SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 102 - paNaH.

[Guest guest]

Dear Devotees:

 

aDiyEn has been posting the write-ups for the nAma-s of SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam

for several years in different e-mail groups. Initially aDiyEn was posting the

write-ups in the bhakti list, and when it ceased distribution, aDiyEn switched

to the raAmAnujamission list. SrI raghurAm muDumbai, a well-known member of

this group, encouraged me to share these write-ups with this e-mail group also,

and so aDiyEn will start posting the future write-ups in the list as

well, concurrently with the postings in the rAmAnujamission list. The previous

write-ups are archived in the following web site created and maintained by SrI

M. K. Krishnaswamy:

 

http://home.comcast.net/~chinnamma/sahasra/

 

Any comments/suggestions for improvement are welcome.

 

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

=============================================================

 

958. paNaH – a) He Who trades His role as Master with His devotees,

and becomes subservient to them.

b) He Who accepts offerings as the antaryAmi of the different

deva-s, and bestows benefits.

c) He is constantly active, creating `forms and names'.

d) He Who bestows benefits according to karma.

e) He Who manages the activities of the Universe.

f) He Who is the object of praise (paN – stutau – to praise).

g) He Who assigns and controls the duties of the different

gods.

 

om paNAya namaH.

 

SrI vAsishTha indicates the root for the nAma as `paNa – vyavahAre –

to bargain, to bet or stake at play', or `paNa – stutau – to

praise'. Most interpreters have used the first meaning, and SrI

kRshNa datta bhAradvAj and SrI satya sandha tIrtha have used the

second meaning.

 

vyavaharati, vyavahArayati vA viSvam, saH paNaH – He Who transacts

the activites of the world, or He because of whom the people of the

world transact their activites, is paNaH. (The term ApaNa means a

market or a shop – a place where transactions are conducted).

Different interpreters give different anubhavam-s of

His `transactions' or dealings with us.

 

a) SrI BhaTTar draws from the Sesha-SeshI bhAvam, or the Lord-servant

relationship that exists between Him and us. While this is the

natural relationship between bhagavAn and us, sometimes He chooses to

reverse this relationship, and behaves as if He is the servant of the

devotee. This is the `transaction', namely the reversal of the role,

that Sri BhaTTar enjoys through this nAma – evam teshAm svAmya-dAsya

vyatihAreNa vyavaharati iti paNaH – He behaves as though there is a

transaction whereby there has been an interchange of the role of the

Master-servant relationship between Him and us (vyatihAreNa

means `interchangeably, reciprocally'). He acts as if they are the

masters and He is their servant. SrI veLukkuDi kRshNan notes that

this is what is reflected in tirumazhiSai AzhvAr being

called `tirumazhiSaip pirAN', and Lord ArAvamudhan of tirukkuDantai

being called "ArAvamudha AzhvAr".

 

Lord kRshNa declares that He considers His true devotees as His AtmA –

an example of the reversed role.

 

udArAH sarva evaite j~nAnI tvAtmaiva me matam |

AsthitaH sa hi yuktAtmA mAmevAnuttamAm gatim || (gItA

7.18)

 

"….I deem the man of knowledge to be My very self; for he,

integrated, is devoted to Me alone as the highest end". Bhagavad

rAmAnuja's vyAkhyAnam is: "ayam mayA vinA Atma dhAraNa asambhAvanayA

mAm eva anuttamam prApyam AsthitaH, ataH tena vinA mama api

AtmadhAraNam na sambhavati, tato mama api AtmA hi saH" – This person

(the j~naNi who is solely devoted to Him) considers Him to be the

highest, and finds it impossible to support himself without Me; so

also, I find it impossible to be without him. Thus, verily, He is My

self".

