SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 82 - catur-vyUhah.

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SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 82 - catur-vyUhah.

 

773. catur-vyUhah – a) He of the form of four Emanations (vyUha forms).

b) He Who had four manifestations in His vibhava form (as kRshNa,

balarAma, pradyumna, and aniruddha).

c) He Who manifests Himself as purusha, chandah purusha, veda

purusha, and mahA purusha.

d) He Whose Supremacy is established by the four-fold veda-s.

e) He Who is in the form of four divisions of speech (three veda-s,

and ordinary speech)

f) He Who has four kinds of greatness (vyUha = mahimA).

 

Om catur-vyUhAya namah.

 

We dealt with this nAma in Slokam 15 (nAma 140). The root is Uh –

vitarke – to conjecture, to reason, to infer. SrI satyadevo vAsishTha

gives the expansion – viSishThA UhA vyUhA – He Who forms Himself into

four forms for the purposes of creation etc.

 

Following is a recap with some additional information, mostly taken

from Vol. 4 of the Agama-koSa published by the Kalpatharu Research

Academy (S. K.. Ramachandra Rao), dealing with the pA’ncarAtra Agama.

 

 

The term vyUh means to divide, to distribute, to separate, to resolve,

etc. It is used to refer to the four forms in which para vAsudeva or

nArAyaNa decided to divide Himself for His functions of creation,

preservation, and destruction. This is a fundamental and integral

concept of the pA’ncarAtra Agama. In this concept, in the para or

transcendental mode, the Deity is like an ocean of nectar altogether

devoid of waves, quiet, profound, still, limitless and unfathomable,

unfragmented by space or time. This is His form in SrI vaikunTham. It

is the plane in which knowledge and bliss abound unobstructed, and

which is populated by the nitya sUri-s (who are never involved at any

time in transmigration etc.), and by the mukta-s. The para form is

full of the six attributes – j~nAna, bala, aiSvarya,, vIrya, Sakti,

tejas. The vyUha mode of bhagavAn emphasizes the differential

manifestations and functions of the six attributes. This creative

configuration of the attributes is for the sake of creation and

evolution of the world, for maintaining the world and protecting the

devotees, and for leading the devotees to salvation. The vyUha forms

are four in number: vAsudeva, samkarshaNa, pradyumna, and aniruddha.

VAsudeva has all six attributes in their fullness and equal dominance.

VAsudeva appears as three additional sequential emanations as follows:

 

j~nAna + bala = SamkarshaNa

aiSvarya + vIrya = pradyumna

Sakti + tejas = aniruddha

 

As in the case of the other nAma-s of this Slokam that are common with

Slokam 15, the first instance of this nAma is explained by SrI BhaTTar

in terms of the vyUha incarnations of bhagavAn, and the second in terms

of His vibhava incarnation as Lord kRshNa.

 

a) As part of his description of this nAma in terms of the vyUha

incarnations (vAsudeva, samkarshaNa, pradyumna, and aniruddha), SrI

BhaTTar points out that each of the vyUha forms have their own limbs,

color, ornaments, weapons, vehicles, banners, etc. These forms are

assumed by bhagavAn for the purpose of meditation and worship (dhyAna

and ArAdhana) by His devotees. The four states of meditation that are

associated with each of these four forms are jAgrat – Wakeful state;

svapna, State of dreams; sushupti – Deep sleep; and turIya – The fourth

and Final State. In the Wakeful state, the external senses function;

in the svapna state, they do not function, but only the mind is active;

in the Sleep state, even the mind does not function, and there is only

breathing; and in the turIya state, even the breath is suspended.

 

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj refers us to SrImad bhAgavatam, where the

four vyUha-s are mentioned:

 

namaste vAsudevAya namah sa’nkarshaNAya ca |

pradyumnAya aniruddhAya sAttvatAm-pataye namah || (bhAga. 10.40.21)

 

b) For the nAma 773, where SrI BhaTTar continues his description of

bhagavAn’s vibhava incarnation as Lord kRshNa, the explanation he gives

is the four forms of kRshNa or vAsudeva, balabhadra (balarAma, His

brother), pradyumna (His son), and aniruddha (His grandson). Just as

in the vyUha incarnation, in the vibhava incarnation also, kRshNa was

full of all the six qualities, and baralAma (sankarshaNa), pradyumna,

and aniruddha had two of the six qualities dominating.

 

SrI Sa’nkara gives two different interpretations for the nAma in their

two instances, consistent with the trait of being free from punar-ukti

dosham of authentic vyAkhyAna-s. For the instance of the nAma in

Slokam 15, he gives the interpretation in terms of the four vyUha

incarnations. He quotes the words of vyAsa in support:

 

vyUhya AtmAnam caturdhA vai, vAsudevAdi mUrtibhih |

sRshTyAdIn prakarotyesha, viSrutAtmA janArdanah ||

 

“He Who is known as viSrutAtmA, janArdana, etc., divides Himself into

four forms, and performs the functions such as creation”.

 

c) For the current nAma catur-vyUhah, he uses the generic meaning

“manifestation”, and using the aitareya AraNyaka declaration,

describes the four manifestations as the purusha in the body, the

purusha in the chandas, the purusha in the veda-s, and the great

purusha – SarIra purushaS-chandah purusho veda purusho mahA purushah

(ait. AraN. 3.2.9). SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri expands on this: purusha

or SarIra purusha refers to the soul or AtmA in the SarIra of the

cetana-s; chandah purusha is the AtmA in the form of the correctly

pronounced mantra-s; the veda purusha is the AtmA in the form of the

veda-s; and the mahA purusha refers to the purusha in the form of kAla

or Time.

 

d) SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshan gives the explanation that He has this

nAma because His Supremacy is established by the four divisions of the

veda-s – Rg, yajus, sAma, and atharva: caturbhih vedaih vyUhyate

pareSatvena vRdhyate yam iti catur-vyUhah.

 

e) SrI satyadevo vAsishTha uses the Rg vedic passage “catvAri vAk

parimitA padAni (1.164.45), and interprets the nAma as referring to

“four divisions of speech”. The passage continues to say “The brAhmins

who have understanding know them”. Ralph Griffith interprets this as a

reference to three veda-s, and to ordinary speech as the fourth one.

 

f) The dharma cakram writer gives a different interpretation. He takes

vyUha to mean “greatness”, and then interprets the nAma as representing

bhagavAn as having the following four mahimA-s: 1. Performing the

function of creation, destruction etc., just as part of His leelA-s;

2. Revealing the greatness of parA-bhakti (extreme devotion) through

rAsa-krIDA; 3. The revelation of the relation between jeevAtmA and

paramAtmA by being the nAtha simultaneously for innumerable gopi-s; and

4. The calm acceptance of the curse of gAndhAri relating to the

destruction of the vRshNi race.

 

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

 

 

 

 

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