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The Divine Dwellings

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Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri

Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama:

 

The Divine Dwellings

 

___________________

 

 

If we wish to see God, where do we search for Him?

This does sound to be a rather simplistic question

from a simpleton: - all the same, it is worth

pondering over. Where indeed do we find Him? What are

His known addresses where He is available?

If He were a local resident, we can find out from our

local Post Office, and if He resides abroad, the

Internet, with its far-reaching tentacles, should help

us find Him somewhere, somehow. Unfortunately, none of

these new fangled inventions seem capable of locating

the elusive Lord, for He is beyond the perception of

human faculties. Often, a search for Him, using our

frail intelligence and inadequate industry, is akin to

the search by a blind man for a black cat in a dark

room. To find Him, it would appear that our only

recourse would be to the old-fashioned sources-the

Scriptures, consisting of Vedas, Itihasas, Puranas,and

Aruliccheyal.

 

Let us first see what the Shruti has to say in the

matter-

Defining the abodes of Sriman Narayana, the

Narayanavalli of the TaittiriOpanishad says

“ambhasyapArE bhuvanasya madhyE nAkasya prishtte

mahatO maheeyAn”

Ambhasi apArE- the endless waters of the ocean

are the favourite haunt of the Paramapurusha. The

first and foremost of the avatArAs, the MatsyAvatAra,

was enacted in the ocean. At the time of PralayA, Sri

Narayana reclines as an infant, on a small banyan leaf

in the swirling waters (“Alilai mEl anna vasam seyyum

aNNalAr”). Sri VarAhAvatArA saw the Lord diving to

the bottom of the ocean to reclaim BhoomipirAtti

(“Masudambil neer vAra mAnamilA pandriyAm”). And for

good measure, in the KoormAvatArA too Emperuman stood

steady as a rock, in the form of a giant turtle, with

his feet firmly planted in the ocean bed, bearing the

Mantara parvatam on his broad back, to enable

dEvAs to obtain nectar. It would thus appear that the

ocean is indeed the home of the para vastu.

Tiruvaimozhi has innumerable references to Emperuman’s

residence in the ocean-

“kadal aazhi neer thOtri adanuLLE kaN vaLarum

adalAzhi ammAn”

“tAnOr peru neer tannuLLE tOtri adanuL kaN

vaLarum vAnOr perumAn”etc.

 

 

« Bhuvanasya MadhyE »-The Antariksham or the great

Universe (or, according to some, the Soorya Mandalam)

is also the abode of SrimanNarayana. Azhwar

describes this thus- “vAnatthum vAnatthuL umbarum

maNNuLLum maNNin keezh tAnatthum endisaiyum tavirAthu

nindrAn “

“Paranda andam idena nila visumbu ozhivara……engum

parandulan”

 

« NAkasya prishttE » “ NAkam » here denotes the suddha

satva maya nitya vibhooti, viz., Sri Vaikuntam. This

is ParamAtmA’s permanent address, so to say, and is

untouched by rajas and tamas.

 

There is one more place where He resides- in our

hearts, as the antaryAmi. The Narayana Anuvakam says

that the heart is in the shape of an inverted lotus,

and in that, the Paramatma is ever present in a

microscopic form.( “TasyA: shikAyA madhyE paramAtmA

vyavastthita:”). Only Yogis, who have their minds

firmly fixed on Him, can see this inner dweller. It is

this form that is referred to in Sri Bhagavat DhyAna

SOpAnam as “madhyE Rangam mama cha hridayE vartatE

sAvarOdha:” Here, discerning Rasikas would appreciate

the word, “sAvarOdha:”-while the Lord resides in

everybody’s heart, in Tooppul Pillai’s hridayam, he

resides with His Nachimars, because here is a devotee

who cannot visualise Emperuman, even in His antaryAmi

svaroopam, without His Divine Consorts.

 

Swami Desikan queries Sri Varadaraja in wonderment, “

The sprawling Milky Ocean and the glittering

Paramapadam are your abodes. With such vastly

superior places to reside in, how ever did you choose

this human body, with all its refuse, as your

favourite haunt, and that too, such a tiny place like

the human heart?”

“oudanvatE mahati sadmani bhAsamAnE

shlAghyE cha divya sadanE tamasa :parasmin

anta :kaLEbaram idam sushiram susookshmam

jAtam Kareesa katam AdaraNa Aspadam tE?”

