Grace

Unmerited favor apart from human merit. Tamil Sri Vaishnavism has an unusually developed scholastic debate on the nature of divine grace (prapatti) between the Tenkalai school (grace as wholly unconditioned, illustrated by the image of a kitten carried by its mother cat) and the Vadakalai school (grace requiring some cooperative effort, illustrated by a baby monkey clinging to its mother). This is a genuine, sophisticated point of comparison, not merely a contradiction — but Christian கிருபை must still be taught as coming through faith in Christ’s finished work, not through ritual surrender (prapatti) to a deity as the Vaishnava traditions frame it. NEVER புண்ணியம் (accumulated religious merit) or ஊழ்வினை பலன் (the fruit of karmic action).