhajana Sampradhayam. Another mission was for him to find where Bodhendraal's Adhishtanam (place where Bodhendraal attained Siddhi) is and to spread the knowledge of this existence to the people. With the help of Tanjore Raja, he diverted the path of the river Kaveri, raised the platform, and built Bodhendraal Swamigal's Adhishtanam. His third mission was to restore and bring back the Granthams of Bodhendraal and Ayyaval. Sathguru Swamigal founded the Radhakrishna Matam where he found where the Granthams were kept and stored the lost treasures of Bodhendraal and Ayyaval. Finally, he emerged with Jagathrakshaka Perumal at Aadhudhurai.
She then talked about the significance of this trinity and how they impacted the culture of Bhajana Sampradhaya. She also talked about the importance of attending these Bhajans and chanting or singing the name of the Lord to display our affection towards them. Whenever we attend Bhajans, we should think about this trinity and their history as they are the producers of this art form and we should bow our heads to these gurus.
This story was particularly interesting for me because these Mahaans (greats) lived only a few centuries back and they have such a great influence on our tradition. Also, they have defined a way for us to be close with God and their works exhibit truths which we should follow in order to attain God. Here is the video below for Sridhara Venkatesa Ayyaval & Marudhanallur Satguru Swamigal Charithram (நம்முடன் வாழ்ந்த மஹான்கள் - ஸ்ரீதர வேங்கடேச அய்யாவாள் & மருதாநல்லூர் ஸத்குரு சரிதம்). Enjoy!