SrI:
SrimatE Raamaanujaaya Namaha //
SrimatE Nigamaanta Mahaa Desikaaya Namaha //
SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya/
SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya//
KAvEri VardhathAm kAlE, kAlE varshathu vAsava: /
SrI RanganAthO jayathu Sri Ranga Sri cha VardhathAm//
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SRI RANGA SRI VOL.08 / ISSUE # 27 dated 2nd June 2007
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IN THIS ISSUE:
1. "AYODHYA KHAANDAM" PART -3 OF SRIMAD RAMAYANAM DISCOURSES IN THE
HINDU TEMPLE OF ATLANTA.
(SRI ANBIL RAMASWAMY SWAMI)
2.TAATPARYA RATNAVALI - SUBMISSION 23 - SLOKAM 13 -PART 4
(SRI N. KRISHNAMACHARAIAR SWAMI OF CHICAGO)
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ISSUES RELEASED
With this issue, about 254 Regular issues of SRS have been released
so far, apart from numerous "Special Issues" as indicated below:
27 Issues of Vol. 1
15 Issues of Vol. 2
42 Issues of Vol. 3
35 Issues of Vol. 4
28 Issues of Vol. 5
30 Issues of Vol. 6
50 Issues of Vol. 7 and
27 Issues of Vol. 8 (including this)
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1. "AYODHYA KHAANDAM" PART - 3 OF SRIMAD RAMAYANAM DISCOURSES IN THE
HINDU TEMPLE OF ATLANTA.
(ANBIL RAMASWAMY)
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31. GUHA'S RAMA BHAKTI - STORY OF THYAGARAJA (SIDE STORY)
H.H. narrates the following story to illustrate the depth of Guha's
Bhakti to Rama.
Once, a family of pilgrims had to spend a night in a far off
village. It was midnight and it was pouring heavily. Only a few days
before, there was a robbery in the village and none of the villagers
dared to offer them any place to rest. They spotted a nearby temple
but the heavy doors were under deadbolt. One man tried to jump over
the tall wall to find out if there was any space for accommodating
the women and children in the group. But, there was no sign of his
coming back. The next morning, the priest came and opened the main
door.
They narrated to him the incident. At long last, when someone peeped
into a well that was precisely where the man had jumped into, they
found his body there. They pleaded with the priest to save the man.
But, he said that in a short while a great Bhakta would be coming
and that they could request him to do the needful. The Bhakta did
come. When the wife of the man prostrated before the Bhakta, he
blessed her "Long live your married life" "Dheergha Sumangali
Bhava". When they told him that the man was suspected to have died,
he said "It is Rama who blessed through me and Rama would save him".
He sang the kriti "nannu paalimpa" in Mohana Raagam. Lo and behold!
The man believed to have died got up as if waking up from sleep. The
Bhakta was none other than Saint Thyagaraja. Guha's Bhakti was like
that. No wonder, Rama had a soft corner in his heart for Guha. He
told Guha "Earlier we were just four brothers. Now, with you, we
have become five"
Munbu uLem oru naalvEm; muDivu uLadu ena
Anbu uLa, ini naam Ore aivargaL aanOm (Guha-617)
Guha brought the milk of banyan tree (gel like liquid) as ordered by
Rama for shaping up his hairs like what the Sages sported on their
heads. Needless to say, that LakshmaNa followed suit.
32. SUMANTRA RETURNS TO AYODHYA
Though Sumantra wanted to accompany Rama and sought his permission
to do so, Rama advised him to go back to AyOdhya saying that only if
he returned to AyOdhya, mother KaikEyi would believe that Rama had
actually gone to the forest. Rama told him: "If people accuse you
for having been instrumental in taking Rama to forest, tell them
that you would yourself bring me back after the 14 years of sojourn
in the forest".
