SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 105 - nAma 982. yaj~na_guhyam.
982. yaj~na-guhyam ? He Who is the secret of the sacrifice.
om yaj~na-guhyAya namaH.
The word guhyam is derived from the root guh ? samvaraNe ? to cover,
to keep secret. Guhyam means `rahasyam' or secret. Different
interpreters have given their diverse anubhavam of how bhagavAn is
the hidden secret behind yaj~na-s.
Sri BhaTTar comments that bhagavAn is the `secret' behind the
sacrifice, because not everyone understands that He is the ultimate
object of the sacrifice, and that even though bhagavAn is not in need
of any offering, He still feels satisfied as if He has been long
expecting the offerings, and enjoys them. Only those who are wise
and knowledgeable about the injunctions, the means and the fruits of
the sacrifices, realize this secret about Him; others do not realize
this secret. SrI BhaTTar quotes the following from the mahAbhArata
in support:
sarve vedAh sarva vedyAH sa-SastrAH sarve yaj~nAH sarva
ijyaSca kRshNaH |
viduH kRshNam brAhmaNAs-tattvato ye teshAm rAjan sarva-
yaj~nAH samAptAH ||
jyotIgmshi SukrANi ca yAni loke trayo lokAH loka-pAlas-trayI
ca |
trayo'gnayaSca AhutayaSca pa'nca sarve devA devakIputra eva
||
"All the veda-s and all that has to be learnt, all the SAstra-s and
all the sacrifices, and all worship ? all are SrI kRshNa. Those who
know kRshNa correctly this way, may be considered to have completed
all the sacrifices successfully".
"All the shining luminaries in the universe, the three worlds, the
three guardians of the world, the three fires, and the five offerings
in those holy fires, and all the gods, are all SrI kRshNa, the Son of
devaki".
The above references bring out another subtle secret that is
elaborated by SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan: Even though the offering in
a given yaj~na may be for some of the other deities, the real Deity
Who ultimately receives all the offerings is BhagavAn and no one
else. BhagavAn is the antaryAmi of all these other deities, and
while He feels satisfied with the offering, He also ensures that
these other deities are satisfied, and thus it is no one other than
BhagavAn Who is the ultimate object of all yaj~na-s. Not everyone
who performs yaj~na-s understands this, and thus bhagavAn is the
secret behind the yaj~na-s in this sense as well ? yaj~na-guhyam.
Sri VeLukkuDi kRshNan brings out another dimension to the anubhavam
of this nAma: Accepting the relatively meager offering in the yaj~na
with great delight, BhagavAn can give to the performer of the yaj~na,
the benefit even up to moksham; in other words, there is no limit to
the return that He can bestow on the performer of the yaj~na in
return for the relatively trivial offering that bhagavAn does not
even need. This is a great secret that is not easily understood by
most people. He keeps the means of yaj~na as a great secret that is
understood only by a few who know the yaj~na SAstra properly, and so
He is yaj~na-guhyam.
SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri notes that there are two aspects to any
sacrifice ? the material aspects, and the thoughts behind the
performance of the karma. We dealt with this discussion under nAma
981 (gItA 4.33). Lord kRshna declares that the thought behind the
actions is more important than the act itself. When this thought
itself is dedicated to bhagavAn, in other words, when the thought
behind the yaj~na or offering is not one that aims at receiving some
benefit for the performer of the yaj~na, this is the best form of
yaj~na. This is the secret behind the performance of yaj~na-s in
their ultimate true sense. When such thought is the basis for the
offering, this is a manifestation of Brahman Himself, and so there is
no difference between Brahman and the yaj~na or the offering, and so
He is called the `secret of the sacrifice' or the yaj~na-guhyam'.
This seems to be the meaning for Sri Sa'nakara's interpretation for
the nAma ? yaj~nAnAm guhyam j~nAna-yaj~naH phalAbhisandhi-rahito vA
yaj~naH; tad-abheda upacArAt Brahma yaj~na-guhyam ? "The secret of
sacrifices is `knowledge-sacrifice'. Yaj~na may also mean any deed
performed without desire for the fruit; Brahman, as identified with
such deeds, is called yaj~na-guhyam".
SrI cinmayAnanda explains the nAma as "The most profound truth to be
realized in all yaj~na-s". He elaborates: "The Self is the most
noble truth to be sought through `offering' all the dravya (objects)
into the `consciousness' (fire) in the `body' (kuNDa). This kind of
subjective yaj~na is called in the gItA as Knowledge-sacrifice
("j~nAna-yaj~na)". This is also called in the veda-s as Brahma
yaj~na".
SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN reinforces the true spirit behind the
performance of sacrifices ? It is for bhagavAn's pleasure alone, and
not for any material benefits for the performer, that the yaj~na is
to be undertaken, and so He is the secret behind the yaj~na-s ? tena
yaj~nena tasyaiva mukhya uddeSyatvAt yaj~na-guhyam.
-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan
(To be continued)
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