charamasloka churukku

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charamasloka churukku

Introduction

Prabhandham entitled : "Charama SlOka Churukku".
This Prabahndham consists of 11 Paasurams summarizing
the many meanings of GeethAchAryan's Charama SlOkam .
The entire Prabhandham is constructed in KattaLai KalitthuRai
metre of Tamil poetry .

In the battle field of KurukshEthram , Arjuna saw
in front of him the assembly of his close relatives and
AchAryAs ready to engage in war. Arjuna concluded that
they will be killed by him during the battle to ensue.
He got discouraged over the thought of the Paapam that
will be acquired by him , when he had to kill them as his
enemies in the combat. He looked at His SarAthy , Bhagavan
KrishNa , fell at His feet and begged the Lord to instruct him on
what is the right course of action( hitham) .

Lord PaarTasArathy took pity on the confused Arjun and performed
UpadEsam through the medium of Bhagavath GeethA on the eternal
svaroopam ( nature) of AathmA , Karma-Jn~Ana yOgams and Bhakthi
yOgam with its angams , which can directly grant  MOksham .
Arjunan was still disturbed about the difficulties in practising
Bhakthi yOgam as upAyam for Moksham and the enormously
long time it takes to yield the desired Phalan of Moksham.

On sizing up the mental agitation of His friend Arjuna ,
the Lord taught him the easy to practise and swift fruit
yielding Prapathti Yogam for gaining Moksham and
concluded Bhagavath GeethA . The SlOkam describing
Prapathti yOgam and its performance is called the Charama
SlOkam .It has many special meanings and therefore it is
included as the third and final rahasyam for VaishNavAs.

Swamy  Desikan's Prabhandham compiles the shorter
version of the meanings of Charama SlOkam and therefore
it is called "Churukku " compared to the Charama SlOka
adhikAram hosed in SrImath Rahasya Thraya Saaram ,
which is a  more elaborate treatment of this Rahasyam.

The charama slOkma is :

Sarva dharmAn parithyajya Maam yEkam SaraNam vraja
aham thvA sarva paapEya: mokshayishyAmi maa sucha :

Architectonics of this prabhandham
*****************************
In the first Paasuram , the entire meaning of Charama
slOkam is given in a condensed form .The remaining
ten Paasurams cover respectively :

(1) Sarva DharmAn Parithyajya
(2) Maam
(3) yEkam
(4) SaraNam
(5) vraja
(6) aham
(7) ThvA
(8) Sarva-PaapEya:
(9) MokshayishyAmi
(10) Maa Sucha:

Slokas

Commentary

315. The Full Meaning of Charama SlOkam
***********************************
kallAr ahalum karumamum Jn~Anamum Kaathalum
maRREllA nilaihaLukku yERppa vidhittha kirisaihaLum
vallAr muyalha vali izhanthAr YenRanai thozhuha yenRu
yellA dharumamum  uraitthavan innadi sErnthanamE (1)

(Meaning ): Only those, who have mastered SaashtrAs and acquired
visEsha Jn~Anam can practise successfully Karma yOgam , Jn~Ana
yOgam and Bhakthi yOgam. Others will conclude after their difficulties
in practising these yOgams that they are not for them and will drop out
in their quest for MOksahm. " As a result , the above three yOgams are
recommended for the knowledgable and competent ones in Saasthrams
and SaasthrArTams. All the others, who are overwhelmed by their
deficiencies are instructed to approach Me and surrender unto Me.
I will stand in the place of all these difficult upAyams and  grant them
the fruits of Moksham . There is no reason for the asakthAs (powerless)
to grieve anymore after their   SaraNAgathy to Me" . This is the full
meaning of
the Charama slOkam blessed to us by the Lord using Arjuna as a VyAjam
(excuse) for His upadEsam .

The key words here are:  " VallAr Muyalha ; vali izhanthAr YenRanai Thozhuha
".
( May the competent ones in SaasthrAs use the UpAyam of diificult Bhakthi
Yogam ; others , who feel disheartened over the steep path of  the tardy
Bhakthi
yOgam and feel powerless as a aresult , May they perform SaraNAgathy to Me
and
seek My protection and I will readily offer them the fruits of the difficult
Bhakthi
and other yOgamsthrough the Prapathti yOgam that they practised so easily .
There are no more worries for them ). GeethAchAryan is saluted by Swamy
Desikan
here as " yellaa dharumamum uraitthavan " ( KaNNan , who performed upadEsam
on all the dharmams ). Swamy  Desikan concludes this Paasuram by performing
his own SaraNAgathy ( " innadi sErnthanamE ).

316. The SIX MEANINGS of "Sarva DharmAn Parithyajya "
************************************************
veRumai uNarnthu munnittu vERu angam illai yenak-
kuRiyavan inn uRavu yettak-kuRitthidum kONai thuRanthu
uRum ayan atthiram yennap-poRA nilai Ohrnthida
Ohr aRa neRi anRu uraitthAn azhiyA aRamAyinananE(2)

The meaning of "Sarva DharmAn Parithyajya" is the abandoining of all
upAyams .Here , Dharmam is a saadhanam ( dedicated effort) to gain
Phalans with the help of prescribed Saasthrams . "Dharmaan" is plural
and therefore it refers to the many Dharmams /UpAyams.The Sarva padham
points out the nature of Dharmam with many angams ( branches, limbs).
Although the Dharma Padham generally refers to an UpAyam , here
it refers specifically to the UpAyam for gaining Moksham .That in this
context is Bhakthi Yogam with all its angams(features).

The Six Meanings of "Sarva DharmAn "
*******************************
1) The reference here is to the powerlessness and consequent
incapabilities of the ChEthanam , who for aeons has lost track of
the ways for his/her upliftment and recognizes his/her serious
deficencies in undertaking Bhakthi yOgam and other UpAyams
and as a result stays paralyzed .The adhikAri (ChEthanan) , who
is unable to perform Prapatthi is indicated here as the first
intrepretation . The Paasuram passage , " veRumai uNarnthu"
connects to this meaning. VeRumai means incapability to gain
the sought after phalan of Moksham because of lack of power
to pursue the upAyam of Bhakthi yOgam and the like.

2) The Paasuram passage " athu munnittu " yields the second
meaning. Here the emphasis is on the aakinchanyam , the poverty
of upAyam as a result of all upAyams abandoning the adhikAri.
Based on the awareness of  "VeRumai " and driven by that knowledge
of insufficencies is the meaning of "athu munnittu" .The word "athu " is
connected to veRumai and the anushtAnam of VeRumai , the observance of
no upAyam is implied. This status of the Jeevan is called "KaarpaNyam "
in SaraNAgathy Saasthram.

3) The Paasuram passage , " vERangam ilai yena" develops the third
meaning for "Sarva DharmAn Parithyajya". Prapatthi has no additional
angams beyond the five ( aanukoolya Sankalpam , PrAthikoolya Varjanam ,
Gopthruva VaraNam , KaarpaNyam & MahA Viswaasam ). Bhakthi yOgam
in contrast has additional limiitng  angams such as VarNAsrama dharmam
to observe . Prapatthi is not dependent therefore on other angams beyond
the five . This is what is meant by " vERu angam ilai ".

4) "KuLLan inn uRavu yetta kONai thuRanthu " passage of the Paasuram:
This second line of this Paasuram refers to the impossible attempt of a
dwarf
jumping up and down to reach the honey comb situated at the top of a tall
tree. However much he may try , it will be beyond his reach. He gets
frustrated over his vain efforts.The comparison is to the ineffective
efforts to
the practise of Bhakthi yOgam , which is beyond the reach of most
chEthanams because of the rigors involved . The condensed meaning here
is the stopping of the futile effort to accomplish the impossible due to
major deficencies in one's spiritual arsenal (wherewithall) .

5. The same second line of the Paasuram also has another level of meaning.
This relates to the cessation of efforts to chase after the impossible .
It is similar to the effort to hang on to a little blade of grass on the
bank of
a  flooding river to save oneself  from drowning. The pursuit of Bhakthi
yOgam for gaining Moksham is one such impossible effort for most of us.

6. The third line of this Paasuram refers to BrahmAsthra NyAyam in
the context of pursuit of the easy-to-perform Prapatthi yOgam.
When one chooses the Prapatthi maargam that is done in a second
( KashaNa karthavyam) very easily , there should not be any pursuit
of other upAyams because of lingering doubts about the efficacy of
Prapatthi yOgam in delivering the desired goal of MOksham. If such
admixture takes place , then the attempted prapatthi would be laid to
waste. The situation is like BrahmAsthra prayOgam . If one doubts
the power of BrahmAstham and sends another asthram to reinforce it
out of ignorance, the BrahmAsthram will cease its protection and only
harm can result.

The Sanskrit slOkam quoted by Vaikunta Vaasi U.Ve Oppiliappan
Koil SrI SrIrAma DesikAcchAr Swamy in this contxt is:

athO asakthAdhikArathvam aakinchanya-puraskriyA
anangabhAvO dharmANAm asakyArambhavAraNam
tathprathyAsaa-prasamanam BrahmAsthra nyAya soochanam
Sarva dharma parithyAga sabdhArTaa: Saadhu sammatha:

This is the accepted list of six meanings by the pious says this
slOkam .The SaraNAgathy Gadhyam passages of AchArya
RaamAnuja dealing with KaarpaNyam , aakinchanyam have to
be reflected upon in the context of this Paasuram .

 317. The meaning of " Maam " in Charama SlOkam
****************************************
Vaarithi vittu malar mahaLOdu Mathurai vanthu
BhAratha vemm samar PaarmahaL BhAram seha uhanthu
SaarathiyAi munpu ThUthanumAi taLarum Visayan
tErathil ninRu avanait-tERRinAn tiRam aayinamE

(Meaning): SarvEswaran as GeethAchAryan points out
His Dhivya MangaLa Vigraham for us as He says "Maam ".
Through that gesture , GeethAchAryan reveals four of His
divine attributes : Vaathsalyam , SwAmithvam , Souseelyam
and Soulabhyam .

1. Vaathsalyam is the DayA ( KaruNai ) of the Lord ,
which overlooks the trespasses of the chEthanams and
makes Him accept them . Lord responded to the enemies of
the PaaNDavAs with this guNam first and then consoled Arjuna ,
who was deluded about the proper dharmam for KshathriyAs
with upadEsam on Arjuna's proper conduct .

2. SwAmithvam: This is the GuNam revealed in the meanings of
PraNavam and the relationship of ours to Him as our unconditional
Lord and Swamy .  This guNam was revealed by the Lord , when He
instructed us that there is no one , who is equal or superior to Him .

3. Souseelyam: The GuNam of the great ones to mix with others of
lowly and lofty attainments with an equal zest . This was revealed when
the Lord volunteering as his Charioteer  was asked by Arjuna to bind
the horses or to bring the chariot here or there in the battle field.

4.Soulabhyam: This guNam is revealed when the Lord beyond the reach of
even great sages like Sanaka et al making Himself visible to all janthus
so that they can see Him and enjoy Him with their Maamsa Chakshus
( fleshy/physical eyes ). For instance , when Arjuna prayed fro the Visva
Roopa Darsanam , our Lord who is Soulabhyan responded and blessed
Arjuna with such a sevai. When Arjuna was overhelmed by that darsanam
begged the Lord to resume His normal roopam as his friend and well wisher ,
our Lord accepted the rquest due to His Soulabhyathvam .

The word "Maam " also refers to the PirAtti , who never ever
leaves His side as indicated by the usage of " Malar MahaLODu "
in this Paasuram .

The three lines following the first line of this Paasuram deal with
the avathAra rahsyam of the Lord , the knowledge of which is essential
for our liberation. There are six aspects to the Lord's avathAra
rahasyam :

avathArasya Sathyathvam ajahath-sva-svabhAvathA
Suddhasatthvamayathvam cha svEcchAmAthra-nidhAnathA
dharmaglAni samudhaya: Saadhu-samrakshaNArTathA
ithi janma rahasyam yO vEtthi nAsya punarbhava:

The four aspects of the AvathAra Rahasyam are:

1) The truth of the avathAram of the Lord instead of
thinking about it as  a mere mesmerizing unreal thing /magic
( Indhra Jaalam).

2) Him not abandoning His ( Lord's) innate GuNams even during
the avathAra kaalams as Raama and KrishNa .

3) Him having the auspicious body of the Lord even during avathAra
kaalam without any admixture of RajO or TamO guNams (i.e) .,
keeping it Suddha Sathva Mayam.

4) Taking the avathAram NOT  because of any karmAs but purely
out  of His own sankalpam (Volition).

5) Taking the incarnation , when the dharmA is in decline and
adharmam is on the rise .

6) Maintaining the protection of His devotees (Saadhus)  as
the only phalan for the avathArams.

In this Paasuram , the first  line , " Vaarithi vittu--Mathurai vanthu"
covers the first four aspects of avathAra rahasyam . The second line ,
BhAratha venchamar---Seha" covers the 5th amsam of AvathAra Rahasyam
and the third line , " SaaraTiyAi --- ThUthanumAi " addresses
the 6th aspect of the mysteries of the Lord's incarnation amidst us.

Furhter , the deep meanings of the many auspicious attributes of
the Lord included in the Thirumanthiram and Dhvayam are to be
reflected upon in intrepreting the meanings of the word "Maam " .

The mukhyArTam is that we have become the servants of
this Lord , who consoled Arjunan (" tERRinAn tiRam aayinam" ).
We are the adimais of Lord PaarTasArathy forever. 

318. The Meaning of the " yEka " Sabdham
*********************************
Our PoorvAchAryAs have given us Six different Meanings to
the yEka Sabdham found in " Maam yEkam SaraNam vraja" .
These six meanings are:

1) " Maam" is singular and when yEka sabdham is attached to it
then the  yEka sabdham connects to a VisEshArTam (viz).,
SarvEswaran is the phalan enjoyed by me as the special arTam .
The prapatthi upAyam performed by me is the instrument for
that (PrApyasyaiva PrApakthvam) phalan .

It is possible not to connect Iswaran with the UpAyam observed
and consider Iswaran as UpAyam and Phalan. It thus become clear
through the yEka sabdham that UpAyam and Phalan are indeed
SarvEswaran. This meaning is inferred from the Paasuram passage:
" Saadhanam Saathakam yenRivaRRai Tannudan yeNNuthal neenga ".

(2) yEka sabdham refers to the dissolution of the thought of independence
 by ChEthanam ( svaprAdhAnya nivAraNam). It is true that chEthanan
has karmic activities . His activities however are under the influence of
the Lord .The chEthanam can not perform every thing but only  a limited
subset. Therefore  for the chEthanan to observe the UpAyam , The Lord's
KadAksha anugraham is essential. ChEthanam has to be goaded by
Isvaran . ChEthanan uses the limbs , body and the Indhriyam given by
the Lord  to perform the UpAyam instructed by Him and thereafter
waits for the phalan like a ChathakA bird waiting patiently for
the rays of Moon , its exclusive food . To include this limited ChEthanam
with the Sarva Svathanthran, the  Lord and to consider this chEthanam
of limited powers as a second siddhOpAyam is not acceptable for vivEkis.
This thought is hinted by the Paasuram package: " Saadhakan yenRivaRRai
tannudan yeNNuthal neenga".

3) UpAyam is of two kinds: SiddhOpAyam and SaadhyOpAyam.
That upAyam , which is not performed by ChEthanam ( Iswaran )
exists from  time immemorial . He  is hence recognized as the SiddhOpAyam.

The yOgams to be observed by the ChEthanan are Bhakthi or
Prapatthi yogam , These are called SaadhyOpAyams .

In this context , the yEka sabdham points out the incorrectness of linking
Iswaran ( SiddhOpAyam ) with Prapatthi ( SaadhyOpAyam). Yes, Bhakthi
and Prapatthi are UpAyams . But their effect ceases after the removal of
the dissatisfaction/anger of our most merciful Lord with us  for trespassing
His saasthrAs. The direct  kaaraNam ( cause) behind the Phalan of
MokshAnugraham after practising the UpAyam of Prapatthi is the Omnipotent
and most merciful Lord Himself and His sankalpam. Those , who are
powerless to perform other upAyams(means ) observe Prapatthi ;
after that , the Lord steps in and stands in place of other
difficult-to-practise
upAyams in His role as Moksha-dhAyakan . He grants the fruits of Moksham
for that one , who performs Prapatthi with its defined angams. He is
also the One , who makes the Mumukshu ( one desirous of gaining
Moksam) perform Prapatthi by creating SadAchArya Sambhandham.
He accepts Prapatthi as a vyAjam ( Excuse/reason for acting )  . Therefore ,
it is not correct to connect the VyAja Maathra Prapatthi with SarvEswaran .
That is what is emphasized by  the "yEka" sabdham.This meaning is indicated
by the Paasuram passage : " Oru SaadhanamAi PonnaruLOdum
PoomahaLOdum Puhazha ninRa Isan ".

4) The Prapannan has now followed the UpAyam of Prapatthi.
The Lord does not want any burden to stand in between Prapatthi
performed and Himself. Therefore , He stands in place of all
other upAyams and bears their burden Himself. He does not
expect the Prapannan to observe any more upAyams for granting
him(the Prapannan)  the fruit of Moksham. This attribute of our Lord is
revealed by the "yEka " sabdham . The Paasuram uses the word ,
" Tanitthu" to refer to this aspect of the meaning of "yEka" sabdham.

5) SarvEswaran is ready to grant the phalans of Prapatthi.
There is no need for any other angams beyond the 5 angams
associated with Prapatthi ( aanukoolya Sankalpam et al).
He will not take note of any other unneeded angams beyond
the above five angams. He does not expect anything else to
grant us the phalan for Prapatthi yOgam practised. He stands
ready and all by Himself without any other anticipation . This is
another meaning for "yEka Sabdham" indicated by the choice
of the word , "Tanitthu" in the Paasuram.

6) The Mumukshu does not have the qualifications or the rigor to
practise tough upAyams( Bhakthi yOgam et al) sanctioned by
the Bhagavath Saasthrams . He has neither the Jn~Anam or sakthi to
perform them . At the same time , the Mumukshu laments over
the long time that takes to reach the goal of Moksham thru
the observance of Bhakthi yOgam .The most merciful Lord
says to the Prapannan that there is no need to do all kinds of
UpAyams to gain their phalans and get distracted by chasing
after them  . He says that He stands moved by the Prapatthi
performed  and vows to give all the Phalan by Himself
alone ( "yEkan ")  . He stands as the yEkOpAyam and
the Paasuram passage " SaadhanamAi ninRa Isan "
refers to this meaning .

