Guest guest Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Dear members, I have been going through various occurences of the purusha sUkta. I notice that the viRata pUrusha or parama purusha as praised in the purusha sUkta is not neccesarily grouped under Vishnu. I do not find direct refernces to Vishnu in the purusha sUkta, in any of it's occurences or recensions. On what basis then is Vishnu identified as the parama purusha of the sUkta? Regards, Jagan India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something new. Click here ------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 2, 2006 Report Share Posted May 2, 2006 Dear Sri Sudarshan, The richa that you are refering to is NOT found in the 10th mandala - 90th sukta of the Rig Veda. It is not found in other vedas that house the purusa sukta. Rgds, Jagan Oppiliappan, "Sudarshan K Madabushi" <mksudarshan2002 wrote: > > > Towards the end of the sukta passage there is the unmistakable > reference to Vishnu: > > "hreeshchatE lakshmeescha patnyow...." > > The Deity of this sukta is hailed as "Lakshmi's spouse!" i.e. Vishnu. > > Regds, > dAsan, > Sudarshan > > > > Oppiliappan, K G Jagannathan <kgjagan21@> > wrote: > > > > Dear members, > > > > I have been going through various occurences of the purusha > sUkta. I notice that the viRata pUrusha or parama purusha as praised > in the purusha sUkta is not neccesarily grouped under Vishnu. > > > > I do not find direct refernces to Vishnu in the purusha sUkta, > in any of it's occurences or recensions. > > > > On what basis then is Vishnu identified as the parama purusha of > the sUkta? > > > > Regards, > > > > Jagan > > > > > > > > India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something new. > Click here > > > > > > > ------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 3, 2006 Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 Dear Sir, I am willing for a moment to grant you the point that you make that the phrase does not appear in the Rg Veda mandala. If we go into a discussion on the authenticity of certain Vedic passages, then there will be no end to the controversy. SO let us leave it there for the time being and approach the subject in another way. >From a careful reading of the 'sUkta', one can glean several implicit expressions and idioms which are very strongly redolent of Vishnu. Take for example, the very first opening line "sahasrasheershA pUrushah:....." The purusha here is described first and foremost as He who is "thousand headed". This is a rather literary form of Vedic expression to convey the fact that the Supreme Purusha is an "immeasurable, infinite" entity i.e. "He Hath no Beginning, no End". He is "Viswam". Now in most purAnic texts, one will find the expression "sahasra" (meaning "1000" which again is Vedic shorthand for "infinite") is almost always associated with Vishnu only. The Vishnu Sahasranamam (which too begins with the expression "vishvam vishnurvashatkAro'"...) is the easily the most egregious confirmation of the fact that Vishnu is the personified equivalent of the 1000-headed Supreme Purusha -- i.e. "sahasraseersha purushah:". Likewise take another phrase in the 'sukta', for example: "tripadAsya'amrutam divi..." Here again the word "tripada" is a complete and unmistakable clue to the real identity of who the Supreme Purusha is. The literal meaning of the word "tripada" means "three-footed". ("dvipada" means two- footed and "chatushpadE" means 4-legged or 4-footed). IN all of puranic literature Vishnu is celebrated as "trivikrama" -- the Lord who with 3 strides simply enveloped the worlds --- one step for this world, the second for the worlds of the gods and with the third stride of His, there remained simply no worlds left to be tread! It is this "tripada" description of Vishnu which is also echoed in other Vedic passages where there is another synonym used commonly to describe Vishnu specifically as "urukkrama" "...sham no vishnur-urukkramah:..." (shAnti pAta) "...vishnOr'urugaayO vichakramE...!" (vishnu-sukta) The word "urukramah" and "tripada" in the Vedic context clearly refer to one identity only --- unmistakably Vishnu. Again in the Suktam, towards the end, there is