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Vishnu sahasranama

The Vishnu sahasranama is a list of 1,000 names (sahasranama) of Vishnu, one of the main forms of God in Hinduism and the personal supreme God forVaishnavas (followers of Vishnu). It is also one of the most sacred and commonly chanted stotras in Hinduism. The Vishnu sahasranama as found in the Mahabharata is the most popular version of the 1000 names of Vishnu. Each name eulogizes one of His countless great attributes. The Vishnu sahasranama has been the subject of numerous commentaries. Adi Shankaracharya wrote a definitive commentary on the sahasranama in the 8th century, which is the oldest and has been particularly influential for many schools of Hinduism even today.Parasara Bhattar, a follower of Ramanujacharya wrote a commentary in the 12th century, detailing the names of Vishnu from a Vishishtadvaita perspective. Madhvacharya also wrote a commentary on Vishnu sahasranama, disclosing that each name in the sahasranama has a minimum of 100 meaning. Upon being challenged by the audience during his time, Sri Madhvacharaya not only gives 100 meanings for each of the Vishnu sahasranama but also expands on each of the meanings making it a multi-fold complexity and displays an outspoken quality to hold and explain the real and deep hidden meaning of sahasranama.

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g to the epic Mahabharata, the names were handed down to Yudhisthira by the arrior Bhishma who was on his death bed (of arrows) in the battlefield of Kurukshetra. Yudhisthira hma the following questions:

iverse Who is the one refuge for all? Who is the greatest Lord in the world? By glorifying whom can h the Auspiciousness (peace and prosperity)? By worshipping whom can a man reach auspiciousness nd prosperity)?What is, in thy opinion, the Greatest Dharma of all Dharmas? By chanting of whose n creatures go beyond the bonds of samsra?
Bhisma answers by stating that mankind will be free from all sorrows by chanting the Vishnu sahasranama' which are the thousand names of the all-pervading Supreme Being Vishnu, who is the master of all the worlds, the supreme light, the essence of the universe and who is Brahman. All matter animate and inanimate reside in him and he in turn resides within all matter. Etymology In Sanskrit, sahasra means "a thousand" and nama means "name". The compound is of the Bahuvrihi type and may be translated as "having a thousand names". Interpretations There are Sahasranama for many forms of God (Vishnu, Shiva, Ganesha, Shakti, and others). The Vishnu Sahasranama is popular among common Hindus, and a major part of prayer for devout Vaishnavas, or followers of Vishnu. While Vaishanvas venerate other deities, they believe that the universe, including the other divinities such as Shiva and Devi, is ultimately a manifestation of the Supreme Lord Vishnu. Followers of Shaivism similarly give prominence to Shiva. Interestingly, despite the existence of other sahasranamas of other forms of God, referring a sahasranama as "The Sahasranama," generally refers to the Vishnu Sahasranama alone, thereby indicating its wide popularity. Smarta interpretations

In fact, the Shri Rudram, one of the most sacred prayers for Hindus and Shaivites in particular, describe Vishnu as an aspect of Shiva in the fifth anuvaka. Likewise, two of the names in Vishnu sahasranama that refer to Shiva are "Shiva" (names #27 and #600 in Adi Sankara's commentary) itself, "Shambhu" (name #38), "Eesanah" (name #64), and "Rudra" (name #114). Most notably, Adi Shankara, according to one interpretation, has not interpreted these to mean that the deity Shiva and the deity Vishnu are the same. Specifically, he asserts that the deity Vishnu is Brahman itself (not just an aspect of Brahmam). Again, he notes that "only Hari (Vishnu) is eulogized by names such asShiva", a position consistent with interpretations of the Srivaishnavite commentator Parasara Bhattar. Parasara Bhattar had interpreted Shiva to mean a quality of Vishnu, such as "One who bestows auspiciousness." However, this interpretation of the name Shiva has been challenged by Swami Tapasyananda's translation of Sankara's commentary on the Vishnu sahasranama. He translates the 27th name, Shiva to mean:" One who is not affected by the three Gunas of Prakrti, Sattva,Rajas,and Tamas; The Kaivalaya Upanishad says, "He is both Brahma and Shiva." In the light of this statement of non-difference between Shiva and Vishnu, it is Vishnu Himself that is exalted by the praise and worship of Shiva." Based on this commonly held Advaitan point of view which has been adopted by Smartas, Vishnu and Shiva are viewed as the one and the same God, being different aspects of preservation and destruction respectively. As many Sanskrit words have multiple meanings it is possible that both Vishnu and Shiva share names in this instance. For example, the name Shiva itself means "auspicious" which could also apply to Vishnu. The deity of Harihara in particular is worshipped by Shaivites as a combination of both personalities. Vaishnava interpretations However, the Vaishnava commentator, Parasara Bhattar, a follower of Ramanujacharya has interpreted the names "Shiva" and "Rudra" in Vishnu sahasranama to mean qualities or attributes of Vishnu, and not to indicate that Vishnu and Shiva are one and the same God. Vaishnavas worship Vishnu in his four-armed form, carrying conch, disc, flower and mace in his hands, believing that to be the Supreme form. However, Smarthas do not subscribe to this aspect or personification of God, as Smarthas say that God is pure and thus devoid of form. Additionally, they believe that God is not limited by time nor limited by shape and color. Vaishnava traditions are of the opinion that Vishnu is both unlimited and yet still capable of having specific forms, as to give arguments to the contrary (to say that God is incapable of having a form) is to limit the unlimitable and all-powerful Supreme. In the Sri Vaishnava tradition, the Bhagavad-gita and the Vishnu Sahasranama are considered the two eyes of spiritual revelation. In other Vaishnava traditions too, the Vishnu Sahasranama is considered an important text. Within Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Vallabha sampradaya, Nimbarka sampradaya and among Ramanandis, the chanting of the names of Krishna and Rama to be superior to that of Vishnu. Based on another verse in the Padma Purana which says that the benefit of chanting the one thousand names of Vishnu can be derived from chanting one name of Rama, and a verse in the Brahma Vaivarta Purana equating the benefit of chanting three names of Rama with one name of Krishna. However, it is important to realize that those verses in those puranas are not to be interpreted literally, as many believe that there is no difference between Vishnu and Krishna. This theological difference can be expressed as follows: Many Vaishnava groups recognize Krishna as an Avatar of Vishnu, while others, instead, consider Him to be svayam bhagavan, or the original form of the Lord. Yet these verses can be interpreted as it is more important to have pure bhakti or devotion than merely repeating the many names of God without emotion. Indeed, Shri Krishna Himself said, "Arjuna, One may be desirous of praising by reciting the thousand names. But, on my part, I feel praised by one shloka. There is no doubt about it.

Interpretations alluding to the power of God in controlling karma Many names in the Vishnu Sahasranama, the thousand names of Vishnu allude to the power of God in controlling karma. For example, the 135th name of Vishnu, Dharmadhyaksha, in Sankara's interpretation means, "One who directly sees the merits (Dharma) and demerits (Adharma), of beings by bestowing their due rewards on them." Merits of Recitation Believers in the recitation of the Sahasranama claim that it brings unwavering calm of mind, complete freedom from stress and brings eternal knowledge. A translation of the concluding verses (Phalasruti) of Vishnu sahasranama, state the following: "Nothing evil or inauspicious will befall a man here or hereafter who daily hears or repeats these names.. Whichever devoted man, getting up early in the morning and purifying himself, repeats this hymn devoted to Vasudeva, with a mind that is concentrated on Him, that man attains to great fame, leadership among his peers, wealth that is secure and the supreme good unsurpassed by anything. He will be free from all fears and be endowed with great courage and energy and he will be free from diseases. Beauty of form, strength of body and mind, and virtuous character will be natural to him.... One who reads this hymn every day with devotion and attention attains to peace of mind, patience, prosperity, mental stability, memory and reputation.... Whoever desires advancement and happiness should repeat this devotional hymn on Vishnu composed by Vyasa....Never will defeat attend on a man who adores the Lotus-Eyed One (Kamala Nayana), who is the Master of all the worlds, who is birthless, and out of whom the worlds have originated and into whom they dissolve." In orthodox Hindu tradition, a devotee should daily chant the Upanishads, Gita, Rudram, Purusha Sukta and Vishnu sahasranama. If one cannot do all this on any day, it is believed that chanting Visnu sahasranama alone is sufficient. Vishnu sahasranama can be chanted at any time, irrespective of gender. Varahi Tantra says that in the age of Kali yuga, most stotras are cursed by Parashurama and hence are ineffective. While listing the ones which are free from this curse and hence suitable during Kali Yuga, it is said, "Gita of the Bhishma Parva, Vishnu Sahasranama of Mahabharata and Chandika Saptashati' (Devi Mahatmyam) are free from all Doshas and grant fruits immediately in Kali Yuga." It is customary to commence the Vishnu sahasranama with a devotional prayer to Vishnu. Quotes about Vishnu Sahasranama Vishnu sahasranama is the essence of the Mahabharata; Great sages such as Narada, the Alvars, and composers including Saint Tyagaraja have made repeated references to the "Thousand Names of Vishnu" in their devotional works; The person who strung together the thousand names as part of the Mahabharata and preserved it for the world was none other than Sage Veda Vyasa, the foremost knower of the Vedas, who is considered an Avatar of Vishnu; Bhishma considered chanting of the Vishnu sahasranama the best and easiest of all dharmas, or the means to attain relief from all bondage;

It is widely accepted that the chanting this Stotram gives relief from all sorrows and leads to happiness and peace of mind; Vishnu sahasranama is in conformity with the teachings of the Gita." Adi Sankaracharya, the Advaita enlightened master, in verse 27 of his hymn, Bhaja Govindam, said that the Gita and Vishnu sahasranama should be chanted and the form of the Lord of Lakshmi, Vishnu should always be meditated on. He also said that the Sahasranama bestowed all noble virtues on those who chanted it. Parasara Bhattar, a follower of Ramanujacharya had said that Vishnu sahasranama absolves people of all sins and has no equal. Madhvacharya, the Dvaita philosopher, said that the Sahasranama was the essence of the Mahabharata which in turn was the essence of the Shastras and that each word of the Sahasranama had 100 meanings. Lord Shiva addressed his wife, Parvati: sri rama rama rameti rame rame manorame sahasranama tat tulyam rama nama varanane "O Varanana (lovely-faced woman), I chant the holy name of Rama, Rama, Rama and thus constantly enjoy this beautiful sound. This holy name of Ramachandra is equal to one thousand holy names of Lord Vishnu." Brahmanda Purana said: sahasra-namnam punyanam, trir-avrttya tu yat phalam ekavrttya tu krsnasya, namaikam tat prayacchati "The pious results (punya) achieved by chanting the thousand holy names of Vishnu (Vishnu sahasra nama stotram) three times can be attained by only one utterance of the holy name of Krishna." Shri Krishna Himself said: yommAm nama sahasrena stotum icchati pandava sohamekena shlokena stuta eva na samshaya "Arjuna, One may be desirous of praising by reciting the thousand names. But, on my part, I feel praised by one shloka. There is no doubt about it. From the oldest scriptural text in Hinduism, the Rig Veda; it states: "O ye who wish to gain realization of the Supreme Truth, utter the name of "Vishnu" at least once in the steadfast faith that it will lead you to such realization."

Benefits of chanting Vishnu Sahasranama The following lines are from the Mahabharata and are quoted portions from the text. Believers believe that regular chanting of the hymn can accrue benefits. On avoiding evil, success in battles, and gaining affluence, pleasure, happiness and offspring: vedantago brahmanasyat kshatriyo vijayeebhavet vaishyo dhanasamrudhyasyat shudra sukhamavapniyat Bhisma said, "Even thus have I recited to thee, without any exception, the thousand excellent names of the high-souled Kesava whose glory should always be sung. Anyone who hears the names every day or who recites them every day, never meets with any evil either here or hereafter. If a Brahmana does this he succeeds in mastering the Vedanta; if a Kshatriya does it, he is always successful in battles. A Vaisya, by doing it, becomes possessed of affluence, while a Sudra earns great happiness." If one becomes desirous of earning the merit of righteousness, one succeeds in earning it (by hearing or reciting these names). If it is wealth that one desires, one succeeds in earning wealth (by acting in this way). So also the man who wishes for enjoyments of the senses succeeds in enjoying all kinds of pleasures, and the man desirous of offspring acquires offspring (by pursuing this course of conduct)." On acquiring fame, prosperity, prowess, energy, strength, beauty, removing fear, avoiding calamity, and being cured of disease: "That man who with devotion and perseverance and heart wholly turned towards him, recites these thousand names of Vasudeva every day, after having purified himself, succeeds in acquiring great fame, a position of eminence among his kinsmen, enduring prosperity, and lastly, that which is of the highest benefit to him (viz., emancipation Moksha itself). Such a man never meets with fear at any time, and acquires great prowess and energy. Disease never afflicts him; splendour of complexion, strength, beauty, and accomplishments become his. The sick become hale, the afflicted become freed from their afflictions; the frightened become freed from fear, and he that is plunged in calamity becomes freed from calamity. " The man who hymns the praises of that foremost of Beings by reciting His thousand names with devotion succeeds in quickly crossing all difficulties. That mortal who takes refuge in Vasudeva and who becomes devoted to Him, becomes freed of all sins and attains to eternal Brahman. They who are devoted to Vasudeva have never to encounter any evil. They become freed from the fear of birth, death, decrepitude, and disease." On acquiring righteousness and intelligence, and avoiding the sins of evil: "That man who with devotion and faith recites this hymn (consisting of the thousand names of Vasudeva) succeeds in acquiring felicity of soul, forgiveness of disposition, Prosperity, intelligence, memory, and fame. Neither wrath, nor jealousy, nor cupidity, nor evil understanding ever appears in those men of righteousness who are devoted to that foremost of beings. The firmament with the sun, moon and stars, the welkin, the points of the compass, the earth and the ocean, are all held and supported by the prowess of the high-souled Vasudeva. The whole mobile and immobile universe with the deities, Asuras, and Gandharvas, Yakshas, Uragas and Rakshasas, is under the sway of Krishna."

On the origins of the soul, the source of righteous behavior, and the basis of all knowledge and existence: "The senses, mind, understanding, life, energy, strength and memory, it has been said, have Vasudeva for their soul. Indeed, this body that is called Kshetra, and the intelligent soul within, that is called the knower of Kshetra, also have Vasudeva for their soul. Conduct (consisting of practices) is said to be the foremost of all topics treated of in the scriptures. Righteousness has conduct for its basis. The unfading Vasudeva is said to be the Lord of righteousness. The Rishis, the Pitris, the deities, the great (primal) elements, the metals, indeed, the entire mobile and immobile universe, has sprung from Narayana. Yoga, the Sankhya Philosophy, knowledge, all mechanical arts, the Vedas, the diverse scriptures, and all learning, have sprung from Janardana. Vishnu is the one great element or substance which has spread itself out into multifarious forms. Covering the three worlds, He the soul of all things, enjoys them all. " His glory knows no diminution, and He it is that is the Enjoyer of the universe (as its Supreme Lord). This hymn in praise of the illustrious Vishnu composed by Vyasa, should be recited by that person who wishes to acquire happiness and that which is the highest benefit (viz., emancipation). Those persons that worship and adore the Lord of the universe, that deity who is inborn and possessed of blazing effulgence, who is the origin or cause of the universe, who knows no deterioration, and who is endued with eyes that are as large and beautiful as the petals of the lotus, have never to meet with any discomfiture."

Introduction It is interesting to contemplate on the circumstances under which Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram came into existence. Yudhishthira, the eldest of the five Pandavas, was mentally depleted because of the war with the Kauravas and the misery of death and suffering that was created by the war in which he had been a major player. Bhishma, his dear grandfather, was lying on his deathbed. With his passing away, his irreplaceable wisdom, based on the experiences of his long life of virtue, righteousness and devotion, was about to be lost to the world. Sage Vyasa and Sri Krishna advised Yudhishthira, who himself was an epitome of righteousness and virtue, to seek the advice of Bhishma on any and all aspects of life on which he had any doubts. Yudhishthira did as advised, and a series of dialogs ensued between the two, witnessed by Lord Krishna Himself, and by other great sages including Vedavyasa. In one of these sessions, Yudhishthira sought Bhishma's advice on the easiest and best means by which mankind can attain lasting happiness, peace of mind, and relief from all bondage and sorrows. This was the setting in which Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram was imparted, with the welfare of future generations also in mind, by Bhishma to Yudhishthira, as part of the advice given by Bhishma in response to the above question. The Composition The following sloka in the prolog to Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram identifies some important aspects pertaining to the composition of the stotram: vishnor nama sahasrasya vedavyaso mahamunih | chandonustup tatha devo bhagavan devaki sutah ||

Sri Vedavyasa is the rishi of Sri Vishnu's one thousand names, i.e., the sage who strung together the thousand names as they were revealed by Bhishma to Yudhishthira. Anushtup (eight syllables per quarter) is its meter. Lord Krishna, the son of Devaki, is the Lord being worshiped. There are over forty commentaries on Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram. Sri Adi Sankara's commentary is the earliest of them. Sri Parasara Bhatta, a disciple of a disciple of Sri Ramanuja, has written a detailed commentary. Sri Satyasandha Yatiswara from the Dvaita school is another prominant commentator. Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram, along with the Bhagavad Gita, is an integral part of the epic Mahabharata composed by Sage Vedavyasa (Vyasa is also the one who organized the vedas into the classifications as we know them today). Of all the commentaries written by Sri Sankara for our religious scriptures (the Bhagavad Gita, the Brahma Sutras, etc.), that on Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram was the very first one. Sri Sankara emphasizes the importance of reciting the Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram in his Bhaja Govindam (geyam gita nama sahasram...). Six reasons are generally identified for the greatness of the Stotram. These are: 1. It is the essence of the Mahabharata. 2. Sages such as Narada, the Alwars, and composers including Saint Tyagaraja have made repeated references to the "Thousand Names of Vishnu" in their devotional works. 3. The person who strung together the thousand names as part of the Mahabharata and preserved it for the world was none other than Sage Vedavyasa, the foremost knower of the vedas, and considered an incarnation of Vishnu (vyasaya vishnu rupaya vyasa rupaya vishnave namo...). 4. It is the considered opinion of Bhishma that it is the best and easiest of all dharmas, or the means to attain relief from all bondage. 5. It is widely accepted that the chanting of this Stotram gives relief from all sorrows and leads to happiness and peace of mind. 6. It is in conformity with the teachings of the Bhagavad Gita, Narayaneeya, etc. The above reasons given to illustrate the importance of Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram become all the more obvious when we recount the personalities involved in the events that resulted in the stotram. It was no ordinary person's advice that was sought. No ordinary person was seeking the advice, and at no ordinary person's urging was the advice being sought. Bhishma was the son of the Mother Ganga and a person sanctified by his unswerving devotion to Lord Krishna, and one who had controlled and conquered all his senses. Yudhishthira was the son of Dharma, and himself a practitioner of justice, righteousness, truth, honesty and integrity. Vyasa was the knower of all vedas. Lord Krishna was a witness to the whole event involving the advice and revelation of the easiest and best means to achieve happiness and peace of mind, given by Bhishma to Yudhishthira. As we know, the advice is in the form of Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram. No other justification is needed to recognize the greatness of the education that is imparted to the human race through the medium of Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram by Vyasa and Bhishma. The Organization Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram as printed for chanting purposes consists of three sections: A prolog, which gives the background on why the Stotram was imparted to the great and just Yudhishthira by Bhishma. The thousand names of Vishnu, organized in a poetic format in 107 stanzas, in the anushtup chandas, (a meter with eight syllables in a quarter), with two quarters per line, and two lines per stanza. The phala sruti, or a recounting of the benefits that can accrue by chanting the Stotram. The above is the typical organization of many stotrams, for example, the Lakshmi Ashtottara Satanama Stotram with which many of us are familiar.

The Prolog In the introductory part of the Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram, Yudhishthira asks Bhishma six questions, related to how mankind can attain happiness. These are contained in two stanzas starting with "kim ekam daivatam loke" in the Stotram. These questions are: Who is the One (Supreme) Deity? What is the highest goal of life? By praising which Deity's auspicious qualities will human beings attain prosperity in this world as well as bliss in the next? By meditating on which Deity will human beings attain prosperity in this world as well as bliss in the next? By reciting which mantra will man be released from the bondage of the cycle of birth and death? Of the three means referred to above (i.e., recitation, praise or archana, and meditation), which is the best means for attaining the grace of the Supreme Deity based on your vast experience and knowledge? Bhishma's response to the above questions follows in the next ten stanzas. In his considered opinion, a person tides over all the sorrows in this world by reciting with undiluted devotion the Thousand Names of the Eternal Person, worshiping Him always with devotion, meditating upon Him, glorifying Him, saluting Him by prostrating before Him, and adoring Him (dhyayan, stuvan, namasyamsca, yajamanas tameva ca). Bhishma adds that of all the dharmas, the dharma or practice involving service done to the Lotus-eyed Lord Krishna, without any desire for benefit, through worship (archana) and hymnal praise (stava), is the best dharma. Note that praising is easy, involving only speech, and does not involve any material sacrifice or bodily exertion. It is open to all, and does not need help from, or dependence on, others. Other kinds of worship might require money or other resources to perform the worship, or the need to impose on other people for their involvement (e.g., a priest to give instructions on the method of worship etc.). For the purpose of chanting the name of God, there is also no constraint on the asrama (i.e., brahmacharya, grihasta, etc.) to which a person belongs, unlike, for example, the constraints that the vedas place in performing the ceremonial rites with sacrificial fire. There is also no requirement regarding time, place, status of purity, etc., for the chanting of the stotram. The key element of the act of chanting as a means to attain the Lord's grace is the sincerity and purity of mind, and there is no other constraint or consideration. In summary, Yudhishthira asks Bhishma: "Given my despair and sorrowful state of mind, I want to expend the least effort and get the most benefit out of it, viz. relief from my despair. Please tell me the means for this." And Bhishma's response is "Chant the thousand names of Lord Krishna WITH DEVOTION. This does not require any effort other than the willingness to chant. This is the best way to get relief from all miseries, sorrows, and sins". The Thousand Names The word sahasra in the title of the Stotram means "one thousand". The main body of Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram consists of 107 stanzas which contain the thousand names of Sri Maha Vishnu. Every one of the Thousand Names in Vishnu Sahasranamam is full of significance in that it refers to one particular quality, guna, characteristic or attribute of Paramatma. (yani namani gaunani, where the emphasis is that each name is indicative of a guna of Vishnu). One could legitimately ask the question: Why were these 1000 names chosen? Does the Parama Purusha get absolutely defined by these thousand names? The obvious answer is that God is Infinite and

Indescribable, and can only be experienced, but cannot be translated into words and communicated from one to another. The vedas conclude that God is neither accessible to words nor to mind (yato vacho nivartante aprapya manasa saha - Taittiriya Upanishad). In Isavasya Upanishad, it is said that you cannot reach (understand) the Paramatma with the human mind (reasoning) alone even if you spend all your life. This holds true even though mind can travel (think) faster than anything known to us, including the speed of light (anejadekam manaso javiyo.... ). Given this Infinite nature of the Paramatma who is not governed or constrained by any of the physical laws as we know them, the choice of a thousand names of Vishnu by Bhishma should be recognized as a representation of some of the better-known qualities of Sriman Narayana that are repeatedly described in our great epics, vedas, puranas, etc., and sung by the devout sages repeatedly. As was indicated earlier, the thousand names are strung together in a poetic form by Sri Vedavyasa. While identifying the thousand names of Narayana from this poetic composition describing the qualities of the Infinite Paramatma, the different revered acharyas have come up with slightly differing sets of thousand names. This is partly because of the ability of these great acharyas to be able to enjoy the indescribable Parama Purusha in their own ways, based on the unique philosophies which they have propounded. Of the thousand names, some are repeated: For example, in Sri Parasara Bhattar's choice of the thousand names, two names occur four times, 12 names occur three times, and 82 names occur twice. When a name occurs more than once, the revered commentators have interpreted the meaning of the name differently in each instance depending on the context in which the name occurs. They have also quoted extensive evidence from ancient scriptures in support of their interpretation. The commentators have emphasized that the recurrence is not the result of a dosha (deficiency of being repetitive) in the composition The Benefits As was pointed out earlier, traditionally our prayers end with a phala sruti - a section on the benefits of reciting the prayer. The Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram is no exception. The necessity of cleansing our body regularly to maintain our physical hygiene and good health is recognized by every one. But perhaps because we do not "see" our mind the same way as we see our body (i.e., as an externally visible entity), the necessity of keeping our minds clean is not as clearly recognized. However, those who do not "cleanse" their mind on a regular basis become "mentally" sick over a period of time, just as they become physically sick if they do not cleanse their body on a regular basis. Prayers are a means to mental cleansing when they are chanted with sincerity and devotion. This aspect of the usefulness of prayers in everyone's life is common to all prayers. The importance of Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram is that the deity being worshipped is none other than Vasudeva (sri maha vishnuh paramatma sriman narayano devata; saktir devaki nandanah; itidam kirtaniyasya kesavasya mahatmanah namnam sahasram divyanam aseshena prakirtitam; sahasram vasudevasya namnam etat prakirtayet, etc.). Sri Vyasa points out that it is by the power and command of Vasudeva that the sun, the moon, the stars, the world, and the oceans are controlled (sa chandrarka nakshatra kham diso bhur mahodadhih vasudevasya viryena vidhrtani mahatmanah). The whole universe of the Gods, Asuras, Gandharvas, etc., is under the sway of Lord Krishna (sasurasura gandharvam ....). In Bhishma's expert judgment, chanting Vasudeva's name with devotion and sincerity will ensure relief from sorrows and bondage. This in a nutshell is the phala sruti or the benefit of chanting Sri Vishnu Sahasranamam.

Some have held the view that the phala sruti need not be, or even should not be chanted, because they somehow feel that it smacks of selfish desires. This is not consistent with the age-old practices of our ancestors. It is true that the phala sruti says that anything that is desired can be obtained if the prayer is sincere and offered with devotion. However, it is up to those who seek benefits through prayers that they should seek things that elevate them in life rather than lower them. An example of the latter type is the case of the evil king Ravana, who had prayed and obtained enormous powers through his prayers to Lord Siva. In the end, he lost all he had including himself by the misuse of his powers. The phala sruti in Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram was not just an add-on by someone trying to popularize the Stotram, but is an integral part of the Mahabharata text. Both Sri Sankara and Sri Parasara Bhatta have written commentaries to the phala sruti slokas. Thus, what is stated in the phala sruti has its authority from those who are worthy of great respect from us, and who have found it fit to comment and elaborate on the advice and information given to us through the phala sruti. Perhaps the most important of the benefits attained by one who chants the Stotram with devotion and sincerity is the cleansing of one's mind from all evil thoughts, and this is a very important and desirable benefit since this is the first step towards achieving pure happiness and absolute bliss. Firmness of mind, good memory, happiness of the self (inner happiness), and freedom from anger, jealousy, and greed, are some of the benefits that accrue to one who recites the stotram with devotion and eagerness. The key is the sincerity of purpose and devotion. The person who chants or recites is not the only one who benefits. Those who for whatever reason are unable to chant, benefit by just hearing the chanting (ya idam srunuyan nityam ....). Importance of Chanting Some might say that they do not understand the meaning of the Sanskrit words in the stotram and therefore do not feel comfortable chanting it. Sri Chandrasekhara Saraswathi Swami has given us his guidance on this issue in one of his discourses. He advises us that learning the chanting of prayers even without knowing the meaning is a worthwhile act, and can be compared to finding a box of treasure without the key. As long as we have the box, we can open it whenever we get the key of knowledge later, but the treasure will be already there. Some could feel that they do not know the correct pronunciation, and so do not want to chant incorrectly. H. J. Achar, in his book "Sri Vishnu Sahasranama - A Study", H.J. Achar, Sharada Press, Mangalore, 1972, has given the analogy of a mother to whom a child goes and asks for an orange. The child does not know how to pronounce the word "orange", and so asks for "ange". The mother does not turn away the child and does not refuse to give the child the orange just because the child does not know how to pronounce the word. It is the spirit or bhava that matters, and so as long as one chants the name of God with sincerity, considerations such as not knowing the meaning, not knowing the pronunciation, etc., do not matter, and God who is the Mother of all of us will confer His blessings on us. The Final Word Sage Vedavyasa concludes the Stotram with the assertion - twice stated - that there is no way a devotee of Vishnu can meet with any dishonor or disgrace of any kind (na te yanti parabhavam - ne te yanti parabhavam om nama iti). If this is not worth striving for, with as little investment as the mere chanting of the thousand names of Vishnu with sincerity, then nothing else is worth striving for. Those interested in more information may refer to the following works. "Sri Vishnu Sahasranama with the Bhashya of Sri Parasara Bhattar, with Translation in English", A. Srinivasa Raghavan, Sri Visishtadvaita Pracharini Sabha, Madras, 1983.

"Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram", Keelathur Srinivasachariar, The Little Flower Co., Madras, Reprinted 1981. "Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram", C. V. Radhakrishna Sastri, C. Venkatarama Sastri Trust, 1986. In the previous write-up, I had presented the view that it is beneficial to chant Sri Vishnu Sahasra NAma Stotram even if we do not know the meaning, even if we do not know the correct pronunciation, etc. In the current and subsequent articles, I am going to attempt to present the meanings of the Names occurring in Sri Vishnu Sahasra NAmam. One can legitimately ask the question: Why spend our time to learn the meanings, when the benefit of chanting is obtained anyway even without knowing the meanings? In fact, one of our devotees had sent me mail privately earlier, referring to the sloka that occurs in the phala sruti portion: sri rAma rAma rAmeti rame rAme manorame sahasra nAma tat tulyam rAma nAma varAnane (As stated by Lord Siva to PArvati - if you just chant the name "rAma", it is equivalent to chanting the 1000 names of Sri MahA Vishnu"). Sri Bhattar very nicely gives the explanation on why it is desirable to delve into an analysis of the meanings behind the Names: "Names pronounced merely and without knowledge of their meanings is beneficial (upakAriNAmapi), but revelation through etymological interpretation quickly affords DELIGHT TO MIND AND PURITY TO HEART (mana: prAsanatvam pAvanatvam ca). Sri Bhattar also refers to the chapters in MahAbhArata relating to the significance in knowing the meanings of the Names in addition to just chanting without knowing the meanings: nAma karmArtavit prApnuyAm purushottamam (Udyoga Parva 59) While I am not proficient in Sanskrit, I certainly derive great mental delight in trying to understand the meanings behind the Names; and in trying to understand the grammatical interpretation behind these Names. The reason for the latter is that it helps one to delve deeper mentally into the guNas of Sri Vishnu and enjoy His qualities even more. In his Bhagavad guNa darpana, Sri Bhattar proceeds to explain the names of MahA Vishnu in accordance with rules of grammar, etymology, and interpretation by the great Sages, with special reference to their significance, context, and propriety. Etymology according to the English dictionaries is the analysis of a word, based on its origin and development, including how the words are formed from their simple roots. Sri Bhattar also indicates in his introduction that even though the same name may occur more than once, its interpretation is different depending on the context in which it occurs, and there is no redundance or repetition in Sri Vishnu SahasranAmam based on the interpretation. In his commentary on Sri Vishnu Sahasra Namam, Sri Bhattar has beautifully traced a thread of connectivity in the sequence of the 1000 names as they occur in the stotram. He has identified an organization and structure in the composition that refers to the guNas of the Lord in the five manifestations in which He has revealed Himself to us, as described in the PancharAtra Agamas. These manifestations are: para, vyuha, vibhava, archa, and antaryAmi. Thus, for instance, Sri Bhattar has noted that the first 122 names in the stotram describe the qualities of the Lord in his para vAsudeva form. The next set of names describe the vyuha forms etc. Thus the names as they occur in the stotram are not just a random collection of names, but have a beautiful thread of organization and structure to them. Sri Bhattar has identified 44 such manifestations of Bhagavan in his exposition. Sri Srinivasachariar, in his editorial introduction to Sri Vishnu

Sahasra Namam published by LIFCO, (1967), describes this beautifully as an arrangement of the petals of a rose 44 layers deep, or a step of stairs with 44 steps leading to the enjoyment of the Supreme. I will not go into the enumeration of these 44 forms at this stage. but will identify these as we go along. The enumeration and the corresponding slokas can be found in the LIFCO publication. A brief introduction to the five types of manifestations of the Lord, to which Sri Bhattar refers in his exposition of the significance of the 1000 names of the Lord, is given below. The para can be viewed as the full and undifferentiated manifestation of the Lord in His complete and resplendent glory in which He has chosen to be unlimited by anything. He does not assume this form as a result of another object, and in this form He is endowed with the fullness of the six qualities - jnAna, bala, aisvarya, vIrya, sakti, teja). In this form, He is the shAdguNya paripUrNa, mahArNava, ni:sima - complete in all respects in the Six qualities, the Great Ocean of all that is perfect, unlimited by anything. Sri Bhattar refers to the sAtvata samhita in explaining the para-vyuha, and vibhava forms. "shAdguNya vigraham devam bhAsvajjvalana tejasam sarvatah pANi pAdam tat iti upakramya param etat samAkhyAtam ekam sarvAsrayam vibhum". "In the para form, the Lord has the body endowed with all six qualities; He shines with intense brilliance and luminosity, and has hands and feet all around. This form is unique, is the support of all, and is all-pervasive". In the vyuha manifestation, the Lord assumes different forms which are rich in some of the Six qualities, with different functions which emphasize these qualities. The vyuha forms can be viewed as the differentiated forms which arise from the para form. The vyuha forms are also referred to as Emanations by the translator of the Bhagavad GuNa darpana, Sri A. Srinivasa Raghavan. In particular, the following vyuha forms are identified: pradyumna - aisvarya and vIrya - function of srshti or creation aniruddha - sakti and tejas - function of sthiti or protection and preservation samkarshaNa - jnAna and bala - function of samhAra or destruction The sAtvata samhita describes the vyuha forms as follows: etat pUrvam trayam ca anyat jnAnAdyaih bheditam guNai: | viddhi etat vyuha samgjnam vai nissreyasa phala pradam || "From this para form emerge three other forms (SamkarshaNa, pradyumna, aniruddha), which are distinguished by the possession of knowledge and other qualities allotted to each one of them, and which bestow these benefits to the devotees". The vibhava is that group of manifestations which are taken by BhagavAn in the form of god, man, animal, etc. (sura, nara, tiryagAdi). Vibhava is of two kinds: mukhya and anuvrtti, also referred to as vibhava and vibhava antara. Vibhava occurs in one of four forms: 1. Some like matsya and kurma are direct manifestations 2. In some incarnations, the Lord enters into the bodies of distinguished sages such as Sri VyAsa.

3. In others, He invests His sakti for some period of time in others. The example of Puranjaya is given here, and we will dwell into the details when we look at the explanation behind the nAma puranjaya later on. 4. There are others in which He manifests Himself in idols as for instance in the arcAvatAra. It seems to me that Sri Bhattar, in his vyAkhyAna, has grouped the arcA form as a subgroup of the vibhava form. I request the bhAgavatas in this group to shed more light on whether I have misunderstood this explanation. Sri Bhattar distinguishes the vibhava form from the Lord's creations such as the four-faced Brahma, who are not manifestations of Bhagavan, but are the creations of Bhagavan. Sri Bhattar refers to the following from the Paushkara samhita to give us an understanding of the difference: jnAnopadeshTA bhagavAn kapilAkshastu adhokshaja: | vidyAmurti: caturvaktro brahmA vai loka pUjita: || tadamsa bhUto vai yasya visva vyanjana lakshaNa: || "The red-eyed BhagavAn, Adhokshaja, is the teacher of all knowledge. The four-faced BrahmA who is the embodiment of learning and who is worshiped by all worlds, is but a tiny amsa (part) of Bhagavan. He is the subordinate of BhagavAn, and he only propounds the knowledge he got from Bhagavan to all in the world". These are distinguished as the prAdurbhAva and prAdurbhAvAntara forms. Here the prAdurbhAva is the adhokshaja form, and the prAdurbhAvAntara is Brahma. It is pointed out that the creations of the Lord such as Brahma, agni, etc., are to be understood at a different level than the manifestations of the Lord in His para, vyuha, and vibhava forms. This is the basis for why those who have been initiated in the worship of acyuta are to worship only Acyuta and not the other gods (prAdurbhAvAnAm ArAdhyatvam .prAdurbhAvAntarANAm ArAdhana nishedhasca). With the above brief introduction, I will attempt to summarize the meanings behind the Names in Sri Vishnu SahasranAmam. The main source I will be using is the Bhagavad guNa darpaNa by Sri Bhattar. I will be using Sri Sankara's commentary as a secondary reference. As I am starting this attempt at learning, I am finding out that just by reading books, and without the aid of an AcArya, it is impossible to gain knowledge. However, this is all what I can do at this stage. My request to all of you is to freely comment on and correct what I am saying because I know that it is full of errors and misinterpretations. With that request which goes without my repeating it for future write-ups as well, I present what I understand for the first of the 1000 names. Sri Bhattar interprets the first 122 nAmas in the stotram as describing the para form of the Lord. Recall that the para form is the all-perfect, undiminuted, absolute, manifestation of the Lord. The description of this form includes all the nAmas starting from visvam and including varArohah in slokam 13. Sri Bhattar views this segment of the stotram as Bhishma's response to YudhisThira's first two questions: kim ekam daivatam loke and kim vApyekam parAyaNam who is the one deity to be worshipped, and what is the supreme goal of attainment. The web-site of SV Temple, Pittsburg, USA contains both Audio and Complete text of Sri Vishnu Sahasranamam and Sri Venkatesa Suprbhatam. The URL of their Stotras site is: http://www.svtemple.org/stotra/stotras.htm

Slokam 1 -

1: visvam 2: VishNu: 3: vashatkAra: 4: bhUta-bhavya-bhavatprabhu: 5: bhUta-krt 6: bhUta-bhrt 7: bhAvah 8: bhUtAtma 9: bhUta-bhAvanah

Nama 1: vishvam a) Universe or Cause of Universe b) One who is full in all respects. Om visvaya namah. The nama is derived from the root vis - to enter. Visvam means "Universe". They say Bhagavan is visvam because He enters all the worlds. Sri Bhattar interprets the term "Worlds" or "Universe" here to denote entirety. He points out that it is quite fitting that the first name of vishnu in Sri vishnu sahasranamam suggests hzis immense glory, the fullness to the brim of His essential nature, form, qualities, etc., which are all natural, unexcelled, auspicious and superior. Sri v.v. ramanujan adds that this completeness is in respect of His rupam, svarupam, gunam, and everything else. He quotes nammazhvar uvaryara uyar nalam udaiyavan. It is to explain this aspect of the fullness of bhagavan in every aspect that the remaining 999 nama-s follow the nama visvam, thus emphasizing the deep meaning embedded into

this first nama as denoting bhagavan's fullness in all respects. Sri Samkara views that bhgavan who is Brahman or the Supreme Person created vivvam and is therefore, called visvam. Brahman is the karta or the Creator here (the Cause), and visvam is the creation or the effect. Because the Cause who is Brahman is being called by the nama visvam which is the effect, this is used by advaitins as an argument to say that effects are nothing different from the Cause, and everything is Brahman. In other words, the argument is advanced that Brahma who is the creation of vishnu, can be praised as an appropriate form of vishnu. Sri Bhattar points out that the two terms, brahman and visvam, should not be taken as referring to their being identical. visvam or Universe is just a mode or extension of bhagavan, as are the other 999 nama-s. Sri v.n. vedanta desikan in his commentary on tiruvaimozhi, observes: "To regard Brahman and World identical is samanadhikaranya to which Azhvar does not subscribe. The world is the prakara or vibhuti of the Lord. He is the cause, sustainer, controller, and the soul of all things and beings". . Sri satyadevo vasishtha interprets the nama visvam or "Universe" as indicating that everything in this Universe came from Him, and also everything in this Universe goes back into Him. So in both senses, He is "visvam". Sri Bhattar points out that it still is a nama of vishnu, representing his guna of absolute fullness and power. Consistent with this, the nama to worship is "visvaya namah" as adopted by the visishtadvaita school. The different anubhava-s of the nama visvam can be summarized as: The nama indicates His Fullness in all respects; the succeeding 999 nama-s all elaborate on this first nama the Fullness of Him in all resepcts. Nothing in the Universe exists without Him, and everything in this Universe ultimately finds refuge in Him, and in this sense also He is visvam or "Universe". 2. VishNu: a) One who permeates everything, is inside every sentient and non-sentient being. b) One who surrounds everything. Om vishNave namah. This nAma occurs again as nAma-s 259 and 663. This nAma can be derived from the root vish - vyAptau - to pervade, or vis - praveSane - to enter. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is - sva vibhUti bhUtam cit acit Atmakam sarvam viSati iti vishNuh. The idea is that keSava exists everywhere and permeates everything that is His Wealth; He is unlimited by space, time, and substance (SrI Samkara); He pervades the whole universe internally and externally. SrI BhaTTar gives the following references in support. viveSa bhUtAni carAcarANi - He entered all beings, movable and immovable tat srshtvA | tadevAnuprAvisat - Having created it, He entered into the same. "vyApya sarvAn imAn lokAn sthitah sarvatra kesava: | tatasca vishNu nAmAsi viserdhAto: pravesanAt || "KeSava exists everywhere having pervaded all these worlds.

Therefore His name is VishNu since the root viS denotes entry i.e., pervasion". Under nAma 259, SrI BhaTTar explains vyApti (pervasion) further, and explains the relation between bhagavAn and the jIva-s as of the nature of the relation between fire and smoke. When there is smoke, there is fire, but the reverse is not always true (as in the case of a red hot iron rod). Thus, bhagavan and the jIva-s are related in the sense that without bhagavAn the jIva-s do not exist. The supreme Person and the jIva-s are never identical, but there is inseparable connection between bhagavAn and the rest. He is greater by virtue of the diverse kinds of help He renders to all who are of a lower order. SrI BhaTTar refers us to the gItA - na tadasti vinA yat syAt mayA bhUtam carAcaram (10.39) - "There is no object, moving or non-moving, which can exist without Me". Another anubhavam of this guNa of vyApti is that it is not just the fact that He is in everything and in inseparably bound to everything, but it is one of His showering everything with His infinite Mercy (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). His sauSIlyam is to be enjoyed here. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj derives the meaning from the root vishu - secane - to sprinkle, to pour out; veshati (si'ncati) bhakta tarUn ASIrvArIbhih iti vishNuh. nammAzhvAr declares: "tiDaviSumberivaLi nIr nilamivaimiSai paDar poruL muzhuvadumAi avai avai torum uDan miSai uyir enak karandu e'ngum paranduLan" (tiruvAimozhi 1.1.7) The Lord created the five elements, and from them He created all others. Indeed He became all others. He pervades everything in and out. He is the Soul for the body of everything and every being. The term "He enters all the worlds" should be understood as "He enters everything in all the worlds". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives another view of the reason why bhagavAn has pervaded everything. It is for the purpose of ensuring that everything is in its designated and assigned place, and things don't come into collision with each other, for example, the different planets and constellations etc. He quotes from the taittirIya AraNyaka, wherein first the question is asked - keneme vidhRte ubhe - "Who is keeping the two things from colliding with each other?", and responds: vishNunA vidhRte bhumI; iti vatsasya vetanA "vishNu is the One who is supporting them with His Sakit; this is the finding of sage vatsa". SrI Samkara gives the following supports for this nAma: antar bahiSca tat sarvam vyApya nArAyaNah sthitah - (mahA nArAyaNa upa. 1.13) nArAyaNa pervades the whole universe externally and internally. "yasmAd vishTam idam sarvam tasya SaktyA mahAtmanah | tasmAd vishNuriti khyAto veSer dhAtoh praveSanAt || (vishNu purANam 3.1.45) "Because the whole world has been pervaded by the energy of the great Self, He is named vishNu, from the root viS - to enter or pervade." vyApte me rodasI pArtha kAntiscApadhikA sthitA | kramaNaccApyaham pArtha! VishNuriti abhisamgj~nita: || (mahAbhA. 350.43) "As I have pervaded the horizons, my glory stands foremost, and as I have measured by my steps the three worlds, O Arjuna! I am named vishNu". SrI anatakRshNa SAstri interprets the term kAnti here as referring to His Effulgence - His radiance pervades

the firmament and transcends it. SrI BhaTTar has given the explanation of the nAma vishNu in terms of His power of pervasion (Sakti) under nAma 663. He refers to the mantra about bhagavAn: sarva SaktyAtmane - He, Who is the embodiment of all powers. He also gives reference to the Slokam: "yasmAd vishTamidam sarvam tasya SaktyA mahAtmanah." given earlier. As an instance of this Sakti, the trivikrama incarnation is also cited - the smRti declares "vishNuh vikramaNAt devah" - mahA bhA. udyoga. 5.68.13), a reference to His name being vishNu because He measured the three worlds with His steps. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr's praise of His Sakti: "ennaik koNDu en pAvam tannaiyum pARak kaittu emar Ezh ezhu piRappum mEvum tan maiyamAkkinAn vallan empirAn en viTTuvE" (tiruvAi. 2.7.4) "He changed me from a nitya samsAri to a nitya sUri; He exterminated all my sins, those of my predecessors and my successors for several generations, so that all of us have reformed to become His. Who did this? VishNu! He will do this because His name implies all-pervasiveness". SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma-s kRtAgamah, anirdeSya vapuh, vishNuh, and vIrah (nAma-s 661 to 664) as indicative of His being the Lord of Sakti. SrI cinmayAnanda refers us to ISAvAsya upanishad: ISAvAsyam idam sarvam yat ki'nca jagatyAm jagat Everything that exists in the universe is nothing but of the nature of the Lord, and without Him nothing exists. He pervades everything, unlimited by space, time, or substance. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives an additional interpretation not found in other vyAkhyAna-s: vi + shNuh = vishNuh - viSesheNa snAvayati prasrAvayati bhakta abhilAshAn iti vishNuh - He who bestows the wishes of the devotees like a fountain. Note that the root from which the second nAma is derived is the same as the root from which the first nAma - viSvam - was derived. However, the interpretation is different. The interpretation here is that BhagavAn has entered all beings - sentient and non-sentient, that He has created. The meaning for the first nAma was that bhagavAn is everything, the Absolute, full in all respects. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan nicely paraphrases the two nAma-s: "a'ngu pUrtiyil nOkku, I'ngu vyAptiyil nOkku". the first nAma emphasizes His Fullness and Perfection, and the second nAma indicates that He permeates everything. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri observes that meditation on the significance of the first two nAma-s - namely that Lord vishNu is in everything around us and in every one of us, and that without Him nothing exists, will lead us closer to a life of peace, tranquillity, ahimsA, and selfless service to Him. Sri Surin, in his commentary on amara KoSa, has given the following derivation for the word VishNu veveshti iti vishNu: - One who surrounds and envelops. This is derived from the root word vesht - to surround (recall the word veshti in Tamil for dhoti, which surrounds!). One interesting question that can be raised is: Given that the stotram is called visNu sahasranAmam, why did Sri VyAsa not start the stotram as vishNur viSvam vashatkAro, and instead chose to start it as viSvam vishNur vashatkAro...?

Based on the SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam, viSvam is the name that symbolizes the primary attribute of the para form as one of shAdguNya paripUrNatva, and vishnu and the following names then elaborate on the name or the guNa represented by the name viSvam. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha rhetorically asks the question: If Lord vishNu is everywhere, in everything, why is it that most of us don't see Him? The key is the SraddhA. SraddhayA vindate vasuh - Rg veda. 10.151.4 SraddhayAgnih samidhyate SraddhayA hUyate havih | SraddhAm bhagasya mUrdhani vacasA vedayAmasi (Rg. 10.151.1) SraddhAm prAtar havAmahe SraddhAm madhyam dinam pari | SraddhAm sUryasya nimruci Sraddhe SraddhApayeha nah | (Rg. 10.151.5) He who is endowed with the sAttavic disposition, or has developed it, keeps seeing vishNu in everything around him all the time. To summarize, - the nAma vishNu refers to the guNa of bhagavAn in pervading everything He has created, including all sentient and non-sentient objects from a blade of grass to brahma; - His pervasion is because of His Sakti; in other words, He is the power behind everything that exists; an instance of His Sakti is illustrated by His measuring the three worlds with His Foot; - His vyApati is indicative of the inseparable relation between Him and everything else outside Him, in the sense that nothing exists without Him. - His pervasion of everything is of the form of His enveloping and showering everything around Him with His Mercy. It is not just His sausIlya that is indicated by this nAma; all His powers including that of creation, sustenance, His Lordship, etc., are to be understood by this nAma. - It is because of His pervasion of everything in this universe that things (for example the constellations, the planets, etc.)., are in their respective positions without colliding with each other. - He is also called vishNu because He bestows the wishes of His devotees profusely like a fountain. Nama 3: vashatkAra: One who controls and directs (not merely pervades). Sri Bhattar interprets the names VishNu, vashatkAra, and bhuta-bhavya-bhavat-prabhu, as additional elaborations of the name visvam. The root of the word is vas - to control as He wills. It should be noted that Sri Bhattar has pointed out in his commentary for visvam that BhagavAn is everywhere with His shAdguNya paripUrNatva WHICH IS NATURAL TO HIM, in the commentary for vishNu that He permeates everything that HE CREATES AND POSSESSES, and in the current one for vashatkAra that He controls AS HE WILLS. Thus, all these guNas are not something that have been acquired or imparted by something external, but this is His will and schema. The following passages from the sruti are given in support of the interpretation of this nAma: * sarvasya vaso sarvasya IsAna: - He is the Controller of all and the Ruler of all. * jagadvase vartatedam - The Universe is under His control. The summarization from Nirukti is svecchayA yo sarvam vase karoti sa: vashatkAra: - One Who controls and directs everything and everyone as He wills.

Sri Sankara provides a very different interpretation for this nAma. He points out that BhagavAn is Himself the vashatkAra mantra, where vashat is a sacred sound (similar to Om, svAhA, etc). used on sacrificial offerings. It is also used in the anganyAsa and karanYasa practice before chanting the sacred slokas (e.g., sahasrArchis saptajihva iti saktyai sikhAyai vashat). Note the similarity of vashatkAra to Om kAra, a word with which we are familiar. VashatkAra is thus a mantra, and BhagavAn is the mantra svarUpi. The explanation in terms of BhagavAn having control over all His creations is appealing because of the continuity it provides to the interpretations of the previous nAmas. Nama 4: bhUta-bhavya-bhavat-prabhu: The Master of all things past, future, and present. Nirukti - trikAla vartinAm seshi - The Lord of all things that exist in the past, present, and future. From the srutis, we have "bhUta-bhavya-bhavan-nAtha: kesava: kesi sUdhana: " - Kesava, the slayer of Kesi, the asura, is the Lord of past, future, and present. The idea that BhagavAn is beyond the physical laws as we know them, such as the laws and constraints of time, can be inferred from this nAma. In order for Him to be the Lord of all things past, future, and present, He existed before anything existed, exists now, and will exist forever into the future. ..Thus the well-known and established physical law that all living things come to an end does not apply to Him. He is beginningless and endless. Sri Bhattar has explained that the nAmas 2, 3, and 4 elaborate the first nAma by indicating how the Allpervading vAsudeva is in everything living and non-living, controls everything, and is the Master of everything past, future, and present. He now proceeds to explain the next 5 nAmas as further expanding on this last aspect - how He is the Master of all things past, future, and present. We will see that this is so because he is the creator of all beings (nama 5), the supporter of all beings (this nAma 6 seems to be further elaborated by nAmas 8 and 9), has existence independent of any other being and as the Lord or Director of all that exist (7), supports all that He has created by being their antaryAmi or inner soul (8), and supports by nourishing them and growing them (9). Nama 5: bhUta-krit The creator of all beings. Sri Bhattar points out that this act of creation of is done by Him without dependence on anything external. "sarvANi bhUtAni svatantra: srjati" - note the word svatantrata: bhutAni karoti iti bhUtakrt - One who creates all the beings. In BrhadAraNya upanishad "sa visvakrt sa hi sarvasya kartA - He is the creator of the Universe and all the beings in the Universe. "tvam kartA sarva bhUtAnAm" - You are the Creator of everything that exists - VishNu PurANa 1-4-15. Nama 6 : bhUta-bhrt

The supporter of all things. BhUtAni Bibharti iti bhUta-bhrt - One who supports all. (seems to be further elaborated by nAmas 8 and 9) Sri Bhattar explains that this support is like that of the support at the center for a wheel and its spokes. If this central support does not exist, the rest of the spokes and the wheel collapse. Thus, one can think of this support as the responsibility for the existence of all the things that He creates. This support is in the form of being the inner soul or atman of all beings (nAma 8 below), and as the One who nourishes and protects all beings (nAma 9 below). Sri Radhakrishna Sastri in his work on Sri VishNu sahasranAma explains this support as that provided by Adi Kurma to support this universe, or by Sri VisNu as varAha mUrti when he retrieved and bore the world. Sri Sankara interprets nAma 6 above as referring to the acts of creation or destruction ("bhUtani krtanti krNoti hinsti iti bhUta krt), and nAma 7 as referring to the act of sustenance, in the context of the three functions of creation, sustenance, and destruction. Nama 7: bhAvah He who exists with all the splendor He who exists always, independent of anything else. This nAma is derived from the root bhU (bhavati - exists). Sri ChinmayAnanda gives the derivation: "bhavati iti bhAva:" Nama 8: bhUtAtma The AtmA or soul of all beings - sarveshAm bhUtAnAm AtmA All things are His body, and He is the soul of all things. The soul enters the bodies, and directly controls and directs all their activities. Sri Sankara gives the following reference from BrhadAraNya Upanishad: esha ta AtmA antaryamyamrtah (3.7.3) The Lord is the soul, the antarYamI or inner ruler of all beings, and amrta or never ceasing to exist. Sri Chinmayananda gives the following reference from Kathopanishad: "eko vasI sarva bhUtAntarArmA rUpam rUpam pratirUpo bahisca" The One Lord manifesting Himself as the souls of all beings who have different external forms. Nama 9: bhUta-bhAvanah One who nourishes and nurtures all beings that He created. The key word that both Sri Bhattar and Sri Sankara use in their vyAkhyAnas for this nAma

is vardhayati - makes them grow - the act of nourishing is emphasized. Sri Bhattar's words are: tAni dhAraka poshaka bhogyapradAnena vardhayati iti bhUta-bhAvanah He is bhUta-bhAvana because He makes all things grow by bestowing on them things that sustain them, nourish them, and contribute to their enjoyment. Sri Sankara bhAshya says: bhUtAni bhAvayati janayati vardhayati iti vA bhUta-bhAvanah He makes them shine (bhA - to shine), generates or invigorates, and makes them grow. With this, we have concluded the first sloka out of the 107 slokas. We notice that Sri Bhattar has beautifully brought out the continuity in the description between the 9 nAmas covered in this first sloka.

Slokam 2 -

10 11 12 13 14 15 16

-pUtAtmA -paramAtmA -muktAnAM paramAgatiH -avyayaH -puruShaH -sAkshI -kshetrajnaH

Nama 10: pUtAtmA The Pure Self - One who is untainted by the effects of karma - good or bad. PUta AtmA yasya sa pUtAtmA One who has the pure Atma is pUtAtmA.

Our Atmas reap the fruits of the actions that we are involved in because of their association with our body. BhagavAn is also associated with the same bodies since we are all extensions of His body. However, He is Pure Atman because He is not affected by the fruits of the association with the bodies. Sri Bhattar gives a very simple example to make this point. A teacher uses a stick to strike a student. Both the teacher and the student .come in contact with the same stick, but the pain of association with the stick is felt by the student, but not by the teacher. So also, even though both the Lord and the jIvAtmans are associated with the bodies of the jIvAtmans, the Lord is not affected by the fruits of the actions of the jIvAtmans. In the Gita, Sri KrshNa says: "na mAm karmANi lipanti" - actions do not taint me. Also, the sruti says: subhAsubah karmabhiryo na lipyati kadAcana - never tainted by actions, good or bad. Nama 11: paramAtmA The Supreme Soul - for whom there is no other guiding or superior soul paro mA asya .sa AtmA paramAtmA That Soul for whom there is none superior is paramAtmA. All of us have Him as our inner souls, but BhagavAn has no one as His Inner Soul that guides Him. There is no one superior to Him. The author of Nirukti says: "Atma IsvaratvAt paramAtmA - One who is the Lord of Himself is paramAtmA. Sri Eknath Easwaran indicates that Lord Krishna says in the Gita: "I am in every one, but no one is in Me". He does not give the reference to the Sanskrit sloka, and I am unable to reference it. I would like help from the Bhakti members in identifying the relevant sloka. There are several pramAnas from the srutis for this: "na param puNdarIkAkshAt drsyate bharatarshabha" There is nothing superior to the Lotus-eyed. "param hi puNdarIkAkshAt na bhUtam na bhavishyati" There was nothing in the past, and there will be nothing in the future, that is superior to the Lotus-eyed Lord. "na daivam kesavAt param: - There is no God superior to Kesava. "matta: para-taram nAnyat kincidasti" Greater than Myself, there is nothing else (GitA 7-7) "param hi amrtam etasmAt visva-rUpAt na vidyate" There is no greater nectar than the Lord of Universal form. "parah parANAm paramah paramAtmA" He is greater than the great; He is superior, and he is the Supreme Soul (visHNu purANa - 1.2.10) "paramAtmA ca sarveshAm AdhAra: paramesvara: | vishNurnAma sarva-vedeshu vedAnteshu ca gIyate || (VishNu purANa 6.4.10) The Isvara above all Isvaras, the paramAtmA who is the supporter of every being, is sung by all vedas and vedantas as Lord VishNu. Nama 12: muktAnAm paramA gatih

One who is the ultimate goal for all muktas or Released or Liberated Souls. Muktas are those who are already released from all bondage, and enjoy every bliss that the BhagavAn has. They have equality with God in the enjoyment of this Bliss. The goal that such a mukta longs for at this stage is to constantly serve the Lord., and thus the Parama purusha is muktAnAm-paramA-gatih. The muktas are .compared to those who reside in the celestial world, the sveta dvIpa. They have no needs such as food, no wants, no desires, etc. For these people who have accomplished everything and who are equal to God in their enjoyment of bliss, the one goal that is of interest is the unceasing servitude to God, and thus God is the Supreme and Ultimate Goal for the muktas. ParamA gati is the goal after attaining which you won't desire anything else. In other words, this is the limit of the goal . Normally, the nature of any goal is such that if you attain .that goal, then you will want to attain the next higher goal. This is not the case with paramA gati. Some pramANas from the srutis are the following: ".....mAmeva anuttamAm gatim" - (They attain) Me, the unsurpassed goal -Bhagavad GItA 7.18 "sA kAshthA sA parA gatih" - He is the highest means; He is the Supreme Goal - kaThopanishad -3.11. Sri Bhattar interprets the next 5 names in terms of why the muktAs choose BhagavAn as their Supreme goal. It should be noted that Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna weave a thread of continuity in the sequence of the names occurring in the stotram, and for this reason Sri Bhattar extends the interpretation to levels beyond what is etymologically derived from the word.. relatively speaking, Sri Sankara seems to more strictly adhere to the literal meaning of the word in his vyAkhyAna. Of course, there are also inevitable differences in interpretation because of the visishtAdvaita vs. advaita philosophies. The reasons for the muktAs choosing Sri MahA VishNu as their Supreme gaol are: He does not send them back to the cycle of samsAra once they reach Him (13), He gives the enjoyment of His Bliss to the muktas in abundance (14), He witnesses the muktas' enjoyment of Him and is in turn pleased, which pleases the muktas (15), He knows the right place for the muktas to get their eternal Bliss (16), and He is one whose Greatness never diminishes over time in spite of the constant Bliss that He provides to the muktas (17). Nama 13:avyayah a) One who does not send back anyone who has reached Him (to the cycle of birth and rebirth .(Sri Bhattar) b) Indestructible (Sri Sankara) Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna na vIyate - na vyapagamyate iti avyayah - He is avyaya because He does not send them back (to samsAra) .In the Yama Smrti, we find the following: "sattvam vahati sUkshmatvAt param nArAyaNam prabhum | paramAtmAnam AsAdya param vaikunTam Isvaram || amrtatvAya kalpeta na nivarteta vai puna:| "

The Mukta bears a body of pure and subtle sattva and attains the Supreme Lord nArAyaNa. Once he reaches the Supreme Lord in the supreme VaikuNTha, he becomes fit for immortality and is not returned back to this world any more. Sri Sankara's vyAkhyAna Sri Sankara gives a different interpretation to this name - Indestructible - based on na asya vyayah iti avyayah, where vyaya means something that can be destroyed. He gives the following pramANa from the BrhadAraNya Upanishad: "ajarah amarah avyayah - He is undecaying, immortal, and indestructible" (6.4.25). See also the nArAyaNa sUktam - anatamavyayam kavim ..... The Immortal and Indestructible Seer. 14:puruShah a) One who bestows on the Muktas the enjoyment of the Bliss of Himself in plenty.- puru sanoti iti purushah b) One who is reclining in this body - puri sete iti purushah c) One who existed before anything else existed - purA AsIt iti purushah d) One who completes and fulfills existence everywhere - pUrayati iti purushah Puru sanoti iti purushah - One who gives in plenty; puru means plenty, and sanoti means giver. Or, purUNi phalAni sanoti - dadAti iti pururshah One who gives plentiful benefits. We find in the taittirIya upanisahd "rasi vai sah , rasam hveyAm labdhvA AnandI bhavati He is Pure Bliss Itself. Having attained Him, the Mukta becomes endowed with joy". Several other explanations for this name are possible. One of these that is also given by Sri Sankara in addition to the above that Sri Bhattar has also chosen, is supported by the following in MahAbhArata "navadvAram puram puNyam etairbhAvaih samanvitam | vyApya sete mahAtmA yastasmAt purusha ucyate || -(12-203-35). "Since the great Soul pervades and resides in this holy city (the body) with nine dvAras or gates, possessed of these organs (senses, etc.)., He is called purusha". Another alternative interpretation that Sri Sankara gives is "puri sete iti purushah - One who dwells in this Fort city - our body". He refers to the following from the taittirIya AraNyaka "pUrvameva aham iha Asam iti purushasya purusahtvam" - I indeed existed here before; as I existed before, I am called purusha. We recall that the purusha is sometimes pronounced as pUrusha in vedic chantings (ato jyAyAgsca pUrushah - in purusha sUktam as an example). Pura is used to refer to this body, as in Gita 5-13: nava dvAre pure dehe..the fortress with nine gateways. Sri Chinmayananda suggests that these different ways of interpreting the meanings of the names is a way to understand more and more about the Nature of the Lord.

15: sAkshI One who directly witnesses everything .as it is. , The All-Knower, The Omniscient BhagavAn sees everything directly by His own awareness without any instrument for seeing (such as the sense organs) in between. SAkshAt Ikshate - The Direct Cognizer. Just as the sun illumines everything but is not affexted in anyway by the state of the objects it illumines, so also the Lord witnesses everything but is not affected by all that He witnesses. The jIvAtmAs see everything through some sense organ or othe other, and so the deficiencies of these organs limits what is seen. Not so in the case of the Lord. Sri Bhattar interprets this name as indicating that the Lord witnesses the muktas enjoying the Bliss that He confers on them, and is thus happy Himself. Obviously, this give great pleasure to Mukhtas, since they are interested in His happiness, and this is one of the reasons for His being their paramA gati. 16:kshetrajnah One who knows, and can lead the muktas to the exact place where the muktas will get their sought-after Supreme Bliss. Sri nArAyaNa is the vaikunTha vAsi. VaikunTha is the place after reaching which there is no return to this world. That this is a place which even the greatest of sages can realize only after intense meditation and devotion to the Lord is evident from the following passage attributed to Sage Agastya in varAha purANa "adyApi tam lokavaram dhyAyan tishThAmi suvrata! | kada prApyet tu asau loka: sarva loka varottamah || "I am even now steeped in the meditation of that supreme world. When am I going to reach that best and noblest of all worlds? This is the thought that is haunting me". In varAha purANa, BhagavAn tells Sage Agastya: "pasya lokamimam mahyam yo na vedestu drsyate | tvat-priyArtham ayam lokah darsitaste dvijottama || " See this world which exists for my sake and which is not seen even by the vedas. O best of Brahmins! This world has been shown to you in order to please you". Note that even a sage of the standing of Agastya has not seen this place except when God chose to show it to him. Sri Sankara has interpreted this name based on Bhagavad GItA Chapter 13 - slokas 1 and 2, in particular. Here, the word kshetra refers to the body, and kshetrajna refers to One who knows (understands the principle or tatva behind) all the bodies and is the direct witness of the actions of all the bodies (by being directly inside the bodies and not needing any secondary means to witness these). I would like to request our Bhakti group members to elaborate on the interpretation of the word kshetrajna as it occurs in Bhagavad GItA, and in particular if the interpretation of this term in GItA is different from the meaning that

God is the soul in all the bodies. May be kshetrajna is a guNa of the Supreme Soul, and is an elaboration of the name "bhUtAtmA". 17: akshara One whose greatness never diminishes over time in spite of being enjoyed by the miktas constantly. na ksharati iti aksharah . His greatness is innate, and does not derive from something external. So it never diminishes. In Nirukti, this is explained as follows: "sadA anubhUyamAno'pi nissIma guNa gauravAt | muktai: kvacit na ksharati iti akshara: parikIrtita: ||" Sri Sankara's interpretation is: "sa eva na ksharati iti aksharah - He alone exists without dying. Sri Bhattar has thus explained nAmas 13 to 17 as the reason why muktas consider the Lord the paramA gati. We will continue with nAma 18 in the next part.

Slokam 3

18. yogaH 19. yogavitAm netA 20. pradhAna puruSheshvaraH 21. nArasimha vapuH 22. shrImAn 23. keshavaH 24. puruShottamaH

18. yogah a) He Who is the sole means or upAya for salvation or mukti. b) He Who is reached through yoga (meditation). The word yoga has several different meanings given in the amara koSa: means, meditation, union, fitness, remedy, etc. yogah sannahana upAya dhyAna sangati yuktishu (amara koSa 3.3.22) Given this diversity of meanings for the word yoga, now let us see the different interpretations for the nAma yogah. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning upAya or means for the term yoga. His interpretation for the nAma is that bhagavAn is the sole means or upAya for mukti (salvation) asyaiva nirupAdhika mukti upAyatvamapi vakti yogah He alone is the natural and independent means for salvation. He further comments sa sAyujyasya ananyApekshah sAkshAt hetuh ityarthah The meaning is that He is the immediate cause of salvation, and does not stand in need of the help of anything else. He gives support the brahma sUtra and from the gItA: t ad-hetu-vyapadeSAc-ca (brahma sUtra 1.1.15) He is the cause of the Bliss that all souls enjoy. esha hveya AnandayAti ( (taitt. Ananda. 2.7.1) aham tvA sarva pApebhyo mokshayishyAmi (gItA 18.66) I will release you from all sins.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives multiple interpretations, one of which uses the meaning upAyam for the word yoga. The explanation is along the lines given by SrI BhaTTar bhatAnAm bhava taraNa upAya iti yogah He Who is the means of salvation for His devotees.

Another vyAkhyAna kartA who uses the meaning upAyam for the word yoga is SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj yogah bhakta abhilAsha adhigamAya amogha upAyah The unfailing upAya or means for attaining the desires or wishes of the devotees. b) SrI Sankara uses the meaning union or oneness for the term yoga, and gives an interpretation that supports the advaita concept that the individual soul and the Supreme Soul are not different from each other. He notes that yoga is the process of controlling the senses and the mind, and realizing this oneness, and He is called yogah because He is to be reached by means of yoga as described here (in other words, by attaining this knowledge of oneness). (It should be noted that one of the main reasons for the great AcArya-s undertaking to write commentaries on important works such as the vishNu sahasra nAmam, the gItA, the brahma sUtra-s, the upanishad-s, etc., is to show that their particular philosophy is what is supported and advocated by the different smRti-s, Sruti-

s, purANa-s, etc. To quote svAmi AdidevAnanda from his Introduction to bhagavad rAmAnujas gItA bhAshyam, Such a method involves some text-torturing to get the meaning that one wants. To impart a sense of consistency of a text to their followers, they are compelled to give interpretations that may sometimes look far-fetched to others. SrI AdidevAnanda is careful to point out that on the whole, the AcArya-s give a reasonable and satisfying interpretation of their philosophy in the process. This is not just limited to SrI Sankaras interpretation, and can be seen in all interpretations. The current interpretation by Sri Sankara is one example of assigning interpretations that bring support for their philosophy from the ancient scriptures). c) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN seems to use both the meanings union and meditation for the word yoga, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is called yogah, because the devotees mind becomes one with Him when the devotee meditates on Him - yujyate manah asmin iti yogah samAdheh SubhASrayah.

d) SrI cinmayAnanda uses the meaning meditation for the term yoga, and gives the interpretation for the nAma yogah as One Who is realized through yoga. His interpretation is By withdrawing the sense-organs from their objects of preoccupation, when the mind of the seeker becomes quiet, he is lifted to a higher plan of consciousness, wherein he attains yoga, meaning he realizes the Reality. He notes: At such moments of equanimity and mental quiet yoga is gained samatvam yoga ucyate (gItA 12.48). Note that while SrI Sankara also interpreted the nAma as One Who is attained through yoga, his interpretation of yoga was attaining knowledge of oneness of self and the Self, whereas SrI cinmayAnandas meaning for the word yoga is meditation by quieting the mind and controlling the senses. SrI satya sandha tIrtha also uses the meaning meditation for the word yoga in one of his interpretations yujyate hRdi yogibhih dhyAyata iti yogah He Who is meditated upon by the yogi-s is yogah . This nAma is probably a very good example where different vyAkhyAna kartA-s use the diversity of meanings for a word, and give interpretations that support their own schools of philosophy, and we get the benefit of diverse enjoyment of His guNa-s in the process. 19. yogavitAm netA One who leads those who practise yogA until they reach their Goal. From Sankara BhAshya, a yoga-vit is one who inquires into, realizes, or acquires yoga - yogam vidanti, vicArayanti, jAnanti, labhanta iti vA yoga vidah. Nayati iti netA - one who leads . In GItA, Sri Krishna says: "ananyAs-cintayanto mAm ye janAh paryupAsate| teshAm nityAbhiyuktAnAm yoga-keshemam vahAmyaham|| (GItA - 9-22) " On those who meditate on me with single-minded devotion, those that want to be with Me unceasingly, I confer on them .the Bliss of .union (yoga) with Me constantly and never returning back to samsAra again (the safety or kshema)"

20. pradhAna purusha Isvarah One who is the Lord of Primordial Matter as well as the Jivas.

PradhAna here refers to the cause of bondage, and purusha refers to the jivAtmA. Perhaps the easiest way to understand the concept of prakrti or pradhAna is through the following explanation for the Brahma Sutra deha yogAdvA so'pi - This conealment of the true nature of jiva is caused by the contact with the body (at the time of creation) or by the contact with the Primordial Matter (prakrti or pradhAna) at the time of deluge. Thus prakrti or pradhAna can be conceived of as the undifferentiated or 'asat' form of the bondage of the jiva, and the sarIra or body can be conceived of as the sat form that keeps the jiva in bondage.

Chapter 13 in the Bhagavad Gita deals elaborately with the concepts of prakrti and jIvAtmA and their interrelationship to each other. In sloka 19 of chapter 13, BhagavAn points out that both prakrti and purusha have always existed, and this nAma indicates that He is the Lord and Master of both. "prakrtim purusham caiva vidyanAdau ubhAvapi". prakrti can be considered to be composed of rajas, tamas and sattva, and from these all the rest such as the panca bhUtas, the eleven indriyas, the five indriya-gocaras, etc. arise. These are explained in detail in the gItA bhAshya by TirukkaLLam Sri NrsimhAchArya. 21. nArasimha vapuh -

He Who is possessed of a body of man and lion combined. om nArasimha-vapushe namah. SrI BhaTTar captures several thoughts about this incarnation of bhagavAn in one sentence in his commentary: sva-bhaktyantarAya nivAraNam bhkata-bhayApaha tadapekshA samakshaNa pratipannayathA kAma divya mahA-nRsimha samhananh. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. This incarnation shows a removal of impediments to devotion to Him. He takes incarnations at will. His incarnations are divine. They remove the fear of His devotees . The incarnations are assumed the moment the request is made.

SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri elaborates on these, and add his own anubhava-s. Among his additional thoughts are: 6. This incarnation shows that when it comes to bhagavAn, our "normal" rationalization should not be applied to anything associated with Him. For instance, we know that man is the best evolved species in the thinking capability (brain power). Similarly, lion is the most evolved in physical strength. Its strength is located in its body and its powerful nails. So, in order to destroy a powerful asura such as hiraNya kaSipu, it would have made a lot more sense if bhagavAn had taken a form with the head of a human being (with the associated highly evolved brain), and the body of a lion (the most evolved with respect to physical strength). BhagavAn does exactly the opposite - the head of a lion, and the body of a human being. This is a simple illustration of the point that He is beyond our capabilities of analysis.

BhagavAn does whatever it takes to fulfill the request of His devotee, irrespective of whether it shows Him in

the best light or not. ANDAL refers to His varAha incarnation as "mAnam ilAp panRi" - the shameless boar with dirt dripping from all over its body, to go after another rAkshasa, hiraNyAksha, the brother of hiraNyakaSipu.

7. Anyone who observes a scene of an ausra being torn to pieces with its nails by a lion-faced form with a human body, will be terror-stricken. And yet, we see prahlAda standing in great reverence, unperturbed, and pleased at having the divya darSanam of the Lord. But seeing the same form, hiraNya kaSipu was terrorstricken as the half-man-half-lion form emerged from the pillar. Thus, at the same time, with the same form, bhagavAn was pleasing to the eye of the devotee, and causing terror to the devotee's enemy. This is another revelation of the greatness of bhagavAn that simultaneously He is endowed with all opposites at the same time.

8. In addition to the aspect of His being able to induce fear or love at the same time, there is the beauty aspect to His form of half-man half-lion. Just for a moment, think of some human form with the head of a lion appearing in front of us, and imagine the aversion that this sight will induce in us. Not so with Lord nRsimha. He was absolutely beautiful in this form, as SrI BhaTTar elaborates in the next nAma SrImAn because He is always associated with SrI or Lakshmi. tirumazhiSai AzhvAr describes His beauty as ari pongik kATTum azhagu (nAnmugan tiru. 21) The beauty of nRsimha form looked like beauty bubbling and spilling over because it cant be contained anywhere.tirumazhiSai AzhvAr describes His beauty as ari pongik kATTum azhagu (nAnmugan tiru. 21) The beauty of nRsimha form looked like beauty bubbling and spilling over because it cant be contained anywhere. 9. In normal course of life, something that came from breaking a jaDa form such as the pillar should be expected to be another piece of the same jaDa form. One should expect a live form to be originating only from another life form. Hers relating to Him, we should not be applying normal logic as we are used to do. SvAmi deSikan describes this unusual birth of Lord nRsimha from the pillar in his daSavatAra stotram in one of his poetic naya-s. He describes the lucky pillar from which Lord nRsimha emerged, as the grandmother of brahmA mahAsura gRha sthUNA pitAmahyabhUt (Slokam 5). The lineage in this description is that bhagavAn is the father of brahmA, and since the pillar gave birth to Lord nRsimha, the pillar thus becomes the grandmother of brahmA.

10. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha does not support the interpretation that bhagavAn had an actual mixed body consisting of some aspects of man and some aspects of lion. Instead, he suggests that the nAma means that He took a normal form that possessed the best aspects such as the strength of a lion, and the best aspects of man such as the ability to think. We will not go into the merits of this interpretation. Only the interesting philosophical aspect that he brings out is dealt with here. He sees in this nAma the illustration that neither karma alone, nor j~nAna alone, are sufficient in the fulfillment of any undertaking, and that both are needed. He quotes from the Srtuti-s in support: idam me brahma ca kshatram ca ubhe Sriyam aSnutAm (yajur. 32.16) yatra brahma ca kshatram ca samya'ncou caratah saha | tam lokam puNyam pra~jnesham yatra devAh sahagninA || (yajur. 20.25)

As a lesson to take from this nAma, SrI vAsishTha makes the point that whatever action one undertakes, this should be done after fully analyzing and understanding the consequences associated with this action. One can also extrapolate from this the thought that it is not enough to have the ability to use force, but also along with that, one should know how to use this force, when to use this force, etc., in order for the force to have beneficial effects.

11. svAmi deSikan describes the six rahasya-s associated with bhagavAns incarnations in his SaraNAgati dIpikA Slokam 17. All of these naturally apply to nArasimha vapuh also. These are: - He takes many incarnations with different forms at will as needed nAnA vidhaih. One of these is the nRsimha incarnation. - The incarnations are all true forms that He assumes, and not just mAyA forms a-kapaTaih. - Every incarnation of His is fully endowed with His parattvam and all His kalyANa guNa-s in full, irrespective of the incarnation He takes ajahat-svabhAvaih - His forms in His incarnations are not made of panca bhUta-s like ours, but His tirumEni in His incarnations is also made of Suddha-sattva, and so He is beyond the three guNa-s, sattva, rajas, and tamas a-prAkRtaih - The forms in His incarnations are takenas part of His leelA, and not as a result of any karma as in our case nij-vihAra-siddhaih - They are taken purely for the protection of His devotees and the destruction of their enemies AtmIya rakshaNa vipaksha vinASanArthaih. 22. srImAn One with a lovely form. In the context of the uncommon and frightful form of nara-simha that we encountered in the previous nAma, one would not normally expect this to be a form of beauty. Not so in the case of BhagavAn, since His form is celestial, charming and beautiful. It is difficult to translate the description that Sri Bhattar has given in Sanskrit - soundarya lAvaNyAdibhih ati-manohara divya rupa. Sri Sankara interprets this name as One who has Lakshmi always with Him in His vaksha-sthala - yasya vakshasi nityam vasati srI: sa srImAn. And for this reason, even though He has the form of a man-lion, there is no diminution in His beauty. 23. kesavah One with lovely locks of hair. The name can be derived from the word kesa - hair. He is beautiful not only because he has Lkashmi with Him, but because He is naturally beautiful. "prasastah kesAh santu asya iti kesavah. An additional interpretation for this name, which is supported by VishNu purANa, is given by Sri Sankara. This interpretation says that kesava derives from the fact that KrishNa is the destroyer of the demon Kesi who was sent to kill the child KrishNa by Kamsa. "yasmAt tvayaiva drshTAtmA hatah kesI janArdana: |

tasmAt kesava nAmnA tvam loke jneyo bhavishyati || "

However, the name kesi-hA appears later on in the stotra, and this literally means the destroyer of kesi. So a different interpretation here will be appropriate since otherwise there is the punarukti dosha, or the fault of repetition. In fact, the name kesava itself repeats later on in the stotra, and we will wait to see what interpretation the great vyAkhyAna kartAs are going to give us at that time (kesavah kesi-hA hari: ). 24. purushottamah The Supreme amongst the purushas (i.e., individualsouls). Purushebhya: uttama:, purushANAm uttama:, purusheshu uttama: are all possible derivations for this nAma. We find the uttama purusha (purushottama) described in more detail in the Gita in sloka 15.16 and 15.17. Here the purushas are described as of two kinds - the kshara or those who have the association with prakrti and are under the bondage of samasara, and the akshara or the muktas who are released from bondage. The uttama purursha is different from either of these kinds of purushas, and is the paramAtmA who supports the acetana and the chetans who are either the baddhas (purushas under bondage) or muktas (purushas released from bondage).. In Gita 15-18, Lord Krishna summarizes the above as follows: "yasmAt ksharam atIto'ham aksharAdapi cottama: | ato'smi loke vede ca pratithah purushottama: || "Because I am superior to both kinds of purushas - the kshara and the akshara, all the srutis and smrtis praise Me as purushottama."

Slokam 4

25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36

sarvaH sharvaH shivaH sthAnuH bhUtAdiH nidhiravyayaH sambhavaH bhAvanaH bhartA prabhavaH prabhuH IshvaraH

25. sarvah (sa as in sanAtana) One who is all - the cause of creation and destruction of all things. We have the following from MahAbhArata "asatasca satascaiva sarvasya prabhavApyayAt sarvasya sarvadA jnAnAt savamenam pracakshate (MB 5.68.11) "He is the origin and end of all things, chetana and achetana, and He has full knowledge of all beings at all times, and so He is called sarva". Sri ChinmayAnanda gives a very simple illustration to help understand the concept behind this nAma. - "All waves arise from the same ocean, and so the ocean is the essence in all waves". 26. sharvah (sa as in Shiva) The Remover of all sins I am unable to get a good understanding of the interpretation of this nAma. The word is derived from the root sr - to tear to pieces, to kill, to hurt. Neither Sri Bhattar nor Sri Sankara have given references to other srutis for this nAma. If any of you know of a context in the Gita or elsewhere that this name occurs or is referred to, please advise me since I would like to understand the significance of this nAma better. Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna says that the Lord is called sarva because He removes the evils of objects that are His body (sva sarIra bhUtAnAm asubhamapi srNAti iti sarvah. Perhaps this means that BhagavAn destroys the sins of His devotees, but the significance of the word . "asubhamapi" in the above is unclear. The author of Nirukti interprets Sri Bhattar's above vyAkhyAna as follows: "sva sarIra jagad-duhkham sarva: sa sthAt srNAti yah"- Sri Sankara interprets this word in terms of the action of BhagavAn at the time of pralaya in withdrawing all beings unto Himself - srNAti samhAra samaye samharati samhArayati vA sakalAh prajA: iti sarvah. In this context, SrI RadhAkrshNa Sastri points out that this destruction at the time of prlaya is not

really to be considered cruel, since this is like "destroying" the shape of raw rice when it is cooked in order to make it edible - the beings are destroyed in order to give them new life. 27. shivah One who confers auspiciouness subha Avahasca sivah - One who bestows auspiciouness on all. In Mahabharata Drona Parva (202), we have the following for supporting the above interpretation: "sameghayati yan-nityam sarvArthAn sarvakarmasu | sivamicchan manushyAnAm tasmAdesha sivah smrtah || "One who bestows all that is desired always by all His devotees is called Siva because of this guNa of His". Two instances of Sri VishNu being referred to as Siva are in nArAyaNa upanishad "sAsvatam sivam acyutam" - The Eternal, The Auspicious, and the One Who never lets His devotees fall" "sa brahma sa sivah sendrah so'ksharah paramah svarAt" - He is Brahma, He is Siva, He is Indra, He is Eternal, He is Supreme, He is the Lord of all. 28. sthANuh One who is .firm in His benefits and anugraha to the devotees. The name derives from the word stha - tisThati, indicating firmness or steadiness. Sri Bhattar interprets this name as indicating that the result of BhagavAn's anugraha is firm in its effect of blessing the devotee far beyond what other lesser acts can bestow. Sri Radhakrishnam Sastri indicates that sthANu is also the name for a tree which has matured to such an extent that no changes affect it any more, including sun, rain etc. He interprets this name as indicating BhagavAn's guNa of not being affected by changes such as growth, decay, etc., nor impacted by the changes of time, place, etc. We will revisit the name sthANu again in the sloka "vistArah sthAvarah sthANuh.....", where we should expect a different interpretation for this guNa in the context that is applicable at that part of the stotram. 29. bhUtAdih a) One who is eagerly sought after by all beings b) The source or cause of all beings c) The very source of the panca bhUtas

Sri Bhattar gives the interpretation bhUtaih sprhaNIyatanatayA AdIyate - One who is eagerly sought after by all beings. Sri Sankara gives the interpretation bhUtAnAm Adi-kAraNatvAt bhUtAdih - BhagavAn is called bhUtAdih because He is the first cause of all beings. It is possible that Sri Bhattar chose to interpret it differently because the second interpretation is similar to the meaning for bhUtakrt (nAma 5). I would like to request any of our bhaktas to comment further. Sri ChinmayAnanda gives another plausible interpretation . - The very cause for the first five great elements - the panca bhUtas - Space, Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. BhUtAnAm Adih 30. nidhiravyayah The inexhaustible treasure. Avayayah nidhih - He is like the wealth that is kept under safe keeping and always available at the time of distress to His bhaktas. Sri ChinmayAnanda points out that the term nidhi means that in which precious things are stored away or preserved secretly - nidhIyate asmin iti nidhih. Surely BhagavAn is a treasure that is not understood or obtained easily by everyone. Sri Sankara interprets this nAma as meaning that VishNu is the One in whom all things go and lie merged therein temporarily till the next creation, and so He is the Immutable Treasure Chest. 31. sambhavah (Though like a Hidden Treasure), One who manifests Himself at will to .those who sincerely seek Him. He manifests Himself at any place and at any time and in any form (e.g., nrsimha, matsya, kUrma, etc.). Note the following: "dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge" (GItA 4-8)" svecchayA sambhavAmyevam garbha duhkha vivarjitah" 32. bhAvanah (Having manifested thus), One who regenerates all by dispelling all their evils. The author of Nirukti summarizes Sri Bhattar's interpretation by the following words: yo janitvA janAn ujjIvayati sah bhAvanah - One who, after having manifested Himself (sambhavah - see above), brings back all to life. Sri ChinmayAnanda points out that to do bhAvana is to give, and BhagavAn gives the fruits of action as they deserve to all, and so He is bhAvana. This is consistent with Sri Sankara's interpretation that BhagavAn is bhAvana because He gives the fruits of actions to all jivas. 33. bhartA

Supporter. Sri Sankara gives the following vyAkhyAna - prapancasya adhishTAnatvena bharaNAt bhartA - BhagavAn is bhartA (Sustainer) because He sustains the universe as its Lord. Sri Bhattar points out that He does this nourishing of His devotees by giving Himself up to His devotees because this is His Nature - yasmAt pushNAti Atma-dAnAt. 34. prabhavah One whose birth is of a sublime nature. Asya bhavah prakrshTa iti prabhavah - His birth (bhava) is unsullied by any blemish, and is capable of uprooting the fetter of birth of all those who realize Him. Or, prakarsheNa bhavati . 35. prabhuh He who is all powerful. Sri Sankara's vyAkhyAna is - sarvAsu kriyAsu sAmarthya atisayavAn prabhuh - One who is the most powerful, showing it forth in all His actions. The author of Nirukti summarizes Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna thus: "brahmAdInAm ca sarveshAm bhoga-moksha-samarpaNe | samarthah prabhu: ityuktah sarveshTa phalado manuh || " He is prabhu - most powerful - because he can bestow fruits such as the enjoyment of the pleasures associated with those of Brahma and even moksha. 36. Isvarah a) One who has the supreme power of control over all beings b) One who has the ability to do anything without the help of any other beings or things This nAma is interpreted based on its relation to the word aisvarya or to the word ishta. The first meaning derives from the word aisvarya - nirupAdhikam aisvaryam asya iti Isvarah - He is Isvara because he has unlimited might or power. The second meaning derives from IshTe iti Isvarah - One who can do whatever He wills without the help of anything else.

Slokam 5

37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. 43. 44. 45.

svayambhUH shambhuH AdityaH pushkarAkshaH mahAsvanaH anAdinidhanaH dhAtA vidhAtA dhAturuttamaH

37. svayambhUh He who manifests Himself by His own free will. Svayameva bhavati iti svayambhUh - One who is self-born. Sri RAdhA KrishNa Sastri gives the example of how in the case of the birth of Lord KrshNa to Devaki and Vasudeva, the child was born unlike any other child, decorated with beautiful jewels, smiling, lotus-eyed, with divya rUpa, etc., and with no pain or discomfort to the mother. In Srimad BhAgavatam, we find the following description: tam adbhutam bAlakam ambujekshNam caturbhujam sankha gadAryudAyudham | srIvatsalakshmam galasobhikaustubham pItAmbaram sAndra payodasoubhagam || "(Sri KrshNa at birth) was of magnificent appearance, lotus-eyed, adorned with sankha, cakra, and gada, with four arms, the kaustubha around his neck, adorned with pitAmbara (yellow silk cloth) around His waist, and beautiful like the water-laden cloud". 38. shambhuh One who causes happiness to everyone by the beauty of His appearance.

Sam bhAvayati iti sambhuh - here sam (sa as in Shiva) means sukham or happiness. This happiness is caused by the sheer beauty of His manifestation. In RAmAyaNa we see the following passages: "rUpa audArya guNai: pumsAm drshti citta apahAriNam" - (Sri Rama) attracts the eyes and hearts of beholders by His beauty, generosity, and similar qualities. "candra kAntAnanam rAmam atIva priya darsanam" - Rama who has a face lovelier than the moon, and who has an extremely pleasing appearance 39. Adityah a) The purusha in the Sun b) One of the twelve Adityas c) One who sustains and nourishes everything like the Sun

Sri Bhattar points out that this is one example of BhagavAn manifesting Himself at His will. We are all familiar with "dhyeyah sadA savtr-manDala madhyavarti nArAyaNa...." Sriman nArAyaNa who is in the centre of the orb of the Sun must always be meditated upon. We also have "sa yascAyam purushe, yascAsAvAditye, sa eka: " (taittirIya upanishad) He is one and the same deity who is in the hearts of men and who is in the middle of the Sun. Sri Sankara gives the additional explanation that this nAma can refer to Lord VishNu being one of the twleve Adityas or Aditi's sons. He gives the Bhagavad Gita in support of this: "AdityAnAm aham vishNur-jyotishAm raviramsumAn | marIcirmaruTamasmi nakshtrANAm aham sasI || (10-21) "Among Adityas, I am VishNu", (the twelfth Aditya) ......... Sri Chinmaya points out that BhagavAn incarnated as Aditi's son in His vAmana incarnation. .

Sri Chinmaya also points out that another way to enjoy this nAma is to realize that BhagavAn is like the Sun in that everything depends on the Sun for its survival, and so BhagavAn is Aditya or the Sun or the supporter and nourisher of everything. 40. pushkarAkshah The Lotus-eyed.

Sri ChinmayAnanda refers us to the famous quote "The eye is the reflection of the mind", and points out that the reference to the beauty of the eye in this nAma is to be contemplated on in terms of the Inner Joy and Peace that BhagavAn beams out to all through His eyes and magically lifts out all the sorrows in His

devotee's hearts. This nAma re-occurs as nAma 561 later, where we will find a new interpretation. Pushkare akshiNI yasya sa pushkarAkshah; PoshayatI bhUtAni pushkare akshiNI yasya sa pushkarAkshah. 41. mahA-svanah He of the venerable sound (of the vedas) In BrhadAraNya upanishad, we have the following: "asya mahato bhUtasya ni:svasitametad yad-rg-vedo yajur-vedah sAma vedo-atharvAngirasa: itihAsa: purANam vidyA upanishada: slokA: sUtrANyaNuvyAkhyAnAni vyAkhyAnAni" (4.4.10) Thus has been breathed from this great Being what we have as Rg veda, Yajur veda, sAma veda, and atharva veda, etc. 42. anAdi-nidhanah One who is without beginning or end. Yasya Adi nidhanam na asti sa anAdi-nidhanah - One for whom there is neither beginning nor end. nidhana, which commonly refers to poverty or lack of wealth, also has a second meaning, death or destruction. . BhagavAn is anAdi-nidhana because His form is not composed of earthly elements like fat, flesh and bone na tasya prakrtA mUrti:mAmsa-medosthi-sambhavA (varAha purANa 75.44), His body is beyond the range of the sense-organs, and can be cognized only by the eye of the mind - rUpam vA atIndriyam, antahkaraNapratyaksha nirdesAt, His body is not made up of the combination of elements like earth, water, etc. - na bhUta sangha samsthAno deho'sya paramAtmanah (MahAbhArata - sAnti parva 206-60), etc. 43. dhAtA a) One Who created the Universe (dhA to produce, or dhA to lay upon). b) He Who supports and sustains (dhA dhAraN poshaNayoySca). c) He Who has no support other than Himself (a-dhAtA). d) He Who drinks everything during pralaya (dheT pAne to drink). e) One Who is the antaryAmi of the four-faced brahmA. This nAma occurs again in Slokam 102 (nAma 951). The nAma can be derived from the roots a) dhA - to produce, to bear, to place, to lay upon; . b) dhA dhAraNa poshaNayoH to support and nurture, or, c) dhEt pAne to drink. SrI Sankara has also provided an alternate interpretation based on the pATham a-dhAtA. SrI BhaTTar interprets the current nAma as The Creator of everything, including the four-faced brahmA. BrahmA has the responsibility for creation of everything inside the brahmANDa, through the powers given to

him by bhagavAn. On the other hand, bhagavAn creates the brahmANDa itself, and brahmA as the first one in the brahmANDa, before brahmA is given the responsibility for the creation of the rest of the things inside brahmANDa. BhagavAn performs the function of creation inside the brahmANDa by being the antaryAmi of brahmA. Thus, bhagavAn is the true Creator of everything. BhagavAns role as the true Creator is repeatedly sung by nammAzhvAr in his tiruvAimozhi.

SrI BhaTTars interpretation for the current instance of the nAma can be understood based on the root dhA to to put, place, lay, put in, lay on or upon (SrI Aptes dictionary). The main idea being conveyed here is that bhagavAn is the Creator of all, including the four-faced brahmA, rudra, etc., all the way down to the blade of grass. SrI BhaTTars interpretation is: aniruddha svarUpaH sarva yonau acit-samashTi bhUtAyAm prakRtau cit-samshTi bhUtam virincAtmakam garbham dadhAti iti dhAtA BhagavAn, in the form of aniruddha, places the aggregate of sentient beings (selves) into the prakRti (the aggregate of non-sentient principles), and it is this laying of one on the other, or association of one with the other by bhagavAn, that is the cause of all beings, namely, creation. SrI BhaTTar gives the gItA Slokam 14.3 in support of his interpretation: mama yonir mahad brahma tasmin garbham dadhAmyaham | sambhavaH sarva bhUtAnAm tato bhavati bhArata || (gItA 14.3) prakRti (referred to here by the term mahad brahma, meaning very large) is like My womb. In that I lay the germ (garbham dadhAmi; the germ or seed referring to the collection of all the jIva-s), and this is what results in the birth or creation of all life forms with a body associated with the self, O bhArata!. SrI BhaTTar gives additional supports from two other sources:

dhAtA kshetre karma-bIja- bhUtam garbham dadhAti (maula samhitA) dhAtA places the foetus (the jIva, which is the seed for actions) ) in the kshetra (prakRti). Apa eva sasarja Adau tAsu vIryam apAsRjat (manu. SmRti 1.8) First He created the waters (referring to the aggregate of prakRti); and in them hee put His vigor (the aggregate of sentients). We also have references to His function of creation in the following: tamasaH paramo dhAtA Sa'nkha cakra gadA dharaH (yuddha kANDa 114.18), where maNDodarI describes Lord rAma as dhAtA (The Creator). sUrya candramasau dhAtA yathA pUrvam akalpayat divam ca RthivIm cAnthariksham atho svah || (Rg. 10/190/3) |

He recreates the world with the sun, moon, etc., the same way all over again after each pralaya. SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN gives an interpretation along the lines of that of SrI BhaTTar: utpatti vinASa virahAdanAdi nidhanaH kAraNatve virincyAdibhyo viSesham Aha dhAtA iti | acit samashTau prakRti yonau cit samshTau virinci garbhasya dhAraNAt ituarthaH | - He Who is the cause of creation, protection and destruction, and He Who sows the seed for brahmA (creates brahmA), by the union of the cit samashTi and acit samsashTi (samashTi = conglomerate). All the other interpreters that we cover have used the root dhA dhAra poshaNayoH, or the root dheT pibe to drink. These interpretations are covered under nAma 951 (Slokam 102).

44. vidhAtA om vidhAtre namaH. a) He Who specially protected the seed He sowed for brahmA till the seed fully developed into the creation of catur-mukha brahmA. b) The Ordainer of the laws of conduct for all, including the likes of yama. c) The Dispenser of the fruits of action and the inducer of action. d) The Supporter of all supports such as AdiSesha. e) He Who lays down the code of conduct and the fruits to be attained from them. f) He Who protects the beings of this world in diverse ways (vi-dhAtA; vi = vividhaiH). g) He Who bestows the desires of His devotees. h) He Who is borne by garuDa, His vehicle (vi-dhAtA; vi = garuDa). This nAma occurs again in Slokam 51 (nAma 485). The meaning for the nAma can be understood based on the following meanings given in the dictionary, and the derivation given by SrI vAsishTha, among others: - vidhAtR A maker, a creator. Grantor, giver, bestower. - vidhAnam arranging, disposing. - vidhAnam - a rule, precept, ordinance, sacred rule or precept, sacred injunction. - vidhAtA vidhAnasya kartA He Who ordains the rules etc. For nAma 43, SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning Creator for the word dhAtA. For the current nAma, he continues on this interpretation, discussed below. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also continues on this same line. All the other interpreters we have been covering, use one of the other meanings for their interpretations. These other interpretations are covered under nAma 485 in Slokam 51. a) For nAma 44, SrI BhaTTar continues on the interpretation of nAma 43 (dhAtA The Creator), and gives the explanation that bhagavAn is vidhAtA because He not only initiated the creation of brahmA in the form of the garbha (nAma 43), but also He protected the garbham until brahmA was born. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains that the nAma dhAtA refers to bhagavAn creating the seed for brahmA, and vidhAtA as referring to nurturing this seed and making it come into existence. SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains the nAma as: viSesheNa dhAtA vidhAtA.

SrI BhaTTar gives several supporting references: - yo brahmANam vidadhAti pUrvam yo vai vedAnSca prahiNoti tasmai | tam ha devam Atam buddhi prakASam mumukshur-vai SaraNam aham parapdye || (SvetAS. 6.18) I, an aspirant after liberation, seek refuge in the effulgent God who created brahmA first, and who endowed him with the Vedas also, and on account of whom my intellect shines. - hiraNyagarbham paSyata jAyamAnam (tait. NArA.) BhagavAn saw brahmA as he was being born. - tasmAt virAT ajAyata (purusha.sUk.) From Him, virAt (i.e., brahmA) was born. - tasmin jaj~ne svayam brahmA sarva-loka pitAmahaH (manu. 1.9) Therein was born brahmA himself, who is known as the grandsire of the universe. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaNs interpretation is the same as that of SrI BhaTTar tam garbham pariNamayya AvirbhAvayati it vidhAtA. SrI kRshNans anubhavam is that bhagavAn is called vidhAtA because He carefully protected brahmA in His beautiful nAbhI kamalam or the lotus in the navel, until he was born. Please see the write-up under Slokam 51 (nAma 485) for other interpretations. 45. dhAturuttamah a) One who is far superior to Brahma (dhAtr) b) The best of all basic constitutents The first interpretation is self-explanatory based on the previous two nAmas. Another explanation given is based on the word dhAtu, which means "element" or basic constituent. He is the ultimate constituent of all, and so He is dhAturuttama. Slokam 6

46. aprameyah 47. hrshIkesah 48. padmanAbhah 49. amaraprabhuh 50. viSva karmA 51 manuh 52. tvashTA 53. sthavishThah 54. sthavirah 55. dhruvah

46. aprameyah One who cannot be defined, explained, measured, etc. through logical means, (but who can only be experienced) pramAtum na yogya: aprameyah He is beyond reach through normal means because He is beyond sense organs (pratyaksha) such as our mortal eyes, ears, etc.; nor through inference (anumAna) because he is devoid of the marks leading to inference (e.g., the presence of fire can be inferred through smoke but, for this inference, one should have witnessed fire and smoke together at least once. No one has seen the Lord with or without anything associated); nor through analogy or comparison (upamA), because He is without parts and everything else is only parts, and hence no comparison can be made; nor through Apta vAkya or shabda pramANa (someone else who has seen Him telling us, or through sacred texts) because no one can see Him, since even the muktAs only experience Him. Sri Bhattar goes on to point out that BhagavAn is aprameya because He is beyond the sense organs of even Brahma and other gods (Sri RAdhAKrshNa Sastri points out that the means of sensing is the same for Brahma and other gods as it is for people). He is not describable as This or That, like this or like that, or inferred because of this or because of that, etc., and so He is aprameya. 47. hrshIkesah a) The controller of the sense-organs of all including Brahma, Rudra etc. b) One who, in the form of the Sun and the Moon, makes this world happy through His rays

The two interpretations are derived by looking at this word as hrshIkA + Isa or hrishI + kesa. The first explanation is derived from "HrshIkANAm Isah hrshIkesah - The Lord of the sense-organs. The second interpretation is given based on kesa - rays, hrshI - that give happiness. Sri Sankara gives the following support from MahAbhArata, Moksha dharma, SAnti parva for the second interpretation: "sUrya candramasoh SaSa vadamSubhi: keSa samjnitaih | bodhayan svApayanScaiva jagadutthisThAte prthak || bodhanAt svApanAccaiva jagato harshaNam bhavet || agnIshoma krtairebhih karmabhih pANdunandana | hrIkeSo'hamIsAno varado lokabhAvana: || "The sun and the moon through their kesa or rays always uphold the world by awakening it and causing it to sleep. By such awakening and sleeping, the world is delighted. It is in consequence of this act of fire (Sun) and Soma who uphold the universe that I have come to be known as HrshIkeSa...". Sri T.S. Krishnamurthy, who has written an English trnslation to Sri Sankara bhAshya, has taken this guNAnubhava one more step by saying that the keSa - hair of the Lord in the form of the rays of the sun and the moon give delight (harsha), and thus He is HrshIkeSa. 48. padma-nAbhah One from whose navel the lotus (the cause of the Universe) emanates. Sarva jagat kAraNam padmam nAbhau yasya sa padmanAbhah Sri Bhattar points out that this name substantiates or summaries all that has been said through the previous nAmas about BhagavAn being the creator or cause of Brahma (e.g., dhAtA, vidhAtA, dhaturuttamah). Sri RadhAkrshNa Sastri gives a beautiful and simple explanation to enable the appreciation of this nAma. In our normal life, the child before and at birth is connected to the mother through the navel chord, and gets its nourishment from the mother through this chord. Similar is the chord from the Lord's navel, which is nothing but the Universe in its prakrti form, and which looks like a lotus which has not expanded. This is prior to its expansion through Time, and He is the nourisher of this creation of His (which is none other than Brahma). 48. amara-prabhuh The Lord of the immortal gods. AmarANAm prabhuh amaraprabhuh. The Lord is amaraprabhu because He created the different devatAs and entrusted them with acts such as creation, destruction, etc., made them immortal because of their functions, and directs them in their functions. Sri Bhattar quotes the following words ascribed to Brahma in Uttara kANda in RAmAyaNa -

"mahArNave SayAnau'psu mAm tvam pUrvam ajIjana: | prAhApatyam tvayA karma sarvam mayi niveSitam || (104-4) "You were lying on the waters of the great ocean and you first of all created me. The entire duty of the PrajApati (the rulership of the beings) was entrusted to me by you". Also, the following from MahAbhArata is given "etau dvau vibudha SreshThau prasAda-krodhajau smrtau | tadAdarSita panthAnau srshTi samhAra kArakau ||(169-19) "These two great gods (Brahma and Rudra) are said to have emerged from the sweet temper and wrath of BhagavAn respectively. They carry out the duty of creation and destruction in the way shwon by Him". 50. viSva karmA a) One who is the agent of all actions with regard to the Universe. b) The Creator of the Universe viSvam karma jagad-vyApArah yasya sa viSva karmA. Sri Bhattar points out that this name signifies that all the entire work with regard to the affairs of the Universe are His alone either before or after the creation of Brahma. In other words, He is the director and controller. Among the many passages in the sruti that support the interpretation are: "so'kAmayatabahu syAm prajAyeya iti He willed, I shall become many, I shall take birth" - taittirIya AraNyaka - 6. "so'bidhyAya SarIrAt svAt sisrkshu: vividhAh prajA: Brahman willed to create different kinds of beings out of Its body and so It did" 51. manuh The Great Thinker: MananAt manuh In the BrhadAraNya upanishad, we have "nAnyo'to'sto mantA There is no thinker but Him" - (B.U. 3.7.23) To mentally conceive an act prior to the act itself is mananam. BhagavAn has to but think and not do anything else in order to achieve what He wills. The creation of the cosmos was only a minute part of His will. Sri Bhattar uses the word sankalpa lava mAtrAt - by the mere fraction (lava mAtrAt) of His will, to explain this 52. tvashTA One who created all the different forms and names in this Universe.

This name is dervied from the root tvaksh - to pare, to reduce, to chisel. Sri Bhattar uses this meaning to interpret this nAma to mean that BhagavAn has "chiseled" so many diverse forms and names of gods, man, birds, plants, insects, etc., and thus He is tvashTA. He gives the taittirIya araNyaka (3-11) in support tvashTAram rUpANi vikurvantam vipascitam. Sri Sankara uses the same meaning to interpret this name as indicating that BhagavAn pares down all the beings or makes them shrink at the time of cosmic dissolution or pralaya. It is interesting to note that the first interpretation refers to the creation of forms and shapes from the primordial matter, and the second interpretation refers to the dissolution of forms and shapes back into primordial matter. 53. sthavishThah One who is exceedingly huge in size. The name is derived from the two words sthUla and ishTha - One who willed to be huge. Sri Bhattar points out that this huge size is the manifestation of BhagavAn as the brahmANda (the eggshaped universe) with the fourteen worlds. which are the places of residences for all the beings that He has created, as well as its sheath, and the sense-organs of all the beings, as well as the sound, touch, and other qualities that are the objects of these sense-organs, as well as their effects. The fourteen worlds are referred to by Sri Ramanuja in his Sri VaikuNTha-gadyam (caturdaSa bhuvanAntaram aNdam daSa guNitottaram ....) in his reference to Sri VaikunTham's location far, far beyond the limits of these fourteen worlds. 54. sthavirah One who has always existed, Older than the oldest. The name is derived from the root stha - tishThati - to stand. This nAma signfies that BhagavAn is not constrained by Time. All His creation goes through the cycle of creation and pralaya, and He uses Time for His creation and dissolution, but He is not constrained by it. Thus He is older than the oldest. 55. dhruvah One who is unaffected by Time, Unchanging, Permanent. The word is derived from the root dhr - to carry, maintain, preserve, to be eternal, immovable - (sthiratvAt dhruvah). The previous nAma indicated that BhagavAn is the oldest of the oldest. This nAma signifies that He is unchanging while Time keeps moving. Perhaps because both the nAmas sthavira and dhruva refer to the quality of BhagavAn being beyond the influence, effect, or control of Time, Sri Sankara has chosen to interpret the two words as one nAma sthaviro dhruvah - One who is unchanging and older than the oldest. Thus the sequence number for the nAmas that follow start differing from this nAma between Sri Sankara bhAshya and Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna.

Slokam 7

56. agrAhyah 57. SASvatah 58. krsHNah 59. lohitAkshah 60. pradrdanah 61. prabhUtah 62. tri-kakuddhAma 63. pavitram 64. mangalam param

56. agrAhyah One who is beyond the grasp of others. The interpretation for this nAma by Sri Bhattar is that BhagavAn cannot be physically grasped, controlled, or acted upon by anyone or anything, and is thus beyond grasp. He gives the following reference to the sruti: nainam Urdhvam na tiryancam na madhye parijagrabhat One could grasp Him neither in the vertical dimension, nor in the horizontal dimension, nor in the third dimension, or for that matter, any other dimension. Sri Sankara's interpretation is karmendriayih na grhyata iti agrAhyah - One who cannot be grasped by the organs of action. He gives the following reference to taittirIya upanishad - yato vAco nivartante, aprApya manasA saha - He cannot be described through speech, and cannot be reached by mind.

Sri ChinmayAnanda gives us yet another interpretation. He points out that the Lord is not the "object" of perception ever by any one, but He is the "subject" who perceives. Thus He is ever the Subject but never the object of perception. He is imperceptible and incomprehensible. Sri Chinmaya refers us to the kenopanishad passage "yat cakshushA na paSyati yena cakshUmsi paSyanti tadeva brahma tvam viddhi - Understand that Brahman is That which cannot be seen by the eyes, but because of which eyes are perceiving other things.

57. shAshvatah One who is eternal. shASvat bhavatIti shAshvatah - That which remains the same at all times is the Permanent. Sri Bhattar points out that the fact that BhagavAn is SASvata is evident from the eternal flow of action pertaining to the world (i.e., creation etc.). Sri Chinmaya points out that for something to be permanent, it has to be changeless with time, and BhagavAn is the controller of time, and is not controlled or affected by time, and so is Eternal and permanent. 58. krsHNah a) One who is always in a state of Bliss (with His sport of creation etc.). b) One who has a dark-blue complexion.. The first interpretation is supported from the following verse in MahAbhArata krshir-bhU-vAcakah Sabdo NaSca nirvrti vAcakah | vishNus-tad bhAvayogAcca krshNo bhavati SASvatah || (MB Udyogaparva 5.68.5) Approximately translated, this says: krishi means bhU, Na means nirvrtti or happiness and bliss, and BhagavAn is called KrshNa because He is the union of these two. Sri Sankara and Sri Bhattar interpret the name slightly differently with this same starting point. Sri Sankara interprets bhU to mean existence (bhU bhav - to be), and Sri Bhattar interprets bhU to mean a receptacle or ground or container (e.g., bhUmi). So Sri Bhattar says that krshNa here means the receptacle of extreme joy because of His constant sport of creation etc. referred to in the previous nAma. Sri Sankara interprets the name to mean that He is the union of existence and bliss. The second interpretation also has its support in the MahAbhArata krshAmi prthivIm pArtha bhUtvA kArshNAyaso halah | krshNo varNaSca me yasmAt tasmAt krshNo'ham arjuna || SAnti parva 342.79 Note the words krshAmi, kArshaNa, and krshNa in the above. Each of these words leads to a new and different interpretation of the meaning of the nAma here. The meaning of the first line in the above sloka is "When the earth becomes shelled by its hard crust, I shall turn myself into an iron plough-share (blackcolored), and shall plough the earth." The name krshNa can arise out of the fact that He is doing the act denoted by the word "krshAmi". Sri Chinmaya beautifully points out that this "ploughing" refers to His ploughing all the stupidities in His devotees and preparing the heart-field, weeding out all the poisonous growth of sin, and cultivating therein pure Bliss. The second part of the verse means "O Arjuna! Because of my dark complexion, I am called KrshNa". The dark complexion referred to above could be because He is the (dark colored) iron plough, or because He is dark complexioned like the water-bearing cloud. Either way, because of His dark complexion, He is called krshNa. Notice that the dark complexion is associated with "kAr mugil vaNNan" or "nIla megha syAmalan" One who has the color of the rain cloud loaded with His limitless mercy.

Sri Chinmaya points out that the inner meaning behind the "dark" complexion is that BhagavAn is not easily recognized (i.e., He is veiled behind some darkness) by those who aspire to reach Him except through single-minded devotion. The nAma krshNa can also be interpreted in terms of the word "AkarshaNa" or magnetic attraction. He is krshNa because He irresistibly attracts all His devotees. Or He sweeps away (like a magnet drawing away the iron filings) the sins in the hearts of those who meditate upon Him. This nAma occurs once more later as nAma 554 in "vedAh svAngo'jitah krshNo.....". Sri Bhattar gives the meaning b) for nAma 554, and gives the first explanation for the current nAma describing the paravAsudeva form. 59. lohitAkshah One with eyes red like the beautiful lotus flower. Lohite akshiNi yasya sah lohitAkshah. Sri Bhattar enjoys the beauty of this nAma by ascribing the redness in the eye to the supreme joy that BhagavAn has. One can recall the mantra "sa mA vrshabho lohitakshah sUryo vipaScit mansA punAtu", which we chant during our sandhyavandanam. This is the second reference so far to the beauty of BhagavAn's eyes (the earlier one was pushkarAksha).

While Sri Bhattar explains the redness of the eye as resulting from extreme joy, another explanation given is that the redness is a result of BhagavAn's anger towards the evil-doers, for the destruction of whom He takes the different avatAras - vinASAya ca dushkrtAm. 60. pradrdanah The Destroyer. This name is derived from the root tardih - to cause destruction. Pra-tarda means extreme destruction. Sri Bhattar gives the following from kaThopanisahd - yasya brahma ca kshtram ca ubhe bhavatah odanah - He who has for His food the brahmins and the kshatriyas (i.e., all beings of the universe) at the time of pralaya. Sri RadhAkrshNa Sastri points out that given the interpretation for this nAma, the redness of the eye in the previous nAma can be appropriately the result of anger at the time of dissolution. 61. prabhUtah

One who is affluent, ever full, and well-endowed with wisdom, greatness, and other qualities.

Literally, the word means "born full" pra-bhUta. Even though at the time of pralaya, BhagavAn destroys everything, still His affluence remains since He has the parama-pada (the transcendental world), which is full of Bliss. And His essential Nature, well-endowed with jnAna, bala, aisvarya, vIrya, Sakti, and tejas still remain. Even after reducing everything at pralaya, the vAmana can be the trivikrama. 62. tri-kakud-dhAma

There are three words in this name - tri, kakub or kakut, and dhAma. tri means three; kakub means the direction or quarter of a compass (for example); kakut means the hump (such as the hump on the back of a bull, or a peak or mountain); kakub and kakut also are interchangeably used for either meaning. dhAma means abode or residence, and also a ray of light or brilliance. Several interpretations arise depending on the choice of the meanings. We will start with dhAma meaning brilliance. Sri Bhattar indicates that if this meaning is used, dhAma will have to be considered as a separate nAma. The first part is then interpreted as tri-kakut, which refers to the incarnation of BhagavAn as the varAha, the Boar with three horns. This interpretation for tri-kakut is supported by the following sloka from moksha dharma in the mahAbhArata tathaiva Asam tri-kakudo vArAham rUpam Asthitah | trikakut tena vikhyAtah SarIrasya pramApaNAt || moksha dharma 343-63. "Then I assumed the form of a Boar with three horns. So I became known as 'tri-kakut'. With that form I killed the rAkshasa." Sri Bhattar gives the above only as an alternative interpretation, but does not interpret the phrase tri-kakuddhaAma as two separate words as explained above. Sri Sankara also interprets tri-kakub-dhAma as one nAma.

One interpretation Sri Bhattar gives for tri-kakud-dhAma is One who has as His abode parama-pada, which is thrice as large as this universe. An alternative interpretation given is that the three parts refer to the three groupings of the six guNas (jnAna, bala, aisvarya, vIrya, Sakti, tejas), and since He is the abode of these three groups of guNas, He is tri-kakud-dhAma. Sri Sankara gives the interpretation that He is the base or support for the three regions of the entire space, the upper, the lower, and the middle, and therefore He is tri-kakud-dhAma. Sri Chinmaya gives the vedAntic interpretation that He is the base or support for the three states of consciousness, viz., the jAgrat, svapna, and sushupti, and this is why He is called tri-kakud-dhAma. 63. pavitram

Purity Incarnate. Up to this point, the qualities, possessions, and body of BhagavAn have been portrayed step-by-step. Now we are passing to His essential Nature which is to be cognized through all of the above. The word is derived from poo - to purify. Either He is the Deity that purifies, or He is the means of purification. The purity referred to here is the inner purity of the mind, which He gives to those who meditate on Him.

Both Sri RadhAkrshNa Sastri and Sri Chinmaya offer a second and more uncommon interpretation - One who gives protection (trAyate) from the thunderbolt of Indra (pavi). Sri Chinmaya points out that in vedAnta indra refers to the mind (indriyANam rAjA indrah - the mind), and the thunderbold of mind can destroy all the accomplishments of a sAdhaka, and uninterrupted medidation of Sri VishNu can give the protection against

such distractions, and thus VishNu is pavi-tra. 64. mangalam param The Embodiment of Supreme Auspiciousness Sri Sankara quotes the following from VishNu PurANa aSubhAni nirAcashTe tanoti Subhasantatim | smrti-mAtreNa yat pumsAm brahma tanmangalam viduh || "Brahman is known as beneficence because He wards off all evils and brings on a series of benefits to men on being merely remembered by them". param just emphasizes that He is the Supreme Beneficence. We may recall the introductory sloka "pavitrANAm pavitram yo mangalAnAm ca mangalam" by Bhishma; these two names occur now sequentially here. Slokam 8

65. 66. 67. 68. 69. 70. 71. 72. 73. 74.

ISAnah prANa_dah prANah jyeshThah SreshThah prajApatih hiraNyagarbah bhUgarbhah mAdhavah madhusUdhanah

65. ISAnah The controller By this name, BhagavAn is clearly distinguished from the bound souls, released souls, and ever-free souls. The name signifies that it is His innate nature to keep all things under control under all circumstances. The name is derived from the root Is - to command, to control, to rule, to possess. The names ISvara and ISAna are both derived from the root IS. I was not able to understand how the word ISAna is grammatically derived from its root, and what the special significance of this particular variant is. I would like to request any one who can elaborate on this further to advise me. 66. prANa_dah The life-giver a) prANAn dadAti iti prANa-dah This gives the first example of how BhagavAn is the controller as indicated in the previous nAma. Sri Bhattar indicates that the life-giving function referred to here is the act of BhagavAn in giving the strength to the nitya-sUris or ever-free Angels to visualize Him always, enjoy Him and do service to Him. Sri Sankara points out that in addition to the above interpretation, the same name can be interpreted to mean that BhagavAn is also the taker of the prANa - prANAn dyati iti - One who takes away the prANa or vital airs at the time of death, or prANAn dIpayati iti - One who purifies and brightens the vital airs. 67. prANah Life.

That which sustains is prANa - prANiti iti prANah. That which has prANa functioning in it is a prANI. BhagavAn is PrANa because He sustains the PrANi. The name can also be understood as referring to BhagavAn being the cause of the pRANA or life-impulse in the air that sustains the life - in kenopanishad we find the Supreme defined as prANasya prANah - the prANa of prANa itself. 68. jyeshThah Older than the oldest. Vrddhatamo jyeshThah.

Brahma is called vrddha-tara since he is older than all other beings that he created as a result of this function being entrusted in Him by BhagavAn; BhagavAn is vrddha-tama because He created Brahma, and is thus older than Brahma. Sri ChinmayAnanda points out that jyeshTHa is the superlative of vrddha (vrddha aged; jyAyAn - more aged; jyeshTha - most aged). 69. SreshThah

Most praise-worthy. PraSasyatamo SreshThah. SreshTha is the superlative of sreya - glorious. It is to be noted that the sequence of the three names above, prANa, jyeshTHa and SreshTHa is the same sequence that occurs in the chandogyopanishad - prANo vAva jyeshThaSca SreshTHASca. 70. prajApatih Lord of the Ever-free Angels. PrakarsheNa jAyante iti prajAh, teshAm patih prajApatih - The leader of those who have a glorious birth - the nitya-sUris, who are far superior to the baddha and mukhta, or the bound and freed souls. An explanation which interprets the term prajA to mean all beings, rather than the special class of Ever-free Angels, has also been provided, and thus the meaning in this case will be Lord of all beings. 71. hiraNyagarbah He who is in a lovely Abode. The word hiraNya means golden. Sri Bhattar interprets it as fitting or lovely. The word garbha means womb. Sri Bhattar interprets it as the Abode or Living Place. Thus the meaning - One who is in a fitting or Lovely Abode, viz. The Parama Padam. Or, He is the garbha , or originator, of hiraNya or gold, a term used to refer to all that is the Object of fulfillment and joy. 72. bhUgarbhah One for whom the Earth is the object of protection. He is the protector of Mother Earth. It can also mean One who has the Universe in Himself - bhU garbhe yasya sah bhUgarbhah. Or, He is the garbha, or Originator, of the Universe. BhU, which is His garbha, is constantly and lovingly nurtured and nourished through His very Essence. 73. mAdhavah a) The consort of MA or Lakshmi. b) One who is attained through the madhu vidyA, or through mauna, dhyAna, and yoga c) The Lord of knowledge or the propounder of the knowledge of the Supreme Being. d) One who is born in the race of Madhu, a yAdhava e) One for whom there is no Lord (i.e., One who is the Lord of everyone) f) A silent observer, a maunee, The nAma mAdhava occurs three times (nAma 73, 169, 741) in Sri VishNu sahasranAmam, and different interpretations are offered in the three contexts. We will deal with all the different interpretations here, and

will refer back to this section for the future. a) MAyAh dhavah mAdhavah - One who is the Lord or consort of MA or Lakshmi. The concept here is that BhagavAn and SrI are eternally and constantly associated with each other, and inseparable. As if to emphasize this, Sri Bhattar gives the detailed explanation for the qualities of MA or Lakshmi under this name, rather than dwell on the nAma MAdhava. In Brahma PurANa, we have tat Saktih durjayA bhImA vishNu-Saktih iti smrtA | sarvabhUta hrdabjasthA nAnArUpa dharA parA || prANAkhyA mantramAtA ca viSvasya jananI dhruvA || "Her power is invincible and awe-inspiring and She is considered the power of VishNu Himself. She is the Supreme Being who lives in the hearts of all beings of the universe and She is endowed with divine forms. Her name is prANa or life. She is the Mother of all mantras, and is the eternal Mother of the Universe". It continues on to say that She pervades the entire universe, moving and non-moving - jagat carAcaram idam sarvam vyApya vyavasthitA. In Sri Lakshmi sahasranAmam, She is called the Supreme Prakrti who possesses the six qualities (shAdguNya)- jnAna, bala, aiSvarya, vIrya, Sakti, tejas. She is the supreme, unique, and eternal Sakti of BhagavAn. She is one with Him, and yet remains distinct like the moon-light of the cool-rayed moon. She pervades the Universe and is the very embodiment of all Saktis. She is endowed with all glory and qualities, and is eternal. Her dharma is the same as that of BhagavAn. She is the life-giving Sakti of all beings on earth. These are expressed in the following Slokas: mahAvibhUteh sampUrNa shAdguNya vapushah prabhoh | bhagavad vAsudevasya nityaiva eshA anapAyinI || ekaiva vartate bhinnA jyotsneva himadIdhiteh | sarvaSaktyAtmikA caiva viSvam vyApya vyavasthitA || sarvaiSvarya guNopetA nityam taddharma dharmiNI | prANaSaktih parA hyeshA sarveshAm prANiNAm bhuvi || The secret of the true nature of MA is thus summarized SraddhayA devo devatvam aSnute Madhava gets His Lordship because of His association with MA or Lakshmi. b) One who is attained through the madhu vidyA, involving mauna, dhyAna, and yoga. The support for this comes from the mahAbhArata madhuvidyAvabodhatvAt dhavatvAdvA Sriyo'niSam | maunAd-dhyAnAcca yogAcca viddhi bhArata mAdhavam || (Udyog a parva 68.4)

Here, mA stands for mauna, dha stands for dhyAna, and va stands for yoga. He is experienced by the seeker who has stilled his mind through mauna, dhyAna, and yoga practices. Or, it can be said that He is mAdhava because He is endowed with mauna, dhyAna, and yoga - He silently observes the physical, mental, and intellectual activities of all beings, and is ever the non-interfering Observer. c) The Lord of knowledge. In this interpretation, mA stands for knowledge, and dhava is Lord. The support for this interpretation comes from HarivamSa mA vidyA ca hareh proktA tasyA ISo yato bhavAn | tasmAd mAdhava nAmAsi dhavah svAmIti Sabditah || (HarivamSa 3.88.49) "O Hari! You are the Lord (dhava) of mA (knowledge); hence you are named Madhava, the Master of mA". d) madhukule jAtatvAt mAdhavah - One who is born in the race of Madhu, a yAdava. e) mA dhavah yasya sa mAdhavah - One for whom there is no other Lord. This interpretation is included as one of the explanations for this name by ThirukkaLLAm sri NrsimharAghavAchAriAr in his bhAshya on Sri Bhagavad GItA. f) One who is the Silent Observer - this is discussed under item b) above. 74) madhusUdhanah The slayer of the evil demon called Madhu. In the MahAbhArata we have the following vishNu karNodbhavam cApi madhu nAma mahAsuram | tasya tAvadvadhAdeva deva dAnava mAnavAh madhusUdhana ityAhur-rshayaSca janArdanam || (MahAbhArata 2.63.13) "Because Sri VishNu destroyed the mahAsuran by name madhu, He is called MadhusUdhana by the sages, devas, asuras, and men". Sri ChinmayAnanda indicates that madhu is a term used in vedAnta to refer to the fruits of actions. Since BhagavAn destroys the effects of the fruits of actions of those who meditate on Him, He is madhusUdana.

Slokam 9

75. ISvarah 76. vikramI

77. dhanvI 78. medhAvI 79. vikramah 80. kramah 81. anuttamah 82 durAdharshah 83. krtajnah 84. krtih 85. AtmavAn

75. ISvarah The Ruler.

This nAma occurred earlier (nAma 36). At that time we had indicated that the name can be interpreted as One who has unlimited aiSvarya, or One who can do whatever He wills (IshTe). AiSvarya means might or power, sovereignty, affluence or wealth, etc. Sri Sankara seems to interpret the first occurrence of this nAma as One who has unlimited might, and the next one as One who has unlimited power. Sri Bhattar interprets the first occurrence as One who has supreme power of rulership over all beings, and seems to interpret the second one as One who does whatever He wills - yatra kAma gamo vaSI - He has self-control and goes wherever He wants. Sri ChinmayAnanda interprets the first occurrence as One who has the ability to do whatever He wants and the second occurrence as One who is Omni-potent or All-powerful, with control over all forms of Sakti - kriyA Sakti, icchA Sakti, and jnAna Sakti. However, all of them seem to use the two variants we have covered under nAma 36. 76. vikramI a) The most courageous, The most powerful. b) One who has the "Special" footsteps viz. Vamana Vikramah Souryam, tadyogAt vikramI - vikrama is courage; He who is ever a courageous One, is vikramI. Sri Bhattar points out that the name signifies that it is His nature that it dispels all possibility of anything going against His will or desire.

Sri ChinmayAnanda gives the additional interpretation which uses the meaning of krama as steps, and interprets the nAma as One who has "Special" footsteps, referring to the vAmana incarnation. 77. dhanvI The wielder of the bow. Dhanurasya asti iti dhanvI. He is the wielder of the divine bow Sarnga. It is well-known that in His incarnation as Sri Rama, He had to dedicate a substantial part of His life wielding His bow. In the GitA, Sri KrshNa says rAmah Sastra bhrtAmaham - I am Rama among the wielders of the bow. 78. medhAvI One who is capable of powerful memory. Sri Sankara gives the following definition "medhA bahugrantha dhAraNa sAmarthyam, sa yasya asti sa medhAvI - medhA is the ability to grasp several ideas on different subjects at the same time; One who has this ability naturally is medhAvI". Sri RadhAkrshNa Sastri points out that BhagavAn is Isvara, vikramI, dhanvI, etc., because He is a medhAvI, one who can command the knowledge of anything at any time as desired. 79. vikramah a) One with great strides (see nAma 76), such as in the vAmana incarnation b) One who rides on the king of birds, the Garuda. The first meaning has been explained under the earlier nAma 76. The second is derived as follows: vi refers to the king of birds, Garuda; krama refers to His sancAra playfully on the Garuda who is the embodiment of the three vedas, around the world. 80. kramah a) One who is the basis for the order in the Universe b) One who controls and bestows the power of movement c) One who is highly prosperous Krama can refer to systematization, sequence, ordering etc. (The word kramam is commonly used in Tamil as a word acquired from Sanskrit with this meaning). It can also refer to steps, as we indicated under vikramI, virkramah, etc., and as a result, motion. Based on the meaning as ordering or sequence, He is the one who makes the events of the world conform

to an order, for eg., night and day following each other. Based on the meaning as steps or motion, He is responsible for the power of His creatures having the power of motion or movement. According to PaNini sUtra 1.3.38, which reads "vrtti-sarga-tAyaneshu kramah", krama also can indicate continuity, energy, or good progress or development. Sri Bhattar uses the last of these, and gives the meaning "One who has great prosperity". 81. anuttamah One for whom there is nothing superior or better. na vidyamAna uttamo yasmAt sah anuttamah - One for whom nothing superior is known. The nirukti summarization of Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna is uttamo nAsti yasmAt sah anuttama udAhrtah. 82. durAdharshah daityAdhibhih dharshayitum na sakyata iti durAdharshah One who cannot be overcome by the demons and others. 83. krtajnah One who is grateful. Sri Bhattar gives the following references from the GItA in support of this interpretation: api cet sudurAcAro bhajate mAm anayabhAk | sAdhureva sa mantavyah samyag vyavasito hi sah || (9.30) A portion of the translation of the bhAshya of Sri RAmAnuja for the above sloka is: "If even the most sinful man worships Me with undivided devotion, with worship as the only purpose, such a person must be considered highly righteous. He is eminent among the worshippers of VishNu - a great Sri VaishNava (vaishNava SreshThasara eva mantavyah are Sri RAmAnujA's own words). He must be esteemed as fit for honor." BhagavAn is so grateful that the mere worship of Him with sincerity is sufficient for Him to forgive all other sins committed by the worshipper. The second support given by Sri Bhattar for the gratefulness of BhagavAn for a devotee who cried for help with full surrender to Him is from the MahAbhArata govindeti yadAkrandat krshNA mAm dUravAsini | rNam pravrddhamiva me hrdayAt na apasarpati || (MB 3-58-22) "That cry for help uttered aloud by Draupadi even from a distance, calling me "GovindA" - that cry is never

away from my mind like a debt that has increased with the interest accumulated on it". Sri Sankara points out that He confers emancipation (moksha) on those that offer to Him in worship even such common objects as a leaf or flower - patrapushpAdyalpamapi prayacchatAm moksham dadAti. Another explanation given for this nAma is that BhagavAn is One who knows the actions of all the other beings, good and bad - prANinAm puNya apuNya Atmakam karma krtam jAnAti iti krtajnah. He is the one Knower who knows all physical activities, all emotional feelings, and all intellectual thoughts and motives. Sri ChinmayAnanda points out that He knows the exact depth of sincerity, the true ardency of devotion, the real amount of purity in the heart of His devotees, and as a result of His gratitude, He brings joy and bliss to their hearts because He is a krtajna. 84. krtih One who is the cause of the virtuous act of His devotees. In the previous nAma we saw that BhagavAn has great gratitude for the good acts of His devotees. Through the current nAma it is pointed out that in reality BhagavAn is really the cause behind the good deeds, and all we can and should do is practice pure and sincere devotion. Sri Bhattar points out that BhagavAn alone makes us do virtuous acts when He wants to lift us up from the worlds of material existence. The virtuous act of the Jiva owes its origin to the Lord when He is pleased - tacca teshAm sukrtam asmAdeva prasannAt iti krtih. 85. AtmavAn The real Owner and Controller of the souls of those who do these virtuous acts.

The basic elemental fact that stands out from the last three nAmas is that it is not we who bring about our salvation through our effort or actions; it is He who makes it happen based on the sincerity of our devotion, trust, and surrender to Him as the sole cause of our salvation. He is the krtajna who, just pleased immensely by our small effort of sincere devotion, will cause our souls which He owns, and divert it towards actions that He will then use as the hetu or reason or pretext for conferring His blessings on us. Another explanation Sri RAdhAkrshNa SAstri gives for this nAma is One who is not dependent on anything else for His actions - for example when He killed PUtanA the demoness, He drank the same milk that she gave Him to bring about her destruction.

Slokam 10 nAmas 86 to 95

86. sureSah 87. SaraNam

88. Sarma 89. viSvaretAh 90. prajAbhavah 91. ahah 92 samvatsarah 93. vyAlah 94. pratyayah 95. sarvadarSanah

86. sureSah a) The Lord of all the other gods. b) The best among those who can bestow their devotees' desires. a) SurANAm ISah sureSah. The word sura means one who can fulfil the desires of the devotees (sushThu rAti - dadAti - iti surah. He is sureSa because He created the other gods (sura) such as Brahma and Rudra and conferred on them the functions for which they are responsible. b) su rA Isah - Best among those who can bestow blessings on their devotees. su - Sobhanam, rAti - dadAti, Isah - Their Lord or the The Best. Thus sureSa means the best among those who can fuflfil the desires of the devotees. Sriman nArAyaNa is the only one who can fulfil the ultimate desire of the devotees - that of moksha. 87. SaraNam The Refuge. According to amarakoSa, SaraNam means protection as well as home - SaraNam vadha rakshitror grha rakshaNayorapi. BhagavAn is the Ultimate Refuge to those who are in misery - ArtAnAm Arti hantAram. He is the also the final Goal or the Destination - nivasishyasi mayyeva ata Urdhvam na samSayah; the one who realizes Him comes to live in Him. Sri ChinmayAnanda points out that He is not only the Home for those who

have realized Him, but in pralaya time He is the home for all beings. 88. Sarma One who is Bliss, the Highest Goal to be attained. AmarakoSa gives this word as an alternative (i.e., with the same meaning) as prIti, sukha, etc. In the vyAkhyAna for amarakoSa, LingAyasurin gives the following derivation - SrNAti duhkham iti Sarma - One who destroys or removes the sorrows. Both Sri Sankara and Sri Bhattar give the meaning "Bliss". ParamAnanda rUpatvAt Sarma, and sukham paramprApyam iti Sarma, respectively. I could not find the root word for the nAma from the dictionary. Sir William-Monier's dictionary speculates that the name is probably derived from Sri. 89. viSvaretAh The seed for the Universe. retas means seed. ViSvam kAryam asya iti viSvaretA, or viSvasya kAraNatvAt viSvaretA. The name denotes that He is the seed from which the tree of life has sprung forth. Later on, in nAmas 118 and 151, we will see that He is the also the viSvayoni where the seed develops and takes full form. In other words, everything results from Him and exists because of Him. Sri Bhattar notes that the purpose of His creation is for His service and His service only. In vishNu tatva, we have the following "vicitrA deha sampattih IsvarAya niveditum | pUrvameva krtA brahman! Hasta-pAdAdi samyutA || "Brahman! This wonderful wealth, namely body, associated with hands, legs, etc., has already been created by me with a view to enable beings to use them in the service of the Supreme." 90. prajAbhavah One from whom all beings have originated. In nAma 70, prajApati, we found that prajA can refer to those special births (prakarsheNa jAyante) such as the nitya suris. So here prajAbhava can refer to the general interpretation that prajA refers to all beings, or more specifically that He created all the other suris or Ever-Free Angels. Sri rAdhAkrshNa SAstri points out that while normal evolution starts with primitive forms and evolves to higher forms, BhagavAn deiced to create the higher forms such as Brahma first, and then the forms that are not as accomplished, such as all the animals, the humans, etc., later. 91. ahah a) One who never forsakes anyone. b) One who is like the Day that awakens people from ignorance. c) One who does not destroy His devotees. The first interpretation is based on "na hInah asya asti iti ahah - There is no one who is abandoned by Him.

The second interpretation is based on the traditional meaning of the word aha - day. The third interpretation is derived by a-ha, where ha means destroy; One who does not destroy is a-ha. 92. samvatsarah He who lives for the uplift of His devotees. This name repeats again as nAma 423. The meaning is derived from the root vas - to live. samuddharaNAya samvasati iti samvatsarah. The term samvatsara is also used to denote the year, and hence another interpetation for this nAma is that BhagavAn is Time itself. 93. vyAlah a) One who accepts the devotees - e.g., vibhIshaNa. b) One who is beyond grasp such as a vyAla - a serpent, an elephant, a tiger, etc. Sri Bhattar gives the first interpretation based on the root lA - to take or accept. VyAla also means a serpent, a mad elephant, a vicious tiger etc. BhagavAn is vyAla because He is slippery like a serpent to grasp, or beyond grasp like a huge elephant. Or He is impossible to be controlled by the demons, like a mad elephant - vyAlavat bhujangavat gajavat grahItum aSakyatvAt vyAlah. 94. pratyayah One who can be relied upon. PratIyate asmin iti pratyayah - One in whom we can place confidence.In the sabhA parva in mahA bhArata, we have "yadi te hrdayam vetti yadi te pratyayo mayi | bhImasenArjunau SIghram nyAsabhUtau prayaccha me || (20.7) "If your heart understands me, and if you have FAITH in me, place BhIma and arjuna immediately at my disposal". 95. sarvadarSanah a) One who shows all His grace to His devotees b) The All-seeing. Sri Bhattar interprets darSana to mean He shows everything, and Sri Sankara interprets this word to mean He sees everything. Great indeed are the ways great minds see and enjoy the BhagavAn in many different ways! Sri Sankara gives the following reference to the sruti "viSvataScakshur viSvAksham - One who has eyes on all sides - One who has a Universal eye". (taittirIya AraNyaka 10.1, 11).

SrI ChinmayAnanda gives the following reference to GItA sarvato'kshi Siromukham - One who has eyes and heads everywhere.

Slokam 11 nAmas 96 to 104

96. ajah 97. sarveSvarah 98. siddhah 99. siddih 100. sarvAdih 101. acyutah 102. vRshAkapih 103. ameyAtmA 104. sarva yoga vinissRtah

96. ajah a) Unborn. b) The Remover of all obstacles. c) One who moves in the hearts of the devotees d) One who removes the ignorance from the hearts of His devotees e) One who is the root of all sound (akshara "a"). This nAma occurs two more times later (nAma 206 and 524).

a) The first meaning is derived as na jAyata iti ajah - One who is not born in the traditional sense. Sri Sankara gives the following from the srutis to support this explanation: na jAto na janishyate - He was neither born nor will be born (Rg veda 1.81.5) "na hi jAto na jAye'yam na janishye kadAcana | kshetraj~nah sarvabhUtAnAm tasmAt aham ajah smrtah || MB SAntiparva 330.9

"I was not born, nor am I born, nor will I have a future birth; I am the soul in all beings; hence I am called the Unborn". Other references to the name aja are: "ajo nityah SASvato'yam purANah" (kaThopanishad 1.2.18), and "sa vA esha mahAn aja AtmA" (brhadAraNyaupanishad 4.4.22). Sri Bhattar points out that BhagavAn only emerges out of a pillar etc., but is not born like others (see the explanation for svayambhuh - nAma 37). b) There are several interpretations of the nAma aja using the meaning "movement" for the root aj - aja gati kshepaNayoh - The root 'aj' signifies movement or throwing away . Sri Bhattar uses this meaning and interprets the name as meaning "The Remover of all obstacles" to ensure that His devotees accomplish in their objective of reaching Him. Sri Sankara uses the same meaning for aja (movement, motion) and comes up with the explanation - ajati gacchati kshipati iti vA ajah - He who moves into the heart of His devotees. Sri rAdhAkrshNa SAstri uses the meaning "movement" and interprets the name as Remover of the ignorance in us, or One who goes to the bhaktas to enable them to reach Him, or One who throws away His weapons at anyone who disturbs or causes hardship to His devotees. One other explanation given for aja is akAravAcyatayA jAtah - One who is known through the letter "a". akAra vAcyatayA jAtah ajah. In the gItA we have "aksharANaAm akAro'smi - (gItA 10.33) - I am 'a" among the syllables. Sri rAdhAkrhNa SAstri points out that at the time of pralaya the panca bhUtas coalesce into ehter (the reverse of AkASAt vAyuh, vAyoragnih, aganerApah, adbhyah pethivI, etc.)., and the ether coalesces into its tanmAtra, the sound, and Sabda ultimately dissolves into the sound "a", which is the form of BhagavAn at the conclusion of prlaya. The sruti is 'akAro vai sarvA vAk". In tirukkural we have "akara mudalAya ezhutthellAm Adi bhaghavan mudatre ulagu". 97. sarveSvarah a) One who reaches all who seek Him b) One who is the Isvara for all isvaras a) Sri Bhattar derives the first interpretation from the root aS to pervade. By the uNAdi sUtra 738, aSnoterASukarmaNi varat ca - the affix varat comes after the root aS - to pervade, when the word formed from it refers to "having the power of granting success soon". Thus aS + varat = ISvarah. The interpretation is that He is sarveSvara because He quickly reaches all those who have taken refuge in Him in order to avoid delay in dispelling their uneasiness whether they are qualified or not. Or rather, the sufficient

qualification is that they have taken refuge in Him. b) sarveshAm ISvarANAm ISvarah sarveSvarah. The Sruti says - esha sarveSvarah - BrhadAraNya upanishad - 4.4.22 - He is the Lord of all lords. 98. siddhah One who is available at the hands of His devotees. niruktam summarizes Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna as svarUpeNaiva bhaktAnAm siddhatvAt siddhah ucyate - He is in the hands of His devotees in His true form. A siddha can also mean One who has accomplished all that has to be achieved. Sri Sankara gives the interpretation that He is ever perfect - nitya nishpanna rUpatvAt siddhah. An interpretation for the amarakoSa gives the definition siddhyati iti siddhah. 99. siddhih The Goal. The word siddhi literally means accomplishment, success etc. BhagavAn is siddhi because He is the Goal or accomplishment by adopting the means. Or, in the context of success or accomplishment, He is siddhi because He gives the ultimate fruit of action, moksha. All other accomplishments can only give lesser benefits such as the lesser joys of heaven etc., but only by attaining Him one can get moksha, the ultimate success. 100. sarvAdih The Origin or Cause of all things. SarveshAm purushArtAnAm Adih sarvAdih or sarva bhUtAnAm AdikAraNatvAt sarvAdih. One who is the very beginning of all; One who was in exsitence earlier than anything else. Even before the effects arise, the Cause. The Infinite whish was before creation, and from which the created beings emerged out. 101. acyutah a) One who has never slipped from His glory. b) One who never lets His devotees slip. c) One who undergoes no modifications such as birth, growth, decay, disease, etc. This nAma occurs two more times later (320 and 557). a) cyti means "fall" and cyuta means "fallen". acyuta means "One who has never fallen from His true nature". Several explanations are given to further expand this guNa of the Lord. Sri Bhattar points out that He does not ever fall from His position of overlordship unlike Brahma, Indra, etc. who are subject to loss of position, and therefore He is called acyuta. Sri rAdhAkrshNa SAstri points out that He also does not slip from

His position by being influenced by kAma etc. unlike Brahma, Indra etc. In mahAbhArata we have "yasmAt na cyuta pUrvo'ham acyutastena karmaNA" - SAnti parva 12.330.16. Sri Sankara and Sri Bhattar have interpreted the above sruti slightly differently. Sri Sankara's words are svarUpasAmarthyAt na cyuto na cyavate na cyavishyata iti acyutah - He has not lapsed, is not lapsing, and will not lapse from His own glory; hence the name acyuta. Sri Bhattar's interpretation fo the above Sruti lead to the second meaning, which follows: b) Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna for the above is "I have never abandoned (my bhaktas). Because of this act of mine, I am known as acyuta". His words are "tebyah prapannebhyah na apagatah acyutah - He is never away from those who have sought refuge in Him". Sri tirukkaLLam nrsimharAghavAchAryar in his bhagavadgItA bhAshya has given the explanation na cyAvayati iti acyutah - One who does not let His devotees slip - arjuna using this name here to call Lord krshNa who has taken it upon Himself to be his charioteer and who will not let him slip. c) cyutam means modification. The upanishad says of BhagavAn - "SASvatam Sivam acyutam" - Eternal, Auspicious, and Changeless" - taittirIya AraNyakam - 10.11). Sri rAdhAkrshNa SAstri points out that BhagavAn is acyuta because he does not slip from stage to stage in the sequence of events such as birth, living, growth, change in appearance, decay, and finally disappearance from the body. 102. vRshAkapih One who lifted the Earth from the waters of adharma in the form of varAha. In the mahAbhArata we have "kapir varAhah SreshThaSca dharmaSca vRsha ucyate | tasmAd vRshAkapim prAha kASyapO mAm prajApatih || (Santi parva 330.24) "The word vRsha means dharma, and the word kapi refers to boar (pA means to protect and ka means water, and so kapi refers to varAha incarnation where He protected the Earth from the waters). Sri chinmayAnanda points out that the name derives from the fact that He protected the Earth from the ocean of adharma in His varAha incarnation. The meaning dharma for the word vRsha is based on the ability of dharma to shower all that is desired. Sri chinmayAnanda points out that this is one of the nAmas on which there is wide controversy between the different vyAkyAna kartAs; however, in the few tests that I have referred to, this indication of serious controversy is not evident. If any of you can elaborate on other interpretations by our AchAryas and other vyAkhyAna kartAs, I will be extremely grateful. 103. ameyAtmA One whose Nature cannot be comprehended. Ameya means unaccountable or incomprehensible. Sri ChinmayAnanda indicates that the virAt purusha

form of the Lord is suggested here. His self or nature is such that it cannot be measured by any particular standard and determined. 104. sarva yoga vinissRtah a) One who is beyond any attachment b) One who is easily attained by all means by His devotees The word yoga can mean union or it can mean the means. Depending on which one of these is chosen, we get a different interpretation. VinissRta means gone forth or out, or escaped according to the Sanskrit dictionary by Sir William-Monier. Using the first meaning for yoga, we get the interpretation that He is free from any and all of kind of bondage, and so He is sarva yoga vinissRta. Using the second meaning, Sri Bhattar's interpretation is that He is attainable easily by all means. His interpretation is - yOgaih - upAyaih; vi - viSheshENa - vEda parama guhyairiva; nissRtah - prAptum yogyah, sugraha iti vA. Slokam 12 105. vasuh 106. vasu-manAh 107. satyah 108. samAtmA 109. sammitah 110. samah 111 amOghah 112. puNdarIkAkshah 113. vRshakarmA 114. vRshAkRti

105. vasuh a) One who dwells in the hearts of His devotees. b) One who dwells in the Milk-Ocean. c) One who is the wealth that His devotees seek. d) The best among the eight vasus - pAvaka. e) One who lives in the sky. This nAma occurs two more times (nAma 271 and 701). a) & b): vasati iti vasuh - One who dwells. He dwells in the hearts of His devotees even with a small amount of devotion, and He dwells in the kshIrArNava. SrI krshNa-prEmi in one his upanyAsas remarks that SrIman nArAyaNa chose to dwell in the Milk-Ocean as if to be nearer to those devotees who are not yet accomplished enough to join Him to SrivaikuNTham, or as if He can be closer to the devotees so as to rush to help those who need Him. We have the following from the srutis "sa lokAnAm hitArthAya kshIrOdhE vasati prabhuh" The great Lord resides in the milk ocean for doing good to the people of the world. "Esha nArAyaNah SrImAn kshIrArNava nikEtanah" This nArAyaNa is always with Lakshmi, and resides in the Milk-ocean (HarivamSa 113.62). c) The word vasu also means wealth - vasati nItimatAm gRha iti vasu. In gItA we have vAsudevah sarvam - vAsudeva is everything (gItA 7.19). He is the wealth that great men seek. d) He is vasu because He is one of the eight vasus. Sri Sankara gives the following reference to the gItA to support this interpretation - vasUnAm pAvakaScAsmi - I am pAvaka among the vasus (gItA 10.23). e) One who, as air, moves about and has residence in the mid-region. In kaThopanishd we have vasurantiksha sat ( kaThopanisahd 2.5.2). 106. Om vasumanasE namah vasu-manAh a) One who has a 'wealthy' or rich mind. b) One who has a mind which thinks of His devotees as a treasure. a) BhagavAn is vasu-manA because His mind is unpolluted by anything such as rAga, dvesha (attachment, hate), and similar secondary afflictions such as mada or infatuation. He has a mind which has none of the sins of passions and pains, none of the storms of desires and jealousies, none of the quakes of likes and dislikes.

b) Sri kRshNa says in the gItA that the high-souled man is very hard to find - sa mahAtmA sudurlabhah - gItA

7.19. 107. Om satyAya namah satyah a) The Truth b) One whose form is made up of prANa, matter and sun c) One who is well-disposed towards the good. This nAma occurs two more times later (nAma 213, 873). a) The most commonly known meaning for this word is Truth. The direct support for this interpretation comes from mahAbhArata "satye pratisThitah kRshNah satamasmin pratishThitam | sattAsattE ca gOvindah tasmAt satyah satAm matah || (udyOga parva 69.12.13) "KRshNa is rooted in satya and satya is rooted in kRshNa. Existence and non-existence are grounded in govinda. So great men opine that kRshNa is Truth itself". b) Sri Sankara gives the following from aitrEya AraNyaka in support of the second interpretation saditi prANAstItyannam yamityasAvAdityah - sat means prANa, ti means food, and yam the sun. He is satya because His form is made up of prANa, matter and sun. c) satsu sAdhutvAt satyah - He is satya because He is well-disposed (excellent) towards the noble souls. The pANini sutra that supports this interpretation is tatra sAdhuh (4.4.98) tatrEti saptamIsamarthAth sAdhurityEtasminnarthE yatpratyayO bhavati The affix yat comes after a word in the locative construction, in the sense of 'excellent in regard thereto'. Sri ChinmayAnanda points out that in philosophy, satya is that which is the same in all three periods (past, present, and future). He is the the only one who fits this definition, and so He is satya. 108. Om samAtmanE namah samAtmA - One who has an even mind. One whose mind is undisturbed by love or hatred. He is also sama AtmA since He does not distinguish one from another when it comes to His thoughts on His devotees. Since He is the soul in everything, He finds no distinction between them. Since He is unattached to anything, He sees everything and everyone as equal. 109. Om sammitAya namah sammitah a) One who has let Himself be understood (controlled) by His devotees.

b) The One Truth who is accepted by the Rshis and revealed in the upanishads. Either meaning seems to be based on the word sammata - accepted. The first interpretation is by Sri Bhattar, who points out that this name signifies that He willingly accepted the role of being 'controlled' by devaki, kausalyA, yasoda, dasaratha, vasudeva, etc. He chose the parents to whom He was going to be the child, and then 'played' the role of the child willingly. Sri chinmayAnanda points out that sammita can mean that He is the only one who is the accepted Truth or sammata by the Rshis and the upanishads. The advaita pATha is asammita, which is interpreted as referring to One who is limitless or immeasurable. 110. Om samAya namah samah - One who treats all His devotees equally. In gItA we have "samO'ham sarva bhUtEshu" - I am equally disposed towards all beings (gIta 9.29). Sri Sankara interprets the meaning as One who is the same at all times. He gives another interpretation also - He is ( sa) with (mAyA) lakshmi always; therefore, He is sama. 111. Om amoghAya namah amOghah - One who always gives fruits to those who worship Him. MOgha means futile. Mogham nirarthakam is amrakOSa. AmOgha is the opposite of it. We have the following from rAmAyaNa "amOgham darSanam rAma na ca mOghah tava stavah | amOghAstE bhavishyanti bhaktimantaSca yE narAh || (rAmAyaNa yuddha 120.31) "o rAma! A sight of You is never futile. The praise of You is also never futile. Those who are endowed with devotion to You will always be successful in their life". 112. Om puNdarIkAkshAya namah puNdarIkAkshah a) One whose eyes are beautiful like the lotus flower b) One who resides in the heart space of everyone and observes all c) One who is like the eye to the residents of SrIvaikunTham. puNdarIkam means lotus flower. PuNdarIkE iva akshiNI yasya sah puNdarIkAkshah - One whose eyes are beautiful like lotus flowers. lingAyatasUrin in his bhAshya for amarakOSa gives a second interpretation as well - puNdarIkam hRtkamalam akshatIti vA - One who pervades the heart space - akshati pervades. SrI Bhattar gives the meaning 'vaikuNTham' to the word puNdarIka based on the following, and interprets puNdarIkAkshah as One who is the eye for the residents of SrIvaikunTham -

puNdarIkam param dhAma nityam aksharam avyayam | tadbhavAn pundarIkAkshah ........ || PuNdarIka is the Transcendental world which is eternal, indestructible, and immutable. You are like the eye to that world and so you are known as puNdarIkAksha." - (MahAbhArata udyoga - 69.6). 113. Om vRshakarmaNE namah vRshakarmA - One who is of righteous actions. VRsha means dharma or virtue - abhilashitam varshatIti vRshah. SrI chinamayAnanda points out that His actions are righteous, and He acts only to establish righteousness - dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yugE yugE. In gItA BhagavAn says that He does his actions according to His dharma even though He has nothing to gain or lose by any action - na anavAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi 3.22. 114. Om vRshAkRtaye namah vRshAkRti - One who is an embodiment of dharma. vRsha - dharma, AkRti - form. One whose form is itself dharma. Lord Rama is considered Dharma Incarnate. Or it can mean One who incarnates for the sake of preserving dharma - dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge. Slokam 13 115. rudrah 116. bahu-SirAh 117. babhruh 118. viSva-yonih 119. Suci-SravAh 120. amRtah 121. SASvatasthANuh 122. varArohah 123. mahA-tapAh

115. rudrah a) One who brings tears to the eyes. b) One who confers the good on the devotees c) One who destroys misery. Om rudrAya namah

rOdayati iti rudrah - Sri Bhattar interprets this to mean that He brings tears of joy to the eyes of His devotees. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAStri gives an example from SrImad bhAgavatam in support of this, but probably because of a typographical error in the book I could not find the particular Sloka in my copy of SrImad bhAgavatam. The gist of this reference is that one who is not shedding tears of joy on hearing of bhagavAn's guNas, singing His praise etc., must indeed have a heart made of stone. The reference given is MB 3.3.24. It could also mean that He brings tears to the eyes of the beings when He withdraws them during the pralaya. Sri Sankara points out that it could also mean one who confers (ra) the good (rud), or it could mean one who destroys (dru) misery and its cause (ru - duhkham) - rum drAvayati iti rudrah. 116. bahu-SirAh One who is multi-headed.Om bahu-SirasE namah. In purusha sUktam of Rg veda we have the description of the cosmic form ofBhagavAn described as "sahasra SIrshA purushah sahasrAkshah sahasra pAt Thepurusha of thousand heads, thousand eyes and thousand feet..... In gItA wefind the following description of the viSvarUpa of bhagavAn -sarvAScaryamayam devam anantam viSvatOmukham - the rUpa with uncountablefaces in all directions (11.11). Again in gItA (13.13), we have "sarvatahpANi pAdam tat sarvato'kshi SirO mukham - The Pure jivAtma savarUpa has handsand legs everywhere, has eyes, heads, and mouths everywhere.....". Sri Bhattar has interpreted the name as referring to the form of bhagavAn asananta, in which form He has many faces and over a thousand hoods. 117. babhruh The Supporter.

Om babhravE namah bibharti lOkAn iti babhruh - The one who supports the worlds. He as AdiSesha supports the earth. He is also the supporter of the Earth as Adi kUrma, Adi varAha, etc. 118. viSva-yOnih a) The cause of this world. b) One who unites His devotees with Himself. Om viSva-yOnayE namah yOni means cause. Since He is the cause of this world He is called viSvayOni. In nAma 89 - viSvarEtA - we saw that He is the seed from which the world originates. This nAma says that He is also the place where the seed develops into its full blossom. yOni means womb, and He is the seed, the womb, the sustainer after the birth of the world, the one who impartially observes as the kshetraj~na, etc. Note that we have refeered to the following from the gItA a few times before, and it applies here again - vAsudevah sarvam. The word yOni can also be derived from the world yu - to unite (yu miSraNE). Thus yOni can refer to bhagavAn's act of uniting His devotees with Him. Without His will, no one will be united with Him. He is viSvayOni because He unites His devotees with Himself. 119. Suci-SravAh a) One who listens to words which are pure. b) One whose names are worthy of being heard. c) One who has beautiful and divine ears. Om Suci-Sravase namah. a) SucIni SrAvaNyAni SRNoti iti Suci-SravAh One who listens to words that are pure. Sri Bhattar gives the following reference to mahAbhArata in support of this interpretation SucIni SrAvaNIyAni SRNomi iha dhanan~jaya | na ca pApAni gRhNAmi tato'ham vai SuciSravAh || (MB Santi parva 344.61) "O dhanan~jaya! I listen here to all that is pure and agreeable to hear. I do not heed to what is sinful. Therefore I am known as Suci-SravAh". In this context, Sri Bhattar points out the incident where bhagavAn just kept listening to the words of vidura which were full of dharma, and the night passed away for KRshNa unnoticed dharmyA ramyASca arthavatIh vicitrArtha padAksharAh | SRNvanto vividhA vAcah vidurasya mahAtmanah | akAmasyaiva kRshNasya sA vyatIyAya SarvarI || (MB Udyoga 93.2) b) Sri Sankara gives the following interpretation -

SucIni Sravamsi nAmAni SravaNIyAnyasyeti Suci-SravAh One whose names and glories are very holy and purifying to hear. c) The word Sravas also means ear. Sri chinmayAnandA thus interprets the name as meaning One who has divine ears - He is the Hearer of all ears. 120. amRtah a) The unsatiating nectar to His devotees b) One who is Immortal Om amRtAya namah a) The devotees never get satiated by doing service to bhagavAn, and He is sweet to the devotees to an unlimited extent. b) na vidyate mRtam maraNam asya iti amRtah - He has no decay or death.The sruti says He is nondecaying and Immortal ajarah amarah -(bRhadAraNya upanishad 4.4.25). Sri chinmayAnandA points out that He is amRtah because He can cure the disease of ignorance in His devotees. 121. SASvata-sthANuh One who is Eternally Firm. Om SaSvata-SthANave namah. The two parts of this name, SASvata and SthANu, occurred as separate names earlier (SASvata - which occurred as nAma 57, and sthAnu as nAma 28). sthANu also occurs as part of the current nAma and of nAma 427 - sthAvara-sthANuh later. Recall that sthANu was earlier interpreted as One who is firm in blessing His devotees, and SASvata was interpreted as One who is Eternal because of His unceasing act of creation, sustenance and destruction. SASvata-SthANu here is interpreted as one name in all the references I have, and there is no discussion on why it is treated thus. Sri Bhattar gives this name the meaning 'Eternal and Steady'. Unlike the nectar for which the devas and asuras churned the Ocean, He is Eternal because he cannot be taken away from those who enjoy Him. Sri Sankara gives the meaning "Eternally Firm". SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives the interpretation that He is SASvata because He has no beginning or end, and sthANu because He does not age or decay. 122. varArohah a) One who is the most supreme object of attainment.

b) One of Excellent Ascent. Om varArohAya namah. Varam means supreme, and Arohanam means ascent. Sri Bhattar's interpretation is that He is the Supreme object of attainment, since all other objects are inferior. Sri Sankara gives the meaning that He is of Excellent Ascent. Sri rAdhAkRshNa Sastri suggests that bhagavAn is varAroha because He is reclining on AdiSesha, the high paryanka. In the second or third article in this series, I had indicated that Sri Bhattar interprets the first 122 nAmas as describing the para-vAsudeva form of the Lord, which is not conditioned by any limiting adjuncts and which is not the effect of another object. It is endowed with six qualities (~jnAna, bala, aiSvarya, vIrya, Sakti, tejas). This is the object of attainment of the released souls. The transcendental nature (paratva) of bhagavAn has been spoken of mostly by the names ending with the above nAma - varAroha. Sri Bhattar also interprets the contents of the first 122 names as the response from BhIshma to YudhisThira for the first two of the six questions posed to him 1) kim ekam daivatam loke? 2) kim vApi ekam parAyaNam? The next set of nAmas are interpreted by Sri Bhattar as a) representing the vyuha (emanation) forms, and b) responding to YudhisThira's question - stuvantah kim - eulogising whom? The vyuha forms are four in number - vAsudeva, samkarshaNa, pradyumna, aniruddha. Of these, vAsudeva can be taken as having been included in the para form. The vyUha forms are in charge of the work of creation, sustenance, and destruction; they propound the Sastras, explain their significance, and give the fruits in accordance with the rules laid down therein; they also teach the method of meditation and workship of bhagavAn. The six qualities of the para rupa are distributed amongst the four vyUhas and each has its own form and duties. They are the means for the attainment of salvation. The samkarshaNa form is associated with knowledge and strength. Starting with the next nAma, the samkarshaNa form - the second in the vyuhas - is to be dealt with. 123. mahA-tapAh One who is endowed with great knowledge. Om mahA-tapase namah. Tapas is given the meaning "great knowledge" based on muNdakopanishad yasya ~jnAnamayam tapah - Whose tapas is the nature of knowledge. Mahat is pUjyam - worthy of respect. Here, knowledge is the ability to guide people so that they may be rid of the miseries of the world which they have been having from time immemorial.

Slokam 14

124 125 126 127 128 129 130 131 132 133 134

sarva-gah sarva-vit bhAnuh vishvak-senah janArdanah vedah vedavit avya~ngah vedA~ngah vedavit kavih

14.124 - sarva-gah One who reaches all.Om sarvagAya namah. sarvatra gacchati iti sarva-gah - One who pervades everything. Or, by His strength which displays His capacity to support, He supports everything He has taken in during the pralaya, and thus He reaches all. 14.125 - sarva-vit One who is the All-knower. Om sarva-vide namah. Sarvam vetti vindata iti vA sarva-vit - One who knows everything or One who obtains everything. In the first interpretation, bhagavAn is the knower in all - the inner soul. In the second interpretation, He performs the function as pradyumna and recovers or obtains all the jivas that have been absorbed into Him in the form of

samkarshaNa. 14.126 - bhAnuh One who shines. Om bhAnave namah. bhAti iti bhAnuh. In spite of His act of creation and maintenance, He remains unchanged and continues to shine undiminished. 14.127 - vishvak-senah One who has His army in all directions for the protection of all. Om vishvaksenAya namah. SrI Bhattar interprets this nAma as referring to aniruddha, the protector. The word senA is derived from "inena vartate iti senA" - where inena means svAmin saha. So sena is one which is with the Lord always seSvara. This nAma indicates His Sakti which indicates His capacity. a-niruddha refers to One who is not under anyone else's control. This nAma also indicates the gUna of the Lord by which He is always there to protect His devotees. 14.128 - janArdanah a) One who destroys the wicked. b) One who protects people from the wicked. c) One who is approached by devotees for their wishes. Om janArdanAya namah. SrI Bhattar gives the support from mahAbhArata - dasyu-trANAt janArdanah (MB udyoga parva 71.6) He is janArdana because He protects people from dasyus (demons). SrI Sankara gives the following two interpretations: One who destroys those who are wicked - janAn - durjanAn, ardayati - hinasti (destroys). ard also means to beg, to ask - gatau yAcane ca. janaih ardyate - yAcyate - One who is approached by His devotees for whatever they want. 129. vedah One who is the embodiment of scriptures. Om vedAya namah. Veda is derived from vid - to know. Vedayati iti vedah - One who explains everything or That which explains everything - the Ultimate Truth - is vedah. Since veda-s originated from His breath, they are not distinct

from Him. In mahAbhArata, we have "sarve vedAh sarvavidyAh saSAstrAh sarve ya~jnAh sarva ijyASca kRshNah" "All the veda-s, all the vidyA-s, all the Sastra-s, all the ya~jna-s, and all offerings, are kRshNa". In SrI Bhattar's vyAkhyAna, this nAma again refers to the vyUha form of 14.130 - vedavit The true knower of the meaning of the veda-s. Om veda-vide namah. This nAma appears once more in this slokam itself (nAma 133). Vedam, vedArtham vetti iti vedavit. Or, vedAn vinte - vicArayati iti vedavit. One who knows the veda-s, or One who spreads the knowledge of veda-s (e.g., in the form of pradyumna, vyAsa, etc.). He is vedavit since He is the knower without any doubts or errors of interpretation, and He is the only one. In gItA the Lord says - vedAnta-kRt vedavideva ca aham - I am the author of the upanishads - vedAnta-s, and I am indeed the knower of the vedas (gItA - 15.15). He is also vedavit in the sense of knowing the true meaning behind the veda-s, viz. dharma. SrI Bhattar interprets this nAma as representing the pradyumna incarnation - as one who propounds the Sastra-s and explains their significance. samkarshaNa who has knowledge as one of His attributes. 14.131 - avya~ngah One who has no imperfections. Om avya~ngAya namah. vya~ngam is imperfection. a-vya~ngam is no imperfection. In the context of the previous nAma-s relating to His originating veda, and His full knowledge of veda, this nAma means that He is not in any way deficient in the knowledge of the chandas, kalpa, and other accessories of the veda-s which He himself has created. One could also interpret the nAma as meaning that He is not deficient in any way in any of the six guNas ~jnAna, bala, aiSvarya, vIrya, Sakti, and tejas. 14.132 - vedA~ngah a) One who has veda-s as His body. b) One who has the sruti-s and smRti-s as His body. Om vedA~ngAya namah. vedAh a~ngabhUtAh yasya sah vadA~ngah. In kenopanishad we have vedAh sarvA~ngAni... - all veda-s are His limbs. Or He is vedA~nga since the sruti-s and smRti-s are His commands. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives

the following quotes from SrImad BhAgavatam in support of the interpretation that He has veda-s for His body: "...trayIm tanum svAm paridhunvate namah - We offer our worship to One who has veda for His body" (SrImad bhAgavatam 3.13.34) "trayImayam rUpamidam ca saukaram - One who has the varAha form which is the veda svarUpam" (SrImad bhAgavatam 3.13.41). 14.133 - vedavit One who knows not only the veda-s, but the true meaning behind the veda-s, viz. the dharma. Om vedavide namah. Please see the explanation under nAma 130 for the interpretation of the guNa expressed by this nAma. 134. kavih One who cognizes beyond ordinary perception. Om kavaye namah. krAnta-darSitvAt kavih - sarvadRk. One who sees beyond what is revealed only by the senses. BhagavAn is the best among the kavi-s.

Slokam 15

135 136 137 138 139 140 141 142

lokAdhyakshah surAdhyakshah dharmAdhyakshah kRtAkRtah caturAtmA catur-vyUhah. catur-damshtrah. catur-bhujah.

15.135 - lokAdhyakshah 15.136 - surAdhyakshah 15.137 - dharmAdhyakshah The Lord of the worlds, of the deva-s, and of dharma. Om lokAdhyakshAya namah. Om surAdhyakshAya namah Om dharmAdhyakshAya namah. adhyaksha means master or superintendent. Loka refers to people whose duty it is to practice dharma, sura-s refers to devas who are worshipped with the dharma, and dharma signifies the means by which this worship is performed. BhagavAn in the form of aniruddha is the presiding deity over all these, who closely observes all these and grants the fruits of the dharmic acts. He also ensures that the benefits are not obtained by those who do not observe the dharmic acts, and ensures that those who observe the dharmic acts do not go without the fruit. An alternate interpretation is that loka refers to the people, sura-s are those who protect the people, and dharma is the means by which they protect them. BhagavAn is the controller and supervisor or master of all these. For instance, the deva-s control the natural elements and ensure that these perform in such a way that they benefit the people. Thus the rising of the sun, the rains, etc. are controlled. When the deva-s swerve from their path, BhagavAn takes over and ensures that the violations are set right. For instance, when indra got angry with the gokula-vAsi-s and tried to destroy gokulam with unending rain, Lord KRshNa bore the govardhana mountain and protected the people from indra's fury and brought indra under control. 138. kRtAkRtah a) The grantor of fruits that are this this-worldly as well as those that are eternal. b) One who is both the cause and effect of all things. c) One who has a form which is nitya or permanent, as well as transient forms. SrI Sankara interprets kRta as effect (kArya rUpa) and akRta as cause (kAraNa rUpa), and thus he interprets this nAma as symbolizing that bhagavAn is both cause and effect of all things. KRtam is vyaktam (that is manifested), and akRtam is unmanifested or avyaktam. Or, the nAma can mean that bhagavAn appears

with a form that is akRtam or nityam in nature, and also in forms which remain only for a limited time (kRtam). A third interpretation is that He gives benefits which are this-worldly (kRtam), as well as eternal (akRtam), and so He is kRtAkRta. 139. caturAtmA One whose Self has a four-fold manifestation. Om caturAtmane namah. One explanation for this is the Self has control over the four-fold nature - the wakeful state, the state of dreams, dreamless deep sleep, and turIya state where even the breath is suspended. These involve the external senses, the mind, breath, and suspended breath. These are also the four stages of development which a worshipper who meditates upon the Lord goes through. SrI Sankara interprets the nAma as signifying that bhagavAn expresses His energies in four forms in each of His acts of creation, protection, and dissolution. He quotes the following sloka in vishNu purANa brahmA dakshAdayah kAlas_tathaivAkhila jantavah | vibhUtayo hareretA jagatah sRshti_hetavah || vishNur_manvAdayah kAlah sarva_bhUtAni ca dvija | stither_nimitta_bhUtasya vishNoretA vibhUtayah || rudrah kAlotankAdyASca samastAScaiva jantavah | caturdhA pralayAyaitA janArdana-vibhUtayah || The four energies of Hari for creation are - brahmA, daksha and others, time, and all creatures. The four energies of Hari for protection are - vishNu, manu and others, time, and all creatures. The four energies of JanArdana for dissolution are - rudra, time, the god of death, and all creatures. Thus He is caturAtma at all times. 15.140 - catur-vyUhah. One with four forms (the vyUha forms). Om catur-vyUhAya namah. This nAma is interpreted as signifying the four vyUha emanations (vAsudeva, samkarshaNa, pradyumana, and aniruddha). SrI Sankara give the following reference to support this interpretation. In my version of the vyAkhyAna, the original source for this reference is not given, but the quote is attributed to vyAsa vyUhyAtmAnam caturdhA vai vAsudevAdi_mUrtibhih | sRshtyAdIn prakarotyesha viSrutAtmA janArdanah || vishNu, of excellent fame, manifests Himself in four forms, vAsudeva, etc. (vAsudeva, samkarshaNa, pradyumna, aniruddha) and carried on creation etc. vyUha refers to a form that has a purpose associated with it. pradyumna is for "padaippu" or creation; samkarshaNa is for samhAra or destruction; aniruddha is for protection; vAsudeva is the overall leader of these three forms. Pradyumna, the one in charge of "padaippu" or creation, is endowed with the leadership

of aisvarya and vIrya. pra-dymna means one who has enormous vIrya in His responsibility of creation. aniruddha, in charge of protection, is endowed with immeasurable Sakti and tejas. a-niruddha means One who cannot be obstructed in His function of protection. SamkarshaNa is endowed with enormous ~jnAnam and balam. Sam-karshaNa means one who attracts (note AkarshaNa - attraction) or draws everything towards Him and makes them draw into Him during the pralaya or great destruction. VAsudeva is the form endowed with all the six qualities and is the Supreme parabrahman. 15.141 - catur-damshtrah. He of four teeth. Om catur-damshtrAya namah.

damshtra refers to canine teeth. The reference here could be to the four full and strongly developed, powerful, beautiful canine teeth in His incarnation in nRsimhAvatAra. SrI Bhattar points out that caturdamshtratvam is a mahApurusha lakshNam. He gives reference to the description of Sri Rama by Hanuman to SItA devi - catur-daSa sam-dvandvah catur-damshtrah catur-gatih - One who has the fourteen parts of the body such as the legs, the hands, etc. fully symmetric with no blemishes, One who has four beautiful canine teeth, and One who has the beauty of the walks of elephant, tiger, lion, and bull. (VAlmIki RamayaNam Sundara kANdam - 35.19). 15.142 - catur-bhujah. One with four arms. Om catur-bhujAya namah. The four hands carry the conch, the discus, the mace, and the lotus respectively. SrI ChinmayAnanda gives a very nice explanation of how the four arms are used by the Lord in maintaining dharma. The conch calls man to the righteous path that directly leads to peace and perfection, the divine vishNu padam. Not very many of us listen to this inner voice of conscience, the sound of the pAncajanya conch, and so He gently wields the 'Mace' and we come to suffer small calamities and tragic jerks in our smooth existence. If the individual still does not listen to the call of the 'Conch', the 'Chakra' - the wheel of time, annihilates the entire being. This call and punishment are solely meant to take man to the Ultimate Goal, symbolized by the 'Lotus' in His hand. SrI RAdhAkRshNa SAStri gives the explanation that the four hands signify that He gives the four purushArtas (I assume dharma, artha, kAma, and mokha are the four being referred to here). Or the four arms represent the four tatva-s - satva, rajas, tama, and ahamkAra. "satvam rajas tama iti aha~nkAraScaturbhujah (gopAlottaratAmini 55). Yet another explanation is that the Self functions in a four-fold pattern involving mind, intellect, cit, and ego, and these are represented by the four arms containing the conch, the mace, the cakra, and the padma. The cit is represented by the Lotus or Padma, the intellect is the 'Conch', ego is the 'Mace', and mind is the 'Discus'.

Slokam 16

143 - bhrAjishNuh 144 - bhojanam. 145 - bhoktA 146. sahishNuh 147 - jagadAdijah 148 - anaghah 149 - vijayah 150 - jetA 151 - viSva-yonih 152 - punarvasuh

16.143 - bhrAjishNuh One who is effulgent. Om brAjishNave namah. bhrAjata iti tacchIlo bhrAjishNuh - One who has the habit of being effulgent. The name is derived from the root bhrAjR and the pANini sutra 3.2.138 - bhuvasca - which states that the afix ishNuc in the sense of "the agent having such a a habit etc." comes after the verbs such as bhU, bhrAjR etc. SrI Bhattar points out that it is the nature of bhagavAn to show Himself to His worshippers. An author by name satyadevo vAsishTha, who has written a detailed vyAkhyAna for Sri vishNu shasranAma in samskRt in this century, points out that the radiance in the sun, the moon, etc. arise only because they derive it from the effulgence of vishNu. Sri rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that we see objects because of the light that makes them visible, and we see the light only because it gets scattered by the objects. But bhagavAn is Pure Effulgence without any association with any object, and this is why the non-devotees don't see Him, though He makes Himself

visible to His devotees. The yajurvedic passages given to support the interpretation for this nAma are: "brahma surya samam jyotih"; "suryo jyotir-jyotih surya" etc. 16.144 - bhojanam. One who is the object of enjoyment. Om bhojanAya namah. taih bhujyate - sukhena anubhuyate iti bhojanam bhagavAn is bhojanam because He is enjoyed with pleasure by His worshippers. bhojanam also means literally food or the means of sustenance. Even though in nature one object becomes the means of sustenance of another object, He is the one who maintains this balance and sustains everything. The vedAntic interpretation for bhojanam is the collection of all objects of enjoyment by the sense-organs. He makes the objects of this world fit for enjoyment, and He also becomes the object of enjoyment Himself when His devotee overcomes the desire for the material objects of enjoyment and longs for Him. 16.145 - bhoktA The Enjoyer. Om bhoktre namah. He Himself is the Enjoyer since He enjoys the things offered by His devotees like nectar. In gItA we have patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktyA prayacchati | tadaham bahktyupahRtam aSnAmi prayatAtmanah || (gItA 9.16) "If a devotee offers to me a mere leaf, flower, fruit, or water with sincere devotion and love, I accept it as invaluable treasure." Or He is the bhoktA for all the sacrificial offerings irrespective of the deity to whom the offering is made aham hi sarva ya~jnAnAm bhokta - gItA 9.14. 146. sahishNuh The Forgiver. Om sahishNave namah. The word is derived from sah - to put up with, forgive. Note the grammatical rule quoted for bhrAjishNu earlier - the affix ishNuc is added to indicate one having a habit etc. Thus it is His Nature to forgive. We

have the yajurvedic mantra "saho'si saho mayi dhehi". sah also means to suffer patiently. He is sahishNu because He suffers patiently, in His perfect detachment, all that is happening around. He is just a mere witness. He continues to support this world without ever getting impatient - nAkshastapyate bhUribhArah - Rgvedic manta. sahate also means conquers, and Sri Sankara uses this meaning and interprets this nAma as meaning that bhagavAn is sahishNu because He conquers daitya-s such as hiraNyAksha. In SrI Bhattar's vyAkhyAna, the vyuha forms are covered up to the above nAma. .Starting with the next nAma, he interprets the guNa-s as reflecting those of the vibhava form of vishNu, the second of the trinities. 16.147 - jagadAdijah He who was born at the beginning of the Universe. Om jagadAdijAya namah. jagat + Adi + jAtah = jagadAdijah. Before the world got created, one who had the ability to create the world had to exist. Thus bhagavAn existed before the world was created. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that this is the manifestation of bhagavAn as HiraNyagarbha, the form where the world of all objects is submerged after pralaya and before the manifestation of the gross world emerges out. This is the manifestation of bhagavAn as the virAt Atma. That vishNu was the first-born among the gods is supported by the following from mahAbhArata gatiSca nastvam pUrvajo jagatah prabhuh | rakshArtham sarva-bhUtAnAm vishNustvam upajagmivAn || (MB Udyoga 12.11) "Thou art our refuge; Thou art the first-born amongst the gods. Thou art the Lord of the Universe. Thou didst assume the role of vishNu for the protection of all the worlds." 16.148 - anaghah One who is Sinless, Un-contaminated. Om anaghAya namah. aghah pApam na vidyate asmin iti anaghah. Though He resides in the midst of the samsAra in His incarnations, He is untainted by sins. Because He is unattached, He is not contaminated by the effects of any actions. Several passages in the sruti-s refer to this attribute - suddham apApaviddham - yajur 40.8, na puNya pApe mama (kaivalya 22), etc. 16.149 - vijayah

Victory Incarnate. Om vijayAya namah. vividham viSesheNa vA jayati iti vijayah - One who wins over everything in different and special ways. He is sat, cit, and Ananda rupa, and thus controls everything including the prakRti and jiva-s. Or He excels in everything - ~jnAna, vairAgya, aisvarya, etc. SrI Bhattar points out that He is vijaya because He controls everything that happens in this world, including the creation and destruction, which are performed by Brahma and Rudra with His help and guidance "tad_AdarSita panthAnau sRshti samhAra kArakau - Guided by Him in the right way, Brahma and Rudra carry out the task of creation and destruction (MB moksha 169.19). 16.150 - jetA The Conquerer. Om jetre namah. sarvam jagat sa jayati iti jetA. He is jetA because nothing ever can happen that is not His will. All the other gods act His will. One who has satyam as His sthira guNa never has any failure or defeat. He is satya kAma, satya samkalpa, etc. 16.151 - viSva-yonih The Cause of the Universe. Om viSva-yonaye namah. viSvasya - sakalasya yonih - kAraNam viSva-yonih. Another interpretation is that He is viSva-yonih because He has the world as His Cause, i.e., He manifests Himself in various incarnations because of the condition of this world. 16.152 - punarvasuh One who lives again and again as the antarAtmA of all His creations. Om punarvasave namah. He is the antarAtmA of all the other gods whom He creates for different functions, beginning with rudra and brahma. In moksha dharma in mahAbhArata we have indra saying to rudra tavAntarAtmA mama ca ye cAnye dehi-samjnitAh He is the Inner Soul of yourself and myself as well as those who are called the Released Souls" - MB moksha 179.4.

It can also mean that He is punarvasu because He recreates the world with the sun, moon, etc., the same way all over again after each pralaya sUrya candramasau dhAtA yathA pUrvam akalpayat | divam ca pRthivIm cAnthariksham atho svah || Rg 10/190/3)

Slokam 17

153 154 155 156 157 158 159 160 161 162 163 164

upendrah vAmanah prAmSuh amoghah Sucih Urjitah atIndrah samgrahah sargah dhRtAtmA niyamah yamah

17.153 - upendrah a) One who appeared as the younger brother of indra to help him. b) One who is superiror to indra. Om upendrAya namah. a) upagatah indram - One who assisted indra. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives the following instance in this

context. PrahlAda's grandson Bali defeated Indra by doing penances according to SukrAcArya's advice. Indra's mother aditi prayed to God to get Indra's position back. Since Bali had attained Indra's position through penance etc., there was no way of getting back the position easily. So bhagavAn appeared as the younger brother of indra by being born as the son of aditi, and restoring the position of indra by asking for three feet of land from Bali in his yAga Sala. b) indrasya upari indrah - One who is superior to indra. upa also means above or superior. Sri rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives the example of Lord KRshNa subduing indra's self-assumed superiority complex in gokulam when indra tried to flood and destroy the place for not offering prayers to him. 17.154 - vAmanah One with the Dwarf form. Om vAmanAya namah.

vAmayati tyAjayati madam balim - One who expelled the pride out of Bali. Vam literally means to vomit out, and vAm could mean one who made Bali literally vomit out his pride. LingAyatasurin gives the interpretation vAmo valgutvam asya asti iti vAmanah - One who has a very charming short form. Or it can be also be interpreted as vAmo vatutvam asya asti iti vAmanah - One who has a short form of a gurukula student, which is how mahAvishNu appeared in front of Bali to ask for the three feet of earth from him. The rupa soundaryam (valgutvam) of the vAmana incarnation is beautifully described in Srimad bhAgavatam - e.g., yajamAnah pramudito darSanIyam manoramam| rUpAnurUpAvayavam tasmA Asanam Aharat|| - Bali, the yajamAna of the yAgaSala, saw the beautiful appearance of the brahmachAri in the dwarf form and offered the seat to him with a completely captivated heart (BhAgavatam 8-18-26). Another interpretation - sarvANi vAmAni nayati iti vAmanah - One who bestows all the desires of the devotees, or He produces joy in those who see Him, by His effulgence. In chAndogyopanishad we have "esha u eva vAmanIh esha hi sarvANi vAmAni nayati (chAndogyopanishad 4.25). 17.155 - prAmSuh The Tall. Om prAmSave namah. prASnute prakarsheNa Urdhvam iti prAmSuh In the vAmana incarnation, bhagavAn very quickly grew from His dwarf form into a form which covered the three worlds under His two feet. As soon as Bali poured the water to accompany his gift of three feet of land into the dwarf hands, the dwarf was no longer a dwarf. The Lord manifested His universal form; the earth was His feet, the sky His head, and the sun and the moon His eyes. The vyAkhyAna kartA-s give the reference, from HarivamSa, to the beauty of His growth from the dwarf form, in relation to fixed objects, the Sun and the Moon. First, He assumed the tall form where the Sun and the Moon were His two eyes. Then as He measured the earth, they were at the level of His bosom. As He measured the space, the Sun was at the level of His navel, and as He lifted His feet to measure the Heaven, the Sun and Moon were just below His knees.

tasya vikramato bhUmim candrAdityau stanAntare | nabhah prakramANasya nAbhideSe vyavasthithau || (HarivamSa 31.89) 17.156 - amoghah One whose acts are never purposeless. Om amoghAya namah. na mogham ceshTitam yasya sah amoghah. When bhagavAn asked for three feet of earth from bali, it helped indra; when Bali could not give the third foot of earth, it helped subdue Bali and make him a great devotee on the spot; subduing Bali led to Bali getting the status equal to indra in a trice, and led to all the gods partaking in the offerings made in the sacrifice. Thus every act of His has a purpose. 17.157 - Sucih Pure. Om Sucaye namah. Sucyata iti Sucih - One who purifies is Sucih. BhagavAn is Pure because He is the ParamAtmA who is uncontaminated by actions and their effects. He is Sucih because One who contemplates on Him becomes pure, and thus association with Him makes one pure. Whatever He does is uncontaminated by anything other than dharma, and so His purity never diminishes. When He helped indra by subduing Bali, one could say He was biased towards the deva-s; not so, since He made Himself the door-keeper of Bali and thus Bali benefited several-fold more than indra did in the process. He is pavitrANAm pavitram, or purer than the purest. The several references from sruti attest to His purity - Suddham apApa viddham - ISAvasya - 8); asparSaSca mahAn Sucih etc. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha takes this interpretation one step further by pointing out that everything bhagavAn does is resplendent with the beauty that speaks of His purity. All one has to do to realize this is to look at the beauty of His creations such as the flowers, the leaves, the waters of the rivers, etc. So He is all around us displaying His innate quality of purity constantly. He points out that thus guNa of bhagavAn should constantly remind His devotees to be always pure in their actions, words, and deeds as a means to attain Him. 17.158 - Urjitah One who is endowed with immense strength. Om UrjitAya namah. UrjA means balam or strength. This is one of the shadguNa-s of bhagavAn (~jnAna, bala, etc.). This strength is displayed whenever He has had to take care of the evil demons. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that He is Urjita not only because of His immense strength, but also because whatever strength each being in His creation has, is because He is the source. He gives the following vedic quotes to substantiate this interpretation -

UrjA detAm avasyojasA tvAm pibA somamadAya kam Satakrato (Rg. 8.36.3) UrjA pinvasva samishodidehi na (Rg 3.3.7) UrgasyAngirasyUrNamradA Urjam mayi dehi (yajur 4.15) balamasi balam mayi dehi (yajur 19.9) Urjo balam sa ojo ma Agan (atharva 18.4.53) Ojo'si saho'si balamasi bhrAjo'si As is evident, through many of mantra-s, the devotee is asking for balam from bhagavAn i.e, He is the source of balam or strength in all His creations. 17.159 - atIndrah One who is superior to indra. Om atIndrAya namah. We saw how He surpasses indra by His lordship and glorious acts. Indra is the king of gods, and bhagavAn exceeds him in wisdom, greatness, etc. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that in vedAnta indra stands for mind-intellect, and the paramAtmA or the Pure Self is superior to mind since it transcends the mind. 17.160 - samgrahah a) He who is easily reached. b) He who has everyone under His control. Om samgrahAya namah. The meaning given in the dictionary by Sir William-Monier is "holding together", "drawing togther", etc. a) SrI Bhattar gives the interpretation "atha bhaktaih ayatnena samgRhayata iti samgrahah" - One who is reached by His devotees without any effort (other than pure devotion). b) SrI Sankara gives the interpretation "sarveshAm samhRtau pratisamhArAt samgrahah" - One who withdraws everything into Him during pralaya.

c) SrI chinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is samgraha because he holds the entire world of beings and things together. SrI satya vAsishTha looks at the nAma as sama + graha, or holding everything together in one form, viz. by being the Atma in everything. 17.161 - sargah The creator of Himself. Om sargAya namah. sRjati iti sargah - One who creates. The word sarga is derived from the root sRj - to create. He is sarga since He created the whole world out of Himself. Sarga refers to primary creation as opposed to pralaya or

dissolution, and sthiti or maintenance. 17.162 - dhRtAtmA The supporter of all the jivAtmA-s. Om dhRtAtmane namah. dhRtah AtmA yena sah dhRtAtmA - One who supports all the jIvAtmA-s, or One who supports (conducts) Himself uninfluenced by any change (birth, death, likes, dislikes, etc.). 17.163 - niyamah The Controller. Om niyamAya namah. niyamayati iti niyamah - One who assigns and directs the different functions to the different beings. The root yam has two meanings: yam uparame - to check, and yam pariveshaNe - to surround. One who is the Creator of all beings is also naturally the Controller of all those beings. It is He who orders all the mighty forces of nature and prescribes for each the laws of their conduct, the ways of their behavior and the methods of their functions. The Sun, Moon, Air, Waters, Death, etc., are all appointed and controlled by the Lord. 17.164 - yamah The Ruler. Om yamAya namah. yacchati iti yamah or yamayati iti yamah - One who rules. He rules all our selves from within. He also rules all the beings of the earth from within the sphere of the Sun. We have the passage from bRhadAraNya upanishad yah sarvANi bhUtAni antaro yamayati (3.7.15). Other passages from the sruti-s are "yah pRthivIm antaro yamayati - He who rules the earth from within" - BRhadAraNya 3.7.3, yah AtmAnam antaro yamayati - He who rules the self from within", etc. Slokam 18

165 166 167 168 169 170 171

vedyah vaidyah sadA-yogi vIra-hA mAdhavah madhuh atIndriyah

172 - mahA-mAyah 173 - mahotsAhah 174 - mahA-balah

18.165 - vedyah a) He who can be realized. b) That which should be known or realized. Om vedyAya namah. veditum Sakyah vedyah, vedanArhatvAt vedyah, or veditum yogya iti vedyah. SrI chinmayAnanda interprets the word to mean "That which should be known - as the Ultimate Truth; having known which, everything else becomes known". This is supported by the following from the gItA - "vedaiSca sarvairahameva vedyah I am the One who is to be known through all the veda-s" - gItA 15.15, and vedair_anekair-ahmeva vedyah kaivalya 22. 18.166 - vaidyah The knower of vidyA or knowledge. Om vaidyAya namah. The word vaidya is related to the word vidyA. One who right from the beginning of the world knew all the vidyA-s that went into the creation of this Universe is vaidya. It is not only that He is the knower, but no one else is the knower of creating all the wondrous and manifold objects in His creation. This is supported by "viSvAni deva vayunAni vidvAn" - yajur 7.43. He is the sarva-vidyA-maya vaidya. Also note "Isvarah sarvavidyAnAm"- taittirIya AraNyaka 10.21. The knowledge that we see displayed even in the insects, birds, etc., should be a constant reminder of the vaidya or All-knower that is bhagavAn, and should lead us to the constant awareness that it is His feet that

we should worship. SrI Bhattar points out that He knows the vidyA of releasing His devotees from the cycle of rebirth, and so He is vaidya. In the traditional meaning of vaidya referring to a doctor, SrI chinmayAnanda points out that He is vaidya since He alone can doctor to the world's suffering from ego and ego-centric misconceptions. In SrI Bhattar's vyAkhyAna we find a supporting reference "meru mandara mAtro'pi pApasya karmaNah | keSavam vaidyam AsAdya durvyAdhiriva naSyati (vishNu dharmam 69.110) One might have accumulated sins the size of the meru mountain; however if one worships keSava, the sins disappear just as the worst diseases disappear when treated by a good vaidya or doctor". 18.167 - sadA-yogi a) One who is always awake with respect to His devotees. b) One who unites this Universe as the sarva-vyApi c) One who always follows the dhArmic way. d) One who is in constant yogic meditation e) One who always displays the samatva-bhAva, i.e., treats everyone equally. Om sadA-yogine namah. One explanation for this nAma is that bhagavAn is always attainable, and so He is sada-yogI. SrI Bhattar interprets the nAma to mean that He is awake at all times with respect to His devotees, and He is always awake as the antaryAmi in all of us.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives three different interpretations for this nAma - satah AyogI, sadA yogI, and sadA AyogI. Satas means equally, and Ayuj means to unite or to join. The roots from which from the nAma can be derived are also many - yugi varjane - to give up; yuj samAdhau - to concentrate the mind; yuj yoge to unite; yuj samyamane - to join; He is a sadA-yogi because He has always given up everything except the good and the just, the dharmic way. He is also a sadA-yogI because He unites this world into one through His sarva-vyApti, His pervasion into everything that exists - sadaiva yojayati samyamayati visvAn lokAn sa sadA-yogI. He is also a sada-yogI because He is constantly in yogic meditation, which is His nature. Yoga here can be interpreted as samatvabhAva. SadA yogah asya asti iti tam sadA-yoginam, sadA yoga Silam svabhAva-dharmANam vA.

The vyAkhyAna in dharma cakram (whose author is not identified) points out that people live one of three ways of life - a rogi, a bhogi, or a yogi. Of these, the life of a yogi (who spends his life by diverting his senses away from sense-enjoyment and towards the parama-purusha) is the one that leads to peace of mind and bodily health. The yogic state of mind is naturally attained by one who devotes one's mind to the worship of the Lord, the sadA-yogi.

18.168 - vIra-hA The slayer of strong men of wicked nature. Om vIraghne namah. We may recollect "paritrRNAya sAdhUnAm vinASAya ca dushkRtAm" - 'For the protection of the good and the destruction of the wicked'. If the quality of being a vIra is used to commit adharma, bhagavAn destroys those vIra-s or rAkshasa-s. SrI Bhattar interprets the vIra-s here as referring to people who are "kutarka-Sura-s" or those who put up false arguments to prevent people from meditating on Him. He refers us to the sloka-s in bhagavad gItA in Chapter 16 starting from sloka 16-8 and ending in 16-19, where bhagavAn gives a description of the kinds of behaviors that these kutarka-vAdi-s demonstrate - claiming that God does not exist, or claiming that they are the God, etc. 18.169 - mAdhavah The propounder of the knowledge of the Supreme Being. Om mAdhavAya namah. The detailed interpretations for this nAma have been given earlier under nAma 73. Please refer to that description. 18.170. madhuh One who is like honey to His devotees. Om madhave namah. He is madhu because He creates Nectarine Bliss in the hearts of His devotees. He causes great satisfaction, like honey. We have from bRhadAraNya upanishad - ayamAtmA sarveshAm bhUtAnAm madhu - 2.5.14. We also have "thEnil iniya pirAne" as He is referenced by PeriyAzhvAr in his PoocchUttal. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha indicates that madhu also means knowledge (derived from man- ~jnAne to know), and He is madhu because He knows everything by His pervading everything - ~jnAna dharmeNa vyApnuvan sarvam viSvam manyate jAnAti, tasmAt sa madhuh. We have the yajurvedic mantra - tadantarsya sarvasya tadu sarvasyAsya bAhyatah - He is inside everything, and He is also outside of everything, and by virtue of this, He is ~jnAna mayam or Knower of everything. The commentator in dharma cakram points out that madhu or honey is unique among all the edibles that when consumed, all of it is digested into the system with no waste products. He also points out that madhu is unique in that there is no ill-effect that results from its consumption, unlike some of the other edibles where an excessive consumption will lead to harmful effects. In our context, bhagavAn is the knowledge that is madhu, from which only good can result. SrI Bhattar interprets the next several nAmas as descriptive of the six celestial qualities of bhagavAn -

~jnAna, bala, aiSvarya, vIrya, Sakti, and tejas. 18.171 - atIndriyah He who is beyond the range of the sense organs. Om atIndriyAya namah. Only those objects that have a fixed shape, color, or other characteristics will be recognizable by the indriya-s or sense organs. He is beyond these sense-organs, and cannot be realized through these or through sheer reasoning. The only way to realize Him is to experience Him through pure devotion. The two mantra-s of ISAvAsya upanishad (anejadekam.., and tadejati tannaijati..) remind us of this quality of bhagavAn in simple words. In kaThopanisahd we have indriyebhyah parAhyarthA ...avyaktAt purushah parah | aSabdam-asparSam-arUpam-avyayamtathArasam nityam-agandhavacca yat | (kaTho 1.3.10 etc.) (He is soundless, untouched, formless, immutable, and so without taste, eternal, smell-less.) SrI chinmayAnanda points out that it is not just He is beyond the reach of the sense-organs, but that the sense-organs don't exist without Him, and so cannot sense anything without His power. So He is the very subject of the sense-organs, and not the object of the sense-organs (the eye cannot see itself, but only its reflection in a mirror!). He is also not seen by the indriya-s because He is not anywhere outside where the senses can sense Him, but is inside each of us in the cavity of our hearts where the senses cannot reach, the size of a thumb angusTha mAtrena. 18.172 - mahA-mAyah One who is possessed of wonderful power of enchantment. Om mahA-mAyAya namah. SrI Bhattar points out that this nAma signifies that He conceals Himself from those who are not devoted to Him through His power of enchantment. This is natural for one who is not within the reach of the sensesorgans as we saw in the previous nAma. Lord KRshNa says in the gItA - mama mAyA duratyayA - My mAyA is very difficult to overcome - gItA 7.14). mAyA here is not to be interpreted to as magic or illusion or untruth, but as something wonderful and unusual. (sItA devi is referred to as devamAyA - janakasya kule jAtA devamAyeva nirmitA). The mAyA referred to here is that bhagavAn wonderfully conceals Himself from those who do not seek Him. Other references to the sruti-s are - ati-mohakarI mAyA mama (Sarabha 24), vidyAt mAyinam tu maheSvaram (SvetASvatAra 4.10). 173. mahotsAhah

He of great enthusiasm. Om mahotsAhAya namah. SrI Bhattar points out that this nAma particularly indicates that unlike the Isvara of the sAnkhya system who is possessed of knowledge but is a non-doer of acts and is indifferent, Sri mahA vishNu is enthusiastic in performing acts which signify His lordship, such as the varieties of His creation, their sustenance etc. The mahotsAha is a guNa that bhagavAn has as an aiSvarya, with no dependence on anything else for support. Because of this, He is unceasingly creating, maintaining and withdrawing His creations, and managing the affairs of the Universe. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that this world will not exist without the endless enthusiasm of His Mighty Power. Just as the ocean, with its endless waves is the "sleepless agitator", so also bhagavAn is the Enthusiastic Accomplisher. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different interpretation to this nAma. He looks at this word as mahAn + ut+ sAhah - mahAntam uccaistamam sAhah, sahate, sAhayati, sahati vA sa mahotsAhah - One who has immense ability to endure. Here sAhah has the same meaning as sahah - sahati. He gives reference to the Rg vedic mantra nAkshastapyate bhUribhArah - 1.164.13 to support this interpretation. He supports the Sun, the Moon, etc., tirelessly, and He is also the self in every being that has been created, and it is His mahotsAha that is manifested in His act. His guNa of endurance is also noted through the yajurvedic mantra "saho'si saho mayi dehi (yajur 19/9)". The word utsAhah traditionally means enthusiasm. The commentator in dharma cakram points out that of the three qualities, the rajas, tamas, and satva bhAva-s, actions that are done with enthusiasm and that benefit the rest of mankind are those that are done by those with the satva disposition. The actions by these are the ones that continue successfully, with full benefits to His subjects. It is good to remind ourselves in this context that He is pure Satva, and one way of offering worship to Him is to follow this model and lead a sAtvic life ourselves. 18.174 - mahA-balah One with immeasurable strength - The Omnipotent. Om mahAbalAya namah.

SrI Sankara's vyAkhyAna is "balinAmapi balavatvAt mahAbalah - Being stronger than the strongest, He is mahAbalah". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAStri gives several examples of this guNa of bhagavAn. RAvaNa went to the pAtAla loka to win over bali. BhagavAn wo had established Himself as the gatekeeper of bali temporarily made Himself invisible. RAvaNa tried to move the kundalam of hiraNyakaSipu which was lying at the doorstep as it has fallen from hiraNyakaSipu's ears at the time of his being slain by Lord nRsimha. RAvaNa's hands got caught under the kundalam. BhagavAn appeared on the scene, and kicked rAvaNa without effort and rAvaNa fell far far away. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha starts from the root bal - prANane to live or to breathe, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is mahAbalah because He makes the world live or supports the world. He points out that there are different kinds of balam, e.g., vidyA balam, senA balam, dhana balam, anna balam, etc., and bhagavAn is the One who is the bestower of all the balams (means of support) to the different devotees, and so He is mahA-balah.

Slokam 19

175 - mahA-buddhih 176 - mahA-vIryah 177 - mahA-Saktih 178 - mahA-dyutih 179 - anirdeSyavapuh 180 - SrImAn 181 - ameyAtmA 182 - mahAdri-dhRt

19.175 - mahA-buddhih He of infinite knowledge. Om mahA-buddhaye namah. SrI Bhattar points out that He is mahA-buddhi because His knowledge does not depend on His sense organs or any external help. He sees and hears and senses all at the same time with any of His organs or with no need for any of the organs. This is supported by several passages from the sruti-s - viSvataScakshuruta viSvatomukhah - He has eyes on all sides and faces on all sides (taittirIya nArAyaNa upanishad 1.12); paSyat_yacakshuh sa SRNoti akarNah - He sees without eyes and hears without ears (SvetASva 3.19); sarvato'kshi Siromukham - He has everywhere eyes, heads, and mouths (gItA 13.13). We also have the venerable AcArya nAthamuni's words - yo vetti yagapat sarvam pratyaksheNa sadA svatah - Who sees directly by perception and of His own accord all things simultaneously (nyAyatatva). The dhAtu word from which the name is derived is budh ~jnAne to know, to understand. BhagavAn is the buddhi behind the functioning of all His creations, and so He is the mahA-buddhi. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha

points out that the behavior of many objects such as even the shedding of the leaves by the trees during the winter months and the regeneration during the summer months etc., is indicative of knowledge that He has invested in them. The establishment of the stars and planets in their respective positions and orbits is a totally different dimension of the same mahA-buddhi of the Lord. The magic of creation of the multitude of beings and their being held together as a functional entity is beyond the knowledge of anyone else but Him. The author also points out cases such as a "lajjAvanti" plant which survives and grows only if a woman waters the plant, and dies if a man pours the water to the plant, which are all examples of the wonders of the ~jnAna that is the mahA-buddhi. In a publication titled dharma cakram published by SrI rAmakRshNa tapovanam in India, a writer has given the additional example of a crow's behavior when threatened by an enemy as an illustration of the knowledge that He has invested in His creations. When a crow is chased by a small child, it just displays minimal effort to get away. If a grown-up person chases it with a stick, it takes just a little bit more effort to run. If a person with a gun appears, the crow will be nowhere to be seen. Who but the mahA-buddhi could have given the crow this level of buddhi, which in addition gets transmitted from parent to offspring in an unending chain? SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that buddhi is the most important of the four antah:karaNa-s. buddhi chooses between the options provided by the manas, taking into account the pictures of previous experiences provided by the cittam, before the ahamkAram takes over and executes the action. If the buddhi makes a poor choice, then it becomes alpa-buddhi; if the buddhi always chooses noble choices, then it is the mahA-buddhi. 19.176 - mahA-vIryah He of great virility. Om mahA-vIryAya namah. He is mahA-vIrya because He remains unchanged unlike everything else which changes with time (e.g., milk changing to curd). It is but a tiny fraction of this quality of His that is reflected in the fact that that the Yogins are of steady mind and do not get distracted. Just as flowers give out their fragrance to all their surroundings with no effort on their part, bhagavAn performs all His acts with no effort on His part, and this is an indication of His vIrya. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that vIrya is the essence of all dynamism or creative urges, and He is mahAvIrya because He is the driving force from whom alone all the dynamism for creation can manifest. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri explains that vIryam is the quality of achieving one's objective no matter how difficult it is. bhagavAn's first accomplishment, the creation of this Universe from the prakRti or primordial matter, is a result of His vIrya. In the vyAkhyAna in dharma cakram it is pointed out that one with the vIrya or creative energy should also be one who has complete control of the indriya-s in order for this creative energy to be beneficial to evreryone else. From this point, the Lord is the only one who can be called the mahA-vIrya. 19.177 - mahA-Saktih

Of immense power. Om mahA-Saktaye namah. SrI Bhattar points out that this nAma emphasizes that bhagavAn is not just the sentient cause of this world, but is also the material cause of this world; i.e., He is not only the brain behind the creation, but He is also the one whose immense power caused the physical creation of this world from the prakRti. SrI Bhattar indicates that this is unlike the view held by the pasupata school that holds that Isvara is only the sentient cause and not the material cause. He points out that the constant change going on in pradhAna or primordial matter, milk, curd, etc., every moment, is but the result of a small fraction of this Sakti of bhagavAn. Unfortunately I am unfamiliar with the details of the point made here about the pasupata school of thought , and would like to invite additional comments/elaborations from the readers. The word can be derived from Sak - marshane to endure, to be able, or Sak Saktau to be able, to endure, to be powerful. Thus SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the meaning to be similar to be mahA-bala, mahotsAhah etc. SrI Sankara interprets Sakti as sAmarthyam or skill, and Sri chinamayAnanda follows up on this and indicates that He is mahA-Sakti because He is the cause of the interplay of the three Sakti-s, the kriyA Sakti or the power-of-action, the kAma-Sakti or the power-of-desire, and the ~jnAna Sakti or the power-of-knowledge, which in turn is the cause of this Universe. As pointed out under the previous nAma, He uses the mighty power for the good of the world, and every instance of this Might should remind us of Him. 19.178 - mahA-dyutih He of great splendor. Om mahA-dyutaye namah. The derivation of this nAma is from the dhAtu dyuta dIptau to shine. dyotate iti dyutih - One who is shining is dyutih, dyotayitA vA dyutih - One who makes things shine is dyutih. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the following yajurvedic mantras to support the point that all that shines in this world is because of His effulgence yaste divi sUrye mahimA sambabhUva| tasmai te mahimne prajApataye devebhyah svAhA || yaste nakshatreshu candramasi mahimA sambabhUva | tasmai te mahimne prjApataye devebhyah svAhA || (yajur 23-2, 23-4)

SrI Bhattar explains that this nAma indicates that bhagavAn neither depends on nor needs any external help for any of His actions, and the great splendor (tejas) in His appearance reveals this. This tejas is capable of removing both the outer and the inner darkness in us. The tejas of the Sun and the shining of the precious jewels are but a tiny part of the tejas of the Lord. This tejas of the Lord is so pleasing to His devotees, and so frightening to His enemies (we may recall the description of the nAma nArasimha-vapu earlier, where we emphasized the same point about the nRsimha avatAram). The sruti references that support this are: svayam jyotih - He is pure Effulgence Himself without the need for external means to illuminate Him

(bRhadAraNya upanishad 4.3.9), jyotishAm jyotih - The Light among lights (muNdakopanishad 2.2.9), etc. The dharma cakram writer points out that those who worship the Lord are automatically blessed by the Lord with a part of this dyuti (The face is the index of the mind - agattin azhagu mugattil teriyum is the Tamil saying). SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that there are 43 nAmas in sahasranAmam that start with mahA. Of these, the above six nAmas refer to bhagavAn's qualities of overlordship, strength, knowledge, virility, power, and effulgence. The combination of these six guNas is what makes bhagavAn the mahA-mAya or the One who performs the wonderful acts which are His sport. The six great qualities of bhagavAn that have been referred to in the previous nAma-s 173-178 are also referenced in many sruti-s: (173 - mahotsAhah 174 - mahA-balah 175 - mahA-buddhih 176 - mahAvIryah 177 - mahA-Saktih 178 - mahA-dyutih ) parA asya Saktih vividhaiva SrUyate svabhAvikI ~jnAna bala kriyA ca (SvetAsvatara U. 6-8) He has varieties of Sakti-s in par excellence as part of His Nature. His superior knowledge, superior might, and His power of creation etc., are some examples. ~jnAna Sakti bala aiSvarya vIrya tejAmsi aSeshatah | bhagavacchabda-vAcyAni vinA heyaih guNadibhih || (vishNupurANam 6-5-79) The word bhagaVan is associated with the six superior qualities of knowledge, strength, lordship or nondependence on anything else, virility, power, and effulgence, with no association whatever with any negative connotations. tejo bala aiSvarya mahA avabodha suvIrya SaktyAdi guNaika rASih| (vishNu purANam 6-5-85) The Lord is the abode for good qualities such as tejas, balam, aiSvaryam, great knowledge, abudant vIrya, Sakti etc. 19.179 - anirdeSya-vapuh He who possesses an indescribable body. Om anirdeSya-vapushe namah. Something that can be described as this or that, or can be pointed to as this or that, is nirdeSa - idam tat ityAdi rUpeNa vi~jnApanam, ~jnApyasya prakASanam vA nirdeSah. AnirdeSa is something that cannot be described as above. vapu means SarIra or body. vapu also can be derived from the dhAtu vap - bIjasantAne chedane ca - to sow, to scatter, etc. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses this latter approach and gives a meaning for anirdeSyavapu as One who cannot be easily described and who is the sower of the seed for this Universe. He indicates that the word bAp, bApu etc., - father in Hindi is derived from a colloquial derivative of vapu. All beings who have a body as we know it have the body which is formed from the panca-bhuta-s, mahat and ahamkAram. BhagavAn's body is different - it is formed from the six maha-guNa-s that we just learned

about. He becomes whatever He wants to become. He is pure effulgence, pure knowledge, pure power, pure lordship incarnate, etc. In vishNu purANa, we have "rUpa varNAdi nirdeSa viSeshaNa vivarjitah - Regarding His form, color, etc., there is nothing that can be compared to them" - (1.2.10). SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri remarks in his commentary that the mahA-guNas cannot be visualized by the meager knowledge that we possess, and it is only by the inner experience that He can be realized. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that He is the knowledge through which we can describe everything else, but He himself cannot be described. (Just as the eye can see others, but the eye cannot be used to see itself). 19.180 - SrImAn Possessed of beauty. Om SrImate namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 22, and will re-occur as nAma 222 later. NAma 22 occurred succeeding the nAma nArasimha-vapuh, which was nAma 21, and was interpreted in that context (viz., the nRsimha incarnation was of exceptional beauty). The nAmas immediately preceding nAma 222 are interpreted by SrI Sankara and SrI Bhattar in the context of the matsya -avatAra, and so they interpret nAma 222 as referring to the beauty of the matsya-avatAra. For the current nAma, since this immediately succeeds the description of the body of the Lord (anirdeSya vapu), they interpret this in this context, and give the meaning that here it refers to the enormously beautiful ornaments that decorate the body of bhagavAn (SrI Bhattar), or they refer to the beauty associated with the six great qualities (SrI Sankara). Note that even though the same nAma, SrImAn, occurs three times, both SrI Sankara and SrI Bhattar interpret them differently each time depending on the context. SrImAn also refers to Sriyah pati, or the Lord of Sri or mahA-lakshmi. BhagavAn's beauty is natural to Him because He has SrI in his vaksha-sthala. The dharma-cakram author inteprets this nAma to mean that the prakRti and purusha are inseparable, just as SrI and the Lord are inseparable, and are part of the same para-brahmam. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the root as "Sri -sevAyAm" - One who is fit to be served. SrI also means SobhA or beauty or "kAnti". He points out that the beauty that is seen all around us in the trees, the birds, the rivers, the flowers, the Sun, the Moon, the stars, etc., should remind us constantly of bhagavAn, the SrImAn whose SrI is shining in everything. SrI also means wealth. The wealth that humans have is transient, and can disappear any time. BhagavAn is SrImaAn whose wealth is nitya or permanent. 19.181 - ameyAtmA He of an incomprehensible nature. Om ameyAtmane namah. SrI Bhattar explains that based on the diverse qualities which are in abudance as described in the previous nAma-s, He is ameyAtmA.

SrI Sankara interprets the meaning of AtmA here as buddhi or intelligence, and He is ameyAtmA because He

has remarkable intelligence which is beyond measure. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha starts from the root or dhAtu from which this nAma is derived - mA mAne to measure, to compare with. MAtum arhah meyah; na mAtum arhah ameyah. Here AtmA refers to the svarUpam. Since He in the inner soul of everything, it is not possible to describe Him from outside, just as an ocean cannot be precisely defined when you are in the middle of the ocean. 19.182 - mahAdri-dhRt The bearer of the great mountain. Om mahAdri-dhRte namah. There are two instances of bhagavAn bearing the mountain. One was the instance of bearing the mandara mountain during the time of churning of the Milk Ocean, when bhagavAn appeared in the form of the Great Tortoise to bear the churning stick (which was the mandara mountain) on His back. The other is the instance when Lord KRshNa bore the govardhana mountain in gokulam to protect the cows.

SrI chinamayAnanda points out that bhagavAn also supports the mind-intellect of the sAdhaka while he is churning, through SravaNa (study) and manana (reflection), his own milk-like pure heart of devotion in order to gain the amRtam of immortality. Some versions of sahasranAmam have this nAmam as mahAdridhRk instead of mahAdri-dhRt. Sri rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out the difference between the two as follows: mahAdri-dhRk - One who is capable of bearing a huge mountain (mahAdraye didhRshNoti); mahAdri-dhRt - One who bears a huge mountain (mahAdrim dharati). My knowledge of samskRt grammar is not good enough to explain this distinction clearly. I would request anyone who can explain the difference between the two versions based on etymological considerations to contribute to clarifying this difference in meaning.

Slokam 20

183 184 185 185 186 187 188 189 190

maheshvAsah mahI-bhartA SrI-nivAsah SrI-nivAsah satAm-gatih a-niruddhah surAnandah govindah govidAm patih

20.183 - maheshvAsah a) The discharger of great arrows b) The wielder of the mighty bow Om maheshvAsAya namah. mahAn - manohArI - enchanting; ishUNAm - arrows; Asah - discharger. SrI Bhattar gives the examples of Lord Rama discharging the arrows to establish a bridge across the sethu river and at the time of destroying the ten-headed RAvaNa. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that ishvAsa can mean the bow (that which throws or discharges the arrows), and one who has the great dhanus is maheshvAsa - mahAn ishvAsah asya asti iti maheshvAsah. The dharma cakram author points out that even though modern science provides a lot of facilities like being able to build bridges to cross great rivers in times of war in a short time nowadays, the result is more war and more insecurity and more evils. Not so with the Lord's arrows, which always achieve their objective without fail (rAma bANam vIN pogAdu is a saying in Tamil - Rama's arrows never go to waste), and bring good to mankind. 20.184 - mahI-bhartA The bearer of the earth. Om mahI-bhartre namah. SrI Bhattar interprets this nAma as referring to bhagavAn bearing the earth constantly as the Adi kUrma. SrI SrInivAsa rAghavAchAryAr has pointed out in his nRsimha priyA articles that the following mantra in the nitya Ahnika karma - Om akhila jagadAdhArAya kUrma-rUpiNe nArAyaNAya namah - is a reference to this act of Sriman nArAyaNa. BhartA literally means husband or supporter. mahI means earth. mahI-bhartA means the Husband of Mother Earth. We have the description of how the Lord, as the Great Boar (varAha) uplifted the earth from

the "waters of Deluge", and is still supporting the earth. The author in dharma cakram surmises that the gravitational force which keeps everything in this universe in its place is just a demonstration of the Sakti or power of this mahI-bhartA. 20.185 - SrI-nivAsah In whom Lakshmi resides. Om SrInivAsAya namah. SrI refers to Lakshmi. NivAsam is the place or abode. Sri mahA-lakshmi emerged from the ocean as one of the nectars as it was churned. All the deva-s were watching and waiting, and She chose the Lord as She emerged. BhagavAn greeted Her with sweet words and offered Her the place on His vaksha-sthalam. This is one of His leela-s. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that SrI connotes "all Glory and power, faculties and strength, to be good and to perform creative acts of righteousness". She never resides permanently in any bosom, and even great saints and sages are known to have compromised the perfections in them in recorded history. The only place where imperfections never enter to molest the serene essence, is the seat of Eternal Perfection, which is the bosom of nArAyaNa. This is a very elegant way of interpreting and understanding the significance of the statement that SrI is always in the vaksha-sthalam of the Lord. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that SrI also means beauty (SobhA), fame (vibhUti), wealth (dhana). One who is the residence of all these is SrI-nivAsa. The statement that SrI resides always with mahA-vishNu in his vaksha-sthalam emphasizes the concept that lakshmi and nArAyaNa should be viewed as One, just as the fire and the heat associated with it are not two separate things. SrI is the brightness, the success, the wealth, the beauty, associated with nArAyaNa. 20.186 - satAm-gatih The Ultimate Goal for all spiritual seekers. Om satAm-gataye namah. sat refers to all spiritual seekers and all those who are virtuous. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that this name implies that He is not only the final goal for these, but also the very direction, path, and progress as well. BhagavAn is the goal for the devotees because they do not want anything except Him once they become His devotees. 20.187 - a-niruddhah One who cannot be obstructed or resisted by anyone. Om aniruddhAya namah.

Examples of this guNa of bhagavAn are seen all around us all the time. Nothing can stop the rising and setting of the sun, the absorption of sun's energy by the different things, etc. The laws of Nature are irresistible. In SrI chinamayAnanda's words relating to this nAma, "Time and tide wait for none". BhagavAn has been victorious and unobstructed in all of His incarnations. SrI Bhattar gives the reference to maula smahitA to support the interpretation for this nAma - aparimita cheshTo bhagavAn aniruddhah - Unlimited are the exploits of bhagavAn aniruddha". The writer in dharma cakram gives a very obvious example of the unobstructed nature of bhagavAn's wishes. Kamsa tries many things to get rid of child KRshNa right from the time of His birth, and in fact He had planned to get rid of the child long before the child was to be born. We all know that nothing worked, and the child kRshNa became the boy kRshNa and got rid of kamsa as He had planned. This nAma not only says that no one can obstruct bhagavAn helping His devotees, but it also says that no one can save His enemies. 20.188 - surAnandah One who gives delight to the gods. Om surAnandAya namah. surAn Anandayati iti surAnandah. The word sura is composed of su - good, and rA - to give. So bhagavAn is One who brings happiness to those who bring good to the world (sura-s). He has assigned them the different functions on these lines. He gives delight to the gods by helping them in times of distress. One instance of this is when the Milk-Ocean was churned and the Lord gave the amRtam to the sura-s. The instance that Sri Bhattar alludes to is the hamsa incarnation which is extensively referred to in the divya prabandham. This is covered in several places in the divya prabandham, and in addition there is a whole chapter dedicated to this incarnation in SrImad-bhAgavatam. The following are references in divya prabandham: mun iv-Ezhu ulagu uNarvinRi iruL miga umbargaL tozhudEtta annamAgi anRu aru-maRai payandavanE enakku aruL puri nIyE... (periya tirumozhi 5.3.8) "When all the seven worlds were immersed in darkness because of all kinds of conflicting and contradictory beliefs, brahma and sanaka-sanandanAdi deva-s prayed to Lord nArAyaNa, He appeared in the form of a hamsa (swan) and gave them the benefit of the knowledge of the path of righteousness." The significance of hamsa here is that it is capable of separating the milk from the water; so also, bhagavAn identified the good from the bad for the benefit of the sura-s. "tunni maNNum viNNAdum tOnRAdu iruLAi mUdiya nAL annamAgi aru maraigaL aruLicceyda amalanidam.... (periya tirumozhi 5.1.9) mannu mA-nilamum malaigalum kadalum vAnamum tAnavar-ulagum tunnu mA-iruLAi tulangoLi Surungi tollai-nAnmaRaigaLum maRaiya pinnum vAnavarkkum munivarkkum nalgi piRangiruL niRam keDa orunAL annamAi a~ngu arumaRai payndAn aranga-mA-nagar amrndAnE. (periya tirumozhi 5.7.3)

"tunniya pEriruL Suzhndu ulagai mUDa manniya nAnmaRai muRRum maRaindiDa pin ivvulagil pEriruL nI~nga anRu annamadAnE! AccOvaccO arumaRai tandAnE! AccOvaccO!" (periyAzhvAr tirumozhi 1.9.10) In SrImad-bhAgavatam, chapter 13 of the 11th skandam is devoted to hamsa avatAram. There bhagavAn describes how brahma meditated upon Him for guidance in answering the question from sanakasanandanA-s on the relationship between buddhi, AtmA, guNa-s, etc., and how He appeared in the form of a swan incarnation and gave the upadeSa to them. 20.189 - govindah a) One who is praised by the gods (for His help). b) One who dug out the Earth from the depths of the Ocean. c) The protector of cows. d) One who confers the veda-s Om govindAya namah. go in samskRt means "Earth", "cows", "speech", or "veda-s" - gaur-vANI, dharA, dhenurvA. From this we derive gavAm, gAm, etc. vid - lAbhe to get, to find, to feel is the root from which vinda is derived. a) gavAm vindah govindah - gavAm - praise, vindah - recipient. He is govinda because He is the recipient of praise by the gods for the help He renders as outlined in the previous nAma. b) Another interpretation is gAm avindat - One who retrieved the Earth from the depths of the Ocean. The following is from Santi parvam in mahAbhAratam nashTAm vai dharaNIm purvam avindam vai guhAgatAm | govinda iti tenAham devair-vAgbir-abhishTutah|| (Santi - 330.5) "I first rescued the earth which was carried away and hidden in depths of the Ocean (by an asura); hence I am praised by the appellation Govinda by gods and scriptures". The significance of this is pointed out by the dharma cakram writer. BhagavAn is the One who truly understands the world and all its subjects. c) gAvo vedavANyo yam vindanti labhante, yatra vA avatisThante sa govindo bhagavAn vishNuh - One who is reached by vedic chanting, or One who is the abode of the veda-s, is govinda or vishNu. In harivamSa we have the following gaureshA tu yato vANI tAm ca vindayate bhavAn | govindastu tato deva! munibhih kathyate bhavAn! || (harivamSa 3.88.50) gau means words. You pervade all words giving them power. Sages, therefore, call you govinda. d) The protector of the cows - again supported from harivamSa -

aham kilendro devAnAm tvam gavAm indratAm gatah | govinda iti lokAstvAm stoshyanti bhuvi SASvatam || (harivamSa 2.19.45) "I am indra, leader of deva-s. You have attained the leadership of the cows. So in this world men praise You always addressing you as govinda". He is the protector of the cows and played the part of gopAla in gokulam. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that the leadership of cows also suggests the importance of milk, ghee, etc., in worship, yaj~na etc., and how these also play a key role in the nourishment of the world. An author by name ananta kRshNa Sastri, who has translated SrI Sankara's vishNu sahasranAma vyAkhyAnam, gives 10 meanings for the combination go+vid - 1) go -svargam - He transcends Heaven. 2) arrows - He knows all the weapons. 3) cattle - He is the leader of cows. 4) Speech - He is to be known by the veda-s. 5) Thunderbolt - He has the vajra marks on His feet. 6) Quarters - He is known in all quarters. 7) Eyes - He is the seer in every person. 8) The Sun - He is in the orb of the sun. 9) Earth - He recovered the Earth from the Ocean. 10) Waters - His seat is in the waters. 20.190 - govidAm patih The protector of those who know the veda-s. Om govidAm-pataye namah. Here go means veda-s. vid is one who knows. pati is the leader or protector. The significance to be recognized here is that He is the source of all knowledge, and it is by His grace that knowledge is attained. Recall from the previous nAma that the word go in samskRt has several meanings, including speech, earth, cows, etc. This opens up the beauty of other interpretations for the current nAma. BhagavAn is also the master of speech of all other creations such as birds, etc., the leader of those who know the principle (tatvam) of this Universe, etc. I am indebted to Sri M. Srinivasan for helping me with identifying these references. Dasan Krishnamachari

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 21 191 - marIcih 192 - damanah

193 - hamsah 194 -suparNah 195 bhujagottamah 196 - hiraNyanAbhah 197 - sutapAh 198 padma_nAbhah 199 - prajApatih

21.191 - marIcih Ray of light. Om marIcaye namah. The word marIci means a ray of light. SrI Bhattar interprets this name as indicating that bhagavAn reveals Himself to His devotees through the eye of their devotion even though they can't see Him through their natural eye. The author in dharma cakram indicates that this guNa of bhagavAn should remind us that we should aim for the ray of light that will help us meditate on Him. This we can achieve by first controlling our indirya-s, which then converts the body's energies into mental energy. Then by control of the mind, this energy is converted into the light that gives the clarity of mind that can help us meditate on Him. A different interpretation is given by SrI satyadevo vAsishTha for this nAma. The word marIci is derived from mR prANatyAge to die, to perish. He interprets marIci as one who destroys. Since it is one of bhagavAn's functions to destroy the beings that He creates, He is marIci. To support this, he gives the examples from bhagavad-gItA - jAtasya hi dhruvo mRtyur-dhruvam janma mRtasya ca (2.25); mRtyuh prajAnAm adhipatih (atharva 5.24.13), etc. 21.192 - damanah.

a) Dispeller (of the samsAra bhAram) b) Subduer - One who controls and punishes those who swerve from their prescribed path. c) He Who controls everything by pervading everything. Om damanAya namah The word is derived from the dhAtu - dam upaSame = to tame. damayati iti damanah - One who dispels. a) Continuing his interpretation of the previous nAma (One with great radiance), Sri Bhattar interprets this nAma as indicating that He guides His devotees overcome the sufferings of samsAra or the material world through His guiding Light kAnti mandAkinIbhih bhava-tApam daayati iti damanah SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj and SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN give similar interpretations. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN explains the nAma as damayati vicheda tApam sva-dhyAtRRNAm kAnti kantalIbhih iti damanah He Who dispels the sufferings of those who meditate on Him through His kAnti. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation: dAmyati upaSamayati kAnti kiraNaih upAsInAnAm manas-tApam iti damanah He Who removes the sorrow in the minds of His devotees through His when they meditate on Him. b) SrI Sankara interprets the nAma as The Subduer - One Who controls and punishes those that swerve from their assigned duties (damayitum Seelam yasya sa damanah). This could be in the form of a king while the people are in their mortal bodies, as yama after they die, etc. SrI cinmayAnanda explains that the damana aspect of bhagavAn is responsible for controlling the rAkshasic impulses within every one of us. In the form of pain and agitation, sorrow and death, it is He who controls all the negative tendencies in everyone's heart. He also has controlled the vicious against the good in the form of His ten incarnations. c) SrI vAsishTha interprets the nAma as One Who controls everything in this world by pervading everything and keeping things in order damayati upaSamayati yathA sthAnam prApayati, damana dharmeNa viSvam sa-carAcaram vyApnoti, iti damanah. d) SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives several interpretations for the nAma: i) ii) damanAsura samhAratvAt damanah He Who destroyed the asura by name damana. damana priyatvAt da-manah He Who likes taming or subduing the wicked.

iii) damo yeshAm asti iti damAh, tAn nayati iti dama-nah He Who is the Supreme among those who have control of the mind and the indriya-s (dama-nah). iv) dam abhIshTa dAtR mano yasya sa iti vA da-manah He Who has the mind to bestow whatever is desired on His devotees (da-manah). The author in dharma cakram points out that when one does not lead a life based on strict sAttvic principles, including the food habits, etc., one gets diseases and other mental pains. These are all acts of bhagavAn to discipline the person with the intent of helping the person learn and realize the right path. This is His act of damana, or controlling, punishing, guiding, etc. The reader is also referred to nAma 864 (Slokam 92) - damayitA, which is dervied from the root as the current nAma, damanah.

21.193 - hamsah Om hamsAya namah.

One who is like the swan.

Hamsa is capable of separating milk from water and drinking only the milk and leaving the water behind. Hamsa is also noted for its beauty, especially for its walk. BhagavAn is hamsa in that He is everything that is good and nothing that is not good. He is also hamsa for His beauty in thought, word, and deed. We had made extensive reference to the hamsa incarnation of bhagavAn in the explanation for the nAma surAnanda. Thus the current nAma can also be viewed as a reference to the hamsa avatAra of bhagavAn. Another interpretation, given by SrI Sankara, is that hamsah indicates that bhagavAn kills (han) the fear of samsAra in those who realize that aham sah - I am He. This (I am He) is traditionally quoted in discussions supporting the advaita philosophy. In some of his upanyAsa-s, SrI kRshNa Premi describes the following upa-katha involving a disciple who went alternately to an advaita and a visishTAdvaita teacher, who taught him alternately their philosophy - so'ham, dAso'ham, sadA so'ham, and dAsadAso'ham. Notice the play of words here, adding dA to the first one, sa to the next one, and dA again to the third word to get the fourth. Yet another interpretation is hanti gacchati sarva SarIreshu iti vA hamsah - He moves in all beings and bodies and so He is called hamsa. 21.194 - suparNah a) (literally) One possessed of charming feathers see below. b) One who can lead men to the other shore across the ocean of samsAra. Om suparNAya namah. a) In SrImad-bhAgavatam we have - siddheSvarANAm kapilah suparNo'ham patatriNAm - Among the siddha-s, I am Kapila, and among birds I am GaruDa (11.16.15). In Bhagavad-gItA, we have mRgANAm ca mRgendro'ham vainateyaSca pakshiNAM - Among beasts, I am the lion, their king, and among birds, I am GaruDa, the son of VinatA (10.29). Thus, suparNa is interpreted as referring to His being the Best of the best in all that exist. b) parNa means wings. Sobhana parNatvAt suparNah - suparNa means One with auspicious and beautiful wings. He is suparNa because He carries His devotees to the other shore of the ocean of samsAra. c) In the upanishad-s, we have reference to two beautiful birds sitting on the same tree - signifying the jIvAtmA and the ParamAtmA dwelling in the same body. One (jIvAtmA) eats the fruits of actions, and the other (ParamAtMA) just gazes on (sAkshI). VishNu is this all-experiencing Principle of Consciouness. "dvA suparNA sayujA sakhAyA samAnam vRksham parishvajAte tayoranyah pippalam svAdvanti, anaSnan anyo abhicAkaSIti (mundakopanishad - 3.1) A pair of white-winged birds extremely friendly to each other sit on one and the same tree; one eats the fruits, the other eats not and gazes on". SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri refers to one as the great enjoyer (pErinbam), and the other as the Great Knower (pEraRivu). d) The nAma can also relate back to the previous nAma The hamsa incarnation with beautiful wings.

21.195 - bhujagottamah Om bhujagottamAya namah.

The Master of the Serpent AdiSesha.

bhujaga refers to the species which navigate using their shoulders or arms - bhujena gacchanti, rather than through their legs. Here bhujaga refers to AdiSesha. uttama can refer to 'one who is above'. Here it refers to bhagavAn who is reclining on top of the AdiSesha. He is the SeshI or the Lord of the Sesha. He is reclining on ananta the Serpent as the couch. Or the name could also refer to bhujagAnAm uttamah - One who is the best among the serpents. i.e., it can refer to ananta - see bhagavad-gItA 10-29 - anantaScAsmi nAgAnAm. Even though I am finding the interpretations of SrI satyadevo vAsishTha to be on the side of being unconventional, I am including them since he supports his interpretations with extensive support from grammar, quotes from sruti-s etc. Here he starts with the dhAtu bhuj kautilye to bend, to curve. He points out that bhagavAn is bhujagottama because He is the best of all that bend and move. This includes air, birds, etc. Wherever anything of this category can reach, no matter how fast they fly or move, bhagavAn is there before them. Even the man-made machines that fly cannot go anywhere including other planets faster than Him, since He is there before them. Not only that, even the ability for those that fly etc. are given only by the Grace of the Lord. 21.196 - hiraNya-nAbhah Om hiraNya-nAbhAya namah. Literally the word means "One who has a beautiful navel with a golden hue". Here it refers to the navel that is great by having created the catur-mukha-brahmA who is also well-versed in the catur-veda-s. brahmA gets his greatness because he creates all the beings thus giving them the opportunity to reveal their greatness. This great brahmA was borne out of the navel of vishNu, and thus the greatness of the navel that bore the great brahmA is evident. Just as a nation that creates great people becomes known as a great nation, so is the analogy here, to quote the dharma cakram writer. 21.197 - sutapAh a) One who is possessed of supreme knowledge. b) One with consistent creative thinking. Om sutapAse namah. SrI Bhattar interprets tapas as knowledge, and gives the first interpretation above. SrI Sankara uses the following from mahAbhArata - mansaScendriyANAm ca hyaikAgRyam paramam tapah - The concentration of mind and senses is called supreme tapas - (MB 12.242.4). SrI chinmayAnanda gives the following support from the upanishad - sa tapah taptvA idametadasRjat (He thought, and through thought He created all this). The author in dharma cakram points out that the strength derived from tapas is more powerful than any other strength, and gives the example of how viSvAmitra's army was powerless against vasishTha's tapoOne who supports in His navel the creator, hiraNyagarbha.

Sakti. It was through tapas that viSvAmitra ultimately attained brahma-j~nAna, and it was through tapas that dhruva attained the immortal position. Lord vishNu is tapas-Incarnate (sutapAh), and thus guides His devotees in the path of tapas. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets tap to mean the ability to bear (kleS kA sahnA in Hindi). The example of a mother bearing the strain of an unborn child for 9 months just so she can bring out the child to this world is but a reflection of bhagavAn's su-tapa or His bearing the tejas of the likes of Sun so that it can bring out the good for the beings of this world, without burning them with its heat etc. So bhagavAn is the mahAtapasvI. 21.198 - padma_nAbhah a) One who has the lotus emanating from his navel (carrying brahma) b) One who resides in the center of everyone's heart Om padma nAbhAya namah. This nAma had occurred earlier as nAma 48. There the interpretation was that the lotus (the cause of the Universe) emanates from His navel. Another explanation given by SrI Sankara for the current nAma is that bhagavAn is in the centre of everyone's hRdaya kamalam or heart (nAbhI means also the central part, and padmam in this context is heart). The author in dharma cakram enjoys this nAma in various other ways. When lotus (padmam) blossoms, it attracts the bees and other insects towards it; so also, bhagavAn (padma-nAbhI) attracts all the jeevans to Him. Lotus is the most beautiful and fragrant of flowers; so also our padma-nAbha is the embodiment of beauty. Lord rAmA's beauty has been described by Sri Kamban - tAL kandAr tALE kandAr. Unlike the bodily beauty which brings down people to a lower level, the beauty of padma-nAbha can only elevate people to a higher level. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives additional insight into this nAma from yet another perspective. Padmam also means knowledge - padyate j~nAyate anena padmam j~nAnam. One who is the Center or reservoir of Knowledge, or One who controls and rules over Knowledge is padmanAbha (the author uses the term j~nAna-bandhanah as the equivalent of padma-nAbha based on this explanation). 21.199 - prajApatih Om prajApataye namah. tat padmodbhava-prabhRtInAm prajAnAm patih - The Lord of all beings including brahma born of that lotus. This pertains to the creation and destruction that take place periodically. Pati also means father, and since all creatures have emerged from Him, He is prajApati. He is the Leader who appears whenever needed to establish dharma. The Lord of beings.

Slokam 22

200 - amRtyuh 201 - sarvadRk 202 - simhah 203 - sandhAtA 204 - sandhimAn 205 - sthirah 206 - ajah 207 durmarshaNah 208 - SAstA 209 - viSrutAtmA 210 - surAri-hA

22.200 - amRtyuh One who is beyond death or decay. Om amRtyave namah. mRtyuh yasya na asti iti amRtyuh. Birth, growth, decay, disease, and death, are the five modifications through which every finite object must pass. Everything that is born is bound to die. Since He is not born, He is beyond decay, death, or other modifications. The author in dharma cakram points out that this nAma should remind us of the indestructibility or deathlessness of the jivAtmA, and should remind us of the need to mediate on Him without associating ourselves with this perishable body. 22.201 - sarvadRk All-seeing. Om sarva-dRSe namah.

He is the Seer and Knower of everything at all times in all beings. He is the witness of all, and sees those who are well-disposed or hostile or indifferent to Him as the Ruler of all and rewards them according to their deeds. The author in dharma cakram points out the concept that is simple but worth repeating - that this nAma should remind us that it is important to be pure in thought, word, and deed, since He is ever watchful of these in all beings at all times. It is easy to swerve from His path without any human being being aware of it, but we should be aware that He is the All-seeing. 22.202 - simhah a) The Lion b) Destroyer Om simhAya namah. SrI Bhattar interprets the nAma as one who has assumed the body of man and lion. SrI Sankara gives the meaning that He is the Destroyer (Lion) of sins. He gives the following etymological derivation "hinasti iti simhah" - hinasti smaraNa mAtreNa samasta pApAn iti simhah. According to this interpretation, the word himsa changes to simha by transposition of letters according to the grammatical rule "pRshodarAdIni yatopadishTam" (PANini 6.3.109). SrI chinmayAnanda points out that even taking the literal meaning "Lion" for simha, He is the Lion at the mention of whose name all the animal passions flee from the jungle of the mind. In the gItA we have "mRgANAm ca mRgendro'ham - Among the animals, I am the king of animals - The Lion" - gItA 10.30. In dharma cakram, the writer says that meditating on this nAma with its meaning should give us the vIrya to destroy the evil in our thoughts, words, and deeds. It is only a strong personality which can help us overcome the negative forces around us and help us realize Him. It is necessary to be good and to be strong (nallavanAgavum vallavanAgavum as stated in the tamizh language). 22.203 - sandhAtA a) One who unites His devotees with Him b) One who unites the beings with the fruits of their actions Om sandhAtre namah. sandhatta iti sandhAtA - One who unites. The first meaning is given by Sri Bhattar, giving the example of prahlAda. The second meaning is given by SrI Sankara. The nirukti gives the description - prahlAdAdyaih sandhAtA samSlesha-karaNAcca sah - One who makes the likes of prahlAda join Him. 22.204 - sandhimAn One who is always united with His devotees. Om sandhimate namah.

sandhi is union. SrI Bhattar gives the explanation that this name indicates that He is always united with His devotees, and so He is sandhimAn. Again, quoting the nirukti, prahlAdAdyaih nityasandhih yasya syAt sandhimAn smRtah - One who is in permanent union with the likes of prahlAda. 22.205 - sthirah One who is firm in His relation to His devotees. Om sthirAya namah. SrI Bhattar's interpretation is that He is sthirah since He is firmly attached to His devotees in spite of any wrongs by them - apacAre'pi acAlyatvAt sandhAne sthira ucyate. SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He is sthira in the sense that He is Constant, being always the same, free from birth, decay, etc. - sadaika rUpatvAt sthirah. 22.206 - ajah a) Unborn b) Remover of obstacles c) One who moves in the hearts of the devotees d) One who removes the ignorance from the hearts of His devotees e) One who is the root of all sound (akshara "a") Om ajAya namah. We encountered this nAma as nAma 96 earlier. It will recur also as nAma 524. Please see the explanations under nAma 96. 22.207 - durmarshaNah The Unassailable. Om durmarshaNAya namah. dushkaram marshaNam asya iti durmarshaNah - One who cannot be overcome by His enemies. SrI chinmayAnanda gives a very interesting perspective for this nAma. We may swerve from His path, and satisfy our sensory urges, but after being born over and over, we ultimately have no choice except to follow His path. In the lesser levels of evolution, we may deny ourselves the peace and joy of living the spiritual values, but in the end we will be seeking the feet of vishNu for real happiness and true achievement. Thus, His is the final victory. The root from which this nAma is derived is mRsh - sahane to bear. Literally this means One who is difficult to bear (for His enemies). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha starts with this, and interprets the nAma to mean that bhagavAn is durmarshaNa because His tejas cannot be confronted in His forms such as the Sun. He also points out that this principle is demonstrated by bhagavAn in everything in this world - the moon cannot stand the tejas of the sun, the brightness of the stars is diminished by the presence of the moon, the power of agni is subdued by that of water, and water disappears in the presence of agni.

Two other explanations for which I could not corroborate the meanings from the dictionary etc. are included as well. One of these is by SrI satyadevo vAsishTha. He gives the alternate interpretation that durmarshNa also means one who cannot be easily understood, based on the alternate meaning for marshitum = ~jNAtum - duhkhena marshitum Sakyah durmarshaNah. The other interpretation is by the dharma cakram writer who gives the meaning that He is durmarshaNah because He destroys the evil asura-s ( I assume this derivation is based on based mR to kill), and protects the deva-s. Meditating on this nAma with its meaning in mind will help in driving away the evil thoughts from the devotee's mind , and help to develop the good thoughts that will lead to realization of Him. VAlmIki who was ignorant in the beginning, meditated on rAma nAma, and this led him in course of time to the realization of Him.

22.208 - SAstA The Teacher. Om sAstre namah. The word is derived from SAsu - anuSishTau to teach, to govern, to correct, to advise. SAsti viSvam iti SAstA - One who teaches the veda-s to the world and governs is SAstA. (The words Sastra, SikshA etc. are derived from the same root). He is constantly teaching us through our elders, through sruti-s, smRti-s, watching us constantly by being the observer in us, etc. SrI Bhattar gives the meaning that He righteously punishes (teaches a lesson to?) those who are hindrance to His devotees, and so He is SAstA. 22.209 - viSrutAtmA a) One whose exploits are praised with wonder. b) One who is called by special names (such as Truth,Knowledge, etc). c) One whose praise is sung in various forms. d) One whose AtmA is of a special Nature. The interpretations except the last one result based on the different ways in which the vyAkhyAna kartA-s have interpreted the "vi" in viSrutAtmA. SrI Bhattar gives the interpretation vismayena - with wonder, SrI Sankara has interpreted it as viSesheNa - specially, and SrI satyadevo vAsishTha has given the meaning vividhaih - through many forms. Sru SravaNe to hear is the second part, and AtmA is the third part in the above nAma. SrI Bhattar adds that this praise in wonder is by all, at all times, and at all places. SrI Sankara points out that He is characterized through special terms like truth, wisdom, etc., and specially glorified in Sruti-s. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that He is known through different forms like Sun, Moon, etc. He gives the following corraboration from Sruti tadevAgnis-tadAdityas-tadvAyus-tadu candramAh | tadeva Sukram tad brahma tA Apah sa prajApatih || (yajur 32-1). He is also viSrutAtmA since he is sung through various means such as gAnam, arcanam, etc., and through sAma veda, yajurveda, etc.

Interpretation (d) is based on viSesheNa Srutah (~jnAtah) AtmA yena sa viSrutAtmA One who is known to be different from the jIvAtmA, One who is sarva~jna, sarvaSakta, sarva-niyantA. His AtmA is pure shAdguNya paripUrNa form, unassociated with an external form, unimpacted by the effects of karma, etc. 22.210 - surAri-hA The slayer of the enemies of the gods. Om surArighne namah. The nAma consists of the three words sura, ari, and hA, where sura refers to gods, ari is the enemy, and hA is the destroyer. SrI Bhattar reminds us of bhagavAn's destruction of hiraNyakaSipu in this context. SrI chinmayAnanda points out that meditating on this nAma's meaning leads to the destruction of the enemies of our mind's aspiration to evolve, the enemies being "the sensuous claims of the flesh, the mild assertions of the ego, the nocturnal devils of desires and passions". One who drives away all the above inimical negative tendencies is surAruihA. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha has included the Rg vedic mantra 1.36.15 starting with "pAhi no agne rakshasah" in his vyAkhyAna, and says that it is his own personal experience that chanting this mantra helps in warding off all evils or evil-doers. I have not included the full mantra because I am not sure about the correct pronunciation etc. If anyone has the original mantra, please share it. All the nAma-s in this Slokam have been interpreted by SrI Bhattar as relating to the description of the guNa-s associated with the nRsimha avatAra.

Slokam 23

211 - gurur-gurutamah 212 - dhAma 213 - satyah 214 - satyaparAkramah 215 - nimishah 216 - animishah 217 - sragvI 218 - vAcaspatih 219 - udAra-dhIh

23.211 - gurur-guru-tamah The foremost among the preceptors. Om gurutamAya gurave namah. guru means 'spiritual preceptor'. SrI Bhattar interprets the following phrase 'guru-tamah' as an adjective for guru, i.e., the guru who is the best of all guru-s. SrI Sankara views this as two nama-s, guru and guru-tama. He is the foremost of preceptors since he is the one who gave the veda-s to brahma, who then is the source of the veda-s to the rest of the world. yo brahmANam vidadhAti pUrvam yo vai vedAnSca prahiNoti tasmaiHe who brought brahma into existence and imparted the veda to him (SvetASvatara 6.18). We also have "guruh ka iti | guruh sAkshAd-AdinArAyaNah" - The Ultimate guru is AdinArAyaNa (tripAdvibhUti mahAnArAyaNopanishat - 8.15). In SrI SankarAcArya guru pramparA, the first guru is nArAyaNa nArAyaNam padmabhuvam vasisTham Saktim ca tatputra parASaram ca vyAsam Sukam ........SrI SankarAcAryam. We all know that SrIman nArayANa is the first and foremost in the SrIvaishNava guru paramparA. In dharam cakram, the writer says that He is guru-tama because you don't have to even go and look for Him. He pervades everything and is everywhere, and all we need to get His teaching is to feel the need for it. All that is needed is the thirst for His mercy in order for us to progress in getting true knowledge instead of living the life of a stone or tree. 23.212 - dhAma a) The Place of Residence. b) The Supreme Light. c) The Abode of all desired things. Om dhAmne namah. We encountered the word dhAma when we looked at the nAma tri-kakud-dhAma (nAma 62). Some of the same thoughts presented there apply here. SrI Bhattar interprets the nAma-s starting with the previous one as referring to the matsya incarnation. Because of my a~jnAnam, I was not able to understand the connection with matsya avatAra for the previous nAma. For the current one, he points out that bhagavAn is dhAma because He is like the helmsman who steers the boat carrying the seeds of all the transitory moving and non-moving objects at the time of pralaya. SrI Sankara interprets the nAma as being the Supreme Leading Light. SrI RAmAnuja in his gItA bhAshya for slokam 10.12 (param brahma param dhAma), chooses the meaning "Supreme Light" in that context for the word dhAma - dhAma Sabdo jyotirvacanah - param jyotih. The writer in dharma cakram elaborates further on the term "Supreme Light". The eye sees with the light from the Sun. But neither the Sun's light nor the eye can see the Ultimate. For that you need the light

called bhagavAn's Grace, the Inner Light. This is what mahA vishNu is, viz. dhAma the Supreme Light, which can reveal what no other light can. It is the eye of intense desire to reach Him that can see this light, and no other eye can. Other interpretations given include "He is the Abode of all desired objects", "He is the Abode of all desires", "He is the Abode for all karma-s", etc. SrI chinmayAnanda, in addition to the interpretation "Supreme Light", gives the alternate interpretation that He is dhAma because He is the Ultimate Goal (dhAma = peak). 23.213 - satyah The Good. Om satyAya namah. This naAma has occurred previously as nAma 107, and will re-occur as nAma 873. Please refer to the explanation for nAma 107. In the current context of matsya avatAra, SrI Bhattar points out that He is satya because He was good to sat-purusha-s such as Manu who sought His help at that time. At the time I submitted the explanation for nAma 107, I did not have SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's vyAkhyAna. Now I am adding some extracts from this source. Under nAma 107, one explanation given was - satya is One who is 'excellent' in sat, based on the pANini sUtra 4.4.98. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha refers us to the Slokam in bhagavad gItA (17.26 and 17.27) for a definition of 'sat' in Lord KRshNa's words. sad bhAve sAdhu bhAve ca sadityetat prayujyate | praSaste karmaNi tathA sac-chabdah pArtha ucyate || ya~jne tapasi dAne ca sthitih saditi cocyate | karma caiva tadarthIyam sadityevAbhidIyate || (gItA 17.26 and 27) The word 'sat' thus refers to existence, goodness, good acts, firmness in sacrifice, austerities, and gifts, and any acts for such purposes. One who is excellent in all these, or One who is excellent to (i.e., supports) those who do acts along these lines, is satya. 23.214 - satya-parAkramah One of unfailing valor. Om satyaparAkramAya namah. SrI Bhattar, continuing on his interpretation of this sequence of nAma-s in terms of maysa avatAra, gives the example of bhagavAn performing truthfully the courageous acts towards Manu and others. The writer in dharma cakram points out that there can be two kinds of valor, one which is used for the good of the people, such as that of SrI Rama, and the other that is used for demonstrating power and for hurting others, such as RAvaNa's. Meditating on mahA vishNu gives us the ability to develop the valor of the former kind.

23.215 - nimishah One whose eyes are closed (towards the enemies of His devotees). Om nimishAya namah. na Ikshate iti nimishah. His Graceful Sight does not fall on those who are opposed to Him or His devotees. SrI Sankara gives the meaning that His eyes are closed while He is in yoga-nidrA. SrI RAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that He is nimisha (with closed eyes) because He does not need His eyes to see, His ears to hear etc. The dharma cakram writer points out that He of closed eyes is seeing all because He is everywhere, in every one of us, all the time, and is watching all that happens everywhere even without eyes. Those who can contemplate on the yoga-nidrA of vishNu can close their eyes and meditate, and over a period of time, will be able to divert their minds towards Him in that state (normally, whether our eyes are open or closed, they wander in worldly thoughts!). 23.216 - animishah One with eyes closed. Om animishAya namah. SrI Bhattar interprets the nAma in terms of the matsya incarnation. In His celestial Fish incarnation, He never closes His eyes and is ever-watchful of His devotees (Fish do not have eyelids, and so never close their eyes). SrI Sankara gives two additional explanations - He is ever awake because of His wisdom, or He is Atma svarUpa, and AtmA never sleeps. The dharma cakram author gives the significance of this nAma as indicating that one who contemplates on this nAma will be always spiritually awake, and bad thoughts and the worldly distractions won't enter his mind. One is reminded of tiruppANAzhvAr's concluding pASuram in amalanAdipirAn "en amudinaik kanDa kaNgaL maRRonRinaik kANAvE". While the AzhvAr sang this when he was witnessing the beauty of the Lord in the temple, the statement aptly applies to the inner eyes as well. 23.217 - sragvI Adorned with the garland (vaijayantI). Om sragviNe namah. srag means garland. According to PANinI's ashTAdhyAyI 5.2.121 - as mAyA medhA srajo vinih - the affix vin coming after sraj indicates 'association with'. So here the meaning is 'One who is associated with the garland always - referring to the vaijayantI garland of vishNu. Prof. A. srinivAsa rAghavan points out that the vaijayanti is composed of the five precious gems - pearl, ruby, emerald, sapphire, and diamond. SrI Sankara refers to the vaijayanti as referring to the garland made of the tanmAtrA-s or the rudiments of the five basic elements (taste, sight, sound, smell, and sensation) of the pa~nca bhuta-s. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives the reference to vishNu purANa - pa~nca svarUpA yA mAlA vaijayantI gadA bhRtah | sA bhUta hetu sangAtA bhUta mAlA ca vai dvijah || (1.2.72). The writer in dharma cakram suggests that we should divert all our tan-mAtra-s to the service of vishNu (he gives the example of ANdAL who decorated herself with the flower garland just to make sure it was good enough for Lord RanganAtha).

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning starting from sRj to create or set forth. Since all creations such as the stars, Sun, etc., are Hiscreations, He is sragvI. In a garland, there may be different kinds of flowers, but they lose their identity as soon as they are part of the garland. So also, all these different creations are together the sragvI or bhagavAn vishNu. Or, just as it is common practice to identify an important person in our society by putting a garland around the neck, bhagavAn is distinguished by this unique garland to indicate His Lordship and superiority. 23.218 - vAcaspatih The Lord of Speech. Om vAcaspataye namah. SrI Bhattar's interpretation is that He is vAcaspati because it was He who propounded the knowledge of the veda-s through SrImad matsya purANa. It is the power of expression in the matsya purANa that reveals the guNa of vAcaspati in Him. SrI Sankara interprets this nAma and the next one - udrAradhIh, as one nAma, vAcaspatirudAradIh, meaning "The Lord of vidyA, being of magnificent intellect. All the other interpretations I am using, except that of SrI satyadevo vAsishTha, follow this same line. The latter gives the vyAkhyAna for these as separate nAma-s, but lists the nAma as one, and points out that this combining is done only to make sure the count of the nAma-s is exactly 1000. SrI Bhattar does not have the problem since there are other places where the others consider two separate names whereas he combines them into one (e.g., gurur-guru-tama, the first nAma in the current posting). According to satya bhAshyam (the name that SrI satyadevo vAsishTha has given to his vyAkhyAnam), the term vAcaspati signifies that bhagavAn protects, or is the Master of, vidyA or veda. 23.219 - udAra-dhIh One with vast knowledge. Om udAra-dhiye namah. dhI here means buddhi or intellect. UdAra means generous, noble, illustrious, etc. One who has a generous disposition towards His devotees, or one who has an illustrious or special intellect that can capture all things at all times, is udAradhIh. SrI chinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has a largehearted tolerance to appreciate the weekness of His devotees' heart, and a great sympathy and infinite kindness towards sinners in general. He has enough paternal kindness to overlook our trespasses, unlike the laws of physical nature which are blind and uncompromising. Slokam 24

220 221 222 223

agraNIh grAmaNih SrImAn nyAyah

224 - netA 225 - samIraNah 226 - sahasramUrdhA 227 - viSvAtmA 228 - sahasraakshah 229 - sahasra-pAt

24.220 - agraNIh One who leads forward. Om agraNye namah. agre nayati iti agraNIh - One who leads forward is agraNIh. SrI Sankara and SrI Bhattar interpret the 'leading forward' as referring to bhagavAn's guNa of leading His devotees to moksha.

The writer in dharma cakram gives an elaborate account of the kind of people whom He will lead to moksha. The example compares people to four stages of fish in a river in which a fisherman casts his net. The nitya sUri-s are like the fish which do not get caught in the net - i.e., they do not fall for the bait, and remain safely outside. The mukta jiva-s are those who get caught in the net, but with their best effort, succeed in getting out. The mumukshu-s are like the fish which keep trying to get out, even though they have not succeeded in escaping. The baddha jiva-s are like the fish who enjoy the bait the fisherman has provided, and remain happily in the net and become the food for the fisherman. SrI vishNu's guNa of agraNI applies to those who are the mumukshu-s, who constantly want to get out of this ocean of samsAra by devoting themselves to the worship of Him. They are like the fish that has been taken out of water and that is desperately trying to get into the water, or like the man who has been thrown into water and drowning and who is desperately interested in getting a breath of air. It is this kind of intensity in seeking Him that will qualify a person for the agraNI's dayA. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that this attribute of SrI vishNu in 'moving everything forward' is constantly demonstrated in everyone's life - i.e., we only keep moving forward, and can never go backwards

in time, and time lost is lost forever. Not only we are moving forward, but we are moving forward according to His will. This is true of the Sun, the moon, etc. 24.221 - grAmaNih Leader of the hosts of angels. Om grAmaNye namah. grAmam samAjam nayati iti grAmanIh - One who leads the group (of devotees). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that grAma refers to any collection, e.g., of several houses ( a village), of several indirya-s (the body), of several musical instruments (sapta svarAs-trayo grAmA - in nAradIya SikshA), or the collection of all created beings. The writer in dharma cakram interprets this nAma in the context of the devotees who have unconditionally entrusted themselves in His care that are led by Him to moksha. He gives the example of one who is lost in a forest (of samsAra). If this person goes and seeks help for getting out of this forest from others (such as his relatives, his friends, etc.), who are also lost in this forest, this request for help is going to be futile. But if they seek the help of vishNu who alone can lead us from the bondage of samsAra, then and only then will they be able to get out of this forest. It is this category of people who are led by this guNa of bhagavAn denoted by the nAma grAmaNI. 24.222 - SrImAn a) One who is endowed with wealth. b) One who is full of all glories. c) One who is radiant. d) The Lord of MahAlakshmi e) One who has MahAlakshmi in his vaksha-sthala. f) One who is endowed with all the powers. Om SrImate namah. This nAma occurred previously as nAma-s 22 and 180. Under these names, the translator of SrI Sankara's bhAshyam had added his own personal comments, which I had incorrectly attributed to SrI Sankara. So I am revising the write-up for SrImAn to correct this error as below. Under nAma 22, I had incorrectly indicated that both SrI Sankara and SrI Bhattar interpret the nAma as referring to the beauty of nRsimha avatAra. SrI Bhattar does interpret nAma 22 as referring to the beauty of nRsimha incarnation. SrI Sankara interprets nAma 22 as 'One who has lakshmi on His vaksha-sthalam'. A translator of Sankara bhAshyam, SrI ananta-kRshNa SAstri, has added his own note that vishNu is SrImAn because there is no diminution in His beauty even though He has the form of a man-lion. Probably this note was added based on SrI Bhattar's vyAkhyAna. I had incorrectly attributed the translator's note to SrI Sankara. For nAma 180, SrI Bhattar interprets SrImAn as referring to the beauty of the Lord decorated with celestial ornaments, and SrI Sankara interprets SrImAn as referring to the Lord's prosperity (SrI), and the translator's note adds that this refers to the six kinds of prosperity (shADgunya paripUrNatva).

For the current nAma (222), SrI Bhattar's interpretation is that bhagavAn is endowed with SrI or wealth. He makes reference to the "Lotus-eyed matsya mUrti - matsyah kamala locanah", and indicates that based on this, the matsya mUrti form is none other than SrImAn who is the paramAtmA. SrI Sankara interprets SrI as kAnti or radiance in this instance, and gives the interpretation that here SrImAn refers to the Lord who is more radiant or resplendent than anything else that exists. Here again, the translator has added a note that though He incarnated as a fish, His splendor was supreme in that form. Here again, the translator's note is probably based on Sri Bhattar's vyAkhyAna. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets SrI as Mother lakshmi, who is the total manifested power potential and stands for all powers or all glories. VishNu is SrImAn because He has all these powers in Him or is courted by all glories.

SrImAn also refers to Sriyah pati, or the Lord of Sri or mahA-lakshmi. BhagavAn's beauty is natural to Him because He has SrI in his vaksha-sthala. The dharma-cakram author inteprets this nAma to mean that the prakRti and purusha are inseparable, just as SrI and the Lord are inseparable, and are part of the same parabrahmam.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the root as "Sri -sevAyAm" - One who is fit to be served. SrI also means SobhA or beauty or "kAnti". He points out that the beauty that is seen all around us in the trees, the birds, the rivers, the flowers, the Sun, the Moon, the stars, etc., should remind us constantly of bhagavAn, the SrImAn whose SrI is shining in everything. SrI also means wealth. The wealth that humans have is transient, and can disappear any time. BhagavAn is SrImAn whose wealth is nitya or permanent. 24.223 - nyAyah a) The Just. b) Logical arguments (tarka) and lines of contemplation (yukti) that help us in arriving at the absolute experience. Om nyAyAya namah SrI Bhattar interprets this nAma as referring to the Lord's guNa of ensuring that He does whatever is appropriate for His devotees, and ensures that nothing faulty or unwelcome happens to them. SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He is nyAya because He is both the tarka (logical contemplation) and yukti (the lines of contemplation) running through all sources of knowledge (pramANAnugrAhakah). The sense here as expressed by SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri is that He is nyAya because He is the only one who can give what is good for His devotees in a rational and consistent form that cannot be refuted through counter-arguments (probably through the veda-s?).

The writer in dharma cakram elaborates on this further, and points out that there are three types of tarka (lines of argument) - vAda, vitanDA, and jalpa. Of these, vAda is done with the purpose of understanding and arriving at the truth, and is undertaken with humility and sincerity. VitanDA is the argument which is meant to just confuse the opponent, and is undertaken with a haughty disposition and with ahankAra. Jalpa is the line of argument where the power or position is used to subdue, frighten, insult and threaten the opponent. Of these, vAda is the most appropriate way of argument, and will lead to enhancing understanding. Devotees who worship mahA-vishNu are blessed by Him with the ability to analyze and understand the truth through the just means, and they are saved from destructive thoughts and are led towards self-realization. The example of Lord KRshNa's instructions to arjuna is given to illustrate the instance that bhagavAn leads

His devotees to the thought process involving nyAya yukti, whereby arjuna's thoughts become clear, his attachments are removed, and he acts on the right and just course of action.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha, in addition to the above explanation, derives his interpretation based on nIyate prApyate iti nyAyah - One who ensures that everything in this world is on its right track and reaches its destination is nyAyah. The yantra that is this Universe, with its Sun, moon, stars, etc., is functioning under the guidance of the nyAya that is vishNu. So also the indriya-s in our bodies are directed by the SarIra-nyAya that is vishNu. The word 'niyati', which means 'rule', is related to the word nyAya (nIyate). 24.224 - netA a) One who fulfills the requests of His devotees. b) One who manages or regulates the affairs of the cosmos. Om netre namah. a) niyuktam karoti iti netA (SrI Bhattar), or b) jagad-yantra nirvAhakah netA (SrI Sankara). The dharma cakram writer gives the analogy of objects attached to a rotating wheel. The objects rotate because of the movement of the wheel. We are all moving around because of His Will which is analogous to the rotating wheel. However, we keep believing that it is we who are responsible for our motion, and forget that it is He who is moving us as He wishes. Those who understand this get out of the false belief that we are the ones who are achieving everything around us. arjuna the jivAtmA was sitting in the chariot or the body, and Lord kRshNa was driving both the chariot and arjuna. The chariot did not have any feeling of responsibility for its motion, but arjuna believed that his actions were caused by his will. The Lord did not take up weapons, but was witness to what was happening. Similarly, in our case bhagavAn is in each of us watching and witnessing our actions. This nAma indicates that He is the Controlling Force behind everything in this Universe. 24.225 - samIraNah a) One who performs acts which are delectable. b) One who controls all movements (e.g., breath) in beings. Om samIraNaya namah.

This nAma is derived from the root Ir- to move (IraNa). SrI Bhattar associates this movement with that part of the matsya incarnation where bhagavAn dove deep into the Ocean to retrieve the veda-s from the netherworld from the asura named hayagrIva. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri associates the motion implied by IraNa with the act of bhagavAn leading the boat with the seeds of creation during the pralaya in His matsya incarnation. The following is from SrImad bhAgavatam skandam 8, chapter 24, Slokam 33 trilokyAm lIyamAnAyAm samvartAmbasi vai tadA | apsthAsyati nauh kAcit viSAlA tvAm mayA IritA || "When all the three worlds disappear under the Ocean, a large boat will be steered by Me towards you" -

note the use of the word IritA here. SrI Sankara associates the motion or movement with the breath in living beings. He is samIraNa because He controls the functioning of the body through the breath. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha takes this concept of control further, and points out that this control by bhagavAn is seen even in the fact that man has had 32 teeth ever since creation, and will continue to have this till the end of the kalpa, man gets the teeth twice in his life, and this is as it has been since creation, and will continue till the end of kalpa, etc., and so will the rising and setting of the Sun and the moon and the movement of the planets etc. 24.226 - sahasra-mUrdhA The thousand-headed 24.228 - sahasra-akshah The thousand-eyed 24.229 - sahasra-pAt The thousand-footed. Om sahasra-mUrdhne namah; Om sahasrAkshAya namah; Om sahasra-pade namah. SrI Bhattar interprets these three names together, and points out that the reference to head, eyes, and feet really includes all organs of knowledge and action, and the reference to a thousand signifies 'innumerable'. What is referred to here is that bhagavAn is endowed with infinite capacity to know and act, which are the functions of these organs. Reference is made to the following sruti-s: sahasra SIrshA purushah sahasrAkshah sahasra-pAt -(purusha sUktam) sarvatah pANi pAdam tat sarvato'kshi Siro-mukham (gItA 13.13) viSvataScakshuruta viSvatomukho viSvato bAhuruta viSvatspAt (taittirIya AraNyaka 10.1) aneka vaktra nayanam anekAdbhuta darSanam (gItA 11-10) rupam mahat-te bahu-vaktra-netram........bahu-bAhUru pAdam (gItA 11-23) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that reference is made to the head first in the above sequence of nAma-s because head is the first one that forms when a child is formed in the mother's womb, and head is the part of the child that appears first when the child is born. Also, reference is made to head, eyes, and feet because of their importance in exercising the j~nAna and kriyA Sakti-s. These three nAma-s also remind us that He is everywhere, in everything, all-powerful, always observing everything in every one of us, etc. Many heads can also refer to His unlimited intellect (SrI satyadevo vAsishTha). We are all part of His body, and thus all our heads are His heads, and so also He is sahasramurdhA. By the fact that He is the antaryAmi in all of us, and is always observing all that we do and think from within each of us, He is sahasrAkshah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha adds that "One who is of many legs" also suggests that He has made his creations such that they can get around by many means e.g., as two legged humans, as four-legged animals, as the hundred-legged centipedes, as multi-legged millipedes, as no-legged serpents, as birds getting around by flying, as fish by swimming, etc. In this sense, sahasrapAt really reveals that He is ananta j~nAnavAn, or of Infinite Intellect, in having created and supported this kind of immeasurable diversity. Note the similarity in the vedic chanting "sahasra SIrshA purushah sahasrAkshah sahasrapAt", including the sequence which is the same as in SrI vishNu sahasra nAma.

Sri cinmayAnanda points out that the "many heads", "many eyes", and "many legs" together indicate that the One Infinite Consciousness expresses everywhere in all forms and at all times through all these equipments of thinking (head), perception (eyes), and action (legs). 24.227 - viSvAtmA The very soul of the Universe; the very inner Essence in all living creatures. Om viSvAtmane namah. viSvasya AtmA viSvAtmA. He is viSvAtmA because He pervades the entire Universe by His knowledge and strength. In gItA, Lord KRshNa says: "ahamAtmA gudAkeSa! Sarva bhuta.... Arjuna! I am the AtmA that resides in the heart of all beings" (gItA 10.20).

The writer in dharma cakram points out that the true significance in this nAma lies in our realizing the unity among all the living beings, rather than seeing the difference in our outer appearance or the difference in our thoughts etc. By seeing the difference in our external appearance or in our thoughts, only kAma, krodha, lobha, moha, matha, and mAtsarya grow and develop in us. Only when we learn to see the unity behind our inner selves, we will qualify to receive His dayA. This is what sage yAg~nyavalkya taught to maitreyi viz. that when one loves one's wife, it is not her shape that should be loved, but it is the AtmA in her that should be loved, etc. (na vA are jAyAyai kAmAya jAyA priyA bhavati, Atmanastu kAmAya jAyA priyA bhavati etc.). That is the true meaning of love.

Slokam 25

230 - Avartanah 231 - nivRttAtmA 232 - samvRtah 233 - sampramardanah 234 - ahahsamvartakah 235 - vahnih 236 - anilah 237 - dharanIdharah

25.230 - Avartanah He who turns the wheel of worldly life or samsAra. Om AvartanAya namah. samsAra-cakram Avartayitum Silam asya iti Avartanah. Avartanam means repetition. BhagavAn is Avartana since He is the Unseen Dynamism behind the ever-whirling wheel of time and the associated endless cycle of birth and death. This is the cycle of night and day, life and death, joy and sorrow, creation and destruction, which are all His play - His mAyA. In gItA, bhagavAn says that He reveals the way to overcome this mAyA to those who surrender to Him daivI hyeshA guNa-mayI mama mAyA duratyayA | mAmeva ye prapadyante mAyAm etAm taranti te || (gItA 7.14) 25.231 - nivRttAtmA a) He whose nature rises above other things. b) He whose mind is turned away from worldly desires. c) He who is the AtmA of those who practice nivRtti dharma. d) He who is beyond the bonds of samsAra. Om nivRttAtmane namah. This nAma occurs later as nAma-s 454, 604, and 780. This is another casewhere when the same nAma occurs more than once, the interpreters have givendifferent interpretations for each occurrence. It is a characteristic of acomposition of quality that there is no redundancy in expression of thoughts. a) For the first interpretation, SrI Bhattar gives the following references: tripAdUrdhva udait-purushah - The Purusha stands eminent in the parama-padawhich has thrice the glory of the material world" - purusha sUkta 4. parAt-param yan-mahato mahAntam - He is greater than the greatest, moreexalted than the most exalted. -

taitti. nArAyanIya 1.5. b) parama vairAgya khyApanaAya vishayebhyah pratyAhRta-manAh nivRttAtmA - Toindicate His profound non-attachment to material objects, He has His mindwithdawan from them. About His meditation it is said antarnivishTa bhAvam ca -He who has His thoughts concentrated on Himself. Also, Atma-dhyAna parAyaNAya -To Him who has His thoughts concentrated within Himself"; "hRd -admArpitamAnasam - Him with His mind fixed on the lotus-heart", etc. c) One who is the AtmA of those who practice the nivRtti dharma. (There aretwo kinds of dharma - the pravRtti dharma and the nivRtti dharma. pravRti dharmatakes us to the world of the pitR-s where we enjoy the fruits of our karma, andcome back to this world with the balance of karma-s to our credit; niv*ttidharma is that which leads one to moksha). d) samsAra bandhAn nivRtta AtmA svarUpam asya iti nivRttAtmA. nivRtta meansthat which has retreated totally, abstaining from worldly acts, etc. 09 SrI cinmayAnanda points out that in the example of the two birds sitting onthe same tree that is referred to in the munDakopanishad which has been referredto earlier in our write-up, the nivRttAtmA is the one who is looking on withouteating the fruits of the tree. The writer in dharma cakram points out that the significance of this nAma isto realize that we should live a life with detachment in material objects inorder to realize the Truth, and meditating on this nAma of mahA vishNu will helpus live that kind of life. Meditating on the Lord who has no attachments willlead us to live a life without attachment. He gives the life of Lord Rama as anexample of the life of nivRttAtmA. Some interpreters have identified the nAma itself as vimuktAtmA oranivRttAtmA in one or more of the occurrences of this nAma later. We will lookat the interpretations of these under the later occurrences. 25.232 - samvRtah He who remains hidden. Om samvRtAya namah.

samvRtatvAt samvRtah. The root is vRn~j AvaraNe to cover. He remains hiddenfrom the unenlightened in whom the tamo-guNa dominates - tamsah parastAt. It isdevotion to Him alone that can reveal Him to us. The dharma cakram writer quotesnammAzhvAr's pASuram "mayarvaRa madi-nilam aruLinan evan avan" (Weshould worship the One) who can bless us with the j~nAna and bhakti that canremove the ignorance, doubts, and viparIta j~nAnam - counter-productiveintellect?. Just as the sun creates the cloud which keeps the sun covered fromus, the a~jnAnam is covering us. Just as the sun's lustre is untouched by thecloud, His lustre is untouched by our a~jnAna. It is his dayA alone which canremove this a~jnAna, and it is devotion to Him alone that can help in this. 25.233 - sampra-mardanah The dispeller (of the darkness).

Om sampra-mardanAya namah. The nirukti author summarizes SrI Bhattar's vyAkhyAna by the following words- tamaso vidyayA samyak mardanAt sampramardanah - He is sampramardana because Hedispels the enveloping darkness by the light of His knowledge. SrIaNNangarAcArya gives the meaning that He dispels the mAyA in His devotees. SrI Sankara interprets the nAma based on mardana - to destroy, and gives themeaning that He is sampramardana because of His act of destruction in the formsof rudra, yama, etc. - samyak pramardayati rudra-kAlAdyAbhih vibhUtibhih itisampramardanah (see the similarity to pradardanah earlier). Recall that SrIBhattar's interpretation is that mardana refers to destruction of the darknessor mAyA. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets mardana as referring to the act ofdestruction of the evil-minded and sensuous and extrovert rAkshasa-s.

The dharma cakram author interprets mardana in the context of the act ofbhagavAn in helping us to destroy the pride and aham-kAra in us and to unitewith Him. Life consists of destroying certain things and preserving certainthings. A good life is that where we understand what is to be preserved andpreserve those values, and destroy those that need to be destroyed. It is thusthat Lord rAma had His kodanDam when He went to the forest - to help preservethe Rshi-s and to help destroy the rAkshasa-s. Chanting the name of rAma wassufficient to turn vAlmIki from the ignorant person that he was to the greatsage vAlmIki. The nAma sampramardana should lead to understand the value ofdestroying the evil qualities in us and to develop the good qualities that willhelp us in realizing Him, which is naturally accomplished when we meditate onthe guNa of bhagavAn expressed by this nAma. 25.234 - ahah-samvartakah The regulator of the day (time); The Sun. Om ahah-samvartakAya namah. samyak ahnAm pravartanAt ahah-samvartakah - He who regulates well thesuccession of day and night. He is the cause for the revolution of the day andother divisions of time. The division of time into past, present, and futureprovides the knowledge of objects as old or young. It brings about theseparation or union of prakRti and purusha (Matter and Soul). It is also thecause of the six kinds of transmutations of prakRti (viz. birth, growth, change,existence, decay, and final death). SrI cinmayAnanda gives reference to the following Sloka from gItA yadAditya gatam tejo jagad bhAsayate'khilam | yac-candramasi yaccAgnau tat-tejo viddhi mAmakam || (gItA 15.12) Understand that I am the Light of the Sun that illumines all earth; and thetejas in the moon and fire are all mine only". The one who dynamises theday and gives life to all and lends energy to them to act, etc. is vishNu in theform of the Sun.

