Sri Vishnu Shata nama Stotram
4. जलशायिनः - ஜலஶாயின: - JalaShAyinaH :
He who lies down on water is called Jalashaayina.
It is basic knowledge that ‘Jalaa’ means water and ‘Shayana’ means to lie down. Hence Jalashaayin essentially translates to He who lies on the water. Since Vishnu, reclines on the great waters of the Ksheerasaagara, He is called so.
Jalashaayina name is not mentioned in Vishnu Sahasranamam, but it mentions महोदधिशय: Mahodadhishayah meaning some what same.
In Vishnu Shodasha nama Stotram this name comes." पावके जलशायानम् " - Paavake Jalashaayinam ., which means Think of the Water-Dweller when in the danger of fire.
Now, it is once again basic science that the best remedy for fire is water. Therefore, what could be more prudent than thinking of the Water-Dweller when in the danger of fire?
However, what is this fire? Not taking it in the literal sense, Paavaka could also represent the fires that scorch us in this Saamsaaric life in the form of lust, anger, greed, attachment and ego. By surrendering these evils to He, who dwells on the Kaarana Jala, we remain assured that He will destroy the very sources of these fires and bless us with a cool and peaceful life. Also, in Hinduism, we always consider water to be sacred and as having purifying properties. We call upon that water to wash our sins and dirt, both mental and physical, before we begin our worship. If water by itself is so pure, how much purer would be its creator? Therefore, He who is more pure than the purest of waters, cooler than the coolest of waters and who rests on the flowing waters will be the most appropriate form to propitiate for the eradication of all the fires that burn us in this material life.
Budhanilkantha - Jalashayana Vishnu temple :
The Temple is 9 Km from Kathmandu,Nepal.
Lord Vishnu is depicted as in Yoga Nidra, a Sate when one appears to be asleep but is fully conscious, in the Ksheera Saagara,Ocean of Milk .
Images of Vishnu in this state are found in may a temples in India.
But a Vishnu floating in water, lying down on Adisesha, the Snake, is in Budhanikantha, Nepal.
Here Vishnu is lying face upwards on the Adisesha, floating in a pond.
The Deity is over 1,000 years old. Lord Vishnu is Carved from a single block of black basalt stone of unknown origin, about 5m (17 ft) long and is lying in a 13m (43 ft) long tank, as if floating, with His legs crossed. His four hands hold the four symbols of Vishnu: the chakra (disc), club, and conch-shell and lotus flower.
Budhanilkantha literally means “old blue-throat.” Ananta has 11-hooded heads. It is believed that the deity was carved in the 7th or 8th century during the Licchavi period. Hindus can walk down the steps and touch His feet, but foreigners cannot. The main festival of the year is when Lord Vishnu, who sleeps on the cosmic ocean during Caturmasya period wakes up on the Haribondhini Ekadashi day in late October or early November.
Many thousands of people come on this day. Three other images of Lord Vishnu were carved at the same time. One is here at Budhanilkantha and is considered the most important and original, one is at Balaju Gardens, and one is at the old Royal Palace in Kathmandu, but can not be viewed by tourist. The king of Nepal is not allowed to see the deity at Budhanilkantha, but he can see the other two deities.
It is believed if the king sees this deity of Vishnu he will die immediately. The deity of Budhanilkantha was lost for a while and was later rediscovered by a farmer. It is believed that the farmers struck the buried deity with his plough and that blood came out from the ground.
“Budhanilkatha’s name has been a source of endless confusion.
It has nothing to do with the Buddha (budha means “old”, though that doesn’t stop Buddhist Newars – a particular sect of Nepalese Buddhists – from worshipping the image). The real puzzler is why Budhanilkantha (literally “Old Blue Throat”), a title which unquestionably refers to Shiva, has been attached here to Vishnu.
The myth of Shiva’s blue throat, a favorite in Nepal, relates how the gods churned the ocean of existence and inadvertently unleashed a poison that threatened to destroy the world.
They begged Shiva to save them from their blunder and he obliged by drinking the poison. His throat burning, the great god flew up to the range north of Kathmandu, struck the mountainside with his trident to create a lake, Gosainkund, and quenched his thirst – suffering no lasting ill effect except for a blue patch on his throat.
The water in the Sleeping Vishnu’s tank is popularly believed to originate in Gosainkund, and Shaivas claim a reclining image of Shiva can be seen under the waters of the lake during the annual Shiva festival there in August, which perhaps explains the association.
Local legend maintains that a mirror-like statue of Shiva lies on the statue’s underside.”
Local legend maintains that a mirror-like statue of Shiva lies on the statue’s underside.”
Saving bhakta prahladan from fire :
The most ‘popular’ event associated with Hoil is the burning of the demoness Holika. Infact the name ‘Holi’ is a shortened version of the name ‘Holika’.
Legend has it that there was a great king of Asuras called Hiranyakashipu. He pleased Lord Brahma with severe tapasya and got a boon that he could not be killed ‘during day or night; inside the home or outside, not on earth or in the sky; neither by a man nor an animal; neither by astra nor by shastra’. He became so self obsessed that he forbid worship of any God and in fact declared himself as the ‘Master of one and all’. But such is Prabhu’s maya that his own son Prahlada turned out to be a great devotee of Lord Vishnu.
Hiranyakashipu couldn’t digest the fact that his own blood was going against his wishes. After trying very hard to pursue Prahlad to stop worship of Vishnu, Hiranyakashyapu reached a stage where he thought that killing his son was the only solution to end this ‘revolt’.
He poisoned Prahlada; but the poison got converted to nectar in his mouth.
He ordered Prahlada to be trampled by elephants; but Prahlada remained unharmed.
He put Prahlada in a room with hungry, poisonous snakes; no damage was done to Prahlada.
He threw Prahlada down a cliff; Prahlada easily survived the fall.
Thus all of Hiranyakashipu’s attempts to kill his son failed.
Finally, he decided to employ the services of his demoness sister Holika in order to ensure the killing of Prahlad.
Prahlad was made to sit on a pyre in the lap of Holika.
Now the logic behind this was that Holika had a boon that she couldn’t be burned by fire.
So the plan was to make Prahlada burn while Holika would be unaffected by the fire. Prahlada quietly went and sat on Holika’s lap. The only thing he constantly did was to take the name of the Almighty – ‘Om Namo Narayana’.
When the pyre was lit, much against the expectations of people around, Holika was affected by the heat of the fire and slowly her body perished. On the other hand Prahlad was untouched and unaffected by the fire.
This event is known as Holika Dahan.
Even today bonfires are lit on the eve of the Holi festival to commemorate Holika Dahan.
Srimad Bhagavatam mentions,
दिग्गजैर्दन्दशूकेन्द्रैरभिचारावपातनैः।मायाभिः सन्निरोधैश्च गरदानैरभोजनैः॥४३॥हिमवाय्वग्निसलिलैः पर्वताक्रमणैरपिन शशाक यदा हन्तुमपापमसुरः सुतम्चिन्तां दीर्घतमां प्राप्तस्तत्कर्तुं नाभ्यपद्यत॥४४॥dig-gajair dandaśūkendrairabhicārāvapātanaiḥmāyābhiḥ sannirodhaiś cagara-dānair abhojanaiḥhima-vāyv-agni-salilaiḥparvatākramaṇair apina śaśāka yadā hantumapāpam asuraḥ sutamcintāṁ dīrghatamāṁ prāptastat-kartuṁ nābhyapadyata- SB 7.5.43-44
Translation:
Hiraṇyakaśipu could not kill his son by throwing him beneath the feet of big elephants, throwing him among huge, fearful snakes, employing destructive spells, hurling him from the top of a hill, conjuring up illusory tricks, administering poison, starving him, exposing him to severe cold, winds, fire and water, or throwing heavy stones to crush him. When Hiraṇyakaśipu found that he could not in any way harm Prahlāda, who was completely sinless, he was in great anxiety about what to do next.
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