33. CROSSING RIVER GANGA- GUHA WASHES RAMA'S FEET (SIDE STORY)
Before they got into the boat brought for crossing River Ganga the
next morning, Guha washed Rama's feet (Paada prakshalanam) Do you
know why? H.H answers: Guha knew how a stone became a woman when
Rama stepped "upon" it. By Rama's stepping "into" his boat, it might
get transformed into a woman. So, he hastened to wash his feet clean!
34. CROSSING RIVER KALINDEE
Stepping out of the boat after crossing Ganga, after some distance,
they had to cross another River, KaaLindee. LakshmaNa prepared a
big 'barge' with pieces of timber fastened together, covered with a
kind of grass and spread over with dry bamboo canes. Thereafter, the
valiant Lakshmana made for Seetha a comfortable seat, after chopping
branches of reeds and branches of rose apple tree [naaval maram in
tamil].LakshmaNa fixed tall upright poles and mats for masts to "go
with the wind". It is popularly believed that LakshmaNa swam
alongside the boat carrying the divine couple. Both Aapasthamba and
Manu prohibit crossing a river by swimming (literally beating the
waters with hands) or by a boat suspected to be leaky.
Varjayet baahubhyaam cha nadee teeraNam
naavam cha saamsayi keem na baahubhyaam nadeem tarEth
There is no evidence for this in either Valmiki or Kamban that he
ever did that.
35. VALMIKI ASRAMAM
They arrived at the hermitage of Sage Valmiki. There LakshmaNa built
a custom designed "ParNasaalai" with all facilities for a
comfortable stay of the divine couple. It was so professionally
built that Rama asked LakshmaNa how and when he learned the art.
Enru sindittu iLaiyavar paarthu iru, Kunru pOlak kuvaviya thOLinaai
Enru katranai nee idu pOle enraan Tunru taamarai kaNN pani
sOrginraan ((Chitrakoota 778)
36. DASARATHA'S LAMENT- Cf. KULASEKARA AZHWAR
Six days had passed by since Rama left AyOdhya. Valmiki then takes
us to AyOdhya to show what happened there after Rama's exit. What
else can one expect except a pall of gloom with heart rending sorrow
enveloping the ruler and the ruled? When Sumantra arrived, he could
see the desolate Dasaratha bewailing his plight of separation from
Rama. He reminded himself how Rama was so dutiful to him that he
agreed to the wedding only after the proposal was approved by his
father and that the separation was like a dagger-stab at his heart.
{Bhagavatas may remember that the lament of Dasaratha has been
poignantly described by KulasEkara Azhwar in his "PerumaaL
Tirumozhi"}
37. KOUSALYA TAUNTS DASARATHA
Dasaratha asked Sumantra if he could take him back to DanDakaaraNya
to meet with Rama. Kousalya taunted Dasaratha saying that even if
Rama were to return after 14 years, he would not like to take over
the reins. She asks: "Will a strong tiger ever taste the flesh of an
animal killed and tainted with the spittle of a fox?" Naturally,
Dasaratha had no answer for this. He folded his palms (anjali) to
beg Kousalya to pardon him. Kousalya knew that a wife who is so
entreated by her husband will come to eternal grief. So, she
immediately stopped him from begging her. (Remember that when
Dasaratha fell at the feet of KaikEyi earlier, she was stubborn)
Kousalya's wrath now turned to KaikEyi. She asked KaikEyi "Do you
think you have earned a Kingdom? What you have earned is just widow-
hood, since the King will not live any longer. This is solely due to
your conspiracy". She vowed that she and the other wives of
Dasaratha would enter the funeral pyre in the event of Dasaratha's
death.
38. REQUITAL OF DASARATHA'S PAST SIN (A MAIN STORY) **
Dasaratha narrated to Kousalya how he was facing retribution for a
sin that he had committed earlier in his life. "When I was just an
adolescent, I learned the art of "Sabda vEdanam" (locating merely by
tracing its sound of an animal that was not visible). On a fateful
night as I was in a forest area, I heard a sound that looked like
that of an animal drinking water at a pond. I shot an arrow at the
location. Soon I heard a human voice crying in the agony of death.
