Chaturvimshati nAmagaLu

By : Smt.Meera & Shri Kesava Rao Tadipatri 

Shri Vadiraja kruta Chaturvimshati murtibheda Stotram 

24 Tattvas - Devatas, Laxmi & Bhagavan Rupas & Gayatri Rupas

24 Laxmi Rupas artha Chintane audio by Smt.Meera Tadipatri 

Here are some meanings  for a few "names of God" that we use normally. Lord hari is "sarva shabda vacya" and can be known by many names.
vanamAli = vanAnAm (padmanAm) mAlA asya astIti = one who wears the garland of lotus flowers.
The caturvimshati namAs (24 names) that we use in "AcamanAdi" kriyAs.

1. kEshava

a. kEshi nAmaka daityasya vadham akarOt = one who killed a demon named kEshi

b. kaH = brahma , IshaH = shivaH ; brahma shivau avati(raxa karOti)
= one who protects brahma and shiva. Also by being above them, He helps them in discharging their functions namely creation and dissolution.

2. nArAyana
In the archives many meanings are given for this.
I will give a couple
 a.  ApO nArA iti prOktA ApO vai narasUnavaH | tA yadasyAyanam pUrvam tEna
nArAyanaH  smr^itaH = one who resides in water, one who as antaryAmi resides in all human beings ; b. nArA = JnAnam , ayanam = nivAsam yasya saH
nArAyanaH = One who resides in knowledge or one in whom knowledge resides.
Incidentally nArada = nArA (JnAnam) dadAti iti nAradaH = one who gives knowledge.

nArada gave upadEsha to prahlAda (when he was still inside the womb of lIlAvati (wife of hiranyakashipu). He asks Lord vishNu, brahma etc. questions of various kinds whose answers are very helpful to the mankind and give the mankind knowledge. He is there as preacher to vAlmIki, dhruva and many more great personalities.

3.  mAdhava

(mA = ramA, dhava = pati)  ramAyaH dhavaH = husband of laxmi

4. gOvinda

a. one who makes the cows happy (gAvaH vindati)
 b. one  who is known by vEdAs only (gObhyaH = vEdEbhyaH vEttumsakyatE)

 Incidentally in the archives, I saw girAvAsaH being given the meaning living on hills. giraH means word or speech. So girAvAsaH means one who dwells in words orspeech.

5. vishNu
probably there are many meanings for this in the archives

     a. visHva vyApana shIlam asya asti iti = one who pervades the
entire universe
      b. yasmAdvishvamidam sarvam tasya shaktyA mahAtmanaH | tasmadEvocyatE vishNurvishadhAtoH pravEshanAt || = the entire universe comes out of him and finally enters or goes into him

 6. madhusUdana

 madhum sUdayati iti = one who killed the demon named madhu.

7. trivikrama  trINi bhuvanAni vikrAnta yena = one by whom all three worlds are occupied.
      It is well known that in vAmanAvatAra, Lord hari took three strides from bali and vishNustrEdhA vichakramE = in one step covered all lower worlds, in 2nd step all upper worlds and in third step sent bali to "pAtALa" and made the king of the lower worlds by giving him a boon that hari himself will  guard his gates.

8. vAmana a. short person (He came in the guise of a short vatu)
 b. vAma rUpaH = sundara rUpaH = a very handsome person
 c. vAmA (laxmi) namati yam saH = one whom goddess laxmi bows

9. shrIdhara  shrI, laxmi dharyatE yEna saH = one in whom laxmi resides

10. hr^ishIkEsha 

hr^ishIkAnindriyANyAhustEshAmIshO yato bhavAn |
hr^ishIkEshastatO vishNO khyAto dEvEshhu kEshava ||

     = Oh Lord you are known as the lord of sense organs among all the gods.

11. padmanAbha 
 nAbhigata padmam yasya = yasya nAbhyA prasr^itam padmam = one who has lotus flower in the navel.

12. dAmodara 
 a. dAmam yasya udaraparivr^tam saH = one who has rope around the belly
     It is well known that once yashOda tried to tie the rope around Lord krishNa and no matter how big a rope she picked up, it fell short. She was not aware that her son is God incarnate and she helplessly says "Oh God help me" looking to the skies. But all pervading krishna notices her helplessness and lets himself tied. That is why damOdara is one who can be tied by bhakti (bhaktasulabhatva).

