pradhaana satakam

You are here: SriPedia - ebooks - Vedanta Desikan - Works

pradhaana satakam

Introduction

Among all the Rahasya granthams created by Swami Desikan to instruct us , three stand out in their loftiness to help us develop the clearest understanding of the sacred tenets of Sri VaishNavism . These are : (1) His Magnum Opus , Sri Rahasya Traya Saaram (2) VirOdha ParihAram and (3) PradhAna sathakam . In the latter two rahasya granthams , Swami Desikan out of his compassion for us as a ParamAchArya takes us by hand as it were and removes the doubts and confusions that may arise in our mandha mathis ( dull minds ) in comprehending the esoteric meanings of these rahasyams and other tattvams .He flags the most important Tattvams among peer groups of Tattvams .

Slokas

Commentary

PradhAna Sathakam - Part 1
V. Sadagopan

SCOPE OF MY COVERAGE
In this series of postings , I will cover the PradhAna sathakam , which deals with hundred essential items that one who desires Moksham should know precisely .At the outset , I will steer clear of explaining the deeper meanings of rahasyams and PraNavams that are reserved for proper upadEsam by one's own AchAryA . I will therefore NOT COMMENT on the esoteric meanings of RahasyAs and will point out their most general meanings .

SANSKRIT TANIYAN FOR THE GRANTHAM
The Taniyan for the PradhAna Sathakam salutes Swami Desikan as the chief one among the prapannAs , and the leader among those who intrepreted Sri Bhagavadh RaamAnuja SiddhAnthAm . This Taniyan is as follows :

ya: pradhAna: prapannAnAm prdhAna sathakam vyadhAth |
tam noumi VenkatAchAryam dhuryam maargE yathIsithu : ||
GREATNESS OF THE TOPIC OF THE GRANTHAM
Swami Desikan himself gives us a perspective on the scope of this grantham , which he named as PradhAna sathakam this way :
paravith upadasitham na: pradhAna Sathakam pramANa siddham |
bhajathi satha kOti bhAvam para pakshE cha prayOjanE cha sathAm ||
Swami proudly identifies with this rahasya grantham as " na: idham pradhAna Sathakam " . THIS rahasyam of OURS named pradhAna sathakam is the way he describes it WITH GREAT AFFECTION .What is the reason for his untypical emotion ? This unusual display arises from the nature of the subject matter and its provenance . The subject matter was the one shown by those who understood the nature of para Brahmam ( paravith upadarsitham ). The subject matter is tightly interwoven with pramANams dealing with the Para Brahmam (pramANa siddham ) . He goes on to point out that this rahasya grantham of his achieves two goals :

(1) It will multiply hundred fold in showering auspiciousness on the righteous ( sathAm prayOjanE cha satha Bhaavam ) ; it will grow one hundred crore fold in strength in putting down mathams that do not have the inherent beauty and power of Sri Bhagavadh RaamAnuja SiddhAntham ( Para PakshE satha KOti Bhavam bhajathi ). That is the personal assessment of the AchArya Saarvabhouman .

TAMIL SALUTATION TO THE GREATNESS OF THE GRANTHAM
After composing the above slOkam in Sanskrit , Our Swami continued in Tamil to elaborate upon the Paravith Upadarsitham pramANam ( the PramANams revealed to us by those Brahma Jn~Anis such as AzhwArs ). He salutes the AzhwArs as the Prapanna kula pathis ( Emperors of the kulam of PrapannAs ) . He charactrizes the auspicious words of these Brahma jn~Anis as " nall vArthaikaL " ( Clear and benevolent upadEsams ) . He acknowledges that those sacred upadEsams pointed out by his kulapathis as the supreior ones are his guiding stars for his conduct as a PrapannA and reveals that he follows that path shown by them scrupulously ( YengaL kulapathigaL ivai mElAm yenRE yeNNIya nall varthaigaL naam isaihinrOmE ).IsaihinrOmE indicates that he accepts them whole heartedly and follows them .

SUPERIOR STATUS OF THESE NALL VAARTHAIGAL
He compares those nall vArthaigal to the sacred Ganga river that flowed from the sacred feet of the ParamAthmA , who measured the entire universe with them . He points out that the river GangA is the most sacred among all rivers just as the upadEsams of His Kula pathis are supreme among all other upadEsams ( pongu punal aaRuhaLil bhuvanamellAm ponn kazhalAl aLanthavan tann tALAl vantha Gangai yennum nathi pOl ).

He equates the superiority of the Nall varthaigaL of his kulapathis to the Milky ocean , which is the most sacred among all the seven kinds of oceans ( kadalkaL yEzhil Kamalai piranthu avan uhantha kadalE pOla ). He puts the Milky ocean ( KsheerAbshi ) on top of the seven , because it is the Ocean that was the seat of avathAram of MahA Lakshmi , who is dear to our Lord .

He compares the superiority of the upadEsa vaarthais of the Kula pathis to the superiority of Paanchajanyam among other conches (sankuhaLil AvanEnthum SankE polE ) . Finally , Swami Desikan equates the supermacy of these nall vaarthaigaL to the supermacy of ThirutthuzhAi garland worn by the Lord over all the other flower garlands adorning His thirumEni( thAril Avan taNN tulavat thArE pola ).

This is why he concludes assertively that his PradhAna sathaka Rahasyam is able to confer auspiciousness to the righteous people many fold compared to other upadEsams and is able to win over para mathams with extreme effectiveness ( One crore fold superior effectiveness ) compared to other nall vaarthaigaL . Therefore , this Rahasyam is Swami DesikanE Uhantha Rahasyam and is to be revered by us as such .

BROAD TOPICS OF COVERAGE BY PRAHDAANA SATHAKAM
The major topics that a Mumukshu should know are dealt with in PradhAna dasakam by Swami Desikan . They fall into the following broad categories :(1) The PramANams that point to BhagavAn , (2)The special meanings of the three rahasyams , (3)The svarUpam of SaraNAgathi , the code of conduct of a prapannAs ,(4) the items to be followed by the PrapannAs and the items to be jettisoned by them ,(5) the ways for prapannAs avoid apachArams during their post-prapatthi period ,(6) the counter-measures once any apachAram happens ,(7) the methods of serving Bhagavan , His BhAvathAs and AchAryAs and (8)Moksha Sukham . In each of these EIGHT broad categories , Swami Desikan uses his sharp intellect and lists the three important items in each of these catgories and then rank orders them for our benefit . Altogether , there are 100 items in this rahasya grantham as Swami Desikan's upadEsam to us .

Swami Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam
Oppiliappan Koil Varadachari Sadagopan  


PradhAna Sathakam - Part 2 - V. Sadagopan

From here on , we will list and comment on the 100 Pradhaanams that Swami Sri Desikan instructed us on .
The Most Prominent among Pramaanams revealing Bhagavaan.

1/100: There are four pramaanams for gaining the correct knowledge about the fruits of Moksham and the means to realize the blessings of Moksham . These four pramaanams for gaining the correct knowledge on the above two subjects are : (1) Prathyaksham (2) Anumaanam and (3) Saasthram (4) Vedham .

Prathyaksham method is to see , touch and hear about things and get convinced about their reality or otherwise .

Anumaanam is the method by which the reasoning power is used to arrive at conclusions about subjects that do not permit the deductions based exclusively on prathyaksham based on sensory perceptions

Saasthram is that pramaanam that instructs us on the fruits of Moksham and the means to attain it , when the routes of Prathyaksham and anumaanam are not useful or competent . Thus Saasthram is superior to both Prathyaksham and anumaanam .

Far superior (pradhaanam ) to all of the above three is Vedam since it describes exactly the fruits gained by the jeevan in parama padham and shows the correct means to attain moksha siddhi . There is no saasthram that is superior to Vedam (vEdaath saasthram param naasthi na dhaivam kesavaath param --Naaradheeya Puraanam 8.32) .Sage Naaradhaa as a Naaraayana Paaraayana raises his hands and swears about Vedam being the pradhanam among all the saasthraas ( Sathyam sathyam puna: sathyam uddhdhruthya bhujam uchyathe : Vedaath saasthram param naasthi na dhaivam kesavaath param ) .

Swami Sri Desikan sums it up this way : paara-loukikapurushaartha -tadhupaayangalai yatha-vasthithamaaha kaatuhira Vedam pradhaanam . He says that VEDAM IS THE PRADHAANAM among the PRAMAANAMS since it alone precisely describes the fruits of Moksham and the means to attain that supreme blessing ( param apurushaartham ) .
What is pradhaanma among Vedaas ?

2/100: VEDHAANTHAM IS PRADHAANAM TO VEDAM. Sriman Naarayanan is the superior Tatthvam . The lower tatthvams are chethanan and achethanm . The means shown by Vedam are Bhakthi and Prapatthi. The fruit resulting from these means is Moksham .

Many pramaanams confuse one by mixing up the above true means to attain moksham and the superiority of Sriman Naarayanaa as the supreme most tatthvam . We can always dismiss these false pramaanams by proving that they are wrong through tarkam or by not paying attention to them . One is ofcourse confused by the prolific nature of these incorrect pramaanams . When one is confused about Pramaanams and their correctness, the entity that resolves all doubts is the siras of Vedam revered as Vedaantham . THUS VEDAANTHAM IS THE PRADHAANAM AMONG THE PRAMAANAM OF VEDAM .

Swami Sri Desikan declares the superiority of Vedaantham ,the Upanishadic part of the Vedams , as " para-apara-tatthva -hitha -purushaarthangalil anyathaa siddha pramaanaantharangalaal varum kalakkangalai yellaam theerkka valla VEDHAANTHAM PRADHAANAM " .

In the above passage quoted , " para -apara-tatthva-hithapurushaartham " refers to the four items: superior tatthuvam , the not so superior tatthuvams , the means for the fruit of Moksahm and the fruit of Moksham itself ." Anyathaa siddha pramaanaantharams " refer to the other pramaanams that deal with fruits other than moksham and the irrelevant means to attain the most sought after palan(fruit )of Moksham . Purusha Sooktham is pradhaanam among Vedaanthaas.

