iseeking

> Rohit Iyer <iyer_rohit
> Has anyone seen Lord Narayana?

> Dear friends I am becoming more and more devoted to
> Lord Narayana.
 
You are indeed very fortunate. My salutations to you.

> I want to know if anyone has seen the
> supreme lord?
 
I am sure your delightful question will elicit a large number of
equally delightful answers from the learned and scholarly members of
this group. adiyen would like to share what little I know with my
very limited knowledge.
 
Yes, countless trillions of nitya and muktha jivatmas have seen and
are seeing Bhagavan Narayana perpetually. The Veda says 'tad vishnoh
paramam padam sadaa pashyanthi surayah' - the Seers always see the
Supreme Pada of Vishnu. Given here is a very partial list of the
fortunate ones who have seen the Lord. The list is somewhat
chronologically ordered:
 
1) Lord Brahma
2) Lord Siva
3) The Sanakadhi Rishis, namely, Sanaka, Sanandana, Sanatana and
Sanatkumara
4) The 12 Rishi sons of Brahma, namely, Vasishta, Atri, Angiras,
Pulastya, Pulaha etc.
5) The Prajapathis such as Kasyapa, Kardama, Daksha etc.
6) Swayambhuva Manu and Satarupa, the first human beings in this
Kalpa.
7) The Bhakti-oriented Maharishis such as Narada, Sandilya etc.
8) The Bhagavathothamas such as Prahlada, Dhruva etc.
9) The Asuras such as Hiranyakasipu, Hiranyaksha, etc.
10) The fortunate ones who lived with the Avatharas such as
Vasudeva, Devaki, Dasaratha, Kousalya, Nanda, Yashoda, etc.
11) The bhaktas who served the Avatharas such as Guha, Sugriva,
Vibeeshana, Hanuman, Arjuna, Uddhava, Daruka, Kuchela, Akrura,
Vidura, Bhishma etc.
12) Parasara, Vyasa's father, who gave us the Puranarathna -
Vishnupurana
13) Vyasa who gave us the Vedas, the Brahma Sutra, the Satvika
Puranas such as Bhagavatha Purana, the Mahabharatha with the 2 gems,
the Bhagavad Gita and the Vishnu Sahasranama
14) Vyasa's son, Sukabrahma, who narrated the Bhagavatha Purana
15) The 12 Alvars such as Nammalvar, Periyalvar, Andal etc. who
constitute our very breath
16) The great Acharyas of our sampradaya such as Sri Natha Muni, Sri
Yamuna Muni, Sri Kanchipurna, Sri Ramanuja, Sri Kuresha, Sri Vedanta
Desika, Sri Manavala Mamuni etc.
17) The Acharyas and Vishnu-bhaktas of other sampradayas said to
have directly seen the Lord such as
Sri Sankara, Sri Padmapadha etc. (Advaita)
Sri Madhva, Sri Vyasaraya, Sri Raghavendra etc. (Dvaita)
Sri Nimbarka etc. (Dvaitadvaita)
Sri Vishnuswami, Sri Vallabha etc. (Suddhadvaita)
Sri Chaitanya etc. (Achintya Bheda-bheda)
18) The Vittaladasas such as Thukaram, Namadeva, Ghora Khumba, Choka
Mela, Janabai, Chakkubai etc. who served Rukmini and Krishna at
Pandaripuram.
19) The Ramadasas such as Bhadrachala Ramadas, Samartha Ramadas and
the recent Thyagaraja Swami.
20) And countless billions of other unsung souls.

> I would like to know what this
> experience is like.
 
Enlightened sages such as Sri Ramanuja spend their whole lifetimes
teaching us, ignorant ones, what this experience is like. Like
children who prattle their parents' speech, adiyen can only prattle
the sacred utterances of those Narayana-Lovers as the answer to your
question - 'Unsurpassable Bliss', 'Supreme Endless Love', 'Soul-
melting', 'Unsatiating Nectar', 'The Peace that passeth
understanding', 'Unending Happiness', 'The Supreme State of
Vishnu', 'The True Nature' etc. adiyen begs the pardon of vaishnavas
for trying to describe this state, being wholly unqualified to even
talk of this Blessed State.

> Also I have heard that as one progresses on the
> spiritual path one can have visions of the other
> Lokas, Devas etc. Has anyone had this vision?
 
Several of the abovesaid mahatmas have had such visions. But they
mention that on seeing Sriman Narayana, there is nothing else in the
totality of existence that is worth seeing. Besides on seeing
Narayana, the totality of existence is seen since Narayana is the
Self of the totality of existence.

