SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokma 74 - Part 6.

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SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 74 - vasuh.

 

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 this nAma.

 

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

 

 

 

 

 

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