Visnusahasranama Stotram- Commentary on the Thousand Names By Adi Sankaracharya

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About the Book Visnusahasranama - the thousand names (sahasra-nama) of Lord Vishnu - appears in the Mahabharata. Adi Sankaracarya has enhanced the glory of Visnusahasranarna by writing a beautiful commentary (in Sanskrit) on it.

This book is a translation into English of the commentary by Adi Sankaracarya on each of the thousand names of the Lord. The unique aspect of this book is the word-for-word translation of the entire commentary, making it easy for the reader to appreciate the purport of the entire Visnusahasranarna. Being familiar with the deeper meaning of the names of the Lord, adds another dimension to the process of chanting of the Visnusahasranama.

In his commentary, the great Acarya has referred to subtle and profound statements from Upanisads, Bhagavad Gita, Mahabharata, etc. giving the readers a flavor and essence of what is contained in these venerable texts.

This translation, on the one hand will help the reader appreciate the beauty and grandeur of the way the Lord has been personified in Visnusahasranama, and on the other hand will provide guidelines and insights for a spiritual seeker.

About the Author To discover what lies beyond the usual avenues of employment, Br. Prasanna Swaroopa exited the IT industry after having devoted 14 years to it. He then became a disciple of Swami Bhoomananda Tirtha and spent 12 years in his Ashram. This path of self discovery enabled him to realize the intricacies of the mind and its application to all life-situations. He came to the conclusion that, 'the journey of life is nothing but the journey of the mind'.

Now, through his workshops and writings he shows that, while spiritual wisdom bestows wellbeing, peace and personal fulfillment, it also helps to achieve success in all spheres of life.

An alumnus of lit Delhi & IIT Madras, he is deeply interested in scriptures like Bhagavad Gita and Upanishads, and also the works of Mi Sankaracarya He is also co-author of the book titled 'Good Values, Great Business' published in 2019 by Sage Publications.

Preface Visnusahasranama, the thousand names (sahasranama) of Lord Vishnu, is one of the very commonly chanted stotras (eulogium): It appears in the Anusasana Parva (book or section) of the Mahabharata. Anusasana Parva continues the theme of Santi Parva, a discussion on the duties of a ruler, the rule of law, instructions on dharma, etc.

Sri Sankaracarya wrote a commentary on Visnusahasranama, which reinforces the significance of this great text. Also, in the famous Bhaja Govindam, Sri Sankaracarya says "geyam gitanamasahasram", i.e. "the Bhagavad Gita and Visnusahasranama should be sung". Here Visnusahasranama has been named along with Bhagavad Gita, and that too establishes, beyond doubt, the importance of this text.

Right from a young age, I used to observe that the Visnusahasranama Stotram was being recited and listened to very fondly in many homes. This text is very popular as part of the daily religious and spiritual disciplines for many. A couple of years ago, I felt a deep sense of curiosity and urge to see what Sri Sankaracarya has said in his commentary on the Visnusahasranama Stotram.

Thus began my study, as part of which I went through what the great commentator had to say regarding each name of Lord Vishnu in the Visnusahasranama Stotram. I read the commentary (in Sanskrit) one word at a time, and alongside noted the meaning of the words, and the overall meaning of the statements made by Sri Sankaracarya.

In this book, I have presented the translation of the commentary by Sri Sankaracarya, including the meaning of each of the words in the commentary.

This entire experience of going through the .commentary of Sri Sankaracarya, and translating the same into English was an extremely humbling and enriching one.

I have tried my best to do justice to this great work of Sri Sankaracarya, and can only pray forgiveness from the Great Acarya himself for any shortcomings in my attempt at translation.

Book's Contents and Sample Pages