3/100 : There are four Vedas . Purusha Sooktham is enshrined in every one of these four Vedaas . Purusha Sooktham salutes Sriya: pathi Purushotthaman as the root cause of this Universe and as the means for Moksham , the liberation from the cycles of births and deaths . THEREFORE PURUSHA SOOKTHAM IS THE PRADHAANAM AND IS SUPERIOR (PRADHAANAM ) EVEN among VEDAANTHAMS . Prominent among the Bhagavaan's Manthraas

4/100 : Mathraas have been recommended for the proper aaradhanam (worship ) of this Purushotthaman celebrated by the Purusha Sooktham . Among the sets of manthraas , THE SET OF VYAAPAKA MANTHRAAS IS PRADHAANAM to perform aaraadhanam to our Lord .

Vyaapaka Manhtraas are Ashtaakshari , Dhvaadasaakshari and Sahadakshari dealing with Sriman Naaraayana , Vaasudevaa and Vishhnu . The Best among the Vyaapaka Manthraas.

5/100 : AMONG THE SET OF VYAAPAKA MANTHRAMS , ASHTAAKSHARAM IS PRADHAANAM . All Achaaryaas are agreed upon its pradhaanyam (sarva aachaarya parigraha adhisayam ) with relish .Its praadhaanyam is also asserted by the fact that it is the only manthram that unambiguously establishes sesha-seshi relationship between the Sarva seshi , the Purushotthaman and the seshis , chethanams and achethanams .That is why the following slokam from Ashtaakshara Brahma Vidhyai salutes it as the pradhaana manthram this way :

yathaa sarveshu deveshu naasthi Naarayanaath para: tathaa sarveshu manthreshu na manthro Ashtaaksharaath Para:
The Best among different kinds of births(piravis)
There are many kinds of births . One is birth asociated with the residence in the Mother's womb . The other is the birth resulting from manthropadesam from one's father recognized as dhvija Janmam .

PRAHDAANAM AMONG DIFFERENT KINDS OF BIRTHS IS THE ONE WHERE THIRUMANTHIRAM (ASHTAAKSHARAM ) STANDS AS THE MOTHER AND ACHAARYAN TAKES ON THE ROLE OF THE FATHER .That is the Jn~anap piravi , which is the pradhaanam among the different kinds of births.

Varadachari Sadagopan

 


PradhAna Sathakam - Part 3
V. Sadagopan

From the seventh to the thrity second upadesams , Swami Sri Desikan establishes the PraadhAnyam of the different aspects of the sacred moola manthram . We will cover these twenty six instructions on AshtAksharam here. We will not go into the details about the deeper meanings of the PraNavam , Nama:Sabdham and the NaarAyaNa sabdham that constitute the moola manthram. This step is in respectful rememberance of the guidelines of our elders that such instructions have to come from KaalakshEpams on Srimadh Rahasyaa Thraya Saaram under the sacred feet of one's AchArya.

The first fifteen of the twenty six instructions on the moola manthram are associated with the PraNavam. The next nine instructions relate to the nama: Sabdham. The subsequent two instructions deal respectively with NaarayaNa sabdham and the dominat meaning of the moola mathram itself among the ten meanings given to it.

7/100:Among the three parts that constitute the moola- manthram --praNavam,Nama:and NaarAyaNAya-- the most prominent is the PraNavam that is on the siras of the VedAs.Bhagavaan Himself has revealed to us in His GithOpanishad that He is PraNavam among the VedAs: " girAmasmi yEkamaksharam " ( Gita:10.25)

8/100:The sacred PraNavam is thrayyakshara Brahmam or Para Brahmam made up of the three aksharAs (letters ): A,U and M .Sruthi has revealed this three-fold combination of the constituent aksharAs. NaarAyAtharvOpanishad and ChAndhOgya upanishad teach us this trifold division of PraNavam.

The first Upanishad states :"prathyag aanandham Brahma Purusham PraNava svarUpam,akAra ukAra makAra ithi, thaa anEkadhA samabhavath,tadhEthadhOmithi". Here the Upanishad says : PraNavam is the Para Brahma SvarUpam that creates joy in the heart of the Jeevan . It is constituted by the union of the three aksharams : A,U and M.ChandhOgya manthram states that the three vyAhruthis (bhU: bhuva: and Suva:) arose out of Rg , Yajus and Saama VedAs respectively as the essence of these three VedAs. They united to form the sacred PraNavam according to ChAndhOgyam .

Swami Desikan evaluates the three aksharams that make up the PraNavam and remembers in this context , the statement of GeethAchAryan.

Swami Desikan reminds us that the first letter "A" is pradhAnam among the three letters (aksharams ) . He points out further that the "Sarva-Vaachaka prakruthi " aksharam "A" is PradhAnam among the three aksharams .Sarva Vaachaka prakruthi means that"A"is the basis of all the doctrines described by words constituted by letters . The PramANam cited by Swami Desikan is " aksharANAm akArOsmi " , the direct upadEsam of Sri PaarthasArathy to His disciple , ArjunA (Gita:10.33).

9/100:The first letter of PraNavam is "A ", behind which is hidden the fourth Case "aaya". Because it is not prominently seen , the fourth vibakthi(case) is called "luptha Vibhakthi". The first letter of PraNavam is therefore to be recognized as being made up of "A" and the hidden "aaya" with which it is intimately associated . The PrathamAksharam is really "A+aaya". "A" represents the Lord ,who is the origin of the meaning of all the vasthus described by words. He is also Sarvarakshakan.This meaning of"A" as the protector of all arises from the root ,"av". Inview of the greatness of Our Lord's Sarvarakshakthvam , the word "A" has prAdhAnyam over the hidden fourth vibakthi(aaya) with which it is associated.

10/100: There are many meanings for the root (dhAthu) "av" from which the letter "A" arose. One of them is the meaning that the Lord is Sarvarakshakan . Since this aspect of the Lord's protection (Rakshakathvam)is the most important one for the Jeevan, the choice of the meaning of "protection" (kaatthal) takes precedence (PraadhAnyam ) over all the other meanings assigned for the prathamaakshaksharam (A). Swami Desikan points out that this meaning of rakshakathvam is "upayuktham"(most purposeful and useful for the Jeevan). Therefore it is PraadhAnyam over all the other meanings for "A".

To be Continued
Varadachari Sadagopan


PradhAna Sathakam - Part 4
V. Sadagopan

11/100 : The first part of the sacred AshtAkshara manthram is the PraNavam made up of the three letters ( A, U, M). The first letter "A" refers to the Lord , who protects us. There are many auspicious attributes ( VisEshaNams) that are unique to Him in the context of His role as a protector. Some of them are His Consort , His DayA guNam and His auspcious body ( Subha Tanu).The second Rahasya manthram sacred to Sri VishNavAs ( Dhvayam ) is the elaboration of the first Rahasyam , Thiru Manhtiram (AshtAksharam). This Dhvayam starts appropriately with the invocation of the "Sri" sabdham . This is due to the fact that the chEthanAs can not be protected without the participation of Sri Devi , the Lord's consort .Therefore , among all the auspicous attributes contributing to the success of the Lord as the protector , the primary (PradhAnam ) role is that of the Lord's consort , Sri Devi .

12/100: There are many Veda mantrams and passages that help us to understand clearly as to who is the primordial divinity . Among all these Veda pramANams , NaarAyaNAnuvAkam is the primary pramANam . This sacred anuvAkam establishes for us that the AkAra Vaachyan ( One who is denoted by the first letter of PraNavam ), who is never separated from His divine consort , Sri Devi , and who is approached only through the observance of the two Brahma VidyAs ( Prapatthi and Bhakthi) is the ONE to meditate upon and to worship .Therefore among all the Veda pramANams in the form of anuvAKams , NaarAyaNAnuvAkam is pradhAnam for us.

13/100: That which is ruled is called the VibhUthi . There are two kingdoms that are ruled by the divya dampathis . One is recognized as the LeelA VibhUthi ( this samsAra mandalam ); the other is the nithya VibhUthi ( Sri Vaikuntam or parama padham ). The undisputed rulers of these two kingdoms are the Lord and His divine consort.Therefore , the most central entities are (1)the two vibhUthis and (2)the rulers of these two vibhUthis, the divya dampathis .

14/100: Among the two co-equals , the Lord and His divine consort , the Lord is praadhAnam as a result of the the ancient traditions of the dharma pathni revering the husband as the one to be obeyed.For instance , in Yaj~nams , there are many observances that treat the husband and his wife as equal and yet there are some unique rites for the husband alone as the yajamaanan . This doctrine extends even to the divya dampathis and therefore the Lord is prathi-prAdhAnyam over His consort . Thus , the Lord of all is by tradition , the sarva pradhAnan .

15/100: Loka PradhAnam of the Lord in every way :

(1) There are many entities in the world that are gigantic in scope and size . For instance , the Sky ( AakAsam ) envelops huge areas and hence we call it Bruhath. Our Lord is larger than the sky in terms of His pervasiveness ( vyApthi). There is no entity in His Universe , which is larger than Him in either size ( Bruhathvam ) or auspicious attributes ( BrahmaNathvam ).He enters all the creations ( Chethanams and achEthanams) and serves as their aadhAram and commands / directs them . BrahmA engages in Vyashti srushti , but it is the Lord , who sets the stage for BrahmA through His Samashti Srushti . BrahmA enlarges the size of the insentients and shrinks or expands the dharma bhUtha Jn~Anam of the sentients .We concede therefore that BrahmA is some what engaged in Srushti vyApAram .But , the power behind BrahmA is Sriman NaarAyaNan , our Lord , who empowers BrahmA . Therefore , He is saluted as PARA BRAHMAM .

(2)Our Lord is the support or substrate ( AadhAram ) for ALL entities in this Universe. He does not however need any AdhAram Himself for His functioning. Hence , He is revered as PARA TATTVAM .

(3)Since He is the supreme effulgence from whom all the radiant entities like the Sun and the Stars derive their JyOthi , He is recognized as PARAM JYOTHI .

