Sri Visnu Sahasranama

SRI

VISHNU SAHASRANAMA

with Text,

Transliteration, Translation and

commentary of

ṠRĪ ṠANKARĀCĀRYA

Translated into English

BY

SWAMI TAPASYANANDA

SRI RAMAKRISHNA MATH

16, Ramakrishna Math Road,

Mylapore, MADRAS-600 004.

Published by

Adhyaksha

Sri Ramakrishna Math

Mylapore, Chennai-4

© Sri Ramakrishna Math, Chennai

All rights reserved

XIX-2M 3C-2-2013

ISBN 81-7120-420-1

Printed in India at

Sri Ramakrishna Math Printing Press

Mylapore, Chennai-4

PUBLISHER’S NOTE

We have great pleasure in presenting to our readers the great Vishnu Sahasranama Stotra with the translation of Sri Sankaracharya’s Commentary. This litany of a thousand names of Vishnu, far from being sectarian, brings out the universality of the Divine and so is eminently fit to be chanted by every one, irrespective of the religious denomination to which he or she belongs. One of the meanings of the word Vishnu is all-pervasive, and the Vishnu Sahasranama aims to bring the devotee closer to the Ultimate Reality that is at once Personal and Impersonal. The very fact that Sri Sankaracharya, who always soars in the empyrean of Non-duality, has chosen to write an elaborate commentary on this Sahasranama is proof positive, if proof were needed, of its magnificence and profundity. When the Divine appellations are chanted with an understanding of their deep implications, their sweetness is all the greater. We wish our readers all the peace, power and plenty that come from reciting these hallowed names.

The hyphenising of the words in Devnagri script is done only to make the reading easy for those who are not familiar with Sanskrit. The words thus connected are to be read as single expressions.

Sri Ramakrishna Math

PUBLISHER

Madras-600 004

September, 1986

KEY TO TRANSLITERATION AND PRONUNCIATION

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Contents

Publisher’s Note

Key to Transliteration and Pronunciation

Introduction

  I. MEDITATION ON VISṆU

 II. INTRODUCTORY VERSES

III. VIṢṆU SAHASRA NAMA STOTRAM

IV. CONCLUDING VERSES

 V. ŚRĪ SANKARĀCĀRYA’S COMMENTARY ON VIṢṆU-SAHASRA-NĀMA

Slokas

INTRODUCTION

The chanting of the Nāma or the Divine name has an important place in the disciplines advocated by the Bhakti tradition. This adoration of the Divine by the name takes two forms—Japa and Stotra. Japa is the silent repetition generally of a single divine name or of a Mantra which may also be a long formula. The Stotra, however, is invariably uttered aloud, and it may consist in chanting verses conveying the glory and attributes of the Divine. The Sahasranāma is perhaps the most popular and the holiest form of Stotras among devotees.

The word Sahasranāma means the thousand names of the Lord. According to the Vedic tradition there is only one manifesting sound (Śabda) indicative of the Supreme Being (Para-Brahman), and that is called ‘Om’, as far as the human ears could capture it. Just as that one Para-Brahman is adored as manifesting in the form of many Deities, the one name Om, indicative of Him, also takes the form of innumerable sound forms representing Divine attributes and other excellences. Sahasranāma is perhaps the most extensive elaboration of the Divine Name. This is a special feature of Hindu devotional practice, unknown to other religions which invoke the Supreme Being by one name only.

It may be asked what devotional purpose the elaboration of Names serves. Inward concentration is the essence of devotional practice, but inward concentration is also the most difficult to practise. Even a great man like Arjuna says to Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the Gītā (6.34) The mind is fickle, turbulent, powerful and unyielding. To control and concentrate it is as difficult as controlling the wind itself. So aspirants treading the path of devotion are given practices of varying subtlety for communion with the Divine. Concentrated meditation is the highest form of communion, Japa comes next; and Stotra and external worship come still after. While meditation and Japa can be done only very imperfectly by the majority of men, Stotra and external worship can be practised much more successfully and with greater devotional satisfaction. Hence the importance of Stotra in devotional practice.

Loud invocation of the Divine may take the shape of Kīrtana, which is singing songs conveying the names and attributes of the Deity by a group of people. But a Stotra is not set to music; it consists in chanting aloud verses in praise of the Deity, mostly by individuals alone or sometimes in the company of a few. The Sahasranāma Stotra, the thousand named praise of the Divine, is a special form of this kind of devotional composition. Every Sahsranāma Stotra is an invocation of a particular cult Deity, and the names strung together into verses in it will briefly indicate the philosophical, theological and ritualistic doctrines of the cult as also the world-saving exploits of that Deity elaborately dealt with in the Purāṇas and other cult literature. A Stotra has six characteristics—salutation, benediction, statement of the doctrine, praise of the Deity and His attributes, description of His valour, form and deeds, and prayer. While in the elaborate Stotras, which often take the shape of long literary pieces, these features can be clearly seen, in the Sahasranāma Stotra too these are brought out through the selection of meaningful names that are strung together into verses.

