Naama 626-629: The Lord's extreme amiability (sauseelyam)

626. vijitātmā · विजितात्मा

The one who delights in being conquered by His devotees. When a devotee bows before Him with sincere devotion, the Lord is easily won over.

(oṃ) vijitātmanē namaḥ

Here, Sri Bhattar moves from the Lord's relationship with Thaayaar to His extreme amiability (sauśīlyam). At the start of the Mahabharata war, Lord Krishna promised that He would not take up weapons. But Bhishma, His great devotee, vowed that he would make Krishna take up arms. When Bhishma's arrows rained down upon Arjuna, Krishna leapt down from the chariot with the chariot wheel in His hand and rushed towards Bhishma. The Lord broke His own vow so that His devotee's vow could be kept true.

Such is the Lord who allows Himself to be conquered by His devotees.

Sri Bhattar's interpretation here shows how he always emphasises the Lord's easy accessibility (saulabhyam), while Sri Sankara tends to emphasise the Lord's supremacy (paratvam).

627. vidhēyātmā · विधेयात्मा

The one whose very nature is to be at the disposal of His devotees, so much so that they can easily command Him, "Come here, stand there, sit here, eat this."

(oṃ) vidhēyātmanē namaḥ

Periyazhwar, in the role of Yasoda, calls to the little Krishna, "Come and wear these flowers! Come and have your bath! Come and drink your milk!" A beautiful example is Lord Yathoktakari (Sonna Vannam Seida Perumal) of Thiruvekka in Kanchipuram. When the king banished Kanikannan, the disciple of Thirumazhisai Azhwar, the Azhwar said to the Lord, "Kanikannan is leaving, so roll up Your snake bed and come with me." The Lord rolled up Adisesha and followed them.

When the king repented, the Azhwar asked the Lord to spread out His bed and lie down again, and the Lord did exactly as He was told. This is why He is called "the Lord who did as He was told."

628. satkīrtiḥ · सत्कीर्तिः

The one whose great fame comes from His amiability. No matter how much we praise His glory, it will always fall short, and every word of it is true without any exaggeration.

(oṃ) satkīrtayē namaḥ

Nammazhwar calls Him "the one whose fame has no equal" (nigar il pugazhāy). There are two kinds of fame: the fame that comes from wealth and position, which is temporary, and the fame that comes from following dharma, which lasts forever. The Lord's fame is of the second kind.

629. chinnasaṃśayaḥ · छिन्नसंशयः

The one who, by His reputation for extreme amiability and accessibility, removes all doubts about Him, such as "Can He be easily known or not?", "Can He be easily pleased or not?", and "Can He be easily approached or not?"

(oṃ) chinnasaṃśayāya namaḥ

Arjuna says to Krishna in the Gita, "O Krishna, You alone can completely remove this doubt of mine. There is no one other than You who can remove it." At the end of the Gita, after hearing the Lord's teaching, Arjuna declares, "My delusion is destroyed, my doubts are gone, and I will do as You say."