”Anantha Padmanabham aasrayae,
Aadimadyaantha rahitham, akhilasubha daayakam , Sree Nayakam,
Anantha Padmanabham aasrayae”
(Swathi Thirunal)
A great masterpiece it is ! The concept of the One, ‘kaladesavadibhyam ( beyond time and place), with no beginning, middle or end, reclining in absolute peace, though in a wavy ocean, though on a multi-hooded serpent, a tender lotus-stem evolved from the naval projecting a lotus flower carrying the god of creation. The Earth and wealth are at His feet. The Sun and the Moon are His eyes.
The bliss on meditating on the form of Ananthapadmanabha is anantham, endless.
On the other hand, if you take Ananthasayanam, literally, you have to answer several uncomfortable questions:
How can there be an ocean of milk? Will fish survive in milk ?
How can Vishnu lie on a bed of serpent? How can an umbilical chord grow from his naval, as He is a male?
How can the four-headed Brahma stay on a lotus seat, precariously positioned on a long stem ?
What happened to Brahma when Vishnu turns to a side?
How do people approach the God to serve him morning tea, breakfast, lunch etc?
Why make our life miserable with all such worries, when Vishu himself is not worried but enjoys His life with all the discomforts ?.
Another form of amazing artistic talent is the Shiva-Sakthi union, the samayogam of Jagadapithrah: in the Lingam-yoni, form, representing the entire male -female combination, nay the symbol of the universe itself.. Whenever I pour milk on the Shivalingam I see in the bottom part the hands of the Divine mother, receiving the ablution and passing it on slowly to the mother earth. I dread to imagine the top of the Lingam as flat ; I dread to imagine the Lingam standing alone on the earth without the support of its lotus-like lower part. The lower part, staying alone, will be barren, meaningless..
All the divine forms handed over to us have a purpose, have a symbolic value. If we study and understand the meaning, the joy is immeasurable.
As Bhatahthiripad said,” Sruti,mathi,madurae sugrahae thasmin thae vigrahae danyaha: ramanthae”
The fortunate ones, enjoy your easily conceivable form, which is ‘sruti,mathi maduram’ sweet to hear and meditate upon