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SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 73 - Part 1.

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Narasimhan Krishnamachari • May 6, 2002 


  SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 73 - stavyah.

stavyah stava-priyah stotram stutah stotA raNa-priyah    |
pUrNah pUrayitA puNyah puNya-kIrtir_anAmayah      ||

om stavyAya namah
om stava-priyAya namah
om stotrAya namah
om stutAya namah
om stotre namah
om raNa-priyAya namah
om pUrNAya namah
om pUrayitre namah
om puNyAya namah
om puNya-kIrtaye namah
om anAmayAya namah

SrI BhaTTar has described His worship through body and mind in the
previous fuew nAma-s.   He interprets the next few nAma-s in terms of
His worship through word.

684. stavyah - a) He Who is worthy of praise.
	b) He Who is praised by all, but who does not have to praise anyone
else.

Om stavyAya namah.

The root from which the word stavyah is derived is stu - to praise. 
The affix yat is added in the sense of "he deserves praise" (SrI
BhaTTar). 

a) stavam arhati iti stavyah.   SrI BhaTTar explains that only Lord
vishNu is endowed with the innumerable auspicious qualities which are
eternal, boundless and flawless, and thus He is worthy of praise over
any other god.  Praising Him will lead to the release of bondage from
samsAra.    He refers us to the following in support:

	AdareNa yathA stauti dhanavantam dhanecchayA     |
	evam cet viSva-kartAram ko na mucyeta bandhanAt    ||  (bRhaspati
samhitA)

"If one praises the Creator of the Universe the same way one praises a
rich man just to get some wealth from him, is there any doubt that he
will be relieved from the bondage of samsAra by praising the Creator?".
    

Such is the power of His praise.

In the phala-Sruti for SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam, bhIshma tells
yudhisThira: 

	itIdam kIrtanIyasya keSavasya mahAtmanah   |
	nAmnAm sahasram divyAnAm aSesheNa prakIrtitam   ||

"Thus the thousand divine names of bhagavAn keSava, the Supreme Being,
Who is worthy of being praised, have been sung in their entirety".   
Here the choice of the word keSava signifies that He is the Creator of
Siva and brahma; mahatmA refers to His being the Supreme Person;  the
term divya signifies that these thousand nAma-s are worthy of being
recited both in this world and in parama-padam; and the word
kIrtanIyasya emphasizes that He is worthy of being praised.  

SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr (tiruvAimizhi 3.9.1),
where he declares that bhagavAn is the Only One who is worthy of praise
with his words, and no one else.

	SonnAl virodham idu, Agilum Solluvan kENminO  
	en nAvil in kavi yAn oruvarkkum koDukkilEn Â….
	Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…Â…............... tiruvE'nkaTattu   
	en Anai en appan emperumAn uLan AgavE        (tiruvAi. 3.9.1)

"Even though it is unpleasant for you (those of you who waste your time
worshipping other deities) to hear this, I am going to say it, and
please listen (for your own good):  I will not waste my sweet words of
praise on anyone except My Lord who stands like an elephant in 
tiruvE'nkaTa malai."

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives an interpretation similar to that of
SrI BhaTTar - stotum yogyah sarvottamatvAt iti stavyah - Because He is
Supreme in all respects, He is fit to be worshiped.  

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that bhagavAn's divya guNa-s are infinite,
and no matter for how many thousands and thousands of years we sing His
praise, we will still be not be done, and can keep praising Him; such
are His natural guNa-s.  He gives reference to the SvetASvatara
upanishad: "tam ISAnam varadam devam IDyam (4.11) - "He Who is the Lord
of all, benevolent, divine, and worthy of praise"; tam viSva rUpam
bhava-bhUtam IDyam" (6.4) - He Who has the Universe as His form, He who
is the cause of all origin and existence, and who is praiseworthy".    


b) SrI Samkara's interpretation is: sarvaih stUyate, na stotA kasyacit
iti stavyah - He who is praised by everyone, but who does not need to
praise anyone.  SrI cinmayAnanda adds that "all the jIva-s invoke Him,
but He does not invoke the jIva-s".  

SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN comments that He is stavyah or worthy of
praise because it is easy to praise His infinite kalyANa guNa-s through
mere use of words - vAg-vyApAreNaiva samArAdhyatvAt nitya kalyANa
guNakatayA stotum arhah stavyah.

The dharma cakram writer gives some examples of the way the AzhvAr-s
have praised Him: uyarvaRa uyar nalam uDaiyavan, mayrvaRa madi nalam
aruLbavan, amarargaL adipati, nalam tarum Sollai nAn kaNDu koNDEn
nArAyaNA ernnum nAmam, acyutA amarar Eru, Ayar tam kozhundu,Â… etc.  
But He is not fully described by any of these; these are just some
limited ways through which His true devotees have enjoyed Him.  
Knowing the inner meaning of songs in praise of Him and singing them,
nAma japam, meditating on Him, dedicating all that we do to Him, etc.,
are among the different ways in which He can be praised. 

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan


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