Ganga - The sacred river having Lord Vishnu's Lotus Feet for its source

The river Ganga is considered to be sacred by followers of the Vedic Sanatana Dharma religion. The waters of the holy river, from time immemorial, are known for their power to cleanse one from all sins. Our dear Lord Narayana too, while enumerating the best of worldly forms and to highlight that He is indeed the indwelling Supersoul of even all those, says (Bhagavad Gita 10.31): "I am Jahnavi  (another name of Ganga) among rivers" (srotasAmasmi jAhnavI), thereby re-establishing the highly-held sanctity of this sacred river.

Sri Narayana Bhattathiri also confirms the excellence of this river in Narayaneeyam:

ga^ngA gItA ca gAyatryapi ca tulasikA gopikA candanaM tat
sAlagrAmAbhi pUjA parapuruSa tathaikAdashI nAmavarNAH |
etAnyaSTApyayatnAnyayi kalisamaye tvatprasAda pravRddhyA
kSipraM mukti pradAnItyabhidadhuH RSayasteSu maam sajjayethAH ||

(Narayaneeyam, 92-9)

[Sages have declared that, in Kali Yuga, eight deeds that take one to liberation easily -
* bathing in river Ganges;
* study of Bhagavad Gita;
* recitaion of Gayatri Mantra;
* Offerings of Tulasi leaves (holy basil);
* Sacred scented clay, Gopika Chandana;
* Worship of Saligrama (a deity form of Vishnu found naturally);
* Fasting on Ekadasi (eleventh day of each fortnight); and
* Chanting of Thy holy names (even if done without understanding their meanings)
- all of which need little effort, lead to swift liberation through propitiating Thee.
O Lord ! May Thou cause me to practice these with sincerity.]

Devaprayag, on the bank of River Ganga (Copyright: Vvnataraj)

Even the popular "Bhaja Govindam" hymn, attributed to Sri Adi Sankaracharya and his disciples, says --

bhagavad gIta ki~ncit adhItA

ga^ngA jala-lava kaNikA pItA |

sakRdapi-yena murAri samarcA

kriyate tasya yamena na carcA ||

[If one reads a little bit of Bhagavad Gita, drinks a few drops of the sacred waters of the river Ganga, or does a little bit of devotional service to Murari (an appellation of Lord Vishnu meaning 'the slayer of the demon Mura'), that person will not be having any unsavory encounters with Lord Yama (the lord responsible for punishing evil persons in hell after their death).]

Itihasas, Puranas, and the works of Acharyas attribute the sacredness of Ganga to its association with Lord Vishnu's lotus-feet. In fact, it is confirmed by them that the river itself has its origin there. We shall see a few instances in those works where these are mentioned.

Sri Adi Sankaracharya's direct disciple Sureshvaracharya says thus in Naishkarmya Siddhi, while saluting his Acharya:

"viSNoH pAdAnugAM nikhila-bhava-nudaM sha^nkaro(a)vApa yogAt

sarvaj~naM brahmasaMsthaM muni-gaNa-sahitaM samyagabhyarcya bhaktyA |

vidyAM ga^ngAM-iva-ahaM pravara-guNa-nidheH prApya vedAntadIptAM 

kAruNyAt-tAm-avocaM janimRtinivahadhvastaye duHkhitebhyaH ||"

- (Naishkarmya Siddhi, IV.76)

[Having worshipped (Acharya Sri) Sankara -- who is all-knowing, established in (the knowledge of) Brahman, accompanied by a host of sages -- with devotion, I obtained from him who is the treasure of most excellent virtues, knowledge which, like the river Ganga, is illuminated by the Vedanta, that follows the feet of Lord Vishnu, and that, while destroying the sorrow of worldly existence, Sankara had attained through yoga; and from compassion, I have set it forth for sufferers to overcome the cycles of birth and death and obtain liberation.]

