Maharaja Ram Bhkati club (Page 5)

Rama-navami
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Lord Rama, the most famous incarnation of God, appeared on Rama-navami (Chaitra 9). He is known as Maryada Purusottama and is the emblem righteousness. His life and teachings of morality in office are as relevant for us today as when He appeared nearly 20 million years ago:
"The emperor [Dasaratha] held his four mighty sons, who had issued from his body, as dear as his own arms. Of the four, Lord Rama was the king's most beloved son, and like a Brahma He excelled all others in virtue. Indeed, He was the eternal Lord Sri Vishnu, and had advented Himself in the world of men on behalf of the Devas, who desired the slaying of Ravana."

"He was a son unequalled in the world, and resembled Dasaratha in the possession of good qualities. He never spoke an untruth, He offered all respect to the learned and the elderly; the people adored Him, and He loved the people. His transcendental body was free from disease and the influence of old age. He was eloquent, beautiful, and adaptable to circumstances. He knew the heart of every man on earth [being omniscient], and He alone was aloof from the world of matter. He alone was possessed of all conceivable qualities who was the king's son, and was as dear to the people as their own hearts."

"He was loved by His father's subjects, and ever increased His sire's delight. Lord Rama was endowed with dazzling transcendental qualities, and He was haloed as if by the rays of the sun. The earth personified adored Him who was possessed of such virtues, who was unconquerable, who was courageous, and who was the unequalled Lord of all."

jai sri rama

raama raama raameti rame raame manorame .
sahasranaama tattulyam raamanaama varaanane

RAMAYANA

The Rmya?a (Devangar: ??????) is an ancient Sanskrit epic attributed to the poet Valmiki and is an important part of the Hindu canon (sm?ti). The name Rmya?a is a tatpurusha compound of Rma and ayana "going, advancing", translating to "the travels of Rma".[1] The Rmya?a consists of 24,000 verses[2] in seven cantos (k??as) and tells the story of a prince, Rama of Ayodhya, whose wife Sita is abducted by the demon (Rkshasa) king of Lanka, Rvana. In its current form, the Valmiki Ramayana is dated variously from 500 BC to 100 BC, or about co-eval to early versions of the Mahabhrata.[3] As with most traditional epics, since it has gone through a long process of interpolations and redactions, it is impossible to date it accurately. The Rmyana had an important influence on later Sanskrit poetry, primarily through its establishment of the Sloka meter. But, like its epic cousin Mahbhrata, the Rmyana is not just an ordinary story. It contains the teachings of ancient Hindu sages and presents them through allegory in narrative and the interspersion of the philosophical and the devotional. The characters of Rama, Sita, Lakshmana, Bharata, Hanumn and Rvana (the villain of the piece) are all fundamental to the cultural consciousness of India.

One of the most important literary works on ancient India, the Ramayana has had a profound impact on art and culture in the Indian Subcontinent and Southeast Asia. The story of Rama also inspired a large amount of later-day literature in various languages, notable among which are the works of the sixteenth century Hindi poet Tulsidas and the Tamil poet Kambar of the 13th century.

The Ramayana is not just a Hindu religious tale. Starting from the 8th century, the colonisation of Southeast Asia by Indians began. Several large empires like the Khmers, the Majapahits, the Sailendras, the Champas and Sri Vijaya were established. Because of this, the Ramayana became popular in Southeast Asia and manifested itself in text, temple architecture and performance, particularly in Indonesia (Java, Sumatra, Bali and Borneo), Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, vietnam.

Structure of Valmiki Ramayana
Valmiki's Ramayana, the oldest version of Ramayana is the basis of all the various version of Ramayana that are prevalent in the various cultures. The text survives in numerous complete and partial manuscripts, the oldest surviving of which is dated from the eleventh century AD.[4] The current text of Valmiki Ramayana has come down to us in two regional versions from the north and the south of India. Valmiki Ramayana has been traditionally divided into seven books, dealing with the life of Rama from his birth to his death.

Bala Kanda – Book of the young Rama which details the miraculous birth of Rama, his early life in Ayodhya, his slaying of the demons of the forest at the request of Vishvamitra and his wedding with Sita.
Ayodhya Kanda – Book of Ayodhya in which Dasharatha comes to grief over his promise to Kaikeyi and the start of Rama's exile.
Aranya Kanda – Book of the Forest which describes Rama's life in the forest and the abduction of Sita by Ravana.
Kishkindya Kanda – Book of Kishkinda, the Vanara kingdom in which Rama befriends Sugriva and the Vanara army and begins the search for Sita.
Sundara Kanda – Book of Sundara (Hanuman) in which Hanuman travels to Lanka and finds Sita imprisoned there and brings back the good news to Rama.
Yuddha Kanda – Book of the War, which narrates the Rama-Ravana war and the return of the successful Rama to Ayodhya and his coronation.
Uttara Kanda – Epilogue, which details the life of Rama and Sita after their return to Ayodhya, Sita's banishment and how Sita and Rama pass on to the next world.
There have been speculations on whether the first and the last chapters of Valmiki's Ramayana were indeed written by the original author. Many experts are of the opinion that they are integral part of the book in spite of the many differences in style and some contradictions in content between these two chapters and the rest of the book.[5][6] These two chapters contain most of the mythological interpolations found in the Ramayana, such as the miraculous birth of Rama and his divine nature as well as the numerous legends surrounding Ravana.

 

Edited by tyagivinayak - 09 December 2006 at 9:27am

 

Edited by tyagivinayak - 09 December 2006 at 9:30am

Morals in Ramayana
In his Ramayana, Valmiki expresses his view of human code of conduct through Rama: life is evanescent and the hedonistic approach to it is meaningless. However, that should not allow one to be indifferent to one's own rights and duties laid down in the ancient texts. He thus adopts the view that Dharma is what is proclaimed in the Veda and it should be followed for its own sake, not for what it brings you in pain or pleasure. Doing this will ensure one's welfare in this and the next world. In addition, Ramayana also reinforces the need for thinking about the consequences before making promises, for if you make them you must keep them, no matter how hard it may be.

Sankshepa Ramayana, the brief narration of the entire Ramayana story by the sage Narada to Valmiki, forms the first sarga of Valmiki Ramayana. Narada lists the sixteen qualities of the ideal man and says that Rama was the complete man possessing all sixteen of these qualities. Although Rama himself declares "he is but a man, and never once claims to be divine, Rama is regarded by Hindus as one of the most important Avatar of the god Vishnu and as an ideal man.

Valmiki portrays Rama not as a supernatural being, but as a human with all the attendant shortcomings, who encounters moral dilemmas but who overcomes these by simply adhering to the dharma--the righteous way. There are several instances narrated in Valmiki Ramayana which cast shadows on the pristine character of the hero and reinforce the theme of Ram struggling with mortal flaws and prejudices whilst struggling to follow the path of dharma. When Rama killed Vali ( See Vali_vadha for a detailed description of the event) to aid Sugriva regain his throne, it was not in fair combat, but while hiding behind a tree. When Sita was freed from Ravana's prison, Rama forced Sita to undergo an ordeal by fire to prove her purity and later as the king, Rama killed the Shudra Shambuka for performing a yogic penance not in keeping with his perceived low station in the society, though this latter incident is contested and may have crept in because of reinterpretation later on.


Concept of Dharma-Artha-Kama as per Ramayana
The concepts of Dharma, Artha, Kama (and Moksha) are very old Hindu concepts. They are also known as Purusharthas. There are two prominent instances of it being defined in Ramayana. The first was when Bharat came to forest (Chitrakoot) to meet Rama. Rama asked him whether he followed the rules of Dharma, Artha and Kaama properly. As per Rama it is defined as: Artha should not interfere with Dharma and vice versa. Similarly Kaama should not interfere with either Dharma or with Artha. Since Bharat was already knowledgeable he was to be reminded in very short words. But Dharma here means the duties and welfare one does for the society. Making wells, for example, is part of the dharma of a king. Arth means earnings. As it is further asked by Rama: The king has to see that there is enough income from taxes, the salaries of the employees are given at proper time and the tax should not be more than 1/6 th (16.6 %) of a person's income. Kaama means pleasure here. One is allowed to have pleasure but without affecting the duties and earnings. The other instance of this concept comes in Yudha Kanda. Here Kumbhakarna, Ravana's brother, advises Ravana that one should use dharma in the morning, artha in the daytime and Kaama at night. He further says to Ravana that he (Ravana) is busy with Kaama all the time and this will take him to destruction. Interestingly one of Ravana's ministers Mahodara scolds Kubhakarna and to please his master says that a King can enjoy Kaama at any time.