(4) Since He intermingles with all AathmAs and stays as their indweller , He is called PARAMAATHMAA.

(5) Since He is worshipped by all the Deevathais , He is known as PARA DEVATHAI .

(6) Since He is the principal fruit of the Mukthi enjoyed by the muktha jeevans , He is recognized as PARAA GATHI .

(7) For MumukshUs ( those desirous of Moksham ) , the Upanishads spell out the items that have to be gained for realizing Moksham. The same Upanishads rank order these items that have to be brought into one's fold for gaining moksham . First , the Indriyams and then the senses followed by the Manas , AathmA and sarIram . The last item in the list is Our Lord . He is the ultimate boundary that one has to reach and gain . Beyond Him , there is nothing to be gained for Moksha Siddhi . Hence , Our Lord is correctly understood as PARAA KAASHTAI .

(8) Those , who seek some fruits(palan) from the Lord observe specific rites as the means , please our Lord and gain what they seek from Him .He stays as SiddhOpAyan( means to attain that sidhdi) and thus permits Himself to be pleased by a variety of means and hence , He is called PARAAYANAM .

(9) One can attain kaarya siddhi by Tapas .Since Our Lord can bless one with all types of siddhis , He is revered as PARAMA TAPAS .

(10) A Pavithra Vasthu is understood as that which purifies other Vasthus of their blemishes . Our Lord empowers such pavithra vasthus to have their sanctifying power . Therefore , He is recognized as the purest among the pure (PAVTHRAANAAM PAVITHRAM).

(11) We recognize some vasthus as auspicious ( MangaLam). That Mangalathvam arises from their auspicious attributes. Our Lord is again the One , who confers that auspiciousness on them. Therefore, He is rightfully recognized as MANGALAANAAM CHA MANGALAM .

Inview of His role as the supreme being in every way as refereed to above , all the PramANams recognize HIm as the PARAMA PRADHAANAM .

V.Sadagopan

 


PradhAna Sathakam - Part 5
V. Sadagopan

16/100 : Sarveswaran is the Prahdana Seshi: In this world , there are number of important people (pramukhAs). They are important because many obey their commands and accept them as their leaders . In reality , they can not be considered as THE SUPREME LORD .The fully qualified ONE is THE SUPREME LORD , who is the Lord of all these pramukAs .These PramukhAs accept Him and Obey Him as their ONE AND ONLY LORD .All those ,who look important because of others obeying them are to be recognized as DhwAra sEshis . They have no lasting superiority compared to Sriman NaarAyaNan as the most natural sEshi (nirupAdhika sEshi ).

17/100 : Jivan may appear pradhAnan inview of juxtaposition: Sriman NaarAyaNan is Visva-sEshi , where as the Jivan is His sEsha bhUthan . In Arjunan's chariot , Lord KrishNa sat in the front as his Saarathy (Charioteer ). Arjuna sat in the back . Thus Visva -sEshi was in the front and the sEsha bhUthan was in the back just as the akAram is in the front and the Makaram trails it in PraNavam . Akaram represents the Lord , the Visva sEshi and Makaaram , the Jivan in PraNavam .

In ArjunA's chariot , ArjunA appears important in a superficial sense , since he is sitting where the pradhAna purushan normally sits . One can guess as to who is PradhAnam by taking the example of PraNavam and the juxtaposition of the aksharams that make up the PraNavam . Akaram comes first and MakAram comes last indicating that Jivan is sEshan to the AkAra Vaachyan, the Lord . Due to sabdha vatthi ( the order of construction of words or juxtaposition of the words ) , Jivan appears pradhAnam as in the case of Arjuna Ratham , where Arjunan ( the Jivan ) appears as though he is the PradhAnan .One has only to look at the PraNavam to establish , who really is the PradhAnan .

18/100 : Artha SvabhAvam revealing that the Lord is PradhAnan: When we state LakshmaNan is RaamAnujan , it may appear that LakshmaNan is pradhAnan , but when we look at the sequence of the words making the compound word , RaamAnujan , it is clear that the PradhAnyathvam rests with RaamA . LakshmaNA's relationship gets defined by RaamA . Hence Raaman is PradhAnam . When we examine the artha SvAbhAvam , it becomes clear that the Lord is sEshi and the Jivan is sEshan to Him , even if it may appear supeficially that Jivan is PradhAnam as in the case of Arjuna Ratham .

19/100: Athyantha Paaratantriyam of the Jivan: Many times , we use the same case for the sEshan and the sEshi. For instance , we say , "EmperumanE Brahman ; EmperumAnE Sivan etc . How can EmperumAn be Brahman or Sivan ? Such statements arise from the usage under SamaanAdhikaraNa sabdham , where the same case (vibakthi ) is used to describe the sEshi and the sEshan. When we recognize that the adjectives and the noun are inseparable ( apruthak-siddha - visEshaNa -vaachi -sabdhams), then we get to the true , the ultimate meaning ( nishkarsha paryavasAyi), then we get to understand the importance of recognizing and reflecting on the total dependence of Jivan on the Lord , the akAra Vaachyan .

SamaanAdhikaraNa sabdham is used because the sEshan (jivan ) is the body of the Sarva sEshi ( the Lord ) and is inseperable from Him .Therefore , it is logical to speak about the both together. Upanishads also declare all the dEvAs as NaarAyaNA . All of them also are inseperable from Him , since , they serve as His body as well. That is why , when we say, "EmperumAnE Brahman " , we mean that it is the EmperumAn , who has Brahman as His body .Inside that body of the Jivan called Brahman or Sivan presides the Lord , the Visva sEshi , who directs them .They are therefore sEshans to the sarva sEshi . These Jivans from BrahmA onwards are inseperable from the Lord because of their status as His body ( Sarira-SaarIrI relation ) and do not have any independent existence or freedom of their own and are completely under the control of the Sarva sEshi . It is important to understand this relationship between the Jivan and the Isvaran as PradhAnam .

20/100: Differences in Vibakthis pointing to prime differences between the Isvaran as sEshi and the Jivan as sEshan: In PraNavam , the first aksharam , "A" has the fourth vibakthi assoicated in a hidden manner with it ; the third aksharam , "M" has the first vibakthi associated with it . The occurence of these different vibakthis (cases ) assoicated with the First aksharam and the last aksharam of PraNavam points out that the AkAra Vachya EmperumAn is the sEshi ( Lord ) of the MakAra Vaachya Jivan , the sEshi ( Liege). These different cases of the two aksharams reveal that the AkAra Vaachya EmperumAn is the One , who protects and is omnipresent , whereas the Makara Vaachya Jivan is the one , who is the object of that protection and is infinitesimal ( Rakshakathva-Rakshyathva relation as well as the Vibhuthva-aNuthva relation ).Thus , the different vibakthis of these two aksharams of PraNavam reveal the differences between the Visva sEshi, the Lord and the sEshan , the Jivan .This understanding is pradhAnam .

21/100: Pradhaanam among the Jn~Anams ( Knowledge): The tattva Jn~Anam born out of the clear understanding of the meaning of PraNavam reveals to us that Bhakthi and Prapatthi are the upAyams for Moksham . Among all possible Tattva Jn~Anams , the Jn~Anam that " the Jivan is liege to Sriman NaarAyaNA and NaarAyaNA is the Lord of the Jivan " is PradhAnam . This Jn~Anam can only arise from a true understanding of the meaning of PraNavam .
Through the past 15 upadEsams (7-21), The PraNavam part of the AshtAkshara Manthram and the primary aspects of the rahasyArthams were coverd by the most merciful Swami Desikan for our benefit . Next , he takes up the Nama: sabdham of the AshtAksharam and covers the important concepts through nine upadEsams ( 22-30), which are vital for our understanding of the important Nama: sabdham .

Oppilaippan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan (To be continued )

 


PradhAna Sathakam : Part 6

The Important aspects of Nama: sabdham (22-30)

22/100 :The connection of Nama: sabdham to Prapatthi: The acquisition of the knowledge that the Jeevan is subservient to the Lord and that Lord is its Swami is the prerequisite to perform Bhakthi and Prapatthi yOgams that lead to the realization of Moksham. The middle word in AshtAksharam, " Nama :" succinctly refers to Praaptthi with its angAs.This act of Prapatthi (saanga-prapadhanam) is more important (prAdhAnyam) than Bhakthi as UpAya - anushtAnam for Moksham.

23/100 : PrAdhanyam (Superiority) of the angi over angAs in Prapatthi:

This prapatthi as an upAya-anushtAnam has five limbs (angAs) such as aanukUlya sankalpam et al. Even more important than the 5 angAs is the angi, which is the act of samarpaNam of the aathmA at the Lord's lotus feet as His property.Angi is thus prAdhAnyam over the angAs.

24/100: The Importance of BharanyAsam over the other two :

Praaptthi consists of three samarpaNams or offerings at the sacred feet of our Lord :

(1) samarpaNam of the aathmA to the Lord : SvarUpa SamarpaNam(the "aham" part of the first verse of NyAsa dasakam and the "yOsmyaham sakalam " part of AlavandhAr's sthOthra rathna slOkam). Here the one performing prapatthi gives up the thought that he is the doer and that anything belongs to him.

(2) SamarpaNam of the responsibilities of protection of the aathmA and the granting of Moksham to the Lord (Bhara SamarpaNam, BharanyAsam, Aathma nikshEpaNam).

(3) SamarpaNam of the fruits of such protection to the Lord Himself (phala samarpaNam). Here, the fruits arising from Prapatthi is also placed at the Lotus feet of the Lord as belonging to Him.

Both SavarUpa and Phala SamarpaNam belong to the category of Tattva Jn~Anam associated with Prapatthi. Bhara samarpaNa however does not belong to this category of tattva-Jn~Anam. Therefore, Bhara SamarpaNma has pradhAnam (priority) over the other two kinds of SamarpaNams.

25/100 : In the injunctions related to the performance of BharanyAsam or Bhara samarpaNma covered by charama slOkam, the command, "SaraNam Vraja" is pradhAnam.

