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PROLOGUE
The Lord willed that the AzhwArs should bring out the messages of what others would
consider as mantras and do chanting (japa) or offerings in fire (hOma). Even the word
nArAyaNa is interpreted by the AzhwArs. For instance, "nArAyaNan ennai ALi,
narahatthucchErAmal kAkkum thirumAl" (nAnmuhan thiruvandhAdhi verse 14)
interprets the word as possessor of the soul(s) and as remover of the obstacles in reaching
Him. "nAraNan muzhu Ezhulahukkum nAthan.. kAraNam kiriSai karumam ivai"
(thiruvAimozhi 2.7.2) interprets the word as 'narANAm ayanam' - the controller, supporter
and conductor of the material and spiritual world.
Sloka:
Meaning:
May Sri ParASara bhattar, son of SrIvatsAnka or KooratthAzhwAn, for whom the prime
concern is the well-being of Lord RanganAtha, be for my great wealth ((of the knowledge
that the Lord is my means and goal).
Introduction:
In the ashtaSlOkI, Sri Bhattar gives us the significance of the three important mantras of
Sri VaishNavism, viz. The Thiru-Mantram or ashtAksharI, the Dwaya-mantram and the
Charama SlOka. This work consists of eight verses.
In the first four SlOkas, Sri Bhattar elaborates the meaning of the Thiru-Mantram or
ashtAksharI, the mantra consisting of eight letters "aum namO nArAyaNAya" comprising
the three words aum, nama: and nArAyaNa.
In the fifth and sixth SlOkas, Sri Bhattar teaches the meaning of the dvaya-mantra, the
mantra consisting of two parts viz. "SrImannArAyaNa CharaNau SaraNam PrapadyE" and
"SrImatE nArAyaNAya nama:"
In the seventh and eighth SlOkas, Sri Bhattar dwells on the message given by Lord
Krishna in the Charama SlOka, the 66th verse in the 18th chapter of SrImad Bhagavad-
Gita.
SLOKA - 1
Meaning:
The word "aum", considered to be the essence of the three Vedas and consisting of the
three letters "a", "u" and "ma", visualizes the following concept:
Letter "a" stands for Lord Vishnu as the creator, protector and destroyer of the universe.
Letter "ma" stands for the soul as a belonging of Lord Vishnu and as His instrument.
Letter "u" establishes a relationship between the soul and the Lord that the soul belongs
only to the Lord.
Purport:
In this SlOka, Sri Bhattar tells us what the word "aum" signifies.
The letter "a" stands for the Lord Vishnu, the in-dweller of all, as the creator, protector and
destroyer of the universe, as the Lord Himself says "askharANAm akArOsmi" in gItA
(10.33), which means He is the letter "a" among all letters. The letter 'a' symbolizes the
Lord for it is considered to be the origin of all letters as the Vedas say "akArO vai sarvA
vAk" which means the letter "a" itself is all speech. Protection here means ishta-prApti
and anishta-nivrtti. This means making things desirable for the jeeva available (so that he
can realize the Lord) and removing those which are not required (obstructions in attaining
the Lord).
The letter "ma" stands for the soul, as the belonging of Lord Vishnu and as a tool in His
hands at His disposal for His activities (lIlAs). Here, by using words "tat" and "idam"
which belong to neuter gender, Sri Bhattar indicates that the soul is like a non-sentient
object in the hands of the Lord and hence is completely dependent on Him.
The letter "u" establishes a relationship between the soul and the Lord that the soul is
meant as a tool only for the Lord and belongs to Him exclusively.
The word "aum", consisting of three letters "a", "u" and "ma", considered as the essence of
the three Vedas, visualizes the above concept.
Scriptures say "aumityEkAksharam" which means "aum" consists of only one letter. This
is in its "samhitAkAram" or undivided form. In its "asamhitAkAram" or divided form,
"aum" consists of the three letters "a", "u" and "ma".