The writer in dharma cakram points out that just as we can see an objectclose to us easily once there is light even though we can't locate it in theabsence of light, bhagavAn is the generator of light that helps us realize theknowledge of the Self, and in this sense also bhagavAn is ahah-samvartakah (thegenerator of day). Just

as the Sun causes all beings to wake up when it rises,mahA-vishNu causes our desire to attain this knowledge of the Self to wake up inus. Just as the fall of the rays of the Sun causes the life forms to becomerejuvenated, the thought of vishNu rejuvenates the jIvAtmA in us and makes itshine. Just as the fall of the rays of the Sun on objects purifies them bydestroying the disease-causing germs etc., the thought of bhagavAn kills theevil thoughts in us and purifies our thoughts. So vishNu is the Sun for ourinner self just as He is the Sun for the external world. 25.235 - vahnih The Bearer or The Carrier; The Fire. Om vahnaye namah. The root from which this nAma is derived is vah - to carry. SrI Bhattarinterprets the nAma as referring to the act of bhagavAn in supporting theUniverse in the form of space. SrI aNNangarAcArya gives the meaning that He isthe bearer (supporter) of everyone. Vahni also refers to fire, since fire is thecarrier of the oblations offered in homa etc. SrI Sankara interprets the nAma inthis context - devebhyo havyam vaha nah prajAnan One who, as fire, carries theoblations to the gods, or havir-vahanAt vahnih. 25.236 - anilah a) The Giver of life-breath; The Air. b) One who needs no goading to Help His devotees. c) The Beginningless. d) One who has no binding, unaffected by virtue and vice. e) One who is beyond dissolution. f) One who is omniscient - All-Knowing. g) Easily accessible to His devotees. h) One who has no fixed residence. i) One who is not supported (by Earth etc). j) One who does not hide anywhere i.e., who is present everywhere k) One who is always awake. Om anilAya namah. This nAma occurs again as nAma 818. tadevAgnih tad-vAyuh - He is agni Himself and He is vAyu - (taittirIya AraN.10), supports the interpretation of this and the previous nAma-s as agni andvAyu respectively. ananAt - ujjIvanAt anilah - Bestows the life-breath on all. Ko hyevAnyAt kah prANyAt - Whoever can breathe and whoever can live if the AkASa(i.e., paramAtmA) were not there? - (taittirIya nArAyaNa 7); prAnAt vAyur_ajAyata - The wind was born out of His breath (purusha sUktam 14). In the occurrence of the nAma as nAma 818, SrI Bhattar derives the meaningbased on ila - to urge, and so the meaning given is - One who does not need tobe goaded by any one to serve His devotees. Ilati preraNam karoti iti ilah,tadrahitatvAt anilah - One who does not need a proposer or inducer.tadapyaprArthitam dhyAto dadAti madhusUdanah - When meditated upon, bhagavAnmadhusudana

bestows His blessings on His devotee without the need for anyoneelse urging Him - vishNu dharma 74.42. SrI Sankara and other interpreters give several alternate interpretations inaddition to above twoanAditvAt aniti yo'asu anilah (c above) - Beginningless, anAdAnAt anilah - One who has no binding, ilati svapiti iti ilah, tad-viparItah anilah - One who is ever awakened (f) nilater-gahanArthAt ka-pratyayAntAt agahanah - anilah - One who is not difficultto access for His devotees (g) anilayah anilah (h) - One who has no fixed abode. An interpretation for the occurrence of this word in amarakoSa is na vidyate nilah nilayam sthAnam yasya. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that ila is Earth, and since He existed beforethe Earth existed, He is not supported by the Earth etc., and so He is anila (i).An alternate interpretation is na nilIyate iti anilah - He is Omnipresent,indestructible, in the form of anila - vAyu (j). Yet another interpretation is anAdAnAt anilah - One who has no binding (d). The dharma cakram writer gives us a view of how important the meditation onthis guNa of bhagavAn is for our life. Without food we can go on for many days;without water we can survive for a few days; but without air, but a few minutes.That is how important air is for our living; so is the meditation on vishNu forour spiritual life. He quotes mahAtmA gAndhi in this context - that he cansurvive without food for several days (and hasn't he proved it several times!),but he cannot live without prayer for even a day. Another view presented relatesto arjuna's words to Lord kRshNa that mind wavers like wind and he can't get itunder control. BhagavAn, like vAyu, is spread everywhere, and it is difficult toget a grasp of Him just as we can't get the mind under control or keep the airstatic in one place without a sealed container. But just as man has learned tocontrol and contain air, he can learn to control his mind by constant meditationon vishNu. The uncontrolled mind is like a storm, and it can be trained to becalm by meditation on vishNu. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation starting from ila - tosleep. Thus one meaning given is One who never sleeps, or One who is alwaysawake - jAgRvim vibhum - Rg veda. This is reflected in His forms as the Sun, therest of the planets, the oceans, the wind, etc. In addition to thisinterpretation he also gives the interpretations a) and h). I was amazed to find that this seemingly simple nAma of two syllables hasthis many interpretations. 25.237 - dharanI-dharah The bearer of the Earth. Om dharaNI-dharAya namah. dharaNIm dhatta iti dharaNI-dharah - One who bears the Earth. SrI Bhattartakes this simple interpretation one level further, and gives the significancethat He bears those who bear others, e.g., He bears AdiSesha, bhUmi, etc. SrIBhattar gives the following supporting quotes

sa dAdhAra pRthivIm dyAm utemAm - He bore the Earth and all the Heaven -yajur 13.4 uddhRtA'si varAheNa - Thou (O Mother Earth) hast been lifted up by varAha -taitt. AraN. 10.8 "pRthivIm ca antariksham ca dyAm caiva purushottamah | manasiava visRshTAtmA nayati AtmavaSam vaSI || 'Purushottama, by His will, created Earth, the Interspace and Heaven; beingthe Supreme Ruler, He keeps them all under His control.' SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives references to several other nAma-s which expressthe above idea - mahIbhartA (184), mahI-dharah (319, 371), triloka-dhRt (757),dharA-dharah (762). In addition, some vyAkhyAnakartA-s have interpreted nAma240 (which we will cover next week) as viSva-dhRk - One who rules over theworlds, similar in purport to the current nAma. The writer in dharma cakram brings the significance of this nAma to a levelof understanding that is easier to comprehend. When we say bhagavAn is thebearer of the Earth, what we mean is that directly or indirectly He issupporting all the life forms by providing food and shelter to all, irrespectiveof whether we are devoted to Him or not, all the good and the bad. Either wesurvive by drawing on the vegetables and other food that we directly get fromthe earth, or some beings survive by preying on other life forms which in turnlive by drawing on the direct produce from the earth. So this nAma signifiesthat He supports us physically in the form of the earth, and also sustains usall through the food from the earth. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha adds that a mother bears and protects the children,the husband protects the wife, and He protects everyone, and so thedharaNi-dharatva guNa of bhagavAn is all around us. Slokam 26

238 - su-prasAdah 239 - prasannAtmA 240 - viSva-sRt 241 - viSvabhugvibhuh 242 - satkartA 243 - satkRtah 244 - sAdhuh 245 - jahnuh 246 - nArAyaNah 247 - narah

238. su-prasAdah

The Giver of good favors.Om suprasAdAya namah. Sobhanah prasAdha dAtRtvAt suprasAdah - For those who surrenderto Him He confers all that is good. In fact He goes further and confersthe good to those who are His enemies as well, as in the cases ofrAvaNa, SiSupAla, duryodhana, etc., by conferring moksha on themultimately. In other words, whatever bhagavAn confers, it is for thegood of the recipient. This concept is repeatedly pointed by svAmideSikan in the dayA-Satakam when he describes the dayA aspects of thedifferent incarnations. Thus for instance, in the paraSu-rAmaincarnation, when He destroyed the evil kshatriya kings, He really gotrid of their sins, and sent them to moksha. In the kalki incarnation,when He will destroy those at the end of the kali-yuga who are soaked insin, it is only to wash them of their sins and reestablish adharma-oriented kRta yuga where their jIva-s can flourish again thatthis act of His is undertaken. The writer in dharma cakram points out that there are those ofus who will do good to those who are bad to us, in addition to those whofollow the rule of an eye for an eye, and worse still, there are thosewho do bad to those who are good to them. SrI mahA-vishNu is one whodoes always what is good for everyone irrespective of how they aretowards Him. Meditation on Lord vishNu with this guNa implied by thisnAma will give us the right frame of mind to follow the sAttvic path. 239. prasannAtmA He with a clear mind; Of delightful nature.Om prasannAtmane namah. He is of delightful nature because He has no desires and nowants since He has realized all desires - avApta-sarva-kamatvAt. Orbecause He is extremely merciful by nature - karuNArdra-svabhAvAt. OrHe is prasannAtmA because His mind is not contaminated by passion(rajas) and inertia (tamas). SrI P.B. aNNangarAcArya svAmi points outthat He has a clear mind because He is unaffected by likes and dislikes.SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that He is All-Blissfulbecause He is not affected by sorrows resulting from association withmatter and its imperfections (guNa-s). He is of a clear mind, withoutbeing affected by the tamasic and rajasic guNa-s. The dharma cakram writer gives the example of the threebrothers, rAvaNa, kumbhakarNa, and vibhIshaNa, respectively dominated byrajasic, tAmasic, and sattvic guNa-s. rAvaNa was indulging innon-righteous acts under the influence of kAma, and broughtself-destruction as a result. Kumbha-karNa was inactive under theinfluence of tamas. VibhIshaNa on the other hand had the clarity ofmind aided by his sattvic guNa. He could save SrIlankA from destructionand could attain the grace of the Lord because of his clear thinking.Meditating on the nAma prasannAtmA will lead to the clarity of mind thatbhIshma could command, when he advised duryodhana prior to the start ofthe mahAbhArata war that they won't win a war fought on immoral andunethical grounds, and the support of the Lord will be on the side ofdharma. prasannatA results out of the dominance of sattva guNa.

240. viSva-sRt The Creator of the Universe.Om viSva-sRje namah. viSvam sRjati yo sa viSva-sRt. He created this Universe outof kindness unmindful of its merits and deficiencies. In SankarapATham, this nAma is given as viSvadhRg - The Overseer of the cosmos.Prof. SrInivAsa rAghavan points in his writings in SrI nRsimha priyAthat other pATha-s are viSva-sRshT and viSva-sRg. In the context of the interpretation based on viSva-dhRg theoverseer or ruler of the cosmos, the dharma cakram commentatorrhetorically asks the question - Do we rule our mind, or does our mindrule us? If we learn to rule over our mind, then we can rule ourfamily, our nation, etc., and also know the Ruler of everything. And weget this conditioning of our mind through meditation on the Lord who isviSva-dhRg. SrI satyadevo vAsisshTha gives the meaning based on the rootdhRsh prAgalbhye to be bold, confident, proud, or brave. He isviSva-dRk because He has created this world with skill (cAturya),prouldy, boldly. Everything He has created, including the differentseasons, the flowers, the different forms of life, etc., are constantlydisplaying His brilliance in the different ways they reproducethemselves, the different forms in which they appear, etc. 241. viSvabhug-vibhuh He who pervades all things and protects them.Om viSvabhug-vibhave namah. vyApya bhunakti - pAlayati iti viSvabhug-vibhuh. SrI Bhattarinterprets this phrase as one nAma, whereas SrI Sankara interprets it asconsisting of two nAma-s, viSva-bhuk and vibhuh. The interpretation for viSva-bhuk is given as viSvam bhu~nkte -The Enjoyer of the Cosmos, or ViSvam bhunakti - The Protector. Thedharma cakram writer points out that He is the Protector for theUniverse in its expressed form with all its created beings or in itsunexpressed or pralaya form as well. This compares with the situationof mortals like us who cannot do any good in protecting this worldeither in our wakeful state or in our sleep state. SrI cinmayAnandagives the interpretation that He enjoys or swallows (bhuk) allexperiences (viSva). The Supreme Consciousness, apparently conditionedby the mind and intellect, is the experiencer of joys and sorrows. Or,the term can mean "One who absorbs all names and forms unto Himself atthe time of pralaya". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the reference totiattirIya AraNyaka 10.91 - prabhuh prINAti viSva-bhuk. SrI satyadevovAsishTha gives an alternate interpretation based on bhuj kautilye tobend, to curve, and says that the nAma can mean that He established theworld by bending or extending it in all eight directions. Since SrI Sankara interprets vibhuh as a separate name, he givesthe meaning - One with multi-form - vividham bhavati iti vibhuh. Hebecame many from HiraNyagarbha downwards. Vividham bhAvayati is anotherinterpretation, again referring to the multi-forms. SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri gives the meaning that He is vibhu because He fills everythingeverywhere - mahAntam vibhum AtmAnam - kaThopanishad 2.22. The dharmacakram writer elaborates on the multi-form by giving reference to LordkRshNa's words in the gItA in Chapter 10 starting with Slokam 21 andgoing up to Slokam 38, where bhagavAn gives several examples of HisvibhUti-s, and then says in Slokam 40 that there is really no limit toHis vibhUti-s. 26.242 - satkartA He who honors the good.Om satkartre namah. satkaroti pUjayati iti satkartA - One who adores those who aregood and wise. SatkAram is worship. SrI rAma was known as sajjanaprati pUjakah - He who worships those in return who are good to Him.SrI radAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the reference to rAmAyaNa -bahuSrutAnAm vRddhAnAm brAhmaNAnAm upAsitA (2-2-33) - He worshipsthose who are learned, old in age, and brAhmaNas. The writer in dharma cakram points out the example of Lord rAmapraising hanumAn as soon as He saw him. The Lord rejoices to find thosewho are in this category. The lesson we should take from this nAma isthat we should do acts that will make us fit for this kind ofrecognition. Acts that fall in this category are those that give peaceof mind and inner happiness to the doer. By corollary, we shoulddesist from acts

which lead to a feeling of self-centeredaccomplishment, pride, etc. Our acts should be directed to His service,and not for the satisfaction of the human ego. 26.243 - satkRtah

He who is worshipped by the sAdhus (even by those whodeserve to be worshipped).Om satkRtAya namah. The word satkRta means pUjita - One who is worshipped. He isthe Object of worship for everyone. The nirukti summarizes SrIBhattar's vyAkhyAna for this nAma as arcAdibhih sajjanaih yah pUjitahsatkRtah smRtah. Prof. SrInivAsa rAghavAcArya svAmi in his commentaryin nRsimha priyA points out that when the ekAntins who worhsip onlymahAvishNu make their offerings to Him, no matter how small the offeringis, He considers it big by considering it as worthy of His SupremeStatus, and receives through His head what is offered at His feet, andreceives it personally and not through other intermediary gods. As ifthis is not enough, He then feels that whatever He does to His devoteesis inadequate in return (recall Lord kRshNa's feeling of being indebtedto draupati for ever when she cried out for help and He helped but notby coming in person right away). The dharma cakram writer points outthat as a means of developing this devotion to Him, our vedas ask us toworship our mother, our father, our teacher - mAtR devo bhava,pitRdevo bhava, AcArya devo bhava. 26.244 - sAdhuh

One who carries out (whatever His devotees say).Om sAdhave namah. sAdhayati iti sAdhuh - One who carries out, or sAdhnoti itisAdhuh - One who makes it possible to carry out, through various meansthat He has provided for the benefit of the beings that He has created.Going as a messenger, acting as a charioteer, etc. are examples of Hiscarrying out His undertaking. Even though Lord kRshNa was Himself a king like duryodhana, He didnot mind doing the work of a messenger, and did not mind doing the workof a charioteer which is like that of a servant to arjuna. Thus, sAdhuhere refers to His act of carrying out whatever He has to do to takecare of His devotees. He takes several incarnations in which He suffersand gets insulted by the likes of duryodhana, SiSupAla, rAvaNa etc., andappears as a fish, a boar, etc., and undergoes suffering and misery asin the case of the rAma incarnation, all because He is a sAdhu, whocarries out what He has to in order to help His devotees. The nAma sAdhu has also been interpreted as One who isrighteous, i.e., conducts Himself according to the code laid in thevedas. And because He follows the righteous path always, Heaccomplishes whatever He undertakes always. The lesson to take here is(dharma cakram) that we should always follow the righteous path ineverything we do, and this will not only endear us to Lord vishNu, butalso lead to success in our just endeavors. 26.245 - jahnuh The Concealer (of His greatness from the non-devotees).Om jahnave namah. This nAma is derived from the root hA - tyAge to forsake.abhakteshu Atma-mAhAtmyam apahnute iti jahnuh. jahAti avidushah jahnuhis another derviation for the same meaning - He leads those devoid ofdevotion away from the Supreme. SrI Bhattar gives the following quotefrom udyoga parva: "cakram tad-vAsudevasya mAyayA vartate vibhoh | sApahnuvam pANdaveshu ceshTate rAhasattamah || (udyogaparva 6.7.2) "That discus of the Omni-present vAsudeva acts by His will forthe benefit of the pANdavas being invisible (to the eyes of others), OGreat King!". SrI Sankara gives an addtional interpretation that He is jahnubecause He is the disintegrator of the Universe at the time of pralaya -janAn samhAra-samaye apahnute apanayati iti jahnuh. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the incidence of Sage Jahnu whohid the Ganges when bhagIrata brought Ganges(jAhanavI) to the Earth.Similarly bhagavAn hides the Universe during pralaya into Himself, andso He is jahnu. In dharma cakram, we find a description of how His act of hidingsome things from us is really devoted to helping us in

our day-to-daylife until we can really realize Him. Thus it is for our benefit thatwe forget some of our bad experiences of the past, and do not know someof the future incidences in our life ahead of time. In fact, thisprocess of things being hidden intermittently is the law of life, as forinstance the child being hidden in the mother's womb before being born,the seed being hidden underground before it sprouts, the time of ourbody's demise being hidden from us till the incident happens, theoutcome of a contest between two competing teams being hidden from themtill the incident concludes, and the same way, the jiva-s being hiddenin Him before the world is re-created after pralaya. This nAma shouldhelp us forget the wrong-doings of others, and remember only the goodthings in life. This training will help us realize Him in the process,and then He does not have to use His act of hiding anything from us. SrI satyadevo vAsisshTha also starts with the root hA tyAge togive up, and interprets the nAma to mean that He is jahnu because He isdevoid of the defects such as kAma, krodha, lobha, moha, mada, andmAtsarya, and is Suddha svarUpa. Ganges is jAhnavI because Gangeswashes away the sins. 26.246 - nArAyaNah

The Supporter of the hosts of souls.Om nArAyaNAya namah. All the previous nAma-s referred to nArAyaNa through His otherincarnations or through His many guNa-s. Now SrI vyAsa gives the namethat only refers to mahA-vishNu, and that is not used to refer to anyother gods (such as the nAma-s rudra, Siva etc., which also occur in thevishNu sshasranAma to refer to mahAvishNu). SrI Bhattar points outthat this nAma is spoken of in every upanishad, and the veda itselfgives the derviation of the name nArAyaNa thus - yacca ki~ncit jagat sarvam dRsyate SrUyatepi vA | antar-bahiSca tat-sarvam vyApya nArAyaNah sthitah || "Whatever object there is in the Universe that is seen or heard,nArAyaNa remains pervading all that, both inside and outside". SrI Bhattar gives several references to bring out the greatnessof this nAma. "nArAyaNAya vidmahe vAsudevAya dhImahi | tanno vishNuh pracodayAt || (taitti. nArAya. 6.1.28) "nArAyaNa param brhma tattvam nArAyaNah parah | nArAyaNa paro jyotir-AtmA nArAyaNah parah ||(taitt. NArAya. 6.11) "eko ha vai nArAyaNa AsIt| na brhamA na ISAnah na Apah naagnishomi yau na eme dyAvA pRthvI na nakshatrANina sUryah na candramAh| (mahopanishad) etc. SrI Sankara gives the following interpretation: nara refers toAtman; nAra refers to ether and the other effects produced from it; He,as their cause, pervades them and they are thus His abode (ayana).Hence He is named nArAyaNa. He gives the following quote frommahAbhArata supporting this interpretation: "narAjjAtAni tattvAni nArANIti tato vidhuh | tAnyeva cAyanam tasya tena nArAyaNah smRtah || (anu.Parva. 13.1.2) "The tattva-s are called nAra since they are sprung from nara(Atman); He is called nArAyaNa as they are His abode". Anotherinterpretation he gives is "narANAm jIvAnAm ayanatvAt pralaya iti vA -Whom the jIva-s appraoch and enter (He is the abode of the beings duringpralaya). This is supported by 'yatpryantyabhisamviSanti' - Whom theyapproach and enter - taittirIya upanishad 3.1. Or He is nArAyaNa sinceHe is the seat of the nAra-s or the tattva-s - nArANAm ayanam yasmAttasmAn-nArAyaNah smRtah - brahmavaivartapurANa. (Note that this thirdinterpretation is that He is their seat, whereas the firstinterpretation was that they are His seat). Manu-smRti gives thefollowing definition - "Apo nArAh iti proktAh Apo vai narasUnavah | tA yadasyAyanam pUrvam tasmAn-nArAyaNah smRtah ||(manu-smRti 1.10) "nAra refers to waters (the panca-bhUta-s before theyinter-mixed and became visible through forms etc.) which He created. Asthey are His original abode (i.e., during prlaya), He is callednArAyaNa". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha draws the parallel between theworld being born out of the waters in which nArAyaNa is floating, andthe child that is born out of the mother's womb after being supported bythe waters in the mother's body. In narasimha purANa, we have the following - "nArAyaNAya nama ityayameva satyah samsAra ghora visha samharaNAya mantrah | SRNvantu bhavyamatayo yatayo'starAgA uccaistarAmupadiSAmyaham UrdhvabAhuh || (narasimha purANa18.31) "This is the real mantra that destroys the deadly poison ofsmasAra nArAyaNAya namah. This I proclaim loudly with uplifted hands;let the ascetics, with passions curbed and inteleects clear, listen tome". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri reminds us that the mantra-devatA thatwe worship through the gAyatri mantra is SrIman nArAyaNa - dhyeyah sadAsavitRmandala madhyavartI nArAyaNah. The

dharma cakram writer refersus to divya-prabandham - "nalam tarum Sollai nAn kaNdu koNdEn nArAyaNAennum nAmam" to remind us of the greatness of this nAma japam. It is very important to note SrI Bhattar's concluding statementof his vyAkhyAnam on this nAma. He points out that the secret of thissacred mantra should only be properly learned by approaching an AcArya,and not by reading the explanations like the one presented. His wordsare that he does not want to say anything more on this nAma because itsgreatness can only be learned from an AcArya, and is thus a matter thatshould be seen by four eyes (the two eyes of the disciple and the twoeyes of the AcArya) and not by six eyes viz. he does not want to addhis two eyes further. So no amount of explanation on paper can bringout the greatness of this nAma. 26.247 - narah a) He who is imperishable.b) The Leader.Om narAya namah. SrI Bhattar gives the meaning that nara refers to one withimperishable possessions, both sentient and non-sentient (both of whichare eternal by nature). SrI Sankara gives the meaning "Leader" to nara, and gives thequote from vyAsa (the source is not identified in my book) - nayati itinarah proktah paramAtmA sanAtanah - Because He directs everything, theeternal paramAtman is called nara. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also starts with the root as nR nayeto lead, and gives the meaning as nayati - One who leads, or nRNati -One who takes things away. He is nara since He takes this Universe fromkalpa to kalpa through many kalpa-s. nara also refers to water orfluid, since this takes things from one place to another as it flows.That there was only water everywhere before sRshTi took place issupported by the following vedic quote - tama AsIt tamasAgUDhamagre'prakRtam salilam sarvamA idam (Rg 10.129.3). The dharma cakram writer points out that just as a mother leadsa child with the child's welfare in mind, and does not mind discipliningthe child for its own good when the child goes and eats dirt, or theteacher tries to discipline a student who is not learning the knowledgefrom the teacher, so also nara, viz. mahAvisNu, leads us all for ourgood even if He has to mete out some punishment occasionally to get ourways straightened out. Slokam 27

248 249 250 251 252 253 254 255 256

asankhyeyah aprameyAtmA viSishTah SishTa-kRt Sucih siddhArthah siddha-sankalpah siddhi-dah siddhi-sAdhanah

27.248 - asankhyeyah

One whose attributes, names, forms, etc. are Innumerable.Om asankhyeyAyanamah.sankhyA is number. asankhyeya is One who cannot be quantified. In gItA,arjuna describes Lord kRshNa as such -aneka-bAhUdara vaktra netram paSyAmi tvAmsarvato'nanta rUpam |nAntam na madhyam punas-tavAdim paSyAmi viSveSvaraviSvarUpa || (gItA 11.16)"O Lord of the Universe! I see you with numberlessarms, stomachs, mouths, and eyes, of boundless forms on every side, and I do notsee the end or the middle or the beginning". He is of infinite knowledge,infinite bliss, infinite manifestations, immeasurable strength, etc. 27.249 - aprameyAtmA One who cannot beknown through knowledge, direct or indirect. Om aprameyAyanamah. SrI satyadevo vAsishThagives the interpretation "pramANaih pramAtum aSakyah aprameyah". prameya is anything that can be known through intellect. aprameya is one whose nature cannot be grasped by any of the existingmeans of knowledge. We get animpression of an object by seeing it with our eyes, and it is this vision of thecolor, shape, or other attributes, or the smell etc., that gives us a feel foran object. BhagavAn isbeyond our senses. SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha gives the quote from yajurveda - na tasya pratimA asti yasyanAma mahad-yaSah - yajur. 31.3. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out the similarity between this nAma and the nAma-saprameyah (46) and ameyAtmA (103,181). 27.250 - viSishTah He who isSuperior. Om viSishTAyanamah.

SrI Bhattar interprets thisnAma as signifying that He is Superior because He does not have to depend onanything else and He excels in everything. SrI Sankara gives the meaning that He transcends everything. The dharma cakram writer points out that superiority in life is notachieved by just wealth, power and fame, but true superiority results only whenwe develop bhakti to the Lord. Theother superiorities do not give us the purity of mind.

27.251 - SishTa-kRt He who makes Hisdevotees eminent. Om SishTa-kRte namah. Because of association with Him, He makes His devotees also superior. An alternate interpretationgiven is that SishTa means discipline, good manners. In this sense, the previous nAma would mean that He isviSishTa because He is of Supreme discipline, and the current nAma would meanthat He helps His devotees acquire this discipline through the mental strengthetc. needed for this. SishTa alsomeans Law, rules, or commands. Theinterpretation then becomes He is One who makes the Law, One who commands, orOne who protects (though the laws). Thegreatest and most significant of these commands is Love, through whichmahA-vishNu rules over us all, and this is the lesson to be derived from thisnAma (dharma cakram). 27.252 - Sucih

Pure.Om Sucaye namah. This nAma occurred earlier (157). His purity is such that associationwith Him makes these devotees pure also. He is pure by body, mind,action, and all, and this is what makes Him viSishTa and SishTa-kRt.One commentator points out that He makes us shine consistent with ourdevotion. (dharma cakram) - Just as we clean our body to avoid diseases of thebody, we can develop cleanliness in our words through the chanting ofbhagavan-nAma, and we can develop and improve the cleanliness of ourthoughts through the control of the five senses, which are the means bywhich we get our input to our thoughts from the external world.Worshipping the Lord in the temple, listening to the sound of the bellduring the worship, observing the karpUra Arati, listening to the nAmasankIrtana, listening to the bhajans, offering fragrant flowers to theLord, observing the beauty of His decorated mUrti, smelling the divinefragrance of His presence in the temple, etc., are the different waysthat the five indriya-s are exposed to opportunities for cleansingourselves through these indriya-s. Simultaneously, we should doeverything to constantly divert the mind from thoughts that are notconducive to the service of SrIman nArAyaNa. Deep meditation on theLord is one way to train our mind. The constant training of our body,mind, word, and deed towards Him is the lesson we should take from thisnAma. 27.253 - siddhArthah One who is in possession of all desirable things.Om siddhArthAya namah. He already possesses all that is desirable in Him naturally andeffortlessly. SrI Sankara gives the passage "satyakAmahsatya-sankalpah" in chAdogya upanishad (8.1) in support of this and thenext nAma. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that this name signifies thatbhagavAn has already the four purushArtha-s (dharma, artha, kAma, andmoksha) that are the object of attainment for mortals. He has attained(siddha) all that is to be attained (artha). 27.254 - siddha-sankalpah One whose wishes are always fulfilled.Om siddha-sankalpAya namah. One whose wishes are fulfilled at the very instance He wishes.Sankalpa means intellectual willing and wishing. One who gains all thatHe wishes for, or One who immediately gains what He wills is calledsiddha-sankalpah. The reference in chAndogya upanishad (see previousnAma) conveys the same idea. Examples in dharma cakram for His being asiddha sankalpah are the decision to make sugrIva and vibhIshaNa thekings of their respective kingdoms, the

destruction of vAli, thesankalpam to fulfill daSaratha's promise to kaikeyi, etc. The devotionto mahA-vishNu makes the devotees equally capable of fulfilling theirsankalpa-s with His help. Thus, bhIshma made Lord kRshNa carry arms inthe battle of mahA-bhArata (thereby Lord kRshNa proved that He is theservant of His devotee, and will fulfill whatever they wish, even if itinvolved His breaking His vow not to carry arms),and hanumAn fulfilledhis sankalpa to find sItA pirAtti. The way we become siddha sankalpa-sis to entrust ourselves completely in His care, and He takes care of therest for us, since whatever we wish will then be for the cause ofdharma. 27.255 - siddhi-dah The bestower of siddhi-s or super-human powers.Om siddhi-dAya namah. There are eight siddhi-s or powers that can be acquired by yogi-s whomeditate on Him. These are aNimA (the ability to assume the size of anatom), mahimA (the ability to assume a very huge size), laghimA (to makethe body weightless like a cotton ball), garimA (to assume heavy weightlike an iron mass), prApti (to obtain anything desired), prAkAmyam (toattain any desired bhoga), ISitvam (to be able to assume rulership orLordship over anything or anyone), and vaSitvam (to get anyone to beunder one's control).SrI Sankara interprets the nAma to mean that He provides benefits orfulfillment according to our action. 27.256 - siddhi-sAdhanah One who makes the means for siddhi as pleasantas the fruit itself. Om siddhi-sAdhanAya namah. siddheh sAdhakatvAt siddhi-sAdhanah. He is the promoter ofachievements. He is the very secret force which enables the seeker todiligently continue all efforts of his seeking. He is the sAdhana ormeans for all siddhi or fulfillment, in particular the moksha siddhi,which no one else can help achieve except Sriman nArAyaNa. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that the sequence "siddhArtahsiddha-sankalpah siddhi-dah siddhi-sAdhanah" is a great mantra byitself, and chanting it will be very beneficial for fulfillment of ourendeavors without interruption when we undertake a good deed and worktowards attaining the desired goal. The dharma cakram writer points outthat the goal that is attained by chanting this mantra is the cleansingof our minds from worldly thoughts, lust, etc., and concentrating themind towards thoughts about Him. By chanting this mantra, He ensuresthat we attain our goal. Slokam 28

257 258 259 260 261 262 263 264 265

- vRshAhI - vRshabhah - vishNuh - vRsha-parvA - vRshodarah - vardhanah -vardhamAnah - viviktah - Sruti-sAgarah

28.257 - vRshAhI a) One who shines in the form of dharma.b) One who makes His devotees shine like day because of their dharma.c) One who makes the day auspicious when the devotee approaches Him.d) One who reveals dharma.e) One who is the devatA for the vRshAha sacrifice.f) One who has the brightness of agni etc., or is the cause of the brightness of all objects Om vRshAhiNe namah. This nAma is interpreted differently by different vyAkhyAna-kartAs. The nAma is composed of two words, vRsha meaning dharma, and aha meaning day.One interpretation is that He shines bright like day because of His dharma. Or He makes those who adhere to dharma shine like day. Both these are given by SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri. SrI Bhattar's interpretation is that He is vRshAhI because the day on which a devotee approaches the Lord, is a day of auspiciousness -dharma, i.e., He has the day which is made auspicious because ofapproaching Him. SrI Sankara's interpretation for this is vRshah dharmah tadeva Ahah - One who reveals dharma. An alternate interpretation he gives is that vRshAha refers to a ten or twleve-day sacrifice, and He is vRshAhI because He is the performer or enjoyeras the devatA for the sacrifice. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning "fire" or "agni" to theterm vRsha based on vRsho agnih samidhyate (Rg veda 3.27.14), anduses ahah to mean brightness or prakASa, and so gives the meaning thatbhagavAn has the brightness of agni and so is called vRshAhI. Hethen generalizes this and says that vRshAhI really refers to One whohas the brightness of anything that is bright, such as the Sun etc.,or in other words, their brightness is because of Him. So is thebrightness resulting from knowledge, brightness of life because of thejivAtmA, etc., which get their brightness from Him. He is the onlyone who has svayam-prakASa. 28.258 - vRshabhah a) He who showers (His grace).b) He who shines because of His dharma.Om vRshabhAya namah. varshati esha bhaktebhyah kAmAn iti vRshabhah. He gives blessing toHis devotees and protects them from the fire of samsAra. He is alsovRshbha because He showers all that is desired by His devotees, e.g.,glowing health, burning devotion, etc. vRshAtmanA bhAti - One whoshines in the form of dharma, is the explanation given by SrIrAdhAkRshna SAstri. (dharma cakram): BhagavAn gives whatever is aspired by the beings,according to their efforts. Of these, the real wish should be torealize Him. All other wishes, while they will also be fulfilled byHim for those wish these lesser desires, will only result in sorrowafter the interim pleasure is over. The desire should be "acyutA!amarar ERE! Ayar tam kozhundE! ennum iccuvai tavira yAn pOy indiralOkam ALum acuvai perinum vEndEn". 28.259 - vishNuh One who pervades everything.Om vishNave namah. This nAma occurred as nAma 2, and will re-occur as nAma 663. Theroot from which this nAma is derived is vish - to pervade. SrI BhaTTar gives the meaning

that this pervasion is in the sense of association such as between fire and smoke. Wherever there is smoke there is fire, but when there is fire, smoke is not necessarily present (e.g., in the case of a red-hot piece of iron). So also, bhagavAn is there in association with His bhakta-s always, and rendersall kinds of help to His devotees as needed. It was mentioned in the introductory article to this series that thevyAkhyAna kartA-s give different interpretations to the same nAmadepending on the context. Since we are now dealing with the sequenceof nAma-s which describe the Lord's guNa of helping His devotees infulfilling their desired wishes, this new interpretation is given. 28.260 - vRsha-parvA He who has provided the steps of dharma to reachHim.Om vRsha-parvaNe namah. vRsha is dharma as has been noted before. ParvA refers to steps. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that He is vRsha-parvA because Hehas revealed the steps ofvarNASrama dharma as the means to attain Him. Other vyAkhyAna kartA-shave included various steps such as j~nAna, bhakti, etc. as the stepsthat He has established. These include SravaNam, mananam, kIrtanam,sat-sangham, SraddhA, etc. These are like the steps of a ladder toreach Him. 28.261 - vRshodarah One who has dharma as His mid-region or belly.Om vRshodharAya namah. Different interpretations are given for this nAma. One is that He isthe receiver of all the offerings through yag~na etc., and so He isthe one with the udara that receives all offerings of dharma. Theother is that creations of those who observe dharma such as Brahmaoriginate from His belly. The third is that this is where He keepsall the beings at the time of pralaya, and this is where everythingoriginates at the time of re-creation. In this context, the meaning"shower" is used for the word vRsha. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha continues to interpret all the previousnAma-s and the current one using the meaning "agni" for the word"vRsha". Thus, He is the One who has agni in His stomach. This isknown even for humans that we have the "agni" (the acid) that digestsour food, there is agni in the centre of the earth, in the centre ofthe sun, the Oceans, etc. These are reflections of the principle ofbhagavAn as vRshodara. 28.262 - vardhanah He who nourishes.Om vardhanAya namah. vardhayati iti vardhanah. One who augments, increases, or nourishes. Following up on the interpretation of the previous nAma, SrI Bhattarinterprets this nAma as One who keep the beings in His womb like amother and nourishes them. SrI P. B. aNNa~ngarAcArya svAmi gives themeaning that he is vardhana because he 'grows' those who have resortedto Him more and more (towards the spiritual path?). SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri gives the example of the offer of one handful of 'aval' aform of compacted rice, by His friend kucela, which was augmented somuch in return that kucela became richer than kubera. So is theoffer of patram, phalam, pushpam, toyam, etc. that we make to Him. Thus He is vardhana because an offer of the size of an atom to Himwith devotion results in a mountain of return and protects Hisdevotees like a mother. The dharma cakram writer points out thatwhile everyone takes all the efforts to grow his body and his wealth,the real effort should be in growing the j~nAna and bhakti, and Hehelps those who are devoted to Him in this area, and so He isvardhana. 28.263 - vardhamAnah He who grows.Om vardhamAnAya namah. In the previous nAma we saw that He makes things grow. In this nAma,it is indicated that He Himself grows as a result or simultaneously. SrI BhaTTar interprets vardhamAnah as one who grows happy as He seesHis devotees grow. Or He keeps growing in spite of His

bestowing allthat anyone asks for. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that this name isindicative of the vAmana incarnation in which He continued to grow tocover the three worlds. SrI Sankara's interpretation is "prapa~ncarUpeNa vadhate iti vardhamAnah - One who grows or multiplies Himselfin the form of the Universe". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri indicates thatthe 'ca' at the end of vardhamAnah is because He grows at the samefast rate at which the Universe is growing. 28.264 - viviktah He who is unique.Om viviktAya namah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the root vij - pRthakbhAve to separateor to distinguish as the etymological basis for this nAma. He gives asimple example of a machinist who makes machines but is separate fromit. So also bhagavAn creates all the beings and keeps them in shapeand in action, but is unique and separate from them. He gives theexample of two birds in a tree, one enjoying the fruits and the otherwatching and observing, which we have referred to before (dvA suparNAsayujA sakhAyA etc. - Rg veda 1.164.20). This author (SrI vAsishTha) has composed one Slokam of his own as the explanation for each Slokam of sahasranAma, and I am just sharing one example here:"sRTvA jagat sarva-vidham vidhAtA svayam vivikto hyajaro'marah sah| sahasra-SIrshA sa sahasradRshTih sa sarva-bandhuh sa pRthak ca dRSyAt||BhagavAn is unique in many ways. He is untouched by the effects ofaction unlike His creations (nirlipta). He is unique because Hisactivities are extra-ordinary and superior to those of others in theworld (SrI BhaTTar). Or it may mean that He remains unique anddistinct even though He pervades the Universe as described inprevious nAma-s (SrI Sankara). He is also unique because He isbeyond our ability to be recognized by our intellect and logicalanalysis alone (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri; also recall the ISAvAsyaupanishad Slokam 4 - anejadekam manaso javIyo ....).The dharam cakram writer points out that this quality of being outsideof, and unaffected by, our surroundings, is the true basis ofaccomplishing our mission in life viz. realizing the paramAtmA. If wedo not get swayed by the pa~nca indriya-s, then in spite of living inthe midst of all the noise and pleasures around us, we will be able tohave control of our mind and divert it to the service of mahA vishNu. This is the significance and lesson to take from this nAma. 28.265 - Sruti-sAgarah He who is the sea where all veda-s take us.Om Sruti-sAgarAya namah.Srutayah sAgara iva atra nidhIyante iti SrutisAgarah. Just as the ocean is the final destination for all the rivers, so also all theveda-s lead us to Him, and He is thus Ocean for the Sruti-s (Sruti-sAgarah). SrI BhaTTar refers us to SrImad bhAgavatam (2.5.15)- nArAyaNa parA vedAh - The veda-s only speak of nArAyaNa, and to the gItA 15.15 - vedaiSca sarvaih ahameva vedyah - "I am the only one that is to be realized through all the veda-s". Slokam 29

266 267 268 269 270 271 272 273 274 275

su-bhujah dur-dharah vAgmI mahendrah vasu-dah vasuh naika-rUpah br*had-rUpah Sipi-vishTah prakASanah

29.266 - su-bhujah One with majestic arms.Om su-bhujAya namahSobhanA bhujAh asya iti subhujah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the majesty and strength of His arms to always shoulder the burden of those that seek refuge in Him. SrI Sankara extends this to refer to the protection of the whole world. SrI cinmayAnanda refers to the beauty of the arms that always protect and bless (abhaya and vara-da). SrI rAdhAkr*hNa SAstri describes the beauty of the arms that are always ready with the Ayudha-s for the protection of the devotees lest there is any delay when the need arises to use them - pAtu praNata rakshAyAm vilambam asahanniva, sadA pa~ncAyudhIm bibhrat sa nah SrIra~nga nAyakah.The writer in dharma cakram points out that the term subhuja refers to the hands of mahAvishNu that carry the Sa~nkha, cakra, gadA and padma. The Sankha reminds us of the Om-kAra or praNava mantra. The cakra both protects those that follow the path of dharma and destroys those who follow the path of adharma. The gadA functions to discipline the evil, and the padma shows His sweet disposition towards those who seek Him. 29.267 - dur-dharah a) The irresistible.b) One who is difficult to comprehendc) One who is difficult to hold in concentrationd) One who cannot be supported by anyone or anything elseOm durdharAua namah.Recall that SrI BhaTTar has interpreted the previous nAma in terms of the strength of His arms. He continues with that thought, and interprets the current nAma as indicating that the strength is such that it is irresistible like the force of the gushing waters of a great ocean against a dam made of playsand.SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He is difficult to be held, e.g., the yogi-s find it difficult to hold him in their thoughts during their meditation. An alternate interpretation given by him is that nothing else can support Him who supported everything else. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma as one who is difficult to comprehend even by the great yogi-s.The dharma cakram writer points out that we should develop a clean mind in order to be able to retain Him in our mind. For this, recourse to such things as nAma pArAyaNam areof help. Once the mind becomes clean, thoughts of mahA vishNu occupy our mind, and bad thoughts do not occupy our mind. 29.268 - vAgmI a) He who has words which are praise-worthy. b) He who has powerful words.c) He from whom the veda-s originated.Om vAgmine namah. veda-s arebut the words of bhagavAn. He also was powerful in persuading arjuna through His words (gItA) in the battlefield when arjuna had laid down his arms. He is vAgmI also because His words are sweet and kind - buddhimAn madhurAbhAshI pUrvabhAshI pryam vadah - rAma is wise and speaks sweet words; He is the first to speak and also speaks kind words - ayodhyA kANdam 1.13. A very good summary of the power of His words is quoted in dharma cakram from the gItA, reflecting

arjuna's state of mind after listening to Lord kr*shNa's words -nashTo mohah smr*tir-labdhA taaaat-prsAdAn mayA acyuta | sthito'smi gata-sandehah karishye vacanam tava || (18-73) "acyuta! By your Grace (gItopadeSam) my ignorance has now gone; I have regained my memory, and now I am steady and free from doubt and am ready to act according to Your instructions" 29.269 - mahendrah a) He of great wealth.b) The God of Indra and other gods.Om mahendrAya namah. The root from which this nAma is derived is idi - paramaiSvarye - to own great wealth. Since He thus pervades everything in many different ways, He is the Lord of everything. He is also mahendra because He is the Lord of Indra, who is the representation of strength, which is one of the six qualities of SrIman nArAyaNa. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a second interpretation based indhI - dIptau to shine, to kindle. Thus He is mahendra since He is the one who kindles the light in every being or is the light in all beings. 29.270 - vasu-dah The Giver of wealth.Om vasudAya namah. vasu - dhanam dadAti iti vasu-dah. One who bestows His wealth to the devotees without their asking for it. He can give the lordship of the three worlds to a devotee, or He can also give the lesser riches to those who want it. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that this act of bhagavAn giving wealth to everyone is behind the act of anyone giving anything to anyone. For instance, when one does vastra-dAnam, or anna-dAnam, or imparts knowledge to another, or any other act of giving, it is a demonstration of the guNa of Giver of mahA vishNu. 29.271 - vasuh He who is Himself the wealth sought by those who have realized the Truth.Om vasave namah.This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 105, and will re-occur as nAma 701. Please refer to the previous write-up as well. vAsudevah sarvam iti sa mahAtmA sudurlabhah - Rare indeed is the great soul who has realized that the ultimate object to be attained is vAsudeva, and the means for attaining this wealth is also vAsudeva (gItA 7.19).>From the next nAma, SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma-s as illustrations of the cosmic form or the viSva-rUpa of the Lord. 29.272 - naika-rUpah He of Infinite forms (as seen in viSvarUpa).Om naikarUpAya namah. In gItA we have paSyAmi tvAm sarvatah ananta rUpam - I see You everywhere with Your endless forms - 11.16. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the following quote - "jalam vishNuh sthalam vishNuh vishNur_AkASam ucyate | sthAvaram ja~ngamam vishNuh sarvam vishNu-mayam jagat || SrI rAdhAkr*shNa SAstri expressses his anubhavam of this nAma by pointing out that this guNa of assuming multiple forms is consistent with (almost necessitated by) His role is the Giver of wealth to everyone. For giving wealth to everyone, He needed to be in multiple forms and at multiple places at the same time. 29.273 - br*had-rUpah He of an immense form.Om br*had-rUpAya namah. br*hat means mahat or big. SrI T. S. Kr*shNamUrti has translsted this as 'mysterious'. He is of an immense form. SrI Sankara has given the example of the varAha incarnation where He carried the submerged Earth with a form which was big enough to ensure that the Earth did not submerge again as it was carried. The trivikrama incarnation is another example where His form covered all the three worlds and the skies. SrI cinmayaAnanda gives the purusha sUktam passage -

atyatishThat daSA~ngulam - He is not only of the total size and dimension fot he Universe but He stands beyond it by ten digits. The dharma cakram author points out that to "see" this br*had-rUpam, the mortal eyes are not sufficient, and it is thus that we do not just see Him but have to experience Him. The more we see this immensity of His Nature and His sarva vyApatitvam, the more we will get out of this "small" world or our bodies and our small pleasures. 29.274 - Sipi-vishTah He who pervades the rays.Om Sipi-vishTAya namah. The word Sipi has two meanings - rays and animals. Thus there are two interpretations. The first is that He is Sipi-vishTa because He is in the forms of rays for example the Sun's rays, the rays emanating from the fire, etc. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is Sipayah raSmayah, tAn sampravishTah - vyAptavAn iti SipivishTah. He quotes Yaska from nirukata to support this Sipayo raSmayah ucyante, taih AvishTah. In the nirukti which is a summary of SrI BhaTTar's interpreations by an unknown author, we have Sipayo raSmayah proktAh vyApya teshvapi vartanAt | SipivishTah samAkhyAtah sUryendy-agnAdi rUpavat ||In mahAbhArata we have Sipi-vhshTeti yaccAsya pItam romam ca yad-bhavet | tenApi vishTam yat ki~ncit Sipi-vishTam hi tat-smr*tam || (Santi parva 343-41) "He has tawny hairs on His body; with that body He has pervaded all other things. So He is known as Sipi-vishTa." In udyoga parva we have roma kupeshu ca tathA sUryasyeva marIcayah - He who enters into the pores of the body like the rays of the sun. lingAyatasUrin in his vyAkhyAna for amarakoSa has given the following Sipishu paSushu janeshu vishTo vyApta iti SipivishTah - One who has pervaded all animals and humans is SipivishTah. 29.275 - prakASanah a) One who shows Himself to His devotees.b) One who illumines everything.Om prakASanAya namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma to mean that BhagavAn shows His celestial form to arjuna and others who long to see it. SrI Sankara's interpretation is that He is prakASana because He illumines everything prakASayati iti prakASanah. The dharam cakram writer points out that the illumination He provides is the path that leads to His realization. Slokam 30

276-ojas-tejo-dyutidharah 277-prakASAtmA 278-pratApanah 279-Rddhah 280-spashTa-aksharah 281- mantrah 282-canDra-amSuh 283bhAskara-dyutih

30.276 -ojas-tejo-dyuti-dharah One who is endowed with strength, vigorand brilliance.om ojas-tejo-dyuti-dharAya namah. Ojas means strength or inherent vitality, tejas means reputationor power to overcome enemies, and dyuti means effulgence or radiance.Since bhagavAn alone has all of these, He is ojas-tejo-dyuti- dharah.Recall that we are now going through the nAma-s that describe theviSva-rupa. SrI Sankara gives the reference to gItA tejas-tejasvinAmaham (7-10), and balam balavatAam cAham (7-11). 30.277 - prakASAtmA He of a nature that is well-known to all.Om prakASAtmane namah. dhRtarAshtra was blind not only externally but also in hismind. Even to him, bhagavAn made Himself known. In mahAbhArata -udyoga parva, dhRtarAshtra says - "tvameva puNdarIkAksha! Sarvasya jagatah prabhuh | tasmAt te yAdavaSreshTha! PrasAdam kartumarhasi || "Oh Lotus-eyed One! You are the Protector of all the worlds.Therefore, the foremost among the yAdavas! You should take pity on me."Another interpretation is that He has a form whose nature is ofradiance. The writer in dharma cakram points out that the prakASa or lightfrom the sun and stars can reveal external objects, but none of thesecan reveal the Absolute Truth. This can be revealed only by mahAvishNuthe prakASAtmA, who gives the external light to the sun and stars in thefirst instance. 30.278 - pratApanah He who scorches (His enemies).Om pratApanAya namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets this nAma in the context of the gItAwhere arjuna says that he is unable to stand the sight of themagnificent viSvarUpa darSanam when Lord KRshNa reveals that theenemies in the kaurava side are falling into the fiery mouth of the Lordand being scorched to their end - tejobhirApUrya jagat samastambhAsastavogrAh pratapanti vishNo (gItA 11.30). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstripoints out that this can also refer to the time of pralaya when the Lordscorches the Earth with the prlayAgni. SrI Sankara gives the explanation that He is pratApana becauseHe heats the world through power manifestations like the Sun. 30.279 - Rddhah He who is full in all respects.Om RddhAya namah.The root from which this word is derived is Rdh vRddhau to prosper,to increase. He is full of guNa-s like dharma, knowledge, dispassion,etc. 30.280 - spashTa-aksharah

He of clear words (through the veda-s).Om spashTAksharAya namah.The reference here is to the veda-s. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation isthat He is spaTAksharah because He revealed Himself through the lettersof the veda-s very clearly. SrI Sankara's interpretation is that He hasthis nAma because He is clearly indicated by the supreme sound OM. SrIcinmayAnanda gives the reference to gItA in support of thisinterpretation OmityekAksharam brahma vyAharan mAm anusmaran | Yah prayAti tyajan deham sa yAti paramAm gatim|| "One who chants my name Om and leaves his body at the time ofdeath thus remembering Me, he shall go to the Supreme state".SrI satyaevo vAsishTha gives a very different interpretation. He usesthe root spaS bandhane - to tie together, and akshara to mean thingsthat don't disappear but reappear again and again until (and evenafter?) pralaya - he uses the words Apralaya sthAyI nakshatrAdi inHindi), viz. the nakshatra manDala etc. Thus he interprets this nAma'smeaning as referring to mahA vishNu who has thus tied together and isholding together this Universe with its constellation of the heavenlybodies. 30.281 mantrah

The mystic word (He who protects those who meditate onHis name).Om mantrAya namah.tan-mantAram trAyate iti mantArah, or mananAt trAyate iti mantrah -mantra is that which protects him who meditates on it. In BrahmapurANa, BhagavAn says - thRshNA toya samAkIrNAt ghorAt samsAra sAgarAt | apArAt pAramApnoti yo mAm smarati nityaSah || "He who thinks of me always, will certainly cross this vast andfrightful sea of samsAra which is filled with the waters of greed andavarice".SrI BhaTTar also gives the reference to the varAha carama Sloka-s fromvarAha purANa - sthithe manasi susvsthe SarIre sati yo narah | dhAtu-sAmye sthithe smartA viSva-rUpam ca mAma ajam || tatastam mriyamANam tu kAshTha pAshANa sannibham | aham smarAmi mad-bhaktam nayAmi paramAm gatim || "The man who, when his mind is in normal condition, when thebody is not shattered, and when the elementary constituents of his body(dhAtus) are in perfect equipoise, meditates on Me who has thew worldas My body and who am not subject o biths due to karmA - when that manlies like a log of wood or a piece of stone in his dying moments, Ithink of this devotee of Mine and lead to attain the Supreme Abode".SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He is the Sacred formula inthe form of the three veda-s.The writer in dharma cakram gives the perspective on the importance ofmantra-s in our scheme of life. Just as we take external bath forkeeping our bodies clean, mantra-s are the means to keep our mindsclean. This can be done either through constant repetition of themantra-s (japam), through deep and constant contemplation (meditation),through musical singing (bhajan) etc. Recall tirumangai AzhvAr - nalamtarum Sollai nAn kaNDu koNDEn nArAyaNA ennum nAmam peria tirumozhi1-1-9). 30.282 - canDra-amSuh He who is possessed of the effulgent rays likethose of the moon.Om canDrAmSave namah.The word canDra is derived from the root cadi AhlAde dIptau ca - todelight, to shine. He brings delight to the minds of those who arescorched by the heat of samsAra. He also nurtures the vegetable kingdomwith nutrition paushNAmi caushadIh sarvA somo bhUtvA rasAtmakah - gItA15-13. It is known in experience also that the cool rays of the moonare soothing. BhavAn is like the rays of the moon for His devotees. 30.283 - bhAskara-dyutih He who has the effulgence of the sun.Om bhAskara-dyutaye namah.This effulgence is such that it shatters and throws His enemies in alldirections. Recall the reference to Lord rAma as rAma-divAkara - Sara jAlAmSumAnSUrah kape! RAma-divAkarah | Satru-rakshomayam toyam uapSosham nayishyati ||(sundara kANdam 37-18) "O Monkey (HanumAn)! The sun-like rAma, who is valiant and whohas heaps of ray-like arrows, will certainly dry up the water of theinimical rAkshasa-s."The reference to SrI AndAl's tiruppAvai (kadir madiyam pOl mugattAn) isrelevant in this context. Dr. V. V. rAmAnujan in his vishNu shasranAmabhAshyam points out the significance of the two nAma-s - candrAmSuh andbhAskara-dyutih

occurring side by side. It is unique that BhagavAn hasat the same time the comforting coolness of the moon and the scorchingheat of the sun in Him - He is soothing to His devotees and burning toHis enemies. The description of the viSva-rUpam continues, and we knowfrom arjuna's description that the tejas of the viSvarUpam is scorchingand frightful. An instacne of this simultaneous existence of thecoothing and burning guNa-s of His tejas is the nRsimha incarnation,where His form terrorized hiraNya-kaSipu, and but was divinely pleasingto prahlAda.He is bhAskara-dyutih also because He is the cause for the dyuti orbrightness of bhAskara or the sun, or for that matter, the brightness inevery one of us. We can see the brightness of the sun but we cannot seethe brightness of mahA vishNu. His effulgence is explained by sanjayain the gItA - divi sUrya sahasrasya bhaved yugapadutthitA | yadi bhAh sadRSI sA syAd-bhAsas-tasya mahAtmanah || (gItA 11-12) "If simultaneously thousands of suns appear in the sky shiningbright, the tejas or effulgence that is seen can be compared to afraction of the tejas of paramAtmA". The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 31

284. amRta-amSuudbhavah 285. bhAnuh 286. SaSabinduh 287. sureSvarah 288. aushadham 289. jagatah-setuh 290. satya-dharmaparAkramah

amR^itaaMshuudbhavo bhaanuH shashabinduH sureshvaraH .aushhadhaM jagataH setuH satyadharmaparaakramaH .. 31.. Om Om Om Om Om amRtAmSUdbhavAya namah bhAnave namah SaSabindave namah sureSvarAya namah aushadhAya namah

Om jagatas-setave namah Omsatya-dharma-parAkramAya namah. 284.amRta-amSu-udbhavah The source of nectar-rayed moon. Om amRtAmSUdbhavAya namah. ThisnAma consists of three words amRta, amSu, and udbhavah. amRta means immortalor life-giving, amSu refers to rays, and udbhavah is one who created. Both SrIBhaTTar and SrI Sankara have interpreted this as referring to the creation ofthe moon by the Lord during the churning of the Milky Ocean. This is generallythe interpretation that most other authors have accepted. SrI cinmayAnanda givesreference to the gItA to point out how the moon's rays are life-giving to theplants - pushNAmi caushadhIh sarvAh somo bhUtvA rasAtmakah - I become thelife-giving rays of the moon and make all the plants grow and flourish. SrIsatyadevo vASishTha has given an independent interpretation. He uses the meaningliquid or "jalam" for the word amRta, and the meaning"distribute" from amSu - vibhAjane to distribute, and gives theinterpretation that the name means that He created the life-forms bydistributing the waters or amRta. He gives the example of how the lifeform iscreated in the mother's womb floating in the waters, and how lthe physical bodyis kept healthy and well-nourished by drinking the water and eating the food. 285. bhAnuh The lustrous Sun or One who is Radiant. Om bhAnave namah. BhAtiiti bhAnuh - That which shines or One who shines. BhagavAn is the source ofradiance to the Sun itself. The passage from muNDakopanishad tameva bhAntamanubhAti sarvam, tasya bhAsA sarvamidam vibhAti -(muNda - 2.2.10). He illuminesHimself, and illumines everything else in this world as well, including the Sun,whose lustre is onethousandth of His lustre. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha alsopoints out that He is the lustre in all of us by being the agni or fire in allbodies. As long as this agni is lit in our body, we are healthy; when the firesubsides, the body is non-functional (death of the body occurs). So He is thebhAnu in all of us. The dharma cakram author reminds us that the light of theSun can only give external light, but cannot help in revealing the paramAtmA orthe Supreme Soul. This can be done only by the paramAtmA or bhAnu. 286. SaSabinduh a) He who disowns the evil-minded. b) The Moon c) One whocontrols the paths of the planets and the stars. Om SaSabindave namah. SrIBhaTTar derives the interpretation from SaSa - pluta gatau - to swerve or jumpfrom the right path, and bindu derived from bidi - to disown. SrI Sankara hasinterpreted the nAma as referring to the moon. The interpretation given is - Onewho has the mark of a hare - viz. the moon. This is based on the words SaSameaning hare,and bindu meaning a dot. Since the moon has a mark which looks likea hare, this interpretation is given. SrI sataydevo vAsishTha has used the nAmaas SaSa-vinduh instead of SaSa-binduh. He uses the meaning for SaSa as thatwhich leaps or moves around, from the root SaS pluta-gatau. For vindu hederives the meaning from the root vid - j~nAne - to know ( based on the pANinisUtra vinduricchuh - 3.2.167) - vinduh = vedana SilAh - intelligent. Thus forthe nAma SaSavinduh, the meaning given is One who knows (controls) the paths ofall the planets and stars (the Sun, the moon, etc.). 287. sureSvarah The Lord of the gods. Om sureSvarAya namah. SurANAm IsvarahsureSvarah - One who is the Leader of all the gods. Just as He disowns those whogo in the wrong path (previous nAma), this name says that he is the Leader ofthose who tread the good path. The word sura itself is composed of su - Sobhana,and rA - dAnah

i.e., one that brings or bestows auspicious or good things. Onewho is the Lord of those who bestow auspiciousness or do good in plenty issureSvara. The dharma cakram writer reminds us that the significance of thisnAma is that by worshipping mahA vishNu who is the sureSvara, we will movetowards the path of the sura-s. 288. aushadham The Medicine. Om aushadhAya namah. He is the Ultimate Medicinefor the poison of samsAra, and there is no other medicine for this. InmahAbhArata we have "devA devarshayaScaiva yam viduh duhkha bheshajam"-The gods and the celestial sages know Him to be the remedy for distress - Santiparva 79-22. Another quote in SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam (the source is not given)is "ekAgratA mUlya balena labhyam bhavaushadham tvam bhagavan! kilaikah"- Oh BhagavAn! Thou alone art verily the recipe for the samSAra, and can beobtained by the high price of the concentration of the mind on Thee". Dr.V. V. rAmAnujan has given the following reference from divya prabandham insupport of the interpretation of this nAma "tE~ngOda vaNNan varu naragamtIrkkum marundu" - 3rd tiruvandAdi - 3. The dharma cakram writer points outthat BhagavAn who is Nature Incarnate is aushdham in day-to-day life as wellsince inhaling the fresh air of nature, eating food which is not synthetic,etc., lead to a healthier life. 289. jagatah-setuh a) The barrier for the world. b) The brodge for corssing theocean of samsAra. c) One who binds and keeps in-tact all that moves in thisworld. Om jagatah-setave namah. He is the barrier that ensures that there isorder in the different things in this world, by making sure that the good andbad do not mix together in a chaoatic way. He ensures that there is no effectfor the karma that is not undertaken, there is always effect for the karma thathas been undertaken. Those who do good get the benefit for their good and thosewho indulge in bad deeds get the benefit of their bad deeds, etc. The passagefrom bRhadAraNya upanishad is given in support of this interpretation - eshahsetuh vidharaNa eshAm lokAnAm asambhedAya - 6.4.22 (He is the bridge thatsupports all the worlds so that they may not get into confusion). SrI Sankaragives an additional interpretation, viz. that He is the bridge for crossing theocean of samsAra. SrI satdevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that BhagavAnties together all that exists in this world. This includes the function ofholding together the different bones, nerves, and muscles in the body, as wellas the system of stars and planets. Jagat is derived from gati - that whichmoves, and setu - that which binds. He is the setu in all bodies, and inaddition holds all these bodies and other things that exist in this worldtogether in order, and thus He is hagatah-setu. The dharma cakram writer givesthe example of a river which is bound by its banks and kept in control, or theocean which is bound by the land surrouding it and kept under control. So also,BhagavAn has kept the jivAtmA under control by limiting it to the indriya sukhamand the ocean of samsAra. It is only mahA vishNu who can help this jIvAtmA outof these bounds, and it is by meditating on Him that the jIvAtmA can getliberated and cross the ocean of samsAra. 290.satya-dharma-parAkramah One whose qualities and valor are always true. Omsatya-dharma-parAkramAya namah. Here dharma refers to the auspicious qualitiesof BhagavAn, and parAkrama refers to His valor. One in whom they are neverfailing (satya) is satya-dharma-parAkramah. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAmato mean that BhagavAn is one who embodies satya (truth), dharma (righteous), andparAkrama (heroism). In vAlmIki rAmAyaNa SrI rAma is referred to assatya-parAkramah - One whose parAkrama is never in vain, and is always used forthe good of the world. The writer in dharma cakram points out that the nAmatells us the importance of living a life of truth, righteousenss, and the valorresulting from this kind of life. Those who live a life along these lines arebound to succeed in what they do, as evidenced by the lives of HanumAn, Bhishma,etc. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 32

291. bhUta-bhavya-bhavannAthah 292. pavanah 293. pAvanah 294. analah 295. kAma-hA 296. kAma-kRt 297. kAntah 298. kAmah 299. kAma-pradah 300. prabhuh

Om bhUta-bhavya-bhavan-nAthAya namahOm pavanAya namahOm pAvanAya namahOm analAya namahOm kAma-ghne namahOm kAma-kRte namahOm kAntAya namahOm kAmAya namahOm kAmapradAya namahOm prabhave namah 291. bhUta-bhavya-bhavan-nAthah The Lord of all in the past, present and future. Om bhUta-bhavya-bhavan-nAthAya namah.

Sankara distinguishesthe meanings of the two nAma-s by interpreting the first one as "TheLord of Past, Present, and Future", or that He is beyond time, and thecurrent one as "The Lord of all beings in the Past, Present, andFuture". In other words, the first interpretation refers to His beingTimeless, and the second refers to His being the Lord of all beings inall time. 292. pavanah He who moves about (Wind).Om pavanAya namah. Pavata iti pavanah. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation based on theroot pavi - to move about. He moves about in all places at al timeswith no constraints. The wind's ability to do this is but a fraction ofHis ability in this regard. pavatAm pavanah asmi (gItA 10-31) - Amongthose that move about, I am the wind. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning for this nAma as One who isPure, and for the next nAma he gives the interpretation that in additionto His being Pure (pavanah), He also purifies everything else -pAvanah). 293. pAvanah He who purifies everything.Om pAvanAya namah. pAvayati iti pAvanah. pAvanah sarva-lokAnAm tvameva raghu-nandana -Oh Scion of raghu race! You alone are the purifier of all the worlds -rAmAyaNam - uttara kANDam - 32.9. The power of Ganges to purify anyonefrom all sins is because of its contact with His Sacred Feet. We havein SrI vishNu sahasranAmam "pavitrANAm pavitram yo mangalAnAm camangalam - He is the Purest of the pure, and the Most Auspicious amongthose that are auspicious". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives the reference fromtiruvAi-mozhi (2-8-5) - devAdideva perumAn en tIrthanE - tIrthan heremeans Pure. Another reference he has given is - karam nAngudaiyAn pErOdi tIrthakarar Amin (iraNDAm tiruvandAdi - 14) - Let us become pure bychanting the name of the One with Four Hands. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that it is mahA-vishNu's pAvana Saktithat is at play when the effect of the poison of a crab bite is removedfrom the body of a person by dropping the juice of red chile in the earsof that person. He gives several other examples as well. 294. analah One who is never satisfied (in His Mercy or dayA).Om analAya namah. alam means "to be satisfied". analam is the condition of never beingsatisfied. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to periya tiruvantAdi - unaDiyArkku en Seyvan enRE irutti nI (53) - "Always thinking about whatYou can do next for Your devotees". He is the One who helped draupadiduring her time of distress and then forever felt that He did not doenough for her because He did not personally appear in the palace whenshe called for Him, and when He ultimately departed for SrI vaikunTham,still felt that He was indebted - RNam pravRttam idam me hRdayAtnApasarpati. analam literally refers to fire (since fire is never satisfied, and willkeep consuming more and more things if left uncontrolled). A certainamount of heat is necessary in the body for the body to continue alive.Since He is the fire that supports life in the body, He is called anala.The insatiable nature of His dayA has been sung by SrI deSika in dayASatakam, where we find that no matter what great sins we have committed,His dayA

will consume (forgive) all those when we surrender to Him withdevotion and sincerity. The hunger of His dayA will not be easilyquenched even by the enormous sins committed by us, and He will forgiveall these if we adopt the simple step of SaraNAgati to Him (Slokam 29 ofdayA Satakam). He is like the fire that will burn all our sins withoutlimit. So He is analah in this sense as well. 295. kAma-hA The Destroyer of desires.Om kAma-ghne namah. He removes the desires in worldly matters in the minds of His devotees.SrI cinmayAnanda gives an analysis of why it is necessary that desireshould be destroyed. When desire arises, there are two possibilities -either the desire is fulfilled, or it is not. If it is fulfilled, theresult is the desire for more - greed. If it is not fulfilled, theoutcome is anger and frustration. So for inner calm, desire needs to bedestroyed, and it is only His Grace which can cause this to happen. Someone who has successfully climbed a very high hill will not desire toconquer a smaller hill. So also, one who has developed a desire for theparamAtmA will not desire anything less or anything else. He iskAma-hA in the sense that desire in Him will automatically destroy thedesire in lesser objects. 296. kAma-kRt One who creates desirable things, and also fulfils the desires. Om kAma-kRte namah. He fulfils whatever is desired, be it towards bhoga or moksha. SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha gives the explanation - kAmAn karoti pUrayati itikAma-kRt - One who fulfils the desires. It is natural that a personwith less wealth goes to a person with more wealth for fulfilling hisneed. The only one who can ultimately fulfil the desires of anyone isthe One who has everything, vishNu the kAma-kRt. kAma-kRt can alsomean One who creates desires; in this sense, He creates the gooddesires, just as He destroys the undesirable desires (kAma-hA). the dharma cakram writer from mANikka vAcakar " vENDattakkadu aRivOy nI,vENDa muzhudum taruvOy nI, vENDum pariSu onRu uNDu enil aduvum undanviruppanRE". He also quotes tirumangai AzhvAr in this context - kulamtarum Selvam tandiDum, aDiyAr padDum tuyar Ayina ellAm nilam taramSeyyum nIL viSumbum aruLum aruLODu peru nilam aLikkum, nalam tarumSollai nAn kaNDu konDEn nArAyaNA ennum nAmam. He gives the lesserobjects to those who desire this, and the very utterance of His nAma cangives moksham also. 297. kAntah He who is charming.om kAntAya namah. This nAma will re-occur as nAma 660 later. kAnta also means attraction.In tamizh, this word is used to refer to magnet. The dharma cakramwriter describes the different kinds of attraction, involving the fivesenses, as well as the attraction involving thought and the oneinvolving good behavior or character. BhagavAn is kAntah because He isthe One responsible for all the different types of attractions, and inaddition He is also attractive in every one of these.

298. kAmah The Lovable (or manmatha).om kAmAya namah. People in this world are after dharma, artha, kAma or moksha. For allthese four, He is the one who is sought after. The dharma cakramwriter points out that those who desire wealth or physical objects andare after sensuous attraction lower themselves, whereas those who desirebhagavAn elevate themselves. Those who desire the ultimate liberationknow that the most desirable is bhagavAn vishNu. kAma also refers tomanmatha, whos is considered the god of desire. manmatha's ability tobe desirable is but a fraction of bhagavAn's. 299. kAma-pradah The Grantor of wishes.om kAma-pradAya namah. He grants the wishes of those who desire Him as well as those who areafter trifles. For those who desire nothing other than Him, He fulfilstheir desire by being in their mind constantly. He makes Himselfavailable in any form that is desired. In kaThopanishad we have "ekobahUnAm yo vidadhAti kAmAn (2.5)" - The One who fulfils the desires ofthe many. 300. prabhuh One who has the supreme power to attract the minds of alltowards Himself; One who surpasses all in being. om prabhave namah. power to attract everyone's mind towards Him through His extremeloveliness. SrI Sankara bhAshyam for this nAma is prakarsheNa bhavanAtprabhuh - One who surpasses all in being. The dharma cakram writergives examples of how bhagavAn surpasses all in being: by not slippingfrom the right path (acyuta), by always having the indriya-s undercontrol (hRshI-keSah), by establishing dharma over adharma (paritrANAyasAdhUnAm vinASAya ca dushkRtAm), by being the destroyer of the evilasura-s (madhusUdana, keSi-sUdana, kamsa cANUra mardana, etc.)... -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 33

301. 302. 303. 304. 305.

yugAdi-kRt yugAvartah naika-mAyah mahASanah adRSyah

306. vyakta-rUpah 307. sahasra-jit 308. ananta-jit

om om om om om om om

yugAdi-kRte namahom yugAvartAya namah naika-mAyAya namah mahASanAya namah ad*SyAya namah vyakta-rUpAya namah sahasra-jite namah ananta-jite namahnAma-s

Starting from this, up to nAma 313, are interpreted by SrI BhaTTar asreferring to the vata-patra-SAyI avatAra or the incarnation as a Child onthe banyan leaf. 301. yugAdi-kRt The Creator at the beginning of a yuga.om yugAdi-kRte namah.SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation "yugasya ante'pi Adim karoti" - Even atthe end of a yuga, He makes the beginning of another. Even at thedissolution of the Universe, He saves it from the distress of Deluge bybeginning the Universe again; even at the end of the Universe throughpralaya, He begins Creation again. SrI Sankara gives the derivation: yugAdeh kAla-bhedasya kartRtvAtyugAdi-kRt He is called yugAdi-kRt because He is the cause of periods oftime such as yuga. According to SrI cinmayAnanda, Adi here refers to otherdivisions of time such as centuries, years, months, days, etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri suggests that through these divisions of time, likethe day and night following each other, He gives a meaning of continuity totime which is otherwise a never-ending cakra or circle with no beginning orend. The word yuga is derived from the root yuj - yoge - to unite. Hecreates the continuity or connectivity between one yuga and another byensuring that the life-forms are re-created according to their karma-s.

Arelated alternate interpretation given by SrI Sankara is yugAnAm AdimArambham karoti iti yugAdi-kRt The Institutor of the yuga etc. It may berecalled that there are four yuga-s, kRta, tretA, dvApara, and kali. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets yuga as kAla-cakra, Adi as beginning, andthe term yugAdi as referring to the Sun, who is the cause of the division oftime as day and night etc. He then interprets yugAdi-kRt as the One whocreated the Sun or One who created the kAla-cakra. The dharma cakram writer points outs the limited nature of our body and ourlife in this world in the context of this huge, immeasurable, and unending,kAla or time. Instead of wasting it on petty goals, and worrying about thepast which is gone or the future on which we have no control, we shouldlearn to meditate on Him in the present, over which we have control. 302. yugAvartah He who revolves the yuga-s or aeons. om yugAvartAya namah. Avarta refers to revolution or rotation. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation isthat He is yugAvarta because He makes the kRta and other yuga-s go roundagain and again with their respective dharma-s. (It is said that if theextent of dharma in the society in kRta yuga is 100%, that in tretA yuga is75%, in dvApara yuga is 50%, and that in kali yuga is 25%. kRta yuga isalso called satya yuga based on this). This rotation is seen in a dimensionwhere we can relate to it easily in the form of day and night, morning,afternoon, and evening, the four seasons with their constant attributes(rain, snow, heat, etc.,) repeating again and again.He is not only the Creator of Time as we saw in the previous nAma, but He isalso the Administrator of Time as we see in this nAma. 303. naika-mAyah He of multifarious wonders. om naika-mAyAya namah. This is one of the nAma-s for which the interpretation of SrI BhaTTar andSrI Sankara are purely based on the respective philosophies (viz.viSishTAdvaita and advaita respectively) to which they subscribed. SrI BhaTTar points out that mAyA here refers to knowledge or wonderfultruths, and should not be interpreted as illusion. He is naika-mAyabecause of His innumerable and wonderful exploits. He gives severalexamples to point out the use of the word not as illusion but as truth,knowledge, etc. "mAyAm tu prakRtim vidyAt" - Know that mAyA is prakRti or PrimordialMatter. "mAyA vayunam j~nAnam" - all signify knowledge, according to niruktam. In vishNu purANa, there is mention of Lord vishNu destroying the thousandsof mAya-s of SambarAsura with His discus. If mAyA here refers to illusion,then a discus was not needed to destroy it; so obviously here mAyA refers toreal objects. SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that this nAma refers to His assumingmany forms of illusion.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root mA - mAne - tomeasure, and gives the interpretation that this nAma means that He hasinnumerable dimensions to Him. 304. mahASanah He who is a voracious eater. om mahASanAya namah. mahat aSanam yasya sah mahASanah. The root is aS - bhojane - to eat. Thereference here is to His swallowing the seven worlds.Recall the pASuram "ulagam uNDa peru vAyA". Also we have from tiruvAi mozhi- "kArEzh kaDalEzh malai Ezh ulagu uNDum ArA vayiRRAnai aDa~ngap piDittEnE" - 10-8-2. SrI Sankara refers to His act of consuming everything during the time ofpralaya. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives another additional derivation for this nAmabased on aS - vyAptau sa~nghAte ca - to pervade, to accumulate. So inaddition to the meaning that His food is huge, he also gives the alternateinterpretation that His pervasion or vyApti is large or extensive. 305. adRSyah He Who cannot be seen. om adRSyAya namah. BhagavAn's acts are inscrutable. In mahAbhAratam, we have katham nu ayam SiSuh Sete loke nASam upAgate | tapasA cintayanScApi tam SiSum nopalakshaye || (vana parva -191-94) "When the entire world has met with destruction, how come this childis alive and lying down (on a leaf)? Even though I try to understand thisthrough the power of my austerities, I am unable to understand the truenature of this child". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr "katkilI unnaik kANumARu aruLAi- tiruvAi mozhi 7.2.3. katkilI here means One who cannot be seen throughour normal vision. In the upanishad-s we have "adreSyam agrAhyamagotram...." (muNdakopanishad 1.1.6), "adRSyam avyavahAryam agrAhymalakshaNam...SAntam Sivam advaitam..." (mAnDUkya 1.7). The dharma cakram writer points out that He is adRSyah because He cannot berecognized through the five senses, nor by logical analysis. For thatmatter, it is only His Grace that can make Him be realized. 306. vyakta-rUpah He of a manifest form. om vyakta-rUpAya namah.

His celestial form is easily visualized by the sages such as mArkaNDeya. atasI-pushpa samkASah SrI-vatsa kRta lakshNah | sAkshAt lakshmyA iva AvAsah sadA pratibhAti me || (bhArata - vana188.96) "He, who is like the blue lily flower in color, and who is adornedby the SrIvatsa mole, appears to me always as the abode of Lakshmi". tasya tAmra-talau tAta! caraNau supratishThitau | sujAta-mRdu-raktAbhih a~ngulIbhih alamkRtau || praNatena mayA mUrdhnA gRhItvA hyabhivanditau || (bhArata - vana188.13) "O Dear! His two feet with red surface adorned by the lovely softand red toes, were firmly placed on my head when I bowed with bent head andworshipped Him".Notice that just in the previous nAma we had seen Him to be adRSya, and nowwe encounter Him as vykata-rUpa. The difference is that in the previousnAma we saw that He cannot be seen through the normal means of perception.In the current nAma we see that He is easily perceived by His devotees whohave transcended the influence of the five senses. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstripoints out that the ca in the Slokam - vyakta rUpaSca - indicates that evenwhile being adRSya, He is of vykata-rUpa or manifest form to His devotees,through so many incarnations etc. The dharma cakram writer points out that the previous nAma revealed vishNu'sattribute which is beyond our perception, and the current nAma reveals Hisattribute of being present in everything as antaryAmi. 307. sahasra-jit The Conqueror of thousands. om sahasra-jite namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the 'thousands' here as referring to thousands ofaeons or Time which He conquers by being in yoga-nidrA while everything elseis dissolved in pralaya. SrI Sankara interprets it as referring to Hisconquering thousands of enemies or asura-s in battle. 308. ananta-jit One whose victory is endless, limitless, countless. om ananta-jite namah. He is ananta-jit because He has everything that exists under His control.In every incarnation He alone wins in the end. SrI BhaTTar gives theinterpretation that His mahimA or greatness is beyond comprehension. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme

by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 33

301. 302. 303. 304. 305. 306. 307. 308.

yugAdi-kRt yugAvartah naika-mAyah mahASanah adRSyah vyakta-rUpah sahasra-jit ananta-jit

om om om om om om om

yugAdi-kRte namahom yugAvartAya namah naika-mAyAya namah mahASanAya namah ad*SyAya namah vyakta-rUpAya namah sahasra-jite namah ananta-jite namahnAma-s

Starting from this, up to nAma 313, are interpreted by SrI BhaTTar asreferring to the vata-patra-SAyI avatAra or the incarnation as a Child onthe banyan leaf. 301. yugAdi-kRt The Creator at the beginning of a yuga.om yugAdi-kRte namah.SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation "yugasya ante'pi Adim karoti" - Even atthe end of a yuga, He makes the beginning of another. Even at thedissolution of the Universe, He saves it from the distress of Deluge bybeginning the Universe again; even at the end of the Universe throughpralaya, He begins Creation again.

SrI Sankara gives the derivation: yugAdeh kAla-bhedasya kartRtvAtyugAdi-kRt He is called yugAdi-kRt because He is the cause of periods oftime such as yuga. According to SrI cinmayAnanda, Adi here refers to otherdivisions of time such as centuries, years, months, days, etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri suggests that through these divisions of time, likethe day and night following each other, He gives a meaning of continuity totime which is otherwise a never-ending cakra or circle with no beginning orend. The word yuga is derived from the root yuj - yoge - to unite. Hecreates the continuity or connectivity between one yuga and another byensuring that the life-forms are re-created according to their karma-s. Arelated alternate interpretation given by SrI Sankara is yugAnAm AdimArambham karoti iti yugAdi-kRt The Institutor of the yuga etc. It may berecalled that there are four yuga-s, kRta, tretA, dvApara, and kali. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets yuga as kAla-cakra, Adi as beginning, andthe term yugAdi as referring to the Sun, who is the cause of the division oftime as day and night etc. He then interprets yugAdi-kRt as the One whocreated the Sun or One who created the kAla-cakra. The dharma cakram writer points outs the limited nature of our body and ourlife in this world in the context of this huge, immeasurable, and unending,kAla or time. Instead of wasting it on petty goals, and worrying about thepast which is gone or the future on which we have no control, we shouldlearn to meditate on Him in the present, over which we have control. 302. yugAvartah He who revolves the yuga-s or aeons. om yugAvartAya namah. Avarta refers to revolution or rotation. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation isthat He is yugAvarta because He makes the kRta and other yuga-s go roundagain and again with their respective dharma-s. (It is said that if theextent of dharma in the society in kRta yuga is 100%, that in tretA yuga is75%, in dvApara yuga is 50%, and that in kali yuga is 25%. kRta yuga isalso called satya yuga based on this). This rotation is seen in a dimensionwhere we can relate to it easily in the form of day and night, morning,afternoon, and evening, the four seasons with their constant attributes(rain, snow, heat, etc.,) repeating again and again.He is not only the Creator of Time as we saw in the previous nAma, but He isalso the Administrator of Time as we see in this nAma. 303. naika-mAyah He of multifarious wonders. om naika-mAyAya namah. This is one of the nAma-s for which the interpretation of SrI BhaTTar andSrI Sankara are purely based on the respective philosophies (viz.viSishTAdvaita and advaita respectively) to which they subscribed.

SrI BhaTTar points out that mAyA here refers to knowledge or wonderfultruths, and should not be interpreted as illusion. He is naika-mAyabecause of His innumerable and wonderful exploits. He gives severalexamples to point out the use of the word not as illusion but as truth,knowledge, etc. "mAyAm tu prakRtim vidyAt" - Know that mAyA is prakRti or PrimordialMatter. "mAyA vayunam j~nAnam" - all signify knowledge, according to niruktam. In vishNu purANa, there is mention of Lord vishNu destroying the thousandsof mAya-s of SambarAsura with His discus. If mAyA here refers to illusion,then a discus was not needed to destroy it; so obviously here mAyA refers toreal objects. SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that this nAma refers to His assumingmany forms of illusion. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root mA - mAne - tomeasure, and gives the interpretation that this nAma means that He hasinnumerable dimensions to Him. 304. mahASanah He who is a voracious eater. om mahASanAya namah. mahat aSanam yasya sah mahASanah. The root is aS - bhojane - to eat. Thereference here is to His swallowing the seven worlds.Recall the pASuram "ulagam uNDa peru vAyA". Also we have from tiruvAi mozhi- "kArEzh kaDalEzh malai Ezh ulagu uNDum ArA vayiRRAnai aDa~ngap piDittEnE" - 10-8-2. SrI Sankara refers to His act of consuming everything during the time ofpralaya. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives another additional derivation for this nAmabased on aS - vyAptau sa~nghAte ca - to pervade, to accumulate. So inaddition to the meaning that His food is huge, he also gives the alternateinterpretation that His pervasion or vyApti is large or extensive. 305. adRSyah He Who cannot be seen. om adRSyAya namah. BhagavAn's acts are inscrutable. In mahAbhAratam, we have katham nu ayam SiSuh Sete loke nASam upAgate | tapasA cintayanScApi tam SiSum nopalakshaye || (vana parva -191-94) "When the entire world has met with destruction, how come this childis alive and lying down (on a leaf)? Even though I try to understand thisthrough the power of my austerities, I am unable to understand the truenature of this child". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr "katkilI unnaik kANumARu aruLAi- tiruvAi mozhi 7.2.3. katkilI here means One who cannot be seen throughour normal vision.

In the upanishad-s we have "adreSyam agrAhyamagotram...." (muNdakopanishad 1.1.6), "adRSyam avyavahAryam agrAhymalakshaNam...SAntam Sivam advaitam..." (mAnDUkya 1.7). The dharma cakram writer points out that He is adRSyah because He cannot berecognized through the five senses, nor by logical analysis. For thatmatter, it is only His Grace that can make Him be realized. 306. vyakta-rUpah He of a manifest form. om vyakta-rUpAya namah. His celestial form is easily visualized by the sages such as mArkaNDeya. atasI-pushpa samkASah SrI-vatsa kRta lakshNah | sAkshAt lakshmyA iva AvAsah sadA pratibhAti me || (bhArata - vana188.96) "He, who is like the blue lily flower in color, and who is adornedby the SrIvatsa mole, appears to me always as the abode of Lakshmi". tasya tAmra-talau tAta! caraNau supratishThitau | sujAta-mRdu-raktAbhih a~ngulIbhih alamkRtau || praNatena mayA mUrdhnA gRhItvA hyabhivanditau || (bhArata - vana188.13) "O Dear! His two feet with red surface adorned by the lovely softand red toes, were firmly placed on my head when I bowed with bent head andworshipped Him".Notice that just in the previous nAma we had seen Him to be adRSya, and nowwe encounter Him as vykata-rUpa. The difference is that in the previousnAma we saw that He cannot be seen through the normal means of perception.In the current nAma we see that He is easily perceived by His devotees whohave transcended the influence of the five senses. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstripoints out that the ca in the Slokam - vyakta rUpaSca - indicates that evenwhile being adRSya, He is of vykata-rUpa or manifest form to His devotees,through so many incarnations etc. The dharma cakram writer points out that the previous nAma revealed vishNu'sattribute which is beyond our perception, and the current nAma reveals Hisattribute of being present in everything as antaryAmi. 307. sahasra-jit The Conqueror of thousands. om sahasra-jite namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the 'thousands' here as referring to thousands ofaeons or Time which He conquers by being in yoga-nidrA while everything elseis dissolved in pralaya. SrI Sankara interprets it as referring to Hisconquering thousands of enemies or asura-s in battle. 308. ananta-jit

One whose victory is endless, limitless, countless. om ananta-jite namah. He is ananta-jit because He has everything that exists under His control.In every incarnation He alone wins in the end. SrI BhaTTar gives theinterpretation that His mahimA or greatness is beyond comprehension. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 34 309 310 311 312 313 314 315 316 317 318 319 ishTah aviSishTah SishTeshTah SikhanDI nahushah vRshah krodha-hA krodha-kRt kartA viSva-bAhuh mahI-dharah

om ishTAya namahom avSishTAya namahom SishTeshTAya namahom SikhanDine namahom nahushAya namahom vRshAya namahom krodhaghne namahom krodha-kRte namahom kartre namahom viSvabAhave namahom mahI-dharAya namah 34.309 - ishTah a) One who is liked by everyone.b) One who is worshipped in ishTi or sacrifice.om ishTAya namah.He is ishTa because He is liked by everyone and this is because He is theSupreme Bliss. The dharma cakram writer emphasizes that there is nothingelse that is worth liking and going after, because nothing else is PermanentBliss. We should learn to convert the desire that we have for materialobjects to the desire for understanding AtmA, and ultimately to the desirefor paramAtmA.The second interpretation is selfexplanatory, and is related to the termishTi which means sacrifice. 34.310. aviSishTah a) He who is impartial to everyone.b) He who cannot be distinguished.c) He who has no equal.om aviSishTAya namah.He protects everyone just as a mother protects all of her children withoutpartiality. Another interpretation is that He is aviSishTa because Hecannot be distinguished by virtue of the fact that He is the antaryAmi ineverything.It is unclear from the sources I have on whether SrI BhaTTar had interpreted309 and 310 together as one nAma - aviSishTah ishTah - meaning He is one whodoes not distinguish between beings and treats them all alike like a motherher children. Two of the four sources I have that follow SrI BhaTTar'svyAkhyAna treat the two toegether as one nAma.In the versions which treat these as two nAma-s, there is a furthervariation for nAma 310 - viSishTa instead of aviSishTa - One who is Specialand Unique - One who is the noblest and most sacred. This version is usedby SrI cinmayAnanDa. 34.311 - SishTeshTah a) He who is dear even to eminent persons.b) He who dearly loves the eminent personsom SishTeshTAya namah.a) SishTAnAm ishTah SishTeshTah or b) SishTA ishTA asya iti SishTeshTah.SrI Sankara gives reference to bhagavad-gItA - "priyo hi j~nAnino atyarthamaham sa ca mama priyah (7.17)" - I am dear to a j~nAni beyond description;and he is also very dear to Me. A j~nAni here refers to one who hasrealized that the one goal that is worth striving for is He, and nothingelse; thus, by his very nature, the only thing dear to him is BhagavAn.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruppAvai - "veLLattaravil tuyilamarnda vittinai uLLattukkoNDu munivargaLum yOgigaLum". 34.312 - SikhanDI a) He who has the plume (or effulgence) of Lordshipb) He who wears a peacock featherom SikhanDine namah.The word SikhanDa means a tuft of hair or the plume of a peacock. SrIBhaTTar uses the meaning 'crest' to mean that He is at the crest or peakof Lordship. SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that this nAma refers toLord KRshNa as a cowherd boy, with the peacock feather in His head. 34.313 - nahushah One who binds (the jiva-s by His mAyA).om nahushAya namah.nahyati iti nahushah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the interpretation thatHe binds all beings through His beauty and soulabhyam. SrI satyadevovAsishTha interprets this to mean that He binds (controls) all beings and soHe is nahushah. This binding extends in the world we observe even to thedifferent parts of the body being bound appropriately so that they functionas a unit. So also the different planets are bound together so that thereis order.

34.314 - vRshah a) He who drenches (those who are scorched by the heat of samsAra).b) He who showers His devotees with all that is asked forc) He who is the embodiment of dharma.om vRshAya namah.The word is derived from the root vRsh - to drench or to shower. He alsoshowers whatever is asked for on His devotees, and so He is vRshah in thatsense as well - kAmAnAm varshaNAt vRshah - SrI Sankara. He also gives thefollowing verse from mahAbhArata vRsho hi bhagavAn dharmah smRto lokeshu bhArata | naighanTuka padAkhyAnaih viddhi mAm vRsha ityuta || (SAntiparva 330.23) "O arjuna! vRsha is explained by the lexicographers and likewiseknown in this world as sacred dharma. Hence know Me as vRsha". Thus,vRsha and dharma are synonyms.SrI BhaTTar interprets the next 8 nAma-s as referring to paraSurAma orbhArgava rAma incarnation. 34.315 - krodha-hA a) He who gave up His anger.b) He who destroys the anger in sAdhu-s.om krodha-ghne namah.krodham hanti iti krodha-hA.SrI BhaTTar's interpretation: At the mere request of KASyapa mahArshi, Hegave up His anger which had previously resulted in the destruction of 21lineages of kshatriya-s. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to divyaprabandham in support of this interpretation: "mazhuvinAl avani araSai mUvezhu-kAl maNi-muDi poDi paDuttu udirakkuzhuvAr punalil kuLittu ven-kopam tavirndavan" - periya tirumozhi 8-1-6.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that this nAma indicates that BhagavAncan control His anger just at the mere thought of controlling it. In Hisincarnation as Lord rAma, we find that He became intensely angry at times(rosham AhArayat tIvram - 3-30-19), (krodhasya vaSameyivAn - 6-59-136), butonly He can also get rid of this anger at will in an instant.A lesson applicable in this context to real life is given by the dharmacakram writer who quotes SrI paramahamsa on how to handle situations whichmay require one to be angry - "Hiss but don't bite". In other words, donot ever let your anger get to a point where you cause harm to others. SrI Sankara's interpretation: He is krodha-hA since He helps the sAdhu-sto overcome anger. Anger is a result of unfulfilled desires, and whendesire is overcome, anger is also overcome. 34.316 - krodha-kRt He who developed anger. om krodha-kRte namah.In HIs incarnation as paraSurAma, He got angry at kArta-vIrya and hiskshatriya race and destroyed 21 generations of them, before giving up Hisanger as mentioned in the previous nAma.SrI Sankara gives the meaning that He creates anger in people who are wickedor bad -asAdhushu krodham karoti iti krodha-kRt, and they cause their owndestruction because of this anger. 34.317 - kartA He who slays. om kartre namah.Continuing his interpretation of the sequence of nAma-s as describingparaSu-rAma incarnation, SrI BhaTTar interprets this nAma as referring tothe slaying of kArta-vIrya. SrI Sankara gives the meaning that He is kartAor Creator of the Universe - kriyata iti karma jagat tasya kartA.SrI Sankara gives the interpretation for 316 and 317 as individual nAma-s,and also suggests that the can be considered as one nAma together -krodha-kRt-kartA - One who destroys those who demonstrate anger viz. theasura-s. For the purposes of accounting for 1000 nAma-s, 316 and 317 astreated as one nAma in SrI Sankara bhAshyam, and as two in SrI BhaTTar'svyAkhyAnam.om krodha-kRt-kartre namah.The interpretation in this

case is krodha-kRtAm daityAdInAm kartA chedakaiti ekam nAma. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation - krodhamkaroti iti krodha-kRt krodha-kRtam kRntati chinatti hanti vA sakrodha-kRt-kartA. 34.318 - viSva-bAhuh He who has arms for the good of the world. om viSva-bAhave namah. Bhagavan uses His arms for removing the thorns (evil-doers) for the good ofthe world. Hence He is is called viSva-bAhuh. Again the context in whichSrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma is with respect to paraSurAma incarnation,and thus the reference here is to the destruction of 21 generations ofrAkshasa-s.SrI Sankara gives the meaning in a more general sense. He is viSva-bAhusince He has arms that are endless in number to support the world, andextend everywhere for the same cause. In SvetASvatara upanishad, we havereference to viSvato-bAhuh ( 3.3). Everything depends on Him, and in thissense also He is viSvabAhuh. Thus, He has infinite arms for bothdestroying the evil-doers (SrI BhaTTar), and for helping His devotees (SrISankara). In both cases, His actions are always for the good of the world.The dharma cakram writer points out that as we use our hands in performingour karma-s, BhagavAn performs the acts of creation, protection, etc. of theworld, and in this sense He is viSva-bAhu. The nAma should also remind usthat these hands of ours are for doing good to others. 34.319 - mahI-dharah The Supporter of the world. om mahI-dharAya namah. mahIm dhatte iti mahI-dharah. He supports the world by removing theevil-doers or wicked people in the world.SrI Sankara bhAshyam is that mahI means both pUjA (mahatva) and earth. Heis mahI-dhara because He accepts the offerings from devotees or because Hesupports the world. SrI cinmayAnanda gives an example to explain themeaning of 'support'. This is like the cotton supporting the cloth, thegold supporting the ornament, or the clay supporting a clay pot. In thissense, His supporting the world is the same as saying that the world and Heare inseparable and same, and the world is one of His manifestations. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 35 320. acyutah 321. prathitah 322. prANah

323. 324. 325. 326. 327. 328.

prANa-dah vAsavAnujah apAm-nidhih adhishThAnam apramattah pratishThitah

om acyutAya namahom prathitAya namahom prANAya namahom prANadAya namahom vAsavAnujAya namahom apAm-nidhaye namahom adhishThAnAya namahom apramattAya nmahom pratishThitAya namah 320. acyutah He who does not fall from His status.om acutAya namah.This nAma occurred previously (nAma 101). The different interpretationshave been covered there.The additional material below was not covered earlier. SrI v.v. rAmAnujanadds the following reference from rAmAyaNa "mitra-bhAvena samprAptam na tyajeyam kathancana dosho yadyapi tasyasyAt " - "No matter what flaws a person has, if he has come to Me seeking Myfriendship, there is no way that I will abandon him under any circumstance".SrI rAmAnujan also gives the reference to divya prabandham "kArtigaiyAnum kari-mugattAnum kanalum mukkaNmUrtiyum mODiyumveppum mudugiTTu" - the reference here is to the story of bANAsura who wasabandoned by the other devatA-s when he approached them for protection. Notso with bhagavAn - na me bhaktah praNaSyati - "My devotee will never perish" - gItA.Another meaning for acyta is One who does not slip from His position - nacyuta iti acyutah. The dharma cakram writer points to the passage inmuNdakopanishad which describes the two birds sitting in different branchesof the tree, one tasting the fruit and the other just watching the bird thatis tasting the fruit (of karma). This has been described in a previouswrite-up. BhagavAn is the acyuta, from His superior position, watching thejIvAtmA which is tasting the fruits of karma in this case. 321. prathitah One who is famous, One who is of great reputation.om prathitAya namah.The nAma is derived from the root prath - to become famous (prath - prakhyAn - prasiddhi). This fame can be associated with the previous nAma - His guNaof being acyuta, or on account of His creation, sustenance, etc. of theUniverse. Supports

for the interpretation are: "tasya nAma mahad-yaSah" -taittirIya nArAya... 1.9; "yaSasaSca eka bhAjanam" - rAmAyaNa - kishkindA ..15.19; perumai uDiaya pirAnAr - tiruvAi mozhi - 1-6-9; nagar-il- pugazhAi -tiruvAi mozhi - 6-10-10.The dharma cakram writer points out that the fame that is derived fromthings such as wealth, position in life, etc. are impermanent and disappearas soon as the underlying cause that resulted in this fame disappears.This is not the case when the fame results from adherence to dharma, and inthis case the fame is permanent. This is as evidenced by the cases ofhariS-canDra, the pANDava-s, prahlAda, hanumAn, etc. BhagavAn is prathitahfor the same reason i.e., He is satya-parAkrama, satya, satyakAma,satya-samkalpa, satya-vrata, etc., and so He is prathitah. 322. prANah The Life-Breath.om prANAya namah.He is prANa for those who resort to Him (SrI BhaTTar). He is also thelife-energy for all beings (SrI Sankara) - prANo vA aham asmi - aitareyaAraNyaka 2.2.3). SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to prabandham - ulagukkEOr uyirumAnAi - tiruvAi mozhi 6-9-7.The next 11 nAma-s are interpreted by SrI BhaTTar as describing the kUrma(Tortoise) incarnation. 323. prANa-dah The Life-Giver.om prANadAya namah.Since He gave the strength to the deva-s to churn the Milky Ocean, He isprANa-dah (SrI BhaTTar). SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He isthe Life-giver to everyone (deva-s and asura-s), and also gives anadditional interpretation using the meaning dyati - cuts - He cuts thestrength of asura-s. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the followingexplanation - prANan dadAti dyati khaNDayati va sa prANa-dah - BhagavAn bothgives life to all beings, and takes away the life of all beings when thetime comes, and so He is prANa-dah in both senses.The dharma cakram writer points out that the different aspects of our lifeand body - such as our thoughts, our words, etc., are all differentreflections of the prANa in us. Without prANa, our life will cease toexist, and our body will cease to function. But by controlling this prANa,we can control our body and all its actions. There is no limit to what canbe achieved by having control over our prANa or breath. This nAma of mahAvishNu should teach us that the prANa that has been given to us by Himshould be used for good purpose. 324. vAsavAnujah The younger brother of vAsava or indra.om vAsavAnujAya namah.SrI BhaTTar says in his vyAkhyAna that this nAma refers to BhagavAn beingborn as the younger brother of indra in order to help him get the nectarwhich he wishes to have. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan points out that the referencein this nAma is NOT to upendra or vAmana (nAma 153). I am unable toexplain what this incarnation is.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives an interpretation which does not involve areference to indra. He interprets vAsavAnujah to mean One who has enteredinto everything in this world vasati sarvatra vaste sarvam iti vA vAsuh ISvarah; vAsohidam vAsavam sarvam jagat; vAsavam jagat anujAto = anupravishTovAsavAnujah. 325. apAm-nidhih The Sustainer of the waters of the ocean.om apAm-nidhaye namah.SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation of this nAma based on the kUrmaincarnation, and points out that this name indicates that He sustained thegreat Ocean when it was being churned.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAi mozhi - appanE! AzhkaDalaik kaDaindatuppanE! (4.7.5).SrI Sankara gives the meaning "The Ocean" to this nAma based on "Apo yatranidhIyante sah apAm-nidhih - The place where the waters get collected inabundance". He also gives reference to the gItA - sarasAm asmi sAgarah -Among lakes I am the Ocean - gItA 10.24. SrI cinmayAnanda points out thatthe glory and might of the oceans are but a tiny reflection of bhagavAn'sglory

divine.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri takes the anubhavam of this nAma a step further andpoints out that just as the waters of all the rivers and canals ultimatelyreach the ocean and lose their identity, so also those who worship BhagavAnbecome one with Him. In this sense He is apAm-nidhih, or the Ocean whereeverybody merges in the end.The dharma cakram writer points out that just as the ocean is the beginningand the end for the water (by evaporation of the waters of the ocean, thevapor rises, condenses and comes back in the forms of rain, which then formsthe rivulets and rivers, and these in turn go back to the ocean), so alsothe beings of this world originate from Him, and ultimately merge back intoHim. Just as the good water as well as the dirty water gets into the oceanbut then lose their identity and get merged into the ocean, so also thejIvAtmA-s attain equality without distinction when they reach Him. Unlikethe bounds which man can place for the lesser bodies of water, there is nobound that he can place for the ocean - another reflection of BhagavAn asapAm-nidhih or Ocean. Though the external surface of the ocean is full ofwaves, its deep inside is peace incarnate, and in this sense also He isapAm-nidhih. 326. adhishThAnam The Support.om adhishThAnAya namah.SrI BhaTTar interprets this as referring to His supporting the mandaramountain in His kUrma incarnation. He gives reference to vishNu purANa insupport "kshIroda-madhye bhagavAn kUrma-rUpI svayam harih | mandarAdreh adhishThAnam bhramato'bhUt mahA-mune || (1.9.88) :Bhagava nArAyaNa Himself, in the form of kUrma, supported themandara mountain in the middle of the Milk Ocean when the mountain wasrevolving (at the time of churning)".SrI Sankara gives the more general meaning that He is adhishThAnam becauseHe is the basis or support for everything in this Universe - adhithishThantibhUtAni. 327. apramattah The Vigilant.om apramattAya namah.He is extremely attentive in the protection of those who are in distress(SrI BhaTTar). pramatta refers to one who is careless or inattentive.apramatta refers to His guNa of extreme vigilance in protecting those whohave surrendered to Him - ASrita-rakshakan. SrI Sankara's interpretationis that He is vigilant in awarding the effects of karma to those who areentitled to them. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that pramada refers to onewho makes errors in judgment, and apramatta is One who does not make errorsin judgment. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that the vigilance herecould also refer to bhagavAn being very careful and vigilant in distributingthe nectar that came out of the churning of the Milk Ocean to theappropriate persons.The dharma cakram writer points out that the lesson we should take from thisnAma is that we should always be vigilant about the thoughts that enter ourmind, and ensure that our thoughts do not stray towards the pleasures ofindriya-s but instead meditate on Him constantly. Just as a thief wouldnot enter a house where people are awake, negative thoughts won't enterone's mind when one is awake and vigilant in the thought of bhagavAn.Whenever negative thoughts enter one's mind, one should divert thosethoughts to positive energy by chanting bhagavAn's nAma instead. This isthe lesson one should take from this nAma. 328. pratishThitah He who is self-dependent.om pratishThitAya namah.One who is supported and established in His own greatness, without anysupport from external sources. The following upanishadic quote echoes thisexplanation almost verbatim "sa bhagavah kva pratishThita iti | sve mahimni" (chAndogya7.24.1) To the question "Where is bhagavAn firmly established?", the replyis "In His own greatness".In vishNu dharma (72.2), we have a similar statement - "sve mahimni sthitamdevam" - "The Lord who rests on His own greatness".One who supports the rest of the Universe obviously is not supported bysomething external, since then His support will depend on something else.We get our greatness from our wealth, our fame, etc., which are allimpermanent; not so with bhagavAn - His greatness is not dependent

onimpermanent things.SrI cinmayAnanda explains this nAma in terms of cause and effect.Everything else in this Universe has its cause, and thus everything else isan effect. Unlike this, bhagavAn is the Ultimate Cause.The lesson we should take from this guNa of bhagavAn is that we should learnto depend on the One who is Permanent in this Universe, and not be dependenton all the impermanent things such as wealth, fame, etc. The dharma cakramwriter gives the example of pANdava-s and kaurava-s. We are constantlyreminded of the impermanent things in life by the occurrence of aging,death, loss of fame, friend becoming enemy, etc., and all these should teachus that the life that is to be led is by meditating on the One who isPermanent, viz. bhagavAn. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 36 329. 330. 331. 332. 333. 334. 335. 336. 337. skandha skanda-dharah dhuryah vara-dah vAyu-vAhanah vAsu-devah bRhad-bhAnuh Adi-devah purandarah

om skandAya namahom skanda-dharAya namahom dhuryAya namahom varadAya namahom vAyuvAhanAya namahom vAsudevAya namahom bRhad-bhAnave namahom Adi-devAya namahom purandarAya namah 329. skandha He who dries up (destroys).om skandAya namah.skandayati Soshayati iti skandah - One who destroys the asura-s and otherevil-doers (SrI BhaTTar). skanda also can mean One who melts like butterwhen it comes to helping His devotees, or flows like nectar in the thoughtsof His bhakta-s - skandati iti skandah (This is one interpretation that SrISankara gives). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to gItA senAnInAmaham skandah (gItA 10.24) - I am skanda among the chiefs of armies. Hereskanda refers to subrahmaNya, who is considered the chief among the chiefsof armies. 330. skanda-dharah The Supporter of skanda.om skanda-dharAya namah.(SrI BhaTTar) - BhagavAn is the supporter of skanda, the commander-in-chiefof the army of gods. The above quote from gItA thus states that skanda is apart of bhagavAn's vibhUti or glory.SrI Sankara's interpretation for the term skanda is "righteous path dharmapatham", and so the vyAkhyAna he gives is that bhgavAn is the upholder ofthe path of dharma. 331. dhuryah The Supporter.om dhuryAya namah.One of the meanings for the word 'dhur' is load. He bore the weight of themandara mountain in His kUrma incarnation, and so He is the Supporter. Heis also the Supporter of the Universe - bhuvana-bhRte. SrI satyadevovAsisshTha gives an alternate meaning also for the word "dhur" the frontpart of an object, and interprets the nAma to mean that bhagavAn is themArga-darSi or one who shows the path for everyone. 332. vara-dah The Grantor of boons.om varadAya namah.varAh abhIpsitah arthah, tam dadAti iti vara-dah. varam also means "thebest", and so One who gives the best to those devotees who pray to Him withdetachment is vara-da. The dharma cakram writer reminds us that the bestfor us is "nalam tarum Sollai nAn kaNDu konDEn nArAyaNA ennum nAmam" pertirumangai AzhvAr. Needless to say what one gets by chanting the nAma ofnArAyaNa - "kulam tarum Selvan tandiDum aDiyAr paDu tuyar Ayina ellAm nilamtaram Seyyum.... peRRa tAyinum Ayina Seyyum". 333. vAyu-vAhanah He who has vAyu as His vehicle.om vAyu-vAhanAya namah.BhagavAn rides on and drives vAyu, the lifebreath of the world. IntiruvezhukkURRirukkai, we have - mEdagum aim-perum bhUtamum nIyE - Hecontrols the pa~nca bhUta-s such as air etc.The dharma cakram writer points out that while air is very important for usto live, this nAma should remind us that mahA vishNu who makes the air moveis just as important to us, and thus we should learn to meditate on Him.SrI Sankara gives the vyAkhyAna that bhagavAn controls the atmosphere in theseven regions of space. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes in detail aboutthese seven regions which are controlled by seven different sons of kaSyapaand diti, because of the powers given to them by bhagavAn. They are calledthe sapta-maruta-s. Six of these regions are listed by many of the authors.These regions are: the space between earth and the clouds, that between theclouds and the sun, that between the sun and the moon, the moon and thestars, the stars and the planets, and the planets and

the sapta-RshimanDala. It is said that it is because of the pressure exerted by theseregions of air that the various stellar objects keep from colliding witheach other.The next 12 nAma-s are interpreted by SrI BhaTTar as referring to adhyAtmavAsudeva or para vAsudeva form of bhagavAn. Prof. A. SrInivAsa rAghavannotes that coincidentally, the vAsudeva mantra also has 12 akshara-s in it. 334. vAsu-devah He who pervades and sports.om Vasu-devAya namah.This nAma occurs again as nAma 701. The name indicates that bhagavAn isvAsu and He is deva. vAsu is derived from vas - to reside and to envelope.sarvam vasati - everything lives in Him, and sarvatra vasati - He liveseverywhere. He is vAsu since He lives in the world making it live withinHimself like a mother and also protects it by covering it like a bird thatprotects its young ones with its out-spread wings. He is deva because Heplays, wishes to conquer, and shines. He also protects the beings asdescribed above (vAsu) as a leelaa, and so He is vAsudeva. The word devais derived from div - krIDAyAm - to play. So all His acts are leelaa-s.The following quotes are given by SrI Sankara and SrI BhaTTar to support theinterpretation: "chAdayAmi jagadviSvam bhUtyA sUrya ivAmSubhih | sarva-bhUtAdhi-vAsaSca vAsu-devah tatah smRtah || -moksh dharma 12-328-36) "Like the sun with his rays, I am covering the whole universe, andalso I am residing in all beings; hence I am called vAsudeva". "vasanAt sarva-bhUtAnAm vasutvAt deva-yonitah | vAsudevastato j~neyah yogibhis_tattva darSibhih || (udyoga69-3) "I am the abode of all beings, and with a divine form I live in allof them. Therefore I am known as vAsudeva by the yogi-s who have realizedthe truth". "sarvatrAsau samastam ca vasatyatreti vai yatah | tatah sa vAsudeveti vidvadbhih paripaThyate || (vishNupurANam 1.2.12) "Learned men declare that bhagavAn is called vAsudeva because Heabides in all things, and al things abide in Him". "sarvANi tatra bhUtAni vasanti paramAtmani | bhUteshu ca sa sarvAtmA vAsudevastatah smRtah || (vishNu purA.6.5.80) "All beings remain in the paramAtman, and He is in all beings; hencethe omnipresent is called vAsudeva".SrI v.v.rAmAnujan points out that bhagavAn got this name also by Hisincarnation as the son of vasudeva. The dharma cakram writer brings outthe subtle point that bhagavAn is in everything and everywhere, and yetsuccessfully conceals Himself from all except His devotees. Hesuccessfully conceals Himself while being present in everything as theantaryAmi, controlling the air, the sun, the planets, etc., havingsvayamprakASa, etc.SrI BhaTTar points out that like the nAma nArAyaNa, this nAma is also arahasyam whose meaning should be learnt from an AcArya, and so is notdiscussed in further detail. 335. bRhad-bhAnuh He of profuse luster.om bRhad-bhAnave namah.bRhat means huge, very large. bhAnu means rays. SrI Sankara gives thefollowing reference:"bRhanto bhAnavo yasya candra sUryAtigAminah | tair-viSvam bhAsayati yah sa bRhad-bhAnurucyate || (udyoga70.4) "He, whose great rays surpass the sun, moon, and others, and He whoilluminates the universe through them, is called bRhad-bhAnuh".SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the support from muNDakopanishad - na tatrasUryo bhAti na candra tArakam nemA vidyuto bhAnti kuto'yamagnih | tamevabhAntam anubhAti sarvam tasya bhAsA sarvamidam vibhAti (2.2.10). The sunand moon get their luster from Him.The dharma cakram writer points out that while the sun gives light to theexternal world, BhagavAn gives light to the Sun as well as the light neededfor us to realize our internal self. 336. Adi-devah The First Deity.om Adi-devAya namah.That He sports with the worlds as He pleases is indicated by the nAmaAdi-devah. As was seen earlier in "vAsu-devah", the term deva refers to HisleelA or sport in creation, protection, and destruction of all the beings.He plays with the act of creation etc. just like a child playing on theseashore by building and smashing sand-castles (SrI v.v.rAmAnujan). "akhilabhuvana janma sthema

bhangAdi leele" - It is His sport to go through thiscycle of creation, protection and destruction.SrI Sankara's vyAkhyAnam is "Adih kAraNam" - The First Cause.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the definition from niruktam - "devo dAnAdvadIpanAdvA dyotanAdvA dyusthAno bhavati (7.25) - deva is one who gives inplenty, one who shines and makes others shine, and one who dwells in space".BhagavAn is Adi-deva in this sense. 337. purandarah a) The Destroyer of the cities.b) The Destroyer of the sufferings from the Adi-daivika causesc) He who helps the devotee in transcending the attachment to sthUla, sUkshma and kAraNa SarIra-sd) He who brings an end to the bodies of all beingsOm purandarAya namah.Puram dArayati iti purandarah - One who destroyed the cities. a) bhagavAn was the antaryAmi of rudra in destroying the three citiesas referenced by nammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhi 1.1.8 (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). The second half of the pASuram is: "puram oru mUnru eRittu amararkkum aRivu iyandu aran ayan ena ulagu azhittu amaittu uLanE"."EmperumAn is the One who destroyed the three cities in the form ofrudra, gave the knowledge of the veda-s to the deva-s in the form ofbrahma, and performs the functions of creation, protection anddestruction".SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives the explanation - purANi SambarAdInAmasurANAm nagarANi dRNAti iti purandarah. He gives reference to the Rgvedic mantra 7.99.5 - indrAvishNU dRgmhitA Sambarasya nava puro navatimca SnathishTham - Ye have destroyed, thou, Indra, and thou, vishNu,Sambara's nine-and-ninety fenced castles.SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is "sura SatrUNAm pura dAraNAt purandarah" -Because He is the Destroyer of the cities of the enemies of the gods,He is called purandarah.b) SrI BhaTTar: asurapurAni dArayati iti purandarah - The destroyer ofthe cities of asura-s. This indicates the removal of fear fromasuras, piSAca-s, thunder and lightning, planets and other troubleswhich go by the name "Adi-daivika" - those that proceed from the gods. Puram in this sense refers to the "dwellings of asura-s".c) SrI cinmayAnanda talks of the "cities" referring to the fields ofexperiences - waking, dream and deep-sleep. Since bhagavAn helps intranscending the Gross, Subtle, and Causal bodies (sthUla, suKshma, andkAraNa), and then experience the self, at that moment the three"cities" are burned down or pillaged or blasted. Without overcomingthe attachment to the sthUla, sUkshma, and kAraNa SarIra-s, we cannotexperience the self. The darma cakram writer graphically explains thatif we consider the sthUla SarIra as belonging to bhagavAn and surrdnerit in His service, then He helps in overcoming our attachment to thesthUla SarIra. If we dedicate the mind to His service and tomeditation on Him, He helps us overcome our actions being controlled byour mind. If we have mahAviSvAsam in Him and surrender to Himunconditionally, He relieves us from the constraints of the kAraNaSarIram as well. This is when we are able to experience the self.Since bhagavAn is the cause of the destruction of the three sArIra-sthat are standing in the way of our experiencing the self, He iscalled purandarah. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha starts with the meaning "body" for the wordpura, and gives the interpretation that since bhagavAn puts an end tothe body, He is purandarah - puram dArayati iti purandarah. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 37 338. a-Sokah 339. tAraNah

340. 341. 342. 343. 344. 345. 346. 347.

tArah SUrah Saurih janeSvarah anukUlah SatAvartah padmI padma-nibhekshaNah

om aSokAya namahom tAraNAya namahom tArAya namahom SUrAya namahom Sauraye namahom janeSvarAya namahom anukUlAya namahom SatAvartAya namahom padmine namahom padmanibhekshaNAya namahThe previous nAma, purandarah, and the following three nAma-s, aSoka,tAraNa, and tAra, are interpreted in terms of bhagavAn's guNa of removingthe fears of different kinds in us. Different vyAkhyAna-kartA-s haveassociated the different types of fears with the different nAma-s, but theunderlying idea is that His dayA is helping to remove these fears from us.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri sums this up nicely "Especially when we havedifficulties of any kind, chanting the sequence of nAmas"aSokas-tAraNas-tArah" will help us overcome these difficulties". SrIBhaTTar has referred to these fears in terms of AdyAtmika, Adi-bhautika, andAdi-daivika. Adi-daivika is the class of fears that can arise from theasura-s etc. The Adibhautika group is the category of fears that canarises from enemies, animals such as tiger, lion, serpent, etc. TheAdyAtmika refers to the fears such as sorrow, delusion, hunger, etc.There is also the major fear, that of the cycle of birth and death, that ofsamsAra.One may wonder how bhagavAn helps in removing the fears of these kinds, whenwe know most of us have the fear anyway. The dharma cakram writer gives avery good explanation. Fear arises when we associate our life with ourbody. When we realize the true nature of our soul, then we know there isnothing to fear, because the soul is neither created nor destroyed. Whenone meditates on mahA vishNu, one realizes this true nature of AtmA, andthen he is relieved of all fears. This is how bhagavAn helps in removingthe fears described below.With this brief introduction, let us look at the individual nAma-s. 338 a-Sokah The dispeller of sorrows.om a-SokAya namahSrI Sankara and SrI BhaTTar give differing but equally enlighteningvyAkhyAna-s for this. SrI BhaTTar points out that bhagavAn has this nAmabecause He is the dispeller of the troubles such as sorrow, delusion,hunger, etc. SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is devoidof defects such as sorrow, delusion, hunger, etc., and so He has this nAma.In SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAna. this nAma is associated with His removing thesorrows of the adhyAtmika kind. The next nAma will be interpreted in termsof Adi-bhautika. nAma 336, purandarah, which was covered last

week, coveredthe category of sorrows designated as Adi-daivika. Thus, the sequence ofnAma-s purandarah, aSokah, tAraNah, and tArah, are interpreted as His guNaof protecting us from all the different kinds of fears. 339. tAraNah He who takes others to the other shore (a boat).om tAraNAya namah.tArayati iti tArah - One who helps in crossing. The interpretation thatSrI BhaTTar gives, continuing on the vyAkhyAna he gave for purandara andaSoka, is that this name refers to His assisting us in overcoming the fearsgrouped as Adi-bhautika. SrI BhaTTar reserves the explanation that He helpsin crossing the ocean of samsAra for the next nAma, tAra, whereas SrISankara associates the current nAma with this guNa of bhagavAn.SrI cinmayAnanda seems to make a subtle suggestion that tAraNa refers tobhagavAn "helping" others crossing the ocean of samsAra, whereas the nextnAma "tAra" refers to His saving others Himself. I wonder if the differenceis one of throwing a stick to someone who is drowning but trying to swim,vs. pulling out the drowning person when he has given up swimming. This isthe kind of distinction that is made sometimes between how the person who ispersuing the bhakti mArga for attaining moksha is helped by bhagavAn vs. onewho is following the prapatti mArga. 340. tArah The Savior.om tArAya namah.SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that He is tArah because He makes Hisdevotees cross over the ocean of samsAra. The following quote fromatharva-Siras (4) - "garbha-janmajarA-maraNa- samsAra sAgara mahA bhayAttArayati tasmAt ucyate tArah" - One who takes His devotee across the greatfear of the ocean of samsAra consisting of garbha-vAsa or conception, birth,aging, and death. 341. SUrah The Valiant.om SUrAya namah.This nAma is derived from the root "Su" to go, and signifies the urge forvictory. Perhaps to emphasize the "go" aspect of this nAma, SrIv.v.rAmAnujan gives examples from divya prabandham which illustrate the"go-get" nature of His victories. "SenRu a~ngu ten ila~ngai SeRRAn" -tiruppAvai; "SenRu a~ngu vANanai Ayiram tOzhim tenRit tiSai tiSai vIzhaccheRRAi" - periYAzhvAr tirumozhi 5.3.4 (Note the choice of the word "SenRu"in both examples).The dharma cakram writer illustrates the significance of this nAma for ourday-to-day life. He points out that whenever there is battle between thedeva-s and asura-s, the asura-s invariable win first, and then the deva-sseek the help of mahA vishNu who then helps them defeat the evil asura-s.Our life is a replay of this scenario, with the constant battle between thebad qualities in us and the good in us. Invariably, the bad will win outunless we seek the help of mahA vishNu by chanting His nAma. This is whatwe should learn from this nAma. 342. Saurih a) The son of valiant people like vasudeva, dasaratha, etc.b) The grandson of SUra, the name of vasudeva's father.c) The descendant of the group of people called SUra-s in the yAdavarace.om Sauraye namah.The above different interpretations are found for this nAma based on thedifferent vyAkhyAna-s. The first is from SrI parAsara BhaTTar and otherswriters who base their vyAkhyAa-s on SrI BhaTTar. The second is from SrISankara. The third is from SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri. In support of thefirst interpretation, SrI v.v.rAmAnujan points out the valor of nandagopan -ODAda tOL valian nadagOpan kumaran, the valor of dasaratha - dayaraRkkumaganAit tOnRi - born as the son of the valiant dasaratha, etc.SrI Sankara's interpretation is that bhagavAn in His incarnation as kRshNawas born as the son of vasudeva, whose

father's name was SUra. SUrasyagotrApatyam pumAn Saurih or SUra kulodbhavAt Saurih. SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri points out that among the yAdava-s, there was a group who were calledthe SUra-s. Since vasudeva was from this group, kRshNa is Saurih. 343. janeSvarah The Lord of the people.om janeSvarAya namah.janAnAm jantUnAm ISvarah janeSvarah - The Lord of all things that are bornor created. The dharma cakram writer points out that bhagavAn is the Leaderof everything by guiding them always as appropriate. When there issuffering, those that meditate on Him benefit by those sufferings byreaching higher levels, and those that don't benefit fall to lower levelstill they reach a point when they feel they need to seek Him. At this pointHe guides them appropriately to the higher levels. SrI satyadevo vAsishThagives the interpretation that He is janeSvarah because He gives aiSvarya orwealth to people. 344. anukUlah One who is within bounds.om anukUlAya namah.kUlam means shore. kUlam anuvartate iti anukUlah - One who is constrainedby the limits. Lord rAma had great valor, but was not was conscious andwonder-struck about that - "vIryavAn na ca vIeyeNa mahatA svena vismitah".SrI P.B. aNNa~ngarAcArya svAmi explains that in spite of His enormous andunbounded greatness, He is easily accessible to those who seek Him. He isbound by bhakti, and this is His AnukUlya svabhAva or ability to be withinbounds. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan points out the incident of His being bound byyaSodA - being within the bounds of what a child is supposed to be -kaNNInUN SiruttAmbinAl kattuNNap paNNiya peru mAyan. Aycci kaNNIkkayiRRinAl kaTTat tAn kaTTuNDirundAn - mUnRAm tiruvantAdi - 91. Withoutknowing His identity, YasodA challenges Him - Make yourself free if you can! - "yadi Saknoshi gaccha tvam ati ca~ncala ceshTita!" - and He just remainstied, because He is anukUlah.SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that He is anukUlah because Healways goes along with whatever anyone does. Thus a murderer commits hismurder, and another helps humanity, and bhagavAn just is the Observer inboth cases. He keeps Himself within His bounds. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstrigives the meaning that anukUla means going towards the shore, based on kUla= shore. bhagavAn is anukUla because He helps His devotees go towards theshore when they try to cross the ocean of samsAra.The dharma cakram writer points out that bhagavAn is always acting His roleas an anukUlah to everyone (including the murderer in the above para) bybeing the internal conscience of everyone and telling them what is right.The inner conscience is always pointing to what is right and what is wrong.Those who obey their inner conscience do not do anything that will benegative to their path of progress towards Him, and those who disobey theirinner conscience deteriorate and move away from Him. But He does His job ofbeing the anukUlah in everyone's case all the time by being their innerconscience. 345. SatAvartah a) He who has several incarnations to sustain dharmab) He whose wealth is bubbling but not overflowing (like vortices)c) He who maintains and manages several cycles - the cycle ofsamsAra for all the beings, the cakra-s of graha-s, nakshatra-s etc.om SatAvartAya namah.Sata means hundred. Here it means innumerable. For the protection ofdharma in the world, He takes infinite varieties of forms or incarnations,and so He is called SatAvarta (SrI Sankara). Recall "dharamasamsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge". Another interpretation, also bySrI Sankara, is that it refers to the 100 nADi's or vessels that proceedfrom the heart and maintain prANa or life in the body - nADI-Sate prANarUpeNa vartata iti vA.dharma cakram: There are several examples which illustrate His guNa ofSatAvarta. He appears in the form of the sun everyday in order to sustainlife in this world. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the reference to atharvaveda - sUryasya AvRtam anvAvarte - 10.5.37. His repeated incarnations inhuman form to protect dharma in this world is another example. Hisprotection of pAnDava-s and draupadi repeatedly when they

were in distressis another example. He protected draupadi from duryodhana's evil act ofstripping her in public, from durvAsa's curse when he tested her byappearing in her house and asking for food after she had cleaned the akshayapAtra, etc. He protected prahlAda from all cruelties meted out to him byhiraNyakaSipu. He did many wonders by protecting the yAdava people in Hisincarnations as kRshNa.Avarta also means vortex. Since His riches (aiSvarya) are so enormous thatthey keep expressing themselves without overflowing like hundreds ofwhirlpools, He is called SatAvarta (SrI BhaTTar). In spite of this, He iseasily accessible to His devotees. This corroborates the Mantra of thepara-aspect of the Lord SAntodita vij~nAna prANAya - Unto Him of tranquiland ever-growing knowledge and life.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning "many" for Sata, and cycle (cakra)for Avarta, and gives the explanation that bhagavAn has this nAma because Herotates or cycles the lives through cycles of samsAra. Another way to lookat this nAma is that He controls different kinds of cycles - nakshatracakra, rASi cakra, graha cakra, etc.The aspects of para-vAsudeva with reference to His qualities have beendescribed so far (from the 334th nAma - vAsudeva). Now begins the rUpa orform of para-vAsudeva in SrI BhaTTar's interpretation. 346. padmI He who carries the lotus in His hand.padmam is what He carries in one of His four hands (Sankha, cakra, and gadAare in the other three hands). The lotus signifies the sAttvic qualities ofbhagavAn viz. dharma, j~nAna, vairAgya, and aiSvarya (SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri). He refers us to SrImad bhAgavatam - itareNa dhunAnam abjam - withthe other hand He is playing with the lotus (10.23.22). The padmam issuggestive of His always being ready to welcome anyone who comes to Him.SrI cinmayAnanda points out that bhagavAn first blows His conch and invitesus to offer His "knowledge" - signified by His padma, and if they don'tlisten to this, He uses His gadA to give a gentle knock, and if this doesnot yield results, then there is the cakra, which annihilates the evil andrestores order again. One is reminded of sAma, dAna, bheda, and danDa.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning "knowledge" for the word padma, andsuggests that one who gives True Knowledge or one who has True Knowledge ispadmI. 347 - padma-nibhekshaNah One who has eyes which resemble the lotus.om padama-nibhkshaNAya namah.This nAma describes the cool, benevolent, kind, inviting, consoling,appearance of His eyes, which look like the lotus flowers. SrIv.v.rAmAnujan provides references from prabandham - "un mugam maiyyal ERRimayakkum mAya mandiram tAn kolO? ceyya tAmaraik kaNNinAi" - nAcciArtirumozhi 2-4; "uvagaiyAl ne~njam uLLurugi un tAmaraik kaN vizhigaLin agavalaip paDuppAn" - tiruvAi mozhi 6.2.7.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that the sequence of nAma-s anukUlahSatAvartah padmI padma-nibhekshaNah all refer to the quality of bhagavAn'shelping nature when one seeks His help.The dharma cakram writer reminds of the saying "The face is the index of themind". In this case, bhagavAn's lotus-eyes are conveying to us His InnerNature. The equivalent of this nAma in tamizh is "tAmaraik kaNNan". -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 38

348. 349. 350. 351. 352. 353. 354. 355. 356.

padma-nAbhah aravindAkshah padma-garbhah SarIra-bhRt maharddhih Rddhah vRddhAtmA mahAkshah garuDa-dvajah

8 om padma-nAbhAya namahom aravindAkshAya namahom padma-garbhAya namahom SarIra-bhRte namahom maharddhaye namahom RddhAya namahom vRddhAtmane namahom mahAkshAya namahom garuDa-dhvajAya namah 348. padma-nAbhah One with a lotus-like navel.om padmanAbhAya namahThis nAma has occurred twice earlier. In the current context where thebeauty of the celestial form of para-vAsudeva is described, the nAma meansOne with a lotus-like navel. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives references toprabandham to support this interpretation "ayanaip paDaitta ezhil undiazhagu" - amalanAdippirAn; tAmarai undit tanip peru nAyagan -tiruvASiriyam.The other interpretations - One who resides in the center of the heart-lotusof every one, and One from whose navel, the Universe sprung forth in theform of an eight-petalled lotus with the meru mountain as the pericap, havebeen explained previously.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's vyAkhyAna is again unique in not following theother interpretations. He interprets padma as "flower" or something thatdisplays colorfully, and nabh as something that does not express itself asbrilliantly. Thus, he interprets padmanAbha as one who at the same time isthe two extremes. He is the knowledge in the learned and the lack ofknowledge in the not-learned; the one who reveals Himself to His devoteesand hides Himself from the non-devotees, like the lotus that blossoms in thepresence of the sun and the same lotus that folds its petals when the sundisappears. 349. aravindAkshah

The Lotus-eyed.om aravindAkshAya namah.aravinda sadRSe akshiNi asya iti aravindAkshah. izahai koLSOdic-cendAmaraik kaN pirAn - tiruvAi mozhi 6-5-5; SevvariyODi nINDaapperiavAya kaNgaL - amalanAdi pirAn - 8; and rAmah kamala patrAkshah(sundara kANDa) are given as references by SrI v.v.rAmAnujan. The meaning issimilar to that of puNDarIkAkshah - nAma 40.SrI cinmayAnanda brings the similarity to the lotus in that His eyes open toHis devotees (like the sun opening up in the presence of the bright sun),and closes to the non-devotees (when it gets dark).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the word "ar" which meansgati, and vindati - prApnoti or One who has, and thus gives the meaning"candra and sUrya" to aravinda. Thus he derives the meaning "One who hascandra and sUrya as His two eyes" for the nAma aravindAksha. 350. padma-garbhah He who is installed in a lotus.om padma-garbhAya namah.He is meditated upon as being seated on a lotus replete with fragrance anddelicacy suited to Him. The words "sarasijAsana sannivishTah" is all toofamiliar to us. An alternate interpretation is that He is seated in theheart-lotus of those that meditate on Him daharam vipApmam para-veSmabhUtam yat-puNDarIkam - The lotus (i.e., heart) which is subtle, flawless,and which is the seat of the Supreme Being. SrI rAmAnujan gives referenceto tiruvAi mozhi taNDAmarai Sumakkum pAdap-perumAn - 4.5.8.SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He is fit to be worshipped in themiddle of the heart-lotus, and so He is called padma-garbhah - padmasyamadhye upAsyatvAt padma-garbhah. 351. SarIra-bhRt The Protector of the bodies of everyone through foodand life-energy.om SarIra-bhRte namah.He is the Sustainer of the bodies of those who meditate on Him, since it isHis guNa-s on which they meditate that sustains them. sva-SArIra-bhUtamupAsakam pushNAti iti SarIra-bhRt - He considers their bodies as His, andprotects them (SrI BhaTTar).Or, He protects all the beings in this Universe through food and life-energyposhayan anna rUpeNa prANa rUpeNa vA SarIriNAm SarIrANi dhArayati itiSarIra-bhRt (SrI Sankara).SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives yet another interpretation - He supports(bears) different bodies in different incarnations for the protection ofdharma and elimination of adharma.Next the magnificence of bhagavAn is described. 352. maharddhih He of immense riches.om maharddhaye namah.mahatI Rddhih vibhUtih asya iti maharddhih - One who has enormousprosperity ( SrI Sankara). SrI cinmayAnanda points out that Rddhi referstot he combination of prosperity and power. He has boundless riches whichcan bring about the well-being and protection of His devotees - tad-yogakshema nissIma vibhUtih (SrI BhaTTar). SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives thereference to tiruvAi mozhi - vIRRirundu Ezh ulagum tanik-kOl Sella ALumammAn (4.5.1).The dharma cakram writer points out that wealth is of two kinds - thematerial wealth (poruL Selvam) and the wealth of benevolence and Mercy (aruLSelvam). Material wealth can be found both in the good and bad; but thewealth of kindness and benevolence is found only in the good. bhagavAn isfull of both kinds of wealth, and so He is maharddhih. Those who meditateon mahA vishNu's nAma of maharddhih will be blessed with these kinds ofwealth. 353. Rddhah One who keeps growing; Prosperous.om RddhAya namah. He grows when His devotees grow. He crowned vibhIshaNa and as a result Hebecame happy and void of any worry; so He grows happy when His devoteesgrow. SrI Sankara points out that He is Rddhah because He is the expansein the form of the

Universe - prapa~nca rUpeNa vardhamAnatvAt Rddhah.The dharma cakram writer points out that He grows beyond the reach of theknowledge of beings. It is only by meditating on His guNa-s that one canreach Him. Thus He is Rddhah. 354. vRddhAtmA One who is full-grown.om vRddhAtmane namah.vRddha means old. Since He is the oldest or the most ancient Self or AtmA,He is called vRddhAtmA. A natural growth cycle for human beings isdescribed by the dharma cakram writer. A cycle of this in samsAra startsfrom the womb, being born, growing up to be a child, a boy/girl, an olderperson, and IF the person meditates on bhagavAn and leads the life thatleads to moksha, and reaching SrI vaikunTham at the time of the death of thebody. This last stage is the cultimnation of the full growth in this cycle.bhagavAn was in the full-grown state before anything existed, without goingthrough this cycle, and so He is vRddhAtmA. He was the Self before allcreation. 355. mahAkshah a) He with a (vehicle of) powerful axle.b) One with Great Eyes.om mahAkshAya namah.aksha means axle. SrI BhaTTar points out that in this case this refers to achariot, by means of a figure of speech where a part is used to refer to thewhole. So mahAkshah means One who has a vehicle worthy of reverence. Thisvehicle is garuDa, the embodiment of veda-s.aksha also means eyes. SrI Sankara uses this meaning in his interpretation- mahatI akshiNI asya iti mahAkshah - One who has great eyes. They aregreat in the sense that they can see not only the external object, but cansee through everything everywhere inside and outside without exception, andnothing is hidden from them. These eyes see through all that is happeningdeep within the bosom of all creatures (SrI cinmayAnanda). SrI Sankaraalso gives an alternate interpretation - mahAntyakshAni asya iti mahAkshah -The possessor of divine senses unattached to objects (SrI anantakRshNaSAstri's translation), or One who has many glorious eyes (SrI T. S.kRshNamUrti's translation).The dharma cakram writer points out that the Greatness of His Eyes refers totheir power to remove the darkness of aj~nAna when they fall on His devotee.Meditating on this nAma of mahA vishNu will give the ability to see thingswith the eye of detachment and affection rather than with the eye of desireand greed, and in opening the eye of j~nAna in the devotee.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning "one who leads" to the word aksha(this is also related to the meaning axle or vehicle), or one that helps inmoving. So mahAkshah is one who shows the path to everyone. 356. garuDa-dvajah One who has garuDa in His banner.om garuDa-dvajAya namah.bhagavAn has the unique symbol of garuDa as His banner, just as He has theunique association with tulasi, with Goddess Lakshmi, etc. In addition tobeing His vAhanam, garuDa is His banner as well. SrI cinmayAnanda pointsout that the eagle soars high in the sky and can see even the minutestobject on the ground and purifies the land by removing the impurities suchas the carrion etc. Similarly, the Lord never allows any negative thoughtsin the heart of His devotees, and hence the eagle is considered as Hissymbol. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to mahA bhAratam where garuDarequested SrIman nArAyaNa for permission to stand on top of Him when garuDahad to fetch amRta for securing the release of his mother. bhagavAn madehim His banner to grant this request, and He also asked garuDa to be Hisvehicle. This is how garuDa is both the flag and the vehicle. I do nothave a copy of mahA bhAratam with me to further elaborate on this reference.The dharma cakram writer points out that garuDa being the vAhana forbhagavAn symbolizes that the jivAtmA exists for the service of theparamAtmA, and the case of jaTAyu illustrates that when the jIvAtmA devotesits life in the service of the paramAtmA, moksham is the naturalculmination. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points to the powerful eagle movingfast while removing the poisonous serpents at sight, similar to bhagaVanremoving the sins of His devotees.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 39 357. atulah 358. Sarabhah 359. bhImah 360. samayaj~nah 361. havir-harih 362. sarva-lakshNalakshaNyah 363. lakshmIvAn 364 - samti~njayah

om atulAya namahom SarabhAya namahom bhImAya namahom samayaj~nAya namahom havir-haraye namahsarva-lakshaNa lakshaNyAya namahlakshmIvate namahsamiti~njayAya namah 357. atulah The Incomparable.om atulAya namahReaders may be familiar with the word "tulA", which is used to refer to abalance. atulah is One who has no equal. tulopamAnam asya na vidyata itiatulah - There is nothing known that is comparable to Him. SrI Sankaragives the following references - "na tasya pratimA asti yasya nAma mahadyaSah" - For Him whose name is Great Glory, there is no likeness -SveTasva. upa. 4.19; "na tvat-samo'sti abhyadhikah kuto'nyah" - gItA 11.43- There is no one equal to You, where is the question of someone exceedingYou? SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers to tiruvAi mozhi - tan oppAr il appan -6.3.9.The dharma cakram writer reminds us that the One who should be praised by usis mahA vishNu, and not people around us for the benefit of some favor.Those who do the former raise to the level that they praise Him, and thosewho do the latter fall further from where they are. This is thesignificance of this nAma for real life. 358. Sarabhah a) The Destroyer (of those who transgress the bounds ofethics). b) One who shines as the Inner Self.om SarabhAya namah.a) SRNAti iti Sarabhah (SrI BhaTTar). The interpretation is based on theverb SR to injure, to destroy.b) Sara means body for the following reason - SeeryaMANAt Sarah - That whichis

perishable. BhA means to shine. .Sarabhah thus refers to One who shinesin the body (SrI Sankara, SrI cinmayAnanda etc.). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstrirefers us to Sarabhopanishat (30) - SarA jIvAs-tadan~ngeshu bhAti nityamharih svayam | brahmaiva Sarabha sAkshAt.SrI SAstri also gives an alternate interpretation Sara refers to an arrow,but if this body is aimed at bhagavAn, then even the perishable body shines,because He shines in that body. 359. bhImah The Formidable.om bhImAya namah.bibhyati iti bhImah. The nAma is derived from the verb bhI - to fear. Thewhole world operates in an orderly way in fear of violation of His will.bhIshA'smAt vAtah pavate - The wind does not transgress its bound out offear from Him (taittirIya AraN 8). Also from kaThopanishad we have"bhayAdeva agnistapati bhayAt tapati sUryah | bhayAt indraSca vAyuScamRtyur-dhAvati pa~ncamah || (2.6.3) - Only out of fear from Him the fireburns, the sun blazes, indra and vAyu discharge their duties, and death, asthe fifth, runs (performs its duties). The same idea is expressed in thebrahma sUtra 1.3.40 kampanAt.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to the terror He created in the heart ofhiraNyakaSipu. We have in tiruvAi mozhi 7.6.8 - ari kAN nariyAi arakkarULaiyiTTu anRu ila~ngai kaDandu pilambukkoLippa - He made the rAkshasa-s inlankA run and hide for cover like the wolves on seeing a lion.The dharma cakram writer points out that as long as there are beings who donot have God realization, the only thing that keeps them under control isfear, and once they have realized Him, they do not have anything to fear.SrI Sankara has also considered an alternate pATham - viz. abhIma - One whocauses no fear to those who follow the proper path. 360. samayaj~nah The Knower of the conventions.om samayaj~nAya namah.He is samayaj~na since He establishes the rules e.g., that when the fireburns, the flame goes upwards, and also at the time of creation after thepralaya, He establishes the path of the Sun, the moon and the planets -sUryA-candramaso dhAtA yathApUrvam akalpayat (tai. nArA. 1).SrI Sankara refers to His knowing the methods and timing of the acts ofcreation, preservation, and dissolution of the Universe. Another way he hasinterpreted this nAma is as sama yaj~nah - One who has the yaj~na orobservance of treating everyone equally without showing preferentialtreatment. He gives reference to vishNu purANam - samatvam ArAdhanamacutasya (1.17.90).SrI BhaTTar also offers an alternate interpretation - He knows the propertime when He should offer Himself to the devotees, or the proper time whenHe should fulfil the vow of protection He has taken.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers to the incidence of nRsimha avatAra, wherebhagavAn knew exactly when to appear in the pillar - iraNiyan tUN puDaippaa~ngu appozhudE avan vIyat tOnRiya en Si~ngap-pirAn tiruvAi mozhi - 2.8.9.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes six kinds of strategies that a king issupposed to adopt in warfare, including when to fight, when to compromise,when to seek another's help, when to let two adversaries collide with eachother and thus weaken themselves, when to attack, and when to wait for theattack. He points out that Lord kRshNa amply demonstrated these differenttechniques when He guided the pANDava-s in their war with the kaurava-s, andthis is an explanation for this nAma.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is the onlyone who knows the past, present and future, the changes in climate, the pathof the planets, when the beings will be born and in what body, when thisbody will die, etc.The dharma cakram writer adds more dimension to the anubhavam of this nAmaby pointing out that bhagavAn knows when He needs to appear among us in Hisincarnations (dharma samsthApanArthAya sambahavAmi yuge yuge). He also knewwhen to send kunti to karNa to get him to promise that he won't attempt tokill any pANDava other than arjuna, etc. 361. havir-harih

Hari who is the recipient of the havis offered in theyaj~na.om havir-haraye namahThis nAma has been considered as two separate nAma-s by somevyAkhAna-kartA-s. So we will look at the interpretation for havir-harih,havih, and harih.havis is the name given to the offering in a yAga. So one interpretationfor this nAma is Hari or vishNu who is the ultimate acceptor of theofferings - yaj~neshu havir-bhAgam harati iti havir-harih. SrI Sankaragives reference to the gItA - aham hi sarva yaj~nAnAm bhoktA ca prabhurevaca (9.24).The word havis is derived from the root hu, which means both "to accept" and"to offer". He both enjoys His devotees, and is the subject of enjoyment byHis devotees, and thus again He is havir-harih. The word "harih" is derivedfrom the root hR - to obtain. One who is obtained by offering of havis ishavirharih.Also we have in mahA bhArata hrAmyagham ca smartR*NAm havirbhAgam kratushvaham | varNaSca me haridveti tasmAd harir_aham smRtah ||(SAnti parva 330.3) "I destroy the sins of those who remember Me, and also receive theoblations in sacrifices; My complexion also is blue; hence I am namedHari".harih also means one who removes the obstacles - harir harati pApAni.The following nAma-s, up to 379, are interpreted by SrI BhaTTar in thecontext of the lakshmI-patitvam (vishNu as the Consort of Lakshmi) ofbhagavAn para-vAsudeva. 362. sarva-lakshNa-lakshaNyah a) He who is the abode of all the auspiciousqualitiesb) He who is the ultimate definition of all good qualitiesc) He who is pointed to as the Ultimate Truth through allanalysisd) He who reveals Himself through everything around usom sarva-lakshaNa lakshaNyAya namah.SrI BhaTTar gives the following dhyAna Sloka that identifies some of thesedistinguishing marks. "dhyAyet kamala-garbhAbham devam lakshmI-patim tatah | kamalAlaya hetISa vibhUshita kara-dvayam|| "One should meditate on that Deity who is the Consort of Lakshmi,who has the splendor of the inner part of a lotus, and whose two hands areadorned by the lotus which is the abode of Lakshmi and cakra which is thelord of all weapons".He also gives reference to the mantra "puNDarIkAksha! sakala-sukha saubhAgyavAridhe!" - Oh the Lotus-eyed Lord! The Sea of Bliss and Good Fortune!SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to other examples from divya prabandham -alarmEl ma~ngai uRai mArbA! nigar-il pugazhAi! ulagam mUnRu uDaiyAi!;tiruvin maNALan tiruvAi mozhi 1.9.1. He also refers us to vishNu purANam- paSyatAm sarva-devAnAm yayau vakshasthalam hareh - When the nectar byname Lakshmi came out of the Milky Ocean when it was churned, She chose thevaksha-sthalam of mahA vishNu straight out of the Ocean even though all thedeva-s were standing there; such are His lakshaNa-s or attributes.SrI Sankara's interpretation is He is the lakshaNya or end result that isobtained through all lakshaNa-s or pramANa-s. i.e., all means ofinvestigation ultimately lead to Him as the Supreme Knowledge or theUltimate Truth.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that bhagavAn is the ultimate definitionfor each and every lakshaNa or attribute, and so He is sarvalakshaNalakshaNyah.The dharma cakram writer points to four types of pramANa-s which are usedfor recognizing something. These are: prakyaksha pramANa (recognitionthrough our senses, such as taste, touch etc.), yukti pramANa (recognitionthrough indirect evidence - such as recognizing fire through smoke), SAstrapramANa (what is laid down in scriptures, and anubhava pramANa (what weexperience ourselves, e.g., head ache). He gives the example of rAmakRshNaparamahamsa who recognized God as the Only Truth through all thesepramANa-s. He could talk to God, he could not live without the thought ofGod just as we can't live without air, he recognized him through theSAstra-s, and in essence he recognized God as the ultimate Truth through allthe pramANa-s.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha describes this nAma's significance by pointing outthat He is sarva-lakshaNa lakshaNya since everything that we see points toHim as the reason behind it. He defines Himself through everything that wecan see or otherwise recognize. 363. lakshmIvAn He who is always with Lakshmi.om lakshmIvate namahProf. SrInivAsa rAghavan, in his translation of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAna,adds a personal note that this tattvam, viz. the association betweenbhagavAn and Lakshmi, should be learned through an AcArya. I am stilladding the few words that I am picking up from

the translation.There are two things that are eternal and always existed and will alwaysexist, without beginning or end. One is bhagavAn. The other is prakRti,the Primordial Matter that is the material from which all the things in thisUniverse are created. This Primordial Matter signifies Lakshmi, theUniversal Mother. The Universe is a result of the Union of these two.Neither exists without the other. There is change in the svarUpam of theprakRti depending on the proportion of the three guNa-s viz. sattva, rajsand tamas, but prakRti does not end at the time of pralaya, nor does itbegin at the beginning of the world. The mUla-prakRti which isbeginningless and endless just like bhagavAn, is none other than Lakshmi.SrI BhaTTar has given the following Sloka in support "dvayam devI-pariNaye leelayaiva samarpayan | prakASayan anAditvam AtmanA prakRthe saha || mat-karaih anuviddheyam prakRtih prAkRtaih aham | yato'ham ASritaSca asyA mUrtih mayi etat AtmikA || "At the time of my marriage with Lakshmi, I in a playful mood,revealed the secret to all that the Supreme Reality is a couple, and notnArAyaNa alone, nor Lakshmi alone. Then I also revealed that like MyselfLakshmi is also beginningless (i.e. eternal). This prakRti was embraced byMy hands, and I by Her hands; wherefore I have resorted to Her, and She, inHer turn, has resorted to Me. (So we are always together".SrI cinmayAnanda echoes the same spirit through the following words: "He isthe Spirit (purusha) that thrills the entire world-of-matter (prakRti).Matter thrilled with the spirit is the dynamic world that we see around.Thus, the manifested Lord is ever wedded to Lakshmi". 364 - samti~njayah He who is victorious in battles.om samiti~njayAya namah.One meaning for the word samiti is battle. samitim yuddham jayati itisamiti~njayah - He who conquers the wars or battles (SrI Sankara). He isthe destroyer of all pain in all the devotees. He helps overcome the feelingof independence from Him in the jIvAtmA-s, and thus brings true happiness tothem by winning over their minds (SrI BhaTTar).SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri uses the meaning "gathering" or "assembly" for theword samiti, and gives the meaning that bhagavAn wins over the samiti nomatter how large it is, if it is ganged up against Him. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 40 365. 367. 368. 369. 370. 371. 372. 373. 374. viksharah mArgah hetuh dAmodarah sahah mahIdharah mahI-bhAgah vegavAn amitASanah

om viksharAya namahom rohitAya namahom mArgAya namahom hetave namahom dAmodarAya namahom sahAya namahom mahI-dharAya namahom mahA-bhAgAya namahom vegavate namahom amitASanAya namah 365. viksharah He who never wanes.om viksharAya namahSrI Sankara bhAshyam is "vigatah ksharah (nASo) yasya asau viksharah" - Onewho has no decay. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn's lovefor His devotees never diminishes, and He is vikshara by this reason.366. rohitah - He who is of red complexion.om rohitAya namah.kamala garbhAbatvAt rohitah - He who has the red color of the inside of alotus. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAimozhi - 8.4.7: "tirucceyya kamalak kaNNum Sev-vAyum SevvaDiyum Seyya kaiyum tiruc-ceyya kamalaundiyum Seyya kamala mArbum". Seyya here means reddish colored, kamalameans lotus.rohita also refers to a species of fish, and SrI Sankara has given thealternate interpretation that it can refer to His matsya incarnation, in theform of a reddish hued fish.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root ruh - bIja janmaniprAdurbhAve ca - to grow, to increase, to rise, to reach, and gives theinterpretation "prAdurbhavati iti rohitah - One who expresses Himself or Onewho causes all beings to express themselves is rohitah. 367. mArgah He who is sought after.om mArgAya namah.mArgyate iti mArgah - He is mArgah because He is always sought after by Hisworshippers. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAi mozhi nURRandAdi91 - "tAL aDaindAr ta~ngatku tAnE vazhit-tuNaiyAm kALa-megattai" - Heaccompanies and shows the way to those who have surrendered to Him. SrISankara gives an additional intepretation - He is mArga because He shows theway for the attainment of Supreme Bliss. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri givesanother aspect - After the Universe disappears at the time of praLaya, it isHe who is the way for the world's re-appearance. 368. hetuh The Cause.om hetave namah.He is the cause for the realization of the desires of His devotees. SriSankara gives the interpretation that He is both the instrumental andmaterial cause of the Universe.The dharma cakram writer nicely distinguishes between bhagavAn the Cause,and bhagavAn the effects. He points out that in general we see the effects,but we don't see the cause behind the effects as easily. This is true inthe different aspects of life - we use the Universe, but we don't understandbhagavAn who is the Cause of the Universe. We see the body, but we don'tsee the five elements which are the constituents of this body. He isvisible only to the yogi-s and the j~nAni-s as the Cause of the Universe.

369. dAmodarah 1) He who has the worlds in His belly.2) One who was tied around His waist by ropes by YaSodA3) One who has happiness for His devotees4) One who is attained by observances such as damA.om dAmodarAya namah.The word dAma can refer to a rope, the worlds, happiness, etc. The wordudaram means belly. Based on these, there are different interpretations.1) udare dAmAni asya iti dAmodarah - One who has all the worlds in Hisbelly. This interpretation is supported by vyAsa's words: "dAmAni loka nAmAni tAni yasya udara antare | tena dAmodaro devah SrIdharah Sri-samASritah || (attributed tovyAsa but no reference given)2) dAmnA udare baddha iti dAmodarah - One who was tied around His waist witha cord. The support for this interpretation is from brahma purANa: "tayor madhya-gatam baddham dAmnA gADham tayodare | tataSca dAmodaratAm sa yayau dAma bandhanAt || (brahmapuRaNa 76.14)(Note: The reference to the above is given differently in the differentvyAkhyAna-s as stanzas 5.6.20, 184.41, and 76.14. Since I do not have acopy of brahma purANa with me, I could not verify the correct reference. Ifany of our readers have the original source, please verify the correctreference and let me know. I would sincerely appreciate it).SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to divya prabandham - veNNei vizhu~nga veguNDuAicci kaNNik kayiRRinAl kaTTat tAn kaTTuNDirundAn - mUnRAm tiruvantAdi.SrI A. SrInivAsa rAghavAcArya svAmi in his interpretation in tamizh in SrInRsimha priyA points out that the act of bhagavAn willingly getting Himselftied around with a rope just demonstrates that He becomes abhaktapara-tantran i.e., He subjects Himself to His devotees' wishes. Inthis case, He subjected Himself to yaSodA's wish that He be constrained bythe rope. He even shed tears when He was tied in order to please her.3) SrI BhaTTar gives an additional interpretation based on "devAnAm sukhasamSitvAt dAmAt dAmodaram viduh" (udyoga parva 71.9)- They know Him asdAmodara because He has "dAma" or joy, indicating happiness for the gods.4) SrI Sankara has given the additional interpretation - damAdi sAdhanenaudarA (utkRshTA) matih (yA tayA gamyata) iti dAmodarah - One who is knownthrough the mind which is purified (udarA or utkRshTA) by means ofself-control (dama) and other qualities. He gives the support frommahAbhArata - damAt dAmodaro viduh (udyoga parva 5.69.8).The dharma cakram writer very nicely remarks that the One who was tied bythe rope can be known only by "tieing" or controlling the pa~nca indriya-sand directing them towards Him and His service. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstripoints out that this nAma has the greatness that at the same time it showsthe greatness of bhagavAn in having the whole Universe inside Him and thesimplicity of being tied by a rope and contained by His devotee. 370. sahah He who has patience.om sahAya namah.sahate iti sahah. SrI BhaTTar links this nAma to the previous one bypointing that He patiently accepted being tied by the rope as dAmodara.nammAzhvAr sings this patience of Lord kRshNa - ettitRam! uralinODuiNaindirundu E~ngiya eLivE (tiruvAimozhi 1.3.1) - referenced by SrIv.v.rAmAnujan. SrI Sankara vyAkhyAna is that He forgives the lapses of Hisdevotees - sahate sarvAn abhibhavati iti sahah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstripoints out that He bears the burden of the Universe for the sake of thewelfare of the creatures in the Universe. The dharma cakram writer pointsout that He patiently waits till we attain the maturity needed to reach Himand be united with Him. He also refers to the incident where He put up withSiSupAla's abusive words more than a hundred times and had given word toSiSupAla's mother to that effect. 371. mahIdharah The Supporter of the Earth.om mahIdharAya namah.This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 319. There the meanings given were thatHe supports the earth by ridding it of evil-doers, or that He accepts thepUjA from the devotees.Under the current nAma, SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He bearsthe Earth in the shape of mountains. He gives reference to vishNu purANa -vanAni vishNur girayo diSaSca - 2.12.37) - The forests, mountains, anddirections are all vishNu. He bears the earth by propping it up in the formof

mountains. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers to His bearing the Earth between Histeeth in His varAha incarnation eyiRRu iDai maN koNDa endai - periyAzhvArtirumozhi 5.2.3. 372. mahI-bhAgah He who is extremely Fortunate.om mahA-bhAgAya namah.SrI BhaTTar explains that Lord kRshNa has the good fortune (mahA bhAgya) ofbeing chosen for service as their Lord by the cowherdess nILa, sixteenthousand celestial damsels, rukmiNi, satyabhAmA, jAmbavati, and others. SrIv.v.rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAomozhi - vaDivu iNai illA malar-magaLmaRRum maN-magaL piDikkum mel-aDiyAn - 9.2.10.SrI Sankara gives the vyAkhyAna that He is fortunate in being able to takeany form He likes, or He who gets the best of everything in Hisincarnations.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that He is mahAbhAgah because He gets themajor (mahA)portion (bhAga) of any offering as He likes. He refers us tothe incident of the offering by the gopa-s to the govardhana giri instead ofto indra at the insistance of kRshNa. Lord kRshNa appeared at the top ofthe govaradhana mountain and accepted all the offerings. 373. vegavAn He who is quick.om vegavate namah.SrI BhaTTar points out that even when He was child kRshNa, His actions weredisplaying His irresistible supremacy and Lordship. SrI v.v.rAmAnujanrefers us to theincident of pUtanA, SakaTAsura, lifting of govardhana giri at the tip of thefinger, etc. tiruvAi mozhi 6.4 is full of these incidents. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri points to the incident of rukmiNi svayamvaram as anexample of the quickness of action that He displays. SrI cinmayAnanda givesthe interpretation that He reaches His devotees fast the moment they thinkof Him because He is everywhere and all-pervading.SrI Sankara interprets the nAma in terms of the ISopanishad declaration (4)"anejadekam manso javIyah - He is unmoving, but at the same time faster thanthe mind". The context here is that He is inside us, but no amount ofreasoning with our mind can decipher Him and figure Him out. He cannot beunderstood by reason and logic alone, since even a lifetime of reasoningwith the mind that is faster than anything that is known will not result inrealizing Him. 374. amitASanah a) The voracious Eater.b) He who gives unlimited supply of food to His creations.om amiTaSanAya namah.amitam aSnAti iti amitASanah - One who eats huge quantities. SrI BhaTTarpoints out that Lord kRshNa displayed His greatness, among other acts, byswallowing the unlimited quantity of food offered to govardhana giri, makingthe cowherds exclaim in wonder - "devo vA dAnavo vA tvam" - "Who are you adeva or an asura?" - vishNu purANam 5.13.121. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers usto divya prabandham - aTTukkuruvi SORRup-paruppadamum tayir vAviyumneyyaLarum aDa~ngap poTTattuRRu - One who in a fraction of a second consumeda huge amount of rice heaped like a mountain, a huge amount of curd thatlooked like a canal, ghee that was poured like a big puddle, plenty ofvegetables, etc. (periyAzhvAr tirumozhi 3.5.1), and to "kArEzh kaDalEzhmalai Ezhulagu uNDum ArA vayiRRAn - tiruvAi mozhi 10.9.2. This nAma issimilar to nAma 304 - mahASanah.SrI Sankara interprets the nAma in terms of His swallowing the wholeUniverse at the time of praLaya. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out thatthere is nothing that He cannot digest, since He is the jATarAgni thatdigests the food that every being consumes - aham vaiSvAnaro bhUtvA ....pacAmyannam caturvidham (gItA 15.14). The dharma cakram writer points outthat we can neither live and grow without eating, nor live without digestingthe food we eat, and both are made possible by Him, and this is siginifiedby this nAma.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the above interpretation, as well as analternate interpretation - amitAn prANinah ASayati = bhojayati itiamitASanah - He is amitASanah because He gives unlimited supply of food toHis creation, which is itself immeasurable.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 41 375. 376. 377. 378. 379. 380. 381. 382. 383. 384. 385. udbhavah khsobhaNah devah SrI-garbhah parameSvarah karaNam kAraNam kartA vikartA gahanah guhah

om udbhavAya namahom kshobaNAya namahom devAya namahom SrI-garbhAya namahom parameSvarAya namahom karaNAya namahom kAraNAya namahom kartre namahom vikartre namahom gahaNAya namahom guhAya namah 375. udbhavah a) He who removes the bondage.b) He who is beyond the bondage of samsAra.c) He who is the origin of the Universe.om udbhavAya namahOne who removes the bondage of samsAra of those who meditate upon Him. SrIBhaTTar points out that those who meditate on the incident of His beingbound by the rope (kaNNinuN Sirut-tAmbinAl kaTTuNNap paNNiya perumAyan) willbe removed from the bondage of samsAra udbhavo bhavah asmAt iti udbhavah.SrI Sankara gives the interpretation is that He is free from the

bondage ofexistence, and so He is udbhavah - udgato bhavAt samsArAt iti udbhavah.SrI Sankara's alternate interpretation is that He is the Origin of theUniverse - prapa~nca utpatti upAdAna kAraNatvAt udbhavah. 376. khsobhaNah The Creator of a commotion.om khshobaNAya namah.The nAma is derived from the root kshub sa~ncalane to cause motion ordisturbance. kshobayati iti kshobaNah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam isbandhArhAn kshobayati iti kshobhaNah - One who creates tumult in the mindsof those who are fit to be bound in samsAra. SrI Sankara's vyAkhyAna isthat He creates vibration and agitation in purursha and prakRti(consciousness or jiva-s and primordial matter) at the time of creation byentering them. He refers us to vishNu purANa in support "prakRtim purusham caiva praviSya AtmeccayA harih | kshobhayAmAsa sarga-kAle vyayAvyayI || (V.P. 1.2.29)An alternate interpretation, supported by SrI satyadevo vAsisshTha, SrIcinmayAnada, etc., is that He is kshobaNah because He keeps the beings inthe Universe vibrant by being their antaryAmi and constantly keeping them inmotion. 377. devah He who sports Himself.om devAya namah.dIvyati krIDati iti devah. He plays with the jiva-s by binding them withmAyA or prakRti. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to divya prabandham - palapala mAya mayakkukkaLAl inburum iv-viLaiyATTuDaiyAn (tiruvAimozhi 3.10.7).A similar concept is expressed in nAma 312 (nahushah), 335 (Adidevah), etc.SrI cinmayAnanda points out that the term dIvyati means "to shine', 'toconquer', ' to praise', etc. SrI Sankara includes the play of creation,the desire to conquer the enemies of gods, functioning in all beings,shining in all beings, being praised by the holy men, pervading all, etc.,as the reasons for His being the only deva. He quotes the SvetAsvatAraupanishad - eko devah sarva bhUteshu gUDhah (6.11) - There is only one Godwho is hidden in all things that exist - in support. 378. SrI-garbhah a) He who has Lakshmi always with Him in His play asdevah.b) He who has Lakshmi in Him in the form of the Universe.c) He who is the abode of all auspicious qualities (SrI).om SrI-garbhAya namah.He is inseparably united with Lakshmi. In His play as the deva He hasLakshmi always as His companion. vishNoh eshA anapAyinI - She is everinseparable from vishNu - vishNu purANa - 1.9.144. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnamis "bhoga-krIDA sahAyatvena vardhanIyA asya SrIh iti SrI-garbhah - He isinseparable from SrI or Lakshmi in His sports. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers todivya prabandham - kOla malarp pAvaikku anbAgiya en appan - tiruvAimozhi10.10.7.SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He has Lakshmi or aiSvarya in Hisbelly in the form of the Universe. SrI cinmayAnanda gives theinterpretation that He has all the glories (SrI) in Himself, and so He isSrI-garbhah.The dharma cakram writer points out that just as the wealth that a motherprotects carefully is the child in her womb, a stingy person protects hiswealth, and a j~nAni protects his knowledge, so also mahAvishNu protects theUniverse. Just as the child cannot live independent of the mother, so alsothe Universe can't exist without bhagavAn.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn is the antaryAmi insideeveryone in this Universe (SrI), and this is as if He is in the garbha ofthe Universe, and so He is called SrI-garbhah. 379. parameSvarah The Supreme Ruler.om parameSvarAya namah.aiSvarya means Lordship. BhagavAn is parameSvarah because He is the Lord ofall, including mahA Lakshmi - tiruvukkum tiruvAgiya SelvA - tirumozhi 7.7.1.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri derives the meaning from parA mA - paramA -mahAlakshmi, One who is above all Sakti-s. This paramA voluntarily seeksthe place in His vaksha-sthala and serves Him; thus He is paramAyAh

ISvarah- parameSvarah.The dharma cakram writer indicates that just as a human being does well inruling over himself if he has full control of his indriya-s, BhagavAn is infull control of al the beings as the parameSvarah or Ruler of the Universe.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives an interpretation based on mA SobhA.parameSvarah thus indicates One who has Supreme SobhA. One who has SupremeSobhA, who is the Lord of this and also has full control of this, andattracts and controls everything because of this, is parameSvarah - parA mAyasya sa paramah. sa ca asau ISvarah parameSvarah. 380. karaNam The Means. 381. kAraNam The Cause - He who causes others to act.om karaNAya namah.om kAraNAya namah.The two nAma-s are being looked at together here because of their closerelation.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derivation kriyate anena iti karaNam -That by which or through whom an act is done. BhagavAn is the only meansfor attaining Him. The eyes, ears, etc. which are the means of knowledgeare all aspects of this power of bhagavAn. kAraNam is the Cause that makesthe beings act using the karaNa-s.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan points us to pANini's words - sAdhaka-tamam karaNam -karaNam is that which is the best among means or sAdhana-s. He also remindsus of the nAma "hRshIkeSa" in this context - He who is the eeSa or Lord ofthe indriya-s (the eyes, ears, etc. are the j~nAnendriya-s, and the legs,hands, etc. are the karmendriyas).Beyond these indriya-s, there are the antah-karaNa-s which are the citta,the mind, buddhi, and ahamkAra, which are also controlled by bhagavAn. Thedharma cakram writer points out that for us to control the j~nAnemdriya-s,the karmendriya_s, the antah-karaNa-s, etc., meditation on mahA-vishNu isthe means. He also refers us to the gItA to point out that the way toachieve this control is firm determination (vairAgya) and repeated training(abhyAsa).Following SrI Sankara's vyAkhyAna, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri distinguisheskaraNam from the next nAma - kAraNam, by interpereting karaNam as "primarycause", and kAraNam as the supplementary causes. BhagavAn is both theprimary cause as well as the supplementary causes in the creation. He givesthe example of the creation of a mud pot from clay. Both the clay and someadditional instruments are needed in this process. But these alone will notresult in the mud pot, unless there is the involvement of the maker of thepot. BhagavAn is the reason for not only the primary cause but the othercauses as well. SrI cinmayAnanda explains karaNam as "He from whom theUniverse arises", and kAraNam as "He who causes the Universe to arise". 382. kartA The Agent.om kartre namah.This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 317. There the interpretation by SrIBhaTTar was based on paraSurAma incarnation, as the one who slayed the demonkArta-vIrya. In the current instance his interpretation is that bhagavAn isthe Agent who causes others to act.SrI cinmayAnanda quotes pANini - svatantrah kartA - One who freely andindependently performs the functions of creation, protection anddestruction, is the "Doer". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that He iskartA because without Him, the mere existence of the pa~nca bhUta-s etc.could not have resulted in the Universe, just as the presence of clay etc.without the presence of a pot-maker could not have resulted in the creationof a pot.Even though the jIvAtmA-s may think that they are independent in their acts,nothing functions without His Will - avan anRi Or aNuvum aSaiyAdu. BhagavAnis the only svatantra kartA - One who acts independently of everything else.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi 5.6.4 -"SeikinRa kidi ellAm yAnE enRum SeivA ninRanagaLum yAnE enRum Seidu mun iRandavum yAnE enRum Seiyap payan uNbEnum yAnE ennum SeivArgaLaic ceivEnum yAnE ennum .....BhagavAn just does not stop with being the Agent, He also feels the effectsof the actions of the jIvAtmA-s as if they were His own. vyasaneshumanushyANAm bhRSam bhavati duhkhitah utsaveshu ca sarveshu pitevaparitushyati - When

the people suffered, RAma suffered more than they did,and when they were happy, He felt happy like a father. After crowningvibhIshNa, Lord rAma felt very fulfilled - kRta kRtyah pramumoda ha 383. vikartA a) He who undergoes modifications.b) He who created the world of varieties.om vikartre namah.a) vikurvANah vikartA. In truth bhagavAn does not undergo anymodifications. He is avikAra. However, since the Universe is an extensionof Him, and since the Universe undergoes modifications constantly, it can besaid that He undergoes modifications. He has no joy or sorrow that resultsfrom His own act; but since He considers others' acts as His own and feelsone with the joys and sorrows of His creations, the resulting vikAra ormodification and feeling of joy and sorrow is for the sake of His creation.Lord rAma did not experience joy when He was to be crowned, no did He feelsorrow the next day when He lost it.b) SrI Sankara's interpretation is that bhagavAn is the creator of thisvaried Universe - vicitram bhuvanam kRtavAn iti vikartA. SrI rAdhakRshNaSAstri points out that His creation is vicitra because it is beyondcomprehension, and He did it out of His leelA. No two things in Hiscreation are identical. The dharma cakram writer points that in addition,no two minds are same, no two faces are the same. We don't know our past,we don't know where we go after we pass away, nor how many more births wewill have to go through. We go through birth after birth, and in each birthwe learn that the external pleasures are not real pleasures, but we don'tcarry this memory and experience to the next birth. Time does not leaveanyone behind, but we ignore this and try to immerse ourselves in thepleasures of our indriya-s. All these are the vicitra-s of His creation. 384. gahanah He who is deep and inscrutable.om gahanAya namah.He is beyond our intellect and reasoning. He is inside all of us, and yetwe don't know Him. yah pRthivyAs tishThan yam pRthivI na veda --He whois in the earth but whom the earth does not know - bRhadAraNya upanishad5.7.3. He is in all the gods but the gods don't know Him - viNNavarkkueNNal ariyAn - tiruvAimozhi 1.9.2 (v.v.rAmAnujan). He is both the eye andthe object to be seen - cakshuSca drashTavyam ca nArAyaNah. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to kaThopanishad - tam durdarSam gUDhamanupravishTam guhAhitam gahvareshTham purANam - 1.21.SrI Sankara points out that He is Unknowable in regard to His Nature,capability or acts.The dharma cakram writer takes us through several instances in young childkRshNa's leelA-s to illustrate this point. The gopikA vastrApaharaNam, theinstance of pUtanA, the lifting of the govardhana giri, the episode of beingtied by yaSodA by a rope, etc., illustrate our inability to understand Himthrough our logic and rationale. The only way to understand Him is throughdevotion. 385. guhah a) The Savior.b) One who hides Himself effectively from non-devotees.om guhAya namah.gUhati rakshati iti guhah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference totiruvAimozhi - kAkkum iyalvinan kaNNa perumAn - 2.2.9. This is SrIBhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that this protection islike that of a child protected by the mother when the child is in her womb.SrI Sankara interprets the nAma based on gUhate samvRNoti - He who hidesHis Nature, and gives the reference to gItA - nAham prakASah sarvasyayogamAyA samAvRtah - 7.25. SrI cinmayAnanda gives reference to vishNubhAgavta 10.37.11 gUDho guhASayah sAkshI mahA purusha ISvarah - This Lord,the Great Purusha, the witness who dwells in the vase most secretively.MuNDakopanishad describes Him as "nihitam guhAyAm. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstrirefers us to kaThopanishad 3.12 - esha sarveshu bhUteshu gUDhAtmA naprakASate, and to gItA -avajAnanti mAm mUDhA mAnushIm tanuASritam | param bhAvamajAnanto mama bhUta maheSvaram || 9.11Yet another interpretation, given by SrI R. anantakRshNa SAstri, is that Hereclines in the heart (guhah) of all.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 42 386. 387. 388. 389. 390. 391. 392. 393. 394. 395. vyavasAyah vyavasthAnah samsthAnah sthAna-dah dhruvah pararddhih parama-spashTah tushTah pushTah SubehshaNah

om vyavaSayAya namahom vyavasthAnAya namahom samsthAnAya namahom sthAnadAya namahom dhruvAya namahom parardhaye namahom paramAya namahom spashTAya namahom tushTAya namahom pushTAya namahom SubhekshaNAya namah SrI BhaTTar interprets the next few nAma-s as referring to the aspect ofbhagavAn as dhruva, the Pole Star. 386. vyavasAyah a) The Pivot (of the planets).b) One with a firm and resolute mind, One with TrueKnowledge about Self.om vyavasAyAya namahatiSayena sIyate (badhyate) asmin jyotiScakram iti vyavasAyah - The circleof planets is tightly bound and closely fastened to bhagavAn, and so He iscalled vyavasAyah. Space which is the support for the stars and planets isthe body of bhagavAn, and so He is tied to them tightly.SrI

cinmayAnanda refers us to two Sloka-s in the gItA where the termvyavasAya occurs. SrI rAmAnuja in his gItA bhAshya (2.41) interprets theword as referring to "unshakable conviction" (about the true nature of theself) - vyavasAyo niScayah. The same interpretation is given in gItA 2.44.So vyavasAyah can refer to One with a resolute mind, or One who has TrueKnowledge of the self. 387. vyavasthAnah The basis.om vyavasthAnAya namah.The basis for the nAma is the root sthA (sthiti). vyavasthAnam karoti itivyavasthAnah, or asmin vyavasthitih sarvasya iti vyavasthAnah. One whoestablishes everything, or One on whom the basis of everything resides; orOne who regulates everything in the Universe and the associated functions.vyavasthA is given the meaning "determination, decision, settlement" inApte's dictionary, and vyavasthit means 'established'. One who determineseverything is thus vyavasthAnah, and One who establishes everything intheir respective places or positions is vyavasthAnah.SrI BhaTTar associates this basis with kAla or time, which is the basis foreverything that happens in this world. This again is determined by themovement of the planets, of which dhruva is the pole or the pivot. SrISankara associates the nAma with bhagavAn being the One who divides andregulates everyone including the different protectors of the world, varioustypes of beings, takes care of their survival and sustenance, etc. 388. samsthAnah The final end.om samsthAnAya namah.sarvam etasmin santhishThate - samApyate iti samsthAnah. One in whom allthings have their ultimate end is samsthAnah. Another interpretation, givenby SrI v.v.rAmAnujan, is samApyate iti samsthAnah - One who terminateseverything at some stage is samsthAnah.SrI Sankara gives an additional interpretation - samIcInam sthAnam asya itisamsthAnah - He who has the supreme place. This is elaborated by SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri as referring to the Milky Ocean, the sUrya maNDala, theheart of the yogis etc., or His position as dhruva in the dhruva maNDala. 389. sthAna-dah The Giver of the Supreme Abode.om sthAnadAya namah.sthAnam dadAti iti sthAna-dah. da is "to give". There are many nAma-s thatend with the affix -da, and all of these can be understood based on thissuffix. Other examples are prANa-dah, mAna-dah, SAnti-dah, SrI-dah,darpa-dah, sarva-kAma-dah, and svasti-dah. sthAna-dah is One who gives thebest of the sthAna-s, paramapadam.SrI Sankara gives a more general interpretation as One who gives status tothe beings as they deserve - dhruvAdInAm karmAnurUpam sthAnam dadAti itisthAna-dah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that bhagavAn is the One whogave the position to dhruva which is unlike all the other stars viz. dhruvais fixed in position compared to the others who are in constant motion.SrI cinmayAnanda gives references to kathopanishad (yathAkarmam yathASrutam- 2.5.7), and quotes "karma phala dAtA nArAyaNah" to support SrI Sankara'sinterpretation. The dharma cakram writer gives reference to tirukkuraL tosupport the same interpretation "vaguttAn vagutta vagai allAl kODi toguttArkkum tuyttal aridu".SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that bhagavAn gives the position to thestars in space, to the devas in the antariksha loka, to the waterlivingcreatures in the Oceans, etc. At a lower level, He has even createdappropriate places in our bodies for the refuse that results from the bodilyfunctions. 390. dhruvah The Stationary (Fixed).om dhruvAya namah.The root dhru means to be steady. He conferred a status on dhruva that isas permanent as SrI vaikunTham. Since He can make any place as permanentas His abode viz. SrIviakunTham, the significance here is that He iseverywhere.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that

bhagavAn conferred on dhruva thatwhich is only His Nature - viz. the indestructible status, and so dhruva isbhagavAn Himself. The dharma cakram writer points out that in the midst ofthe cycle of creation and pralaya where everything that has been createdmerges in Him and then reappears, He is the only permanent or fixed one, andso He is dhruva. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha takes the meaning "certain" fordhruva, and points out that even though everything except Him in thisUniverse is adhruva, by His Nature of dhruvatva He gives a sense ofcertainty to everything - thus the rising of the sun and the setting of thesun are dhruva or certain, birth and death are certain, etc.Next begins the story of SrI rAma. The next 16 nAma-s are interpreted bySrI BhaTTar in the context of rAmAvatAra. SrI BhaTTar titles this sectionas "The story of SrI rAma which resuscitates even the dead". SrIv.v.rAmAnujan points out the "bias" that SrI BhaTTar has for thisincarnation shows in the vryAkhyAnam that he gives for these nAma-s. Thetitle is just the beginning. 391. pararddhih He who is full of noble and auspicious qualities.om paraddhaye namah.Rddhih means vibhUti or manifestation. parA Rddhih yasya sa pararddhih -One who has a super-abundance of auspicious qualities or kalyANa guNa-s.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan comments that it is not an exaggeration to say that in noother incarnation do we find the perfection of auspicious qualities as inthe rAma incarnation. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to rAmAyaNa wheresome of these qualities are described in Sloka-s 1.1.8 to 1.1.18 by sagenArada to vAlmIki. The last two Sloka-s are given here as examples: "samudra iva gAmbhIrye dhairyeNa himavAniva | vishNunA sadRSo vIrye somavat priyadarSanah || kAlAgnisadRSah krodhe kshamayA pRthivI samah | dhanadena samstyAge satye dharma ivAparah || "rAma has gAmbhIrya like an ocean, dhairya of himavAn, vIrya ofvishNu, the sweet appearance of the moon, anger comparable to that ofpralaya agni, patience of Mother Earth, tyAga of kubera, and satya of dharmadevatA".SrI rAmAnujan gives an additional interpretation: pareshAm RddhirevaRddhih yasya - One who considers para samRddhih or the fulfillment ofothers as His own. After crowning vibhIshaNa, Lord rAma felt happy by thesheer act of fulfilling His word - kRta kRtyah tathA rAmah. He alsoquotes "utsaveshu ca sarveshu piteva paritushyati" - When the citizens arehappy, He feels happy like a father who feels pleasure at the happiness ofthe child". 392. parma-spashTah He whose greatness is explicit.om parama-spashTAya namah.spashTa (pratyaksha, dRshTA) pAramyah parama-spashTah. His greatness isexplicitly obvious. SrI BhaTTar refers us to rAmAyaNa vyaktameshamahA-yogI paramAtmA sanAtanah - (yuddha kANDam - 114.4). These aremandodari's words when she sees rAma after He slays rAvaNa in thebattlefield. Similarly, tArA, vAli's wife, recognizes rAma's divine natureas soon as she sees Him - tvam aprameyaSca durAsadaSca.....manushyadehAbhyudam vihAya divyena dehAbhydayena yuktah (rAmAyaNa 4.24.31-32). LordrAma's only goal and firm determination (mahA-yogi) in this incarnation wasprotection of the world, and His greatness can be clearly cognized by meansof direct perception. sumitrA's words are: "sUryasyApi bhavet sUryah" - Heshines even brighter than the Sun, and He is the One who gives brightness tothe Sun. Other references to Lord rAma's explicit greatness are His beingcalled "pumsAm dRshTi cittApahAriNam", "rUpa samhananam lakshmIm tadRSurvismitAkArAh", etc.The dharma cakram writer points out that it is this explicit greatness thatcaused bharata to throw away the kingdom that was offered to him and insteadbe devoted to rAma, lakshmaNa to serve rAma for 14 years without food andsleep, and hanumAn to surrender to rAma as soon as he met him and serve Himfor the rest of his life.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives an independent interpretation based on theroot spaS - to bind ( spaSati - badhnAti), and gives the meaning "One whobinds everything in a superb way" for parama-spashTa. The example of thecomplex human body, which retains its beautiful appearance in spite of itsinternal complexity, is given as an example. He gives the following quotesin support: asya spaSo na nimishanti (rg 9.73.4), divah spaSah pracaranti(atharva 4.16.4), etc.

393. tushTah He who is full of happiness.om tushTAya namah.Instead of being in SrIviakunTham where only a chosen few could be with Him,He decided happily to choose dasaratha, a human, as His father, and be bornin this world so that He was within reach of everyone. When the deva-sappeared before Him in His rAma incarnation and praised Him as bhagavAn, Hetold them that He was happy to consider Himself as a human, the son ofdasaratha - AtmAnam mAnusham manye rAmam daSarathAtmajam. As we saw before,He is one who was happy like a father of an accomplished child when Hiscitizens were happy - piteva paritushyati, and who attained unbounded joy byjust fulfilling His word to vibhIshaNa and crowning him as the king of lankApramumoda ha.SrI Sankara interprets the nAma as referring to His being The Supreme Bliss.SrI cinmayAnanda explains that He is tushTa - One who becomes happy evenwith the smallest of offerings. He refers us to"patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktyA prayacchati | tadaham bhaktyupahRtam aSnAmi prayatAtmanah || "I accept even if one offers some leaf or flower, fruit, or spoon ofwater, happily, if it is offered in love".The dharma cakram writer points out that bhagavAn is tushTa because He isnot subject to the pains and pleasures that other beings are subject to.rAma did not feel instant happiness when He was going to become king, norwas He sad when He was asked to go the forest for 14 years. kRshNa onlysmiled when gAndhAri cursed that the yAdava race should come to an endforever. bhagavAn is only the witness to all events, and is not influencedin any way by any event, which for the outsiders is deemed good or bad,happy or sad etc. This nAma should teach us that the proper way to realizebhagavAn is to be tushTa always, and be witness to the events around us butnot be attached to them, and train to be a yogi - santhushTah satatam yogI. 394. pushTah He who is full of noble qualities.om pushTAya namah.pUrNatvAt pushTah. He is complete in every respect, and so there is no roomfor likes and dislikes, wants and desires. The dharma cakram writer refersus to vaLLuvar referring to bhagavAn as "vENDUdal vENDAmai ilAn".Meditating on the significance of this nAma will lead us to move towardsthis state where we overcome likes and dislikes.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha extends this meaning to also suggest that He ispushTa because He keeps all his creations fulfilled by making available themeans for them to be fulfilled - pushNAti iti pushTah. 395. SubehshaNah He who has auspicious eyes.om SubhekshaNAya namah.We have seen the nAma-s padmanibhekshaNah (346) and aravindAkshah (348)earlier. SrI BhaTTar refers us to ayodhyA kANDam "yaSca rAmam na paSyettu yam ca rAmo na paSyati | ninditah sa vaset loke svAtma'pi enam vigarhate || (ayodhyA 17.14) "Whoever has not seen rAma or whomsoever rAma has not seen, thatperson stands condemned by all people in this world, and even his own selfcondemns him".SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to amalanAdipirAn - kariyavAgip-puDai parandumiLirndu SevvariyODi nINDa ap-perivAya kaNgaL, sung by tiruppANAzhvAr.subhRUh Ayata tAmrAkshah sAkshAt vishNuriva svayam - He with such beautifulbrows and bright long red eyes - He is none other than vishNu, is the praiseof the citizens of ayodhyA. hanumAn describes rAma to sItAdevi as "rAmahkamala patrAkshah sarva sattva manorathah - where he describes the greatnessof seeing His eyes as well as being seen by His eyes. sItA pirATTi herselfdescribes Her Lord rAma thus - tam padma daLa patrAksham .. dhanyAh paSyantime nAtham - Those who are blessed see the beautiful lotus-like eyes of mynAtha.SrI Sankara elaborates on the power of the beauty of His eyes thus: "IkshNam darSanam yasya Subham Subhakaram narANAm, mumukshUNAmmokshdam, bhogArthinAm bhogadam, pApinAm pAvanam, sarva sandeha vicchedakAraNam, hRdaya-granther vicchedakaram, sarvakarmANAm kshpaNam, avidyAyAScanivartakam sah SubekshaNah". "His mere sight is so auspicious and bestows good on all beings; itgives moksham to the spiritually minded, enjoyments to those that desirethem, cleanses sinners, removes all doubts, burns up all the karma-s, andremoves all

ignorance".He quotes the Sruti "bhidhyate hRdaya-granthih chidyante sarva samSayAhkshIyante cAsya karmANi tasmin dRshTe parAvare" (muNDakppanishad 2.2.8) -The knots of the heart are cut....SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives us several references to the Sruti. IkshANamalso refers to the determination by bhagavAn that He will become many fromOne. This samkalpam became the auspicious decision which resulted in thecreation of this Universe. Since He is the One with the Subha IkshaNa orsamkalpa, He is SubhekshaNa. SrI SAstri gives the following quotes tosupport this interpretation: tadaikshata bahu syAm prajAyeyeti (chAndogya6.2); sa Ikshata lokAnnusRjA iti (aitareya 1.1.1); sa IkshAm cakre (praSno6.3); seyam devataikshata hantAhamimAh tisro devatA anena jIvenaAtmA'nupraviSya nAmarUpe vyAkaravANi (chAndogya 6.3).The dharma cakram writer points out several examples of individuals whobenefited by the mere sight of bhagavAn falling on them. arjuna asked LordkRshNa to bless him with His Merciful glance; as soon as this happened, allof arjuna's doubts were cleared, and he realized the true nature of his soulimmediately. guha, hanumAn, paraSurAma, and Sabari are just among some ofthe examples of people who gained immensely from the mere sight of LordrAma. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 43 396. rAmah 397. virAmah 398. virajo-mArgah 399. neyah 400. nayah 401. anayah 402 vIrah 403. SaktimatAm-SreshThah 404. dharmah 405. dharmavid-uttamah

om rAmAya namahom virAmAya namahom viratAya namahom mArgAya namahom neyAya namahom nayAya namahom anayAya namahom vIrAya namahom SaktimatAm-SreshThAya namahom dharmAya namahom dharma-vid-uttamAya namah 396. rAmah a) He who delights others.b) He in whom everyone delights.om rAmAya namahThere are two obvious interpretations for this nAma. One is that all theyogi-s revel in His charm - ramante yoginah asmin iti rAmah. SrI Sankaragives reference to pAdmapurANa - ramante yoginah anante nityAnande cidAtmani- The yogins revel in Him who is Eternal Bliss, Pure Consciousness andEndless.The other is that He who has a compelling charm about Himself and He who ismost Handsome - ramayati itit rAmah. SrI BhaTTar gives several references.rAmo ramayatAm SreshThah - rAma is the foremost among those who delight theminds of all people (rAmAyaNa - ayodhyA 53-1); guNAbhirAmam rAmam ca - rAmawho is filled with kalyANa guNas (mahAbhArata sabhA 58-42); tathAsarva-prajA kAntaih prIti sanjananaih pituh | guNaih viruruce rAmah dIptahsUrya iva amSubhih || - rAma who is liked by His citizens, who bringshappiness to His father, and who is full of klayANa guNa-s, shone like theSun with its intense and bright rays - ayodhyA 1.33. In tiruppAvai, ANDALcalls Him manatukku iniyAn. His form is such that even His enemies getattracted to it. Even though mandodari and vAli's wife are not in thecategories of enemies of rAma, they were both realized His divine Naturewhen they saw Him with their husbands dying or dead. SrI v.v.rAmAnujanrefers to SUrpanakA's description of rAma and lakshmaNa - taruNau rUpasampannau sukumArau - puNDarIka viSAlAkshau....SrI satyadevo vAsishTha and SrI v.v.rAmAnujan both refer to the root ramu -krIDAyAm - He who derives pleasure out of His leelA-s, or He who makeseveryone happy because of His krIDA as part of His krIDA, is rAma.The dharma cakram writer adds that there are two kinds of delight- delightsof this world which have sadness associated with them always as aconsequence, and the delight pertaining to the enjoyment of para brahmamwhich has pure lasting happiness associated with it. rAma is the source ofthe later kind. The writer refers us to Sabari's holding on to life only tohave the darSan of rAma, the Rshi-s who delighted themselves in the sightof rAma, and the gopi-s and gopAla-s who had bhagavad-anubhavam by beingwith kRshNa in AyarpADi.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri reminds us that it is sage vasishTha, the kula guruof daSaratha's family, that gave the name rAma to daSaratha's first son. 397. virAmah a) He before whom all become powerless.b) He who is the final goal of everyone.om virAmAya namah.SrI BhaTTar has explained the nAma as follows: viramyate asmin varapradaihbrahmAdibhih, varaiSca avadhyAdibhih, labdha-varaiSca rAvaNAdibhih itivirAmah - Before rAma all become powerless, including the likes of brahmawho grant the boons, the boons themselves of indestructibility even bydeath, and people like rAvaNa who acquired the boons by their austerities.He quotes rAmAyaNa in this context - brahmA

svayambhUh caturAnano vA ...(Sundara kANDa 51.45), where hanumAn advises rAvaNa to understand rAma'sprowess.SrI Sankara gives the explanation that He is the final resting place or goalof all beings virAmah avasAnam prANinAm asmin iti virAmah. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to rAmAyaNa wherein we find that those whohave seen rAma or have diverted their thoughts on Him do not even try to getout of this mode.na hi tasmAt manah kaScit cakshushI vA narottamAn |narah SaknotyapAkrashTum atikrAnte abhi rAghave || (rAmA 2.18.13)SrI cinmayAnanda explains that He is the final resting place because havingreached Him there is no return into the realm of experiences. He alsopoints out that some vyAkhyAna kartA-s interpret the meaning as "He in whomthe world of plurality merges during the deluge or pralaya".The dharma cakram writer comments that until the soul reaches Him i.e.,attains moksha, there is always re-birth, and He is the final restingplace, attaining which alone one can rest finally. So this nAma shouldremind us that the final goal is mahA vishNu, and teach us to meditate onHim.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha nicely relates the two nAma-s, rAma and virAma.ramante asmin iti rAmah, viramanti asmin iti virAmah - One in whom peopledelight is rAma, and One in whom people find final SAnti is virAma. Thesource of delight is also the end of delight - yatra ramaNam tatra ramaNaavasAnam. He is the Creator and He is also the one who ends the creation.This is the same principle involved in the body being formed from the pa~ncabhUta-s and dissolving back into the pa~nca bhUta-s, the sun rising in timeand settling back in time, etc. He gives numerous references to theSruti-s to support this interpretation: tasmin idam sam ca vicaiti sarvam sa otah protaSca vibhuh prajAsu(yajur 32.8) yo mArayati prANayati yasmAt prANanti bhuvanAni viSvA (atharva13.3.3) kAlenodeti sUryah kAle niviSate punah (atharva 19.54.1) yatrAmRtam ca mRtyuSca purushe'dhi samAhite (atharva 10.5.17) 398. virajo-mArgah One who shows the faultless path.om viratAya namah - The Unattachedom mArgAya namah - He who is sought afterom virajo-mArgAya namah - He who shows the flawless pathThere is some confusion here as to whether this is to be interpreted as onenAma (virajo-mArgah), or as two separate nAma-s. SrI SrInivAsarAghavandiscusses the terms viratah and mArgah separately but lists them under thesame number, and also indicates that virajo-mArgah is the form when the nAmais considered as one nAma. SrI aNNa~ngarAcArya and SrI v.v.rAmAnujan listviratah (virajah) and mArgah as two separate nAma-s. The difference innumbering which started with Slokam 34 (ishTo'viSishTah vs. ishTah andaviSishTah) between these two sets of interpretations continues up to thisnAma, where it synchronizes again.bhagavAn is viratah because the spirit of detachment is natural to Him.vigatam ratam asya vishayasevAyAm iti viratah One in whom the desire forpleasure in objects has ceased. When He lost the kingdom it did not depriveHim of His splendor just as the night cannot take away the loveliness of thecool-rayed of the moon. "na cAsya mahatIm lakshmIm rAjya nASo'pakarshati | loka-kAntasya kAntatvam SItaraSmeriva kshapA ||(ayodhyA 19.32)sItA pirATTi's own words are: "When SrI rAma abandoned the kingdom under theplea of dharma, and led me to the forest where I had to move on foot, therewas neither disappointment nor grief, nor fear in rAma". "dharmApadeSAt tyajataSca rAjyam mAm cApyaraNyam nayatah padAtim || (sundara 36.29)SrI v.v.rAmAnujan points out that another instance of this detachment isthat He did not have the faintest desire to have any part of SrIlankA forHimself which he won in the battle with rAvaNa. He also gives references toprabandham: pArALum paDar Selvam bharata nambikkE aruLi arum kAnamaDaindavan (perumAl tirumozhi 8.5); iru nilattai vENDAdE virainduvenRimaivAyakaLirozhindu tEr ozhindu mAvozhindu vanamE mEviya em irAman(perumAL tirumozhi 9.2).Some versions have this nAma as virajah (rajo-rahitah). SrI cinmayAnandagives the interpretation that He is without the rajas or agitation of themind, and so He is virajah (passionless). He is the embodiment of Puresattava guNa.The dharma cakram writer points out that the difference between us andbhagavAn is this - that we are attached and He is detached. He refers us totirukkuraL: paRRuga paRRaRRAn paRRinai appaRRaippaRRuga paRRu viDaRkku.The significance of this nAma is that we should learn to be detached bymeditating on this nAma of bhagavAn.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha has composed one Slokam for each nAma to explain thenAma's significance, and thus there are 1000 Sloka-s of his own

inexplanation of the 1000 nAma-s. I am including his Slokam for the currentnAma as an example: "rajo na tasmin na tamSca tasmin, sattva-svabhAvo hi sa vishNuruktah| so'sti svabhAvAt amita-prakASo, deve'sti gItah tamasah parastAt||mArgah - He who is sought after.om mArgAya namah. mArgyate iti mArgah. The word is derived from the rootmRjU Suddhau, to cleanse. He is the path for those who lead a life as laiddown in the SAstra-s. SrI BhaTTar remarks that even sages like bharadvAjasought after Him. He is also the mArga because He is the only means (upAya)to attain Him. SrI Sankara quotes the taittirIya upanishad - nAnyah panthAvidyateyanAya (3.13). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference tobRhadAraNya upanishad - esha panthA brahmaNA hAnuvittah - 4.4.9). Thdharma cakram writer gives examples of paraSurAma, vAli, rAvaNa, etc.,where bhagavAn was the means for their realization of Him.SrI BhaTTar also remarks that virajo-mArgah is the version when the twowords are combined as one nAma, and the meaning is that He is the One whoshows the flawless path. SrI srInivAsarAghavan uses the nAma asviratomArgah and gives the meaning that He is the path that is sought aftereven though He Himself is unattached. 399. neyah He who lets Himself be governed (by His devotees)om neyAya namah.netA refers to one who leads. neyah is one who is led. SrI BhaTTar givesthe derivation - niyoga arhatvAt neyah. niyogah means order. One who is tofit to be entrusted with the responsibility to command is also neyah. SrIBhaTTar gives the following references:"Ag~nyApyo'ham tapasvinAm" - I am agreeable to be commanded by those whopractice austerities - (rAmAyaNa AraNya 6.22);:niyunkshva cApi mAm kRtye sarvam kartAsmi te vacah - KRshNa's words toyudhisThira - You may ask me to do whatever you want; I shall certainlycarry out your behests (mahAbhArata anuSAsana 33.25);"ayam asmi mahAbAho brUhi yat te vivakshitam| karishyAmIha tat sarvam yattvam vakshyati bhArata! || - O Long-armed scion of the royal dynasty ofbharata! I am here ready to do whatever you want; I shall carry out yourcommands (mahA udyoga 71.5).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning as "One who is fit to be sought"- prApyah prAptum yogyah, or "One who is not attainable through any pramANaexcept by contemplation, meditation, and devotion" - sarva prmANaavishayatvAt sa manasA netum arhah = mantum yogyah mananIyo bhavati. Thekey phrase is netum arhah neyah. 400. nayah He who draws everyone towards Himself.om nayAya namah.nayati iti nayah - One who draws everyone towards Himself; one who leadseveryone in their spiritual illumination. When rAma reached daNDakAraNyam,the Rshi-s there were drawn to Him, and they entrusted their protectionsolely to Him, even though they had their tapo-balam. SrI v.v.rAmAnujanrefers us to bhagavAn's words in His varAha incarnation - nayAmi paramAmgatim - I will lead everyone to the Ultimate, viz. moksham. The dharmacakram writer points out the examples of arjuna being led in the right pathby bhagavAn through the gItopadeSam. Meditation on this nAma of bhagavAnshould reveal to us that the path to moksahm is to be drawn towards Him andto follow His lead. 401. anayah He who cannot be spirited away.om anayAya namah.SrI bhaTTar gives the example of the futile effort of rAvaNa to lift andcarry away lakshmaNa when he was lying on the battleground after beingstruck by the Sakti weapon by rAvaNa. He also gives an alternateinterpretation based on ayah - the means which brings prosperity; an-ayahthen means He without whom there is no prosperity.SrI Sankara's interpretation that He is one who is not led by anyone, unlikeHe who leads everyone in the spiritual path.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the examples of bhagavAn being the oppositessimultaneously. One meaning he gives for nayah is One who moves. anayah isOne who does not move. He gives reference to 'tadejati tanaijati',anejadekam

manaso javIyo (ISAvAsya upanishad), aram kAmAya harayovadhanvire sthirAya hinvan harayo harI turA (Rg veda 10.96), etc.The dharma cakram writer nicely illustrates how rAma always acted in thepath of dharma without anyone having to lead Him. When he had to go theforest, others including sage vasishTha tried to persuade Him to accept thekingdom instead and rule, but rAma did not swerve from the path of dharmaand adopted that path without having to be told by anyone. When He returnedback from the forest and became the king, some citizens commented thatsItAdevi had been in another person's house and should not occupy the thronewith SrI rAma. Because rAma wanted to set an example to His citizens, Hesent her instead to vAlmIki's ASramam, and showed them the path of dharma ofthe king. Thus, He never needed to be led by anyone, anayah. 402 vIrah Valiant (See 664).om vIrAya namah.He is vIra because He destroys at once those who are a source of sufferingto the pious by discharging His wapons which are ever ready to carry out Hiscommands. He is a source of terror to His enemies. SrI Sankara bhAshyam is"vikramaSAlitvAt vIrah - One who is valorous". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan points outthat vIra, saurYa, and parAkrama are among the mahA-guNa-s of bhagavAn, andthe reference to vIrya here by bhIshma can be taken to refer to all threeguNa-s. vIrya is the quality of inducing terror in the hearts of theenemies; Saurya is derived from the word SUra - the ability to cause havocamong the enemies' ranks by single-handedly penetrating their ranks; andparAkrama is the ability to cause enormous damage to enemies' side while notbeing even slightly hurt Himself. rAma is referred to as mahAvIra inraghu-vIra-gadyam (The starting line is jaya jaya mahA-vIra!).SrI bhaTTar giveas reference to the following:mArIca tells rAvaNa about rAma "vRkshe vRkshe ca paSyAmi cIra kRshNAjinAmbaram | gRhIta dhanusham rAmam pASa hastamiva antakam || (rAmAAraNya 39.14)" "In every tree I see rAma dressed in tree bark and black deer-skinand His bow drawn as though He is the god of death with the rope in hand". "brahma-daNDa prakASAnAm vidyut-sadRSa varcasAm | smaran rAghava-bANAnAn vivyate rAkshaseSvarah ||(yuddha 60.3)" "rAvaNa, the king of rAkshasa-s, became uneasy whwn he even thoughtof the arrows of rAma, which hasd the luster of the club of brahma and theglitter of the lightning". "mAta~nga iva simhena garuDeneva pannagah | abhibhUto'bhavad-rAjA rAghaveNa mahAtmanA || (yuddha 60.2)" "The king (rAvaNa) was overpowered by the powerful rAma like theelephant by the lion, and the serpent by garuDa".SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives several references to prabandham:- In tiruccanda viruttam, tirumazhiSai sings - "anRu ila~ngai nIRu SeiduSenRu konRu venRi koNDa vIraNAr";- n perumAltirumozhi we have "ve~nkadirOn kulattukkOr viLakkAit-tOnRi viNmuzhudum uyyakkoNDa vIran tannai" (10.1); mazhu vAL Endi vevvari naRcilaivA~ngi venRi koNDu vEl vEndar pagai taDinda vIran tannai (10.3);- pollA arakkanaik kiLLik kaLaindAanai" in tiruppAvai, referring to the easewith which rAma finished rAvaNa whose power was unheard of;- "vennarakam SerA-vagaiyE Silai kunittAn - tiruma~ngai in SiRiya tirumaDalreferring to rAma's act of torturing kara and dUshaNa during their fight tothe point that they did not need a spearate anubhavam of living in narakAm.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives references to the Sruti: SRNve vIro vindamAno vasUni mahad-devAnAm asuratvam ekam (Rg3.55.10) sa ghA vIro na rishyati yamindro brahmaNaspatih somo hinoti martyam(Rg 2.28.4)SrI rAdhAkRsNa SAstri gives a beautiful description of His vIra. Thesource is not identified, but the description is worth repeating here: "yasmat sva-mahimnA sarvAn lokAn sarvAn devAn sarvAn Atmanah sarvANibhUtAni viramati virAmayati ajastram sRjati visRjati vAsayati, yato vIrahkarmaNyah sudRksho yukta-grAvA jAyate deva-kAmah tasmAt ucyate vIram iti".He cannot be opposed, cannot be conquered, and His skills will beself-evident and will subdue His enemies automatically. 403. SaktimatAm-SreshThah The Greatest among the powerful.om SaktimatAm-SreshThAya namah.SaktimatAmapi SaktimattvAt SaktimatAm SreshThah. He is the mostpraiseworthy among the powerful gods and others. He is more

powerful thanthe likes of brahma the Creator. The likes of indra could not destroyrAvaNa, and they surrendered to bhagavAn as a result seeking His protection.rAma with the axe (i.e., paraSurAma) says to SrI rAma: "aakshayyammadhu-hantAram jAnAmi tvAm syreSvaram - I know that you are indestructible;You are the slayer of madhu (the asura), and You are the Lord of all thegods" (rAmAyaNa bAla 76.17). SrI bhaTTar also gives reference to hanumAn'swords to rAvaNa "devASca daityASca niSAcarendra! gandharva vidyAdhara-nAga-yakshAh| rAmasya lokatraya-nAyakasya sthAtum na SaktAh samareshu sarve||(sundara 51.44) "O King of the rAkshasa-s! The gods and the asura-s, gandharva-sand vidyAdhara-s, nAga-s, and yaksha-s - all these cannot stand againstrAma, the Lord of the three worlds, in the battle". 404. dharmah Virtue Incarnate.om dharmAya namah.SrI satyadevo vAsisshTha derives the meaning from the root dhR~nj - dhAraNeto support; dhArayati iti dharmah - that which supports is dharmah, dhAryatevA yena jagat iti dharmah - He by whom this Universe is supported isdharmah.SrI bhaTTar points out that He is Virtue Incarnate because He sustains allbeings by conferring prosperity and salvation on them. In yuddha kANDabrahma says of Lord rAma - lokAnAm tvam paramo dharmah - Thou art theSupreme Dharma in all the worlds. In mahAbhArata we have "sAkshAt devahpurANO'sau sa hi dharmah sanAtanah - He is ancient God Himself and also theeternal dharma incarnate". About kRshNa incarnation "ye ca vedavido viprAh ye ca adhyAtmavido janAh | te vadanti mahAtmAnam kRshNam dharam sanAtanam || "Those brAhmins who are well-versed in veda-s, and those whorealized the Brahman, declare in one voice that the great SrI kRshNa is theeternal dharma incarnate".SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers to mArIca's words about rAma - rAmo vitgrahavAndharmah - rAma is dhrama incarnate. He also points that ANDAL calls Him"dharumam aRiyAk kurumban" in nAcciAr tirumozhi, obviously out of the sheerintense liberty she has towards her Lord, and out of her intense fondness toHim.SrI cinmayAnanda discusses in some detail the significance of this term"dharma". By example, he points out that the dharma of sugar is sweetness,the dhaarma of fire is heat, etc., and thus the dharma of an the individualin this sense is the soul, without which the individual does not exist.Since bhyagavAn is the one Self that supports all the individuals, He is theUltimate Dharma.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri reminds us of "dharmo rakshati rakshitah, dharma evahato hanti" - dharma protects those who protect it, and destroys those whodestroy it. dharma is like the guides on both sides of the road; if wefollow them, we reach our destination safely; if we go outside the limit, orif we collide with the guides, we encounter suffering. bhagavAn is thisguide for those who want to follow it. Those who don't follow it paydearly.The dharma cakram writer gives several examples of where dharma hasprotected those who followed it, and destroyed those who tried to ignore it.In the former category are hariScandra, the pANDava-s, etc. In the lattercategory are rAvaNa, duryodhana, etc. BhIshma tried his very best to adviseduryodhana that no one who follows dharma can be defeated in the end, nomatter how many bhIshma-s try to help duryodhana. But he won't listen, andultimately paid the price for adharma. Same was the case with rAvaNa, whowould not listen to vibhIshaNa-s advice. Meditation on this nAma ofmahAvishNu should teach us the basic lesson that dharma protects those whofollow it, and adharma will have no end other than self-destruction. 405. dharmavid-uttamah The foremost among those who are conscious ofdharma.om dharma-vid-uttamAya namah.No further evidence is needed for this than that sages such as vasishTha,vAmadeva, and mArkaNDeya who were the guru-s for rAma resorted to Him for aknowledge of dharma (SrI BhaTTar). The dharma cakram writer remarks that itis not easy to recognize what is dharma and what is not dharma. bhagavAnhas created the Sruti-s as His commandments to explain to us what is dharma.To realize what is dharma, meditation on mahaAvishNu is the path. For this,a clean mind is necessary. This is what is taught in tirukkuraL -manattuk-kaN mASilan Adal anaittu aRan. SrI Sankara points out that allSruti-s and smRti-s are His

commandments, and hence He is called thegreatest of the knowers of dharma. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives referenceto vishNu dharmottara - Srutis-smRtI mamaivA~gnye (76.31).-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 44 406. 407. 408. 410. 411. 412. 413. 414. 415. 417. vaikunThah purushah prANah praNamah pRthuh hiraNya-garbhah Satru-ghnah vyAptah vAyuh adhokshajah

om vaikunThAya namahom purushAya namahom prANAya namahom prANa-dAya namahom praNamAya namahom pRthave namahom hiraNya-garbhAya namahom Satru-ghnAya namahom vyAptAya namahom vAyave namahom adhokshajAya namah 406. vaikunThah Remover of obstacles (to union).om vaikunThAya namahSrI BhaTTar derives the meaning from the root kuThi gati praghAte -obstructing the path. Thus kunThA signifies the obstacles to union.vaikunTha-s are those whose obstacles have been removed. The obstacles tobhagavAn are sins. He is the remover of sins, and so He is calledvaikunTha.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains the nAma as vigatA kunThA tasyAh kartA -One who regulates those that tend to go their own way if left unobstructed.At the beginning of the earth,

when the pa~nca bhUta-s tended to expanduncontrolled without uniting with each other, bhagavAn controlled this andmade them co-exist through union with other.SrI Sankara and SrI BhaTTar both quote the following Sloka from mahAbhAratain support of the concept that bhagavAn brings about the union of seeminglyincompatible things: "mayA samSleshitA bhUmih adbhir-vyoma ca vAyunA | vAyuSca tejasA sArdham viakunThatvam tato mama || (SAnti343-50) "By me the earth was united with water, ether with air, and air withfire. So I am called viakunTha".He is vaikunThah also because He removes all obstacles to attaining Him forHis devotees, and unites them with Him (SrI P.B. aNNa~ngarAcArya).SrI satyadevo vASishTha explains that One for whom all obstacles orobstructions (kunThA) have been removed is vikunTha. Or One who removes allobstacles is vikunTha also.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives yet another explanation. bhagavAn is calledvaikunThah because He was born to Subhra and vikunThA in the fifthmanvantara. He then married ramA and acceded to her request to create aplace for her enjoyment, and this place was called vaikunTha. He Himself isthis vaikunTha. This is supported by vishNu purANa 3.2.41 and bhAgavata8.5.4-5.The dharma cakram writer takes the interpretation to a level where itapplies to lives of individuals for whom He removed the obstacles facingthem from attaining Him and united them with Him. The cases of prahlAda,paraSurAma, karNa, hariScandra, vAli, etc. are given as examples. 407. purushah The Purifier.om purushAya namah.This nAma occurred earlier also (nAma 14), even though it was not identifiedas a recurring nAma at that time. A summary of the vyAkhyAna given for nAma14 is included here. a. puru sanoti iti purushah - One who gives in plenty. b. purA AsIt iti purushah - One who existed before anything else. c. pUrayati itit putushah - One who completes and fulfils existenceeverywhere. d. puri Sete iti purushah - One who is reclining in this body.In support of d) above, SrI Sankara gives the additional support from theSruti-s: sa vA ayam purushah sarvAsu pUrshu puriSayah (BR. Upa. 2.5.18) -He is indeed called purusha who lives in all the bodies. SrI v.v.rAmAnujangives the following support from divya prabhandham in support of a):vENDiRRellAm tarum en vaLLal (tiruvAimozhi 3.9.5); enakkE tannaittandakaRpagam (tiruvAImozhi 2.7.11).To the above four explanations, we now add the following: e. "usha dAhe purUn sarvAn oshati dahati iti vA purushah" - He whooutshines everyone. f. "pApmana oshah tasmAt purushah" - He who burns away all sins. g. piparti pRNAti pAlayati pUrayati iti vA purushah - He who protects -from pR pAlana pUraNayoh - to protect or nourish h. purah + kushan = purushah (from pura agragamane) - pura agragamanepurati agragAmI bhavati iti vA purushah - He who is the Leader or who is inthe forefront. i. pUrvah asmAt viSvAt tat AdikAraNatvAt iti purushah - He who is theoriginal cause of the world. j. purUNi bhuvanAni samhAra samaye syati antam nayatIti purushah - He whotakes the worlds to their end at the time of samhAra or pralaya.Under the current nAma, SrI BhaTTar gives the two new interpretations above- One who burns (purifies) - oshah - all sins by nature: sa yat pUrvahasmAt sarvasmAt pApmana oshah tasmAt purushah. This is close to the Srutipassage that SrI Sankara gives as a support sa yatpUrvo'smAt sarvasmAtsarvAn pApmana aushat tasmAt purushah (Br. Upa. 1.4.1).The nAma can also be derived from the root pR to protect or nourish (g).Also, from the uNAdi sUtra purah kushan and from pura agragamane (pANi nisUtra), the meaning "One who leads or is in the forefront" (h) is derived.SrI P.B. aNNa~ngarAcArya svAmi chooses this meaning in his abridgedcommentary. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan nicely summarizes the guNa-s indicated by thenAma purusha as "rakshaka", phala prada" etc.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha, who gives most of the interpretations that havebeen covered by other vyAkhyAna kartA-s, also adds the last one above. 408. prANah The vital air (Life-breath).om prANAya namah.This nAma occured earlier (nAma 67, 322). There the explanation given wasprANIti iti prANAh - That which gives or sustains life. In addition togiving prANa to everything in this world, He is also the prANa for all thegods and for all His devotees. As prANa, He causes

the movements.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives additional references - en Aviyai, naDuvE vanduuyyak-koLginRa nAthanai (tiruvAimozhi 1.7.5); naRpAl ayOddhiyil vAzhumSarASaram muRRavum naRpAlukku uittanan (tiruvAimozhi 7.5.1); ottAiep-porutkum uyirAi (tiruvAimozhi 2.3.2). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers usto "yadvai prANiti sa prAnah (chAndogya 1.3).409. prANa-dah - The Life-giver.om prANadAya namah.This nAma occurred earlier (66, 323), and will re-occur as nAma 956. Theinterpretations were: a) prANAn dadAti iti prAna-dah - He who gives life(SrI Sankara and SrI BhaTTar); b) prANAn dyati iti prANah - He who takesaway the vital airs at the time of death (SrI Sankara); and c) prANAndIpayati - He who purifies and brightens the vital airs (SrI Sankara).The aspect of His giving life has also been interpreted as His giving theability to the nitya-sUri-s to enjoy Him constantly, which is the sustenanceof their life.The dharma cakram writer points out that when bhagavAn gives life in theform of the sun, the beings that receive this light are more lively than thebeings that do not get exposed to the sun. Similarly, those who identifythemselves with their body are not in an awakened and energized statecompared to those who realize that they are the belongings of bhagavAn.bhagavAn in His mantra svarUpa awakens the spiritual light in those whochant the gAyatri mantra, and this in turn leads to God realization. ThusHe gives life in different ways to the beings of this world. 410. praNamah a) He who makes others bow before Him.b) He who deserves to be worshiped.om praNamAya namah.praNAmayati iti praNamah. By His superior character, He makes others bowbefore Him. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to divya prabandham - "ilai tuNaimaRRen ne~njE! ila~nkaiyai IDazhitta kURamban allAl kuRai (nAnmugantiruvantAdi 8) - Except for Lord rAma, there is no one else fit for us toworship.An alternate version for this nAma is praNavah - He who is praisedimmensely. SrI Sankara quotes sanatkumAra - praNamantIha vai vedAs-tasmAtpraNava ucyate - He for whom prostrations are made in the veda, is praNavah.praNavah refers to the praNava mantra, and this is considered the verbalrepresentation of bhagavAn - mantra svarUpi. 411. pRthuh Well-known.om pRthave namah.The word pRthuh is derived from pratha prakhyAne - to become famous. SrIBhaTTar gives references to the following: pRthu-SrIh pArthivAtmajah (bAlakANDa - 1.8) - The son of king daSaratha is endowed with world-wide renown;teshAm atiyaSe loko rAmah - (bAla 77.28) - Amongst them rAma was the mostreputed. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers to divya prabandham - nigar il pugazhAi (tiruvAi mozhi 6.10.10).SrI Sankara gives the meaning "He who has expanded Himself as Cosmos". SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha gives the explanation for this interpretation - prathvistAre - to spread out, to expand. The viSva rUpa of mahA vishNu is anexample of pRthuh in both senses - He who is well-known through His virAtsvarUpa or He who is spread throughout cosmos in His virAt svarUpa.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives an additional interpretation - His ninthincarnation among His innumerable incarnations is as pRthu mahAraja who isthe father of pRthvI. This is described in SrImad bhAgavtam 1.3.14 -Rshibhir-yAcito bheje navamam pArthivam vapuh - In response to the requestfrom the Rshi-s, He appeared in the form of pRthu. 412. hiraNya-garbhah He who delights everyone's heart.om hiraNya-garbhAya namah.This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 71. The interpretation given was a) Hewho is in a lovely abode viz. parama padam, or b) He who is the originatorof all that is the object of fulfillment or joy. hiraNya refers to gold.The analogy here is that just as gold is pure, very attractive, and highlycoveted, paramapadam is suddha-sattva, and hence the reference to hiraNya.One who generates all that is great is hinraNya garbhah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujangives reference to tiruvAimozhi 10.9.11 - toNDar ALvadu SUzh-pon-viSumbe -SUzh-pon-viSumbu here referring to "niratiSaya

tEjOrUpamAna paramapadam".hiraNya also refers to the vIrya that He had in Him and that resulted in thecreation. This is another explanation for the nAma that is given by SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri.Just as gold is hidden in the heart of the earth, He is hidden in the heartsof His devotees. He is hiraNyagarbha in this sense as well (SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri).SrI radhAkRshNa SAstri gives a connected account of the nAma-s startingwith viakunThah and ending with this nAma in terms of creation. BhagavAnvaikunTha who has unobstructed and enormous energy, descended from His stateof parama purusha and decided to reside in the beings in this Universe inthe form of purusha in this body as if it is vaikunTha. Then He convertedthe prAna Sakti which operates the prakRti into a form which supported thebeings, and thus becme prANa-dah. Thus resulted this Universe, the AkASabeing the first of the bhUta-s (tasmAd-vA etasmAdAtmana AkASassambhUtah).First there resulted the great sound of praNava (pEroli). From this AkASa,there resulted the other bhUta-s (AkASAd-vAyuh, vAyoragnih, agnerApah,adbhyah pRthivI), and thus He expanded into the cosmos (pRthuh). ThispRthu is the Father of this Universe. pRthvI is the daughter of thispRthuh. Starting from the sthUla form, and following through with thebestowing of the SUkshma form, He then gave the prANamaya, manomaya, andvi~jnAna maya koSa-s to His creations as the hiraNyagarbhah. Thus,starting from the nAma viakunThah, and up to the nAma hiraNya garbhah, thesecret of creation is nicely revealed. 413. Satru-ghnah The Slayer of the enemies.om Satru-ghnAya namah.Satrum hanti iti Satru-ghnah. SrI BhaTTar points out that He subdues byHis arrows of wisdom the senses which lead away the people to the enjoymentof earthly pleasures. That is, when one mediates on Him, this is how Heslays the enemies to the devotee's realization of Him. The mind is comparedto rAvaNa and his ten heads to the ten sense-organs.SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He is the destroyer of the enemiesof the gods. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the nAma as referring toHis act of punishing those who violate His dictum. 414. vyAptah He who is full (of love and affection)om vyApatAya namah.From nirukti we have - nIca pUjya avisesheNa vyApanAt vyApta ucyate -Because He does not distinguish between young and old, master and servant,friends and foes, when it comes to showering His affection. SrI BhaTTarrefers us to SrImad rAmAyaNa -paurAn svajanavat nityam kuSalam paripRcchati | puteshvagnishu dAreshu preshyaSishya gaNeshu ca || nikhilena AnupUrvyAcca pitA putrAniva aurasAn || ((AraNya2.37,38)Also, "ripUNAmapi vatsalah" - Even towards His enemies rAma is kind" -yuddha 50.56.Another interpretation given is that He pervades everything (SrI Sankara,SrI cinmayAnanda, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri). 415. vAyuh He who moves (towards His devotees).om vAyave namah.SrI BhaTTar: He is called vAyu because He Himself goes seeking His devoteeswherever they may be. Examples are His going to Sabari seeking her withrespect, His visit to bharadvAja in his ASrama, His friendship with guha,etc.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derivation - vAti sarvatra gato bhavatiiti vAyuh - vishNuh. He who is spread out everywhere in this Universe.There is not a single place in this Universe where air has not entered ordoes not exist. This is the guNa of bhagavAn.The dharma cakram writer reminds us that this is a nAma that emphasizesbhgavAn's guNa of being all-pervasive. He gives reference to gItA - "puNyogandhah pRthivyAm - I am the principle of sweet fragrance in the earth(7.9). We can survive without food or water for a few days, but withoutvAyu we can't survive even for a few minutes. Without bhagavAn we can'tsurvive, period. This is the concept this nAma should remind us. vAyucomes to us without our seeking; so does bhagavAn - He seeks His devoteesand goes after them (see SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam in the beginning). vAyudoes not distinguish between people in any way; so does bhagavAn mingle witheveryone with equality of disposition.SrI cinmayAnanda points out that He is not just the air but the life-givingforce behind the air.SrI Sankara

derives the meaning from vAti - gandham karoti iti vAyuh - Hewho is the cause of smell. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to theupanishad - vAyurasmai puNyam gandham Avahati - aitareya 1.7. bhagavAn isthe antaryAmi for vAyu, and makes vAyu perform its functions -"yo vAyau tishThan-vAyorantaro yam vAyur-na veda yasya vAyuh SarIram yovAyumantaro yamayati, esha te AtmAntaryAmyamRtah" - bRhadA 3.7.7.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives several passages from the Sruti to bring outthe uniqueness and importance of vAyu among the devatAs. The Sun, moon,fire and water all merge into vAyu when they disappear vAyurvAva samvargoyadA vA agnirudvAyati, vAyumevApyeti, yadA sUryo'stameti vAyumevApyeti, yadAcandro'stameti vAyumevApyeti,yadApa ucchushyantivAyumevApiyantivAyuhyavaitAn-sarvAnsamvRkye (chAndogya 4.3). When theindriya-devatA-s such as the sun and the moon enter the sushupti state, vAyucontinues to be active as the prANa vAyu - mlocanti hyanyA devatAh, navAyuh, saishA'nastamitA devatA vAyuh - bRhadA 1.5.22. bhgavAn vishNu bearsthe earth through His vibhUti as vAyu - kim tad-vishNor-balamAhuh |vAtAt-vishNor-balamAhuh | (taittirIya 1.8.3). vAyu is the thread thatkeeps this world together like a string holding the beads of a chain;without this the world will break apart like a chain with a broken string;bhagavAn is this force - vAyurvai gautama tat-sUtram, vAyunA vai gautamasUtreNAyam ca lokah paraSca lokah sarvANi ca bhutAni sandRbdhAni bhavanti(bRhadA 3.5.2). Thus vAyuh and its vital role in the existence andsurvival of this Universe is the reason for bhagavAn's nAma as vAyuh. 417. adhokshajah He who does not get diminished.om adhokshajAya namah.He is adokshajah because He never gets diminished even though He is enjoyedby His devotees. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives the most appropriate support forthis from nammAzhvAr - "yAnum Etti mUvulagum muRRum Etti pinnaiyum tAnumEttilum tannai Etta Etta engu eidum? tEnum pAlum kannalum amudamumAgit-tittippa" - tiruvAimozhi 4.3.10.He is adhokshajah also because His vitality never diminishes, and He is notdiminished by repeated births and deaths - adho na kshIyate jAtu yasmAttasmAt adhokshajah (mahAbhArata udyoga 4.69.10). adhah means down or below,and kshIyate refers to getting diminished.SrI Sankara gives an alternate interpretation - He who is perceived when thesense organs (aksha gaNa-s) are made inward-looking. He gives reference tothe following verse, whose author or source are not known. adho bhUte hyakshagaNe pratyag-rUpapravAhite | jAyate tasya vai j~nAnam tena adhokshaja ucyate ||Yet another interpretation given by SrI Sankara is "He who manifests Himselfas the virAt between the sky (aksha) and the region below (adhah) i.e., theEarth" - aksham adhah tayor-madhye vairAja rUpeNa ajAyata iti adhkshajah.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds yet another dimension: adhah - j~nAtRtvabhAvAthInam, akshajam j~nAnam yasya sa adhokshajah - He who is not recognized byindriya-s such as the eyes etc., even though He is everywhere, ineverything.-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 45 417. Rtuh 418. sudarSanah 419. kAlah

420. 421. 422. 423. 424. 425. 426.

parameshThI parigrahah ugrah samvatsarah dakshah viSrAmah viSva-dakshiNah

om Rtave namahom sudarSanAya namahom kAlAya namahom parameshThine namahom parigrahAya namahom ugrAya namahom samvatsarAya namahom dakshAya namahom viSrAmAya namahom viSvadakshiNAya namah 417. Rtuh Seasons (The Lord of Time who governs the seasons).om Rtave namah.The nAma is derived from the root Rgati-prApaNayoh to go. Rcchati itiRtuh. The term Rtuh which refers to seasons is based on the fact thatthe seasons push one another and keep coming fresh and lively withoutinterruption. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn'sauspicious guNa-s which are unique and delightful and which presentthemselves like waves of seasons in the hearts of His devotees and blessesthem. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri: Rtu refers to a two-month period, of whichthere are six in an year. These are called vasanta, grIshma, varsha,Sarad, hemanta, and SiSira. The cycle of time involves these Rtu-ssuccessively moving one after the other without interruption. This nAmaindicates that BhagavAn is in the form of Time which is behind the cycleof seasons. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to aruNa praSnam (9)-Rtur-RtunA nudyamAnah vinnAdAbhidhAvah - One season prods the other outand declares its arrival loudly.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn is called Rtuh becauseHe is everywhere in the form of seasons. 418. sudarSanah a) He of a delightful appearance that induces happiness in those who see Him.b) He whose vision leads to moksham.c) He whose eyes resemble the lotus petals.d) He who is seen easily by His devotees.om sudarsanAya namah.SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that the nAma refers to His guNa thatthe very sight of Him is a source of delight and is auspicious even tothose who may be ignorant of His qualities and greatness. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the term "dRshThi cittApahAri to describe thisguNa of BhagavAn.SrI Sankara has given three interpretations:a) su darSanam asya iti sudarSanah - He who has the good Vision

that leadsto moksham. su - Sobhanam, nirvANa phalam; darSanam - j~nAnam, asya itisudarSanah. b) He who has eyes that resemble the petals of lotus - Subhe darSane -IkshaNe padma-patrAyate asya iti sudarSanah.c) He who is easily seen by His devotees - sukhena dRSyate bhaktaih itisudarSanah.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri relates this nAma to the previous one byinterpreting the current nAma as referring to the devatA for the sudarSanacakra. Just as time is spinning uninterruptedly in the form of the sixRtu-s, the six-pronged sudarSana cakra is revolving powerfully andwithout interruption, and BhagavAn is the devatA for this sudarSanacakram. He gives the following reference in support of thisinterpretation - shaDaram vA etat-sudarSanam mahA-cakram tasmAt shaDarambhavati, shaD-patram cakram bhavati, shaDvA Rtavah Rtubhih sammitambhavati, madhye nAbhir-bhavati, .... (nRsimha pUrva 7.2).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that this nAma refers to bhagavAn'sability to see and know everything in this Universe in and out clearly andwithout blemish through His netra in the form of the Sun, and also throughHis being the antaryAmi in everything. 419. kAlah a) He who draws all towards Himself.b) He who measures and sets a limit to everythingc) He who is Death or annihilation to all His enemiesd) He who measures everyone's karma and doles out the phala.The nAma is derived from the root kala samkhyAne to measure or count. SrIBhaTTar's bhAshyam for this nAma is carAcara sa~nkalanAt kAlah - He whogathers everything - movable and non-movable, into Himself through Hisdelightful qualities (kalanAt kAlah).SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is kalayati sarvam iti kAlah - He who measures andsets a limit to everything is kAlah. He gives reference to gItA - kAlahkalayatAm aham (10.30). SrI rAmAnuja bhAshya for this part in gItA isanartha-prepsutayA gaNayatAm madhye kAlah mRtyuh aham - Of those whoreckon with the desire to cause misfortunes or calamities, I am god ofdeath. tirukkaLLam SrI nRsimharAghavAcArya svAmi has commented that thereference here is to the One who is proficient in keeping track of timefor everyone's end viz. citragupta. It can also mean that He is the Deathor annihilation to all His enemies (SrI cinmayAnanda).SrI cinmayAnanda adds that this nAma signifies that bhagavAn measures themerits and defects in each individual, and doles out the appropriateresults kalayati iti kAlah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha has also given thissame interpretation - sarveSvaro vishNureva kAlo, yato hi sa kalayatigaNayati samasta-prANi-karmANi, tadanukUla phala-pradAya. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that among those that are used to measureor quantify things, kAla or Time is the most precise; it is not prone toany error and keeps prodding everything to its destined end. This isBhagavAn's act. He gives reference to the following passage - "kAlo hinAma bhagavAn svayambhuh anAdi madhya nidhanah | sa sUkshmAmapi kalAm nalIyate iti kAlah | samkalayati kAlayati vA bhUtAni iti kAlah (suSrutasUtra 6.3). 420. parameshThI a) He who resides in the Supreme Abode, SrIviakunTham.b) He who resides in the Supreme cave of the heart.om parameshThine namah.SrI BhaTTar gives the derivation - parame sthAne tishThati itiparameshThI - He who resides in the Supreme Abode, SrIvaikunTham. Aftercompleting His sport of hunting the rAkshasa-s, BhagavAn goes and stays inthe Supreme Abode, and so He is known as parameshThI. SrI v.v.rAmAnujanrefers us to tiruvAimozhi 6.4.10 - mAya~ngaL Seidu SEnaiaip pAzh paDanURRiTTup pOi viN miSaittana tAmame puga mEvia SOdi (jyoti). SrI cinmayAnanda, who follows SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam, bases his explanationon the kaThopanishad passage "parame vyomni prathisTHitah" - He who iscentered in the Supreme cave of the heart and readily available forexperience. 421. parigrahah a) He who takes all with Himb) He who is grasped on all sides by those who seek refuge in Himc) He who accepts any offering by His devotees when offered with sincerityd) He who has everything in this Universe

under His control.om parigrahAya namah.SrI BhaTTar bhAshyam - atra tatra ca parito grahah asya iti parigrahah -Here, there, and everywhere, He accepts all. Quite appropriately, this isthe last of the nAma-s that SrI BhaTTar interprets as referring to the SrIrAma incarnation. When Lord rAma departed to SrIviakunTham after thepurpose for his incarnation was completed, He took every ayodhyA-vAsi withHim, including the gardens, trees, etc. SrI nammAzhvAr very nicelydescribes this - puRpA mudalAp pul eRumbu Adi onRinRiyE naRpAl ayoddhiyilvAzhum carAcaram muRRavum naRpAlukku uittanan nAnmuganAr peRRa nATTuLE(tiruvAimozhi 7.5.1). SrI BhaTTar concludes his anubhavam of Lord rAma's guNa-s by singling outHis souSIlyam as the most outstanding guNa in SrI rAma avatAra - His guNaof mingling with everyone without distinction regardless of His SupremeSuperiority.Among the interpretations given by SrI Sa~nkara are: a) parito gRhyate -He who is grasped on all sides by those who seek refuge in Him; and b)parigRhNAti iti parigrahah - He who receives (accepts) the offerings ofleaves, flowers, etc. offered by the devotees. Recall "patram pushpamphalam toyam..." in the gItA (9.26). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn isparigrahah - paritah sarvatah grahaNam - He who has everything in thisUniverse under His control through His power. 422. ugrah The Formidable.om ugrAya namah.SrI BhaTTar explains the next few nAma-s in terms of the kalkiincarnation. The nAma is derived from uc - samavAye - to collecttogether. At the end of kali yuga, when all are more inclined to commitsins, and when there is great confusion in the divisions of caste and theseveral stages of life, bhagavAn becomes ugra- furious and wrathful, andtakes the kalki incarnation and destroys the hosts of mleccha-s. SrIv.v.rAmAnujan points out that when bhagavAn is unable to conquer throughHis 'kUDArai vellum Sir" those who are bent on the path of adharma, it isthen that He becomes ugra. 423. samvatsarah a) He who resides (in the pAtAla loka).b) He in whom everything resides.om samvatsarAya namah.The word is derived from the root vasati preceded by the preposition sam.SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn is reclining on the ananta-couchin the pAtAla loka with all His weapons awaiting the time when He has toappear as the kalki incarnation. SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam: samvasanti bhUtAni asmin iti samvatsarah - He inwhom all beings reside. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the meaning "Year" to theword samvatsarah, and interprets this to mean Time, in the context ofwhich all beings exist and gather their experiences. 424. dakshah He who is quick in action.om dakshAya namah.The word is derived from the root daksh - to grow or act quickly. (Notethat the word dakshiNA also results from the same root, since it is meantto grow the welfare of the yajamAna). SrI BhaTTar continues hisinterpretation in terms of the kalki incarnation, and points out that thisnAma refers to bhagavAn's quick action in eliminating the dasyu-s(miscreants, looters) quickly during His incarnation. SrI v.v.rAmAnujanrefers us to nammAzhvAr 4.8.1 - kulam kulamA asurargaLai nIRAgum paDiyAganirumittup-paDai toTTa mARALan. This nAma also occurs later as nAma 917, where SrI BhaTTar interprets theword in terms of bhagavAn's being very fast in coming to the rescue ofgajendra, even though gajendra was just an animal. SrI v.v.rAmAnujanobserves that SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam of this incident is that bhagavAnwas so fast when He came to the help of gajendra that He did not have timeto inform pirATTi, and when He found that the speed of garuDa was notsufficient, He carried garuDa (instead of garuDa carrying Him) and flewand landed on the banks of the pond with utmost speed. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the explanation "He who is Smart", because He isvery prompt, efficient and diligent in His function of creation,protection, and destruction of the Whole Cosmos. He also explains the nAmaas

referring to " bhagavAn's readiness to reach and help all, at alltimes, everywhere, under every circumstance".SrI Sa~nkara observes that daksha refers to one who has the threequalities, immensity, strength, and quick execution (pravRddhah, Saktah,SIghrakArI ca dakshah). This nAma conveys that all these qualities arenatural to the Supreme Being. 425. viSrAmah a) The Place of Rest.b) One who provides rest to all the beings.om viSrAmAya namah.The word viSrAmah is derived from the word Srama. He is the place of restfor those who are extremely tired by the heavy burden of their sins andthe experience of their fruits. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives thederivation - viSrAmyati yasmin sarvam iti viSrAmah. BhagavAn is also theplace of rest for all the jIva-s at the time of pralaya. Another explanation provided by SrI satyadevo vAsishTha is - viSrAmayatisarvam iti viSrAmah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that BhagavANcreated night after a day's toil for the beings to rest, death after alife of karma-s, fire for those who shiver from cold, shade to rest forthose scorched by the sun's rays, etc., and thus He constantly providesthe comfort of rest for every tApa. When those who suffer the effects oftheir karmA think of Him, He makes this thought itself the shield for themfrom their sufferings, and provides the needed comfort. 426. viSva-dakshiNah a) He who is well-disposed towards all.b) He who offers the whole world as dakshiNA in the aSva-medha yAga.c) He who is proficient in everything.d) He who is more proficient than everyone.om viSva-dakshiNAya namah.The first two interpretations are SrI BhaTTar's, and the next two are SrISa~nkara's.a) viSvasmin ishTa-anishTa kAriNiavisesheNa dakshate iti viSva-dakshiNah -He shows His favor uniformly to all. This was the case in the trivikramaincarnation, where He blessed everyone with His Feet in addition tomahAbali. The word dAkshiNya (derived from the same root as dakshiNah)refers to the guNa of forgiving enemies. b) viSvam dakshiNA asya iti viSva-dakshiNah. In vanaparva in mahAbhArata,we have "Then He will destroy all the robbers and will offer this Earth asdakshiNA in the aSvamedha yAga to the officiating priests". "tataS-cora-kshaya kRtvA dvijebhyah pRthivIm imAm | vAjimegha mahA-yaj~ne vidhivat kalpayishyati ||(bhArata vana 191.1)c) viSveshu karmasu dAkshiNyAt viSva-dakshiNah - One who is proficient ineverything.d) viSvasmAt dakshiNah Saktah - One who is more skilled than everyone.SrI cinmayAnanda elaborates that all the efficiency and skill in theuniverse among the living dynamic creatures is but an expression of Him,since He is the source of the skill and efficiency. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. 427. 428. 429. 430. 431. 432. vistArah sthAvar-sthANuh pramANam bIjam-avyayam arthah anarthah

433. mahA-koSah 434. mahA-bhogah 435. mahA-dhanah

om vistArAya namahom sthAvara-sthANave namahom pramANAya namahom bIjAya-avyayAya namahom arthAya namahom anarthAya namahom mahA-koSAya namahom mahA-dhanAya anamah 427. vistArah a) He who spreads (the veda-s).b) He who is spread out in everything.c) He who expands to contain everything (at the time of pralaya).om vistArAya namahAfter destroying the kali yuga by force in His kalki incarnation, bhagavAnestablishes the kRta yuga and then spreads dharma through the veda-s.SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the mahAbhArata: tatah adharma vinASo vai dharma-vRddhiSca bhArata | bhavishyati kRte prApte kriyavAn ca janas-tathA ||(mahA. vana. 191.7)SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr - kaliyum keDum kaNDu koNmin;tiriyum kali-yugam nI~ngi devargaL tAmum pugundu peria kida yugampaRRip-pErinba veLLam peruga (tiruvAimozhi 5.2.1,2).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn is vistArah because Hespreads Himself out in the form of all the beings He has created and all theobjects in the universe. Then at the time of pralaya, all these merge backinto Him, and He expands Himself to contain all the things. Thus the nAmavisTara applies both to His being spread out in all objects, and Hisspreading out to contain all the objects within Himself. SrI vAsishThagives reference to the yajurveda - tadantarsya sarvasya tadu sarvasyAsyabAhyatah; ISAvAsyam idam sarvam yat-kim ca jagatyAm jagat; etc. He alsogives the example of a seed expanding to a tree, and the tree beingcontained in the seed back again.The dharma cakram writer adds another dimension to the anubhavam of thisnAma. He observes that the viSva-rUpa that bhagavAn showed to arujuna is anillustration of this nAma. This form with infinite faces, infinite eyes,with no beginning or end, with all the beings including all the devascontained in this form, with the Sun and the moon as His eyes, and with notop, middle or bottom, illustrates His nAma "vistArah". svAmi vivekAnandaonce made a statement to the effect that "Life is to expand", meaning thatwe get closer and closer to God by expanding our love to Him and our desireto reach Him. This is what the nAma "vistArah" should remind us. 428. sthAvar-sthANuh a) He who is tranquil after establishing the dharma in kRta yuga.b) He in whom the earth etc. restc) He who is motionless, and in whom the earth etc. rest.om sthAvar-sthANave namah.SrI BhaTTa's vyAkhyAnam is "evam dharme sthAvari_kRte, Same sthAsyati itisthAvara-sthANuh", which supports interpretation a)

above.SrI Sa~nkara interprets the nAma as "sthitiSIlah sthAvarah; sthitiSilAnipRthivyAdIni tishThanti asmin iti sthANuh; sthAvaraSca asau sthANuScasthAvara-sthANuh". This is translated slightly differently by two differentinterpreters. One is that the apparently motionless objects such as theearth etc., rest in Him. The other interpretation is that this nAma refersto "He who is firmly established, and in whom the apparently motionlessentities such as the earth are established, and He is both of these".SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation "He is both Firm (shtAvara) andMotionless (shtANuh)". He is motionless because He is Allpervading.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains sthAvara as referring to the pa~nca bhUta-sthat will continue till the time of pralaya, sthANuh as referring to Onewhose state does not change, and interprets sthAvarasthANuh as referring toOne who does not change in His state, and in whom the changeless pa~ncabhUta-s exist. The tamizh word "tAvaram" is related to the samkRt word"sthAvara". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that just as the road does not move eventhough people keep moving on it, and the mother walks but the child in herwomb does not walk with her, so also bhagavAn has created all that is aroundus but He Himself is sthAvarah. 429. pramANam The Authority.om pramANAya namah.The root from which the nAma is derived is mA mAne to measure, to comparewith. pramANam is that through which everything is ascertained. In thiscase it refers to bhagavAn who is the final proof or authority foreverything. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn created thisUniverse the way He wanted, including the decision on how many speciesshould exist and what attributes they should have, etc., and so He is thepramANam or authority for everything.The nAma occurs again as nAma 959. SrI BhTTar interprets the currentoccurrence as referring to His being the authority to decide what is goodand what is bad for the people in the kRta yuga, after the kalkiincarnation.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri defines pramANam as that ability which helps usdecide between good and bad through data acquired using our sense organs(ears, eyes, etc.). BhagavAn is the One who controls this, and so He isHimself pramANam. 430. bIjam-avyayam The Seed Imperishable.om bIjAya avyayAya namah.The nAma is bIjam (seed) that is avyayam (imperishable). Because dharmagrows again and again from Him after the end of each yuga, He is theImperishable Seed (SrI BhaTTar).SrI Sa~nkara vyAkhyAnam is that He is the cause of everything withoutHimself undergoing any change (anyathA bhAvavyatih ekeNa kAraNam). Thedharma cakram writer gives a slightly different interpretation - Unlike someseeds which may not produce a tree and which may decay in the form of theseed itself, bhagavAn is the undecaying seed from which the Universeresults. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to gItA 9.18 - (aham)bijam-avyayam. SrI rAmAnuja bAshyam for this passage in gItA is "tatra tatravyaya-rahitam yat kAraNam tad aham eva" - "I alone am the imperishable seedthat is the exhaustless cause everywhere". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha refersus to the vedic passage "ajAyamAno bahudA vijAyate", which conveys a similarmessage. He also gives a passage from vaiyAkaraNa defining the term avyayamsadRSam trishu li~ngeshu sarvAsu ca vibhaktishu | vacaneshu ca sarveshu yan-na vyeti tad-avyayam ||which can be approximately translated as "That which is equal andindistinguishable in the three genders and numbers as well as in its variousdeclensions". 431. arthah The Goal - He who is sought after.om arthAya namah.That which is obtained or desired to be obtained is "artha". SrI BhaTTarrefers us to gItA - "j~nAnavAn mAm prapadye vAsudeah sarvam iti" (7.19).SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is "sukha rUpatvAt sarvaih arthyata iti arthah" - Hewho is sought after by all as He is of the nature of bliss. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri remarks that there are many things in this world whichare sought after with a view to deriving happiness, but they all end up inresulting in misery after they are

acquired and enjoyed. Unlike these,bhagavAn is sought after by those who have the j~nAna to know that He is theonly one to be sought for permanent bliss. 432. anarthah a) He who is not the goal for some.b) He who is self-fulfilled and does not have any other end to seek.om anarthAya namah.a) SrI BhaTTar explains that He is not sought after by those who have only alittle merit. They seek Him if at all, only for wealth. These are thosewho want to regain their lost wealth, those who wish to acquire new wealth,and those who seek the enjoyment of their own self (kaivalyam) withoutseeking kaimkaryam to bhagavAn.SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is that bhagavAn is completely fulfilled and so doesnot need any artha (i.e., He does not seek anything), and so He is anarthah.The dharma cakram writer has devoted about one-and-a-half pages to thisnAma, and nicely describes how the current-day human being goes to greatlengths to make himself/herself comfortable, and in the process keeps makinglife miserable. The needs just keep increasing the more new things areinvented. The atom bomb is invented, and instead of protecting man itbecomes a threat to worry about. More and more cosmetics are invented, andmore and more diseases result as a result of their use. More and morethings are invented to satisfy our taste buds, and more and more problemsresult because of over-consumption. This nAma should illustrate to us thatlife that does not keep multiplying our needs is the life that willultimately lead us to the mental state where we can contemplate on bhagavAn. 433. mahA-koSah a) He who has a great treasure.b) He who is a Great Treasure.c) He who is shielded by the five koSa-s or shields.om mahA-koSAya namah.koSa means treasure. mahA-koSa refers to vast, inexhaustible treasure. Eventhough BhagavAn is giving away Himself and His belongings always to Hisdevotees in all ways, still it does not diminish. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refersus to "Unam il Selvam enko?", pointing to the undiminishing Affluence calledBhagavAn.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that from this Great Treasurechest(mahAkoSah) viz. bhagavAn, come out all these different worlds, and thedifferent life-forms in each of these worlds, but the Treasure-chest is notin anyway diminished by this. We see this demonstrated even in day-to-daylife, in that the waters of the ocean never diminish even though the wateris constantly evaporating. So also, the beings are born one from the otherjust because of the mahAkoSa.SrI Sa~nkara's interpretation is based on the meaning "shield" for koSa.This interpretation is that the real nature of the soul is shielded by thefive koSa-s, anna maya koSa, prANa maya koSa, mano maya koSa, vij~nAna mayakoSa, and Ananda maya koSa, and bhagavAn is the mahAkoSa who is shieldedfrom all except the yogi-s. The dharma cakram writer points out that bycontrol of our indriya-s we can cross the anna maya koSa, by control ofbreath we can cross the prANa maya koSa, by control of the mind the manomayakoSa is crossed, by channeling one's intellect and through control ofworldly desires and passions we can cross the vij~nAnamaya koSa, and throughmeditation on the Self we cross the Anandamaya koSa, and ultimately realizebhagavAn. 434. mahA-bhogah He who has objects of great enjoyment.om mahA-bhogAya namah.SrI BhaTTar: He who has objects of great enjoyment. Great sensualgratifications which have got to be acquired by means of wealth, they toocan be had from Him. The objects of desires that are obtained by theworship of indra and other gods is but a blessing of bhagavAn - "labhate catatah kAmAn mayaiva vihitAn hitAn" - gItA 7.22.SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr 3.10.3 - muttu il pal-bhOgattorutani-nAyakan - bhagavAn has limitless and unbounded bhoga-s.The dharma cakram writer points out that among the joys that one gets, thereare those which are conducive to desirable benefits, and there are thosewhich lead to misery as a result of the enjoyment. When one eats food forsatisfying hunger, this does not lead to suffering, but when one consumesfood to

satisfy the taste buds, it is of the later kind. The enjoymentinvolving gambling, intoxicating drinks, stealing other's wealth, etc., arebought at the price of misery as a consequence. The term mahAbhogahindicates that bhagavAn is the source of the bliss that is the greatest ofall joys that lead to positive benefits, the one that leads to Selfrealization. 435. mahA-dhanah He of great wealth.om mahA-dhanAya namah.He is endowed with immeasurable and unlimited wealth to be given to thosewho need it. SrI BhaTTar quotes vishNu purANa marIcimiSraih daksheNa tathaiva anyaih anantatah |dharmah prApatah tathA ca anyaih arthah kAmah tathA paraih || vishNupurAna 1.18.23"dharma in an endless manner has been obtained from Him by the reveredmarIci, daksha, and others. Similarly wealth has been obtained from Him byothers. Likewise, by yet others kAma (the sensual enjoyment) has beenacquired".SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that He is the possessor of the greatwealth that can be put in the mahAkoSa - great treasure chest (nAma 433),and that is needed for the mahAbhoga - great enjoyment (nAma 434).The dharma cakram writer discusses three kinds of wealth material wealth,knowledge, and devotion. The first two can be attained by anyoneirrespective of their character etc. Those who have material wealth orknowledge are praised by the people of this world, and as a result getintoxicated with pride. But the third category of wealth is rewarded andpraised by bhagavAn, and does not lead to anything except bhagavAn Himself.Lord rAma during His paTTAbhishekam gave away lots of material gifts to theparticipants, but He did not give any material gift to hanumAn. When siTapirATTi asked rAma about this, He told her that He has already given tohanumAn what nobody else knows, and that she can find out what it is fromhanumAn himself. When asked, hanumAn shows Lord rAma and sItA residing inHis heart. This is what vishNu's nAma of mahAdhanah indicates, viz. thatHe gives away the greatest wealth there is, Himself, to His devotees.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha adds that He is mahAdhanah because He has wealththat leads to absolute bliss, never diminishes, immense, cannot be countedor measured, and is prayed for by everyone else.-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 47 436. 437. 438. 439. 440. 441. 442. 443. 444. 445. anirviNNah sthavishThah bhUh dharma-yUpah mahA-makhah nakshatra-nemih nakshatrI kshamah kshAmah samIhanah

om anirviNNAya namahom sthavishThAya namahom bhuve namahom dharma-yUpAya namahom mahamakhAya namahom nakshatra-nemaye namahom nakshatriNe namahom kshamAya namahom kshAmAya namahom samIhanAya namah 436. anirviNNah He who is never despondent .om a-nirviNNAya namah.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning starting from the root vid -vicAraNe to discuss, to consider. SrI BhaTTar explains this by indicatingthat bhagavAn does not become despondent even though His expectations thatwe will resort to Him for our redemption are not fulfilled. He just goes onwith a new creation in the hope that we will meet His expectations in ournext chance. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr - SOmbAduip-palluruvai ellAm paDarvitta vittA - periya tiruvantAdi 18. SrI Sa~nkaragives the interpretation that He is never despondent because He has nowishes that are not fulfilled.The term a-nirvedah is also used to explain this nAma - One who is notdespondent or in despair.The dharma cakram writer points out that just as the heart ceaselessly keepsbeating in order to keep us alive but takes rest constantly in between thebeats and so never gets tired, bhagavAn ceaselessly creates this world andrests also continuously in between and never gets tired. If we do ourkarma-s with a sattvic attitude we also will never get despondent, but if wedo our karma-s either with the rAjasic or tAmasic disposition, we will geteasily depressed. This is the lesson we should take from this nAma. 437. sthavishThah He who is Immense.Om stahvishThAya namah.The author of nirukti explains this nAma as "sthoulyAt sthavishThah. SthUlameans large, immense, huge. SrI BhaTTar explains this sthoulya in terms ofthe huge grouping of stars referred to SiSumAra in vishNu purANa 2.9.1 -tArA-mayam bhagavatah SiSumArAkRtih prabhoh - The form of the mighty Hariwhich is present in heaven, consisting of the constellations, is that of aporpoise, with dhruva situated in the tail, etc. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan observesthat this constellation is revolving constantly like a cakra, and is beingconstantly drenched by the Ganges flowing from the satya loka to this earth,and is a reminder that bhagavAn is constantly striving to rejuvenate andsustain the beings of this Universe. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri givesreference to taitttirIya AraNyaka 2.19, which also describes bhagavAn inthis great form of SiSumAra, the Gangetic porpoise, with all the deva-s aspart of His body - tasmai namas-tac-chiro dharmo mUrdhAnam brahmottarAvishNur-hRdayam.....sa vA esha divyah SAkvarah SiSumArah. SrI Sastri alsorefers us to the description of the huge form of bhagavAn in SrImadbhAgavatam, 2.1.24 - 2.1.38, starting with viSeshas-tasya deho'yamsthavishThaSca sthavIyasAm. Here He is described as sthUlasyAm sthUlah -the most huge among those that are huge (Slokam 24), and sthavishThe vapushi(Slokam 38) - He with the form that is huge.SrI Sa~nkara gives reference to another

vedic passage - agnir-mUrdhAcakshushI candra-sUryau - muNDakopanishad 2.1.4 - Agni is His head, the moonand sun are His eyes. 438. bhUh The All-supporter.om bhuve namah.bhu bhav - to be - He who exists, without any other support. Thus oneinterpretation is that this refers to One who truly exists, unlike all otherbeings which have only temporary existence in a bodily form.bhu also refers to Earth, or in this case the support for all the stars inSiSumAra referred to in the previous nAma. The vishNu purANa passage quotedin the previous paragraph says that dhruva is in the tail of the SiSumAragroup of stars, and as dhruva spins, all the other stars spin with it, andis thus the supporter of the SiSumAra constellation. Since dhruva is a formof bhagavAn, bhagavAn is thus the supporter of all the stars of SiSumAra.This is SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam. SrI rAmAnujan refers to nammAzhvAr -tiRambAmal maN kAkkinREn yAnE (tiruvAimozhi 5.6.5), and to tirumazhiSaiAzhvAr - nAgamEndu maNNinai...kAttu (tiruccandaviruttam 6) - He who supportsthe AdiSesha who supports the Earth.SrI Sa~nkara uses an alternate pATham as his primary text here, leading tothe nAma as a-bhuh- He who is not born, though he also refers to thepossible alternate pATham - bhuh, Existence. 439. dharma-yUpah He who is united with dharma.om dharma-yUpAya namah.yu - miSraNe to join. yUpa refers to a post, e.g., the sacrificial post towhich sacrificial animal is tied. Here it refers to His being the peg forall dharma-s.SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is - dharma-tattvam Sirah avayavatayA yauti itidharma-yUpah - He in whom dharma is united as part of His body viz. head.The taittirIya AraNyakam passage referred to in nAma 437 starts with "tasmainamas-tac-chiro dharmah" - He whose Head is dharma. SrI BhaTTar quotes"dharmo mUrdhanam ASritah - dharma has resorted to His head". dharma isHis most important responsibility (v.n.vedAnta deSikan).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different anubhavam of this nAma. dharma isthat which sustains - dhArayati iti dharmah. yUpa as was pointed outearlier is derived from yu - miSraNe to join. The pa~nca bhUta-s serve thepurpose of sustaining life in this world. Since bhagavAn unites the pa~ncabhUta-s which sustain the life in this world, He is dharma-yUpah.The dharma cakram writer observes that dharma and bhagavAn are not distinct.This nAma should remind us that those who follow dharma are always protectedby bhagavAn. This was the advice given to duryodhana by bhIshma whenbhIshma had to fight on the side of duryodhana, viz. that there is no waythat the pANDava-s can be defeated because they are on the side of dharma. 440. mahA-makhah The Great ya~jna-svarUpi.om mahA-makhAya namah.makhah refers to yaj~na, sacrifice, or sacrificial oblation. SrIv.v.rAmAnujan points out that bhagavAn is ya~jna-svarUpan. This can bebest understood from SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's explanation that ya~jna issomething that gives whatever is desired on successful completion.BhagavAn is the mahA-makhah since He bestows everything desired on Hisdevotees. The Universe and all the things He has created for the enjoymentand benefit of the beings of this Universe are examples of things thatresulted from this 'mahA-mahkah'.Another explanation is that dharma is the greatest ya~jna (ya~jno dharmaScavi~jneyah), and since dharma is His head, He is Himself the great sacrificepersonified (mahA-makhah).SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is that He is mahA-makhah (The Great sacrificialoblation?) because sacrifices or offerings to bhagavAn lead to moksha, thegreatest of the benefits. 441. nakshatra-nemih

He who makes the stars move.om nakshatra-nemaye namah.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derivation for nakshatra as "na ksharatikshIyate vA". The word nemih is derived from the root nI to lead or carry.SrI BhaTTar vyAkhyAnam is "jyotiS-cakram nayati iti nakshatra-nemih". Herefers to the continuation of the vishNu purANam passage referred to in nAma438. "evam bhraman bhrAmayati candrAdityakAn grahAn | bhramantamanu tam yAnti nakshatrANi ca cakravat ||* vishNu purANam 2.9.2."As He (in the form of dhruva) goes round, He makes the sun, the moon andother planets revolve. All the stars also follow Him like a wheel as Hemoves in a circle".VishNu purANam continues with "SiSumArAkRti proktam yadrUpam jyotishAm divi | nArAyaNah param dhAmnAm tasyAdhArah svayam hRdi || (2.9.4) "The porpoise-like figure of the celestial sphere is upheld bynArAyaNa, who Himself, in planetary radiance, is seated in its heart".Reference to vishNu being in the heart or center of the SiSumAra cakra andbeing responsible for its movement is also made in the the svAdhyAyabrAhmaNa of taittirIya Sakha referred to under nAma 437. SrI Sa~nkara usesthis reference to explain that bhagavAn is nakshatra-nemih because He is inthe center of the SiSumAra collection of stars, and is the one who supportsit like a nave at the center of the wheel.The dharma cakram writer reminds us how important this function of mahAvishNu is. If only one of the millions of stars goes out of its pathprescribed by Him, the consequences will be disastrous for us. This nAmashould remind us that just as order in the macro level is important for oursurvival, there is need for order at the thought level as well for thelong-term survival of all of us. If the thoughts are not good, and if theyare not devoted to the welfare of the world as a whole but areself-centered, the consequence is the long-term destruction of the whole. 442. nakshatrI He who has (supports) the stars.om nakshatriNe namah.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha explains that just as one who has kshetra is calleda kshetri, or one who has SarIra is called a SarIri, one who has the starsis nakshatrI. SrI BhaTTar explains that His being the Lord and drivingforce behind SiSumAra is the reference here. SrI Sa~nkara gives theinterpretation that nakshatrI refers to His being the Moon, the Lord of allthe stars (nakshatrANAm aham SaSI - Among the stars, I am the Moon - gItA10.21). 443. kshamah a) He who is competent.b) He who has great patience.om kshamAya namah.a) This interpretation is based on ksham - sahane to allow, to suffer. SrIBhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is - akhila bhuvana bhAram anAyAsena kshamate - vahatiiti kshamah; He is known as kshamah because He bears the burden of theentire Universe with ease. SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is "sarva kAryeshusamarthah kshamah - He who is clever and competent in everything.b) SrI Sa~nkara gives an additional interpretation based on ksham - sahaneto endure. He refers to SrImad rAmAyaNa - kshamayA pRthivI samah - SrIrAma is like the earth in patience bAla kANDa 1.18.The dharma cakram writer links the two interpretations nicely by pointingout that in order to be competent and efficient, you have to act withpatience. And when we act with patience and thus become efficient in ouracts, the feeling we should have is that this is the kRpA of bhagavAn.This nAma conveys the idea that in order to be efficient and proficient, weneed to be patient and then dedicate the results of this efficientperformance to bhagavAn and grow our devotion to Him. This in turn will getus closer to realization of Him.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that when the jIva-s leave the vedic pathand pursue other paths, He does not lose His patience, but instead gives thefruits that are consistent with these actions and thus makes them pure andkeeps giving them more opportunities to correct themselves. In a sense,bhagavAn's guNa of kshamA is reflected in everything in this Universeinherently. The individual soul puts up with the body for the duration thatis prescribed for it irrespective of all the actions of the body, everycreation of His puts up with the heat and cold to which they are exposed,etc. 444. kshAmah

a) He who is in a diminished form.b) He in whom all forms diminish.om kshAmAya namah.The root from which this nAma is derived is kshau - kshaye to waste. SrIBhaTTar explains this nAma by pointing out that bhagavAn stands in the formof dhruva in a diminished form at the time of the dissolution of the Earthinclusive of the five elements. All the luminaries up to dhruva disappear,and dhruva alone remains shining in his place, as stated in vishNu purANa "yAvan-mAtre pradeSe tu maitreyAvasthito dhruvah | kshayamAyAti tAvat-tu bhumerAbhUtasamplave || 2.8.92SrI Sa~nkara's vyAkhyAnam is that He is kshAmah - The Remainder, since Healone remains when everything else has disappeared in pralaya.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the explanation that bhagavAn is kshAmahbecause He is hidden in everything in this Universe. 445. samIhanah a) He who establishes all others (indra etc.) in their respective posts.b) Well-wisher - He who works towards the welfare of His creation.om samIhanAya namah.The nAma is derived from the root Iha ceshTAyAm - to aim at, to desire, tostrive for. There are two aspects to striving for something. One is tostrive by oneself, and the other is to make others work. Thus there are twodifferent interpretations given for this nAma.SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn after the deluge, at the time ofcreation, makes all the other devas do their work in their respectiveposts. samIhayati iti samIhanah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference totivuvaImozhi - iRukkum iRai iRuttuNNa ev-vulagukkum tan mUrti niRuttinAndeiva~ngaLaga ad-deiva nAyakan tAnE (5.2.8).SrI Sa~nkara's vyAkhyAnam is that He is one who wishes well for His creationSRtyAdi artham samyagIhata iti samIhanah - Well-wisher.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives several references from Sruti-s to support theinterpretation of this nAma, among which is the following from Rg veda "sUryA-candram-asau dhAtA yathA pUrva-akalpayat | divam ca pRthvIm ca antariksham atho svah ||- Rg 10.190.3.-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 48 446. 447. 448. 449. 450. 451. 452. 453. 454. 455. yaj~nah ijyAyah mahejyah kratuh satram satAm gatih sarva-darSI nivRttAtmA sarvaj~nah j~nAnam-uttamam

om yaj~nAya namahom ijyAya namahom mahejyAya namahom kratave namahom satrAya namahom satAm-gataye namahom sarva-darSine namahom nivRttAtmane namahom sarvaj~nAya namahom uttamAya j~nAnAya namah 446. yaj~nah The Sacrifice.om yaj~nAya namah.This nAma occurs again as nAma 971.The spirit of the nAma is that He is yaj~na-svarUpi Himself, i.e., Hepractices yaj~na of the Highest Order. The term yaj~na is nicely explainedby the dharma cakram writer. karma binds us to the phala-s deriving fromthese karma-s; yaj~na releases us from the bondage of karma. In otherwords, any act that is done without a selfish goal, for the benefit ofothers and for the benefit of the world, with a spirit of sacrifice,performed without the feeling of "I" associated with it, and acts done asbhagavad-ArAdhana, these qualify as yaj~na. There is divinity associatedwith acts which are performed with this spirit.This writer goes on to describe the different types of yaj~na. dravyayaj~na (expending one's earnings for the public good), tapo yaj~na(contemplating and meditating on bhagavAn and diverting all thoughts towardsHim), yoga yagj~na (practicing utmost selfcontrol and controlling all fivesenses and leading a life consistant with conduct guided by this principle),and lastly the greatest of all yaj~na-s - dedicating oneself and one'sbelongings towards the service of bhagavAn.When we have transformed all our acts so that they are not karma-s devotedto our selfish goals, we have transformed the karma-s to yaj~na. Theultimate yaj~na is when we have offered ourselves as the Ahuti in thisyaj~na, i.e., we do everything for His benefit, not for our benefit.Since every one of bhagavAn's acts is for the benefit of His devotees andnothing is for His own benefit, He is the incarnation of yaj~na.Several references are provided in support of this nAma. SrI BhaTTar refersus to the Sruti - yaj~no vai vishNuh. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives severalreferences to prabandham - SeiginRa kidi ellAm yAne ennum (tiruvAimozhi5.6.4), vEdamum vELviyum Adiyum AnAn (tirumozhi 9.4.9), paNDai nAnmaRaiyumvELviyum tAnAi ninRa emperumAn (tirumozhi 5.7.1), viLa~ngum SuDarc-cOdiyaivELviyai (tirumozhi 7.10.9), etc.SrI Sa~nkara extends this interpretation to include bhagavAn's nurturing allthe other gods. As yaj~na-svarUpi or sacrifice-bodied, He provides offeringsto all gods, thus causing their satisfaction and happiness sarveshAmdevAnAm tushTi-kArako yaj~na AkAreNa pravartata iti. 447. ijyAyah He who is the (only) object of worship.om ijyAya namah.ijyAm arhati iti ijyah. Those who worship anyadevatAs seeking temporarybenefits of a lower order, in reality worship only vishNu who is theantaryAmi or Inner Soul of all beings. This is revealed in gItA ye tu anya-devatA bhaktA yajante SraddhayA anvitAh | te'pi mAmeva kaunteya yajanti a-vidhi-pUrvakam || (gItA9.23)SrI BhaTTar also refers us to mahAbhArata ye yajanti pitR*n devAn brAhamNan sahutASanAn | sarva bhUtAntarAtmAnam vishNumeva yajanti te || (SAnti355.24) "Those who worship the spirits of their forefathers, the

gods, thebrahmins as well as agni - they in reality worship only vishNu who is theInner Soul of all beings".SrI Sa~nkara quote the harivamSa to support the same interpretation ye yajanti makhaih puNyair_devaTAdIn pitR*napi | AtMAnam AtmanA nityam vishNumeva yajanti te || (3.40.27) "Holy sacrifices to divinities and pitR-s are verily adoration ofvishNu Himself, who is the Self of all". 448. mahejyah He who is the best among the objects of worship.om mahejyAya namah.He is the best object of worship because He alone can give the finalliberation from the cycle of samsAra, whereas the other objects of worshipcan only give the lesser fruits. SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is "sarvAsu devatAsumoksha-phaladAtRtvAt iti mahejyah". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan emphasizes thesignificance of this nAma - mahA vishNu is the parama purusha, and we shouldworship the mahejyah directly instead of offering worship to Him through theother deities for whom He is the antarAtmA. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastriobserves in this context that agni is the nearest of the devatA-s to us, andvishNu is the farthest (agniravamo devatAnAm vishNuh paramah (taittirIyasamhitA 5.5.1). 449. kratuh a) Object of worship through the sacrifices called kratu-s.b) He who is behind the actions of everybody or He by whom everything is done.om kratave namah.SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that among the different types of yAga-s,the type where one uses one's resources to perform a yAga with a definiteobjective and within a prescribed duration, is called a kratu. Thisrequires firm dedication, sincere effort, and the firm belief that thedesired result will be obtained. Since He is the one worshipped by allthese, He is kratuh. Or since He is the personification of all these, He iskratuh.The term yaj~na we came across as nAma 446 is different from the term kratuhwe have here, based on the Sloka from gItA aham kratuh aham yaj~nah svadhA aham aham aushdham | mantrah aham ahameva Ajyam aham agnih aham hutam || 9.16SrImad rAmAnuja in his gItA bhAshyam interprets kratuh as referring to thevedic sacrifices such as the jyotishToma, and the term yaj~na ( nAma 446) asreferring to the mahA yaj~na, which is interpreted by SrI BhaTTar asreferring to the pa~nca mahA yaj~na-s, the seven pAka yaj~na-s, etc.Prof. A. SrInivAsarAghavan explains the pa~nca mahA yaj~na-s further: brahma yaj~na involving teaching and reciting veda-s, pitRyaj~na - offering of libations of water to the deceased ancestors daily(tarpaNa), deva yaj~na - a sacrifice made to the gods through oblations tothe fire, bhUta yaj~na involving offering a portion of the daily meal to allcreatures, and manushya yaj~na - sacrifice offered to other people(hospitable reception of guests).The seven pAka yaj~na-s are:aupAsana homa, vaiSva-deva, pArvaNa - sthAlI-pAka, ashtakA-SrAddha,mAsa-SrAddha, sarpa-bali - oblation to the serpents, and ESAna-bali(oblation to the gods).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different explanation. He gives theinterpretation that He by whom everything is done is kratuh - kriyata itikratuh. Or, that intellect through which everything is done, is kratuh,i.e., jnAna. 450. satram a) He who is worshipped by the sacrifice called satram.b) He who protects the good peoplec) He who makes everything go.om satrAya namah.satram is another type of sacrifice, this one done on an unlimited timescale, devoted to world-welfare, with participation from multitude ofpeople. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "dIrgha-kAla bahu-yajamAnakamAsacodanA-lakshaNam satram".SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that the activity that is commonlyundertaken to feed the pilgrims in large numbers in choultries (calledSattiram in tamizh) is an example of this kind of selfless activity wheremany good people participate for the welfare of a larger community ofpeople. Again bhagavAn is the object of worship of these activities, and soHe is satra-svarUpi.SrI Sa~nkara gives an additional interpretation - He who protects the good -satah trAyati iti sat-tram.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root sad - sIdatisignifying movement.

sIdati gacchati sarvatra - One who goes everywhere -sattram. Alternatively, satrayate vistArayati viSvam iti sattram - He whomakes the world go. Everything in His creation also has His guNa ofmovement, including the human heart which goes constantly and yet whichstays in one place. 451. satAm gatih The Goal of the pious.om satAm-gataye namah.This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 186 - Slokam 20.SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is "satAm - mumukshUNAm na-anyA gatih iti satAm-gatih"- The sole support for those who seek liberation.SrI BhTTar comments that whereas in previous nAma-s, bhagavAn is describedas the goal of those who follow the pravRtti-dharma, i.e., dealing with thepleasures and business of the world, this nAma signifies that He is also thegoal of those who follow the nivRtti-dharma, i.e., discontinuance ofworldly acts or emotions.SrI BhaTTar gives reference to vishNu purANam nirdhUta dosha-pa~nkAnAm yatInAm samyatAtmanAm | sthAnam tat paramam vipra! puNya-pApa parikshaye || 2.8.94 "O brAhmin! That is the sublime place for yati-s (i.e., yogins) whohave washed off the mire of sins and who control their minds when all theirmerits and sins have been annihilated".SrI cinmayAnanda comments that the term gatih in samskRt means both thepath and the goal. SrIman nArAyaNa is both the means and the end for thesAdhu-s, and it is only by surrendering to Him that they reach Him. 452. sarva-darSI The All-Seer.om sarva-darsine namah.One who, by His innate insight, is able to see all the good and evil actionsof living beings. Since He is the antaryAmi in everything, He seeseverything even without the awareness of the beings. SrI cinmayAnandaobserves that as the Sun is known as the "eye of the Universe", bhagavAn isthe Illuminator of everything. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that Heobserves everything irrespective of whether we perform what are supposed toperform, we perform what we are not supposed to perform, or we don't performwhat we are supposed to perform. The dharma cakram writer summarizes thepurport of this nAma by pointing out that when we act with the fullrealization that He is our Inner Consciousness, and when we act consistentwith that, we have understood the meaning of this nAma. This is behind theconcept that we should do every act of ours by dedicating it to Him, and notperform any act that is not towards His Will. (AnukUlaya sa~nkalpam,prAtikUlya varjanam).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha summarizes the nAma as "j~nAna cakshur bhagavAnvishNuh". He gives references to the well-known sruti: sahasra-SirshApurushah sahasrAkshah sahasrapAt; viSvataS-cakshuruta viSvato mukho viSvatobAhuruta viSvataspAt; hiraNyayena saviTa rathenA devo yAti bhuvanAni paSyan;etc.The gItA Slokam 13.13, with a reference that is easy to remember, alsoconveys this idea: sarvatah pANi pAdam tat sarvato'kshi Siro mukham | sarvatah SrutimAn loke sarvam AvRtya tishThati ||SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri refers us to the related nAma-s sarva-darSanah(Slokam 10), sarva-dRk (Slokam 22). 453. nivRttAtmA a) He whose mind is turned away from worldly desires.b) He who is the AtmA of those who follow the nivRtti dharma.om nivRttAtmane namah.The nAma nivRttAtmA occurred earlier in Slokam 25 (nAma 231), and willre-occur as nAma-s 604, and 780.Sa~nkara pATham in this instance is vimuktAtmA. In another place (Slokam83) he uses the pATham a-nivRttAtmA. We will deal with his alternateinterpretations under nAma 780.SrI BhaTTar vyAkhyAnam: a) This nAma illustrates that bhagavAn appeared asnara and nArAyaNa to teach the nivRtti dharma to the world (as nArAyaNa),and to show how to practice it with extreme detachment (in the form ofnara). To indicate His profound detachment (parama vairAgya) to materialobjects of pleasure, He has His mind withdrawn from them. Thenara-nArAyaNa avatAra as well as the nivRtti dharma are embedded in thisnAma. The avatAara emphasized nivRtti-dharma and propagated the sacredashtAkshara. The essence of nivRtti dharma is the realization that nothingis done for our benefit or by us, and everything is for the benefit ofnArAyaNa and happens because of Him. We are not for us or

for someone else,but only for nArAyaNa. b) Under nAma 604, SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam that He isnivRttAtmA also because He is the AtmA of those who practice the nivRttidharma. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan observes that another name for these practitionersof nivRtti dharmA is j~nAnI, whom bhagavAn considers as His own soul.Under nAma 780 SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is yet another variant of thenivRtti concept. BhagavAn is also nivRttAtmA because, even though Hecreated this whole Universe, He remains totally detached from the worldlyaffairs. He is associated with the Universe in that He created out of Hissheer Mercy, but His mind itself is not in any way affected by the worldlythings - svatastu tat a-sammata manAh.SrI Sa~nkara pATham, vimuktAtmA, is interpreted as He who has the Soul whichis ever-free. BhagavAn is untouched by the effects of karma, since all Hisactions are for the benefit of others, His creations. SrI satyadevovAsishTha observes that bhagavAn is inside everything in the Universe astheir antaryAmi, and yet is not bound by them, and thus He is nivRttAtmA. 454. sarvaj~nah The Omniscient.om sarvaj~nAya namah.This nAma occurs again as nAma 821. Sri BhaTTar explains that He knows thatHe is the antaryAmi in everything, and thus He is sarvaj~nah. He knows Heis the best dharma, the best means, and the best goal. SrI v.v.rAmAnujanquotes peria tirumozhi in support - ulagattu ellAm aRivIr - 4.9.6.SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is "sarvaSca asau j~naSca iti - He who is all and whoknows all. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri has given several references to theSruti - yah sarvaj~nah sarvavit (muNDakopanishad 1.1.9); sa sarvaj~nah sarvobhavati (praSna 4.10); esha sarveSvara esha sarvaj~nah (mANDUkya 6); saviSvakRt siSvavid Atmayonih j~nah kAlakAlo guNI sarvavidyah (SvetASva2.6.2,16). 455. j~nAnam-uttamam The Greatest Knowledge.om uttamAya j~nAnAya namah or j~nAnAya uttamAya namah.SrI BhaTTar points out that BhagavAn is the one who revealed the vaishNavadharma which is the most superior of all the dharma-s - sarvah paroviashNavo dharmah j~nAyate asmin iti j~nAnam-uttamam. He also refers to therevelation of the pA~ncarAtra by bhagavAn as another instance that He is theuttama j~nAnam paThantam aniSam Sastram pA~ncarAtra puras-saram. SrIv.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr - mikka j~nAnamUrtiyAgia vEdaviLakku - tiruvAimozhi 4.7.10.SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam for this nAma is prakRshTam ajanyam anavacchinnamsarvasya-sAdhakam iti j~nAnam-uttamam - Superior to all, birthless,continuous and permanent (unlimited by Time and Space), and the best meansof achieving everything. He gives reference to "satyam j~nAnam, anantambrahma" - Brahman is Truth, Knowledge, and Infinitude - taittirIyaupanishad.SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri contrasts the "limited" knowledge with the"Superior" knowledge. An example of the former is the sight an observersees, with the limitation of the observer's eyes, the light that shines onthe object, the limitation of the observer (e.g., the state of mind of theobserver), as well as the limitations of the observed object (e.g., therelative size of the object etc.). Not limited by constraints like these isthe knowledge that is revealed by the Self about the Self, which isunlimited by the sense organs. This is the knowledge of bhagavAn.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives reference to the atharva vedic passage "sUtramsUtrasya yo veda, sa veda brahmANam mahat" - He who has knowledge of theSupreme Knowledge, knows the greatest there is to know. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by

Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 49 456. 457. 458. 459. 460. 461. 462. 463. 464. 465. su-vratah su-mukhah sUkshmah su-ghoshah sukha-dah su-hRt mano-harah jita-krodhah vIra-bAhuh vidAraNah

om su-vratAya namahom su-mukhAya namahom sUkshmAya namahom su-ghoshAya namahom sukhadAya namahom su-hRde namahom mano-harAya namahom jita-krodhAya namahom vIra-bAhave namahom vidAraNAya namah 456. su-vratah a) He of good vows - to protect anyone who surrenders.b) He who did intense tapas in His nara-nArAyaNa incarnation.c) He who has good control of the offerings He accepts - e.g., from the likes of kucela only.d) He who observes nitya-karma-s in His incarnations just to set an example to us.om su-vrtAya namah.This nAma occurs later as nAma 824.Under nAma 824 SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam that is most familiar to allof us - Lord rAma's vrata expressed during vibhIshNa SaraNAgati through sakRdeva prapannAya tavAsmIti ca yAcate | abhayam sarva-bhUtebhyo dadAmyetat vratam mama || yuddha18.34 "To him who seeks my protection even once and begs of mesaying "I am Thine", to him I give protection from all beings. This is myvow". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives the equivalent reference fromnammAzhvAr's SrIsUkti - SaraNamAgum tanatAL aDaindArgatkellAm - tiruvAimozhi9.10.5. SrI Sa~nkara gives this interpretation under the currentnAma, but gives a different anubhavam for the nAma when it occurs later inSlokam 88. There he interprets vratayati as enjoys, and su-vrata asreferring to His enjoying the offerings of bhakta-s such as kucela. vratamis control of the food one eats and other controls. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastriobserves that bhagavAn had good control of His habits when He wasnaranArAyaNa. SrI cinmayAnanda gives another dimension of thenara-nArAyaNa incarnation as its applies to the nAmna su-vrata - He who didintense tapas (su-vrata) for a long number of years in the nara-

nArAyaNamount in BadrinAth.For the current nAma, SrI BhaTTar gives another aspect of bhgavAn's suvrata- good deeds. BhagavAn has nothing to gain by observance of any karma suchas the prescribed kula dharma-s. Even so, bhagavAn observes all theanushTAna-s during His incarnations without any compromise. Thus He is asu-vrata. He says in the gItA na me pArtha asti kartavyam trishu lokeshu ki~ncana | na anavAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi || 3.22 "For me, arjuna! There is nothing in all the three worlds whichought to be done, nor is anything that is not acquired that ought to beacquired. Yet I go on working".BhagavAn continues to work purely for the benefit of His creation. This isthe significance of His nAma as su-vrata. He says in the very next Sloka inthe gItA that if He did not do this, He will set a bad example for others,and they will not perform their prescribed duties and suffer for this lapse.The dharma cakram writer gives some examples of the power of su-vrata.BhIshma practised the su-vrata of brahmacarya, which gave him his enormousgreatness. hariScandra's story is an example of the greatness ofsatya-vrata.The nAma-s from 457 to 463 that follow are interpreted by SrI BhaTTar firstbased on the nara-nArAyaNa incarnation, and then he gives an alternateinterpretation based on the mohini incarnation. 457. su-mukhah He with a charming face.om su-mukhAya namah.su - Sobhanam mukham asya iti su-mukhah.This can be taken as a reference to His having a sweet countenance even whenHe was chanting the mantra-s and meditating as nArAyaNa maharshi in Hisnara-nArAyaNa incarnation. SrI BhaTTar refers us to the mantra aboutkRshNa - kRshNAya kamala-dala amala netrAya - To SrI kRshNa Who has aface with eyes pure and spotless like a lotus petal. SrI v.v.rAmAnujangives reference to nAcciyAr tirumozhi - "engaLai maiyal ERRi mayakka unmugam mAya-mandiram tAn kolO" 2.4; amalanAdipirAn - ap-perivAya kaNgaLennaip-pEdaimai SeidanavE - 8; prasanna vadanam dhyAyet etc.SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri explains the significance of the nAma very nicely bypointing out that normally with practice one overcomes the strain of severepenance, and so the countenance will not reflect any strain. But inbhagavAn's case we see cheerfulness instead of just the lack of strain. WhenHe was told to go to the forest just at the time He was decorated forpaTTAbhishekam,His face didn't have the slightest indication of disappointment or sadness,but instead displayed the peace and satisfaction typical of the greatest ofthose who have renounced the worldly things (ayodhyA kANDa 19.30-33).kamban's description of rAma's face is "meit-tiruppadam mEvu enRa pOdilum,it-tirut-tuRandu Egu enRa pOdilum, cittirattil alarnda Sen-tAmaraiyaiottirukkum mugattinai unnuvAL" - Lord rAma's face resembled apicture-perfect lotus-flower no matter whether He was asked to ascend thethrone or to forsake all and go to the forest.SrI Sa~nkara gives reference to vishNu purANam and to several passages fromSrImad rAmAyaNa. In vishNu purANam we have - prasanna vadanam cArupadma-patrAyatekshaNam (6.7.79)- His face is pleasing, handsome, possessedof large eyes resembling the lotus-petal. In rAmAyaNa, SrI Sa~nkara givesreferences to sundara kAndam 33.24 - sa pitur-vacanam SrImAn abhishekAtparam priyam | manasA pUrvam AsAdya vAcA prati-gRhItavAn; ayodhyA kANDam24.17 - imAni tu mahAraNye vihRtya nava-pa~nca ca | varshANiprama-prItah sthAsyAmi vacanam tava ||; and ayodhyA kANDam 19.33 - na vanamgantu-kAmasya tyajataSca vasundarAm | sarvalokAtigasyeva mano rAmasyavivyate ||An alternate interpretation given by SrI Sa~nkara based on the Sruti passage- yo brahmANam vidadhAti pUrvam - SvetA. upa. 6.18, is that He has a verysatisfied countenance because He has imparted all the knowledge to brahmA. 458. sUkshmah Subtle, delicate and difficult to comprehend.om sUkhsmAya namah.He is sUkshmah because He can be realized only by deep contemplation andmeditation which is performed without expecting any benefit. He can't becomprehended through the physical organs such as the eyes and ears, andcan't be realized through the mind, but can only be experienced.SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri nicely explains the power behind the concept ofsUkshma. The subtler the object, the more power it has. We all know theultimate power of

the atom. If we start from the macro level of our body,and go through the different subtler levels such as the sense-organs, themind, the buddhi, and finally the soul, the power increases as the subtletyincreases. MahAvishNu is subtler than the subtlest of things, sUkshmah.SrI Sa~nkara gives reference to the Sruti sarva-gatam susUkshmam -muNDakopanishad 1.1.6 - He who is very subtle and has entered intoeverything.SrI cinmayAnanda points out that in vedAnta terminology, sUkshma or subtletyimplies pervasiveness, and bhagavAn's nAma of sUkshma refers to HisAll-pervasiveness.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different perspective to the anubhavam ofthis nAma by tracing the nAma to the root sUc - paiSunye - to point out, toindicate by gesture. He gives the explanation thatbhagavAn is suKshmah because, even though He does not manifest Himselfexpressly, He expresses Himself to us through everything around us all thetime. This is the sUkshma behind vishNu the Sukshmah, viz. that He is allaround us and has never really hidden Himself from us in any way.Just as the sound made by the cow identifies the cow even if the cow is notseen, or the sound (voice) created by a person identifies the person eventhough the person is not seen, so also everything around us that is createdby bhagavAn identifies Him to us (e.g., the AkASa, the sound from the AkASa,etc). 459. su-ghoshah a) He whose voice is itself the great veda-s.b) He who is praised by the delightful voice of the veda-s.c) He who has a very sweet, deep, and sonorous voice.om su-ghoshAya namah.SrI BhaTTar vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn is su-ghoshah because He isproclaimed by the vedic voice of the upanishads. bhagavAn is vedasvarUpiHimself. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi - nAraNan, muzhuEzhulagukkum nAthan, vEda mayan (2.7.2), and to peria tirumozhi 5.5.9, wheretiruma~ngai AzhvAr called bhagavAn "SandOgan, pauzhiyan, ain-tazhal Ombutaittiriyan, Sama-vedI". SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is "su-Sobhano ghoshovedAtmako asya iti su-ghoshah" - One whose auspicious sound is the veda-s.He also gives a more direct alternate interpretation - He who has a voicedeep and sonorous like that of the cloud - meghagambhIra ghoshatvAt.The dharma cakram writer points out that when veda is chanted with theproper intonations, the sound originates from the region of the diaphragm,and this sound has the ability to cleanse and purify our mind. The sweetsound of Nature, the sound arising from the trees and the birds, is soothingand comforting to the mind. BhAratiyAr sings "kETkum oliyil ellAm nandalAlAundan gItam iSaikkudaDA nandalAlA". All the musical instruments werediscovered as a result of listening to the sweet sound of Nature. This nAmashould remind us that all the mantra-s sung in praise of bhagavAn and thatsing His greatness are su-ghosha-s.SrI satyadevo vAsishsTha looks at the nAma from its root - hushir viSabdaneto proclaim, to declare. The nAma su-ghoshah is formed by prefixing theupasarga su- which means "Sobhana". su-ghoshah is thus the sound whichproclaims Him well repeatedly or loudly viz. the veda-s. Since the name andthe One who is referred to by that name are same, He becomes su-ghoshah.BhagavAn manaifests Himself through su-ghoshah in real life constantlyeverywhere. The knowledge of the rain, that of the running water as well aswater that is obstructed from its natural flow, all these can be known fromthe sound emanating from these. Just as a great artist is revealed by theart he/she creates, bhagavAn is constantly revealed through the sweet soundsof Nature that He has created. 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 - sadAcArasamAdhi anushThApanena tan-nishThebhyah phalam parama-sukham dadAti itisukha-dah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan observes that bhagavAn just does not stop withgiving the fruits to those who observe sadAcAra, but He Himself observesthese anushTHAna-s to set an example to us so that we can follow His pathand get the parama-sukham. This is revealed by Lord kRshNa in the gItA inSlokam 3.23 which we referred to earlier under nAma 456. SrI rAmAnujanrefers us to nammAazhvAr - "inbam payakka iniduDan vIRRirundu ivezhulagaiAlginRa e~ngaL pirAn - tiruvAimozhi 7.10.1.The dharma cakram writer points out that even

though bhagavAn is the One whobestows even the ordinary benefits such as wealth, health etc., based onkarma-s, the significance of the current nAma is that He alone can bestowthe Ultimate sukham viz. moksham.SrI Sa~nkara gives an additional interpretation which means that bhagavAndestroys the sukham of those who are wicked and evil. asad-vRttAnAm sukhamdyati 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 outletsthat allow us to lead a life without sickness, disease etc. One who givesthis sukha sarIra is su-kha-dah - sukham khAtam tad-dah sukhadah vishNuh. 461. su-hRt The good-hearted, a True Friend.om su-hRde namah.BhagavAn is always on the lookout for ways to help even His adversaries, andthis is His Nature of being a su-hRt. SrI BhaTTar vyAkhyAnam is -anupakAriNi api "kim asya bhavishyati? kim karavANi" iti SubhASamsi SobhanahRdayatvam su-hRtvam. su-hRtvam or friendliness is that quality of abenevolent person who wishes good even for those who have not helped him inany 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 - Afriend even to His enemies.The dharma cakram writer observes that the heart which suffers when sorrowhits, 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 goodheart. Lord rAma was not affected one way or the other when He was about tobe crowned or when He was asked to leave for exile in the forest. He wasneutral in both circumstances. But the pure heart is one which anguisheswhen someone else suffers, and rushes to help those who need help.Meditating on the significance of this nAma will lead to the purification ofthe 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'sheart. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr - maiyal Seidu ennaimanam kavarndAnE - tiruvAimozhi 7.2.6. SrI cinmayAnanda has appropriatelytranslated this nAma as "One who is the looter of the mind". His vyAkhyAnamis "Not only is the Lord Beauty Incarnate, but He compels the attention ofthe devotee to come away from all other sense objects to dwell upon Hisenchanting form. Thus vishNu is one who generates an irresistible joy inthe mind of His devotees and compels them to spend their time in constantworship".SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn has created all things withthis mano-haratva attribute built into everything He created. Now we seeal these beautiful things around us, and our mind is captivated by thisingenuity of the Creator, and we wonder aloud - "Who could it be thatcreated this marvel?" So He is mano-harah.The dharma cakram writer generalizes the interpretation of this nAma tosuggest that bhagavAn gravitates the minds of people either towards Him ortowards the worldly objects depending on what they want. Those who wantmaterialistic pleasures, He gravitates their mind deeper towards the life ofshort-term enjoyment; and those who have controlled their mind and senses,He gravitates these devotees closer and closer towards Him. So bhagavAn ismano-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 isjita-krodhah. He gets angry only if He chooses to get angry by His ownwill. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives the following reference: In the beginningof SrImad rAmAyaNa SrI vAlmIki asks the question "Who is the jita-krodhah"among people, and nArada responds that it is rAma - ucyamAno'pi parusham nauttaram pratipadyate - Even when others utter harsh words towards Him, Hedoes not respond with similar harsh words.SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri distinguishes between three types of anger, all ofwhich

have been mastered by BhagavAn. manyu is the type of anger which isin the mind but which does not find expression in words or in action. Whenthe anger spills out in the form of reddening of the eyes, expression in theface, etc., this is called kopam. When anger finds expression in harshwords, shaking of the body, deeds which reflect harshness as a result of theanger, etc., then this is called krodham. It is to be noted that bhagavAnhas not eliminated anger completely, but just has conquered it, and will getangry when He feels the need for it. SrI vAlmIki nicely expresses thisthrough the words "krodham AhArayat tIvram" 3.24.33 - He brought Himselfto be angry. When His devotee hanumAn is hurt by rAvaNa, Lord rAma madeHimself angry. (yuddha 59.147). SrI Sa~nkara points out that if He killsan asura, it is not because of anger but only to establish the vedic orderof life.SrI cinmayAnanda extends the anubhavam to include not just krodha, but allthe six types of afflictions that a man can suffer from - kAma, krodha,lobha, moha, mada, and mAtsarya. This nAma indicates that bhagavAn hasconquered all of these.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha, who in addition to his great mastery of samskRt,was a great ayurvedic expert as well as a great astrologer, comments thatkrodham is a result of some defects of the body, and is caused by animbalance in the bodily juices. Since bhagavAn is not subject to thesedeficiencies, He is not subject to kAma, krodha etc.The interpretations by SrI BhaTTar for nAma-s 457 to 463 that were given sofar were based on bhagavAn's nara-nArAyaNa incarnation. He has also givena set of alternate interpretations for these nAmas based on the mohiniincarnation, which are covered below. 457. su-mukhah He who has a charming face - He who shines with a facewhich is delightful like the moon and which is replete with the nectar ofBliss very much like the pot of nectar held in the hand.458. sUkshmah - The Subtle - He is subtle because His thoughts were hiddenfrom the asura-s.459. su-ghoshah - He who is the object of loud and delectable praise - Hisact of churning was delectable and was praised loudly both by the gods andthe asura-s.460. sukha-dah - The Giver of Joy - He gives joy to the gods by distributingthe nectar to them.461. su-hRt - The friend - because of His love for the deva-s.462. mano-harah - The heart-ravishing - His form bewitched the minds of theasura-s.463. jita-krodhah - He who conquered the anger - On seeing His form theminds of the asura-s became confounded with confusion and thereby Heovercame the anger of the asura-s against the gods.nAma-s 464 to 470 which follow are also interpreted by SrI BhaTTar on thebasis 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 armswhich are all vying with each other in the wonderful act of churning theMilk-Ocean - arms which are shining with effulgent bracelets, armlets, andgarlands. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to peria tirunozhi 5.7.4 -"Seyiru viSumbum ti~ngaLum SuDarum dEvarum tAmuDan tiSaippa Ayiram tOLAlalai kaDal kaDaindAn ara~nga mAnagar amarndAnE". We also have intiruvAimozhi - aSurarauit-tagarkkum tOLUm nAngu - 10.1.1.SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is that bhagavAn is vIra-bAhuh because he destroyedthe foes and established the moral law of the scriptures (veda-s).SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri observes that a vIra is one who engages in his actwith intensity in a prescribed way without backing down. BhagavAn's fourhands with four different weapons in them simultaneously go into actionindependently 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 ofhis 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 thatmatter. He cannot be considered a vIra, since all he could use his mightfor was to nurture his kAma. This nAma of mahA vishNu should remind us thatour abilities should be put to use to protect dharma, and not for selfishpurposes. 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 offrAhu with His divya Ayudha during the distribution of the nectar to thedeva-s in the presence of the asura-s. He is also known as vidAraNahbecause He cuts off the greatest of fears in His devotees - "samagra ugrabhaya vidAraNAya" is the mantra about bhagavAn. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refersus to tiruvAimozhi 9.10.6 - Sem-ponAgattavuNan uDal kINDAvan - He who toreapart hiraNyakaSipu's body to help His devotee.The dharma cakram writer gives the interpretation that bhagavAn tears awaythe association (bandham) between the AtmA or the soul and the body orprakRti. BhagavAn is the one who separates or tears away the unchangingsoul from the ever-changing body.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out this guNa of separating - vidAraNa, inall aspects of His creation. Thus man and woman, day and night, uttarAyaNaand dakshINayana, pRthivI and antariksha, agni and soma, etc. are alldemonstrations or reminders of this guNa of mahAvishNu - vidAraNah. He isthe one who "tears away" or separates the child from the mother at the timeof birth so that the two live separately.-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 50 466. 467. 468. 469. 470. 471. 472. 473. 474. 475. svApanah sva-vaSah vyApI naikAtmA naika-karma-kRt vatsarah vatsalah vatsI ratna-garbhah dhaneSvarah

om svApanAya namahom sva-vasAya namahom vyApine namahom naikAtmane namahom naika-karmakRte namahom vatsarAya namahom vatsalAya namahom vatsine namahom ratna-garbhAya namahom dhaneSvarAya namah 466. svApanah He who lulls people into sleep.om svApanAya namah.SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn in His mohini incarnation lulledinto sleep the asura-s who had not been put away as described in theprevious nAma, using His beautiful smile, sweet glances and the play of Hiseyebrows, and thus made them forget that He was distributing the nectar tothe deva-s exclusively.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's anubhavam of this nAma is "svApayati nidrApayatipralayakAle sarvam prakRtAviti svApanah" - He puts everyone to sleep at thetime of pralaya. Even though He makes everyone sleep, He Himself is wideawake. This svApanatva guNa of bhagavAn is reflected again in everything Hecreates after the pralaya also. The Sun puts everyone to sleep when thenight comes, but the sun itself does not sleep.SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri refers to gItA 7.25 "nAham prakASah sarvasyayoga-mAyA-samAvRtah, mUDho'yam nAbhijAnAti" - His paratva has beenconcealed to the non-devotee in bhagavAn's incarnations because He appearslike all of us in His body, appearance, and talk etc., and so they don'trecognize Him as paramAtmA. He who does not see what is in front of Him isas good as a person who is sleeping.The dharma cakram writer gives the analogy of the animal life vs. the humanlife. Humans are "awake" in the world of intelligent reasoning, in whichthe animals are "asleep", i.e., they are not capable of operating in thisdomain as well as humans can do. Similarly the ordinary human is asleep tothe world of the j~nAni. The path for the ordinary human to become awakein the world of the j~nAni is to chant the nArAyaNa mantra - "nalam tarumSollai nAn kaNDu koNDEn nArAyaNA ennum nAmam" is AzhvAr aruLic-ceyal. Thisis the lesson we should take from this nAma. 467. sva-vaSah He who is under His own control.om sva-vaSAya namah.Continuing on his anubhavam of the mohini incarnation, SrI BhaTTar explainsthat after bhagavAn put the asura-s to sleep, He plays as He likes with thedeva-s, consistent with His absolute independence.The bhAvam here is that bhagavAn is not under the control of anyone oranything else, and He is only under His own control. He does not needanyone's help or

support for whatever He does. Everything else is under Hiscontrol. He does His acts of creation etc. as He wishes. He does not alsohave any desire that is out of His reach (based on vaS - kAntau to wish, todesire SrI satyadevo vAsishTha). BhagavAn is sva-vaSah because He haseverything that He desires within Himself, does not have any desire outsideof Him, and rejoices with His own Self.SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is that bhagavAn is Independent, being the cause ofcreation, preservation and withdrawal of the Universe svatantrah.The dharma cakram writer points out that it is only when one does not haveany need that one can be totally independent. tiruvaLLUvar refers tobhagavAn as "vENDudal vENDAmai ilAn". ANDAL's words are "kuRaivu onRumillAda gOvindA". When we are under the control of our mind, we lose ourindependence, and do whatever our mind dictates. Then we become dependenton others. This nAma teaches us that we should learn to control our mindand get it under our control instead of being controlled by our mind.Meditating on this nAma of bhagavAn will give us this discipline. The morewe are able to devote ourselves to bhagavAn, the more our mind will getunder our control. 468. vyApI The Pervader.om vyApine namah.SrI BhaTTar-s vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn pervades everyone with His ownPower and gives energy to them. At the time of churning the Mik-Ocean, Hepervaded the deva-s, the asura-s, the mandAra mountain, vAsuki and others,and gave them the energy to churn the ocean. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us tonammAzhvAr 1.1.10 - "paranda taN paravai uL nIr torum paranduLan....karandue~ngum paranduLan ivai uNDa karanE". (paravai here refers to an expanse ofwater Ocean).SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives reference to the Sruti - avyaktAt-tu parahpurusho vyApakah ( muNDaka 2.3.8). SrI cinmayAnanda points out that inphilosophy pervasiveness indicates subtlety. BhagavAn is all-pervasive, andso is subtler than the subtlest. Since the cause pervades the effect (e.g.,gold pervades all gold ornaments), so also bhagavAn who pervades everythingis thus the Cause of everything.The dharma cakram writer observes that All-pervasiveness also implieslimitlessness, since whatever there is and wherever it is, BhagavAn pervadesit, and so there is no limit to Him. This limitless emperumAn just projectsHimself such that we see whatever little we see based on our limitations.Meditating on this nAma of bhagavAn will broaden our ability to see thisLimitless vyApI.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives several references from the Sruti - parItyabhUtAni parItya lokAn parItya sarvAh pradiSo diSaSca (yajur), pRshTo divipRshTo agnih pRthivyAm pRshTo viSvA oshadhIrAviveSa (Rg), yo agnau rudroyo apsv-antarya oshadhIr-vIrudha AviveSa (atharva); etc. 469. naikAtmA He of diverse forms.om naikAtmane namah.SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam is that bhagavAn assumed several forms at the timeof churning - as vishNu to help the gods and the asura-s to churn, as thetortoise to support the mandAra mountain, and as mohini to distribute thenectar.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri reminds us of the similarity between this nAma andnAma 139 - caturAtmA. A more general interpretation is that bhagavAnexpresses Himself through all the forms of His creation. The dharma cakramwriter points out that the different forms of gods that the followers ofdifferent religions worship are all an expression of bhagavAn, and it isbecause of their ignorance of bhagavAn being a naikAtmA that they think theyare worshipping different deities and fighting within themselves.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the root of the word AtmA as ata -sAtatyagamane - to go constantly, which nicely explains the nature of theAtmA. BhagavAn is everywhere in the form of the father, the mother, theson, the disciple, the teacher, the husband, the wife, the friend, etc.,since He is the antaryAmi in everything. SrI vAsishTha gives severalreferences to the Sruti in support of the interpretation of this nAma, amongwhich are the following tadev-Agnis-tad-Adityas-tadu vAyus-tadu-candramAh| tadeva Sukram tad-brahma tA Apah sa prajApatih || (yajur. 32-1); tvam hinah pitA vaso tvam mAtA Satakrato babhUvitha (Rg 8.98.11) 470. naika-karma-kRt

He who performs diverse acts.om naika-karma-kRte namah.SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma by giving the example of His churning theocean, supporting the mountain, overcoming the enemies, distributing thenectar, etc. SrI v.v.v rAmAnujan gives the quotes from nammAzhvAr - kUDinIraik-kaDaindavArum amudam dEvar uNNa asurargaLai vIDum vaNNa~ngaL SeidupOna vittagamum (tiruvAimozhi 5.10.10), and from tirumaZhiSai AzhvAr - malaiAmai mEl vaittu vASugiyaic-cuRRi talai Amai tAn oru kai paRRi alaiyAmalpIrak-kaDainda perumAn (nAnmugan 49). SrI Sa~nkara points to diverseactions such as creation, sustenance, etc. as a way of interpreting thisnAma. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points to His actions in the form of candra,sUrya, agni, etc. and helping to serve us.The dharma cakram writer gives a view which summarizes all the above bypointing out that everything that ever takes place is His action and nothingelse. Examples of this abound. We are instruments in His creation, but weare not creators. From one mango tree, only another mango tree can come,and we can't create something else from a mango seed. We are theinstruments and He is the kartA. If we have this realization, the benefits(karma phalam) of none of the actions for which we are the instruments willaccrue to us.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha continues his interpretation based on his previousinterpretation of naikAtmA. BhagavAn who is in many forms (father, mother,son...), performs many actions in the form of the father, mother, son, etc. 471. vatsarah a) He who lives within all beings.b) He in whom everything resides.c) He who is the Infinite Time.d) He who restored the calves to the gopa-s.om vatsarAya namah.a) The word is derived from the root vas - to dwell. BhagavAn resides inall beings as a way of administering His dharma - for bestowing fruits in ajust way for the acts of all. He also lives as anrtaryAmi in everyone inorder to guide them towards the path of dharma according to their merits andqualifications. SrI BhaTTar refers us to the following mantra aboutbhagavAn which brings out this point - sarvAntaScAriNe dharmAtmane - UntoHim Who is the embodiment of dharma and Who lives in all beings. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to toNDaraDippoDi AzhvAr in tirumAlai uLLuvAruLLiRRellAm uDanirundu aRidi enRu (34).b) SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is 'vasati atra akhilam iti vatsarah' - He in whomeverything resides - The Abode of All.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives several references to the Sruti-s illustratingthe vyAkhyAna-s above. ISAvAsyamidam sarvam yat-ki~ncit jagatyAm jagat(IsaVAsya); samvatsaro'si parivatsaro'sIdAvatsro'sIdvatsaro'si vatsaro'si(yajur. 27.45); tvayi rAtri vasAmasi svapishyAmasi jAgRhu (atharva19.47.9); etc.c) vatsarah also refers to time - the period of one year. BhagavAn is thecontinuum of space and time, in which all creatures live - in the sense ofb) above. So He is the endless space and infinite time - vatsarah.d) SrI cinmayAnanda decomposes the word as vatsAn rAti iti vatsarah. In HiskRshNAvatAra, He restored the calves to the gopa-s when they had been takenaway by the enemies - So He is vatsarah because He gave away the calves(vatsa here is interpreted as calf). 472. vatsalah The Affectionate.om vatsalAya namah.This nAma is formed from the word vatsa by adding the lach pratyayasignifying loving, tender (based on 5.2.98 ashTAdhyAyI of PANini - vatsaamsAbhyAm kAma bale). The nAma signifies that He has extreme love for Hisdevotees. SrI cinmayananda translates the word as "Supreme Love", andpoints out the significance of this nAma - BhagavAn SrIman nArAyaNa is LoveIncarnate.SrI BhaTTar points out that this nAma explains why bhagavAn wants to guideeveryone by being their antaryAmi as expressed in the previous nAma - it isbecause of His extreme kindness towards His devotees. This affection islike that of a cow to its calf - kanaittu iLam kaRRerumai kanRukku ira~ngininaittu mulai vazhiyE ninRu pAl Sora. sItA pirATTi's words of advice torAvaNa were - vihitah sa hi dharmaj~nah SaraNAgata-vatsalah - It iswell-known that rAma knows this great virtue, and that He is veryaffectionate towards those who have sought refuge in Him.The dharma cakram writer gives several examples of bhagavAn's guNa ofvAtsalya. guha became a close friend of rAma. bhagavAn also gave Himselfcompletely to hanumAn (which was revealed when hanumAn opened his heart andshowed rAma

residing there). sugrIva SaraNAgati, vibhIshaNa SaraNAgati,etc. are other examples of His extreme love for His devotees. 473. vatsI a) He who possesses lots of calvesb) He who possesses lots of children whom He protects like a cow protects its calves.om vatsine namah.The first of these interpretations is a reference to His gopAla incarnation,where He protected the calves during the episode involving indra. SrIv.v.rAmAnujan refers us to kanRu mEittu inidu uganda kALAi (16).The second interpretation refers to the innumerable hosts of souls who areto be always tended by Him, like a cow tends to its calves with affection.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that bhgavAn's guNa of being the Protectorexhibits itself throughout life. Even before the child is born to a mother,He makes sure the mother has the milk to feed to the child as soon as it isborn, the mother bird and the child bird know how to transfer food throughtheir beak, etc. 474. ratna-garbhah a) He who is in possession of abundant wealth.b) He who is the source of everything that can give happiness.om ratna-garbhAya namah.Among BhagavAn's devotees there are those who are after wealth, and He hasimmense wealth to take care of their needs. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan givesreference to nammAzhvAr 6.7.11 - vaitta mA-nidhiyAm madhusUdananai -BhagavAn is like a treasure in deposit, available in times of need infuture.SrI Sa~nkara's vyAkhyAnam is based on the ratna-s or gems being treasured inthe depth of the oceans, and since bhagavAn is Himself in the form of theOceans, He is called ratna-garbhah. SrI cinmayAnanda refers us to gItA 10.24- sarasAm asmi sAgarah, and observes that bhagavAn is ratnagarbhah like theOcean and has all the treasures within His control, and can bestow anywealth quickly to any devotee as He desires. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastriextends this to the presence of ratna in the hood of the serpent and in theknots of the bamboo shoots, which are caused by none other than bhagavAn.The name also suggests that bhagavAn protects His devotees like gems, andassists them towards the path of realization of the Self. Meditating onbhagavAn constantly instead of succumbing to the rAjasic and tAmasic aspectsdormant in us will elevate us so that we can realize Him.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning of ratna starting from the rootram - krIDAyAm to play, to rejoice at. Thus, the word ratna denoteseverything that gives happiness. Since bhagavAn has the whole world in Hisgarbha, He has everything that can give happiness in Himself, and so He isratna-garbhah. He gives several examples from the Sruti: hiraNyagarbhahsamavartatAgre bhUtasya jAtah patireka AsIt; arcAmi satyasavam ratnadhAmabhipriyam matim; hiraNyAkshah savitA deva AgAt dadhat ratnA dASushe vAryANi,etc. 475. dhaneSvarah The quick giver of wealth.om dhaneSvarAya namah.dhanAnAm ISvarah dhaneSvarah - He who is the Lord of all wealth, is theinterpretation given by SrI Sa~nkarAcArya, who interpreted the previous nAmaas referring to bhagavAn's vibhUti as the Ocean which bears the gems.Since SrI BhaTTar interpreted the previous nAma in a broader sense, viz.,that He is the source of all wealth, he interprets the current nAma asreferring to bhagvAn's generosity in giving away this wealth quickly to Hisdevotee who wishes for it. He supports his interpretation based on theuNAdi sUtra 738 - aSnoter-AsukarmaNi varat ca - The affix varat comes afterthe root aS - to pervade, when the word formed from it refers to 'having thepower of granting success soon' - the emphasis being that bhagavAn is quickin giving the benefit to His devotees. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference tonammAzhvAr 3.9.7 - SErum koDai pugazh ellai ilAnai. SrI anantakRshNaSastri gives the example of bhagavAn giving instantaneous wealth to Hisdevotee kucela. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives an alternate interpretationthat this nAma refers to bhagavAn's vibhUti of being in the form of kubera,the god of wealth. Note gItA 10.23 - vitteSo yaksha rakshasAm - wherevitteSah refers of bhagavAn's vibhUti as kubera.SrI cinmayAnanda comments that the term wealth here refers to all

thingsthat cause happiness. He is lakshmI-pati, the Lord of Goddess Lakshmi, andso He is ever the Masterof-Wealth. The greatest of wealths is moksha, andLord nArAyaNa is Isvara of this great wealth, and is the Giver of thiswealth to the prapanna-s readily.-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 51 476. 477. 478. 479. 480. 481. 482. 483. 484. 485. 486. dharma-gup dharma-kRt dharmI sat aksharam (sat) a-sat asat-ksharam avij~nAtA sahasrAmSuh vidhAtA kRta-lakshaNah

om dharma-gupe namahom dharma-kRte namahom dharmiNe namahom sate namahom akshara-sate namahom asate namahom asat-ksharAya namahom avij~nAtre namahom sahasrAmSave namahom vidhAtre namahon kRta-lakshaNAya namah 476. dharma-gup He who protects dharma.om dharma-gupe namah.dharmam gopAyati rakshati iti dharma-gup. SrI Sa~nkara gives reference tothe gItA 4.8- dharma sampsthAnaparthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge. SrI satyadevovAsishTha observes that bhagavAn is dharma-gup because He protects thebeings through

dharma systematically from the time of creation to the timeof destruction. An illustration of this is the rule that the seed comesfrom the tree and the tree gives back the seed, thus continuing the processof the existence and survival of life forms. He gives reference to theSruti - trINi padA vicakrame vishNur-gopA adAbhyah | ato dharmANi dhArayan|| (yajur. 34.43).The dharma cakram writer elaborates on this nAma by pointing out thatbhagavAn maintains dharma by rewarding those who observe dharma (withwealth, health etc.), and punishing those who violate dharma (throughdisease, suffering, etc.). so that they can be returned to the path ofdharma. Peace in the society, rain, good crops, and general prosperityresult when the society as a whole follows the path of dharma; disease,earth quakes, war, looting, famine, etc. result when the society fails tofollow the path of dharma. Thus, this nAma should remind us that ouradherence to the path of righteousness in everything we do (our relationswith our wives/husbands, our treatment of our parents, the behavior of thepeople who are involved in public projects on how they treat their publicresponsibility, how a person who has renounced the worldly life treats thewealth that he may be able to collect, etc.)., all reflect in bhagavAn'sadministration of His dharma as the dharma-gup. 477. dharma-kRt a) He who induces His devotees to follow dharma.b) He who practices dharma.om dharma-kRte namah.a) Those who follow dharma do so because of His anugraha. SrI BhaTTarquotes - dharmam sAmAnyam amalam anAdinidhanam vibhum | durlabham yatprabuddhAnAm tat-prasAdayitA vinA || - Ordinary flawless dharma, which iswithout beginning or end and all-pervasive, cannot be attained without HisGrace even by those who have great knowledge. BhagavAn induces peopletowards the path of dharma for their own benefit, and without any benefitfor Him, out of His sheer Mercy. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr 5.6.4 - SeivArgaLaic-ceivEnumyAnE.b) Even though He is Himself above dharma and adharma, He rigorouslyobserves the path of dharma so that He sets an example to the others -dharma maryAdA sthApanArtham dharmameva karoti iti dharma-kRt - SrISa~nkara. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out the importance of dharma in our lives.The jIvAtmA is caged into this body as a result of the previous karmA-s.BhagavAn has shown us the path of dharma in order for the jIva to getrelease from this cage. BhagavAn does not have any such need to observedharma etc. because karma does not touch Him. Even so, He observes all thedharma-s consistent with His avatAra. Lord kRshNa's words in the gItA ch.3.22-24 refer to this. na me pArtha asti kartavyam trishu lokeshu ki~ncana | na anvAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi || yadi hyayam na varteyam jAtu karmaNyatandritah | mama vartma anuvartante manushyAh pArtha sarvaSah || utsIdeyur_ime lokA na kuryAm karma cedaham | s~ankarasya ca kartA syAm upahanyAm imAh prajAh || 478. dharmI He who has dharma as an instrument.om dharmiNe namah.dharmah asya asti iti dharmI. BhagavAn is known as dharmI because Heprotects dharma, and uses it as a common means to protect His devoteees.nammAzhvAr refers to Him as "neRi ellAm eDuttu uraitta niRai j~nAnattu orumUrti (4.8.6) - SrI v.v.rAmAnujan. dharma is eternal and endless just as BhagavAn is eternal and endless. Heis dharmasvarUpi. Those who follow the path of dharma reach the fame thatis ever-lasting, and those who destroy dharma end up destroying themselves.All this is illustrated by the case of the pANDava-s and the kauravasrespectively. BhagavAn constantly keeps imparting the path of dharma to Hisdevotees, in addition to setting an example to us by following dharmaHimself. When BhIshma was about to leave his material body, bhagavAn tookyudhisThira to his bedside and asked bhIshma to impart all his knowledge ofdharma to his deserving grandson. This nAma of mahAvishNu should constantlyremind us that bhagavAn is there always striving to show us the path ofdharma in every way. (dharma cakram).The fact that bhagavAn is reflecting dharma all the time constantly to us isevident when we see the sun, the moon etc. always following their prescribeddharma without fail. The sun always rising in the east and setting in thewest, the cycle of the moon, etc, are constant reminders to us of this fact(SrI satyadevo vAsishTha).The next four

words are sat, aksharam, asat and ksharam, which are combinedin different sequence by SrI BhaTTar and by SrI Sa~nkara. SrI BhaTTar usesthe sequence "sad-aksharam asad-ksharam", and SrI Sa~nkara uses the sequence"sat asat ksharam aksharam". The nAma-s they derive out of this sequenceare similar, except that SrI BhatTTar treats the word aksharam as anadjective for sat, and the word ksharam as the adjective for asat. Thus thenAma-s according to his vyAkhyAna are sat, sad-aksharam, asat, andasad-ksharam. The nAma-s per SrI Sa~nkara are sat, asat, ksharam, andaksharam.The nAma-s sat and a-sat can be treated as a pair of opposites, and thenAma-s sad-aksharam and asad-ksharam can similarly be treated as a pair. 479. sat a) He who is commendable.b) He who is ever existent.c) He who is in the form of good and meritorious acts.om sate namah.In SrImad bhagavad gItA, bhagavAn instructs arjuna on the significance ofthe three terms "om, tat, and sat" in chapter 17. Sloka-s 17.26-27 dealwith the word sat. sat refers to existence (sad-bhAva), goodness(sAdhu-bhAva), and auspicious or commendable action (praSaste karmaNi). TheSloka in gItA is sadbhAve sAdhubhAve ca sad-ityetat prayucyate | praSaste karmaNi tathA sac-chabdhah pArtha yujyate || SrI BhaTTar points out that bhagavAn is sat because He is unconditionallyauspicious and commendable, and He is also eternal in existence.(nirupAdhikAt sad-bhAvAt, sAd-guNyacca). SrI P.B. aNNa~ngarAcArya svAmigives reference to AzhvAr pASuram - uLan kaNDAi nanne~njE uttaman enRu uLankaNDAi, in support of the second of the above meanings. In advaitic interpretation, the meaning for this word is given as "Truth".SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri points out that in truth, there are two kinds - oneis pAramArthika sat - that which is true in all three time frames (past,present, and future). The other is vyAvahArika sat - like this world, whichoriginates in the pAramArthika sat and merges back into the pAramArthika satat the time of pralaya. BhagavAn is the pAramArthika sat or nitya sat. 480. aksharam (sat) a) He whose existence is never diminished or destroyed in any way.b) sad-aksharam - He who never forsakes the good.om akshara-sate namah.SrI BhaTTar points out that aksharam is an adjective for sat (the previousnAma), and thus gives the current nAma as sad-aksharam or aksharam-sat.ksharam is that which decays or diminishes, or something that does not stayassociated with something else, and aksharam is that which is neverdiminished or decays. His sat or Existence, does not undergo any decreaseor diminution. This is also true of His svarUpa and His kalyANa guNa-s. Sothe meaning of this nAma is - He who is ever existent without decrease ordestruction. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to vishNu purANam and to ChAndogyaupanishad - apakshaya vinASAbhyAm pariNAmardhi-janmabhih | varjitah Sakyate vaktum yah sadAstIti kevalam || VP1.2.11 "He is free from decrease, destruction, modification, growth andbirth. He can only be spoken of as That which always is".In ChAndogya upanishad 6.2.1we have - sadeva somya! idamagra AsIt - "Existence alone, My dear child, this was in the beginning, one only withouta second." b)The root from which the word ksharam is derived is kshar - sa~ncalane toflow, to distil (SrI satyadevo vAsishTha). In the context of SrI BhaTTar'svyAkhyAnam for nAma 482, sad-aksharam could also mean He who never partswith or forsakes the good. 481. a-sat a) That which does not exist now, but existed in the past as well as will exist in the future.b) He who is the cause of misery to those who do sinful acts.c) He who is non-existent for those who do not follow the path of dharma.om a-sate namah.a. In gItA 9.19, bhagavAn says "amRtam caiva mRtyuSca sat asat ca ahamarjuna - "I am immortality as well as death, O arjuna. I am the being aswell as the non-being". SrI rAmAnujna bhAshyam for this stanza is: sat isthat which exists now (sad yad vartate), and asat is that which does notexist now but which existed before and which may exist in the future (asadyad atItam ca anAgatam ca). Thus bhagavAn is a-sat (non-being) in the senseof sat meaning existence as we saw in the

gItA Slokam 17.26, and a-sat beingthe things that don't exist now, but existed in the past and will exist inthe future.b. In the sense of sad referring to good acts (sAdhu-bhAve in gItA Slokam17.26), bhagavAn is a-sat in the sense of being the cause of distress tothose who do sinful acts (SrI BhaTTar). This is in the form of the greatmisery of endless samsAra (birth and death).c. He is also non-existent (asat) with respect to those who do not followthe path of dharma. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to tirumAlai 15 meyyarkkEmeyyanAgum vidi ilA ennaipOla poyyarkkE poyyanAgum puT-koDi uDaiya kOmAn,and to nammAzhvAr - meyyanAgum virumbit-tozhuvArkkellAm poyyanAgum puRametozhuvArkkellAm (tiruvAimozhi 9.10.7). 482. asat-ksharam He who moves away from the bad.om asat-ksharAya namah.ksharam refers to something perishable or impermanent. ksharam also meanssomething which flows away ( kshar sa~ncalane to flow, to distil). BhagavAndoes not associate with the bad, and so He is ksharam with respect to theasat (SrI BhaTTar). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets ksharam as referring to this Universe(the dynamism associated with it), and to aksharam as referring to theantaryAmi in everything, which is responsible for all the movement in theUniverse. Thus, bhagavAn is simultaneously ksharam (moving) and aksharam(the cause of this movement). He nicely illustrates this demonstration ofthe ksharam and aksharam aspects of bhagavAn by a simple day-to-day example- when we walk, one leg is moving while the other leg is stationary.Similarly, bhagVaN is both kshara in the form of all things moving in theUniverse, and akshara in the form of the antaryAmi supporting this movement.The author gives several examples from the Sruti, one of which is theISAvasya upanishad verse tadejati tan-naijati tad-dUre tadv-antike | tadantrasya sarvasya tadu sarvasya bAhyatah ||SrI cinmayAnanda gives an example of the concept of bhagavAn being ksharamand a-ksharam at the same time - the waves of the ocean rise and decay, butthey are nothing but the ocean that is non-decaying. So they are both partof the same thing. 483. avij~nAtA The Non-cognizant.om avij~nAtre namah.SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that He is non-cognizant of the faults of Hisdevotees. He observes that it is a great commendable quality of bhagavAnthat He is willing to forget and forgive the sins of those who havesurrendered to Him unconditionally. It is said of Lord rAma that He nevereven responds back to those who speak harsh words towards Him - ucyamAno'piparusham nottaram pratipadyate (ayodhyA 1.10). SrI BhaTTar quotes hisrevered father, SrI kUrattAzhvAn - "Oh Lord! We refute the statement thatyou are a sarvaj~nA! It is obvious You are totally ignorant of the faultsof your devotees!" - sarvaj~natAm evam upAlabhAmahe, tvam hi aj~na evaAsrita-dosha-joshaNah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to periAzhvAr's outpouring - en aDiyAr aduSeyyAr seidArEl nanRu seidAr enbar (4.9.2) - My devotee would not havecommitted this sin, and if he did, then as far as I am concerned, it is agood deed. He also gives reference to the gItA (9.30)- api cet sudurAcArobhajate mAm ananya-bhAk | sAdhureva sa mantavyah ... || (Even if someonedoes not follow the AcAra for his jAti etc., as long as he worships me withsingular devotion and without expecting any other benefit, he is a paramaviahsNava to Me).SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning by looking at the word as avi +j~nAtA instead of the traditional a+vij~nAtA. Then he derives the meaningfrom av rakshaNAdau - to protect, to do good, and j~nAtA - One who knows.Thus his meaning for avij~nAtA is One who knows how to protect, or He whoprotects everyone. Thus it refers to His being antaryAmi in everything, Hisbeing the Protector of those who surrender to Him, etc. SrI satyadevovAsishTha gives reference to the atharva-vedic mantra "avirve nAmadevatartenAste parIvRtA" (10.8.31) to support this interpretation. SrI Sa~nkara interrpets vij~nAtA as referring to jIva with the distortedknowledge of being responsible for its own actions etc. (Atmani kartRtvAdikalpa vij~nAnam kalpitam iti jIvo vij~nAtA). He who is above this distortedknowledge is avij~nAtA (tad-vilakshaNo vishNuh a-vij~nAtA).

484. sahasrAmSuh He who has a thousand rays (of knowledge).om sahasrAmSave namah.amSu means ray. sahasra here refers to infinite or countless. SrI BhaTTarinterprets amSu as referring to radiating knowledge, and thus sahasrAmSuhrefers to One who is possessed of infinite knowledge. nammAzhvAr says -mikka j~nAna mUrtiyAya veda viLakkinai (4.7.10) - BhagavAn is pure andunalloyed radiating knowledge, who revealed the veda-s to us, and who isrevealed to us by the veda-s.SrI Sa~nkara interprets the nAma as referring to His being the Sun withcountless rays. yena sUryas-tapati tejaseddhah - (tai.brA. 3.12.9) -Lighted by His effulgence, the sun shines. SrI Sa~nkara also givesreference to the gItA to support his interpretation - yadAditya gatam tejah... yac-candramasi yac-cAgnau tat-tejo viddhi mAmakam - 15.12 - O arjuna!know that the tejas of the sun, the moon, agni, etc. is mine viz. I am theOne who bestowed this tejas on them. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's interpretation is that BhagavAn radiates Hisknowledge and His tejas everywhere, and so He is sahasrAmSuh (anata j~nAnaananta prabhaSca vushNuh ata sahasrAmSuh). nAma 485: vidhAtA. om vidhAtre namaH. i) He Who specially protected the seed He sowed for brahmA till the seed fully developed into brahmAs creation. j) The Ordainer of the laws of conduct for all, including the likes of yama. k) The Dispenser of the fruits of action and the inducer of action. l) The Supporter of all supports such as AdiSesha. m) He Who lays down the code of conduct and the fruits to be attained from them. n) He Who protects the beings of this world in diverse ways (vi-dhAtA; vi = vividhaiH). o) He Who bestows the desires of His devotees. p) He Who is borne by garuDa, His vehicle (vi-dhAtA; vi = garuDa). We studied this nAma earlier in Slokam 5 (nAma 44). Interpretation (a) by Sri BhaTTar and SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN are described there. The other interpretations are discussed below. The meaning for the nAma can be understood based on the following meanings given in the dictionary, and the derivation given by SrI vAsishTha, among others: - vidhAtR A maker, a creator. Grantor, giver, bestower. vidhA in the dictionary is given the meaning "division, part, portion", and based on this, vidhAtA means one who apportions, controls, distributes, creates, etc. li~ngayasUri defines the meaning as "vidhatta iti vidhAtA" in his amarapadavivRti. - vidhAnam arranging, disposing. - VidhAnam - a rule, precept, ordinance, sacred rule or precept, sacred injunction.

- vidhAtA vidhAnasya kartA; a) See the write-up for nAma 44. b) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms bhagavAn being The Supreme Controller and the Ordainer of the laws of conduct for all - (vidhAnam arranging, disposing; a rule, precept, ordinance, sacred rule or precept, sacred injunction. Also see vAsishTha - vidhAtA vidhAnasya kartA). He explains the nAma in the context of the meaning of avij~nAtA that he gave earlier bhagavAn ignores the faults of His devotees. Then one can ask the question "what happens if someone else, like yama for instance, who is impartial in his treatment of everyone for their sins as well as good deeds, punishes the devotees of vishNu for their sins?". This nAma says that bhagavAn controls yama and all other gods, and so they won't punish a vishNu-bhakta, and they will inform their servants not to punish a vishNu-bhakta in any way. Thus, SrI BhaTTar picks an example of bhagavAns guNa of ordaining or laying down the rules that brings out bhagavAns eternal mercy towards those who are devoted to Him. Even though yama is authorized by bhagavAn to be impartial in punishing the jIva-s for their karma-s, at the same time, using His powers as the Ordainer, bhagavAn has ordained yama to be lenient and gentle when it comes to punishing His devotees. Since yama is under the total control of bhagavAn, he follows the orders of bhagavAn, and instructs his servants to keep away from vishNu bhakta-s at the time of their death. This mRdutvam of bhagavAn in exercising His Control (as vidhAtA, the Controller) such that it benefits the jIva-s that follow the path that leads to Him, is declared in several places: vishNu purANa, brahma purANa, vAmana purANa, nArasimha purANa, lainga purANa, vaishNava dharma, SrI vishNu tattva, and SrImad bhAgavatam. In vishNu purANam, we have: parihara madhu sUdana prapannAn prabhur-aham anya nRNAm na vaishNavAnAm (VP 3.7.14) hari guru vaSagosmi na svatantraH prabhavati samyamane mamApi vishNuH | (VP 3.7.15) Keep clear of the worshippers of madhusUdana. I am the lord of all except the vaishNava-s (yamas word to his servants). He Who obeys Hari, as his spiritual guide, is independent of me; for, vishNu is of power to govern and control me. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to divya prabandham, again referring to this soft side of bhagavAns role of ultimate Controllership: tiRambEnmin kaNDIr; tiruvaDi tan nAmam maRandum puram tozhA mAndar iRainjiyum SAduvarAip pOdumingaL enRAn namanum tan tamaraik kUvic cevikku - (nAnmugan tiruvantAdi 68) yama instructs his servants through message given secretly in their ears: Dont forget my orders. When you approach anyone who does not worship anyone other than Lord vishNu even by oversight or

forgetfulness, just worship them, and peacefully move away from them. Do not in any way use any force against them. avan tamar ev-vinaiyar Agilum em kOn avan tamarE enRu ozhivadu allAl- naman tamarAl ArAyappaTTu aRiyAr kaNDIr aravu aNai mEl pEr Ayarkku ATpaTTOr pEr. (mudal tiruvanTAdi 55) When the servants of yama encounter a devotee of kaNNan who rests in the Milky Ocean, they do not go further and enquire anything more about these devotees, but praise them and get away from them. They realize that their leader yama, is also a devotee and servant of the same kaNNan, and do not in any way harm the vishNu bhakta-s. talaip-pei kAlam naman tamar pASam viTTAl alippUN uNNum av-allal ellAm agala kalai-pal j~nAlattu en kaNNanaik kaNDu koNDu nilaip peRRu en nenjam peRRadu nIDuyirE (tiruvAi. 3.2.10) When the last breath is to leave the body, merciless messengers from yama release their death-rope and drag you, and you experience the excruciating agony. This is all described in elaborate detail in several places. But this is not what happens in the case of bhgavAns devotees. For them, bhagavAn appears in front of them at this crucial moment, and suddenly all the shivering and fear is gone, and their soul gets fresh and eternal hope and energy. c) SrI Sankaras interpretation for the nAma in Slokam 5 is karmaNAm tat-phalAnAm ca kartA vidhAtA He Who specifies the various karma-s and their benefits; The dispenser of the fruit of actions and the inducer of actions. d) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 51, SrI Sankara interprets the nAma as One Who supports the earth in the form of AdiSesha, the eight elephants, etc., which in turn bear all other things viSesheNa Sesha dig-gaja bhU dharAn dhAtRRn dadhAti it vidhAtA. In other words, bhagavAn is the Support of all other supports. e) SrI vAsishTha gives the interpretation: vede manushyasya kRte kartavyANam vidhAnakartRtvena vidhAtA, i.e., vidhAnasya kartA vidhAtA - He who lays down the rules for the vedic rites to be observed by people. BhagavAn is also called vidhAtA because He specifies the karma-s to be observed and the fruits to be attained - karmaNAm phalAnAm yathArthatvena vidhAtRtvAt vidhAtA sa vishNuH He is also the One who bestows the benefits for the karma-s that are observed. SrI vAsishTha gives a quote from the ISAvAsya Upanishad for an example of one of the rules laid down by bhagavAn (vidhAnam etat This is the Ordained rule):

kurvanneveha karmANi jijIvishet Satam samAH | evam tvayi nAnyathetosti na karma lipyate nare || (ISAvAsya. 2) One should desire to live a hundred years just performing nishkAmya karma-s (accessory to upAsana). For an aspirant (of moksha) there is no other way. Karma will not cling to such a person (who is a knower of Brahman). This laying down of the rules is one aspect of bhagavAn being vidhAtA vidhAnasya kartA. The other aspect of His being vidhAtA is that He is the Bestower of the fruits of any action karmaNAm phalAnAm yathArthatvena vidhAtRtvAcca vidhAtA sa vishurasti iti vidhAtA. Again, SrI vAsishTha gives another reference from the Sruti: sa paryagAt Sukram akAyam avraNam asnAviram Suddham apApaviddham | kavir-manIshI paribhUH svayambhUH yAthAtathyatorthAn vyadadhAt SasvatIbhyaH samAbhyaH || (ISA. 8) He the Seer, the Controller of the mind, the Conquerer of enemies like desire etc., the self-existent, attains the effulgent, the one with no body associated with karma, the soreless, the one without sinews, the one ever pure, the one never tainted by sin. The seer has borne in his mind all things as they are (such as the end of life, way, the obstacles, etc.) for numberless years. In other words, for one who has led a life of nishkAya karma as laid down by the vidhAtA vishNu, Lord vishNu in turn gives the benefit (vidhAtA) in the form of the realization of Himself to such a practitioner of this dictum from Him. f) SrI vAsishTha gives another interpretation based on the root dhA dhAraNa poshaNayoH to support, to nurture. In this interpretation, vi- is a prefix that indicates "in a number of different ways - vividha". VidhAtA thus refers to One who protects the beings in a variety of ways. A simple illustration of this is the protection by the Lord, of both the mother and the child in the womb of a pregnant mother, simultaneously, but in different ways. g) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as vidadhAti kAmAn sva-janAnAm iti vidhAtA He Who bestows the desires of His devotees. He gives support from the Upanishad-s: - nityo nityAnAm cetanaS-cetanAnAm eko bahUnAm yo vidadhAti kAmAn (SvetAS. 6.13; kaTho. 5.13) The One Eternal Sentient who bestows the desires of the many eternal sentients (is to be known in order to be liberated). h) One of SrI satya sandha tIrthas interpretation is: viH garuDo dhAtA yasya iti vi-dhAtA - He Who is carried by garuDa 486. kRta-lakshaNah - a) He who has prescribed the distinguishingcharacteristics for the pious. b) He who has created distinguishing marks forHimself. c) He who has created the veda-s. d) He who distinguished the different species byexternal and internal attributes.om kRta-lakshanAya namah.This nAma means "He who has laid down the lakshaNa-s or distinctions". SrISa~nkara and SrI

BhaTTar give different anubhavam-s of this aspect ofbhagavAn's guNa. Meaning (a) is from SrI BhaTTar and (b) to (d) are fromSrI Sa~nkara.a) SrI BhaTTar had interpreted nAma 483 - avij~nAtA, as indicative ofbhagavAn overlooking the defects of His devotees. Here it is indicated thatbhagavAn does not ignore everyone's faults, but only the faults of those whohave certain distinguishing characteristics, which He Himself has laid out -kRtalakshaNah. SrI BhaTTar gives the following references where bhagavAnhas identified these attributes: - mitrabhAvena samprAptam - yuddha kANDa 18.3 - "He who has come to Meas a friend"; - samyag vyavasito hi sah - gItA 9.30 - "He who has rightly resolved inhis mind that bhagavAn is everything", and does not look for any otherbenefit - ananya bhAk (same Slokam in gItA); cakrA~nkitAh praveshTavyAh (harivamSa 21.24) - "They who bear the markof the discus on their bodies". This mark is to be cherished by a vishNubhakta just as a chaste woman cherishes her mangala sUtra and otherornaments when her husband is alive (vishNu tattva). SrI v.v.rAmAnujan addsfurther support from divya prabandham - tIyil poliginRa Se~ncuDarAzhi tigazhtirucc-cakkarattin kOyil poRiyAlE oRRuNDu ninRu kuDi kuDi AtceyginROm -tiruppallANDu. In addition to the above lakshaNa-s that SrI BhaTTar has identified, SrIv.v.rAmAnujan adds the following as the most important lakshNa: maRandumpuRam tozhA mAndar (nAn~gAm tiruvantAdi 68) - "He who does not worship anyadevatA-s even absent-mindedly". The dharma cakram writer points us to gItAchapter 12, Sloka-s 13 to 20, where Lord KRshNa has laid down thelakshaNas of His bhakta, starting with adveshTA sarvabhUtAnAm..., andending with SraddadhAnA mat-paramA bhaktAste atIva mama priyAh.SrI Sa~nkara gives different alternative interpretations: b) He created(kRt) the veda-s (lakshaNah). c) He has also distinguished Himself withthe SrIvatsa mark on His vakshasthalam. d) He has created the differentspecies with distinguishing marks that identify the species uniquely throughexternal as well as internal distinguishing marks. He is kRta-lakshNahfrom all these aspects.SrI cinmayAnanda points out that bhagavAn is kRta-lakshaNah since Hedistinguishes Himself through the six attributes - aiSvarya dharmah yaSaScaSrIh j~nAnam vairAgyam (glory, righteousness, fame, wealth, knowledge, anddetachment). SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri observes that bhagavAn hasdistinguished Himself through His unique attributes of being sat, cit, andAnanda svarUpa, and other aspects such as His AdiSesha Sayanam, garuDavAhanam, megha SyAmam, San~kha and cakra Ayudha-s, pItAmbara vastra, etc. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 52 487. gabhasti-nemih 488. sattva-sthah 489. simhah 490. bhUta-maheSvarah 491. Adi-devah 492.mahA-devah 493.deveSah 494.deva-bhr*t 495.guruh

om om om om om om om om om

gabhastinemaye namah sattvasthAya namah simhAya namah bhUta-maheSvarAya namah Adi-devAya namah mahA-devAya namah deveSaya namah deva-bhr*te namah gurave namah

487. gabhasti-nemih a) He who has the effulgent cakra as His weapon. b) He who enlightens everything by His effulgence. c) He who is the Center of the planetary system (viz. the Sun) om gabhasti-nemaye namah. a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "gabhastih dIpyate jyotir-mayam,nemi-lakshitam cakram yasya iti gabhasti-nemih - He who possesses the effulgentcakra. His cakra is bhAsvara-sahasrAra-cakrah - the effulgent cakra with a thousand spokes. yama and yama-dhUta-s don't even come anywhere close to those who bear the mark of cakra on their bodies (see SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for the previous nAma), since their savior is gabhasti-nemih who has as His weaponthe thousand-spoked effulgent cakra. Note the words from tiruppallANDu - tIyil poliginRa Se~n-cuDarAzhi tigazh tiruc-cakkarattan (SrI v.v.rAmAnujan). The dharma cakram writer comments that this cakram in bhagavAn's Hand denotes the dharma cakram which controls, guides and directs everyone towards the path of dharma, and is the kAla cakram which shows the never-ending nature of time which is His manifestation. b) SrI satyadevo vAsisTha derives the meaning of the nAma from the roots bhasdIptyoh to shine, and nI prApaNe to lead. The word gabhasti is derived from the root bhas bhartsana dIptyoh - to censure or to shine. The latter meaningis relevant for this nAma. The word nemi is derived from the root nI prApaNe - to lead. nemi is given the meaning "the circumference or rim of awheel". Thus gabhasti-nemih means He who by His Effulgence enlightens everything. We all know that the Sun gives light to everything. But it is bhagavAn thegabhasti-nemih, who gives light to the Sun. He is br*hadbhAnu or "manysuns all in one".

c) SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is that bhagavAn is the Center of the planetary systems - gabhasti-cakrasya madhye sUryAtmanA sthita iti gabhastinemih. SrIrAdhAkr*shNa Sastri refers us to the Sruti - Adityo vA esha etan-maNDalam, ya esha etasmin maNDale'rcidIpyate | ya esha etan-maNDale'rcishi purushah ||(tait. AraN. 10.14), and also to "dhyeyas-sadA savitr*-maNDalamadhyavartI nArAyaNah" - He who is meditated upon as Lord sUryanArAyaNa at thecentre of and controlling the sUryamaNDala". 488. sattva-sthah a) He who is in the hearts of the devotees. b) He who abides in sattva-guNa. c) He who resides in all beings. om sattva-sthAya namah. The dictionary gives the meanings entity, mind, goodness, etc. for the wordsattvam. The three interpretations below are based on these different meanings. a) SrI BhaTTar points out that when bhagavAn is in the heart of the devotees,there is no karma in them since darkness does not exist where there is sun. The nirukti description for this nAma is "sattve hr*di sthitatvAt sa sattvasthah samudIritah - As He stays in the heart of beings, He is known assattvasthah. "When Lord Hari, who is imperishable and eternal, and whowields the discus and the mace, abides in the heart of a person, how can sin existthere?" - sphatika maNi SilAmalah kva vishNuh | manasi nr*Nam kvamatsarAdi doshah? - vishNu purANam 3.7.22. He stays in the hearts of the devotee withHis cakra and thus makes sure that yama and yama-paTa-s dont come nearthis devotee - "ki~nkarA daNDa pASau vA na yamo na ca yAtanAh | samarthAhtasya yasyAtmA keSavAlambanah sadA || " (vishNu purA. 2.2.28). b) SrI Sa~nkara interprets sattva here as referring to the sattva-guNa, and gives the meaning that bhagavAn abides in the sattva guNa - sattvam guNamprakASakam prAdhAnyena adhitishThati iti - He who chiefly presides over the quality of sattva guNa which is radiant. dharma cakram: Of the three guNa-s that are reflected in everyone, sattvaguNa is the one that results in the clarity of mind that is necessary forrealizing the Absolute Truth. The food we eat, the thoughts we think, etc., shouldall be directed towards development of this sattva guNa in us. Habits like gettingup in the brahma muhUrta (~ 4 a.m.), observing japa, dhyAna, etc. at this time, performing one's prescribed duties with the welfare of the fellow-beings inmind, never harming anything else, etc, are habits that will foster the development of sattava guNa in us. This nAma teaches us that leading our lifewith sattava guNa is the path to the realization of bhagavAn. c) SrI Sa~nkara's alternate interpretation is that sattva-s refers to all beings, stha means residing, and sattva-sthah can mean that He resides in allbeings. 489. simhah a) He who punishes (those who harm His devotees). b) He who took the nr*simha form. c) He who is most powerful.

om simhAya namah. This nAma has occurred earlier (nAma 202). There SrI BhaTTar had interpreted the nAma as referring to bhagavAn's nr*simha incarnation. For the currentnAma, he continues his interpretation in terms of bhagavAn protecting His devotees by punishing if necessary anyone who even tries to harm His devotee. Thus He punishes yama and his servants if they approach a vaishNava with the intent of harming him without realizing that he is vishNu's devotee. SrIBhaTTar gives examples from vishNu tattva, vhshNu dharma, and lai~nga purANa to illustrate this. SrI Sa~nkara's earlier interpretation was that bhagavAn is the Destroyer of sins. His vyAkhyAnam for the current nAma is that bhagavAn is like the lionwhen it comes to His Power, and so He is referred to as simha. SrI rAdhAkr*shNa Sastri suggests that bhagavAn is the lion that gets rid of thedeer in the form of asura-s. Alternatively, SrI Sa~nkara points out that simhah may considered a short form for His full nAma -nr*simha. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root sic - ksharaNe tosprinkle, to impregnate, and interprets simhah as He who bestows the karma-phala to everyone impartially. His alternate interpretation is thatbhagavAn is of infinite Power, which is indicated by His nAma of simhah. He takes away the life of everything in their due time, including themanvantara-s, the kalpa-s, and the mahA-kalpa-s, and merges them all into Himself. Just as we refer to a great medical doctor as vaidyakesari, bhagavAn is the kesari of all kesari-s or lions. 490. bhUta-maheSvarah The Supreme Lord of all beings. om bhUta-maheSvarAya namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that BhagavAn is the Supreme Lord of all beings, asevidenced by His being the Lord of the likes of brahma, yama etc. who are themselves the lords of beings. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to divyaprabandham in support - - niruttinAn deiva~ngaLAga ad-deiva nAyakan tAnE - He, the Lord of all theother gods, established these other gods (tiruvAimozhi 5.2.8); - mUvar mudalvan Or mUvulagALi - The foremost among the trinity, and theSupreme ruler of all the three worlds - tiruvAimozhi 8.9.8; - peria appanai, piraman appanai, uruttiran appanai, munivarkku uriyaappanai, amarar appanai, ulagukkOr tani appan tannai - He is the Father and Lord ofall including brahma, rudra, the sages, all the gods, ane everything in all the worlds - tiruvaimozhi 8.1.11. SrI Sa~nkara interprets the nAma as bhUtAnAm mahAn-Isvarah - He who is the Great Lord of all beings. His alternate interpretation is bhUta - truly,maheSvarah - nArAyaNa is the Supreme Lord. bhUtena - satyena, sa eva paramAtmA mahAn Isvara iti bhUta-maheSvarah. SrI rAdhAkr*shNa Sastri refers us to thegItA where bhagavAn points out that sadly the foolish people do not recognize His glory as the bhUta-maheSvara because they think He is just a human eventhough He has assumed the human form out of sheer Mercy towards to them so that He is easily accessible to them (gItA 9.11). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives several references to the Sruti-s: - bhavASavau mr*Datam mAbhi yAtam bhUtapatI paSupatI namo vAm (atharva 21.2.1). - ya Ise asya dvipadaS-catuspadah kasmai devAya havishA videma (yaju. 23.3) - yo bhUtAnAm adhipatir yasmin loke adhiSritAh | ya Ise mahato mahAns-tena gr*hNAmi tvAm aham(yaju.

20.32). - hiraNyagarbhah samavartatAgre bhUtasya jAtah patireka AsIt - r*g. 1.121.1. 491. Adi-devah a) He who is the first cause and is endowed with effulgence. b) The Foremost Deity. c) He who swallows the three worlds at the time of pralaya, and releases at the time of creation. om Adi-devAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 335 (Slokam 36). SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is Adih dyotamAnaSca Adi-devah. Adi - The cause, and deva - ever-shining. He is the cause of all the other gods, and is possessed of great splendor that subjugates them. SrI BhaTTar gives one example of this - bhIshA'smAt vAtah pavate (taittirIya - Ananda valli 8.1) - The wind blows out of fear from Him. SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is - sarva bhUtAni AdIyante anena iti Adih; AdiSca asu devaSca iti Adi-devah. He is the first through whom all beings come to exist, and He is divine as well. Unlike SrI BhaTTar and SrI Sa~nkara who both have treated Adi and deva as two separate aspects of bhagavAn's guNa, SrI cinmayAnanda treats Adi as the qualifier for deva, and gives the meaning that bhagavAn is the First Deity. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is Adi - Adatte grasati jagat-pralaya kAle sa Adih - He who swallows the worlds at the time of pralaya, and deva - datte visr*jati ca bahih sarga kAle sa devah - He who releases the beings from Him at the time of creation, and so He is Adi-devah. The dharma cakram writer remarks that this nAma indicates that bhagavAn is not governed by nature as we know it, where everything has an origin - e.g., the tree comes from the seed, and the seed comes from the seed, the deva-s come from bhagavAn, but He is Adi-deva who has no origin. Everything that is created has an end, but He has no end. Even the gods can't comprehend Him fully. We who have an origin and an end can't fully comprehend Him who has neither origin nor end, and the more we meditate on the significance of the nAma Adi-devah, the more we are closer to realizing Him. 492. mahA-devah The great Player. om mahA-devAya namah. As we have seen earlier, the word devah is derived from the root div- krIDAyAm to play. He is superior to all the gods and for Him they are like playthings (SrI BhaTTar). This indicates His Lordship over all the other gods. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr - inbuRum iv-viLaiyATTuDaiyAn (tiruvAimozhi 3.10.7). In his vyAkhyAnam for this pASuram, SrI V. N. vedAnta deSikan points out that the inbam or leelA here is that He gives us all the means to reach Him (such as His arcA rUpa which is close to us, His bestowing on us the caitanyam, the ability to think and understand what is good for us, etc.), and still we decide not to use any of these means that He has given us and go astray. This amuses Him, and this is the krIDA or leelA that is implied here. Or, since He performs His great leelA of creation etc., using all the gods that He has created such as brahma, He is mahA-devah (SrI P. B. aNNa~ngarAcArya).

SrI cinmAyananda explains that since all the other gods came from Him, He is the mahA-deva or Supreme Lord or Great Deity. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning mah - pUjAyAm - to honor, and interprets the nAma s meaning "He who is fit to be worshipped to the exclusion of others". He gives examples of the stars losing their importance as soon as the Sun appears, or the AtmA being of supreme importance in the context of the indirya-s which are like the deva-s. 493. deveSah The Ruler of Gods. om deveSAya namah. devAnAm Isah deveSah. SrI cinmayAnanda explains "He is the very Consciousness in all the other gods". Consciousness here can be interpreted to mean "antarAtmA". He is the God of all the gods, and of course everything else that exists. "vAnOr perumAn mAmAyan vaikunThan emperumAn" are nammAzhvArs's words (tiruvAimozhi 1.5.4) - v.v. rAmAnujan. SrI P. B. aNNa~ngarAcArya svAmi elaborates that since bhagavAn is the one who assigns the other deva-s such as brahma in their respective functions, He is the Isa or Lord for all the deva-s. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives several supporting quotes from the Sruti: yo deveshu adhi-deva eka AsIt kasmai devAya havishA vidhema - r*g. 10.121.8. yo jAta eva prathamo manasvAn devo devAn r*tunA paryabhUshat - athar. 20.34.1. sa devAnAm adhipatir babhUva so asmAsu draviNamAdadhAtu - athar. 7.5.2. tam ISAnam jagats-tasthushaspatim dhiyam jinvamase hUmahe vayam - yajur. 25.18.

494. deva-bhr*t The Supporter of gods. om deva-bhr*te namah. SrI BhaTTar points out that bhagavAn assigns the different deva-s to their duties based on their abilities, and thus protects them. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr 8.1.5 - maniSarkku dEvar pOla dEvarkkum dEvan. SrI Sa~nkara and those who base their interpretations on him (e.g., SrI cinmayAnanda etc.)., combine the current nAma and the next as one nAma - deava-bhr*t-guruh - and gives the meaning that bhagavAn is the guru (One who taught the veda-s) to deva-bhr*t (the king of all deva-s, indra). Their alternative interpretation is still to consider the nAma as deva-bhr*t-guruh, but treating the nAma as referring to two different attributes in one nAma - deva-bhr*t - He who nourishes all the deva-s, and guruh - He who promulgates all knowledge. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam to the next nAma, guruh, essentially corresponds to bhagavAn being the source of all knowledge in the form of the veda-s. 495. guruh The Preceptor. om gurave namah.

SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation mentioned earlier viz. bhagavAn is guruh because He gaves the veda-s to the deva-s. In vishNu purANam, brahma is quoted as saying: hari-guru-vaSago'smi (3.7.15) - I am under the control of my Guru - bhagavAn Hari. We have from the Sruti - yo vai vedamSca prahiNoti tasmai - (Sve. 6.18) - He who teaches him (i.e., brahma) the veda-s. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan reminds us that bhagavAn is the prathama AcAryan in our guru-paramparA. -dAsan kr*shNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 53 496. 497. 498. 499. 500. 501. 502. 503. 504. uttarah go-patih goptA j~nAna-gamyah purAtanah SarIra-bhUta-bhr*t bhoktA kapIndrah bhUri-dakshiNah

om om om om om om om om om

uttarAya namah go-pataye namah goptre namah j~nAna-gamyAya namah purAtanAya namah sarIra-bhUta-bhr*te namah bhoktre namah kapIndrAya namah bhUri-dakshiNAya namah

496. uttarah

a) The Rescuer (of brahma and others from the asura-s) b) The Savior (of devotees from samsAra) c) He who transcends the bounds of birth and transmigration. om uttarAya namah uttAraNat uttarah - He who rescues. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAnis the Rescuer of brahma and others from the asura-s. SrISa~nkara givesthe interpretation "janma samsAra bandhanAt uttarati itiuttarah" - TheSavior from the ocean of samsAra. SrI T. S.Kr*shNamUrti has translated this as"He who transcends the bounds ofbirth". SrI satyadevo vAsishThasupports the last two of these interpretations by deriving the meaning from thewords ap -waters, and tara to cross, to swim across.Alternatively, ut can refer to utkarshaor atiSaya extraordinary, exalted,etc., and tara referring to crossing, and uttara can thus refer to bhagavAnbeing the best means (the only means!) for crossing the ocean of samsAra. The dharma cakram writer gives thesignificance of this nAma in our day-to-day life. Our mind is normally torn byall kinds of desires, bondage, etc., and these are trying to puncture holes inour mind which is the boat we need to safely cross this ocean of birth. Rocks inthe form of aha~nkAra, mamakAra, etc. are trying to wreck this boat. Till wecross this life span, we need to have this boat intact without being wrecked orpunctured. Meditation on bhagavAn is essential in order for us to accomplishthis. The following from tiruvaLLUvar is relevant in this context "piRavip-perum kaDal nInduvar, nIndAr iRaivan aDiSerAdAr". 497. go-patih a) The Master of all words (veda-s as well asall languages). b) The Protector of His own word. c) The Protector of His bhakta's words. d) Protector of the cows in His kr*shNAvatAra. e) Protector of all that moves around. f) The Lord of Mother Earth. g) The Lord of the (celestial) world. This nAma re-occurs as nAma 599. om go-pataye namah. The word go means cow, words, veda-s, earth,etc. Thus there are several interpretations for this nAma. SrI satyadevovAsishTha nicely summarizes many of these meanings through the followingwords: "gAvovAco, gAvah paSavo, gaur-bhUmiSca viSvanirmANe kAraNam iti bhAvArthah|eva~nca - gopatih catushpadAm gavAm vAcAm bhUmeSca rakshaka ityarthah|". The concept that bhagavAn is the Master of all words is interpreted by SrIBhaTTar as referring to His being the One who gave the veda-s as well as all thelanguages to us. The dharma cakram writer interprets this as meaning thatbhagavAn keeps His word to His devotees, as well as meaning that He ensures thatHis bhakta's words come true. We know of bhagavAn's promise to protect those whosurrender to Him unconditionally, and we know that He ensured that bhIshma'spromise tomake Him take to weapons in the war against His own promise come true.He also made the words of prahlAda come true that BhagavAn will be in the pillarwhen hiraNyakaSipu challenged the young prahlAda.

The roots of interest in understanding themeanings for this nAma are:gam - gatau to go, and pA- rakshaNe to protect. Inthis sense, go can also refer to indriya-s since they wander towards materialobjects, to mind since mind wanders on all kinds of thoughts, to AtmA since AtmAmoves from one body to another, to body since the body moves from one place toanother, and on and on. BhagavAn is the patih for all these. Among His creationsfor which He is the patih, veda is the one that isheard, and the Universe is theone that is seen. Veda-s expound the way of life of the world, and the world isan expression of the veda-s, and He is the pati for all of these. 498. goptA a) The Savior. b) He who hides Himself from non-devotees. om goptre namah. This nAma re-occurs as nAma 600. The nAma is derived from the root gup -rakshaNeto protect. SrIBhaTTar interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn being theprotector of all knowledge, thus extending the interpretation offered in theprevious nAma (a). SrI Sa~nkara gives the interpretation thatbhagavAn is theprotector of all beings and all the worlds. SrIrAdhAkr*shNa Sastri gives thereference from atharvaSiras 5 - samsr*jyaviSvA bhuvanAni goptA. Among thesupporting quotes given by SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha is the Sruti - trINi padAvicakrame vishNurgopAadAbhyah - yajur. 34.43. He points out that bhagavAn'sguNa of protection of all that is on this land, in the sea or in the air, isHisdharma. SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam for nAma 600, the second occurrence of this nAmalater, is that He is the Protector and Administrator of the wheel of karma -bestowing the fruits of karma to the beings for their acts, good and bad, thecycle of birth and rebirth etc. Another meaning for the word gup is to hide,to conceal. Based onthis, SrI Sa~nkara interprets the second occurrence of thisnAma as meaning that He hides Himself (from non-devotees) through His mAyA.SrIrAdhAkr*shNa Sastri uses both the meanings of gup (hide and protect), and givesthe interpretation that bhagavAn is goptA because He protects His devotees byhiding them from their enemies, and from all obstacles. The dharma cakram writer observes that thisnAma should remind us that bhagavAn is the one who is constantly protectingeverything He has created. Those who think they are protecting themselves or arebeing protected by some other human being have this thought because oftheirsheer ignorance. This nAma should remind us of this simple fact. 499. j~nAna-gamyah He who is to be realized by knowledge. om j~nAna-gamyAya namah. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that the knowledgereferred to here is not the mere knowledge of things. SrI M. V. rAmAnujAcAryaremarks that the knowledge referred to here is para vidyA - The knowledge of theSupreme Self, which is attained only by absolute meditational unison -samAdhinishThA. The dharma cakram writer elaborates on this further.

Knowledge can be considered to be of two kinds- that which is obtained by external indriya-s like the eyes, ears, etc., or bymind - aparavidyA, and that which is beyond the reach of the indriya-s -paravidyA. Among the means that aid in attaining this para knowledge arej~nAna,bhakti, karma, and yoga. Practices on a continuing basis suchas nAma samkIrtanam(chanting bhagavAn's nAma), SravaNam (listening to bhagavAn's nAma, purAna,itihAsa, ...), kaimkaryam (performing duties in support of temple services,making garlands, cleaning the temple-premises, ...), etc., facilitate inpurifying our mind and developing bhakti. Bearing with patience any difficultiesthat arise in our life,not rejoicing at any good things that happen in our lifebut dedicatingthem to bhagavAn, etc., will also help in directing our mindtowards Him. j~nAnam in our context is the realization of the relationshipandassociation between us and our Creator. This j~nAnam will materialize for usonly by His Grace. This nAma conveys to us that BhagavAn is realizable onlythrough the j~nAnam, and He is the only One who can bless us with this j~nAnam,but what we can do is prepare ourselves toreceive this j~nAnam when He decidesto bless us with it. 500. purAtanah - The Ancient. om purAtanAya namah. SrI BhaTTar explains the significance of thenAma in terms of the previous nAma-s, indicating that He is Ancient in that Hehas been giving us knowledge and protecting it not only in this kalpa, but inall previous kalpa-s as well. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us tonammAzhvAr -UzhitORUzhi vaiyam kAkkum Azhi nIr vaNNan (tiruvAimozhi7.3.11). SrI Sa~nkara'sbhAshyam is "He who is not limited by Time and who existed before anythingelse". The dharma cakram writer observes that this nAma also conveysseveral other thoughts - viz. that bhagavAn is beginning-less, not born, notgoverned by Time, not comprehended by the mind, the Origin of everything thatexists, etc. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that "Ancient" here refers tothat from which the concept oftime itself originated, and thus He is the Truththat cannot bemeasured in terms of Time. 501.SarIra-bhUta-bhr*t a) He who supports all the tattva-s whichconstitute the SarIra. b) He who supports all beings which are part of His body. c) He who protects the devatA-s who are associated with different parts of thebody. om SarIra-bhUta-bhr*te namah. The term bhUta can refer to the pa~nca mahAbhUta-s, the 24 tattva-sor Reals of which the pa~nca mahA bhUta-s are a subset,or to the entire universe of all beings. Thus there are differentinterpretations for the nAma. SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning of bhUtaas referringto the 24 tattva-s or Reals that are the elements involved in creation - prakr*ti,mahat, ahankAra, sound, ether, touch, air, sight, light, taste, water, smell,earth, mind, eye, ear, nose, mouth, skin, tounge, hand, leg, anus, and the organof reproduction. Theseare the SarIra-bhuta-s are the elements of creation.BhagavAn supportsthese tattva-s through His body, i.e., they are part of Him.SrIBhaTTar gives reference to mahAbhArata - tasya mUrdhA samabhavatdyauhsa-nakshatra devatA - His head was the sky along with the stars and thedeities - SAnti parva 348.49. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers totiruvAimozhi 10.7.10where nammAzhvAr refers to these 24 tattva-s:"po~ngaimpulanum poRi aindumkarumEndiriyam aim-bUtam I~ngiv-vuyirEipirakiruti mAnA~ngAra mana~ngaLE" -the five senses such as sound, the five sense-organs, the five action-orientedlimbs, the five elements ike earth, prakr*ti, mahat, ahamkAra, and manas ormind.

A more general meaning for the word bhUta isanything that exists (from bhU - satyAyAm - all that is true or exists - SrIv.v.rAmAnujan). Since all these beings are His body, and since He supports(bhr*t)these bhUta-s which are part of His SarIra, He is SarIra-bhUta-bhr*t. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan and SrI P. B. aNNa~ngarAcAryasvAmi have given this interpretation. SrIv.v. rAmAnujan gives the support again from tiruvAimozhi 10.7.2 - "tAnEyAginirAindu ellA ulagumuyirum tAnEyAi ninRozhindAn". SrI Sa~nkara gives the interpretation thatsince bhagavAn nourishesthe elements of the body, and since He Himself is theprANa (the vital air), He is SarIra-bhUta-bhr*t. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives an alternateinterpretation. Different devatA-s are associated with different parts of ourbody - the Sun with the eyes, the moon with the mind, the skin with vAyu, thecolor orvArNa with ISA etc. BhagavAn is the Protector of these SarIra-bhUta-sordevatA-s, and so He is called SarIra-bhUtabhr*t. 502. bhoktA The Enjoyer. om bhoktre namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 145. Therethe nAma was explained as referring to bhagavAn's guNa ofenjoying even thesimplest offerings from His devotee. "patram,pushpam, phalam, toyam..."from the gItA (9.26) was referenced. He isalso the Ultimate Enjoyer of theofferings to all the gods (bhoktAramyaj~na tapasAm sarvaloka maheSvaram gItA5.29). Under the currentnAma SrI BhaTTar extends this guNa of bhokta toinclude not only theofferings to the gods (havya), but also to the kavya, theoffering toour pitr*-s or the deceased ancestors havya kavya bhujo vishNohudak-pUrve mahodadhau (mahAbhArata Santi parva 348.3) -bhagavAn is stationed in the north-east ocean and consumes the havya and kavyathat are offered with sincerity. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several references tosupport the interpretation: - tiruvAimozhi 5.6.4 - Seigaip-payan uNbEnumyAnE ennum (5.6.4); - ahamannamahamannamahamannamahamannAdo'hamannAdo'hamannAdah taittirIya upanishad I am the food or the object of enjoyment for My devotees, and I am the Enjoyeror consumer of the offerings of My devotees as well; - nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 9.6.10 vArik-koNDu ennai vizhun~guvankANil enRu. ennil munnam pArittu tAn ennai muRRap paruginAn AzhvAr and bhagavAn are competing with each other to enjoy each other, andbhagavAn succeeds in the competition! - tiruvAimozhi pASuram 10.10.11 - avAaRac-cUzh ariyai He who mingles with His devotees intimately and to His heart's content. The obvious examples of kaNNan accepting withgreat delight the handful of puffed rice from kucela, and His accepting the foodoffered by vidura over that offered by duryodhana are well-known.

SrI cinmayAnanda gives two derivations for themeaning for bhoktA-bhunakti iti bhoktA - The Protector, and bhunkte iti bhoktA -TheEnjoyer. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha nicely expresses this - rakshakobhakshaNaSca.He creates, protects, and then swallows at the time ofpralaya. The dharma cakram writer explains the functionof bhagavAn as bhoktA ina way that applies to our day-today life. BhagavAn isin all of us -in some cases He is the observer, in others He is the guide, inyetothers He is the Enjoyer, etc. (gItA 13.22). For those who spend theirtime inworldly pursuits, He is just the observer. For those whoobserve the path ofdharma, He is the bhartA in times of need - as inthe case of pANDava-s. Forthose who offer to bhagavAn the worldlygains that they get, such as the fameetc. that come to them, He is thebhoktA, i.e, He accepts these as offerings, andHe bestows on them Hisanubhavam instead. The more we dedicate our actions andthe benefitsof these actions to Him, and thus make Him the bhoktA, the moreHereveals to us what true happiness is, and the more we are relievedofundesirable attributes such as ahamkAram, mamakAram, etc. Thesignificance ofthis nAma thus is for us to realize that we shoulddedicate all our actions andtheir effects to bhagavAn as the bhoktA,and we should instead enjoy Him andattain eternal bliss. SrI BhaTTar interprets the next few nAma-s interms of the guNAnubhavamof the incarnation of bhagavAn as SrI rAma. Earlier,nAma-s 390 to421had been interpreted also in terms of SrI rAmAvatAra. 503. kapIndrah a) The Lord of the monkeys. b) The Great Boar - varAha. c) He who controls all movement in everything. om kapIndrAya namah. kapInAm indrah kapIndrah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is: BhagavAnassumedthe human form which was very different from His Nature inorder to propagate theperformance of sacrificial acts laid down in theveda-s which He had Himselfpromulgated earlier in the form ofhayagrIva, and the deva-s assumed the form ofmonkeys which are evenmore different from their nature. He was the indra or theLord for thegods who were his servitors, and hence He is called kapIndra. Thisissupported by the following Sloka from vAlmIki rAmAyaNa -sarvalokeSvarahsAkshAt lokAnAm hita-kAmyayA |sarvaih parivr*to devaih vAnaratvam upAgataih || (yuddha114.16) loka here means the world, the people of theword, and also the veda-s.So His incarnation is for the protection of the worldand its people, but also for the protection of the veda-s. SrI rAdhAkr*shNa SAstri observes that for Onewho could controlthousands and thousands monkeys, it is a trivial task tocontrol theindriya-s of mortals like us. The dharma cakram writer pointssoulthat our mind which is like a monkey can be controlled if we seek thehelp ofbhagavAn and meditate on Him, and then we can win over theaj~nAna just as thecontrolled monkeys won over rAvaNa in the battle.Our soul is caged andimprisoned by the aj~nAna, just as sItA pirATTiwas imprisoned by rAvaNa, and itis only by controlling the mind whichis like a monkey that we can get rid ofthis aj~nAna and release thesoul from its bondage. This nAma should teach usthat it is possibleto achieve this with the help of bhagavAn, kapIndrah.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the wordkapi based on kapisa~ncalane - anything that moves about, and applies this tothe sun,the moon, and all other objects that move. He thus interprets the nAmatomean "He who gives the power of movement to everything thatmoves".This can then be extended to even the movement of the pure bloodandimpure blood simultaneously inside the body without getting mixed up,the AtmAmoving from one body to another, etc., and thus He iskapIndrah, the Controllerof movement in everything and everywhere.SrI Sa~nkara points out that kapi canalso refer to a boar (varAha),and so kapIndrah can also refer to His varAhaincarnation. The termkapih was interpreted earlier in nAma 102 vr*shAkapih -in thissense. 504. bhUri-dakshiNah a) The giver of liberal gifts. b) He who makes things grow fast and move fast. c) He who is extremely dextrous. om bhUri-dakshiNAya namah. bhUri means "much, abundant, numerous,copius". dakshiNah has beeninterpreted as one who gives dakshiNA. vyAkhyAnakartA-s haveinterpreted the nAma as a reference to the incarnations inwhichbhagavAn has performed numerous sacrifices to uphold dharma and to setanexample to the rest of the world, and in these He has made largegifts to theparticipants to set an example to others. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan points out that this example shouldextend to the vaidikakarmA-s such as SrAddha, in which the dakshiNA should beliberal to theparticipants. He gives the example of Lord kr*shNa's guru dakshiNA-that of bringing back sAndIpani's dead son to life again - maRi kaDalvAimANDAnai Oduvitta takkaNaiyA uruvuruvE koDuttAn (periAzhvArtirumozhi 4.8.1). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives hisinterpretation based on dakshvr*ddhau SighrArthe - to grow, to go in speed, andgives the meaningthat bhagavAn makes things that He creates grow very fast, asalso moveabout with speed as soon as they are born. A bird starts eatingthingsas soon as it is born without worrying about whether something is raworripe, and starts growing. A human child starts drinking milk themoment it isborn, and a young animal starts walking as soon as it isborn as well. Thisaspect of bhagavAn where He makes everything growfast and move around fast issuggested by the nAma bhUridakshiNahaccording to this interpretation. The word dakshiNa is also given the meaning dextrous,able, clever(pANini 1.1.34). Thus the nAma could mean that bhagavAn isextremelydextrous. This interpretation is mentioned in passing by SrIrAdhAkr*shNaSastri. -dAsan kr*shNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 54

505. somapah 506 - amr*tapah 507. somah 508 - puru-jit 509. puru-sattamah 510. vinayah 511. jayah 512. satya-sandhah 513. dASArhah 514. sAttvatAm-patih

om om om om om om om om om om

somapAya namah amr*tapAya namah somAya namah puru-jite namah puru-sattamAya namah vinayAya namah jayAya namah satya-sandhAya namah dASArhAya namah sAttvatAm-pataye namah

505. somapah a) He who drank the soma juice afterperforming sacrificial offerings in His rAma incarnation. b) He who, in the form of the deity being invoked in a yaj~na, accepts the somajuice by the householder performing the yaj~na. om somapAya namah. soma juice is the extract from a plant, and isthe most important ingredient in ancient sacrificial offerings. SrIBhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that the nAma signifies that Lord rAma performed severalyaj~na-s,and drank the juice from the soma plant after performing thesesacrificial offerings. SrI Sa~nkara gives the additionalinterpretation that bhagavAn accepts the offering of the soma juice in allsacrifices in the form of the deities to whom the sacrifice is addressed.

The dharma cakram writer points out that thejuice of the soma plant is comprised of a constituent that gives long life -like nectar. This isoffered first to the deva-s to whom the yaj~na is dedicated,and then the yajamAna partakes of this prasAdam. 506 - amr*tapah The drinker of ambrosia. om amr*tapAya namah. amr*ta refers to ambrosia or nectar. SrIBhaTTar gives two interpretations for this nAma depending on -pah in the nAmabeingi nterpreted as pibati - drinks, or pAti -protects. The oblations offeredin sacrifices as prescribed in the veda-s along with therecitation of mantra-sare transformed by the god of fire into ambrosia and given to vishNu "yat ki~ncit hUyate vahnauhavir-mantrair-vidhAnatah | tat sarvam amr*tam kr*tvA vishNavesamprayacchati || . Thus bhagavAn is the drinker of the nectar -amr*tapah. The alternate interpretation is that bhagavAnHimself is the amr*ta, and He protects it for the benefit of His devotees sothat they canenjoy Him in the Transcendental World after following the path ofdharma shown by Him in the discharge of daily duties in this world. The Sruti-squoted in support are: amr*tasya esha setuh(muNDakopanishad 2.2.5) - He is thebridge for the amr*ta i.e., the procurer of the nectar; yasya chAyA amr*tam(tai. yaju. 4.1) - He whose shadow is ambrosia i.e., He whose protection is amr*tamitself. SrI Sa~nkara refers to the incident of mohini incarnation in the contextof this nAma, where bhagavAn restored the amr*ta stolen by theasura-s, protectedit, made the deva-s drink it, and also drank Himself. SrI rAdhAkr*shNaSAstri suggests that since bhagavAn is in the form of deva-s who drink thenectar, He is amr*tapah, the drinker of ambrosia. SrI cinmayAnanda comments that as the InfiniteTruth bhagavAn enjoys blissful immortality (amr*tatvam) at all times, and inthis sense He is One who has partaken of amr*tam 507. somah a) The Nectar. b) The moon. om somAya namah. BhagavAn is called soma (nectar) here becauseHe is sweet like nectar to the bhakta-s who enjoy Him. SrI BhaTTar givesreference to SrImadrAmAyaNam - rAj~nA daSarathenAsi labdho'mr*tamiva amaraih (AraNya.kANDam)- daSaratha obtained rAma like the necatar by the gods. He also refers us to theSruti Santi samr*ddham amr*tam (tai. SIKshA. 6) -Brahman is replete withtranquility and immortality (amr*tam).BhagavAn's tirunAmam ArAvamudan expressesthe same idea - The Insatiate Nectar. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references todivya prabandham -ANDAL - manattukku iniyAnai pADAvum nI vAi tiravAi intiruppAvai; The outpouring by nammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhi 10.7.2 enakkut tEnE!pAlE! kannalE! amudE! - He is everything to me, like honey, milk,sugar candy, nectar, etc. nammAzhvAr again in tiruvAimozhi 2.5.4 eppozhudum nAL ti~ngaL ANDuUzhi torum appozhudukku appozhudu en ArA amudamE! -You are Insatiate

Nectar to me always, no matter how much I enjoy you - fordays, months,years, yuga-s. You are the fresh nectar every time, even if I haveyour anubhavam continuously. soma also refers to the moon. SrI Sa~nkarauses this meaning in one of his interpretations for this nAma. SrI rAdhAkr*shNaSAstri and SrIcinmayAnanda give reference to gItA 15.13 in support pushNAmicaushadhIh sarvAh somo bhUtvA rasAtmakah - Becoming the moon radiatingthe life-giving rays, I nourish all herbs. The interpretation of soma here asreferring to the moon is given by tirukkaLLam SrI nr*simhAcAryasvAmi in his gItAvyAkhyAnam. 508 - puru-jit The Conquerer of all. om puru-jite namah. SrI Sa~nkara gives the vyAkhyAnam purUn - bahUn jayati iti puru-jit -He who conquers many. SrI BhaTTarrefers to SrImad rAmAyaNam in support of his vyAkhyAnam giving this meaning.King daSaratha pleads with kaikeyi to spare him from the torture of separationfrom rAma who is the personification of everything that is good. In thiscontext, he tells kaikeyi - rAma has conquered the world through truth, the poorby charity, the teacher by his dedicated service, and the enemies by His mightybow, i.e., He has conquered many or all. satyena lokAn jayati dInAn dAnena rAghavah | gurUn SuSrUshayA vIro dhanushA yudhi SatravAn || (ayodhyA. 12.29) This same guNa of bhagavAn viz. puru-jit, isreferred to by tiruma~ngaiAzhvAr in periya tirumozhi 1.10.2 and 4.3.5 (SrI v.v.rAmAnujan): ila~ngaip patikku anRu iRaiyAya arakkar kulam keTTu avar mALakkoDip-puL tirittAi!(1.10.2), and tI-manttu arakkar tiRal azhittavanE(4.3.5). SrI rAmAnujan also observes that Lord rAma has the distinction of winning overthree from the same family rAvaNa was won over by His valor, vibhIshaNa by Hisdharma and character, and SUrpanakhA by His appearance. Thus again He hasconquered many throughmany means. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha extends theinterpretation to cover the whole Universe which is under the control ofbhagavAn asa~nkhyAta tArAgrahaupagraha sahitam tathA vana-upavana samudrAdi sahitam kha-gola bhUgolaAtmakam sarvam viSvam yena vaSikr*tam sa puru-jid vishNuhHe who has under His control all the constellations, the lands, the oceans,thedifferent worlds, all the souls, and everything there is, is puru-jit. Thedharma cakram writer observes that the same attributes that helped rAma win overeveryone viz. dharma, truth, humility, etc., are the same attributes that weneed in life to overcome obstacles in life. When obstacles arise for those whopractice these traits, these should be only taken as temporary incidences thatare meant to reinforce their faith in following the good traits that ensureultimate success. This was true in the case of hariScandra and the pANDava-s.This nAma of bhagavAn should teach us to follow the traits that will ensuresuccess in life in the long run. 509. puru-sattamah a) He who remains with the great. b) He whose form is of cosmic dimensions, and who is the best of all

om puru-sattamAya namah. There are many different interpretations forthis nAma. SrI BhaTTar'svyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn remains with manygreat ones such as Hanuman who are always desirous of drinking the ocean ofHisnectarlike qualities. He gives the following words of HanumAn in support: sneho me paramo rAjan! tvayi nityamapratishThitah | bhaktiSca niyatA vIra! bhAvo nAnyatra gacchati || (uttara.40.15) "O King! My love for Thee is very greatand it is firmly planted in Thee. O Warrior! My devotion to Thee is even moresteady. I can not think of going anywhere else (leaving this world where Thouhastenslaved me)". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruma~ngaiAzhvAr Sindai tannuLnI~ngAdirunda tiruvE! maruviniya maindA! (tirumozhi 4.9.2); and EttuvAr tam manattuLLAn - tirumozhi 1.8.4. SrI Sa~nkara interprets the nAma as consistingof two attributes, puruhand sattamah, the first referring to the multi-faced,multi-headed, multi-eyed, multi-dimensioned, viSva-rUpa form, and the secondreferring to His being the best of all, sattama. viSvarUpatvAt puruh, utkr*shTatvAtsattamah. SrI ChinmayAnanda gives the meaning "great" to the word puru,and interprets the nAma as bhagavAn being the Greatest among the great. Heopines that the pATham purushottamah is used in some versions for this nAma, andthe meaning then is given in terms of purushah and uttamah -Omnipresent andBest.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the nAma in terms of three constituentsof the nAma - puru, sat, tama. Taking sat to mean existence here, He is farsuperior to anything that exists, since everything except Him is impermanent oranityam, and He is the onlynityam. A trivial example for lack of a better one isthe relative impermanence of a pot compared to the maker of the pot. Thus theinterpretation given is that of the amr*tatvam of bhagavAn. The dharma cakram writer gives the meaning"He who shines through many great forms", and refers to the vibhUtiyoga in SrImad bhagavad gItA. He is the Sun and the moon in those that shine,sAma veda among veda-s,indra among the deva-s, etc. 510. vinayah a) The Subduer. b) He who leads well. om vinayAya namah. SrI BhaTTar vyAkhyAnam is vinIyante damyanteiti vinayah - He who subdues. He gives the example of the subduing of mArIca byLord rAma through His valor. Or because He causes the evil-doers to have modesty(vinayam) by punishing them, He is vinayah. SrI ChinmayAnanda observes that the directmeaning of the word vinayah is "He who shows supreme humility". Hereit means "He who humiliates those who are unrighteous". He also givesan alternate interpretation- vi-nayah, where nayah refers to He who leads (netAetc.)., and vi-nayah refers to the Lord who leads well the seekers steadilythrough the path of truth and righteousness. 511. jayah

a) He who is conquered. b) He who is victorious. om jayAya namah. SrI Sa~nkara bhAshyam is samastAni bhUtAnijayati iti jayah - He who is victorious over all beings. SrI BhaTTar gives the first interpretation.The nirukti descriptionfor SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is Asritaih jIthate yasmAtvidheyokriyatejayah - One who has been conquered by the devotees and who actsaccording to their wishes. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that even thoughthe interpretation that He is one who has jaya SrI with Him can be given, SrIBhaTTar's choice of his interpretation is to bring out the dominant guNa-s ofbhagavAn such as souSIlyam. SrI BhaTTar gives examples of this quality ofLord rAma from SrImad rAmAyaNa "Aj~nApyo'ham tapsvinAm" - "I am to be commanded by the sages -i.e., I am at their disposal" (bAla. 3.37); tato nArAyaNo vishNuh niyuktaihsura-sattamaih - Then nArAyaNa was directed bythe great gods (bAla.16.1). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that jayahconnotes bhagavAn being everywhere, in everything, controlling everything,having conquered everything and everyone, being unconquerable ever by anything,etc. The dharma cakram writer explains the context of being victorious for ourday-to-day life - the lesson we should learn from this nAma. There are alwaystwo aspects to our character - acquiring and practicing qualitiesthat are conducive to our realization of bhagavAn, or indulging in activitiesthat are contrary to this. Being subservient to wealth, committing even heinouscrimes in order to acquire and accumulate wealth, going after name and fameinstead of devoting ourlife in kaimkaryam to bhagavAn, etc. are some examples ofthe latter. rAvaNa, duryodhana, etc. were examples of characters who fellprey to their inferior instincts in their lives. The victory that we should aimfor is over the base instincts that will result in our defeat in our effort tocross the ocean of samsAra. For real victory in this life, we should develop andpractice characters such as kindnesstowards others, sacrifice for the welfare ofothers, vairAgyam, bhakti,etc. 512. satya-sandhah a) He whose promises are always true. b) He of firm resolve. om satya-sandhAya namah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaningpratij~nA or promise to the word sandhA. Thus satya sandhah means He whosepromises are alway strue. SrI BhaTTar quotes Lord rAma's words to sItA pirATTiabout this aspect of bhagavAn's guNa apyaham jIvitam jahyAm tvAm vA sItesa-lakshmaNam | na tu pratij~nAm samSrutya brAhmaNebhyo viSeshatah || (AraNya.10.19) "O sItA! I would rather give up my life,or even you and lakshmaNa, than break my promise especially that which has beenmade to brahmins".

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference tonammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhi 9.10.6nALum tan meyyarkku meyyanE - always true to His true devotees. SrIrAmAnujan comments that bhagavAn was not only true to His devotee PrahlAda,but He became true (i.e., made His appearance) to even His adversaryhiraNyakaSipu in the process (poyyanukkum meyyan!). BhagavAn's own words to SrIrAmAnuja as conveyed in SaraNAgati gadyam rAmo dvir-nAbhibhAshate, and anr*tam nokta pUrvam me na ca vakshyekadAcanacome to mind. Instances of daSaratha keeping his word to kaikeyi, dharmaputragoing to the forest and undergoing aj~nAtavAsam just for the sake of fulfillinghis word, the story of hariScandra, etc. are examples of great people caring tokeep their words. This is why they are great, and dear to bhagavAn. SrI Sa~nkara gives the derivation satyA sandhA(samkalpah orpriatij~nA) asya iti satya-samkalpah - He who has firm resolve anddetermination that always becomes true. Both SrI R. anantakr*shNaSasti and SrIcinmayAnanda quote the following from purANa, but I am unable to locate thereference: "Heavens might fall, earth might crumbledown, the Himalayas might be crushed, the ocean might become dry, but My worduttered shall never become vain". 513. dASArhah a) He who is worthy of gifts. b) He is worthy to be possessed as a gift. c) He who was born in the race of daSArhah i.e., the yAdava race. om dASArhAya namah. The nAma is derived from the root dASr* dAne -to give away, and arhah meaning deserving. Thus there are two interpretationsgiven. The first is that He is fit to be worshipped through offerings of gifts,and the second is that He is fit to be aimed for as the ultimate gift. SrI Sa~nkara has given the interpretations aand c, and SrI BhaTTar has given all three interpretations. SrI BhaTTar explainsthat He is fit for us to offer our selves to Him, or alternately, He considersHis Supreme Self fit to be offered to His devotees. Along the lines ofinterpretation (a), SrI cinmayAnanda observes that bhagavAn is fully competentto receive all the offerings made with devotion in the ritualistic sacrifices.The third interpretation is based on bhagavAnkr*shNa being born in the daSarhaclan or tribe of the yAdava race. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvArenadu AviyuL kalanda perunal udavikkuk kaimmARu enadu Avi tandu ozhindEn ini mILvadenbadu uNDE(tiruvAimozhi 2.3.4) in support of SrI BhaTTar's interpretation along the lines of (a) referring toHis being fit for our Atma samarpaNam. An example of where bhagavAn sees it fitto give His gift to the devotees is the mohini incarnation where He bestowed thenectar that He Himself churned out of the milky ocean to the deva-s who wantedit. BhagavAnis "perumakkaL uLLuvar tam perumAn" (tiruvAimozhi 3.7.4) -He who resides inside the great people who chant His name, where He is sought asthe gift by these great people. In support of the interpretation a), thedharma cakram writer observes that bhagavAn is fit for our offerings over anyoneelse, since He accepts all our offerings including our sins, and if we offer ourkarma-phalan to Him, He relieves us of all the effects of our karma and bestowsmoksha on us. 514. sAttvatAm-patih

The Lord of the sAttvata-s. om sAttvatAm-pataye namah. SrI BhaTTar gives a detailed derivation of theword sAttvata starting from the word sat meaning either Supreme Brahman or thequality of sattva. sattvAn is one who knows brahman or one who is possessed ofthe quality of sattva. sAttvata signifies the act of a sattvAn in knowingbrahman or in acquiring the quality of sattva or the scriptures followed by asattvAn. sAttvata-s are thus bhAgavata-s. Since bhagavAn is the Lord of thesAttvata-s or bhAgavta-s, He is sAttvatAm-patih. The yAdava race is also called the sAttvatarace. Since Lord kr*shNa is the Lord of the yAdava-s, He is calledsAttvatAm-patih. Another interpretation, given by SrI Sa~nkara and those thatfollow his vyAkhyAnam, is that bhagavAn is sAttvatAm-patih since He is theLeader of those who follow the tantram called sAttvatam, the scriptures whichare essentially sAttvic in nature. SrI cinmayAnanda observes that the path ofthe sAAttvata-s is single-pointed meditation upon the form of Lord vishNu withabsolute devotion. For this reason, the pA~ncarAtrins are also called sAttvata-s.SrI P. B. aNNa~ngarAcArya svAmi explains that this nAma refers to bhagavAn beingthe Originator of the pA~ncarAtra system and thereby being the Protector of thesAttvata-s or bhAgavata-s. The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 55 516. 517. 518. 519. 520. 521. 522. 523. vinayitA sAkshI mukundah amita-vikramah ambho-nidhih anantAtmA mahodadhi-Sayah antakah

om om om om om om om om om

jIvAya namah vinayitre namah sAkshiNe namah mukundAya namah amita-vikramAya namah ambho-nidhaye namah anantAtmane namah mahodadhi-SayAya namah antakAya namah

515. jIvah He who gives true life to His devotees. om jIvAya namah. jIvayati iti jIvah (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). He helps bhAgavata-s keep away from committing sinful acts and thereby bringingabout their ruin, and instead makes them lead a life of Bliss by doing serviceto Him. SrI rAmAnujan corroborates this interpretation of SrI BhaTTar byreference to periAzhvAr - eyiRRiDai maN koNDa endai irAp-pagal Oduvittuennaip-payiRRip-paNi koNDAn (5.2.3). He even made the squirrels do service toHim and thus enjoy the bliss of kaimkaryam to Him. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha givesthe more general interpretation viz. that bhagavAn is the cause of sustenance ofeverything - jIvayati prANAn dhArayati iti jIvah 516. vinayitA a) The Savior. b) He who shows the path to everyone. om vinayitre namah. SrI BhaTTar derives the interpretation fromthe root nay, which has teo meanings - gatau rakshaNe ca - to go or to protect.SrI BhaTTar uses the second of the two meanings. In fact he states that bhagavAnprotects His devotee-s with love and affection and treats them like princes -rAjakumAra lAlanena rakshati. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the moving example ofLord rAma's words of concern to sugrIva after his first fight with vAli, wherehe was defeated and had to come back. rAma says "tvayi ki~ncit samApannekim kAryam sitayA mama" (yuddha kANDam) - "Of what use is it to me toget sItA if even the slightest harm has been caused to you?" - such was theconcern and love that he had for a mere monkey-king. We have nammAzhvAr's wordsin tiruvAimozhi - j~nAlattUDE naDandum ninRum kiDandirundum SAlap pala nALugandOr uyirgaL kAppAnE (6.9.3) - You show your standing pose, your recliningbeauty, your sitting posture on different occasions to sustain the lives ofthose who seek Your protection. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha bases hisinterpretation using the first meaning given above for nay viz. to go. Hisinterpretation is - sarvasya jagato gatim prAyayitA gater-dAtA ityarthah - Heshows the path to everyone, or gives direction to everyone. 517. sAkshI The Observer.

om sAkshiNe namah. BhagavAn is the Observer within every one ofus. uLLuvAr uLLiRRellAm uDan irundu aRidi - tirumAlai 34 (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan).SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that bhagavAn is so concerned about the welfareof His devotees that He constantly observes them to make sure no harm comes tothem. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives theinterpretation - sAkshAt drashTA sAkshI - He Who sees things as they truly are,or it can also mean He who sees things for Himself. Since bhagavAn is inside us,outside of us, and is everywhere and in everything, He is the the sAkshI ofeverything that happens inside us and outside of us. SrI vAsishTha has composedthe following Slokam as his interpretation for this nAma sAkshI sa vishNuh sa hi darSano vA drashTA svayam sa hi sUrya cakshuh | j~nAnam hi cakshuh r*tamAtrabodhah so'ntargatah paSyati viSvamAtram || SrI Sa~nkara and others who follow hisvyAkhyAnam have interpreted nAma-s 516 and 517 together as one nAma -vinayitA_sAkshI - He who witnesses or observes the humility of His devotees. 518. mukundah He who gives moksha. om mukundAya namah. Both SrI Sa~nkara and SrI BhaTTar give thesame vyAkhyAnam - muktim dadAti iti mukundah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives severalreferences to divya prabandham: pul eRumbu Adi onRu inRiyE naRpAl ayoddhiyil vAzhum arASaram muRRavum naRpAlukku uyttanan (tiruvAimozhi 7.5.1); anRu SarASara~ngaLai viakundattERRi (perumAL tirumozhi 10.10); viNNulagam taruvAnAi viraiginRAn (tiruvAimozhi 10.6.3), etc. Both SrI Sa~nkara and SrI BhaTTar have givenreference to the pANini sUtra 6.3.109 - pr*shodarAdIni yathopadishTam to supportthe derivation of the word mukunda from muktim dadAti - "The elision,augment and mutation of letters to be seen in pr*shodara etc., while not foundtaught in treatises of grammar, are valid, to that extent and in the mode, astaught by the sages". 519. amita-vikramah a) He of boundless valor. b) He of the three great strides (tri-vikrama). om amita-vikramAya namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn isthe Supporter of all Realities such as prakr*ti. He is known by the name AdhAraSakti - AdhAra Sakti samj~nasya amUrtasya ca vai vibhoh (SrI paushkara). SrI V.N. vedAnta deSikan's English translation of of the vyAkhyAnam for this nAma bySrI M. V. rAmAnujAcArya is "The Lord is of inestimable capacity tobear". SrI Sa~nkara gives two interpretations for thenAma. One is based on vikrama referring to Saurya, which means strength, power,might -

amitam vikramaNam Sauryam asya iti amita-vikramah. The nAma occurs in SrImad bhagavad-gItA in Slokam 11.40 anantavIryAmitavikramastvam ., which is translated by SrI tirukkaLLam nr*simharAghavAcAryasvAmi as immeasurable parAkramam, which stands for heroism, prowess, courage,valor. The second interpretation SrI Sa~nkara givesfor the nAma is based on the meaning "stride, step, pace" for vikramah,or vikramaNa - amitA aparicchinnA vikramAstrayah pAdavikshepA asya - He whosethree strides, or steps, were immeasurable. The reference here is to the tri-vikramaincarnation. The Lord's steps were so vast, they were indeed immeasurable. The root kram - pAdavikshepe - to walk, tostep, is the basis for the derivation of the interpretation by SrI satyadevovAsishTha, which is the same basis on which SrI Sa~nkara's second interpretationabove rests. However SrI vAsishTha interprets the nAma as meaning that bhagavAnhas innumerable or countless strides in His manifestations. This diversity orextensive manifestation is also reflected in everything around us the Earth,the sky, and the region in between; rajas, tamas and sattva guNa-s; sun rise,mid-day, and the sunset; etc. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma-s 520 to 528which follow in terms of the kUrmAvatara. 520. ambho-nidhih a) He who has the waters as His abode (kUrmaincarnation) b) He who is in the form of the Oceans c) He who sustains the ambhA-s (devas, men, manes, and asura-s) om ambho-nidhaye namah. SrI BhaTTar gives the first interpretationpAtAlAmbhasi akhila-jagadAdhAra-pITha nidhIyate iti ambhonidhih He has kept His form as a Tortoise in the waters of the pAtAla loka as the baseplank to support the Universe. The mantra quoted by SrI BhaTTar in support is: "ananta bala Saktaye bhuvanabhr*te kacchapAtmane" Unto Him of unlimited power and strength Who supports the worlds in the form ofa Tortoise. nidhi means reservoir, abode,receptacle. SrI Sa~nkara gives the second and third interpretations bhagavAnis the Ocean or the reservoir of water. He quotes the gItA - sarasAm asmiSagarah - 10.24. His alternateinterpretation is based on the term ambhA as representing the deva-s, the asuras,the people of this world, and the pitr*-s, as defined in the tait. brAhmaNa2.3.8 "tAni vA etAni catvAryambhAsi | devo manushyAh pitaro'surAh ||". Thus the nAma can be interpreted to mean that bhagavAn is the abode or restingplace of all the ambhA-s. The dharma cakram writer points out that while theseambhA-s are the ones who control the rest of the life forms, bhagavAn controlsthe ambhA-s, and thus He controls everything. BhagavAn also supports the lifeforms as kUrma mUrti when everything gets submerged under the water duringpralaya. Thus, this nAma signifies that bhagavAn is the Support of all lifeforms at all times. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the nAma asmeaning that bhagavAn establishes (nidhAnam) water in various forms and withvarious attributes and sustains life - the blood stream running in several lifeforms, the water that seeps through the root from the earth to sustain the treesand other plant forms, etc. Water is one of the essentials in sustenance oflife. He gives the quote from atharva veda - apAm retAmsi jinvati.

521. anantAtmA The Inner Soul of ananta. on anantAtmane namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as referringto bhagavAn being the Inner Soul of ananta, who bears the Universe standing ontop of the kUrma. SrI Sa~nkara's interpretation is that bhagavAnis the Indefinable Soul (AtmA), not limited by Time, Space, or Substance (ananta).SrI rAdhAkr*shNa SAstri elaborates on this further by observing that for allobjects in this Universe, if they are in one place they can't be in anotherplace, and if they are in one form they can't be in another form at the sametime. BhagavAn is not subject to these constraints, signified by the nAmaanantAtmA. 522. mahodadhi-Sayah He Who is reclining in the vast ocean. om mahodadhi-SayAya namah. The words comprising the nAma are mahA, udadhi,and Sayah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that BhagavAn lies on the couch-likeserpent-body of ananta in the Milk-Ocean at the time of the final deluge. Thisis expressed by periAzhvAr in periAzhvAr tirumozhi 5.1.7 - veLLai veLLattin mEloru pAmbai meddaiyAga virittu adan mElE kaLLa nittirai koLginRa mArgam kANa, andby nammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhi 3.4.9 acyutanai anantan mEl naNNi nanguuRaiginRAnai (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI Sa~nkara gives the interpretation thatduring pralaya bhagavAn disintegrates everything and reduces them all into oneocean and reclines in those primeval waters. SrI cinmayAnanda suggests that the nAma canalso be interpreted as referring to bhagavAn reclining on a fig-leaf on thewaters after the deluge (Alilai mEl paLLI koNDAn). 523. antakah He Who beings out the end of all. om antakAya namah. SrI Sa~nkara gives the derivation "antamkaroti bhUtAnAm itit antakah". SrI BhaTTar gives several supporting quotes.ante pr*thivyAm salile dr*Syase tvam mahoragah (SrImad rAmAyaNa, yuddha. 120.23)"At the time of the end of this world, Thou art seen on the AdiSesha inthe waters of the deep"; "kalpAnte yasya vaktrebhyo vishAnala Sikhojvalah | samkarshaNAtmako rudro nishkramya atti jagat-trayam || "From His mouths, at the end of the kalpa, proceeds the venomed fire that,impersonated as rudra, who is one with balarAma, devours the three worlds"(vishNu purANam 2.5.19).

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes nammAzhvar yAvarum yAvaiyum ellAp-poruLum kavarvinRit tannuL oDu~nga ninRa Azhi am-paLLiyAr - tiruvAimozhi 2.2.6. SrI cinmayAnanda adds that as Time He brings an end to allthings thus creating constant changes in this world, without which no evolutionor creative development is ever possible, and in this sense bhagavAn is theantakah. -dAsan kr*shNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 56 524. 525. 526. 527. 528. 529. 530. 531. 532. 533. ajah mahArhah svAbhAvyah jitAmitrah pramodanah Anandah nandanah nandah satya-dharmA tri-vikramah

om om om om om om om om

ajAya namah mahArhAya namah svAbhAvyAya namah jitAmitrAya namah pramodanAya namah AnandAya namah nandanAya namah nandAya namah

om satya-dharmaNe namah om tri-vikramAya namah 524. ajah a) He who is signified by the letter 'a'. b) He who is not born. c) He who drives away the darkness in the mind of the devotee. d) He who goes where the devotee is. e) He who is the cause of motion in the heart. f) He who is ever active in bestowing the effects of karma. g) The collections of things that exist. h) He who is everywhere and in everything. om ajAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier twice (96, 206).Based on the root aja - gati kshepaNayoh - which signifies motion or throwingaway, SrI BhaTTar interpreted the first of these occurrences as referring toBhagavAn being the remover of obstacles (kshipati iti ajah). He dispels thedarkness of ignorance by means of the luminous lamp of knowledge. The secondoccurrence was interpreted based on na jAyate iti ajah - He who is not born. Thecurrent nAma is interpreted as "akAra vAcyatayA jAtah" - He who issignified by the sound a or the letter a. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains thatwhen the world comes to an end, after the world submerges into earth, earth intowater, water into air, etc., ultimately what is left behind is the sound ofpraNava, and then its root or origin or base, the sound 'a' (akAram), whichsymbolizes bhagavAn. The other interpretations which have beengiven by other vyAkhyAna kartA-s are summarized under the discussion relating tothe nAma-s 96 and 206. Briefly, SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation thatbhagavAn is the Mover in the heart of the devotee - ajati gacchati kshipati vAajah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the interpretation that bhagavAn reaches out(gacchati) to where His devotees are, or He is ever active in ensuring thateveryone gets the effects of their karma without discrimination. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning(g) above starting with 'a' referring to vishNu, and ja referring to everythingthat is born from vishNu when combine with 'a'. He relies on mahAbhArata Santi parva 341.74 in support of theinterpretation (b): na hi jAto na jAye'ham na janishye kadAcana | kshetraj~nah sarva-bhUtAnAm tasmat aham ajah smr*tah || 525. mahArhah He who is worthy of worship. om mahArhAya namah. maham - pUjanam arhati iti mahArhah. mahammeans worship. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan adds that the pUjA referred to here isAtma-samarpaNam or prapatti. This principle of nyAsam or bhara samarpaNam isrevealed to us in the upanishad. SrI BhaTTar refers us to taittirIya nArAyanIyam21 -

brahmaNe tvA mahasa om iti AtmAnam yu'njIta etad-vai mahopanishadam devAnAm guhyam || "The great secret which the gods arekeeping, and which is revealed to us by the great upanishad, is that the jIva isto be offered to bhagavAn, the Supreme Brahman, by means of the praNava, thefirst letter of which, 'a', signifies the paramAtmA, and the last letter, 'm'signifies the jIvAtmA. "To Thee, the Brahman of great effulgence, I offermyself through the mantra 'Om' ". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that of all theworships offered to bhagavAn, the worship offering our own selves, which isnothing but prapatti, is the greatest and the most supreme. This nAma indicatesthat He is One who is deserving of prapatti. 526. svAbhAvyah a) He who is to be meditated upon by those whobelong to Him. b) He who is by nature fit to be the Master. c) He who is naturally without a beginning. d) He who is present everywhere and in everything without exception. om svAbhAvyAya namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "svabhUtaih (Atmabhih)bhAvanIyatvAt svAbhAvyah" - He who is fit to be meditated upon by theindividual souls who are His property. Alternatively, svAbhAvikatvena bhAvyatvAtsvAbhAvyah - He who is naturally accepted (as the Master) because everythingelse His property, He being the Creator. SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is "svabhAvenaabhAvyah" - He who is naturally without a beginning, because He iseternally perfect. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning based on sva +bhU + vyat, where he uses the meaning bhU - bhav to be, and the pANini sUtraorAvaSyake - the affix vyat comes after a root ending in short or long u whenthe sense is that of necessity. Thus, the meaning he gives is that bhagavAnexists everywhere and in everything as a matter of inevitability i.e.,svAbhAvyah means that bhagavan is One who is present everywhere and ineverything naturally and without exception. 527. jitAmitrah a) He who helps His devotees conquer enemiessuch as anger, kAmam, ahamkAram, mamakAram, etc. b) He who has conquered anger, kAmam, etc. c) He who has conquered His enemies such as rAvana etc. om jitAmitrAya namah. amitrAh jitAh anena iti jitAmitrah - He bywhom the foes have been conquered. SrI BhaTTar indicates that the foes referredto here are kAmam, aham-kAram and mama-kAram in the devotees. kAmam is thedesire in the devotee for material objects, ahma-karam is egotism, and mama-kAramis the feeling that all things that one possesses are one's own (and notbhagavAn's). One translator has translated the later two as Iness andmine-ness. These are the enemies that prevent us from having the svarUpa j~nAnam,and bhagavAn helps His devotees by removing them in His devotees. Lord kRshNareveals the powerful negative nature of these enemies (desire, anger, etc.)., inbhagavad-gItA 3.37 to 3.43

(kAma esah krodha esha rajod-guNa samudbhavah | ..jahi Satrum mahAbAho! kAmarUpam durAsadam ||). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives severalreferences from the Sruti-s for bhagavAn's nAma of jita amitrah: dyumAgm amitradambhanah (Rg 4.15.4), amitra senAm maghavan (atharva. 3.1.3); etc. He alsopoints out that those who follow bhagavAn and dharma come out victorious inwhatever they undertake, whereas those who forsake dharma are guaranteed to failin the end as well. This guNa of bhagavAn in removing the foes ofself-realization in His devotees is also described in the prabandham (v.v.rAmAnujan) - "en peru vinaiyaik kiTTik kizha'ngoDu tan aruL ennum oL vAluruvi veTTik kaLaindavan"; SeyyEl tIvnai enRu aruL Seyyum en kaiyArcakkarak kaNNa pirAnE (tiruvAimozhi 2.9.3). SrI Sa'nkara also adds the aspect ofbhagavAn's conquering the enemies such as rAvaNa, SiSupAla, etc. There is alsothe interpretation that He has conquered these enemies such as kAma, krodha,etc., Himself; thus, He has conquered the enemies within as well as outside. 528. pramodanah a) He who delights His devotees. b) He who is always joyful. om pramodanAya namah. pramodam karoti iti pramodanah - He who fillswith joy the minds of those who meditate on Him. The nAma is derived from the root mud - harshe- to rejoice, to be glad. SrI BhaTTar connects the interpretation of this nAmato the previous one by indicating that when the devotees realize that bhagavAnhas removed the foes such as anger, desire, etc., they feel delighted, and He ispramodanah in this sense. SrI Sa'nkara also gives an alternate explanation -pramodate iti pramodanah - He is ever joyful. SrI PBA, SrI v.v. rAmAnujan etc. connect bothinterpretations a and b nicely through the following anubhavam - The devoteesfeel delighted that enemies such as ahamkAram, mamakAram, fear, anger, etc.,have been removed from them by bhagavAn; bhagavAn in turn feels delighted whenHe finds that His devotee is delighted. This is like the parents feelingdelighted when their child is happy. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that whilemodah refers to the pleasures associated with day-to-day life, pramodanam is thedelight that is associated with the realization of the true nature of the self. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha remarks that theextent to which bhagavAn keeps His creations happy can be seen by the fact thateveryone wants to cling to this material body and no one really wants to leavethis body that they get because of their prior karma! 529. Anandah He Who is Bliss. om AnandAya namah.

SrI BhaTTar interprets the next few nAma-s interms of bhagavAn's kapila incarnation (The nAma kapilAcAryah is embedded in thenext Slokam). He is called Anandah because He is endowed with a Bliss that isbeyond description or imagination (vA'ng manasa dur-graho mahA Anandah asya astiiti Anandah). SrI BhaTTar reminds us of the discussion of the nature of HisBliss in Anandavalli in taittirIya upanishad. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains thatthe choice of the attribute of Anandah to describe kapila is because kapila wasdevoid of all attachments. The Sruti is "Srotriyasya ca a-kAmahatasya"- where the reference is to one who has overcome kAma or desire (kAmahata refersto one who is afflicted with kAma, and a-kAmahata is one who has overcome kAma).brahmAnandam is Bliss or Joy that is beyond description and imagination. kapilawas a brahmin who had overcome all desire, and the Bliss of such a one is thestate of brhamAnandam. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives references to theSruti referring to bhagvAn being Ananda-svarUpan AnandarUpam amRtam yadvibhAti (muNDaka. 2.2.7); Ananda AtmA (taitt.2.5); Anando brahma (taitt. 3.6). 530. nandanah The Bliss-Giver. om nandanAya namah. nandayati iti nandanah. BhagavAn gives thisbrahmAnandam (described in the previous nAma) to the liberated souls (mukta-s)when He confers moksham to them, and as a result He Himself rejoices. Theprevious nAma signified that He is the embodiment of Bliss, and the current nAmaindicates that He gives this happiness to the mukta-s. This happiness is in noway different from the happiness that He Himself enjoys. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstripoints out that the mukta-s derive this Bliss by His mere nearness to them, justas the mere presence of a child near them makes the parents happy. 531. nandah He Who is full of things that are Blissful. om nandAya namah. He has with Himself, in full, the enjoyablematerials, the instruments for enjoyment, the modes of enjoyment, the people whoenjoy, etc., at all times. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan elaborates on this further bypointing out that since BhagavAn is unattached to anything, and does not haveany need or desire, He has everything that is needed for Absolute Bliss. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the nAma as- nandanti samardhante asmin viSvarUpe purusha iti nando vishNuh - BhagavAnvishNu is called nandah because all jIva-s derive their final happiness in HimWho is the pUrNa purusha. SrI Sa'nkara also gives an alternate nAma -anandah - instead of nandah, and gives the meaning that BhagavAn is devoid ofall worldly pleasures which result from sense-contacts. 532. satya-dharmA

a) He Who performs His dharma truthfully. b) He Who protects those who have surrendered to Him without exception. c) He Who truly has all the kalyANa guNa-s in perfection om satya-dharmaNe namah. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation thatBhagavAn is called satya-dharmA because He is noted for His uprightness towardsHis devotees right from the time they begin to approach Him up to the time oftheir attainment of Him (a). His dharma is well-known to be sAdhu-paritrANam andSaraNAgata -paritrANam. SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi and SrI M. V.rAmAnujAcArya svAmi interpret the nAma as expressing the guNa of bhagavAn thatHe protects those who have surrendered to Him without exception (b). BhagavAn's own words to Bhagavad rAmAnuja inSaraNAgati gadyam explain the dharma of bhagavAn: anRtam nokta pUrvam me na ca vakshye kadAcana| rAmo dvir-nAbhibhAshate || sakRdeva prapannAya tavAsmIti ca yAcate | abhayam sarva-bhUtebhyo dadAmyetad vratam mama || sarvadharmAn parityajya mAm ekam SaraNam vraja| aham tvA sarva-pApebhyo mokshayishyAmi mA Sucah || He is true to what He has declared as Hisdharma, and so He is called satya-dharmA. SrI Sa'nkara interprets the term dharmA torefer to guNa-s such as j~nAna, and SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates furtherand explains the nAma as indicating that bhagavAn is the Abode in Perfection forthe six guNa-s - j~nAna, bala, aiSvarya, vIrya, Sakti and tejas SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation thatBhagavAn has all the true dharma-s such as kindness, charity, etc., toperfection, and so He is satya-dharmA. He also gives the alternateinterpretation that bhagavAn is the embodiment of yoga, and supports it with theupanishad declaration "aym hi paramo dharmah yad-yogena Atma-darSanam"- "That alone is Supreme Dharma which is to experience the Self throughyoga". 533. tri-vikramah a) He Who pervades the three veda-s. b) He Who measured the three worlds with three strides. c) He Who pervades all the three worlds completely. d) He Who has transcended the waking, sleep, and deep-sleep states. om tri-vikramAya namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets "tri" here asreferring to the three veda-s (Rk, sAma, and yajur veda-s). The terms trayI andtri are used for the three veda-s, and tri-vikramah has been interpreted asreferring to His pervading the three veda-s, viz. He is the object of the threeveda-s . SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the following:

trirityevam trayo vedAh kIrtitAhmuni-sattamaih | kramate tAn tathA sarvAn tri-vikrama iti smRtah || SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning "veda"for the word "loka" in this reference, whereas SrI Sankara uses themeaning "world" for this same word in his interpretation (b) whichfollows. b) SrI Sankara gives the interpretation interms of the trivikrama incarnation - trayo vikramAs-trishu lokeshu krAntA yasyasah tri-vikramah (b). He gives supporting quotes from Sruti - "trINi padAvicakrame (tait. brA. 2.4.6); and from harivamSa (279.50) - "trirityevam" which we saw in the previous interpretation. c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the thirdinterpretation in addition to the first two viz. that bhagavAn is trivikramahin the sense of pervading everything in all the three worlds. d) SrI ChinmayAnanda uses the same harivamSareference and interprets the word loka to mean the three "fields ofexperience - the waking, dream, and deep-sleep conditions", and gives themeaning that bhagavAn is One Who has trancended these three states and reachedthe Infinite Consciousness, ie., He is the paramAtman. Thus, this nAmaillustrates that the spiritual seeker has to just to take the three steps viz.cross the waking, dream, and deep-sleep states, to realize the centre of self inhimself. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamachari for the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 57 534. 535. 536. 537. 538. 539. 540. 541. maharshih kapilAcAryah kRtaj~nah medinI-patih tri-padah tridaSAdhyakshah mahA-SR'ngah kRtAnta-kRt

om maharshaye namah omkapilAcAryAya namah om kRtaj~nAya namah om medinI-pataye namah om tri-padAya namah om tri-daSAdhyakshAya namah om mahA-SR'ngAya namah om kRtAnta-kRte namah. 534. maharshih The Great Seer. om maharshaye namah. BhagavAn is maharshih because, in Hisincarnation as kapila, He realized the three veda-s by intuitive perception (Rshir-darSanAt- niru. 2.11 - satyadevo vAsishTha). He is known for chanting all the vedaswithout a break - SrutIh RgAdyAh vaktrebhyah prodgirantam atah smaret. SrIBhaTTar gives reference to SvetASvataropanishad 5.2 - Rshim prasUtam kapilammahAntam (kapila, who was a seer from his birth). He is also a maharshi for hispropounding the sAnkhya system - sAnkhyasya vaktA kapilah paramrshih sa ucyate(source of quotation unidentified). SrI Sa'nkara gives reference to the gItA,where bhagavAn kRshNa declares that "Of the perfected ones, I am the sagekapila" - siddhAnAm kapilo munih (gItA 10.26). SrI Sa'nkara comments that those whoenvisioned part of the veda are referred to as Rshi-s, and those who envisionedthe entire veda are referred as the "Great Rshi-s (maharshi-s)". Ofthese, Lord kRshNa ranks kapila as the foremost (the gItA reference above). SrISa'nkara combines this nAma and the next one as one nAma - maharshihkapilAcAryah - kapilAcArya, the great sage. We already saw why kapila is calleda maharshi. He is also an AcArya because he propounded the sAnkhya system. 535. kapilAcAryah He Who is of brown complexion and also an AcArya. om kapilAcAryAya namah.

kapilaScAsau AcAryaSca iti kapilAcAryah.kapilam refers to the color of the inside of a tree; Sage kapila's namesignifies his complexion which resembles that of smokeless fire. The mantra tomeditate on him is "nirdhUmA'ngAra varNAbham Sa'nkha padmAksha sUtriNam"- He who is possessed of a luster like the burning and smokeless ember, and hasSan'kha and padma beads in his hand. The reference to kapila being like thesmokeless and burning ember also can be taken to refer to his character which isflawless like the smokeless fire, and the similarity to the burning fire areference to his extra-ordinary j~nAnam. The mantra referring to this attributeis "samvit prakASanAya" - To Him Who spread the knowledge of Hissystem. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a nice and crisp definition of an AcArya -Acarati svayam, SishyebhyaSca AcAram grAhayati iti AcAryah - An AcArya is onewho observes the sad-dharma himself, and also imparts the knowledge of thissad-dharma to his disciples. 536. kRtaj~nah a) He Who remembers the good deed done. b) He Who is both the Created and the Creator. c) He Who knows everything about His Creation. om kRtaj~nAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 83 (Slokam9). Please refer to the earlier explanation or additional guNAnubhavam. sukRtameva j~nAtavAn iti kRtaj~nah He Who remembers only the good actsdone. SrI BhaTTar explains this nAma in the contextof sage kapila and the sons and grandson of sagara, a descendant of the ikhsvAkurace. The sons of king sagara offended sage kapila and he reduced them to ashes.But later on, amSumAn, the grandson of sagara, came before kapila and bowed withrespect, and pleaded on behalf of his ancestors. kapila remembered only thisgood act, and immediately conferred a boon to amSuman to ask whatever he wants. SrI Sa'nkara interprets kRtam as referring tothe Universe which is created, and j~nah as referring to the Knower or the AtmAwhich is not created. Since bhagavAn is both the Created and the Creator, He iskRtam and j~nah (SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives theinterpretation - kRtam jAnAti iti kRtaj~nah - He Who knows precisely everythingthere is to know about His creation. He knows the why, when, how, where, what,and precisely for how long, of everything He has created. 537. medinI-patih The Lord or Protector of the Earth. om medinI-pataye namah. At the time of creation, when the Earth sankunder water, at the request of brahmA, bhagavAn took the yaj~navarAhaincarnation, and supported the Earth and brought it out. In the form of kapilain the pAtALa loka, bhagavAn is supporting the Earth through His yoga-Sakti. InSrImad rAmAyaNam, we have

yasyeyam vasudA sarvA vAsudevasya dhImatah | kapilam rUpamAsthAya dhArayatyaniSam dharAm || (bAla. 1.40.2) "All the Earth belongs to the omniscientvAsudeva; taking the form ofkapila, He always bears the Earth". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives the reference totiruvAimozhi which conveys the same thought: peria appan, piraman appan,uruttiran appan, munivarkku uriya appan, amarar appan, ulagukkOr taniyappan(8.1.11). 538. tri-padah a) The Propounder of the three tattva-s. b) He Who is in the form of praNava mantra with three letters. c) He Who assumed the form of a Boar with three humps. d) He Who triumphed over the worlds with three steps. e) He Who is the Lord of the past, present, and future. om tri-padAya namah. Thethree tattva-s referred to here by SrI BhaTTar are: pradhAna (nonsentientmatter), purusha (the individual soul), and paramAtmA. These are also referredto as bhoktA (the individual self), bhogya (the objects of enjoyment or thenon-sentient matter), and niyantR (Ruler). SrI BhaTTar gives reference to vishNudharma 63.59: sattvAnAm upakArAya pradhAnam purusham param | darSayishyAmi lokeshu kApilam rUpam Asthitah || "For the benefit of all beings in theworld, having assumed the form of kapila, I am going to reveal the threeRealities viz. pradhAna, purusha, and paramAtmA". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that the threetattva-s refer to the three states in which bhagavAn manifests Himself - as Onewho protects the world, as one who protects the devatA-s who protect the world,and as SrIvaikunTha nAthan disassociated with this world. SrI BhaTTar gives twoother alternate interpretations. b) tri-padah can also mean that He isrepresented by the three words or syllables of the praNava - A U M. c) In His varAha incarnation, BhagavAn assumedthe form of a boar with three humps (tri-padah) tavaivAsam trika-kudo vArAhamrUpamAsthitah (mahA. moksha. 343.63) - "I assumed the form of varAha (Boar)with three humps". d) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma in terms of the tri-vikramaincarnation, and supports it with the quote from taitt. brAhmaNa 2.4.6 - trINipadA vicakrame - "He who triumphed over the three worlds by His threestrides". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the following interpretation to thetrivikrama incarnation: bhagavAn measured this world with one step and coveredall the sthUla belongings of mahAbali, with the second step He measured all thesUkshma belongings of bali such as svarga which he would have achieved in hisfuture births through His current good deeds, and through His third step Heremoved the ahamkAra mamakAra-s of bali and sent him to the eternal parama padam. e) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri also gives analternate explanation that bhagavAn has His Feet (i.e., His Adhipatyam) in thepast, present, and future, and so He is called tri-padah. 539. tridaSAdhyakshah

a) The Savior of the thirty-three gods. b) The Master of the three states. c) The Master of the three guNa-s. om tridaSAdhyakshAya namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the term tri-daSa torefer to the thirty three gods and explains the nAma as signifying that bhagavAnis their adhyaksha and helps brahma and others when they encounter difficultiesin their functions after the pralaya (brahmAdeh pralaya Apat sakhatvAt). Prof.SrInivAsa rAghavan adds that the term tri-daSa, which means three times ten orthirty, is a rounded number which refers to the thirty-three gods (eight vasu-s,eleven rudra-s, 12 Aditya-s, and the two aSvin-s). In tiruppAvai (20) we havereference to the thirty three deva-s - muppatti mOvar amarkku mun SenRu kappamtavirkkum kali (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI rAmAnujan explains how bhagavAn hasbeen the Savior of the gods during the creation soon after pralaya. When theworld was submerged under water, and brahma could not proceed with creation,bhagavAn took the form of the big boar and lifted the earth out of water andthus helped brahma in his task. SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as tri-daSAadhyakshah, where the term tridaSA refers to the three states waking, dream,and deep-sleep states. SrI cinmayAnanda extrapolates the term to mean the rajas,tamas, and sattva guNa-s. Thus bhagavAn is the Lord of the three states, or Onewho has mastery over the three guNa-s. 540. mahA-SR'ngah a) The Big-tuskedvarAha. b) He who took the matsya rUpam with the big horn. om mahA-SR'ngAya namah. SR'nga refers to the horn of an animal. SrIBhaTTar gives interpretation (a), and quotes the reference from SrImad rAmAyaNam- ekaSR'ngo varAhastvam (yuddha. 120.14) in support of his interpretation. Helifted the Earth from the waters with the tip of His tusk, and the Earthappeared like the leaf of a lotus besmeared with mud on the tusk of an elephantthat has entered a lotus-pond (vishNu purANam 1.4.36). SrI v.v. rAmAnujanexplains that the horn or tooth of this varAha rUpam was so huge (mahASR'nga)that the Earth looked like a small particle of food stuck at the tip of thetooth of this huge form ( SrImad bhAgavatam). SrI Sa'nkara gives interpretation (b) - thatthe nAma refers to matsya incarnation, where bhagavAn towed the boat tied to Hisbig horn with satyavrata in it and sported Himself in the pralaya waters. 541. kRtAnta-kRt a) The Slayer of hiraNyAksha. b) He who kills death himself. c) He who proclaimed the kRtAnta (siddhanta). d) He who brings about the end to the manifested condition of the Universe. a) and b): kRtAntam kRttavAn iti kRtAntakRt (SrI BhaTTar); kRtAntam mRtyum kRntati iti kRtAntakRt (SrI Sa'nkara). Both the interpretations have the same meaning. kRtAnta refers to yama. SrISa'nkara takes the literal meaning of kRtAnta, and gives the second meaningabove, viz. when bhagavAn brings an end to everything,

this includes yama also.SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation (a), that bhagavAn is the Slayer ofhiraNyAksha who was like yama. c) SrI BhaTTar gives an alternateinterpretation as well. kRtAnta refers to sidhhAnta, and bhagavAn is kRtAntakRtsince He has promulgated His doctrine of protecting those who seek refuge inHim. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to peria tirumozhi of tiruma'ngai AzhvAr(2.6.3) where the varAha avatAram is described as the personification of j~nAnam- Enattin uruvAgi nilama'ngai ezhil koNDAn j~nAnattin oLi uruvai ninaivAr ennAyagarE. d) SrI Sa'nkara also gives an alternateinterpretation kRta anta kRt - kRtasya antam samhAram karoti iti kRta anta kRt, meaning He brings about the destruction of kRta or manifested condition of theUniverse. The dharma cakram writer adds that just as the farmer whosows the crop also destroys it for the ultimate benefit of His creatures,bhagavAn creates and then destroys what He created, for the ultimate benefit ofthe jIva-s. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 58 542. mahA-varAhah 543.govindah 544. susheNah 545.kanakA`ngadI 546. guyhah 547.gabhIrah 548. gahanah 549.guptah 550. cakra-gadA-dharah

om om om om om om om om om

mahA-varAhAya namah govindAya namah susheNAya namah kanakA'ngadine namah guhyAya namah gabhIrAya namah gahanAya namah guptAya namah cakra-gadA-dharAya namah

542.mahA-varAhah He Who appeared in the form of the Great Boar. om mahA-varAhAya namah. This nAma refers to the varAha incarnation.SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the description in vishNu purANam - tatahsamutkshipya dharAm sva-damshtrayA mahA-varAhah sphuta-padma-locanah | rasAtalAtutpala-patra-sannibhah samutthito nIla ivAcalo mahAn || (1.4.26) "The Great varAha bhagavAn, Who has eyeslike full-blown lotuses and the complexion like that of blue lotus-petal, liftedthe Earth from the rasAtala (nether-world) by His tusk and emerged as a greatblue mountain". Similar description of the beauty of the eyesof varAha mUrti is found in tiruc-canda viruttam 45 - "perum kEzhalAr tanperum kaN malarp-puNDarIkam nam mEl oru'ngE pizhara vaittAr (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan).SrI cinmayAnanda comments that the varAha rUpa was taken to heave up the worldfrom the slush that formed naturally when the waters of the deluge receded. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives theinterpretation based on mahA + vara + Aha = He who bestows great blessings onothers. 543. govindah a) One who is praised by the gods (for Hishelp). b) One who dug out the Earth from the depths of the Ocean. c) The protector of cows. d) One who confers the veda-s e) He who rescued the Earth. f) He who is known by vedic sentences. g) He who is responsible for all things that move. om govindAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 189. Pleasesee the detailed explanation in Slokam 20 also. Explanations a) to d) were givenunder Slokam 20. SrI BhaTTar gives interpretation e - avariation of explanation b - under the current nAma viz. bhagavAn is govindahbecause He rescued the Earth from the rAkshasa.

SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation f) underthe current nAma: "gobhih - vANibhih vindate" - He Who is known (vid)through words i.e., vedic sentences. SrI Sa'nkara gives the reference fromvishNutilaka gobhireva yato vedyo govindah samudAhRtah - "You are namedgovinda as You are to be known through scriptual texts". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives hisinterpretation starting from the root gam - gatau - to go (gacchati iti gauh),and gives the meaning "to possess" to the word vid (vid - lAbhe - toget), and thus derives the interpretation g above. His explanation is thatanything that moves, including our mind, our indriya-s, the Sun, etc., are Hispossession, and so He is called govindah. He gives this interpretation for thenAma "govidAm patih" also. He supports his interpretation based on"gacchati iti jagat" - BhagavAn is present everywhere as seen by themovement of everything in this world. The life in all things that live isassociated with movement, and He is the One who is behind this movement -govindah. 544. susheNah a) He who is equipped with a body with Suddhasattva Sakti-s that are like an army. b) He Who has an army of auspicious associates. om susheNAya namah. a) SrI v.n. vedAntadeSikan comments that fromthis nAma onwards, certain abstruse or rather esoteric meanings are implied,which are only to be learned through the AcArya-s, and are not communicated inprint. Thus the explanations found in print are cryptic. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan addsthat the current nAma and the following few nAma-s are in the category of whatsage viSvAmitra refers to when he says "aham vedmi" etc. to daSarathawhen he persuades daSaratha to send rAma with him. He reassures daSaratha thathe, and not daSaratha, can understand the greatness of young rAma because he isa king of Rshi-s, whereas daSaratha is only a king of men. susheNah is interpreted as su-senah (One whohas a good army) by SrI BhaTTar. He explains that bhagavAn has a body which ispure suddha-sattva, and the constituents of this suddha sattva body are like anarmy that can win over the baddha-s, mukta-s and nitya-s and make them join Himin mutual enjoyment of Bliss. The constituents of bhagavAn's body are the pa'ncamahA Sakti-s, parameshThi, pumAn, viSvah, nivRttah, and sarvah, just as ourhuman body is constituted of the pa'nca bhUta-s. The pa'nca mahA Sakti-s are allsuddha sattva dravya-s, and they can be realized and understood properly onlythrough the upanishads. Therefore they are also referred to as the pa'ncaupanishad mayam. These pa'nca mahA Sakti-s or the pa'nca-mahopanishad-mayadravya-s constitute the senA referred to in this nAma. SrI P. B. aNNa`ngarAcArya svAmi summarizes theabove as indicating that bhagavAn has the multitude of means that are useful inhaving His devotees under His sway. nammAzhvAr refers to bhagavAn's guNa-s beingHis Strength or army in the following reference given by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan -"mazhu'ngAda j~nAnamE paDaiyAga" - (tiruvAimozhi 3.1.9). b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation thatbhagavAn is susheNah because He has a distinguished army at His command. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates that this includes the following 9 gaNa-s: 12Aditya-s, 10 viSvedeva-s, the ashTha vasu-s, 26 tushita-s, 64 AbhAsvara-s, 49marut-s, 30 mahArAjika-s, 12 sAdhya-s, and 11 rudra-s.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the nAma fromthe root si - bandhane - to bind. He gives the interpretation that bhagavAn isOne who binds everything well (His devotees to Him, His army of deva-s, sages,etc. together well, He Who holds all the beings of the world together well, HeWho binds all the constellations together well, holds this frail body of ourstogether well even after the jIva departs from the body, etc. He givesreferences to the Sruti for this nAma in yajurveda - ayamuparvAg-vasus-tasyasenajiica susheNaSca (yajur. 15.19), satyajicca senajicca susheNaSca (yajur.17.83). 545.kanakA`ngadI He Who is adorned by armlets of gold. om kanakA`ngadaye namah. kanaka literally means gold, but here is notto be taken literally as the material gold that we are used to. The term"gold" used in the current context just refers to the superiority ofHis bhUshNa-s. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan points out that in antarAditya, bhagavAn isdescribed as resembling gold in appearance antarAditye hiraNmayah purushahdRSyate. nammAzhvAr calls bhagavAn by the names "mANikkamE! en marakatame!maRRoppAraiyillA Anip ponnE!" in tiruviruttam 85. What is referred to hereis the extraordinary brilliance of His appearance and the extreme attractivenessof His tirumeni. Thus, the reference in this nAma to kanaka isto the non-material, suddha-sattva. The ornaments referred to here are not theones composed of the material of this world and made of up of the three guNa-s -sattva, rajas, and tamas, but are ones composed of celestial matter (Suddhasattva), which set off the beauty of His celestial body described earlier. a`ngadam means armlet. Again, the reference isnot only to the armlet, but all the tiru AbharaNa-s of bhagavAn. The armlets areone example of these ornaments that adorn His body. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstriobserves that the armlets, kirITam, keyUram, etc., are the ornaments of vIra-s. SrI BhaTTar points out that the ending ini inthis nAma refers to the constant and permanent association of the brilliancereferred to in this nAma with His tirumeni (nityayoge inih). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the nAma interms kanaka, a`nga, and da, meaning The Giver (dah) of brightness (kanaka) toeverything and the One who keeps things moving (a`nga from a`ng - to go). Theassociation or connection between the kanaka and a`nga aspects can be seen bynoting that as long as the body keeps moving, it has the brightness in the eyes,and the brightness ceases when the body ceases to move. 546. guyhah He who is concealed. om guhyAya namah. SrI BhaTTar points out that He is concealed bythe possession of a body which is made of the celestial matter (Suddha sattva),which fact is revealed by the great upanishads. Thus His divya Atma-svarUpacannot be comprehended by us. nammAzhvAr declares: j~nAlam uNDu umizhnda mAlaieNNumARu aRiya mATTEn (tiruvAimozhi 3.4.9) - "I can't comprehend thisemperumAn who swallowed the whole world and then recreated it". SrISa'nkara gives two interpretations: 1. rahasya upanishad vedyatvAt - One who isto be

known only by the esoteric knowledge conveyed by the upanishad-s; and 2.guhAyAm hRadayAkASe nihita iti vA, guhyah - He who is hidden in the guha or theheart. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates on this further and points out that theidea here is that He is not realized through the ordinary senses or thereasoning by the mind, but only by deep inward meditation and contemplation. Hecannot be revealed by someone else to us, but only by our own inward search.Thus He is guhya or concealed. 547. gabhIrah He who is deep or mysterious. om gabhIrAya namah. He is gabhIrah because of His gAmbhIrya - HisMajesty which is deep and cannot be completely comprehended. BhagavAn is calleddeep because His Nature is not easily understandable; His majesty can only beapproximately conceived. If the bound souls which are tainted by deepbeginningless Nescience can become pure by merely coming into contact with Him,this can give an approximate idea of His greatness. This is like the muddy waterwhich becomes clean by coming in contact with the kataka seed. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that BhagavAn ismysterious because He has the simultaneous co-existence in perfection of all thesix guNa-s - j~nAna, bala, aiSvarya, vIrya, Sakti, and tejas. Just as the bottomof a very deep lake with very clear water looks like it is very near in spite ofits depth, BhagavAn's depth is impossible to find even though it appears that Hecan be easily comprehended. He is very far though He appears to be very near forthe ordinary beings. 548. gahanah a) He who is deep, Impenetrable, Inexplicable. b) He who is the witness in everyone om gahanAya namah. gahanam refers to a forest, a fortress etc. Wecannot see or figure out what is inside a dense forest or in a well-builtfortress. BhagavAn's Nature is similar (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri). In hiscommentary on amarakOSam, appayArya gives the explanation "gahanamdushpraveSa sthAnam" - A place which is difficult to access. SrI BhaTTarexplains the nAma as dur-avagAhah, and SrI Sa'nkara gives the description "dushpraveSatvAtgahanah", both of which convey the above idea. Even though we can see thebottom of the Ocean when the water is clear, it is very difficult to access thebottom of the Ocean floor. So also, even though bhagavAn may seem easy torealize because of what is revealed in the upanishad-s, all the same it isdifficult to grasp His Nature. The Sruti declares Him as "aprApya manasAsaha - Inaccessible to the mind" (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). b) The alternate interpretation for gahanah isbased on its derivation from the root gAhU - viloDane - to dive into. BhagavAnis called gahanah because He is inside everyone and everything, and is thewitness of everything in its waking, dream and sleep states (SrI Sa'nkara).Through these three states we get an understanding of what is within our abilityto comprehend. But through these three states, we cannot get an idea of One whois the Witness of these three states in all of us (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri). 549. guptah

He who is hidden. om guptAya namah. This nAma is formed from the root gup -rakshaNe to protect, to conceal. SrI BhaTTar explains that BhagavAn's Greatnessis guarded and protected well by the pUrvAcArya-s who knew His Greatness by HisGrace. One cannot hope to learn of the Lord's mahimA except by being guided bythese AcArya-s of our sampradAyam. Even the upanishads cannot completely revealBhagavAn to us. He is known only to the likes viSvAmitra who declares "ahamvedmi mahAtmAnam - I know the greatness of young rAma". It is only byfollowing the sampradAyam of the AcArya-s and following their instructions withsincerity that one can realize Him who is hidden to us otherwise. He is also One who is protected with greatcare by the likes of anantAzhvAn, garuDa, vishvaksena, etc. Even in paramapadamwhere it is not easy for anyone to go, He is protected by ananta who is spittingpoisonous fire - "a'ngu AravAram adu kETTu azhal umizhum pU'ngAraravaNaiyAn pon mEni" - (nAnmugan tiru antAdi 10) - SrI v.v. rAmAnujan. SrI Sa'nkara explains that BhagavAn is hiddenbecause He is not accessible through words, thought etc. va'ng manasaagocararvAt guptah. Even though He is in every being, He is not manifested -esha sarveshu bhUteshu gUDhah AtmA na prakASate - kaTha upanishad 3.12. We alsohave "yato vAco nivartante aprApya manasA saha" - brah. valli 4 oftaitt. upa. 550.cakra-gadA-dharah The bearer of the discus and the mace. om cakra-gadA-dharAya namah. This nAma of bhagavAn is referenced in yuddhakANDam 114 - tamasah paramo dhAtA Sa'nkha cakra gadA dharah. SrI nammAzhvArrefers to Him as "nAngu tOLan, kuni Sar'ngan, oN Sa'ngu gadai vAL AzhiyAn"(tiruvAimozhi 8.8.1) - SrI v.v. rAmAnujan. While the superficial reference inthis nAma is that BhagavAn is the bearer of cakra, gadhA, etc., SrI M. V.rAmAnujAcArya explains that the reference to the pa'nca mahAyudha-s (Sankha,cakra, gadA, Sar'nga, and nandaka) has deeper signifcance. These are also theincarnations or personifications of the pa'nca Sakti-s viz. sRshTi, sthiti,samhAra, nigraha, and anugraha. These pa'nca mahAyudha-s are an integral part ofbhagavAn's SarIram which is of Suddha-sattva made of these five mahA Sakti-s,and are like His instruments in His five functions of creation, protection,destruction, giving punishment, and giving benefits. The pa'nca mahA Sakti-shave been referred to earlier (in nAma 544). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan adds that inaddition, the pa'nca Ayudha-s are also none other than the nitya sUri-s e.g.,sudarSana AzhvAn, pA'ncajanya AzhvAn, etc. Note that the five paramAtma Sakti-sare here associated with the five functions (sRshTi, sthiti etc.), the fiveAyudha-s of bhagavAn, the nitya sUri-s, etc. in a simple way and clearly. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri quotes passages from SrI vishNupurANam (1.22.69-74) to identify the five Ayudha-s as representations of thedifferent tattva-s: BhagavAn supports egotism (rAjasa ahamkAram and mAnasaahamkAram, into the five elements and the five organs of sense), in the emblemsof His conch-shell and His bow; In the form of His discus, He supports the mind(manas), whose thoughts, like the weapon, fly swifter than the winds; The brightsword of vishNu is the holy wisdom (vidyA); Intellect (buddhi) abides in mAdhavain the form of the mace (gadA). This nAma refers to His form where He holds themanas tattva and the buddhi tattva in His two hands in the forms of the cakraand gadA respectively. The broader meaning of

the whole passage in SrI vishNupurANam is that BhagavAn is the source and repository of everything there is -soul, nature, intellect, egotism, the elements, the senses, mind, ignorance, andwisdom. All that is wisdom, all that is ignorance, all that is, all that is not,all that is everlasting, is centered in Him. He is time, He is earth, He is sky,He is heaven, etc. Those interested should read the section of SrI vishNu purANafor a continuation of this beautiful description of His "viSva rUpa".Thus the nAma also signifies that bhagavAn is the source and controller ofeverything there is, was and will be. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 59 551. vedhAh 552.svA'ngah 553. ajitah 554.kRshNah 555. dRDhah 556.sankarshaNah 557. acyutah 558. varuNah 559. vAruNah 560.vRkshah 561. pushkarAkshah 562.mahA-manAh

om om om om om om

vedhase namah svA'ngAya namah ajitAya namah kRshNAya namah dhRDAya namah sa'nkarshaNAya namah

om om om om om om

acyutAya namah varuNAya namah vAruNAya namah vRkshAya namah pushkarAkshAya namah mahA-manase namah

551. vedhAh a) The Provider. b) The Doer (of auspicious happenings). c) The Creator. om vedhase namah. SrI BhaTTar derives the meaning from "vidadhAtiiti vedhAh" - He is the Giver or Provider of unlimited and varied objectsof splendor. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation "vidadhAtikAmAn svajanAnAm iti vedhAh". He also gives the reference to kaThopanishad- "eko bahUnAm vidadhAti kAmAn" (2.2.13). SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi gives thesecond interpretation - "anbargaLukku ma'ngalamAna vibhava'ngaLiac ceibavar". SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam is vidadhAti sRjati itividhAtA vedhAh - The Creator. In amarakoSa we have srashTA prajApatir vedhAvidhAtA viSvasRT vidhih (1.17), and the explanation vidadhAti karoti iti vedhAh,offered by li'ngAyasUrin. 552. svA'ngah a) He who has the marks of sovereigntywhichare His own. b) He who is both the Instrumental Cause and the Material Cause of the Universe. c) He who has beautiful, well-proportioned limbs. d) He who, in the form of the Universe, moves by Himself. The term a'nga here refers to the celestialmarks of sovereignty such as the chatra (umbrella), cAmara and other thingswhich are His own and unique (sva a'ngah). He is the Supreme King of all theworlds, and has the unique marks associated with this. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAjgives the following explanation: "svanyante Sabdyante sUktibhiriti svAni;tAdRSAni a'ngAni yasya iti svA'ngah". SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam is "svayamevakAryasya karaNe a'ngam sahakaroti iti svA'ngah" - He is Himself theinstrument in accomplishing His works. The idea communicated is that bhagavAn isthe Material Cause as well as the Instrumental Cause of this Universe (SrIcinmayAnanda). SrI cinmayAnanda also indicates that the nAma can be interpretedto mean that bhagavAn has beautiful, well-proportioned a'nga-s or limbs. SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning a'ng - to go (agi - gatyarthaka dhAtu), andgives the interpretation that bhagavan has His movement by Himself, unlike allthe other life forms which move only because He is present in them as theantaryAmi. When the self leaves the body, the body loses the ability to move.Unlike these, e.g., in the form of the Sun, bhagavAn moves by Himself withoutthe need for any other external source.

The dharma cakram writer gives the meaningthat He is One who helps Himself. He observes that meditation on this nAma ofmahAvishNu should reveal to us that when we worship Him, there is no need forany external help for us from anyone or anything in this world, since all thethings we need will be met from within ourselves. It is only when we go aftermaterial pursuit that we need the support of others. BhagavAn is in the ultimatestate where He needs nothing from anyone or anything. 553. ajitah a) He who is unconquered, and unconquerable. b) He who is the Chief of the Unconquerable place called ajita or SrIvaikunTha. c) He who took the amSAvatara in the 6th manvantara as ajitah to help inchurning the Milk Ocean. d) He who is unconquered in His vow to protect those who have surrendered toHim. (SrI BhaTTar): ajitA, aparAjitA, etc. are alsonames for paramapadam, and He is the Chief of SrIvaikunTham, and so also He iscalled ajitah. He and His abode SrI vaikunTham and everything therein arecomposed of celestial matter called Suddha sattva, which is not under the swayof birth and death. He is thus unconquered by the sway of birth, aging, decay,and death which are characteristic of those that pertain to the world of prakRti.SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to SrI rAmAyaNam yuddha kANDam wherebhagavAn's nAma ajita occurs (120.16 -ajitah khaDgadhRg vishNuh kRshNaScaivabRhad balah). Here ajitah is interpreted by SrI P. S. kRshNasvAmi iye'ngAr asreferring bhagavAn being undefeated in His ASrita samrakshNam or His vow toprotect those who have surrendered to Him even once). (SrI Sa'nkara): na jita iti ajitah - One whohas never been conquered, and can never be conquered, is ajitah. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - na jitah kenApi tribhuvane itiajaitah - One who has never been conquered by anyone ever in all the threeworlds. He has never been conquered by anyone in any of His incarnations, and soalso He is ajitah. He is satya svarUpi and dharma svarupi, and soalso He is unconquered and unconquerable (dharma cakram) - satyameva jayate. Thedharma cakram author gives innumerable examples to illustrate that satya anddharma are unconquerable, including those involving prahlAda, hariScandra, thepANDavas, etc. The lesson to take from meditating on this nAma is the greatnessof dharma and satya, and the life led conforming to these values. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives yet anotherinterpretation based on SrImad bhAgavtam. BhagavAn SrIman nArAyaNa appeared asajitah in the sixth manvantara as the son of sambhUti and helped in the churningof the Milk Ocean to get the amRta for the deva-s. He also took the kUrmAvatArato support the mandara mountain in the process tatrApi devah sambhUtyAm vairAjasya abhavatsutah | ajito nAma bhgavAn amSena jagatah patih || (SrImad bhAgavatam 8.5.9). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that thereis a question of one being conquered by another only when they can be comparedto each other. In the case of mahAvishNu, there is no one else to compare toHim, and so there is no question of His being conquered by any other, and so Heis ajitah or unconquerable and unconquered. 554. kRshNah

a) One who is always in a state of Bliss (withHis sport of creation etc.). b) The Dark-hued. c) He who irresistibly attracts His devotees to Him through His infinite kalyANaguNa-s. d) He who cultivates the Earth like a plough and makes it suitable for lifeforms to form and nourish. e) He who appeared as veda vyAsa or kRshNa dvaipAyana. f) He who cultivates the minds of devotees by providing the veda-s in Hisincarnation as kRshNa dvaipAyana. g) The Dark, Mysterious, and Unknowable except by deep devotion. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 58. Pleaserefer to the detailed interpretation provided there as well. The first fourinterpretations were covered there. Some additional details are provided here.In support of interpretation (a), SrI v.v. rAmAnujan observes that unlike inrAma incarnation where bhagavAn went through enormous difficulties - nATTilpiRandu paDAdana paTTu - nammAzhvAr tiruvAimozhi 7.5.2, in kRshNa incarnation itwas "inbuRum iv-viLaiyATTuDaiyAnaip peRRu (tiruvAimozhi 3.10.7)","kanRinai vAlOlai kaTTi (periAzhvAr tirumozhi 2.4.8)", etc. Anotheranubhavam of SrI v.v. rAmAnujan is that bhagavAn is laughing at us mockingly,seeing that we are not putting to good use the hands and legs and all theindriya-s He gave us to help us attain Him, but instead we are misusing theseand getting into the cycle of birth and rebirth. Under the current nAma, SrI ParASara BhaTTargives one more of his anubhava-s of this nAma, and indicates that the Suddhasattva material which His body is made of has a fascinating complexion dark likethe blue cloud. One of the grammar rules (uNAdi sutra 3.4) states that when theroot kRsh - to plough is followed by affix nak, it means one of the colors -kRsher varNe. It is interesting to note that one name for grapes is kRshNAbecause of this connotation of color. So also, iron is called kRshNA because ofits black color. This latter meaning is used to explain the significance ofbhagavAn's nAma as kRshNa in mahAbhArata SAnti parva 143.49 kRshAmi medinIm pArtha! bhUtvA kRshNAyasomahAn| kRshNo varNaSca me yasmAt tena kRshNoham arjuna|| This is a slight variation of the Sloka alsoquoted from mahAbhArata under the explanation given under nAma 58. The two Sloka-sare too similar to each other to suggest that these are variants of the samereference. I do not have the original version of mahAbhArata to check theauthenticity of the references. In support of interpretation (b), SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives references to the following: kaNNan enum karum daivam (nAcciyArtirumozhi 3.1), kariyAn oru kALai (tirumozhi 3.7.), etc. SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj gives the following explanation along the lines of interpretation :karshati bhagavAn AtmAnam prati vayovarNa rUpaa lAvaNya madhurI rasotkarsheNaiti kRshNah, or kRshate AtmAnam prati bhaktAn sa-soundaryeNa iti kRshNah, basedon (kRsha vilekhanam AkarshNam ca). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha and others alsosupport this interpretation along with the other two. SrI Sa'nkara interprets this instance of thenAma of kRshNah as referring to veda vyAsa (e), who is none other than anincarnation of bhagavaAn according to SrI vishNupurANa - kRshNadvaipAyanamvyAsam viddhi nArAyaNam prabhum | ko hyanayh puNDarIkAkshAn mahAbhAratakRtbhavet (VP 3.4.5). The dharma cakram writer uses the concept ofbhagavAn being like a plough (the basis of interpretation d), combines this withSrI Sa'nkara's interpretation (e), and offers a new interpretation (f). Hisanubhavam is

that in the form of veda vyAsa, bhagavAn cultivates the minds ofpeople by providing to us the veda-s, and so vyAsa, who is none other thannArAyaNa, is referred to by the nAma kRshNa here. SrI cinmayAnanda uses the meaning"dark" for the word kRshNa, and suggests that this nAma of bhagavAnsignifies the "unknown factor" that expresses through us - whosemanifestations are all our physical, mental, and intellectual capabilities.Except by deep and sincere devotion, He cannot be comprehended, and so He iskRshNah - Dark and Mysterious. 555. dRDhah a) He Who assumes firm, concrete vyUha formsfor the benefit of His devotees. b) He Who is firm and determined in His thoughts, words and deeds. c) He Who is firmly established and cannot benegated as the Supreme Deity bycounter-arguments. d) He Who is huge and strong. om dRDhAya namah. dRDha literally means solid, firm, strong,massive, etc. The root word from which the nAma dRDhah is formed is dRh -vRddhau - to be fixed or firm, to grow. SrI v.n. vedAnta deSikan gives theinterpretation in English as: Para vAsudeva takes the vyUha forms which are firmand concrete and are not merely of a nebulous, imaginative level. In otherwords, the term dRDhah here refers to forms that can be more easily comprehendedand meditated upon. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to the nRsimhaincarnation tiNNiyadOr ari uru, where ari means lion. b) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri interprets the nAmaas referring to bhagavAn being firm in His actions - one meaning for acyutahwhich we will encounter later in this write-up. SrI cinmayAnanda observes thateven though bhagavAn is firm in His Infinite Justice, this Justice becomes a-dRDhahwhen a great sinner surrenders to Him, and bhagavAn immediately reaches out tohelp the sinner. c) SrI PBA gives the interpretation thatbhagavAn s dRDhah because He if firmly established as the Supreme Deity by vedicpramANa-s, and no amount of false arguments by the "bAhya ku-dRshTi-s"can negate that. d) dRDhah also means huge, mighty, strong, etc. - dRDhau sthUlobalavAn vA. Since bhagavAn assumes huge and strong forms when He takes Hisincarnations to destroy His enemies, this nAma can be interpreted as a referenceto this guNa of His. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the explanation dRDahu sthUlobalavAn vA. He also gives another view - everything that bhagavAn createsreflects His guNa of firmness. The Oceans have always been firm in keeping themassive amount of water in their bounds without exception, and the skeleton thatholds the body together is firm from birth to death and never collapses from itsshape, and the earth holds all its subjects and contents firmly. BhagavAn who isgiving all of these their firmness, is thus also called dRDhah. 556.sankarshaNah He Who draws others near Him. om sankarshaNAya namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "samsAre cit-acitohAtmani samam karshaNAt samam karsham nayati" - In this world, He drawstowards Himself both the cit and acit in the same way and unites them - Hispower of

attraction is uniform, and so He is called samkarshaNa. SrI Sankaraspecifically refers to this attraction as referring to the time of cosmicdissolution, when bhagavAn draws everything towards Himself. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives theinterpretation - samyak karshati iti sankarshaNah; SrI bhagavAn svajanAn AtmAnamprati svakIyaih vAtsalya mAdhuryAdi guNaih karshati - He who draws His devoteestowards Him through His infinite guNa-s such as vAtsalyam, His exquisite beauty,etc. SrI Sankara combines this nAma with the nextone, acyutah, and interprets sankarshNocyutah as one nAma, meaning that bhagavAndraws everything at the time of dissolution towards Himself (samkarshNah), whileHimself not slipping from His Real Nature (acyutah). SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastrigives yet another anubhavam for the sequence dRDhah, sankarshNah, and acyutah:dRDhah - He is one who is firm in His Nature, sankarshNah - He who draws thosewho are caught in the ocean of samsAra towards Him with firm determination andMercy, and acyutah - He Who is firm and does not slip while drawing the entiregroup of these cetana-s towards Him. The dharma cakram writer gives a simpleanalogy to illustrate the above. To drag someone who has fallen into a forcefulriver to safety, the savior should be strong enough not to be drawn by the riverhimself, but also should have the strength to drag the other individual againstthe force of the river. BhagavAn is the acyutah who has the firmness, resolve,and the power to save the samsAri-s from the ocean current of samsAra. 557. acyutah a) One who never slips from His glory. b) One who never lets His devotees slip. c) One who undergoes no modifications such as birth, growth, decay, disease,etc. om acyutAya namah. We came across this nAma twice before (nAma-s101 and 320). The contents of the previous explanations have been included inthe following summary. a) cyuti means "fall" and cyuta means"fallen". acyuta means "One who has never fallen from His truenature". Different anubhava-s are given to further expand this guNa of theLord. Sri Bhattar points out that He does not ever fall from His position ofoverlordship unlike Brahma, Indra, etc. who are subject to loss of position, andtherefore He is called acyuta. In support of the interpretation that bhagavAndoes not undergo transformations like others, SrI BhaTTar quotes the following: cyavanotpattiukteshu brahmendra varuNAdishu | yasmAn na cyavase sthAnAt tasmat samkIrtyase acyutah || The source of this reference has not beenprovided in Prof. SrInivAsa rAghavan's text. The meaning is: "Whereasbrahma, varuNa, and others are subject to birth and death and fall down fromtheir position, Thou dost not fall down like that. So Thou art called acyuta". Sri rAdhAkrshNa SAstri points out that He alsodoes not slip from His position by being influenced by kAma etc. unlike Brahma,Indra etc. In mahAbhArata we have "yasmAt na cyuta pUrvo'ham acyutastenakarmaNA" - SAnti parva 12.330.16. Sri Sankara interprets the above asmeaning "svarUpasAmarthyAt na cyuto na cyavate na cyavishyata iti acyutah"- He has not lapsed, is not lapsing, and will not lapse from His own glory;hence the name acyuta.

The dharma cakram writer points to the passagein muNDakopanishad which describes the two birds sitting in different branchesof the tree, one tasting the fruit and the other just watching the bird that istasting the fruit (of karma). This has been described in a previous write-up.BhagavAn is the acyuta, from His superior position, watching the jIvAtmA whichis tasting the fruits of karma in this case. b) Sri Bhattar also gives the alternatevyAkhyAna: "I have never abandoned (my bhaktas). Because of this act ofmine, I am known as acyuta". His words are "tebyah prapannebhyah naapagatah acyutah - He is never away from those who have sought refuge inHim". Sri tirukkaLLam nrsimharAghavAchAryar in his bhagavadgItA bhAshya hasgiven the explanation na cyAvayati iti acyutah - One who does not let Hisdevotees slip. arjuna calls Lord kRshNa as acyuta since He has taken it uponHimself to be his charioteer and will ensure that arjuna will not slip. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan adds the followingreference from rAmAyaNa in support of the interpretation "He who does notlet His devotee slip" - na cyAvayati - "mitra-bhAvena samprAptam natyajeyam kathancana dosho yadyapi tasya syAt " - "No matter what flawsa person has, if he has come to Me seeking My friendship, there is no way that Iwill abandon him under any circumstance". SrI rAmAnujan also gives thereference to divya prabandham - "kArtigaiyAnum kari-mugattAnum kanalummukkaN-mUrtiyum mODiyum veppum mudugiTTu" - the reference here is to thestory of bANAsura who was abandoned by the other devatA-s when he approachedthem for protection. Not so with bhagavAn - na me bhaktah praNaSyati - "Mydevotee will never perish" - gItA. c) cyutam means modification. The upanishadsays of BhagavAn - "SASvatam Sivam acyutam" - Eternal, Auspicious, andChangeless" - taittirIya AraNyakam - 10.11). Sri rAdhAkrshNa SAstri pointsout that BhagavAn is acyuta because He does not slip from stage to stage in thesequence of events such as birth, living, growth, change in appearance, decay,and finally disappearance from the body. 558. varuNah He Who envelops. om varuNAya namah. The word is derived from the root vr~nj varaNeto envelop. SrI BhaTTar gives the example of "yena AvRtam kham ca divammahIm ca - He by Whom are covered the Ether, the svarga, and the Earth" -taittirIya upanishad 1.1. In other words, He surrounds all the three worlds (SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri). varuNa is also the term used for the eveningsun. Like the sun who withdrawing his scorching rays unto himself in theevening, the Lord withdraws all the pluralistic world unto Himself. The EternalReality , functioning through the sun as the sun's energy and light, isdescribed in the upanishads as the "Golden One", and hence theappropriateness of using this term varuNa for nArAyaNa (e.g., the designationsUrya nArAyaNa (SrI cinmayAnanda). The dharma cakram writer lists the followinganubhava-s related to this mantram (note how the learned people view the nAma-sof the Lord that occur in sahasranAmam): varuNa is the the Lord of the waters;He is also the setting sun in the evening; He is also the Lord of the westerndirection. Just as darkness envelops us when the sun sets, those who do not havethe thought of bhagavAn fall into darkness. As long as they have the thought ofbhagavAn in their mind, there is the brightness of j~nAna guiding them. 559. vAruNah

a) He Who is with those who have sought Him astheir Lord or svAmi. b) The Son of varuNa. c) He Who removes the adversities of His devotees om vAruNAya namah a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as: tamsvAmitvena vRNute iti varuNah; tatra bhavo vAruNah - varuNa refers to one whoseeks Him as his master; bhagavAn is called vAruNa since He is always with thisseeker. The nirukti author gives the following interpretation of SrI BhaTTar'svyAkhyAnam - svAmitvena vRNAneshu sthito vAruNa Iritah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan givesreferences to the following from divya prabandham which convey the thoughtconsistent with this interpretation - "vandAi en manam pugundAi mannininRAi" tirumozhi 1.10.9; "unnaik koNDu ennuL vaittEn" -periAzhvAr tirumozhi 5.4.5). b) SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam is "varuNasyaApatyam vasiThah agastyo vA vAruNah - vAruNa refers to the son of varuNa, viz.vasishTha or agastya, who are both incarnations of bhagavAn c) SrI kRshNa dattabharadvAj gives the interpretation c above: vArayati nivArayati vipadamsvajanAnAm iti vAruNah. 560. vRkshah a) He Who provides shade like a tree (i.e., Heis the Resort) for the wise. b) He Who is firm like a tree. om vRkshAya namah. a) vRksha is derived from the root vRj varaNeto seek or resort to (SrI BhaTTar). SrI BhaTTar points out that like a shadytree, bhagavAn is possessed of all things required by those who resort to Him,and He gives shade to even those who insult Him, just as a tree gives shade toeven those who cut it. SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi points out that bhagavAnis waiting for the devotee to come to Him with His protection always availableto them. So He is called vRksha. SrI BhaTTar gives the following references insupport of his interpretation - nivAsa vRkshah sAdhUnAm ApannAnAm parA gatih -He is the one Resort for the good and the supreme refuge in distress (rAmA.kishkindA. 15.19); vRksha iva stabdho divi tishThatyekah - Like an unmoving andfirm tree He stands in the Heavens - mahA nArA. u. 10.4). SrI v.v. rAmAnujanobserves that there are several who get saved by this "vAsudeva taruc chAyA"or the shade from the tree by name vAsudeva. He also refers us the prabandham -"tan oppAr illppan tandanan tana tAL nizhalE" (tiruvAimozhi 6.3.9). b) SrI Sa'nkara uses the same upanishadpassage we referred to above (vRksha iva stavdho divi tishThatyekah) andinterprets it to mean that bhagavAn is referred to vRksha because He is firmlike a tree. SrI T. S. kRshNamUrti elaborates on this and suggests that thefirmness here refers to bhagavAn being firmly established in the spiritualrealm. SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma in terms of the world itself emergingout of bhagavAn being described as a "tree" in the upanishads - UrdhvamUlam adhah SakhAm Asvattham prAhuravyayam (gItA 15.1); Urdhva mUla avAk Sakhaesha Asvatthah sanAtanah (kaTho. 2.6.1). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives differentexamples from the Sruti-s where the term vRksha is used to refer to a tree (vRkshona pakvah - Rg. 4.20.5), to the sun (kah svid vRksho nishThito madhye arNasah -Rg. 1.182.7), a woman (maryo na yoshAmabhi manyamAnah - Rg. 4.20.5), prakRti (dvAsuparNA sayujA sakhAyA samAnam vRksham parishasvajAte (Rg. 1.164.20),paramAtmA (yasmin vRkshe madhvadah suparNAh niviSante stuvate cAdhi viSve (Rg.1.164.22) etc. Since bhagavAn appears in all these forms of vRksha, His nAma isvRksha.

SrI vAsishTha also gives another anubhavam forthis nAma. vRksha could also mean tearing apart, separating - based on vraSc -chedane - to cut, to tear. The jIvAtmA separates the bodies, bhagavAn separatesthe different jIva-s in His creation, He keeps the starts and the planetsseparated, the sun tears apart the darkness, the tree separates out the fruitsfrom the leaves and the branches, etc. So these are all vRksha-s viz. those thatseparate out different things. BhagavAn has thus manifested Himself in HisvRksha aspect and expanded this world in its variety. SrI vAsishTha proceeds tocomment that one who understands this secret behind bhagavAn who is a vRksha,will succeed in tearing apart from the tree of desire and reach bhagavAn thevRksha from all aspects and dimensions. The dharma cakram writer points out that thelesson to take from this nAma is not to just seek the shade alone from this Treeas duryodhana did, but to really benefit from the fruit from this Tree as arjunadid. If one only wants the temporary shade, then the shade of the tree keepsshifting with time relative to the sun's position, and so seeking the shade inthe form of temporary benefits is not what will lead to permanent Godrealization. Instead of asking for the kRshNa's army and rejecting kRshNa asduryodhana did, one should seek Him as arjuna did, which will then take care ofall the other needs. 561.pushkarAkshah a)He Who has nourishing eyes. b) He Who has beautiful lotus-like eyes. c) He Who pervades all space. d) He Who has the Sun and the Moon as His eyes. e) He Who shines as the light of consciousness when meditated upon in the lotusof the heart. om pushkarAkshAya namah. a) SRI BhaTTar derives the interpretationbased on the root push - pushTau - to nourish. svAmi deSikan describes His eyesin SrI bhagavd dhyAna sopAnam as "svAgata udAra netram" - Lordra'nganAtha's Merciful and welcoming eyes always look at the devotee who isapproaching Him. The beauty of His eyes are again described in SrI daSAvatArastotram as resembling a forest of beautiful lotus flowers - aravinda gahanAnitanvan iva datta kshaNair vIkshaNaih (Slokam 2). b) pushkara refers to a lotus, and aksha meanseyes. So pushkarAkashah refers to One with lotus-like eyes. SrI kRshNadattabhAradvAj gives the SrI rAmAnuja-fame quote "tasya yathA kapyAsampuNDarIkam eva akshiNi" from chAndogyopanishad 1.6.7. c) pushkara also means Universal Space, andakshu means pervading, and SrI cinmayAnanda follows SrI Sa'nkara in interpretingthe nAma as "He Who pervades all space". d) In addition to c), SrI satyadevo vAsishThauses a variant of the above, and also gives the interpretation that bhagavAn hasthe two eyes in space, viz. the sun and the moon (yasya sUryaS cakshuScandramASca punarNavah - atharva. 10.7.33). e) When pushkara is interpreted as theheart-lotus, pushkarAksha can be interpreted as referring to One who illuminesthe heart-lotus when meditated upon (SrI Sa'nkara). The dharma cakram writer,whose name is not given but who is a sanyAsin of the SrI rAmakRshNa tapovanamOrder, observes that for a beginner who wants to practise meditation,concentrating on the heart-lotus is easier than concentrating on the spacebetween the two eye-brows etc. (The later can cause a head-ache for a novice whois not used to meditation!).

562. mahA-manAh a) The Broad-minded. b) He Who has a great (highly capable) mind. c) He Who has a mind (intellect) with unlimited capability om mahA-manase namah a) SrI BhaTTar: Since bhagavAn has a generous,deep, and broad mind towards His devotees, He is called mahA-manAh. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to peria tiru antAdi 53 - un aDiyArkku en Seyvan enrEirutti nI (note the emphasis in enrE isntead of just enru!), and also totiruvAimozhi 9.4.10 - aDiyAn ivan enRu enakku Ar aRuL Seyyum neDiyAn. Theinstance of His feeling forever that He had not done enough to help draupadiafter she cried out for Him and He saved her from being defamed by duryodhanaalso comes to mind. His Nature is that He forgives even the worst of sinnerswhen they surrender to Him - such is His broad-mindedness. b) SrI Sa'nkara: By His mind alone, Heperforms the creation, preservation, and withdrawal of the world such is thecapability of His mind. The karmendriya-s are not involved in this process. SrISa'nkara quotes the vishNu purANa in support - manasaiva jagat-sRshTim samhAramca karoti yah (5.22.15). c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha: BhagavAn is mahAmanAh because He has knowledge which supercedes anyone else's knowledge in thisUniverse, and also as antaryAmI in everything that exists, He knows everythingthere is to know. All great ones pray to Him for knowledge - yAm medhAmdevagaNAh pitarSca upAsate | tayA mAm adya medhayA agne medhAvinam kuru || (yajur.32.14). The dharma cakram writer observes that in the sequence"body, indriya-s, and mind", body is the sthUla or bigger one, andmind is the subtle one or sUkshma. The subtler one is the more capable in thissequence, and without the mind the indriya-s don't function, and without theindriya-s the body does not function. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 60 563.bhagavAn 564.bhagahA 565.nandI or AnandI 566.vanamAlI 567.halAyudhah 568.Adityah 569.jyotir-Adityah 570. sahishNuh 570.gati-sattamah

om bhagavate namah om bhagaghne namah om nandine namah om vanamAline namah om halAyudhAya namah m 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 asreferring to His being worthy of worship because of His essential nature whichis antagonistic to all defects and which is endowed with all auspiciousqualities. The word bhaga has a special meaning which refers to the sixattributes, but SrI BhaTTar does not use this meaning here to interpret thisnAma, which the other vyAkhyAna kartA-s use. Instead, he gives theinterpretation "He Who is worthy of worship". In amarakOSa vyAkhyAnam,there is a reference to "bhajyata iti bhagah", which seems to fit SrIBhaTTar's interpretation for the current nAma. He uses the reference to the sixattributes in interpreting the next nAma "bhagahA". In support of SrIBhaTTar's interpretation for the current nAma, SrI v.v. rAmAnujan givesreference to AzhvAr aruLicceyal: uyarvaRa uyar nalam uDaiyavan (tiruvAimozhi1.1.1), tIdu il SIr nalam tigazh nAraNan; andam il Adiyam bhagavan (tiruvAimozhi1.3.5). b) SrI Sa'nkara and other vyAkhyAna kartA-sinterpret the current nAma based on the word bhaga referring to the sixattributes. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation - bhago j~nAnAdishaTkam vidyate niratiSayam yasmin iti bhagavAn - He in whom the six attributes(j~nAna etc.), which are called bhaga-s, are present in perfection and fullnessis called bhagavAn. SrI Sa'nkara gives reference to vishNu purANam supportinghis interpretation: aiSvaryasya samagrasya vIryasya yaSasah Sriyah| j~nAna vairAgya yogaScaiva shaNNAm bhaga itI'nganA || (V.P.6.5.74)

"He Who possesses the attributes ofaiSvaryam or Lordship, dharma, fame, wealth, j~nAna and vairAgya in full iscalled bhagavAn". There are differing versions of the Sloka, with dharmasyareplacing vIryasya, "j~nAna vairAgyayoScaiva" replaced by "vairAgyasyAthamokshasya", etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the followingbrief explanation of the six attributes referred to above: aiSvarya - Thequality of being the Lord of all - He can control and rule over all things atall 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 vIrammahAvishNum) - yaSah - kIrti; Worthy of praise by all without exception (tasyanAma mahad-yaSah - (tait. AraN. 10.1) - SrI - Wealth; He is One Who hasmahAlakshmi 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 theLord of the three - bhUta bhavya bhavan-nAthah (yah savaj~nah sarvavit yaysj~nAnamayam tapah - muNDako. 1.1.9) - vairAgya - Being unattached to anything (savA ayamAtmA brahma akAma mayah - bRhadA. 4.4.5) c) SrI Sa'nkara gives an alternateinterpretation as well, also based on another Slokam from SrI vishNu purANam:utpattim pralayam caiva bhUtAnAm Agatim gatim | vetti vidyAm avidyAm ca sa vAcyobhagavAn iti || (V.P. 6.5.78) "He is named bhagavAn who knows the originand the end, the arrival and the exit, of all beings, and also vidyA and avidyA". 564. bhagahA a) He Who is possessed of auspiciousqualities. b) He Who gets rid of the wealth etc. from everyone during praLaya. om bhagaghnenamah. a) As was pointed out in the last para, SrIBhaTTar's interpretation for bhagahA uses the meaning of bhaga referring to thesix attributes, and here he quotes the same vishNu purANam reference that SrISamkara uses for the last nAma (VP 6.5.74). The literal interpretation is "bhagaSabdyAn 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 hAis "to kill, to destroy" - e.g., vIrahA. But SrI BhaTTar uses themeaning "hanti - goes" in his interpretation. SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj also adopts the same interpretation - bhagam mAhAtmyam jihIte gacchatiprApnoti iti bhagahA. b) SrI Samkara uses the meaning of hA - tokill, and interprets the nAma as meaning that He is the Remover of all thingssuch as wealth from everyone at the time of pralaya - aiSvaryAdikam samhArasamaye hanti iti bhagahA. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different elaborationof this idea - bhaga represents the vastness of things, and hA represents thecontraction of this vastness. Thus He is called bhaga-hA because He reduces thevastness of His creation by contracting it all into Himself at the time ofpralaya. svAmi cinmayAnanda points out that in this sense, it is not"destruction" of things, but an absorption of things back into Himselfthat initially came from Him. The dharma cakram writer observes that theimpermanence of things like wealth, fame, etc. is what is being imparted to ushere, and the more we understand this and remove our attachment to these, thecloser we would have understood the significance of this nAma. 565. nandIor AnandI a) He Who has nanda as His father. b) He Who is ever blissful by Nature, and also because of His prosperity and thesix 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, andSrI Samkara gives the latter nAma. In both the interpretations, SrI BhaTTarinterprets the nAma as referring to balarAma as the samkarshaNa form of bhagavAn,and SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as AnandI, referring to bhagavAn in HiskRshNa incarnation. Others interpret the nAma as nandI or AnandI, both referringto Lord kRshNa. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma nandI asreferring to balarAma whose father is nandagopa. BhagavAn who was samkarshaNa inthe vyUha form took incarnation as balarAma in the vibhava form with nanadagopaas His father. SrI cinmayAnanda chooses to interpret the same as referring toLord 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, orbecause His Nature is Bliss - sukha svarUpatvAt AnandI, or sarvAbhih sampadbhihsamRddahtvAt AnandI. c) SrI BhaTTar interprets the term AnandI torefer to balarAma who made Himself and all around Him happy in AyarpADi. Thedharma cakram writer uses the same sense and interprets the nAma to refer tokRshNa who made Himself and all around Him happy in AyarpADi. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives theintepretation - nandati samRdhyati iti nandI - He Who gives delight to Hisdevotees. SrI cinmayAnanda observes that those who move towards Him in puresurrender come to share His divine nature of All-Bliss. The term AnandI can alsobe interpreted to mean this same idea. The dharma cakram writer points out thesignificance of the nAma AnandI - that we are inherently blissful, but just asthose who have eyes can choose to close their eyes and suffer in darkness, weclose our eyes to j~nAna and suffer in misery and distress. The means to get outof this state of suffering is to realize bhagavAn's and our true svarUpam. Thisrealization can be attained only through His grace, and so worshipping Him withdevotion is the only means for everlasting happiness. The gopi-s of AyarpADiwere happy always because they did not have any other thought except the thoughtof Him, and so they were devoid of any worldly thought. The significance of thisnAma is to teach us that the means to true happiness is to immerse ourselves inHis 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 adornedby the vyjayantI Garland, which is the presiding deity over the pa'nca bhUta-sand 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 subtleelements 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 offlowers that grow in the forest. For the purpose of making it, five differentcolors are used to string the garland, representing the five tanmAtra-s. Thesymbolic meaning is that He wears this Universe with its diverse variety like agarland around His neck. The dharma cakram writer observes that we experiencethe five tanmAtra-s through the five j~nAnendriya-s or sense organs. This nAmateaches us that we should

surrender or dedicate the five senses to Him andworship Him with devotion, instead of diverting them to the sensuous enjoymentof this world. 567. halAyudhah One Who has the plough in His hand. om halAydhAya namah. SrI Samkara gives the explanation - halamAyudham asya iti halAyudhah. This thus refers to the incarnation as balarAma.SrI BhaTTar points out that bhagavAn works like an agriculturist with a ploughin 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 previousbirth 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 vaishNavadharma 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 ofdaksha) born as aditi in this world. You are the mother eternal of the world. Iconfer favors on you". b) SrI Samkara interprets the nAma asreferring to bhagavAn's vAmana incarnation as aditi's son - adityAm kaSyapAtvAmana rUpeNa jAta Adityah. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives reference to thefollowing, but the source is not identified: "bhAdramAse site pakshe dvAdaSyAmSubhavAsare | kaSyapAt aditer-mAtuh bhagavAn vAmanah abhavat || c) SrI BhaTTar gives the alternateinterpretation: "A" varNAt Atah ityah - prApyah iti Adityah - He Whois realized by the mystic letter "A" which is the bIja mantra forsamkarshaNa. d) SrI cinmayAnanda uses the same basis as c,and interprets At to mean "from vishNu", and ityah to mean "to beattained", and interpreta Adityah to mean "He from Whom moksha isobtained". The next segment is interpreted by SrI BhaTTar as pertaining tothe incarnation of bhagavAn as nArAyaNa. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan points out thatwhile the nAma "nArAyaNa" is very special, it also refers to one ofthe incarnations He took (nara and nArAyaNa forms) in badri. 569.jyotir-Adityah a) The Resplendent Aditya. b) He Who resides in the disc of the sun. c) He Who glows like the sun

om jyotir-AdityAya namah. a) His tejas is such that it makes the sunlook like a dark spot by comparison. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "divyAScaryajyotir-mayatvAt apUrvah jyotir-Adityah. He gives reference to mahAbhArata:"nishprabhANi ca tejAmsi brahmA caiva AsanAt cyutah" (SAnti. 344.90)"When nara and nArAyaNa began to fight with bhava (rudra), all theluminaries became void of their luminosity, and brahma too slipped from hisseat". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the references todivya prabandham: nandAda kozhum SuDar (tirumozhi 1.10.9), umbar vAnavar Adiyamjyoti. b) He is the cause of the brilliance of thesun (dhyeyah sadA savitRmaNDala madhyavartI nArAyaNah sarasijAsana sannivishTah).He is jyoti of the Aditya or the sun - the antaryAmi of the sun. SrI Samkara'svyAkhyAnam is: jyotishi savitRmaNdale sthitah, jyotir-Adityah. c) SrI kRshNa bhAradvAj gives theinterpretation - dyotate dIpyati iti jyotih | jyotih Aditya iva itijyotirAdityah - He Who shines like the sun. He gives the following support:"vedAhametam purusham mahAntam | Aditya varNam tamasah parastAt || (SvetAS.Upa. 3.8), and "sarvasya dhAtAram acintya rUpam Aditya varNam tamasahparastAt (gItA 8.9). 570 sahishNuh a) He Who is endowed with enormous patience. b) He Who forgives. c) He Who suffers patiently for us with perfect detachment. d) He Who conquers His foes. e) He Who willingly accepts the offerings of His devotees. f) He Who can bear the opposites - like heat and cold. om sahishNave namah. This nAma has occurred before as nAma 146. Seethe write-up under that nAma as well. a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "aparAdhasahanAt sahishNuh" - Because He puts up with all kinds of aparAdha-s. SrIBhaTTar refers to the "fight that bhagavAn had with Siva", andbhagavAn's putting up with Siva's aparAdham and forgiving him after he wasdefeated. It appears that the reference here is to the yuddha where Siva triedto support bANAsura against bhagavAn. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives other instanceswhere bhagavAn has displayed His enormous patience. He put up with the enormousabusive language from SiSupAla - kETpAr Sevi Sudu kIzhmai vaSavugaLE vaiyumpazham pagaivan SiSupAlan tATpAl aDainda tanmaiyan (tiruvAimozhi 7.5.3); palapala nAzha'ngaL Sollip pazhitta SiSupAlan tannai alaivalaimai tavirtta azhagan (periAzh.4.3.5). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference toSrImad rAmAyaNam - kshmayA pRthivI samah - Lord rAma's patience is like that ofMother Earth herself, who puts up with all our abuses and still does notretaliate. Another of his very interesting observations is that He was born tothe likes of devaki, aditi, kausalyA etc., and so inherited the patience fromthem (recall the life histories of the three!), and displayed it in each of Hisincarnations. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha notes that patience isbhagavAn's Nature, His dharma, His conduct - sahate tat Silah, tad-dharmah, tad-sAdhuh.His dharma of patience is inculcated in every aspect of His creation,

includingthe structure of the body which is provided with a skeleton that bears theweight and structure of the rest of the body without collapsing etc. b) Under the vyAkhyAna for nAma 146, SrIBhaTTar eloquently describes bhagavAn's guNa of forgiving the apacAra of Hisdevotees when they surrender to Him: "prAk, Urdhvam ca, sa'ncitAnAm, buddhyA,abuddhyA, sakalakaraNaih, sarvadA, sarvathA ca, pracIyamAnAnAm, vidhi-nisheda Sasana atila'nghanAtmanAm, sAdhAraNAnAm, asAdhAraNAnAm ca, svAvaj~nA-nindAnInAm, sarvamsahena svenApi dus-sahAnAm, sva-bhakta vishayANAm ca, anavadhikAnAm aparAdhAnAm, sahishNuh" "He forgives the accumulated sins thatwere committed in the past or to be committed in the future, sins committedconsciously or unconsciously by all the organs of sense at all times and in allways, sins committed by not observing the SAstric injunctions or by doing actsforbidden by the SAstra-s, sins that are common and uncommon, sins committed byinsulting Him and abusing Him, as well as the sins against His owndevotees". In SaraNAgati gadyam, SrI bhagavad rAmAnujalists some of the enormous apacAra-s that we all commit, and asks Hisforgiveness on our behalf. "mano vAk kAyaih anAdikAla pravRtta anantaakRtyakaraNa akaraNa bhagavad-apacAra bhAgavata-apacAra asahya-apacAra-rUpanAnA-vidha-asahya apacArAn Arabdha kAryAn anArabdha kAryAn kRtAn kRiyamANAnkarishyamANAnSca sarvAn aSeshatah kshamasva" - "apacAra-s performedthrough thought, word and deed, sins committed through the infinite number ofbirths, the infinite sins accrued from performing acts that are forbidden andfrom not performing karma-s that are prescribed, the apacAra-s committed towardsHim and towards His devotees (bhAgavata-s), all the varieties and shades of sinsthat we commit that can't possibly be tolerated and forgiven, those that havealready begun to fructify and those are still to take their effects, the sinsthat we have committed in the past, those that we are actively committing now,and those that we will commit in the future" bhagavAn forgives all thesewithout any left-over IF WE UNCONDITIONALLY SURRENDER TO HIM. This is the basicconcept of prapatti. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to divyaprabandham - "tan aDiyAr tiRattagattut tAmariyAL Agilum Sidagu uraikkumElen aDiyAr adu SeyyAr SeidArEl nanRu SeidAt enbar pOlum (periAzh. 4.9.2)",to show the magnanimity of His forgiving nature. Interpretations b, c, and d arecovered in the earlier write-up for nAma 146. e) SrI kRshnadatta bhAradvAj gives theinterpretation - "sahitum tRptim anubhavitum bhakta upahRtaih phalAdibhihSilam yasya iti sahishNuh", and "sodhum tRptim anubhavitum svajasevayASilam asya iti sahishNuh", which signify that He willingly accepts and issatisfied by even the simple offerings such as fruits by His devotees, and bythe services that they offer. Recall "patram pushpam phalam toyam"in SrImad bhagavadgItA (9.26). f) SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam for the currentinstance of this nAma is that He is capable of putting up with opposites likeheat and cold - dvandvAni SitoshNAdIni sahata iti sahishNuh. For bhagavAn, thereis no difference between these opposites, since He is unaffected by any of thesesuch as happiness vs. sorrow. SrI anantakRshNa SAstri observes that this wasvividly demonstrated by bhagavAn in His intense penance as nara nArAyaNa inbadari. 570.gati-sattamah

a) The best instructor in the path of dharma. b) The Best among the refuges to be sought. c) The Ultimate Support and the Greatest of all beings. om gati-sttamAya namah. The several ways in which this nAma has beeninterpreted correspond to: sad-gatih tamah; gatih sattamah ca; sat tamahgatih; etc. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam - sa evaparama dharmAdhvadesikatvena gati-sattamah - gatau pratyayita tamah - He is theBest Instructor there is for dharma (He gave us the gItA, the veda-s, etc.). SrIv.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAimozhi which conveys the same idea: ARRanalla vagai kATTum ammAn (4.5.5); "nambanE! navinREtta vallavargaL nAthanE!(periAzhvAr tiru. 5.1.9); neRi vASal tAnEyAi ninRAn (mudal tiru. 4) - where neRimeans the path of dharma. b) SrI Samkara interprets this nAma asrepresenting the two attributes of bhagavAn - gatih and sattamah He is thepath and He is the Best - gatiSca asau sattamaSca iti gati-sattamah. He is theultimate resort and support of all (gatih), and He is the greatest of all beings(sat-tamah). c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the interpretation that Heis the best among the objects/places that are to be sought. This is because Heis forgiving and patient (previous two nAma-s), and so He will not ignore thosewho have sinned, and so He is the easiest path and therefore the best path inthis sense also. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation: "gantavyasthAne gatiprayogah - The term gatih is used in the sense of the place worthy ofreaching". He further adds: "SrIman nArAyaNa caraNAvinda sAnnidhyamevasavottamam gantavyam". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also echoes the sameinterpretation gati Sabdena iha gatirASrayah gRhyate, tena gatirASritAnAmSreshThatamo gatisattamah. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 61

572.su-dhanvA 573.khaNDa-paraSuh 574.dAruNah 575.draviNa-pradah 576.divi-spRk 577.sarva-dRk 578.vyAsah 579:vAcas-patih 580.a-yonijah

om om om om om om om om om

su-dhanvane namah khaNDa-paraSave namah dAruNAya namah draviNa-pradAya namah divi-spRSe namah sarva-dRSe namah om vyAsAya namah om vAcaspataye namah a-yonijAya namah

572. su-dhanvA He Who has a splendid bow. om su-dhanvane namah The literal meaning is "One who has a splendidbow". The vyAkhyAna kartA-shave different anubhavam-s in interpreting the nAma based on this meaning. SrI BhaTTar gives the instance of the fight that ensued between the deva-s and the asura-s as a result of the distribution of the nectar, and the resulting demonstration of the splendor of His bow in bringing about the end to that conflict. SrI Samkara's interpretation is: Sobhanam indriyAdi-mayam SAr'nga dhanuh asya asti iti su-dhanvA - the great bow in His hand represents His being the controller and supporter of the indriya-s. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to SrI vishNu purANam 1.22.69, wherein reference is made to the significance of the dhanus in His hand bhUtAdim indiryAdim ca dvidhA aha'mkAram ISvarah | bibharti Samkha rUpeNa Sar'ngarUpeNa ca sthitam || BhagavAn's dhanus symbolizes the senses (the eyes and the rest), and He supports the ego or awareness due to the senses (indriya ahamkAra), represented by the SAr'nga bow in His hand. (The other verses inSrI vishNu purANam continueto describe how bhagavAn is the source and supporter of everything in the Universe as represented by the different Ayudha-s and aspects of His Form, and thus gives one mode or representation of a way of meditating upon Him in the forms that are more easy for the mind to grasp than to meditate on anabstract truth).

References in divya prabandham that convey the sense of this nAma are (from SrI v.v. rAmAnujan): tadavarai tOL cakrapANi SAra'nga vil SevaganE! (periAzhvAr 5.4.4), paramETTi, pavittiran, SAr'ngam ennum vil ANDAn (tiruppallANDu). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the analogy of the function of bhagavAn inprotecting the world from the asura-s with His dhanus, just as the bow-shapedeye-brow protects the eye of everyone from unwanted foreign objects. 573. khaNDa-paraSuh He with the broken axe. Om khaNDa-paraSave namah. Khanu - bhedana = avadhAraNa (khaDi - bhedane- to break), and param SRNAti itiparaSuh Satram, together make the nAma khaNDa paraSuh - One with the broken axe(SrI satyadevo vAsishTha). Alternatively, one can look at it as khaNDayatiSatrUn iti khaNDah, khaNDah paraSuh yasya iti khaNDa paraSuh - He whose axepunishes or destroys the enemies (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj) . SrI BhaTTar quotes the incident involving bhagavAn's fight with rudra, where He discharged the axe which became broken. So bhagavAn saysHe is known as "One with thebroken axe". atha rudra vighAtArtham ishIkAm nara uddharan | mantraiSca samyuyojASu so'bhavat paraSur-mahAn || kshipataSca sahasA rudre khaNDanam prApavAnstathA | tato'ham khaNDa-paraSuh tatah paraSu-kahNDanAt || (mahAbhA. Santi. 362.49) "Then for the destruction of rudra, nara took a reed and by the recitation of mantras gave new power to it. At once it became an immense axe. It was thrown on rudra with great force. Butthen it broke. Becauseof the breaking of the axe, from that time I came to be known as "khaNDa paraSuh - the Lord with the broken axe". SrI Samkara interprets the nAma in terms of the paraSurAma incarnation - where, as Jamadagni's son, He punished His foes. Alternatively,SrI Samkara suggeststhat the nAma can be taken as a-khaNDa paraSuh, He who wields an invincible axe - the nAma being given as a-kahaNDA-paraSuh in this case. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes irAmAnuSa nURRantAdi-56 which supports theinterpretation in terms of the paraSurAma incarnation - kOkkula mannaraimUvezhukAl oru kUr mazhuvAl pOkkiya dEvanaip pORRum punitan, in referring tobhagavad rAmAnuja. Another reference is to tiruvAimozhi 6.2.10: ninRila'ngu muDiyinAi irupattOr kAl araSu kaLai kaTTa venRi nIr mazhuvA. 574. dAruNah a) The Splitter. b) He who is merciless to those who deviate from the path of virtue. Om dAruNAya namah.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "bAhyAbhyantara ari dAraNAt dAruNah - As indicated above, He splits into pieces (destroys) the enemies both internal and external. So He is called dAruNah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference totiruvAimozhi 9.9.2 - igal iDattu aSurargaL kURRam, and to Siriya tiru maDal 41 - avaTku mUttOnai ven-narakam SerA vagaiyE Silai kunittAn. SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is san-mArga virodhinAm dAruNatvAt dAruNah - He who is harsh and merciless towards those who follow the evil path. SrI cinmayAnanda gives a niceexplanation that when He punishes anyone, it is for the ultimate good of the one who is being punished. "Up to a point the Lord is All-Mercy, but when He finds out that noother method can save theindividual, like a surgeon at the operation theater, He appears to be relentless - merciless". The next few nAma-s are being interpreted by SrI BhaTTar in terms of bhagavAn'svyAsa incarnation. 575. draviNa-pradah The Bestower of wealth. Om draviNa-pradAya namah. Here SrI BhaTTar refers to the wealth in the form of the SAstra-s - He gave the substance of all the SAstra-s and their meaning. ThedhyAna Sloka on vyAsa is: vahan vai vAma hastena sarva SastrArtha samcayam | dakshiNena ca SAstrArthAn AdiSamScayathA sthithAn || "vyAsa holds in his left hand the collection of all the SAstra-s and their purport, and propounds by his right hand (the upadeSa mudrA) the true import of all the SAstra-s". nammAzhvAr calls bhagavAn"paNbuDai vEdamparanda payan" in tiruvAimozhi 6.6.5. SrI Samkara interprets the nAma more generically - "The Bestower of thewealth as desired by the devotee". SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastriexplains that draviNam derives from the concept that it is wealth that is fluid- drava - that can be used right away as needed. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derivesthe meaning for draviNa as wealth from dravati -gacchati iti draviNam dhanam -that which never stays in one place. He gives the following references from theSruti in support of the interpretation for the nAma: dadhAti ratnam draviNam ca dASushe agne sakhye mA rishamA vayam tava (Rg. 1.94.14) yatkAmAs te juhumas tanno astu vayam syAma patayo rayINAm (yajur. 40.16) The dharma cakram writer has written his explanation for this nAma in Vol. 45.5of dharma cakram, the beauty of which is lost somewhat in translation. Hedescribes wealth as of two kinds: preyas and Sreyas. Preyas is that which causes priyam or worldly satisfaction. Sreyasis that which gives spiritual satisfaction. To the first category belongthe material wealth, the official position, the wife, the husband, children,etc. preyas gives problems at one stage or the other. Sreyas removes all problems and sufferings, and leads to mokshamultimately. After getting the wealth of Sreyas, there is nothing more toget. Preyas is transient wealth, and Sreyas is permanent wealth. BhagavAn is ever ready to give either of the wealths one seeks, and mostgo after the transient worldly pleasures, and very few seek Sreyas.

There is the vedic story of naciketa, who requested the wealth of Sreyas from yama, and yama offered to give him the preyas instead. naciketa told yama that he did not need yama's help for preyas, because he could get that by his own effort; yama's help was needed onlyfor Sreyas, since this is somethingthat cannot be obtained by one's own effortalone. The lesson to take for us is that we should pray to bhagavAn for Sreyas, since this is the wealth that we cannot attain by our own effort and without His Grace. This is the tAtparyam behind this nAma. 576. divi-spRk He Who touches the skies. a) through His knowledge b) by His being not only in the form of this Universe, but also far beyond it. c) By His vAmana incarnation. d) By His viSva rUpa revealed to arjuna. e) By His being the antaryAmi for sUrya and the other planets. Om divi-spRSe namah. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as referring to the unbounded extentof Hisknowledge. By His para vidyA (brAhmic or Supreme knowledge), Hetouches themystic nature of His Reality as it is in the paramapada. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAimozhi 3.1.9 - mazhu~ngAdaj~nAnamE paDaiyAgatozhumbAyArkkaLittAn. b) It can also mean that He resides in His para form in the regions farbeyondthe skies. The Sruti declares that one-fourth of His form is inthe form ofthis Universe, and three-fourths is beyond the Universe(tripAdsyAmRtam divi -chAndogyopanishad 3.12.6) (SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri). c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the nAma as divah spRk, andexplains that inthe vAmana incarnation, bhagavAn touches the skieswhile measuring the three feetof land that were promised to Him bymahAbali vAmanAvatAre SrI bhagavAn svacaraNa kamalena vardhamAnenadivam pasparSa. d) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that He revealed His Universal formto arjuna as divah spRk. e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives references to the Sruti to interpret theassociation with divi as referring to the sun. vAtasya nu mahimAnam rathasya rujanneti stanayannasya ghoshah | divi-spRgyAtyaruNAni kRNvannuto eti pRthivyA reNumasyan || (Rg. 10.168.1) He points out that the terms divi-kshayam, divi-kshitA, divi-carAh,divi-jAh,divi-yajah, divi-yonih, divi-Sritah, divishadah, divi-sadam,etc., are usedrepeatedly in the veda-s to refer to the sun. So heinterprets the nAmadivi-spRk as referring to bhagavAn as the antaryAmiof the sun and all the graha-sthat are in the skies. 577. sarva-dRk The All-seer.

a) He who sees everything - the totality of para tattvam.. b) He who is in the form of knowledge of all forms. c) He who is the Creator of all forms that can see under different conditions. Om sarva-dRSe namah. a) sarvasya drashTA sarva-drk - He who has realized the totality ofthepara tattvam. The nirukti description is "sarva darSanAtsarva-dRk". sarva-dRk means He who is Omniscient - He who seeseverything, He who is the eyeof all. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan givesreference to tiruvAimozhi 3.10.10 -taLarvinRiyE enRum e~ngum parandatani mudal j~nAnam. b) sarva-dRk can mean "j~nAnam, knowledge". He who is in theform of knowledge of all forms ( P. SamkaranArAyaNan - BhavAn's Publications). c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha elaborates on His being able to seeeverything, fromanother viewpoint. He points out that bhagavAn hascreated all thedifferent creations that can see in water, in air, inspace, and even indarkness. He has spread Himself in the Universe indiverse forms which areendowed with bodies to suit these differentconditions, and equipped with indirya-swhich make them function wellunder these different circumstances. Ants cansmell from very faraway, there are birds that can hear from a long distanceaway, thecamel can drink water and store it for a long time, etc. 578. vyAsah The Arranger. a) He who arranged the veda-s into its four divisions, the purANa-s into 18, etc. b) He who divided time as well as His creation into its varioussub-divisions(e.g., day and night, Sukla paksha and kRshNa paksha, manfrom woman, sUrya fromcandra, etc.) c) He whose ornaments (like kaustubha) shine distinctly. Om vyAsAya namah. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that because bhagavAn divided theveda thatwas originally in a single form into its four divisions (Rg,yajus, sAma, andatharva), He has the name vyAsa - vibhajanstu caturdhAvai vedamekam trikAlavititi vyAsah. This was done by bhagavAn in Hisincarnation as vyAsa just tomake it easier for people whose knowledgediminishes in accordance with thechanges of the four yuga-s. SrI Samkara gives the interpretation in terms of the division of theveda-s,and also refers to the division of the purANa-s - anyAni capurANAni vyastAnianena iti vyAsah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derviation "vyasyante - pRthakkriyanteanena iti vyAsah - He by whom things are separated or dividedis vyAsa. He then suggests that the nAma can be interpreted based bhagavAn being the Onewho separates day from night, dakshiNAyana fromuttarAyaNa, Sukla paksha fromkRshNa paksha etc. He also separatessUrya from candra, and for that mattermakes this world function by itsvarious divisions. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives yet another dimension to theinterpretation - (yasyakaustubhAdIni

AbharaNAni viSeshena asantidIpyanti sa vyAsah) - He whoseornaments like the kaustubha shinedistinctively is known as vyAsah. SrI Samkara and the others who follow his vyAkhyAna have interpretedthe abovetwo nAma-s together as one nAma - sarva-dRk vyAsah. It cansimply mean"The omniscient vyAsa". SrI cinmayAnanda has given perhapsthebest interpretation for the single nAma- He who creates manyomniscient men ofwisdom. One who encourages the spread of knowledgeand thus turns out many men ofwisdom and clearer understanding of lifeand the world. 579 : vAcas-patih The Master of words. (See also 218) Om vAcaspataye namah. This nAma has occurred earlier as nAma 218. Please refer to Slokam 23forthe interpretation provided therein. SrI BhaTTar interpretsthecurrent occurrence as referring to vyAsa's authorship of themahAbhArata - Heis the Master of words which are in the form of thefifth veda - i.e.,mahAbhArata. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference totiruvAimozhi 5.6.8 -"uraikkinRa munivarum yAnE". SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as "vAco vidyAyAh patih vAcaspatih"-The Master of all learning. He interprets this nAma along withthenext one together as one nAma - vAcaspatir-ayonijah - He who is theMaster ofall learning, and who is not born in a mother's womb. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri comments that one who has mastered the wordsalso does notwaste words, and is precise. This certainly applies tobhagavAn giving usall the instructions for all aspects of lifeconcisely in the form of the veda-s,the brahma sUtra-s etc. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that the nAma means "One whoiseloquent in championing the Supreme Law of life". It almost seemslikehe had gItAcAryan in his mind. Some people have interpreted the term vAcah to refer to sarasvati, andthusconclude that vAcaspatih refers to brahma, the pati of sarasvati. BhagavAn beingthe antaryAmi of brahma will justify thisinterpretation. 580. a-yonijah The Unborn. Om ayonijAya namah. In SrI BhaTTar's interpretation of the current group of nAma-s asreferring tothe vyAsa incarnation, he explains the current nAma asreferring to vyAsa beingcreated out of sound by bhagavAn as sArasvataatha bhUyo jagat sRshTvA "bho" Sabdena anuvAdayan | sArasvatIm uccacAra tatra sArasvato'bhavat || (mahAbhA.Santi.350.37) SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the support from peria tirumozhi 4.3.2 piRappoDu mUppu onRillavan. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that bhagavAn created the sun, and wecan easilyperceive that the sun

was not born like the normal humans,and so it is easy toperceive that bhagavAn is a-yonijah. SrI Samkara and others following his interpretation have interpretedthe abovetwo nAma-s as one nAma vAcaspatir-ayonijah - He who is theMaster of words andwho is unborn. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 62

581. 582. 583. 584. 585. 586. 587. 588. 589. 590. 591. 592.

tri-sAmA sAma-gah sAma nirvANam bheshajam bhishak sannyAsa-kRt Samah SAntah nishThA SAntih parAyaNam

om om om om om

tri-sAmne namah sAmagAya namah sAmne namah nirvANAya namah bheshajAya namah

om om om om om om om

bhishaje namah sanyAsa-kRte namah SamAya namah SAntAya namah nishThAyai namah SAntaye namah parAyaNAya namah

581. tri-sAmA - He who is propounded by the three-fold sAma veda. om tri-sAmne namah. There are three important kinds of sAma veda - bRhat, rathantara, and vAma-devya, all of which sing His praise. This nAma signifies this aspect of bhagavAn. These three branches are together called deva-vrata. Of the four veda-s (rG, yajus, sAma, and atharva), sAma veda is the one that has the praise of the various deities as its principal theme. It is musical to hear when it is chanted with the proper intonations. BhagavAn declares in SrImad bhagavad gItA - vedAnAm sAmavedo'smi (10.22) - Among the veda-s, I am the sAma veda. Thus it is a vibhUti of bhagavAn Himself. SrI cinmayAnanda gives a slightly different interpretation - He indicates that among the singers who praise Him through the sAma gAna are three who are well-known- deva-s, vrata-s and sAman-s. 582. sAma-gah a) The singer of sAma. b) He who is praised by the sAma. a) Om sAma-gAya namah.

BhagavAn Himself sings the sAma in His svAnubhavam and so He is called sAma-gah. The mukta-s in paramapadam sing the sAma in bhagavad-anubhavam - etat sAma gAyannAste (taiitirIya.). SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives the following reference which sings the greatness of the sAma veda He who knows the sAma veda, is the knower of brahman Rco ha yo veda sa veda devAn yajUgumshi yo veda sa veda sarvAn | sAmAni yo veda sa veda sarvam || A couple of writers have emphasized the role of the music in the power of sAma veda in bringing about the brahmAnubhavam. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the second explanation - sAmabhih mantraih gIyate iti sAma-gah. 583. sAma a) He who removes the sins of those who sing about Him. b) He who is in the form of the sAma veda Himself.

c) He who is soft and sweet. Om sAmne namah. a) SrI BhaTTar derives the meaning from the root sho (so) -anta-karmaNi - to destroy, to bring an end to. (pApam) syati iti sAma - He who brings an end to the sins of those who sing about Him. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to tiruvAimozhi 3.6.2 - Savam uLLana nIkkuvAnai, pAva nASanai, pa~ngayat taDak kaNNanaip paravuminO; naraga nASan (periAzhvAr tirumozhi 4.4.4). b) SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi interprets the nAma as referring to His being the sAma veda Himself vedAnAm sAma vedo'smi (gItA 10.22). SrI cinmayAnanda observes that this is to express the very sacredness of the veda itself. c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri uses the meaning of sAma in the sense of sAma, dAna, bheda, and daNDa, and interprets the word sAma as referring to His being soft and sweet. The means which He used to try to urge duryodhana to follow the path of dharma is the sAma mArga - that of being soft and gentle in His persuasion. He gives the support from the Sruti - yat khalu sAdhu tat sAmetyAcakshase (chAndogya. 2.1.1). The dharma cakram writer observes that sAma vedam is so called because of its sweetness and softness. 584. nirvANam The Bliss. a) He who is the cause of Bliss to His devotees b) He who is the embodiment of Bliss Himself Om nirvANAya namah. nirvANam refers to Absolute Bliss. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that vANam refers to body, and the state of being beyond the 'I' and "mine" feeling associated with the body, is nir-VANam. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is called nirvANa because He is the cause of attainment of the state of Bliss by those whose sins have been eliminated as stated in the previous nAma. The state when even the wind that blows is not felt by the body is the state of nirvANa, where there is total disassociation with the identity of the body with the self. The dharma cakram writer points out that suffering is of three kinds - bodily, mental, and that associated with a~jnAna. Animals have bodily suffering, most humans have bodily and mental sufferings, and those among humans who try to realize the self also have the suffering from aj~nAna. Thus, the more evolved a being, the more the causes for suffering. One who transcends all these sufferings is the one who realizes Absolute Bliss. As long as the animals have no hunger and no disease, they are happy. But a human who is free from hunger and disease, all the same makes himself unhappy by pursuit of misery in the form of worldly pleasures. These include the inability to dominate others, the inability to get whatever they want for their materials pleasures, the desire for material wealth, the desire for success in everything they undertake, and on and on. It is when humans try to satisfy the five indirya-s through external means that they invite and incur suffering and sorrow. It is by getting to the state of nirvANa (the total disassociation of the identify of the body with the self) that one starts to overcome this kind of suffering. This can only happen by meditating on bhagavAn who is the embodiment of nirvANa. This is the lesson to take from this

nAma. 585. bheshajam The Remedy. Om bheshajAya namah. He is the only remedy for the otherwise incurable disease of samsAra. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the bhIshma stava rAja (mahAbhArata): nArAyaNAt Rshi-gaNAh tathA siddhA mahoragAh | devA devarshayaScaiva yam viduh duhkha bheshajam || "The groups of Rshi-s, siddha-s, the serpent-gods, and godly seers came to know of this medicine for the disease of samsAra from nArAyaNa". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to mUnRAm tiruvantAdi (4) marundum poruLum amudamum tAnE; and to peria tiruvantAdi 62 - na~ngaL piNikkAm peru marundu. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri's anubhavam is that He is the medicine that leads to nirvANa, the tender and soothing medicine for the disease of samsAra. The dharma cakram writer observes that for self -realization one needs good bodily health but more importantly good mental health. For both of these, one should lead a life of control of the senses and control of the mind. Just as we take medicine for rectifying the illness of the body, we should resort to the medicine of meditating on Him so that we can avoid the disease of the mind. Health of the mind is something that most of us don't worry about, but this is very important for attaining Bliss. Chanting His nAma and meditating on Him are the means to maintain the health of the mind; hence He is the Medicine. This is the lesson to take from this nAma. 586. bhishak The Physician. Om bhishaje namah. BhagavAn is the expert Physician who treats the disease of the fear of samsAra in His devotees through the teaching of the brahma vidyA in the form of the gItA and other upanishads. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to the divya prabandham - maruttuvanAi ninRa mA-maNi vaNNA.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that the mantra "nirvANam bheshajam bhishak" should be recited by those who seek relief from diseases. That bhagavAn is the first and foremost of the physicians is supported in the taittirIya upanishad - prathamo daivyo bhishak (4.5.1). The dharma cakram draws analogy between the physician who treats the diseases of the body, and bhagavAn who treats the diseases of the mind. Unlike the bodily cure which is transient and temporary, the treatment that bhagavAn gives by removing the aj~nAna or ignorance is permanent. This is the spirit with

which one should meditate on this nAma. SrI cinmayAnanda gives an alternate explanation - that this nAma can refer to bhagavAn in His form as dhanvantari, the Deity of Medicine in the Indian system of Medicine. Since He appeared in this form as the Lord of Physicians, He is called "The Physician - bhishak". 587. sannyAsa-kRt a) He Who cuts asunder the bonds when desires are renounced. b) The Institutor of the samnyAsa ASrama for the attainment of moksha. c) He Who shows the path of SaraNAgati to His devotee. Om sannyAsa-kRte namah.

a) SrI BhaTTar interprets this nAma in relation to the previous nAma, and explains how bhagavAn treats those with the affliction of the bondage of samsAra. "sAttvikena sanyAsena rajas-tamasau kRtanti iti sannyAsa-kRt - He who cuts the bonds in the form of rajo and tamo guNa-s in those who perform all their acts in a disinterested manner with a spirit of renunciation of desire for the fruit. Another name for this is also sAttvika-tyAga - The abandonment of all the fruits of any action we perform, and assignment of these benefits to Him and Him alone; in other words, every act that we perform should be for His benefit and His pleasure. This is the gist of karma yoga that is enunciated in the gItA. The word san-nYasa here signifies surrender of the burden to the Master, and this surrender alone is the remedy for samsAra. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the Sruti "vedAna vij~nAna suniScitArthAs-sanyAsa yogAt parimucyanti sarve | te brahma loke tu parAntakAle parAmRtat parimucyanti sarve |" Those who have acquired the true knowledge of tattva, hita and purushArtha through the study of the upanishads, do yoga by doing acts renouncing the desire for fruits and giving up the idea that they are the chief agents of the acts. By this process their minds become pure and they practice bhakti yoga. At the end of their last body they attain the brahman and become free from all karma. b) SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is "mokshArtham caturtham ASramam kRtavAn iti snanyAsa-kRt" - He Who instituted the fourth ASrama of samnyAsa for the attainment of moksha. c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri brings out the point that while samnyAsa - the surrendering of the burden for our acts and the fruits thereof to Him - is the only means for relieve from samsAra, it is also He alone who shows this path of samnyAsa to His devotee; in other words, He is the One who leads His devotee to perform samnyAsa. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj echoes this when he gives the following interpretation for the nAma "samyak nyAso nikshepah samnyAsah shad-vidha SaraNAgateh ekatamam a~ngam Atma nikshepaNAm adheyam | tam karoti draDhayati bhakta-hRdaye iti samnyAsa-kRt.

Thus, bhagavAn is samnyAsa-kRt in the sense that He is the One who blesses His devotee so that He performs the act of surrender or saraNAgati. He is also the One who gives the needed qualifications to those who undertake the samnyAsa ASrama - SrI cinmayAnanda. d) The dharma cakram writer brings out the importance of leading a life devoid of attachment caused by the indriya-s. He gives the analogy of a child forming in the mother's womb, which has to give up the mother's womb at the appropriate time if it were to live. Similarly, the jIva has to give up the life dominated and controlled by the indriya-s if it is to evolve to a higher level than to be part of the cycle of samsAra. This act of being relieved from the negative guNa-s of prakRti viz. rajas and tamas is samnyAsa. The current nAma emphasizes the importance of leading a life of detachment and renunciation. 588. Samah a) He Who instructs on how to control anger etc. b) He who instructs that control of mind is the principal dharma for samnyAsin. c) He who controls all beings, including during pralaya. d) He Who has absolute control of mind - He Whose nature is Calmness. e) He who puts an end to the darkness in His devotees' mind. Om SamAya namah.

The root from which the word is derived is Samu - upaSame - to grow calm, to put an end, to stop (note the link to SAnti). So the meaning is - One who puts an end to, One who quiets down or calms down, etc. Thus, the interpretations are related to: He puts an end to qualities like tamas in His devotees, He puts an end to all things at the time of pralaya, He gives instructions on how to calm down the mind, He controls all beings, etc. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that by meditating on this quality of bhagavAn, the person who meditates will himself become quieted down in his mind, and attain SAnti.

a) SrI BhaTTar continues the link with his interpretation for the previous nAma, and interprets this nAma as referring to bhagavAn being the Instructor of how to control the desire, anger, fear etc. He gives reference to the gItA 5.29, where bhagavAn tells us that He is the real enjoyer of the fruits of all sacrifices and austerities bhoktAram yaj~na tapasAm sarvaloka maheSvaram | suhRdam sarvabhUtAnAm j~nAtvA mAm Santim Rcchati || b) SrI Samkara ties the interpretation to his interpretation of the previous nAma as referring to the samnyAsa ASrama, and indicates that bhagavAn is the instructor of the rule of Sama or control of the mind for the samnyAsin, and he quotes the smRti yatInAm praSamo dharmo niyamo vanavAsinAm | dAnameva gRhastAnAm SuSrUshA brahmacAriNAm || c) He also gives the alternate interpretation sarva bhUtAnAm Samayitaiti Samah He controls all the beings.

SrI anantakRshNa Sastry interprets this as referring to His quieting or calming down everything during the pralaya. d) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that bhagavAn Himself is the embodiment of calmness, and so He is called Sama Himself.

The dharma cakram writer elaborates on how the ancient traditional system ensured that this control of the mind was built into the duties of all the four ASrama-s. In the brahmacarya stage, practices such as getting up early in the morning, taking a cold bath, chanting veda-s, performing the mantra japam, serving the guru, and being kept active throughout the course of the day, was part of the training, and so the control of the mind was constantly inculcated. Similarly, the gRhasta was supposed to involve himself actively in performing religious rites such as yaj~na-s etc., which kept him involved in mind control through involvement in these activities. Similar discipline applies to the vAnaprastha and samnyAsa ASrama-s. The current nAma reveals to us that control of the mind and channeling of the mind towards acts that please Him should be our goal in life. e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets Samah to mean that bhagavAn puts an end to the darkness in us tamobhavAni kAryANi Samayati niSAcarANAm. 589. SAntah He whose mind is always tranquil. Om SAntAya namah. SrI BhaTTar comments that even though bhagavAn's greatness is such that it can express itself like a rising ocean, He chooses to be tranquil like a calm and waveless ocean. A poet has said of sage vyAsa: His tranquillity is such that even the wild animals become tranquil at his very sight. It can also be said that in spite of all the oceans of apacAra-s that all of us commit, which can justifiably make Him boil with anger at our deeds, He still keep Himself tranquil and always willing to forgive us. SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn is peaceful because He is completely unattached to the sense world - "nishkalam, nishkriyam, Santam" - SvetAsvatara. 6.19. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the additional reference to praSna upanishad 7.5 - SAntam ajaram amRtam. The dharma cakram writer observes that the more one gets involves in the desire for material objects, the more one gets lack of peace of mind. The more one draws one's interests inward, the more one finds peace. Thus control of the mind is the path to attaining peace. The more one meditates on this mantra which represents the guNa of tranquillity in bhagavAn, the more our mind will become tranquil. 590. nishThA a) The object of concentration. b) The stable Abode of all during pralaya. Om nishThAyai namah. a) nishThA essentially means a pivot, firm support. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for the nAma is "vyutthita

cittaih SubhASrayabhUte asmin nishThIyate iti nishThA" - Those who have achieved a deep level of concentration have Him and His body as the object of their meditation. The root from which the word is derived is shThA (sthA) - gati nvRttau - to stand, to wait, to be at hand etc. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives the derivation of this nAma as - niyatam sthAnam ni-shThAnam svajanakAmAnAm iti nishThA - He is the firmly established abode as the object of desire of the devotees. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives refers to peria tirumozhi 4.9.2 - Sindai tannuL nI~ngAdu irunda tiru. b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He is the stable final Abode for all the beings during pralaya pralaye nitarAm tatraiva tishThanti bhUtAni iti nishThA.

c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that while bhagavAn has permeated everything in this world and makes everything else go, He Himself is fixed. Just as a worm inside a stone cannot move the stone while the worm itself keeps moving, the rest of the world keeps moving within Him and because of Him, but He is fixed - nishThA. The dharma cakram writer observes that the significance of the nAma lies in realizing the importance of having our thoughts centered and anchored on bhagavan-nAma-dhyAnam. The more we let it wander in search of worldly objects, the more we will be plagued by needless and meaningless fears and confusion on the real purpose of our existence, and the more we will slip and fall from that great Object whom we should attain in order to be relieved of the cycle of samsAra. We should meditate on Him with "nishThA" or firmness. 591. SAntih a) Peace. b) The object of meditation c) The Ultimate Support. Om SAntaye namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is Samu upaSame to grow calm, to put an end to, to stop.Use of the pANini sUtra 3.3.94 striyAm ktin adds the affix ktin to the root. The paNini sUtra 6.4.15 leads to the lengthening of the vowel associated with Sa to SA. He Who is calm, and in Whom everything else becomes calm, is called SAntaH SAmyati yatra sarvam iti SAntiH, Samanam vA.

a) When a devotee has attained the perfect calm in the final state of meditation, this state is called samAdhi. At that stage, the Lord makes the devotee enjoy Him and Him alone, and forget all else including the self, other activities, interests, etc. This quietening of all the person's interests and activities is called SAnti, which is granted only by the Lord. Those who have abandoned everything else find peace in Him who is the Ultimate Peace. So He is called SAntih. This is the final stage of perfect meditation. SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as: tatra parama-samAdhau vismRta-sarvAdhikArAH SAmyanti iti SAntiH In the final stage of perfect meditation they (the meditators) forget all other activities and become tranquil, (and this occurs because He grants them this peace, and so he is called SAntiH). SrI kRshNan indicates that when one is meditating on Him through the yoga mArga, nothing else distracts them, and there are in continuous and direct communication with Him, and there is absolute tranquility in

their mind. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes from the Sruti - yatra nAnyat paSyati nAnyat SruNoti tad bhUmA - when you enjoy Him and His greatness, nothing else is seen or heard or enjoyed. He also quotes from the prabandham ippAl kai vaLaiyum mEgalaiyum kANEn, kaNDEn ghana magarak kuzhai iraNDum nAngu tOLum (tiru neDuntANDagam 22) When tiruma~ngai AzhvAr had Him in his mind, he did not remember anything about himself; he only saw bhagavAn and His beauty, His AbharaNams, etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to kaThopanishad 2.2.13 - teshAm SAntih SAsvatI na itareshAm Permanent Peace is to be found in Him and nowhere else. SrI Sankara vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn is devoid of all avidyA-s, and so He is the personification of the peace that results from the total absence of avidyA in Him. SrI cinmayAnanda substitutes avidyA with desire. Agitations are caused by desire, and since bhagavAn is All-Full and has no desire to be fulfilled, there is no agitation in Him and He is thus Peace itself. SrI cinmyAnanda explains the nAma as One Whose very nature is peace (SAnti). He elaborates: Agitations are caused by desires and the consequent temptations to strive form acquire and indulge in them. In the All-Full, there is no desire, hence He ned not seek His fulfillment among the perishable objects of the universe, and so He is Peace. b) SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj explains the meaning based on the root Sama - Alocane - to look at, and explains the nAma as indicating that He is the object of meditation of the devotees - bhaktAnAm Alocana vishayatvAt SAntih. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation based on Sam- upaSame - to grow calm, to put an end to, to stop - and interprets the nAma on the basis of the Sruti - dyauH SAntiH antariksham SAntiH pRthivI SAntiH Apah SAntiH. Here the word SAnti can be interpreted as each level supporting the previous level. Everything else is ultimately supported by Him and ends in Him, and so He is called SAntih. SAntaH, SAntiH, SAnti-daH The later means that when we meditate on Him, we forget everything else disappears from our mind, and so He is SAnti Himself. kai vaLaiyum mekalaiyum kANEn . (tirumangai) 592. parAyaNam a) The Ultimate Means. b) The Best Goal. c) He Who has the Best Abode to seek. Om parAyaNAya namah. The first interpretation is that He is the Means, and the second one is that He is the End. Both are

appropriate since bhagavAn is really both the upAya and upeya.

a) Param ayanam parAyaNam. The root from which the word "ayanam" is derived here is ay- gatau - to go. He is the best means for attaining Him, since the highest bhakti that is needed for attaining Him is acquired from Him alone. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the gItA, 18.53-54, in support of the interpretation: nir-mamah SAnto brahma-bhUtAya kalpate || brahma-bhUtah prasannAtmA na Socati na kAnkshati | samah sarveshu bhUteshu mad-bhaktim labhate parAm || , Also we have in Slokam 11.54 bhaktyA tu ananyayA Sakya aham evamvidho arjuna | j~nAtum drashTum ca tattvena praveshTum ca parantapa || In amarakOSam, ayanam is given as a term that is equivalent in meaning to mArga, or path -ayante anena iti ayanam. b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He is the best goal to aim for, since this way one is assured that there is no return to samsAra. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to the words "paramam yah parAyANam" which occur in the introductory part of sahasranAmam. SrI cinmayAnanda give the quote from gItA 15-6 yad gatvA na nivartante tad dhAma paramam mama He is the Supreme Goal, and there is no return to samsAra after reaching Him. SrI BhaTTar has interpreted the word parAyaNam in the introduction involving the question from yudhishThira - "kim ekam daivtam loke, kim vA'pyekam parAyaNam" - as referring to the end (upeya) in his vyaAkhyAnam to the introduction. (paramam upeyam pRccati - kim vA'pi ekam parAyaNam iti; ayanam - prApyam; evam upeyam dvidhA pRshTam etc. are extracts from his vyAkhyAnam to the Slokam kim ekam daivatam loke). c) SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi points out there an alternate pATham is parAyaNah, which means that He is the One who has the best sthAnam - the best place to offer - param ayanam yasya sah parAyaNam. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that the japa on "sannyAsa kRt Samah SAnto nishThA SAntih parAyaNam" will bring peace to a disturbed and agitated mind .

The dharma cakram writer nicely contrasts the state we achieve when we control our indriya-s and our mind, and the state we achieve when we let the indriya-s and mind control us. In the former case we reach the state of no more birth in this world, and in the later we are back to the cycle of samsAra. When we perform any action, we should remember that He is the doer and we are only His instrument. This is how we can elevate ourselves through karma yoga. When we convert our desire for worldly pleasures into a desire for Him instead, we elevate ourselves through bhakti yoga. When we realize the true nature of the self and the distinction of the body and the mind, and realize that we are subservient to Him and Him alone, we elevate ourselves through j~nAna yoga. Thus, it can be seen easily that He is the means for attaining Him.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 63

593. 594. 595. 596. 597. 598. 599. 600. 601. 602.

SubhA'ngah SAnti-dah srashTA ku-mudah kuvaleSayah go-hitah go-patih goptA vRshabhAkshah vRsha-priyah

om om om om om om om om

subhA'ngAya namah SAnti-dAya namah srashTre namah kumudAya namah kuvaleSayAya namah go-hitAya namah go-pataye namah goptre namah

om vRshabhAkshAya namah om vRsha-priyAya namah 593. SubhA'ngah a) He Who possesses and gives the eight auspicious accessories of yoga. b) He Who has a handsome form. c) He Who has a form that bestows ma'ngaLam to those who meditate on It. d) He Who makes everything auspicious by His presence, movement, etc. The same nAma occurs again as nAma 788. Om SubhA'ngAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the term a'nga here to refer to the eightaccessories of yoga - ashTA'nga yoga (yama, niyama, Asana, prANAyAma, pratyAhAra,dhAraNa, dhyAna, and samAdhi). All of these are auspicious (Subha) on account ofthe devotion to Him and are obtained by His favor. It is He who helps thedevotee to begin and complete the meditation on Him. The dharma cakram writer nicely explains how the practice of asTA'nga yogaresults in the realization of Oneness with bhagavAn. One gets control of themind by practicing yama and niyama, the first two of the 8 a'nga-s of theashTA'nga yoga, with their aspects (ahimsA, satya, brahmacarya, asteya, andaparigraha as part of yama, and Sauca, santosha, svAdhyAya, tapas, and AtmasamarpaNam as aspects of niyama). Asana and prANAyAma help in developing thebody so that it is fit for the meditation on Him. The next four a'nga-s of theashTA'nga yoga - pratyAhAra, dhAraNa, and dhyAna, and samAdhi - develop andnurture the thought and concentration on Divinity continuously with each step,the ultimate end being the realization of Him samAdhi. b) SrI Samkara interprets the term a'nga here to refer to His form, and sothe meaning given is - sundarAn tanum dhArayan SubhA'ngah. SrI BhaTTar gives this interpretation for nAma 788 - He Who has a bewitchingform. It is so beautiful that with this form He beguiled and deluded the asura-swhen He appeared as mohini. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to periatirumozhi 4.9.8 - ponnin vaNNam maNiayin vaNNam puraiyum tirumEni. SrIanantakRshNa SAstri refers us to the beauty of Lord kRshNa that showeredhappiness on the gopi-s. References to Lord rAma's beauty are numerous. HanumAndescribes in many verses the beauty of Lord rAma to sIta pirATTi when he firstmeetss her in aSoka vanam. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the upanishadic support -Santam, Sivam, sundaram (Peace, Auspicouness, Beauty) is how the Infinite Lordis described in the upanishads. In chAndogya upanishad (1.6.7), we have thedescription ya esho'ntarAditye hiraNmayah purusho ucyate | tasya yathA kapyAsam puNDarIkaevamakshiNI..|| He shines like gold in the middle of the Sun, and His eyes shine like the blossoming lotus. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives an additional interpretation - BhagavAn isSubhA'ngah since He has 788 beautiful a'nga-s in His tirumeni. A reference tothe original source of this information is not available.

c) SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj interpets the nAma as "One Who has the formthat bestows Subham or ma'ngaLam on those who meditate on His caraNam (Feet),vadanam (tirumeni), nayanam (lotus eyes), etc. SubhAni - darSakAnAmmangalotpAdakAni; a'ngAni - caraNa vadana nayanAdIni; yasya iti SubhA'ngah. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the word a'nga based on the root a'ng -to go, and his anubhavam of this nAma is that bhagavAn is SubhA'ngah since Hemakes everything auspicious by His very movement in every form, of His verypresence in everything that is moving, for example the Sun. To summarize, the vyAkhyAna kartA-s have given two different interpretationsfor the term a'nga that occurs as part of this nAma. The first refers to theeight a'nga-s of the ashTA'nga yoga, and the second refers to the auspiciousparts of bhagavAn's body. The meanings given are thus: a) He is One who blessesthe devotee with the means of the a'nga-s of the ashTA'nga yoga and the successin it, and b) He is One who has the captivating auspicious form that the devoteemeditates on. 594. SAnti-dah - The bestower of eternal peace. Om SAnti-dAya namah SrI BhaTTar continues the interpretation of this nAma in the context of theprevious one - to those who have thus perfected their devotion to Him throughobservances such as the yoga referred to above, He bestows ever-lasting peace inthe form of His own realization. For them there is no longer any fear of rebirthin this world. In other words, SAnti here refers to moksha, and He is themoksha-pradan. SrI BhaTTar gives the support from SvetASvatara upanishad 2.7 - viSvasyaikam pariveshTitAram j~nAtvA SivamSAntim atyantam eti - If a person realizes the auspicious God who pervades theUniverse, He attains perfect peace; SvetAS. 3.11 - tam ISAnam varadam devamIDyam nicAyya AtmAnam SAntim atyantameti - When a person realizes that God who is the Ruler, the grantor of boons,worthy of praise and is the Inner Soul, he obtains the highest peace; and the gItA 18.59 - mat prasAdAt param SAntim sthAnam prApsyasi SASvatam By My Grace, you will attain supreme tranquillity and the eternal world as well. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi 3.7.7 aDiyArgaLaik koNDupOi tanmai peRuttit tan tALiNaikkIZh koLLum appan. SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn bestows peace of mind characterizedby complete absence of likes and dislikes, and so He is called SAnti-dah. Truepeace of mind results only when there are no likes and dislikes. One cannot getcontentment as long as one has likes and dislikes. The dharma cakram writer refers us to tiruvaLLuvar who defines God as one whois "vENDudal vENDAmai ilAdAn". By our dedicating our thoughts to Him,we can get to the stage where we will be able to get away from likes anddislikes, and thus attain true inner peace. The lesson to take from this nAma is that He is the Bestower of the UltimatePeace - moksha, which one gets by constant meditation on Him. 595. srashTA - The Creator.

Om srashTre namah. This nAma also occurs later as nAma 990. SrI BhaTTar: The root from which this nAma is derived is srj - to create.Just as He bestows moksha to those who long for it, He also bestows samsAra whoask for it through their karma. Thus He is the Creator as well. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the anubhavam of nammAzhvAr: kaDal j~nAlam SeidEnum yAnE (tiruvAimozhi 5.6.1), mun-nIr j~nAlam paDaitta em mugil vaNNanE (3.2.1), and Lord kRshNa's own words from the gItA 7.6 aham kRtsnasya jagatah prabhavah - I am the Source of the entire creation. SrI Samkara: BhagavAn is srashTA - Creator - in that He brought fortheverything at the start of the creative cycle sargAdau sarva bhUtAni sasarja iti srashTA. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj explains sRjati lokAnAm iti srashTA. He quotes from the Rg veda 10.81.3 dvAvA bhUmI janayan deva ekah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to SvetASvatara upanishad 4.14 viSvasya srashTAram aneka rUpam, and to aitareya upanishad 1.2 - sa imAn lokAn asRjata. The root srj also means to let loose, to send forth - visarge. SrI satyadevovAsishTha uses this meaning, and his anubhavam of this nAma is that bhagavAnkeeps all the beings inside Himself at the time of pralaya, and then puts themout at the time of sRshTi, and so He is srashTA. The dharma cakram writer looks at the positive aspect of creation - by givingthe body to the jIva, bhagavAn gives the jIva one more opportunity for it toseek and attain Him. The beauty of this anubhavam is that whatever He does, Hedoes it for our welfare, including all the punishments that He gives us. SrI cinmayAnanda observes that He is the Creator of brahma, whose function isto create, and it is only because of the abilities and capacities derived fromvishNu that brahma can perform his functions of creation. Thus one can see thatHe is the antaryAmi behind all the other gods, and their powers derive from Him. All interpretations converge on His function as the Creator. The differentvyAkhyAna-s emphasize the different aspects of His function of creation. Hecreated everything to start with, the cycle of creation keeps happening from Himafter each pralaya, this creation is an inevitable consequence of the karma ofthe beings who insist on being on born again and again, this act of creation bybhagavAn is an expression of His extreme kindness to us in that this gives thejIva one more opportunity to realize Him, and all this is happening because Heis the Power behind everything. Thus, all vyAkhyAna kartA-s are using themeaning "Creator" for the nAma, and yet we get the benefit of therichness of the diversity of the anubhavam-s here. 596. ku-mudah - He who is happy in His relation to this world in variousforms. Om kumudAya namah.

This nAma also occurs as nAma 813. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as ku-mudah. ku refers to the prakRtimaNDalam - the world that consists of objects that are a source of pleasure forall created objects from brahma to a tiny blade of grass. He gives these objectsrUpam, rasam, Sabdam etc., and gives the beings the ability to have theanubhavam of these objects. BhagavAn makes all those beings enjoy these objects,and He Himself feels delighted by that (modate). So He is ku-mudah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAimozhi 3.10.7 pala pala mAya mayakkugaLAl inbuRum iv-viLaiyATTuDaiyAn. Based on the same derivation, SrI BhaTTar gives yet another anubhavam - kaumodate iti kumudah bhagavAn delights Himself even in the prakRti maNDalambecause of His company with His devotees. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan elaborates: In thisworld which can make rAma cry and suffer - nATTil piRandu paDAdana paTTu, losingsItA, being kicked out His kingdom, being forced to live in a forest, losingjaTAyu, etc., He still finds it His pleasure to be in the company of bharadvaja,atri, agastya, etc. nammAzhvAr describes how bhagavAn mingles with His devotee -oru iDam onRu inRi ennuL kalandAn (tiruvAimozhi 2.5.2). SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as suggesting that He gives joy to this earthby freeing it of its burdens (at the time of pralaya?) - kum - dharaNimbhArAvataraNam kurvan modayati iti kumudah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri's anubhavam, starting with the same meanings for thewords ku and muda, is that He delights in His company with bhUmi pirATTi, and soHe is called ku-mudah. Or, He takes incarnations in this earth to get rid of theevil and to protect the good, and thus He delights Himself with this earth. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma as indicating that bhagavAn delightsHimself by creating this world of plurality which is the joyous expression ofthe infinite potentialities of bhagavAn. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's anubhavam is based on a line of thought entirelydifferent from all the above. He derives the meaning based on the root kai -Sabde - to sound, and thus interprets the nAma as indicating bhagavAn's guNa ofderiving pleasure through Sabda, in the form of giving this experience to Hiscreations in the form of their power of speech, hearing, music etc. One couldalso think of His deriving pleasure in hearing the chanting of the veda-s andthe sAma gAna. The dharma cakram writer illustrates the dimension of the pleasure that isderived by bhagavAn in this world through an example. He refers us to thepleasure that a small ant derives out of a huge mound of sugar. Even thoughthere is this huge source of pleasure for the ant, all the ant sees of this isthe few particles of sugar that it needs to fill itself, and then a few moreparticles to save for the future in its nest. The pleasure that we see in thisworld through our five indirya-s etc. is similar to what the ant enjoys, andmost of us miss out on the great store of pleasure called bhagavad anubhavam.What bhagavAn offers and derives out of this world is the huge mound that wedon't take advantage of. This nAma illustrates to us that the true pleasure tobe derived out of this world is the greater pleasure, which is accessible to usby meditating on His nAma and by seeing beyond the sense-pleasure, by dedicatingourselves to His kaimkaryam. Thus, to summarize the different vyAkhyAna-s, the nAma indicates thatbhagavAn delights Himself with this earth in various ways: by creating thediverse beings, by giving them the anubhavam of rUpam, rasam, Sabdam etc., bydestroying the evil and protecting the good through His different incarnations,by having bhUmi pirATTi as His consort, by being in the company of His devotees,by relieving the earth of its burden at the time of pralaya, by giving the veda-sto us, by hearing us sing His praise through songs and through the veda-s, etc.

597. kuvaleSayah a) The Controller of the jIva-s who wander in this world with the thoughtthat they are the masters of their bodies. b) He Who is reclining in the waters surrounding this earth. a) SrI BhaTTar derives the meaning by looking at the nAma as ku_vala-ISa-ya.ku refers to the world as pointed out in the previous nAma. vala means valanti-wandering. ISa means Ruler. Thus, ku-vala-ISa refers to the jIva-s who wanderaround in this world with the thought that they are the masters of their bodiesand that they control everything about themselves. Yah is the part that refersto bhagavAn who goes after (yAti goes) these jIva-s, i.e., keeps them undercontrol. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr - "ulagam mUnRu uDaiyAi!ennai AlvAnE! (tiruvAimozhi 6.10.10). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also looks at the nAma as ku + vala + ISah + yah.However, he interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn who has control (ISah)over all those that make sound (kai - Sabde - to sound, see previous nAma), allthose that walk or move (vala), etc. In other words, He is the antaryAmi ineverything. b) SrI Samkara derives different interpretations, all based on looking at thenAma as kuvale Sayah, where Sayah refers to reclining. His differentinterpretations are based on different meanings for the term kuvala. One of theinterpretations is: koh kshiteh, valanAt - samsaraNAt, kuvalam - jalam; tasminSeta iti kuvaleSayah. In other words, He is kuvale Sayah because He isreclining in the waters that surround the earth. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notesthat since the earth originated from water - adhbhyah pRthivI - water surroundsthe earth. Another interpretation that SrI Samkara gives is that kuvala can refer to theunderside of the serpent, since it crawls on the earth with its stomach - kau -bhUmyAm, valate - samSrayata iti sarpANAm udaram kuvalam, tasmin Seta itikuvale-Sayah - He reclines on the serpent, and so He is called kuvaleSayah. The dharma cakram writer explains that the pa'nca bhUta-s evolved in thesequence AkASa, vAyu, agni, waters, and earth. Since earth arose from waters,the waters surround the earth. The pa'nca bhUta-s all arose from Him, and so asimple way to understand the statement "He is reclining in the waters"is to remember that bhagavAn is in the Nature that originated from Him. To summarize, there are essentially two different ways that this nAma hasbeen interpreted. One is kuvala + ISa + yah - He is the controller or Master ofeverything that moves around, and the other is kuvale + Sayah - He Who reclinesin the waters, or He Who is reclining on the AdiSesha. 598. go-hitah a) He Who looks after the welfare of the world. b) He Who protected the cows by lifting the govardhana mountain. Om go-hitAya namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that "go" here refers to prakRti (thePrimordial Matter) which is the field where the seeds for samsAra are sown. Hitah refers to Him who gives hita to this world, who controls and looks afterthe welfare of this world. SrI v.v. rAmAnujam gives the support fromtiruvAimozhi - koLLa mALA inba veLLam kOdila tandiDum en vaLLal (4.7.2). The inba veLLam that nammAzhvAr refers to is of course the

bhagavad anubhavam. SrI Samkara gives the meaning "cows" to the samskRt word"go", and thus interprets the nAma in terms of the hitam that bhagavAndid to the cows through the lifting of the govardhana mountain gavAmvRddhyartham govardhanam dhRtavAn iti gobhyo hito go-hitah. He gives anadditional interpretation based on the meaning "bhUmi" for the word"go" - gohitah in thissense being a reference to His protecting this world through differentincarnations to destroy the evil and protect the good. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the root gatau - to go, and gives theinterpretation that bhagavAn is go-hitah because He facilitates the movement ofall beings in this world. In summary, "go" can refer to cows in particular or to the world andits people in a more general sense. Either way, go-hitah refers to Hisbeing the One who facilitates their existence. 599. go-patih a) The Lord of the Celestial world. b) The Lord of the indriya-s. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 497 (Slokam 53). Please refer to thewrite-up under that nAma, which is fairly detailed and is supplemental to thewrite-up that follows. SrI BhaTTar interprets the word "go" in current occurrence of the nAmaas referring to the bhoga bhUmi svarga, and thus gives the meaning to thisinstance of the nAma as "He Who is the Lord of those in svarga". patirefers to His role as the rakshaka or Protector. BhagavAn is the Lord ofthis world as well as the Celestial world, and time and time again He comes tothe rescue of the deva-s when the asura-s get the upper hand. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives the tiruvAimozhi reference - kaN AvAn enRum maNNOr viNNORkku(1.8.3). SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the term "go" as referring to cows,people, sense-organs (indriya-s)etc. Since He is the pati or Lord of allthe things, the term means that He is the Lord of all. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning that He is the Protector of all,starting with the meaning gau - to go for the term "go". Inother words, He shows the path for all the beings, and protects all beings evenas the sArati of a chariot sits in the driver's seat and directs the chariot andthe horses pulling the chariot, and protects them and looks after their welfare. 600. goptA The Protector. Om goptre namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 498 (Slokam 53). Please the write-upunder that nAma. The different interpretations offered are all based on either the meaning gup -to protect, or gup - to conceal. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's anubhavamis that He keeps Himself hidden (svayam Atma guptah), and at the same timeprotects everyone because this is His dharma (goptA sa vishNuh sa hi goptRdharmA). Thus, he uses both the meanings of gup in his vyAkhyAnam.

The summary of the different interpretations is that He is called goptA becauseHe is a) the Protector of everything, the Protector of the veda-s, the Protector ofthe wheel of dharma, the wheel of karma etc., or b) He conceals Himself from those to whom He does not want to revealHimself, or He conceals His devotees from the bad, He conceals the Inner Selffrom those who are not qualified to realize it, He remains concealed fromeverything and at the same protects everything etc. gopAyati- satatam rakshati svabhaktAn nityadA iti goptA. The dharma cakram writer points out the lesson to take from this nAma - Only Hecan protect us, and no one else can. It is not just that He is theProtector, but there is no one else who can protect us. Recall svAmideSikan's beautiful expression of this bhayam kutah syAt tvayi sAnukampe | rakshah kutah syAt tvayi jAtaroshe || (SrI ashTabhujAshTakam 5) tava pravRtte mama kim prayAsaih | tvayyapravRtte mama kim prayAsaih || (SrIashTabhujAshTakam 6) tvayi rakshati rakshakaih kim ananyaih | tvayi cArakshati rakshakaih kim ananyaih || (SrIkAmAsikAshTakam 8)

(For meanings, please refer to the write-ups on SrI deSika stotram in thislist). 601. vRshabhAkshah a) HeWho is the Support for the cycle of samsAra in the form of dharma. b1) He Whose Eyes shower all fruits desired. b2) He who has dharma as His objective. om vRshabhAkshAya namah. The two parts of this nAma are vRshabha and aksha. vRshabha is derivedfrom the root vRshu - secane - to shower, to rain. vRshabha is also a termthat denotes dharma. The word aksha means axle or eye. The union ofthe two words then leads to the different interpretations. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is the dharma axle thatsupports the wheel of samsAra. vRshabha means dharma because it showersthe fruits of actions - phala varshI vRshabho dharmah. BhagavAnis the support for samsAra cakra or the wheel of samsAra, for which He is thesupport or axle in the form of dharma (sah akshah - samsAra cakra AdhArah). nammAzhvAr refers to Him as "tani mudalAi mUvulagum kAvalOn (tiruvaimozhi2.8.5) - v.v. rAmAnujan. b1, b2) SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is - sakalAn kAmAn varshuke akshiNI asya itivRshabhAkshah - He whose eye rains the fulfillment of all the devotee's wishes. All He has to do is look at the devotee with the samkalpam that He wants tobestow His devotee with his wishes, and the devotee's wishes will be fulfilled. Alternatively, His vision or look is dharma - vRshabhah dharmah sa eva vA dRshTih asya iti vRshabhAkshah; that is, He only has dharma as His objective. The dharma cakram writer points out the example of duryodhana and arjuna, andshows how dharma is

what protects one ultimately. bhIshma toldduryodhana when the latter asked bhIshma to fight on his side, that no matterwho fights on duryodhana's side, he will lose because he is following the pathof adharma, and arjuna's side will win because he is following the path ofdharma. This nAma teaches us that bhagavAn will always be on the side ofdharma, and if we follow the path of dharma, He will bestow His blessings on us. The summary of the different interpretations is that He uses dharma to run thesamsAra cakra by bestowing the benefits of the karma-s to the devotees accordingto their karma-s. 602. vRsha-priyah a) dharma-lover. b) Dear to the virtuous. Om vRsha-priyAya namah. vRsho dharmah priyo yasya iti vRsha-priyah. SrI BhaTTar gives theinterpretation that bhagavAn is vRshapriyah because He is pleased with dharma -both pravRtti dharma and nivRtti dharma. It is His pleasure with thedharma performed by His devotee that results in His bestowing the desired fruit. pravRtti dharma helps the jIva-s continue in this world; nivRtti dharmahelps its practitioners attain Him instead. The dharma cakram writer gives the example of one who practices pravRttidharma - one who earns money through honest profession and then spends theproceeds in a dhArmic way - this person is one who is interested in the life ofthis world and observes the pravRtti dharma. One who is not involved in the material world and who insteadmeditates on Him as the sole purpose of life is a practitioner of nivRttidharma. The life led by svAmi vivekAnanda's father is given as an exampleof pravRtti dharma, and the life of svAmi vivekAnanda as an example of nivRttidharma. The point to note is that both the paths follow dharma, and arethus dear to Him. SrI Samkara gives an additional interpretation - that bhagavAn is dear to thevirtuous - priya for vRsha-s. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that dharma is so dear to bhagavAn that He takesbirth among the likes of us just to protect and preserve dharma - dharmasamsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge (gItA 4.8). -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page. Slokam 64 603. 604. 605. 606. a-nivartI nivRttAtmA samksheptA kshema-kRt

607. 608. 609. 610. 611.

Sivah SrIvatsa-vakshAh SrI-vAsah SrI-patih SrImatAm-varah

Om Om Om Om Om Om Om Om Om

anivartine namah nivRttAtmane namah samksheptre namah kshema-kRte namah SivAya namah SrI-vatsa-vakshase namah SrI-vAsAya namah SrI-pataye namah SrImatAm-varAya namah

603. a-nivartI a) He who does not turn away those who are inclined to comeback to this world. b) He Who does not turn away from His battles with the asura-s. c) He Who does not turn away from dharma under any circumstance. d) He whose creations never turn back in their shape, form etc. till pralaya. Om a-nivartine namah. The term nivartana means causing to return, returning, turning back etc. a) SrI BhaTTar: na nivartayati iti a-nivRtI. For those who areattached to the pravRtti dharma, bhagavAn does not let them turn away fromsamsAra - (pravRtti dharma nishTargaLai samsArattai viTTu nivarttikkacceiyyAdavar - SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi) b) and c): SrI Samkara gives two alternate interpretations. 1.devAsura samgrAmAt na nivartata iti a-nivartI - He who never turns away in Hisbattles with the asura-s; and 2. VRsha priyAt dharmAt na nivartata iti anivartI- He who, being devoted to dharma, never turns away from it. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation - na nivartitum SIlam asyaiti a-nivartI - He who does not have the characteristic of coming back. Heelaborates by pointing out that bhagavAn's creations are such that they do notlose their attributes until the end of creation, until pralaya.

In summary, two main interpretations are given: a) SrI BhaTTar - (samsArAt)na nivartayati iti a-nivarti One who does not let those who observe pravRttidharma turn back from samsAra, and b) SrI Samkara - na nivartata itia-nivartI - One who does not turn away Himself from certain things. 604. nivRttAtmA a) He whose Nature is superior to other things. b) He who is the AtmA of those who practice the nivRtti dharma. c) He whose nature is that He is free from the bonds of samsAra. d) He whose mind is turned away from worldly attachments. e) He whose mind turns away from any feeling of self-glory over His kIrti orfame. f) He who naturally turns away from the objects of senses. g) He who does not turn away from anywhere because of He is Omnipresent. om nivRttAtmane namah. This nAma is one of the two nAma-s that occur 4 times in SrI BhaTTar'sinterpretation (231 - Slokam 25, 453 - Slokam 48, 604 - Slokam 64, and 780 -Slokam 83). (The other nAma which occurs 4 times in SrI BhaTTar'sinterpretation is prANa-dah). Please see the write-ups under Sloka-s 25and 48. The write-up below supplements the previous write-ups. nivRtti refers to detachment. SrI BhaTTar uses the word in this sense, asalso with the meaning "superior" nivRttam - udgatam - superior. His interpretation of the nAma in Slokam 25 uses the meaning"superior", indicating that bhagavAn's Nature rises above all otherthings. The interpretations of the other three instances of the nAma arebased on the meaning "detachment", and correspond to d) for nAma 453,b) for nAma 604, and e) for nAma 780. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan elaborates on how bhagavAn is the AtmA of those who practice the nivRtti dharma (interpretation b). These are the jIva-s who do not have any interest in pravRtti dharma, and live their lives with the sole objective of doing kaimkaryam to Him. They are not interested in any fruit out of their action except the bhAgyam of doing kaimkaryam to Him. BhagavAn gives them exactly that, namely He gives them His lokam from where there is no return to samsAra - viNNulagam taruvAnAi variaginrAn (tivuvAimozhi 10.6.3). In fact, even though bhagavAn is AtmA of these nivRtti dharma practitioners just as He is the AtmA of all other creations, yet He considers that these nivRtti dharma followers are His soul, that is, He cannot live without them. SrI rAmAnujan also gives his anubhavam of bhagavAn's detachment from any feelingof self-glory over His greatness (interpretation e). Here He is, creatingthis great wonder with all its innumerable creatures and all the planets and thedifferent worlds. He is the svAmi of all these worlds - vIRRirunduEzhulagum tanik kOl Sella; varambilAda mAyai mAya!. varambilAda kIrtiyAi! (tiruccandaviruttam 96). With all this greatness, one would expect that Heshould have some attachment of ownership to His wonderful creation, and pride ofthis great creation of His. Yet, He does not have any of this sense ofpride, and is only interested in our welfare instead, in whatever He does. Such is His greatness. In the four instances where SrI BhaTTar uses the nAma nivRttAtmA as referred toabove, SrI Samkara uses the nAma nivRttAtmA in Sloka-s 25 and 64, the nAmavimuktAtmA in Slokam 48, and gives interpretations using the pATha as a-nivRttAtmAor alternatively as nivRttAtmA in Slokam 83. His interpretations are:

Slokam 25: "He whose nature is that He is free from the bonds ofsamsAra - samsAra bandhanAt nivRtta AtmA svarUpam asya iti nivRttAtmA". Slokam 64: "He who naturally turns away from material pleasures -svabhAvatah vishayebhyo nivRtta AtmA manah asya iti nivRttAtmA". Slokam 48, where Samkara pATham is vimuktAtmA: "He who is the free Self -svabhAvena vimukta AtmA yasya iti vimuktAtmA". Note that He isunbound by the effects of karma, and so by nature He is vimukta AtmA - theunbound Self. Slokam 83: a-nivRttAtmA: "He who never turns away from anywherebecause He is omnipresent - sarvatra vartamAnatvAt a-nivRttah kuto'pi iti a-nivRttAtmA. If the nAma is taken as nivRttAtmA, SrI Samkara's interpretation is: "By nature He turns away from the objectsof the senses - nivRtta AtmA mano vishayebhyo asya iti vA nivRttAtmA". SrI cinmayAnanda observes that the significance of the nAma lies in indicatingto us that we have to detach our mind from sense indulgences in order to realizeHim. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that bhagavAn is the only one who canretrieve those who are attached to all kinds of material and sense objects,beause He is the only one who is not attached to anything. Only theone who is not stuck in the mud can retrieve one who is stuck in it. Summarizing the four instances of this nAma, bhagavAn is called nivRttAtmAbecause His Nature is superior to all other things, He showed how to practicethe nivRtti dharma in His incarnation as nara-nArAyaNa, He is the soul of thosewho practice the nivRtti dharma, His nature is that He turns away from materialpleasures, sense objects, etc., and He turns away from any self-glory about Hisimmeasurable greatness and instead does everything only for the pleasure of Hisdevotees. 605. samksheptA a) He who constrains or limits (the field of light ofknowledge of those who practice the pravRtti dharma). b) He who, at the time of cosmic dissolution, contracts the expansive Universeinto a subtle state. c) He who minimizes the misfortunes of His devotees. Om samksheptre namah. The term samkshepa means shortened, abridged, contracted, etc. (e.g., samksheparAmAyaNam). Different vyAkhyAna kartA-s have different anubhava-s ofthis guNa of bhagavAn. a) SrIBhaTTar continues to interpret this nAma in relation to his vyAkhyAna of theprevious nAma-s, in terms of pravRtti and nivRtti dharma-s. Thus, hisinterpretation in the current instance is that bhagavAn constrains the knowledgefield of those who observe the pravRtti dharma such that they don't see thelight completely, and are born again in samsAra instead of attaining Him. Associated with birth in this world, there is a diminution of the naturalknowledge consistent with the pUrva karma-s. b) SrI Samkara interpets His constraining act in terms of the contraction of thewhole Universe in His body in a subtle form - vistRtam jagat samhAra samayesUkshma rUpeNa samkshipan - samksheptA. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that He is samksheptAbecause He reduces or minimizes the misfortunes of His devotees - samkshipatinyUnayati bhaktAnAm vipattIh iti samksheptA.

d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's anubhavam of this nAma is that bhagavAn contracts ahuge tree in the form of a small seed, and the same dharma applies to all of Hiscreations in the whole huge Universe. e) SrI cinmayAnanada and SrI anatakRshNa SAstri point to an alternate pATham,with the nAma being given as a-samksheptA, meaning He who never abandons Hisdevotees. The dharma cakram writer remarks that the deeper we get involved in this worldlylife, the more we are contracting or constraining our knowledge of Him. The purpose of life properly lived is to expand the knowledge of Him. Those who live a life of involvement in the material and sensual aspects oflife, are living and yet not living (that is, they have not achieved the purposeof this precious life). The idea to take from the different interpretations is that bhagavAnincorporates different constraints on His creatures as part of theadministration of dharma and as part of the administration of His function ofthe cycle of creation. This is seen in different forms: in the formof limiting the knowledge of the followers of the pravRtti dharma, the form inwhich the huge tree is contained in a small seed, the way in which Heassimilates all the innumerable jIva-s into Himself at the time of pralaya, theway in which He minimizes the suffering of His devotees, etc. 606. kshema-kRt a) He who does what is good for His devotees. b) He who protects what has been acquired by His devotees. Om kshema-kRte namah. SrI BhaTTar: BhagavAn does what is good for the practitioners of nivRttidharma by removing the obstructions to their knowledge. SrI Samkara: upAttasya kshemam - parirakshaNam karoti iti kshema-kRt. This ha been translated differently by two different translators. SrI T. S. kRshNamUrti gives the translation - He who gives kshema or protectionto those who go to Him. SrI R. anantakRshNa SAstri gives the meaning - Hewho protects what has been acquired by His devotees. SrI cinmayAnanda notes that bhagavAn not only preserves that which has beenattained by His devotees, He also helps them attain what has not been attainedso far - ananyAS cintayanto mAm....yoga kshemam vahAmyaham - gItA 9.22. Here yoga refers to what has not been attained yet, and kshema refers to whathas been already acquired. tirukkaLLam SrI nRsimha rAghavAcArya svAmiexplains yoga and kshema as follows: a-labdhasyalAbho yogah, labdha rakshaNam kshemah - attaining something that we don't haveis yoga, and preserving what we have is kshema. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAjgives a similar explanation - aprAptasya prApaNam yogah, yogasya rakshaNamkshemah. BhagavAn gives yogam in the form of moksham to the devotee wholongs for it, and then gives kshemam by making sure he does not lose it (kshemam). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr - perum tunbam vEraRa nIkki tantALin kIzh SErttu avan Seyyum SEmattai eNNit teLivuRRE? - tiruvAimozhi 7.5.10. Note that the kshemam referred to here is moksham. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meanings: dwelling or residing - nivAsa, goingor in movement - gati, to diminish or extinguish - kshaya, to hurt or cause pain- himsA, etc. to the word kshema, starting from the roots kshi kshaye, kshinivAsa gatayoh, and kshi himsAyAm, in addition to the traditional meaning, tobestow welfare. He thus gives theinterpretation to the nAma as indicating that bhagavAn resides in everyone andeverything (nivAsa), He gives it movement (gati), and in the end He takesaway the soul from the body

(kshaya). He knows the beginning, the end, andthe in-between of all the jIva-s. Hence He is kshema-kRt in all thesenses. The dharma cakram writer gives the analogy of a mother who protects the childwhen the child is in her womb, and then for as long as the child seeks themother's support, she provides this support by loving the child even more thanher own self. That is the way bhagavAn looks after His devotees (bhagavAnbhaktan mIdu pittuk koNDuLLAr). This nAma should remind us that it is He protects us, and does whatever is goodfor us no matter what He does. 607. Sivah a) He who gives auspicious things to His devotees. b) He who purifies those who meditate on Him. c) He in whom the whole Universe rests at the time of pralaya. d) He who resides in everything and everywhere. Om SivAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar: Sivam karatvAt Sivah - He does what is auspicious for allwhether they desire the enjoyment of worldly pleasures or whether they seekmoksha - whether the aspirant is a bubhukshu or a mumukshu. SrI BhaTTar refers us to - SrI mahAbhArata - Sivo SivAnAm a-Sivo a-SivAnAm- He does good for the good, and bad for the bad. - SrI vishNu purANam (6.7.62)- samsAra moksha sthiti bandha hetuh - He is the cause of the bondage ofwrldly existence, also for the release from it. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to tirumozhi 1.1.9 - aruLoDu peru nilamaLikkum nAraNan, and to tiruvAimozhi 1.5.7 - SeDiyAr Akkai aDiyAraic cErdaltIrkkum tirumAl. The idea emphasized here is that a) whatever He does is for our good, and b) Hedoes whatever we deserve to get based on our karma. b) SrI Samkara: He is Sivah because He purifies everyone by the mereremembrance of His name. c) Both SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj and SrI satyadevo vAsishTha give thealternate interpretation based on the root SI'ng - svapne to sleep. Sete sarvam jagat pralaya velAyAm yasmin iti Sivah - He in whom the wholeUniverse rests at the time of pralaya is Sivah (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj). d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also gives the alternate interpretation based on theroot Syai - to go, the meaning given being that He is present everywhere, He isin everything - SyAyate sarvam iti prApnoti iti arthah. Thus, the nAma Sivah indicates that whatever bhagavAn gives us is what is goodfor us, and is meant for our purification and for our reaching Him. Thepunishment He gave to the demons such as rAvaNa, kamsa, etc. were all for theirultimate good. It should be realized that when we encounter somesufferings in life that are obviously given to us by bhagavAn, we should acceptthese as willingly as when He gives us things that make us happy, becausewhatever He does is for our good. 608. SrIvatsa-vakshAh

He who has the SrIvatsa mole on Hischest. Om SrIvatsa vakshase namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma-s starting from the current one and up to nAma619 as praising His sambandham with pirATTi. The nirukti description forthe current nAma is: lakshmI-vallabhya saubhAgya cihnam SrIvatsa nAmakam | SrIvatsa vakshA asya asti vakshasi iti sa tu smRtah || The SrIvatsa mark is the unique sign of He who is the lakshmI vallabhan. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to SrI vishNu purANam where parASara narratesto maitreyi what has been communicated to him by vyAsa, on how vishNu bears thewhole world, abiding in His nature, characterized by ornaments and weapons. In this description, the SrIvatsa mark is described as the pradhAna seated inthe Eternal: SrIvatsa samsthAna dharam anante ca samASritam (1.22.67) The glorious Hari wears the pure soul of the world, undefiled, and void ofqualities, as the kaustubha gem. The chief principle of things, (pradhAna)is seated on the Eternal, as the SrI vatsa mark. Intellect abides inmAdhava, in the form of His mace. .. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to another passage in SrImad bhAgavatam (12.11.10)where the SrIvatsa mark is described as the reflection of the kaustubha gem thatbhagavAn wears, representing His Atma-jyoti (translated as Suddha jIva caitanyaby a translator): kaustubha vyapadeSena svAtma jyotih bibharti ajah | tat-prabhA vyApinI sAkshAt SrIvatsam urasA prabhuh || Similar to the description in vishNu purANam, this section of SrImad bhAgavatamgives details of how bhagavAn bears on Him everything that constituteseverything that exists. SrI cinmayAnanda refers to the story of bhRgu maharshi's testing who among thetrinity was the superior one, and kicking Lord vishNu on His chest. Heindicates that the mark of bhRgu's foot is the SrIvatsa mark on the Lord'schest, since the Lord offered to bear the mark of bhRgu's foot as an indicationof how He values the touch of the feet of His devotee. He gives the reference to the story of bhRgu maharshi in SrImadbhAgavatam (10-89), wherein bhagavAn says that mahAlakshmi will henceforthreside in His vaksha sthalam because it has now been purified by the touch ofthe sage's foot adyAham bhagavan lakshmyA Asam ekAnta bhAjanam | vatsyati urasi me bhUtih bhavat pAda hatAmhasah || (10.89.12)

SrI cinmayAnanda interprets this to mean that the SrIvatsa mark itself is themark of SrI on His chest ("bhagavAn says - He will ever bear the mark ofthe sage's foot as SrI on His chest".). The SrIvatsam mark on bhagavAn's chest is thus the representation of pradhAna asbeing supported by Him, as the unique of Him who is the SrI vallabhan, as thereflection of the kaustubha gem that bhagavAn

wears, and as the symbol of how Hevalues His devotee as reflected by the incident involving bhRgu maharshi. 609. SrI-vAsah The Abode of lakshmi. Om SrI-vAsAya namah. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to SrImad rAmAyaNam - yuddha kANDam 114.15 -referring to Lord as nitya SrIh. He is like the garden consisting ofkalpaka trees, and She is kalpaka valli, who freely roams around as She pleasesin the kalpaka tree garden. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes "agalagillEniRaiyum enRu alarmEl ma'ngai uRai mARban" - tiruvAimozhi 6.10.10. SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam is "asya vakshasi SrIh anapAyinI vasati itiSrI-vAsah" - One on whose chest SrIdevi dwells uninterruptedly. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj adds - "SobhA soundarya sampannah" as hisexplanation for the nAma - He who is always full of eternal luster and beauty. SrI cinmAyananda gives a similar interpretation - SrI vasati asminiti SrI-vasah - SrI - all glory and riches, ever dwell in His bosom of love andbeauty. The dharma cakram writer refers to different kinds of wealth, which all can begrouped under the six categories - SrI, kIrti, aiSvarya, j~nAna, vIrya, andvairAgya. The term "bhagavAn" refers to One who has all thesesix kinds of wealth. In the case of others, if theys how the slightestsign of having any one of these in some measure, we talk of his having beenblessed with "lakshmI kaTAksham". The more one devotes one'slife in the thought and service of bhagavAn, the more these qualities startdemonstrating themselves in the individual. This should be the purpose oflife correctly lived - Meditation on Him and association with Him will lead toour acquiring these traits, just as "poovODu Sernda nArum maNam peRum". SrI vAsah thus refers to Him who has SrI in the form of lakshmi with Him alwayson His vaksha sthalam, as well as One who has all the SrI's (kIrti-s) in fullmeasure with Him always, undiminished, undiluted, and uninterrupted. 610. SrI-patih a)The Consort of lakshmi. b) The Master of the Supreme Cosmic Power. Om SrI-pataye namah. BhagavAn is the Eternal and suitable Consort of lakshmi in all the incarnations,and She accompanies Him whatever form He takes in His incarnation. SrI BhaTTargives reference to SrIsUktam - asyeSAnA jagato vishNupatnI - She is the Ruler ofthis Universe and the Consort of vishNu, and to sundara kANDam 16.5 - RAghavo'rhati vaidehIm tam ceyam asitekshaNA - OnlyLord rAma is fit for sItA, and only sItA is fit for rAghava. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to divyaprabandham - tiruvin maNALan (tivuvAimozhi1.9.1); tiruvukkum tiruvAgiya SelvanE! (peria tirumozhi 7.7.1) - He who isthe Wealth (Consort) of One who bestows wealth on all; kOla malarp pAvaikuanbAgiya en anbEyO! - You who are LOVE personified to mahAlakshmi,

and who isLOVE itself for me (tiruvAimozhi 10.10.7). SrI Samkara refers to the incident of the churning of the Milky Ocean, whereinmahAlakshmi appears from the Ocean, and chooses mahAvishNu as Her consort, fromamong all the deva-s who are present - amRta mathane sarvAn surAn asurAdInvihAya SrIh enam patitvena varayAmAsa iti SrI-patih. SrI Samkaragives an alternate interpretation as well: SrI means Supreme Cosmic Power, and bhgavAn is the Master of this Power,and so He is SrI-patih. Thus, SrI patih refers to Him who is the Consort of mahA lakshmi, theMaster of the Supreme Cosmic Power, and the Master and Bestower of all that isauspicious. 611. SrImatAm-varah a) The Best Among those who possess affluence. b) The Best among those who possess knowledge of the veda-s. Om srImatAm-varAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar refers to the incident of the churning of the Milky Ocean for theinterpretation of this nAma. Goddess lakshmi chose by Him among all thedeva-s that were assembled, and He is the Object of her full and loving glancesalways; after being seated in His vaksha-sthalam (chest), she blesses thedeva-s such as brahma by her casual glances or blessings occasionally. Thus, He is the best among those who receive lakshmi's kaTAksham. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to SrI vishNu purANam (1.9.106-107), describing theabove. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan elaborates further by pointing that bhagavAn is the Only Onewho is SrImAn of Possessor of all wealths; the others can be qualified asSrImAn because they may possess some wealth in some specific area for some breifperiod of time. He gives references to nacciyAr tirumozhi 10.10 - nAgaNaimiSai nam parar Selvar periyar; nammAzhvAr's tiruvASiriyam 1 - Sivan ayanindiran ivar maudal anaittOr deivak kuZhA'ngaL kai tozhak kiDanda tAami undittanip peru nAyakan. b) SrI Samkara interprets the term "SrI" here as a reference to theveda-s, and his anubhavam of this nAma is that bhagavAn is the Best among thosewho have the knowledge of the veda-s. He gives reference to the Sruti -Rcah sAmAni yajUgmshi | sA hi SrIamRtA satAm (taitt. BrAhmaNam 1.2.1) -The Rg, yajus, and sAman are the imperishable SrI or welath of the wise. SrI Samkara'sd interpretation is: Rg yajus sAma lakshaNA SrIh; yeshAm teshAm sarveshAm SrImatAm virincyAdInAm varah pradhAna bhUtah SrImatAmvarah. SrI cinmayAnanda builds on the above, and gives another interpretation: varahmeans blessing; so the nAma can also mean that He is the Blessing that issought by those who are the students of the veda-s. The nAma can also be interpreted to mean that He is worshipped as the ChiefDeity by those who have the veda-s as their wealth. To summarize, the nAma means that bhagavAn is the wealthiest of all those whopossess wealth, He is the One who possesses all the wealth all the time, Hiswealth is permanent and ever-existent unlike all the others whose wealth is onlytransient and temporary, He is the One sought by those who are proficient in theveda-s, He is the Chief Diety that is praised by the veda-s, etc. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page.

