SriRamanavami

by
A. V. Srinivasan

On April 2, 2009, Hindus around the world will prepare to celebrate

the reign of a hero popularly known as Ramarajya. Ramarajya
portrays everything that is noble in governing a people and pertains
to the rule of ancient Bharat by prince Rama. Sreeramachandra is
one of the most beloved Hindu Gods and is the hero of our great
epic, the Ramayana. Millions of Hindus read the hundreds of stories
in the epic and derive immense satisfaction recalling the trials and
tribulations the young prince of Ayodhya experienced in the fourteen
year exile leading to the slaying of the demon Raavana, recovery of
His beloved consort Sita and finally His coronation as the emperor of
India of lore. As a story Ramayana is superb. No matter what chapter
one reads, one is struck with the depth of human feeling, human
nature and the eternal conflicts among values.

Rama was born to Kausalya, the first queen of King Dasharatha.

Scholars have established the date of birth of Rama to be 4439 B.C.,
Chaitra, Shukla, Navami. The other three sons of Dasharatha are
Lakshmana and Shatrugna born to queen Sumitra, and Bharata born
to queen Keikeyi.

Hindus celebrate Sreeramanavami for nine days in March/April each

year during which it is customary, especially in the South, to read the
Valmiki version in Sanskrit. On the ninth day (Navami tithi), the details
of the pattaabhishekham (coronation) are sung and the entire festivity
reaches a climax. Harikathaas (religious story-telling) are arranged in
which skillful storytellers relate in the local language the nearly infinite
sub-stories the upakathaas that bring us back and forth to the main
story the Ramayana. An unusual mixture of emotions arises as one
listens to these spell-binding events in the life of Rama. Sadness,
anger, sympathy, empathy, bewilderment, compassion, pleasure and
pain are all felt as one views in one’s mind Rama, Sita, Bharata,
Lakshmana, Ravana, Kumbhakarna, Jatayu the bird, Maareecha as a
deer, Vaali, Sugreeva, Vibheeshana, Keikeyi, Manthara, Hanuman
and a thousand other personalities exploding as it were from a
capsule. This cultural experience is unequalled. That experience, that
thrill is part and parcel of what we call Hindu Dharma. Hindu values
are indeed blended into these stories and serve as a guide to our
lives as we face the complexities that are part of living.

Dasharatha’s sorrow, brotherly love between Rama and Bharata, the

exceptional bond between Rama and Lakshmana, Sita’s
unconditional devotion to her husband, Rama’s unswerving sense of
duty, Manthara’s treachery, Keikeyi’s jealousy and greed, all interplay
throughout the unfolding drama and guides us towards a life within
the framework of dharma.

When Rama was 25 years old, King Dasharatha made elaborate

preparations to install his first son as Yuvaraaja. Tulsidasji describes
how happy queen Keikeyi was when she heard the news from her
maid Manthara who tried to sow seeds of jealousy in the queen:

“ said Keikeyi: Manththara I declare,

no ill-will to you do I bear.
Blissfull indeed will be the day
When Rama is crowned prince as you say”

But Manthara continues to work on Keikeyi and gradually fabricates a

web of dire consequences for her if Kausalya became queen mother.
Manthara serves as an example of how one’s mind can be poisoned
by raising passions of jealousy. Once Rama is crowned, he will not
leave Bharata alone, Manththara says and “There will be danger to
his life.” And then the final blow: “Kausalya is no friend of yours. She
bears a grudge on you because you are the king’s favorite.” That
does it and now Keikeyi is asking her maid’s advice. Manththara is
only too happy to comply.

“The king two boons to you long owes,

take them today and fail your foes,
to Bharata throne, to woods Rama sent
Kausalya’s joy for you be meant.”

The story goes on and King Dasharatha is in shock after hearing

Keikeyi’s demands. The day dawned, the hour fixed for the
coronation approached. The procession of sage Vasishta and his
disciples carrying the waters of the holy rivers was converging
towards the palace. The great street was decorated and was crowded
with eager citizens of Ayodhya. As they saw the procession of young
men and women carrying silver and gold containers of ghee, honey,
curds, rice, sacred grass, flowers and fruits followed by elephants,
horses, chariots, the white umbrella, the royal horse, the tiger-skin
seat; all moving to the accompaniment of music from many
instruments, the people made loud acclamation which reverberated in
the air.

But within the palace, Keikeyi had already sent for Rama so that she
could tell him what the king could not bear to do. When Rama went
in, the pitiless Keikeyi utters these words: “It is for you to relinquish
the planned installation and go into exile with matted hair and hermit
weeds, leaving the preparations now ready for installation of
Bharata.”

The author of Ramayana, Valmiki says that there was not the
slightest bit of disappointment or sorrow in Rama’s face. Smiling, the
prince says “Is that all, mother? Surely the king’s promise to you must
be fulfilled. My hair shall be twisted and I shall wear the bark and this
very day I shall proceed to the forest.” Thus began the fourteen-year
exile.