Begin | Sloka-1 | Sloka-2 | Sloka-3 | Sloka-4 | Sloka-5 | Sloka-6 | Sloka-7 | Sloka-8
SLOKA - 2
Meaning:
The middle word "nama:" in the great mantra "aum nama: nArAyaNAya" teaches the
jeeva his nature, when read along with the first word "aum". When read in its own place, it
teaches the means of liberation for the soul. When read along with the last word
"nArAyaNAya", it teaches the destination of the soul. It is well-thought and conveyed
through this word that independence, protection of the jeeva and engaging in the service
of the Lord are suitable only for the Lord Hari and not for the soul. Therefore the jeeva
does not belong to himself.
Purport:
In this verse, Sri Bhattar teaches the meaning of the word "nama:", the middle word in the
ashtAksharI mahAmantra.
The word nama: stands for "na mama" or not mine. This conveys us what the nature of the
soul is, the means of liberation for the soul and its destination.
When read along with the first word of the mantra "aum", nama: indicates the nature of
soul. Here nama: means I (the soul) am not mine. From the meaning of the word "aum"
we understand that I (the soul) am a belonging of the Lord. Thus the word nama:, conveys
the subservience or SEshatva of the soul to the Lord.
The word nama: when read in its own position (sthAnata:), indicates that the soul has no
means of its own for its liberation. Here, since I (the soul) am not mine but a belonging of
somebody else (the Lord), I cannot make my own efforts to reach my Lord. It is for Him
to take me.
The word nama: when read along with the word nArAyaNa which follows it
(paSchAdapi), conveys that the ultimate destination of the soul is Lord nArAyaNa on His
own. Here nama: means that the destination is not mine (the soul's), and the Lord is my
destination not because of my thinking but on His own status as nArAyaNa. The meaning
of the word nArAyaNa is explained in the next verse. Here, it is worth noting Sri
nammazhwAr's statement in ThiruvAimozhi (10.9.9) - "vaikundham puhuvadhu
maNNavar vidhiyE", which means the habitants of the earth are destined to go to
paramapada by God's sankalpa which is "vidhi" or destiny.
From the above explanation, it is to be understood that the word nama: conveys that
independence, protection of self and service to the Lord, are known to be fit only for Lord
Hari and nobody else. This means the soul is completely dependent on Him and He alone
protects the soul and He alone engages the soul in His service natural to the soul. This is
thought well and conveyed through the word nama:. Therefore, the jeeva does not belong
to himself but only to Sri Hari.
SLOKA - 3
Meaning:
I am meant for Lord Vishnu alone denoted by the letter "a" and not for me. The word
nArAyaNa stands for the Lord as the supporter and conductor of the jeevas in material and
spiritual worlds (lIlA vibhUti and nitya vibhUti). May service to Him, natural to me and
ordained on me, happen at all times, all places and in all states.
Purport:
In the third word of the Thiru-mantra "nArAyaNAya", the word nArAyaNa stands for the
Lord Whose business is to support and conduct the activities of all the jeevas in the
material and spiritual worlds. The suffix "Aya" means I (the soul) am only for the Lord
nArAyaNa, previously indicated by the letter "a" in the word "aum" and hence I am not
for myself. This is indicated by Sri nammAzhwAr in ThiruvAimozhi 2.9.4 as he says
"tanakkEyAha eneikkoLLum IdhE".
The suffix "Aya" also involves a prayer to the Lord wishing the service to Him natural to
me (the soul) and ordained on me, to happen at all times, all places and in all states. Here
natural service means the service which does not involve the ego that I am doing it and it
is mine. In "ozhivil kAlamellAm" verse of ThiruvAimozhi (3.3.1), Sri nammAzhwAr
wishes the same service (vazhuvilA adimai). Sri Thirumangai AzhwAr interprets this as a
wish for being serviceable to His devotees or bhAgavata SEshatva as he says
"Thiruvettezhuttrum katru utralum unnadiyArkadimai" in Periya Thirumozhi (8.10.3).
