padithadhai-ch-cholgirEn (Vishnu sahasra nama)

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Sri: One Sanskrit Scholar at Mysore Palace once mentioned to me that in Vishnu Sahasra Namam no mention of name pertaining to Lord Ranganatha ( as Ranga or any derivatives of it) is there. Adiyen would like to know how this name got missed in the 1000 names of Vishnu in the Sahasranamam. Adiyen Krishna Ramanuja Dasanjayasartn <jayasree.saranathan wrote: SRIMATHE RAMANUJAYA NAMAHA.paDitthaDai-ch-cholgirEn.....>> The beauty of the sahasra-nAmas lies in the fact that nowhere else do the scriptures convince us so dramatically that God possesses both the opposites of the same quality or attribute. Contrary attributes being assigned to God is certainly in tune with the Upanishadic descriptions of

the Absolute in terms of opposite superlative extremes like smaller than the smallest, greater than the greatest, etc.:aNor-aNIyAn-mahato mahIyAn>> Tricky names and trickier meanings are what makes the sahasra-nAmas what they are. They are at the same time texts for recitation as prayers and also storehouses for information to be leisurely digested during meditation.He is both Existence - sat - and Non-Existence - asat -. Existence, because He is the One that exists in all things and beings; Non-existence, because He is the conditioned and limited plurality of the universe which is manifest to us but has no ultimate reality. Recall the words of the Lord in the gItA (9 - 19):sad-asac-cAham arjuna>> He is the changeless core amidst all changes, but He appears as changing just as the ocean appears as the changing and dying waves. He is therefore at the same time the perishing superposition as

well as the imperishable substratum -- ksharaH as well as aksharaH>> He is ekaH, one, because there is no second. He is also naikaH, that is, not one, because He is the One immanent in all the plurality of the visible universe. Recall Rg-veda (1-164-46): The one Truth, Wise men speak of in varied ways. ekam sad-viprA bahudhA vadanti>> Also recall kathopanishad (2 - 2 -9): Just as fire, though one, having entered the world, assumes separate forms in respect of different shapes, similarly, the Self inside all beings, though one assumes a form in respect of each shape; and yet, it is outside:agnir-yathaiko bhuvanam pratishTo rUpam rUpam pratirUpo babhUva / ekastathA sarva-bhUtAntarAtmA rUpam rUpam pratirUpo bahiSca //Again, chAndogya-upanishad: (6 - 2 - 1): brahman is one, one only, without a second.ekam-evAdvitIyam brahma>> He is aNuh, atomic; bRhat, macrocosmic; kRSaH, lean;

sthUlaH, fat; guNabrt, full of attributes; nirguNaH, attributeless; mahAn, great; adhRtaH, supportless. These names occur in continuous succession that parASara, one of the great commentators on the vishNu sahasra-nAma, excels here by interpreting these eight names as describing the eight powers of yoga: namely, aNimA, mahimA, laghumA, garimA, Isitva, vaSitva, prAkAmya and prApti --meaning, the powers to become atomic, transcendent, light, heavy, the power to will anything beyond any natural phenomenon, effortless attainment of anything and omniscience coupled with omnipotence! This is a gem from parASara.>>> From Mahabharatha Shanthi parvam chapter 352 > You will find many namas with their derivations as told by Krishna Himself to Arjuna.In chapter 346, Narada pays a sthuthi on sriman Narayana, by 198 namas. Before he starts this, Vyasa says that Narada thus began the sthuthi of

Narayana who is both 'nirgunaNan' and 'guna-swaroopi'.Regards, jayasree saranathan.>> "M.G.Vasudevan" <mgv@l...> wrote:>> Dear srivaishNava perunthagaiyeer,> > Here is a part of mahaa bhaaratham translation read by me today. [Translation by Kesary Mohan Ganguly which is available in internet] > > Since it was a coincidence that sri sukumar raised a point on the 'sri vathsa vakshase nama' where he adds -- quote "Which one we should believe in this context (if my thoughts are not unfounded) - sruti (which refutes this) or purana / smriti (which details this incident)?". Unquote.

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SrI:

 

Dear Srimathy Sranathan :

 

You had asked for the meaning of Rangan and RanganAthan

and suggested that Rangan is none other than Lord Ramachandra

in archA form . Here are some additional reasons :

 

Furthher to the dhivya Prabhandham Paasurams cited ,

it is traditionally believed that the Uthsavar at

Srirangam is Lord Raamachandran and the Moolavar

is DhAmOdhara KaNNan with His 3 welt marks on

His waist . AzhwArs and AchAryAs ,as you know ,

have experienced Him as DasAvathAran and more .

 

Sri RanganAtha PaadhukA Sahasram(SRPS) of Swamy Desikan

celebrates Sri RanganAthan's Paadhukai as that of Raamachandra .

At the very beginning of SRPS salutes BharathAzhwAn for revealing

the Vaibhavam of Sri RanganAtha Paadhukais FOR THE CITIZENS

OF THE WORLD and links them to the PaadhukAs to Lord Ramachandra

( SlOkam 2 of SRPS :

 

" BharathAya param namOasthu tasmai

praTamOdhAharaNAya bhakthibhAjAm

yadhupaj~namasEshatha: PruTivyAm praTithO

RAAGHAVA-PAADHUKAA-PRABHAAVA: "

 

Sri RanganAtha Paadhukai is Swamy NammAzhwAr . Bharathan is the One ,

who carried them on His head to Nandigramam ; later VibhishaNa carried

the whole VimAnam ( PraNavAkAram) and landed it with Sri Raamachandra

inside .

