Hita as the Middle Knowledge
In the three-knowledge framework of Sri Vaishnavism (tattva-hita-puruṣārtha), hita occupies the middle position — between tattva (what is real) and puruṣārtha (the goal). Hita is the bridge: given that the jīva is the Lord's śeṣa (tattva), and given that the goal is eternal kainkarya (puruṣārtha), how does the jīva get from here to there? The answer is hita.
The True Hita
In Sri Vaishnavism, the hita (means) is not one's own effort, virtue, or practice. The Lord himself is the paramamhita — the supreme means. This is the deep teaching of prapatti:
- In bhakti-yoga: the devotee cultivates bhakti (itself a gift of grace) which leads the Lord to grant liberation
- In prapatti: the devotee performs the single act of surrender (śaraṇāgati), and then the Lord himself becomes the upāya — he carries the soul to liberation
The Dvaya Mantra as Hita
Pillai Lokācārya's Mumukṣuppadi assigns the Dvaya mantra as the statement of hita: «śrīmannārāyaṇa-caraṇau śaraṇaṃ prapadye» — "I take refuge at the lotus feet of Śrīmannārāyaṇa" — this is the act of prapatti, the hita in action.
The second half of the Dvaya — «śrīmate nārāyaṇāya namaḥ» — is then the statement of the phalam (goal): kainkarya offered to the Lord with Śrī.