VISHNU SAHASRANAAMAM
(The Thousand Glories of Maha Vishnu)

The finite alone can readily be comprehended, by the sense-organs, the mind and the intellect of man, at his present “state” of consciousness. The attempt of the spiritual student is to transcend his present instruments of perception and awake to the Higher in Him, from where he can experience the one “objectless-Awareness”. This great reality behind the universe, though intimately experienced by the great Rishis, they were helpless in directly defining, explaining or demonstrating it to their students. All such indications, pointing out the infinite, through the world of manifested finite objects are his glory only. Each one of them is a “Glory” of the lord, which id considered in religious as a “scared name” of the Lord.

In short, these “Thousand Names of Vishnu” provide us with thousand clear arrows- marks rising from the known, indicating the unknown. Contemplation upon these can deepen our faith in, broaden our devotion to and steel our understanding of All-pervading Reality (Vishnu).

The infinite is approached by the devotees (Bhaktas) through love (Bhakti) and by philosophers (Aachaaryas) through contemplation (Vichaara). The differences in their techniques of approach, are the essential differences ordered by the types of vehicle employed by them. The devotees approach the Temple of their love through the heart, while the philosophers storm the citadel of truth with reason and logic; they explore the Reality with the head. Whatever be the means employed, and the instruments pressed into service, till they reach the last lap of their pilgrimage, all seekers need, in one form or other, props (Aasraya) to maintain a continuous and efficient ply of their instruments of saadhana. The sahasranaama gives to them both, a thousand props: each phrase here as its appeal to the devotee, and each one of them has also a suggestion to rocket the contemplative intellect to sublime heights of understanding.

Since the devotees have different forms to contemplate upon, according to the Lord of their heart we have different sahasranaamas available among us: Siva sahasranaama, Lalitaa sahasranaama, Sri Rama sahasranaama etc., to mention but a few. Of all of them, no doubt, Vishnu sahasranaama is most popular one today among the Hindus.

Acharya sankara reached the feet of his Guru, Sri Govindapaachaarya, and on the bank of Narmada, the Nambootiri-boy from kaaladi got initiated into the secrets of the Mahaavaakyas. At the end of his short but intense study, sankara, the inspired missionary, wanting to fulfill his glorious work, craved from the blessings of his teacher. Govindapa Acharya tested sankara by ordering him to write an exhaustive commentary (Bhaashya) upon the Vishnu sahasranaama. He accomplished his great task and the very first work of the Upanishadic commentator, sankara, the greatest Hindu missionary of the 7^th century, thus came to see the light of the day.

Govindaacharya, satisfied with the proficiency of the student blessed him and set him on the road of service and action. Earning the grace of the teacher and the blessings of the Lord Vishnu, Sri sankara inaugurated an incomparable revival movement of the decadent culture of the 7^th century Hinduism. We shall here follow closely Sankara’s commentary and also draw our material from the Puranic literature that has an endless store of appeal to the hearts of all devotees.

There are, no doubt, slight differences here and there between the texts now popular in the north and the south. These different versions are of no consequence at all. Similarly, we find very slight differences in the ritualism generally adopted before starting the chanting of or “Archanaa” with the Vishnu Sahasranaama.

The Vishnu sahasranaama was composed by Sri Veda Vyaasa, the author of the Puraanas, and we meet this great chant in his classical work, the Mahaabaarata, Prince Yudhisthira, the eldest of the pandavas, at the end of the war approached Bheeshma Pitaamaha, when the mighty grandsire of the Kuru family was lying on the bed of arrows, unconquered and in conquerable, awaiting the scared hour of his departure to the feet of the lord. Yudhishthira, the righteous, asked six questions, Bheeshma, the constant devotee of Krishna, the gigantic Man of Action, calmly answered them all. This is how we find the “Thousand Names of Lord Vishnu” introduced in the immortal classic of the Hindus, the Mahaabaarata.

Yudhishthira, as a righteous man of spiritual inclination, with the mortal integrity of a careful mortal, asks quite an interesting set of questions which are typical queries which the heart of seekers will always ask.

Question 1.    Kim ekam daivatam loke?
                   Who is the greatest Lord in the world?

Answer 1.      Pavitraanaam pavitram yo
                   Mangalaanaam cha mangalam
                   Daivatam devataanam cha
                   Bhootaanam yo avyayah pitaa.

He who is very sanctity which sanctifies all scared things; he who is most auspicious; he who is the god of gods; he who is the eternal father of all creatures is the one god – VISHNU.

Question 2.    kim vaapyekam paraayanam?
                   Who is the one refuge for all?

Answer 2.      Paramam yo mahat-tejah
                   Paramam yo mahat-tapah
                   Paramam yo mahat-brahma
                   Paramam yah paraayanam. 

He who is the great effulgence; He who is the Great controller; He who is the Supreme All-Pervading Truth; he who is the Highest (Param) Goal (Ayanam)-the Lord Vishnu.

Question 3.    stuvantam kam praapnuyuh Maanavah subham?
                   By glorifying whom can man reach the 
                   Auspiciousness (peace and prosperity)?

Answer 3.      Jagat-prabhum deva-devam
                   Anantam purushottamam
                   Stuvan naama-sahasrena
                   Purushah satatotthitah.

The supreme Purusha, who is ever up and dong for the welfare of all, the Lord of the world the endless – Sri Maha Vishnu.

Question 4.    kam archantah praapnuyuh Maanavaah subham?
                   By worshipping whom can a man reach 
                   auspiciousness (peace and prosperity)?

Answer 4.      Tameva cha archayan nityam
                   Bhaktyaa purusham avyayam
                   Stuvan naama-sahasrena
                   Purushah satatthitah.

By meditating upon, by worshipping and by prostrating at the same Purusha, man can reach true Auspiciousness.

Question 5.    Ko dharmah sarva-dharmaanaam Bhavatah paramo matah?
                   What is, in thy opinion, the Greatest Dharma?

Question 6.    Kim japan muchyate jantuh Janma-samsaara-bandhaaat?
                   By doing japa of what can “creatures” (jantu) go 
                   beyond the bonds of samsara?

Answers 5&6. anaadi-nidhanam vishnum
                   Sarvaloka-maheshvaram
                   Lokaadhyaksham stuvan nityam
                   Sarva-duhkha-atigo bhavet.

Both questions are answered here: - the greatest Dharma is the one Vishnu, who has neither a beginning (Aadi) nor an end (Nidhanam), the supreme Lord of the world. All creatures can go beyond the bonds of samsar, “and he goes beyond all sorrows” who daily chants the sahasranaamas and within glorifies “the knower of the world” (Lokaadhyaksha).

The supreme is described as that from which the whole world of names and forms had risen in the beginning of the creation, that in which the world continues to exit, that into which alone the world can merge back during the ‘Dissolution’ (Pralaya); this supreme is VISHNU.

After thus answering all questions, “His thousand Name”, said Bheeshma, “I shall now advise you. Please listen to them with all attention”. This is how the Sacred Hymn, called as “The thousand names of Lord Vishnu”, is introduced in the Mahaabhaarata.

The Supreme cannot be defined and since He is the very substratum of all qualities, He cannot be denominated by any name, or indicated by any term, or defined in any language, or ever expressed, even vaguely, in any literary form. He is beyond both the “Known” and the “Unknown”. He is the very illumining Principle of Consciousness that illuminates all experiences.

And yet He has many manifestations and, therefore, He can have infinite names in terms of His manifestations. Definitions should directly describe the thing defined, and here we have a thousand indirect definitions with which the Real, the Infinite is being indicated in terms of the unreal and the finite. These “Thousand names of the Lord” have been coined and given out by the Rishis. They were collected and strung together into a joyous Hymn to Vishnu, a garland of devotion and reverence, by the poet-seer Vyaasa.

Since each of them is thus an indicative definition of the unknown in terms of the known, each term here can rocket-us up into the realms of the divine experience, only when we have lifted our minds towards it through contemplation. Thus the Vishnu Sahasranaama is employed not only by the devotees, in the sweet attitude of ‘sporting with the Lord’, but these are also employed by the contemplative students of philosophy, as gliders to roam in the realms of inspired Higher Consciousness.

In the Kali-Santarana Upanishad, which is one of the minor Upanishads, we find the great devotee Naarada approaching Brahmaaji to enquire what is the way out for man to evolve in these hard days of extrovertedness, which is quite natural and unavoidable in the Iron-age (Kaliyuga).”Repetition of the names of Naaraayana is sufficient enough”, was the reply given.

It is to be carefully noted here that in the sixth question the enquiry was how can ‘creatures’ realise the Highest. Jantu means ‘that which is born’ (Janana-dharman). So all living creatures are fit for this easy path. ‘Creatures’ could even include the animal kingdom as it is described in the Puraanas in their own poetic language. In the Trikutaachala lake, the elephant that was caught by the crocodile is described as having been saved by the Lord (Gajendra Moksha). The story of Jadabharata is yet another example.

Sankara in his commentary describes here Japa as comprehensive of all the three types. (A) That which can be heard by others; (B) That which is heard by ourselves; (C) That which is mental.

Vishnu Sahasranaama can be employed in performing Japa of all these three kinds.

In the following “Thousand Names”, we meet with, though rarely, some repetitions. Exactly 90 names have been repeated in this Great Hymn; and of them, 74 are repeated twice, 14 are repeated thrice, and again 2 of them are found to have been repeated four times. Sometimes, the terms are repeated as such Vishnu- Vishnu, Siva-Siva etc. and sometimes different words with the same meaning are also employed (Sreepati- Maadhava; Pushkaraaksha- Kamalaaksha). These need not be considered as a defect, since this Hymn is a chant of His Glory .In a chant of glory (stuti) repetitions are acceptable-it is but a style of the emotional heart to repeat its declarations of love.

There are exactly 1,031 single “Names” of the Lord in the 1000-Name-Chant (Sahasranaama). The extra 31 Names are to be considered each as an adjective qualifying (Viseshana) the immediately following noun. When one makes Archanaa to the Lord the correct dative case is to be used. There are 20 double-names in the first 500 Names and 11 double-names in the second half of the chant. There is one indeclinable (Avyaya) word used, and it (896th) should be used in the dative for Archanaa as Sanaat Namah; so too the 929th Name in the chant, being a plural noun, should be used in Archanaa as Sadbhyo Namah.

It will also be found, as we study the significances of these Divine names, that Vyaasa has employed sometimes masculine gender, on other occasions feminine gender and some other times even neuter gender. Wherever it is masculine. it denotes Vishnu, the Lord of Lakshmi. and when it is feminine it is indicative of His Might. Glory or power (devataa) that is manifest everywhere, and when the term is in neuter gender, it means Pure Brahman, the infinite Reality.

This Archanaa is generally performed by devotees daily; if this is not convenient they perform this worship at least on their own birth-days, on eclipse days and on the day on which the Sun moves from one zodiac to another (the Samkraanti-day). This performance has been prescribed by the Sastra for warding off troubles arising from the position of planets, anger of the rulers, incurable diseases and ruthless enemies. The highest effect is for purifying the mind and thus gaining more and more inner-poise for the Saadhaka in meditation.

INSTALLATION OF THE LORD

All ritualisms start in Hinduism with a beautiful function-the installation of the Lord in the devotee’s own physical form. This is technically called as Anga-Nyaasa and Kara-Nyaasa. The “Installation in the Limbs”, and the “Installation in the Palm”. This is a method by which the seeker with wilful thoughts and deliberate physical signs sanctifies himself to be a Divine Temple and installs various sacred deities in himself.

This helps the student to realise that though he is worshipping the Lord as a Goal (or an Ideal) other than himself (bheda or anya), in fact, he is to seek his identity with no traces of differentiation (Abheda or Ananya), between himself and the Lord. The final realization is a perfect identity indicated in the Mahaavaakya. “I am Brahman”. (Aham Brahmaasmi).

Neither in the Northern texts nor in the original Mahaabhaarata do we find this ‘subjective installation ceremony’ (Anga-Nyaasa) prescribed. However, pundits of ritualism in the South employ the Anga-Nyaasa; and it being such a beautiful act, so very helpful to the seekers, we give here below the most popular one practised widely in the South.

This “Installation Ceremony” declares to the devotees that the enchanting form of Vishnu is to be ultimately realised as One Infinite Reality without names or forms-in which the recognition of even the distinction of the meditator-meditated- meditation is to cease. Beside this deep significance, even though it be only for the time being, the student is also given a temporary sense of purity and sanctity in himself. Just as a devotee feels highly inspired in the divine atmosphere of a sacred temple, so too, after the Anga-Nyaasa, however shattered we might have been, before we entered the Pooja-room, we can artificially work ourselves up into a divine mood of peace and purity.

The body itself is rendered as the temple of the Lord, wherein the various limbs become the altars upon which, with a heart of love and faith, the devotee invokes and installs various deities. In this process, in order to bring the full blast of the sacred suggestions to him, the repetition of each of these mantras is emphasised by a corresponding physical sign. The idea is only, as we have already explained, to establish the correct mood for devoted contemplation.

A. asya Vishnu-sahasranaama-stotrasya veda-vyaasa Rishih

For this sacred chant, the “Thousand Names of Lord Vishnu”, Sri Veda Vyaasa is the Rishi.

Great mantras of deep spiritual significance and sublime Vedic dignity are not mere poetic compositions by mortal fallible intellects. When a. mastermind through meditation transcends the lower levels of his personality and soars into the higher mental altitudes, through his contemplation, there he ‘receives’ certain ‘revelations’ which are faithfully repeated by them to the world. Such ‘heard’ statements (Srutam) alone have the power to stand against the onslaught of the intellect, the ravages of time, the forces of criticism etc.

Such statements when contemplated upon by lesser seekers, they too, in the spiritual cadence of these mantras, get unconsciously uplifted into realms unknown, and there they come to live a world of experiences unfrequented by the ordinary multitudes. The ‘author of the mantra’ is thus termed in our Vedas as the ‘Seer’ (Mantra- Drashtaa). Such Rishis themselves admit that they did not manufacture, compose or create the mantra, but they had a revelation or vision (Darsanam) of the mantra.

The Mantra- Drashtaa, the Rishi, is the guru of the seeker, who is seeking his path with the help of that particular mantra. The Rishi of a mantra is installed at the roof of the head and the seeker, in his seat of Vishnu-Sahasranaama-chanting, first of all chants this mantra in his mind, and, with his right-hand thumb, middle-finger and ring-finger touches the top of his head.

B.  Anushtup Chandah

The metre in which the revealed mantra comes to the teacher is also mentioned because it orders the discipline that should be followed while chanting the mantra. Anushtup is the name of the particular metre in which this thousand-name- chant on Vishnu is sung. The chant is to come out through the mouth, and therefore, the ‘altar of the metre’ can be only the mouth. The fingers that were touching the roof of the head now come down to touch significantly the lips, when the mantra ‘B’ is repeated in the mind by the seeker.

C.  Sri Vishvaroopo Mahaavishnur-Devataa

Lord Vishnu of the form of the entire universe of variegated names and forms (Vishva-roopah) is the deity of the mantra. Vishnu is the theme of the chant. The Lord of Vaikuntha is the altar at which the devotee is preparing to offer himself in humble dedication and utter surrender. Since Lord Vishnu is, to the devotee, the Lord of his heart, the very centre of his personality, while chanting mentally the mantra 'C' the student, with all sincerity and devotion, installs the Lord in his heart, bringing the fingers from the lips down to touch the centre of his bosom.

D. Devakee-nandanah srashteti Saktih

Every deity is a manifestation of the mighty Omnipotency of the Supreme. The creator and sustainer (Srashtaa) of Dharma, the son of Devaki (Devakeenandana), is the manifested power of the Almighty. This creative power of righteous- ness and peace is installed at the navel (naabhi) point, and, therefore, the fingers come down from the heart region to the navel.

