NAME 65
Prāṇadaḥ प्राणदः
Prāṇa is the life force, without which life is not possible. This nāma says that Lord Viṣṇu is the life force of all beings. Brahman is the source of all. At the time of conception, air plays a very significant role in the formation of foetus. Both soul and prāṇa enter the foetus at the time of conception.
After having entered into the foetus, prāṇa multiplies into five types and sustains the body. They together form a sheath around the soul which is known as prāṇamaya kośa. When prāṇa leaves the body, death is caused, as the vital force to sustain the body has left the body. This also confirms the theory that He is the creator by getting into the body as prāṇa, sustaining in the body by modifying into five types of prāṇa and causes death be leaving the body. Along prāṇa, soul and subconscious mind also leave the body during death.
In this nāma, the addition of da after prāṇa is important. द da underlines the act of giving. He is the giver of prāṇa. One who bestows the vital energy i.e. Prana
‘Praanam dadaati iti Praanadah – Giver or infuser of Life’. Being the source of all life in the Universe, Bhagavan is called Pranadah. This Nama further exemplifies Bhagavan as the Controller of the Universe as indicated in the previous Nama.
Sri Parasara Bhattar indicates that the life-giving function attributed in this Nama is the act of Bhagavan to give strength to the nitya-suris or Ever-free Angels to always visualise Him, enjoy Him, and do service to Him.
Sri Adi Sankara points out that in addition to the above interpretation, the same Nama can be interpreted to mean that Bhagavan is also the taker of Prana, ‘Praana- praanaan dyati iti’ – One who takes away the Praana or vital airs at the time of death, or Praanaan deepayati iti – One who purifies and brightens the vital airs.
६५. ॐ प्राणदाय नमः |
65. OM Prāṇadāya Namaḥ
Praanadah -One who gives (Dadaati) the Praanas to all. The term Praanas used in philosophy indicated “all manifestations of Life in a living body”. The Source of Life from which all dynamic activities in the living organisms of the world flow out, meaning, That from which all activities emerge out is Praanadah.
Prāṇān dadāti One who bestows or activates the five main vital energies of Prāṇa, Apāna, Vyāna, Udāna and Samāna as also the other (sub vital) energies of Nāga, Kūrma, Kr̥kara, Devadatta and Dhananjaya.
Taittīrīyopaniṣat – Chapter 2, Anuvāka 7
Asadvā idamagra āsīt, Tato vai sa dajāyata tadātmānagˈṃ svaya makuruta, Tasmāttatsukr̥ta mucyata iti, Yadvai tatsukr̥tam, Raso vai saḥ, Rasagˈṃ hyevāyaṃ labdhvā’’naṃdī bhavati, Ke hyevā’nyātkaḥ prāṇyāt yadeṣa ākāśa ānaṃdo na syāt, Eṣa hyevānaṃdayāti. (1)
In the beginning was verily this non-existent. From that (Parabrahma) was generated the existent. That made Itself by Itself. Therefore It is called Self-made. That one who is self-made is verily the joy. Having attained this joy, (man) becomes blessed. Who would have lived and breathed, had not this sky of bliss existed? This verily It is that bestows bliss.
exclaims: “Who could then live. who could breath” if He be not every- where.”
INTERPRETATION GUIDED BY SANT VANI (WORDS OF SAINTS)
Prāṇadaḥ (also names 321, 408, 956)
i. The one who gives prana.
ii. The one who cuts prana.
There is no equivalent for the word Prāṇa in English. The word includes the understanding of breath, energy and also that which is life giving and life sustaining. Prāṇa is a subtle form of Vayu, one of the five elements that are the building block of this manifestation. The Lord is prāṇada, because He gives prāṇa; He makes life possible.
As life giving breath and energy, prāṇa is five fold, manifests in five different ways in the body. Prāṇa lends shakti to the body and enlivens its functions through
a. Prāṇa – Respiratory system (inhalation and exhalation),
b. Apāna – evacuating system (waste removal),
c. Vyāna – circulating system which circulates oxygen,
d. Samāna – digestive system which allows digestion and assimilation of nutrients
e. Udāna- reversing system which operates at the time of death, when the breath is reversed and goes out permanently.