There are those , who intrepret "yEka " sabdham to mean
that SarvEswaran alone is the upAyam and His PirAtti
has no sambhandham. Swamy Desikan does not accept
this and refers the "yEka Seshithvam " doctrine . He avers
that PirAtti has equal sambhandham with Her Lord during
UpAya nilai and that does not diminish any thing for Him .
Therefore Swamy  Desikan refers to the combination of
His golden grace ( PonnaruLODum ) and His PirAtti
( PoomahaLODum ) in this Paasuram dealing with yEka sabdham .

The Sanskrit slOkam summing up these six meanings is:

PrApyasyaiva PrApakathvam sva-prAdhAnya nivAraNam
PrapatthE: vyAja maathrathvam anyOpAyai: ananvaya:
Tadhangairapyasambhandhas-sarva-saadyEshvabhinnathA
ittham arTaa: shaDA AchAryai: yEka sabdhasya darsithA:

319. The Meaning of the " SaraNa " Sabdham
*********************************
Oonil  iNaitthu  uzhalvikkum  vianik-kadaluL vizhuntha
yaann yenathAna  guNangaL  yenakku  isai nall vazhiyum
thAnn udhavit-Tanai tanthida ninRa Tanit-tharumam
nAnn ini vERu ohr bharam nANuhA vahay nalhiyathE  (5) 

(Meaning): The sambhandham between the SarIram ( body)
and the AathmA is the  result of ancient KarmAs. The Lord 
blesses the suffering jeevans  in SamsAram with Svaroopam ,
Jn~Anam and other auspicious guNams . He makes the Jeevans 
perform UpAyams befitting his capabilities and makes the blessed 
jeevan enjoy Him as a BhOgya vasthu .  Our Lord removes all
burdens from the Jeevans that have surrenderd to Him and stands in
place of all other upAyams like Bhakthi yOgam . 

320. The Meaing of "Vraja " Sabdham 
*******************************
kadu vinai nAmm peRum pERRait-tahanthamai kaNDu namm mEl
thodai vilahAmal isaynthu oru kaalm thuNivudanE
udaimai adaikkalammAha adaikkum uhappathanAl
adai yena anRu uraithAn adaivitthanan tannadiyE (6)

(Meaning): Until now , our karmAs stood in the way of
our gaining the PurushArttham of Moksham. We have 
understood this now. We should not stray away from 
the SaasthrAs from here on. We should always do the karmAs
that please the Lord . We should have mahA visvAsam in
the Lord granting us the Phalan after performing Prapatthi.
We should present the Lord , His property , our AathmA
with joy . Thus , the Lord who performed upadEsam to
Arjunan to seek unconditional surrender at His Thiruvadi 
made us attain His feet as well . 

Thus , the Meaning of "Vraja" is the act of SamarpaNam of 
one's Aathma to the Lord .The various words representing
the different angams of Prapatthi are:

" Thodai vilahAmal " =PrAthikoolya varjanam 

" isaynthu" = aanukoolya Sankalpam 

" thuNivudanE " = MahA VisvAsam

The first line stands for the angam of KaarpaNyam .

" adaikkalamAha " = gOpthruva VaraNam

"adai" = the angi of "aathma SamarpaNam "

"adaivithinan" = Saathvika ThyAgam .

The detailed meanings of each of the angams of  Prapatthi
has been covered earlier under the 241st Paasuram of 
Desika Prabhandham ( Aadaikkala Patthu Prabhandham). 

321. The Meaning of the Sabdham : " Aham "
************************************
Kaan yenRa VedangaL kaakkum Paran yenRu kaatta ninROn
ThAnn yenRu aRiyahilArkku aRivikkum tanittiralOn
vaan onRinArodu mAnidan yenna avatarippAn
nAnn yenRa namm ThirumAl nall padham sErtthidumE

(Meaning): The VedAs are like  a dense jungle(Kaan yenRa vEdangaL)
 in view of our inabilities to find their meanings. Our Lord is eulogized by
these
VedAs as Sarva Rakshakan/ protector of all ( Kaakkum Paran YenRu
Kaatta ninROn ) . This is the upadEsam of the VedAs for all , who are
ignorant of this Sarva Rakshaka tatthvam of ParamAthmA . Our Lord
uniquely instructs the ignorant ones that He is that Jagath Rakshakan
this through His VedAs ( ThAnn yenRu aRiyahilArkku aRivikkum
Tanit-thiralOn ) . He incarnates as " humans" and acts as an AchAryan
in the human form during those avathArams  as Raama and KrishNa
( Maanidan yenna avatharippAn) . Our Lord of this vaibhavam chooses
the word "Aham " to reveal His glories to us and joins us to His sacred
feet .Therefore , the sabdham of "Aham " in the Charama slOkam reveals
the matchless power of the Lord to banish all the sins of those , who
perform
Prapatthi to Him with MahA ViswAsam .

