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Srimate SrivanSatakopa Sri Vedanta Desika Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:



"Yours Obediently"



There are any number of stotras, extolling the Lord's praise. All bhaktas, from 
the impartial Vedapurusha to the Adikavi Valmiki to the venerated present day 
Acharyas, have considered it their sacred duty to compose peaens of praise on 
the Lord, in prosaic or verse form. These are outpourings of uncontrollable 
devotion, which makes the devotee burst into verse spontaneously, with 
absolutely no prompting from anyone. There comes a stage in devotion when the 
bhakta, unable to contain the sublime and exalting experience of bhagavat 
anubhavam, simply has to find an outlet for his overwhelming attachment, and 
waxes eloquent in prose or poetry in an effort to share his ecstatical 
experiences. 



Though there are innumerable Stotras, there is one particular stuti which is 
extremely popular, has been touted to be a panacea for all ills physical and 
spiritual, held out as a sure means for achieving all desires secular and 
religious and recited the world over by all those who believe in Emperuman, 
without denominational differences. Such is the popularity of this stotra that 
even today, when religious teaching and learning have fallen to an 
unprecedented nadir, competitions are conducted among children to encourage 
learning and propogation of this beautiful stotra. Admittedly, this stotra is 
rather long, but is all the more enjoyable for it. We are told that the Lord's 
auspicious attributes are innumerable, but if we want to find a stotra 
enumerating as many of them as humanly possible, we have only to turn to this 
giant among stotras.



The Vishnu Sahasranama Stotra is indeed a masterly compendium of the glorious 
names of the Lord, each of which stands for a particular kalyana guna. If one 
single tirunama of the Lord, viz., the Govinda nama, could save distressed 
Droupati from certain humiliation in front of the entire regal court of 
Hastinapuram, we can imagine what sincere utterance of the thousand and eight 
names of the Lord, enumerated in the Sahasranama stotra can do for us. "Kalou 
sankeertaya Kesavam" says the Scripture, laying down that what can be achieved 
by elaborate Yagyas involving huge expenditure of money, energy and 
concentration, what is possible of fruition through charity of huge proportions 
etc. in other Yugas, is possible in this Kali Yuga, through the mere chanting 
of Emperuman's exalted names. Considered in this light, there appears to be 
hardly a parallel to the Vishnu Sahasranama stotra in any parameter. This 
stotra has the added merit of being a part of the elaborate Epic Sri 
Mahabharata, placing it on par with the other great guidebook of human conduct, 
the Bhagavat Gita.



Often the beauty and popularity of a particular work is judged by the number of 
commentaries it is able to attract, which is evidence of the undying patronage 
the work is able to garner, even after the passing away of its author. The 
large number of commentaries on the Bhagavat Gita and the Brahma Sutras is a 
case in point. Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotra too can boast of numerous 
elaborations, the principal ones being the ones by Sri Sankaracharya and Sri 
Parasara Bhattar.

Of these, the latter incorporates interesting, enlightening and spiritually 
moving purports for each of the thousand namas, providing a great and glorious 
mirror which attempts to capture the various facets of the Lord's auspicious 
attributes.

It is no wonder that it is aptly named "Bhagavat Guna Darpanam"(A mirror of 
Emperuman's exalted virtues). A perusal of this commentary would afford us not 
only the true meaning of each of the Lord's names under discussion, but also 
the distilled essence of the Visishtadvaita Sampradaya, the outpourings of 
Azhwars and of their commentators and the quintessence of the Lord's message in 
the Srimad Ramayana and Srimad Bhagavat Gita. So vast is the ambit of Sri 
Bhattar's coverage in his commentary that we wonder whether it is humanly 
possible for anyone to assemble such an array of concepts, quotes and comments 
in a single place. Sri Bhattar's matchless brilliance and devotion are on 
evidence in every single syllable of his magnum opus. While the other 
commentaries on the Sahasranama (a reference to Sahasranama automatically means 
Sri Vishnu Sahasranama, although there are any number of such compilations on 
other deities too) are no doubt precious and valuable, Sri Bhattar's is 
indubitably a glittering gem, unmatched in splendour and lustre. It serves as 
an invaluable enhancement to the Stotra, making it a pleasure of rare 
proportions to peruse.



