Azhwars and acharyas never tire of being overwhelmed when they begin to contemplate the Lord’s boundless munificence towards all creation in general and towards those who have surrendered to Him as the only refuge in particular. All His incarnations that are for the purpose of protecting the good, destroying the evil and establishing dharma in the worlds only reflect His response to the wishes of His bhaktas. Moreover the power of surrender is seen to be infinite as it benefits not merely the one who surrenders, but includes all those near and dear to him as well, pointed out Dr. Sri Venkatesh in a discourse.
How a bhakta becomes a helper to lead others to God is illustrated with examples from day to day life by Vedanta Desika in a verse in Nyasa Tilaka. One who is short of sight crosses the road with assistance from another; or one unable to walk is taken to the other side of the river when helped to get into a boat; or the rewards gained by one’s service to the king trickles to his son who has no direct contact with the king. In Draupadi’s case, Krishna protects her from further humiliation when she surrenders. But He does not stop with this. He sees to it that her vow that she would tie her tresses only after Duryodhana and Dushsaasana are punished is fulfilled. He also stands by the Pandavas, and but for His timely help on innumerable occasions, they could not have survived the evil machinations of Duryodhana and Sakuni.
In the Ramayana, when Bharata surrenders to Rama and asks Him to come back and rule Ayodhya, Rama holds this surrender in waiting and accepts it after fourteen years. But Rama also responds to Bharata by giving him something greater than Him, the Paduka. Above all, owing to Bharata’s saranagati, all the people of Ayodhya are granted moksha.
