Srimathi Nagu Satyan's kind note

[Guest guest]

Dear Mrs. Satyan :

 

I am deeply grateful to you and

all the other members , who have written to me and have encouraged

me to write on topics that are dear to us all. We are learning a lot from each

other

about our illustrious sampradhayams . I am very happy to read the postings

by Sri M.Srinivasan , Sri Mohan Sagar , Sri Varadan , Yourself and others , who

are knowledgable about our Tenkalai sampradhAyam . It is very educational

for the rest of us , who have been brought up in the Kanchi AcharyaL's

sampradhayam . Both of the sampradhayams are indeed branches

of the same tree of Bhagavadh Ramanuja SiddhAntham .

 

Back in India , we would never have had such a welcome

opportunity to balance our knowledge about the many rich

Sri Vishanavite traditions and to benefit from them.

 

There is yet another kalai that remains behind the Vada Kalai

and Tenkalai . That is what I would like to describe as

ucchishta Kalai . This is the SARVA SESHI , the Bhagavan

saluted by the Vedas as UCCHISHTA BRAHMAM . The Atharva

Veda devotes a whole hymn called Skhamba suktham

to salute this Ucchishta Brahmam , who stands as the

Skhambham or divine support of His entire creation and

holds it in equilibrium across time and space (AV X. 7.1.44).

UcchishtA (Ut-SishtA ) stands for that eternal, everlasting

Brahman that " weaves this cosmic cloth with divine woofs

and warps , shuttles and pegs , the art of two divine maidens

(day and night ) working incessantly in the parameters of space

ant time " ( Atharva Vedam X. 7.42-44 ) . He creates the Universe

and the created Universe assumes His form :

 

ya imE dhyAvApruthvee janithree rupairapimsidh

bhuvanAnani visvA ( Rg Vedam X. 110.9 )

 

Atharva Vedam then goes onto conceive the majestic weaving

of the Universe by the Lord through His divine thread ( Tanthu ):

 

rOhithO dhyAvApruthvee jajAna tathra TANTHUM PARAMESHTI

tathaana ( Atharva Vedam XIII .1.6)

 

Rg vedam chimes in and states that this entire Universe is

sustained by that great Parameshti, the Ucchishta Brahman.

This Rk of Rg Vedam (VI.45.3 ) points out that this entire

Universe is sustained by the great principle ( Mahi PraNithi )

and protected by the undecaying devices of protection ( Uthi ):

 

maheerasya PRANEETHAYA: purvOrutha prasasthaya: I

naasya ksheeyantha UTHAYA : II

 

This Ucchishta Kalai , exists , when nothing else exists

at the time of MahA PraLayam ( the great dissolution ) ,

when His own creation reverts to primordial matter , devoid

of Name and Form . Then , this supreme Self alone exists,

persists , since He is beyond change, decay or death .

 

One of the great Rks of Atharva Vedam declares loud and

clear that EVERY THING and PRINCIPLE is sustained in

this UCCHISHTA BRAHMAN including the Rg , Yajuh, Sama ,

UdhgithA , HinkarA , Svara , and Saman rhythms and Saman

rhymes :

 

rk saama yajurUCCHISHTA udhgeetha: prasthutham sthutham I

himkAra UCCHISHTE svara: saamnO medhisccha tanmayi II

( Atharva Vedam XI. 7.5 )

 

This passage of Atharva Vedam captures the essence of all

the three other Vedams , which went ahead of it and reveals

the additional glories of this JYESHTA BRAHMAN AS THE

SARVAADHAARAM (entire support ) for this universe in

the rest of the Rks of Skhambha suktam and the PARSINI

SUKTAM ( atharva Vedam X.2) . I will quote some passages

that echo with the Purusha Suktham rks :

 

"everything is born from Him after the dissolution , the disciplines of

divine knowledge , the sense organs , the vital realm , the blissful

realm, and ALL CATEGORIES of human beings --He is the Father and

Grandfather and He is equaly the sustainer of the inorganic and

organic world, of clouds, lightning and rains " .

 

The representation of this Cosmos as the figurative form

of this Ucchishta Brahman , as one possessing a human body

helps us to come closer in our understanding of Him and His

pervasive majesty . Yet , this body of Him is different from ours according to

the hymns

of Purusha SukthA celebrated in all the four Vedas . Man has two eyes ,

one mouth, two legs and two arms. This Ucchishta Purushan however has

thousands of eyes , legs , mouths and arms and through His innumerable

eyes can see in every direction . Purusha Sultham in the Rg Vedic

version covered very well by Sri Sundar and housed in the SrivaishNavA home page

 

discusses this grand conception . A pasage of Purusha Suktham says :

" The moon was gendered form His mind, and from His eye

the sun had birth --earth from His feet , and from His ears the

regions , thus they formed the worlds (tathA lokAgum akalpayan )"

--Rg Vedam X .90.13&14 .

 

The Atharva Vedam and the other three Vedams celebrate in their

many Rks and Saamans , the infinite glories of this Ucchishta

Kalai of Jyeshta Brahman and these eulogies are known

as BRAHMA -PRAKAASANAM .

 

May we all be inspired by these Vedic Thoughts

and enjoy the Bhagavad Vishayam related to

this UCCHISHTA BRAHMA KALAI !

 

Sri Veda PurushAya Nama :

 

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan