NAME 104
Vasuḥ वसुः
Nāma-s 270 and 696 are repetitions of this nāma.
Vasu-s are the set of eight gods who establish connection between the beings and nature. They are a class of gods who are highly benevolent. Their names differ in various scriptures. Vasu-s are eight in number and generally known as aṣṭavasu-s. According to Vishnu Purana the names of these gods are Āpa (Water), Dhruva (the pole star), Soma (moon), Dhava or Dhara, Anila (wind), Anala or Pāvaka (fire), Pratyuśa (the dawn), and Prabhāsa (the light). Amongst them Anala or Pāvaka is said to the chief. Kṛṣṇa spoke about Vasu-s in X.23 of Bhagavad Gītā.
This nāma says that He is the most benevolent. Benevolence is the primary quality of the Brahman.
Vasuh – He is the treasure that His devotees seek
The Nama ‘Vasuh’ occurs three times in the Vishnu Sahasranamam and needless to say has at least three different meanings. Vasuh basically comes from the root word ‘vas’ meaning to live. The following meanings are indicated.
a) One who dwells in the hearts of His devotees.
b) One who dwells in the Milky-Ocean also known as Ksheera Sagara.
c) One who is the treasure that His devotees seek.
d) The best among the eight Vasus – Pavaka or Fire
e) One who lives in the sky.
‘Vasanti sarva bhootani atra iti vasuh’ – He is Vasuh because all beings live in Him. In the Bhagavat Gita Chapter 7 Verse 12, Bhagavan says ‘Matta eveti taan viddhi na tvaham teshu te mayi – They live in me and I in them’
‘Teshu ayam vasati iti vasuh’ – He is Vasuh because He resides in all beings (or resides in the heart of his devotees).
Vasati iti Vasuh means One who dwells. He dwells in the hearts of His devotees who show even a small amount of devotion. “sa lokaanaam hitaarthaaya ksheerodhe vasati prabhuh” – The great Lord resides in the Milky Ocean or the Ksheera Sagara for doing good to His devotees in this world. “Esha Narayanah Srimaan kshIraarnava niketanah” – This Narayana is always with Lakshmi, and resides in the Milky Ocean.
The word ‘Vasu’ also means Wealth – Vasati Neetimataam Griha iti Vasu. In the Bhagavad GIta, Chapter 7 Verse 19, the Lord says: Vasudevah Sarvam meaning Vasudeva is everything. He is the ultimate wealth that learned men seek i.e. Moksha.
There are eight elemental gods (called “Ashta-vasu”, ‘Eight Vasus’) representing different aspects of nature and cosmic phenomenon. He is Vasuh because He is one of the eight Vasus .
Sri Adi Sankara gives the following reference from the Bhagavad GIta (Chapter 10 Verse 23) to support this interpretation – ‘Vasunam Pavakascasmi’ – I am the Pavaka among the Vasus meaning He is the God of Fire. And by burning He purifies everything.
Vasu also means One who as air, moves about and resides in the mid-region – Vasurantiksha Sat (Katho Upanishad 2.5.2).
BG 10.23:
रुद्राणां शङ्करश्चास्मि वित्तेशो यक्षरक्षसाम् |
वसूनां पावकश्चास्मि मेरु: शिखरिणामहम् || 23||
rudrāṇāṁ śhaṅkaraśh chāsmi vitteśho yakṣha-rakṣhasām
vasūnāṁ pāvakaśh chāsmi meruḥ śhikhariṇām aham
BG 10.23: Amongst the Rudras know me to be Shankar; amongst the demons I am Kuber. I am Agni amongst the Vasus and Meru amongst the mountains.
Commentary
The Rudras are the eleven forms of Lord Shiv—Hara, Bahurupa, Tryambaka, Aparajita, Vrisakapi, Shankar, Kapardi, Raivata, Mrigavyadha, Sarva, Kapali. The Puranas have named them differently in different places. Amongst these, Shankar is the original form of Lord Shiv in the universe.
Yakṣhas (semi-divine demons) are beings who are very fond of acquiring wealth and hoarding it. Their leader, Kuber, is the god of wealth and the treasurer of the celestial gods. He thus reflects the vibhūti of God amongst the demons.
There are eight Vasus—land, water, fire, air, space, sun, moon, and stars. They constitute the gross structure of the universe. Amongst these, agni (fire) gives warmth and energy to the rest of the elements. Thus, Shree Krishna mentions it as his special manifestation.
