Vishnu Sahasranama: Sloka 7: śrutvā dharmānaśeṣeṇa

Sloka 7: text

śrī vaiśaṁpāyana uvāca
śrutvā dharmānaśeṣeṇa pāvanāni ca sarvaśaḥ |
yudhiṣṭhiraḥ śāṁtanavaṁ punarevābhyabhyāṣata || 7 ||

Meaning

Sri Vaisampayana said:
After hearing a lot,
About Dharma that carries life,
And of those methods great,
That removes sins from ones life,
For ever and to cleanse,
Yudhishtra asked again,
Bheeshma, the abode of everlasting peace. (Swami Krishnananda)

Another Meaning

Having heard about dharma and acts of purification, Yudhishthira, to Bhῑsma (son of Śantanu) spoke once again.

Comment

Sri Vaisampayana, the narrator of Mahabharata is an important sage of Hinduism. Veda Vyasa had taught Krishna Yajur Veda to Sri vaisampayana. Sri Vaisampayana is also regarded as the first author to expand the Mahabharata from the original 8000 verses it had to 24000 verses.

śrutvā: after hearing
dharmāna: about dharma
aśeṣeṇa: in detail
pāvanāni: that which purifies
ca: connector (and)
sarvaśaḥ: in all respects
yudhiṣṭhiraḥ: Yudhishtra
śāṁtanavaṁ: Bhishma (Shantanu was Bihishma's father)
punarevābhya: once again the same thing

The seventh sloka is an important sloka because it is the prelude to one of the most important slokas in the Vishnusahasranamam, the eighth sloka where Yudhishtra raises certain important questions. More on the eighth sloka in another post. 

Kural 579: Being Considerate as the Highest Virtue

Kural

ஒறுத்தாற்றும் பண்பினார் கண்ணும்கண் ணோடிப்

பொறுத்தாற்றும் பண்பே தலை. (579)

Transliteration 

"oRuththaatrum paNpinaar kaNNumkaN Noatip

poRuththaatrum paNpae thalai" (source)

Translation

"To smile on those that vex, with kindly face,

Enduring long, is most excelling grace." (source)

Meaning 

Being considerate and bear with even to those who vex us is the highest virtue.

Comment

Kural 579 of Tirukkural comes under the chapter 58 (அதிகாரம்), titled "Kannottam" கண்ணோட்டம்), which literally means "glance" but refers to considerateness or sympathy in this context.

ஒறுத்தாற்றும் (oRuththaatrum) can be divided into ஒறுத்து (oRuththu) and ஆற்றும் (aatrum). ஒறுத்து (oRuththu) is derived from the root ஒறு (oRu) which means punish/ blame/ vex. Parimelazhagar comments on the kural by using ஒறுக்கு instead of  ஒறுத்து. ஒறுக்கு means to roast. 

ஒறுத்தாற்றும் (oRuththaatrum) means "vexing".  பண்பினார் (PaNpinaar) refers to "those with character". ஒறுத்தாற்றும் பண்பினார் (oRuththaatrum paNpinaar) are those with vexing character or those who vex others. கண்ணும்  (kaNNum ) roughly means even towards. Its root is  கண் (kaN). The phrase ஒறுத்தாற்றும் பண்பினார் கண்ணும் oRuththaatrum paNpinaar kaNNum means "even towards those with vexing character".

கண்ணோட்டம் (KaNNottam) means considerateness/ kindness. பொறுத்தாற்றும் like ஒறுத்தாற்றும் can be divided into பொறுத்து and ஆற்றும் (aatrum). பொறுத்து is being patient. பொறுத்தாற்றும் is "being patient". பண்பு is virtue or character. தலை (thalai) literally is head but in Tirukkural it is means "what is chief". கண்ணோடிப் பொறுத்தாற்றும் பண்பு (kaNNotip poRuththaatrum paNbu) refers to the virtue of being considerate and patient.

The kural can translated in simple as follows: being considerate and bearing with even to those who vex us is the highest virtue. 

