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Fourth Kalasam ( Atharva Vedam ) : part 11.3

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sadagopan • April 24, 1998 


Dear VedAbhimAnis : 

I will complete the remaining 9 manthrAs 
of the Atharva Vedam and move on to the subject 
of " Sri RanganAthA , The SarvOpanishad SvarUpan "
in my next posting .

10. SRI RANGANATHA KAVACHAM ( A.V : XII.3.24 )
**********************************************

Agni pachan rakshathu tvaa purasthAdh
IndrO rakshathu dakshiNathO MaruthvAn 
VaruNas tvaa dhrumhAddharuNE pratheechyA
uttarAth tvaa Soma: sam dhadhaathai 

( Meaning ) : May the Omniscient Lord strengthening thee ,
protect thee from the Eastern direction ; May the Opulent ,
splendorous Lord guard thee from the Southern direction ;
May the supreme Lord support thee from the western
direction with His strength and power . May our Lord ,
the cosmic creator hold thee together from the north . 

11. A PRAYER FOR PURIFICATION AND LONG LIFE (AV:XII.2.13)
**********************************************************

asmin vayam samkasukE Agnou riprANi mrujmahE 
abhUma yaj~niyA: suddhA; pra Na aayugumshi tArishath 

(Meaning ): We dissolve our blemishes away with the anugrahm
of our Lord , the Omniscient . We have achieved the state of
purity in His company and have become qualified to do Yaj~nams .
May the benevolent Lord give us long lives ! 

12. SRI RANGANATHA: SARVA SAAKSHEE ( AV: XIII.2.41)
*****************************************************

arvA disa: samacharadh rohithOadhipathir diva:
divam samudrAdh bhUmim sarvam bhUtham vi rakshathi 

(Meaning ) : God , the Emperor of light penetrates
all regions. He watches over the celestial region , 
the Oceans and the earth  and all the beings ,
He has created .

13.VEDIC KNOWLEDGE AND SRI RANGANATHA (AV: XV.6.9)
**************************************************

ruchAm cha vai sa saamnAm cha yajushAm cha 
BrahmaNasccha priyam dhAma bhavathi ya yEvam vEda 

(Meaning ) : He who is Brhamavidh ( Knower of Brahmman )
becomes the chosen abode of the four VedAs .

14. A PRAYER FOR THE EMBRACE OF THE LORD (AV: XIX.15.4)
********************************************************

urUm nO lokamanu nEshi vidhvAnthsvar-
yajjyOthirabhayam svasthi 
ugrA ta Indra sthavirasya bAhU 
upa kshayEma saraNA bruhanthA 

(Meaning ) : O Glorious Lord ! Thou take us by hand to 
the vast riches , bliss and to Your parama padham , 
where shines the light of knowledge , perfect peace
reigns and one is free form fear of any kind . Your 
divine arms are strong and powerful . They are steadfast 
in coming to our rescue; Your arms are firm in lifting us 
over all dangers . May we be blessed to find ample refuge
as PrapannAs in Your strong arms . 

15. A CALL FOR LORD'S HELP ( AV: 20.26.1)
******************************************

yOgE yOgE tavasthram vAjE vAjE hjavAmahE 
sakhayA IndramUthayE 

(Meaning ) : O Lord , As BhagavathAs devoted to 
Your service , we seek Your help and guidance 
in every act of meditation undertaken by us ;
we seek Your assistance and blessings in
every act of acquiring true knowledge about
Your commands and SaasthrAs .

16. ACHAARYAA'S COUNSEL TO THE PEOPLE ( AV: 20.48.2)
*****************************************************

anarsarAthim vasudhAmupa sthuhi bhadrA Indrasya rAthaya:
sO asya kAmam vidhathO na rOshathi manO dhAnAya chOdhayan 

(Meaning ) : O SamsAri ! worship the Lord , whose gifts
are flawless.He is the generous grantor of riches and
wealth beyond your imagination . He is VaradrAjan , the king
of boon-givers . Those boons are the most auspicious and 
they are bountiful . He is the Lord of immeasurable fortunes .
He does not turn down the wishes of His devotees in anger ,
but He has vowed to grant the boons that you seek . 

17. ACHAARYAA'S DESCRIPTION OF THE MIGHTY LORD (AV:20.50.1)
***********************************************************

YyO Adhribhith prathamajA ruthAvA 
BruhaspathirAngirasO havishmAn 
dvibarhjmA prAgarmasathpithA na aa
rodhasee vrushabhO rOraveethi 

(Meaninmg ) : Our Lord ( Sri RanganaathA ) is the great
protector of His vast universe. He is the Master of 
the Vedic knowledge . He is the banisher of the dark 
clouds of vipareetha j~nanam and evil.He is 
the First revealer ( prathamAchAryaa) . He is indeed 
the ordainer and the regulator of the laws of nature .
He is the one , who enters the created beings as
antharyAmi Brahmmam . He is the one , who supplies
the nourishment to the embryo in the mother's womb and
food to the thErai inside the stone . He is firmly 
positioned in Heaven and Earth . He is resolutely 
linked to devotees , knowledge and action . He is
the One , who provides the heat and light to the burning
Sun . He is our protector and nourisher like a father to
His children and showers His blessings on us unfailingly .
Hark ! Listen ! He loudly proclaims His instructions
all around the earth and Heavens through His AchAryAs 
and sends His nithyasUris as His messengers to help us
reach Him .

18. SVASTHI MANTHRAM (AV: XX.CXLIII.8 )

In this manthram before the very last manthram
of Atharva Vedam , benedictions to the world and its
beings are housed and an appeal is made to follow 
the saastraic injnctions of our Lord RanganAthA :

madhumatheerOshadheer dhyAva aapO 
madhumannO bhavathanthariksham 
KshEthrasya pathirmadhumannO 
asthvarishyanthO anvEnam charEma 

(Meaning ) : May the Oushadhis ( plants and medicinal
herbs) be sweet and efficacious to us ! May the Heavens ,
the waters and the mid-regions be all sweet , healthful
and invigorating for us ! May the producer of food 
be sweet, friendly and helpful to us ! Let us follow
our Lord and engage in acts that please Him and stay 
away from acts that displease Him , perform Prapatthi and 
be free from the disease of SamsAram and chase away 
all of our troubles ! 

With this crescendo of a prayer , Atharva Vedam 
comes to a close . 

May the Lord of Srirangam accept this offering 
and sprinkle us with the pavithra theertham from
His four Veda Kalasams and provide us the wisdom and 
strength to complete His Aalaya NirmANa kaimkaryam  
at Pomona , New York .

Sri Ranganaatha ParabrahmaNE nama:
Oppiliappan Koil VaradachAri SadagOpan