Hari Om.
Let us begin the one hundred and seveteenth sarga of the yuddha kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.The reunion was taking an unexpected turn. Just when everyone thought it was curtains on sorrow and beginning of joy, the rAja dharma of rAma put sItA under the lens. He asked her questions which the public would ask later. rAma perhaps thought, when the topic was hot it was best to address it. So, torn between his love for sItA and his duty as the future king to run a governance in which the subjects had implicit trust on the honesty and goodness of the king, rAma feigned utter indifference and told sItA she could wherever she wanted to. The exemplary woman she was, she said if not rAma, she would only seek shelter in the fire. However, it was not to end her life, but to let the world know that she was unsullied. She was testifying in the fire that she had always been devoted to rAma. And if she was so, may the fire protect her. Therefore, the common understanding that she sulked and jumped into the fire is wrong and mahaRshi showed clearly that she sought life and protection from the agni. The onlookers were petrified and the gods rushed to the scene. Onwards…
Hearing those words (of sItA), rAma, the embodiment of dharma, rAma was moved to tears, reflected for a moment and was sad.
ततो वैश्रवणो राजा यमश्च पितृभिः सह ।
सहस्राक्षश्च देवेशो वरुणश्च जलेश्वरः ।
षडर्धनयनः श्रीमान् महादेवो वृषध्वजः ।
कर्ता सर्वस्य लोकस्य ब्रह्मा ब्रह्मविदां वरः ।
एते सर्वे समागम्य विमानैः सूर्यसन्निभैः ।
आगम्य नगरीं लङ्काम् अभिजग्मुश्च राघवम् ॥
ततः सहस्ताभरणान् प्रगृह्य विपुलान् भुजान् ।
अब्रुवंस्त्रिदशश्रैष्ठाः प्राञ्जलिं राघवं स्थितम् ॥
And then the gods including kubEra (vaiSravaNa), the pitR dEvas, lord indra, varuNa, the three-eyed lord Siva on his bull, the creator of the worlds, lord brahma, the foremost among those who know the brahman converged on lanka in their brilliant chariots and approached rAghava. rAma who was standing with folded hands was spoken to by the gods who had broad chests and were decked in golden ornaments –
“O creator of all the worlds, O greatest, O foremost among the wise, how can you be so indifferent as sItA is entering into the fire? How is it that you are not remembering your being the foremost among the gods? You are the vasu RtadhAma of the yore who was the prajApati, the great progenitor. Among the rudras you are the eight one and among the sAdhyAs you are the fifth one. You are the very source and the primordial lord who made the three worlds. The aSwins are your ears and the sun and the moon are your eyes. You are seen before, during and even after the creation. And yet you are being indifferent to vaidEhI like an ordinary man”?
As the guardian deities intervened thus, the mater of the world, rAghava, the best among those who stick to dharma said to them –
“I believe I am rAma, the son of daSaratha. Please do educate me about who and whose I am and where did I come from”?
आत्मानं मानुषं मन्ये रामं दशरथात्मजम् ।
योऽहं यस्य यतश्चाहम् भगवांस्तद् ब्रवीतु मे ॥
As kAkutstha asked thus, the lord brahma, best among the knower of the brahman said –
“O rAma, you have truth as your valour, listen to the truth.
You are verily nAraAyaNa, the illustrious, all pervading, chakra wielding lord. You are the unicorn varAha. You are the vanquisher of the foes in the past (madhu, kaitabha et al) and the future (SiSupAla et al). You are the indestructible, absolute, truth, eternal, the dharma that holds the world. You are the four armed vishwaksEna who has sovereign control of the world. You are the wielder of the bow SArnga (SArngadhanwa) (the protector), you are the controller of the senses (hRshIkESa), you are the purusha, the eternal being who exists since the beginning of the time) and you are also the best among men (purusha). You are the invincible, vishNU who wields the sword, you are the one who can comfort the earth and are enormously powerful. You are the chieftain of the amies and of the communities (villages). You are the intellect, substance, forbearance and restraint. You are the source and auspiciousness, you are the vAmana (the younger brother of indra) and madhusUdana (the slayer of the demon madhu). You accomplish the deeds of indra, you are mahEndra (wealthy), you are padmanAbha (the lotus emerges from your navel) and you are finishers of the battles! The great sages call you the divine shelter and one in whom shelter should be sought.
You embody the vEdas with more than a thousand SAkhas (branches) and a hundred different ways of articulating them. You are the ultimate thought. You are self-born and the creator of the three worlds. You precede the Sidhhas and sAdhyas. O repressor of the enemies, You are verily the yajna, the mantra called vashaT and you are the primordial Om. It is impossible to know your genesis, end of who you are. You are seen in all beings, brAhmins, cows, in all the directions, skies, oceans and forests. You have a thousand feet, a thousand heads and a thousand eyes (sahasra SIrsha purushah – purusha sUktam). You carry the beings, the earth with its mountains. At the time of the great dissolution, you assume the form of the great serpent and uphold the three worlds with the gods and gandharvas.
O rAma, I am your heart and your tongue is saraswatI. O lord, the gods made by brahma are the hair on your limbs. When you close your eyelids momentarily it is night and when you open them it is day. Your breath has become the vEdas and there exists nothing that is not you.
निमेषस्ते स्मृता रात्रिः उन्मेषस्ते भवेद्दिवा ।
संस्कारास्तेऽभवन् वेदा न तदस्ति त्वया विना ॥
The entire universe is your body, your firmness is the earth. Your anger is the fire, your grace is the moon and you are the lord vishNU who wears the gem SrIvatsa on his chest. In the yore, you have covered the three worlds with your feet and taking the demon bali as captive you have crowned indra as the king.
सीता लक्ष्मीर्भवान् विष्णुः देवः कृष्णः प्रजापतिः ।
वधार्थं रावणस्येह प्रविष्टो मानुषीं तनुम् ॥
O lord, sItA is verily lakshmI, you are verily the dark complexioned captivating vishNu, the lord of the subjects. You assumed human form to vanquish rAvaNa. O greatest among the observers of dharma, you have accomplished our task by vanquishing rAvaNa and now the heavens welcome you with joy.
O rAma, your might and valour always triumphs, your power and ability are unfailing. O rAma your vision is a supreme blessing and so is a eulogy addressed to you. All those on the earth who are unquestioningly devoted to you, the best among purushas, will always be successful and their desires in this world and the next are fulfilled.
अमोघं बलवीर्यं ते अमोघस्ते पराक्रमः ।
अमोघं दर्शनं राम अमोघस्तव संस्तवः ॥
अमोघास्ते भविष्यन्ति भक्तिमन्तो नरा भुवि ।
ये त्वां देवम् ध्रुवं भक्ताः पुराणं पुरुषोत्तमम् ।
प्राप्नुवन्ति सदा कामान् इह लोके परत्र च ॥
इममार्षं स्तवं नित्यम् इतिहासं पुरातनम् ।
ये नराः कीर्तयिष्यन्ति नास्ति तेषां पराभवः ॥
All those who recite this ancient and historical eulogy of yours made by the Rshi and in conformity with the vEdas regularly do not experience rebirth and setbacks.
Here we conclude the one hundred and seventeenth sarga of the yuddha kAnDam of SrImath vAlmiKi rAmAyaNam and humbly offer it at the lotus feet of SrIrAma. Hari: Om!
jAi SrIrAma.
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Next: 6.118. The grand reunion
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rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 