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Sri Guna Rathna Kosam : Part 47: slOkam 36

From the Bhakti List Archives

Sadagopan • June 15, 2001 


Dear BhakthAs:

In the 36th SlOkam , Swamy Parasara Bhattar wrestles
with the futility of comparing the aprAkrutha ThirumEni
of Sri RanganAyaki with prakruthic material objects of
the world like Moon , Lotus et al. He concludes that
nothing in this world or nobody here could come anywhere 
near the matchless beauty of Sri RanganAyaki's ThirumEni.
The 36th slOkam containing these thoughts takes this form : 

angam tE mrudhu-seetha mugdha madhurOdhArai:guNai: gumbatha:
KshIrAbdhE kimrujIshathAm upagathA: manyE mahArgAstatha:
Indhu: KalpalathA sudhA-madhumukhA ithyAvilAm varNanam
SrirangEswari! saantha kruthrimakaTam dhivyam vapu: nArhathi 

(Meaning according to Dr.V.N.VedAnthadEsikan):
***********************************************
It is permissible to visualize the birth of Sree RanganAyaki 
from the churning of the milky ocean at a particular point of 
time in the history of events. Oh Goddess! I recall that along 
with You , arose the Moon ,the nectar , the spiritous liquor , 
the Kalpaka creeper, etc. 

Now it appears that You assimilated the essence of gentle
nature and coolness from the Moon , the sweetness and 
immortality-conferment from the nectar , the intoxicatig
trait from the liquor , the liberal bounteousness from
the Kalpaka creeper , etc., --leaving them all behind 
with famished husk-like bereftness. 

What we now portrayed would amount to saying that 
the Moon and the like have all lent away their essential 
virtue to make You up. Very good imaginative picturization
indeed , but WRONG! Am I to assume , even for a moment ,
that You are artifically built up from material principles 
drawn from the Moon and the nectar and the like? No, No! 
You are non-material , non-made; non-physical; You are
absolutely Supreme Goddess, NON-PAREIL and SRI GENERIS.
We are not justified in reducing You to a simple material
object made of this and that of this world , even for 
purposes of illustration . 

Additional Comments: 
********************
Bhattar points out that the kalpanais of poets 
that She is soft and cool like the Moon , Sweet 
and life-giving like amrutham , intoxicating like Madhu
(liquor) , geneorous boon giving nature like the KalpakA
creeper are off the mark. If the well-meant intent is
to suggest that Sri RanganAyaki is the essence of all
of the above prAkruthic material ,this uthprEkshai 
(similie/comparison) is not correct. Besides, it is 
a confused vision . Why? The dhivya MangaLa vigraham of 
Sri RanganAyaki(MahA Lakshmi) is not made up of portions 
of physical entities at all . Her incomparable beauty of 
limbs and samudhAya Soundharyam arises from
Suddha satthva material of AprAkrutha origin. Therefore , 
it is incorrect to compare Her beauty to the objects of this
world .

Sri Vatsya VeerarAghavAchAryA's VasurAsi commentary 
explains this inaccuracy in comparison beautifully:
" --dhivyam aprAkrutham vapu: vigraha: na arhathi
na uchitham bhavathi. akruthrimasya Lakshmi Vigrahasya
krithrima vasthu saarathva uthprEkshaNam ayuktham 
ithi bhAva:". 

Praakrutham means the original source of the material 
world of three essential qualities, sathva, Rajas 
and Tamas (the ThriguNAs). AprAkrutham means 
outside the three guNAs, Suddha Sathva Svaroopam. 
Prakrutham also refers to the five elements ( pancha
bhoothams like pruthvI, Appu, Tejas, Vaayu and AkAsam)
that constitute the entities of the world. AprAkrutham
is outside the reach of the pancha Bhoothams.

MahA Lakshmi's dhivya MangaLa Vigraham ( divine auspicious
ThirumEni) is made up of aprAkrutha tatthvam. Therefore,
it is neither appropriate or effective to compare Her
Soundharyam through prAkruthic references (na arhathi
na uchitham bhavathi). MahA Lakshmi's vigraham (divine
body ) is akruthrimam ( not artificial or fictitious ).
By taking artificial or prakruthic entities and squeezing  
the essence of them to make the akruthrima dhivya managaLa 
Vigraham of MahA Lakshmi is a totally erroneous approach 
according to Swamy ParAsara Bhattar.

  
  



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