Post 6 Dear sri vaishNava perunthagaiyeer, We were seeing how seethaa exhibits her `lakshaNa saasthra knowledge' - her learnings on beauty of a lady and its phalans - even though she is in deep sorrow, and how raavaNan sees her beauty, asks her `who are you? Is it that you are a goddess?' That means the `divine beauty' of seethaa makes even a kaamugan [lust- full person] like raavaNan also to show a first reaction of `divinity' - no `mean lust' for the flesh - later it might be because of turn of events and time - but first it is very `positive' reaction. Then you can think of and see in your mental eyes how was the extolling beauty of seethaa. And such others like `rukmiNi' - later. Mother rukmiNi addresses to krishNa `sruthvaa guNaan bhuvana sundhara' - `heard only' - not seen you oh krishNa - but you, the world's best beauty and then goes on to plead for their marriage and union - then what to talk of that krishNaa's beauty and how to express it in words. Oh great. Or raama's beauty - which makes even the `complete sense controlled' rishis to desire for a `embrace' - a `physical union' with that raama. So the beauty in its abstract wholesome form does not create a lust or passion for union is the first conclusion. When it gets combined with ideas of trying to possess such a `beauty' as `my own' then only it turns out to be lust and bad and leads to disaster. Perhaps that is why hanumaan when first saw mandodhari - another beauty - wrongly thinks she is seethaa. And later when he really sees seethaa, he is simply in all praises for that beauty of seethaa and that creates a divine feelings in him and he bows down [which also we will see here now]. Now let us continue seethaa's description of herself - mama varNO maNi nibhO mrudhooni angaruhaaNi cha | prathishThithaam dhvadhasabhi: maam oochu: subhalakshaNaam || 6-48-12 meaning: seethaa weeps and says to herself, `I was said since my colour is of the gem, the hair on body is soft, [10 fingers and the two feet making the twelve] the total twelve are fully covering the ground, as such have `supreme perefection' `uththama lakshaNam' for a woman. samagrayavam achchhidhram paaNi paadhm cha varNavath | mandhasmithEthyEva cha maam kanyaa lakshaNikaa vidhu: || 6-48-13 meaning: seethaa continues, `my palms and feet are having yava rekhaas completely, and are not separated, and are red in colour. [means having gaps or depth which is not good] Those, who, know the lakshaNa saasthra of ladies, have said `always I have a smile'. [whereas now I am weeping because my raama has gone - which is understood] points: 1. So `what is the supreme lakshaNams of a women is completely in seethaa's knowledge - may be somebody said that in mithila or in ayOdhyaa - she learnt that - she remembers those points, even at a time of `an imaginary very great loss' - she seeing raama fallen on ground - whether raama alive or not on which she has a doubt. In spite of that situation and condition her knowledge shines about that `lakshaNa saasthram'. Then she says these people are liars. That is something great. That is what I want to highlight. 2. When raavaNan sees seethaa standing alone in that aasramam, the lust of raavaNan spearheads, and so he speaks about her beauty - as in sundhara kaaNdam where raavaNan comes to meet seethaa when hanumaan is just waiting to introduce himself to seethaa see both slOkams - both are by raavaNan to seethaa -- chaaru smithE chaaru dhathi chaaru nEthrE vilaasini | manO harasi mE raamE nadhee koolam iva ambhasaa || 3-46-21 karaanthamitha madhyaa asi sukEsee samhatha sthanee | meaning: raavaNan to seethaa, `Oh, allurer, your smile is alluring, teeth are alluring, and your eyes allure, oh, beauty, your waist is palmful, your hair velvety, your breasts are jostling, and you rob my soul as a spate robs the riverbank'. [3-46-21, 22a] chaaru smithE chaaru dhathi chaaru nEthrE vilaasini || 5-20-29 manO harasi mE bheeru suparNa: pannagam yathaa | meaning: raavaNan to seethaa, `O one with a beautiful smile! O one with beautiful teeth! O one with beautiful eyes! O charmful one! O timid one! You are stealing my heart like a serpent stolen by Garuda. Point 3: On this `smile' `mandha smitha' says seethaa - but raavaNa says `chaaru smitha'. That is the difference - how each looks at it fro their own angle. But the smiling face is true - only the adjective varies. 4. Further see in the above two slokams, there is a `repeat' in both slOkams, from beginning of slOkam upto that `manO harasi'- repeat of same words by vaalmeeki - in two different portions of the kaavyam - which is called `punarukthi dhOsham' in sanskrit grammar. Of course there are several such `repeats'. Though it is wrong grammatically, it is not treated as `dhOsham' in `raamaayaNam' and same is treated as `great kaavyam -composition'. In one place on raamaayaNam, it is also said the work is `un-paNinian' - perhaps many may know paNini is the first `grammarian' of `Sanskrit' lanuguage - and vaalmeeki's work transgresses these later day rules of grammar in many places, that is why it is said as un-paNinian. [for such minute details and comments, please see www.valmikiramayan.net <http://www.valmikiramayan.net> website]. Now let us continue on how raavNa talks to seethaa further -- na Eva dhEvee na gandharhvee na yakshee na cha kinnaree || 3-46-22 na Evam roopaa mayaa naaree dhrushTa poorvaa mahee thalE | meaning: raavaNan says, `I have not hitherto seen any earthly female with this kind of features on the face of earth; not a goddess, nor a gandharva female, nor a yaksha female, nor a kinnaraa female - no, none whosoever! [3-46-22] That means seethaa is more than a goddess and et al. that is what is the reality and we will see more on the beauty in next post. Dhasan Vasudevan m.g. Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SriRangaSri/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: SriRangaSri-unsubscribe@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
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