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SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 60 - Part 1.

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Narasimhan Krishnamachari • May 13, 2000 


				SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 60.

		bhagavAn bhagahA nandI vanamAlI halAyudhah      |
		Adityo jyotir-Adityah sahishNur_gati-sattamah          ||

om  bhagavate namah
om bhagaghne namah
om nandine namah
om vanamAline namah
om halAyudhAya namah
om AdityAya namah
om jyotir-AdityAya namah
om sahishNave namah
om gati-sattamAya namah

563. bhagavAn -  a) He Who is worthy of worship.
b) He Who is full of the six attributes
c) He Who knows the origin and the end of all beings.

om bhagavate namah.

a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as referring to His being worthy of
worship because of His essential nature which is antagonistic to all
defects and which is endowed with all auspicious qualities.  The word
bhaga has a special meaning which refers to the six attributes, but SrI
BhaTTar does not use this meaning  here to interpret this nAma, which
the other vyAkhyAna kartA-s use.   Instead, he gives the interpretation
"He Who is worthy of worship".  In amarakOSa vyAkhyAnam, there is a
reference to "bhajyata iti bhagah", which seems to fit SrI BhaTTar's
interpretation for the current nAma.  He uses the reference to the six
attributes in interpreting the next nAma "bhagahA".  In support of SrI
BhaTTar's interpretation for the current nAma, SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives
reference to AzhvAr aruLicceyal:  uyarvaRa uyar nalam uDaiyavan
(tiruvAimozhi 1.1.1), tIdu il SIr nalam tigazh nAraNan; andam il Adiyam
bhagavan (tiruvAimozhi 1.3.5).

b) SrI Sa'nkara and other vyAkhyAna kartA-s interpret the current nAma
based on the word bhaga referring to the six attributes.   SrI kRshNa
datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation - bhago j~nAnAdi shaTkam vidyate
niratiSayam yasmin iti bhagavAn - He in whom the six attributes (j~nAna
etc.), which are called bhaga-s, are present in perfection and fullness
is called bhagavAn.  SrI Sa'nkara gives reference to vishNu purANam
supporting his interpretation:

		aiSvaryasya samagrasya vIryasya yaSasah Sriyah   |
		j~nAna vairAgya yogaScaiva shaNNAm bhaga itI'nganA   ||  (V.P.
6.5.74)

"He Who possesses the attributes of aiSvaryam or Lordship, dharma,
fame, wealth, j~nAna and vairAgya
 in full is called bhagavAn".   There are differing versions of the
Sloka, with dharmasya replacing vIryasya, "j~nAna vairAgyayoScaiva"
replaced by "vairAgyasyAtha mokshasya", etc.  

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the following brief explanation of the six
attributes referred to above:

- aiSvarya - The quality of being the Lord of all - He can control and
rule over all things at all times, and thus He is the Supreme over all.
(na tasya ISe kaScana - tait. AraN. 10.10)
- vIrya - The ability to be victorious over any enemy (ugram vIram
mahAvishNum)
- yaSah - kIrti; Worthy of praise by all without exception (tasya nAma
mahad-yaSah - (tait. AraN. 10.1)
- SrI - Wealth; He is One Who has mahAlakshmi always residing as part
of Him (Sriyam lakshmIm aupalAm ambikAm gAm)
- j~nAna - Because He is the Knower of the past, present, and future
and the Lord of the three - bhUta bhavya bhavan-nAthah (yah savaj~nah
sarvavit yays j~nAnamayam tapah - muNDako. 1.1.9)
- vairAgya - Being unattached to anything (sa vA ayamAtmA brahma akAma
mayah - bRhadA. 4.4.5)

c) SrI Sa'nkara  gives an alternate interpretation as well, also based
on another Slokam from SrI vishNu purANam:

		utpattim pralayam caiva bhUtAnAm Agatim gatim   |
 		vetti vidyAm avidyAm ca sa vAcyo bhagavAn iti   ||   (V.P. 6.5.78)

   "He is named bhagavAn who knows the origin and the end, the arrival
and the exit, of all beings, and also vidyA and avidyA".