Though Sri Bhattar's commentary stands head and shoulders above others' in 
respect of each and every nama of the Sahasranama Stotra, it would be 
interesting to take up a sample of one name and enjoy the inimitable insights 
Sri Bhattar provides.



"VijitAtmA vidhEyAtmA satkeerti: cchinna samsaya:

udeerNa: sarvata: chakshu: aneesa: sAsvata: stthira:"



Our research is confined to the second tirunama in the aforesaid couplet, viz., 
"VidhEyAtmA".



Commentators other than Sri Bhattar have construed a negative vowel "A" ahead 
of VidhEyAtmA and taken it to read "avidhEyAtmA", meaning someone who cannot be 
dictated to by anybody, who is not bound to listen to anyone, one beyond any 
sort of fetter or binding on his actions. This is indeed a beautiful tirunamam 
and portrays eloquently the irrepressible nature of the Lord, who is the 
Supreme Entity, with none to account to and none to tell Him what to do and 
when. It is He who tells everyone, through Shastras, how they ought to conduct 
themselves ("agal gyAlattavar ariya neriyellAm edutthu uraittha nirai gnAnatthu 
oru moortthi"). He is not bound by any rules, for He HImself is the maker of 
the rules. He is verily the uncontrollable wild elephant ("madha hastinam"), in 
whose path none can stand with impunity. None can question His actions, for He 
is the "nirankusa svatantran". This appears therefore to be an apt purport of 
the word "avidhEyAtmA".



The unique thought processes of Sri Bhattar and the influence of Aruliccheyal 
make him put forward an entirely different, in fact diametrically opposite, 
definition of the tirunamam. And it also speaks of his fearless attitude, his 
moral courage in voicing an opinion that is contrary to established and 
long-standing tenets. And his pedigree, (being the son of the venerated 
Koorattazhwan, having received tutelage from none other than the great 
Bhashyakara and his disciple Sri EmbAr and having been the adopted son of Sri 
Ranganatha Himself) shines through in his interpretation of the word 
"VidhEyAtmA". Unlike others, Sri Bhattar takes the tirunamam as it is, without 
adding or subtracting to it to suit his convenience and arrives at exactly the 
opposite purport to that advanced by other distinguished commentators.



Sri Bhattar takes "VidhEyAtmA" to mean one who is bound by the dictates of 
others, making the Lord a humble soul indeed. We are astonished at this strange 
definition-the Lord, and obeying others! How can that be, we ask, for it is 
indeed contrary to His status as the Supreme Being and militates against the 
very notion of a Celestial Emperor, the Lord of all He surveys. If the Lord 
Himself is to be subordinated to somebody else's will, then whom indeed can we 
consider independent?

Though He is the Supreme Being, beyond anybody's command or instruction, the 
Lord, by His sweet nature, makes Himself subject to the will of others who love 
Him beyond measure. We must understand that He does this out of His own sweet 
will and not out of any necessity for the same, marking an important difference 
with others who have to be obedient out of the compulsions of an avocation or 
otherwise.



There are three classes of people to whose tunes the Lord dances, whatever be 
His own opinion in the matter. 



Sri Koorattazhwan says that the Lord is indeed a subordinate soul, a 
"VidhEyAtmA", awaiting the approval of His Divine Consort for each and every 
action of His, whether it be Creation, Protection or Destruction. He fashions 
His functions upon the likes and dislikes of His beloved PatnI, (expressed not 
even explicitly but through the expression in Her eyes or a movement of Her 
brows) carefully eschewing what is not to Her taste.