E. Sankha-bhrit nandakee chakree iti Keelakam

The mighty Creative Power invoked and established on the navel region cannot be as such conceived by the mind. Therefore, to ‘nail’ it down (Keelakam) and establish it in our comprehension, this mantra conceives the Power as the Lord, who bears the Conch, the Sword, named Nandaka, and the Discus. This is only to show how the total cosmic Power, expressed in terms of our present understanding as creation, sustenance, and destruction, is but a manifestation of the Lord. The conch (Sankha) represents the ‘call’ of the Reality, the Lord’s own declarations stated in the scriptures. Nandaka, the sword that punishes to bring joy (Nandana) into the community and the destruction, without which evolution is impossible, is represented by the concept of the Discus (Chakra).

Here it is also to be noted that the blowing or the conch represents speech; wielding the sword represents action and the discus that takes off from Him at His will, represents his thoughts. Thus this great Power installed at the navel expresses itself in the world through speech, action and thought.

To conceive fully this form is to hold firmly the Lord’s own feet, and, therefore, when this mantra is mentally chanted, the fingers move away from the navel, and with both hands the seeker touches his own feet.

Here it is to be carefully noted how the Guru is kept at the roof of the head, the Veda in the mouth, the Lord in the heart, the Power in the navel and, thereby, the seeker himself becomes so sacred that he prostrates unto himself by holding his own feet. Can there be a better method of preparing the devotee to realize ultimately his identity with the Lord?

F. Saarnga-dhanvaa-gadaa-dhara iti Astram

Whenever there is a large wealth in a box it becomes a treasure and it is locked and safely protected; when this divine installation has taken place, and therefore, the body has become the Temple of the Almighty, and therefore, it has become a scared treasure house to be protected. But the seeker himself has no power to protect, and so, he invokes the very weapon (Astra) of Vishnu, the protector of the world, to stand by for the defence of the sanctified bosom. Saarga is the name of the Bow (Dhanus) of Vishnu and the Mace (Gadaa) is another of his weapons. These two form the artillery of defence; which are manned by the Lord himself. At this moment when this mantra is mentally chanted, it is significant that the student lifts the palm away from the feet, and with the stretched out index and middle fingers of the right palm snaps them on the open left palm.

G. Rathaangapaanir-akshobhya iti Netram

Lord Vishnu as Lord Krishna played the part of the charioteer and gained the name “Rein-handed” (Rathaangapaani). A charioteer has to guide every step of every horse in order that the chariot be safe, and the travel be pleasant. Of the sense organs eyes are the most powerful and once they are well guided, all others also follow their heels. When Lord Vishnu, the charioteer, Himself is installed in the eyes, the individual is safe in his spiritual pilgrimage. Therefore, invoking the Divine Driver, with reins in his hand (Rathaangapaani), He is installed in the pair of eyes, and at the moment of mentally chanting this, both the eyes are touched by the tip of the fingers.

H. Trisaamaa saamagah saameti Kavacham

He (Tri-Saamaa) who is glorified by all the three type, of Saama songs (Deva-Vrata-Prokta), He who is the very theme that is glorified by the Saama songs (Saamagah), He whose glory itself is the manifested Sama Veda (Saama), He is none other than the Supreme This great Lord is installed a, an armour to wear for self-protection While chanting this in the mind the seeker first touches with the tip of his finger, of each arm, the same shoulders, and afterwards crosses the arm, in front of him making fingers of each palm touch the other shoulder-as if he is actually wrapping himself and wearing the divine armour.

I. Anandam brahmeti Yonih

The Supreme Brahman, the Infinite Bliss is the very womb (Yonih) from which the universe has emerged out. The procreated world of endless variety has only one Eternal Father, and this source is immaculate Bliss. When this is chanted the seeker installs the Bliss Infinite at the very place of procreation in himself. It is a spot in this great divine temple of the body, wherein is the one source, from which the world has emerged out, manifesting itself as the power of procreation (Taittireeya).

J. Visvaroopa iti Dhyaanam

The entire band of experience gained through the instruments of the body, mind and intellect in terms of perceptions, emotions and thoughts together is indicated by the term Visva. He, who has manifested to be the total world of experiences (Visva), must therefore be Visvaroopah. The cosmic form of the Lord (Visvaroopa) is the total universe. Thus to meditate (Dhyaanam) upon Him as the whole universe, is a method of installing Him in our intellect. At this moment the student locks his fingers and sits in meditation.

K. Ritam sundarasnah kaala iti Dikbandhah

Truth (Ritam), the lord, and his weapon, the discus, called Sudarsana, and his annihilating power, Time (Kaala)-these three are the mighty forces that guard this scared temple of life in the seeker at the outer frontier of his world of influence (Dik-Bandhah). To be truthful and ever to seek the great Reality (Ritam), to discriminate and see the play of the Lord in all situations (Su-Darsanam), and to control the very instrument of the time (Kaala), which is intellect in the seeker, is to guard the frontiers of one’s spiritual world, against the hoards of inimical forces. At this moment the student snaps his middle finger with the help of his thumb and runs his palm around his head. After all, the universe dwells in our own concept.

L. Sree-mahaa-vishnu-preetyarthe jape Viniyogah

Having thus installed through sankalpa the Lord in himself and having come under the protecting wings of the mighty lord, here is the declaration how he is going to employ himself in it. He is going to engage himself (Viniyoga) in japa (jape) of the “Thousand Names of Lord”. Now the question is: with what motive should be undertake this chanting? The answer is in the very statement that it is only for the grace (Preetyarthe) of Sree Maha Vishnu. After chanting this declaration in the mind, the saadhaka, takes a spoon of water (Teertham) in his right palm and pours it on the floor in front of him.

A true seeker is not desire-ridden for material satisfaction, and, therefore, he can have only one intention-the grace of lord, which will manifest in him as contemplative power.