 

This perhaps echoes the feelings of Sri Periazhwar-

“Panikkadalil pallikOLai pazhagavittu, Odi vandu en

manakkadalil vAzhavalla mAya maNALA nambI

TanikkadaEle tanicchudarE taniyualagE endru endru

UnakkidamAi irukka ennai unakku uritthAkkinayE ».

 

Other Azwars too confirm that the Lord of

TiruppArkadal, who resides forever in Piratti’s heart,

has made their (Azhwars’) minds His home-

“manattuLLAn mAkadal neeruLLAn, MalarAL danattuLLAn

tanduzhAi mArban” (Sri Peyazhwar)

“idam Avadu en nenjam indrellAm- andru pada nAgaNai

nediya mArku »(Sri Tirumazhisai Piran).

Another favourite haunt of Emperuman seems to be the

Vedas, and in particular, the Vedanta or Upanishads.

This is borne out by the following Sreesooktis-

“nangu Odu nAl Vedatthu uLLAn

naraviriyum pongOda aruvi punal vaNNan »

 

« noorkadalum nuNNoola tAmarai mEl

pArpattirundAr manamum idamAga koNdAn kurundositta

GopAlakan »-Sri PeyAzhwar.

« Shruti sirasi videeptE BrahmaNi SrinivasE »-Sri

Bhashyakara

« ShruteenAm uttaram bhAgam VEgavatyAscha dakshinam

»-Swami Desikan (Sri Kamasikashtakam).

 

 

 

 

All this nice to read and write about: but are any of

these forms accessible to us? To quote Sri LokAchArya,

to a thirsty man, Paramapadanatan is like the

primordial waters surrounding this globe, and the

antaryAmi, residing in our heart, like the untapped

underground water: both are of no use in quenching

one’s thirst.

 

In their infinite mercy, Azhwars show us another of

the Lord’s dwellings, which is eminently accessible,

one we can visit at our convenience- the various

temples where He resides in the form of images duly

consecrated by Sages and sung by Azhwars-collectively

known as divya desams. The ArchaAvatAra Emperuman, in

all His soulabhyam, contracts His infinite form to

suit the images of stone and various types of metals

that His devotees make for Him. Sri Peyazhwar gives us

a sample of such divyadesams, where the Lord resides-

“Chiranda en sindayum sengaN aravum,

nirainda seer neeL Kacchi uLLum-uraindaduvum

Venkatamum VekkAvum VeLukkai pAdiyumE

TAn kadavAr tanduzhAyAr »

Sri BhootattAZhwar chips in with

“payindradu arangam TirukkOtti-pannAL

payindraduvum VenkatamE pannAL-payindradu

aNi tigazhum sOlai aNi neermalayE

maNi tigazhum vaN tadakkai Mal »

 

Tirumazhisai Piran, who is enamoured of the Sleeping

Beauty, lists the divya desams where Emperuman is to

be found in a reclining posture, on Ananta-

“nAgatthaNai Kudandai VekkA TiruvevvuL

nAgatthaNai Arangam PEr Anbil-nagatthaNai pArkadal

kidakkum Adi nedumAl

aNaippAr karrutthan AvAn”.

 

The Siriya Tirumadal and Periya Tirumadal of Sri

Kaliyan contain a big list of such divyadesams, which

the Lord has made His home.

To wind up this piece, let us find out what Iramanusa

Nootrandadi says in this regard:

Though Emperuman resides in the hearts of all Yogis,

Sri Tiruvarangatthu amudanAr makes a special mention

of the Lord’s most favourite abode-he says, ”Though

scholars say that the Lord resides in Sri Vaikuntam,

Tirumalai, TirumAlirum Solai, etc., He dwells with

happiness only in Sri Ramanuja’s heart”.

“iruppidam Vaikuntam Venkadam-Malirum SOlai ennum

poruppidam Mayanukku enbar nallOr-avai tannodum

vandu

iruppidam Mayan Iramanusan manatthu”.

 

Thus all Azhwars have been enthusiastic votaries of

the ArchAvatArA, and have lost themselves in the

Lord’s captivating form at the various divyadesams.

There is however a diametrically opposite school of

thought, which says,” pratimAsu aprabuddhAnAm,

sarvatra sama darsinAm” (Mature sages find Him

everywhere, not merely in His images)(Srimad

Bhagavatam). But then, this would be material for

another piece altogether.

Srimate Sri LakshmINrisimha divya paduka sevaka Srivan

Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama:

_dasan,sadagopan.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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