"YasyA: veekshya mukham tat ingita parAdheena: vidhattE akhilam" says Sri 
Azhwan in his Sristavam, laying down that the Lord always looks to Sri's 
tirumukham for a signal of approval for all His actions. He is thus a "PatnI 
parAdhIna:"



One more class of people who are able to make the omnipotent Lord dance to 
their tunes is the arcchakAs, those in charge of His worship at various 
temples. The Lord is so compliant where this group of people is concerned, that 
He gets up when they give Him a wake-up call, bathes when He is told to, wears 
whatever the arcchaka offers Him for the day, be it a priceless and glittering 
PIthAmbaram or a mere loin cloth, meekly subjects Himself to such adornments 
and alankAram as the bhattar deems fit, dons only those ornaments offered by 
the arcchaka, consumes obediently the day's diet, whether it be a sumptuous 
feast with the nine tastes or mere cooked rice without any seasoning and goes 
to sleep compliantly when the arcchaka shuts the doors to the Sannidhi. This is 
why He is said to be an "archaka parAdhIna:".



The third class of persons whom the Lord feels Himself bound to obey are His 
unflinching devotees, who are able to make Him dance to their tunes. When His 
bhaktas call upon Him to do something, He obliges with alacrity and willing 
compliance. The following sloka highlights this trait-



"iha gaccha, iha tishtta, idam bhunkshva, iti pranatai: sadA

yOgyam vidhAtum yat roopam VidhEyAtmA sa keertita:"



"Come here, don't stir out of this place, eat this" etc. are some of the 
commands He receives from His beloved and caring devotees, with which he 
complies implicitly. As Sri Krishna, He allowed Himself to be tied to the 
grindstone by His mother, apparently tearful with fear and self-pity. He waited 
hand and foot upon His Acharya Santipini, to set an example of a disciple's 
conduct towards his guru. He obeyed the dictates of Arjuna implicitly as a 
compliant charioteer, druing the Kurukshetra war. He and His brother stood 
obediently before Viswamitra during the Ramavatara, with all humility, willing 
to carry out the errands of the Maharshi ("kinkarou samupastthitou"). He ate 
with as much relish the humble fare of jungle fruits offered by Sri Sabhari, as 
He accepted the rich feast from Bharadvaja Mahrshi. And His obedience to His 
parents was indeed legendary, unheard of before or after.



When Sri Vidura, in his boundless bliss at the Lord calling on his (Vidura's) 
humble residence, paying scant attention to what he was doing, offered a bunch 
of banana skins to the Lord, throwing away the fruits, Sri Krishna accepted the 
skins and ate them contentedly. To prove the words of a mere infant, He 
manifested Himself from a stone pillar in the form a magnificent man-lion, 
unseen or unheard of before. To oblige Indra, another devotee, the Lord begged, 
(an occupation He had never had to resort to earlier) from Mahabali. In answer 
to the prayer of deities affected by Ravana, He endured an unprecedented and 
painful separation from His Consort, who had never forsaken Him for even a 
second ("agalakillEn irayum endru alarmEl mangai urai mArba!"). It is all these 
and other innumerable instances of His subjecting Himself to the dicatates of 
His devotees, that have earned Him the sobriquet, "Bhakta parAdhIna:"



When the Lord is subject to the whims and fancies of all these people, can we 
really call Him the Undisputed Master ("Nirankusa Iswara:" as Sri Nadadur Ammal 
puts it) and attribute to Him the ultimate in independence? We can, for it is 
out of His infinite Soulabhyam, overwhelming Mercy and boundless love and 
affection for us and others that He makes Himself amenable to the dictates of 
devotees. Simply because the elephant obeys its mahout, it doesn't lose any of 
its greatness-it remains as powerful, strong and independent as ever and 
submits to the mahout's directions only out of a love for him. While on others 
the character of subjection may sit as a stigma, it adds to the greatness of 
the Lord and makes Him the more venerable for that. He is thus greater as a 
"VidhEyAtmA" than as a "avidhEyAtmA"



Srimate Sri LakshmINrsimha divya paduka sevaka SrivanSatakopa Sri Narayana 
Yatindra Mahadesikaya nama:

Dasan, sadagopan







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]





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