26/100 : The Lord is PradhAnam over the upAyam of Prapatthi

Prapatthi is an act to be performed by the chEthanan and hence it is considered as SaadhyOpAyam. By this act of Prapatthi, Lord comes under the influence (vasIkaraNam) of the chEthanan. Prior to that act of prapatthi, Sriman NaarAyaNA was not accessible to the chEthanan and therefore has remained as SiddhOpAyam. Our Lord is the root cause of every thing (KaaraNathvam). He is totally independent (svatantrathvam). He stands as the direct means for granting Moksham.Therefore, compared to Prapatthi, which is only an upAyA, EmperumAn who as UpEyA receives and accepts the Bhara SamarpaNam is PradhAnam.

27/100: The pradhAnam of SaadhyOpAyam in Nama: sabdham

Ahirbhudnya Samhithai intreprets the meaning of Nama: Sabdham in three different ways : sthUlam, Sookshmam and param. The intrepretation along the lines of VyAkaraNa saasthram yields the SthUlam aspect of Nama: sabdham. Here, the word Nama : is derived from "naamayathi" meaning to charm the Lord and to attract Him (VasIkaraNam). This in turn connects the Nama: sabdham to the act of prapatthi with its five limbs (SaadhyOpAyam). In the intrepretation (sthUla yOjanai) along the sthUlA lines of the nama: sabdham, SaadhyOpAyam thus gains prominence.

28/100: Sookshma Yojanai & the praadhAnyam of the utter dependence of the Jivan on the Lord

The angam of Vedam known as Niruktham intreprets words according to etymology. In this glossorial intrepretatation, the word "nama:" splits as "na" and "ma". The aksharam , "ma" denotes Jeevan. "na" refers to no freedom (svanthram) of its own for the Jeevan. Therefore the combination of "na" and "ma" leading up to nama: sabdham points out that there is no independent existence for the Jeevan outside the Lord, its Master. The banishment of the thought of independence of its own away from that of the Lord is the prAdhaanyam in the Sookshma Yojanai of the nama: sabdham.

29/100: In Para YojanA, SaadhyOpAyam is PrAdhAnyam

Ahirbudhnya SamhithA provides again the meaning of "nama:" sabdham according to Para YojanA.This Para YojanA deals with the meaning of words as derived from akshara nigaNdu associated with the Rahasya sAsthrams. Aksharams are the letters of the alphabet; NigaNdu is the glossary of Vedic words as explained by Yaska in his work known as NirukthA. Thus this approach has Vedic sanctions (nigamanam).

According to Para YojanA intrepretation, "nama:" splits as the aksharams, "na", " ma ' and the visargam ":".The respective rahasya meanings of "ma", "na" and ":" are importance, upAyam (means) and EmperumAn.Thus this intrepretation asserts that namanam (prapatthi) is the most important means (pradhAnyam) to attain the grace of EmperumAn and Moksha Siddhi. Since Prapatthi as SaadhyOpAyam facilitates the vasIkaraNam of the Lord, Para YojanA points out SaraNAgathi is PrAdhAnyam as SaadhyOpAyam.

30/100 : SiddhOpAyam (EmperumAn) has PrAdhAnyam over Prapatthi, the SiddhOpAyam

According to the above parayOjanA intrepretation, nama: sabdham has EmperumAn (Sriman NaarAyaNA) as the embedded meaning. He is ancient and exists even before the performance of prapatthi (SaadhyOpAyam) by the chEthanA. Thus Sriman NArAyaNA as SiddhOpAyam is prAdhAnyam over Prapatthi, the SaadhyOpAyam.

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan

 


pradhAna sadakam - part 7
V. Sadagopan

31/100: The Importance of Tathpurusha SamAsam in the NaarAyaNa sabdham of Moola manthram The third padham in the Moola manthram is "NaarAyanAya ". This padham prominently salutes the Lord , who stands in as SiddhOpAyam and is therefore a glorious name that reveals His unmatched mahimA and compassion .

In Sanskrit , when two self-standing words are combined to form a new word , the effect is called "SamAsam "; when a compound word made up otwo or more words is split into the individual componebts , the process is known as Vigraham . In Tamil, "SamAsam " is called "piNarchi".

The padham "NaarAyanA " is a samaasam , which is made up of the two words , "naara" and "ayana " , since SamAsam by definition is made up from the union of two or more words .

In Sanskrit , there are two kinds of SamAsams to form compound words : (1) BhauvrIhi (2)tathpurusham . When we split the "naarAyaNa " sabdham into these two kinds of SamAsams , we get different meanings .

In BahuvrIhi splitting , "naarAyaNaya" splits as , " naarA:+ ayanam +yasya ". In Tathpurusha SamAsam , the same "naarAyaNaaya "splits as "naarANAm+ayanam " .

"naara" means Jeevan , which does not perish. IN Sanskrit , the word "ru" , which is derived from "ra" means that which is perishable.The prefix "na" before "ra" implies that Nara is imperishable. In our siddhaantham , naara , the jeevan is eternal.

"ayanam " has three meanings :(1) a resting place/ abode /support (2) UpayA or means and (3) fruit or objective . The BahuvrIhi samaasam suggests NaarAyaNA is the one for whom the Jeevans serve as the abode or resting place. He is their antharvyApthi or NaarAyaNA is the inner resident of all chethanms. The Tathpurusha SamAsam indicates that NaarAyaNA stands as the UpAyam for the JIvans. Among the two samaasams, Tathpurusha SaamAsam is pradhAnam for the understanding of "NaarAyaNa " sabdham, since it reveals that Sriman NaarAyaNA is the means for Prapatthi and Moksham .

32/100: What is PradhAnam among the ten meanings of the Moola Manthram ?
There are ten meanings for the Moola Manthram as a result of permutaions and combinations of the different words that make it . These ten meanings refer to one or more of the following categories : SvarUpam , UpAyam and palan . Some deal with either SvarUpam or UpAyam or Palan only . Some deal with combinations of two of the above three categories (viz), the meanings alluding to upAyam and palan .Others dal with all the three of them . In looking for the most supreme among the ten possible meanings for the Moola Manthram , one recognizes that the one with the meaning that integrates all the three (SvarUpam ,UpAyam and Palan ) is of the highest category . That One is PradhAnam .

Oppiliappan Koil VaradachAri SadagOpan

 


pradhAna sadakam - part 8 - V. Sadagopan

33/100 : The Importance of Dhvayam among SaraNaagathi Manthrams
There are a number of manthrAs for performing SaraNaagathi. Some of them are: PraNavam, Dhvayam and mUla manthram. Among the above triad, Dhvayam is the most important. Why? It is because the first section of Dhvayam (Sriman NaarAyaNa CharaNou) refers to the SiddhOpAyam of BhagavAn as well as the SaadhyOpAyam of Prapatthi to be done by us (SaraNam prapadhyE). The second section (utthara bhAgam) refers specifically and clearly to the great phalan of Moksham through the passage, " SrimathE NaarAyaNaaya". Thus, Dhvayam is prAdhAnam among the prapatthi manthrams.

34/100: What is PradhAnam among the meanings of Dhvayam ?
The Dhvaya manthram points out to the sacred feet of the Lord through the statement : "I take refuge at the sacred feet of the Lord, Sriya: pathi (Sriman NaarAyaNa charaNou SaraNam prapadhyE)". The target for that prapatthi is the holy feet of the Divine Consort of MahA Lakshmi, Sriman NaaraayaNan.

Our Lord has both ThirumEni (subhAsrayam) and SvarUpam. Among these two, ThirumEni is the easier to grasp and contemplate on (easy to realize). The very thought of Thirumeni will cleanse us of all sins. Even those who do yoga, hold on to Thirumeni for their meditation Line SvarUpa dhyAnam is not easy to perform. That kind of dhyAnam does not last in a durable manner in their minds. If they have difficulty, we can imagine readily the extreme difficulty that we would have to engage in SvarUpa dhyAnam about the Lord.

The dhyAnam on the subhAsrayam (Saalampana mahA yOgam) on the other hand makes it easier to maintain the dhyAnam through concentration on the divya mangaLa vigraham of the Lord, His soundharyam, weapons and bhUshaNams (asthra BhUshaNAdhis) as well as His hEyaprathanIka (blemishless with out admixture of amangaLams) kalyANa guNams.

In view of this, our Lord's SubhAsrayam (ThirumEni) becomes prominent over svarUpam. Even in the ThirumEni, the sacred feet of our Lord becomes the most prominent. When we hold firmly His sacred feet, His heart overflows with DayA for us and He can not run away from us. Therefore, Dhvayam points to us the Thiruvadi (sacred feet) of the Lord as the pradhAna upAyam (means). In this context, Swami Sri Desikan recalls an isloated statement (mugdhakham) of Bhagavadh RaamAnujA : "anathikramaNeeyam hi CharaNa - grahaNam" (if one holds on to the feet of the Lord, He can not shake that grip off and walk away).

35/100: Sriman NaaraayaNan is however the PradhAnOpaayam
Even if we point out to the importance of the loftiness (prAdhAnym) of our Lord's sacred feet as the means (Upayam) for saraNAgathi, the possessor of those holy feet becomes the PradhAnOpAyam. He is the One, who wills (has the sankalpam) to bless us with the fruit of SaraNAgathi. Hence, He becomes the most prominent as UpAyam.

36/100:UpAya-prApya eikyam pradhAnam
Our Lord, Sriman NaarAyaNan is the ancient upAyam that exists before any others (SiddhOpAyam). Similarly, He is the most ancient upEyam (phalan). Hence, He is recognized as SiddhOpEyam as well. The Upanishads reveal to us that that there is unity between the UpAyam and prApyam and thus He is both SidhdOpAyam and SiddhOpEyam without any contradiction.

There may be doubts about Him serving as both UpAyam (Means) and prApyam (upEyam/Phalan). Although ordinarily, upAyam and Phalan are distinctly different entities, the uniqueness of the Lord as revealed through the Dhvaya Manthram rooted in the Upanishads is that He is the one and only Supreme being who is the amsam of both upAyam and phalan. Thus, there is nothing inconsistent in Sriman NarAyaNan being both the prApakan and the PrApyan.

