Vishnusahasranama

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knowledge and initiated the very Creator Brahmaaji into the knowledge of the

four Vedas. The creative mind of the very first Spiritual Master must have

received this experience of the Transcendental, initiated by none other than

the Supreme Itself. Later on, the Man of Realization might come to help other

seekers, and to that extent the following generations of disciples, can, no

doubt, psychologically believe that the teacher guided them to Truth. But, in

fact for all times to come, the final experience of the theme of the Vedas is

arrived at only through the final revelation, which has nothing to do with the

teacher or the text. Svetaasvatara Upanishad (6-18) says, “He who first Created

the Creator (Brahmaa) and imparted him the Vedas.” The Guru and the scripture,

devotion to God, meditation, moral conduct and the religious discipline are all

necessary, in as much as, they prepare the bosom of the seeker for the dawn of

realization. But the final

unveiling is done by the Infinite alone, and hence, Vishnu, the Self, is the

best among the Gurus. Heaviness is called by the same term (Gurutvam), and in

this sense the Lord is Indicated here as “that which is heavier than the

heaviest. (211) Dhaama -The Goal; the Sacred destination of a pilgrimage. The

Supreme is the Param-dhaama, the ‘Supreme Destination’, having reached which,

there is nothing more to reach beyond. This Absolute State of Perfection is

called the “Peak” (Dhaama). The Sanskrit term Dhaama also means “Effulgence”

(Tejas); the Pure Consciousness as the illuminator of all experiences is

considered and glorified as the Light of all Lights etc. (212) Satyah -One who

is Himself the Truth. The difference from the general connotation, we have for

the term “That which remains without a change in the past, present and future”

is called Sat yam. “Truth,

Knowledge, Infinite is Brahman”, thunder the scriptures. Brihad Upanishad

(4-1-20) says, “The Praanas are the truth, and He is the Truth of them.”

(213) Satyaparaakramah -Dynamic Truth. Passive truthfulness is the harbour of

the fools, the dark den of the cowards; although it is any day better than

suicidal un- truth and criminal dishonesty. The Lord, the Infinite is not only

Himself the Truth but He is Dynamic in insisting that “Truth shall prevail, not

untruth”. Not only gravity is a law of nature, itself ever truthful, but it

insists that none shall escape its influence or disobey sway. So too, the

Infinite Law of Harmony and Love is an Inevitable Truth persisting with

insistence in life. The Lord is therefore indicated by the term “

Satyaparaakramah”. (214) Nimishah -The condition of “the eyelids closed” is

called Nimishah; the unwinking

is called Animishah. When the eyes are open, the mind is extrovert; the

condition of mental introvertedness is expressed in an unconscious closing of

the eyes. When a man is deeply thinking, remembering, contemplating, we find

him naturally closing his eyes. In a state of intense contemplation, when the

intellect is turned away from the objects-of-experiences, the bosom experiences

the One Divine “Subject” both within and without. The Lord is described here as

“with eyes closed”, only to indicate that He is ever rooted in Himself; from Him

viewed, there exists nothing other than Himself to constitute the world-

of-objects. (215) Animishah -One who remains unwinking. Whenever we wink both

the eyelids close together and what we are seeing is at least technically veiled

from the seer in the eye. The Supreme is indicated here by the term “unwinking”,

in the sense that, the consciousness is Ever-Knowing. In

Sankara’s words, in Chandogya Bhaashya, “there is no cession of knowing in the

knower”. (216) Sragvee -A garland is called Srak and, therefore, the term

means One who is constantly wearing a garland of undecaying flowers. The famous

garland of Vishnu is called Vaijayantee. (217) Vaachaspatir-Udaaradheeh

-Vaachaspati is a term given to One who is eloquent in cham” pioning the

Supreme law of life; and Dheeh means the power of intelligence; and Udaaradheeh

one who has a “Large- hearted intelligence”, One who is not puritanical in his

view points. God is not only the Declarer of the Law but He has a large-hearted

tolerance to appreciate the weakness of the devotee’s heart, suffering under the

delusion of Maayaa, and hence, has a great sympathy for the weakness in us This

is expressed in God’s Infinite kindness towards sinners in general. The laws

of spiritual

living can be disobeyed for a long time without any tyrannical onslaught, unlike

the law of physical nature, which is blind and uncompromising. Fire knows no

mercy. But Narayana, the Great Vishnu, is kind and considerate the while He

expresses the Truth of Life eloquently at all times around us. In His

Large-heartedness, He has enough paternal kindness to overlook our trespasses.

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