C. Rajagopalachari, in his re-telling of the Ramayana says at this

juncture, “ Readers of this chapter should exercise their imagination
and build up in their own hearts the passions and sorrows of the
persons in this epic.” Dasharatha’s anguish, Rama’s cheerful
renunciation, the greedy passions of Keikeyi, the evil counsel of
Manthara these are familiar phases in our daily lives. Now the story
of Bharata gives us a glimpse of the heights to which human nature
can rise through love and devotion. When Bharata arrives on the
scene, he finds a mess at Ayodhya. Rama, Lakshmana and Sita have
already departed. The king is dead. He refuses to be crowned and
instead he rushes to the forests in search of Rama. In the forest,
Rama’s party hears sounds of an approaching crowd. Lakshmana
climbs a tree to look around. Now we are about to witness another
interesting component of human nature. Lakshmana recognises the
flag of the approaching army as that of Bharata. His interpretation is
that Bharata is coming to slay them. The only question Lakshmana
has now is to decide whether to give battle right away or wait until
they are a little closer!
 “So Bharat and his warriors all,
shall by my hands answer death’s call,
to save him even if Shankara fares,
to kill him Rama’s devotee swears.”

Of course, Lakshmana’s doubts were unfounded. Actually Bharata,

after failing to persuade Rama to return to Ayodhya, begs Rama to
part with his sandals under the authority of which Bharata plans to
serve the empire as a figurehead until Rama’s return.

“The wooden sandals of the Lord

were for Ayodhya like two guards,
like mantle of devotion deep,
like Rama himself for Bharata’s peace.”

The superb story continues with the exiled party reaching the deeper
regions of the South, kidnapping of Sita by the Raakshasa Raavana,
the battle of Lanka, rescue of Sita through the exceptional service of
the monkey God Hanuman and his army of monkeys, and the final
triumphal return of Rama to Ayodhya. Bharata and the citizenry wait
anxiously to receive the returning hero and it is said the coronation
took place on Friday, Chaitra Shukla Saptami of 4400 B.C.

Sreerama led an ideal life fulfilling his duties,without any compromise,

as a son, brother, friend, husband, warrior and ruler. Rama as an
avataar of Vishnu, married Sita, an avataar of Lakshmi, and lived the
life of a human, suffering the associated consequences in order to
demonstrate the need to adhere to and uphold dharma. Rama is
worshipped by Hindus in every part of India and thus serves as a
unifying force for his devotees. Hindus remember Rama for the ideal
life he led; boyhood devoted to learning skills appropriate to royalty,
youth full of love and devotion to the family, extraordinary sense of
accepting hardships and challenges with grace and dignity,
leadership and compassion towards his followers, and above all a
remarkable sense of duty and loyalty towards elders in the family.
Hindus want to remember Rama so often in their daily lives that
many, particularly in the north, use “Ram Ram” to greet each other!
An important part to the great stories in the life of Rama is the bond
between Hanuman and Rama. Hanuman had enormous strength but
he didn’t quite appreciate it and was not conscious of it until the old
Jambavan reminded it. It was that encouragement that made it
possible for Hanuman to “fly” across the ocean to reach Lanka.
Further when Lakshmana was wounded in war and needed to be
revived with a special medicinal plant known as sanjeevini, Hanuman
is assigned the task of going to a nearby mountain. Unable to decide
which of the many plants was sanjeevini, Hanumn decided to pluck
the entire mountain and brought it back. Thus was Lakshmana saved!
Fantastic as these stories are, they are truly enjoyable if viewed in
context. In India Hanuman is always worshipped when Rama is
worshipped. In addition there are temples devoted entirely to
Hanuman in order to worship the very symbol of service and strength.

It is important for youngsters growing up in the West to read the

Ramayana in one version or the other and experience the emotions
mentioned above. Equally important, it is necessary to assemble as a
group and listen to someone who is knowledgeable and who enjoys
telling stories. In a way it will revive the ancient oral tradition and
compliments the advances in technology readily available to access a
wide variety of resources in the form of books, articles, tapes, musical
renderings and paintings of the epic events. Epic clubs may be
established on campuses to hold discussion of specific epic events,
define research topics and explore the past through the internet.
While providing an intellectual framework and pursuit, this will in
some ways contribute to the cultural experience referred to above.
Another enjoyable medium is drama and it will be a service to the
community at large to pick an episode from the great epic and
present in the form of a play with music, dance and other forms of
entertainment built into it.

It is the practice among Hindus to bless boys to grow to be like

Rama, Lakshmana, Bharata and Hanumaan, good and brave souls,
and bless girls to grow up like Sita full of love and strength. The
power of the epic is such that it has for thousands of years influenced
the lives of Hindus around the world and will undoubtedly do so for
another thousand years and more in keeping with the promise made
by Brahma to Valmiki thus:
 rÉÉuÉixiÉxrÉÇÌiÉ ÌaÉËUrÉÉ:
xÉUÏiÉ¶É qÉWûÏiÉsÉã
iÉÉuÉiÉç UÉqÉrÉhÉ MüjÉÉ
sÉÉåMãüwÉÑ mÉëcÉËUvrÉÌiÉ

“yaavatstasyanti giriyaaha
sareethashcha maheethale
thaavath Ramayana kathaa
lokeeshu pracharishyathi

“As long as the mountins stand

and the rivers flow
so long shall the story of Rama
be cherished among people”

*******************************************************************************
The above is reproduced from the booklet How to Conduct Puja to
SriRamachandra, by Dr. Srinivasan, published by Periplus Line, Box 56,
East Glastonbury, CT 06025. See www.periplusooks.com