the reference to the Supreme Purusha having brought forth all Creation through a great Cosmic Sacrifice ("yagnyEna yagnyamaya jantadEvAh..." etc). The reference to "yagnya" is a clear and unmistakable reference to Vishnu because we see in all of puranic literature that Vishnu is "yagnya" and "yagnya" is Vishnu ("yagnyO'vai vishnu"!). The Deity that is worshipped through all "yagnyas" is ultimately Vishnu only. It is Vishnu who is the ultimate "yagnya karta". This is also indicated in the Vishnu Sahasranamam where Vishnu is hailed variously as "yagnya-krut", "yagnya-bhuk" etc. The two are inseparable and identical. The logical conclusion therefore is that since the Supreme Purusha brought forth all of Creation through an act of "yagnya" and since Vishnu is the Lord of all "yagnyAs", He Himself was indeed the author of the very first primordial sacrifice spoken of by the Purusha Sukta. Hence Vishnu Himself verily is Purusha. There is a plethora of learned commentaries, both traditional and contemporary, on the identity of Vishnu as the Supreme Purusha about which the "purusha sukta" sings. This matter is well beyond the shadow of a doubt. I urge you to refer to such sources and satisfy yourself. Hope my explanations above are of some use to you. Thanks and regards, Sudarshan Oppiliappan, "kgjagan21" <kgjagan21 wrote: > > > Dear Sri Sudarshan, > > The richa that you are refering to is NOT found in the 10th mandala - > 90th sukta of the Rig Veda. It is not found in other vedas that > house the purusa sukta. > > Rgds, > > Jagan > > Oppiliappan, "Sudarshan K Madabushi" > <mksudarshan2002@> wrote: > > > > > > Towards the end of the sukta passage there is the unmistakable > > reference to Vishnu: > > > > "hreeshchatE lakshmeescha patnyow...." > > > > The Deity of this sukta is hailed as "Lakshmi's spouse!" i.e. > Vishnu. > > > > Regds, > > dAsan, > > Sudarshan > > > > > > > > Oppiliappan, K G Jagannathan <kgjagan21@> > > wrote: > > > > > > Dear members, > > > > > > I have been going through various occurences of the purusha > > sUkta. I notice that the viRata pUrusha or parama purusha as > praised > > in the purusha sUkta is not neccesarily grouped under Vishnu. > > > > > > I do not find direct refernces to Vishnu in the purusha sUkta, > > in any of it's occurences or recensions. > > > > > > On what basis then is Vishnu identified as the parama purusha > of > > the sUkta? > > > > > > Regards, > > > > > > Jagan > > > > > > > > > > > > India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something new. > > Click here > > > > > > > > > > > > ------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 3, 2006 Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 Sri: Srimate Rangaramanuja Mahadesikaya Namaha Dear Sri Jagan, Just reading through text of the Purusha Suktam, or any other section of Vedas, for that matter will not do enough justice to the subject. Rishis and Acharyas have aleady done the hard work of correct rules of vedic interpetation "lakshanam" for us in their commentaries. Sri Sudarshan is consistent with our Acharyas in mentioning the rk "hreeshchatE lakshmeescha patnyow....". shAstras are replete with pramAnas that identify the Purusha with Lord Sriman Narayana and none else. Here are just a few: o Sri Nanjiyar (Sri Ranganathamuni, Mukunda-Narayana-dasa) in his reputed commentary on the PS, quotes from Rgvidhana of Saunaka on the detailed method of worshipping Lord Vishnu with the riks of the PS. Further, Nanjiyar enlightens us as to how Rk 5 of the PS, "padOsya vishvA bhUtAni | tripAdasyAmratam divi || refers to the 4 vyUhAs of Sriman Naryana - Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumna, and Aniruddha. The purusha-sukta samhita of the sAkAlya-bramhana from which Nanjiyar quotes, expounds the role of Aniruddha (Sriman Narayana) in the greatest yagna - PS and that this is nothing but Atmasamrpanam or Prapatti. Nanjiyar also writes "Adityavarnam purusham vAsudEvam vichintayEt". Please refer to Sri Nanjiyar commentary for more details. Sri UttamUr Swami's commentary on the PS is another treasure. o sAma-vidhAna-brAmhaNa of the sAma-Veda, on the application of the samans of the PS of the Sama-Veda: "idam vishnuh prakshasya