Stotra Ratnam : Part 1

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Dear Members of the Prapatthi group :

 

After completing the Chathussloki on the mahAthmyam

of Sri Devi , AaLavandhAr proceeded to compose his

tribute to Sriman NarayaNan.There are 65 slokas in

this sthothram . The number 65 is the sum of the letters

contained in the three rahasyams( AshtAkshari+Dwayam+

Sarama Slokam ) . Therefore, Sthothra Ratnam is considered

the essence of Rahasya Trayam or it is the Rahasya Trya Saaram.

 

It has been said that there is no Kavyam that moves one's heart

as Srimadh RaamayaNam ; Similarly , Sthothra Ratnam has been

considered by Purvacharyas as the sthothram that is matchless

in moving one 's heart . It has profound philosophical principles

and yet it is a moving appeal to the Lord and cries out for His

grace. This sthothram is a great lesson in the stages that one

has to go through to perform SaraNAgathi and to become free of

fear about SamsaarA .

 

The sthothram starts and ends in the traditional way of salutations to

one's AchArya . Swami Desikan states that this gem of a sthothram

is placed in the beautiful box of Acharya sthuthi . YaamunA starts with

the salutation to his Acharya and then moves on to praise BhagavAn.

He becomes diffident about his qualifications for the task and yet

wants to eulogize Him in the manner of VedAs and Upanishads .

His resolution gets diluted and he laments over his lack of

qualifications and inadequacies and performs akinchana SaraNAgathi

at the lotus feet of the Lord . He then comforts himself by reflecting

that even a small upAyam such as SaraNAgathi can yield major

auspicious results and that his goal in performing SaraNAgathi is

to do Nithya Kaimkaryam in Sri Vaikuntam . He recognizes that

the great sins that he has accumulated obstruct progress in

the attainment of his desired goal . He states that he is however

not discouraged as a result of his awareness of the Lord' s

DayA . He appeals movingly to the Lord to strengthen his

SaraNAgathi efforts and to protect him from the obstacles that

stand in his way towards the realization of his goal. He goes on

to the next step of prayer, where he begs the Lord to grow his Bhakthi

towards Him and to bless him to live with BhagavathAs and to

live in a state of KaarpaNyam devoid of egotistic thoughts.

He pleads with the Lord for Acharya Sambhandham to realize the

fruits of the glorious Prapatthi and declares his MahA viswAsam

in the Lord's KshamA and anukampA to bless him with the fruits

of Prapatthi .

 

The meaning of Dwayam is deftly interlaced in the body of this

gem among sthothrams composed by AaLavandhAr . In the previous work,

Chathussloki , our Acharya made Purushakaara Prapatthi to

Sri Devi . Thereafter, as he starts to perform BharanyAsam

at the holy feet of the Lord, he completes guru paramparAnusanthAnam

as the first step as a prerequisite. He elaborates next on the meaning of

NaarAyaNa sabdham and follows the arc of Dwayam and completes

the SaraNAgathi at the sacred feet of Sriman NaarAyaNA . The second

paadham of Dwaya manthram comes into focus now. Our Acharya now

explains the meaning of "SrimathE nArAyaNAya " section by stating

that this portion stands for the obtainment of the fruit of nitya Kaimkaryam

to Sri VaikunTa naathan in Parama Padham . He adds next the slokams

that cover the "Nama: " section--the concluding word of Dwayam -- for

seeking the Lord's anugraham to eliminate any left over obstacles in

his efforts to get the full benefits of SaraNAgathi (i-e) Nitya Kaimkarya

PurNAnubhavam . Thus , the slokams of Sthothra Ratnam can be

considered to cover the full meaning of the sacred Dwaya Manthram .

 

The Two Invoctory verses (Taniyans ) for Sthothra Ratnam

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Taniyan 1 :

 

svAdhayan iha sarveshAm thryyanthaartham sudurgraham I

sthothrayaamasa yogeendra: tam vandE YaamunAhvayam II

 

I salute Yaamuna Muni ( Yamunai Thuraivar ) , the preeminent

among the Yogis for blessing us with the gem among sthothrams.

He gave us this eulogy so that we can all enjoy the delectable

taste of the meaning of the VedanthA , which is very difficult to

realize on our own .

 

Taniyan 2 :

 

namO namO YaamunAya YaamunAya namO nama: I

namO namO YaamunAya YaamunAya namO nama: II

 

There are many nama: sabdhaas in this Taniyan. Each of the

nama: sabdhaas have their own meanings. The five meanings

of the nama: sabdham are : My Maanasa , Vaachika and Kaayika

( mind, Speech and Body ) NamaskArams to Yaamuna Muni;

In addition to these three Upaaya namaskArams , I salute

Yaamuna Muni in Parama Padham for making it possible to

reap the benefits of my Prapatthi . May the fruits of these namaskaarams

not belong to me , but only to him as the Seshi .

 

Yaamunaacharyan ThiruvadigalE saraNam.

 

Sri VaishNava Daasan ,

 

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan