shlokArtha shAbdika vyAkhyAnam: Linguistic interpretation of shlokas

[sarma-61]

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Now in the Vishnu Sahasranama the second shloka is:

yasya dwirada vaktrAdyAH pAriShdyAH parashshatam|
vighnaM nighnanti satatam viShwaksenam tam Ashraye||

Here Vishvaksena is considered as the Chief of the ViShnu pArShadIyas as is Ganapati= Vighneshwara- the Chief of Rudra gaNas. Here if one takes ViShvaksena to be the Protector of the Universe and dwirada vaktra = Elephant-faced God as a pArshadIya of ViShnu then one could relate this first shloka to Vinayaka. In the ShriVaiShnavaite tradition however ViShvaksena is worshipped as the "vighna harta". This is not the practice by other sampradayas. But in the Vishnu Sahasranama the word Vishvaksena occurs as a "nama" of the Lord. If that is given consideration then with dwirada vaktra as Adya(The First deity) things fit well, and Vighneshwara could be considered as being parised in the shuklambaradharam shloka!

Shri Viswamitra (gAdhi's sUnu) sir,

The word in the second verse is dwiradavaktrAdyAh, and not dwiradavaktrAdyah. This makes a difference in sense. The former means, imho, starting with dwiradavaktra (hundreds of pArshadas of Vishvaksena are destroying obstacles, and so on.) The sense you try to read into, will be there only if it was the latter word used. Now the question is, which is the authentic version?

 

[Gadhisunu8]

Correction suggested

Dear sarma-61,
I do not know where I have spelt the word quoted by you as dwiradavaktrAdyaH. I checked my input of shloka in your quote. I see that it is spelt as dwiradavaktrAdyAH and I think this is the right word. The other word would get a saMdhi split as dwirada-vaktrAt- yaH which wouldn't fit into any semantic structure. In that shloka everything that is connected is in plural. The parsing(anvaya) of the shloka would be as follows:

yasya, dwiradavaktrAdyAH parashshatam pAriShadyAH satataM vighnaM nighnanti, tam viShvaksenam (aham) Ashraye |

The sentential form that could emerge would be: taM viShvaksenam aham Ashraye, yasya dwiradavaktrAdyAH parashshatam pAriShadyAH satataM vighnaM nighnanti |

I take refuge in that viShvaksena[Protector of the Universe] whose, over a hundred "councillors" lead by the elephant faced Lord(Vighneshwara) are ever dissolving all the obstacles that could arise.

This gives us the idea that there are always obstacles to any good happening in this world. But then there is array of Obstacle -busters who are ever ready active abnd effective in neutralizing them. The army of them is lead by Vighneshwara.

The original text of VS in MB starts only from "yasya smarana mAtreNa...." But then in daily pArAyaNas many other shlokas have been pre-and post-fixed. And a Prayer to viShvaksena I have seen only in VS South Indian recension of VS.

Gadhisunu8

 

[Gadhisunu8]

And kudos for figuring out Gadhisunu as Viswamitra. Well Viswamitra is not my gotram. I respect Vishwamitra because <1> He achieved his BrahmarShihood by kaDina-uzhaippu and <2> He had all those weaknesses taht any ordinary man would have yet he overcame them to be among the saptarShis! It is deference to his uniqueness that I have chosen his name as my Screen Name.

 

[Gadhisunu8]

It is really sad that the Iyengar priest is not able to see that shivo'ham shivo' ham has nothing to do with Lord shiva the "Image" conceived for the concept of shiva= auspiciousness/goodness.

The reason why the realised "aham" strictly speaking the vanished aham is identified with brahman in The Vedas as in aham brahmAsmi is identified with the word shiva rather than viShNu apart from the musical simplicity of shivo'ham as against the possibility viShNuraham is because among the Vedic Rituals in rudrabhiShechan vidhi only the Acharya Bodhayana rules that arudro rudraM na archayet! One must become rudra before he performs rudrArchanA! In (Sri)vaiShNava matam it is always dAsabhAva that is projected as the right approach to worship. You could tell the priest that goes against the grain of Srivaishnavaite thinking. This si very imteresting subject, that can be blogged independently.

 

[sarma-61]

Dear sarma-61,
I do not know where I have spelt the word quoted by you as dwiradavaktrAdyaH. I checked my input of shloka in your quote. I see that it is spelt as dwiradavaktrAdyAH and I think this is the right word. The other word would get a saMdhi split as dwirada-vaktrAt- yaH which wouldn't fit into any semantic structure. In that shloka everything that is connected is in plural. The parsing(anvaya) of the shloka would be as follows:

yasya, dwiradavaktrAdyAH parashshatam pAriShadyAH satataM vighnaM nighnanti, tam viShvaksenam (aham) Ashraye |

The sentential form that could emerge would be: taM viShvaksenam aham Ashraye, yasya dwiradavaktrAdyAH parashshatam pAriShadyAH satataM vighnaM nighnanti |

I take refuge in that viShvaksena[Protector of the Universe] whose, over a hundred "councillors" lead by the elephant faced Lord(Vighneshwara) are ever dissolving all the obstacles that could arise.

This gives us the idea that there are always obstacles to any good happening in this world. But then there is array of Obstacle -busters who are ever ready active abnd effective in neutralizing them. The army of them is lead by Vighneshwara.

The original text of VS in MB starts only from "yasya smarana mAtreNa...." But then in daily pArAyaNas many other shlokas have been pre-and post-fixed. And a Prayer to viShvaksena I have seen only in VS South Indian recension of VS.

Gadhisunu8

Sir,

dviradavaktrAdyAh is the word in question. To me it means "beginning with dviradavaktra". Secondly, pArshadyAh will mean retinue, something like followers and not consultants or peers as envisaged by the use of the word "councillors".