vrshNah, prakAvya mushnE babruvAN iti varAha- mantyam purushavratE cha aesha vaishnavI nAma samhitA etAm prayunjan vishnum prINAti." o vAlmIkI rAmAyaNa: "tEjO mahattayA vA-api samsmArayati pUrusham" says Sage Agastya in praise of Rama. o geethAcharyan in the Bhagavad-Geetha 15th Chapter: "..athOsmi lokE vEdE cha praThitah purushOttamah" o Skanda Purana: "...yaTha purushashabdOyam vAsudEvEvatishtaTE..." o pAdma-puraANa: "sarvalOka pratIchya cha purushaha harih | tam vinA pundarIkaksham ko-anyah purushashabdabhAk ||" o Yogavasista describes two forms of Lord Kesava - the infinite as in the Purusha and the minute, as in Dahara Sruti o Narasimhapurana: "prakrtisparsharahityat svAtantryAd-vaibhavAdapi | sa eva vAsudEvO-yam sAkshAt-purusha uchyatE | strIprAymitarat-saravam jagad-bramha-purassaram || o Apastamba identifies Purusha as Sriman Narayana: "upAhitam purushEN nArayaNEn uptishTatE" o "vedEshu nirjarapate nikhilEsgvadhItam vyAsAdibhirbahumatam tav sUktamagryam | anganyamUni bhavatah suBhAnyadhItE vishvam vibhO janitavanti viraNchpUrvam || " -sri devayanayaka-panchashat(15) Oh Lord Devanatha! The PS is found in all four Vedas and is extolled as the foremost of Vedic hymns by the Vyasa and other revered authors of the Smritis, Puranaas, abd Itihasas says that these beatiful limbs of your yours created the whole Universe, right from Bramha. o Also refer to Sri N. Krishnamachari Swami's detailed commentary on "Purushaha" in the Sri VishNu Sahasra nAmam http://home.comcast.net/~chinnamma/sahasra/sloka02.html#14:puruShah These are just a few pointers. Hope these help as a starting point. My sincere apologies for any errors/typos. namo veda-purushAya! sarvamsrIkrishnArpanamasthu, rAmAnuja-dAsan. (-Shreyas) Oppiliappan, "kgjagan21" <kgjagan21 wrote: > > > Dear Sri Sudarshan, > > The richa that you are refering to is NOT found in the 10th mandala - > 90th sukta of the Rig Veda. It is not found in other vedas that > house the purusa sukta. > > Rgds, > > Jagan > > Oppiliappan, "Sudarshan K Madabushi" > <mksudarshan2002@> wrote: > > > > > > Towards the end of the sukta passage there is the unmistakable > > reference to Vishnu: > > > > "hreeshchatE lakshmeescha patnyow...." > > > > The Deity of this sukta is hailed as "Lakshmi's spouse!" i.e. > Vishnu. > > > > Regds, > > dAsan, > > Sudarshan > > > > > > > > Oppiliappan, K G Jagannathan <kgjagan21@> > > wrote: > > > > > > Dear members, > > > > > > I have been going through various occurences of the purusha > > sUkta. I notice that the viRata pUrusha or parama purusha as > praised > > in the purusha sUkta is not neccesarily grouped under Vishnu. > > > > > > I do not find direct refernces to Vishnu in the purusha sUkta, > > in any of it's occurences or recensions. > > > > > > On what basis then is Vishnu identified as the parama purusha > of > > the sUkta? > > > > > > Regards, > > > > > > Jagan > > > > > > > > > > > > India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something new. > > Click here > > > > > > > > > > > > ------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted May 3, 2006 Report Share Posted May 3, 2006 Dear Sri Jagan : Sriman Sarangan has given a wonderful and detailed reply to your question with lot of PramANams . One more that might be of interest is our daily recited Veda Mantram : " Tadh VishNO; Paramam Padham sadhA Pasyanthy Sooraya:" V.Sadagopan -- In Oppiliappan, "Shreyas Sarangan" <sarangan wrote: > > Sri: > Srimate Rangaramanuja Mahadesikaya Namaha > > Dear Sri Jagan, > > Just reading through text of the Purusha Suktam, or any > other section of Vedas, for that matter will not do enough > justice to the subject. > > Rishis and Acharyas have aleady done the hard work of > correct rules of vedic interpetation "lakshanam" for us > in their commentaries. > > Sri Sudarshan is consistent with our Acharyas in mentioning the > rk "hreeshchatE lakshmeescha patnyow....". > > shAstras are replete with pramAnas that identify the Purusha > with Lord Sriman Narayana and none else. > > Here are just a few: > > o Sri Nanjiyar (Sri Ranganathamuni, Mukunda-Narayana-dasa) > in his reputed commentary on the PS, quotes from Rgvidhana > of Saunaka on the detailed method of worshipping > Lord Vishnu with the riks of the PS. > > Further, Nanjiyar enlightens us as to how Rk 5 of the PS, > > "padOsya vishvA bhUtAni | tripAdasyAmratam divi || > > refers to the 4 vyUhAs of Sriman Naryana - Vasudeva, Sankarshana, > Pradyumna, and Aniruddha. > > The purusha-sukta samhita of the sAkAlya-bramhana from which Nanjiyar > quotes, expounds the role of Aniruddha (Sriman Narayana) in the > greatest yagna - PS and that this is nothing but Atmasamrpanam or > Prapatti. > > Nanjiyar also writes "Adityavarnam purusham vAsudEvam vichintayEt". > > Please refer to Sri Nanjiyar commentary for more details. > Sri UttamUr Swami's commentary on the PS is another treasure. > > o sAma-vidhAna-brAmhaNa of the sAma-Veda, > on the application of the samans of the PS of the Sama-Veda: > > "idam vishnuh prakshasya vrshNah, prakAvya mushnE babruvAN iti varAha- > mantyam purushavratE cha aesha vaishnavI nAma samhitA etAm prayunjan > vishnum prINAti." > > o vAlmIkI rAmAyaNa: > "tEjO mahattayA vA-api samsmArayati pUrusham" > says Sage Agastya in praise of Rama. > > o geethAcharyan in the Bhagavad-Geetha 15th Chapter: > "..athOsmi lokE vEdE cha praThitah purushOttamah" > > o Skanda Purana: > "...yaTha purushashabdOyam vAsudEvEvatishtaTE..." > > o pAdma-puraANa: > "sarvalOka pratIchya cha purushaha harih | > tam vinA pundarIkaksham ko-anyah purushashabdabhAk ||" > > o Yogavasista describes two forms of Lord Kesava - the infinite as > in the > Purusha and the minute, as in Dahara Sruti > > o Narasimhapurana: > "prakrtisparsharahityat svAtantryAd-vaibhavAdapi | > sa eva vAsudEvO-yam sAkshAt-purusha uchyatE | > strIprAymitarat-saravam jagad-bramha-purassaram || > > o Apastamba identifies Purusha as Sriman Narayana: > "upAhitam purushEN nArayaNEn uptishTatE" > > o "vedEshu nirjarapate nikhilEsgvadhItam vyAsAdibhirbahumatam tav > sUktamagryam | > anganyamUni bhavatah suBhAnyadhItE vishvam vibhO janitavanti > viraNchpUrvam || " > -sri devayanayaka-panchashat(15) > Oh Lord Devanatha! The PS is found in all four Vedas and is extolled > as the foremost of Vedic hymns by the Vyasa and other revered authors > of the Smritis, Puranaas, abd Itihasas says that these beatiful limbs > of your yours created the whole Universe, right from Bramha. > > o Also refer to Sri N. Krishnamachari Swami's detailed commentary > on "Purushaha" in the Sri VishNu Sahasra nAmam > http://home.comcast.net/~chinnamma/sahasra/sloka02.html#14:puruShah > > These are just a few pointers. Hope these help as a starting point. > My sincere apologies for any errors/typos. > > namo veda-purushAya! > sarvamsrIkrishnArpanamasthu, > rAmAnuja-dAsan. > (-Shreyas) > > > Oppiliappan, "kgjagan21" <kgjagan21@> wrote: > > > > > > Dear Sri Sudarshan, > > > > The richa that you are refering to is NOT found in the 10th > mandala - > > 90th sukta of the Rig Veda. It is not found in other vedas that > > house the purusa sukta. > > > > Rgds, > > > > Jagan > > > > Oppiliappan, "Sudarshan K Madabushi" > > <mksudarshan2002@> wrote: > > > > > > > > > Towards the end of the sukta passage there is the unmistakable > > > reference to Vishnu: > > > > > > "hreeshchatE lakshmeescha patnyow...." > > > > > > The Deity of this sukta is hailed as "Lakshmi's spouse!" i.e. > > Vishnu. > > > > > > Regds, > > > dAsan, > > > Sudarshan > > > > > > > > > > > > Oppiliappan, K G Jagannathan <kgjagan21@> > > > wrote: > > > > > > > > Dear members, > > > > > > > > I have been going through various occurences of the purusha > > > sUkta. I notice that the viRata pUrusha or parama purusha as > > praised > > > in the purusha sUkta is not neccesarily grouped under Vishnu. > > > > > > > > I do not find direct refernces to Vishnu in the purusha > sUkta, > > > in any of it's occurences or recensions. > > > > > > > > On what basis then is Vishnu identified as the parama purusha > > of > > > the sUkta? > > > > > > > > Regards, > > > > > > > > Jagan > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > India Answers: Share what you know. Learn something > new. > > > Click here > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > ------------------------ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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