These twelve ‘slogans’ are chanted for invoking and installing these refreshing and spiritually benign ideas on the limbs of the devotee himself. At this juncture this makes him inspired sufficiently for higher meditation upon the truth as indicated and directed by the thousand terms in Sahasranaama.

This beautiful subjective ritual is known as ‘Installation on the limbs’ (Anganyaasa). Not only that the student temporarily discovers a new surge of inspiration, but even beginners feel highly relived, at least temporarily, from the load of his senses of ‘sins’. When this is properly performed with a right attitude and devotion, to an extent the student gains identification (saaroopya) with the Lord of his heart, at least at the outer levels of his personality.

THE MEDITATION STANZA

 saantaakaaram bhujaga-sayanam
padmanaabham suresam
visvaadhaaram gagana-sadrisam
megha-varnam subha-angam
yogibhir-dhyaana-gamyam
vande vishnum bhava-bhaya-haram
sarva-lokaika-naatham.

“We meditate upon the master of the universe, lord Vishnu, who is ever peaceful, who lies on the great serpent-bed, from whose navel springs the lotus of the creative power, who is the controller of the gods, whose form is the entire universe, who is all pervading as the sky, of the hue of the cloud, of fascinating beauty, the lord of Laksmi, the lotus eyed, he who dwells in the hearts of the yogis and who can be approached and perceived through meditation, he who is the destroyer of the fear of samsara.”

This is the meditation upon the form of the lord, visualising Him thus in His, all-Comprehensive nature, and meditating upon Him, the seeker starts the vishnu-sahasranaama chanting.

Stanza 1

Om visvam vishnur- vashatkaaro
bhoota-bhavya-bhavat-prabhuh
bhoota-krit bhoota-bhir bhaavo
bhootaatmaa bhoota-bhaavanah 

(I) Visvam - He whose manifestation is the whole universe of forms: the Viraat-Purusha. The cause is always present in the effects and as such That Form from which the whole universe has emerged out can only be its own manifestation. The whole cosmos of gross forms is His own expression, and therefore, He is called as Viraatpurusha. ‘Sa eva Sarva- Bhootaatmaa Visvaroopo Yato-Avyayah’. The Sanskrit term Visvam comes from the root Vis, to enter: Thus it means He who has created and entered into the entire universe, as the All-Pervading Reality. It can also mean, That into which the entire universe has entered to remain therein established. In the Upanishads also we have assertions of similar ideas. It is only when intellectually, we view the Lord that we come to recognise Him as the ‘cause’ for the universe. When viewed through contemplation, since the effect is nothing other than the cause, there can be no world other than Him. In fact, there is nothing other than the Supreme. In the Mandukya Upanishad we read ‘Omkaara Evedam Sarvam’. In Geeta ‘OM ltyekaaksharam Brahma’.

(2) Vishnuh -The term Vishnu is dissolved as Veveshti Vyaapnoti iti Vishnuh-That which pervades every- where is Vishnu.

That which has the nature of pervasiveness is Vishnu. He is the one who pervades all and nothing ever pervades Him. ‘Eesaavaasyam Idam Sarvam’-All this is indwelt, pervaded by the Lord. This very same idea is described in the typical style of the Puranas, in the incarnation of the Lord as Vaamana, the short-boy, who, with His three feet, measured the entire universe. Because of this act, the Lord got the name Vishnu, says Mahaabhaarata. Vishnu Purana (3-1) says:

The root Vis means ‘to enter’. The entire world of things and beings is pervaded by Him and the Upanishad emphatically insists in its mantra ‘whatever that is there is the world of change’. Hence it means that He is not limited by space (Desa), time (Kaala) or substance (Vastu).

(3) Vashatkaarah - ln the ritualistic portion of the Vedas we find many mantras ending with ‘vashat’ and they are used in pouring devoted and dedicated oblations. Thus the term Vashatkaara means: He who is invoked, and for propitiating whom, the oblations are poured in Vedic ritualism, using mantras ending with vashat.

Also Vashatkaara can mean yajna in its association and thus the term in its suggestion can signify ‘He who is of the form of the Yajna’. In the Upanishads also we find this meaning endorsed when the Upanishad mantra says: “Yajno vai Vishnuh” - Yajna itself is Vishnu.

(4) Bhoota-bhavya-bhavat-prabhuh  - He who is the Lord (Prabhu) of the Past (Bhooita), the Future (Bhavya) and the Present (Bhavat). Time is the concept of the intellect; it expresses itself in the interval between experiences. Experiences are registered as thoughts and thoughts are ever changing. This very change is known and experienced by us. The knower of the change must be something other than the change. Thus, He who is the Illuminator of all changes, meaning the Consciousness (Aatman) is the Lord Vishnu. He is the One who is not conditioned by time.

(5) Bhoota-krit -The Creator (Krit) of all creatures (Bhoota). This word can be dissolved in two ways:

(a) One who creates the creatures (Bhootaani Karoti iti Bhoota- Krit) or (b) One who annihilates all creatures (Bhootaani Krindati iti Bhoota-krit). In both these cases, Brahman, the Supreme is the One Reality that seems to function as the Creator, Sustainer or Destroyer, when He functions through different gunas in the Total-Mind. Functioning through a preponderance in Rajoguna, He becomes the ‘Creator’; through Sattvaguna the ‘Sustainer’, and through Tamoguna, He Himself expresses as the ‘Destroyer’.

Subjectively, the Atman functioning through my own mind and intellect is I, the individuality. My personality entirely depends upon the quality and texture of my own thoughts. I myself become according to the moods of my mind the creator, sustainer and annihilator of my world of experiences. He who manifests and functions, in these three aspects, is the Supreme Vishnu.

(6) Bhoota-bhrit -One who nurtures and nourishes all beings (living creatures) in all their attitudes is this Great Reality and, therefore, He is called as the Bhoota Bhrit. In Geeta there is an elaborate description of this idea in the l5th Chapter where the Lord points out how, He, as the light in the sun, fertility in the earth, growth in the plants, nourishment in food, heat in fire, -becomes Himself the ‘eater’, and, therefore, how He Himself presides over all the functions of the body and mind, and apparently nurtures and nourishes the creatures, who are in fact nothing other than Himself.

(7) Bhaavah -One who ‘becomes’ (Bhavati iti Bhaavah) Himself into the movable and the Immovable beings and things in the world. He is the Pure Existence in all the sentient organisms and the insentient objects in the universe. Hence He is indicated by the term Bhaavah.

(8) Bhoolaalmaa -He is the Aatman of all the beings: The very ‘Be’ in ill the living beings. Just as the same universal space plays in all rooms as the room-space, or in all pots as the pot-space, so the Infinite Life playing through any given vehicle is called the Aatman of the vehicle. It is well known that space everywhere is one and the same; so too, the One Reality sports as though different Aatmans. This One Universal Soul is called in Vedanta the Supreme Brahman (Para-Brahman) .In Bhaagavata, the Lord is addressed as “You are the One Self in all living creatures ever illumining all their experiences.’’ In Kathopanishad: “The One enchanting Truth that revels in every form manifesting in plurality”.

(9) Bhoota-bhaavanah -One who creates and multiplies the creatures; meaning the One, who is the cause for the birth and who is responsible for the growth of all living creatures.

Stanza 2

pootaatmaa paramaatmaa cha
muktaanaam paramaa gatih
avyayah purushah saakshee
kshetrajno akshara eva cha.

(10) Poota-atmaa -One with an extremely Pure (Pootam) Essence; One who is not affected the least by the impurities of Maayaa. The Self is beyond all vaasanaas and, therefore, He cannot be affected by anyone of the manifestations of Maayaa such as thoughts of the intellect, emotions of the mind or the perceptions of the body. Immaculate is ever the Self, and so He is termed as the Pure Self (Poota-Aatmaa).

(11) Parama-atmaa -The Supreme, meaning that which transcends all limitations and imperfections of matter: in short, the Transcendental Reality. The Spirit is other than matter, and that in its presence, the vestures of matter, borrowing their dynamism from Him, play their parts rhythmically at all times. This has been the assertion found chorusly repeated in all the Upanishads and in the entire Vedantic literature. Sankara in Aatma Bodha points out that the Self is other than the three bodies and that He functions in the microcosm as a king in the nation. It was also said therein that matter borrows its energy from the Spirit and continues its activity “as the world from the Sun”.

Kathopanishad and the Geeta guide us from the outer levels of our personality, stage by stage, into the inner-most sanctum, and there, the teachers declare, is He the Infinite, transcending all, reigning in His own glory. “In short, that which remains other than the cause and effect-Maayaa and matter-is He, the Parama Aatman. In Vishnu Purana this Supreme is glorified as Maha Vishnu (Paramaatmaa)”-Vishnu Purana 6.4.10...

(12) Muktaanaam paramaa gatih -He who is the final Goal, that is reached by all the liberated souls. The limitations and bondages lived through by man are in fact the destiny of the matter vestures. Through delusion of un-understanding, we identify with them and come to suffer the consequent sense of imperfections. To liberate ourselves from the thraldom of matter is to realize the Self. Hence the Truth is defined as the Supreme Goal of the emancipated.

This ‘Goal’ to be attained is called as ‘Gati’ in Sanskrit, “The Supreme Goal” (Paramaa Gatih) would necessarily be then that Goal, having reached which, there is no return: “There where having gone, men never return, That sacred place is My seat”-Geeta Ch. 15. St. 6. In Geeta. (Ch. 8. St. 6) even more explicitly the same idea has been asserted by Sri Krishna when He says: “O Son of Kunti, having reached Me, there shall be no more any re-birth”.

Again, He defines the final Goal as “That having reached no return again” – Geeta Ch. 15, st.4.

(13) Avyaah –“Vyaya” means destruction; destruction cannot be without change; therefore, that which is “without destruction” (Avyayah) is the changeless. The Indestructible, and therefore, changeless, can never have any modifications (Parinaama). For, modification is but the death of a previous condition and the birth of a new condition. The Eternal and the Immutable (Avyayah) is the Supreme Sat-chit- aananda, and every other thing and being come under the hammer or change. The medium in which all these changes are sustained is Brahman, the Immutable. The Upanishads glorify Him as “Ajaro Amaro Avyayah”-without old age, death or change.

(14) Purushah -One who dwells in the Fort-city (Puri sete iti Purushah). Herein metaphorically the Rishis conceive our body as a fortress with nine gate-ways-“Nava Dvaarc Pure Dehee”-(Geeta Ch. 5, St. 13) -and declare the One who rules within it, like a king, is the Self.

This term can also be dissolved in two more different ways giving more and more suggestions to the nature of the Self. Thus, Purusha can mean “That which was before all creatures” -Puraa Aaseet iti Purushah or it can be “One who completes and fulfils the Existence everywhere”, meaning, without whom Existence is impossible (Poorayati iti Purushah).

