Lord Ramacandra's glorious examples

Maisnam Ibohal Singh *

Lord Rama :: Picture Courtesy - Dr. Sapam Nabakishore Singh

Lord Ramacandra as the incarnation of Lord Krishna appeared directly in this world as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth Himself in His full expansion as Lord Ramacandra Himself, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughana, as the sons of Maharaja Dasaratha in the dynasty of Maharaja Khatvanga in the Treta-yuga in response to prayers of the demigods. In that dynasty, Dirghabahu was the son of Khatvanga.

Dirghabahu's son was Raghu and the son of Raghu was Aja. Maharaja Dasaratha was the son of Aja. Lord Ramacandra also appeared as the incarnation of Lord Krishna in the colour of suka, a parrot in another Dvapara-yuga as confirmed in Srimad Bhagavatam.

Sukadeva Gosvami summarized in Srimad Bhagavatam the activities of Lord Ramacandra briefly, though the Ramayana composed by Valmiki is a huge literature. This literature was unfortunately written by many present day scholars misrepresenting the original one written by tattva-darsis, as commented by many learned scholars. Lord Ramacandra married mother Sita, the incarnation of the Goddess of the fortune, Lakshmi who constantly rests on the chest of the Lord.

He broke the bow, belonging to Lord Siva just as a baby elephant breaks a stick of sugarcane, in the assembly of the competing heroes of the world. Lord Ramacandra also defeated the proud Parasurama who rid the earth of the royal order twenty-one times. He fulfilled the order of His father Dasaratha who was bound by a promise to his wife Kaikeyi and left behind His kingdom to proceed to the forest of Dandakaranya for fourteen years with Sita and Laksmana, His younger brother.

Step mother, Kaikeyi requested her husband Maharaja Dasaratha to enthrone her son Bharata and send Ramacandra to the forest. Lord Ramacandra as an obedient son accepted the order of His father just as a great yogi gives up. his life without material attraction. Lord Ramacandra, carrying His invincible bow and arrows in His hand in a life of hardship, deformed Ravana's sister Surpanakha, who was polluted with lusty desires, by cutting off her nose and ears.

The ten headed Ravana having agitated by lusty desires of the beautiful and attractive features of mother Sita decided to kidnap her. He sent demon Marica in the form of a golden deer to distract Lord Ramacandra from His asrama in chasing that wonderful deer who was then killed by Him with a sharp arrow. Ravana kidnapped Sita devi while both Lord Ramacandra and Laksmana entered the forest to chase the demon Marica turned golden deer.

Lord Ramacandra became distressed due to separation from His wife to whom He was so much attached. However, Lord Ramacandra is not subject to the conditions of the material world as He as the Supreme Personality of Godhead is atmarama Himself.

Such separation is spiritually understood as vipralambha, an activity of the hladini potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead belonging to the mellow of conjugal love in the spiritual world (srngara-rasa). But, unfortunately Lord Ramacandra's pleasure potency is misunderstood that the Lord is considered as an ordinary human being.

In fact, Sita kidnapped by Ravana was not the real Sita, but an illusory (maya) Sita and also, it was actually impossible to take away mother Sita by Ravana. When the purity of mother Sita was tested in the fire, the maya- sita was burnt and the real Sita came out of the fire.

A glorious example is that a woman should always be protected, before marriage by her father and after marriage in her husband's house by her husband, as a woman can't protect herself independently. Lord Ramacandra who assumed the form of a human being, but possessed with full opulences, performed the funeral ceremony of Jatayu who was killed by Ravana. He then killed the demon Kabandha and Vali and made friends with monkey chiefs for delivering the mother Sita.

Lord Ramacandra reached the beach of the ocean and fasted there for three days for the arrival of the ocean. When the ocean failed to obey His order, Lord Ramacandra, as the master of the ocean exhibited anger glancing over the ocean. The personified ocean then fearfully expressed that the lord of ghosts being the mode of ignorance could understand the all-pervading Supreme Person only when punished severely by the modes of material nature.

The personified ocean requested the Lord to please cross the ocean by constructing a bridge over it as a symbol of His transcendental fame and regain mother Sita from Lanka by killing Ravana, son of Visrava, as Ravana was the source of disturbance in the three worlds. Ravana was in fact no better than the urine because of his demoniac character.