Meru is a mountain in the celestial abodes famed for its rich natural resources. It is believed to be the axis around which many heavenly bodies rotate. Shree Krishna thus speaks of it as his glory. As wealth distinguishes a wealthy person, these glories reveal the vibhūtis of God.
१०४. ॐ वसवे नमः |
104. OM Vasave Namaḥ
Vasuh -The One who is the very support of all elements, and the One who Himself is the very Essence of the elements, This is something like the dream made up of our own mind; and the very same dream-world plays itself out, all the time sustained in the very same mind. Similarly, the Self indwells all and all dwell in the Self. In the Geeta we are told by the Lord, “I am among the Vasus the Paavakah”-(Geeta. Ch. 10, St. 23). Therefore, the Self exists like air-allowing everything to remain in it and sustaining everything by it.
Vasanti asmin iti / वसंति अस्मिन् इति All beings abide in Him therefore Vasuḥ or Vasati iti vasuḥ / वसति इति वसुः He too abides in them; so He is Vasuḥ. Or as Lord has described himself in Chapter 10 of Bhagavad Gītā, He is Pāvaka among the eight Vasus.
Bhagavad Gītā – Chapter 6
Yo māṃ paśyati sarvatra sarvaṃ ca mayi paśyati,
Tasyāhaṃ na praṇaśyāmi sa ca me na praṇaśyati. (30)
:: श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता – आत्मसंयम योग ::
यो मां पश्यति सर्वत्र सर्वं च मयि पश्यति ।
तस्याहं न प्रणश्यामि स च मे न प्रणश्यति ॥ ३० ॥
One who sees Me in everything and sees all things in Me – I do not go out of vision and he also is not lost to My vision.
Bhagavad Gītā – Chapter 10
Rudrāṇāṃ śaṃkaraścāsmi vitteśo yakṣarakṣasām,
Vvasūnāṃ pāvakaścāsmi meruśśikhariṇāmaham. (23)
:: श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता – विभूति योग ::
रुद्राणां शंकरश्चास्मि वित्तेशो यक्षरक्षसाम् ।
वसूनां पावकश्चास्मि मेरुश्शिखरिणामहम् ॥ २३ ॥
Among the Rudrās I am Śankara, among the Yakṣās and goblins I am Kubera. Among the Vasus, I am Fire and among the mountains I am Meru.
INTERPRETATION GUIDED BY SANT VANI (WORDS OF SAINTS)
104. Vasuḥ (also names 270, 696)
i. The indweller.
ii. The one in the form of the eight vasus.
There are eight vasus mentioned in the śāstras. They are a category of celestials beings who are exalted jīvas. Some of them are Agni, Vayu, Apa and Prithvi. Śrī Kṛṣṇa says in the Gītā, ‘among the vasus I am pāvaka, fire’ (10.23). So He is the one, who is in the form of these eight vasus and among them in the form of Agni,fire. Agni is the great purifier and also the presiding deity of speech. That which makes any kind of speech possible. Speech in the form of knowledge can illumine what is not known, in different disciplines of knowledge. We have seen that our speech can make or break relationships. The Gita talks about vak tapas, discipline of speech. It is not enough for the person to speak the truth. For speech to qualify as tapas, a discipline it needs to meet four requirements:
1. Speech needs to be true, satyam
2. Speech needs to be pleasing, priyam
3. It needs to be beneficial to the person, hitam and
4. It need not cause agitation, anudvegakaram.
5. Recitation of our Veda or studying the Shastra.
6. In the name of being truthful, a lot of us can be blunt and blurt out things because of inner pressure. That is not vak tapas, that is speech that creates a lot of heat and bruised egos! Some of us can be very pleasant and beat around the bush, not getting to the point of speaking the truth.
That also is not vak tapas. We pay attention to what we say as we want to live a mindful life, in awareness, practising ahimsa to the extent we can. If we find that people hurt us, we want to find a way to express our hurt in a way that takes responsibility for our own emotions and share with the person what we require. A good candid yet gentle template with respect to a disturbing situation for conversation, is I observe you doing this……(observation is different from a judgment – You are so stupid)…I feel… your needs and thoughts related to this are these …..I request you to …… And to check with the other person as well about his/her needs /thoughts/feelings. This kind of a template keeps the conversation going and mutual expectations can be worked out. If one’s speech only has fire are no light, then we know what happens.
“It is impossible that all your decisions or conversations are going to be comforting, endearing or delightful. That, however, can’t be the reason to avoid such decisions. When you choose to ignore or accept (especially in a parent-child relationship) where you should be putting your foot down, you are not helping your child. No, I’m not suggesting that you always either be firm or soft. Just be mindful. Try to strike a balance.
