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Sri PVP vyakhyanam of Prathama Jitante stotram shlokam 7.

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M.N.Ramanuja • October 16, 2002 


            		Srimate Ramanujaya Nama:

               Sri PeriyaVachchan Pillai tiruvadigaLE sharaNam 


              shrImat kriShNa samAhvAya namO yAmunasUnavE ;

            yatkaTAkShaika lakShyANAm sulabha: shrIdhara: sadA.


7*  kAryANAm kAraNam pUrvam vachasAm vAchyamuttamam.

      yOgAnAm paramAm siddhim paramam tE padam vidu: *


Meaning:: --kAryaNAm -- for all the things that are the effects. --pUrvam 
kAraNam-- as the original cause. --vachasAm-- for all the spoken words. 
--uttamam vAchyam-- as the ultimate target or the best implication. 
--yOgAnAm-- for all the yOgas. --paramAm siddhim-- as the supreme goal. 
--tE-- Your. --paramam padam-- divine feet.  --vidu:-- (the elders) 
understood. 


Introduction:: (kAryANAm kAraNam etc) Having recalled the jnAna and shakti 
mentioned in the previous shlokam, this shlokam says that I should be 
admitted into  paramapadam which is created by His shakti and which 
is  favourable for enjoyment of  God, .  Sri Bhattar used to interpret 
that He is a fit refuge who can bestow the land that is accessible to the 
muktas or the liberated. The other scholars used to opine that this 
shlokam says that one should attain the divine feet of God. 


vyAkhAnam:: (kAryANAm kAraNam purvam) This excludes the mutual cause and 
effect relationships. As in "pradhAna pumsOrajayO: kAraNam kAryabhUtayO:" 
even the prakriti and puruSha, in relation to the God, become His effects 
only.  As in "yata: prasUtA jagata: prasUtI toyEna jIvAn visasarja 
bhUmyAm", the secondary causes prakriti and puruSha in turn caused 'mahat' 
'ahankAra' etc. From them followed the 'anDams' or the galaxies. From the 
brahmA who resides in that 'anDam' as the cause, came the four types of 
creatures like devas etc, and their enjoyables, enjoying implements and 
the enjoying places (bhogya bhogopakaraNa bhogasthAna). Thus, for all the 
multitude of secondary and tertiary causes, the sarveshvara stands as the 
primary cause. 

(kAryANAm kAraNam) when this is interpreted to mean a special place 
(paramapadam) instead of feet, then just as prakriti is an eternal 
qualification for the God, and therefore it was named as the cause of the 
universe,  so also,  paramapadam being His eternal qualification, and 
existing earlier, can be indicated as the primary cause. This states the 
eternality of the  paramapadam. This is seen from quotations like 
"tadakSharE paramE vyOman"   and "kalangAp peru naharam". 


(vachasAm vAchyam uttamam) For all the words that are laukikam (worldly) 
and vaidikam (religious and ritualistic) the prime indication is the God. 
Consider  quotations like "anEna jIvEnAtmanA anupravishya nAmarUpE 
vyAkaravANi", "tatsrushTvA tadEvAnuprAvishat", "satyanchAnritancha 
satyamabhavat" for supporting this. The brahmasUtram "charAchara 
vyapAshrayastu syAttadvyapadEshO bhAkta: tadbhAva bhAvitvAt"  also says 
that God alone is the primary indication of all words. Therefore, among 
the created things, including the various worshippable gods, including the 
worshipper human beings and including all the fauna and flora (tiryak 
sthAvara) which are the worshipping implements, the God resides as the 
in-dwelling divine soul. 

When (vachasAm vAchyamuttamam) is taken to point to a place, then it 
indicates  the greatness and primordealness of the paramapadam as seen in 
"paramE vyOman" and "tani yulaku". 

(yogAnam paramAm siddhim) Yogas like jnAnayoga bhaktiyoga etc are also 
employed as means for liberation. It is distinct from the "liberation from 
samsara" which is bestowed by the grace of the Lord Himself as seen in 
"tvAmEva sharaNam prApya nistaranti manIShiNa:". This points to the divine 
feet which are unlimitedly enjoyable. Besides, the place is also 
unlimitedly enjoyable as in "nalam antamilladOr nAdu". 

(tE paramam padam)  The feet and/or the abode of incomparable enjoyability 
(niratishaya bhogyam) of that Lord who is the cause of all, who is 
indicated by all words, and who is attainable by all the means is meant by 
the word "paramam padam". 

(vidu:) people who excelled in knowledge, have understood so. Those who 
have understood that there exists a land which is eternal, superior to 
prakriti, and is excessively enjoyable, and that in that land, as in 
"shriyA sArdham jagatpati: ...AstE", He resides with an excellent, 
magnificent, special form,  are really knowers of everything that is  to 
be known, and have verily grasped, as a fruit on hand, the summary purport 
of all vedantas.   Seeing the smallness of an aspirant and His own 
autocracy (svAtantryam),  He bestows without being asked for, the 
specialities of this world in order to allow him to go there (paramapadam) 
after knowing his intentions. As an example, if one has a lemon in his 
hand and another extols the virtues of that lemon, then the first one, if 
he were liberal, would give away that lemon to the other, knowing his 
intentions.   

     If the frst slokam is the summary, then this slokam is the 
description of the word "mahApuruSha". 


.....contd.


Adiyen Ramanuja dasan

Ramanuja



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