The above verse is a beautiful word-play comparing Ganga to spiritual knowledge, and is also a double entendre on the name 'Sankara', which stands for both the name of the Acharya as well as Lord Siva who bears the Ganga as his crown. Sri Jnanottama Misra, the advaitic commentator who wrote the "Candrika" gloss expanding on the Naishkarmya Siddhi, explains here --

viSNor-vyApino jagat-kAraNasya padamadhiSThAnaM saccidAnanda-eka-rasam-anugacchatIti viSNoH padAnugA vidyA | ga^ngApi viSNoH puruSottamasya caraNam-anusRtya gacchatIti "vAmapada-a^nguSTha-nakha-sroto-vinirgatAm"-iti smaraNAt |

[The knowledge that bears the fruit of liberation flows from the feet of Vishnu, the all-pervading Creator of the universe. Also, the river Ganga is known to flow from the Divine Feet of Lord Purushottama (another appellation of the Lord, meaning 'best among men'). We read thus in the scriptures: "(The river Ganga) flows from the left toenail (of Lord Vishnu)".]

The full version of the verse quoted by Jnanottama occurs in the Vishnu Purana, the "Gem of all Puranas" (purANaratna), and is given below: 

vAma-padAmbuja-a^nguSTha-sroto-vinirgatAM |

viSNor-bibharti yAM bhaktyA shirasAharniSaM dhRvaH ||

(Vishnu Purana, II.8.104)

In the Srimad Bhagavatam, we are told that Lord Siva, having known that the river washed the feet of Lord Vishnu, bears Ganga on his head as he is aware of the principles of the religious:

tat-pAda shaucaM jana-kalmaSApahaM sa dharmavin-mUrdhny-adhadAt suma^ngalaM |

yad-deva-devo girishaH-candra-maulir-dadhAdara mUrdhnA parayA ca bhaktyA ||

(Srimad Bhagavata Purana, 8.18.28)

Sri Narayana Bhattathiri's Narayaneeyam, which forms a beautiful summary of the Bhagavatam in 1000 verses, explains the same:

prahlAda-vaMshajatayA kratubhir-dvijeSu
vishvAsato nu tadidaM ditijo(a)pi lebhe |
yatte padAmbu girishasya shiro(a)bhilAlyaM
sa tvaM vibho gurupurAlaya pAlayethAH ||

(Narayaneeyam, 30-10)

[The sacred water flowing from Thy feet, adorns the head of Lord Siva. Although a demon by birth, Bali, was fortunate enough to have it sprinkled on his head, perhaps due to his being born in the dynasty of Prahlada, or due to his sacrifices or because of his faith in Brahmins. Oh Guruvayurappa, May Thou of such glory, save me].

Lord Vishnu measures the universe in three steps, subduing Mahabali and the demons

Sri Sarvajnatma Muni, another early Advaita Acharya, writes thus at the end of the sa^nkSepa shAriraka, dedicating the work to the lotus feet of Lord Vishnu:

avirala-pada-pa^nktiH padmanAbhasya puNyA 

caraNa-kamala-dhUligrAhiNI bhAratIyaM |

ghanataraM upaghAtaM shreyasaH shrotRsa^ngAt 

surasaridiva sadyo mArSTu mA^ngalya-hetuH ||

(Samksepa-Sariraka, IV. 61)

[Like Ganga -- the river of the celestials, let these auspicious words running to several thousand lines, from its association with the dust of the lotus feet of Lord Padmanabha (another name of Lord Hari meaning, 'one who has the primordial lotus -- the source of the universe -- springing from his navel'), immediately release one from darkness and ignorance upon hearing them, and serve them as a means for reaching auspiciousness.]

Srimad Ramatirtha, who wrote a sub-commentary "anvayA-artha-prakAshikA" to the Samksepa Sariraka, explains here that the author, Sri Sarvajnatma Muni, is dedicating his work to Bhagavan Narayana, the Lord. (etA kRtiM bhagavati nArAyaNe samarpayan sva-kRter-ma^ngalaM prArthayate).

Ramatirtha says further that Sarvajnatman is presenting this work to all, after having dedicated it to Lord Narayana in the form of Sri Padmanabha -- the form of the Lord residing in the city of Anantapuri, the modern-day Trivandrum/Tiruvanantapuram of Kerala -- by which process the book carries the dust of the lotus-feet of the Lord (padmanAbhasya shrImad-anantapurI-vAsinaH sheshA^nke shayAnasya nArAyaNasya caraNa-kamala-dhUli-grAhiNI taccaraNayoH samarpitA satI tathAvidhA).

The commentator explains the comparison with the river Ganga next: "Indeed, the river Ganga also carries the dust of the same Lord Padmanabha, the one who bore the form of Trivikrama -- the form to which the Lord expanded himself to measure the entire universe by three steps, during the divine Vamana avatAra. Hence, the sin-cleansing auspicious nature of the river Ganga is also meant. (ga^ngA tu padmanAbhasya trivikramarUpaMdhRtavataH caraNa-kamala-dhUli grAhiNI prasiddhA, ata eva puNyA pAvayitrI bhAratI ga^ngA ca ityarthaH).

Lord Ananta Padmanabha Swami of Tiruvanantapuram, Kerala

Finally, the Tamil poet Kambar, in his Kambaramayana (Tamil version of Sage Valmiki's epic Ramayana), re-establishes this Vedic doctrine about the river Ganga:

(1) "The river Ganga was produced from the sacred pot (kamaNDalam) of the four-faced Lord Brahma when he washed the feet of Vishnu" ("pa^nkayattu ayan paNDu tan pAdattin am kaiyin tarum gangaiyin nIrADinAn" - Kambaramayanam ayOdyA kANDam, gangaip paDalam, verse 16).

(2) In the verse that immediately follows, the poet illustrates the scene of Rama having a bath in the river, at which point the poet says that the river Ganga, which washes away the sins of those who take a dip in it, is rejoicing that her own sins are being delivered, since Rama, who as Vishnu was its own origin, took a dip in it! ("panni nIkka arum pAdakam pAruLor ennin nIkkuvar: yAnum inRu en tanda unnin nIkkinen. uyndenan yAn") Kambar clearly implies here that the sin-destroying capacity of the river Ganga itself is dependent on the Highest Lord, Sriman Narayana.



REFERENCES

[1] Narayaneeyam references: see end of this article.

[2] Naiskarmyasiddhi of Sureshvaracharya with the Chandrika of Jnanottama, Bombay Sanskrit Series No. XXXVIII, 1891 (edited with notes and index by Colonel G. A. Jacob). Readable online for free here.

[3] Samksepa Sariraka of Sarvajnatma Muni, with the anvayA-artha-prakAshikA Tiika of Srimad Ramatirtha. Readable online fore free here.

[4] Vishnu Purana with Sridhara Swami's "svaprakAsha" gloss, Saraswati Press, Kolkata, 1882. Read online for free here.

[5] Transcriptions of two episodes of Sri U. Ve. Velukkudi Krishnan Swami's Podhigai TV lectures on Bhagavad Gita, dealing with River Ganga and its history: [a][b].

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The Lord of Guruvayur, Narayaneeyam, and Cosmic Manifestation

Guruvayur is a sacred pilgrimage center in the state of Kerala in South India. There is a very famous temple dedicated to Lord Krishna here. According to the traditional history of this temple, this is the spot where Lord Siva is said to have instructed the Rudra Gita, a song that glorifies Sriman Narayana -- the Lord of even great Lords like Brahma, Siva, and Indra. The deity of this temple is said to have been in possession of Lord Krishna during His stay in Dwaraka, which he then gave to a disciple named Uddhava before voluntarily disappearing from this world after fulfilling the mission of His avatar. But since a deluge followed the ascent of Lord Krishna back to His spiritual realm, the idol had to be eventually salvaged by Brihaspati (bRhaspati, also known as guru),  the devata in charge of the planet Jupiter, with the help of his disciple Vayu (vAyu) who is in charge of the one of the elements of nature- the wind. Ultimately, they were guided by Lord Siva, and hence it was installed at the present location - Guruvayur. The name Guruvayur comes from the combination guru + vAyu (the devatas who installed the deity of Lord Krishna) and the word oor which means "place" in the South Indian languages Malayalam and Tamil. Here, the deity form of Lord Krishna is known affectionately as guruvAyUrappan - the Lord of Guruvayur.

Little Lord Krishna, the deity of Guruvayur

Bhagavata  Purana (srImad bhAgavata purANa, srImad bhAgavatam, or simply bhAgavatam) is a divine revelation compiled by Sri Veda Vyasa Maharishi, consisting of 18,000 verses. The book extols devotion to Supreme Lord Hari, and is praised by both scholars and the lay as "the essence of all Vedic literature". Sri Narayana Bhattathiri (nArAyaNa bhaTTatiri) was a great devotee of Lord Krishna who belonged to the 16th Century. He identified with the Advaita school of Vedanta. When he was once inflicted with a severe illness Sri Bhattathiri prayed to the Lord of Guruvayur. The devotional outpourings came in the form of a 1000-verse summary of the contents of the Bhagavata Purana, known as "Narayaneeyam" (nArAyaNIyam).

