Search:
Bhakti List Archives

SrI vishNu sahasra nAma - Slokam 84 - mahA-karmA.

From the Bhakti List Archives

champakam • January 24, 2003 


     SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 84 - mahA-karmA.

793. mahA-karmA – He of magnanimous actions.

Om mahA-karmaNe namah.

mahAnti karmANi yasya sa mahA-karmA – He Whose actions are great and 
magnanimous.   The difference in the different interpretations 
relates the specific anubhavam of the vyAkhyAna-kartA-s on His mahA 
karma-s.  

a) SrI BhaTTar continues the thread from the earlier nAma-s.  "Even 
though bhagavAn is of a merciful nature, deceitful acts were 
perpetrated by Him for the sake of the protection of the prapanna-s  -
 those who had taken refuge in Him, and for the destruction of those 
who were wedded to unholy practices.  Since all His acts were thus 
justifiable, He is mahA-karmA" – evam prapanna paripAlanArthatvAt 
durAcAra-daNDanArthatvAcca parama-kAruNikasyaiva vipralambha 
sambhavah  | evam nyAya vRttatvAt mahA-karmA.  One is reminded of the 
well-known Slokam "paritrANAya sAdhUnAm, vinASAya ca dush-kRtAm, 
dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge" (gItA 4.8).  

SrI Sa'nkara gives examples of a different kind for the great deeds 
referred to in this nAma – such as the creation of ether, earth, 
water, air, and fire – mahAnti viyatAdIni bhUtAni karmANi kAryANi 
asya iti mahA-karmA.   SrI cinamyAnanda elaborates on this – "To 
create a cosmos so scientifically precise and perfect out of the five 
great elements, and to sustain them all with an iron hand of 
efficiency, all the time constantly presiding over the acts of 
destruction without which the world of change cannot be maintained, 
is in itself, a colossal achievement of Absolute Intelligence". 

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvaj gives the interpretation that He has this 
nAma because He performs divine actions – mahat mahanIyam divyam 
karma yasya iti mahA-karmA.  He gives the support from gItA 4.9 – 
janma karma ca me divyam – "My birth and My actions are of a divine 
nature".

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's anubhavam of the mahA karmA's is the 
incident involving Lord kRshNa restoring indra's royal umbrella and 
adiTi's earrings and giving them back to their owners – mahAnti 
bhauma vadha maNi parva chatra aditi kuNDala AnayanAni karmANi yasya 
sa mahA karmA.  The reference to these incidents is found in SrImad 
bhAgavatam in skanda 10, adhyAya 59, Sloka 2:

	indreNa hRtac-chatreNa hRta-kuNDala-bandhunA |   
	hRta amara adri sthAnena indreNa j~nApito bhauma ceshTitam   |
	sa-bhAryo garuDArUDhah prAg-jyotisha puram yayau   
||                   (bhAga. 10.59.2)

"Having been requested by indra for His help in recovering his royal 
umbrella, his mother's ear-rings, and his seat called maNi parvatam 
in sumeru hill, that has been forcibly taken away by narakAsura, Lord 
kRshNa went to the city of narakAsura with satyabhAmA, riding on His 
garuDa vAhanam".  The chapter in SrImad bhAgavatam then extensively 
describes kRshNa-s fight with narakAsuran, and the slaying of 
narakAsura in the end.  Then in Slokam 43, Lord kRshNa is referred to 
as a-tarkya-kRt – He Who performs acts that are unarguably great.  
The use of the word atarkya-kRtah here is the same as the sense 
conveyed by the current nAma – mahA-karmA.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan




--------------------------------------------------------------
           - SrImate rAmAnujAya namaH -
To Post a message, send it to:   bhakti-list@yahoogroups.com
Group Home: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/bhakti-list
Archives: http://ramanuja.org/sv/bhakti/archives/
 

Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/