Hari Om. Invoking the divine blessings of lord SriRama and our sathguru, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba, we welcome you to this series on SrImad vAlmIki rAmAyaNam. In this episode we will dwell on the need and layout of this series.
SrI rAmAyaNam has been an age old epic. It is known as the Adi kAvyam – the First Poem. It is authored in samskrit by the sage Valmiki. The epic is a result of the deep desire of the sage to write about a righteous person who is also mighty, humble, loving and having a host of endearing qualities. He wonders if such a person exists. It is his deep contemplation and righteous desire which brings the divine sage nArada to him. Just as we would consult experts to clear our doubts, sage vAlmIki brought it up to the divine omniscient sage. The divine sage nArada is happy at this question and briefs vAlmIki about the life of SrIrAma and talks about his ideal life and exploits concisely. Sage vAlmIki then expands on this and compiles the entire epic. In due course we will see the extent of the epic and the way it is organized. rAma’s story is so filled with duty and virtue that it has captured the imagination of India as well as several south-Asian nations. The love for rAma can be said to be the love that man has for truth and righteousness. Therefore, it is hardly surprising that over the millenia scores of authors in several languages have re-told the epic in their own way. All of them have drawn inspiration and content from sage vAlmIki’s work but presented it in their own way. That has since enriched the Indian literature and influenced the Indian mindsets.
Fast forward to current times – it is still being re-told by several authors in various languages. It is also being used to drive-home management lessons and improve attitudes and efficiencies. However, what we feel is that considering it to be a part of mythology, several people take liberties with the narrative and also misinterpret the various episodes to suit their own agenda. This happens partly due to ignorance of the original work and partly due to malintention on the part of such people. As we will see, vAlmIki is inquiring about a real happening and not looking for an imaginary and idealistic construct. Hence, SrIrAmAyaNam is not mythology at all. It is our history, or itihAsam.
However, the fact that a large number of people still relate to rAmAyaNam is heartwarming. They could certainly enjoy and imbibe it more if they got a taste of the original. It is to such people that we owe this work. We felt the need to take maharshi vAkmIki to such people directly and make a factual presentation of his work.
maharshi’s work is best enjoyed in the original samskrit. However, there is a language barrier for many people to enjoy it in its pristine, unadulterated form. The purpose of this translation work is to inspire such people to go back to the original work and accumulate tools to understand, appreciate and imbibe it.
Accordingly, the episodes will have factual narration of the chapters (sargas). We will not cover a verse by verse meaning but will narrate the story in that sarga. However, we will point out the verses which are deeply significant and have a profound message so that you feel encouraged to go back to the original and reflect upon it. We will largely stay away from detailed commentaries although there could be passing references to such excerpts.
We seek the blessings of lord SrIrAma, maharshi vAlmIki and our sathguru to help us in this mission. jAi SrI rAma!
Next: bAla kANDam, sarga 1
rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 