A question was posed to me.,
'Please tell, from where "suklambaradaram Vishnum....." manthram is taken sir, I am not getting its source."
-----------------------
शूक्लाम्बरधरं विष्णुं शशिवर्णं चतुर्भुजं ।
प्रसन्नवदनं ध्यायेत् सर्वविघ्नोपशान्तये।।
My thoughts on it..
It is not a vedic mantram.. but the mantram is chanted almost everywhere in India.. as a respect to the God of obstacles..
Even the start of Vishnusahasranamam is with that mantram.. but the original chapter in mahabharatham where Bheesham recited Vishnusahasranamam does not contrain this mantram.
It is not possible to trace the source of every mantram.. in a language which has evolved for more than 5000 years..
There is even difference of opinion about the deity to whom the mantram is addressed..
The Smarthas and Shaivaites and even Shakthas would state that this mantram denotes Ganesha,, or Vigneshvara..
And meaning
Let us meditate on the deity who is clad in white clothes,
who pervades all the universe,
who is of the colour of the bright moon,
who is having four arms,
who is having a pleasant face ( some say prasanna indicates an elephant but this claim is not substantiated'.. prasanna can mean pleasant, and also very wide and big )...
We meditate upon him so that he will remove or set at nought all the obstacles..
The vaishnavas interpret this mantram as
Let us meditate on the deity who is clad in white clothes,
who is the Vishnu who pervades all the universe,
who is of the colour of the bright moon,
who is having four arms,
who is having a pleasant face
We meditate upon him so that he will remove or set at nought all the obstacles
Both interpretations are equally valuable..
For Vasihnavites, Vishvaksena the commander in chief of the Vaishnavite army is the deity having the face of an elephant.. He is only subservient to Vishnu the Narayana
This mantram ( shuklambaradharam) is in circulation for perhaps 3000 to 4000 years and is found in many holy texts.. and palm manuscripts.. But who can say as to who discovered this mantram or who recited it first.. or to which text it belongs?
No comments:
Post a Comment