 


PradhAna sadakam - part 9
V. Sadagopan
(Based on originals from Sri U.Ve.SriRamadesikAchAr, "RahasyArttha vivaraNam - Sillarai RahasyangaL - part 3, in tamil)

PradhAnam in understanding prapatthi ShAsthram:

37/100: There are many shAsthrAs to intrepret the meanings of Prapatthi vidhyai. For instance, the Thirumanthiram and the Dhvaya manthram explain the deeper meanings of Prapatthi. Among all these sAsthrAs, Sri pAncha rAthra shAsthram which arose out of our Lord's vAk is pradhAnam. Hence, it is revered as Bhagavath shAsthram.

38/100: Among the many granthams that elaborate on the meanings of the prapatthi shAsthram in an enchanting manner to the mind (Chittha ranjanam), the most delectable ones are the aruLiccheyalkaL of the AzhwArs. They serve as the nectar for the adiyArs and are absolutely free from errors and falsehoods.

39/100: Srimath RaamAyaNam and MahA BhAratham, the two IthihAsAs, elaborate on the doctrines of prapatthi. Among these two, Srimath rAmAyaNam housing the sacred utterances of the SaraNya dampathis is pradhAnam. Swami Desikan is referring here to the two important slOkams of Srimath rAmAyaNam associated with Sri RamAchandran and His divine consort, Sri SithA PirAtti :

sakruthEva prapannAya .................. --- Sri Ramachandran: Yuddha KhAndham: 6.18.33

pApAnAm vA subhAnAm vaa vadhArhANam plavangama kAryam karuNamAryENa na kascchith nAparAdhyathi --- Sri SithA Piraatti: Sundara KhAndham: 6.116.44

40/100: Among the various granthams providing the many meanings of Prapatthi and Bhakthi Yogams, the four Veda samhithAs and their upanishads (sruthis) are very important. If we place the entire sruthis on one arm of a weighing scale and place MahA Bharatham on the other arm, both arms will be at equilibrium indicating that they are of equal weight (and importance). Therefore, MahA BhAratham revered as the fifth Vedam is pradhAnam among the many granthams dealing with prapatthi shAasthram. Swami Desikan quotes the slOkam sections from the Aadhi Parvam of MahA Bharatham as PramANam for his view (Aadhi parvam: 1.293 to 296):

mahathvE cha guruthvE cha bhriyamANam tathOdhikam mahathvAth bhArathvAccha MahA BhAratham uchyathE

(Meaning): MahA BhAratham got its name, when the weighing of it against the four Vedams and Upanishads revealed its greatness (mahath) and for its passages housing the lofty and noble meanings (artha Gouravam).

41/100: Among the many sections of MahA BhAratham discoursing the four purushArthams (DharmArhta kAma mOksham), the section dealing with the AdhyAthma vidhyai (section dealing with the nature of AthmA) is principal (PradhAnam).

42/100: Among the sections on AdhyAthma shAsthram, the one known as the essence of all Upanishads, the GithOpanishad or GithA shAsthram is pradhAnam.

43/100: In that GithOpanishad, the two slOkams singled out by Sri KrishNa BhagavAn for their sacredness and status as parama Rahasyam are pradhAnam as the essence of GithA shAsthram. These two continuous slokams (65&66) of Chapter 18 are:

manmanA bhava madhbhakthO madhyAji maam namaskuru mAmEvaishyasi sathyam thE prahtijAnE priyOsi mE

(Meaning): "Focus your mind on Me. Be My devotee. Be My worshipper. Prostrate before Me. You shall come to Me alone. I promise you truly ; for you are dear to Me".

sarva dharmAn parithyajya maamEkam saraNam vraja aham thvA sarva pApEpyO mOkshayishyAmi mA sucha:

(Meaning): "Completely relinquishing all DharmAs, seek Me alone for refuge. I will release you from all sins. Grieve not".

44/100: Among the above two slOkAs, the last one (Charama slOkam), is pradhAnam. Why ? It is because of the way in which this slOkam houses in a brilliant and succinct way the powerful meanings and the diverse glorious aspects of prapatthi: dhvayArtham, the qualifications of one for performing prapatthi, the svarUpam of prapatthi, Sriman NaarAyaNA as the object of prapatthi, the state of prapatthi that does not expect any thing in return and the fruits of prapatthi. Swami Desikan in his brilliant way sums the above meanings and the diverse aspects of prapatthi as: "adhikAri-nairapEkshya- vishaya-svarUpa-phala visEshams".

 


PradhAna sadhakam - part 10
V. Sadagopan
(Based on originals from Sri U. Ve. Sri Rama desikAchAr, "RahasyArttha vivaraNam - Sillarai RahasyangaL - part 3, in tamil)

The Important meanings of Charama SlOkam (45-47)

45/100 : The charama slOkam is made up of three constituent parts: (1) sarva dharmAn parithyajya mAmEkam saraNam vraja (2) aham thvA sarva pApEpyO mOkshayishyAmi (3) mA sucha :

The first portion instructs one to perform SaraNAgathi. The second portion focuses on the phalan arising from such a performance. The third portion describes the status of being care-free and blissful as a result of the performance of SaraNAgathi. The second and third portions of the Charama slOkam arose as a response to the question, "why should we perform SaraNAgathi" as commanded by the First portion of the charama slOkam. Hence, THE FIRST PORTION OF THE CHARAMA SLOKAM IS PRADHAANAM. The first portion is recognized as pUrva vAkyam since the second and the third portions are responses to the first portion and hence are known as utthara vAkhyams. Swami Desikan points out that the Purva vAkhyam is pradhAnam over the utthara vAkhyams.

46/100 : The second portion of the charama slOkam focuses on the phalan resulting from performing SaraNAgathi. It houses our Lord's promise to free us from all karmAs that stand in the way of mOksham as obstacles (prathibhandhaka nivrutthi). When these obstacles are chased away, it is but natural to gain mOksham (svatha: prAptham), which is nothing but gaining Sri VaikuntanAthan (Swami laabham). Hence, the fruit (phalan) of the realization of the Lord of Srivaikuntam as a result of the removal of obstacles is pradhAnam (svatha : prAptha Swami lAbham).

47/100 :In GithOpanishad, Our Lord has spoken thrice to remove the sorrow of Sri ArjunA. His sOkha - nivrthaka vaakhyams aimed at comforting His friend and Sishyan, ArjunA, are found in the second, sixteenth and the eighteenth chapters of GithA.

47.1: Second Chapter: Arjuna is ovewhelmed with the sorrow over the thought of killing his AchAryAs and relatives in the battle field to gain the kingdom. This type of sorrow does not belong to a Kshathriyan and his dharmam. Our Lord explained to ArjunA that his sorrow was totally inappropriate and instructed ArjunA about the nature of the body and the self. Our Lord pointed out that the Self is eternal and is not dependent on the body for its existence, nor is it subjected to destruction on the death of the insentient body. The Lord said "You grieve for those, who should not be grieved for. Yet, you speak words of wisdom. The wise grieve neither for the dead or for the living (nAnu sOchanthi panDithA:)". Swami Desikan comments that Lord removed the "asthAna snEhAdhi nibhandhana sOkham" (sorrow arising from misplaced affection) of ArjunA in the second chapter.

47.2: Sixteenth Chapter (anadhikArathva sankhA nibhandhana sOkha Nivarthanam): In the fifth slOkam of the 16th chapter, our Lord comforted ArjunA by explaining the differences between the divine and the demonical destinies (sura and asura sampath and points out that Arjuna is born to divine destiny and as such he has nothing to grieve:

dhaivU sampadh vimOkshAya nibhandhayAsuri mathA mA sucha: sampadham dhaivIm abhijAthOsi pANdava

When Arjuna was sorrow stricken over the fear that he possessed Asuri sampath, our Lord removed his sorrow by pointing out that he (Arjunaa) had a divine destiny and is fit to gain mOksham and thus removed his anAdhikArathva sankhA (sorrow over unfitness as a qualified one).

47.3: Eighteenth Chapter (viLamBhitha -phala-kruchra-nivartthanam) (sAdhya-upAya-upadEsa janitha sOkha Nivarthanam): "The instruction about the supermacy of Prapatthi Yogam":

Our Lord instructed Sri ArjunA on the Bhakthi yOgam that yields its phalan after a long and arduous practise. Sri ArjunA was sorrow-stricken over the thought of his incapacity to undertake this difficult Bhakthi yOgam. When the Lord recognized the dejection of ArjunA, out of His limitless compassion blessed Sri ArjunA with the easy-to-perform Prapatthi yOgam and wiped away Sri ArjunA's sOkham once and for all.

Swami Desikan takes into account the three instances, where Our Lord came to the rescue of the sorrowing Arjuna to remove his dukkham. Swami Desikan concludes that, AMOMG THE THREE UPADESAMS FOR SORROW REMOVAL, THE ONE HOUSED IN THE 18th CHAPTER IS PRADHANAM. He explains that the first two upadEsams housed in the 2nd and the 16th chapters are not of much use to the suffering samsAris and the third upadEsam is the most useful for all chEthanAs and hence attains the status of PrAdhAnyam.

 


PradhAna sadhakam - part 11

V. Sadagopan

(Based on originals from Sri U.Ve.SriRamadesikAchAr,"RahasyArttha vivaraNam - Sillarai RahasyangaL - part 3, in tamil)

The Principals among the PrapannAs (48-49)

48/100 : We should perform prapathi at the sacred feet of Sriman NArAyaNA after being initiated into the meanings of Thirumanthiram, Dhvayam and Charama SlOkam. Those, who have performed such Prapatthi are known as PrapannAs. They can be classified in to the two categories of dhruptha prapannas and Aartha PrapannAs.

