Video 16

Ramayana 016 - “Sri Rama in Panchavati”

ramayana this is a beautiful scripture this ramayana and the many they consider ramayana as the history of india this is one of the histories the ramayana and mahabharata these are two histories of india and ramayana based on sri ramachandra and how ramachandra did all this but at the same time they go on giving the descriptions of the diden society we are now and then whenever there is an opportunity we are describing that we are analyzing those now let us start with this totra i salute the supreme lord hari known as rama the cause transcending all relative causes now here in this verse it is very clear the sri rama though apparently shows as a human being but in reality he was that supreme god who took that form the human being whose mysterious power controls all being in the world including brahma devas and asuras whose substance gives reality to all things as the rope does to the snake appearing on it and fit alone before a spiritual aspirant as a boat for crossing the ocean of samsara the sri ramachandra we consider him that he is the supreme lord the vishnu and appearing in that form as sri ramachandra and guiding the humanity towards his goal what is the goal of the humanity the ultimate goal is to get the bliss the joy the happiness whatever we do we always do to get the happiness three things only that we want and when i went to this riyadh the capital of the uh the um saudi arabia they organized this is the first time perhaps and they wrote there the the first time the heartland of the muslim the islam the they opened up for all the religions that is an unique thing and in a grand way they organized and i got little opportunity to speak over there and i told them only three things every human being wants one is they like to survive they like to live no one wants to die second we want to know what is happening what is the what is that that curiosity is always there by nature within the human being and third we want happiness joy so these are the only three things and when we get it from the worldly things that is temporary so naturally that sometimes we stop but when that turns to spirituality we get the same three things eternally what are those three things the eternal existence and knowledge eternal please eternal the inter-existence eternal knowledge eternal bliss eternal and the vedantin they gave that name the brahman now this is a concept which is very difficult for ordinary people to have to understand then what we do these great souls again they then gave a wonderful another idea that's the god the supreme lord is coming down and taking a human form and living with us and helping us guiding us through their life itself what we should do so this is the whole thing it goes the spiritual life and the very first one who came is ramachandra the complete that supreme lord he came in the form of sri rama ramajandra because the total existence of the creation has been in the not in the veda but in the other scriptures they they say that there are four yugas are there the time frame satya yuga dwapara yuga sutta dwapa and kali and satya tretha dhopper it was not necessary the people who were there very the number was not many and at the same time most of them they were created directly by the brahma and they were having the satwaguna then came the next stage where it was necessary for the lord vishnu the creator to take the human form to guide the human being and he came as sri rama chandra after that sri krishna so anyway this ramachandra and about him we have already read and today because the last month we could not read the ramayana for some reason i was not getting some time you two could not so we couldn't continue but in this month we will continue from the last where we ended in the april and that is sri ramachandra entering into that famous place panchavati and asking his brother to make a house a cottage so that they can stay over there because the 14 years have to spain over there so what are the things necessary the first is the it must have some fruits must have some other foods must be free from the enemy must they have the clear water and all those things so both the brothers the judge and they decided one place here we find the lakshmana though himself was the son of the dashiratha the brother of rama but he was so humble to sri ramachandra and he said o rama please order me which place you want me to construct a house and i will do that but i am not going to decide the place myself so just a small one line but it seems uh what is there nothing but think of the the ego free the lakshmana was completely free from the ego and who is ramchandra the lord vishnu himself and how the rama lakshmana could be constantly with him because the lakshmana was not having any ego which separates us from god rama is the god and lakshmana is the devotee like us the lakshmana was so close to sri rama rama was so happy and he said that you are my that there are two lives one is inside and on the outside you are my external life by that way he is appreciating and obviously we can understand it was possible because the lakshmana was not at all having any ego and this when he it was decided that their heart should be constructed so that the rama lakshmana sita all they can leave and lakshmana could and he himself was a very good craftsman so he could do it but he's not doing he is asking sri rama that is ramayana when we are studying the ramayana what we are learning not only the story through one or two lines through the stories we are learning the wonderful teaching of the spirituality the free from ego bhagavan sirama krishna again and again everywhere he mentioned ami mole gucci janjal if you are free from the ego then all problems are solved the free from ego lakshmana is asking then the rama showed the place well you can do it over here and then lakshmana built with almost in no time and here we can see the the craftsmanship of the lakshmana not only he is humble but he is capable also so when we come to serve the god or a holy person not only that we should be humble but we should be capable the lakshmana was so capable immediately he went