b. dAmam yasya udarasyOpari saH = one who has a garland going over his belly

 c. dAmam yasya udarE asti saH = one who has the entire universe inside his belly

 13. saMkarshhana  
  a. (sarvam) sankr^ishhyatE  yasmin saH = every thing gets absorbed or drawn together into him

 b. samyak karshhanam karoti iti = one who is most attractive

Incidentally else where samkarshhana may be used for balarAma where the "vyutpatti artha" is different = samkarshhanAttu garbhasya sa hi samkarshhanO yuvA = one who is drawn away from one womb (devaki's) to another womb (rOhini's) by yOgamAya at the command of Lord hari. Similar confusion arises from other words like 'halAyudha" or "haladhara rUpa" . In one sense it refers to balarAma. But hala means plough (the weapon used by parashu rAma is parshu which is axe different from hala or plough). Ploughman is the person who tills the land and also who controls the land. metaphorically Lord hari controls the entire universe, seeds (creates), takes care (maintains), removes at the end (disintegrates).

  14. vAsudEva 
 a. vasudEvasya apatyam pumAn = son of vasudEva

 b. vasu = riches or wealth , vasudA = one that gives wealth = earth,
vasudAdIn avati (raxati) = protect the earth (implicitly all the beings therein) etc.

 c. vAsuH dEvah = the supreme being or paramAtma

 d. sarvEshu utkrAmya vasati = one who pervades everything

 15. pradyumna 
prakr^ishtEna dyumati = one who shines with effulgence
Incidentally Krishna has a son named pradyumna who is the incarnation of manmatha.

 16. aniruddha 
asya nirOdham kartum na sakyatE iti = one whom it is impossible to stop . Incidentally Krishna has a grand son named aniruddha.

 17. purushOttama
 purushAnAm uttamaH = hari sarvOttama
Else where in dvaita site refer to BG's slOkas and explanation "dvAvimau purushau lOkE...."

18. adhOxaja 

 a. axAt  indriyAt  jAyatE iti axajam pratyaxaJnAnam , tadadharam grAhakatva abhAvAt hIna sya saH = one whom it is impossible to comprehend using the knowledge of sense organs

  b. adhaH kritam axajam (indriyaJnAnam) yEna saH = one who controls all the knowledge from the sense organs (also). He control every thing including this.

  c. adhO na xIyatE jAtu yasmAttasmAdadhOxajaH = one who never diminishes

   d. dyauraxam pr^ithivI cAdhastayOryasmAdajAyata | madhyE vairAjarUpEna tatO~dhOxaja ishhyatE || axam means heaven, adhoxam is one that is below heaven which is earth. adhOxaja is one from whom   the earth is born (purusha sUkta  : - ....padbhyAm bhUmirdishaH srOtrAttatha lOkanakalpayan.....)

19. nArasimhaa. One who has human body and lion's  head.
 b. nAra means JnAna , simha is king of the jungle or symbolically ruler. So one who rules the knowledge

 20. acyuta 
na chyutaH = One who never falls, never removed, never errs, never deprived, never loses, never shaken.

 21. janArdana
(pralay kAlE sarvAn) janAn, samasta lOkAn ardati layam
karOti iti = one who annihilates the entire creation at the time of mahA pralaya.

 22. upEndra

upagata indraH anujatvAt = one who is born as younger brother of indra.
     Indra is son of aditi. Lord hari in vamanAvatAra comes as aditi's son. In a work known as "shishupAla vadha" a sentence goes  "yadupEndrastvamatIndra Eva saH" (Even though you are younger brother of indra, you are much superior to him)

  23. hari

Lord hari = one who removes bhava bandha or worldly fetters = one who removes all the sins of his devotees

24. krishna a. krishna varnaH = One who has the color of nIlamegha or black cloud

b. (sarva) karana shIlam asya asti iti = one who is the doer of all

These 24 forms are called mUla rUpAs of Lord hari. He holds conch, discus, mace and lotus in 4 hands. Factorial 4 = 4 x 3 x 2 x 1 = 24 is the number of all possible permutations. Each form holds them differently.
For ex. kEshava has conch in right upper hand, discus in left upper, mace in left lower, lotus in right lower.
nArAyaNa has lotus in right upper hand, mace in left upper, discus in left lower, conch in right lower. etc.

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Chaturvimshati Laxmi rupagaLu
24 Laxmi Rupas artha Chintane  audio by Smt.Meera Tadipatri 

Bhagavan	Laxmi
Keshava	Shri
Narayana	Laxmi
Madhava	kamala
Govinda	Padma
Vishnu	Padmini
Madhusudana	kamalAlaya
Trivikrama	ramA
Vamana	vrushAkapi
Shridhara	Dhanya
Rishikesha	Buddhi
Padmanabha	yajna
Damodara	Indira
Sankarshana	Hiranya
Vasudeva	Harini
Pradyumna	sathyA
Aniruddha	NityA
Purushottama	Ananda
Adoxaja	TrayI
Narasimha	Sudha
Achyuta	Sugandha
Janardhana	SundarI
Upendra	vidyA
Hari	sushIla
Krishna	SulaxaNa

I. Names are mentioned in the [bruhat] hAritA smrutiH, and quoted in the GurvarthadIdhiti, comm. on Tantra Saara Sangraha verse # 1.60

1. shri, laxI, kamalA, padmA, padmini, kamalAlayA

7. ramA, vR^ishhAkapI, Dhanya, vR^idhi, yajna, indira

13. hiranyA, harini, sathyA, nityA, Ananda, trayI

19. sudhA, sugandhA, sundarI, vidyA, sushIla, and

24. sulaxaNa

II. Sri Sumatindra Tirtharu has also quoted these in his KeshavAdi-chaturvimshati-murti" stotram.

"shrirlaxIH kamalA padmA padminI kamalAlayA |

ramA vR^ishhAkapI dhanyA vR^idhiryajna tathendirA ||

shaktayaH keshavAdInAM samproktAH paramepade

hiranyA harinI sathyA nityA nandA trayI sudhA

sugandhA sundarI vidyA sushIlA cha sulaxaNA

sankarshaNAdimUrtInAM shaktyaH samprakIrtitAH"

III. Sri Vijaya Dasaru mentions these names in the Durga SuLadi:

shri laxmI kamalA padmA padmini kamalAlayA |
ramA vR^ishhAkapI dhanyA vR^idhi vishAlAyajna
indire hiranyA harini vAlayasathyA nityA nanda
trayI sudhA shIlesugandhA sundarI vidyA sushIle
sulaxaNadevi nAnA rUpagalinda mereva mR^ityunAshe..

Note:

Vyuha is basically a cluster of His own rupa-visheshas meant for karya vishesha. At the time of shrushti, Mula Narayana takes chatur-vyuha [MBTN 3.9] -- Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha.

Like these, Acharya says in MBTN 1.10, there is: 

a. the 5 vyuha [Narayana, Vasudeva, Sankarshana, Pradyumna and Aniruddha] of Sri Hari

b. 12 vyuha of Shri Keshava to Damodhara.

c. 10 rupas cluster Matsya etc.

d. 100 rupas with Narayana cluster

e. 1000 rupas cluster like Vishva..

f. 18 or many rupa vyuha like Para

g. 51 matruka vyuha 

Further we also see vyuhas within them like in Taitiriya,

Chandogya how each vyuha will be made up of one aspect of God like Narayana vyuha will have: Narayana-Narayana Narayana-Vasudeva Narayana-Pradyumna Narayana-Aniruddha and so on. Here the chintane is that each "Akara" is made up of His own jnana-ananda maya Narayana rupa

A few other meanings :

uma

a. (already given) mAtrA tapasI nishhiddha paschAdumAkhyAm sumukhI jagAma her mother told her "Oh do not practice penance" ; u = penance, mA =no

This definition was given by kAlidAsa in kumAra sambhava.

 b. OH = shivasya (u means shiva) , mA = laxmIriva. 
Together it means one who is the consort of shiva.

 c. um = shivam, mAti manyatE patitvEna mA = one who treats shiva as her husband

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vEnkatEsha

vEm = sins, katanti = go away, Isha = lord, yasya Ishasya smaranat papani katanti saH     

a. The lord who washes away all the sins (just by his smarana).      
b. vEm = vAnchitapradam, katanti = go to , ishadayaH yam vAnchitapradam adhigacchanti      

The boon-giver  to whom shiva and others go to or approach

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gAyatrImantra:

Om tatsavitur varENyam bhargO dEvasya dhImahi dhiyO yO naH prachOdayAt

Sanskrit prose order :

yo naH dhiyo  prachOdayAt  (tasya) dEvasya savituH varENyam  tat  bhargaH dhImahi

Meaning : 

yaH = one who ; naH = our ; dhiyaH = intellects; prachOdayAt =

instigating ; (tasya = to such);

dEvasya = Lord's; savituH = savitr^i  nAmaka  nArAyana (acting as instigator);

varENyam  = most desirable by virtue of being most outstanding;  tat = that well known;

bhargaH  = effulgent supreme being; (bharana  gamana  kartr^itvAt bhargaH);

dhImahi = let us meditate upon.

Let us meditate upon the well known effulgent, most desirable and outstanding, supreme being, pranavAtmaka savitr^i nAmaka nArAyana, who instigates our intellects.

Shri KrishNArpaNamastu.