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Sri Ranganatha Padhuka Sahasram

PADDHATHI #3: Greatness of Paaduka (cont..)

Prabhaava Patthadhi





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Sloka #71

71. MakuTeShu nivishya dikpathInAm PadhamEva prathipadhya daItyahanthu: parirakshasi pAdhukE! Padham thvam ka nu BhidhyEtha garIyasAm praBhAva:

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! You perform the protection duty, whether You remain on the heads of Indra and other guardians of the eight directions or You are below the feet of the Lord. Great individuals do not change their nature, wherever they may be.

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Here, Swami Desikan answers the doubters , who question him equating the PaadhukhA's powers with that of the Lord's sacred Feet. He says: " Oh PaadhukhE ! Your vow is to protect one and all with whom You come into contact .Your Lord protects from above , when You rest on His devotee's heads. You protect the Lord's holy feet from below. This way Your vow is fulfileld always. Your reputation does not ever diminish as a result of protecting from above (Deva's heads) and below (the Lord's feet). You never fail therefore to protect anyone , who comes in contact with You.

2) Srimadh Andavan's anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE ! You protect the padham (status) of the Digh PaalakAs by adorning their heads. You stay at the Scared feet of Your Lord and protect His padham (Lotus Feet).It is said that MahAns will behave exactly the same way at all levels (sthAnams)regarding their anugraham and DayA .Swami Desikan hints that Indran and others wear the SatAri on their heads ,which is worn by PerumAL and through that act protect their sthAnams and Isvaryams .

3) Swami Desikan uses the word "Padham " twice in this slOkam . In the first instance, the Paadhukhai sits on the heads of IndrA and Dhig PaalakAs and protects them against losing their padhavis (padham ).The Paadhukhai also reaches the Lord's feet and protects them ( padham prathipadhya PadhamEva parirakshasi ). In this matter, Swami Points out that The Paadhukai behaves like the great souls and its glories are like that of the great Ones , who have Sama BhAvam (equanimity)in their dealings with every one independent of their status . Swami Desikan ends up with a rhetorical Question : GarIyasAm PrabhAva: kvanu bhidhyEtha ? ( Where would the glories of MahAnubhAvAs become different ?).......V.S

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

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Sloka #72

72. jagathAmaBhirakshaNE trayANAmaDhikAram maNipAdhukE! vahanthyO: yuvayO:parikarmakOtilagnam charaNadhvandhvamavaImi rangaBharthu:

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! For You invested with the honour of presiding over the protection of all three worlds, the Lord's feet are verily a head-ornament, a crown so to say!

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam: Oh Gem-studded paadhukhE ! Since You protect the Lord's feet, which in turn protects the world, the Lord's feet appear more like the decorations for You .Thus , the Lord's feet beome classified in the category of adorning jewelery for You .

2) Srimadh Andavan anubhavam : PerumAL Thiruvadi is the Crown for the Paadhukhai .

3) Swami Desikan states that the Paadhukhai of Sri RanganAthA is the queen of the three worlds and the Lord's holy feet are the Crown for that queen .Swami gently reminds us that the crown is not worn by anyone except the most exalted . Swami classifies the Lord's sacred feet as "Parikarma kODilagnam " or of the category of jewelery .... V.S

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

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Sloka #73

73. PadarakshiNi!vatsalA nikAmam raGhuvIrasya padAmbhujAdhapi thvam yadhasoU BharatasthvayAmshavatthvA nna punasthAdrushamanvaBhUdhviyOgam

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! You are evidently much kindlier to Bharata than Rama's feet were. Beacuse, when Bharata returned grief-stricken, without getting Rama back to Ayodhya, he derived, in You, what he asked for and he never suffered later any disappointment.

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE ! You exceed the glory of the Lord's feet through the quality of affection that You show to those, who worship You . It is because of that special quality of affection , BharathA was consoled and was able to quell the sorrow arising from the sepaeration from Lord RamachandrA's holy feet .

2) Srimadh Andavan's anubhavam :BharathA was sorrow stricken over the seperation from his Brother. After Bharathan received You , his sorrow subsided somewhat .Oh PaadhukhE ! Because of Your affection for the people of AyOdhyA , You cheered up Bharathan .The inner meaning is that AchAryA's Vaathsalyam for the chEthanAs is even more than that shown by PerumAL .

