Nāma — The Divine Name as Bhagavān Himself
Nāma ('name'; from the root nam = 'to bend, to bow') in the Śrī Vaiṣṇava theological context is not a mere linguistic label for Bhagavān — it is a sākṣāt-sambandha (direct relationship) with Bhagavān. The Vedic principle that nāma-rūpa (name and form) are non-different in the divine realm means that every sacred name of Bhagavān carries His full presence.
The theology of nāma in Śrī Vaiṣṇavism rests on several foundations:
1. Name = Named (abheda): Bhagavān's name and Bhagavān Himself are ontologically non-different. When one recites 'Nārāyaṇa', one is in the presence of Nārāyaṇa. This is why the Āzhvārs and Āchāryas consider nāma-kīrtana (singing the names) and nāma-japa (repeating the names) to be forms of direct devotional encounter (sākṣātkāra).
2. The Aṣṭākṣara (Om Namo Nārāyaṇāya): This eight-syllable mantra, given to the disciple during pañca-saṃskāra, is considered the mūla-mantra (root mantra) — the most compressed and complete expression of the relationship between the soul and Bhagavān. The first syllable 'Om' is praṇava, pointing to the absolute; 'Namas' is the act of surrender; 'Nārāyaṇāya' is the dative pointing to the object of surrender — Nārāyaṇa.
3. Viṣṇu Sahasranāma: The thousand names of Bhagavān, sung by Bhīṣma to Yudhiṣṭhira in the Mahābhārata's Anuśāsana Parva, constitute the fullest liturgical enumeration of Bhagavān's guṇas (qualities) through His names. Recitation of the Sahasranāma is one of the primary daily practices of Śrī Vaiṣṇavas.
4. The Divya Prabandham as extended nāma-kīrtana: The 4,000 pāsurams of the Āzhvārs are understood as an expanded, bhāva-filled outpouring of Bhagavān's nāmas and qualities — an extended act of nāma-saṃkīrtana ('proclamation of the name'). Nammāzhvār's Tiruvāimoḷi opens: uyarvara uyar nalam ... and virtually every pāsuram invokes one or more of Bhagavān's names as the vehicle of devotional communion.