 

b) There is another aspect to the `transaction' that bhagavAn has put

in place. This is in the form of our offerings to the different gods

through yaj~na etc. SrI vAsishTha gives examples from the Sruti

where this `transaction' aspect is captured:

 

yo agnishomA havishA saparyAt daivadrIcA manasA yo ghRtena

|

tasya vratam rakshatam pAtamamhaso viSe janAya mahi Sarma

yacchatam || (Rg. 1.93.8)

 

"Whosoever honors agni and soma with devout heart, through oil and

poured oblation, for him, they (agni, soma etc.) in turn protect his

sacrifice, preserve him from distress, and grant to the sacrificer

great falicity".

 

agniH pUrvebhiH RshbhiH Idyo nUtanairuta |

sa devAm eha vakshati || (Rg. 1.1.2)

 

"Worthy is agni to be praised by the living as by ancient seers; he

shall bring hitherword the gods".

 

agne naya supathA rAye | (Rg. 1.189.1)

 

"agni, god who knows every sacred duty, by goodly paths lead us to

riches".

 

In the spirit in which SrI vAsishTha has interpreted the nAma,

namely, that offerings are made to the deva-s, and the deva-s in

return, bestow goods on the people, the following Slokam from the

gItA lends support to this thought:

 

D22evAn bhAvayatAnena te devA bhAvayantu vaH |

parasparam bhAvayantaH SreyaH param avApsyatha || (gItA

3.11)

 

ishTAn bhogAn hi vo devA dAsyante yaj~na bhAvitAH |

tair-dattAn apradAyaibhyo yo bhu'ngte stena eva saH ||

(3.12)

 

"By this (i.e., through sacrifices), please the gods, and the gods

will support you. Thus nourishing one another, may you obtain the

highest good". (Note that these deva-s are the bodies of the Lord,

and He is their antaryAmi. The offerings to these gods ultimately

reach Him only).

 

"The gods, pleased by the sacrifice, will bestow on you the

enjoyments you desire. He who enjoys the bounty of the gods without

giving them anything in return, is but a thief".

 

c) SrI Sa'nkara interprets the nAma as one referring to

the `transaction' aspect of bhagavAn creating the different life-

forms (according to their karma?). He quotes a mantra from the

upanishad in support:

 

sarvANi rUpANi vicitya dhIraH; nAmAni kRtvA'bhivadan

yadAste | (taitt. 3.12)

 

"He, the Wise, keeps creating various forms and giving a name to

each".

 

d) SrI Sa'nkara's alternate interpretation is: puNyANi sarvANi

karmANi paNam sa'ngRhya adhikAribhyaH tat-phalam prayacchati iti

lakshaNayA paNaH – He who awards, to those that are entitled, the

fruits of their good karma-s, that they have accumulated". SrI

rAdhAkRshNa SAstri comments that as a merchant gives merchandise that

is commensurate with the amount that is paid to him, bhagavAn

measures out the phalanx commensurate with the karma; thus, the

price for happiness is following the path of dharma, and the price

for suffering is one's having followed the a-dharmic path.

 

e) SrI cinmayAnanda explains this guNa of bhagavAn in terms of the

functioning of everything in the universe: "PaNaH – The Supreme

Manager of the Universe. By giving the exact reward for all actions,

Lord both orders and justly manages all activities of each individual

and directly supervises the interactions between individuals and

things constituting this scientifically precise universe".

 

f) SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj uses the root paN – stutau – to praise,

and explains the nAma as "paNyate stUyate sattva guNavadbhiH iti

paNaH – He Who is worshipped by those who are endowed with a

predominance of the sattva guNa. This is also one of the

interpretations provided by SrI satya sandha tIrtha – paNyate janaiH

stUyate iti paNaH.

 

g) SrI raghunAtha tIrtha gives yet another dimension to

His `transactions' – paNayati devAn vyahAreshu pravartayati iti

paNaH – He is called paNaH because He assigns the respective duties

to be performed by the different the gods, and controls them in these

functions.

 

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

 

archive: http://home.comcast.net/~chinnamma/sahasra/