Sri Lakshmi Sahsram : 17.9

[Guest guest]

SrI:

 

Dear BhakthAs of MahA Lakshmi:

 

In this slOkam , Sri VenkatAdhri Kavi points out that

MahA Laskshmi's nAmAs add lustre to the Lord's radiant

dhivya mangaLa vigraham on top of the seven hills

(YezhumalayAnukku yezhil sErkkum NaamamngaL:

Sapthagirisan's JyOthi enhancer) .

 

The Ninth SlOkam

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bhAsvath-varNam VrushagiripathEr-bhAvukam tanvathA tE

dhAmnA dhAma sphurathy JaladhE: puthri nAmnA cha nAma

ramyam harmyasTalamapi maheerakshiNaS-Sailatungam

dheepArOpam rajanishu vinaa Devi dhEdheepyathE kim

 

Key words: " JaladhE: Puthri ! VrushagiripathE: bhAsvath-varNam

dhAma bhAvukam tanvathA tE dhAmnA sphurathy".

 

(Meaning of the slOkam) : The sacred body of Your Lord , Saptha Gireesan ,

gains additional lustre through Your dEha kAnthi . This results because of

His naamam of SrinivAsan incorporating Your nAmaa of "SrI ". You are like

a lamp in the beautiful and lofty palace of the king of the Universe . It is only

through the lighting of this lamp that the beauty of the palace is brought out

at night . You are that mangaLa dheepam in the palace of Your Lord . As

Vakshasthala Lakshmi , You illumine further Your Lord's sacred Body .

 

Oh Daughter of the Ocean ( JaladhE: puthri ) ! Oh PadhmAvathy ! Your Lord

has a shining body fwith lustre like that of the Sun's rays ( Vrushagiri PathE:

bhAsvath varNam dhAma) . " Aadhithya varNam tamasasthu pArE " sings

the Sruthis in recognition of the splenderous jyOthi of Your Lord on top of

the Seven Hills. With this lustre mingles Your own uniquely auspicious

JyOthi and enhances that lustre ( bhAvukam tanvathA tE dhAmnA sphurathy).

Your golden hue reinforces and multiplies the natural hue of Your Lord .

 

As Vakshasthala Lakshmi , who never leaves Him even for a fraction of

a second , You are like a jyOthi-filled lamp in the dark bluish body of Your

Lord and illumine every thing around . He is defined by Your Naamam of

SrI . With this lakshaNam , He is known everywhere as SrinivAsan . That

prefix of SrI (Your Naamam) in His name ( Sridharan , Sriya: Pathi )

enhances His own lustre manyfolds . ( bhAsavth varNam naama cha Tava

nAmnA adhikam sphurathy).

 

Oh Lakshmi ! Your Lord 's divine body is like a lofty palace of a king .

The beauty of such an expansive palace can only be apprecited against

the darkness of the night with the jyOthi of a brillian tlamp. Oh Lakshmi !

Thou art that illumining JyOthi (dheepArOpam) in the mansion of Your Lord !

This beautiful ( ramyam) and the lofty royal palace resembling a mountain peak

( MaheerakshiNa: Sailatungam harmyasTalam ) is Your Lord's ThirumEni

against the darkness of the engulfing SamsAric night (Rajani). Without Your

light prsent as a MangaLa dheepam , how can one relate to and enjoy

the beauty of Your Lord? Will a lofty palace at night be enjoyed without

the illumining light ( harmya sTalamapi rajaneeshu dheepArOpam vinaa

dEdheepyathE kim? ). No, It can not be seen without the radiance of

the lamp that is lit . She is the " Harmyatala MangaLa dheepa rEkha " as

saluted by Swamy ParAsara Bhattar in His Sri GuNa Rathna kOsam . She is

the MangaLa dheepam having the abode of His VakshasTalam . She is

the "lOkaiak dheepAnkuraa". Please refer to the second slOkam of

Sri GuNa Rathna Kosam ( UllAsa Pallavitha---) for a detailed enjoyment of

the meanings of " MangaLa dheepa rEkhA ":

 

http://www.malolan.org

 

The words "DhAma and "VarNam " have many meanings and all of them

fit in with the words and the metaphors chosen by VenkatAdhri Kavi.

 

" Dhama" means body , lustre(tEjas) and abode . ThiruvenkatamudayAn's

body , tEjas and abode ( Venkatam and Vaikuntham) are illumined brilliantly

by MahA Lakshmi's radiant lustre. Lord's "bhAsvath varNam" is enhnaced

by the mingling of His Devi's hue.

 

"VarNam" has two meanings: hue and letter . His hue is enhnaced by Her hue .

The addition of Her name ( the aksharam , SrI) in front of His name defines Him

and makes Him even more auspicious. He is now known as SrinivAsan illumined by

the MangaLa dheepa rEkhai.

 

Sriman KaNNan Swamy's Tamil summary of this slOkam takes on this form:

 

yEzhumalayAnukkum

yezhlUttum unn nAmam

yEzhadukku mALikayil

yERRi vaittha dheepam pOl

 

Sri PadhmAvathy SamEtha Sri SrinivAsa ParabrahmaNE nama:

Daasan , Oppiliappan KOil VaradAchAri Sadagopan