Sri Vaikunta Stavam series : SlOkams 56-61

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SrI :

 

SlOkam 56

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samvartha sambhrutha karasya sahsra-rasmE :

usram tamisrayath ajasravihAri haari

nithyAnukoolam anukoola nruNAm , parEshAm

udhvEjanam cha Tava tEja udhAharanthy

 

(Meaning) : BhagavAn's tEjas is being saluted in this slOkam .

Your tEjas makes the Sooryan filled with bright rays look like night

during PraLaya kaalam . Never diminishing and pleasing to the mind

and fear causing to Your enemies is Your tEjas. Ancients say such

a fearsome tEjas of Yours produces only auspicousness to those dear

to You .

 

(Commentary ): The tEjas ( lustre) of BhagavAn makes the brightness of

Sooryan look like darkness . The tEjas of the Lord outshines that of the Sun

( Sahasra rasmE: usram tamisrayath) . This tEjas terrifies the enemies of

the Lord and at the time protects His devotees .For those who are engaged in

Bhaagavatha apachAram , this tEjas produces terror and chases them down

wherever they are . For the devotees of the Lord , it has the most

comforting effect .The power of this tEjas makes the Stars , the Sun and

all other luminary bodies shine ( TamEva bhAntham anubhAthi SARVAM

Tasya bhAsA sarvam idham vibhAthi) .

 

SlOkam 57

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naiva hyavApyam anavAptham ihAsthy yasya

satthAapi tasya Tava veekshaNatha: prajAnAm

sampath thu kimpunarithO na vadhAnyamanyam

manyE , ThvamEva khalu mandiram IndhirAyA:

 

(Meaning) : Oh Bhagavan ! It is very clear there is no bhOgam that

You have not enjoyed sofar or any that you desire in future . This is

well known . If your glances fall on all the chEthanams , then they

gain all auspiciousness. Are n't You the One in whom MahA Lakshmi

has Her abode ? It is clear that all the wealth find their home in You

and therefore I will not consider anyone other than You as

the most generous benefactor to shower us with riches . adiyEn

will not seek any other one for blessing me with wealth of every kind .

 

(Commnetary) : Sofar , BhagavAn's six guNamds ( Jn~Anam , Balam ,

Sakthi , Iswaryam , tEjas et al ) were saluted to provide meaning for

Bhagavath sabdham . Now , KurEsar shifts to the celebration of His

generosity ( OudhAryam ) . His UdhArthvam ( VadhAnyathvam) is saluted .

All the other gods do not have the capabilities to match the boon granting

power of the Lord accompanied by MahA Lakshmi ( "pENilum varam tara

midukilla Devar " according to one AzhwAr ) .ThoNDardippodi AzhwAr

gives us upadEsam on this matter and instructs us about the folly of

seeking other gods for boons , while the Lord riding on Garudan is

waiting to grant all that one seeks ( kEtteerE NampimeerkAL

Garuda Vaahananaum niRka , sEttai tann madi ahatthuc-chelvam

pArtthirikinReerAe ) . Our Lord is one Supreme benefactor , who

has the power and riches to grant you any boon that you seek

( " koLLak- kuRaivilan , vENDiRellAm taru, kOthil VaLLal " ) .

He never runs out of Iswaryam to bless us .

 

SlOkam 58

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PapairAr-anAdhibhava sambhava vaasanOthTai :

dukkhEshu ya: khalu mimankshathy hantha ! janthu:

tamm kEvalam nu krupayaiva samuddharishyan

taddh-dhushkruthasya nanu nishkruthim-AtthTa sAsthrai:

 

( Meaning) : Oh Bhagavann ! Your KaaruNyam is matchless

and fills us with awe . ChEtanan is immersed in the timeless

SamsAra sAgaram and is about to drown buffetted by the waves of

sorrow , cycles of birth and death , old age and narakam. Out of

Your KaaruNya guNam , you take pity on such suffering Jeevans

and decide to bring them to the opposite shores of the fearsome ocean of

SamsAram and instruct them on the PrAyascchitthams to destroy

their paapams and save them.