While there are Sahasranāma Stotras in praise of most of the Deities of the Hindu pantheon, two of them have attained great popularity and form parts of the devotional programmes of the worship of the Deities to whom they are related. These are Lalitā-sahasranāma in praise of the Deity as the Divine Mother and Viṣṇu-sahasranāma in praise of the Lord conceived as Viṣṇu. The latter forms the Text dealt with in this book.

Viṣṇu-sahasranāma is a part of the Śānti Parva of the Mahābhārata. Tradition says that it was composed by Sanaka, one of the Kumāras (eternally living Youths) and was transmitted to Bhīṣma who recited it in the presence of Śrī Kṛṣṇa to the Pāṇḍava brothers when he was questioned by Yudhiṣṭhira: Who is that Being who is the supreme Lord of all, who is the sole refuge of all and by praising and worshipping whom man gains what is good and attains to salvation? The thousand names of Viṣṇu is the answer that Bhīsma gives to this enquiry.

Besides its inherent quality, the importance of the Stotra is enhanced a hundredfold by the fact that no less a personage than the great Śrī Śaṅkarācārya thought it worthwhile to write a commentary on it, expounding the meanings of the various names that find a place in it. An interesting tradition has something to say on how Śrī Śaṅkara came to write his commentary. It seems Śrī śaṅkara wanted at first to write a commentary on the Lalitā-Sahasra-nāma and asked a disciple to fetch the text of the Sahasranāma. He brought Viṣṇu-sahasra-nāma. Twice this was repeated and then the Ācārya heard a disembodied voice asking him to comment on this text. A tradition of this type is the way in which the Paurāṇikas expressed the importance of the text with telling effect.

Today of all Sahasranāmas, the Viṣṇu-sahasranāma is known as ‘the Sahasranama’. It is the most widely chanted by people in all stations of life, and besides there are cassettes made of it as rendered by well-known artistes. According to orthodox Hindu tradition, a devotee should daily chant the Upaniṣad pertaining to his Śākhā, the Gītā, Rudram, Puruṣasūkta and Viṣṇu-sahasranāma. It is believed that if he cannot do all this on any day, chanting Viṣṇu-Sahasranāma alone is sufficient. It is open to all to chant it, without any distinction of caste, creed or sex. It can be chanted at any time and no special rituals are obligatory on one chanting it. It is also interesting to note that in some parts of India students are asked to learn by heart the Viṣṇu-sahasranāma when they begin Sanskrit studies.

MEDITATION ON VISṆU

1. ॐ शुक्लाम्बरधरं विष्णुं शशिवर्णं चतुर्भुजम् ।

प्रसन्नवदनं ध्यायेत् सर्वविघ्नोपशान्तये ।।

Oṁ Śuklāṁbara-dharaṁ Viṣṇuṁ Śaśivarṇaṁ catur-bhujam prasanna-vadanaṁ dhyāyet sarva-vighn’ opaśāntaye.

1. For the eradication of all obstructions, I meditate on Visṇu who has white wearing cloth, who is of the colour of the moon, who has four arms and who has a placid expression in His face.

2. शान्ताकारं भुजगशयनं पद्मनाभं सुरेशं

विश्वाधारं गगनसदृशं मेघवर्णं शुभाङ्गम् ।

लक्ष्मीकान्तं कमलनयनं योगिभिर्ध्यानगम्यं ।

वन्दे विष्णुं भवभयहरं सर्वलोकैकनाथम् ।।

Śānt’ākāraṁ bhujaga-śayanaṁ padmanābhaṁ sureśaṁ viśv’ ādhāraṁ gagana-sadṛśaṁ megha-varṇaṁ śubh’āṅgam Lakṣmī-kāntaṁ kamala-nayanaṁ yogibhir dhyāna-gamyaṁ vande Viṣṇuṁ bhava-bhaya-haraṁ sarva-lok’aika-nātham.

2. I salute Viṣṇu, the sole master of the universe, whose presence is very peaceful, who stretches Himself on a serpent-bed, who sports a lotus in His navel, who is the one lord of all the Devas, who is the support of the worlds, who is subtle and all-pervading like the sky, whose complexion is like that of the clouds, whose form is very beautiful, who is the consort of Śri, whose eyes are like lotus petals, who is meditated upon by Yogis and who eradicates the fear of Saṁsāra.

3. सशंख-चक्रं सकिरीट-कुण्डलं

सपीतवस्त्रं सरसीरुहेक्षणम् ।

सहार-वक्षःस्थल-कौस्तुभ श्रियं

नमामि विष्णुं शिरसा चतुर्भुजम् ।।

Saśaṁkha-cakraṁ sakirīṭa-kuṇḍalaṁ

sapīta-vastraṁ sarasīruh’ekṣaṇam

sahāra-vakṣaḥsthala-kaustubha-śriyaṁ

namāmi Viṣṇuṁ śirasā catur-bhujam.

3. I bow down my head before the four-handed Viṣṇu who sports in His hand the Śaṅkha and the discus, who is adorned with a crown and ear-pendants, who wears a yellow cloth, whose eyes resemble a