SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 59 - Part 1.
From the Bhakti List Archives
• December 20, 1999
SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 59 - Part 1. vedAh svA'ngo'jitah kRshNo dRDhah sa'nkarshaNo'cyutah | varuNo vAruNo vRkshah pushkarAksho mahaAmanaAh || om vedhase namah om svA'ngAya namah om ajitAya namah om kRshNAya namah om dhRDAya namah om sa'nkarshaNAya namah om acyutAya namah om varuNAya namah om vAruNAya namah om vRkshAya namah om pushkarAkshAya namah om mahA-manase namah 551. vedhAh - a) The Provider. b) The Doer (of auspicious happenings). c) The Creator. om vedhase namah. SrI BhaTTar derives the meaning from "vidadhAti iti vedhAh" - He is the Giver or Provider of unlimited and varied objects of splendor. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation "vidadhAti kAmAn svajanAnAm iti vedhAh". He also gives the reference to kaThopanishad - "eko bahUnAm vidadhAti kAmAn" (2.2.13). SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi gives the second interpretation - "anbargaLukku ma'ngalamAna vibhava'ngaLiac ceibavar". SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam is vidadhAti sRjati iti vidhAtA vedhAh - The Creator. In amarakoSa we have srashTA prajApatir vedhA vidhAtA viSvasRT vidhih (1.17), and the explanation vidadhAti karoti iti vedhAh, offered by li'ngAyasUrin. 552. svA'ngah - a) He who has the marks of sovereignty which are His own. b) He who is both the Instrumental Cause and the Material Cause of the Universe. c) He who has beautiful, well-proportioned limbs. d) He who, in the form of the Universe, moves by Himself. The term a'nga here refers to the celestial marks of sovereignty such as the chatra (umbrella), cAmara and other things which are His own and unique (sva a'ngah). He is the Supreme King of all the worlds, and has the unique marks associated with this. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives the following explanation: "svanyante Sabdyante sUktibhiriti svAni; tAdRSAni a'ngAni yasya iti svA'ngah". SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam is "svayameva kAryasya karaNe a'ngam sahakaroti iti svA'ngah" - He is Himself the instrument in accomplishing His works. The idea communicated is that bhagavAn is the Material Cause as well as the Instrumental Cause of this Universe (SrI cinmayAnanda). SrI cinmayAnanda also indicates that the nAma can be interpreted to mean that bhagavAn has beautiful, well-proportioned a'nga-s or limbs. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning a'ng - to go (agi - gatyarthaka dhAtu), and gives the interpretation that bhagavan has His movement by Himself, unlike all the other life forms which move only because He is present in them as the antaryAmi. When the self leaves the body, the body loses the ability to move. Unlike these, e.g., in the form of the Sun, bhagavAn moves by Himself without the need for any other external source. The dharma cakram writer gives the meaning that He is One who helps Himself. He observes that meditation on this nAma of mahAvishNu should reveal to us that when we worship Him, there is no need for any external help for us from anyone or anything in this world, since all the things we need will be met from within ourselves. It is only when we go after material pursuit that we need the support of others. BhagavAn is in the ultimate state where He needs nothing from anyone or anything. 553. ajitah - a) He who is unconquered, and unconquerable. b) He who is the Chief of the Unconquerable place called ajita or SrIvaikunTha. c) He who took the amSAvatara in the 6th manvantara as ajitah to help in churning the Milk Ocean. d) He who is unconquered in His vow to protect those who have surrendered to Him. (SrI BhaTTar): ajitA, aparAjitA, etc. are also names for paramapadam, and He is the Chief of SrIvaikunTham, and so also He is called ajitah. He and His abode SrI vaikunTham and everything therein are composed of celestial matter called Suddha sattva, which is not under the sway of birth and death. He is thus unconquered by the sway of birth, aging, decay, and death which are characteristic of those that pertain to the world of prakRti. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to SrI rAmAyaNam yuddha kANDam where bhagavAn's nAma ajita occurs (120.16 -ajitah khaDgadhRg vishNuh kRshNaScaiva bRhad balah). Here ajitah is interpreted by SrI P. S. kRshNasvAmi iye'ngAr as referring bhagavAn being undefeated in His ASrita samrakshNam or His vow to protect those who have surrendered to Him even once). (SrI Sa'nkara): na jita iti ajitah - One who has never been conquered, and can never be conquered, is ajitah. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - na jitah kenApi tribhuvane iti ajaitah - One who has never been conquered by anyone ever in all the three worlds. He has never been conquered by anyone in any of His incarnations, and so also He is ajitah. He is satya svarUpi and dharma svarupi, and so also He is unconquered and unconquerable (dharma cakram) - satyameva jayate. The dharma cakram author gives innumerable examples to illustrate that satya and dharma are unconquerable, including those involving prahlAda, hariScandra, the pANDavas, etc. The lesson to take from meditating on this nAma is the greatness of dharma and satya, and the life led conforming to these values. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives yet another interpretation based on SrImad bhAgavtam. BhagavAn SrIman nArAyaNa appeared as ajitah in the sixth manvantara as the son of sambhUti and helped in the churning of the Milk Ocean to get the amRta for the deva-s. He also took the kUrmAvatAra to support the mandara mountain in the process - tatrApi devah sambhUtyAm vairAjasya abhavat sutah | ajito nAma bhgavAn amSena jagatah patih || (SrImad bhAgavatam 8.5.9). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that there is a question of one being conquered by another only when they can be compared to each other. In the case of mahAvishNu, there is no one else to compare to Him, and so there is no question of His being conquered by any other, and so He is ajitah or unconquerable and unconquered. 554. kRshNah - a) One who is always in a state of Bliss (with His sport of creation etc.). b) The Dark-hued. c) He who irresistibly attracts His devotees to Him through His infinite kalyANa guNa-s. d) He who cultivates the Earth like a plough and makes it suitable for life forms to form and nourish. e) He who appeared as veda vyAsa or kRshNa dvaipAyana. f) He who cultivates the minds of devotees by providing the veda-s in His incarnation as kRshNa dvaipAyana. g) The Dark, Mysterious, and Unknowable except by deep devotion. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 58. Please refer to the detailed interpretation provided there as well. The first four interpretations were covered there. Some additional details are provided here. In support of interpretation (a), SrI v.v. rAmAnujan observes that unlike in rAma incarnation where bhagavAn went through enormous difficulties - nATTil piRandu paDAdana paTTu - nammAzhvAr tiruvAimozhi 7.5.2, in kRshNa incarnation it was "inbuRum iv-viLaiyATTuDaiyAnaip peRRu (tiruvAimozhi 3.10.7)", "kanRinai vAlOlai kaTTi (periAzhvAr tirumozhi 2.4.8)", etc. Another anubhavam of SrI v.v. rAmAnujan is that bhagavAn is laughing at us mockingly, seeing that we are not putting to good use the hands and legs and all the indriya-s He gave us to help us attain Him, but instead we are misusing these and getting into the cycle of birth and rebirth. Under the current nAma, SrI ParASara BhaTTar gives one more of his anubhava-s of this nAma, and indicates that the Suddha sattva material which His body is made of has a fascinating complexion dark like the blue cloud. One of the grammar rules (uNAdi sutra 3.4) states that when the root kRsh - to plough is followed by affix nak, it means one of the colors - kRsher varNe. It is interesting to note that one name for grapes is kRshNA because of this connotation of color. So also, iron is called kRshNA because of its black color. This latter meaning is used to explain the significance of bhagavAn's nAma as kRshNa in mahAbhArata SAnti parva 143.49 - kRshAmi medinIm pArtha! bhUtvA kRshNAyaso mahAn | kRshNo varNaSca me yasmAt tena kRshNoham arjuna || This is a slight variation of the Sloka also quoted from mahAbhArata under the explanation given under nAma 58. The two Sloka-s are too similar to each other to suggest that these are variants of the same reference. I do not have the original version of mahAbhArata to check the authenticity of the references. In support of interpretation (b), SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to the following: kaNNan enum karum daivam (nAcciyAr tirumozhi 3.1), kariyAn oru kALai (tirumozhi 3.7.), etc. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the following explanation along the lines of interpretation ©: karshati bhagavAn AtmAnam prati vayovarNa rUpaa lAvaNya madhurI rasotkarsheNa iti kRshNah, or kRshate AtmAnam prati bhaktAn sa-soundaryeNa iti kRshNah, based on (kRsha vilekhanam AkarshNam ca). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha and others also support this interpretation along with the other two. SrI Sa'nkara interprets this instance of the nAma of kRshNah as referring to veda vyAsa (e), who is none other than an incarnation of bhagavaAn according to SrI vishNupurANa - kRshNadvaipAyanam vyAsam viddhi nArAyaNam prabhum | ko hyanayh puNDarIkAkshAn mahAbhAratakRt bhavet (VP 3.4.5). The dharma cakram writer uses the concept of bhagavAn being like a plough (the basis of interpretation d), combines this with SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation (e), and offers a new interpretation (f). His anubhavam is that in the form of veda vyAsa, bhagavAn cultivates the minds of people by providing to us the veda-s, and so vyAsa, who is none other than nArAyaNa, is referred to by the nAma kRshNa here. SrI cinmayAnanda uses the meaning "dark" for the word kRshNa, and suggests that this nAma of bhagavAn signifies the "unknown factor" that expresses through us - whose manifestations are all our physical, mental, and intellectual capabilities. Except by deep and sincere devotion, He cannot be comprehended, and so He is kRshNah - Dark and Mysterious. -To be continued. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Thousands of Stores. Millions of Products. All in one place. Yahoo! Shopping: http://shopping.yahoo.com
- Next message: Sheela Belur: "Sri Pillai Lokacharya's Granthams- A Request."
- Previous message: Satyan, Nagu: "Thanks from SVSS Volunteers"
- Messages sorted by: [ date ] [ thread ] [ subject ] [ author ] [ attachment ]