> If anyone has had this experience please let me know
> what it was like.
 
adiyen would humbly beg you to approach an Acharyan who would kindly
lead you to that Consummate Experience.

> Thanks,
> rohit
 
dasan,
P.Srinivasan

SrI:
SrImathE rAmAnujAya namah:
This refers to the question on ThirumaN SrichoorNam for women for
which there is a reply that women can also wear them on their
foreheads. I would like to supplement what was told by Srimad
Pondareekapuram Andavan SwamigaL. He said that it is imerative for
the Sri VaishNava women too to wear the 12 ThirumaN on their bodies
(which I remembered to have seen in my Grandmother's body, as she
used to wear 12 thirumaN everyday).
 
This only goes to prove that the better half is in no way inferior
(in fact BETTER only due to their getting half of their husband's
puNyam automatically).
 
(in lighter vein: I read in Reader's Digest once: Do not complain
your wife. Had she been better, she would have got a better husband)
 
There was a query on Signififcance of Naamam (ThirumaN kappu) on
forheads: ThirumaN kappu- is called "Urdhva puNdram-Urdhva -
vertical; puNdram- mark..It has been widely discussed and can be
found in archives.
 
Swamy Desikan explains the saasthra pramANam of the same in crystal
clear terms in His Saccharitharaksha, which is divided into three
parts with the titles:
 
SudharsanapaanchajanyadhAranavidhi
UrdhvapuNdra dhAraNa vidhi
BhagavannivEdhithOpAyOga vidhi
 
Swamy Desikan starts the Sacharitharaksha which establishes the
absolute and prime need of Pancha samskaram:
 
(meaning of 1st sloka): Let us carry the people on our head who bear
the mark of Sudharsana and Paanchajanya; who wear the UrdhvapuNdra
(ThirumaN kaappu) on forheads; who consume only the food offered to
the Lord and by virtue of the above who are saluted even by
NithyasUris.
 
All of us have these doubts as to where the saasthRAs says that one
should wear Thiruman kappu. Swamy Desikan has beautifully explained
it in this work.
 
Vedic authority of Urdhva puNdram dhAraNam is:
 
GruthOdhvapuNdra: paramESithAram nArAyaNam saankhya yOgAdhi gagyam |
jnAthvA vimuchyEtha nara: samasthai: samsaara paaSairiha chaiva
vishNu: ||
 
MahOpanishad statement above sys: One who wears Urdhva puNdra and
meditates on Lord Sriman Narayanan and realizes Him through his mind
gets liberated from the bondage of samsaara.
 
In Paancharaathra samhitha it is said:
 
yagnO dhAnam thapou hOma: bhOjanam pithru tharpaNam
sarvE bhavanthi viphalaa: Urdhva puNdram vinAkruthA:
 
Yaga, charity, penance, daily sacrifice, taking food, offering of
water to manes (argyam?) etc., is all null and void if one does
without wearing Urdhva pUndram. Libations means pouring of water in
honour of God. Manes means spirit of the dead (deceased Father,
Mother. Grand father, Grand mother, Great grand father, Great grand
mother et al).
 
pithru tharpaNam means offering water with sesame seeds to those
twelve Pithru dEvathAs. Hence, wearing Urdhva pUndram is essential.
The shape of Urdhva pUndra should be in the shape of HaripAdakruthi
(in the shape of the Lotus Feet of Sriman Narayanan). In Varaaha
pUrAna Lord says:
 
yEkAnthina: mahAbhAgA: math swarUpa vidha: amalA:
sAntharAlAn prakurvIran puNdrAn *mama padhaa kruthin*
 
As per Brahmaanandha purAna, in the middle of every Urdhva puNdra,
which is wide and good looking, Lord Sriman Narayanan stays with His
Consort Goddess Mahalakshmi. The symbol of Mahalakshmi is Sri
choorNam which may be either in red or yellow colour.
 
Thus, Swamy Desikan in the three chapters, establishes by his
beautiful and inimitable style and power of arguments based strictly
on scriptures, the three important customs and rituals of
Srivaishnavas which are Pancha samskaram, UrdhvapuNdradhAraNam and
partaking of the food offered to the Lord Sriman Narayanan in archa
form.
 
(The above article is based on write up of Sri U Ve Anantha
Naarasihmachariar Swamin of Srirangam)
 
In this connection, a fervent appeal is made to every Srivaishnava to
strictly adhere to the above customs and eschew any contact or
worship of any deities other than Lord VishNu. More important: DO
NOT WIPE OFF when you step out of the house.The sikhs do not remove
their turbans; the arabs not their head ring.. But why should we?
That is as bad as not wearing it, if not worse.
 
Regards
Namo Narayana
dAsan