The kural comes under the Part, "arathupaal" (அறத்துப்பால்), which deals with wealth and welfare aspects. Chapters 53 to 63 of Tirukkual relate to norms of good governance, cherishing kith and kin, humanism and so on. The adhigaram applies equally to rulers (and officials) and to individuals but considering the placement of the kural, it seems to target the ruling class. While many translators such as Manakkudavar, Namakkal Kavignar, Ilakkuvanar, Tirukkuralar Munisami, Drew & Lazarus, have translated the kural in such a way that it is addressed to an individual, Parimelazhagar's translation of the kural addresses the kural to rulers and officials. Parimelazhagar refers to "the highest virtue of rulers" (அரசர்க்கு தலையாய இயல்பாவது).  

Drinking Alcohol is Uncool!

A friend's dad recently passed away due to a smoking related disease. Most of the guys in the previous generation thought smoking was cool and are now paying the price. In the same way, the present generation thinks drinking alcohol is being cool and a teetotaler is considered uncool and a "pazham". Well, please know that drinking alcohol is totally uncool. If you think otherwise, all you would be doing by continuing to drink alcohol is you will make your spouse and children immensely suffer in a decade or two. So stop drinking!

And if you happen to have a friend who's a teetotaler and you're on your way pestering him to drink, please stop doing it. You are doing no good to him; you're not being a friend.

I am lucky that way. During my college days, there is probably not a bar in Mangalore that I had not visited with friends. Yet, not once have my friends suggested that I should taste alcohol. Once, an acquaintance asked me to drink and all my friends were pretty pissed off at him for asking me to drink. I am so proud of my friends that I keep telling about them to everyone.

Friendship is not just about enjoying and having a good time together. It is about ensuring that your friend always goes a step ahead in life. It is fine if you cannot help him or her; at least don't shove him down the rabbit hole.

Vishnu Sahasranamam: Sloka 6: Yasya Smarana Maathrena

Sloka 6: Text

yasya smaraṇamātreṇa janmasaṁsārabaṁdhanāt |

vimucyate namastasmai viṣṇave prabhaviṣṇave || 6 ||

ōṁ namō viṣṇave prabhaviṣṇave ||

Meaning

Bow I before Him,

The all-powerful Vishnu,

The mere thought of whom.

Releases one forever,

Of the ties of birth and life.

Bow I before the all powerful Vishnu.

(Swami Krishnanda)

"My salutation to that all powerful deity, Visnu the mere contemplation of whose name frees all persons from the bonds of samsara, the terrific cycle of birth and death." (link)

Comment

Yasya: to be endeavoured

smaraṇa: the act of remembering

mātreṇa: merely

smaraṇamātreṇa: the mere contemplation

janma: birth

samsāra: cycle of birth and death

bandhanāt: from the material bondage

The term bandhanāt also appears in Canto 3 verse 23.57 of Srimad Bhagavadam where it is stated:

sāhaṁ bhagavato nūnaṁ

vañcitā māyayā dṛḍham

yat tvāṁ vimuktidaṁ prāpya

na mumukṣeya bandhanāt

which means: "My lord, surely I have been solidly cheated by the insurmountable illusory energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for in spite of having obtained your association, which gives liberation from material bondage, I did not seek such liberation."

vimucyate: becomes freed/ liberated

namastasmai: Salutations to him

viṣṇave: All-pervading Lord Vishnu

prabhaviṣṇave: to Lord Viṣṇu, the most powerful

ōṁ namō viṣṇave prabhaviṣṇave: I bow before the all powerful Lord Vishnu

This is the last sloka of the Purvabhagam which does not figure out in Mahabharata. As said in the previous post, this sloka is also a salutation to Lord Vishnu. The previous sloka speaks of the nature of the Lord while this one is about why contemplation of the Lord's name is necessary: it releases one from the bonds of birth and death (samsara).

Vishnu Sahasranamam: Sloka 5: Avikaaraaya Shuddhaaya Nityaaya

Sloka 5: Text

avikārāya śuddhāya nityāya paramātmane |
sadaikarūparūpāya viṣṇave sarvajiṣṇave || 5 ||

Meaning

Bow I before Vishnu
Who is pure,
Who is not affected,
Who is permanent,
Who is the ultimate truth.
And He who wins over,
All the mortals in this world.

(Swami Krishnanda)

Poetic Meaning

Salutation to Lord Vishnu who is immutable (unchangeable, not subject to any variation), who is inherently pure and eternal, the Supreme soul who has a consistent undiversified form in all times and ages and is the conqueror of one and all. 

(link)

Comment

The fifth and the sixth slokas of the Purva Bhagham (of the Vishnu Sahasranamam) are salutations to Vishnu. Each word of the sloka is significant and is explained below:

avikārāya: one who does not undergo material transformation or unchangeable. 

The word avikārāya is also used in Canto 10 of Srimad Bhagavadam, Verse 16:40 which reads:

jñāna-vijñāna-nīdhaye
brahmaṇe ’nanta-śaktaye
aguṇāyāvikārāya 
namas te prākṛtāya ca 

(emphasis supplied)

The above Sloka translates as follows:

"Obeisances unto You, the Absolute Truth, who are the reservoir of all transcendental consciousness and potency and the possessor of unlimited energies. Although completely free of material qualities and transformations, You are the prime mover of material nature." (link).

śuddhāya: pure/ unadulterated.

Again, this word has several references in Srimad Bhagavadam. For instance, verse 49.13 of the 10th Canto, which reads:

namaḥ kṛṣṇāya śuddhāya
 brahmaṇe paramātmane
yogeśvarāya yogāya

 tvām ahaṁ śaraṇaṁ gatā 

(emphasis supplied)

The verse translated reads as below:

"I offer my obeisances unto You, Kṛṣṇa, the supreme pure, the Absolute Truth and the Supersoul, the Lord of pure devotional service and the source of all knowledge. I have come to You for shelter." (link)

nityāya: permanent/ eternal

paramātmane: one who is the supreme person (paramātma)

sadaikarūparūpāya: one who is consistent

viṣṇave: the all-pervading Vishnu

sarvajiṣṇave: jiṣṇu is the root of this compound word whose meaning is all conquering.

Thus, Sloka five of the Vishnu Sahasranamam explains in brief the qualities of Lord Vishnu: The Lord  is eternal, pure, consistent, without end, all conquering and supreme. An English and a Tamil translation of this sloka in the form of a video is available here. 

Vishnu Sahasranamam: Sloka 4: Vyasaya Vishnu Rupaya

Sloka 4 Text

vyāsāya viṣṇu rūpāya vyāsarūpāya viṣṇave |

namo vai brahmanidhaye vāsiṣṭhāya namo namaḥ || 4 ||

Meaning

Salutations to Sage Vyasa who is in the form of Vishnu and to Vishnu who is in the form of Vyasa!

Salutations again and again unto him, who is a reservoir of the vedas and who is in the lineage of Sage Vasishtha.

Poetic Meaning (link)

Salutations, again and again, to VyAsa, a visible aspect of Lord Vishnu and to Lord Vishnu who, in turn, is also a visible aspect of VyAsa, the sage descended from Vasistha and a veritable treasure of vedik knowledge of Brahman.

Comment

Readers may kindly note that we are still in the Purvabhagam of the Sahasranamam, which is not strictly the Vishnu Sahasranamam, but are introductory slokas which provide the context to the slokas. After having explained the lineage of Veda Vyasa in the third sloka, 

This sloka is probably the highest form of praise to Sage Vyasa who is regarded as the one who classified the Vedas and also authored Vishnu Sahasranamam. Veda Vyasa is compared to Lord Vishnu and more importantly, Vishnu to Veda Vyasa. Such is the significance of the contribution of Veda Vyasa in Hinduism that God is compared to him.

[The role of "Vyasa" in the context of Hinduism should be understood. The wikipedia entry on Vyasa is a good read on this.]  

The context in which the Vishnu Sahasranamam has been rendered has been aptly summarised in a website by an author called "Lakshi". The explanation offered by the author is quoted below:

"It is interesting to contemplate on the circumstances under which Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram came into existence. Yudhishthira, the eldest of the five Pandavas, was mentally depleted because of the war with the Kauravas and the misery of death and suffering that was created by the war in which he had been a major player. Bhishma, his dear grandfather, was lying on his deathbed. With his passing away, his irreplaceable wisdom, based on the experiences of his long life of virtue, righteousness and devotion, was about to be lost to the world. Sage Vyasa and Sri Krishna advised Yudhishthira, who himself was an epitome of righteousness and virtue, to seek the advice of Bhishma on any and all aspects of life on which he had any doubts. Yudhishthira did as advised, and a series of [dialogues] ensued between the two, witnessed by Lord Krishna Himself, and by other great sages including Vedavyasa.

In one of these sessions, Yudhishthira sought Bhishma's advice on the easiest and best means by which mankind can attain lasting happiness, peace of mind, and relief from all bondage and sorrows. This was the setting in which Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotram was imparted, with the welfare of future generations also in mind, by Bhishma to Yudhishthira, as part of the advice given by Bhishma in response to the above question... 

Sri Vedavyasa is the rishi of Sri Vishnu's one thousand names, i.e., the sage who strung together the thousand names as they were revealed by Bhishma to Yudhishthira. Anushtup (eight syllables per quarter) is its meter. Lord Krishna, the son of Devaki, is the Lord being worshiped..." (link)

As stated above, Bhishma in his deathbed made known to Yudhishtra the goal of attaining lasting happiness. It is said that Sahadeva, one of the Pandavas, had etched Bhishma's advice in his memory. He recounted it to Veda Vyasa, who authored Vishnu Sahasranamam through Ganesha, who is said to have written what was dictated to him. 

Sloka four of the Purvabhag of the Vishnu Sahasranamam is an obeisance to Veda Vyasa for his achievements as regards the compilation of Vedas, the Upanishads and for authoring the Mahabharata.

Vashishtaya refers to the lineage of Sage Vashishta. This reference makes it absolutely clear that the obeisance is not to the titular role of Vyasa but to Krishna Dwaipayana Vyasa or Veda Vyasa. Veda Vyasa through this sloka is regarded as the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. And Lord Vishnu is regarded as the "Visible Aspect" or the physical manifestation of Veda Vyasa!

Thirukkural 119: When is Justice Seem to be Done?

Lord Chief Justice Hewart famously said in 1923: "Not only must Justice be done; it must also be seen to be done." The context was the case, R v Sussex Justices, ex parte McCarthy ([1924] 1 KB 256, [1923] All ER Rep 233, a motor cyclist was prosecuted for dangerous driving. The Magistrates' court convicted him although the clerk of the court was a member of the solicitor's firm which represented against the defendant in a civil claim. Based on this, the motor cyclist sought for quashing the conviction. The matter was heard by Lord Chief Justice Hewart who overturned the conviction and said these famous words. This principle has been quoted in India numerous times in numerous decisions relating to bias.

We'd be surprised to notice that more than 2000 years back, Saint Thiruvallur wrote about bias. In Adhigaram 12 (Naduvu Nilaimai- Equity and Uprightness), Thiruvallur said:

சொற்கோட்டம் இல்லது செப்பம் ஒருதலையா

உட்கோட்டம் இன்மை பெறின். (119)

There are multiple ways this Kural has been translated. As is expected with a work of this vintage, multiple commentators have interpreted the Kural in various ways. One of which is given here: "Justice is seen to be done when the judge is upright in words and deeds." [J. Narayanasamy]

The meaning of the Kural is that it is not only enough if the words of the judgement are smooth but it should come from the judge who is endowed with integrity and uprightness. Here, "உட்கோட்டம் இன்மை" means "மனதில் குற்றம் இல்லாமல் இருக்கும் தன்மை", that is, the state where the judge's mind free of bias. The Kural roughly means the following: The judgement free from textual error is desirable only if it is written or spoken with a bias free mind.