Paramapadam (Sri Vaikuntham)
Paramapadam
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The eternal abode of Vishnu and the ultimate goal of liberated souls in Sri Vaishnavism; the supreme, last of the 108 Divya Desams.
Sthala Purāṇam
Paramapadam, also called Sri Vaikuntham, is the supreme and eternal abode of Sriman Narayana, and the first and foremost of the 108 Divya Desams. It is the second of the two celestial Divya Desams, lying wholly beyond the material universe; in Sri Vaishnava theology it is the nitya vibhuti, the eternal realm, as distinct from the leela vibhuti, the transient cosmos of sport. The presiding Lord is Paramapada Nathan, enthroned upon Adisesha beneath the Ananthanga Vimanam, attended by his consorts Sri Devi, Bhu Devi, and Neela Devi. Its boundary is the river Viraja, which separates samsara from the deathless realm; the liberated soul (mukta) crosses it and sheds all trace of material bondage. Paramapadam is the home of the nitya suris, the ever-free eternal beings such as Ananta, Garuda, and Vishvaksena, who serve the Lord in perpetual bliss. The soul reaches this abode by the archiradi marga, the path of light described in the Upanishads, along which divine guides (ativahikas) lead it until the nitya suris and the divine consorts, with the Lord himself, come forward to welcome it. Nammalvar's Thiruvaymozhi decad 10.9, 'Soozh visumbu ani mugil,' is the celebrated description of this ascent, where, having attained parabhakti, the Alvar is granted the vision of the soul's journey through the archiradi marga into the assembly of the nitya suris. Verses on Paramapadam come from Nammalvar, Periyalvar, Andal and Thirumangai Alvar. As the goal of every Sri Vaishnava, Paramapadam is moksha itself: eternal, unbroken kainkaryam to the Lord.
Mangalāśāsanam — the Āḻvār pāsurams
The Lord Paramapada Nathan with Periya Pirattiyar (Sri Mahalakshmi) of Paramapadam is glorified in 34 pāsurams by:
Paramapadam (Sri Vaikuntham) is the foremost of the 108 Divya Desams, a celestial (non-terrestrial) abode rather than a physical temple. The Sri Vaishnava tradition counts the Mangalasasanam of eight Alvars for it - Poigai Alvar, Peyalvar, Thirumalisai Alvar, Nammalvar, Periyalvar, Andal, Thiruppaan Alvar and Thirumangai Alvar. Rather than a single localized decade, Paramapadam is celebrated across the Nalayira Divya Prabandham (especially Nammalvar's Thiruvaaymozhi) as the realm of eternal light, causeless grace and unending bliss, the destination of liberated souls who eternally serve Sriman Narayana. Because the verses are scattered and not tied to one verifiable localized decade, no exact Tamil text is asserted here.
Verses & references (1)
- Nammalvar repeatedly evokes Paramapadam (Sri Vaikuntha) as the transcendental abode of unending light and immeasurable bliss (andamil perinbam), free from samsara, where the liberated souls (Nithyasuris and Muktas) eternally serve the Lord. His Thiruvaaymozhi presents Paramapadam as the final goal of the devotee's pilgrimage and surrender (prapatti). — Nammalvar, Thiruvaaymozhi (Nammalvar) · source ↗