[srivenugopala] Deepavali Significane and Greetings!

[Guest guest]

At 05:52 PM 11/3/02 -0600, you wrote:

Dear Sriman Sadagopan Mama,

 

Happy Deepavali to you and all of our family members on this cyberlist and

other lists.

 

Here is an excellent write up on Deepavali which I found in the archives:

 

http://www.ramanuja.org/sv/bhakti/archives/oct97/0106.html

 

Dear Members of the Bhakthi Group :

 

It is my pleasure to extend to one and all of you

my Dipavali greetings and to be blessed to be

the beneficiaries of the blessings of Sri RukmiNi

SathyabhAmA sametha Sri Venkata KrishNan .

 

This is the day when Sathyabhama rode with

the Lord to the battle at PrakjyOthisha puram , the capital

of Narakaasuran and helped her Lord to put an end to the

adharmic acts of that Asuran . He was a son of Bhumi Devi ,

but had strayed and committed many offenses against the

devotees oft he Lord . The compassionate Mother understood

the role of dushta Nigraham of Her Lord and prayed for

Her son to be granted Moksham and be remembered

on the day of his destruction by the Sudarsanam of the Lord .

 

Outside the slokams of Bhagavatham , the tradition is that

she prayed for the pristine waters of Ganga , which arose from

the Lord's feet from TrivikramAvatham time to enter into the

oil and waters at the home of pious devotees on this day ,

when they take the oil bath in hot water during

the early morning ( before sunrise ) of this

Naraka Chathurthi day . She also prayed for all people

to celebrate her son's moksham as a pandigai wearing

new clothes and eat special sweets and nourishments .

Lord KrishNA granted her wish and thus we celebrate

this day of DipAvaLi . We light fire crackers , light lamps

and with " sound and light " we celebrate this great deed

of the Lord . We go around inquiring our friends and

relatives : " GangA SnAnam Aacchaa? " .

 

This is also the day , when the Lord brought the

PaarijAthA tree from Indra's Nandavanam to please

SathyabhAma and planted it in her garden at

Dwarakai . I have described that event in the Saranagathi

Journal 's recent issue and discussed the connection

to the work ( Prapanna PaarijAtham ) of Sri NadAthuR ammAL .

 

Sri VaishNavALs celebrate the AmAvasyai day ( tomorrow )

with Maha Lakshmi PoojA . This is also the day ,

when the new year accounts are started by commercial

houses and Maha Lakshmi pooja is performed

with great ceremony .

 

Some of them do KedAra Gauri poojA .

Gauri does not mean exclusively Parvathi .

It also means a eight year old Virgin girl . it also

means speech , Turmeric and Tulasi . For Sri VaishNavas,

it means Bala Lakshmi . KedAram means a meadow

rich with water or a collection of water under the trunk

of a tree. It is not just a mountain chain in HimAlayAs .

Hence , KedArA symbolizes richness or samrutthi

or subheeksham . Under this definition , KedAra Gauri

Poojaa is then understood as PoojA for

the Goddess of Wealth, MahA Lakshmi .

 

Bhumi Devi's prayer to the Lord are moving and

are housed in the chapter 59 of the Dasama skandham .

Here are some illustrative verses :

 

namasthE devadEvEsa sakha chakra gadhAdhara I

bhakthEccHOpAttha rUpAya ParamAthman namOsthu thE II

 

(meaning ) : Salutations to Thee , the God of Gods ! sporting the

conch , the disc and the mace ! Obesiance to Thee , the supreme

Consciousness , who assumest bodies to fulfill

the yearnings of Thy devotees !

 

Nama: PankajanAbhAya Nama: PankajamAlinE I

Nama: PankajanEhtrAya NamasthE PankajaAngrayE II

 

( meaning ) : Salutations to the Lotus-navelled !

Salutations to the Lotus-garlanded! Salutations

to the Lotus eyed ! Salutations to the Lotus-footed !

 

namO BhagavathE thubhyam VaasudEvAya VishNavE I

PurushAya AdhibheejAya PurNabhOdAya thE nama: I

 

(meaning ) : I salute VaasudEvA , the support of all !

I salute VishNu , the inner pervader of everything !

I salute Him , who is the ultimate source of everything !

I salute Him , who is All-Intelligence !

 

AjAya janayithrEasya BrahmaNE ananthasakthayE I

ParaavarAthman BhUthAthman Paramaathman namOsthu thE II

 

(Meaning ) : Salutations to Him , who manifests both

as the cause and the efect! Salutations to Him, who is

ever existent ! Salutations to Him ,who is the supreme

spirit ! Salutations to Him , Who is the Infinite power !

Salutations to Him , who is the greatest being !

Salutations to Him ,who is the father of the worlds !

Salutations to Him, who is birthless !

 

(PraNavam) NamO BhagavathE VaasudEvAya !

 

Today and tomorrow even more , all of us can benefit

from reciting Sri Sthuthi of Swami Desikan and

Sri Sthavam of KurEsa and ChathusslOki

of AlavandhAr . We can also perform aaradhanam

to Maha Lakshmi with Lakshmi AshtOttharam

or Lakshmi sahasra Naamam .

 

Those , who do not have the time can atleast

recite one slOkam from Sri Sthuthi , which

starts with KalyANAnAm avikala nidhi :

and receive Her blessings for the year to come !

 

(PraNavam) Sriyai Nama:

 

Oppiliappan Koil VaradachAri SadagOpan

Isvara Samvathsara DipAvaLi dinam (1997)