Service to His devotees e.g. Sri RAmAnuja's dAsas is also wished in "nallAr paravum"
verse of irAmAnuSa nUtrandhAdhi (verse 80).
SLOKA - 4
A person who considers the Lord to be his means and goal has to know well the following
things:
• The third letter of "aum", "ma" if he considers the body and soul to be one.
• The first letter of "aum", "a", if he is blind with the thought that he is independent.
• The second letter of "aum", "u", if he considers himself to be subservient to
entities other than Lord nArAyaNa.
• The word nama: if he is for protecting himself from worldly bondages 3.
• The word nArAyaNa if he is very much attached to his worldly relatives.
• The suffix "Aya" if he has a lust for material enjoyments.
Purport:
In this verse, Sri Bhattar explains the message conveyed by Thiru-mantra and how it
protects jeevas from various material entanglements and guides them in the proper path by
pointing out attitudes going against the message.
A prapanna, or the person blessed with the knowledge that the supreme Lord is the means
and goal for him has to know the following things well:
If one considers his body and soul to be one and hence whatever good happens to the body
is good for the soul, the letter "ma" in the word "aum" comes to his rescue as it says that
the soul is not his, but only of Lord Vishnu. So it is for the Lord to do any good to the
soul.
If one is blind with the thought that he is independent from the Lord, he has to look at the
letter "a" in aumkAra and learn that he is not independent since it is the Lord who creates,
protects and destroys the universe.
If one thinks of subservience to entities other than SrImannArayaNa, letter "u" tells him
that he is exclusively meant for Lord Vishnu. This is indicated by Sri Thirumanagai
AzhwAr in Periya Thriumozhi (8.10.3) as he says "matrum Or thaivam uLadhennu
iruppArOdu utrilEn..".
If one has got a lot of attachment with people related to him in this world, the word
nArAyaNa which stands for the supporter and conductor of all jeevas tells him that it is
the Lord who is the Atmabandhu or true relative of the soul. This is indicated in the verse
"koNda peNdir" of nammAzhwAr in ThiruvAimozhi (9.1.1).
If somebody has a lust for material enjoyments, the suffix "Aya" destroys such lust as it
conveys to him that he is meant for Lord nArAyaNa only. This is indicated by Sri
Thirumangai AzhwAr as he says "kUdinEn kUdi ilayavardhammOdu.. nArAyaNa ennum
nAmam" in Periya Thirumozhi (1.1.1)
SLOKA - 5
Meaning:
The dwaya mantra, consisting of two parts and six words, which is there in Vedas, protects
the person who thinks of the following ten points contained in it:
Purport:
In this verse, Sri Bhattar tells us what the dwaya mantra, which consists of two parts and
six words, and which is there in Vedas, signifies.
The first part of the mantra is "SrImannArAyaNa charaNau SaraNam prapadyE" and the
second part is "SrImatE nArAyaNaya nama:".
SrImannArAyaNacharaNau
SaraNam
prapadyE
SrImatE
nArAyaNAya
nama:
1. nEtrtvam:
The word SrI stands for Goddess lakshmI, the personification of His compassion and
concern for the jeevas, as the one who leads us to the Lord. This is because She is
approached by the jeeva for his liberation (SrIyatE iti SrI:) and She in turn represents the
case of the jeeva to the Lord. Note that this description is apt when 'SrI' is just the Lord's
krpA.
2. nityayOgam:
The suffix "mat" to the word SrI means Goddess lakshmI is always in union with the Lord
as the Lord is always merciful. This is indicated by Sri nammAzhwAr in the verse
"ahalahillEn..." in ThiruvAimozhi (6.10.10).
From the word nArAyaNa the qualities of the Lord said to be well-suited to Him are
conveyed. This is because He has to have certain qualities to be nArAyanNa i.e., He has to
have qualities like vAtsalya, sauSIlya etc. for supporting the jeevas and qualities like
gnAna, bala etc. for controlling them.
