saranagati deepika

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Slokam 17
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Today , adiyEn will cover the seventeenth slOkam 
of Sri SaraNAgathi DhIpikai , where Swamy Desikan
salutes the six mysteries relating to the Lord
ViLakkoLi PerumAL's avathaarams ( AvathAra Rahasyams):

naanAvidhai: aghapaDai: ajahath-svabhAvai:
aprAkruthai: nija-vihAra-vasEna siddhai:
aathmIya rakshaNa vipaksha-vinAsanArtai:
samsTApayasi anaga janmabhi: aadhya dharmam 

--SrI SaraNAgathi DhIpikai: SlOkam 17

(Meaning): Oh ViLakkoLI EmperumAnE! (1)You incarnate 
in this world whenever unrighteousness (adharmam) 
dominates . You take on different forms during 
those avathArams of Yours (2)The forms that You take are 
real and are not like magician's indhra-jaalams
( deceptive acts)(3) during such avathAraams , You
do not cast aside Your svAbhAvika guNams ( innate,
natural righteous attributes).(4)Your ThirumEni 
(sacred Body )during these avathArams is not constituted
by the five elements (pancha bhUthams ) as in the case 
of human beings. It is constituted only by Suddha Satthvam
devoid of any trace of RajO or TamO guNams (5) Your
sarIram during Your avathArams is not created by
karmaas . Your SarIram comes to be because of Your
sankalpam ( volition ). (6) Further , Your sarIram 
unlike ours is not for enjoying the fruits of karmAs.
Your sarIram is intended only to protect Your 
devotees and to punish the enemies of Your devotees.

Shrouded in these six mysteries , You incarnate 
in this karma bhUmi as sacred avathAra Purushan 
(PurushOtthaman) , destroy unrighteousness and
establish the most pious Dharmam of the ancient
Krutha Yugam , when the cow of Dharmam is said 
to stand firmly on its four legs .In Kali Yugam ,
the cow of Dharmam is said to be tottering 
with the support of only one leg.

Additional Comments:
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In his magnificent SrI DasAvathAra SthOthram ,
Swamy Desikan refers to the svath-sankalpam of the Lord 
being responsible for taking the form of mathsyam (Fish) 
to recover the VedAs stolen by the Asuran . Our Lord 
took MatsyAvathAram and plunged into the depths of 
the ocean to find the VedAs , which were hidden by 
the asuran in his home under the ocean waters. 
Swamy Desikan salutes the Lord here as "IcchA Meena !" . 
He took on the task Himself. Nobody asked Him to 
undertake this gigantic effort to protect the VedAs.

The whole slOkam celebrating the Lord's ten avathArams
set in the long and majestic metre of SaardhUla VikrIditham
takes this form :

IcchA Meena vihAra Kacchapa MahApOthrin yadrucchA HarE
RakshA Vaamana ROsha Raama KaruNA KaakusTa hElAhalin
krIDA vallava Kalka-vAhana dasA kalkinnithi prathyaham
jalpantha: purushA: punanthi bhuvanam puNyaouga paNyApaNA:

Lord's Svath-Sankalpam is indicated by the choice of words:
"IcchA Meena" . This is one of the avathAra Rahasyam.
" RakshA Vaamana " refers to another of the six avathAra 
rahasyam: Incarnation taking place , when adharmam 
dominates and the dhushtAs have to be punished and
the Saadhus have to be protected. This is true of 
RaamAvathAram as well .Kalki avatharam at the end of 
Kali Yugam is yet another instance of such an avathAram.

In Srimath Rahasya Thraya Saaram , Swamy Desikan refers 
brilliantly to these six rahasyams about the Vibhava 
avathArams( Charama slOka adhikAram) :

" avathArasya Sathyathvam ajahathsva-svabhAvathA , 
Suddha Satthvamayathvam cha svEcchAmAthra-nidhAnathA
dharmaglAnou samudaya: Saadhu samrakshaNArTathA"

Sage ParAsara , the author of VishNu PurANAm specially
points out about the sankalpam of the Lord alone being
the driving force behind the avathArams :

"IcchA gruhItha abhimathOrudEha:" 

He takes the many avathArams based on His volition.

Swamy NammAzhwAr wonderingly states in this context:

" inninna yOniyumAi piRanthAi ImayOr TalaivA ! " 

In this 17th slOkam of SrI SaraNAgathi DhIpikai , 
avthAra sathyathvam is referred to by the choice word
"agapaDai:". Maintaining His innate kalyANa GuNams
is referred to by the words: "Ajahath svabhAvai: ".
Having a Suddha Sathva sarIram with out the influence 
of the pancha BhUthams is refered to by the word:
"AprAkruthai: ". Additional avathArarahsyams are 
referred to by the other words chosen forthis slOkam :
nija vihAra VacjhanE Siddhai: ( originating out of 
His leelais), AathmIya RakshaNa dharmam ( for protecting
His devotees), Vipaksha vinAsana artai: ( for destroying
the enemies of His BhakthAs) and "anaga janamabhi: "
( blemishless avathArams , which has nothing to do
with karma sambhnadham).

After this slOkam dealing with the Lord's avathAra rahasyams, 
Swamy Desikan salutes in the next slOkam the Souseelya and
Soulabhya guNams displayed by the Lord during His avathArams.