When I got near, I was shocked to see that it was not an animal but
a young boy who was hit by my arrow and was about to die. He told me
that he had come to the pond to collect water in a pot to quench the
thirst of his blind parents who were waiting for him a few yards
away under a tree. The boy asked me to pull out the arrow. I did so
and the boy died instantly. I took the pot filled with water to his
parents, narrated the unfortunate, unexpected incident. They wanted
me to take them to the place where the boy's dead body was lying.
There, they also cast away their mortal coils but not before laying
a curse on me that I would also die due to pangs of separation from
my son (PutrasOkam), even as they did. I did not realize the gravity
of the curse then. On the other hand, I felt happy that their curse
was a blessing in disguise in that after all I would be blessed with
a son! Now, I am reaping the consequence of my misdeed"
The lesson is that whether we remember or not, one cannot escape
experiencing the consequences of one's past "karma". But, knowing
this fully well, what do we do?
The following slOka answers:
puNyasya phalam ichchanti, puNyam na kurvanti maanavaa: /
Paapasya phalam na ichchanti, paapam kurvanti yathnata: //
People desire to reap the fruits of puNya (meritorious deeds) but do
not do any acts that would fetch them the same; On the other hand,
they do not want to experience the consequences of sins Paapa (sin)
but commit sins with enormous effort" We enjoy or suffer the effect
of our good or bad actions, whether we like it or not!
39. THE KING IS DEAD; CAN WE SAY "LONG LIVE THE KING"?
His Majesty died at dead of night. Unfortunately, even though he had
four sons a a result of performing numerous intense Yaagas, not one
of them was near his bedside at the time of his death! AyOdhya
became a kingdom without a king! The King's body was put in
a "Thailak-kopparai"- (A wide mouthed large brass vessel) containing
preservative oils waiting for the return of Bharata. VasishTa sent
messengers to summon urgently Bharata and Satrughna to AyOdhya
cautioning them not to reveal the news of the demise of the King and
the exile of Rama and LakshmaNa.
40. BHARATA'S DREAMS
Valmiki now takes us to kEkaya kingdom where Bharata and Satrughna
were enjoying their vacation. Valmiki catalogues about 15 dreams
that Bharata had that night. When the emissaries conveyed the
message from VasishTa, they took leave of the King instantly and
started on their journey. They traveled for several days and reached
AyOdhya. They found the city in a shambles and were afraid that some
mishap had befallen, though they could not divine what it could be!
41. BHARATA- KAIKEYI SAMVAADAM
Dasaratha was not found in his chambers or in KaikEyi's, his usual
resort. When inquired, KaikEyi conveyed the news by saying that the
King had reached the final resting place to which all living beings
are destined to reach. When asked where Rama was, she replied that
the King had sent him on exile to live in the forest for 14 years
and that Dasaratha desired that Bharata should rule the kingdom in
Rama's place. He asked what crime Rama had committed to deserve such
punishment. When Bharata came to know that it was at her behest that
Rama was exiled, he flew into uncontrollable rage. He scolded
KaikEyi saying "So, you wanted to rule making me a scapegoat? No
wonder that you seem to have inherited the evil traits of your
mother who was driven out of the Kingdom for her misdeeds". He
spared her life not because she was his mother but he was scared
that Rama may not approve of killing her. However, he left her and
proceeded to Kousalya's place.
42. BHARATA PRATIGNAI
The first reaction of Kousalya on seeing him was one of accusing him
of complicity in his mother's designs. Bharata was beside with grief
on hearing her accusations. He tried to convince her that he had
nothing to do with his mother's plans. To prove his point, he went
on listing over 50 heinous sins that cast a soul in terrible hells
and that he would go to those hells if he had any hand in his
mother's deal. Valmiki cautions us through Bharata's Pratignai what
we SHOULD avoid to regulate our own lives on Dharmic lines. (Vide
Introduction to this series on "would" and "should") We give below a
few of them. He swears-
"If my heart ever hankered in the least after this kingdom and
turned traitor to Rama, let all the lessons learned at the feet of
Gurus go futile.
