Sri: SrimatE Gopaladesika MahadesikAya Namaha, Dear Smt. Sangeeta, Garuda or Vainatheya is a most celebrated Nithyasoori (citizen of Sri Vaikuntam, the eternal abode of Lord Narayana) of the Srivaishnava tradition. He is known as periya tiruvadi on account of his eternal service to Lord Narayana as his vehicle. Being Vaidikas let us explore the Vedam to begin our quest for references glorifying Garuda. The SouparNika Sooktham celebrates the greatness of Garuda through the rk "suparNOsi garuthmAn trivrutthEshinO gayathram chakshu:" (The golden winged Garuda has for his head the Trivruth Saaman and for his eyes the Gayathri Saman). The Anandavalli portion of the Taittriya Upanishad discusses Lord Narayana as being made up of Anandamaya rasa (rasO vai sa:). The Aitareya and Taittriya Brahmanas affirm that this rasa also known as soma rasa flourished at the third foot of Trivikrama and was brought by the high flying bird known as shyEna or Garuda. In fact the Anandavalli section of the Taittriya Upanishad is a succinct summary of the entire Soma Mandala of the Rg Vedam. The Anandavalli formally glorifies Garuda as "tasya yajurEva shira: rg dakshiNa: paksha: sAmOtthara: paksha: AdEsha Atma aTharvAngirasa puccham prathiShTA:" (His head is the Yajur Veda; His top body is the Sama Veda; His lower body is the Rg Veda; His soul is the message; His tail is the atharvaNa Vedam), thus describing Garuda as being made up of the four Vedas. The Mahanarayana Upanishad contains a Gayathri Mantram for Garuda "thath purushAya vidhmahE swarNapakshAya DhImahi tannO garuda: prachOdhayAth". Having sampled the vedic tributes to Garuda, let us turn our attention to the ithihasas. The Ramayana speaks of the glory of Garuda when he comes to the rescue of Rama and Lakshmana, who were bound by the Naga Pasha of Indrajit in the war against Ravana. Indrajit used poisonous serpents for darts in his battle against Rama and Lakshmana, who were rendered unconscious by the arrows. The arrival of Garuda, the sworn enemy of the serpents caused them to beat a hasty retreat. As a result, Rama and Lakshmana regained consciousness. They were warmly embraced by Garuda. Adikavi Valmiki pays glowing tributes to this Kaimkaryam of Garuda and declares that Rama and Lakshmana became even more powerful than before as a result of the embrace of Garuda. Another reference to Garuda in the Ramayana can be found in Rama's battle against the Asura Malyavan. Lord Rama was hard-pressed to defeat the Asura. However, the arrival of Garuda and his mere glance at the Asura caused Rama to effortlessly blow the asura away like a bale of cotton. Again, Adikavi Valmiki speaks of this Upakaram of Garuda in most affectionate and glowing terms. We then explore the Mahabharata for further testimony in support of the greatness of Garuda. We may remember "VedhEShu pourusham sooktam purANEshu cha vaishnavam BhArathE Bhagavad-Gita DharmashAsthrEShu mAnavam" (The foremost among the Vedas is the Purusha Sooktam. The foremost among puraNas is the Vishnu Purana. The jewel in the crown of the Mahabharata is the Bhagavad-Gita and the foremost among the Dharma shastras is the Manu Smriti). In accordance with this statement, we focus our attention on the Bhagavad Gita to gain further insight on the glory of Garuda. Lord Krishna declares in the Bhagavad Gita that "vainathEyasya pakshiNAm" (among birds I am VainathEya) and "vedhAnAm sAmavEdhOsmi" (among the Vedas, I denote the Sama Vedam). The uniqueness of the Sama Vedam is that it glorifies Lord Narayana to the exception of all other deities., whereas in the Rg and Yajur Vedam one finds eulogies of Indra, Agni et al with the implicit notion that the tribute is meant for Lord Narayana, the in-dweller of these deities. It is helpful to note that Mantram 6 of the 17th section in the third chapter of the Chandogya Upanishad pertaining to the Sama Vedam declares Lord Krishna, the son of Devaki to be the Supreme Being. This explains the fondness of Lord Krishna for the Sama Vedam The Sama Vedam aspects of Garuda mentioned earlier taken in conjunction with the statements of Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita make Garuda an overwhelming favorite of Lord Narayana. PuraNas such as the VishNu puraNa, Bhagavata purANa and Garuda PurANa wax eloquent on the glories of Garuda. The glory of Garuda is further celebrated by Swami Alavandar in the Chatushloki salutation "vEdhAthmA vihakEshvarO" and by Swami Nigamanta Mahadesikan in the Garuda Dandakam and Garuda Panchasat. Swami Desikan notes that " Garuda's Atma is made up of Sthoman (Sthoman is the Sama Vedic Passage which discusses what Sama Vedam is about). His head is the Trivruth Saman; His body is the Vamadevya Saman; His eyes denote the Gayathri Saman; His wings denote the Bruhat Saman and RaThantara Saman respectively. His name is verily the Yajur Vedam." These references should suffice in establishing Garuda's pre-eminent status in the Srivaishnava tradition. The September 1999 Malolan net archives contains a posting by adiyen, which provides further details about Garuda. PakshirAjAya Namaha, Namo Narayana, SriMuralidhara Dasan ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark Printer at MyInks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada. http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511 http://us.click.yahoo.com/mOAaAA/3exGAA/qnsNAA/VkWolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Yahoo! 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