Dhruptha PrapannAs are those, who want to eliminate the causes for future births so that they can attain the bliss of Moksham at the end of their allotted earthly life. Aartha prapannAs are those, who develop a distaste for spending additional time on earth and long intensely to attain moksha siddhi without delay and be a resident of Sriman NArAyaNA's Vaikuntam quickly. They wish to be rid of the rest of their karmas that stand between them immediately and thereby attain Moksha Siddhi rightaway to enjoy Sri Vaikunta VAsam as muktha prapannAs. Among the dhruptha and Aartha prapannAs, the latter is pradhAnam.

49/100 : Among Aartha prapannAs, there are those, who want to leave this worldly life at once to perform nithya Kaimkaryam to Sri Vaikuntanathan without "additional" time. They do not want to tarry in this earth even for a moment. They have unquenchable ardour to be at the side of the Lord's feet immediately . Other Aartha prapannAs pray to Lord to shrink their time on earth by weeks, months or years and put up with their allotted life span, even if they are sorrowful over the time delay in enjoying the fruits of Moksham. Among the Aartha prapannAs, those, who would like to have their lives shrunk on earth to the minimum and have the greatest sense of urgency to enjoy the MokshAnugraham are the most important.

Gathi Chinthanam and Anthima Prathyayam (50-51) 50/100 : Among the dhruptha prapannAs, there are two categories. The first one spends his or her time on this earth thinking about the blessings of travel by archirAdhi mArgam. Though this type of thinking is not helpful for Moksham, it would be a pleasant way to spend one's remaining time on this earth. The other category of dhruptha prapannan will focus one's thoughts on the time, when the Lord will bless one with Moksham. The very thought (Chinthanai Nilai) of the Archiradhi margam and the expectation of getting the Moksham would be important.

Swami Desikan quotes in this context, the pAsuram of NammAzhwAr (Thiruvaimozhi : 9.3.7), where he prays to Lord Narasimhan :

"--Vaikuntham kANpathaRkku, yen manam yEkam yeNNUm irAp pahalinRiyE ".

(Meaning): My mind will think unceasingly during night and day about the enjoyment of Lord Narasimha at His abode of Sri vaikuntam.

51/100 : Here, Swami Desikan comments on the topic that he covered at length in the NirNayAdhikAram chapter of Srimath Rahasya Thraya SAram (Twentieth Chapter). The topic is anthima prathyayam or thoughts during the last moments of one's life on this earth. For a prapanna, the thoughts about the Lord during anthima prayANam would be the most desirable. The prapanna need not however take a special effort in this context.Our Lord out of His infinite daya would bless the prapanna with thoughts about Him. It is important to pray for this anthima chinthanai about Him at the time of the performance of Prapatthi itself performed by a sadhAchAryan. One should not seek thereafter for the boon of anthima chinthana from the Lord as a fruit of one's prapatthi. That kind of prarthanai is a svayam prayOjana prArthanai.

Swami Desikan cites the 21st chUrNikai of SaraNAgathi gadhyam of Sri RAmAnujA in this context :

"SarIrapatha samayE thu kEvala madhIyayaiva dhayayA athiprabhuddha:mAmEva avalOkayan --"

(meaning): May the illustrious dayA of Sri RanganAthA envelop me at the time of my last, moments on His earth (leelA VibhUthi) that I am blessed with unceasing thoughts about Him due to the blossoming of Bhagavath- Thatthva jn~Anam!

Swami Desikan's references to the slOkam passage from VarAha PurANam,"nashta smruthirapi, partithyajyan dEham", VarAha Charama slOkam passage (sthithE mansi susvathE..) and PeriyAzhwAr's prayer to Sri RanganAthA "appOthaikku ippOthE solli vaitthEn.." (PeriyAzhwAr Thirumozhi:4.10.1) on anthima smruthi are important ones for a svathanthra prapatthi nishtan. For such a prapannan, the last thoughts on BhagavAn will arise due to the Lord's sankalpam. This was also one of the six messages sent by Sri VaradarAjan of KAnchi to Sri RAmAnujA through Sri Thirukkacchi Nambi.

 


PradhAna sadhakam - part 12
Sri V. Sadagopan
(Original in Tamil  by  Sri  U.V.SrirAmadEsikAcchAr,  "RahasyArttha  vivaraNam -  Sillarai RahasyangaL - part 3)

52-54/100 :Important Aspects related to kaimkaryams
52/100 : Aj~nA kaimkkaryam is pradhAnam over anuj~nA kaimkaryam in our lives as PrapannAs. Aj~nA kaimkaryams are sandhyA vandhanam  & other daily rituals prescribed by SAsthrAs.  Our Lord is angry  at those,  who  do  not  perform  these prescribed Aj~nA kaimkaryams. Those who missed doing the  Aj~nA  kaimkaryams  are  obligated  to perform  appropriate prAyaschitthams (expiatory rituals) to negate the sins accumulated and thereby please the Lord .

Anuj~nA kaimkaryams are those that make the Lord happy,  when  one performs them. They do not lead to the acquisition of  sins,  when one fails to perform them. In such category are  kaimkaryams  such as pushpa kaimkaryam, sandalwood paste samarpaNam & other  anuj~nA kaimkaryams for the Lord.

53/100: The two Kind of Aj~nA kaimkaryam are classified as follows:
(1) abandoning  the  performance  of   those  kaimkaryams that are prohibited by sAsthrAs (2) Performance of those recommended by the sAsthrAs . Among these two categories of Aj~nA kaimkaryams,  It is pradhAnam to cease doing those that are prohibited by SAsthrAs.

54/100 : Among the Anuj~nA kaimkaryams, there are the 2 categories known as KriyAmsa and Jn~AnAmsa  Kaimkaryams. KriyAmsa kaimkaryams are those that involve physical  involvement like making a garland for  the  Lord, lighting of lamps in the Lord's sannidhi, cleaning of the prAkArams  of the temple  et al.  Jn~Amsa  kaimkaryams  are those  that  involve one's mind such  as  the  study  of  VedAntha granthams, Sri Sookthis of AzhwArs and AchAryALs.  The  study  and contemplation  of  these  Sri  Sookthis  in  the  light   of   the understanding bestowed by  the  rahasyArthams of Dhvayam also fits into the category of Jn~Amsa Anuj~nA kaimkaryam.

Among KriyAmsa & Jn~Amsa anuj~nA kaimkaryams, latter is PradhAnam.

55/100 :  Which type of Sishyan has to be avoided by the AchAryan? There are many kinds of sishyAs , who need to be avoided, when the AchAryan  examines  their  qualifications  to  receive   spiritual instructions dealing with ubhaya VedAntha  granthams  and  AchArya Sri  Sookthis  (Sri BhAshyam,  GeethA  BhAshyam,  Srimadh  Rahasya thraya sAram).   Even  if  many   aspiring   sishyAs  approach   a sadAchAryan for such instructions through the route of KAlakshEpam, the Qualified teacher  should  reject sishyAs having the following attributes :

a)those who do not beleive in the SAsthrAs
b)those who transgress the injunctions of the SAsthrAs
c)those who absorb the knowledge without the knowledge and approval  of the AchAryan
d)those who betray his AchAryan
e)those  who  donot  observe  the  procedures  learnt  through  the  upadEsam of the AchAryan or those who  do not have  trust in  the  instrcutions received
f)those who criticize the Lord and the AchAryan and speak ill about  their Guru and the Lord.

There is one category of aspirant (would-be sishyan),  who is worse than the  above  types  (a-f).  He  is  the  one,  who  during  the performance of his duties outside nithya-karmAs, associates himself with  anya  dEvathA  sambhandham by thought  or deed. For instance, during the performance of SandhyA-Vandhanam,  one recites the names  of Indran, Sooryan, VaruNan, Agni et al with the understanding that salutations addressed to them are not for them. On the other  hand, one should understand that these salutations are for the  Lord  who resides as antharyAmi brahman inside  them. It is  also  understood that it is Brahman who assigns  them such alloted duties.  That  is the proper way. Those aspirants however,  who  willfully  engage in the recitation of the names  of  the  dhaivams   other than  Sriman NArAyaNA  or worship them  or serve them  in  any  way  have  to be summarily abandoned by the AchAryan. It is pradhAnam  to avoid such aspirants, who  practise  anya-dEvathA upAsanam over all the others.

A SadAchAryan should not perform upadEsam of  Rahasya  manthrAs  to such a sishyan , who engages in anya-dEvathA upAsanam by mind, body or deed. It is not appropriate for the sadAchAryan to  banish  them after performing upadEsam ; that type of aspiring sishyan should be rejected at all costs even at the first approach for initiation.

56-57/100 : Who is PradhAnam among qualified SishyAs ?

56/100 : The one to be sought avidly is the Brahma vidh, who  is of tranquil mind,  who follows the sAsthrAs meticulously and instructs others to follow that noble path and corrects them when they swerve from the injunctions of the sAsthrAs.  Such a sishyan is  pradhAnAm among those who clamor for acceptance as a sishyan by a SadAchAryan.

57/100 : The sAsthrAs stress on the peformance of the 40 samskArams and the posssession of eight Atma guNams as the two most  important aspects of one's qualifications to gain  acceptance as a sishyan by a sadAchAryan.  The  sishyan  with  the above two qualifications in equal measure  is  hard  to  realize.  There  are  some,  who  have completed the fourty samskArams, but lack the Athma  guNams;  there are others, who have not undergone all the fourty  samskArams,  but are blessed with the possession of the Athma  guNams  as  a  direct result of performing Bhagavath-BhAgavatha Kaimkaryams. Since Aathma GuNams take precedence over samskArams,  the  sishyan who possesses Athma  guNams  is  pradhAnam  over  the other, who does not possess Athma  guNa  poorthi  inspite  of  being  distinguished by SamskAra Poorthi.

 


PradhAna  sadhakam -  part 12
Translated by Sri V. Sadagopan
(Original in Tamil  by  Sri  U.V.SrirAmadEsikAcchAr,  "RahasyArttha vivaraNam -  Sillarai RahasyangaL - part 3, in tamil)

PradhAna Sathakam : The Importance of Bhagavatha Kainkaryam 58/100:  BhAgavatha  kainkaryam  is  pradhAnam  over Sri Bhagavath kainkaryam. EmperumAn's thiruvuLLam is that  any one who considers Him as the sarvasEshi could even  abandon the Kainkaryam  to  Him, when it comes to serving His BahgavathAs first.

