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The Lord’s supremacy

CHENNAI: The Supreme Being is the cause of the universe and the scriptures state that He first creates Brahma and entrusts the responsibility of creation to him. The three cosmological functions of creation, maintenance and dissolution of the universe is a cyclic process, and Narayana sustains the cosmos and Rudra Siva is responsible for dissolution.

In his discourse on the compositions of Tirumazhisai Azhwar, Utthamur Sri Rajagopalachariar said the Azhwar had established the Lord’s supremacy in the opening 10 verses of the Nanmukan Tiruvandadi. On the lines of Prahlada who describes the nine modes of devotion to show that a human being must utilise all his faculties given by God to express his devotion to Him, Tirumazhisai Azhwar says, “Contemplate on Him firmly, fold your hands in obeisance and strew fresh flowers. Lower your head at His feet, let your tongue praise Him, let your eyes see Him, let your ears hear Him.” The human senses and the mind can engage in devotion to the Lord, but will that lead to liberation directly? No, say the Azhwars and preceptors. They enable the devotee to develop discrimination to overcome the pitfalls of worldly life and enhance devotion. One desirous of liberation must pursue the path of devotion (Bhakti yoga) or surrender to the Lord (Prapatti) through a preceptor.

In a verse on the Lord of Tirumala (Venkatam), Tirumazhisai Azhwar reinforces that the Supreme Being stays in this world to ensure man’s liberation by nullifying his Karma. “Venkatam” literally means that which destroys all sins. Vedanta Desika in the opening verse of his hymn Dayasatakam pays obeisance to Venkatam as the hill is revered as the body of the Lord. If the hill is capable of removing man’s sins, what then needs to be said of the Lord of this hallowed abode? The Almighty is the dispenser of Karma and man enjoys the result in the form of Punya (merit) and Papa (sin). It is necessary to remember that an action by itself cannot become Papa or Punya. It is God’s will that transforms man’s Karma; His grace transforms an act in conformity to Dharma into Punya and His censure of an unrighteous act accrues as Papa.

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