and cut down the trees and prepared the all the logs and constructed that house in such a nice way so that the cool breeze will come at the same time and that all this privacy should be maintained and all those things and along with that he arranged the beautiful flower garden and these and that rama was so happy so they started leaving over there but now that one lady she used to live nearby the rakshasas they used to live nearby they were also very successful people but the system was different so one lady came saw these two young men and she went to rama rama refused then the she went to lakshmana lakshmana quickly used to get the anger when she asked lakshmana to marry her lakshmana instead of killing her cut her nose that was a great mistake again the rama said you made a great mistake you should not have insulted her like that and from here begins that ramayana now this lady she was not an ordinary lady she was the sister of ravana and ravana was having other brothers also and obviously she fast wayne to a place called janakasthana and there he she met that two very powerful brothers and complained about the rama and lakshmana and then the description that we have already started in our last class now here the whole thing was over shara and dushana the two very powerful the rakshasas were killed and then 14 000 strong the rakshasa team came to fight with rama and rama alone was fighting with them and he killed punished them one and all every all the 14 were about 14 thousand then alone it could kill them only one person was surviving and he left that place and he was accompanied his name that rakshasa in that from that war field he understood that it is of no use trying to fight with sri rama so from there he secretly left that place and with the and for many days he walked and somehow he reached to the palace of ravana and ravana would not have got this information except this akampana the akampana reached to the ravana and he said o king all the rakshasas of the janasthana are dead with great difficulty i have come to you to give you this message now janasthana was a place where the rakshasas were in big number they used to leave over there so obviously it was very well known among the rakshasas so from there he went and reported to ravana and ravana was very much aware about that place because all his kids and kin are there they used to rule that place the ravana was taken aback what do you say it is unbeatable people they how it is possible that someone killed him and not only killed them fourteen thousand the strong the rakshasas all of them are killed only by one person and that is three rama so he is repeating rabbana naturally the ravana was that symbolizes that is the three gunas are there satya raja and tama rabana is raja and tama mixed so immediately anger came into ravana his face became braid and he stood up and said even the death is afraid of daytime the i am the death of the death even the death that is the yama raja he is also afraid of me how come someone can challenge me why it is challenging because sharadushana was his own people they were all his own people when someone is hearting the sharadhusana means they're also challenging the ravana so rabana immediately became very angry and who dares to destroy my people this moment i will go over there and kill them kill him is it then akampana with great humility said o great king there is no doubt that even the gods are afraid of you but please listen to me i want to tell you the truth oh lord the sri rama the son of king dasharata is the foremost of the bowman myself have seen him killing at ease thousands of powerful rakshasas all alone and he was mentioning about sri rama and there he is mentioning that is also very interesting there is no fear or anger on his face when the rama is fighting there is no fear or anger on his face why because rama was contained it the anger comes for ordinary people because there is an object i am not getting so i have to get that i have to secure that so the anger comes but when there is nothing to achieve nothing to get just doing just like a game so rama who was the lord himself the supreme lord vishnu the god so his face was calm and composed there was no anger and no question of fear why the fear comes when we think that we are going to lose something so no question of that so rama's face was free from fear or anger sometimes when the people they make the draw the picture of rama or the god like the goddesses like durga their face should be very calm and composed because they are not angry when we are enacting durga many places we have seen they are showing the anger no i'm so sorry swamiji i muted you by mistake what is that can you unuse please um have you heard it we're hearing you now i'm so sorry oh so the whole time half an hour [Laughter] so half an hour you didn't listen to anything to from me i'm so sorry somebody just joined and i tried to mute them but that you have you have heard me from the beginning no yes yes i just oh just this moment okay okay no problem no problem okay okay so the just uh i will just repeat that this is the way the things were happening you know that the rama he was punishing those but at the same time he was not angry at all so this akampana that the only rakshasas who survived that fight in the janasthana that he was reporting to ravana or ravana this person is a unique one why because when there is a fight usually the fa the face is the anger is shown or sometimes the fear is shown but nothing is there on his face he's so handsome and good looking but we are no match in fight with him so that is the perfect report the correct report when someone is giving the report to the king he should say exactly what is there so he said in this way o king this rama has a brother then he is mentioning this rama has a brother his name is lakshmana he as equal as sri rama urabhana sri rama alone destroyed our janasthana the whole that place was destroyed if both the brothers try to try to kill all the rakshasas they can do that that was the report of that person who survived who saw that how they are fighting so from his experience he is coming and reporting only