The Activity of Grace
Anugraha means gracious favor, blessing, or compassionate benefaction. In Śrī Vaiṣṇava theology it names Bhagavān's mercy in guiding and uplifting the jīva—through the opportunity of embodiment, śāstra, avatāra, Āchārya-sambandha, protection, acceptance of surrender, and the grant of mokṣa. The fixed list 'sṛṣṭi, sthiti, saṃhāra, tirodhāna, anugraha' is especially prominent in Śaiva systems and is not the defining universal Śrī Vaiṣṇava framework for this term.
Forms of Anugraha
Anugraha takes many forms: (1) the gift of a human birth with the capacity for liberation-oriented inquiry; (2) the arising of mumukṣutva (desire for liberation) in the jīva; (3) encounter with a qualified ācārya who transmits the teaching; (4) the arising of śraddhā (faith) to receive the teaching; (5) the formal act of prapatti; (6) the Lord's acceptance of prapatti and the conferring of liberation at death; (7) the gift of the divine body (śuddhasattva) in Vaikuṇṭha. Each step is a form of divine anugraha.
Anugraha and Free Will
A theological question: if anugraha is entirely the Lord's activity, what role does the jīva play? Śrī Vaiṣṇava explanations preserve both Bhagavān's sovereignty and the jīva's real, dependent assent and responsibility. In the Teṉkalai emphasis, even the rise of mumukṣutva, Āchārya-sambandha, and the capacity to surrender are themselves fruits of prior grace; they are not an independently produced price that purchases or activates mercy. The jīva is not an inert object, but neither can it claim authorship of its rescue.
Periya Pirātti's Role
Periya Pirātti (Lakṣmī) mediates anugraha: She intercedes with the Lord on behalf of devotees, and the Lord's anugraha flows through Her mediation. The Dvayam mantra's structure (first surrendering to Śrī, then to Nārāyaṇa) reflects this mediated structure of divine anugraha.