[sri ramanuja] Sri Ramanuja Journal Volume 1 Issue 3

[Guest guest]

**

 

*Aippasi, Vyaya

AzhvAr 1; AchArya 3*

 

 

 

* Om** SrIdharAya namaH*

 

* Om SriyaiH namaH*

 

* Om SrIvishvaksEnAya namaH*

 

* Om SrI SaThagOpAya namaH*

 

* SrImathE rAmAnujAya namaH*

 

*

*

 

*AippaSi pUrADam- thirunakshathram of sEnApathi AzhvAn*

 

* *

 

*tulAkathEthi nagarE poorvAshAdA samudhbhavam*

 

*padmApadhAmbhujAsaktham sEnAdhipamaham bhajE*

 

*is a thaniyan used to salute SrI sEnApathi AzhvAn or SrI vishvakshEna in

our Guru-parampara. In the SrIvaishNava sampradAyam, Guruparmpara the

position of SrIvishvakshEna is third in the line. Tradition has it

SrIyaHpathi SrIman nArAyaNan, did the rahasya upadESam to periya pirATTiyAr

SrImahAlakshmi, and she did upadESam to SrI vishvakshEna, and Through

vishvakshEna, EmperumAn did panchasamskAram to swAmi nammAzhvAr. Hence, the

thirunakshathram of the commander in chief of the ubhaya vibhUthi is very

much of importance to us. On this auspicious day let us try to glimpse

through the passing remarks given by our pUrvAchAryas about this grand

Acharya. *

 

*He is often portrayed in the divya mangaLavigraham, as chathurbAhu,

holding, conch, chakram, and having his left hand holding a cane, or a whip,

or a chenkOl, and his right hand showing a special mudra called Anguli

mudra. *

 

*This is wonderfully portrayed in srIranga rAja sthavam, by swami

paraSarabhattar*

 

*SrIrangachandramasa indhirayA viharthum*

 

*vinyasya viSva chitha chinnayanAdhikAram |*

 

*yO nirvahathya nisamanguli mudrayaiva*

 

*senAnyamanyavimukAsthama SriyAma ||*

 

*In this slokam SENai mudhalaiyAr is being worshipped and revered. The whole

prapancham is to be administered by EmperumAn. VishwakSEnar*

 

*spells out thus " svAmi! dhEvarEr need not bother; You can be with Periya

PirATTiyAr. adiyEan will take care of these duties' and the Lord Almighty

accordingly delegates these on him.*

 

*Sri VishwaksEnar's anguLi mudhirai -which is seen in his vigraham-s-

represents this administration under his regime.*

 

*The well known SrI vishNu sahasranAmam, salutes sEnApathi Azhvan, in the

second invocatory verse as the remover of obstacles.*

 

*Yasya dviravakthrAdya pArishadyA paraSSadam*

 

*Vighnam nighnanthi Sathatham vishvakshEnam thmASrayE ||*

 

*In Edu 36000ppadi, nampiLLAi refers emperuman himself as*

 

*"Viswaksenar pirambin kEzhEa vaLarnadha thathuvam"*

 

*The philosophy grown under the strict regime of Sri Visvaksenar*

 

*Often in our pUrvAchArya commentaries he is portrayed as an age old prime

minister to whom emperumAn transferred all the duties and takes pleasure

with pirATTI's. When ever SrI vishvaksEna makes an entry without notice,

pirATTi's go and hide, out of great respect to the Age old manthri. *

 

*Among the nithya sUrIs, and mukthAs, VishvaksEna is the chieftain. In Every

temples, he is the custodian of EmperumAn's prasAdam. That is ,whenever the

thaLigai is offered to EmperumAn, immediately afterwards, it is offered to

vishvakshEna. Hence, he bears, the name SEshASana(not to be confused with

sEshAsana) meaning, one who part takes the remaining food. *

 

*Remember the SEsha SEshASana garuDa pramukha… chUrNai in SaraNagathi

gadyam.*

 

*In Kerala DD's, Thanthra samucchayam, kriyA paTalam, addresses him as nirmAlya

dhAri. Meaning the same, SEshASana. His presence is inevitable in all

uthsavams, and his extreme importance is seen in SrIpAncharArtha

Agamaitself, having an important portion of it named after himself as

vishvaksEna

samhitha.*

 

* *

 

*In sthOthra rathnam swAmi ALavanthAr points out*

 

*thvadIya bhukthOjhitha SEsha bhOjinaa *

 

*thvayaa nisRshtha aathma bharENa yadyathhaa. *

 

*priyeNa senaapathinaanyavEdi thath *

 

*thathhaanu jaanantha mudaara viixaNaiH

Who approves with noble glance whatever communication is brought to You by

your beloved chief of hosts (Vishvaksenar), who partakes of the remnants of

Your food, and on whom has been bestowed the charge (of Your sovereignty).

[courtesy sundarasimham.org]*

 

* *

 

*swAmi dESikan praises the vishvaksEna in several SrI sUkthIs*

 

*In dayA Sathakam it goes like this*

 

*anEka vighna samanam aneekEswaram AshrayE*

 

*sreemata: karuNAmbOdhou sikshA srOta ivOtthitam*

 

*salutations to vishvaksEna, who is like a canal, originating from the ocean

of mercy of the lord, He has been given the power to chastise and correct

the erring chEthanams to remove the obstacles that stand in the way of their

travel through the path of light to reach Bhagavan's supreme abode.*

 

* *

 

*in yathirAja sapthathi it goes like this*

 

*VandE VaikuNDa sEnAnyam dEvam SootravatI sakham*

 

*yat vEtra shikara: spande visvam Etat vyavastthitam *

 

*I pay my respects to Vishvaksena, the Consort of Soothravathi. He is the

Commander-in-chief of the Lord. At the tip of His disciplining ward (whip)

the whole universe stays put in proper place and is rightly led on. *

 

* *

 

*And above all, when swAmi nammAzhvar expresses his deep anguish for

kainkaryam, in the ozhivil kAlamellAm pathikam he remembers immediately

about vishvakshEna.

 

vAnavar vAnavarkOnoDum chinthu pUmakizhum thiruvEnkaTam

 

*

 

*Ongku thulAp pUrAdaththuthiththa selvan vAzhiyE*

 

*oNdodiyAL sUthravathi uRai mArban vAzhiyE*

 

*Ingkulagil sadakOpaRku itham uraiththAn vAzhiyE*

 

*ezhiR pirambin sengkOlai Enthumavan vAzhiyE*

 

*pAngkudan muppaththu mUvar paNiyumavan vAzhiyE*

 

*pangkayath thAL thiruvadiyaip paRRinAn vAzhiyE*

 

*thEngku pugazh arangkaraiyE sinthai seyvOn vAzhiyE*

 

*sEnaiyar kOn sengkamalath thiruvadigaL vAzhiyE*

 

* *

 

* *

 

*Vara vara muni dasargaL*

 

**

 

------------------------------