Vishnu Sahasranama Stanza -27

August 20, 2006

Om Namo Narayanaya!!

asankhyeyo-aprameyaatmaa visishtah sishta-krit-suchihsiddhaarthah siddhasankalpah siddhidah siddhisaadhanah.

247. Asankhyeyah -Sankhyaa means number; Asankhya= Innumerable. Asankhyeyah is one who has Innumerable names and forms. The infinite variety of things and beings that constitute the manifested Universe are all His Own Form, and hence He is indeed Innumerable, who expresses Himself as the Universe. In the 11th Chapter of Geeta, we see through Arjuna's eyes the Cosmic Form of the Lord. Of boundless forms on every side with numberless arms, stomachs, mouths and eyes-neither end nor middle, nor beginning do I see, O Lord of the Universe.

aneka-bAhUdara vaktra netram paSyAmi tvAmsarvato'nanta rUpam |nAntam na madhyam punas-tavAdim paSyAmi viSveSvaraviSvarUpa || (gItA 11.16) "O Lord of the Universe! I see you with Innumerable arms, stomachs, mouths, and eyes, of boundless forms on every side, and I do not see the end or the middle or the beginning".

248. Aprameya-Atmaa -Prameya=Pramaana Vishaya-anything that can be known through any of the "Sources-of-knowledge"-direct or indirect. Atman, the Self, cannot be apprehended by the intellect through any of the known "Sources-of-Knowledge" (Pramaana) and so He is called as Aprameya. One who has this nature is the Self, Aprameya-Atmaa, Sri Narayana.

249. Visishtah -The One who transcends every- thing, in His Glory is the Supreme (Visishtah). Something that is other than the three bodies, something other than the five kosas, something definitely different from the finite world of perishable things is the Infinite Self-which cannot be defined in terms of either the waking or the dream or the sleep conditions. The Self is something other than all these: This Supreme Truth is Maha Vishnu.

250. Sishtakrit -One who governs; One who is the Law Maker and the Law that governs the universe. The goal of His administration is the protection of the good (Sishtah). Maha Vishnu is the Governor of all, and the Protector of the good.

251. Suchih -One who is Pure. The immaculate Reality which is never contaminated by the Maayaa and its by- products is Maha Vishnu. When dirt exists upon anything, it becomes unclean. In the Absolute Oneness there can be nothing other than itself and therefore the Fourth-plane-of- Consciousness (Tureeyam) is indicated in our Scriptures as the Transcendental Ever-Pure Self, Sri Hari.

His purity is such that association with Him makes these devotees pure also. He is pure by body, mind, action, and all, and this is what makes Him viSishTa and SishTa-kRt. One commentator points out that He makes us shine consistent with our devotion. (dharma cakram) - Just as we clean our body to avoid diseases of the body, we can develop cleanliness in our words through the chanting of bhagavan-nAma, and we can develop and improve the cleanliness of our thoughts through the control of the five senses, which are the means by which we get our input to our thoughts from the external world. Worshipping the Lord in the temple, listening to the sound of the bell during the worship, observing the karpUra Arati, listening to the nAmasankIrtana, listening to the bhajans, offering fragrant flowers to the Lord, observing the beauty of His decorated mUrti, smelling the divine fragrance of His presence in the temple, etc., are the different ways that the five indriya-s are exposed to opportunities for cleansing ourselves through these indriya-s. Simultaneously, we should do everything to constantly divert the mind from thoughts that are not conducive to the service of SrIman nArAyaNa. Deep meditation on the Lord is one way to train our mind. The constant training of our body, mind, word, and deed towards Him is the lesson we should take from this nAma.

252. Siddhaarthah -One who has gained all that has to be gained and achieved all that has to be achieved. He already possesses all that is desirable in Him naturally and effortlessly. SrI Sankara gives the passage "satyakAmahsatya-sankalpah" in chAdogya upanishad (8.1) in support of this and the next nAma. SrI cinmayAnanda points out that this name signifies that bhagavAn has already the four purushArtha-s (dharma, artha, kAma, and moksha) that are the object of attainment for mortals. He has attained (siddha) all that is to be attained (artha).

253. Siddhasankalpah -Sankalpa means "intellectual willing and wishing". One who gains all that He wishes for, or One who immediately gains what He wills is called Siddha-sankalpah. Ordinarily we fail to gain what we demand because of the disintegration within ourselves. The Lord, the Perfect, is One who instantaneously gains all that He wishes; hence the Upanishads define Him as the Satya Sankalpavaan. This great Paramesvara of the Upanishads is the Maha Vishnu, the theme of the "Thousand Chants" (Sahasranaama).

254. Siddhiddah -One who is the Giver of the appropriate reward for all actions, for those who are doing spiritual practices. SrI Sankara interprets the nAma to mean that He provides benefits for fulfillment according to our action. He is the bestower of siddhi-s or super-human powers. There are eight siddhi-s or powers that can be acquired by yogi-s who meditate on Him. These are aNimA (the ability to assume the size of an atom), mahimA (the ability to assume a very huge size), laghimA (to make the body weightless like a cotton ball), garimA (to assume heavy weight like an iron mass), prApti (to obtain anything desired), prAkAmyam (to attain any desired bhoga), ISitvam (to be able to assume rulership or Lordship over anything or anyone), and vaSitvam (to get anyone to be under one's control). Yogis however, do not use these power and consider them as a hinderance on the path to the goal.

255. Siddhi-Saadhanah - One who makes the means for siddhi as pleasant as the fruit itself. siddheh sAdhakatvAt siddhi-sAdhanah. He is the promoter of achievements. He is the very secret force which enables the seeker to diligently continue all efforts of his seeking. He is the sAdhana or means for all siddhi or fulfillment, in particular the moksha siddhi, which no one else can help achieve except Sriman nArAyaNa. SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri points out that the sequence "siddhArtahsiddha-sankalpah siddhi-dah siddhi-sAdhanah" is a great mantra by itself, and chanting it will be very beneficial for fulfillment of our endeavors without interruption when we undertake a good deed and work towards attaining the desired goal. The dharma cakram writer points out that the goal that is attained by chanting this mantra is the cleansing of our minds from worldly thoughts, lust, etc., and concentrating the mind towards thoughts about Him. By chanting this mantra, He ensures that we attain our goal.

Krishnarpanamastu!!