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DasAvatAram and NavagrahAs

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Vijayaraghavan Srinivasan • November 25, 1999 


Dear BhaghavatOttamAs:

Shri Sadagopan gave a good account of the NavagrahAs.  There is a raging 
debate at the Buffalo temple whether or not to have a navagraha sannidhy.

His article could not have been more timely.  The people of north India do 
not think it necessary and the people of south India, especially the smArtAs 
are pretty much for it.  This lead me to do a little research on this topic 
and I thought I would share it with you.

The following slOka clearly says that navagrahAs are pleased if we pray to 
the dasAvatAram of EmperumAn.  This slokA very much voices the same 
sentiments as expressed in the Thyagaraja Kruti quoted by Shri Sadagopan.  I 
understand that there is a similar kruti by Purandara Dasa (sakala graha 
pala ninnE sarasijAkshA..).  The slOkA:

RAmAvatAra: sooryasaya, chandrasya yadunAyaka:
NrusimhO bhoomiputrasya, sowmya: sOma sutasya cha,
vAmanO vibudhEndrasya bhargavO bhargavasya cha
koormO bhaskara putrasya, saimhikEyasya sookara:
kEthOr meenAvatArascha yEkEchAnyapi gOcharA:

Based on this pramAnam, it is clear that praying to the dasavatAram of
BhagavAn (by reciting the dasAvatAra stotram of Vedanta Desika) one can get 
rid of one's difficulties caused by dasAbhuktigal.  Specifically:

Lord Matsya :   Ketu
Lord Kurma: Sani
Lord Varaha: Rahu
Lord Narasimha: AngArakan
Lord Vamana:  Guru
Lord Parasurama: Sukran
Lord Rama:  Surya
Lord Balarama: kuligan
Lord Krishna: Chandran
Lord Kalki: budhan

In the vEnkatEsa suprabhata slokam (SooryEndu bhowma..) it says that those 
who seek refuge under the lotus feet of EmperumAn are automatically freed 
from the jurisdiction of navagrahAs.

There is also a slOkA from padukA sahasram (kanaka ruchirA kAvyAkyAtA..) 
that says that pAdukA devi  will shield us from the influences of 
navagrahams.

Incidentally, the Satya Narayana Puja that is done includes a puja for the 
navagrahams.  To the best of my knowledge Sri VaishnavAs  do not perform 
Shri Satya Narayana Puja.  This belongs to the category of Vara Lakshmi 
Vratam etc. that are not performed by Sri VaishnavAs.

Now here is a clarification I seek from Dr. Parthasarathy (through Shri 
Sadagopan).  From one of the Lifco publications (Stotra Malai) Tirupati is 
listed as the navagraha kshEtram for chandran and Srirangam for shukran. 
There is also some difference in other kshEtrAs but they are all under the 
category of Siva kshEtrAs.   There appears to be some variation from what 
Dr.Parthasarathy had written and what is in the LifcO publication.

S.  Vijayaraghavan
Buffalo, NY
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