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SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 49 - Part 2.

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Krishnamachari, N (Krish) • March 7, 1999 


		SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 49.

		SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 49 - Part 2.	


460. sukha-dah - He who Bestows Bliss.

om sukha-dAya namah.

BhagavAn bestows Supreme Bliss on those who practice sadAcAra (good conduct)
and deep meditation (samAdhi).  SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is - sadAcAra
samAdhi anushThApanena tan-nishThebhyah phalam parama-sukham dadAti iti
sukha-dah.  SrI v.v.rAmAnujan observes that bhagavAn just does not stop with
giving the fruits to those who observe sadAcAra, but He Himself observes
these anushTHAna-s to set an example to us so that we can follow His path
and get the parama-sukham.  This is revealed by Lord kr*shNa in the gItA in
Slokam 3.23 which we referred to earlier under nAma 456.  SrI rAmAnujan
refers us to nammAazhvAr - "inbam payakka iniduDan vIRRirundu iv-ezhulagai
AlginRa e~ngaL pirAn - tiruvAimozhi 7.10.1. 

The dharma cakram writer points out that even though bhagavAn is the One who
bestows even the ordinary benefits such as wealth, health etc., based on
karma-s, the significance of the current nAma is that He alone can bestow
the Ultimate sukham viz. moksham. 

SrI Sa~nkara gives an additional interpretation which means that bhagavAn
destroys the sukham of those who are wicked and evil.  asad-vr*ttAnAm sukham
dyati khaNDayati iti vA sukhadah.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha analyzes the word into three part su, kha, and da,
and gives an interpretation different from the above.  He starts with khanu
- avadhAraNe - to dig, and equates su-kha with the SarIra with its outlets
that allow us to lead a life without sickness, disease etc.  One who gives
this sukha sarIra is su-kha-dah - sukham khAtam tad-dah sukhadah vishNuh. 

461. su-hr*t - The good-hearted, a True Friend.

om su-hr*de namah.

BhagavAn is always on the lookout for ways to help even His adversaries, and
this is His Nature of being a su-hr*t.  SrI BhaTTar vyAkhyAnam is -
anupakAriNi api "kim asya bhavishyati? kim karavANi" iti SubhASamsi Sobhana
hr*dayatvam su-hr*tvam.  su-hr*tvam or friendliness is that quality of a
benevolent person who wishes good even for those who have not helped him in
any way, and who, being apprehensive of any evil that may befall them,
always thinks "How shall I help them?".

SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to SrImad rAmAyaNam - ripUNAmapi vatsalah - A
friend even to His enemies.  

The dharma cakram writer observes that the heart which suffers when sorrow
hits, or rejoices when a favorable event occurs, is not the "good heart"
referred to here, but the heart that bleeds when others suffer is the good
heart.  Lord rAma was not affected one way or the other when He was about to
be crowned or when He was asked to leave for exile in the forest.  He was
neutral in both circumstances.  But the pure heart is one which anguishes
when someone else suffers, and rushes to help those who need help.
Meditating on the significance of this nAma will lead to the purification of
the heart of the devotee.

462. mano-harah - He who captivates the heart.

om mano-harAya namah.

Because of the innate benevolence noted above, He captivates everyone's
heart.  SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr - maiyal Seidu ennai
manam kavarndAnE - tiruvAimozhi 7.2.6.  SrI cinmayAnanda has appropriately
translated this nAma as "One who is the looter of the mind".  His vyAkhyAnam
is "Not only is the Lord Beauty Incarnate, but He compels the attention of
the devotee to come away from all other sense objects to dwell upon His
enchanting form.  Thus vishNu is one who generates an irresistible joy in
the mind of His devotees and compels them to spend their time in constant
worship". 

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn has created all things with
this mano-haratva attribute built into everything He created.   Now we see
al these beautiful things around us, and our mind is captivated by this
ingenuity of the Creator, and we wonder aloud - "Who could it be that
created this marvel?"   So He is mano-harah.  

The dharma cakram writer generalizes the interpretation of this nAma to
suggest that bhagavAn gravitates the minds of people either towards Him or
towards the worldly objects depending on what they want.  Those who want
materialistic pleasures, He gravitates their mind deeper towards the life of
short-term enjoyment; and those who have controlled their mind and senses,
He gravitates these devotees closer and closer towards Him.  So bhagavAn is
mano-harah for both categories of people.

463. jita-krodhah - He who has overcome anger.

om jita-krodhAya namah.

Because BhagavAn has conquered all bad qualities including anger, He is
jita-krodhah.  He gets angry only if He chooses to get angry by His own
will.   SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives the following reference:  In the beginning
of SrImad rAmAyaNa SrI vAlmIki asks the question "Who is the jita-krodhah"
among people, and nArada responds that it is rAma - ucyamAno'pi parusham na
uttaram pratipadyate - Even when others utter harsh words towards Him, He
does not respond with similar harsh words.

