Guest guest Posted October 7, 2002 Report Share Posted October 7, 2002 Dear Friends, Apropos the recent discussion on the Lord's kalyana-gunas, a learned correspondent sent me a note of which I reproduce and abridgment here: > > You may like to cite the following from vishNu purANam: > > aiSvaryasya samagrasya vIryasya yaSasa: Sriya: > jnAna vairAgyayOS caiva shaNNAm bhaga itIraNA > (VP 6-5-74) The word 'Bhagavan' (/bhagavAn/) means 'One who possesses 'bhaga'. 'bhaga' is the collective possession of the six qualities of supremacy, valor, renown, auspiciousness, knowledge, and detachment. Only one who possesses all these in full is called 'Bhagavan'. > jnAna-Sakti-balAiSvarya-veerya-tEjAmsy aSEshata: > bhagavac-chabda-vAchyAni vinA heyAir-guNAdibhi: > (VP 6-5-79) The word Bhagavan is associated totally with the qualities of knowledge, power, strength, supremacy, valor, and effulgence, and is absolutely bereft of anything limiting or defiling. The following sloka of Sri Alavandar brings the nectarean ocean of Bhagavan's auspiciousness to light: > > vaSI vadAnyO guNavAn RjuS-Suchi: > mRdur-dayALur-madhura:-sthira:-sama: > guNI guNajna: tvamasi svabhAvata: > samasta-kalyANa-guNamRtOdadhi: > (stOtra ratnam 18) --- I am told that this verse of Alavandar's was once cited by Indira Gandhi in a speech, highlighting the fact that that God can be absolutely pure as well as be full of all glory. aDiyEn rAmAnuja dAsan, Mani Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted October 22, 2002 Report Share Posted October 22, 2002 -SRIMATHE RAMANUJAYA NAMAHA. -- In bhakti-list, Mani Varadarajan <mani@r...> wrote: > > Dear Friends, > > Apropos the recent discussion on the Lord's kalyana-gunas, > a learned correspondent sent me a note of which I reproduce > and abridgment here > The word 'Bhagavan' (/bhagavAn/) means 'One who possesses > 'bhaga'. 'bhaga' is the collective possession of the six > qualities of supremacy, valor, renown, auspiciousness, knowledge, > and detachment. Only one who possesses all these in full > is called 'Bhagavan' An information to add. The very first verse of ThirukkuraL describes God as Bhagavan,(a vada sol- sanskrit term)and not by the other popular tamil terms such as kadavuL, iRaivan etc. It is the usual practice to dedicate the first verse to the Lord by extolling His graetness.Thiruvalluvar wrote an entire chapter (adhikaaram)on God, but nowhere he talks about the attributes of God in open verses. He only talks about why one should pray to God-with his last verse stressing on the need to surrender at His feet. The only verse where we can find some description of god is in the first verse 'Agara mudala.." wherein he names the Lord as 'Adhi Bhagavan' In his commentary to ThirukkuraL, ParimElazhagar, the popular writer of the 11th century AD, traces the root of the word Bhagavan to 'bhagam' and 'bhagawan' of sanskrit and describes the 6 virtues of the Lord as mentioned in the mail quoted above. He further says that Adhi Bhagavan means 'the first Lord' According to him, Thiruvalluvar seeks to establish the presence of God in this verse by the expression, 'adhi bhagavan mudhattrE ulagu'(the world that has Him as the first Lord) The primary stress is on 'world'and not on the Lord. That is because the very exitence of the world pre-supposes the existence of the Lord just as how the presence of smoke establishes the presence of fire. The specific use of the term Bhagavan in this verse also establishes the primacy to the 6 attributes enshrined in this term. Another information in this context which has been very much an eye of a controversy is whom (which God) does Thiruvalluvar refer to as Bhagavan. One school of thought says that it must be Thirumaal (Vishnu). The authentication quoted for this is Nammazhvar's "andamil aadhiyam bhagavan" Another authentication is drawn from the BG where the Lord says that He is the A-kaaram ('agara mudala ezhuththu' in KuraL) Therefore 'Bhagavan' in KuraL refers to Lord Krishna. jayasree sarnathan : > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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