Thus , this sabdham of "Aham " points out that He as the Lord of all
incarcerated the jeevan with gigantic accumulated sins in
the prison of  SamsAram and responds later with mercy to the same
Jeevan , once it performed SaraNAgathy to Him . That mercy arising
as response to the SaraNAgathy can not be stopped or revoked by
any one. There is also no one , who can bless the Prapanna Jeevan
with Moksham . That extraordinary and unmatched power is
indicated by the Sabdham of "Aham ". That Lord will take us
to His Supreme abode ( Naann yenRa ThirumAl nalpadham
sErtthidum ).


 322. The Meaning of the Sabdham : " Thvaa "
************************************
Tannilai kAtti tanimai uhanthu tanit-tahavAl
alnilai theera adaikkalam koNDu adi sErtthidavE
palnilai moola yezhutthilum PaaNDavan tEr tanilum
munnilai koNDa PirAn yemai munnilaikoNDananE

(Meaning ): SarvEswaran instructed us about His svaroopam
that is distinctly different from those of ChEthanam and achEthanam
through GeethOpadEsam . He also saw our helpless state in 
gaining Moksha Sukham although we developed the jn~Anam 
from His upadEsam about the futility of  evanescent goals (other 
than Moksham ) and the insignificance  of those other goals . 
Recognizing our intense desire to gain MOksham and our incapabilities to
pursue difficult routes such as Bhakthi yOgam , . He took 
pity on us and accepted us as the suitable adhikAri for pursuing 
the easy to practise Prapatthi yOgam . That Lord of infinite grace 
wished to unite us at His sacred feet and placed us in the front
with the choice of the  word "ThvA" and performed the upadEsam 
for our salvation . 

Bhagavan is saluted as " MUnnilai koNDa PirAn " in this Paasuram 
for two reasons : (1) He is the first letter (aksharam of PraNavam ) 
and (2) He sat in the front portion ( munn nilai ) of ArjunA's chariot.

Bhagavan says here: " Oh Chethanam ! I address you as "ThvA " 
for the following reasons : (1) Through my UpadEsam , You have
achieved Tatthva Thraya Jn~Anam . (2)Your vivEkam (discriminating
intelelct ) has awakened . (3)You have understood the futility of chasing
impermanent wealth and alpa sukhams  and are disgusted with them .
(4) You have now developed intense desire to gain the great Phalan of
enjoying Me (5) You have rcognized that you are powerless to pursue
the prescribed hard upAyams to achieve that goal due to the rigors 
associated with such upAyams (6) You have come to the conclusion that 
I am Your only goal to destroy all mOksha virOdhis and therefore have laid
the burden of your protection entirely with Me and performed 
SaraNAgathy at My feet (7) As a result of performing this 
SaraNAgathy , You enjoy the state of Krutha Kruthyan and You
have vowed not to follow the prapatthi UpAyam again for Moksham.
For a chEthnam , who has rigorously followed all the above steps ,
I as Your Lord   address You as " ThvA " with affection . This is 
the meaning of the "ThvA " sabdham .

323. The Meaning of the Sabdham : " Sarva PaapEpyO "
*******************************************
KaadukaLO narahO kadithAm karaLat-tiraLO
Soodu vidA analO tolayA nilai naLLiruLO
SaaDu padac-charaNAl  anRu Saadiya SaarathiyAr
veedu seyvitthu namai viduvikkinRa paavangaLE

(Meaning): There are two words here : Sarva and Paapam .
Taking the latter first , Paapams are those to be understood
with the help of SaasthrAs and as those causing ill effects ( Theengu
viLavikka SaadhanamAi iruppavai). The PuNya karmAs , which will
yield non-lasting sukhams like Svargam for one who desires MOksham,
are also included in the Paapa sabdham . Once Svarga anubhavam is
over , the jeevan has to come back to samsAram and therefore it is
not desirable for a Mumukshu . The PuNyams and Paapams are
considered as the golden and iron handcuffs/fetters  for one who desires
Moksham and hence have to be destroyed utterly . For a Mumukshu ,
Svargam and Narakam are one and the same. Therefore , GeethAchAryan
uses the plural term of "PaapEpya: " . The immensity of the assembly of
"Paapams " are also hinted throught he use of the Plural term.

The Sarva Sabdham covers the Paapams to be accumulated from
the above karmAs as well : (1) Avidhyai: This is the kAraNam and
Kaaryam for Avidhyai. The path to reach BhagavAn is blocked by
Avidhyai and Karma is generated .That Karma generates additional
avidhyai and they feed each other cyclically and grow gigantically with time
.
(2) the Karma vaasanai arising from the enjoyment of worldly
pleasures (3) the continued  desire for those pleasures
(4) The Jeevan's sambhandham with prakruthi until the jeevan
is seperated from the gross ( SthUlam ) and subtle (Sookshmam)
Sareeram (5) All paapams accumulated before the anushtAnam of
Prapatthi , after Prapatthi et al.

