Childhood and Education of Swami Deshikan

As discussed previously, Swami Deshikan was born in the year 1268 in the Tamil month of Puratasi, on the tenth day of the Shukla Paksha (Vijayadashami), under the nakshatram of Tiruonam, in the Thoopul agrahaaram, opposite the Deepaprakashar Temple, in Tiruttankaa.

Upon birth, Swami Deshikan was named Veṅkaṭanātha by his maternal uncle Kidambi Appullar. As Swami Deshikan grew, his uncle became his guru. When Swami Deshikan was just five years of age, he was taken by his maternal uncle, Kidambi Appular, to attend a discourse by Nadadhoor Ammal, a revered Sri Vaishṇava Scholar at the time. As soon as Nadadhoor Ammal saw Veṅkaṭanātha, he saw a divine radiance in the child and stopped the lecture he was delivering to hug the child affectionately.

After this, when Nadadhoor Ammal said that he had forgotten where he had stopped his lecture, Veṅkaṭanātha reminded him of the point at which he had stopped. This act astonished the crowd, as they had never seen a five-year-old boy comprehend the deep intricacies of the philosophical knowledge being discussed. It was then that Nadadhoor Ammal predicted and blessed Veṅkaṭanātha, saying he would become the torchbearer to spread Sri Vaishṇavism everywhere.

By the age of seven, Veṅkaṭanātha was initiated into Brahmacharya by Kidambi Appullar, who performed the Upanayanam and Pañcha-Saṃskāram. Upon being initiated into the Brahmacharya ashramam, Veṅkaṭanātha was taught the Vedas as well as the Naalaiyira Divyaprabandham.