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Bayu Anggriawan Profile picture அழகரசன் Profile picture gymgirl reader // mishra🏳️‍🌈 Profile picture Anant Profile picture Vishnu Profile picture 6 subscribed
Jun 3 33 tweets 5 min read
Since I have explained both the sharaNAgatis in mahAbhArata – draupadI’s and duryodhana’s – let us see what phalAs they obtained.

Just tying up some loose ends in the final thread+ We already know draupadI always relied on her husbands and relatives over krishna.

Because of this, she always lived in fear when usually prapannAs are fearless (सुयोधनभयार्दिताम् ; रक्ष मां कीचकाद् भीतां).+
May 28 32 tweets 6 min read
DRAUPADI’S SURRENDER – PART 4 (CONCLUSION)

As yudhiShThira, bhIma & arjuna failed to answer duryodhana’s question, the Kauravas decided that draupadI remained a slave.

Since she too had forgotten bhagavAn and again depended on her husbands, she was manhandled again+ ततो दुःशासनस् तूर्णं द्रुपदस्य सुतां बलात्.प्रवेशयितुम् आरब्धः स चाकर्षद् दुरात्मवान्

[Then the sinful minded duHshAsana, quickly began to drag the daughter of drupada (to the slave quarters)]

duHshAsana was afraid to try to disrobe her again, as he had seen she was protected+
May 27 29 tweets 5 min read
DRAUPADI’S SURRENDER – PART 3

We saw that Krishna protected draupadI, giving her clothes when she surrendered to him. But he cannot not kill duHshAsana or duryodhana – as both are under balarAma's protection.

Still, the pANDavAs can kill Duryodhana now+ If draupadI’s husbands act on her behalf, it would nullify duryodhana’s protection, making him vulnerable.

Yet, paNDavAs did not even think of that – hence, Lokacharya says Krishna wanted to cut off their heads in anger, but spared them to avoid draupadI being widowed!+
May 21 34 tweets 6 min read
DRAUPADI’S SURRENDER – PART 2

We saw that draupadI’s dependence on her husbands was fruitless. Now, duHshAsana tries to disrobe her, she instinctively thinks of Hari and performs sharaNAgati.

Let us look at her stuti to Krishna today, as she finally invokes Hari+ गोविन्द द्वारकावासिन् कृष्ण गोपीजनप्रिय

[ “Govinda! Resident of dvAraka! Krishna! Beloved of the gopIs”]

गोविन्द- He as a cowherd is accessible (saulabhya) to even the ignorant.

द्वारकावासिन्– He abandoned paramapada to come to dvAraka from affection (vAtsalya) for samsArIs+
May 20 32 tweets 6 min read
DRAUPADI’S SURRENDER – PART 1

Today, we will take a look at whether draupadI’s accusation of krishna was correct – that he did not help her when duHshAsana dragged her by the hair.

This is how that ordeal of hers is described in Sabha parva+ केशेशु कृष्णेषु तदा स कृष्णाम्. कृष्णं च जिष्णुं च हरिं नरं च त्रायाय विक्रोशति याज्ञसेनि

[When duHShAsana was dragging her by her black hair, yAj~naseni was crying out for protection to krishna, jishnu, hari and nara]+
May 17 4 tweets 1 min read
The reason why bhagavad avatArAs are so celebrated is not because bhagavAn just appears and kills the sinners with his power.

Rather, most asuras and daityas have sAdhana like duryodhana or some sukRita. That's why they are able to conquer the devas now and then+ bhagavAn is celebrated in his avatArAs because he subdues these sinners without violating their sAdhana. He ensures their sAdhana is not broken and that they also receive the fruits of their good deeds+
May 14 11 tweets 2 min read
If you notice, both Ramayana and Mahabharata are about two women who sought the refuge of bhagavAn - sIta and draupadI.

Both performed sharaNAgati for their ends. But what is the significance of this?+ Well, the significance is the fact that they are women. As shAstra says,

पुरुषोत्तम: स एव. स्त्री प्रायम् इतरत् सर्वम्

[He (viShNu) alone is puruShottama, all else are strIs by nature]+
Apr 30 8 tweets 2 min read
As far as the discussion on twitter today about whether the Linga is a phallus or not goes, here's the truth.