Swamy Desikan states that the Lord will kick away all these Paapams
of Prapannan just like the infant KrishNa kicked and destroyed SakatAsuran ,
who came in the form of a wheel to kill Baala KrishNan resting in His cradle
.

The Paapams are described as the dense forest ( KaadukaL) ,
Narakam , Visham , scorching Agni and the dark night . Paapams are
like dense forest since it is difficult to look for them as finding the path
in
a dense , overgrown forest . Since Paapams produce unbearable
sufferings , they are called as Narakams . Since these Paapams grow
inside and act as poisonous cancer , they are compared to Visham .
Since the very same Paapams scorch us as samsAric afflictions,
they are related to Agni.The Paapams hide the Svaroopam of
the Jeevan and hence they are compared to the dark night in
this Paasuram dealing with all kinds of Paapams( Sarva Paapam).

324. The Meaning of " MokshayishyAmi "
********************************
senRu uyar vaann amarnthu avvadiyArudan sErnthidavE
inRu yenil inRu , nALai yenil nALai , inic-cheRinthu
ninRa nilai ninn anaitthu vinayum ninn vittahalak-
kanRi viduppan yenRAn karutthAl namaik-kAtthidumE

(Meaning): The Lord states here that He will release the Prapanna
Jeevan from SamsAra bhandham and make him a Muktha Jeevan as
and when that Jeevan wants ( Boons of Dhruptha and AarTa Prapatthi ).
The Lord says: " Oh Prapanna Jeevan ! I will destroy all of your karmAs
the moment you desire to join with NithyAs ( the eternally liberated ) and
the MukthAs ( the liberated Jeevans) to perform Kaimkaryam for Me
at My Supreme Abode (SrI Vaikuntam).

we will conclude the study of  the Desika   Prabhandham
entitled , "Charama SlOka Churukku" with the coverage of
the 11th Paasuram ..

We will focus on the many meanings of the most important
assurance given by GeethAchAryan to lift us up from our sorrows
and comfort us : "Maa Sucha: " , the two words that you see embedded
in the hand of Lord VaradrAja at Kaanchi. The companion words
are seen on the hand of SrI Oppiliappan : " Maam yEkam SaraNam
Vraja".

325. The Meaning of " Maa Sucha: "
****************************
aRivum anaitthum ilaa adiyOmai adaikkalam koNDu
uRavu yena ninRa yelAm uRavE ninRa ThAnn yemakkAi
maRu piRavit-thuyar vaarA vahai manam koNDu ahalA
IRaivan innaruLAl yenkaL sOham tavirtthananE

(Meaning) : The Lord , who stands in our minds as  the foundation
for  all vasthus decided to protect us , who took refuge in Him.
He recognized that we are powerless to practise upAyams other
than the performance of Prapatthi at His Thiruvadi and therefore
in place of all the other difficult-to-practise upAyams , He blessed
us with the boon of freedom from the cycles of rebirth in the Karma
BhUmi for performing Prapatht and removed our sorrows once and for all .

The different Meanings of "Maa Sucha: " according to PoorvAchAryAs
********************************************************
" Maa Sucha: " stands for " please do not grieve" . ChEthanan is exposed
to sorrow from many sources in his samsAric life.  Bhagavan says here
that chEthanan can feel free from all those sorrows due to His intervention
and protection .

These are the many ways by which these sorrows arise:

1. Bhakthi yOgam is hard to practise and there are many obstacles ,
which interfere with the practise of this yogam for gaining Moksham .
This yogam also takes a long time to bear fruit . Lord says here to
the Prapanna jeevan not to grieve over that type of sorrow .The Lord says
that He will stand in place of that difficult yogam and remove the Jeevan's
sorrow.

2. Oh Jeevan, after you practised the upAyam of Prapatthi , the
responsibilities for your protection is Mine , the fruits arising from
that protection is also Mine. If I fail to protect you , I will be in a
terrible
state of being one , who has abandoned His duties . Please do not be
afraid that I would abandon you ever because of My independence .
You can now set aside that fear and sorrow.

3. Prapatthi yogam can be practised by people of all Jaathis.
So do not grieve that you are born in  a unqualified Jaathi. All
are adhikAris .Therefore abndon your sorrow on this aspect.

4. Prapatthi is easy to perform and can be done in a trice .
It does not anticipate any other angams other than the five
associated with it. Hence You do not need to grieve over
the thought that there are many angams that would bloat
its (prapatthi's) size to that of a huge and diffiuclt to practise
upAyam .