564. bhagahA - a) He Who is possessed of auspicious qualities.
		b) He Who gets rid of the wealth etc. from everyone during praLaya.

om bhagaghne namah.

a) As was pointed out in the last para, SrI BhaTTar's interpretation
for bhagahA uses the meaning of bhaga referring to the six attributes,
and here he quotes the same vishNu purANam reference that SrI Samkara
uses for the last nAma (VP 6.5.74).  The literal interpretation is
"bhaga SabdyAn sa kalyANa guNAn hanti tu gacchati" - He Who goes to
(i.e., has) all the six attributes referred to by the term bhaga.  The
usual meaning for hA is "to kill, to destroy" - e.g., vIrahA.  But SrI
BhaTTar uses the meaning "hanti - goes" in his interpretation.  SrI
kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also adopts the same interpretation -  bhagam
mAhAtmyam jihIte gacchati prApnoti iti bhagahA.

b) SrI Samkara uses the meaning of hA - to kill, and interprets the
nAma as meaning that He is the Remover of all things such as wealth
from everyone at the time of pralaya - aiSvaryAdikam samhAra samaye
hanti iti bhagahA.  SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different
elaboration of this idea - bhaga represents the vastness of things, and
 hA represents the contraction of this vastness.  Thus He is called
bhaga-hA because He reduces the vastness of His creation by contracting
it all into Himself at the time of pralaya.  svAmi cinmayAnanda points
out that in this sense, it is not "destruction" of things, but an
absorption of things back into Himself that initially came from Him. 
The dharma cakram writer observes that the impermanence of things like
wealth, fame, etc. is what is being imparted to us here, and the more
we understand this and remove our attachment to these, the closer we
would have understood the significance of this nAma.

565. nandI or AnandI

a) He Who has nanda as His father.
b) He Who is ever blissful by Nature, and also because of His
prosperity and the six guNa-s.
c) He Who is ever happy by association with His devotees.
d) He Who gives Bliss to His devotees.

om nandine namah 
om Anandine namah.

SrI BhaTTar gives both the above nAma-s, and SrI Samkara gives the
latter nAma.  In both the interpretations, SrI BhaTTar interprets the
nAma as referring to balarAma as the samkarshaNa form of bhagavAn, and
SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as AnandI, referring to bhagavAn in His
kRshNa incarnation.  Others interpret the nAma as nandI or AnandI, both
referring to Lord kRshNa.

a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma nandI as referring to balarAma whose
father is nandagopa.  BhagavAn who was samkarshaNa in the vyUha form
took incarnation as balarAma in the vibhava form with nanadagopa as His
father.  SrI cinmayAnanda chooses to interpret the same as referring to
Lord kRshNa, who was brought up by nandagopa (nandagopan kumaran
nArAyaNan). 
b)  SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as AnandI, signifying that He is
ever prosperous because He is rich in everything, or because His Nature
is Bliss - sukha svarUpatvAt AnandI, or sarvAbhih sampadbhih
samRddahtvAt AnandI.
c) SrI BhaTTar interprets the term AnandI to refer to balarAma who made
Himself and all around Him happy in AyarpADi.  The dharma cakram writer
uses the same sense and interprets the nAma to refer to kRshNa who made
Himself and all around Him happy in AyarpADi. 
d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the intepretation - nandati
samRdhyati iti nandI - He Who gives delight to His devotees.  SrI
cinmayAnanda observes that those who move towards Him in pure surrender
come to share His divine nature of All-Bliss.  The term AnandI can also
be interpreted to mean this same idea. 