4. tanukhyApanam:
From the word charaNau the dwaya-mantra shows us the most important part of His
divine form i.e. His feet. Conceptually, feet are important as one cannot move if we catch
hold of one's feet (kAl katti kai viduvitthukkoNda - ThiruvAimozhi nUtrandhAdhi verse
97).
5.upAyam:
By the word SaraNam, the mantra conveys to us that His feet are the means for us to reach
Him.
6. kartavyabhAgam:
From the word prapadyE, we learn it our nature to accept His feet as our means of
liberation.
8. svAmitvam:
The word nArAyaNa forming part of "nArAyaNAya" stands for the Lordship of God
Vishnu over the universe, as He is its supporter and conductor.
9. prArthanAm:
The suffix Aya in the word nArAyaNAya involves a prayer to the Lord from our part,
wishing a service without any defect to Him, as conveyed in Thiru-mantra. This is
indicated by Sri nammAzhwAr as he says "vazhuvilA adimai SeyyavENdum" in his
"ozhivil kAlamellAm" verse in ThiruvAimozhi (3.3.1). In the second part, the word
SrImatE is used as the Lord has to be merciful i.e., with lakshmI for fulfilling our wish of
service to Him.
The word nama: which means "not mine" destroys our ego, particularly the thought that I
am the enjoyer of the service and the service I am doing to Him is an object of enjoyment
for me. Such thought is considered to be the most powerful enemy (prabalatara virOdhi)
to our nature.
Whoever understands and thinks of the above ten points conveyed by dwaya, which is a
mantra i.e., which protects the person who thinks over, understands and practises it
(without any action!), is protected.
1. alarmEl mangai uraimArbA: krpA which is nothing but SrI lives in His
heart(chest) and leads us to Him.
2. ahalahillEn irayum: SrI is not ready to leave Him even if He would intend to do so.
3. niharil puhazhAi: of all His qualities it is His vAtsalyam which has none to excel.
4. unnadikkIzh: His feet are the important limbs of His divine form for the soul.
5. puhalonrillA...adi: His feet are the only means.
6. amarndhu puhundhEnE: placing oneself mentally incessantly under His feet is the
soul's nature.
7. alarmEl mangai uraimArbA...unnadikkIzh: the Lord is the upEya more because He
is enjoined with SrI, i.e. krpA.
8. ulaham mUnrudayAi ennai ALvAnE niharil amarar munikkanangal virumbum: He
is the Lord of sentient and non-sentient objects of the cosmos.
9. adikkIzh: the case and the word "kIzh" indicates a wish for paNi(or kainkarya) to
the Lord( as also to His devotees) on His ordinance.
10. thiruvEngadatthAnE: the word vEmkadam in Tamil means the annihilation of
difficulties and as interpreted by nammAzhWAr in his verse "inrippOha"
(thiruvAimozhi 9.3.8) as removing iruvinai viz. puNya-pApa - a creation of
ahankAra and mamakAra.
SLOKA - 6
Meaning:
I take shelter in SrI, the beloved consort of the great Lord of the universe, Who is always
in union with Him. Then I take shelter in the lotus feet of Lord Hari, Who has all suitable
qualities to offer shelter, with the thought that they are my desired means of salvation.
Then I urge my Lord Who is always with SrI, to enable me to do service to Him
incessantly, uninterruptedly and eternally, without any ego and possessiveness.
Purport:
In this verse Sri Bhattar explains the message of dwaya mantra in the form of a statement
by jeeva, as follows:
I take shelter in Goddess SrI, the beloved consort of the great master of the universe, Who
is always with Him without any separation. Here Sri Bhattar uses the word ISAnAm
which means She is the empress or the ruler of the world. However, by using the word
jagatAm adhISa dayitAm he clarifies that She is the beloved spouse of the great master of
the universe. Since dayitA means one who is qualified for dayA or concern and since Sri
Bhattar says that She is the dayitA of Lord nArAyaNa, it is established that She belongs to
the class of jeevas as She is subservient to Him.
