re types of dharmam 1

[Guest guest]

Dear Sri MGV,

 

Incidentally the ThriuvAimozhip pAsuram 'vAikuntha maNivANNAnEa en pollAth ThriukkuRaLA ennuL manni,

...sei-kuntha varum thEmai vun aDiyArkkuth thErthu , asurarkkuth thEamigaL sei kunthA.." 2-6-1;

 

Interestingly, the term kunthA occurs fthree times in this pAsuram.

 

THE EDU

 

1. VaikunthA -mEanmaiyaich sollugiRAdhu. The LOrd's majetsic state at

Paramapadham is indicated. ' nithya vibhUdhiukthan thammuDan vandhu kalandhAn '

enRu hrshtarAgiRAr ennumidam thORRugiRadhu.

 

2. sei-kunthA -seiyappattu kadakka aridhAya pApangaL. The kArmic effects which

are difficult to get crossed over.

 

3. asurarkuth thEmai sei-kunthA - that is the Lord who creates hurdles for the

demons. Here the kunthA is taken as idaik kuRai that

is 'kurundham 's is taken as kuntham. This flower is white and EmperumAn is

likened to the pure whiteness.

 

Otherwise,the name is also derived from the terms 'kumudha-kundhara-kundha:

Asridha paksha pAdhiyAna vunnai.

 

The highlight of the VyAkyAnam is the following line. The macro thoughts on

these three words are succinctly summarised here. The vyAkyAna karthA's

greatness sparkles here. It again goes to prove that our vyAkyAnam-s are not

just meanings but a menainigful coherent thought process both in a micro and

macro level.

 

vaikunthA enRu mEanmaiyaic sollithu; maNivaNNA enRu -vadivazhagu sollithu;

en-pollAth ThriukkuRaLA enRu saulabhyam sollithu;

 

immUnRum kUDinadhAyiThu parathvamAVadhu.

 

By the term VaikunthA Greatness is mentioned. The term ManivANNA refers to the

beauty and pollAth ThriukkuRALA indicates saulabhyam.

 

The combination of these three qualities go into the making of Supremacy.

 

svAmi NampiLLai thiruvadigaLEa charaNam.

 

adiyEan

dAsan

vanamamalai padmanabhan

 

-

M.G.Vasudevan

 

Cc: tiruvenkatam ; oppiliappan

Tuesday, March 21, 2006 4:31 PM

re types of dharmam 1

Dear sri sukumar swamin and sri vaishNava perunthagaiyeer,I always admire the

way sri sukumar puts his points across. Here also he raised a point on the

difference between vaikunta and brahma. In the srivaishNava sampradhaaya or

tradition, the supreme lord is always referred / mentioned as para-brahma, and

not simply 'brahma'. For sri vaishNavas, brahma is the four faced brahma

[chathur mukha brahma], or prajapathi the creator who is parabrahma's first

creation [re naanmugan thiruvandhadhi posts by Smt. Sumithra] [except in sri

vishNu sahasra naamam].Now considering the naama "Om vaikunTaaya nama:" as in

sri vishNu sahsra naamam, this is a special one - please refer naama no. 406

occurring in slokam 44 Quote from sri krishNamachari swamin's sri vishNu

sahasra naamam commentary [available in web site] 406. vaikunThahRemover of

obstacles (to union). om vaikunThAya namah.SrI BhaTTar derives the meaning from

the root kuThi gati praghAte - obstructing the path. Thus kunThA signifies the

obstacles to union. vaikunTha-s are those whose obstacles have been removed.

The obstacles to bhagavAn are sins. He is the remover of sins, and so He is

called vaikunTha. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri explains the nAma as vigatA kunThA

tasyAh kartA - One who regulates those that tend to go their own way if left

unobstructed. At the beginning of the earth, when the pa~nca bhUta-s tended to

expand uncontrolled without uniting with each other, bhagavAn controlled this

and made them co-exist through union with other. SrI Sankara and SrI BhaTTar

both quote the following Sloka from mahA bhAratain support of the concept that

bhagavAn brings about the union of seemingly incompatible things: "mayA

samSleshitA bhUmih adbhir-vyoma ca vAyunA | vAyuSca tejasA sArdham

viakunThatvam tato mama || (SAnti343-50) "By me the earth was united with

water, ether with air, and air with fire. So I am called viakunTha". He is

vaikunThah also because He removes all obstacles to attaining Him for His

devotees, and unites them with Him (SrI P.B. aNNa~ngarAcArya). SrI satyadevo

vASishTha explains that One for whom all obstacles or obstructions (kunThA)

have been removed is vaikunTha. Or One who removes all obstacles is vaikunTha

also. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives yet another explanation. bhagavAn is called

vaikunThah because He was born to Subhra and vikunThA in the fifth manvantara.

He then married ramA and acceded to her request to create a place for her

enjoyment, and this place was called vaikunTha. He Himself is this vaikunTha.