 

(Commentary ) : From here on through seven slOkams , KurEsar engages

in the celebration of the incomparable KaaruNya GuNam of the Lord .

KuResar criticihose , who declare that BhagavAn is NirguNan (

attributeless).

 

Until now , KurEsar was engaged in eulogizing dhiyAthma guNams ; now ,

he shifts to the celebration of dhivya mangaLa vigraha guNams . Here , he

starts with KrupA-Vaathsalya-Kshamaa guNams , which assist the bhaktha

janams not to go away from Him . If there was no KrupA and KaaruNyam ,

bhakthAs will be overwhelmed by His powers and will fear to approach Him .

They will reason : How great He is and How small I am ( AmmAn AazhippirAn !

Avan yevvidatthAn ?yaann aar ? " ) and run away from Him .

 

To understand His KaaruNyam (Dayaa, KrupA ) , we have to visualize the five

wheels that swirl around us and catch us and propel us from one to other

in a ceaseless manner from ancient times . These five wheels , where we get

swirled around are : avidhyai , Karmaa , Vaasanai , ruchi , Prakruthi

sambhandham . AvidhyA (nescience) makes us engage in KarmAs .

Such engagement in KarmAs creeate residual effect ( vaasanai) ;

that Vaasanai leads on to the taste(ruchi) to redo them . That ruchi

establishes the association with Prakruthi and we go through

the ceaseless cycles of births and deaths . To break this awesome

cycle , BhagavAn out of His dayA (sahEthuka krupA ) instructs us

to practise Prapatthi as an excuse (VyAjam) to gain His grace and

be freed from Prakruthi . He is Omniscient ( Sarvaj~nan) ,

Powerful Lord of the Universe (SarvEsan ) and most merciful always

( Sadhaa KaruNeekan) . Even with all that , He expects a request

from the Karma-bound jeevan to gain freedom from the terrors of SamsAric

afflictions( Sarvaj~nOapi hi VisvEsa: sadhaa KaaruNeekOapi sann , SamsAra-

tanthravAhithvAth RAKSHAAPEKSHAAM PRATHEEKSHATHE " ) . The incomparable

KaruNai of Mukundhan (apAra KaruNaa) and the deep vaathsalyam for His

bhakthAs is saluted by Swamy Desikan followign KurEsar later : " Mukundha

KaruNAm vandhE MudhEshvadhika vathsalAm , svaroopasamsthavou

yasyA: nirhEthuka-sahEthukou ".

 

Our performance of Prapatthi is a simple act compared to the mighty act of

response from the most merciful Lord . He grants us His unfailing protection

and MOksha Phalan ( kEvalam nu krupayaiva Samuddharishyan ) . AchArya

RaamAnuja defines the GuNam of DayA this way : " DayA hi naama

SvArTa-nirapEkshA , Para dukkha asahishNuthA " ( One that does not think of

any gain for itself but is incapable of watching others suffer ) . That is

the nature of

the Lord's DayA . He is avAptha samastha Kaaman ( He is totally fulfilled

and does not need any thing from anyone ) ; yet , his heart melts over

the suffering of the Karmaa-bound Jeevans and waits to rush to their

rescue . When that Jeevan sorrows over the mighty sins committed and

how it can hope to overcome their power , the Most merciful Lord ordains

PrAyascchitthams to destroy all sins totally ( anupAdhuparamAth

prAyasccchitthOnmukhathvatha: , tathpooraNAth chAparAdhA:

sarvE nasyanthi paadhasa: Quote from aparAdha ParihAra adhikAram of

SrImath Rahsya Thraya Saaram ) . SaraNAgathy is the remover of all

Paapams ( Sarva pApmAnaam sishDam hyAthmApahArasya nishkruthi:

SvabharArpaNam ) . PrAyschittha Prapatthi performed to destroy

any sins accumulated after Prapatthi takes care of their destructon .