Slokam 65

om om om om om om om om

SrI-dAya namah SrI-SAya namah SrI-nivAsAya namah SrI-vibhAvanAya namah SrI-dharAya namah SrI-karAya namah Sreyah-SrImate namah loka-trayASrayAya namah

612. SrI dah - The Giver of Glories. om SrI-dAya namh. As mentioned in the beginning of the explanation for nAma 608, SrI BhaTTar continues to interpret the nAma-s up to 619 in terms of bhagavAn's inseparable association with pirATTi. For the current nAma, his explanation is that bhagavAn is the Giver of glory to lakshmi in the form of supreme love which is eternal, fresh, and spontaneous. The SrI that He gives lakshmi is makes her declare "agalagillEn iRaiyum" (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI bhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is: nitya nUtana, nir-vyAja praNaya rasa Sriyam tasyai dadAti iti SrI-dah. That is to say, He is Her life itself. He gives references to SrI vishNu purANam 1.9.144 vishNoreshA anapAyinI - She is ever inseparable from vishNu; yuddha kANDam 121.19 - ananyA hi mayA sItA bhAskareNa prabhA yathA - (rAma's words) - SitA cannot be without Me even as the Sun and its luster cannot be separated from each other; sundara KANDam 21.15 - (SitA's words) - ananyA rAghaveNAham bhAskareNa prabhA yathA - Just as radiance cannot be separated from the Sun, I cannot be separated from rAma. If SrI is taken to mean wealth, then the interpretation is that He is the Giver of wealth to His devotees. This is SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam - Sriyam dadAti bhaktAnAm iti SrI-dah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam

centralizes this to the case of SrI Herself - He is the One who gives Her the quality of SrI, just as She is the One who gives Him the pUrNatvam. The idea is that the two are One inseparable tattvam. Since bhagavAn is the Giver of wealth, the question arises: What kind of wealth should we seek? The dharma cakram writer clarifies this. There are two kinds of wealth. One is called preyas and the other is called Sreyas (this has been explained in a previous write-up as well). Preyas is the search for material wealth, and Sreyas is the search for spiritual wealth. This is dealt with in detail in kaThopanishad. We should learn to worship vishNu with the interest in seeking Sreyas, and not preyas, even though bhagavAn will bestow whatever the seeker seeks. The lesson to take from this nAma is that we should seek Sreyas in this life by worshipping vishNu, as the means for attaining mukti. In summary, the nAma illustrates that He is the Giver of wealth to His devotees, and He is the Giver of the attribute of SrI to lakshmi, just as She is the Giver of pUrNatvam to Him, and thus the two are one inseparable tattvam. PerumAL and pirATTi are like the Sun and its prabhA or luster. 613. SrI-Sah a) He Who is the ISa or Lord of SrI. b) He Who has SrI as His Ruler. SrI + ISah = SrI-Sah. Here again the inseparable Oneness of the tattvam of bhagavAn and pirATTi is reflected. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the description of lakshmi as: "AdAvAtma guNatvena bhogya rUpeNa vigrahe | AdhAraka svarUpeNa dAsI bhAvena vA sadA || " "lakshmi is ever with bhagavAn either as His innate qualities in His Transcendental Form, or in a delightful form in His body, or as His support by Her essential nature as a devout servant". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains this as: "pirATTi is in the form of His auspicious qualities in His Transcendental Form, as His beauty (saundaryam) in His divya ma'ngala vigraha form, and as His Support as well as servant", as described in the SrI pA'ncarAtra samhitA. She is also His Ruler in that He does not act without consent and approval from Her - SrI ISAh asya sa SrI-Sah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan points to the nAma SrI-patih (nAma 610) in this context. SrI BhaTTar also refers us to SrI sanatkumAra samhitA 113, describing lakshmi as the Ruler of bhagavAn: "pum pradhAna Isvara IsvarI" - lakshmi is the Ruler of the individual souls, or prakRti, and of the Ruler Himself. SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as meaning that He is the Lord of wealth - Sriya ISah SrISah. The nAma can thus be understood as illustrating that bhagavAn is the Lord of all wealth, and He is also the Lord of lakshmi, who in turn is His Ruler as well. 614. SrI-nivAsah a) The Abode of lakshmi b) The Support of lakshmi. c) He who dwells in purified hearts. d) He who resides where lakshmi resides.

om SrI-nivAsAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 185 (Slokam 20). The gist of the vyAkhyAnam for the nAma in Slokam 20 is included here. a) In Slokam 20, SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma based on the incident of bhagavAn churning the Milky Ocean. lakshmi emerges from the Ocean and takes Her place on His vaksha-sthalam, with the declaration as captured by nammAzhvAr: "agagillEn iRaiyum enRu alarmEl ma'ngai uRai mArban (tiruvAi mozhi 6.10.10)". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several references: paSyatAm deva devAnAm yayau vaksha sthalam hareh (SrI vishNu purANam); en tiru vAzh mArvar (tiruvAimozhi 8.3.7); malindu tiru irunda mArvan (mUnRAm tiruvantAdi 57); tiru ma'ngai ta'ngiya Sir mArban (nAcciyAr tirumozhi 8.4). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes the inseparable oneness of bhagavan and pirATTi in terms of pirATTi being the amRta creeper that surrounds bhagavAn who is like the kalpa vRksham - yato lakshmIs-tato harih. SrI Samkara bhAshyam for the occurrence of this nAma in Slokam 20 is: yasya vkashasi anapAyinI SrIh vasati sah SrI-nivAsah - He in whose vaksha-sthalam SrI always resides is SrI-nivAsah. SrI cinmayAnanda describes SrI as connoting "all Glory and power, faculties and strength, to be good and to perform creative acts of righteousness". She is found to never reside permanently in any bosom, except that of Lord vishNu. Even great sages and saints in recorded history have come to compromise the perfection in them. The only place where imperfections never enter to molest the serene essence is the seat of Eternal Perfection, which is the bosom of nArAyaNa. Hence mahA vishNu is indicated as SrI-nivAsa The Permanent Abode of lakshmi. b) In the current Slokam, SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms of the Oneness of bhagavAn and pirATTi - He is the contiguous support of lakshmi - note the word nitya in the vyAkhyAnam - divya vallyA iva kalpa drumah tasyAh nitya aupaghnah SrI-nivAsah. c) SrI Samkara bhAshyam in the current instance of the nAma is: SrImatsu nityam vasati iti SrI-nivAsah He who dwells in devotees who are endowed with SrI or virtue. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that SrI here refers to those who are pure at heart, wherein the passions and lusts have been removed, and peace, joy, devotion, and understanding reside. BhagavAn lives in the hearts of these, who are here referred to as SrImAn's, or those who have SrI in them. d) SrI anantakRshNa SAstri gives the explanation that bhagavAn resides where SrI resides, which is suggestive of the togetherness of bhagavAn and pirATTi. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri quotes: yato lakshmIs tato harih. Under Slokam 20, SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as referring to bhagavAn being the Permanent Abode of all auspicious qualities, unlike in the case of everyone else, whom She blesses for a brief period of time with a tiny part of some aspect of auspiciousness. Please see the detailed description under Slokam 20. The nAma "SrI-nivAsah" thus signifies that - SrI lives in His vaksha sthalam inseparably (SrI referring to pirATTi), - He lives in those who are blessed with SrI or virtue (SrI referring to the virtue in the devotees of

bhagavAn) - BhagavAn is the permanent Abode of all auspicious qualities (SrI or virtue residing in Him always in full) 615. SrI-nidhih a) He who has lakshmi as His wealth. b) He in whom all wealth resides. c) He who is the treasure house for SrI. a) nidhi means wealth. Ho who has SrI as His wealth is SrI-nidhih. SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam is that SrI has been placed in bhagavAn like a gem-studded jewel in a casket. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes that SrI is the personification of all His Sakti, and He treasures her and protects her in His vaksha-sthalam and keeps her protected with His pItAmbaram. She is the incarnation of all Sakti, and He is the resort where all Sakti resides. b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation - sarva Saktimaye asmin akhilAh Sriyoh nidhIyanta iti SrI-nidhih - He who is the resort of the entirety of wealth, as He is all-powerful. c) SrI cinmAyananda interprets the nAma as "He who is the nidhi for SrI", and notes that He is All-Full and Perfect, all glories draw themselves from Him alone. In this sense, SrI also draws her vitality from Him, and He is thus the nidhi of SrI. The dharma cakram writer explains the meaning behind the nAma as follows: SrI refers to all that is good. As bhagavAn has declared - He takes incarnations to protect the good and destroy the evil - paritrANAya sAdhUnAm vinASAya ca dushkRtAm. This nAma indicates His protecting SrI - the incarnation of all that good and virtuous. This nAma teaches us that just as the good part of the food that is consumed is converted into blood etc. and the bad part is discarded as waste, we should retain what is good around us and discard what is not good. Meditation on this nAma of vishNu with this understanding of the meaning of this nAma will give us this ability. The nAma SrI-nidhih thus means: - He has SrI as His treasure - SrI has Him as her treasure - He is the resort of all wealth 616. SrI-vibhAvanah a) He who owes His greatness to lakshmi. a) He who bestows greatness on all according to their karma. b) He who makes lakshmi's fame (vivhavam) known to everyone. SrI BhaTTar gives the reference to sage vAlmIki - aprameyam hi tat tejah yasya sA janakAtmajA (AraNya. 37.18) - "The tejas or splendor of SrI rAma, who has sItA as His pirATTi, is beyond all measure". These are the words of mArIca to rAvaNa. ANDAL dramatically describes the extent of trouble He went through to get pirATTi - uNNAdu uRa'ngAdu oli kaDalai UdaRuttu peN Akkai AppuNDa SelvanAr (nAcciyAr tirumozhi 11.6). peN here refers to pirATTi who has no one to compare with.

b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He is SrI-vibhAvanah because He gives various forms of prosperity to all according their karma-s - karmAnurUpeNa vividhAh Sriyah sarvabhUtAnAm vibhAvayati iti SrI-vibhAvanah. c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the interpretation that He is SrI-vibhAvanah because He spreads the fame of lakshmi by proudly displaying His association with lakshmi, and by bestowing blessings on all devotees through His association with lakshmi. The dharma cakram writer explains in simple terms the complimentary nature of perumAL and pirATTi. The analogy he gives is that when wealth is in someone's possession who does not use it for anything good, it is wasted. Neither the wealth of this person acquires fame, nor does the possessor of this wealth. The dharma cakram writer gives the example of a poor man who got seven jars of gold, six of them full, and the seventh half full. He was taken by greed that the seventh jar was only half full, and so started living a life with the aim of trying to get the seventh jar filled up, and in the process suffered even more in poverty than before he got the gold jars. This is not the purpose of getting wealth. Instead, there are those who get wealth and then use it to help those in need. They attain fame because of their wealth, and their wealth also becomes famous because it is used for the right purposes. BhagavAn has the wealth in the form of SrI (mahAlakshmi), and He bestows all His devotees with blessings according to their karma, and so He gets His fame. SrI gets the fame since the wealth that He has because of His association with her is being used for protecting dharma. Thus, the mutually complimentary nature of bhagavAn and pirATTi is conveyed in this nAma, as in other nAma-s of this group.

617. SrI-dharah The Bearer of SrI. Om SrI-dharAya namah. The inseparable nature of the relationship between SrI and bhagavAn is once again revealed in this nAma. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is: ratnamiva arcisham, pushpamiva surabhim, induriva candirkAm, amRtamiva svAdutAm, autpattikena sambandhena Sriyam dharati iti SrI-dharah - Just as the gem bears its luster, the flower its fragrance, the moon her moonlight, and nectar its sweetness, so also vishNu bears lakshmi in Him by an innate relationship. He also quotes the following support from SrImad rAmAyaNa - na hi hAtumiyam SaktyA kIrtirAtmavato yathA (ayodhyA. 3.29)- It will be impossible for rAma to abandon sItA even as the fame of a virtuous man cannot be abandoned by him. It is not possible to separate the quality of an object from the object itself. Similarly, it is not possible to separate bhagavan from lakshmi, just as it is not possible separate the heat from the fire, the whiteness from the milk, the prakASam from the Sun, etc., as additional examples. 618. SrI-karah a) He who makes lakshmi (follow Him in His incarnations) b) He who confers SrI (spiritual wealth) on the devotees, including moksham (nitya-SrI) c) He who makes His devotees shine with SrI (glory).

d) He who has taken the hand of SrI (mahA lakshmi). Om SrI-karAya namah. Sriyam karoti iti SrI-karah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn makes lakshmi incarnate Herself in a suitable form when He comes down into this world in His incarnations, and thus He is called SrI-karah. 'devatve deva deheyama maushyatve ca mAnushI' is from SrI vishNu purANam (1.9.145) - She assumes the deva deham when He is in daiva lokam, and she assumes a human form when He takes a human form. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes the following support from nammAzhvAr: ezhil malar mAdarum tAnum iv-Ezh-ulagai inbam payakka AlginRa e'ngaL pirAn (tiruvAi. 7.10.1). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates on this, and adds that after making lakshmi incarnate in a suitable form with Him, (such as sItA when He came as rAma, rukmiNi when He came as kRshNa etc.)., He spreads her fame, and ensures that she blesses those who worship Him, including nitya-SrI (moksham) to those devotees who have matured to that level. SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is: smaratAm, stuvatAm, arcayatAm ca bhaktAnAm Sriyam karoti iti SrI-karah He is called SrI-karah since He confers spiritual wealth on His devotees who think about Him, praise Him, and worship Him. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - SriyAm - svajana kIrtInAm karah iti SrI-karah BhagavAn is SrI-karah because He gives expression to the kIrti or fame of His devotees. Based on the vyAkhyAnam by SrI Baladeva vidyAbhUshaN, yet another interpretation suggests itself - He is SrI-karah because He has taken SrI's (mahA lakshmi's) hand in marriage. Thus, the significance of this nAma can be summarized as: a) bhagavAn is called SrI-karah because He causes lakshmi follow Him in an appropriate form whenever He takes an incarnation b) He bestows SrI (spiritual wealth) including moksham, on His devotees according to their karma and maturity level in their bhakti c) He gives expression to the SrI (kIrti) in His devotees. d) He has taken the hand of mahA lakshmi. 619. Sreyas-SrImAn a) He that has lakshmi who is resorted to by devotees for attaining the good. b) He who is decorated with the exquisitely beautiful wealth of ornaments such as His nUpuram, keyuram, kaTakam, kirITam, etc. Om SreyaS-SrImate namah.

Here Sreyas or Sreyah refers to the Spiritual Good. In kaThopanishad, yama's description of Sreyas, and its difference from preyas (the material wealth), is nicely presented. In the current nAma, SrI BhaTTar interprets laskhmi as Sreyas-SrI, who bestows the spiritual benefits to those who worship her. BhagavAn is SreyaS-SrImAn, the One who possesses her. Thus, again the inseparable nature of perumAl and pirATTi is brought out. SrI BhaTTar gives the following quotes in support of his interpretation: praNipAta prasannA hi mythilI janakAtmajA | alameshA paritrAtum rAkshasyo mahato bhayAt

||

(sundara.58.92)

"Mythili (sItA), the daughter of Janaka, is surely bent upon showing her grace to those who make their obeisance to Her. O rAkshasis! Sheis capable of protecting us from this danger" - words of trijaTA to rAkshasi-s. SarIra Arogyam AiSvaryam ari paksha kshayah sukham health, wealth, destruction of enemies, and happiness. - (vishNu purANam 1.9.125) - She bestows bodily

vimukti phala dAyinI - (vishNu purANam 1.9.120) - She is the grantor of the fruit of release from bondage. yasyAm hiraNyam vindeyam gAmaSvam purushAnaham - (SrI sUktam 2) (She) from whom I shall get gold, cows, horses, and sons. Sriyam loke devajushTAmudArAm (SrIsUktam 5) - lakshmi, who is worshipped by the gods for getting their ends accomplished, or who is loved by nArAyaNa Himself, and who is bounteous in Her gifts. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the explanation that bhagavAn has the nAma SreyaS-SrImAn because He possesses the most exquisite SrI-s in the form of His ornaments etc. - SreyasI atiSaya SobhamAnA SrIrvesha racanA nUpura yugala kA'ncI kaTaka keyUra kuNDala kirITAdimatI yasya iti Sreyah SrImAn. He gives the support from amarakoSa - SreyAn-SreshThah pushkalah syAt sattamS-cAtisobhane (3.1.58). In SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam, this nAma is treated as two separate nAma-s - Sreyah and SrImAn. In this interpretation, bhagavAn is called Sreyah because He is Salvation, the Ultimate Goal of Eternal Bliss. He is called SrImAn because He is the Possessor of SrI (SrI here meaning His power, splendor, and supreme wisdom). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri quotes from the kaThopanishad, referenced earlier in this nAma, to explain the significance of the term "Sreyah" anyat Sreyah anyadutaiva preyah, ..tayoh Sreya AdadAnasya sAdhu bhavati, Sreyo hi dhIro'bhi preyo vRNIte" - (extracts from KaThopanishad 2-1and 2). "Sreyas and preyas take one in two entirely different paths; Sreyas brings good (Spiritual realization) to those who aspire for it. The wise ones chose Sreyas over preyas (sensual and materialistic pleasures)". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha equates preyas and Sreyas to pravRtti and nivRtti mArga-s respectively, and gives the quote from the Rg veda to indicate how preyas and Sreyas can go together to achieve the final liberation - by acquiring material wealth and using it properly to attain the Higher Spirit paricinmartto draviNam mamanyAdRtasya pathA namasA vivAset | uta svena kratunA sam vadeta SreyAmsam daksham manasA jagRbhyAt || (10.31.2) 620. loka-trayASrayah

a) He Who is the Resort for all three worlds. b) He who is the substratum for the worlds-of-experiences of waking, dream, and deep sleep. Om loka-trayASrayAya namah. trayANAm lokAnAm AsrayatvAt loka-trayASrayah (SrI Samkara) - One who is the refuge for all the three worlds. SrI BhaTTar: BhagavAn and lakshmi, like father and mother, are the one resort for all beings in all three worlds. SrI BhaTTar gives the reference to indra's words in SrI vishNu purANam - tvam mAtA sarva lokAnAm devadevo harih pitA (1.9.126) - "Thou art the Mother of all the worlds, and Hari, the God of all gods, is the father". SrI anantakRshNa Sastri interprets the "three worlds" as referring to the earth, the atmosphere, and the heavens. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the "three worlds" as referring to the three "worlds of experiences", namely, waking, dream, and deep-sleep. Thus, he explains the nAma as referring to bhagavAn being the substratum (ASraya) for these three worlds-of-experiences in every being; without the presence of nArAyaNa in everyone of us, we will not be able to experience anything in any of these states. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page.

Slokam 66

omsvakshAya namah om sva'ngAya namah

om om om om om om om

SatAnandAya namah nandaye namah jyotir-gaNeSvarAya namah vijitAtmane namah vidheyAtmane namah satkIrtaye namah chinna-samSayAya namah

621. svakshah - The Beautiful-Eyed. Om svakshAya namah. The nAma can be understood by looking at the two parts which constitute the word- su + akshah. SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam is su - sobhane puNDarIkAbheakshiNi asya iti svakshah - He whose eyes resemble the lotus-petals. SrI BhaTTar continues his anubhavam of seeing pirATTi and bhagavAn together -his interpretation is that bhagavAn has these beautiful eyes which arethoroughly proficient in the art of the enjoyment of the nectarine ocean of Herbeauty. We may recall that the hue of bhagavAn's kaDaik-kaN is describedas reddish, and pirATTi's eyes are dark-hued. The anubhavam of this by ourelders is that His kaDaik-kaN (corner of the eye) is reddish in colorbecause He is always looking at the beautiful reddish complexion of pirATTithrough His side glances, and Her eyes are dark because She is always enjoyingthe beautiful dark complexion of bhagavAn. She is "nArINAmuttamA vadhU" (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). tiruppANAzhvAr describesthe beauty of His eyes - kariya Agip puDai parandu miLirndu Sevvari ODiap-periavAya kaNgaL ennaip pEdaimai SeidanavE". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is svakshahbecause He views the whole universe seated in the Sun chariot, and He is the eyeof everything that exists. 622. sva'ngah - The Lovely-bodied. Om sva'ngAya namah. The interpretation is similar to the previous nAma - su + a'ngah = sva'ngah. Su - SobhanAni a'ngAni asya iti sva'nah - One whose limbs are beautiful (SrISamkara). He has a beautiful form that captivates all His devotees. See the anubhavam of tiruppANAzhvAr, svAmi deSikan, hanumAn, etc., referencedbelow. SrI BhaTTar'as anubhavam is that He has a celestial body that is worthy of beingadmired by even lakshmi. SrI Baladeva vidhyAbhUshaN echoes the sameanubhavam - lakshmI spRhaNIya divya SarIra dhArI. BhagavAn's soundaryamleads Her to declare "agalagillEn" (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). In sundara kANDam, vAlmIki gives a very detailed description ofevery aspect of Lord rAma's beauty through 16 Sloka-s in hanumAn's words (35,7-22). We also have tiruppANazhvAr's beautiful description of Lordra'nganAtha's beauty in his amalanAdi pirAn. His beauty just makesAzhvAr just conclude his praise of the Lord with the declaration "enamudianik kaNDa kaNgaL maRRonRinaik kANAvE". svAmi deSikan describesLord ra'nganAtha's beauty in bhagavad dhyAna sopAnam and many other stotra-s. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives his interpretation using the root agi - gatau -to go, to move around, and gives the explanation - SobhanAni a'ngAni - gamanAniyasya sa sva'ngah - He who has beautiful paths or gaits is sva'ngah. Hegives the quote from Rg veda to support his interpretation:

agre bRhannushsAmUrdhvo asthAnnirjaganvAn tamaso jyotishAgAt | agnirbhAnunA rushatA sva'nga A jAto viSvA sadmAnyaprAh || (10.1.1) "High hath the Mighty risen before the dawning, and come to us with lightfrom out of the darkness. Fairshapen agni with white-shining splendorhath filled at birth all human beings" (translation from Ralph Griffith). Alternatively, since bhagavAn has created this Universe with beings which allhave the capability to move around and perform their functions, He is calledsva'ngah. 623. SatAnandah - He of infinite Bliss. Om SatAnandAya namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that He has boundless Bliss which is ever flowing onaccount of the mutual love of pirATTi and bhagavAn. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan comments that the number "hundred" here does not mean thenumber "100", but stands for the greatness of the extent of the Bliss. SrI Samkara interprets the nAma in terms of His being of the form ofInfinite Bliss, and quotes from the bRhadAraNya upanishad - etasyaiva AnandasyaanyAni bhUtAni mAtrAm upajIvanti (4.3.32) - "Compared to His Bliss,the bliss of all other beings is a but a minute fraction". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that Anandam is of different kinds at the levelof the different beings; man gets one type of Anandam, the animal enjoys adifferent kind of Anandam, the deva-s yet a different type, the Rshi-s adifferent type, etc. Thus, the Anandam varies depending on the enjoyer ofAnandam. The j~nAni who is disinterested in worldly affairs derives thegreat Anandam that those who are interested in worldly pleasures get only inbits and pieces. All these bits and pieces of Anandam that every creaturederives is what flows from Him who is the Supreme Bliss, SatAnandah. SrI SAstri gives the support from taittirIya upanishad 2.8 te ye Satam mAnushAh, devAnAm, indrasya, prajApateh AnandAh sa eko brahmaNa Anandah | Srotriyasya cAkAmahatasya | SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives yet another view of the Infinite Bliss of bhagavAn. Other than Him, each creature feels pleasure when it is in some particularenvironment, and feels pain when it is in a different environment. Thus, afish feels pleasure when in water, and feels pain when outside water. Forhuman beings, it is exactly the reverse. For birds, it is a different kindof medium. But for Him, His Bliss in independent of any constraint, andthus He is of Infinite Bliss. The Anandam of everything else flows fromthe One and Only source of true Anandam - SatAnandah. The dharma cakram writer explains the concept of pErAnandam starting with thelittle Anandam of tge immobile (sthAvara) beings such as plants, which derivetheir pleasure through the sense of touch alone. The worms derive their pleasure through the sense of touchand taste. Slightly more evolvedbeings such as the ants derive their pleasure from the sense of touch, taste,and smell. Beings such as the bees derive their pleasure from thesense of touch, taste, smell, and sight. The animals derive their pleasurefrom the additional sense of hearing. Man derives his pleasure from themind in addition. Yet ordinary people seek cheap material pleasures withall these gifts, and end up enjoying the impermanent pleasures, just as the fish enjoys its sense of taste and falls prey to the fisherman's hook. Only a true yogi reaches the next level, that of AtmAnandam. This nAmashould teach us to meditate of on the "SatAnanda" mantra on

Him, andderive the permanent Anandam. 624. nandih - He who is ever delighted. Om nandaye namah. nandati iti nandih - He who is delighted is nandih. SrI BhaTTar: He is nandi because He is ever prosperous by virtue of Hisbeing with SrI at all times, at all places, and in all ways. His constantand inseparable association with SrI is the reason for His constant delight. SrI Samkara: paramAnanda vigraho nandih - One who is the embodiment ofSupreme Bliss. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri: His Anandam is such that the humans and the deva-scan look to Him to derive the true Anandam - He is the Bestower of their trueAnandam. 625. jyotir-gaNeSvarah a)The Lord of the host of lustrous deities (nitya sUri-s). b) The Lord of the luminaries (the stars, sun, moon, etc.). Om jyotir-gaNeSvarAya namah. The simple meaning of the nAma is - He who is the leader of the luminaries. The difference in the vyAkhyAna-s centers around who the luminaries are that isbeing referred to in the nAma. a) SrI BhaTTar refers to the host of nitya-sUri-s like AdiSesha, vishvaksena,etc., who are constantly at the service of bhagavAn and pirATTi, and whoare themselves lustrous. He refers us to purusha sUktam marIcInAmpadamicchanti vedhasah - "Wise men desire to attain the world of theradiant souls", referring the world of nitya sUri-s as the world of radiantsouls. MarIci here refers to those who are radiant. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan nicely translates "jyotir-gaNeSvarah" to "ayarvaRum amarargaL adhipati" of nammAzhvAr. The nitya sUri-sare shining with the kaimkarya SrI to bhagavAn and pirATTi. b) SrI Samkara gives the same meaning, but interprets the term "jyotir-gaNa"to the luminaries, namely the stars, the Sun, etc. SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj gives the derivation of the meaning - jyotishAm nakshatrANAm, gaNAiti jyotir-gaNAh; teshAm ISvara iti jyotir-gaNeSvarah. SrI Samkara givesthe support from kaThopanishad tameva bhAntam anubhAti sarvam tasya bhAsA sarvamidam vibhAti (2.2.14) - When He shines, all the others shine after Him. Everything here shines by His effulgence"; and from the gItA - yadAtiya gatam tejah (15.12) - referring to the brilliancewhich is in the sun. The dharma cakram writer gives the analogy that just as a person who does nothave eyesight cannot see the light around him, one who does not have j~nAnamwill not be able to see the jyoti-gaNeSvarah residing in him. One has tofirst rid oneself of the darkness of kAma, krodha, etc. in him, before one cansee the light

inside. This is the lesson to take form this mantra. 626. vijitAtmA a) He whose mind has been conquered (by His devotees). b) He who has conquered His Mind. Om vijitAtmane namah. SrI BhaTTar has thus far interpreted the previous nAma-s 608 up to 625 in terms of His association with pirATTi. Now he proceeds to interpret the next few nAma-s in terms of His extreme sauSIlyam (the quality of amiability). SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for the nAma "vijitAtmA" is that bhagavAn revels in being conquered by His devotee; this is His real nature. When a devotee goes and bows before Him with devotion and sincerity, bhagavAn is easily conquered by the devotee. Recall that kRshNa makes the promise at the start of the mahAbhArata war, that He won't take to weapons during the war. Then, in the course of the war, bhIshma, the great devotee of kRshNa, takes a vow in front of kRshNa that he will make kRshNa take to weapons the next day during the fighting. Everyone including bhIshma knew kRshNa's earlier vow not to take to arms. And yet, since His great devotee declared that he will make kRshNa take to arms, kRshNa made that word of His devotee come true, and did exactly as his devotee wished the next day. Such is His compassion to His devotee, that He will even break His own promise in order to make His devotee's words come true. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 1.3.1 - pattuDai aDiyavarkku eLiyavan ettiRam. nammAzhvAr who could sing bhagavAn's parattvam in a clear state of mind, could not bear to describe His soulabhyam and the troubles He went through to remain bound to the ural (mortar), get beaten up by yaSodA, etc. AzhvAr passed out and lost His conscience of the external world for six months since He could not bear to think of perumAL going through all this suffering, just to please His devotees. b) SrI Samkara bhAshyam is - vijita AtmA mano yena sah vijitAtmA - He by whom His mind has been subdued or controlled, is vijitAtmA. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that bhagavAn possesses everything there is to possess, and so He has nothing to desire, and thus He is of a mind that is absolutely controlled. The dharma cakram writer indicates that that meditation on this nAma of bhagavAn will lead one to better mind control, and ultimate God-realization. Note that this is one of the nAma-s that was discussed in the posting comparing the bhAshya-s of SrI Samkara and SrI BhaTTar, where the point was made that SrI Samkara tends to emphasize the parattvam, aiSvaryam, etc., of Brahman, and SrI BhaTTar emphasizes the soulabhyam of perumAL repeatedly. SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya selects all the four nAma-s starting with the current one for his comparison of the bhAshya-s of SrI Samkara and SrI BhaTTar to establish his point. 627. vidheyAtmA a) He who is of a submissive nature (to His devotees). b) He who has the jIva-s as subservient to Him. c) If a-vidheyAtmA, then He who is subservient to no one. Om vidheyAtmane namah. vidheya means subservient. As mentioned in the previous nAma, SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms of bhagavAn's being subservient to the devotee and His enjoying His subservience. Sri BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that it is bhagavAn's essential nature to be at the disposal of His devotees to such an

extent that they can easily command Him to do whatever they want. He gives examples of "Come here, stand here, sit here, eat this", etc. (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers to periAzhvAr calling Him - pUc cUDa vA, nIrADa vA, ammam uNNAi, etc.). SrI PBA gives the example of Sonna vaNNam Seyda perumAL. When tirumazhiSai AzhvAr asked Him to pack up His snake bed and leave town, He obeyed as He was told, and later when AzhvAr commanded Him to go back when the king repented, perumAL obeyed AzhvAr's command as well. SrI PBA also gives the example of Lord kRshNa obeying the command of arjuna when the latter ordered Him to take the chariot and position it in between the two armies at the start of the mahAbhArata war - "Senayorubhayor madhye ratham sthApaya me acyuta!". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the example from peria tirumozhi 11.5.5. - vaNNak karum kuzhal AycciyAl mottuNDu kaNNik kuRum kayiRRAl kaTTuNDAn. Similar to SrI v.v. rAmAnujan's examples of "pUc cUDa vA", SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the examples from the Sruti-s: "udbhudyasva, pratijAgRhi, ishTApUrtam samsRja", etc. (udbudhyasvAgne pratijAgRhi tavam ishTApUrte samsRjeyAmayam ca" - yajur. 15.54), ("deva savitah prasuva, yaj'nam prasuva, yaj'na patim bhagAya" - yajur. 32.15). b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - vidheyAh -sevakA AtmAno - jIvA yasya iti vidheyAtmA - He who has the jIva-s who are subservient to Him. c) SrI Samkara in this case uses the pATham a-videhyAtmA instead of vidheyAtmA, and gives the meaning "One who is not subservient to any one". Using this pATham, the dharma cakram writer notes that the requirement for one to be not subservient to anyone else, is to win over his/her own self. When one has controlled his/her own indriya-s and manas, then there is nothing that this person needs or wants, and so there is no need to be subservient to anyone else. He gives a story to illustrate the point that want is what makes people subservient to others. Traditionally, the priests of a particular temple were brahmacAri-s, and were devoting themselves wholeheartedly to the worship of God. The local king tried to get them to come to His palace and do some things according to his wish, and they refused to leave their service to Lord. He consulted with his ministers, and the ministers advised the king that if the king can get the priests married, the problem of the king will go away. The king accordingly made efforts tog et the priests married, and succeeded in this effort. Once they got children, their materialistic needs increased, and they voluntarily took temple prasAdam and started visiting the king, in expectation of some material gift from him. So they automatically became subservient to the king without his effort. So the lesson to take from this nAma is that the key to being not subservient to another human being is to win over oneself first - get control of one's own indriya-s and mind. SrI PBA addresses the difference between the pATha-s used by SrI Samkara and SrI BhaTTar, and observes that the version used by SrI BhaTTar is more appealing to a devotee since it brings out the aspect of saulabhyam in perumAL which is in favor of His devotees. 628. sat-kIrtih He of true renown. Om sat-kIrtaye namah. SrI BhaTTar associates bhagavAn's kIrti as resulting from His sauSIlya - sauSIlya sattvena asya ati-mahatI kIrtih iti sat-kIrtih. SrI BhaTTar points out that no matter how well we praise His kIrti, it is still only an understatement. In addition, His kIrti is all truth and no exaggeration. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers to nammAzhvAr: "nigar il pugazhAy" - He whose kIrti has no comparison. SrI Samkara emphasizes the "sat" in sat-kIrtih as referring to the true nature of His kIrti - satI- avitathA

kIrtih asya iti sat-kIrtih. SrI cinmayAnanda associates the kIrti with His being the Consort of lakshmi. The dharma cakram writer describes two kinds of fame - the fame that comes from material wealth, official status, etc., and the fame that comes because one follows the path of dharma. The former type of kIrti is temporary and transient - one loses it as soon as the wealth or the position that brought the fame are gone, and they go one day or the other anyway. But the followers of the path of dharma - such as dharmaputra or hariScandra - do not ever lose their kIrti; the world praises them forever. It is the kIrti that comes out of following the path of dharma and the worship of bhagavAn that one should follow in order to realize satkIrtih, the mantra contained in this nAma. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha explains that He is sat-kIrti also because it is only by constantly worshipping Him and singing His praise that one can attain true kIrti; all the other kIrti-s attained through any other means will be not true kIrti. Readers may recall that SrI satyadevo vAsishTha, in addition to giving detailed explanations of the derivation of the nAma-s and their interpretations, has composed one Slokam for each nAma that contains his interpretation. His Slokam for the current nAma is: vishNuh sadA sarvaguNAbhirAmah samkIrtyate svAtma tamah pramRshTyai | mantrair-vrataih satya-japais tapobhir nAnyas-tatah kIrtim upaiti satyAm || 629. chinna-samSayah The Dispeller of all doubts. Om chinna-samSayAya namah. chinnAh samSayA bhaktAnAm yena iti chinna-samSayah (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj) - He by whom all doubts of His devotees are dispelled is called chinna-samSayah. SrI BhaTTar comments that because of His reputation of being endowed with extreme sauSilyam and saulabhyam, all doubts that anyone may have about Him - such as: "Can He be easily known or is it difficult to realize Him?", "Can He be easily pleased or is it difficult to please Him?", "Can He be easily approached or is it difficult to approach Him", etc. - stand easily dispelled. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes arjuna's words to kRshNa from the gItA: "None but You (kRshNa) can possibly dispel my doubt": etat me samSayam kRshNa chhettumarhasi aSeshatah | tvat ananyah samSayasya asya chhettA na hyupapadyate || (gItA 6.39) SrI cinmayAnanda points out that after Lord kRshNa gave the upadeSam to arjuna, the later declares that all his doubts are now cleared: sthito'smi gata-sandeahah karishye vacanam tava (gIta 18.73) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is called chinna-samSayah because He has no doubts of any kind Himself - He realizes everything directly like a fruit in the palm - karatala amalakavat sarvam sAkshAtkRtavatah kvApi samsAyo nAsti iti chinna-samSayah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that the lack of any doubt in bhagavAn is revealed in the flawless way He executes His acts of creation all the way up to pralaya. Note that SrI BhaTTar links his interpretation to bhagavAn's sauSIlyam, as was pointed out in a recent comparison of the two vyAkhyAna-s.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page.

Slokam 67

om om om om om om om om om

udIrNAya namah sarvatas-cakshushe namah anISAya namah SASvata-sthirAya namah bhU-SayAya namah bhUshaNAya namah bhUtaye namah a-SokAya namah Soka-nASanAya namah

630. udIrNah a) He Who visibly manifests Himselfthrough His incarnations. b) He who is superior to all beings c) He who elevates His devotees to His level. Om udIrNAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets this nAma andthe subsequent few nAma-s as describing the arcA form of bhagavAn. In this context, he interprets the nAma "udIrNah" as "ullasitah"which means "shining, bright,

becoming visible" and gives the meaning"He has a pleasing and splendid form that is clearly visible to the eyes ofthe devotee". b and c) SrI Samkara's interpretationis "sarva bhUtebhyah samudriktatvAt udIrNah" - He who is superior to all beings. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives thewords starting from the upasarga "ut" and the root Ru - gatau - to go,and gives the meaning - One who is above all beings. Alternatively, hesays that the nAma can signify that He is udIrNah because He lifts everyone up. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj essentially gives the same explanation - ut -abhyudayam, Rccahati - prApayati sma eva sadaiva svASritAnAm iti udIrNah. Thus, he also derives the nAma from ut, and the root R - to go, and gives themeaning that bhagavAn is called udIrNah because He lifts up His devotees so thatthey reach Him. The dharma cakram writer illustrates atdifferent levels how bhagavAn is superior in all respects. In sheer sizeof His form, He permeates everything, and everything is His body, so there is noone who has a bigger form than Him. In superiority of Power, we knowthrough His incarnations that there is no one superior to Him in His Power. In the area of controlling indriyas and mind, bhagavAn is the yogISvara, andthere is none superior to Him in this aspect also. In the area of Love toeveryone, bhagavAn demonstrated that there is none equal to Him in this aspectby His leelA-s in gokulam. When it comes to knowledge, there is nothingmore to know for one who has known mahA vishNu; since He is the ultimate inknowledge. Thus, no matter what aspect one looks at, there is nothingsuperior to Him. This nAma should reveal to us this great and at the samesimple Truth, and thus lead us to meditate on Him. 631. sarvataS-cakshuh a) He Who is visible to the eyes ofall. b) He who has eyes everywhere, and sees everything through His consciousness. Om sarvatas-cashushe namah. a) SrI BhaTTar: He issarvataS-cakshuh because He is visible to the likes of even ordinary people likeus. He has been visible to the people of His time when He took incarnationas rAma, kkRshNa, etc., and He is visible to us today in the form of arcA mUrtiin the temples and in our houses. This again supports His beingchinna-samSayah as we saw in nAma 629. He delights His devotees with Hiscomplete darSanam. b) SrI Samkara: He issarvataS-cakshuh because He has eyes everywhere, and thus sees everythingthrough His consciousness. Sarvatah sarvam sva-caitanyena paSyatiiti sarvatS-cakshuh. Through His caitanyam which is natural to Him, Hesees everything always. The Sruti says - He has eyes on all sides -viSvataScakshuruta viSvatas-pAt (SvetASva. 3.3). 632. anISah a) He Who is not the Master. b) He Who has no one above Him as the Master. Om anISAya namah.

a) SrI BhaTTar: He is calledanISah since when it comes to His devotees, He does not assert or display Hisrulership, and instead, is completely subservient to them. We already sawseveral examples of this in our explanation of the nAma 627 - vidheyAtmA. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan presents this idea more graphically by pointing out thatbhagavAn becomes dependent on the likes of us to bathe Him and feed Him in HisarcA form! PeriAzhvAr describes this act of His becoming dependent on Hisdevotees thus - AycciiyAgiya annaiyAl anRu veNNei vArttaiyuL sIRRamuNDu azhukUtta appan (tiruvAi. 6.2.11). He just puts up a show of weeping andcrying to show how subservient He is to yaSodA at the very thought that she mayget angry at the remote suggestion that He may be involved in any reportedincident of butter being stolen. b) SrI Samkara: He is called anISah because He hasno one above Him as His Master - na vidyate asya ISa iti anISah. He quotes from the Sruti - na tasya ISe kaScana - nArAyaNa. Upa. 3.2. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the additional example - na tasya kaScit patirasti loke na ceSilA - SveTASva. 6.9. The dharma cakram writer points outthat the lesson to take from this nAma is that one who is devoted to bhagavAnhas bhagavAn Himself under his control, and so devotion will lead one to thestate where there is no one who will be a master of the bhakta. This isthe greatness of devotion or bhakti. 633. SASvata-sthirah - He Who iseternally existent and steady. Om SASvata-sthirAya namah. SASvata means eternal, always, andsthirah means stable. SrI BhaTTar: He assumes thevarious forms of the images (arcA forms) which continue to exist for ever andwhich are directly perceptible to the eyes, at all times. SrI BhaTTarquotes from the sAttvata samhitA bimba AkRtyA AtmanA bimbe samAgamyaavatisThate - "He assumes a form similar to that of the image (fashioned byus), enters into it and remains there". The reference here is to thearcA mUrti-s. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj alsointerprets the nAma in terms of bhagavAn's vAtsalyam to His devotees - He iseternally stable in His vAtsalyam to His devotees. His vyAkhyAnam is: SASvat bhava iti SASvato nityah | sa ca asau sthira iti SASvata-sthirah -nityam svASrita vAtsalya pratishThitah | SrI Samkara: Even while beingEternal, He is also unchanging and stable - SaSvat bhavannapi, na vikriyAmkadAcit upaiti iti SASvata-sthirah. The dharma cakram writer points outthat when our mind is involved with things that change, our likes and dislikesare also changing. For example, if we get attracted to a body that isyoung, we lose the attraction when the body becomes older. But if weinvolve our mind with paramAtmA, who is never changing, there is no question ofour changing constantly between likes and dislikes. One who involveshis mind in the Supreme Self also attains eternal and stable piece, knowledge,and love. The likes of us who have an impermanent body and live in thisimpermanent world can attain permanent peace and permanent joy by meditating onthe etrnal and stable Self - the SASvata-sthirah. This is the significance of this nAma. 634. bhU-Sayah a) He who lies in His arca form wherever the devotee installs Him b) He Who lay on the sea shore on His way to SrIla'nkA.

c) He who lies inside every one of His creations as their antaryAmi d) He in whom the whole world rests at the time of pralaya. Om bhU-SayAya namah. a) Continuing his interpretation of the current set of nAma-s in terms of HisarcA incarnations, SrI BhTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam to the current nAma asfollows: He is called bhU-Sayah since He defers to the request of Hisdevotees to appear in this world, and makes His appearance in different formssuch as svayam-vyakta, siddha, mAnusha, etc., and even stays put in these placesby lying down there permanently in order to bless the devotees. svayam-vyakta forms are those where the Lord has chosen to manifest Himselfwithout the effort of anyone; siddha are those forms where the image of the Lordhas been consecrated by siddhas or perfected beings (such as brahma etc.)., andmAnusha are places where the Lord is installed by ordinary human beings. SrI P. B. aNNa'ngarAcArya describes his anubhavam of bhU-Sayah as "He Whojust stubbornly lies down and stays wherever His devotees ask Him to be",which is the best I could translate from his tamizh sentence "anbargaLuganda iDa'ngaLil paDu kADu kiDappavar". b) SrI Samkara gives reference to Lord rAma's resting on the sea shore whileproceeding to SrI lankA for destroying rAvaNa. c) SrI cinmayAnanda gives an additional alternate interpretation He in whomthe whole world rests at the time of dissolution - bhUh Sete asmin iti bhU-Sayah. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that since He rests in allthings that exist in the form of antaryAmi, He is called bhU-Sayah - bhUshu Sete. Thus, in summary, the nAma bhU-Sayah is enjoyed by the different vyAkhyAna kartA-sin various ways: a) He responds to the devotee's wishes by lying downwherever they install Him in the form of acrA mUrti, so that they can worshipHim easily; b) He is called bhU-Sayah because He lied down on the ground(on the sea shore) on His way to SrIla'nkA; c) He lies in the heart lotus of allthe creatures as their antaryAmi; d) All the creatures (referred to by the termbhU here), rest in Him (Sayah) at the time of parlaya.

635. bhUshaNah He Who becomes adorned, orHe Who adorns. a) He who wears the ornament of saulabhyam as His bhUshaNam b) He who is decorated with all kinds of different and wonderful ornaments asdescribed by emperumAnAr in SrI SaraNAgati gadyam c) He who adorns this world with His different incarnations at His wish d) He Who adorns every creature by His being their antaryAmi e) He who beautifies this world by His variety of creations Om bhUshaNAya namah. The literal meaning of the term bhUshaNam is "decoration, adornment,ornament". bhUshaNah is thus One who is decorated or adorned, or onewho decorates or adorns. The different vyAkhyAna kartA-s give differentanubhavams of what he is decorated with, or what He decorates with.

a) SrI BhaTTar looks at His saulabhyam as His most important bhUshaNam - Hiseasy accessibility to His devotee. The act of climbing down from Hisparatvam to the level of His devotees and mixing with them, is only bhUshaNamfor Him and not a dUshaNam. b) SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the additional explanation in terms of His divyabhUshNa-s as described by emperumAnAr in SrI SaraNAgati gadyam: kirITa makuTa cUDAvatamsa makara kuNDala graiveyaka hAra keyUra kaTakaSrIvatsa kaustubha muktAdAama udara bandhana pItAmbara kA'ncIguNa nUpurAdiaparimita divya bhUshNa - He is decorated with all sorts and kinds of ornaments,most wonderful to behold, everlasting, faultless, sweet-smelling, soft totouch, wonderful with splendor, such as the crown bearing the central diadem oflustrous stone, other head ornaments, ear ornaments, necklaces and neckornaments, garlands, shoulder-bracelets, bracelets in the hands, SrIvatsa andkaustubha, pearl garlands, waistlets, lace cloths, gold waist band and legornaments and others precious and innumerable. c) SrI Samkara views His taking the numerous incarnations at His wish asHis act of bhUshaNam or adorning this world - "sva icchA avatAraihbahubhih bhUmim bhUshayan bhUshNah". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives theexample of bhagavAn decorating gokulam by His very presence. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the example of the soul or AtmA being in thebody as itself a decoration or adornment of the body. When the soul leavesthe body, the body becomes unattractive by the second. Similarly, bhagavAn is the adornment for the whole world. Thatwhich is the life of something is the bhUshaNa for it as well. Forinstance, bhagavAn is bhUshaNa for the universe in the form of the sun and inthe form of the antaryAmi of the sun. e) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that He makes this world beautiful(adorns) with the varieties of His creation. He gives love and other finerinstincts, and He is the One behind all great, noble, and beautiful thoughtsthat have enriched human life. The dharma cakram writer points out that all the different kinds of beautiesthat we experience in nature (through sound, sight, touch, thought, intellect,etc.)., are present in Him. In His form as kRshNa, He was exquisitelybeautiful to see, the sound of His flute stole the hearts of all the gopi-s, the bhagavad gItA that He gave us is the incarnation of knowledge, His characteris absolute perfection, etc. The same is true of His incarnation as Lord rAma. LordrAma's divine beauty was well-known, the Rshi-s were immensely moved by thebeauty of His character, vAlmIki lost himself in the nAma of rAma, and hanumAnlost himself in His service. BhagavAn is thus the bhUshaNa above allbhUashaNa-s to His devotees. The different interpretations for this nAma are thus based on: a)His being decorated or adorned with qualities that are beneficial to Hisdevotees; b) His being adorned with all different kinds of beautiful ornaments;c) His adorning this Universe with all kinds of beautiful creations andequipping them with qualities such as love and intellect, and above all, givingthem the vital force of life by being their antaryAmi; d) His adorning theUniverse through His different incarnations, and thus decorating the place whereHe is by His very presence.

636. bhUtih a) He Who is wealth to Hisdevotees. b) He Who is the personification of Glory. c) He Who is the cause of all glory in His creations. d) He Who exists in the forms of all His creations.

Om bhUtaye namah. The root from which the nAma can be derived is bhU - sattAyAm - to be, to live,to be born. The nAma can also mean vibhUti - wealth. SrI cinmayAnanda quotes amarakoSa - vibhUti bhUtir_aiSvarye. The other amara koSa definitions arebhavati iti bhUtih, and bhavati anayA SrImAn iti bhUtih, which support thetwo meanings indicated. The different interpretations for this nAma arecentered on these two meanings. a) SrI BhaTTar explains that He is the wealth in every way to those who havetotally surrendered to Him, and so He is called bhUtih. nammAzhvAr captures this sentiment in tiruvAimozhi 5.1.8: "SelEi kaNNiyarum perum Selvamum nan makkaLum mElAt tAi tandaiyum avarE iniAvArE" (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj echoesthe same idea in his interpretation - paramA sampath bhaktAnAm iti bhUtih. b) Among the interpretations SrI Samkara gives are: a) BhavagavAn iscalled bhUtih because He Himself is the embodiment of Glory (vibhUtih), or, b)He is the cause of all glories in all His creations, or the source of allglorious manifestations - sarva vibhUtInAm kAraNatvAt bhUtih. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn iscalled bhUtih because He exists everywhere in the forms of all His creations, inthe forms of the sun, the stars, etc. , and He also is the cause of all theglory that His creations display. d) The dharma cakram writer gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is One who isthe personification of greatness. He observes that thesignificance of the nAma lies in our realizing that we should not go after thetransient and false greatness that comes with impermanent and materialisticbenefits, but instead, learn tomeditate on Him in thought, word, and deed so that we aim towards therealization of that One True Greatness. 637. a-Sokah or vi-Sokah He Who is without sorrow. Om a-SokAya namah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derivation - vigatah Soko yasya sa vi-Sokah,or avidyamAnah Soko yasya sa a-Sokah. (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj: na Soko yasya iti aSokah nitya Ananda mayah). a) SrI BhaTTar continues to stress bhagavAn's concern for the devotee in everyone of his interpretations. For the current nAma, his interpretation isthat bhagavAn has no need to be sorrowful because He never abandons any anAthawho has no other help and seeks His help. b) SrI Samkara continues to stress bhagavAn's paratvam, His being withoutblemish, etc. For the current nAma, his interpretation is that bhagavAn isGriefless, being absolute Bliss. One might raise the obvious question: Lord rAma was struck with extremesorrow when He was separated from sItA. How can one say He is withoutSokam? SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the explanation straight from SrImadbhAgavatam 9.10.11 - Lord rAma went through this act in His role of showing usall how ordinary mortals who are attached to a woman dear to them behave: priyayA viyuktah strI sa'nginAm gatimiti prathayanS-cacAra.

SrI cinmayAnanda observes that it is because of disturbances at thebody-mind-intellect level that one experiences sorrow. Since bhagavAn isbeyond these agitations, He is ever Blissful, desireless, ever contented, andthus never experiences sorrow. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj quotes from chAndogyopanishad in support of thevyAkhyAnam for this nAma ya AtmApahatapApmA vijaro vimRtyur-viSoko avijighatsoapipAsah satyakAmah satya samkalpah sonveshTavyah sa vijij~nAsitavya. (chA. 8.7.1), wherein one of the many attributes of Brahman is given as viSokah. 638. Soka-nASanah The Destroyer of sorrows. Om Soka-nASanAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that He removes the sorrow of thedevotee who suffers from separation from Him, by helping the devotee cross theocean of samsAra. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan observes that while all wealthin this world causes sorrow, He is the only Wealth who removes the sorrow. How does He do that? SrI rAmAnujan refers us to tirumazhiSai AzhvAr'stiruccandaviruttam 115: attan Agi annai Agi, Alum empirAnumAi, ottu ovvAdapal piRappu ozhittu nammai AT-koLvAn - He becomes the devotee's whole Wealth, Hebecomes the devotee's Father, Mother, and Lord, gets into the devotee's heart,and redeems the devotee from the ocean of samsAra, and thus removes thedevotee's sorrow once for all. b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that by the very remembrance of Him, thesorrow of the devotee is removed - smRti mAtreNa bhaktAnAm Sokam nASayati itiSoka-nASanah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to the upanishads -He who knows the Self has no sorrow: tarati Sokam Atmavit (chAndogya. 5.1.3; tatra ko mohah kahSokah (ISAvAsya. 7). SrI cinmayAnanda gives reference to gItA teshAm aham samuddhartA mRtyu-samasAra sAgarAt bhavAni na cirAt pArtha mayyAveSita cetasAm || | (gItA 12.7)

"Of those whose minds are thus focused on Me, I become soon their saviorfrom the ocean of mortal life". The dharma cakram writer points out that when there is moham (attachment), theresult is Sokam. Thus, to be rid of Sokam, one has to overcome attachment. This is accomplished by meditating on bhagavAn. He gives the example ofarjuna. gItA begins with the expression of Sokam in arjuna's mind becauseof his moham or attachment to all his relatives and AcArya-s, whom he faces inthe battlefield. Because of this Sokam, arjuna loses his heart completely, hisbow is slipping from his hand, his mind is tired, he is unable to stand up, hisbody perspires and he is shivering with nervousness. The whole gItA isimparted to arjuna by bhagavAn just so he can overcome his moham and thus hisSokam. At the end of receiving the instruction from bhagvAn, He asksarjuna if he has overcome his Sokam because of the realization of the truth, andarjuna confirms that by listening to His instructions, he has been able toovercome the Sokam. The lesson to take from this nAma is that bymeditating on Him we can overcome Sokam. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

The Thousand Names of the Supreme by Sri N. Krishnamacharifor the Sri Vaishnava Home Page.

Slokam 68

om om om om om om om om om

arcishmate namah arcitAya namah kumbhAya namah viSuddhAtmane namah viSodanAya namah aniruddhAya namah a-prati-rathAya namah pradyumnAya anamah a-mita-vikramAya namah

639. arcishmAn He Who has great luster. Om arcishmate namah. The word arcis refers to a ray of light. This is the basis for the interpretation of this nAma. He Who possesses arcis or great luster is arcishmAn. a) SrI BhaTTar: bhagavAn has the great luster that He reveals to His true devotees. Ordinarily, people are unable to realize His greatness. However, in the case of a few like arjuna, He gave divine vision so that they could see His true greatness. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives an alternate interpretation that this can refer to His

jyoti in His arcA form. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives this interpretation arci-vigraha kAntih | tadasya asti iti arcishmAn | SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that He reveals His luster or greatness to His devotee just at the level that the devotee can enjoy. He also gives the ability to His devotees such that they can experience His greatness. In truth, His Divine Luster is beyond nature, and so no one can ordinarily realize its depth and magnitude. b) SrI Samkara bhAshyam is that He is the principal Luminary by whose radiance the sun, the moon, and the others shine. Archishmanto tadIyena arcishA candra sUryAdayah, sa eva mukhyah archishmAn. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates that just as a hot iron rod acquires redness like fire when it is associated with fire, so also the sun and the moon shine because they are associated with (have as their antaryAmi) bhagavAn.

SrI cinmayAnanda gives reference to the gItA jyotishAmapi taj-jyotih tamasah param ucyate (13.17) The light of all lights, this is said to be beyond tamas. He also refers us to kaThopanishad 2.5.15 na tatra sUryo bhAti na candra tArakam nemA vidyuto bhAnti kutoyamagnih | tameva bhAntum anubhAti sarvam tasya bhAsA sarvamidam vibhAti ||

There, neither the sun, nor the moon, nor the stars, nor the lightning has any effulgence; how then can this Fire-light illumine It? By Its Light alone, all else in the world illumined. c) SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN, who is a follower of the gauDIya sampradAyam, gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is called archishmAn (jAjvalyamAnah) because He was shining with anger on hearing that kamsa had disgraced his father (ugrasena) by putting him in prison and dethroning him kamsAt pitror-avaj~nayA jAjvalyamAnatvAt archishmAn. This is an example of how the different vyAkhyAna kartA-s have the anubhavam of the different bhagavan nAma-s to even better enjoy their own sampradAya-s. 640. arcitah He Who is worshipped. Om arcitAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar: All the guNa-s that have been described so far are consistent with Him being arcitah To be worshipped. This nAma also refers to His incarnation in the arcA form. The other incarnations are limited to us by the time in which they took place (rAma, kRshNa, etc.), or the place where He is found in these incarnations (for example, the para rUpa in SrI vaikunTham). Unlike these, the arcA form is not at all limited in any way in Its accessibility to us, and is available to us in holy places, temples, and even houses at all times. The mysterious truth (guhyam) about the arcA form can be found in bhagavat SAstra (the pAncarAtra Agama), bodhAyana smRti, vaishNava purANa, and other scriptural texts. SrI BhaTTar gives the following passage from vaishNava dharmam, which describes the benefit of the worship of the arcA mUrti:

su-rUpAm pratimAm vishNoh prasanna vadanekshaNAm | kRtvAtmanah prItikarIm suvarNa rajatAdibhih || tAm arcayet tAm praNamet tAm yajet tAm vicintayet | viSatyapAsta-doshastu tAmeva abrahma rUpiNIm || After having shaped a beautiful image of vishNu with a lovely face and lovely eyes, out of gold, silver, and the like in a manner that would be pleasing, one should worship it, do sacrifice to it, and meditate on it. By doing so, one would enter into that form which is none other than Brahman itself, and will have all the sins dispelled. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to mudal tiruvantAdi 44 tamar ugandadu evv-uruvam avv-uruvam tAnE, tamar ugandadu ep-pEr, ap-pEr He assumes whatever shape His devotees want Him to assume, accepts whatever name they give Him, and becomes whatever form the devotees give Him when they meditate on Him. SrI rAmAnujan also refers us to gItA Slokam 4.11, which conveys the same thought. ye yathA mAm prapadyante tAns-tathaiva bhajAmyaham | nammAzhvAr tells us the same truth in tiruvAimozhi 3.6.9 nenjinAl ninaippAn yavan avanAgum nIL-kaDal vaNNanE We do not need to worry about our inability to access Him in His para rUpam in SrI vaikunTham; He will assume whatever form we give Him even in our thoughts. b) SrI Samkaras interpretation is that the Lord is arcitah because He is worshipped and adored even by the likes of brahma. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that the likes of sUrya, candra, brahma etc. worship Him just so that they can have a fraction of His divya Sakti. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that the name Worshipped is given to Him because He is worshipped by Siva, brahma, etc. The dharma cakram writer points out that from this nAma, we can take the lesson that He can be worshipped in whatever form one chooses to worship Him, depending on ones mental maturity in the path of sAdhanA. Note that the orientation of SrI BhaTTars interpretation is always in terms of bhagavAn always doing everything He does for the sake of His devotees, while SrI Samkaras interpretation in invariably in terms of His parattvam. Almost without exception, this aspect is noticeable in every nAma, and the reader should keep this in mind in order to enjoy the different vyAkhyAna-s to the fullest extent. This point will not be repeated for every nAma, but seems to be true without exception for every nAma. 641. kumbhah a ) He Who is an object of desire. b) He Who shines in this world. c) He Who fills this world with His fame. d) He in Whom everything is contained.

e) He Who envelops the earth. Om kumbhAya namah. SrI BhaTTar gives two derivations for the nAma:

a) The first of these meanings He Who is desired, is derived from the root kamu kAntau, and the uNAdi sUtra kameh kum ca. (I could not find this specific sUtra in my copy of the siddhAnta kaumudi, but both SrI BhaTTar and SrI satyadevo vAsishTha have referred to this sUtra in explaining this nAma. An example of the application of this sUtra is in the formation of the word kumAra, which is also derived from the same root kamu kAntau to desire). Thus one interpretation for the nAma is He Who is desired kAmyata iti kumbhah. He is desired by the devotees because He is the Ultimate in beauty, He is the One by reaching whom there is no more return to the ocean of samsAra, there is nothing more to desire after reaching Him, etc. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to tirumozhi accO oru azhagiyavA (9.2.1); to tiruppANAzhvAr en amudinaik kaNDa kaNgaL maRRonRinaik kANAvE; and to tirumAlai mAdaraAr kayarkaN ennum valaiyuL paTTu azhunduvEnaip pOdarE enRu Sollit tan pAl Adaram peruga vaitta azhagan arangan, which all illustrate His being the Object of desire for His devotees.

b) SrI BhaTTar gives the alternate interpretation based on the root bhA to shine, in association with the word kum this world. So He Who shines in this world is kumbhah kau bhAti iti kumbhah. SrI BhaTTar attributes His shining in this world to His presence as the arcA mUrti in the shrines, and gives several quotes to support the sanctity of the areas around the sacred shrines, the power of the presence of His shrine in the temples etc. The reference to bhUmi here is thus to the divya deSam-s. Birth, living, or death in a divya deSam is the most purifying for any one. Yama and his servants wont dare to approach one who dies close to a divya deSam. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation which is a variation of the above kuh bhUmih prapanca pratIkah; umbhati pUrayati iti umbhah; koh prapancasya umbhah pUrakah sva-yaSasA iti kumbhah BhagavAn fills this world with His fame and thus makes it complete, a fit place to live. d) SrI Samkara uses the meaning container or pot to the word kumbhah, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma because everything in this Universe is contained in Him like in a pot. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates on this BhagavAn protects everyone in this Universe like a vessel that protects the water contained inside it. He gives the following supports from the Sruti-s: ubhe asmin dyAvA pRthivI antareva samAhite (chAndogya. 8.1.3), and tasmin sarvam pratishThitam (bRhadA. 1.5.1). SrI cinmayAnanda gives yet another variation of the interpretation He is called The Container, because everything that happens only takes place within Him. The dharma cakram writer explains that what is meant here is the He is the support for everything. All our friends and relatives can at best be supports for us only as long as we live; after that they cant support us. He is the One who supports the jIva all the way until it attains mukti. But the jIva-s who are steeped in aj~nAna only think of the support from their friends and relatives, and do not realize that the real support comes from Him. We find many means to keep our eyes and ears in good shape, but we dont spend the time to keep our minds in shape. This nAma tells us that He is the Only One who can support us in achieving this. e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root kubhi AcchAdane to envelop, to cover, and

explains that bhagavAn envelops the earth in the form of the sun etc., and so He is called kumbhah. 642. viSuddhAtmA He of a pure nature. Om viSuddhAtmane namah. SrI BhaTTars anubhavam is that because bhagavAn sacrifices all that He has on His devotees, He is One of pure nature. AzhvArs equivalent nAma is amalan Adi pirAn, vimalan, etc.

SrI Samkara gives the interpretation viSuddha AtmA The pure Atman He who is beyond the influence of the three guNa-s sattva, rajas and tamas, which keep influencing our actions and thoughts, and thus keep us attached to this body and ultimately bind us in samsAra. Since He is beyond the influence of prakRti whose attributes are these three guNa-s, He is not influenced by these, and thus He is pure. He is beyond all passions and desire, and all disturbances arising from these triguNAtItah (SrI cinmayAnanda). SrI kRshNa datta bharadvAj gives the interpretation viSesheNa Suddhah AtmA svarUpam yasya iti viSuddhAtmA. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the following reference from the Sruti which describes His Suddha svarUpam: sa paryagAt Sukram akAyam avRaNam asnAviram Suddham apaApaviddham (ISAvAsya. 8) etonvindram stavAma Suddham Suddhena sAmnA | SuddhairuktairvAvRdhvAmsam Suddha ASIrvAn mamamttu || indra Suddho na Agahi Suddhah SuddhAbhirUtibhih | Suddho rayim ni dhAraya Suddho mamaddhi somya || indra Suddho hi no rayim Suddho ratnAni dASushe | Suddho vRtrANi jighnase Suddho vAjam sishAsasi || (Rg. 7.95 7,8,9) 643. viSodhanah The Purifier. Om viSodhanAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar: viSodhayati iti viSodhanah. bhagavAn has the nAma Purifier since He purifies those who give up their body in a holy shrine, by making them fit to attain Him. This is reflected in nammAzhvArs tiruvAimoshi 2.7.4 ennaik koNDu en pAvam tannaiyum pARak kaiitu (tanna0) mevum tan mayam AkkinAn em pirAn vittu. viSesheNa Sodhayati vimalI karoti samArAdhana niratAn iti viSodhanah (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvaAj). b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He is the Purifier because the very remembrance of Him purifies us by destroying our sins smRrti mAtreNa pApAnAm kshapaNAt viSodhanah. This purification happens because remembrance of Him keeps our mind from being influenced by the three guNa-s (sattva, rajas and tamas), and thus it enables us to realize Him (SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri). By remembering Him, the human heart becomes cleansed of its sins, immaculately swept of all consequent feelings of restlessness (SrI

cinmayAnanda). c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn purifies this universe in various ways by the process of creation (navo navo bhavati jAyamAnah), by His being unconstrained and unrestrained in any way ((indrasya bAhvor bhUyishThamojah) amogha Sakti, in the form of the Sun, etc. Through creation, He renews the old into the new, and thus makes us feel like one who wakes up from sleep and feels fres SrI BhaTTar interprets the next few nAma-s as describing the vyUha (Emanations) and vibhava (Incarnations) of bhagavAn in the holy shrines. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan adds that the forms described are His representations in the para, vyUha, and vibhava forms in different kshetra-s. Note that the vyUha forms are the ones which are the precursors to the vibhava forms in the viSAkha yUpa tree, and are the forms which He assumes in the process of creating and maintaining the various beings in the Universe. 644. aniruddhah a) He Who is in the form of aniruddhah. b) He Who is unobstructed. Om aniruddhAya namah.

This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 187. The root from which the word is derived is rudhir AvaraNe to oppose, to besiege. niruddha means obstructed, hindered, restrained, etc. a-niruddha is one who is unrestrained or unrestrainable. The nAma literally means One who cannot be obstructed in any way na asti nirodho yasya sa aniruddhah (SrI satyadevo vAsishTha). SrI BhaTTar has explained nAma 187 by pointing that this Unobstructed Power is used by Him to protect all beings and to repel all opposition in this act of His. (Note that always bhagavAns acts are for the good of His creation, His devotees, His Sesha-s, and never for His pleasure or benefit! This is also seen in all His incarnations, such as the rAma and kRshNa incarnations, where none could stop Him from fulfilling the purpose of His incarnation). The aniruddha form is considered one of the vyUha forms. His main function in this form is protection of the beings (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri terms this form as kAppuk kaDavuL). The dharma cakram writer observes that this form of bhagavAn also illustrates that He has the unobstructed Power to help His devotees who want to overcome the influence of the indriya-s. SrI cinmayAnanda refers to the law of Truth and dharma being irresistible, as a demonstration of His irresistible power. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the example of the inability of anyone or any way to prevent the jIva from leaving the body when the time comes for this to happen. For the current occurrence of the nAma aniruddhah, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation as referring to bhagavAns nitya vAsam as janArdana in the part of this earth called vasubhANDa. Some translators of SrI BahTTars bhAshyam refer to vasubhANDa as a kshetram. 645. a-prati-rathah The Matchless. Om aprati-rathAya namah.

prati-rathan is one who can oppose another in a fight mounted in a chariot. a-prati-rathan is One who has no such person who can confront Him thus. bhagavan is matchless in the sense that no one can stand directly in front of His chariot and engage successfully in a war with him. na prati-rathah samAna SaktimAn kopi yasya iti a-prati-rathah (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the reference to tiruvAimozhi 2.3.2 ottAr mikkArai ilaiyAya mAyan. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that as janArdana

(The Tormentor of people who are wicked by nature), He is matchless in this task, and there is no one who can stop Him. SrI Samkara bhAshyam is prati-rathah pratipakshah asya na vidyata iti a-prati-rathah. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives reference to the gItA na tvat samostyabhyadhikah kutonya (11.43) There is no one equal to You. How then could there be another greater than You in the three worlds?. SrI cinmayAnandas anubhavam is that in the loving Presence of vishNu, everyone is vanquished, and there is no one even to threaten Him. 646. pradyumnah a) He Who illumines the jIva-s. b) He Whose wealth is of a superior order. c) The Bestower of all desires. d) He Who is endowed with great strength. om pradyumnAya namah. The word dyumnam means wealth as well as luster. SrI Samkara uses the former meaning and SrI BhaTTar uses the latter. Other interpretations are based on the meaning desire, strength, etc. for the word dyumnam. SrI BhaTTars explanation is Atma pradyotavAn pradyumnah He who makes the individual souls effulgent. Per information in SrI v.v. rAmAnujans book, we can worship pradyumna in tiru-allik-kENi. I believe tirunaRaiyUr or nAcciyAr koil is another kshetram where bhagavAn is present in the four vyUha forms.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha, who analyzes the meaning of each nAma by looking at the word syllable by syllable, derives the meaning from pra + dyu + mna (pra - prakRshTa, utkRshTa Superior; dyu luster; mnA abhyAse - repeatedly. Thus, he gives the interpretation that bhagavAn displays His special luster again and again in the form of the sun, and so He is called pradyumna; or because He gives luster to the jIva-s repeatedly birth after birth. We can also extrapolate and have the anubhavam that because He takes several incarnations and keeps displaying His superior luster repeatedly, He is also called pradyumna. Thus, SrI satyadevo vAsishThas interpretation draws heavily on mnA abhyAse repeatedly, again and again.

SrI Samkara gives the interpretation prakRshTam dyumnam draviNam asya iti pradyumnah One who has wealth of a superior order, or One who has enormous wealth. SrI cinmayAnanda adds that as lakshmI-pati, He is endowed with all the riches, and in His benevolence, He gives riches and mighty glory to all His devotees. Again, we note the difference in the approach of the vyAkhyAna-s of SrI Samkara and SrI BhaTTar SrI BhaTTar emphasizes bhagavAns qualities in terms of helping the jIva-s, and SrI Samkara emphasizes His parattva. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the additional meaning desire to the word dyumnam. pradyumna is the Deity for manas, and in this role He creates the desires in us that contribute to the sustenance of creation. The dharma cakram writer gives the interpretation that the desires being fulfilled are those of the devotees to realize the Self. The best of desires that for Self-realization and for performing eternal service

to Him. He is the Only One who can fulfill this, and so He is called pradyumna The Bestower of all desires. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning balam or strength for the word dyumnam, and gives the meaning He who has distinguished strength - prakRshTam dyumnam balam yasya iti pradyumnah. He quotes the support from medinI kOSam 1.20.11 dyumnam vittam balepi ca. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN also gives the same interpretation prakRshTam anantam balam asya iti pradyumnah. 647. amita-vikramah He of immeasurable steps. Om amita-vikramAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 519. See the write-up under Slokam 55. vikrama means stride. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as a reference to His tri-vikrama incarnation trilokyepi aparya vasita vikramatvAt trivikramah amita-vikramah In His incarnation as trivikrama, all the three worlds were no match for His three steps. So He is tri-vikrama. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan takes amita as a reference to innumerable, and gives the interpretation that He has innumerable feet tALgaL AyirattAi pErgaL AyirattAi tamiyanEn periya appanE (tiruvAi. 8.1.10). Note the declaration in purusha sUktam sahasra SirshA purushah; sahasrAkshah sahasra pAt. SrI Samkara has given this as the first of his two interpretations fpr the earlier occurrence of this nAma (Slokam 55). Vikrama also means prowess, heroic valor. For the current occurrence of the nAma, SrI Samkara uses this meaning and gives the interpretation that He is amita-vikramah because of His unequaled prowess which cannot be injured by any one amitah atulitah vikramah asya iti amita vikramah; a-himsita vikramo vA. This interpretation in terms of His boundless valor was given by SrI BhaTTar for the earlier occurrence of this nAma (519). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri makes a connection to the previous nAma by observing that since pradyumna is the Lord of manas, He acts with unlimited speed of mind (power of mind) in His role as pradyumna, and so He is also called amita-vkramah. SrI cinmayAnanda remarks that as SrIman nArAyaNa, He is Omnipotent, and none can stand against Him. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN, a follower of the gauDiya vaishNava sampradAyam, interprets the nAma in terms of the Prowess displayed by child kRshNa ati-vikramiNAmapi cANUrAdInAm helaiva vinASanAt amita-vikramah He is called amita-vikrama because He destroyed the likes of the mighty cANUra as if in a sport. Thus we see that the different interpreters interpret the nAma-s in terms of their sampradaAya-s, all of which are equally valid except when it comes to deep philosophical differences. Thus, in most instances, we benefit by getting exposed to multiple, equally enjoyable, anubhavam-s of His kalyAna guNa-s. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam Slokam 69 .

om om om om om om om om om

kAla-nemi-nighne namah Sauraye namah SUrAya namah SUra-janeSvarAya namah tri-lokAtmane namah tri-lokeSAya namah keSavAya namah keSighne namah haraye namah

At the outset, we will note that there are different versions of this Sloka in use, where the nAma-s 649 and 650 occur as follows. vIrah SUrah, Saurih SUrah, Saurir-vIrah, vIrah Saurih, etc. Thus the two names are chosen from vIrah, Saurih, and Surah, depending on the pATham that is being used. 648. kAla-nemi-nihA a) The destroyer of the wheel of ignorance of Time. b) The Destroyer of the asura by name kAlanemi. c) He Who sets the direction for the sun who is the controller of Time. d) He Who is beyond the wheel of Time. om kAla-nemi-nighne namah. a) nemi refers to the outer ring of a wheel; nihanam means killing, slaughter. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that the wheel of Time represents avidyA; since bhagavAn destroys this avidyA, He is called kAlanemi-nihA. SrI M. V. rAmAnujAcArya explains that kAlanemi the wheel of Time- refers to the bane of kali, and since He destroys the effect of kali, namely avidyA, by firmly residing in the holy places and shrines, He is called kAlanemi-nihA. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following words of bhagavAn in support, but the reference is not available: avidyAkhyA ca yA nemih kAlacakrasya durdharA | sA mayIyam samASritya vigraham vidhunoti ca || avidyA (Ignorance) is an irresistible folly of the wheel of Time; when it comes to Me, it loses its form.

The nine-syllabled mantra containing this nAma om kAla-nemi-nighne namah removes the root-cause of avidyA or ignorance, as summarized by the author of nirukti: kAla-cakrasya yA nemih avidyAklhyA ca durdharA tAm nASayati yaScAsau kAla-nemi-nihA smRtah || navAksharo manurayam avidyA-mUla mocakah ||

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that for those who are caught up in the wheel of time (being born again and again?) because of avidyA, He stops this wheel for them when they seek His help. He destroys their karmAs accumulated over time; He ensures that kAla (yama) does not get them in his cycle, to be born again. b) SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as a reference to His destroying the asura by name kAlanemi kAalanemim asuram nijaghAna iti kAlanemi-nihA.

kAlanemi was born later as kamsa, and bhagavAn destroyed kamsa also; so the nAma can be interpreted as as a reference to His destroying kamsa. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives reference to SrImad bhAgavatam (10.51.42 kAlanemi-hatah kamsah ), and gives the interpretation kAlanemih kamsah tasya nihanteti kAlanemi-nihA. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri also makes a reference to kamsas killing as an interpretation for this nAma.

c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different explanation. He uses the root hA to go, and interprets nihA as One who gives directions or makes things happen. He interprets kAla as time, and nemi as the wheel, or that which keeps going. So kAla nemi is interpreted as referring to the sun, and kAla-nemi-nihA as He who makes the sun go, or who sets the direction for the sun, which sets the direction for time. d) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that the Supreme Self is called kAlanemi nihA because Self is beyond the reach of intellect, and time is but a concept of intellect only, and since He is beyond this wheel of Time, He is called kAlanemi-nihA. e) The dharma cakram writer points out that we should learn to use time without wasting it for our personal pleasures, but to overcome the karma-s of the past and to avoid accumulating karma-s for the future. The clock was invented to measure time, and we use that to beautify ourselves instead of learning to use it for making the best use of it. The nature of time is that you dont get it back after it is past. He who does not waste even a single moment of it and devotes all the time in the service of God and His creatures is the one who has utilized time properly, and thus won over time. Of all the indriya-s that we have for utilizing time, at least one of these indriya-s should always be in the service of Him. The most precious possession that God has given to mankind is Time. Those who use it properly overcome Time itself and reach Him who is beyond Time. 649. Saurih a) The son of SUra (another name for vasudeva), or He Who is born in the race of SUra-s, a yAdava clan. b) A reference of Sauri rAjap perumAL of tirukkaNNapuram c) He Who is ever valiant and victorious. This nAma has been presented earlier as nAma 342 (Slokam 37). Please see the previous write-up as well.

Om Sauraye namah. a) He is the son of vasudeva, who is also called SUra - SUrasya vasudevasya apatyam iti Saurih (SrI BhaTTar). Or, because He is born in the kulam of SUra, He is called Saurih SUra vamSa prAdurbhUtatvAt Saurih SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj. (Note: Under nAma 342, it has been indicated that kRshNa is the grandson of SUra. This was based on SrI anantakRshNa SAstris explanation. Under the explanation given for this nAma in Slokam 37, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri indicates that since Lord kRshNa was born in the race of yAdava-s by name SUra-s, He is called Saurih, and both vasudeva and his father were known by the name SUra). b) Or, He is in the form of Sauri rAjap perumAL in tirukkaNNapuram (utpalAvartaka), as Lord kRshNa (SrI BhaTTar).

c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root SUra vikrAntau to be heroic. Thus Saurih means One who is heroic and victorious SUrayata iti Saurih. The alternate meaning he gives is: SUrasya apatyam Saurih - atyanta SUrah. apatyam normally means progeny, as SrI BhaTTar has used above, but SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that it can also mean atyanta the Ultimate, based on a reference from niruktam (6.32).

SrI Samkara uses the pATham vIrah in place of Saurih in this place, and his next nAma is Saurih. The meaning of vIra is He Who is valiant. The dharma cakram writer observes that unlike for all other creatures, for man there are two types of potential enemies those from outside and those from inside. The enemies from inside are the more difficult to overcome desire, anger, fear, jealousy, pride, lust, etc. One who does not win over these enemies will not make progress in life. A vIra is one who does not run away from these enemies, but fights valiantly and overcomes them. For these enemies who are fighting us from within, it is not enough for us to fight alone we need His help to overcome them. It is only when we realize this that He helps us, as evidenced in purANa-s over and over again. It is only when the deva-s realize that they cant by themselves be victorious over the asura-s, and go to Him and seek His help, that He takes His incarnations and comes and helps them overcome the asura-s. We should learn to seek His help in fighting and overcoming the internal enemies inside us.

Under the earlier occurrence of this nAma, SrI Sankara's interpretation is that bhagavAn in His incarnation as kRshNa was born as the son of vasudeva, whose father's name was SUra. SUrasya gotrApatyam pumAn Saurih or SUra kulodbhavAt Saurih. This is the same as explanation a) for this nAma by SrI BhaTTar for the current occurrence for this nAma. 650. SUrah The Valiant. Om SUrAya namah.

The sequence in Samkara pATham is kAlanemi-nihA vIrah Saurih Sura-janeSvarah, and BhaTTar pATham is kAlanemi-nihA Saurih SUrah SUra-janeSvarah. The nAma SUrah occurs once in Samkara pATham, in Slokam 37 (nAma 341); in BhaTTars pATham, it occurs twice, the second one being the current occurrence. He explains the first occurrence in terms of the generic guNa of His valor (Sauryam), and the second occurrence as specifically referring to His incarnation as Lord rAma, whose valor is well-known. The derivation of the meaning from its root is explained under nAma 341. SrI satyadevo vAsishThas

anubhavam is that He is unrestrained not only in the sense that His valor is unconstrained, but He is also unconstrained by deSa, kAla, etc. (kAla dig deSa vibhAga muktah), unconstrained in fulfilling the desires of His devotees (dadAti varyam), pervades this Universe unconstrained in His functions of creation, protection, and destruction, sustains all creatures by being unconstrained and appearing in the form of the Sun as mitra, varuNa, and agni in the morning, afternoon and evening (mitrasya varuNasyAgneh), etc. 651. SUra-janeSvarah The Chief of the SUra-s or the valiant people. Om SUra-janeSvarAya namah. SUra janAnAm ISvarah Sura-janeSvarah The Chief of the valiant people. SrI aNNangarAcArya and others give the example of His being the Chief of valiant warriors of the likes of hanuman, sugrIva, etc. SrI Samkara gives the example of His being the Lord of indra and others. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that bhagavAn is the Lord of gods like indra, men like arjuna, and monkeys such as sugrIva and hanuman. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives another dimension of this guNa of bhagavAn He is the one from whom all that moves in any form has originated, and thus He is the Lord of all. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives the interpretation that He has this nAma because He is the Lord or Chief of the SUra klan, through acts such as the destruction of kamsa. 652. tri-lokAtmA a) He who ever moves about in the three worlds. b) He Who makes the three worlds move about. c) He Who is the AtmA for everything in all the three worlds. Om tri-lokAtmane namah. a) SrI BhaTTar gives his interpretation based on the derivation of the word "AtmA" from the root ata - to be always moving about (ata sAtatyagamane) - trIn lokAn atati satatam gacchati. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAimozhi, where nammAzhvAr beautifully expresses this concept "viN mIdiruppAi! malai mEl niRpAi! KaDal SerppAi! maN mIduzhalvAi! ivaRRuL e'ngum maRainduRaivAi! eN mIdiyanRa puRavaNDattAi!.. (6.9.5). He keeps moving about in all the three worlds in order to be easily accessible to everyone. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha extends this anubhavam to point out that not only does He move about in the three worlds, but He is the One who makes everything move about in all the three worlds avan anRi Or aNuvum aSaiyAdu. So He is tri-lokAtmA in this sense as well. c) SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that He is the AtmA of everything in all the three worlds - trayANAm lokAnAm antaryAmitayA AtmA iti tri-lokAtmA. The three worlds here refer to the earth, the world above and the world below. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the term tri-loka to refer to the three states of experience the waking, the dream and the deep-sleep, and gives the interpretation that He is the Reality, the Self of the

all the three worlds of experiences. Thus, He is called tri-lokAtmA because He moves about in the three worlds, He is the antaryAmi of everything in the three worlds, and He makes everything in the three worlds move about. 653. tri-lokeSah The Ruler of the three worlds. Om tri-lokeSAya namah. tri-lokAnAm ISatayA tri-lokeSah - By virtue of His being the Lord or Ruler of the three worlds, He is known as tri-lokeSah. NammAzhvAr's well-known pASuram "agalagillEn" refers to Him as as "ulagam mUnRu uDaiyAi (tiruvAimozhi 6.10.10). SrI Sankara elaborates His Rulership thus - trayo lokAh tadA~jnayA sveshu sveshu karmasu vartanta ititri-lokeSah - The three worlds, in obedience to Him, attend to their respective functions. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives support from the Sruti-s - esha loka pAla esha lokeSah (kaushItakI 3). 654 (23). keSavah a) One who has beautiful locks of hair b) He whose hair is of supreme fragrance c) He who is the source or origin of brahmA and Siva. d) He who is the source of the rays emanating from the Sun etc. e) The Slayer of keSi f) The tormentor of His enemies g) One who has Adhipatyam over water (oceans etc.) h) One who has Adhipatyam over the different kinds of sukham (including moksham) Om keSavAya namah. This nAma occurred as nAma 23 in Sloka 3. The word keSa refers to hair, as also rays of light. Some of the interpretations are based on these two meanings. Another approach at interpreting the nAma is based on the word kam = water or sukham. Yet another interpretation is based on the root kliS - to torment. There is also one which is based on kah + Isah = keSah. From amara pada vivRti of lingayasUrin, we have the following: a) SobhanAh keSA yasya sah keSavah - He who has beautiful hair. keSa means hair, and the suffix va is added to keSa to denote the "beauty" of the hair, by a grammatical rule - "keSAdvo'nyatarasyAm" iti praSamsAyAm vah (SrI BhaTTar). SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi nicely translates the nAma in tamizh as "kuzhal azhagar". Under nAma 23, SrI BhaTTar adds that by implication, this nAma indicates that the Lord is possessed of qualities like supremacy and loveliness which are all His own by nature. He possesses curly locks of hair, which are sublime, soft and blue (praSasta - snigdha - nIla - kuTila - kuntalah).

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds to this anubhavam further. In His incarnation as nRsimha, the beauty of His Lion's hair (piDari mayir in tamizh) was exceptionally beautiful. MArIca has described Lord rAma's hair as "SikhI kanaka mAlayA" - beautiful like a golden garland. The gopi-s describe Him as "kuTila kuntalam komalAnanam - One with curly locks of hair and lotus-like face. SrI Samkara bhAshyam is "abhirUpAh keSAh yasya sah keSavah" - "His hair's beauty is compatible with His divya ma'ngala rUpam" - black, curly, consistent, just indescribably beautiful. NammAzhvAr describes the beauty of the keSam of bhagavAn as well as its fragrance in 7.7.9 tiruvAimozhi: koLginRa kOLiruLaic cugirndiTTa kozhum SuruLin uL koNDa nIla nan-nUl tazhai kol? anRu ... "I thought may be the darkness of His hair can be compared to the thread made out of the darkness that results at the time of pralaya kAlam; but no, this is not a good enough comparison - there is no comparison. The comforting fragrance of tulasi that emanates from His kuzhal has completely stolen my AtmA, and only I can feel it and feel about it". b) vAnti gandhayanti iti vAh gandhavantah keSAh yasya iti keSavah (based on the root vA - gatigandhanayoh)He who has fragrant keSa. We just saw nammAzhvAr's reference in the previous para to the fragrance of tulasi emanating from His kuzhal. c) bhagavAn is called keSava because ka - brahmA, and ISa - Siva, originated from His body. SrI Sankara and SrI BhaTTar quote the following from harivamSa: ka iti brahmaNo nAma (brahmeti samAkhyAta) ISo'ham sarva dehinAm | AvAm tavA'nge sambhUtau (tavAmSa sambhUtau) tasmAt keSava nAmavAn || (harivamSa 3.88.48) The above are words of Siva to bhagavAn - (ka is the name of brahma, and I am ISa who rules over all the embodied beings. Both of us have been born out of Thy body, and therefore Thou art known by the name keSava). Thus, the nAma signifies that brahma and Siva originated from bhagavAn. d) SrI Samkara gives the additional interpretation that He is the owner of the keSa-s or rays that emanate from the Sun, the moon, and all the effulgent objects in the cosmos, and so He is called keSava. He gives the support from mahAbhArata: amSavo ye prakASante mamaite keSa sam~jnitAh | sarvaj~nAh keSavam tasmAt mAm Ahuh dvija-sattamAh || (mahA.12.328.43) (Literallay, the above says: "The rays that are emanating from Me are called keSa-s, and so the learned Brahmins call me by the name keSava"). e) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives a reference from vishNu purANam, and narrates that when brahmA with the other deva-s sought the help of Lord nArayaNa against the terror from asura-s, the Lord plucked two keSa-s (hairs - one black and one white), and told brahmA that those two hairs will descend on earth as kRshNa and balarAma, and relieve the earth of the burden of the demons:

evam sastUyamAnastu bhagavAn parameSvarah | ujjahArAtmanah keSau sita-kRshNau mahAmune || uvAca ca surAnetau mat-keSau vasudhAtale | avatIrya bhuvo bhAra kleSa hAnim karishyatah || (vishNu purA. 5.1.59-60) (The commentator indicates that the above should be taken just as an indication by bhagavAn that His hair should be sufficient to take care of the asura-s, and should not be literally taken to suggest that the two hairs took incarnation). f) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha has another anubhavam of this nAma - He derives the meaning that keSavah signifies One who torments His enemies - based on the root kliS - vibAdhane - to torment, to distress, and the uNAdi sutra (kliSeran lo lopaSca). kliSnAti, kliSyate vA anena iti keSavah. g) Two more interpretations by SrI satyadevo VasishTha: kam refers to water and to sukham: kam = jalam or sukham; He who has the Adhipatyam over water (oceans etc.) is keSavah - jalam tamIshTa aiSvarya bhAvAya nayati iti keSah (kam + Isah); or, He who has control over the sukham (aihika as well as Amushmika) of the jIva-s. h) In the explanation under nAma 23, the interpretation of the nAma based on His destroying keSi has been covered. This is also explicitly the subject of the next nAma. 655. keSi-hA a) He who killed the asura by name keSi. b) He who directs agni, sUrya, indra, vAyu etc. in their functions. Om keSighne namah. a) keSi-nAmAnam asuram hatavAn iti keSi-hA. kamsa sent the asura keSi to destroy child kRshNa, and keSi who took the form of a horse to destroy kRshNa was destroyed by kRshNa. The references in tiruppAvai to "mA vAi kINDAn", and in 2nd tiruvantAdi to "kUndal vAi KINDAn" are to this incident. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha takes the meaning of the root hA- to go, and derives his interpretation for the nAma based on the Rg-vedic description of keSi referring to agni, vAyu, and sUrya (see the mantra below. KeSi is one who has keSa or hair. smoke is the "hair" of the fire; the rays of sUrya are the keSa-s of sUrya; indra (lightning) is the keSi which is not seen - the reference to dadRSe na rUpam in the mantra (Ralph Griffith translates this as referring to vAyu instead of indra in his traslation); These are explained in Yaska's niruktam in detail (12-24,25). The Rg-vedic mantra he quotes in support is: trayah keSina RtuthA vicakshate samvatsare vapata eka eshAm | viSvameko abhicashTe SacIbhirdhrAjirekasya dadRSe na rUpam || (1.144.44) Thus, in this interpretation, bhagavAn is called keSi-hA because He directs agni, sUrya, indra, or vAyu perform their functions.

SrI vAsishTha has given several other interpretations for this nAma (e.g., keSi referring generically to a horse, keSi referring to AtmA, heart, etc.), which are not being covered here. Those interested can refer to his original vyAkhyAna in samskRt, with translation in hindi. 656. harih a) The Green-hued. b) He Who removes the distress of His devotees c) He Who wards off samsAra with its cause from His devotees. d) The Destroyer of the Universe at the time of pralaya. Om haraye namah. a) The term hara refers to green color. BhagavAn's words from mahA bhArata are given in support by SrI BhaTTar: iDopahUtam .varNaSca me harih SreshThah tasmAd harir-iti smRtah || (mahA. SAnti. 343.39) "My superior complexion is green, and therefore I am called Hari". One is reminded of the familiar pASuram "paccai mA-malai pOl mEni) (tirumAlai 2). b) SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya gives the interpretation "ArtigaLai harippavar" - He who removes the distress of His devotees. c) (samsAram) harati iti harih - He who wards off samsAra with its cause from His devotees is harih (SrI Samkara). Alternatively, pApAnAm harati iti harih - He who wards off the sins of His devotees. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha extends the anubhavam to include bhagavAn's destruction of the world at the time of pralaya, and His destruction of the darkness in our minds always.

The dharma cakram writer observes that the sight of green gives a feeling of peace to the mind; the thought of Hari, the green-hued One, similarly gives peace to the mind. The "hari nAma" is chanted whenever one starts anything auspicious, and this is to remove all obstacles and sins that may be committed in the process. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that in kali santaraNa Upanishad, the repetition of the 16 nAma-s in the following familiar chant is prescribed for the removal of all sins caused by kali: hare rAma hare rAma rAma rAma hare hare | hare kRshNa hare kRshNa kRshNa kRshNa hare hare || (kali santaraNa upa. 6.2) -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasranAmam - Slokam 70

kAma-devah kAma-pAlah kAmI kAntah kRtAgamah | anirdeSya-vapur_vishNur_vIro'nanto dhana'njayah || om om om om om om om om om om kAma-devAya namah kAma-pAlAya namah kAmine namah kAntAya namah kRtAgamAya namah anirdeSya-vapushe namah vishNave namah vIrAya namah anantAya namah dhana'njayAya namah

657. kAma-devah a) The One who grants all desires. b) The Lord who is desired by those who seek the four purushArtha-s. Om kAma-devAya namah a) SrI BhaTTar derives his interpretation kAmAn dIvyati iti kAma-devah - One whogives as a gift all that His devotees desire. The term "dIvyati"signifies dAna-karmA. He gives the support for this interpretation frommahA bhAratam: kAmadevastu bhagavAn sarveshAm sarva-kAmadah | (bhA. Santi.343.39)

" The Lord has the name kAma-deva as He grants all the desires of allbeings". b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma because Heis the God (deva) who is desired (kAma) by those who seek the four kinds ofgoals - dharma, artha, kAma, and moksha. (kAmyata iti kAmah - kAma because He isdesired, and devaSca - God). kAmam or desire can be that which is consistent with dharma, or that which iscontrary to dharma. The kAma that one should seek is the one that isconsistent with dharma. BhagavAn refers to this in gItA 7.11 dharmaaviruddho bhUteshu kAmo'smi bharatarshabha - In all beings, I am the kAma whichis unopposed to dharma. The dharma cakram writer points out that byworshipping bhagavAn, the kAma-deva, one can

develop the enrichment of thedesire that is consistent with dharma, and move away from the kAma that isopposed to dharma. He points out that those with the right kind of kAmasee God in the world, and those who have the wrong kind of kAma see the world inGod. To win over the worldly kAma and to grow the godly kAma, one should chantthe nAma of kAma-deva with this meaning in mind. 658. kAma-pAlah a) The Protector of the gifts that He bestows. b) The Protector of those who desire Him. Om kAma-pAlAya namah. a) In the previous nAma, SrI BhaTTar interpreted kAma-devah as One whobestows the gifts that the devotee desires, thus kAma referring to the giftsdesired by the devotee. He interprets the current nAma as referring tobhagavAn's guNa of protecting that which He has bestowed - sa eva datta (kAmAn)anupAlanAt kAma-devah. SrImad baladeva vidyAbhUshaN, a follower of the gauDiya vaishNava sampradAyam,specifically refers to bhagavAn fulfilling the wishes of the deva-s by killingkeSi - keSi vadhena teshAm kAmam abhilAsham pAlayati pUrayati iti kAma-pAlah. b) In one of the interpretations that SrI cinmayAnanda gives, he interprets kAmaas referring to those who desire Him, and then assigns the meaning to kAma-pAlahas One who protects those who desire Him. 659. kAmI a) He who has all things that are desirable. b) He who is of fulfilled desires. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that He is kAmI because He haseverything that is desired. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan emphasizes the abundance ofall good things that He possesses, such that He can bestow anything to thedevotees that they want. b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He is kAmI because He is One whohas all His desires fulfilled (pUrNa kAma svabhAvatvAt). He isreferred to as avApta-sarva-kAman. 660. kAntah a) He Who is charming. b) He Who causes the end of brahma at the end of his period. c) He Who is present everywhere, and Effulgent. Om kAntAya namah. We encountered this nAma earlier in Slokam 32 (nAma 297). SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam - sa eva svayameva kamanIyah kAntah ByHimself He is fascinating. Under the earlier occurrence ofthis nAma, he indicates that this natural charm of bhagavAn is because of Hiseternal saukumAryam, saundaryam, etc. - svayam saundarya, saukumAryAdi rUpaguNaih. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvar's tiruvAimozhi - paruguinnamudE (7.1.7). Unlike the deva-s who

made Him strain Himself bychurning the ocean for getting the amRtam for them, AzhvAr just wants to drinkHim directly, because He is the amudam Himself! SrI rAmAnujan also givesreference to kulasekhara AzhvAr's perumAL tirumozhi 8.2: "kaNDavartam manam vazha'ngum kaNa purattu en karu maNiyE!" Those who see Him intirukkaNNapuram, just lose their mind to Him and surrender to His beauty - suchis His charm. b) SrI Samkara gives an alternate interpretation kasya brahmaNah antah asmAtiti kAntah - Since He is the cause of the end of brahma at the end of theparArdha (100,00 billion years), He is called kAntah - kasya antah kAntah). c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives another interpretation based on the root kani- dIpti kAnti gatishu, and gives the meaning that He is around everywhere, andHe is Effulgent. 661.kRtAgamah a) The Revealer of the sacred mantra-s to the pure-minded. b) He who has propounded the pA'ncarAtra Agama-s. c) He Who has given us the Sruti-s and the smRti-s. d) He from Whom the kRta yuga emerged e) He who victoriously entered the gathering of His kith and kin after slaying keSi f) He Who appears to His devotees again and again in whatever form they desire. om kRtAgamAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as referring to His being the Revealer of the mantra-s to those who are pure-minded. Every mantra has associated with it a mantra-drashTA, the Seer or sage who is associated with the revelation of that mantra. It is He who is in the form of the mantra Itself, and reveals Himself to the mantra-drAshTA in the form of the mantra. Thus, His nAma as kRtAgamah. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation thus - kRto viracita upadishTo vA Agamah pA'ncarAtraSAstram yena iti kRtAgamah - He is called kRtAgamah because He propounded the pA'ncarAtra Agama. The pA'ncarAtra Agama was given to us directly by bhagavAn, and thus has the same authority as the veda-s. Readers are referred to the series on pA'ncarAtra that has appeared in this list for more details on pA'ncarAtra and its origin. c) SrI Samkara interprets the term "Agama" in a generic sense to refer to all Sruti-s and smRti-s, and thus gives the interpretation that He is called kRtAgamah because He is the author (originataor) of the Agama-s - the Sruti-s and smRti-s. He quotes bhagavAn's own words - Sruti smRtI mamaiva A~jne - The Sruti and smRti are My commands. Later on in SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam, Sage vyAsa declares - vedAh SastrANi vi~jnAnam etat sarvam janArdanAt - The veda-s, SAstra-s, wisdom, and all these, came from janArdana (Lord vishNu). SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya gives the following crisp interpretation from prabandham, which contains an ocean of thoughts - "kalaigaLum vedamum nIdi nUlum kaRpagamum SoL poruL tAnum maRRai nilaigaLum vAnavarkkum piRarkkum nIrmaiyinAl aruL Seidavar - peria tirumozhi 2.8.5" - He Who gave the veda-s, vedAnta sUtra-s, itihAsa-s, kalpa sUtra-s, vyAkaraNa, mImAmsA, etc., to the deva-s and to the mansuhya-s, by His sheer kindness towards them. d) SrI cinmayAnanda gives yet another angle - consistent with the interpretation that He is the Destroyer of

brahmA at the time of pralaya for the previous nAma, the current nAma can be interpreted as One who then inaugurates the kRta yuga (kRta Agamah). Thus, He is the One into whom the whole world dissolves at the time of pralaya, and from whom the world re-emerges at the beginning of the next yuga. e) SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshan continues his thoughts from the previous Slokam dealing with keSi vadham, and gives the interpretation to the current nAma that He is kRtAgamah because He finished off kESi and then victoriously entered the assemblage of His kith and kin (probably the root he draws on is kR himsAyAm - to kill, and gam gatau - to go). Here kRta refers to the act of destruction of keSi, and Agamah refers to His gamana or arrival in the midst of His kith and kin. f) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the roots kR karaNe - to do, and gam gatau - to go, to derive his meaning, and gives the following interpretation - kRta Agamo yena sa kRtAgamah -BhagavAn does the act of appearing to His devotees in whatever form they desire, in response to the stuti of the stotrA-s of the devotees. He bases his interpretation on the Rg-vedic mantra 8.3.13-14: kadu stuvanta Rtayanta devata Rshih ko vipra ohate | kadA maghavan indra sunvatah kadu stuvata Agamah || "What prayers shall we the mortals sing, so that You will appear in response to the call of the priaser?" The dharma cakram writer, in the issue of May 1998, describes the Agama-s and the veda-s under the term darSana, and then gives a detailed description of their different classifications under the groups of nyAya, vaiSeshika, mImAmsa, sAnkhya, yoga, and vedAnta. He also goes into further sub-classifications under these. He points out that all these different categories of darSana-s are provided to us by bhagavAn Himself, or by those who are blessed with the right knowledge by Him, in order to guide us towards Him. This is the explanation for the nAma kRtAgamah that is provided by the dharma cakram author. 662. anirdeSya-vapuh a) He of indefinable form

Om anirdeSya-vapushe namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 179 (Slokam 19). Please visit thewrite-up for nAma 179 as well. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation thus: na nirdeshTum Sakyamvapuh yasya iti anirdeSyavapuh - He is anirdeSya-vapuh because He has a bodythat is beyond the reach of the mind, words, etc. In his vyAkhyAnam for this nAma under Slokam 19, SrI BhaTTar quotes from maulasamhitA, and gives an analysis of the difference between the nature ofbhagavAn's form vs. our forms. Our body is formed by the seven greatelements - the pa'nca bhUta-s, plus mahat and ahamkAra. We possessintellect, mind, body and limbs. From the SAstra-s we know that bhagavAnalso has intellect, mind, body and limbs. So the question arises: "Of what substance is bhagavAn's body composed?", and the answer isgiven: BhagavAn's body is composed of His form itself". In other words, there is nothing else of which He is composed, andso He can't be described in terms of something else. This a-nirdeSya-vapuhis further revealed thus: "BhagavAn is of indescribable form becauseHis body is knowledge incarnate, lordship incarnate, power incarnate, like theglowing ember, of the burning khAdira or silk-cotton that has fire on all sides,like pure honey, when drunk, that is sweet on all sides, like a bar of gold thatis being polished is gold all around, like a mansion that will be attractivewhen viewed from all angles. Similarly, bhagavAn is entirely lordship andpower in

full. Whatever He wants to become, He becomes". It isvery clear that this description keeps looking for similes to describe Himunsuccessfully, illustrating that He can't be described. SrI BhaTTar also gives reference to SrI vishNu purANa (1.2.10-1.2.12), whichstates the impossibility of describing Him: "Who can describe Him whois not apprehended by the senses, who is the best of all things, the SupremeSoul, Self-existent, who is devoid of all the distinguishing characteristics ofform, color, etc., is exempt from birth, growth, aging, death or decay, whoexists everywhere and in whom everything exists always..". -varjjitah Sakyate vaktum yah sadA asti iti kevalam - All we can do is say thatHe exists always, but we can't describe Him in words. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri quotes kaThopanishd 2.2.14 - "anirdeSyamparamamsukham" in support of the interpretation of this nAma. Those who have realized Him give up after struggling for words in theirdescription of Him, as evidenced by the pASuram-s of AzhvArs. The thought is poured out by tiruma'ngai AzhvAr in his 3rd pASuram intiruneDunTAnDakam (referenced by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan): tiruvaDivil karu neDu mAl Seyan enRum, tirEdaik kaN vaLai uruvAit tigazhndAnenRum peru vaDivil kaDal amudam koNDa kAlam, perumAnaik karu nIla vaNNan enRumoru vaDivattu Or uru enRu uNaral AgAdu, Uzhi tORu Uzhi ninRu Ettal allAl karuvaDivil Se'nkaNNa vaNNan tannai, kaTTuraiyE yAr oruvar kANgiRppArE? "By nature, He who has immense Mercy towards His creation is dark like thewater-laden clouds; in tretA yugam, He is known to have a reddish color; in kRtayugam His complexion is white like that of the conch. In each yugam devotees can worship Him in whatever form(s) He chooses topresent Himself in, but beyond worshipping, we cannot precisely understand Histrue form. People can describe this nIla megha SyAmalan with lotus-likereddish eyes as they want, but none can describe Him in the form in which He hasrevealed Himself to me". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan also gives reference to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 8.8.2 -paDiyE idu enRu uraikkalAm paDiyan allan paramparan - His Nature is not suchthat it can be described as such and such; IDum eDuppum il ISan - There isnothing that is equal to Him or above Him (tiruvAi. 1.6.3); oruvaraiyum ninoppAr oppu ilA enginRALAl (peria tirumozhi 8.1.2) - There is no one comparableto Him. In praising Lord oppiliappan of tiruviNNagaram, nammAzhvAr refersto Him as "tan oppAr il appan" - oppu ili appan (tiruvAi. 6.3.9). There are vast numbers of additional references in divya prabandham pointing tothe indescribable nature of bhagavAn, but one more from nammAzhvAr is included: kOlamE! tAmariak kaNNadOr a'njana nIlamE! ninRu enadAviyai IrginRa SilamE! SenRu SellAdana munnilAm kAlamE! unnai ennAL kaNDu koLvEnE? (tiruvAi. 3.8.8)

One can feel the depth of feeling that the great AzhvAr istrying to convey through words, of the experience that cannot be described inwords. We have the tiatittirIya upanishd mantra - yato vAco nivartante, aprApya mansAsaha (Anandavalli - anu. 4) - He is inaccessible to words or to mind; He canonly be experienced. Similar passages abound in veda; e.g., kenopanishad 1.5 to1.9 - Brahman is that which reveals speech, but which cannot be revealed byspeech; that which gives us the ability to see but which cannot be seen, etc.;ISAVAsya upanishad mantra 4-5 (The Self is inaccessible to the mind since it isfaster than the mind; it is beyond the reach of the senses; It moves and movesnot; It is far for those who are ignorant, and near for those who are wise; Itis within and without; etc.). Under the current nAma, SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam is that bhagavAn assumesdifferent forms in the different yuga-s as needed in order to bless thedevotees, and so He is called a-nirdeSya-vapuh. The nirukti authorsummarizes SrI BhaTTar's thoughts thus - yugAnusAri rUpatvAt a-nirdeSya-vapuh. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that He is inside everyone, permeateseverything inside and out, has a virAT SarIra (viSva rUpa), is neither born norends nor ages, and this is His guNa of anirdeSya-vapuh. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also gives an alternate interpretation that is notgiven by any of the other major vyAkhyAna kartA-s, based on the root vap - bIjasantAne chedane ca - to sow (the seed, vapati). Since bhagavAn is the Onewho sows the seeds that result in the creation of the Universe, and since He isindescribable, He is the Indescribable Originator or the seed-sower. Herelates the origin of the word bAp or bApu in hindi to this root vap - to sow.

663. vishNuh - The Pervader. Om vishNave namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma-s 2 and 259 (Sloka-s 1 and 28). Please refer to the revised write-up I posted in the bhakti list on Jan. 17,2001 for this nAma. 664. vIrah a) The Valiant. b) The swift Mover (into the hearts of His devotees or against demons). c) He Who destroys His enemies d) He Who makes the enemies tremble in front of Him and run, showing theirbacks. Om vIrAya namah. This nAma was described earlier under Slokam 43 - nAma 402. a) SrI BhaTTar derives the interpretation for the nAma from the root aja - gatikshepaNayoh - to drive or to lead, and a grammatical rule which states that vIis the substitute for aja under certain conditions (ashTAdhyAyI 2.4.56), andgives the meaning - He Who is valiant. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the interpretation - vIrayate iti vIrah - He whodisplays valor is called vIrah,

and expands - ripu damanAya vikramate - It isfor the destruction of the enemies. SrI BhaTTar describes that it is forthe destruction of the enemies of His devotees that He uses His valor. Thus, the anubhavam here, as in all the vyAkhyAna-s of SrI BhaTTar, is thatwhatever bhagavAn does is for the sake of His devotees. SrI BhaTTardescribes the nature of this valor - He induces terror in the hearts of Hisdevotees' enemies - rakshsAm ati-bhaya calana hetutvAt vIrah. b) SrI Samkara gives an additional interpretation based on the root vI - gati,vyApti, prajanana, kAnti, asana, khAdaneshu - to go, to pervade, toobtain, to throw, to conceive, to be born, to shine, to be beautiful, to desire,to eat. Thus, the root denotes motion, creation, radiance, existence andconsumption. As He has all these qualities, He is called vIrah -gatyAdimattvAt vIrah. SrI anatakRshNa SAstry extends this anubhavamand gives the interpretation that this speed is displayed in His swift entryinto the hearts of His devotees, as well as His swift move against His devotees'enemies. This guNa of bhagavAn, namely His swift entry into the heart of His devotee toplease the devotee, and His swift effect on His devotees' enemies by causingthem terror, reminds one of the nArasimha vapuh incarnation (see the detailedexplanation for this nAma under Slokam 3). In this incarnation, bhagavAn'sform as Lord nRsimha terrorizes hiraNyakaSipu, but at the same this same form isso pleasing to prahlAda. This is one more example of the guNa of Hispossessing the anirdeSya-vapuh that we encountered in the previous nAma - theform that cannot be described as this or that, because simultaneously it iseverything. c), d) Other interpretations for this nAma that are given in the vyAkhyAna foramarakoSa are: viruddhAn rAti hanti iti vIrah - One who destroys the enemies;vidvishTAn Irayati iti vIrah - One who makes the enemies tremble and run showingtheir backs (Ira -gatau kampane ca). When this quality of being valiant applies to us human beings, the dharma cakramwriter emphasizes that we should be valiant against the internal enemies evenmore than the external enemies. It is the fight against the internalenemies - kAma, krodha, lobha, moha, bhaya, etc. , that one should learn to wineffectively. It is by resorting to prayer and devotion to bhagavAn that wecan effectively overcome these internal enemies. Meditating onthis nAma of bhgavAn will help us achieve this objective. References to the Sruti, smRti, divya prabandham, etc., that have been given bythe great AcArya-s in support of their interpretations for this nAma, have beenprovided under nAma 402. 665. anantah a) The Limitless. b) One who is beyond the reach of those who are not of pure mind. Om anantAya namah. Note that this is one of the nAma-s from the trio - acyuta, ananta, govinda, that is uttered several times daily by vaishNava-s. Starting from this nAma, and up to nAma 683 (mahA havih), SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma-s as describing His limitless vibhUti-s. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation - na asya deSa kAla vastutah avadhayah santi iti anantah - He for whom there is no limitation of space, time or object. He is ananta-mUrti - One of unbounded form. In the gItA, bhagavAn declares: nAstyanto vistarasya me (10.19) - There is no limit to My auspicious manifestations (vibhUti-s). SrI BhaTTar also gives reference to the Sruti-s: "satyam, j~nAnam anantam

brahma" (tait. Ananda. 1) - Brahman is Existence, Knowledge, and Infinite; "athaitasyaiva anto nAsti tad brahma" (tait. yajur. 7.3.4) - There is no limit or end to this object known as Brahman. SrI Samkara gives additional reasons for His being called ananta - vyApitvAt, nityatvAt, sarvAtmatvAt, deSatah, kAlatah, vastutaSca aparichinnah anantah - Because He is all-pervading, eternal, and the Self of all, and because He is unlimited by space, time, or substance, He is known as anatah. In addition to the upanishadic support, he also gives additional support from SrI vishNu purANa gandharvApsarasah siddhAh kinnaroraga cAraNAh | nAntam guNAnAm gacchanti tena anantah ayam avyayah || (2.5.24) "The gandharva-s, apsara-s, siddha-s, kinnara-s, uraga-s, and the cAraNa-s are unable to find the end of His attributes; hence, the imperishable Lord is called ananta". nammAzhvAr refers to bhagavAn as "kaNakku aRu nalattanan, antam il Adi am bhagavan" (tiruvAi. 1.3.5) "bhagavAn possesses limitless kalyANa guNa-s, He is the beginning of everything, and He has no end". He captures the ananta nature of bhagavAn nicely in the pASuram nAm avan ivan uvan avaL ivaL uvaL evaL tAm avar ivar uvar adu idu udu edu vImavai ivai uvai avai nalam tI'ngavai Am avaiyAi avaiyAi ninRa avare (tiruvAi. 1.1.4) "We are but He; What one indicates as that man, this man, that woman, this woman, that object, this object; on whatever we indicate in plural similarly, all are but He and He alone; Things with good traits or bad traits, things there or here, things that go off, things that will come one day, all are merely He. All are aspects of His splendor" (translation copied from Sri V. N. Vedanta deSikan). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates further on His being unlimited by time, space, and substance. - Since He existed before everything else, He exists now, and He will exist for ever in the future, He is unlimited by time (bhUta-bhavya-bhavan-nAthah). Thus He is nitya - nityo nityAnAm (kaTha. 2.2.13); - Since He pervades everything and is everywhere inside and out, He is unlimited by space (vishNu); eko devah sarva bhUteshu gUDhah sarva-vyApI ca bhagavAn (SvetASva. 3.11). - Since He is everything there is, it is not possible to precisely say that He is this, that, man, woman, or any one thing, and so He is unlimited by form; naiva strI na pumAn eshah ( SvetASva. 5.10). b) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation that He is anantah because He is beyond the reach of those who are not pure in their mind - a-viSuddha manasAm a-nikaTatvAt anantah. 666. dhana'njayah a) He Who surpasses all other wealth in being desired. b) One Who manifested Himself as arjuna, the conqueror of wealth. Om dhana'njayAya namah. a) He is the source of redemption for everyone, and those who know this will seek Him above all other wealth like gold and diamond, because of His far superior qualities and possessions. Those who know the Truth will seek Him above all, and will want to keep Him secure with them. The nirukta author summarizes SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam as follows: maNi-mauktika ratnAdi hema-rUpyAdikam dhanam jayati - adhah

karoti iti dhanan'njayah - As wealth that is to be desired, He is the wealth who surpasses all other wealth such as gold, diamond, etc. Those who know His value will consider the likes of gold and diamond as less than grass. One is reminded of svAmi deSikan's views in this context from his vairAgya pa'ncakam, on which a write-up on which can be found in one of my previous postings in the list. SvAmi deSikan points out that the real dhanam or wealth is "dhana'njaya vivardhanam dhanamudUDha govardhanam su-sAdhanam a-bAdhanam su-manasAm samArAdhanam" - The true wealth that will never diminish, that will always give the utmost pleasure to those who are of pure mind, that is the surest means of attaining anything that is desired, is the One that bore the govardhana mountain, and that gave arjuna the greatness that he attained. nammAzhvAr describes Him as "enakkut tEnE, pAlE, kannalE, amudE" - He is the honey, milk, sugar-candy, nectar, everything for me (tiruvAi. 10.7.2) - (quote from v.v. rAmAnujan). b) dhana'njaya is a common name for arjuna, because he conquered several kings and accumulated enormous wealth to facilitate the rAjasUya yAga by dharma putra. In the gItA, Lord kRshNa declares that arjuna is a vibhUti or manifestation of Himself - pANDavAnAm dhana'njayah (gItA 10.37). Thus, SrI Samkara interprets this nAma as referring to Him as the Conqueror of wealth in His manifestation as arjuna. dhanam ajayat iti dhana'njayah. Just as an example of how the different devotees enjoy bhagavAn's nAma-s in their own way, Sri baladeva vidyAbhUshaN, a gauDIya vaishNava sampradAya follower, gives interpretations for most nAma-s based on Lord kRshNa's life in this world. For the current nAma, he gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is called dhana'njaya because He won over all the wealth of kamsa, and gave them to ugrasena - kmasa sampado dhanAni jayati, jitvA ugrasenAya dadAti iti dhana'njayah. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that the whole Universe belongs to Him, and all this is under His control, and so He is dhana'njayah - the Conqueror of all wealth. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 71 brahmaNyo brahma-kRt-brahmA brahma brahma-vivardhanah | brahma-vid brAhmaNo brahmI brahma`jno brAhamNa-priyah ||

om om om om om om om om om

brahmaNyAya namah brahma-kRt-brahmaNe namah brahmaNe namah brahma-vivardhanAya namah brahma-vide namah brAhmaNAya namah brahmiNe namah brahma~jnAya namah brAhamNa-priyAya namah

The word brahman or a derived word occurs in this Slokam repeatedly. It will beuseful to have some basic understanding of this term before proceeding with theexplanation of the nAma-s. The word brahman is derived from the root brah, which means vastness, power,growth, etc. Anything that is big is covered under the term brahma. The term can refer to penance, veda-s, brAhmaN-s well-versed in scripture,wisdom, etc. - tapo vedASca viprASca, j~nAnam ca brahma sam~jnitam. The word brahman can also denote the Supreme Being, veda, prakRti, and the Atman(jIva). The last one is particularly used in the bhagavad rAmAnuja school,because the jIva in its essential nature is unlimited in its power, and thus isbrahma in nature. Any limitation it suffers is temporary, and thelimitation is only when the jIva is associated with a body. TheAtman or self possesses the quality of "infinite extensiveness" as itstrue nature, even though it is conditioned by the limitations of the body whenit is associated with a body. As a proper noun, the term brahmA refers to the four-faced brahmA, and ofcourse, the word stands to denote bhagavAn when it comes to the creation of thefour-faced brahmA. The different interpreters use one or more of the above meanings for the termbrahman in their vyAkhyAnas for the following nAma-s. This is partly thesource of the differences in the different anubhava-s. 667. brahmaNyah

a) He who is beneficial to all the big things both a-cetanaand cetana, namely prakRti and Atman. b) He who is beneficial to Brahman, namely the veda, brAhmans well-versed inscripture, penance, etc. Om brahmaNyAya namah. In chapter 5.1 of pANini's ashTAdhyAyI, sUtra-s 4 to 7 deal with the affix yat,and indicate that the suffix means "good for that" under certaincases; specifically, sUtra 5.1.7 - khala yava mAsha tila vRsha brahmaNah ca (yat)- states that the affix ya after brahman denotes "good for Brahman". Since bhagavAn is the cause for the existence and enjoyment of prakRti andpurusha, He is beneficial to them. Thus, SrI BhaTTar's interpretation forthis nAma is that He is beneficial to the jIva and to prakRti, and so He iscalled brahmaNyah. Thevastness of prakRti, jIva, and paramAtmA (and thus all being Brahman) is nicelycaptured by nammAzhvAr in tiruvAumozhi 10.10.10 as referenced by SrI v.v.rAmAnujan: SUzhndu SUzhndu SUzhndu SUzhndu aganRu Azhndu uyarnda muDivil perum pAzhEyO adanil peria para nan malarc cOdIyO adanil peria SuDar j~nAna inbamEyO adanil peria ennavA aRac cUzhndAyE.

"Oh the antarAtmA of the mUla prakRti, which evolves into mahat, ahamkAra,etc., which pervades all space, and is infinite! Oh the antarAtmA of the jIvAtmA-s,who encircle, extend over, and are larger than, the prakRti in extant, whosej~nAna is unlimited, and whose very nature is characterized by j~nAna, Ananda,and tejas! Oh the unique possessor of samkalpa j~nAna, which extends beyond theabove, and has its halo even beyond still further, which is pure Bliss innature! My desire to join you is even larger than your samkalpa j~nAna. But Youhave now enveloped me, and I am a drop in your vastness of nectar ocean. My long-time ambition is fulfilled". The first line above refers to the vastness of prakRti, the second refers to thevastness of the j~nAna of the Atman, and the third line refers to His vastness. When the term Brahman refers to the Supreme Being, it is qualified by both citand acit, or has both conscious and unconscious entities as His body; when itrefers to prakRti, it is qualified by only acit or insentiency; and when itrefers to Atman, it is qualified by only cit or consciousness. b) SrI Samkara interprets the term brahma in this nAma as referring collectivelyto penance, veda-s, brAhmaN-s well-versed in scripture, and wisdom - tapovedASca viprASca, j~nAnam ca brahma sam~jnitam, and gives the interpretation tothe nAma that because He is beneficent to them all, He is called brahmaNyah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives examples of this: bhagavAn retrieved the veda-sfrom the asura by name hayagrIva in His matsya incarnation; He showed the pathof penance in His nara-nArAyaNa incarnation; He gave us the knowledge of theveda-s through His teaching of the gItA; He takes several incarnations toprotect the brAhmaNa-s (vipra-s) in their times of distress. As examples of bhagavAn being beneficent to the brAhmaNa-s, SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj gives the example of Lord kRshNa doing pAda pUjA for all the brAhmaNa-swho came for the rAjasUya yAga performed by yudhisThira, and SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshan gives the example of Lord kRshNa retrieving the son of His guru fromyama loka. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that He is called brahmaNyah because He is big,and He makes His devotees big, by giving them all the things to enjoy, and bysupporting them and protecting them. 668. brahma-kRt-brahmA

The Creator Who created brahmA, the creator of big things. Om brahma-kRt-brahmaNe namah. SrI BhaTTar explains this nAma again using thegeneric meaning big for the word brahman. The creator of the world, thefour-faced brahmA, is brahma-kRt because he creates the big things, namely theworlds. BhagavAn is the Big One who creates this brahmA. So He is calledbrahma-kRt-brahmA. SrI nammAzhvAr captures this thought in his pASuram 2.2.4 intiruvAimozhi (quote from SrI v.v. rAmAnujan): dEvum epporuLum paDaikka, pUvilnAn-muganaip paDaitta dEvan emperumAn This emperumAn created the fourfacedbrahmA so that he could create all the other things including all the deva-s,and all the sentient and non-sentient objects. SrI Samkara considersbrahma-kRt-brahmA as two nAma-s, brahma-kRt, and brahmA. For brahma-kRt,he assigns the generic meaning tapas etc. for the word brahma, and thusinterprets the nAma as meaning that He is the Originator of tapas etc. SrIcinmayAnanda gives a slight variant He is brahma-kRt because He performs thebrahma tapas etc., and abides in tapas. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives asimilar explanation brahma karoti brahmacarya lakshaNam tapas carati itibrahmakRt. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning that bhagavAn makes Hisdevotees big, and so He is brahma-kRt. Or, He created the four-faced brahmA, theveda-s, the brAhamaNa-s, tapas, etc. as special (magnanimous), and so He isbrahma-kRt (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri). For the second part, SrI Samkara gives theinterpretation that He is brahmA the creator. Since He is the antaryAmi ofbrahmA the four-faced creator, He is the real Creator. 669. brahma TheSupreme Brahman, parmAtmA. Om brahmaNe namah. This nAma signifies that He is theparamAtmA. There are two aspects to this that are brought out by the vyAkhyAnakartA-s: 1) He is Big, and 2) He makes everything big. His Bigness isexplained in terms of His parattvam in the vyAkhyAna-s of SrI Samkara and thosefollowing him, and the emphasis is placed on His unlimited kalyANa guNa-s in thevyAkhyAna-s of SrI BhaTTar and those following his school. Please refer to thewrite-up comparing the different vyAkhyAna-s that was presented in this seriesearlier. The root is the same as for the previous nAma-s, namely bRah togrow, to increase. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following in support: bRhatvAtbrahmaNatvAcca brahmeti parikIrtyate He is called Brahman because He isbig, and He also makes others big. He is everywhere, He is in everything, Hemakes everything big, His guNa-s are big, and He performs all His actionswithout any other support and by His mere samkalpam. He expands the non-sentientmatter into gross and subtle, He sustains these in a form that is useful for thejIvAtmA-s to enjoy, He sustains the jIvAtmA-s, He grows them towards theirultimate goal, namely His realization. He does all these only for the benefit ofthe jIva-s. He is big with countless unsurpassed qualities, by His essentialnature, by the glory of His possessions, etc. His greatness is such that He canlift a baddha jIva an ordinary samsAri to the level of a nitya sUrithrough His Infinite Mercy (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAjgives the interpretation bRmhayati prajAh svadayAdRSA iti brahma He Whoenhances His devotees by His mere Merciful glance (kaTAKsham), is Brahma. SrISamkara emphasizes His being Great (bRhatvAt), as signified by Hisall-pervasiveness, His expanding into everything, etc. He quotes from the vishNupurANa (6.7.53) sattA mAtram, a-gocaram vacasAm, Atma samvedyam, tad j~nAnambrahma That which is Pure Existence, is beyond the reach of words, and canonly be experienced, is Brahma. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation bRmhatvAt brahma Because He is the Biggest, the Vastest, the All-Pervading.,He is called Brahma.

670. brahma-vivardhanah a) He Who makes dharma grow. b) He Who grows and nurtures everything in a big way. Om brahma-vivardhanAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation here uses the meaning "tapas", whichin itself includes dharma, for the term brahma. The Sruti text is "tapobrahma", and He Who makes it grow is brahma-vivardhanah - tapo brahma, tamvivardhayati iti brahma-vivardhanah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha givesreference to the Sruti - brahma vai yaj~nah (aiyt. BrAh. 7.22). SrI v.v.rAmAnujan adds that tapas involves getting detached from objects of sensual enjoyment; the more one grows tapas, the morewill be the growth towards enjoyment of Him. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that because He nurtures thetattva of brahma in the hearts of His devotees, He is called brahma-vivardhanah- brahma tattvam, tat viSesheNa vardhayate svajana hRdayeshu itibrahma-vivardhanah. SrI cinmayAnanda includes austerities, veda-s, truth,and knowledge under the term tapas, and since He grows these in His devotees, Hehas this nAma. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives another interpretation which uses the meaning"big" for brahma. Because He grows things indefinitely andinfinitely, as in the case of a seed yielding a tree, which yields many more seeds, and the process continue on and on, He is calledbrahma-vivradhanah vivardhanam viSvamidam samastam yatah svayam brahma-vivardhanah sah | bIjAcca vRksham kurute vivRddham vRkshAcca bIjAn kurute bahUn sah|| The dharma cakram writer includes tapas, dhAnam, and yaj~nam under the termbrahma for this nAma. I have summarized his write-up in the following: tapas is the means by which one keeps improving his or her own self. When one sacrifices what one has for the benefit of thesociety, it is called dhAnam. Doing all our actions through thought, word, anddeed without feeling self-ownership, and dedicating them to bhagavAn, is yaj~nam. All karma should be performed without attachment. This way of doing karmaleads one to forsake the worldly pleasures, and seek union with God instead. All the actions that one undertakes with this feeling become tapas, dhAnam, oryaj~nam. The more we indulge in actions in this spirit, the more the worldimproves and becomes purer. tapas through deed, or through body, is the service to bhAgavata-s. Talking only good things, chanting the veda-s,etc., become tapas by word. Thinking only good thoughts, and not thinkingbad thoughts, becomes tapas through thought. All this tapas shouldbe undertaken with no desire for fame or name, and should be as ordained in theSAstra-s. Similarly, dhAnam should be done with full joy in giving,and not with reservation or sadness that one is parting with one's possessions,or expecting something in return. Yaj~na should again be undertaken withselflessness, and not for show or recognition, and should be consistent withSAstra-s, and performed with SraddhA. It is His thought that grows this path oftapas, dhAnam, and yaj~nam. Therefore He is called brahma-vivardhanah. The above ideas (of sAttvic tapas, dhAnam and ya~jnam) are clearlyenunciated by bhagavAn in gItA Chapter 17 - SraddhA traya vibhAga yogah. 671. brahma-vit a) The Knower of the veda-s. b) He Who restored the veda-s during His matsya incarnation.

c) He Who knows everything big, both seen and unseen, and those that can only beinferred. om brahma-vide namah. brahma vetti iti brahma-vit - He Who knows brahma is brahma-vit. a) The term brahma in the current nAma is interpreted as referring to the veda-sby SrI BhaTTar. The vedas are endless - anantA vai vedAh, and Lord SrImannArAyaNa is the Only One who knows all there is to know of the veda-s in theirentirety: anAdi nidhanam brahma na devA na Rshayo viduh | ekas tad veda bhagavAn dhAtA nArAyaNah svayam || (mahA. Moksha.380.19) "The veda is both beginningless and endless. Neither the gods,nor the sages, know it in entirety. The one great Creator, bhagavAnnArAyaNa alone knows it, by Himself". Note that the veda-s are theones that reveal Him, and just as He cannot be entirely known, so also the veda-scannot be entirely known, except by Him. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan givesreference to the gItA - vedAnta-kRt veda-videva cAham (15.15) - "I am theOne who brings about the fruition of the vedic acts, and I am the Knower of theveda-s". bhagavad rAmAnuja in his commentary on verse 15.15 of the gItA indicates that by"knowledge of the veda" is meant the understanding that He is the Onewho is the object of worship to all other devatA-s such as agni, vAyu, etc. -aham hi sarva yaj~nAnAm bhoktA ca prabhureva ca (9.24), that He is One whobrings fruition to all the offerings - labhate ca tatah kAmAn mayaiva vihitAn hitAn (7.22), that He is the One to be known from the veda-s - vedaiSca sarvaihahameva vedyah (15.15),. Anyone who does not clearly understand these, andinterprets the veda-s in any other sense, is not a knower of the veda-s. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to peria tirumozhi of tiruma'ngai AzhvAr insupport of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnakm: paNDAya vEda'ngaL nAngum ainduvELvigaLum kELviyODu a'ngam ARum kaNDAnai (2.5.9), paNDai nAn maRaiyumvELviyum kELvip pada'ngaLum pada'ngaLin poruLum tAnAi ninRa em perumAn(5.7.1). b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning vid - lAbhe - to get or to find,and interprets the nAma in terms of His matsya incarnation where He restored theveda-s when they were escaping from brahma's mouth - visramsitAn uru bhayesalile mukhAt me AdAya tatra vijahAra ha veda mArgAn - SrImad bhAgavatam -2.7.12) - (The four-faced brahma's words - Because of my great fear at the vastwaters at the end of the millennium, the veda-s came out of my mouth, and theLord who enjoys those waters protected the veda-s). c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning brahma = anything big, seen orunseen, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is brahma-vit, becauseHe alone knows all things big, that are seen or unseen, or that can be perceivedonly through j~nAna, and He is the One who creates them, sustains them,and grows them bigger. His samkRt wording is worth repeating - vivRddhamvivardhanam vA brahma, dRSyam adRSyam j~nAna mAtra gamyam ca yat, tad sarvam kovetti iti praSne vaktum Sakyate, sa eva sarvasya AdhAro bhagavAn vishNuh vettiiti, tasmAt sa brahma-vit. The dharma cakram writer points out that the true knowledge of the veda-s liesin understanding the differences between the prakRti, the jIva, and paramAtman,and in particular, in realizing the distinction between the jIva and the SupremeOne. Those who try to analyze and dissect the lives of rAma, kRshNa, etc.,as if they are ordinary jIva-s like us, are the ones who are truly ignorant ofthe veda-s, since they have not realized the difference between the jIvAtmA andparamAtmA. The veda-s are a secret(maRai) to those

who don't have the mental maturity to realize the truth behindthe veda-s. The realization that He is not just a purusha but thepurushottama, that He is beyond the three guNa-s, that He is the Supreme ineverything, that there is nothing that binds Him or constrains Him, etc., is thetrue knowledge of the vedas. 672. brAhmaNah The Instructor of the veda-s. om brAhamNAya namah. Etymologists give the derivation - brahma nayati, aNati iti brAhmaNah - He Whoguides or recites the veda is a brAhamNa (SrI BhaTTar). (The relevantroots for aNati are aN - Sabde to sound, or prANane - to live). SrIBhaTTar refers to bhagavAn's taking birth in the atri gotra as dattAtreya, andother such births as brAhamaNa in order to establish the teachings of the vedain this world. In the amarakoSa vyAkhyAnam, a brAhmaNa is described as one who engages in thesix-acts yajana yAjana adhyayana adhyApana dAna pratigraha lakshNAni the act of sacrificing, the act of helping in conducting asacrifice, learning the veda-s, teaching or instructing of the veda-s, givingdAnam to others, and receiving or accepting alms from others. The dharma cakram writer summarizes the qualifications for a brAhamaNa: He knows the true nature of Brahman, and devotes his entire life in the serviceof Brahman; he has no attachment to his body or to material things in thisworld; he has absolute trust in bhagavAn's kalyANa guNa-s; he dedicates himselfthrough thought, word, and deed to bhagavAn; every act of his is dedicated toHis service and to the service of His devotees; by nature he has control of hismind and indriya-s; he is not interested in worldly enjoyment; he devotes hislife in the pursuit of eternal service to Him; he has naturally purity inthought, word, and deed; he accepts whatever difficulties confront himwithout question, and does not cause harm to others in return; he isstraightforward in thought, word, and deed; he will have full trust and faith inveda-s, SAstra-s, and bhagavAn; he will learn the veda-s, and teach the veda-sto others; he will get enormous delight in learning the veda-s and SAstra-s fromthe learned, and in living a life based on these teachings; he will bedominating in sattva guNa; his dharma will be to live for the veda-s, to learnthe veda-s and to impart the knowledge of the veda-s to others; he willdedicate himself to live in such a way that by his example he will teach otherswhat it is to live a life of righteousness and love towards others. 673. brahmI a) He who possesses all that goes by the term brahma prakRti, purusha, ISvara, veda, etc. b) He Who has the four-faced brahmA in His nAbhI-kamalam. om brahmiNe namah. The etymology for the nAma is given by SrI satyadevo vAsishTha based on thepANini sUtra "vrIhyAdibhyaSca" (5.2.116) and "nastaddhite"(6.4.l44), whereby the addition of the affix ini to the word brahma gives themeaning "having or bearing brahma". a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that He is called brahmI because Hepossesses all that is in the form of pramANa (the means of knowledge), andprameya (the objects of knowledge). SrI SrInivAsarAghavan

notes that thisincludes the veda-s (pramANa), and prakRti, purusha, ISvara, etc. (theprameya-s - those that are to be known from the veda-s). SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri observes that the veda-s, the four-faced brahmA, the braAmaNa-s (vipra-s),tapas, etc., are all there to reveal His true nature, and since they are all Hispossessions, He is called brahmI. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that because He has thefour-faced brahmA in His nAbhI-kamalam (in the lotus in His navel), He has thenAma brahmI - sa nAbhIkamale vishNoh sthito brahmA prajApatih - mArkaNDeya purA.78.51). The dharma cakram writer observes that the significance of this nAma is torealize that just as the body which is made of the pa'nca bhUta-s needs theirsupport for its survival, the realization of the paramAtmA who resides within usrequires the support of His possessions, namely the veda-s, the brAhMaNa-s (vipras),and tapas. One should learn the veda-s, live the life revealedby the veda-s, and live the life of a brAhmaNa as described in the previous nAma,and this yogic way of life will lead to His realization. 674. brahma~njah The Knower of the inner meaning of the veda-s. om brahma~jnAya namah. SrI BhaTTar distinguishes between this nAma and the earlier nAma brahma-vit(671), as follows: "brahma-vit - anatA vai vedAh; tAn avadhinA vetti iti brahma vit" - veda-s are limitless; He knows the the veda-s to completion or to theultimate limit, and so He is called brahma-vit. "brahma~jnah - vedAn artha-paryantam sAkshAtkaroti iti brahm~jnah" He perceives, apprehends, and knows the veda-s inclusive of their significanceor meanings, and therefore He is called brahma~jnah. The nirukti author gives the corresponding summary for veda-vit as "yovedAn antato vetti sa brahma-vit udIritah" - He Who knows the veda-s totheir full extent is brahma-vit is called brahma-vit, and for brahma~jnah as"yo vedAn arthato vetti so'yam brahma~jnah Iritah" - He Who knows theveda-s with their true inner meanings is veda~jnah. Based on the above, one can say that in the first nAma, SrI BhaTTar emphasizesthe breadth of knowledge of the veda-s, and in the second one the depth ofknowledge is indicated. SrI Samkara differentiates the two nAma-s as follows: brahma-vit - vedamvedArtham ca yathAvat vetti iti brahma-vit; brahma vedAn svAtmabhUtAn jAnAti itbrahma~jah. Thus, in this case, the first interpretation includes theknowledge of the meanings of the veda-s, and the second one states that He knowsthe veda-s which are born of Himself. SrI cinmayAnanda comments for thefirst one as "One who has intuited the vedas and their fullcommentaries", and for the second one, "One Who knows the nature ofBrahman as no one else can; He being the very Brahman, no one else knows Hisnature as He Himself can". Other interpreters have used other ways to distinguish between the two nAma-s. SrI kRshNa datta bhaAradvAj uses the meaning "to find, to get", to theword "vid", in the nAma brahma-vit - "brahma vedah; tad vindatimatsyAvatAre iti brahma-vit", and uses the meaning "One whoknows" for "j~nah" in "brahma~jnah". - brahma SrIvishNor vibhUtih; tad sva vibhUti rUpam jAnAti iti brahma~jnah (brahma refers toall His manifestations; He who knows this brahma in truth is brahm~jnah).

The best way to view the interpretation of the two nAma-s seems to be toconsider them as complimentary to each other, the two nAma-s together signifyingHis perfect knowledge of all there is to know of the vedas, in completion andwith the complete understanding of the significance of the veda-s. 675. brAhmaNa-priyah a) He for Whom the brAhamaNa-s are of specialliking. b) He Who is specially liked by the brAhamaNa-s. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that the brAhamNa-s are extremely dear toHim, and so He is called brAhmaNa-priyah. He gives the example of howbhagavAn treated bRgu maharshi when the latter kicked Him in His vaksha sthalam(chest). SrI BhaTTar quotes several supports: ghnantam Sapantam parusham vadantam yo brAhmaNam na praNayet yathA'ham.." (itihAsa samuccaya 30.100) "Though a brAhmin beats a person, curses him, or utters harsh words to him,one should bow to the brAhmin as I did to bRgu. One who does not respectthe brAhmin this way will be consumed by the wild fire of the brAhmin's anger,and he deserves to be killed and punished. He is not Mine". This extreme respect for brAhmins from bhagavAn is because "they are theones who follow the virtuous conduct of karma yoga as instructed by Me, who arefull of faith, and who hold Me as the Highest Deity, and so they are dear toMe" ye tu dharmyAmRtamidam yathoktam paryupAsate | SraddhAnA mat-paramA bhaktAste atIva me priyAh || (gItA 12.20) "I am victorious over the asura-s because of the blessings of the brAhmins"vipra prasAdAt asurAn jayAmi (vishNu dharma 52.23). Buried in this vyAkhyAnam is also a summary of how a brAhmaNa should conducthimself, that justifies the great respect that bhagavAn holds for them. SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri gives the following explanation: "The brAhmins arevery dear to Him because they live for the sole purpose of chanting the veda-sas well as teaching the veda-s. Sinve the veda-s are the Lord Himself, thelove of a brAhmin in the veda-s as He chants them transforms into a love to Him;and since the brAhmin gives the place for Him in them in the form of the veda-s,the brAhmin is dear to Him". The dharma cakram writer adds that thosewho live for Him are brAhmins, and those who live for themselves are the rest. b) SrI Samkara gives the first interpretation as well as the second one brAhmaNAnAm priyah brAhmaNa-priyah | brAhamNAh priyaA asya iti vA| He also gives the support given under a) from itihAsasamuccayam. c) SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN, who gives all his interpretations based on LordkRshNa's life in this world, gives the example of His pleasing sAndIpani bybringing back his child alive, as the explanation for this nAma.

d) SrI cinmayAnanda observes that the term brAhmaNa here refers to the class ofpeople who have the supreme experience-divine, those men of completerealization, and not to the brAhmins by caste. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 72 - mahA-kramah. mahA-kramo mahA-karmA mahA-tejAmahoragah | mahA-kratur_mahA-yajvA mahA-ya~jnomahA-havih ||

om om om om om om om om

mahA-kramAya namah mahA-karmiNe namah mahA-tejase namah mahoragAya namah mahA-kratave enamah mahA-yajvane namah mahA-ya~jnAya namah mahA-havishe namah

SrI BhaTTar enjoys bhagavAn's greatness in terms of His unboundedvAtsalyam towards His devotees in the next few nAma-s. Theinterpretation of SrI BhaTTar is in terms of His relation with Hisdevotees, how He makes it easy for the worshipper to worship Him, etc. 676. mahA-kramah a) He Who provides easy step-by-step access for theelevation of His devotee. b) He of the three great strides (in His tri-vikrama incarnation). c) He Whose strides are great in that He reaches everything fasterthan anyone else. d) He Whose Feet are great (to surrender).

Theword kramam refers to step or pace (of the feet), and also to a systematic orgradual approach. SrI Samkara uses the first meaning to explain thenAma in terms of His tri-vikrama incarnation, and SrI BhaTTar uses the secondmeaning and interprets the nAma in terms of bhagavAn's making it easy fordevotees to reach Him through gradual steps. a) Since bhagavAn provides a systematic approach to elevate us who are at thebottom of the pit of samsAra from our lowly levels to His level, He is calledmahA-kramah. SrI BhaTTar provides a very lucid analogy to make this pointclear. Just as a mother starts feeding breast milk to the child first foreasy digestion, and then slowly starts feeding cow's milk, then other fluids,and then solid food, so also bhagavAn provides gradual steps to His devotees toreach Him. At first, He removes from our mind the dislike against Him;then He makes us believe in Him and His vedic injunctions; then He makesus obey these injunctions with pleasure; after this, He bestows knowledge anddevotion, and generates deep faith in Him; ultimately He makes us attain Him. Even though this takes several births in the cases of most of us, He keeps at ittill He gets us to Him. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following in support: janmAntara sahasreshu tapo dhyAna samAdhibhih | narANAm kshINa pApAnAm kRshNe bhaktih prajAyate || (laghuatrismRti)

"The sins of human beings get annihilated over a period of several birthsby means of austerities, meditation, and contemplation on Him, and devotion toLord kRshNa results in the end". bahUnAm janmanAm ante j~nAnavAn mAm prapadyate (gItA 7.19) "It is only at the end of many births that a wise man resorts to Me". AbhyAsa yogena tato mAm icchAptum dhana'njaya | (gItA 8.8) "O Arjuna! Strive to attain Me by constant practice of meditation". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives related reference from divya prabandham: "ARRa nalla vagai kATTum ammAn" (tiruvAi. 4.5.5), and "neRi vASal tAneyAi ninRAnai" (mudal tiruvantAdi 4). SrI v.n. vedAnta deSikan in his tamizh vyAkhyAnam for the first reference bringsout the point that bhagavAn shows this path to arjuna step by step, gradually,and not all at once. Doing so all at once would have only confused arjunaprofusely. The second reference stresses that it is only by His Grace thatthe step-by-step path will be revealed, and not otherwise; Siva tried hisbest to realize Him by controlling all his indriya-s, and could not find Him b) SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as referring to His tri-vikrama incarnation mahAntah kramAh pAda-vikshepA asya iti mahA-kramah. He gives reference totaittirIya Upanishad in support Sanno vishNur-uru-kramah (1.1). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that the significance of mahA here is that thesemeasures are nothing known to us, and beyond our comprehension - we can't definewhat each "step" of bhagavAn means in this context of tri-vikramaincarnation. All we can say is that His steps are "big". c) SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the "long stride" to refer to His beingable to permeate and pervade everything, one of meanings of the term "vishNu"; He reaches everything and everyone earlier than anything else or anyone else,and so He is mahA-kramah, or One with great strides, in this sense aswell. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha conveys this anubhavam in his vyAkhyAnam aswell -

na cAsti ki'ncit bhuvi vartamAnam mahAkramo yan-na vaSe karoti There is nothing in this universe that is not under the control of thismahA-kramah. d) The dharma cakram writer gives yet another anubhavam - His steps (Feet) areso great that by resorting to them one crosses the ocean of samsAra; ourordinary steps only allow us to cross short distances in this earth. Thelowliest of beings here will become the greatest of mukta-s just by surrenderingto His steps such is their greatness. 677.mahA-karmA - He of great actions. Om mahA-karmaNe namah. This nAma occurs as nAma 793 again (Slokam 84). mahAnti karmANi yasya iti mahA-karmA One Whose actions are great is mahA-karmA. SrI BhaTTar and his followersinterpret the nAma in terms of His great actions in helping His devotees. Other interpretations emphasize His great actions in the form of His creationetc. SrI BhaTTar refers to His actions as "ati-vismayanIyam" - extremelysurprising, and refers to bhagavAn's action in lifting the likes of worms,germs, and less, from those low levels to the level where they are capable ofenjoying His supreme glory. He lifts us from our very low levels to thelevel of a nitya sUri, a wonder that can't even be comprehended by us. SrIv.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr (tiruvAi. 7.5.1): ".puRpA mudalAp pul eRumbu enRu Ado onRu inRiyE naRpAl ayottiyil vAzhum SarASaram muRRavum naRpAlukkumuittanan" LordrAma lifted all the jIva rASi-s starting from the blades of grass, the ants, andall other life forms that existed in His land ayodhyA with Him to SrI vaikunThamwhen He departed this world after His avatAra kAryam ended. KulasekharaAzhvAr refers to the same incident in perumAL tirumozhi 10.10 "anRuSarASara'ngaLai vaikundattu ERRi", where His makA-karmA aspect is sung. His great actions do not stop with just directly helping His devotees by liftingthem to His level, but also in His acts in punishing His devotee's enemies,including tricking them as part of His leelA. SrI BhaTTar interprets theoccurrence of this nAma in Slokam 84 in this sense (in terms of His BuddhaavatAra, where He intentionally taught those who were averse to Him to followthe non-vedic path). These great acts of His are also just, since they areaimed at punishing those who are set against Him. SrI Samkara interprets the nAma in terms of His great karma or act in the formof His creation of this Universe etc. - mahat jagat utpatyAdi karmA asya itimahA-karmA. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the example of His swallowing theentire universe at the time of dissolution. In the later occurrence ofthis nAma in Slokam 84, SrI Samkara brings out another aspect of His greatcreation - that of bringing out the great elements etc. - mahAnti viyadAdInibhUtAni karmANi kAryANi asya iti mahA-karmA. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers to Lord kRshNa's words in the gItA that Hisactions are "divya" karma-s (divine actions) - janma karma ca medivyam (gItA 4.9. The dharma cakram writer explains His "great action" in terms of Hissupporting whatever a jIva is after: if

the earthly pleasures is what onewants, He supports that by providing the means for these; if after some stagethis person realizes that it is not worth going after earthly pleasures, Heprovides the necessary means for them to follow the yogic path; when the personmatures in this path over several births, and starts feeling the desire to seekHim, He aids this person in this path as well, and ultimately unites this personwith Him. He does all these things simultaneously to all the beings,according to their wishes and desires. For the English-speaking world, SrI cinmayAnanda's description for this nAma isa good summary, which is similar to SrI Samkara's interpretation: "Tocreate a cosmos so scientifically precise and perfect out of the five greatelements, and to sustain them with an iron hand of efficiency, all the timepresiding over acts of destruction without which the world of change cannot bemaintained, is, in itself, a colossal achievement". 678. mahA-tejAh He of great Resplendence. Om mahA-tejase namah. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that He is called mahA-tejAh because He has theeffulgence which destroys the darkness of the beginningless ignorance of eventhose who are tAmasic by nature. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives referenceto the Sruti - "nArAyaNa paro jyotih". The jyoti of a thousandSuns is a but a small fraction compared to His jyoti. tirumazhiSaip pirAn called Him "SodiyAda Sodi nee"- "You are the unquestionable jyoti (tiruccanda viruttam 34)". SrI Samkara's anubhavam is that He is called mahA-tejAh because of His radiancethrough which the Sun and other luminaries possess their light. The Sun is knownto illumine everything around us, but this Sun itself gets its tejas from aminute fraction of His tejas. SrI Samkara quotes the Sruti "yenasUryas-tapati tejaseddhah (tait. brAh. 3.12.9)" - "By whom thesun shines, illuminated by His effulgence". He also gives referenceto the gItA yad-Aditya gatam tejo jagad-bhAsayate'khilam | yac-candramasi yac-cAgnau tat-tejo viddhi mAmakam || (gItA 15.12) "Know that tejas (Light) to be Mine which is residing in the Sun and whichillumines the whole world, and that is in the moon and in the fire". SrI cinmayAnanda gives reference to muNDakopanishad II.2.10 na tatra sUryo bhAti na candra tArakam nemA vidyuto bhAnti kuto'yamagnih | tameva bhAntam anubhAti sarvam tasya bhAsA sarvam idam vibhAti || "Even the Sun, moon, the stars and fire have no light of their own. By Him they shine, the Giver of light in all". He also gives another reference to the gItA "jyotishAmapi taj-jyotih tamasah param ucyate"(13.17 "That Light of all lights, is said to be beyonddarkness". SrI Samkara also gives the alternate interpretation that He is endowed withbrilliance of various excellences like harshness towards His enemies, valor,etc., and so also He is called mahA-tejAh -

kraurya SauryAdibhih dharmaih mahadbhih samalamkRta iti vA mahA-tejAh. His being merciless towards dushTa-s, being aggressive against conquering eventhe strongest of enemies, being unconquerable, etc., are all aspects of "tejas". His tejas is supreme, and so He is called mahA-tejAh (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri). The dharma cakram writer observes that while the Sun eliminates the darknessoutside us, He eliminates the darkness inside us, while at the same time Heprovides the light to the Sun and other objects that remove the darknessoutside. Just as the Sun reveals itself as well as the objectsoutside with its light, He reveals Himself in addition to enlightening the innerselves of all of us. 679. mahoragah a) He Who is great, and enters into our heart (uras). b) He Who has a great heart (uras), and blesses us. c) He Who manifests Himself in the form of the great serpent ananta, vAsuki,etc. d) He Who has the serpent ananta as His bed. e) he Who traverses everywhere in the form of the Sun with His broad chest. Om mahoragAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar derives his interpretation by using the combination mahA + urah +gah. Uras refers to chest, and in this context it refers to the heartwithin us. urah pradarSitam hRdayam, yad-dvArA tAn (adIyAn) gaccgatiiti mahoragah - He is called mahoragah because He reaches us who are small likea particle of dust compared to Him, through our hearts. SrI BhaTTar posesthe rhetorical question: "How does He enter our heart?", and gives theanswer that He enters our heart the same way the material objects of pleasureenter our heart, namely through our indriya-s. We see His form through oureyes, we hear His praise through our ears, etc., and He slowly gets into ourheart through our own indriya-s, and occupies it after displacing ourmaterialistic desires from our hearts. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several references to prabandham in support of SrIBhaTTar's interpretation: "vandAi! En manam pugundAi, manni ninRAi, nandAda kozhum SuDarE! E'ngaLnambi!" - tiruma'ngai AzhvAr, tirumozhi 1.10.9; "eNNam pugundu tittikkum amudE! imaiyOr adhipatiyE" - tiruvAimozhi6.10.3; "muttanAr mukundanAr pugundu tammuL mEvinAr; ettinAl iDar kaDal kiDatti?Ezhai ne'njamE" - tiruccanda. 115; "vandu aruLi en ne'nju iDam koNDa vAnavar kozhundu" - tiruvAi. 5.7.7. b) While SrI BhaTTar interprets uras as referring to our heart, the term canalso refer to His great heart in blessing the lowest of creatures mahatA urasA hRdayena gacchati sva-bhaktam mucukundam iti mahoragah (Sribaladeva vidyA bhUshaN). SrI vidyA bhUshaN uses the term "bhakta praNayittvam", or love for thedevotee, to describe the significance of this nAma. He gives examples ofLord rAma's getting into guha's heart by His Ali'nganam or embrace, His showingHis magnanimous heart in performing the last rites for jaTAyu, and His showingHis great affection for His devotee by accepting the fruits offered by SabarI. c) uragah means serpent. The snake or serpent moves around on its chest (uras),and so it is called uragah - urasA gacchati iti uragah. SrI Samkara uses this meaning for urgah, and gives the interpretationthat bhagavAn manifests Himself in the form of the great serpent vAsuki, and soHe is called mahoragah. He supports his interpretation with the quote fromgItA 10.28 - sarpANAmapi vAsukih. Lord kRshNa also declares that He isananta among the many-hooded serpents - anataScAsmi nAgAnAm (10.29), andbased

on this, SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma as indicating that He hasthis nAma because He manifests Himself in the form of ananta. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj suggests that the nAma is suggestive of His havingananta as His bed mahAn - mahanIyah, uragah - anantah, SayyA-rUpeNa yasya iti mahoragah. e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the same etymological approach as SrI BahTTar (mahA+ uras+ gah), but comes up with the interpretation that He is mahoragah becauseHe moves relentlessly with His great (broad?) vaksha-sthalam (chest), in theform of the Sun. In passing, I would like to point out that most of SrI satyadevo vAsishTha'sinterpretations are based on an assumption of identity between Lord vishNu andthe Sun, even though I have not represented his interpretations in this view. The significant value I have derived from his vyAkhyAnam is the very detailedetymological derivation of each nAma, which is thorough, with references to thepANini sUtra-s, and detailed vedic references. In this aspect, hisvyAkhyAnam is superb. 680.mahA-kratuh a)He Who is worshiped by the great yAga-s. b) He Who can be easily worshiped. c) He Who can be worshiped in many ways d) He Who is the Great Sacrifice (that gives the best results) e) He Who performed the great sacrifice called the pA'ncarAtra kratu. Om mahA-kratave namah. The word "kratuh" occurred as nAma 449 in Slokam 48, and the meaningof the term was explained there. Briefly recapitulating, the term "kratuh"refers to a particular type of sacrifice, or can also refer to bhagavAn since Heis the object of the yAga-s. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also gives the explanation"karoti iti kratuh, kriyate vA kratuh" - One who performs is a kratuh,or that which is performed is kratuh. The term "mahA" is used in the sense of "great","many", "great because of its ease", etc., in the differentinterpretations. a) SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya gives the interpretation "He Who is the object ofworship of the great yAga-s". "mahA" is interpreted here with themeaning "great". b) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that He is mahA-kratuh because "Heis the Great Lord Who has the easiest means of worship" - mahat sarvasukaram ArAdhanam asya iti mahA-kratuh. Based on the supporting references hehas quoted in his interpretion, I feel that he is using the term "mahA"or "great" here in two ways: 1) to mean "easy or simple for thedevotee, and thus "great from the point of view of the devotee", 2) torefer to the multitude of easy ways that are available to worship Him. He gives reference to vishNu dharma (90.69), and to gItA (9.27), where heemphasizes the ease of worship: yo na vittair na vibhavaih na vAsobhir na bhUshNaih | toshyate hRdayenaiva kas-tam ISam na toshayet || (vishNu dharma-90.69) "Who will not endeavor to please that God Who is pleased by just sincerityof heart alone, but not by wealth or riches, clothes or ornaments?"

yat karoshi yad-aSnAsi yaj-juhoshi dadAsi yat | yat-tapasyasi kaunteya tat-kurushva madarpaNam || (gItA 9.27) "Whatever you do, whatever you eat, whatever you offer in sacrifice,whatever you give, whatever you practice as austerity, O kaunteya, do it as anoffering to Me". SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshan also associates the ease of His worship with thisnAma, and explains that He is mahA-kratuh because He has such great (easy) waysof worship such as being offered the tulasi leaves, in order to obtain thegreatest of blessings. c) In his commentary, SrI BhaTTar also says that "He is to be worshiped byall acts which have been prescribed by the Agama SAstra-s, and by offering toHim, these acts become sanctified and sweet" samarpaNa samskArasvAdu-kRtaih Agama SAstra kArita sarva vyApAraih ArAdhyatvAt" - from whichit may be inferred that the term 'mahA" may refer to the many ways ofoffering worship. d) SrI Samkara's interpretation is that He is mahA-kratuh because He is Himselfthe Great Sacrifice mahAnSca asau kratuSca iti mahA-kratuh. Akratuh is a sacrifice that is performed for specific benefits, and thus it is asacrifice that yields specific benefits. We note that bhagavAn declares that Heis kratuh Himself, in gItA 9.16: aham kratur-aham ya~jnah svadhAham aham aushadham | mantro'ham ahmevAjyam aham-agnir-aham hutam || (gItA 9.16) "I am the kratu; I am the sacrifice; I am the offering to the manes; I amthe herb; I am the mantra; I am myself the clarified butter; I am the fire; I amthe oblation". This Slokam is explained in greater detail under the nAmamahA-havih (nAma 683). e) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - mahAn kratuhpa'ncarAtro yaysa it mahA-kratuh. SrI Ramachandra Rao in his AgAma kOSa vol. IV,quotes from the Satapata brAhmaNa which says that purusha nArAyaNa performed thegreat pA'ncarAtra kratu or sacrifice, and attained superiority over all beingsand became all beings Himself: "purusho ha vai nArAyaNo'kAmayata atitishTheyam | sarvANi bhUtAni ahameva idam sarvam iti | sa etam purushamedham pA'ncarAtram ya~jna kratum apaSyat tam Aharat tena ajAyata teneshTam | atyatishTatsarvANi bhUtAnIdam sarvam abhavat || " (13.6.1) 681.mahA-yajvA a)He Who performs great sacrifices. b) He Who has the special class of devotees (mahA-yajvA-s) of a superior nature. According to pANini sUtra 3.2.103 (suyajor'ngvanip), the word yajvA is derivedfrom the root yaj - to sacrifice, with the addition of the affix 'ngvanip. Whenthe affix 'ngvanip is added to the root yaj, the result is yajvA with a pastsignification, and thus means "one who has sacrificed". SrI satyadevovAsishTha gives the etymological derivation "mahAntam ya~jnam kRtavAn itimahA-yajvA" - He Who has performed great sacrifices.

a) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He is called mahA-yajvA because Hehas performed great sacrifices. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the example of theaSvamedha yAga in His incarnation as Lord rAma. He is also the yajAmana of allsacrifices performed by all devotees, since He ensures their successfulcompletion, and in this sense also He is mahA-yajvA, the Great Sacrificer. b) SrI BhaTTar interprets the term "mahA-yajvA" as a reference to thesuperior class of devotees who worship vishNu with single-minded devotion,without worshiping any other devatA for any reason. In this derivation of theinterpretation, a yajvA is one who offers worship, a mahA-yajvA is one whooffers the superior form of worship whereby he worships only Lord vishNu withoutworshiping anya devatA-s, and bhagavAn is Himself referred to as mahA-yajvAbecause He has this superior class of devotees, or because He is the Leader ofthese devotees. He is also a mahA-yajvA because He worships (values) thesemahAyajvA-s as His AtmA, and uplifts the devotees who worship Him specially incomparison to those who worship anya-devatA-s (sva-yAjinAm anya-yAjimyo'piatyutkarshatvAt mahA-yajvA - SrI BhaTTar). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan has given themeaning in tamizh for SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam (tannai ArAdhippavargaLaicciRappUTTubavan). SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi's interpretation is "tannaiArAdhippavargaLaic ciRandavargaLAgac ceibavar" - "He Who especiallyelevates those who worship Him exclusively". The superiority of His exclusive devotees derives from the fact that these arethe ones who seek the best of all blessings - moksham, to the exclusion of allother worldly benefits. 682. mahA-ya~jnah a) He Who is the best among those to be worshiped. b) He Who manifests Himself in the form of the best of ya~jna-s. c) He Who is worshiped by the great j~nAni-s, or He Who is worshiped through great sacrifices. Om mahA-ya~jnAya namah. As in the previous nAma, the root from which ya~jna is derived is yaj- deva pUjA sa'ngati karaNa yajana dAneshu - to sacrifice, to make an oblation to, to give, to associate with, etc. The act of sacrifice, or one who is worshipped through a sacrifice, are both referred to by the term ya~jnah - yajanam ya~jnah, ijyate iti vA ya~njah (SrI satyadevo vAsishTha). a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for this nAma is "He Who is the best among those to be worshiped". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains this interpretation as follows: ya~jnam is bhagavad ArAdhanam; ya~jnah is the object of this ArAdhanam; MahA-ya~jnah is the Most Superior Object of bhagavad-ArAdhanam, or He Who is the best among those to be worshiped. SrI BhaTTar points out that the term ya~jna includes such ways of worship as singing suprabhAtam to emperumAn, respectful approach, offering sweet things such as mixture of honey etc., prostrating at His Feet, etc. The best of ya~jna-s is when these are offered to Him rather than any to other devatA. SrI BhaTTar points out that worship of Lord vishNu is the best because "He protects His devotees as if there were His own body" - rakshate bhagavAn vishNuh bhaktAn Atma-SarIravat, "He accepts the rites performed by His devotees with great joy and with a bowed head" - tAh sarvAh SirasA devah prati-gRhNAti vai svayam (mahAbhArata moksh. 17.163), vidhi prayuktAm pUjAm ca gRhNAti SirasA svayam (SAnti. 353.64), etc. b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation for the nAma as "He who manifests Himself in the form of the Great Sacrifice", and gives the support from the vibhUti yoga in gItA: "ya~jAnAm japa ya~jno'smi" (gItA 10.25)"Of sacrifices, I am the sacrifice of japa". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that unlike kratu which is a sacrifice performed with a specific benefit in mind, ya~jna is a sacrifice that is done as part of one's duty, and is not done with a specific benefit in mind. Among the ya~jna-s, the japa ya~jna (silently repeating a

sacred mantra) is declared as the best by bhagavAn in the referenced gItA Slokam. The japa ya~jna can be performed easily, without interruption, and with no accessory needed other than the desire to perform this ya~na. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning "He Who is worshiped by great ya~jna-s", or "He Who is worshiped by the great j~nAni-s" - mahat yajanam yasya, mahadbhih ijyata iti vA). The dharma cakram writer explains the spirit behind offering worship to bhagavAn who is the mahAya~jnah (the personification of the ya~jna-s) through five types of ya~jna-s that are expected of each one of us: the bhUta ya~jna, the pitR ya~jna, the nara ya~jna, the Rshi ya~jna, and the deva ya~jna. bhUta ya~jna involves our rendering service and assistance to the life forms that are below our level. This involves the protection of plants, trees, the four-legged animals, etc., all of which are rendering service to us in various ways, and making our life possible. The pitR ya~jna involves our devotion and service to our elders, to our parents, etc., who have devoted their lives to bring us up, educate us, and help us live the way we live, and thus made our lives possible. The nara ya~jna involves service to our fellow humans in the society, including how we treat others in our thought, word, and deed. Without the help of the others in the society, we will not be able to lead our lives, and in return, we owe the debt to society to make it better by spreading good thoughts, good word, and good deed. The Rshi ya~jna involves learning, chanting, protecting, and propagating the mantra-s, veda-s, and the knowledge that the Rshi-s have given us. This will lead to our acquiring the kind of knowledge that they possessed, over time. The deva ya~jna involves our worshipping Him with constant and uninterrupted devotion, which will result in our attaining Him. The significant point to take from this discussion is that we should perform all the above five types of ya~jna-s with the full realization that these are all offerings to Him, since He is the mahA ya~jnah who is worshiped by al these offerings. They should be performed for His pleasure and not with any benefit for us in mind, with the clear understanding that He is the Doer who is just using us as the means for getting these done, etc. 683. mahA-havih a) He Who is worshiped with supreme oblations. b) He Who manifests Himself in the form of the great Offering. c) He Who accepts the whole Universe as havis at the time pralaya. Om mahA-havishe namah. The root from which the word havis is derived is hu - dAnAdAnayoh - to offer, to perform a sacrifice, to eat. The word havis is explained by the uNAdi sutra "arci Suci hu sRpi chAdi chardibhya ish (268), and has the meaning "clarified butter offered in sacrifice". In common usage, the term is used for referring to the material used in the oblation to the fire. mahA-havis is the greatest of these oblations, and mahA-havih refers to the One who is the recipient of the supreme oblations. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha indicates that the term havih can also refer to one who is making the offering, one who is the object or recipient of the offering, that by which the offering is made, etc. We will see in the interpretations below that He is mahA-havih in all the above senses: He is mahA-havih because: - He is worshiped by the offerings that are themselves supreme in nature (e.g., in the form of our AtmA); - He is the Great or Supreme acceptor of the meager offerings that we make; - Everything is but a form of Him, or His manifestation, and He manifests Himself in the form of the Great Sacrifice.

a) SrI BhaTTar interprets havis as referring to the offerings, and thus mahA-havis refers to the great offerings; mahA-havih is the receipient of the great offerings. SrI BhaTTar explains what these "great offerings" are, or why the offerings to Him are great or supreme: He can be worshiped without killing of any animal - na tatra paSu ghAto'bhUt (mahA. SAnti. 337.9); the sacrifices to Him that He likes best are the offering of our mind, buddhi, and indriya-s to Him, and best of all, Atma-samarpaNa (ahamevan mAm juhomi - tait. nArA. 41; pratyagAtma havishTvAt, ahimsram AtMAdi havih yasya syAt sa mahAhavih). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's Atma-samarpaNam to Him in pASuram 2.3.4 in tiruvAimozhi - "enadAviyuL kalanda peru nal udavik kaimmARu enadAvi ozhindEn ini mILvadenbadu uNDE". SrI ALavandAr also refers to Atma samarpaNam in his stotra ratnam (53) - "aham adyaiva mayA samarpitah". Even though this AtmA belongs to Him to start with, we offer it to Him as if it is an offering from us of something that belongs to us, and He is kind enough to accept it as a supreme offering. The concept of offering the AtmA as an oblation to the fire is to be understood as referring to the burning of the feeling, or getting rid of the feeling once for all, that our AtmA belongs to us and that we have independent ownership of our soul. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives an interpretation similar to that of SrI BhaTTar, and gives different examples of the great offerings that He likes namaskAra, svAdhyAya, aushadi rUpatvena ati-pavitratvAt anya havibhyo mahAnti havImshi yasya sa mahA-havih (He is called mahA-havih because He has the offerings that are suprmely pure, in the form of namaskAra, chanting of veda-s, and offerings of tulasi leaves). He quotes the following in support: tulasI dala mAtreNa jalasya culukena ca | vikrINIte svam AtmAnam bhaktebhyo bhakta-vatsalah || (quote from vishNu dharma) "bhagavAn who dearly loves His devotees, just trades away His own Self in exchange for the offering of some tulasi leaves or a palm's content of water". He also quotes from moksha dharma, where it is stated that no matter what a person who has singleminded devotion offers to Him, He accepts it with a bowed head: yAh kriyAh samprayuktAh syuh ekAnta gata bhuddhibhih | tAh sarvAh SirasA devah pratigRhNAti vai svayam || (from moksha dharma) A brAhmaNa qualifies for the title of brAhmaNa by pure nAma japam, and nothing else is required: japyenaiva hi sam-Suddhyet brAhmaNo nAtra samSayah | kuryAd-anyan-na kuryAt maitro brAhmaNa ucyate || (from moksha dharma) b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that bhagaVan is Himself the Great Sacrifice. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to the gItA in support: aham kratur-aham ya~jnah svadhAham aham aushadham | mantro'ham ahmevAjyam aham-agnir-aham hutam || (gItA 9.16) "I am the kratu; I am the sacrifice; I am the offering to the manes; I am the herb; I am the mantra; I am myself the clarified butter; I am the fire; I am the oblation".

Bhagavad rAmAnuja explains the concept in his vyAkhyAnam for Slokam 9.15. " vividha vibhakta nAma rUpa sthUla cit acit vastu SarIrah syAm iti samkalpya, sa ekadeva eva tiryang manushya sthAvarAkhya vicitra jagac-charIrah avatishThate iti anusandhAnASca mAm upAsate.." The Lord wills thus: May I become embodied in gross animate and inanimate entities, distinguished variously by name and form. He alone then abides, with the variegated cosmos as His body, comprising gods, animals, men, and immobile things. (The mahAtma-s) worship Me contemplating on Me thus. Thus, everything is part of His body, His form. In the context of the current nAma, He is Himself the havis also - aham hutam (SrI tirukkaLLam svAmi reminds us that this does not mean that everything or everyone is identical to Him, but that everything is part of Him). The concept that He is the AtmA of everything, is also conveyed in Slokam 4.24 of gItA: brahmArpaNam brahma havih brahmAgnau brahmaNA hutam | brahmaiva tena gantavyam brahma karma samAdhinA || (gItA 4.24) "Brahman is the instrument through which the offering is made; The offerings are Brahman; The One who offers is Brahman, and the offering is made into the agni which is Brahman. One who performs all actions with this understanding and knowledge of the Supreme Brahman, attains none other than Brahman". SrI rAmAnuja again explains that the ladle with which the offering is made is Brahman because it is an effect of Brahman, (who is the material cause of this universe); The oblation likewise is Brahman; It is offered by the agent Brahman into the fire of Brahman. Again, identity is not to be inferred from this, but the sense that He has all these as His body. c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives the additional interpretation that He is mahA-havih since He accepts as an offering the whole universe at the time of pralaya, and contains it all within Him. Just as an offering made to fire becomes fire itself, the offering made to Him at the time of pralaya becomes a part of Brahman Himself. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 73 - stavyah. stavyah stava-priyah stotram stutah stotA raNa-priyah | pUrNah pUrayitA puNyah puNya-kIrtir_anAmayah ||

om om om om om om om om om om om

stavyAya namah stava-priyAya namah stotrAya namah stutAya namah stotre namah raNa-priyAya namah pUrNAya namah pUrayitre namah puNyAya namah puNya-kIrtaye namah 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 . ............... 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, 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. 685. stava-priyah He Who is pleased by the praise in whatever form it is offered. om stava-priyAya namah. In his interpretation, SrI BhaTTar points out that when anyone praises Him in any manner (even in a negative manner!), in any language (even if it contains errors in diction or meaning), even if it is adverse to His splendor, bhagavAn accepts it as praise. SrI BahTTar's exact words are: yathA katha'ncit (in whatever manner), yayA kayAcit bhAshayA (in whatever language - even in negative language), yena kenApi (by anyone - even including those who denigrate Him), tejaskarah tiraskaropi vA (either in praise of His qualities or in negative terms), stavah priyatamah asya iti stava-priyah (He accepts them as praise of Him because these actions are done while thinking of Him). SrI BhaTTar gives an example of this guNa of bhagavAn by referring us to the incident of ghaNTAkarNa, who did not like to hear even the name of vishNu being uttered by anyone even casually. So he suspended two bells from his ears, and at the very utterance of the name of vishNu, he will shake his head violently, so that these words won't fall in his ears. But in order to ensure that he shake his head at the mere mention of the name of vishNu, he had to always be thinking of vishNu, and watching for even a casual mention of the name of vishNu. The Lord took this as constant meditation on Him, and gave salvation to ghaNTAkarNa for this constant meditation on Him. This is an example of how He takes even the negative thought about him as praise of Him. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan adds to this the example of SiSUpAlan, who got moksham even though all he was doing was using abusive language to talk about Lord kRshNa at every possible opportunity - "kETpAr Sevi SuDu kIzhmai vaSavugaLaiyE vaiyum pazham pagaivan SiSupAlan". nammAzhvAr concludes one of his dacads in tiruvAimozhi by pointing out that no matter how we say His name - knowing the meaning or not knowing the meaning, etc., - the final outcome is that it will always lead to good for us - "e'nganE Sollinum inbam payakkumE" (7-9-11). SrI rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 5.1.1, which supports the interpretation that SrI BhaTTar has given for this nAma - perumAL is stava-priyah because His Grace is such that even if we don't mean to praise Him, as long as we say something about Him, even without sincerity, He will accept it as praise, in order to help us reach Him - such is the destiny of the jIva: kaiyAr Sakkarattu en karu mANikkamE enRenRu poyyE kaimmai Sollip puRamE puRamEyADi meyyE peRRozhindEn vidi vAikkinRu kAppAr Ar? AiyO! KaNNa pirAn! aRaiyO inip pOnAlE (tiruvAi. 5.1.1) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that bhagavAn's pleasure when He is praised is not because He is happy that people are praising His qualities, but because He is pleased that the jIva-s are putting to appropriate use the indriya-s that He has given to the jIva-s. When the thought, word, and deed are all directed appropriately for His praise, He is all the more happy. By praising Him, we are getting closer to Him, and this is exactly what He wants of the jIvAtmA-s, and this makes Him happy. The dharma cakram writer gives the analogy of the parents who feel happy when the child does well in the school. The body and the indriyas that He has given us are for serving Him, and, just like the parents who feel happy when the child does

well in the school, He is happy when we do well with the facilities He has given us. 686. stotram The Eulogy Incarnate. Om stotrAya namah. The word stotram is derived from the root stu - to praise, through the addition of the affix shTran, which gives the sense of instrument (i.e, means of praise), according to pANini sUtra 3.2.182. The nAma means that bhagavAn is stotram incarnate. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that bhagavAn is the cause or the instrument of the stotram or praise, because it is only by His anugraham that the devotee praises Him. SrI BhaTTar gives the example of child dhruva who was spell-bound when bhagavAn appeared before Him, and could not utter even a word. Then bhagavAn gently touched dhruva's cheek with His conch, and immediately words of praise of bhagavAn started pouring out form dhruva's mouth. Thus, bhagavAn was the true instrument for His praise in this case. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to the following words of dhruva: yo antah praviSya mam vAcam imam prasuptAm sa'njIvayatyakhila Sakti dharah sva dhAmnA | anyAmSca hasta caraNa SravaNa tvagAdIn prANAn namo bhagavate purushAya tubhyam || "I worship that Lord who entered into me, gave life to my words which were more or less dead, and with His unique Sakti, rejuvenated my hands, legs, ears, skins, etc., and gave movement to them". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAimozhi 10.7.5, where nammAzhvAr echoes this same sentiment: paNNAr pADal in kavigaL yAnAit tannait tAn pADi, where nammAzhvAr says that bhagavAn sang His own praise by Himself through tiruvAimozhi using nammAzhvAr as the vehicle or means. SrI Samkara's interpretation is that bhagavAn is Himself the Hymn. SrI cinmayAnanda explains this by pointing out that when a glorious hymn, praising His Divine Nature, is sung with full devotion and ardent aspiration to realize Him, this praise lifts the devotee into the experience of the Nature of Truth. Thus, the nAma (praise here) and the nAmee are one and the same in experience. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that words that praise Him are by their very nature good words, and so they are His manifestation (Note that Lord kRshNa declares in the gItA that all that are best in this world are but His manifestations). The dharma cakram writer explains that the great Rshi-s to whom bhagavAn has revealed Himself, have a mind which is pure and where He resides. When these sages reveal their experience of Him through words to others, this becomes the mantra or the word of praise or stotram. Thus the stotram or the mantra becomes the representation of Him. This is what AzhvAr declares when he says: "nalam tarum Sollai nAn kaNDu koNDEn nArAyaNA ennum nAmam". One is reminded of the incident of draupadi being saved by invoking the nAma of kRshNa which saved her even before kRshNa could personally come and save her. In this sense, the nAma or the stotram is even more powerful than Him.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets stotram in the current context to refer to veda stUyate anena iti stotram vedah - that by which bhagavAn is praised, is veda. Since bhagavAn is the object of praise of the veda-s, He is stotram Himself: vedasya pradhAna vishayatvA brahmApi stotram. 687. stutah He Who is praised. Om stutAya namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn is called stutah because He is praised by everyone including the nitya sUri-s for the attainment of their respective desires. This includes the thousand-hooded AdiSesha, garuDa who is the embodiment of the three-fold veda-s, brahma and other gods, and also byhuman beings like ourselves sahasra-phaNa trayI-mayAdibhih anantaih brahmAdibhih asmadAdibhiSca tat-tad-abhilAsha siddhaye stuta iti SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the Sruti "dhAtA purastAt yamudAjahAra Sakrah pravidvAn pradiSaS-catasrah" - purusha sUktam "At first, brahma, the creator, praised Him, then indra of great knowledge extolled Him, and then the four directions". The reference to the four directions indicates that He is the Object of praise by all beings like ourselves. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 3.3.5, which conveys this idea - "SodiyAgi ellA ulagum tozhum Adi mUrti enRAl aLavAgumO?". SrI Samkara pATham for this nAma is stuthih - the act of praise. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri observes that with SrI Samkara's version, the previous nAma refers to the words of praise, and the current nAma will refer to the act of praise. With SrI BhaTTar's version (stutah), the previous nAma says that He is the instrument for His praise (including the words and the acts), and the current nAma indicates that He is the object of these words and acts of praise. The dharma cakram writer notes that it is only when we have a mind that is clean, and is occupied by Him, that meaningful and proper stuti comes out through our words. It is then that the greatness of bhagavAn takes shape in the form of words and comes out as stuti. Thus, it is He who causes the stuti to occur, and hence He is called stutih. 688. stotA a) He Who praises those who extol Him. b) He Who is also the form of the Eulogizer of bhagavAn. Om stotre namah. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "sva-stotAram stotum Seelam asya iti stotA"- He Whose nature it is to praise those who praise Him is stotA. He quotesfrom vishNu dharma in support: "yam stuvan stavyatAmeti vandamAnaSca vandyatAm" (75.55) "He Who praises bhagavAn is praised by bhagavAn Himself, and he who adores bhagavAn becomes an object of adoration for Him". SrI BhaTTar gives the example of bhagavAn's kailAsa yAtra in His kRshNaincarnation. The incident referred to is Lord kRshNa's praise ofSiva in the form of a hymn during the kailAsa yAtra. Siva constantlymeditates on bhagavAn through the tAraka mantra, and so He becomes an object ofstuti by

bhagavAn, as He says in hari vamSa - "One who praises Me becomespraiseworthy". SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the sameinterpretation as SrI BhaTTar - stauti sva-janAn iti stotA. SrI baladevavidyAbhUshan gives the reason for bhagavAn praising His devotee - He wants tobring out the greatness of such a devotee. He quotes from the gItA -j~nAnI tvAtmaiva me matam (7.18). Slokam 7.17 of the gItA also conveysthis idea: teshAm j~nAni nitya-yukta eka-bhaktir viSishyate; | priyo hi j~nAnino'tyartham aham sa ca mama priyah || where Lord kRshNa declares that the devotee who has exclusive devotion to Him isextremely dear to Him. SrI cinmayAnanda refers us to the gItA Slokam 12.14mayyarpita mano-buddhir yo mad-bhaktah sa me priyah. The dharma cakram writer elaborates on the attributes or qualities of thedevotee whom bhagavAn praises. This devotee shows kindness to all, hasovercome anger, considers pleasure and pain as equal, is pure in thought, wordand deed, dedicates all his actions to bhagavAn, is neither happy when heobtains objects of pleasure nor unhappy when he is faced with objects ofdispleasure, is neither positively influenced by praise nor negativelyinfluenced by unkind words, etc. Lord kRshNa describes such a devotee in Chapter16 of the gItA among other places. b) SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam is - stotA api sa eva, sarva AtmakatvAt - so He isthe Eulogizer as well. SrI cinmayAnanda obsrves that the true devotee whosings the divine hymns of the Lord dissolves in the Lord (becomes one with theLord), and is in at-one-ment with Him. 689. raNa-priyah a) He Who delights in battle. b) He Who delights in the auspicious sounds in places of worship. c) He Who moves around happily in the form of the Sun etc. Om raNa-priyAya namah. The word raNa has two meanings - raNa gatau, raNa Sabda arthah- it can meanmotion or sound. The different interpretations draw on these two differentmeanings. Generically, raNa-priyah thus means one who delights in moving around,accompanied by sound. Thus, the term raNa is used to refer tobattle, where a vIra purusha moves around with joy in confronting his enemies. SrISamkara and SrI BhaTTar use this meaning (battle) in their interpretations. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning "movement", while SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj uses the meaning "sound". He is raNa-priyah when it comes to dealing with the enemies of those who havesurrendered to Him and sought His protection. He delights in battle forthe purposes of protection of those who seek refuge in Him, and for protectionof righteousness. The fight against rAvaNa in His rAma incarnation, andthe destruction of duryodhana and other demons in His kRshNa incarnation areamong the widely known examples of His guNa of raNa-priyah. These are forthe protection of the good and the destruction of the evil paritrANAyasAdhUnAm vinASAya ca dushkRtAm dharma smasthApaNArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge. SrI BhaTTar quotes sage vAlmIki in yuddha kANDa:

tatah sakAmam sugrIvam a'ngadam ca mahA-balam | cakAra rAghavah prIto hatvA rAvaNamAhave || (yuddha.111.31) "Sri rAma killed rAvaNa in the fight and felt happy that He fulfilled thedesires of the powerful sugrIva and a'ngada". SrI Samkara refers to His carrying the great pa'ncAyudha-s ever ready for theprotection of the world - yatah pa'nca mahAyudhAni dhatte satatam lokarakshaNArtham ato raNa-priyah. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives an interpretation which is different fromthe other vyAkyAna kartA-s: raNo ravah mandireshu ma'ngala dhvanih; sa priyo yasya iti raNa-priyah The auspicious sound in the temples is called raNah or ravah; since these arepleasant to Him, He is referred to as raNa-priyah. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning of movement for raNa, and gives theinterpretation that He is called raNa-priyah because He delights in movingaround in the hearts of everyone and removing the darkness in them andenlightening them, or He delights in moving around in the form of the Sun andremoving the darkness in the world. The dharma cakram writer points out that life intrinsically is a struggle of onething vs. another. For one life to live, some other life or some aspect ofanother life is destroyed. For us to be relieved from evil influences, wehave to fight to overcome the evil. bhagavAn has the big task of fighting against the evils of theworld, and this is what He signifies by carrying the pa'ncAyudha-s. ThisnAma of bhagavAn should remind us that our life is a big struggle and a fight tokeep the bad from us, and to constantly assert the good in us. 690. pUrNah He Who is complete. Om pUrNAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is pUrI - ApyAyane - to fill, tosatisfy. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that since He is avApta-samasta-kAman (OneWho has all His desires fulfilled, and has nothing else to wish for), He ispUrNah. SrI BhaTTar notes that this is why it is easy to please Him withjust words of praise, with no expenditure of any kind involved, no physicalstrain, and no need for elaborate worship. nammAzhvAr sings His pURNattvamin tiruvAimozhi (4.5.7, 4.510) - ellA ulagum uDaiyAn tannai, tanadEulagena ninRAn tannai (references from SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrIcinmayAnanda points out that He is lakshmI-pati, and there is nothing that Hedoes not have. SrI Samkara comments that He has all objects of desire, and all Sakti-s orenergies, and so He is pUrNah sakalaih kAmaih, sakalAbhih SaktibhiSca sampannaiti pUrNah. Thus, He not only has all that is desired, but also has all thepowers to fulfill all that is desired. He is also pUrNah in the sense that He is everywhere, andpermeates and pervades everything (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri). Sinceeverything is part of Him, and there is nothing that is not part of Him, thereis nothing for Him to desire. SrI SAstri refers us to the wellknownupanishadic passage

pUrNamadah pUrNamidam pUrNAt pUrNamudacyate; pUrNasya pUrNamAdAya pUrNamevAvaSishyate (SAnti pATha of ISAvAsya uapnishad, bRhadA. 5.1.1 ) He is complete in all respects; whatever emanates from Himis complete; His fullness is such that even though many things emanate from Himthat are complete, He remains complete in all respects. Otherupanishadic references he gives are: pUrNam apravarti (bRhaDA. 2.1.5),and tadetat pUrNam apravarti (chAndoygya. 3.12). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj adds additional anubhavam for this nAma - a) He isfilled with infinite kalyANa guNa-s, and so He is pUrNah - pUryate ApyAyate smakalyANa guNaih iti pUrNah; b) He is easily fulfilled and satisfied withthe simple offerings from His devotees, such as flowers, fruits, etc. -bhaktArpitaih phala kusumAdibhih tarpita iti pUrNah. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN builds on his vyAkhyAnam for the previous nAma, andinterprets the current nAma to mean that He is perfect in the sense of finishingoff His enemies once for all without trace. Thus, among the different anubhavam-s for this nAma are: a) He is full, with alldesires fulfilled; b) He is complete with all the kalyANa guNa-s; c) He iseasily satisfied and fulfilled with the simple offerings of His devotees; d) Heis filled with all the Sakti-s that are needed to fulfill any possible desire;e) He permeates and pervades everything, and there is nothing that is not partof Him. The dharma cakram writer discusses the implications of this nAma to our dailylife. PUrNa is the fulfilled or completely satisfied state. Thegeneral observation in our lives is that as we succeed more in our materiallife, we become more and more dissatisfied, because our needs and wants keepgrowing more. The modern day education only helps grow this material need. The term 'kalvi' signifies 'kalludal', digging into. The true purpose ofkalvi should be to bring out the good in us and to develop the desire to seekHim. But the modern day education only digs out more desire, more wants,and helps us lose whatever little good we might have had to start with. Webecome even more of pleasure seekers and wealth seekers as we get the moderneducation. The more devices wediscover to defend ourselves, the more the fear in us increases of possibleattacks. Lack of trust and faith in Him is the general result of theeducation we receive nowadays. The significance of this nAma for us shouldbe to realize that the joy we are seeking externally is really within us, and torealize our true nature and become fulfilled through this realization of thetrue nature of our selves. 691. pUrayitA The Fulfiller of the desires of His devotees. Om pUrayitre namah. bhagavAn has the nAma pUrayitA because He bestows anything that anyone desiresdepending on their merit - dharma, artha, kAma or moksha. SrI BhaTTargives the interpretation that He has this nAma because He fulfillsthe desire of the devotees to sing His praise. In other words, bhagavAn ispUrayitA by becoming a stava-priyah (nAma 685) for the sake of His devotees, andfulfilling their desire to praise Him, even through He is a pUrNah (previousnAma), and thus does not need the praise of the devotees. His truedevotees would only seek the chance to do kaimkaryam to Him by pleasing Himthrough praise etc., and this is what He fulfills, as signified by the nAmapUrayitA. SrI Samkara continues on his interpretation for the previous nAma, and pointsout that bhagavAn is not just

fulfilled Himself (pUrNah), but He makes othersfulfilled as well (pUrayitA) at the appropriate time, by bestowing whatever theyseek. The dharma cakram writer gives some instances of the unique ways in whichbhagavAn fulfils the desires of those who seek His help, all the time upholdingdharma. The story of arjuna and duryodhana seeking help from Lord kRshNafor the mahAbhArata war is interesting. Lord kRshNa bestowed both arjuna'sand duryodhana's wishes, though ultimately He made sure that dharma won. BhIshma, the great devotee of kRshNa, declared to duryodhana that he will fightso ferociously that he will make kRshNa break His vow and take to arms duringthe war. BhagavAn fulfilled bhIshma's promise, because it was the wish ofa devotee. By fulfilling His devotees' wishes, all He is doing isfulfilling His own wishes, since He wants to ensure that His devotees' words aretrue. The reason that bhagavAnalways fulfills His devotees' wishes is because their wish is never contrary toHis wish under any circumstance. In the mahAbhArata war, even thoughbhIshma was on duryodhana's side, he blessed yudhisThira that he should win thewar, which was the same as bhagavAn's wish. 692. puNyah a) The Purifier. b) He Who is excellent in performing pious activities. Om puNyAya namah. This nAma occurs again as nAma 925 in Slokam 98. There are two ways the derivation of the word "puNyah" has beenapproached - one from the root pU pavane - to purify, and the other puN- Subha karmaNi - to be pious. The details will be seen below under therespective authors.
SrI BhaTTar gives the definition - punAti iti puNyah - He who purifies ispuNyah, which is derived from the root pU - pavane to purify. SrI BhaTTarpoints out that bhagavAn has this nAma because He purifies even theworst of the sinners and makes them fit for extolling Him. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan observes that the nAma "puNyan" for bhagavAn in tamizh isa favorite of the AzhvArs. Among the references he gives are from tirumazhiSaiAzhvAr - "anantan mEl kiDanda em puNNiyA!" (tiruccanda viruttam45), and from tiruma'ngai AzhvAr - "un aDiyEn manam pugunda appulava! puNNiyanE!" (periya tirumozhi 3.5.7). SrI Samkara interprets this nAma to mean that He is a Purifier because thoughtabout Him purifies the person who thinks about Him - smRtimAtreNakalmashANi kshapayati iti puNyah. The dharma cakram writer explainsthat just as the thoughts of indriya-sukham are thoughts that are notconducive to His realization, the thoughts about Him produce the puritythat leads to His realization. Under nAma 925, SrI BhaTTar gives the above as his second interpretationfor this nAma - that by the mere contemplation of His kIrti pertainingto His helping His devotees, we become pure. He gives the example ofbhagavAn's protection of gajendra, and observes that the meditation ofHis kIrti through acts such as this will purify us. This sameinterpretation and example are presented by SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaNfor this nAma under Slokam 98. For the occurrence of this nAma in Slokam 98, SrI Samkara gives the interpretationthat bhagavAn has the nAma puNyah because He enables all to berighteous by His teachings through the Sruti-s and smRti-s - sarveshAmSruti smRti lakshaNayA vAcA puNyam AcashTa iti vA puNyah.

Under the current Slokam, SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN comments that bhagavAnis a Purifier of this world in the sense of eliminating or removing thewicked (such as kamsa). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the nAma starting from the root pU - pavane- to purify, and gives the derivation - pavata iti, pUyate vA anena itipuNyah - pavitrah pApAnaviddhah Subho vA - He who purifies, or One bywhom things are purified is puNyah; or, One who is pure, devoid of anysin, auspicious, etc. He gives the example of bhagavAn in the form ofthe Sun purifying all objects in the universe, in addition to beingpure Himself. In addition to the above derivation and interpretation,both SrI satyadevovAsishTha and SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also give the alternativederivation of the nAma starting from the root puN Subha karmaNi - tobe pious. SrI bhAradvAj gives the derivation as "puNati Subhamkarma Acarati iti puNyah - One Who observes pious activities is puNyah.By the grammatical rule "tatra sAdhuh" (ashTAdyAyI 4.4.98), withthe addition the yat pratyaya to puNa, the term puNyah means "One whois excellent in observing the pious activities", and not just in thesense of being good. BhagavAn sets the example to His devotees onperformingpious acts by performing them Himself. He leads by example. Thus, bhagavAn is puNyah (the Purifier) because a) He purifies even theworst of sinners by making them think of Him; b) He purifies this worldby eliminating the wicked from our midst during His incarnations; c) Histhought is a purifier for those who meditate on Him; d) He purifies everythingin the form of the Sun; e) He guides us to be righteous through theSruti and smRti. Alternatively, He is puNyah (One who excels in observing pious activities)because He excels in the practice of pious activities so that He setsan example for others to follow.

693. puNya-kIrtih He Whose kIrti or praise is also purifying (in addition toHim being the Purifier). Om puNya-kIrtaye namah. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as signifying that His kIrti is purifying whenit is sung by His devotees; in other words, nAma samkIrtanama by Hisdevotees, which involves singing His kIrti, purifies the devotee, and so He iscalled puNya-kIrtih. SrI BhaTTar gives several references thatindicate the purifying nature of His praise. nAma samkIrtanam pumsAm vilAyanam anuttamam | maitreya! aSesha pApAnAm dhAtUnAmiva pAvakah || (vishNu purA.6.8.20) "Maitreya! Just as fire purifies the metals, the unequalled recitation ofthe names of bhagavAn, which have unsurpassed greatness, destroys all sinsof man". avaSenA'pi yan-nAmni kIrtite sarva-pAtakaih | pumAn vimucyate sadyah simha-trataih mRgairiva || (vishNu.PurANam. 6.8.19)

"Those who, even without being aware of it, pronounce the name of bhagavAnare freed from their sins the same way a deer is freed from the attack of thebeasts when they run away on hearing the roar of a lion nearby". dhyAyan kRte yajan ya~jnais-tretAyAm dvApare'rcayan |

yadApnoti tadApnoti kalau samkIrtya keSavam || (vishNuPurANam. 6.2.17) "By the mere mention of the name of bhagavAn, a man in kali yuga attainsthe same fruits that one obtained in the kRta yuga by abstract meditation, inthe tretA by sacrifice, and in the dvApara yuga by adoration". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to ANDAL's tiruppAvai pASuram "mAyanai" vAyinAl pADi manttinAl Sinndikka pOya pizhaiyum pugutaruvAnninRanavum tIyinil tUSAgum (pizhai here refers to our sins or pApam). The dharma cakram writer gives the additional reference to "nalam tarum Sollai nAn kaNDu koNDEn nArAyaNA ennum nAmam". SrI Samkara also gives the interpretation that this nAma signifies that He haskIrti which brings purity to people- puNyam Avahati asya kIrtih nRNAm itipuNya-kIrtih. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri seems to draw a connection betweenthe previous nAma and the current nAma. SrI Samkara interprets theprevious nAma as referring to His being a puNyah or Purifier in the sensethat mere thoughts about Him by the devotee lead to the purification of thedevotee - smRtimAtreNa kalmashANi kshapayati iti puNyah. Inorder to have this smRti of Him, one should first realize His greatness. The current nAma provides this basis, namely His fame, which induces thoughtsabout Him in the devotee, which then leads to the smRti of bhagavAn. Thus,His kIrti has the effect of being a purifier (this nAma), just as His smRti is(the previous nAma). SrI cinmayAnanda explains that whoever glorifies Him becomes holy, and so inthis sense His glory is purifying. 694. an-Amayah a) He Who removes the disease of samsAra. b) He Who is beyond pain or suffering - internal, external, karma-related, etc. om an-AmayAya namah. The root from which this nAma is derived is mI - himsAyAm, to die, to perish. The term Amayah refers to disease or sickness. He Who is beyond disease orsickness is an-Amayah. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that He is called an-Amayah because Heis the adversary for the worst Amayah, namely the disease of samsAra, in Hisdevotees - samsAra mahA-vyAdhi virodhI. samsAra is considered adisease because it is an obstacle to the power of enjoyment of the glory ofbhagavAn. SrI BhaTTar quotes from chAndogyopanishad and indicatesthat those who have realized the true nature of samsAra declare that "theyare full of disease" - "vyAdhibhih paripUrNo'smi (chAn. 4.10.3). nammAzhvAr refers to Him as "vani tIr marundu" (tiruvAi. 7.1.4) -reference from SrI v.v. rAmAnujan. b) SrI samkara gives the interpretation that He is called an-Amayah because Heis free from all ills produced by karma - internal or external. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj gives the derivation - na Amayo rogo yasya iti anAmayahdivya-ma'ngala vigrahah - His divya ma'ngala vigraham is beyond any kind ofdisease or illness. His Nature is of pure unstained divine essence,and He is thus beyond the mental restlessness or physical pangs that constantlyhaunt us because of our karma (SrI cinmayAnanda). The following summary from dharma cakram is educational and informative:

"Disease is whatever causes discomfort to the bodyor mind. The body is sthUla and the mind is sUkshma. When the sthUlabody feels suffering, it impacts the sUkhsma mind, and the reverse is also true. Since jIvan is associated with the body and mind, the pain felt by either isfelt by the jIvan or soul also. BhagavAn is beyond all these, and so He isan-Amayah". -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 74 - mano-javah. manojavas_tIrtha-karo vasuretA vasu-pradah | vasu-prado vAsudevo vasur_vasu-manA havih ||

om om om om om om om om om

manojavAya namah tIrtha-karAya namah vasu-retase namah vasu-pradAya namah vasu-pradAya namah vAsu-devAya namah vasave namah vasu-manase namah havishse namah.

695. mano-javah He Who is swift as thought. Om mano-javase namah. The word javah is derived from the root ju'ng - gatau - to go. The amara koSam commentator observes that the series of words related to javah all indicate movement with speed - etAni sa-vega-gati nAmAni. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the definition - manaso java iva javo yasya itimano-javah - He Who has speed like that of the speed of the mind. a) SrI BhaTTar comments that He is called mano-javah because He is faster than thought itself in implementing all the acts described in previous nAma-s in purifying a devotee. SrI BhaTTar gives supports from the gItA and the vishNu dharma:

kshipram bhavati dharmAtmA SaSvat SAntim nigacchati | kaunteya pratijAnIhi na me bhaktah praNaSyati || (gItA 9.31) "The devotee who is solely dedicated to Me quickly becomes righteous and obtains everlasting peace. Affirm, on my behalf, arujuna, that My devotee never perishes". sapta-janma-kRtam pApam svalpam vA yadi vA bahu | vishNor-Alaya vinyAsa prArambhAdeva naSyati || (vishNu dharma 83.20) "The sins committed in seven births, be they many or a few, are all destroyed the moment a man begins to place his foot in the temple of vishNu". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to gajendra moksham, where bhagavAn was not willing to depend solely on the speed of garuDa, and hurried out without even worrying about His appearance. nammAzhvAr also describes His extreme speed in removing the sins of His devotees: kaDivAr tIya vinaigaL noDiyAm aruLavaikkaN koDiyA aDu puL uyartta vaDivAr madhavanArE (tiruvAi. 1.6.10) Especially because of mahA lakshmi's proximity, it takes Him less than the time it takes us for producing the sound of a noDi (the sound produced by two fingers), to remove all our sins from beginningless time. SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi notes that this nAma signifies that He fulfils His devotees' wishes with the speed of mind. (He can fulfill whatever He decides by His mere samkalpam - samkalpa mAtreNa). SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN comments that He has this nAma because He removes the obstacles of samsAra extremely fast for those who surrender to Him. b) SrI Samkara observes that bhagavAn has the speed like that of the mind in that He is everywhere at the same time - manaso javah, vega iva vego'sya sarva-gatatvAt iti mano-javah. The ISAvAsya Upanishad mantra 4 describes His speed: anejadekam manaso javIyo nainad-devA Apnuvan pUrvam arshat | tad-dhAvato'nyAn atyeti tishThat-tasminn-apo mAtariSvA dadhAti || (ISA. 4) "Although fixed in His abode, God is swifter than the mind and can overcome all others running. ". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri's comments for this nAma can be summarized as follows: Time, place, or things (kAla, deSa, vastu) can obstruct one's speed. But in bhagavAn's case, none of these come as impediments; He is everywhere already (deSa) ; He is not limited by past, present, or future (kAla); He is the Controller of everything, and so nothing can obstruct Him (vastu). SveTASvatara Upanishad (3-19) declares a-pANI pAdo javano grahItA paSyati a-cakshuh sa SRNoti a-karNah | sa vetti vedyam na ca tasya asti vettA tam Ahuh agryam purhsham mahAntam || "Without use of His hands and feet, He moves and grasps; He sees without use of His eyes, hears without need for His ears. He knows whatever is to be known, and of Him there is no knower. They speak of Him as the first, the purusha, the Great". The dharma cakram writer points out that the more we think of Him, the more our mind get these

attributes of being unconstrained by deSa, kAla, and vastu, and the more we become closer to Him. He quotes rAmakRshNa paramahamsa, who says that the more we proceed towards the east, the farther we get away from the west. The more we get closer to Him, the farther away we move from the worldly attachments, and the faster He can grasp us towards Him like a powerful magnet. 696. tIrtha-karah a) He Who is the source of the holy waters. b) He Who makes us cross over the ocean of samsAra. c) He Whose touch of hand is purifying. d) He Who has provided simple steps to access Him through His various incarnations. Om tIrtha-karAya namah. The word tIrtham is derived from the root thRR - plavana taraNayoh - to swim, to cross over. That through which one crosses over or swims is tIrtham. The term tIrtham is used to refer to sources of water that purify a person. The term is also used to refer to the sacred scriptures which purify a person through their learning - taratyanena pApam aj~nAnam iti tIrtham, or making it easier for us to reach Him through His various incarnations (para, vyUha, vibhava, arcA, antaryAmi). The "crossing over" can also refer to crossing over the ocean of samsAra, the crossing over of all sins, etc. nammAzhvAr''s tiruvAimozhi pASuram 7.10.1 captures the full significance of the word "tIrtham": tIrthanukkaRRa pin maRROr SaraN illai enRu eNNi, tIrthanuukE tIrtta manattanan Agi, Sezhum kurugUr SaThakOpan Sonna tIrtha'ngaL AyirattuL ivai pattum vallArgaLai, dEvar vaikal tIrtha'ngaLe enRu pUSittu nalgi uraippar tam dEviyarkkE (tiruvAi.7.10.11) The reference to "tIrthan" in the first line is to perumAL; the "tIrtham" in the 3rd line refers to nammAzhvAr's pASuram-s which are purifying to those who chant them, and are even more purifying than Him ; the reference to tIrtham in the 4th line is to those who have learned the purifying pASuram-s, who are even more pure than the pASurams themselves (SrI V. N. vedAnta deSikan from ARAyirap paDi). Thus, tIrtham here refers to the three levels - perumAL, the sacred AzhvAr's pASurams, and the devotees who chant them. bhUtattAzhvAr also refers to those who sing His praise as "tIrtha-kara-s" - eN tiSaiyum pErtta karam nAngu uDaiyAn pEr Odip pediagAL - tIrtha karar Amin tirindu (iraNDAm tiruvantAdi - 14). - reference from SrI v.v. rAmAnujan. The term karah is used in two ways by the vyAkhyAna kartA-s: The Doer, from the dhAtu kR - karaNe - to do; or to refer to karah - hand. Thus, tIrtha-karah means tIrtham karoti iti tIrtha-karah - He Who creates the tIrtha-s is tirtha-karah (SrI satyadevo vAsishTha), or He Who creates the SAstra-s etc. that purify the person who resorts to them, or He has the divine hands whose touch purify the devotee - tIrthah tArakah karo yasya iti tIrtha karah (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj). a) SrI BhaTTar gives three interpretations: 1) He has this nAma because He is the source of the holy rivers such as the ganges, and the holy lakes such as the pushkara, which purify those that mediate on them or recite their names, just as His nAma purifies them. 2) He is the Originator of yoga, j~nAna, sAmkhya (science, craft and other arts, Vedas, SAstra-s, and music)

- yogo j~nAnam tathA sAmkhyam(mahA bhArata, Anu. 150.141). 3) He, Who is deep like an unreachable ocean, but makes it possible for the devotees to reach Him through a series of incarnations that are like steps to reach Him. In dayA Satakam, svAmi deSikan prostrates to the AcArya paramparA as the steps that make it possible to have access to Him who is otherwise inaccessible like the deep ocean (Slokam 2 - vigAhe tIrtha bahulAm.SitalAm guru-santatim). One is reminded of the sAmyam of AcArya-s with bhagavAn that svAmi deSikan refers to in nyAsa vimSati Slokam 2. I feel that, along the lines of SrI BhaTTar's third interpretation above, bhagavAn is tIrtha-karah also in the sense that He has provided this great AcArya paramparA starting with Him, followed by pirATTi, vishvakesenar, etc., all the way down to our current AcArya in order to enable us to reach Him. b) SrI Samkara uses the meaning "vidyA" for tIrtham, and gives the interpretation - caturdaSa vidyAnAm bAhya-vidyA-samayAnAm ca praNetA pravaktA ca iti tIrtha-karah - He is the Teacher of the fourteen vidyA-s and the auxiliary sciences, and so He is called tIrtha-karah. These include the veda-s and other vidyA-s which He taught to brahma and the deva-s, as well the other sciences that are contradictory to the vedic teachings that He gave to the asura-s to deceive them. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to the 14 or 18 vidyAs or the "ghats of knowledge - kalvit tuRaigaL" - the four veda-s, the six vedA'ngga-s (SikshA, vyAkaraNa, chandas, niruktam, jyotisham, kalpam), the two darSana-s (mImAmsA, nyAaya), dharma SAstra, and purANa-s, and the four additional ones - Ayurveda, dhanurveda, gAndharva, artha SAstra. Among the vidyA divisions that are non-vedic in nature and meant for misleading those who are Asuric are the bauddha, jaina, etc. branches. SrI cinmayAnanda comments that He is tIrtha-karah because He is the most ancient Teacher of vidyA-s or tIrtha-s. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning "hand" for the word karah, and gives the interpretation that He is called tIrtha-karah because He has hands whose mere touch alone can purify anyone or anything - tIrthah tArakah karo yasya iti tIrtha-karah. He gives support from SrImad bhAgavatam where we find that the mere touch of bhagavAn was able to lift gajendra from his a~jnAnam, to which he had been subjected through a previous curse (SApam) from agastya muni.. gajendro bhagavad-sparSAt vimuktah aj~nAna bandhanAt | prApto bhagavato rUpam pItavAsAS-caturbhujah || ( bhAga. 8.4.6) "By the touch of bhagavAn the elephant-king was relieved from the bondage of a~jnAnam, and attained sArUpyam with bhagavAn, wearing the yellow silk garment and endowed with four hands". d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that the nAma signifies that He is the One who makes the Sun and all the other planets move around (tIrtham is used in the sense of crossing over, and karah in the sense of making this possible for the graha-s). 697. vasu-retAh a) The Source of Luster. b) He Who shines like gold in the context of creation. c) He Who is the cause or origin of the universe. Om vasu-retase namah. Starting from this nAma, up to nAma 786, SrI BhaTTar bases his interpretations on the kRshNa incarnation

of bhagavAn. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan has grouped the nAma-s up to 848 under the major title "dushTa nigraha SishTa paripAlanam - the destruction of dushTa-s and the protection of the virtuous". vasu as a noun can mean a class of deities (deva-bhedah), fire (analah), a ray of light (raSmi), a rein or halter (vasU), gem (ratna), wealth (dhana), vishNu, the intelligent or wise (vedhAh), etc. The following is from amara koSam: deva-bhede'nale raSmau vasU ratne dhane vasu | vishNau ca vedhAh strI tvASIr-hitASamsAhidamshTrayoh || (3-4- 288) The word retah is derived from the root rI - sravaNe - to flow. The term retas is used to refer to the semen or seed, cause, etc. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning "luster", related to "raSmi" for the word vasu - vasu iti jyotih paryAyah, and the meaning "cause or source" for the word retas, in his interpretation for the nAma, and thus gives the meaning "He Who is the Source of the Divine Luster". He is also the One from Whom the other objects including the Sun get their light. The nirukti summary for the nAma is vasu Sabdo jyotir-artho retas-tat-kAraNam matam | divya-jyotih kAraNatvAt vasu-retAh prakIrtitah || SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya gives the interpretation for the nAma as "He Who has His divya tejas as the cause for His incarnations". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the example of His kRshNa incarnation, where He entered the garbham of devaki in the form of His jyoti. b) SrI Samkara's interpretation is - vasu suvarNam retAh asya iti vasu-retAh. This has been translated as "He Whose essence is gold" by one translator. SrI Samkara quotes the following from vyAsa in support: devah pUrvam apah sRTvA tAsu vIryam upAsRjat | tad-aNDam abhavat haimam brahmaNah kAraNam param || "The Lord created the waters, and cast His Power into them. It became the golden Egg, the prime source of Brahma". As extract of the description of SrI cinmayAnanda for the above follows: "In the beginning of creation were the primeval waters. In this Ocean the Lord dropped His Essence and it became a Golden Egg from which brahma, the Creator, first arose. Thus, Lord, as the womb of all Creation, is mentioned in the purANa-s as hiraNya-garbha, the Golden Womb". c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the root vas - nivAse - to dwell, and derives the meaning that One in Whom the whole universe resides is vasu. He uses the meaning "root" or "cause" for the term retah, and thus gives the interpretation that vasu-retA refers to One Who is the cause of all things in this universe. The dharma cakram writer gives the analogy that just as gold serves as the base material for all gold ornaments, so also He serves as the base from which all other beings arise. He shines like gold in the context of creation. Just as gold needs to be admixed with a small amount of copper in order for it to be used in making jewels, so also the joining together of His vIryam with the moola-prakRti results in the creation of the universe, with its pa'nca bhUta-s etc. 698, 699. vasu-pradah

a) The Giver of Treasure (in the form of Himself). b) The Giver of Glory or Dignity. c) The Bestower of moksham d) He Who provides the place for dwelling for all beings Om vasu-pradAya namah. This nAma repeats itself as the next nAma also. It is also similar to the nAma 270 in Slokam 29 (vasu-dah). The difference between nAma 270 and the current nAma is the addition of "pra" in pra-dah. This stands for prakarsheNa - in a special way. In general, the vyAkhyAna kartA-s have interpreted nAma 270 as referring to His bestowing any wealth in general; the current and the next nAma are interpreted as referring to His bestowing special wealth such as the wealth similar to that of kubera, Himself, moksham, ever-lasting fame, etc. One could think of nAma 270 as referring to His being the Bestower of any wealth at all (the transient wealth etc.), and nAma-s 698 and 699 as referring to His being the Bestower of ever-lasting wealth and the associated joy. The vyAkhyAna-kartA-s give their interpretations such that redundancy in the meanings is avoided, thus establishing that there is no fault of punar-ukti (redundancy or repetition) in the composition of vyAsa just because the nAma repeats itself - the meaning is different in each of the occurrences. vasu dhanam prakarsheNa dadAti iti vasu-pradah One Who bestows wealth in an eminent or superior way is vasu-pradah. a) SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam for nAma 698 is that He gives the best of wealth to the true seeker, in the form of Himself - thus He gives the parama nidhi - the Treasure, to the true devotee. SrI BhaTTar gives the example of bhagavAn giving Himself as a son to devaki and vasu-deva. For nAma 699, SrI BhaTTar gives the explanation that in the process of offering Himself as their son to devaki and vasudeva, the Lord also gave them the kIrti (vasu) of being His parents, and so He is vasupradah in this sense as well. He also gave kIrti to daSaratha when He was born as rAma - ellai il SIr daSarathan tan maganAit tOnRi (perumAL. 10.11). b) c) For nAma 698, SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He has this nAma because He is the true Giver of wealth even to the likes of kubera. Even though kubera has the fame that he is the giver of wealth, he gets his fame as giver of wealth purely by bhagavAn's Grace. For nAma 699, SrI Samkara interprets the term wealth to specifically refer to the best of wealths, namely moksham, and thus the interpretation here is that He is this nAma because He is the Bestower of the greatest of wealths, which He alone can give. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning "dwelling" for vasu, and gives the interpretation that He has the nAma vasu-pradah because He provides Himself as the place for the existence of all beings vastatyasmin iti vasuh vAsastam pradadAti iti vasu-pradah. In the next occurrence of the nAma, he interprets the nAma as "The Giver of wealth". Thus, the nAma vasu-pradah has been interpreted variously as a) He Who gives Himself to His devotees as the best of treasures that they seek; b) The Bestower of kIrti to His devotees; c) He gives immeasurable wealth to the likes of kubera; d) He provides the dwelling place for all beings at the time of pralaya; e) He is the Bestower of moksham. 700. vAsu-devah -

a) He Who pervades and sports. b) The Son of vasudeva. c) The presiding Deity of the well-known 12-lettered vAsu-deva mantra. d) The Deity Who is adored by His devotees. e) He Who lives in everything and Who keeps them moving around. Om vAsudevAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier asnAma 334 (Slokam 36), and will occur again as nAma 714 (Slokam 76). The meaninggiven for this nAma under Slokam 36 was "He Who pervades and sports". Please refer to the writeup under Slokam 36 for the many references. SrIBhaTTar points out under nAma 334, that this nAma, like the nArAyaNa nAma, is aguhya mantram, and its meaning should be properly learnt from a qualified AcArya. I am sharing what little I understand based on what is written in the differentvyAkhyAna-s. a) For nAma 334, SrI BhaTTar'sinterpretation was that bhagavAn is called vAsu-deva because He is vAsu (One inwhom everything lives like in a mother, and One who envelopes and protectseverything like a bird with its wings), and He is a deva (One Who sports, or hasthis process of pervasion, permeation, creation, protection, destruction, etc.,as a part of His leelA). So He is both a vAsu and a deva, and so He iscalled vAsu-devah. For this nAma in Slokam 36, SrISamkara also derives the meaning based on the combination of the words vAsu anddeva, but he suggests that in addition to His divine play in permeatingeverything and being the dwelling place for everything, His play includes Hiscovering everything with His mAyA (vasati - AcchAdayati - covers, conceals,sheaths, envelops, etc. - vasati, vAsayati, AcchAdayati vA sarvam itivAsuh). For the nAma in Slokam 76, he unequivocally associatesHis play (being a deva) with enveloping the whole universe (vAsu) with His mAyA- jagat AchchAdayati mAyayA iti vAsuh sa eva deva iti vAsu-devah. The term 'mAyA' in the advaita system is interpreted as"illusion", whereas in the viSishTAdvaitic system it refers to thewonderful power of ISvara, whose effects are very real. b) For the current occurrenceof the nAma, both SrI Samkara and SrI BhaTTar gives the explanation that He iscalled vAsu-deva because He is the son of vasudeva (vasudevasya apatyamvAsu-devah). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the support fromSrImad bhAgavatam, where bhagavAn declares that He is called vAsu-deva becauseHe was born as the son of vasu-deva in the yadu kulam: avatIrNo yadukule gRha Anakadundubheh | vadanti vAsu-deveti vasu-deva-sutam hi mAm || (bhAga.10.51.41)

c) Under Slokam 76, SrI BhaTTarexplains the nAma vAsu-deva in terms of the twelve-lettered mantra, namely thatthe nAma vAsu-deva refers to the Deity that presides over this (vAsu-deva)mantra. The same para-vAsu-deva from SrI vaikunTham took incarnation asvyUha vAsudeva in the Milky Ocean (SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for nAma 714),and He also took the incarnation as the son of devaki and vasu-deva in mathurA (SrIBhaTTar's interpretation for nAma 700). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan observes thatit is the same vyUha vAsu-deva that descended from SrI vaikunTham, that alsotook birth as the child of vasu-deva, delighted the hearts of the gopi-s, wasthe para-tattvam for the yogi-s, and at the same time was the death for kamsaand a terror for his other evil-minded associates. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAjincludes an additional interpretation that has not been given by the others Hehas the nAma vAsu-deva because He is adorned by His devotees - vAsyate sevyatebhaktaih iti vAsuh; sa

cAsau deva iti vAsu-devah. The root from which hederives this interpretation is vAs - upasevAyAm - to scent, to make fragrant. e) One of the meanings for theroot "div" (from which the word deva is derived) is "to movearound" - div krIDA vijigIshA vyavahAra dyuti stuti moda mada svapna kAntigatishu. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses this last meaning (gacchati,gamayati) for the word deva, and gives the interpretation for the nAma as"One Who dwells in everything, and makes it possible for everything to movearound". He gives reference to the ISAvAsya Upanishad mantra"ISAvAsyam idam sarvam yad-ki'nca jagatyAm jagat"as support. SrI cinmayAnanda gives theinterpretation that He has this nAma since He lives in every living entity asthe jIva-entity. He supports his interpretation with a reference to thegItA Slokam 18-61: ISvarah sarva bhUtAnAmhRd-deSe'rjuna tishThati | bhrAmayan sarva bhUtAni yantrArUDhAni mAyayA || (gItA18.61) "The Lord, O arujuna,abides in the heart of every being, spinning them round and round, mounted on awheel as it were, by His power". The gItA bhAshyam for thisSlokam by bhagavad rAmAnuja indirectly supports this interpretation by the useof the name vASu-deva for bhagavAn in this context - "ISvarahsarva-niyamana-Seelo vAsu-devah sarva-bhUtAnAm hRd-deSe sakala-pravRtti-nivRttimUla-j~nAnodaye deSe tishThati".

701. vasuh a) The Dweller (in the hearts of His devotees) b) The Best of wealths that is sought after. c) He Who resides in the Milk-Ocean. d)He Who is in the form of the vasu-s. e)He Who lives in everything and in whom everything lives. f)He Who conceals Himself (from those who are not devoted to Him). g)He Who is the final dwelling place for all. Om vasave namah. We encountered this nAma earlier as nAma-s 105 (Slokam 12) and 271 (Slokam 29). The term vasu refers to one who dwells, wealth, one who conceals, etc. (see nAma 697). a) For the first occurrence of this nAma in Slokam 12, SrI BhaTTar comments that bhagavAn is vasuh because He dwells in the hearts of His devotees as He is pleased even with the slightest of devotion. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 8.8.1, where he declares this saulabhyam of perumAL: kaNgaL Sivandu peria vAi..on Sa'ngu gadai vAL AzhiyAn oruvan aDiyEn uLLAnE (The one unique Lord shines as my soul's soul inside me). Sri rAmAnujan's anubhavam is that if someone counts number sequentially starting from one, when they count 26, He will consider that they have finished counting the 24 tattva-s, and the 25th as AtmA, and when they count the number 26, He will consider that this person is thinking of Him as the 26th, and will rush to dwell in this person. If someone casually keeps recalling the names of familiar hills, and somewhere mention the names of tirumalai or tirumAl irum Solai, He will consider this as their recollecting His place, and will rush to their side. Such is His desire to help the

devotee and redeem the jIva. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN quotes bhagavAn's own words - mad-bhaktA yatra gAyanti tatra tishThAmi nArada - "Wherever my devotees invoke My name, I am present there." b) Under Slokam 29, SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that bhagavAn is vasuh because He is the wealth or treasure sought after by great people to the exclusion of all other wealth - "vAsu-devah sarvam" iti prakAreNa garIyasAm svayameva dhanam iti vasuh. SrI rAmAnujan points out that these are the people who consider that "uNNum SORu parugu nIr tinnum veRRilai ellAm kaNNan" (tiruvAi. 76.7.1). The dharma cakram writer points out that just like a child which gets distracted with some toys and forgets its mother, we get distracted with the trivial materialistic wealth often and forget Him; but just as the mother embraces the child when it cries for her, bhagavAn embraces us when we cry for Him instead of for the materialistic pleasures, and realize that He is the wealth of all wealths. c) For the current occurrence of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is in the context of kRshNa incarnation, and he explains the nAma vasuh as referring to His dwelling in the Milk-Ocean, from where He takes His incarnations for our benefit. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following in support: sa lokAnAm hitArthAya kshIrode vasati prabhuh | (mahA bhAra. SabhA. 47.26) - "The great Lord resides in the Milk-Ocean for doing good to the people of the world" esha nArAyaNah SrImAn kshIrArNava niketanah | nAga parya'nkam utsRjya hyAgato mathurAm purIm || (harivamSam 113.62) "This nArAyaNa, Who is always with lakhsmi, resides in the Milk-ocean; He has come to the city of MathurA leaving serpent-couch (AdiSesha). d) e) f) SrI Samkara's interpretation in Slokam 12 is that that nAma signifies that He is the in-dweller in all beings, and all beings dwell in Him, or that He is one of the eight vasu-s Himself (vasUnAm pAvakaScAsmi gItA 10.23); In Slokam 23, SrI Samkara gives several interpretations: He is the Wealth that He gives Himself to His devotees; He is vasuh because He conceals Himself with His mAyA (vas to cover); He is one of the vasu-s in the form of vAyu (vasur-antarikshasat - kaThopanishad 2.2.3 - He is vasu dwelling in the atmosphere. The dharma cakram writer identifies the nAma with fire, which according to him is the most important of the ashTa vasu-s in nature. g) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the explanation that He is the final refuge of all, and this is what is signified by thisnAma. 702. vasu-manAh a) He Who has a Mind which thinks of His devotees as atreasure. b) He Whose mind is always with vasu-deva. c) He Who has a golden mind - pure, without any afflictions. d) He Who has a pure mind (He dwells in every thing without distinction) e) He Who has a mind which is filled with vAtsalyam to His devotees. f) He Who has a mind that leads to His removing the difficulties of Hisdevotees. g) He Who has complete knowledge of the type of body and other needs of allbeings. h) He Whose mind was with bhIshma as he lay in his death-bed of arrows. Om vasu-manase namah. We encountered this nAma earlier as nAma 106. The sequence vasuh andvasu-manAh occurred as nAma-

s 105 and 106, and now we see the two nAma-sconsecutively as nAma-s 701 and 702. a) In Slokam 12, where SrI BhaTTar interpreted the nAma vasuh as "He Whodwells in His devotees' minds" even when they display the slightest ofdevotion, he explained the next nAma - vasu-manAh, as indicating further thatbhagavAn considered these devotees as a treasure which is hard to find (vasuhinterpreted as wealth, and manas interpreted as mind; vasu-manAh - He Whotreasures the devotees in His mind). SrI BhaTTar gave the reference togItA 7.19 - sa mahAtmA su-durlabhah, indicating how the pure devotees are a hardtreasure for Him to find. SrIbaladeva vidyA bhUshaN comments that all that bhagavAn look for is thewealth of pure devotion to Him from His devotees - aki'ncana bhaktadhaneshu mano yasya sa vasumanAh. In his first pASuram of tiruvAimozhi, nammAzhvAr refers to perumAL's tiruvaDi as"tuyar aRu SuDar aDi". The traditional meaning given for thisis: The glorious tiruvaDi that removes the sufferings of His devotees. SrIv.v. rAmAnujan gives this as a support for the current nAma, and comments thatperumAL's tiruvaDi shines brightly when He is relieved of His sorrow on findingHis devotee. SrI B. R. Purushottam Naidu explains this in his work on IDuvyAkhyAnam in tamizh. bhagavad rAmAnuja has given this alternateexplanation for this phrase of nammAzhvAr: It is bhagavAn whose tuyar or sorrow isremoved, and His Divine Feet shine brilliantly, as they get in contact with Hisdear devotees. Such is the importance of the devotees and their happinessto bhagavAn. Bhagavad rAmAnuja's anubhavam is that He suffers when thedevotees suffer, and He feels happy when the devotee feels happy, as describedin SrImad rAmAyaNam, ayodhyA kANDam, 2.42: vyasaneshu manushyANAm bhRSambhavati duhkitah | utsaveshu ca sarveshu piteva paritushyati || SrI rAmAnujan also gives support for this interpretation of SrI BhaTTar fromtiruma'ngai AzhvAr's tiruneDuntANDakam (1) - endai taLir puraiyum tiruvaDi entalai mElavE. SrI periyavAccAn piLLai explains that it is only aftercoming into contact with AzhvAr's head that His tiriuvaDi got their life; untilthat time they were like dried leaf. The point to be noted is thatfor bhagavAn, association with His devotee is the most important treasure, whichHe longs for - hence His nAma as vasu-manAh. b) For the current occurrence of the nAma vasu-manAh, SrI BhaTTar follows up onhis interpretation of the previous nAma (701) - vasuh, which he interpreted as"One Who dwells in the Milk-Ocean ready to take the different incarnationsfor the benefit of mankind". He interprets the currentnAma as indicating that though He was resting in the Milk-Ocean, His manas waswith vasu-deva - vasu-manAh (the term vasu in this nAma referring tovasu-deva), to whom He decided to be born as the son for His kRshNa incarnation. SrI BhaTTar points out that just as the term 'datta' without any otherqualification always refers to deva-datta, and the term 'bhAmA' refers tosatyabhAmA, so also scholars in mhaA-bhAshya have interpreted the name vasu torefer to vasu-deva. Even though He resides in the Milk-ocean, thebirth place of lakshmi, His mind is with vasu-deva, and this is why He choosesto be born as vasu-deva's child. c) d) For this nAma in Slokam 12, SrI Samkara gives the interpretationthat He has the nAma vasu-manAh since He has a manas which is vasu (pure,excellent, superior); His mind is not polluted with desire, aversion,pride, etc. (raga-dveshAdibhih kleSaih madAdibhih up-kleSaiSca yato nakalushitam cittam tatah tan-manah praSastam; praSastam mano yasya sah vasu-manAh). For the current occurrence of this nAma, SrI Samkara gives the interpretationthat He is has a mind which is pure and excellent in the sense that He dwells ineveryone's mind without distinction, and treats everyone equally - a-viSesheNasarveshu vishayeshu vasati iti vasuh, tAdRSam manah asya iti vasu-manAh. The dharma cakram writer explains that while most people are used to think ofonly their own selves and their own welfare, a person who strives to put vedAntainto practice will have the broad mind to think of the welfare of others, andwill see God in everything he encounters. He realizes that bhagavAn is theonly One

who is worthy of worship. He acquires unshakable devotion to Him. This is not easyto attain, and it may take several births to achieve. Meditation on thecurrent nAma, with an understanding of its significance, will help us all movecloser to this objective in life. e) f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses yet other meanings for the word vasu (vas- snehe - to love, and vasapaharaNe - to take away, based on vas -snehac-cheda apaharaNeshu - to love, to cut, to take away). His firstinterpretation is that this nAma signifies bhagavAn's vAtsalyam (vasu snehahvAtsalyam tan manasi yasya iti vasu-manAh). His second interpretation, based on vas - apaharaNa - to takeaway, is that He has this nAma because He has a mind which makes Him take awayor remove the sufferings of His devotees vAsayati apaharati vipadahsva-janAnAm iti vasu; tAdRSam mano yasya iti vasu-manAh). g) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the root man - j~nAne - to know, to think, andgives the interpretation that this nAma signifies that bhagavAn is the Knower ofthe type of body, and the relative requirements of heat, air, water, etc., forthe different kinds of beings, and so He is vasu-manAh - One Who knows thevarious needs, constitution, etc., of all the creatures (yena prakAreNanivasitum arhati, pRthak pRthak SarIra-kRte katham vidhasya aushNyasya, kim vASitasya, kim vA jalasya, kim vA vAyoh AvaSyakatA astiiti sarvam vishNuh jAnAti,tasmAt sa vasu-manAh ukto bhavati). h) SrI baladeva vidyA-bhUshaN specifically takes the reference to "vasu"as a reference to bhIshma, and gives the interpretation for the nAma as "HeWho had bhIshma in His mind". bhIshma is one the ashTavasu'swho was born to ga'ngA devi with santanu. SrI vidyA bhUshaN quotes thefollowing in support: Saratalpo gato bhIshmah Samyanniva hutAsanah | mAm dhyAyati purusha-vyAghra tato me tad-gatam mana || 703. havih a) The Sacrificial Offering. b) He Who is satisfied or pleased. Om havishe namah. The word havih is derived from the root hu - dAnAdanayoh - to offer, to performa sacrifice. The derivation and the different interpretations forthe nAma mahA-havih (nAma 683 - Slokam 72), has been given before. Briefly,the term havis refers to any material offered in a sacrifice in general. a) In the context of kRshNa incarnation, SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam for this nAmais that it signifies that bhagavAn was given away (sacrificed) by devaki andvasudeva to yasodA and nandagopa as soon as He was born. Even though childkRshNa did not have anything to fear from kamsa, He let Himself be given away tonandagopa just for the peace of mind of vasudeva and yasodA. The dharma cakram writer observes that when something is offered in sacrifice byone person to another, both benefit in the process. In the case of LordkRshNa, devaki and vasudeva who gave Him away were released from the atrocity ofkamsa, and yaSodA and nandagopa who received Him derived immense joy by havingHim with them. That is the greatness of sacrifice. However, it isimportant to note that sacrifice should be performed without the feeling ofownership, and without the desire for benefit. In a more general sense, bhagavAn describes Himself as havih in gItA Slokam4.24. This Slokam and its meaning have been explained under nAma 683 (Slokam72)indetail. SrI Samkara gives his interpretation for the current nAma as"He Who is the Oblation in the sacrifice", and gives theabove-referenced gItA

Slokam in support. His explanation is that aBrahman-knower knows that the havis is nothing but Brahman brahma arpaNam yenakaraNena brahma-vit havih agnau arpayati tat brahmaiva iti paSyati. b) A different derivation is given by SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj and SrIbaladeva vidyA bhUshaN. They derive their interpretations based on theroot hu (hinv) - prINane - to please, and thus give the interpretation for thenAma as "He Who is pleased or satisfied" - hUyate prIyate iti havih. Following on his explanation for the nAma vasu-manAh in terms of bhIshma, SrIvidyA bhUshaN observes that He was pleased with bhIshma's meditation as He waslying on the bed of arrows, and bestowed moksham on him, and this is what issignified by the nAma "havih". -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 75. sad-gatih sad-kRtih sattA sad-bhUtih sat-parAyaNam | SUra-seno yadu-SreshThah san-nivAsah su-yAmunah ||

Om Om Om Om Om Om Om Om Om

sad-gataye namah sat-kRtaye namah sattAyai namah sad-bhUtaye namah sat-parAyaNAya namah SUra-senAya namah yadu-SreshThAya namah san-nivAsAya namah su-yAmunAya namah.

704. sad-gatih a) He Who who provides the right path for the good. b) He Who is Himself the right path for the good. c) He Who has superior intellect. d) He Who is attainable by the good. sat refers to that which is good, or those who are good. gatih means path. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation as -satAm sAttvika-sajjanAnAm gatih iti sad-gatih. We have seen the nAma"muktAnAm

paramA gatih" (nAma 12, Slokam 2) earlier, whichconveys that He is the Supreme Goal for all the Released souls. The current nAmadescribes His showing the right path for those who seek the Truth. Theinner significance of the nAma sad-gatih is that He removes the shackles ofsamsAra and liberates His devotees and shows them the right path a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation for the current nAma as "One Whoprovides the right path for the good or virtuous". The"right path" is that which leads to eternal peace and tranquility. SrI BhaTTar gives the example of how even at time of birth of Lord kRshNa, thevirtuous people saw all signs of tranquility all around them. He givessupport from vishNu purANam, 5.3, which elaborately describes the tranquilityand auspicious signs at the time of birth of child kRshNa to devaki. One of theSloka-s from the reference is: santah santosham adhikam praSamam canDa mArutah | prasAdam nimagnA yAtA jAyamAne janArdane || (vishNu purA.5.3.4) "The virtuous experienced new delight, the strong winds subsided, and theriver glided tranquilly, as janArdana was about to be born". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives additional examples. As soon as Lord kRshNa wasborn to devaki, He unfettered vasudeva from the shackles that held him inprison; Even as a child, and He ridded the asura-s from amongst thegopi-s and gopa-s in nandagopa's place. SrI rAmAnujan observes that inaddition to His being sad-gatih (the path for the good), He is also asad-gatih -The Redeemer of the bad also, like SiSupAla. So He is the gati for asat-salso. nammAzhvAr refers to Him in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 7.2.7 as "paRRilArpaRRa ninRAn" - He Who is the Refuge for even those such as kAkAsuran. b) SrI Samkara gives the significance of the nAma as "He Who is the Goal orRefuge for the good". He quotes from taittirIya Upanishad, which saysthat "If a person knows that Brahman exists, then the wise call himgood" - asti brahmeti ced veda, santamenam tato viduh (taitt. 2.6). c) SrI Samkara also gives an additional interpretation using the meaning"intellect" for the term "gati". Thus the nAma canalso mean "He Who has a superior intellect".- sati gatih, buddhihsamutkRshTA asya iti vA sadgatih. d) SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN uses the meaning "accessible orattainable" to the term "gatih", and gives the interpretationthat He is accessible to the good, such as bhIshma - satAm bhIshmAdInAmprApyatvAt sad-gatih. 705. sat-kRtih He of lovable acts, and full of good actions. Om sat-kRtaye namah. a) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the explanation - sati satyA SobhanA ca kRtIracanA yasya iti satkRtih. SrI BhaTTar gives the examples of Hisstealing butter, getting tied to the mortar, etc. SrI v.v. rAmAnujanrefers to bhagavAn's own words about His acts - janma karma ca me divyam (gItA4.9), where He Himself describes His karma-s or acts as divine. The merecontemplation of even His acts will release the person who contemplates on thesefrom the bondage of samsAra. His divine acts do not just stop with the lovable acts in His childhood, butextend to all aspects of creation, protection and destruction. nammAzhvArstarts the description of His leelA-s in 6.4.1, and goes on listing

more andmore of His acts in the next 11 pASuram-s, frequently interspersing with "maRRumpala", indicating that they are countless, even though he is listing someexamples (This list reminds one of Lord kRshNa's description ofjust a few examples of His indescribable vibhUti in chapter 10 of the gItA): - kuravai AicciyarODu kOttadum, kunRam onRu Endiyadum, uravu nIrp poigai nAgam kAindadum maRRum pala (6.4.1); - kEyat tI'nkuzhal UdiRRum nirai mEittadum, keNDai oN kaN vASap pU'nkuzhal pinnai tOLgaL maNandadum maRRum pala.. (6.4.2); - nigar il mallaric ceRRadum, nirai mEittadum, nIL neDum kai Sikara mAkaLiRaTTadum, ivai pOlvanavaum piRavum (6.4.3); - nOva Aicci uralODu Arkka ira'ngiRRum, va'njap peNNaic cAvap pAl uNDadum, Ur SakaDamiDac cADiyadum (6.4.4);

- vENDi dEvar irakka vandu piRandadum, vI'ngu iruL vAi pUNDu anRu annai pulambap pOi a'ngu Or Aikkulam pukkadum, kANDal inRi vaLarndu ka'njanait tu'nja va'njam Seidadum (6.4.5); - igal koL puLLaip piLandadum, imil ERugaL SeRRaduvum, uyar koL SOlaik kurundu oSittadum uTpaDa maRRum pala . (6.4.6); - manap parippODu azhukku mAniDa SAdiyil tAn piRandu tanakku vENDu uruk koNDu tAn tana SIRRattinai muDikkum punat tuzhAi muDi mAlai mArban (6.4.7); - nInilattoDu vAn viyappa niRai perum pOrgaL Seidu vANan Ayiram tOL tuNittadum uTpaDa maRRum pala mANiyAi nilam koNDa mAyan.. (6.4.8); - kalakka Ezh kaDal Ezh malaiyum ulagam Ezhum kazhiyak kaDAi ulagat tEr koDu SenRa mAyamum uTpaDa maRRum pala (6.4.9); - maN miSaip perum bAram nI'nga Or bhArata mA perum pOr paNNiya mAya'ngaL Seidu SEnaiyaip pAzh paDa nURRiTTup pOi viN miSai tan tAmamE puga mEviaya SOdi . (6.4.10); - nAyagan muzhu Ezh ulagukkumAi muzhu Ezh ulagum, tan vAiyagam puga vaittu umizhndu avaiyAi avai allanumAm kESavan(6.4.11). In the issue of dharma cakram 48.8, several of kaNNan's sat-kRti-s aredescribed, and the associated lesson that is intended to be taught to us by eachof these acts is also described. b) SrI cinmayAnanda reminds us that even those acts of His that may seemdestructive (such as His role in the mahA bhArata war, the killing of therAkshasa-s such as rAvaNa etc.), are really for the good of the individual andfor the protection of the world. All His actions are in harmony and aremeant for the establishment of peace. SrI Samkara specifically emphasizesthat His acts are sat-kRti-s because they are meant for protecting theuniverse - sati kRtih, jagad-rakshaNAdi lakshaNA asya yasmAt tena sat-kRtih.

c) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation that He is sat-kRtihbecause at the time of giving up the body by a devotee, if this devotee is notcapable of thinking of bhagavAn as a result of his/her physical condition,bhagavAn takes the responsibility to give this soul moksham. yadi vAtAdi dosheNa mad-bhakto mAm na ca smaret | aham smarAmi mad-bhaktam nayAmiparamAm gatim 706. sattA Existence Incarnate. Om sattAyai namah. a) The word sat refers to existence. Slokam 17.26 of bhagavad gItA explainsthe meaning of the word sat: sad-bhAve sAdhu-bhAve ca sad-ityetat prayujyate | praSaste karmaNi tathA sac-chabdah pArtha yujyate || (gItA 16.26) "The term sat is used in the sense of existence and goodness. And soalso, O arjuna, the word is applied to an auspicious action". The addition of the affix tva or tal (ta or tA) to a word in the sixthcase leads to the sense of "the nature thereof" according to pANinisUtra 5.1.119 (tasya bhAvah tva-talau) - SrI satyadevo vAsishTha. Thus,sattA means "He Who is of the nature of Existence". b) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that He has this nAma signifying that Heis the very existence of the good and the pious and all other things. Thereis indeed nothing that can exist without Him - sattAdi satAm svayamevaiti sattA | na hi tad-vyatirekeNa ki'ncit syAt. SrI BhaTTar givesreference to the gItA in support: yac-cApi sarva-bhUtAnAm bIjam tad-aham-arjuna | na tad-asti vinA yat-syAt mayA bhUtam carAcaram || (gItA 10.39) "I am also that which is the seed of all beings, O arjuna. Nothing thatmoves or is stationary, exists without Me". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tirumazhiSai AzhvArs nAnmugan tiruvantAdi (7) nanRaganAn unai anRi ilEn kaNDAi, nAraNanE! nee ennai anRi ilai WithoutYou we do not exist, and as for You, if we are not the ones You protect, thereis nothing else for You to protect. b) SrI Samkara gives the meaning "Existence" to the nAma -sajAtIya vijAtIya svagata bheda rahitA anubhUtih sattA. One translatorhas given the meaning as "The state which is devoid of differenceas regards its own species, as well as others" (explained furtherin the next para). SrI Samkara quotes the chAndogya Upanishad insupport: ekam eva advitIyam - chAndogya. 6.2.1 - "He remains everthe same, One without a second". ||

The dharma cakram writer elaborates on the above vyAkhyAnam of SrI Samkara.He notes that sajAtIya bhedam is the difference that we see between thedifferent members of a given species - such as the difference betweenone human being and another. Seeing this difference externally takes usaway from realizing the truth that we are all His property, and He isour antaryAmi and we are His Sesha-s. True knowledge consists in seeing the unity and servingeveryone as God's creation. BhagavAn does not have this sajAtIya bhedamthat we are subject to. ThevijAtIya bhedam is the difference that we observe<"Courier New";mso-fareast-font-family:"Courier New"">between the different species, such as the difference between man and animal.It is because of vijAtIya bhedam that a dog attacks the cat, and onespecies attacks another. One who has true knowledge sees all species asequals, and shows respect and love for all without distinction. Again,bhagavAn is beyond this kind of bhedam as well. svagatabhedam is the difference we observe in ourselves - such as the<"Courier New";mso-fareast-fontfamily:"Courier New"">difference in appearance between the different parts of our body. We humansfeel one part of the body is attractive, and another part is not attractive.Seeing these kinds of distinctions only leads us away from realizingthe truth. BhagavAnis beyond all these bheda-s (the root cause of our not realizing Him. The nature of sat is to see unity ineverything at all levels. When this state is reached, it is the purepersonification of sat or good. Such is bhagavAn, and so He is calledsattA. c) BhagavAn is also "Existence Incarnate", "One without asecond", and "Pure Existence" in the sense that He isunchanging, never subject to aging, disease, death, etc., to whicheverything else is subjected. d) SrI vAsishTha gives the interpretation that that the act of protectionor preservation is sattA - sattA hi Atma-dhAraNam. In this sense, onlyHe is sattA, since He alone protects everyone and everything, and noone else is capable of protecting or preserving himself. 707. sad-bhUtih a) The wealth, in all forms, for the good. b) He Who is endowed with rich glories (aiSvaryam) c) He Who alone truly exists. d) He Who manifests Himself in infinite forms. om sad-bhUtaye namah. The term bhUti can refer to wealth, prosperity or existence (amara koSam) - bhavatyanayA SrImAn iti bhUtih; bhavatAt iti vA. a) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation satAm mahAtmanAm bhUtih sampattih iti sad-bhUtih The wealth for the good. SrI BhaTTar points out that for the true devotee, He is the son, friend, messenger, charioteer, and everything else also. SrI aNNan'ngarAcArya svAmi points out that this means that He is their help in all forms. b) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that this nAma means "One Who has Rich Glories". He interprets bhUti as referring to His aiSvaryam - wealth, power, happiness, etc. Alternatively, he gives the interpretation that the nAma refers to "One Who has taken different incarnations", exhibiting in all of them the glories of the Supreme.

c) SrI Samkara gives the meaning bhAsamAnatvam (Effulgence) to the term 'bhUti", and "true existence" to the term sat, and thus gives the interpretation that this nAma of bhagavAn signifies that He alone truly exists, and has the effulgence which is revealed without any other external object. Without Him nothing else exists, and without His Effulgence, nothing else is revealed. One translator has translated SrI Samkara's original vyAkhyAnam as follows: "As the supreme Self is ever-existing as Consciousness and shining, He is unsublated being". d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the root bhU - sattAyAm - to be, to live, for the term bhUti, and thus gives the interpretation suggestive of "His truly existing in different forms" (sati = SASvatI, bhUtih = bhavanam = vividha bhAvena pariNAmah, sad-bhUtih). He gives as an illustration the fact that the tree exists in the seed, and the seed exists in the tree, and both are real and true. Time does not destroy this relationship, and this relationship is eternal. This same relationship extends to everything in the universe. Thus, bhagavAn is both the nimitta kAraNam and the upAdAna kAraNam (tathaiva idam brahma jaDa cetana rUpasya asya viSvasya nimittam kAraNam na tu upAdAna kAraNam, bIjAnAm vapte ca). 708. sat-parAyaNam a) The Support for the good. b) The supreme Goal for the good. c) He Who has the good people as His support. om sat-parAyaNAya namah. SrI BhaTTar gives two alternate versions for this nAma - sat-parAyaNam or sat-parAyaNah. The first version is in neuter gender, and the second one is in masculine gender. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation corresponds to the meaning "BhagavAn is the supreme support for the good" for the first version, and for the second, he gives the interpretation "The good are His supreme support". a) sat-parAyaNam: satAm parama ayanam iti sat-parAyaNam (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj) - "He Who is the Supreme Support for the good". In support of the interpretation of the nAma as "sat-parAyaNam", SrI BhaTTar quotes the mahA-bhArata Slokam 173.24 from droNa parva: kRshNASrayAh kRshNa balAh kRshNa-nAthASca pANDavAh | kRshNah parAyaNam teshAm || "The pANDava-s have kRshNa as their resort, kRshNa as their strength, kRshNa as their savior. In short, kRshNa is their great support". So He is their sat-parAyaNam. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes nammAzhvAr's well-known agagillEn pASuram "pugal onRu illA aDiyEn un aDi-kIzh amarndu pugundEnE" (tiruvAi. 6.10.10), as support for SrI BhaTTar's interpretation. b) Among those who have provided translations for SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam, some have used the version "sat-parAyaNah" and some have used "sat-parAyaNam". SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam is - satAm tattva vidAm param prakRshTam ayanam iti sat-parAyaNam or sat-parAyaNah, depending on the source. Translators have interpreted the nAma as meaning that He is the supreme Goal for the good people. SrI Samkara elaborates that "satAm" here refers to those who are the knowers of Reality, or the true nature of God - satAm - tattva vidAm. c) sat-parAyaNah: If the version "sat-parAyaNah" is used, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation "santoh asya parAyaNam" - The good are His supreme support. For this interpretation, SrI BhaTTar quotes the following

in support: mama prANA hi pANDavAh (mahAbhA. Uttara. 90.33) - "The pANDava-s are verily my lifebreath"; j~nAni tvAtmaiva me matam (gItA 7.8) - "It is My view that the wise men are my inner soul". tirumazhiSai AzhvAr sings this dependence of bhagavAn on His bhakta-s - "nAraNanE! nee ennai anRi ilai! (nAnmugan tiru. 7), which has been referenced before (e.g., under nAma 706 in this Slokam). 709. SUra-senah a) He with a valiant army. b) He Who keeps everything that moves around, bound together and functioning as a unit. Om SUra-senAya namah. a) The word SUra is derived from the root SUra - vikrAntau - to act the hero. The amara koSa vyAkhyAnam for the noun senA is "inena prabhuNA saha vartata iti senA - That which has a powerful, mighty, leader is senA. The term is thus used to refer to an army. The term sUra-senah thus refers to One who has a mighty army. SUrA senA yasya iti SUra-senah (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj). SrI BhaTTar observes that bhagavAn had a great army of yAdava-s and pANDava-s when He relieved the Earth of her burden by eliminating the wicked kaurava-s. SrI Samkara refers to Lord rAma's great and valiant army consisting of the likes of hanuman hanUmat pramukhAh sainikAh SaurySAlino yasyAm senAyAm sA SUrA senA yasya sah SUra-senah. nammAzhvAr sings the praise of the SUra-sena aspect of bhagavAn in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 6.4.10 "Or bhArata mA perum pOr paNNi Senaiyaip pAzh paDa nURRiTTa Sodi nAthan" (reference - SrI v.v. rAmAnujan; SEnai in the context of this pASuram refers to the army of the opponents). b) Alternately, SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the word SUra from the root Su - to go, based on the uNAdi sutra - Su si ci mInAm dIrghASca (sutra 185) - the root is elongated and the rak pratyaya is added, leading to SUra. He derives the word senA from the root si - bandhane - to bind. Thus, he gives the interpretation that this nAma indicates that bhagavAn binds the creatures that have the ability to move around such that they function as a unit with all their parts intact. We are given the ability to walk and to run fast, but we do not ever worry about our legs falling apart as we run. We watch a dancer dance, and in the process our eyes move all around, but there is never a thought in us that the eyes will fall out as they move around constantly. This general rule, trivial as it may seem, is an important part of the whole world functioning when the planets keep moving around, we do not worry about their falling apart, colliding with each other, etc. All this is because of bhagavAn- the SUra-sena, who keeps everything bound in a way that everything functions as a unit and all things co-exist with each other. SrI vAsishTha-s summary of this interpretation is - evameva sakalam carAcara dRSyam adRSyam ca cintayam acintayam ca jagat tasya vishNoh SUrasenatva lakshaNam guNam prakASayan SUra-sena abhidhAnam labhate. The learned people know and understand that bhagavAn has given us the freedom to move around, and at the same time He is the One who keeps us all together as one unit, and has established the rules for all of us to follow. The mahA-purusha-s understand this simple and universal secret that permeates in everything all around, and praise this SUra-sena and thereby all their sins are removed. The dharma cakram writer illustrates the significance of this nAma in terms ofthe mhaA bhArata war. In that war, bhagavAn used the pANDava armyconsisting of the good people such as arjuna, and defeated the wicked kaurava-s.When duryodhana enlisted good people such as bhIshma anddroNa on his side, and when arjuna hesitated to kill them for the sake ofdharma, bhagavAn imparted true knowledge to him and made him fight. It was thuswith bhagavAn's help that arjuna could win the war. We have to constantly fight the Asuric tendencies in us in order to elevate ourselves. For this, we need His

help. It is only by removing our association with the materialistic desires, and by strengthening our connection with bhagavAn, that we can succeed in overcoming the Asuric tendencies in us. This is the lesson that we should take from this nAma. 710. yadu-SreshThah a) The pre-eminent among the yAdava-s. b) He Who is Best among those who strive (for the redemption of the jIva-s). om yadu-SreshThAya namah. a) yadushu SreshThah iti yadu-SreshThah (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj) - He Who is the most praise-worthy among the yadu-s; yadUnAm paradhAnatvAt yadu-SreshThah (SrI Samkara) - The Chief of the yadu-s, the clan to which kRshNa belonged. SrI BhaTTar gives support from vishNu purANa (5.20.37): ayam sa kathyate prAg~jnaih purANArthAvalokibhih | gopAlo yAdavam vamSam magnam-abhyuddharishyati || "This is He who has been foretold by the wise, skilled in the sense of the purANa-s, as gopAla, who shall exalt the depressed yAdava race". The depressed state of yAdava kulam was because of kamsa (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI aNNan'garAcArya refers to yayAti's curse on the yadu kulam as the reason for the depressed state of the yadu clan. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives his interpretation from the root yat - prayatne - to attempt, to strive for, and gives the meaning "One whose nature it is to strive for" (yateh yatuh prayatna-SIlah); SreshThah is explained on the basis of the pANini sUtra "praSasya Srah" (sutra 5.3.60), which states that Sra is substituted for praSasya when followed by the affix "ishThan". The affix ishThan represents the superlative (pANini sutra atiSAyine tamap ishThanau (5.3.54). Thus, SreshThah refers to One who is the most praiseworthy. Thus, the meaning that SrI vAsishTha derives for the nAma yadu-SreshThah is "One who is most praiseworthy among those who strive, or put in effort". He gives the examples of bhagavAn constantly nourishing and sustaining the different life forms in the form of the Sun, and His being the Soul of all the souls in our heart, and constantly driving the function of the heart to sustain life. In fact, even after the body falls, the AtmA continues to live and does not get destroyed. This principle is true of everything else as well (the principle of conservation of energy?). Perhaps the best example of His being "the Best among those who strive - yadu-SreshThah", is in His constantly striving to reach the jIva-s and trying to provide for opportunities for them to re-unite with Him; He does this by providing the veda-s to us for our guidance, by taking the arcA form so that He is always accessible to us, by providing opportunities again and again for us by giving us a body so that we can use it to reach Him, etc. On a different level, His efforts to bring a reconciliation between the pANDava-s and the kaurava-s by repeatedly trying His very best to impart sense in the kaurava-s to avoid the war, is also an example of His being the best among those who strive hard to achieve the best for everyone. As with all other nAma-s, the dharma cakram writer relates the significance of the nAma to our day-to-day life. He points out that in the case of Lord kRshNa, because He was born in the yadu kulam, the clan itself became famous, the place He lived - gokulam - became well-known, the day He was born is widely celebrated, and both His natural parents and His adopted parents became famous. Thus, when one is praiseworthy, everything else associated with this individual also becomes praiseworthy. This is how kRshNa's guNa of yadu-SreshThah is to be meditated. TiruvaLLuvar says: "tOnRin pugazhoDu tOnRuga; ahdu ilAdAr tOnRalin tOnRAmai nanRu". We should use this gift of life in a way that our life is praiseworthy; if we don't live such that our life and everything associated with us is praiseworthy, we would have wasted this precious gift of life. The lesson to take from this nAma is that we should meditate on this quality of

bhagavAn, and live a life that leads to the mental maturity to constantly meditate on Him and elevate ourselves to be SreshTha-s in our worship of Him. 711. san-nivAsah The Abode of the saintly. Om san-nivAsAya namah. The word nivAsah is derived from the root vas - nivAse - to dwell. nivAsarefers to a place of dwelling or a resting place. SrI BhaTTar gives theinterpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma because He is the abode of rest forgreat saints like Sanaka, even though He has assumed the human form and theactions of ordinary human beings. PeriAzhvAr refers to this guNa ofperumAL as "Ayar puttiran allan arum daivam" (peria. tiru. 1.1.7); in tiruvASiriyam (1), nammAzhvAr describes His being worshiped by Sivan, ayan,indiran, etc. "Sivan, ayan, indiran ivar mudal anaittOr daivak kuZhA'ngaLkai tozhak kiDanda tAmarai undit tanip-perum nAyaka" (references from SrIv.v. rAmAnujan). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the support from rAmAyaNa,where tArA praises rAma as "nivAsa vRkshah sAdhUnAm ApannAnAm parA gatih"(kishkindA. 15.19). SrI BhaTTar gives the reference from vishNu purANam,where akrUra describes his anubhavam of sanandana and other seers meditatingintensely on bhagavAn: sanandanAdyair-munibhih siddha yogair-akalmashaih | samcintyamAnam tatrasthaih nAsAgra nysta-locanaih || (vish. PurA. 5.18.42) "(SrI kRshNa in gokulam) is the object of meditation for sanandana andother seers, who remain there, who are flawless, who have attained perfection inyoga and who do the meditation with their eyes fixed at the tip of theirnose". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha takes "sat" to mean "those that arepermanent and unchanging" - (satAm - vinASa rahitAnAm, pravAhato nityAnAm,Apralaya sthAyinAm), and gives the interpretation that this nAma indicates thatHe is the dwelling place of all these jIva-s who are eternal, and who do not gothrough the cycle and birth and dealth (the nitya sUri-s), and He also dwells inthem (loka lokAntarANi nija sattAyAm vAsayantam, teshu vA vasantam iti bhAvah). 712. su-yAmunah a) He with the delightful sport in the yAmuna river. b) He Who is attended by the good yAmuna-s. c) He Who has beautiful collyrium in His eyes. d) He Who lifts up and protects the jIva-s during the time of pralaya. Om su-yAmunAya namah. The term yAmunah has been interpreted by SrI BhaTTar as "One who isassociated with the river yamunA". YAmunam also means a kind ofcollyrium that is applied to the eye; some interpreters have used thismeaning as the basis for their interpretation. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation "He with the delightful sport inthe yAmuna river" - Sobhanam pAvanam manoharam yamunAsambandhi jala-krIDApushpAcaya rAsa-krIDAdi yasya iti su-yAmunah - "He is su-yAmunah because ofall of His activities that are connected with yamuna, activities which are

pure,auspicious and fascinating like water-sport (in its waters), culling of flowers(on its banks), and dance with the gopis (on its sands)". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to "tUya peru nIr yamunait turaivan" (tiruppAvai). Because of association with Lord kRshNa, yamunA is considered sacred even now. nAthamunigaL is said to have looked for any left-over from the divine gopi-s onthe banks of the yamunA river. b) SrI Samkara interprets the term yAmuna to refer to the gopa-s who lived onthe banks of the river yamunA (yamunA sambandhinah yAmunah); sinceLord kRshNa was surrounded by the good yAmuna-s such as devaki, vasudeva, nanda,yasodA, balabhadra, subhadrA, and others, He has this nAma suyAmunah. SrIcinmayAnanda comments that these yAmuna-s were not just keepers of cows, butwere indeed the keepers of the milk of knowledge of the upanishads. Hequotes from nArAyaNIyam in support: tAruNyAramya ramyam parama sukha rasa svAda romA'ncitA'ngaih AvItam nAradAdyaih vilasat upanishad sundarI maNDalaiSca || (nArAyaNIyam daSaka 100.1) "(I behold) the form of a divine boy, attractive with the advent ofadolescence and surrounded by nArada and others with their limbs covered withhairs standing on end at the taste of the Bliss Supreme, and by that bevy ofcharming maidens of the form of shining upanishads". c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning "a type of collyrium"for the term yAmunam, and gives the interpretation "sundaram yAmunam nayanaa'njanam yasya iti su-yAmunah" - He Who has beautiful collyrium decoratingHis eyes. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the root yam - uparame - to lift up, as thebasis for his interpretation. He gives the meaning "yacchati,uparamayati - He who lifts up", to the word yAmunah. Hisinterpretation is thus Sobhano yAmunah su-yAmuno vishNuh One Who lifts up (the souls) in an auspicious way (during the time of pralaya) bhagavAn vishNuh mahApralaye svakIyayA vyavasthayA kArya kAraNa rUpam idam samastam viSvam yacchati, pariNatam uparamayati, Samayati. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 76 bhUtA-vAso vAsu-devah sarvAsu-nilayo'nalah | darpa-hA darpa-do'dRpto dur-dharo'thA'parAjitah ||

om om om om om om om om om

bhUtA-vAsAya namah vAsu-devAya namah sarvAsunilayAya namah analAya namah darpaghnAya namah darpadAya namah dRptAya namah dur-dharAya namah aparAjitAya namah

713. bhUtA-vasah a) He Who is the abode of all creatures. b) He Who dwells in the hearts of His devotees. c) The dwelling place of the Great Elements. Om bhUtA-vAsAaya namah. The word bhUtAh can be derived from the root bhU - bhav - to be; bhavantiiti bhUtAni. The word vAsAh is derived from the root vas - nivAse - todwell. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derivation samantAdvasanti bhUtAni yasmin sah bhUtA-vAso vishNuh - He in Whom all beings everywherelive is bhUtA-vAsah. The nirukti description (a summarization of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam) for thenAma is "yasmin vasanti bhUtAni bhUtA-vAsa sa kathyate" - He in Whomall beings reside is called bhUtA-vAsah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments thatLord kRshNa revealed through several viSva rUpa darSana-s that He is bhUtA-vasah,One in Whom all beings reside. SrI rAmAnujan gives references to the gItA and todivya prabandham in support: paSyAmi devAns-tava deva dehe sarvAns-tathA bhUta viSesha sa'nghAn | brahmaNam Isam kamalAsanastham RshiNSca sarvAn uragAnSca dIptAn || (gItA11.15) "O Lord, I behold in Your body all the gods and all the diverse hosts ofbeings, brahma, Siva, the seers, and the lustrous snakes" - (arjuna's wordsas he has the viSva rUpa darSanam). mattah parataram nAnyat ki'ncidasti dhana'njaya | mayi sarvam idam protam sUtre maNigaNA iva || (gItA 7.7)

"There is nothing higher than Myself, O arjuna. All this is strung onMe, as rows of gems on a thread". nammAzhvAr refers to perumAL as "uyirgaL ellA ulagum uDaiyavan" (tiruvAi.3.2.11); He is the Soul of all souls. periAzhvAr describes yaSOdA's anubhavam of finding all the universesinside His mouth "vaiyam Ezhum kaNDAL piLLai vAyuLE" (periAzhvAr tiru. 1.1.6) SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is: bhUtAni atra abhimukhyena vasanti iti bhUtA-vAsah He in whom all beings, in essence, dwell, is bhUtA-vAsah. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj interprets the nAma as "He who dwells in the devotees who perform His worship andsing His praise" - bhUteshu bhajana parAyaNeshu prANishu AvAso yasya iti bhUtA-vAsah. c) SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the terms bhUtAh as referring to the five GreatElements, and thus interprets the nAma to mean "He Who is the very dwellingplace for the Great Elements". He quotes the following from harivamSa as support: "vasanti tvayi bhUtAni bhUtAvAsas-tato bhavAn" (279.52). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives some examples to illustrate His guNa of bhUtAvAsah in the context of His being the Controller of the five great elements. Even though we human beings are constituted of the five great elements, ourprincipal nature is that of pRthvI, while that of the fish is primarily thenature of water. The fish is created such that its lungs don't fill withwater as it lives in water, whereas the fish cannot live outside the water andon the land. Those that fly in the air are primarily of the nature of vAyu. He says that if the ashes from burnt cowdung are let stand for 50 years, therewill be an insect that originates from this that will be fire-proof, and thushas fire as its principal nature. Thus, bhagavAn has created the differentcreatures in different ways, and associated them with the pa'nca mahA bhUta-s indifferent ways. There is variety also in the way the different creaturesreproduce themselves. Some creatures that live in water lay their eggsoutside water, on land, because of the need for heat in hatching the egg. Even in poison, there are germs that survive and live and thrive. Allthese are illustrations of the fact that He is bhUta AvAsah - One in Whomeverything lives, and One Who lives in everything. SrI vAsishTha refersus to the Rg vedic hymn - vishNoh karmANi paSyata (1.22.19) - Look at vishNu'sworks, whereby He has let His great ways be seen. 714. vAsu-devah. Om vAsu-devAya namah. This nAma has been covered under nAma 700. 715. sarvAsu-nilayah The Abode and support of all souls.

Om sarvAsu-nilayAya namah. The word sarvAsu-nilayah consists of three parts: sarva, asu, andnilayah. asu is derived from the root as - bhuvi - to be(asti); asti iti asuh (SrI vAsishTha). The word asu is also used to refer to life, breath, etc. nilaya means abode, derived from the root lee - SleshaNe - to stick, to lie on. The interpretations for the nAma cover the following: a) BhagavAn is the necessary and essential support for His true devotees who cannot live without Him; b) He is the support and vital life-force for all beings; c) He is the final resting place for all souls at the time of pralaya. The sum total of all this is that all the beings dwell in Him and have Him as their support during their existence in this world and during their laya in Him duringpralaya. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma indicating that He is the indispensable support for His devotees - sarva prANa Alambanam sarvAsunilayah. Alambanam means abode or support. SrI BhaTTar gives support from mahA bhArata, uttara kANDam (28.22), which describes how kRshNa's arrival at hastinApuram was greeted by the people there with the joy that one would feel if the sun appears all of a sudden in a place that has been dark for a long time, or when breeze arrives in a region where there has been no wind for a long time: a-sUryamiva sUryeNa nivAtamiva vAyunA | kRshNena samupetena jahRshe bhAratam puram || SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya's anubhavam is that everyone is so captivated by Him that their very life depends on Him, and this why He is called sarvAsu-nilayah - "ellArum tammiDattilEyE prANanai vaittirukkum paDiyAga manOharamAi iruppavar". SrI Samkara interprets asu as prANa, the life-energy, the indestructible jIva, and explains the meaning of the nAma as "He Who is the abode of all life-energies, being the indestructible jIva Himself" sarva eva asavah prANA jIvAtmake yasmin avyaye nilIyante sa sarvAsu-nilayah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri suggests the explanation for the nAma as "He Who is the final resting place for all jIva-s" - "ellA uyirgaLum oDu'ngum iDam". Just as the indriya-s act as if they are independent of the jIva in the waking state, but lose this so-called independence in the sleeping state, the jIva merges into Him at the time of pralaya, and so He is the nilaya or the final resting place for all the asu-s or jIva-s. 716. an-alah a) He Who is never satisfied that He has done enough for His devotees. b) He Who cannot tolerate the offense committed to His devotees. c) He Who receives the prANa Sakti as His own and functions in the form of the jIvAtmA (SrI Samkara). d) He Who is beyond smell etc. e) He Who is unlimited (in His Glories) (alam - paryApti - end). f) He Who is in the form of Fire. g) One Who has no end (alam - paryApti - end) h) One Who has no opposition (alam - opposition) i) He who rejuvenates His devotees who intensely long for Him (an - prANane ). Om analAya namah.

This nAma occurred as nAma 294 in Slokam 32 earlier. The reader is referred to this earlier write-up as well. The nAma can be looked at as an-alah, a-nalah, or ana-lah. The different interpretations are derived based on the different ways of looking at the word. a) For the occurrence of this nAma in Slokam 32, SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning al - paryApti - to be satisfied, and gives the interpretation to the nAma an-alah as "He Who is not satisfied". In spite of all that He does for His devotees, He feels that He has done nothing to help His devotee - "na ki'ncit kRtam eshAm mayA iti avitRptah". SrI BhaTTar quotes the incident from mahA bhArata, where Lord kRshNa expresses His feeling of being permanently in debt to draupadi who cried out for His help. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan describes that even though He protected her when she cried out for help, and even though in addition He helped the pANDava-s by changing the day into night, violating His promise not to take to arms during the war, etc., still His heart was heavy that He did not do enough to help draupadi. As Lord kRshNa was departing to SrI vaikunTham after the purpose of His incarnation was completed, He said relating to this incident: RNam pravRddhamiva me hRdayAt nApasarpati(udyoga. 28.22) - "(That cry of help uttered by draupadi even from a distance calling me "govinda", even though I was far away in dvArakA) - that cry is never away from My mind, like a debt that has increased over time with interest accumulated on it". nammAzhvAr describes this guNa of bhagavAn in peria tiruvanTAdi 53 - "un aDiyArkku en Seivan enRE irutti nee" - "Your preoccupation is in contemplating on what You can do to help your devotee always". In this aspect, He is like the fire that is never satisfied with anything that is offered to it; it keeps consuming whatever is offered, and grows more eager to consume ever more. For this reason, the term analah also refers to fire. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives another dimension to His not being "satisfied" - He is not satisfied with just the materialistic offering during His worship, but will be satisfied only when it is offered with bhakti or devotion. Bhakti is the only requirement for satisfying Him, and not any accompanying materialistic offerings. b) For the current occurrence of the nAma an-alah, SrI BhaTTar gives the additional interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma because of His guNa of not being able to put up with apacAram to His devotees. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following words of bhagavAn: dvau tu me vadha kAle'smin na kshantavyo katha'ncana | ya~jna vighna-karam hanyAm pANDavAnAm ca dur-hRdam || (bhA. sabhA.68.26) "At the time of destruction, two persons will not at all be forgiven by Me. I will kill Him who obstructs the conduct of this sacrifice, and also him who is ill-disposed to the pANDava-s". SrI rAmAnujan also refers us to the incident where Lord kRshNa refused to take the offering in duryodhana's house because of duryodhana's attitude of hatred towards the pANDava-s. c) Under Slokam 32, one of the interpretations given by SrI Samkara is based on looking at the nAma as ana-lah. ana refers to prANa, and the root lA means "AdAne dAne ca - to take, to obtain". His interpretation is "anAn prANAn Atmatvena lAti iti ana-lah". The translators have generally translated this to mean that He receives the prANa Sakti as His own and functions in the form of the jIvAtmA, and hence this nAma. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the same approach as above, but gives the interpretation that since bhagavAn ultimately takes away the prANa-s to Him, He is called ana-lah.

d) Another alternate interpretation that SrI Samkara gives is based on the root nal - gandhe bandhane ca to smell, to bind. In this interpretation, the nAma is explained as a-nalah; na alam asya sah a-nalah - He Who is beyond smell etc. SrI Samkara gives support from bRhadAraNya upanishad: a-sthUlam anaNvahrAsvam a-dIrgham a-lohitam a-sneham acc-chAyam .. a-mAtram anantaram a-bAhyam (3.8.8.) Brahman is neither big nor small, neither short nor tall, not colored, not wettable, can't be measured, etc. e) For the current occurrence of the nAma analah, SrI Samkara uses the meaning "limit" for alam paryApati, and gives the interpretation that this nAma signifies that bhagavAn is unlimited in His energies and powers - alam paryAptih Sakti sampadAm na asya vidyata iti an-alah. SrI cinmayAnanda quotes the gItA in support: nAnto'smi mama divyAnAm vibhUtInAm paramtapa | (gItA 12.5) "Of My Divine Glories, there is no end". This interpretation of SrI Samkara brings out the parattvam of bhagavAn. Notice that Sri BhaTTar has used this same root (al - paryApti), and given the interpretation that bhagavAn is unlimited in His desire to help His devotees (see a above). Both experiences are true, and are different dimensions of His guNa, the first expounding His parattvam, and the second expounding His vAtsalyam. Further appreciation of this difference in approach between SrI Samkara and SrI BhaTTar can be gleaned from the article that was posted earlier, comparing the two vyAkhyAna-s. f) SrI cinmayAnanda takes the meaning "fire" for "analah", and comments that the nAma can refer to His being in the form of Fire and sustaining our body with the right amount of warmth that is needed for the sustenance of our body. g) h) Using the meaning "paryApti - tRpti vacana" for the term alam, SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets analah as "One Who does not have an end". In addition, using the meaning vAraNa - resistance or opposition for the word "alam", he gives the alternate interpretation "He Who has no one to oppose Him" for the nAma an-alah. He gives several Sruti references: na tvadanyah kavitaro na medhayA dhIro varuNa svadhAvAn (atharva. 5.11.4); na dvitIyo na tRtIyah(atharva. 13.4.16); aham indro na parAjigye (Rg. 10.48.5); sarvam tadindra te vase (Rg. 8.93.4; atahrva. 20.112.1; yajur. 33.35). i) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj takes an approach different from others, and gives his interpretation starting with the root an - prANane - to live, to breathe. Using the uNAdi sUtra "vRshAdibhayaScit - (1.106)" - he derives the word analah, and gives the interpretation "Anayati samujjIvayati tapah: kRSAn sva-janAn svadarSanena iti analah" - He Who rejuvenates His devotees who are engaged in intense tapas on Him, by giving His darSanam to them. 717. darpa-hA The Destroyer of pride. Om darpaghnAya namah. The root from which the word darpa is derived is dRp - harsha mohanayoh - to be glad, to be proud; hA is derived from the root han - to kill. So the nAma darpa-hA means "He Who kills or destroys the pride in those who are afflicted with pride".

