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       SrImate SrI ra'nga rAmAnuja mahA deSikAya namaH.

   SrI vishNu sahasra nAmam - Slokam 106, nAma 992 - pApa nASanaH.

992. pApa-nASanaH ? The Destroyer of sins.

Om pApa-nASanAya namaH.

pApam nASayati iti pApa-nASanaH.   It is very interesting to look at 
the derivation of the word pApa ? it is derived from the root pA ? 
rakshaNe ? to protect.  The addition of the affix paH leads to the 
word pApaH ? that from which one should protect oneself is pApa, or 
sin.  SrI vAsishTha gives the derivation for the word pApa as "pAti 
asmAt AtmAnam iti pApaH ? That from which one should protect oneself 
is pApaH or sin.

SrI BhaTTar explains the nAma by reminding us of the great value of 
meditating on bhagavAn's leelA-s.  By meditating on the nectar-like 
stories of His stealing the butter and curd, by reminding ourselves 
of His rAsa-krIDA-s with the gopi-s, etc., the sins in our minds are 
removed.  In fact, this is one of the ways that bhagavAn annihilates 
the internal flaws in the minds of SrI vaishNava-s ? those who 
meditate on Him with single-minded devotion.  SrI BhaTTar's words 
are:  atha dadhi-navanItastainya rAsa krIDAdi kathAmRtena pareshAm 
pApa-nASanaH  |  avatAre'pi vaishNavAnAm bAhyAbhyantara Satru-nASanaH 
|  
Even during His incarnations, He annihilates the enemies, both 
internal and external, of SrIvaishNava-s (the devotees of vishNu 
inseparably associated with SrI or mahA lakshmi).  He annihilates the 
internal enemies when they meditate on His kalyANa guNa-s, and he 
annihilates the external enemies through the divine weapons that he 
carries for their protection (which is the substance of the next and 
last Sloka)..

SrImad SrImushNam ANDavan explains that ordinary thieves only steal 
material objects, but bhagavAn steals the feelings of stealth itself 
from the minds of the devotees ? the Stealer of the thought of 
stealth itself- cauryasya cauryam  jagati prasiddham ? He is well-
known as the Stealer of the very thought of stealth itself from those 
who meditate on His leelA-s of stealing butter, curd etc.    

SrI v.v. rAmAnujan refers us to nammAzhvAr's tiruvAimozhi pASuram 
3.6.2, where AzhvAr refers to bhagavAn by the nama "pApanASan":

        mUvarAgiya mUrtiyai mudal mUvarkkum mudalvan tannai
        SAvamuLLana nIkkuvAnai taDam kDal kiDantAn tannai
        dEva dEvanai ten ila'nkai eri ezhac ceRRa villiyai
pAva nASanai pa'ngayat taDam kaNNanaip paravuminO.   (tiruvAi. 3.6.2)

"I beseech all of you people to devote yourselves to the Lotus-eyed 
Lord who is the Chief among the tri-mUrti-s, the antaryAmi of rudra 
and brahmA, and their Creator.  He is the One Who removes the curses 
of rudra, brahmA and other gods whenever they get into trouble.  He 
is the One Who is reclining in the Milk Ocean, and the same One Who 
tortured the evil-minded ravAna and his SrI la'nkA to retrieve sItA 
pirATTi.  He is the Lotus-eyed Lord Who removes all our sins by the 
mere contemplation on Him".

Similar thoughts are expressed by periyAzhvAr:

        emmanA! en kula daivamE! ennuDai nAyakanE!
        nin uLEnAip peRRa nanmai ivvulaginil  yAr peRuvAr?
        namman pOlE vIzhttu amukkum nATTil uLLa pAvam ellAm
        SummenAdE kai viTTo ODit tURugaL pAindanavE.   (periAzhvAr 
tiru. 5.4.3)

"My Lord! How can I ever describe the great benefit that I have 
received because of Your Grace?  All the sins that normally push me 
down mercilessly to the ground like demons and ghosts, have left me 
quietly like prisoners that escape without making any noise and hide 
in the bushes".

SrI vELukkuDi kRshNan refers us to the gItA Slokam 4.9:

        janma karma ca me divyam evam yo vetti tattvataH   |
        tyaktvA deham punar-janma naiti mAmeti so'rjuna   ||   (gItA 
4.9)

"He who thus knows in truth My divine birth and actions does not get 
rebirth after this body; he will come to Me, O arjuna".

