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Sri PVP vyakhyanam of Prathama Jitante stotram shlokam 8.

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M.N.Ramanuja • October 24, 2002 


Sri PVP vyakhyanam of Prathama Jitante stotram shlokam 8.


		Srimate Ramanujaya Nama:

               Sri PeriyaVachchan Pillai tiruvadigaLE sharaNam 


              shrImat kriShNa samAhvAya namO yAmunasUnavE ;

            yatkaTAkShaika lakShyANAm sulabha: shrIdhara: sadA.


**8. aham bhItO (a)smi dEvEsha samsArE (a)smin bhayAvahE.

      pAhi mAm punDarIkAkSha na jAnE sharaNam param. **


Meaning:: --dEvEsha-- Oh head of nithyasUris. --bhayAvahE-- in this 
frightening. --asmin samsArE-- in this samsAra. --aham-- adiyEn. 
--bhItO(a)smi-- am terrified. --punDarIkAkSha-- red-lotus-eyed lord! 
--mAm-- me. --pAhi-- please protect. --param sharaNam-- other means. --na 
jAnE-- I do not know. 


Introduction:: (aham bhItOsmi..) In the previous shlokam, the chetana, 
reiterated the enjoyability in the paramapadam. And because of that 
reiteration, the fear of his incompatibility with this samsAra arose in 
his mind. This shlokam implores the lord to eliminate that fear. After 
all, one who can remove the fear of samsAra, is verily eligible as a 
refuge. Even for a person who has comprehended the samsara inside out, 
this samsAra is a source of  terror. And even for one who has understood 
one's svarUpa (characteristic) inside out, this samsAra is a source of 
fear. Besides, even on reiterating the enjoyability of paramapadam, this 
samsAra is a source of fear. 


Vyakhyanam:: (bhayAvahe asmin samsAre aham) what is samsAra? why is it 
terrifying? The answer is samsAra is but a conglomerate of ignorance 
(avidya),  actions (karma)  trace memory (vasana), taste (for indulgence) 
(ruchi), and bondage to nature (prakriti sambandham). Ignorance is 
misunderstanding. i.e., the feeling of "I"ness in the body that I have 
entered into, and the feeling of "mine"ness in the objects encountered by 
the body as in "anAtmani AtmabuddhiryA asvE svamiti yA mati:" quoted by 
sage Parashara. 
             
                Nammalvar said to himself "yAne ennai ariyagilAdE yAnE 
entanadE enrirundEn" and advised others "nIr numadenrum ivai" . Since 
ahankAram (egoism) smothers servitude (shEshatvam), it is a source of 
fear. mamatA (possessiveness) smothers a sense of enjoyability in matters 
of the God and hence is also a source of fear.  

          Karma has two forms of punya and pApa (merits and sins). 
Sins lead to suffering in hells and hence are terrifying. But how 
is merit terrifying? Merits result in enjoyments in heavens etc. 
Since they nurture ahankAra and mamakAra (egoism and possessiveness) 
which destroy the characteristic of the soul (svarUpa), they are 
frightening. Since they encourage one to indulge in 
sense objects like (music) sound sight etc they are frightening. The 
bondage with the body, is terrifying owing to the mental and physical 
afflictions, insults and victimisations by others and uncomfortable 
weathers.  

In the same vein, even traces and tastes are frightening. Why? 
The first Bharata (jada bharata), owing to great interest in the fawn at 
the stage of samAdhi (last stage of yoga), was reborn as a deer. Not that 
he had love for a wrong object that gave him rebirth as a deer; it was the 
strong trace (vAsana) of memory as the protector of the fawn, that 
resulted in the rebirth. Hence, even traces and interests are dangerous. 
Just like 'drishti viSham' (seeing itself is poisonous), ruchi or interest 
is poisonous and dangerous. That is, for the  samsAris, seeing itself is 
dangerous, just as for a moth which by its ego, seeing a flame and taking 
it as light, voluntarily falls into it and burns itself.  "bhUmau 
nipAtyamAno(a)drE: antarAstE svapanniva"  just like a man on a long fall 
from a mountain onto the ground, falls asleep on the way oblivious or 
unaware of the impending crash.  Similarly the people of samsAra please 
themselves with pleasures not bothering about the impending  calamity. 
Just as in "nalam antamilladOr nAdu", an entire vibhUti, vaikuntham, is a 
total happiness, this samsAra is fully submitted to fearsome nature. 

(aham bhItO(a)smi ) having realised the samsAra as a reservoir of endless 
adversities, I am consumed by fear. The use of present tense (asmi) 
implies that I do not see a way out to eliminate the fear. Is there an 
opportunity for the removal of fear?  yes, one who has transferred his 
onus of self-defence to God, would be fearless. But even that transfer of 
onus will not make me fearless. Because of excessive adoration for the 
goal (prApya), if impatience and haste to reach Him are born, one cannot 
contain himself and remain unagitated just with the thought of having 
transferred the onus of protection to Him.  In spite of having full faith 
in Him, as declared in "kaLaikaN maRRilEn"  and "nAgaNai mishai nam pirAn 
sharaNE sharaN namakku", Alvar, realising the enjoyability of that 
promised special land as stated in "anthamil pErinbatthu adiyarOdu 
irundamai", goes ahead later to yell and scream as in "muniyE nAnmuganE" 
for immediate release. 


(dEvEsha) As in "ayarvaRum amararhaL" when You and the nityasUris are 
enjoying in isolation in paramapadam, how can You be indifferent to me who 
is suffering here but nevertheless equally deserving as the nityasUris to 
enjoy Your company? Even mother goddess (pirAtti), staying as She did in 
the terrifying Lanka, groaned "hA rAma! hA lakshmaNa!" as did Alvar in 
"imaiyOr talaivA" and "viNNuLAr perumAnEyo"! 


(mAm pAhi)   Save me, who having realised the enjoyability in paramapadam 
as in "yOgAnAm paramAm siddhim" is hastening for liberation. As in "Ehi 
pashya sharIrANi" (sages to Rama in Aranyakandam) he displays the marks of 
suffering on his body. 


(pAhi) having severed my connection with the body You would take me in the 
path of archirAdi  to that land free from fear. 


(pundarIkAkSha)  please, look at me with your attractive eyes and cool me 
down. There will be great difficulty when I put a lot of effort to remove 
my own fears. If You wish to remove my fears, it will be a very easy job, 
alas. Do You need those qualities of vAtsalya etc (making You a good 
refuge) and jnAna shakti etc (necessary for the attainment of the fruit) 
to save me? Just as, in the first step, You removed my external 
distraction to other objects as stated in "jitante pundarIkAkSha", pray  
remove my fears and save me. 


(na jAnE sharaNam param) I am not aware of any refuge except You. Even 
though the srutis commanded "nididhyAsitavya:" and You, the saviour also 
proclaimed "manmanA bhava madbhakta:",  I am totally unaware of any other 
means. What is the reason behind it?  Because, including the chetana or 
jIvAtma and including  his assistant sense organs, all are totally 
subordinate to You as explained in "namastE(a)stu" and "hriShIkEsha". Even 
God proclaimed "matta: smritir jnAnam apohanam", i.e.,  remembrance, 
knowledge and forgetting are all caused by Me!             

           When the first shlokam is the summary, this shlokam is the 
elucidation of the word "pundarIkAkSha". 


..contd.


Adiyen dasan

Ramanuja






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