SrI rAdhAkr*shNa Sastri distinguishes between three types of anger, all of
which have been mastered by BhagavAn.  manyu is the type of anger which is
in the mind but which does not find expression in words or in action.  When
the anger spills out in the form of reddening of the eyes, expression in the
face, etc., this is called kopam.  When anger finds expression in harsh
words, shaking of the body, deeds which reflect harshness as a result of the
anger, etc., then this is called krodham.   It is to be noted that bhagavAn
has not eliminated anger completely, but just has conquered it, and will get
angry when He feels the need for it.  SrI vAlmIki nicely expresses this
through the words "krodham AhArayat tIvram" - 3.24.33 - He brought Himself
to be angry.  When His devotee hanumAn is hurt by rAvaNa, Lord rAma made
Himself angry.  (yuddha 59.147).  SrI Sa~nkara points out that if He kills
an asura, it is not because of anger but only to establish the vedic order
of life.

SrI cinmayAnanda extends the anubhavam to include not just krodha, but all
the six types of afflictions that a man can suffer from - kAma, krodha,
lobha, moha, mada, and mAtsarya.  This nAma indicates that bhagavAn has
conquered all of these.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha, who in addition to his great mastery of samskr*t,
was a great ayurvedic expert as well as a great astrologer, comments that
krodham is a result of some defects of the body, and is caused by an
imbalance in the bodily juices.  Since bhagavAn is not subject to these
deficiencies, He is not subject to kAma, krodha etc.
  
The interpretations by SrI BhaTTar for nAma-s 457 to 463 that were given so
far  were based on bhagavAn's nara-nArAyaNa incarnation.  He has also given
a set of alternate interpretations for these nAma-s based on the mohini
incarnation, which are covered below.

457. su-mukhah - He who has a charming face - He who shines with a face
which is delightful like the moon and which is replete with the nectar of
Bliss very much like the pot of nectar held in the hand.

458. sUkshmah - The Subtle - He is subtle because His thoughts were hidden
from the asura-s.

459. su-ghoshah - He who is the object of loud and delectable praise - His
act of churning was delectable and was praised loudly both by the gods and
the asura-s.

460. sukha-dah - The Giver of Joy - He gives joy to the gods by distributing
the nectar to them.

461. su-hr*t - The friend - because of His love for the deva-s.

462. mano-harah - The heart-ravishing - His form bewitched the minds of the
asura-s.

463. jita-krodhah - He who conquered the anger - On seeing His form the
minds of the asura-s became confounded with confusion and thereby He
overcame the anger of the asura-s against the gods.

nAma-s 464 to 470 which follow are also interpreted by SrI BhaTTar on the
basis of the mohini incarnation.

464.	vIra-bAhuh - He of mighty arms.

om vIra-bAhave namah.

SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam of this nAma is that bhagavAn has a thousand arms
which are all vying with each other in the wonderful act of churning the
Milk-Ocean - arms which are shining with effulgent bracelets, armlets, and
garlands.  SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to peria tirunozhi 5.7.4 -
"Seyiru viSumbum ti~ngaLum SuDarum dEvarum tAmuDan tiSaippa Ayiram tOLAl
alai kaDal kaDaindAn ara~nga mAnagar amarndAnE".  We also have in
tiruvAimozhi - aSurarauit-tagarkkum tOLUm nAngu - 10.1.1.

SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is that bhagavAn is vIra-bAhuh because he destroyed
the foes and established the moral law of the scriptures (veda-s).  

SrI rAdhAkr*shNa Sastri observes that a vIra is one who engages in his act
with intensity in a prescribed way without backing down.  BhagavAn's four
hands with four different weapons in them simultaneously go into action
independently of each other, and accomplish the desired action flawlessly,
each one of them displaying the quality of the vIra independently. 
 
The dharma cakram writer observes that a vIra is one who uses the might of
his arms to help the cause of dharma and not for any selfish purpose.
rAvaNa was also one of mighty arms, not just two but twenty of them for that
matter.  He cannot be considered a vIra, since all he could use his might
for was to nurture his kAma.  This nAma of mahA vishNu should remind us that
our abilities should be put to use to protect dharma, and not for selfish
purposes.

465.	vidAraNah - a) He who cut (rAhu, hirNyakaSipu and others).
	b) He who cuts the sins of His devotees.

om vidAraNAya namah.

He who destroys (tears away) those who live contrary to dharma.  He cut off
rAhu with His divya Ayudha during the distribution of the nectar to the
deva-s in the presence of the asura-s.  He is also known as vidAraNah
because He cuts off the greatest of fears in His devotees - "samagra ugra
bhaya vidAraNAya" is the mantra about bhagavAn.  SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers
us to tiruvAimozhi 9.10.6 - Sem-ponAgattavuNan uDal kINDAvan - He who tore
apart hiraNyakaSipu's body to help His devotee. 

The dharma cakram writer gives the interpretation that bhagavAn tears away
the association (bandham) between the AtmA or the soul and the body or
prakr*ti.  BhagavAn is the one who separates or tears away the unchanging
soul from the ever-changing body. 

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out this guNa of separating - vidAraNa, in
all aspects of His creation.  Thus man and woman, day and night, uttarAyaNa
and dakshINayana, pr*thivI and antariksha, agni and soma, etc.  are all
demonstrations or reminders of this guNa of mahAvishNu - vidAraNah.  He is
the one who "tears away" or separates the child from the mother at the time
of birth so that the two live separately.

-dAsan kr*shNamAcAryan