Vishnu Sahasranama Meaning 86 - 91

Vishnu Sahasranama Meaning 86 - 91

86. Śaraṇaṁ शरणं

He is the ultimate protector, the ultimate sanctuary. Taking shelter in Him gives relief from sufferings and pains. The concept of śaraṇāgati (approach for protection) is considered very important amongst the followers of Viṣṇu.  

Surrender is an important aspect of spiritual path. When a person performs an action without attachment to the fruits of an action, it is known as surrender. Here, the power of ego is overcome by the concept of surrender. By surrendering to the Brahman, one understands his essential nature that was hither to veiled by His projecting power known as māyā.  

Towards the end of Bhagavad Gita (XVIII.65, 66) Kṛṣṇa says, “Fix your mind on Me, worship Me and bow down to Me. By doing so, you will come to Me alone. I promise you. Resigning all dharma, take refuge in Me alone. I shall absolve you of all your sins.” When one surrenders to the Lord, he need not even follow the path of dharma as such a person will have no other thought except the Lord. Such a person walks with Him, eats with Him and sleeps with Him. The one without the other is just not possible. Duality blossoms forth into non-duality.  

87. Śarma शर्म

Śarman means happiness. When this word is used with reference to the Brahman, it means bliss. Brahman is the embodiment of bliss. He is not just the embodiment of bliss alone; He is the embodiment of everything that prevails in the universe. He is also full of anger, rage, pains and miseries. Otherwise, He cannot be omnipresent.  

A jīvanmukta can also be in the state of total bliss. A jīvanmukta is free from fear of death and he is not bound by limitations. He is a liberated person who continues to live merely to wipe out the remains of his karmas. A jīvanmukta always remains in the state of saccidānanda, the eternal bliss.  

Gabriel Pradiipaka explains the state of jīvanmukta thus: “The first obvious difference between a Jīvanmukta and an aspirant occurs when the former remains undisturbed while the latter just cannot. But there is another difference. Even when the Jīvanmukta feels sorry for having had that painful experience (like the rest of human beings do usually), sooner or later Turya emerges and triumphs. A Jīvanmukta lives within the body of his Lord, in the middle of His processes of contraction and expansion. So, here you have him feeling sorry for something, and at the next time you see him and he is full of Joy. For that reason, the scriptures say: "Tajjayati" or "That triumphs". Turya, the state of the Self, always triumphs and overcomes even depression, pain, fear, etc.  

So, the Jīvanmukta lives now like a mere mortal and then like an immortal. He cannot help having pleasant and unpleasant experiences, but his reaction is different. Even when he may react like a mere mortal, in the end Turya appears and shatters his pain. In his case, Turya is more powerful than the external circumstances at the mercy of which his physical body is exposed. He cannot stop behaving like a mere mortal, even though he might act like an immortal now and then. But even after showing how human he is, his Turya is so strong that It will come and snatch his pain from him by force.  

Therefore, people harboring the idea that a Jīvanmukta is like a kind of super human being, unable to feel sorry or pain or fear in all respects, cannot detect the presence of a real Jīvanmukta because he looks so usual. That false idea about Jīvanmukti or Liberation while one is alive was manifested by the Lord for undeserving people not to come near His devotee.  

All in all, Turya can be recovered by a lot of effort in the case of an advanced aspirant, but a Jīvanmukta experiences the emergence of Turya in a pretty autonomous way. It just emerges spontaneously and takes it all! Despite the Jīvanmukta experiences difficulties in his bodily life like the rest of the mortals, Turya always triumphs in his case.”  

88. Viśvaretāḥ विश्वरेताः  

Viśvaretas means the seed of the universe. Viśva literally means universal and retas means seed. Kṛṣṇa beautifully explains this in Bhagavad Gita (XIV.4), “Of all embodied beings, Prakṛti is the Mother, who conceives and I am the seed giving Father.”  

According to Sāṃkhya philosophy, there are two primary aspects of creation. One is the Puruṣa, the masculine energy and another is Prakṛti, the feminine energy. The conjugation between the two causes creation of the universe. Individual puruṣa, which is also known as the individual soul when unites with Prakṛti, an individual being is born.  

This nāma says that Viṣṇu is that Puruṣa, the Brahman. 

89. Prajābhavaḥ प्रजाभवः  

Prajā refers to the subjects of a kingdom. Universe is the God’s kingdom. Bhavaḥ means creation.

He is the cause of creation. The Divine has two aspects; one is the cause and the other is effect. Brahman is the cause and His power of projection known as māyā is the effect. The one who understands that both are the same is jīvanmukta. 

Kṛṣṇa says (Bhagavad Gita X.6) that the entire world has originated from His Will. Ultimately, it is the will of the Brahman that is responsible not only for creation but also for sustenance and absorption of the universe.  

90. Ahaḥ अहः  

Ahar means night and day of twenty four hour period. In this context He is the creator of time factor.  

This nāma also mentions about His Self-luminosity. Brahman alone is Self-illuminating. Other luminaries like sun reflect His light.  

Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad Gita (XVI.16), “Those who set aside ignorance by acquiring true knowledge that shines like the sun, thereby unveiling the Brahman.” Knowledge about the Brahman is always radiant that gets reflected through one’s body, by way of abundant positive energies around him.  

91. Saṁvastsaraḥ संवस्त्सरः

Saṁvastsara refers to a solar year. Sun’s movement from Aries to Pisces, comprising of twelve lunar moths is known as Saṁvastsara. Previous nāma said that He represents twenty four hours of a day and this nāma says that He represents a solar year.  

Typically speaking, these two nāma-s say that He is both tiny and large part of time. This goes well with the concept that Brahman is smaller than the smallest and bigger than the biggest.