one brother he is so powerful that all our power couldn't do fourteen thousand he couldn't do now if the both the brothers they come and join hands then it will be impossible for us hence from my experience i would suggest this person is telling don't try to fight these two brothers rather find out some other way to punish them the some other way to punish them he is mentioning then he will give the suggestion he will say say this rama has a wife and she is very young so if we can somehow abduct her then the rama will be weak and we can punish him by that way now if she is completely safe we won't be able to fight him so this is the person who first gave this idea to ravana ravana never thought in that way ravana wanted to fight rama and as usual as but sometimes some people they give this type of peculiar ideas and from here the rabbana afterwards of course not only he the rabana sister she also said like this the ravana he said the two brothers we cannot fight ravana got up from his throne and declared o akampana i am not weak either and i am not afraid of those two brothers i shall go to janasthana and destroy these two brothers rabana's sisters shurpunaka who witnessed the destruction of those fourteen thousand rakshasas including shara and dusana say to rabana i have noticed rama shooting arrows and in a flash that is also something to learn how they are so powerful the in those days in the mahabharata also we find the maharata rata and different grades are there and in the mahabharata they mentioned that one who could fight alone with so many thousands of people they will get this title and like that like that so this is we find about the rama ulcer surprised it that when the rama is fighting she's fighting alone with fourteen thousand the rakshasas they were also very good fighters but the surprise describing you cannot see when his hand is reaching the quiver lifting the arrow placing it on his great bow and then shooting in flash he is doing so that is the way we can understand how powerful sri rama was though he was very young but at the same same time the when he's a one person fighting with 14 000 is it possible are they coming one after another not like that even the together they are coming attacking but he was so fast and so swift and so uh his arrows were also and there he she mentioned and surprisingly the his quiver was never emptied how many arrows can be there in that quiver but the ramos quiver and it is mixed with the divine grace it never ever emptied the ramos was picking up and shooting again and again so one does akampana another this those who have witnessed this the surprise both they are talking giving the idea about the rama's capacity and he says o king rama's quiver never gets emptied father or brother he has a brother and who didn't kill me because i'm a woman but he is also very powerful and we find in the aranakanda in 34 to 14 there in the ramayana it says he is amarshi their observation is so perfect so they're beautifully explaining about the lakshmana and he's amarshi amarshi means angry the as a as a male and particularly shatriya the the the shatriya clan they are very powerful and they become angry very if that anger is not there a brahmana should not have the anger but the shatriya should have so the first quality that he is angry and durujaya unbeatable no one can conquer him that is the unbeatable dudu but he destroyed others vikrant very powerful buddhiman intelligent balihi hero so he is amarshi durujaya vikranta bhuddhivan balihi ramashi dakshina baahu he is as if the right hand of the sri rama wherever sri rama there immediately lakshmana was also there so he was the as if the right hand of the the rama and as if he was a prana he was so close to rama as a man cannot survive without the prana the vital force similarly he was like that and externally he was the prana so this is the way he was meant she was mentioning so both of them they told it won't be really good if you go to fight him immediately so they afterwards the rabbana thought that well now let me go to one person who can help me and ravana is going to his brother another brother and uncle we can say and maricha and going to maricha and asking him to help why murica had a power and that power to change his body in different forms the yogic power in those days also there were people even among the rakshasas who were having this type of yogic powers the marijuana he could take different type of forms he could become animals he could become bird he could become different human being so that is the reason that rama is going to him for his health and you know in janakasthana where my brothers shara and dusana and my sister should punaka and others are there three shira leaped and the other rakshasas also reside and one person has come has they killed each and every one of them three shira he was having three aids he was also killed by the hand of the rama so the ravana going and telling him and in everything well in lanka that when he saw the rabana immediately he understood the ravana will not come without any purpose he has come with the purpose and what is that purpose he wanted to know rabano said o maricha i am indeed in distress and you are my only help in difficulty i shall immediately tell you everything that has happened just listen to me friends devotees when we are reading this ramayana we can find exactly this thing happened even today when someone some king or the rulers are finding difficulty they go for their friends they will be going and meeting and developing very recently that g7 that means the great seven so they met in the germany so all this european and american country they all met over there discussed they are friends they're alive they are developing that power together so this always happens and the ravana also was having the great support from his the brother the shara doshana trishara all them and now they are dead the whole area is there no rakshasas are there so obviously he was thinking to go and fight but when he heard that it will be maybe difficult to challenge them right this moment so he wanted to take another way to make the enemies rama and lakshmana weak so