Commentaries on Vishnu Sahasranama

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Om Namo Narayanaya!

The Vishnu Sahasranama can be chanted in form of a sloka or the

names can be chanted in Archana form, such as Om Vishnave namah,

etc. When chanted in the form of a sloka, the thousand names are

arranged in 107 stanzas. Each of these names is highly pregnant with

meaning that refers to the guna or the quality of the Paramatma. The

Lord is infinite and indescribable and the human mind cannot

comprehend the qualities of the Lord. Sage Vyasa, however, has tried

to describe the Lord by choosing the thousand best qualities of the

Lord, while composing the Vishnu Sahasranama.

The interpretation of the names depends on the seer who has written

the commentary. The two important commentaries are by Shri Adi

Shankaracharya and Shri Bhattar. Shri Shankaracharya was a great

proponent of the Advaita Philosophy, which describes the Nirguna

Brahman, One without attributes. The saguna brahman is only an

interim means to realize the real truth for the advaitin - namely

the realization of the nirguNa Brahman. To an advaitin the only

truth is nirguNa Brahman - One without any attributes. Shri Bhattar

on the other hand, was a great exponent of the VisishtAdvaita

philosophy. The central idea of Visishtadvaita is this: there exists

an Ultimate Principle, an Absolute Being that is the source and

substratum of all that exists. This immanent spirit is the inner

guide and controller of the whole universe with all its diverse

animate and inanimate elements. Communion with this gracious,

omnipotent Supreme Being constitutes the supreme end of existence.

Such communion is attainable exclusively through self-surrender and

undivided, loving meditation. According to Sri Sankara, all

qualities or manifestations are unreal or temporary. They are a

result of Avidya or ignorance. According to Sri Ramanuja, the

attributes are real and permanent. Thus, Sri Sankara mostly gives

his interpretations emphasizing the supremacy of Brahman, the all-

powerful nature of Brahman, the difficulty in realizing It, etc. Sri

Bhattar's commentary emphasizes the gunas of the Lord that are so

much in favor of His devotee. For example,

vijitAtmA (Slokam 66):

The simple meaning of the words in the nama is: He who has a mind

that has been conquered. It does not say " conquered by whom? " This

is the place where we see the different anubhavam-s of the two

commentaries.

Sri Sankara has interpreted the nama as One who has controlled His

indriya-s and mind - vijita AtmA mano yena sah vijitAtmA. In other

words, bhagavan is referred to by this nama here because He has

conquered His own mind.

Sri Bhattar sees here an example of how bhagavan's mind is easily

conquered by His devotees. So he gives an interpretation which is in

a sense the exact opposite of that Sri Sankaracharya - namely, He is

one whose mind is easily conquered by others, namely His devotees.

So He is the One who is defeated in His mind control, since He gives

in easily to His devotees' wishes.

Of the thousand names, there are some repetitions. For example, in

Sri Parasara Bhattar's choice of the thousand names, two names occur

four times, 12 names occur three times, and 82 names occur twice.

When a name occurs more than once, the revered commentators have

interpreted the meaning of the name differently in each instance

depending on the context in which the name occurs. They have also

quoted extensive evidence from ancient scriptures in support of

their interpretation. The commentators have emphasized that the

recurrence is not the result of a dosha (deficiency of being

repetitive) in the composition

In his commentary on Sri Vishnu Sahasra Namam, Sri Bhattar has

beautifully traced a thread of connectivity in the sequence of the

1000 names as they occur in the stotram. He has identified an

organization and structure in the composition that refers to the

gunas of the Lord in the five manifestations in which He has

revealed Himself to us, as described in the Pancharatra Agamas.

These manifestations are: para, vyuha, vibhava, archa, and

antaryami. Thus, for instance, Sri Bhattar has noted that the first

122 names in the stotram describe the qualities of the Lord in his

para vAsudeva form. The next set of names describes the vyuha forms

etc. Thus the names as they occur in the stotram are not just a

random collection of names, but have a beautiful thread of

organization and structure to them. Sri Bhattar has identified 44

such manifestations of Bhagavan in his exposition. A brief

introduction to the five types of manifestations of the Lord, to

which Sri Bhattar refers in his exposition of the significance of

the 1000 names of the Lord, is given below.

The para can be viewed as the full and undifferentiated

manifestation of the Lord in His complete and resplendent glory in

which He has chosen to be unlimited by anything. He does not assume

this form as a result of another object, and in this form He is

endowed with the fullness of the six qualities - jnAna, bala,

aisvarya, vIrya, sakti, teja). In this form, He is the shadgunya

paripurna, maharNava, ni:sima - complete in all respects in the Six

qualities, the Great Ocean of all that is perfect, unlimited by

anything.

" In the para form, the Lord has the body endowed with all six

qualities;

He shines with intense brilliance and luminosity, and has hands and

feet all around.

This form is unique, is the support of all, and is all-pervasive " .

In the vyuha manifestation, the Lord assumes different forms which

are rich in some of the six qualities, with different functions

which emphasize these qualities. The vyuha forms can be viewed as

the differentiated forms which arise from the para form. In

particular, the following vyuha forms are identified:

pradyumna - aisvarya and vIrya - function of srshti or creation

aniruddha - sakti and tejas - function of sthiti or protection and

preservation

samkarshaNa - jnAna and bala - function of samhAra or destruction

The vibhava is that group of manifestations which are taken by

BhagavAn in the form of god, man, animal, etc. (sura, nara,

tiryagAdi). Vibhava is of two kinds: mukhya and anuvrtti, also

referred to as vibhava and vibhava antara.

Vibhava occurs in one of four forms:

1. Some like matsya and kurma are direct manifestations

2. In some incarnations, the Lord enters into the bodies of

distinguished sages such as Sri VyAsa.

3. In others, He invests His sakti for some period of time in others.

4. There are others in which He manifests Himself in idols as for

instance in the arcAvatAra.

Sri Bhattar, in his commentary, has grouped the arcA form as a

subgroup of the vibhava form. Sri Bhattar distinguishes the vibhava

form from the Lord's creations such as the four-faced Brahma, who

are not manifestations of Bhagavan, but are the creations of

Bhagavan.