Compassion does not mean that you give others the right to mistreat you, abuse you or disrespect you. Be firm where you need to be, but as Chanakya said that even if we have to confront, we must never forget how to do it. Often, it’s not what you say but how and how much you say. And, when you say, of course.
You take care of how, how much and when, what and who matters not much then. Isn’t that something to learn from the lives of some of the greatest people? Think Christ, think Buddha. Think Martin Luther King, Gandhi. You can make a point without hurting.
It’s very easy to lecture others or to feel that they are wrong. As they say, we act as lawyers for our mistakes but judges for others’.
You can confront, you can speak up, but just take a moment to reflect deep within. Do you really have to say what you are about to? Now? In the manner you are about to? As much as you intend to? Is it beneficial? Will it solve any purpose? If the answer is yes to all, if you have thought it through, go ahead and carefully string your words together and lay them out. It’s okay to be helpful than delightful under such circumstances.
If you are mindful about both sukha and hita, if you are truthful, your words will make a difference. Truth always does. Only truth does, in fact.”
– Om Swami
Agni definitely has special glory. Śrī Kṛṣṇa says that wherever there is any special glory ‘may you recognize me there.’ Therefore, one of the vasus alone cannot be Parameśvara. All the vasus are not separate from Parameśvara and their glory is His. Therefore, He is Vasu.
The Lord is called Vasu, because everything, all beings, elements and elementals, exists in Him; and also because He too exists in everything as the truth of everything.
(Please listen in totality)
In the Bhagavad-gītā, (Vibhūti Yoga), Bhagavan talks about his divine opulences and how everything that we see in the Universe is a manifestation of that one Supreme being. He further tells Arjuna that “He” is the powerhouse of ultimate beauty and magnificence – that which triggers within us a feeling of awe, splendor, devotion is his doing.
That which fires our intellect and stimulates our imagination and infuses us with bliss is nothing but a tiny spark of his unmatched opulence. Bhagavan further points to personalities, objects, and aspects that best demonstrate and display His magnificent opulence. It is in this context that he identifies himself with the Vasus and tells Arjuna that among the Vasus, he must be known as the great Pāvaka.
रुद्राणां शङ्करश्चास्मि वित्तेशो यक्षरक्षसाम् |
वसूनां पावकश्चास्मि मेरु: शिखरिणामहम् || 10-23||
rudrāṇāṁ śhaṅkaraśh chāsmi vitteśho yakṣha-rakṣhasām
vasūnāṁ pāvakaśh chāsmi meruḥ śhikhariṇām aham
Among the Rudrās, know me as Śaṅkara, among the Yakṣas and Rākṣasas as that Vitta-īśhaḥ (the Deva of wealth, Kubera), among the Vasus, I am identified with that Pāvaka and among the mountains I am Meru-parvata.
There is an interesting and intriguing aspect to this name. Bhīṣma himself is an incarnation of one of the eight Vasus born on earth as a result of being cursed by Sage Vasiṣṭha. However, he is not identified with the Vasu symbolizing Pāvaka. Pāvaka signifies Agni whereas Bhīṣma is identified with the Vasu Prabhāsa, symbolizing Ākāśa.
Agni symbolizes the eternal witness – the eternal Sākṣī who is with us at every step of our life – as the flame in the lamp we light, as the Agni in the yajñá-homas during each of the Ṣōḍaśa Saṃskāras (16 rites), as the fire of digestion, as fire in speech, and intellect. Viṣhṇu is identified with Surya during the day and Agni at night and therefore he is that Vasuḥ symbolized as Pāvaka.
In the Kaṭhopaniṣad, in the discussion on the Ātman and the associated commentary of Śaṅkara, the phrase: “vasurāntarikśasa” is explained as “He who as the ātman does not live in the city of one body alone; but he lives in all cities dwelling in heaven as the sun and as Vasuḥ, he animates all and dwells in the inter-space (Chidakasha):
हँसः शुचिषद्वसुरान्तरिक्शसद्धोता वेदिषदतिथिर्दुरोणसत् ।
नृषद्वरसदृतसद्व्योमसदब्जा गोजा ऋतजा अद्रिजा ऋतं बृहत् ॥ २ ॥
ham̐saḥ śuciṣadvasurāntarikśasaddhotā vediṣadatithirduroṇasat ।
nṛṣadvarasadṛtasadvyomasadabjā gojā ṛtajā adrijā ṛtaṃ bṛhat ॥ 2 ॥