 

Swamy DEsikan salutes these Padhukais as " Rangapathy vibhrama

" Paadhukais " , the Paadhukais intended for the sport of Lord Ramachandra

(Ranganatha) , the processional deity . At other places , Swamy Desikan

salutes

these RanganAtha Paadhukais as those of the enemy of Kamsan (SRPS: Slokam 9)

:

" KamsArE: PaadhukE ! Here , the identity of Moolavar is revealed .

 

Various naamArchanams for RanganAtha in SRPS reveal the dance stage (Rangam)

of Lord RanganAtha :

 

Ranga Kshithi RamaNa ( SlOkam 10) ; Ranga BhUmi , aranga MEdai is referred

to and the Lord is recognized as the Master of that space for His leelais .

On

this divine stage dances Lord RanganAthan the various dances ( aha and Pura

Kootthus).

 

Many VinOdha Koothus are performed by the Lords here such as KudamAdu

Kootthu , Nokku ( a dance form marked by agility and grace) like one of

the ten gamakams in VeeNaa playing , where dextirity is needed to execute .

Here on this aranga Medai, the great Master defines His dances of Srushti ,

Sthithi and samhAram within the framework of stylized movements and

symbolic gestures with Rasaa and Bhaavaa for the benefit of His devotees

in genral and the AzhwAars and AchAryAs in particualr . Their rasAnubhavam

flpwed as divine Paasurams .For them , He plays the Alliya Kootthu , Kuda

Kootthu , Mohini Aattam , Vari Kootthu ( vipralambha SringAram) . Arayars

took

their cues from here . In this context , one has to remember the Arayars

enact on

the 4th day of adhyayana festival at Srirangam , the RanganAtha avathAram .

 

On this Ranga BhUmi , the Lord of that stage enjoys Navasandhi Kavutthuvam

by Brahma DEvan and ohter dEvAs with the Jathis , TaaLams and Raagams

assigned to them as per the Aagama Saasthrams , one of which is expounded by

BhagavAn Himself (Sriprasna Samhitha section) .

 

On this divine Ranga BhUmi , the blissful RasAnubhavam is experienced by

" the idnetification of the spectator with the spectacle " . Rasa has been

defined as both the tasting and what is tasted . It has been described as

the most relishable , blissful experience reminding one of the Aanandha of

Brahman described by the Upanishad . AzhwArs had this rasAnubhavam

and left the outpourings of that anubhavam for us to enjoy as Kuladhanam.

 

Sage BharathA , known for Bharatha Saasthram ( Bhaavam+Raagam+TaaLam)

describes this bliss ( at Ranga BhUmi) :

 

yathO hasthas-tathO dhrushti:

yathO dhrushtis-tathO mana:

yathO manas-tathO bhAva:

yathO bhAvas-tathO rasa:

 

We follow the dance of RanganAtha on this stage of srirangam.

 

In Tamil , it has been translated as :

 

kai vazh nayanam sella

kaNN vazhi manam sella

manam vazhi uNarcchi sella

athaninRu Suvai piRakkum

 

I will conclude this big topic rather quickly with the slOkams

used for Aranga Poojai and the spirit behind such an aarAdhanam

by dancers :

 

Bharathakula bhAgya kalikE ! BhAvarasAnandha

pariNathAkArE ! JagadhEka Mohana

kalE Jaya Jaya RANGADHI

DEvathE DEvi " .

 

After ThOdaya MangaLam and MeLa PrApthy rituals , the lady dancer

(Sri Ranga Naayaki) pays Her salutations to the Aranga Devathai

(Her Divine consort) and performs the AarAdhanam treating that

arangam ( stage ) as the Temple . OhmkAra Tulya Naadham

arises from that Rangam because of its association with

PraNavAkAra VimAnam forming the roof for that stage and

links to the AkAra-MakAra-UkAra roopan presiding over that

stage as Lord Ramachandran . The identity of Sri RanganAyaki as

SithA PirAtti is revealed by the RanganAtha PurOhithar in

His GuNa Rathna Kosam , where he addresses Her as " Maathar

Mythili "

 

Srimath Azhagiya Singar Thiruvadi ,

Oppiliappan Koil V.Sadagopan

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Regarding the meaning of RanganAthan , the literal meaning is

Master of Rangam , the dance stage ( arangam ) in His LeelA

VibhUthi .

 

 

-

" jayasartn " <jayasree.saranathan

<Oppiliappan >

Friday, November 25, 2005 3:32 AM

Re: padithadhai-ch-cholgirEn (Vishnu sahasra nama)

 

 

> SrI:

>

> Can anyone help us with the meaning for Ranga or Ranganathan?

> Regards

> jayasree

>

>

> Oppiliappan , " jayasartn "

> <jayasree.saranathan@g...> wrote:

>>

>> SRIMATHE RAMANUJAYA NAMAHA.

>>

>> There is solid evidence in Naan mugan Thiruvandhadi that it is Lord

>> Rama who has taken his abode in Thiruvarangam.

>> I request the fellow bhagavathas to refer to verses 29 & 30 of this

>> Thiruvandhadhi.

>> In verse 29, (ugappuruvam thane..) Raman's beauty is described as

>> also His valour in having overcome Kumbhakarnan.