5. Please do not grieve as a result of developing doubts
that I who responds to the small and easy to practise UpAyam
of Prapatthi may not be approached easily or can not be trusted
or would not have compassion or be too independent to change my
mind . I am easily won over by your SaraNAgathy and am aasritha
sulabhan and DayALu . I stand as SiddhOpAyam ( the UpAyam
that exists already ) and therefore cast aside your sorrows based on
such doubts.

6. During your post-prapatthi period , please do not fear that  there
might be deficencies in the nithya-naimitthika karmAs done for
My preethi without expectation of any fruits . These karmAs are not
part of the group of   angams for SaraNAgathy and therefore any
imperfections associated with them due to kaala , dEsa varthamAnams .
The nithya karmAs should be done deficent or not .

7. Please do not sorrow over praayascchittha prapatthi performed
during the time of Prapatthi to avoid paapams accrued after Prapatthi .
It will not nullify your original prapatthi .

8. Please do not grieve over not doing Praayascchittha prapatthi for
paapams accrued knowingly and as  a result , you will suffer in
narakam . I remove those Paapams too for a prapannan ( details in
the 64th Paasuram of Desika Prabhnadham dealing with AparAdha
ParihAra adhikAram of AdhikAra Sangraham ) .

9. Oh Jeevan ! Please do not sorrow over residence in your Sariram ,
which is like naraka vAsam after Prapatthi. If you desire to get Moksha
Prapatthi due to aarTi , I will grant You release right away from
your sareeram .

10. I have vowed never to abandon a Prapannan. When there is
delay in MOksham as a result of adopting Dhruptha Prapatthi ,
you do not need to sorrow because there is no question about
the gaining fruit of MOksham. Please do not grieve that the PuNyam of
Prapatthi will be neutralized by the paapams accumulated knowingly
or unknowingly after the performance of Prapatthi .

11. Since You wished to have moksham at the end of this life ,
you may grieve that the paapams acquired during post-prapatthi
period would result in your rebirth in the karmic world. You will never
be reborn here and hence chase away that sorrow.

12. When you have performed unconditional Prapathti to Me
without expecting any fruits , all karmAs that stood in the way of your
moksham would have been destroyed . There will be no interferecnes
and time delays in gaining moksham due to distractions like Kaivalyam .

The sorrows that you may  entertain before and after Prapatthi are not
appropriate since You have recieved my full anugraham .Such sorrows
and worries are inappropriate given the glories of Prapatthi , my vow
to protect You and your status of placing full trust in Me as your
rakshakan . Therefore such acts on your part are expressions of your
immaturityand ignorance (avivEkam) . Abandon every one of the above
sorrows and feel assured that there is no basis for these worries of yours .

The full meaning of the Charama SlOkam
*******************************
Oh ChEthanam! Your Jn~Anam is insignificant (alpam).
Your sakthi is also limited. You live here for a limited time.
You are anxious to gain Moksham without delay. It is very
difficult for you to observe difficult upAyams such as Bhakthi yOgam
to gain Moksham. They will also grant the phalan after considerable
time delay . Therefore do not chase these frustrating  upAyams .
I am easily  accessible to one and all . I am the protector of all
the janthus of the world. I have the auspicious attributes befitting
My role as Jagath Rakshakan (Sarva lOka SaraNyan). Therefore
choose Me alone as UpAyam ( Maam yEkam SaraNam vraja).
Perform the Bhara NyAsam with its five aangams . After that upAya
anushtAnam , you will become krutha kruthyan ( one who has performed
his duty). You become thenthe object of My protection . You will become
very dear to Me. My compassion for You is limitless. I have started to
shower My grace on you. There are no restrictions to my independence.
The fruits of My intervention on your behalf belongs to Me alone.
My sankalpam alone is the sahakAri for my act of protection .
You have a wide variety of foes. Those are limitless. You can not ever
destroy them by yourself. I will destroy them down to their roots.
They wont follow you anymore. I will grant Me and Mine to you
and make you enjoy them on a par with Me ( Bhoga Saamyam).
When You engage in this ParipoorNa BrahmAnubhavam , I will
bless you with nithya kaimkaryam at all times and places .You do
not need to grieve over anything anymore.

The 29th chapter of Swamy Desikan's SrImath Rahasya Thraya
Saaram is a treasure house of the myriad subtle meanings of
GeethAchAryan's Charama SlOkam .

Swamy  Desikan ThiruvadigaLE SaraNam ,

NaarAyaNa , NaarAyaNa , NaarAyaNa
Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradachAri Sadagopan

SrimathE SrI Lakshminrusimha Dhivya PaadhukA Sevaka
SrIvaNN SaThakOpa SrI NaarAyaNa YathIndhra MahA DesikAya Nama:

Further Reading: External Links


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