Also Godess SrI is always blemishless (nityAnapAyA) as She never leaves Him.
"ahalahillEn iraiyumenru..." says Sri nammAZhwAr in ThiruvAimozhi (6.10.10). The
Lord is kind as She is always with Him.
Having taken shelter in goddess lakshmI, I take shelter in the lotus feet of Lord Hari, Who
has all suitable qualities for offering shelter to everyone, with the thought that His lotus
feet are the desirable means for me to attain Him. Here the word ishta or desired is used
for the means since it involves no effort and hence is very easy. The word Hari used here
is important as it means the one (the Lord) who destroys all our sins or obstacles to reach
Him.
SLOKA - 7
Meaning:
Renounce all the paths told by Me to attain Me. Take Me alone in turn as the means for
attaining Me, and be effortless with great interest in the thought that I am your means. To
you with such an effort, I, being complete and perfect in all qualities like gnAna, will
remove all obstacles in My getting you. Do not grieve.
Purport:
In this SlOka SrI Bhattar explains the message of charama SlOka (Bhagavad-Gita 18.66),
by framing it in the Lord's own words.
The Lord says:
Renounce all the paths like karma, gnAna, bhakti, previously told by Me to attain Me.
Take Me alone in turn as the means for attaining Me and be effortless with deep interest in
the very thought that I am the only means for you to attain Me. This explains the message
conveyed by Lord in the statement "sarva dharmAn parityajya mAmEkam SaraNam
vraja".
To you with such an effort on your side (not making any), I, complete in all qualities like
gnAna etc. will make remove all obstacles in My getting you. Do not worry. This explains
the Lord's statement "aham tvA sarva pApEbhyO mOkshayishyAmi mA Sucha:"
Here Sri Bhattar specifically mentions the quality of Lord, gnAna or knowledge, to
indicate that the Lord is capable of knowing any effort on our side, if at all we are making
one. Also, by saying that He is complete in all qualities Sri Bhattar conveys that the Lord
will liberate the soul on His own without any effort on the part of the latter, due to His
qualities like vAtsalya, sauSeelya etc.
From this, we understand that the God does not expect any effort from the jeeva and does
not want him to grieve for his inability to reach Him (by jeeva's effort).
SLOKA - 8
Meaning:
Oh Hari, the charioteer of arjuna ! Being convinced that I am always under Your control, I
am not able to make any effort in the form of karma etc. to reach you, or to submit myself
to You. I am worried that I am not even able to leave all my effort as suggested by You
and have lost confidence. However, since I am blessed with the knowledge of Your
charama SlOka, I am firm that you will make all my faults completely absent.
Purport:
In this SlOka, Sri Bhattar assures us that the Lord is ready to remove all our defects and
take us to Him. This verse is in the form of a statement by the jeeva.
However, since I am blessed with the knowledge of Your charama SlOka which says
"aham tvA sarva pApEbhyO mOkshayishyAmi mA Sucha:", I remain firm that You will
make all my faults completely absent, including the offence involving the ego that I have
renounced all my efforts, and take me to You.
EPILOGUE
Other schools of philosophy (e.g. advaita, dvaita) do not consider the SlOka "sarva
dharmAn.. mA Sucha:" as an important statement of the Lord in Bhagavad-Gita. The
AzhwArs point out its importance in the following verses for instance:
The AchAryas later to rAmAnuja, starting from Sri ParASara bhattar, called this SlOka
charama SlOka or the final message and interpreted it according to nammAzhavAr 5 to
mean the message that the Lord is upAyam and upEyam 6, 7 interpreting "AlanriyAvarO' in
the thiruvAimozhi verse (7.5.10) as equivalent to 'SaraNam vraja' of the SlOka indicating
it as a state of mind and no action.
REFERENCES