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SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 78 - Part 9.

From the Bhakti List Archives

Narasimhan Krishnamachari • November 24, 2002 


      SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 78 - bhakta-vatsalah.

742. bhakta-vatsalah – a) Affectionate towards the devotees.
	b) He Who goes to the devotees who makes offerings to Him through
yaj~na 
	c) He Who takes the devotees to Him, who are dear to Him like a calf
to the cow

om bhakta-vatsalAya namah.

The term bhakta is derived from the root bhaj – sevAyAm – to serve, to
honor (bhajati bhajate sevate iti bhaktah - kASakRtsna dhAtu vyAkhyAna
1.695, referenced by SrI satyadevo vAsishTha).  Thus, one who serves,
honors, praises, etc., is a bhakta. The word vatsalah is derived from
the word vatsa, which by itself means calf.  However, by pANini sutra
5.2.98, the addition of the affix lac after the word vatsa gives it the
meaning “love” – vatsa amsAbhyAm kAma bale.  Thus, the word vatsala
means kAmavat, snehavat, etc. – one who is in love, one who is
friendly.  Bhakta vatsalan in thus One Who is affectionate towards His
devotees.

a) SrI BhaTTarÂ’s anubhavam is that this nAma brings out the special
attitude of BhagavAn towards His devotees, who are eager to cultivate
the relationship with Him as Master and kinsman (i.e., as bhakta-s
towards Him).  SrI BhaTTar comments that His joy of having attained His
bhakta-s is so great, that He forgets all other desires – tal-lAbha
sambhrama vismRta anya-kAmah.  

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan elaborates on the term vatsalah, or vAtsalyam of
BhagavAn towards His devotees.  As mention earlier, vatsa refers to a
calf.  Vatsalah also refers to affection, of the kind that a cow shows
towards its calf.  The cow licks and removes any dirt or other material
that may be found on the body of the calf, on in other words, it treats
even the blemishes on its calf as bhogyam for itself.  BhagavAnÂ’s love
towards His devotees is similarly one of ignoring their faults, and
enjoying their devotion instead.  SrI rAmAnujan gives two examples.  

-	When Vidura was offering worship to kRshNa at his house, he was
totally immersed in looking at Lord kRshNa with devotion and affection,
and he was peeling off the outer layer of the banana, and giving the
peeled skin to kRshNa for eating instead of giving the peeled fruit by
mistake.  Lord kRshNa was so immersed in His devotee that He did not
also realize that the skin was what He was being given, and He also ate
the skin as a bhogya vastu, because it had been offered with the utmost
devotion.
-	When BhIshma was lying on the death-bed of arrows and meditating on
Lord kRshNa, the Lord just informed the fellow pANDava-s: “The Lion of
men is lying there, just thinking of Me and meditating on Me”, and
having said that, He Himself was lost on the thought of His bhakta and
forgot Himself and His surroundings.

b) In addition to giving the above interpretation (bhakteshu
vAtsalyavAn), SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives two other interpretations
for the nAma.  One of these is based on the meaning “cooked rice or
food” for the term bhakta (see the explanation for bhakta vilocanan in
the nAcciyAr tirumozhi posting for pASuram 12.6).  In this
interpretation, SrI satya sandha yatirAja looks at the nAma as
bhaktavat-salah, and gives the interpretation “bhaktam annam yeshAm
asti iti bhaktavanto yaj~na kartAro brAhmaNAn, tAn prati salati
gacchati iti bhaktavat-salah” – He Who goes to the devotees who make
offerings to Him through yaj~na (the root sal – to go, to move is used
for the interpretation of the second part, salah).

c) The other interpretation given by SrI satya sandha yatirAja is
“bhaktA eva vatsAh, tAn lAti iti bhaktavatsa-lah” – He Who takes the
devotees to Him, who are dear to Him like a calf to the cow”. (The root
lA – AdAne dAne ca – to take, to obtain, is used in this
interpretation).  

The dharma cakram writer compares the relationship between BhagavAn and
us to that between the mother and the child.  The mother has selfless
affection to the child, and the child trusts the mother solely and
exclusively for its survival.  A true devotee will be like the child
towards the mother, and BhagavAn is of course like the Mother towards
all.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

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