Vedic Wisdom Talks

Leading by example! As king Dasharath sat in a melancholy mood with his three principal queens absorbed in his thoughts, a messenger came telling him that his chief priest Vasishtha was now present in the assembly hall. Dasharath had been waiting for this news. He rose up and with the gait of a powerful lion went along the wide passageways, his long sword swinging at his side & his gold ornaments jangling as he walked   Near to the hall he was joined by his chief ministers. All of them were heroes who had been tried in battle, and all were learned and wise. The state ran smoothly under their expert administration. There were no citizens unemployed & no criminals left unchecked. The ministers were devoted to Dasharath’s service & as they walked, they considered the problem facing the king Flanked by his bodyguards & ministers, Dasharath entered his great hall. It vied in splendour with the assembly hall of Indra, the king of the gods. Massive marble pillars ros...

  Satisfaction is not in possession!   King Dasarath paced his palace balcony. Ina pensive mood he surveyed the scene around him. People thronged the inner courtyard below. Feudal kings & princes came with their retinues to pay tribute. From his seventh-story terrace, Dashrath could see much of his city Ayodhya, which stretched to the horizon in all directions. Crowds of citizens moved along the well-planned roads, which was interspersed with mango groves & orchards The broad central highway, built entirely of red stone, ran the full hundred-mile length of the city. Large white mansions lined that road, with many coloured pennants waving in the breeze on their roofs. The road was sprinkled with perfumed water & strewn with flowers. Above the city the king could see the golden airplanes of apsaras, the consorts of the gods Looking over his capital, Dasharath was plunged in an ocean of anguish. He entered the palace & walked slowly towards the inner chambers. As ...

Ideal leaders! As Ravan tried to lift mount Kailash, Lord Shiva stood up & pressed down the hill with his toe. Ravana at once felt an unbearable pressure. His arms, which resembled huge pillars holding the hill, were crushed. He let out a tremendous cry & trapped by the weight of the mountain could not move Ravana’s ministers at once advised him to appease Shiva–Offer him prayers & seek his compassion & He will be gracious to you. Ravan, who had studied all scriptures, began to sing hymns from Samaveda glorifying Shiva. But even after a hundred years had passed, he still remained trapped. Although in great pain, he continued offering prayers to Shiva Finally, the Lord relented & relieved Ravan of the pressure. He appeared before the demon & spoke kindly:O ten-headed one, your prayers have pleased me. Do not be so rash again. Leave now & go wherever you like Ravan bowed to the god, who stood holding his famous trident. The crescent moon showed from hi...

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...

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 &...

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...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

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 ...

The Perfect Role Model! Once sage Valmiki enquired from Sri Narada, who was ever engaged in the practice of religious austerities & study of the Vedas, and the best among the eloquent speakers He asked: Who in this world lives today endowed with excellent qualities, prowess, righteousness, gratitude, truthfulness and firmness in his vows? Who is the one gifted with good conduct, always thinks about the wellbeing of all living creatures, learned in all the knowledge that is known, capable of doing things which others cannot do and is most handsome? Who (among men) is self-restrained? Who has conquered anger? Who is endowed with brilliance and free from envy? Who is that when excited, even the demigods are afraid of (let alone foes)? O Maharshi Narada said Valmiki - I intend to hear about such a man whom you think is worth knowing and worshipping? Indeed, I have great curiosity for your answer After thus being invited by Valmiki to take his seat, Narada, the knower of the...

How to Live & Die!   After answering to so many questions, Bhisma said to Maharaj Yudhisthira: You should cast aside the grief that you feel due to thinking that you are the cause of destruction of your friends & relatives. The truth is that everyone is killed by Eternal time, which represents the supreme will of Sri Krsna, the original Supreme Personality of Godhead & Supreme One above all others You had acted instrumentally in the hands of Sri Krsna & for this reason you should feel the greatest satisfaction. Indeed, if anyone wants to serve his ultimate self-interest & award himself the highest benediction, he should become an unalloyed devotee of the Supreme Lord After hearing this, the assembly turned toward Sri Krsna & with folded hands they mentally worshipped Him with great awe and reverence. After a long pause, Vyāsdev suggested: My dear son of Santanu, now that Maharaj Yudhisthira’s equilibrium has been restored by listening to your instructi...

Wealth & Life! Maharaj Yudhisthira asked Bhisma: My dear Grandfather, how can one receive the mercy of the goddess of fortune & thus become prosperous in all regards? Bhisma replied by telling Yudhisthira how Rukmini once had the opportunity of meeting Laksmi-devi. She requested: O Goddess, kindly describe to me those persons in whom you dwell, as well as those who you avoid In the presence of Lord Krsna, Laksmi replied: My dear Rukmini, I always reside with those persons who are eloquent, active, attentive to their duties, free from anger, grateful, of controlled passions, worshipers of the Supreme Lord and the demigods, and are high-minded I never reside with atheists, thieves, those of impure habits, or those who speak harshly, are inattentive to their duties, beget unwanted children due to uncontrolled lust, are ungrateful, malicious toward their superiors, or become distressed over trifles & thus are always irritated and angry I reside with wives who are very...

Actual reason! Maharaja Yudhisthira said to Bhisma: In spite of hearing your wonderful narrations, I am not able to give up my grief & attain peace of mind. How can mere theoretical instructions on the subject of spiritual elevation help me when I’ve already brought condemnation upon myself by becoming the cause of a great massacre? What could be more distressing than to see my grandfather lying on a bed of arrows as a consequence of my greed! How will I ever be able to become freed from the results of my grievous sins? Bhisma told a story: There was once an old lady named Gautami, who was noted for her great patience & mental satisfaction. One day Gautami's son died after being bitten by a snake. To please the ascetic lady, a bird hunter Arjunaka captured the snake. After binding it securely, the hunter brought it to Gautami & inquired: Pious lady, how should I kill this culprit? Gautami replied: Ignorant hunter, release the serpent! My son will not be brought ba...

Future prosperity or destruction! Maharaj Yudhisthira enquired: What should a king intelligently do after losing all his prosperity? Bhisma replied: When one has fallen into a very distressed condition of life, being bereft of friends, relatives, wealth & reputation, he should practice fortitude & not give way to grief under any circumstances. Indulgence in grief destroys one’s personal beauty, duration of life, prosperity & virtue. One who constantly dwells upon his misfortune loses all enthusiasm, mental equilibrium & bodily strength & meets with total defeat in life Yudhisthira asked : By what symptoms can one ascertain future greatness or fall of a person? Bhisma said: The mind is the indicator of one’s future prosperity or degradation. In this connection I will tell you a story related to how Lakshmi had once come before Indra When Indra asked about the purpose of her visit, Lakshmi-devi said: Formerly I had dwelt with asuras because of their meritori...