This Aatman remains in the bodies of living creatures as their individuality (Jeeva) and in all the activities, physical, mental and intellectual, Aatman is not in fact involved but He is therein only an observer of all that is happening. This will become clear in the following discussion.

(15) Saakshee -Witness. In every day life he is a witness who without any mental reservation or personal interest observes and watches what is happening in a given field of experience. “Saakshaad Drashtari Saakshee syaad-Amarakosa. “The ‘Knower’ in every bosom is the same Supreme Self”, says Lord Krishna (Geeta Ch. 13, St. 3). Though thus Consciousness illumines everything, It is only a Witness, as It knows no change. Just as the sun illumines every thing in the world and yet the Sun is not affected by the condition of the things it is illumining, so too Vishnu, the Supreme, illumines all, without Itself undergoing any change.

According to Paanini Sutras the word Saakshee is derived from “Sa +akshi”, meaning “direct perceiver”.

(16) Kshetrajnah -One who knows the body and all the experiences from within the body, is the Knower-of-the- field, Kshetrajnah. As Brahmapurana would put it: Bodies are ‘fields’ and the Atman illumines them all without an effort, and therefore, is called Knower-of-the-field, Kshetrajnah”.

(17) Aksharah -lndestructible: things which are finite are necessarily conditioned by time and space; the Infinite is unconditioned, and so It is Aksharah. Since It is Indestructible, It cannot come under the methods of universal destruction arising from nature or through the wilful actions of man. “It cannot be cleaved by instruments of destruction, nor can fire burn It, nor water drench It, nor air dry It”-(Geeta Ch. 2, St. 23). It is also indicated that the Supreme Brahman is the Akshara-“Aksharam Brahma Paramam” -(Geeta Ch. 8, St. 3).

Please note that in the stanza there is the extra word ‘only’ (Eva) used, indicating that Kshetrajnah is the Aksharah; there is no difference between them both: the “Knower-of-the-field” and the “field”.

Stanza 3

yogo yoga-vidaam netaa
pradhaana-purushesvarah
naarasimha- vapuh
sreemaan kesavah purushottamah.

(18) Yogah -The one who is to be known or realized through yoga. By withdrawing the sense organs from their objects of preoccupation, when the mind of the seeker becomes quietened, he is lifted to a higher plane-of-consciousness, wherein he attains “yoga”, meaning wherein he realizes the Reality. At such moments of equanimity and mental quiet “yoga” is gained: Samatvam yoga uchyate- (Geeta Ch. 2, St. 48).

Since He is experienced through Yoga He is known as Yogah.

(19) Yoga-vidaam netaa –One who guides all the activities of all men ‘who knows yoga’ (Yogaviti) .To all men of realization, He who is the Ideal, is the Supreme Lord. Just as our activities are today ordered by our selfishness and individuality, the Ideal that commands and orders all activities in the bosom of a Man of Realization is his God-Consciousness. This realm of experience is Mahaa Vishnu. In the Geeta also we find the same idea expressed, in the language of emotion, when the Lord says: “Those who contemplate upon Me with total dedication, their daily welfare and spiritual progress I shall bear”.

(20) Pradhaana-purusha-eesvarah -Lord of both Pradhaana and Parusha. The term Pradhaana means ‘maayaa’-the total cause for the entire universe of forms. Purusha indicates the individuality in each one of us-the Jeeva Lord Eesvara means the Master (Eeshte iti Eesvarah). The Lord of Maayaa and Jeeva means the one who makes both these possible to exist and function. The One Infinite Reality which Itself manifests as Maayaa, Jeeva and Eesvara is the Essence in Vishnu.

(21) Naarasimha-vapuh -One whose form is half human and half lion This is the famous fourth incarnation of Lord Vishnu which He took in order to destroy the atheistic tyrant Hiranyakasipu and bless his devotee, Prahlaada.

(22) Sreemaan -One who is always with Sree. Mother Sree is Mother Lakshmi. In the Puranic terminology Laksmi stands for all powers, all faculties. The total manifested power potential in the Omnipotent is Lakshmi. These powers are ever in Him and therefore, He is the Sreemaan.

(23) Keshavah -He who has beautiful and graceful (Va) locks of hair (Kesa) is familiar as in Lord Krishna’s form. Or, it can also mean, one who destroyed the demon Kesin who was sent to destroy the child-Krishna by his uncle Kamsa This interpretation is endorsed by the Vishnu Purana, 5.16.23.

(24) Purushottamah -The constitution of the individuality, Jeeva, when analysed, we find that it is made up of both the perishable-matter and the Imperishable-Spirit. The Spirit expressing through matter is the individuality, Jeeva. Reflected moon is the moon of the heavens dancing on the surface of water. Just as the moon is something different from its reflections and the water surfaces, so too the Self is, in its transcendental nature, something different from both matter, the perishable, and Spirit, the Imperishable, ever playing in matter. This Transcendental Truth is indicated by the term the Supreme Purusha (Purushottama).

Stanza 4

sarvas-sarvas-sivah sthaanur
bhootaadir nidhir-avyayah
sambhavo bhaavano bhartaa
prabhavah prabhur-eesvarah.

(25) Sarvah  -He who is the all. He being the One cause from which have sprung forth all things and beings. He himself is the all. In Mahabharata Udyoga Parva (70-12) we read: “As He is the origin and end of all, whether existent or otherwise, and as He, at all times, cognises all, He is called  “Sarva”. All waves rise from the same ocean and, therefore, the ocean is the very essence in all waves.