he has come to this person who was having a tremendous power yogic power to change his form he came rama who alone along with his wife has been banished by his father that weak and the lowest of the shatrias has destroyed all their actions he's telling to this at the maricha murica's face grew dark as he heard ravana's words and he was greatly alarmed by the proposal and being almost half dead the marital when he heard the ravana is giving him the proposal that he should go and abduct sita rashita is weak she is a lady as as a rakshasa you can go and somehow you can capture her the moment she will be in our camp and as our prisoner then we can talk to rama and we can punish him in that way but this was not appreciated by the marijuana murica again and again said who has given you this idea and he's telling oh brother sula bha purusha rajan satyatam priya baadinaha apriya pathasya bhakta bhokta this is a great idea in administration he's telling o king in this world the there will never be a difficulty for the people to tell you the sweet words but that may not be the truth so sulawa purusho rajan o king there are all the time there are people who are ready to just tell you something just to get some benefit from you they are priya bhadhina they will appreciate oh you are so good you are so every decisions are correct but they are not your friends obvious such a pathos but when someone is telling you the truth and pointing out your weaknesses appreciating that and rectifying and correct correcting that is really really difficult very rare very rare people can do that the whenever someone is in the administration when becoming a king it is very difficult for the king because ego plays so much he is not ready to appreciate the criticism even though that criticism may be very constructive criticism maybe that will help him but unfortunately because of his ego he cannot accept that so the maricha again and again is telling who has given you this idea to abduct sita you are not only inviting your own death by that way at the same time you are going to destroy the whole civilization of the rakshasas and truly that happened the rama destroyed the whole civilization of the rakshasas not that all the rakshasas were bad but when it is blamed like that and in the war even the those who are not involved into it they also get the same that destruction that misery they had to suffer so that is exactly where we can find because when we read the story we find this person he transformed him through his miraculous power as a golden deer and attracted the attention of the mother sita and shita wanted to get that golden deer knowing very well that it is impossible a deer cannot be like that and akshiri ramachandra can you please catch that and it is naturally for a husband to give a gift what she is wanting and rama knowing very well that it is impossible a golden deer chased that deer and after some time but before that he asked the brother lakshmana give me the word that you will never leave the sita alone you must protect the sita friends maybe in our next class we will discuss this the this what happened the lakshmana he was very very obedient to rama but sometimes out of emotion and out of anger and maybe not understanding the truth sometimes the ladies they say something to the male folk which creates the all problem for them so one should not comment in that way even the words that the mother srita used for lakshmana that was so hearty that most of us those who have read the ramayana we know this particular incident that happened over there had it not been there the ramayana would not have been and then ravana maybe rabana would have been killed by rama but not that the whole civilization be destroyed what happened there this maricha was convinced because the rabana was the king and he wanted that marijuana should work for him he pressurized him murica went over there and passed like a golden deer and masita noticed that aksada requested the rama to catch that rama followed knowing it very well that there is something wrong in it and that is why he asks the lakshmana to protect the sita till he comes back whatever happens to me give me the word that you should not leave sita lakshmana said ok i will be protecting sita the rama went to catch that and when he shot that the deer immediately that golden deer actually that rakshasa a maricha he in the voice of rama called for lakshmana oh brother i am in great danger please come and save me sita heard that lakshmana also hard but lakshmana knew no one can harm sri rama it is impossible so he was not disturbed he knew something is happening whatever it happens he was on his post guarding madasita but sita she was thoroughly disturbed obviously as a wife when she heard the voice of sri ramachandra and calling for help she told oh lakshmana something happened over there rama is calling you won't you go the lakshmi told mother don't worry no one can hard rama it is just the rakshasas they are playing with us something wrong i should not leave you alone and moreover i have given the word to sri rama i cannot break that word i should be here and at that time mother sita out of anger out of confe confusion she used some words like oh you like to get me after sri rama and that is why you want that let rama die over there so that he will get me the sita that was a terrible word for the lakshmana because she he never even thought she as a lady but she he always taught srita as his mother as his own mother sumitra instructed him you must consider shita as your mother as me your mother so lakshmana he was considering in that way and not only that it is said that the lakshmana neighbor looked at the person of the sita only looked at her feet when that very sita insulted lakshmana doubted the character of the lakshmana it was too much for him to bear and then she said you must go and put a health dashi rama and you will know the lakshmana was also having some power spiritual power he made around the with his bow and said mother do not come out of this i am putting all my power into this to protect you whatever happens outside please remain inside the cottage and do not come out