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Vadama etc

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It all started in Later Chola period when Ramanuja created Thenkalai. He converted all the workers in Srirangam as Then kalai. According to an inscription which was found at Tiruvannamalai, Desikan was the son of a Sivachar who created an Agama for sivan temple.(1360 AD I think). The temples were working as Government treasurer, collecting taxes etc., lent money at the rate of 50% per annum, and UR panchayat assembled under the tree before a temple. The gold and silver so collected as taxes were hidden under the deity at garbhagraha. The Muslims invaded and broke these lingams and robed the gold and silver.
The persons who created Vedam was called Vadama, the persons who administrated temples were identified as brahasaranam (Brahath Saranam), the persons who assisted the king in ruling the kingdom and levied taxes as ministers were identified as Vathimas.

Further there were 8000 jains who visited from Madurai after Malikaffor invasions visited Tanjore and requested the ruler to allot a place for them. The king jokingly said "So, You are Asta Sahasram!". The name remained as it is.
 
It all started in Later Chola period when Ramanuja created Thenkalai. He converted all the workers in Srirangam as Then kalai. According to an inscription which was found at Tiruvannamalai, Desikan was the son of a Sivachar who created an Agama for sivan temple.(1360 AD I think). The temples were working as Government treasurer, collecting taxes etc., lent money at the rate of 50% per annum, and UR panchayat assembled under the tree before a temple. The gold and silver so collected as taxes were hidden under the deity at garbhagraha. The Muslims invaded and broke these lingams and robed the gold and silver.
The persons who created Vedam was called Vadama, the persons who administrated temples were identified as brahasaranam (Brahath Saranam), the persons who assisted the king in ruling the kingdom and levied taxes as ministers were identified as Vathimas.

Further there were 8000 jains who visited from Madurai after Malikaffor invasions visited Tanjore and requested the ruler to allot a place for them. The king jokingly said "So, You are Asta Sahasram!". The name remained as it is.

This seems to be a load of guesses! The period earlier to Sri Ramanuja, were all vaidikas or sharmas or vadamAs (northerners). VadamAs and SriVaishnavas share the same lineage, adhering to vedic/sanskrit injunctions, except that former ones are not Sri Vaishnavas (by philosophy of Sri Ramanuja). Sri Ramanuja himself and his cousin were assumed to be Vadamas, who tuitioned under an advaitin scholar.
Re: [Pre-Ramanuja status]

Swamy NigamAntha Desikan (Birth name- Venkatanatha), has written Yathi-rAja saptathi, in praise of Sri Ramanuja. His own maternal Uncle is Appullar (Atreya Ramanuja), belong to vaishnava family and taught him Sri bhasya, the magnum opus work of Sri Ramanuja , at the age of 7 after upanayanam [unlike Sri Ramanuja]. Thus, desikan being a common name, could be some one else. To clarify your confusion on identity, you may read the biography/dates for the Acharya desika_life_history_for children

The difference in the vadakalai and thenkalai came up mostly at a very later age than Sri Ramanuja himself, thru few instances/incidences. Likewise, the vadamas and vadakalais pretty much remained the same from earlier periods. The Thenkalais inclined towards tamil/chola specific culture and similarly non-vadamas to the saivite/advaita ideologies.

During Sri Ramanuja's stay in Melkote, many jains became vaishnavas and are called Hebbar/Mandyam iyengars. It may be likely that the Asta Sahasram are the saivites (from jainism).

Also, a group of vanniyars adopted Srivaishnavism during the dominant Thenkalai Jeeyar periods (Nampillai/Nanjeeyar) at SriRangam, they were called 'Kovilars'. I browsed thru the net and they are called 'Sat Dasa' or 'Sathatha' Sri Vaishnavas. http://maadhavan.wordpress.com/2009/01/06/sathatha-sri-vishnava-chattada-srivaishnava/
 
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