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SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 81 - pragrahah.

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Narasimhan Krishnamachari • December 21, 2002 


         SrI vishNU sahasra nAmam - Slokam 81 - pragrahah.

766. pragrahah – The Controller.

Om prgrahAya namah.

pra is an upasarga or prefix, and the root involved in the nAma is grah
– upAdAne – to take hold of, to seize.  prakarshaNena gRhNAti iti
pragraphah (SrI satya devo vAsishTha) – He Who controls in a special,
excellent, or unique way.  The different bhAshya-s differ on what is
controlled by Him.  SrI Sa’nkara uses the meaning “He receives” for the
term grah in his primary interpretation.

a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as referring to Lord kRshNaÂ’s
excellent control over arjuna, even though He was only arjunaÂ’s
charioteer.  It should be kept in mind that SrI bhaTTar is continuing
the thread of kRshNAvatAram starting from nAma 697, all the way up to
nAma 786.  Lord kRshNa controlled arjuna like the reins that control
the horse.  The word pragraham refers to reins (see kaThopanishad –
manah pragrameva ca – mind is like the reins , with AtmA the the master
of the chariot, the body is like the chariot, etc.  – AtmAnam rathinam
viddhi, SarIram rathameva ca, bhuddhim tu sArathim viddhi, manah
pragrahameva ca). 

b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha explains the nAma by referring to bhagavAnÂ’s
exceptional control of everything in the universe – prakarshaNena
gRhNAti viSvam iti.    
 
c) SrI Sa’nkara uses the meaning “to receive” for the word grah, and
gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has the nAma parigrahah because
He receives offerings such as leaf, fruit, etc., from His devotees –
bhaktaih upahRtam patra pushpAdikam pragRhNAti iti pragrahah.  SrI
cinmayAnanda gives a different dimension to this notion – He is
pragrahah because He is the ultimate recipient of the worship offered
by people of all creeds and races, and all animals, men, plants, etc.  
	
d) SrI SaÂ’nkara gives an alternate interpretation along the lines of
vyAkhyAna-s a, and b also.  Here, he refers to the overall control that
bhagavAn exerts on a devoteeÂ’s otherwise uncontrolled horse-like senses
roaming over the forest of sense-objects – dhAvato vishaya AraNye
durdAnta indiriya vAjinaha, tat-prasAdena aSmineva badhnAti it vA
pragravat – prgrahah.  It is because of His anugraham that a true
devotee is able to overcome the involvement in sense-objects, and
proceeds to the true realization.  

e) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj takes the prefix pra as representing
prakRshTa – special, exalted, and the word grahah as One Who accepts or
receives, and gives the interpretation – prakRTo grahah svIkAro yasya
iti pragrahah – One Whose acceptance (of saraNAgati) is unique,
exceptional, special, exalted.  His vyAkhyAnam is:  svajanam sakRdapi  
SaraNAgatam svIkRtya punah kadApi tam na partityajati iti prakRshTa eva
grahah prabhoh – He is the Lord Who accepts the SaraNAgati from His
devotee the very first time, and will never ever forsake the devotee;
such is the superiority of His acceptance of SaraNAgati. 


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