(26) Sarvah - The Auspicious One: meaning, the One who gives auspiciousness to those who hear of Him, to those who have a vision of Him, and to those who meditate upon Him.

(27) Sivah -The One who is Eternally Pure. In Him can never be any contamination of the imperfection of Rajas and Tamas. ‘Non-apprehension of Reality’ is Tamas and ‘misapprehensions of Reality’ constitute the Rajas. In the Reality Itself there can be neither of them ‘He is Brahman; He is Siva’, so the Upanishad declares of the Absolute Oneness, which is Vishnu.

(28) Sthaanuh: -Generally this term Sthaanuh is used for the permanent pillars that mark the frontiers of a country. They are permanent, immovable, fixed. The Truth, that remains thus firm and motionless, without movement, permanently established in Its own Realm of Purity, is called by the term Sthaanuh-the Pillar. “Eternal, All-Pervading, the Pillar, Motionless (is) this Ancient One,” so says Geeta Ch. 2, 24.

(29) Bhootaadih - The very cause for the five great elements: Space, Air, Fire, Water and Earth.

(30) Avyayah Nidhih -The Imperishable treasure. The term Nidhi means ‘that in which precious things are stored away or preserved secretly’: (Nidheeyate Asmin iti Nidhih). Therefore, He who is the substratum-container-for the entire universe is the Nidhi. During the dissolution (sleep) the One into Whom all things go to lie merged therein temporarily, till the next projection or creation (waking), as this Immutable Treasure Chest-the Vishnu. Here ‘unchangeable’ (Avyaya) is qualifying ‘Nidhi’.

(31) Sambhavah -One who takes up by his own free will various incarnations for the glory of the world is Sambhavah. In fact, He alone is the source of all that is created. In Harivamsa we read the assertion: “I am the Narayana, the Source from which all creatures and things spring forth”.  To uphold Dharma I shall manifest again and again, declares the Lord in His Geeta:

(32) Bhaavanah -To do Bhaavana is to give: One who gives everything to His devotees is Bhaavanah. The Lord is One who gives both joy and sorrow to each one according to his deserts. In the case of humanity it is He again who destroys the evil and blesses the good.

(33) Bhartaa -The One who ‘Governs’ the entire living world. Governing includes protecting the world from all harms and serving it positively with progress and joy. One who does these to all creatures at all times is Vishnu-the great Bhartaa.

(34) Prabhavah - The One who is the very womb of all the Five Great Elements. It is That from which even the very concepts of time and space have sprung from.

(35) Prabhuh -The Almighty Lord. He who is the All-Powerful. He who has the supreme freedom to do (Kartum), not to do (Akartum), or to do quite differently from what He had already done (Anyathaa Kartum) is considered as the Prabhuh.

(36) Eesvarah -One who has the ability to do anything without the help of other beings or things is called Eesvara.

Stanza 5

svayambhooh sambhur aadityah
pushkaraaksho mahaasvanah
anaadi-nidhano dhaataa
vidhaataa dhaaturuttamah.

(37) Svayambhooh -The one who manifests Himself from Himself is considered as self-made. Everything born or produced must have a cause. The Supreme is the cause from which all effects arise, and Itself has no cause. This un- caused Cause-of-all, this Ultimate Cause, with reference to which every thing else is considered as ‘effects’ is in itself the Absolute Cause. This idea is indicated by the term Self-made (Svayambhooh).

(38) Sambhuh -He who brings Auspiciousness- both inner goodness and outer prosperity to His devotees. Sambhuh is one of the famous names of Lord Siva. By using this term in invoking Vishnu, by its suggestion, it declares that Vishnu and Siva are not two Divine Entities, but they are both manifestations of the One Essential Reality.

(39) Aadityah-The Truth (Purusha) that glows with a golden splendour in the solar orb is called Aadityah. There are twelve Aadityas and of them One is called Vishnu. Krishna Himself declares, ‘I am Vishnu among the Aadityas’ -Aadityaanaam Aham Vishnuh- (Geeta Ch. 10, St. 21). The word Aaditya can mean ‘Son of Aditi’-signifying the one who was born as the son of Aditi in His Vaamana incarnation.

The term Aadityah can also mean in Sanskrit ‘One who is like the sun’. The Sun is the one who illumines all, and every living creature draws its nurture and nourishment directly or indirectly always from the sun alone. In the same way Brahman is the one Sun in the universe of living creatures illumining all experiences of all creatures.

(40) Pushkaraakshah -One who has eyes like the lotus. Joy and Peace in the bosom of an individual are expressed in the world outside at no other point so vividly as in the eyes. The One, whose inner peace and joy, beaming out through His eyes, bring into the devoted hearts all the aesthetic beauty and romantic thrills of seeing a lotus dancing in the breeze, In short, the term indicates the Lord who with His beautiful looks, magically lifts all the sorrows in the devotee’s heart and fills it with Peace, Joy and Perfection.

(41) Mahaasvanah- One who possesses thundering voice of compulsion: Svana means ‘sound’. One whose ‘call’ is thundered in all hearts, familiarly known as the ‘compelling whisper’ of the Higher. Or, Svanam can also mean ‘breath’; and so, the term can mean, ‘He whose great breath is the very Vedas’. “Thus, O Maitreyee, this has been breathed forth from this great Being what we have as Rigveda. Yajurveda” -Brihadaaranyaka Upanishad (4.4.10). In the Spiritual literature of India we often read Vedas described as His breath; He breathed out the Vedas (Nih-svasitam).

(42) Anaadi-nidhanah