Goddess Sarasvati and Lord Hayagreeva

[Guest guest]

Dear Mani:

 

It was a nicely written article. We find that your broad based reading,

discussions and analysis have certainly elevated you to a much higher level

of presentation on varied topics of relevance to all of us. It carries

conviction. Please keep up.

 

With respect to the article above, I checked the meaning of "Devi SarojAsana

Dharma Patni" in Rama DesikAchAr's translation. It is translated as Brahma

Patni (eventhough I personally wished to see the meaning interpreted by

you). I know that you had once referred to Sri Ranga PriyA Swamigal for

this interpretation. Do you have any other source corroborating this.

 

Thanks.

 

S. Vijayaraghavan

Buffalo/NY

 

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[Guest guest]

Sri Vijayaraghavan wrote:

> With respect to the article above, I checked the meaning of "Devi SarojAsana

> Dharma Patni" in Rama DesikAchAr's translation. It is translated as Brahma

> Patni (eventhough I personally wished to see the meaning interpreted by

> you). I know that you had once referred to Sri Ranga PriyA Swamigal for

> this interpretation. Do you have any other source corroborating this.

 

Dear Vijayaraghavan,

 

Sri Rama Desikachar is of course correct when he reads

"devI sarojAsana-dharma-patnI" as meaning the consort of

Brahma. "sarojAsana" is the one who resides on the lotus,

i.e., Brahma, and his dharma-patnI or wife is named Saraswati,

as named in the Puranas, etc. Sri Desika writes that she

and others who are reputed to be teachers of knowledge

derives their greatness from Hayagriva alone.

 

I didn't mean to imply otherwise. My idea is that when

*we* think of Saraswati as the Goddess of Knowledge, she

can be none other than a form of Lakshmi, and should not

be thought of as a lesser personality, such as the wife of

Brahma.

 

For example, my given name is Vachaspati. The name of

Lord Hayagriva is also Vachaspati. When we say we worship

"Vachaspati", do we worship me, or do we worship Hayagriva?

Similarly, when we worship Saraswati, we are worshipping

the *original* goddess of all knowledge, Lakshmi herself,

and no one else.

 

Saraswati Devi is typically pictured with pustaka and aksha-mAla

and is clothed in all white. Hayagriva similarly shines like

white crystal (Suddha-sphaTika) and similarly holds a book

and aksha-mAla in his hands. The Hayagriva Ashtottaram says

of this Lord "aksha-mAlA, jnAna-mudrA, yukta-hasto-varapradaH."

Furthermore, he is seated on a white lotus (puNDarIka-nishaNNa)

while holding a pustaka, as Desika himself describes. For every

form of Vishnu, Lakshmi has an appropriate form. We know this

from Sri Ramanuja's Saranagati Gadyam, where he describes Lakshmi

as having "bhagavan-nArAyaNa-abhimatAnurUpa...".

 

Hayagriva is the source of the Vedas. The sound of the Vedic

speech is Saraswati, as attested to by the Vedas themselves.

It is established convention that if the Lord is "sat", or

True Being itself, Lakshmi is "sattA", the quality of being

existent. Using this idea, if Saraswati represents the qualities

of the Vedic speech, and Hayagriva is the source of the Vedas

themselves, this leads me to believe Hayagriva-Saraswati

represent Lakshmi-Narayana.

 

Furthermore, I have seen many orthodox Sri Vaishnavas keep

pictures of Saraswati in their Perumaal sannidhi, while eschewing

those of all other so-called "anya-devatas".

>From all this, and from my brief conversation with Sri Rangapriya

Swami, I can only conclude that the ultimate Goddess of Knowledge

Saraswati is only a particularized form of Lakshmi.

 

Given that we have the good-fortune of vidvAns such as

Sri Velukkudi Krishnan Swami and Sri N.S. Anantarangacharya Swami

within easy access of email, perhaps we should ask them to

confirm my reasoning.

 

daasan,

Mani