Yama’s Stotra to Vishṇu

This is a stotra to Bhagavān Vishṇu sung by Yama, the master of dharma, at Dharmāraṇya. It was sung before the great assembly of the devas that Brahmā called there. It praises Vishṇu as the highest protector of all dharma, the cause of all creation and the one who holds up all beings. It is found in the Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa, Dharmāraṇya Khaṇḍa, Pūrvārdha, chapter 9.

The setting

Brahmā called a great assembly at Dharmāraṇya. All the great devas came: Brahmā, Bhagavān Śiva, Bhagavān Vishṇu, Indra and the whole council of the devas. Yama had been one of the first to hear of the glory of Dharmāraṇya, in Brahmā’s assembly, and he held it in deep respect. When Vishṇu arrived, Yama stepped forward and praised him with this stotra.

The stotra

Yama spoke to Vishṇu as the highest protector and ruler of all dharma. The main epithets and statements of the stotra are these:

  • Vishṇu rested on a banyan leaf (vaṭapatrāśāyin) on the first waters during the Mahāpralaya (the great dissolution).
  • Brahmā arose from him on the lotus, and through Brahmā the whole sarga (creation) was done.
  • He is Jagadīśa, the master of all the worlds.
  • He is Kamalāksha, the lotus-eyed.
  • He is Rakshaka of all prāṇis, the protector of every living being.
  • He is the Oṃkāra, the Vashaṭkāra, the Svāhā and the Svadhā, all the sacred sounds.
  • He is the yajña (the fire ritual), the yajñapati (master of the yajña) and the one who performs the yajña. He is the dravya (the offering), the ṛtvij (the priest) and the one who receives it. Every part of the yajña is his.
  • He is Dharmarāja, the king of all dharma.
  • His glory is more than the Vedas can tell.
  • He holds all the worlds in his pores.

Yama ended the stotra by saying that Dharmāraṇya is perfectly fit for the lasting presence of Vishṇu. It is a kshetra where all dharma is upheld and all pāpa (sin) is destroyed.

Vishṇu’s answer

Vishṇu was pleased with Yama’s stotra. He gave a great vara (a boon) that has marked Dharmāraṇya ever since. He placed 18,000 brāhmaṇas in the kshetra for all time. They were organised into 24 gotras, with their pravaras and their own qualities of learning and conduct. The kājeśas keep them. They are given to the work of keeping up Vedic recitation and yajña at Dharmāraṇya for ever.

Sources

  • Skanda Mahā Purāṇa, Brahma Khaṇḍa, Dharmāraṇya Khaṇḍa, Pūrvārdha, chapter 9