SrI kRishNan svAmi adds that if we meditate on His birth, we won't be 
born again; if we meditate on His drinking His mother's milk in His 
birth, we won't have to be born to drink a mother's milk;  if we 
enjoy His leelA of stealing butter and curd, our sins will be stolen 
away by Him; if we meditate on His being bound by ropes by yaSodA, we 
won't be bound again in samsAra;  such is the greatness of the 
thoughts about Him and His leelA-s.

SrI Sa'nkara's vyAkhyAnam is: "kIrtitaH pUjito dhyAyataH smRtaH 
pAparASim nASayan pApa-nASanaH" ? He Who destroys the sins of those 
who adore Him, meditate on Him, and remember and sing hymns of praise 
on Him.  He gives support from a work titled vRddhaSAtAtapa:

        pakshopavAsAd yat-pApam purushasya praNaSyati   |
        prANAyAma Satenaiva tat-pApam naSyate nRNAm  ||

        prANAya sahasreNa yat-pApam naSyate nRNAm  |
        kshaNa-mAtreNa tat-pApam harer-dhyAnAt praNaSyati   ||

"Whatever sins are removed by fasting for a fortnight, are destroyed 
by performing a hundred prANAyAma-s.  Whatever sins are destroyed by 
a thousand prANAyAma-s, are removed in a fraction of a second by 
meditating on Hari".

SrI rAdhAkRshNa SAstri gives an explanation for how the thought of 
bhagavAn's leelA-s is able to wash away one's sins.  These thoughts 
of bhagavAn's leelA-s have the effect of keeping Him always on our 
thoughts, and this is what causes one's mind to be purified.   This 
is what bhIshma tells yudhishThira at the beginning of the stotra:

        tasya loka pradhAnasya jagannAthasya bhUpate   |
        vishNor-nAma sahasram me SruNu pApa bhayApaham   ||

"O king, hear from me the thousand names of vishNu, the Lord of the 
Universe, the highest in the worlds;  these remove all sins and 
fear".  The next stanza clarifies that the nAma-s are but 
representations of bhagavAna's guNa-s ? yAni nAmi gauNAni vikhyAtAni 
mahAtmanaH, and thus, meditation on the names of vishNu, or the guNa-
s of vishNu, leads to the removal of sins in the mind of one who 
meditates on vishNu.

SrI kRshNa datta bhAradvAj gives support from SrImad bhAgavatam:

        nAma sa'nkIrtanam yasya sarva pApa praNASanam   |
        praNAmo duHkha SamanaH tam namAmi harim param   ||  (bhAga. 
12.13.23)

"My prostrations to Lord SrI Hari Whose nAma sa'nkIrtanam leads to 
the eradication of all sins, and by worshipping Whom all sorrows are 
weakened".  This is the last Slokam of SrImad bhAgavatam, and can be 
considered the summarizing Slokam of SrImad bhAgavtam by SrI sUta 
muNi.

SrI cinmayAnanda summarizes the purport of the nAma in the following 
words:  "Meditating upon Whom all vAsanA-s (sins) are liquidated.  
When an individual, surrendering in love to Him, acts and fulfills 
his duties, all his existing vAsanA-s are destroyed, and no new ones 
are created.  This is the very root in the theory of karma yoga in 
the veda-s. Through meditation upon the Self, all sins are dissolved 
and totally removed".

In one of his alternate interpretations,  SrI satya sandha tIrtha 
looks at the nAma as pApanAH + aSnAti ? pApam nayati iti pApanAH 
daityAH, tAn aSnAti  iti pApaNASanaH.  The asura-s are called pApanAH 
because they lead in committing sins, and bhagavAn `eats away' or 
destroys these asura-s, and so He is called pApanASanaH.

SrI baladeva vidyA bhUshaN also includes the above thought in one of 
his alternative interpretations ? pavitraiH caritaiH SrotRRNAm 
nikhila karmya rUpam pApam vivartayan, asurAnAmapi nihatAn Atma 
vidyAm nivartya muktim tebhyo yacchat pApanASanaH ? He is called pApa 
nASanaH because He removes the sins of those who hear the stories of 
His leelA-s; He is calo called pApa nASanaH because He destroys the 
asura-s, and in the process, even for them He removes their sins by 
redeeming the knowledge about the Self and gets them to moksha.  

-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan
(To be continued)











 
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