The word Prāṇa refers to the composite whole of these five fold manifestations and sometimes refers only to the inhalation and exhalation. It depends on the context in which the word Prāṇa is used.
Every time breathing takes place, my namaskars to Bhagavān. Please note, I did not say, Every time I breathe because breathing is involuntary. Luckily Bhagavān made this involuntary. Imagine what would have happened if we had to remember to breathe, like other actions in life.
Swamini Tattvavidyananda ji, a fine Vedanta teacher, has a profound byline: ‘Breathing in and out, namaḥ’. One lives in the appreciation and recognition of Bhagavān every moment.
The Taittirīyopanisad says. ‘ko hyeva anyāt aḥ prāṇyāt–if this ātmā were not there, who would live and who would breathe?’ (2.7). He gives sattā and sphūrti to all beings as Īśvara, between breathing in and breathing out, there is every possibility of the prāṇa not coming back. Therefore, Īśvara is the Prāṇada, the giver of breath and life.
Or else He is so called because He cuts away the prāṇa, detaches the life of a person in the form
of Kāla, when the enjoined life time of the person is over. He is thus known also because prāṇān dāti, He destroys the śakti of the indriyas, sense organs whose activity indicates the presence of prāṇa.
He has this name also because prāṇān dāyati, śodhayati–He purifies and brightens the activities of the indriyas. Anyone who has practiced prānāyāma can testify to this. Thus, the Lord is the giver and also the taker of prāṇa, life.
He who gives, sustains and takes away the vitality/the vital principle of life. He who bestows the ‘life-giving’ vitality in man. He who ‘gives'(Dadāti) this vitality, this Prāṇa to all beings.
Essentially, what this means is: “If he did not exist within, then who is there to activate the Prāṇa, give us the vitality and keep us going?” That inner controller Īśānaḥ (previous name in this string) is also the one who has literally “loaned” us this life and it is also he who keeps up its vitality (as we will see in the next name).
As Bhagavan says in the Bhagavad-gītā
अहं वैश्वानरो भूत्वा प्राणिनां देहमाश्रित: |
प्राणापानसमायुक्त: पचाम्यन्नं चतुर्विधम् || 14||
ahaṁ vaiśhvānaro bhūtvā prāṇināṁ deham āśhritaḥ
prāṇāpāna-samāyuktaḥ pachāmy annaṁ chatur-vidham
The fire of the digestive power (vaiśhvānaro), the breath of life (prāṇināṁ), that animates the body (deham), and present (as the controller) in the in-breath and out-breath (prāṇāpāna), maintaining equilibrium (samāyuktaḥ), I digest food of four types (pachāmy annaṁ chatur-vidham)
While it is common to translate the four types of food as those that are chewed, swallowed, sipped etc. I think this has a far deeper meaning – it refers to all that we consume across the four dimensions of our being – Physical, Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual – what you eat, think, how you relate and reflect are all foods that have an effect on the Citta (चित्त). One of the easiest ways to achieve Citta-Vritti-Nirodha is truly to handover the reins of our life to that Īśānaḥ-Prāṇada – that inner controller who has bestowed on us the gift of this life.
“We also eat through our ears, our nostrils, our eyes, our touch. Through whatever senses we perceive, we are effectively in-taking food. He is the producer, enjoyed, and processor of food, why, He is the very food himself. Eating food is not just a mechanical process that you carry out every day, it is a divine act, no less a yajña.” – Om Swami
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It is in this context that one truly understands what it means when we say “Sarvam Krishnarpanam astu” – Everything that we do, we do as an offering to him. Such a name also makes you pause and reflect at what this life actually means and why we are here and then also think about this:
If this life itself is his gift even the thought of offering everything to him seems strange – “Do we offer “him” to ‘himself’?
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