The dharma cakram writer points out the significance of the nAma 
AnandI - that we are inherently blissful, but just as those who have
eyes can choose to close their eyes and suffer in darkness, we close
our eyes to j~nAna and suffer in misery and distress.  The means to get
out of this state of suffering is to realize bhagavAn's and our true
svarUpam.  This realization can be attained only through His grace, and
so worshipping Him with devotion is the only means for everlasting
happiness.  The gopi-s of AyarpADi were happy always because they did
not have any other thought except the thought of Him, and so they were
devoid of any worldly thought.  The significance of this nAma is to
teach us that the means to true happiness is to immerse ourselves in
His thought rather than divert ourselves into worldly thoughts.

566. vanamAlI - He Who has the vanamAlA garland.

om vanamAline namah.

He is known s vanamAlI because He is adorned by the vyjayantI Garland,
which is the presiding deity over the pa'nca bhUta-s and the
pa'nca-tanmAtra-s (the five elements in their gross and subtle form),
and also over the quality of fragrance.   The pa'nca tanmAtra-s or the
five subtle elements are Sabda, sparSa, rasa, rUpa, and gandha - sound,
touch, taste, sight, smell.   The pa'nca bhUta-s associated with these
tanmAtra-s are:  AkAsa or ether, air, fire, water, and earth.  vana
mAlai literally refers to a garland made of flowers that grow in the
forest.  For the purpose of making it, five different colors are used
to string the garland, representing the five tanmAtra-s.   The symbolic
meaning is that He wears this Universe with its diverse variety like a
garland around His neck.  

The dharma cakram writer observes that we experience the five
tanmAtra-s through the five j~nAnendriya-s or sense organs.  This nAma
teaches us that we should surrender or dedicate the five senses to Him
and worship Him with devotion, instead of diverting them to the
sensuous enjoyment of this world.  

567. halAyudhah - One Who has the plough in His hand.

om halAydhAya namah. 

SrI Samkara gives the explanation - halam Ayudham asya iti halAyudhah. 
This thus refers to the incarnation as balarAma.   SrI BhaTTar points
out that bhagavAn works like an agriculturist with a plough in His hand
for the prosperous growth of the pa`nca mahA bhUta-s (earth, water,
air, etc.). 

568. Adityah -   
a) Son of devaki who was aditi in her previous birth
b) Son of aditi (and kaSyapa) in His vAmana incarnation 
c) BhagavAn samkarshaNa, who is attained through the bIja mantra "A"
d) He from Whom moksha is obtained.

a) SrI BhaTTar gives reference to vaishNava dharma in support of the
first interpretation:

dAkshAyaNi tvam aditih sambhUtA vasudhAtale    |
nityaiva tvam jagad-dhAtrI prasAdam te karomyaham   ||  (vishNu dharma
93.44 )

"  You are dAkshAyaNi (the daughter of daksha) born as aditi in this
world.  You are the mother eternal of the world.  I confer favors on
you".

b) SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn's vAmana
incarnation as aditi's son - adityAm kaSyapAt vAmana rUpeNa jAta
Adityah.  SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives reference to the following,
but the source is not identified:

"bhAdramAse site pakshe dvAdaSyAm SubhavAsare    |
  kaSyapAt aditer-mAtuh bhagavAn vAmanah abhavat  ||

c) SrI BhaTTar gives the alternate interpretation:  "A" varNAt Atah
ityah - prApyah iti Adityah - He Who is realized by the mystic letter
"A" which is the bIja mantra for samkarshaNa.

d)    SrI cinmayAnanda uses the same basis as c, and interprets At to
mean "from vishNu", and ityah  to mean  "to be attained", and
interpreta Adityah to mean "He from Whom moksha is obtained".  

The next segment is interpreted by SrI BhaTTar as pertaining to the
incarnation of bhagavAn as nArAyaNa.  SrI v.v. rAmAnujan points out
that while the nAma "nArAyaNa" is very special, it also  refers to one
of the incarnations He took (nara and nArAyaNa forms) in badri.

-To be continued.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

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