May I go the way of him who-
1. lends himself as a tool to the wicked and the sinful
2. excretes urine and ordure facing the Sun
3. kicks at a sleeping cow
4. sweats his workmen and cheats them of their lawful wages
5. deals treacherously with a righteous king who treats his
subjects like his sons
6. collects public money but swindles them by using for
personal use
7. promises sacrificial fees to holy men but later denies it
with haughtiness
8. turns his back and flees from the battlefield
9. consumes food without first offering to Bhagavaan
10. reviles his Guru and dishonors elders
11. betrays the confidence placed in him especially by his
friends
12. is ungrateful and does not render back the kindness done to
him
13. is devoid of all sense of shame and decency
14. commits suicide, patricide, matricide, fratricide etc
15. is selfish ignoring his kith, kin and servants who languish
in penury
16. is disqualified from performance of Vedic rites
17. is suffering the curse of barrenness
18. slays women, children and old men
19. abandons his servants and retainers to a miserable and cruel
fate
20. sells food and articles like red cotton, honey, meat and iron
21. kills an enemy who has surrendered
22. is a madman clad in a single piece of cloth, begging from
door to door
23. is a slave to passions and is drowned in sensual enjoyments
like wine, women and dice
24. avoids the path of Dharma and stays with zeal in the path of
Adharma
25. showers gifts on the unworthy
26. sleeps in the twilights
27. sets fire to habited houses and of defiling the bed etc
28. does not perform Nitya and naimittika karmas like
Sandhyavandanam, Sraddham etc
29. speaks harsh and unpleasant words and is unclean
30. acts as spy and an informer
31. puts away a dutiful wife who seeks to beget a lawful son, in
due season
32. deserts his lawfully married wife and goes after other's
wives
33. starves to death his wife, children and dependents
34. adulterates or poisons food or drinks
35. is an Atheist who spoils or prevents the worship of
Bhagavaan and Bhaktas
36. Does not offer water to one who is thirsty and begs for the
same
37. milks the cow dry with the expectant calf by its side
38. while umpiring between disputants, instructs one of them how
to overcome his opponent
Kousalya was moved by his sincere pleadings and convinced herself
that he was blemish-less.
(To Continue with Ayodya kaaNdam)
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2.TAATPARYA RATNAVALI - SUBMISSION 23 - SLOKAM 13 -PART 4
(SRI N. KRISHNAMACHARAIAR SWAMI OF CHICAGO)
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SrImate ra'nga rAmAnuja mahA deSikAya namaH.
tAtparya ratnAvaLi - Submission 23 - Slokam 13 Part 4, tiruvAimozhi
1.3 contd.
? pASuram 1.3.7:
onRu ena, pala ena aRivarum vaDivinuL ninRa
nanRezhil nAraNan nAnmugan aran ennum ivarai
onRa num manattu vaittu, uLLi, num iru paSai aRuttu
nanRena nalam Seivadu avaniDai nammuDai nALE.
onRu ena, pala ena, aRivu aru vaDivinuL ninRa nanRu ezhil nAraNan,
nAnmugan, aran ennum ivarai num manattu onRa vaittu, uLLi, num iru
paSai aRuttu, nammuDai nAL avaniDai nanRu ena nalam Seivadu -
"Oh,You souls! These three forms ? nArAyaNan, the four-faced
brahmA, and rudra all have divine forms that are disntinguished;
(with superficial analysis) it is difficult to figure out whether
these forms all have one soul controlling them, or whether they each
have different souls, etc. You should thoroughly analyze their
complete attributes in your mind based on all available pramANa-s,
analyse and understand them completely, completely remove any
attachment to the two who are inferior out of the three, and then
completely dedicate your devotion to the One Supreme Deity within
your lifetime, without any delay, realizing that this is the best
thing for you.
svAmi deSikan identifies the guNa of emphasis in this pASuram
through the phrase sva-ruci vitaraNAt ? Because He bestows the
desire in Him. One meaning for the word vitaraNa is gift, donation.