Lord Ramacandra's transcendental pastime was not a common activity. Due to the Lord Ramacandra's potency the mountain peaks, trees and plants hurled by His faithful monkey soldiers into the sea were floating over the sea to form a bridge to cross it and proceed to Lanka. Even the sun moves by the desire of the Supreme Personality of Godhead as said in Brahma Samhita.

With the help of Vibhisana, Ravana's pious brother, Lord Ramacandra along with Sugriva, Nila and Hanuman went to Lanka and the entire city of Lanka was destroyed just like a river disturbed by a herd of elephants.

Ravana ordered all his Raksasas and son Indrajit and finally Kumbhakarna to fight against the enemies. Lord Ramacandra, along with Laksmana and monkey soldiers headed by Sugriva and Hanuman, attacked the soldiers of the Raksasas who were fully equipped with various invincible and modern weapons, and killed Ravana's soldiers. The curse that mother Sita poured upon Ravana was in fact the cause for the defeat of Ravana's soldiers.

Ravana helplessly started striking against Lord Ramacandra who was seated on the effulgent chariot driven by Matali, Indradeva's chariot driver. Ravana was then addressed by Lord Ramacandra. "You are the most abominable of the man-eaters. Indeed, you are like their stool. You resemble a dog, for as a dog steals eatables from the kitchen in the absence of the householder. So in My absence you kidnapped My wife, Sita devi. Therefore as Yamaraja punishes sinful men, I shall also punish you the most abominable, sinful and shameless, without fail."

Lord Ramacandra rebuked Ravana and killed him by releasing an arrow from His bow through his heart like a thunderbolt. Ravana vomited blood from his ten mouths and fell from his airplane on the earth just like a pious man falls to earth from the heavenly planets after the result of his pious activities are exhausted. Ravana was bound by the result of his karma as he offended an exalted personality, especially the Supreme Personality of Godhead by kidnapping the faithfully and chaste mother Sita who cursed Ravana.

The glorious example is that one like Ravana should not act thinking oneself independent of the laws of material nature. Instead one should remain fixed in one's devotional service free from false prestige. Mandodari, the wife of Ravana knew Ravana's cruelty. Indeed the meaning of Ravana is "one who causes crying for others."

Sita, Mandodari, Draupadi are all ideal chaste women. If any one who falls like Ravana under the influence of lusty desires of such chaste women or women faithful to their husbands, then he would be certaintly punished suitably by the nature's laws. Therefore an intelligent person looks upon another's wife as his own mother. Canakya said in his 10th sloka:
"matrvat para-daresu
para-dravyesu lostravat
atmavat sarva-bhutesu
yah pasyati sa panditah"

"One who considers another's wife as his mother, another's possessions as a lump of dirt and treats all other living beings as he would himself, is considered to be learned.’’

Lord Ramacandra said that Ravana, due to his deeds, made his body fit to be eaten by vultures and his soul fit to go to hell. Srila Prabhupada's commentary is that the destination of godless atheists such as Ravana, Hiranyakasipu, Kamsa and Dantavakra is a hellish condition of life. However, as Lord Rama-candra was merciful, Vibhisana, the pious brother of Ravana was allowed to perform the prescribed funeral ceremonies for his family members to save them from the path to hell.

Lord Ramacandra felt compassion for mother Sita who was found sitting in a small cottage beneath the tree named Simsapa in a forest of Asoka trees. She was exceedingly happy to see her beloved. Thus ending Lord Ramacandra's living in the forest of Dandakaranya and giving Vibhisana to rule Lanka for one Kalpa, returned to Ayodhya with Sita in a decorated airplane, accompanied by Hanuman, Sugriva and Laksmana. In Ayodhya, the demigods headed by Lord Brahma greeted Lord Ramacandra and others in great jubilation.

His brother Bharata who was living in Nandagrama in a very lamentable condition by eating barley cooked in the urine of a cow, covering his body with the bark of trees, wearing matted locks of hair and lying on a mattress of Kusa, came to Ayodhya carrying Lord Ramacandra's wooden shoes and received Him with all other paraphernalia befitting a royal reception.

Bharata in ecstasy and tears in eyes fell at His lotus feet and offered the wooden shoes to Lord Ramacandra with folded hands. Lord Ramacandra embraced Bharata with tears for a long time. He then accompanied by mother Sita and Laksmana offered respectful obeisances unto the learned brahmanas and elderly persons in the family.