The categories of BhagavathAs and their PradhAnyams (59-63/100)

There are five kinds of BhagavathAs : sathkAra, sallAbha, sahavAsa, bheethi and preethi yOgya BhagavathAls. SwamiDesikan indicates the pradhAna purushans among these five categories in items  59-63  of PradhAna Sathakam.

 59/100: SathkAra yOgya BhAgavathars : Samyak- Jn~AnadhikAran or the BhAgavathan  with  superior  Jn~Anam is  pradhAnam  over  all   the BhAgavathAs possessing Bhagavath bhakthi .

60/100:SallAbha yOgya BhAgavathAs : SallAbham  means  communicating with each other. Among the SallAbhayOgya BhAgavathAs, the pradhAnam is the one who  is nirvEdha adhikAran or the one, who truly suffers the pangs of pain from the sorrows caused  by samsAric bonds. Among all  the  BhAgavathAs  with  whom  one  wants  to   have  sallAbham (Conversations/exchanges ),the one  shows the utmost nirvEdham over the afflictions of samsAram is the best.

61/100: SahavAsa  yOgya  BhAgavathALs:   Among   this   category of BhAgavathALs with whom one wants to dwell together, the BhAgavathan who has utter detachment from SamsAram  is pradhAnam. That  type of BhAgavathan is known as VairAgya adhikAran.

62/100: Bheethi  yOgya  BhAgavathALs:  One  should  have  fear   in approaching mahAns with great  qualifications. One  who  approaches with reverenece and respect other BhAgavathALs is known  as Bheethi yOgya Bhagavathan. Among this  type  of Bheethi yOgya  BhAgavathALs, the one, who does not boast about one's superior qualifications and underplay them is  pradhAnam.  Even  Sriman NArAyaNan de-emphasized His sarvEsvarathvam during His avathArams as RaamA and KrishNA.

63/100: Preethi yOgya BhAgavathars:  Swami  Desikan  evaluates  the pradhAna BhAgavathar in  this  category of BhAgavathALs  using  the counsel  given  by  a slOkam of  VishNu Tattvam, which states: That BhAgavath Bhakthan, whose eyes  are filled with  tears of joy,  has horripilation through the Bhagavath guNAnubhavam and who constantly reflects on the anantha kalyANa guNams of the Lord is the one to be seen by all (sarva dEhibhi: dhrashtavya :). His cool eyes  will  be filled with tears of joy arising out of the experience of the bliss of Bhagavadh anubhavam (AhlAdha seetha  nEthrAmbu). His  hairs  are standing on end from that experience (puLakIkrutha gAthravAn).

Based on the clear guidelines given by the above Sri sookthi, Swami Desikan recommends this category of Preethi yOgya BhAgavathALs, the one , who has Bhaashpa and ROmAnjalis from  Bhagavath  guNAnubhavam is PradhAnam.

 


PradhAna  sadhakam -  part 14
Translated by Sri V. Sadagopan
(Original in Tamil by Oppiliappan SAnnithi Vangipuram  nava neetham Sri U.V.SrirAmadEsikAcchAr,  "RahasyArttha vivaraNam  -   Sillarai  RahasyangaL - part 3, in tamil)

Bhagavath-BhAgavatha-AchArya Kaimkaryams
64/100:  The  kaimkaryam performed for a BhAgavathA, who is  one's AchAryan is pradhAnam over kaimkaryam to the sAdhArana BhAgavathAs, who are not one's AchAryans.

65/100: There are in general 3  kinds of  kaimkaryams. The  1st is Bhagavath kaimkaryam; in the middle is BhAgavatha kaimkaryam & the last one is the AchArya kaimkaryam. Latter  is  one  of  the  most important kaimkaryams. When that gets united  with the  BhAgavatha kaimkaryam that type of kaimkaryam becomes pradhAnam over the rest In other words, it is important to combine AchArya kaimkaryam with BhAgavatha kaimkaryam. This combined  kaimkaryam is  pradhAnataram.

66/100:  When it  would be  possible for one to  perform Bhagavath, BhAgavatha & AchArya kaimkaryms, then that would be the the highest in hierarchy of kaimkaryams (pradhAnatamam /superlative category.

67/100: There are many kind of kaimkaryams that one can perform to BhagavAn,  His  BhagavathAs and one's AchAryan. It may not however be possible to perform all of these kaimkaryams  to the  above set of three. Hence, one should follow the guidance of the SAsthrAs to decide on the appropriate kaimkaryams. The  pradhAnam  among  such kaimkaryams recommended by the SaasthrAs should  however  be those that please the mind of the One for whom kaimkaryam is intended.

68/100: When one engages in the peformance of   these  kaimkaryams, the bhAva visEsham is pradhAnam. Those kaimkaryams done with since -rity and relish are thus  pradhAnam over those done without  such attitude.

69/100: It is common  knowledge that whatever  a chEthanan does is for the fulfilment of a personal need and goal (sva-prayOjanArtham). One gets elated, when  performing a kaimkaryam in this fashion. In reality , when one has developed the wisdom (Jn~Anam )that  such a personal  elation  is under the control of the Lord (para sEsham), then that kind of kaimkaryam pleasing the  Lord is  pradhAnam over that devoid of such Jn~Anam.

PradhAnam among Bhagavath Roopams
70/100: Sriman NArAyaNA has 5 forms. These are: Param, VyUham, Vib-havam, AntharyAmi & Archai. The JIvans can select any one of  the 5 forms  to  direct  their kaimkaryams. Among this set of 5 forms, the  ascending  order  of  prAdhAnyam is Param, VyUham,  Vibhavam, AntharyAmi & Archai. In other words, kaimkaryam to Archai is pradh -Anam over AntharyAmi & the kaimkaryam to VibhavAtharams is pradhA -nam over the kaimkaryam to the Lord in the AntharyAmi form.  Thus the kaimkaryam to ArchA manifestation is PradhAnatamam (the higest order).

71/100 : For one, who has the firmness of belief & clarity of mind that the Supreme Reality (Parabrahmam) is the indweller of all the 5 forms, he or she can select an incarnation  that is dear to them for worship. That incarnation becomes PradhAnam over the others.

PradhAnam among the various YugAs
72/100: There are 4 Yugams, when one classifies  passage  of Time. These 4 are : Krutha,ThrEthA, DhvAparam and Kali yugams.  In  Kali yugam,  the  rajO & tamO guNams dominate over Satthva guNam, which is almost nonexistent. In DhvApara Yugam, Sattva guNam  becomes  a little more prominent compared to Kali yugam. In the ThrEthA yugam, the rajO and the tamO guNam decrease in proportion to  the satthva guNam; the latter becomes even more prominent than in the DhvApara Yugam. In the Krutha yugam, the Satthva guNam is the most dominant & the other 2 guNAs are  almost nonexistent. Kaimkaryams performed in the Krutha yugam dominated by the Satthva guNam are thus pradhA -natamam over kaimkaryams performed in any other yugam.

73/100: Kali yugam is however pradhAnam over  the other  3 yugams, since,  it is the yugam in which a small kaimkaryam to the Lord is rewarded by a large measure of auspicious  response from HIM.  For instance, VishNu purANam points out that the Lord is pleased  with DhyAnam of Him in Krutha yugam, performance of Yaj~nams in ThrEthA yugam, ArAdhanam in DhvApara yugam and mere nAma-sankeerthanam  in the Kali yugam. Equal measure of phalan is said  to be obtained by the singing of the Lord's  names in Kali yugam as one would obtain by the rigorous practise of DhyAnam over the  Lord's  savrUpam  in the Krutha yugam. Thus Kali yugam  with its least arduous route of gaining the Lord's krupA is pradhAnam over the other yugams.

 


PradhAna sadhakam - Part 15/15
Translated by Sri V. Sadagopan
(Original  in Tamil by Oppiliappan SAnnithi Vangipuram  navaneetham Sri U.V.SrirAmadEsikAcchAr,  "RahasyArttha vivaraNam  -   Sillarai RahasyangaL - part 3, in tamil)

The Mukhya amsangaL of kaimkaryam upakaraNams
(74) There are many "instruments" for  Bhagavath  Kaimkaryam.  The mind  (manas)-  vAk  (speech)  and  seyal (body and action)are the three dominant ones for such a kaimkaryam. When the  mind,  speech and  the  limbs are unified to perform Bhagavath Kaimkaryam with a pure heart, then it is pradhAnam among kaimkaryams.

(75)When the mind, vAk and the limbs  are  united  in  purpose  to serve  the  Lord, then the external sAmagriyais like TuLasi, water and  flowers,  whatever  is  available  without   difficulty,   is appropriate for Bhagavath kaimkaryam.

(76) The kshEthram fit for living to perform Bhagavath- kaimkaryam is  where  the  bhAgavathAs of the Lord reside. This should be the place of residence. This is pradhAnam. During times  of  emergency and  danger,  any  place  is  fit however for residence to perform kaimkaryam for BhagavAn.

(77) The four kinds of kshEthrams, where BhagavAn  is  present  in the  archA  form  are: (1) Svyam vyaktham, where He has manifested out of  His  own  sankalpam  (2)  Saiddham,  where  siddhars  have performed  prathishtai  (3)Arsham,  where  the  Vedhic  sages have initiated the prathishtai  (consecration)  (4)  VaishNavam,  where paramEkAnthis/Bhagavathars  have performed prathishtai of the Lord in the sAstraic way.

(78) When any one of the above four  kshEthrams  are  inaccessible for   residence,  then  the  pradhAnam  is  Sri  Vaikuntam,  where BhagavathAs reside permanently.