SrI BhaTTar gives the above interpretation, and points out instances of bhagavAn destroying the pride of the deva-s and asura-s without destroying the deva-s or asura-s themselves. He gives as examples the instance of BhagavAn lifting up the govardhana mountain against the lashing rains caused by indra, the carrying away of the pArijAta tree from the garden of indra, chopping off the grove-like arms of bANAsura, etc. SrI Samkara explains the nAma as referring to bhagavAn repressing the pride of those that stray from the path of dharma. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that darpam refers to acts that are undertaken when one becomes ecstatic without knowing one's own position (relative to bhagavAn), and starts indulging in actions that are not consistent with dharma. This applies to those who do not follow the path of dharma, as well as to those who follow dharma but momentarily get carried away from the success of their dhArmic acts and start feeling pride in their accomplishments. In these later cases, bhagavAn imparts a lesson to these people by temporarily posing some obstacle. The dharma cakram writer gives a similar explanation, and describes darpa as the act performed by us when we do not realize that the self is different from the body, and falsely feel ownership for our action. BhagavAn creates obstacles as needed under these circumstances, and strives to remove this pride. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha explains the darpa-hA guNa of bhagavAn by alluding to the day-to-day events in our lives. He observes that most jIva-s consider themselves independent of Him and feel proud. Then, off and on when these same jIva-s observe someone else undergo suffering, momentarily their pride gives way to a temporary annihilation of a tiny part of their pride. Thus He performs His act of destroying the pride constantly (darpa-hA), even as He is the Bestower of pride to us (see next nAma). 718. darpa-dah a) The Bestower of pride (to His devotees). b) The Bestower of beauty and attractiveness in everything. om darpa-dAya namah. a) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the explanation - darpo harshah; tam sAttvikebhyo dadAti AtmAnam pradarSya iti darpa-dah. BhagavAn makes His true devotees proud by revealing Himself to them. SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi's anubhavam is that bhagavAn gives full enjoyment of Himself to His true devotees, and makes them feel proud of this experience. tiru ara'ngattu amudanAr expresses this kind of pride arising out of his association with emperumAnAr - "enakku Arum nigar illaiyE"; "Ar enakku inRu nigar, Sollil?", "enakku enna tAzhvu iniyE?". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that bhagavAn gives pride (darpo garvah) to His devotees when they have to face the opponents of dharma. He gives the example of Hanuman bubbling with God-given pride when he was crossing the ocean going in search of sItA pirATTi, when he was addressing rAvaNa, etc. Thus bhagavAn gives the strength in the form of pride to His devotee as necessary. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that bhagavAn creates this pride in His devotees, which helps them in their urge to be the best among the righteous and the virtuous. This pride is their protection from compromising in even a small way in any act. This is positive 'pride' of a higher order, and not the pride referred to in the previous nAma. The dharma cakram writer comments that pride per se is not bad. If it is used negatively then it is bad, but if it is used to advance dharma, then it is good. It is like a knife that can be used to cut a fruit or cut the hand. A pure devotee of vishNu should feel proud about his position, and this will help him advance further

spiritually. The feeling of pride reflecting as "I am following the path of dharma; I am a sesha (servant) of the Lord; I cannot be defeated in my objective of attaining Him" is a positive pride that is good. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the term darpa as referring to attractiveness, beauty etc. (dRp harsha mohanayoh). His anubhavam is that the nAma indicates that anything that is attractive or beautiful around us has this beauty because Lord vishNu, the darpa-dah, has given this attractiveness to this object. In addition to his expertise in samskRt grammar, the veda-s, etc., SrI vAsishTha's expertise also includes Ayurveda, jyotisha etc. For this nAma, he indicates that the aspect of attractiveness arises from the influence of moon and Venus, and they in turn have their powers because of bhagavAn. He gives reference to the Sruti - tadevAgnis- tad-Adityas-tad vAyus-tadu-candramAh (yajur. 32.1). Some interpreters suggest the pATham a-darpa-dah. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the meaning "He Who never allows His devotees to become proud". The LIFCO publication, "SrI vishNu sahasra nAma stotram", which gives the alternatives for the viSishTAdvaita, dvaita, and advaita pATham-s, does not give this alternate version; thus, this version is probably a later addition by the more recent interpreters. 719. a-dRptah a) He Who is not proud Himself.Or dRptah b) He Who is ever happy; c) He Who is proud. Om a-dRptAya namah. SrI BhaTTar gives his vyAkhyAnam using the nAma a-dRptah first, followed by the vyAkhyAnam for the nAma as dRptah as an alternate. SrI Samkara uses dRptah in his vyAkhyAnam. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for a-dRptah is - "One Who does not become proud". In His kRshNa incarnation, even though He did many great things, He never became proud, because of His majestic nature. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following in support: evam vidhAni karmANi kRtvA garuDa-vAhanah | na vismayam upAgamat pArameshThyena tejasA || (mahA. SabhA. 51.28) "Even though He did so many great things like these, He never became proud, because of His majestic nature". He is "nanadagopan kumaran", in other words, One Who is an obedient Son to His father. (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI vAsishTha's anubhavam is that bhagavAn is a-dRptah (One Who is not proud) since He never violates any of His commandments under any circumstances, even though He is the Ultimate Controller of everything. b) dRptah - He Who is ever happy. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation if the nAma is taken as dRptah, is that He is delighted with the love and care given by yasodA and nandagopa - yasodA-nanda-lAlana dRptah. He is "yasOdai iLam Si'ngam" (SrI v.v.rAmAnujan). SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that He has the nAma dRptah because He is ever blissful/satisfied, and is immersed in His true nature which is Pure Bliss - svAtmAmRta rasAsvadanAt

nitya-pramudito dRptah. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj interprets the nAma as "nityam harsha mayatvAt dRptah", and "garva rahitatvAt a-dRptah" - "He is dRptah because of His eternal Blissful nature", and "He is a-dRptah because He is devoid of pride". c) dRptah - He Who is proud. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri follows this line, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is proud as the Fighter for dharma. SrI vAsishTha: He is dRptah - dRpyati iti dRptah - One Who causes us to wonder as to who created all these worlds etc, (dRp harsha mohanayoh). This is what causes the wise to seek the Ultimate Cause of everything, and thus releases them from sorrow. This dRptah-adRptah combination is analogous to His nAma-s vi-Sokah and Soka-nASanah, tadejati tan-naijati (ISAvAsya upanishad), etc. 720. dur-dharah a) He Who is difficult to control (as child kRshNa). b) He Who cannot be constrained by the evil-minded (duryodhana). c) He Who is difficult to be held in concentration (except by those of trained mind). Om dur-dharAya namah. The word dharah is derived from the root dhR - dhAraNe - to hold, to bear, to support; The word duhkhena is interpreted in the sense of "with great difficulty or trouble". Thus, the meaning of the nAma dur-dharah is "One Who can be held in one's mind only with great difficulty", or "One Who is difficult to control and be held down physically (as child kRshNa)". SrI BhaTTar uses the latter meaning and interprets the nAma in terms of kRshNa's childhood leelA-s. The other vyAkhyAna-kartA-s use the former meaning to illustrate the difficulty of meditating on Him and realizing Him except by those with trained minds. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is - "bAla leelAdiprasa'ngeshu matta-mAta'ngatvAt tAbhyAm dur-dharah durvAra-ca'ncala ceshTitah" He (Child kRshNa), in His sportive activities in His childhood, was uncontrollable by yasodA and nandagopa, like an elephant in ruts. SrI BhaTTar quotes the support from vishNu purANam (5.6.15): yadi Saknoshi gaccha tvam ati-ca'ncala-ceshTita - "O Thou of naughty acts! Now run away if Thou canst" (yasodA's words to kRshNa after He was tied to a mortar). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives support from divya prabandham: "kaDainda naR-pAlum tayirum nee piRandaduvE mudalAgap peRRaRiyEn empirAnE!", veNNaik kuDattai uruTTi iLam piLLai kiLLi ezhuppi kaNNaip puraTTi vizhittu kazhagaNDu Seiyum pirAnE!", "kanRinai vAlOlai kaTTi kanigaL udira eRindu, pin toDarndu ODi Or pAmbaip piDittuk koNDATTinAi pOlum nin tiRattEn allEn nambi!" (all from periAzhvAr's neerATTam). b) In another sense, the nAma can be interpreted to mean that bhagavAn cannot be restrained by the evilminded people under any circumstance. SrI BhaTTar gives the following supports: imam hi puNDarIkAksham jidhRkshanti alpa-medhasah | paTenAgnim prajvalitam yathA bAlo yathA'balAh || (bhAra.udyoga. 129.16) "These men of little knowledge want to seize and bind Him just as a weak boy or girl think of keeping under control the blazing fire with a piece of cloth". dur-grahah pANinA vAyuh duh-sparSah pANinA SaSau | dur-dharA pRthivI mUrdhnA dur-grahah keSavo balAt || (bhAra. Vana.309.28)

"The wind cannot be caught by hand, nor can the moon be touched by the hand, nor the Earth be supported by the head of a man; so also, keSava cannot be caught by force". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to kRshNa showing His viSva rUpam like an uncontrollable elephant under rut when duryodhana tried to bind kRshNa in his court. c) A third interpretation for the nAma is that bhagavAn is beyond the grasp of anyone except through intense concentration and meditation extending over several births, and in this sense also He is durgrahah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri indicates that dhAraNa is an a'nga of yoga that is between dhyAna and samAdhi, and is attained only after practicing dhyAna over several births. SrI Samkara gives this interpretation, and quotes the gItA in support: kleSo'dhika-taras-teshAm avyaktAsakta-cetasAm | avyaktA hi gatir-duhkham dhavadbhir-avApyate || (gItA 12.5) "Greater is their trouble whose minds are set on the Unmanifest; for, the path of the Unmanifest is very hard for the embodied to tread". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derivation "duhkhena dhartum Sakhyo dur-dharah" - One Who can be realized only with great difficulty. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - duhkhena AyAsena dhriyate hRdaye a-samAhita-mAnasaih iti dur-dharah - He Who can be held only with great difficulty by those who do not have a collected and composed mind. atha Sabdam following dur-dharah: When atha Sabdam occurs in the middle of a sentence, it usually has the context of a ma'ngaLa vAkyam atheti grantha madhye ma'ngalam (SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN). Apte in his samskRt dictionary indicates that the word "atha" is considered to be indicative of auspiciousness, since this word, along with the praNava, came out of the throat of brahma as the first words: OmkAraS-ca atha-SabdaS-ca dvAvetau brahmaNah purA | kaNTham bhitvA viniryAtau tena mA'ngaLikAvubhau || 721. a-parAjitah The Invincible. Om a-parAjitAya namah. This nAma will re-occur in Slokam 92 (nAma 866). Please refer to nAma 866 for additional anubhavam-s. The root from which this nAma is derived is ji - jaye - to conquer. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the explanation - na parAjitah kadApi kenApi iti a-parajitah - He Who cannot be conquered by anyone and through any means is a-parAjitah. SrI BhaTTar quotes several examples where the deva-s have declared over and over again that bhagavAn cannot be vanquished by anyone. ekam hanishyasi ripum garjantam tam mahAmRdhe | na tu tam prArthayasyekam rakshyate sa mahAtmanA ||

yam Ahur-veda-vidusho vArAham a-jitam harim | nArAyaNam a-cintyam ca tena kRshNena rakshyate || (bhA. udyo.129.40) indra tells karNa: "In the great fight, I give you the power to kill one thundering warrior, but this cannot be the one you wish to kill (arjuna), since he is protected by the Great Lord (kRshNa). KRshNa is none other than the Invincible Hari, Who had assumed the form of the Wild Boar, and Who is the Incomparable nArAyaNa, as declared by the vedic scholars". The same message is given to jayadratha by rudra: a-jayyAnScApi a-vadhyAnSca vArayishyasi tAn yudhi | Rte arjunam mahA-bAhum devairapi durAsadam | yam Ahuh amitam devam Sa'nkha-cakra-gadA-dharam | pradhAnah so'stra-vidushAm tena kRshNena rakshyate || (bhA. vana.260.75) "In the fight you can ward off the attacks of all invincible and indestructible warriors except the long-armed arjuna who is unassailable even to the gods, since he is protected by kRshNa who is the Unknowable Deity Who bears the conch, discus and mace as arms". BhIshma, droNa, etc., declare that they could have annihilated the pANDava-s without a trace if only vishNu had not been their Protector, and that just as certainly as truth rests with a brAhmin, humility is certain in the pious, and wealth is sure in the skillful, so also victory is certain for nArAyaNa: dhruvam vai brAhmaNe satyam dhruvA sAdhushu sannatih | SrIr-dhruvA cApi daksheshu dhruvo nArAyaNe jayah || We also have the vishNu sahasranAma phala-Sruti Slokam which we will encounter later: yatra yogeSvarah kRshNo yatra pArtho dhanur-dharah | tatra SrIr-vijayo bhUtir-dhruvA nItir-matir-mama || (gItA 18.78) "Where kRshNa, the Lord of the yoga-s is, and where pArtha, the bow-armed arjuna is, there is prosperity, there is victory, there is wealth, and there is firm justice - this is my conclusion". SrI BhaTTar quotes from the Ayurveda caraka samhitA, where again the invincibility of bhagavAn is conveyed: yathA'ham nAbhijAnAmi vAsudeve parAjayam | mAtuSca pANigrahaNam samudrasya ca SoshaNam | etena satya-vAkyena sicyatAm agado hyayam || "On the veracity of the following statements, may this medicine be pounded and be effective: "There is no defeat for vAsudeva"; "I have not witnessed the marriage of my mother"; "the ocean will never become completely dry". (These are all absolute true statements)". In vaitaraNa, the following is used to invoke the efficacy of the poison-removing mantra: ratnAkara iva akshobhyo himavAniva ca acalah |

jAtavedA iva adhRshyo nArAyaNa iva ajayah || "Let this poison-removing mantra be effective just as the ocean is imperturbable, himAvan is unshakable, fire is unapproachable, and nArAyaNa is unconquerable". SrI BhaTTar also gives references to SrImad rAmAyaNam and mahAbhAratam: a-jayyah SASvato dhruvah (yuddha. 114.15); a-jitah khaDga-dhRk (yuddha. 120.14); yatah kRshNah tato jayah (bhA. udyoga. 6.79); etc. - "He is Inivincible, eternal and steady"; "He is unconquered, and is the Wielder of the Sword", "Where kRshNa is, there victory is certain". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to divya prabandham in support of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam: "paRpanAbhan uyarvuRa uyarum perum tiRalOn" (tiruVai. 2.7.11); anRu aivarai velvitta mAyap pOrt tErp pAganAr (tiruvAi. 4.6.1). b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is a-parAjitah since internally, desire and the rest cannot conquer Him, and externally, demons and others cannot conquer Him. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also derives the interpretation for the nAma starting from the word para meaning Supreme - para eva kaScin-nAsti "na dvitIyo na tRtIyah" iti atharva vacanAt, tasmAt parAjitvasya a-sambhavAt bhagavatah aparAjita iti nAmnA samkIrtanam upapadyate - Since there is no one who is para (Supreme) except Him, there is no possibility of His being vanquished by anyone else, and so He is calledaparAjitah. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 77-viSva-mUrtih. viSva-mUrtir_mahA-mUrtir_dIpta-mUrtir_a-mUrtimAn aneka-mUrtir-a-vyaktah Sata-mUrtiS-SatAnanah || |

om viSva-mUrtaye namah. Om mahA-mUrtaye namah. Om dIpta-mUrtaye namah. Om a-mUrti-mate namah. Om aneka-mUrtaye namah.

Om a-vyaktAya namah. Om Sata-mUrtaye namah Om SatAnanAya namah. 722. viSva-mUrtih a) He Who has the Universe as His body. b) He Who has a beautiful Form that finds entry into the mind, eyes, etc., of His devotees. c) He Who has mAyA Sakti in the form of the Universe. d) He Who has a Form that can induce mAyA in everything. Om viSva-mUrtaye namah. a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as indicating that bhagavAn has the whole Universe as His body. He is the Inner Soul who resides in the hearts of all beings - "ahm AtmA guDAkeSa! Sarva-bhUtAtaya-sthitah" (gItA 10.19). SrI BhaTTar points out that the reason why the strong ones always do not always win in conflicts with the weak is because bhagavAn is sitting in the hearts of the weak also, ensuring that dharma is preserved at all times and under all conditions. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan observes that this is why the kauravas, with a might army and with the support of the likes of bhIshma and droNa, could not defeat the pANDava-s. nammAzhvAr sings this "viSva mUrti" form of bhagavAn in tiruvAimozhi 6.9.7: ulagil tiriyum karuma gadiyAi ulagamAi ulagukkE Or uyirumAnAi... "You are the karma-s; You are the worlds in which they are performed; You are the Soul of all beings;." . SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is "viSvam mUrtih asya sarvAtmakatvAt iti viSva-mUrtih" - He Who has the whole universe as His body or form, since He is soul of all. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri identifies viSva mUrti with "viSva rUpam" that bhagavAn revealed in duryodhana's palace and other instances. He also gives references to the Sruti - "viSvAtmAnam parAyaNam" ( tait. AraN. 10.13), "Urdhvaretam virUpAksham viSvarUpAya vai namo namah" (tiat. AraN. 10.14). The dharma cakram writer comments that in order to appreciate the significance of this viSva rUpam of bhagavAn, first one should develop the mental maturity required for that. In the case of arjuna, he asked Lord kRshNa to show him the viSva rUpam, but when bhagavAn showed the viSva rUpam to him, he was completely bewildered and confused. This nAma signifies to us the need for developing our mind so that we can comprehend the viSva rUpam aspect of bhagavAn. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning of the root viS - to enter, and gives the interpretation viSati mano nayanAni satAm iti viSvA; tADRSI kamanIyA mUrtih yasya iti viSva-mUrtih - He Who has such an attractive Form that It finds entry into the minds, eyes, etc., of the good people. c) d) In addition to the meaning "rUpam" or "Form" for the word mUrtih, SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the additional meaning "mAyArUpA mohikA Saktih" for "mUrti" from the root murcchA - moha samuchrAyayoh to faint, to become senseless, to grow, to prevail, to be a match for. Thus he gives the following interpretations to the nAma viSva-mUrtih - "viSvameva mUrtih AkAro yasya sah viSva-mUrtih", viSvameva mAyA = vimohikA Sakti yasya sa viSva mUrtih"; "vISvasya mohikA Saktih yasya sa viSva-mUrtih", which can be approximately translated as: "He Who has the Form of the Universe", "He Who is the mAyA Sakti in the form of the Universe", or "He Who can bind the Universe with mAyA". Even though every single thing in this universe is but a clear and vivid expression of bhagavAn's Sakti, most of us do not recognize any of that, and we look at our own form and conclude and feel proud that we

are in sole control of that. All this is the result of bhagavAn's mAyA or leelA. The common dictionaries do not give this later meaning for the term "mUrti" (namely, mAyArUpA mohikA Saktih), but Prof. A. A. Ramanathan has included this interpretation in his collection of amara koSa vyAkhyAna-s - mUrchyata iti mUrtih. e) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN links his interpretation for the nAma "viSva mUrtih" to the previous nAma aparAjitah. His anubhavam is that bhagavAn is a-parAjitah or Unconquerable because He resides in and controls all the bodies of all the deva-s, gandharva-s, mAnava-s etc. - deva gandharva mAnavAdi sarva SarIrah. 723. mahA-mUrtih a) He of Immense form. b) He Who is immensely worthy of worship. Om mahA-mUrtaye namah. a) SrI BhaTTar explains that His body is immense because it is the resort foreverything in the entire Universe. He gives reference from the gItAas support: ihaikastham jagat kRtsnam paSyAdya sa-carAcaram | mama dehe guDAkeSa! yacchAnyat drashTum icchati || (gItA 11.7) "guDAkeSa! See now the whole Universe with all the things moving andnon-moving, in one corner of My body, and you may also see (in My body) anythingelse you wish to see (because everything is part of My body)". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to gItA 11.13, which describes arjuna's seeingthe whole Universe in His body: tatraikastham jagat-kRtsnam pravibhakta-manekadhA | apaSyat deva-devasya SarIre pANDAvas-tathA || (gItA11.13) "There (in that form) arjuna beheld the whole Universe, with its manifolddivisions gathered together in one single spot within the body of (Lord kRshNa)the God of gods". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruma'ngai AzhvAr's peria tirumozhi,where AzhvAr describes perumAL's mahA mUrti form - aLattarkku ariyAi - beyondmeasure. If this whole Universe is but a tiny part of His body, one canonly try to imagine His true mahA mUrti form. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhArdvAj interprets the word mahA as "pUjanIya",or worthy worship, instead of "big" in size. His interpretationis - mahatI pUjanIyA mUrtih AkRtih yasya iti mahA-mUrtih. The dharma cakram writer comments that the mahA mUrti form of bhagavAnillustrates a few points: a) It illustrates unity in diversity. Eventhough each embodied soul has its body, all are ultimately dependent on Him, andare part of His body. b) BhagavAn's body includes sRshTi (creation),sthiti (existence), as well as samhAram (destruction). In order forone life to live, another life is destroyed. In order to realize Him,sAdhanA is required, and for this a body is required. All these functionsare happening in Him because these are essential for the jIva-s to ultimatelyevolve towards Him and realize Him. The embodied souls do not realize Himbecause of the screen they have created between Him and them through theirkarma-s. When they refine their minds through several births and diverttheir minds towards Him, He will bless them

with His anugraham, and they willsee His mahA mUrti form and beyond. 724. dIpta-mUrtih He with a shining form. Om dIpta-mUrtaye namah. dIptA a-prAkRta tejomayI mUrtih AkArah yasya iti dIpta-mUrtih He Who has a form which shines exceptionally. SrI BhaTTar observes thatanything in this Universe which shines is only because it gets its shine fromHim. He quotes the gItA Slokam 10.41 in support: yad-yad vibhUtimat sattvam SrImad-Urjitameva ca | tat tadevAvagaccha tvam mama tejo'mSa sambhavam || "Whatever being is possessed of power, or of splendor, or of energy, knowthat as coming from a fragment of My power". SrirAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to kaThopanishad - tameva bhAntam anubhAtisarvam (2.2.15) - While shining by Itself, It also illuminates everything else. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to divya prabandham in support: nandAda kozhum SuDarE! e'ngaL nambI (peria tirumozhi 1.10.9); oLi maNi vaNNan (tiruvAimozhi3.4.7) - describing His dIpta mUrti character or guNa. SrI Samkara's vyAkhyAnam is that He is called dIpta-mUrtih because He is theincarnation of Wisdom (dIptA j~nAna mayI mUrtih yasya iti dIpta-mUrtih), orbecause He assumes the radiant form at His own will (svecchayA gRhItA tejasImUrtih asya iti vA dIpta-mUrtih). SrI cinmayAnanda gives reference to gItA11.12, where sa'njaya describes the splendor of Lord kRshNa to dhRtarAshTra -divi sUrya-sahasrasya bhavedyugapadutthitA - If a thousand Suns were to blazesimultaneously in the sky, the splendor of this is only a fraction of thesplendor of that Mighty Being. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the term dIpta not only in the sense ofresplendence, but also in the sense of "explicit", and not hidden. Thus he comments that unlike thehumans who sometimes tend to hide what they do from others, bhagavAn does nothave a need to hide anything from anyone. He gives the example of a womanwho is to deliver a baby, the signs of which are explicit right up to the timeof the baby's delivery. The dharma cakram writer distinguishes between two types enlightenment: theenlightenment of the objects externally through the sunlight, and theenlightenment of the mind through knowledge. BhagavAn enlightenseverything externally in the form of the Sun, and He enlightens us internallythrough our minds. The bad acts in the external world invariably takeplace when the Sun is out, and when it is dark. It is the external lightof the Sun that keeps crime away. Similarly, the internal light is neededfor keeping the mind clean, and keeping negative thoughts away. ThegAyatrI mantra is one way that bhagavAn has provided for inducing andenlightening the mind. The significance of this nAma is to realize thatbhagavAn controls everything in this world both externally and internally bybeing the antaryAmi of everything, and cultivating our mind to seek Him whoenlightens our minds. 725. a-mUrtimAn a) He Who has even the subtle and formless things as His possessions. b) He Who Forms that are not the result of karma. c) He Who has a disposition that is not hard, inflexible, etc. d) He Who has Forms that are indescribable, and not fixed.

e) He Who takes whatever Forms He pleases as His incarnations, and thus One Om a-mUrti-mate namah.

Who has no fixed forms.

a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as "He Who owns even the forms which are a-mUrti's", such as earth, fire, water, wind, etc. He gives several references in support: bhUmir-Apo'nalo vAyuh kham mano buddhireva ca | ahamkAra itIyam me bhinnA prakRtir-ashTadhA || (gItA 7.4) "Earth, water, fire, air, ether, manas, buddhi, and ego-sense - thus My PrakRti is divided eightfold". yasya avyaktam SarIram - He Whose body the Unmanifested prakRti is- subAlopanishad 7. yasya AtmA SarIram - He Whose body the individual soul is - Satapata brAh. 14.6.30). The pANini sutra 5.2.94 says that the affix matup comes after a word in first case in the sense of "whose it is" - tat asya asti asmin iti matup. Thus, SrI BhaTTar points out that the interpretation should be "One Who has as His possession the a-mUrti objects", and not as "He Who does not have a specific murti or form". The latter interpretation will take away the significance and purpose of the specific use of the matup affix in this case. Thus, according to SrI BhaTTar, the nAma a-mUrtimAn should not be taken to signify the negation of a form for BhagavAn. In addition to the matup violation, such an interpretation will be contrary to the earlier and later nAma-s, such as viSva mUrtih, mahA mUrtih, dIpta mUrtih, aneka mUrtih, etc. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi, where AzhvAr refers to emperumAn as aru - meaning One He is formless, as well as of such complex forms that He cannot be understood: - puRa aNDattu alagil polinda tiSai pattAua aruvEyO (tiruvAi. 6.9.7) - You are the (Formless) soul of the countless mukta jIva-s that are in all the directions of SrIvaikhunTham - tollai nan nUlil Sonna uruvum aruvum nee (tiruvAi. 7.8.10) - You are the Only One with a beautiful, enjoyable Form, and you are the also the One who is the abstract, invisible, soul of all things in the world! - OnRalA uruvAi aruvAya nin mAya'ngaL (tiruvAi. 5.10.6)- (I wonder) at Your wonders - You who has innumerable Forms, as well as One who is the (Formless) soul of all beings. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives support from the Upanishads expressing that bhagavAn has as His Form the unmanifested objects as well as the manifested ones: divyo hyamUrtah (muNDako. 2.2); dve vA va brahmaNo rUpe mUrtam ca a-mUrtam ca (bRhadA. 3.1). b) SrI Samkara interprets the nAma as signifying that He has no form brought on by karma - karma nibandhanA mUrtih asya na vidyata iti a-mUrtimAn. c) As an extension of the meaning "that which has a form, shape, etc.", the term mUrti also stands for "One who is hard, stubborn, etc.) - mUrtih kAThinyam" - amara koSa. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses this meaning for the word mUrti, and gives the interpretation that because bhagavAn has a disposition that is not hard, inflexible etc., (krUra, kaThora), He has the nAma a-mUrtimAn. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that because bhagavAn has forms which are indescribable, He is not of a fixedform and therefore, He is called a-mUrtimAn. SrI cinmayAnanda gives a

similar explanation - The limited alone has a form, but He being Unlimited, like "Space", has no limited form. e) The dharma cakram writer comments that bhagavAn takes the forms that He desires when He takes His incarnations, but He is not constrained in any way by that form. This is like the lotus leaf that remains in water but is not wetted by the water, or the fish that lives in mud but is not soiled by the mud. He takes His forms just for the protection of the good and the destruction of the bad. 726.aneka-mUrtih He of manyforms. Om aneka-mUrtayenamah. SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj gives the derviation anekA bahavo mUrtayah AkArAh svecchA parigRhItA yasya iti aneka-mUrtih He Who can assume many different forms as He desires at will is aneka-mUrtih. SrIBhaTTar gives the example of Lord kRshNa assuming 16,100 forms in order to bealways in the company of His 16,100 Queens. He gives the following reference from vishNu purANam in support: shoDaSa strI sahasrANi Satamekam tatodhikam | tAvanti cakre rUpANi bhagavAn devakI-sutah || (vishpurA. 5.31.18) Inorder to be always in the company of His 16,100 Queens, Lord SrI kRshNa, the Sonof devaki, took as many forms. SrIv.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvArs tiruvAimozhi: pErumpala palavE, pala palavE Sodi vaDivu (2.5.6) He has manifold variety in all aspects, such as in names, some relating tovalor, some related to qualities; manifold forms of divine effulgence, etc. SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha gives the support from Sruti ekam sad viprA bahudhA vadantyagnim yamam mAtariSvAnam Ahuh (Rg.1.164.46). SrI Samkarainterprets the nAma as a reference to bhagavAn taking different incarnations forthe protection of the world. 727. a-vyaktah He Who is not manifest; He Who cannot be easily realized. Om a-vyaktAya namah. vyaktam means "manifest". vyaktam is anything that can beperceived through the sense-organs. Since bhagavAn is beyond the senseorgans, He is a-vyaktah. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is called a-vyaktah becausein His human incarnations such as the kRshNa incarnation, His true nature is notmanifest to everyone. SrI BhaTTar gives the support for his interpretationfrom the gItA:

nAham prkASah sarvasya yoga mAyA samAvRtah | mUDho'yam nAbhijAnAti loko mAm ajam avyayam || (gItA7.25) "Veiled by My mAyA, I am not manifest to all. The deluded world doesnot recognize Me as the unborn and immutable." nAham vedair na tapasA na dAnena na ca ijyayA | Sakya evam vidho dRashTum dRshTavAnasi mAm yathA || (gItA11.53) "Not by the veda-s, nor by austerities, nor by gifts, nor by sacrifice, canI be seen in such a form as you have see Me" (kRshNa-s words to arjuna). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives references to the Sruti in support of His a-vyaktaguNa: na sandRSe tishThati rUpamasya na cakshushA paSyati kaScanainam (SvetA. 4.20) - His form does not exist within the range of vision; no one seesthis One with the eye. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha quotes support fromthe atharva veda and from SvetAsvatara upanishad: anti santi na paSyati anti santam na jahAti | devasya paSya kAvyam na mamAra na jIryati || (atharva.10.8.32)

which conveys the idea that even thou bhagavAn is closeby and never far away, Heis not seen, and He neither ages nor decays - such is His wonder. eko devah sarva bhUteshu gUDhah (Sve. 6.11) - He is One Deity, but Heremains hidden in all beings. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives support from the prabandham: "yavarkkumcindaikkum gocaram allan" (tiruvAi. 1.9.6) - He is beyond the grasp ofanyone through mere logical analysis; "yArurmOr nilaimaiyan ena aRivaRiyaemperumAn" (tiruvAi. 1.3.4) - (Except for His devotees) His true Nature isbeyond comprehension. Even when He reveals Himself at times momentarily,He immediately withdraws that memory from them, and becomes a-vyaktan again. He revealed His viSva rUpam to arjuna, but after this incident passed, arjunatreated kaNNan as His charioteer only. He revealed Himself to yaSodA, andfollowing this incident, she continued to tie Him up and beat Him for Hismischief anyway. SrI Samkara gives the interpretation that even though he has various forms inHis incarnations, He is called a-vyaktah because He cannot be defined preciselyin His true state in terms such as "He is of this nature, He is like thisetc." - yadyapi aneka mUrtitvam asya (previous nAma), tathApi ayam IdRSaeva iti na vyajyata iti a-vyaktah.

728. Sata-mUrtih He with a hundred forms. Om Sata-mUrtaye namah. The nAma Sata-mUrtih is very similar to the nAma aneka-mUrtih (nAma 726). The term "hundred" in the current nAma is just a figurativeexpression, and means "many". The Sata Sabdam, the sahasraSabdam,

etc., are indicative of "many". In this sense, thewords "Sata-mUrtih, sahsra-mUrtih, aneka-mUrtih, bahumUrtih, etc. allsignify the same concept. SrI BhaTTar seems to distinguish between the twonAma-s by interpreting "aneka-mUrtih" as representing different formsthat He took as different incarnations at different times, and interpreting"Sata-mUrtih" as referring to His simultaneous display of differentforms to the seer in His one form at a given instant in time. (It shouldbe noted that this distinction is not the result of anything specific to thewords involved in the two nAma-s, but is the result of the bliss of differentanubhavams by the vyAkhyAna kartA for the two nAma-s, and a great example of howthe great interrpeters avoid punarukti or redundancy in the interpretation ofthe thousand nAma-s). After assuming a cosmic form for the sake ofarujuna, Lord kRshNa tells arjuna - paSya me pArtha! RUpANi SataSo'thasahasraSah (gItA 11.4) - "O arjuna! Look at My bodies which are in hundredsand thousands". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives a differentanubhavam of His one form showing itself as different forms - Whereas SrIBhaTTar's example was of arjuna seeing different forms in bhagavAn's ViSva rUpam,SrI SAstri gives the example where different people see bhagavAn's one formdifferently at the same time, as He enters the stage that kamsa had set fortrapping kRshNa, illustrating His guNa of being Sata-mUrtih: mallAnAm aSanih nRNAm nara-varah strINAm smaro mUrtimAn gopAnAm svajanah asatAm kshitibhujAm SastA sva-pitro SiSuh | mRtyuh bhoha-pateh virAt avidushAm tattvam-param yoginAm vRshNInAm paradevatA iti viditah .. (bhAga. 10.43.17)

"As kRshNa enters the stage set by kamsa with His brother balarAma, theboxers saw in Him a thunder arriving, the menfolk saw Him as the best of men,the womenfolk saw in Him manmatha arriving, the gopa-s saw their friendarriving, the kings affiliated with kamsa saw Him as the enemy arriving to metout punishment to them, devaki and vasudeva saw their child arriving, kamsa feltthat death was approaching him in kRshNa's form, the ignorant saw a king coming,the yogi-s realized that the para tattvam was in front of them, and the yAdava-sfelt that some divine force has arrived to redeem their prestige". SrI SAstri also gives the analogy of the kalpaka vRksham - the tree that cangive anything that anyone wishes while standing under that tree. For example, all the different fruits and flowers that normally appear indifferent seasons will all be found at the same time in the kalpaka vRksahm, andwhoever wishes whichever species of fruits or flowers will just see what he/shewishes in the tree at any given time. BhagavAn is exactly that - He willappear in whatever form anyone wishes to see Him - Sata-mUrtih. SrI Samkara distinguishes between the nAma-s aneka-mUrtih and Sata-mUrtih asfollows: He interprets aneka-mUrtih in terms of His differentincarnations, and for Sata-mUrtih, he explains that even though vishNu is of theform of pure consciousness, He projects Himself as of many different forms byHis own thoughts - nAnAvikalpajA mUrtayah samvida-kRteh santi iti Sata-mUrtih. 729.SatAnanah a) He Who is many-faced. b) He Who has provided many different means (such as nose, mouth, etc.) for lifeto be sustained. c) He Who has created various life-forms and provided easy means for theirsurvival. d) He Who is viewed in different "faces" (in different ways) bydifferent faiths. Om SatAnanAya namah.

SrI satyadevo VasishTha gives the derivation of Ananam from the root ana - prANane - to breathe. According to pANini sUtra 3.3.117 -karaNa adhikaraNayoSca - the affixlyuT (ana) comes after a root, when the relation of the word to be formed to the verb is that of aninstrument or location. Thedefinition that SrI vAsishTha gives is A = samantAt anyate = prANyate anena iti Anananm = mukham - The part ofthe body which contains the meansfor breathing, namely the face. The word Sata has the same meaning as in the previous nAma, namely, many, uncountable, etc. Thus the explanation for the nAma is: SatamAnanAni yasya sa SatAnanah =anantAnanah - He Who has innumerable faces. SrI BhaTTar gives the support from gItA 11.10: aneka vaktra nayanam anekAbhuta darSanam | aneka divyAbharaNam divyAnekodyatAyudham || (gItA11.10) "With innumerable mouths and eyes, many marvelous aspects, many divine ornaments, and many divine weapons" - This is how sa'njaya startsthe description of the viSva rUpamthat bhagavAn shows to arjuna. SrI cinmayAnandarefers us to Lord kRshNa's words in gItA Slokam 13.13, which conveys the same concept when He describes Brahman: sarvatah pANi-pAdam tatsarvo'kshi-Siro-mukham | sarvath Srutiman-loke sarvam-AvRtya tishThati || (gItA 13.13)

"Everywhere are Its hands and feet; Its eyes, heads, and mouths are everywhere; Its ears are on all sides; and It exists encompassingall things." SrI v.v. rAmAnujan givessupport from tiruvAimozhi: tOLgaL AyirattAi! muDigaL AyirattAi! tuNai malark kaNgaL AyirattAi! tALgaL AyirattAi! pErgaL AyirattAi! tamiayanEn peria appanE! (tiruvAi.8.1.10)

where nammAzhvAr refers to Him as "Oh Lord with a thousand shoulders,faces, eyes, feet, names", etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to the SvetASvtara Upanishad wherein Brahman is described as "sarvAnana SirogrIvah sarva bhUta guhASayah" - (3.11) - "He Who has many faces, heads and necks,and resides in the hearts of allthe beings". b) SrI satyadevo vAsishThagives a second interpretation, in which he takes Ananam to mean "the means for sustaining life", and givesthe meaning to the nAma as "HeWho has provided innumerable ways (such as nose, mouth, face, etc.), through which life is sustained for the different creatures" - jIvana upAyAnAm ca bAhuvidyam, tathA cayadyad jIvane Silpa vaiSishTyam tattat tasyaiva bhagavata ityAkhyAtum SatAnananAmnA bhagavAn vishNuh stUyate. c) Yet another interpretationprovided by SrI vAsishTha is based on the pANinisUtra 3.1.26 - hetumati ca which states that the affix Nic is employed after a root when the operation of a causer is to be expressed. Thus, he interprets the term "Ananah" as"Anayati iti Ananah" - "One Who causes, or makes it possible to live". Ananam is here interpreted as referring to bhagavAn's action increating the different lifeformswhich have different ways of sustaining life. Ananah is thus given the meaning "jIvan dAtA - thelifegiver". The meaninggiven here is thus "He Who has created various life-forms" - catur-vidha SrshTi udvhAvinah anantAn jIvAn tat-tat jIvanaih upakaraNaih Anayati = jIvayatiiti SatAnanah.

d) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstriexplains the nAma in terms of bhagavAn being seen in different "faces" by the different faiths such as thejaina matam, the bauddha matam,etc., and also viewed differently by nyAya, mImAmsA, etc., the dvaiti-s, adviati-s, etc. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan (will continue) SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 78 - ekah.

om om om om om om om om om om om om om

ekAya namah naikAya namah sAya namah vAya namah kAya namah kime namah yate namah tate namah padaya anuttamAya namah loka-bandhave namah loka-nAthAya namah mA-dhavAya namah bhakta-vatsalAya namah

730. ekah One Who is Unique and matchless in all respects. Om ekAya namah. SrI BhaTTar gives his interpretation of the nAma ekah based on the root iN -gatau - to go, with the addition of the affix kat per uNAdi sUtra 326 - iNa bhIkA .kan, with the meanings "one, chief, alone" for the word ekah. SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha explains ekah as " eti - gacchati sarvatra iti ekah"- He Who is present everywhere. When we have more than one of anything withsimilar attributes, we refer to them as "two brAhmaNa-s, five

kshatriya-s",etc.; however, in the case of bhagavAn, there is no one else to compare to Him,and so He is ekah. SrI BhaTTar's actual words are - ukte mahimni sajAtIyasamkhyeya asambhavAt advaitam gacchati iti ekah With reference to His Supremegreatness, there is no one who can be compared with Him, and so He is calledekah. SrI BhaTTar gives the Sruti vAkhyam "eka id-rAjA jagato babhUva (tait.yaju. 4.1.8)" "He was the only King of the whole world" insupport. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the following references: - dyAvA bhUmI janayan deva ekah - Rg. 10.81.3 - "He, the Sole God,producing earth and heaven ,."; yadi no bhagavAn prIta ekah sarva-guNASrayah - bhAga. 9.5.11 "If it istrue that bhagavAn, who is the antaryAmi of all the beings and the abode of allkalyANa guNa-s, is pleased with us, then let this braAhmin be relieved of hissuffering". nammAzhvAr refers to Him as "oruvan" (One without a second) in manyplaces. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the following references: - arakkarai uruk keDa vALi pozhinda oruvanE (tiruvAi. 8.6.2); kaNgaL Sivandu periyavAi, vAyum Sivandu kanindu,.., oN Sa'ngu gadai vAL AzhiyAn oruvan aDiyEn uLLAnE (tiruvAi. 8.8.1); ilanadu uDaiyan idu ena ninaivu ariyavan .an-nalanuDaiya oruvanai . (tiruvAi.1.1.3); . j~nAlam uNDu umizhnda endai eka-mUrtikkE (tiruvAi. 1.1.3) b) SrI Samkara gives the interpretation "paramArthatah sajAtIyavijAtIya sva-gata bheda vinirmuktatvAt ekah "The One, being devoid of any distinction such as sajAtIya, vijAtIya, andsvagata". The concepts of sajAtIya, vijAtIya, and the svagata bheda areexplained under nAma 706 in Slokam 75. BhagavAn is unique in not discriminatingbetween the different members of the same species, members of different species,etc., and so He is ekah (Unique). SrI Samkara gives the support from chAndogyaupanishad - ekameva a-dvitIyam (6.2) He is One without a second. c) SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN links this nAma to the nAma-s of the previousSlokam, and comments that even though He has many forms, many faces, etc., (Sata-Murtih,SatAnanah), He is still One and Only One, and so He is referred to as ekah inthis nAma. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the analogy of the one father for the manychildren; BhagavAn vishNu is the One Father who creates everything in thisUniverse, and so He is called ekah. In the sahasra nAmAvaLi, the mantra is "Om ekAya namah" accordingto the followers of viSishTAdvaitam and dvaitam, and "Om ekasmai namah"according to the adviata sampradAyam. Similar difference exists in many nAmas: viSvAya namah vs. viSvasmai namah (First nAma of SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam); naikAya namah vs. naikasmai namah for nAma 731, etc.

The difference seems toarise as a result of the fundamental difference in the philosophies of thevyAkhyAna kartA-s. When a word is a pronoun or a sarvanAma, (and the words viSvam, ekah etc. aresarvanAma-s when they have their traditional meanings), then it is declinedsimilar to the word sarva, and the dative singular is "sarvasmai, viSvasmai,ekasmai etc." (pANini sUtra 1.1.27). However, when this same words is nottreated as a pronoun, and instead refers to something special, like the specificname of a person (e.g., ekah as a person's actual name), then the word isdeclined like an ordinary noun such as narah, and not as a pronoun. Then thedative singular is declined as sarvAya, viSvAya, ekAya, etc. The example givenin explanation of this sUtra by SrISa Candra Vasu in his "AshTAdhyAyI ofpANini" is that of the word "sarva" meaning"everything" (a pronoun) vs. sarva being the name of a person (anordinary noun). The former is declined as a pronoun, and the latter is declinedas an ordinary noun like narah. The followers of the advaita sampradAyam seem toconsider the different sarvanAma-s that occur in SrI vishNu sahasra nAma aspronouns representing Brahman, whereas the followers of the viSishTAdvaitasampradAyam seem to treat each of the nAma-s as a distinct personification ofbhagavAn in His different Forms, and thus each sarvanAma word that occurs as anAma in sahasra nAmam is treated as a special nAma of bhagavAn with its ownspecial meaning, each a proper noun in its own right, and not treated as apronoun standing for Brahman. This seems to explain the difference in thenAmAvaLi, based on grammar as well as the difference in the differentphilosophies. 731. naikahHe Who is not One only. Om naikAya namah (om naikasmai namah in Samkara pATham - see nAma 730). a) SrI BhaTTar explains how He is One (the previous nAma), and also "Notone only" (the current nAma). He is One in the sense of being unique in having everything in all the Universeas His possession; but He is not one only, since there are all these other things which are Hisglorious vibhUtis or extensions which are of a nature different from His. He is the antaryAmi of all that exist. SrI BhaTTar's words are - vibhUtitayA vijAtIyena sarveNa dvitIyavAneva itinaikah Since He has as His glorious possessions all that are of a nature different fromHis, He is not One only. He quotes from the gItA in support - " nAnto'sti mama divyAnAm vibhUtInAmparamtapa " (11.40) "O arjuna, There is no end to the divine glories of Mine (What I have stated in detail is only a small part of My glories)". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives support from nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi: tIyAi nIrAi nilanAi viSumbAik kAlAi tAyAit tandaiyAi makkaLAi maRRumAi muRRumAi nIyAy nI ninRavARu ivai enna niyAya'ngaLE? (tiruvAi. 7.8.1)

"You are the Fire, Water, Earth, Ether, and Air. To us You are the mother, father, children, other relatives all rolled into one. You are more; You are the whole Universe. Yet I enjoy You in Your own beautifulForm. Now pray tell me the secret of all this. I don't understand this high-levelabstract mysticism". nIrAi nilanAi tIyAi kAlAi neDu vAnAi SirAr SuDargaL iraNDAi SivanAi ayan AnAi (tiruvAi. 6.9.1) "You are Water, Earth, Fire, Air, and Ether, the Sun and the Moon., Sivaand Brahma. (You are antaryAmi of all of them; You became all of them; You entered into themall)." Since He is AtmA of all the AtmA-s, He has all of these as His body. Thus He is not only One, but He is also Many. SrI Samkara explains the nAma naikah He Who is not one only, by attributing His many forms to His mAyA mAyayA bahu-rUpatvAt naikah. In the nAmAvaLi, the advaita pATham is "naikasmai namah". b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives a different interpretation naikah - dvitAm vindamAnah; mAta-pitR-bhAvanayA SrI-lakshmI-nArAyaNa rUpeNavirAjamAnah | He is not One but should be recognized as two - in the form of our Father andMother, in His Form as SrI lakshmI-nArAyaNa. SrI cinmayAnanda observes that His being One (ekah) is to be realized at the"knowledge" level, but His being Many is realized at the "Being" level. He is ineverything that exists, and without Him, nothing exists; so He is Many. However it is He and He alone who is in everything making everything function, and so He is One. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's explanation is that He is called naikah because there is no identity in anything that is created by Him, and everythingis different na eko yasmAt iti naikah. (na tasya pratimA asti - yajur. 32.3.). SrI vAsishTha refers to this as the naikattva dharma of bhagavAn. 732. sah a) He Who spreads knowledge. b) He Who is the final authority on all knowledge. c) He Who destroys all obstacles to His devotees. d) He Who is easily accessible, to the point of being pointed out as"He" by the youngsters of AyarpADi. e) He Who is of the form the soma sacrifice (when the nAma is taken as savah) f) He Who is the final Knowledge, and Who dwells everywhere (savah) Om sAya namah. The root from which the word sah is derived in the interpretation ofthis nAma is so - antakarmaNi- to destroy, to bring to an end.

a) SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam - sva-vishaya j~nAnam syati iti sahHe Who spreads knowledge about Him is sah. The explanation of this interpretation starting from the root so -antakarmaNi, is given under item ii) under "savah" below (syati = antayati= niScayati sva-vishaya j~nAnam). SrI BhaTTar gives the example of Lord kRshNa spreading knowledge about Him rightfrom His childhood to everyone. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the support from embAr's interpretation forperiAzhvAr's "ap pUcci kATTuginRAn" pASurams the reference here is that even as a child, kRshNa reveals His tiru Azhi andtiruc ca`ngu to even the children of AyarpADi and reveals His greatness to them. nammAzhvAr declares that he has realized thewhole truth about emperumAn because he has been bestowed with "mayarvaRa madi nalam" by perumAL avanE avanum avanum avanum avanE maRRellAmum aRindanamE (tiruvAi. 9.3.2, and the associated vyAkhyAnam by SrI V. N. VedAnta deSikan). b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has thisnAma because He ultimately determines (brings to a conclusion, ends the discussion on) howeverything in this Universe functions etc. (see the additional explanation under ii) for the nAma interpreted as " savah"below. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - syati vinASayatisva-jana vipada iti sah He is called sah because He destroys the obstacles of His devotees. d) SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya svAmi seems to give his interpretation using thedirect meaning of the word sah He. His actual words are: "appaDip paTTavar enRu koNDADat takkavar" He Who is worthy of being praised as such and such", where I assume that the reference "appaDip paTTavar" refers to Hisprevious nAma-s such as ekah, naikah, etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives a similar interpretation, and notes that He hasthe nAma sah because He was such ( a saulabhyan) that the other young and innocent gopa-s inAyarpADi could point to Him and say "He" is kRshNa. savah: i) While SrI BhaTTar treats sah (the current nAma) and vah (thenext nAma) as two separate nAma-s, SrI Samkara treats the two words as forming one nAma - savah (om savAya namah). savah is defined in the amarakoSa vyAkhyAna as " sUyate abhishUyatesomah atra iti savah" that event in which the soma juice is offered is called savah, namely the somasacrifice. SrI Samkara's explanation is that He is the soma sacrifice Himself, and so hasthis nAma. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that the term savah refers to the somayAga because the juice extracted from the stems of the soma plant (soma latA) is usedin this sacrifice. He adds that the inner meaning is that bhagavAn is the essence or the finalextract of everything that exists.

ii) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the above interpretation, and also gives analternate interpretation: savah - yo hi syati = antayati - niScAyayati sva-vishayam j~nAnam, vasati casarvatra, iti savah He Who gives the final knowledge about Him to His devotees, and also dwellseverywhere, is savah. 733. vah - The Dweller. Om vAya namah. The nAma vah is derived from the root vas - nivAse - vasati iti vahHe Who dwells as the antaryAmi of everything. The pANini sUtra anyeshvapi dRSyate (3.2.101) is applied in thederivation of this word from its root , similar to jah standing for "one who was born" (e.g., najAyate = a-jah, dvir-jAtah = dvi-jah, etc.). SrI BhaTTar gives support from SrI vishNu purANam for his interpretation: vasanti tatra bhUtAni bhUtatmanyakhilAtmani | sa ca bhUteshvaSeshesu vakArArthas-tato mune || (6.5.76) "All beings dwell in Him Who is Himself all beings and the Inner Soul ofall. He also dwells in all of them without exception. Therefore, O sage, He is signified by the letter ' va'." (The above Slokam in SrI vishNu purANam occurs in the context where all the letters of the word "bhagava" is explained). nammAzhvAr refers to His being everywhere always, in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram2.8.9, in the context of the description of prahlAda caritram (ref: SrI v.v. rAmAnujan): e'ngum uLan kaNNan enRa maganaik kAyndu, I'ngu illaiyAl enRu iraNiyan tUNpuDaippa.. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan also gives reference to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram1.1.10: paranda taN paravaiyuL nIr torum paranduLan paranda aNDam idu ena nila viSumbu ozhivaRak karan Sil iDam toRum iDam tigazh poruL toRum karandu e'ngum paranduLan ivai uNDa karanE (tiruvAi.1.1.10) "He is present in every atom in the cool waters that are widelydistributed everywhere; He permeates everything everywhere in the land and in the sky in all theUniverses; He is present in the minutest of things, and also in the AtmA of everything; He Who swallowed all these things and kept them in His stomach, is present in everything without their even knowing that". SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation "He Who goes to the abodes of those who sing His praise", using the meaning vAti = gacchati (vAti gacchati sva janAyojita bhajanabhavanam iti vah. As pointed out under the previous nAma, vah is not treated as aseparate nAma by SrI Samkara and those who follow his bhAshyam. 734. kah -

a) He Who shines. b) He Who is invoked or praised through words by devotees. c) He Who is the personification of happiness. d) He Who remains an unanswered Question Mark when approached through"intellection". Om kAya namayh. The root from which this nAma is derived is kan - dIpti kAnti gatishu- to shine etc. The same grammatical rule which applied for vah above (pANini 3.2.101) is usedhere to derive the nAma kah from kanati - He shines. a) SrI BhaTTar points out that even though He dwells even in things that aredirty (as the Soul of their soul), He Himself is ever-resplendent - maleemaseshu vasannapi kanati iti kah. Even though bhagavAn is the antrayAmi in everything including those that areimpure, sinful, etc., their impurity or sin do not affect Him or His luster in any way. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan adds that in His case, His luster is natural, unlike in the case of people like us whose appearance is dependent on theclothes we wear, the talk we talk etc. - vastra AbharaNa vapushA vAcA. Based on kan - dIpti kAnti gatishu, SrI vAsishTha gives theexplanation that because He shines everywhere, and He is present everywhere ( gati), and enlightens everything or makes everything shine ( dIpti), thus in allsenses He is called kah. At an individual level, we see that the kAnti that a living being has is only so long as He is in that body as the Soul of the soul; when the Soul leaves the body, the luster is gone also. This whole Universeshines because He is present everywhere and in everything, illuminating all. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root kai - Sabde - to sound, and gives the interpretation - kAyate Sabdyate AhUyate bhaktaih iti kah He Who is invoked by devotees or praised by them through sound is kah. c) One of the meanings of the word kam is happiness - kam sukhe'pivijAnIyAt (as quoted by A. A. Ramanathan in his title "amarakoSa" - Part 2, p.228, 1978 edition). SrI Samkara uses this meaning, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn iscalled kah because He is the personification of happiness. He gives the support from chAndogyaUpanishad 4.10 kam brahma - Happiness is Brahman. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that the limit of happiness is the tyAga ofahamkAra and mamakAra, and bhagavAn is One who has realized the limit of this. The dharma cakram writer points out that there are two kinds of happiness: the happiness of the body and the happiness of the soul. The first one leads tosorrow, but this is the happiness that most people go after. It is only by sacrificing this bodily happiness that the happiness of the soulis achieved, a nd the latter is achieved only to the extent that the former is sacrificed. It is the happiness of the soul that should be sought after, and this is thelesson to be learnt from this nAma.

d) SrI cinmayAnanda adds a new interpretation based on the common meaning of kah- "Who?". His interpretation is that this nAma says that bhagavAn is a Question Mark with no answer when approached with the human intellect or reasoning alone; He can only be experienced when one transcends the intellect, and not through"intellection". 735. kim a) He about Whom all questions are asked by seekers of Truth (such as Where is He, What is He, Who is He, etc.) b) He Whose praise is sung by His devotees c) He Who is fit to be enquired about or sought after. Om kime namah (om kasmai namah in Samkara pATham see explanation under ekAyanamah, nAma 730). The common usage of the word kim is to represent the question What?.The word kim is derived from the root praccha j~nIpsAyAm to ask, to seek. Here it is used as a noun, and means He about Whom allquestions are asked by seekers of Truth. SrI sataydevo vAsishTha comments: pRcchati iti kim | pRcchyata iti vA kim | He who asks is kim, or He about whom questions are asked is also kim.Here bhagavAn is called kim in the context of the latter of the two. Inother words, all questions that are asked by those who want to realize Him, arequestions about Him, since they all lead to Him in the end. SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate derivation as well, starting from the root kai Sabde to sound, leading to kAyati iti kim He aboutWhom questions are asked, such as Who is He, What is He, Where is He,etc., is kim. Those who seek Him start with the enquiry of What,and end up with Him after they realize that He is the ultimate answer to everyenquiry. SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is: tat tat sarvepsituh buphutsUnAm nirupAdhika prashTavyatvAt kim He is enquired into by all those who are desirous of knowing the ultimateobjects of their desire without any other motive, and so He is called kim.SrI BhaTTar gives the support from the Sruti sa anveshTavyah, sa viji~njAsitavyah ChAndogya. 8.7.1 He is to be sought after, He is to be known with eagerness. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to tiruvAimozhi 5.6.2, where nammAzhvArdeclares about perumAL: kaRkum kalvic cAramum yAnE. In fact, everyline of each pASuram, starting with 5.6.1 ( kaDal j~nAlam SeidEnum yAnE ennum),all the way up to 5.6.10 (kOlam koL Suvarkkamum yAnE ennum .), arebeautiful singing of His being everything, line after line. SrI Samkaras interpretation is: sarva purushArtha rUpatvAt Brahmaiva vicAryam iti Brahma kim

As Brahman is the supreme goal among all aims of life, He is to be inquiredafter, and so is called kim. He refers us to the first Slokam of chapter8 of Bhagavad gItA, where arjuna precisely starts with this question: kim tad brahma kim adhyAtmam kim karma purushottama | adhibhUtam ca kim proktam adhidaivam kim ucyate || (gItA 8.1) What is that Brahman? What is adhyAtma? What is karma? What is said to beadhibhUta? O Supreme Person, who is said to be adhidaiva? SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives similar passages from the Rg veda, which asksimilar rhetorical questions about Brahman: - ambhah kim AsIt gahanam gabhIram (10-129-1) Was water there, unfathomed and deep? kutah AjAtA kuta iyam visRshTih (10-129-6) Whence was it born, and whence comes this creation? yosyAdhyakshah parame vyoman (10-129-7) (He) whose eye controls this world in highest heaven, he verily knows it, orperhaps he knows not. Thus, He is called kim- What because He is the Ultimate answerto all the questions. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root ku~ng Sabde tosound, and the uNAdi sutra kAyater dimih (siddhAnta kaumudi, uNAdisutra 600) to derive the word kim, and gives the definition kUyate AhUyate svajanaih bhajamAnaih iti kim He Whose praise is sung by His devotees is kim. c) SrI aNNangarAcArya gives the interpretation that this nAma means thatHe is One who is worth being sought after; One Who is described as anveshTavyahin the Upanishads: sa anveshTavyah, sa viji~njAsitavyah ChAndogya. 8.7.1 He is to be sought after, and He is to be known with eagerness. The dharma cakram writer elaborates that bhagavAn is called kim HeWhose Nature is contemplated on by those who seek the Truth, because it is byknowing this Truth that everything there is to be known is known. That which isbeyond time, space, etc., that which never changes and is eternal, that which isbeyond the reach of the senses and is only reached by true devotion andmeditation, that which is in everything and everywhere, is the Ultimate answerto all questions asked by those who seek the Truth. 736. yat a) He Who takes efforts. b) That Which already exists. c) That from Which everything in this Universe came about. om yate namah (om yasmai namah in Samkara pATham, when yat is interpreted as asarvanAma or pronoun).

SrI BhaTTar derives the interpretation from the root yat prayatne to attempt. to strive after, etc. His vyAkhyAnam is: teshAm rakshAyai yatate iti yat He Who takes all efforts for the protection of His devotees. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj elaborates further on the same concept: yatate prayatate sva-samkalpa mAtreNa svajana Apat nivAraNAya iti yat . SrI BhaTTar quotes the following words of bhagavAn: kRshNa kRshNeti kRshNeti yo mAm smarati nityaSah | jalam bhitvA yathA padmam narakAt uddharAmyaham || Whoever remembers Me always repeating the name kRshNa, kRshNa, kRshNa, I lift him up from naraka just as one takes a lotus free from water by brushingaside the water. - aham smarAmi mad bhaktam nayAmi paramAm gatim | (varAha caram Slokam)I remember My devotee and take him to the Supreme abode. Even if thedevotee in his final state is unable to think of bhagavAn, bhagavAn thinks ofthe devotee, and takes him to His abode. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvArs tiruvAimozhi 5.8.9 iSaivittu ennai un tAL iNaik kIzh iruttum ammAnE nammAzhvAr says that bhagavAn took the effort to impart Atma j~nAna to even himwho was unrelenting, sensually disposed, haughty enough to be an incorrigiblesoul-thief, etc. (nammAzhvArs naicya bhaAvam is what is reflectedhere). b) SrI Samkara interprets the nAma using the conventional meaning Whichfor the word yat. His interpretation is: yat Sabdena svatah siddha vastu uddeSa vAcinA brahma nirdiSyata iti brahmayat The word yat indicates a self-sustaining entity, can only denote Brahman,who is by nature always existing. He quotes the taittirIya Upanishad in support yato vA imAni bhUtAni jAyante (3.1) From which all these beings comeout. c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri uses the above Sruti vAkyam and gives theinterpretation that yat refers to That from Which all the other thingsin the Universe came into existence. SrI cinmayAnanda quotes another similar usage: yato vAco nivartante aprApya manasA sah (tiatt. Up. 2.9.1) That from which words retire, along with the mind, unable to reach. 737. tat a) He Who increases (the j~nAnam and bhakti about Him in the devotees). b) He Who increases the kIrti (fame) of His devotees c) He Who expands the Universe from its subtle form to its visible form d) He Who is not seen by senses etc. om tate namah (om tasmai namah in Samkara pATham).

The root from which the nAma is derived is tanu vistAre to spread, togo (tanoti vistRNAti expands). SrI BhaTTars bhAshyam is sva j~nAna bahktim tanoti iti tat He Whoincreases the j~nAnam and bhakti in His devotees. He gives the support fromtaittirIya nArAyaNIyam (27) tat savitur vareNIyam That superior lusterof the Lord, the cause of the Universe. The term tat is given another meaning in the gItA. The term refers tothe veda-s. and to the acts of sacrifice that are undertaken without anyexpectation of a benefit, as prescribed in the veda-s. om-tat-sat iti nirdeSo brahmaNah tri-vidhah smRtah | brAhamaNAs-tena vedASca ya~jnASca vihitAh purA || (gItA 17.23) Brahman (the veda) is denoted by the three-fold expression: Om, tat,sat. Associated with these, the BrAhamaNas, the Vedas, and sacrifices were ordainedin the past. In Slokam 7.25, the term tat is explained further: tad-iti anabhisandhAya phalam ya~jna tapah kriyAh | dAna-kriyASca vividhAh kriyante moksha kAnkshibhih || Acts of sacrifice, austerity and various gifts are performed without aiming at reward by those who seek release (moksha), after pronouncing tat. In our samkalpam for many religious rites, we start with Harir-om tat. Bhagavad rAmAnuja explains in his vyAkhyAnam for gItA Slokam 7.25, that whateveracts such as the study of the Vedas, sacrifices, austerities and gifts are donewithout aiming at results by those of the first three stations, seeking onlyfinal release these are designated by the term tat, referring to Brahman,since they constitute the means for attainment of Brahman. He also refers inthis context to the current Slokam (78) of SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam, andobserves that it is thus well-known that the term tat refers to Brahmansa vah kah kim yat tat padam anuttamam iti tat-Sabdo hi brahma vAcIprasiddhah. In the context of the above gItA Slokam, SrI rAmAnuja interprets the term tatas referring to Brahman, or to the means of attaining Brahman such as the study of the Vedas etc. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan links the previous nAma (yatate takes special effortsto protect us), with the current nAma (tanoti increases the bhakti in ustowards Him as part of that effort. While SrI Samkaras vyAkhyAnam is also tanoti iti tat, in thenAmAvalI, the mantra is om tasmai namah, signifying that the nAma is treated again as a sarva nAma or pronoun, meaningThat, the term standing for Brahman. b) The beauty of the diverse anubhavam-s of the great vyAkhyAna kartA-s isseen in the diverse ways in which they interpret the same explanation tanoti vistRNAti expands. We already saw SrI BhaTTars interpretation,that He expands the j~nAnam and bhakti in His devotees. SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj gives the interpretation tanoti vistArayati sva-janAnAm kIrtim ititat He is called tat because He spread the kIrti or fame of Hisdevotees. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains the action of bhagavAn in His guNa of tat asspreading and pervading into everything, which is yet another way that Heenables the jIva to function in this world to attain Him.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that this nAma signifiesthat He expands the sUkshma jIvas into the visible world forms and shapes (seed below) Whether it is in the form of increasing our j~nAnam and bhakti aboutHim so that we can reach Him, or it is in the form of His spreading the fame andkIrti of His devotees so that others learn from this and follow the correct pathfor their attainment of Him, or it is in the form of His spreading into everyoneas their antaryAmi and supporting and guiding them, in the end everything thatHe does is for the sake of His devotees c) SrI vAsishTha gives the interpretation tanoti viSvam iti tat HeWho expands the Universe. His explanation is that bhagavAn is called tatbecause He expands the Universe that is inside Him in the sUkshsma state, into aUniverse that is in the sthUla and visible state, just as the mother givesexpression to a child which is contained in her in an unseen state. d) satya sandha yatirAja, an AcArya from the madhva sampradAyam, explains thenAma tat as referring to that which is not seen paroksham vastutat Sabda vAcyam, haristu pratyakshAt avedyatvena mukhyto vedaika gamyatvAt vAguNaih tatatvAd-vA tat iti ucyate. 738. padam anuttamam a) The Supreme Goal. b) The Unexcelled Protector of His devotees. Om padAya anuttamAya namah. The root from which the word padam is derived is pad gatau to go, toattain. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meanings padyate = gamyate, j~nAyate,prApyate, yatyate vA tat padam, and summarizes the meaning of the word padam tomean that for the attainment of which, or the knowledge of which, effort isto be undertaken. na uttamam yasmAt iti anuttamam That which is not surpassed by anythingelse is anuttamam. Padam anuttamam thus refers to That which is unsurpassedby anything else, and for whose attainment knowledge and effort deserve to beundertaken. SrI BhaTTars bhAshyam is teshAm parama prApyatvAt padam anuttamam- He is the Supreme Goal for His devotees. SrI aNNangarAcArya summarizes this in tamizh as tamakku mElprApaymAnadu onRillAda paDi parama prApayamAnavar. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives support from nammAzhvArs tiruvAimozhi, whereAzhvAr declares that he does not want even SrI vaikunTham, but he only wants tohave the Lotus Feet of bhagavAn on his head. In other words, His Lotus Feet arethe Supreme Goal: nin SemmA pAda paRput talai Serttu ollai ammA aDiyEn vENDuvadu ihdE(5.9.1). In tiruvAimozhi 3.7.6, nammAzhvar declares that bhagavAn is the Supreme,unexcelled rakshakan (padam anuttamam): oLi koNDa Sodiyai uLLattuk koLLum avar kaNDIr b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning trANam rakshaNam protection to the word padam, based on amara koSam: padam vyavasiti trANasthAna lakshmAnghri vastushu (3.3.93), and gives the

interpretation to thisnAma as padam trANam | anuttamam sarvottamam iti padam anuttamam | arthAt sarvottamo rakshakah SrI bahagavAneva sarvottmas-trAtA sva-janAnAm|The Unexcelled Protector of His devotees. c) SrI cinmayAnandas interpretation is: Lord VishNu has this nAmabecause He is the way (pada), the goal (pada), and the pilgrimage (pada). Hegives support from the gItA Slokam 7.18, where bhagavAn declares that He isanuttama gati (Supreme path, Supreme Goal): udArAh sarva evaite j~nAnI tvAtmaiva me matam | Asthitah sa hi yuktAtmA mAmeva anuttamAm gatim || All these are indeed generous, but I deem the man of knowledge to be Myvery self; for he, integrated, is devoted to Me alone as the Supreme end. 739. loka-bandhuh a) The Relative of the World. b) One to Whom everything is bound since He is their Support c) One to Whom everything is related since He is their Best Friend theirFather d) One Who provides instructions as a kinsman on what is right and what is wrongthrough the SAstra-s. e) One Who limits everything through things such as limited life etc. Om loka-bandhave namah. The mutual and inseparable relation between us and bhagavAn is what isrevealed in this nAma. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma becauseHe is the Relative of everyone in this world without exception, and blesses allwithout exception evam a-viSesheNa a-Sesha anugrahe a-varjanIyam bAndhavam nibandhanam Aha loka bandhuh. He gives the following in support: - mAtA pitA bhrAtA nivAsah SaraNam suhRt gatih nArAyaNah (subAlaopanishad 6) nArAyaNa is the mother, father, brother, abode, refuge, friend, and the finalgoal. pitA aham asya jagato mAtA dhAtA pitAmahah | vedyam pavitram om-kAram Rk sAma yajureva ca || (gItA 9.17) I am the father, mother, creator, and grandfather of the universe. I am the purifier. I am the syllable Om and also Rk, sAma, and yajus. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to gItA 9.29, which conveys the very samethoughts that SrI BhaTTar has given in his bhAshyam: samoham sarva bhUteshu na me dveshyosti na priyah | ye bhajanti tu mAm bhaktyA mayi te teshu cApyaham || (gItA 9.29) I treat everyone in creation the same way. There is none whom I like moreor dislike more. But those who worship Me with devotion abide in Me and I abide in them.

Other references given by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan to emphasize this point are: o un tannODu uRavEl namkku Ingu ozhikka ozhiyAdu (tiruppAvai 28) The relationship between You on the one hand, and all of on the other, ispermanent, and never alterable. o nAn unnai anRi ilEn kaNDAi nAraNanE nI ennai anRi ilai (nAnmugan tiru. 7) I have no refuge other than Yu, and You have no one who is more worthy anddeserving of protection than me. o .. ennap peRRa at-tAyAyt-tandaiyAy aRiyAdana aRivitta attA (tiruvAi. 2.3.2) You are my Father, my Mother, my AcArya. o .tAyAit tandaiyAi makkaLAi maRRumAi muRRumAi nIyAi nI ninRavu ivai ennaniyAyangaLE?..(tiruvAi. 7.8.1) You are the Mother, Father, Children, other relatives all rolled into one. Youdo all that a father does, a mother does, children do (to the parent at thelatters old age). You are more. You re the whole Universe; yet I enjoy You inyour own beautiful Form. Now pray tell me what is the secret of all this. I dontunderstand this abstract high-level mysticism! b), c) & d) SrI Samkara gives three alternate interpretations: i) All the worlds are bound to Him since He is the support of all AdhArabhUtesmin sakalA lokA badhyanta iti lokAnAm bandhuh lokabandhuh; ii) He is the relative of all, since He is the Creator of all and so He isrelated to all and there is no greater friend than the father lokAnAmjanakatvAt janakopamo bandhur-nAstIti vA; iii) He instructs the world as a kinsman in right and wrong, through Sruti andsmRti lokAnAm bandhukRtyam hitAhitpadeSam Sruti smRti lakshaNam kRtavAn itivA. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root bandh to bind, and gives theanubhavam that He is lokabandhuh because He binds His devotees with Hisaffection badhnAti prema pASena iti bandhuh | lokAnAm bandhuh iti lokabandhuh. e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the explanation for the nAma starting withthe roots lok darSane, to see, to perceive, and bandh to bind, toattract, etc. One interpretation he gives is that bhagavaAn has this nAmabecause He binds all things that are seen, for instance with limited life etc. badhnAti iti bandhuh. Another interpretation that SrI VasishTha gives is that He binds all the jIva-sto their karma without a rope or such things, and so also He is calledloka-bandhuh. Or, He binds the dealings between the people of this world throughHis vedic teachings, and so also He is loka-bandhuh. The dharma cakram writer elaborates on the guNa of loka-bandhu of bhagavAn.BhagavAn gives whatever a devotee prays for; but the devotee can pray either forworldly comfort or for the attainment of true Realization. Most people prefer toask Him for the worldly comforts (the kaThopanishad describes the two aspectspreyas or pleasant, and Sreyas or the good) BhagavAn acts inthe role of the worldly relatives and bestows preyas or pleasure in the form ofwife, children, father, mother, etc., or He bestows Sreyas in the form of theguru when we seek Sreyas. The dharma cakram writer comments that the lesson totake from this nAma is to realize that He is our bandhu either way, and we needto realize what is truly good for us, and seek that from Him. 740. loka-nAthah a) The Protector of the world. b) He Who bestows aiSvaryam on all as a result of His unlimited aiSvaryam c) He Who is sought after or prayed by all

d) He Who shines in the world, or He Who regulates the world by energizing e) He Who comforts or blesses the world f) He Who rules over the world g) He Who gives troubles as needed to those who need to be disciplined. Om loka-nAthAya namah. The roots involved in the nAma are: lok darSane to see, to perceive, or lok bhAshAyAm dIptau ca tobehold, to shine, to know, to seek; and nAth yAc, upatApaih, aiSvaryASIhshu to ask, to be master, toharass. Based on these, the word lokam signifies the world, and the word nAthais interpreted in the sense of nAthyate One Who is sought, or nAthate One Who seeks. In the former sense, He is One Who is sought by the people of theworld, and the latter sense, He seeks His devotees and blesses them. Thedifferent interpretations below are combinations of the above meanings. a) SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is that He is addressed as loka nAthah becauseof His unique relationship to all the creatures, which is the cause of Hisattachment which is natural to Him, as their Master tan-mUlam asAdhAraNam svAbhAvikam ca sambandham Aha loka nAthah. His interpretation is that through this nAma, the specific relationship betweenbhagavAn and us, that is the cause of His natural attachment to us, isdelineated He is our svAmI or Master, and we are His belongings, andso He is naturally attached to us. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references from prabandham, that reflect thisconcept: - iv Ezh ulagai inbam payakka iniduDan vIRRirundu AlginRa engaL pirAn (tiruvAi.7.10.1) BhagavAn is seated together with pirATTi in all the divya deSam-s only to ensurethat His creations in all the seven worlds are happy. - j~nAlattUDE naDandum ninRum kiDandu irundum SAlap pala nAL ugandu Or uyirgaLkAppAnE (tiruvAi. 6.9.3) You have appeared in various Forms in this world at various times only forthe protection of the all the creatures in Your creation. - ulagam mUnRu uDaiyAi! ennai AlvAnE (tiruvAi. 6.10.10) You Who is My Lord, and Who owns the three worlds (the three types of cetanasbaddha, nity, mukta, and the three types of acetana-s time, prakRti,Suddha sattva). b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the following interpretation: lokam nAthati sva aiSvarya yogena aiSvaryavantam karoti iti loka nAthah He Who bestows aiSvaryam on all as a result of His unlimited aiSvaryam, is lokanAthah. SrI Samkara gives four explanations for the nAma (b, c, d, e): c) lokaih nAthyate yAcyate He Who is sought after or prayed by all; (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives a similar explanation that they pray toHim for dharma, artha, kAma, and moksha lokhaih nAthyate yAcyate dharmaartha kAma mokshAn iti loka nAthah); SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the explanation lokaih prANibhihsvartha-siddhaye nAthyate prArthyata iti loka nAthah He Whose favor issought by the beings of the world for the fulfillment of their desires is lokanAthah. d) lokAn upatapati One Who shines in the world, or Who regulates theworld by energizing;

e) ASAste One Who comforts or blesses the world; or f) lokAnAm IshTa One Who rules over the whole world. g) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri interprets upatapati (see c above for SrI Samkara)as One Who gives punishments as needed, and gives the meaning that thisnAma can be interpreted as One Who gives punishments as needed anddisciplines the world (ulagai vATTi nal vazhi paDuttubavar). The dharma cakram writer weaves all the above explanations under the generalconcept that bhagavAn is the Lord of the world. In this role, He ensures thatthe evil is destroyed and good is established. He ensures that all thecreatures, who are His belongings, attain Him ultimately. If anyone transgressesdharma, He ensures that they are adequately disciplined and brought back to theproper way of life. Those who follow dharma always live in peace, and those whofollow a-dharma live a life of unrest. This is the constant rule in His role asloka-nAthah. 741. mAdhavah The Consort of Lakshmi. Om mAdhavAya namah. a) The Consort of MA or Lakshmi b) The Bestower or Propounder of Knowledge about Himself. c) One Who is attained through the madhu vidyA. d) One Who is attained through mauna, dhyAna and yoga e) One Who is born in the race of madhu, a yAdhava f) The nAma that reveals the eternal relationship of the Mother and Father withthe rest of the Universe. g) One for whom there is no Lord above The nAma mAdhavah occurs three times (nAma-s 73, 169, and 741). Thedescription below extends the description given under nAma 73, with additionalinformation included. a) mAyAh dhavah mA-dhavah The Lord or consort of MA or Lakshmi. The concept here is that BhagavAn and SrI are eternally and constantlyassociated with each other, and inseparable. As if to emphasize this, SrIBhaTTar gives a very detailed explanation for the qualities of MA or Lakshmiunder this nAma, rather than dwell on the guNa-s of bhagavAn. In the end, heconcludes with one sentence: The secret about the true nature of SrI is thatLord VishNu gets His Lordship because of His association with Lakshmi. Allthis detailed explanation is provided by Sri BhaTTar under the very firstoccurrence of the nAma, in Slokam 8. SrI BhaTTar gives reference to the Sruti vAkhya-s which establish theinterpretation for a start: - hrIScsa te lakshmISca patnyau (purusha sUktam) Bhumi and Lakshmi are Thy spouses asyeSAnA jagato vishNu-patnI (nIlA sUktam) Lakshmi, who is the Ruler of this universe the spouse of VishNu. Then he proceeds to explain the qualities of Lakshmi in the following words:

AsyAh svarUpavat nitya-nirmala-rUpatvam, nirupAdhika paramaiSvaryAdi,jagan-mAtRtvam, autpattiko bhagavat-sambandho nitya anapAyaSca ityAdi tattvapareshu SastreshuamaryAdam | vedeshu tAvat SrI-sUktam, medhA sUktam, uttara nArAyaNam, kaushItakI brAhamaNamityAdau. The essential Nature of Lakshmi is described in the Sastras dealing withthe Supreme Reality as follows: Her From is eternal and spotless; Her SupremeRulership is not restricted by any limiting adjunct; Her universal Motherhood,Her natural association with bhagavAn, are all delineated in great detail in theSAstras. In vedic literature, the SrI sUkta, SraddhA sUkta, medhA sUkta, uttaranArAyaNa, kaushItakI brAhamaNa and others deal with this subject. Then SrI BhaTTar gives several references from the purANa-s etc., that speakof the Supremacy of pirATTi, starting with the following reference from SrIvishNu purANa: nityaiva eshA vishNoh SrIr-anapAyinI | yathA sarvagato vishNuh tathaiveyamdvijottama || (vishNu purANa 1.8.17) This Lakshmi is eternal, the universal Mother, and is ever in union withVishNu. Just as VishNu pervades all things, she also does, O best of Brahmins. In Brahma PurANa, we have tat Saktih durjayA bhImA vishNu-Saktih iti smRtA | sarva bhUta hRdabjasthA nAnArUpa dharA parA || prANAkhyA mantra-mAtA ca viSvasya jananI dhruvA | devI bhinnAnjana SyAmA nirguNA vyoma eva hi || "Her power is invincible and awe-inspiring and She is considered thepower of VishNu Himself. She is the Supreme Being who lives in the lotus-likehearts of all beings of the universe and She is endowed with diverse forms. Hername is prANa or life. She is the Mother of all mantras, and is the eternalMother of the Universe. tathaivaikA parASaktih SrIh tasya karuNASrayA | j~nAnAdi shADguNya mayI yA proktA prakRtih parA || ekaiva Saktih SrIh tasya dvitIyA parivartate | parAvareNa rUpeNa sarvAkArA sanAtanI || ananta nAmadeyA ca Sakti-cakrasya nAyikA | jagat carAcaram idam sarvam vyApya vyavasthitA || Likewise, Lakshmi is His Supreme Power, and She is endowed with thequality of Mercy. She is called the Supreme prakRti and possesses the sixqualities, knowledge and others. Lakshmi is the supreme, unique, and eternalSakti of BhagavAn; She is His second and transforms Herself into diverse forms,high and low. She has innumerable names, and is the head of the Sakti-cakra the wheel of powers. She stands steady, pervading the entire universe, movingand non-moving. In SrI LahsmI sahasra nAmam, She is described as follows: mahA-vibhUteh sampUrNa shad-guNya vapushah prabhoh | bhagavad-vAsudevasya nityaiva esha anapAyinI ||

ekaiva vartate bhinnA jyotsneva hima dIdhiteh | sarva SaktyAtmikA caiva viSvam vyApya vyavasthitA || sarvaiSvarya guNopetA nityam tad-dharma dharmiNI | prANa Saktih parA hyeshA sarveshAm prANinAm bhuvi || SaktInAm caiva sarvAsAm yoni-bhUtA parA kalA || She is eternal and inseparably associated with BhagavAn vAsudeva, who isthe Master of great glory, who is endowed with the six qualities, and who is allpowerful. She is like the moon-light of the cool-rayed moon; She is one withHim, yet remains distinct. She pervades the Universe, and is the very embodimentof all Sakti-s. She is endowed with all glory and qualities, and is eternal. Her dharma isthe same as that BhagavAn. She is the life-giving Sakti of all beings on earth.She is the source of all Sakti-s and is the sublime element in all. yasmAt lakshmyamSa sambhUtAh Saktayo viSvagAh sadA | kAraNyatvena tishThanti jagatyasmin tadAj~nayA || tasmAt prItA jaganmAtA SrIh yasya acyuta-vallabhA | suprItAh Saktayah tasya siddhim ishTAm diSanti ca || All the Saktis that have emanated from Lakshmi are always pervading theentire Universe. They remain, under the command of SrI, as the cause. Therefore,when Lakshmi, the Mother of the Universe and the beloved consort of BhagavanAcyuta is pleased with someone, these Saktis themselves highly pleased, bestowprosperity which one desires. After this detailed description of Lakshmis qualities, SrI BhaTTar pointsout that this subject is more fully dealt with in vaishNava smRti and otherdharma SAstra-s. rAmAyaNa also declares the greatness of Lakshmi in the Sloka in bAla kANDam(4.7): - kAvyam rAmAyaNam kRtsnam sItAyAh caritam mahat "The entire epic poem of rAmAyaNa is but the glorious story of sItA. SrI BhaTTar concludes his vyAkhyAnam for the nAma mAdhava in its firstoccurrence in Slokam 8 (nAma 73), by elaborately dwelling on the qualities ofLakshmi, and then ending with one line for mA-dahva, where he attributes thegreatness of mAdhava to His association with SrI: SraddhayA devo devatvamaSnute Lord VishNu gets His Lordship because of His association with Lakshmi.This is the secret about the true nature of SrI. Under nAma-s 169 and 741, SrI BhaTTar gives alternate explanations for thenAma mA-dhavah, but these a couple of sentences each in length, compared to thevery elaborate description above that he has given for the first occurrence ofthe nAma in Slokam 8 (nAma 73). It is clear that SrI BhaTTars thoughts areabout our Mother SrI in his anubhavam of the nAma mA-dhava for the Lord. b) The Bestower of Knowledge (mA The vidyA or knowledge of Hari; dhava Lord, Preceptor, Propounder) For the nAma mA-dhava in Slokam 18 (nAma 169), both SrI Samkara and SrIBhaTTar give the interpretation in terms of His being the Propounder (dhavah) ofthe mA vidyA the knowledge of Hari. They both quote the support from theharivamSa:

mA vidyA ca hareh proktA tasyA Iso yato bhavAn | tasmAt mA-dhava nAmAsi dhavah svAmIti Sabditah || (3.69.4) The knowledge about of Hari is called mA. Thou art the Master of thatknowledge. Therefore Thou art known as mAdhava. It has been stated that dhava means Lord. SrI cinmayAnanda elaborates further on the above. He Who helps introspection and meditation in the seeker is Madhava. SrI BhaTTar gives additional support from the mahAbhArata: madhu vidyA avabodhatvAt dhAvatvAt-vA SriyoniSam | maunAd-dhyAnAcca yogAcca viddhi bhArata mAdhavam || (mahA. 3.69.4) There are three explanations that are given in the above Sloka for the nAmamAdhavah. c) first is that since He is cognized through madhu vidyA, He is called mAdhavah (madhu vidyA is referenced in chAndogya Upanishad 3.1,bRhadAraNya upanishad 2.5); the second explanation is that He is the Lord of SrI (the explanationdiscussed in detail under a) for this nAma); d) and the third one is that because He is recognized through dhyAna, mauna,and yoga, He is called mAdhavah. The dharma cakram writer explains mauna, dhyAna, and yoga further. Mauna results in the control of the indriya-s; dhyAna focuses the mind in the thought of the Atma tattvam, and yoga solidifies and consolidates this thought on a permanent basis. e) Under the current nAma, both SrI Samkara and SrI BhaTTar give theinterpretation that He is a scion of the Race of the Madhus, and therefore hasthe name mAdhavah (madhu kulodhbahavAt mAdhavah, or madhu kule jAtatvAt mAdhavah). f) Another explanation given by SrI BhaTTar for the nAma is that this nAma isan illustration of the togetherness of SrI and BhagavAn as Mother and Father ofall of us. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments the importance of this specialrelationship of bhagavAn and pirATTi to the world, and their togethernessalways, in the protection of the jIva-s. It is of because of the Mothersnearness that bhagavAn forgives the countless apacAra-s committed by the cetana-s.It is in this sense that it is important for all of us that He is agalagillEniRaiyum enRu alrmEl mangai uRai mArban (tiruvAi. 6.10.10), and She isalways with Him. g) SrI tirukkaLLam nRsimha rAghavAcArya in his gItA bhAshya, has givenanother interpretation mA dhavah yasya sa mAdhavah He for Whom there is no Master. Since there is no one above Him in any sense, and since He is the Lord of everyone and every thing in all the universes, He is called mA-dhavah. 742. bhakta-vatsalah

a) Affectionate towards the devotees. b) He Who goes to the devotees who makes offerings to Him through yaj~na c) He Who takes the devotees to Him, who are dear to Him like a calf to the cow om bhakta-vatsalAya namah. The term bhakta is derived from the root bhaj sevAyAm to serve, tohonor (bhajati bhajate sevate iti bhaktah - kASakRtsna dhAtu vyAkhyAna 1.695,referenced by SrI satyadevo vAsishTha). Thus, one who serves, honors, praises,etc., is a bhakta. The word vatsalah is derived from the word vatsa, which byitself means calf. However, by pANini sutra 5.2.98, the addition of the affixlac after the word vatsa gives it the meaning love vatsa amsAbhyAmkAma bale. Thus, the word vatsala means kAmavat, snehavat, etc. one who isin love, one who is friendly. Bhakta vatsalan in thus One Who is affectionatetowards His devotees. a) SrI BhaTTars anubhavam is that this nAma brings out the specialattitude of BhagavAn towards His devotees, who are eager to cultivate therelationship with Him as Master and kinsman (i.e., as bhakta-s towards Him). SrIBhaTTar comments that His joy of having attained His bhakta-s is so great, thatHe forgets all other desires tal-lAbha sambhrama vismRta anya-kAmah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan elaborates on the term vatsalah, or vAtsalyam of BhagavAntowards His devotees. As mention earlier, vatsa refers to a calf. Vatsalah alsorefers to affection, of the kind that a cow shows towards its calf. The cowlicks and removes any dirt or other material that may be found on the body ofthe calf, on in other words, it treats even the blemishes on its calf as bhogyamfor itself. BhagavAns love towards His devotees is similarly one of ignoringtheir faults, and enjoying their devotion instead. SrI rAmAnujan gives twoexamples. - When Vidura was offering worship to kRshNa at his house, he was totallyimmersed in looking at Lord kRshNa with devotion and affection, and he waspeeling off the outer layer of the banana, and giving the peeled skin to kRshNafor eating instead of giving the peeled fruit by mistake. Lord kRshNa was soimmersed in His devotee that He did not also realize that the skin was what Hewas being given, and He also ate the skin as a bhogya vastu, because it had beenoffered with the utmost devotion. - When BhIshma was lying on the death-bed ofarrows and meditating on Lord kRshNa, the Lord just informed the fellow pANDava-s:The Lion of men is lying there, just thinking of Me and meditating on Me,and having said that, He Himself was lost on the thought of His bhakta andforgot Himself and His surroundings. b) In addition to giving the above interpretation (bhakteshu vAtsalyavAn),SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives two other interpretations for the nAma. One ofthese is based on the meaning cooked rice or food for the term bhakta (seethe explanation for bhakta vilocanan in the nAcciyAr tirumozhi posting forpASuram 12.6). In this interpretation, SrI satya sandha yatirAja looks at thenAma as bhaktavat-salah, and gives the interpretation: bhaktam annam yeshAm asti iti bhaktavanto yaj~na kartAro brAhmaNAn, tAn pratisalati gacchati iti bhaktavat-salah He Who goes to the devotees who make offerings to Him through yaj~na (the rootsal to go, to move is used for the interpretation of the second part, salah). c) The other interpretation given by SrI satya sandha yatirAja is bhaktA eva vatsAh, tAn lAti iti bhaktavatsa-lah He Who takes the devotees to Him, who are dear to Him like a calf to the cow. (The root lA AdAne dAne ca to take, to obtain, is used in thisinterpretation).

The dharma cakram writer compares the relationship between BhagavAn and us tothat between the mother and the child. The mother has selfless affection to thechild, and the child trusts the mother solely and exclusively for its survival.A true devotee will be like the child towards the mother, and BhagavAn is ofcourse like the Mother towards all. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 79 -

suvarNa-varNo hemA'ngo varA'ngah candanA'ngadI | vIra-hA vishamah Sunyo ghRtASir_acalaS_calah ||

om om om om om om om om om om

suvarNa-varNAya namah hemA'ngAya namah varA'ngAya namah candanA'ngadine namah vIraghne namah vishamAya namah SunyAya namah ghRtASishe namah acalAya namah calAya namah

743. suvarNa-varNah The golden-hued. Om suvarNa-varNAya namah Sobhana varNa su-varNa, suvarNamiva varNam yasya sa su-varNah "He Who has a hue that is attractive like gold". Thus, the literalmeaning of the nAma is "He Who is goldenhued". Gold is known for its purity and its untarnished nature, its effulgence, itsbeing highly desired by people, etc. All these aspects of bhagavAn are brought out by this nAma, namely HisEffulgence, His blemishless nature, His Illuminating Power, His Purifying Nature, His being desired and coveted byall His devotees, etc.

The term suvarNa here stands for "that which is extremely desiredand longed for, that which is flawless and pure", etc. SrI aNNan'ngarAcArya gives the explanation: "He Who has the divya svarUpamwhich is blemishless like gold". nAma-s similar to the current one are used in the outpourings of AzhvArs whogrope for words to describe the aunbhavam that they have had of theindescribable emperumAn. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several examples fromprabandham. - tiruma'ngai AzhvAr describes Him in tiruk kuRum tANDakam (6) as sweet song,fresh honey, shining gold, the flower that the nitya sUri-s wear on their head,etc. "inbap-pAvinai, paccait tEnai, paim-ponnai, amarar Sennit pUvinai". - nammAzhvAr describes Him in tiruviruttam (85) as "ualgu aLanda mANikkamE!En maradagamE! MaRRu oppArai illA Anip ponnE!" - The Gem that measured thethree worlds! My favorite Emerald! The Incomparable Pure Gold! - Tirum'ngai AzhvAr describes the beautiful golden hue of perumAL in periatirumozhi 4.9.8 as follows: "ponnin vaNNam maNiyin vaNNam puraiyum tirumEni" (in tretAyugam), Your hue is golden, and (in dvApara yugam), Your hue is blue.. SrI bhaTTar gives supports from the Sruti and smRti-s, where paramAtman'ssuvarNa varNam is referenced: - yadA paSyah paSyate rukma varNam kartAram ISam purusham brahma yonim (muNDakopanishad 3.3) "When the seer sees the purusha, the golden-hued, creator, lord...". - praSasitAram sarveshAm aNIyAmsam aNorapi | rukmAbham svapanadhIgamyam vidyAttam purusham param || (manu smRti - 12.122) "Let him know the Supreme Purusha, the Sovereign Ruler of them all,smaller than the smallest, bright like gold, and perceptible by the intellect only when in a state of abstraction". - Aditya varNam (purusha sUktam 20) - He Who has the luster of the sun. - .ya eshontarAdiye hiraNmayah purusho dRSyate hiraNya smaSruh hiraNya keSa ApraNakAt sarva eva suvarNah | (chAndog. 1.6.6)"That golden Person who is seen within the sun, with golden beard andgolden hair, golden altogether to the very tip of His nails". SrI cinmayAnanda explains the significance of this Sruti vAkhya: Upon witnessing the Self-Effulgent (Golden) Being, the seer's realization iscompletely transformed, and "then, the wise one, shaking off all deeds of merits and demerits,becomes stainless, and attains the supreme State of Equipois". PirATTi is also described along the same lines in the veda-s: "hiraNyavarNAm hariNIm..." (SrI sUktam). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives additional support from SrImad rAmAyaNam, where sItA pirATTi describes rAma as "One Who has golden hue": kaccin-na tad-hema samAna varNam..." (sundara. 36.28).

744. hemA'ngah - He of golden-hued limbs. Om hemA'ngAya namah. SuvarNa and hema are equivalent words that refer to gold. The word hema is derived from the root hi - gatau, vRddhau ca - to go, topromote. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the following derivation for the nAma : hinvanti vardhayanti SobhAm iti hemAni | taDRSAni a'ngAni yasya iti hemA'ngah | He Who has limbs that promote the beauty of His tirumeni, or He Who has limbs that resemble gold in promoting His beauty. SrI bhaTTar interprets the nAma as referring to the limbs of His body whichare eternal, celestial, and composed of suddha-sattva material. nityam, divyam,sattva mayam a'ngam asya iti hemA'ngah. This nAma is a logical extension of theprevious one - Since He has a body which is golden-hued, His a'nga-s likewiseare golden-hued. All the pramANa-s quoted in support of the interpretation forthe previous nAma are applicable here as well. Additional supports given underthis nAma, which equally apply to the previous nAma, are: - "dhyeyas-sadA, savitR-maNDala madhyavartI nArAyaNa ... hiraNmaya vapuhdhRta sa'nkha cakrah....." (in sandhyAvandana mantram) pon AnAi! Pozhil Ezhum kAval pUNDa pugazh AnAi! .. ImayOrku enRum mudal AnAi! (tirumangai AzhvAr, tiruneDum tANDakam 10) 745. varA'ngah a) He Who displayed His Divine Form to devaki in response to herprayers. b) He Who has beautiful limbs. c) He Who has a lovable Form that is pleasing to those who meditate on Him. Om varA'ngAya namah Among the dictionary meanings for the term vara are: i) best, excellent, mostbeautiful; ii) boon; iii) a wish; etc. Different interpretations use thesedifferent meanings. a) SrI bhaTTar uses the meaning "wish" or "prayer" forthe term vara, and gives the interpretation that because He manifested the formwith celestial marks etc., that are concealed from mortal eyes, to devaki inresponse to her prayer, therefore He is named varA'ngah: tadetat aupanishadamdevakyA vriyamANam atinihnuta divya cihnam AvishkRtam iti varA'ngah. SrI bhaTTarrefers us to SrI vishNu purANam 5.3.8, which describes this beauty of childkRshNa in vasudeva-s words: phullendIvara patrAbham catur-bAhum udIkshya tam | SrIvatsa vakshasam jAtam tushTAva Anakadundhubhih ||

"Anakadundhubhi (vasudeva) beheld the Child, of the complexion of thepetal of a full-blown blue lilly, having four arms, and the mystic mark of SrIvatsa on His chest, and startedpraising Him". b) SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning "beautiful" for the word vara, and gives the interpretation for the nAma as "varANi SobhanAni a'ngAni asyaiti varA'ngah" One Who has beautiful limbs. c) SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma as: He Who has a Form that is pleasing (lovable) to those who meditate on Him. Thus he gives the meaning "lovable" to the term vara. We have seen three nAma-s above in sequence, which all describe the beauty ofHis form: suvarNa-varNah, hemA'ngah, varA'ngah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives hisanubhavam of the subtle difference in the ideas conveyed by the three nAma-s. - suvarNa-varNah - One Who has the natural form of sheer exquisite brilliancehemA'ngah - One Who has beautiful limbs that attract and hold the attention ofeveryone. varA'ngah - One Who has all the sAmudrikA lakshaNa-s brought together in oneplace, in His Form. The dharma cakram writer comments that even as beauty in human form tends toevoke kAmam, the beauty of the divine form evokes bhakti. The three nAma-s thatwe have just gone through, convey to us the beauty of the Divine Form of LordvishNu, that evokes bhakti in those who mediate on His Form. 746. candanA'ngadI He Who is adorned with delightful armlets. b) He Who is besmeared with pleasing sandal. c) He Who provides us all with the means and ways to be happy. d) He Who has a'ngada as His pleasing devotee. Om candanA'ngadine namah. The word candana is derived from the root cand - AhlAde dIptauca - to be glad, to shine. That which causes pleasure is candana - candyateanena, candayati vA yat, tat candanam iti (SrI satyadevo vAsishTha) Thatthrough which happiness is attained, or that which is instrumental in bringinghappiness, is candana. The word a'ngada is derived as - a'ngam dayate, dAyati,dyati vA. The relevant roots are: de'ng - pAlane - to protect, to cherish (dayate);or daip - Sodhane to purify, to be purified (dAyati); or do - avakhanDane - tocut, to divide, to move (dyati). The term is used for the ornament worn on theupper part of the arm (keyUram). The armlets are ornaments of defense worn onthe upper arm to protect the shoulders from enemy swords. Thus we get themeaning "He Who is adorned with delightful armlets" for the nAma. a) SrI bhaTTar notes that bhagavAn's Body is itself an infinitely beautifuljewel, and objects like the a'ngadI get their pleasing appearance when they getattached to His Body, and so He is called candanA'ngadI. So it is not thatbeautiful jewels decorate His Body, but His beautiful Body decorates the jewelsthat are placed on His Body, and make them beautiful. The a'ngada or keyUra isonly one example of the kinds of jewels that get their pleasing appearance byassociation with Him. nammAzhvAr describes in tiruvAimozhi 2.5.6 pala palavE AbharaNam pErum pala palavE Countless are the jewels that are on Him. The beauty of bhagavAn as every partof His body competes and complements the beauty of all the other parts, iscaptured by nammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhi pASuram 8.8.1,

starting with "kaNgaL Sivandu periyavAi, vAyum Sivandu kanindu,..makara kuNDalattan.oruvan aDiyEn uLLAnE". The reader is encouraged to delve deep into the meaning of this pASuram to getthe true anubhavam. bhagavad rAmAnuja pours out his anubhavam of bhagavAn'sbeautifully decorated tirumEni in his SrI vaikunTha gadyam: "ati manohara kirITa cUDAvatamsaka makara kuNDala graiveyaka hAra keyUra kaTaka SrIvatsa kaustubha muktAdAma udara bandhana pItAmbara kA'ncIguNa nUpurAdibhih atyanta sukha sparSaih divya gandhaih bhUshitam. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi 10.1.8, where nammAzhvArdescribes the Jewel that is perumAL: "tayarathan peRRa marakata maNit taDattinaiyE". Marakata maNi has the characteristic that it will remove the fear from poisonouscreatures, because they won't even approach anywhere close to its location.Similarly, enemies won't even get close to where Lord rAma is. The word taDamrefers to a cool reservoir of water, which is liked and desired by everyone. b) SrI ananta kRshNa SAstri ues the meaning "sandal" to the termcandana, and gives the interpretation that He has this nAma because He isadorned with pleasing sandal on His body. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning "pleasing" to the termcandana as we indicated earlier, and the root a'ng - to go, and interprets thenAma candanA'ngadI as referring to "He Who gives the means or ways for allof us to be happy" - (AhlAdalarIm gatim yo dadAti). d) SrI satyasandha yatirAja gives an interpretation where he links the nAmato a'ngada, the son of vAli. He gives the meaning "pleasing" or"devout" to the term candana, and interprets the nAma as referring to"One Who has a'ngada as a pleasing devotee". The dharma cakram writer sees the nAma as revealing to us the guNa ofbhagavAn whereby we derive mental peace by the very meditation on the Form ofbhagavAn. 747. vIra-hA a) The Slayer of the strong demons. b) The Destroyer of those who indulge in vain arguments and distract others from meditating on Him. c) The Destroyer of the bonds of yama. d) He Who leads the jIva-s to moksha by showing them the right path. e) He Who provides different ways for His creations to move around. f) He Who is accompanied by garuDa and vAyu when destroying the asura-s. g) He Who ends the various paths that go from birth to birth. Om vIraghne namaH. We have delved into the anubhavam of this nAma earlier (nAma 168 - Slokam 18), and we will see the nAma again in Slokam 99 - nAma 927). The term vIra is traditionally used to refer to the attribute of a person who is heroic and exhibits valor towards his enemies in war. Based on amara koSa vyAkhyAnam: viruddhAn rAti hanti iti vIrah (rA - dAne,

chedane ca) - One who destroys his enemies; vIrayati iti vA vIrah (vIr - vikrAntau - to display valor) - He who displays valor. So the nAma vIra-hA literally means "He Who destroys the vIra-s". Based on the attribute of bhagavAn described here, namely that He is One Who destroys vIra-s, some interpreters have given the meaning to the term vIra itself, with a negative connotation (instead of the meaning brave, they interpret the term as referring to those who violate dharma, based on the root Ir gatau to go, or, Ir kshepe to move, to throw, to cast off, to discard. In this interpretation, those who discard the path of dharma are being referred to as vIra-s, or those who go in the wrong path are called vIra-s (see the interpretations of SrI vAsishTha and SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj below). To understand the interpretation of the nAma with the positive meaning brave for vIra, we should remember that all vIra-s are not followers of dharma. In this nAma, bhagavAn's guNa of destroying the vIras who resort to a-dharma is what is addressed. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha elaborates that it is only where vishNu is that victory is, and it is not necessarily where a vIra is. Victory is where dharma is. A person who has the strength, but who tortures the innocent, is called an "aparAdhI" or one who has committed an aparAdham. It is these people that are destroyed by bhagavAn in the end without a trace. Grammatically, words such as vIra-hA kAma-hA, etc., signify a past action (one who has destroyed) - pANini sUtra 3.2.87). a) SrI BhaTTar gives examples of the "vIra-s" covered under this nAma: It is the likes of pUtanA, SakaTa, the twin arjuna trees, and such others who tried to kill child kRshNa deceitfully. nammAzhvAr describes some of these instances in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 5.3.8) (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan): peI mulai uNDu SakaTam pAindu marudiDaip pOi mudal SAittu puL vAi piLaNdu kaLiraTTa tU muRuval toNDai pirAnai...... (Note the references to pUtanA, SakaTAsuran, the twin maruda trees, bakAsuran, kuvalayApIdam, etc. He killed all these, and then just smiled with His bright teeth showing through the red lips in a mild artistic smile that is characteristic of Him whenever He achieves a feat). tiruma'ngai AzhvAr refers to Him as "the vIra beyond all vIra-s" - vem tirAl vIraril vIrar oppAr (periya tirumozhi 2.8.2). SrI vAsishTha gives the derivation - viruddha gatIn hanti iti vIra-hA. Along the same lines, SrI kRshNa datta bhArdvAj gives the interpretation: viSesheNa Irayanti kshipanti dharma mArgam iti vIrAh kamsa rAvaNa prabhRtayah; tAn vIrAn hanti iti vIra-hA - He destroys those that discard the path of dharma, such as kamsa, rAvaNa etc.. b) Another interpretation that SrI BhaTTar gives for the term vIra-s in the context of this nAma are those that are proficient in words, but misuse their skill to give fallacious arguments and prevent people from meditating on Him. BhagavAn destroys them, and so also He is referred to as vIra-hA (sva-vedana vihantRRn haituka-vIrAn hatavAn iti vIra-hA). c) For the third instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as referring to "One Who removed the strong bonds with yama for gajendra". SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN explains the nAma as: vIram vikrAntam graham hatavAn iti vIra-hA He Who destroyed the ferocious crocodile. BhagavAn removed the bonds of yama from gajendra by releasing him from the crocodile's jaws - mokshayAmAsa nagendram pASEbhyah

SaraNAgatam (vishNu dharma 69). The nirukti author summarizes the vyAkhyAnam: vIram tad-bAdhakam mRtyum hatavAn vIra-hA matah. d) One of the interpretations that SrI Sa'nkara gives is that BhagavAn is called vIra-hA because He destroys the asura vIra-s (covered under a). In addition, he gives an alternate interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma because He shows the right path to the samsArin-s and gives them salvation, by taking them away from following the various wrong paths - vividhAH samsAriNAm gatIh mukti-pradAnena hanti iti vIra-hA. SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry indicates the derviation of this interpretation as: The Destroyer (hA) of various (vi-) wrong paths (Ira), by conferring salvation on the devotees. e) In addition to the interpretation a), SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the roots Ir -gatau - to go, and hamm gatau - to go, to give another interpretation: vividham Irati iti vIrah - referring to all the different creatures which move in different ways; tAnsca yo hanti - gamayati - He Who makes it possible for them to go, is virahA - sarveshAm bahudhA irANAm jantUnAm gamayitA vishNuh. f) One of the interpretations given by SrI satya sandha tIrtha is: vih = garuDah, Irah = vAyuh; tAbhyAm hanti gacchati iti vIra-hA - vishNu is called vIra-hA because He goes along with garuDa and vAyu in destroying the asura-s. g) In one of the interpretations, SrI cinmAyananda takes the term vIra to mean "various or different paths or ways", (this is probably derived from the root Ir - gatau - to go), and gives the interpretation to the nAma as "He Who ends the passage from birth to birth". The dharma cakram writer observes that just as there are those who follow the path of a-dharma and are destroyed by BhagavAn, there are the internal enemies in each one us in the form of kAma, krodha, moha and lobha, which are also destroyed by Him when we devote ourselves to Him. The lesson to take from this nAma is that the chanting and meditation on the mantra derived from this nAma will result in His destroying these internal enemies in us, that obstruct us from realizing Him. 748. vishamah a) He of unequal (conflicting) acts towards His devotees vs. Hisenemies b) He for Whom there is no equal. c) He Who destroyed the effect of the poison that was consumed by rudra duringthe churning of the Milk Ocean. Om vishamAya namah. The word vi-shamah is derived by the combination: vi + samah = vishamah -vigatah samo yasya iti vishamah - One Who is devoid of equals is vishamah. Whenthe prefix vi is combined with the word samah, the sa becomes sha according topANini sUtra 8.3.88 (ashTAdhyAyI) - su-vi-nir-durbhyah supi, sUti, samAh The sof svap, sUti, and sama, is changed to sh after su, vi, nir, and dur. a) SrI bhaTTar's anubhavam is that His guNa of vi-samam reflects in Hisconflicting behavior in His treatment of the good vs. the bad. Hisinterpretation is that bhagavAn is "One with unpredictable and conflictingacts" - vi-samah, because He acts in different ways with different persons.He is very benevolent with His devotees, and He is fearsome and terrific withthose who are offenders of dharma.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi 2.6.1, where nammAzhvArdescribes this guNa of bhagavAn: "vaikunthA maNi vaNNanE en pollAt tirukkuraLA .. Sei kundA varum tImai un aDiyArkkut tIrttu aSurarkkut tImaigaL SeikundA! nammAzhvAr names some of His "viDam'ngaL' in tiruvAimozhi pASuram7.8.3: "Sittirat tEr valavA! Tiruc-cakkarattAi!..ivai enna viDama'ngaLE!" He was the charioteer for arjuna in the mahAbhArata war. As arjuna's charioteer,He will either depress the whole chariot slightly or raise it slightly, suchthat the arrows of bhIshma aimed at arjuna will miss him, and the arrows ofarjuna meant of the enemies will hit their targets without fail. In the warbetween arjuna and jayadratha, He just wielded His cakra to interchange day andnight, so that jayadratha who was hiding till he thought the sun had set, couldbe eliminated by arjuna. These are just some instances of His "viDama'ngaL". The same idea is conveyed by SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN, who gives theinterpretation "bhakta pakshapAtittvAt" vishamah - Because He is biased towards His devotees, He is called vi-samah. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that He is vishamah because He has noequal in any sense, and He transcends everything - samo na asya vidyatesarva-vilakshNatvAt iti vishamah. He refers us to arjuna's words frombhagavad-gItA: pitA'si lokasya carAcarasya tvamasya pUjyasSca gurur-garIyAn | na tvat-samosti abyadhikah kuto'nyo loka-trayepyapi apratimaprabhAva || (11.43) "You are the Father of this world, of all that moves and that does notmove. You are its Teacher and the One most worthy of reverence. There is noneequal to You. How then can there be another greater than You in the threeworlds, O Being of matchless greatness?" nammAzhvAr describes perumAL in his tiruvAimozhi as "ottAr mikkArai ilaiyAya mA-mAyA (2.3.2)" "You are a mA-mAyan without a peer or a superior". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that it is precisely this vishama guNa ofbhagavAn that He reflects in all His creation - no two creations are exactlyidentical in all respects, and every single creation is unique. No two childrenof any parent are identical, and nothing is identical to another in thisuniverse consisting of countless creations. As has been indicated in a fewplaces before, SrI vAsishTha, who explains the intricate grammatical basis foreach of the nAma-s in great detail, also has composed a Slokam for each nAmaexplaining the significance of the nAma, in addition to giving a detailedvyAkhyAnam. His Slokam for the current nAma is: sa vishNureko vishamah purANah karoti viSvam vishamam svabhAvAt | tamAnukurvan vishamam pravRttA sampat vipac-cApi jagat prasRptA || "The purAna purusha, vishNu, is distinct from everyone else, and isdistinct. Consistent with this guNa of His, He has also created everything elsesuch that nothing is same as another in His creation. This guNa is spread notonly in species of different kinds, but also in members of the same kind".

c) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation that He has the nAmavishamah because He nullified the effect of the poison that was consumed byrudra during the churning of the Milk Ocean (visham rdura pItam mInAti hantisva-nAma-smaraNena iti vish-mah. The root mI - himsAyAm - to kill, to lesson, tochange, to be lost is used in this interpretation). The dharma cakram writer gives several examples to illustrate that bhagavAn is unique and without anyone to compare to Him - vi-samah. a) He is hRshIkeSan - One Who is unexcelled in His control of His indriya-s, andeven more so, He is the sole Controller of all our indriya-s. b) He is keSavan, KeSi nishUdanan, madhu sUdanan, etc. In other words, there isno one comparable to Him in assisting the deva-s when they are harassed by theasura-s, and in destroying the asura-s. c) He is govindan, since there is no one comparable to Him in knowing the natureof the jIva-s. d) He is janArdanan; there is no one as determined and powerful as He is inchastising the wicked people. e) He is vishNu; He pervades everything and He is everywhere. Without Himnothing exists and functions. f) He is yogISa and yogavidAm netA - The best among the yogi-s and the Leader ofall those who follow the path of yoga. g) He is bhagavAn, who is unique in His shad-guNya paripUrNattvam - thequalities of j~nAna, Sakti, bala, aiSvarya, vIrya, and tejas. h) He is acyuta, Who neither slips from His vow, nor lets His devotees slip awayfrom their goal. These are just a few instances that bring out His vi-samattvam,and so He is known as vishamah. 749. SUnyah a) He Who is devoid of defects when He takes births as one of us. b) He Who is without any attributes (advaita interpretation) c) He Who goes everywhere, or is present everywhere. d) He Who cleans out everything at the time of pralaya. e) He Who is not accessible when we seek Him through our senses. Om SUnyAya namah. The word SUnyam means empty, void, etc. The nAma is interpreted by differentvyAkhyAna kartA-s in terms of His being devoid of defects, His destroyingeverything completely at the time of pralaya, His ridding His enemies completelywithout trace, etc. a) SrI bhaTTar's interpretation is that He has this nAma because He waswithout any trace of any type of defect even though He took human incarnations.SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 3.10.6: tuyar il SuDAroLi tannuDaic cOdi ninRa vaNNam niRkavE tuyarin maliyum maniSar piRaviyil tOnRik kaN kANa vandu tuyara'ngaL Seidu tan deiva nilai ulagil puga uykkum ammAn tuyaram il SIrk kaNNan mAyan pugazh tuRRa yAn Or tunbam ilanE. BhagavAn is without any trace of defect, and this is well accepted. But Hetakes birth among the griefstricken human beings. Even so, He continues to haveall His parattvam intact in His incarnations, and so He is without any defect.He takes these births so that He is accessible to the people. He continues totorture His enemies through His weapons etc., and He continues to torture Hisdevotees because of even the

minutest separation from Him. But for nammAzhvArthere is no tuyaram in this world because he is constantly having the anubhavamof His thought. svAmi deSikan describes the six rahasya-s of bhagavAn's incarnations, in hisSaraNAgati dIpikA, Slokam 17: 1) nAnA-vidhaih (they are of different types, e.g., matsya, nArasimha, kRshNa,etc.), 2) a-kapaTaih (they are all His true Forms, not just appearances), 3) ajahat-svabhAvaih (He is full of all His qualities of parattvam during theseincarnations, 4) a-prAkRtaih (His tirumeni during His incarnations are made of suddha-sattva,and not of the pa'nca bhUtas as in the case of His creations); 5) nija vihAra vaSena siddhaih (These Forms are not a result of pUrva karma, asis in our case; they are assumed as part of His leelA, by His own FreeWill); 6) AtmIya raksha, vipaksha vinASanArthaih (They are assumed for the protectionof His devotees, and for the destruction of their enemies, and not for theexpiation of the karma accumulated in previous countless births as in our case).It is clear that bhagavAn is a Big Zero when it comes of to any form of defecteven when He is born among us humans! SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that the nAma signifiesthat bhagavAn is completely devoid of anay guNa-s associated with prakRti -prAkRta guNa virahitatvAt SUnyah, which is item 4 in svAmi deSika's list above. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is a reflection of his advaita philosophy -He is called SUnyah because He is devoid of any attributes - sarva viSesharahitatvAt SUnyavat SUnyah. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the root Sun - gatau - to go, and interpretsthe nAma as referring to "One Who goes everywhere, or is everywhere" (SunatiprApto bhavati sarvatra iti SUnyo vishNuh). He points out that kham - the wordfor sky, also means "void" or "a cipher". It is becausethere is a void that a motion or movement from another place to this void ispossible, and thus void leads to motion, and motion leads to void. He points outthe importance of SUnya by reminding us how the number "1" undergoes aten-fold increase in value by the placement of just a SUnyam next to it in thenumber system. d) SrI satyasandha yatirAja gives the interpretation that He is SUnyahbecause He clears out everything in this universe with nothing left, at the timeof pralaya - pralaya kAle sarva padArtha SUnyatvAt SUnyah. e) The dharma cakram writer gives yet another anubhavam: bhagavAn is calledSUnyah because He is not accessible to our senses, no matter how much we try. Weare used to believing that something exists only if we can relate to it throughour senses. He is not accessible to the senses, and so He is SUnyah. 750. ghRtASIh a) He Who sprinkles the world with prosperity b) He Who is desirous of thebutter in the gopis' houses. c) He from Whom all desires have flown away. d) HeWho enjoys the offering of ghee in the homa etc. Om ghRtASishe namah. The two parts that make up this nAma are ghRtam and ASIh. There are severalmeanings for the word ghRtam - secanam, ksharaNam, dIpanam vA ghRtam -sprinkling, flowing, or shining. ghRtam also refers to ghee or butter. The wordASIh is derived from the root A'ng - SAsu - icchAyAm - to expect, to bless. Thedifferent combinations result in the different interpretations.

a) SrI bhaTTar derives his interpretation using the meaning ghR - secane - tosprinkle, to cover. SrI bhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is - ghRtam - secanam, sva-guNaihjagat ApyAyanam - He makes the world prosperous by means of His benevolentqualities. b) An alternate interpretation given by SrI bhaTTar is based on the meaning"ghee or butter" for the word ghRtam. Since He has great desire (ASAsti)for the butter (ghRtam) in the gopis' homes, He is called ghRtaASIh gopa gRha gavye ASAstih asya iti ghRtASIh (ghRte ASIh kAmo yasya sa ghRtASIh). c) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is: ghRtAh vigalitAh Asishah prArthanAh asya iti ghRtASIh He of non-existent requests is ghRtASIh. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri paints a picture of this guNa by pointing out that"the qualities of desiring something, seeking someone's grace to get it,receiving it from someone, etc., which are common sequences for many of us inday-to-day life, have melted away like ghee, and dripped off or oozed out fromHim, and so He is devoid of all these qualities of need, want, etc". d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretations that He is ghRtASIhbecause He desires or enjoys the offerings of ghRtam or ghee in the fireofferings; or, He is ghRtASIh because He likes the offering in the form of alighted dIpam. 751. a-calah a) He Who is unshakable against His enemies. b) He Who is immutable in Hisnature, power, wisdom, etc. c) He Who does not move anywhere, because He iseverywhere already. Om a-calAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is cal - kampane - to stir, toshake. That which does not move, or He Who is firm in His conviction and action, arecalled a-calah. a) SrI bhaTTar gives the interpretation: duryodhanAdhibhih durAtmabhih a-bhedyaha-calah He is called a-calah because He is not stirred by the evil-minded duryodhana andothers. b) SrI Sa'nkara's anubhavam is: na svarUpAt na sAmarthyAt na ca j~nAnAdikAt guNAt calanam vidyate asya iti a-calahHe is Immutable, or a-calah, because He undergoes no change in His nature,power, wisdom or any other attributes. The reader is again referred to the article thathad been posted earlier, comparing the approaches of SrI Sa'nkara dn SrI BhaTTarto the vyAkhyAna of SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam. The difference we see in theinterpretation of the current nAma is another illustration of this difference. c) One of the interpretations that SrI cinmayAnanda gives is that becausebhagavAn is everywhere (Allpervading), and there is no place that He is not,therefore He is a-calah. He gives the gItA Slokam 2.24 as support:

ac-chedyo'yam a-dAhyo'yam a-kledyo'Soshya eva ca | nityah sarva-gatah sthANuh a-calo'yam sanAtanah || "It cannot be cleft; It cannot be burnt; It cannot be wetted and Itcannot be dried; It is eternal, all-pervading, stable, immovable, and primeval". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that bhagavAn Who is a-calah, has alsoinculcated in all His creations, the principle of a-calattvam in some form.Thus, for instance, the tree or plant that comes out of a given seed is only ofthe same type as the seed, and not of a different type. This dharma is notviolated ever. When a fire shoots out, it is always directed in an upwarddirection, and not in a downward direction. Thus, even those that are moving andactive, are bound by His principle of a-calattvam. The dharma cakram writer gives a real-world analogy to illustrate theimportance of this nAma. A small wind is able to move and shake small plants; abigger cyclone is able to uproot even big trees; however, a mountain is notmoved by any of these. Similarly, people who are involved and entangled inworldly joys and sorrows are shaken up and tossed around emotionally; evenarjuna got totally confused and disheartened when he entered the battlefield. Itis very rare indeed to find human beings who are not tossed around, becausetheir indriya-s control them. But he who controls his manas and indriya-s isfirm in his resolve, and he is not tossed around or shaken by happenings aroundhim. His mind becomes a-cala manas. The peace that comes out of this dispositionis the true peace that we should aim for. 752) calah a) He Who swerves. b) He Who moves (in the form of vAyu etc.). c) He Whorushed out of SrI vaikunTham at the cry for help from gajendra. d) He Who isfull of leelA-s. Om calAya namah. We just saw in the previous nAma that bhagavAn is a-calah. Now we see that Heis also calah, He Who swerves. His a-cala guNam or firmness was towards Hisenemies; his cala guNam is reserved for His devotees. SrI bhaTTar gives the well-known instance of His carrying arms againstbhIshma after making a promise earlier that He will never take to arms in themahA bhArata war. Thus, He swerved from His word, and so He was a calah in thiscase. A couple of reasons are given for His breaking His own promise. One wasthat He wanted to save His dear devotee, arjuna, from the wrath of bhIshma, andso decided to go with His cakra against bhIshma to protect arjuna. The secondreason given is that bhIshma, who was a great devotee of kRshNa, had taken anoath in front of kRshNa the previous evening that he will fight so ferociouslythe next day as to make kRshNa break His promise and take to arms; what was atstake was the word of His devotee bhIshma, and kRshNa had to protect the word ofHis devotee even if it meant that He had to break His own promise. Making Hisdevotee's word come true was more important for Him than to keep His ownpromise. So He took to arms, and thus became a calah - One Who swerves for Hisdevotee. Another instance was His cheating jayadratha by converting day intonight. The real truth to be understood in the above instances that He is the Onewho establishes what is right and what is wrong, and so by definition, what Hedecides is Justice. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that He is calah, or One Who moves, inthe form of air vAyu rUpeNa calati iti calah.

c) SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry has added an interpretation that He is calledacalah because He rushed out of SrI vaikunTham to help the elephant-kinggajendra when he cried out for help. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root cal - vilasane - to sport,to frolic, and gives the interpretation that He has this nAma because He is fullof leelA-s calati vilasati iti calah vilAsa leelA sampannah.

Dasan Krishnamachari -(will continue) SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 80 -

a-mAnI mAnado mAnyo loka-svAmI tri-loka-dhRt | su-medhA medhajo dhanyah satya-medhA dharA-dharah om om om om om om om om om om a-mAnine namah mAnadAya namah mAnyAya namah loka-svAmine namah tri-loka-dhRshe namah su-medhase namah medhajAya namah dhanyAya namah satya-medhase namah dharA-dharAya namah.

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753. a-mAnI a) He Who is not proud. b) He Who does not mistakenly identify things such as the body with Atman. c) He Who is beyond all measure in all respects. Om a-mAnine namah.

a) The nAma is derived from the root mAn - pUjAyAm - to honor, to worship.mAna means garva (pride), ahamkAra (the feeling of "I"), etc. - garvoabhimAno ahmakArah (amara koSam 1.7.22). The word a-mAnI means One Who has nogarva or ahamkAra (na mAno garvo yasya aiti amAnah). He is unconcerned aboutbeing respected by others - Atma-sammAna bhAva rahitah (SrI satyadevo vAsishTha),even though He is the prabhu Who is worshipped by the likes of brahma. SrIbhaTTar gives the example of bhagavAn undertaking to be a messenger for thepANDava-s, even though He had to face indignities in the process. His being thecharioteer for arjuna is another example of the same guNa of bhagavAn. For thegood of the world, He does not hesitate to take incarnations even as a Boar, aFish, a Form with the face of a Lion, etc. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to prabandham in support: mun Or tUdu vAnarattin vAyil mozhindu .. ............... avanE pin Or tUdu Adi mannarkku Agi peru nilattAr "innAr tudan" ena ninRAn .(periya tirumozhi 2.2.3) "He became the messenger to the pANDava kings, and let Himself bereferred to as "so-and-so's messenger", even though He is the SupremeLord". ANDAL describes Him in Her nAcciyAr tirumozhi 11.8 as "One Who iswilling to become mAna ilAp panRi": pASi tUrttuk kiDaNda pAr magaTkup paNDoru nAL mASu uDambil nIr vArA mAnamilAp panRiyAm... "He shamelessly took the Form of a varAha, with a dirty body and waterdripping all over, just for the sake of retrieving bhU devi who was lying underthe Ocean with fungus growing all over Her..". nammAzhvAr refers to Him as "nADuDai mannarkkut tUdu Sel nambi" intiruvAimozhi 6.6.4. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that He is called a-mAnI because He hasno mistaken notions of Atman in things that are not Atman - anAtma vastushuAtmAbhimAno na asti asya iti a-mAnI. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives an additional interpretation using the rootmA - mAne - to measure, to compare with, and gives the meaaning "One Whocannot be measured (with regard to strength, power, or any of the otherauspicious qualities)". The sense conveyed here is that bhagavAn is a-prameya- Beyond the scope of definition. 754. mAna-dah a) He Who honors others. b) He Who confers rewards on His devotees, or denies rewards for the unrighteous(Sa'nkara) c) He Who removes the false understanding of Atman in true seekers, or induces afalse sense of Atman in non-seekers (Sa'nkara) d) He Who gives spiritual enlightenment to His devotees. e) He Who gives a measure and dimension to everything in the Universe. Om mAnadAya namah. The same root that was used in the last nAma applies for the current nAma aswell. a) SrI bhaTTar's interpretation is that BhagavAn is called mAna-dah becauseHe always honors His devotees. He gives the instances of Lord kRshNa's honoringarjuna by making him the master of the chariot, making

ugrasena the Ruler andbeing his vassel, and making yudhisthira the king and respecting him arjunaugrasena yudhisthirAdibhyo rathitva, Adhi-rAjya , bahumAnam dattavAn mAna-dah. There are numerous other instances where bhagavAn has exhibited His guNa ofbeing a mAna-dah. His being born as a son to daSaratha, vasudeva, etc., are allexamples where He bestows honor on these great devotees of His. b) - c) SrI Sa'nkara gives multiple interpretations for the nAma: - In the first of his interpretations, SrI Sa'nkara ues the meaningAtmAbhimAnam for the word mAnam, and gives the interpretation that Lord vishNuinduces a false sense of Atman through His mAyA - He creates the falseattachment in objects that are not the self, and makes people get attached tothem as if they are the self - sva-mAyayA sarveshAm anAtmasu mAnam AtmAbhimAnamdadAti it mAna-dah. His second interpretation is that vishNu is mAna-dah because He confersrewards on His devotees bhaktAnAm mAnam satkAram dadAti iti vA. The third interpretation is that He prevents rewards to the unrighteous - a-dharmishThAnAmmAnam satkAram dyati khANDayati iti. The last interpretation of SrI Sa'nkara is that He has this nAma because Hedestroys the wrong notions of Atman in earnest seekers - tattva-vidAm anAtmasumAnam AtmAbhimAnam dyati khaNDayati iti vA mAnadah. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning "citta samunnati" or"elevation of mind" to the word mAna, and thus interprets the nAma asmeaning that He gives spiritual enlightenment to His devotees, and so He ismAna-dah - mAnam citta-samunnatim dadAti iti mAna-dah (mAnaS-citta samunnatih -qamara koSam). e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning "parimANam" or measureto the word mAnam, and gives the interpretation that the nAma means "OneWho gives dimension to everything. SrI vAsishTha uses both the roots dad - dAne- to give, and dau - avakhaNDane - to cut, to divide, in his interpretation ofthe nAma simultaneously, and points out that bhagavAn has this nAma because Heestablishes a definition of everything in this universe by both the principlesof attraction and repulsion (AkarshaNam and vikarshaNam) to achieve thisfunction of giving dimension to everything (mAna-dah) - mAna dadAti AkarshaNena,mAna dyati khaNDayati vikarshaNena. He gives the example of the various planets having their shapes, orbits,etc., only because of this function of bhagavAn as mAna-dah. He also points outthat the very shape of the body, with its different parts, is because of Hisgiving dimension and definition to all these, and thus His guNa of mAna-dah isreflected in everything we see. SrI vAsishTha-s anubhavam of the nAma goesfurther, and he points out that because bhagavAn has thus given the definitionand dimension to everything, He has shown us the principle of the airplanesthrough the birds that fly, the principle of the ship etc., through thecreatures that navigate in water, etc. Water quenching fire, and fireevaporating away water, are all instances of His giving dimension and definitionto these elements, such that everything works together in unison. Drawing from the thoughts conveyed by the dharma cakram writer, the lesson totake from this nAma is that just as bhagavAn gives respect to His devotees, weshould learn to give respect to Him and to His devotees, and to devote ourenergy to Atma vishayam, and not waste our life and time by giving respect tothings that do not deserve true respect, such as a-dharma, injustice, etc.

755. mAnyah The Object of honor. Om mAnyAya namah. This nAma again has the same root as the previous two nAma s: mAn pUjAyAm to honor, to worship. mAnayitum yogyo mAnyah pUjanIyah iti mAnyah He Who is fit to be worshipped or honored is mAnyah. SrI bhaTTar comments that bhagavAn is worthy of respect because of Hisspecial relationship towards His devotees based on His affection towards them tadIyatvena sanmantavyo mAnyah. SrI bhaTTar gives the example of LordkRshNas concern for arjuna through the following verse in mahAbhArata: na sAratheh sAttvata kauravANAm kruddhasya mucyeta raNedya kaScit - In the battle of kurukshetra today, no sAttvata or kaurava is going toescape death because the Charioteer of arjuna is angry. SrI v.v. rAmAnujanrefers us to nammAzhvArs periya tiruvantAdi 53, where AzhvAr points to thisguNa of bhagavAn: un aDiyArkku en Seivan enrE irutti nI You are constantlythinking of the good that You can do to Your devotees. SrI Sankaras vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn is worthy of being worshippedby all because of being the SarveSvaran sarvaih mAnanIyah pUjanIyah sarveSvaratvAt iti mAnyah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha points out that rightly He is worthy of beingworshipped, because it is because of Him that everything exists and functions ISAvAsyam idam sarvam yat kim ca jagatyAm jagat (ISAvAsya upanishad - mantra1). He is the Lord, Creator and Protector of everything. SrI cinmayAnanda refers us to another work of SrI Sankara, viveka cUDAmaNi,where Sankara uses the term mAnyah to refer to those blessed souls whohave been able to realize the Supreme Being dhanyah sa mAnyo bhuvi.If the people who have realized the Supreme Being are mAnyah orworshippable, what words can be used to describe the worship-worthiness of theSupreme Being Himself! It is noted again that SrI bhaTTars anubhavam of the nAma-s are primarilyoriented towards enjoying bhagavAns guNa-s as being subservient to thewelfare of His devotees, and SrI Samkaras vyAkhyAnam is primarily orientedtowards bringing out His parattvam and Supreme Rulership. SrI SAstri reminds us of the idea conveyed by the three nAma-s, a-mAnI,mAna-dah, and mAnyah: bhagavAn does not show Himself as One Who deserves to besupremely respected and honored (a-mAnI), He ensures that His devotees arerespected (mAna-dah), and this is where all His feeling of respectability lies (mAnyah). The dharma cakram writer observes that even though bhagavAn is mAnyah(To be worshipped), it is only His true devotees who realize this, and it is tothose that He gives the ability to overcome the lower desires, and realize Him. We will use this nAma to bring out an important point about understanding thereason for the existence of different vyAkhyAna-s for the same vishNu sahasranAma stotram. One of the reasons is of course the difference in the anubhavam-sof the different vyAkhyAna-kartA-s, who are all great devotees of the Lord.Another reason is that the interpreters try to interpret ancient works such asthe Sruti, smRti, itihAsa-s and purANa-s so that they can claim authority andauthenticity for their specific school of philosophy

through theirinterpretation of these scriptures. We will see this briefly for the dvaitainterpretation for this nAma. In the dvaita philosophy, the view on pirATTi is:a) She is a jIva, but a higher jIva than all the other jIva-s; b) She is vibhu,but less than vishNu in Her parattvam. Two of the interpretations that SrI satyasandha yatirAja, one of the AcArya-s in the dvaita lineage, gives for this nAma(mAnyah), are based on looking at the nAma as (mA + anyah): 1. mAyA ramAyA anyA ceshTanIyA asya iti mAnyah; and 2. mAyA ramA upalakshita jIva rASeh anyo bhinna iti mAnyah . Both of these support the elements of their philosophy that are given above. Itis worth nothing that both SrI Sanakara and SrI bhaTTar chose to use only theroot mAn as the basis for their interpretation of the nAma, and gave the meaningto the nAma as He Who is worthy of worship, while the dvaita interpreterchose to see the nAma as mA + anyah. 756. loka-svAmI The Master of the Universe. Om loka-svAmine namah. One meaning for the word svam is aiSvaryam. The amara koSavyAkhyAnam for svAmI is svam aiSvaryam asya asti iti svAmI. There is apANini sUtra, svAmin aiSvarye (5.2.126), which equates the word svAminwith aiSvaryam. The affix Amin after the word sva comes inthe sense of lordship. aiSvaryam refers to sovereignty, Lordship, power,wealth, etc. Thus, one interpretation for the nAma is: He is called loka-svAmIbecause He is the Lord of the Universe. The thread in SrI bhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is worth revisiting for the fullenjoyment of his vyAkhyAnam. BhagavAn is called amAnI (nAma 753) becauseHe is not proud of any of His possessions or guNa-s, He is mAna-dah (nAma754) because He honors His devotees, and he is mAnyah (nAma 755) becauseHe considers Himself worthy of respect because of His special relationship ofaffection to His devotees. Now we come to His nAma loka-svAmI (nAma 756) The Master of the Universe. In what sense? According to SrI bhaTTar, it is notbecause of His superior power or wealth or parattvam, but because He isthe Master in simplicity, based on the previous three nAma-s, and so He isloka-svAmI in soulabhayam. This anubhavam of bhagavAn as living for thedevotees and acting for the devotees, is the crowning aspect of SrI bhaTTarsbhAshyam, which can be seen throughout the vyAkhyAnam. His interpretation forthe current nAma is: he is loka-svAmI because He is a-mAnI, mAna-dah, and mAnyahas explained above ka evam karmakarah? loka-svAmI. The idea that SrI bhaTTar reflects is conveyed by nammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhipASuram 4.5.7: enRum onRAgi ottArum mikkArgaLum, tan tanakku inRi ninRAnai ellA ulagum uDaiyAn tannai kunRam onRAl mazhai kAtta pirAnai. The important point here that bhagavAn is not only superior because of His parattvam,but more so because He is unique and excels everyone in His soulabhyambyHis own choice; He behaves and sees Himself as another human being, even thoughin every sense He retains His parattvam in His human incarnations ahammAnusham manye. SrI Sankaras vyAkhyAnam is that He is loka-svAmI because He is the Lordof the fourteen worlds, the seven worlds above and the seven worlds below caturdaSAnAm lokAnAm IsvaratvAt loka-svAmI.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives support from the kaushItakI Upanishad eshalokAdhipatih (3.9). SrI cinmayAnanda comments that He is loka-svAmI in the sense that He is theCreator, Controller, Director, the Lord and the Governor of allfields-of-experience of all creatures, at all times, everywhere; He is theConsciousness that illumines matter. SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate interpretation, based on One Who haslokam or the Universe as His svam or aiSvaryam. Adding the affix Amin to theword loka-svam, he derives the meaning for the nAma as The Lord Who has theUniverse as His wealth. 757. tri-loka-dhRt a) He Who supports the three worlds (the worlds above, the worlds below, andearth in the middle). b) The Supporter of the three states of experience (waking, dream and deepsleep) Om tri-loka-dhRte namah. a) SrI bhaTTars interpretation is that He is One Who has the burden ofresponsibility for the support and nourishment of the entire Universe, and so Heis called tri-loka-dhRt aSeshANAmapi dhAraNa poshakayoh bhArakatvAtloka-svAmI (the root involved is dhR dhAraNe to hold, to bear, tosupport). Because He created us, therefore He necessarily has the burden ofresponsibility for supporting us, just like the responsibility of a father tohis children. SrI Sankara bhAshyam is: trIn-lokAn dhArayati iti tri-loka-dhRt TheSupporter of the three worlds. b) In addition to the meaning world for the word loka, SrIcinmayAnanda also gives an alternate interpretation where he takes tri-loka tomean the three states of waking, dream and deep sleep. He then gives theinterpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma because He is the Supporter, in theform of Consciousness, of the three states of experience, since without thekindling support of life in the bosom, it would be impossible for us to have anyexperience. Another variant of the nAma is tri-loka-dhR k. The interpretation givenis essentially the same as for tri-lokadhRt. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaNgives the interpretation tir-loka-dRg-iti dhArakatayA pAlakatayASca tri-lokIm dharjati gacchati iti tasyasvAbhAvikoyam dharmah It is His dharma to sustain this universe and keepit going by supporting and protecting all the creatures of the three worlds.Here he uses the root dhRj gatau to go, to move, as the root for thisexplanation. SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation tri-lokAndyu pRthivi antarikshAn dharati iti tri-loka-dhRk, where the root dhR dhAraNe to hold (dharati) is used. Without getting into intricate grammatical rules, it is difficult todistinguish between the two versions. However, it is to be noted that SrI Sankaraand SrI bhaTTar have explained the nAma using the version tri-loka-dhRt, andSrI satya sandha yatirAja has explained the nAma as tri-loka-dhRk. 758. su-medhAh The Well-Intentioned. Om su-medhase namah.

medhA means memory or intellect. su is a prefix or an upasargawhich means superior. So the nAma means One Who has a Superiorintellect or memory. The different interpretations involve differentanubhavam-s of what good intellect means. a) SrI bhaTTars anubhavam is that His buddhi is su-medhA or Superiorbuddhi, because He constantly thinks of the good of His devotees ArAdhakasu-sAdhu buddhih su-medhAh. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the derivation SobhanA medhA dhAraNavatIdhIh asya iti su-medhAh, which also conveys the above idea. SrI Sankara bhAshyam is SobhanA medhA pra~jnA asya iti su-medhAh Heof bright intelligence. SrI rAdhakRshNa SAstri elaborates that superior intellect consists inanticipating future events or outcomes, not being disturbed or impacted bysurrounding events, etc. SrI cinmAyananda points out that when applied to us, the term su-medhA canrefer to the ability of the self to realize its true nature, something that isnot new information, but that has been temporarily forgotten by us. So heinterprets the nAma as meaning Divine memory Power. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning to medhA as the intellect thatgives protection or support, and explains the nAma as referring to the memoryof bhagavAn that is always aware of everything that is going on everywhere, aswell as events associated with all beings past, present, and future. Hecomments that the intellect of each of us is directly proportional to the extentto which we are able perceive the medhA of bhagavAn. The dharma cakram writer explains medhA as that power which enables us tounderstand and realize That which is the biggest of the big and the smallestof the small. All of us have this power potentially, and can realize it oncewe know how to control our thought, word and deed and realize the potentialpower that we have in us. 759. medha-jah a) He Who was born as a result of a sacrifice. b) He Who is realized as a result of sacrifices. c) He Who makes His presence in the gatherings of bhakta-s. Om medha-jAya namah. The term medha refers to ya~jna or sacrifice. SrI bhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is:ato medhe devakI putrIya vrata rUpe ya~jne jAtah iti medha-jah He hasthis nAma indicating that He was born to devaki as a result of the medhA orsacrifice in the form of austerities performed by her to get Him as son. Thiswas revealed by Lord kRshNa Himself as soon as He was born to devaki (vishNupurANam 5.3.14): stutoham yat tvayA pUrvam putrArthinyA tadadya te | saphalam devi! SanjAtam jAtoham yat tavodarAt || O Revered Lady! You praised Me before, desirous of having Me as Yourson. Your prayers have been fruitful today since I have taken birth out of your womb.

SrI bhaTTar also gives support from vishNu dharma: sabyagh-ArAdhitenoktam yat prasannena te Subhe! | tat kRtam saphalam devi! || (vishNu dharma 33.39) O Auspicious Lady! When you worshipped Me in the proper manner before, Ibecame pleased and made a promise to you (that I would be born as your son). That has beencarried out now. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives other instances where bhagavAn has taken birth asthe child of devotees, as a result of their yAga, vrata, etc. He was born in Hisincarnation of vAmana as aditis son as a result of her payo-vratam; it iswell-known that Lord rAma was born as a son to daSaratha as a result of theputra kAmeshTi yAgam; yaSodA and nandagopan had Lord kRshNa as their son becauseof their tapas. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the additional instances of LordvaradarAja, Who manifested Himself from the sacrificial fire of brahmA in kAnci. b) SrI cinmayAnanda comments that because bhagavAn makes His appearance inevery yaj~na in His pure Form, we can say that He is born in yaj~na. Based onthe gItA, he gives the definition for yaj~na as a cooperative endeavor whereinwe offer our capacity into a field of chosen work invoking in it theunmanifested Lord, who pours His blessings in terms of profit. In this sense,when all the personality layers are offered in an act of total surrender, thespiritual experience of the Self is born. Thus bhagavAn is the result of themedha or sacrifice (medha-jah), and to the student of vedAnta, the term is richin its suggestiveness. The dharma cakram writer describes the five types of yaj~na-s that each of usshould be observing, and indicates that the realization of the Self is a resultof observing these panca mahA yaj~na-s, and this is the significance of thisnAma for us. In other words, He becomes accessible and available to us as aresult of our observing the panca mahA yaj~na-s (medha-jah). The pancamahA yaj~na-s are: bhUta yaj~na, pitR yaj~na, nara yaj~na, Rshi yaj~na, and devayaj~na. These have been described before, under nAma-s 449 and 682. c) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN uses the root med, medh sangame tomeet, as the basis for his interpretation: medha bhakta sangame jAyate prAdur-bhavati iti medha-jah He Who makes His presence in the gatherings of bhakta-s. 760. dhanyah The Blessed. Om dhanyAya namah. The word dhanam refers to wealth. The amara koSa vyAkhyAnam is dhanadharma sAdhuh dhanyah One Who excels in wealth and dharma is dhanyah. BypANini sUtra dhana gaNam labdhA (4.4.84), the addition of the yat pratyayato dhana gives the meaning to this nAma as: One who obtains dhana or wealth. What wealth does bhagavAn have to attain, that He does not have? SrI bhaTTarsanubhavam is that He considered being born to devaki as the wealth that Hecoveted. Since He got His desired wealth by being born to devaki, now He isdhanyah tad-janma dhana lAbhAt dhanyah.

SrI v. v. rAmAnujans anubhavam is that since bhagavAn is One Who does nothave birth normally, this is a great blessing for Him! (I am reminded of an article that I recently received from a friend of mine.In this moving article, the wellknown Sri candra sekhara sarasvati (theprevious AcArya of kAnci Sankara maTham), feels intensely sorry that hisposition as the sanyAsi and head of his Asrama had permanently deprived him ofthe privilege of prostrating at the feet of elders right from a very young age,since he became the head of the maTham when he was probably less than 10. So hefeels intensely for his situation, that falling at the feet of elders andprostrating was a bhAgyam that he was permanently deprived of in his lifebecause of his position). SrI Sankara bhAshyam is that since every wish of bhagavAn is fulfilled, Heis dhanyah kRtArtho dhanyah He is self-satisfied, and so He is Blessed. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the amaram sukRti puNyavAn dhanyah, andgives the interpretation that BhagavAn accepts the sincere offerings in the formof flowers etc., and constantly keeps thinking of their welfare; This is sukRtamand puNya kAryam, and so He is dhanyah sukRtI or puNyavAn. The dharma cakram writer dwells on the lesson to take from the nAma, as heinvariably does for all the nAma-s. In common use, the word dhanyah refers toone who is benefiting from the good karma-s in his previous birth (dhanyosmi I am blessed). The antima smRti is a determinant of the next birth. In orderto have good antima smRti, one should train oneself throughout ones life tobe involved in good deeds, thoughts and words. This is what will make one adhanyah in the future births. This is the lesson to take from the conceptsbehind this nAma. 761. satya-medhAh a) He of true thoughts honest, straightforward. b) He of true knowledge with foresight and minuteness. c) He of true knowledge of the Vedas and their numerous branches. Om satya-medhase namah. a) SrI bhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn is satya-medhAh because He issincere in whatever He says, and it is not just for pretence medhA satyAasya, na naTana mAtram iti satya-medhAh. SrI v. v. rAmAnujan describes this guNaof bhagavAn as Arjavam straightforwardness. SrI bhaTTar quotes the instancewhere bhagavAn addresses His gopa friends, after they see Him perform thegovardhana episode and wonder aloud whether He is really one of them: yadi vosti mayi prItih SlAghyoham bhavatAm yadi | tad-Atam-buddhi sadRSI buddhir-vah kriyatAma mayi || (vishNu purANam 5.13.11) nAham devo na gandharvo na yaksho na ca dAnavah | aham vo bAndhavo jAtah na vaS-cintyam atonyatA || (V.P. 5.13.12) If you have real love for me and think that I am worthy of praise fromyou, then you must think of me as you think of yourselves (i.e., you must thinkof me as a gopa, as you all are). I am neither a god, nor a gandharva, neither ayaksha (a demi-god), nor a dAnava (demon). I am a born relative to you all. Youmust not think of me any other way.

Similarly, rAma declares: AtmAnam mAnusham manye rAmam daSarathAtmajam I consider myself as a human being, and the son of daSaratha. b) SrI Sankara vyAkhyAnam is that He is of unfailing intelligence satyA avitathA medhA yasya iti satya medhAh. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri commentsthat true knowledge (satya medhA) consists of the ability to foresee things andto see the inner aspects of things (nuN aRivu), so that there are noobstructions caused because of unanticipated or overlooked aspects of thingsduring execution of any action. If ones knowledge is useful in times of needwith these attributes, then any action undertaken by this person will be boundto succeed. Since bhagavAn is One Who is equipped with such knowledge, He iscalled satya-medhAh. c) SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry gives the interpretation that because bhagavAnhas the true knowledge of the veda-s and their numerous branches, He has thenAma satya-medhAh. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives yet another anubhavam for the nAma because bhagavAn has the unfailing knowledge that keeps all the multifariouscreations right from the beginning of the kalpa to the end with their properperspectives, He is called satya-medhAh. The dharma cakram writer observes that because bhagavAn unfailingly bestowstrue knowledge on those who follow the path of dharma, and thereby gives them amind that is directed towards realization of Him, therefore He is calledsatya-medhAh. So the lesson for us from this nAma is that we should follow theunfailing path of dharma so that we will bestowed with true knowledge. 762. dharAdharah a) He Who supported the Mountain (govardhana). b) He Who supports the earth. Om dharAdharAya namah. The word dhara means mountain, and the word dharA refers to earth. So thenAma can be viewed as dhara + Adharah, dharA + dharah, dharA + Adharah, etc. Thedifferent vyAkhyAna kartA-s come up with their interpretations depending onwhich combination they choose. a) SrI bhaTTar gives the interpretation using the word dharam mountain.The nirukti description for the nAma is dharam dhRtavAn dharAdharah He Whobore the mountain. The reference here is to Lord kRshNas bearing thegovardhana mountain to protect the cows and cowherds when indra caused troubleto them (dharasya govardhanasya girer-dharaNAt dharAdharah SrI baladevavidyA bhUshaN). SrI bhaTTar gives the following reference to bhagavAnsthoughts described in vishNu purANam prior to His lifting the Mountain: tad-etad-akhilam goshTham trAtavyam adhunA mayA | imam adrim aham dhairyAt utpATyASu SilAdhanam | dhArayishyAmi goshThasya pRthucchatramivAparam || The cowpen with all the cows and cowherds should be protected by me now. Ishall by force uproot this mountain with big boulders at once and hold it overtheir heads as a big umbrella and save them all (from this distress).

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several references to AzhvArs on this incident: - tiru nedum tANDakam 13 kal eDuttuk kal mAri kAttAi (tiru mangaiAzhvAr) - kaDunkAl mAri kallE pozhiya . neDunkAl kunRam kuDai onRu Endiniraiyaic ciramattAl naDungA vaNNam kAttAn (tirumangai AzhvAr, periyatirumozhi 6.10.8) - . tiRambAmal malai eDuttEnE ennum.(tirmbAmal flawlessly) (nammAzhvAr,tiruvAi. 5.6.5) - Eleven pASurams of periyAzhvAr tirumozhi (3-5) are all dedicated to thegovardhana incident. b) SrI Sankaras interpretation uses the meaning dharA earth. dharAmdhaArayan dharAdharah. His actual vyAkhyAnam is: amSaih aSeshaih SeshAdyaih a-SeshAm dharAm dhArayandharah He Who supports all the earths through His amSa-s such as Adi-Sesha. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out the other forms, such as varAha, the eightelephants of the eight directions, etc. He quotes the Sruti vAkhyam in support:yene me vidhRte ubhe; vishNunA vidhRte bhUmi; dAdhartham pRthivImabhitomayUkahih | SrI cinmayAnanda gives a different anubhavam of His being the solesupport of the earth. He interprets earth here to refer to matter in general,and observes that bhagavAn is the very essence from which matter has come toexpress itself, both its gross and subtle forms. He continues: Geographically,the earth is supported by water, water by atmospheric air, and air by space. Ifone enquires further and questions what supports space, we know that space is aconcept which we experience by our intellect. All experiences of the intellectare established in Consciousness, and therefore, the ultimate support for theentire world is the Supreme nArAyaNa, and so He is dharAdharah. The dharma cakram writer explains bhagavAns support of the earth,starting from the panca bhUta-s in their sUkshma form, and how they combinetogether to evolve into their sthUla forms. His support of the earth isreally a part of His support of the panca bhUta-s. He is the Creator ofeverything, and He is the ultimate Abode of everything, and so He is dharAdharah.Several are the concepts that are hidden in this mantra om dharAdharAya namah.Just like all the other mantra-s (and remember that each nAma is a mantra), thisis another very potent mantra. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 81 -

tejo-vRsho dyut-dharah sarva-Sastra-bhRtAm-varah pragraho nigraho vyagro naika-SRngo gadAgrajah om om om om om om om om tejo-vRshAya namah dyuti-dharAya namah sarva-Sastra-bhRtAm-varAya namah prgrahAya namah nigrahAya namah vyagrAya namah naika-SrngAya namah gadAgrajAya namah

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763. tejo-vRshah a) He Who showers His splendor on His devotees in the form of His protection. b) He Who showers rain through the sun. c) He Who showers His radiance on everything. d) He Who showers His fierce weapons on His enemies in defense of His devotees. Om tejo-vRshAya namah. The two roots applicable to this nAma are given by SrI satyadevo vAsishThaas: tij niSAne to whet, or tej niSAne, pAlane ca to whet, toprotect, and vRsh secana to rain, to shower. tejah also canrefer to tejas luster, light, brilliance, splendor. varshati itivRshah. Thus, the nAma can mean One who showers brightness,One who showers protection, etc. a) SrI bhaTTar emphasizes the meaning protection in his interpretation: evam suhRt-pAlana lakshaNam tejo varshati iti tejo-vRshah Thus He showers splendor in the form of protection of the good-heartedbeings. So He is tejo-vRshah. As all of us know, SrI bhaTTar sees a connection through the sequence of nAma-s,and the current nAma-s are being interpreted as referring to the kRshNaincarnation. So here the protection of the cows and the cowherds that wesaw in the previous nAma is being referred to. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains the nAma as referring to bhagavAn showering Histejas or Sakti on His devotees in the form of His protection. Theinnocent folks in AyarpADi loved kaNNan with all their hearts, and He showeredHis Grace and protection on them even as the mother cow secretes the milk forits calf with all its heart. b) The word tejas also refers to water, and SrI Sankara uses this meaningin his interpretation tejasAm ambhasAm Aditya rUpeNa varshaNAt tejovRshah He always showers rain through the medium of the sun. SrI ananta kRshNa SAstri elaborates: tejAmsi AdAya Aditya rUpeNavarshati vA. The dharma carkam writer points out that just as the sea water, which byitself is unusable for most purposes, is converted by the sun into potable andusable water, so also the thought of bhagavAn distills our mind and purifies itfrom bad thoughts. Just as we cannot live without water, we cannot livewithout Him

either. Just as the sun keeps functioning behind our consciousthoughts to purify the sea water into a form that is usable by us, so also HisGrace is always functioning to purify our thoughts constantly. c) The anubhavaam of SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj is that this nAma indicatesthat He showers His luster on everything because of His divine and auspiciousForm SrI vigrahAt tejasvinah prabhA kiraNAh sarvatah prasaranti. Whatever radiance a living organism has, is a result of a miniscule fraction ofHis tejas. d) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN has yet another different interpretation: sva-bandhu rakshAyai cakrAdi duh-sahAni tejAmsi varshati iti tejo-vRshah He Who showers His magnificent weapons such as the cakra (on the enemies) in thecause of protection of His bhandu-s (devotees), is tejo-vRshah. 764. dyuti-dharah He Who possessed a majesty. Om dyuti-dharAya namah. We encountered the phrase dyuti-dharah as part of nAma 276 ojas-tejo-dyuti-dharah (Slokam 30). dyuti refers to effulgence or radiance. The root involved is dyut dIptau to shine. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that dyuti is theterm that refers to the unique effulgence that is characteristic of deva-s. The word dharah can refer to One Who protects or One Who bears (seenAma dharAdharah in previous Slokam). SrI bhaTTar gives the interpretation for the nAma as One Who had theeffulgence or radiance even at a very young age in His kRshNa incarnation, thatcould bedazzle devendra. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj describes His unique kAnti atiSayita kAntisampannah. SrI Sankara refers to the kAnti in all of bhagavAns.limbs as hisinterpretation for this nAma (Recall the Slokam 79 nAma-s: suvarNa-varNahhemAngah varAngah candanAngadI, where the beauty and kAnti of His limbsare described). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that bhagavAn is called dyuti-dharah becauseHe supports the dyuti that is characteristic of the sun, the moon, all the deva-s,lightning, ratna, etc. In fact, whatever radiance we all possess inus, is but a tiny part of His radiance. SrI cinmayAnanda points out thatit is this kAnti in us that enables us to be aware of all our perceptions,emotions, and thoughts. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha treats the word dyuti itself as referring to OneWho possesses effulgence, and then treats the word dharah as One Whoprotects, and thus gives the meaning to the nAma dyutidharah as OneWho has Effulgence, and Who protects and everyone and everything svayam prakASamAnah sarvam dharati iti; vAsatavika arthah prakASamAnahsarvasya AdhAraSca iti arthah. The dharma cakram writer comments that the dyuti that is referred to here isnot the physical beauty that one sees in the body, but the radiance thatemanates from the inner AtmA, and is reflected in the same body. Unlike the physical beauty which stirs thoughts of kAmam in the observersmind, the beauty that is seen in the body because of the dyuti emanating fromthe AtmA, kindles thoughts of bhakti in the observer. Hequotes the famous saying in tamizh:

rAman irukkum iDattil kAman illai; kAman irrukkum iDattil rAman illaiThere is no kAma where rAma is, and there is no rAma where kAma is . This nAma signifies to us that every part of bhagavAns Form is such thatit evokes extreme devotion on the devotee. One should go through some ofsvAmi deSikans stotra-s such as SrI bahgavd-dhyAna sopAnam, SrI devanAyaka pancAsat,etc., to appreciate the truth of this statement as svAmideSikan has the anubhavam of emperumAn. 765.sarva-Sastra-bhRtAm-varah The Best among those warriors who are armed with all weapons. Om sarva-Sastra-bhRtAm-varAya namah. The relevant roots for this nAma are (SrI satya devo vAsishTha): - Sas himsAyAm to cut up, to destroy; based on the pANinisUtra 3.2.182 dAmnI Sasa yu yuja .karaNe (shTran), whereby the root Saswith the affix shTran gets the sense of instrument. Thus, the word Sastragets the meaning a weapon. - bhR dhAraNa poshaNayoh to hold, to support; bhRt means One Whoholds. - vR varaNe to choose. VarItum arhah varah One Who is fitto be chosen is varah. So the nAma means He Who is Best among all those who hold or carryweapons. sarveshAm Sastra-bhRtAm madhye varah SreshThah. a) SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is that He has the nAma indicating that He wasthe foremost among the wielders of weapons in His fight against the asura byname naraka, king jarAsandha, and others. SrI bhaTTar emphasizesthat it was childs play for the Lord during His incarnations to wield theseweapons against His enemies: manushya dharma leelasya leelA sA jagat-pateh | astrANyaneka rUpANi yad arAtishu muncati || (vishNupurANa &npsp; 5.22.14) For the Lord of the world Who was diverting Himself with the activities ofthe human beings it was mere play to discharge different kinds of weaponsagainst His enemies. SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry gives the support from bhagavad gItA 10.31: pavanah pavatAm asmi rAmah Sastra-bhRtAm aham | jhashANAm makaraS-cAsmi srotasAm asmi jAhnavI || (gItA10.31) Of moving things, I am the wind. Of those who bear weapons, I am rAma. Of fishes, I am makara, and of rivers, I am gangA. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that bhagavAn is the Best among those Whowield weapons, because He uses them to bring about constructivedestruction, as opposed to other weapon-wielders who bring

aboutdestructive destruction. His words are: The Lordnever uses His weapon of annihilation indiscriminately for He is ever just . It is also significant that all destructions in nature are alwaysconstructive destructions; therefore, the Lords Discus is itselfcalled the auspicious vision sudarSana. In the maturity ofones evolution when one becomes fit for ones own inner unfoldment, slowlybut irresistibly, the seeker can ever detect a secret hand that diligently cutsoff all this connections with the outer world, and compels him to lean more andmore on the higher. Our purANic literature is replete with instances, and,without exception, in all of them SrI nArAyaNa is described as using His weaponto destroy the devilish and to give him moksha! the auspiciousvision su-darSana. Others, when they employ their weapons ofdestruction, the result invariably ends in a sad destructive destruction,and therefore, to invoke Him as the the best among those who wield weaponsis most significant for a seeker. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha asks the rhetorical question as to why He should beconsidered the Best among those with weapons, and answers it by pointingout that it is because He has expressed Himself by equipping every livingcreature with the appropriate weapon for its own protection and for itsenemies destruction. On the one hand, He has equipped the differentcreatures with different claw types for those creatures with claws, thedifferent types of teeth for those that protect themselves with their teeth fromtheir enemies, with their fangs, horns, etc. However, it is to be notedthat each creature has only one or two such weapons for its own protection. He is the origin of all these Sastra-s, and so He is rightly known as thesarva-Sastra-bhRtAm-varah. He also reserves for Himself the ability tostrike with all the weapons as necessary and when necessary. Thus, theenormous earthquakes, the great epidemics that strike down masses of people,etc., are weapons that He wields as He deems necessary on a mass scale. The dharma cakram writer comments that it is because rAma and kRshNa usedtheir weapons for the destruction of evil and for the protection of the good,that they were SreshTha-s or vara-s among wielders of weapons. Those thatused their weapons for committing atrocities only ended up being ruined. The lesson to take from this in these modern days of invention of more and moretechnologically advanced weaponry, is that they should be used for the good ofmankind, and not for their destruction. 766. pragrahah The Controller. Om prgrahAya namah. pra is an upasarga or prefix, and the root involved in the nAma is grah upAdAne to take hold of, to seize. prakarshaNena gRhNAti itipragraphah (SrI satya devo vAsishTha) He Who controls in a special,excellent, or unique way. The different bhAshya-s differ on what iscontrolled by Him. SrI Sankara uses the meaning He receives forthe term grah in his primary interpretation. a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as referring to Lord kRshNas excellentcontrol over arjuna, even though He was only arjunas charioteer. Itshould be kept in mind that SrI bhaTTar is continuing the thread ofkRshNAvatAram starting from nAma 697, all the way up to nAma 786. LordkRshNa controlled arjuna like the reins that control the horse. The wordpragraham refers to reins (see kaThopanishad manah pragrameva ca mind islike the reins , with AtmA the the master of the chariot, the body is like thechariot, etc. AtmAnam rathinam viddhi, SarIram rathameva ca, bhuddhim tu sArathim viddhi,manah pragrahameva ca). b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha explains the nAma by referring to bhagavAnsexceptional control of everything in the universe prakarshaNena gRhNAtiviSvam iti.

c) SrI Sankara uses the meaning to receive for the word grah, andgives the interpretation that bhagavAn has the nAma parigrahah because Hereceives offerings such as leaf, fruit, etc., from His devotees bhaktaihupahRtam patra pushpAdikam pragRhNAti iti pragrahah. SrI cinmayAnandagives a different dimension to this notion He is pragrahah because He is theultimate recipient of the worship offered by people of all creeds and races, andall animals, men, plants, etc. d) SrI Sankara gives an alternate interpretation along the lines ofvyAkhyAna-s a, and b also. Here, he refers to the overall control thatbhagavAn exerts on a devotees otherwise uncontrolled horse-like sensesroaming over the forest of sense-objects dhAvato vishaya AraNye durdAnta indiriya vAjinaha, tat-prasAdena aSmineva badhnAti it vA pragravat prgrahah. It is because of His anugraham that a true devotee is able to overcome theinvolvement in sense-objects, and proceeds to the true realization. e) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj takes the prefix pra as representing prakRshTa special, exalted, and the word grahah as One Who accepts or receives, andgives the interpretation prakRTo grahah svIkAro yasya iti pragrahah OneWhose acceptance (of saraNAgati) is unique, exceptional, special, exalted. His vyAkhyAnam is: svajanam sakRdapi SaraNAgatam svIkRtya punah kadApi tam na partityajatiiti prakRshTa eva grahah prabhoh He is the Lord Who accepts the SaraNAgati from His devotee the very first time,and will never ever forsake the devotee; such is the superiority of Hisacceptance of SaraNAgati. 767. nigrahah a) The Subduer. b) He Who has a firm control over all creation. Om nigrahAya namh. The word nigraha means restraining, keeping in check; nigrahaNa meansholding back or down, suppressing. Thus, the nAma means One Whorestrains, One Who keeps in check. The differentvyAkhyAna kartA-s give different instances of His restraint as illustrations ofthis nAma. a) SrI bhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is that He has this nAma since He successfullysubdued all the enemies in the mahAbhArata war by His skill as a Charioteer,without expecting the support of arjuna or his valor. SrI Sankaras vyAkhyAnam is that the nAma signifies that He controls allthings independently sarvam sva-vaSena nigRhNAti iti nigrahah. SrI stya sandha yati raja alludes to His subduing all the asura-s nigRhNAti daityAn iti nigrahah. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation nigRhNAti vipathagAminah iti nigrahah He restrains those who stray away from the path of dharma. SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN refers to His control of the enemies of pANDava-sin the form of yama nigRhyante pArtha-Satravah kaka-dRshTinA anena iti nigrahah.

b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different interpretation from the above. Taking the upasarga ni, and the root grah upAdAne to take hold of,to seize, SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation: niScayena gRhyate yena iti nigrahah vishNuh - bhagavAn has a firm grasp andleads everything in this universe as He wishes, creating what is fit to becreated, destroying what is fit to be destroyed, etc. c) SrI cinmayAnanda literally translates the nAma nigrahah as TheKiller, and points out that such a nAma is justified for bhagavAn in thecontext of His destroying the ego in His devotees. This is like a doctorwho murders the diseases in the patients, the sun is the destroyer ofdarkness, etc. The nAma also means One Who absorbs the devoteesunto Himself. 768. vyagrah a) He Who was very enthusiastic (to destroy the enemies of His devotee during the mahAbhArata war). b) He Who has no end. c) He Who moves around in many different ways. d) (a-vyagrah He Who is not confused dvaita pATham) e) He Who uses garuDa as His vehicle. Om vyagrAya namah. The root from which the term agrah is derived is agi gatau. Through the uNAdi sutra 2.28, the addition of the affix ra leads to the wordsagra, which mean front, first. a) SrI bhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is that Lord kRshNa took the lead as needed inthe mahAbhArata war, because He could not put up with any delay in putting downthe enemies of arjuna. This is evidenced by His action against bhIshma: ye yAnti yAntyeva Sini-pravIra! YevasthitA satvaram tepi yAntu | bhIshmam rathAt paSyata pAtyamAnam droNam ca sankhye sa-gaNam mayAdya|| . rathAt avaplutya visRjya vAhAn || (mahA bhArata,bhIshma. 59.86) O Sini-pravIra (referring to Satyaki)! Those who have gone, have gone forever. Those who are still left, let them all go at once. You willsee now that bhIshma is thrown from his chariot, and also droNa with hisarmy. So saying, kRshNa jumped down from the chariot , and leaving the horses,advanced forward against bhIshma. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan translates the above quote from mahA bhArata slightlydifferently: He describes the scene where the pANDava forces are runningconfused at the intensity of bhIshmas attack, and then kRshNa declares: Let those who run keep running, and let the remaining watch Me defeat bhIshmaand droNa; so saying, He jumps from His chariot, even forgetting Hisown promise not to take to weapons. Thus, He is One Who does not delay when itcomes to His determination to get rid of enemies. Thus, the nAma indicatesHis intolerance and impatience when it comes to getting rid of the enemies ofHis devotees. nammAzhvAr beautifully captures this guNa of bhagavan in tiruvAimozhi 9.2.10: amararkku iDar keDa aSurarukku iDar Sei kaDu vinai nenjE! You are One with the determined Mind to do whatever You have to doeliminate the demons when it

comes to protecting the deva-s. (SrI v. n.vedAnta deSikan comments that in this regard, He is the efficacious poison tothe asura-s that will not fail, and for which there is no antidote). b) SrI Sankara uses the meaning end for the word agram, andgives the interpretation that because He has no end, He is vyagrah vigatamagram asya itit vyagrah (agram antah, vinASah). c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the derivation vividham gamanam yovidhatte sa vyagra ucyate He Who moves around using many different ways isvyagrah. He points out that everything that is moving is amanifestation of His guNa of vyagra, or movement in various ways. d) SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the pATham a-vyagrah for the nAma as hisprimary interpretation. The meaning is One Who is not confused vyagro na bhavati iti a-vyagrah. (In thisinterpreatation, vgagrah meansOne who is confused, and avyagrah is the opposite. vividham agramasya iti vyagrah One Who is confused, with multiple paths and not knowingwhat to choose amara koSa vyAkhyAnam). e) In his alternative interpretation using the pATham vyagrah, Srai satya sandha yatirAja gives the explanation: vih garuDo agre asya sa vygrah He Who has garuDa as His vehicle (togo, to move around). 769. naika-SRngah a) He Who adopted diverse tactics for controlling His devoteesenemies. b) He Who can be brought under control (realized) through the four horns inthe form of the four veda-s. c) He Who can be controlled (reached) through the OmkAra, with its fourhorns akAra, ukAra, makAra, and nAda. d) He Who has the four horns in the form of the four veda-s, to control theworld through dharma. e) He Who has many dimensions to His Lordship (prabhutvam). f) He Who has many aspects to His role as a Bestower of His devotees wishes. g) (eka-SRngah satya sandha yatirAja) He Who took incarnation as theone-horned varAha. h) He Who has many rays of effulgence radiating from Him. i) He Who has provided diverse means to the different living beings tocause harm to their enemies, as also to defend themselves from their enemies. Om naika-SRngAya namah. The root involved in the nAma is SRR himsAyAm to tear to pieces, tokill, to hurt. The word SRngah is derived from this root by theapplication of the uNAdi sUtra 126, SRNAter-hrasvaSca. SrI satyadevovAsishTha gives the meanings dIpti (radiance), means ofdestruction, and means for protection against obstacles from others,for the word SRngam SRngam iti dIpter nAma, himsAsAdhanam tathApara-kRta-bAdhA-nivAraNa-sAdhanamapi SRngam. The word SRngaalso means horn, and SrI Sankara uses this meaning in his interpretation. a) Of the above, SrI bhaTTar has used the meaning himsA sAdhanam in hisinterpretation. na + eka + SRngah = naika-SRngah He Who hasmultiple means for causing distress to His enemies. SrI BhaTTar elucidateshis interpretation using the instances of mahA bhArata buddhi-yogah sArathyam anAyudha grahaNa vyAjah prAptakAle tad-grahaNam iti bahu-vairi-bAdhakam asya iti na-eka-SRngah He is naika-SRngah since He adopted several devices for bringing about thefall of the enemies, like giving sound advice, skillfully driving the chariot,pretending that he would not use a weapon but actually making

use of His weaponat the opportune moment, etc. Interchanging day and night is another of thetactics that He used. nammAzhvArs tiruvAimozhi 6.4.10 describes this guNa of His (SrI v.v.rAmAnujan): maN miSaip perum bhAram nInga Or bhArata mA-perum pOr paNNI mAyangaL Seidu Senaiyaip pAzh paDa nUtRiTTup pOi. To reduce the weight of this world caused by the ahamkAra of people, theLord caused the mahA bhArata war, performed many miracles, as if some mantra wasinvoked for each step, and made sure that His design succeeded. (nooTriTTu fabricated, as it were, all these mAya-s). b) SrI Sankara uses the meaning horn for the word SRngah, andgives the meaning He With Many Horns. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that just as the animals with horns comeunder control when their horns are seized, bhagavAn comes under control of Hisdevotees through the four veda-s the four horns referred to by SrISankara catuh SRngah naika-SRngah. SrI Sankara gives support from Rg veda catvAri SRngA (RV 4.58.3) catvAri SRngA traysya pAdA dve Sirshe sapta hastAsosya | tridhA baddho vRshabho rorarvIti mahAdevo martyAgm AviveSa || (RV 4.58.3)

(Ralph T. H. Griffith gives an explanation based on SAyaNa bhAshya for theabove in his translation of the Rg vedic hymns. The four horns refer tothe four veda-s, the three feet refer to the three daily sacrifices, etc.). c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives other interpretations from the SAyaNabhAshyam, which includes the four horns, namely akAra, ukAra makAra, and nAda for the OmkAra akAra ukAra makAra nAdarUpaSRnga catushTayopetah; from the niruktam - catvAri SRngA iti vedA vA uktah. d) A thought that comes out of b) is that bhagavAn has the four horns in theform of the four veda-s, that He uses to control the world through dharma. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the reference to the four horns catvAriSRngA in the Rg vedic quote above (4.58.3) as a reference to the fourStates of Consciousness the waking, dream, deep-sleep, and Pure Awareness. He interprets the three feet as the three states of gross, subtle and causalbodies respectively. e) The word SRngam also means Lordship, supremacy, etc. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj uses this meaning, and gives the interpretation that the nAmarefers to His many aspects to His Lordship naikam vividham SRngam prabhutvam yasya iti naika-SRngah. He quotes medinI in support SRgam prabhutve Sikhare (medina 3.25). f) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation na eka SRngo, na ekAni anekAni SRngANi yasya vRsha rUpe sanaika-SRngah, which can be translated as He Who has multiple forms in His aspect as theBestower, or One Who establishes dharma (vRsha dharma).

f) In his alternate interpretation, he splits the word as nA eka-SRngah,and explains the word nA separately as referring to the parama purushatvam ofbhagavAn (parama purshatvAt nA), and then takes eka-SRngah as the nAma, andgives the interpretation that it refers to vishNus form as the one-hornedvarAha incarnation. He quotes moksha dharma in support eka-SRngah tato bhUtvA varAho nandi-vardhanah| imAm ca udhRtvAt bhUmimeka-SRngah. h) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning dIpti for the word SRnga,and interprets the nAma as referring to One Who has many radiant rays emanatingfrom Him. He also gives two other interpretations 1) He Who has many ways of causing himsA; and 2) He Who provides many ways to ward off from himsA (see the first paragrapah). As illustration of the third interpretation, he points out the sharp nails inthe paw of the lion are its horns (SRnga) for its protection, the horns ofthe buffalo are its way of protection, the hands for the man are hisSRngas for protection, the tusks of the elephant are its SRnga forprotection, etc. All these same instruments for their protection are alsothe same instruments for destruction or himsA, and thus the same examples holdfor the 2nd interpretation above as well. 770. gadAgrajah a) The elder brother of gada. b) He Who was born as a result of mantra. c) He Who pervades those who walk and talk (gada + agra + jah) d) The Foremost among those who created sound (in the form of veda-s) e) He Who keeps the brAhamaNa-s healthy (spiritually) Om gadAgrajAya namah. a) SrI bhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that kRshNa is the elder brother of a childnamed gada, born to vasudeva after kRshNa. Gada's mother is sunAmA, one of thewives of vasudeva. b) SrI Sa'nakra sees the nAma as (ni)gada-agrajah, or born as a result ofmantra (as in the case of Lord rAma who was born as a result of putra kAmeshTiyAgha). He treats ni as lopa (left out, elided) in this interpretation -nigadena mantreNa agre jAyata iti "ni" Sabda lopam kRtvA gadAgrajah. (gadyateiti gadah, referring to mantra-s). He also gives the interpretation "Elderbrother of gada" as his second interpretation. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that in her letters to kRshNa, rukmiNi calls Himby this name, gadAgrajah. c) SrI vAsishTha gives a different interpretation: He looks at the nAma asgada + agra + jah. For gada, he derives the meaning from gada vyaktAyAm vAci -to speak; For agra, he derives the meaning from agi gatau - to go; and he usesthe meaning jAta - anupavishTa - who enters or pervades, for the part jah. Thus,his interpretation for the nAma is "He Who pervades (in the form the soul)those that speak and those that walk or move around. Gadeshu - gadana Seeleshu,agreshu - gamana Seeleshu, anupravishTo jAta iva pratIyamAno gadAgraja itivishNor nAma. SabdAyamAne, gamanaSIle ca jIvita SarIra eva jIvAtmAno'vabhAsahprakASa ityarthah. d) Another alternate interpretation by SrI vAsishTha is: gadAnAm vyaktam Sabdam kurvatAm manushyANAm agrajah -= jyeshThah = SreshThahThe foremost and the best among those who have produced sound. The referencehere is to His revelation of the veda-s. For this reason, He is also calledvAcaspati.

e) SrI satya sandha yatirAja, in addition to the interpretation forgadAgrajah as "the elder brother of gada", also considers thealternate pATham agadAgrajah, and sees the nAma as agada + agrajah. Here agadameans healthy, without disease, and agraja refers to brAhmins. Hisinterpretation is: agadA nIrogiNo agrajA brAhmaNA yasmAt iti agadAgrajah - Hebecause of Whose Grace the brAhmaNa-s are healthy. The reference can be tospiritual health because of the vedic chanting. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 82 -

catur-mUrtih catur-bAhuh catur-vyUhah catur-gatih | catur-AtmA catur-bhAvah catur-veda-vit eka-pAt || om om om om om om om om catur-mUrtaye namah catur-bAhave namah catur-vyUhAya namah catur-gataye namah catur-Atmane namah catur-bhAvAya namah catur-veda-vide namah eka-apade namah

771. catur-mUrtih He of FourForms. Om catur-mUrtaye namah. The nAma means He of Four Forms. Different vyAkhyAna kartA-s have anubhavam of His four folded-ness in differentways. SrI bhaTTar comments that the reference to Four Forms immediatelyreminds one of the four vyUha forms (vAsudeva, sankarshaNa, pradyumna, andaniruddha). These four vyUha forms preceded the vibhava incarnations suchas rAma, kRshNa, etc. Even in His vibhava form as Lord kRshNa, He had fourforms, in the

forms of balabhadra, vAsudeva, pradyumna, and aniruddha (balabhadrais the elder brother of kRshNa, pradyumna is His son, and aniruddha is Hisgrandson). Similarly, in His incarnation as rAma, the four brothers (rAma,lakshmaNa, bharata, and Satrughna) originated from the same pAyasam that wasgiven to daSaratha at the end of the putra kAmeshTi yAgam. SrI Sankara refers to His Four Forms as virAT, sUtrAtman, avyAkRta, andturIya (gross, subtle, uncompounded, and transcendent). SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri provides the following explanation for the four forms: - In the process of creation, the first tattva is called avyakta, the stateof mUla prkRti before it started evolving. - virAT refers to the sthUla form of the evolved state of mUla prakRti,before bhagavAn entered it in the form of antaryAmi and made it functional. - SUtrAtman refers to the prANa Sakti in all of us; SrI SAstri refers to thisform as HiraNyagarbha. This is the form in which bhagavAn manifestsHimself in our buddhi and manas (sUkshma form); - The turIya state is the one that is beyond the three states above, and iscalled parama pursha or purshottama. This is the state in which everythingis contained in Him, and He alone exists, with His Supreme effulgence, beforethe jIva-s get their forms etc. SrI cinmayAnanda refers to His four forms with four different colors in thefour yuga-s: white in kRta yuga, red in tretA yuga, yellow in dvApara yuga, and dark (black)in kali yuga. He also refers to the four states of the self the wakingstate, the dream state, the deep-sleep state, and the Pure Self state. Inthe microcosm, these are called viSva, taijasa, praj~nA, and turIya, and in themacrocosm, they are called virAt, hiraNyagarbha, ISvara, and paramAtman. This latter is similar to the interpretation by SrI Sankara. Again, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes the terms viSva, taijasa, prAj~na,and turIya. SarIram has three aspects to it: sthUla, sUkshsma, andkAraNa. sthUla is the external appearance, with a shape and a form. sUkshma aspect refers to manas, prANan, etc. The kAraNa SarIra aspect isreflected in the memories acquired from previous births. An example ofthis is the knowledge that a child has as soon as it is born, that by crying itwill get milk, by sucking at the mothers breast it will be fed, etc. The viSva, taijasa, and prAj~na are the states of the jIva associated with thesthUla, sUkshma, and kArANa SarIra-s. These are also associated with theperson in the waking, dream, or sleep states. In all the abovestates, the jIva wrongly considers that the sarIra belongs to It, and hasthe feeling of ownership for its body etc. When the jIva realizes thetruth and passes beyond this feeling of I ness, this state is the turIyastate. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers to His four forms in SrI vaikunTha, satyaloka, Sveta dvIpa, and kshIrAbdhi respectively. He quotes the following insupport: vaikunThe prathamA mUrtih satya loke tathAparrA | Sveta dvIpe tRtIyA ca caturthI kshIra sAgare || 772. catur-bAhuh TheFour-armed. Om catur-bAhave namah.

This nAma is equivalent to the nAma 142 (Slokam 15) catur-bhujah. It has been pointed out earlier that SrI BhaTTar interprets different groups ofnAma-s as connected to each other in a string that describes a particular formor incarnation of bhagavAn. nAma 142 occurs in the segment where hedescribes bhagavAns vyUha incarnations, and the current nAma (772) is in thesegment where he is having anubhavam of the vibhava incarnation of Lord kRshNa. Correspondingly, his interpretation of nAma 142 refers to bhagavAn's vyUhaincarnation with four arms, and the current interpretation refers to His vibhavaincarnation in His birth to devaki as child kRshNa with four arms. Severalreferences are given under both the nAma-s in support. Under nAma 142 in Slokam 15, catur-bhujah, SrI BhaTTar gives the followingreferences: - catur-bhujam udArAngam cakrAdyAyudha bhUshaNam (vishNu purANam); - tamasah paramo dhAtA Sankha cakra gadhA-dharah (SrImad rAmA. yuddha. 114.15); - bhujair-caturbhih sametam (mahA bhArata moksha. 5.34). For the current nAma, catur-bAhuh, where the interpretation is in terms ofthe kRshNa incarnation, we have a reference to His appearance as child kRshNa todevaki with the four arms etc., in SrImad bhAgavatam tam adbhutam bAlakamambujekshaNam catur-bhujam. (SrImad bhAgavatam 10.3.9). SrIBhaTTar gives reference to vishNu purANam in support, as devaki describes Himsoon after He was born: upasamhara sarvAtman rUpametat catur-bhujam jAnAtu mAvatAram te kamsoyam diti-janmajah | || (V.P. 5.3.13)

O The Inner Soul of all beings! Please withdraw this four-armed formwithin Yourself. Let not this kamsa that belongs to the asura race knowthat you are the incarnation of vishNu. nammAzhvAr refers to Him as nAngu tOLan - tiruvAimozhi 8.8.1 (v.v. rAmAnujan). It is as if He has four long arms instead of the normal two, just to embraceAzhVar! In gItA Sloka-s 11.45 and 11.46, arjuna refers to His divine form with fourhands: kirITinam gadinam cakra hastam icchAmi tvAm drshTum aham tathaiva |&nbdp; tenaiva rUpeNa catur-bhujena sahasra bAho bhava viSva mUrte || I wish to see You adorned in the same way (as before) with crown and withmace and discus in hand. Assume again that four-armed shape (that is, inthe divine form of vishNu deva rUpam as mentioned in the previous Slokam), OThou Universal Being with the thousand-arms. ANDAL describes Him asIr IraNDu Mal varait tOL SenKaN tiru mugattu Selvat tirumAl (tiruppAvai30). PerukkAraNai SrI cakravartyAcAryas anubhavam is that the four armsfor bestowing the four purushAtha-s. It is as if He just keeps increasingthe number of arms as needed, to carry many more weapons to protect His devoteesas occasion demands. Thus, when He came to protect gajendra, He came with eightarms; sudarSana AzhvAr that He carries has 16 arms, and 16 weapons in thosehands (SrI shoDaSAyudha stotram of svAmi deSikan). tirumangai AzhvAralso refers to His four arms in periya tirumozh 8.1.1 malai ilangu tOLnAngE maRRu avanukku! eRRE kAN. SrI Sankara points out that the nAma catur-bAhuh is traditionally reservedfor vAsudeva (recall Sankha cakra gadA pANe dvArakA-nilayAcyuta govindaapuNDarIkAksha raksha mAm SaraNAgatam).

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points outthat vishNu is typically personified with Sankha, cakra, gadA, and eitherlotus or dhanus in the four hands. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the reference to SrImad bhAgavatamdescribing bhagavAn as One with Four arms: - catur-bhujah Sankha gadAbja cakrah piSanga vAsA nalinAyatekshaNah (bhAga.8.18.1); - tam adbhutam bAlakam ambujekshaNam catur-bhujam Sankha gadAyudAryudham (bhAga. 10.3.9). Under Slokam 15, SrI cinmAyananda describes the four arms of bhagavAncarrying the Sankha, cakra, gadA, and padmam. These are meant formaintaining dharma among mankind. The conch calls man to the righteouspath that directly leads to Peace and Perfection, to His Lotus Feet. But most ofus, in the enchantment of the immediate sense-joys, refuse to listen to thesmall inner voice of conscience from His conch. For those, He wields theMace (gadA) very gently, and we suffer small calamities and tragic jerks in ourotherwise smooth existence, in the form of communal, social or nationalcalamities. If still the individual is not listening to the call of theconch, then the cakra - the Wheel of Time, annihilates the entire being. The call and the punishment are all only to take man towards his Ultimate Goal,represented by the padma in His hand. For the nAma catur-bAhuh, SrI cinmayAnandas anubhavam is that the fourhands represent the four factors that together constitute the inner equipmentsin man mind (manas), intellect (buddhi), thought flow towards objects (citta),and ego (ahamkAra). These are the four agents through which all thephysical activities are controlled, regulated, and constantly commanded fromwithin the body. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the following support:"sattvam rajas tama iti aha~nkAraScaturbhujah (gopAlottaratApini 55). A related explanation is that the Self functions in a four-fold patterninvolving mind, intellect, cit, and ego, and these are represented by the fourarms containing the conch, the mace, the cakra, and the padma. The cit isrepresented by the Lotus or Padma, the intellect is the 'Conch', ego is the'Mace', and mind is the 'Discus'. For catur-bhujah, SrI satya sandha yatirAjahas given the following interpretations: 1. bhungte bhunakti iti bhujah; caturNAm dharma artha kAma mokshANAmbhujah catur-bhujah vishNu is catur-bhujah since He makes dharma, artha,kAma, and moksha to be experienced by the deserved. 2. caturbhyah vedebhyah bhavati iti catur-bhug j~nAnam tena jAyateabhityAjyate iti catur-bhujah vishNu is known as catur-bhujah since He canonly be known by the four veda-s. 773. catur-vyUhah a) He of the form of four Emanations (vyUha forms). b) He Who had four manifestations in His vibhava form (as kRshNa, balarAma,pradyumna, and aniruddha). c) He Who manifests Himself as purusha, chandah purusha, veda purusha, and mahApurusha. d) He Whose Supremacy is established by the four-fold veda-s. e) He Who is in the form of four divisions of speech (three veda-s, and ordinaryspeech) f) He Who has four kinds of greatness (vyUha = mahimA). Om catur-vyUhAya namah.

We dealt with this nAma in Slokam 15 (nAma 140). The root is Uh vitarke to conjecture, to reason, to infer. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives theexpansion viSishThA UhA vyUhA He Who forms Himself into four forms forthe purposes of creation etc. Following is a recap with some additional information, mostly taken from Vol.4 of the Agama-koSa published by the Kalpatharu Research Academy (S. K..Ramachandra Rao), dealing with the pAncarAtra Agama. The term vyUh means to divide, to distribute, to separate, to resolve, etc.It is used to refer to the four forms in which para vAsudeva or nArAyaNa decidedto divide Himself for His functions of creation, preservation, and destruction.This is a fundamental and integral concept of the pAncarAtra Agama. In thisconcept, in the para or transcendental mode, the Deity is like an ocean ofnectar altogether devoid of waves, quiet, profound, still, limitless andunfathomable, un-fragmented by space or time. This is His form in SrI vaikunTham.It is the plane in which knowledge and bliss abound unobstructed, and which ispopulated by the nitya sUri-s (who are never involved at any time intransmigration etc.), and by the mukta-s. The para form is full of the sixattributes j~nAna, bala, aiSvarya,, vIrya, Sakti, tejas. The vyUha mode ofbhagavAn emphasizes the differential manifestations and functions of the sixattributes. This creative configuration of the attributes is for the sake ofcreation and evolution of the world, for maintaining the world and protectingthe devotees, and for leading the devotees to salvation. The vyUha forms arefour in number: vAsudeva, samkarshaNa, pradyumna, and aniruddha. VAsudeva hasall six attributes in their fullness and equal dominance. VAsudeva appears asthree additional sequential emanations as follows: j~nAna + bala = SamkarshaNa aiSvarya + vIrya = pradyumna Sakti + tejas =aniruddha As in the case of the other nAma-s of this Slokam that are common with Slokam15, the first instance of this nAma is explained by SrI BhaTTar in terms of thevyUha incarnations of bhagavAn, and the second in terms of His vibhavaincarnation as Lord kRshNa. a) As part of his description of this nAma in terms of the vyUha incarnations(vAsudeva, samkarshaNa, pradyumna, and aniruddha), SrI BhaTTar points out thateach of the vyUha forms have their own limbs, color, ornaments, weapons,vehicles, banners, etc. These forms are assumed by bhagavAn for the purpose ofmeditation and worship (dhyAna and ArAdhana) by His devotees. The four states ofmeditation that are associated with each of these four forms are jAgrat Wakeful state; svapna, State of dreams; sushupti Deep sleep; and turIya The fourth and Final State. In the Wakeful state, the external senses function;in the svapna state, they do not function, but only the mind is active; in theSleep state, even the mind does not function, and there is only breathing; andin the turIya state, even the breath is suspended. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers us to SrImad bhAgavatam, where the fourvyUha-s are mentioned: namaste vAsudevAya namah sankarshaNAya ca | pradyumnAya aniruddhAyasAttvatAm-pataye namah || (bhAgavatam. 10.40.21) b) For the nAma 773, where SrI BhaTTar continues his description of bhagavAnsvibhava incarnation as Lord kRshNa, the explanation he gives is the four formsof kRshNa or vAsudeva, balabhadra (balarAma, His brother), pradyumna (His son),and aniruddha (His grandson). Just as in the vyUha incarnation, in the vibhavaincarnation also, kRshNa was full of all the six qualities, and baralAma (sankarshaNa),pradyumna, and aniruddha had two of the six qualities dominating.

SrI Sankara gives two different interpretations for the nAma in their twoinstances, consistent with the trait of being free from punar-ukti dosham ofauthentic vyAkhyAna-s. For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 15, he gives theinterpretation in terms of the four vyUha incarnations. He quotes the words ofvyAsa in support: vyUhya AtmAnam caturdhA vai, vAsudevAdi mUrtibhih | sRshTyAdIn prakarotyesha,viSrutAtmA janArdanah || He Who is known as viSrutAtmA, janArdana, etc., divides Himself into fourforms, and performs the functions such as creation. c) For the current nAma catur-vyUhah, he uses the generic meaning manifestation,and using the aitareya AraNyaka declaration, describes the four manifestationsas the purusha in the body, the purusha in the chandas, the purusha in the veda-s,and the great purusha SarIra purushaS-chandah purusho veda purusho mahApurushah (ait. AraN. 3.2.9). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri expands on this: purusha orSarIra purusha refers to the soul or AtmA in the SarIra of the cetana-s; chandahpurusha is the AtmA in the form of the correctly pronounced mantra-s; the vedapurusha is the AtmA in the form of the veda-s; and the mahA purusha refers tothe purusha in the form of kAla or Time. d) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshan gives the explanation that He has this nAmabecause His Supremacy is established by the four divisions of the veda-s Rg,yajus, sAma, and atharva: caturbhih vedaih vyUhyate pareSatvena vRdhyate yam iticatur-vyUhah. e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the Rg vedic passage catvAri vAk parimitApadAni (1.164.45), and interprets the nAma as referring to four divisions ofspeech. The passage continues to say The brAhmins who have understandingknow them. Ralph Griffith interprets this as a reference to three veda-s, andto ordinary speech as the fourth one. f) The dharma cakram writer gives a different interpretation. He takes vyUhato mean greatness, and then interprets the nAma as representing bhagavAnas having the following four mahimA-s: 1. Performing the function of creation,destruction etc., just as part of His leelA-s; 2. Revealing the greatness ofparA-bhakti (extreme devotion) through rAsa-krIDA; 3. The revelation of therelation between jeevAtmA and paramAtmA by being the nAtha simultaneously forinnumerable gopi-s; and 4. The calm acceptance of the curse of gAndhAri relatingto the destruction of the vRshNi race. 774. catur-gatih a) He Who is in the form of the four purushArtha-s. b)He Who provides the four goals: indra, brahma, kaivalya, and moksha. c) He Whohas the four gaits (vRshabha, gaja, vyAghra, and simha gati) d) He Who is thegoal of the four varNa-s and the four ASrama-s. e) He Who is the Refuge for thefour kinds of bhakata-s (Arta, ji~jnAsu, arthArthI, and j~nAnI) om catur-gataye namah. a) SrI bhaTTar interprets the nAma as referring to His being the path for allthe four goals desired by His devotees upAsaka abhiyoga tAratamyakRta-kramAt catasrah prAptayah asmin iti catur-gatih. SrI bhaTTar does notexplicitly specify what the four goals are that he has in mind. Two

differentinterpretations have been given by the subsequent interpreters. One is that thefour goals are the four purushArtha-s dharma, artha, kAma, and moksha. b) An alternate interpretation, given by SrI aNNangarAcArya and a fewothers, is that, depending on the merit of the upAsaka, bhagavAn takes theupAsaka to one of the four goals: the position of indra, brahmA, kaivalyam, ormoksham. c) In SrImad rAmAyaNam, hanuman describes Lord rAma to sItA pirATTi with thename catur-gatih (sundara kANDam 35.20 catur-daSasamadvandvaS-catur-damshTraS-catur-gatih). This is traditionally translatedusing the meaning gait for the word gatih, giving the meaning to thenAma as One Who has the four kinds of gaits. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers usto the ARAyirap paDi vyAkhyAnam for tiruppAvai pASuram 23 mArI malaimuzhangil, for the part un koil ninRu InganE pOndu aruLi.emperumAns naDai is enjoyed in four different ways in SrI rangam utsavam-s.These are the Rshabha gati (the walk of a bull, characterized by pride andexultation), matta gaja gati (the gait of an infatuated elephant, characterizedby majesty), the vyAghra gati (associated with the anger of an angry tiger), andsimha gati (the walk of lordliness associated with its position as the king ofthe four-legged species and by its ability to overpower and conquer the otherfour-legged species). In SrImad rAmAyaNam we have the reference to the beauty ofLord rAmas gait gaja simha gatI vIrau SardUla vRshabhaupamau, referringto the four gaits described above. d) SrI Sankara uses the meaning goal (the ultimate end) for the wordgati, and gives the interpretation that the nAma means He Who is the Goal ofthe four varNa-s and ASrama-s ASramANAm varNAnAm caturNAmyathokta-kAriNAm gatih catur-gatih He is the goal of the four stages of lifeor ASrama-s (brahmacarya, gRhasta, vAnaprastha and sannyAsa), and the fourcastes (brAhmaNa, kshatriya, vaiSya, and Sudra), when their respective codes ofconduct are observed. e) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation that He has this nAmabecause He is the Refuge for the four kinds of bhakta-s the Arta, ji~jnAsu,arthArthI, or j~nAnI caturNAm ArtAdInAm bhaktAnAm yathA-bhAvam AsryatvAtcatur-gatih. SrI satya sandha yatirAja also gives this interpretation, and givesthe reference to the gItA Slokam 7.16: catur-vidhA bhajante mAm janAh sukRtinorjuna | Arto ji~jnAsur-arthArthIj~nAnI ca bharatarshabha || (gItA 7.16) Four types of men of good deeds worship Me, O arjuna. These are thedistressed, the seekers after knowledge, the wealth-seekers, and men ofknowledge. 775. catur-AtmA a) He Who has four forms in His vyUha incarnation b) HeWho has four manifestations in His vibhava incarnations of kRshNa and rAma c) HeWho has a four-fold manifestation in His functions of creation, preservation anddestruction. d) He Who is skilled in keeping His AtmA pure from attachment etc.(catura -cAturya AtmA) e) He Who is behind the functions of manas, citta, buddhi,and ahankAra. f) He Who manifests Himself in four forms to support the jIva inits four states - viSva, taijasa, prA`jna, and turIya. g) He Whos is theantaryAmi of the four types of devotees - Arta, arthArthI, etc.

h) He Whocreated the fit being - the four-faced brahmA (catura = kuSala, fit) i) He Whomanifest Himself in four kinds of AtmA-s: jIva, antarAtmA, paramAtmA, j~nAnAtmA. Om catur-Atmane namah. We dealt with this nAma in Slokam 15 (nAma 139). The term Atman usuallyrefers to the individual soul, but is also used refer to the Supreme Self (ParamAtman),ones essential essence or nature, Form, image etc. (VAman Aptesdictionary). The nAma-s catur-mUrtih (nAma 771 in the current Slokam),catur-AtmA (nAma 139 in Slokam 15, and the current nAma), and catur-vyUhah (nAma140 in Slokam 15, and the previous nAma in the current Slokam) haveinterpretations that are somewhat related. So I am re-visiting all the abovenAma-s here. It has been pointed out in many places before, that a unique feature of SrIBhaTTars bhAshyam is that he sees a connection between groups of nAma-s inSrI vishNu sahasra nAmam, and has grouped the 1000 nAma-s into 44 groups, like44 petals of a lotus flower. So in SrI BhaTTars bhAshyam, we will see theinterpretation that is most appropriate to the form of bhagavAn that he isdealing with for any instance of a given nAma. For instance, he interprets thenAma-s 123 to 146 in terms of His vyUha incarnations (vAsudeva, samkarshNa,pradyumna and aniruddha), and nAma-s 697 to 786 in terms of the vibhavaincarnation of bhagavAn as Lord kRshNa. So he interprets the occurrence ofcatur-AtmA and caturvyUhah as nAma-s 139 and 140 in terms of the vyUhaincarnation, and the occurrence of the same nAma-s catur-AtmA and catur-vyUhahas nAma-s 775 and 773, in terms of His kRshNa incarnations. Thus, he uses themeaning Emanation or vyUha incarnation in the former instance of the termvyUha, and refers to His four vyUha incarnations for the nAma 139,and deals withwhy He took these forms, for nAma 140. When interpreting the series of nAma-sunder the kRshNa incarnation, he refers to the four manifestations of kRshNa asvAsudeva (Himself), samkarshaNa (His brother), prdyumna (His son), and aniruddha(His grandson) for catur-mUrtih (nAma 771), the distribution of the sixqualities between them for nAma 773, and the meditation of these four forms bythe devotees under nAma 775. The point to be made is that even though the nAma-smay have outwardly same or similar meanings, the interpretation is made withemphasis on different aspects of bhagavAns manifestations and guNa-s, andthus the full benefit of the diversity of the guNAnubhavam is provided to us,with no dosham of repetition or punar-ukti. Even though SrI Sankara has not adopted a scheme of interpretation wherehe weaves a thread of connection between groups of nAma-s as a rule (as SrIBhaTTar has done), he also avoids punar-ukti or repetition because this is a anaccepted and expected trait or lakshaNa of the great vyAkhyAna kartA-s. Heuses different meanings for the words in his interpretations for the twoinstances of catur-AtmA. In the first instance, he uses the meaning four,and explains the nAma in terms of four manifestations of His in each of Hisroles of protection, creation, and destruction, based on quotes from SrI vishNupurANam. In the second instance of the same nAma, he views the nAma as catura +AtmA, and gives the meaning cAturyam to the word catura, and gives theinterpretation that the nAma refers to His skill in keeping His AtmA or Selfpure from any attachment etc. Similarly, for the first instance of the nAmacatur-vyUhah, he uses the interpretation in terms of the four vyUhaincarnations, and for the second instance of the same nAma, he gives a differentinterpretation, based on the different forms of purusha - The purusha in thebody, the purusha in the chandas, the purusha in the veda-s, and the greatpurusha. For the nAma catur-mUrtih, he draws on yet another aspect of bhagavAnsguNa-s His appearing with different colors in the four yugas: white, red,yellow and black bodies. With that diversion on how the great vyAkhyAna kartA-s provide us withdiverse anubhavam-s of bhagavAns guNa-s and eliminate the purnar-ukti dosham,we will briefly summarize the anubhavam of the current nAma catur-AtmA.

a) As pointed out in the previous paragraph, for nAma 139 SrI bhaTTar givesthe interpretation that He manifests Himself in four vyUha forms vAsudeva,samkarshaNa, pradyumna, and aniruddha. Here the meaning given for the term AtmAis rUpam, based on the nirukti description vAsudevAdi rUpatvAt caturAtmA itikathyate. b) For the instance of this nAma in the current Slokam, he gives theinterpretation that bhagavAn makes Himself available for experience of thedevotees both in sthUla and in sUkshma form, in any of the four states ofexperience: the waking state, the dream state, the sleep state, and the turIyastate, depending on the capacity of the devotee to meditate on Him. c) SrI Sankaras vyAkhyAnam for this nAma in Slokam 15 is that His Saktiis expressed in a four-fold manifestation in each of His functions of creation,preservation, and destruction. These four forms are: In creation: brahmA, daksha and others, time, and all creatures Inpreservation: vishNu, manu and others, time, and all creatures In dissolution:rudra, yama and others, time, and all creatures. He supports this interpretation from vishNu purANam 1.22.30-32: brahmA dakshAdayah kAlah tathaiva aklhila jantavah | vibhUtayA hariretAjagatah sRshTi-hetavah || vishNur manvAdayah kAlah sarva bhUtAni ca dvija | sthiter nimitta bhUtasyavishNoretA vibhUtayah || rudrah kAlah antakAdyaSca samastASvaiva jantqavah | caturdhA pralayAyaitAjanArdana vibhUtayah || d) For the current instance of the nAma caturAtmA, SrI Sankara views thenAma as catrura + AtmA, where he uses the meaning cAturyam for the word catura.His interpretation here is that He has this nAma because He is skilled inkeeping His AtmA or Self pure and free from attachment etc. rAga deveshAdirahitatvAt catura AtmA mano asya iti caturAtmA. e) An alternate interpretation by SrI Sankara is that He is in the formof, or behind, the four types of internal organs mind, intellect, sense(ego), and citta (intuition), and so He is in these four forms catur-AtmA.SrI Sankaras words are: mano buddhi ahankAra cittAkhyAntah karaNacatushTaya AtmakatvAt catur-AtmA. SrI rAdhakRshNa SAstri elaborates on this. Hedescribes the four as the mind function, the buddhi function, the cittafunction, and the ahankAra. The mind function involves thinking of doingsomething, the buddhi function is one of analysis, the citta function is one ofdrawing on prior experiences in execution, and the ahankAra is the feeling ofaccomplishment at the end of this process. These four are called the four antahkaraNa-s, or internal organs. Since bhagavAn is the AtmA of function behindthese, He is called caturAtmA. mano buddhir-ahankArah cittam karaNamAntaram | samSayo niScayo garvas smaraNam vishayA amI || SrI cinmAyanada givesthe pATham as catvarAtmA as the one corresponding to this interpretation catvara + AtmA The One Infinite Efflugence that expresses Itself as thefour aspects of our inner equipment antah karaNa catushTaya.

f) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives a interpretation based on nRsimhottara tApinI.This describes His manifesting His Self in four forms. The first is themanifestation where He supports the sthUla SarIra of the jIva (called viSva), inHis form as virAT. The combined form of viSva and virAT is otA. The second formis where He supports the sUkshma SarIra of the jIva called taijasa, in His formas sUtra. This combined manifestation is called anuj~nAtA. There is third aspector dimension of the soul, which is called kAraNa SarIra (also called prA~jna),which is responsible for memories that are carried over from previous birth,such as the memory of the newborn child that crying will result in its gettingmilk. The manifestation of His Self that supports this kAraNa SarIra of the soulin His form as ISvara is called anu~jnaikarasa. His Self which is past thesethree aspects of the soul, and which is realized through brahma j~nAna is calledavikalpa. The nAma caturAtmA, based on the nRsimhottra tApinI, refers to thefour forms of His Self described above otA, anu~jnAtA, anu~jnA ekarasa, andavikalpa atha turIyaS-caturAtmA turIyAvasitvAt ekaikasya otAnu~jnAtranu~jnAvaikalpaih (1.11). The first three forms lead to the fourth form theparamAtman, through knowledge and realization. SrI T. S. Raghavendran gives reference from mArkaNDeya purANa which declaresthat paramAtmA enters the bodies of all creatures with the four forms of viSva,taijasa, prA~jna, and turIya: paramAtmA catu-rUpah sarva-prANi-sarIragah | viSvaSca taijasahprA~jnas-trIyaSceti kathyate || In his explanation, SrI Raghavendran associates the viSva form with thewakeful state of the jIva, the taijasa with the dream state, the prA~jna withthe sleep state, and the turIya with the state that is above all the otherthree, the moksha state. g) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that the nAma refersto His being the antaryAmi of the four types of devotees the Arti, arthArthI,j~nAnI and mumukshu those who worship Him for relief from sufferings, thosewho seek wealth, those who seek knowledge, and those who seek moksha caturNAm Arta arthArthi ji~jnAsu mumukshUNAm AtmA antaryAmI priya iti caturAtmA. SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives an interpretation that is based His being thecause of the four types of desires in the devotees: caturshu dharma artha kAmamoksheshu janAnAm yogyatAnusAreNa AtmA mano yasmAt sa caturAtmA. h) SrI satya sandha yatirAja also gives another anubhavam: BhagavAn is calledcaturAtmA because He created the fit being for purposes of creation, in the formof brahmA - caturah kuSala AtmA catur-mukho yasmAt iti caturAtmA. i) Another of SrI satya sandha yatirAjas interpretations is that bhagavAnhas the nAma caturAtmA because He has all the qualities of the four types ofAtmA-s: AtmA, antarAtmA, paramAtmA, and j~nAnAtmA (catvAra AtmAnah AtmA,antarAtmA, paramAtmA, j~nAnAtma lakshNA yasya iti caturAtmA). SrI T. S.Raghavendran explains that parmAtmA, in the rUpa of AtmA, resides in our hearts,and resides in the rUpa of antarAtmA in the heart of the soul. paramAtmA is theSupreme Soul. He explains j~nAnAtmA by referencing the taittirIya Upanishad satyam j~nAnam anatam brahma. He is prANa maya, mano maya, anna maya, vi~jnAnamaya, and Ananda maya. Manomaya and Ananda maya here refer to His manifestationsas j~nAnAtmA according to the explanation provided by SrI Raghavendran. He alsoquotes the bRhat samhitA to distinguish between AtmA and antarAtmA as distinctmanifestations of hari: AtmA antarAtmA iti harir-eka eva dvi-vidhA sthitah | nivishTo hRdaye nityamrasam pibati karmajam ||

776. catur-bhAvah a) He Who gives expression to the four vyUha formsthrough four kinds of actions. b) The Source of the four varNa-s, ASrama-s,pururshArtha-s, etc. c) He Who created the four kinds of species. Om catur-bhAvAya namah. The root from which the word bhAvah is derived is bhU - sattAyAm to be,to live, to be born. SrI vAsishTha notes that the meaning for the word bhAva canbe One who exists, one through whom existence takes place, one who came intoexistence by himself, one who makes others appearetc. a) SrI bhaTTar interprets the word bhAva as standing for bhAvanA,which means manifesting, revealing. bhAvah = bhAvanA = abhivyanjanam,which means manifesting, revealing. He continues his interpretationlinking the nAma to the previous ones, which dealt with His vyUha forms, andinterprets the current nAma as revealing the expression of these vuYha formsthrough actions. Creation, sustenance, protection of the beings, and propagationof the SAstra-s are the four actions or duties. These are distributedrespectively as follows: vAsudeva sRshTi, universe creation; sankarshaNa sthiti, keepingthe universe in form; pradyumna rakshaNa, protection; aniruddha sAstrapradAnam bequest of a good number of instructional scriptures as guides forliving. abhivyanjanam manifesting, revealing. b) SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that the nAma representsbhagavAn as the Source of the four kinds of purushArtha-s: dharma, artha, kAmaand moksha dharam artha kAma mokshAkhya purushArtha catushTayam bahavati utpadyate asmAt iti catur-bhAvah. SrI cinmayAnanda takes the generic meaning The Source of the Four, andthen expands on it. He is the Source of the four varNa-s, the four ASrama-s, thefour purushArtha-s etc. (see b above). He gives reference to the gItA Slokam4.13 in support: cAtur-varNyam mayA sRshTam guNa karma vibhAgaSah | tasya kartAramapi mAmviddhi akartAram avyayam || (gItA 4.13) The system of four stations was created by Me according to distinction ofguNa-s and karma. Though I am their creator, know Me as non-agent and immutable. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that the current nAmasignifies His creation of the four kinds of species: svakRtavyavasthayAcatur-vidhAm sRshTim utpAdayati One Who has created the four kinds ofspecies through His own Free Will. The four species are: those that come from anegg, such as birds, serpent, etc.; the humming kind, such as the mosquito, bee,etc.; the species such as trees, and the human species. 777. catur-veda-vit a) He Who is known by those who are learned in thefour veda-s. b) He Who is the Knower of the four veda-s. c) He Who makes itpossible to know the four veda-s.

om catur-veda-vide namah. Literally, the term catur-veda-vit refers to one who is an expert in all thefour veda-s. This unequivocally applies only to bhagavAn. Other who are learnedin the four veda-s, see but a drop of the Great Ocean that He is, because themagnificence displayed in the vyUha and vibhava is vast like the ocean, whichcannot be comprehended by anyone. a) nammAzhvAr addresses Him as maRaiyAya nAl vEdattuL ninRa malarc cuDarEin tiruvAimozhi 1.3.10 (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI V. N. Vedanta deSikan pointsthe use of the two words maRai and vedam, in this pASuram. MaRai refers to thisgreat secret being concealed from the undevoted, and vedam refers to its beingrevealed to the great devotees. In gItA 15.15, Lord kRshNa reveals that He isthe Only One Who is to be known from all the vedas, He is the One Who createdthe veda-s, He is the One Who brings about the fruition of the rituals of theveda-s, and He is the One Who knows the veda-s vedaiSca sarvam ahamevavedyah | vedAnta-kRt, veda-videva cAham ||. To know Him as He is in paramapadam is extremely difficult, to say the least. But in His vyUha and vibhavaincarnations, with His Grace, a tiny part of His mahimA can be realized. b) SrI Sankaras vyAkhyAnam is that He has this nAma because He is theOnly One Who knows the meanings of the veda-s as they are - yathAvat vetticaturNAm vedAnAm artham iti catur-veda-vit. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives asimilar interpretation catvAro vedA RgAdayah | tAn aSeshAn vetti iticatur-veda-vit. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri comments that not only it is true that He alone knowsthe four veda-s completely and with their correct meanings, but He is also theveda-s Himself. Thus, knowing Him is only possible for those who have learnedthe veda-s correctly and with their true meanings. SrI cinmayAnanda commentsthat a student of veda can be considered to have achieved his studysobjective only when he has realized the Lord. c) SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN has a different anubhavam of the nAma bhagavAn has this nAma because He is the One Who enables His devotees to knowthe four veda-s caturo vedAn vedayati bhaktAn iti caturveda-vit. In otherwords, only through devotion to Him will a student of veda be able to know andunderstand the veda-s and their meanings correctly. 778. eka-pAt a) He Who manifests only a part of His mahimA when He takesincarnations amongst humans. b) He Whose manifestation in the form of thisUniverse is only one-fourth of Himself. c) He Who is constantly on the look-outas our Sole Protector (ekapo + at) Om eka-pade namah. (Both SrI satyadevo vAsishTha and SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj give the mantra corresponding to this nAma as eka-pAde namah).

The word pAda refers to a quarter of anything (one-fourth), or to the foot.Generically, the term is also used to a part or a fraction of something. a) SrI bhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn chooses to show only apart of His greatness when He takes incarnations amongst us. (This does not meanthat He actually has only part of His mahimA during the incarnations. He has Hiscomplete and undiminished attributes at His command, but He just does not invokethem or use them. This is revealed in SrImad rAmAyaNam, where Lord rAmaemphasizes that He is only a human aham mAnusham manye), even thoughviSvAmitra and others know His true Nature. See svAmi deSikans description ofthe six rahasyas of His incarnations in Slokam 17 of SaraNAgati dIpikA, whichhas been described previously). SrI BhaTTar gives the following references: - amSAvatAro brahmarshe! Yoyam yadu kulodbhavah (V.P. 5.1.2) OBrahmarshi! This incarnation of the Lord as kRshNa in the yadu race is only asmall part of Himself. - AmSAmSena avatIrya urvyAm (V.P. 5.1.3) He hascome down to this world only with a part of a part of Himself. - VishNor-ardham mahA bhAgam putram ikshvAku nanadanam (bAla. 18.12) rAma,the delight of the ikshvAku race, took birth as half the amSam of vishNu. b) SrI Sankara gives the interpretation in terms of the purusha sUktampassage etAvAn asya mahimA | ato jyAyAgmSca pUrushah | pAdosya viSvAbhUtAni | tri-pAdasyAmRtam divi | tri-pAd-Urdhva udait-purushah | pAdosyehAbhavAtpunah | tato vishvang vyakrAmat | sASanAnaSane abhi | In his purusha sUkta vyAkhyAnam, SrI K. SrInivAsa aiyengAr gives theinterpretation that the leela vibhUti which is expressed in His manifestationthrough this universe is only a fourth of His mahimA. The remainingthree-fourths is found in parama padam in His nitya vibhUti. The reference toone-fourth and three-fourth here really are parts of His immeasurable mahimA. SrI Sankara gives reference to the gItA in support: athavA bahunA etena kim j~nAnena tava arjuna | vishTabhAyahamidam kRtsnamekAmSena sthito jagat || (gItA 10.42) But of what use to you is all this extensive knowledge O arjuna? I standsustaining this whole universe with a fragment of Mine (My power). SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives the following reference from the smRti: aNDAnAm tu sahasrAnAm sahasrAnyayutAni ca | IdRsAnAm tathA tatra koTi koTiSatAni ca || All the thousands of universes together are nothing more than a tiny part ofHim. c) SrI satya sandha yatirAja bases one of his interpretations by looking atthe nAma as ekapo + at, and using the root at sAtatyagamane to goconstantly (atati). His interpretation is ekapo mukhya pAlakah san atati He Who is constantly on the lookout as the Sole Protector.

The root pA rakshaNe to protect (pAti protects), also suggeststhat the nAma can be viewed as meaning that He is the Sole Protector. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 83 -

samAvarto nivRttAtmA dur-jayo dur-atikramah | dur-labho dur-gamo durgo durAvAso durAri-hA || om om om om om om om om om samAvartAya namah nivRttAtmane namah dur-jayAya namah dur-atikramAya namah dur-labhAya namah dur-gamAya namah dur-gAya namah dur-AvAsAya namah durrArighne namah

779. samAvartah a) He Who takes incarnations again and again for the benefit of His devotees. b) He Who performs His function of creation again and again in cycles. c) He Whose true thoughts are always revolving around what He can do to help Hisdevotees. om samAvartAya namah. sam is an upasarga here, and can mean well, from all sides, etc.The term Avarta means turning around, revolving. The root from which theword Avarta is derived is vRt vartane to exist, to happen, to live on,to occupy etc. The amara koSa vyAkhyAnam is: Avartate carkravad bhrAmyati itiAvartah That which rotates around like a wheel.

a) SrI bhaTTars interpretation is that bhagavAn has this nAma because Hetakes incarnations again and again repeatedly as needed, for the benefit of Hisdevotees, even though He is birthless. nammAzhvAr refers to Him as piRappu ilpal piRavi perumAn in tiruvAimozhi 2.9.5 (SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). b) SrI Sankara gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has the nAma samAvartah because He skillfully turns the wheel of worldly life samsAracakrasya samyag-Avartaka iti samAvartah. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives thesame interpretation - samyag Avartayati samsAra cakram iti samAvartah. SrIbaladeva vidyA bhUshaN expresses the same idea because bhagavAn repeatedlycontinues His creation in cycles, He is called samAvartah samyak tAnAvartayati punah punah sRjati iti samAvartah . c) An alternate interpretation by SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj is thatbhagavAn is called samAvartah because His true thoughts are constantly revolvingaround what He can do to protect His devotees samIcInah AvartanaS-cintanamsvajana avanamayam yasya iti samAvartah . 780. nivRttAtmA a) He whose Nature is different from, and superior to, everything else (TrascendentalForm). b) He whose mind is turned away from worldly attachments. (nara-nArAyaNaincarnation) c) He who is the AtmA of those who practice the nivRtti dharma (Bestower ofbenefits according to karma). d) He whose nature is that He is free from the bonds of samsAra, even when Hetakes His incarnation amongst us (kRshNa incarnation). e) He who does not turn away from anything or anywhere because He isOmnipresent. (a-nivRttAtmA Sankara) f) He Who withdraws the jIva-s into Him during pralaya g) He Who has permeated everything completely. h) He Who is Himself un-impacted or withdrawn with respect to the effects of pralaya of sRshTi. i) He whose mind turns away from any feeling of self-glory over His kIrti orfame. Om nivRttAtmane namah. The nAma nivRttAtmA occurs 4 times in SrI BhaTTars system ofinterpretation. This is one of only two nAma-s that occur this many number oftimes (the other nAma is prANa-dah). The instances of the nAma nivRttAtmA in SrIBhaTTars shceme of interpretation are: nAma 231 (Slokam 25), nAma 453 (Slokam48), nAma 604 (Slokam 64), nAma 780 (Slokam83) SrI Sankara has given the nAma-s as nivRttAtmA in Sloka-s 25 and 64, asvimuktAmA in Slokam 48, and as a-nivRttAtmA in Slokam 83, with nivRttAtmA beinghis alternate version in Slokam 83. What follows is a consolidation of the previous write-ups for this nAma. ThenAma has been explained in detail in the previous three instances, using theapproach that I have taken for all other nAma-s, namely, giving the differentanubhavam-s of the different vyAkhyAna kartA-s for the nAma in one place. Wewill take a look at the vyAkhyAna for this nAma from a different perspective inthe current write-up. There are two unique contributions that SrI BhaTTar has made in hisvyAkhyAnam for SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam. These are:

1. He has approached the elucidation for all the nAma-s with the emphasis onbhagavAns guNa-s of saulabhyam and sauSIlyam towards His devotees as theprimary guNa-s of bhagavAn that are of interest from the devoteesperspective. SrI Sanakra generally gives his interpretations with emphasis onthe parattvam or Supremacy of vishNu in his interpretations. This point has beenbrought out in detail in my write-up comparing the two vyAkhyAna-s, and has beenmentioned as a reminder under different nAmas. 2. SrI BhaTTar is unique in viewing the 1000 nAma-s as a collection of 44discrete groups, each group consisting of a series of nAma-s describing aspecific incarnation or manifestation of bhagavAn. This aspect has also beenmentioned off and on during the discussion of the nAma-s. Because of the general approach I have taken throughout, of summarizing thedifferent anubhavam-s of several interpreters under each nAma, I have inevitablylost the stress on the second aspect of SrI BhaTTars contribution in mywrite-ups, even though I try to mention this aspect off and on. In the currentview of the nAma nivRttAtmA, we will emphasize this second aspect of Sri BhaTTarsvyAkhyAnam for the four instances of this nAma. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma-s in the following contexts: nAma 231 as part of the group of nAmas from 226 to 247, reminiscent ofthe purusha sUktaupanishad pratipAdita virAT svarUpam. nAma 453 as part ofthe group of nAma-s from 451 to 463, describing the nara-nArAyaNa incarnation,as the nivRtti dharma pravartaka. nAma 604 as part of the group of nAma-sfrom 590 to 606, describing His guNa as a conferrer of benefits to jiva-s basedon their karma. nAma 780 as part of the nAmas from 697 to 786, describingHis kRshNa incarnation. The meaning for the word nivRtta is to turn away, to abstain from, to beabove worldly acts, etc. a) SrI BhaTTars interpretation for nAma 231(in the group of nAma-sdescribing the Transcendental Person described in purusha sUkatam etc.,), isthat bhagavAns svabhAva (Nature) is past the prAkRta svabhAva (the ordinarynature of mortals), and the meaning given is that His Nature as the Supremepurusha is superior to anything else, and stands above all other things. He isthe Master of the Transcendental Glory that is thrice the glory of the materialworld. He is the svAmI or Lord of all that is this Universe, and all that isbeyond this Universe. SrI Bhattar gives the following references: tripAdUrdhvaudaitpurushah - The Purusha stands eminent in the parama-pada which has thricethe glory of the material world" - purusha sUkta 4. parAt-param yan-mahatomahAntam - He is greater than the greatest, more exalted than the most exalted.- taitti. nArAyanIya 1.5. SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives reference to the muNDakopanishad passage, oftwo birds sitting in the same tree, one representing the jIva and the other theSupreme Soul. His interpretation is: ni is an upasarga; the root involved is vRt vartane to exist, to happen, to live on, to occupy; or vRt varaNe to choose, to divide. The word nivRtta means One Whose Nature is different svarUpa paryAyah (SrI vAsishTha). dvA suparNA sayujA sakhAyA samAnam vRksham parishasvajAte | tayoranyahpippalam svAdvat-anaSnan-anyo abhicAkaSIti || (muNDa. 2.1.) The above sloka talks of two birds, one representing the paramAtmA and the otherthe jIvAtmA, one watching and shining brilliantly, while the other enjoys thefruits of the karma. It thus illustrates the different nature of the superiorSoul, who turns away from the enjoyment that the jIva goes after ( nivRtta -anaSnan). SrI vAsishTha captures the spirit of the nAma through the Sloka he hascomposed for describing the

meaning of this nAma, just as he has composed hisown Sloka as his interpretation for each of the 1000 nAma-s: ja~jne sa viSvam sa bibharti viSvam sakhA sa jIvasya samAna Sakhah | nASnanjagaj-jAta rasAn aseshAn nivRtta mAtroSnuta eva sarvam || BhagavAn creates the universe and protects everything, and is a Friend ofthe jIva-s and treats everything in His creation equally. He does not consumeany of the fruits of this world, but withdraws everything into Him at the timeof pralaya. b) In SrI BhaTTar interpretation for nAma 453 in Slokam 48 (in the groupdealing with the nara-nArAyaNa incarnation), the anubhavam is that bhagavAn hasHis mind turned away from worldly desires. Since the nara-nArAyaNaincarnation deals with the life of austerity that He adopted, and He taught the nivRtti dharma tonara, this is an appropriate interpretation in this context. BhagavAn appeared as nara and nArAyaNa to teach the nivRtti dharma to theworld and to practice it with extreme detachment (BhagavAns form was nArAyaNain the role of the teacher, and nara in the role of the student). To indicateHis profound detachment ( parama vairAgya) to material objects of pleasure, Hehad His mind withdrawn from them. The nara-nArAyaNa avatAra as well as thenivRtti dharma are embedded in this nAma. The avatAara emphasized nivRtti-dharmaand propagated the sacred ashtAkshara. The essence of nivRtti dharma is therealization that nothing is done for our benefit or by us, and everything is forthe benefit of nArAyaNa and happens because of Him. We are not for us or forsomeone else, but only for nArAyaNa. SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam here is: parama vairAgya khyApanaAya vishayebhyahpratyAhRta-manAh nivRttAtmA To indicate His profound non-attachment tomaterial objects, He has His mind withdrawn from them. About His meditation itis said - antarnivishTa bhAvam ca - He who has His thoughts concentrated onHimself. Also, Atma-dhyAna parAyaNAya - To Him who has His thoughts concentratedwithin Himself"; " hRd -admArpita mAnasam - Him with His mind fixed onthe lotus-heart", etc. c) For nAma 604, which is in the group of nAma-s dealing with His relationwith the jIva-s in giving them the results of their karma-s, SrI BhaTTar givesthe interpretation that He has this nAma because He is the AtmA of those whopractice the nivRtti dharma, or the life of renunciation. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan elaborates on how bhagavAn is the AtmA of those whopractice the nivRtti dharma. These are the jIva-s who do not have any interestin pravRtti dharma, and live their lives with the soul objective of doingkaimkaryam to Him. They are not interested in any fruit out of their actionexcept the bhAgyam of doing kaimkaryam to Him. BhagavAn gives them exactly that,namely He gives them His lokam from where there is no return to samsAra -viNNulagam taruvAnAi variaginrAn (tivuvAimozhi 10.6.3). In fact, even thoughbhagavAn is AtmA of these nivRtti dharma practitioners just as He is the AtmA ofall other creations, yet He considers that these nivRtti dharma followers as Hissoul that supports Him. Another name for these practitioners of nivRtti dharmAis j~nAnI, whom bhagavAn considers as His own soul. Of the two kinds of dharma - the pravRtti dharma and the nivRtti dharma,pravRti dharma takes us to the world of the pitR-s where we enjoy the fruits ofour karma, and come back to this world with the balance of karma-s to ourcredit; nivRtti dharma is that which leads one to moksha.

d) For the current instance of this nAma in the context of the kRshNaincarnation, SrI BhaTTars anubhavam is that even though He took theincarnation among us for our benefit, and even though we are deeply immersed inpravRtti dharma, He keeps Himself in the nivRtti dharma, and is not in any wayaffected by worldly things, and so He continues to be a nivRttAtmA. Thus, even though the nAma is the same, the anubhavam is related to thecontext of the particular aspect of bhagavAn that is emphasized in that context.This vision of SrI BhaTTar in recognizing the connectivity between the differentnAma-s in sequence has also naturally taken care of the issue of avoiding punar-ukti. Part-2 (The following list has been revised, and is slightly different from the oneposted yesterday. So it is included here). 780. nivRttAtmA a) He whose Nature is different from, and superior to, everything else (TrasncendentalForm). b) He whose mind is turned away from worldly attachments. (nara-nArAyaNaincarnation) c) He who is the AtmA of those who practice the nivRtti dharma (Bestower ofbenefits according to karma). d) He whose nature is that He is free from the bonds of samsAra, even when Hetakes His incarnation amongst us (kRshNa incarnation). e) He who does not turn away from anything or anywhere because of He isOmnipresent. (a-nivRttAtmA Sankara) f) He Who withdraws the jIva-s into Him during pralaya g) He Who has permeated everything completely. h) He Whose Mind turns away fromsacrifices that are performed by those who are not qualified. i) He Who is Himself un-impacted or withdrawn with respect to the effects ofpralaya of sRshTi. j) He whose mind turns away from any feeling of self-glory over His kIrti orfame. Om nivRttAtmane namah. (Interpretations a to d were posted yesterday. This is the continuation). For the rest of the write-up, new information that was not included in theprevious write-ups is included below. SrI Sankaras interpretation in Slokam 25 is that bhagavAn is callednivRttAtmA because He is free from the bonds of worldly life The unboundSelf samasAra-bandhAn nivRtta AtmA savrUpam asya iti nivRttAtmA . SrI BhaTTarsinterpretation a) above is along the same as lines as this. For the incidence ofthe nAma in Slokam 48, SrI Samkara vyAkhyAnam is svabhAvato vishayebhyonivRtta AtmA manah asya iti nivRttAtmA He turns away from material pleasuresnaturally. SrI BhaTTars interpretation b) is along the same lines, eventhough SrI BhaTTar links the guNa to His nara-nArAyaNa incarnation specifically. e) For the current instance, SrI Sankara uses the pATham a-nivRttAtmA, andthen gives the interpretation that because He is present everywhere, there is noturning away from anything for Him, and so He is anivRttAtmA. New interpretations (f, g, and h - below) that have not been presented earlier arefrom satya sandha yatirAja:

f) nivRttAAtmAno yena pralaya iti He is nivRttAtmA because He withdrawsthe AtmA-s (jIva-s) into Him during pralaya. g) ni nitarAm wholly, completely; vRttah sakala vishayeshupravRttah exists in everything; One Who exists in everything, On Who haspermeated everything completely. h) ayogya-kRta ya~jnAdibhyo nivRtto vA AtmA mano yasya sa nivRttAtmA HeWhose mind turns away from the sacrifices that are made by those who are notauthorized or not qualified to perform these sacrifices. i) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 64, SrI vAsishTha uses the meaning asanga - unassociated with for the word nivRtta, and gives theinterpretation that bhagavAn is called nivRttAtmA because at the time of pralayaHe is not impacted by the effect of pralaya (i.e., He does snot cease to exist),and at the time of creation He is not impacted by the effect of creation (thatis, He is not created). So He is unassociated with the effects of the pralaya,sRshTi, etc. bhagavAn vishNuh sRshTi kAle pralaya kAle ca sRshTim pralayauyathA-kramam vidadhadapi, sva-svarUpavato nivRttAtmA bhavati asangah, pralayakAle vA sRshTer nivartata iti nivRttAtmA vishNurukto bhavati. j) SrI rAmAnujan also gives his anubhavam of bhagavAn's detachment from anyfeeling of self-glory over His greatness. Here He is, creating this great wonderwith all its innumerable creatures and all the planets and the different worlds.He is the svAmi of all these worlds - vIRRirundu Ezhulagum tanik kOl Sella;varambilAda mAyai mAya!. varambilAda kIrtiyAi! (tiruccanda viruttam 96). Withall this greatness, one would expect that He should have some attachment ofownership to His wonderful creation, and pride of this great creation of His.Yet, He does not have any of this sense of pride, and is only interested in ourwelfare instead, in whatever He does. Such is His greatness. In this sense also,bhagavAn is nivRttAtmA. SrI cinmayAnanda observes that the significance of the nAma lies inindicating to us that we have to detach our mind from sense indulgences in orderto realize Him. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that bhagavAn is the only one whocan retrieve those who are attached to all kinds of material and sense objects,because He is the only one who is not attached to anything. Only the one who isnot stuck in the mud can retrieve one who is stuck in it. The writer in dharma cakram points out that the significance of this nAma isto realize that we should live a life with detachment from material objects inorder to realize the Truth, and meditating on this nAma of mahA vishNu will helpus live that kind of life. Meditating on the Lord who has no attachments willlead us to live a life without attachment. He gives the life of Lord Rama as anexample of the life of nivRttAtmA. SrI Sankara pATham: As indicated earlier,for the four instances of nivRttAtmA in SrI BhaTTars scheme ofinterpretation, the corresponding treatment by SrI Sanakara is the use of thenAma nivRttAtmA in Sloka-s 25 and 64, vimuktAtmA in Slokam 48, and a-nivRttAtmAin Slokam 83. The adoption of a specific pATham by a given vyAkhyAna kartA canbe for one of the following reasons: 1. It may be a result of the specificanubhavam that these great devotees of nArAyaNa have, and the way they feel theenjoyment of the nAma. 2. In addition to the above, the specific pATham may givea beneficial edge in providing an interpretation that supports the specificphilosophy that the particular vyAkhyAna kartA propounds or follows. 3. Adoptingdifferent pAThams may be a way of avoiding the issue of punar-ukti (repetitionor redundancy).

SrI Sankaras interpretations for the above nAma-s in Sloka-s25, 48, 63 and 83 respectively, do not seem to suggest that he has adopted thepATham that he has chosen, for illustration of any specific advaita philosophyrelated issues. So it can be assumed that his choice is more a reflection of 1and/or 3 above. vimuktAtmA: a) He Who is a naturally free Soul, since He is never born, not touches byeffects of karma, etc. b) He Who liberates the souls or jIva-s. SrI Sankaras alternate pATham in Sloka-s 48 is vimuktAtmA. We did notcover this as part of Slokam 48, and so we will cover this here. The rootinvolved is muc mokshaNe to set free, to leave, to abandon. Vi is anuapasarga. a) The interpretation given by SrI Sankara is: svabhAvena vimuktaAtmA yasya iti vimuktAtmA One Who is naturally free. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstrigives the interpretation that the nAma stands for One Who has attained viSeshamukti, or liberation in a unique or special way. BhagavAn is naturally freein a unique way since He does not have birth and its associated avidyA, desire,etc., like every one else does. He is not affected by karma, the three guNa-s,etc. SrI cinmayAnanda translates the nAma as The ever-liberated Self. b)SrI satya sandha yatirAja, a follower of the dvaita tradition, also uses thepATham as vimuktAtmA here, and gives an interpretation different from SrI Sankara vimuktA AtmAno jIvA yena iti vimuktAtmA He by Whom the jIva-s areliberated or released is vimuktAtmA. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that thereis essentially no difference in the meaning of the words vimuktAtmA andnivRttAtmA. The dharma cakram writer describes the four kinds of karma nitya,naimittika, kAmya, and nishiddha. nitya karma-s are (such as trikAlasandhyAvandanam) those which are to be done necessarily; doing them does notaccumulate puNya, but not doing them accumulates papa. Performance of naimittikakarma-s (such as observance of ekAdaSi) will lead to specific benefits. Actsthat are done with specific desire for benefits (such as special sacrificialrites undertaken with specific benefits in mind) are called kAmya karma-s. Thenishiddha karma-s are the ones that are forbidden. BhagavAn is not subject tothe effects of any type of karma, because He does not undertake any karma forHis benefit; whatever He does is for the benefit of the jIva-s. anivRttAtmA: SrI Sankaras interpretation for this version is that bhagavAn is a-nivRttAtmA,One Who never turns away from anything, because He is in everything andeverywhere sarvatra vartamAnatvAt s-nivRttah kutopi anivRttAtmA. Not toomany other interpreters have used this version. 781. dur-jayah a) He Who cannot be under control except by devotion. b) He Who is Invincible. c) He Who makes it possible for us to conquer duhkham. d) He Who can be won over by difficult practices such as samAdhi etc. Om dur-jayAya namah. dus is an upasarga. ji jaye to conquer, is the root involved.

a) SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam is that it is impossible to bring Him undercontrol by the ordinary power of human or divine beings. The only thing by whichHe can be conquered is through total surrender (SaraNAgati) or through totaldevotion (bhakti), of which SaraNAgati is an anga. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that anyone who follows the SAstric rules,and who performs actions consistent with His dictates, will always besuccessful. This is because bhagavAn resides in these people in His form as dur-jayah. This nAma is essentially same as the nAma a-parAjitah (nAma 721, Slokam 76,and nAma 866 in Slokam 92), and ajitah (nAma 553 in Slokam 59). In SrI BhaTTarsscheme of organization of the nAma-s into groups, nAma 553 is interpreted in thegroup of names that describe Him as Suddha-sattva-svarUpI, nAma 721 is part ofthe same group that the current nAma belongs to, in that they both are part ofthe description in terms of the kRshNa incarnation. nAma 866 is part of nAma-sthat stress His guNa as a dushTa-nigrahan One Who punishes the dushTa-s. Soit is interesting to see how SrI BhaTTar achieves differentiation in theinterpretation of these three similar nAma-s in their four instances. For nAma 553, where SrI BhaTTars interpretation is in terms of bhagavAnbeing of Suddha-sattva svarUpam, his anubhavam is that bhagavAn has this nAmabecause He is the Owner of parama padam, whose other names are ajitA, aparAjitA,ayodhyA, etc. Everything here is composed of Suddha-sattva material, and birthand death are unknown because nothing is composed of perishable material. SeeSlokam 59 for details on this nAma. For nAma 721, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation in terms of Lord kRshNasrole in the mahAbhAratra war (see the detailed write-up for nAma 721 in Slokam76). For the current nAma, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that He cannot bebrought under control or won over, except when He wishes to reveal Himself yan-na darSitavAn esha kas-tad-anveshTum arhati If He does not showHimself, Who can succeed in seeking and finding Him? For nAma 866, in the guNAnubhavam of His dushTa nigrahatvam, theinterpretation given is that it is impossible for anyone to obstruct Him, at anytime, through any means, in His function as the Ruler over everyone andeverything. In fact, all that is required to ensure invincibility for anyone isHis blessing: yasya mantrI ca goptA ca suhRc-caiva janArdanah | haih trai-lokya-nAthah sankim nu tasya na nirjitam || (mahA bhArata udyoga. ) What is there in this world that cannot be conquered by that person whohas bhagavAn Hari as his mentor, protector, and friend? Thus, all four interpretations describe His invincibility, but in eachinstance a different aspect of His invincibility is stressed. b) The corresponding vyAkhyAna-s of SrI Sankara are: - For nAma ajitah in Slokam 59, He Who has never been conquered in any ofHis Incarnations kenApyavatAreshu na jitah iti ajitah . - for aparajitahin Slokam 76, He Who has conquered desires and the rest internally, and thedemons and others externally. - For dur-jayah in the current Slokam, HeWho is Invincible jetum na Sakyata iti dur-jayah. - For the instanceaparAjitah in Slokam 92, Unconquered by gods and men Satrubhih naparAjita iti aparAjitah.

c) Coming back to the interpretations for the specific nAma dur-jayah, inaddition to the interpretation jetum na Sakyah dur-jayah, SrI satya sandhayatirAja gives an alternate interpretation that He has the nAma dur-jayahbecause He makes it possible for us to conquer duhkha duhkhasya jayo yasmAtiti durjayah. d) SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives yet another diversity to the anubhavam: duh-sAdhena samAdhinA jIyate hRdi vaSIkriyate iti dur-jayah He Who is wonover by the difficult practices such as samAdhi etc. 782. dur-atikramah a) He Who cannot be bypassed by those who seek relief from samsAra. b) He Who cannot be transgressed because of fear of the consequences ofdisobeying Him. c) He for whom all sorrow is bypassed. d) He by transgressing whose orders, sorrow is the result. Om dur-atikramAya namah. The root involved in the nAma is kramu pAda vikshepe - to walk, to step.atikrama means overstepping, going beyond, breaching. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that it is impossible to have anyrecourse except Him if we wish to cross the ocean of sorrow. He gives severalsupporting references: 1. yadA carmavad-AkASam veshTayishyanti mAnavAh | tadA devam avij~nAya duhkhasyAntam nigacchati || (SvetA. 6.20) The success with which one can reach the end of sorrow without resortingto God, is the same as the success one would have in rolling the whole firmament andputting it into a small leather bag 2. vAsudevam anArAdhya ko moksham samavApnuyAt Who can attain salvation without worshipping vAsudeva? 3. na hi vishNumRte kAcit gatiranyA vidhIyate | ityevam satatam vedA gAyante nAtra samSayah || (lainga purANam 24.43) All the veda-s are always singing in chorus that there is no other meansof redemption except the worship of vishNu. There is no doubt about this. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers to the kAkAsura episode in support. He went roundall three worlds for someone to protect Him from the astra of Lord rAma, andultimately had to come back to His feet for rescue. In SrImad rAmAyaNam, hanumandeclares that if rAma decides that someone should be killed, then no one in allthe three worlds, including indra, brahma, rudra, or any other devatA canprotect that person. nammAzhvAr reveals the same truth in his tiruvAimozhipASuram 10.1.1 (kALamEgattai anRi maRRu ilam gatiyE), and 10.1.6 (tirumOgUrAttan Aptan tAmarai aDi inRi maRRu ilam araNE) There is no recourse forus except His Feet.b) SrI Sankara vyAkhyAnam is also that He cannot betransgressed. This is because He is the source of fear for those who transgressHis orders, and none will dare to disobey them. He gives kaThopanishad insupport:

bhayAt asya agnis-tapati bhayAt tapat I sUryah | bhayAindrSvca vAyuSca mRtyur-dhAvati pancamah || (kaTho. 6.3) Through fear of Him burns the fire, through fear of Him shines thesun, through fear of Him functions indra, the wind, and Death as the fifth. We have a similar passage in the taittirIya upanishad: bhIshAsmAt vAtah pavate, bhIsdhodeyti sUryah, bhIshAsmAd agniScendraSca, mRtyur-dhAvati pancama iti | (taitti. 2.8.1) Out of His fear the wind blows; Out of fear the Sun rises; Out of His fear runs Fire, as also Indra and Death, the fifth. c) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the explanation duhkhasya atikramo yasya sa dur-atikramah He for whom all sorrow isbypassed. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha explains the nAma as meaning that He bytransgressing whose order, sorrow is the result yo bhAgavatam niyamam ullangatesa SaSavat dukkhameva Apnoti iti dur-atikramah. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN givesa similar interpretation duhkhadah atikramah Sasana ullanghanam asya itidur-atikramh Bypassing His order will lead to sorrow. dur-labhah, dur-gamah. dur-gah, dur-AvAsah Part 1. 783 784 785 786 Om Om Om Om dur-labhah dur-gamah dur-gah dur-AvAsah

dur-labhAya namah dur-gamAya namah dur-gAya namah dur-AvAsAya namah.

The next four nAma-s: dur-labhah, dur-gamah, dur-gah, dur-AvAsah have similarmeanings. In fact, the oneline translation in English given by SrI SrinivasaRaghavan is almost identical for the first three of these: dur-labhah He Who is difficult to be attained. dur-gamah He Whom it is impossible to attain. dur-gah He Who cannot be entered into. dur-AvAsah He Whose place of residence is not easy to attain. At first look, the above meanings seem very similar. So here we have anotheropportunity to enjoy how SrI BhaTTar and SrI Sankara deal with theinterpretation of the nAma-s such that there is no redundancy. First, let us look at SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam. The general idea that isbeing described is that He is difficult to attain. This may be because of

a) Deficiencies in the approach of the seeker; b) Attributes that pertain tothe Sought, that make it difficult to access Him; c) Barriers between the seekerand the sought; d) The limitations imposed by the place where the person that issought is located. These are precisely the four aspects that SrI BhaTTar addresses, and assignsone of these for each nAma, each of which contributes to the difficulty in Hisunattainability. Thus once again he has nicely handled the issue of avoiding punar-ukti in the interpretation. 783a. dur-labhah - He Who is difficult to attain for those who are notsingle-minded in their devotion to Him. The root involved is labh prAptau to get. SrI BhaTTar gives theinterpretation that bhagavAn is difficult to attain for those who are notsingle-minded in their devotion to Him - ajitendriya dushprApo dur-labhah sa cakathyate He is not easy to access to those who have not controlled theirindriya-s. SrI BhaTTar gives support from vishNu dharma and from mahAbhArata: - tasyApyanya manaskasya sulabho na janArdanah (vishNu dharma 73.6) janArdana is not within easy reach of those who have their minds after thingsother than Him. - aprApyah keSavo rAjan! Indriyaih ajitaih nRNAm (mahAbhA.udyoga. 78.21) O King! KeSava cannot be attained by men if their senses arenot conquered by them. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr pASuram tiruvAimozhi 1.3.1: pattuDai aDiyavarkku eLiyavan, piRargaLukku ariya vittagan He is easy toaccess to the devotees who worship Him as their Lord, but for others, He is noteasily accessible. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN refers us to the following, which indicates howdifficult it is for one to get to follow the path of bhakti: janmAntara sahsreshu tapo dAna samAdhibhih | narANAm kshINa pApAnAm kRshNebhaktih prajAyate || It takes countless births of austerities and other good deeds before a humanbeing is rid of sins and develops devotion to kRshNa. 784a. dur-gamah He Who is difficult to attain because of His Effulgence. The root involved in this nAma is gam gatau to go. The meaning givenby SrI BhaTTar is He to whose nearness One cannot go. SrI BhaTTarsvyAkhyAnam here is: dur-gamah netra durbalAnAm iva madhyAhna bhAskarahapradhRshya tejAh daNDA pUpikayA durgamah Just as the mid-day sun cannot beseen by men with weak eyes, so also bhagavAn who is endowed with the brillianceand splendor of a thousand suns, cannot be accessed by weak-minded people. (SrIBhaTTar invokes the daNDa pUpikA nyAayam here, to reinforce his point: Ifa cake with some sticks embedded in the cake is left in a room, and if someonedeclares that sticks have been eaten away by rats, then it goes without sayingthat the cake has been eaten by the rats too. So also, if a trivial sun cannotbe seen by our eyes, need we say anything about our seeing bhagavAn with theradiance of a thousand such suns)?

785a. dur-gah He Who is separated from us by our avidyA which acts like afortress between Him and us. The root is the same as for the above nAma: gam gatau to go. Here SrIBhaTTar ascribes His inaccessibility because of curtains or protections that aretoo difficult for us to go through, in the form of our a-vidyA or Nescience: avidyA AvaraNaih dush-praveSaSca dur-gah. The term dur-gah usually refers to afortification for a fortress, such as a moat. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives thederivation duhkenApi gantum aSakyah One Who cannot be reached even withdifficulty. SrI cinmayAnanda translates the nAma as Not easy to storm into (since one meaning for the word durgah is fort). He observes that theessence of nArAyaNa is fortressed around by the matter vestures and theirobjects of fascination. Attracted by them, our attention is always distractedtowards the joy contents in them. This seducing power of the matter vestures isitself the mighty mAyA, which is crossed over only by very rare, courageous, andblessed ones. He gives reference to the gItA: daivI hyeshA guNamayI mama mAyA duratyayA | mAmeva ye prapadyante mAyAm etAmtaranti te || (gItA 7.14) This divine mAyA of Mine consisting of the three guNa-s is hard toovercome; but those who take refuge in Me alone shall pass beyond this mAyA. The upanishads say that the Truth cannot be perceived by the senses, imaginedby the mind, or thought of by the intellect. These being the only source of ourknowing, it seems almost impossible to realize the Truth yato vAconivartante (tait. upa. 2.9.1). SrI cinmayAnanda reminds us that He is inour heart, but even then He is not easily realized. 786a. dur-AvAsah He Whose place of residence is not easy to attain. Here SrI BhaTTar refers to the sheer inaccessibility of parama padam for us,and thus the impossibility of accessing Him in this birth to perform kaimkaryamto Him in parama padam evam ca dUre dushkarah tat-pada AvAsa iti dur-AvAsah . SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri indicates that there is a version dUr-AvAsahalso in use, and then it means: One Who is far, far, away, and thus is noteasily accessible. Now let us see how SrI Sankara distinguishes between the four nAma-s sothat there is no redundancy in interpretation. dur-labhah dur-labhayA bhaktyA labhyata iti dur-labhah He Who is noteasily attained except through intense devotion dur-gamah duhkhena gamyatej~nAyata iti dur-gamah One Who is known only with difficulty dur-gah antarAyapratihataih duhkhAt avApayata iti dur-gah. HeWho can be attained only by overcoming several unanticipated obstacles in ourattempts to realize Him dur-AvAsah duhkhena avAsyate cite yogibhih samAdhAviti dur-AvAsah. He Who is not easily retained for prolonged periods even by yogin-sduring deep meditation

The distinction made in the first two nAma-s is labhayata vs. j~nAyata.Literally, the first refers to getting Him, and the second refers to knowingHim. The first can refer to those who can attain Him through pure devotion,without necessarily having the deep detailed knowledge of SAstra-s etc., and thesecond can refer to the mastery over the actual SAstric knowledge. The path ofbhakti is tedious, and so is the acquisition of knowledge about Him. In SrI Sanakaras interpreatation, dur-gah refers to the multitude ofunanticipated obstacles in attaining Him, in addition to the known and inherentobstacles involved in the path of bhakti; and dur-AVAsah refers to thedifficulty in meditating on Him for prolonged period of time, even for the bestof yogin-s. Additional details on the interpretation of the four nAma-s for SrI Sankarasinterpretation are given below: dur-labhah - He Who can be attained only through extreme devotion. SrI Sankara quotes vyAsa: janmAntara sahasreshu tapo j!nana samAdhibhih | narANAm kshINa pApAnAm kRshNebhaktih prajAyate || Devotion towards kRshNa comes to those men whose sins are burnt up byausterities, wisdom and meditation, practiced in thousands of lives. He also gives support from the gItA (8.22): purushah sa parah pArtha bhaktyAlabhayas-tad-ananyayA | The Supreme Person can be attained only by undivideddevotion, and by no other means. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to the kaThopanishad passage 1.2.7: SravaNAyApi bahubhir-yo na labhyah SrNvantopi bahavo yam na vidyah | AScaryovaktA kuSalosya labhdhA Ascaryo j~nAtA kuSalAnuSishTah || Even to hear of It is not available to many; many, even having heard ofIt, cannot comprehend. It is rare to find a good teacher for It, and equallyrare to find a good student. Wonderful indeed is he who comprehends It whentaught by an able preceptor. 784b. dur-gamah He Who is known only with difficulty. The root from which this nAma is derived is gam gatau to go; duhkhenagamyate = j~nAyate, j~nApyate vA dur-gamah. The distinction between dur-labhahand dur-gamah based on the words labhyata vs. j~nAyata in SrI SankarabhAshyam has already been pointed out earlier. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explainsthis nAma as referring to the difficulty that people have in developing thedesire for Him for a start, with means such as SravaNam (the knowledge impartedby a guru about the SAstra-s etc.), mananam (individual enquiry based on theabove knowledge), or nididhyAsanam (intense meditation). He gives reference tothe kaThopanishad passage (1.2.23) nAyamAtmA pravacanena lbhyo na medhayA nabahudhnA Srutena.

SrI cinmayAnanda interprets dur-gamah as referring to the difficulty intreading the path of devotion that was referred to in the previous nAma (dur-labhah).He gives the support from kaThopanishad: He for Whose attainment one has totread a path that is like walking on a razors edge kshurasya dhArA niSitAduratyayA durgam pathas-tat kavayo vadanti kaTho. 1.3.14. dur-gah Not easily realized due to obstacles and difficulties. SrI Sankaras interpretation is: antarAyapratihataih duhkhAt avApayataiti dur-gah Even for those who attempt the difficult means towards bhaktiyoga, there will be many unexpected obstacles that will keep cropping up. It isprobably these difficulties that are being referred to here. 786b. dur-AvAsah Not easily retained in their mind by even yogin-s duringdeep meditation. SrI Sankaras words are: duhkhena AvAsyate citte yogibhih samAdahu itidur-AvAsah. SrI cinmayAnanda gives a similar interpretation Not easy tolodge within the heart steadily for even the great seekers who are diligentin their consistent pursuit. Arjuna declares this condition experienced by thelikes of him in the gItA: yoyam yogastvayA proktah sAmyena madhusUdana | etasyAham na paSyAmi cancalatvAtsthiti sthirAm || (gItA 6.33) This yoga of equality, which has been declared by You, O kRshNa, I do notsee that it can be steady because of the fickleness of the mind. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN intereprets the nAma as referring to thedifficulty of retaining Him in our hearts duh-sAdhayA prapattyA vAsyate hRdiiti dur-AvAsah He Who will be retained in our hearts constantly only throughthe difficult path of prapatti. (According to the rAmAnuja sampradAyam, prapattiis the easiest way to attain Him, as long as one can qualify with the five anga-sof prapatti. One of these is mahA viSvAsam, or the unshakable faith that He willdefinitely protect us once we surrender to Him. Perhaps, this is one of the mostdifficult mental states to acquire, and so one can consider that prapatti isdifficult in this sense. Other anubhavam-s: SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives interpretations that suggest that all thesestatements about bhagavAn being difficult to attain, difficult to know,difficult to access, difficult to retain, etc., all apply to only those that donot strive with sincerity. His interpretations clearly bring out this point: - duhkhena labhyo mRduvega ArAdhakaih iti dur-labhah He is difficult toattain for those who seek Him only with mild effort - duhkhena AyAsena gamyatej~nAyayate manta-matimadbhih iti dur-gamah He is difficult to know for thosewho are not smart enough to seek Him - duhkhena gamyate prApayate a-tIvrasamvegaih iti dur-gah He is not accessible and impenetrable like one in afortress for those who are not excited enough about attaining Him

- duhkhenaAvAsyate hRdaye a-samAhitaih iti dur-AvAsah He is difficult to retain inheart for those who are not collected and calm enough in their meditation Thus, SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAjs interpretation is that He is a sulabhan,or easy of access, for a true devotee. He is easy to attain, easy to retain,easy to access, etc., as far as a sincere devotee is concerned. dur-labhah: SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the anubhavam that even though bhagavAn ispresent in everything and everywhere, and in all of us, and is the force behindour every action, still it is so difficult for us to appreciate this and evenaccept this. Given this state of affairs, to know His svarUpam is next toimpossible for most of us. Hence He is called dur-labhah. SrI vAsishTha pointsout that this jIva does not have the ability to know when life will leave thisbody, and when the jIva will take the next SarIra, or anything else. Herhetorically asks the question of how much more difficult it will be to know Histrue nature in full, and to attain Him. He observes that even the likes of sageMarkaNDeya with his long life did not succeed in understanding Him fully. So SrIvAsishThas interpretation is that bhagavAn is called dur-labhah because He isdifficult to attain even for the best of the sages. dur-gamah: For the nAma dur-gamah, SrI vAsishTha gives the anubhavam that the nAmarefers to bhagavAns Eternal Principle that He reflects everywhere in Hiscreation namely, that even though He is inside all of us and thus very nearto us, still He is very far for most of us, and so inaccessible. It is thereflection of this Eternal Principle of dur-gamatvam that we cannot accompanythe jIva with our body when it departs the body after our death, no one knowsexactly what another persons thoughts are, etc. 784c. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN interprets the nAma dur-gamah as follows: duh sAdhena upanishad vicAreNa gamyate budhyate iti dur-gamah He Who isknown through the tedious and difficult process of inquiring into the upanishads. dur-gah: 785c. SrI vAsishTha points out that bhagavAn is ananta or Infinite, and thesuccess in realizing Him is related to the effort that is put in, but is nevercomplete. This is the sense of the nAma dur-gah - He Who is difficult to beaccessed in His totality. For humans who are constrained by the limitations oftheir antahkaraNa-s (the seat of thought and feeling, the mind, the thinkingfaculty, the heart, the conscience, the soul), He is dur-gah. 785d. SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation durgo duhkhamgamayati daityAn prati iti dur-gah He Who causes pain and suffering to theevil-minded rAkshasa-s. The root used here is gam gatau to go. 785e. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN interpets the nAma dur-gah using the root gai Sabde to sing, and gives the interpretation that the nAma refers toHis being sung through sAma gAnam which is difficult to learn, practice andmaster. dur-AvAsah:

786c. dur-AvAsah AvAsah refers to the place or location of a person. SrIvAsishTha observes that because He is everywhere and in everything, it isimpossible to precisely say where He is, and so He is called durAvAsah OneWhose place or location is impossible to pinpoint precisely. He quotes theatharva vedic passage: antariksham utodaram divam yaScakre mUrdhAnam tasmai jyeshThAya brahmaNenamah | (atharva. 10.7.32) Reverence to the Supreme Brahman, whose base is earth, whose stomach isair, and whose head is the sky. 786d. SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate interpretation also BecausebhagavAn sustains the lives of even the creatures that do not have access tocommon needs of life such as air, water, etc., He is called dur-AvAsah durgatamapi prANivargam yathAvyavastham duhkham anubhavantam AvAsyati itdur-AvAsah. To recapitulate, the different anubhavam-s for the four nAma-s above are: 783. dur-labhah: a) He Who can be attained only by single-minded devotion 784. dur-gamah: a) He Who is unapproachable in the context of His Effulgence. b) He WhoseTrue Nature can be known only with difficulty c) He Who can be known only by thedifficult process of enquiry into the upanishads etc. 785. dur-gah: a) He Who is shielded from us like One in a fortress by our avidyA b) Noreasily realized because of unanticipated obstacles during our efforts to seekHim c) He Whose realization is constrained by our own limitations. d) He Whocauses pain and suffering to the evil-minded rAkshasa-s. e) He Who is praised bythe sAma gAnam which is difficult to master. 786. dur-AvAsah: . a) He Whose place (SrI vaikunTham) is inaccessible to us. b) Not easily retained in their mind for prolonged intervals even by yogin-sduring meditation c) He Whose precise location can never be specified because Heis everywhere and in everything. d) He Who supports the lives of even thosecreatures which do not have access to the essentials of life as we know them. It is important to keep in mind the point brought out by SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvaj in the context of these four nAma-s, namely, that in the case of thosewho long for Him, He removes the obstacles, and makes sure that He is easilyaccessible. He uses diverse means to get rid of the enemies or mislead them etc.We will see this aspect in the next series of nAma-s, 787 to 810 in SrI BhaTTarsscheme of interpretation. 787. durAri-hA

a) The Dispeller of the evil-minded enemies. b) TheDispeller of evil thoughts from the minds of the devotees. Om durArighne namah. This is the first of the series of nAma-s that are interpreted by SrI BhaTTarin the context of bhagavAns Buddha incarnation. The word is made up of dur + A + ari + hA. dur and A are upasarga-s. dur heremeans bad. A stands for samanta complete, entire ( A samantAt SrIvAsishTha); ari refers to foe, and hA stands for destroying or killing, derivedfrom the root han to kill, to destroy. SrI vAsishTha explains the termdurArih as meaning one who causes pain and misery from all sides duhkham samantAt arpayati prApayati iti durArih. The nAma durAri-hAstands forHe Who destroys the durAri-s durArih tAn hanti iti durAri-hA. a) SrI BhaTTars anubhavam is that bhagavAn uses different means to get ridof the evil-minded asura-s. One of them is to make them weak by turning themaway from the veda-s. He gives a quote from vishNu purANam: mAyA mohena te daityAh prakAraih bahubhih sadA | vyutthApitA yathA naishAmtrayIm kaScit arocayat || hatASca tesurA devaih san-mArga paripanthinah || (vishNupurA. 3.18.34) By His powerful skill, He confounded in several ways their minds, and ledthem astray, as a result of which there was no one amongst them who had a likingfor the veda-s. They became averse to going in the right path, and they wereeasily disposed of by the gods. To understand the significance of the above, it should be kept in mind thateven the daitya-s or asuras will have the good effects of practicing the veda-s,and their power will correspondingly increase. And the asuras use this power tocause misery to His devotees. This is illustrated by the might of rAvaNa, whohas accumulated enormous powers by the practice of austerities, and then used itto create terror among the deva-s. When the asura-s use these acquired powers toperpetrate evil further, in the interests of protection of the world, bhagavAnthinks of ways to diminish this power of the asura-s. It is in this context thatHe decides to take some deceitful incarnations so as to mislead the evil-doers,and steer them away from the practice of the veda-s etc., so that they do notkeep increasing their powers. This is described in SrI vishNu purANam 3.17,where the deva-s who have been defeated by the asura-s come and seek the help ofbhagavAn, and after listening to them, bhagavAn shows them a deceptive form, andresponds to them as follows: mAyA mohaoyam akhilAn daityAnstAn mohayishyati | tato vadhyA bhavishyantiveda mArha bahishkRtAh || (VP 3.17.42) sthitou sthitasya me vadhyA yAvantah paripanthinah | brahmaNo yedhikArasyadevadaityAdikAh surAh || (VP 3.17.43) This deceptive form of Mine shall wholly beguile the daitya-s, so that,being led astray from the path of the veda-s, they may be put to death, for bethey gods, demons, or others, those who are opposed to the authority of the veda-s,shall perish by My might, which is exercised for the protection of the world.SrI BhaTTar explicitly refers to the Buddha incarnation in the above context inhis interpretation of the nAma-s

787 to 810 idam daurlathyam aprapipsupApavishaye prayacchan budddhAvatAram niyacchati durAri-hA. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi 5.10.4: . kaLLa vEDattaik koNDupOyp purampukkavARum, kalandu aSurarai uLLam pEdam SeidiTTi uyir uNDa uPAyangaLum. Your spreading anti-vedic religions, say, as Buddha, your contriving toseduce asura-s at the time of distribution of nectar as Mohini, These melt myheart. Why do you do all this, My Lord?. This concept of bhagavAn creating mAyA Sastra and other ways to mislead theasura-s is also mentioned in svAmi deSikans dayA Satakam 47: mAyASastrANyapi damayitum tvat-prapanna-pratIpAn to control the enemies ofYour devotees, You create the mAyA SAstra-s also. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri givesreference to the kaushItakI upanishad, which also reveals this same truth: eshau evainam asAdhu karma kArayati tam yamadho ninIshate (3.9) - He makes themdeviate from the good and proper karma-s, and makes them perish in the process. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different anubhavam. He takes the termdurAri to refer to the bad aspects of our intellect, and gives theinterpretation that the nAma means One Who destroys the negative aspects inour mind when we resort to Him dur-matih tAm hanit iti durAri-hA. Heindicates that this is the worship we do through the mantra tat saviturvareNyam bhargo devasya dhImahi dhiyo yo nah pracodayAt. SrI cinmayAnandagives a similar explanation bhagavAn is called durAri-hA because, out of Hiscompassion, He destroys the Asuric tendencies in us and redeems us from its sadconsequences, when we invoke Him. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives a different derivation for the nAma, eventhough the meaning is the same He Who destroys the enemies who make amockery of the dharma mArga. He uses the root dula utkshepe to shake toand fro, and gives the derivation dolyate utkshipyate dharma mArgo yaih tedulAh; delA eva durAh; te ca arayah iti durArayah; tAn hanti iti durAri-hA He destroys those who flout the dharma mArga and who are His enemies. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn beingthe One Who destroys the likes of kAma etc. that represent the great the enemiesin our desire to reach Him dushTArim pratigacchanti iti durAriNah kAmAdayah, tAn hatavAn iti tatra sAhAyyakAritvAt na atikashTam iti artha With His help,it is not at all difficult to overcome the enemies such as kAma, in our path toHim. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 84 -

SubhAngo loka-sArangah su-tantuh tantu-vardanah | Indra-karmA mahA-karmA kRta-karmA kRtAgamah ||

Om SubhAngAya namah

Omloka-sArangAya namah Omsu-tantave namah Omtantu-vardhanAya namah Omindra-karmaNe namah OmmahAkarmaNe namah OmkRta-karmaNe namah OmkRtAgamAya namah

788.SubhAngah a) He with a bewitching form thatmesmerizes the asura-s and misleads them.
b)He with an auspicious form that is meditated upon by His true devotees. c)He Who makes the ashTAnga yoga successful for those who follow this path withdevotion d)He Who has beautiful gaits e)He Who pervades everywhere at all times with His auspicious form f)He Who makes things functional in this Universal in a beautiful way. g)He Who brings the auspicious aspects such as trust in SAstra-s, gurus words,etc., to His devotees.

om SubhAngAya namh. We studied this nAma earlier in Slokam63 (nAma 593). The details covered here are supplemental to the informationpresented for nAma 593. The word anga refers to a limb orpart of the body, a constituent part or an essential component, a part of adivision or part of anything, etc. a) SrI BhaTTar has interpreted nAma593 as part of the description of the auspicious qualities of
bhagavAnin bestowing benefits to His devotees according to their efforts.In that context, he uses the meaning a constituent part or anessential component as the meaning for the word anga. His anubhavamthere was that bhagaVan is called SubhAngah because He makes Hisdevotees succeed in the eight anga-s of bhakti yoga, for those whoundertake this path with faith in Him (For details, please see under Slokam63).

b) For the current instance of thenAma SubhAngah, SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation in termsof
bhagavAns Buddha incarnation. He gives the meaning He Who hadlimbs that were bewitching, or

He Who had a bewitching form, inreference to the Buddha incarnation a form that could easily convince theasura-s that His words of deceit were trustworthy, even though He tookthis form only to succeed in misleading them by diverting them fromthe vedic observances. SrI BhaTTars words are: katham tAnanupravishTah? SubhAngah How did He enter in their fold? By taking abewitching form that made them feel comfortable with Him and believethat He is trustworthy. This deceitful form that He took was alsoone of perfection in deceit (vastreNa, vapushA, vAcA by Hisdress, His appearance, His words, etc., to use v.v. rAmAnujansquote).

Thus, for the two instances of thenAma SubhAngah, SrI BhaTTar differentiates the interpretations by using twodifferent meanings for the word anga. c) SrI Sankaras interpretationsare:
-sundarIm tanum dhArayan SubhAngah (Slokam 63) One Who has a handsomeform -Sobhanaih angaih dhyeyatvAt SubhAngah (current instance) One Who isto be meditated upon with a form of auspicious limbs.

Thus, while SrI BhaTTar interprets thenAma SubhAngah in its current instance as His kapaTa vesham
ordeceitful by His true destruction devotees in form to fool the ausra-s, SrI Sankara interprets theauspicious form that is worshipped devotees. Note that both areforms taken for the benefit of His devotees - for the of Hisdevotees enemies in the former case, and for the benefit ofmeditation of His true the later case.

SrI cinmayAnanda translates the nAmaSubhAngah as One with enchanting limbs of perfect beauty.
SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to the anubhavam of His bewitching form bysage nArada and by hanuman, as revealed to us by vAlmIki in rAmAyaNa.SrImad rAmAyaNam begins with vAlmIkis question to nArada: Whois the best guNavAn, vIryavAn, dharmaj~nah, kRtaj~nah, satya-vAkyah,and dRDha-vratah in ths world?. nArada responds to vAlmIki and tellshim that there is no one other than rAma, born to daSaratha, whoqualifies for all these in one Person. In three Sloka-s (bAlakANDam1.9-11), nArada describes the beauty of rAmas form:

vipulAmso mahA-bAhuh kambugrIvomahA-hanuh |

mahorasko maheshvAso gUDha-Satruh arindamah | AjAnubAhuhsu-SirAh su-lalATah su-vikramah || samah sama-vibhaktAngah snigdha-varNah pratApavAn | pIna-vakshAviSAlAksho lakshmIvAn Subha-lakshaNah ||

rAma is One with broad shoulders,long arms, beautiful neck, great facial features, broad chest, great
atwielding weapons, a muscular body, one who subdues His enemieseasily, long hands that reach up to His knees, beautiful head andforehead, beautiful gait, .

In sundara kANDam, sitA pirATTi askshanuman to describe rAma and lakshmaNa to her, partly because
shewants to make sure that hanuman has been genuinely sent by rAma, andpartly because she wants to enjoy the anubhavam of His beauty beingdescribes to her. In Sloka-s 9-22 of the 35th sargam in sundara kANDam,hanuman describes the beautiful appearance of Lord rAma.to sItA Lord rAma Who is SubhAngah.

A similar anubhavam of His beautifulform is by SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN, who gives the
interpretation:SubhAni darSakAnAm mangalotpAdakAniangAni caraNa-vadana nayanAdIni yasya iti

SubhAngah He Who has a form that bestows auspiciousness to those who meditate onHim - His Lotus Feet, His lotus eyes, His beautiful form etc.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha takes adifferent root to the interpretation.

He interprets the part anga basedon the root agi gatau - to go, and gives several alternateinterpretations (d, e, f).

d) SobhamAno angati gacchatiyah sa SubhAngah He Who has abeautiful gait. (Recall the simha gati, gajagati, etc. that peruMALhas in SrI rangam during utsava-s). e) anganam sArva-kAlikamsArva-deSikam ca vyApanam; Subham anganam yasya sa SubhAngah
He Who pervades everywhere at all times with His auspicious form

f) SobhAyanjagat gamayati itSubhAngah He Who makes things functional in this Universal in a beautifulway. g) Using the same approach for theword anga, SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN interprets the nAma
assignifying that bhagavAn makes accessible to the devotees theauspicious things such as the trust in Sastra-s, the trust in the words ofthe AcArya-s, etc. SubhAni guru Sastrokti viSvAsa svapna AsvAsanalakshaNAni angyati utpalambhayati iti SubhAngah.

789.loka-sAra'ngah a) He Who preached the superficiallyacceptable goals in the world.


b)He c)He d)He e)He f)He g)He Who Who Who Who Who Who grasps the essence of the world like a sAra'nga or honeyubee. is reachable through the essence (sAra) of the veda-s, namely praNava. is the object of devotion (loka-sAra) is attracted by bhakti bestows moksham, and He to whom the j~nAni-s are attracted. has devotees singing His auspicious qualities.

Omloka-sAra'ngAya namah. a)SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam - "loke yat sAram tat gacchati itiloka-Sara'ngah" He Who preached what was more immediately appealingoutwardly from the veda-s. SrI BhaTTar continues that in His deceitful role, Hetaught them that there are only two things to worry about: 1. How to enjoy while welive, and 2. How to get moksham at the end. He told them "kurushvam mama vAkyAni yadi muktimabhItshTatha" (VP 3.18.5) "If you want salvation, follow my words".One should go through the entire chapter of SrI vishNu purANam3.17 and 3.18 to have a full understanding of the Buddha incarnation. SrIv.v. rAmAnujan gives support from nammAzhvAr's tiruviruttam 96: vaNa'ngumtuRaigaL pala pala Akki madi vikaRpAl piNa'ngumSamaya'ngaL pala pala Akki, avai avai tORu aNan'ngumpala pala Akki nin mUrti parappi vaittAi iNa'nguninnOrai illAi. "Youcreated several ways to worship You, including those that conflict with, andcontradict each other; You created several gods, but there is nothing that canequal You". SrIK. Ve'nkaTasAmi reDDiyAr has written a uRai for this pASuram, in whichhe explains that the reference here is to the different paths thatHe has created for worship for the rAjasic and

tAmasic people,

includingthe gods and processes of worship associated with them.

SrISa'nkara uses the same meanings as above for the three parts of the nAma loka, sAra, and a'nga, and gives two interpretations: b)lokAnAm sAram sAra'ngavat bhR'ngavat gRhNAti iti loka-sAra'ngah He Who grasps the essence of the world like a sAra'nga or honey-bee. c)He Who is reachable through the sAra or essence of the veda-s, namely thepraNava. loka-sArah praNavah, tena pratipattavya iti loka-sAra'ngah. d)e) SrI satya devo vAsishTha derives the nAma starting from the rootslok darSane to see, to perceive; sR gatau to go; and a'ng to go. His approach is: loka He who is in the purview of visionis lokah, or He who shines with different aspects; sR gatau to go. By use of pANini sutra 3.3.17, (sR sthire) the word sArahrefers to something that moves while remaining fixed; for instance,candana sArah the essence of sandal. sthiro bhavati iti sArah One who moves while remaining fixed throughout time is sArah.Choosing the second of the two meanings given for loka, loka- sArais interpreted by SrI vAsishTha as referring to bhakti towards bhagavAn(loke sAro bhagavti prema). He Who is the recipient or objectof this bhakti, or He Who is attracted by bhakti, is loka- sAra'ngah loka sArah tad gacchati = prApnoti, tat prati AkRshTo bhavatiiti lokasAra'ngo vishNuh. Sothe two interpretations that SrI vAsishTha gives for the nAma are: HeWho is the object of devotion (loka-sAra), or HeWho is attracted by bhakti f)SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation by viewing the nAmaas loka-sAh + ra'ngah. He uses the roots san dAne to give, andra'nj rAge to be devoted to, in his interpretation. His vyAkhyAnamis: lokam vaikunThAdi lokam sanoti dadAti iti loka-sAh; rajyantej~nAninah atra iti ra'ngah; loka-sAh asau ra'ngaSca iti lokasA-ra'ngah He Who bestows SrI vaikunTham, and He to Whom the j~nAni-sare devoted, is lokasA-ra'ngah. g)The word sAra'nga also refers to a conch shell or a kind of musicalinstrument. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN takes the word lokA to referto bhakta janAh the devotees, and sAra'nga as a reference to aconch shell or a kind of musical instrument, and gives the interpretation for the nAma as "He Who has devotees singing His auspicious qualities" lokA hari-bhakta-janAh Sara'ngA monodvatad guNagAyakA yasya sa loka-sAra'ngah.

790.su-tantuh a) He who has a powerful net ofthreads to capture the asura-s and retain them from escaping.
b)He Who has expanded this Universe starting from Himself. c)He Who has progeny such as brahmA. d)He Who expanded the yAdava race in auspicious way by being born as the son ofvasudeva. Omsu-tantave namah. suis an upasarga. tantu is derived from the root tanu vistAre to spread, to go. Among the meanings for the term tantu are thread, cord, wire, string,etc.

a)SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning "a net of threads" for the term"tantu", and gives the meaning "One Who has such a net to capturethe evil-minded folks", for the term tantuh. BhagavAn puts inan appearance of tranquility and meditation in this deceitful role,and the asura-s are caught up in this net, and could never get outof it. This interpretation is a continuation of SrI BhaTTar's elucidationof the nAma-s 787 810 in terms of the Buddha incarnation.SrI SAstri explains that the net is beautiful and attracts the asura-s, and at the sametime is very strong, and so theycan't out once get caught in this net. b)SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation Sobhanah tantuh vistIrNah prapa'nco'syaiti su-tantuh. One translator gives the meaning as "He Whois beautifully expanded, like the universe", and another gives the meaning "He, through whomthis universe is beautifully and auspiciously expanded as athread". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that since bhagavAn created everythingstarted from Him, like a long piece of thread from a small ball ofcotton, He is called su- tantuh. SrIsatyadevo vAsishTha develops his interpretation based on the meaning"to expand" for the root tanu vistAre, consistent with the secondtranslation above tanyata iti tantuh Sobhanah tantuh yasya sasu-tantuth vishNuh; Sobhanam tanyate viSvam yena sa su-tantuh iti arthah. Consistent with this act of the beautiful expansion that He does, we see thatright from the start of creation, and up to the timeof pralaya, the different species remain the same and keep expanding at the sametime. They have expanded before, they are expanding now, and they will continueto expand in the future (expansion here is to be understood interms of new members of each species being created, while old members die). c)SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the sense of visTara or expansion forthe term tantu, and interprets the nAma as signifying that bhagavAn has the nAma su-tantuhbecause He has the likes of brahma as His son Sobhanas-tantuhcatur-mukhAdi santAno yasya sa sau-tantuh. d)SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry uses a similar approach, but gives the interpretationthat because bhagavAn expanded the race of yAdava-s in anauspicious way being the progeny of vasudeva, He is called su- tantuh.

791.tantu-vardhanah a) He Who increases the meshes.


b)He Who augments the expansion of Himself into this world, by protecting it. c)He Who withdraws this world into Himself after creating it. d)He Who expanded the vasudva family through pradyumna and others. Theword vardhanah is derived from the root vRdh vRddhau to grow.So this nAma can be viewed as an extension of the previous nAma One who increases the meshes in the net, or One Who continues tomaintain or sustain the growth or vistAra of this universe. a)SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam evam papa rUcibhih amsubhiriva samsAra-tantum santanoti ititantu-vardhanah "Thus, by aggravating the taste for sin in these people (whodeserve to be punished), He strengthens the snare of samsAra as ifby strong fibers." SrI BhaTTar quotes from the

followingsources in support: tAnaham dvishatah krUrAn samsAreshu narAdhamAn | kshipAmyajastramaSubhAn AsurIshveva yonishu || (gItA 16.19) "Thosehaters, cruel, the vilest and the most inauspicious of cycles of births and deaths, into thewombs of demons". trayI-mArgasamutsargam mAyAmohena te'surAh | kAritAs-tanmayAhyAsan tathA'nye tat-pracoditAh || tairapyanye'paretaiSca tairapyanye pare ca te | (VP 3.18.32) "Thefoes of God being thus induced to apostatize from the religion ofthe veda-s by the enchanting power of vishNu, became in their turn teachersof the same heresies, and perverted others; and these, again,communicating their principles to others, by whom they were stillfurther disseminated, the veda-s were in a short time deserted bythe daitya race". Thisis how bhagavAn "increased the meshes" tantu-vardhanah. b)SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that the nAma signifies that He augmentsthe web of this world, by protecting the world that He expandedfrom Himself - tameva tantum vardhayati iti. c)Alternatively, SrI Sa'nkara gives another interpretation He Who withdrawsthe world (at the time of pralaya) vardhayati chedayati cuts down. SrI Sa'nkaravyAkhyAnam is chedayati iti vA tantu-vardhanah. d)SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry continues on his idea d) in the previousnAma, and interprets the nAma tantu-vardhanah as referring toHis extending the progeny of the vasudeva family through pradyumna andothers. mankind,I hurl forever into the

792.indra-karmA a) He Who did all this for the sake ofindra.


b)He Who is responsible for the powers of indra. c)He Who performs acts that reflect His Supreme Lordship. Omindra-karmaNe namah. Theroot from which the word indra is covered is ind paramaiSvarye tohave great power, and the addition of the affix ran per uNAdi sutra2.28; the resulting word indra means "foremost". The word alsorefers to the god indra. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation usingthe reference to the god indra, and others use the generic meaningof the word indra foremost. a)SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn took this Buddha incarnationin order to assist indra and other gods in response to theirrequest for help. He gives support from SrI vishNu purANam: tamUcuh sakalA devAh praNipAta purassaram | prasIdanAtha! daityebhayah trAhi iti SaraNArthinah || (VP 3.17.36) "Allthe gods prostrated before Him and said: O Lord! Be merciful towardsus. Please save us from the asura-s. We seek refuge in Thee". This is part of thedescription in SrI vishNu

purANam,

leading to the Buddha incarnation.

b)SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that He has this nAma becauseHis actions are great and glorious, like those of indra indrasyakarmeva karmA asya iti indra-karmA aiSvarya karmetyarthah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstrigives the interpretation that He has the nAma because He has theactions of indra as His own; in other words, He is the antaryAmi ofindra, and is thus the cause behind indra's power. c)SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the generic meaning ind paramaiSvarye,and gives the interpretation indrANi karmANi yasya pramaiSvryaSalIni karmANi yasya sa indra-karmA He Whose actions reflectHis Supreme Lordship, is indra-karmA. SrI vAsishTha gives examplesof His indrakarmA-s the support of the all the worlds, ensuringthat the planets function in their correct paths with their correctperiods, bestowing the sun with its power, etc. SrI cinmayAnandagives a similar interpretation - "One Who always performsgloriously auspicious actions".

793.mahA-karmA He of magnanimous actions.


OmmahA-karmaNe namah. mahAntikarmANi yasya sa mahA-karmA He Whose actions are great and magnanimous.The difference in the different interpretations relatesthe specific anubhavam of the vyAkhyAna-kartA-s on His mahA karma-s. a)SrI BhaTTar continues the thread from the earlier nAma-s. "Even thoughbhagavAn is of a merciful nature, deceitful acts were perpetrated by Him for the sake of theprotection of the prapanna-s - those who had taken refuge in Him, andfor the destruction of those who were wedded to unholy practices.Since all His acts were thus justifiable, He is mahA-karmA" evam prapanna paripAlanArthatvAt durAcAra-daNDanArthatvAccaparama-kAruNikasyaiva vipralambha sambhavah | evam nyAya vRttatvAtmahA-karmA. One is reminded of the well-known Slokam "paritrANAya sAdhUnAm, vinASAya ca dush-kRtAm, dharmasamsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge" (gItA 4.8). SrISa'nkara gives examples of a different kind for the great deeds referredto in this nAma such as the creation of ether, earth, water,air, and fire mahAnti viyatAdIni bhUtAni karmANi kAryANi asyaiti mahA-karmA. SrI cinamyAnanda elaborates on this "To createa cosmos so scientifically precise and perfect out of the five greatelements, and to sustain them all with an iron hand of efficiency, all the time constantlypresiding over the acts of destruction without which the world ofchange cannot be maintained, is in itself, a colossal achievementof Absolute Intelligence". SrIkRshNa datta bhAradvaj gives the interpretation that He has this nAmabecause He performs divine actions mahat mahanIyam divyam karmayasya iti mahA-karmA. He gives the support from gItA 4.9 janmakarma ca me divyam "My birth and My actions are of a divine nature". SrIbaladeva vidyA bhUshaN's anubhavam of the mahA karmA's is the incidentinvolving Lord kRshNa restoring indra's royal umbrella and adiTi'searrings and giving them back to their owners mahAnti bhaumavadha maNi parva chatra aditi kuNDala AnayanAni karmANi yasya samahA karmA. The reference to these incidents is found in SrImad bhAgavatamin skanda 10, adhyAya 59, Sloka 2:

indreNahRtac-chatreNa hRta-kuNDala-bandhunA | hRtaamara adri sthAnena indreNa j~nApito bhauma ceshTitam | sa-bhAryogaruDArUDhah prAg-jyotisha puram yayau || (bhAga. 10.59.2) "Havingbeen requested by indra for His help in recovering his royal umbrella,his mother's earrings, and his seat called maNi parvatam insumeru hill, that has been forcibly taken away by narakAsura, Lord kRshNawent to the city of narakAsura with satyabhAmA, riding on His garuDavAhanam". The chapter in SrImad bhAgavatam then extensively describeskRshNa-s fight with narakAsuran, and the slaying of narakAsurain the end. Then in Slokam 43, Lord kRshNa is referred to asa-tarkya-kRt He Who performs acts that are unarguably great. Theuse of the word atarkyakRtah here is the same as the sense conveyedby the current nAma mahA-karmA.

794.kRta-karmA a) He Who practiced the acts Hepreached to the asura-s, in order to convince them.
b)One Who has achieved all there is to achieve. c)One Who keeps repeating the processes of creation etc., with perfection d)One Who has performed acts that no one else can ever perform. omkRta-karmaNe namah. a)SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn played His role of deceptionby following the practices that He preached to the asura-s, toensure that they believed in Him completely svayam anushThita tad-AcArah.SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that bhagavAn stressed the motto"ahimsA paramo dharmah" to the exclusion of every other code, andmade sure that the asura-s rejected vedic sacrifices and such otheracts. b)SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that He has the nAma because"He is One of fulfilled activities", that is, He has nothing moreto achieve na kartavyam ki'ncidapi karma asya vidyata iti kRta- karmA. SrIkRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers us to gItA 3.22: name pArtha asti kartavyam trishu lokeshu ki'ncana | naanavAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi || (gItA 3.22) "ForMe, arjuna, there is nothing in all the three worlds that is leftyet to be done, nor is there anything unacquired that ought to be still acquired. Yet I go onworking." c)SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that the nAma signifiesthat bhagavAn is "One Who keeps repeating the process of creation,protection, and destruction in cycles One Who keeps doing theseactions again and again" kRtameva jal-lakshaNam karma punah punahkaroti. He gives the Rg vedic mantra "yathA pUrvam akalpayat" (Rg.10.190.3) "He created everything as before", in support. d)SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate interpretation as well He Who performsthe work that no one else can do" anyaih kartum anarham bahubhirapiyat karma, tat karoti iti kRta-karmA. He gives the exampleof the function of the sun appearing and setting unendingly everyday from the beginning of the world, and continuing till the endof the world. This process of creation is something that

no one

elsedo, with perfection, over and over again.

SrIbaladeva vidyAbhUshaN, a follower of the caitanya tradition, has theanubhavam of the nAma in terms of the many acts of kRshNa that arein the category of "No one else can do" the slaying of narakAsura,the liberation of the 16000 rAja kumAri-s who had been imprisonedby him, the fetching of pArijAta tree for satyabhAmA, the victoryover rudra in the battle with bANAsura, the freeing of aniruddhaand usha, etc.

795.kRtAgamah a) The Propounder of Agama-s(Spiritual texts) including those dealing with Buddhism, Jainism, etc..
b)He c)He d)He e)he Who Who Who Who propounded the Vedas Rg, sAma, etc. is the Originator of the pA'ncarAtra Agama. made His appearance at dvArakA after performing His several leelA-s. makes His appearance repeatedly through different incarnations.

omkRtAgamAya namah. Theterm Agama is derived from the root gam gatau to go. SrI vAsishThagives the derivation Agamyate anena iti Agamo vedah That through which knowledge isobtained is Agama, namely, the veda- s. He Who created the veda-s is kRta-Agamah kRta Agamo yena sa kRtAgamah. a)SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as a continuation of His acts of deceivingthe evil people. To make them believe Him in these acts, Hefurther propounded spiritual texts propounding the faiths of Buddhism,Jainism, etc. Buddha arhata sAmayika Agamah kRtAgamah. SrIv.v. rAmAnujan describes these Agama-s as attractive to the outwardmind, very appealing, and something that can easily distract anddeceive one intellectually. b)SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn being theOrigin of the veda-s kRto vedAtmaka Agamo yena iti kRtAgamah. Hequotes the bRhadAraNya upanishad: "asya mahato bhUtasya niSvasitam etat Rg vedo yajur-vedah sAma vedoatharvA'ngirasa itihAsahpurANam vidyA vidyA upanishadah SlokAh sUtrANyanuvyAkhyAnAni vyAkhyAnAni." "The Rg veda, yajur veda,sAma veda, atharva veda, are the breath of this Supreme Being". The termAgama refers to scriptures. c)SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as referring to His beingthe Originator of the pA'ncarAtra Agama "pA'ncarAtrasya kRtsnasyakartA nArAyaNah svayam" The whole of pA'ncarAtra was originatedby nArAyaNa Himself. d)SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN interprets the word Agama as "arrival", andgives the meaning for the nAma as referring to the arrival of LordkRshNa in dvArakA after performing several of His leelA-s - kRtas-tat-tatcaritAni prakASya dvArakAyAm Agamo yena sa kRtAgamah. e)The term Agama also means "appearance". SrI vAsishTha gives an interpretationusing the meaning "Avarta" revolution or repeated appearance.He gives the example of the sun appearing repeatedly, as avibhUti of bhagavAn. BhagavAn Himself appears in His incarnations repeatedly,and in this sense also He is "Agamah" He Who appears repeatedly. -dAsankRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 85 -

udbhavah sundarah sundo ratna-nAbhah su-locanah | arko vAja-sanih SR'ngI jayantah sarva-vij-jayI ||

om udbhavAya namah on sundarAya namah om sundAya namah om ratna-nAbhAya namah om su-locanAya namah om arkAya namah on vAjasanaye namah om SR'ngiNe namah om jayantAya namah om sarva-vij-jayine namah 796. udbhavah a) He Who rose above samsAra. b) He Who is of a superior birth, taking birth as He likes, where He likes, when He likes. c) He from Whom everything originated. d) He Who resides in an exalted place ( SrI vaikunTham). e) He Who created the exalted gods and goddesses. f) He Who is born again and again for the protection of dharma. om udbhavAya namah We had the anubhavam of this nAma in Slokam 41 (nAma 375). SrI BhaTTar's interpretation of nAma 375 was in the context of bhagavAn as para vAsudeva, lakshmI-pati. ud is an upsarga; the root for bhava is bhU sattAyAm to be, to live, to be born. The term udbhava refers to origin, source, creation etc. The difference in the different interpretations mostly arises from the different ways in which the vyAkhyAna-kartA-s interpret the upasarga "ut" (e.g., udgata rising above, utkRshTa excellent, uttama best or superior, uccaih high, etc.).

SrI BhaTTar interprets both the instances of the nAma as "udgatah bhavAt iti udgatah" "He Who pulls us out of the cycle of samasAra". He distinguishes between the two instances of the nAma as follows: In Slokam 41, he interprets the nAma in terms of bhagavAn's act of releasing His true devotees from samsAra. In the current instance, his interpretation in terms of the Buddha incarnation is that He misled the asura-s on the path of release from samsAra. In the context of Slokam 41, SrI BhaTTar points out that by meditating on His being released from the bondage to which He subjected Himself when yaSoDA tied Him to the mortar, we will be released from our bondage of samsAra "dAmodaram bandha haram". a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the current instance is "muktyupadeSa nATitakena bhavAt udgata iti udbhavah" He was preaching the wrong way to attain salvation, and then pretended that He has indeed achieved the objective of rising above samsAra through these wrong means. b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is "utkRshTam bhavam janma svecchayA bhajati it udbhavah" He Who is of superior birth, being born of His free will, wherever He likes. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for this nAma in Slokam 41 was: 1. bhagavAn is called udbhavah because He is the Origin of the Universe, being its material cause prapa'nca utpatti upAdAna kAraNatvAt udbhavah; Or, 2. udgato bhavAt iti udbhavah He Who is free from birth or worldly existence is udbhavah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the interpretation "uttamo bhavo yasya sa ud-bhavah" He Whose birth is superior, which is similar to the above. He gives the support from SrImad bhAgavatam 10.3, which describes child kRshNa's birth to devaki in the prison. His birth is superior because it is unlike any other birth that is known, and is accompanied by wonderful and uncommon events. Unlike other children who are born, His eyes were not closed at birth, but He appeared with beautiful lotus eyes open; He was not connected to His mother through the umbilical cord at birth; He was not covered with the signs of being inside a mother's womb, but appeared with a clean and beautiful body, bearing the conch, the cakra etc.; the waves dashing against the shore sounded like the beautiful beat of the drum as an auspicious sound at the time of His birth; and all kinds of other unusual and auspicious things that happened when this One Who has no birth, "was born" to devaki. c) An alternate interpretation by SrI Sa'nkara is udgatam apagatam janmA asya, sarva kAraNatvAt He Who has no birth or origin, since everything originated from Him. SrI satya sandha yatirAja conveys a similar idea. His interpretation is: "bhavAt samsArAt utpatter vA udgata iti ud-bhavah He Who is beyond samsAra, birth etc., is udbhavah. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the meaning "source or origin" for the word udbhava, and gives his interpretation for the nAma as "The ultimate source" He from Whom everything originated the very spring of Creation. He gives the gItA Slokam 14.4 in support: sarva yonishu kaunteya mUrtayah sambhavanti yAh | tAsAm brahma mahad-yonih aham bIja-pradah pitA || (gItA 14.4) "Whatever forms are produced in any womb, O arjuna, the prakRti is their great womb, and I am the sowing father". The meaning is that bhagavAn is the One who decides the birth of each individual according to each one's karma He decides whether one is born a deva, a gandharva, an animal, etc., according to their karmA.

d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning uccaih for the upasaraga ut ud upasarga uccaih arthe. Using the root bhU sattAyAm, he gives the interpretation uccaih bhavanam yasya sa udbhavah He Whose place of existence is at a high level. SrI vAsishTha gives the example of sun moving around in a high position as a manifestation of bhagavAn being in a high position. The meaning is more enjoyable if we take the reference to the "high place" as SrI vaikunTham. e) Among the alternate interpretations that are given by SrI satya sandha yatirAja is one which describes this nAma as referring to His being the Creator of exalted beings such as pArvati utkRshTah pArvatyAdibhyo bhavo yena iti udbhavah. f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives another interpretation He has this nAma because He is born again and again to protect dharma dharma samsthAnapArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge (gItA 4.8). 797. sundarah a) He Who is handsome. b) He Who has the beautiful conch pA'ncajanyam. c) He Who killed sunda through upasunda (sunda-rah) d) He Who is exceedingly well regarded and worshipped e) He Who has separated or divided the different creatures well in many ways. Om sundarAya namah. The word sundara means "handsome". The word dara by itself means "a conch shell". Most interpreters use the former meaning; SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the second meaning and gives an alternate interpretation. a) SrI BhaTTar explains that He was handsome in the eyes of the asura- s, and so He is described as sundarah in the context of the Buddha incarnation tad-dRshTi manoharah sundarah. SrI V.N. veDantadeSikan gives the explanation in English as "He Who had a captivating form so as to impress and attract a large following." SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that He is of a handsome form, as one of His inherent and natural qualities viSvAtiSayi saubhAgyaSalitvAt sundarah. tiruma'ngai AzhvAr describes this beauty of bhagavAn in periya tirumozhi 9.2.4 "vambu avizhum tuzhAi mAlai tOL mEl;..accO! oruvar azhagiyavA!" _ "Oh! What a bewitching beauty He is! How can I describe this beauty!". In fact, in all the ten pASurams under periya tirumozhi 9.2, AzhvAr just keeps wondering about this indescribable beauty of emperumAn. tirumazhiSai AzhvAr describes His beauty as "ari po'ngik kATTum azhagu (nAnmugan tiru. 21) The beauty of nRsimha form looked like beauty bubbling and spilling over because it couldn't be contained anywhere. tiruppAN AzhvAr is unable to contain His exuberance at the beauty of Lord ra'nganAtha, and in two of the total of ten pASuram-s that are attributed to him, he exclaims at His beauty by crying out "aiyO!" What a Beauty! (Seyya vAi aiyO amalanAdipirAn 7; nIla mEni aiyO amalanAdi pirAn 9). SrI cinmayAnanda relates the term "beauty" here to the mental peace that is derived from meditation and contemplation on SrIman nArAyaNa. He observes that when meditation leads to the joy of ecstasy, the

mind feels the peace, and it is at these moments of supreme inner satisfaction that the flashes of beautyexperiences flood the bosom. This is nothing but the manifestation of SrIman nAraAyaNa, and this is why He is referred to as "Peace-Auspiciousness- Beauty" "SAntam Sivam, sundaram" in the upanishads. b) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives his first interpretation as "sundarah soundarvAn". Using the meaning "a conch shell" for the word dara, he gives the additional interpretation Sobhanam darah Sa'kho yasya iti sun-darah "He Who the beautiful conch pA'ncajanyam". c) Another interpretation by SrI santya sandha yatirAja is "sundam upasundena repayati nASayati iti sundarah" He Who killed sunda through upasunda". The story related to this incident is given in Apte's dictionary under the meaning for the word sundah". sunda and upasunda were sons of the demon nikumbha, and had managed to get a boon from brahmA that they would be not be killed unless they destroyed each other. They became very oppressive, and ultimately indra had to send a nymph named tilottamA, and while fighting for her between themselves, they killed each other. Since all creation and destruction is because of bhagavAn, and since He made sure that sunda was destroyed through upasunda, He is called sunda-rah the Destroyer of sunda. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives yet another anubhavam sutarAm driyate praSasyata iti sundarah He Who is exceedingly well regarded and worshipped (using the meanings sutarAm exceedingly, dRyate from the root dR to worship, to regard). He gives the support from SrImad bhAgavatam: prasAdAbhimukham SaSvat prasanna vadanekshaNam | su-nAsam su-bhruvam cAru-kapolam sura-sundaram || (bhAga. 4.8.45) "He Who is always interested in bestowing His blessings on His devotees, He with a happy countenance, beautiful eyes, nose, cheeks, He who is the most beautiful of all gods, should be meditated upon with single-minded devotion." e) SrI satya devo vAsishTha derives the meaning based on the root dR vidAraNe to tear, to divide. Using su an upasarga meaning "well", he gives the meaning "He Who divides or separates well" for the nAma su = sushTu "nirdosham" vidAraNam yah kurute sa su-darah sanneva varNAgamena sundra ityukto bhavati. His interpretation is in terms of all the parts of the bodies of the different creations being properly divided or separated (such as the two wings of the birds, the branches of the trees, etc. Part of the Slokam that he has composed to explain this nAma is "sa sundaro vishNur-ananta rUpo yonIh samagram vividham dRNAti" vishNu who has many forms, has separated or divided the different creatures in different ways. 798. sundah a) He Who presents Himself as a very soft person to the asura-s in order to convince them to follow His deceitful methods. b) He Who is soft to His devotees. c) He Who bestows joy and happiness on His devotees. Om sundAya namah. su is an upasarga. The root involved in the nAma is und kledane to wet, to moisten. sushThu unatti iti sundah He Who softens. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that He is called sundah because He melted the hearts of the asuras by His fascinating form, and drew them towards Him. This is true of His mohini incarnation as well as His

Buddha incarnation. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is "He Who is of a melting nature because of His great compassion". SrI cinmayAnada's words describing His Mercy are: "Whatever be the amount of vAsanA-s hoarded in our personality, because of our ego-centric, extroverted activities, once a devotee turns unto Him in total surrender, all the vAsanA-s are purified, and the devotee moves more and more towards Him". In His infinite mercy, bhagavAn forgives all sins that a person might commit in his ignorance. c) SrI satya sandha yatirAja's interpretation is that He has this nAma signifying that He is the Bestower of joy and happiness to His devotees sum sukham dadAti iti sum-dah on sundah. d) SrI satysdevo vAsishTha uses the meaning und kledane to wet, and attributes the nAma to His providing every living being with the requisite amount of water and other fluids, the crops with the requisite amount of rain, etc. yo vRsha karmaNA samyag unatti; loke'pi ca paSyAmah, manushyo jalena kvacit bahu-kRtvah si'ncati, kvacicca alpaSah; esha yo niyamo sa tasyaiva vyApakasyavishNoh, etc. 799. ratna-nAbhah a) He with a gem-like navel. b) He Who has the navel from which the gem among men brahmA originated. c) He Who destroys the asura-s (aratna-nAbhah). d) He Who has ratna in His navel - in the form of ratna-s in the oceans. Om ratna-nAbhAya namah. ratna here represents beauty. The following derivation is given by SrI vAsishTha: The word ratna is derived from the root ramu - krIDAyAm - to play, to rejoice, and the application of the uNAdi sUtra 3.14 - ramesta ca, leading to the wrod ratnam which means gem. The word nAbhi is derived from the root nah - bandhane - to tie, to bind, and the application of the uNAdi sUtra 4.126 - naho bhaSca, leading to the word nAbhI. The siddhAnta kaumudI gives the meaning - "a khshatriya" to the word in the masculine gender, and the meaning "navel" in the feminine gender. The kaumudi also points sout that sometimes the meaning navel is given in the masculine gender as well. The term nAbhah means "one with the nAbhi", and so the meaning "navel" is the one that is relevant here, and the one used by all the vyAkhyAna-kartA-s. He Who has a beautiful navel is ratna- nAbhah. a) SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam is that He showed off His beautiful navel as a sign of His pANDityam or learning, again to convince the asura-s of His teachings in the Buddha incarnation pANDitya viDambana mRshTodara vyakta ramya nAbhI ratna-nAbhah. From many translations of the above, it appears that one of the external gesticulations of a learned person is to massage the belly (SrI v. n. vedAnta deSikan's translation in English, SrI v. v. rAmAnujnan;s translation in tamizh, etc.). SrI vedAnta deSikan's translation is: "In the form of Buddha, the imposture like a great scholar required certain external gesticulations like massaging the belly, when His navel was displayed as a beautiful gem". SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is also a reference to the beautiful navel of bhagavAn ratna Sabdena SobhA lakshyate; ratnavat sundarA nAbhih asya iti ratna-nAbhah. SrI cinmayAnanda describes the significance of the navel as the origination point of the thought process in the devotee who performs meditation. He describes the findings of deep thinkers about the process of origination of thought. According to them, all thoughts arise in their seed form from the Infinite before manifestation. From this womb (origination), they become manifest, and the individual becomes dimly

aware of thoughts in their embryo form vague, incomplete, and as yet not fully formed (paSyantee). In the next stage, they get translated into expressions (madhyamA), and in their last and full stage of manifestation, they express themselves as actions in the outer world (vaikharee). In this chain of processes on how the thoughts become manifest for the thinker, the seat of the paSyantee stage is said to be navel region (nAbhI). When one considers the seat of origination of all thoughts of all thinkers, this seat is the ratna-nAbhI of bhagavAn, and hence He is called ratna-nAbhah. SrI cinmayAnanda suggests that this may be significance of the representation that the Creator, brahmA, originates from the lotus from the navel of bhagavAn. SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives two explanations, both of which are different from the above. These are based on his taking the nAma as ratna-nAbhah or aratna-nAbhah. b) Taking the nAma as ratna-nAbah, he gives the interpretation - ratnam pum-ratnam catur-mukho nAbahu yasya He Who has the navel from which the gem among men brahmA originated. c) Taking the nAma as aratna-nAbhah, his interpretation is: aratnAn arat-daityAn nabhati iti a-ratna-nAbhah He Who destroys the asura- s. He uses the root nabha himsAyAm abhAvepi to kill, to hurt, in this interpretation. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation - ratnam nAbahu yasya iti ratna-nAbhah - He Who has ratnam in His navel is ratna- nAbhah. He proceeds to interpeet the nAma as indicating that He has endowed the oceans with ratnam, which is like ratnam in His navel - sa ratna-nAbho bhagavAn vareNyo loke samudre vidadhAtiratnam. 800. su-locanah a) One with bewitching eyes. b) He of superior wisdom. c) One Who has the wisdom and the vision of the Self. d) He Who gives everyone else the ability to see.om su-locanAya namah. su is an upasarga. The root involved is loc darSane to see. a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is tathA hRdayAlu-cora-locanah su- locanah He is called su-locanah because (in His Buddha incarnation) He had charming eyes which enticed the tender-hearted. He gives support from vishNu purANa - punaSca raktAmbaradhRk mAyA-mohah a-jitekshaNah (VP 3.18.16) He was clad in crimson robes, and had eyes which were unconquered; and He deluded the minds of all by His mAyA. As we all know, His beauty is not something that is used by Him only for deluding the asura-s, but also for drawing His devotees closer to Him. ANDAL praises His beauty in many places in her pASuram-s, and SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to one of these instances, in nAcciyAr tirumozhi 11.2 en ara'ngattu in-amudar kuzhal-azhagar vAi-azhaghar, kaN-azhagar, koppUzhil ezhu-kamalap pU-azhagar em-AnAr "My sweet nectar who resides in SrI ra'ngam, the One Who has beautiful hair, beautiful mouth, beautiful eyes, One from whose beautiful navel sprouts the beautiful lotus, the One Who has subjugated me as His

own by His beauty". One almost senses the exclamation "aiyo" of tiruppANAzhvar here. The nAlAyiram is full of references to the beauty of His eyes and the beauty of His tirumEni (Sem tAmariak kaNNan, pavala vAi, kamalac ce'nkaN,.. ..), and they are too numerous to list. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that He has the nAma because of His beautiful eyes, and alternatively, assigns the meaning "j~nAnam" to the word locanam, and gives the alternate meaning He of superior wisdom Sobhanam locanam nayanam j~nAnam vA asya iti su-locanah. c) SrI cinmayAnanda points out that in addition to the beauty of His form that is reflected and enhanced by His beautiful eyes, the significance of the term "beauty" here is that His eyes can see constantly the infinite purpose and goal of the entire creation. These eyes of His can simultaneously perceive everything that is happening in all the three worlds all the time, not only the present, but the past and the future as well. Thus, he gives the meaning "One who has the wisdom of the Self", to this nAma. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning that He has this nAma because of His beautiful eyes, and in addition, he gives the alternate interpretation that the nAma signifies that because of Him, the rest of the creation is able to see well, in His manifestation as the sun samyag locante prANino yasmin udite sati iti su-locanah sUryah. The sun and the moon are considered His two eyes candra sUryau ca netre. Thus ends the commentary on the Eight Hundred names of Lord SrI MahA vishNu. 801. arkah a) He Who is praised. b) He Who is in the form of the sun. Om arkAya namah. The root from which this nAma is derived is arka tapane stavane ca toheat, to praise. arcyate stUyata iti arkah He Who is praised is arkah. SrI satya devo vAsishTha points out that the meaning can also be derivedstarting from the root Rc stutau to praise, and from the root arc-pUjAyAm to worship. Based on the meaning arka tapane to heat, arkahalso refers to the sun. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the meaning that He has an adorable form, and indicatesthat He was praised in His Buddha incarnation by His followers as "aho!mahAtma! ati-dhArmikah!" "Oh! A great soul and a highly virtuousone!". SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that He is adored by even the likes ofbrahmA brahmAdibhih pUjyatamairapi arcanIyatvAt arkah. The same idea isgiven by SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj arkyate stUyate brahmAdibhih iti arkah.He gives the support from SrImad bhAgavatam: yam brahmA varuNendra marutah stuvanti divyaih stavaih (bhA. 12.13.1) He Who is worshipped through divine adorations by brahmA, varuNa, indra, vAyu,etc.

b) SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma as referring to His being in the formthe Sun, using the meaning "sun" for the word "arkah". TheInfinite Consciouness, SrIman nArAyaNa, is the one source of light and energyillumining and nourishing everything. Once He leaves the body of any creature,the body cannot be maintained. 802. vAja-sanih a) He Who advocated eating a lot (a Preacher of mundane pleasures, likeeating). b) He Who provides for the nourishment of all His creation. Om vAja-sanaye namah. SrI BhaTTar gives the nAma as vAja-sanih, and SrI Sa'nkara's version isvAja-sanah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives both versions, and points out that"vAja-sanih" is "vaidika pATham". This is probably based onthe fact that this nAma is referred to in the veda-s as "vAja-sanih" for example, (Rg. 9.110.11), (Rg. 3.51.2), (Rg. 10.91.15) The term vAja refers to annam or food. The root from which sanah or sanih isderived is san sambhaktau, dAne to divide, to give. a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is nAstikya vAdena aihikam annAdikamevasambhajati iti vAja-sanih By His atheistic teachings He created a taste in them for the enjoyment ofpleasures in this world itself. SrI BhaTTar notes that it is the vow of abuddhist monk that he should consume mouthfuls of curd-rice every day early inthe morning kshapaNaka vratam hIdam yat prAtah prAtah dadhyodana kabalAn gRhNate iti. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation vAjam annam arthinAm sanoti dadAti it vAja-sanah He Who gives food to those who pray for it. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds that the nAma signifies that He has made provision forall living beings for their food even before they are born, such as providingfor the milk for the child from the mother's breast even as the child is born.So He plans and provisions for sustenance of all creatures even before Hecreates the world. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation that the nAmasignifies His being the source or nurturer of the entire world of"emotions-feelings-and-thoughts" for the experiences of the body, mindand intellect of all creatures. For the interpretation in terms of His being the provided of food to allbeings, SrI cinmayAnanda gives references to the gItA: gAm-AviSya ca bhUtAni dhArayAmyaham-ojasA | pushNAmi caushadhIh sarvAh somo bhUtvA rasAtmakah || (gItA 15.13) "And entering the earth I uphold all beings by My strength. I nourishall herbs, becoming the juicy soma". 803. SR'ngI a) He Who appears like one having a horn (with a bunch of peacock feathers inhis hand). b) He Who had a horn in His matsya and varAha inbcrnations. c) He With the peak of govardhana mountain on His hand. d) He Who has provided every creature with the means to express its SR'nga orexpression of power. e) He Who destroys the fear of birth in His devotees.

Om SR'ngiNe namah. The word SR'ngam refers to a horn. It also refers to the top of a mountain,sovereignty, etc. The root and the different meanings and interpretations forthe word SR'gan have been covered previously in nAma 540, Slokam 57 -mahA-SR'ngah; and nAma 869, Slokam 81 - naika-SR'ngah. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as One who has a horn, and associates itwith His carrying a bunch of peacock feathers in his hand in His incarnation todelude the asura-s, as a symbol of his doctrine of ahimsA. He gives support fromvishNu purANam: tato digambaro muNDo barhi-patra-dharo dvija | mAyA moho'surAn SlakshNam idam vacanam abravIt || (VP 18.2) "Approaching the daitya-s engaged in ascetic penances, He approachedthem in the semblance of a naked mendicant, with his head shaven, and carrying abunch of peacock's feathers, and addressed them in gentle accents thus". H.H. Wilson adds a footnote in his translation, that "a bunch of peacockfeathers is still an ordinary accompaniment of a Jain mendicant. According tothe Hindi poem, the pRthu rAi caritra, it was borne by the Buddhist amara sinha". b) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma in terms of the matsya incarnation, wherebhagavAn had a horn with which He guided the boat with satya vrata in it pralaya ambhasi SR'ngavAn matsya viSesha rUpah SR'ngI He Who is horned,during pralaya when He assumes the form a special fish. SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry comments that the nAma can also be a reference toHis varAha incarnation, where He supported the earth at the tip of His horn.(see nAma 542, Slokam 58 mahA-varAhah). c) SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the meaning "summit of amountain" for the word SR'nga, and gives the interpretation that the nAmais a reference to His carrying the govardhana mountain SR'ngANi govardhanaSR'gANi asya santi iti SR'ngI. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the term SR'nga as meaning a ray oremanation, or any kind of energy, and gives the interpretation that the nAmasignifies that bhagavAn has enabled all beings with different ways of givingexpression to their energy, and so He is SR'ngI the fangs of a serpent arethe SR'nga-s of the serpent, and the tail of a scorpion is the SR'nga of thescorpion, as examples. e) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj interprets SR'nga as "destroying",(The root is SR himsAyAm to hurt, to kill), and gives the interpretationfor the nama as "He Who destroys the fear of re-birth in His devotees" SRNAti bhava-bhayam iti SR'ngam avicintya- sAmarthyam; tad-asya asti itiSR'ngI. 804. jayantah The Conquerer. Om jayantAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is jI jaye to conquer.jitavAn iti jayantah. a) SrI BhaTTar continues with the elucidation of the point that just as thegood things that exist in this universe are because of Him, the negative thingsthat exist are also caused by Him, with a purpose. Thus,

the creation of themAyA SAstra-s etc., are also part of His leelA. His interpretation here is thatthis nAma indicates that He conquered the advocates of theism among the asura-sby means of His false doctrines that the world is an illusion, and that the soulis nothing but knowledge Astikya-vAdinah samvidAtmatvaprapa'ncamithyAtva-mithyA vAsaih jitavAn iti jayantah. The reason for His doing thisshould be clearly understood to be because there were, among the asura-s somewho believed in practicing theism just to get the powers, which they wouldthen misuse for causing harm to His devotees (the case of SukrAcArya, the guruof the asura-s, and rAvaNa, who was a great expert in the veda-s, areexamples.) The reference here is not to the theists who worship Him withthe desire to attain Him. In this latter case, bhagavAn only helps them more toattain Him the more they wish it. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that the nAma signifies that He is theConquerer of enemies, or is the cause of the victory of the deva-s over theasura-s arIn atiSayena jayati, jaya-hetur-vA jayantah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points to His help to the pANDava-s to gain victoryover the kaurava-s. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that it is His jayantah guNa that helps us"to conquer our lower impulses, our endless desires for the sensuous and our craving for the cruel pleasures of indulgence", because it is the"grace of the mind and intellect, in attunement with the Self" thathelps us achieve this. c) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's anubhavam is more along the lines of theenjoyment of kRshNa as a youth He is jayantah because He always won in handcombat as well as verbal combat with His friends jayati sakhAn bAhu-yuddhevAg-yuddhe vA iti jayantah. d) SrI vAsishTha captures the spirit of the nAma thus yo ho sarvadAjayati, na kadAcit parAjayam labhata iti jayanatah He Who is alwaysvictorious, and can never be defeated under any circumstances by anyone at anytime, is jayantah. SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma in terms of bhagavAn being victorious overall the beings of the Universe, and keeping everything under His control.Wherever there is His blessing, there victory is guaranteed irrespective of theother conditions that surround the situation. He summarizes his interpretationin the following words: evam hi yo vetti jayantamagRyam vishNum sa sarvam jayatIti bodhyam | yasyAsti savye bhagavAn jayantah kim Satravas-tasya narasya kuryuh || No amount of powerful weapons or anything else can prevent the victory of onewho has His support and blessings. One is reminded of the words of vedAnta deSika in SrI kAmAsikAshTakam (6): tvayi rakshati rakshakaih kim ananyaih tvayi cArakshati rakshakaih kim ananyaih | "When you are the Protector, where is the need for other protectors, and when You have decided not to protect, what is the use of any other"protector"?" Again in abhIti stavam, svAmi deSikan points out that for His devotee, thereis no fear ever, from anywhere, under any circumstance kadAcana kutaScanakvacana tasya na syAt bhayam (abhIti. 5).

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the following references to Sruti where thenAma jayantah occurs: - jayantam tvam anumade soma (Rg. 1.91.21) - devasenAnAm abhibha'njatInAm jayantInAm maruto yantvagram | ( Rg. 10.103.8) 805. sarva-vij-jayI a) The Conqueror of those who had learnt all things. b) He Who is Omniscient and Victorious. c) He Who had won over the hearts of the all-knowing sages. Om sarva-vij-jayine namah. The nAma consists of sarva + vid + jayI. (sarva means "all" sarati iti sarvah; vid j~nAne to know, or vid vicAraNe todiscuss; ji jaye - to conquer). a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that He won over the learned people (amongthe asura-s who were believers in the efficacy of following vedic proceduresetc. for acquiring special powers, which then were misused to harm the followersof dharma) by His sweet words and convincing arguments. b) SrI Sa'nkara treats the nAma as "One Who is sarva-vit", and"One Who is "jayI". His explanation for the nAma is that bhagavAnis Omniscient (sarva-vit) and Victorious (jayI) sarva-vishayam j~nAnam asya iti sarva-vit; AbhyantarAn bAhyAn hiraNyAkshAdInSca dur-jayAn jetum Seelam asya iti jayI (He Who is complete in knowledge, and He Who overcomes the internal foes such asdesire, and also the mighty external foes such as the demon hiraNyAksha). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to the Sruti for the nAma sarva-vit: yah savar~jnah, sarva-vit (muNDa. 1.1.9, 2.2.7). He also provides the link between the two part of the nAma because He is sarva-vit, He is able to conquer the inner enemies such as kAmaand krodha. SrI vAsishTha comments that it is by knowing the inner secrets of one's enemythat one can be assured of victory over the enemy. Since bhagavAn is the Knowerof everything sarva-vid, He is the Conqueror under all circumstances jayI. A different anubhavam is given by SrI cinmayAnanda: Even those who boast oftheir wisdom " Prattlers of wisdom, however eloquent in theirdiscussions, must become utterly silent in their moments of samAdhi, in thepresence of the Self, SrI nArAyaNa" So He is sarva- vij-jayI. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj interprets the term sarva-vit as a reference tothe all-knowing brahmA and the like, and since He is above them all because ofHis Supreme and perfect knowledge, He is sarva-vi-jayI sarvam vidanti iti sarva-vido brahmAdayah; tAnapi niratiSaya sarva~jnatayA jayati iti sarva-vij-jayI. c) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the same meaning for the term sarva-vid all-knowing, as the other interpreters have given, but interprets the wordjayI not in the sense of victory over an adversary, but as One Who is held in aposition of respect and esteem by very learned people His interpretation isthat the Lord had a distinct position of eminence and glory with the all-learnedpeople such as vasishTha, vAmadeva,

etc. sarva-vitsu vasishTha vAmadevAdishu jayo mahotkarsho'sya nityam asti itisarva-vij-jayI. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 86 -

suvarNabindurakshobhyah sarvavAgISvareSvarah | mahAhrado mahAgarto mahAbhUto mahAnidhih || om om om om om om om suvarNa-bindave namah akshobhyAya namah sarvAg-ISvara-ISvarAya namah mahA-hradAya namah mahA-gartAya namah mahA-bhUtAya namah mahA-nidhaye namah

806. suvarNa-binduh a) He Who concealed the truth of the vedic path from the asura-s with sweetwords. b) He Who has a beautiful form with golden-colored beautiful limbs. c) HeWho is in the form of the auspicious praNava mantra. d) He Who has a beautifulform, and Who has beautifully divided the creatures of the universe into theirvarious parts. e) The Knower of the veda-s consisting of auspicious letters. f)He Who has the beautiful golden-colored sandalwood marks on His forehead,cheeks, etc. Om suvarNa-bindave namah. su is an upasarga; varNa is derived from the root vR varaNe tochoose; varNa refers to color, letter, etc. The word bindu is derived from theroot bind avayave to split, to divide, or vid j~nAne to know.Because of a generally accepted rule of non- distinction between ba and va bygrammarians (ba-vayor-abhedena), vindu and bindu have the same meaning. SrIBhaTTar ues the root bidi apalApe to conceal, in his interpretation. Theword bindu also refers to the decorative mark applied between the eyebrows, theanusvAra, the marks on the body of a deer, etc. The different interpretationsbelow are a result of these variations.

a) SrI BhaTTar uses the root bidi apalApe to conceal, and the meaning"letters" to the word varNa, he continues his interpretation in termsof bhagavAn's Buddha incarnation, specifically taken to deceive the evil-mindedpeople and thereby punish them for their karma-s. Here, the interpretation isthat bhagavAn successfully used "sweet" words to conceal the truth ofthe vedic path from the asura-s, and to create a distrust in the vedic practicesamong those asura-s who believed in using vedic rites in order to get powers,and then using these powers to harm the deva-s. The cases of SukrAcArya,indrajit, rAvaNa, etc., who got powers by performing vedic rites, and then usedthose powers to harm His devotees, are examples. b) Sri Sa'nkara uses the meaning avayavah limbs, for the word bindu, andgives the interpretation to the nAma as "One having limbs radiant likegold" bindavah avayavAh su-varNa sadRSA asya iti su- varNabinduh. Wecame across the beauty of His form and limbs in the nAma-s suvarNa-varNah,hemA'ngah, varA'ngah, and candanA'ngadI (Slokam 79, nAma-s 743 746). Pleaserefer to these write-ups for a detailed account of His tirumEni to be enjoyedfrom the different interpreters' perspectives. SrI vAsishTha gives the above as one of his two interpretations: su =Sobhanam; varaNIyam = dRSyam rUpam yasya sa su-varNah; su-varNA bindavahavayavAh yasya sa su-varNa-binduh. One Who has a beautiful complexion andbeautiful limbs is su-varNa-binduh. SrI rAdhARshNa SAstri adds another dimension to the anubhavam of His goldentirumEni. He refers to bhagavAn rising with a golden form from the agni-kuNDamin ya~jna-s performed by several devotees. We know of kA'nci pEraruLALan whotook his arcA mUrti incarnation from the agni kuNDam when brahmA performed hispenance in this kshetram. c) An alternate interpretation by SrI Sa'nkara is based on the meaning "aksharam"for "varNa", and "anusvAra" for "bindu", thusgiving the meaning "One Who in the form of the auspicious praNava" Sobhano varNah aksharam binduSa yasmin mantre tan-mantrAtmA vA su- varNa-binduh.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives references to the Sruti in support: omiti brahma (taitt.1.81); tat-te padam sa'ngraheNa bravImyomityetat (kaTha. 1.2.15). d) Based on the root bind avayave to divide, to split, and using theuNAdi sUtra bindur-icchuh (uNAdi. 3.2.169), SrI vAsishTha interprets the wordbinduh as referring to "one who divides" bindati avayavAnkaroti, or "one who performs the kriyA of avayava or division. In thisinterpretation, SrI vAsishTha gives the meaning "One Who Himself is ofbeautiful form (su-varNa), and Who has divided (binduh) the creaturesbeautifully into their different parts, while operating as the Undivided One inall of them" as in the case of a tree, into its branches, leaves, etc.,or the different planets of the solar system yathAyam sUryastathAyamsamastah prapa'ncah parasparam avayava-avayava vibhAvam Apannah, patra-phalapushpa-SakhAdIni vRkshasyeva). e) SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the meaning "letter" for the wordbindu, and interprets the term suvarNa as a reference to the veda-s. He uses theroot vid j~nAne, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAmasignifying that He is the "Knower of the veda- s" SobhanA varNAyasmin sa su-varNo vedah; tasya binduh j~nAtA su- varNa-binduh. f) Using the meaning "a decorative mark on the forehead" for bindu,SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation su-varNo lalATasthobinduh asya iti He Who has golden mark of decoration on His forehead, or HeWho a decorative mark on His golden forehead. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj alsogives a similar interpretation suvarNamiva pItAbhA bindavah candana-bindavoyasya cibuka kapola mastake sa su-varna binduh He Who has the decorationwith the golden-colored sandalwood on His cheeks etc.

807 - a-kshobhyah. Om a-kshobhyAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is kshub sa'ncalane todisturb, to be agitated. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the nAma is that when He presented Hisarguments as Buddha to the asura-s, no one could stand up against his arguments,because he was possessed of impenetrable thoughts gambhIrASayatvena a-vikAryah. b) SrI San'kara's interpretation is that the nAma indicates that He isunshaken by desire, hatred, etc., by the objects of senses such as sound etc.,and by the external foes such as the enemies of the deva- s, etc. rAgAdibhih,SabdAdi-vishayaiSca, tri-daSa-aribhiSca, na kshobhyata iti a-kshobhyah. SrI cinmayAnanda's translation for the nAma is `One who is unruffled".He explains that while ordinarily an individual gets disturbed, subjectively, bythe presence of desires, anger, passions, etc., and objectively an average manis constantly stormed by the enchanting dance of beautiful sense-objects allaround him, the Lord is not subjected to any of these. He refers us to thedescription of a sthitapra~jna in the gItA by Lord kRshNa, in response toarjuna's question in Slokam 2.54 (sthita pra~jnasya kA bhAshaetc). bhagavAn'sresponse is contained in Sloka-s 2.55 to 2.61, where He outlines the attributesof a sthitapra~jna. Those are also the characteristics of an a-kshobhyah. c) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives an anubhavam not shared by the others. Inaddition to treating the nAmas suvarNabinduh and akshobhyah as two separatenAma-s and giving interpretations for these, he looks at these two combined asone nAma also su-varNa- bindu + rakshah + bhyah. His interpretation is:suvarNa bindavo yasmin tat suvarna-bindu; suvarNa-binduvat rakshaScasuvrNa-bindu- raksho mArIcah; tam bhyAsayati bhIshayati iti suvarNa-bindu-raksho-bhyah - The term suvarNa-bindu rakshah refers to the demon by name mArIca, sincehe had golden dots (bindu-s) all over his body. BhagavAn has the nAmasuvarNa-bindu-raksho-bhyah since He caused fear in the mind of this rAkshasa,mArIca, with the golden dots all over his body. The root bhya bhaya is usedin this interpretation. 808. sarva-vAg-ISvara-ISvarah The Lord of all who have a mastery over all words. Om sarva-vAg-ISvara-IsvarAya namah. He Who is the Lord of all who have mastery over vAk or speech issarva-vAg-ISvara-ISvarah The ISvara of those who are "sar-vAg- ISvara-s".The different interpreters give different anubhavam-s on who these "mastersover speech" are. SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation in terms of bhagavAn's Buddhaincarnation. He interprets the nAma as signifying that bhagavAn was the clearwinner over the "learned masters" among the rAkshasa-s in argumentsand disputations. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that vAcaspati is known for pilingpoints after points in support of his position in any argument. That skill ofvAcaspati is but a tiny fraction of bhagavAn's power. The point to be kept inmind here is that in his Buddha incarnation, bhagavAn was advancing arguments topromote nAstikam among the asura-s, and so his arguments in the current contextwere not consistent with the SAstra-s.

SrI Sa'nkara interprets sarva-vAg-ISvara as a reference to brahmA, and sincebhagavAn is the Lord of brahmA, He has the nAma saarva-vAg- ISvara-ISvarah. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that brahmA with his four faces and four mouths,gives the veda-s to the rest of the world, and so he is sarva-vAgISvaran, and hegot this power from bhagavAn, the sarva-vAg-ISvara-ISvara. SrI satya sandha yatirAja considers the reference of the phrase "sarva-vAg-ISvarato rudra, and so describes the namA as indicating that He is the Lord of rudra:sarveshAm vAcah sarva-vAcah tAsAm Isvarasya rudrasya ca ISvaratvAtsarva-vAg-ISvara-ISvarah. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN lists brahma, rudra, etc.,as those learned in the SAstra-s, and bhagavAn being the Lord of all of them,has this nAma sarvAh SrutyAdilakshaNA vAco yatra sa sarva-vAk; nikhilaSAstra pratipAdya ityarthah; yata ISvara-ISvara vidhirudrAdi niyAmakah. Sameidea is reflected in SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj's interpretation sarveshAmvAgISvarANAm sura-guru- druhiNAdInAm ISvarah SastA itisarva-vAg-ISvara-ISvarah. SrI cinmayAnanda quotes the kenopanishad passage where the question is firstasked: keneshitAm vAcam imam vadanti At whose behest do people utterspeech?, and the answer is given: tadeva brahmam tad viddhi It is Brahmanfrom which all these arise. SrI cimnayAnanda explains the nAma thus: "It isnot the instruments of actions and perceptions that act by themselves, as theyare all made up of inert matter. The immediate animation to the equipment isgiven by the `inner instruments'. Therefore, for all the senseorgans, themind-intellect-equipment is their immediate lord. But these subtle instrumentsthemselves get their dynamism to act only in the presence of SrI nArAyaNa". SrI vAsishTha comments that the gods or devatA-s for speech and sound arevAcaspati, agni, vidyut, etc., and He is the Lord of all those gods who are thegods of vAk, and so He is called sar-vAg-ISvara- ISvarah sarva vAgISvarANAmapi ISvarah. SrI vAsishTha comments that even though there are a large number ofspecies, each with its own unique structure of the organs that produce soundfrom them, all of these originate from Him, and ultimately subside in Him. 809. mahA-hradah a) The Vast Lake in which the sinners drown never to rise again, and thedevotees dip again and again to get relief. b) He Who is associated with the deep waters, as in kAlIya mardanam, or in Hisreclining on the Milk Ocean. c) He Who has created the great oceans so that the earth does not becomecompletely dry and perish. Om mahA-hradAya anamah. The root from which the word hrada is derived is hrAda avyakte Sabde to sound, to roar. That which makes indistinct, undefined sounds is calledhradah. That which is huge, and makes this sound is mahAhradah. The term isused to refer to a deep lake, an ocean etc. hRadate iti hradah. a) SrI BhaTTar's explanation for the nAma is that bhagavAn as Buddha was likea deep lake in which the evil-doers sank, never to rise again yatrapApa-karmaNah a-punar-utthAnam nimajjanti. He refers us to Lord kRshNa's wordsin the gItA: tAn aham dvishatah krUrAn samsAreshu narAdhamAn | kshipAmi ajastram aSubhAn AsurIshveva yonishu || (gItA 16.19) "Those haters, cruel, the vilest and the most inauspicious of mankind, Ihurl forever into the cycles of births and deaths, into the wombs ofdemons".

SrI BhaTTar also points out that while He is the deep lake where the sinnerswill drown, He is also the deep lake where the devotees will find their greatcomfort, and will bathe again and again without ever getting satisfied pApa-karmANah apunar-utthAnam nimajjanti, puNya- kRto gAham gAham tRpyanti, samahAhrAdah. One is reminded of the nRsimha incarnation, where bhagavAn wassimultaneously a cause of terror for hiraNyakaSipu, and with that same form, Hewas the cause of great delight for prahlAda. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan describes the term hradah as eddy, the deep ditch thatsometimes lies in the path of running waters. If one gets caught in one ofthese, it is well near impossible to get out of it alive. BhagavAn is like oneof these for the asura-s. nammAzhvAr refers to bhagavAn as "vallarakkarpukkazhunda tayaradan peRRa marakata maNit taDam" in tiruvAimozhi 10.1.8 bhagavAn is described as the large cool tank in which so many devoteesimmerse and benefit, and He is also the large tank in which the cruel asusra-sfall and drown, never to return (val arrakar pukku azhunda). The reference tobhagavAn as the "cool reservoir of waters" for the devotees is commonin AzhvArs' aruLic-ceyal-s and other works: tiruma'ngai AzhvAr in tirunenDumtANDakam (19) poRRAmaraikkayam neerADap ponAL, and the reference in SrImadbhAgavatam esha brahma pravishTosmi grIshme Sitamiva hradam, are given asexamples. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that He is like the great lake since theyogi-s remain peacefully in His bliss by plunging into it avagAhyatadAnandam viSramya sukham Asteyogina iti mahA-hradah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains the nAma in tamizh as "aNDa muDiyAdaAzhnda nIrt tEkkam pOnRu uLLa Anandak kaDal".- The not-so-easily accessibledeep reservoir of water that is the Bliss of Ocean personified. b) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the explanation as `One Who is associatedwith the deep waters in kALIya mardana, or as He reclines in the MilkOcean" mahAn hrado yasya kAlIya mardana kAle vA, samudra Sayana kAle vAsa mahA-hradah. c) SrI satya devo vAsishTha explains the nAma as referring to His creatingthe great oceans so that the world does not become completely dry and perish.Here is his vyAkyAnam in his traditional Sloka form: mahA-hrado vishNur-amogha karmA karoti viSvam bahu- sAdhanAptam | mahA-hradam sa kurute samudram Sushyen-na bhUh sUrya- kharAmSupAtaih || 810. mahA-gartah a) He Who pushes the great sinners into the great pit of samsAra. b) The Great Charioteer of mahAbhArata fame. c) The One with the Great Chariot (with the garuDa in its flag). d) He Who resides in the great mountains such as SeshAcala. e) The Great Pit in which everything in this Universe originates, resides, andmerges back. Om mahA-gartAya namah. The root from the word garta is derived is gRR nigaraNe to swallow,to devour, to emit. The term is used to refer to a ditch, and also the seat of a war-chariot. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning "pit" for "garta", andequates the pit in this nAma to the naraka loka-s such as the raurava, intowhich bhagavAn casts away those who have lost their souls by following the pathcontrary to the path of dharma

evam bAhya-kudRshTi vinisvishTa nashTAtmanAm rauravAdi-gartA asmAt itimahA-gartah. He quotes the gItA Slokam 9.3 in support: aSraddadhAnAh purushA dharmasyAsya parantapa | aprApya mAm nivartante mRtyu samsAra vartmani || (gItA 9.3) "Men devoid of faith in this dharma, O scorcher of foes, ever remain without attaining Me, in the mortal pathway of samsAra". In his vyAkhyAnam to this Slokam in gItA, bhagavad rAmAnuja indicates thatthe people referred to here are those who have attained the fitness to practicethe proper dharma of worship, but then deviate from the path because of aSraddhAor lack of faith. He exclaims at the end of his vyAkhyAna for this Slokam in hisgItA bhAshyam "aho! mahad idam AScaryam!" "O! How strange it is! (that people just ignore their dharma and fall intothe pit). SrI Sa'nkara describes Him as "The great Chasm", because His mAyAis very difficult to cross. He gives the gItA Slokam 7.14 as support: daivI hyeshA guNa-mayI mama mAyA duratyayA | mAmeva ye prapadyante mAyAmetAm taranti te || (7.14) "For, the divine mAyA of Mine consisting of the three guNa-s is hard toovercome; but those who take refuge in Me (prapadyante) alone shall pass beyond the mAyA". b) SrI Sa'nkara gives an alternate interpretation based on the meaning"a chariot" to the term garta. This meaning is given in the nirukatam 3.5: ratho'pi garta ucyate | gRNAteh stuti-karmaNah | stutatamam yAnam | "A rohatho varuNa mitra gartam". SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam for this nAma is: garta Sabdo ratha paryAyo nairuktair- uktah, tasmAt mahA-rathah mahA-gartah. The Great Charioteer. His skill in this area is famous in His role as theCharioteer of arjuna in mahA-bhArata war. c) Using the same meaning as above for garta, namely ratha or chariot, SrIkRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation: mahAn garto garuDa-dvaja ratho yasya iti mahA-gartah He Who the Great Chariot with the garuDa dvajam is mahA-hradah. d) SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the meaning "mountain" for theword aga, and looks at the nAma as mahA + aga + a part based on the root R gatau to go (R gatua kartari ktah). His vyAkhyAnam is: mahAntSca te agASca SeshAcalAdayah tatra Rcchati iti mahA-gartah He Who goes to (resides) in the High Mountains such as SeshAcala. e) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN give another perspective on the nAma He is "The Great Pit" because everything that exists is part of Him,and can be found in Him

ihaikastham jagat kRtsnam paSyAdya sa-carAcaram | mama dehe guDAkeSa yaScAnyat drashTum icchasi || (gItA 11.7) "Behold here, O arjuna, the whole universe with the mobile and immobile things centered in Mybody, and whatever else you desire to see". This is the last of the nAma-s that SrI BhaTTar interprets in terms of therole of bhagavAn in misleading the evil-minded people in his Buddha incarnation.It is more pleasant to enjoy His guNa-s in His role of saulabhyam and sauSIlyamtowards His devotees, than His role as One who punishes those who violate thepath of dharma. However, it is important to realize that whatever happensanywhere in any part of the Universe at any time, are all His actions, and arecarried out for the benefit of His creation. Thus, it is necessary to realizethat the incarnations such as the Buddha incarnation are taken by Him for thepurpose of doling out the effects of their karma to those who follow the path ofadharma. In the next few nAma-s, we will see how His guNa-s are displayed in HisSishTa-paripAlanam role. 811. mahA-bhUtah a) He Who considers great men as His own. b) He Who is a Great Being. c) He Who is the Origin of the five elements. Om mahA-bhUtAya namah. The root from which the nAma can be derived is bhU sattAyAm to be, tolive, to be born. The term bhUta also is used to refer to the pa'nca bhUta-s earth, water,fire, air, and AkASa (prithivI, ap, tejas, vAyu, and AkASa). a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the term mahA-bhUta as referring to "greatbeing", and gives the meaning "One Who possesses mahA-bhUta-s or greatbeings as His own" is called mahA-bhUtah. The "great beings"referred to here are those who are single-minded in their devotion to Him aregreat beings. Since bhagavAn considers them as His own, He is the "Owner ofthe mahA-bhUta-s" mahA-bhUtah. nammAzhvAr refers to this guNa of bhagavAn in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram2.3.6: tIrndAr tam manattup piriyAdavar uyirai SorndE pOgal koDAc cuDar He is like the flame that stays in the hearts of His true devotees, to ensurethat they do not suffer because of separation from Him. He will not like to beseparated from those given to devotion to Him. They too cannot bear a separationfrom Him. b) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn as "TheGreat Being", because He is unlimited by the three dimensions of time the past, the present, and the future kAla-trayAnavacchinna svarUpatvAt mahA-bhUtah. The nAma gives another instance where we can see the difference in approachbetween SrI Sa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar. SrI Sa'nkara stresses the Supremacy aspect of bhagavAn, and SrI BhaTTaremphasizes the saulabhyam and sauSIlyam aspects. As has been pointed out before,both are valid aspects of bhagavAn's guNa-s, but His saulabhyam and sauSIlyamare the guNa-s that give hope to most of us who commit enormous sins constantlyknowingly and unknowingly, in this birth as well as in the countless previousbirths.

c) SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn ismahA-bhUtah because it is from Him that the five great elements air, water,etc., originated. SrI satya sandha yatirAja also gives a similar explanation mahAnti bhUtAni AkASAdIni yasmAt iti mahA- bhUtah. 812. mahA-nidhih a) He Who has the great treasure in the form of His devotees. b) He Who is a great treasure for His devotees. c) He Who is the Abode of everything in the Universe. d) He Who is like a treasure from which His devotees can draw at will. Om mahA-nidhaye namah. a) ni is an upasarga prefix. The root on which the nAma is based is dhA dhArana poshaNayordAne ca to put, to grant, to produce, to bear; nitarAm dhIyate pushyata iti ; nidhIyate atra iti nidhih; That in which things are stored is nidhi. Usually the term is used to refer to treasure. nitarAm wholly, entirely, continuously, always. nidhi reservoir,receptacle, abode a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning "treasure" for the term "nidhi",and gives the vyAkhyAnam that bhagavAn has this nAma because He values thedevotees as His treasure they are so dear to Him: te nidhivat ati-priyA asya iti mahA-nidhih. nammAzhvAr captures this aspect of bhagavAn in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram10.7.8: triup pArkkaDalE en talaiyE; taN tiru vE'nkaTamE enadu uDalE; manamE vAkkE karumamE oru mA noDiyum piriyAn "bhagavAn loves my head with the same attachment He has for tirup parkkaDal; He loves my body with as much intensity as He likes tiru vE'nkaTam; Henow appears to be a complete dependent on my body for His verysustenance". SrI v.n. vedAnta deSikan's interpretation for this pASuram, in part, is:"The Lord bestows the same attachment on my body and limbs as He does ondivya deSa shrines. He appears to love my head as much as He does tirumAl irumSolai and tiruvE'nkaTam". b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAam is: sarva bhUtAni asmin nidhIyanta iti nidhih He is called mahA-nidhih becauseHe is the great Treasure House of all beings. He protects all beings inside Himlike a treasure at the time of pralaya. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the interpretation that the nAma symbolizesthat He is the abode of everything in the Universe, including such great thingsas the sun mahAntah sUryAdayo'pi grahA yatra pakshiNa iva nihitA iti mahatAm nidhitvAt samahA-nidhih all the planets reside in Him like birds. d) SrI cinmayAnanda translates the nAma as "The Great Abode". Heexplains the nAma as: "The Eternal Source from which everything springs forth, and the Infinitesubstratum upon which the entire

play of the finite is held in animatedsuspension". He also notes the meaning "treasure" for the wordnidhi, and observes that SrI nArAyaNa is the richest treasure of all of Hisdevotees to loot at will!". The idea is that His devotees will never be satiated with His anubhavam, and Heis always there for them to eternally enjoy. AzhvArs refer to bhagavAn as their nidhi in this sense of His being availablefor their enjoyment and support always. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several references: - tiruma'ngai AzhvAr in tiruk kurum tANDakam (1) nidhiyinai, pavaLattUNai - He is the Treasure who comes forth without fail when we are in need;He is like the pillar that comes for our support like the pillar made of pavaLam.tiruma'ngai AzhvAr periya tirumozhi 7.1.7: gatiyEl illai nin aruLEl enakku;nidhiyE - I have no recourse to any help except Your Mercy; You are the treasurein reserve for me when I am in need". nammAzhvAr, tiruvAimozhi 6.7.11: vaitta mA nidhiyAm madusUdanaiyE alaRRi..-MadhusUdanan is like a great treasure in reserve (vaitta mA-nidhi), available intime of need in future. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj interprets the nAma as a combination of two guNa-sthat He is great and He is also held as a treasure by His devotees SrI bhagavAn hi bhaktaih prathamam pUjyate tataSca tasya manomayI pratimA hRdayenidhIyate dhyAyate ca. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 87 -

kumudah kundarah kundah parjanyah pavano'nilah | amRtaSo'mRta-vapuh sarva~jnah sarvato-mukhah || om om om om om om kumudAya namah kundarAya namah kundAya namah parjanyAya namah pavanAya namah anilAya namah

om om om om

amRtASAya namah amRta-vapushe namah sarva~jnAya namah sarvat-mikhAya namah

813. kumudah a) He Who is on this earth with delight by enjoying the association with Hisdevotees. b) One Who gladdens the earth by ridding it of the evil-doers. c) One Who bestows the auspicious world of parama padam. d) One Who delights in the sky, in the form of the sun. e) He Who wears a garland made of blue lilies. Om kumudAya namah. The nAma consists of two or three parts, depending on the interpretation. Oneway to look at the nAma is as ku + mudah. The first part is derived from theroot kai - Sabde - to sound. kauti dhvanati iti kuh - that which is fullof sound. The amara koSam gives the meaning "world" to the word kuh- kuh pRthivI prthvI. mudah is derived from the root muda - harshe - torejoice, to be glad. modata iti mudah - One who rejoices, or modayatiiti mudah - One Who makes others rejoice. Another way to look at the nAma isku + mu + dah (see c below). a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms of ku + mudah. His vyAkhyAnam iskau - prakRti maNDale (even) in this world of prakRti; mudah - (taih saha)modate - (In the company of His devotees) He rejoices. So He is known as kumudah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan wonders aloud how difficult it must be for bhagavAn tohave to be part of us just to enjoy our company. By coming into this world, LordrAma had to undergo lots of miseries - " nATTil piRandu paDAdana paTTu"is how He had to live - such is life in this world, that it will make even theparama purushaN undergo enormous suffering and misery. Lord rAma Himselfdescribes His miseries rAjyAt bhramSah vane vAsah sItA nashTah hato dvijah (AraNya kANDam 67.24) "I was driven away from My kingdom, I have to live in the forest, I havelost sItA, and now this great bird (jatAyu, the eagle) has beenslain". And yet, He chooses to live amongst us just for thecompany of, and association with, the likes of bharadvAja, atri, agastya, etc. SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma thus: "One Who gladdens theearth", or "One Who is gladdened by the earth". He explains thatbhagavAn's delight is a sheer expression of His Omnipotence - the very fact thatHe has created this dynamic, complex, cosmos that is so scientifically precise,is a matter of delight, since it is the fulfillment of His Omnipotence. b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is kum dharaNim bhAra avataraNam kurvanmodayati iti ku-mudah He Who frees the earth from its burdens and givesjoy to the beings of the earth. SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry observes that this lightening of the burden is throughthe elimination of the wicked people (dushTa nigraham). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the example of His taking many incarnations for thesame purpose - to destroy the wicked people and protect His devotees.

Here is one more instance of seeing the difference in the approaches of SrISa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar in their general approach to their interpretations. SrISa'nkara explains the nAma as His giving joy to the earth by freeing it of itsburdens, and SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as His rejoicing and derivingpleasure by the company of His devotees. We should keep in mind that both theinterpretations are valid anubhava-s of bhagavAn. The difference in approach isthat one emphasizes His Power, and the other emphasizes His saulabhayam andsauSIlyam. c) SrI M. V. rAmAnujAcArya gives an additional interpretation: He Who bestows the world of mukti, or parama padam - ku = bhUmi, mu = mukti; dah= Giver or Bestower. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the meaning "sky" to "ku"(based on kai - Sabde), and gives the interpretation to the term "kumudah"as "One Who delights in the sky, in the form of the sun" Sabdavat AkASe modayati iti kumudah; SabdASraye khe modata iti kumudah sUryah . e) The word kumuda is also used to refer to the blue lily or to lotus. He Whowears a garland made of these is kumudah - utpala dhAro kumudah (SrIbaladeva vidyA bhUshaN). 814. kundarah a) The Bestower of the knowledge of the Supreme Reality (kunda-rah). b) He Who dissolves or eliminates the sins accumulated over countless births(kun-darah). c) He Who bestows benefits as agreeable as the kunda flower (kunda-rah). d) He Who accepts offering that are pure like the kunda flowers (kunda-lah). e) He Who pierced the earth in His varAha incarnation in search of hiraNyAksha (kum-darah). f) One Who gives what is sought or what is desired. g) He Who created the oceans by tearing apart the earth (kum-darah). h) He Who is very pleased with the offerings of the kunda pushpa-s by Hisdevotees (kunda-rah). Om kundarAya namah. SrI BhaTTar uses the word kundam as referring to "The knowledgeof the Supreme Reality" or para-tattva j~nAnam. This is based on hisinterpreting the term ku as a reference to "mukti-bhUmi",rather than just as meaning "bhUmi". kundam is that which givesthe mukti-bhUmi, namely the knowledge of para-tattva. Since He is the Giver ofthis knowledge, He is kunda-rah (rAti = dadAti = gives). SrI v. v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 2.3.2,where he addresses bhagavAn as "aRiyAdana aRivitta attA!" "You are the AcArya Who imparted the true knowledge to me". We havealso Lord kRshNa's declaration in the gItA: teshAm satata-yuktAnAm bhajatAm prIti-pUrvakam | dadAmi buddhi-yogam tam yena mAm upayAnti te || (gItA 10.10) "To those who are ceaselessly united with Me and who worship Me withimmense love, I lovingly grant that mental disposition (buddhi-yoga) by which they come toMe". This is the para-tattva-j~nanam that SrI BhaTTar is referring to. b) The nirukti author has added an interpretation to this nAma, that isborrowed from SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the next nAma, kundah.This involves the use of the meaning "sin" for the

word ku kumavyayam pApa-vAci, tasya dAraNAt kun-darah He Who dissolves oreliminates the sins (accumulated over countless births). SrI satya devo vAsishTha also includes this as one of his threeinterpretations for the nAma (the other two are covered below). The amara koSavyAkhyAnam gives the following as an illustration of the use of the word kuwith the meaning "sinful" - tyajet ku-jana-sa'ngam _ Leave theassociation with sinful people. SrI vAsishTha's vyAkhyAnam is: kum = pApamdRNAti sva-sevAnAm iti kum-darah He who tears apart or removes the sins ofHis devotees. He makes them see knowledge by removing the sins from their mind sa eva buddhim jaritur-viSodhya su-medhasam tam kurute sa vishNuh || c) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is that the nAma signifies that He bestowsfruits that are as pure and agreeable as the kunda (jasmine) flowers kundapushpa tulyAni SuddhAni phalAni rAti dadAti iti kundarah. d) Alternately, SrI Sa'nkara gives the explanation He Who acceptsofferings that are pure like the kunda flower kunda pushpa tulyAni SuddhAniphalAni lAti Adatte iti kundarah (based on the root lA AdAne dAne ca to take, to obtain) . Here he uses the rule of mutual interchange of ra and lain conventional usage ra-la-yoh ekatava smaraNAt. e) A third interpretation given by SrI Sa'nkara is that He has the nAmarepresenting His action of tearing the earth or piercing the earth (dara to tear) in search of hiraNyAksha in His varAha incarnation: kum dharAm dArayAmAsa hiraNyAksha jighAmsayA vArAham rUpam AsthAya it vA kun-darah . f) SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for the word kunda as kamu kAntau to desire, and the application of the uNAdi sutra abdAdayaSca (uNAdi. 4.98),leading to the word kundah. He gives the interpretation kAmayata iti kundahkamanIyah That which is desired or sought for is kunda. Using the rootrA dAne to give, kundarah means "One Who gives what issought or what is desired" kamanIyam vA'ncitam dadAti iti kunda-rah. g) An alternate interpretation given by SrI vAsishTha is: kum pRthivIdArayati iti kun-darah - (based on the root dRR vidAraNe to tear, todivide). He is referring to bhagavAn creating the great oceans by tearing apartthe bhUmi sa kun-daro nAma vidArya bhUmim sa Atma-SaktyA kurute samudram | h) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation bahkta-samarpita kunda pushpeNa ramati iti kundarah He Who is very pleased with the offerings of the kunda pushpa-s by His devotees. 815. kundah a) He Who grants the successive stages of higher knowledge. b) He Who cleanses the sins of His devotees. c) He Who is pure and beautiful like the kunda (jasmine) flower. d) He Who bestows purity like the kunda flower to His devotees. e) He Who has the spear by name kunta (kuntah) f) One who is sharp like the kunta spear in removing the sins of His devotees (kuntah). g) He Who gave an offering of the earth to kaSyapa Rshi.

h) He Who eliminated the bad kshatriya kings from the earth. i) He Who cleanses the earth through the sun, rain, etc. Om kundAya namah. As explained in the previous nAma, the word ku refers to bhUmi as well assin; the word kunda itself refers to the jasmine flower. The previous nAma,kundarah, and the current nAma, kundah, are somewhat similar. The part -dah isinterpreted as dadAti - gives, dAyati - cleanses, or dyati - eliminates, thusleading to the different interpretations. a) We had seen that the meaning "para-tattva-j~nAnam" was given bySrI BhaTTar to the word kunda. kundah is One Who bestows this knowledge.kundarah was also assigned the same meaning earlier. SrI BhaTTar distinguishesthe current nAma from the previous one by referring in the current nAma, tobhagavAn's giving the para-tattva knowledge to those that have started climbingthe steps of knowledge through self-control etc., in steps of para-bhakti,para-j~nAnam, and ultimately parama-bhakti. b) SrI BhaTTar also gives an alternate interpretation. We saw in the previousnAma the assignment of the meaning "sin" to the word ku, and aninterpretation added by the nirukti author for the previous nAma based on thismeaning for the word ku. While we saw the interpretation "He Who destroysthe sins" for the previous nAma, the interpretation given for the currentnAma is "He Who cleanses the sins", based on the meaning ku = pApam,and the root daip = Sodhane - to purify; pApam dAyati Sodhayati iti kundah. Hefirst removes the sins from His devotee (kundarah), and then cleanses the sinsso that they do not get back to the devotee again (kundah) - pApam dArayati itikundarah, api ca vidAritam pApam Sodhayati iti kundah. This is also one of the interpretations given by SrI vAsishTha kum itipApArthakam avyayam, tad khaNDayati iti kundah; yad-vA kum = pApam dAyati +Sodhayati iti kundah (do = avakhaNDane, daip = Sodhana). c), d) nammAzhvAr uses the nAma kunda in tiruvAimozhi pASuram 2.6.1 Sei kundA varum tImaigaL un aDiyArkkut tIrttu aSurarukkut tImaigaL Sei kundA He removes the sins of His devotees, and gives them to the evil-doers as thephalan for their karma-s. Here, the meaning given by the vyAkhyAna kartA-s forthe word kunda is "One Who is pure like the kunda pushpam - the pure whitefragrant jasmine flower". In tamizh, the word kunda can also be consideredas standing for the word kurundam flower - a pure white flower representingpurity. So the nAma can be understood as "One Who is pure like the kundaflower", or "One Who bestows purity like that of the kunda flower toHis devotees". SrI Sa'nkara gives several interpretations for the nAma. The first of these is: "He Who is as pure and beautiful as the kundaflower" kundopama sundarA'ngatvAt svacchatayA sphaTika nirmalah kundah. e), f) SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that the term can also be taken to mean"One who has the spear called kunta" - (nin kaiyil vEl pORRi -tiruppAvai). SrI uttamUr vIrarhAvAcArya svAmi also refers to this as onepossible interpretation for the occurrence of this word in nammAzhvAr's pASuram.The nAma in this case will be "kuntah" instead of "kundah".The meaning then could also be "One who is sharp like the kunta spear inremoving the sins of His devotees".

g) One of Sri Sa'nkara's alternate interpretations is: "One Who gave anoffering of "ku" or earth to kaSyapa Rshi" as indicated in thefollowing quote from hari vamSa: sarva pApa viSuddhyartham vAjimedhena ceshTavAn | tasmin ya~jne mahA dAne dakshiNAm bhRgu-nandanah || mArIcAya dadau prItah kaSyapAya vasundharAm || (hari vamSam 31.106) "The son of bhRgu, in order to purge all his sins, performed the horsesacrifice. In that sacrifice that required great gifts to be given away, He, inHis incarnation as the son of bhRgu, made a gift of the earth to mArIca withgreat pleasure". h) The third interpretation by SrI Sa'nkara is: "He Who got rid of thekshatriya-s from the earth" kum pRthvIm dyati khaNDayati vA kundah. He gives the support from vishNu dharma for this interpretation: nih-kshatriyAm yaSca cakAra medinIm anekaSo bAhuvanam tathA'nchinat | yah kArtavIryasya sa bhArgavottamo mamAstu mA'ngalya vivRddhaye harih || (vishNudharma 43.37) "Let Hari, the best of the bhRgu family, who made the earth free fromwicked kshatriya-s many a time, and who cut off the thousand arms of kArtavIrya,be with me for the increase of prosperity". i) SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives an additional interpretation using themeaning "earth" for ku, and dAyati = Sodhayati for dah. He whocleanses the earth of its impurities through rain etc. pRthivIm varshaNena Sodhayati iti kundah. 816. parjanyah a) He Who bestows His blessings on the devotees like therain-cloud. b) He from whom a superior birth is attained. c) He Who protects. Om parjanyAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar derives the nAma from the root aja ardane - to dispel. Heexplains the nAma in terms of His removing (dispelling), like a rain-cloud, thethree kinds of tApa-s the tApa-traya-s AdhyAtmika, the Adhidaivika, andthe Adhi-bhautika types. These three are: the pain cause by one's own mind etc.,the pain caused by fate or gods, and the pain caused by animals, other people,etc. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan adds that it is by bestowing the knowledge about Himthat He relieves us from the tApa-traya-s. BhagavAn is frequently referred asthe rain-cloud by AzhvArs for showering His blessings on His devotees: - tiruma'ngai AzhvAr's tiru neDum tANDakam (30) minnu mA mazhai tavazhummega-vaNNA!; - tiruma'ngai periya tirumozhi 7.9.9: karu mA mugil uruvA!Kanal uruvA! Punal uruvA! You who are like the rain cloud for some, like thefire for some, and like the comforting water for many! SvAmi deSikan refers to bhagavAn's guNa of removing the tApa-traya-s of thedevotees who are immersed in devotion to Him in his SaraNAgati dIpikA: tApa-trayeNa vihatim na bhajqanti santah samsAra gharma janitenasamAdhimantah || (SaraNAgati dIpikA 23)

"Those j~nAni-s who are immersed in bhakti yoga towards You do notsuffer from the tApa-traya-s that are caused by the heat of samsAra". SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is also in terms of His removing the threetypes of tApa-s parjanyavat AdhyAtmikAdi tApa-trayam Samayati iti "He extinguishes the three kinds of burning miseries concerning the bodyand the rest, even as the rain-charged cloud cools the earth by itsdownpour". SrI Sa'nkara's alternate interpretation is that this nAma signifies that Heshowers all desired objects on His devotees like rain sarvAn kAmAnabhivarshati iti parjanyah. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj looks at the nAma as pari-janyah, which is treatedsame as parjanyah by dropping the i in pari. His interpretation is "paritaAsInA janAh parijanAh; tebhyo hita-tamah iti pari-janyah; ikAra-lope parjanyah pari-jana-s are those that are around Him those that worship Him; He Whobestows welfare on them is pari-janyah, which is same as parjanyah in SrIbhAradvAj's interpretation. SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma starting from the root pRsh secane tosprinkle, and the application of the uNAdi sutra "parjanyah" (3.103),with the meaning "cloud". That which wets or drenches is parjanya parshati si'ncati iti parjanyah. SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN gives a similarinterpretation: tasyAm cinta-bhUmau varshati nija-rUpa amRtam iti parjanyah He Who showers His actual Self in the thoughts of His devotees is parjanyah. b) SrI satyasandha yatirAja gives the interpretation param janyam yasmAtparjanyah He from whom a superior birth is attained. c) SrI vAsishTha gives at least six different ways of deriving the nAma,starting from different roots. One of these is pR pAlana pUranayoh toprotect, to fill, to bring out; with the addition of the anya pratyaya, thisbecomes parjanyah, which means "One Who protects". 817. pavanah a) He Who is the forrn of the wind. b) He Who moves to Hisdevotees to remove their distress. c) He Who purifies in the form of wind, agni,water, etc. d) He Who protects the protectors the kings (pA + avanah). Om pavanAya namah. We saw this nAma earlier in Slokam 32 (nAma 292). SrI BhaTTar indicates the root for the nAma as pavi to go. The amara koSavyAkhyAnam indicates the derivation from the root pU'ng pavane; pavata itipavanah; punIte vA; The meanings are thus: that which goes, that which blows,that which purifies, etc. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for nAma 292 was that He has the nAmasignifying that He moves about in the form of the wind, with just a fraction ofHis power. nammAzhvAr conveys this in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 5.7.3 kANginRa ik-kARRellAm yAnE ennum. The ten pASurams in tiruvAimozhi 5.7 sum upthe truth that bhagavAn is everything without exception.

SrI cinmyAnanda conveys the same thoughts in the following words: "HeWho manifests as the life-giving atmosphere around the world and sustains theexistence everywhere". In Slokam 32, SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for the nAma is that He is thePurifier in the form of the wind. He has given the reference to gItA Slokam10.31 as support: pavanah pavatAm asmi rAmah Sastra-bhRtAmyaham | "Of moving things, I am the wind. Of those who bear weapons, I am rAma". b) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the current instance of this nAma is thatbhagavAn goes Himself (pavi to go) to His devotees to remove their distress- pavate iti pavanah. This is expressed by tiruma'ngai AzhvAr in periyatirumozhi 1.10.9: vandAi; en manam pugunDAi; manni ninRAi You came of Yourown free will, entered my mind, and have decided to stay there. nammAzhvArconveys the same thought in his tiruvAimozhi 5.7.7 vandaruLi en ne'njiDamkoNDa vAnavar kozhundE! aDiyEnai agaRRElE Oh Lord! You have been kindenough to come and take a place in my heart. Only, now please do not ever leaveme. c) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for the current instance of the nAma is thatHe purifies anyone who merely remembers Him smRti- mAtreNa punAti itipavanah. In the context of bhagavAn being the Great Purifier, SrI rAdhAkRshNa Satricomments in his vyAkhyAnam for the Slokam "pavitrANAm pavitram yah..",that acts such as taking a bath in the holy waters, visiting divya kshetra-s,etc., are ways of our ridding ourselves of sins, when we undertake these actswith the faith and belief that bhagavAn is present in these rivers and divyakshetra-s. Thinking of Him, worshipping His divya ma'ngaLa vigraha-s, singingHis praise, performing pUja for Him, meditating on Him, prostrating, etc., areall ways to remove our sins through His purifying power. SrI cinmayAnanda uses the version "pAvanah" in Slokam 87, and givesthe translation for the nAma as "One Who ever purifies". He commentsthat "The impurities of a personality are gathered when the mind andintellect, in a natural impulse of animal voluptuousness, rush towards thesense-objects with ego-centric passion". The purification by His poweroccurs when we peacefully let our minds settle in contemplation of the divinenature and eternal glory of SrI nArAyaNa. c) SrI vAsishTha also uses the version "pAvanah", but indicatesthat the interpretation is the same whether the nAma is taken as pavanah orpAvanah. He gives the meaning "He Who purifies", for the nAma. Hepoints out that bhagavAn purifies in many ways: in the form of the wind byblowing, fire by burning, water by washing, earth by consuming, etc. So Hispurifying power is manifest all over. He gives the reference to Rg vedic hymn: punAti dhIro bhuvanAni mAyayA Rg. 1.160.3, and also to niruktam 5.6: vAyuhpavitram sa mA punAtu agnih pavitram sa mA punAtu. He also has summarized hisvyAkhyAnam in the form of the following Sloka: sa pAvano vishNur-amartyakarmA punAti viSvam vividha- prabhedaih | sa evasUrya sa hi vAsti vAyau jale sthale vA pavitA sa eva || d) In one of his interpretations, SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the version"pAvanah", and looks at the nAma as pA + avanah He Who protectsthe protectors or kings. His vyAkhyAnam is: pAnti iti pA rAjAnah; teshAm avanamyasmAt iti pAvanah.

818. anilah a) He Who need not be goaded by anyone in His blessing thedevotees (an-ilah). b) He Who has no enforcer above Him. c) He Who is easilyaccessible to His devotees (a-nilah). d) He Who is the Giver of life-breath toeverything else. e) He Who is ever awakened. f) One Who needs no support g) OneWho does not have a fixed residence, One Who is in the form of the wind, etc. h)He Who has no end. i) One Who has no binding to pApa, puNya, etc. j) He Who gavethe kingdom (to ugrasena after killing kamsa). k) He Who spent sleepless nights(planning how to save rukmiNi). om anilAya namah. We looked into this nAma in Slokam 25 (nAma 236). The root word from whichthe nAma can be derived is ila preraNe to urge. Apte's dictionary alsogives the meanings: to sleep, to go, to move, to throw, etc., for the word ila (ilasvapna kshpaNayoh to sleep, to throw). SrI BhaTTar also derives the nAmafrom the root ana prANane - to live, to breathe. ilA also means the earth.These different meaning and combinations are used in arriving at the differentanubhavam-s below. a) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar derives theinterpretation based on the root ila preraNe to urge. ila refers to thatperson who urges another to do an act. Since bhagavAn does not have to be urgedby anyone to bless those who worship Him, He is called a-nilah. His gives thefollowing in support: tadapyaprArthitam dhyAto dadAti madhusUdanah - Whenmeditated upon, bhagavAn madhusudana bestows His blessings on His devotee evenwhen the devotee does not pray for them - vishNu dharma 74.42. b) One of SrI Sa'nkara's interpretations is that bhagavAn has this nAmabecause He has no enforcer above Him: ilati preraNam karoti iti ilah, tad-rahitatvAt an-ilah . c) SrI Sa'nkara also gives another interpretation that is related tobhagavAn's ease of approach to His devotees. This is based on the root nil gahane to become thick, deep, hard to be understood. Using the noun form nilah meaning "difficult to understand", SrI Sa'nkara interprets thenAma a-nilah as "One Who is not difficult to understand for thedevotee"a-gahanah a-nilah - bhaktebhyah sulabhah Easilyaccessible to bhakta-s. d) For the instance of this nAma in Slokam 25 (nAma 236), Sri BhaTTar derivesthe meaning based on the root an prANane - to live, to breathe, and theapplication of the uNAdi sUtra 1.54 sali-kal-ani-mahi-bhaDi-bhaNDi-SaNDi-piNDi-tuNDi-kuki-bhUbhya-ilach which states that theaffix ilach comes after the verbs sal to go down (salilam water), kal to count (kalilam covered with, mixed), an to live (anilah wind), etc. Thus, the meaning given for nAma 236 was ananAt ujjIvanAtanilah Because He sustains the life of everything through life-breath, He isanilah. nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 5.6.2 declares: kANginRa ik-kARRellAm yAnE all this air and wind around us is

but a tiny fraction of Me - The well-knownwind is but a tiny fraction of this anila that is bhagavAn. He gives support from the following: ko hyevAnyAt kah prANyAt - Whoever can breathe and whoever can live if theAkASa (i.e., paramAtmA) were not there? - (taittirIya nArAyaNa 7); prAnAtvAyur_ajAyata - The wind was born out of His breath (purusha sUktam 14). Notethat in this interpretation, anilah is not equated with air or wind, but as Hisbreath prANa, that supports the wind and all other life. e) SrI Sa'nkara gives several alternate interpretations for the nAma inaddition to b) above. One of these is based on the meaning "sleep" forthe word ila ilati svapiti iti a~jna ilah; tad- viparItonitya-prabuddha-svarUpatvAt iti vA anilah ilati means sleeps, that is,ignorant; a condition opposed to ignorance is that of ever wakeful state;therefore, One Who is ever awakened is an- ilah. f) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 25, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri looks atthe nAma as an + ilah, where ilA refers to bhUmi, used in the sense of supporthere avidyamAnA ilA AsrayatayA an-ilah. Since He needs no support of theearth, air, etc., He is anilah. g) Or, one can use the amara koSa vyAklhyAnam na vidyate nilah nilayamsthAnam yasya iti anilah He Who does not have a fixed place is anilah. h) Another interpretation given by SrI Sa'nkara is: anAditvAt anilah OneWho has no beginning or end;. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri's interpretation is - nanilIyate naSyati iti anilah. i) One more of SrI Sa'nkara's interpretations is: anAdAnAt anilah One Whohas no binding. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains this as na nilAti Adatte puNyampApam vA Neither puNyam nor pApam stick to Him. j) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN seems to use the pATham nilah instead of anilahin his interpretation nitarAm lAti gRhNAti aikAntino bhaktAn iti SinceHe totally attracts the single-minded devotees, He is nilah. j) An alternate interpretation by SrI vidyA bhUshaN is that He has the nAmasignifying that He gifted the kingdom to ugrasena after killing kamsa kamsavada nirjitAyA ilAyA bhUmeh ugrasenAya dAnAt. k) Yet another anubhavam of SrI vidyA bhUshAn is in terms of the sleeplessnights that kRshNa spent planning on how to rescue rukmiNi. The term ilA is usedhere with the meaning "sleep", and the pATham used is anilah. rukmiNi-spRhayA nidrAparityAgAt anilah. He quotes Lord kRshNa's words to supportthis interpretation: tathAhamapi tac-citto nidrAm ca na labhe niSIti. The dharma cakram writer gives the meaning for this nAma that bhagavAn is inthe form of air, and gives us a view of how important the meditation on thisguNa of bhagavAn is for our life. Without food we can go on for many days;without water we can survive for a few days; but without air, but a few minutes.That is how important air is for our living; and so also is the meditation onvishNu for our spiritual life. He quotes mahAtmA gAndhi in this context - thathe could survive without food for several days (and hasn't he proved it severaltimes!), but he could not live without prayer for even a day. The air is alsospread around everywhere, just as mahA vishNu is. Our mind wanders aroundeverywhere, and occupies everything, just

as air occupies all available space.Man has learned to control and contain air. So also, he can learn to control hismind by constant meditation on vishNu. This is another lesson we can take fromthis nAma. 819. amRtASah a) He Who feeds His devotees with the Nectar - Himself. b)He Who consumed the nectar after churning the Milk Ocean. c) One Who has anever-living will to give fruits. d) One Whose wishes are failure-proof. e) OneWho is dear to the mukta-s. f) One Who provides unending means of survival forHis creation. Om amRtASAya namah. The nAma consists of a + mRta+ ASah. a-mRta refers to undying or eternal, orto nectar. ASah is derived from the root aS bhojane to eat. One Whoconsumed amRtam, or One Who gives amRtam to others, is ASah - aSnAti ASayati vAASah. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is tAn sva-guNa amRtam ASayati itiamRtASah He Who feeds His devotees with the Nectar of His guNa-s. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers to tivruvAimozhi 8.8.4, where nammAzhvAr conveys this: . tEnum pAlum kannalum amudum Agit tittittu en UNil uyiril uNarvinil ninRaonRai uNarndEnE. "I can feel that He is in my body, flesh and blood, life-breath and thefaculty of thinking. He is sweet like honey, milk, sugar, candy, and whatnot". nammAzhvAr also describes that bhagavAn voluntarily entered into him and gavehim bliss as the insatiable nectar ArA amudamAi al AviyuL kalanda kArAr karu mugil pOl en ammAn akkaNNanukku (tiruvAi. 2.5.5) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives a similar interpretation amRtam ayAcitammoksham ASayati bhojayati bhkatAn iti amRtASah He Who feeds bestowsmoksham to His devotees unasked, is amRtASah. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives multiple interpretations. The first one is thatbhagavAn is called amRtASah because He consumes amRta or Immortal Bliss, whichis His Own nature sva-rUpa amRtam aSnAti iti He also refers to bhagavAn'schurning of the Milk-Ocean and consuming the amRtam from this action in additionto giving it to the deva-s. c) d) Sri Sa'nkara gives an additional interpretation using the meaning"desire or will" for the word "ASA", and gives the meaningto the nAma as "One Who has an ever-living will to give fruits" One Who has amRtA ASA amRtA avinaSvara phalatvAt ASA vA'ncA asya itiamRtASah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains this as referring to "His desiresor wishes being failure-proof amRta". e) One of SrI satya sandha yatirAja's interpretations is based on the meaning"desire or attachment" for the word "ASA", and the meaning"mukta-s" for the word "amRta-s" "One Who is verydear to the mukta-s" amRtAnAm muktAnAm ASA icchA yasmin vishaya itiamRtASah.

f) One of the interpretations given by SrI vAsishTha is that bhagavAn has thenAma indicating that He provides for the unending supply of means of survivalfor all His creation - pravAhato nitya-sthAyIdam caturvidha bheda vibhaktamyathAtadarha jIvana sAdhanAni ASayati = bhojayati iti amRtASo vishNuh. 820. amRta-vapuh a) He of a Nectar-like body. b) He Who has an immortalform. c) He Who sows and cuts the lives of this Universe continuouslyirrespective of time. Om amRta-vapushe namah. The term amRta was explained for the previous nAma. The term amRta means"undying, non-decaying". It is also used to refer to nectar, or amRtam.vapuh is derived from vap bIjasantAne chedane ca to sow, to scatter, toweave, to cut, to shave. The term vapu is used to refer to the body, appearance,etc. In their interpretation for this nAma, SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning"Nectar" for the term amRtam, and SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning"undying". a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is bhagavAn has a body that is like Nectar.His devotees meditate on His divya ma'ngala vigraham His tirumEni, and neverget satiated. BhagavAn is called ArAvamudan (of tirukkuDantai fame). nammAzhvArdedicates tiruvAimozhi pASuram 5.8.1 to 5.8.11 to sing the praise of ArAvamudan the Nectar that never gives fulfillment of satisfaction, no matter for howlong we stand in front of Him and worship Him. He again calls out to His ArAAmudam in pASuram-s in 2.5.4 (appozhudukku appozhudu en ArA amudamE), 2.5.5 (ArAamudamAi al AviyuL kalanda), 10.10.5 (enakku ArA Amudu AnAyE) , 10.10.6 (enakkuArA amudamAi), etc. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan remind us of emprumAnAr's SrI vaikunThagadyam, where he describes the experience of bhagavAn in SrI vaikunTham amRta sAgarAntarnimaghnah sarvAvayavah sukhamAsIta. b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is mRtam maraNam tad-rahitam vapuh asya itiamRta-vapuh He Who has an immortal form is amRa-vapuh. Immortal means"unconditioned by time". BhagavAn's tirumEni is not made of theperishable material that our bodies are made of, but instead, its constituent isSuddha-sattva material, that is eternal and non-decaying. SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri's anubhavam is that bhagavAn who took incarnations as rAma, kRshNa etc.,is giving His darSanam to us still in that form, even after the passage of time,with that same tirumEni (this is precisely the concept behind the arcA rUpam ofperumAL in our temples). c) One of the interpretations given by SrI satya devo vAsishTha ues themeaning "one who sows" for vapuh va bIjasantAne chedane ca to sow, to cut. His interpretation is bhagavAn pravAhanityam idam viSvam vapatisantanoti tathA sarvam antakAle cchinatti bhagavAn has this nAma signifyingthat He is the One Who sows the seed of life continuously in this Universe, andwhen the time comes, He is the One who cuts it also. He is the One Whopropagates the vistAra dharmA of propagation of each species from othermembers of the same species, with no violation of this rule anywhere. 821. sarvaj~nah: a) He Who knows all. b) He Who knows all the needs of allHis devotees. Om sarvaj~nAya namah.

This nAma occurred earlier in Slokam 48 - nAma 454. a) In Slokam 48, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn issarvaj~nah because He knows that He is the antaryAmI in everything tathAsarvAtmanA AtmAnam jAnAti iti sarva~jnah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to usbRhadAraNya Upanishad, which conveys this message: idam sarvam yad ayam AtmA (bRha.6.5.7). He knows that He is the best means and the best end (best upAyam andbest upeyam). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 4.7.7,where AzhvAr refers to emperumAn as "nirainda j~nAna mUrti" sarvaj~nan. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri has given several additional references to the Srutiwhere Supreme Brahman is referred to as sarvaj~nah: - yah sarvaj~nah sarvavit (muNDakopanishad 1.1.9); - sa sarvaj~nah sarvobhavati (praSna 4.10); - esha sarveSvara esha sarvaj~nah (mANDUkya 6); - saviSvakRt siSvavid Atmayonih j~nah kAlakAlo guNI sarvavidyah (SvetASva.2.6.2,16). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that as the Maker of everything that exists(the Creator), He knows the in and out of everything there is to know abouteverything. He gives several Sruti references, where He is referred to as"One Who knows everything": - tvam indra asi viSva-jit sarva-vit puruhUtas-tvam=indra | (atharva.17.1.111) - sa no bandhur-janitA sa vidhAtA dhAmAni veda bhuvanAni viSvA | (yajur. 32.10) - yo nah pitA janitA yo vidhAtA dhAmAni veda bhuvanAni viSva | (Rg.10.82.3) - yas-thishThati carati yaSca va'ncati yo nilAyam carati yah prata'nkam| dvau sannishadya yan-mantrayete raja tad veda varuNas-tRtIyah || (atharva.4.26.2) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj brings out the significance of the "all-knowing" aspect through the following words SrI bhagavAn hi sarvamsarvatra sarvadA sarvathA ca jAnAti He knows everything, always, everywhere,through all means. He is the Only One Who knows the past, present and the future bhUtabhavad-bhavishyAdInAm j~nAnam. He is inside everyone and everything.All the bodies and all the souls are His body, and nothing is beyond His reach.His sarva~jnatvam thus covers everything that is known, and everything there isto know. b) While SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam for the previous instance of this nAma (inSlokam 48) was that He knows that He is the antaryAmI in everything, hisvyAkyAnam for the current nAma is in terms of what is particularly beneficialfor the devotee - that He knows precisely what is useful for the devotee. HisvyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn knows what is in the power of His devotees and whatis not in their power, what they can accomplish by themselves and what theycannot accomplish by themselves teshAm Sakya aSakya sAdhya asAdhyAdikamanusandatte iti sarvaj~nah. The benefit to us from this is that He will help usachieve things that we cannot achieve by ourselves, depending on our wishes. SvIv.v. rAmAnujan reminds us of tiruma'ngai AzhvAr's pASuram of this quality ofperumAl, where AzhvAr takes issue with perumAL for not revealing Himself toAzhvAr right away, without delay, even after knowing fully well how much AzhvAris suffering from the separation from Him: nallAr aRivIr, tIyAr aRivIr; namakku iv-ulagattil ellAm aRivIr, EdE ariyIrindaLUrIrE ! (periya tirumozhi 4.9.6) "You know who Your devotees are that cannot bear separation from You,and who those people are that do not know the value of their association withYou! You know everything else in this universe too! But somehow You do not seemknow the purity and simplicity of the intense pain that I am undergoing rightnow, because You are not giving Your darSanam to me right away!"

SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam for the instance of this nAma in Slokam 48 is "sarvaScaasau j~naSca iti sarva~jnah" - He who is all and who knows all. For thecurrent instance of the nAma, his interpretation is sarvam jAnAti itisarva~jnah He Who knows all. The difference is that in the first case hetreats the nAma as sarvah + j~nah (sarvah as a noun or pronoun), and in thesecond case as sarvam + j~nah (as qualifying j~nah). c) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the interpretation as "One Who illumines all "The Illuminator of all thoughts, all intentions, motives, emotions,and all sense perceptions in an individual". 822. sarvato-mukhah a) He Who can be approached from many paths. b) HeWho has faces on all sides. Om sarvato-mukhAya namah. sarvatah means "from all sides, in every direction, everywhere".mukham means mouth, face, and in a generic sense, to an opening. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that the nAma signifies that thereare many ways of accessing and attaining Him. He has not laid down any rule thatHe can be attained only by a particular means and not by another. On the otherhand, He can be easily attained by means that are sometimes inexplicably simple yena kenApi vyAjena supraveSatvAt sarvato-mukhah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to SaraNAgati gadyam 17, where emperumAn tellsbhagavad rAmAnuja: yena kenApi prakAreNa dvaya vaktA tvam kevalam madIyayaivadayayA As long as one surrenders with the utterance of the dvaya mantra withor without sincerity, the natural Divine Grace of bhagavAn will protect thisperson. Be it with sincerity (sa-hRdaya), or with feigned sincerity (a-hRdaya),one who needs immediate help (Arta), or one who may need support sometime in thefuture (dRpta), one who is His friend or one who is His sworn enemy (such asrAvaNa), as long one approaches Him in the name of SaraNagati, it is His vow toprotect that person. During vibhIshaNa saraNAgati, Lord rAma tells sugrIva thatHe considers it the sworn duty of a dharmishTan to protect anyone who surrendersto him, even by giving up his own life if needed Arto vA yadi vA dRptahpareshAm SaraNAgatah | arih prANAn parityajya rakshitavyah kRtAtmanA || (yuddhakANDam 18.28). b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is that the name signifies that bhagavAn hasfaces on all sides sarvatah pANi-pAdam tat sarvato'kshi Siro mukham | sarvatah Srutiman lokesarvam AvRtya tishThati || (gItA 13.13) "Everywhere are Its hands and feet; Its eyes, heads and mouths areeverywhere; Its ears are on all sides; and It exists encompassing allthings". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives references to the Sruti in support: - viSvataS-cakshuruta viSvato-mukhah (tai. AraN. 10.1) pratya'ng-janAs-tishThati sarvato-mukhah (SvetASva. 2.16) pratya'ng-mukhAs-tishThati viSvato-mukhah (tait. AraN. 10.1)

SrI cinmayAnanda gives the analogy of the sun whose light shines in alldirections, or the light from a lamp that shines in all directionssimultaneously. Yet another anubhavam is given by SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj Bhakta-sare singing His praise from all sides simultaneously, and He has faces on allsides to listen to all of them simultaneously - sarvAsu diSAsu bhajamAnaihbhaktair-hi SrImad bhagavato mukham avalokyate | A similar interpretation isgiven by SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN atah sarvato-mukhahsarva-dig-deSa-vartishu bhakteshu mukham asya iti sarvato-mukhah. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 88 -

sulabhah su-vratah siddhah Satru-jit Satru-tApanah | nyag-rodhodumbaro'Svatthah cANUrAndhra-nishUdanah ||

om om om om om om om

sulabhAya namah su-vratAya namah siddhAya namah Satru-jit-Satru-tApanAya namah nyag-rodhodumbarAya namah aSvatthAya namah cANUrAndhra-nishUdanAya namah

823. su-labhah a) He Who can be easily attained. b) He Who makes it possible to attain sukham (sukham labhata). Om su-labhAya namah. su is a prefix (pratyaya) meaning sukham or saukaryam here. The root involvedin the nAma is labh prAptau to get. sukhena saukaryeNa vA labhyahsu-labhah He Who is attained easily.

In SrI viSishTAdvaita sampradAyam, His soulbhayam is one of the two mostimportant guNa-s that is enjoyed by the devotees very much (the other being HissauSIlyam). a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is anargho'pi mUlya-bhAsena svIkartum Sakyah su-labhah Even though He is priceless, He can be easily attained as iffor a small price. SrI BhaTTar gives the example of a woman of multi-defacedbody (kubjA) who offered some sandal paste to Lord kRshNa and got Him to visither house She seized govinda by the dress and said "Come to myhouse": vastre pragRhya govindam mama geham vrajeti vai (vishNu purANam5.20.11). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives instances from AzhvAr's SrI sUkti-s: - pattuDai aDiyavarkku eLiyavan (tiruvAi. 1.3.1) He is extremely easy ofaccess to those who approach Him with devotion. (After describing bhagavAn's parattvam in the first two tiruvAimozhi- s ofthe first pattu (decad), nammAzhvAr starts to describe His saulabhyam, and thisis the first pASuram of the third tiruvAimozhi, where he starts describing theincident where He just let Himself be bound to the mortar just to please yaSOdA.Tradition has it that nammAzhvAr was so moved by this soulabhyam of perumAL thatHe passed out at this simple, unassuming, virtue of emperumAn mingling with all,and was in this state of lost consciousness for six months before regainingconsciousness. That is the kind of anubhavam that the AzhvAr-s had of emperumAn.For those who have gone through ANDAL's nAcciyAr tirumozhi, to understandANDAL's outburst of emotion, it is important to understand that this is thelevel where she was in her anubhavam of perumAL). - eNNilum varum en ini vENDuvam (tiruvAi. 1.10.2) if we count numbers andutter the number 26, He thinks we are referring to Him, and uses this as anexcuse to come to us. (Among the tattva-s, the twenty-fifth is the soul (jIva), and the 26th isparamAtmA. If someone counts numerals just for counting purposes, andaccidentally utters the number 26, He is willing to assume that this person isthinking of Him as the 26th tattvam, and is willing to appear before this personto bless him. Such is His willingness to be easily accessible). - aNiyan Agum tana-TAL aDaindArgatkellAm (tiruvAi. 9.10.8) - He is very nearto those who surrender themselves to Him. SrI v. n. vedAnta deSikan comments that when sugrIva surrendered to rAma forhelp in getting his kingdom and his wife, rAma considered it His supremeresponsibility to protect sugrIva above any other responsibility of His,including protecting sItA. Such is the power of surrender to Him. Lord rAmatells sugrIva: tvayi ki'ncit samApanne kim kAryam sItayA mama | bharatena mahAbAholakshmaNena yavIyasA | Satrughnena ca Satrughna sva-SarIreNa vA punah || (yuddha.41.5) "If you meet with death (by My lack of protecting you), I do not care ifany of the others are left behind such as sItA, lakshmaNa, bharata,Satrughna, or for that matter, Myself". That is the level of His ease of accessibility through the simple act ofsurrender. SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: patra-pushpAdibhih bhakti-mAtra- samarpitaihsukhena labhyata iti su-labhah He Who is easily attainable even by the offerof leaves, flowers, fruits, etc., with full devotion. The key words are"with devotion". SrI Sa'nkara quotes from mahA-bhArata:

patreshu pushpeshu phaleshu toyeshu akrIta-labhyeshu sadiava satsu |bhaktyeka-labhye purushe purANe muktyai katham na kriyate prayatnah || "The Ancient Purusha is easily attainable by devotion alone, with theoffer of leaves, flowers, fruits, and even water, which are always attainablewithout cost. When such is the case, how is it that people do not even want totry to work towards emancipation?" SrI cinmayAnanda quotes the gItA Slokam where bhagavAn Himself declares thatHe is "sulabhah": ananya-cetAh satatam yo mAm smarati nityaSah | tasyAham su-labhah pArthanitya-yuktasya yoginah || (gItA 8.14) "I am easy of access, O arjuna, to that yogin who is ever integratedwith Me, whose mind is not in anything else but Me, and who ceaselesslyrecollects Me at all times". b) SrI satya sndha yatirAja givea a new anubhavam sukham labhata itisulabhah He Who bestows happiness is su-labhah. 824. su-vratah a) He Who has taken a good, strong vow. b) He Who accepts only the pure food that is offered with sincerity by Hisselfless devotees. c) He Who controlled what He consumed appropriately in His nara-nArAyaNaincarnation. d) He Who controls everything in this universe and keeps them in order. e) He Who observed all the vrata-s rigorously in His kRshNa incarnation, eventhough He was the Supreme Soul. Om su-vratAya namah. su is an upasarga (prefix). vrata means "promise, vow". a) SrI BhaTTar points to His su-vratam as "dRDha vratam" strongvow. "yathA katha'ncit pravishThAnAm sarvathA paripAlana dRDha vratah su-vratah He Who has taken a strong vow to protect those who come to Him through by onemeans or another, through whatever means it takes, is su-vratah. He quotes LordrAma's vratam: sakRdeva prapannAya tava asmi iti yAcate | a-bhayam sarva-bhUtebhyo dadAmyetat vratam mama || ( rAmA. yuddha. 18.33) "To him who has sought my protection only once, and begged of me saying"I am Thine", to him I give protection from all beings. This is my vow". We also have His own assurances to bhagavad rAmAnuja in SaraNAgati gadyamabout how serious He is in His vratam: -anRtam nokta pUrvam me na ca vakshye kadAcana I have never uttered a lie before, nor will my words ever be false. -

sarva-dharmAn parityajya mAm ekam SaraNam vraja | aham tvA sarva pApebhyo mokshayishyAmi mA Sucah || (gItA 18.66) "Completely relinquishing all dharma-s, seek Me alone for refuge. I will release you from all sins. Grieve not". - rAmo dvir na abhibhAshate "rAma does not do double-talking". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 9.10.5, whichreflects this su-vratam of bhagavAn: SaraNam Agum tanaTAL aDaindArgaTkellAm maraNam AnAl vaikunTham koDukkum pirAn (tiruvAi. 9.10.5) "The Lord grants SrI vaikunTham to whomsoever that has surrendered atHis feet. This He does at the time of their death". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to the following in SrI vacana bhUshaNam 381: "en Uraic connAi, en pEraic connAi, en aDiyArai nOkkinAi, avargaL viDAiyait tIrttAi, avargaLukku odu'nga nizhal koDuttAi, .. janma paramparaigaL tORum, . tAnE avaRRai onRu pattAkki naDattik koNDu pOrum"If someone says the name of a divya deSam without evening thinking about it as adivya deSam, He is willing to give credit to this person for having mentionedthe name of His divya deSam etc. And then, He keeps accumulating these overseveral of our births, and then multiplies them ten-fold, and then considersthese as our good deeds, and protects us. b) SrI Sa'nkara associates the term vratam with consumption of food. HisvyAkhyAnam is: Sobhanam vratayati bhunkte. Different translators give different meanings for this. SrI ananta kRshNa SAstrygives the interpretation that the nAma signifies that He accepts only the purefood that is offered with sincerity by His selfless devotees such as Kucela. c) The alternate interpretation by SrI Sa'nkara is that He controlled what Heconsumed appropriately bhojanAt nivartayati iti su-vratah such as in His nara-nArAyaNa incarnation,and this is symbolized by this nAma. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha views the term vratam as signifying control orrestraint niyamanam, and gives the interpretation that the nAma signifies that He controls the worldvery effectively suvratati niyamayati iti su-vratah. This is also ascribed to fear of Him even by the likes of vAyu, agni., etc., on the consequences of transgressing His orders bhIshAsmAd-vAtah pavate etc. He gives the following references to the instance of His function of vrata orniyamanam from the Sruti: yasya vrate prithivI nannamIti yasya vrate Saphavaj- jarbhurIti | yasya vrate oshadhIr-viSva rUpAh sa nah parjanya mahi Sarma yaccha || (Rg.5.83.5) e) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the explanation that bhagavAn, in HiskRshNa incarnation, was observing all the vrata-s rituals etc.,meticulously, and this is what is conveyed by this nAma SobhanAni paramotsava rUpANi janmAshTamI-kArtika-niyamAdIni vratAni yasya sasu-vratah.

825. siddhah a) He Whose protection is ever available without any special effort on thepart of His devotees. b) He Who is the siddhopAya the already existing means - for attainingmoksham. c) He Who is fully accomplished, without dependence on anyone or anything else. d) He Who makes His devotees accomplished in their tapas and other effortsto attain Him. e) He Who gave us the SAstra-s, or He Who bestows auspiciousness on us f) The final conclusion the Ultimate Truth through all means of proofavailable to us. g) He Who accomplishes all His undertakings flawlessly to completion andperfection. om siddhAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is sidh samrAddhau to reach,to attain one's end, to succeed, to accomplish. We came across a series of nAma-sbased on this root in Slokam 27 nAma-s 253 to 256 siddhArthah,siddha-samkalpah, siddhi-dah, siddhi- sAdanah. In the current context, the nAmais interpreted as "One Who is already materialized as a Protector of us,One Who helps us materialize our objectives, One Who is perfect, One Who makesus perfect", etc. a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that His protection is available to Hisdevotees without any special effort on their part. The act of protecting Hisdevotees in natural to Him, is ever existent in Him, and is not conditioned byanything asya goptRtvam aupAdhikam, sadA svata eva sarva-goptRtvAt , a-yatna sAdhyahsiddhah. SrI v.v.v rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 5.7.10 in support: ARu enakku nin pAdamE SaraN enRu ozhindAi "My goal is Your Feet. The means, or upAya, is also to cling to YourFeet". These Feet of emperumAn already exist for our clinging without any effort on ourpart, and so He is siddhah. nammAzhvAr describes that bhagavAn is already materialized for our protection(siddhah) since He rushes to us to give us vaikunTham just for our chanting Hismany nAma-s: naNNinam nAraAyaNanai nAma'ngaL pala Solli maN ulagil vaLam mikka vATTARRAn vandu ninRu viN ulagam taruvAnAi viraiginRAn vidi vagaiyE eNNinavARAgA ik-karuma'ngaL en ne'njE! (tiruvAi. 10.6.3) "We approached nArAyaNa by reciting His names which are expressions ofHis qualities. The Lord comes and hastens to hand over SrI vaikunTha lokamitself to us, to enjoy at our will, whenever we wish it. He has come the wholeway through, taken residence near us in TiruvaTTARu, and waits, even though Heis in a great hurry to take me. O my mind! You were very co-operative;otherwise, this could not have happened". b) SvAmi deSikan explains that among the upAya-s or means for attaining Him,He is Himself the already existing siddha upAyam siddhopAyastu muktauniravadhika dayah SrI-sakhah sarva-Saktih SrIman nArAyaNa, with infinitemercy and infinite Sakti, is the siddha upAyam in the matter of bestowingmoksham (nyAsa vimSati 17) the means that already exists without requiringany special effort on our part to create this upAya or means; all we need to isfollow one of the sAdhya upAya-s - either the bhakti or the prapatti mArgam, andHe is the pre-existing means (siddha upAya) that will grant the moksham.

c) SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that the nAma signifies that He isperfect fully accomplished, without dependence on anyone else ananyAdhIna siddhitvAt siddhah. d) SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry gives the interpretation that the nAma can alsomean that He is One who makes others perfect through their devotion to Him The good ones attain perfection or full fruition in tapas, salvation, etc., byserving Him. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri also gives a similar dual interpretation He issiddhah because He gives siddhi to the practitioners of the vrata- s etc., andHe is siddha because He has attained siddhi in all respects. He gives supportfrom nRsimhottara tApanI 9.9 - sadevapurastAt siddham hi brahma. e) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives a new interpretation sidham ma'ngalam SAstram vA dhatta iti sid-dhah - He Who gave us the SAstra-s, or He Who bestows auspiciousness on us. He uses the root shidhU SAstre mA'ngalye ca "to ordain, command, instruct, to turn out well or auspiciously", and the root dhA dhAraNa poshNayoh dAne ca "to put, to grant, to produce, to bear" in this interpretation. f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the explanation that the nAma means thatbhagavAn is the Ultimate End or the Final conclusion of all enquiries siddhyati sma siddhah bhagavAn hi sakalaih pramANaih siddhah; tatrapratyaksham pramANam bhaktAnAm, anumAnam pramANam tArkikANAm, Sabda pramANam caSruti-SAstrANAm, evam pramANa- tryamapi Sri bhagavantam sAdhayati For thedevotees, He is the prayaksha pramANam, for the analysts He is the final resultof the analysis, and He is the Sabda pramANam as declared loudly in the Sruti-sand SAstra-s. So He is the end result of all means of establishing the UltimateTruth. g) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's anubhavam is that the nAma refers to "OneWho accomplishes everything there is to accomplish, with no effort" Srama klamtandrAbhih varjito yatnApekshAsiddhiSca siddhah. Or, "He whoaccomplishes everything to completion and perfection always" is siddhah sarvato bhAvinI SAsvatI siddhih asya iti siddhah. He refers to bhagavAn'screation of the universe and its functioning flawlessly, with the right mix ofair, heat, water, different species, etc., as He decides. SrI BhaTTar has interpreted the nAma-s in terms of bhagavAn's directincarnations. The interpretation of the next few nAma-s will be in terms of Hisindirect incarnations that is, those in which He enters into others andacts. 826. Satru-jit-Satru-tApanahHe Who occupies the bodies of Satru- jits to torment His devotees' enemies. Om Satru-jit-Satru-tApanAya namah. All interpreters other than SrI BhaTTar and those who follow him, treat thisas two nAma-s: Satru-jit and Satru-tApanah. The essential meaning of the twointerpretations is same BhagavAn ensures that the enemies of the gods arepunished and conquered; either He Himself does this (SrI Sa'nkara'sinterpretation), as rAma, kRshNa, etc. in the case of rAvaNa, kamsa, etc., or Hedoes it by entering into someone else with His Sakti (sva-tejasA ApyAyitaih),and then accomplishes the destruction of the enemies of the gods (SrI BhaTTar'sinterpretation).

Thus, SrI BhaTTar treats the nAma as Satru-jit-Satru-tApanah, and gives theexplanation that (in addition to using His powers directly in destroying theenemies of His devotees), He also uses His powers by entering into others withHis tejas, and then defeats the enemies of His devotees as well. Thus, hisinterpretation for this nAma is that He is Satru-tApanah (Torturer of Hisdevotees' enemies) by using Satru-jits (those who conquer their enemies) as Hisvehicle. SrI BhaTTar gives examples for this interpretation from SrI vishNupurANam: "para'njayo hi nAma SaSAdasya ca rAjarshes-tanayah kshatriya- varyah | tac-charIre aham amSena svayameva avatIrya tAn aSeshAn asurAn nihanishyAmi"(V.P. 4.2.8); "kakutsthah bhagavatah carAcaraguroh acyutasya tejasA ApyAyito devAsura sa'ngrAme samastAneva asurAn nijaghAna (V.P. 4.2.11). "With a part of Me, I will descend into the body of para'njaya andannihilate the asura-s Myself". "Then, kakutstha (para'njaya), infused with the power of the Eternal Rulerof all movable and immovable things, destroyed in the battle all the enemies ofthe gods ". ". Atha bhagavAn Adi-purushah purushottamo yauvanASvasya mAndhAtuhpurukutsa nAmA putrastam aham anupraviSya etAn aSesha dushTa gandharvAn upaSamam nayishyAmi (V.P.4.3.7)"; "rasatala gataSca asau bhagavat tejasA ApyAyita Atma-vIryah sakalagandharvAn jaghAna (V.P. 4.3.9)". "The Adi-purusha and purushottama replied: I will enter into the personof purukutsa, the son of mAndhAtri and yuvanASva, and in him I will quiet theseiniquitous gandharva-s.".; "Reaching the regions below the earth, andbeing filled with the might of the Supreme Deity, he (purutkutsa) destroyed thegandharva-s". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also gives this as his interpretation, the idea ofHis indirect incarnations, for the nAma satru-tApanah sarva-suhRdah sAdhUndvishanti ta eva Satrvah, tAnSca yah sva- paradatta-Saktibhih mahA-purushaihtApayati iti Satru-tApanah He gives His Sakti to the mahA-purushas, who inturn go after those who harm His devotees, and punish them. He gives the following support from atharva veda, where this guNa ofscorching the enemies is referred to: dvishas-tApayan hradah SatrUNAm tApayan manah | dur-hrAdah sarvAs-tvam darbha dharma ivAbhIntsam tApayan || (atharva. 19.28.2) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj treats the nAma as "Satru-jit-Satru- tApanah", but gives the interpretation in terms of the two parts: "He Who is Satru-jit and also Satru-tApanah" "Satayanti utpIDayanti dhArmikAn iti Satravah; tAn jayati iti Satru-jit;SatrUn tApayati iti Satru-tApanah; Satru-jit ca asau Satru-tApanan iti Satru-jit- Satru-tApanah". The interpretation for Satru-jit and Satru-tApanah as separate nAma-s by SrISa'nkara and his followers is given below: Satru-jit: a) He Who conquers His enemies. b) He Who helps us defeat our worst enemy the identity of the body with thesoul. c) He Who gives His creation the means to defend themselves against theirenemies.

a) Satrum jayati iti Satru-jit He Who conquers the enemy is Satru- jit.SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is: suraSatrava eva asya Satravah, tAn jayati itiSatru-jit The enemies of the gods are His enemies, and He is the Conquerorof those, and so He is Satru-jit. b) SrI cinmayAnanda sees in this nAma the message that bhagavAn is the Onewho can drive away the worst of all the enemies, that in our mind: "In thebosom of man, his enemies are none other than consciousness of his body and theconsequent passions of the flesh both objective and subjective. The seekerfeels that these urges in him constitute a very powerful team of belligerentforces, and against their concerted onslaught he feels helpless". But whenan alert seeker turns to nArAyaNa who is in his own heart, all obstacles whitheraway, and thus He is the "Supreme Conqueror of all enemies". In otherwords, it is the identification of the body with the soul that is the worst ofour enemies. Meditation on Him is the only means to conquer this enemy, and soHe is called Satru-jit. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that bhagavAn displays His guNa ofconquering the enemy, by giving His creation different means to defendthemselves, such as the horns for the horned species, the nails for the lionetc., and other means for the other species to defend themselves. Satru-tApanah: a) The Torturer of the foes of His devotees. b) He Who destroys the negative tendencies in the devotee's heart. a) SrI Sa'nkara gives the explanation sura-SatrUNAm tApanAt Satru-tApanah The Tormentor of the foes of the gods. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that this act of tormenting the Satru-sis to punish the evil-doers even when they are alive, by meting out severe andunbearable punishments to them. b) SrI cinmayAnanda continues along the lines of his interpretation for theprevious nAma, and comments that bhagavAn's nAma "Satru- tApana"indicates that "When the devotee offers himself at the altar of His Feet,He (bhagavAn) burns down all the negative tendencies polluting this devotee'sheart. 827. nyag-rodhodumbarah He Who has the Supreme Abode with Lakshmi and everything that is magnificent,but Who is at the command of the devotees who approach Him with folded hands. om nyagrodhodumbarAya namah. This is another nAma which is treated as two separate nAma-s by mostvyAkhyAna-kartA-s except SrI BhaTTar and his followers. This nAma is anoutstanding example that illustrates the uniqueness of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam.But first, let us look at the individual meanings of the two parts: nyagrodhah a) He Who is controlled by those who stand below, bowing to Him with foldedhands. b) He who controls those below Him. c) He Who is Primordial, and is above all. d) He Who is firmly rooted, and extends in all directions in the form of theuniverse. e) He to Whom those below make a plea for benefits that they desire.

f) He Who subjugates the enemies of His devotees, and punishes them g) He Who is desired in their hearts by those who worship Him (rudh kAme to desire). SrI vAsishTha indicates the derivation of the word nyak from the root a'nc gatipUjanayoh to go, to worship. ni is an upasarga or prefix. nIcaiha'ncati iti nyak One who bows low; The word rodhah is derived from the rootrudh, which has a couple of different meanings rudh kAme to obey;rudh AvaraNe to oppose. The term nyag-rodah is also used to denote thevaTa vRksham the banyan tree. Some vyAkhyAnakartA-s look at the nAma asnyag-rohah, using a grammar rule that says that the `ha' can be replaced by `gha'.The different interpretations are the results of the above variations. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is: nyag-bhUtaih adhah- kRtA'njalibhih, rudhyate svaprasAdaunmukhyena vyasthApyate iti nyag- rodhah He Who is controlled by those who stand below, bowing to Him with folded hands.SrI BhaTTar stresses the influence of a'njali on bhagavAn a'njalih paramAmudrA kshipram deva-prasAdinI (vishNu dharmottara 33.105) - The sight of thea'njali (the act of joining hands in supplication), immediately pleases the Lordat once without delay. ALavandAr points to this in stotra ratnam 28 (SrI v.v.rAmAnujan): tvad-anghrim uddiSya kadA'pi kenacit yathA tathA vA'pi sakRt kRto'njalih | tadaiva mushNAtyaSubhAnyaSeshatah SubhAni pushNAti na jAtu hIyate || (stotra.ratna 28) "If anyone worships Your Feet with folded hands even once at any timeunder any pretence, at that very moment all the sins of this person are driven away, and infiniteauspices accumulate for this person". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers to the instance of His being tied to the mortar byyaSodA "kaTTuNNap paNNiaya peru mAyan", as an example of thisSupreme ParamAtman being subservient to yaSodA's affection. b) In one if his interpretations, SrI vAsishTha uses the same roots, and comes up with the interpretation that "He is One who controls thosebelow" nyag ruNaddhi iti nyagrodhah. c) SrI Sa'nkara looks at the nAma as nyag-rohah for the purposes ofinterpretation, and then invokes the grammatical rule "pRshodarAditvAt hakArasya dhakArAdeSah" which allows for thereplacement of ha with gha in the above, resulting in nyag-rodhah. HisvyAkhyAnam is: nyak arvAk rohati sarveshAm upari vartata iti nyagrodhah which is generally translated as "One Who is Primordial, and is aboveall". This meaning can be derived by using the root ruh bIja janmani prAdurbhAveca to grow, to increase, to rise, to reach. SrI satya sandha yatirAja also looks at the nAma as nyag-rohah (similar toSrI Sa'nkara above), but comes with a different interpretation. He uses themeaning ruh to grow, and gives the explanation that the nAma signifies that"He makes all beings obey Him, and grows or develops all the beings" sarvANi bhUtAni nyakRtya rohati vardhata iti. In the tamizh translation for SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam by SrI kAmakoTi kOSasthAnam in 1948, one of the meanings given for the nAma is: "ellAuyirgaLaiyum kIzhp paDuttit tan mAyaiyAl mUDik kaTTup paDuttukiRAn" ThenAma signifies that He controls all beings that are below Him, and envelops themwith

His mAyA. This interpretation can be derived by using the meaning"below" for "nyak", and the meaning "obey" for theword rodhah (rudh kAme to obey). d) The term nyagrodhah also refers to the banyan tree, since this tree growsin the downward direction as much as it grows in the upward direction. (ruh to grow) nIcair-gatau parohair-vardhate; nyag rohati grows downwards.Because of this, this tree is very strongly rooted, and is extremely stable. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri interprets the nAma as referring to this attribute ofbhagavAn, namely, that He is firmly rooted, and extends in all directions in theform of the universe. e) Another interpretation of SrI vAsishTha is nyagbhih anurudhyate = prArthyate IpsitAptaya iti nyag-rodhah "He to Whom those below make a plea for benefits that they desire". f) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation that "He is One who subjugates the enemies of His devotees, and oppresses orpunishes them" nyak-kRtya ruNaddhi niraye nikshipati sva-bhakta- drohiNa iti nyag-rodhah. (The root used is rudh AvaraNe to oppose, to oppress; nyak-kRtyua -subjugating). g) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation: nyagbhih praNataihrudhyate hRdaya-pradeSe iti nyag-rodhah He Who is desired in their hearts bythose who worship Him (rudh kAme to desire). udumbarah: a) He Who has the most auspicious SrI vaikuNTham as His own. b) He Who is `above the sky', i.e., superior to all. c) He Who nourishes the world in the form of food etc. d) One Who has the best of sounds the veda-s, as His form. e) He Who is praised by the highest and best of sounds - bhajans,nAma-sa'nkIrtana-s etc. f) He Who has the superior pItAmbaram as His garment (ud- ambarah). ut is an upasarga (prefix). ambaram refers to the sky (derived from am gati Sabda sambhaktishu to go, to eat, to sound). ut + ambara = ud-ambara,which becomes ud-umbara because of a grammatical rule pRshodarAdi lakshaNam. a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is: sarva-guNaih udgatam ambaram param dhAmaasya iti ud-umbarah He Who has as the Supreme Abode, SrI vaikuNTham, isudumbarah. This abode is Supreme because it has Lakshmi, and it rises above allother things by its magnificent qualities (ut). b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is that "He is `above the sky' i..e., He issuperior to all amabarAt udgatah ud-ambarah. SrI cinmayAnanda adds that the cause is subtler than the effect, and thus,the essential principle, nArAyaNa, transcends even the concept of space. c) SrI Sa'nkara gives an alternate interpretation using the meaning"food" for the word "Urk", and gives the explanation for thenAma as "Urk annam, tad-AtmanA viSvam poshayan udambarah He Whonourishes the world in the form of food etc. He gives the support from Sruti UrgvA annAd yad udumbaram (tait. brAh. 1.2.7, 1.3.8).

d) SrI vAsishTha uses the root am Sabde to sound, and interprets thenAma ud-umbarah as "One Who has the best of sounds the veda-s, as Hisform" uccaih sarvata uttamo veda-rUpah Sabdo yasya sa udumbarahsarveSvaro vishNuh. e) Based on the same root, SrI vAsishTha gives another explanation He Whois praised by the highest and best of sounds: bhajans, nAma- sa'nkIrtana-s etc., ut sarvata utkRshTatvena ambyate = Sabdyate = sa'nkIrtyata iti ud-umbarah. f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation: ut utkRshTam ambarampItAmbaram yasya sah udumbarah - He Who has the superior pItAmbaram as Hisgarment is ud-ambarah. Here, he uses the word ambaram with the meaning"garment". nyag-rodha-udumbarah: Now that we have seen the separate meanings of the two nAma-s nyag- rodah andudumbarah, let us revisit the interpretation of SrI BhaTTar for this as one nAma.We note that SrI BhaTTar's explanation for the part nyag-rodah was that "bhagavAnis One who is subservient to the devotees who stand in front of Him with theirfolded hands", and for "udumbarah", the interpretation was that"He is One Who has the Supreme Abode as His, with Lakshmi and with all thatis magnificent". The reasons for combining the two into one nAma now standsout at us: "Even though bhagavAn is One Who is endowed with everything thatis Supreme, He is just at the command of His devotees when they stand in frontof Him with folded hands". SrI BhaTTar's words are: atyucchrita-sevyo'piatyanta-nIcAnAmapi anuvartana- sAdhyah Though He is worshipped by thehighest of the gods, He is within easy reach of the lowliest of persons (becauseit is possible to please Him easily). No language or words can capture thissaulabhyaam of emperumAn. This nAma in SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is perhaps oneof the best examples of the uniqueness of his contribution through hisvyAkhyAnam, appropriately titled as "bhagavad guNa darpaNam", where herepeatedly brings out the two supreme qualities of bhagavAn His saulabhyamand His sauSeelyam. 828. aSvattah a) He Who has established the impermanent gods for performing variousfunctions. b) He Who is described as the root of an eternal aSvattha tree of samsAra etc. c) He Who eternally rules over the universe that is never the same, and keepsconstantly changing. d) He Who pervades the entire universe in the form of the five great elements. om aSvattAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is based on looking at the nAma as a + Sva +stha (SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya). Svas means "tomorrow" (Apte's dictionary).a-Svah then means `not tomorrow', namely `that which is impermanent'. SrIBhaTTar interprets this as a reference to the impermanent positions of brahmA,indra etc. The part sthah refers to His being the niyAmaka or Controller of theworlds through these gods whose position is transitory na Svah anityam, indrAdityAdi padam yeshAm, teshu niyAmakatayA tishThati itia-Svat-sthah or aSvatthah using the pRshodarAdi rule, whereby s is replaced by t or stha by ttha. SrI BhaTTar gives support from SrI vishNu purANam: mUrtim rajo-mayIm brAhmIm ASritya sRjati prajAh | ASritya paurushIm mUrtim sAttvikIm yah sa pAlayan | kAlAkhyAm tAmasIm mUrtim ASritya grasate jagat || (V.P.

"Residing within the body of brahmA, composed of rajo guNa, bhagavAncreates the world. He takes the body of vishNu composed of sattva, and protectsthe world. Assuming the body of kAla (Siva) composed of tamo-guNa, He swallowsthe Universe". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi, where AzhvArdescribes this aspect of bhagavAn: iRukkum iRai iRuttu uNNa ev-vulagukkum tan mUrti niRuttinAn deiva'ngaLAga ad-deiva-nAyagan tAnE . (tiruvAi. 5.2.8) "The lower deities, whom you are wont to worship for many differentworldly benefits, are like tax-collectors. They have all been established intheir positions by my Lord who is daiva-nAyaka, the Chief of all gods". In one of his interpretations, SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the concept oftime (Svas = tomorrow), and gives the interpretation: Svah = kAle, tishThati itiSvatthah, na Svatthah a_Svatthah, kAla bahir bhUto bhagavAn vishNuh He Whois not constrained by time. This is why He is called sanAtana Eternal,Permanent. He refers to the kaThopanishad passage "Urdhva mUlo'vAk Sakha esho'Svatthah sanAtanah | tadeva Sukram tad-brahma tadevAmRtam ucyate | (kaTho. 2.3.1) "This eternal pipal tree has its root above and branches downward. That is effulgent. That is Brahman. That alone is said to be immortal". b) One of SrI Sa'nkara's interpretations is based on the reference to theaSvatta tree aSvattha iva tishThati iti aSvatthah - that has roots hanging from the treedownwards, as well as roots like traditional trees. Because of this, it isdescribed in the gItA and in the Upanishads as a tree that has its roots fromabove, and branches below. Urdhva-mUlam adhah SAkham aSvattham prAhur-avyayam | chandAmsi yasya parNAni yas-tam veda sa veda-vit || (gItA 15.1) "They speak of an immutable aSvattha tree with its roots above and itsbranches below. Its leaves are the veda-s. He who knows it knows the veda-s". The reference to the eternal aSvattha tree here is a reference to permanentcycle of samsAra, which is rooted in Brahman, and which grows in a continuousflow into the different life forms which themselves perish after some time, butthe flow continues on. It propagates through the knowledge in the forms of itsleaves. This knowledge (veda) consists of both the kAmya karma-s in the form ofreligious rites and sacrifices that promote the tree of samsAra, as well as theknowledge that is needed to fell this tree that grows by desire etc. The Sruti also gives the description of samsAra in terms of the aSvatthatree: - Urdhva-mUlo'vAk Sakha esho'Svatthah sanAtanah | (kaTho. 2.3.1) referenced earlier - Urdhva-mUlmavAk Sakham vRksham yo veda samprati (AraNya.1.11.5) c) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN uses the meaning "prapa'ncam" or"the universe" for the word aSvattha, based on the niruktam SvastAd- rUpeNa na sthAteti aSvatthah prapa'ncah;

sa asya asti nityam niyamyata iti arthah He Who eternally rules over the universe that is never the same, and keepsconstantly changing. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives a different anubhavam. He derives themeaning starting from the root aS vyAptau sa'nghAte ca to pervade, toaccumulate. His interpretation is: aSnuvate vyApnuvanti viSvam iti aSvAni pa'nca mahA bhUtAni, teshu vyApakatvena sthitah aSvatthah He Whopervades the entire universe in the form of the five great elements. 829. cANurAndhra-nishUdanah a) He Who slew the wrestler by name cANura. b) He Who causes utmost misery to those who cause hardship to the good people ofsAttvik disposition. c) He Who slew cANura, duryodhana and the like. Om cANurAndhara-nishUdanAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that this nAma refers to bhagavAn'sslaying of an asura wrestler by name cANUra, belonging to the andhra race, orone who is from a low-caste, and who was the enemy of indra and other gods tad-virodhinam cANUra-nAmAnam asurAndhra mallam nishUditavAn iticANUrAndhranishUdanah. SrI v. n. vedAnta deSikan comments that this cANura isdifferent from the one that kamsa had deputed for killing kRshNa (it so happensthat this later was also a wrestler). The term andhra in this nAma is translated differently by the differenttranslated either that it refers to a race called andhra, or a locationcalled andhra, or a low-caste called andhra. Some interpreters of SrI Sa'nkaravyAkhyAnam indicate that the cANura that was sent by kamsa was from the kingdomof andhra. b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives his interpretation starting from the basicroots for the component parts of the nAma. - caN dAne gatau ca to give. caNanti = dadati dAna-SilAsAttvika-vRttayah cANUrAh Those who are sAttvik by nature and who performacts of giving to others are called cANUra-s. Or, cAi pUjA niSAmanayoh to worship, to observe. cAyyante = pUjyante iti cANUrAh, praSasta-hRdayAhsAdhavah Those noble people who are worthy of worship because of their noble hearts arecalled cANUra- s. Thus, the term cANUra in SrI vAsishTha's interpretation refersto good people. - andhra derived from andha dRshTyupaghAtedRshyupasamhAre to be blind, to close their eyes. andhayati iti andhrah Those who cheat or deceive are andhra-s. So cANUrAndhra-s are those who cheat ordeceive the good people. nishUdana is derived from the root sUd ksharaNe to destroy. nishUdana means "One who gives or causes extreme painthrough multiple ways" sarva-prakAreNa nitarAm bhAdate.. Thus, SrI vAsishTha's interpretation for the nAma cANUrAndhra- nishUdanah is: "One Who causes extreme pain and misery to those who trouble the good andsAttvik minded people". c) SrI satya sandha yatirAja uses the pATham cANuRAndha nishUdanah, andinterprets the term andha to refer to duryodhana and his associates (andha meansblind; the reference to duryodhana and his associates as andhAh could be becausethey were blind to truth and dharma; it could also be because duryodhana and hisbrothers were sons of dhRtarAshTra). So his interpretation is that the nAmameans "He Who destroyed cANura, and duryodhana and his brothers" cANUraSca andhASca duryodhanAdayah, tAn nishUdayati iti.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 89 -

sahasrArcih sapta-jihvah saptaidhAh sapta-vAhanah |a-mUrtir_anagho'cintyo bhaya-kRt bhaya-nASanah ||

om sahasrArcishe namahom sapta-jihvAya namahom saptaidhase namahom sapta-vAhanAya namahom amUrtaye namahom an-aghAya namahom acintyAya namahom bhaya-kRte namahom bhaya-nASanAya namah 830. sahasrArcih a) The Thousand-rayed, Who illumines everything in this Universe. b) He Whose tirumEni radiates with kAnti that resembles infinite number or raysemanating from Him. Om sahasrArcishe namah. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that He has countless rays emanating fromHim, in the form of the sun, the moon, etc. It is because He has endowed the sunwith countless rays that the sun is able to perform the four functions of pAcana(cooking and ripening), SoshaNa (drying), pratApana (giving heat), and prakASana(illuminating). SrI BhaTTar quotes from the paushkara samhitA and the gItA insupport: agnIshomAtma sam~jnasya devasya paramAtmanah |sUryA-candramasau viddhi sa AkArau locaneSvarau || (SrI paushkara) "Know that the sun and the moon are the two eye-gods in an embodied form of the Supreme Deity ParamAtmA whose name is agnIshomAtman". yad Aditya-gatam tejo jagat bhAsayate'khilam |yac-candramasi yac-cAganau tad-tejo viddhi mAmakam || (gItA 15.12) "That light which is in the sun and illuminates the entire universe, that in the moon and that in the fire understand all that light is only Mine".

SrI cinmayAnanda notes that it is not only the sun and the moon that gettheir light from Him, but He is the One who illumines all experiences. b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: sahsrANi anantAni arcIshi yasya sahsahasrArcih He who radiates innumerable rays is sahasrArcih. He quotessa'njaya's words in the gItA in support: divi sUrya sahasrasya bhaved yugapad-utthitA |yadi bhAh sadRSI sA syAd bhAsas-tasya mahAtmanah || (gItA 11.12) "If a thousand suns were to rise at once in the sky, the resulting splendor may be like the splendor of that mighty One". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi, where AzhvArrefers to emperumAn as "oLi maNi vaNNan" The One with the dazzlingradiance of a gem sahasrArcih: "oLi maNi vaNNanaiyE." (tiruvAi.3.4.7). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation as "shasrANi arcIshi SrI vigrahodgata kAnti-kiraNA yasya iti sahasrArcih He Whose divine tirumEni shines with countless rays of radiance". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes the similar nAma-s dIpta-mUrtih (Slokam 77, nAma724 ), and sahsrAmSuh (Slokam 51, nAma 484). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that the significance of the nAma lies inpointing to the immeasurable glory of bhagavAn it is like counting thenumber of grains of sand in a seashore. Just as the number of rays of lightemanating from the sun cannot be quantified, so also bhagavAn's glory cannot bequantified. The only thing we can do is to remember that the jyoti of the sun isbut a tiny fraction of His jyoti. SrI vAsishTha has given innumerable referencesfrom the Sruti to the description of bhagavAn's guNa-s as "sahasra" beyond quantification: sahasra yAjasah, sahasra parNah, sahasra pAt, sahasra SIrshA, sahasrAkshah,sahasra posham, sahasra poshiNam, sahasra bAhvah, sahasra mRshTih, sahasrabharah, sahasra yAmA, sahasra vIram, sahasra SR'ngah, sahasra sthUNam, sahasraketum, sahasra cakshasam, etc. 831. sapta-jihvah The seven-tongued. Om sapta-jihvAya namah. sapta refers to the number seven. jihvA means tongue in general, also to the"tongue of fire". It is in this late sense that the interpreters haveexplained the nAma in general. agni or fire is considered to have seven tongues,and bhagavAn in the form of the sacrificial fire accepts the sacrificialofferings and takes it to the different gods. SrI BhaTTar quotes the paushkara samhitA in support: tad-vaktra-devatAnAm ca huta-bhuk parameSvarah |mantra-pUtam yad-AdAya hutam Ajya puras-saram | brahmANDa bhuvanam sarvam santarpayati sarvadA ||

"The Supreme Lord in the form of huta-bhuk (fire) carries to the gods the offerings that are sanctified by the mantra-s and made in a sacrifice along with clarified butter, and thereby always pleases the entire Universes". a) SrI BhaTTar notes that fire is considered to have seven tongues named kAli,karAli, manojavA, sulohitA, sudhUmravarNA, sphuli'ngini, and viSvaruci, and theyhave been allotted the duties of nourishing the gods, receiving the oblations,and carrying them to the respective gods. SrI Sa'nkara gives the muNDakopanishad passage in support: kAlee karAleeca manojavA ca sulohitA yA ca sudhUmravarNA |sphuli'nginee viSva-rucee ca devI lelAyamAnA iti sapta-jihvAh || (muNDa. 1.2.4) "kAli, karAli, manojavA, sulohitA, sudhUmravarNA, sphuli'ngini, and the brilliant viSva-ruci are the seven flaming tongues". One translator translates this as: "The seven quivering tongues of fire are: The black one, the terrific one, swift as the mind, the very red one, of purple color, emitting sparks, and all-shaped goddess". Other references to the seven tongues of agni found in the Sruti are: - divas-cd-agne mahinA pRthivyA vacyantAm te vahanayah sapta-jihvAh | (Rg. 3.6.2)- sapta te agne saamidhah sapta-jihvAh | (tait. sam. 1.5.3) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that the tongues of fire that accept theofferings are known differently depending on whether the karma is a sAttvic,rAjasic, or tAmasic: The seven flames are known as hiraNyA, kanaka, raktA,kRshNA, suprabhA, atirkatA, and bahu-rUpA in a sAttvic karma, padma-rAgA,suvarNA, bhadra-lohitA, SvetA, dhUminI, and kAlikA in a rAjasic karma, and kali,karali, etc., in a tAmasic karma. He also notes that the devatA-s associatedwith the seven tongues are the deva-s, pitR-s, gandharva-s, yakshas, nAga-s,piSAca-s, and rAkshasa-s. b) In addition to the interpretation in terms of the seven tongues of agni,SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate interpretation, in which he takes the referenceto "seven" as a reference to "many" sapta iti anekaupalakshaNam aneka-prakAra jihvam vidhatta iti. In this interpretation, hisanubhavam is that just as He has several tongues, He has also equipped Hiscreation with several types of tongues for the different species. He observesthat as the offerings in the homa feed the agni with its seven tongues, the foodconsumed by the different species through the tongue, along with the prANa vAyu,is transmitted to feed the jATharAgni; thus, what the veda talks of (feeding thefire through the different tongues), is nothing different from what happens inreal life, and so veda is not talking anything but real life happenings bhavati lokena samo vedo vedena ca samo lokah. SrI cinmayAnanda suggests that the "seven tongues of flame" conveysthe idea that the Light of Consciousness in us beams out through seven points inthe face two eyes, two ears, two nostrils, and the mouth. As intelligentbeings, powers of perception, metaphorically, flame out through each one ofthem, illumining the world for us. The one in our heart, SrI nArAyaNa, Whototally manifests as the seven distinct tongues-of-flame is classified here inthe language of lyrics as sapta-jihvah. 832. saptaidhAh One Who is kindled in the form of fire by the seven kinds of offerings.

Om saptaidhase namah. The previous nAma, sapta-jihvah, was interpreted in terms of the differenttypes of flames, with their individual traits such as differing colors and otherattributes, and also the different devatA- s to whom they carried the offerings.The current nAma refers to the different types of fuels that are used to raisethese fires, both in the form of the fuels themselves and in the form of thedifferent types of yAj~na-s. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the root for the current nAma as edh vRddhau to grow, to prosper. The term edhas is used to referto fuel that kindles the fire. The nirukti author gives the description sapta edhAh yasya santi sah saptaidAh. Apte's dictionary gives the meaning"fuel" to the word edhas (he gives a reference from the gItA insupport yathaidhAmsi samiddhognir- bhasmasAt kurute'rjuna Bg. 4.37).edhA also means `prosperity, happiness'. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation uses the meaning "fuel" (based onthe translation of SrI A. Srinivsa Raghavan) for the word edhas, and hisvyAkhyAnam is "One Who shines like fire through the seven kinds offuels". SrI BhaTTar proceeds to describe the kinds of `fuels' that kindlethis `Fire' it is the offerings of different kinds in the form ofpAka-yaj~na, havir-yaj~na, soma-samstha, etc., each of which is of seven kinds.SrI Srinivasa Raghavan describes these further: - pAka-yaj~na (based on cooked food): aupAsana, vaiSva-deva, sthAlI-pAka, ashTakA SrAddha, monthly ceremonies, ISAna bali, and sarpa bali. - havir-yaj~na (oblations in fire): agni-hotra, darSa-pUrNa-mAsa, piNDa-pitR-yaj~na, paSu-bandha, AgrAyaNa, cAtur-mAsya, and sautrA-maNi. - soma-samstha (yAga-s): agni-shToma, atyagni-shToma, uktya, shodaSa, vAjapeya, atirAtra, and aptoryAma. - The sticks of seven forest trees that bear fruit apparently without any blossoms and that are used in sacrifices are: the palASa tree, the banyan tree, the fig tree, the jack tree, the SamI, aSani-hata, and pushkara-parNa. Thus, in SrI BhaTTar's interpretation, the nAma refers to "One Who iskindled in the form of fire by the seven kinds of offerings". SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is "sapta edhAmsi dIptayo'sya iti saptaidhAh agnih" - He that has seven flames. He gives the support from the Sruti `sapta te agne samidhah, sapta jivhAh' (tait. sam. 1.5.3) "O Fire,you have seven flames, seven tongues". SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation in terms of thesapta-Rshi-s the seven stars of the Ursa Major constellation (marIci, atri,a'ngiras, pulastya, pulaha, kratu, and vasishTha). His interpretation is thatthe nAma signifies that bhagavAn is the Supporter of the seven Rshi-s in theform of the stars saptaRshIn edhayati vardhayati iti saptaidhAh. Thus, theterm edhas is here used in the sense of prosperity and happiness. 833. sapta-vAhanah a) He Who has seven vehicles in the form of the seven vedic mantra-srepresented by the seven horses of the Sun.

b) He Who supports the Universe in the form of the seven Sun-s. c) He Who supports the three worlds through the seven vAyu-maNDala-s or regionsof air. d) He Who has a vehicle with its horse named sapta. e) He Who protects the beings through facilities that has provided in units ofseven seven types of fluids in our system, seven holes in our face as senseorgans, the seven objects of these sense-organs, etc. f) He Who conducts the seven worlds with prosperity. Om sapta-vAhanAya namah. The word vAhana is derived from the root vah prApane to bearalong, to carry, to flow. vAhanam also has a meaning "an animal used inriding, such as a horse". He who propagates or is carried along throughthings that are in units of seven, or who is supported by things that are inunits of seven, is sapta-vAhanah. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as "One Who has as His vehicle thesun whose chariot has seven horses (of the sun)". These are considered thepresiding deities of the seven veda mantra-s in the context of this nAma: bhU,bhuvah, suvah, mahah, janah, tapah, and satyam. The chandas associated withthese mantra-s are respectively: gAyatrI, ushnik, anushTup, bRhatI, pa'ngti,trishTup, jagati. The devatA-s associated with these mantra-s are: agni, vAyu,arka(sun), vAgISa (bRhaspati), vruNa, indra, viSvedeva). These seven devatA-slead the sun in his course. Since BhagavAn supports the sun through these sevendevatA-s and the seven mantra-s associated with these seven meters, He is calledsapta-vAhanah. These seven mantra-s are vehicles that reveal Him, and they arecouched in the seven meters referred to above. We worship Him who is in thecenter of the sUrya maNDalam through these veda mantra-s. SrI v.v. rAmAnujangives reference to SiRiya tirumaDal of tiruma'ngai AzhvAr: kArAr puravi EzhpUNDa tani Azhi terAr nirai kadirOn manDalattAn. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to SrI vishNu purANam 2.8, where thesun and its characteristics are described. The reference to the seven horsesthat support the sun is given in V.P. 2.8.5: hayASca saptac-chandAmsi teshAm nAnAni me SruNu |gAyatrI sa bRhat-ushNig jagatI trishTubeva ca | anushTup pa'nctir-ityuktAS-chandAmsi harayo raveh || (VP 2.8.5) "The seven horses of the sun's car are the meters of the veda-s: gAyatrI, bRhatI, ushNig, jagatI, trishTubh, anushTubh, and pa'nkti". SrI satya sandha yatirAja also refers to the seven horses of the sun, andbhagavAn's nAma of sapta-vAhanah signifying that He leads the sun with the sevenhorses sapta-vAhanah sapta vAhA aSvA yasya sah sapta-vAhah sUryas tam nayati iti sapta-vAhanah. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that bhagavAn in the form of the sun has avAhana or vehicle with seven horses sapta AsvA vAhanAni asya iti sapta-vAhanah. b) SrI SAstri also points to seven suns Arogah, bhrAjah, paTarah,pata'ngah, svarNarah, jyotishImAn, vibhAsah (see aruNa praSnam 20 (ArogobhrAjah paaTarah pata'ngah | svarnaro jyotishImAn vibhAsah |). Of these, Arogais the sun that we see. We do not see the other six suns, since three of thesesustain the lower part of the meru mountain, and three shine on the upper partof the meru. BhagavAn is called saptavAhanah, since He supports all parts ofthe Universe through these seven vehicles or the seven suns.

c) SrI BhaTTar gives an alternate interpretation in terms of His protectingthe Universe through seven regions of prANA Sakti vital airs in theforms of seven vAyu maNDala-s or regions of air. Prof. A. Srinivasa Raghavandescribes these seven regions of air in the three worlds as Avaha, pravaha,samvaha, udvaha, vivaha, parivaha, and parAvaha. Sinve vAyu or air gets itsstrength from the life- breath of the Lord of the World, He is the Supporter ofall the worlds in the form of the seven maNDala-s or regions of air. d) SrI Sa'nkara also gives an alternate interpretation for which he quotessupport from the Sruti He Who has a vehicle called sapta eko'Svo vahatisapta-nAmA (tait. AraN. 3.11.9; Rg. Sam. 1.164.2) The horse named sapta iscarrying Him. e) SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri points out that there are several aspects of ourbody that are in units of seven. There are seven dhAtu-s essentialingredients - associated with the body rasA sR'ng mAmsa medah asti majjASuklAni dhAtavah according to the ancient medical science - Chyle, blood, flesh,fat, bone, marrow, semen. Since bhagavAn supports the body with these sevenessential ingredients, He has the nAma saptavAhanah. Or, there are seven dvAra-s (openings or holes) in our face the two eyes,the two nostrils, the two ears, and the mouth. The life energy is exchanged inour body through these openings, and since He supports the life through theseseven vehicles, He is called sapta- vAhanah. Or, these seven openings are like the seven tongues through which our life issustained , through the senses of feelings, sight, taste, smell, etc. These arethe sapta-jivhAh, sapta, edhAh (firewood), sapta-vAhana, etc. SrI SAstri givesthe muNDakopanishad passage in support: sapta prANAh prabhavanti tasmAt sapArcishah samidhah sapta homAh (jihvAh) |sapteme lokA yeshu caranti prANA guhASayA nihitAh sapta sapta || (muNDa. 2.1.8) Slightly different translations of the above are given below, in theinterests of additional clarity. "From the akshara purusha emerge the seven sense organs, the seven fires, the sacrificial fuel, and the seven flames, and the seven worlds in which we move the sense organs that are deposited by the Creator in groups of seven and seven". "From Him emerge the seven sense-organs, the seven flames, the seven kinds of fuel, the seven oblations, and these seats where move the sense-organs that sleep in the cavity, having been deposited by God in groups of seven". "From Him, too, the seven senses in the head, their powers of cognition, their objects and their knowledge, as also the seven seats of sense traversed by the life forces centered in the hearts of all creatures. The seven seats are the nerve centers of the inner principles of the senses, without which the external senses cannot by themselves function). The seven sense-organs are the ones located in our head the two eyes, thetwo nostrils, the two ears, and the mouth; the seven flames the means ofillumination of the objects of these sense- organs; the saptasamidah theseven objects of these sense-organs, since the sense-organs are kindled by theseobjects. f) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshan gives his interpretation in terms of bhagavAnconducting the seven worlds prosperously: sapta-bhuvanAni vAhayati prApayatiabhyudayam iti sapta-vAhanah.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives support from SrImad bhAgavatam giving theinterpretation that Lord kRshNa had as His vehicles the following seven,consisting of four horses, the chariot itself, garuDa, and A'njaneya: - tatra AsvAh Saibya sugrIva megha pushpa balAhakAh (SrImad bhAgavatam 10.89.49)- syandanam pa'ncamam the chariot itself - chandomayena garuDena samuhyamAnah cakrAyudho'yagamadASu yato gajendrah | (bhAga. 8.3.31)- bikshu rUpam parityajya vAnara rUpam Asthitah |pRshThamAropya tau vIrau jagAma kapiku'njarah || ( rAmAyaNam 4.4.34) g) SrI cinmayAnanda's anubhavam is that this nAma of bhagavAn signifies thatthe sun is drawn by the seven horses, representing the seven days of the week.He has not given the basis for this interpretation. The nAma has similarities to vAyu-vAhanah (nAma 333, 860 Slokam 36, 90 ),which we will deal with in Slokam 90. 834. a-mUrtih a) He Who does not have a body that is the effect of karma similar to ours. b) He Who is signified by the letter `a' in praNavam. SrI BhaTTar interprets the next few nAma-s as illustrating that bhagavAn isvery different from the jIva-s over whom He presides, in His Nature. mUrti refers to form. a-mUrti literally means "One Who hasno form". a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as meaning that He does not have a formthat is like any of our bodies, and it is quite different from the gross bodiesof ours that is composed of the five elements - sthUlabhautika mUrtivyAvRttah a-mUrtih. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives support from the ISAvAsya Upanishad (8): sa paryagAt Sukram a-kAyam a-vraNam - The One with no body (caused by karma)a-kAyam. SrI Sa'nkara defines the term `mUrti" as an object, moving or unmoving,that has weight and tangibility mUrtih ghana-rUpam dhAraNa samarthamcarAcara lakshaNam. Since He is not constrained by any of these limitations, Heis amUrtih tad-rahita iti a-mUrtih. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates onthis, and notes that the term `ghana rUpam' here refers to consumable food whichis of two kinds the moving kind, such as the rat for the cat, and the non-moving kind such as the rice for the humans. The `mUrti" or form that isreferred to here is the form that requires sustenance in the form of theghana-rUpam that is of the moving or the non-moving kind. Since He is notconstrained by such a form that needs to be supported as noted here, He iscalled a-mUrtih. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri remarks that mUrti or form is that which is given tous for the enjoyment of the benefits of our karma. Since bhagavAn does not havea form that is the result of karma-s, He is a- mUrtih. Brahman is like fire that has no fixed shape or form. It can grow as large asit chooses to, and take whatever form It wants. SrI vAsishTha gives thefollowing Rg vedic mantra, which describes agni as formless (amUram = amUrtam): agnim hotAram pravRNe miyedhe gRtsam kavim viSam-idam amUram | (Rg. 3.19.1)

b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives the interpretation that the nAmasignifies that bhagavAn is represented by the letter `a' akAro mUrtihyasya iti a-mUrtih. In this interpreation, a-mUrtih is: "One Who has the mUrti of form represented by the letter "a". svAmi deSikan quotes from ashTaSlokI in his rahasya traya sAram: akArArtho vishNuh jagad-udaya-rakshA-pralaya-kRt | "a-kAram refers to Lord vishNu, in His role as the Creator, Protector,and Destroyer of the Universe". SrI vAsishTha nicely brings out the point that bhagavAn is a-mUrtih, bypointing out the relation between the soul and the body with which it isassociated. Just as the soul is formless, but supports the body that it isassociated with, bhagavAn is the formless Supreme Soul that supports all theformed entities in this Universe. Here is his composition expressing thisinterpretation: AtmA hi amUrtir-vahate ca mUrtam gAtram yathA nAma tathAbhupaiti | vishnUr-hi amUrtih sakalam ca viSvam vahan tathA nAmabhir- ucyate sah || 835. an-aghah a) The Sinless.b) He Who is opposed to sin.c) He Who is of blemishless character.d) He Who does not suffer sorrow. Om anaghAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier as nAma 148, Slokam 16. The root word involved in the nAma is agh pApa karaNe to go wrong, tosin. agho nAsti yasmin so'naghah He Who does not have any sin is an-aghah. Or, na aghah agha Sabda pApa vacanah, tad-virodhI ca anaghah He Who is opposed to sin is an-aghah. agha also means duhkham or sorrow He Who does not suffer sorrow is an-aghah. a) BhagavAn takes birth in the midst of us, in the midst of samsAra. Even so,He is sinless. This is the aspect that SrI BhaTTar stresses in hisinterpretation for this nAma in Slokam 16 - samsAra madhye janitvA'pi anaghah.SrI v.v. rAmAnujan notes that even though Lord rAma had to go through enormoushardships as part of this samsAra "nATTil piRandu paDAdana paTTu",still He was completely sinless. His birth and His actions are purely because ofHis leelA. He is apahatapApmA completely opposed to faults of any kind. Heis "kuRaivu onRum illAda govindan" (ANDAL tiruppAvai). In additionto Himself being sinless, He is the One who removes the sins of others. For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar's interpretation deals withthe reason why He is sinless as noted above it is because He is not subjectto karma, and so He is entirely different from the jIva-s that are under Hiscontrol akarma vaSatvena tan- magna jIva vilakshaNah an-aghah. There are several other anubhava-s as to why bhagavAn is an-aghah. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan notes that His body is made of Suddha sattva material, which is beyondthe processes of aging, decay, death, disease, etc. This is one reason why He isan-aghah from the aspect of His body.

c) nammAzhvAr refers to emperumAn as "tIdil SIr tiruvE'nakaTattAn"(tiruvAi. 3.3.5) - One with blemishless character. Here, His guNa of simplicityin blessing His devotees with the utmost Mercy, irrespective of their infinitefaults, is the aspect that is enjoyed. SrI v. n. vedAnta deSikan comments thatHe is without tIdu anaghan, because He is standing there in tiruvE'nkaTampatiently, waiting for protection-seekers, unmindful of any demerits of thesepersons, not satisfied till the last one is redeemed; this simplicity andmagnanimous grace are His greatest virtues that really mark Him out. SrI Sa'nkara distinguishes between the two instances of the nAma by using thetwo different meanings for the words agham duhkham and pApam. This is thesame approach that SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses as well. The meaning"sorrow" for the word "agham", in addition to the meaning"sin", is supported by the amara koSam a'nagho duhkha vyasaneshvagham (3.3.27) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj. SrI Sankara's interpretation for this nAma in Slokam 16 was: agham na vidyateasya iti an-aghah, and he gives the quote from chAndogya Upanishad 8.1 in support apahatapApmA He is free from sin. For the nAma in Slokam 16, SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also uses the meaning"sin" na agham yasmin iti an-agho nish-pApah. d) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for the current instance of the nAma is: agham duhkham pApam ca dvayam asya na vidyata iti an-aghah One Who iswithout sin or sorrow. SrI bhAradvAj's interpretation for the current instance of the nAma uses thismeaning: na agham duhkham yasmin iti an-aghah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that bhagavAn is devoid of bad deeds, thesins that result from such deeds, and the sorrow that result from them. It isthe thought of committing sins that is the start of the act of sinning. He isdevoid of such thought to start with. So there is no evil deed. Since there isno evil deed, there is no consequence of the evil deed also the duhkham. Hegives several quotes from the Sruti in support: - Suddham apApa viddham ISAvAs. 8 - Ever pure, untouched by puNya and pApa.- apahatapApma abhayam rUpam. tad-Apta kAmam Atma kAmam akAmam rUpam SokAntaram Brhad. upa. 4.3.21)AtmA apahatapApamA vijaraj - chAndogya. 8.7.1 That AtmA which is sinless, ageless, .- na jarA na mRtyur na Soko n sukRtam na dushkRtam sarve pApmAno'to nivartante apahatapApmA .. (chAn. 8.4.1) SrI cinmayAnanda gives reference to a similar message in chAndogya Upanishad8.1.5 esha AtmA apahatapApmA vijaro vimRtyur viSoko vijighatso'pipAsahsatyakAma satya sa'nkalpah . This is the AtmA that is opposed to all thatis defiling, free from old age, death, sorrow, hunger, and thirst, and has truedesire and true will. SrI cinmayAnanda comments that the peace of virtue or theagitations of the sin in us cannot affect the Illuminator of all consciousness,and He is free from sin and uncontaminated (aliptah). SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN refers us to bhIshma's words "pavitrANAmpavitram yah" in the introductory part of SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam The Purest of the Pure. 836. a-cintyah a) He Who is incomparable to anything known. b) He Whosepower cannot be imagined. c) He Who cannot be completely comprehended in ourminds.

Om a-cintyAya namah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the root involved in the nAma as cit samj~nAne to notice, to understand. He Who cannot be described as such andsuch, is a-cintyah; Or, He Who cannot be comprehended completely in our mind isa-cintyah. cintayitum iyattayA paryavasitum Sakyah cintyah; na cityah a-cintyah;manaso'pi agocarah. There are many other ways to enjoy this nAma He WhoseleelA-s are incomprehensible, He Whose power cannot be imagined, etc. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is that the nAma indicates that He is beyondcomparison with anyone or anything. vaLLuvar declares that bhagavAn is "tanakkuuvamai allAdAn". The Sruti attempts to describe Him the chAndogya Upanishad declares thatbhagavAn is "golden-colored, with golden colored moustache, eyes resemblingthe just-blossomed lotus" ya eshontarAditye hiraNmayah purushah dRSyate,hiraNmayah smaSruh, hiraNya keSa apraNakhAt sarva eva suvarNah; tasya yahtAkapyAsam puNDarIkamevam akshiNI He is in the middle of the sun, with goldenhue, golden mustache, golden hair, eyes resembling the justbloomed lotus, etc.But the Sruti also declares that He is beyond words and beyond mind yatovAco nivartante, aprApaya manasA saha (taitt. upa.). nammAzhvAr conveys the twoideas together in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 1.3.2: kaTTuraikkil tAmarai nin kaN pAdam kai ovvASuTTuraitta nan pon un tirumEni oLi ovvAduoTTuraittu ivulagu unnaip pugazhvellAm perumpAlum paTTuraiyAip puRkenRE kATTumAl param jotI! (tiruvAi. 1.3.2) "O Supreme Effulgence! You are to be merely enjoyed. Any attempt atverbal description of You is futile, especially if one compares You withfamiliar objects that are not even remotely comparable to You in any respect.With beautiful eyes, feet and arms, to all of which lotus is but a poor simile,with a dazzling stature to which pure unalloyed gold is a poor comparison, Youare often being pictured by the world with words that do You no justice. Anycomparison of You to the worldly things is just a failed attempt to describeYou". It is like some commoner who has never seen a precious stone, describing thatprecious stone as "something resembling a pebble." nammAzhvAr proceedsin the very next pASuram to declare that even after describing His greatness bythe words "param jyoti The Supreme Effulgence", if one proceeds todescribe His auspicious qualities His simplicity, His sauSIlyam and Hissaulabhyam, there is no word that we have that can describe these aspects ofbhagavAn. AzhvAr exclaims: "param jyoti! govindA! PaNbu uraikka mATTEnE" "I won't even attempt to describe Your auspicious qualities". So,bhagavAn is a-cintyah in every sense of the word., especially when it comes toHis auspicious qualities. He is "govindA" Who can mingle with evencows. nammAzhvAr laments at the unimaginable behavior of this emperumAn who issarva lokeSvaran, who subjects Himself to the insult of being called the"butter thief" ne'njAl ninaippu aridAl veNNey UN ennum Enac-collE(tiruviruttam 98). SrI rAmAnujan refers to a tiruvAimozhi pASuram by nammAzhvArthat nicely explains the nAma a-cintyah: mAyan en ne'njil uLLAn maRRum yavarkkum ahdEkAyamum Seevanum tAnE kAlum eriyum avanESeyan aNiyan yavarkkum Sindaiyum gocaram allantUyan tuyakkan mayakkan ennudait tOL iNaiyAnE (tiruvAi. 1.9.6)

The following explanation of the above pASuram is partly drawn from SrImadtirukkuDanthai ANDavan's bhagavad vishaya sAram, and is my poor attempt atcapturing my great AcArya's thoughts: "He is our body, and He is also the soul of our body; He is the soul ofthe pa'nca mahA bhUta-s (air, water, etc.)., He is aNiyan very easilyaccessible to His devotees; He is also SEyan inaccessible to those who donot surrender to Him; yAvarkkum Sindaikkum gocaran allan a-cintyan He isbeyond the reach of the mental capabilities of even the greatest of j~nAni-s; tUyan Even so, He decided to bless me by residing in my heart; tUyan - HeWho considered that being with me is the only thing that He longed for in allHis life; tuyakkan By revealing His guNa-s, He draws us towards Him; mayakkan He draws us to Him through the sheer joy of thinking about Him;ennuDait tOL iNaiyAn Such a Great One has now decided to take possession ofme by sitting on my shoulders (treating me like garuDa)". He is mAyan Ascarya bhUtan personification of wonders". Sri Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: pramAtrAdi sAkshitvena sarva pramANaagocaratvAt a-cintyah The simplest way to explain this is that just as the eyecannot see the eye itself since it is the means of seeing all other thingsexcept itself, so also bhagavAn is the means of perceiving everything else, andso He cannot be perceived by any means of perception. SrI Sa'nkara gives the alternate interpretation: ayam IdRSa iti viSvaprap'nca vilakshaNatvena cintayitum aSakyatvAd-vA a-cintyah He Who isdifferent from this expanded Universe. All that is in the domain of ourperception in this universe is but a tiny fraction of His manifestation, and thefull extent of His vibhUti-s is beyond comprehension. Lord kRshNa declares thisin the gItA: nanto'sti mama divyAnAm vibUtinAm parantapa | esha tUddeSatah prokto vibhUter-vistaro mayA || (gItA 10.40) yad-yad-vibhUtimat-sattvam SrImad-Urjitameva vA | tat-tadevAvagaccha tvam mama tejo'mSa sambhavam || (gItA 10.41) "There is no limit to My divine manifestations. Here the extent of suchmanifestations has been explained in brief by Me. "Whatever being is possessed of power, or of splendor, or of energy,know that as coming from a fragment of My power". b) In his gItA bhAshyam, for the next Slokam, bhagavad rAmAnuja explains thatthis Universe consisting of sentient and non-sentient entities, whether ineffect or causal condition, whether gross or subtle, is supported by bhagavAnwith an infinitesimal fraction of His power, in such a manner that it does notviolate His will in preserving its proper form, existence or various activities.He quotes bhagavAn parASara from vishNu purANam: yasyAyutAyutAmSAmSe viSvaSaktir-iyam stithA (V.P. 1.9.53) - On an infinitesimal fraction of His energy,this universe rests. In other words, His full power is beyond our comprehension He is acintyah. c) SrI cinmayAnanda gives the reference from the gItA, where bhagavAn isdescribed as a-cintya-rUpan sarvasya dhAtAram acintya rUpam gItA 8.9 The Creator of all, and One Who cannot be comprehended mentally.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN points out that He is called acintyah because Hecannot be understood through tarka or discussion and analysis, but is revealedonly through the Sruti vAkya-s tarka agocarah Srutyeka gamyah. 837. bhya-kRt He Who causes fear. 838. bhaya-nASanah He Whodestroys fear. Om bhaya-kRte namah. Om bhaya-nASanAya namah. The word bhaya is derived from the root bhI bhaye to fear, to beanxious about. The nAma bhaya-kRt can be viewed as "bhayam karoti itibhaya-kRt", or "bhayam kRntati iti bhaya-kRt" "One Whocauses fear", or "One Who removes fear". SrI BhaTTar gives his interpretation for these two nAma-s together. Hisexplanation is that bhagavAn creates fear in those who violate His commands, anddispels fear in those who follow them. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the followingsupports for the two interpretations: - bhaya abhayam karah kRshNah sarva-lokeSvarah prabhuh (mahA bhArata) Lord kRshNa is One Who causes intense fear in those who violate the commands ofthe SAstra-s, and removes fear in those who obey the SAstric injunctions. - sakRdeva prapannAya tavAsmIti ca yAcate | abahayam sarva bhUtebhyo dadAmyetad vratam mama || (rAmAyaNa, yuddha. 18.34), declared by Lord rAma during vibhIshaNa SaraNAgati on the sea shore "To him who even once bows to Me saying that I am Thine, I grant him shelter and protection from all evils. This is My vow". - van SaraN surarkkAi, asurarkku vem kURRamumAi tan SaraN nizahR-kIzh ulagamvaittum vaiyAdum ten SaraN tiSaikkut tiru viN nagar SErnda pirAn en SaraN en kaNNan ennaiALuDaiyan en appanE (tiruvAi. 6.3.8) The simultaneous role of bhayakRt and bhaya-nASanah is reflected both in thefirst and second lines of this pASuram: surarkku van SaraNAi For Hisdevotees, including the deva-s, He is the surest Protection; asurarukku vemkURRamumAi Just as surely, for those with a demonic disposition, He is thesure Death; tan SaraN nizaR-kIzh ulagam vaittum Keeping those who havesurrendered to Him under His Feet for protection; vaiyAdum Those that havenot surrendered to Him are not allowed anywhere close to His Feet. Such is theNature of our great kaNNan in tiru viN nagar Oppiliappan koil. - His guNa as bhaya nASanah is reflected in nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram3.10.8 also ellai il mAyanai kaNNanait tAL paRRi yAn Or duhkam ilanE By surrendering tothis mAyak kaNNan's divine feet, I have no more worry of any sorrow. SrI Sa'nkara gives the primary interpretation for `bhaya kRt" as One Whocauses fear to those who follow the wrong path asan-mArga vartinAm bhayamkaroti iti bhaya-kRt (kR karaNe to do). He gives an alternateinterpretation that brings out His guNa of protecting the bhakta-s bhaktAnAmbhayam kRtanti vA bahaya-kRt He Who dispels fear from the minds of Hisdevotees (kRt chedane to cut). SrI vAsishTha also gives both the interpretations for the nAma "bhaya-kRt". In support of the first interpretation, he gives the support from Rgveda:

dyAvA cidasmai pRthivI namante, sushmAcidasya parvatA bhayante | yah somapA nicito vajra-bAhur-yo vajra-hastah sa janAsa indrah || (Rg. 2.12.13) "Even the Heaven and Earth bow down before Him, before His very breaththe mountains tremble. Known as the soma drinker, armed with thunder, who wieldsthe bolt, he, o ye men, is indra". We know that indra trembles beforebhagavAn, and so bhagavAn is the bhaya-kRt of them all, to ensure that all thegods function properly and perform their assigned duties. The taittirIyaUpanishad declares: bhIshAsmAd vAtah pavate, bhIshodeti sUryah, bhIshAsmAdagniScendraSca,mRtyur-dhAvati pa'ncama iti | "The wind blows out of fear of Him; For fear of Him does the Sun rise; Forfear of Him do agni and indra function. Out of fear of Him, does Death, thefifth one, run". SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for the nAma "bhaya nASanah" stressesthe importance of following the varNASrama dharma-s: varNa ASrama AcAravatAmbhayam nASayati iti bhaya-nASanah. This can be understood in different ways: - as a reference to varNASrama dharma to the practices prescribed for thefour divisions or varNa-s - the brAhamNa-s, kshatriya-s, vaiSya-s and Sudra-s; -as a reference to the practices prescribed for the four varNa- s as well as forthe four ASrama-s (brahmacarya, gArhasthya, vAna prastha, and sanyAsa), - or asa reference to the varNa-s, ASrama-s as well as the AcAra-s or the codes ofconduct for all these groups. SrI sa'nkara gives support from SrI vishNu purANam of ParASara: varNa ASrama AcAravatA purhseNa parah pumAn | vishNur-ArAdhyate panthA nAnyas-tat-tosha-kArakah || (VP 3.8.9) "The supreme vishNu is propitiated by a man who observes theinstitutions of varNa, ASrama, and the AcAra-s (purificatory practices). Noother path is the way to please Him". -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 90 -

aNur_bRhat_kRSas_sthUlo guNa-bhRn_nir-guNo mahAn | adhRtah sva-dhRtah svAsyah prAg-vamSo vamSa-vardhanah || 90

om aNAve namah. Om bRhate namah. Om kRSAya namah. Om sthUlAya namah Om guNa-bhRte namah Om nir-guNAya namah Om mahate namah Om adhRtAya namah Om svadhRtAya namah Om svAsyAya namah Om prAg-vamSAya namah Om vamSa-vardhanAya namah. The next few nAma-s are interpreted by SrI BhaTTar in terms of the grandeurof bhagavAn, consisting of His superhuman powers such as becoming smaller thanan atom, etc. SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya notes that the powers that are being described here arethe ashTa aiSvarya-s (might or power). The ashTa aiSvarya-s are declared by thefollowing: aNimA, mahimA, laghimA, garimA, prApatih, prAkAmyam, ISitA, vaSitvam, cetiaiSvaryashTakam ucyate | 839. aNuh a) He Who has the power of being smaller than anything small thatis known to us. b) He Who is the cause of the sound that permeates everywhereand is in everything (aNa - Sabde). c) He Who is in the form of the veda-s, orHe Who reveals the veda-s, the SAstra-s etc. (aNa - Sabde). Om aNave namah. This is the first of the ashTa aiSvarya-s mentioned above - aNimA. The wordaNuh is formed from the root aNa - to sound, through the application of theuNAdi sUtra - aNaSca (1.8), which states that the affix u comes after the rootaNa. The term aNu refers to an atom, and here it is used to refer to bhagavAn'spower of becoming smaller than the smallest object that is known. a) SrI BhaTTar comments that the nAma signifies His ability to enter into theinfinitesimally small void space known as dahara AkASam in the hearts of beings,into prakRti, and also into the subtle jIva. aNu here means that He is extremelysubtle. SrI BhaTTar refers us to the taittirIya Upanishad - aNor-aNIyAn - He issubtler than whatever we perceive as subtle. These aISvarya-s or powers are natural to Him. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan points outthat some of these powers are also given to those who have His anugraham orblessing. He gives the example of hanuman, who had the ability to alternatebetween a very large form and a very small form at will in an instant, indealing with surasA (sundara kANDam). SrI Sa'nkara gives the support from muNDAkopanishad - esha aNur_AtmA cetasAveditavyah - This Self (paramAtman) is inscrutable, and is to be known throughthe mind. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that the ability of the eye to see something islimited by a lower limit and an upper limit with respect to size. BhagavAn isoutside of this limit on either end (we will see this in the next

nAma also). Heis beyond all the sensory perceptions. Sri SAstri gives several references tothe Sruti in support: - aNor-aNIyAn (kaTha. 2.20, tait. AraN. 10.1)- na hi su-j~neyam aNur-esha dharmah (kaTha. 1.21) - The truth is very subtle and not easily comprehensible.- yad-aNubhyo'Nu ca (muNDa. 2.2.2) - That which is subtler than the subtle. - aNIyAn hyatarkayam anU paramANAt (kaTha. 2.8) - It is subtler than the subtle and beyond realization through reasoning alone.- esha sa AtmA antar-hRdaye aNIyAn vrIher-vA yavAd-vA sarshapAd-vA SyAmAkAd-vA SyAmAka-taNDulAd-vA. (chAndog. 3.14.3) - This paramAtman who is residing in my heart is smaller than a grain of rice, a barley corn, a mustard seed, the grain a millet, etc. - Sa ya esho aNimA (chAndog. 6.8.7) - This (sat) is of the nature of being subtle. SrI cinmayAnanda gives the support from the gItA - sarvasya cAham hRdisannivishTah - "I am seated in the hearts of all". b) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha notes that it is by His aNutvam that He is presenteverywhere, and permeates everything, including the subtle jIva. He also givesan interpretation based on the root aNa - Sabde - to sound, and indicates thatthe nAma suggests that He is in the form of the sound that pervades the ethereverywhere, and is also the cause of the sound that emanates from the differentlife-forms etc. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives his interpretation based on the meaningaNati - Sabdayati - makes known, reveals - aNati Sabdayati vedAdi SAstram itiaNuh - He Who reveals the SAstra-s such as the veda-s etc. We will note that SrIbhAradvAj does not follow the approach of interpreting this nAma and thefollowing ones in terms of the ashTa aiSvarya-s, but gives interpretations thatare not linked to each other. 840. bRhat - TheGreat. This nAma describes His aiSvarya or power calledmahimA - of becoming greater than anything that we know of as great. Thereference here is to His power of vastness, in contrast to the aNutva that wesaw referenced in the previous nAma. The root from which the nAma is derived is bRh- vRddhau - to grow, to increase. SrI BhaTTar describes His greatness interms of His pervasion. Even the vast Transcendental World (parama padam) can becontained in a corner of His palm. Note that parama padam is tripAd-vibhUti -three times as large as the Universe that we are aware of. tiruma'ngai AzhvArrefers to bhagavAn as "aLattaRku ariyAy" (tirumozhi 3.8.1) - He whocannot be measured. SrI BhaTTar gives the purusha sUkta - sa bhUmim viSvatovRtvA atyatishTat daSA'ngulam - He pervaded the Earth in all its entirety andstood up beyond by daSa-a'ngula. daSa here means endless, and a'ngula meansyojanA. He gives other supports from the Sruti: - mahato mahIyAn (tait. upa.6.10) - Greater than the great. - varshIyAnSca pRthivyAh - He is greater thanthe Earth. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives additional Sruti references: - abjA gojARtajA adrijA Rtam bRhat (kaTha. 2.2.2) - The water-born, the earth-born, thesacrifice-born, the mountain-born, the Truth, the Great. - tatah param brahmaparam bRhantam (SvetASva. 3.7) - After thus praying unto Him and then knowing(through meditation) the infinitely great Supreme Brahman.. Note that this aiSvarya of mahimA is exactlyopposite of the aiSvarya we dealt with in the previous nAma aNimA. We will see a few more of these pairs of extremes in the next few nAma-s. It is to be understood that there is nothing that is beyond His ability. SrI cinmayAnanda captures the idea as follows: These two may seem paradoxical, but the apparent contradictiondissolves into an illuminating experience for the contemplative mind. In fact, the upanishad talks of these two qualities in the same breath aNor-aNiyAn mahato mahIyAn AtmAsya jantor-nihitam

guhAyAm (kaTho. 2.20) Subtler than the subtle and great than the great is lodged in the cave ofthe heart. SrI Sankara vyAkhyAnam is bRhatvAtbRmhaNantvAt ca bRahma bRhat Because of the hugeness and because of theability to expand at will indefinitely, He is called bRhat. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj continues hisinterpretation outside of the context of the ashTa aiSvaryas: barhati vardhate pratipadam SobhAyAm iti bRhat He Who enhances orincreases the beauty of everywhere. Whateverbeauty exists in anything, is because of Him. SrI satya sandha yatirAja interprets the nAma as:guNaih vRddha He Who is enhanced in His guNa-s. or auspicious qualities. 841. kRSah a) He Who is lighter than the light.b) He Who is thinner than anything thin.c) He Who reduces or eliminates the difficulties to His devotees. d) He Who pares down the form for the jIva-s to make it possible for them to live in comfort.e) He Who makes `light work' of the asura-s (i.e., He Who destroys the asura-s). Om kRSAya namah. This nAma represents another of the ashTa aiSvarya-s, called laghimA, or theability to be lighter than anything that we know is light. The root from whichthe nAma is derived is kRS tanUkaraNe to become lean or thin. The nAmais interpreted as referring to the ability to be lean or thin, or to be light,depending on the interpreter. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms of Hisability to be lighter than anything light, and Sri Sa'nkara interprets the nAmaas One Who can be thinner than anything thin, to the point of not having a form. a) SrI BhaTTar explains that He is lighter than cotton, wind, etc., and soHis movement is unimpeded on all sides and in all respects sarvatra avyAhatagatih. He quotes from mahA bhArata in support yatra-kAmagato vaSI Hecan go wherever He chooses. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's anubhavam is that bhagavAn is so thin that Hecan be even inside a rock unobstructed, because of His kRSatvam leanness orthinness - SilAsvapi apratihat praveSatvAt kRSah. b) SrI Sa'nkara vyAkhyAnam is: asthUlam ityAdinA dRSyatva pratishedhAt kRSah He Who can become so thin that He is devoid of visibility. One interpreterhas the given the text is "dravyatva pratishedhAt because He does nothave a form. A translator translates this as "One Who is of the form ofnon-material Spirit". SrI Sa'nkara quotes the bRhadAraNya Upanishad insupport asthUlam (BU 3.8.8) He Who is not of a gross body. He might havechosen this interpretation asthUlah, because of the next nAma sthUlah(as the opposite of the next nAma). SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri summarizes this nAma and the next one, by observingthat the question of whether bhagavAn is One Who is lean or hefty, can beanswered only if He can be seen, to start with. If He is either so huge that wedo not even see Him, or so lean that we cannot see Him, then the question ofwhether He is lean or huge cannot be answered. That is the Nature of bhagavAn,whom we cannot see. In fact, the passage that SrI Sa'nkara quotes frombRhadAraNya Upanishad, referring to bhagavAn as asthUlam, in the very next wordsays that bhagavAn is an-aNu also asthUlam an-aNu. The pointto be understood is that He can be whatever He chooses to be, whenever Hechooses to be, and He can become anything He wants in

the minutest fraction oftime. The Sakti or aiSvarya that is described in the current nAma specifically,is His ability to become as light as He chooses or as thin as He chooses, at HisWill. We saw bhagavAn described as aNu, and in the next nAma He was described asexactly the other extreme, bRhat. In the current nAma we see Him describes askRSah, and in the next nAma we will see Him described as its other extreme,sthUlah. SrI cinmayAnanda notes that this is an example of how "the Rshi-shave made an art of effectively employing terms of contradiction in order tobring the incomprehensible within the cognition of the students ofcontemplation". We have already seen some examples of this in theupanishadic passages in the last few nAma-s. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj's interpreation is: kRSyati tanUkaroti svajanavipadam iti kRSah He Who reduces or eliminates the difficulties to Hisdevotees. d) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also gives an interpretation that is not based onthe ashTa aiSvarya concept. He takes the generic meaning for the root kRS to make lean, and gives the meaning that the nAma refers to bhagavAnarchitecting the creatures of the features in various forms by paring them downas needed for their survival and comfort. SrI vAsishTha equates the nAma kRSahto the nAma tvasTA in its essential meaning (Slokam 6, nAma 52). e) SrI satya sandha yatirAja's interpreation is: daityAn karSayati iti kRSah He Who makes `light work' of the asura-s. He Who destroys the evil asura-s. 842. sthUlah a) He Who is immense. b) He Who grows or enhances enormously the wealth of His devotees. Om sthUlAya namah. The root from which the nAma can be derived is sthUl - paribRhamaNe - tobecome big or stout, grow bulky or fat. Note that the previous nAma was kRSah -One Who can become as lean or thin as He wishes. Now we have the nAma thatdescribes the aiSvarya of His ability to become as big as He wishes. a) SrI BhaTTar comments that since bhagavAn has the ability to touch anyobject in any world even while standing in one place, He has the nAma sthUlah.The trivikrama incarnation is an obvious illustration of His aiSvarya calledprApti, that is reflected in this nAma - sthUlah. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan givesreferences to nammAzhvAr - tAL parappi maN tAviya ISan (tiruvAi. 3.3.11), and toANDAL's tiruppAvai - O'ngi ulagaLanDa uttaman. SrI vAsishTha quotes the mantra from ISAvAsya Upanishad in support: anejadekam manaso javIyo naiand-deva Apnuvan pUrvamarshat | tad-dhAvato'nyAnatyeti tishThat tasminnapo mAtariSvA dadhAti || (ISA. 4) "The paramAtman is unmoving; The One without an equal; swifter than themind. The gods have not attained It, even though It has reached them. Remainingstationary, It overtakes others who run ahead of It. By It, vAyu bearswater".

He also quotes the purusha sUkta mantram in support: sahasra SirshA purushah; sahasrAkshah sahasra pAt | sa bhUmim viSvato vRtvA atyatishThat daSA'ngulam || "He is One with countless heads, countless eyes, and countless feet. Hepervades all space, and it is not possible to measure His extent by our ordinaryknowledge of means of measurement". SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is sarva AtmakatvAt sthUlah iti uapacaryate Because He is the Soul of everything, He is figuratively called sthUlah or`Huge". SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the explanation koTi brahmANDa vigrahatvaAt stUlah Since bhagavAn is in the form of the infinite brahmANDa-s or Universes, He isstUlah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that as a consequence of His aiSvarya orpower of being aNu, bRhat, kRSah, sthUlah, etc., at will, no one can comprehendHim from one moment to the next. SrI SAstri draws attention to the similarity ofthis nAma to the nAma `sthavishTha (53 and 437, Sloka-s 6 and 47). Thesimilarity arises because `sthavishThah' is made of the words `sthUla' and `ishTha',giving as one of the meanings "He Who has Willed to be huge". Amongthe other interpretations for the nAma sthavishTha are that bhagavAn manifestsHimself in the form of the huge brahmANDa, the huge constellation of stars andgalaxies, etc. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation sthUlayati bRmhayati svajana sampadam iti sthUlah He Who grows or enhances enormously the wealth of His devotees, is sthUlah. Note that the `wealth' for the devotees can be in the form of their enjoyment inperforming kainkaryam to Him and to His devotees in this world, and need notnecessarily refer to material wealth only. 843. guNa-bhRt a) The Supporter of all that are subject to Him. b) He Who supports the three guNa-s of sattva, rajas, and tamas. c) He Who bears (has) infinite kalyANa guNa-s. Om guNa-bhRte namah. guNa refers to attributes such as dayA, dAkshiNya, etc., and also to thethree attributes sattva, rajas, and tamas. The root from which the part bhRtis derived is bhR dhAraNa poshaNayoh to hold, to support. Theexplanation given by SrI vAsishTha for the nAma is: guNa dayA dAkshiNyAdayahsatva rajas tama AdayaSca, teshAm bhRt = dhAraka ityarthah Because of Hisquality of Mercy and compassion, He supports the three guNa-s of sattva, rajasand tamas, that distinguishes between the different beings. a) SrI BhaTTar expands the meaning of guNa-bhRt to cover everything that issubject to the three guNa-s. He interprets the nAma as a reference to bhagavAnssupreme power of ruling over all by making all things in all their statessubject to Him, and supporting them. By His mere Will (sva-sankalpena), Hesupports all of them in their different states. So He is called guNa-bhRt. Thusthis nAma is an expression of His aiSvarya or

power of ISitvam Lordship. Hegives the support from the Upanishad sarvasya vaSI sarvasya ISAnah (taitt.Upa. 6.1) He keeps all under control and rules over them all. b) SrI Sankaras vyAkhyAnam is: sattva rajas tamasAm sRshTi sthiti layakarmasu adhishThAnatRtvAt guNabhRt Since He supports the guNa-s of sattva,rajas, and tamas to varying degrees in the different beings as part of Hisfunctions of creation, preservation and destruction, He is guNa-bhRt. SrIbaladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives a similar interpretation guNAn sattvAdInbibharti iti guNa-bhRt. Both SrI vAsishTha and SrI cinmayAnanda comment that He supports the threeguNa-s by assuming the sattva guNa in His process of creation, the rajo guNa inthe process of preservation, and the tamo guNa in the process of destruction orannihilation in this sense, He is the Bearer of the three guNa-s. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the explanation guNAn j~nAna AnandamAdhurya vAtsalyAdIn bibharti iti guNa-bhRt He Who possesses the qualitiessuch as perfection in knowledge about the past, present and future of everythingat all times, absolute bliss, the ability to be kind and sweet even to theenemies, attachment to His devotees like that of a cow to its calf, etc. SrIsatya sandha yatirAja also gives an interpretation along similar lines guNAnAnandAdIn bibharti it guNa-bhRt. 844. nir-guNah He Who is bereft of the qualities (common toothers). Om nir-guNAya namah. The term guNa here refers to the three guNa-s sattva, rajas, and tamas,that are characteristic of prakRti. Since He is untouched by these guNa-s andtheir influence, He is called nir-guNah. While bhagavAn is the Supporter of thethree guNa-s in prakRti (guNa-bhRt), He himself is beyond the influence of theguNa-s. The nAma-s guNa-bhRt and nir-guNah are outwardly contradictory, but inthe case of bhagavAn, they are consistent guNa-s as we see in theinterpretation. SrI BhaTTar comments that the nAma nir-guNah indicates that while bhagavAn isin eternal contact with all the jIva-s all the time, He has the power that Hewill not be tainted by any of their defects. SrI BhaTTars interpretation is:atatvaSyatayA tat-samsparSepi aspRshTa-tad-guNah nir-gUnah Even though Heis in contact with all, He is not tainted by their defects, since He is notsubject to any one, and is above all of them. This nAma is interpreted by SrIBhaTTar as representing the aiSvarya called vaSitvam The supreme power ofholding others in magical submission to His will. He gives the followingsupports: - viSvasya mishato vaSI (taitt. 3.6.1) He bewitches the entire world withits wide-open eyes. - sattvAdayo na santISe yatra ca prAkRtA guNAh (vishNu purA. 1.9.44) sattva and other guNa-s that are in the prakRti have no place in bhagavAn, theRuler. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the explanation prAkRta guNa-trayavirahitatvAt nir-guNah. SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives a similar interpretation sattvAdi guNa rahitatvAt nir-guNah. SrI Sankaras interpretation is: vastuto guNa abhAvAt nir-guNah. This istranslated as He Who is devoid of all guNa-s by followers of the advaitasampradAyam. SrI Sankara gives support from the upanishad sAkshI cetAkevalo nir-guNaSca (SvetAS. 6.11) He Who is the witness in everyone, but whois not tainted by the three guNa-s in them. 845. mahAn

a) He Who is supreme in everything. b) He Who is Great beyond comprehension. c) He Who is worthy of worship, and worshiped by the likes of indra. Om mahate namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is maha pUjAyAm to honor, to delight, to increase. means One who is worthy of worship. mahAn

a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma mahAn in terms of His supreme excellence in everything - parama prakarshAt mahAn. He can plunge into the earth as He wishes, and emerge out of it as He wants, just as we can enter water and get out of it at will. In the context of the ashTa aiSvarya-s, SrI BhaTTar explains the current nAma as signifying the aiSvarya known as prAkAmyam (irresistible will), the power of achieving whatever He desires. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes prAkAmyam as the ability to enter others mind at will, make them remember or forget things at will, etc. Sri BhaTTar gives the following support: samprayojya viyojyAyam kAmakArakarah prabhuh | yad-yad-icchet ayam Sauirh tat-tat kuryAt ayatnatah || The powerful Lord, Sauri, acts as He chooses. He unites and separates things as He likes. Whatever He chooses to do, He can accomplish it without any effort. SrI Sankara explains the nAma in terms of the impossibility of constraining Him to a description even for the sake of discussion tarkatopi yato vaktum na Sakyam, because He is One to whom sound and other attributes have no reference, One who is immeasurably subtle, One who is ever pure and all-pervading, One about whom anything in the nature of an obstacle cannot be advanced. b) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains the nAma as signifying that He is beyond comprehension and description by words, thoughts or other means. For instance, the previous six nAma-s described Him first as one extreme, and then as the other extreme (small, big, thin, huge, full of guNa-s, devoid of guNas). He is unconstrained by form, space, time, etc. So He is referred to as mahAn. SrI cinmayAnanda echoes the same thought He is not conditioned by the five elements, nor by time and space. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj continues his independent style for this set of nAma-s: mahyate pUjyate brahmAdibhih iti mahAn - He who is worshiped by the likes of brahmA is mahAn based on the root maha pUjAyAm. The generic meaning is mahyate = pUjyate iti mahAn He Who is worthy of worship (SrI vAsishTha). SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation sarvaih abhyarcayatvAt mahAn He is called mahAn becaue He is worshipped by everyone. 846. a-dhRtah a) The Unconstrained.
b) The Unsustained.

Om a-dhRtAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is dhR dhAraNe to hold,to support.

While SrI BhaTTar explained the previous nAma (mahAn) as a referenceto bhagavAn's superior power to achieve anything, he explains the current nAma as a reference to His being totally unobstructed
orunconstrained in His ability to achieve anything He wants. Thus, the two nAma-s together mean "He Who has the power to achieveanything He wants, without any constraint or limitation". He gives the example of bhagavAn first giving paramapadam to the sons of thevaidika brAhmin, and then bringing them back to this world and giving them rebirth because of His will to bring them back to this earth,even though normally one who goes to paramapadam is never reborn. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan indicates that the aiSvarya called prApti theability to achieve anything, is indicated by this nAma.

SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that bhagavAn is the Supporter ofeverything else that exists, while He Himself is not supported by anything else pRthivyAdInAm dhArakANAmapi dhArkatvAt na kenacitdhriyata
iti a-dhRtah.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha rhetorically asks thequestion yo hi sarvasya dhAtA sa kena dhRtah syAt? - How can He be supported by anything when He is the Supporter and Sustainer ofeverything? SrI cinmayAnanda gives the example that just as cottonis the support behind the cloth, gold is the support behind thegolden ornaments, and mud is the support behind the mud pot, so alsobhagavAn is the support behind everything in the universe, and we should meditate on SrIman nArAyaNa as the support behind us. 847. sva-dhRtah 848. svAsyah 849. prAg-vamSah 850. vamSa-vardhanah. SrI BhaTTar interprets nAma-s 847 to 849 as conveying the Supremacy ofbhagavAn as follows: - sva-dhRtah He is superior over the baddha-s who may have some ofthe same ashTa aiSvarya-s that we saw above, through meditation , prayer, etc. -svAsyah He is superior over the mukta-s, who have a status equivalentto Him in many respects, but who were once clouded by nescience. - prAg-vamSah He is superior over the nitya-s, the eternal souls in SrI vaikunTham, sinceHe is their origin, source and eternal support. Then SrI BhaTTar concludes the gist of the three nAma-s with the next one, vamSa-vardhanah,as referring to bhagavAn being the One who fosters and grows all the threecategories of jIva-s. Because of this thread between the four nAma-s in SrIBhaTTar's interpretation, we will look at the four nAma-s together. First, wewill deal with his interpretation for all the four nAma-s, and then look at theanubhavam of the other vyAkhyAna kartA-s. 847a. sva-dhRtah He Who isSelf-sustained. Om sva-dhRtAya namah. Following on the previous nAma, sva-dhRtah means "One Who is self-supporting". SrI BhaTTar comments that the nAma declares that HisSovereignty does not depend on anything else, and is innate and natural to Him.This distinguishes the sublime nature of paramAtman from the greatness that thebound souls (baddha

jIva-s) can acquire through meditations, austerities etc.BhagavAn's sublimity is not dependent on meditation or austerities, but isnatural to Him. All the other gods, who are all enjoying the effects of their karma-s likethe rest of us, are established and supported by Him so that they can beconsidered gods niRuttinAn daiva'ngaLAga ad-daiva nAyagan tAnE (tiruvai.5.2.8) The other gods have been established by Him like tax-collectors, andwill fall from grace if He does not support them. BhagavAn is poru il taninAyagan (tiruvAi. 5.10.8) The One and Only, incomparable, Supreme Deity eko ha vai nArAyaNa AsIt. 848a. svAsyah a) He Who has a glorious status. om svAsyAya namah. Asya refers to `status', and is derived from the root As upaveSane - tosit (e.g., Asanam). This is the meaning that Sri BhaTTar uses. The word Asyam isalso used to refer to `face'. We will see later that SrI Sa'nkara uses thissecond meaning in his interpretation. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the nAma is "One Who has a gloriousstatus". The nAma can be looked at as su = SobhanA, SobhanA AsyA yasya sasvAsyah One Who has a magnificent or superior status; or, Asanam AsyA,svayam svasmin AsyA yasya sa svAsyah (SrI vAsishTha) One Who has His owninnate natural superior status. SrI BhaTTar notes that even though in SrI vaikunTham, the mukta-s have sAmyamwith bhagavAn in their status, His status is superior in the sense that it wasnever subject to nescience at any time, unlike in the case of the mukta-s. SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri summarizes this explanation as "One Whose status is suchthat it never was, is, or will be, tainted by ignorance etc". Thus, Hisstatus is uniquely superior to that of the mukta jIva-s. 849a. prAg-vamSah He Who is thecause of the eternally free souls. om prAg-vamSAya namah. prAk means "first, foremost, earliest". vamSa literally means`race'. SrI BhaTTar interprets the term `prAk' to refer to the nitya-s, or theeternally liberated souls who have been in SrI vaikunTham from the earliest oftimes. He interprets the term `vamSa' as meaning `support' or `AdhAra'. Theirexistence, their ashTa aiSvarya-s or powers, are all derived from His grace andwill. Thus, SrI BhaTTar gives the explanation for the nAma as "He Who isthe eternal support for the foremost souls the nitya sUri-s in SrIvaikunTham". In interpreting the term `prAk' to refer to the nitya-s, SrIBhaTTar uses the purusha sUkta passage in support: yatra pUrve sAdhyAh santidevAh parama padam is the place of vishNu where from time immemorial thesAdhya devatA-s (the eternally free Angels) live. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that it is customary to name the different racesafter someone who is very important and prominent in that race for instance,the candra vamSa, the sUrya vamSa, the raghu vamSa, the yadu vamSa etc. In thissense, bhagavAn is the foremost in prAg-vamSa the vamSa of the nitya-s. 850a. vamSa-vardhanah He Whokeeps His progeny growing.

SrI BhaTTar interprets the term vamSa (progeny) in this nAma to refer to thethree types of jIva-s that he has referred to in the previous nAma-s. Hisinterpretation for the current nAma is that bhagavAn is the cause for everincreasing the kainkarya rasam (the desire to do eternal service to Him) in thethree types of jIva-s. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr: marundE na'ngaL bhoga magizhccikku enRu perum dEvar kuzhA'ngaL pidaRRum pirAn. (tiruvAi. 9.3.4) "The deva-s, nitya sUri-s, etc., offer obeisance to the Lord inuncoordinated words because they are overwhelmed with their feelings on thethought of the Lord, and declare that He is the medicine that offers them theirbhogam or enjoyment, the tonic for that enhances their happiness, pleasure oflife and sustaining force". This is the real growth vardhanam, the ever-increasing pleasure inworshipping Him and doing kainkaryam to Him and to His devotees that is to besought in life. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives an interpretation along the lines ofSrI BhaTTar: vamSam bhaktAnAm vardhayate iti vamSa- vrdhanah He Who grows His devotees. So far, we dealt with SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for the four nAma-s:sva-dhRtah, svAsyah, prAg-vamSah, and vamSa-vardhanah. Now we will look at theanubhavam of the other interpreters. 847b. sva-dhRtah: b) He Who is self-supporting (sva referring to Himself). c) He Who is held in their minds by His devotees (sva referring to sva-janAh,the devotees). d) He Who supports the prosperity of His devotees (svam dhanam). SrI Sa'nkara quotes the chAndogya upanishad in support sa bhagavahkasmin pratishThita iti, sve mahimni (chAn. 7.24.1) "Where does thatImmensity abide, Sir?" "It abides in Its own glory." SrIrAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that by logic, anything that supports something issupported by something else. If the question is continually asked, there comes apoint at which we realize that everything else is supported by One, the SupremeSelf. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the meaning sva-janah to the term sva, andgives the interpretation svaih sva-janaih dhRtah citte iti sva-dhRtah HeWho is held in their minds by the devotees. SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives a different perspective he interprets theterm svam as referring to dhanam wealth, and gives the interpretation svamdhanam dhRtam yena iti sva-dhRtah He Who supports and sustains prosperityand well-being in everything else. 848b. svAsyah b) He Who has a countenance that is naturally beautiful. c) One Who has a beautiful face also because it is the source of the veda-s. om svAsyAya namah. We saw earlier that SrI BhaTTar has used the meaning `status' for the wordAsya - derived from the root As upaveSane - to sit (e.g., Asanam).

b) The word Asyam is also used to refer to `face' asyate kshipyatenavanItAdih asmin iti Asyam (amara koSa vyAkhyAnam, based on asu kshepaNe to throw). SrI Sa'nkara uses this second meaning. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for thr nAma is: "One Who has a beautifulface" su = Sobhanam, padmodara talavat tAmram abhirUpatamam asya Asyamiti svAsyah He Whose face is rosy like the inside of the lotus. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj also gives the same interpretation Sobhanam Asyanm vadanamyasya aiti svAsyah. c) Alternately, SrI Sa'nkara explains that the beauty of the face is alsoreflected in the fact that the veda-s emanated from His mouth vedAtmakomahAn SabdarASih tasya mukhAt nirgatah purushArtha upadeSartham iti svAsyah. Hegives support from the Upanishad: asya mahato bhUtasya niS-Svasitam etat Rg-vedoyajur-vedah sAma-vedah atahrvA'ngirasa itihAsah purANam vidyA upanishadah SlokAhsUtrANi anuvyAkhyAnAni vyAkhyAnAni asyaiva etAni sarvANi niS-SvasitAni. (bRhad.Upa. 2.4.10) The veda, the upanishads, the purANa-s, the sUtra-s, etc., allarose from His vital breath. 849b. prAg-vamSah b) He from whom the first race (namely, the universe itself) originated. c) He from whom, brahmA, the first of all those that were created, originated. d) He Who moves around majestically, and whose greatness is expressed clearly orloudly. om prAg-vamSAya namah. prAk means "first, foremost, earliest". vamSa literally means`race'. b) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the term `prAg-vamSah' as referring to the firstrace being the universe, after which alone all the other races came intoexistence. Since the universe originated from vishNu, He is called prAg-vamSah asya vamSah prAgeva, na pAScAtya iti prAg- vamSah. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj interprets the term vamSam as referring toprogeny, and he takes the term prAg to refer to catur-mukha- brahmA, and givesthe explanation that the nAma means "One Who has brahmA as His progeny prA'ncati it prAg brahmA; sa vamSah santAno yasya iti prAg-vamSah. d) SrI vAsishTha derives the meaning from the root a'nc gati=pUjanayoh to go, to worship, and takes the meaning `to go' for the current context forthe root a'nc. Based on pANini, he derives the meaning: pra + a'ncu + kvin =prA'nc (pANini 3.2.59) being in front, directed forwards. Using the root van Sabde sambhaktau ca - to sound, to honor, to aid, SrI vAsishTha gives theexplanation for the nAma prAg-vamSah as: prakarsheNa a'ncati = gacchati, vanati= SabdAyate sambahajate ca prAg-vamSah He Who moves around majestically,and whose greatness is expressed clearly or loudly. (The explanation in Hindithat is given by a translator is: prakarsha se caltA huA jo Sabda yA sambhAgkartA hai uskA nAm prAg-vamSa hai). 850b. vamSa-vardhanah b) He Who keeps the Universe growing (vRdh to grow). c) He Who cuts off the Universe at the appropriate time (vardh to cut). Om vamSa-vardhanAya namah.

Recall that SrI BhaTTar had interpreted the nAma vamSa-vardhanah, as asummarization of the previous three Nama-s - sva-dhTtah, svAsyah, andprAg-vamSah, and gave the meaning to vamSa-vardhanah as One Who keeps all thethree kinds of jIva-s growing (vardhana) in their anubhavam of enjoyment throughdevotion to Him. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the meaning for the nAma as "He Who expands theuniverse", based on vRdh to increase vamSam prapa'ncam vardhayanvamSa-vardhanah. SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives the example of His growing the vamSa of pANDava-sby protecting parIkshit parIkshit-samrakshaNena pANDu- kulam vardhayati itivamSa0vardhanah. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN quotes the growth of yadu vamSaitself as the example of His being vamSa-vardhanah vamSam yadoh vardahayatiiti vamSa-vardhanah yatra shaT pa'ncASat koTayah pradhAna bhUtA babhUvuh - wherethere were numerous prominent yAdava-s. c) An alternate interpretation given by SrI Sa'nkara is based vardh chedane - to cut: prapa'ncam chedayan vA vamSa-vardhanah He Who withdrawsthe universe. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri gives the specific example of Lord kRshNadestroying the yadu vamSa just before He decided to leave this world for SrIvaikunTham (SrImad bhAgavatam 11.30). -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 91 -

bhAra-bhRt kathito yogi yogISah sarva-kAma-dah | ASramah SramaNah kshAmahsuparNo vAyu-vAhanah || Om bhAra-bhRte namah Om kathitAya namah Om yogine namah Om yogISAya namah Omsarva-kAma-dAya namah Om ASramAya namah Om SramaNAya namah Om kshAmAya namah OmsuparNAya namah Om vAyu-vAhanAya namah 851. bhAra-bhRt He Who shoulders the burden.

Om bhAra-bhRte namah. Both the parts bhAra and bhRt are derived from the same root bhR dhAraNa poshaNayoh to hold, to support. bhAra refers to burden. bhArambibharti iti bhAra-bhRt He Who shoulders the burden is bhArabhRt. SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation in the context of bhagavAn'srelation to the jIva-s. In the viSishTAdvaita tradition, the jIva-s are of threetypes the baddha-s or the bound souls, the mukta-s or the liberated souls,and the nitya-s or the eternal souls. The baddha jIva-s attain liberation andbecome mukta-s and then reside in SrI vaikunTham, performing eternal service toHim. BhagavAn bears the burden of bringing about this liberation of the baddha-sto become mukta-s through the realization of their true nature and theattainment of Himself, and so He is described as bhAra-bhRt in SrI BhaTar'sinterpretation. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to the gItA, where bhagavAn Himself declaresthat He shoulders this burden of maintaining the welfare and prosperity of Hisdevotees: ananyAS-cintayanto mAm ye janAh paryupAsate | teshAm nityAbhiyuktAnAm yogakshemam vahAmyaham || (gItA 9.22) "There are those who, excluding all else, think of Me and worship Me,aspiring after eternal union with Me. Their prosperity and welfare (yoga and kshema) are looked after by Me". SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also interprets the nAma as referring tobhagavAn's role of protecting His devotees bhAram bhakta rakshAyA bibhartiiti bhAra-bhRt. There is another dimension to the anubhavam of this `burden' of bhagavAn. Ifwe so much as utter the word "namah' to Him, He treats it as major `burden'of His to make sure that He protects us. SrI v. v. rAmAnujan quotes nammAzhvAr: vE'nkaTattu uraivArkku nama ennal Am kaDamai, adu SumandArgaTkE (tiruvAi.3.3.6) "It is our duty to say `namah' to tiru vE'nnkaTattAn; the rest is Hisburden to shoulder". We are all familiar with the sense of indebtedness that Lord kRshNa carrieduntil the day He left this world, to draupadi who called out His name for helpduring the vastra apaharaNa episode. Even though His nAma itself protecteddraupadi at that time, still He continued to feel that He owed a debt to herthat He could never fulfill throughout His incarnation in this world such isHis feeling of indebtedness to one who surrenders to Him unconditionally. SrI Sa'nkara interprets the bhAra or the `weight' that He carries as areference to His supporting the Universe on His shoulders in the form ofAdiSesha anantAdi rUpeNa bhuvo bhAram bibharti iti bhArabhRt. SrI satyasandha tIrtha explains the nAma as a reference to bhagavAn bearing the Universein the form of a Tortoise bhAram bhAra bhUtam brahmANDam kUrma rUpeNabibharti iti bhAra-bhRt.

SrI cinmayAnanda comments that the "carrying" that is referred tohere is not as a man would carry a load in the traditional sense. The sense tobe enjoyed here is that He is the cause of the Universe, and thus He is thebhAra-bhRt. He Whose greatness is extolled by all the veda-s,purANa-setc.. om kathitAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is kath vAkya prabandhe totell, to narrate. SrI BhaTTar's bhAshyam is "kathitah ukta vakshyamANa guNavattayAsarva SAstreshu" He is called kathitah because His fullness of all guNa-sthat have been described so far and that will be described hereafter, isdeclared in all the SAstra-s. SrI BhaTTar gives support from the jitante stuti(1.7) vacaSam vAcyam uttamam All the words (Sruti-s, smRti-s etc.),declare the greatness of this uttaman SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tirumazhiSai AzhvAr, who captures the gist ofthis nAma in his pASuram: SollinAl toDarcci nee, Solap paDum poruLum nee SollinAl SolappaDAdutOnRuginRa Sodi nee SollinAl paDaikka nee paDaikka vandu tOnRinAr SollinAlSuru'nga nin guNa'ngaL Solla vallarE? (tiruccanda. 11) "You are the Ultimate goal of the veda-s; You are the One declared asthe Supreme Brahman by the veda-s; You are the Supreme Effulgence that cannot bedescribed through words; You created brahmA so that he can perform the functionof creation using the veda-s as his aid, but even he cannot describe You throughwords even roughly". SrI rAmAnujan also refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 3.1.10, whereAzhvAr refers to emperumAn as "maRaiyAya nAl-vedattuL ninRa malarc-cuDarE" "You Who are the essence of all the four veda-s, that are hidden to thenAstika-s (maRai), and revealed to Your devotees (veda)". SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is vedAdibhih ayameka eva paratvena kathita iti kathitah; sarvair-vedaih kathita iti vA kathitah He alone is declared asSupreme by the veda-s etc., and all veda-s extol His virtue, and so He is calledkathitah. He gives several supporting quotes: - sarve vedA yat-padam Amananti (kaTho. 2.15) All the veda-s describe Hisstatus (as Supreme). - VedaiSca sarvam ahameva vedyah vedAntakRt veda-videva cAham (bhagavad gItA15.15) - "Indeed I alone am to be known from all the veda-s. I bring aboutthe fruition of the rituals of veda-s; I alone am the Knower of all the veda-s". - vede rAmAyaNe puNye bhArate bharatarshabha | Adau madhye thathA cAntevishNuh sarvatra gIyate (bhavishyat. 132.95) "vishNu is sung everywhere at the beginning, middle, and end of the veda-s,the holy rAmAyaNa, and bhArata, O Best of bharata race".

- sodhvanah paramApnoti tad-vishNoh paramam padam (kaTho. 3.9) "He(who has sound intellect as his charioteer and controlled mind as the bridle)reaches the end of the road, which is the highest place of vishNu". Other vyAkhyAna kartA-s give specific instances of His being a kathita, orOne Whose greatness is extolled by great sages. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj givesthe example of His fame being sung by the likes of nArada, vAlmIki, etc. nArada vAlmIki prabhRtibhih sa'kIrtita yaSo vistaratvAt kathitah. SrI satyasandha tIrtha refers to His being praised by the Agama-s kathitah sad-AgamaihpratipAditah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that even the veda-s fail in their attemptto describe Him completely. It is for singing His praise that we have beenprovided the ability of speech. Here is SrI vAsishTha's composition summarizinghis interpretation: vishNur-hi loke kathitah purANah tasyAntam Apnoti na vAg vacobhih | tasmAtsanAdeva ca vartamAnA vAgasti vaktum prati-jantu nishThA || He remarks that just as bhagavAn is kathitah or One Who should be spokenabout and praised, He is also a darSatah (He Who sees everything, He Who is theObject we should see in everything we see, He for seeing Whom we are endowedwith the ability to see, etc.,), SravaNah, sparSanah, rUpah, ghrANah, etc. 853. yogI a) He Who is endowed with super-human powers. b) He Who isrealized through yogic powers. c) He Who bonds everything together. d) He Whohas total control of His Self. e) He Who unites the devotees with their wishes i.e., He Who bestows the devotees' wishes. Om yogine namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is yuj yoge to unite. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation yujyate anena iti yogah;aghaTitArtha ghaTanam mahA prabhAvah sa asya atiSayena nitya yogena; sarvam etatsambhAvayati iti yogI There is a unique greatness in Him of bringingtogether a harmonious combination of things that generally do not go together;this unique greatness is present in Him in an extreme measure, and is quitenatural to Him. So He is called yogI. The context in which this notion is to beunderstood is in terms of the asTa aiSvarya-s that we saw in the previous Sloka the apparently conflicting characteristics of aNimA and mahimA, kRSa andsthula (laghimA and prApti), etc. It is not easy for one to have any one ofthese aiSvaryas in full measure. It is not possible to have all the eightaiSvarya-s in full measure in the same person, except in the case of bhagavAn.Thus, He is a One who has combined in Him these apparently conflicting aiSvarya-sto co-exist in full measure simultaneously, and so He is called a yogI in SrIBhaTTar's anubhavam. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation yogah j~nAnam, tenaivagamyatvAt yogi He Who can be attained through j~nAna or knowledge alone.This is an interpretation that is given along the

line of the advaitaphilosophy. In the viSishTAdvaita system, bhagavAn is attained only through thebhakti yoga or prapatti mArga, and j~nAna yoga is an accessory along with karmayoga in leading to the bhakti mArga. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains the term yoga as the process by which onedraws his/her mind towards Him when it tries to wander and stray away into otherthings. BhagavAn is called yogI since He is attained by the process of yoga(namely, by control of the mind and the senses). c) SrI vAsishTha interprets the nAma as signifying that bhagavAn alone hasthe ability to keep everything in the universe bound together as one unit, andso He is called yogi yogair-yuktam ca idam SarIram yogi, sakala'nca viSvamparasparam baddham yogi, esha ca yoga rUpo guNo bhagavato vishNureva sarvatra vyAptah. His derivation as yujyate sambadhyate iti yogi He Who unites orbonds everything together, is yogI. d) SrI Sa'nkara gives the alternate interpretation that He is called yogIbecause He has total control of His Self yogah samAdhih, sa hi svAtmanisarvadA samAdhatte svAtmAnam tena vA yogi. SrI cinmayAnanda takes his definition for the term yoga from the yoga SAstra-s yogah citta vRtti nirodhah yoga is stopping of all though flow. One whohas no thought agitations who has totally conquered the mind, and lives inHis own Effulgent Self is the greatest yogi, and hence bhagavAn has this nAmaper cinmyAnanda. e) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that the nAmasignifies that He unites the devotees with their wishes, in other words, Hebestows the desired wishes for their devotees yojayati svajanAn tadabhIshTenaiti yogI. We have seen the nAma yogah (nAma 18 Slokam 3), which is related to thecurrent nAma. . The write-up for nAma 18 complements the current write-up, andthe reader is referred to the earlier write-up for additional enjoyment of thisnAma. 854. yogISah - He Who is the foremost Lord of all yogins. Om yogISAya namah. SrI BhaTTar started the interpretation of the nAma-s from sva-dhRtah (nAma847) in terms of the relation of bhagavAn to the three types of souls. Hecontinues that thread in this nAma also. For the current nAma, hisinterpretation is that bhagavAn is called yogISah because He is the foremostLord of all yogins, and bears the responsibility to bring about the perfectionof yoga in these devotees even as they are in the midst of the bound souls inthis world. Thus, even for the likes of sanaka who are by nature gifted with thepowers of meditation, it is He who has to bring about the perfection of the yogaso that they attain SrI vaikunTham. He gives the support for this interpretationfrom SrI vishNu purANam: sanandanAdIn apa-kalmashAn munIn cakAra bhUyah ati-pavitram padam | (vishNupurAnam) "He conferred the highly pure goal, namely SrI vaikunTham, upon sanakaand other sages who were flawless".

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram whichconveys the sense of His being the yogISa who is worshipped by the yogi-s: kalakkam illA nal tava munivar karai kaNDOr tuLakkam illA vAnavar ellAmtozhuvArgaL. (tiruvAi. 8.3.10) "The Seers such as janaka, sanaka, etc., who have clear perception as aresult of their true penance and devotion, the mukta-s who have crossed theocean of the enjoyment of His unlimited auspicious qualities through enjoymentand experience, and the nitya-s who have not had the slightest trace of the fearof this samsAra - all serve Him with pure delight". The mumukshu-s, themukta-s and the nitya-s are all referred to here. SrI Sa'nkara gives the meaning "The Supreme amongst yogin-s" to thenAma, and explains that unlike other yogins who are subject to being obstructedby impediments to yoga and falling off from their progress, bhagavAn isunobstructed and free from any impediments, and so He is called the "Lordof the yogin-s", or Supreme among yogins. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that He is worshipped andmeditated upon by the karma yogin-s, j~nAna yogins and bhakti yogin-s, and so Heis yogISah. He gives the following gItA verse in support: yoginAmapi sarveshAm mad-gatenAntarAtmanA | SraddhAvAn bhajate yo mAm sa me yukta-tamo matah || ( gItA 6.47) "He who worships Me with faith, whose innermost self is fixed in Me, Iconsider him as the greatest of the yogin-s". The idea conveyed is that Heis the object of worship - the Lord, of the best among yogin- s. SrI cinmyAnanda describes a yogin as one who is free - completely and fully -from any involvement while being in the midst of samsAra and its seethingactivities. BhagavAn alone qualifies as the King of yogi-s by this description. SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives an alternate anubhavam that is different fromthe others - yoginAm Sam (=sukham) yasmAt iti yogISah - He through Whom (bymeditating on Whom) the yogi-s attain great delight is yogI-Sah. SrI vAsishTha uses the meaning "union" for the word yoga, and givesthe interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma signifying that He keepseverything bound together - for instance, all the bones in the body are keptunited together so that the body is in one functional piece. While this examplemay sound trivial, the whole universe is held together only because of His powerof yoga or union. 855. sarva-kAma-dah - He Who bestows all desires. Om sarva-kAma-dAya namah. sarvAn kAmAn dadAti iti sarva-kAma-dah - He Who bestows all desires issarva-kAma-dah. SrI BhaTTar points out that bhagavAn grants all desires sought by the devotedyogin, including the powers such as aNimA (one of the previously discussed ashTasiddhi-s), even though these are impediments to the path for Salvation. In otherwords, even if the yogin falls from his ultimate path of seeking Salvation, andinstead seeks lesser benefits, bhagavAn is still the bestower of whateverbenefits the devotee seeks.

SrI BhaTTar notes that even those who have not perfected their yoga and whoslip from this path because of distraction from desire etc., will still get thebenefit of their yogic effort, and will be bestowed with good birth in the nextjanma. He quotes the gItA in support: prApya puNya kRtAm lokAn ushitvA SASvatIh samAh | SucInAm SrImatAm gehe yoga-bhrashTo'bhijAyate || (gItA 6.41) "He who has fallen away from yoga is born again in the house of the pureand prosperous after having attained to the worlds of doers of good deeds and living there formany long years". SrI Sa'nkara quotes the brahma sUtra 3.2.38 in support - phalamata upapatteh, which declares that the Lord alone is capable of bestowing any benefits for yogaor effort of any kind. So He alone is sarva- kAma-dah. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives support from SrImad bhAgavatam: a-kAmah sarva-kAmo vA moksha-kAma udAra-dhIh | tIvreNa bhakti-yogena yajeta purusham param || (bhAga. 2.3.10) "He who has no desire in anything, or one who is desirous of allbenefits, or one who is realized enough to be interested in moksha, shouldworship the parama purusha with intense devotion". In other words, He isthe Only One whom we should worship, no matter what our desires are - dharma,artha, kAma or moksha, because He alone is the Ultimate Bestower of all benefits- sarva-kAma-dah. This concluding message is given by SrI Suka muni to parIkshitafter discussing several alternate routes such as worshiping the lesser devatA-sfor attaining the lesser benefits. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to the Upanishad: esha u eva vAmanIresha sarvANi vAmAni nayati | sarvANi vAmAni nayati ya evam veda || (chAndogya. 4.15.3) "And He alone is vAmani, since He grants all good things to those whotake refuge in Him". (SrI N. S. ananta ra~ngAcArya explains that vAmanI here refers to vAmanItvam -sva ASriteshu Sobhana prApakattvam He Who bestows all auspiciousness on those Who have taken refuge in Him). Note the double emphasis on `sarvAni vAmAni nayati". In vedic parlance,double emphasis is used to reinforce the strength of the declaration. SrI SAstri also refers us to the nAma kAma-pra-dah in Slokam 32 (nAma 299),which has a similar meaning. 856. ASramah - He Who provides an abode of rest for the seekers. Om ASramAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is Sramu - tapasi khede ca - to takepains, to be fatigued. The prefix A sometimes gives the meaning opposite to thatof the verb it follows (e.g., gam - to go, A- gam - to come; dA - to give, A-dA- to take). Similarly, the word A- Srama gives the meaning - to rest, oppositeof Srama. ASrama refers to a place of rest, a hermitage.

SrI BhaTTar continues the thread from his interpretation for the previousnAma, where he pointed out that bhagavAn bestows the lesser benefits for thosewho have swerved from the path of yoga after starting on that path. When theyhave completed the enjoyment of the meritorious benefits for their lessereffort, then He gives them `a place of rest' - birth in the houses of SrIvaishNava-s where true knowledge of the Lord can be had in profusion and theycan become refreshed: tato vivRtya subhiksha para vidyeshu vaishNava gRheshuteshAm viSrAnti-hetuh ASramah. In other words, this birth in a good family is toenable those who have been interrupted in their yoga in their previous birth, torest and then continue and succeed in the current birth by being provided theright conditions and environment for the successful completion of theinterrupted yoga. Note the second line of the gItA Slokam 6.41 that was given asa reference for the previous nAma - SucInAm SrImatAm gehe yoga-bhrashTahabhijAyate - they are born in the house of the pure and prosperous (prosperousmeaning they are delighting themselves in pure and exclusive devotion to theLord). This "Place of Rest" that is referred to by the nAma ASramah isnothing but meditation on His Holy Feet, and the association with bhAgavata-swho have nothing but Him in their mind. This is nicely brought out in thepASuram by nammAzhvar to which SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us: ..... nalam koL nAn-maRai vANargaL vAzh tirumOgUr nalam kazhal avan aDinizhal taDam anRi yAmE (tiruvAi. 10.1.2) Note the reference to the "nAn maRai vEdiyargaL", and to His `aDinizhal". These are the two things that really give the rest, not only inthis birth, but for all birth to come according to nammAzhvAr. In the vyAkhyAnam,it is pointed out that the association with the bhAgavata-s is extremelybeneficial because they are "nalam koL vANargaL" - those who areinterested in lifting us up to their levels, and those who are interested in ourwelfare without any benefit for them. It is a delight to dwell deep intonammAzhvAr's pASuram-s. SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation - ASramavat sarveshAm samsAra AraNyebhramatAm viSrama sthAnatvAt ASramah He is called ASramah (The Hermitage of peace) since He is like an ASramam forthose who wander in the forest of samsAra. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives an interpretation similar to those ofSrI Sa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar bhavATavyAm bhramatAm sarveshAm bhaktAnAm viSrama dAyitvAt ASramah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri generalizes the concept of ASramah as all thedifferent means by which bhagavAn gives rest to those who have been stressedthrough the forest of samsAra - including the ASrama-s of vAna prasthA, sanyAsa,sleep, samAdhi, and finally moksha. SrI satya sandha tIrtha interprets the nAma as "He Who is the Lord of those who have no Srama or hardship na vidyate Sramo yeshAm te a- SramA muktAh, teshAm ayam svAmi iti ASramah. SrI raghunAtha tIrtha in his tattva sAra, based on bRhat sahasra, gives theinterpretation A - samyak, Sramyate - tapyate, gUhyate iti A-Sramah He Who completely conceals Himself. SrI satya devo vAsishTha interprets the first syllable A'ng as an upasarga(prefix), and gives the explanation -

ASramyante karmAnurUpAm yonim prApaya yena iti ASramah He by Whom the jIva-s are made to endure the birth in this world according totheir karma- s, is ASramah; or, He through meditation on whom the tapasvin-s undergo the rigors ofmeditation and penance - is called A-Sramah. Note that SrI vAsishTha is not using the prefix A to derive the meaning asopposite of Srama as Sri BhaTTar and Sri Sa'nkara did, but has instead used theprefix A as a reinforcement of the meaning of the word Srama - One Who ensuresthat the jIva-s go through the toils according to their karma-s. 857. SramaNah a) He Who makes it possible to continue the effort of uncompleted yoga in thenext birth. b) He Who torments those who have not exercised their discriminatingability. c) He Who undertook tapas in the form of nara nArAyaNa for the welfare of theworld. d) He Who is the source of subsistence for sanyAsin-s. e) Subject matter of, andknown by, hymns of praise. The root from which this nAma is derived is the same as that for the previousnAma - Sramu - tapasi khede ca - to take pains, to be fatigued. Sramyate itiSramaNah - He Who strains or makes one put in the effort is SramaNah. a) SrI BhaTTar continues his thread from the interpretation for the nAma 853- yogI, and has interpreted the next few nAma-s in terms of bhagavAn's relationwith the practitioners of yoga, and His supportive treatment of them, even ifthey do not complete their yoga in one birth. In this spirit, SrI BhaTTarinterprets the current nAma as referring to bhagavAn making it possible forthose that have not completed their yoga in a given birth, to resume where theyleft off with minimal effort in their next birth - "anAyesena"Sramyate iti SramaNah. He quotes support from the gItA: tatra tam buddhi samyogam labhate paurva daihikam | yatate ca tato bhUyahsamsiddhau kurunandana || ( gItA 6.43) "There he regains the disposition of mind which he had in his formerbody, O arjuna, and from there he strives much more for success in yoga". b) SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as "One Who torments those who are notcapable of discrimination" avivekinah sarvAn santApayati iti SramaNah.SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains this as the situation where, even thoughbhagavAn is indicating the right path for attaining Him, there are many among uswho do not want to follow that path, and then He is left with no choice exceptto make us undergo the effects of our karma, and as most of us know, it is atormenting experience to be born and living in samsAra. SrI cinamyAnanda puts the idea more graphically: "One Who prosecutes theworldly people - who, driven by their hungers and passions, seeksense-gratifications. By the very nature of the ephemeral sense- objects and theever-changing instruments of experience in us, the life of gratifications canonly yield exhausting fatigue and weary disappointments. This is the `Law' andSrI nArAyaNa is the `Law- Giver'". c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj attributes the Sramam to bhagavAn Himself, inHis incarnation as nara nArAyaNa, for the protection of the world - SrAmayatitapas carati nara nArAyaNa rUpeNa loka sa'ngrahAya iti SramaNah.

d) SrI santya sandha tirtha interprets the nAma as: SramaNAh sannyAsinah asyadAsattvena santi iti SramaNah - SramaNa refers to sanyAsins, and since sanyAsin-sexist through dAsatvam to Him, He is called SramaNah. e) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha in his tattva sAra, gives the interpretation -Sramanti jAnanti anena iti SramaNam stutih | stutimAn stuti vishayah SramNah ||- "Subject matter of, and known by, hymns of praise ( translation by SrI K.SrIpAdha rAo). 858. ksAmah a) One Who is in a diminished form (in the form of dhruva, the PoleStar). b) He Who helps the yogi to become well-equipped. c) He Who alone is left behind at the time of pralaya. d) He Who reduces everything to its un-evolved state at the time of pralaya. e) He Who remains hidden amongst us, and he in Whom everything is hidden. f) He Who is the final abode for all (kshAyati). g) He Who has established the Universe in all its dimensions (kshA + mAne) h) He Who restrains and controls those of demonic disposition (kshA + mavate) i) He Who bore the Earth (in His varAha incarnation) j) Remover of obstructions in the path of cows (ksham + Ama). k) He Who endures patiently. Om kshAmAya namah. This nAma was dealt with earlier in Slokam 47 - nAma 444. The nAma can be derived from the following roots: kshi - kshaye - to decay, kshi - himsAyAm - to destroy, kshi - nivAsa gatyoh - to dwell, and ksham - sahane - to allow, to be capable of. In addition, interpretations have been given by looking at the word as ksham +Ama, kshA + mA, etc., for which details are given below. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the root kshi - kshaye - to decay, in his interpretationof nAma 444, and ksham - sahane, for his interpretation of the current instanceof the nAma. Incidentally, this resolves the avoidance of redundancy ininterpretation in SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam. nAma 444 was interpreted by SrI BhaTTar as a reference to bhagavAn's form asthe Pole Star. Revisiting the write-up for this nAma in Slokam 47, we have: "SrI BhaTTar explains this nAma by pointing out that bhagavAn stands inthe formof dhruva in a diminished form at the time of the dissolution of theEarth inclusive of the five elements. All the luminaries up to dhruva disappear,and dhruva alone remains shining in his place, as stated in vishNu purANa "yAvan-mAtre pradeSe tu maitreyAvasthito dhruvah | kshayamAyAti tAvat-tubhumerAbhUtasamplave || 2.8.92".

b) For the interpretation of the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTaruses the root (ksham - sahane - to allow, to be capable of). Continuing on hisinterpretations of the nAma-s 855 to 861 in terms of His role as One Who upliftsand supports those that have not successfully completed the yogic path, heexplains the current nAma as "One who allows those who have slipped fromthe path of yoga to fulfill their effort by giving them the necessary strengthto achieve this, if only they show an inclination for this - sva yogAbhimukhyamAtreNa te yoga-bhrashTA api durgam taritum kshamante asmAt iti kshAmagh. Hequotes the gItA Slokam 6.40 in support: pArtha naiveha nAmutra vinASas-tasya vidyate | na hi kalyANa-kRt kaScitdurgatim tAta gacchati || (gItA 6.40) "Neither here (in this world), nor there (in the next), arjuna, is theredestruction for him. For, no on one who does good ever comes to an evilend". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the meaning "One Who makes the yogin skilled incontinuing and fulfilling the yoga" - "tiRamai uDaiyavanAgac ceybavan". c) Sri Sa'nkara bases his interpretation for the instance of the nAma inSlokam 47 on kshi - kshye - to decay, and explains that bhagavAn has this nAmasignifying that He alone is left behind after everything disappears duringpralaya - sarva-vikAreshu kshapiteshu svAtmanA avasthita iti kshAmah. d) For the current instance of the nAma, he gives another variant of the actof bhagavAn during pralaya that He reduces all beings to the state in whichthey were prior to the current created form - kshAmAh kshINAh sarvAh prajAhkaroti iti kshAmah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the example of how bhagavAngradually removes the functions of the indirya-s, mind etc., gradually beforethe final moment in our own life - the function of kshAma or decay. SrI kRshNadatta bhAradvAj give another anubhavam of His function of kshAma or destruction- He eliminates the wicked - kshAmAn = kshInAn karoti dur- janAn iti kshAmah. e) SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives an interpretation using the meaning"hidden" for "kshaya", and explains the nAma as referring tobhagavAn who remains hidden amongst us while being present in all of us, or inwhom we are all hidden - ya etasmin viSve antarleenah tishThati sarvam vyApya,yasmin vA idam viSvam praleeyate. f) Alternatively, using the root kshi - nivAsagatyoh - to dwell, SrIvAsishTha gives the alternate interpretation that this nAma of bhagavAnsignifies that He is the ultimate abode for all at the time of pralaya -kshAyati = nivAsayati, gamayati iti kshAmah. g) Among the other anubhava-s of SrI vAsishTha are: kshA refers to theUniverse (kshA = pRthivee), and the root mA'ng - mAne Sabde ca means "tomeasure, to sound". Using these, his interpretation is that the nAma canrefer to bhagavAn being the One Who has established this Universe as such andsuch., has given it the ability to function, and has equipped it with sound etc.- kshA iti viSva upalakshaNam; evam ca viSvam idam ya iyattayA nibadhnAti,gatidAnena Sabdavacca karoti it kshAmah. h) SrI satya sandha tIrtha interprets the nAma as kshA + mA - kshA - narakaAh,tAn mavate - badhnAti iti kshA-mah - He Who binds (restrains, controls) thedemons is kshA-mah. (The root is mav - bandhane himsAyAm ca - to fasten, tobind, to kill).

i) An alternate interpretation by SrI satya sandha tIrtha is: kshamAyA ayamdhArako varAhAdi rUpeNa iti kshAmah - He Who bore the Earth (bhU devi) in HisvarAha incarnation, is kshAmah. j) For the instance in Sloka 47, SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives theinterpretation - ksham gavAm samrodha viSesham Aminoti kRntati iti kshAmah -Remover of obstructions in the path of the cows (ksham + Ama). k) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI raghunatha tIrtha'sinterpretation is: kshamate sahate iti kshAmah - He Who endures patiently. 859. suparNah a) One Who has beautiful wings in the form of hamsa, garuDa, etc. b) He Who helps the yogi-s cross the ocean of samsAra. c) He Who enables everything to move around. d) He Who is in the form of the veda-s (as the leaves of the tree of samsAra). e) One Who is decorated with the beautiful green tulasi leaves. f) One Who has the green color of emerald because of His association with Lakshmi. g) One Who is easily pleased by pure devotion. h) He Who is the Abode of Supreme Happiness (su-par-Nah). i) He Who rests on the beautiful tender green fig-tree leaf (at the time of prlaya). j) He Who pervades the entire Universe completely. k) He Who has suparNa garuDa as His vAhana. Om suparNAya namah. We enjoyed this nAma earlier as part of Slokam 21 (nAma 194). SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives two roots from which the different interpretations can be explained: pAr tIr karma samAptau to finish, to get through or over; and parN harita bhAve to make green. Based on these, the word parNa means wing as well as leaf. The different interpretations for the nAma include: One who has beautiful wings, One Who enables the jIva-s cross the ocean of samsAra, One who gives everything the ability to move around, One who makes everything live and thrive (green), One who is decorated with the green tulasi leaves, etc. SrI BhaTTar interprets the two instances of the nAma as a) One Who has beautiful wings (e.g., in His hamsa incarnation), and b) One Who helps the yogin-s cross the ocean of samsAra (with beautiful wings that carry the samsArin-s across the ocean of samsAra) Sobhana parNatvAt, samsAra-pAra-nayanAt vA suparNah . a) While SrI BhaTTar himself has not made a direct reference to the hamsa incarnation in his interpretation, other interpreters have elaborated on SrI BhaTTars interpretation as a reference to bhagavAns hamsa incarnation, or alternatively as a reference to His being the antaryAmi of garuDa. SrI M. V. rAmAnujAcArya and SrI P. B. aNNangarAcArya explain the nAma as a reference to His hamsa incarnation. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains the nAma as referring to garuDa, who has bhagavAn as his antaryAmi. Alternatively, suparNa refers to garuDa, and bhagavAn is suparNah since He has garuDa as His vAhana. In SrImadbhAgavatam we have - siddheSvarANAm kapilah suparNo'ham patatriNAm - Among the siddha-s, I am Kapila, and among birds I am GaruDa (11.16.15). In Bhagavad-gItA, we have mRgANAm ca mRgendro'ham vainateyaSca pakshiNAM Among beasts, I am the lion, their king, and among birds, I am GaruDa, the son of VinatA (10.29).

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that the two wings of this form of bhagavAn suparNah can be enjoyed as: a) one wing representing the veda-s that show the path for our conduct; and b) the other wing representing the sadAcAram practised by our AcArya-s and elders through their conduct of life following the teachings of the veda-s. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha explains the nAma in terms of the muNDakopanishad passage quoted below: In the upanishad-s, we have reference to two beautiful birds sitting on the same tree - signifying the jIvAtmA and the paramAtmA dwelling in the same body. One (jIvAtmA) eats the fruits of actions, and the other (paramAtmA) just gazes on (sAkshI). VishNu is this all-experiencing Principle of Consciousness. dvA suparNA sayujA sakhAyA samAnam vRksham parishvajAte | tayoranyah pippalam svAdvanti, anaSnan anyo abhicAkaSIti || (muNDakopanishad - 3.1). A pair of white-winged birds extremely friendly to each other sit on one and the same tree; one eats the fruits, the other eats not and gazes on". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to one as the great enjoyer (pErinbam), and the other as the Great Knower (pEraRivu). b) SrI BhaTTars interpretation for the current instance of the nAma is that He enables the yogi-s who have fallen from the path of yoga to get back in track and cross the ocean of samsAra evam pratyApanna samAdhIn samAdhi-vipAka-dvArA tamasah pAram nayati iti su-parNah. He gives support from the maula samhitA and from the gItA: sva-pAram bhagavAn nayati (maula.) The Lord leads them to reach the shore

prayatnAd-yatamAnastu yogi samSuddha kilbishah | aneka janma samsiddhah tato yAti parAm gatim || (gItA 6.45) The yogin, striving earnestly, cleansed of all his stains, and perfected through many births, reaches Me. c) SrI vAsishTha also gives another dimension to the anubhavam in terms of His being One with the best and beautiful wings He is the One Who enables everything in the Universe including the Sun, the Moon etc., to move around because of His beautiful wings, in other words, by His Power. d) Using the meaning leaf for the term parNa, SrI Sankara explains the nAma as referring to bhagavAn in the form of veda-s represented by the leaves of the tree of samsAra, as described by Lord kRshNa in the gItA Slokam 15.1: Urdhva mUlam adhah Sakham aSvattham prAhur-avyayam chandAmsi yasya parNAni yas-tam veda sa veda-vit || | (gItA 15.1)

They speak of an immutable aSvattha tree with its roots above and branches below. Its leaves are the veda-s. He who knows it knows the veda-s. SrI SAstri continues on the above, and explains that He is also suparNah because He gives protection to the jIva-s in their sojurn in this samsAra by giving them the shade in the form of the beautiful leaves of this immutable aSvattha tree while they go through the samsAra to expend their karma-s.

e) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as One Whose form is decorated with the green tulasi leaves SobhanAni parNAni tulasI dalAni yan-mUrtau sa su-parNah. For one of the instances of the nAma, SrI vidyA bhUshaNs anubhavam is along the same lines: bhagavAn is more pleased wearing the beautiful green tulasi leaves than when wearing the precious jewels, and so He is su-parNah SobhanAni parNAni tulasI patrANyeva na tu kanaka ratnAni yasmin sa su-parNah.. f) SrI bhAradvAj gives an alternate interpretation as well: He is su-parNah since He has the green emerald color because of His association with SrI lakshmi Who resides in His vaksha-sthalam - Sobhanah parNo harita bhAvo yasya SrI lakshmI devI sAnnidhyAt iti su-parNah. g) SrI bhAradvAj gives a third interpretation using the root pRN prINane to please, to satisfy, and explains the nAma as Sobhanam parNam prINanam yasya iti su-parNah He Who is easily pleased and satisfied by the sincere offerings of His devotee. One is reminded of the gItA Slokam patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktyA prayacchati | tad-aham bhaktyuoahRtam aSnAmi prayatAtmanah || (gItA 15.1) Whoever offers Me with true devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit or some water, I accept this offering made with devotion by him who is pure of heart. h) SrI T. S. Raghavendran has given the following in his SrI vishNu sahasra nAma sangrahArtha (this also corresponds closely to the interpretation given by SrI raghunAtha tIrtha in his tattva sAra for this nAma in Slokam 21): su = sobhana, para = uttama, Nah = Anandah, tAn santi iti su-par-Nah He is called su-parNah because He is the Abode of Supreme happiness. i) SrI satya sandha tIrtha enjoys the nAma as referring to One Who is resting on the beautiful green tender leaf of a fig-tree at the time of pralaya Sobhanam parNam vaTa-patram SayyAtvena yasya sa su-parNah. j) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI raghnAtha tIrtha gives the interpretation: su samyak bhUmin pUrayati vyApnoti iti su-parNah He Who pervades the earth completely. 860. vAyu-vAhanah a) He Who makes the wind flow for the benefit of sustaining life. b) He Who lifts up the fallen with the swiftness of air with the help of garuDa c) He Who had "The vAyu - hanumAn" as His vehicle during His rAma incarnation. We enjoyed this nAma in Slokam 36 - nAma 333 earlier. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the roots involved in the nAma: vA - gati gandhanayoh - to go, to blow, etc., and vah - prApaNe - to carry, to flow. He gives the derivation as: vAyuh vAhyate - pravartyate anena iti vAyu-vAhanah - He because of Whom the air flows;. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in Slokam 36 as a reference to bhagavAn's act of driving the air (making it move and flow) that is vital for the survival of all beings. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives refers us to tiruma'ngai AzhvAr's tiru ehu kURRirukkai - mEdamum aim- perum bhUtamum neeyE - "You are the Force behind the five great elements that are constituents of the body that houses the jIva-s".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives reference to the bRhadAraNyaka Upanishad, which describes that bhagavAn is the antaryAmi of vAyu, and makes vAyu flow etc. yo vAyau tishThan vAyorantaro yam vAyur na veda yasya vAyuh SarIram yo vAyurantaro yamayati esha ta AtmA antaryAmi amRtah | (bRhad. 3.7.11) "He who dwells in vAyu, who is within the vAyu (Air), whom Air does not know, whose body is Air, and who controls Air from within, is the Inner Ruler (antaryAmi), the Immortal". SrI Sa'nkara explains the first instance of the nAma in Slokam 36 as "He Who is the Director of the seven vital airs - vahatah sapta AvahAdIn vAhayati it vAyuvAhanah" - bhagavAn has this nAma signifying that He is the Controller of the atmosphere in the seven regions of space. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes in detail about these seven regions that are controlled by seven different sons of kaSyapa and diti, because of the powers given to them by bhagavAn. They are called the saptamaruta-s - A-vaha, pra-vaha, sam-vaha, ud-vaha, vi- vaha, pari-vaha, and parA-vaha. The upasarga prior to the term vaha in each case signifies the kind of force that is exerted by this type of flow, for instance udvaha is the force that lifts up, etc. The seven maruts control seven regions of the Universe. Six of these regions are listed by many of the authors. These regions are: the space between earth and the clouds, that between the clouds and the sun, that between the sun and the moon, the moon and the stars, the stars and the planets, and the planets and the sapta-Rshi manDala. It is said that it is because of the pressure exerted by these regions of air that the various stellar objects do not collide with each other. In short, SrI cinmayAnanda summarizes the above in the following words: "The inconceivable might and power of the winds and their life-sustaining abilities are all lent to the air by bhagavAn's own munificence and, therefore, He is called vAyu-vAhanah". For the current instance of the nAma, SrI Sa'nkara explains that bhagavAn is vAyu-vAhanah or "One Who makes the air flow and sustain all beings". In this instance his anubhavam is that the Air flows because of the fear of bhagavAn if the air does not comply as directed. As mentioned in the taittirIya Upanishad: "bhIshAsmAd- vAtah pavate" (taitt. 2.8) - "The wind blows through fear of Him". Another anubhavam given by SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri is that bhagavAn redeems His devotees swiftly like air, and so He is vAyu-vAhanah. SrI vAsishTha comments that at the time of creation, bhagavAn first makes the air flow, and then gives body to the jIva-s so that they can move around or breathe and live, and so He is vAyu-vAhanah. This great Power of bhagavAn is not easily perceived by us. Sri vAsishTha gives several references to the vedic passages in support: - tad-dhAvato'nyAn-atyeti tishThat-tasmin-apo mAtariSvA dadhAti (ISAvAsya. 4) - While not moving, It goes faster than those who run after It. By Its Power, the Air supports all the living beings". - kasmAd-a'ngAt dIpyate agnir-asya kasmAd-a'ngAt pavate mAtariSvA (atharva. 10.7.2) - By Whose movement or force the agni glows, and by whose movement the air flows".

- kva prepsan dIpyata Urdhvo agnih, kva prepsan pavate mAtariSvA (atharva. 10.7.4) - How (by Whose Power) the agni always blazes upward, and by Whose Power the wind flows". - yatrAgniS-candramAh sUryo vAtas-tishThantyArpitAh | skambham tam brUhi katamah svideva sah || (atharva. 10.7.12) "That Support on which the earth, firmament and sky are set as their foundation, in Whom the Fire, Moon, Sun, and Wind have their foundation". - yasmAd vAtA RtudhA pavante yasmAd samudrA adhi viksharanti (atharva. 13.3.2) - He from Whom winds blow pure in ordered seasons, and from Whom the seas flow forth in ordered directions. b) For the current instance of the nAma vAyu-vAhanah, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn lifts up those that have fallen into the ocean of samsAra, using garuDa, who is noted for his swiftness. vAyu here signifies garuDa, the king of birds, who is known for his swift movement. SrI BhaTTar's words are - tAnSca prabala hetubhih patitAnapi, vAyunA - anupamagatvareNa patagapatinA, vAhayati uttArayati iti vAyu-vAhanah. He quotes an example from vishNu tattva - the story of King uparicara vasu. This king was cursed by a great sage to wander in the nether worlds. He was a great devotee of bhagavAn, and so bhagavAn sent garuDa who lifted him up from the nether worlds and brought him back to the upper worlds. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that bhagavAn is vAyu-vAhanah or "One Who has Air as His vehicle" on account of another incident as well - It is said that when bhagavAn had to rush to save gajendra, finding that the speed of garuDa was not fast enough, bhagavAn just used the Air as His vehicle, and reached gajendra and saved him. c) Sri ananta kRshNa SAstri takes "vAyu" to refer to "The vAyu" - the son of vAyu, namely hanumAn, and notes that bhagavAn is vAyu-vAhanah since He had hanumAn as the "vehicle" in His rAma incarnation during the battle with rAvaNa. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the following interpretation: vAti - gandhayate sUcayati SrImad-bhagavad Agamanam iti vAyuh | tad- vAhanam garutmadAkhyam yasya iti vAyu-vAhanah | garutmatah sa'ncalane sAma-gItir-udbhavati, sA ca SrIman nArAyaNasya Agamanam sUcyati | That which, or one who announces the arrival of bhagavAn is vAyu, based on "vAti - gandhayate sUcayati". BhagavAn has garutmAn as His vAhana, who announces His arrival, and so He is vAyuvAhana. The movement of garuDa produces sAma gAnam, which again announces the arrival of bhagavAn ahead of His arrival. e) SrI satya sandha tIrtha looks at the nAma as vAyuvAh + nah: vAyum - svAsa vAyum vahanti iti vAyuvAh, jIvAh; tAn nayati iti vayAvAha-nah - Those that inhale and exhale the prANa vAyu (vAyu) are called vAyu-vAh; One Who leads them is vAyuvAha-nah. f) In his alternative interpretation, SrI satya sandha tIrtha looks at the nAma as vAyuvah + vRtu - vartana - to exist, to happen, to live on; aha - vyAptau - to pervade. He Who makes vAyu exist, and to pervade is vAyuvah + ahanah - vAyuvaSca asau ahanaSca iti vAyuvAhanah.

dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 92 -

dhanur-dharo dhanur-vedo daNDo damayitA'damah a-parAjitah sarva-saho niyantA niyamo yamah ||

om om om om om om om om om om

dhanur-dharAya namah dhanur-vedAya namah daNDAya namah damayitre namah a-damAya namah a-parAjitAya namah sarva-sahAya namah niyantre namah niyamAya namah yamAya namah

861. dhanur-dharah - The weilder of the bow. Om dhanur-dharAya namah. dhanusho dharah dhanur-dharah - One Who has the bow. Both SrI Sa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar interpret this nAma as "One Who carries the bow in His hand". The word dhanus is derived from the root dhan - to sound, or from the root dhan - dhAnye - to bear fruit. a) SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that bhagavAn has this nAma indicating that He carries His bow by name SAr'nga in order to remove the obstacles in the path of the devotees performing yoga to attain Him. The reason for Lord rAma carrying the bow with Him during His vana- vAsam was precisely to remove the obstacles to the penance performed by the Rshi-s in the forest. This is kshatriya dharma - "etad-artham hi loke'smin kshatriyair-dhAryate dhanuh" It is for this reason that the bow is wielded by the kshatriya-s in this world;

- "dhAryate kshatriyaih cApo na Arta Sabdo bhaved-iti" The bow is always carried by the kshatriya-s so that there may not be the cry of distress anywhere. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan nicely translates the nAma into tamizh as "Sar'ngapANi" - "One Who has SA'rnga in His hand". nammAzhvAr personifies all His weapons themselves as being filled with anger at the very sight of the enemy, and ready to remove the sorrow of the devotees - kAi Sina Azhi Sa'ngu vAL taNDu Endi em iDar kaDivAnE (tiruvAi. 9.2.6). nammAzhvAr also refers to emperumAn as "kuni Sar'ngan" (tiruvAi. 8.8.1) - One Who has in His hand the Sar'nga bow that is bent as if with respect. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is - "SrImAn rAma nAmA mahad-dhanur- dhArayAmAsa iti dhanur-dharah He Who carried the great bow in His rAma incarnation (to protect the sages). The key word to emphasize is "the great bow". There are others who have carried the bow, but none is equal to rAma in wielding the bow. Lord kRshNa decalres as such in the gItA - Of those who bear weapons, I am rAma. ...... rAmah Sastra bhRtAm aham | (gItA 10.31)

SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri refers to rAma's skill in wielding the bow and arrow He could even convert a shade of grass as an arrow in chasing kAkAsura all over the three worlds and making Him surrender at His Feet ultimately. c) SrI cinmayAnanda gives an interesting reference to muNDakpanishad, where the "bow" refers to the praNava: dhanur-gRhItvaupanishadam mahAstram Saram hyupAsAniSitam samdhayIta | Ayamya tad-bhAva gatena cetasA lakshyam tadevAksharam somya viddhi || (muNDa. 2.2.3) "Having taken the bow (called praNava) well known in the upanishads, one should fix on it an arrow (the Atman) that has been sharpened by constant meditation. Drawing it with the mind fixed on the Brahman, O good looking one, know that the Immutable itself is the target". The next mantra explicitly declares: "praNavo dhanuh, Saro hyAtmA, brahma tal-lakshyamucyate". c) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN, an exponent of the gauDIya vaishNava sampradAyam, gives his interpretation in terms of bhagavAn's kRshNa incarnation, and refers to His bearing the bow to shoot the fish at His svayamvaram with lakshaNA svayamvare matsya vedhanAya dhanusho dharaNAt dhanur-dharah. The incident of arjuna piercing through the fish in the svayamvara of draupadi is well-known, but the reference here is to a similar incident that refers to bhagavAn. This incident could not be traced through the internet search, and so the original reference to this incident could not be located. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives reference to the Rg vedic mantra in support: aham rudrAya dhanur-Atanomi brahmadvishe hanta vA u | aham janAya samadam kRNomy-aham dvAyavA pRthivI AvivESa || (Rg. 10.125.6)

"I bend the bow for rudra that his arrow may strike and slay the hater of devotion. I rouse and order battle for the people, and I have penetrated Earth and Heaven". 862. dhanur-vedah a) The Propounder of the science of archery. b) The Knower of the Science of archery in its completeness (a reference to Lord rAma). c) One Who has given the means of self-protection (dhanush) to all His creation. d) One Who has propounded meditation on "OM" as the sure means of Self realization. Om dhanur-vedAya namah. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as an example of His being the Propounder of all that is known and to be learnt. In this instance, He is the Propounder of the Science of archery - dhanur-veda. Even the rulers of men (kings) and gods (indra) get their knowledge of the science from His blessings alone. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpreation is: "sa eva dASarathih dhanur-vedam vetti iti dhanur-vedah" - "The Son of daSaratha, who alone is the Knower of the Science of archery (to perfection). Thus as the term "mahat" was emphasized in SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation of the previous nAma, the term "eva" should be stressed here. There are others who knew and know the science of archery, but none who compares to rAma. SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri gives examples of Lord rAma's knowledge of the science of archery. He could direct the arrows as He wished, retrieve them as He wished, and even change Nature through discharge of the arrows (as His use of the arrow to warn samudra rAjan for His initial lack of response to His request). c) SrI vAsishTha gives the following interpretations: i)dhanur vindati - labhata iti - He Who has the dhanus. ii) dhanur-vedayati sva-rakshaNArtham sarvebhya iti dhanur-vedah - He Who bestows the dhanus to all His creation for their self-protection is dhanur-vedah. Here SrI vAsishTha gives a generic meaning the term dhanus, and uses the term as a reference to any means for self- protection from the natural enemies etc. Thus, he refers to the horn of the cows etc. as their `dhanush' (gavAdhikAnAm dhanurasti SR'ngam), the nails of the tigers, lions etc. as their `dhanush' (simhAdi himsrasya nakhAdirUpam), and the intellect as the dhanush for human beings (dhanuSca martyasya su-buddhih). SrI vAsishTha gives support from yajur-veda; avatatya dhanushTvagm sahasrAksha Sateshudhe | niSIrya SalyAnAm mukhA Sivo nah sumanA bhava || (yajur. 16.13). d) SrI cinmayAnanda continues his anubhavam of the nAma based on the interpretation of the term dhanush to refer to the "omkAra" (see previous nAma). He gives the interpretation for the nAma as "One Who propounded the unfailing technique of meditation on "OM" for realization of the Self". SrI raghunAtha tIrtha explains the nAma as "dhanUmshi vidanti iti dhanur-vedAh astr~jnAh bhRtyAh | te asya bhaktAnAm dAsAh santi iti dhanur-vedah |" He Who has His devotees served by those who have knowledge of the science of missiles and weaponry.

863. daNDah a) The source of punishment for the wicked. b) He Who is verily the weapon (power) of yama - the daNDa. c) He Whom no one else controls (a-daNDah). d) He Who is the source of restraint for all beings so that they follow dharma. Om daNDAya namah. The root from which this nAma is derived is dam - upaSame - to be tamed. (dushTAn) daNDayati iti daNDah - The means of punishment for the wicked is daNDah. daNDam is a term used for a staff. It refers to the staff that is carried by a sanyAsin, and also is a symbol of the power that one has (like the daNDam or staff of a king). The sense in which it is used in this nAma is the latter. Thus, daNDah here refers to the means to administer punishment or taming. a) SrI BhaTTar comments that bhagavAn is daNDah because He administers the rules of dharma through the kings who have the responsibility to punish the wicked and bring protection and happiness to the world by following the dharma as laid down in the vedas. SrI Sa'nkara gives reference to the gItA, where Lord kRshNa declares that among those that administer chastisement, He is daNDa: daNDo damayatAm asmi nItirasmi jigIshatAm | (gItA 10.38) "I am the Power of Punishment among those who administer punishment when the law is transgressed". nammAzhvAr describes the intensity with which bhagavAn punishes the wicked, in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 6.10.4) - reference by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan: AvAennAdu ulagattai alaikkum aSurar vANAL mEl tI vAi vALi mazahi pozhinda SilaiyA tiru mA magaL kELvA. "He showers His deadly piercing fiery rain-shower of arrows on the life-source of the wicked asusra-s who by their very nature will torture the people of this world without the least mercy". Such is the intensity with which bhagavAn dealt with kara, dhUshaNa etc. b) SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri interprets the nAma as a reference to the weapon of yama in his role of samhAram. BhagavAn is verily that power of yama in the form of his weapon, the daNDa - the ultimate of weapons in the ultimate of punishments. SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives the explanation - daityAn daNDayati it danDah - He Who punishes the asura-s. c) He gives an alternate interpretation using the pATham "a-daNDah" - anya kartRka SikshaNa rahitah adaNDah - He Whom no one else controls. d) SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives the explanation that bhagavAn is called daNDah because He is the source of restraint (daNDa = damana = niyamana =restraint) for all beings so that they act according to His rules. 864. damayitA a) The Subduer (of the enemies of His devotees). b) The Dispeller (of the miseries and sufferings of His devotees).

Om damayitre namah. The root from which this nAma is derived is the same as the one for the previous nAma - dam - upaSame to be tamed. The difference is that the last nAma referred to bhagavAn being the Source or the tool of punishment of the wicked, and the current nAma refers to Him as the One who administers the punishment. The affix tRn that appears at the end of this nAma refers to "One who has the habit of" tAcchIlya, according to pANini sUtra 3.2.125, and thus the nAma signifies that bhagavAn is in the habit of punishing the wicked. SrI vAsishTha gives the definition - damayati = upaSamayati tacchIlo damayitA. a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation along the above lines - svayam ca rAvaNAdIn tAcchIlyena damayitA - He Who destroys the likes of rAvaNa as a matter of habit. The nirukti author gives the description for the nAma as "tAccHilyAt rAvaNAdInAm hartA - damayitA svayaam". It is because of this habit of His that He takes direct incarnations such as the rAma and kRshNa incarnations to rid the wicked from this world. nammAzhvAr describes this attribute of bhagavAn in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 7.5.2 (reference from SrI v.v. rAmAnujan): nATTil piRandu paDAdana paTTu maniSarkkA nATTai naliyum arakkarai nADit taDindiTTu nATTai aLittu uyyac ceidu naDandamai kETTumE?

(tiruvAi. 7.5.2)

BhagavAn takes birth among us, goes through innumerable sufferings for our sake in His incarnation (as evidenced by the incarnation of rAma with pirATTi sItA), and then goes after and seeks the wicked (nADi), and destroys them - all for the sake of the human beings who have no interest in worshipping Him and seeking His Feet. It is this "habit" of His seeking the wicked and punishing them that is emphasized in the nAma damayitA. SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that He is the "Subduer" of the wicked in the form of yama, the rulers etc. He gives support from the gItA: ........ yamah samyamatAm aham (gItA 10.29) (I am yama among the subduers). SrI satya sandha tIrtha explains the nAma along similar lines - daityAn damayati iti damayitA - He Who subdues the wicked asura-s. SrI vAsishTha also echoes a similar thought: BhagavAn has this nAma signifying that He subdues those who violate the rules of dharma as established by Him jagati jagadISa kRtAyA jagad-vyavasthAyA bha'njakam upaSamya sva-vaSe sthApayati. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation that He "dispels" the sorrowful or miserable state of His devotees (by retrieving them from the bondage of samsAra): damayati upaSamayati dainyam svajanAnAm iti damayitA. This is along the lines that SrI BhaTTar has interpreted nAma 192 - damanah (Slokam 21). Both the nAma-s have the same root, and in fact SrI BhaTTar stresses the guNa of bhagavAn as a Subduer in nAma 192 also, but a different aspect of this guNa of bhagavAn - that of subduing the tApa or suffering of His devotees. EmperumAn is always acting in the interests of His devotees - either as a Subduer of the tApa of His devotees (kAnti - mandAkinIbhih bhava tApam damayati iti damanah (He dispels the sufferings of samsAra in His devotees through the Ganges-like streams of His luster or kAntiinterpretation for nAma 192), or as a Subduer of the enemies of His devotees (the current nAma).

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "One Who punishes the wicked, destroys the sinners and thus regulates and cultivates life in the universe, making it a garden for the blossoms of spiritual beauties". SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshAn, an exponent of the gauDIya vaishNava sampradAyam, gives his interpretations for all the nAma-s as far as possible based on the specific instances of bhagavAn's kRshNa incarnation. For the current nAma, he gives the anubhavam that the nAma reflects His "subduing" the seven bulls in His svyamavaram - nAgnajitI svayamvare saptAnAmukshNAm damanAt damayitA. 865. a-damah a) He Who is not subdued by anyone. b) He Who is in the form of the good effects of punishment to those who err. c) He Who is the means of control.. d) He Who controls everything. e) He Who bestows all wishes to His devotees. Om a-damAya namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is dam - upaSame - to be tamed, the same root as for the previous two nAma-s. SrI BhaTTar looks at the nAma as a-damah - He Who cannot be tamed or subdued, and SrI Sa'nkara and others treat the nAma as damah. The nirukti author summarizes SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam thus: kaScit damayitA na asti yasya asau a-damah smRtah He is meditated upon as a-damah because there is no one who can subdue Him in any way. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as: dAmyati it damo damanah parAbhavitA; na damo yasya kaScit sah a-damah. SrI BhaTTar quotes the mahA bhArata in support: bhasma kuryAt jagat-sarvam manasaiva janArdanah | na tu kRtsnam jagac-chaktam ki'ncit kartum janArdane || (mahA. udyoga. 67.8) But all the Universe combined

"JanArdana by His mere Will can turn into ashes the entire Universe. together can do no harm to Him".

b) SrI Sa'nkara, who treats the nAma as damah, gives the interpretation damyeshu daNDa kAryam phalam, tacca sa eva iti damah He is also the result of the act of punishment or discipline that is administered. In other words, whatever is the effect of the punishment administered to one who errs, such as the good effects that take place because of the punishment, the corrections that occur in the individual, etc., are also a manifestation of bhagavAn. SrI cinmayAnanda captures this sense in his explanation: "That which is ultimately gained by the worldly punishments - the final experience of Beatitude in the Self". One should be able to realize through this interpretation that what happens to us - good or bad -is all for our benefit, bestowed by bhagavAn.

c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that the term dama also refers to the means that are used to control the unruly; the net result of this control is the control of the senses etc., which is also referred as to dama. d) SrI vAsishTha derives the meaning for the nAma as "dAmayati iti damah" - He Who controls. For the previous nAma - damayitA, he interpreted the function of control as it applies to those who violate dharma. For the current nAma, he gives the interpretation in terms of bhagavAn being the Controller of everything such that they follow the prescribed path as their natural behavior - in other words, He is the Controller of all the planets such that they follow their prescribed courses; He is the Controller of our indriya-s such that the eye only sees and does not hear, the ear only hears but not smell, etc. BhagavAn is present everywhere and pervades everything, and has full control of everything - He is damah, the Controller. Here is SrI vAsishTha's composition capturing his interpretation: damo hi sarvatra virAjamAnah, kriyAsu sarvam sa niyamya yu'ngte | grahAs-tameva damamatra vishNum namanti sarve paridhau bhramantah ||

e) SrI satya sandha tIrtha takes the pATham Ada-mah, and gives the interpretation that He has the nAma signifying that He is the Bestower of wealth on all - samyak dadAati iti Adah, teshAm mA - sampat yasmAt iti Ada-mah. SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives a similar interpretation in his tattva sAra, but looking at the nAma as da+mah kalpa taru sAkhA iva bhaktAnAm sarvAbhIshYTam dadAti iti da-mah He Who confers all the things desired, to the devotees, like the branches of the heavenly wish-giving tree, kalpa vRksha. 866. a-parAjitah a) He Who is invincible. b) He Who has no protector above Him, and Who is Resplendent (a-pah + rAjitah). c) He Whose Powers do not perish or diminish over time. Om a-parAjitAya namah. This nAma occurs twice in the stotram (Slokam 76 - nAma 721, and the current instance). The root for the nAma is ji -jaye abhibhave ca - to conquer. SrI vAsishTha gives the explanation parair-na parA-jIyate, parAbhibhUyate vA sa a-parAjito vishNuh He Who cannot be conquered or humiliated in any way by anyone. a) Among the different aspects of bhagavAn's invincibility, there are two that are noteworthy: 1) He cannot be defeated by anyone or anything at any time, anywhere, under any circumstance. 2) Anyone whom He supports is also equally invincible, as illustrated by the case of the pANDava-s against the stronger army of kaurava-s. SrI BhaTTar describes the current instance of the nAma in terms of 1) above, and for nAma 721 his anubhavam is based on 2 above. This is how SrI BhaTTar has avoided the punarukti dosham or the fault of redundancy in his vyAkhyAnam for the two instances of this nAma.

SrI BhaTTar explains the first interpretation as follows: kvacit, kadAcit, kutaScit a-pratihatah a-parAjitah He cannot be obstructed by anyone, at any time, anywhere or by any means. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj echoes the same idea - na parAjitah kadApi kenApi iti a- parajitah - He Who cannot be conquered by anyone and through any means is a-parAjitah. SrI BhaTTar gives several supports for his interpretations: - From the gItA: yatra yogeSvarah kRshNo yatra pArtho dhanur-dharah | tatra SrIr-vijayo bhUtir-dhruvA nItir-matir-mama || (gItA 18.78) "Where kRshNa, the Lord of the yoga-s is, and where pArtha, the bow- armed arjuna is, there is prosperity, there is victory, there is wealth, and there is firm justice - this is my conclusion". - From the Ayurveda caraka samhitA, where again the invincibility of bhagavAn is declared: yathA'ham nAbhijAnAmi vAsudeve parAjayam | mAtuSca pANigrahaNam samudrasya ca SoshaNam | etena satya-vAkyena sicyatAm agado hyayam || "On the veracity of the following statements, may this medicine be pounded and be effective: - "There is no defeat for vAsudeva"; "I have not witnessed the marriage of my mother"; "the ocean will never become completely dry". (These are all absolute true statements)". - In vaitaraNa, the following is used to invoke the efficacy of the poison-removing mantra: ratnAkara iva akshobhyo himavAniva ca acalah | jAtavedA iva adhRshyo nArAyaNa iva ajayah || "Let this poison-removing mantra be effective just as the ocean is imperturbable, himAvan is unshakable, fire is unapproachable, and nArAyaNa is unconquerable". - From SrImad rAmAyaNa: a-jayyah SASvato dhruvah (yuddha. 114.15) - "He is Inivincible, eternal and steady"; a-jitah khaDga-dhRk (yuddha. 120.14) - "He is unconquered, and is the Wielder of the Sword". - From the mahAbhArata: dASArham aparAjitam - "KrishNa Who is invincible"; yatah kRshNah tato jayah (bhA. udyoga. 6.79) "Where kRshNa is, there victory is certain". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference from divya prabandham in support: - "paRpanAbhan uyarvuRa uyarum perum tiRalOn" (tiruVai. 2.7.11). Sri rAmAnujan explains the term "tiral" as "parAbhibhavana sAmarthyam" - the skill to subdue and overcome His enemies.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha enjoys the nAma as (a-parah + a-jitah) - He Who has none superior to Him, and He Who can never be conquered - na vidyate para = uttamo yasmAt iti a-parah; a-paraSca asau a-jitaSca iti aparAjitah. SrI cinmayAnanda gives another dimension to the invincibility of bhagavAn, with support from the ISAvAsya upanishad - "nainad-devA Apnuvan" - The deva-s could not overtake It - the overwhelming powers of desires and passions can never vanquish the Self - the Divine nArAyaNa. SrI BhaTTar quotes several examples from the mahAbhArata in support of his second interpretation above as well, where the deva-s themselves have described over and over again that those who are supported by bhagavAn cannot be vanquished by anyone. ekam hanishyasi ripum garjantam tam mahAmRdhe | na tu tam prArthayasyekam rakshyate sa mahAtmanA || yam Ahur-veda-vidusho vArAham a-jitam harim | nArAyaNam a-cintyam ca tena kRshNena rakshyate || (bhA. udyo.129.40) indra tells karNa: "In the great fight, I give you the power to kill one thundering warrior, but this cannot be the one you wish to kill (arjuna), since he is protected by the Great Lord (kRshNa). KRshNa is none other than the Invincible Hari, Who had assumed the form of the Wild Boar, and Who is the Incomparable nArAyaNa, as declared by the vedic scholars". The same message is given to jayadratha by rudra: a-jayyAnScApi a-vadhyAnSca vArayishyasi tAn yudhi | Rte arjunam mahA-bAhum devairapi durAsadam | yam Ahuh amitam devam Sa'nkha-cakra-gadA-dharam | pradhAnah so'stra-vidushAm tena kRshNena rakshyate || (bhA. vana.260.75) "In the fight you can ward off the attacks of all invincible and indestructible warriors except the long-armed arjuna who is unassailable even to the gods, since he is protected by kRshNa who is the Unknowable Deity Who bears the conch, discus and mace as arms". BhIshma, droNa, etc., declare that they could have annihilated the pANDava-s without a trace if only vishNu had not been their Protector, and that just as certainly as truth rests with a brAhmin, humility is certain in the pious, and wealth is sure in the skillful, so also victory is certain for nArAyaNa: dhruvam vai brAhmaNe satyam dhruvA sAdhushu sannatih | SrIr-dhruvA cApi daksheshu dhruvo nArAyaNe jayah || - yasya mantrI ca goptA ca suhRc-caiva janArdanah | harih trailokya nAthah san kim nu tasya na nirjitam || What is there in this world that cannot be conquered by that person who has bhagavAn Hari as His mentor, protector, and friend? SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to divya prabandham in support:

- anRu aivarai velvitta mAyap pOr tErp pAganAr (tiruvAi. 4.6.1) He, who, in the form of the Charioteer, ensured the victory of the pANDava-s. SrI Sa'nkara avoids redundancy in interpretation by giving the following two anubhava-s: BhagavAn is unconquered by desire and the rest na Antarai ragAdibhih parajita iti aparAjitah (Slokam 76) 2) BhagavAn is invincible by His foes Satrubhih na parAjita iti a-parAjitah (the current Slokam) SrI satya sandha tIrtha enjoys the nAma as (a-parah + a-jitah) He Who has none superior to Him, and He Who can never be conquered na vidyate para = uttamo yasmAt iti a-parah; a-paraSca asau a-jitaSca iti aparAjitah. b) One of the interpretations of SrI satya sandha tIrtha is based on looking at the nAma as a-pah + rAjitah: na vidyaye pah = pAlako yasya sa a-pah; sa cAsau rAjitaSca iti a-pa-rAjitah He Who has no protector above Him, and He Who is resplendent. He is also Unconquered in another sense - no one who is not single-mindedly devoted to Him will be able to attain Him. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha also derives the interpretation for the nAma starting from the word para meaning Supreme. One of his interpretations is same as the first interpretation of SrI BhaTTar. The other interpretation is: For one to be defeated, there needs to be someone or something other than that entity. But since there is nothing else that exists other than the Supreme Self, there is no possibility of defeat for this One Truth "para eva kaScin-nAsti; na dvitIyo na tRtIyah" iti atharva vacanAt, tasmAt parAjitvasya a-sambhavAt bhagavatah aparAjita iti nAmnA samkIrtanam upapadyate. This probably follows the advaita philosophy (Non-existence of anything except of Brahman in truth). SrI cinmayAnanda gives yet another dimension to the enjoyment of this nAma. The Supreme Self is aparAjitah since the Self alone remains when everything else is destroyed. c) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha looks at the invincible nature of bhagavAn's Power over time as compared to all others, whose powers are perishable over time parAjIyate kAlatah iti parAjitah - naSvarAh vibhUtayah; na vidyante naSvarAha vibhUtayah yasya sah a-parAjitah His vibhUti-s are powers are not transitory, but are eternal, and therefore He is called a-parAjitah. 867. sarva-sahah a) The Supporter of all the other deities. b) He Who conquers all His enemies. c) He Who is competent in all His actions. d) He Who forgives the aparAdha-s of everyone.

The word sah has multiple meanings - `to bear or support', `to bear or put up with', `to be capable of', `to be powerful'. sahas also means strength - sahate anena Satrum iti sahah (amara kOSam). The difference in the different interpretations results from the use of the different alternate meanings. SrI BhaTTar and SrI vAsishTha use the meaning "One Who Supports - bears", SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning `to be capable of', `to be powerful, to conquer', and `to support', and SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning "One Who puts up with". In addition, SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning `strength' for `sahas' in one of his interpretations. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma specifically in the context of bhagavAn's support to the other gods. Because of His support to the other gods, they continue to be worshipped by people who have not achieved the full realization that nArAyaNa is the Supreme Deity to be worshipped. As the Provider of this support, He is called sarva- sahah - sva-SAsanena sarvam devatAntaramapi mandAdhikAriNAm ArAdhyatayA sahate - bibharti iti sarva-sahah. The same concept is given by nammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhi 5.2.8 (referenced by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan): iRukkum iRai iRuttu uNNa ev-vulagukkum tan mUrti tAnE .. niRuttinAn deiva'ngaLAga ad-deiva nAyagan

"The other deities have been established like tax-collectors by my daiva nAyakan - the Chief of all gods; they are all His body". In one of his interpretations, SrI vAsishTha uses the meaning "support", and gives a more general interpretation - bhagavAn has this nAma because He supports and protects everything including the sky, the earth, the movables and the immovables. b) c) SrI Sa'nkara gives multiple interpretations: - sarvAn SatrUn sahata iti sarva-sahah - He Who conquers all His enemies. sarva karmasu samartha iti sarva-sahah - He Who is competent in all His actions. pRthivyAdi rUpeNa vA sarva-sahah - He Who supports all in the form of the earth etc. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation - sarveshAm sva-jana aparAdhAnAm sahah iti sarvasahah - He is sarva-sahah because He puts up with all the aparAdha-s of all His devotees. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri also gives this as his interpretation - The Lord forgives the aprAdha-s of His enemies by considering that it is because of their inherent nature that they perform the aparAdham, and a person of good conduct and character should forgive and forget, rather than punish and seek revenge. He refers to SrImad rAmAyaNam (yuddha. 116.49), where sItA pirATTi instructs hanuman that the servant-maids of rAvaNa should not be punished for mistreating her while in aSoka vanam: na kaScit na aparAdhyati There is no one who does not commit aparAdham (it is in the nature of all beings). Using the meaning `to bear, to put up with' SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate interpretation along similar lines. Just as the sea does not lose its nature even though all kinds of other waters mingle with it over time, so also bhagavAn is untouched by all the things that He has to endure. It is the reflection of this guNa of bhagavAn' guNa of sarva-sahatvam that is reflected in the ability of the jIva to endure all that is happening when it is occupying one body, and then move to another body at the end of this body's life.

SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives the example of Lord kRshNa putting up with all the insults from the likes of rukmi (brother of rukmiNi), duryodhana, SiSupAla etc. - sarvANi rukmyava~jnA vadAmsi sahata iti sarva-sahah. 868. niyantA a) He Who directs. b) One Who has no one above Him to direct and control Him (a- niyantA). SrI satya devo vAsishTha derives the word from the root yama - uparame - to lift up, to show, to offer. ni is an uapasarga (prefix) that denotes, among other things, command, order, etc. tRc is an affix added to denote agency. niynatA is One Who controls, directs, governs, restrains, etc. a) SrI BhaTTar extends the idea from the previous nAma (sarva-sahah) relating to the worship of the anya devatA-s. Thos who worship the other devatA-s or gods, still are worshiping these gods with the support of bhagavAn. The initial freedom of choice is given to the individual, but once the choice is made, no matter what the choice is, then bhagavAn supports this individual in the pursuit of this choice. It is this guNa of bhagavAn that SrI BhaTTar brings out through the nAma niyantA - tatra tat tat rucIn prarocayan niyacchati iti niyantA - He directs and guides these individuals after letting them make the choice according to their tastes. SrI BhaTTar gives the following quote from the gIta in support: yo yo yAm yAm tanum bhaktah SraddhayA arcitum icchati | tasya tasya acalAm SraddhAm tAmeva vidadhAmyaham }} (gItA 7.21) "Whichever devotee seeks to worship with faith whatever form, I make that faith steadfast". This same idea is given by nammAzhvAr in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 1.1.5 (reference from SrI v,.v. rAmAnujan): avar avar avar avar avar avar avar avar tama tamadu aRivaRi vagai vagai iRaiyavar ena aDi aDaivargaL irAiyavar kuRaivilar iRaiyavar vazhi vazhi aDaiya ninRanarE (tiruvAi. 1.1.5)

"Each and every individual chooses, in accordance with his nature and attainments, limited by his intellect, to worship a particular deity of his/her choice in the hope of securing desired results. These deities are, without doubt, capable of granting the lesser boons (other than moksha) to their devotees according to their merits, because the Lord is the inner soul, controller, and source of their power". The idea that bhagavAn is the niyantA of all the other gods is to be appreciated here. SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is the "Regulator of all in all their functions" sarvAn sveshu sveshu kRtyeshu vyasthApayati iti niyantA. SrI vAsishTha points out that everything functions according to the course laid out by Him as the niyantA of all - including the sun and all the planets, and even the heart inside all of us niyacchati = nibhadhnAti sarvam vyavasthita vartmanA gamanAya iti `niyantA' vishNuh.

b) SrI cinmayAnanda uses the pATham a-niyantA for this nAma, and gives the interpretation - One Who has none above Him to control Him" - He is the One Who has appointed all controllers of the phenomenal forces as the Sun, the Moon, Air and Waters. 869. niyamah a) He Who controls. b) He Who ordains. c) He Who is attained through the yogic path of niyama (and yama). d) He Who has no Controller or Director above Him (a- niyamah). e) He Who bestows sacred knowledge about Himself to devotees in full measure. f) He Who pervades and surrounds everything (yama - pariveshane - to surround). Om niyamAya namah. This nAma occurred earlier in Slokam 17 - nAma 163. The root from which the word is derived is yam - uparame - to check. SrI vAsishTha also gives another root - yama - pariveshaNe - to surround. The word niyama means restraint or check, and niyamah is One Who restrains. a) For nAma 163, SrI BhaTTar brings out the role of bhagavAn in controlling even the likes of the mighty mahA bali - bali prabhRtayah api niyamyante anena iti niyamah. The nirukti author captures the significance of the interpretation as - niymayate jagat yena niyamah sa udIritah - He is called niyamah because the whole universe is controlled by Him. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan emphasizes the role of bhagavAn as the ASrita- rakshaka - One Who protects those Who seek refuge in Him, as the guNa that is portrayed in this nAma. The Lord controlled hiraNyAksha in His incarnation as vAmana; He killed keSi and protected the cowherds of AyarpADi; He destroyed the elephant that was deployed by kamsa to kill Him; and there are many other similar instances in His other incarnations such as the rAma incarnation etc. b) For the current instance of the nAma niyamah, SrI BhaTTar enjoys another aspect of His control - He ordains (prescribes, specifies) the fruits of worship to each individual according to the nature of their worship of the anya devatA-s of their choice: tat-phalam ca - jAti, Ayuh, bhogAdikam niyamyate asmin iti niyamah. Following on the reference to the gItA Slokam 7.21 for the previous nAma, SrI BhaTTar takes the idea conveyed by bhagavAn in the very next Slokam - 7.22 of the gItA to support the interpretation of the current nAma: sa tayA SraddhayA yuktah tasya ArAdhanam Ihate | labhate ca tatah kAmAn mayaiva vihitAn hi tAn || (gItA 7.22) "Endowed with that faith, he worships that form (of other devatA-s) and thence gets the objects of his desire, granted in reality by Me alone". It is to be noted that a) bhagavAn lets the individual choose the deity to be worshiped by him based on his limitations and knowledge; b) bhagavAn then supports the individual in this endeavor; c) bhagavAn bestows the benefits of this worship by empowering the devatA that the individual worships to bestow the desired powers, depending on the eligibility of the individual. Ideas a and b are reflected in the nAma

niyantA in SrI BhaTTar's interpretation, and idea c is reflected in the current nAma; and these two interpretations nicely follow the two concurrent Sloka-s, 7.21 and 7.22, in the gItA. The concept of individual freedom of choice for the jIva as outlined in the above steps is reflected in SrI bhAshyam by SrI rAmAnuja (vyAkhyAna for sUtra 2.3.41 - kRta prayatnApekshatu vihita-pratishiddhA avaiyarthAdibhyah). The idea that bhagavAn is the One Who ordains the benefits that are attained by resort to the lesser devatA-s, is reinforced by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan through a reference to tiruvASiriyam 4 by nammAzhvAr, where AzhvAr notes that bhagavAn is the One Who created the likes of brahma, Siva etc., along with their limited powers: daiva nAn-mugak kaDavuLai EnRu, mukkaN ISanODu dEvu pala nudaliya mAyak kaDavUL (tiruvASiri. 4). Note the way SrI BhaTTar has avoided redundancy in interpretation (punar-ukti dosham) by giving two different aspects of bhagavAn's control for the two instances of the nAma. c) SrI Sa'nkara gives two different versions of the nAma-s in Slokam 92: a-niyamah and a-yamah, or niyamah and yamah. In the version "niyamo yamah", his interpretation is that bhagavAn has these nAmas because He can be attained through the two means of yoga called niyama and yama. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to pata'njali's yoga sUtra for the definition of the term niyama Soca santosha tapah svAdhyAya Isvara praNidhAnAni niyamAh (sUtra 2.32)

"Purity of the body, mental contentedness, austerity, reciting the veda-s, and persevering devotion to the Lord are called `religious observances - niyama". SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for the nAma niyamah in Slokam 17 is that He is the Director of all beings in their respective functions - sveshu sveshu adhikAreshu prajA niyamati iti niyamah. (see d below for Sri Sa'nkara's interpretation with the pATham a-niyamah). d) SrI Sa'nkara's explanation for the pATham a-niyamah in the current Sloka is that bhagavAn is One Who does not have anyone else who controls or directs Him - niyamah niyatih tasya na vidyata iti a- niyamah | sarva-niyantuh niyantantara abhAvAt | - Since He is the Controller and Director of everything else, there is no Controller or Director above Him. Note that He is the niyantA of all (previous nAma), and so by definition, He is a-niyamah. e) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha in his tattva sAra gives the explanation - sva-vishaya j~nAnAni bhaktebhyo niyamayati - prayacchati iti noyamah - He is called niyamah because He bestows sacred knowledge about Himself to devotees in full measure. f) Using the root yama - pariveshTane - to surround, SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives the explanation for the nAma as "niyaman SaktyA sakalam viSvam vyApnoti tasmAt sa niyamayh" - One Who pervades and surrounds everything. Using the alternate root yam - uparame - to check, SrI vAsishTha gives the alternate interpretation in terms of all things beings constrained by being bound to Him, by residing in Him, and by moving only because of Him. 870. yamah -

a) The Controller (of all the deva-s). b) He Who is attained through the yogic path of yama (and niyama). c) He Who is beyond yama or mRtyu (a-yamah). d) One Who has no one to command Him (a-yamah). e) One Who brings to end all life at the time of pralaya. f) One Who feeds His devotees with delectable food in the form of anubhavam of Himself. g) One Who knows and prescribes the mandates that bestow virtue (aya+mah). Om yamAya namah. The root from which the word is derived is the same as for the previous nAma, namely, yam - uparame - to check, or yama - pariveshaNe - to surround. We had anubhavam of this nAma earlier in Slokam 17 - nAma 164. In fact, the sequence "niyamo yamah" occurs in Slokam 17, just as it does in the current Slokam. All the four nAma-s are derived from the same root. The functions of bhagavAn that SrI BhaTTar chooses to describe for the four nAma-s are, respectively: One Who control even the likes of mahA bali, One Who corrects all as their antaryAmi, One Who ordains and bestows the fruits of the worship of different gods, and One Who controls and directs all the deva-s. Given that SrI BhaTTar interprets the whole set of nAma-s as but a reflection of bhagavAn's guNa-s which are infinite, he is able to provide different anubhavam-s for the different instances of the same or related nAma-s and provide ever greater enjoyment of His guNa-s in the process. SrI satydevo vAsishTha has composed a Slokam in which He conveys nicely that the nAma-s niyantA, niyamah, yamah, a-niyamah, and a- yamah, all refer to Lord vishNu: vishNur niyantA niyamo yamo'sau vishNur niyantA a-niyamo a- yamo sah prakASate viSvam idam samastam yamair niyAmaiSca kRta vyavastham | ||

a) For the specific instance of the nAma in the current Sloka, SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is: tat-tat phala niyAmakAn yamAdIn api yacchati iti yamah - He is called yamah because He is the One Who controls the likes of yama who are the bestowers of the respective fruits". He quotes yama's own words from vishNu purANa in support: prabhavati samyamane mamApi vishNuh (vishNu. 3.7.13) - VishNu controls me also. SrI T. S. Raghavendran refers us to ISAvAsya Upanishad mantra 16, where there is reference to bhagavan as yamah - the Controller as antaryAmi of all: pUshan! ekarshe! yama! sUrya! PrAjApatya! ... (mantra 16)

"O pUshaN! The One Seer! O Controller! Prompter! The Indwelling Ruler of all creatures born of prajApati!." He also gives reference to the gItA, where arjuna praises bhagavAn as being the antaryAmi of all including yama etc.: vAyur-yamo'gnir-varuNah SasA'nkah prajApatis-trvam prapitAmahaSca |. (gItA 11.39) "You are the Controller and antaryAmi of yama, agni, varuNa, the Moon, and brahmA; You are the Grandfather and Great Grandfather of all".

Lord kRshNa Himself declares that He is yama among subduers: "yamah samyatAmyaham" - Among those who administer punishments, I am yama. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 4.10.8, where AzhvAr gives an example to show that bhagavAn controls all the others, including Siva: pukk-aDimaiyinAl tannaik-kaNDa mArkanDEyan avanai nakka-pirAnum anRu uyyak-koNDadu nArAyaNan aruLE (tiruvAi. 4.10.8) "It is true that Siva granted eternal life to mArkanDeya when the later surrendered to him. But note that Siva could bestow this eternal life on mArkhanDeya only because of the Grace of Lord nArAyaNa". b) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the first instance of niyamah and yamah respectively as: One Who establishes all the beings in their respective functions, and, One Who controls all the beings as their antaryAmi. SrI Sa'nkara gives two versions for the second set of nAma-s: a-niyamah and a-yamah, or niyamah and yamah. In the later choice, he gives the interpretation that since bhagavAn is attained through two yogic paths - niyama and yama, He is called niyamah and yamah - athavA yama niyamau yogA'nge, tad gamyatvAt sa eva niyamo yamah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri recalls the yoga sUtra of pata'njalai for the definition of `yama' ahimsA satya a-steya brahmacaryA parigrahA yamAh (sUtra 2.30) "Not hurting others, veracity, not stealing, continence, and not coveting, are part of "Forbearance" yama.". c) Using the pATham a-yamah (the first choice by SrI Sa'nkara), his interpretation is that bhagavAn is ayamah because He has no yama (death) - na asya vidyate yamah mRtyuh iti a-yamah. BhagavAn is beginningless and endless, and He is the One Who has created yama and Who controls and directs him. d) Using the root yam - uparame - to check, a-yamah can also be interpreted as "One Who has no one to command Him at any time under any circumstance, or One Who has no one similar to Him in any respect na vidyate yamah = niyAmakah, sadRSo vA yasya sah yamah. This is one of the interpretations given by SrI satya sandha tIrtha. e) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the additional interpretation that bhagavAn is called yamah because He controls the life of all the beings, and He is yama in this role - Controller of the lifetime of all beings. SrI vAsishTha gives a similar interpretation, and refers to bhagavAn being the `yama' or One Who terminates all life at the time of pralaya by keeping them in Himself - yacchati = upasamharati sarvam sargAnte iti yamah. f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning "to eat" for the root yama (yamayati brAhmaNan - He feeds the brAhmaNa-s; yama - pariveshane; pariveshaNam - bhojanam), and gives the interpretation yamayati bhojayati svAdubhih annaih bhaktAn iti yamah - He Who feeds His devotees with delectable food (e.g., with delightful thoughts of anubhavam about Himself). g) An alternate interpretation given by SrI satya sandha tIrtha is: ayam = SubhAvaha vidhim, mAti = jAnAti iti a-yamah - He is aya-mah because He knows and prescribes the mandates that bestow virtues (mA - mAne - to measure).

SrI BhaTTar concludes this section by reminding us that the previous few nAma-s (851 onwards) have dealt with bhagavAn's presiding over the rajas and tamo guNa-s predominant in the worshippers. He will interpret the nAma-s 870 to 880 in terms of bhagavAn's role in presiding over the sattva guNa. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 93 -

sattva-vAn sAttvikah satyah satya-dahrma-parAyaNah | abhiprAyah priyarho_'rhah priya-kRt prIti-vardhanah || om om om om om om om om om sattva-vate namah sAttivkAya namah satyAya namah satya-dharma-parAyaNAya namah abhiprAyAya namah priyArhAya namah arhAya namah priya-kRte namah prIti-vardhanAya namah

871. sattva-vAn a) He Who controls the sattva guNa that paves the way for liberation. b) One Who possesses courage, strength etc. c) One Who is determined to bestow His blessings on His devotees. Om sattva-vate namah.

The term `sattva' is generally used to refer to the sAttvic quality. However, the term has other meanings, and these are used in some of the interpretations below. Among the meanings given are:

quality of goodness, wealth (dravyam), inherent power, determination (vyavasAyah - niScayah), etc. Here is a list from a commentary on amara koSam: dravye prANe bale jantau vyavasAya svabhAvayoh | guNe vitte sato bhAvo sattvam guNini tu trishu || SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives detailed derivation of the nAma from the basics of grammar: starting from the root as - bhuvi - to be, he derives `sat', and then by pANini sUtra 5.1.119 - tasya bhAvas-tva- talau - tva is added to sat in the sense of `the nature thereof', leading to `sat-tva. Next, use of pANini sUtra 5.2.94 tat-asya- asmin-asti iti matup - the matup prtyaya, in the sense of `whose it is' or `in whom it is', is added to sat-tva, leading to `sat-tva- mat'; and then.va is substituted for ma by sUtra 8.2.9 - ma At upadhAyAh ca matoh dhah a yavAdhibyah, leading to `sat-tva-vat', which is the basis for `sattva-vAn'. This detail is included here just as one example of the depth to which SrI vAsishTha delves into the etymological derivation of the nAma-s, which he does in this elaborate detail for every single nAma. Another special feature of his vyAkhyAnam is that he gives references from the Sruti-s to support his interpretation. This is a superb piece of work for those who understand samskRt grammar. Starting from this nAma, up to nAma 880, SrI BhaTTar describes the nAma-s in terms of bhagavAn being the presiding Deity over sattva guNa. SrI BhaTTar notes that of the three guNa-s, sattva, rajas and tamas, the sattva is the guNa that leads to moksha ultimately. sattva guNa has the qualities of luster, lightness and bliss, and is the cause of salvation - parama-prakASa lAghava, sukha-sampadA moksha mUlam sattvam sAkshAt adhishTheyam asya iti sattva-vAn - BhagavAn is called sattva-vAn because He directly presides over the sattva guNa which has the qualities of luster, lightness and bliss, and which therefore is the cause of Salvation. According to the pANini sUtra "tad asya asti asmin iti matup" - 5.3.94, the mat pratyaya or affix follows a word in first case in the sense of "whose it is" or "in whom it is". It is to be noted in passing that this pratyaya is not used for someone who just possesses the object in some small measure (like one having a couple of cows etc.), but to one who has thousands of cows, as an example. Thus, in the current case, the matup pratyaya refers to One Who is full of sattva quality. Here Sri BhaTTar's interpretation is that bhagavAn has leadership of the sattva quality in His devotees. SrI BhaTTar gives support from the SvetASvatara Upanishad: mahAn prabhur-vai purushah sattvasya esha pravartakah | su-nirmalAm imam Santim ISAno jyotir-avyayah || (SvetAS. 3.12) "This purusha alone is the Great Giver of moksha. This purusha is the propagator of sattva. Therefore this immutable light is the ruler (ordainer) of this pure peace of the form of moksha" - (SrI N. S. ananta ra'ngAcArya's translation). SrI BhaTTar also gives support from the varAha purANa: sattvena mucyate jantuh sattvam nArAyaNAtmakam | (VP 3.7.13) "A being is released from bondage because of the quality of sattva in him. sattva is indeed nArAyaNa Himself." Recently, asmad AcAryan SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan quoted several references from svAmi deSikan's stotra ratna vyAkhyAnam for Slokam 12 of stotra ratnam, where bhagavAn's sattva aspect is emphasized:

- In li'nga purANam, ch. 14, we have: hiraNyagarbho rajasA tamasA Sa'nkarah svayam | sattvena sarvago vishNuh sarvAtmA sadasanmayah || - In ch. 24 of the above, we have: tvat-kopa sambhavo rudraha tamasA ca samAvRtah | tvat-prasAdAt jagat-dhAtA rajasA ca pitAmahah || tvat-svarUpAt svayam vishNuh sattvena purushottamah || - In the very next chapter, nandikeSvara declares: paramAtmAnam ISAnam tamasA rudra rUpiNam | rajasA sarva-lokAnAm sarga-leelA pravartakam || sattvena sarva-bhUtAnAm sthApakam parameSvaram | sarvAtmAnam mahAtmAnam paramAtmAnam ISvaram || te dRshTvA prAha vai brahmA bhagavantam janArdanam || - In bhagavac-chAstra (pA'ncarAtra) we have: sAttvikaih sevyate vishNuh tAmasaireva Sa'nkarah | rAjasaih sevyate brahmA sa'nkIrNais-tu sarasvatI || SrI raghunAtha tIrtha, based on bRhatI sahasram, gives the interpretation satah samIcInasya bhAvah sattvam viSishTa prakRshTa AnandAdi guNa jAtam, tat asya asti iti sattva-vAn Possessor of special supreme qualities such as Bliss. b) SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning `power, courage', etc. for the term `sattava' Saurya, vIryAdikam sattvam asya asti iti sattva-vAn - "One Who possesses courage, strength, etc., is sattva-vAn". (The term simha-sattva refers to the `strength' of the lion). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates that this quality is associated with the ability to remain fearless in war, to be unperturbed in situations which might otherwise cause one to be disturbed and lose balance, etc. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning vyavasAyah niScayah for the term sattva, and gives the interpretation sattvam vyavasAyah - niScayah bhaktAnugraha sUcako vartate yasmin sah sattva- vAn Since bhagavAn is determined to bestow His Blessings on His devotees, He is called sattv-vAn. 872. sAttvikah a) He Who confers the fruits of sattva guNa. b) One Who is essentially established in sattva guNa. Om sAttvikAya namah. The same root from which the previous nAma was derived is used for the derivation of this nAma. The taddhita affix ik is added to the word sattva in the sense of "who deserves that" - "tad-arhati" pANini 5.1.63). a) SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation dharma j~nAna vairAgya aiSvarya rUpa phala niyamanena ca sattvam arhati iti sAttivikah - He dispenses the fruits of dharma, knowledge, non-attachment and riches, and so He is called sAttvikah.

SrI vAsishTha gives the explanation tathA ca sarva manushyAdi vanaspatyAdi vargaSca sattva-yuktah, sattva-arhah, sattva-sambandhI vA He bestows the sattva aspect on people, on the plants etc., as they deserve. Essentially the same idea is echoed in SrI raghunAtha tIrtha's interpretation in his tattva tIkA sattva-guNa janyatvAt sAttvam - j~nAnam, tad-vAn sAttvI, sva-bhaktam sAttvinam karoti iti sAttvikah Makes His devotees possessors of sacred divine knowledge. b) SrI Sa'nkara vyAkhyAnam is sattve guNe prAdhAnyena sthita iti sAttvikah One Who is essentially established in sattva guNa. 873. satyah a) One Who is well-disposed towards pious souls. b) One Who is good in a supreme way. c) He Who is established in Truth. d) He Who is Real, and who alone exists ( Sri Sa'nkara). e) He Who is in the form of prANa, anna, and sUrya. Om satyAya namah. This nAma has been visited earlier in Sloka-s 12 (nAma 107) and 23 (nAma 213). The addition of the taddhita affix (pratyaya) `yat' to the word `sat' leads to the word satya. The pANini sUtra "tatra sAdhuh" (4.4.98) is used - "The affix yat comes after a word in the locative construction in the sense of `excellent in regard thereto'" (SrI vAsishTha). SrI vAsishTha refers us to the Sloka-s in bhagavad gItA (17.26 and 17.27) for a definition of 'sat' in Lord KRshNa's words: sad bhAve sAdhu bhAve ca sadityetat prayujyate | praSaste karmaNi tathA sac-chabdah pArtha ucyate || ya~jne tapasi dAne ca sthitih saditi cocyate | karma caiva tadarthIyam sadityevAbhidIyate || (gItA 17.26 and 27) The word 'sat' thus refers to existence, goodness, good acts, devotion to sacrifice, austerities, and gifts, and any acts for such purposes. One who is excellent in all these, or One who is excellent to (i.e., supports) those who do acts along these lines, is satya. a) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 12, SrI BhaTTar takes `sat' to refer to the `pious souls', and gives the explanation that the nAma means- teshu satsu sAdhuh - "One Who is well-disposed towards the pious souls". b) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 25, SrI BhaTTar ues the meaning `good' for the term sat, and interprets the nAma as "One Who is good in a supreme way", or "One Who is exceptionally good",

and gives the example of His being good to those who seek His help, such as Manu who sought refuge in Him - manvAdishu tat-kAla samASriteshu satsu sAdhuh". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram-s 9.10.6 and 9.10.7: .......nALum tan meyyarikku meyyanE (tiruvAi. 9.10.6) "He is always true to His devotees, and He will never abandon them". meyyan Agum virumbit tozhuvArkkellAm poiyan Agum puRamE tozhuvArkkellAm .. (tiruvAi. 9.10.7) "To those who are sincerely devoted to Him without looking for any benefits as a result, He is always true. In other words, to those who desire only kainkaryam to Him, and do not worship Him just for some small benefit to them, He always delivers. For those others who may worship Him with desire for small benefits, He may give them the benefit, but then He will leave them, and there won't be any bond between Him and them." (extract from SrI v. n. vedAnta deSikan). c) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as "He Who is Truth Himself" sAttvika SAstra-pratipAdyatayA yathArthavaibhavah satyah "The Lord is delineated by the sAttvika SAstra-s, and all the greatness attributed to Him is true, and He stands fully established in Truth". He gives reference to mahA bhArata in support: satye pratisThitah kRshNah satyam asmin pratihThitam sattAsatte ca govindah tasmAt satyah satAm matah || | (udyoga. 69.12)

"Lord kRshNa is rooted in satya, and the Truth (satya) is rooted in Lord kRshNa. Existence and non-existence are both established on Lord Govinda. Hence He is called `satya' or "Truth". These are the words of sa'njaya to dhRtarAshtra on why kRshNa is called vAsudeva, satya, etc. SrI v.v. rAmnujan notes that bhagavAn's tiru nAmam in the divya kshetram by name tirumeyyam, is "satya mUrti". He also refers us to periya tirumozhi 5.6.9, where tiruma'ngai AzhvAr declares that bhagavAn truly reveals Himself to those who seek Him with sincerity. poi vaNNam manattu agaRRi, pulan aindum Sela vaittu mei vaNNan ninRavarkku mein-ninRa vittaganai .

(periya tirumozhi 5.6.9)

"He Who reveals His True Nature to those who sincerely seek Him by forsaking the pursuit of the impermanent object of this world, and by desisting from acts of the five senses..". d) e) SrI Sa'nkara gives several alternate interpretations, some of which are directed towards a reinforcement of his advaita philosophy. This conclusion is made based on the English elaborations by scholars, of the vyAkhyAna-s in samskRt that SrI Sa'nkara gives. Among his interpretations are: - He is called satyah because He is the Real, Not False - avitatha rUpatvAt. He refers to taitt. upanishad 2.1 - (satyam, j~nAnam, anantam brahma) -in support. He, Who alone exists as manifest and unmanifest - sat ca tyat ca abahavat (He is all that exists in the

manifest and unmanifest conditions). He Who is in the form of prANa, anna, and sUrya; or He Who is the Origin of prANa, anna and sUrya saditi prANAstItyannam yamityasAvAdityah (taitt. AraN. 1.3). SrI vAsishTha gives additional reference to atharva veda for this interpretation: satyenottabhitA bhUmih sUryeNottabhitA ca dyauh | Rtena AdityAs-tishThanti divi somo adhiSritah || (atharva. 14.1.1) "Truth (satya) is the Base that bears the earth; by sUrya are the heavens upheld; By Law the Aditya-s stand secure, and Soma holds his place in heaven". - He Who is good towards the good - satsu sAdhutvAt. SrI annatakRshNa SAstri translates this as: "He Who is in the form of virtue in holy men". - He Who is embodied as the virtue of the truth-speaking, or, He Who is the Embodiment of Truth since He speaks the Truth, or, He Whose words always come true, depending on the different translators - satya vacana dharma rUpatvAt satyah. He gives reference to the Sruti - tasmAt satyam paramam vadanti (mahAnArayaNa. 221.) - (Therefore, they say that Truth is Supreme). - satyasya satyam - The Truth of truths. He quotes bRhadAraNyaka Upanishad (2.1.20) in support - "satyasya satyam iti prANA vai satyam, teshAm esha satyam" (The prANA-s are true and He is the Truth of those). One of SrI satya sandha tIrtha's interpretations is: sadbhAvam yApayati iti satyah He Who directs His devotees towards good qualities is satyah. For the current instance of the nAma, SrI vAsishTha gives the explanation satsu -sAdhusvabhAveshu paramahita kAritvena mahApurusha pUjyah nitya-paramahitakArI ca ityarthah He Who is best among those endowed with sAttvic quality because of His disposition to help others, and Who is worshipped by the great souls. SrI T. S. Raghavendran has assembled and presented 34 different interpretations or pramANa-s for the nAma. We will look at some of these. - tat-satyam-ityAcakshase (taitt. upa. 3.6) - Therefore Brahman is called "one of good deeds" (SrI ananta ra'ngAcArya's translation). - He of all auspicious qualities as stated in the following Sloka from Aditya purANA: satyeSam satyasankalpam satyam satyavratam harim | satyacaryam satyayonim satyaSIrsham aham bahaje || (Aditya. 3.5) - SrI madhvAcArya in his bhAgavata tAtparya describes bhagavAn as: satyam nir-duhkha nitya niratiSaya Ananda anubhava svarUpam (1.1.1) "He Whose Nature is Truth, One without any trace of sorrow, Eternal, of Extreme Splendor, Eternally Blissful.". - Another quote from SrI madhvAcArya - satyo hi bhagavAn vishNuh sad-guNatvAt prakIrtitah "vishNu is called satya because of His infinite auspicious attributes.

- SrI jayatIrtha in his `karma nirNaya TIkA' gives the interpretation - satyah - svatantrah - He Who is Independent. - The atharvaNa Upanishad mantra that follows, declares bhagavAn as `satyah': "satyameva jayati nAnRtam, satyena kathAh vitato devayAnah | yanAkramanti Rshayo hyAptakAmAh yatra tat-satyasya paramam nidhAnam || (athar. Upa. 2.6) - chAndogya upanishad mantra 7.16.1: esha tu ativadati | yah saytena tivadati | so'ham bhagavah satyenAvadAnIti | satyam tveva viji~jnAsitavyam iti | satyam bhagavo vijij~jnAsa iti || - aitareya Upanishad mantra 2.1.7: tat satyam | sat iti prANah | ti iti annam | yam iti asau Adityam | tad etat tri-vRt | .. | ya evam etat satyasya satyattvam veda || "That Brahman-vishNu is called satyam. He is sarvottama and hence he is called sat. ti - tanu vistAre - vishNu is complete and full by deSa, kAla, and guNa-s. He is perfectly full and complete, and so is called as `ti'. Yam - yeti j~nAnam samuddishTam | He is sarvaj~nA. All these denote one Person: sat, ti, yam". (translation from SrI Raghavendran's book). SrI Raghavendran has collected an extensive list of supporting references from the brahma sUtra-s etc. as well. The interested reader is referred to his book for details. 874. satya-dharma-parAyaNah a) He Who is pleased with the true dharma practiced by His devotees. b) He Who is ever devoted to, and established in, Truth and in righteousness. c) He Who provides the support to, and Who shows the path for, those who follow the superior path of dharma. d) Refuge of devotees such as yadu, turvaSa, etc., who take interest in discharging virtuous duties. Om satya-dharma-parAyaNaya namah. SrI vAsishTha derives the word parAyaNa from the roots pRR - to refresh, to fill, and ay - to go. The meaning is "One Who conducts Himself according to the satya dharma, or Who is the Abode of satya dharma satyaSca asau dharmah satya-dharmah saccidAnana lakshaNah, sa eva parah ayanam = Asrayah svarUpam vA sa satya-dharma- parAyaNah. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the term satya-dharma as referring to "the true dharma as laid down in the SAstra-s, namely the nivRtti dharma that is practiced by pious men without any expectation of benefit etc., and parAyaNam as "parama prINanam" - that which gives the most happiness to bhagavAn. BhagavAn is `satya-dharma-parAyaNah' because He is most pleased with the practice of the dharma that is practiced by pious men with no expectation of any benefit, as laid down in the sAttvika SAstra-s. All

actions by us should be undertaken in the spirit of "SrI bhagavad Aj~nayA SrIman nArAyaNa prItyartham" - all actions we undertake should be in the spirit that these are His commands (we only should do what is prescribed in the SAstra-s, which are His commands), and for His pleasure only. SrI cinmyAnanda points to the definition for dharma - kartavya, akartavya vidhreva dharmah The rules of do's and don'ts (as per the SAstra-s) is dharma. b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: "satye yathAbhUtArtha kathane dharma ca, codanA lakshaNe niyata iti satya-dharma-parAyaNah" He Who is ever devoted to, and established in, Truth and in righteousness (i.e., acting according to scriptural injunctions of do's and don'ts). c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as: satyah samIcIno dharma AcAro yeshAm te satya dharmANah | teshAm param paramam ayanam gatih AdhAro vA yah sa satya-dharma-parAyaNah || He Who provides the support to, and Who shows the path for, those who follow the superior path of dharma, is satya-dharma-parAyaNah. d) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives the derivation satsu bhavah satyah, sa ca asau dharmaSca satya-dharmah | satya-dharmeshu sAttvika- dharmeshu param tAtparyam yeshAm te satya-dharma-parAh, yadu, turvaSa Adi bhkta-janAh | teshAm ayanam Asrayah iti satya-dharma-parAyaNah | "Refuge of devotees such as yadu, turvaSa, etc., who take interest in discharging virtuous duties". He refers us to another related nAma - sat-parAyaNah, in Slokam 75 (nAma 708). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to two other nAma-s that are similar, and that we have studied earlier: satya dharma parAkramah - Slokam 31 - 290; satya dharmA - Slokam 56 (nAma 532). 875. abhiprAyah a) He Who is the object of choice. b) He to Whom all beings go (praiti) directly (abhi) during pralaya. c) He Who exclusively directs the activities of all others. Om abhiprAyAya namah. `abhiprAya' as is commonly used, means `aim, purpose, intention, wish, desire' etc. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as: abhiprIyate - kAmayate svajana hito yena iti abhiprAyah He Who desires the welfare of His devotees is `abhiprAyah". He derives the meaning from abhi + prI - tarpaNe kAntau ca - to please, to take delight in. a) SrI BhaTTar enjoys the nAma as a reference to "One Who is the aim or object of the devotees". His interpretation is: satyadharma nishThena svacchena nirupAdhika uddeSyatayA abhipretah iti abhiprAyah

- He is the Highest Goal sought after by His devotees who are pure by nature, practice the sAttvika dharma, and are not seeking lower pleasures. The niukti author explains - sacchena dharma nishThena yo abhitah preyate punah - He Who is decidedly the highest goal sought after by His devotees who are pure at heart..". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan illustrates the spirit of the interpretation with a reference to AzhvArs' pASuram-s: - vizhumiya munivar vizhu'ngum kOdalin kani (periya tirumozhi 2.3.2) -The delightful fruit with no residual fiber whatsoever, that is relished by the excellent sages. - vizhumiya amarar munivar vizhu'ngum kannaR-kani discerning devas and sages. (tiruvAi. 3.6.7) - He is the sugar block for the

b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the explanation abhipreyate purushArtha ka'nkshibhih He Who is sought after by those who seek the four purshArtha-s (dharma, artha, kAma and moksha). Alternatively, he gives the interpretation Abhimukhyena pralaye asmin praiti jagat iti vA abhiprAyah -He to Whom all beings go (praiti) directly (abhi) during pralaya, is abhiprAyah. . This interpretation is based on `abhi', used as a prefix, meaning `to, towards', and prAya meaning `going away, departing'. c) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha interprets the nAma in his tattva sAra as `abhi abhitah prakarsheNa prAyah preraNAdikriyA yasya iti abhiprAyah He Who exclusively directs the activities of all others. 876. priyArhah a) He Who is rightly the object of love. b) He Who deserves to be offered our most beloved offerings. Om priyArhAya namah. The roots involved in the nAma are: prI - tarpaNe, kAntau ca - to please, to take delight in, and arh - pUjAyAm yogyatve ca - to worship, to deserve. SrI vAsishTha gives two alternate derivations: - priyam arhati iti priayArhah - He Who deserves love. - priyeshu arhah = yogyah, priyArhah - He Who is most fitting among objects of love. a) SrI BhaTTar comments that bhagavAn is rightly the object of love from the devotees, since He loves and respects the devotees intensely. He is worthy of love from His devotees because of His attitude towards them - bhagavAn feels that His devotees are `benevolent' to Him because they have chosen to seek Him for their needs. By giving their devotion to Him, bhagvAn feels that His devotees have benevolently given Him all their belongings: udArAh sarva evaite j~nAnI tvAtmaiva me matam | Asthitah sa hi uktAtmA mAmemAnuttamAm gatim || (gItA 7.18)

"All these devotees are indeed generous (udArAh), but I deem the man of knowledge to be My very self; for he, integrated, is devoted to Me alone as the highest end". BhagavAn considers that by worshipping Him and seeking His help, they have already contributed everything they have to Him, and so He considers them benevolent and generous. Such is His respect to His devotees, and so he is deserving of extreme love from these devotees. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 7.5.11: teLivuRRu vIvinRi ninRavarkku inbak kadi Seyyum teLivuRRa kaNNan.. "bhagavAn kaNNan bestows the constant thought of His Divine Feet to those devotees who surrender to Him with unswerving devotion, but even after that, He feels that He has not done enough to His devotee" (SrI v. n. vedAnta deSikan). The way that Lord kRshNa felt about His not having done enough to help draupadi even at time He returned to SrI vaikunTham, comes to mind. b) SrI San'kara interprets the term `priya' as a reference to `things that are dear to oneself', and explains the nAma as signifying that Lord vishNu deserves to be offered our most precious and beloved things. He quotes the vishNu dharmottara in support: yad-yat ishTa-tamam loke yaccAsya dayitam gRhe tat-tat gRNavate deyam tadeva akshayam icchatA | || (mahA. 13.58.7, V.D. 55.3)

"By those that desire the imperishable (Brahman), the most beloved things in the world and the choicest things in the house should be offered to a meritorious person". (This will become a choice offering to God). In elaboration of the above, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers to a mantra from bRhadAraNyaka Upanishad Atmanastu kAmAya sarvam priyam bhavati", and notes that of all the things that are dear to one, the self is the dearest. This would support the great concept of Atma- samarpaNam or prapatti that is dear to SrI vaishNavas in particular. Another anubhavam is provided by SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj - priyANi srak-candanAdIni arhati iti priyArhah - He Who deserves to be worshipped with a wreath or garland of flowers, sandal, etc. SrI vAsishTha refers to the yajur vedic mantra in support: priyANAm tvA priyapatim havAmahe | (yajur. 23.19) 877. arhah - The fitting Lord to be worshipped. Om arhAya namah. Arhyate - prAptum yujyata iti arhah He Who is fit to be attained. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "ananya-spRhANAm teshAmapi ayameva yogya iti arhah He is the right Deity to be sought after by devotees who have no other desire in life (other than moksha). SrI BhaTTar refers us to Lord kRshNa's words in the gItA:

Asthitah sa hi yuktAtmA mAmeva anuttamAm gatim |

(gItA 7.18)

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as referring to "One Who is deserving of worship" svAgata Asana, praSamsA, arghya, pAdya, stuti namaskAra Adibhih pUjA sAdhanaih pUjanIya iti arhah "He should be worshipped by such things as words of welcome, offering of a seat, praise, arghya or offering of water, milk, etc., pAdya or water for washing His Feet, glorification, prostrations, etc. One is reminded of the SrI vaishNava ArAdhanam for perumAl in the form of sAlagrAma in the houses. SrI vAsishTha very nicely captures the spirit of the nAma in the following words: sarvAntargatAn sarvAn bhogAn vihAya, SreyorthinAm vidushAm sarva prakAraih sAdhanaih, sopakaraNaih pUjA vidhAnaih, sarva karmArpaNena nishkAma karmabhiSca sa eva prAptum yogya iti arthah. "Giving up interest in all external pleasures, and desiring only the ultimate bliss, the learned direct all their efforts , spiritual practices, different ways of worship, and all the resultant benefits from these actions, to that One bhagavAn - vishNu, and therefore He is arhah - Fit to be worshipped". The point to note is that He is fit to be sought by those who have no interest in anything else. He points out that there are several instances where the term `arhate' occurs in the veda-s, and gives just one example: imam stomam arhate jAtavedase rathamiva sam mahemA manIshayA | bhadrA hi nah pramatirasya samsadyagne sakhye mA rishAmA vayam tava || (Rg. 1.94.1) SrI vAsishTha notes that we are all arha-s (fit) in some sense or the other only because He reflects His arhattvam in all of us in some tiny measure. SrI raghunAtha tIrtha uses a different pATham from the others by treating the nAma as "arhapriya-kRt" He Who bestows affection and blessings on the devotees who are deserving arhebhyah -yogyebhyah bhaktebhyah, priyam karoti - rakshaNAdi karoti iti arhapriya-kRt. 878. priya-kRt He Who does what is wanted by others. om priya-kRte namah. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the nAma is that bhagavAn does fulfill the wishes of those who desire other, lesser, pleasures from Him as well (that is, in addition to bestowing moksha), as long as they are His devotees. He does not look at their deficiencies, but only considers the fact that they are His devotees. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to divya prabandham "un aDiyArkku en Seyvan enrE irutti nI". This way, He pleases them and thereby converts them over time to be solely interested in attaining Him

anya parAnapi bhajatah tac- chandAnuvartanena priyAn karoti iti priya-kRt. SrI Sa'nkara notes that He is not only worthy of being pleased priyArhah (see nAma 876), but He is also One Who pleases His devotees priya-kRt by fulfilling the desires of those who worship Him by means of hymns, etc. na kevalam priyArha eva, kim tu stutyAdibhih bhajatAm priyam karoti it priya-kRt . SrI vAsishTha observes that when vedic mantra-s are invoked in offerings, such as the following, bhagavAn is pleased and bestows the desired benefits on the devotee, and so He is called priya-kRt: vashaT te vishNavAsa akRNomi tan me jushasva SipivishTa havyam || vardhantu tvA sushTutayo giro me yUyam pAta vastibhih sadA nah || (Rg. 7.99.7) (May these my songs of eulogy exalt thee. Preserve us ever more with blessings). agne naya supathA rAye asmAn viSvAni deva vayunAni vidvAn | yuyodhyasmad-juhurANameno bhUyishThAm te nama uktim vidhema || (Rg. 1.189.1)

(By goodly paths, lead us to riches. Remove the sins that make us stray and wander; We will bring the most ample adoration to you). tat savitur vareNyam bhargo devasya dImahi | dhiyo yo nah pracodayAt (Rg. 3.62.10) (We meditate on the adorable effulgence of the Lord who creates everything, so that it may energize our consciousness). SrI raghunAtha tIrtha uses the nAma as `arha-priya-kRt', and gives the interpretation as "One Who bestows protection and affection to the deserving devotees". 879. prIti-vardhanaha) Who increases the joy of His devotees. b) He Who fulfills the love of His devotees. Om prIti-vardhanAya namah. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha notes that the word `vardhanah' can be derived from either of the two roots vRd - vRddhau - to grow, or vardh - pUraNa - to fill. The two different meanings could then be: a) He Who grows the love of the devotees towards Him, or b) He Who fulfills the love of the devotee. a) SrI BhaTTar comments that by manifesting His qualities more and more, He increases the joy of His devotees, and so He called prIti- vardhanah. He quotes the gItA in support: teshAm satata yuktAnAm bhajatAm prIti pUrvakam | dadAmi buddhi yogam tam yena mAm upayAnti te || (gItA 10.10)

"To those who are constantly united with Me and who worship Me with immense love, I lovingly grant that mental disposition (buddhi yoga) by which they attain Me". tirumazhaippirAn refers to emperumAn as "bhakti uzhavan" - He who cultivates bhakti in the devotees like a peasant. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan also refers us to bhagavd rAmAnuja's introductory section for his gItA bhAshya, where he says of bhagavAn kRshNa: "niratiSaya saundarya sauSIlyAdi guNa gaNa AvishkareNa akrUra mAlAkArAdIn parama bhAgavatAn kRtvA." "He Who made akrUra, mAlakAra, and others His most ardent devotees by the manifestation of His unsurpassed qualities such as beauty and loving compassion". This is what the nAma "prIti-vardhanah" refers to. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan also refers us to nAmmAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 1.10.10, where AzhvAr recounts that bhagavAn has lodged Himself into namAzhvAr's heart with the beauty of His lotus eyes, lest AzhvAr may forget Him accidentally: maRakkum enRu Sen-tAmaraik kaNNoDu maRappaRa ennuLLE manninAn tannai . (tiruvAi. 1.10.10) SrI cinmayAnanda's explanation is: "The sense of drunken joy that arises in one's bosom when one loves deeply and truly is called prIti. "One Who increases the prIti in the devotee's heart is SrI nArAyaNa. The more He is contemplated upon, the more His glories are appreciated, the more our prIti in Him increases". SrI satya sandha tIrtha's explanation for the nAma is: prItim bhakteshu vardhayati prItyA bhaktAn vardhayati iti vA prIti- vardhanah" He Who grows the love in the devotees, or He Who grows the devotees through love, is prIti-vardhanah. b) Using the root vardh - chedana pUraNayoH - to cut,. to fill, SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate interpretation also prItim vardhayati = pUrayati it prIti-vardhanah - He Who fulfills the love of the devotees. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 94 -

vihAyasa-gatir_jyotir_su-rucir_huta-bhug-vibhuh | ravir_iorocanah sUryah savitA ravi-locanah || om om om om om om om om om vihAyasa-gataye namah jyotishe namah su-rucaye namah huta-bhug-vibhave namah ravaye namah virocanAya namah sUryAya namah savitre namah ravi-locanAya namah

SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma-s of this Sloka and the beginning nAma-s of the next Sloka in terms the different steps that the mukta jIva takes in reaching Brahman. These steps are described differently in different upanishad-s . chAndogya Upanishad lists seven steps arcis -agni, ahaH -day, Sukala paksha, uttrAyana, samvatsara - year, Aditya - ravi, candra - moon, vidyut lightning. The kaushItaki Upanishad lists six steps agni loka, vAyu loka, varuNa loka, Aditya loka, indra loka, and prajApati loka. The bRhadAraNyaka Upanishad lists the following arcis, ahah, Sukla paksha, uttarAyaNa, deva loka, Aditya, and vaidyuta. The relevant references are: chAndogya upanishad 4.15.5, 4.15.6, 5.10.1 and 5.10.2, kaushItaki upanishad 1.21, bRhadAraNyaka Upanishad 8.2.15, 7.10.1. The chAndogya Upanishad mantra-s are given below: tadya ittham viduH; ye ceme'raNye SraddhA tapa itupAsate - te'rcisham abhisambhavanti, arcisho'haH, ahna ApUryamANa paksham, ApUryamANa pakshAt yAn shaDuda'n'neti mAsAnstAn || (chAnd. 5.10.1) "Those who know the nature of the five fires - pancAgni thus, and those who practice in the forest meditating upon Brahman with faith, will unite with agni.

From agni to the deity of the day and from there to the deity of the bright half of the month and thereon he comes upon the deity of the half year while the sun moves towards the north." mAsebhyah samvatsaram samvatsarAt Adityam,AdityAt candramasam, candramaso vidyutam | tat-purusho amAnavaH | sa enAn brahma gamayati esha deva patho brahma pathah etena pratipadyamAnA imam mAnavam Avartam nAvartante nAvartante || (chAn. 5.10.2) "From that half year he reaches the year - samvatsara. From samvatsara he comes to the sun. From the sun to the moon, from the moon to vidyut, and from there that amAnava, super human, takes him to parabrahman. This is known as the path of the gods or the path to Brahman. Those who go by this path never again return to this world of samsAra". The other upanishadic passages are not given here, but these are discussed in detail in bhagavad rAmAnuja's SrI bhAshya (sUtra 4.3.1). Bhagavad rAmAnuja points out that all the paths described in the three Upanishad-s refer to the same arcirAdi mArga with the same steps, and that consistency is to obtained by consolidating the details from the different descriptions, since they all list the same path in the final analysis, but do not list all the steps. Thus, we end up with the arcirAdi mArga with the following twelve steps: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10 11 12 arcis or agni, ahas or day, pUrva paksha or Sukla paksha, uttarAyaNa, samvatsara or year, vAyu, Aditya, candra, vaidyuta, varuNa, indra and prajApati.

The sequence of these steps and their relative arrangements is not arbitrary in any sense, but is based on intense analysis of the different upaniahad-s, and coming up with a sequence that is consistent between the different upanishadic declarations. A detailed discussion of the sequencing is given in bhagavad rAmAnuja SrI bhAshyam - brahma sUtra 4.3.2. These twelve are the deities that are established by bhagavAn to lead the mukta in his ascent to paramapadam from this world. They are also called AtivAhika-s or `those that lead the way'. The mapping between the different nAma-s by SrI BhaTTar, and the different steps of arcirAdi mArga as outlined in the upanishads, is given below: vihAyasa gatiH - The summary statement that He is the One who leads the mukta jIva to Himself. jyotiH - agni suruciH - deity of the day

huta-bhug-vibhuH - deity of the bright half of the month raviH - the deity of the half year while the sun moves towards the north virocanaH - the year, samvatsara sUrya - vAyu savitA - the sun ravi-locanaH - a reference to the moon, the lightning, and varuNa ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA - indra loka, and prajApati loka It is an entirely delightful experience to delve into nammAzhvAr's description of the ascent of the jIva to SrI vaikunTham in his pASurams, and their interpretations by our AcArya-s in particular. We get a different dimension of the function of these AtivAhika-s as the mukta jIva is received and led on his way to bhagavAn. BhagavAn's deep love for his devotee who is arriving, is expressed by AzhvAr in his delightful devotional outpouring. Here, vaidyuta comes first, and announces with joy the arrival of the mukta to the rest of the AtivAhika-s with his thunder (Suzh viSumbaNi mugil tUriyam muzhakkina - tiruvAi. 10.9.1). VaruNa fills the sky with water-laden clouds, as if with golden pots - pUraNa pork-kuDam (10.9.2). The oceans are dancing with joy with their rising and falling waves constantly - neer aNi kadalgaL ninRu Arttana. Not just the 12 AtivAhikas listed above, but everyone in the AtivAhika lokam come out and stand in line and offer their obeisance to the arriving mukta, including the usually meditating and silent sages (10.9.3). BhagavAn is decorating Himself with tulasi garlands, and is waiting along with pirATTi to receive His longlost devotee (10.9.4). The deva-s in all the worlds on the way of the mukta jIva are setting up delightfully decorated huts for the temporary stay of the mukta jIva to take rest on the way. VaruNa, indra, and prajApati are eagerly waiting at the entrance to their regions to welcome and receive the mukta, with a request to the mukta to bless them by passing through their regions - emadu iDam puguduga (10.9.5). The likes of sanaka, nArada, etc., are chanting veda-s with great delight to welcome the mukta jIva. A big festive atmosphere is prevalent everywhere on the way. High-sounding musical instruments are being played all the way along. As the mukta jIva nears the limits of parama padam, the nitya sUri-s, who are supreme in their Seshattvam, welcome the mukta to their world (10.9.8). Even the Lord is shining brilliantly in anticipation of this special occasion. The nitya sUri-s are rejoicing that at last a jIva has realized his Permanent Abode, and is joining them, and consider it their good fortune that this incident is taking place. They all welcome the mukta by offering pAdya upacAra (washing his feet) at each house as the mukta passes along (pAda'ngaL kazhuvinar 10.9.10). It is thus that bhagavAn and pirATTi look forward to their long-lost child, and welcome the mukta to SrI vaikunTham. 880. vihAyasa-gatih a) He Who is the means for the attainment of paramapadam. b) He Who travels in the form of the Sun. c) He Who travels in space through His vehicle garuDa- the King of birds. d) He Who is attained by tapasvin-s through their tapas (hA - tyAge - to abandon). Om vihAyasa-gataye namah. SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma starting with vi as an upasarga, the root hA - gatau - to, to get, to attain;

or hA - tyAge - to abandon, and adding the `asun' pratyaya according to a related uNAdi sUtra. gati means "that which is attained'. That through which one travels is vihAyasa, meaning space. vihAyasa also can refer to those who sacrifice, or those sAttvik people who perform tapas etc. Thus, vihAyasa-gatih can mean "One Who travels in space", or "One Who is attained by those who follow the sAttvik path". The amara koSa gives the meanings "sky", "bird", Lord's vishNus' Abode, etc., for the word vihAyasa - viyad vishNupadam vihAyasI. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the last of these, and gives the interpretation - tathA nirUDha bhakti parakoTibhih vihAyasam = parama vyoma padameva gamyate asmAt iti vihAyasa-gatih - He is called vihAyasa-gatih since it is through Him and because of Him that those devotees who have reached the highest stage of bhakti attain the supreme abode, namely paramapadam. He quotes from the vishNu purANa in support: bhunktvA ca vipulAn bhogAn tam ante mat-prasadAdajam mamAnusmaraNam prApya divyam lokam avApsyasi | || (V.P. 5.19.26)

"Having enjoyed the worldly pleasures in abundance by My grace, you will remember Me at the last moment of life, and will attain the divine world of parama padam". He also quotes brahma sUtra 4.2.16 in support: tadokah agra-jvalanam tat-prakASita-dvAro vidyA-sAmarthyAt taccheshagatyanusmRti yogAcca hArdAnugRhItah SatAdhiikayA | "Because of the efficacy of the bhakti yoga that has been practiced by the devotee and because of the constant meditation on the path that leads to the Supreme Abode of the Lord" - the devotee is able to see the opening by which he has to go when he leaves the body, and when the soul leaves the body through the mUrdhanya nADi or the sushumnA nADi, it leads him to the Supreme Abode of the Lord. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to divya prabandham, where AzhvAr refers to bhagavAn letting His devotee enjoy the pleasures of this world, and then takes them to His world in the end: "i'ngu ozhindu bhOgam nee eidip pinnum nam iDaikkE pOduvAi". (periya tiru. 5.8.5) nammAzhvAr refers to bhagavAn as "vAneRa vazhi tanda vATTARRAn" (tiruvAi. 10.6.5), and "maN ulagil vaLam mikka vATTARRAn vandu inRu viN ulagam taruvAnAi viRaiginRAn" (tiruvAi. 10.6.3). b)SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning `abode' for the term `gati', and gives the explanation for the nAma as: "One Who has His abode in the firmament - referring to either Lord vishNu or His form as the Sun" vihAyasah - vihAyAsam gatih ASrayah asya iti vihAyasa gatih, vishNu padam, Adityo vA". SrI cinmayAnanda refers to the nAma of bhagavan - sUrya nArAyaNa, in this context. SrI satya devo vAsishTha also gives an interpretation that the nAma refers to bhagavAn in the form of the Sun - vihAyase antarikshe gatih gamanam yasya sa vihAyasa-gatih - sUryah.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri takes the term vihAyasa as a reference to the sky, and observes that bhagavAn is called vihAyasa gatih because He has the sky as His path - unobstructed, unsupported, vast, limitless - in the form of the Sun. He comments that bhagavAn manifests in the form of the Sun as one reflection of His immense love for His creation - priya-kRt, prIti-vardhanah etc. He will look at the next 10 nAma-s as describing bhagavAn in the forms of various aspects of the Sun. c) SrI kRshNa data bhAradvAj uses the dual meaning "sky" and `bird" for the word vihAyasa", and interprets the nAma as "One Who travels in space by means of the king of birds - garuDa, as His vAhana vihAyase - vyomni vihAyah patinA gatih yasya iti vihAyasa-gatih. SrI satya sandha tIrtha also gives the explanation in terms of bhagavAn's garuDa vAhana - vihAyaso -garuDah, tena tena gatih yasya sa vihAyasa-gatih. d) An alternate interpretation provided by SrI vAsishTha uses the meaning `tapasvin' for the term `vihAyasa' (see first paragraph for this nAma; hA - tyAge - to abandon): "He Who is attained by the tapasvin-s through their tapas" - vihAyasaih tapasvibhih, abhigamyate prApyata iti vihAyasagatih vishNuh. 881. jyotih a) The Light that leads to SrI vaikunTham. b) The Light that is self-luminous. c) The Light that illuminates the Sun, the moon etc. Om jyotishe namah. Starting from this nAma, SrI BhaTTar interprets the next few nAma-s as a description of the different steps involved in the arcirAdi mArga, the path taken by the mukta-s in their way to paramapadam. The root from which the nAma is derived is dyuta - dIptau - to shine. The uNAdi sUtra - dyuter-isin AdeSca jah (uNAdi. 2.110) results in the word jyotih starting from the root duyta. dyotyate asmAt iti jyotih - He by Whom things are illumined, is jyotih. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets this nAma as the first step in the ascent of the jIva-s to parama padam. This step is also called arcih. arcih refers to the first deity that escorts the mukta jIva to the Supreme Abode. SrI BhaTTar refers to chAndogya Upanishad (5.10.1) and to the brahma sUtra-s for the above details: te arcisham abhisambhavanti (chAn. 5.10.1) "They unite with agni; from agni to the deity of the day, and from there to the bright half of the month. Sri ananta ra'ngAcArya translates arcih as a reference to agni). brahma sUtra 4.3.1 - arcirAdinA tat-pratitheh | "Along the path beginning with light, this is well-known" The mukta-s (Released souls) are led along the stages beginning with arci (light), and this is well-known from the upanishadic texts. brahma sUtra 4.3.4 - AtivAhikAh tal-li'ngAt | "They are persons deputed to take the meditators to Brahman, because there is indication of this" -

arcih and the other deities are known as AtivAhika (Escorting Angels) because of the nature of their duty which is to lead the mukta-s to the Supreme Abode. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to the gItA (Sloka-s 8.24 to 8.27), where the path taken by the knowers of Brahman to reach Brahman is described. agni jyotir-ahah Suklah shaNmAsA uttarAyaNam | tatra prayAtA gacchanti brahma brahmavido janAh || (gItA 8.24) "Light in the form of fire, the day, the bright fortnight, the six months of the northern course of the Sun the knowers of Brahman who take this path go to Brahman." By contrast, those who reach svarga (a temporary abode where the jIva enjoys the benefits of his good karma and then is reborn in this world) take the dhUmAdi mArga (Slokam 8.25) - smoke etc., and those who are headed for narakam take the yAmaya mArga according to the SAstra-s. In divya prabandham also we have the description of the path taken by the knowers of Brahman. SrI rAmAnujan gives reference to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 10.9 (SUzh viSumbaNi), where the ten pASuram-s describe in detail the welcome that is offered to the mukta jIvan on his way to SrI vaikunTham. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives an interpretation similar to that of SrI BhaTTar: "dyotate sushumnayA nirgatah tad-bhaktah arcih prApya yasmAt sa jyotih" He Who is the guiding light for those devotees whose souls leave the body through the sushumnA nADi, is jyotih. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation that the nAma signifies that bhagavAn is "One Who shines of His own accord". He quotes the mahA nArAyaNa upanishad in support - nArAyaNa paro jyotir-AtmA nArAyanah parah. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives additional support from bRhadAraNyaka upanishad atra ayam purushah svayam jyotih (bRhadA. 4.3.9). SrI T. S. Krishnamoorthy translates Sri Sa'nkara's commentary as: "One Who is the light of self-luminous consciousness - He Who reveals Himself (without external aid), as well as other things - is jyotih". SrI cinmayAnanda refers us to the gItA: jyotishAmapi tad-jyotih - (gItA 13.18) - The Light of all lights. cinmayAnanda also gives support from muNDakpanishad: tameva bhAntam anubhAti sarvam tasya bhAsA sarvam idam vibhAti (muNDa. 2.2.10) SrI

"Everything shines following Him alone as He shines. All this shines by His light". SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as: dyotate dIpyati kAntyA iti jyotih - He Who enlightens through His kAnti is jyotih. c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha observes that the Sun and Fire are both referred to as jyoti in the vedic terminology, and since bhagavAn is the One who illumines these, He is appropriately jyotih:

agnir-jyotir-jyotir-agnih svAhA | sUryo jyotir-jyotih sUryah svAhA || 882. su-rucih

(yajur. 3.9)

a) He of lovely effulgence - The Day time. b) One Who has the good desire or Will to protect the world. c) He Who is the cause of all the effulgence in everything. d) He Who has intense attachment to His devotees. Om su-rucaye enamah. The root from which the nAma is derived is: ruc - diPtAvabhiprItau - to shine, to look beautiful, to be pleased with. SrI vAsishTha gives the derivation: sushThu rocata iti su-rucih - He Who shines beautifully and well is `su-rucih'. a) SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation as a continuation of the previous nAma, and interprets the current nAma as a reference to "Day time", which is the second step in the ascent of the mukta to SrI vaikunTham. He derives the interpretation as follows: sUryodayAt rocate iti rucih, sA asya SobhanA iti su-rucih The rising of the Sun is pleasing because of its effulgence. Since He is the cause of that beauty, He is called su-rucih. SrI BhaTTar quotes the Sruti - arcisho-ahah - (chAndog. 5.10.1) After agni to the deity of the day.., where the path to Brahman is described. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives an interpretation that associates the nAma su-rucih to the daytime, similar to SrI BhaTTar. His vyAkhyAnam is: Sobhano rucih = divasah yasmAt sa su-rucih He by Whose Grace we have a pleasant day time is su-rucih. b) SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as: "One Whose effulgence is beautiful, auspicious and attractive", or, "One Whose Will is beautiful, auspicious and attractive". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri uses the meaning `taste' for the word' ruci', and gives the explanation for the nAma as "One who has good desire or taste to protect the world". c) SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as a reference to bhagavAn being the cause of anything that is effulgent. SrI cinamyAnanda uses the meanings "Glory" or "Desire" for the term `ruci', and gives the meanings: "He of auspicious Glory or He of auspicious desire", both referring to this world being an expression of His Will or Desire. d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as SobhanA su-rucih = abishva'ngaH anurAgaH yasmin bhaktAnAm iti su-rucih -

He Who is intensely attached to His devotees, is su-rucih. He quotes the amara koSa in support abhishva'nge spRhAyAm ca gabhastau ca rucih striyAm - 3.3.29, giving the meaning "abishva'ngaH = intense attachment, affection" to the word ruciH. 883. huta-bhug-vibhuh He that is the Bright Fortnight of the Moon. Om huta-bhug-vibhave namah. The term hutam is formed from the root hu - dAnAdanayoH - to offer, to perform a sacrifice, to eat. `bhuk' is formed from the root bhuj - pAlana, abhyavahArayoH - to protect, to consume. One who consumes the offering is huta-bhuk - hutam bhu'ngte = huta-bhuk. The term vibhuH is defined by SrI vAsishTha as: vi is an upasarga or prefix, meaning vividha; the root bhU - sattAyAm - to be, to exist. vividho bhavati it vibhuH - That which manifests itself in different ways. SrI BhaTTar interprets the term hutag-bhuk to refer to the moon - hutam bhu'njAnah - somah, and the term vibhuH is given the meaning "One who grows and becomes full - pUrNo bhavati). In other words, the term huta-bhug-vibhuh is interpreted as a reference to the waxing moon - one that has consumed (bhuk) the offerings (huta) made to it, and has become full (vibhuh - pUrNo bhavati). The nirukti author summarizes Sri BhaTTar's interpretation as follows: hutam sudhA pariNatam bhu'njAnaS-candramAs-tathA | vibhuh pUrNo bhavet yasmin sa vai syAt huta-bhug-vibhuh || This is the third step in the arcirAdi mArga. Again, reference is made to the chAndogya Upanishad 5.10.1 in support - arcishaH ahaH ahna ApUryamANa paksham. "From agni to the deity of the day and from there to the deity of the bright half of the month... SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's vyAkhyAnam for the current group of nAma- s continues to parallel that of SrI BhaTTar. He interprets the nAma huta-bhug-vibhuh as a reference to the waxing period of the moon, the Sukla paksha, similar to SrI BhaTTar. His explanation is: huta- bhuk = candraH, vibhuH = pUrNaH, yatra sa huta-bhug-vibhuH Sukla pakshaH.. He because of Whom His devotees have all their darkness removed just like Sukla paksha is called `huta-bhug-vibhuh'. (The translator of SrI vidyA bhUshaN's vyAkhyAnam in Hindi says - "jinkI kRpA se bhakton kA nitya Sukla paksha hai, arthAt unke sarva andhakAr dUr ho jAtA hai |"). SrI Sa'nkara treats "huta-bhuk-vibhuh" as containing two nAma-s: huta-bhuk, and vibhuH. The dvaita AcArya, SrI satya sandha tIrtha, and SrI satya devo vAsishTha also follow the same system. With this pATham, the nAma huta-bhuk re-occurs in Slokam 95 in the pATha-s of both above vyAkhyAnaa-kartA-s (In SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam, the nAma is treated as ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA in Slokam 95, as we will see later). huta-bhuk i) He Who is the Consumer of oblations in homa-s etc. ii) The Protector of the sacrifices.

om huta-bhuje namah: i) The interpretation given by SrI Sa'nkara for the instance of the nAma in the current Slokam is: "He Who is the Consumer of the oblations". SrI Sa'nkara's words are: samasta devatoddeSena pravRtteshvapi karmasu hutam bhu'nkte bhunakti it vA huta-bhuk - "Though offered to different gods in sacrifices, He is the real Enjoyer, or He protects the offerings". ii) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 95, Sri Sa'nkara gives the interpretation - hutam bhunakti it buta-bhuk - He Who protects the sacrifice. SrI vAsishTha explains that hutam refers to the offerings in the fire during homa etc., accompanied by the associated mantra-s: hutamiti agnau prakshiptam sa-mantram. He refers us to the seven tongues of fire that we have described earlier, under the nAma sapta-jihvaH: sapta te agne samidhaH sapta jihvAH (yajur. 17.79). He further adds that its is this `huta-bhuk' guNa of bhagavAn that is reflected in, and is responsible for, our being able to consume the offerings in the form of food to our body. Associated with the prANa vAyu that we inhale and the fire that is in our body, this food or offering gets `consumed'. vibhuh i) He Who is present everywhere, or Her Who is the Lord of all the worlds. ii) He because of Whom al the beings of this universe become distinguished. iii) He Who manifest Himself in different forms. om vibhave namah: SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is: sarvatra vartamAnatvAt trayANam lokAnAm vibhutvAt vA vibhuH Because He is everywhere, or because He is the Lord of all the three worlds, He is called vibhuH. SrI cinmayAnanda translates the nAma as "All-Pervading" - Lord nArAyaNa, the Self, is unconditioned by time or space, for He is Eternal, the Omnipresent. He is All-pervading as He is unlimited by any conditionings. ii) SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives the interpretation - viSishTA bhavanti asmAt it vibhuh - Since beings become distinguished and distinct because of Him, the Lord is called vibhuh. iii) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha interprets the nAma as: vividho bhavati iti vibhuh - He Who manifests Himself in many forms is vibhuH. 884. raviH a) The Sun in his uttarAyaNa or Summer solstice. b) He Who is responsible for the ability of all cetana-s and acetana-s to make sound. c) He Who is praised by His devotees. Om ravaye namaH. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the root ru - Sabde - to sound, and interprets the nAma as as rUyate - praSasyati iti ravih - One Who is praised. In his mapping of the nAma-s of this Sloka with the different steps in the arcirAdi mArga, SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as "One Who is praised as the uttarAyaNa, or the Summer

solstice" - the period in which the Sun begins his movement towards the north. uttarAyaNa is the fourth step in the arcirAdi mArga (see the detailed introduction at the beginning this Slokam). SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives an interpretation similar to that of SrI BhaTTar. He derives the nAma from the root ru - gatireshaNayoH - to go, to hurt, and gives the explanation for the nAma as ravate gacchati uttarAyaNena yasmAt sa raviH; yad-anukampayA uttarAyeNa yAti iti arthaH. The translator in hindi gives the meaning as JinkI kRpA se sUrya uttarAyaNa mem gaman kartA hai | He by Whose Grace the sun is able to traverse the uttarAyaNa mArga, is raviH. SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as a reference to the Sun - Aditya AtmA - The driving force behind the sun. `rasAn Adatta iti raviH' - The Sun has the name ravi because he absorbs all the rasas or fluids from all objects. SrI Sa'nkara quotes the vishNu dharmottara 1.30.16 in support of his interpretation - rasAnAm ca tathA AdAnAt ravih iti abhidhIyata. SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry refers to bhagavad gItA 10.21: AdityAnAm aham vishNuH jyotishAm ravir-amSumAn | (gItA 10.21) "Of Aditya-s I am vishNu, of luminous bodies I am the radiant Sun". b) SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma from the root ru - Sabde - to cry, to yell, to sound as bees; The application of the uNAdi sUtra 4.139 - "aca iH" leads to the word raviH - the Sun. SrI vAsisTha indicates that the affix `i' adds the sense of "one who does", "one who causes others to do" - kartari karaNe vA. So in his interpretation, the term raviH means "One who causes sound", or "One who enables others to make sound", and indicates that it is because of Him that the beings are able to create sound, and so He is called raviH. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as rUyate stUyate bhakta janaih iti raviH He Who is praised by His devotees is raviH. 885. virocanaH a) The Illuminant (the year). b) He of various splendors - such as Sun, moon, day, night, etc. c) He Who shines in the minds of His devotees in various special ways. d) He Who gave special sight (divya cakshus) to arjuna, sa'njaya etc. (vi-locanaH). om virocanAya namaH. The root from which the nAma is derived is `ruc' - dIptAvabhiprItau - to shine, to look beautiful, to be pleased with. vi- is an upasarga or prefix. The pratyaya which leads to the word rocana from ruc, (the pratyaya yuc, which becomes ana), has the sense of "one who has a habit of", according to SrI vAsishTha, who gives pANini sUtra 3.2.149 - anudAttettah ca halAdeh - in support. Thus, virocate tacchIlo virocanaH He Who has the habit of, or for whom it is part of His nature, to shine and to look beautiful. He Who is naturally shining, and Who enlightens this Universe, is virocanaH.

a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as "dvAbhyAm ayana-gatibhyAm samvatsaro rathena virocayati iti virocanaH" - He is the year that illuminates the Sun when he rides his chariot through the two ayana-s or the two periods of six months each (the uttarAyaNa and the dakshiNAyana - the summer solstice and the winter solstice). This is the fifth step in the arcirAdi mArga (see the detailed introduction at the beginning of this Sloka). SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN continues to parallel the interpretation of SrI BhaTTar virocayati samvatsareNa gacchantam svopAsam abhiprautam dIpra'nca karoti it virocanaH - He Who makes the Sun shine as he travels through the samvatsara or through the year. b) SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as "vividham rocata iti vi-rocanaH - He of various splendors. One translator gives the example of His shining in forms such as the Sun, the moon, etc. ; another refers to His shining as the day, night, twilight, etc.; SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points to His providing various types of rays to assist in the growth of the plants etc. c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj points to His shining in special ways in the minds of His devotees viSesheNa rocate bhaktebhya iti virocanaH. He quotes the yajur vedic mantra - namo rucAya brAhmaye (yajur. 31.20). SrI cinmayAnanda notes: "Whatever form the devotee chooses to contemplate upon Him, the Lord manifests in that very Form for the sake and joy of the devotee". SrI vAsishTha refers us to a few mantra-s where the nAma virocana occurs in the Sruti: - tasyA virocanaH prAhlAdir-vatsa AsId-ayaspAtram pAtram | (atharva. 9.10.2) Sriye sudRSIruparasya yAh svar-virocamAnaH kakubhAmacodate | (Rg. 5.44.2) - ayam punAta ushaso virocayat ( (Rg. 9.86.21) d) SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives an alternate pATham -vi-locanah - One Who gave the special sight to arjuna, to sa'njaya etc. - divyam locanam pArthasya yasmAt sa vi-locanaH. He supports his interpretation with a reference to the gItA - divyam dadAmi te cakshuH (gItA 11.8). 886. sUryah a) The source of movement in the form of wind. b) He Who brings forth everything, or He Who brings forth wealth. c) One who generates SrI or brilliance in sUrya or agni (sacred fire). d) He because of Whom we get enlightenment. Om sUryAya namah. SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma from the root sR - gatau - to go, or sU - preraNe - to excite, to impel. The pANini sUtra 3.1.114 - rAja sUya sUrya ..leads to the word sUryah by the addition of the kvip pratyaya. The meaning is "That which moves", or "That which impels all beings to action" sarati gacchati iti sUryah, or suvati karmaNi prerayati lokAn iti sUryah. SrI cinmayAnanda notes: "The term etymologically means the One Source from which all things have been borne out, or out of which they have been delivered. The Lord as the First Cause is the Womb of the Universe". The term is commonly used to refer to the Sun, because on the surface of the world it is the Sun that nurtures and nourishes all living creatures. -

a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the root sR with the meaning `to move'. He notes that the kRt affix (kvip in the present case) has got wide application, and the meaning of the affix is not restricted. Thus, the word sUrya can be interpreted in a way suitable to the context, and he interprets the term in association with `vAyu', since the wind always moves out of Him - vAyuh sadA sarati yasmAt iti sUryah. In other words, he maps the nAma sUrya to the sixth step in the arcirAdi mArga. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also gives the same interpretation - vAyum sarati svopAsakam nItvA iti sUryah. SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri explains the nAma as a reference to One Who streaks through the skies like a snake (sarati). This can closely relate to the interpretation of the nAma as a reference to the wind. vAyu is placed next to samvatsara in the arcirAdi mArga based on the kaushItakI Upanishad sa vAyu lokam (kaushItakI upa. 1.3) - "He (the jIva) goes to the vAyu loka). b) & c) Sri Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is sUte sarvam iti sUryah | sUte Sriyam iti vA sUryah | One translator translates this to mean "He Who brings forth everything, or He Who brings forth wealth, is sUryah". Another translator gives the following as the interpretation - "One who generates SrI or brilliance in sUrya or agni (sacred fire) is sUryah". d) In addition to some of the above interpretations, SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives one another interpretation sUri gamyatvAt sUryah - He because of Whom we get enlightenment is suryah. Somewhat related to this interpretation, SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives the following explanation sUribhih j~nAnibhih prApyate iti sUryah - He Who is attained by the enlightened Sages. 887. savitA a) He Who produces or brings forth the crops etc., in the form of the Sun. b) He Who brings forth everything in the Universe (including the sun etc.). om savitre namah. sUte iti savitA. This nAma occurs again as nAma 969 (Slokam 104). SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma from the root sU - prANi garbha vimocane - to bring forth, to produce. SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam - sUrya dvArA vRshTi sasyAdikam sUte iti savitA BhagavAn produces, through the sun as the medium, rain and the crops, and so He is called savitA or Aditya. This is the seventh step in the arcirAdi mArga. For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 104, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn's nAma here signifies that He is the Creator of everything (including the sun) sarveshAm sAkshAt janayitA savitA.

SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation - sarvasya jagatah prasavitA savitA He Who brings forth or creates all the Universes. He gives support for the interpretation from vishNu dharmottara: rasAnAm ca tathAdAnAt raviH iti abhidhIyate | prajAnAm tu prasavanAt savitA iti nigadyate || (vishNu dharmottara 1.30.15).

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives references to Sruti: devo varuNah prajApatiH savitA (chAndogya. 1.12.5) "He who shines brilliantly, He who brings rain, He who is the Protector of people, the Lord SavitA"; savanAt savitA - (maitrAyaNi 5.7). SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry gives an interesting alternate pATham that has the same meaning "sa pitA - He, The Father of All". SrI vAsishTha gives the explanation sUrya dvArA vRshTi sasyAdikam utpAdya jagat janayati iti savitA He Who creates grains etc. through rain by means of the sun and generates and sustains life, is savitA. 888. ravi-locanaH a) He Who illuminates (through the rays of the sun). b) He that has the Sun for His eye. c) He from Whose eyes the Sun was born. d) He Who is fond of praise. om ravi-locanAya namaH. raviNA - tat prakASena, locayati - darSayati iti ravi-locanaH That which reveals everything to us through its luster. The root from which `locana' is derived is `loc - darSane - to see'. ravi refers to the Sun. a) SrI BhaTTar ues this nAma to cover the eighth, ninth and tenth steps of arcirAdi mArga the Moon, indra (lightning), and varuNa. All these shine by means of the sun's rays, and so they are together covered by this nAma in SrI BhaTTar's interpretation ravi raSmi sa'nkrAntyAdi mukhena candra-vidyud-varuNAn locayati iti ravi- locanaH. The chAndogya Upanishad mantra quoted at the beginning of this Sloka - AdityAt candramasam, candramaso vidyutam", and the kaushItakI Upanishad passage - sa varuNa lokam (1.3), are invoked in support of the interpretation. b) SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is - raviH locanam = cakshuH asya iti ravi-locanaH He Who has the Sun as His eye is ravi-locanaH. SrI Sa'nkara quotes the muNDakopanishad passage in support: agnir-mUrdhA cakshushI candra sUryau (Mundako. 2.1.4) "He Who has fire for the crown of His head, and Who has candra and sUrya as His eyes".

c) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj interprets the nAma as "One from Whose eyes arose sUrya" raviH bhAskaraH locanAd-yasya iti ravi-locanaH. He refers us to purusha sUkta cakshoh sUryo ajAyata (Rg. Veda 10.90.13). SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives multiple explanations: - raviNA locayati sarvasm it raiv-locanaH - He Who enlightens everything through the Sun; He Whose eyes are the Sun, and through which we see - locyate anena iti locanaH, raviH locanam = cakshuH yasya sa ravi-locanaH. d) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha seems to derive his interpretation based on the root ru - Sabde - to sound, for the word raviH, and gives the meaning `praise' for the word `raviH'. His interpretation for the term locanaH is "One Who is pleased", probably based on the root loc - to shine. His interpretation for the nAma is: raviH stutiH; locanIyatvAt locanam priyam; raviH stutiH, locanam - priyam yasya sah ravi-locanaH - He Who is fond of praise, is ravi-locanaH. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 95 -

ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA sukha-do naikado-'grajah | a-nirviNNah sadAmarshI lokAdhishThAnam_adbhutah

||

om om om om om om om om

ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktre namah. sukha-dAya namah. naikadAya namah agrajAya namah a-nirviNNAya namah sadA-marshiNe namah lokAdhishThAnAya namah adbhutAya namah.

889. ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA

a) He Who is indra and brahmA of immeasurable greatness. b) He Who is endless, and Who consumes the offerings through fire. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets this nAma as representing the last two steps (the eleventh and twelfth) in the arcirAdi mArga. indra and brahmA escort the jIva in the final two steps in the ascent of the jIva to parama padam through the arcirAdi mArga (sa indra lokam, sa prajApati lokam - kaushItakI. ).. SrI BhaTTar interprets the term huta-bhuk as a reference to indra, since he is the consumer of the offerings through fire in the sacrifices - sapta tantushu hutam bhu'nkte iti indro huta-bhuk. He maps the term `bhoktA' in this nAma to `brahmA' - prajAh bhunakti - pAlayati iti prajApatih bhoktA. Since brahmA sustains and protects the process of creation - birth etc., he is called bhoktA (prajA means propagation, production, birth). Since both indra and brahmA, who are endowed with immense greatness (ananta), are under bhagavAn's control, He is called ananta- huta-bhug-bhoktA. SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN, who has given the same anubhavam as SrI BhaTTar for the past few nAma-s (i.e., in terms of bhagavAn leading the mukta jIva-s in their path to SrI vaikunTham after they leave their body in this world), treats `ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA' as consisting of two nAma-s - `anantah' and `hutabhug-bhoktA', and gives an interpretation similar to that of SrI BhaTTar for the term `huta-bhug-bhoktA huta-bhugbhih amRta pariNAma rUpam hutam bhu'njAnaih vidyuta paryanta Agatena amAnavena purusheNa sahitaih varuNa indra prajApatibhih sva-pada gAminam bhaktam bhunakti pAlayati it huta-bhug-bhoktA He is the Protector of the devotee who have been escorted by the amAnava purusha-s through the indra lokam, etc., and who are on their final stages of reaching His Abode, escorted by varuNa, indra, and prajApati. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj treats `ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA as one nAma, but interprets its as consisting of two parts na antah yasya iti anantah - One for Whom there is no end, is anantah; and, huta- bhujA pAvakena bhu'nkte iti huta-bhug-bhoktA - He Who consumes (the offerings of oblations in sacrifices) through fire is huta-bhug- bhoktA; anantaSca asau huta-bhug-bhoktA iti ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA - He Who is endless, and Who consumes the offerings through fire, is ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA. Now we will look at the different interpretations by other vyAkhyAna kartA-s who have interpreted `ananta-huta-bhug-bhoktA' as consisting of three nAma-s - anantah, huta-bhuk, and bhoktA. SrI Sa'nkara is the leading vyAkhyAna kArtA who takes this approach. (The nAma `anantah' occurs as nAma 665 (Slokam 70) in SrI BhaTTar's interpretation, and the nAma bhoktA has been studied as nAma-s 145 and 502 in SrI BhaTTar's interpretation). i) anantah - The Infinite. Om anantAya namah. `anta' means `end'; ananta means "One Who is not limited", "One Who is endless", etc. na antam yasya sa anantah. The reader is referred to the detailed write-up for this in Slokam 70 (nAma 665).

In addition to the interpretations given for the instance of this nAma in Slokam 70, SrI Sa'nkara gives an alternate interpretation here - Because He is in the form of AdiSesha, He is called ananta - Sesha rUpo vA. ii) huta-bhuk: a) The Protector of the sacrifice. b) The Consumer of the offerings in a sacrifice. Om huta-buje namaH. We encountered the nAma huta-bhuk earlier in Slokam 94 in Sa'nkara pATham (SrI BhaTTar takes the nAma as huta-bhug-vibhuh in Slokam 94). SrI vAsishTha gives the root hu - dAnAdanayoH - to offer, to perform a sacrifice, to eat; and the root bhuj pAlanAbhyavahArayoH - to protect, or anavane - to eat, to consume, for deriving the nAma. a) For the current instance of the nAma in SrI Sa'nkara's pATham, the interpretation given is hutam bhunakti iti huta-bhuk - He Who protects the sacrifice. SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri notes that this protection refers to the successful completion of the sacrifice by His blessing, even when there may be inadvertent deficiencies in the performance of the sacrifice yasya smRtyA ca nAmoktyA taop yAga kriyAdishu | nyUnam sampUrnatAm yAti satyo vande tam acyutam ||

b) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 94 in SrI Sa'nkara's pATham, he gives the explanation hutam bhu'ngte iti huta-bhuk - He Who consumes the offerings in the sacrifice. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates on this further: When offerings are made to different devatA-s in a sacrifice, agni (fire) again receives it first, and then passes it on to sUrya, who then takes it to the respective deities. All the deities ultimately offer these to bhagavAn, Who is the ultimate receiver of all the offerings. iii) bhoktA: a) The Enjoyer of all offerings made by devotees with love. b) Enjoyer of offerings made in all sacrifices. c) Enjoyer of offerings made to the pitR-s etc. d) He Who consumes (destroys) everything over time through different forms - as agni, sUrya, kAla etc. e) He Who protects everything (bhuj - pAlane - to protect). om bhoktre namaH. The root for `bhoktA' is the same as for the term `bhuk', namely, bhuj - to protect, to eat. We have studied the nAma `bhoktA' previously in Sloka 16 (nAma 145) and Sloka 53 (nAma 502). Two derivations for the term `bhoktA' are - bhunakti iti bhoktA - The Protector, and bhunkte iti bhoktA The Enjoyer. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha nicely expresses this as `rakshako bhakshaNaSca'. BhagavAn creates, protects, and then swallows at the time of pralaya.

a) For nAma 145, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is the Enjoyer of things offered by His devotees with love, like nectar. He refers us to Lord kRshNa's words in the gItA: patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktyA prayacchati | tadaham bahktyupahRtam aSnAmi prayatAtmanah || (gItA 9.26) "If a devotee offers to Me a mere leaf, flower, fruit, or water with sincere devotion and love, I accept it as invaluable treasure." b) Alternatively, SrI BhaTTar explains that bhagavAn is bhoktA since He is the Ultimate recipient and Enjoyer for all the sacrificial offerings irrespective of the deity to whom the offering is made. SrI BhaTTar refers us to Sloka 5.29 of the gItA, where Lord kRshNa declares: bhoktAram yaj~na tapasAm sarva-loka-maheSvaram | suhRdam sarva-bhUtAnAm j~nAtvA mAm SantimRcchati || (gItA 5.29)

"Knowing Me as the Enjoyer of all sacrifice and austerities, as the Supreme Lord of all the worlds, as the Friend of every being, one attains peace". We also have bhagavAn's declaration in Sloka 9.24 of the gItA. aham hi sarva yaj~nAnAm bhoktA ca prabhureva ca na tu mAm abhijAnanti tattvena atah cyavanti te || | (gItA 9.24)

"For, I am the only enjoyer and the only Lord of all sacrifices. They (The ordinary people) do not recognize Me in My true nature, and hence they fall". c) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 53 (nAma 502), SrI BhaTTar extends this guNa of bhokta of bhagavAn to include not only the offerings to the gods (havya), but also to the kavya, the offering to our pitR-s or the deceased ancestors havya kavya bhujo vishNoH udak-pUrve mahodadhau (mahAbhArata SAnti parva 348.3) "bhagavAn is stationed in the north-east ocean and consumes the havya and kavya that are offered with sincerity". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several references to support the above interpretations: - Seigaip-payan uNbEnum yAnE ennum (tiruvAi. 5.6.4) - ahamannam_ahamannam_ahamannam ahamannAdo_'hamannAdo_'hamannAdah (taitti. Upa.) "I am the food or the object of enjoyment for My devotees, and I am the Enjoyer or consumer of the offerings of My devotees as well".

- vArik-koNDu ennai vizhu'nguvan kANil enRu.. ennil munnam pArittu tAn ennai muRRap paruginAn (nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 9.6.10). AzhvAr and bhagavAn are competing with each other to enjoy each other, and bhagavAn succeeds in the competition! - avA aRac-cUzh ariyai (tiruvAimozhi pASuram 10.10.11) "He who mingles with His devotees intimately and to His heart's content." The obvious examples of kaNNan accepting with great delight the handful of puffed rice from kucela, and His accepting the food offered by vidura over that offered by duryodhana are well-known. The dharma cakram writer explains the function of bhagavAn as bhoktA in a way that applies to our day-today life, using Sri Sa'nkara vyAkhyAnam for Sloka 13.22 from the gItA. BhagavAn is in all of us - as the observer, as the guide, as the Enjoyer, etc. upadrashTA anumantA ca bhartA bhoktA maheSvaraH | paramAtmA iti cApyukto dehe'smin purushaH paraH || (gItA 13.22) "Close Observer, Giver of sanction, Sustainer, Experiencer, the pre- eminent Lord, Supreme Self - thus is styled the Supreme Spirit in the human body". For those who spend their time in worldly pursuits, He is just the observer. For those who observe the path of dharma, He is the bhartA or Protector and Supporter in times of need - as in the case of pANDava-s. For those who offer to bhagavAn the worldly gains that they get, such as the fame etc. that come to them, He is the bhoktA or Enjoyer, i.e, He accepts these as offerings, and He bestows on them His anubhavam instead. The more we dedicate our actions and the benefits of these actions to Him, and thus make Him the bhoktA, the more He reveals to us what true happiness is, and the more we are relieved of undesirable attributes such as ahamkAram, mamakAram, etc. The significance of this nAma thus is for us to realize that we should dedicate all our actions and their effects to bhagavAn as the bhoktA, and we should instead enjoy Him and attain eternal bliss. d) SrI satya devo vAsishTha uses the meaning bhuj - to eat, and interprets the nAma `bhoktA' as One Who consumes or swallows everything in the form of kAla or time kAla rUpo hi bhgavAn kAlakRameNa sarvam bhu'nkte. He also links the term `ananta' to `bhoktA' by pointing out that bhagavAn consumes all things over time in different forms - agni, sUrya, kAla or yama, etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to the kaThopanishad mantra: yasya brahmaSca kshtram ca ubhe bhavata odanaH | (kaTho. 2.25) "He for whom brahma and kshatra (the movables and immovables) both become food".

SrI vAsishTha notes that just as the ocean is the source of the rain that results in the small rivers, and the rivers merge back into the ocean, so also bhagavAn is the Origin of everything, He is the Support for everything (bhoktA), and He is also the end of everything (One Who consumes everything in the end - bhoktA) - utpAdayitA, rakshitA, bhakshitA ca bhavati. e) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN uses the meaning "to protect" for the root `bhuj', and interprets the nAma as "One Who protects the good" - bhunakti pAlayati SishTAn iti bhoktA. 890. sukha-dah a) The Giver of Bliss to His devotees. b) The Remover of happiness for the wicked. c) The Remover of tiny pleasures from His devotees (dyati - cuts) so that they can seek the Higher Bliss. d) The Remover of unhappiness for His devotees (a- sukha-dah; dyati - cuts). e) He Who is the source of water for all beings (sukham = udakam = water). f) He Who has given a beautiful body to the jIva-s. Om sukha-dAya namah. We studied this nAma in Slokam 49 (nAma 460). The reader is referred to the write-up for nAma 460 as well. a) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 49, SrI BhaTTar's interpretation was that this nAma indicated bhagavAn's guNa of bestowing bliss on those who followed the sadArAca. It should be remembered that the `sukha' that is bestowed by bhagavAn, in addition to including the ordinary pleasures of life, specifically refers to the pErinbam or the Supreme Bliss of moksha, which He alone can bestow among all the deities. For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar continues on the interpretation of the immediately preeceding nAma-s describing the ascent of the jIva to parama padam, and interprets the current nAma as follows: amAnava mukhena spRshTvA sa-vAsanam samsAramutsAyam, svApti sukham dadAti iti sukha-dah. Once the jIva reaches the final step, bhagavAn removes the last traces of contact of the jIva with this world along with the latent impressions, and confers Bliss on the jIva, and so He is called sukha-dah. The touch by the amAnava purusha removes all traces of association of the jIva with samsAra, and thus purified, the jIva is led to paramAtmA. SrI BhaTTar gives support from the Upanishad: tat purushah amAnavah sa enAn brahma gamayati | esha devayAnah panthA iti || (chAndogya. 5.10.2) "From there (through the moon, vidyut etc.), the amAnava, the super- human, takes him to parabrahman. This is known as the path of the gods."

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's interpretation is along the same lines tato mAnavena sva-pArshadena AnItAya vidhvasta-li'nga dehAya sva- bhaktAya sva-pArshada tanu lAbha rUpam sukham dadAti it sukha-dah. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives two alternate interpretations for the nAma `sukha-dah': i) He Who bestows happiness on the righteous ones - sukahm dadAti; or ii) He Who deprives the wicked of their happiness - sukham dyati. c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives another anubhavam for the nAma: sukha-dah = sukham dyati - bhagavAn even takes away the `sukham' of His devotees, namely the ordinary pleasures of life, in order to help the devotees lose their attachment to the materialistic pleasures, and instead seek the higher Bliss of attaining Him. d) SrI Sa'nkara also uses an alternate pATham - a-sukha-dah, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn removes the misery of His devotees - asukham dyati, and so He is called a-sukha-dah. e) SrI vAsishTha notes that sukham means `udakam' or `water' as specified in nighanTu (1.12) - probably based on the root khanu - avadhAraNe - to dig. So he interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAn being the Giver of water in the form of wells, rivers, ponds, etc., for the survival of all the beings. f) Alternately, SrI vAsishTha interprets the term su-kha as a reference to this body - a well-dug moat, and since bhagavAn has given this body to the jIva-s, He is su-kha-dah - suvyavasthita khAtam ca idam SarIram jIvebhyo dadAti iti su-kha-dah. The Lord has beautifully mixed flesh and bones with fluids and made a beautiful piece of creation called the `body', and so He is `su-kha-dah'. 891. naika-daH a) The Giver of many things (Literally, The Giver of Not just one thing). b) He Who is not `born' just once, but many times (naika-jaH). Om naika-dAya namaH. a) The nAma can be looked at as na-eka-daH. SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation based on the reception accorded to the mukta jIva who is arriving at SrI vaikunTham. He explains the nAma as follows: ekam dadati iti eka-dAH; tad-viruddAh naika-dAH - Those who give only one thing are called `ekada-s; unlike these, naikada-s are those that give not just one thing, but many things. The context in which SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma is in terms of the reception accorded to the mukta jIva as he ascends to parama padam. BhagavAn has thousands of celestials as His attendants, who are well-versed in the art of giving to the mukta-s, and who bestow countless garlands, clothes, etc., as the jIva arrives. He quotes the kaushItakI Upanishad in support: tam pa'nca-SatAni apsarasaH upadhAvanti Satam mAlA-hastAh Satam a'njana-hastAH .tam brahmAla'nkArena ala'nkurvanti.(1.4). "Five hundred apasara-s (divine damsels) rush forth to receive the mukta. A hundred of theme have garlands in their hands, and another hundred have scented ointments etc., in their hands to decorate him..They decorate him with the adornments of the Brahman itself".

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's interpretation is also that He is the Giver of many things "na ekam vastu dadAti, api tu sva-paryantAni sarvANi vastUni dadAti" He gives everything, including Himself. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives a similar interpretation, namely, that bhagavAn's nAma `naika-dah' refers to His being the Bestower of all the four purushArtha-s - dharma, artha, kAma and moksha bhaktebhyo na ekAn arthAn bahUn eva kAmAn catur-varga antarvartino dadAti iti naika-dah. b) SrI Sa'nkara uses the pATham `naika-jah' - One Who is not born just once, but has many births for protecting dharma - dharma guptaye asakRt jAyamAnatvAt naika-jah. Note that the birth referred to here is to His incarnations out of His own free Will, and not the births because of karma that the jIva-s take. Lord kRshNa declares: paritrANAya sAdhUnAm vinASAaya ca dushkRtAm | dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge || (gItA 4.8) "For the protection of the good and also for the destruction of the wicked, for the establishment of dharma, I am born from age to age". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to Lord kRshNa's words in the previous Slokam of gItA: yadA yadA hi dharmasya glAnir-bhavati bhArata | abhyutthAnam adharmasya tad-AtmAnam sRjAmyaham || (gItA 4.7) "Whenever there is a decline of Dharma, and an uprising of adharma, O arjuna!, then I incarnate Myself". SrI satya sandha tIrtha uses the pATham ,naikajah, but gives an entirely different interpretation - he looks at the nAma as consisting of the upasarga `ni', and the word ka-ja. He interprets the word ka-ja as `born from water', namely lotus etc. ke jAyanti iti kajAni kamalAni. He then interprets `ni-kajA as a reference to SrI mahA lakshmi, and gives the meaning to naikajah as "The Lord of SrI mahA Lakshmi". Alternatively, he interprets `nikajam' as a reference to the gardens or forests containing lotuses, tulasi flowers etc., and then gives the interpretation that bhagavAn's nAma symbolizes that He is ever present in these places nitarAm kajAni yasmin tad-vanam ni-kajam, tatra bahvo nai-kaja iti - He Who is present where there are lots of lotus flowers, tulasi flowers etc. He quotes: tulasI kAnanam yatra yatra padma vanAni ca | vasanti vaishNavA yatra tatra sannihito hariH || "Hari is present in the tulasi gardens, in the forests where there are lotus flowers, and in places where vaishNava-s live". As his last interpretation, he gives the explanation of His being born many times through His incarnations. SrI raghunAtha tIrtha, another AcArya of the dvaita sampradAya, uses yet another pATham - aneka-dah, but the meaning he gives is the same as the ones who use the pATham naika-daH anekAni bahUni dadAti it aneka-daH.anekAni bahUni dadAti it aneka-daH. 892. agra-jaH - He Who manifests in front of the mukta-s.

om agra-jAya namaH. agra means first. agra-jaH means One Who is born first, or existed before everything - agre jAyata iti agrajaH. SrI vAsishTha refers us to the purusha sUkta mantra pUrvo yo devebhyo jAtaH; namo rucAya brAhmaye" (yajur. 31.20). SrI BhaTTar uses the word agra in the sense of `in front', and ja in the sense of "One who came forward". He continues the interpretation of the current nAma along the lines of the mukta jIva's arrival at SrI vaikunTham. He explains the nAma as referring to bhagavAn coming forward, or manifest Himself, along with SrI or mahA Lakshmi, to welcome the mukta jIva on his arrival at SrI vaikunTham. His words are: evam prAptAnAm muktAnAm agre saha sarveSvaryA SriyA yathA -parya'nka vidyam parama bhogyo jAyate iti agrajah " } This is described in the kaushItaki Upanishad: " sa Agacchati amitaujasam parya'nkam" iti prabhRti | upaSrIrupabRmhaNam tasmin brahmAste, tamitthamvit pAdenaiva agre Arohati, tam brahma Aha "ko'si" iti" iti prabhRti ca | sA yA brahmaNi citiH yA vyashTiH tAm citim jAyati, tAm vyashTi vyaSnute iti" ityevamantA hi parya'nka vidyA |(kaushI. 1.5, 1.6) "The mukta comes near the dazzlingly lustrous couch. The Supreme Brahman is seated on it with Lakshmi beside Him and the celestial attendants around Him. The mukta who has meditated on the Lord thus, now realizes Him in this manner, and climbs on the couch. The Supreme Brahman enquires about the mukta. Then the mukta acquires the knowledge that the Supreme Brahman has. He also enjoys the Bliss that is that of Brahman". SrI Sa'nkara gives the explanation - agre jAyata iti agra-jaH - "The First-Born". Other interpreters give interpretations that all refer to His having existed before anything else existed. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers us to SrImad bhAgavatam, which describes that brahmA was able to see Lord SrIman nAraYaNa and His loka-s prior to starting his creation, through intense tapas: tasmai sva-lokam bhagavAn sabhAjitaH sandarSayAmAsa param na yat-param | vyapeta samkleSa vimoha sAdhvasam sva-dRshTavadbhiH abhishTutam || (bhAga. 2.9.9) } "Thus worshipped, Lord vishNu revealed to brahmA His Abode, SrI vaikunTham, that is blemishless, above which there is nothing superior, and which is the object of meditation and praise by the learned Atmaj~nAni-s". SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "The One Who was First-Born". Naturally, everything came from Him alone". That from which everything comes, in which everything exists, and into which everything finally merges, is agra-jaH. 893. a-nir-viNNah a) He Who is not despondent that the jIva-s are not resorting to Him for redemption. b ) He Who is relieved of worry after having liberated a jIva who becomes a mukta.

c) He Who is not depressed because He has nothing to wish for. d) He Who is not tired of fulfilling the wishes of His devotees. om a-nir-viNNAya namaH. We studied this nAma earlier in Slokam 47 - nAma 436. SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives two roots for deriving the nAma: vid - sattAyAm - to happen, to be; and vid - vicAraNe - to discuss, to consider. ni- is an upasarga or preposition that is used in many senses, including `a collection'. nirviNNa means `despondency, depression'. a-nirviNNah refers to "One Who does not have any concerns". SrI vAsishTha gives the interpretation - nirvedam kshobham kleSam Alasyam vA na prApnoti sa a-nirviNNo vishNuH - He Who does not become despondent, indifferent, depressed, lazy, etc., is a- nirviNNah; or, yo na kadAcidapi nir-vedam = khinnatAm (viraktatAm) prApnoti sa a-nir-viNNah He Who does not attain depression, despair, frustration etc., on any account is a-nir-viNNah. The different vyAkhyAna-kartA-s give different anubhavam-s of why He is without concerns or worries. a) For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 47, SrI BhaTTar explains that bhagavAn engages in His act of creation, and gives bodies to the jIva-s, and gives them the benefit of all pleasures, hoping that they will turn to Him for redemption. But the jIva-s continue to revel in material pleasures, and His wish is not fulfilled. But He does not become despondent over this unsuccessful outcome, and goes on with His next cycle of creation. This is how the cycle of creation and destruction go on repeatedly, and He never gives up or becomes dispirited in the process. a-nirviNNaH = an-alasaH - He Who does not become indolent, lazy, frustrated, giving up, etc. SrI v.v.rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr - SOmbAdu ip-palluruvai ellAm paDarvitta vittA - periya tiruvantAdi 18. tirumazhiSai AzhvAr also refers to bhagavAn as "bhakti uzhavan" in his nAnmugan tiruvantAdi 23 - BhagavAn tries to inculcate bhakti even in those who have gone away from Him, without giving up, even as a farmer keeps cultivating his land no matter whether he get results out of first effort or not. b) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation that bhagavAn `ceases to be concerned - because he is relieved', and so He is a-nirviNNah - devoid of concern. This interpretation is a continuation of his interpretations of the previous nAma-s starting with vihAyasa-gatih (nAma 880), describing the path taken by the released soul - mukta jIva, to SrI vaikunTham. SrI BhaTTar explains that bhagavAn is at last relieved that His devotee - the mukta, has arrived safely at SrI vaikunTham, and has been united with Him. Until this time, this jIva as an object of compassion for bhagavAn, who keeps worrying about whether this jIva will use his life to become free of his karma-s and move towards Him. Now that this jIva has become a mukta - a released soul, bhagavAn does not have worries about this jIva any more. SrI BhaTTar give the example of how relieved Lord rAma was, once He crowned vibhIshaNa as King of la'nkA. He had given His word to vibhIshaNa to crown him as the king of SrI la'nkA, and until the time of coronation of vibhIshaNa, Lord rAma felt that He had a word that He still had to fulfill. After the coronation, He felt relieved as One who had fulfilled His duty at last - kRtakRtyas-tadA rAmo vi- jvaraH pramumoda ha - (bAla kANDam 1.85). SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that in the very first pASuram of tiruvAimozhi, the term "tuyar aRu SuDar aDi", was enjoyed by emperumAnAr as "tuyar aRum SuDar aDi" - the Lotus Feet that became free of tuyar

or sorrow, because He had blessed AzhvAr with "mayarvaRa madi nalam" - the intense j~nAna and bhakti that are free from any flaws or deficiency. c) Sri Sa'nkara explains that bhagavAn is `not depressed - a- nirviNNaH', because He has nothing to be depressed about, since He has all His desires fulfilled, and He has nothing more to attain avApta sarva kAmatvAt, aprApta hetyabhAvAt, nirvedaH asya na vidyata iti a-nirviNNaH. SrI cinmAyananda refers us to the gItA Slokam 3.22: na me pArtha asti kartavyam trishu lokeshu ki'ncana nAnavAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi || | (gItA 3.22)

"For Me, arjuna, there is nothing in all the three worlds which ought to be done, nor is there anything not acquired that ought to be acquired. Yet I go on working". d) SrI ananta kRshNa SAstri gives another view - BhagavAn never gets tired of fulfilling the desires of His devotees, and so also He is a- nirviNNah - One Who does not get exhausted, negligent, lazy, etc., in fulfilling His devotees' desires. The same explanation is given by SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj na nirvindati kadApi svajana kAmanApramaparA pUrtishu iti a-nirviNNaH. SrI vAsishTha and SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri both note that nirviNNa - virakti - frustration, despondency, etc., are characteristics of those who keep changing constantly, or for those who can't get enough of what they want, or not satisfied with what they get. All of these happen because of the effects of pUrva-janma karmA. None of these is an issue for bhagavAn - He has no birth and no karma, He is never- changing, He has everything He wants, and can get anything He wants at His will. So He is beyond being dissatisfied, frustrated etc. He is full of Bliss, brahmAnanda svarUpan. BhagavAn's creations are changing constantly, and are suffering from their karma-s, and so they undergo nirviNNa, but He Himself is beyond all these, and so He is a-nirviNNaH. 894. sadA-marshI a) He Who is ever patient (sadA _ marshI). b) He Who is patient towards the mistakes of good people (sat +A+marshI). c) He Who is extremely impatient with the wicked people (sadA + AmarshI). Om sadA-marshiNe namah. The root from which the nAma is derived is mRsha - titikshAyAm - to suffer, to allow, to pardon. SrI BhaTTar continues his description of the arrival of the mukta jIva in SrI vaikunTham. He enjoys the nAma in terms of bhagavAn's trait of helping the mukta jIva in performing kainkaryam to Him once he is in SrI vaikunTham. The `patience' aspect comes in since bhagavAn patiently accepts, with pleasure, all kainkaryam offered to Him by the mukta. Whatever kainkaryam the mukta wishes to perform to bhagavAn out of his intense love and bhakti to the Lord, He will accept it with a sweet disposition, even if it is not a kainkaryam that He needs. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 10.8.10:

uRREn ugandu paNi Seidu una pAdam peRREn, EdE innam vENDuvadu entAi .. "Oh Lord! It was given to me to enjoy Your Lotus feet. The kainkaryam (in this case, the singing of tiruvAimozhi by AzhvAr) was performed with an ardor that led to the enjoyment of Your Lotus feet. This enjoyment of Divine feet is what I would request for all time .". b) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as sataH sAdhUn Abhimukhyena mRshyate kshamata iti sadA-marshI - He Who always forgives, especially if the good men commit any aparAdham unintentionally. SrI Sa'nkara looks at the nAma as sat + A + marshI, `sat' referring to the `good people'. (SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri). The prefix A is used in some instances to signify "from all sides" (SrI vAman Apte's dictionary). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj echoes the same thoughts sataH sAdhUn A samantAt masrshitum Seelam yasya iti sad-A-marshI. SrI SAstri refers us to SrImad rAmAyaNam in support: katha'ncit upakAreNa kRtena ekena tushyati | na smarati aparakArANAm Satamapi AtmavattayA || (ayodhyA. 1.11) "Lord rAma is intensely pleased with even a single act, even minor, that is performed towards Him; On the contrary, He does not even keep it in His mind even if a hundred acts are committed that are unhelpful to Him, out of His sheer nature". SrI satya devo vAsishTha gives support from the Rg veda, illustrating the extreme patience of bhagavAn: nAkshas-tapyate bhUri bhAraH (Rg. 1.164.13) "The axle of the wheel that supports all the living creatures never becomes over-heated, and is never broken". c) SrI satya sandha tIrtha derives the exact opposite meaning for the term sadAmarshI, based on looking at the nAma as "sadA + AmarshaH (instead of sadA + marshaH) - sadA AmarshaH kopo daityeshu asya asti iti sadAmarshI - He Who is extremely impatient with the evil people, the demons. In samskRt, the prefix A is sometimes used to give the opposite meaning of the verb it is associated with (e.g., gam - to go, Agama - to come). So also, marshI - One who is patient, A- marshI - One who is angry or impatient. SrI Apte gives the meaning "anger" to the word "AmarshaH" in his dictionary. 895. lokAdhishThAnam - The Support of all the worlds. Om lokAdhishThAnAya namaH. The root word for the nAma is sthA - gati nivRttau - to stand, to be. adhi is a prefix, which means `principal, chief, supreme' in the current context. `loka' refers to the worlds. He Who is the Principal Support for all the worlds is "loka adhi-sThAnam' - lokasya adhishThAnam lokAdhishThAnam. In continuation of his anubhavam of the previous nAma-s in terms of the mukta jIva's arrival at SrI vaikunTham, SrI BhaTTar specifically refers to bhagavAn being the Support of the world that the mukta jIva enjoys, namely the world of bhagavAn's nitya vibhUti.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN echoes similar thoughts lokAnAm svAntikam AgatAnAm svajanAnAm nityam ASryatvAt lokAdhishThAnam - He is the final resting place and Abode for those who have reached the end of their journey and reached Him. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi: ... SAi koNDa immaiyum SAdittu vAnavar nATTaiyum nI kaNDu koL enRu vIDum tarum ninRu ninRE. (tiruvAi. 3.9.9). "He gives all mundane prosperity. Then He takes us to vaikunTham, and tells us: "This is your house. Take it". We then become owners of vaikunTham.". SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives several supports from the Sruti: - tasminnAthasthur-bhuvanAni viSvA (Rg. 1.164.13) Rco akshare parame vyoman yasmin devA adhi viSve nisheduH (Rg. 1.164.39) yasminnidam sam ca vicaiti sarvam (tait. AraN. 10.1.1) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives additional support: - yasmin viSvAni bhuvanAni tasthuH (yajur. 17.30). SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation tam anAdhAram adhishThAya trayo lokAH tishThanti lokAdhisThAnam The three worlds rest in Him as Support, even though He Himself needs no support. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that He is the Support for the world in the forms of His kUrma and varAha incarnations, and in the form of AdiSesha. 896. adbhutah a) He Who is extremely wonderful. b) He Who makes appearances occasionally amongst us. c) He because of Whom grains, food etc. exist (Adyam = grains). om adbhutAya namaH. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the nAma using the root bhU - to be, and the uNAdi sUtra 5.1 (adi bhuvo dutac). `ad' is an indeclinable meaning `occasionally' or `sudden'. The term `adbhuta' also means `AScarya' wonderful. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms of His being "Insatiable" He is always delightful to enjoy, no matter how much we have enjoyed Him. He is a source of wonder always, as if unseen before sarvadA sarvaiH sarvathA anubhave'pi apUrvavat ati- vismayanIyaH. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN captures the spirit of the interpretation through the following words "vicitraiH pratikshaNam nItanaiH guNa rUpa caritaiH taiH teshAm vismaya karaNAt adbhutaH" He makes His devotees - the mukta-s enjoy Him every second in great wonder and amazement, by expressing His guNa, rUpa, etc. through numerous acts that give pleasure to them.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives support from divya prabandham: - paNDu ivaraik kaNDu aRivadu evvUril yAm (periya tirumozhi 8.1.9) Where did I see Him earlier? In what divya kshetram? Or, have I not seen Him before anywhere? - innAr enRu aRiyEn; annE! AzhiyoDum pon Ar Sa'ngam uDaiya aDigaLai innAr enRu aRiyEn (periya tirumozhi 10.10.9) "My mother! I am unable to identify Him Who has the divine cakra in His hand, and also the golden hued bow by name Sar'ngam. I just can't define Him." - aRpudan nArAyaNan, ari, vAmanan niRpadu mEvi iruppadu en ne'njagam..........(tiruvAi. 8.6.10) "Lord nArAyaNa who delights in performing wonderful acts" adbhuta cEshTitangaLai uDaiya en appan. What are His `adbhuta cEshTita'ngaL' - His wonderful acts? He helps not only His devotees but also His enemies. He takes incarnations and assumes all kinds of forms including that of a boar, a tortoise, or anything at all, to make sure He helps His devotees, and He gives us delight beyond measure when He get to enjoy Him. He comes as a dwarf vAmana, and then rises to all the three worlds; and while He stands spreading over all the worlds thus, He at the same time is occupying a seat in my heart. Such is the nature of His adbhuta ceshTita'ngaL. SrI Sa'nkara gives support from the Upanishad and from bhagavad gItA: - kaThopanishad: SravaNAyApi bahubhir-yo na labhyaH SRNvanto'pi bahavo yam na vidyuH | AScaryo vaktA kuSalo'sya labdhA AScaryo j~nAtA kuSalAnuSishTaH || (kaTho. 2.7) "The Supreme Self is such that He is not gained by many for the mere hearing, and not known by many even while hearing. Rare is an expounder of Him, and rare is an able attainer, and rare is he who knows Him under the instruction of an adept teacher". SrI cinmayAnanada summarizes the message as "He, and the teacher who teaches of Him, and even the student who grasps Him are all `wonders'". - Bhagavad gItA: AScaryavat paSyati kaScidenam AScaryavat vadati tathaiva cAnyaH | AScaryavac-cainam anyaH SRNoti SrutvApyenam vada ca caiva kaScit || (gItA 2.29) "One looks upon this self as a wonder; likewise, another speaks of It as a wonder; still another hears of It as a wonder; and even after hearing of It, one knows It not". The message of both passages is identical. b) SrI vAsishTha gives the meaning: ad = kadAcit bhavati iti adbhutam - He Who occasionally appears, is adbhutam. sannapi a- bhUtam iva iti arthah - Being present, He is not present at the same time. While bhagavAn exists amongst us all the while, we are oblivious to this fact, and more or less live in a state where He does not exist for us. This is signified by the nAma `adbhutaH'.

c) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha explains the nAma as "Adyam = bhogyam annAdikam bhavati asmAt iti adbhutam "He because of whom grains and food exist for sustaining life, is adbhutaH". (The term Adyam refers to "grains, food etc.). -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 96 -

sanAt sanAtana-tamaH kapilaH kapir_avyayaH | svasti-daH sasti-kRt svasti svasti-bhuk svasti-dakshiNaH

||

om om om om om om om om om

sanAte namaH. sanAtana-tamAya namaH. kapilAya namaH kapaye-avayayAya namaH svasti-dAya namaH svasti-kRte namaH svastine namaH svasti-bhuje namaH svasti-dkashiNAya namaH

897. sanAt a) The Object of enjoyment. b) He Who is in the form of Time. c) He Who is Eternal, Immutable, and always of the same beautiful Form. om sanAte namaH. Two distinct derivations have been used to interpret the nAma. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root san - dAne - to give, to worship, and gives the definition - sanoti - dadAti svadarSanam bhaktebhya iti sanAt - He Who gives His darSanam to His devotees is sanAt. This is the sense in which Sri BhaTTar seems to interpret the nAma.

SrI vAsishTha interprets the nAma as meaning `SaSvat, nitya' - permanent, eternal. The amara koSa lists the word `sanA' as an indeclinable meaning `perpetually, ever', and gives the definition - `sanA nitye'. The word `sanAtana' is derived from the word sanA. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is: teshAm sambhajanAt sanAt - Because He confers perfect enjoyment on all the mukta-s equally, He is called sanAt. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the meaning `ancient', `of long duration', to the word sanAt - sanAt iti nipAtah cirArtha vacanaH - An indeclinable indicating a great length of time. One of the manifestations of bhagavAn is as Time. He quotes vishNu purANa in support: parasya brahmaNo rUpam purushaH prathamam dvija | vyaktAvyakte tathaivAnye rUpe kAlas-tathAparam || (VP 1.2.15) "The first form of para brahman is purusha. The next two are vykata and avyakta. Another is Time". Just as He is without beginning and without end, Time is also without beginning and without end. c) SrI vAsishTha gives the description - sanAt nityaH avikAraH ekarasaH ityarthaH - He Who is Eternal, Immutable, and always of the same beautiful Form. He gives references to the Sruti in support: - sanAt yuvAnamase havAmahe - Rg. 2.16.1 sanAdeva sahase jAta ugraH - Rg. 4.20.6 A yo mahaH SuraH sanAt anIDaH - Rg. 10.55.6. d) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation - sanam tad- datttam rasa gandhAdi atti iti sanAt He Who gladly accepts the offerings from His devotees (one of the meanings given by SrI Apte for the word `san' is `to receive graciously'). 898. sanAtana-tamaH - The Most Ancient. om sanAtana-tamAya namaH. SanA is an indeclinable meaning `nitya' etc., as noted in the previous nAma. The word `sanAtana' is derived by application of the pANini sUtra 4.3.23 (SrI vAsishTha), that says that addition of the pratyaya here to a word having the sense of time (sanA), leads to the sense of `belonging to'. Thus, the term `sanAtana' has the meaning `belonging to the eternity or ancient times'. With the addition of the `tamap' pratyaya, the meaning for `sanAtana-tama' is "The Most ancient". He was present before anything else was present, and He is present when everything else is destroyed during the pralaya. So He is sanAtanatamaH. SrI BhaTTar comments that even though He is ancient (purANa), He is always new, and is always more enjoyable and fresh, as though He is new and not seen before. In bhagavAn's case, He is `purA api navaH purANaH'. This is what is exciting (tama) about His ancient nature - Ageless but new. SrI BhaTTar uses the term `tana' in the nAma to refer to rUpam or form (tanu - SarIram). He remarks: sadA- tanatve'pi tadA-tanatvavat nitya nUtana bhogyaH - Even though He has always had a body (sadA tanatvam), He looks like One who is just new (tadA-tanattvam - One who has just been endowed with a new body), and is enjoyed as though He is new, and this is why He is sanA-tana- tamaH.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's interpretation supports that of SrI BhaTTar sanAtanAnAm muktAnAm ayam atiSayena sanAtana-tamah | sanAtanve'pi teshAn tadA-tanatvavat pratIya itayarthaH. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's pASuram, which graphically captures this thought of bhagavAn being ever new for our enjoyment, no matter how many yuga-s pass. ep-poruLum tAnAi maragatak kunRam okkum ap-pozhudait tAmaraip-pUk-kaN pAdam kai kamalam ep-pozhudum nAl ti'ngaL ANDu Uzhi Uzhi torum ap-pozhudaikkappozhudu en ArA amudamE. (tiruvAi. 2.5.4) "I am sorry I have to repeat what I have said before. It is because the experience I have is refreshingly new every moment, even if I enjoy it for days, years, ages, and millennia, without my being satiated. The infinite variety, unlike tiring uniform monotony, makes every moment a fresh bliss; it is an experience that is new always. Do not think that my new experience is because I am discovering something new every moment because of my growing intellect. The Lord has given me flawless intellect at the very outset. The experience of the Lord's company is on an entirely different plane. He Who is the inner soul of all, having all things as His aspects, looks like a greenish cool hill of beauty, with eyes, feet, hands, all like lotus flowers that have freshly blossomed at this very moment. He is nectar that is sweeter and sweeter every moment, insatiable and unceasingly enjoyable". (translation from v.n. vedAnta deSikan). AzhvAr again refers to this ever-new experience of bhagavAn in pASuram 2.6.1: ...............ennuL manni vaigum vaigal tOrum amudAya vAnERE ..... (tiruvAi. 2.6.1)

"O My Lord, You who are the Chief of all gods, is like nectar with which one never gets satiated with every new day that we live through". SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation that "He is the Most Ancient", since He is the cause of all, and older than brahmA and others who are very ancient - sarva kAraNatvAt, viri'ncyAdInAmapi sanAtanAnAm atiSayena sanAtanatvAt sanAtana-tamaH. SrI vAsishTha gives support from the Sruti: sanAtanam-enam-Ahur-utAdyaH syAt-punAr-Navah | aho-rAtre prajAyete anyo anyasya rUpayoH || (atharva. 10.8.23) "Being ancient, He appears new every moment, even as the day and night reappear fresh repeatedly, one assuming the form of the other". 899. kapilaH - He Who is of beautiful complexion. Om kapilAya namaH. We studied the nAma kapilAcArya earlier (535 - Slokam 57). SrI Sa'nkara and Sri BhaTTar have both interpreted the instance of the nAma in Slokam 57 as a reference to bhagavAn's incarnation as kapila, who propounded the sAnkhya system of philosophy. (SrI BhaTTar has interpreted the nAma-s from 529 to 538 in terms of bhagavAn's incarnation as kapila, an amSAvatAra). Both SrI Sa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar

interpret the current instance of the nAma using its generic meaning "One Who has a beautiful complexion". Thus the punarukti dosham (fault of redundancy) is avoided. The roots from which the nAma can be derived are: kam - kAntau - kAntir-icchA - to desire, or, kabR - varNe - to color. Through the application of the uNAdi sUtra 1.55 - kameH paSca, the ma of `kam' or bR of `kabR' is changed to pa, and the affix ilac is added, leading to kapilaH - `One who is tawny (reddish) in color'. The reader is referred to the write-up for nAma 535 (Slokam 57) for SrI BhaTTar's interpretation of the nAma `kapilAcAryah' in terms of bhagavAn' incarnation as Sage kapila, an amSAvatAra. SrI Sa'nkara gives the following supports for the interpretation: - Rshim prasUtam kapilam mahAntam (SvetAsvatara upa. 5.2) - aSvatthaH sarva vRkshANAm dava-RshINAm ca nAradaH | gandharvANAm citra-rathaH siddhAnAm kapilo muniH || (gItA 10.26) "Of trees, I am the aSvattha. Of celestial seers, I am nArada. Of the gandharva-s, I am citraratha. Of the perfected, I am kapila". (Lord kRshNa's words). For the current instance of the nAma kapilaH, SrI BhaTTar gives his interpretation in the generic sense of the term `kapilaH' - "One Who is of beautiful complexion". He enjoys the nAma in terms of bhagavAn's beautiful bluish complexion, with mahA lakshmi represented by `sparkling streaks of lightning madhyastha nIla toyada vidyul- lekhojjvala varNaH kapilaH - He is of radiant form in the self- luminous SrI vaikunTham, very much like a blue cloud in the midst of sparkling streaks of lightning. SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as "One Who is tawny in color". He enjoys the nAma as representing the form of bhagavAn in the form the fire inside the ocean that keeps the ocean from overflowing - the baDavAnala fire - the subterranean fire in the ocean, which is called kapila. His interpretation is baDavAnalasya kapilo varNa iti tad- rUpI kapilaH. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri describes kapila as referring to a color that is golden with a black tinge. SrI vAsishTha uses the meaning `Sun' for the word kapi - tawny in color - pi'ngala varNaH (Recall the interpretation of `kapyAsam puNDarIkAksham' by SrI bhagavad rAmAnuja - kam pibati iti kapiH). SrI vAsishTha gives the interpretation - kapim = sUryam lAti - Adatte, sarvasya jagataH pravartanAya iti kapilaH - He Who brings the Sun for the sustenance of everything in this world is kapi-laH. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning `monkey' for the term `kapi', and gives the interpretation kapIn sugRiva hanumat AdIn lAti sevAyAm iti kapi-laH - He Who got sugrIva, hanuman etc., in the line of service for Him. 900. kapir-avyayaH - He Who enjoys the never-diminishing Bliss. om kapaye-avyayAya namaH. Some interpreters treat this as two nAma-s: kapiH and avyayaH or apyayH.

In SrI BhaTTar's pATham, the nAma is kapir-avyayaH. avyayaH means `undiminished'. The word `kam' is used with the meaning `sukham' by SrI BhaTTar. In this interpretation, the term kapiH is explained as "kam pibati, pAti vA kapiH - He Who experiences Bliss, or He Who protects the Bliss of His experience for others. He derives the word kapiH as: kam +pA = ka-piH, using the uNAdi sUtra - `sarva dhAtubhya in' (4.117) to derive `pi' from `pA - to protect or to drink'). He explains the nAma as - a) svayamapi tad-anubhava sukha nirvRtim pAti pibati vA kapir- avyayaH He protects (pAti) the pleasure of enjoyment of His Bliss for the mukta-s without decrease (avayaya), or, - b) He experiences (pibati) the pleasure of the enjoyment of His Bliss by the mukta-s without decrease (avyaya), and so He is called kapir-avyayaH. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj treats `kapir-avyayaH' as one nAma, but interprets it as a combination of two guNa-s - kapiH and avyayaH. He explains `kapiH' as - kaam -jalamapi pibati sva-janaiH sa-prema upahRtam iti kapiH - He Who accepts an offering from His devotee, even it be only water, as long as it is offered with love and affection. He explains `avyayaH' as "sadaiva avyayo = nir-vikAra iti avyayaH' - He Who is Eternal and unchanging, is a-vyayaH. He Who is both kapiH and avyayaH is kapir-avayayaH. kapiH i) He Who is in the form of the Sun. ii) He Who protected the Earth from the great waters in His varAha incarnation. iii) He Who accepts even water gladly as an offering when offered with devotion. om kapaye namaH. i) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as - kam - jalam raSmibhiH piban kapiH, sUryaH. He Who `drinks' (dries up) the water through His rays in the form of the Sun, is kapiH. ii) Alternatively, Sri Sa'nakra gives the explanation that the term kapiH can refer to His varAha incarnation: kAt - toyAt bhUmim apAt iti kapiH - varAhaH - He Who protected the Earth from the great waters (SrI Sa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar both interpret the term kapiH as it occurs in Slokam 11 - nAma 102 - vRshAkapiH, as a reference to varAha). They give the support from mahA bhArata: kapir varAhaH SreshThaSca dharmaSca vRsha ucyate | tasmAd vRshAkapim prAha kASyapO mAm prajApatiH || (SAnti parva 330.24) "..The word kapi refers to "The Great Boar varAha..". (pA means to protect and ka means water, and so kapi refers to varAha incarnation where He protected the Earth from the waters). SrI vAsishTha gives several alternate roots from which the word `kapiH' can be derived: i) kai - Sabde - to sound; ii) kRR - vikshepe - to pour out, to scatter; or iii) kan - dIpti kAnti gatishu -to shine. Among the interpretations he gives are:

- Because bhagavAn enjoys (`drinks') the praise that is in form of Sabda, He is called ka-piH stavaH Sabda rUpaH tam pibati iti kapiH; - kam - jalam, pAti = pibati; He that `drinks' water, referring to sUrya. Since bhagavAn is the antaryAmi for sUrya, He has this nAma. iii) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN interprets the nAma kapiH as: tad- sevA rUpam kam pibati iti ka-piH He Who accepts water etc., when offered as a devotional offering by His devotees. Recall the Slokam patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktyA prayacchati | tad-aham bhaktyupahRtam aSnAti prayatAtmanaH || (gItA 9.26) "Whosoever offers to Me with true devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit or some water, I accept this offering made with devotion ny him who is pure of heart". a-vyayaH: SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the interpretation - na vyeti teshAm samAjAt iti a-vyayah He Who never moves away from His devotees, and Who is always with His devotees. apyayaH The term apyayaH is made of a preposition (upasarga - api), and the verb ay - to go. The preposition is used in the sense of `placing near or over, taking towards, reaching or going up to, proximity, nearness', etc. SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as pralaye asmin apiyanti jaganti iti apyayaH - The resting Place for the Universes during its dissolution. SrI vAsishTha gives the interpretation apiyanti iti apyayaH - leeyante asmin bhUtAni pralaya kAle, ataH apyayaH iti ucyate He in whom all beings merge at the time of pralaya, is apyayaH. We have `tena devAn apiyanti' in taittirIya Upanishad - brahmAnanda mImAmsA "Through these, they reach the deva-s'. With this nAma, we have reached the end of the commentary on the first 900 nAma-s of SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam. Just an observation, though this might not be significant While the numbering of the nAma- s differed widely between the systems of SrI Sa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar starting around nAma 69, they are beginning to coincide starting with nAma 901. 901. svasti-daH - The Giver of Auspiciousness. om svasti-dAya namaH. The word svasti is formed from the root `as - bhuvi - to be', with the addition of `su' - an upasarga, as described by the uNAdi sUtra 4.180 - sAvaseH, and is an indeclinable that denotes blessing. SrI vAsishTha explains the word as `su + asti' = svasti. svastim dadAti iti svasti-daH - kalyANa-daH - The Bestower of auspiciousness.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root asa - gati dIptyAdAneshu - to go, to shine, to accept, and gives the derivation - SobhanA astiH = gatiH arthAt j~nAnam gamanam prAptiH, svastiH, tAm dadAti bhaktebhya iti svasti-daH - He Who bestows the path for the attainment of true knowledge to the devotees. SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as "evam mahan-ma'ngalam dadAti iti svasti-daH" - "In this way He gives supreme auspiciousness to all". SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains that the Supreme Auspiciousness that is being referred to is brahma j~nAnam that leads ultimately to the Bliss of SrI vaikunTham, that He alone can give. This is in line with the interpretation and derivation given by SrI bhAradvAj above. SrI rAmAnujan refers us to AzhvAr's pASuram-s. - nammAzhvAr refers to bhagavAn as "uyar vinaiyE tarum oN SuDark kaRRai" (tiruvAi. 1.7.4) - The Beam of Light that gives the supreme knowledge that leads to the moksha Anandam. - PeriAzhvAr says: "pirama guru Agi vandu, pOdil kamala an- ne'njam pugundu, en SennittiDaril pAda ilaccinai vaittAr" (periAzhvAr tiru. 5.2.8) - "BhagavAn came as the guru Who performed brahmopadeSam to me, entered the seat of true knowledge in me - my mind, and set His Feet there, and this removed all the flaws, deficiencies and ignorance in my mind". SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is: bhaktAnAm svasti ma'ngalam dadAti it svasti-daH - The Conferrer of blessings on His devotees. SrI vAsishTha gives an alternate explanation - Atma dhAraNAya - arthAt jIvanAya jIvana upayogini sAdhanAni dadAti sa, svasti-daH - He Who gives the necessities for the jIva-s to sustain themselves. 902. svasti-kRt - The Doer of good to the devotees. om svasti-kRte namaH. BhagavAn gives auspicious things to us (svastidaH), and then He gives us the attitude that enables us to enjoy this auspiciousness. In SrI BhaTTar's interpretation, after giving the brahma j~nAnam (svasti- daH), He then makes Himself available to the mukta-s to enjoy Him and His qualities (svasti-kRt). In SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation, bhagavAn gives auspicious things to the devotees (svasti-daH), and He also does things that are good to the devotees (svasti-kRt). SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry adds another interpretation - He Who makes His devotees do good things is svasti-kRt. SrI cinmayAnanda uses an approach that has been used by SrI Sa'nkara in many nAma-s that end with kRt, and gives an alternate interpretation using the root kRt - chedane - to cut, and explains the nAma as One Who robs an individual of all bliss when that individual follows a path that is not according to dharma. 903. svasti - He Who is Auspiciousness. om svastine namaH.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as - svayameva mahan-ma'ngalam - svasti - He Who is Himself the incarnation of auspiciousness. The SrI vishNu sahasra nAma satsangam, New Delhi, in the translation for SrI BhaTTar's bhAshyam, gives the following additional explanation: "All the jIva-s tend to live with lot of attachment and desires towards worldly pleasures. Since this is not real enjoyment, the Lord blesses the devotees for directing their desire towards Him, and makes them enjoy Him". Thus, He is the true ma'ngalam for His devotees.. SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation - ma'ngla svarUpam AtmIyam paramAnanda lakshaNam svasti - He Whose nature is Supreme Bliss or Auspiciousness. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several supports on this. - en amudinaik kaNDa kaNgaL maRRonRinaik kANAvE - amalanAdipirAn - My eyes that have seen my Sweet Nectar, will never move away from Him and see anything else again (tiruppANAzhvAr). - yatra na anyat paSyati, na anyat vijAnAti, na anyat SruNoti, tad bhUmA - sanat kumara - That which is auspicious or Bliss is that from which the eyes can't turn away, the mind does not move away, and the ears can't divert. This object of Supreme Bliss is all- absorbing, and the best that there can ever be. AzhvArs' anubhavam of this all-engrossing beautiful Blissful and auspicious form of bhagavAn are too numerous to list. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri reminds us that bhagavAn is "pavitrANAm pavitram" - The Purest of the pure, "ma'ngLAnAm ca ma'ngaLam" -The Most Auspicious among the auspicious, and "ma'ngaLam param" - The Supreme Bliss. SrI cinmayAnanda comments that He is of the Nature of sat-cit-Ananda, and thus there is no cause for inauspicious in Him. SrI satya sandha tIrtha interprets the nAma as - su atyantam asti iti sakala deSa kAleshu vartata iti svasti He Who always exists in the past, present and the future, is svasti. 904. svasti-bhuk a) The Protector of all that is auspicious. b) The Enjoyer of Bliss. c) He Who enables His devotees to enjoy bliss. om svasti-bhuje namaH. The root bhuj - pAlanAbhyavahArayoH, has multiple meanings: to protect, to eat, to consume, to enjoy, to rule, to govern. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning `to protect', for the root bhuj, and gives the interpretation - sarvam etat svasti bhunakti - pAlayati iti svasti-bhuk. One translator of SrI BhaTTar's commentary elaborates on this: "The Lord protects everything auspicious, and protects the devotees. The pleasure of experiencing the Lord in the mind, the extreme satisfaction that the devotees get on that account, and the services that the devotees are induced to perform thereby, are all preserved and protected by the Lord". The nirukti author summarizes the above thoughts through the following: "pAlanAt ma'ngalasya iva svasti-bhuk ca iti gamyate" He is sung by the name svasti-bhuk because He protects all that is auspicious.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN echoes the same thoughts in his interpretation svasti - kalyANam bhunakti - pAlayati samrtRRUNAm iti svasti-bhuk. b) c) SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning bhuj - to enjoy, and interprets the nAma as tadeva bhu'nkta iti svasti-bhuk | BhaktAnAm ma'ngalam svasti bhunakti iti vA svasti-bhuk | "The Enjoyer of Bliss", or "He Who enables His devotees to enjoy blessings". The alternate interpretation given by SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN echoes interpretation (b) above svayam svasti bhu'nkte anubhavati iti svasti-bhuk. d) SrI satya sandha tirtha interprets the nAma as - svasti sukham bhojayati it svasti-bhuk One Who feeds (bestows) sukham or happiness on His devotees, is svasti-bhuk. 905. svasti-dakshiNaH He Who gives auspicious things as dakshiNA to His devotees. om svasti-dakshiNAya namH. The root from which the term dakshiNA can be derived is daksh - vRddhau - to grow. SrI BhaTTar uses the term `dakshiNA' in the sense of `fee' or `gift' that is offered to the officiating priests in religious ceremonies etc. He interprets the current nAma as "One Who offers `svasti' or auspiciousness as dakshiNA". The ceremony and the priests who receive the dakshiNA are to be identified. Here is SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam: BhagavAn is performing an eternal, never-ending sacrifice, called dIrgha satram, in which the `officiating priests' are the nitya-s and the mukta-s (the eternal souls and the liberated souls). The purpose of this yAga of bhagavAn is to offer Himself to be enjoyed by His devotees. BhagavAn gives Himself to His devotees, the nityas and the mukta-s, as an offering in this `sacrifice'. In addition, He gives them auspicious things such as a celestial body that is made of Suddha sattva material that never decays or ages, and other powers such as Sakti, j~nAnam, etc. So bhagavAn is like the yajamAna or master of the sacrifice who offers dakshiNA or fee to the priests who are officiating in it. Hence the nAma svasti-dakshiNaH. SrI BhaTTar's words are: anyAdapi sva-paricaraNa anuguNam divya- SarIra SaktyAdi svasti svAtma dAna dIrgha satre Rtvigbhyo deyA dakshiNA asya iti svasti-dakshiNaH. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives an interpretation that is along similar lines: "sva-nityam dhAmAdikam kalyANa rUpatvAt svasti iti ucyate | sA dakshiNA sva-bhakti-satra Rtvigbhyo deyam asya iti svasti-dakshiNaH". In this interpretation, .SrI vaikunTham and other aspects of SrI vaikumTham are referred to as `svasti' because of their eternal and auspicious nature. BhagavAn offers these to the officiating Rtvik-s in His bhakti ya~jna as dakshiNA or fees, and so He is called svasti-dakshINaH. Another interpretation along similar lines, given in the title "bhagavd guNa darpaNa" published by the SrI vishNu sahasra nAma satsangam in New Delhi, is that bhagavAn bestows auspicious things to those who perform sacrifices, as the `fee', and hence He is svasti- dakshiNaH. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives a similar interpretation svastibhiH ASIrbhiH dakshayati vardhayati svajanAn iti svasti- dakshiNaH.

SrI Sa'nkara gives three alternate interpretations: - i) svastirUpeNa dakshate vardhate - He Who grows through His auspiciousness, that is, He Who feels great by bestowing auspiciousness on His devotees; ii) svasti dAtum samartha iti vA svasti-dakshiNaH - He Who is capable of bestowing auspiciousness (dakshiNa also means `able, dexterous, skillful'); iii) dakshiNa Sabda Asu-kAriNi vartate; SIghram svasti dAtum ayameva samartha iti svasti-dakshiNaH Using the meaning "One who is capable of achieving things fast' for the term `dakshiNa", bhagavAn is called svasti-dakshiNaH because He alone is capable of bestowing auspiciousness on His devotees fast or readily. SrI Sa'nkara gives the following in support: smarAdeva devasya siddhyanti sarva siddhayaH || smRte sakala kalyANa bhAjanam yatra jAyate | purushas-tam-ajam nityam vrajAmi SaraNam harim || smaraNAdeva kRshNasya pApa sa'nghAta pa'njaram | SatadhA bhedam AyAti girir vajrahato yathA || "I always take refuge in Hari, the Supreme Person, the Unborn, Eternal, Who, by just being remembered, becomes the source of all auspiciousness. By the mere remembrance of kRshNa, the body of accumulated sins are destroyed just as a mountain gets destroyed (broken into many pieces) by indra's thunderbolt". SrI cinmayAnanda nicely captures the spirit of the above: "The term indicates that SrI nArAyaNa will quickly and efficiently reach His sincere seekers to give them the experience of auspiciousness which is the Lord's very nature". SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as svastim dakshate vardhayati iti svasti-dakshiNaH - varada-hasto ma'ngala hasta iti He Who grows auspiciousness by bestowing the desired boons and other auspicious things to His devotees, as signified by His varada-hasta or ma'ngala hasta, is svasti-dakshiNaH. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 97 -

a-raudraH kuNDalI cakrI vikram_yUrjita-SasanaH SabdAtigaH Sabda-sahaH SiSiraH SarvIkaraH ||

om om om om om om om om om

a-raudrAya namaH kuNDaline namaH cakriNe namH vikramiNe namaH Urjita-SasanAya namaH SabdAtigAya namaH Sabda-sahAya namaH SiSirAya namaH SarvarIkarAya namaH

906. om a-raudrAya namaH. He Who is not driven to anger easily. The root from which the nAma is derived is rudir - aSru vimocane - to cry, to weep, to roar. rudra means `one who causes others to shed tear' - rodayati iti rudraH. `raudra' means `rudra-like, violent, irascible, wrathful' (SrI Apte's dictionary). Since bhagavAn is not a raudra, He is called a-raudraH. SrI BhaTTar notes that bhagavAn is gentle, agreeable, and cool by nature, and is not irate, even though He is sarveSvaran - parama aiSvarye'pi guNa SItalimnA a-raudraH. Hence He is called a-raudraH. Note the dhyAna Slokam starting with "SantAkAram bhujaga Sayanam padmanAbham sureSam, viSvAdhAram..". Note also that the first trait praised here is His SAnta AkAram - His Peaceful form with a countenance that radiates kindness and warmth. Sri kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as "parama SAnta saumya sundara AkAraH. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan points out that even though bhagavAn is radiating extreme tejas, it does not deflect His devotees even a bit. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is avApta sarva kAmatvena rAga dveshAdeH abhAvAt iti a-raudraH Because bhagavAn is avApta-sarva- kAman, He is beyond desire, anger, or any action that can cause either of these. Desire leads to action to attain the desired object, and when it is not attained, it leads to anger; or, when the desired object is attained, more of the same is desired, or some other object is desired, and so the cycle goes on. BhagavAn has no desire, hatred, etc., and so He is called a-raudraH.

SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives an essentially similar interpretation rudati anena iti rudram = duHkham, taj-janakatvena tat-sambandhitvAt raudram = kAma krodhAdi duHkha sAdhanam, tat asya nAsti iti a- raudraH He is called a-raudraH because He has no association with sorrow that arises out of desire, anger, etc. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN notes that bhagavAn is the exact opposite of raudram Ananda pURnAtvAt a-raudraH prasanna mUrtiH - He is the embodiment of Perfect Bliss. 907.kuNDalIHe Who is bedecked with beautiful ear-rings. om kuNDaline namaH. The term kuNDalam refers to the ear-ring, or the decoration worn for the ear (karNikA tAla patram syAt kuNDalam karma veshTanam (amara. 2.103). SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as "yathocita nitya divya bhUshNaH kuNDalee" He Who is appropriately bedecked with celestial ornaments befitting His body and His status. Thus, SrI BhaTTar takes the kuNDala as one representation of all infinite auspicious ornaments. Literally, "One Who is adorned with beautiful ear-rings, the kUNDala-s, is kuNDalee", since bhagavAn is adorned with makara kuNDalam, or ear-rings that are shaped like fish. In his SaraNAgati gadyam, Bhagavd rAmAnuja describes bhagavAn as "niratiSaya aujvalya kirITa makuTa cUDAvatamsa makara kuNDala graiveyaka hAra keyUra kaTaka SrIvatsa kaustubha muktAdAmodara pItAmbara kA'ncIguNa nUpurAdi aparimita divya bhUshaNa!" One Who is adorned with wonderfully splendorous Crown bearing the central diadem of lustrous stone, other head ornaments, ear ornaments, necklaces and other ornaments for the neck, garlands, shoulderbracelets, bracelets in the hands, SrI vatsa and kaustubha, pearl garlands, waist ornaments, lace clothes, gold waist band, leg ornaments and other precious and innumerable other jewels. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's description of His makara kuNDalam in tiruvAimozhi pASuram-s 7.3.10 and 8.8.1: - makara neDum kuzhaik kAdan mAyan (7.3.10) This mAyan has beautiful, long ear pendants that are shaped in the form of fish. ilagu vilagu makara kuNDalattan (8.8.1)- He Who has shining fish-shaped ear ornaments that are dangling back and forth beautifully while shining lustrously. - makaram SEr kuzhai iru pADu ila'ngi ADa (tiruneDum tANDakam 21 - tiruma'ngai AzhvAr) - With the shining fish-shaped ear pendants dangling from both ears. The term kuNDalee also refers to a `serpent' kuNDalAkAram vapuH asya iti kuNDalee - that which has a coiling body (amara koSa vyAkhyAnam). SrI Sa'nkara uses this definition for the word `kuNDala', and gives the meaning to the nAma as "Sesha rUpa bhAk kuNDalee" One Who is in the form of the serpent Sesha. He gives an alternate interpretation that uses the meaning `ear-ornament' for the word `kuNDala': Since bhagavAn has ear-rings that are bright like the Sun, or since He has fish-shaped ear pendants

representing sAmkhya and yoga SAstra-s, He is called kuNDalee. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the support for this interpretation from SrImad bhAgavatam: bibharti sA'nkhyam yogam ca devo makara kuNDale | maulim padam pArameshThyam sarvalokAbhaya'nkaram || (bhAga. 12.11.12) "The Supreme Deity wears the sA'nkhya and yoga as His two makara kuNDala-s and the whole brahma lokam as His crown". SrI vAsishTha indicates the roots for the nAma as kuDi - dAhe - to burn, or kuDi -rakshaNe - to protect. He uses the uNAdi sUtra 1.104 - kalas-tRpaSca, to add the affix kala (ala) to kuND, that results in `kuNDala'. He gives the derivation: kuNDalam dAho rakshaNam vA, sa asya asti iti kuNDalI That which has the property or guNa of burning or destruction (dAhaH - dahanam), or protection (rakshNam) is kuNDala; SrI vAsishTha suggests that this refers to the sun, fire etc.; since bhagavAn is their Creator, He is kuNDalee. The explanation can also be given that since bhagavAn is the One who has the guNa of destruction as well as protection, (and creation), He has the guNa of `kuNDala' - destruction and protection), and so He is kuNDalee. SrI satya sandha tIrtha explains the nAma as - makarakuNDalvAn kuNDalee, and SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives the interpretation - kuNDalam dahanam SatrUNAm asmAt bhavati it kuNDalee He Who destroys His enemies, is kuNDalee. 908. cakrI - One with the Discus in His arm. om cakriNe namaH. The nAma occurs also in Slokam 107 (nAma 995). (nAma 417 - sudarSanaH, is related). SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as - "tAdRSa divyAyudhaH cakrI" He Who has divine weapons also of like nature (in the context of the previous nAma - kuNDalee). SrI BhaTTar elaborates further on the grand enhancement of bhagavAn's beauty with the divine weapons (nAma 905), and also the reflection of His rakshakattvam - His nature of protecting His devotees, when he comments on the same nAma in Slokam 107 - nAma 995: "nitya sudarSanaH | svabhRtyasura pratibhaTa rakshaH asura SONita kalmAshita jvAlA'ncitam cakramapi tathiva iti cakrI" BhagavAn is ever armed with the Discus known as sudarSana. The cakra is smeared with the blood of the asura-s who are the sworn enemies of the gods that are His devout servants. The cakra is also adorned with the flames of fire that are shooting out of it. BhagavAn is called cakrI because He has it as one of His weapons".

Note that SrI BhaTTar avoids the punarukti dosham by interpreting the nAma cakrI in the current instance as a mark of His divine ornament, and in Slokam 107 (nAma 995), he interprets the same nAma - cakrI, as One Who bears this weapon to destroy His enemies as a reflection of His rakshakattvam. NammAzhvAr praises and enjoys the guNa of bhagavAn as the Protector (rakshakattvam) - `kAkkum iyalvinan' One Whose nature is protection - tiruvAimozhi 2.2.9). We have bhagavad rAmAnuja describing the divine Ayudha-s of bhagavAn in his SaraNAgati gadyam "svAnurUpa acintya Sakti Sa'nkha cakra gadA'si Sar'ngAdi asan'khyeya nitya niravadya niratiSaya kalyANa divyAyudha!" You, My Lord, bear the various weapons of par- excellent powers, and worthy of You alone, such as the Conch, the Discus, the Mace, the Sword, the Bow, and such other innumerable auspicious divine weapons exceeding all others in power and force". SrI v.v.rAmAnujan gives several references to divya prabandham: - nammAzhvAr describes His always bearing the cakra in readiness to help His devotees eppOdum kai kazhalA nEmiyAn nam mEl vinai kaDivAn (periya tiruvantAdi 87). The cakra in His hand serves multiple purposes: It is an adornment for Him; it is also there ever ready to destroy anyone who hurts His devotees. - Azhiyum Sa'ngum SumappAr (tiruvAi. 8.3.3) - He Who carries the Discus and the Conch in His hands. - kUrAr Azhi veN Sa'ngu Endik koDiyEn pAl vArAy (tiruvAi. 6.9.1) - nAngu tOLan kuni SAr'ngan oN Sa'ngu gadai vAL AzhiyAn (tiruvAi. 8.8.1) - He with four arms, with the beautiful weapons SA'rnga or the bow, Sa'nkha - the Conch, gadA - the mace, khaDga - the sword, and cakra - the Discus). - PadmanAbhan kaiyil Azhi pOl minni valam puri pOl ninRu adirndu - tiruppAvai. - taDavarait tOL cakrapANi - (PeriAzhvAr tirumozhi 5.4.4) - The broad-shouldered One bearing the cakra in His hand. In his upanyAsam on SrI vishNu shasra nAmam, SrI velukkuDi kRshNan points out that the cakra is a distinguishing mark of emperumAn, and refers us to nammAzhvAr - (Seru oN Sakkaram Sa'ngu aDaiyALam tirundak kaNDE (tiruvAi. 6.1.7). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives several additional references: - sudarSanam cakram asahya tejaH (SrImad bhAga. 8.20.30) - The sudarSana Discus with its intense brilliance. - Sa'nkha cakra dharo hariH (rAmAyaNam 1.45.22) - Lord vishNu who bears the Conch and the Discus) - namaste carka hastAya (VishNu purANam 5.30.22) - Obeisance to Lord with the Discus in His hand. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that bhagavAn used this cakra of His during the protection of gajendra, and during His kRshNa incarnation more than once. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is: "samasta loka rakshaNArtham manas- tattvAtmakam sudarSanAkhyam cakram dhatta iti cakrI -

He holds in His hand the cakra called sudarSana, which represents the principle of manas or mind, for the purpose of protecting all the worlds. SrI Sa'nkara gives support from vishNu purANa: cala svarUpam atyantam javenAntaritAnilam | cakra svarUpam ca mano dhatte vishNu kare sthitam || (VP 1.22.70) "vishNu holds in His hand the cakra which represents the mind that is unsteady, and which is swifter than the wind". The sudarSana cakra in His hand is always rotating and ready to be discharged at anyone who causes obstacles to His devotee, and so it is equated to being `unsteady' in this translation. An alternate interpretation given by SrI Sa'nkara for the instance of this nAma under Slokam 107 is that bhagavAn is the Wielder of the cakra of samsAra for everyone, and so He is cakrI in this sense as well - samsAra cakram asya A~jnayA parivartata iti vA. The word `cakra' also means `army' - (varUthinI balam sainyam cakram.. amara koSa 2.8.78); cakate hanti parabalam iti cakram (amarakoSa vyAkhyAnam). SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN uses this meaning and gives the following interpretation for the nAma: cakram aparimitam sainyam asya asti iti cakrI - He Who has an unlimited army at His disposal is cakrI. 909. vikramI a) He Who has prowess. b) He with the characteristic stride (in His tri- vikrama incarnation). c) He Who has no difference in His different incarnations. d) He Who has a distinguishing role - that of protection. om vikramiNe namaH. We had this nAma in Slokam 9 (nAma 76). The word `vikrama' means 'valor', as well as `a pace, stride' (SrI Apte's dictionary). a) For nAma 76, SrI BhaTTar uses the first meaning above, and comments that bhagavAn is called vikramI because it is His nature to dispel any possibility of anything going against His desire or will icchA pratihantR prasakti paripanthi svabhAvam (asya iti) vikramI. SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains that bhagavAn has the `viSesha kramam' that He will eliminate any obstruction to His Will, and so He is called vi-kramI. SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan refers us to Lord rAma's declaration to sugrIva, that He will eliminate any foe with the tip of His finger, if only He so wishes: piSAcAn dAnavAn yakshAn pRthivyAm caiva rAkshasAn | a'ngulya mAtreNa tAn hanyAm icchan harigaNeSvara || "O King of vAnara-s! If only I so desire, I can eliminate any of the beings, be it a piSAca (devilish being), asura, yaksha, or rAkshasa, with the tip of My finger".

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan notes that the whole of tiruvAimozhi 5.10 speaks of bhagavAn's vikramam. Some examples are given below: - piRandavARum vaLarndavARum periya bhAratam kai Seidu, aivarkkut tira'ngaL kATTi iTTuc ceidu pOna mAya'ngaLum.. (5.10.1) "How You were born, what all You suffered, what miracles You wrought, how You grew up with mischief-s, how you killed Your foes sportively, how You contrived to conduct a battle showing Your deftness in support pf pANDava-s, the many episodes that You enacted that pass one's understanding.." - vaduvai vArtaiyuL ERu pAindadum mAya mAvinai vAi piLandadum . (5.10.2) "To win nappinnai in marriage, You jumped on the seven bulls and slew them. As a boy, You slew bakAsura by splitting open his mouth. - peyyum pUm kuzhal pEy mulai uNDa pILLait teRRamum pErndu Or SADiRac ceyya pAdam onRAl Seida nin Siruc cevagamum .. (5.10.3) "You beautifully got rid of pUtaNA who tried to trick You by decorating herself like a well-meaning mother, by sucking the life out of her poisoned breast; Your one red foot achieved a small feat by destroying the SakaTAsura who took the form of a wheel in a toy cart, by a mere kick at the wheel". b) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation gAmbhIryAnukUla vilAsaH vikramI - He whose actions are fascinating and befitting His heroic nature. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to periAzhvAr's emotional recollection of bhagavAn's vikramam: - unnuDaiya vikkiramam onRu ozhiyAmal ellAm ennuDaiya ne'njagam pAl Suvar vashi ezhudikkoNDEn (periAzhvAr tiru. 5.4.6) "My Lord! Just like the pictures that are drawn on a wall and that are very clearly visible to the eye, I have written all Your heroic leelA-s in my mind without leaving out anything". SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan SrI ra'ngarAmAnuja mahAdeSikan explains the nAma as a reference to the `vikrama gati' - the walk that is consistent with His valor and heroism. He refers us to ANDAL, who describes His majestic walk or vikrama (stride) resembling that of a lion that is just coming out of its cave and surveying its surroundings with its authoritative majesty: mArI malai muzha'ngil mannik kiDantu uRa'ngum SIriya Si'ngam aRivuRRut tI vizhittu vEri mayir po'nga eppADum pOrndu udaRi mUri nimirndu muzha'ngip puRappaTTu pOdarumA pOlE nI pUvai pU vaNNA! (tiruppAvai 23) SrI vAsishTha indicates the derivation of the nAma from the root kram - pAda vikshepe - to walk, to step. viSishTaH krama iti vikramaH; sa asya asti iti vikramI, or, vishTam kramaNam asya asti iti vikramI He Who has the distinguishing stride is vikramI. SrI vAsishTha gives reference to the Rg vedic mantra-s, which describe the tri-vikrama incarnation:

idam vishNur vicakrame tredhA nidadhe padam | sa-mUdhAmasya pAgm sure || (Rg. 1.22.17) yasyorushu trishu vikramaNeshu adhikshiyanti bhuvanAni viSvA (Rg. 1.154.2) He within whose three wide-extended paces all living creatures have their habitation - referring to His trivikrama incarnation. SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning `pAda vikshepa - stride', as well as bhagavAn's prowess, in his interpretation: vikramaH pAda vikshepaH Sauryam vA, dvayam ca aSesha purushebhyo vilakshaNam asya asti iti vikramI He Who is endowed with the unique movement of His Feet, or Who is endowed with prowess; these two being so unique to Him as compared to all other beings, He is called vikramI". In his SaraNAgati gadyam, bhagavad rAmAnua lists a series of bhagavAn's kalyANa guNa-s, including Sauryam - vikramam, which are all used by Him for the benefit of His devotees. - svAbhhAvika anavatikAtiSaya j~nAna bala aiSvarya vIrya Sakti tejas sauSIlya vAtsalya mArdava Arjava sauhArda sAmya kAruNya mAdhurya gAmbhIrya audArya cAturya sthairya dhairya saurya parAkrama sataya kAma satya sankalap kRtitva kRta~jnatAdi asankhyeya kalyANa guna gaNaugha mahArNava! "You are the Ocean unto which flow rivers of limitless excellent virtues, all natural to You, and useful for the protection of the devotees. These include: All knowledge, mighty Rulership of the worlds, Untiring virility, Power to act without any outside help; Kind disposition, Affectionate tenderness, Gentleness, Truthfulness in speech, mind and body, Friendliness, Feeling of equality, Mercifulness, Sweetness, Nobility, Generosity, Quickeness to respond to the miseries of the devotees, Firmness in resolve to protect the devotees, Undaunted courage to bring succour to them, Courage to fight for the devotees, Ability to fight the enemies within their own camp; Having Your Will ever fulfilled, Having Your commands ever irresistible, Your deeds fully executed, Always remembering with gratitude even a little worship done to You.". SrI velukkuDi kRshNan enjoys the nAma in terms of bhagavAn's act of bestowing His blessings on His devotees without any limit or restraint. BhagavAn bestows His blessings on His devotees without their asking, without any limit, without even thinking that He is bestowing these blessings on the devotee, and without putting any limits or questioning His actions in this respect. He is like an ocean in this respect - the ocean is very deep, immeasurable in its depth or breadth, and contains treasures that cannot be measured. So also, bhagavAn's desire to bestow His blessings on His devotees is immeasurable and unrestrained (vikrama). c) SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives another anubhavam - he interprets the term `krama' as `tAratamya' or `stepwise differences'. The prefix vi- gives a negative sense, and so vi-kramaH is "One Who does not have differences (between

His various incarnations)": kramaH tAratamyam asya asti iti kramI; na kramI vi-kramI sva avatAreshu tAratamya rahita iti vi-kramI. SvAmi deSikan describes the avatAra rahasyam of emperumAn in his SaraNAgati dIpikA (Slokam 17), emphasizing that in all of bhagavAn's incarnations, He has all the qualities that are unique to Him as the Supreme Deity in full perfection, and they are in no way diminished just by His assuming the form of a human or a boar etc. d) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives yet another interpretation - he interprets `krama' as `occupation' or `function', and gives the meaning "He Who has a distinguishing occupation or function is vikramI" - viSishTaH kramaH vyApAraH vikramaH. As the Lord of all, It is bhagavAn's role to constantly look after His creation, which is His unique concern. 910. Urjita-SAsanaH He of inviolable commands. om Urjita-SAsanAya namaH. SrI vAsishTha derives the term Urjita from the root Urj - bala prANanayoH - to strengthen, to live, and gives the meaning `balavat' or `endowed with strength' to the word "Urjita". He derives the word SasanaH from the root "SAs - anuSishTau - to teach, to inform, to govern, to correct, to advise. Thus `Urjita-SAsanaH" would mean "One Who governs with forceful effectiveness" - balavat anuSAsanam = A~jnAnuvartanam yasya sa UrjitaSAsanaH vishNuH anatikramaNIya niyamaH - He Whose order cannot be transgressed or violated. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is - viri'nci purandarAdi alanghyA~jnaH Urjita-SAsanaH - He Whose commands cannot be disobeyed even by brahmA, indra, and others. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives an essentially similar explanation - vidhi rudrAdi ala'nghya A~jnatvAt Urjita-SAsanaH. In his tiruvASiriyam-3, nammAzhvAr refers to emperumAn as `ANai mei peRa naDAya daivam' - The Lord Whose commands are fulfilled without obstruction (reference by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan refers us to tirumazhiSai AzhvAr - poru kaDal nIr vaNNan ugaikkumEl, et-tEvar vAlATTum? (nAnmugan tiruvantAdi 38) - Not a single one among all the deities can as much as lift a finger against bhagavAn's Will. The taittirIya upanishad declares: bHiSAsmAd vAtaH pavate; bhIshodeti sUryaH; bhIsAdagniScendraSca; mRtyur-dhAvti pa'ncama iti "The wind blows out of fear of Him. For fear of Him does the Sun rise. For fear of Him do agni and indra function. Out of fear of Him, does death, the fifth one, run". SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives support from bRhadAraNyaka Upanishad: etasya vA aksharasya praSAsane gArgi sUrya candramasau vidhRtau tishThataH | etasya vA aksharasya praSAsane gArgi gArgi dyAvAprthivyau vidhRte tishThataH |.

"yA~jnavalkya said: O gArgi under the mighty rule of this immutable Brahman, the Sun and the moon are held in their positions. Under the mighty rule of this Brahman, heaven and earth in their positions..." SrI Sa'nkara gives another dimension to the anubhavam of the power of His commands - in the form of Sruti and smrti-s - "Sruti smRti lakshaNam Urjitam SAsanam asya iti Urjita-SAsanaH - He of powerful commands in the form of Sruti and smRti. SrI Sa'nkara gives the following support: Sruti smRtI mamaivA~jne yaste ulla'nghya vartate | A~jnAc-cchedI mama dveshI mad-bhakto'pi na vaishNavaH ||

The Lord has said: The Sruti and smRti are My commands. He who overrides them is a violator of Law and My enemy. Such a person, though he may profess to be My devotee, is not a true VaishNava (worshipper of vishNu)". SrI cinmayAnanda asserts the inviolability of bhagavAn's Laws - "It permits no exceptions, accepts no excuses, admits no circumstantial conditions". 911. SabdAtigaH He Who is beyond words. om SabdAtigAya namaH. SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "Sabdam atigacchati = vAcam atikramya vartate iti `SabdAtigaH". SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is that His Glory is such that even the thousand-tongued AdiSesha, or the veda-s with all their innumerable branches, or even Goddess sarasvati herself, will be unable to describe them through words ananta jihvena anantena, ananta SAkhaiH AmnAyaiH sAkshAt sarsvatyA ca durudAraha mahimA SabdAtigaH. He is One of ananta kalyANa guNa-s - full of infinite auspicious qualities. We note the thousand guNa-s that are extolled by SrI BhIshma in our SrI vishNu sahasra nAma stotram, are just a small collection of examples of His kalyAna guNa- s. AzhvArs sing this aspect of bhagavAn over and over again. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives the following examples: - tan muDivu onRu illAda taN tuzhAi mAlaiyanai Sol muDivu kANEn nAn Solluvadu en? SollIrE? (nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi 2.5.8) "His Power, beauty, quality, splendor, feats, etc., have no end. The tulasi garland around His neck is proof of His overlordship. How can I describe in words what I have enjoyed? If any of you think you can describe His greatness, try it". - tE nIr kamalak kaNgaLum vandu en Sindai niraindavA! . tU nIrk kaDaluL tuyilvAnE endAi Solla mATTEnE! (tiruvAi. 8.5.4) "You have filled my mind with Your captivating, honey-exuding, watery, kindly lotus eyes. I recall with gleeYour lying in sleep in the middle of the Milky Ocean. Oh My Lord! It is not enough that I have the mental experience; I will not be able to put in all in words here".

The Sruti itself declares about Him: yato vAco nivartante; aprApya manasA saha" (taittirIya upanishad 2.3) "Words turn back without being able to describe Him; The mind also cannot reach Him". SrI Sa'nkara also explains the nAma as One Who transcends speech, because He is not of a species that can be described by words Sabda pravRtti hetunAm jAtyAdInAm asambhavAt Sabdena vaktum aSakyatvAt SabdAtigaH. He refers us to the taittirIya upanishad passage 2.3 quoted above, and also to the following from vishNu purANam na Sabda gocaro yasya yogi dhyeyam param padam (VP 1.17.22) "His Supreme Abode transcends speech, and is meditated upon by yogin-s". SrI cinmayAnanda explains that the veda-s only `point to the Truth', but cannot explain, or even define the truth. The Infinite and Eternal Truth is beyond even the veda-s, beyond all that can be gained even through the highest faculties of the finite equipments (mind and intellect). SrI BhaTTar describes nAma-s 912 to 945 that follow, in terms of the gajendra episode (gajendra mokshaNam). 912. Sabda-sahaH - He Who shoulders the burden of the words of cry of distress. om Sabda-sahAya namaH. The word Sabda is derived from the root Sap - AkroSe - to curse, to wear, to blame, and the use of the uNAdi sUtra 4.97 - SASapibhyAm dadanau - The affix dan comes after the root roots Sap - to curse, with the meaning Sabda - noise. The term saha is derived from the root sah - marshaNe - to forebear. SrI BhaTTar relates the nAma to the cry of help from gajendra; since bhagavAn bears the responsibility of protecting even animals which may incoherently cry for help, He is called Sabda-sahaH - aspashTa SabdAnAm tiraScAmapi Arta-Sabdam ati-bhAramiva sahate iti Sabda- sahaH. Arta refers to one who is in distress or pain. BhAratvena sahati iti sahaH - He treats the cry for help from the Arta just like carrying a major responsibility or load. When bhagavAn heard the cry of gajendra for help, the cry of "AdimUlam", it immediately evoked a sense or urgency on the part of bhagavAn to help the wounded animal, and He left SrI vaikunTham in a very great hurry to help gajendra. BhagavAn noted that that the elephant had a flower in its hand, and He pondered over its devotion, and this was enough for Him to consider it a major responsibility of His to immediately rush to protect the elephant. `Sabdam' can refer to both good and bad words. SrI vAsishTha takes the word here to refer to `abusive words', and explains that the nAma signifies that bhagavAn puts up with even abusive words from His enemies, because He is full of patience - kshamA vibhUshA sakalasya loke, sarvam kshamAvAn sahate kshmAyAm. So his interpretation is that it is bhagavAn's kshamA or patience that is really spoken of through His nAma `Sabda-sahaH'. Note that Lord rAma is described as kshamayA pRthivI samaH - "In patience, Lord rAma is like Mother Earth". SrI vAsishTha notes that this same guNa transfers to those who are worshippers of Lord vishNu - they are kshamA-vAn-s, those endowed with a predominance of sAttvic tendency. SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives the example of bhagavAn putting up with the insults of Sage bhRgu - bhRgvAdi bhakta kRta tarjana rUpa Sabdam sahata iti Sabda-sahaH.

SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as - sarve vedAH tAtparyeNa tameva vadanti iti Sabda-sahaH - He Whom alone all the veda-s proclaim, with single focus. SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as "One Who allows Himself to be invoked by the vedic declarations". 913. SiSiraH He Who rushed to render help. om SiSirAya namaH. SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for the nAma as SaSa - pluta gatau - to leap, to jump. The word "SiSiraH' is formed by using the uNAdi sUtra 1.53, which states that the word is formed by adding the kirac affix to the root SaSa - to go by leaps. SaSati = Seeghram utplutya gacchati iti SiSiraH. a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms of bhagavAn rushing to the scene where gajendra needed help - Arta Sabda SravaNAntaram ati- tvarayA gataH SiSiraH. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following passage in support, to indicate the speed with which He arrived at the scene where gajendra needed help: SrutvA cakra gadAdharaH, sAnnidhyam kalpayAmAsa tasmin sarasi" - "Immediately on hearing the painful cry of the elephant gajendra, the Lord, armed with His Discus and Mace, flew (on the back of garuDa) and stood on the bank of the pond". Commentators enjoy this incident by pointing out that bhagavAn left without even informing pirATTi, and, when He found that garuDa was not fast enough for His desired speed, He carried garuDa in His hand, and jumped at the scene instantly. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to the following divya prabandham passages in support: - "Anaiyin tuyaram tIrap puL Urndu SenRu Azhi toTTAn (tirumozhi 2.3.9) "He Who came on garuDa and relieved the misery of the suffering elephant gajendra by releasing the carkrAyudha against the crocodile". - nArAyaNA! O! maNi vaNNa! NAgaNaiyAi! VArAi en iDarai nIkkAi - ena veguNDu tIrAda SIRRattAl SenRu iraNDu kUrAga ErA adanai iDar kaDindAn (SiRiya tirumaDal) - "When gajendra cried for help - O nArAyaNa! MaNi vaNNa! ananta Sayana! Please remove my misery", bhagavAn became very angry at the crocodile, hurried to the scene, split the crocodile into two, and relieved gajendra from his agony. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives an interpretation similar to that of Sri BhaTTar - SaSati -drutam gacchati svajanAnAm avanAya iti SiSiraH - He Who rushes to the protection of His devotees is `SiSiraH'. b) The word SiSirah also means `the cool season'. SrI Sa'nkara uses this meaning, and interprets the nAma as signifying that bhagavAn cools down the tApa-traya-s of His devotees (physical, mental and supernatural) - tApa trayAbhitaptAnAm viSrama sthAnatvAt SiSiraH. The three tApa-s are called AdhyAtmika, Adhibhautika, and Adhidaivika. SrI cinmayAnanda notes that bhagavAn has this nAma indicating that He is the cool resting place for those tortured by the heat of samsAra. SrI vAsishTha uses both the above meanings for "SiSira', namely "one who leaps', and `the cool season', and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn's nAma "SiSiraH' signifies that He is One who supports all the beings by the methodic and regular changing of seasons etc.

SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN explains the nAma as - dRshTa mAtraH teshAm santApam nivartayati iti SiSiraH - By His very darSanam, all the sorrows of the devotees are washed away, as signified by the nAma SiSiraH. 914. SarvarI-karaH a) He Who had the destructive weapons in His hands. b) The Maker of `night' - in the form of samsAra. c) The maker of night - the time for rest. d) He Who is in the form of the cool rays of the moon in the nights. e) He Who causes destruction of His enemies. om SarvarI-karAya namaH. a) SrI BhaTTar indicates the derivation of the word `SarvarI' from the root SR - himsAyAm - to tear to pieces, to hurt, to kill, and the application of the uNAdi sUtra 2.122 that results in addition of the affix shvarac to the root SR (SR + shvarac = SarvarI). SrI BhaTTar interprets the word `karaH' as "One with the weapons in His hands" (kara - hand). Some of the other interpreters use the meaning "He Who does" for the word `karaH', based on the root - kR - karaNe - to do. SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation in terms of the gajendra moksham incident - himsA para vidAriNI pa'ncAyudhI kare asya iti SarvarI-karaH - He Who had the five destructive weapons in His hands, when He came to help gajendra. BhagavAn has the five weapons - Sa'nkha, cakra, gadA (the mace), Sar'nga (the bow), and nandaka (the sword) in His hands, ready to destroy the enemies who are a source of harm to others. b) One of the meanings for the word SarvarI is `night' - SRNAyAm loka ckashUmshi iti SarvarI (amara koSa vyAkhyAnam) - That which shuts out the vision of the beings. SrI Sa'nkara uses this meaning, and gives the interpretation that the nAma signifies that bhagavAn is "The Maker of Night". To those bound in samsAra, the knowledge of the Atman is dark as night, and to those who are illumined, samsAra is undesirable and dark as night. As bhagavAn is the cause of both of these, He is called SarvarI-karaH. SrI Sa'nkara quotes support from the gItA for this interpretation: yA niSA sarva bhUtAnAm tasyAm jAgarti samyamI (gItA 2.69) | yasyAm jAgrati bhUtAni sA niSA paSyato muneH ||

"What is night for all beings (i.e., lacking in knowledge of the self), in it the controlled one is awake; when all beings are awake (i.e., involved in the enjoyment of sense objects), that is the night to the sage who sees". (That understanding which has the self for its object, is obscure like night to most. But he who has subdued the senses and is serene, is awake in respect of the self). c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that the daytime reflects rajo guNa or activity, and the nighttime reflects tamo guNa or inactivity. In this nighttime, the feeling of "I", "mine" etc., are not dominant in our lives. This alternation of day and night is a great help from nature for our lives in this world. The `night' allows us to rest, and forget all the worldly worries. The j~nAnI enjoys the calm of the night even while he is awake. But the aj~nAnI is given the chance to rest by bhagavAn blessing him with the `night' time to rest. So bhagavAn is "SarvarI-karaH" by giving the time of rest - the night for all of us. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives a similar interpretation - SarvarI niSA loka-viSrAma dAyinI | tasyAH karaH sampAdakaH iti SarvarI-karaH - He Who gives the night which is a time of rest for all the beings.

d) A different anubhavam is given by SrI satya sandha tIrtha using the meaning `rays' for the term `karaH', and the meaning `night' for the word `SarvarI' - SarvAyAm = rAtrau, karAH = kiraNA yasya candrArgata rUpeNa iti SarvarI-karaH - He Who is in the form of the cool rays of the moon in the night. e) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha uses the meaning `doer' for the word `karaH', but gives yet another anubhavam: SarvarI = himsA, tAm karoti iti SarvarI-karaH - He Who causes destruction of His enemies. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 98 -

a-krUraH peSalo daksho dakshiNaH kshamiNAm-varaH | vidvat-tamo vIta-bhayaH puNya-SravaNa-kIrtanaH ||

om om om om om om om om

a-krUrAya namaH peSalAya namaH dakshAya namaH dakshiNAya namaH kshamiNAm varAya namaH vidvat-tamAya namaH vIta-bhayAya namaH puNya-SravaNa-kIrtanAya namaH

915. a-krUraH - He Who was not cruel (while rescuing gajendra). om a-krUrAya namaH. SrI vAsishTha indicates that the root from which the nAma is derived is kRt - chedane - to cut, to divide. Application of the uNAdi sUtra 2.21- kRtecchaH krU ca - The affix rak comes after the root kRt -to cut, and in one case, the verb is itself replaced by krU, leading to krUraH - wicked, cruel. na krUraH a-krUraH - He Who is not cruel, is a-krUraH. The best example of His disposition to be `not cruel' is His treatment of rAvaNa during the battle with him. When rAvaNa was all but defeated, and could have been finished with one more arrow, rAgahvan just told rAvaNa to go back to his home, rest and recuperate, and then come back refreshed the next day to continue the battle. Given the nature of the sin that rAvaNa had committed, the strength of the enemy,

and the deceitful means that he employed in the battle, none but the kindest at heart would give `time to recuperate' for the enemy. In the context of the gajendra episode, bhagavAn was first kind enough to draw the elephant and the crocodile both from the waters to the shore safely, but did not kill the crocodile right away, even though He had His weapons in His hands - gajaparijigIrshayA karasthairapi AyudhaiH grAhamapi jhaTiti a-kRttavAn akrUraH. It is only when the crocodile refused to let go of gajendra even after being brought to the shore alive, that bhagavAn killed it. SrI kRshhNan comments that when He did ultimately kill the crocodile, He did not kill it with cruelty, but killed it instantly by splitting it into two, so that it did not suffer for a prolonged time in the process. SrI BhaTTar gives the following support: grAhagrstam gajendram ca tam grAham ca jalASayAt | ujjahAra aprameyAtmA tarasA madhusUdanaH || "MadhusUdana, the Lord of inscrutable nature, quickly took out not only the elephant which had been seized by the crocodile, but lifted the crocodile also from the waters of the pond". Sri Sa'nkara first establishes a link between the mental state of cruelty and the desire of the mind, and the anger associated with unfulfilled desires. Then he notes that since bhagavAn is avApta samasta kAman One Who has all His desires fulfilled, there is no room for anger in the mind, and no room for cruelty avApta samasta kAmatvAt kAma abhAvAdeva kopa abhAvaH, tasmAt krauryam asya na asti it a-krUraH. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that in the hiraNyakaSipu episode, because the anger that bhagavAn had while slaying hiraNyakaSipu was `made up' anger and not natural, the moment the Lord saw prahlAda, His disposition immediately changed to one of love from anger. Thus, by nature, bhagavAn is a-krUraH. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN adds another incident to illustrate that bhagavAn is, by nature, forgiving. He relates the durvAsa episode in the forest-life of pANDava-s, where the sage harassed the pANDava- s on behalf of duryodhana by demanding feast for a large battalion of his disciples after draupadi had washed her `akshaya-pAtra' for the day. In spite of this harassment to His dear devotees, Lord kRshNa did not harm him because, by His nature, He is akrUra - pANDava kleSa kArakam durvAsasam na kRtavAn iti akrUraH. 916. peSalaH a) He Who is charming. b) One Who is supremely soft. om peSalAya namaH. SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for the nAma as piS - avayave, dIpanAyAm ca - to form, to kindle, to light, and the application of the uNAdi sUtra 1.106 - that adds the affix kala (ala) after the root. a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as One Who was charming at the time of gajendra moksha, even with all His ornaments in chaotic condition because of the hurry in which He left SrI vaikunTham to help gajendra sambhramAt ayathAyatha srag-bhUshAmbara ramaNIyaH - peSalaH.

This association between the gajendra rakshaNam and bhagavAn's especially beautiful form at that time is beautifully reflected by nammAzhvAr in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 3.5.1 (reference by SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan): moim-mAm pUmpozhil poigai mudalic ciRaippaTTu ninRa kaimmAvukku aruL Seida kAr mugil vaNNan .. (tiruvAi. 3.5.1) "To the elephant gajendra, that got into the trap of a crocodile while plucking a flower in the lotus-pond, our Lord kRshNa, with His dark hue reminiscent of the cloud, flew in a great haste displaying His condescending simplicity and grace". What is the connection between bhagavAn protecting gajendra, and His charming appearance (peSalaH)? SrI kRshNan has a few anubhavam-s on this. BhagavAn's beautiful appearance is a result of His feeling of happiness at having protected His devotee who was in distress. Or, His ornaments, dress etc., were very disorganized since He was in a hurry, and this itself was beautiful on Him - since the ornaments get their beauty by being associated with Him, and not the other way. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that this nAma of bhagavAn indicates that He is handsome - peSalaH, because His deeds, mind, words, and body are all beautiful - karmaNA, manasA, vAcA, vapushA ca SobhanatvAt peSalaH. b) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that the nAma indicates "One with a soft heart, like a flower". He is One who is full of kindness and compassion, and this reflects in all His thoughts, words and deeds. SrI cimayAnanda comments: "In His Infinite kindness and Mercy, His Heart-divine is ever flowing out in love and tenderness towards His devotees when they call out for help ardently and lift themselves from their body-consciousness and egocentric life of sense-pursuits". SrI vAsishTha uses the meaning `piS - avayave - to form', and interprets the nAma as signifying that bhagavAn is One Who has formed or separated every major form in His creation (such as our human body) into its several parts - pimSati - avayavam karoti it peSalaH. He also gives examples of the nakshatra maNDalam being separated into individual stars, time being separated into its subdivisions, etc. SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives an alternate interpretation by looking at the nAma as pa + Isa + la: ISam = rudram, lAti = bhaktatvena gRhNAti, iti ISA-laH; pAti iti paH; paSca asau ISalaSca iti peSalaH - He Who has rudra who is devoted to Him, and He Who protects him, is pESalaH. 917. dakshaH a) He Who removes evil elements very quickly (daksh SIghrArthe). b1) He Who came to the rescue of gajendra very fast (daksh SIghrArthe). b2) He Who had the Sakti power, to arrive very fast at the scene of gajendras suffering c) He Who grows into, or manifests Himself as, the Universe (daksh to grow). d) He Who is deft in His creation, sustenance and destruction (daksha dexterous). e) He Who destroys His enemies (daksh himsanayoH). om dakshAya namaH. We studied this nAma earlier in Slokam 45 (nAma 424).

SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma from the root daksh vRddhau SIghrArthe ca to grow, to go in speed. The amara koSa vyAkhyAnam is kAryam SIghram karoti iti dakshaH. The different meanings for the word daksha are given by SrI vAsishTha pravRddhaH, SaktaH, SIghrakArI ca One Who is grown(SrI Sankara uses this meaning and interprets the nAma as One Who has manifested Himself in the form of the Universe see below), One Who is skilled, and One Who is fast. The root daksh has also another meaning gati himsanayoSca to go, to hurt. The different interpretations are based on these different meanings for the word daksha. a) SrI BhaTTar explains nAma 424 in terms of the kalki incarnation, and how bhagavAn will get rid of the evil elements very quickly in this incarnation (dasyu-vadhe dakshate SIghra-kArI iti dakshaH). One of SrI Sankaras interpretations for the instance of the nAma in Slokam 45 is - sarva karmANi kshipram karoti vA dakshaH - He Who performs all actions fast. The term sankalapa mAtreNa is used extensively in describing this guNa of bhagavAn All He has to do is to will, and the action will be done. b) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation kshipram AgantA dakshaH. This has been interpreted (translated) as One Who came swiftly when called for by gajendra by most translators, based on daksh SIghra-kArI. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also gives his interpretation in terms of bhagavAns speed in responding when He is meditated upon smRta mAtraH tvarayA gatavAn iti dakshaH. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also echoes the idea of the speed with which bhagavAn rushes to the protection of His devotee dakshate = SighratAm kurute svajana avane iti dakshaH. Given that SrI BhaTTars bhAshyam for nAma 913 SiSiraH, has already been interpreted as referring to bhagavAns speed in arriving at the scene where gajendra had called for help in pain, the above interpretation is redundant, and thus, is not the best interpretation for this instance in the writers opinion. It is to be noted that this is not punar-ukti dosham (fault of repetition) in the strict sense of the term , since different words (nAma-s) have been used by Sage vyAsa. This point is made by SrI Sankara in his vyAkhyAnam for the next nAma, dakshiNaH, where he interprets the nAma dakshiNaHas having the same meaning as the current nAma dakshaH. While the redundancy is thus not a case of punar-ukti dosham in the strict sense of the term, a better interpretation is provided by SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan, that removes this redundancy. He translates SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam for the current nAma as One Who is skilled and has the power to arrive very fast, based on daksha sAmarthya SAli or Sakti-SAli. This point is discussed in detail near the end of the write-up for the current nAma. c) For the instance of the nAm in Slokam 45, using the meaning daksh to grow, SrI Sankara gives another interpretation jagad-rUpeNa vardhamAnatvAt dakshaH - He Who grows into, or manifests Himself as, the Universe. d) For the current instance of the nAma, SrI Sankara explains that since the Supreme Being has the three qualities immensity, strength, and quickness in execution, He is called dakshaH pravRddhaH SaktaH SighrakArI ca dakshaH | trayam caitat parasmin niyatiam iti dakshaH. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains that He is deft in creation, and this is indicated by this nAma. SrI cinmayAnanda explains: One Who undertakes creation, sustenance, and destruction of the whole Cosmos with ease and efficiency, diligence, and promptitude. e) One of the alternate interpretations of SrI satya sandha tIrtha is: SatrUNAm hantA dakshaH He Who destroys His enemies. This uses the meaning daksh himsanayoH to hurt.

This nAma provides a very good example of the difficulties in translating and interpreting the samskRt vyAkhyAnam of the great vyAkhyAna-kartA-s into other languages, and the possible errors that might be introduced in the process. The nAma-s SiSiraH and dakshaH occur almost adjacent to each other (nAmas 913 and 917 respectively). SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam in samskRt for the two nAma-s are: SiSiraH Arta-Sabda SravaNantaram ati-tvarayA gataH SiSiraH (SASa pluta gatau; sAnnidhyam kalpayAmAsa tasmin saarasi)). dakshaH kshipram AgantA dakshaH.

As explained under nAma 913, and based on SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam, it seems clear that SrI BhaTTar had in mind the speed with which bhagavAn came to help gajendra. For nAma 917 dakshaH, SrI BhaTTar refers to bhagavAns speedy arrival (kshipram AgantA) again. The translators (two in English and two in tamizh) have translated both the above vyAkhyAna-s as referring to One Who was very fast in coming to the help of gajendra). A couple of those who have elaborated on SrI BahTTars vyAkhyAnam even go to the extent of pointing out that two nAma-s refer to the same incident - and thus the same guNaAnubhavam. Thus they have essentially attributed redundancy in Sage vyAsas narration, even though this is not punar-ukti dosham in the strict definition of this term, since different nAma-s are involved in describing the same incident. (See SrI Sankaras commentary for the next nAma, where he makes this point). SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan gives explains SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam for the current nAma that eliminates this repetition, and thus, is a more elegant explanation of SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam for this nAma. For the nAma SiSiraH, SrImad ANDavan gives the explanation of SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam as a reference to One Who came fast to the scene where gajendra had been seized by the crocodile. But for the nAma dakshaH (nAma 917), SrImad ANDavan explains SrI BhaTTars words kshipram AgatA dakshaH, as One Who has the sAmarthyam as evidenced by His arriving at the scene very fast. (sAmarthyam = power, force, capacity, ability, strength SrI Aptes dictionary). Note that one of the meanings for the word daksha is dexterous, skilled. Also, recall SrI vAsishThas words giving the different meanings for the word daksha SaktaH, Sighra-kArI ca One Who has the power (SaktaH), or One Who achieves things fast (Sighra-kArI). Thus, SrImad ANDavan explains SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam for SiSiraH (nAma 913) in terms of bhagavAn being SIghra-kArI, and for dakshaH (nAma 917) in terms of bhagavAn being a Sakti-SAli. Thus the redundancy in the interpretation of SrI BhaTTars vyAkhyAnam does not exist any more. One could argue, mistakenly, that there is still redundancy in the interpretation of the nAma 425 (dakshaH), and the nAma SiSiraH (nAma 913), since both refer to His speed. But there is no redundancy in fact, since, for nAma 425, SrI BhaTTar refers to bhagavAns speed in getting rid of the evil people in His kalki incarnation, and for nAma 913, he is referring to BhagavAns speed in responding to the cry for help from a devotee. These are subtle points that may be of interest to some readers. SrI Sankara avoids the punarukti dosham by giving interpretations that are distinctly different from each other, and thus there is no confusion in translating these: - SiSiraH (based on The cool season) - tApa-traya abhitaptAnAm viSrama sthAnatvAt SiSiraH He Who removes the torments arising from physical, mental and supernatural causes.

- dakshaH - pravRddaH, SaktaH, SIghra-kArI ca He Who is endowed with the qualities of immensity, strength, and quick execution. 918. dakshiNaH a) He Who is pleasing and amiable. b) He Who pervades everywhere. c) He Who destroys everything (at the time of pralaya). d) He Who is very liberal, charitable, and kind. om dakshiNAya namaH. The root from which the nAma is derived is the same as for the previous nAma - daksh - vRddhau, SIghrArthe - to grow or act quickly. The application of the uNAdi sUtra 2.50 -dru dakshibhyAm inan, results in addition of the affix inan to the root daksh, leading to the word dakshiNa. The siddhAnta kaumudI gives the following meanings for the word dakshiNaH - dakshate vardhate SIghrakArI bhavati vA sa dakshiNaH; saralo vAmabhAgaH paratantro'nuvartanam (right, honest, courteous, submissive). As explained above, the term `dakshiNa' has the same meaning as the term `daksha' - "dexterous, skillful, one who arrives fast, one who accomplishes things fast', etc., but additionally, it means `pleasing, amiable, courteous, civil', etc. (SrI Apte's dictionary). Thus, the word `dakshiNa' means `One who is fast, One who destroys, One who is courteous, One who grows His devotees, One who is compassionate', etc. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning `courteous and compassionate' for the word `dakshiNa', and comments that even though bhagavAn responded immediately to the cry for help from gajendra, He still expressed regret to gajendra that He was not nearer to the site of the incident, and consoled gajendra with kind words. SrI BhaTTar's words are: thathA Agatya, `dhin'g mAm, dUragato'ham tvAm', iti sAntvanaiH, gajendrasya anukUlaH dakshiNaH - "Though He came as soon as gajendra called for His help, He still expressed regret that He was not near at the time of danger, and consoled gajendra with kind words - "Fie upon Me that I was far away from you". SrI BhaTTar gives support from vishNu dharma: prItimAn puNDArIkAkshaH SaraNAgata vatsalaH | bhajantam gajarAjAnam madhuram madhu-sUdanaH || (vishNu dharma 69.83)

"The Lotus-eyed Slayer of madhu, Who is kind and affectionate to those who have surrendered to Him, showed His love to gajendra, who worshipped Him". SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains the nAma as referring to His dAkshiNyam - politeness, civility, courtesy. For sarveSvaran to express regret to a mere animal, is a clear expression of His guNa of sauSIlyam. SrI kRshNan graphically describes that bhagavAn knelt at the feet of the elephant, checked for the injuries, took out His uttarIyam - the vastram at the top of His divya tirumEni, blew at it to get some heat, and then applied the heat to the elephant's leg to give comfort to the elephant's wound. In addition, He expressed regret for not having come earlier. This nAma thus illustrates that bhagavAn is SaraNAgatavatsalan - One Who is dearly attached to those who surrender to Him. The word `sAntvanam' that has been used by SrI BhaTTar in his vyAkhyAnam means `consolation, pacification'. SrI kRshNan refers to another instance where bhagavAn felt `regret at having been late' in helping the devotee who surrendered to Him' and expressed words of consolation - `sAntvanam'. This was in the case of vibhIshaNa SaraNAgati. `vacasA sAntvayitvainam locanAbhyAm pibanniva" - yuddha

kANDam 19.7 - ""Lord rAma uttered words of consolation to vibhIshaNa, and blessed him with His kaTAksham, as if He drank vibhIshaNa through His eyes". b) c) SrI Sa'nkara comments that the meaning for the previous nAma and the current one are same, and notes that there is no punarukti by Sage vyAsa because different words have been used to describe this guNa of bhagavAn - dakashiNa SabdasyApi daksha eva arthaH; Sabda bhedAt na paunaruktyam. However, he proceeds then to give an alternate interpretation based on the root daksh - gati himsanayoH to go or to kill - athavA, gacchati hinasti iti vA dakshaH - He Who goes or He Who kills is dakshiNaH. This is translated by SrI T. S. Krishnamoorthy as "One Who pervades everywhere", or as "One Who destroys everything" (e.g., at the time of pralaya - the function of samhAra). Using the meaning `to kill' or `destroy' for the root daksh, SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the example of Lord kRshNa destroying or preventing the rise of duryodhana - damSati duryodhana udyamam iti dakshiNaH. d) SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma in terms of dAkshiNya (liberal-hearted) - the opposite of selfishness and attachment to wealth that one possesses. He sums up the meaning of the nAma as "One Who has Infinite Kindness and Charity towards all good people and One Who is thus ever ready to liberally give away His endless Benevolence". He gives the example of the offering of `dakshiNA" to the priests after a ritual as their fee - this should be given in a spirit of large-hearted, liberal charity. Recall the nAma svasti- dakshiNaH (nAma 905 in Slokam 96), which is interpreted along these lines. SrI vAsishTha comments that bhagavAn is One Who arrives fast if one calls to Him for help, and is pleasant once He arrives - kshipram Agacchati AhUta, Agatya ca santushTo mukta-hastam dadAti iti udAraH sa dakshiNa ucyate. e) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning - daksh -vardhate - to grow, and interprets the nAma as dakshayati vardhayati svajanAn iti dakshNaH - He Who grows His devotees is dakshiNaH. f) An alternate interpretation by SrI bhAradvAj is - ata eva viSvara'nge udAratamo nAyakaH - BhagavAn is the most compassionate Lord of all. The amara describes `dakshiNa' as `sarala, udArau ca' - honest, sincere, generous, compassionate'. (amara. 3.1.8). 919. kshamiNAm-varaH a) The foremost in bearing the burden of protection of His devotees. b) The Foremost among those who bear the burden of the Universes. om kshamiNAm-varAya namaH. The root of interest for the nAma is ksham - sahane - to allow, to suffer. vara is derived from vRN - varaNe - to choose. `kshamiNAm varaH' refers to "One Who is superior among those who are endowed with patience or endurance". . SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "sahana SilAyAm, kshmAvatAm madhye varaH = SreshTha ityarthaH", which has the above meaning. SrI Apte has listed the meanings `able, competent' for the word `kshama' in addition to `forbearance, patience'. The interpretations below use both these meanings. The nAma has been translated as "One Who is the best among those who have endurance", by most of the

translators of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam. However, the significance of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam does not seem to be expressed well enough with this translation. Sri BhaTTar's words are - tad-darSanena dhRtAtmA; abhavat tatra deveSaH - It was only after seeing gajendra safe that He felt relieved; The Lord of all gods stood as though revived (after seeing gajendra safe)". This signifies that bhagavAn was throbbing with anxiety on behalf of His devotee and patiently putting up with this anxiety for the short duration between gajendra's call and His protecting gajendra. His desire to protect His devotee is so extreme and intense, that normally for Him to patiently wait till He comes to the scene of the incident was unimaginable. It is this extreme concern of bhagavAn - the intensity with which He is committed to the protection of His devotees, that is to be enjoyed here. It is the seriousness with which He takes His commitment to protect His devotee, and His anxiety at the smallest delay in protecting the devotee, that is enjoyed by Sri BhaTTar through this nAma - "BhagavAn is the Foremost in bearing the burden of protection of His devotee - kshamiNAm varaH". SrI kRshNan emphasizes this point, and refers to another incident where the Lord was throbbing with anxiety for the welfare of His devotee - when sugrIva suddenly rushed to rAvaNa and fought a duel with him, and brought the ten crowns of his ten heads. Lord rAma tells sugrIva after his return that He was very concerned about sugrIva's safety during that time, and added that for Him, sugrIva's safety was more important than even lakshmaNa or sItA pirATTi's welfare. Such is the intensity with which He bears the responsibility for the protection of His devotee. Of course, other anubhavam-s are possible for the nAma in the context of gajendra moksham, and some of these are given by some of the interpreters of SrI BhaTTar's bhAshyam. The most common among these is that bhagavAn did not lose His composure once He arrived at the scene of gajendra being caught by the crocodile (SrI M. V. Ramanujacharya's explanation - "gajendraniak kaNDa piRagu, tam manattaip padaikkAmal niRuttinavar"). SrI v. n. vedAnta deSikan comments that this guNa of bhagavAn was evident only after He saw that the elephant was safe (until that time, His concern for the safety of His devotee was extreme. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives multiple interpretations: - He Who is the foremost among yogin-s who have forbearance - kshamavatAm yoginAm iti kshamiNAm varaH. - He Who is foremost among those that bear all burdens such as that of the Earth etc. - pRthivyAdInAm bhAra dhArakANAm SreshTha iti kshamiNAm varaH. - He Who is the foremost among the strongest (here the word kshamiNaH is interpreted to means "One Who is endowed with power") - kshamiNaH SaktAH, ayam tu sarva SaktimatvAt sakalAH kriyAH kartum kshamata iti vA kashmainAm varaH. He gives support from SrImad rAmAyaNam - kshamayA pRthivi samaH (1.1.18) - Lord rAma's ability to endure is described as equal to that of Mother Earth. SrI cinmayAnanda's anubhavam is that bhagavAn has this nAma indicating that He is the most patient when it comes to tolerating and forgiving the sins of the jIvas. His words are: "He exhibits supreme patience with the evil-minded, the tyrant, the foul and the fiendish. hiraNyAksha, hiraNyakaSipu, rAvaNa, and others of this type were given many fair opportunities to realize for themselves the folly of their baser attitudes and their immoral ways of life. It is only when no other method of treatment could cure them

that the Lord destroyed them in His Infinite kindness" (they all reached parama padam as a result of having His darSanam!). Another dimension of bhagavAn's forbearance is His willingness to forgive the sins of His devotees also - kshamitum soDhum bhakta aparAdhAn Seelam yeshAm te kshamiNaH; teshAm varaH uttama iti kshamiNAm varaH (SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj). One is reminded of the extent of sufferings that He subjected Himself to, during His rAma incarnation. The whole rAmAyaNa is a demonstration of His being kshamiNAm varaH, along with pirATTi, who is in all respects equal to Him. The incident of Sage bhRgu kicking bhagavAn in His vaksha sthalam, and the composed reaction of bhagavAn to this incident, is another example of His most superior kshamA or endurance and forbearance. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives another example from Lord kRshNa's incarnation: - the magnanimity with which bhagavAn forgave Sage durvAsa for his ignoble act of harassing the pANDava-s on behalf of duryodhana during the vana vAsam of the pANDava-s. The kAkAsura incident, and sItA pirATTis' kind act of laying the evil asura such that his head was facing Lord rAma's Feet so that Lord rAma will forgive the asura, and bhagavAn's forgiving the asrua by just punishing him very mildly instead of killing him as he justly deserved, is an example that shows both bhagavAn and pirATTi rival each other in their kshamA, or willingness to forgive and put up with aparAdha-s of their children. nammAzhvAr repeatedly reminds us that none in all the Universes - not even the catur-mukha brahmA who is gifted with superior knowledge by bhagavAn Himself, will be able to describe bhagavAn's kalyANa guNa-s and do justice to even one of His guNa-s. We are seeing that His guNa as `kshamiNAm varaH' is just one example of the inability to describe the guNa - we just have to feel His guNa-s and enjoy them. 920. vidvat-tamaH The Best among those who know what to do. om vidvat-tamAya namaH. SrI vAsishTha gives the following derivation for the nAma vidanti iti vidvAmso j~nAninaH teshu atiSayena SreshThaH sarvaj~natvAt iti vidvat-tamo vishNuH He Who is the best among those endowed with knowledge - the All-Knowing. He from Whom all knowledge originated, He Who gave the veda-s to the world, etc., is vidvat-tamaH. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma in terms of the gajendra moksham incident, and points out that the nAma reminds us that bhagavAn knew exactly how to administer treatment to gajendra as soon as He arrived at the scene - tac-cikitsAyAm vidvat-tamaH BhagavAn gently touched the elephant, and started speaking to the elephant comfortingly. Extreme devotion to bhagavAn is what caused gajendra to go to the pond to pluck the lotus flower for offering to Him in the first instance. Nothing was more important to gajendra than the darSanam of bhagavAn, and all his ailments were cured right away. (The beauty of the vyAkhyAnam of SrI BhaTTar, illustrating the extreme concern of bhagavAn to His devotees at every step, can only be felt, and cannot be described adequately through words. The current interpretation is one such example). SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains the nAma with the comment that bhagavAn is the `greatest Doctor there ever was and is, - the way He administered the most appropriate cikitasA or treatment to gajendra,

(who had suffered for a thousand years in the clutch of the crocodile)'. BhagavAn knew precisely what would give gajendra the greatest comfort, and so He is called vidvat-tamaH in SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam. SrI BhaTTar gives support from vishNu dharma: evamuktvA kuruSreshTha! gajendram madhusUdanaH sparsayAmAsa hastena.. . . . . | (vishNu dharma 69.89)

The Bliss of the touch by bhagavAn's hands eliminates all misery, and is like the herbs that can cure any ailment. His divine hands were the medicine for gajendra, and the heat from His beautiful red lips were the comfort that gajendra would do anything to have. SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan gives another analogous example, where pirATTi administers the cikitsA that is the most appropriate for the occasion. When rAma came back full of bleeding wounds after victoriously eliminating the rAkshasa khara and his army of 14,000 rAkshasa-s in janasthAnam, sItA pirATTi administered the best treatment for the occasion she gave Him a very fond embrace. As Lakshmi, she is the embodiments of all cures, and thus, Her embrace was the best cure for rAma's wounds. tam dRshTvA Satru-hantAram maharshINAm sukhAvaham | babhUva hRshTA vaidehI bhartAram parishasvaje || "sItA pirATTi was extremely happy to see Lord rAma who had eliminated the rAkashas-s that were causing immense harm to the sages, and thus had fulfilled the cause of ensuring the safety of these sages". SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN also interprets the nAma based on the gajendra episode atha gajendra uddhArakatAm sUcayan Aha - svaika SaraNyasya gajendrasya vipad vinASe ati-nipuNatvAt vidvat-tamaH - He Who handled the surrender of gajendra in the most skillful manner. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri generalizes SrI BhaTTar's explanation - bhagavAn is One Who knows how to remedy the bhakta's problems. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that bhagavAn has this nAma because He alone, and no one else, always possesses the knowledge of everything nirastAtiSayam j~nAnam sarvadA sarva gocaram asya iti asti, na itareshAm iti vidvat-tamaH. All the rest possess but a tiny fraction of His knowledge. SrI vAsishTha comments that bhagavAn is All-Knowing One Who knows everything there is to know ever since creation started, and prior to that, and for all future to come, and so He is vidvat-tamaH. This cannot be said of anyone else. This is how the veda-s praise Him. 921. vIta-bhayaH a) He because of Whom fear is dispelled. b) He Who is devoid of fear.

om vIta-bhayAya namaH. SrI vAsishTha derives the meaning s "One Who has no fear" vi = vishesheNa, itam = gatam, bhayam = bhItiH yasya it vIta-bayaH - One Who is totally devoid of fear. SrI BhaTTar, whose special emphasis is the guNanubhavam of bhagavAn as One Whose sole purpose in everything He does is to help His devotees, gives the anubhavam that He has this nAma since He drives away the fear in His devotees - vItam bhayam yasmAt sa vIta-bhayaH. The former interpretation is given by SrI Sa'nkara and others who follow his vyAkhyAnam, and the later interpretation is given by SrI BhaTTar and those that follow his lead. a) SrI BhaTTar's interpretation is: tat-samAgama tumula upalambhAt vItam bhayam gajendrasya iti vItabhayaH Seeing the ardent zeal of the Lord in coming to his help, the fear of gajendra vanished. Thus, bhagavAn has this nAma since He is "One Who dispelled the fear of gajendra through His arrival". SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan's anubhavam is that gajendra was afraid that the lotus flower that he was carrying for offering to the Lord might become old and lose its freshness, and this fear waqs gone as soon as gajendra noticed that bhagavAn had arrived. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that gajendra had called for help from nArAyaNa, and was afraid that bhagavAn's guna of ASrita rakshaNam might be questioned by some if He did not come right away, and it was this fear that was removed as soon as bhagavAn arrived. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN echoes the same thoughts as above - vItam = vinashTam gajendrasya grAhAt bhayam yena sa vIta-bhayaH - He Who relieved gajendra of the fear of being gripped by the crocodile, is vIta-bhayaH. b) SrI Sa'nkara gives the interpretation - vItam = vigatam, bhayam sAmsArikam samsAra lakshaNam vA asya iti vIta-bhayaH, sarveSvaratvAt nitya muktatvAt ca - He Who has no fear pertaining to, or accompanying, the transmigratory life; in addition, since He is the Lord of all, and ever free, He I without fear of any kind as well.. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that the worst of all fears is the fear of samsAra, or being born in this world; since bhagavAn is beyond this, He is Fearless, and beyond fear vIta-bhayaH. SrI satya sandha tIrtha also gives the explanation along the same lines - bhaya SUnyaH vIta bhayaH - One Who is without fear. Another dvaita AcArya, SrI raghunAtha tIrtha, gives the alternate interpretation that is supported by SrI BhaTTar bhaktebhyo vItam = vigatam bhayam yasmAt saH vIta-bhayaH. 922. puNya-SravaNa-kIrtanaH He Whose nAma SrvaNam and kIrtanam are purifying. om puNya-SravaNa-kIrtanAya namaH. The nAma can be understood in terms of its three component words: puNya, SravaNa, and kIrtana. puNya here refers to `that which purifies' - pavate, pUyate vA anena iti puNyam. SravaNa refers to hearing from

others, and kIrtana refers to our own chanting. The nAma says that bhagavAn's glory is such that by hearing it from others, or by singing His glory ourselves, we will be purified. puNyam = pavitrIkraraNam, nAmnAm SravaNam kIrtanam ca yasya sa puNya- SravaNa-kIrtanaH vishNuH. One by hearing whose names, and by chanting whose names, we get purified, is called `puNya-SravaNakIrtanaH' yasya vishNor-nAm nAm anyataH SravaNam, tathA sva-mukhata uccArya kIrtanam, ityubhayatA pavitrIkaraNam bhavati, sa etan-nAmnAm abhidhIyate. SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation of the nAma as it relates to gajendra moksham, and explains the nAma as: "He by hearing whose gajendra moksham episode, or by narrating it ourselves, we get purified". This is one example of the purifying power of singing His glory or hearing His glory. SrI BhaTTar refers us to a Sloka from vishNu dharma in support: Srutena hi kuru-SreshTha! SmRtena kathitena vA | gajendra moksheNaiva sadyaH pApAt vimucyate || (vishNu dharma 69.79)

"O the best of kuru-s! A person is immediately rid of his sins if he hears, thinks or talks about the story of the rescue of gajendra by the Lord". SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan points out that bhagavAn is puNya SravaNa kIrtanaH also because He has thee kIrtanA (fame) that is worthy of being heard (SravaNa), and that will remove all our sins. He reminds us that this is the reason why we do the anusandhAnam of the following Slokam on gajendra moksham every morning as we get up: grAham graste gajendre sarabhasam tArkshaym Aruhya dhAvan vyAghUrNan mAlya bhUshA vasan parikaro megha gambhIra ghoshaH | vibhrANo rathA'ngam Saram asim abhayam Sa'nkha cApau ca kheTau hastaiH kaumodakIm api avatu harirasAvamhasAm samhater_naH || The Slokam is found in devanAgari lipi in prakRtam SrImad Azhagiya Si'nger's Ahnika grantham. The Slokam reminds us how bhagavAn rushed to the scene of gajendra's suffering, climbing on to garuDa's back in a big hurry, with disheveled ornaments because of the hurry, with the roaring sound of His arrival clearly noticeable, and with all His weapons ready for the protection of the devotee. The anusansdhAnam (thinking with the meaning in our mind) of this act of bhagavAn will protect all those who meditate on it, chant it, or hear it from others. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN echoes the same anubhavam - pApahAri- gajendra-sambandhi-SravaNAditvAt puNya-SravaNa-kIrtanaH. SrI Sa'nkara gives the following interpretation- puNyam puNyakaram SravaNam kIrtanam ca asya iti puNya-SravaNa-kIrtanaH - He, whose names, heard and recited, lead to religious merit. Both SrI Sa'nkara and SrI vAsishTha give reference to the phala Sruti Slokam which conveys the same message that is conveyed by this nAma: ya idam SruNuyAn-nityam yaScApi pariklIrtayet | nASubham prApnuyAt ki'ncit somutreha ca mAnavaH ||

"Nothing inauspicious or unwelcome will accrue either in this world or in the world beyond, to anyone who hears the vishNu sahasra nAma stotra daily, or who recites it daily". SrI cinmayAnanda comments that "kIrtana should not be just interpreted to mean mechanical repetition, but the serious student should reflect upon the glories of the Lord. We must learn to get ourselves committed to the life of God-centered activities. It is not to be a mere noisy chanting of hymns, a mere muttering of mantra- s. We must teach ourselves to allow Him to express through us. Our physical activities, mental feelings, and intellectual thoughts must all shine forth the awareness of His Divine Presence that is in us at every moment, everywhere. The life of such a devotee will itself become, in its dynamic beauty, love and devoted tenderness, a constant worship (poojA), a continuous (akhaNDa) hymn chanted (kIrtanA) in praise of the Lord-of-the-heart". The message should be self-explanatory. SrI vAsishTha summarizes the meaning of this nAma through the following composition of his own: yasyAsti nAmnAm SravaNam pavitram, sa'nkIrtanam cApyamalam hi tasya so'nanta nAmA bhagavAn hi vishNuH, sva-nAmabhir viSvamidam punAti || |

"Lord vishNu, whose nAma-s are purifying to those who hear them or chant them - this Lord vishNu with His infinite nAma-s (representing His infinite kalyANa guNa-s), purifies this whole Universe through His nAma-s". -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 99 -

uttAraNo dushkRti-hA puNyo duH-svapna-nASanaH vira-hA rakshaNaH santo jIvanaH paryavasthitaH ||

om uttAraNAya namaH om dush-kRti-ghne namaH om puNyAya namaH om duH-svapna-nASanAya namaH

om vIra-ghne namaH om rakshaNAya namaH om santAya namaH om jIvanAya namaH om paryavasthitAya namaH

923. uttAraNaH - He Who lifts up.

om uttAraNAya namaH.

`ut' is an upasarga, meaning `intensity'. `tAraNa' is derived from the root tR - plavana santaraNayoH - to cross over, to swim. uttArayati iti uttAraNaH - He Who helps in crossing over, is uttAraNaH.

SrI BhaTTar continues the interpretation in terms of the gajendra episode - the nAma refers to bhagavAn lifting up the elephant and the crocodile both from the waters - tau sarasaH uttAritavAn. It is to be noted that SrI BhaTTar uses the word "tau' - He lifted both of them from the lake. In a sense, bhagavAn protected both the elephant and the crocodile - by relieving gajendra from the clutches of the crocodile, and by relieving the crocodile from its curse.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the same interpretation also - sarovarAt gajendram uttArayAmAsa iti uttAraNaH.

Most other interpreters interpret the nAma as a reference to bhagavAn lifting the samsAri-s from the ocean of samsAra.

SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is: samsAra sAgarAt uttArayati iti uttAraNah.

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "One Who lifts us out of the ocean-of-change. By identifying through our body-mind- intellect with the changing whirls of matter around us, we assume to ourselves the changes which provide us the horrible sorrow of mortal finitude. On lifting ourselves from the giddy changes in these whirls of finite matter, when we fix it upon Him, the one Consciousness that illumines all changes in all living creatures, we get uplifted into a state of Immortality - changeless, blissful, supremely satisfying. Hence SrI nArAyaNa is called the Up-lifter, the Savior".

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as: bhavArtisantaptAnAm bhavac- charaNa AgatAnAm uttitIrshUNAm uttAraNo nAviko nAveva ityarthaH He Who, like a person rowing a boat to help cross a river, helps the samsAri who is tortured by the heat of samsAra, and who surrenders to bhagavAn seeking help in crossing over the ocean of samsAra.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha explains the nAma in terms of the praNava mantra that lifts up the spirits of the sanyAsin-s etc. - utkRshTaH tAraH praNavo yeshAm ta uttArAHsannyAsinaH teshAm NaH sukham yasmAt sa uttAraNaH.

924. dushkRti-hA -

a) He Who slays the evil-doers. b) He Who destroys the sins of those who surrender to Him.

om dushkRti-ghne namaH.

a) dushkRtinam hanti iti dushkRti-hA _ He Who destroys the evil-doers is dushkRti-hA.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma in terms of bhagavAn killing the crocodile that seized the leg of the devotee gajendra who was involved in bhagavad kainkaryam, and threatened his life. SrI BhaTTar continues the support from vishNu dharma (69) - sthalastham dArayAmAsa grAham cakreNa mAdhavaH - mAdhava slew the crocodile with His discuss when the crocodile was on the land.

Note the following Sloka, which describes the guNa of bhagavAn praised in this nAma:

paritrAnAya sAdhUnAm vinASAya ca dushkRtAm | dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge ||

"I take incarnations in every yuga, for the protection of the good, the destruction of the evil, and the establishment of dharma".

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also interprets the nAma in terms of the gajendra episode: dushkRtim grAham hatavAn iti dushhkRti-hA - He Who destroyed the crocodile that committed apacAram towards a bhAgavata.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives references to divya prabandham where this guNa of bhagavAn is extolled:

- ANDAL sings this guNa of bhagavAn in tiruppAvai: pollA arakkanaik kiLLik kaLaindAnai - He Who got rid of the ferocious demon as if by weeding him out. - vEzham mUvAmai nalgi mudalai tuNittAn (periya tirumozhi 6.8.3) - BhagavAn came on garuDa who is the incarnation of the veda- s, destroyed the crocodile and removed the pain and suffering of gajendra.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan explains that for bhagavAn, the worst among those who are sinners are those who commit apacAram to His devotees. This is what makes Him angry the most, and this is where His guNa of dushkRti-hA is in full force. We see this in His incarnations as Lord rAma and Lord nRsimha. Lord ra'nganAtha also displayed His anger when the priest committed apacAram against tiruppANAzhvAr. This nAma should remind us that bhAgavata apacAram is the worst of all sins, and should be avoided at all costs.

b) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as - dushkRtiH pApa sam~jnitAH hanti iti dushkRti-hA He Who destroys the sins, or alternatively, "ye pApakAriNaH tAn hanti it vA" - He Who destroys those who commit sinful deeds.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri reminds us that it is not just bhagavAn who redeems us from our sins, but His nAma is just as effective. In helping draupadi against act of duryodhana, Lord kRshNa assured rukmiNi that before He could go and help draupadi, His nAma already protected her when she cried out His name when in need of help.

In addition to getting rid of those extreme sinners who cannot be corrected any other way, bhagavAn is also the One Who corrects and redirects those who are inadvertent sinners.

SrI cinmayAnanda's anubhavam is that when bad actions (dush-kRti-s) are undertaken by anyone, prompted by sensuous desires, they leave impressions (vAsanA-s), and these always have a tendency to make them repeat similar actions. When one turns the mind towards nArAyaNa, the Self, one is emptied of these existing vAsanA-s, and so the Lord is indicated as the "Destroyer of the sins".

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as - dushkRtiH hanti prapannAnAm iti dushkRti-hA "One Who destroys the sin of the prapanna-s - those who have sought refuge under Him.

925. puNyaH - The Purifier.

om puNyAya namaH.

Please refer to the write-up for this nAma in Slokam 73 (nAma 692).

926. dus_svapna-nASanaH - The Remover of evil dreams.

om dus-svapna-nASanAya namaH.

`dus' is an upasarga. `svapna' is derived from the root svap - Sayane - to sleep; the word `svapna' means `dream'. `nASana' is derived from the root naS - adarSane - to be lost, to perish. dushTaH svapno dus-svapnaH; dus-svapnasya nASano dus-svapna-nASanaH - He Who removes bad or inauspicious dreams.

SrI BhaTTar continues his interpretation in terms of the gajendra moksham "Those who hear the story of gajendra mosham will be relieved of inauspicious dreams". It should be noticed that SrI BhaTTar has been giving support from the vishNu dharma for his interpretations of all the nAma-s based on gajendra moksham. This extends to the current nAma as well. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the current nAma is found in the phala Sruti of this episode as described in vishNu dharma:

ye mAm tvAm ca saraScaiva grAhasya ca vimoskaNam | ye smarishyanti manujAH prayatAH sthirabuddhayaH | dus-svapno naSyate teshAm su-svapnaSca bhavishyati ||

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the same interpretation, and gives the reference quoted above as well.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj quotes support from SrImad bhAgavtam, where it is declared that meditation on Lord kRshNa and the gajendra moksham will relieve the devotee from bad dreams:

etan mahArAja taverito mayA kRshNAnubhAvo gajarAja mokshaNam | svargyam yaSasyam kali kalmashApaham dus-svapna nASanam kuru varya SRNvatAm || (8.4.14)

"O parIkshit mahArajan! I (Sage Suka) have narrated to you this great mahimA of Lord kRshNa that is called gajendra moksham, by hearing which all sins accrued in the kali yaga will be destroyed, bad dreams will be eliminated, and one can attain the svarga loka and all fame".

SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as the "Dispeller of bad dreams that forewarn of upcoming dangers, when He is meditated upon, praised and worshipped".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that since bhagavAn ensures that His devotees are not exposed to dangers, they do not get bad dreams forewarning them of the dangers also. He also comments that the habit of constant meditation of bhagavAn's nAma-s will ensure that in the long run, there is no room for bad dreams.

SrI cinmayAnanda interprets that the worst dream is that of being re-born. He notes that when one is ever centered in nArAyaNa-smaraNa, then his sub-conscious mind is not loaded with half-digested thoughts and unexpressed intentions, repressed desires and suppressed motives, immoral passions and covetous inclinations, and he has no fearful dreams in his sleep. Over time he enters nArAyaNa-consciousness, and there is no room for bad dreams.

SrI vAsishTha gives references to vedic passages where prayer is made for the removal of bad dreams:

jAgrad dush-svapnyam svane dush-svapnyam | (atharva. 16.6.9)

punarehi vRshAkape suvitA kalpayAvahai | ya esha svapnanamSano'stameshi pathA punar-viSvasmAd-indra uttaraH || (Rg. 10.86.21)

927. vIra-hA - He Who destroyed the powerful bonds that tied gajendra to death.

om vIra-ghne namaH.

We studied this nAma previously in Sloka-s 18 and 79 (nAma-s 168 and 747). Please refer to the write-up for nAma 747 in Slokam 79.

928. rakshaNaH - The Savior.

om rakshaNAya namaH.

The nAma is derived from the root raksha - pAlane - to protect. rakshati = pAlayati sakalam viSvam iti rakshaNaH.

SrI BhaTTar relates the nAma to the protection of gajendra by bhagavAn - tam sparSana parirambhaNa sAntvanAdibhiH rakshitavAn BhagavAn saved the elephant by touching it, embracing it, and speaking words of consolation to the elephant. SrI BhaTTar and SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN quote vishNu dharma in support:

evamuktvA maharaja gajendram madhusUdanaH | sparSayAmAsa hastena gajam gandharvameva ca ||

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as "One Who has the function of protection of all the three worlds" - sattvam guNam adhishThAya jagat- trayam rakshan iti rakshaNaH - He who, assuming the sattva guNa, protects allt he three worlds.

In tiruvAimozhi, nammAzhvAr stresses that it is Lord vishNu's nature to protect (kAkkum iyalvinan pASuram 2.2.9). In fact, AzhvAr points out that in addition to protection, Lord vishNu performs the functions of destruction and creation through rudra and brahmA respectively by being their antaryAmi-s, and these functions are also directed in effect, towards protection of the jIva-s. The destruction is for the purpose of giving new bodies to the jIva-s instead of continuing with the aged and worn-out bodies, and the creation is to give indriya-s etc. to the jIva-s so that they can strive to attain Him in the new birth. Thus rakshaNam is the motivation for all His acts.

SrI cinmyAnanda reminds us that protection is the reason that bhagavAn keeps taking incarnations:

paritrANAya sAdhUnAm visASAya ca dushkRtAm

| || (gItA 4.8)

dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi yuge yuge

"For the protection of the good, the destruction of the wicked, and the establishment of righteousness, Itake different incarnations in each yuga". Note that `protection' comes first in the reasons for His incarnations. In fact, destruction of the wicked is only for the protection of the good.

SrI vAsishTha gives reference to a vedic mantra that prays for this protection:

rakshA No agne tava rakshaNebhI rArakshANaH sumukha prINAnaH pratishphuTa viruja vIDvaho jahi raksho mahi cid vAvRdhAnam

|| (Rg. 4.3.14)

929. santaH - a) He Who makes those who have sought refuge in Him prosper. b) He Who exists for His devotees. c) He Who bestows the desired benefits on His devotees. d) He Who manifests Himself in the form of holy men. e) He Who is present everywhere and permeates everything. f) He Who is worshipped. g) He Who expands the world in a controlled way.

om santAya namaH.

sam- is an upasarga (preposition). The root for the nAma is tanu - vistAre - to spread. The word also means `to bestow, to lengthen' etc. (SrI Apte's dictionary).

a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as "ASritAn santanoti (samyak tanoti) iti santaH" - He Who makes those who have sought refuge in Him prosper, and feel joy by thoughts on Him. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the same interpretation - evam gajendram SaraNAgatam santanoti iti santaH. SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan explains the significance of the nAma as illustrating the guNa of bhagavAn in growing the

confidence in us (santanoti) that He will protect us without fail. The very sight of bhagavAn during His procession around our streets is for giving us this confidence at the sight of Him.

b) SrI BhaTTar gives two other alternate interpretations: `teshAm asti iti santaH' - He Who exists for His devotees is santaH. SrI kRshNan refers us to the Slokam in jitante stotram:

na te rUpam na cAkAro nAyudhAni na cAspadam

| tathA'pi purushAkAro bhaktAnAm prakASase

||

"Neither Your divya Atma svarUpam, nor Your divya ma'ngaLa vigraham, nor for that matter Your weapons, or Your own SrI vaikunTham, are for Your benefit (they are all for Your devotees' benefit, and thus You are not independent, but You are the possession of Your devotees). Even so, You shine as the Supreme Being".

c) Or, tebhyaH ishTam dattavAn iti santaH - He Who bestows the desired benefits on His devotees is santaH.

d) SrI Sa'nkara gives the following interpretation: `san-mAraga- vartinaH santaH, tad-rUpeNa vidyA vinaya vRddhaye sa eva vartata iti santaH" - Those who follow the right path (of dharma) are holy men. Since bhagavAn manifests Himself in the form of the holy men for the increase of knowledge and modesty, He is called santaH.

e) SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives the derivation for the nAma as `sampUrvAt tanoteH DaH vyAptaH' - He who is present everywhere and permeates everything. This is consistent with the meaning tanu - vistAre to spread.

f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root san- sambhaktau - to worship, and gives the interpretation sanyate ArAdhyate sma iti santaH - He Who is worshipped, is santaH.

g) SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "samyak tanoti vistArayati jagat iti santaH" - He Who appropriately (in a controlled way?) expands the world, is santaH.

930. jIvanaH - The Life-Giver.

om jIvanAya namaH.

The root from which the nAma is derived is "jIv - prANa dhAraNe - to live".

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "jIvayati = prANayati jIvana upayoga sAdhanaiH iti jIvanaH" - He Who sustains life by giving all the means for all the created beings to live.

nammAzhvAr describes bhagavAn as "One Whose nature it is to protect" - kAkkum iyalvinan kaNNa perumAn (tiruvAi. 2.2.9). All acts of bhagavAn are directed towards protection of the jIva-s. His swallowing the whole Universe with all beings at the time of pralaya, is only for the purpose of protecting them and giving them new bodies in the next cycle of creation. When a being meets with `death', it is only a means of removing the old, aged body, and giving the jIva a new body. Thus, bhagavAn is Life-giver in is acts of creation, protection and destruction.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is sva-hastena hananAt grAham api gandharvatvena jIvayan - jIvanaH Even though bhagavAn slew the crocodile for its apacAram, He restored the crocodile to its former form as a gandharva, and so He is jIvanaH - the Life-Giver. SrI BhaTTar gives support from SrI vishNu purANam:

sa hi devala Sapena hUhUH gandharava-sattamaH | grAhavatmam agamat kRshNAt vadham prApya divam gataH || (VP 69)

"The foremost among gandharva-s, Hoohoo by name, had become a crocodile by the curse of Sage devala. Later, when the crocodile met its death at the hands of kRshNa, he went back to svarga". Even though all we superficially note is that bhagavAn slew the crocodile, in fact He restored his life as a gandharva.

Whatever bhagavAn does, including the slaying of the rAkshasa-s in His different incarnations, is truly for the benefit of the rAkshasa-s who are killed by Him.

SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN's interpretation is along the same lines as that of SrI BhaTTar grAhamapi gandharvatbvena jIvati iti jIvanaH.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruviruttam of nammAzhvAr, where bhagavAn is referred to as "uyir aLippAn" - "Life Giver" (pASuram 1).

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is - "sarvAH prajAH prANa rUpeNa jIvayati iti jIvanaH He Who sustains all life forms by giving them vital airs (prANa), is jIvanaH.

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as "One Who is the Life-spark in all living creatures". He gives support from the gItA:

gAmAviSya ca bhUtAni dhArayAmyaham ojasA

| || (gItA 15.13)

pushNAmi caushadhIH sarvAH somo bhUtvA rasAtmakaH

"Permeating the earth I support all beings by My energy; and having become the juicy Moon I nourish all herbs".

931. paryavasthitaH - He Who stands beside.

om paryavasthitAya namaH.

SrI vAsishTha indicates the base root for the nAma as sthA - gati nivRttau - to stand, to wait, to be at hand, etc. pari is a prefix which means `round, round about' etc.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is - vAtsalyAt gajendram pari = paritaH, avasthitaH iti paryavasthitaH Out of His vAtsalyam (affection) to gajendra, He stood closely around gajendra. He refers us to the Sloka from vishNu dharma, that praises bhagavAn's attachment and affection to His devotees:

prItimAn puNDarIkAksaH SaraNAgata vatsalaH - vishNu dharma.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr who points to this guNa of bhagavAn in his tiruvAimozhi - avA aRac cUzh ari (10.10.1) - nArAyaNa, who mingles with a yearning with His devotees, and also in pASuram 8.3.6 - tiru nIla maNiyAr mEniyODu en manam Suzha varuvArE - BhagavAn, with His cool bluish gem-like hue, comes to His devotees and completely occupies their mind. In the whole of tiruvAimozhi 1.9, AzhvAr describes how bhagavAn enjoys His devotee and pervades him and floods him gradually, and how all the indriya-s of the devotee are ultimately permeated by Him without interruption, and dedicated to His thought permanently.

SrI kRshNan's anubhavam is that bhagavAn went round and round gajendra, to find out all the places where he might have suffered injury in his encounter with the crocodile, so that He can comfort the elephant as needed, and so He is called paryavasthitaH.

SrI bala deva vidyA bhUshaN also explains the nAma in terms of bhagavAn being around gajendra with vAtsalyam vAtsalya bhareNa gajendrasya paritaH sthitatvAt paryavasthitaH.

While the above anubhavam of SrI BhaTTar, supported by nammAzhvAr's pASuram-s, points to bhagavAn vAtsalyam to His devotees, SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj enjoys another aspect of bhagavAn's guNa - His extreme concern to His devotee, and His ever being ready to protect the devotee from any harm. His vyAkhyAnam is - parito bhaktam avasthitaH tasya rakshAyai iti paryavasthitaH. He gives support from SrImad bhAgavatam (1.12.9, 10), that describes the moving episode of how bhagavAn protected parIkshit in his mother's womb by surrounding the yet-to-be-born child from the brahmAstra of aSvatthAma:

kshatajAksham gadApANim AtmanaH sarvato diSam |

paribhramantam ulkAbhAm bhrAmayantam gadAm muhuH

|| (bhAga. 1.12.9)

astra tejaH sva-gadayA nIhAramiva gopatiH | vidhamantam sannikarshe paryaikshata ka ityasau || (bhAga. 1.12.10)

"BhagavAn, with angry red eyes, bore the gadA in His hand, and was moving around like a wind in all directions around the yet-to-be-born child, whirling the gadA in His hand that was shining like a burning firewood, and destroying the tejas of the brahmAstram with His gadA like the Sun that removes the dew. The child wondered aloud who this purusha was, who had suddenly appeared by his side".

SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is that bhagavAn pervades everything in this Universe, and hence is called paryavasthitaH partiaH sarvato viSvam vyApya avasthita iti paryavasthitaH.

SrI rAdhAkRshna SAstri refers us to the following from nArAyaNa sUktam antarbahiSca tat- sarvam vyApya nArAyaNaH sthitaH - BhagavAn is permeating all things inside and out. The act of permeation of bhagavAn as our antaryAmi in all of us, is a result of His concern for the jIva-s, to ensure that He is always with the jIva to help him in whatever he undertakes.

SrI vAsishTha gives the same interpretation as SrI Sa'nkara paritaH = sarvata UrdhvAt adhaH, tiryak ca avasthitaH - sarva-vyApaka iti paryavasthitaH.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 100 -

ananta-rUpo_'nanta-SrIHjita-manyur_bhayApahaH | catur-aSrogabhIrAtmA vidiSo vyAdiSo diSaH ||

om ananta-rUpAya namaH omananta-Sriye namaH omjita-manyave namaH ombhayApahAya namaH omcaturaSrAya namaH omgabhIrAtmane namaH omvidiSAya namaH omvyAdiSAya namaH omdiSAya namaH. 932. ananta-rUpaH a) He of infinite Forms. b)He of unending (never decaying) form. c)He of indescribable form extending infinitely inall directions. om ananta-rUpAya namaH. The nAma is explained as a) One Whohas infinite forms e.g., throughHis different incarnations and manifestations; b) He Who hasa form that is indescribable, and extends in alldirections, e.g., HisviSva rUpam; c) He Who has form that will never decay, age, or inany way undergo any change of any kind. We willsee the detailedvyAkhyAna-sbelow. a) anantAni rUpANi yasya saHanata-rUpaH He Who has infinite formsisananta-rUpaH. The familiar Slokam that comes to mind is the onethat declares the purpose of bhagavAn'sincarnations, ad declared by Him: paritrANAya sAdhUnAm vinASAya cadushkRtAm | dharma-samsthApanArthAyasambhavAmi yuge yuge || "I take incarnations as needed,in every yuga, for the purpose of theprotectionof the good, the destruction of the evil, and thesustenanceof dharma". Even though three reasons are given here, theprimary reason for all His incarnations is the onestated first the protectionof His devotees; the other two are incidental to thefirst one. The form in which He appeared at thescene of gajendra mokshamwas one such form.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is IdRSi sadyaHsampAdyAni anantAni rUpANi asya iti ananta-rUpaH He Who assumesinnumerable forms, of His own volition, straightaway as occasionarises and as necessity demands. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives nammAzhvAr'spASuram-s that sing this guNa ofbhagavAn: eLivarum iyalvinan nilai varambu ilapala piRappAi oLivarum muzhu nalam mudal ila kEDu ila vIDAm teLitarum nilaimai adu ozhivilan muzhuvadum iRaiyOn aLivarum aruLinODu agattanan purattanan amarndE. (tiruvAi. 1.3.2) "BhagavAn takes severalincarnations that are characterized bysimplicityas needed by the circumstance. He does not care what form Hehas to take in order to help His devotees. In these incarnations,He is full of all His auspicious kalyANa guNa-s,gives the moksha anubhavamto His devotee, and is easy to attain for His devotee inthese forms, and at the same difficult to attainfor the foes of His devotees".He does not mind taking the form of a Boar, a Fish, ahalf-man and half-lion form, etc., in order tofulfill the purpose of Hisincarnation. pala palavE AbharaNam pErum palapalavE pala palavE SOdi vaDivu paNbu eNNilpala pala kaNDu uNDu kETTuRRu mOndu inbampala palavE j~nAmum pAmbaNai mElArkkEyO. (tiruvAi.2.5.6) "The Lord who lies on AdiSesha inthe Milky Ocean, has countless varietyin every respect jewelry adorning Him; names some beingrelated to valor, some related to qualities; formsof divine effulgence,yet different roles such as para, vyUhas, etc.; He canbe enjoyed in several modes through singing,through contemplation,throughseeing, hearing, etc. He Who lies on anantan is ananta inthe aspects of His rUpa etc. as well". SrI kRshNan interprets the nAma asreferring to bhagavAn's forms in thepara, vyUha, vibhava, arcA and antaryAmi forms, each of whichconsists of multiple forms (e.g., in vibhava, themany incarnations suchas rAma, kRshNa etc., the numerous arcA forms, the countless antaryAmiforms, etc.). All these forms are taken by bhagavAn forthe sole purpose of protecting His devotees. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is anantAni rUpANi asya viSva prapa'ncarUpeNa sthitasya iti ananta-rUpaH Endless are His forms, sinceHe shines as the whole universe. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj addsanother dimension to the anubhavam ofthe nAma anantam SASvatam rUpam asya iti ananta-rUpaH He hascountless forms that are also ever-lasting andpermanent. Many of theforms that He has are there eternally, and those that He takes (suchas the vibhava incarnations) are also there for us to enjoyforever. SrI satya sandha tIrtha also uses theword ananta in the sense of ever-lasting,permanent a-nASAni rUpANi yasya sa ananta-rUpaH(nASa that which decays or is destroyed; a-nASa that which neverdecays or gets destroyed). c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri adds anotherdimension to the interpretation BhagavAn has a form that is endless in all dimensions which sounds like a reference to His viSva rUpam. Hegives reference to kaivalya

upanishad acintyamavyaktam ananta rUpam(6) that which cannot be clearly comprehended, cannot be clearlydefined, and is infinite in all dimensions. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha refers us tothe Rg vedic mantra in support: viSvataS-cakshuruta viSvato-mukhoviSvato-bAhuruta viSvatas- pAt| sam-bAhubhyAmdhamati sampatatrair-dvyAvA bhUmI janayan devaekaH || (Rg. 10.81.3); (yajur.17.19) "He Who has eyes on all sidesround about Him, mouths on all sides,armsand feet on all sides; He, the One God, producing earth and heaven,keeping them together, with His arms as wings..". 933. ananta-SrIH a) He of infinite wealth, glory,power, etc.. b)He of wealth, glory, power etc., that will neverdiminish. om ananta-Sriye namaH. a) SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explainsthe nAma as: anantAH SriyaH yasyasaH ananta-SrIH He Who has unending and infinite wealth is ananta-SrIH.What does He do with all this wealth? Just so that Hecan give everything that His devotees want,including the attainment ofHimself, to the devotees. SrImad ANDavan notes that in thecurrentinstance of gajendra episode, the crocodile got SApavimocanam by being restored to his gandharva form,and was thus given svargamby bhagavAn. Gajendra was given SrI vaikunTham by bhagavAn.This possession of infinite wealth to give away,is reflected by the nAmaanantaSrIH. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is tebhyodeyAH sva-prApati-paryantAH anatAHSriyo'pi asya iti ananta-SrIH He who has all wealth to giveto His devotees, at His command, including givingthe enjoyment of Himselfin full to His devotees. In the case of gajendra, bhagavAn gavehim a divine body and sent him to SrI vaikunTham. SrI BhaTTargives support from vishNu dharma 69: tato divya vapor-bhUtvA hasti-rATparamam padam jagAma | (vishNudharma 69) SrI v.v. rAmAnujan comments that bothHis vibhUti-s the leelA vibhUtiin this world, and the nitya vibhUti in SrI vaikunTham, are purelyfor the benefit of His devotees. He refers us to nAcciyArtirumozhi (10.10), where ANDAL refers to emperumAnas "Selvar periyar" One Who is full of wealth and Who is mahA purushan. PeriyAzhvAr(2.8.8) refers to perumAL as "SelvattinAl vaLar piLLai" One, who, as child kRshNa, was growing amidstabundant wealth. SrI kRshNan refers us to tiruma'ngaiAzhvAr's pASuram in periya tirumozhi(7.7.1) "tiruvukkum tiruvAgiya SelvA! deivattukkuaraSA!" "He Who is the Wealth foreven Lakshmi the Goddess of all wealth!He Who is the Lord of all the deva-s!". SrI kRshNan alsorefers us to ALavandAr's stotra ratnam (Slokam12): kaH SrIH SriyaH paramasattvasamASrayaH kaH kaH puNDarIka nayanaHpurushottamaH kaH | kasyaayautAyuta Sata eka kalAmSaka amSe viSvam vicitra citacit pravibhAgavRttam || Who is the Deity that is the SrI forSrI (Lakshmi devi) Herself? Who isthe Deity that is the embodiment of sattva guNa? Who is the Deitythat is the Supreme Purusha of all purusha-s? Whois the One who is endowedwith beautiful lotus-like eyes? Who is the One Deity by whosetiny fragment of Power this whole

Universeconsisting of thecountlessforms of cetana and acetana forms are created, protected,and destroyed? (It is none other than the SupremeDeity, SrIman nArAyaNa)". SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning "Sakti"for the word SrI, and gives the interpretation anantA a-parimitA SrIH = parA SaktiH asya iti ananta-SrIH He of infinite power and glory, becauseHe possesses countless superiorSakti-s. He quotes the Sruti in support parA asya SaktiH vividhaiScaSrUyate (Sve. upa. 6.8) His supreme Sakti is declaredto be various. SrI rAshAkRshNa SAstri commentsthat bhagavAn's infiniteSakti is the driving force for all of us in whatever we achieveduring our lives. b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses themeaning `indestructible' - a- vinASinI,for the word ananta, and gives the interpretationas"anantA = a-vinASinI SrIH SobhA sampat yasya iti ananta-SrIH" Hewho has eternal beauty and wealth, is ananta-SrIH. SrI satya sandha tIrtha alsointerprets the nAma along the same lines anantA = nASa-rahitA SrIH avarUpa SrIH yasya sa ananta-SrIH He Whose wealth is by nature eternal. SrI cinmayAnanda refers to the three`powers' that the Lord expresses inthis universe icchA Sakti (desirepower), kriyA Sakti _actionpower), and j~nAna-Sakti (Knowledge power). Headds: "These are expressionsof His Glory at our physical (kriyA sakti), mental (icchASakti), and intellectual (j~nAna Sakti) levels.These three manifestations of His `powers', and theircontinuous interplay, togetherweave the fabric of the total dynamic expressions of life inthis world. The self, SrI nArAyaNa, is the onespringboard for all thesevibrant aspects of life". 934. jita-manyuH He Who hasconquered His anger. om jita-manyave namaH. The word manyu is formed from the rootman j~nAne to know, to think.Application of the uNAdi sUtra 3.20 results in the addition ofthe affix yuc to the root, giving the word `manyuH',meaning `distress, sacrifice, or anger'. The word`jita' is derived fromthe root `ji jaye, abhibhave ca to conquer'. ThenAma`jita-manyuH' thus means "One Who has conquered anger". SrI BhaTTar continues hisinterpretation of the current series ofnAma-sin relation ot the gajendra moksham incident. He explains thenAma as indicating that bhagavAn controlled Hisanger at the crocodileeven after seeing that the crocodile was not letting go ofHis devotee's leg. Here was a SaraNAgata in theform of gajendra, andthis `creature' in the lake (SrI BhaTTar's words jala-kITam theworm in the water) was causing pain and misery to His devotee,but still He controlled His anger, and proceededwith calm to take theaction needed for relieving the pain of gajendra. Perhaps the best example of Hiscontrol over anger is the incident wheresage bRghu kicked Him on His chest, and in response, bhagavAn calmlycomforted the sage's foot (and, of course, in the processkilled the ahamkAra of the sage). Lord kRshNa describes how angerdevelops in us, and the consequences ofnot controlling anger: dhyAyato vishyAn pumsaHsa'ngas-teshUpajAyate | sa'ngAtsa'njAyate kAmaH kAmAt krodho'bhijAyate || (gItA2.62)

krodhAt bhavati sammohaH sammohAtsmRti-vibhramaH | smRt-bhramSAtbuddhi-nASo buddhi-nASAt praNaSyati ||(gItA2. 63) "To a man thinking aboutsense-objects, there arises attachment tothem;from attachment arises desire, and from desire arises anger". "From anger, there comesdelusion; from delusion, the loss of memory;fromloss of memory, the destruction of the ability to discriminate;and with the destruction of discrimination, he islost (that is, he getsdeeper and deeper into actions that sink him into the ocean of samsAra)". SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes thatthere are times when bhagavAn forcesHimself to become angry, especially if the offense is suchthat the subject needs to be punished; but inthese cases, He gets Hisanger under control as soon as the object of anger is achieved. Onesuch case is when samudra rAjan did not respond to His `request'for assistance during the crossing of the ocean toSrI la'nkA. SrI SAstri points to another nAma thathas a similar interpretation jita-krodhaH(Slokam 49, nAma 463), and distinguishes between three terms manyu, kopam, and krodham. manyu is the state where onefeels anger at the mental level, but this has notfound externally visibleexpression. Kopam is the state when the anger is visiblethroughfacial indications such as reddish eyes. krodham is thestate when this feeling finds expression throughharsh words, banging onthings, and other actions indicating the state of anger.BhagavAnhas all these states of anger under full control,and `becomes' angry only when needed, but stillfully under His control.SrI SAstri points to two incidents in SrImad rAmAyaNam wheresage vAlmIki describes Lord rAma `getting' angry. vinamya dhanur-bhImam tUNyoScoddhRtyasAyakAn | krodhamAhArayat tIvram vadhArtham sarva-rakshasAm ||(3.24.33) "SrI rAma bent His bow, and setthe arrows to them, and, for the purposeof the destruction of the rAkshasas, got Himself angry". Inother words, He has His anger under control, andbrings it out only whenHe wants, as needed. The second instance is when hanumanwas bleeding from the arrows of rAvaNawhile hanuman was carrying Lord rAma on his shoulders. ThenLord rAma again `got angry'. When He Himselfundergoes personal sufferingin any of His incarnations, such as the rAma incarnation, Heis in complete control of His anger. But when His devoteesuffers, He deliberately and knowingly `invites'anger to Himself inother words, under full control of Himself, He decides to be angry.This is because He cannot tolerate His devotee's suffering. Interestingly, SrI BhaTTar interpretsthe nAma `jita-krodhaH' in Slokam49 as "BhagavAn conquering the anger in others", insteadof "One Who has conquered anger inHimself"; in other words, when Hedeceivedthe asura-s and cheated them without giving them the amRtain His mohini incarnation, instead of gettingangry, they wereconfoundedand confused by His mohini form, and thus He overcame the angerin them towards the deva-s. The reader is referred to the write-upfor nAma 463, since much of thisinformation is covered there. SrI kRshNan comments that it wouldhave been quite understandable if BhagavAnhad indeed become angry and put additional curse on the crocodilesince it had committed bhAgavata apacAram by hurtinggajendra. But instead, He was willing to givecredit as it were, for thecrocodile to have put its head at a bhAgavata's

feet, and sent itto svarga lokam instead. SrI kRshNan gives twoother instances where bhagavAngets anger completely under control once the object of angerhas been achieved. After Lord rAma killed rAvaNa,He asked vibhhIshaNa to proceed to perform the final ritesfor his brother. WhenvibhIshaNa hesitated because of the feeling of enmity, Lord rAmapointed out to him that enmity between Him andrAvaNa ended the momentrAvaNa was dead, and rAvaNa was after all a great warrior who wasundefeated until that time. maraNa antAni variANi nirvRttam naHprayojanam | kriyatAm asya samskAromamApyesha yathA tava || "Enmity (between rAvana and Me)was only until rAvaNa's death. Now heis as related to Me as he is to you. The object of our effort is accomplished.Now please proceed to do the final rites for yourbrother". SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan also refersto the above Slokam in support ofthe interpretation of this nAma in his sahasra nAma bhAshya upanyAsam. Again, when rAvaNa hit hanuman in theforehead, and hanuman was bleeding,rAma reached the peak of anger (kopasya vAsAM EyivAn yuddha.59.147). He attacked rAvaNa fiercely, and in a few moments,he found that rAvaNa was completely paralyzed bythe attack. At that point,instead of continuing the attack on rAvaNa, rAma calmly toldhim: "I find you are completely tired andde-stabilized, and so I willnot kill you now. I will permit you to go back to your palace, takerest and recuperate, and then come back, and then you can see Mytrue Might". tasmAt pariSrAnta iva vyavasya na tvAmSarair-mRtyu vaSam nayAmi| yuddha. 59.153 gacchAnujAnAmi raNArditas-tvampraviSya rAtri'ncara-rAja la'nkAm| AsvAsya niryAhi rathI ca dhanvI tadA balamdrakshyasi me rathasthaH || yuddha. 59.154 SrI vAsishTha comments that angerarises towards one who is stronger ormore powerful than oneself, and in the case of bhagavAn, there isno cause for anger, since there is no one who issuperior to Him in anyrespect. 935. bayApahaH He Who destroys thefear (of samsAra) in the mind ofthe devotee. om bhayApahAya namaH. bhaya means fear. The verb apahanmeans `to kill, to destroy'. bhaya-apahaHmeans "One Who destroys fear'. Both SrI BhaTTar and SrIvAsishTha refer to the pANini sUtra 3.2.49 ASishi hanaH, which declaresthat the affix Da is added to the root han to kill, with asense of benediction ("May He remove ourfear"). The ending `ha' means `to kill, todestroy' (from the verb han to kill).Tha pANini sUtra 3.2.50 ape kleSa tamasoH states that the affixDa comes after the verb han to kill, when it is compoundedwith the preposition ap, and when the object incomposition with it isthe word kleSa pain, or tamas darkness. The above sUtra leadsto the words kleSApahaH remover of pain, andtamopahaH remover of darkness.The current nAma bhayApahaH falls in a similar category remover of fear. We studied the nAma bhaya-nASanaH (nAma838 Slokam 89), that has a similarmeaning. SrI BhaTTar explains the current nAma as asmadAdInAmapi sva-vAtsalyena tAdRSa anAthatva bhayam vadhyAt itiASamsanArhaH By virtue of His love for Hisdevotees, He can be reliedupon to dispel our fear that we have no Protector. He can berelied on to protect us also just as He protectedgajendra, and we canpray to

Him for removing our fear". SrI BhaTTar quotes bhayemahati magnAnSca trAti nityam janAradanaH "JanArdana always protectsthose who are drowned in the great fear (of samsAra)". It is the trust that we can have inbhagavAn that He will surely protectus without fail if we surrender to Him (mahA viSvAsam) that isemphasized in this nAma. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives examples fromdivya prabandham where AzhvArs capture this guNathrough the use of theword "namban" One Who can be trusted. - nambanai naraSi'nganai" peiyAzhvAr tirumozhi 4.4.9 Lord nRsimhawho can be trusted (to protect us). nambanE! ..Azhi mun Endi kamba-mA-kari kOL viDuttAnE!(periyAzhvAr.5.1.9) - He the Most Trustworthy One when it came to rakshaNamof the devotees! He came with His cakra in His hand andrelieved the pain and distress of the greatelephant gajendra. SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAanam is bhayam samsAra-jam pumsAm apa-ghnan bahayApahaH He Who destroys the fear of repeated cycle of birth anddeath in this world in the case of His devotees. (SrISa'nkara's vyAkhyAnamfor the nAma `bhaya-nASanaH' Slokam 89, was thatbhagavAnremoves the fear of those who follow the path of dharma. Inother words, these followers of dharma do not haveany feeling of fearfor anything, because bhagavAn gives them the mental maturity toaccept whatever comes as a natural result ofkarma, and so they do nothave any sorrow or fear of anything). Sri rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments thatfear is the state that occurs as aresult of anticipation of some problem, and its effect andintensity is even more severe and longer lastingthan the problem itself.Those who trust in the Lord do not have this fear, and when anyproblem does arise, they accept it. A true devotee is one whosees pain and pleasure without any difference that is, he neither rejoiceswhen something good happens, nor suffers when something bad happens.This is revealed to us in several places in the gItA (sukhaduhkha same kRtva .. 2.38; duhkeshvanudvigna manAHsukheshu vigata spRhaH2.56; etc.). SrI kRshNan's anubhavam for the nAmais that bhagavAn not only removedthe fear of gajendra, but also that of the crocodile, whichgot the fear of the curse removed on seeingbhagavAn. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses thepATham `byAvahaH', which has a similarmeaning (avahan to strike away, to fend off. 936. catur-aSraH a) One Who isskilled in all aspects. b)One Who is fair to everybody. c)One from whom wishes are asked for. d)One Who pervades in all four directions.e)One Who nourishes and feeds everything in all fourdirectionsf) One Who is worshipped by the knowledgeablepeople. om caturaSrAya namaH. The term `catur' refers to the number4, and `aSra' or `aSri' means`corner'. catruasraH refers to the geometrical shape known as thesquare. The term has been used by some vyAkhyAna kartA-s as areference to "One Who is fair-minded, or fairto everyone". SrI cinmayAnandaexplains the nAma as "One Who deals squarely with all".The term catura also means "One Who isskilled" a reference to one's`sAmarthya'. So He Who is skilled in all aspects is catr- aSraH. a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning"One Who is skilled in all aspects"asthe meaning for the nAma "caturaSraH". SrImad ANDavan explainsthat bhagavAn has this nAma indicating that Hedoes whatever is appropriatein the benefit of the devotee under any and all circumstances.In the current context of gajendra moksham, Herelieved the crocodile from it curse, He fulfilledthe desire of gajendrato perform

flower kainkaryam to Him, and He demonstrated toall of us that He will definitely protect thosewho surrender to Him, allwith His one act of responding to gajendra's call the way He did.He could have taken care of the crocodile from SrI vaikunThamitself, but He did not do that. When gajendrascreamed out for help,He rushed to the scene even with all His ornaments not properlypositioned garjate gajAya jagAma. And, Heinvited upon Himself greatanger against the meager `water-creature' kshudra jalakITAya cukrodha;all because of His extreme concern for His devotee. Thus,all His actions are appropriate and consistentwith His real nature `kAkkumiyalvinan' according to nammAzhvAr One Whose real natureis that of protection. Using the meaning `cAturya, or skillfor the word `catur', SrI VeLukkuDikRshNan gives an example of bhagavAn's cAturyam from SrImadrAmAyaNam. During vAli vadham, when vAli lieswounded by rAma's arrow,first he starts accusing rAma of unfairly hitting him while hidingbehind a tree. vAli and rAma exchange some words, and at theend, just before dying, vAli praises rAma for Hisrighteousness. It isnot easy to mortally wound someone, and then have him praise the onewho is the causing your death. This is clearly possible only forOne who is a caturasraH skilled in allrespects. b) SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is nyAya sama vetaH catur-aSraH He Whois just to everyone by distributing the fruits of their karma etc.SrI ananta kRshna SAstry gives an elaborate list of examplesand explanations for the term catura (four) in thenAma: - dharma, artha, kAma and moksha;bhagavAn distributes these tothe deserving according to their karma-s.The sacrificial fire is of four kinds AhavanIya,gArhapatya,dakshiNa, (the sources I have only refer to `agnitraya,or three agni-s; so it is unclear what the fourfires are that are beingreferred to here). -He nourishes with food the four kinds of creatures born of womb,born of egg, born of sweat, and those that come out of earth.- He protects four kinds of people thedistressed, those desirous of knowing Him, the desirers of wealth,and the wise ones. -He is known by the Siras of the four veda-s (i.e., by theUpanishad-s).- His command is obeyed in all four corners of theworld. c) SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma fromthe root cad yAcane to ask,and the application of the uNAdi sUtra cater-uran (5.58), whichstates that the affix uran comes after the rootcat, giving the word`catur'. SrI vAsishTha gives the meaning "One who asks forsomething", or "One from whom somethingis asked", to the term`catur' catati catyate vA iti catur. d) e) Alternately, SrI vAsishThaderives the meaning based on the rootaS vyAptau sa'nghAte ca to pervade, to accumulate; or aS bhojane to eat. The meanings derived fromthese are: "catasro diSoaSnute caturaSraH" - One Who pervades in all four directions",or "catasRshu dikshu sthitAnAm prANinAmbhojanasya dAtA iti vishNuH" "OneWho nourishes and feeds everything in all four directions". f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explainsthe nAma as caturaiH SrIyate =sevyate iti catur-aSraH He Who is worshipped by those who havethe knowledge to understand His greatness. 937. gabhIrAtmA He of deep andprofound nature. om gabhIrAtmane namaH. SrI vAsishTha indicates the derivationof the nAma based on the uNAdi sUtra4.35 gabhIra gambhIrau The affix Iran comes after the rootgam gatau- to go, and the `m' gets changed to`bh', leading to the wordgabhIra. This has the same meaning as gambhIra, whichmeans`deep' (amara koSa has `nimnam, gabhIram, gambhIram' asequivalentwords). The term `AtmA' here refers to `sva-rUpa' orinherent nature.

SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as"One who has a deep and profoundnature",that is beyond the understanding of even the likes of brahmAand others anyeshAm catur-mukha-mukhAnAmapradhRshya gAmbhIryaH gabhIrAtmA. SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains thenAma as One Who is of such depth*(like an ocean) that nothing and no one can disturb or perturbHim in anyway. SrI kRshNan adds that Siva who wasfortunate enough to have borne the SrIpAda tirtham of bhagavAn (in the form of ga'ngA) in his head, orbrahmA who is the best among those who have beenendowed with knowledge(brahma vidAm varaH), are not able to see His true nature eventhough they have been performing penance for this for a long,long time. He refers us to toNDaraDip poDi AzhvAr: peN ulAm SaDaiyinAnum piramanum unnaikkANbAn eN ilA Uzhi Uzhi tavam SeidAr veLgi niRpa .. (tirumAlai44) nammAzhvAr points out that brahmA canknow things that he created, butcannot have full knowledge of all things that existed long beforehe was created. Thus, his knowledge of the One whocreated all the thingsincluding brahmA, is not totally within his comprehension: - Surar aRi arul nilai tiruvAi.1.1.8; - uNarndu uNarndu uNarilum iRai nilai uNarvaduaridu uyirgAL (tiruvAi.1.3.6) In fact, bhagavAn is One whosegreatness is such that even He cannotknowit tanakkum tan tanmai aRivaRiyAn. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives severalsupports from divya prabandham: kaTkariya piraman Sivan indiran enRuivarkkum kaTkariakaNNanai.(tiruvAi. 7.7.1) "We humans cannot see, with ourphysical eyes, the likes of brahmA, Siva,and indra. Exactly in the same manner, they also cannot see myLord kRshNa". tirumAl! nAnmugan, Se'n-caDaiyAn enRuivargaL en perumAntanmiyai yAr aRigiRpAr? pESi en?. (tiruvAi. 8.3.9) "Oh Lord who is always associatedwith SrI or Lakshmi! The likes of brahmaand Siva are incapable of fathoming Your true greatness. Whereis the need to even discuss this limitation of theirs? ArE aRivAr anaittu ulagum uNDuumizhnda pEr AzhiyAn tan perumaiyai? KAr SeRinda kaNDattAn eN-kaNNAn kANAn avan vaittapaNDait-tAnattin pati. (nAnmugan tiruvan. 73) "Who can comprehend the greatnessof emperumAn who is like the deep ocean,and who swallowed all the Universes at the time of pralaya,and then spit them out at the time of creation? Noone! The eight- eyedbrahmA (four-faced), and Siva who has the blue neck (because heswallowed the poison), do not even know thegreatness of the surest meansto reach Him the carama Sloka. Sage vAlmIki describes Lord rAma as"samudra iva gAmbhIrye" - "deepas the Ocean"; bhagavAn conceals Hisgreatness such that even the deva-scan't easily recognize His greatness without deep devotion.

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is AtmA= svarUpam cittam vA gabhIram paricchettuma-Sakyam asya iti gabhIrAtmA He Whose true form or mindis unfathomable. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates that Hismind is such that He never gets disturbed easily,and does not easily revealwhat is in His mind, as He considers pros and cons ofeverythingdeeply. SrI cinmayAnanda describes theunfathomable nature of bhagavAn throughthe following words: "One Who, in His Real Nature, is toodeep to be fathomed by the frail instrument of ourmind. Depth here indicatesprofoundness the Supreme Essence pervading the Universe isunfathomably profound in its significance and glory." SrI vAsishTha gives interpretationsbased on the root gam gatau- to go:gacchati gamyate = prApyate anena He because of Whom everythingis attained, or, `gacchanti = prApnuvanti,dhyAyanti prArthayante vA sagabhIraH' - He Who is the object of attainment, meditation or worship,is gabhIraH. He is also gabhIraH since He makes everythingmove gacchati = gamana-SilaH; He makes eventhe sthAvara-s such as plants,trees etc. move through death or decay. 938. vidiSah a) One Whosenature, forms, and qualities are spreadoutin all directions. b) One Who can be reached from all directions.c) He Who bestows all benefits on His devotees.d) He Who pervades everywhere, and is ineverything, in all directions.e)He Who is the cause of happiness for the knowers (of Brahman) basedon vid to know. f)He Who has revealed all SAstra-s in elaborate detail. om vidiSAya namaH. This nAma and the next two nAma-s allhave root diS in them in one formor another (vidiSaH, vyAdiSaH, diSaH). The root has differentmea SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 101 -

anAdir_bhUr-bhuvo lakshmIH su-vIro rucirA'ngadaH | janano jana-janmAdir_bhImo bhIma-parAkramaH ||

om anAdaye namaH. om bhuvo-bhuve namaH. om lakshmyai namaH. om su-vIrAya namaH. om rucirA'ngadAya namaH.

om jananAya namaH. om jana-janmAdaye namaH. om bhImAya namaH. om bhIma-parAkramAya namaH.

941. anAdiH

a) He Who is not realized by many because of their ignorance etc. b) He Who has no beginning.

om anAdaye namaH.

SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma from the root dA dAne to give, and gives the interpretation"na AdIyate iti anAdiH He Who is not easily attained. The word Adi means `beginning'. One interpretation for the nAma is "He Who isbeginningless".

a) SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as taiH anyaparaiH na svAmitvena AdIyate iti anAdiH He Who is not realized by the likes of brahmA and rudra as their Lord. SrI SrImushNam ANDavan explains the nAma as"na dIyate iti AnadiH" He Who does not give Himself to the non- devotees. SrI BhaTTar comments: evam tiryakshvapi bahkteshuvivaSaH; brahmAdishu phalgu phalameva prayacchati He gives Himself to the complete control of animals such asgajendra, but when it comes to the likes of brahmA and rudra, He gives them only meager fruits. He does not bestow the same level of benefits on the likes of brahmA and rudra as He does on His dear devotees. He gives Himself freely to the likes ofgajendra, who have surrendered to Him. But He does not give the likes of brahmA and rudra the same benefits, namely the ability to realize Him and reach Him, as He bestows on devotees such asgajendra, and so He is anAdiH.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan comments that even though brahmA and rudra obey the Lord, it is not necessarily out of love, but more out of fear (because of bhIti rather than prIti). BhagavAn is bound by prIti, and not by bhIti, and so the likes of gajendra can attain Him easily, whereas the likes of brahmA and rudra don't stand a chance. BhagavAn is not realized as the Supreme Deity by the likes of brahmA and rudra; they rush to Him only when they are in danger, and need His help. At other times, they long after other benefits, such as their positions, rather than devoting their efforts to attaining Him. Thus, bhagavAn is called anAdiH also

because He is not realized by many as the Supreme Deity. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri expresses the thought as "One Who is not accepted by those who are driven by pride and haughtiness (Serukku).

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as: "na AdIyate iti anAdiH" He Who is not `given' to us though our mind,indirya-s etc. na AdIyate = gRhyate sa-manaskaiH j~nAnendriyaiH karmendriyaiSca itianAdiH. The meaning is that He is not accessible to us through the means of the mind andindirya-s.

b) SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning `beginning' for the word `Adi', and gives the interpretation AdiH = kAraNam asya na vidyata itianAdiH, sarva kAraNatvAt He Who is beginningless, because He is the cause of everything.

An alternate interpretation by SrI vAsishTha is na AdIyate = svIkriyate svodbhavAya ki'ncit aparam nimitta kAraNam anena so anAdiH He Who does not need any other cause for His being, is anAdiH in other words, One Who existed before anything else existed.

942. bhUr-bhuvaH

a) He Who is the abode of those who really live (by realizing their relation to the Lord). b) He Who supports that which supports all (namely, the earth). c) He Who exists in Himself (with no other support). d) He Who is the Source of all knowledge.

om bhuvo-bhuve namaH.

SrI vAsishTha derives the nAma from the root bhU sattAyAm to be, to live. Based on the declension of the nounbhU, the first part, bhU, is interpreted as `AdhAra - support', and the second part,bhuvaH, is taken as the 6th case the genitive case, giving the meaning for `bhuvaH = of the support". SrI vAsishTha's explanation is: prathamo bhU Sabda AdhAra vAcakaHprathamAnto, dvitIyaSca shashThyantaH pRthivI vAcakaH. In other words, bhagavAn bhuvaH bhUH The Support of all supports. The different interpretations can be viewed on the basis of this meaning.

a) SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as: "bhavati iti bhUH svadAsya j~nAnena AtmalAbhavAn; tasya bhuvaH, svayameva bhUH = padam iti bhUr-bhuvaH" A person who has the correct knowledge that he is the servant of the Lord and that the Lord is the Master, is one who is bhU one who really lives. For that person, bhagavAn is an Abode or the Support -(bhU), and so He is referred to as bhUr-bhuvaH.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains that bhagavAn is bhUmi (support) for those who have the dAsya j~nAna, namely the knowledge and realization that they are always His dAsa-s, as their bhUmi. In other words, He is the Support for those that are followers of bhakti yoga, prapatti yoga, etc.

b) SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as "bhuvo'pi bhUH" He Who supports the Earth, which itself supports everything else.

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "bhavanti asyAm iti bhUH pRthivI; tasyA bhUH AdhAraH He is the Support of the earth, and so He isbhUr-bhuvaH. He is also the Creator as well as the Sustainer of everything - bhuvayor bhAvayitA = utpAdako mUlAdhAraH sa bhUr-bhuvaucyate.

c) SrI vAsishTha gives the alternate interpretation svayam svasmin bhavati it bhUr-bhuvaH He Who exists in Himself isbhUr-bhuvaH. In other words, there is nothing else which is the cause for His existence, or for His creation.

d) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvaj gives the interpretation bhuvaH prapa'ncasya, bhUH udgamaH (creation, sustenance etc.), bhuvo bhUH. He gives the alternate interpretation bhuva itij~nAnam, tasya bhUH = udbhava iti bhuvo bhUH He Who is the source or Origin of knowledge. He refers to the gItA Slokam 15.15 in support:

sarvasya cAham hRdi sannivishTo mattaH smRtir-j~nAnam apohanam ca | (gItA 15.15)

"I am seated in the hearts of all. From Me are memory, knowledge, and their removal as well".

943. lakshmIH The Wealth.

om lakshmyai namaH.

SrI BhaTTar comments that bhagavAn has this nAma signifying that He alone is all the wealth for His devotees teshAm lakshmIH sarvA sampat ca. He gives examples from the rAmAyaNa and the mahAbhArata:

bhavad-gatam ca me rAjyam jIvitam ca sukhAni ca (yuddha. 19.6)

(vibhIshaNa says to Lord rAma): "My kingdom, my life and my happiness are all centered in You".

kRshNASrayAH kRshNa balAH kRshNa nAthASca pANDavAH | kRshNaH parAyaNam teshAm jyotishAmiva candramA || (droNa. 183.24)

"For the pANDava-s, SrI kRshNa is the sole support. kRshNa is their strength, and kRshNa is their protector. SrI kRshNa is their sole Lord, even as the moon is to the stars".

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers to nammAzhvAr's pASuram in support:

SElEy kaNNiyarum perum Selvamum nan makkaLum mElAt tAi tandaiyarum avarE iniAvArE. (tiruvAi. 5.1.8)

"Beautiful damsels that one loves here, money and affluence, offspring on which one dotes, much-praised mother and father are, hereafter, for me none except my Lord. He is ALL to me".

SrI kRshnan explains the nAma as "One Who has all the wealth for giving away to the devotees, One Who is endowed with limitless wealth; One Who has lakshmi Herself as His Consort". In addition, He is Himself the wealth for the devotees who seek Him and nothing else. SrI kRshNan gives additional support from SrImad rAmAyaNam:

na deva lokAkramaNam na amaratvam aham vRNe | aiSvaryam vA vilokAnAm rAmaye na tvayA vinA || (lakshmaNa)

"There is no lordship, no eternal life, no great victory in this world, no wealth of any kind that I wish in this world; all I wish for is for You, My Lord rAma".

sneho me paramo rAjan tvayi nityam pratishThitaH | bhaktiSca niyatA vIrA bhAvo nAnyatra gacchati || (hanuman)

"My mind does not seek anything except eternal and constant devotion to You; all I wish for eternal serviceminded dedication to You".

en amudinaik kaNDa kaNgaL maRRu onRinaik kANAvE || (tiruppANAzhvAr)

"My eyes that have seen my sweet Nectoar, the Lord of SrIra'ngam, will never see anything else ever again".

ic-cuvai taviRa yAn pOi ac-cuvai perinum vENDEn ara'nga mA nagar uLAnE (toNDaraDippoDi)

"When I have this taste of enjoying You right here and now, My Lord ra'nganAtha! I will not trade this even for the taste of the after- life in SrI vaikunTham".

SrI Sa'nkara gives a few combinations of the three words bhUH, bhuvaH, and lakshmIH, and gives interpretations for these combinations. We saw the interpretation for one of these combinations - bhUr-

bhuvaH in the previous nAma. Now he proceeds to give two other combinations: bhuvo-lakshmIH, and bhUr-bhuvo- lakshmIH

- bhuvo lakshmIH: SrI Sa'nkara uses the meaning "SobhA" splendor, for the wordlakshmI, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn is not only the Support for the earth (previousnAma), but He is also the splendor of the earth na kevalam asau bhUH bhuvaH, lakshmIH SobhA ca iti bhuvolakshmIH. (bhuvaH of the earth, lakshmIH splendor). - bhUr-bhuvo-lakshmIH - "One Who is in the form of the beauty(lakshmIH) of this earth (bhUH), and of the firmament (bhuvaH) bhUmi antarikshayoH SobhA itibhUr-bhuvo-lakshmIH. In other words, He is One Who illumines the earth and the firmament. - An alternate interpretation he gives for the nAma taken as bhUr-bhuvo-lakshmIH is "He Who is in the form of this earth(BhUH), the firmament (bhuvaH), and Atma vidyA the science of Atman (lakshmIH). Here Sri Sa'nkara gives the meaning"Atma vidyA" or the science of Atman to the word `lakshmIH', based on vishNu purANam 1.9.118, where Lakshmi is praised as Atma vidyA Atma vidyA ca devitvam. The idea is that Lakshmi and bhagavAn are the Ones who give Atma vidyA or the knowledge of the Self to the seeker.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that the nAma is of feminine gender, and denotes that bhagavAn is One Who is always associated with Goddess Lakshmi, and in fact She never leaves Him ever, and is always residing in His vaksha sthalam. When bhagavAn takes incarnations, She always accompanies Him; for instance, when He took incarnation as rAma, She took incarnation as SitA, and when He took incarnation as kRshNa, She came as rukmiNi. Thus, She is inseparable from Him, and it is this duality together that we should worship. We have the well-known pASuram of nammAzhvAr:

agalakillEn iRaiyum enRu alarmEl ma'ngai uRai mArbA! nigar il pugazhAi ulagam mUnRuuDaiyAi, ennai AlvAnE! (tiruvAi. 6.6.10)

"O! Lord of tiruvE'nkaTam! You rule over me, and You in fact own all the things in al the three worlds. Your kIrti (fame) is beyond compare to anything. Our Mother, alarmEl ma'ngai (mahA lakshmi), resides in Your vaksha sthalam (Divine chest), declaring that She is ever inseparable from You, and will never ever leave Her rightful place with You".

The nAma thus signifies that bhagavAn is ever associated with the qualities of beauty, fame, splendor, wealth, and in fact the fullness of all auspicious qualities, that are signified by Goddess lakshmi.

SrI cinmayAnanda captures the idea that bhagavAn is the Sole source of all that is good and beautiful in this universe through the following words: "If Self were not, then all would have been inert, unborn, dead. As the One Life everywhere, as Pure Existence, all the glories of this dynamic Universe are in Him and from Him alone".

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj derives his interpretation starting from the root laksha darSanA'nkanayoH to notice, to define, to regard; or alternatively, the root laksh Alocane to perceive, to observe. His interpretations are:

- lakshayati = darSayati niratiSaya vAtsalyam iti lakshmIH He Who shows vAtsalyam (affection) that is beyond description, to His devotee. - lakshayati a'nkam Aropayati bhakta putrAn itilakshmIH, jaganmAtA Refers to jagan mAtA, mahA lakshmi, Who ensures that Her children who are devoted to the divyadampati, are safely on His lap. (In previous nAma-s, we have described how a jIva who becomes a mukta jIva ultimately reaches SrIvaikunTham, and how, finally, the jIva climbs the snake bed of bhagavAn andpirATTi, and is affectionately seated on the lap of emperumAn). Since bhagavAn and piraTTi are inseparable in all respects, the nAmalakshmIH, which normally refers to our Mother, is also a reference to Him simultaneously. - Using the meaning laksh Alocane, the alternate interpretation is lakshayati = Alocayati sva-janAnAm vipat-sarita uddhArasya upAyAn iti lakshmIH He Who shows the means to the devotee on how to overcome the obstacles encountered in samsAra which is full of impediments to reaching Him.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha uses the same root laksh darSanA'nkayoH to regard, and gives the interpretation: lakshayatipuNyakRto, lakshayate puNyakRtbhiH iti vA lakshmIH. BhagavAn is called lakshmIH since He regards those who are endowed with good virtues as His treasure, or because He is regarded as the Supreme Lord by the virtuous.

SrI vAsishTha uses the same root in his interpretation as well, and explains the nAma as lakshayati = darSayati iti lakshmIH He Who makes those who are endowed with lakshmI wealth, beauty, etc., shine distinguishably. In fact, He, in the form oflakshmI, is present everywhere and pervades everything, and makes all things known. He gives the example of the Sun, which is visible from a vast distance away, because he has endowed the Sun with the SobhA or splendor.

944. suvIraH

a) He Who possesses great valor. b) He Who has auspicious movements. c) He Who is accessible to us through different paths. d) One Who, in His kRshna incarnation, was associated with various other auspicious vIra-s.

om suvIrAya namaH.

Interpretations have been given based on the words vIra One Who isvalorous, and also based on the root Ir gatau to go. In the latter interpretation, su- and vi- are treated as upasarga-s orprepositions (sumeaning `good', and vi meaning vividha various, per SrI satya devo vAsishTha).

The related nAma vIraH, has been described in Sloka-s 43 (nAma402), and 70 (nAma 664). The reader is referred to the detailed write-ups under both these nAma-s in addition to the current write-up.

a) SrI BhaTTar uses the meaning `valorous' for the term `vIra', andexplains the nAma as "One Who is valorous in defending His devotees from their downfall, and retrieving those who have had a downfall teshAm vinipAta pratIkAraH.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains the nAma as "SobhanaH vIraH yaH saH su-vIraH He Who is a highlydesirable vIra is su-vIra.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi 3.2.3, where nammAzhvAr praises the valor of Lord kRshNain conducting the mahA bhArata war without even participating directly as a warrior in the war.

kollA mAk-kOl kolai Seidu bhAratap-pOr ellAc-cEnaiyum iru nilattu aLitta endAi! (tiruvAi.3.2.3)

BhagavAn uses the stick that He used for directing the horses of thechariot, and though this stick itself could not kill, He still used it so skillfully that arjuna was able to finish the task that Hewanted to get fulfilled, and reduced the bhU-bhAram or the load on the earth by destroying the fighters of both sides.

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as SobhanA = saralA, vividhA ca IraH = gatiH yasya, sa suvIraH He Who has beautiful, elegant, gait thatis displayed in various forms. Even though SrI vAsishTha does not refer to the different gati-s of bhagavAn such as the gaja gati,simha gati, vyAghra gati, sarpa gati etc., one is immediately reminded of these beautiful gati-s that one is given to enjoy duringour temple processions of

emperumAn from temple chambers to the outside and back. SrI vAsishTha gives the example of bhagavAnmanifesting Himself beautifully in various forms such as dakshiNAyana, uttarAyaNa, etc.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan distinguishes between three types of vIra-s:vIra, SUra, parAkrama. VIra is one who does not get disturbed by the might of the opposition; Sura is one who gets inside the army of theopposition and destroys the opposition without a trace; parAkrama is the quality wherein there is no harm or injury to the fighter in theprocess of fighting. SrI kRshNan comments that through this nAma, bhagavAn's vIra, Saurya and parAkrama are all described. If one wereto ask why this great term `su-vIra' needs to be invoked in the context of His killing this small creature in the form of acrocodile, SrI kRshNan notes that whether it is a small creature like the crocodile or a big creature like rAvaNa, for bhagavAn what countsis that it is an enemy of His devotee. Once this is established, He displays His guNa of being a su-vIra in defending His devotee, nomatter how insignificant this creature is.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as Shobano vIraHparakramI iti su-vIraH.

b) SrI Sa'nkara uses the root Ir to go, in his interpretation SobhaNa vividhA IrAH = gatayo yasya sa suvIraH He Who has various auspicious movements.

SrI ananta kRshna SAstry elaborates that thedifferent movements referred to here are His occupying the hearts of the yogin-s, His being in the Sun's disc, in the Milky Ocean, etc.

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "One Who moves through variousways which are all divinely glorious; Or, One Who exhibits in all His incarnations the inimitable splendor of valor in His actions andachievements".

c) SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri uses the same root Ir, and explains thatbhagavAn has this nAma signifying that He is accessible to us through different means (e.g., bhakti, prapatti).

d) SrI bala deva vidyA bhUsahN interprets the nAma as One, Who, inHis kRshna incarnation, was associated with many vIra-s alongside Him is su-vIraH tataH samAgateshu sakhishu suvIraH SobhanAH SrIdAmasubhadrAdayaH svatulyA vIrA yasya sa su-vIraH,

Given that bhIshma had already described bhagavAn's guNa of vIryathrough two references to this guNa earlier (in Sloka-s 43 and 70), the question arises as to why He is now describing another guNa - `su-vIraH'. One way to appreciate this subtlety is to realize that the nAma vIra was interpreted as a reference to His parAkrama in Hisencounters with His enemies in general. As we saw in the study of the nAma vIra-hA (nAma-s 168, 747, 927), vIra-s (those endowed withvalor or the skill to defeat opponents) are of two kinds: good and bad. BhagavAn's nAma of vIra that we studied in Sloka-s 43 and 70refer to His guNa of vIra in containing the bad vIra-s who use their vIrya in committing extensive atrocities and a-dharma in general, bycurtailing these evil vIra-s in their root. Thus, bhagavAn destroys the `vIra-s' who win at any cost, either by using fallaciousarguments in their disputations in philosophical discussions, or by using their strength for wrong and a-dharmic causes (such as `vIra-s'like rAvaNa in committing atrocities against the followers of the righteous path). The nAma su-vIrah that we are studying currently,is a special class of this quality of emperumAn, and describes the use of this guNa by Him in ensuring that His devotees who encounterany obstacle will in the end come out of it auspiciously, with His help and support. In other words, the current nAma describes HisguNa of ensuring auspiciousness to His devotees under all circumstances.

945. rucirA'ngadaH a) He Who bestows His lovely form for His devotees to enjoy. b) He Who gives a beautiful body to those who are devoted (e.g., to the hunch-backed woman). c) He Who is adorned with beautiful shoulder ornaments (a'ngada-s). d) He Who has given elegant means for all creatures to move about.

om rucirA'ngadAya namaH.

a) The meaning of the nAma can be easily comprehended if we look at the nAma in terms of the individual words comprising thenAma: rucira-anga-daH. SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as `ruciram = ati-manoharam, anubhava bhogyam a'ngam dadAti iti ricirA'ngadaH He Who bestows His lovely form to His devotees which is fit to be enjoyed very much. SrI BhaTTar quotes from the jitante stotram in support (this has been referenced in nAma 923 as well)

na te rUpam na cAkAro nAyudhAni na cAspadam | tathA'pi purushAkAro bhaktAnAm prakASase ||

"Neither Your divya Atma svarUpam, nor Your divya ma'ngaLa vigraham, nor for that matter Your weapons, or Your own SrI vaikunTham, are for Your benefit (they are all for Your devotees' benefit, and thus You are not independent, but You are the possession of Your devotees). Even so, You shine as the Supreme Being".

BhagavAn has a divya ma'ngaLa vigraham (tirumEni) that is absolutely delectable to His devotees. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi, where AzhvAr describes bhagavAn's tirumEni in more than one pASuram:

Sev-vAi undi veN paL SUDark kuzhai tammODu evvAic cuDarum tammil mun vaLAik koLLa Sev-vAi muruvalODu enadu uLLattu irunda avvAi anRi yAn aRiyEn maRRaruLE. (tiruvAi. 8.7.7)

"I am truly enchanted by the reddish lips, the beautiful navel, the shining row of teeth, the lustrous ear ornaments, all competing with one another in encircling me and enslaving me. But the most successful of them all is the blossoming smile in the red lips, through which the Lord communicates His message with me while in my heart. Nothing else can equal this grace".

kaNgaL Sivandu periyavAi, vAyum Sivandu kanindu, uLLE veN pal ilagu SuDar ilagu vilagu makara kuNDalattan koNDal vaNNan SuDar muDiyan nAngu tOLan kuni SAr'ngan oN Sa'ngau gadai vAL AzhiyAn oruvan aDiyEn uLLAnE. (tiruvAi. 8.8.1)

"The one, unique, Lord shines as my soul's soul in me. I see Him in me! With large, beautiful, red eyes, with His mouth and lips resembling beautiful deep red fruits, with the rows of beautiful teeth showing ever so slightly with beautiful luster, with the fish- shaped ear ornaments, the cloud-hued One, with shining crown, with four long arms, with the five overpoweringly beautiful weapons(Sa'nkha, cakra, gadA, Sar'nga, and khadga) with all these, He stands inside me".

In these four lines, AzhvAr beautifully captures the beauty of His Form, but also the fact that this lovely form is there only for devotees like AzhvAr to enjoy.

Innumerable indeed are the places where our AzhvAr-s and AcArya-s have delved deep into this anubhavam of bhagavAn's tirumEni - tiruppANAzhvAr's amalanAdIpirAn, bhagavad rAmAnuja's gadya trayam, svAmi deSikan's bhagavad dhyAna sopAnam and SrI devanAyaka pa'ncAsat, among others. For the sake of brevity, details are not included here.

SrI kRshnan gives the instance of gajendra moksham, and notes that for a devotee such as gajendra, bhagavAn gave His divine tirumEni (by embracing him all around). He also refers us to tiruvAimozhi 1.9, all the ten pASuram-s of which describe how bhagavAn gives the enjoyment of Himself to AzhvAr in gradual steps at a time (instead of giving this anubhavam all at once in one dose), just so that AzhvAr is not overwhelmed by this divine experience.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives an interpretation similar that of SrIBhaTTar: ruciram a'ngam tebhyo dadAti iti tad vidheyastAn Ali'ngatavAn iti arthaH He gives His divine embrace to those devotees who are deserving. Recall that SrI rAma blessed hanuman with His divine embrace, declaring that this was the best gift that He could ever give to anyone.

b) SrI ananta kRshNa SAstry gives a different interpretation, based on the same meaning for the words constituting the nAma He Who bestows beautiful or auspicious bodies on His devotees. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives the example of bhagavAn giving a beautiful form to a hunch-backed woman in kamsa's palace by removing the disfigurement that she had in her form.

c) SrI Sa'nkara looks at the nAma as rucire = kalyANe a'ngade yasya iti rucirA'ngadaH One Who is adorned with two beautiful shoulder ornaments (refer to the nAma kanakA'ngadI nAma 545).

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives a similar explanation rucirANidarSanIya- tamAni bAhu-bhUshaNAni catvAri a'ngadAni yasya iti rucirA'ngadaH He Who is adorned with four shoulder ornaments that are a delight to look at and enjoy.

d) SrI satya devo vAsishTha derives an interpretation based on the root a'ng gatau to go, and explains the nAma as: sundara gati yuktamSarIram, sundram gamanam vA yo dadAti sa rucirA'ngadaH - One Who has given a body equipped with the means for all creatures to move around"

946. jananaH The Creator.

om jananAya namaH.

The root for the nAma is jan prAdurbhAve to be born. SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as"janayati iti jananaH, sarvasya jagato jananaH, svayam ajo'pi" - One Who creates everything else, but Who Himself is not born. SrI T. S. Krishnamoorthy explains that the application of pANini sUtra 3.3.113 leads to the word jananaH from the root jan "The suffix lyuT(ana) is added to a verbal root to form verbal nouns, denoting either the action itself, or the instrument, or the place where the action takes place. Here,jananaH, in masculine is derived in the sense of agency kartari."

