Vishnusahasranama

Pratardanah – One who destroys the World at the time of Cosmic Dissolution

evaṁ nṛṇāṁ kriyā-yogāḥ sarve saṁsṛti-hetavaḥ

ta evātma-vināśāya kalpante kalpitāḥ pare (SB 1.5.34)

Thus when all a man’s activities are dedicated to the service of the Lord, those very activities which caused his perpetual bondage become the destroyer of the tree of work.

Pra-tarda means total destruction.

tataḥ kālāgni-rudrātmā yat sṛṣṭam idam ātmanaḥ

sanniyacchati tat kale ghanānīkam ivānilaḥ (SB 2.10.43)

Thereafter, at the end of the millennium, the Lord Himself in the form of Rudra, the destroyer, will annihilate the complete creation as the wind displaces the clouds.

From the Vedas we know that this creation is not the only to have ever existed. The Universe is created and destroyed repeatedly – which is a cycle. This creation is very much like the cloud. The cloud is created and situated in the sky, but when they are displaced, they remain in the same sky without manifesting.

Lord Krishna is the Supreme Personality, Brahma is the first created being. Lord Krishna manages this material world in His guna avataras – Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. This whole creation is made by the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His form of Brahmā, it is maintained by Him in the form of Viṣṇu, and it is destroyed by Him in the form of Rudra, or Śiva, all in due course.

bhūta-grāmaḥ sa evāyaṁ bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate

rātry-āgame ’vaśaḥ pārtha prabhavaty ahar-āgame (BG 8.19)

Again and again, when Brahmā’s day arrives, all living entities come into being, and with the arrival of Brahmā’s night they are helplessly annihilated.

paras tasmāt tu bhāvo ’nyo ’vyakto ’vyaktāt sanātanaḥ

yaḥ sa sarveṣu bhūteṣu naśyatsu na vinaśyati (BG 8.20)

Yet there is another unmanifest nature, which is eternal and is transcendental to this manifested and unmanifested matter. It is supreme and is never annihilated. When all in this world is annihilated, that part remains as it is.

The Lord clearly mentions that this world is temporary and will eventually be destroyed. Yet, we are all hankering to accumulate wealth, build houses, achieve the highest positions, success in life. Without thinking that all this is temporary and will be lost in snap when one dies.

Lets chant the Holy Name of the Lord and seek Him to destroy all our sins by helping us improve our devotional service. May He destroy all our Ego, Pride, Envy, Jealousy, Greed and shape us to become Pure in our devotion towards Him.

 Nama 60 – VishnuSahasranama

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