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Your Friend or enemy! As Ravan sat aboard Pushpaka chariot, gazing at the magnificent scenery below, he suddenly noticed a lady sitting in meditation. This was most unusual as women were rarely seen in those mountains. Sometimes the rishis would have their wives with them, but this woman seemed to be entirely alone Ravan slowed the chariot & moved down to have a closer look. He saw a young ascetic girl sitting on a soft grassland surrounded by wildflowers. She glowed with golden beauty; her limbs were exquisitely formed & she wore a black deerskin. Dark locks of thickly matted hair hung down to her waist, framing her white-complexioned face. Her red lips moved slightly as she intoned the sacred syllable Om. Her smooth golden arms were bared in front of her as she sat with folded palms, her long curling lashes covering half closed eyes Ravan’s mind was overpowered with lust. Who was this youthful lady? What is she doing here in such a lonely place? Does she have a protecto...
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Ayodhya – The crown jewel! King Dasaratha, who always kept his word & followed dharma, attained prosperity and pleasure in equal measure by righteous means ruled Ayodhya as Indra ruled Amaravati. The people living in that excellent city were happy, virtuous, well-read (in Vedas & the sastras) and content with the possessions they owned. They were free from avarice & always spoke the truth In Ayodhya, there was not even a single householder who did not have adequate wealth or who had not achieved Dharma, Artha and Kāma or who did not possess the wealth of foodgrains, cattle and horses. The lustful, the miserly, the unscholarly & atheists were not to be seen anywhere in the city of Ayodhya. All men and women in the city, were of righteous conduct, fully self-controlled & prosperous, with good conduct and behaviour. They were pure like Maharshis In the city, there was none without ear ornaments, without coronet, without wearing garlands. They were all clean &...
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The invincible city of Ayodhya! Ayodhya city was surrounded with suburban towns on all sides. It was filled with beautiful, mesmerizing & soothing gardens & mangroves and girdled by sal trees. It was enclosed by strong fortifications & a deep moat. No enemy can ever enter and occupy Ayodhya. It had abundant elephants and horses, cattle, camels and mules. It was embellished with a host of tributary kings who used to pay tributes and with merchants from different countries Like Indra's Amaravati, it was adorned by mountains & mansions were inlaid with precious stones. Groups of men and women lived in seven storied palaces. It looked wonderful like a board where the game of Ashtapada is played. It was rich in all kinds of gems & its dwellings were constructed on levelled ground with no space left unutilised. It was abundantly stocked with fine-grained rice & water which tasted sweet like sugarcane juice The city echoed with the sounds of trumpets, mridang...
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The great Epic-It shines & soothes! Sri Rama, the tormentor of enemies, surrounded by his ministers & brothers occupied the splendid golden throne. He then admirably looked at the two very handsome brothers (Kusa & Lava), addressed Laxman, Shatrughna & Bharata, saying-Listen to the story sung by both of them, portraying excellent sense & words He then urged the singers with the lustre of demigods to commence. Both of them, with good & ample voice, chanted the kavya (poem) in a distinct meaningful way. Tuning their stringed instruments, they sang melodiously & engagingly. The chanting of the kavya in the assembly of men, comforted their sense of hearing & the listeners rejoiced in their mind, heart & the whole being Addressing the assembly Rama said-Both Kusa & Lava, even though ascetics, are endowed with the attributes of royalty. Even though they are singers, they are ascetics. Listen to the meaningful story with concentration. Encouraged ...
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Reciting Ramayana is so auspicious! Divine sage Valmiki composed events that happened in the lifetime of Sri Rama & also the events yet to happen in future on this earth (i.e. Uttarkanda). He composed the Ramayana in 24 000 verses in six kandas (cantos) After composing the verses, Valmiki pondered over about who can translate this epic into a poetic rendition & perform to the whole world. As he was thinking, Kusa & Lava came to him in the garb of ascetics & bowed at his feet. The sage saw the two illustrious princely brothers, well-versed in dharma & gifted with a sweet voice. He found them endowed with intellect & accomplished in the Vedas. Valmiki initiated them into Ramayana, for the purpose of nourishing the Vedas The twin brothers Kusa & Lava, with a melodious voice, possessed auspicious form & beauty. They were Gandharvas in human form. They looked like the two reflected images of Sri Rama. The contents of the epic Ramayana, apart from being ...
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Mahatma! (Great soul) Hearing the entire story of Rama from the intellectual sage Narada, the righteous Valmiki, sought to know clearly more about the history of Rama endowed with wisdom. He performed achamana and seated on kusha grass with folded palms, Valmiki searched for the course of past events in the history of Rama by his power of penance. The holy sage then clearly visualised Rama, Laxman and Sita, King Dasaratha, his wives & his kingdom and all that they had observed, experienced, endeavoured during the course of events. He also visualised clearly their laughter & conversations exactly as it happened in real life He clearly saw all that was acquired by truthful Rama, Laxman & wife Sita-as the third person when they were moving in the Dandakaranya forest. With the power of yoga, Valmiki clearly saw, like an amalaka fruit in the palm of the hand, the entire course of events that happened in the past relating to Rama Having visualised the story (of Rama), with ...
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Our most beautiful composition is but...! Sage Narada told the entire story of Sri Ram-from his would-be appointment as heir apparent to the Ayodhya throne by his father King Dashratha–to his exile for 14 years in the forest–losing his loving wife Sita to Ravana by abduction–killing the demon Ravana & bringing back Sita, returning to Ayodhya & ruling it for eleven thousand years thereafter Narada explained how Ram governed his kingdom (Rajya). After Sri Ram was anointed King, his subjects rejoiced with happiness & with their desire fulfilled they were content. All people followed the path of righteousness & there was no fear of sufferings or agonies, diseases or famine During the period of Rama's rule, nowhere would men witness the death of their sons or women were widowed. They would ever remain chaste & devoted to their husbands. In Rama’s kingdom, there was no fear of fire, water, wind, disease, hunger and also theft. All the cities & villages were ...
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