(79) Prior to performing Bhagavath kaimkaryam,  one  has  to  take bath  in  pure  water  and  make  themselves  fit  for  initiating Bhagavath kaimkaryam. Based on one's physical condition, different snAna  vidhis  are prescribed. These are: (1) VAruNa snAnam, where one immerses fully in water and takes the bath (2) The  second  is manthra  snAnam,  when  one  is ill and is unable to dip in water.  Here, one recites prescribed manthrAs and splashes the consecrated water on top of one's head (3)  When  one  can  not  even  perform manthra  SnAnam,  then  mAnasa  snAnam  is  recommended. Here, one contemplates on the subhAsrayam of the archA  mUrthy  without  any doubt  about  the  power  of  mAnasa snAnam qualifying one for the performance of bhagavath kaimkaryam. For people performing  mAnasa snAnam,  our  Lord,  Sriman  NArAyaNan stands in place of the holy waters. He is the Supreme One seated in our  heart  lotus  as  the PuNya  theertham.  When  one  is  immersed in such a roopa dhyAnam associated with MAnasa snAnam,  this  type  of  snAnam  is  indeed pradhAnam.

(80)   The   chEthanan  (sentient  being)  can  perform  bhagavath kaimkaryam in whatever state he or she is as  long  as  the  three instruments-manas,  vAk and limbs - are unified in purpose and are pure.  This  is  the  pradhAna  nilai  for  performing   Bhagavath kaimkaryam as revealed to us by sage SANDilyA.

DhOshAs and their elimination
(81)  There  are  insufficiencies  associated with the three tools that man has: Manas-VAk and Limbs. SAsthrAs have focused on  these insufficiencies. The limbs and the body constituting them have the defect  of causing harm to others in a physical sense. VAk has the defect of uttering untruth. Manas has the defect  of  longing  for things  that  are  not appropriate for sAdhanai. These defects are our enemies. We must banish these defects. The chief  among  these defects  is  the  ever-increasing  desire  to  possess things that produce no long term happiness. When some one stands in the way of fulfilling these desires, anger raises its ugly head.  When  anger takes  over,  the  sins  follow  immediately.  Therefore  the most important item to control is desire. That is pradhAnam.

(82)The relief from all these imperfections and protection against the encroachment of such dhOshams can be  realized  by  sathsangam with  BhAgavathAs  rich  in  satthva guNam. Those noble souls will correct the offending one through their sadhupadEsams and dayA.

ApachArams and their ParihArams
(83) What  are  the  reasons  for  the  dhOshams  (apachArams)  to aggregate  in a chEthanan? They arise from transgressions of codes established by sAsthrAs for serving BhagavAn, His BhAgavathAs  and AchAryALs.  BhagavathApachAram is worse than apachAram to BhagavAn and the worse than BhAgavatha apachAram is AchArya apachAram.  One can   perform   prAyacchittham   for   Bhagavath   and  BhAgavatha apachArams, but not for  AchArya  apachAram.  Our  Lord  will  not tolerate  AchArya apachAram. Such AchArya apachArams will push the chethanan to the deepest chambers of  narakam.  Therefore  AchArya ApachAram is prahdAnam to avoid.

(84)The   worst   of  the  AchArya  apachAram  is  to  forget  the mahOpakAram that He performed and to have ill  will  towards  that AchAryan.

(85)There  are  a  few  upAyams  to  persuade even one, who is not inclined to forgive one's apachArams.  Among  these  upAyams,  the supreme  one  is  the mudhrai (gesture) with folded hands known as anjali mudhrai. This anjali mudhrai will yield  fruits  only  when the  one  that  has committed the apachAram has genuine regret and remembers with gratitude the help offered earlier.

(86) If one committs apachArams to  BhAgavathAs,  there  are  some redresses to overcome those apachArams. The dominant among them is to   approach   the  BhagavathAs  themselves  and  to  seek  their forgivance.

(87) One committs heinous sins and apachArams. To  overcome  them, he  has to do prAyacchittham as a means of redress. If he does not do so, he will end up badly. To prevent this disaster, one has  to have  the  mercy  of  the AchAryAs. Through his dayA, the AchAryan corrects the sinner and brings him back to the righteous path.

(88) There are many ways to remove the sorrows of those  suffering from  the cruel afflictions of SamsAram. Sri RAmachandran stood on the shores of the ocean and declared  in  front  of  the  army  of monkeys  and  VibhishaNan  that  he  has  taken  the  vow  to save unfailingly any one, who sought His refuge. That vow taken by  our Lord  is  pradhAnam  for  consoling  those,  who seek redress from samsAric illness. When one thinks of that vow, the  sufferings  of samsAram  are  banished  and  one lives in a state of freedom from worries.

AchAryan-PrAchAryan : The PrahdAnams
(89) The parents and teachers belong to the guru vargham  (class). Among  them,  the  AchAryan,  who  initiates  one  into  vEdhAntha SAsthram is pradhAnam.

(90)  There  may  be  more  than  one  AchAryan,  who instructed a disciple in vEdhAntha SAsthrams. Among  them,  the  AchAryan,  who instructed  the  sishyan  on  Thirumanthiram,  Dhvayam and Charama slOkam (the three rahasyams and their meanings) and  prepared  the sishyan thus for Prapatthi is pradhAnam.

(91)  When one's AchAryan and His AchAryan (PrAchAryan) are at one place, it is pradhAnam to offer the salutation to PrAchAryan. That will please the heart of the AchAryan.

The Importance of Kaimkaryam blessed by the AchAryan
(92) It is  pradhAnam  to  get  the  niyamanam  (command)  of  the AchAryan   to   perform   the   kaimkaryams   approved   for   the ParamAchAryan, EmperumAn.

The prahAna apachAram in BhagavAn's sannidhi
(93)In the sannidhi of our Lord, showing reverence to the One, who considers  our  Lord as Para dEvathai (Supreme Lord) is pradhAnam. Recognizing others, who do not accept our Lord as the DEvAthidEvan should be rejected.

EkAnthis and their Kaimkaryams
(94) Even among those, who revere our Lord as Para  dEvathai,  the one who is pradhAnam amidst them is that one, who seeks mOksham as the sole fruit and does not seek any other boon from Sarvesvaran.

(95)  Those  who  peformed  prapatthi  for attaining mOksha siddhi perform kaimkaryam for our Lord until their last  moment  on  this earth.  The  greatness  of  the  kaimkaryams done by the prapannan without seeking anything in return becomes equal then in glory  to that performed by the muktha jeevans in Sri vaikunTam.

(96)  The karmAs done anticipating some rewards are known as KAmya karmAs. The One, who performed prapatthi seeking only  Moksham  as his  goal should not engage in the performance of kAmya karmAs. It is befitting for him to do karmAs, which are consistent  with  his svarUpam.   The  kAmya-karmAs  permitted  for  the  mumukshu  are: Kaimkaryams to celebrate the Vaibhavam of  the  Lord,  kaimkarymas for  the  well  being  of  the  BhAgavathAs  serving  their  Lord, kaimkaryams  for  the  growth  of  one's  own  bhakthi and tatthva jn~Anam and kaimkaryams for the removal of sins that stand in  the way of attaining the desired goal of mOksham.One should never pray to  the  devathAntharams for fulfilment of desired objectives. The Mumukshu can however pray to the Lord or to the  nithyasUris  dear to Him such as ThiruananthAzhwAn or Garudan (Periya Thiruvadi).

The Importance of kaimkaryam to those rich in Jn~Anam
(97) PradhAnam is the kaimkaryam to those rich in Jn~Anam and such kaimkaryams enhance our own jn~Anam.

(98)  There  will  always be obstacles to the bliss resulting from the enjoymnet of our Lord. The  mind  will  become  agitated  over these  obstacles.  There  are  many  remedies  to  overcome  these disturbing  obstacles that stand in the way of paripUrNa anubhavam of our Lord. The chief remedy is to grow our  Jn~Anam.  That  will lead  to the growth of satthva guNam. The awakening of the satthva guNam from the growth of Jn~Anam is thus the pradhAnam  among  the cures  to  eliminate  the  obstacles  in  enjoying our Lord to the fullest extent.

The chief among sukhams for Humnans
(99) The humans derive happiness from the interplay of  the  three guNams:  satthvam,  rajas  and  tamas.  The  prahdAnam  among such sukhams is the one attained, when the outter  and  inner  indriyAs are  controlled and when Satthva guNam dominates in the background by reining in the external and internal indhriyAs.

(100) Among all the sukhams of the  chEthanan,  pradhAnam  is  the sukham  attained by the one blessed with Moksha siddhi through the successful practise of Bhakthi or Prapatthi yOgam. These prapannAs spent their post-prapatthi days on this earth in contemplation  of the  Lord  in archai or darsanam of Him at His temples or sevai to Him. There are however some obstacles to such pursuits that  arise form the thought that he(the prapnnan) is independently conducting all  these  acts  in his post-prapatthi days. He should not forget that it is the Lord that has blessed him with this AnandhAnubhavam and  that  he  is  not  a  svathantran,  when  it  comes  to  such uninterrupted enjoyment of the Lord and service  to  BhAgavathALs. That   type   of  kaimkaryam  infused  with  sAthvika  thyAgam  is consistent with  the  "Aya"  root  positioned  over  the  NArAyaNa sabdham.  That  type  of  kaimkaryam  is  devoid  of  thoughts  of svathanthram.  only  such  kaimkarymas are blemishless and last in value forever. The sukham arising  from  such  niravadhya,  nithya kaimkaryams has no match in the bliss created. This sukham enjoyed by the mukthan is the greatest of all Anandhams.

(101)  The  sukham arising from such nithya, niravadhya kaimkaryam enjoyed by the mukthan is equal to the sukham enjoyed by our  Lord Himself. It is indeed PerumAL, who blesses the mukthan to have the svathanthram  to engage in such kaimkaryams. Our Lord is Mukundhan or Moksha dhAyakan. He is  the  antharyAmi  Brahmam  and  has  the chethanams  and  achethanams as His body. Thus, we (Swamy Desikan) has established the supermacy (PrAdhAnyam) of Sriman NArAyanan. PradhAna sathakam sampUrNam SrimathE NigmAntha MahA DesikAya nama

 


Further Reading: External Links


Spelling: