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   SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 105 - nAma 982. yaj~na_guhyam.

982. yaj~na-guhyam ? He Who is the secret of the sacrifice.

om yaj~na-guhyAya namaH.

The word guhyam is derived from the root guh ? samvaraNe ? to cover, 
to keep secret.  Guhyam means `rahasyam' or secret.  Different 
interpreters have given their diverse anubhavam of how bhagavAn is 
the hidden secret behind yaj~na-s.  

Sri BhaTTar comments that bhagavAn is the `secret' behind the 
sacrifice, because not everyone understands that He is the ultimate 
object of the sacrifice, and that even though bhagavAn is not in need 
of any offering, He still feels satisfied as if He has been long 
expecting the offerings, and enjoys them.  Only those who are wise 
and knowledgeable about the injunctions, the means and the fruits of 
the sacrifices, realize this secret about Him; others do not realize 
this secret.   SrI BhaTTar quotes the following from the mahAbhArata 
in support:

        sarve vedAh sarva vedyAH sa-SastrAH sarve yaj~nAH sarva 
ijyaSca kRshNaH   |
        viduH kRshNam brAhmaNAs-tattvato ye teshAm rAjan sarva-
yaj~nAH samAptAH   ||

        jyotIgmshi SukrANi ca yAni loke trayo lokAH loka-pAlas-trayI 
ca   |
        trayo'gnayaSca AhutayaSca pa'nca sarve devA devakIputra eva   
||

"All the veda-s and all that has to be learnt, all the SAstra-s and 
all the sacrifices, and all worship ? all are SrI kRshNa.  Those who 
know kRshNa correctly this way, may be considered to have completed 
all the sacrifices successfully".

"All the shining luminaries in the universe, the three worlds, the 
three guardians of the world, the three fires, and the five offerings 
in those holy fires, and all the gods, are all SrI kRshNa, the Son of 
devaki".

The above references bring out another subtle secret that is 
elaborated by SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan:  Even though the offering in 
a given yaj~na may be for some of the other deities, the real Deity 
Who ultimately receives all the offerings is BhagavAn and no one 
else.   BhagavAn is the antaryAmi of all these other deities, and 
while He feels satisfied with the offering, He also ensures that 
these other deities are satisfied, and thus it is no one other than 
BhagavAn Who is the ultimate object of all yaj~na-s.  Not everyone 
who performs yaj~na-s understands this, and thus bhagavAn is the 
secret behind the yaj~na-s in this sense as well ? yaj~na-guhyam.

Sri VeLukkuDi kRshNan brings out another dimension to the anubhavam 
of this nAma:  Accepting the relatively meager offering in the yaj~na 
with great delight, BhagavAn can give to the performer of the yaj~na, 
the benefit even up to moksham; in other words, there is no limit to 
the return that He can bestow on the performer of the yaj~na in 
return for the relatively trivial offering that bhagavAn does not 
even need.  This is a great secret that is not easily understood by 
most people.  He keeps the means of yaj~na as a great secret that is 
understood only by a few who know the yaj~na SAstra properly, and so 
He is yaj~na-guhyam.  

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that there are two aspects to any 
sacrifice ? the material aspects, and the thoughts behind the 
performance of the karma.  We dealt with this discussion under nAma 
981 (gItA 4.33).  Lord kRshna declares that the thought behind the 
actions is more important than the act itself.  When this thought 
itself is dedicated to bhagavAn, in other words, when the thought 
behind the yaj~na or offering is not one that aims at receiving some 
benefit for the performer of the yaj~na, this is the best form of 
yaj~na.  This is the secret behind the performance of yaj~na-s in 
their ultimate true sense.  When such thought is the basis for the 
offering, this is a manifestation of Brahman Himself, and so there is 
no difference between Brahman and the yaj~na or the offering, and so 
He is called the `secret of the sacrifice' or the yaj~na-guhyam'.   
This seems to be the meaning for Sri Sa'nakara's interpretation for 
the nAma ? yaj~nAnAm guhyam j~nAna-yaj~naH phalAbhisandhi-rahito vA 
yaj~naH;  tad-abheda upacArAt Brahma yaj~na-guhyam ? "The secret of 
sacrifices is `knowledge-sacrifice'.  Yaj~na may also mean any deed 
performed without desire for the fruit;  Brahman, as identified with 
such deeds, is called yaj~na-guhyam".

SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as "The most profound truth to be 
realized in all yaj~na-s".  He elaborates:  "The Self is the most 
noble truth to be sought through `offering' all the dravya (objects) 
into the `consciousness' (fire) in the `body' (kuNDa).  This kind of 
subjective yaj~na is called in the gItA as Knowledge-sacrifice 
("j~nAna-yaj~na)".  This is also called in the veda-s as Brahma 
yaj~na".    

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN reinforces the true spirit behind the 
performance of sacrifices ? It is for bhagavAn's pleasure alone, and 
not for any material benefits for the performer, that the yaj~na is 
to be undertaken, and so He is the secret behind the yaj~na-s ? tena 
yaj~nena tasyaiva mukhya uddeSyatvAt yaj~na-guhyam.  

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

(To be continued)






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