Firstly, padma purana confirms it is indeed symbolizing the union of a phallus with a vagina, as it is due to a curse uttered by bhR^igu to mahAdeva+ नारीसंगममत्तोऽसौ यस्मान्मामवमन्यते |
योनिलिंगस्वरूपं वै तस्मात्तस्य भविष्यति

[bhR^igu - "Since you, being engrossed in the company of umA ignored me, you will have the form of yonilinga"]+
Apr 24 9 tweets 2 min read
Interesting little detail in the mahAbhArata – it is a narrative in which both bhagavAn and bhAgavata get abused in a Sabha.

Krishna was abused by shishupAla in a sabha (Sacrificial area) of yudhiShThira, draupadI was abused by the Kauravas in a sabha (royal court)+ In the case of Krishna, shishupAla tried to deny the greatness of Krishna by saying - राजा जरासंधो महाबलः . योऽनेन युद्धं नेयेष दासोऽयम् इति – “The powerful King jarAsandha, refused to fight with Krishna, saying, “this one is a slave (of kaMsa)”+
Apr 17 9 tweets 2 min read
A very apt shloka by devarishi narada on the occasion of Shri Rama Navami:

ऋषीणां देवतानां च मानुषाणां च सर्वशः . पृथिव्यां सहवासो ऽभूद् रामे राज्यं प्रशासति (~ droNa parva)

["When rAma ruled his Kingdom, the rishis, gods and men all lived together on the Earth"]+ Note the order – rishis, gods & men. This implies rishis are superior to gods who in turn are superior to ordinary men.

Rishis have high j~nAna & vairAgya; gods have high j~nAna but lesser vairAgya; ordinary humans have less j~nAna & vairAgya+
Apr 15 30 tweets 5 min read
When proving hari sarvottama in the pAsuram “kANilum uruppolAr” (thirucchanda virutham, credit - @KoyilOrg), thirumazhisai azhwar gives a beautiful explanation of how other gods are not to be worshipped as the supreme being.

Note: Thread not for everyone+ Consider the vAkya- आत्मा वा अरे द्रष्टव्यः श्रोतव्यो मन्तव्यो निदिध्यासितव्यः (~ bR^ihadAraNyaka up.)– “The self is to be seen, heard, thought of & meditated upon”.

Azhwar says this implies that gods other than Brahman should not be seen, heard, thought of or meditated on+
Apr 8 20 tweets 4 min read
A quality of rAma is that whenever he has a council with his close associates, he listens to what they say, but ultimately makes the decision himself.

For eg: He patiently listened to arguments of bharata, vaShiShTha, jabali etc who tried to convince him to not go to the forest+ In the end, he rejected their arguments and went to the forest anyway.

Likewise, prior to banishing sIta due to rumors among citizens, he summons his brothers and well-wishers, asking for their opinion. Against their opinions, he still decides to banish her+
Mar 18 35 tweets 6 min read
In the anushAsana parva, pArvati asks mahAdeva - केन कण्ठश् च ते नीलो बर्ह भाति निभः - “Why is your neck blue like the tail of a peacock?”

Shiva gives an interesting answer, in the form of a little known anecdote+ इन्द्रेण च पुरा वज्रं क्षिप्तं श्रीकाङ्क्षिणा मम दग्ध्वा कण्ठं तु तद् यातं तेन श्रीकण्ठता मम

[Shiva - “Once, Indra, desiring my wealth, hurled his vajrAyudha at me. With that weapon my throat was scorched. By that, I have attained the state of having a beautiful (blue) throat”]+
Feb 5 32 tweets 5 min read
Today, Let us look at why rAma banished sIta. First, we need to understand the AdhyAtmic meaning behind the separation.

In shrI vachana bhUshana vyAkhyAna, mAmunigal explains that her 2nd separation was to highlight her pAratantriyam – quality of existing for bhagavAn's sake+ As she says,

न खल्व् अद्यैव सौमित्रे जीवितं जाह्नवी जले . त्यजेयं राघवम् वंशे तु भर्तुर् मे परिहास्यते (~ uttara kANDa)

[sIta – “lakshmaNa! The progeny I bear cannot stop existing for the sake of rAghava’s lineage. Hence, I did not cast myself into the ganga to end my life.”]+
Jan 22 15 tweets 3 min read
On this auspicious day of prANa-prathiShTha, let us study what this ritual implies.

It is the establishment (prathiShTha) of bhagavAn who is called “prANa” in the vigraha+ He is “prANa” because – 1) He is the “life” or “breath” of his devotees who sustain themselves by enjoying him in archAvatAra, 2) He protects all by such forms. These 2 guNAs - enjoyment and protection are primary.

Thus, we have the following pramANAs+
Jan 19 6 tweets 1 min read
rAvaNa worshipped shiva believing he could gain power over the indrAdi devatAs. There was no love or respect in that worship.

Rather, he knew that gods are duty-bound to honor worship by giving boons+ It is pertinent to note that vAlmiki mentions rAvaNa worshipped a golden linga. The linga form of mahAdeva is worshipped by those who are not advanced enough to worship him in his manifest form, ie, by people lacking Atma-j~nAna (which the lingarUpI mahAdeva eventually bestows)+
Jan 8 31 tweets 5 min read
Today, let us look at a dialogue between parashurAma and shiva. In the viShNu dharmottara, there is a section where Shiva describes the guNAs and leelas of nArAyaNa to parashurAma.

This is how parashurAma approaches shiva+ त्वत्तः परतरं देवं नान्यं पश्यामि कञ्चन. पूजयन्ति सदा लिङ्गं तव देवाः सवासवाः

[parashurAma said to rudra – “I cannot perceive any God superior to you. The devas along with Indra as their chief always honor your prime characteristic – your excellence in upAsana.”]+
Jul 26, 2023 7 tweets 1 min read
With all the debate about “कालोऽस्मि लोकक्षयकृत्प्रवृद्धो लोकान्समाहर्तुमिह प्रवृत्तः” due to the Oppenheimer movie, I thought I would share Acharya Ramanuja’s commentary for the same+ Firstly, “काल:”  does not mean “Death” or “Time” according to the Acharya. Even I had wrongly assumed he meant “Time” without seeing the commentary.

“काल:” refers directly to bhagavAn. It means “One who calculates or measures” (कलनात्)+
Jun 19, 2023 28 tweets 5 min read
KIRATA AND ARJUNA - PART 3

Now, Indra had advised arjuna to get a darshanam of mahAdeva as he felt the latter as j~nAna-prada-mUrti would enable arjuna to surrender.

So, Arjuna commences penances towards mahAdeva+ तपस्य् उग्रे वर्तमान उग्रतेजा महामनाः दर्भचीरं निवस्याथ दण्डाजिनविभूषितः

[Arjuna who is very wise, of formidable resplendence, performed a fierce penance wearing robes made of darbha, with a staff and deer skin]+
Jun 13, 2023 32 tweets 6 min read
KIRATA AND ARJUNA - PART 2

Despite yudhiShThira & vyAsa asking him surrender, arjuna couldn’t do it.

When one cannot obey an AchArya’s order due to incapability, shAstra permits him to do the next best thing. So arjuna decided to do penances with thirumantra as accessory+ मनोजवगतिर् भूत्वा योगयुक्तो यथानिलः…इन्द्रकीलं समासाद्य ततोऽतिष्ठद् धनंजयः

[Arjuna, yoked to the thirumantra called “योग”, reached his destination quick as thought, like the wind. He arrived at Indrakila & stayed intending to do penances.]+
Jun 12, 2023 30 tweets 5 min read
KIRATA AND ARJUNA - PART 1

Continuing from the Intro thread.

When yudhiShThira ponders about how to defeat the Kauravas, veda vyAsa comes to him and gives him advice.

He tells him that it is time for Arjuna to acquire celestial weapons+ श्रेयसस् ते परः कालः प्राप्तो भरतसत्तम . येनाभिभविता शत्रून् रणे पार्थो धनंजयः .

[vyAsa - “Foremost of bhAratAs! The time has come for you to obtain bhagavad anugraha, by which pArtha, called dhananjaya, can conquer foes in battle.”]+