Meaning of Prapatti is essentially that it is a direct means of attaining moksha. It requires the complete surrender of the individual to God and His mercy. The term prapatti is derived from the root words pra-pad. Pad means to move and pra implies in the best manner. In the context of upaya, the term implies total self-surrender to God as the sole refuge. A more appropriate Sanskrit language term for prapatti is atma niksepa or bharanyasa, that is, to place the burden of the protection of the self in the care of God. It is also known as saranagati, or seeking God as the sole refuge.

The Visistadvaita Vedanta holds that the two important sadhanas for attaining the Supreme spiritual goal (parama purusartha) are bhakti yoga and prapatti. Both of the means have been advocated by the Sruti and Smriti texts as alternative means of moksha which are to be adopted by people with different capacities and eligibilities. The Vaishnava treatises give greater importance to prapatti. The praptti can be followed by all classes of individual belonging to any creed and status unlike Bhakti yoga which can only be performed by a certain class of individuals. This is why the Vaishnava acharyas right from the time of Nathamuni have preferred prapatti as a means of moksha. Thus prapatti is of great significance in Vaishnavism.

The doctrine of prapatti is very old and it has its roots in the Vedas. There are numerous statements in the Rig Veda referring to the basic principle of saranagati, viz., that an individual pleading his inability to achieve a desired object seeks with fervent prayer the help of a divine power.

The famous Rik hymn addressed to Agni which is reiterated in the Isavasyopanisad states, "O Agni, lead us along the auspicious path to prosperity, O God, who knowest the means of attainment, remove all the obstacles coming in our way; we shall offer unto Thee salutation with the expression of namah." According to the interpretation of Vedanta Desika, Agni in the hymn refers to the Supreme Being as its antaratma and the word namah signifies the act of self-surrender to God. Another hymn states explicitly that the person who offers prayer with the expression of namah (implying self-surrender) is to be regarded as one who has performed a good sacrifice (sodhvarah) almost equivalent to the formal sacrifice done in the consecrated fire by offering the faggots (samit) along with the recitation of the mantras. The interpretation of this hymn in favour of self-surrender (atma-nyasa) is upheld by the Ahirbhudhanya Samhita.

The Vedic seers were fully conscious of the fact that none other than the Divine Being is capable of protecting man from bondage. God is regarded as a dear friend and near relative of all human beings. He is compared to the non-leaky boat that can safely take persons from one shore to the other, through the turbulent waters of life. The Vedic seers have, therefore, sought in all their prayers the grace of God for achieving their desired objectives.

Prapatti in the Upanishads
The Upanishads have given expression in clearer terms to prapatti as a means of moksha. Thus, the Svetasvatara Upanishad says, "I as an aspirant of moksha seek refuge in that effulgent God who creates Brahma first and who verily delivers to him the Vedas, etc." The Taittiriya Narayana Upanishad extolls nyasa (prapatti) and enjoins that the self is to be surrendered to Brahman with the pranava mantra. The Kathavalu Sruti, which is not extant but frequently referred to by Vedanta Desikaand other Vaishnava acharyas, contains the secret mantra known as dvaya which enunciates the essence of saranagati (self-surrender). The Itihasas, Puranas and the Pancharatra Sarhhitas uphold the observance of saranagati as the direct means of attaining not only moksha but whatever an individual desires.

Prapatti in the Ramayana and Mahabharata
The Ramayana is regarded by the Vaishnava acharyas as a Saranagati Sastra or a sacred work expounding the saranagati dharma. The saranagati observed by Vibhisana, seeking the refuge of Lord Rama is cited as a classic illustration of prapatti. In the Mahabharata and Bhagavata Purana there are several episodes glorifying saranagati.

Prapatti in the Bhagavad Gita
In the Bhagavad Gita which is part of the Mahabharata, Lord Krishna enjoins Arjuna to observe saranagati as a last resort for attaining God, if other harder paths of yoga such as bhakti yoga are found difficult. The verse on this subject which appears in the concluding portion of the Gita is upheld as an important mantra (carama sloka) by the Vaishnavas enunciating prapatti as an alternative means to moksha.

Prapatti in the Pancharatra Treatises
The Laksmi Tantra and the Ahirbhudhanya. Samhita, two older and important Pancharatra treatises, extensively deal with the various aspects of prapatti. In fact, Vedanta Desika and other Vaishnava acharyas have drawn mostly from these two works while expounding the doctrine of saranagati.

Prapatti in the Hymns of the Alvars
The hymns of the Alvars have emphasised the importance of prapatti. Nammalvar, who is regarded as the leader of prapannas (prapanna jana kuthsilha) has set an example by himself performing prapatti at the feet of Lord Srinivasa, the presiding deity at Tirumala Hills. Both Yamuna, in his Stotraratna and Ramanuja in his Saranagati gadya have done the same thing and shown to the Vaishnavas the need and importance of saranagati as a direct means to moksha.

Vedanta Desika, the illustrious follower of Ramanuja has contributed several independent works written both in Sanskrit and Manipravala language, expounding in great detail, the various feature of saranagati and defended it against all possible criticisms in his Nikseparaksa and Rahasyatrayasara. Pillai Lokacharya, the leader of the Tenkalai sect of Sri Vaishnavas and his predecessor, Periyavacchan Pillai have also upheld the doctrine of prapatti as taught by Yamuna and Ramanuja.

Thus, the observance of prapatti as a means to attain moksha or any other desired goal is a Vedic practice and has been in vogue from ancient times. Right up to the time of Nathamuni, it was preserved as a secret doctrine and its knowledge was imparted orally by the qualified preceptors to the deserving pupils. It was only in the post-Ramanuja period that the doctrine was expounded with all its details in written works for the benefit of future generations.

Conditions of Eligibility for Prapatti
An individual who adopts the path of prapatti for moksha is required to fulfill two important conditions of eligibility, besides the general qualification such as a yearning for moksha (arthitva) and basic knowledge of the nature of prapatti along with the capacity to follow it (samarthya). The two special requirements are-

(1) akincanya, that is absolute inability on the part of the individual to adopt any other upaya for moksha such as bhakti yoga aided with karma yoga and jnana yoga (upayantara sam arthyahhava).

(2) ananya gatitva, that is, not to aspire for any goal other than moksha (prayojanantara-vaimukhya). The second condition implies that the aspirant for moksha should not seek refuge in any other deity than the Supreme Being for the obvious reason that moksha cannot be granted by other deities.

Both these conditions should be fulfilled by the aspirant to become eligible to adopt the path of prapatti as direct means to moksha. Both Yamuna and Ramanuja have emphasised this point by imposing on themselves these qualifications in their ardent prayer for saranagati. With the fulfilment of these two conditions, any person, irrespective of caste, creed and status can become qualified to observe prapatti for moksha.