From this nAma onwards, till almost the end (till nAma 992), SrI BhaTTar interprets thenAma-s as conveying the purpose for which bhagavAn undertakes all His actions. atha sarva bhagavad vyApArANAmprayojanam. We will see that everything that bhagavAn undertakes is for the sole benefit of thejIva-s, without exception.

First, we start with His act of creation. SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam is tad-anubhava kshama karaNa yuktAn anyAnapi janayati iti jananaH He creates us and other beings also, gifted with theindirya-s etc., for enjoying Him. SrI kRshnan quotes the following in support:

vicitrA deha sampattiH ISvarAya niveditum | pUrvameva kRtA brahman hasta pAdAdi samyuta ||

"Brahman creates us fully endowed with the means of karma such as hands, legs, etc., just so we can dedicate these in the service of the Lord".

Out of His compassion, bhagavAn gives the jIva-s a body, with all the indriya-s, and a form that is based on their karma-s, so that they can better themselves in that birth and move towards Him. He also gives us the free will to use our capabilities to either move towards Him, or misuse all our faculties and divert them to other causes. If we misuse the opportunity, of course, we are reborn to have another chance again, according to our accumulated karma-s. (Lest some readers get confused and think that brahmA is the one who creates, nammAzhvAr repeatedly reminds us that it is bhagavAn who is the true Creator, who creates the mahat, the pa'nca mahA bhUta-s, the brahmANDa etc., and then creates brahmA inside this brahmANDa, and gives him the knowledge to continue the process of creation inside the brahmANDa, and gives Him the power to do this by being his antaryAmi. So it is bhagavAn who is the true Creator).

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "Lord SrI nArAyaNa is the great Father of all living beings, as all the universe comes from Him alone. He alone was before all creation; from Him alone everything has arisen; in Him everything exists, is nurtured

and nourished by His Glory. Thus, as the very progenitor of the universe, SrI nArAyaNa, the Self, is the only jagad-Isvara (Lord of the Universe)." SrIO cinmayAnanda refers us to the gItA:

pitAsi lokasya carAcarasya tvamasya pUjyaSca gurur-garIyAn | na tvat-samo'styabhyadhikaH kuto'nyo loka-tyaye'pyapratima- prabhAva || (11.43)

"You are the Father of this world, of all that moves and that does not move. You are its teacher and the One most worthy of reverence. There is none equal to You. How then could there be in all the three worlds another greater than You, O Being of matchless greatness?".

SrI satya sandha tIrtha's alternate anubhavam is: janam nayati iti jananaH He Who leads all beings isjana-naH.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as janayati mudam sva- janAnAm hRdayeshu iti jananaH - He Who generates delight in the hearts of His devotees isjananaH.

947. jana-janmAdiH

a) He Who is the root cause of all beings. b) He Who is the ultimate goal of all beings.

om jana-janmAdaye namaH.

The nAma can be understood by looking at its component words: jana-janma-AdiH. Most interpreters explain the nAma as "He Who is the Cause of all living beings". As we see below, the word Adi isinterpreted as "root' or "cause" in this interpretation.

a) SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "janAnAm janmana AdiH - One Whois the cause of all living things. He looks at the nAma as: jAyante iti janAH; janma = jananam; AdiH = `dadAteH' He Who gives, He Whois the root cause mUla kAraNam.

b) SrI BhaTTar gives this interpretation as well, but in additionadds that He is also the `prayojanam', or the ultimate goal for the living beings that are blessed with birth with a body teshAmjanAnAm janmana AdiH = nimittam (root cause), prayojanam (benefit or fruit of the birth) iti jana-janmAdiH. In fact, in the context ofthe theme of SrI BhaTTar's interpretation, his emphasis is on the `prayojanam', or "root purpose" of being this birth. He givesseveral supports that declare that the prime purpose of this birth that we are given by bhagavAn, is to attain Him through expiation ofour karma-s. - adya me saphalam janma (vishNu dharma 5.17.3) "This day mybirth has become fruitful, and my night has given place to an auspicious dawn, because I am going to see Lord kRshNa" words ofakrUra on the prospects of having the darSanam of Lord kRshNa. - janmanya viphalA saikA ya govindASrayA kriyA The only actthat is not fruitless in this life is that which has something to do with kRshNa.-

sujanma dehamatyantam tadevASesha jantushu | yadeva pulakotbhAsi vishNu nAmani kIrtite ||

"Amongst all beings, the body of that person is of good birth which shines with hair standing on their ends out of joy when the name ofkRshNa is pronounced".

SrI Sa'nkara also gives a similar interpretation janasya janimataHjanma udbhavaH, tasya AdiH, mUla kAraNam iti jana-janmAdiH The primary Cause of beings.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj's interpretation is along the same linesas well janAnAm = prANinAm janmanaH AdiH iti jana-janmAdiH.

948. bhImaH

He Who is frightful to those who do not follow dharma.

om bhImAya namaH.

We studied this nAma in Slokam 39 (nAma 359). Please refer to thewrite-up for nAma 359 also. As indicated there, the root from which the nAma is derived is bhI bhaye to fear. In the larger schemeof things in creation etc., bhagavAn is called bhImaH because He is the Supreme Controller of all. In the case of His devotees, theextent of His control is related to their devotion, to the point that He lets Himself be controlled by devotees who are dedicated to Him.But in the case of those who do not wholeheartedly devote themselves to Him, they still obey Him because of fear of the consequences ofnot obeying Him. This aspect is covered under nAma 359, where reference is given to the veda-s, which declare that even the fivegreat elements (vAyu, agni, etc.,) obey Him out of sheer fear, signified by His nAma bHImaH. SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj quotesSrImad bhAgavatam in support:

vAyvambarAgny-ap-kshitayas-trilokA brahmAdayo ye vayamudvijantaH | harAma yasmai balim antako'sau bibheti yasmAd-araNam tatonaH || (SrImad bhAga. 6.9.21)

"The five great elements, the three world that are constituted fromthese, and all of us fear that great destroyer, who himself fears the great Supreme Brahman. Let that Supreme Being protect us".

For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar stresses anotheraspect of His being frightful by His punishing the Jiva-s who refuse to follow the proper and prescribed path of dharma in theirlifetime. He pushes them into another janma, or into naraka etc., even though this is done for the ultimate benefit of the jIva, sothat the jIva can correct himself and have another opportunity in another birth. SrI BhaTTar notes that bhagavAn chooses thistreatment only when a being does not wish to resort to the Grace that He naturally shows mahA anugraha vimukhAnAm bhImaH. He givessupport for this interpretation from the gItA:

tAn aham dvishataH krUrAn samsAreshu narAdhamAn |

kshipAmyajastram aSubhAn AsurIshveva yonishu || (gItA 16.19)

"I throw those who hate Me repeatedly into the samsAra, and into noneother than demonic wombs, for they are cruel, unholy, and the worst of men".

SrI kRshNan refers us to nammAzhvAr pASuram 9.9.7 in tiruvAimozhi:

meyyanAgum virumbit tozhuvArkkellAm poyynAgum puRamE tozhuvArkkellAm (tiruvAi. 9.9.7)

"To those who are truly devoted to Him, and who worship Him withoutany other benefit in mind than Himself those who do not bargain with Him for benefit, He is easy to realize. To those who worshipHim with some benefit in mind, He bestows this benefit, and then moves away from them; He is not accessible to them and is notattainable by them".

SrI Sa'nkara gives the meaning bhaya hetutvAt bhImaH He Who isthe cause of fear, and gives the mantra from kaThopanishad in support "mahad-bhayam vajramudyatam" (2.3.2) "He is a great fearlike an uplifted thunderbolt (to those who attempt to defy Him)".

SrI Sa'nkara has given an alternate pATham in Slokam 39 for thisnAma a-bhImaH, and has given the interpretation - "One Who causes no fear to those who follow the righteous path". SrI rAdhAkRshNaSAstri gives the following support for the nAma a-bhImaH:

- bhIshNam abhIshaNam (nRsimhottara. 6.1) He Who is frightfuland at the same time not frightful. It is well-known that in His nRsimha incarnation, bhagavAn was simultaneously a cause of intenseterror to hiraNya kaSipu, and at the same time, He was a great delight for prahlAda.

Alternate interpretations are provided by SrI satya sandha tIrtha:

- bhRtA mAH pramANAni tena vyAsAdi rUpeNa iti bhImaH In Hisincarnation as veda vyAsa He established the authorities in the form of veda-s, and so He is called bhImaH. - bhiyam bhakta bhayam minAti hinasti iti bhImaH BhagavAn iscalled bhImaH because He destroys the fear of His devotees and saves them.

Recall that through the current set of nAma-s, SrI BhaTTar isdescribing the prayojanam or reason for bhagavAn's vyApara-s or actions. His being bhImaH or the cause of fear to the non-devoteesetc., and His meting out punishment to them for their a-dharmic deeds, is to maintain order, to protect His devotees, and to help thenon-conforming jIva-s so that they can correct themselves and attain Him over time.

949. bhIma-parAkramaH

He Who has terrific powers.

om bhIma-parAkramAya namaH.

This nAma praises bhagavAn's parAkrama.

SrI BhaTTar explains that bhagavAn has terrific powers that striketerror in the hearts of the likes of hiraNya, rAvaNa, etc. This is a benefit to the devotees, since it keeps the evil souls underrestraint. It is also of benefit to the evil souls themselves, because it keeps them under control, like keeping a mad personfettered so that he does not hurt himself.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan givesreference to nammAzhvAr, who describes this guNa of bhagavAn as "amarkku iDar keDa, asurarukku iDar Sei kaDu vinai na'njE" (tiruvAi. 9.2.10) BhagavAn is like virulent poison for which thereis no cure, when it comes to dealing with asura-s who cause harm to the deva-s.

SrI kRshNan notes that the previous nAma bhIma, dealt with 1jIva-swho were not following the path of dharma in their code of conduct, whereas the current nAma deals with those who go one step further andare bent upon doing harm to the world.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for the current nAma is anyeshvapi jagad-ahita-niratreshu hiraNyAdishubhIma-paraAkramaH In the case of others such as hiraNya who arebent upon causing harm to the word, He becomes One of terrific valor, and controls them.

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as bhaya hetuH parAkramaH asya iti bhIma parAkramaH His prowess is such that it will strike terror inthe heart of the enemy. He explains the nAma as a reference to bhagavAn causing fear in the hearts of the asura-s during Hisincarnations.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that even the fact that bhagavAn inducesfear in the hearts of His enemies, turns out to be for their good in another sense as well by constantly worrying about bhagavAn'sparAkramam, they keep Him in their minds always, and this ends up purifying them over time. He gives Slokam 7.1.30 from SrImadbhAgavatam in support. However, all the Sloka-s of the referenced chapter are relevant, since the topic of the chapter itself is howbhagavAn uses His parAkrama for the elimination of the vil and the preservation of the good.

These Sloka-s declare that bhagavAn's punishment to the asura-s is purely for the removal of their sins andfor their ultimately attaining Him. In an exchange between dharmaputra and sage nArada, the former asks the later how it is that some extreme haters of SrIman nArAyana end up attaining Him in the end oftheir life. In response, nArada responds: "People end up thinking constantly about bhagavAn either through intense attachment (as inthe case of gopi-s), or through intense enmity (as in the case of SiSupAla), or through extreme fear (as in the case of kamsa), orthrough being related to Him in one of His incarnations (as in the case of the people of vRshNi vamSa), or through pure devotion (as inthe case of the likes of myself)".

gopyaH kAmAt bhayAt kamsaH dveshAt caidyAdayo nRpAH | sambandhAt vRshNayaH snehAt yUyam bhaktyA vayam vibho ||

SrI satya sandha tIrtha explains the nAma as bhImasya, draupadI-pate rudrasya vA parAkramo yasmAd sa bhIma-parAkramaH

He Who is the source of the parAkrama of the likes of bhIma, rudra etc.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 102 -

AdhAra-nilayo dhAtApushpa-hAsaH praja-garaH

Urdhva-gaH sat-pathAcAraH prANa-daH praNavaH paNaH ||

om AdhAra-nilayAya namaH om dhAtre namaH om pushpa-hAsAya namaH om pra-jAgarAya namaH om UrdhvagAya namaH om sat-pathAcArAya namaH om prANa-dAya namaH om praNavAya namaH om paNAya namaH

950. AdhAra-nilayaH

The Abode of those who supportthe world through their righteous actions.

om AdhAra-nilayAya namaH.

`A' is a prefix meaning `from all sides, in all resepcts". dhAra is derived from the root dhR- dhAraNe - to support. nilaya is derived from the root `lee - SleshaNe - to stick, to lie on', with the prefix ni-. SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as - jagad AdhArANAm api dhAraka iti AdHara-nilayaH - He is the Support of all those that are considered the support of the world. This means that He is thesupport of all the deva-s such as brahmA, rudra, indra, the Sun and all the planets and their moons, the pa'nca mahA bhUta-s, etc. Heis also present in every living being as their antaryAmi, supporting them in every act of these beings.

SrI BhaTTar specifically givesthe example of the likes of prahlAda, vibhIshaNa,the pANDava-s, etc., whose righteous conduct in life is an example for us, and thus serve as the support for the world to follow. BhavAn is the abode for such pious men, and so He is called AdhAra-nilayaH - dhArmikatayA jagad-AdhArAH prahlAda-vibhIshaNa-pANDavAdayaH, teshAm nilayaH AhdAra-nilayaH. SrI BhaTTar quotes a Sloka from vishNu smRti in support:

varNASrama Acara-parAH santaHSAstraika tatparAH | tvAm dhare! dhArayishyanti teshu tvad bhAram Ahitam ||

"O! Mother Earth! Thosewho strictly adhere to the rules of conduct stipulated for different castes andstages of life, and also scrupulouslyfollow the dictates of the SAstra-s, are your support. On them your burden rests".

Note the emphasis here on theadherence to the dharma-s of the varNa- s (castes) and the Asrama-s (stages inlife, such as brahmacarya, gRhasta,etc.). These are the ones because of whom this earth keeps going; these are the ones who are supported by bhagavAn in their righteous observances and conduct AdhAra-nilayaH.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavanexplains the nAma in two ways: AdhAra bhUtAH sAttvikAH, teshAmnilayaH; or

AdhAra bhUtaH nilayAH yasya sa AdhAra-nilayaH. The first one corresponds to the interpretation discussed above. The second interpretation means thatbhagavAn has, as His abode, those that support the earth through their dhArmiclife (AdhArAH). This is a unique concept of the viSishTAdvaita sampradAyam, which is elaborated on by SrI veLukkuDi kRshnan. Heexplains this with nammAzhvAr's periya tiruvantAdi pASuram 75:

puviyum iru viSumbum nin agattanee en Seviyin vazhi pugundu en uLLAi avivinRi yAn periyan nee periyai enpadanai yAr aRivAr? Un parugu nEmiyAi! ULLu

"It is true that Yousupport everything including all the worlds, the skies, etc. But now You reside inside me by enteringinside me through my ears, and thus I am supporting You inside me. Now Youtell me whether You are supporting me or I am supporting You - whether You are the bigger One or I am the bigger one. You tell me,emperumAn with the cakra that drinks the blood of Your enemies".

The above pASuram of AzhvArsupports the alternate interpretation that bhagavAn has as His residence (nilayam)the hearts and minds of those whosupport the varNa and ASrama dharma-s (AdhAra-s), and so He has the nAma AdhAra-nilayaH.

SrI kRshNan also quotes thegiTA Slokam 7.18 as additional support:

udArAH sarva evaite j~nAnItvAtmaiva me matam

AsthitaH sa hi yuktAtmA mAmeva anuttamAm gatim || (gItA 7.18)

"All these are indeedgenerous, but I deem the man of knowledge to be My own very self; for he, integrated, is devoted to Me alone as the highest end".

The declaration by Lord kRshNathat the j~nAnI is His own self, once again supports the second interpretationabove.

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAmain terms of bhagavAn's support of the pa'nca bhUta-s etc. pRthivyAdInAm pa'nca bhUtAnAm AdhAratvAt AdhAra- nilayaH.

SrI vAsishTha gives numerousexamples from the Sruti in support:

- yatrAdhi sUra udito vibhAtikasmai devAya havishA vidhema

| (yajur. 32.7)

- yataH sUrya udetyastam yatraca gacchati | tadeva manye'ham jyeshTham tadu nAtyeti ki'ncana || (atharva. 10.8.16)

"I hold that Supremebecause of which the Sun rises, sets, and rests. Nothing surpasses the Will of this Supreme".

na te vishNo jAyamAno na jAto deva mahimnaH paramantamApa |

udastabhnA nAkamRshvam bRhantam dAdhartha prAcIm kakubham pRthivyAH || (Rg. 7.99.2)

"None who is born or beingborn, Lord vishNu, has reached the utmost limit of Thy grandeur. The vasthigh vault of heaven hast Thou supported, and fixed earth's eastern pinnaclesecurely".

- yasyorushu trishuvikramaNeshu adhikshiyanti bhuvanAni viSvA (Rg. 1.154.2)

"He within whose threewide-extended paces all living creatures have their habitation".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri choosesto interpret the nAma as "One Who is resident -nilayaH, in the pa'nca bhUta-s". Even though the five elements, by themselves, perform different functions withinour body (e.g., agni converts thefood that we consume into forms such as blood; water carries this into the different parts of the body'; earth supports all the beings of this world; etc.), bhagavAn, by being present in these elements, ensures that there is mutual coordination such that all beings function as a unit, in a healthy way. Sri SAstri quotes the gItA Slokam 15.13-14 toillustrate this point:

gAm AviSya ca bhUtAnidhArayAmaham ojasA | pushNAmi caushadhIH sarvAH somo bhUtvA rasAtmakaH || (15.13)

"And entering the earth Iuphold all beings by My strength. I nourish all herbs, becoming thejuicy soma".

aham vaiSvAnaro bhUtvA prANInAmdeham ASritaH | prANApAna samAyuktaH pacAmyannam catur-vidham || (15.13)

"Becoming the digestivefire, I function within the bodies of all living beings. In union withinward and outward breaths, I digest the four kinds of food - chewed (like riceetc.), sucked (like mango fruitetc.), licked (like medicinal power mixed with honey), and drunk (like water)".

SrI SAstri also gives supportfrom the bRhadAranyaka Upanishad:

yaH sarveshu bhUteshu tishThansarvebhyo bhUtebhyo'ntaro yam sarvANi bhUtAni na vidur-yasya sarvANi bhUtAni SarIram yaH sarvANi bhUtAnyantaro yamayatyesha ta AtmAntaryAmyamRtaH ityAdhi-bhUtam athAdhyAtmam || (bRha. 3.7.19)

"He who dwells in allbeings, who is within all beings, whom all beings do not know, whose body is allbeings, and who controls all beingsfrom within, is your Internal Ruler - the Self, the Immortal".

SrI satya sandha tIrtha givesan explanation based on the dhArA or thedownpour of rain caused by indra in gokulam: "A - samantAt dhArA =devendra-kRta vRshTi dhArA yeshAm ta A-dhArA gopAlAH, teshAm govardhana dhAraNena nilayaASraya iti A-dhAra-nilayaH" He Who protected the gopAla-s orcowherds from the intense downpour of rain caused by devendra, through the govardhana dhAraNam.

951. dhAtA

a) One Who created the Universe(dhA - to produce, or dhA - to lay upon). b) He Who supports and sustains (dhA - dhAraN poshaNayoSca). c) He Who has no support other than Himself (a-dhAtA). d) He Who `drinks' everything during pralaya (dheT - pAne - to drink). e) One Who is the antaryAmi of the four-faced brahmA.

om dhAtre namaH.

We studied this nAma in Slokam 5 (nAma 43).

SrI vAsishTha gives the root for the nAma as `dhA - dhAraNa poshaNoyoH dAne ca'- to put, to grant, to produce, to bear.

a) SrI BhaTTar derives theinterpretation for the instance of the nAmain Slokam 5 based on the root dhA -

to put, place, lay, put in, lay onor upon (SrI Apte's dictionary), and gives the meaning "The Creator"for the nAma. The detailed explanation is provided under nAma43 (Slokam 5).

b) For the current instance ofthe nAma, SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretationsvayam ca dharmAcAryakeNa dhAtA - He is called dhAtA becauseHe practices dharma rigorously, and is thus the best Preceptor ofdharma.

SrI M. V. rAmAnujAcAryaexplains SrI BhaTTar's interpretationbased on the root "dhA - dhArana poshaNayoH to support, to sustain", andexplains SrI BhaTTar's interpretation as referringto bhagavAn being the Sustainer and Supporter of the earth throughstrict adherence to dharma in all His incarnations. Thus, He setsHimself as a model for us to follow. SrI BhaTTar gives support from the gItA:

na me pArtha asti kartavyamtrishu lokeshu ki'ncana nAnavAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi ||

| (gItA 3.22)

"For Me, arjuna! There isnothing in all the three worlds which ought to be done, nor is there anything that has not been acquired, and oughtto be acquired. Yet I go on working" (to set an example to others, as explained further inSloka 3.23 of the gItA).

Different interpreters givetheir different anubhavam-s of the unending dimension of His guNa ofprotecting and nurturing all His creation.

SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya explainsthe nAma as He Who supports the world through His teachings (in the forms of veda-s, gItA etc.).,and through His own code of conduct(during His incarnations).

SrI kRshnanillustrates this by referring us to Lord rAma's incarnation, which is an outstanding example of the adherence to dharma in all its intricacies.

For the earlier occurrence ofthis nAma, SrI vAsishTha gives the interpretation that bhagavAn supports (bears) the earth in the form ofananta. This is the same interpretation that Sri Sa'nkara gives as well - anantAdirUpeNa viSvam bibharti iti dhAtA.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAjgives the interpretation dadhAti poshayati svajanAn itidhAtA - He Who protects and supports His devotees.

c) Sri Sa'nkara uses the pAThama-dhAtA in the current instance for his primary interpretation, and gives theinterpretation as "svAtmanA dhRtasya asya anyo dhAtA na asti iti a-dhAtA" One for Whom there is no other support except Himself .

SrI vAsishTha also givesthis pATham as an alternative, and gives the same interpretation.

d) As an alternative, if thepATham `dhAtA' is used, SrI Sa'nkara givesthe interpretation based on the root dheT - pAne - to drink, andthe explanation is samhAra samaye sarvAH prajA dhayati = pibati iti dhAtA He Who drinks all beings during the time of pralaya.

SrI vAsishTha gives this interpretation as one of his alternate interpretationsalso dhayati = pibati viSvam iti dhAtA.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha givesthe interpretation - dhAtA = dhAraNa poshaNakartA.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaNexplains the nAma in Slokam 5 as utpatti vinASa virahAdanAdi nidhanaH kAraNatve viri'ncyAdibhyo viSesham Aha dhAtA iti He Who creates all beings, protects them, and destroys themat the appropriate time (in the forms of brahmA, vishNu and rudrarespectively).

e) The term dhAtA is also usedto refer to the four-faced brahmA. SrI aNNa'ngarAcArya uses this meaning, and explains the nAma 43 as "nAnmugak kadavuLai SarIramAgak koNDavar" - "One Who has brahmAas part of His body". We all know that our body is at our self's disposal, and its sole purpose is to serve our soul. So also, brahmA, as part ofbhagavAn's body, is there solely to serve emperumAn.

952. pushpa-hAsaH

He Who is like the bloom of a flower.

om pushpa-hAsAya namaH.

The roots involved in the nAma are: pushpa - vikasane - to open, to blow,and has - hasane - to smile, to excel, to bloom etc. The nAma signifies the tendernessand pleasing nature of bhagavAn towards His devotees.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as "evam nishpAdita svAnubhava- SaktInAm sAyamiva pushpasya hAso bhogyataullAsaH asya iti pushpahAsaH" In the case of those who are blessed with the ability to enjoyHim, He manifests His enjoyable nature gently like a flower thatblossoms in the evening. So He is called pushpa-hAsaH.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains SrI BhaTTar's bhAshyamas a reference to bhagavAn' Sakti-sor powers that are enjoyable for the devotee(svAnubhava SaktInAm), since they blossom forth towards the devoteesas needed for protecting them (since He has Sakti-s or parAkrama-sthat are worthy of enjoyment by the devotee - bhogya bhUta Sakti-s).

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan describes the nAma in terms ofbhagavAn's whole tirumEni as anillustration of His flower-like tenderness. This tendernessis particularly reserved for His dear devotees - thus illustratingHis avatArapryojanam that is the current topic of SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam. He draws the parallel between theinterface of bhagavAn and Hisdevotees on the one hand, and His flower-like tendernesson the other. For His devotees, having His divine Feet attheir head is like having the soft flower in their head. His LotusFeet are soft to touch just as the flowers are soft to touch. BhagavAn'swhole tirumEni is soft to touch, just as the flowers are. Theflowers blossom on seeing the Sun, and bhagavAn is delighted when Hesees His devotees, who are like the Sun to Him. In other words, Hisdevotees enjoy Him like a beautiful tender flower. SrI kRshNan refersus to periya tirumizhi-8.1.5, where tiruma'ngai AzhvAr enjoys bhagavAn'stirumEni as pushpa-hASan:

aDit-talamum tAmaraiyE am-kaigaLum pa'nkayamE enginrALAl kuDit-talamum poR-pUNum en ne'njattuL agalAdu enginrALAl vaDit-taDam kaN malar avaLO varia Agattu uL iruppAL enginrALAl kaDik-kamalam kaL ugakkum kaNNa purattu ammAnaik kaNDAL kolO. (periya.tiru. 8.1.5)

"His Feet are soft like lotus flowers. HisHands, with which He picks us upwhen He surrender at His Feet, are equally soft like lotus flowers. Then He embraces us with affection, andthe divine beauty of His tirumuDiand His divine ornaments that we get to enjoy atthat time, is something that will never leave our thoughts ever. Wepray for the blessings of the One with broad eyes (SrI devi) Who isseated on the lotus flower in His broad vaksha sthalam (His chest), so that we are united with Him for ever. ThisemperumAn is waiting for us in thedivya kshetram by name tiruk-kaNNa puram, which is itself the place full of fragrant lotus flowers drippingsweet honey".

Another pASuram that SrI kRshNan refers us to is fromnammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi (3.1.2),where AzhvAr describes bhagavAn's eyes, feet, hands, etc., for all of which the tender, fragrant, andbeautiful lotus flowers are but avery poor comparison (since they have nowhere nearthe beauty compared to emperumAn's beauty) kaTTuriakkil tAmarai nin kaN pAdamkai ovvA.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives a similar interpretation pushpamiva mRduH svajana manoharI hAso yasya sa pushpa-hAsaH He Who has a sweet and enchantingsmile that delights the hearts of His devotees.

SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as referring to bhagavAnblossoming into the form theUniverse mukulAtmanA sthitAnAm pushpANAm hAsavat prapa'nca rUpeNa vikAsaH asya asti iti pushpa-hAsaH - As thebuds of flowers blossom forth, Hehas blossomed forth in th form of the Universe.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri's anubhavam is that bhagavAn makesHis devotees blossom with delightat His thought, and He also blossoms in theirheart and gives fragrance to their thought, and so He is called pushpa-hAsaH.

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "yo sadA prasanna-mukaH Soka- rahistaSca bhavati, tasmin nishpApe Soka-moha-rahite svayam bhagavAn virAjate sa vishNuH pushpa-hAsaH" He Who is always of a very pleasingdisposition, who is beyond any sorrow, untainted by any defects,devoid of any desire or want, this is the significance of thisnAma". He points out that, just as it is the dharma (nature) of theflower to blossom beautifully, so also it is the nature of bhagavAnto have a sweet and smiling countenance.

953. pra-jAgaraH -

He Who is awake day and night,for the protection of thedevotees.

om pra-jAgarAya namaH.

SrI vAsishTha indicates theroot for the nAma as "jAgR - nidrAkshaye - to awake. pra- is a upasarga. prakarsheNa jAgarti iti pra-jAgaraH He Who is awake in a special and unique way. The uniqueness is that He is always awake, and always thinking of ways to help the jIva- sattain Him.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAmaalong the above lines - rAtrim divam pra-jAgartiiti pr-jAgaraH - He Who is awake day and night, to protect His devotees, like afarmer intent on protecting his crops. Hegives a mantra from kaThopanishad in support:

ya eshu supteshu jAgarti kAmamkAmam purusho nirmimANaH (kaTho.5.8)

"This purusha (thesupreme) keeps awake while others (the individual souls) are asleep, creating through his eternal willpower. (That is the effulgentand that is Brahman)".

SrI kRshNan explains this asbhagavAn keeping wide awake while we are all fast asleep, bestowing all our desires and requeststhat are infinite andnever-ending.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavanpoints out an obvious demonstration of His beingawake, in the form of His looking after us, while we are fast asleep. We all go to bed with the full hope that we will wake up alivethe next morning. And He, as pra-jAgaraH, is there to wake us upsafe and sound, fully rejuvenated, the next morning.

SrI Sa'nkara also interpretsthe nAma as One Who is ever awake, as partof His nature - nitya prabuddha svarUpatvAt jAgarti it pra- jAgaraH. This is interpreted by some as indicating that bhagavAn is not affected by nescience,and thus He is not affected by sleep that isa result of tamo guna etc.

SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives yetanother anubhavam He Who liberates theaccomplished devotees from sleep prakasheNa bhaktAn jAgarayati nidra-rahitAnmuktAn karoti iti pra-jAgaraH.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha looksat the nAma as praja + aga + ra. In this interpretation, praja = He Who creates; aga = HeWho resides in the hills ofve'nkaTAcala, ra = ramati = He Who enjoys the company of devoteesby being in ven'kaTAcala. (prakarsheNa janayati lokAn it prajA;ageshu ve'nkaTAdi parvateshu ramata iti aga-raH, prajaSca asau agaraScaiti prajAgaraH.

This guNa is alsoreflected in the world through the pa'naca bhUta-s forwhich He is the antaryAmi, and ensures that they are all functioning in theinterest of the jIva-s constantly - vAyu, agni, water,AkASa, etc. never sleep. So also, the Sun never sleeps, the AtmA neversleeps, and the prANa never sleeps.

954.Urdhva-gaH

a) He Who rises high. b) He Who leads His devotees to SrI vaikunTham, the highest goal of the jIva-s. c) He Who is above everyone else in all respects.

om Urdhva-gAya namaH.

a) The term Urdhva means`above'. Urdhva-gaH means "One Who rises high". SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as acontinuation of his explanationof the previous nAma - He Who sleeplessly protects His creation. He devotes Himself to this task ofrakshNam even without sleep,because He aims high in whatever He does, and so He is "Urdhva- gaH". SrI BhaTTar's words are: svabhAva-tu'ngaH - HeWho, by nature, rises high ineverything.

His aiming high in everythingis sung by nammAzhvAr through the phrase"karuttin kaN periyan" (tiruvAi. 10.8.8) - "He Who is great whenit comes to paying attention to His goal". nammAzhvAr also identifiesHis paramount goal "kAkkum iyalvinan" (tiruvAi. 2.2.9) - HeWhose Nature it is to protect. It is this paramount goal of His thatis being sung in this nAma.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavanexplains the nAma as "uyarvaRa uyar nalam uDaiyavan yavan avan" (tiruvAi. 1.1.1) - HeWho possesses auspicious qualitiesthat cannot at all be excelled".

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAmaas - sarveshAm upari tishThan Urdhva- gaH- He Who stands above all.

b) SrI ananta kRshNa SAtrygives an alternate interpretation that the nAmasignifies that Lord vishNu is the One Who takes us to SrI viakunTham.

c) SrI vAsishTha interprets thenAma as - sarveshAm Urdhva sthiti SAlitvAt,sarvataH SreshThatvAt vA Urdhva-gaH - "He who is above everyonein all aspects". He notes that even in real life, the place of knowledge, namely the brain, is above all otherorgans in the body,reflecting an aspect of this guNa of bhagavAn.

955.sat-pathAcAraH -

a) One Who leads His devoteesin the right path. b) He Who follows the path of dharma in His incarnations.

om sat-paThAcArAya namaH.

patha means path. satrefers to `righteous'. The word AcAra is derived from the root car - gatau - to walk. `AcAra' means `conduct,behavior'.

a) Sri BhaTTar interprets thenAma as "One Who leads His devotees in the right path" - sat-pathe =svAbhAvika dAsya mArge, AcaraNam = teshAmpravartanam asya iti sat-pathAcAraH - He Who induces (leads) thedevotee in the right path of kainkaryam (servitude) to Him, which isthe true nature of the devotee. Recall that in this segment, Sri BhaTTaris interpreting the nAma-s in terms of the benefits to the devoteesfrom His guNa-s (avtAra prayojanam). Since it is in the interestof the jIva-s to recognize and follow the relationship of Sesha-SeshIbhAva (the Master-servant relationship between the Supreme Being and the jIva), bhagavAn facilitates this,and leads the devotee in this path. SrI BhaTTar refers us to the words of advice given by Lord kRshNa to arjuna:

a-nityam a-sukham lokam imamprApya bhajasva mAm | (gItA 9.33)

"You are now in thetransitory and unhappy world. To get over it, worship Me".

SrI satya sandha tIrtha alsogives an interpretation similar to that of SrI BhaTTar - sat-pathe = san-mArge Acarayati yogyAniti sat- pathAcAraH.

b) Sri Sa'nkara interprets thenAma as - satAm panthAnaH karmANi sat-pathAH | tAn Acarati esha iti sat-pathAcAraH He Who follows the path whichgood men have chalked out in His incarnations, is sat-pathAcAraH.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refersus to Slokam 3.22 in the gItA, where bhagavAntells us that He follows the path followed by the great ones inHis incarnations, just to set an example for others to follow:

na me partha asti kartavyamtrishu lokeshu ki'ncana nAnavAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi ||

| (gItA 3.22)

"For Me, arjuna, there isnothing in all the three worlds that ought to be done, nor is there anything un-acquired that ought to be acquired.

Yet I go on working (to set an example to others)".

SrI vAsishTha interprets the nAma as: sat-pathe AcAro yasya sa sat- pathAcAraH- He Whose conduct or behavior is along the righteous path, is sat-pathAcAraH. 956.prANa-daH - The Life-giver.

om prANa-dAya namaH.

This nAma is one of two nAma-sthat is repeated four times in SrI BhaTTar's pATham (the other nAma isnivRttAtmA). The other instances forthe current nAma are: 66, 323, 409 - Sloka-s 8, 35, 44.

The root from which the wordprANa is derived is aN - prANane - to breathe,to live, to move. pra- is an upasarga, meaning `in a special way'.The word `prANa' can be translated as `vAyu" or air - prANyate =jIvyate anena iti prANaH = vAyuH.

The ending stem -da of the nAmacan be interpreted in several ways:

- dadAti - gives (dadAti itidaH) - do - avakhaNDane - tocut (dyati) - kAlAtmanA avakhaNDayati prANomRtyuH prANastakmA (atharva. 11.4.11) -dai - Sodhane - to purify. prANAnAn dApayati Sodhayati SudhyantivA. - dA - lavane - to cut; prANAn dAti lunAti it prANa-daH (kAlaH sarvasya IsvaraH atharva.19.53.8)

In essence, it is because ofHim that beings breathe, and it is becauseof Him that they cease breathing. Here is the beautiful composition of SrIvAsishTha summarizing the various interpretations thatare possible for the nAma prANa-daH:

prANAn dadAti, kimu vA dyati,dAti kim vA prANan viSodhayati, dApayati iti kim vA | sarvatra sarva vidhinA sa hi vishNur-eko yaHprANado'sti kathitaH SrutibhiH purANaH ||

"He is the Giver of prANa,the Taker of prANa, the Purifier of prANa, Enlightener of prANa, and is present everywhereand in everything in the form of prANa. The Supreme Deity,. Lord vishNu,is sung thus as prANa-daH in the Sruti-s".

Other references to the Srutithat are provided by SrI vAsishTha are:

prAna-dA apAna-dA vyAna-dAvarco-dA varivo-dAH

| || (yajur. 17.15)

anyAns-te asmAt-tapantu hetayaH pAvako asmabhyam Sivo bhava

yaH prANa-daH prAnadavAnbabhUva yasmai lokAH dhRtavantaH ksharanti

| (atharva. 4.35.5)

prANo mRtyuH takmA prANam devAupAsate

prANo ha satyavAdinam uttamo loka Adadhat || (atharva.11.4.11)

Another independent line ofinterpretation given by SrI vAsishTha is based on the root prA - pUraNe - tofill. In this interpretation, he givesthe derivation - prANaH = pUrNaH, pURNasya dAtA prANa-daH - He Whogives fullness to everything. He gives real-life examples, such asour finding that the minerals are distributed uniformly through ourbodies, we find the milk oozing out from any part of the tree thatis cut, etc. And he also gives the beings all kinds of comforts to livewith. So He is One Who bestows fullness prANa-daH.

Several interpretations of thenAma are possible. One interpretation is: PrANam = jIvanam dadAti iti prANa-daH - He Whosustains life through vAyu orair is prANa-daH. PrANa is one of the five airs that enable the functions of the body (the others being apAna,vyAna, etc.).

SrI BhaTTar's interpretationsfor the four instances of the nAma are given below:

66: asya aiSvaryasyaprathamam vishayam - prANam dadAti - Giver of life (strength and vitality) that enables the devoteesto perform eternalkai'nkaryam to Him. SrI BhaTTar gives the example of bhagavAngiving this energy and will to the nitya sUris- to serve Him uninterruptedly- sUribhyaH sadAdarSana-rUpa-svAnubhava paricaraNa- anukUla bala-daH. The nitya sUri-s not only get the ability toserve Him, but also thebenefit of performing kai'nkaryam to Him eternally, beingwith Him constantly, and enjoying Him permanently. This is the firstexample of the foremost action of bhagavAn, signifying His lordshipover all.

- ya Atma-dAH bala-dAH (taitt.yajur. 4.1.8) - He gives the Selfand He bestows strength. - SadaivaHprANa AviSati (bR. Upa. 3.5.20) - The vital airs enter the body of a created being, along with theSupreme Divinity.

BhagavAn is pRANa-daH also inthe sense that He is the prANa or life for His true devotees, and He gives Himself for them toenjoy. SrI kRshNa dattabhAradvAj captures this thought with his interpretation prANAn = jIvanam dadAti bhaktebhyaH AtmAna darSayitvA iti prANa-daH.

323. Sri BhaTTarinterprets the sequence of eleven nAma-s starting from nAma 323 as a description of the kUrmAvatAra. In this context, SrI BhaTTarinterprets the term prANa to refer to strength, and the nAma prANa-daH as One Who gave the strength to the deva-sduring the episode describingthe churning of the Milky Ocean. So bhagavAn is called prANa-daH - The Giver of strength. Theamara koSa gives severalmeanings for the word prANa - vital breath, strength, prowess,life etc. - SaktiH parAkrama prANau . (amara koSa 2.8.102), andone of the meanings for the word prANa is seen to be strength.

SrI T. S. Raghavendran givesthe following Sloka in support of the aboveinterpretation:

marutAm bala dAnAd-hi samudramethane bhRSam

prANadaSca samuddishTaH kUrmarUpatayA hi saH ||

In a sense, bhagavAn not onlygave strength to the deva-s for the purposeof churning the ocean, but He Himself gave His strength to thewhole effort by serving as the support for the huge mountain that wasused as the axle for churning the ocean, in the form of a kUrma (HiskUrma incarnation). He is meditated upon as ananta-bala Saktan (omananta-bala-Saktaye namaH) - One Who is endowed with unlimited strengthand power.

409: Giver of life to all. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "prasiddhAnapi prANAn dadAti iti prANa-daH". Sri SrInivAsa Raghavantranslates this as "One Who bestows the well-known life itself to all", but SrI Satya MurthyAyyangar chooses to translate itas "The Imparter of liveliness (instead of the Imparter of life)". SrI BhaTTar gives the example of thestate of the trees, shrubs,flowers etc. in ayodhyA when SrI rAma was separated from sItA through the abduction by rAvaNa. Even theywithered because of sadnessover this event:

api vRkshAH parimlAnAHsa-pushpA'nkura korakAH | (ayodhyA. 59.4) pariSushka palASAni vanAnupavanAni ca | (ayodhyA. 59.5)

"Even the trees with theirflowers, buds, and sprouts withered. All that remained in the forests and gardens were only dryleaves".

On the other hand, when rAmareturned from exile to ayodhyA later withsitA, fruits and flowers appeared in plenty even out of season (describedby SrImad vAlmIki in SrImad rAmAyaNam).

956: SrI BhaTTar givesanother example of His giving `life' to the devotees: He confers redemption on those soulsthat have been poisoned bythe indulgence in material pleasures - Atam ujjIvanam dadAtiiti prANa-daH - He gives a new life to these souls. The niruktiauthor describes this through the following words:

kAntAdi vishaya AsaktyA nashTaAtmabhyaH kRpA vaSAt sad-Atma ujjIvanam yo'sau dadAti prANa-daH tu atyam ||

"BhagavAn is calledprANa-daH because He instills life in the jIva-s whose souls are getting lost because they havebeen poisoned by the sensuouspleasures".

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAna-s forthe different instances of the nAma are:

- Slokam 8: prANAn dadAticeshTayati iti prANa-daH - He Who bestowsvital airs. kohyevAnyAt kaH prANyAt (taitt. 2.7) - (But for this), Who then couldlive, and who could breathe? -Alternate interpretation by Sri Sa'nkara: prANAn kAlAtmanA dyatikhaNDayati , prANAn dAyati (dApayati) Sodhayati vA, prANAn dAti lunAti iti vA prANa-daH - He Who takes away the life inthe form of death, orpurifies or destroys the prANa-s (breaths). - Slokam 35: surANAm asurANAm ca yathAsa'nkhyam prANam dadAti dyati vA iti prANa-daH _ He Who gives life (energy) tothe gods, and destroys(kills) the life of the demoniac beings (asura-s). -Slokam 44: He Who gives life to all beings at the time of creation,or He Who withdraws all life at the time of pralaya - sRshTyAdausarva-prANinAm antaryAmitayA prANAn dadAti iti prANa-daH | dyati khaNDayati prANinAm prANAn pralaya kAla iti vA prANa-daH. -

Slokam 102 (current): mRtAn parIkshit-prabhRtIn jIvayan prANa-daH- He Who revived the life of parIkshit and others. (Recall thatSrI KrshNa also revived the son of the guru with whom He formally performed gurukula vAsam, by retrieving the son from yama lokam).

It is obvious how both SrIBhaTTar and Sri Sa'nkara have explained the nAma-s such that there is no punarukti dosham.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri givesanother dimension to the anubhavam of thenAma in His rAma incarnation, He declares that He will even giveHis life in order to protect those who have surrendered to Him:

apyaham jIvitam jahyAm tvAm vAsIte sa-lakshmaNAm | na tu pratij~nAm samSrutya brAhmaNebhyo viSeshataH || (rAmAyaNa AraNya. 10.19)

(Adressing sItA pirATTi): "I won't mind sacrificing My own life, or eventhose of You and lakshmaNa; but I will not swerve from the word Igive especially to the brAhmaNa-s".

Other interpretations, given inSrI T. S. Raghavendran's book, are:

- prANAn indiryANi dadAti itprANa-daH - He who gives indirya-s toall and makes them function, - prNAn indiryANi dyati khaNDayati iti prANa-daH - He Who removes the attachment to indriya-s for the sAttvicsouls. - PrakrsheNa aNam sukha virruddha duHkham dyati khaNDayati iti prANa-daH- He Who removes the grief that is opposed to happiness. (NaH = sukham, tad-viruddhatvAt a-NaH = SokhaH, prakrsheNa tama dyati =khaNDayati iti prANa-daH).

957. praNavaH

He Who guides the devotee to surrender to Him with love.

om praNavAya namaH.

nAma 410 praNamaH, is related. `praNavaH' is an alternate pATham for nAma 410. The interpretation for the pATham `praNamaH' is covered under nAma 410 (Slokam 44). The interpretations for the nAma `praNavaH' are covered here.

SrI vAsishTha indicates the derivation of the nAma from the root Nu stutau to praise, to commend. prais a prefix, meaning `in a special way'. praNauti iti praNavaH, praNamayati iti vA He Who is praised or worshipped is `praNavaH'. Just as the root bhU becomes bhav, the root Nu becomes Nav (pANini sUtra 3.3.57 Rdorap). Pra + Nav = praNav. In interpretations below that contain `na' in the root, the na become `Na' by the application of the pANini sUtra 8.4.14 upasargAt a-samAse'pi NopadeSasya, leading to the change of the `na' to `Na'.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for the nAma is: praNavena IdRSa sambandham udbhodhya, "mAm namaskuru" iti sva-caraNaravindayoH tAn praNamayati "By means of the sacred `praNava' mantra, bhagavAn reveals to His devotees the true relationship between Him and them,

and makes them understand the need for surrendering to Him".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri quotes the yoga sUtra tasya vAcakaH praNavaH (1.27) "The praNava mantra is a manifestation in words of paramAtmA". This mantra reveals Him to us, when we understand the meaning of the mantra. Again, when we understand the deeper meaning of the mantra, it will lead us to worship Him.

praNava refers to the mantra represented by the three letters a, u, and m "aum" or "OM". This syllable, which is considered a mantra that is the essence of all veda-s, is considered as a manifestation of bhagavAn Himself in sound form. Detailed vyAkhyAna for this mantra has been expounded by the great AcArya-s, and this should be learnt from the AcArya-s. The mantra reminds us, the jIva-s, of the eternal and inseparable relationship of the jIvAtmA to the paramAtmA in a Sesha-SeshI relationship.

SrI V. N. Vedanta deSikan has translated SrI M. V. Ramanujacharya's interpretation for the nAma thus: "BhagavAn informs the souls if they can understand of the perennial bond of relationship existing between Himself and the individual soul, as imbedded in the secret import of the praNava mantra. The key is that "we should try and understand" this eternal relationship between us and Him, and the true nature of our selves, and surrender to Him.

In the last chapter of the gItA, almost near the end, bhagavAn summarizes His instructions to arjuna:

man-manA bhava mad-bhakto mad-yAjI mAm namas-kuru mAmeva eshyasi satyam te pratijAne priyo'si me ||

| (18.65)

"Focus your mind on Me; Be My devotee; Be My worshipper; Prostrate before Me. You shall come to Me alone. I promise you, truly, for you are dear to Me".

It is enlightening to read bhagavad rAmAnuja's explanation of the meaning of the Slokam, so that we truly understand the nature of this obeisance that bhagavAn instructs us to offer to Him.

mad-bhaktaH bhava "atyartham mama priyaH atyarthamatpriyatvena ca niratiSaya priyAm smRti santatim kurushva ityarthaH". This is translated by SrI AdidevAnanda as: "Focus your mind on Me; Be My devotee. Be one to whom I am incomparably dear. Since I am the object of superabundant love, medidate on Me, i.e., practice the succession of memory of unsurapassed love of Me. Such is the meaning".

Note the use of word `priyam' thrice in this one sentence of vyAkhyAnam by SrI rAmAnuja. This priyam is the basis of the relationship between Him and us. It is because of His intense love and compassion to us that we should bow to Him, and surrender to Him, and He assures us that He will redeem us as a result.

mad-yAjI bhava "tatrApi mad-bhakta iti anushajyate | yajanam pUjanam atyartha priya mad-ArAdhano bhava | ArAdhanam hi paripUrNa Sesha vRttiH".

Translation: "Be My worshipper (yAjI). Here also, the expression `Be My devotee' is applicable. Yaj~na is worship. Worship Me as One exceedingly dear to you. Worship (ArAdhana) is complete subservience to the Lord".

Note again the emphasis on `atyartha priyam'. This is the basis of the ArAdhana that bhagavAn is advising us to practice. The complete subservience is based on our utmost love to Him, and not based on any other factor such as fear etc.

mAm namas-kuru namo namanam mayi atimAtra-prahvI bhAvam atyartha-priyam kuru ityarthaH |

Translation: "Prostrate before Me". Prostration means `bowing down'.

The meaning is `Bow down humbly before Me with great love'. Once again, note the emphasis by bhagavad rAmAnuja on `atyartha priyam kuru' perform this act with great love.

For those who thus surrender to Him, bhagavAn says: mAm eva eshyasi, satyam te pratijAne" "I make this solemn promise to you. You shall attain Me as a result". These are not mere empty words, because bhagavAn continues: "priyo'si me" "You are dear to Me". Thus, bhagavAn is not just advising us to worship Him with love as the basis, but He is bound to us by the same love, even more intensely than we can ever command. Elsewhere bhagavAn has already declared: "He in whom there is great love to Me, I hold him also as exceedingly dear to Me. I Myself will enable him to attain Me". (gItA 7.17).

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan points out that the spirit of the gItA Slokam above is best understood if we look at the phrases as "man-manA eva bhava", "mad-bhata eva bhava", "mad-yAjI eva bhava", " mAm eva namas-kuru", "mAm eva eshyasi" Meditate on Me alone, Worship Me alone, Prostrate only to Me; You will definitely attain Me without any doubt.

SrI BhaTTar also gives support from the atharva Siras: pRaNAn sarvAn paramAtmani praNamayati, etasmAt praNavaH | - "The mantra is called praNava mantra, because it makes all souls to obey, and pay respects to, the paramAtmA" (as indicated in the earlier translation, this is considered the greatest privilege by those who understand the significance of the mantra).

SrI Sa'nkara interprets the current instance of the nAma as a reference to bhagavAn through the sound of the syllable "OM". Since bhagavAn is represented by this syllable in word form, this syllable is none other than bhagavAn praNavo nAma paramAtmano vAcaka om-kAraH tad-abhedhopacAreNa ayam praNavaH.

For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 44, Sri Sa'nkara gives the interpretation praNauiti iti praNavaH He Who is praised. He gives the sanatkumAra vacanam "praNamantIha yam vedAH tasmAt praNava ucyate" "The veda-s pay obeisance to Him, He is named praNava".

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as "prakarsheNa nUyate

stUyate sadbhiH iti praNavaH" He Who is praised uniquely by the devoted.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives the interpretation for the nAma as prakarshena nayati iti praNavaH Lord vishNu is called praNavaH because He regulates or puts the world in orderly form in a splendid way.

SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN gives the interpretation nitya nUtanatvAt praNavaH (prakesheNa nUtanatvAt praNavaH (pra + nava= praNava).

SrI Raghavendran has included some additional interpretation and support:

praNamanti iha yam vedAH tasmAt praNavaH ucyate sanatkumAra vishNu is called praNavaH because all veda-s bow down to Him.-

raso'ham apsu kaunteya pabhAsmi SaSi SurayayoH

| || (gItA 7.8)

praNavaH sarva bhUteshu SabdaH khe paurusham nRshu

(Lord kRshNa declares to arjuna): "O arjuna! I am the taste in the waters, the light in the Sun and the Moon, and the praNava (OmkAra) in all the veda-s, sound in the ether, and manhood in all men".

SrI vAsishTha gives support from kaThopanishad:

sarve vedA yat-padam Amananti tapAmsi sarvANi ca yad vadanti

yad-icchanto brahmacaryam caranti tat-te padam sa'ngraheNa bravImi yom iti etat || (kaTho. 2.15)

"I shall briefly teach you that abode of which all the veda-s speak, of which the AraNyaka-s and the Upanishad-s mention, desiring which brahmacarya is observed. That is OM".

The Upanishad continues on:

etad-dhyevAksharam brahma stad-dhyevAksharam param etad-dhyevAksharam j~nAtvA yo yadi-icchati tasya tat

|| (2.16)

etad-Alambanam SreshTham etad-Alambanam param | etad-Alambanam j~nAtvA bloke mahIyate || (2.17)

"This letter is indeed Brahman. This very letter is the Supreme. Meditating upon this letter one gets whatever one wants. This is the best support. This is the highewst support. He who knows this is glorified in the world of Brahman".

SrI vAsishTha gives several other references to the Sruti, where the significance of the praNava mantra is revealed to us:

viSve devAsa iha mAdayanta OM pratishTha | (yajur. 3.13)OM krato smara | klive smara | kRtam smara | (yajur. 40.15)OM kham brahma | (yajur. 40.17)Rco akshare parame vyoman asmin devA adhi viSve nisheduH | (Rg. 1.164.9)

The significance of the praNava mantra is the meditation on the mantra with its meaning in mind, which, at a high level, reveals to us the permanent and eternal relationship between us and the paramAtmA, Lord vishNu.

958. paNaH

a) He Who trades His role as Master with His devotees, and becomes subservient to them. b) He Who accepts offerings as the antaryAmi of the different deva-s, and bestows benefits. c) He is constantly active, creating `forms and names'. d) He Who bestows benefits according to karma. e) He Who manages the activities of the Universe. f) He Who is the object of praise (paN stutau to praise). g) He Who assigns and controls the duties of the different gods.

om paNAya namaH.

SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for the nAma as `paNa vyavahAre to bargain, to bet or stake at play', or `paNa stutau topraise'. Most interpreters have used the first meaning, and SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj and SrI satya sandha tIrtha have used the second meaning.

vyavaharati, vyavahArayati vA viSvam, saH paNaH He Who transacts the activites of the world, or He because of whom the people of theworld transact their activites, is paNaH. (The term ApaNa means a market or a shop a place where transactions are conducted). Different interpreters give different anubhavam-s of His `transactions' or dealings with us.

a) SrI BhaTTar draws from the Sesha-SeshI bhAvam, or the Lord-servant relationship that exists between Him and us. While this is thenatural relationship between bhagavAn and us, sometimes He chooses to reverse this relationship, and behaves as if He is the servant of the devotee. This is the `transaction', namely the reversal of the role, that Sri BhaTTar enjoys through this nAma evam teshAm svAmya-dAsya vyatihAreNa vyavaharati iti paNaH He behaves as though there is a transaction whereby there has been an interchange of the role of the Master-servant relationship between Him and us (vyatihAreNa means `interchangeably, reciprocally'). He acts as if they are the masters and He is their servant. SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan notes that this is what is reflected in tirumazhiSai AzhvAr being called `tirumazhiSaip pirAN', and Lord ArAvamudhan of tirukkuDantai being called "ArAvamudha AzhvAr".

Lord kRshNa declares that He considers His true devotees as His AtmA an example of the reversed role.

udArAH sarva evaite j~nAnI tvAtmaiva me matam | AsthitaH sa hi yuktAtmA mAmevAnuttamAm gatim || (gItA7.18)

".I deem the man of knowledge to be My very self; for he, integrated, is devoted to Me alone as the highest end". BhagavadrAmAnuja's vyAkhyAnam is: "ayam mayA vinA Atma dhAraNa asambhAvanayA mAm eva anuttamam prApyam AsthitaH, ataH tena vinA mama api AtmadhAraNam na sambhavati, tato mama api AtmA hi saH" This person (the j~naNi who is solely devoted to Him) considers Him to be the highest, and finds it impossible to support himself without Me; so also, I find it impossible to be without him. Thus, verily, He is My self".

b) There is another aspect to the `transaction' that bhagavAn has put in place. This is in the form of our offerings to the different godsthrough yaj~na etc. SrI vAsishTha gives examples from the Sruti where this `transaction' aspect is captured:

yo agnishomA havishA saparyAt daivadrIcA manasA yo ghRtena | tasya vratam rakshatam pAtamamhaso viSe janAya mahi Sarmayacchatam || (Rg. 1.93.8)

"Whosoever honors agni and soma with devout heart, through oil and poured oblation, for him, they (agni, soma etc.) in turn protect hissacrifice, preserve him from distress, and grant to the sacrificer great falicity".

agniH pUrvebhiH RshbhiH Idyo nUtanairuta | sa devAm eha vakshati || (Rg. 1.1.2)

"Worthy is agni to be praised by the living as by ancient seers; he shall bring hitherword the gods".

agne naya supathA rAye | (Rg. 1.189.1)

"agni, god who knows every sacred duty, by goodly paths lead us to riches".

In the spirit in which SrI vAsishTha has interpreted the nAma, namely, that offerings are made to the devas, and the deva-s inreturn, bestow goods on the people, the following Slokam from the gItA lends support to this thought:

DevAn bhAvayatAnena te devA bhAvayantu vaH | parasparam bhAvayantaH SreyaH param avApsyatha || (gItA 3.11)

ishTAn bhogAn hi vo devA dAsyante yaj~na bhAvitAH | tair-dattAn apradAyaibhyo yo bhu'ngte stena eva saH || (3.12)

"By this (i.e., through sacrifices), please the gods, and the gods will support you. Thus nourishing one another, may you obtain thehighest good". (Note that these deva-s are the bodies of the Lord,and He is their antaryAmi. The offerings to these gods ultimately reach Him only).

"The gods, pleased by the sacrifice, will bestow on you the enjoyments you desire. He who enjoys the bounty of the gods withoutgiving them anything in return, is but a thief".

c) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as one referring to the `transaction' aspect of bhagavAn creating the different life-forms (according to their karma?). He quotes a mantra from the upanishad in support:

sarvANi rUpANi vicitya dhIraH; nAmAni kRtvA'bhivadan yadAste | (taitt. 3.12)

"He, the Wise, keeps creating various forms and giving a name to each".

d) SrI Sa'nkara's alternate interpretation is: puNyANi sarvANi karmANi paNam sa'ngRhya adhikAribhyaH tat-phalam prayacchati iti lakshaNayA paNaH He who awards, to those that are entitled, thefruits of their good karma-s, that they have accumulated". SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 103 -

pramANam prANa-nilayaH prANa-dhRt prANa-jIvanaH | tattvam tattva-vit_ekAtmA janma-mRtyu-jarAtigaH ||

om pramANAya namaH om prANa-nilayAya namaH om prANa-dhRte namaH om prANa-jIvanAya namaH om tattva-vide namaH om ekAtmane namaH om janam-mRtyu-jarAtigAya namaH

959. pramANam The valid authority.

om pramANAya namaH.

We discussed this nAma earlier in Slokam 46 (nAma 429).

SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for the nAma as mA'ng mAne tomeasure, to limit, to compare with, to form, to show, etc. pra- isan uapsarga. The term `pramANam' is used to refer to `proof, validknowledge, authority', etc. prakRshTam mAnam pramANam Superiorknowledge,Valid authority.

SrI BhaTTar explains nAma 429 as "atha kArta yugAnAm hita a-hitayoHpramANam" BhagavAn is the authority for determining what is goodand what is bad for the people who live in the kRta yuga. PramANamis used here in the sense of `vyavasthApanam setting the standard,establishing'. The context in which SrI BhaTTar interprets thesequence of nAma-s 422 to 436, is in terms the kalki incarnation,which will be taken by bhagavAn when a-dharma will become so widethat He decides to eliminate everything and start again with creationin the kRta yuga. When the cycle of yuga-s starts with the kRta yugaafter this current yuga (the kali yuga), bhagavAn sets the standardfor action the right and the wrong. SrI BhaTTar notes thatperception and other means of knowledge are considered authoritativeby being activated by this power of His, and people in this world aresupposed to follow only this mode of His action.

For the current instance of the nAma, SrI BhaTTar explains thatbhagavAn has this nAma since He reveals the secrets and mystic truthsof the veda-s without doubt or error evam nis-samSaya viparyaya veda rahasya paramArtha pratyAyakatvAt paramANam.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains that since bhagavAn reveals the paramArtha the Supreme Truth, to us without any samSayam or viparyayam (beyond anydoubt and without any distortion in truth etc.)., bhagavAn is thetrue pramANam the true proof. He is not only the goal to beachieved prameyam, but He is also the means to achieve the goal.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha interprets the nAma as prakRshTam mAnamvedAdi pramANam yasmin iti pramANam He Who has given the veda-setc. as the highest authority, is pramANam.

SrI vAsishTha uses the generic meaning `measure' for the root `mAn',and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has this nAma signifyingthat prior to creation itself, He has decided and established thenature of the Universe, including the extent, the nature of the guNa-s that dominate our conduct, the different kinds of beings, etc. yAvat-pramANakam, yAdRg-guNam, yAdRg-AkRtimacca jagan-nirmitsati, tat-pramANam tAn guNAn tA'nca AkRtim jagad-ArambhAt pUrvameva tan-nirmAtiparimitayata eva tat-pramANam abhidIyate |

SrI vAsishTha gives several instances from the Sruti to support hisinterpretation:

- anaDvAn indraH sa paSubhyo vicashTe trA'nchako vimimIteadhvanaH (atharva. 4.11.2) nava prANAn navabhiH sam mimIte dIrghAyutvAya SataSaradAya |(atharva. 5.28.1) dhAmAni veda bhuvanAni viSvA | (yajur. 32.10)sa bhUmim sarvato vRtvA atyatishThad-daSA'ngulam | (Rg.10.90.1) etAvan asya mahimA ato jyAyAg'mSca pUrushaH | (yajur. 31.3)

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives another etymological derivation prakrsheNa mimIte Sabdayati, Avishkaroti j~nAnam brahmAdibhya itipramANam He Who clearly reveals or makes known, the true nature ofBrahman etc. (mA'ng = mAne, Sabde ca).

Alternatively, SrI bhAradvAj explains the nAma as prakrsheNa mAnyate brahmAdibhiH iti praMANam He Who is worshipped by the likesof brahmA (mAna pUjAyAm).

One of the alternate interpretations given by SrI satya sandhatIrtha is: prakRshTam mAnam SarIrAdi parimANam tri-vikramAdi rUpeNayasya iti vA pramANam He Who had unusual dimensions for His form inHis tri-vikrama incarnation ( mAne to measure).

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN explains the nAma as "One Who alwaysspeaks the truth". satya bhAshitvAt pramANam. He gives thefollowing in support: "pramANam nitya-maryAdA satya vAdipramAtRshu".

In the amara koSa vyAkhyAnam by Prof. A. A.Ramanathan, he gives the following: "iyattA hetu SAstreshu pramANamsatyavAdinI |", showing the equivalence of the words pramANamand "satya vAdinI".

960. prANa-nilayaH

He Who is the Abode for all beings.

om prANa-nilayAya namaH.

SrI BhaTTar defines prAnA as "prANanti iti prANAH, anye'pi jIvAH Those that live, namely the jIva-s. nilayam means abode. SrIvAsishTha uses the word `nilaya' as `AdhAra' or support. SrI BhaTTargives the analogy of the birds going to their nest at the end of theday for rest. Similarly the jIva-s have Him as their abode. SrImadSrImushNam ANDavan reminds us: "vaikunTham puguvadu maNNavarvidiyE" (tiruvAi. 10.9.9) vaikuNTham is our ultimate final Abode.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN uses the same analogy, and explains thenAma in terms of bhagavAn's incarnation as kRshNa "He in Whom thegopi-s sought support as a result of the intense love of devotion toHim, just as the birds seek shelter in their nest" prANanti tat- snehAmRtena sambandhavateti prANAH tat-preyasIjanAH te nileeyante asmin SakuntA iva nIDe iti prANa-nilayaH.

SrI Sa'nkara uses the term prANa to collectively represent the fivetypes of vAyu-s that help the body function: prANa that sustainslife in the form of the inhaled breath, apAna that denotes theexhaled breath that expels impurities outside of the system, vyAnathat sustains the movements of the systems in the body, udAna thatsupports the movements of the karmendriya-s etc., and samAna thataids the expelling of the waste in the form of stools. SincebhagavAn is the Support of all these functions, and since they allmerge into Him ultimately, He is called prANa-nilayaH.

The term `nilIna' merging with, merging into, has been used by bothSrI Sa'nkara and by SrI vAsishTha in one of their interpretations forthis nAma: prANIti iti prANo jIvaH pare pumsi nilIyata iti prANa-nilayaH The Supreme Person in whom the prANa or jIva merges (SrISa'nkara), and prANA nilIyante yasmin sa prANanilayaH He in Whomthe jIva-s merge (SrI vAsishTha)..

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha comments that bhagavAn has this nAma alsobecause He makes provision for the living of all living beings inwhichever form it is appropriate for them. For example, He providesthe means

for the sustenance and survival of the trees, the beings inthe water and in the land, the humans, etc. in other words, Hemakes the provisions for the different jIva-s to live or have anabode sa sarveshAm shtAvara ja'ngamAnAm ca yatha yogay sAdhanapradAnena vAsayita'taH sa prANa-nilayaH ucyate.

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "He in Whom all prANa-s standestablished. He Who is the very substratum vital foundation forall `activities' manifested in a living organism". This seems tosummarize Sri Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam in terms of prAnA, apAna, etc.,described above.

961. prANa-dhRt He Who sustains the beings.

om prANa-dhRte namaH.

prANa means life. The word dhRt is derived from the root dhR dhAraNe to hold, to support, to bear.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is "tAn mAtR-vat dhArayati ca iti prANa-dhRt" He Who nourishes theliving beings like a mother.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr, who praises bhagavAn as "Our mother, Our father, Our soul" the three that always work for our welfare and benefit, in the present, in the past and in the future:

pOginRa kAla'ngaL, pOya kAla'ngaL, pOgu kAla'ngaL, tAi tandai uyirAginRAi! unnai nAn aDaindEn viDuvEnO. (tiruvAi.2.6.10)

The pATham `prANa-bhRt' is used by Sri Sa'nkara, SrI vAsishTha etc.The root in this case is bhR dhAraNa poshaNayoH to hold, tosupport. Sri Sa'nkara's interpretation is poshayan anna rUpeNa prANAn prANa-bhRt He Who nourishes the beings by means of food, or in the form of food.

Sri vAsishTha gives the interpretation sarvatra vyAptaH sarveshAm prANinAm prANAn bibharti = poshayati, dhArayati vA saH prANa-bhRt He Who pervades everything, and nourishes and supports everything isprANa-bhRt.

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "He Who rules over all prANa-s SrI Hari is the One Who causes everyone to eat, digest, feelenergized, act, achieve the fruits thereof, grow old and die. In allthese activities, the great One, Commanding, Factor, Divine, SrInArAyana, the Self, presides in silent detachment, and by Hispresence He initiates and maintains all these activities in allliving creatures upon the earth's surface".

SrI satya sandha tIrtha gives the following interpretation prANAn indriyANi bibharti iti prANa-bhRt He Who nourishes and supports theindriya-s and life.

962. prANa-jIvanaH He Who nourishes the beings.

om prANa-jIvanAya namaH.

The root involved in the nAma is jIv prANa dhAraNe to live, tosupport life. jIvayati iti jIvanaH; prANAnAm jIvanaH prANa jIvanaH He Who supports life.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as: "tAn anna pAnIyAdivat jIvayati itiprANa-jIvanaH" He Who supports life even as food and drink do.SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan comments that even the food and the wateretc., have their power to sustain life only because He has given themthis power.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to a pASuram fromnammAzhvAr, where AzhvAr declares that for devotees like him,bhagavAn is verily the food that is eaten, the drink that isconsumed, etc. In other words, they will not live without Him:

uNNum SORu parugu nIr tinnum veRRilaiyum ellAmkaNNan, emperumAn (tiruvAi. 6.7.1)

"emperumAn kaNNan is the food that we consume, the water that wedrink, and the betel leaves that we chew after food". He is thetArakam (sustenance), poshakam (nurturing), and bhogyam (enjoyment)for His devotee.

SrI kRshNan comments that bhagavAn offers Himself as the food for thetrue devotees, and they cannot live without Him, and so He is theirlife or jIvanam. So He is prANa-jIvanaH. SrI kRshnan notes thatthis same idea is conveyed by the phrase "vAsudevaH sarvam" in thegItA.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives an interpretation that has the samespirit: "prANAn jIvAn bhajana parAyaNAn jIvyati sva-darSana dAnenaiti prANa-jIvanaH He Who rejuvenates His devotees who sing Hispraise, by revealing Himself to them".

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: "prANino jIvayan prANAkhyaiH pavanaiHprANa-jIvanaH" He Who makes the beings live by means of prANa orvital air. He gives the following Sruti in support:

na prANena na apAnena martyo jIvati kaScana | itarena tu jIvanti yasmin etAvupASritau || (kaTho. 5.5)

"A man, whosoever he may be, does not live by prANa or apana, but bysomething else on which both of these depend". In other words,bhagavAn is the Supporter of prANa by which the life is supported.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that life is not the vital air, or thebody, or the mind, by itself. It is a mysterious togetherness of allof these that causes life, and this is made possible by bhagavAnalone, and nothing else. So He is the true Support of life, or theGiver of life to every living being.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha's interpretation is: prANena mukhya prANena jIvayati janAn iti prANa jIvanaH He Who sustains life through thevital airs.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN explains the nAma as: "prANAH te jIvanamasya iti prANa-jIvanaH" - He Who has His devotees as His prANa orlife. This idea of how bhagavAn treats those who are dear to Him asHis own AtmA, has been described before, most recently under nAma950, Slokam 102 (gItA 7.18).

SrI vAsishTha gives several supporting mantra-s from the Sruti:

- yo asya sarva janmana ISe sarvasya ceshTataH | atandro brahmaNA dhIraH prANo mA nu tishTatu || (atharva.11.4.24)

"I pray to prANa, alert and resolute, Who is the Lord of all and whois responsible for the activities of all in this universe of variousbeings that move and work".

- prANAya namo yasya sarva idam vaSe | (atharva. 11.4.1)

"Homage to prANa under whose control everything in this universeexists".

- prANam Ahur mAtariSvAnam vAto ha prANa ucyate | prANe ha bhUtam bhavyam ca prANe sarvam pratishTitam ||(atharva. 11.4.15)

"The name prANa is bestowed on mAtariSvan, also known as the wind(air). On this prANa depend the past, the future and everything inthe present".

There are different dimensions to supporting the life forms, startingfrom giving a body to the jIva-s, giving them the vital airs forsurvival, the food to eat, the water to drink, the mind to think, theindriya-s to act with, etc., all functioning in a coordinated andhighly regulated way, till death parts the body and the soul.Between the nAma-s prANa-daH, prANa-dhRt or prANa-bhRt, and prANa-jIvanaH, one can see that all these supports happen because of Him,and thus He is the sole Creator, Protector, and Destroyer in the end.

963.tattvam - He Who is the Essence.

om tattvAya namaH.

SrI vAsishTha derives the wordtat from the root tanu - vistAre - to extend, to spread, to go. The application of the uNAdi sUtra 1.132 leads to the addition the affix adi to the root tan: tan + adi = tad. The application of the pANini sUtra 5.1.119 - tasya bhAvaH tvatalau - (The affixes tva and tal come after a word in the sixth sense in construction, in the sense of "the nature thereof"),leads to the word tat-tvam. (e.g., aSvasya bhAvaH aSvat-tvam, go-tvam etc.). tanyata iti tat, sthAvara ja'ngamAtmakam jagat,tasya sAra bhUtam vastu tat-tvam ityarthaH - This universe is denoted by theterm `tat', which consists of movable and immovable things spread all over; theessence of basis of all this is tat-tvam.

SrI vAsishTha gives thefollowing from the atharva veda in support:

yo vidyAt sUtram yasminnotAHprajA imAH

| || (atharva. 10.8.37)

sUtram sUtrasya yo vidyAt sa vidyAt brAhmaNam mahat

"One who knows thedrawn-out string whereon all these creatures are strung, one who knows the thread's thread, knows the Great Brahman".

That without the support orexistence of which a given thing cannot function, can be considered to be itstattvam, its essence or support. Thus, for a machinery, the oil orlubricant is something without which it cannot function for a prolonged time,and so it can be considered one of its tattva-s. Everything in thisuniverse that functions will not exist without Him, and so He is the tattvabehind all that exist.

SrI BhaTTar interprets the term`tattvam' as `sArAmSa' - and this is translated as `essence', or `the principleof the universe' by the translators. SrI BhaTTar clarifies theinterpretation through an example: "dadhi dugdhayoriva dadhisAraH cit acitoH vyApti prayojanAbhyAm sArAmSaHtat-tvam" Like butter which is the essence of milk and curd, bhagavAn, by His pervasionand usefulness in the sentient and non-sentient things, is the essence of allthings. Butter gives texture,taste, the energy content, etc., to milk and curd. So also, bhagavAn isthe essence of all things, by being the cause of their existence, the source oftheir sustenance etc..

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives theanalogous reference from nammAzhvAr:

iRandadum nIyE.. kaRanda pAl neyyE! Neyyin in SuvaiyE! KaDalinuL amudE! amudil piRanda in SuvaiyE! Suvaiyadu payanE! pinnai tOL maNanda pErALA! (tiruvAi. 8.1.7)

"Oh my Lord! You are theghee present latent in fresh milk. You are the covetable taste of theghee. You are the nectar from the ocean; no, the taste of the nectar; no,no, You are the pleasure that one derives from enjoying the nectar...".

SrI BhaTTar gives the followingsupport for his interpretation:

paramArtham aSeshasya jagataHprabhavApyayam | SaraNyam SaraNam gacchan govindam nAvasIdati ||

ekato vA jagat kRtsnam ekato vAjanArdanaH sArato jagataH kRtsnAt atirikto janArdanaH ||

"Govinda is the trueentity and He is the cause of creation, destruction, as well as protection. If a person seeks refuge in Him, he will never be in grief".

"Place the entire Universein one pan of a balance, and bhagavAn janArdana in another, and you will findthat janArdana is superior to the whole Universe because of His intrinsicgreatness".

ANDAL refers to Him as "tattuvan"in naAcciyAr tirumozhi 5.6:

iLam kuyilE! en tattuvanaivarak kUviRRiyAgil talaiyallAl kaimmARu ilEnE.

(nAcci. tiru.5.6)

ANDAL is asking the bird to goand tell the Lord - the tattuvan,, of her condition, and ask Him to come to herright away without delay. She tells the bird she will forever be indebtedto it if it can do this help for her. tattuvan here refers to His beingthe sole reason for herexistence - the essence of her life.

Another pASuram in whichnammAzhvAr describes bhagavAn being the essence of everything that exists, is intiruvAimozhi pASuram 6.9.7:

ulagil tiriyum karuma gatiyAiulagamAi ulagukkE Or uyirum AnAi ..

(tiruvAi. 6.9.7)

"You are the karma-s; the worlds in which they are performed, the Soul of all the beings".

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavanrefers us to the following from the gItA in support of His being the tattvambehind everything:

yad-yad vibhUtimat sattvamSrImad-Urjitameva vA | tat-tad-evAvagaccha tvam mama tejo'mSa sambhavaH || (gItA 10.41)

"Whatever being ispossessed of power, or splendor, or energy, know that as coming from a fragment of My power".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri givesanother view of the term `tattvam' - that which leads to existence, and thatwhich does not cease to exist whenthe being that came into existence disappears, is the true origin or source - the tattva. The other sources that disappearover time, are not the true cause. He comments that `tat' is the word-formof Brahman that is the true cause of everything. tat-tvam is the nature ofthis `tat', as has been explained in the first paragraph.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAjrefers us to the nArAyaNa Upanishad tattvam nArAyaNaH paraH - nArAyaNa is the Supreme Reality.

SrI Sa'nkara interprets theterm `tattva' as synonymous with `brahman' "tattvam, amRtam, paramArthaH, satattvam iti ete ekArtha vAcinaH | paramArtha sato brahmaNo vAcakaH SabdaH tattvam | The words tattva, amRta, satya, pramArtha, and satattva are synonyms, andmean the Supreme Brahman.

964. tattva-vit - The Knower ofTruth.

om tattva-vide namaH.

The term `tattvam' has beenexplained above. The root vid - to know, is the second part of the nAma. tattvam tat-svarUpamvetti iti tattva-vit - "He Whoknows the true nature of Himself".

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAmaas "AtmanaH tattvam vetti iti tattva- vit" - "One Who knows thetruth about Himself", or One Who knows the truth about the tattva. The truth that bhagavAn is theSupreme Deity and the Lord of all,is something that is not easily understood even by the likes of brahmA, rudra and indra, as repeatedly pointedout by nammAzhvAr:

- Surar aRivu aru nilai (tiruvAi.1.1.8) - He is of such nature that even the deva-s cannot understand His tattvam. - uNarnduuNarndu uNarilum uyar nilai uNarvadu aridu uyigAL! (tiruvAi. 1.3.6) - It is just not easy, even with intense contemplation,to understand the true nature of the Supreme Deity.

SrI BhaTTar refers to Slokam10.15 in the gItA, in which arjuna declaresthat bhagavAn knows Himself by His own Self:

svayameva AtmanAtmAnam vetthatvam purushottama bhUta bhAvana bhUteSa devadeva jagatpate

|| (gItA10.15)

"O Supreme Person, OCreator of beings, O Lord of all beings, O God of all gods, O Ruler of the Universe, You Yourself knowYourself by Yourself".

SrI BhaTTar also refers to theSruti vAkyam - "tvameva tvAm vettha" - You alone are aware of Yourself".

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan refers usto tArA's description of bhagavAn as`a-prameyan' (SrImad rAmAyaNam) He Who is beyond the reach of ourintellect (pramA means `buddhi'). It is not just the ordinary mortalslike us who can't fully comprehend Him through our intellect, buteven the SAstra-s return back declaring that He is beyond description. The taittirIya upanishad declares: yato vAco nivatante, aprApaya manasA saha (Anandavalli) - Words, alongwith the mind, turn back withoutbeing to fully comprehend the Bliss of Brahman,which is infinite. The deva-s are unable to fully know Him, aswe have seen through nammAzhvAr's words above. Even He is unable tofully realize His own greatness. SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan refers toAzhvAr's words: "tanakkum tan tanmai aRiya aRiyAnai" - He whose greatnessis such that even He cannot know it fully. AlavandAr declaresin his stotra ratnam: "yasyAste mahimAnam Atmana iva tat- vallbho'piprabhuH" - Neither bhagavAn's greatness nor pirATTi's greatnesscan be known either by Him or by Her, because there is no limitto it, and so even they cannot measure something that has no limit. The idea is that of all those who can know Him, He knows Himself the most.

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAmaas "tattvam svarUpam yathAvat vetti iti tattva-vit" - "He Who knows the Truth as itis".

BhagavAn alone knows thefunctions of creation, preservation, destruction,giving the benefits to the jIva-s according to their karma-s, taking the jIva to Him ultimately at the appropriatetime, etc., and no one else does.

965. ekAtmA - The one uniqueand Superior Soul.

om ekAtmane namaH.

eka means `one, and `AtmA'refers to `soul'. SrI BhaTTar explains thatbhagavAn is the One and only Supreme Soul who controls all the othersouls, and so He is ekAtmA - sarvasya cit acit vargasya ayam ekaeva SeshI bhoktA abhimAnau ca iti ekAtmA - He is ekAtmA because Heis the Sole Master, Enjoyer, and Well-wisher of all sentient and non-sentient objects. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us tonammAzhvAr's pASuram, wherebhagavAn is called `Or uyirEyO!" - which is`translated' by SrI V. N. Vedanta deSikan as `ekAtmA' in his tamizhtranslation. He obviously chose this word for the tamizh translationbecause `ekAtmA' summarizes AzhvAr's thoughts the best, eventhough it is not a tamizh word. The pASuram of interest is:

AruyirEyO! AgaliDa muzhudumpaDaittu iDandu uNDu umizhndu aLandaPEruyirEyO! Periya nIr paDaittu a'ngu uRaindu adu kaDaindu aDaittu uDaitta SIruyirEyO! maniSarkku dEvar pOla devarkkum devAvO! Or uyirEyO! Ulaga'ngaTkellAm unnai nAn e'ngu vandu uRugO! (tiruvAi.8.1.5)

"The vast universe wascreated, once dug out from deep waters (varAha incarnation), swallowed (pralaya), spat out (creation afterpralaya), scaled with feet (trivikramaincarnation), all by You, out of grace. You made the seas, churned them, bridged the ocean, and brokea part of it later. You aremy dear life. You are the Lord of all the deva- s, and You are far abovethe deva-s just as the deva-s are far above the humans. Your are the Supreme Soul above all theother souls, the Creator, Protectorand Destroyer of the universe. How am I to reach You? Pray tell me."

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan quotesthe following Sruti vAkya in support of SrIBhaTTar's interpretation of the nAma nityo nityAnAm cetanaS- cetanAnAm eko bahUnAm yo vidadAti kAmAn He Who is the Most Eternal aboveall the nitya-s, the Supreme above al the cetana-s, the One Who constitutes the many,and the One Who bestows all the wishes of all theother beings.

SrI Sa'nkara `s vyAkhyAnam isekaSca asau AtmA ca iti ekAtmA - The oneSelf. He gives the following in support:

AtmA vA idameka agra AsIt |nAnyat ki'ncana mishat | sa IkshatalokAnnu sRjA iti | (Aita. 1.1.)

"In the beginning all thiswas this Atman alone. There was nothing else that winked. He willed "Let me create theworlds".

He also gives the li'nga purANain support:

yaccApnoti yad-Adatte yaccAttivishayAniha

yaccAsya santato bhAvas-tasmAd Atmeti gIyate || (li'nga. 70.96)

"That which pervades, thatwhich receives, that which enjoys the objects,and that which exists always, is called the Atman".

SrI satya devo vAsishThaexplains the nAma as: "eva'nca sa vishNureva sarvasya sthAvara ja'ngama rUpasya viSvasya ekaAtmA sarvatra vyAptatvAt ekAtmA Lord vishNu, who pervades everything in thisUniverse of sentient and non-sentient objects, is called ekAtmA.

SrI satya sandha tIrthaexplains the nAma as "eka AtmA = mukhya svAmI = The Supreme Deity.

966. janma-mRtu-jarAtigaH - HeWho is beyond birth, death and old age.

om janma-mRtyu-jarAtigAya namaH.

janma = birth; mRtyu = death,jara =old age; atigaH = He Who is beyond. The meaning for the nAma is thus derived easily. Just for thesake of completeness, the respective roots are: jani - pradurbhAve- ; mR'ng - prANa-tyAge - ; jRsh - vayohAnau - ; gam - gacchati- to go with ati- as prefix meaning overstep, go beyond (atigacchcatiiti atigaH). janma mRtyu jarA atigacchati it janam- mRtyu-jarAtigaH.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAmaas One Who is beyond birth, death, agingetc.. His vyAkhyAnam is - tathApi tad-ubhaya vidharmAtmA - He Who,while being the Inner Soul or antaryAmi of all the sentient and nonsentientobjects, is not affected by their attributes (such as rajas,tamas, puNya, pApa etc.). The ordinary souls accumulate the effectsof the puNya-s and pApa-s that they accrue while they are embodied. Unlike these souls, bhagavAn is not touched by any of theseeffects of puNya-s and pApa-s even though He is the antaryAmi ofall these objects. In addition, when He assumes a body out of His ownfree will, He is not born like the rest of us, and is not subject toaging, death etc. like the rest of us.

It is important to understandthe difference between the body and the soul in order to understand the meaning of this nAma. Ordinary souls (jIva-s) also arebeyond birth, death and decay. But they get a body based on their previous karma-s, to enable them to enjoy theeffects of these karma-s. This body is subject to birth, death and decay. The jIva-s go through repeated births and deaths, with theassociated new bodies, until theyexhaust all their karma-s, and ultimately realize the paramAtman and are relieved of this cycle of birthand death. BhagavAn is notsubject to this cycle, since He is not touchedby the effects of karma ever. Lord kRshNa declares in the gItA:

na mAm karmaNi limpanti na mekarma phale spRhA | iti mAm yo'bhijAnAti karmabhir na sa badhyate || (gItA 4.14)

"Works do not contaminateMe. In Me there is no desire for fruits of actions. He who understands Me thus is not bound byactions".

Even though He has all thesentient and non-sentient beings as His body according to the viSishTAdvaita philosophy, SrI BhaTTarexplains that BhagavAn is still nottouched by the dharma-s (namely, sins, gooddeeds, the resulting birth, death etc,), of these sentient and non-sentientbeings, but instead, it is the souls of these beings thatget the effects of these karma-s. The bodies of all the sentientand non-sentient beings are part of His body in the sense thatthey are all subservient to Him and are fully under His control. So are the souls of all these beings - they areHis body, and are subservient toHim. He is the antaryAmi of these souls, and is a witness and the Energizer of these souls; however He is not touched by theirkarmas, and so He is never born, and so there is no question of aging, death etc. There is no such thing askarma for Him, since all Hisactions are all selfless, and are devoted to the benefitof all the beings that exist. None of His actions is for His benefit.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshnan delves insome length on some of the above pointsin his sahasra nAma upanyAsam for this nAma.

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: "jAyate, asti, vardhate, vipariNamate, apakshIyate,naSyati, iti shaD-bhAva vikArAn atItya gacchati iti janma-mRtyu-jarAtigaHHe Who transcends the six kinds of changes, namely conception, birth, growth, maturity, decay and death.

SrI vAsishTha refers us to aRg-vedic mantra that conveys the sense ofthis nAma:

akAmo dhIro amRtaH svayambhUrasena tRpto na kutaScanonaH | tameva vidvAn na vibhAya mRtyor-AtmAnam dhIrm ajaram yuvAnam || (Rg. 10.8.44)

"Desirelss, firm,immortal, self-existent, contented with the essence,lacking nothing, free from fear of death is he who knows thatSoul courageous, youthful and undecaying".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri givesthe following upanishadic mantra in support:

- sa vA esha mahAn aja AtmAajaraH amaraH amRtaH abhayaH brahma abhayamvai brahma abhayam hi vai brahma bhavati ya evam veda (bRhadAraNya.4.4.25).

"That infinite birthlessundecaying , indestructible immortal, and fearless self (ParamAtman) is the Supreme Brahman. TheSupreme Brahman is devoid of fear. He who knows that Supreme Brahman thus becomesindeed the fearless parabrahman".

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

-(will continue) SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 104 -

bhUr-bhuvas-svastarus_tAraH savitA pra-pitAmahaH | yaj~no yaj~na-patir_yajvA yaj~nA'ngo yaj~na-vAhanaH ||

om bhUr-bhuva-svas-tarave namaH. om tArAya namaH. om savitre namaH. om prapitA-mahAya namaH. om yaj~nAya namaH. om yaj~na-pataye namaH. om yajvane namaH. om yaj~nA'ngAya namaH. om yaj~na-vAhanAya namaH.

967. bhUr-bhuvas-svas-taruH

He Who is the tree for the beings of the three worlds -earth, sky and heaven (svarga loka)..

om bhUr-bhuvas-svas-tarave namaH.

The term bhU here refers to this world; bhuvaH refers to the middle world,the antariksha or sky, and sva refers to the heavenly world (svargaloka). The term `taru' means `tree'. Since He is the protectionfor all the beings of all the three worlds, and since He bestowsall the fruits to the beings of all these worlds, He is called the tree for the beings of the three worlds. SrI BhaTTar explains the nAmaas "bhUr-bhuvas-svarupalakshitaiH pakshi pathikairiva prANibhiH upajIvyamAnac-chAya patralapArijAtaH bhUr- bhuvas-svastaruH"- He is like the pArijAta, the celestial tree, for all the beings living in the worlds beginning withearth, sky and heaven, evenas a tree is a welcome resort for the birds and the travelersby virtue of its green foliage and cool shade.

SrI Apte gives the following meanings for the terms bhU-loka, bhuvar-loka andssar-loka:

- bhU-loka - the world in which we live, as opposed to antariksha or svarga. - bhuvar-loka - the second of the three vyAhRti-s; the space immediately abovethe earth. - svar-loka: paradise, the paradise of indra, and the temporary abode ofthe virtuous after death, the space above the sun or between the sun and thepolar star, the third of the three vyAhRti-s.

SrI VeLukkuDi kRshNan notes that in this nAma only three out of the fourteenworlds, namely the bhU, bhUva and svar-loka-s, are mentioned,and the protection aspect described in this nAma refers to the naimittika pralaya, when the three worlds referredto by the terms bhU. Bhuva,and svar-loka-s get submerged in the waters during thepralaya, and bhagavAn protects all the beings of these three worldsby swallowing them and keeping them in His stomach. However, Heis also the Protector for all the beings in all the fourteen worlds. So the nAma can be understood to mean that bhagavAn is the Protectivetree for all the beings of all the fourteen worlds.

SrI BhaTTar gives the following support:

samASritAt brahma taroH anantAt | nis-samSayaH pakva phala prapAtaH || (VP 1.17.91)

"If a person resorts to the eternal Tree of Brahman, there is no doubt thatthe ripe fruit (of release from the bondage of samsAra and the attainment ofmoksha) will certainly fall in his hands."

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 2.8.5, whereAzhvAr refers to the same concept:

OvAt tuyarp piRavi uTpaDa maRRu ivvevvaiyum mUvAt tani mudalAi mU ulagum kAvalOn.. (tiruvAi. 2.8.5)

"Single-handedly, bhagavAn protects all the beings of the three worlds,who are full of sufferings etc. He is the Sole cause for all the beings, and after creating them, He takesresponsibility for protectingthem, and does not back down under any circumstance".

Specifically to be noted in this nAma is the emphasis on the protectionaspect of bhagavAn (taru - one that provides the cool shadeand protection from the torture of the heat of samsAra). In histiruvAimozhi, nammAzhvAr emphasizes that even though bhagavAn is responsiblefor all three functions - creation, protection and destruction, protection is His primary concern (kAkkumiyalvinan kaNNa perumAn -tiruvAi. 2.2.9). This protection aspect of bhagavAn isto be specially enjoyed in this nAma.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshnan gives a quote from SrImad rAmAyaNa where rAma is describedby tArA as a tree of protection, hope and refuge for all:

nivAsa vRkshaH sAdhUnAm ApannAnAm parA gatiH | ArtAnAm samSrayaScaiva yaSaSca eka bhAjanam | | (kishkindA. 15.19)

"(rAma) is the protective tree for the sAdhu-s or the virtuous people; He is the safe Abode for the suffering; He is the Protector for those whohave no other protection; He is the One who is worthy of praise".

SrI Sa'nkara uses the root `tR - plavana taraNayoH - to cross over, toswim', in his primary interpretation for the nAma, and gives the meaning"One Who helps in crossing over the three worlds - bhU loka, bhuvarloka and svar loka". His vyAkhyAnam is: "bhUr-bhuvaHsvaH samAkhyAni trINi vyAhRti rUpANi

SukrANi trayI sArANibahvRcA AhuH | tair-homAdinAjagat-trayam tarati plavate vA iti bhUr-bhuvas-svastaruH". He bases his interpretation onthe following Rg vedic mantra,which also occurs in the taittirIya Upanishad:

bhUr-bhuva-suvariti etAs-tisro vyAhRtayaH | .. bhUriti vA ayam lokaH | bhuvarityantariksham | suvarityasaulokaH | ... bhUriti vA agniH |bhuva iti vAyuH | suvarityAdityaH | .. bhUriti vA RcaH | bhuva iti sAmAni | suvariti yajUgmshi | .. bhUriti vai prANaH | bhuva ityapAnaH | suvariti vyAnaH |"

"BhagavAn created the three worlds; then He created agni in this world,vAyu in the sky, and sUrya in the heaven. From these came the threeveda-s: Rg veda from agni, yajur veda from vAyu, and sAma veda fromthe Sun. Out of these again came the three vyAhRti-s or sounds: bhUH from agni, bhuvaH from vAyu, and svaH from the Sun. By performinghoma using these three vyAhRti-s, one crosses the three worlds". Based on this, Sri Sa'nkara's interpretation for the nAma as`One Who helps those who perform homa using these vyAhRti-s to crossover the three worlds that are the origin of these three vyAhRti-s".

An alternate interpretation given by SrI Sa'nkara is - bhUr-bhuvaH svarAkhyamloka trayam vRkshavat vyApya tishThati iti bhUr-bhuvaH- sars-taruH - Lord vishNu has this nAma signifying that He isspread out in the threeworlds bhUH, bhuvaH and svaH like a tree.

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as: bhUH iti bhU lokaH, buvaH iti antariksham,svaH iti dyu-lokaH, ete trayo lokAH trayaH skandhA iva yamASritya tishThanti, sa eteshAm AdhAro mUla-bhUtaH parameSvaraH tarur-ivasthito bhUr-bhuvas-svastaruH - " He Who serves as the tree underwhich all the beings of this world, the sky and the heaven seek refuge,is bhUr-bhuvas-svas-taru".

968.tAraH

Savior; He Who is a ferry to cross theocean of samsAra.

om tArAya namaH.

We saw this nAma in Slokam 37 earlier (nAma340).

The root from which the nAma is derived is tRR plavanasantaraNayoH to cross over, to swim. He who helps the jIva-s that are deeply immersed in the ocean of samsAra,to cross this ocean.

For nAma 340, SrI BhaTTar gives theinterpretation "Savior" sarva samsAra bhayAt tArayati iti tAraH One Who protects us from the ocean of samsAra. He gives a quote from the atharva Siras in support:

garbha janma jarA maraNa samsAra sAgaramahA bhayAt tArayatiiti | tasmAt tAraH |

"He makes all cross over the greatfears of the ocean of samsAracomprising conception, birth, old age, and death. Therefore, He iscalledtAraH".

Note that bhagavAn Himself is beyond allthese fears, since He isnever born (a-jAyamAnaH), He is beyond aging (a-jaraH), and beyonddeath (a-maraH).

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference totiruma'ngai AzhvAr's periyatirumozhi, where the guNa of bhagavAn signified by the nAma tAraH ispraised:

nandA naragattu azhundA vagai nALumentAi! tonDar Anavarkku in aruL SeivAi (periya tiru. 11.8.10)

"You Who help Your devotees by makingsure they do not get submergedin the hell-like experience of samsAra".

Because samsAra is compared to an ocean,and bhagavAn helps crossthis, He is traditionally compared to a ferry. SrI kRshNan refers usto ANDAL'sreference to Him as the ferry to cross all miseries: nALumtunbak kaDal pukku vaikuntan enRu Or tONi peRAdu uzhalginREn (nAcci.tiru. 5.4). SrI kRshNan also refers us to the divya dESam by nametiru nAvAi (literally meaning "The Blessed Ship"), where Lordmukundangives moksham to the devotees who worship Him.

Drawing from an example from SrI KRshNan,all that a measly worm hasto do to cross from one peak to another peak in its lifetime, is toclimb on alion that jumps from the first peak to the second peak, andin the process, the worm has achieved the otherwise impossible feat.Similarly, all that the jIva has to do is to surrender to Lord nRsimha,the man-lion incarnation, and He will make sure that the jIvacrosses the insurmountable obstacle of crossing the ocean of samsAra.He is like a boat that carries one from one shore to the othershore. All that the individual has to do is to get into the boat,and leave the navigation to the boatman.

SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is also thatbhagavAn has this nAmasignifying that He helps us cross the ocean of samsAra samsArasAgaramtArayan tAraH. His alternate interpretation is "tAraH praNavovA" The word tAra refers to the praNava mantra, since meditatingon the praNava mantra uplifts one from the ocean of samsAra.SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan also points to the significance ofthe praNava mantra as the uplifter from samsAra.

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as"One Who helps us cross over;the Eternal Boat-man, to whom, if the devotee can surrender inunswervingfaith and true devotion, He will surely row them across theOcean of samsAra. That One is tAraH. Through exclusive, devoted meditation,alert with understanding, the individuality in each of us wakesup to the higher plane, and there, in that Be-attitude to experiencethe Self the Eternal Brahman SrI Hari".

The dharma cakram writer notes that weshould take a hold of bhagavAninstead of being taken hold of by nature. We should dedicateourselvesto His service in everything we do. The rAma nAma is called`tAraka mantra', because it protects those who meditate on thistAraka nAma. Just as hanumAn was able to cross the ocean by chantingLord rAma's name, we will be able to cross the ocean of samsAraby meditating on His name. He quotes the common saying in tamizh: "rAman irukkum iDattil kAman illai; kAman irukkum iDatitil rAmanillai" (Where there is rAma, there is no desire in material things;where is desire in material things, there is no dedication torAma". The more intensely we resort to the tAraka mantra, the fasterwe will be relieved from the bondage of samsAra.

969.savitA He Who produces.

om savitre namaH.

SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for thenAma as sU prANi garbhavimocane to produce, to bring forth. sUte sarvam jagat iti savitA;sarvasyautpAdaka ityarthaH He Who creates everything in the universeis savitA.

We studied this nAma in Slokam 94 (nAma887), with the same genericmeaning, but interpreted by SrI BhaTTar as a reference to bhagavAn inthe formof the Sun (the producer of rain, crops etc)., since the contextthere was the description of the arcirAdi mArga, of which Sun isthe seventh step. The current interpretation refers to bhagavAn asthe Creator of everything sarveshAm sAkshAt janayitA savitA. SrImadSrImushNam ANDavan refers us to the upanishad mantra "so'kAmayata| bahu syAm prajAyeyeti |" (taittirIya. Ananda. 6) Hewilled : May I become many. May I be born.

SrI kRshNan stresses the importance of theword `sAkshAt' in SrIBhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam. When it is stated that bhagavAn is the Creatorofeverything in all the worlds, some may have a doubt that the fourfacedbrahmA is the true creator. SrI kRshNan points out that there aretwo aspects to sRshTi a-dvAraka sRshTi, and sa-dvAraka sRshTi. In thefirst category, bhagavAn first creates the 24 tattva-s (prakRti,mahAn, aha'nkAra, the five tanmAtra-s or subtle elements (Sabda,sparSa, rUpa, rasa, and gandha - sound, touch, sight, taste, smell),the pa'nca bhUta-s (ether, air, agni or light, water, earth),the five karmendriya-s (hand, leg, tongue, anus, and the organof reproduction), the five j~nAnendriya-s (ear, eye, mouth, nose,and skin), and manas. After this, He creates the first being, thecatur-mukha brahmA, and endows him with the knowledge for proceedingfurther with creation. He becomes the antaryAmi of brahmA,and guides him in the creation after this point. All the a- dvArakasRshTi is performed by bhagavAn through the medium of catur- mukhabrahmA. If it were not for

the knowledge and power given to brahmAby bhagavAn, the subsequent stage of sa-dvAraka sRshTi through brahmAwould not have happened. So the true Creator is bhagavAn sAkshAtjanayitA. The creation that takes place through brahmA is thesa-dvAraka sRshTi by bhagavAn in other words, the process of creationcontinued by Him through the medium of brahmA.

nammAzhvAr, in many of his tiruvAimozhipASurams, repeatedly remindsus that bhagavAn is the true Creator, Protector and Destroyer. Oneamongthese is pASuram 1.5.3, where AzhvAr refers to bhagavAn's actionof creating brahmA and delegating the further responsibility toHim for subsequent creation: nI yOnigaLaip paDai enRu niRai nAnmuganaippaDaittavan.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN uses the pAThamsa-pitA, and interpretsthe word `sa-pitA" as two nAma-s: sa, and pitA. This interpretationmight have been chosen because of the next nAma (pra-pitAmahaH,meaning "Great Grandfather". But for thenAma pita, he essentially the same interpretation as SrI BhaTTar has given forthe nAma `savitA', namely, The Father of all, or the Creator of all "teshAmjanakatvAt pitA". We already noted earlier that SrI ananta kRshNaSAstry also has used the same pATham, and his interpretation isalso same.

970.pra-pitA-mahaH The Great-grandfather.

om prapitAmahAya namaH.

SrI vAsishTha starts the derivation of thenAma from the root pA rakshaNe to protect. The word pitR (father) is derived byapplicationof the uNAdi sUtra 2.95. pitAmaha refers to father's father(pANini 4.2.36). `pra' is added to pitAmaha in the sense of`gone', or `previous' (pANini. 2.2.18), leading to the nAma `prapitAmahaH' Great grand-father pitAmahInAmapi pitA pra-pitAmahaH.

The four-faced brahmA is called pitAmaha orgrand-father because hecreated the prajApati-s, the first beings, who thencreated all the other prajA-s all the other beings. amarakoSavyAkhyAnam gives the definition for pitAmaha as "agnishvAttAdipitRRNAm pitA pitAmahaH (the term agnishvAtta is given the meaning `tasted bythe funeral fire' by Monier-Williams; thus, the amarakOSadescription refers to brahmA as the father of all our forefathers who aredead and gone from time immemorial). Since bhagavAn is the Fatherof this catur- mukha brahmA, He is called "pitAmahasya pita orprapitAmahaH".

SrI satya sandha tIrtha explains the nAmaas:

"loka pitRRNAMmarIcyAdInAm pitA pitAmahaH catur-mukhaH, tasya pitRtvAt "pra- pitAmahaH", which conveys the same idea asconveyed above.

In several places in tiruvAimozhi,nammAzhvAr refers to bhagavAnbeing the Creator of catur-mukha brahmA first, and then entrustingbrahmA tobe the creator of the rest of the beings such as the prajApati-setc. For instance, in tiruvAimozhi pASuram 1.5.3, AzhvAr says:

mA yOnigaLAi naDai kaRRa vAnOr palarummunivarum nIyOnigaLaip paDai enRu niRai nAnmuganaip paDaittavan. (1.5.3)

BhagavAn created brahmA, endowed him withadequate knowledge, andassigned the function of subsequent creation to him so that he couldthencreate all the deva-s , Rshi-s etc, with their superior knowledgeand powers.

Sri Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: "pitAmahasya brahmaNo'pi pitA iti pra-pitAmahaH" He is called prapitAmahaH because He is the Creator of brahmA,who himself is known as the grandfather of all.

Just to give a feel for how some vyAkhyAnakartA-s look for hiddenmeanings in their interpretations, the following is by SrI raghunAthatIrtha: prapIn tAmayati hanti ca iti prapi-tAma-haH prapIn = mithyA j~nAnAdi rUpa pApavataH asurAn tAmayati hanti ca iti prapi- tAma-haH He Who kills the sinful demons having false knowledge and throwsthem in darkness.

971.yaj~naH He Who is the Sacrifice.

om yaj~nAya namaH.

We studied this nAma in Slokam 48 (nAma446).

The nAma is derived from the root yaj deva pUjA sa'ngati karaNayajana dAneshu to sacrifice, to make an oblation to, to give, to associatewith.

Several interpretations are possible: yajanam yaj~naH; ya ijyate sayaj~naH; yajanti yatra iti yaj~naH; ijyate anena iti yaj~naH sAdhanam (offering,He Who is worshipped, the means or objects used in the offerings,are all called yaj~naH).

A Slokam from the gItA captures the abovethought:

brahmArpaNam brahma haviH brahmAgnaubrahmaNA hutam | brahmaivatena gantavyam brahma karma samAdhinA || (gItA 4.24)

"Brahman is the instrument to offerwith; Brahman is the oblation;By Brahman is the oblation offered into the fire ofBrahman; Brahman alone is to be reached by him who meditates on Him inhis works".

For the instance of this nAma in Slokam 48,SrI BhaTTar comments thatbhagavAn is the object of all yaj~nas, the Bestowerof benefits of the yaj~na-s, the aids for the performance of theyaj~na, etc., and so He is called yaj~naH "yaj~na, tat sAdhana,tat-phalAvadhitvena pratipAditaH | ato yaj~naH |". SrI BhaTTar givesthe following from vishNu purANa in support, where the ijyA or sacrificeis described as the basis for all the sustenance of all the threeworlds:

tataSca ijyA Ahutir-dvArA poshitAstehavir-bhujaH | vRshTeHkAraNatAm yAnti bhUtAnAm sthitaye punaH || (VP 2.8.101)

"The gods, who are the receivers ofthe oblations, being nourished bythe offerings in the fire, cause the rains tofall for the support of the created brings".

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to the gItA,where Lord kRshNa declaresthat He is the basis of everything that constitutes the yaj~na:

aham kratur_aham yaj~naH svadhAham ahamaushadham | mantro'hamahameva Ajyam aham agniH aham hutam || (gItA 9.16)

"I am the kratu the jyotisThomaand other vedic sacrifices. Ialone am the Great sacrifice. I am the offering to the manes. I amthe herb.I am the mantra. I am Myself the clarified butter. I am thefire, and I am the oblation".

Again, in Slokam 8.24, Lord kRshNadeclares:

aham hi sarva yaj~nAnAm bhoktA caprabhureva ca | na tu mAmabijAnanti tattvena ataS-cyavanti te || (gItA 9.24)

"I am the only enjoyer and the onlyLord of all sacrifices. They donot recognize Me in My true nature, and hence they fall".

SrI BhaTTar also refers us to the SrutivAkya yaj~no vai vishNuH yaj~na is vishNu Himself.

For the current instance of the nAma, SrIBhaTTar explains thatbhagavAn serves the function of the yaj~na for those who do not havethe meansto perform proper yaj~na-s, but who just do His nAma japa instead svArAdhana dharma samRddhi riktAnAm tad-arthinAm svyameva yaj~naH To those devotees who wish to attain Him, and therefore wantto perform ArAdhanA (worship) of the Lord, but have no physical andmaterial wherewithal, the Lord Himself stands as the japa yaj~na, namely,He is pleased with the japa which itself is a yaj~na.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan notes that someprevious nAma-s (sapta-jihvaH,saptaidhAH etc.) have dealt with the subject ofyaj~na also, but these were directly related to bhagavAn being thesupport for those who are capable of performing yaj~na in theprescribed way. However, the current series of nAma-s deal with bhagavAn'ssupport for those who do not have the means to perform yaj~na-s in theprescribed manner.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's interpretationis along similar lines "aki'ncanAnAm tat-tad-ArAdhana upakaraNatvAt yaj~naH" Since He serves as the means for those who are otherwise not in a position toworshipHim, He is called yaj~naH.

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "evamca yajyate sa'ngamyatedIyate ca yasmA iti nAnArtho yaj~na SabdaH" He Who isworshipped, to Whom all the benefits of all karma-s are dedicated, etc., is knownas yaj~naH.SrI vAsishTha further explains that all our actions are ultimatelyperformed for our Atma-prIti, and since bhagavAn is the antaryAmiof our AtmA, they are ultimately performed for His pleasure.

Several versions of Sri Sa'nkara'svyAkhyAnam are given: ya~jnasvarUpatvAt ya~jnaH; yaj~nAtmanA yaj~naH; sa'ngantA yaj~naH; etc.,all ofwhich explain the nAma as "One Who is of the form of yaj~na or sacrifice".

For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 48,Sri Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnamis: "sarva yaj~na svarUpatvAt yaj~naH |sarveshAm devAnAm tushTikArako yaj~na AkAreNa pravarta iti vA |" All sacrifices are His form, or because He exists as sacrifice in orderto please all the gods".

One of the meanings for the root yaj thatwe have seen above is yaj sa'ngati to associate with. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri uses thismeaningand explains the nAma as "One who associates the karma-s of thejIva-s with their effects".

For the instance of the nAma in Slokam 48,SrI baladeva vidyAbvhUshaN refers to bhagavAn's birth to ruci and AkUti as yaj~na rucipatnyAm AkUtyAm yaj~na nAmA AvirbhUtatvAt yaj~naH.

In Slokam 48, SrI raghunAtha tIrtha usesthe pATham in which hetreates "yaj~na ijyaH" as one nAma, and explains the nAma asOne who is worshipped in sacrifices "yaj~ne ijyaH stutyaH pUjyaH itiyaj~na-ijyaH.

SrI cinmayAnanda defines the term yaj~na as"work undertaken with apure spirit of total dedication in completecooperation with others, and for the well-being of all creatures and for thewelfare of the world". He then comments that whenever there issuch a cooperative endeavor with total selflessness, there is SrImannArAyaNa in action through His creatures, and this is why He is calledyaj~naH.

972. yaj~na-patiH The Lord of yaj~na.

om yaj~na-pataye namaH.

The term yaj~na has been discussed above.SrI vAsishTha indicatesthe root "pA rakshaNe - to protect, to rule", for thederivation of the word patiH. The term `pati' also means"Lord, Master". The interpretations are based on either of thesetwo meanings.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as "sva-yaj~na-phala-pradaH yaj~na-patiH" He Who gives the fruit of sacrifices done to please Him.

Lord kRshNa declares in the gItA:

aham hi sarva-yaj~nAnAm bhoktA caprabhureva ca | (gItA9.24)

"I am the only enjoyer and the onlyLord of all sacrifices".

Sri Sa'nkara gives the above as support,and his interpretationincludes both protection aspect as well as the aspect that bhagavAnis theLord of all yaj~na-s: yaj~nAnAm pAtA svAmI vA yaj~na-patiH The Lord of the sacrifices or the Protector ofthem.

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as "svayam yaj~na rUpo yajanIyoyaj~na sAdhanam ca bhagavAn yaj~nam pAtiityato yaj~na-patiH" BhagavAn is Himself in the form of sacrifice,He is the One Who is worshipped through yaj~na-s, and He is the means forthe performance of the yaj~na, and so He is the Protector of theyaj~na-s, and so He is called yaj~na-patiH.

SrI cinmayAnanda continues with his broaderdefinition of yaj~na asgiven in the previous nAma, and explains the currentnAma as indicating that bhagavAn is the Enjoyer in all self-dedicated, cooperativeendeavors, and so He is called yaj~na-patiH. He points out thatin chapter 3 of the gItA, the term yaj~na is used in this sense.In particular, for the Sloka 3.9 below, his interpretations emphasizesthis point:

ya~jnArthAt karmaNo'nyatra lok'yam karma-bandhanaH| tad-arthamkarma kaunteya mukta-sa'ngaH samAcara || (gItA3.9)

"The world is bound by action otherthan performed for "the sake ofsacrifice"; do thou, therefore, O son ofkunti, perform action for the sake of ya~jna alone, free from allattachments".

He offers the additional explanation:"ya~jna here means only "anyself-sacrificing work undertaken in a spirit ofSelf-dedication, for the blessing of all" The following stanzasalso will become more and more clear only when we understand ya~jna as"any social, communal, national, or personal activity into which theindividual is ready to pour himself forth entirely in a spirit of serviceand dedication".

973. yajvA He Who performs the sacrifice.

om yajvane namaH.

.SrI vAsishTha points to the pANini sUtra3.2.103, which explains theword yajvA as indicating a past signification One who hassacrificed.However, he notes that in the case of bhagavAn there isno limitation of time, and so the meaning should apply to the past,present, and future in other words, "viSva nirmANa rUpeNa tad- artha sAdhana sampAdana rUpeNa ca yaj~nenaishTavAn yajate, yakshyati iti vA sa yajvA vishNuH One Who has sacrificed, One Who is sacrificing, and One Who will continue tosacrifice for the purpose of creating the Universe, and creating all thesupporting materials for the existence and enjoyment of all the creatures,is Lord vishNu.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as signifyingthat bhagavAn Himselfperforms sacrifice on behalf of those who are unable to perform theirrites, andgives the support from mahAbhArata in Lord kRshNa's own words:

teshAm tu pavanAya aham nityamevayudhisThira! | ubhesandhye anutishThAmi hi askannam tad-vratam mama ||

"O yudhishThira! For the purificationof those who are unable toobserve the daily rites, I am Myself doing the yaj~na at both dawnand duskevery day. I never fail in carrying out this vow of Mine".

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan points out thatthe reference here is tothe paramaikAntin-s who are unable to perform their nitya karma-sbecause ofsome inevitable disabilities. Thus, this does not absolve physicallycapable people from performing their nitya karma-s regularly.

SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN interprets thenAma along lines similar toSrI BhaTTar aSaktam aki'ncanam AviSya tat-tad-ArAdhanam nivartayansvyamevayajvA.

The term yajvA has the same meaning as theword yajamAna one whoperforms the sacrifice. Sri Sa'nkara explains the nAma as yajamAnAtmanAtishThan yajvA, where he interpets the terma yajmAna as the"Lord" of the yaj~na, which is also true. He supports thisinterpretationwith a reference to the gItA:

aham hi sarva yaj~nAnAm bhoktA caprabhureva ca | (gItA 9.24)

"I am the only enjoyer and the onlyLord of all the sacrifices".

SrI cinmayAnanda reminds us of the definition of yaj~na as given byhim for nAma 971, and notes that the current nAma stresses thatbhagavAnis "One who performs yaj~na according to the strict prescriptionslaid down in the Vedas the One Who maintains in all Hisdivine actions the true yaj~na spirit" in other words, He undertakesall His actions for the benefit of the creatures of this world.

One of the meanings of the root yaja is `togive (yaja deva pUjAsa'ngati karaNa yajana dAneshu to sacrifice, to make an oblation,to give,to associate with). SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses this meaning(yaja dAne to give), and interprets the nAma as yajate dattevarAn bhaktebhya iti yajvA He Who bestows His blessings on thedevotees is yajvA.

974. yaj~nA'ngaH

a) He for Whom the yaj~na performed by the devotees is an anga or accessory to attain Him. b) He Who has the divya avayava-s that are worthy of worship. c) He Whose divya avayava-s in His mahA varAha incarnation represent the different aspects of a yaj~na or sacrifice; d) He Who makes it possible for us to attain the different means needed for a sacrifice; Who receives the offerings of a sacrifice; Who is attained through the sacrifice, etc.

om yaj~nAngAya namaH.

SrI vAsishTha discusses the nAma in terms of the two parts of the nAma yaj~na and angaH. The derivation of the word yaj~na has been discussed before (to sacrifice). The term anga is derived from the root ang to go. anga also means a part or accessory. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation uses this meaning.

a) SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains the nAma as - yaj~nam angam asya iti yaj~nAngaH He Who is attained by the yaj~na-s (performed by those who are capable). The yaj~na-s such as bhagavad ArAdhanA etc., performed by the devotees are an upAyam or means in the form of an offering to Him, and He is the One Who is the angI or the final goal. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is samarthAn anushThitamapi yaj~nAntaram asya SeshabhUtam iti yaj~nAngaH. He Who has the sacrifices of others as an accessory to what He is doing. The sacrifices performed by those who are capable of performing them, are all subservient to Him, namely, a means or an accessory to attain Him.

b) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning parts for the term anga, and comments that this nAma of bhagavAn signifies that He is One Who is endowed with the divya avayava-s from His Lotus Feet to His divine Head that are worthy of worship yaj~nAni pUjanIyAni angAni caraNAdi mastakAntAni yasya iti yaj~nAngaH.

c) Sri Sankara interprets the nAma as - yaj~nA angAni yasya iti varAha mUrtiH yaj~nAngaH - One Whose different parts of the body- incarnate as varAha mUrti are associated with the different aspects of a yaj~na. He gives the passages from hari vamSa in support (hari vamSa 3.34-3.41), wherein the different parts of His body are associated with the different aspects of a yaj~na. His Feet are equated to the veda-s, knowledge to His face, fire to His tongue, darbha grass to His hair, the day and night to His eyes, the sacrificial ladle to His mouth, the great chants of sAmaveda to His talk, virtue and truth to His body, etc. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to a similar description of the varAha rUpa in SrImad bhAgavatam 3.13.34-39, where the divine form of varAha bhagavAn is compared to the different aspects of a yaj~na (e.g., His body is itself veda; the hairs of His body are like darbha-s; His eyes are havis or ghee; etc.

d) SrI vAsishTha notes that broadly, the term yaj~na can refer to all materials associated with a sacrifice ijyate yaH, ijyate yena, ijyate yasmai, ijyate yatra vA iti yajanIyaH, yajana sAdhanam havirAdi, yajan sampradAm uddeSo, yajan sthalAdikam ca sarvam yaj~na Sabdena gRhItama bhavati He for whom the sacrifice is done, he by whom the sacrifice is done, that for which it is performed, the place where the sacrifice is performed, in other words, the Lord who is worshipped through the sacrifice, the place of worship, the havis (ghee) etc. that are used in the sacrifice, etc. can all be indicated by the term yaj~na. The term yaj~nAngaH then can mean One Who makes it possible to attain all the above that are needed for the sacrifice, or One Who receives the offerings through the sacrifice (svayam yajanOyo yaj~narUpaH san yaj~na rUpANi havirAdIni yaj~na sthalam gatvA prApnoti iti yaj~nAngaH), Or One Who is attained through yaj~na (yaj~ne anganam = gatiH yasya, sa yaj~nAngaH, or yaj~naiH = yajana karmabhiH angaH = prAptiH yasya sa yaj~nAngaH)), etc.

Alternatively, SrI vAsishTha notes that the term anga can be taken to mean part, and since bhagavAn is the antaryAmi for all the aspects that are needed in a sacrifice, including the brahmA, the hotA, the adhvaryu, the havis, etc., He is also known as yaj~nAngaH.

975. yaj~na-vAhanaH He Who helps others complete their sacrifices.

om yaj~na-vAhanAya namaH.

The root from which the word vAhanaH is derived is vaha prApaNe to bear along, to carry, to flow.

SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as teshAm bhakti SraddhA adhikAra dAnena yaj~nam vAhayati iti yaj~navAhanaH He Who ensures the successful completion of a yaj~na undertaken by the kartA, by investing the kartA with the necessary power, faith and means to perform the yaj~na.

Thus, bhagavAn is the One Who bestows the benefits to those who are able to perform the yaj~na themselves (yaj~na-patiH), He is the One who performs the yaj~na for those who are unable to perform it themselves (yajvA), He is the One Who is to be attained by the yaj~nas that are performed (yaj~nAngaH), and He is the One Who gives the ability (Sakti), the interest (SraddhA)and the authority (adhikAra) to undertake the yaj~na-s.

SrI Sankaras interpretation is phalahetu bhUtAn yaj~nAn vAhayati iti yaj~na-vAhanaH He Who ensures the successful fruition of the yaj~na-s that are undertaken with good benefits in mind.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the meaning vehicle for the term vAhana, and interprets the nAma as yaj~nam = pUjanIyam vAhanam = vainateyo yasya iti yaj~na-vAhanaH He Who has for His vAhana or vehicle, garuDa who is worthy of worship.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 105 -

yaj~na-bhRt yaj~na-kRt yaj~nI yaj~nabhuk yaj~na-sAdhanaH | yaj~nAnta-kRt yaj~na-guhyam annam annAda eva ca ||

om yaj~na-bhRte namaH. om yaj~na-kRte namaH. om yaj~nine namH. om yaj~na-bhuje namaH. om yaj~na-sAdhanAya namaH. om yaj~nAnta-kRte namaH. om yaj~na-guhyAya namaH. om annAya namaH. om annAdAya namaH.

976. yaj~na-bhRt He Who brings about the completion of the sacrifice (even when there are imperfections in its performance).

om yaj~na-bhRte namaH.

The root from which the word bhRt is derived is bhR poshaNa dhAraNayoH to hold, to support. yaj~nam bibharti = pushNAti, dhArayati iti yaj~na-bhRt He Who supports the sacrifice and brings it to successful completion is called yaj~na-bhRt. Sri BhaTTar notes that even if there are deficiencies in the actual performance of a yaj~na, the final offering of pUrNa Ahuti while thinking of Him,

results in the rectification of all these deficiencies and the successful completion of the yaj~na vikalpamapi yaj~nam sva-smaraNa pUrNAhutibhyAm pushNAti iti yaj~na-bhRt. SrI BhaTTar gives the following support from the Sruti:

pramAdAt kurvatAm karma pracyavatyadhvareshu yat | smaraNAdeva tad-vishNoH sampUrNam syAd-iti SrutiH ||

If there is a mistake in the performance of sacrifices due to negligence or oversight, the sacrifice will become imperfect. If the person thinks of vishNu for the removal of these deficiencies, they are removed and the sacrifice becomes perfect. This is what the Sruti declares.

SrI vELukkuDi kRshNan notes that the term bhRt suggests that bhagavAn bears the bhAram (burden) of completing the yaj~na successfully when the performer is unable to bear this burden for successful completion by himself. All the yajamAna has to do is to shift the burden for forgiving all the deficiencies at the end to bhagavAn by doing a pUrNAhuti. This is the final Ahuti that is offered, with divine thoughts at the Lotus feet of Lord kRshNa, asking for forgiveness for all the known and unknown, intended and unintended deficiencies in the performance of the yaj~na in order to ensure that the yaj~na as a whole becomes completed (pUrNam). The faults inherent in the performer of the yaj~na, the faults in the procedures, the faults used in the materials used in the offering, (deficiencies in mantra, tantra, vidhi, viparyAsa etc.), are all forgiven by bhagavAn when the final Ahuti is made with His Divine feet in mind. Among the mantra-s that are meditated upon at the time of pUrNAhuti are:

prAyaScittAnyaseshAni tapaH karmAnyAtmakAni vai | yAni teshAm aSeshANAm SrI kRshNAnusmaraNam param ||

upAcArApadeSena kRtAn aharar mayA | apacArAn imAn sarvAn kshamasva purushottama ||

pUrNAhutim uttamAm juhoti ; karmam vai pUrNAhutiH ;

AvirgIrbhiH yatatona Unam tena uktim vidhema

SrI Sankara reflects the same meaning in his interpretation yaj~nam bibharti pAti iti yaj~na-bhRt.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that there are four chief priests at any yAga, called Rtvija-s, and they ensure that all steps of the yAga are performed correctly without any deficiency. These priests are called hotR, udgAtR, advaryu, and Brahman. At grand ceremonies, sixteen priests are enumerated.

SrI cinmayAnanda continues his earlier interpretation of the term yaj~na, and gives his interpretation for the current nAma as: One Who helps us conclude successfully all our good, dedicated, selfless acts of service to others.

977. yaj~na-kRt He Who created the sacrifice.

om yaj~na-kRte namaH.

Both SrI Sankara and SrI BhaTTar give the interpretation that Lord vishNu has this nAma because He created yaj~na as a means for the well-being of the universe.

SrI BhaTTars interpretation is: jagad- hitAya yaj~namAdI sRjati iti yaj~na-kRt He first created the sacrifice for the well-being of the Universe.

The following Sloka-s in the gItA explain in detail, in the words of Lord kRshNa, the idea that bhagavAn created yaj~na as a means of establishing a connection between the deva-s and the human beings:

saha-yaj~nAH prajA sRshTvA purovAca prajApatiH | anena prasavishyadhvam esha vostvishTa kAma-dhuk || (gItA 3.10)

devAn bhAvayatAnena te devA bhAvayantu vaH | parasparam bhAvayantaH SreyaH param avApsyatha || (gItA 3.11)

ishTAn bhogAn hi vo devA dAsyante yaj~na bhAvitAH | (gItA 3.12)

In the beginning, the Lord of all beings, creating man along with the sacrifice, said: By this shall you prosper; this shall be the cow of plenty granting all your wants.

By this (yaj~na), please the gods, and the gods will support you. Thus nourishing one another, may you obtain the highest good.

The gods, pleased by the sacrifice, will bestow on you the enjoyments you desire.

In his explanation for the nAma vashaTkAraH, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri elaborates on this connection and interdependence between the deva-s and the manushya-s as follows: The deva-s depend on the manushya-s for their havir-bhAgam through the yaj~na-s, and the people depend on the deva-s for their sustenance through rain etc. Thus, bhagavAn has set up the yaj~na as the bridge between the deva-s and the people, and thereby the interdependence between the deva-s and the manushya- s. Therefore, He is called yaj~na-kRt.

The term yaj~na-kRt has also been interpreted as One Who is the performer of yaj~na-s. SrI cinmayAnandas translation for the nAma is:

One Who performs yaj~na. He notes that the Lord issued forth creation as an act of yaj~na a pure and selfless act of service to the jIva-s.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the interpretation: yaj~nAn makhAn svayamapi karoti avatAra vigrahe iti yaj~na-kRt - He Who performs yaj~na-s Himself during His incarnations.

As has been noted in several previous nAma-s, Sri Sankara gives an alternate interpretation for the term kRt as One Who destroys kRntati: jagadAdau yaj~nam karoti, tadante yaj~nam kRntati iti vA yaj~na-kRt He Who created the sacrifices at the beginning, or He Who destroyed them at the end of the universe.

978. yaj~nI He for Whose sake the yaj~na-s are done.

om yaj~nine namaH.

SrI vAsishTha notes that the word yaj~nI is derived from the word yaj~na by the addition of the ini pratyaya that has the same sense as the matup pratyaya (one indicating possession) yaj~naH asya asti iti yaj~nI He for Whom the sacrifices are performed.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is sarva yaj~nAnam SeshI yaj~nI He Who is the Lord or Master of all the yaj~na-s. It is for His propitiation that all yaj~na-s are performed. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to the gItA Sloka 9.24 in support:

aham hi sarva yaj~nAnAm bhoktA ca prabhureva ca |

na tu mAm abhijAnanti tattvenAtaS-cyavanti te

|| (gItA 9.24)

"For, I am the only Enjoyer and the only Lord of all sacrifices. They do not recognize Me in My true nature, and hence they fall".

SrI rAmAnujan also refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi:

Seigaip payan uNbEnum yAnE ennum. (tiruvAi. 5.6.4) "Fruits of acts anyone does are but Mine".

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan explains that this Lordship of bhagavAn expresses itself in His ensuring that His devotee attains Him even when any offering to Him is flawed and deficient. He illustrates this point by taking five of toNDaraDipoDi AzhVAr's pASurams from tirumAlai, starting with pASuram 25: (kuLittu mUnRanalai Ombum.).

AzhvAr tells the Lord that he has not performed the karma-s ordained for his varNa, he has not followed the j~nAna yoga or the bhakti yoga, he has not spent any time singing the name of the Lord, he has not done anything even remotely similar to the offering of a flower like gajendra, he has not even offered the relatively small service like the squirrels or the monkeys to Lord rAma, but the only thing he knows is to cry for the help from the Lord. The Lord accepts this as sufficient yaj~na, and takes AzhvAr to His Feet.

This example is an excellent illustration of why BhagavAn is called the Lord of all yaj~na-s. BhagavAn takes the offering of a flower by gajendra, the offering of a few specks of sand by the squirrels, the service offered by the monkeys, or the sheer cry for help from Him, as a sufficient offering to Him, in order to bless His devotee.

(One should remember that it is just sheer naicyAnusandhAnam that leads AzhvAr to declare that he has no devotion of any kind, and has done nothing to sing the name of the Lord).

Sri Sa'nkara's interpretation is: "yaj~nAnAm tat-samAradhAnAtmanAm SeshI iti yaj~nI" He Who is the Principal (SeshI) of the yaj~na, that is performed for His own adoration.

979. yaj~na-bhuk The Enjoyer or the Protector of the sacrifice.

om yaj~na-bhuje namaH.

yaj~nam bhu'nkte, bhunakti iti vA yaj~na-bhuk. The root used is bhuj pAlana abhyavahArayoH to protect, to eat, to consume, to enjoy. Thus, both the meanings (He is the Enjoyer, and He is the Protector) are given. Both SrI Sa'nkara and SrI BhaTTar give both

the definitions.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj emphasizes the meaning bhu'nkte = aSnAti = consumes, and gives the following interpretation: "ijyante dIyante samarpyante svajanaiH iti yaj~nAH, arthAt nAnA-vidhA rucirAH padArthAH | tAn bhu'nkte aSnAti iti yaj~na-bhuk" He Who accepts and enjoys the different kinds of offerings that are offered with devotion by the devotees is ya~jna-bhuk. He gives support from the gItA:

patram pushpam phalam toyam yo me bhaktyA prayacchati | tad-aham bhaktyupahRtam aSnAmi prayatAtmanaH || 9gItA 9.26)

"Whoever offers Me with true devotion a leaf, a flower, a fruit or some water, I accept this offering made with devotion by him with pure heart".

It is worth recalling from the write-up for the previous nAma that yaj~na is anything offered with sincerity, and that bhagavAn is ever ready to accept even the simplest offering as long as it is made with love, as we saw from the pASuram-s of toNDaraDippoDi AzhvAr, as elaborated by SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan. The gItA Slokam quoted here confirms the same point. SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan refers to the gItA Slokam 9.24: "aham hi sarva yaj~nAnAm bhoktA ca prabhureva ca"

(I am the enjoyer and also the Lord of all the sacrifices".

For the current nAma, SrI kRshNan points out that the protection aspect of yaj~na-s by bhagavAn is very well illustrated in His rAma incarnation, where He protects the yAga by sage viSvAmitra. Anyone who came in the way of the yaj~na was finished off by Lord rAma. This is a vivid and visible case of protection of the yaj~na by bhagavAn. For all the yaj~na-s performed, bhagavAn is the means, the end, the One Who is worshipped, the One Who is the Object of worship, and is also the One Who ensures the successful completion of the yaj~na by protecting it from all obstacles. This is the significance of the interpretation that "He is the Protector of yaj~na-s".

SrI cinmayAnanda makes another important point: "All that is offered into the sacred Fire during a yaj~na, though with an invocation to any of the deities, in tender devotion and with joy, goes to Him alone, "The One receiver of all that is offered"".

980. yaj~na-sAdhanaH a) He Who is an accessory for the sacrifices. b) He Who is attained through yaj~na-s as a means (or sAdhana).

om yaj~na-sAdhanAya namaH.

The word sAdhana is derived from the root sAdh samsiddhau to finish, to accomplish. SrI BhaTTar gives the interpretation te asya j~nAna-dvArA siddhyupAyA iti yaj~na-sAdhanaH The sacrifices become the means for attainment of the respective fruits only because of the knowledge about Him. The emphasis is made that it is the knowledge about bhagavAn, about the relationship between us and bhagavAn the Sesha-SeshI bhAvam or the servant-Master relationship, and above all, the love with which the offerings are made to Him, that are essential for the attainment of the fruits. It is not so much the substance of what is offered that is important, but the dedication behind it that is important, as has been emphasized repeatedly earlier.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN's interpretation is along similar lines j~nAna dAnena yaj~na upakAritvAt yaj~na-sAdhanaH Becaue He gives the know-how for the performance of the yaj~na, and thus assisting in the conduct of the yaj~na, bhagavAn is called yaj~na-sAdhanaH.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshnan starts with the definition of the term yaj~na as "prApti upAyAH yaj~nam" - any means to attain Him is termed yaj~na. Thus, the term does not just refer to the yaj~na performed in a homa kuNDam, but covers any means of worshipping Him, including the nitya tiru ArAdhanam performed for Him. The term sAdhanam refers to upAyam or means to attain Him. SrI kRshnan points out that this

nitya ArAdhanam should be performed with SraddhA, and full dedication to Him, and then bhagavAn acceptas this as means or uapAyam to attain Him, and so He is called yaj~na-sAdhanaH.

SrI vAsishTha explains the nAma as yaj~naH sAdhyate anena, yaj~nam sAdhayati vA yaj~na-sAdhanaH He through whom the yaj~na gets accomplished, or He Who fulfils the yaj~na, is yaj~na-sAdhanaH.

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as yaj~nAH sAdhanam tat-prAptau iti yaj~na-sAdhanaH He is yaj~na-sAdhanaH because the yaj~na-s are a sAdhana or a means to attain Him.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj notes that He is called yaj~na-sAdhanaH because He enables the devotee to perform the yaj~na, and He is also yaj~na sAdhanaH because He is attained through the yaj~na-s "yaj~naH pUjA ArAdhanam vA | tam bhaktAnAm sAdhayati iti yaj~nasAdhanaH | tathA yaj~naH pUjA sAdhanam prAptaye yasya iti yaj~nasAdhanaH".

Sri cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: "One Who fulfils all ya~jnas. It is by His Grace alone that all noble endeavors, undertaken in an honest and true sincerity, gain spectacular success". Notice again that SrI cinmayAnanada interprets the term yaj~na in a broad sense as "any effort undertaken for the public good, in a sense of

selfless undertaking".

SrI satya sandha tIrtha uses the meaning "means" for the term sAdhana, and explains the nAma as "yaj~nasya sAdhanam sruk sruvAdikam mantrAdikam vA yasmAt iti yaj~na-sAdhanaH" He is called yaj~na sAdhanaH since it is He who is the cause for the means such as the ladle, the mantra-s, etc. used during the yaj~na. The terms sruk and sruva refer to two different types of ladles used in the yaj~na (sruva refers to the smaller ladle, and sruk refers to the larger ladle in which the ghee is poured using the smaller ladle MonierWilliams dictionary). Lord kRshNa declares in the gItA that He is the means for all the aspects associated with a yaj~na:

brahmArpaNam brahma haviH brahmAgnau brahmaNA hutam | brahmaiva tena gantavyam brahma karma samAdhinA || (gItA 4.24)

"Brahman is the instrument to offer with; Brahman is the oblation. By Brahman is the oblation offered into the fire of Brahman; Brahman alone is to be reached by him who meditates on Him in his works".

Bhagavad rAmAnuja explains the term `brahmArpaNam' as a reference to the means for offering in a yaj~na, such as a ladle arpyate anena iti arpaNam srugAdi, tad brahma kAryatvAt brahma, brahma yasya havishaH arpaNam tad-brahmArpaNam.. - "That by which an offering is

given, such as a ladle, is an arpaNa. It is called Brahman because it is an effect of Brahman, Brahman being the material cause of the Universe. BrahmArpaNam is the oblation, of which the instrument is Brahman". This is the same idea that has been reflected by SrI satya sandha tIrtha in his interpretation given above.

As if to illustrate that the devotees of the Lord can enjoy Him in His infinite dimensions through their thoughts, Sri raghunAtha tIrtha gives another interpretation yaj~na SabdaH Subha-vAcI, tam sAdhayati iti yaj~na-sAdhanaH "The term yaj~na refers to auspiciousness, and since bhagavAn gives auspicious results, He is called yaj~na-sAdhanaH".

981. yaj~nAnta-kRt He Who produces the fruit of the sacrifices.

om yaj~nAnta-kRte namaH.

yaj~nasya antam = samAptim phalam vA karoti iti yaj~nAnta-kRt He Who brings about the successful conclusion of the yaj~na, or He Who gives the fruits of the yaj~na. Thus, there are two approaches to the interpretation of the nAma One Who helps in the successful conclusion of the yaj~na, or One Who gives the fruits of the yaj~na at the conclusion of the yaj~na. Some interpreters have chosen both the explanations, and others have chosen one of the two.

It should be remembered that yaj~na is a karma, and its goal is to attain the true knowledge of bhagavAn, when it is performed without material goals in mind. Sri BhaTTar's interpretation is that bhagavAn is called yaj~nAnta-kRt since He makes the attainment of true knowledge about Him as the end and the goal of all sacrifices yaj~na paryavasAnam sva-tattva j~nAnam karoti iti yaj~nAnta-kRt. (It is well to remember here that in vedic parlance, `true knowledge' about something means the conduct of one's life according to that knowledge, and not the mere knowledge only). SrI BhaTTar quotes the gItA in support of this concept:

SreyAn dravya mayAt yaj~nAt j~nAna yaj~naH parantapa | sarvam karma akhilam pArtha j~nAne parisamApyate || (gItA 4.33)

"Of the two aspects of karma yoga knowledge and material aspects, the component of knowledge is superior to the component of material sacrifices. O arjuna, all actions and everything else culminate in knowledge".

SrI vELukkuDi kRshNan refers us to the Sruti vAkyam "tamevam vidvAn amRta iha bhavati | nAnyaH panthA ayanAya vidyate" He Who realizes that great Brahman attains the moksha Ananadam; there is no other

path to attain moksha. In other words, it is the knowledge about Him that ultimately leads to moksha according to this Sruti vAkyam. BhagavAn gives this knowledge as a result of the karma of yaj~nam, and so He is called yaj~nAnta-kRt.

SrI Sa'nkara gives both the interpretations mentioned in the introduction to the nAma: a) He Who gives the fruits of the yaj~na at the conclusion of the yaj~na yaj~nasya antam phala prAptim kurvan yaj~nAnta-kRt; b) He Who brings about the successful conclusion of the yaj~na with the chanting of the vaishNavI Rk or the pUrNAhuti mantra as the final oblation vaishNavI Rk-Samsanena pUrNAhutyA vA yaj~na samAptim karoti iti yaj~nanta-kRt. The idea that even when there are deficiencies during the performance of the yaj~na, bhagavAn makes the yaj~na complete and successful with the final offering of the last Ahuti dedicated to Him with pure thoughts, has been explained earlier in nAma 976 yaj~na-bhRt. SrI rAdhA kRshNa SAstri quotes the following Sloka in support:

yasya smRtyA ca nAmoktyA tapo yA Su-kriyAdishu | nyUnam sampUrNatAm yAti satyo vande tam acyutam ||

"Our prostrations to acyuta Who brings to successful completion any good act, by the very thought of Him or the mention of His nAma".

SrI cinmayAnanda's explanation for the nAma is: "One Who performs the last, concluding act in all yaj~na-s". He follows the lead of SrI Sa'nkara in interpreting the nAma as a reference to the final act of pUrNAhuti offering to the Lord, and notes that "when total surrender of all vehicles and their actions is accomplished (in the form of pUrNAhuti offering), the transcendental experience of the Self, nArAyaNa alone, comes to manifest in all His divine Splendor".

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj notes that the nAma signifies that bhagavAn blesses the conclusion of the yaj~na by His very auspicious appearance, out of His sheer Mercy yaj~nAnAm anto ramaNIyo bhagavadAvirbhAvavelA | tamapi kRpayA karoti it yaj~nAnta-kRt | He gives support from SrImad bhAgavatam:

yatra yaj~na-patiH sAkshAt bhagavAn harir_ISvaraH | anvabhUyata sarvAtmA sarva-loka-guruH prabhuH || (4.19.3)

"The Supreme Deity, Lord vishNu, Who has everything and everyone as His body, and Who is the Lord and Master of all, was offered worship". (The subsequent Sloka-s, e.g. 4.19.6) describe bhagavAn's actual appearance at the yaj~na, accompanied by the siddhas, kapila, nArada, datta, etc.).

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha notes that the nAma signifies that bhagavAn

brings about the successful conclusion of the yaj~na by removing all the obstacles, and also gives the fruits of the yaj~na to the kartA vighnAn vihRtya yo yaj~nam samApayati, sampAditasya tasya yaj~nasya yo antam = phalam ca dadAti sa yaj~nAnta-kRt abhidIyate.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN chooses the meaning that bhagavAn decides the final fruit of the yaj~na yaj~nasya antam phala niScayam karoti iti yaj~nAnta-kRt.

In an alternative interpretation, SrI satya sandha tIrtha uses the root kR himsAyAm to hurt, to kill, and explains the nAma as "One Who destroys or kills the likes of subAhu and mArIci, who tried to put a premature end to the ya~na by viSvAmitra in the rAma incarnation yaj~nasya anto nASo yebhyaH te yaj~nAntAH subAhu mAricAdayaH, tAn kRNoti it vA yan~nAnta-kRt.

982. yaj~na-guhyam He Who is the secret of the sacrifice.

om yaj~na-guhyAya namaH.

The word guhyam is derived from the root guh samvaraNe to cover, to keep secret. Guhyam means `rahasyam' or secret. Different interpreters have given their diverse anubhavam of how bhagavAn is the hidden secret behind yaj~na-s.

Sri BhaTTar comments that bhagavAn is the `secret' behind the sacrifice, because not everyone understands that He is the ultimate object of the sacrifice, and that even though bhagavAn is not in need of

any offering, He still feels satisfied as if He has been long expecting the offerings, and enjoys them. Only those who are wise and knowledgeable about the injunctions, the means and the fruits of the sacrifices, realize this secret about Him; others do not realize this secret. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following from the mahAbhArata in support:

sarve vedAh sarva vedyAH sa-SastrAH sarve yaj~nAH sarva ijyaSca kRshNaH |viduH kRshNam brAhmaNAstattvato ye teshAm rAjan sarva-yaj~nAH samAptAH ||

jyotIgmshi SukrANi ca yAni loke trayo lokAH loka-pAlas-trayI ca |trayo'gnayaSca AhutayaSca pa'nca sarve devA devakIputra eva ||

"All the veda-s and all that has to be learnt, all the SAstra-s and all the sacrifices, and all worship all are SrI kRshNa. Those who know kRshNa correctly this way, may be considered to have completed all the sacrifices successfully".

"All the shining luminaries in the universe, the three worlds, the three guardians of the world, the three fires, and the five offerings in those holy fires, and all the gods, are all SrI kRshNa, the Son of devaki".

The above references bring out another subtle secret that is elaborated by SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan: Even though the offering in a given yaj~na may be for some of the other deities, the real Deity Who ultimately receives all the offerings is BhagavAn and no one else. BhagavAn is the antaryAmi of all these other deities, and while He feels satisfied with the offering, He also ensures that these other deities are satisfied, and thus it is no one other than BhagavAn Who is the ultimate object of all yaj~na-s. Not everyone who performs yaj~na-s understands this, and thus bhagavAn is the secret behind the yaj~na-s in this sense as well yaj~na-guhyam.

Sri VeLukkuDi kRshNan brings out another dimension to the anubhavam of this nAma: Accepting the relatively meager offering in the yaj~na with great delight, BhagavAn can give to the performer of the yaj~na, the benefit even up to moksham; in other words, there is no limit to the return that He can bestow on the performer of the yaj~na in return for the relatively trivial offering that bhagavAn does not even need. This is a great secret that is not easily understood by most people. He keeps the means of yaj~na as a great secret that is understood only by a few who know the yaj~na SAstra properly, and so He is yaj~naguhyam.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that there are two aspects to any sacrifice the material aspects, and the thoughts behind the performance of the karma. We dealt with this discussion under nAma 981 (gItA 4.33). Lord kRshna declares that the thought behind the actions is more important than the act itself. When this thought itself is dedicated to bhagavAn, in other words, when the thought behind the yaj~na or offering is not one that aims at receiving some benefit for the performer of the yaj~na, this is the best form of yaj~na. This is the secret behind the performance of yaj~na-s in their ultimate true sense. When such thought is the basis for the offering, this is a manifestation of Brahman Himself, and so there is no difference between Brahman and the yaj~na or the offering, and so He is called the `secret of the sacrifice' or the yaj~naguhyam'. This seems to be the meaning for Sri Sa'nakara's interpretation for the nAma yaj~nAnAm guhyam j~nAna-yaj~naH phalAbhisandhi-rahito vA yaj~naH; tad-abheda upacArAt Brahma yaj~na-guhyam "The secret of sacrifices is `knowledge-sacrifice'. Yaj~na may also mean any deed performed without desire for the fruit; Brahman, as identified with such deeds, is called yaj~na-guhyam".

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as "The most profound truth to be realized in all yaj~na-s". He elaborates: "The Self is the most noble truth to be sought through `offering' all the dravya (objects) into the `consciousness' (fire) in the `body' (kuNDa). This kind of subjective yaj~na is called in the gItA as Knowledge-sacrifice ("j~nAna-yaj~na)". This is also called in the veda-s as Brahma yaj~na".

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN reinforces the true spirit behind the performance of sacrifices It is for bhagavAn's pleasure alone, and not for any material benefits for the performer, that the yaj~na is to be undertaken, and so He is the secret behind the yaj~na-s tena yaj~nena tasyaiva mukhya uddeSyatvAt yaj~na-guhyam.

983. annam The object of enjoyment.

om annAya namaH.

The root from which the nAma is derived is ad bhakshaNe to eat. atti = bhakshati iti annam He who consumes or enjoys is `annam'. Alternatively, adyaH iti annam That which is consumed or eaten, is annam.

SrI vAsishTha gives another alternate derivation using the root ana prANane to breathe, to live: anIti iti annam, yadvA anyate = prANyate yena tad annam He Who makes the beings live, or He because of Whom the beings exist. This can refer to the vital air that is necessary for the beings to survive and live.

SrI vAsishTha points out that the word `annam' is used in the Sruti to refer to any offering in a yaj~na that which can be offered as havis, including ghRtam (ghee) etc:

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma as "bhoktR-SaktibhiH bhujyate iti annam' He Who is enjoyed, or is the Object of enjoyment by those who have been blessed by Him with the power to enjoy Him. In fact, for the true devotee, everything except bhagavAn is not an object of enjoyment, and He is everything for them. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refer us to nammAzhvAr:

uNNum SORu parugu nIr tinnum veRRilai ellAm kaNNan * emperumAn enRenRE kaNgaL nIl malgi maNNiNuL avan SIr vaLam mikkavan Ur vinavi tiNNam en iLa mAn pugumUr tirukkOLUrE. (tiruvAi. 6.7.1)

"To His devotee, all is kRshNa. Food - eaten to satisfy the appetite, water drunk to quench the thirst, and betel leaves consumed after the food, are all kRshNa only in their case. Saying His name, speaking of His qualities, and thinking of Him, His devotee will feel the hunger and the thirst and all other needs satisfied. They will not eat any other food since kRshNa-consciousness is enough food for them. Reciting His name and enquiring everyone on the way "Am I on the right path to tirukkOLUr? How far is it hence? the devotee will proceed without any other need for sustenance. The very thought of His place serves as nourishment for the devotee".

SrI rAmAnujan also refers us the gItA in support:

bahUnAm janmanAm ante j~nAnavAn mAm prapadyate | vAsudevas-sarvam iti sa mahAtmA sudurlabhaH || (gItA 7.19)

"At the end of many births, the man of knowledge finds refuge in Me, realizing that "vAsudeva is all" (annam). It is very hard to find such a great-souled person".

The well-known Sruti vAkya from taittirIya Upanishad:

aham annam aham annam aham annam |

aham annAdo'ham annAdo'ham annAdaH |

bhagavAn is annam because He allows Himself to be enjoyed by those who are qualified and endowed with the knowledge to enjoy Him. He in turn enjoys those who thus enjoy Him, and so He is also called annAdaH Enjoyer (next nAma).

SrI vELukkuDi kRshNan refers us to the pASurams of nammAzhvAr where AzhvAr refers to both the aspects of bhagavAn being annam and annAdaH. In the ten pASurams of tiruvAimozhi 5-10, AzhvAr repeatedly refers to both these aspects. We will deal with the references for the nAma annAdaH under the next nAma.

The whole of divya prabandham is nothing but bhagavAn being enjoyed as annam by the different AzhvArs. SrI kRshNan profusely keeps quoting from different AzhvArs. Couple of examples are given below:

pAlAzhi nee kiDakkum paNbai yAm kETTEyum kAl Azhum ne'nju azhiyum kaN Suzhalum * neelAzhic cOdiyAi! AzhiyAi! tol vinai empAl kaDiyum neediyAi! niR-cArndu ninRu. (nammAzhvAr periya tiruvantAdi 34).

"Oh Lord! You have the brilliance of the dark Ocean, and You are the First Cause of all the universes. It is Your nature to remove the blemishes in the likes of me. When I think of You and the beauty of Your reclining in the Milky Ocean, the experience is so profound that my legs are not able to support me any more, my mind is not able to comprehend Your beauty, and my eyes experience the same profoundness".

ERaDarttadum EnamAi nilam kINDadum mun rAmanAi mARaDarttadum maN aLandadum Sollip pADi (perumAL tiru. Of kulaSekhara. 2.3)

"When I sing Your glory Your great feat of destroying the seven mighty bulls, Your lifting the whole Earth in Your varAha incarnation, Your destroying the evil rAvana in your rAma incarnation, tears of joy well into my eyes and overflow like a river..".

Sri Sa'nkara explains the nAma as `adyate iti annam' = That which us consumed by all beings is annam. Since He is the sustaining power present in all the food consumed by all beings, He is called annam. SrI cinmayAnanda includes all the sense-objects that satisfy the needs of the sense-organs under scope of

annam represented by Him, and explains the nAma as "One Who has Himself become the sense- objects which are the `food' consumed by the sense-organs".

Using the definition atti = bhakshati iti annam he Who eats, both Sri Sa'nkara and SrI cinmyananda give the alternate interpretation that He is called annam One Who eats - atti bhUtAni iti annam He Who consumes everything at the time of pralaya.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root ana prANane to breathe, to live, and gives the explanation anyante uapjIvyante bhaktAH yena sva-darSana-dAna dvArA iti annaH BhagavAn sustains the bhakta-s by giving them His darSanam, and so He is the Sustainer annam. The application of the uNAdi sUtra 3.10 adds the affix na after the root an, giving the word annam food.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN extends the topic of yaj~nam that has been the subject of the previous nAmas to the current one as well, and explains the nAma as indicating that at the successful conclusion of the yaj~na by the devotee, when the devotee reaches the ultimate objectives of SrI vaikunTham, bhagavAn presents Himself to the devotee in the forms of the most enjoyable objects in SrI vaikunTham through His sa'nkalpa Sakti, and so He becomes the ultimate annam for the devotee yaj~na labhye parama vyomni yad-divya-rasa- gandhAdikamadanIyam bhogyam.

984. annAdaH The Enjoyer of those who enjoy Him.

om annAdAya namaH.

The word annam can be derived from the roots ad bhaksahNe, or ana prANane, as indicated in the previous nAma, and one of the meanings is food. To this word, the stem Ada is added, to get the word annAdaH. This stem itself (Ada) is again derived from the same root ad bhakshaNe to eat, literally giving the meaning "The eater of food". In the current context, the meaning is that BhagavAn is the Enjoyer of those who enjoy Him. The previous nAma indicated that He is One who is enjoyed by His devotees as annam, and the current nAma indicates that He in turn enjoys the devotees who enjoy Him annam atti iti annAdaH.

SrI BhaTTar's words in interpretation are: tAnSca tathA bhu'nkte iti annAdaH He is annAdaH since He also enjoys them in the same way as they enjoy Him.

He proceeds to explain the significance of the next two words in the Slokam eva and ca, which are not nAma-s of bhagavAn per se. He explains that the significance of the word eva is that there is no one else like Him ko anya IdRSaH? iti eva-kAraH. The significance of the word ca is that all that has been described thus far are present perfectly in this one Deity, namely Lord vishNu `ca' SabdaH sarvamuktam ekatra asmin samuccinoti |.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN echoes the same interpretation for the words eva and ca

na hyetAdRk anyo'sti iti bodhayitum eva-kAraH | nikhila bhhogya samuccAya ca-kAraH

This mutual love of the devotees to BhagavAn (He being annam), and for bhagavAn to His devotees (He being annAdaH), is nicely described by nammAzhvAr in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 9.7.9, almost like a mutual competition of who enjoys whom most, and is referenced by both SrI v.v. rAmAnujan and by SrI vELukkuDi kRshNan:

vArik koNDu unnai vizhu'nguvan kANil enRu ArvuRRa ennai ozhiya ennil munnam pArittu, tAn ennai muRRap paruginAn kAr okkum kATkarai appan kaDiyanE. (tiruvAi. 9.7.9)

AzhvAr says that he had been just waiting to see bhagavAn, and as soon as He would see Him, his plan was to just swallow Him completely with nothing left for anybody else. But even before that could happen, bhagavAn planned more skillfully, and displayed His extreme sauSIlyam to AzhvAr. This made AzhvAr melt down completely, and bhagavAn just drank him totally in this `dravya' form. AzhvAr exclaims that this tirukkATkaraiappan is an extremely hard nut to crack, and One with whom no one can compete in this kind of game, or in anything else for that matter. AzhvAr wanted to make Him annam, but bhagavAn instead became the annAdan in this case.

SrI Sa'nkara gives the meaning annam atti iti annAdaH - "The Eater of food" to the nAma, and explains that the nAma signifies that bhagavAn is the eater of the whole world as food. SrI Sa'nkara proceeds to explain the next two words eva and ca as follows:

- sarvam jagat annAdi rUpeNa bhoktR-bhogyAtmakam eva iti darSayitum eva-kAraH-

"The particle eva is used to show that the entire universe of becoming enjoyer and enjoyed, is traceable to the Lord. ca SabdaH sarva nAmnAm ekasmin parasmin pumsi samuccitya vRttim darSayitum The adjunct ca is used to indicate that all names ultimately indicate a single Superior person. Another translation found for Sri Sa'nkara's words is: The word ca is used to show that all the names given in the text can be applied to the one ParamAtman.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that everything in this world can be classified in two categories: food, and the eater of food. Through the nAmas annam and annAdaH for bhagavAn almost near the conclusion of the stotra, SrI bhIshma indicates to dharmaputra that vAsudeva who is seated in front of them is the One that has been described all along through all the nAma-s starting with viSvam, all the way up to the current nAma. In the next Sloka, he states explicitly that Lord vishNu who has been praised in all the previous Sloka-s, is none other devakI-nandana kRshNa Who is seated in front of them.

The concluding section of bhRgu valli in the taittirIya upanishad summarizes that bhagavAn pervades food as well as the eater of food, and so He is both of the form of annam and annAdaH aham annam annamadantamAdmi.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj explains the nAma as annam svajanopahRtam modakAni atti iti annAdaH BhagavAn is called annAdaH because He gladly accepts the offerings from His devotees.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 106 -

Atma-yoniH svayam-jAto vaikhAnaH sAma-gAyanaH | devakI-nandanaH srashTA kshitiSaH pApa-nASanaH ||

om Atma-yonaye namaH.

om svayam-jAtAya namaH. om vaikhAnAya namaH. om sAma-gAyanAya namaH. om devakI-nandanAya namaH. om sRashTre namaH. om kshitISAya namaH. om pApa-nASanAya namaH.

985. Atma-yoniH He mixes with His devotees very easily.

The root from which the word yoni is derived is yu miSraNe amiSraNe ca to join, to separate. The affix ni is added by application of the uNAdi sUtra 4.51, leading to the word yoni womb. One explanation for the nAma is AtmA = svayameva, svasya yoniH = kAraNam He Who is the Cause for Himself.

SrI BhaTTar uses the root yu `to unite, to mix', and interprets the nAma as - "dughdeneva sitAvalayam AtmanA bhoktAram miSrayati iti Atma-yoniH" - One Who mixes others with Himself easily like milk with sugar. In other words, it is bhagavAn's sauSIlyam that is emphasized by SrI BhaTTar through this nAma.

As has been pointed out in many previous nAma-s, Sri BhaTTar's main emphasis in his sahasra nAma vyAkhyAnam is to bring out the two guNa-s of bhagavAn that are of utmost significance and importance to the devotees namely bhagavAn's sauSIlyam and saulabhyam. The interpretation of the current nAma is a vivid example where SrI BhaTTar uses his skills in interpretation to emphasize bhagavAn's guNa of sauSIlyam or His ability to mix with His devotees with the greatest ease, and let them enjoy Him easily and completely, as long as they are sincerely devoted to Him.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN echoes the same thoughts as Sri BhaTTar in his interpretation AtmAnam svam yauti bhaktaH sahavAsa bhoge iti Atma-yoniH He Who mixes the bhakta-s with Himself indistinguishably for the purpose of their enjoyment of Him. He quotes the ananda maya vidyA from Ananda valli of taittirIya upanishad "yo veda nihitam guhAyAm parame vyoman |

So'Snute sarvAn kAnmAn saha | brahmaNA vipaSciteti | "He who knows Brahman hidden in the cavity of the heart, enjoys in the supreme abode all the auspicious qualities of Brahman along with the all-knowing Brahman".

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 2.3.1 in support of SrI BhaTTar's interpretation:

Unil vAzh uyirE nallai pO unnaip peRRu vAnuLAr perumAn maduSUdan en ammAn tAnum yAnum ellAm tannuLLE kalandu ozhindOm tEnum pAlum neyyum kannalum amudum ottE. (tiruvAi. 2.3.1)

"O my mind! Even though you are present in this physical body of flesh and the like - all filthy, you have served me right in the direction of deliverance. What I have enjoyed is what nityasUri-s enjoy in SrI vaikunTham. BhagavAn has subdued me even when I was in a mood to leave Him, and has made me a happy servant of His, and he has become one with me. It is like honey mixing with honey, milk with milk, sugar with sugar, ghee with ghee, and nectar with nectar."

It is worth noting that while SrI BhaTTar says that bhagavAn mixes with His devotee like sugar and milk (see his vyAkhyAnam above), AzhvAr says bhagavAn has mixed with Him like milk with milk itself (honey with honey, milk with milk, ghee with ghee, etc.), a level more intimate than the mixing of milk and sugar.

SrI Sa'nkara brings out an aspect of bhagavAn's function of creation through this nAma Atmaiva yoniH upAdAna kAraNam na anyat iti Atma- yoniH Because He alone is the material cause of the universe, and no other, therefore He is called Atma-yoniH.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj also gives the interpretation that since bhagavAn has no cause other than Himself, He is called Atma-yoniH svambhUtvAt Atma-yoniH. He gives support from the Upanishad:

sa viSva-kRd viSva-vid Atma-yoniH (SvetASvatara. 6.16)

While SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the meaning svayam-bhU to the word Atma-yoniH in the upnaishadic passage above, SrI N. S. Anantara'ngAcArya translates the term as "indweller in the jIvAtman" in his book titled "Selections from the Upanishads", and this translation is based on the vyAkhyAna of SrI ra'nga rAmAnuja muni.

986. svayam-jAtaH He Who is self-born.

om svayam-jAtAya namaH.

svayam jAyate ajanishTa iti vA svayam-jAtaH He Who is self-born, or is not created by anyone else is svayam-jAtaH.

SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam is that bhagavAn has this nAma signifying that He takes His incarnations as and when necessary, without waiting for those in difficulty to come and pray to Him to take His incarnation prArthanA nirapekshatayA jAtaH svayam-jAtaH. In other words, He takes the incarnation out of His concern for the protection of the good, the destruction of the evil, and the preservation of dharma (paritrANAya sAdhUnAm, vinASAya ca dushkRtAm, dharma samsthApanArthAya sambhavAmi) He Himself takes birth out of His own will. His main concern is the protection of the jIva-s that are His children; it is His Nature to be concerned and to protect (kAkkum iyalvinan kaNNa perumAn nammAzhvAr in tiruvAimozhi 2.2.9), and so He takes incarnations for this purpose as and when necessary, out of His own sa'nkalpam.

Repeated reference has been made to the unique approach of SrI BhaTTar in interpreting the nAmas by emphasizing that all that BhagavAn does is for the benefit of His devotees. Even though the outward meaning for the nAma is "One Who is born by Himself", SrI BhaTTar takes the opportunity to point out that "He is born by Himself as and when necessary to remove the sufferings of His devotees", rather than to just say that "Bhagavan has no other Creator". The current nAma is one other instance of SrI BhaTTar's unique anubhavam in his interpretation of the nAma-s.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan quotes the tiruviruttam pASuram in support:

uyir aLippAn enninRa yOniyumAip piRandAi ! imaiyOr talaivA | (tiruviuttam 1)

"You Who took birth voluntarily in order to liberate us from the burden of samsAra".

SrI vELukkuDi kRshNan gives a quote from the gItA in support, and notes that bhagavAn gets entangled in the miseries of this world just to release us from the same miseries:

na me pArtha asti kartavyam trishu lokeshu ki'ncana | nAnavAptam avAptavyam varta eva ca karmaNi || (gItA 3.22)

"For me, arjuna, there is nothing in all the three worlds which ought to be done, nor is there anything unacquired that ought to be acquired. Yet I go on working".

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan points out that it is for removing the bondage of several other women that sItA pirATTi voluntarily lived for ten months in the prison of the ten-headed rAvaNa, and it is for removing our bondage that Lord kRshNa voluntarily chose to be born in the prison of kamsa. For the Divine Couple, all these voluntary sufferings are for the purpose of relieving our sufferings.

In his vyAkhyAnam for the above gItA Sloka, bhagavad rAmAnuja explains that bhagavAn still continues to work for the protection of the world, even though there is nothing for Him personally to be achieved by working "karmaNA avAptavyam na ki'ncid api asti, athApi loka rakshAyai karmaNi eva varte".

SrI Sa'nkara had explained the previous nAma (Atma-yoniH) as signifying that bhagavAn is the Material cause of the Universe. He continues this thread in the current nAma, and explains the nAma svam- jAtaH as signifying that bhagavAn is also the Instrumental cause nimitta kAraNam api sa eva iti darSayitum svayam-jAta iti. The terms `Material cause' and `Instrumental cause' can be briefly explained by reference to the making of a pot by a potter, using the mud, the wheel, the water etc. In this example, the mud is the upAdAna kAraNa or the material cause. The nimitta kAraNa or the Instrumental cause is the pot maker. The other supplementary materials such as the wheel, the water etc. are called the sahakAri kAraNa-s. SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation for the previous and the current nAma-s are that bhagavAn is both the Instrumental Cause and the Material Cause in the process of creation. He gives support from the brahma sUtra (prakRtiSca pratij~nA dRshTAnta anuparodhAt (1.4.23)) that declares that bhagavAn is not just the

Instrumental cause but also the Material cause. In other words, He performs the function of creation with no other help or external means but from Himself, by Himself. This is nicely captured by nammAzhvAr in his tiruvAimozhi pASuram 1.5.4 (tAn Or uruvE tani vittAi tannil mUvar mudalAya.).

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains the nAma as `One Who appeared by Himself", and gives the reference from taittirIya upanishad in support: tad-AtmAnam svayam akuruta That Brahman created Itself by Itself (Anandavalli in taittirIya upanishad). If it be said that devaki `gave birth' to kRshNa, SrI Suka explains that bhagavAn just appeared from her womb just as the moon appears in the sky devakyAm deva rUpiNyAm vishNuH sarva guhASayaH AvirAsIt yathA prAcyAm diSi induriva pushkalaH (SrImad bhAgavatam 10.3.8). Lord kRshNa chose to enter devaki's womb for some time, and then chose to come out when He chose to come out; the connection between devaki and kRshNa is just the same connection as between the east direction and the moon from which it appears.

987. vaikhAnaH He Who uproots (the evils of the world).

om vaikhAnAya namaH.

The root from which the nAma is derived is khana avadhAraNe to dig. vi- is an upasarga, and the sense in which it is used here is to denote intensity (viSesheNa). The sense in which He `digs' is interpreted differently by different interpreters.

Sri BhaTTar uses the root khana with the meaning `uproot', and explains the nAma as One Who uproots the miseries of His devotees janitvA, bhava duHkha vikhananAt vaikhAnaH Having taken His birth or incarnation out of His own will, then BhagavAn proceeds to uproot the sorrows of the world, in particular the sorrow of repeated birth and death.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN follows a similar interpretation janitvAca sva-bhakta duHkha vikhananAt vaikhAnaH Taking birth voluntarily, He destroys the sorrows of His devotees.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavaan refers us to the first pASuram of nammAzhvAr's tiruviruttam, where AzhvAr points out that bhagavAn takes His births for the purpose of removing our bondage to this samsAra:

poi ninRa j~nAnamum pollA ozhukkum, azhukku uDambum in ninRa nIrmai ini yAm uRavAmai uyir aLippAn en-ninRa yOniyumAip piRandAi! imaiyOr talaivA mei-ninRu kETTu aruLAi, aDiyEn Seyyum viNNappamE.

"O Lord of the deva-s! You take Your births amongst us out of Your own free will in order to protect us, who live with false and incomplete knowledge, bad conduct, and an impure body and mind, and are stuck deep in the ocean of samsAra. You alone can redeem us from this deep misery. Please bless us and heed my plea and save us".

Sri Sa'nkara uses the meaning `dig' for the root khana, and uses the instance of bhagavAn's varAha incarnation to illustrate the significance of the nAma

dharaNIm viSeshena khanitvA pAtAla vAsinam hiraNyAksham vArAha rUpam AsthAya jaghAna iti purANe prasiddham

It is well-known in the purANa-s that He, in the form of a boar, dug up the earth, and killed hiraNyAksha, an asura who lived in the netherworld.

Sri cinmayAnanda gives an interesting interpretation for the above purANic incident hiranya is gold, and aksha is eye, and the term `hiraNyAksha' symbolizes our eye towards materialistic pleasures. BhagavAn has to dig and reach inside our ego to rid us of this desire for materialistic pleasures, and in this sense He is vaikhAnaH.

*One of the interpretations given by SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the meaning `disturbance' for the term `khana'. Using the meaning `devoid of' for the upasarga vi-, he interprets the term vikhAna as a reference to the mukta-s who are completely liberated, and then explains the term vaikhAna as the Lord of vikhAna-s or the mukta-s vikhAnAH khanana rahitAH muktAH, tatsambandhI vaikhAnaH.

SrI raghunAtha tIrtha takes the word `khana' as meaning `to dig to completely undo', and interprets the nAma as viSesheNa Satrum avadArayati iti vikhAnaH, vikhAna eva vaikhAnaH He who cuts into pieces and destroys the enemy.

Using the meaning `dig' for the root khana, SrI vAsishTha gives another interpretation, and attributes the existence of oceans etc., as the work of the Lord He has specially provided for these as examples of His specially digging out these resources of water in nature, which no one else can do tasya ca viSishThaH khAno samudrasya _ nahIdRk khananam kenacit tad-anyena kartum Sakyam |

988. sAma-gAyanaH a) He before Whom the sAma hymns are sung. b) He Who sings the sAma gAna Himself. c) He Who is the final resort for those who sing the sAma gAna.

om sAma-gayanAya namaH.

The word sAma is derived from the root so antaHkarmaNi to destroy, to bring to an end. By application of the uNAdi sUtra 4.152 (sAtibhyAm manin maniNau), the word sAma is obtained, meaning `that which is appeasing'. The word also refers to the sAma veda. The word gAyana means `singer' (derived from the root gai Sabde to sing, and the pANini sUtra 3.1.153 NyuT ca). sAma-gAyana means one who sings the sAma, and sAma-gAyaNaH means One Who has the singers of sAma hymns.

a) SrI BhaTTar uses the above interpretation and explains the nAma as "One Who has the mukta-s or the Released souls singing the sAma hymns in praise of Him once they have attained Him" sva-prApti madhu pAnena "hAvu hAvu hAvu" iti sAmAni gAyamAno muktaH asya asti iti sAma-gAyanaH. He gives the quote from taittirIya Upanishad "etat sAma gayannAste" (The released soul or mukta) will be singing this sAma chant.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers us to a passage in SrImad bhAgavatam where the description is given about bhagavAn being worshipped through the sAma gAna chanting:

yam brahmA rudrendra varuNa marutaH stunvanti divyaiH stavaiH vedaiH sA'nga pada kramopanishadaiH gAyanti yam sAmagAH | dhyAnAvasthita tad-gatena manasA paSyanti yam yoginaH yasyAntam na viduH surAsura gaNA devAya tasmai namaH || (12.13.1)

"Our obeisance to Him who is worshipped by the likes of brahmA, rudra, indra, and marut-s through the best of praises, through veda-s chanted systematically with their a'nga-s and karma-s, whose praise is sung by those who sing the sAma gAna, who is seen through the concentrated meditation of the yogi-s, and whose infinite nature is beyond realization by the deva-s and asura-s, and Who is ever resplendent".

Among the four veda-s, sAma veda is given special emphasis by Lord kRshNa:

vedAnAm sAma vedo'smi devAnAmasmi vAsavaH | indriyANAm manaScAsmi bhUtAnAm asmi cetanA || (gItA 10.22)

"Of the veda-s I am sAma veda. Of gods, I am indra. Of sense-organs I am the manas. Of living beings, I am consciousness".

b) Sri Sa'nkara attributes the singing of the sAman to kaNNan Himself, and interprets the nAma as "One Who sings the sAma gAnam" sAmAni gAyanti iti sAma-gAyanaH.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that the brahma j~nAni sings the sAma gAnam in the excitement of his realization, and Lord kRshNa in His incarnation sang in the flute the peaceful and all-quieting sAma gAnam, and hence He is sAma-gAyanaH.

c) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha derives the interpretation for the nAma by looking at the nAma as sAma + ga+ ayanaH.

Those who sing the sAma veda are called sAma-gAH. SAmagAnAm ayanam = ASrayaH paramo lakshayaH sAmagAyanaH He Who is the final goal of those who sing the sAma is sAmagAyanaH.

SrI raghunAtha tIrtha explains the nAma as "yaj~na vinASakAn rAkshasAn syati hinasti iti sAma gIyante asmin iti gAyanaH | sAmAni stotra viSeshAH gIyante asmin iti sAma-gAyanaH | "Extolled by special hymns of praises for His acts of killing the demons who ruin the performance of the sacrifice".

989. devakI-nandanaH The Source of joy to devaki.

om devakI-nandanAya namaH.

Recall that the whole vishNu sahasra nAma has been revealed to yudhishThira by bhIshma in the presence of kRshNa. SrI BhaTTar's interpretation for the nAma is that through this nAma, bhIshma is clarifying to yudhisThira that the nAma-s that have been revealed all along are not about some Deity who is beyond reach, but they describe none other than devakI-nandana who is seated just next to him, and who has taken incarnation as the kinsman of yudhishThira. SrI BhaTTar refers us to a Sloka from mahAbhArata:

sa esha pRthudhIrgAkshaH sambandhI te janArdanaH | esha bhUtam bhavishyacca bhavacca bharatarshabha | ||

"O! Best of Bharata-s! JanArdana, the broad and long-eyed Lord is your kinsman. He is all things in the past, the present and the future".

SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is also along the same lines. He gives another support from the mahAbhArata:

jyotIgmshi SukrANi ca yAni loke trayo lokA loka-pAlAS-trayI ca | trayo agnayaSca AhutayaSca pa'nca sarve devA devakI-putra eva || (mahAbhArata 13, app. 1, 156-7)

"All the luminaries of the world, the three worlds themselves, the protectors of the worlds by guarding the quarters, the three veda-s, the three sacred fires, the five oblations are all but the Son of devaki (kRshNa)".

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives the reference from SrImad bhAgavatam, describing the incarnation of ParamAtmA as the Son of devaki:

devakyAm devarUpiNyAm devakI-nandanaH SrI kRshNaH | AvirAsIt yathA prAcyAm diSir-induriva pushkalaH || ((bhAga. 10.3.8)

"Lord kRshNa, the Joy of devaki, appeared as the child of the divine devaki just like the moon appearing from the eastern direction".

While the nAma devakI-nandana immediately reminds us of Lord kRshNa who was 'born' to devaki, a couple of interpreters have taken a different approach to interpreting the nAma that does not refer to this incident of Lord kRshNa's incarnation. A couple of these interpretations are included below as an example:

SrI raghunAtha tIrtha's interpretation is: devAnAm kam sukham asya asti iti devakI somaH | tena devakinA somena nandate iti devakI-nandanaH | "The term devaki refers to soma juice because it gives pleasure to the deva-s; The Lord is called devakInandanaH because He is delighted by the offering of soma juice". Or, devena pAshANena kriyate sUyate iti devakI | devakyA somena nandate iti devakI-nandanaH | -

"soma juice is extracted by the use of stones and so it is called devakI; One Who is delighted by the offering of soma juice extracted through the use of stones, is devakI-nandanaH". -

Sri satyadevo vAsishTha also avoids any reference to Lord kRshNa in this nAma, and explains the nAma as a reference to sUrya. We will not go into the details of how he gets this interpretation, but will only note that for some reason, he also chose to not use the obvious interpretation that suggests itself for this nAma, namely that the Supreme Deity Lord vishNu is none other than kRshNa who was seated in the midst of the bhIshma and yudhishThira.

One can only speculate on why they chose to take this approach. One reason could be that kRshNa chose to leave devaki within a few moments after He was born to devaki, and so He was not a source of delight for devaki at least for a few years after He was born. A few interpreters observe that another name of yaSodA was devaki, and so He was a devakI-nandana (for instance, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri and SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN both make this observation).

Bhagavad rAmAnuja mentions in his SrI Bhashya, in the explanation of the mahA vAkya `tat tvam asi', that "when a direct meaning of an expression is sufficient, it is illegitimate to seek an indirect implied meaning (SrI AdidevAnanda's words in his Introduction to the translation of bhagavad rAmAnuja's gitA bhAshyam). The 'indirect implied meanings' have been included here for those with academic interest, and may kindly be ignored by the bhAgavata-s of this group.

990. srashTA The Creator.

Om srashTre namaH..

We studied this nAma earlier (Slokam 63 - nAma 595). Please refer to the write-up for nAma 595 also.

sRjati iti sRashTA vishNuH He Who creates. As has been explained in several places before, brahmA creates the things inside the brahmANDa, after bhagavAn creates the things outside brahmANDa, and the brahmANDa itself with brahmA inside the brahmANDa, and gives the power, the knowledge and the responsibility to brahmA for the rest of the creation. It is because bhagavAn is the antaryAmi in brahmA that brahmA is able to proceed with this function at this point. Thus bhagavAn is the True Creator, as He is the Destroyer and the Protector of all beings.

SrI BhaTTar reemphasizes through the interpretation for this nAma that SrI BhIshma once more tells yudhishThira that devakI-nandana, SrI kRshNa, is none other than para-vAsudeva who is responsible for creation. One can see bhagavAn's saulabhyam and sauSIlyam reflected through these series of nAma-s. Even though the reference to His function of creation can be taken to illustrate His parattvam, the fact that the same para-vAsudeva has made Himself accessible to all the people in the audience (where bhIshma is instructing yudhisThira on the greatness of bhagavAn's nAma-s reflecting His kalyANa guNa-s) shows simultaneously His saulabhyam.

SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam is: "srashTA sarva lokasya" BhagavAn is called srashTA because He is the Creator of all the worlds.

SrI cinmayAnanda comments: "Even the creator (meaning catur-mukha brahmA) can perform his job only by drawing his abilities and capacities from the Infinite Self, SrI nArAyaNa". In other words, brahmA creates only because bhagavAn is the antaryAmi of brahmA.

991. kshtISaH The Lord of the Earth.

om kshitISAya namaH.

The root from which the nAma is derived is khsi nivAsagatyoH to dwell. The application of the pANini sUtra 3.3.94 striyAm ktin, leads to the word khsitiH the Earth; tasyA ISaH kshitISaH The Lord of the Earth.

SrI BhaTTar notes that bhagavAn is the Lord of all the worlds, not just the Earth, as revealed in the following reference:

yo anantarUpo akhila viSvarUpo garbhe'pi lokAn vapushA bibharti ||

"He is of infinite forms and is in the form of the entire universe. He bears by His body all the worlds in His womb".

However, in this nAma, bhagavAn is particularly singled out as the Lord of the Earth. Different anubhavam-s are given for this. SrI BhaTTar points out that there is generally more suffering in the Earth than in the other worlds such as the deva loka-s etc., and so bhagavAn takes incarnations more often here, to help relieve the sufferings of the beings here. So He is particularly addressed as the Lord of the Earth kshitISaH - sarva ISatve'pi Arti- bhUyishThatvAt bhUyishTham bhUmeH ISaH iti kshitISaH.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan refers us to the tiruvAimozhi pASuram 3.3.4, where nammAzhvAr points out that even though bhagavAn is the Lord of the deva-s, He is more attached to AzhvAr in this world more, because AzhvAr is in a more helpless situation than the deva-s:

ESan vAnavarkku enban enRAl adu tESamO tiruvE'nkaTattAnukku nISanEn niRaivu onRum ilEn en kaN pASam vaitta param SuDar SOdikkE. (tiruvAi. 3.3.4)

"We can declare that tiruvE'nkaTattAn is the Lord of nityasUri-s etc. But this in no way adds to His glory. His true glory is in His mingling with the lowliest of the lowly people like me, being accessible to all the downtrodden etc. This, it is His saulabhyam that adds to His glory, and not the Lordship over the nityasUris. He has shown a doting love to me, endearing me that way".

It is this love of bhagavAn towards the suffering and downtrodden beings of the Earth that makes them dear to Him, and so He is called the Lord of the Earth in this nAma.. bhagavAn is "ISan" for all the other worlds, but His "pASam" or love is with the Earth.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also interprets the nAma as "Lord of the Earth", the Lordship being reflected in His being concerned with the removal of the suffering of the beings of the world and their protection kshiter-bhAram apanIyatAm pAlayana kshitISaH.

SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as a reference to the rAma incarnation The Lord of the earth, the son of daSaratha kshiteH bhUmeH ISaH daSarathAtmajaH.

SrI cinmayAnanda interprets the nAma as "The Consort of Mother Earth" kshiti referring to Mother Earth or bhUmi pirATTi.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha's interpretation is: Kshiyanti = nivasanti, gacchanti vA nASam bhUtAni yasyAm sA kshitiH = bhUH, tasyA ISaH kshitISaH That in which all beings ultimately mingle after their life here, is kshitiH, or earth. The Lord of kshiti is kshitISaH.

992. pApa-nASanaH The Destroyer of sins.

Om pApa-nASanAya namaH.

pApam nASayati iti pApa-nASanaH. It is very interesting to look at the derivation of the word pApa it is derived from the root pA rakshaNe to protect. The addition of the affix paH leads to the word pApaH that from which one should protect oneself is pApa, or sin. SrI vAsishTha gives the derivation for the word pApa as "pAti asmAt AtmAnam iti pApaH That from which one should protect oneself is pApaH or sin.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma by reminding us of the great value of meditating on bhagavAn's leelA-s. By meditating on the nectar-like stories of His stealing the butter and curd, by reminding ourselves of His rAsakrIDA-s with the gopi-s, etc., the sins in our minds are removed. In fact, this is one of the ways that bhagavAn annihilates the internal flaws in the minds of SrI vaishNava-s those who meditate on Him with single-minded devotion. SrI BhaTTar's words are: atha dadhi-navanItastainya rAsa krIDAdi kathAmRtena pareshAm pApa-nASanaH | avatAre'pi vaishNavAnAm bAhyAbhyantara Satru-nASanaH | Even during His incarnations, He annihilates the enemies, both internal and external, of SrIvaishNava-s (the devotees of vishNu inseparably associated with SrI or mahA lakshmi). He annihilates the internal enemies when they meditate on His kalyANa guNa-s, and he annihilates the external enemies through the divine weapons that he carries for their protection (which is the substance of the next and last Sloka)..

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains that ordinary thieves only steal material objects, but bhagavAn steals the feelings of stealth itself from the minds of the devotees the Stealer of the thought of stealth itself- cauryasya cauryam jagati prasiddham He is well- known as the Stealer of the very thought of stealth itself from those who meditate on His leelA-s of stealing butter, curd etc.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 3.6.2, where AzhvAr refers to bhagavAn by the nama "pApanASan":

mUvarAgiya mUrtiyai mudal mUvarkkum mudalvan tannai SAvamuLLana nIkkuvAnai taDam kDal kiDantAn tannai dEva dEvanai ten ila'nkai eri ezhac ceRRa villiyai pAva nASanai pa'ngayat taDam kaNNanaip paravuminO. (tiruvAi. 3.6.2)

"I beseech all of you people to devote yourselves to the Lotus-eyed Lord who is the Chief among the trimUrti-s, the antaryAmi of rudra and brahmA, and their Creator. He is the One Who removes the curses of rudra, brahmA and other gods whenever they get into trouble. He is the One Who is reclining in the Milk Ocean, and the same One Who tortured the evil-minded ravAna and his SrI la'nkA to retrieve sItA pirATTi. He is the Lotus-eyed Lord Who removes all our sins by the mere contemplation on Him".

Similar thoughts are expressed by periyAzhvAr:

emmanA! en kula daivamE! ennuDai nAyakanE! nin uLEnAip peRRa nanmai ivvulaginil yAr peRuvAr? namman pOlE vIzhttu amukkum nATTil uLLa pAvam ellAm SummenAdE kai viTTo ODit tURugaL pAindanavE. (periAzhvAr tiru. 5.4.3)

"My Lord! How can I ever describe the great benefit that I have received because of Your Grace? All the sins that normally push me down mercilessly to the ground like demons and ghosts, have left me quietly like prisoners that escape without making any noise and hide in the bushes".

SrI vELukkuDi kRshNan refers us to the gItA Slokam 4.9:

janma karma ca me divyam evam yo vetti tattvataH | tyaktvA deham punar-janma naiti mAmeti so'rjuna || (gItA 4.9)

"He who thus knows in truth My divine birth and actions does not get rebirth after this body; he will come to Me, O arjuna".

SrI kRishNan svAmi adds that if we meditate on His birth, we won't be born again; if we meditate on His drinking His mother's milk in His birth, we won't have to be born to drink a mother's milk; if we enjoy His leelA of stealing butter and curd, our sins will be stolen away by Him; if we meditate on His being bound by ropes by yaSodA, we won't be bound again in samsAra; such is the greatness of the thoughts about Him and His leelA-s.

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: "kIrtitaH pUjito dhyAyataH smRtaH pAparASim nASayan pApa-nASanaH" He Who destroys the sins of those who adore Him, meditate on Him, and remember and sing hymns of praise on Him. He gives support from a work titled vRddhaSAtAtapa:

pakshopavAsAd yat-pApam purushasya praNaSyati | prANAyAma Satenaiva tat-pApam naSyate nRNAm ||

prANAya sahasreNa yat-pApam naSyate nRNAm | kshaNa-mAtreNa tat-pApam harer-dhyAnAt praNaSyati ||

"Whatever sins are removed by fasting for a fortnight, are destroyed by performing a hundred prANAyAmas. Whatever sins are destroyed by a thousand prANAyAma-s, are removed in a fraction of a second by meditating on Hari".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives an explanation for how the thought of bhagavAn's leelA-s is able to wash away one's sins. These thoughts of bhagavAn's leelA-s have the effect of keeping Him always on our thoughts, and this is what causes one's mind to be purified. This is what bhIshma tells yudhishThira at the beginning of the stotra:

tasya loka pradhAnasya jagannAthasya bhUpate | vishNor-nAma sahasram me SruNu pApa bhayApaham ||

"O king, hear from me the thousand names of vishNu, the Lord of the Universe, the highest in the worlds; these remove all sins and fear". The next stanza clarifies that the nAma-s are but representations of bhagavAna's guNa-s yAni nAmi gauNAni vikhyAtAni mahAtmanaH, and thus, meditation on the names of vishNu, or the guNa- s of vishNu, leads to the removal of sins in the mind of one who meditates on vishNu.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives support from SrImad bhAgavatam:

nAma sa'nkIrtanam yasya sarva pApa praNASanam | praNAmo duHkha SamanaH tam namAmi harim param || (bhAga. 12.13.23)

"My prostrations to Lord SrI Hari Whose nAma sa'nkIrtanam leads to the eradication of all sins, and by worshipping Whom all sorrows are weakened". This is the last Slokam of SrImad bhAgavatam, and can be considered the summarizing Slokam of SrImad bhAgavtam by SrI sUta muNi.

SrI cinmayAnanda summarizes the purport of the nAma in the following words: "Meditating upon Whom all vAsanA-s (sins) are liquidated. When an individual, surrendering in love to Him, acts and fulfills his duties, all his existing vAsanA-s are destroyed, and no new ones are created. This is the very root in the theory of karma yoga in the veda-s. Through meditation upon the Self, all sins are dissolved and totally removed".

In one of his alternate interpretations, SrI satya sandha tIrtha looks at the nAma as pApanAH + aSnAti pApam nayati iti pApanAH daityAH, tAn aSnAti iti pApaNASanaH. The asura-s are called pApanAH because they lead in committing sins, and bhagavAn `eats away' or destroys these asura-s, and so He is called pApanASanaH.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also includes the above thought in one of his alternative interpretations pavitraiH caritaiH SrotRRNAm nikhila karmya rUpam pApam vivartayan, asurAnAmapi nihatAn Atma vidyAm nivartya muktim tebhyo yacchat pApanASanaH He is called pApa nASanaH because He removes the sins of those who hear the stories of His leelA-s; He is calo called pApa nASanaH because He destroys the asuras, and in the process, even for them He removes their sins by redeeming the knowledge about the Self and gets them to moksha.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 107 -

Sa'nkha-bhRn_nandakI cakrI Sar'nga-dhanvA gadA-dharaH | rathA'nga-PANIr_akshobhyaH sarva-praharaNAyudhaH ||

om Sa'nkha-bhRte namaH.

om nandakine namaH. om cakriNe namaH. om Sar'nga-dhanvane namaH. om gadA-dharAya namaH. om rathA'nga-pANaye namaH. om akshobhyAya namaH. om sarva-praharaNAyudhAya namaH.

nAma 993. Sa'nkha-bhRt.

In this last Sloka of the stotra before phala-Sruti, bhagavAn's celestial weapons are described. There are several aspects in which the Ayudha-s or weapons in bhagavAn's hands are enjoyed by the devotees.

1) 2) . These weapons are enjoyed by His devotees as divine ornaments, while at the same time they are objects of terror for His enemies.

Even though bhagavAn has many weapons that decorate Him (for instance, the shoDaSAyudha stotram by svAmi deSikan describing 16 weapons in the hands of Lord sudarSana), the pa'nca Ayhudha-s are the ones that receive mention in this Sloka. The pa'nca Ayudha-s or the five weapons are also sung in the pa'ncAyudha stotram.

3) In addition to the aspect that the weapons in bhagavAn's hands are worshipped as decorations for Him (which is how most devotees view the weapons), and the aspect that He carries them for the protection of His devotees and the destruction of their enemies, there is another aspect that is to be enjoyed. This is the perspective of the special devotee such as nammAzhvAr, who becomes extremely concerned about the safety of His Lord because of his intense love towards His Lord. We already know that periAzhvAr sang ma'ngaLASAsaam to the Lord and prayed for a `long life' for His Lord (paLLANDu). Similarly, nammAzhvAr gets concerned that His Lord has been left to carry all these huge weapons in His hands, with nobody coming forward to help Him by carrying them for Him. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to tiruvAimozhi pASuram 8.3.3:

ALum AL Ar, Azhiyum Sa'ngum SumappAr tAm vALum villum koNDu pin SelvAr maRRillai tALum tOLum kaikaLai Arat tozhak kANEn nALum nALum nADuvan aDiyEn j~nalattE.

The pASuram is one where AzhvAr is in deep bhagavad anubhavam, to the point that he is worried and concerned that there is no to one to help His Lord carry these heavy weapons, and instead they only keep calling on Him to bestow on them worldly things, instead of realizing that He is the only true object to wish for.

4) There is a fourth aspect to the Ayudha-s that Lord vishNu holds on His tirumEni, that is described in SrI vishNu purANam. Here, the Ayudha-s that Lord Hari holds in His divine body are described as representing the various tattva-s that ultimately are involved in the creation of the Universe and its beings. SrI kRshNan describes these in detail in his sahasra nAma upanyAsam. Briefly, the following is a summary:

- cakram symbolizes the constant movement of manas vAyu vegam mano vegam - Sa'nkham tAmasa aha'nkAram, from which the pa'nca bhUta-s have appeared; (pRthivi, ap, vAyu, tejas, AkASam). e.g., Sabdam, one of the tan-mAtras which is the first stage before AkASa appears, is the sound emanating from the conch. - gadhA - buddhi unlike manas which is ca'ncalam, buddhi is the stabilizing factor. - SAr'nga sAttvika the five karma indriya-s and the five j~nAna indriya-s. SAr'nga is the controlling force for the indriya- s. - nandakI the sword represents brahma vidyA; the sheath for the knife is the controlling force that controls avidyA.

The Sloka-s from SrI vishNu purANam from chapter 1.22 that describe the above are:

pradhAnam buddhirapyAste gadA rUpena mAdhave || (68)

bhUtAdim indriyAdiSca dvidhAha'nkAram ISvaraH | bibharti Sa'nkha rUpeNa SAr'nga rUpeNa ca sthitam || (69)

bala svarUpam atyanta javenAntarivAnilam | cakra svarUpaSca mano dhatte vishNuH kare sthitam || (70)

bibharti yac-cAsi ratnam acyuto'tyanta nirmalam | vidyomayantu tad-j~nAnam avidyA koSa samsthitam | (73)

"Intellect abides in Madhava in the form of His mace. The Lord supports egotism (aha'nkAra) in its two-fold division, into elements and organs of sense, in the emblems of His conch-shell and His bow. In His hand vishNu holds, in the form of His discus, the mind, whose thoughts fly swifter than the winds.

"The bright sword of acyuta is holy wisdom, concealed at some seasons in the scabbard of ignorance".

Thus Lord vishNu embodies the shapeless elements of the world as His weapons and His ornaments, for the salvation of mankind.

5) Yet another aspect to the pa'cAyudha-s is that these are asAdhAraNa lakshaNa-s for bhagavAn (the symbols that are unique to Him, and to no other god), as noted by SrI v.v. rAmAnujan.

MandodharI, rAvaNa's wife, describes rAma as "tamasaH paramo dhAtA Sa'nkha cakra gadA dharaH". Arjuna requests bhagavAn to display His `usual form', with crown and with mace and discus in hand, after he sees bhagavAn's viSva rUpam and becomes frightened.

kirITinam gadinam cakra hastam icchAmi tvAm drashTum aham tathiva | tenaiva rUpeNa catur-bhujena sahasra bAho bhava viSvamUrte || (gItA 11.46)

"I wish to see You as before, with crown and with mace and discus in hand. Assume again that four-armed shape, O Thou thousand-armed, of Universal Form!".

Another reference to the pa'ncAyudha-s is given by SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj, from SrImad bhAgavatam:

sarvAtmanIdam bhuvanam nirIkshya sarve'surAH kaSmalam Apura'nga | sudarSanam cakram asahya tejo dhanuSca SAr'ngam stanayitnughosham ||

parjanya ghosho jalajaH pA'ncajanyaH kaumodakI vishNu gadA tarasvinI | vidyAdhadro'siH Sata-candra yuktaH tUNottamau akshayasAyakau ca ||

"O King! Finding the whole world as the body of SrI Hari, the asura- s became concerned and sad. At the same time, the sudarSana cakra with incomparable tejas, the bow called SAr'nga that made the sound of the thunder, the conch by name pA'ncajanya that made the sound of the clouds about to shower, the gadA with enormous power, the sword that represents vidyA and that has a hundred sharp edges were prostrating to Lord Hari.".

Now we will look at the specific nAma Sa'nkha-bhRrt.

SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for the word "Sa'nkha' as Sama upaSame to grow calm, to put an end to, to stop. (This is also the root for the word SA'ntiH). The application of the uNAdi sUtra 1,102 (SameH khaH) leads to the addition of the affix kha to the root Sama, leading to the word Sa'nkha the conch-shell. The word `bhRt' is derived from the root bhR dhAraNa poshaNayoH to hold, to support. Sa'nkham bibharti iti, Sa'nkham pushNAti iti vA Sa'nkha- bhRt He Who holds the conch, He Who supports the conch, He Who nourishes the conch, etc. The last interpretation is the one that SrI BhaTTar emphasizes, and the one that ANDAL relishes, as we will see.

SrI BhaTTar, who has described the previous 991 nAma-s by emphasizing bhagavAn's saulabhyam and sauSIlyam, finishes the last eight nAma-s by reminding us that this same bhagavAn is none other than the Supreme Lord of all the Universes in other words, he describes the last eight nAma-s as indicative of bhagavAn's supreme overlordship "parama aiSvarya cihna divya AyudhadvAt". At the same time, he directs his interpretation to aspects of these Ayudha-s in His hands that evoke the sense of bhakti rasam in His devotees. Thus, his interpretation for the nAma Sa'nkha-bhRt is that bhagavAn is supporting or nourishing the Sa'nkha through the adharAmRtam from His mouth (bhR dhAraNa poshNayoH to support, to nourish). This is the anubhavam that ANDAL has about the Sa'nklham in bhagavAn's hands.

ANDAL devotes a full tiruvAimozhi in praise of bhagavAn's divine conch, and enviously describes how His conch is blessed to be always with Him (unlike cakrattAzhvAn who has to go wherever there is need such

as the gajendra moksham incident, to take care of the enemy, and then return). The conch is resting either in His hand, or when it feels the need for some nourishment, it just goes to His mouth and enjoys the droplets of His adharAmRtam, and then returns back to His hand for rest. One sentence that summarizes ANDAL's description of His pA'ncajanyam

"uNbadu Sollil ulagaLandAn vAyamudam, kaN paDai koLLil kaDal vaNNan kait-talattE (nAcciyAr tiru. 7.7).

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam for the nAma is: pA'ncajanyAkhyam bhUtAnaha'nkArAtmakam Sa'nkham bibhrat Sa'nkha-bhRt The Bearer of the conch shell, called the pA'ncajanya, which stands for the tAmasa ahmkAra, from which the five elements are born. The inner significance of this interpretation is seen in the detailed explanation that is given in SrI vishNu purANam that has been described earlier.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that the name pA'ncajanyam itself signifies that the divine conch is the representation of the tattva called ahamkAra that is the origin of the pa'ncabhUta-s. Of course, there is also the vRttAntam about bhagavAn slaying the asura by name pa'ncajana, who was in the form of a conch, and this conch also became a decoration for bhagavAn, and is known as pA'ncajanyam.

SrI SAstri notes that the sound that emanates from His pA'ncjanyam has the effect of removing the internal enemy in the form of ignorance in the minds of the devotees, as well as the powerful external enemies. Thus, in both senses the conch is a weapon that He bears for the protection of the devotee and the annihilation of the enemy of the devotee.

SrI vAsishTha refers us to hymns from the Rg-veda that are directed to the praise of the glory of the Sa'nkha. There are ten mantra-s in Rg veda 4.10 that all praise the glory of the Sa'nkha. Even though Ralph T. Griffith, the European translator of these mantra-s into English, describes these mantra-s as referring to those `accompanying the investiture of a person with a protective amulet of shell', SrI vAsishTha refers to them in the context of bhagavAn's nAma of Sa'nkha- bhRt, as a reference to the glory of bhagavAn's Sa'nkha.

994. nandakI He Who has nandakI, the sword.

om nandakine namaH.

The root for the nAma is nand samRddhau to be pleased, to thrive. Both SrI BhaTTar and SrI vAsishTha refer to the pANini sUtra 3.1.150 Asishi ca, whereby the affix vun is added to the verb when benediction is intended. This leads to the word nandakaH, with the meaning `may he be happy'. nandakI then refers to One Who is inseparably associated with the sword that is prayed for with the prayer: "May He keep me happy" m j. SrI BhaTTar interprets the nAma as a reference to the divine sword that the Lord possesses, to whom the Lord makes the prayer to give Him joy in His victories.

SrI vAsishTha on the other hand interprets the nAma as "One Who has beings for whom He wishes happiness always, and whom He can bless as "may he be happy always" ASamsanArham priyam vastu nityam asya asti iti `nandakI'. Thus, he does not even refer to the divine weapon in his interpretation.

Sri Sa'nkara explains the nAma as One Who carries the sword called nandaka, representing knowledge "vidyA-mayo nadakAkhyaH asiH asya asti iti nadakI". This follows the description of the divine weapons given in SrI vishNu purANam that we discussed in the previous nAma. SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives the same interpretation vi~jnAnAtmako nandako asiH asya asti iti nandakI.

SrI cinmayAnanda gives the following explanation: "The Lord's sword is called nandaka. Therefore, this term indicates One Who holds and wields the nandaka sword. The word nanda-kam means "that which brings bliss". The SAstra-s sing that this divine sword in the sacred hands of Lord Hari represents the Knowledge-Spiritual (vidyA- tattva) with which a seeker can destroy his ignorance of the Self in him".

995. cakrI He Who has the cakra, the Discus.

om cakriNe namaH.

We have studied this nAma earlier in Sloka 97 (nAma 908). Please refer to that write-up as well.

Cakra refers to the Discus, and He who has the Discus as one of His weapons is cakrI. The cakra in bhagavAn's hand is called the sudraSana cakra. As noted earlier, it serves as the adornment for bhagavAn, as well as a weapon against the enemies of His devotees. SrI BhaTTar notes that the carkra in His hands is always smeared with the blood of the rAkshasa-s who are the sworn enemies of the gods who are His devotees. It is also adorned by the flames of fire that are shooting out of it. periAzhvAr refers to Him as taDavarai tOL cakkarapANi (periAzh. 5.4.4) "One with the broad shoulders bearing the cakra (and the SAr'nga bow)".

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha takes a more generic meaning for the term cakra as something going round and round or happening again and again in circles, and gives the interpretation that bhagavAn has the nAma cakrI because He has established this world with events that happen again and again in circles such as the appearance of the sun, the moon, the planets, etc.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives references to SrImad bhAgavatam and SrI vishNu purANam: - sudarSanam cakram asahya tejaH "The sudrSana cakra with tejas that cannot be confronted" SrImad bhAga. 8.20.30. - namaste cakra hastAya (SrI VishNu purA. 5.30.22)

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as "One Who carries the Discus called sudarSana. sudarSana means "that which gives the auspicious vision. The SAstra-s attribute to this Discus-Divine the representation of the human mind".

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN captures the thought as: "tejas-tattvam sudarSana cakram asya asti iti cakrI" He Who bears the sudarSana cakra that represents the tattva of tejas.

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan's anubhavam is that bhIshma has introduced `nandakI' between Sa'nkha and cakra just so bhagavAn's beauty with Sa'nkha and cakra does not get the dosham of dRshTi from those who are not His devotees.

Other names for cakra noted by SrI kRshNan are: hetirAjan, rathA'nga, and sudarSana. rathA'ngapANi is the nAma we will discuss after a couple of nAma-s.

996. SAr'nga dhanvA He Who has the bow named SAr'nga.

om SAr'nga-dhanvane namaH.

SAr'ngam dhanuH asya iti SAr'nga-dhanvA He Who has the bow by name SAr'nga. The word SAr'nga can be derived from the root "SRR himsAyAm to tear to pieces, to hurt, to kill. The word dhanush is derived from the root dhan Sabde to sound.

SrI BhaTTar describes the greatness of the SAr'nga bow as one that is capable of destroying not only the evil forces, but even the names and status of the enemies, by a mere twang (the sound caused by the vibration of the chord of the bow) echoing in a powerful and fiery manner. Added to this is the power of the sharp arrows issuing out of the bow. Note SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam that the SAr'nga dhanus destroys its enemies in two ways: by the sound that emanates when its chord is plucked, and the shower of arrows issuing from it jyAgosha Sara-varsha nASita. The sound emanating from the string of the bow rejuvenates the ASrita-s and shatters the will of the enemies.

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan reminds us of ANDAL's pASuram singing the glory of the SAr'nga dhanus, in her pASuram Azhi pOl minni, valam puri pOl ninRu adirndu tAzhAdE SAr'ngam udaitta Sara mazhai pOl vAzh ulaginil peidiDAi. (tiruppAvai 4) an appeal to the Rain-god to shower rain like the shower of arrows that shoot out from SAr'nga, the divine bow in the Lord's hands. Note that instead of comparing the shower of arrows to the rain, ANDAL compares the rain to the shower of arrows, meaning that the rain can only try to match the shower of arrows shooting out from the SAr'nga bow. For ANDAL, the profuse and ceaseless shower of arrows from His bow is the known (upamAna), and the shower of rain becomes only the upameyam.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers to the great sound of the bow as described in SrImad bhAgavatam "dhanuSca SAr'ngam stanayitnughosham" (8.20.30) - The SAr'nga bow that makes the sound that resembles thunder.

Sri Sa'nkara's explanation is: indriyAdi aha'nkAra Atmakam SAr'ngam nAma dhanuH asya asti iti SAr'ngadhanvA He has the bow called SAr'nga, representing the senses and egotism (aha'nkAra).

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as: " "One Who aims His unerring Bow called SAr'nga". He continues: "This bow of nArAyaNa is glorified in our texts as representing the Ego, as the apex of all the sense organs, aha'nkAra-tattva. In this concluding stanza, the instruments of Blessing in Sree nArAyaNa's hands are remembered with reverence and devotion.".

SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN explains the nAma as kriyA tattvam SAr'ngam dhanuH asya iti SAr'ngadhanvA - He Who bears the bow by name SAr'nga that represents the kriyA tattvam.

997. gadA-dharaH He Who bears the Mace.

om gadA-dharAya namaH.

gada vyaktAyAm vAci to speak. gadati Sabdam karoti iti gadA that which generates sound is gadA. dhara is derived from dhR'nj dhAraNe to hold, to bear, to support. gadAyAH dharaH gadA-dharaH He Who holds or bears the mace. BhagavAn's Mace is called kaumodakI. SrI BhaTTar describes the kaumodakI as the `queen of maces, that gives Him pleasure and that emits flames all around like the fire at the final dissolution of all the worlds". SrI vAsishTha compares the sound that emanates from the kaumodakI to the sound that one hears from the thunders.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri relates the incident of the destruction of kANDa vanam by arjuna with the help of kRshNa. At that time, the kaumodakI was given as a gift by varuNa to kRshNa, according to a description in mahA bhArata. He also gives another derivation for the nAma: kumudaH is One Who rejoices in the company of Bhumi devi. kumodakaH is One Who makes the earth happy. KaumodakI is that which belongs to Him kumodakasya idam.

The vishNu purANa description given at the beginning of this Sloka attributes the buddhi tattva with the gadA, and SrI Sa'nkara gives his interpretation according to the vishNu purANam buddhi- tattvAtmikAm kaumodakI nAma gadAm vahan gadA-dharaH The Bearer of the club called kaumodakI representing the principle of intellect.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives reference to SrImad bhAgavatam: kaumodakI vishNu gadA tarasvinI (8.20.31) - vishNu's gadA that has enormous strength.

998. rathA'nga-pANiH He Who is armed with the wheel in His hand.

Om rathA'nga-pANaye namaH.

rathA'ngam, cakram pANau yasya iti rathA'nga-pANiH.- He Who has the discus in His hand. SrI vAsishTha gives the following derivation: The word ratha is derived from the root ramu krIDAyAm to play, to sport; by the application of the uNAdi sUtra 2.2, the affix kthan is added, leading to the word ratha chariot (ramate = krIDati yasmin yena vA rathaH). The word a'nga is derived from the root agi to go. rathah a'ngati yena tad rathA'ngam That which makes the chariot go is rathA'ngam or wheel.

In one interpretation for this nAma, the reference is to the wheel or discus in His hand. We studied the nAma cakrI (nAma 995), and one might feel that there is redundancy between the two nAma-s. SrI BhaTTar points out that in nAma 995, bhagavAn being the Possessor of the Ayudham or weapon was described, whereas in the current nAma His readiness for action (having the cakra ready in His hand for release) is described, and thus there is no repetition. It is His readiness for action at all times that is enjoyed in the current nAma. In periya tiruvantAdi-87 this readiness is described by nammAzhvAr as "eppozhudum kai kazhalA nEmiyAn" He Who has the discus that never leaves His hand.

Another interpretation given for the nAma is a reference to the incident where bhagavAn jumped from the chariot and rushed towards bhIshma during the mahA bhArata war with the wheel of the chariot in His hand, just to make the promise of His devotee bhIshma come true, even when it involved His breaking His own promise not to take to weapons during the war. SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan reminds us of this incident in explanation of this nAma.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri refers us to bhIshma's own description of this incident:

sva-nigamam apahAya mat-pratij~nAm Rtam adhikartum avapluto rathasthaH | dhRta ratha caraNah abhyayAt calatguH haririva hantum ibham gatottarIyaH || (bhAga. 1.9.37)

"Giving up His promise not to take arms in the battle, and just to fulfill my promise that I will make Him take arms, He who had ascended the chariot jumped down and rushed towards me with the haste that made the earth shake, like a lion that was rushing to kill an elephant".

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also gives the interpretation in terms of bhagavAn bearing the wheel of the chariot in order to fulfill the vow of His devotee bhakta pratij~nA pratipAlakatAm ati-SlAghyatvAt punarAha rathA'ngapANiriti bhIshmam prati pradarSitam etat.

999. akshobhyaH He Who is unshakable.

Om akshobhyAya namaH.

We studied this nAma earlier in Slokam 86 nAma 807. Please refer to that write-up for additional insights on bhagavAn's akshobhyatvam.

SrI satyadevo vAsishTha gives the following derivation for the nAma: The nAma is derived from the root kshubh kshobh sa'ncalane to be agitated or disturbed. The application of pANini sUtra 3.1.124 R- halorNyat, results in the word kshobhyah, giving the sense of SakyArthe arhArte vA - `one who is capable of', and `or one who is fit to be'.. Thus, khshobhyah means `one who can be agitated, perturbed, shaken', and akshobhyaH means "One who cannot be shaken' - na kshobhayitum = sa'ncalayitum Sakyah akshobhyah.

SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is prapanna abhaya dAna dArDhyAt sva- mahimnA'pi akshobhyaH He Who cannot be shaken from the firm vow that He has taken to protect those who have surrendered to Him; this vow of His cannot be shaken even by His own Great Self". One is reminded of the words of bhagavAn found in SaraNagati gadyam of bhagavad rAmAnuja:

- anRtam nokta pUrvam me na ca vakshye kadAcana - I have never uttered an untruth before, and will never utter one ever. - rAmo dvir-nAbhibhAshate rAma never talks with two tongues - sakRdeva prapannAya tavAsmI ca yAcate | abhayam sarva bhUtebhyo dadAmyetad vratam mama || (yuddha. 18.33)

"It is My vow to protect unconditionally from every living being, anyone that surrenders to Me even once, or seeks my protection saying "I am your servant"".

- sarva dharmAn parityajya mAm ekam SaraNam vraja | aham tvAsarva pApebhyo mokshayishyAmi mA Sucah || (gItA 18.66)

"Completely relinquishing all Dharma-s, seek Me alone for refuge. I will release you from all sins. Grieve not".

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan points to the incident where sItA tries to persuade rAma not to bear arms while in the forest, but to follow the path of penance instead. Lord rAma's response is that He had given His word to the Rshi-s in the forest that they will be protected from the rAkshasa-s at all costs, and that He won't swerve from His word even if it involves losing sItA and lakshmaNa:

apyaham jIvitam jahyAm tvAm vA sIte sa-lakshmaNam | na tu pratij~nAm samSrutya brAhmaNebhyo viSeshatah || (AraNya. 10.19)

"O sItA! I would rather give up My life, or even you and lakshmaNa, than break My promise, especially that which has been made to brAhmins".

Lord rAma reinforces His commitment to protect anyone who approaches Him with sincerity, during vibhIshaNa SaraNAgati:

mitra bhAvena samprAptam na tyajeyam katha'ncana | dosho yadyapi tasya syAt satAm etat agarhitam || (yuddha. 18.3)

"I will not forsake anyone who has approached Me with a feeling of true love, even if this person has any faults. This is the conduct that will be considered blemish-less by elders".

The write-ups for the nAma satya-sandhah (Slokam 54), acyutah etc., give ample support to His akshobhyatvam.

SrI Sa'nkara's interpretation is ata eva aSakya-kshobhaNa iti akshobhyaH `thus equipped with the various weapons, He is said to be unassailable". In other words, SrI Sa'nkara associates the unassailability with the previous nAma-s describing His weapons.

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri's anubhavam is that bhIshma is describing the Lord whom He saw for 10 days in the battlefield through these last few nAma-s (rathA'nga pANiH - the previous nAma, and akshobhyah the current nAma). SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN gives essentially the same interpretation tyakta Sastro'pi kshobhayitum gharshitum a- SakyatvAt akshobhyah.

Another anubhavam of His being unshakable, is given by SrI cinmayAnanda through the following words: "One Who cannot be exasperated by anyone, by any act or acts, however blasphemous they may be; One Whose peace and calm cannot be stormed out by any happening in his outer world; Ever-peaceful. The term suggests Infinite patience, love and kindness towards man and his frailties".

1000. sarva-praharaNAyudhaH He Who has all weapons that act against evil.

Om sarva-praharaNAyudhAya namaH.

praharaNam means `striking, beating, attacking, hurting' etc. sarvANi praharaNAni AyudhAni yasya iti sarva-praharaNAyudah. He Who has all kinds of destructive weapons to punish the evil.

In this Slokam, starting from nAma 993, and up to nAma 999, bhIshma has explicitly referred to the following Ayudha-s of bhagavAn Sa'nkha the divine conch, nandaka the divine sword, cakra the divine discus, Sar'nga the divine bow, and gadA bhagavAn's mace. These are the five weapons that are prominently sung in the pa'ncAyudha stotram. Then we have the shoDaSAyudha stotram that describes the 16 weapons that cakkarattAzhvAn himself has. This in no way is the limit of His weapons. He has limitless number of weapons that can strike at the enemy. This is the message conveyed in this nAma. The difference in the anubhavam of the different vyAkhyAna-kartA-s is on why He is carrying these weapons.

SrI bhaTTar explains that the nAma signifies that bhagavAn possesses countless Ayudha-s that are very powerful in removing all the obstacles encountered by the prapanna-s (those who have unconditionally surrendered to Him), are befitting His greatness, possess the great power to destroy the enemies of His devotees, serve as both ornaments and armaments to Him, and which have taken a vow as it were, to protect His devotees always, in all places, and through all means. Just as Hee has infinite Sakti, He has infinite Ayudha- s. These weapons are not to be looked upon simply as mere tools of machinery in the mundane physical sense. Each of these weapons possesses infinite power. (SrI bhaTTar's words are svanishThAnAm sarva anishTa unmUlayitRRNi sadA, sarvatra, savathA, sarva-prakAra samASrita.). These weapons help Him discharge His responsibility as the Supreme Lord of the Universe, to root out all the miseries of His devotees". The yAga that is mentioned by SrI BhaTTar in his vyAkhyAnam dIrgha satra yAga, could also be enjoyed as referring to bhagavAn's long and never-ending yAga or undertaking of the `protection of the people, and all His creation'. This aspect namely, that whatever bhagavAn does, including the carrying of weapons, is solely for the protection of His devotees, has been the emphasis throughout SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for all the nAma-s. We will enjoy more of this commitment of bhagavAn to protection of all of His creation in a subsequent write-up.

The words sarva and praharaNa are adjectives to the word `Ayudhah". `sarva' signifies that in addition to the Ayudha-s that have been mentioned explicitly, He has many more such Ayudha-s not mentioned here, which are all aspects of His indescribable splendor.

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan's anubhavam is that bhagavAn, who can destroy all His enemies through His mere Will, still carries the weapons just to cause terror in the hearts and minds of the wicked people.

SrI Sa'nkara explains the nAma as `etAnyeva AyudhAni asya iti na niyamyate, api tu sarvANyeva praharaNAni AyudhAni asya iti sarva- praharaNAyudhah He has all of kinds of destructive weapons, and it cannot be categorically declared that He possesses only such and such weapons. SrI Sa'nkara comments that even though finger-nails are not considered Ayudham by any standards, in His case, He uses them as Ayudham as well, as He showed in the case of hiraNya-kaSipu Ayudhatvena aprasiddhAnyapi karajAdIni asya asya AyudhAni bhavanti iti. SrI Sa'nkara further comments that this final nAma declaring that "He is One Who possesses all kinds of weapons with which He can strike", is chosen to show His satya-sa'nkalpam and His Lordship over all. He refers us to the bRhadAraNyaka upoanishad "esha sarveSvaraH" (BU 4.4.22).

It may be recalled from discussions of several previous nAma-s that a major distinguishing feature between SrI Sa'nkara's and SrI BhaTTar's commentaries is that the former emphasizes Lord vishNu's paratvam (Supremacy), whereas the latter stresses His saulabhyam and sauSIlyam, and above all, His supreme concern for the welfare of His devotee. The respective vyAkhyAna-s for this final nAma by the two vyAkhyAna-kartA-s reflects this aspect of their approach to the commentary very distinctly SrI Sa'nkara concludes that the final nAma reinforces Lord's sarveSvaratvam Lordship over all, whereas SrI bhaTTar

concludes that the nAma signifies bhagavAn's ever- readiness to go for the protection of His devotees with all His weapons.

While SrI Sa'nkara mentioned bhagavAn's use of even His fingernails as Ayudham, SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri goes one step further The Lord used grass as a weapon (kAkAsura), the sucking of the breast milk from a demoness (pUtanA) as a weapon, etc. SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan notes that bhagavAn used the garbha grass in the case of SukrAcArya who tried to interfere in bhagavAn's scheme to get three feet of land from vAmana. The point to enjoy is that just as He uses anything as a weapon to destroy the wicked, He will use anything to protect His devotee as well He is satya-sa'nkalpan; by His mere Will, He can accomplish anything He wishes.

A legitimate question that can be raised, is: "Why does the Lord even need any weapons at all to destroy His devotees' enemies, when He can achieve this by His mere sa'nkalpam? For instance, Lord rAma Himself tells sugrIvan:

piSAcAn dAnavAn yakshAn pRthivyAm caiva rAkshasAn | a'ngulyagreNa tAn hanyAm icchan harigaNeSvara || (yuddha. 6.18.22)

"O King of the army of monkeys! It is quite possible for Me to destroy all the ghosts, the asura-s, the yaksha-s, and all these rAkshasa-s with the tip of My finger, if I so desire".

Then why is it that He carries all these weapons? On reason given is that He carries them so that they will induce terror in the hearts of the enemies of His devotees, and at least in some cases, they will desist from harming His devotees, without His having to punish them. SrI v. v. rAmAnujan refers us to ANDAL's tiruppAvai (25): "ka'njan vayiRRil nerppenna ninRa neDumAlE!" He struck fear deep down in the bowels of kamsan by His very thought. Another anubhavam is that when dealing with those who show enmity to Him alone, He uses His sa'nkalpa Sakti to punish them, but if anyone ill- treats His devotee, then bhagavAn becomes angry, and instead of destroying them through His sa'nkalpa Sakti alone, He resorts to His weapons to punish them (tiruvAi. 4.8.1).

Another aspect of His many divya Ayudha-s is that they are nitya-sUri- s who worry about His protection out of their love and attachment to Him, even though He does not need any protection Himself. But it is their love of Him that makes them be always on the lookout for His protection, and so they all reside in His tirumEni, always watching out for any unforeseen enemies. Recall periyAzhvAr singing pallANDu for Him, for His divine weapons, etc., all because of his concern for the welfare of emperumAn, driven by His deep love to Him.

This nAma formally concludes the write-up on the 1000 nAma-s of Lord vishNu. We still have the phala Sruti Sloka-s to cover. In addition, a member of the list who has been giving me great encouragement and support in all my works (including sahasra nAma, tAtparya ratnAvaLi, etc.), raised a very interesting question: Is there any special significance that the enumeration of the most prominent nAma-s chosen by bhIshma based on the nAma-s most commonly sung by the Rshi-s etc. (Rshibhih parigItAni), ends with a description of bhagavAn's weapons? We will cover this in a separate write-up devoted for this subject.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrImate SrI ra'nga rAmAnuja mahA deSikAya namaH.

sarva-praharaNAyudha om nana iti |

Slokam 107 that we concluded in our last posting, has different versions in different books. The version we used in our last posting is the version used by some; there are some who include the words `sarvapraharaNAyudha om nama iti' as part of Slokam 107, at the end of the Sloka that we had in our last posting. There are some versions that just include the nAma `sarva-praharaNAyudhaH' once more at the end as part of Slokam 107, followed by the words `om nama iti' as the next sentence.

This is then followed by phala Sruti. Not all commentators have included vyAkhyAna beyond what we covered in our previous posting. Some proceed further, and give interpretation for the words `sarvapraharaNAyudha om nama iti', followed by interpretation for the phala Sruti Sloka-s; others give vyAkhyAnam for "sarva-praharaNAyudha om nama it', but do not include a commentary for the phala Sruti Sloka-s.

SrI satya devo vAsishTha, SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj, SrI M. V. rAmAnujAcArya, NS SrI cinmayAnanda, are among those who end their commentaries WITH Slokam 107 as we had in the preceding posting. SrI BhaTTar, SrI Sa'nkara, SrI v.v. rAmAnujan, are among those who continue their vyAkhyAna-s further, even though they do not all cover everything beyond this point.

sarva-praharaNAyudha om nama iti

I came to know about a `Critical edition' of mahA bhArata by the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute. Following is a brief description of the `Critical Edition' provided to me by Dr. Bob Evans of the University of Chicago:

"The project took decades. Some of the greatest Sanskrit scholars of India and the West worked on the project at different times. What I recall from Professor van Buitenen at the University of Chicago (from Sanskrit classes nearly 30 years ago), is that the goal was to try to reconstruct Vyasa's orginal text by comparing the oldest dated manuscripts from all over India. As manuscripts were copied and recopied over thousands of years, variations crept in. Some were mistakes made by the copiers, others were corrections based on the learning of the copier, etc. etc. In some cases, there were stories that exist only in one region and not in other regions. The differences were culled out (and fully documented in notes). In a nutshell, the editors attempted to recover the "original" text before the variations crept in over time. In the West, this approach has been used to "recover" the "original" texts of the Bible. In India, this approach has been used to edit the Ramayana (project completed) and the Bhagavata Purana (project in progress at Tirupati)".

The editing of this manuscript for mahabhArata extended over several years (the cover page of the Critical Edition that I have lists the starting date as August 1925, and the effort was on-going as of at least April, 1961). The reason for my bringing up this information is that this Critical Edition does not have the words "sarva- praharaNAyudha om nama iti" in its text. This may partly explain why certain vyAkhyAna-kartA-s have omitted this line from their commentaries. However, it is worth noting that Adi Sa'nkara, the first one known to have written a vyAkhyAnam for SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam, has included these words in his vyAkhyAnam, and has commented on the phrase. Others have included his vyAkhyAnam when they have included the vyAkhyAnam for this line in their publications.

I am unable to find a vyAkhyAnam for this line by SrI BhaTTar in three texts that I have. asmad AcAryan, SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan, does not include this in his upanyAsam on SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam, and continues directly to the phala Sruti after Slokam 107. However, Prof. A. Srinivasa Raghavan, in his English translation of SrI BhaTTar's `bhagavad guNa darpaNam', has added an explanation in English for the line `sarva-praharaNAyudha om nama iti', which esentiallay echoes SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam. . The same is the case with the English translation for SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam by SrI vishNu sahasra nAma satsa'ngam, New Delhi.

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam for this line is: "dvir-vacanam samAptim dyotayati | OmkAraSca ma'ngalArthaH |" The repetition "sarva- praharaNAyudhah" marks the end of the work. The syllable "OM" is used for auspiciousness. He gives support from the bRhan-nAradIya purANam (51.10):

Om-kAraScAtha SabdaSca dvAvetau brahmaNah purA |

kaNTham bhitvA viniryAtau tasmAn-mA'ngaLikAvubhau ||

"As the words OM and atha proceeded from the throat of brahmA at the beginning, they are auspicious".

He further comments that by the word namaH, the author of the stotra offers obeisance to Lord vishNu. He gives support from the Sruti:

bhUyishThAm te nama uktim vidhema | (ISA. 18) "We offer Thee many words of salutation with the word `namaH'".

SrI Sa'nkara notes that it is the practice followed by elders to offer salutation to bhagavAn at the beginning of an act as well as the end of the act. (ante'pi namaskArasya SishTaiH AcaraNAt).

He concludes his vyAkhyAnam of the tenth hundred with the following Sloka-s pointing out the greatness attained by prostrating to Lord kRshNa:

eko'pi kRshNe sukRtah praNAmo daSASvamedhAvabRthena tulyah | daSASvamedhI punareti janma kRshNa praNAmI na apunar-bhavAya ||

atasI pushpa sa'nkASam pIta-vASasam acyutam | ye namasyanti govindam na teshAm vidyate bhayam ||

loka-trayAdhipatim a-pratima-prabhAvam Ishat praNamya SirasA prabhavishNum ISam | janmAntara pralaya kalpa sahasra jAtam Asu praNASam upayAti narasya pApam ||

"Even one salutation, offered with sincerity to Lord kRshNa, is equivalent to ten aSva-medha yAga-s properly performed. He who has performed the aSvamedha yAha can still take another birth, but he who salutes kRshNa is never re-born.

"There is no fear for those who bow down before Govinda, whose color resembles that of the atasI flower, who is clad in yellow pItAmbaram, and who never lets His devotees fall.

"The non-righteous acts committed by a man in his past births, over a thousand kalpa-s and pralaya-s, are immediately destroyed by slightly bowing down his head before the Supreme Lord, vishNu, of incomparable excellence, and the Master of the three worlds."

SrI v. v. rAmAnujan notes that in the gItA, it is declared that the syllable `OM' is the representation of Brahman in sound form ? ` omityekAkasharam brahma' (gItA 8.13). Lord kRshNa declares again ?

tasmAt OM iti udAhRtya yaj~na dAna tapaH kriyAH | pravartante vidAnoktAH satatam brahma vAdinAm || (gItA 17.24)

"Therefore, the sacrificial acts performed as specified in the veda- s, gifts and austerity by the expounders of the veda-s, or such acts by those belonging to the first three stations, are always and at all times begun after pronouncing the syllable OM at the beginning".

The same practice applies to the completion of an act as well, according to the practice of elders.

SrI satya sandha tIrtha uses a version of Sloka 107 that contains a repetition of the nAma saevapraharaNAyudaH, followed by the words `om nama iti', as follows:

Sa'nkha-bhRn_nandakI cakrI SAr'nga-dhanvA gadA-dharaH | rathA'nga-pANr_akshobhyaH sarva-praharaNAyudhaH sarva- praharaNAyudhaH || om nama iti ||

This pATham retains the recurrence of the nAma sarva-praharaNAyudhaH twice in sequence, followed by the words `om nama iti', as a separate phrase following this version of Slokam 107. SrI satya sandha tIrtha also points to the common practice that the last word(s) are repeated at the end, to signify conclusion of the work ? adhyAyAnte dvir-uktiH syAt vede vA vaidike'pi vA |

SrI veLLukuDi kRshNan includes comments for the phrase `sarva praharaNAyudha om nama it', and his vyAkhyAnam also echoes the spirit of SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam. He gives the example of the brahma sUtra, where the last word(s) at the end of each of the four adhyAya-s are repeated, to signify the end of the adhyAya:

etena sarve vyAkhyAtA vyAkhyAtAh | - at end of chapter 1 vaiSeshyAttu tad-vAdas-tad-vAdah ? at end of 2nd adhyAya evam muktiphalAniyamas-tadavasthAvadhRtes-tadasthAvadhRteh - at end of 3rd adhyAya anAvRtti SabdAt anAvRtti-SabdAt | - at end of 4th adhyAya.

This is the form of the sUtra that is used by both Adi Sa'nkara and bhagavad rAmAnuja in their bhAshya-s for the brahma sUtra, confirming that this is the form in which bAdarAyaNa himself has given the sUtra to us (with the words repeated at the end to indicate conclusion).

Thus, in conclusion of the write-up on the phrase `sarva- praharaNAyudha om nama it', we note that this phrase is not found in the Critical Edition of mahA bhArata. SrI Sa'nkara has commented on this line, and many subsequent commentators have followed his commentary. As expected, his commentary follows the vedic tradition of indicating the conclusion of the work by repetition of the last nAma, followed the `OM' and 'namaH' Sabda-s.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 107 - Additional Comments.

As I started on the write-up for Slokam 107, I received the following feedback from a devotee: "In texts that are organized and ordered (i.e. texts that are not randomly organized), the final portions are often reserved for summary or conclusive statements. Do any of the commentators explain why the final Sloka of nAmas is reserved for the Lord's weapons? Or, are the nAmas randomly organized, so that the final verse of nAmas has no more special significance that the other nAmas?"

The current write-up is an effort to address this comment. The answer to the question of whether the nAma- are a random collection, or whether there is any organization to the nAma-s, is answered easily. I have reproduced one paragraph from the Introduction that I wrote for the current series several years back: "In his commentary on Sri vishNu sahasra nAmam, SrI BhaTTar has beautifully traced a thread of connectivity in the sequence of the 1000 nAma-s as they occur in the stotram. He has identified an organization and structure in the composition that refers to the guNas of the Lord in the five manifestations in which He has revealed Himself to us, as described in the pA'ncarAtra Agamas. These manifestations are: para, vyuha, vibhava, arcA, and antaryAmi. Thus, for instance, SrI BhaTTar has noted that the first 122 nAma-s in the stotram describe the qualities of the Lord in his para vAsudeva form. The next set of nAma-s describe the vyuha forms etc. Thus the nAma-s as they occur in the stotram are not just a random collection of nAma- s, but have a beautiful thread of organization and structure to them. SrI BhaTTar has identified 44 such manifestations of BhagavAn in his exposition. Sri Srinivasachariar, in his editorial introduction to SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam published by LIFCO, (1967), describes this beautifully as an arrangement of the petals of a rose 44 layers deep, or a step of stairs with 44 steps leading to the enjoyment of the Supreme. I will not go into the enumeration of these 44 forms at this stage, but will identify these as we go along. The enumeration and the corresponding Slokas can be found in the LIFCO publication". It is the unique contribution of SrI BhaTTar's commentary that he has identified this connectivity or organization in the sequence of the nAma-s. No other commentator has identified this thread of connectivity in the sequence of nAma-s. This connectivity and organization have been pointed out through the series of subsequent postings after the above Introduction was written. Having thus answered the question of organization, and noted that there is definite organization and structure to the sequence in which the nAma-s have been strung together by bhIshma, we now look at the question of significance of the reference to bhagavAn's Ayudham-s in the final Slokam 107. In other words, why, of all the possible endings for the stotram, did bhIshma choose to sing the praise of emperumAn with His divine weapons to conclude the stotram?

Perhaps the best reason for including a description of bhagavAn with His weapons as the concluding Slokam, can be best appreciated by understanding why He bears the weapons to start with. In the viSisTAdvaita tradition, two anubhavam-s are given for His bearing the weapons. One is that they are part of His adornments. The second, and the one that is relevant in the current context, is that He is carrying them for the protection of His devotees against the asura-s etc. After singing His guNa-s of saulabhyam and sauSIlyam through 992 nAma-s, SrI bhIshma perhaps sees it fit to point out that all these guNa-s of bhagavAn are purely for the benefit of His devotees, and that He stands ready, carrying His most ferocious weapons, ever ready to protect His devotees at all costs. Protection of the devotees is the primary and only concern of bhagavAn. Everything He does, including His functions of Creation, is for the protection of the jIva-s. It is this aspect of bhagavAn's commitment to Protection of His devotees that is signified in this concluding Slokam of the stotram, and that is revealed to us by presenting Him with His ferocious weapons. The devotees themselves enjoy these weapons as adornments on His divine tirumEni, and at the same

time, these weapons are the objects of terror in the hearts of the most ferocious enemies of the devotees (hiraNyakaSipu, rAvaNa, SiSupAla, etc.).

In his vyAkhyAnam for the nAma akshobhyaah, SrI BhaTTar describes the vratam of bhagavAn in protecting His devotees to the point that He won't even mind forsaking His dear brother lakshmaNa, or separating from sItA pirATTi. His vyAkhyAnam, taken from the write-up for the nAma akshobhyah, is prapanna abhaya dAna dArDhyAt sva-mahimnA'pi akshobhyaH He Who cannot be shaken from the firm vow that He has taken to protect those who have surrendered to Him; this vow of His cannot be shaken even by His own Great Self". One is reminded of the words of bhagavAn found in SaraNagati gadyam of bhagavad rAmAnuja:

anRtam nokta pUrvam me na ca vakshye kadAcana - I have never uttered an untruth before, and will never utter one ever. rAmo dvir-nAbhibhAshate rAma never talks with two tongues sakRdeva prapannAya tavAsmI ca yAcate | abhayam sarva bhUtebhyo dadAmyetad vratam mama || (yuddha. 18.33) "It is My vow to protect unconditionally from every living being, anyone that surrenders to Me even once, or seeks my protection saying "I am your servant"". sarva dharmAn parityajya mAm ekam SaraNam vraja | aham tvAsarva pApebhyo mokshayishyAmi mA Sucah || (gItA 18.66) "Completely relinquishing all Dharma-s, seek Me alone for refuge. I will release you from all sins. Grieve not".

SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan points to the incident where sItA tries to persuade rAma not to bear arms while in the forest, but to follow the path of penance instead. Lord rAma's response is that He had given His word to the Rshi-s in the forest that they will be protected from the rAkshasa-s at all costs, and that He won't swerve from His word even if it involves losing sItA and lakshmaNa:

apyaham jIvitam jahyAm tvAm vA sIte sa-lakshmaNam | na tu pratij~nAm samSrutya brAhmaNebhyo viSeshatah || (AraNya. 10.19)

"O sItA! I would rather give up My life, or even you and lakshmaNa, than break My promise, especially that which has been made to brAhmins".

Lord rAma reinforces His commitment to protect anyone who approaches Him with sincerity, during vibhIshaNa SaraNAgati:

mitra bhAvena samprAptam na tyajeyam katha'ncana |

dosho yadyapi tasya syAt satAm etat agarhitam || (yuddha. 18.3)

"I will not forsake anyone who has approached Me with a feeling of true love, even if this person has any faults. This is the conduct that will be considered blemish-less by elders".

Thatg is the level of commitment of bhagavAn to the Protection of His devotees.

BhagavAn's supreme commitment to the Protection of His devotees is sung by nammAzhvAr and other pUrvAcArya-s over and over again. BhagavAn is in fact the One responsible for Creation, Protection and the Destruction of all things. But Protection is the driving force for His functions of Creation and Destruction as well. His fundamental nature is one of protection. He performs creation and destruction only as acts that are directed towards protection.

kAkkum iyalvinan kaNNa perumAn SErkkai Seidu tan undi uLLE vAitta tiSai-mugan indiran vAnavar AkkinAn deiva ulagugaLE. (tiruvAimozhi 2.2.9)

This pASuram states that kaNNa pirAn has, as His nature, the function of protection. Because this is His nature, He protects all the jIva- s in His stomach at the time of pralaya, but it is really protection. This `destruction' again, is a prelude to creation that is in the welfare of the jIva-s, by giving them another opportunity to attain Him by giving them a body and all the comforts to enjoy, and is thus really protection in truth. BhagavAn is the One who creates brahmA first from the brahmANDam that emanates from His navel, and then gives him the power to create all other things, and thus He is the true Creator through brahmA also. Similarly, brahmA creates rudra, and bhagavAn remains as the antaryAmi of rudra, and enables him to perform the function of `destruction', the function that He has entrusted to rudra. It is bhagavAn's nature to protect the jIva-s. This is what He considers more important than the functions of destruction and creation. These other two functions are done only to facilitate the protection of the jIva-s, so that ultimately the jIva-s will attain moksham, and join Him in SrI vaikunTham for ever. The Supreme Deity (perumAn) takes incarnations for the primary purpose of protection, because this is His very nature (kAkkum iyalvinan). Note Lord kRshNa's declaration paritrANAya sAdhUnAm, vinASAya ca dushkRtAm For the protection of the good, and the destruction of the evil. Protection is mentioned first, and destruction only follows as the next function in importance. Like removing the weeds so that the intended grains can grow, destruction of the evil is only for the protection of the good.

The first set of words in AzhvAr's pASuram kAkkum iyalvinan, refers to the function of protection, which is His nature. SErkkai Seidu The second set of words, refers to the function of destruction. This is subservient to the function of protection. It is for the purpose of protecting the jIva-s from being destroyed during the pralaya, that He saves everything in His stomach at the time of pralaya, even ensuring that they

do not bump into each other and suffer any damage. AkkinAn The third function in this sequence, namely creation, is dependent on the previous step, that of samhAram, which again was meant for protection.

In order of importance, protection is the most important. By saying "kAkkum iyalvinan AkkinAn", AzhvAr emphasizes that the main purpose is protection, and creation is only a means of protection giving a body to the jIva-s so that they can expend their karma-s and attain Him. By saying "SErkkai Seidu AkkinAn", AzhvAr clarifies that Serikkai Seidal or destruction is again a prelude to "Akkal' or creation. svAmi deSikan captures the gist of this pASuram as "rakshNAya avatIrNam" BhagavAn takes incarnations solely for the purpose of protection. The destruction of rAvaNa, hiraNyakaSipu etc., really result in their attaining moksham the ultimate protection, even though we only see them as `killing of rAvaNa or hiraNyakaSipu'. We have the well-known Slokam from the jitante stotram that declares that everything that bhagavAn possesses including His divine weapons, is for the benefit of His devotees: na te rUpam na cAkAro nAyudhAni na cAspadam | tathA'pi purushAkAro bhaktAnAm prakASase || (jitante. 1.5)

"Neither Your divya Atma svarUpam, nor Your divya ma'ngaLa vigraham, nor for that matter Your weapons, or Your own SrI vaikunTham, are for Your benefit (they are all for Your devotees' benefit, and thus You are not independent, but You are the possession of Your devotees). Even so, You shine as the Supreme Being".

Having thus understood that the concluding Slokam of the vishNu sahasra nAma stotram emphasizes the concern of Protection that bhagavAn has for His devotees by mentioning His divine form with His weapons, a very logical question that can arise in some people's minds is: "Obviously emperumAn can destroy His devotees' enemies merely by His Will power. Why does He have to carry weapons to destroy these sinners?"

To understand this, let us look at nammAzhvAr's pASuram (tiruvAi. 4.8.1):

ERu ALum iRaiyOnum, tiSai muganum, tirumagaLum kURu ALum tani uDamban, kulam kulamA asurargaLai neeRu Agum paDiyAga nirumittu, paDai toTTa mARALan kavarAda maNimAmai kuRai ilamE. (tiruvAi. 4.8.1)

Many of bhagavAn's kalyANa guNa-s are to be enjoyed in this pASuram; however, let us look at the following in the current context:

- kulam kulamA aSurargaLai neeRu Agum paDiyAga nirumittu, paDai toTTa mARALan He is also the One who made the decision through His mere Will that the wicked asura-s who were enemies of His devotees will be destroyed without trace, by numbers upon numbers, and Who used His weapons to destroy them.

The key words to note are `nirumittu' (having decided in His mind), and paDaai toTTa (He Who then used His weapons to destroy them). So bhagavAn has made up in His mind that the asura-s will be destroyed without trace. But how does He accomplish this not just by His sa'nkalpam alone, but though the use of His weapons. Here is the anubhavam by our pUrvAcArya-s:

nirumittu sankalpittu: emperumAn is also One Who could have destroyed the asura-s, who were enemies of His devotees, through a minute fraction of His Infinite Will power. But instead of destroying them thus with His Will power alone, bhagavAn chooses to use His weapons to kill them. He would have destroyed them through His Will power alone if they were showing enmity only towards Him; but instead, they were showing enmity towards His devotees, and this is something that He could not tolerate. So He became angry, and used His weapons to destroy them. Through his choice of words, AzhvAr shows that bhagavAn will not tolerate any offense to His devotees He will not tolerate bhAgavata apacAram.

kulam kulamA asurargaLai nIrAgum paDiyAga nirumittu paDai toTTa refers to His veeryam - one His six primary guNa-s.

mARu ALan He Who considers the enemies of His devotees as His own enemies; He Who literally exchanges His position with that of the devotee, and destroys their enemies. Note Lord kRshNa's refusal to eat in duryodhana's place, just because the later was an enemy of the pANDava-s; in other words, He considered the enemy of the pANDava-s as His own enemy

dvishad-annam no bhoktavyam dvishantam naiva bhojayet | pANDavAn dvishase rAjan mama prANA hi pANDavAH ||

Thus, bhagavAn's weapons are a sign of His ardent desire to protect His devotees. By singing bhagavAn's Form with His weapons in the last Slokam, bhIshma wants to brings out this guNa of bhagavAn, namely His commitment to protect His devotees against all forces opposed to His devotees.

SrI BhaTTar reflects the intensity of bhagavAn's commitment of protection of His devotees through His superb choice of words: `at all times, in all places, by all means, ` etc. In fact, SrI BhaTTar extends this commitment to protect the devotees, not only to bhagavAn, but to the divine weapons as well who are all nitya-sUri- s who have taken the forms of His divine weapons. Let us look at his commentary: - SrI BhaTTar gives his summary at the conclusion of the last nAma sarva-praharaNAyudah He Who has all the weapons that act against evil. He elaborates this further, and the translation of this explanation is: "He has also numberless other divine weapons befitting Him which are powerful enough to uproot completely the

distress of His devotees who are rooted in Him weapons that have taken a vow as it were, in a long sacrifice to protect at all times at all places by all means, and in all ways those who have resorted to Him; which have unlimited power, which are like ornaments to Him and which help Him to discharge His duties as the Supreme Lord of the Universe". As we will see below, bhagavAn's main function in His leelA is the protection of the jIva-s. All His kalyANa guNa-s, and everything He possesses, are for the benefit of the devotee. Just as there is no limit to bhagavAn's kalyANa guNa-s, there is no limit to the enjoyment of His kalyANa guNa-s as well. And there is no limit to the extent to which He will go in ensuring protection of His devotees. It is hoped that the significance of the concluding stotram of SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam, with a reference to bhagavAn's form bearing His ferocious weapons, is thus understood in terms of His most important guNa Protection of His devotees at all costs, under all circumstances, in all places, at all times, to quote SrI BhaTTar.

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

Commentary on PhalaShruti follows. SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam: vanamAlee

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam `vanamAlI gadI SAr'ngI.' vanamAlI gadI SAr'ngI Sa'nkhI cakrI ca nandakI | SrImAn nArAyaNo vishNuh vAsudevo'bhirakshatu || This Slokam is not found in the Critical Edition we referred to in the posting on `sarva praharaNAyudhaH'. However, many people chant this as a result of their traditional training. SrI BhaTTar has not included it in his vishNu sahasra nAma bhAshyam. However, Prof. Srinivasa Raghavan has added the meaning in English,

after noting that it is not found in the mahAbhArata and is not commented by SrI BhaTTar. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri also makes the same comment, and has given the meaning in tamizh. The meaning in English is given below: "SrIman nArAyaNa is adorned by the garland by name vanamAlA, and is armed with the Mace, SAr'nga the bow, the Conch, the Discus and the sword by name nandaka. He is vishNu (all-pervasive), and vAsudeva (Who resides in all and in Whom all reside). May that vAsudeva protect us all". After I posted the above brief write-up for the above Sloka, I received the comment that this Slokam is considered to contain the essence of SrI vishNu gAyatrI, by an author by name Nallan Chakravarti Raghunathacharyulu in his telugu translation of SrI BhaTTars bhAshyam published by Mudra Offset Printers, Vijayawada (2002 edition). The comment was also made that this interpretation is consistent with the traditional way of concluding invocations on many deities with the gAyatrI mantra for the deity, and so this Sloka can be interpreted to be a fitting conclusion for the vishNu sahasra nAma stotra. However, it is to be noted that the Sloka is not part of SrI vishNU sahasranAma as found in the Critical Edition referred to earlier. It is also to be noted that SrI Sankara, SrI BhaTTar, SrI raghunAtha tIrtha, and the other vyAkhyAna kartA-s whose works have been used as referenced through this write-up, have not commented on this Sloka, which is consistent with the view that this Slokam is not part of the SrI vishNu sahasra nAma stotram as found in the mahAbhArata. On the other hand, there is nothing wrong in chanting any Sloka on SrIman nArAyaNa with faith, including chanting the Sloka with the faith that it is the essence of the gAyatrI chanting His nAma-s with devotion and faith will confer all the benefits to be described in the rest of this phala Sruti write-up. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Phalashruti Slokas Phala Shruti

SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam phala Sruti - 1.

iti idam kIrtanIyasya keSavasya mahAtmanah | nAmnAm sahasram divyAnAm asesheNa prakIrtitam || (1) The above is addressed by bhIshma to yudhisThira at the end of the 107 Sloka-s containing the 1000 nAmas of bhagavAn. The meaning is: "Thus, the thousand divine names of bhagavAn keSava, the Supreme Being, Who is worthy of being praised, have been sung in their entirety". SrI BhaTTar comments that the word `kIrtanIyasya' has been chosen to indicate that bhagavAn richly deserves the praise, and that by using this word, bhIshma is telling yudhishThira that he should begin the recitation of the names right away. The reason for the same is given by the choice of the name keSava (the Creator of brahmA and Siva see the interpretation for the nAma keSava nAma-s 23 and 654), and mahAtmanah (He is the Supreme Being). The word `divyAnAm' (divine) applied to the nAma-s signifies that the nAma-s are worthy of being sung in this world as well as in SrI vaikunTham. The word `aSesheNa' is used to denote that nothing that is significant or important has been left out by bhIshma in his communication to yudhisThira, and everything that needs to be known has been taught. SrI Sa'nkara explains the word `aSesheNa' to mean `a-nyUna, an- atirikta' neither less, nor more, but exactly thousand nAma-s. The implication is that the choice of the thousand names by bhIshma are significant, and are not randomly chosen. SrI Sa'nkara also refers us back to one of the initial six questions kim japan mucyate jantuh (see Introduction for detailed meanings), and points out that these 1000 divine nAma-s are the ones that are the object of `japa' referred to therein. He points out that `japa' consists of three kinds - ucca, upAmSu, and mAnasa loud, whisper, or in the mind (trividha japo lakshyate uccaA, upAmSu, mAnasa lakshaNah trividho japah). The words prakIrtitam in the current Sloka answers that all three means chanting loudly, through a low tone, or by contemplating in the mind, can be used in singing His praise (kIrtana). This Slokam emphasizes that these nAma-s are divine, and are sung in SrI vaikunTham by the nitya sUri-s themselves. They are specifically selected as sung by the Rshi-s (Rshibhih parigItAni see the Introductory section). This stotram is unlike any other stotram that we know of. It was first revealed in Lord kRshNa's presence. ya idam SRNuyAt nityam yaScApi parikIrtayet | nA'Subham prApnuyAt ki'ncit so'mutreha ca mAnavaH || (2) In this Sloka, the qualifications for reciting the stotra, and the result from recitation are declared in general terms. "Nothing inauspicious or unwelcome will accrue to that man in this world or in the world beyond, when one hears this daily or recites it". SrI BhaTTar comments that he, who according to his qualification and ability, hears it or meditates on it in his mind, will encounter nothing inauspicious in this world, or hereafter. Note that the benefit is attained by chanting, as well as by listening. By the term `hereafter (amutre ca)', lesser worlds than SrI vaikunTham, such as svargam, brahma lokam etc. are meant. SrI Sa'nkara points the case of yayAti and his father nahusha, both of whom ended up suffering after reaching brahma lokam and indra lokam respectively, because they committed sins against brAhmaNa-s after reaching these higher worlds. Such inauspicious instances won't happen to those who chant or hear this divine stotram yayAti nahushAdivat aSubha prApti abhAvam. vedAnta-go brAhmaNah syAt kshatriyo vijayI bhavet | vaiSyo dhana samRddhah syAt SudraH sukham avApnuyAt || (3)

The next few Sloka-s declare the benefits attained by chanting the hymn, hearing it chanted etc. SrI BhaTTar has categorized the benefits as follows: - The current Slokam declares the benefits attained by people of the four varNa-s, when they chant the stotram without necessarily directing their chanting for any specific benefit, and do so without necessarily following any special discipline etc. - The next Slokam (Slokam 4 in this sequence) declares the benefits attained by those who chant the stotram with specific benefits in mind. - Sloka-s 5 to 8 declare the benefits attained by those who chant the hymns following discipline such as getting up early in the morning, taking a bath etc., before chanting. The organization along the above lines will be clearer as we see the meanings of the Sloka-s, in particular, Slokam 5 etc. Thus, there is benefit that is bestowed by the recitation of the hymn, whether it is done by those with intense devotion or is chanted without necessarily following any specific discipline, whether specific benefits are sought by the person chanting the hymn or not, etc. (Note: Based on Slokam 2 of this sequence, whatever benefit is described for chanting the hymn, equally applies for listening to the hymn being chanted). The current Sloka declares that by reciting this hymn or hearing it being chanted, (without necessarily following any specific rules etc., and without specifically seeking any benefit), still certain benefits are attained by people belonging to the four varNa-s. Thus, a brAhmaNa reaches the knowledge of the vedAnta-s, in other words, the knowledge of the self and its relation to the Supreme Self. If he is a kshatriya, he will be victorious in war. A vaiSya (businennman) will attain immense wealth, and a SUdra will be bestowed with great happiness. SrI Sa'nkara gives an elaborate explanation for the words `vedAnta-go brAhmaNah syAt', and using the meaning "The brAhmaNa will get KNOWLEDGE of the vedAnta-s, he proceeds to argue that sage vyAsa is declaring through this Slokam that simply reciting the hymn is not the means to salvation (japa karmaNA sAkshAt mukti Sa'nkAyAm, karmaNAm sAkshAt mukti hetutvam nAsti, api tu j~nAnenaiva moksha iti darSayitum `vedAntago brAhmaNah syAt' ityuktam) , but the knowledge obtained by the recitation is the path to salvation. We won't go into elaborate details of SrI Sa'nkara's argument on this point in the vyAkyAnam for this Slokam; however, this is one instance of how the vyAkhyAna-kartA-s orient their vyAkhyAna-s so that they can establish their philosophy, and argue that important works such as this one by veda vyAsa can be `shown' to support their system of philosophy. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan explains that the knowledge that is attained by chanting the hymn is the realization of the eternal relationship between the soul and the Supreme Soul as servant and Master (not the realization that everything is imaginary and nonexistent, except Brahman, as SrI Sa'nkara defines true knowledge). One commentator adds that this Slokam by referring to the benefits attained by all the four varNa-s, implies that there is no constraint in anyone chanting the hymns. Some AcArya-s have asked the women among their followers to refrain from chanting the hymn either in part or in full. The instructions vary from being allowed to chant only the 107 Sloka-s starting from "viSvam vishNuh" up to "Sa'nkhabRn- nandakI", not chanting anything, chanting the stotra in its entirety, etc. To my knowledge, there is no restriction listening to the hymn, which is as powerful in conferring benefits as chanting the hymn. In all cases, one's own AcAryan's instructions should be rigorously followed. dharmArthI prApnuyAt dharmam arthArthI cArthamApnuyAt | kAmAn avApnuyAt kAmI prajarthI cApnuyAt prajAm ||

In this Slokam, it is declared that those who desire righteousness (dharma), will be blessed with that; those who desire wealth will be blessed with wealth; those who are after the pleasures of life, will be bestowed with all pleasures of life; those who desire progeny will be blessed with children. SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - phala Sruti - Part 2. bhaktimAn yah sadotthAya Sucis_tad-gata mAnasaH | sahasram vAasudevasya nAmnAm etat prakIrtayet || (5) SrI BhaTTar groups the four Sloka-s, 5 to 8, as a statement of the benefits accruing to a devotee (bhakta) who recites the nAma-s as a japa (chanting) in accordance with the rules laid down for the same. SrI BhaTTar's words are: " atha niyama viSeshavat japa rUpa sa'nkIrtane bhaktasya sarva samRddhim Aha ". From the previous two Sloka-s, it is noted that the act of chanting either aloud or in a whisper or in the mind, or just listening to others chanting the stotram, leads to benefits, either explicitly desired and sought, or those consistent with the varNa dharma-s of the one who chants or listens to the stotram. Now vyAsa points out that if a person gets up early in the morning, purifies himself with a bath and the observance of the rites and rituals consistent with his dharma as laid down in the SAstra-s (according to his varNa and ASrama), and recites the thousand nAma-s of vAsudeva with his mind firmly fixed on Him, he will be bestowed with salvation itself (anuttamam Sreyah prApnoti Slokam 6). SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: "bhaktimAn ityAdinA bhaktimatah Suceh satatam udyuktasyaikAgra cittasya SraddhAlorviSishTAdhikAriNah phala viSesham darSayati " The special benefits accruing to one who is devout, pure, ever persevering with one-pointed attentive meditation, and with faith, are revealed next. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that the benefis stated next are those that accrue to one who has singleminded devotion to vAsudeva, meditates on him constantly, is pure in thought, word and deed, and chants the thousand nAma-s of vAsudeva as laid down in this Slokam. In order to reinforce the thoughts embedded in this Slokam, let us look at the individual meanings of a few words in the Slokam: - bhaktimAn A devotee. Specifically, it refers to the devotee of vAsudeva (vAsudevasya nAmnAm). Single-minded devotion is of importance here, as noted in the above. anya devatA worship resort to other devatA-s, is to be avoided. sadA utthAya always getting up early in the morning. Sucih Purifies himself. The purity referred to is both external and internal. The external purity involves taking a bath etc. The other aspects of purification involved here are the strict observance of nitya karma-s as laid down in the SAstra-s for the devotee the varNASrama dharma-s. Our AcArya-s repeatedly emphasize that any activity undertaken without observing the nitya karma-s will end up as wasted effort. - tad-gata-mAnasaH The mind of the devotee should be concentrated on bhagavAn vAsudeva. This is a re-emphasis on the single-minded devotion to vAsudeva that was mentioned under `bhaktimAn'. - prakIrtayet kIrtana specifically refers to chanting, recitation.

The specific benefits that such a devotee will attain are specified in the next three Sloka-s: yaSah prApnoti vipulam j~nAti prAdhAnyameva ca | acalAm Sriyam Apnoti Sreyah prApnoty_anuttamam || (6) na bhayam kvacit Apnoti vIryam tejaSca vindati | bhavaty_arogo dyutimAn bala rUpa guNanvitah || (7) rogArto mucyate rogAt baddho mucyeta bandhanAt | bhayAn mucyeta bhItastu mucyrtApanna ApadaH || (8) SrI BhaTTar has given his interpretation for the above Sloka-s in two short sentences "anuttamam Sreyah muktih | anye abhyudaya viSeshAh ||" `anuttamam Sreyah in Slokam 6 means `salvation'; all the other fruits mentioned are fruits of success in this world'. Prof. Srinivasa Raghavan has given the following translation for the above Sloka-s: "He becomes endowed with great reputation and becomes the foremost among his kith and kin. He acquires wealth that never diminishes in this world, and he also gets unexcelled prosperity in the next (namely, salvation). "There is no fear for him from any quarters. He acquires valor and power. He is never unwell, and always shines. He becomes endowed with strength, a healthy body, and noble qualities. "He who is suffering from any disease will get over it. He who is in bondage will be relieved of it. He who is affected by fear will become free from it, and he who is in difficulties will become rid of them". SrI Sa'nkara also does not comment on the above Sloka-s. The idea is that both SrI BhaTTar and SrI Sa'nkara consider that the meaning is self-explanatory. The most important benefit is the one that SrI BhaTTar has commented on anuttamam Sreyah moksham. The other benefits can all be understood as aid to this most important, and in fact the only phalan that such a devotee will aspire for. Thus, for instance, being rid of fear in this world can be understood as the full confidence that bhagavAn will definitely redeem us from the ocean of samsAra at the end of our current birth in this world, mahA viSvAsam; acalAm Sriyam undiminished wealth in this world the opportunity and blessing to be involved in kai'nkaryam to Him always the ka'inkarya SrI; rogArto mucyate rogAt the devotee will be rid of the greatest of diseases, namely attachment to the worldly and materialistic objects of this life, and, above all, the attachment to this body and to all the things associated with the body;

bhayAn mucyeta bhItah the devotee will be rid of the greatest of all fears the fear of repeated births, the fear of samsAra; yaSah prApnoti the devotee will be known for his single-minded devotion to vAsudeva, as his greatest accomplishment; dyutimAn, tejaSca vindati the tejas of such a devotee will be self-revealing, as we can feel in the presence of our AcArya-s. SrI vishNU sahasra nAmam - phala Sruti - Part 3. Next, it is stated that if a person is exclusively devoted to SrI kRshNa and his only desire is to attain Him, all his difficulties will automatically vanish even though he does not pray to the Lord for any relief from them. durgANi atitarati ASu purushah purushottamam | stuvan nAma sahasreNa nityam bhakti samanvitah || (9) "That person, who, with devotion, praises the Supreme Being (purushottaman) reciting his thousand nAmas daily, surmounts all difficulties very easily. SrI BhaTTar comments that the next two Sloka-s speak of the attainment of the Lord by such devotees. vAsudeva ASrayo martyo vAsudeva parAyaNaH | sarva pApa viSuddhAtmA yAti brahma sanAtanam || (10) na vAsudeva bhatAnAm aSubham vidyate kvacit | janma mRtyu jarA vyAdhi bhayam vA api upajAyate || (11) "That man, who has taken resort to vAsudeva with the thought that vAsudeva is the highest goal to be reached, becomes cleansed of all sins and his mind becomes pure. He finally attains the Eternal Brahman. "Nothing inauspicious ever occurs to the devotees of vAsudeva. Nor do they have any fear from birth or death or old age or disease". imam stavam adhIyAnah SraddhA bhakti samanvitah | yujyeta Atma sukha kshAntih SrI-dhRti-smRti-kIrtibhih || (12) "The person who chants this hymn with zeal and devotion, is blessed with happiness of the self, forbearance, riches, firmness of mind, excellent memory, and great fame". SrI BhaTTar comments niyamavato bhaktasya anusha'ngiNIm abhyudaya siddhim Aha For the devotee who recites the names in accordance with scriptural injunctions, there is attainment of prosperity of all kinds that come as a matter of course". He explains the term SraddhA as sa-gaurava tvarA Eagerness associated with respect. He also comments that bhakti is a result of highly meritorious acts - bhagavati bhaktih mahatah su-kRtasya phalam. . Thus a true devotee should chant the stotram with sincere devotion and interest, and should accompany the chanting with other meritorious acts as part of his way of life. SrI BhaTTar further adds: govinda bhaktyabhyadhikam SreyaSca anyat na vidyate There is no act superior to devotion to Lord govinda. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam for Sloka-s 5 to 8 was "atha niyama viSeshavat japa rUpa sa'nkIrtane bhaktasya sarva samRddhim Aha". For the current Sloka, his interpretation is "niymavatah bhaktasya anusha'ngiNIm

abhyudaya siddhim Aha". Thus the interpretations in both cases describe the benefit for a `bhakta' or devotee who follows `niyama' or rules as laid down in the scriptures. Slokam 5 refers to the bhakta who follows niyama and does prakItanA (praising, extolling, lauding) of bhagavAn through the stotram, whereas the current Slokam refers to the bhakta with niyama who is `adhIyAnah' (a student, or one who goes over the stotra either as a student or as a teacher). SrI v. v. rAmAnujan has used the term anusandhAnam (which means inquiry, investigation, scrutiny etc.), in the context of this Slokam. Thus, the difference between the two, if one were to look for a difference, is that the first discusses the benefits attained by the bhakta who chants the stotram, and the second about the benefits attained by the bhakta who propagates or delves deep into the meanings etc. One translator of SrI Sa'nkara bhAshyam has grouped the Sloka-s from 5 (bhaktimAn) to 12 (imam stavam) into one group, and has ascribed SrI Sa'nkara's short commentary as follows, for all these Slokas as one group " bhaktimAn ityAdinA bhatimatah Suceh satatamudyuktasyaikAgra cittasya SraddhAlorvivishTa adhikAriNah phala viSesham darSayati" "In the verses beginning with bhaktimAn etc., the stated results are promised to one who is devout, pure, ever- persevering with one-pointed attentive meditation, with faith". SrI Sa'nkara further explains: "SraddhA Astikya buddhih | bhaktih bhajanam tAtparyam | Atmanah sukam Atma-sukham | tena ca kshAnyatibhiSca ucyate |" . This is translated as: "Faith means belief in God; bhakti refers to worship; Atma sukham means spiritual bliss by this term, other qualities such as patience, forgiveness etc. are also meant". na krodho na ca mAtsaryam na lobho nAsubhA matih | bhavanti kRta puNyANAm bhaktAnAm purushottame || (13) "Neither anger nor jealousy, neither greed nor evil thoughts haunt the minds of those people who are devotees of purushottama (The Supreme Being) and who have acquired merit by virtuous deeds". SrI BhaTTar comments that as a matter of natural course, these defects by themselves keep away from the devotees. SrI Sa'nkara emphasizes the point that in the Slokam, krdha, lobha and aSubhAmatih occur without a `ca', whereas mAtsarya occurs with a `ca'. He explains that this means that not only krodha, lobha and aSubhA mati anger, lust and evil thoughts) are absent in these devotees, but also jealousy is absent. SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - phala Sruti - Part 4. dyauH sa-candrArka nakshatrA kham diSo bhUh mahodadhiH | vAsudevasya vIryeNa vidhRtAni mahAtmanaH || (14) "The firmament, along with the moon, the Sun, the stars, the sky, the directions, Earth, the great sea are all supported by the valor of vAsudeva, the Supreme Lord". Untold benefits have been mentioned in previous Sloka-s, including moksham, for those who chant the stotram with devotion etc. SrI BhaTTar points out that there may be those who, because of their misfortune, may indulge in illogical reasoning, and doubt the above statements about the fruits. He stresses that this view is incorrect, and there is nothing to doubt about the power and greatness of bhagavAn vishNu, as described in the current Slokam and the next few na ayam phala artha vAdah Sa'nkyah nir-bhAgyaih ku-tArkikaih bhagavat-prabhAvasya asambhAvya abhAvena ativAda apavAdayoh asambhavAt iti abhipriyan, tasya tam prabhAvam Aha.

SrI Sa'nkara has made the comment with regard to the purpose of this Sloka || `dyauh sa-candrArka nakshatrA' ityAdinA stutyasya vAsudevasya mahAtmya kathanena uktAnAm phalAnAm prApti vacanam yathArtha kathanam na artha vAda iti darSayati || By the verse `dyauH' etc., it is indicated that the effects of reciting this hymn as laid down are literally true and not merely glorifying utterance or hyperbole. Note that both SrI Sa,nkara and SrI bhaTTar make similar comments for this Slokam rejecting the positions of non-believers. A matter of grammatical interest is made here by SrI bhaTTar || vidhRtAni nAnAli'ngAnAm "napumsakam anapumsakena ekavat ca asya anyatarasyAm" (ashTAdhyAyI 1.2.69) Words in different gender (firmament, moon, Sun, etc) occur in the Sloka. VidhRtAni is a word in neuter gender that qualifies the words in different genders. The grammatical rule stated says that the participle form of a neuter verb is put in the neuter gender when one verb qualifies several words in different genders, one of which is in neuter gender. Having thus stated that everything functions by the power of bhagavAn, next it is stated that He is also their Controller. sa-surAsura gandharvam sa-yakshoraga rAkshasam | jagad-vaSe vartatedam kRshNasya sa-carAcaram || (15) "This world along with all the sentient and non-sentient objects, with gods, asura-s, gandharva-s, as well as yaksha-s, serpents, and rAkshasa-s, is under the control of SrI kRshNa". SrI bhaTTar notes that the joining of the words vartata and idam into the compound word `vatatedam' is Arsha prayogam (ancient usage); according to strict grammatical rule, the pATham should be `vartata idam', alternatively, the pATham could be `avartata idam', meaning `this was'. SrI Sa'nkara does not provide a vyAkhyAnam for this Slokam separately. indriyANi mano buddhih sattvam tejo balam dhRtiH | vAsudevAytmakAni AhuH kshetram kshetraj~na eva ca || (16) "The sense-organs, mind, intellect, the quality of sttva, power strength, firmness, as well as the body and the individual soul all of them have vAsudeva as their AtmA or Inner Soul. So it is stated (by the SAstra-s)". vAsudevasya AtmakAni - all of them are His bodies. SrI BhaTTar comments that this state of all things being under the control of vAsudeva is particularized as the body-soul relationship between all objects and bhagavAn in this Sloka. This relationship between the individual soul and the Supreme Soul as one of body-soul relationship is a key aspect of the viSishTAdvaita siddhAnta. SrI bhaTTar comments that in this Slokam, it is pointed out that all the tattva-s (Realities) are under the control of bhagavAn, as declared by the SAstra-s, which are themselves under the control of bhagavAn. In the next Slokam, it is pointed out that all the SAstra- s that declare the injunctions for the practice of rites

etc., including AcAra that forms the basis of all rites, are also under His control. In other words, tattva SAstra-s as well as anushThAna SAstra-s are under His control. sarvAgamAnAm AcArah prathamam parikalpyate | AcAra prabhavo dharmo dharmasya prabhur-acyutah || (17) "Right conduct is the foremost discipline to be observed by all the scriptures. SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - phala Sruti - Part 5. Rshayah pitaro devAh mahAbhUtAni dhAtavah | ja'ngamAja'ngamam ca idam jagat nArAyaNodbhavam || (18) "All the Sages, the departed ancestors, the different gods, the great elements, their effects, the moving and the non-moving objects that comprise the Universe, all have their origin on nArAyaNa". This Slokam and the next one declare that everything that exists, has existed and will ever exist have as their origin and support bhagavAn SrIman nArAyaNa. SrI bhaTTar notes that anything and anyone that is under the influence and control of dharmam has bhagavAn as their origin || dharmAnubandhinAmapi tad-udbhavatvam Aha. SrI bhaTTar provides word-by-word explanation: Rshayah || manvAdayah, tasya smartArah, anushThAtAraSca (Manu and others; the writers of smRti-s as well as those who practice them); - pitarah, devAh || avAntara || ArAdhyAh || The Manes and the gods who are the subsidiary divinities that are to be worshiped. - mahA bhUtAni || viyadAdIni || The five great elements (air, water, fire, earth and ether) - dhAtavah - tat-kAryANi, tvak carmAdIni etAni karma phala bhoga uapakaraNAni || skin etc., that are provided as the means of enjoyment of the fruits of karma - ja'ngama aja'ngamam ca idam jagat || This world of beings both moving and non-moving, that enjoy the fruits of karma-s. - nArAyaNa udbhavam || all originated from nArAyaNa. yogo j~nAnam tathA sA'nkhyam vidyAh SilpAni karma ca | vedAh SastrANi vij~nAnam etat sarvam janArdanAt || (19) "The knowledge of yoga, sA'nkhya, other branches of learning, arts, works, Vedas and SAstra-s || a knowledge of all these springs from bhagavAn janArdana". The Critical Edition has the pATham "SilpAni", and SrI bhaTTar has used the pATham "SilpAdi". Also, SrI bhaTTar seems to have used the pATham yoga j~nAnam instead of `yogo j~nAnam'. The former would mean `knowledge of yoga' sprung from janArdana, and the later would mean `yoga and j~nAna' originated from janArdana. The previous Slokam declared that bhagavAn is the source and origin of all cetana-s and acetana-s (sentient and insentient beings).

This Slokam declares that bhagavAn is the Source of all knowledge as well. Again, SrI bhaTTar gives wordby-word meanings. - yoga j~nAnam || yogasya j~nAnam; j~nAnam || SAstram. yogo dvi- vidhah samAdhi yogah, karma yogaSca | (j~nAnam = SAstra-s; yoga is of two kinds || bhakti yoga and karma yoga. So yoga j~nAnam means the knowledge of the SAstra-s related to bhakti yogam and karma yogam. - sA'nkhyam || sa'nkhyayA tattvAnAm avadhAraNam sA'nkhyam || The science by which the nature of the Realities is arrived at by means of sankhyA or intellect. - vidyAh || vyAkaraNAdi a'nga vidyAh, dhanur, Ayur, gAndharva prabhRtIni dRshTArthAni upa-vidyAh - The subsidiary branches of knowledge such as grammar, archery, medicine, music, dancing etc. (veda-s are considered the foremost among sciences, as we see below). - Silpa Adi || Sculptures, architecture, etc. - karma || sarvatra anushTheyam karma - Observance of duties in all places. - vedAh || pradhAna vidyAh - The foremost among all sciences. - SAstrANi || smRti, itihAsa purANAni|| smRti, itihAsa-s and purANa-s. - sarvam etat vij~nAnam || all these SAstra-s - janArdanAt (udbhavanti) || All these sciences are born of janArdana. The greatness of BhagavAn as revealed by His possession of all things and beings in both the nitya vibhUti (SrI vaikuNTham) and the leelA vibhUti (all the other Universes), is sung in the next Slokam. eko vishNur_mahad-bhUtam pRthak-bhUtAnyanekaSah | trIn-lokAn vyApya bhUtAtmA bhu'nkte viSva-bhuk avyayah || (20) "vishNu is the unique and unparalleled Deity in that He pervades the many, various, and different objects of the three Universes, and the three worlds of souls. Remaining as the Inner Soul of everything, He protects and enjoys the Universe, and yet remains untouched by their foibles and defects". Again SrI bhaTTar provides word-by-word meanings and interpretation. - ekah - svayam ekah san, Being the Supreme Deity above all else - vyApya || teshAm niyama SeshitvAdibhih AtmA bhavan || By pervading, by being the Inner Soul of, Controller of, and Master of - anekaSah pRthak bhUtAni - asa'nkhyeyatayA rUpa-prakAra- pariNAma-prayojana bhedena pRthak ca sthitAni mahAnti bhUtAni - The great Elements that are of countless forms, manners, mutations, and utility which are distinct and different from one another. - trIn lokAn ca || baddha mukta nityAn cetanAn || and of the three worlds of souls, namely, the bound souls, Released souls, and Eternal angels. - viSva-bhuk || sarvathA paripAlakah; and by being the Sole Protector of everything in all the Universes; tathA'pi || Even so, - avyayah || tad-doshaih aparAmRshTah, punaSca para vibhUtyA || being untouched by the faults of any of the souls whose AtmA He is. - mahad-bhUtam || avA'ng-manasa gocaraSca bhavan || His greatness is beyond description through words, imagination by the mind, etc. - bhu'nkte || leelA bhoga rasam anubhavati || and He enjoys the pleasure of Divine Sport and Divine Bliss.

SrI Sa'nkara has not commented on this Slokam. However, SrI T. S. Krishnamoorthy, who has provided a translation for Sa'nkara bhAshyam, provides the following translation: "vishNu, the one great Being, pervades innumerable individual beings and the three worlds; and being the undecaying Self and enjoyer of all, He experiences everything (and also protects)". He has essentially echoed the translation provided by SrI R. Anantakrishna Sastry. An interpretation that is more reflective of the advaitic philosophy is given by SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri, a rough translation of which follows: "Lord vishNu who permeates everywhere, became mahat, the basis for all the three worlds. Then He became many, took different forms, and filled all the worlds with these forms; He is the soul of all things that appeared thus. He is enjoying these worlds without being distinct from them in the slightest way. He ultimately contains everything within Himself. (He is the One who performs creation, protection, and destruction)". SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - phala Sruti - Conclusion. This posting formally concludes this project on SrI vishNu sahasra nAma that adiyEn started on May 7, 1997. Little did aDiyEn expect at that time that it would take close to 10 years to complete. Whatever little adiyEn knows about our sampradAyam, is completely owed to this effort over a period of 10 years. It was of immense benefit to me in taking me a tiny bit closer to the life's ultimate goal. In our sampradAyam, our AcAryan is our Lord in real life. Today is the SatamAna utsavam (centenary celebration) of our great AcAryan SrImad tirukuDanthai ANDavan, and aDiyEn is delighted to present this concluding write-up with the sweet memories of the few moments in my life when aDiyEn was blessed with his kaTAksham, and place this work at the Lotus feet of asmad AcAryan SrI ra'nga rAmAnuja mahA deSikan. imam stavam bhagavato vishNor-vyAsena kIrtitam | paThed-ya-icchet purushah Sreyah prAptum sukhAni ca || (21) "That person, who desires to obtain supreme bliss and the pleasures of the world, should read this stotra of bhagavAn vishNu sung by the great sage vyAsa". SrI bhaTTar's comment can be summarized thus: "This stotra sings the praise of Lord vishNu, possessed of unlimited greatness. The one who praises him through this stotra is none other than Sage veda vyAsa, who has drunk this greatness in full, and who has no shortness of words to describe that greatness. This gem of a Hymn has the greatness of the One who is praised as well as the one who is praising Him. This world that is filled with destitution, is eminently qualified to benefit by the chanting of this Hymn, which is capable of redeeming this world from its destitution. Thus, everything is perfect about this hymn |||||||||| the person who is sung, the person who sings, and the beneficiary who is qualified to benefit by singing His praise. Therefore, any person desirous of supreme Bliss or material pleasures, whoever he may be, can resort to it". Some of the original words used by SrI bhaTTar in giving his summary above are: `stava ratnam' to describe the vishNu sahasra nAma stotram, `mahA dAridRyam idam jagat' to describe the deplorable state of this world which is straying away from dharma, `nirviSa'nkah sevatAm' |||||||||| the benefits will be attained without any doubt. The Sloka

itself declares that both Sreyas (denoting moksham), and the lesser pleasures (sukhAni ca) are attained by the chanting of this Hymn. SrI Sa'nkara provides the following commentary for the Sloka: "imam stavam ityAdinA sahasra SakhAj~nena sarvaj~nena bhagavatA kRshNadvaipAyanena sAkshAt nArAyaNena kRtam iti sarvaireva arthibhih sAdaram paThitavyam sarva phala siddhaya iti darSayati" |||||||||| By the verse beginning with `imam stavam', bhIshma indicates that this hymn is composed by the revered kRsh dvaipAyana, the omniscient, the knower of the thousand branches of veda, who is nArAyaNa Himself, and hence this hymn is to be recited by all with faith, in order to achieve all the ends. viSveSvaram ajam devam jagatah prabhavApyayam | bhajanti ye pushkarAksham ne te yAnti parAbhavam || (22) "The Lotus-eyed bhagavAn is the birthless Supreme Deity, the Ruler of the Universe, and the Cause of the creation and destruction of the Universe. Those who sing His praise will never meet with disrespect or discomfiture of any kind". We will first look at SrI Sa'nkara's commentary for this last Slokam, and conclude with SrI bhaTTar's words of conclusion. SrI Sa'nkara stresses the importance of worshiping Hari for the fulfillment of all that is desired, for the removal of all deficiencies in all karma-s performed with benefit as the objective, etc. He then points out that worship of Hari will bestow moksham itself |||||||||| release from the bondage of samsAra. He concludes by dedicating his bhAshyam at the Lotus Feet of Hari. He gives the following Sloka-s in support of his vyAkhyAnam: pramAdAt kurvatAm karma pracyavetAdhvareshu yat | smaraNAdeva tad-vishNoh sampUrNam syAt iti Srutih || (garu. PurA. 230.50) "The Sruti-s say that any acts that have been carelessly performed, such as irregular procedures in sacrifices etc., are rendered perfect by meditating on vishNu". (Note the Slokam |||||||||| "kAyena vAcA manasA |||||||||| nArAyaNayeti samarpayAmi" .that is always chanted at the conclusion of any karma by the followers of any sampradAyam of the Hindu faith). SrI Sa'nkara quotes another Slokam from vyAsa: AdareNa yathA stauti dhanavantam dhanecchayA | tathA ced-viSvakartAram ko na mucyeta bandhanAt || "If one praises the Creator of the Universe with the same ardor with which one praises a rich man to get wealth from him, would not one be relieved from the bonds of samsAra||" SrI Sa'nkara concludes his vishNu sahasra nAma bhAshyam with the following Sloka of his own:

sahasra nAma sambandhi vyAkhyA sarva sukhAvahA | Sruti smRti nyAya mUlA racitA hari-pAdayoH || "This commentary of sahasra nAma which brings happiness to all, and which was written consistent with the Sruti, smRti and nyAya, is dedicated to Hari (laid at His Feet)". SrI bhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam is: "evam svabhAvata eva samasta-dvandva- pratidvandvi |||||||||| sakala kalyANa guNAkaram, prapanna pArijAtam, puNDarIkAksham, lakshmI-patim, bhagavantam bhajamAnAnAm sa eva sarvasvam iti, tad-sampado vAcAm agocarAh | kutah sAmsArika- paribhava-prasa'ngah iti paryAptayati |||||||||| visveSvaram iti || " bhagavan nArAyaNa, the Consort of lakshmI and the Lotus-eyed Lord, is by nature opposed to all kinds of unwelcome things (like happiness and sorrow, good and evil), and is the mine of all auspicious qualities. He is like the celestial pArijAta tree for those who have resorted to Him. They consider that He alone is their wealth. Therefore the riches and well being of those people are beyond words. This being the case, where is there any occasion for them for dishonor or disgrace|| Sage vyAsa concludes the Hymn with the oath repeated twice: "na te yAnti parAbhavam ||||||||||.. na te yAnti parAbhavam" "NEVER DO THEY MEET WITH ANY DISRESPECT||||||||||. NEVER DO THEY MEET WITH ANY DISRESPECT". SrI bhaTTar concludes his bhagavad guNa darpaNam with the following asmAkam atra ca paratra'nca sarva duhkham unmIlya sampadam aSesha vidhAm vidhAya | SrI ra'ngarAja mahishI sa ca vaishNavAnAm sa'ngAt sukham saha jayena sadA kriyAstAm || "May both SrI ra'nganAyaki, the Queen Consort of SrI ra'ngarAja, along with SrI ra'ngarAja, root out all the distress here and hereafter, confer wealth of all kinds on us, and always bless us with the company of the devoted SrI vaishNava-s, happiness and victory.". SrI kRshNArpaNamastu |||||||||| Dedicated in all humility to Lord kRshNa. -dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

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