there also shita made the mystic that's why sometimes they say that the emotion is terrible emotion forces us to do commit mystics and mahasita did repeated that mistake again when the lakshmana went over there and the rama saw him and said hey why you were here why you have left her alone you should not have come over here you know nothing can happen to me lakshmana told i know that brother but it was impossible for me to be there because mother shita is doubting my character it is not possible for me to be there so that is how the shita that that is the mistake and that is called the maya though herself was the maya the power of god but at the same time she made that mistake now friends how things happen we also made this type of mistake and then we suffer and that is the reason whole thing when you are reading about it and it goes on like this again and again rama and lakshmana when they came back to the that cottage they found the shita is not there why in the meantime as the story goes in when the of course that rakshasa was killed by sri rama chandra but the marijuana was killed but in the meantime when the lakshmana left that cottage to see what has happened to rama ravana came in the form in the gurb of sannyasi and asking for the alms mashita thought that isannasi has come let me go and give some alms maybe because of this good work my husband will be saved so this is the emotional way always the mothers they think and she when she went to that immediately remembered that i should not cross that boundary that lakshmana has given lakshmana reika that is a very famous way they always mention i should not go beyond that but that sannyasi also in the ravana in that form was going on insisting that you must come you must come ravana was destroyed rabana is being hated the jugas of tajugas why because of these reason if he had come and fight with ramachandra because the rama insulted his sister shulpanaka and killed his brothers sarah dushana and killed the other rakshasas maybe that history would have praised ravana in a different way any hero will do that any shatriya era will do that but he did a completely different way because the akampana advised him and his own sister also gave a very fearful idea about the rama and lakshmana and he thought that by this way and here also he is putting the girl of a sannyasi no one should insult this girl even the people those who are in in different way they utilize the religion for their own purposes selfish purposes they should not do it because this is the only the wind that saffron color comes people have the great faith on this the thousands of years it has been developed in such a way that whenever someone is putting on the saffron color that people they believe him as a holy person and they believe that this is the person we can believe we can have faith we can depend on him if that is also destroyed then where the faith of the people will go if the children cannot believe the parents so if i go and with the father and the mother i am safe but they will go if the sisters and other brothers junior brothers cannot have that confidence my elder brothers or sisters or mothers and father or the auntie the uncle they are my own they are not going to harm me then what will happen to this world where they will go whom they will believe so that was the heinous scene that the ravana committed so one should not do that anyone who ever putting the girl in the story of sri ramakrishna there was a person who is to go and show different type of the place in the in those days the villages they were not having the tv or any other amusements so sometimes some people this to come and they used to play and there will be a different type of mimicries there's to do they will change their voices and talk in different way so the people is to get joy that there is one person he was famous in that he was very good in that act and he was acting as a sannyasi they used to do that for money but when he came as a sannyasi and he was behaving like a sannyasi in talking like a sannyasi and the local the landlord the rich man was very happy so he wanted to give some the money to him as an appreciation then he said no i am not going to accept it now then he went back changed the dress and came back as his own self and he said sir give me that gift to me the jaminda told hey that time you are not receiving i wanted to give you you refused no that time i was sannyasi the girl that i was putting on actually it is a sannyasi so my mind was in that and i am not supposed to accept him as a sannyasi that money from your hand that will be insult for a sannyasi and that is the reason i didn't accept that by this story bhagavan si ramakrishna wants to tell us that there is a great respect for the gerua glad people and thousands of years it has developed if we break it just for some political economical or social purposes and some short gains if this long tradition is destroyed it will be very difficult for the society to rebuild it so one must be very careful if you like to cheat others that is there all the time in the society try to do that in your own way but do not take the name of god or use the the holy people's girl for that so that is the teaching ravana came in the gulp of sannyasi masita believed him as a sannyasi and as a lady there is no hesitation to go to that sannyasi because sannyasins are beyond the physical and mental the lower level they're always on the higher level they should be so obviously masita believed and when he said that i cannot go over near you have to come to me and give me believing she crossed that lakshmana rekha the boundary that the lakshmana gave and immediately she was abducted by ravana so we will follow this ramayana and what happened and now and then whatever the religious advices we find in ramayana we will discuss so thank you friends thank you for giving this opportunity to read and discuss this the great book ramayana our generations after generations people are reading this book and getting the inspiration to become spiritual may that supreme lord who came in the form of sri rama bless us all let us say shanti three times and we conclude that's it