All the citizens also offered their respectful obeisances to the Lord. Then Lord Ramacandra accompanied by Sita devi, Bharata, Laksmana, Vibhi-sana, Satrughana, Sugriva, Hanuman, Angada and Jambavan entered the city of Ayodhya in the midst of a festival. He offered obeisances to mother Kaikeyi, His own, mother Kausalya and other mothers, and also to Vasistha, the spiritual preceptor.

The family priest Vasistha performed abhiseka for Lord Rama-candra with the water from four seas and other substances. Lord Ramacandra thus accepted the throne of the state having pleased with Bharata for his full surrender and submission. He ruled the kingdom exactly as a father takes care of his children, and the citizens being obliged to the good government accepted Lord Ramacandra as their father.

Lord Ramacandra's Rama-rajya rule was based on the institution of varna and asrama, which arranges society in the varna divisions of brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya and sudra, and the asrama divisions of brahmacarya, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa.

Bhagavata-gita (4.13) confirms such form of the different varnasrama occupational duties. "catur- varnyam maya srstam guna-karama-vibhagasah." The purpose of varnasrama is to enable people to become God conscious and vaisnavas of any faith. A rajarsi chief executive can give a good government with good citizenship.

Lord Ramacandra's rule in Treta-yuga was like the age of Satya-yuga, as everyone was religious and completely happy and peaceful. It is said that there was no bodily and mental suffering, disease, lamentation, distress, fear, even old age and bereavement.

The glorious example is that of Lord Ramacandra's "eka-patni-vrata", ie, accepting only one wife. So also, mother Sita devi's submissiveness, faithfulness, shyness and chastity are the glorious example. Lord Ramacandra donated His entire kingdom by giving the entire east of the land to the hota priest, the south to the brahma priest, the west to the adhvaryu priest and the north to the udgata priest, and the balance of the land to the acarya.

Thus nothing else was left for Himself and mother Sita except His personal garments and ornaments, and nose ring for Sita devi. But the brahmanas returned all the property to Lord Ramacandra again. They were completely pleased with the Lord's affection toward them, which was sufficient to melt their hearts and also dissipate the darkness of their ignorance. They were very much enlightened by the Supreme Personality of Godhead and they offered their respectful obeisances at the lotus feet of the worshipable deity.

Once Lord Ramacandra was walking at night incognito to find out the people's opinions of Himself, He heard a man rebuking his unchaste wife comparing with Sita devi and telling that he was not a henpecked husband like Lord Rama. Immediately Lord Ramacandra returned home, and fearing such rumours, He superficially decided to give up Sita's company, and thus banished Sita knowing her of a good conduct.

At that time Sita was pregnant. She having taken shelter of Valmiki Muni in his asrama, gave birth to twin sons named Lava and Kusa. Sita devi entrusted both her sons to the care of Valmiki Muni. Lord Ramacandra then performed various sacrifices- like myriads of horse-sacrifices, Vajapeya sacrifices, Agnihotra, Gomedha etc. uninterruptedly for thirteen thousand years. Valmiki Muni brought Sita devi and asked Lord Rama to accept the chaste Sita.

Though she was abandoned of a good conduct near Valmiki, Lord Ramacandra said that she must convince the kings and great sages of her innocence. Then mother Sita meditating at the lotus feet at Lord Ramacandra with folded hands and having spoken that she had not thought of anyone except Lord Rama requested the goddess Earth to give her a cavity. Thus mother Sita devi entered the Earth.

Lord Ramacandra then observing complete celibacy and overcome by grief entered Saketa with His sons, best kings and sages. Having fulfilled His vows righteously, ruled over the kingdom for ten thousand and ten hundred years, consecrated His sons Kusa and Lava to the thrones, Kusa at Kusavati and Lava at Sarasvati and having said that He would appear Himself in a Dvapara-yuga in the Yadu dynasty- entered the spiritual world, His own Supreme abode which is covered by the brahmajyoti.

Lord Ramacandra descended to this material world in the form of a human being with full opulences to perform His pastimes for His own pleasure as well as to protect and satisfy His devotees. The pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead do always set some glorious examples for the benefit of the common people in this material world.