Lord Krishna's abode at Guruvayur, Kerala

In the last several posts, we have been dealing with the subject of the threefold acts of creation, sustenance, and destruction by Lord Narayana. We shall now wind up this discussion with relevant verses from Narayaneeyam which summarize the Lord's threefold activity. Let us now look at the following slokas-

vyakta-avyaktam-idaM na ki~ncit-abhavat prAk prAkRta-prakSaye

        mAyAyAM guNa-sAmya-ruddha-vikRtau tvayi-AgatAyAM layam     |

no mRtyuH-ca tat-AmRtaM ca sama-bhUnnohno na rAtreH sthitiH

        tatra-ekaH-tvam-ashiSyathAH kila para-Ananda-prakAsha-AtmanA    ||

(Narayaneeyam, 5:1)

Translation:

"When the earlier great deluge occurred, the world was nonexistent and mAyA (the primordial seed of material existence) was merged in Thy (Lord Krishna's) Supreme Form indiscernible in any way. There was no life or death and no day or night. Only Thy brilliant form of Supreme Bliss existed."

In a previous post, we saw that, according to Vedic Sanatana Dharma, the universe is created, sustained, and re-absorbed by Lord Hari. This entire process is repeated in a cyclical manner. At the end of each cycle, there is a period known as mahApraLaya ("great deluge") when the entire material universe exists without name and form in a subtle, indescribable manner. In another post, we saw that this indescribable matter is described as "avyakta" in the Vedic scriptures. The Narayaneeyam verse that we just saw above confirms these scriptural statements. It describes the dissolved state of the material universe during this great deluge, before the universe was created by Lord Hari as it exists today.

Lord Manu, the author of Manu-Smriti also confirms that the material universe existed in a very subtle, indiscernible form during the cosmic night:

This (universe) existed in the shape of Darkness, unperceived, destitute of distinctive marks, unattainable by reasoning, unknowable, wholly immersed, as it were, in deep sleep.

(Manu Smriti, I.5)

Manu Bhagavan then proceeds to describe the brilliance of the Lord as He shone during the great deluge, in the manner agreed by the above Narayaneeyam verse:

He who can be perceived by the internal organ (alone), who is subtle, indiscernible, and eternal, who contains all created beings and is inconceivable, shone forth of his own (will).

(Manu Smriti, I.7)

One may ask thus-- "When it is said in scripture that 'the universe did not exist', does it mean that the Lord created everything out of nothing"? Not at all, says Sri Narayana Bhattathiri in the next verse:

kAlaH karma guNAH-ca jIvanivahA vishvaM ca  kArye vibho!

         cilliilAratimeyuSi tvayi tadA nirliinatAmAyayuH                                    |

teSAM na-eva vadanti-asatvamayi bhOH-shakti-AtmanA 

         no cet kiM gagana-prasUna-sadRshAM bhUyo bhavet-sambhavaH        ||

(Narayaneeyam, 5:2)

Translation:

"Oh Lord ! At that point of time everything in the Universe viz. Kala (time), Karma (action), Guna (mood), the Jivathmas (individual souls ) all lay merged in Thy supreme form. But they were never nonexistent or imaginary like flowers of the sky. They were ensconced in Thee and re-emerged after the deluge."

For how long did this state last, and how did creation begin? Narayana Bhattathiri answers this for us thus:

evam-ca dvi-parArdha-kAla-vigatAvIkSAM sisRkSAtmikAM

        bibhrANe tvayi cukSubhe tribhuvanIbhAvAya mAyA svayam            |

mAyAtaH khalu kAla-shaktiH-akhila-adRSTaM svabhAvo-api ca

        prAdurbhUya guNAn vikAsya vidadhuH-tasyAH sahAya-kriyAm     ||

(Narayaneeyam, 5:3)

Translation:

This state lasted for one hundred Brahma-years. Then with the desire for creation Thou activated the mAyA (primordial matter) with a single glance and the evolution of the three worlds began. From the mAyA came "kAla-shakti", the hidden resultant karmA (the balance of good and bad deeds committed in the past) of individual souls and their svabhAvas (inborn dispositions). From these evolved the guNas (qualities/natures) and helped mAyA to manifest as the universe.

Hence, Sri Bhattathiri says that all the cosmic forces that maintain orderliness and justice in the universe were activated by Lord Vishnu by a single glance of his eyes. One hundred Brahma-years is the lifetime of one Brahma (four-faced deva), and is approximately equal to 310 Trillion human years. In the past, innumerable Brahmas have lived through their full tenures, and more will continue to do so. Fifty Brahma-years is known as a parArdha in Vedic cosmology. In other words, after the lifetime of every Brahma, the universe enters into another cosmic deluge lasting for 100 Brahma-years, but actually there is no Brahma during this time.

The next verse (5:4) of the Narayaneeyam describes Supreme Lord Narayana as the witness to the entire process of creation, and that he is not enveloped by mAyA, the cause of delusion and suffering in the material universe. Everything in this universe is ordained by the Lord, according to the principles of dharma (justice) and karma (past good/bad deeds).

Under the Lord's ordinance, primordial matter then evolved into the principle known as mahAn, then into aha"nkAra (ego-principle). The ego-principle further got divided into the three modes: sAttvika (goodness), rAjasa (passion), and tAmasa (ignorance). From the tAmasa ego-principle, the principles behind the five modes of perception (tanmAtra-s) -- sabda, sparsha, rUpa, rasa, and gandha (sound, touch, sight, taste, and smell), as well as the five material elements -- space, wind, fire, water, and earth, came into existance one after the other in an interleaved manner. This creation is described in the following Narayaneeyam verse:

shabdAd vyoma tataH sasarjitha vibho! sparshaM tato mArutam

        tasmAd rUpamato maho-athaH-ca rasaM toyaM ca gandhaM mahIm        |

evam mAdhava! pUrva-pUrva-kalanAd-AdyAdadharmAnvitaM

        bhUtagrAmamimaM tvayeva bhagavan! prAkAshayaH-tAmasAt               ||

(Narayaneeyam, 5:8)

Translation:

"From sound (sabda) Thou created the space (AkAsha). From that came touch (sparsha); from which air (vAyu) was born; from that came the visual form (rUpa); from visual form came fire (agni); from fire came taste (rasa); then came water (Apa) from taste; from water came smell (gandha) and from smell earth (prithvI) was formed. Thus Oh Lord Madhava ! Thou caused the group of elements to manifest from tamasa egoism with each one of them having the qualities of those created prior to them and hence all of them being interconnected."

In the Causal Ocean, the Supreme Lord first separates the qualities of the material elements (ether, air, fire, water, and earth) by His glance. 

 Thanks: www.glimpseofkrishna.com.  Copyrighted image and caption reproduced with permission of the artist Smt. Madhavapriya Devi

The above creation process by Lord Vishnu is known as samaSTi sRSTi or "aggregate creation" in English. The samaSTi sRSTi process continues further until four-faced Brahma deva is created by the Supreme Lord Narayana from the Divine Lotus springing from His navel. After that, the Lord ordains Brahma to be the agent for the next stage in creation known as vyaSTi sRSTi or "individual creation". It is then that Lord Brahma, under the instructions of the Lord, proceeds to create other beings -- from devas, gandharvas, angels, elves, demons, men, animals, down to plants, and further down to simplest single-cell organisms.

We close the discussion of Lord Hari's relation to the cosmos and His creation, which we have been running for weeks, with the following excellent summary given by Sri Adi Shankaracharya in his introductory chapter to his commentary on the Bhagavad Gita:

"sa Adi-kartA nArAyaNAkhyo viSNUH... sa ca bhagavAn jnAna-aishvarya-shakti-bala-vIrya-tejobhiH sadA sampannas triguNAtmikAm vaiSNavIm svAm mAyAm mUla-prakRtim vashIkrtya, ajo-avyayo bhUtAnAm Ishvaro nitya-shuddha-buddha-mukta svabhAvaH"

 (Adi Sankara's Introduction 

to Bhagavad Gita)

Translation:

"Lord Vishnu (all-pervading), known as Narayana, is the primordial creator... The Lord, possessed of infinite knowledge, supremacy, power, strength, might, and vigor, controls the mAyA -- belonging to Him as Vishnu -- the primordial matter that is the first cause composed of the three natures (goodness, passion, and ignorance). The Lord is unborn and indestructible, and is by nature Eternal, Pure, Intelligent, and Free."

So far, we have explored the greatness and supremacy (paratva) of the Lord. Starting with the next post, we will start exploring his other great aspect, namely His compassion and accessibility (saulabhya) to all of His creatures.

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