Because bhagavAn is sulabhan, once we start meditating on Him with
devotion, He takes care of removing any confusion in our mind about
who the Supreme Deity is, and creates the desire in our mind to be
totally devoted to Him. All one needs to do is start with an
unbiased mind on the three forms, and then deeply analyse all the
scriptural evidence, the guNa-s of the three mUrti-s, etc., and He
will take care of creating the desire in us for exclusive devotion
to Him, by removing all our confusion. This is how the likes of
mArkaNDeya, ghaNTa karNa, etc. realized the supremacy of SrIman
nArAyaNa over the other two.
A more detailed write-up for this pASuram can be found in the
anaubhavam for this pASuram in the series ?"tri-mUrti in
tiruvAimozhi".
? pASuram 1.3.8:
nALum ninRu aDu pazhamai am koDu vinai uDanE
mALum; Or kuRaiu illai; mananagam malamaRak kazhuvi
nALum nam tiruvuDai aDigaL tam nalam kazhal vaNa'ngi
mALum Or iDattilum vaNakkoDu mALvadu valamE.
mananagam malam aRak kazhuvi, nam tiruvuDai nam aDigaL tam nalam
kazhal vaNa'ngi, nALum ninRu, nama pazhamai am koDu vinai uDanE
mALum; nALum Or kuRaivu illai; mALum Or iDattilum vaNakkoDu mALvadu
valamE. ? By removing all other desires from our mind completely,
and meditating on the Lotus feet of our Lord who is ever associated
with our Divine Mother mahA lakshmI, all our eternal and huge sins
will be immediately destroyed, and all our desires will be
fulfilled; even when our soul leaves the body, it is best to die
having surrendered thus to Him, over the path of bhakti yoga.
svAmi deSikan captures the essence of the pASuram as `sarva kAla
ASrayatvAt' ? mALum Or iDattilum vaNakkoDu mALvadu valamE ? He who
can be surrendered to at any time in this birth, even including at
the time of death, with complete redemption from all the sins
accumulated over uncountable prior births). AzhvAr points out that
bhagavAn is such a sulabhan that He will accept our surrender at any
time, and redeem us from all our accumulated sins over countless
births ? uDanE mALum, tIyinil tUSAgum, and we need not be worried
that we have such huge sins accumulated to our credit. SrImad
tirukkuDanthai ANDavan refers us to the following:
- " meru madara mAtro'pi rASih pApasya karmaNah keSavam vaidyam
AsAdya durvyAdhiriva naSyati" (vishNu dharmam 69.110) - One might
have accumulated sins the size the meru mountain; however if he
worships keSava, the sins disappear just as the worst diseases
disappear when treated by a good vaidya or doctor.
- na vAsudeva bhaktAnAm aSubham vidyate kvacit (vishNu sahasra
nAmam ? phala Sruti) - Nothing inauspicious ever occurs to the
devotees of vAsudeva.
SrI UV quotes the upanishad text: "iha ced avedIt atha satyamasti na
cedihAvedIt mahatI vinashTih:" (keno. 2.5) ? If one has realized
(Brahman) in this birth itself, then he becomes worthy of having
existed. If one has not realized, then it is a great loss.
Every single word that AzhvAr has chosen is full of significance:
mananam malamaRak kazhuvi ? leaving behind all attachments to anya
devatA-s completely; Or kuRaivu illai ? There is nothing that is
left to be desired or accomplished; mALum Or iDattilum ? SaraNAgati
at His Lotus feet can be performed even at the time of death, and He
will offer His protection; tiruvuDai nam aDigaL ? bhagavAn is to be
worshipped together with SrI or mahA lakshmi;
uDanE mALum ? You don't have to wait for another birth after
surrendering to Him; nalam kazhal ? His Lotus feet will never fail
anyone who has surrendered to Him once. These are the guNa-s of
emperumAn that make Him a sulabhan (recall the guNa identified by
svAmi deSikan at the daSakam level).
-dAsan kRshNamAcAryan
(To be continued)
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