This is supported by vishNu purANa 3.2.41 and bhAgavata 8.5.4-5. The dharma

cakram writer takes the interpretation to a level where it applies to lives of

individuals for whom He removed the obstacles facing them from attaining Him

and united them with Him. The cases of prahlAda, paraSurAma, karNa,

hariScandra, vAli, etc. are given as examples. -- Unquote.MGV: In the

dictionary, if you see, the word vaikunta has meanings - * name of

Vishnu * The abode of Vishnu located on the north and east of meru

the mountain. So vaikunta means the supreme lord vishNu as well as his abode.

MGV: To take up next the naamam 'VishNu:' required by sri sukumar - again from

same web site - naama no. 2 occurring in slokam 1 of sri vishNu sahasra naamam

- Meaning: 1. One who permeates everything, is inside every sentient and

non-sentient being. 2. One who surrounds everything.Om vishNave namah.This nAma

occurs again as nAma-s 259 and 663. This nAma can be derived from the root vish

- vyAptau - to pervade, or vis - praveSane - to enter. SrI BhaTTar's vyAkhyAnam

is - sva vibhUti bhUtam cit acit Atmakam sarvam viSati iti vishNuh. The idea is

that keSava exists everywhere and permeates everything that is His Wealth; He

is unlimited by space, time, and substance (SrI SaMkara); He pervades the whole

universe internally and externally. SrI BhaTTar gives the following references

in support.viveSa bhUtAni carAcarANi - He entered all beings, movable and

immovabletat srshtvA | tadevAnuprAvisat - Having created it, He entered into

the same."vyApya sarvAn imAn lokAn sthitah sarvatra kesava: |tatasca vishNu

nAmAsi viserdhAto: pravesanAt || "KeSava exists everywhere having pervaded all

these worlds. Therefore His name is VishNu since the root viS denotes entry

i.e., pervasion".Under nAma 259, SrI BhaTTar explains vyApti (pervasion)

further, and explains the relation between bhagavAn and the jIva-s as of the

nature of the relation between fire and smoke. When there is smoke, there is

fire, but the reverse is not always true (as in the case of a red hot iron

rod). Thus, bhagavan and the jIva-s are related in the sense that without

bhagavAn the jIva-s do not exist. The supreme Person and the jIva-s are never

identical, but there is inseparable connection between bhagavAn and the rest.

He is greater by virtue of the diverse kinds of help He renders to all who are

of a lower order. SrI BhaTTar refers us to the gItA - na tadasti vinA yat syAt

mayA bhUtam carAcaram (10.39) - "There is no object, moving or non-moving,

which can exist without Me". Another anubhavam of this guNa of vyApti is that

it is not just the fact that He is in everything and in inseparably bound to

everything, but it is one of His showering everything with His infinite Mercy

(SrI v.v. rAmAnujan). His sauSIlyam is to be enjoyed here. SrI kRshNa datta

bhAradvAj derives the meaning from the root vishu - secane - to sprinkle, to

pour out; veshati (si'ncati) bhakta tarUn ASIrvArIbhih iti vishNuh.nammAzhvAr

declares: "tiDaviSumberivaLi nIr nilamivaimiSai paDar poruL muzhuvadumAi avai

avai torum uDan miSai uyir enak karandu e'ngum paranduLan" (tiruvAimozhi

1.1.7)The Lord created the five elements, and from them He created all others.

Indeed He became all others. He pervades everything in and out. He is the Soul

for the body of everything and every being. The term "He enters all the worlds"

should be understood as "He enters everything in all the worlds". SrI

rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives another view of the reason why bhagavAn has pervaded

everything. It is for the purpose of ensuring that everything is in its

designated and assigned place, and things don't come into collision with each

other, for example, the different planets and constellations etc. He quotes

from the taittirIya AraNyaka, wherein first the question is asked - keneme

vidhRte ubhe - "Who is keeping the two things from colliding with each other?",

and responds: vishNunA vidhRte bhumI; iti vatsasya vetanA - "vishNu is the One

who is supporting them with His Sakit; this is the finding of sage vatsa". SrI

Samkara gives the following supports for this nAma:antar bahiSca tat sarvam

vyApya nArAyaNah sthitah - (mahA nArAyaNa upa. 1.13) - nArAyaNa pervades the

whole universe externally and internally."yasmAd vishTam idam sarvam tasya

SaktyA mahAtmanah | tasmAd vishNuriti khyAto veSer dhAtoh praveSanAt || (vishNu

purANam 3.1.45)"Because the whole world has been pervaded by the energy of the

great Self, He is named vishNu, from the root viS - to enter or pervade."vyApte

me rodasI pArtha kAntiscApadhikA sthitA | kramaNaccApyaham pArtha! VishNuriti

abhisamgj~nita: || (mahAbhA. 350.43)"As I have pervaded the horizons, my glory

stands foremost, and as I have measured by my steps the three worlds, O Arjuna!

