Narayana

All you want to know about Narayana

For twin avatars of Vishnu, see Nara-Narayana.

Narayana (Sanskrit: नारायण; nārāyaṇa) or Narayan is an important Sanskrit name for Vishnu, and in many contemporary vernaculars a common Indian name. Narayana is also identified as the original man, Purusha. The Puranas present divergent views on Narayana. In the Kumara Purana he is identified with Brahman and Krishna-Vishnu, but in the Brahma Vaivarta Purana Narayana is considered different from Krishna and also considered part of Krishna. ^[1]

In the Mahabharata Krishna is often referred to as Narayana and Arjuna as Nara.^[2] The epic identifies them both in plural 'Krishnas', or as part incarnations of the earlier incarnations of Vishnu, recalling their mystical identity as Nara-Narayana.^[3] Followers of Lord Swaminarayan believe that Narayan manifested himself as Swaminarayan.^[4]

1 Etymology
2 Religious uses
3 Secular uses
4 References
5 External links

Etymology

The name Narayana is a Sanskrit tatpurusha compound of nara ("human, man") and ayana ("eternal, without ending").^{[citation needed]} Tradition associates the nara element with another meaning of "water", explaining the name as indicating the all-pervasive nature of Narayana as that of an infinite ocean in which the never-ending movement of birth, life and death of the cosmos occurs. Narayana, according to this etymology, is the one who moves in the infinite waters and is also the water itself. This close association of Narayana with water explains the frequent depiction of Narayana in Hindu art as standing or sitting on an ocean. Another important translation of Narayana is "The supreme Man who is the foundation of all men".^{[citation needed]}

Another interpretation of the word Narayana sees Nara meaning "human" and Ayana as "direction/goal". Hence Narayana refers to the "direction of a human" (or the one that helps a human to his/her goal, i.e. towards moksha). Nara is related to moksha as both are rooted to the Water element (Ap), one of the Great Elements (Mahābhūta). (See also Tattva).

Religious uses

Narayana is another name for Vishnu and appears as the 245th name in the Vishnu sahasranama. (See Vaishnava Theology.)
The book, Sri Ramanuja, His Life, Religion, and Philosophy, states that the name "Narayana" means, "He who is the dwelling place, i.e., the source, support and dissolving ground of all Jivas or souls, including inert matter."
Om Namo NārāyaNāya is one of the most famous mantras chanted by Hindus. This mantra, along with Om Namah Shivāya, and the Gayatri mantra are the most sacred prayers by Hindus.

A verse that confers the Devas' subordinate status comes from the Vishnu sahasranama, whose concluding verses state: "The Rishis (great sages), ancestors, the Devas, the great elements, in fact, all things moving and unmoving constituting this universe have originated from Narayana." This verse indicates that the Devas are subordinate to Vishnu, but Vishnu is often named a Deva. (Vasudeva, Narasimhadeva, etc.)

Secular uses

Among the many people with the name Narayan are the novelist R.K. Narayan, the political activist Jayaprakash Narayan, the singer Udit Narayan T.R., and the Fijian stateswoman Irene Jai Narayan T.R.. Prithvi Narayan Shah founded the kingdom of Nepal

There is also song "Narayan" by The Prodigy on their The Fat of the Land album, with the lyrical line "Om Namah Narayana". The song is co-composed and sung by Crispian Mills, singer and frontman of the English psychedelic rock band Kula Shaker. Kula Shaker covers the song in a version named "Song of Love/Narayana" in their Strangefolk album.

In the video game Grand Theft Auto 2 from the Grand Theft Auto series, Narayana is the name of a neighborhood occupied by the Hare Krishna street gang.

In the video game Myst III: Exile, the final age to which the player travels is called Narayan. It consists of an ocean that extends infinitely throughout the age, with trees rising from the water's surface to support life.

References

^ Raghavan, V. (1982). International Sanskrit Conference v.4. The Ministry. ISBN Page 142.
^ Vaisnavism Saivism and Minor Religious Systems, Ramkrishna Gopal Bhandarkar. Published by Asian Educational Services, p.46.
^ Hiltebeitel, Alf (1990). The ritual of battle: Krishna in the Mahābhārata. Albany, N.Y: State University of New York Press. ISBN 0-7914-0249-5. p61
^ "Lord Narayan manifested himself as Lord Swaminarayan".

External links

v • d • e Avatars of Vishnu

Daśāvatāra	Matsya · Kurma · Varaha · Narasimha · Vamana · Parashurama · Rama · Krishna · Balarama · Buddha · Kalki

Other avatars	Catursana · Narada · Nara-Narayana · Kapila · Dattatreya · Yajna · Rishabha · Prithu · Dhanvantari · Mohini · Vyasa · Prshnigarbha · Hayagriva · Hamsa