Gadya Traya — Rāmānuja's Three Prose Prayers of Surrender
Gadya-traya ('three prose compositions'; gadya = prose composition + traya = three) refers collectively to the three Sanskrit prose works of Rāmānujāchārya (1017–1137 CE) that articulate the theology and experience of prapatti (complete surrender to Bhagavān) in a direct, first-person devotional voice.
The three gadyas are:
1. Śaraṇāgati Gadyam ('The Prose of Refuge-Seeking') — Composed before the mūlavar (installed deity) at Śrīraṅgam, this gadyam records Rāmānuja's act of prapatti itself. He enumerates the five aṅgas of prapatti (per the Teṅkalai framework) and formally surrenders at the feet of Śrī and Nārāyaṇa, asking for liberation. The Āchāryas consider this the 'living document' of how prapatti is to be performed.
2. Śrīraṅga Gadyam ('The Prose of Śrīraṅgam') — A contemplative address to Raṅganātha (Śrī Raṅgam Perumāḷ) describing Bhagavān's auspicious qualities (kalyāṇa-guṇas), His transcendence and accessibility, and Rāmānuja's experience of His grace at Śrīraṅgam. This gadyam is the most lyrical of the three, reading almost like an extended stotra.
3. Vaikuṇṭha Gadyam ('The Prose of Vaikuṇṭham') — An elaborate description of Śrīvaikuṇṭham — the transcendent divine realm — including the nitya-sūris (eternal divine servants), the muktas (liberated souls), and the experience of kaivalya and paramānanda (supreme bliss) in Bhagavān's presence. This gadyam provides the theological content of what the surrendered soul aspires to attain.
The three gadyas together function as the scriptural backbone of prapatti practice and theology in Śrī Vaiṣṇavism. They are recited daily in Āchārya lineage contexts, especially during ekādaśī, festival days, and on the Thirunakshatram of Rāmānuja (Thiruvādirai in Kārtikai).