I am named vishNu". SrI anatakRshNa SAstri interprets the term kAnti here as

referring to His Effulgence - His radiance pervades the firmament and

transcends it. SrI BhaTTar has given the explanation of the nAma vishNu in

terms of His power of pervasion (Sakti) under nAma 663. He refers to the mantra

about bhagavAn: sarva SaktyAtmane - He, Who is the embodiment of all powers. He

also gives reference to the Slokam: "yasmAd vishTamidam sarvam tasya SaktyA

mahAtmanah." given earlier. As an instance of this Sakti, the trivikrama

incarnation is also cited - the smRti declares "vishNuh vikramaNAt devah" -

mahA bhA. udyoga. 5.68.13), a reference to His name being vishNu because He

measured the three worlds with His steps. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan gives reference to

nammAzhvAr's praise of His Sakti:"ennaik koNDu en pAvam tannaiyum pARak kaittu

emar Ezh ezhu piRappum mEvum tan maiyamAkkinAn vallan empirAn en viTTuvE"

(tiruvAi. 2.7.4) "He changed me from a nitya samsAri to a nitya sUri; He

exterminated all my sins, those of my predecessors and my successors for

several generations, so that all of us have reformed to become His. Who did

this? VishNu! He will do this because His name implies all-pervasiveness". SrI

cinmayAnanda refers us to ISAvAsya upanishad: ISAvAsyam idam sarvam yat ki'nca

jagatyAm jagat - Everything that exists in the universe is nothing but of the

nature of the Lord, and without Him nothing exists. He pervades everything,

unlimited by space, time, or substance.SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives an

additional interpretation not found in other vyAkhyAna-s: vi + shNuh = vishNuh

- viSesheNa snAvayati prasrAvayati bhakta abhilAshAn iti vishNuh - He who

bestows the wishes of the devotees like a fountain. Note that the root from

which the second nAma is derived is the same as the root from which the first

nAma - viSvam - was derived. However, the interpretation is different. The

interpretation here is that BhagavAn has entered all beings - sentient and

non-sentient, that He has created. The meaning for the first nAma was that

bhagavAn is everything, the Absolute, full in all respects. SrI v.v. rAmAnujan

nicely paraphrases the two nAma-s: "a'ngu pUrtiyil nOkku, I'ngu vyAptiyil

nOkku". - the first nAma emphasizes His Fullness and Perfection, and the second

nAma indicates that He permeates everything. SrI rAdhAkRshNa Sastri observes

that meditation on the significance of the first two nAma-s - namely that Lord

vishNu is in everything around us and in every one of us, and that without Him

nothing exists, will lead us closer to a life of peace, tranquility, ahimsA,

and selfless service to Him.Sri Surin, in his commentary on amara KoSa, has

given the following derivation for the word VishNu - veveshti iti vishNu: - One

who surrounds and envelops. This is derived from the root word vesht - to

surround (recall the word veshti in Tamil for dhoti, which surrounds!).MGV

adds: Vishnu the term is dissolved as " veveshti Vyaapnoti iti Vishnuh." He is

the one and only one who pervades all and nothing ever pervades him. The

Greatest Dharma is the one Vishnu, who has neither a beginning nor an end, the

Lotus Eyed Supreme Lord of the Universe. The "Cause" of the whole Universe is

the Lord Vishnu and all the effects are but expressions of the "Cause" Lord

Vishnu.Quote continues: One interesting question that can be raised is: Given

that the stotram is called visNu sahasranAmam, why did Sri VyAsa not start the

stotram as vishNur viSvam vashatkAro, and instead chose to start it as viSvam

vishNur vashatkAro...? Based on the SrI BhaTTar's anubhavam, viSvam is the name

that symbolizes the primary attribute of the para form as one of shAdguNya

paripUrNatva, and vishnu and the following names then elaborate on the name or

the guNa represented by the name viSvam.SrI satyadevo vAsishTha rhetorically

asks the question: If Lord vishNu is everywhere, in everything, why is it that

most of us don't see Him? The key is the SraddhA.SraddhayA vindate vasuh - Rg

veda. 10.151.4SraddhayAgnih samidhyate SraddhayA hUyate havih | SraddhAm

bhagasya mUrdhani vacasA vedayAmasi (Rg. 10.151.1)SraddhAm prAtar havAmahe

SraddhAm madhyam dinam pari | SraddhAm sUryasya nimruci Sraddhe SraddhApayeha

nah | (Rg. 10.151.5)He who is endowed with the sAttavic disposition, or has

developed it, keeps seeing vishNu in everything around him all the time.To

summarize, - the nAma vishNu refers to the guNa of bhagavAn in pervading

everything He has created, including all sentient and non-sentient objects from

a blade of grass to brahma; - His pervasion is because of His Sakti; in other

words, He is the power behind everything that exists; an instance of His Sakti

is illustrated by His measuring the three worlds with His Foot; - His vyApati

is indicative of the inseparable relation between Him and everything else

outside Him, in the sense that nothing exists without Him. - His pervasion of

everything is of the form of His enveloping and showering everything around Him

with His Mercy. It is not just His sausIlya that is indicated by this nAma; all

His powers including that of creation, sustenance, His Lordship, etc., are to

be understood by this nAma. - It is because of His pervasion of everything in

this universe that things (for example the constellations, the planets, etc.).,

are in their respective positions without colliding with each other. - He is

also called vishNu because He bestows the wishes of His devotees profusely like

a fountain. --- Unquote:Since the length of the post puts a restriction on me we

will continue in next post.DhasanVasudevan M.G.DISCLAIMER: This Message and its

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