SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 84 - lokasAra'ngah.

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SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 84 - lokasAra'ngah.

 

789. loka-sAra'ngah – a) He Who preached the superficially acceptable

goals in the world.

b) He Who grasps the essence of the world like a

sAra'nga or honeyubee.

c) He Who is reachable through the essence (sAra) of

the veda-s, namely praNava.

d) He Who is the object of devotion (loka-sAra)

e) He Who is attracted by bhakti

f) He Who bestows moksham, and He to whom the j~nAni-s are

attracted.

g) He Who has devotees singing His auspicious qualities.

 

Om loka-sAra'ngAya namah.

 

a) SrI BhaTTar gives the vyAkhyAnam - "loke yat sAram tat gacchati

iti loka-Sara'ngah" – He Who preached what was more immediately

appealing outwardly from the veda-s. SrI BhaTTar continues that in

His deceitful role, He taught them that there are only two things to

worry about: 1. How to enjoy while we live, and 2. How to get

moksham at the end. He told them "kurushvam mama vAkyAni yadi

muktim abhItshTatha" (VP 3.18.5) – "If you want salvation, follow my

words". One should go through the entire chapter of SrI vishNu

purANam 3.17 and 3.18 to have a full understanding of the Buddha

incarnation.

 

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives support from nammAzhvAr's tiruviruttam 96:

 

vaNa'ngum tuRaigaL pala pala Akki madi vikaRpAl

piNa'ngum Samaya'ngaL pala pala Akki, avai avai tORu

aNan'ngum pala pala Akki nin mUrti parappi vaittAi

iNa'ngu ninnOrai illAi….

 

"You created several ways to worship You, including those that

conflict with, and contradict each other; You created several gods,

but there is nothing that can equal You".

 

SrI K. Ve'nkaTasAmi reDDiyAr has written a uRai for this pASuram, in

which he explains that the reference here is to the different paths

that He has created for worship for the rAjasic and tAmasic people,

including the gods and processes of worship associated with them.

 

SrI Sa'nkara uses the same meanings as above for the three parts of

the nAma – loka, sAra, and a'nga, and gives two interpretations:

 

b) lokAnAm sAram sAra'ngavat bhR'ngavat gRhNAti iti loka-

sAra'ngah – He Who grasps the essence of the

world like a sAra'nga or honey-bee.

 

c) He Who is reachable through the sAra or essence of the veda-

s, namely the praNava. loka-sArah –

praNavah, tena pratipattavya iti loka-sAra'ngah.

 

d) e) SrI satya devo vAsishTha derives the nAma starting from the

roots lok – darSane – to see, to perceive; sR – gatau – to go; and

a'ng – to go. His approach is: loka – He who is in the purview of

vision is lokah, or He who shines with different aspects; sR –

gatau – to go. By use of pANini sutra 3.3.17, (sR sthire) the word

sArah refers to something that moves while remaining fixed; for

instance, candana sArah – the essence of sandal. sthiro bhavati iti

sArah – One who moves while remaining fixed throughout time is

sArah. Choosing the second of the two meanings given for loka, loka-

sAra is interpreted by SrI vAsishTha as referring to bhakti towards

bhagavAn (loke sAro bhagavti prema). He Who is the recipient or

object of this bhakti, or He Who is attracted by bhakti, is loka-

sAra'ngah – loka sArah tad gacchati = prApnoti, tat prati AkRshTo

bhavati iti loka-sAra'ngo vishNuh.

 

So the two interpretations that SrI vAsishTha gives for the nAma are:

 

He Who is the object of devotion (loka-sAra), or

He Who is attracted by bhakti

 

f) SrI satya sandha yatirAja gives the interpretation by viewing the

nAma as loka-sAh + ra'ngah. He uses the roots san – dAne – to give,

and ra'nj – rAge – to be devoted to, in his interpretation. His

vyAkhyAnam is: lokam vaikunThAdi lokam sanoti dadAti iti loka-sAh;

rajyante j~nAninah atra iti ra'ngah; loka-sAh asau ra'ngaSca iti

lokasA-ra'ngah – He Who bestows SrI vaikunTham, and He to Whom the

j~nAni-s are devoted, is lokasA-ra'ngah.

 

g) The word sAra'nga also refers to a conch shell or a kind of

musical instrument. SrI baladeva vidyAbhUshaN takes the word lokA to

refer to bhakta janAh – the devotees, and sAra'nga as a reference to

a conch shell or a kind of musical instrument, and gives the

interpretation for the nAma as "He Who has devotees singing His

auspicious qualities" – lokA hari-bhakta-janAh Sara'ngA monodvatad

guNa gAyakA yasya sa loka-sAra'ngah.

 

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan