SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 80 - Part 9.

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SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 80 - dharAdharah.

 

762. dharAdharah – a) He Who supported the Mountain (govardhana).

b) He Who supports the earth.

 

Om dharAdharAya namah.

 

The word dhara means mountain, and the word dharA refers to earth. So

the nAma can be viewed as dhara + Adharah, dharA + dharah, dharA +

Adharah, etc. The different vyAkhyAna kartA-s come up with their

interpretations depending on which combination they choose.

 

a) SrI bhaTTar gives the interpretation using the word dharam –

mountain. The nirukti description for the nAma is dharam dhRtavAn

dharAdharah – He Who bore the mountain. The reference here is to Lord

kRshNa’s bearing the govardhana mountain to protect the cows and

cowherds when indra caused trouble to them (dharasya govardhanasya

girer-dharaNAt dharAdharah – SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN). SrI bhaTTar

gives the following reference to bhagavAn’s thoughts described in

vishNu purANam prior to His lifting the Mountain:

 

tad-etad-akhilam goshTham trAtavyam adhunA mayA |

imam adrim aham dhairyAt utpATyA’’Su SilAdhanam |

dhArayishyAmi goshThasya pRthucchatramivAparam ||

 

“The cowpen with all the cows and cowherds should be protected by me

now. I shall by force uproot this mountain with big boulders at once

and hold it over their heads as a big umbrella and save them all (from

this distress)”.

 

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives several references to AzhvArs on this

incident:

 

- tiru nedum tANDakam 13 – kal eDuttuk kal mAri kAttAi (tiru ma’ngai

AzhvAr)

- kaDu’nkAl mAri kallE pozhiya …. neDu’nkAl kunRam kuDai onRu Endi

niraiyaic ciramattAl naDu’ngA vaNNam kAttAn (tiruma’ngai AzhvAr,

periya tirumozhi 6.10.8)

- …. tiRambAmal malai eDuttEnE ennum….(tirmbAmal – flawlessly)

(nammAzhvAr, tiruvAi. 5.6.5)

- Eleven pASurams of periyAzhvAr tirumozhi (3-5) are all dedicated to

the govardhana incident.

 

b) SrI Sa’nkara’s interpretation uses the meaning dharA – earth.

dharAm dhaArayan dharAdharah. His actual vyAkhyAnam is: “amSaih

aSeshaih SeshAdyaih a-SeshAm dharAm dhArayan dharah – He Who supports

all the earths through His amSa-s such as Adi-Sesha. SrI rAdhAkRshNa

SAstri points out the other forms, such as varAha, the eight elephants

of the eight directions, etc. He quotes the Sruti vAkhyam in support:

yene me vidhRte ubhe; vishNunA vidhRte bhUmi; dAdhartham

pRthivImabhito mayUkahih |

 

SrI cinmayAnanda gives a different anubhavam of His being the “ sole

support of the earth”. He interprets earth here to refer to matter in

general, and observes that bhagavAn is the very essence from which

matter has come to express itself, both its gross and subtle forms. He

continues: “Geographically, the earth is supported by water, water by

atmospheric air, and air by space. If one enquires further and

questions what supports space, we know that space is a concept which we

experience by our intellect. All experiences of the intellect are

established in Consciousness, and therefore, the ultimate support for

the entire world is the Supreme nArAyaNa”, and so He is dharAdharah.

 

The dharma cakram writer explains bhagavAn’s “support of the earth”,

starting from the pa’nca bhUta-s in their sUkshma form, and how they

combine together to evolve into their sthUla forms. His “support of

the earth” is really a part of His support of the pa’nca bhUta-s. He

is the Creator of everything, and He is the ultimate Abode of

everything, and so He is dharAdharah. Several are the concepts that

are hidden in this mantra “om dharAdharAya namah”. Just like all the

other mantra-s (and remember that each nAma is a mantra), this is

another very potent mantra.

 

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

 

 

 

 

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