3) Swami Desikan says here that the Paadhukhai had more affection for the Mumukshus than even for the tender feet of Sri RaghuvIran . Because of this nikAma vathsalA svarUpam , Paadhukhai made it possible for Bharathan not to suffer from the ViyOgam from the seperation from Sri raamA as before acquiring their Lord...V.S

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

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Sloka #74

74. aBhigamya mukundapAdhukE! thvAmapanIthAthapavAraNaI: shirOBhi: harithAm pathayE dhurApamanyaIranaGhacChAyamavApnuvanthi BhOgam

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! The guardians of the directions (such as Indra, Rudra, etc.,)come and worship You, after leaving off their umbrellas and other paraphernalia. What reward they get! They now dervie a lordship and enjoyment of the perfect honour and paraphernalia-not attainable to others!

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

(1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE adorning the holy feet of MukundhA ! It is Your overflowing and matchless affection that confers the comfort of immesurable wealth and unquestioned status to the Lords of the eight directions . They forsake their umbrellas duirng the heat of the day and step out with unprotected heads to receive You on their heads with affection .They enjoy the cool shade of Your contact and become enrichd .

2) Srimadh Andavan anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE ! When Your Lord wears You on His lotus feet and goes about His sanchAram , the Digh PaalakAs walk behind You without their umbrellas covering their heads . Through this act ,they come under Your comforting shade and attain all riches. The inner meaning is : When we are with AchAryAs and PerumAL , we should not use the umbrellas even if it is noon day's heat . We wil not be affected by the mid-day heat , when we are with Them . VisEsha Sukhams result. This is part of Their PrabhAvam .

3) Swami Desikan chooses exquisite words to describe the unique blessings conferred by the Mukundha Paadhukhais (Moksham granting AchAryaas ). When we have their (AchAryA's ) sambhandham , then the unattainable (dhurApam) comes within our reach . Swami Desikan says: ThvAm abhigamya anyai: dhurApam anaga: chAyam bhOgam avApnuvanthi .The word '" chaayam" means both lustre (Kaanthi) and shade (Nizhal ). Those , who have the AchArya sambhandham attain and enjoy these BhOgams ... V.S

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

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Sloka #75

75. apahAya sithAsithAnupAyAnaravindhEkshaNapAdhukE!mahAntha: thvadhananyathayA Bhajanthi vrutthim thvadhasADhAraNaBhOgasABhilApA:

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduke!Discerning people discard the paths of dubious efficacy. They devote themselves to You wholly, without any other resort or aim; by reason of hte bliss-enjoyment that is unique in Your association with the Lord's feet.

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE of the Lotus-eyed Lord ! The great Ones abandon the dubious approaches charactrestried by pains and pleasures and fix their minds only on You to obtain the aunalloyed bliss of union withthe Lord's holy feet in a manner similar to You .

2) Srimadh Andavan's anubhavam : Oh Lord's PaadhukhE ! Few great Ones abandon Karma Yogam and other UpAyams to secure Moksham and instead meditate on You . The inner meaning is that the fortunate few place their total faith in their AchAryAs and do not engage in other upAyams to secure Moksham .

3) The anushtAnam of the mahantha: (the great Ones) is alluded to here . They leave the upAyams that are doubtful regarding their ability to yield phaalan ( SithAsithAn upAyAn apahAya) and seek the BhOgam of seeking refuge in You ( tvadhasAdhaaraNa BhOga SaabhilAshA: Santha:). They develop a way of life that does not focus on anyone except You ( TvadhanyatayA Vrutthim bhajanthi). Unconditional AchArya Bhakthi is referred to here as the preferred way of life of the enlightened Ones ...V.S

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

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Sloka #76

76. PraNamanthi na vA viDhErvipAkAdhya imE ranganarEndhrapAdhukE! thvAm upajAthamanutthamAngamEShAmuBhayEShAmapi chitramutthamAngam

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka what an interesting feat of fate! Those in the world who bow to You and those who do not bow like this, reap the same return that the head becomes fit to be described as "anuthamanga"! (In the former case, it means that there is nothing superior to the head; in the latter case, it means not superior, i.e., inferior head!)

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE ! It is amazing that those , who have the good fortune to wear You on their heads as well as those , who do not have that blessing seem to get the same results. Here Swami Desikan uses the word , "anutthamAngA " to explain this paradox. Head is the Utthama oer superior limb of th body. In the case of the fortunate, wearing the paadhukhAs make their heads "anutthamAngA " because those heads are seen below the PaadhukhAs .In the case of the unfortunate ones not having the good fortune of earing the PaadhukhAs of the Lord on their Utthama angA ( Superior limb or the head ) ,those heads become inferior limbs (anutthamaaangA)of their bodies.

