Guruvayurappan Guruvayur
Narayaneeyam in Short Form…Narayaniyam is a holy Sanskrit text, which consists of beautiful poems from the Bhagavata Purana. It was written by Narayana Bhattathiri, during 16th century AD, who was one of the famous poets in Kerala. The Bhagavata Purana is a sacred text, and it tells us about the significance of Lord Krishna, his wonderful Leelas, miracles performed by him and about his childhood plays etc.
The divine text, Narayaniyam is still read by lot of Hindus, especially by the Malayalee Hindus, and they consider it as the Mahaprasad of Lord Krishna. This text would be recited by large number of devotees in the Guruvayur Krishna Temple, and also in the Vishnu temples during the times of festivals. Narayaniyam contains about the complete details of Lord Narayana, and this beautiful work was completed by Bhattathiri at the Guruvayur Temple, Kerala, through the blessings of Lord Krishna. Narayaniyam tells us about the avatars of Lord Vishnu, the grace showered on his devotees, and about his supreme powers.
The “chanting” of Narayaniyam is believed to heal various mental and physical diseases, and also it would remove all sorts of doshams of the devotees. Discourses on Narayaniyam would regularly take place in the Guruvayur temple, and large number of devotees would eagerly watch the divine discourse, and would get delighted. Narayana Bhattathiri was born in the year 1560 in a village in Malappuram district, Kerala. He has written Narayaniyam due to the grace of Lord Krishna, and after writing the holy text, Narayaniyam, his Paralysis disease was cured, due to the blessings of Krishna.
Through this text, Narayaniyam, Bhattathiri had spread the “SRI KRISHNA BHAKTI” amongst the people, and lot of people had become Krishna devotees. Apart from Narayaniyam, Bhattathiri has also written lot of devotional works, and it is believed that he died at the age of 105, and after his death, he has reached the lotus feet of Lord Krishna.
Indeed it is a great luck that in Guruvayur, The great and well known divine principle of God,
Is present as the continuous stream of joy and wisdom, Which does not have an equal, which is beyond time and place, Which is always free from ties, which in spite of being made clear,
By several prayers as well as words of praise is still unclear, And which makes you want to see it again and again, once you see it When this principle of God which is difficult to get, Is easily available to us, it is unfortunate that people depend, On some other thing by their body, mind and words, And this is clearly not correct and also bad, But we with great stability of mind are depending on, The lord of Guruvayur for getting rid of all problems of the world It is heard that sage Vyasa has several times told that your form, Is extremely pure and personification of Sathwa aspect, And is entirely separated from the regal and base aspects,
And is made of the beings and their properties.
And due to this purity, your form which is unhidden great pleasure, Shines and has a great form inside and is pleasant to hear and meditate, Making it possible for your devotees to get attracted and enjoy.
It is said by the learned that the very pure sathva character, Is equal to the beating of the waves of the ocean called Brahmam, Which is without movement, always full, personification,
Of the limitless nectar of joy and great due to merging of several liberated souls, Oh God who is everywhere, this thine form is the only complete one, Compared to the several incarnations that you have taken.
Oh God ,who does not have any birth, though you seem to be without action, You take up the job of being “this moment” without any reason, And that is why you as the nature ,rise up at the beginning of the ions, From within yourself though there seems to be nothing there in you at that time, And that nature is pure, does not hide anything and the form of pure thought, And you yourself have assumed your form from a part of that nature.
I meditate always on your form Oh, the great Lord of Guruvayur, Which is as pretty as the water rich new clouds, Which makes one happy with its play like kalaya flowers, Which is the ultimate single essence of prettiness, Which is the incarnation which is born as the good deeds, Of those people who have done laudable actions, Which is the place for Goddess Lakshmi to play without hesitation, And which is the rain of nectar in the mind of those who meditate on you.
Oh God who can never be defeated, I once thought that, Your act of creation was cruel as it gives all the beings, Large amount of sorrow and pain in day to day life, But I am not thinking like that now, for without that action, How can they drink the beauty of your form which is full of joy and knowledge, And enjoy themselves in the sea of nectar of that divine joy.
Oh God, you always appear before all those who salute you, And grant them not only their wishes but also those that they have not asked, You grant them the joyful path of salvation at all times, And so, Oh Lord Vishnu , you are the wish giving tree , Which is available for all with unending fruits, But those devotees seem unnecessarily to want, That weeds like wish giving tree in the Garden of Indra. Other Gods due to mercy fulfil some other desires, But you give them due to great mercy give your soul itself, Other Gods due to riches, become their Lord, But you are god and Lord even of your own soul, Some very lucky ones make you as interesting subject, And become incomparably very happy, But you are the one within whom there is nothing but joy, And So oh valorous God, salutations to you for these exceptional qualities.
Your greatness is indicated by your making Shiva and other Gods obey you, Your valour lies in your abilities in your control of the power of those who give power, Your spotless fame is being praised by sages, who do not want anything, Goddess Lakshmi is always with your various parts of your body, And so you are the one who knows all and no one can imagine that you have any desires, And so Oh Lord of Guruvayur, killer of Mura, you are fit to be termed as God.
The Dashavatara (10 Primary Avatars)
Matsya (Fish): Saved the first man, Manu, and the sacred Vedas from a cosmic flood.
Kurma (Tortoise): Supported Mount Mandara on his back during the churning of the ocean of milk.
Varaha (Boar): Rescued the Earth goddess Bhudevi from the demon Hiranyaksha.
Narasimha (Man-Lion): Destroyed the demon Hiranyakashipu to protect his devotee, Prahlada.
Vamana (Dwarf): Subdued the arrogant king Bali by traversing the three worlds in three steps.
Parashurama (Warrior with an Axe): Cleansed the world of corrupt kings to restore balance.
Rama (The Ideal Man): The prince of Ayodhya who defeated the demon king Ravana, central to the Ramayana.
Krishna (The Divine Statesman): Played a crucial role in the Mahabharata and delivered the Bhagavad Gita.
Buddha (The Teacher): Preached peace, non-violence (ahimsa), and compassion (often listed as a teacher to correct ritualistic practices).
Kalki (The Destroyer of Filth): The final, future avatar predicted to appear at the end of the Kali Yuga to end the age of darkness.
“OM SRI NARAYANA DEVAYANA ANANDA SAYANA NAMAYANA NAMO NAMAHA”
COMPILED BY
R. HARISHANKAR