PAVAMĀNA: Enduring Indic Wisdom

Shri Rama and Ramayana

by Bala Bharadvaj

Today (17 April 2024) is rāma navami – the day on which śrī rāma was born thousands of years ago in ayodhya, as the son of king daśaratha and queen kausalya.

We come to know about śrī rāma as introduced in the epic rāmāyaṇa composed by mahaṛṣi vālmīki, the first great poet of India.  The story is about the life of śrī rāma, an avatār (incarnation) of śrī mahāviṣṇu in which He is born as a prince of ayodhya, and lives among the people as an exemplary human being.

We find that śrī rāma demonstrated many outstanding qualities and is venerated as the maryāda puruṣottam even today.  The qualities that are exemplified by him include,

• superior intelligence as a precocious child
• great courage as a valiant young prince
• charm and power as a handsome suiter during sītā’s svayamvara
• steadfast integrity as a dutiful son who keeps his father’s promise
• humility as a householder living in the forest among the sages
• loving husband who becomes distraught when sītā goes missing
• a reliable friend who helps sugrīva
• a great warrior who leads an army and kills rāvaṇa
• a dharmic ruler that established a prosperous kingdom
• an enlightened master who advises lakṣmaṇa

The original composition of rāmāyaṇa was in Sankrit by mahaṛṣi vālmīki consistsing of 24,000 ślokas, organized into seven kāṇḍa-s or sections.  One must marvel at the intellectual acumen of mahaṛṣi vālmīki who created this great poem.  There are several other versions such as kamba rāmāyaṇam in Tamil (with 10,569 verses), and the rāmcaritmānas in Hindi (24,000 verses) by gosvāmi tulsidas.  For those familiar only with English, there is a nice translation by C. Rajagopalachari.  The influence of rāmāyaṇa as a story and the main characters has spread not only across India but also to several South-East Asian countries.

The classic versions of the rāmāyaṇa are literary masterpieces which require a strong commitment and dedication to study and appreciate the nuances.  A kind master has condensed the essence of the epic into a single verse for the benefit of future generations (like ours).  This is called the eka śloki rāmāyaṇa and captures the key events and ideas from each Section of the epic.

पूर्वं राम तपोवनाधिगमनं हत्वा मृगं काञ्चनं वैदेही हरणं जटायु मरणं सुग्रीव सम्भाषणम्।

वाली निर्ग्रहणं समुद्र तरणं लङ्कापुरी दाहनं पश्चात् रावण कुम्भकर्ण हननं एतद् हि रामायणम् ॥

pūrvaṃ rāma tapovanādhigamanaṃ hatvā mṛgaṃ kāñcanaṃ vaidehī haraṇaṃ jaṭāyu maraṇaṃ sugrīva sambhāṣaṇam |

vālī nirgrahaṇaṃ samudra taraṇaṃ laṅkāpurī dāhanaṃ paścāt rāvaṇa kumbhakarṇa hananaṃ etad hi rāmāyaṇam ||

DIRECT MEANING:  A long time ago, śrī rāma went to the tapovan forest where he killed the golden deer.  (In the meantime) sītā gets abducted and the big bird jaṭāyu is killed (by rāvaṇa).  Then śrī rāma had discussions with sugrīva, subdued vāli, and hanuman crossed the sea to laṅkapurī and burned down parts of the city.  Later, śrī rāma defeated and killed kumbhakarṇa and rāvaṇa.  This indeed is the story of rāmayaṇa.

Our ancient ṛṣi-s were masters of Sanskrit language and had a deep understanding of various aspects of being a human, along with knowledge of the land and nature.  The rāmāyaṇa contains many descriptive passages as well as philosophical discourses and sub-stories (story within a story) imbedded within the framework of the main story.  The composition is done in such a skillful manner that it generates an interest to hear it again and again, and a new message reveals itself when you read it or listen to it the next time.

When I first heard (and later read) the story of rāmāyaṇa as a young boy, the parts where śrī rāma and his brother lakṣmaṇa defeated the bad guys (various asura-s) were the most captivating.  In dance dramas (and solo dance programs) the episodes portrayed most often are those involving a lot of emotion, such as sītā’ s wedding, rāma being ordered to leave ayodhya and sent to the forest, the abduction of sīta, etc.  Those inclined to devotion are enthralled by hanuman and his dedication to śrī rāma, especially how he crosses the sea, meets with sītā and burns parts of laṅka to scare rāvaṇa.  Statesmen study the rāmāyaṇa to admire and learn from the administrative setup and integrity of śrī rāma as a ruler.  When vedāntic masters look at rāmāyaṇa, the philosophical messages are more meaningful to them.  Thus, the same epic conveys many messages and has captured the attention of generations of Hindus for eons.

For those who want to see it, the eka ślokī also conveys the mystical meaning even in the shortened form.  The poet has chosen words that have very interesting mystical meanings.

For instance, the compound word tapovanādhigamanaṃ (tapovana + adhigamanaṃ) means that śrī rāma went through a forest where sages lived performing their austerities, i.e., it was a holy place where rāma (representing a dedicated spiritual sādhaka) and sīta were very happy and contented.  Then one day the golden deer appeared on the scene as a mesmerizing distraction.  As it happens often, this shiny distraction created a strong desire, overwhelmed good judgement, and resulted in calamitous consequences.  śrī rāma recognizes the trickery and kills the golden deer, but in the meantime, rāvaṇa abducts sītā forcibly and initiates a chain of challenges that had to be overcome.  Here rāvaṇa represents the ten-headed monster of external attractions & negative tendencies, present within each of us.  Later śrī rāma meets sugrīva, forms an army of monkeys, and after overcoming various challenges, destroys rāvaṇa. 

So, the hidden meaning is about how the mind of a sincere spiritual student can be distracted and kidnapped by shiny external objects and negative forces if one is not very careful and vigilant.  The good news is that the negative forces can be overcome eventually even if there are challenges along the way. 

The story of śrī rāma is a great inspiration to a broad range of people in society, and the core message is as relevant today as it was long long ago.  The enlightened masters encourage us to follow śrī rāma’s example even if we don’t fully understand the mystical implications.  As we mature and become purer, the magic of understanding will happen automatically.

May the blessings of śrī rāma be with you and guide you in your actions.