2) Srimadh Andavan anubhavam : The word anuthamAngam has two meanings: the most lofty limb or the lowly limb . Those who wear the PaadhukhAs on their heads have a superior limb and those who do not have heads that are to be characterized as inferior limbs. The inner meaning is that those who seek the holy feet of a SadhAchAryan is to be considered as a puNyasAli and those , who do not have that srEyas are to be considered as inferior in status.

3) Swami Desikan states that the Vidhi VibhAgam ( karma visEsham ) is the determnining factor in seeking refuge at the holy feet of the SadhAchAryan or not . For both of them , Swami Desikan points out in his unique way of double entendre that the UtthamAngam becomes in a strange way anutthamAngam ( ubhayEshAmapi utthamAngam anutthamAngam upajAtham )..V.S

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Sloka #77

77. thava keshavapAdhukE! praBhAvO mama duShkarma cha nanvananthasArE niyamEna thaThApi pashchimasya praThamEnaiva parABhavam prathIma:

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! Your greatness as well as my sin-stock are both infinite in magnitude. But interestingly, the latter can have hope for annihilation from the former only, as a rule always.

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

(1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Here, Swami Desikan plays with the words "anantha saaram ".These words can have a double meaning as in the case of "anutthamAngA " in the previous slOkam . In one intrepretation , "anantha Saaram " means the essence of the glory of AnanthA or Adhi Seshan , who is considered to have taken the form of the Lord's Paadhukhai . Here, Anantha saaram means the majesty of Paadhukhais. In another intrepretation , Ananhta Saaram stands for the limitless strength or the enduring strength of one's accumulated sins.Swami Desikan points out that the similarity between the glory of PaadhukhAs and his heap of sins and concludes that both have limitless attributes. Inspite of their superficial similarity , it is no wonder that the PaadhukhA's limitless power destroys effortlessly " the limitless power " of his sins , when he sinner wears the noble PaadhukhAs on his head .

(2) Srimadh Andavan's anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE ! There are no limits to Your glories and my sins. But, because of your unmatched power , all my sins vanish on contact with You. The inner meaning is that the AchAryA's PrabhAvam chases away even the greatst sins of the most mighty sinner .

(3) Swami Desikan says : Kesava PaadhukhE ! tava prabhAva: mama Dushkarma cha ANANTHASAARE NANU ?Indeed Your PrabhAvam and my transgressions through saasthrOllankanam (Dhushkarama) are limitless in their scope. Even then ( TathApi) , the second one (dhushkarmA )is put to shame ( parAbhavam )by the first one ( your PrabhAvam)and is chased away .The play between the words PrabhAvam and ParAbhavam is splendid indeed ....V.S

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

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Sloka #78

78. asthraBhUShaNathayaIva kEvalam vishvamEthadhaKhilam viBharthi ya: aklamEna maNipAdhukE! thvayA sOpi sheKharathayaIva DhAryathE

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! True that the Lord bears the whole Universe as if its constituents constitute His weapons and ornaments; so trivial is His world-bearing responsibility for Him. But then You bear such a Lord as Your head-ornament, without a trace of strain!(You become Seshi to that Seshi!)

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Oh Gem-studded Paadhukhais of the Lord ! The very same Lord , who has the entire universe and its contents as His weapons and jewelery , becomes the jewelery on Your head. When He wears You ,He becomes like a jewelery to You and thereby Your superiority is revealed by Him .

2) Srimadh Andavan's anubhavam : The Lord of Srirangam bears the entire universe as His AbhAraNams and Aayudhams . Even that magnificent Lord bearing the entire Universe , You carry Him on Your head without much effort .The inner meaning is that the entire world is under the control of the Lord . That Lord is under the control of Swami NammAzhwAr (SatAri ), His Padhukhai.

3) The choice of words to contrast the effort of the Lord in bearing the entire Universe and its contents as Jewelery and weapons and the Paadhukhais holding that Lord effortlessly on its head is beautiful .The Lord's effort is described as "Bibharthi " and the paadhukhai's effortless effort is explained as "DhAryathE ". The Lord bears all the Universe all alone ( Ya: kEvalam akhilam visvam bhibarthi ); Even that mighty Lord of such unparalleled valor , the Paadhukais wears Him on its head like a light lotus flower without effort ( ( sOapi thvayA aklamEna sEkarathayA yEva dhAryathE ).What splendid imagination and skills that the Kavi Simham displays her !..V.S

------------------------------------------------------------------------ Srimate Sri Laksminrisimha Divya Paduka Sevaka Srivan Satakopa Sri Narayana Yatindra Mahadesikaya Nama

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Sloka #79

79. RamapAdhasahaDharamachariNIm pAdhukE! niKhilapAthakacChidham thvAmsheShajagathAmaDhIshvarIm BhAvayAmi BharathADhidevathAm

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! I consider You as the goddess for Bharata; as the dharmic housewife of Rama's feet; as the annihilator of our sins; as the Super-queen for all worlds.

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Oh Raama PaadhukE! You can not be an inanimate object .If you are animate, I deem You to have the feminine gender and serving Rama as His better-half and thereby qualifying as His sahadharma-chaariNi .When You are understood to assume this role as His Dayaa Devi and a co-performer of all of His righteous acts, then , it is easy to relate to the blessings that you confer on those , who seek refuge in You. BharathA is the supreme witness to this phenomenon. He ruled the kingdom of Lord RamachandrA with Your blesisngs , while You exercised Your role as the Lord's sahadharma-chAriNi.

2) Srimadh Andavan's anubhavam : Oh PaadhukhE ! Bharathan worships You. Your Lord travels wearing You on His Thiruvadi. You shine as the Empress of the Universe . You banish all the sins of those , who are Your BhakthAs . Thus , You are like Periya Piraatti . The inner meaning is that the AzhwArs and AchAryALs are like the Devis of PerumAL .

3) The three beautiful tributes paid in this slOkam by Kavi Simham to the Raama Padhukhais are: (1) Raama Paadha Sahadharma-chAriNi (2) nikhila Paadhakac-chidham and (3) asEsha JagathAm adhIsvari . The sacred PaadhukhAi with such glories is described as " Bharatha adhidEvathA " ( the sacred object of worship by Bharatha Swami)..V.S

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Sloka #80

80. chUdAkapAlavyathiShangadhOSham vimochayiShyanniva viShNupadhyA: kruthAdhara: keshavapAdharakshE! biBharthi bAlEndhuviBhUShaNasthvAm

Meaning (translated by Sri. U.Ve. V.N. Vedanta Desikan)

Oh Paaduka! Siva bore You on his head with great relish, in order that Ganga on his head could get relieved of the bad taint acquired to it because of the contact with Brahma's skull (That Siva became holy and auspicious because of Ganga from the Lord Vishnu's feet falling on him is a different story; here Ganga herself is being sanctified.)

Special Notes from Sri. U.Ve. V. Sadagopan

1) UtthamUr Swamy's anubhavam : Oh Kesava PadhukhAs ! You do an important service to Rudran through Your unique kindness. Devi GangA residing in the knotted tresses of Rudran's head originated from Lord VishNu's Paadhams . She now finds herself next to the skull that Rudran wears as a decorative jewelery . Devi GangA begins to worry that she as a remover of every one's sins will no longer be able to do so because of her juxtaposition with an inauspicous object (viz)., BrahmA's skull . Oh PaadhukhE of the Lord ! When Rudran wears You on His head , You dispell the sorrows of GangA Devi .The amangala object , the skull , gets sanctified through contact with You and reaches now an auspicious state equal to that of holy GangA. She sheds her fears of being polluted by the proximity of that skull and breathes easy .

2) Oh PaadhukE ! Lord SivA adorns You with longing on His head. He houses Devi GangA on His head. She resides next to the skull of BrahmA ( Brahma kapAlam ). Does Lord SivA place You on His head to remove the asuddhi arising from the contact with the skull ? The inner meaning of this slOkam is that any dhOsham that comes the way of BhagavathAs can only be eliminated by Sambhandham with other BhagavathAs.

3) Swami Desikan chooses a set of beautiful words to describe Lord SivA : "BaalEndhu VibhUshanan " ( The One who wears the young crescent Moon on His tresses ). He recognizes Devi GangA as " VishNu PadhyA " , the One who arose from the sacred Paadham of Thrivikraman .The GangA Devi who acquired sacredness through sambhandham with the Lord's holy feet has another sambhandham ( Vyathishangam ), while she resides on Lord ChandrasEkaran's head .GangA Devi worries about" Vyathishanga DhOsham " through association as a neighbor with the inauspicious skull .Lord SivA comes now to the rescue of the worried GangA Devi and adorns the PaadhukhAs of His Master , Sri RanganAthA and has the inauspiciousness of the skull banished through sambhandham with the sacred PaadhukhAs ..V.S

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