 

[sarma-61]

Shri GS sir,

The other word would get a saMdhi split as dwirada-vaktrAt- yaH which wouldn't fit into any semantic structure. In that shloka everything that is connected is in plural. The parsing(anvaya) of the shloka would be as follows:

Its vigraha will not be dwirada-vaktrAt- yaH but dvi - rada - vaktra - AdyAh. You may be able to provide the meaning.

If we simply say Adya, it is - as you have written - "with dviadavaktra as first", the word being masculine, singular, nominative (like रामः). But when it is आद्याः, it becomes nominative plural, meaning all of the parassatam pArshadAh as equal, like rAmAh (ராமன்மார்கள்).

 

[sarma-61]

kara - agre = In the tip of the hand - this points to the use of the tip of the hands to count and distribute/store etc.. money;

vasate = vasa dhAtu meaning "to live" is bhvAdi gaNa pasmaipadI; vasa AchChAdane adAdi dhatu means "to cover" is Atmanepadi; the Pp-Ekavachana should be "vaste" ;
then there is one 'vasa' in churAdi gaNa that means oily/cut/thieving which is ubhayapadi;


Going by the meaning that fits here and the form that is used only bhvAdi dhAtu fits but that is again wrongly conjugated as an AP. It should have been "vasati". But that would make Chndobhanga, so plausible expalnation is the poet/bhakta has violated/sacrificed/compromised vyAkaraNa to fit Chhandas and has used the Atmanepada form.

viduShAM vashaMvadaH
Gadhisnu8

Is AP usage wrong here? Since the sloka is recited for oneself (looking at one's own palms and touching the appropriate points with the tips of the thumbs/forefingers, the aim is for reminding one's own self about it. Is it not?

 

[S.Narasimhan]

In vaishnava tradition vishavksena is invoked for removal of vighnas. The sloka is as below: यस्य द्विरदवक्त्राद्या पारिषद्या परश्शतं विघ्नं निघ्नन्ति सततं विष्वक्सेनं तमाश्रये. Vaishnavas invoke vishvaksena for removal of hurdles.

 

[Gadhisunu8]

karAgre...

Is AP usage wrong here? Since the sloka is recited for oneself (looking at one's own palms and touching the appropriate points with the tips of the thumbs/forefingers, the aim is for reminding one's own self about it. Is it not?

No, Use of AP is not wrong. But vasa dhatu is only PP. If it were a UP there would be both the forms and one could, without sacrificing vyAkaraNa take AP usage to be right. Instead suppose labhate were to have been used, then formal and to some extent semantic correctness would have been there.

GS

 

[Gadhisunu8]

Shri GS sir,



Its vigraha will not be dwirada-vaktrAt- yaH but dvi - rada - vaktra - AdyAh. You may be able to provide the meaning.

If we simply say Adya, it is - as you have written - "with dviadavaktra as first", the word being masculine, singular, nominative (like रामः). But when it is आद्याः, it becomes nominative plural, meaning all of the parassatam pArshadAh as equal, like rAmAh (ராமன்மார்கள்).

यस्य द्विरदवक्त्राद्याः पारिषद्याः परश्शतम् ।
विघ्नं निघ्नन्ति सततं विष्वक्सेनं तमाश्रये ॥
अन्वयः - यस्य(६-१) द्विरदवक्त्र+आद्याः{द्विरदवक्त्रः(गजमुखः)(१-१) आद्यः(१-१) येषां ते- बहुव्रीहिः} परश्शतं (अव्ययीभवसमास) पारिष्द्याः(१-३) सततं (अव्ययम्) विघ्नं (२-१) निघ्नन्ति(प्र.पु.-ब) तं(सर्व० २-१) आश्रये (आ०प० उ०ए०)॥
अहं तं विश्वक्सेनं शरणं यामि यस्य गजमुखादय: शताधिकाः पार्षदीयाः सदा विघ्नान् निघ्नन्ति।

Just to give you an idea about what I had meant I have put it entirely in Sanskrit. I hope I have clarified my point.

 

[Gadhisunu8]

yasyadwiradavaktrAdyAH..

In vaishnava tradition vishavksena is invoked for removal of vighnas. The sloka is as below: यस्य द्विरदवक्त्राद्या पारिषद्या परश्शतं विघ्नं निघ्नन्ति सततं विष्वक्सेनं तमाश्रये. Vaishnavas invoke vishvaksena for removal of hurdles.

Shri Narasimhan, what this shloka means and the ShrivaiShNavaite tradition of doing ViShvaksena puja for stoppage/removal/busting of hurdles is known. I would like you to enlighten me where in The Vedas(4 recognized by all), Smritis(19 Principal ones recognized by all), or Puranas 18(recognized by all) is this traditional worship of ViShvaksena originates? As known to me the epithet ViShvaksena occurs in the VS where it is taken to refer to Lord ViShNu.

 

[Gadhisunu8]

You are right sarma-61, dviradavaktrAdAH = dvirada-vaktra+AdyaH- dviradavaktra Adyah yeSham te dviradavaktrAdyaH the plural applies to pAriShadyaH = belonging to the pariShad; I used councillors in a loose way I wasn't able to think of an appropriate English word, quickly. You are right again!

I feel viShvaksena is a SrivaiShanvaite fixation for Obstacle- Buster but I want to know which standard purANa talks of viShvaksena as different from viShNu? That he is some viShNu-pAShdIya like say Veerabhadra or kAlabhairava in the Saiva Tradition. Adi Shankara has taken ViShvaksena to mean "The Protector of the Universe and put it as an epithet for The Lord Himself.

I would love to see someone quote from Parashara Bhattar's commentary on the VS how or what sources he quotes for the nama ViShvaksena!


Gadhisunu