paragata svīkāram — The Lord's Initiative of Acceptance
Paragata svīkāram (Sanskrit: para = the Supreme Lord + gata = pertaining to / belonging to + svīkāra = acceptance, taking) is a pivotal theological term in Śrī Vaiṣṇava thought expressing the teaching that it is Bhagavān Himself who takes the decisive initiative in accepting the surrendered jīva — rather than the jīva's own act of prapatti (surrender) being automatically or mechanically efficacious of itself.
The significance of this concept is best understood within the full structure of prapatti theology. When a mumukṣu performs śaraṇāgati — surrendering to Bhagavān as the sole upāya (means) and seeking liberation — this act is genuine and necessary. It removes the primary obstacle: the jīva's ahankāra (false identification as an independent agent) and mamakāra (false sense of self-ownership). The surrender presents the jīva in its true nature as the Lord's śeṣa (property). But liberation itself comes not from the act of surrender per se but from the Lord's responsive svīkāram — His gracious acceptance, ownership, and commitment to protect.
Piḷḷai Lokācārya in Śrī Vachana Bhūṣaṇam and Maṇavāḷa Māmunigaḷ in his commentary develop this at length. The Dvaya Mantra embodies this structure: the first half (Śrīman Nārāyaṇa caraṇau śaraṇaṃ prapadye) is the jīva's act of surrender; the second half (Śrīmate Nārāyaṇāya namaḥ) declares the Lord's ownership and the soul's perpetual service — the enacted form of the svīkāram.
The concept guards against two errors: (1) treating prapatti as a mechanical performance that automatically compels the Lord — this would compromise His absolute svātantrya (independence); His acceptance is always His own free act of grace; (2) thinking liberation is entirely passive, with the jīva's act of turning to the Lord being irrelevant — in fact, prapatti is the genuine and necessary condition that enables the svīkāram. The balance of jīva's authentic surrender and the Lord's decisive initiative is the theological heart of the Śrī Vaiṣṇava rahasyam.