All of this is made possible thru the KaaruNyam of the Lord .

 

SlOkam 59

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Saasthrair-anAdhi nidhanai: smruthibhis-Thvadheeya-

dhivyAvathAra charithai: subhayA cha dhrushtyA

nissrEyasam yadhupakalpayasi prajAnAm

Saa ThvathkrupA jaladhi tallaja valkitha SrI :

 

(Meaning): This slOkam also celebrates BhagavAn's KaaruNya

guNam . With Your ancient and eternal Vedams and Saasthrams ,

with the Smruthis blessed by Sages Manu , Athri , Haareethar ,

with the happenings during Your avathAra kaalams and with Your

auspicious glances ,You bless the people with all mangaLams

all the way upto Moksham . Your blessings are the waves of

Your Dayaa saagaram ( Ocean of Mercy ) .

 

(Commentary ) : The Jn~Anam / Buddhi to discriminate the auspicious from

the inauspicious is provided by the Most Merciful Lord through His anaadhi

Vedams , Smruthis linked to Sage Manu and Others , His kaDAksham . These are

all Dayaa Kaaryams for gaining the Phalans all the way upto Moksham (

dadhAmi Bhuddhi yOgam tamm yEna YaamupAyAnthi tE ) . AvathAra Kaala

charithrams are enacted for the same purpose nad arise out of His Dayaa

to help the Jeevans.

 

SlOkam 60

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hai hantha ! janthushu niranthara-santhathAthmA

pApmA hi nAma vadha kOyam achinthya-sakthi:

ya: Thvath krupAjaladhim api athivElakhElam

ullangayathyakrutha bhAsura bhAgadhEyAn

 

(Meaning) : Oh Lord ! You must explain the nature of this powerful

and countless assembly of Paapams that is pervasively present among

the chEtanams . What a power these pApams hold over those unfortunate

ones , who do not practise the UpAyam of SaraNAgathy revealed by You !

It makes them ( the non-practioners of SaraNAgathy ) stay outside

the domain of Your incomparable Dayaa .

 

(Commentary ) : Inspite of the availability of our Lord's KaaruNyam ,

some do not take advantage of it .These are the unfortunates from

birth ( KaruvilE ThiruvilAthAr ) . The timeless Paapams are the reasons

that stand in the way between them and the most merciful Lord .

BhaagavathApachAram is one such Paapam that interferes with

the gaining of the Lord's KaaruNyam . The ways to overcome this

handicap are described at length in the Utthara KruthyAdhikAram

of SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram .

 

SlOkma 61

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yadh Brahmakalpa niyuthAnubhavE api anAsyam

tath kilBisham srujathy janthuriha kshaNArdhE

yEvam sadhA sakala-janmasu sAparAdham

kshAmyasyahO ! tadhabhisandhi virAma mAthrAth

 

(Meaning) : Oh Bhagavann ! In this karma bhUmi , a jeevan accumulates

in a fraction of a second fierce paapams that can not be destroyed

even during the very long life of Brahma dEvan . You bear with this

chEtanam, who tirelessly accumulates such Paapams in all his births

by taking account only of the times in which that jeevan does not

engage in committing such paapams .

 

(Commentary ) : BrahmA's day is made up of the combination of

thousand chathur yugams . Hundred days and nights of this length

constitute the life of one Brahma Devan . It is terrifying to visualize

such gigantic time spans . In one fraction of a second , the Jevan

committs mighty sins that will not be removed even during the huge

interval of time represented by the life of one Brahma dEvan . Once

that Jeevan practises prapatthi and vows that it will not engage in

Karmaas that will displease the ThiruvuLLam of the Lord , then

the Most Merciful Lord takes over and destroys these fierce

and long-enduring Paapams and grants the Jevan His protection .

 

Swamy KurEsar ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam ,

Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan

 

Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka

Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama: