LIFE OF SRI SANKARA

Today is Sri Sankara Jayanthi. A brief life is posted here.

Birth and childhood:

Sankara [also known as Śaṅkara Bhagavatpādācārya and Ādi Śaṅkarācārya (788 CE - 820 CE)] was born

to the nambudiri brahmana couple, Sivaguru and Aryamba, in a little village called Kaladi in Kerala. The couple had remained childless for a long time, and prayed for children at the Vadakkunnathan (vrshacala) temple in nearby Trichur. Lord Siva is said to have appeared to the couple in a dream and promised them a choice of one son who would be short-lived but the most brilliant philosopher of his day, or many sons who would be mediocre at best. The couple opted for a brilliant, but short-lived son, and so Sankara was born.

Sankara lost his father when quite young, and his mother performed his upanayana ceremonies with the help of her relatives. Sankara excelled in all branches of traditional vaidika learning. A few miracles are reported about the young Sankara. As a brahmacarin, he went about collecting alms from families in the village. A lady who was herself extremely poor, but did not want to send away the boy empty-handed, gave him the last piece of Amla fruit she had at home. Sankara, sensing the abject poverty of the lady, composed a hymn (kanakadhara stavam) to Sri Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, right at her doorstep. As a result, a shower of golden Amlas rewarded the lady for her piety. On another occasion, Sankara is said to have re-routed the course of the Purna river, so that his old mother would not have to walk a long distance to the river for her daily ablutions.

Sannyasa:

Sankara was filled with the spirit of renunciation early in his life. Getting married and settling to the life of a householder was never part of his goal in life, though his mother was anxious to see him as a grhastha. Once when he was swimming in the river, a crocodile caught hold of his leg. Sankara sensed that he was destined to die at that moment, and decided to directly enter the fourth Asrama of sannyasa right then. This kind of renunciation is called Apat sannyasa. The crocodile released him when he thus mentally decided to renounce the world, and Sankara decided to regularize his decision by going to an accomplished guru. To comfort his anxious mother, he promised that he would return at the moment of her death, to conduct her funeral rites, notwithstanding the fact that he would be a sannyasi then.

Sri Sankara then traveled far and wide in search of a worthy guru who would initiate him and regularize his vow of sannyasa, till he came to the banks of the river Narmada in central India. Here was the Ashrama of Govinda Bhagavatpada, the disciple of Gaudapada, the famous author of the Mandukya Karikas. Sri Sankara was accepted as a disciple by Govinda, who initiated him into the paramahamsa order of sannyasa, the highest kind of renunciation. Seeing the intellectual acumen of his disciple, Govinda commanded Sri Sankara to expound the philosophy of Vedanta through commentaries on the principal Upanishads, the Brahmasutras and the Gita. Sri Sankara took leave of his guru and traveled to various holy places in India, composing his commentaries in the meantime. At this time he was barely a teenager. He attracted many disciples around him, prominent among whom was Sanandana, who was later to be called Padmapada. In this period, Sri Sankara wrote commentaries on badarayana's brahmasutras, the various upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita. These commentaries, called bhashyas, stand at the pinnacle of Indian philosophical writing, and have triggered a long tradition of sub-commentaries known as Varttikas, TIkas and Tippanis. He also commented upon the adhyatma-patala of the Apastamba sutras, and on Vyasa's bhashya to Patanjali's Yogasutras. In addition to these commentarial texts, Sri Sankara wrote independent treatises called prakarana granthas, including the Upadesasahasri, Atmabodha, etc.

In addition to writing his own commentaries, Sri Sankara sought out leaders of other schools, in order to engage them in debate. As per the accepted philosophical tradition in India, such debates helped to establish a new philosopher, and also to win disciples and convert from other schools. It was also traditional for the loser in the debate to become a disciple of the winner. Thus Sri Sankara debated with Buddhist philosophers, with followers of Samkhya and with Purva Mimamsakas, the followers of Vedic ritualism, and proved more than capable in defeating all his opponents in debate.Sri Sankara then sought out Kumarila Bhatta, the foremost proponent of the Purva Mimamsa in his age, but Bhatta was on his deathbed and directed Sri Sankara to Visvarupa, his disciple. Visvarupa is sometimes identified with Mandana Misra.

Sri Sankara's debate with Visvarupa was unique. The referee at the debate was Visvarupa's wife, Bharati, who was herself very well-learned, and regarded as an incarnation of Goddess Sarasvati. At stake was a whole way of life. The agreement was that if Visvarupa won, Sri Sankara would consent to marriage and the life of a householder, whereas if Sri Sankara won, Visvarupa would renounce all his wealth and possessions and become a sannyasi disciple of Sri Sankara. The debate is said to have lasted for whole weeks, till in the end, Visvarupa had to concede defeat and become a sannyasi. Bharati was a fair judge, but before declaring Sri Sankara as the winner, she challenged Sri Sankara with questions about Kamasastra, which he knew nothing about. Sri Sankara therefore requested some time, during which, using the subtle yogic process called parakaya-pravesa, he entered the body of a dying king and experienced the art of love with the queens. Returning to Visvarupa’s home, he answered all of Bharati's questions, after which Visvarupa was ordained as a sannyasi by the name of Suresvara. He was to become the most celebrated disciple of Sri Sankara, writing Varttikas to Sri Sankara's Bhashyas on the Yajurveda Upanishads, in addition to his own independent texts on various subjects.

Establishment of Maths:

Sri Sankara continued to travel with his disciples all over the land, all the while composing philosophical treatises and engaging opponents in debate. It is said that none of his opponents could ever match his intellectual prowess and the debates always ended with Sri Sankara's victory. No doubt this is true, given the unrivaled respect and popularity that Sri Sankara's philosophical system enjoys to this day. In the course of his travels, Sri Sankara stayed for a long time at the site of the old Ashama of the Rishis Vibhandaka and Rshyasrnga, in the place known as Sringeri. Some texts mention that Sri Sankara stayed at Sringeri for twelve years. A hermitage grew around him here, which soon developed into a famous Math (monastery). Suresvara, the disciple whom he had won after long debate, was installed as the head of this new Ashrama. Similar Maths were established in the pilgrim centers of Puri, Dvaraka and Joshimath near Badrinath, and Padmapada, Hastamalaka and Trotaka were placed in charge of them. These are known as the Amnaya Maths, and they continue to function today. Their heads have also come to be known as Sankaracaryas, in honor of their founder, and revered as jagadgurus, or teachers of the world. Sri Sankara also organized the community of Ekadandi monks into the sampradaya of Dasanami sannyasins, and affiliated them with the four Maths that he established.

Meanwhile, Sri Sankara heard that his mother was dying, and decided to visit her. Remembering his promise to her, he performed her funeral rites. His ritualistic relatives would not permit him to do the rites himself, as he was a sannyasi, but Sri Sankara overrode their objections, and built a pyre himself and cremated his mother in her own backyard. After this, he resumed his travels, visiting many holy places, reviving pujas at temples that had fallen into neglect, establishing Sri Yantras at Devi temples as in Kanchipuram, and composing many devotional hymns.

Ascension of the Sarvajnapitha:

In the course of his travels, Sri Sankara reached Kashmir. Here was a temple dedicated to Sri Sarada (Sarasvati), the Goddess of learning, which housed the Sarvajnapitha, the Throne of Omniscience. It was a tradition for philosophers to visit the place and engage in debate. The victorious one would be allowed to ascend the sarvajnapitha. It is said that no philosopher from the southern region had ever ascended the pitha, till Sri Sankara visited Kashmir and defeated all the others there. He then ascended the Sarvajnapitha with the blessings of Goddess Sarada. (A few centuries later, Ramanuja, the teacher of Visishtadvaita, would visit the same Sarvajnapitha in search of the Baudhayana Vrtti. However, a variant tradition places the Sarvajnapitha in the south Indian city of Kanchipuram.)

Sri Sankara was reaching the age of 32 now. He had expounded the Vedanta philosophy through his writings; he had attracted many intelligent disciples to him, who could carry on the Vedantic tradition; and he had established monastic centers for them in the form of Maths. His had been a short, but eventful life. He retired to the Himalayas and disappeared inside a cave near Kedarnath. This cave is traditionally pointed out as the site of his samadhi. Other variant traditions place Sri Sankara's last days at Karavirpitham or at Mahur in Maharashtra, Trichur in Kerala or Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu. It is a measure of Sri Sankaracarya's widespread fame that such conflicting traditions have arisen around his name.

True to the traditions of sannyasa, Sri Sankara was a peripatetic monk, who traveled the length and breadth of the country in his short lifetime. His fame spread so far and wide, that various legends are recounted about him from different parts of India. The true sannyasi that he was, he lived completely untouched by the fabric of society. So much so that even the location of Kaladi, his birth-place, remained generally unknown for a long time. The credit of identifying this village in Kerala goes to one of his 19th-century successors at Sringeri, Sri Saccidananda Sivabhinava Narsimha Bharati.

Reference: SrimatSwami Tapasyananda, The Sankara-dig-vijaya of Madhava-Vidyaranya, Ramakrishna Math, Chennai-4. 

Courtesy: sringeri.net

LIFE OF SRI RAMAKRISHNA

HERE IS A U-TUBE VIDEO ON SRI RAMAKRISHNA'S LIFE GIVEN IN PICTORIAL FORM. IT IS VERY INTERESTING AND EDUCATIVE. MAY HE BLESS US.

LIFE OF LORD MAHAVIR:

1. PICTORIAL LIFE OF LORD MAHAVIR:

Today is Lord Mahavir Jayanthi. In his memory this is posted.

Courtesy:'jainworld.com

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2. A BRIEF LIFE OF LORD MAHAVIR:

Lord Mahavir was the twenty-fourth Tirthankara of the Jain religion. He was born 2596 years ago on the 13th day of the rising moon of Chaitra, in either 599 BC or 615 BC (depending on religious tradition) at Kundagrama in the kingdom of Vaishali, near Patna in Bihar. According to the Digambara school of Jainism, Lord Mahavir was born in the year 615 BC, but the Swetambaras believe that He was born in 599 BC. His father was Siddhartha, a chieftain of Kundagrama and his mother was Trishala. Queen Trishala saw 14 auspicious dreams when the child was in her womb.

When the child was born he was named Varthamana- he who brings prosperity, because his father’s wealth had increased during the pregnancy of the mother. He is however, popularly called Mahavir, the great hero, because he subdued his passions.

 As a young boy, Varthamana was handsome, brave and fearless. He was liked by one and all. Once he was playing with children in the mango-grove, when a huge snake curled itself around the trunk of the tree nearby. Other boys fled, but Varthamana coolly held the serpent by its hood and with a jerk threw it away like a piece of rope.

Mahavir was married to Yasoda and had a daughter according to the Shvetambara tradition. From childhood, he was very quiet, resolute and indifferent to worldly matters. Although he was surrounded by comforts and luxuries, he had a strong sense of detachment. At the age of thirty, after the passing away of his parents and with the consent of his elder brother he renounced the world and became a Shramana or a wandering monk. He vowed to remain equanimous throughout his life. He did rigorous austerities, including prolonged fasts, for twelve and half years till he achieved Kevala-Jnana [omniscience]. Mahavir faced numerous hardships and indigenous during this long Samnyasa period but he proved to be an incarnation of forbearance and became his chief disciples, and formed the forgiveness.

After attaining omniscience, Lord Mahavir began to preach, wandering from one place to the other on foot. On hearing his teachings, 11 eminent Brahmin scholars led by Indrabhuti Gautama and formed the nucleus of the religious Order. Lord Mahavir established fourfold congregation of monks, nuns, laymen devotees and laywomen devotees. In the Sangha so established, there was no difference between men and women. The women were also initiated as nuns, which was a great revolutionary step at that time.

For thirty long years, Mahavir went about preaching the religion [non-violence], Anekanta [non-absolutism] andAparigraha [non-possession]. At the age of 72 he passed away at Pavapuri in Bihar.

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LIFE OF SRI SARADA DEVI:

May Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi bless us all on this auspicious day of her 158th birthday.

Sri Sarada Devi Temple & Image at Jayrambati

Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi 's life is a life of Devotion and Dedication, Inspiration and Illumination and, Service and Sacrifice. It is also a source of Solace and Solution for  Spiritual aspirations of many people. 

1. Birth and parentage:

Sri Sarada Devi was the wife and Divine Consort of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, the spiritual luminary of West Bengal, who lived in nineteenth century.  She is also reverentially addressed as the Holy Mother by the devotees and monks of the Ramakrishna order. Sri Sarada Devi played a vital role in the growth of the Ramakrishna Movement. The followers of the Sri Ramakrishna movement regard Sri Sarada Devi as an incarnation of the Divine Mother.

Sri Sarada Devi was born of Brahmin parents as the eldest daughter on December 22, 1853, in an obscure village named Jayarambati. It is situated about 75 km northwest of Kolkata in West Bengal. Her parents, Ramachandra Mukhopadhyaya and Syamasundari Devi, were poor but pious. Her father Ramachandra earned his living as a farmer and through the performance of priestly duties. After the birth of Sri Sarada Devi, Ramachandra had one more  daughter and five sons.[Picture:  Sri Sarada Devi's house at Jayarambati where she lived for the majority of her life]

It is interesting to know that Sri Sarada Devi’s parents had visions and supernatural events foretelling the birth of a divine being as their daughter. The Holy Mother herself had given an account of an incident regarding her mother’s spiritual vision: “My mother in my grandmother’s house once went out and was sitting under a Vilva tree. At that time she saw a beautiful young girl of six, swinging from the tree. Seeing her, my mother was over powered. The small girl came down from the tree. However, my mother did not see the girl-child and afterwards felt something had entered her womb and she lost consciousness!” The Vilva tree stands even today and is seen behind monument at Sarada Math, Sihore. [Picture: courtesy to saradamath.org]

In the case of Ramachandra too, a few days back, an incident of similar nature happened. One day Ramachandra dreamt that a small girl was playing on his stomach holding his neck with both her hands. The form and the ornaments she wore gave the impression that the girl was a divine being. “Who are you? he asked. In a sweet voice, the little girl replied, “I have come to you!” When the dream ended he felt as if Goddess Lakshmi had graciously appeared before him.

2.TRAINING AT HOME:

As in the case of most girls of rural upbringing, Sri Sarada Devi did not receive any formal education. On her own effort Sri Sarada Devi learnt to read and write in Bengali. Later years she could read herself Ramayana and other religious literatures. But she learned to serve others as she helped her mother to run a large household and looked after her younger brothers.  During the terrible famine of 1864, Sarada worked ceaselessly as her family served food to hungry people.  She was interested in the clay models of goddesses Kali and Lakshmi, which she worshiped regularly. She is said to have started meditating from her childhood and had many spiritual visions and experiences.

3. marriage:

Sri Ramakrishna who was a priest of the Dakshineswar Kali Temple since 1855-was practicing intense spiritual practices. His mother Chandramani and brother thought that a marriage would be a good steadying effect on him, by diverting his attention away from  severe spiritual austerities and visions.

In May 1859, Sri Sarada Devi was married to Ramakrishna. Then Sarada was only 5 years old and Ramakrishna was 23.After the marriage, Sarada was left to the care of her parents and Ramakrishna returned to Dakshineswar.


After this Sri Sarada Devi had seen Sri Ramakrishna only once, but she was only a small girl then. After that in her thirteenth and fourteenth year she went to Kamarpukur twice for short     periods and stayed there. During her forth visit to Kamarpukur an extraordinary incident happened. She used to see a bevy of eight girls of her age coming from an unknown place, and escorted her in the chores during her childhood.
 [To read this anecdote (click here)]

4. at dakshineswar kali temple:

Sri Sarada joined Ramakrishna at Dakshineswar in 1872 on her own accord when she was eighteen, after hearing many rumors about his mental health. She found Ramakrishna to be a kind and caring person. In Dakshineswar she lived in a small room on the south side ground floor of the Nahabat (Musical tower) [Pictures: Nahabat and Sri Sarada Devi's tiny room on the ground floor of the Nahabat (now a shrine)].

Ramakrishna imparted Sri Sarada Devi instructions on

meditation and spiritual life. Both of them lived lives of

unbroken continence, showing the ideals of a householder and of the monastic ways of life. She was unique in being the devoted wife, perfect sannyasini, affectionate mother and guru for innumerable and monks and devotees.

About her life in Dhakshineshwar she expressed it in later days: “I felt as if a pitcher of bliss kept in my heart. From that time onwards, the joy continued throughout my life. It is impossible for me to describe the divine joy that I was experiencing in my mind.”

Sarada Devi stayed at Dakshineswar until 1885, except for short periods when she visited her village Jayrambati. By this time Ramakrishna had already embraced the monastic life of a sannyasin; as a result, the marriage was never consummated. On the day of Phalaharini Kali Puja, Sri Ramakrishna worshiped Sri Sarada Devi as Shodashi [ie. worshing Divine Mother as a sixteen year old virgin]. She was made to sit in the seat of Goddess Kali, and worshiped as the Divine mother. During the worship both went into Samadhi. Sri Ramakrishna always regarded Sri Sarada Devi as the incarnation of Divine Mother.

Sri Sarada Devi's day began at 3 am. After finishing her ablutions in the Ganges, she would practice japa [counting the beads] and meditation until daybreak.  Ramakrishna taught her the sacred mantras, and instructed her how to initiate people and guide them in spiritual life. Sri Sarada Devi is regarded as Ramakrishna's first disciple.  Except for her hours of meditation, most of her time was spent in cooking for Ramakrishna and the growing number of his devotees. While Sri Sarada Devi remained completely in the background, her unassuming but warm personality attracted female devotees – Golap-Ma, Yogen-Ma, Gopal-Ma and others. Some of them became her lifelong companions. Ramakrishna had commissioned her to continue his mission after his passing away and wanted his disciples not to make any distinction between himself and her. 

During Ramakrishna's last days, during which he suffered from throat cancer, Sri Sarada Devi played an important role in nursing him and preparing suitable food for him and his disciples. After Ramakrishna's passing away in August 1886, when Sri Sarada Devi tried to remove her bracelets as the customs dictated for a widow, she had a vision of Ramakrishna in which he said, "I have not passed away, I have gone from one room to another." According to her, whenever she thought of dressing like a widow, she had a vision of Ramakrishna asking her not to do so.

5. Pilgrimage:

After his death, Sri Sarada Devi began her pilgrimage to North India, accompanied by a party of women disciples including Lakshmi Didi, Gopal Ma, and Ramakrishna's householder and monastic disciples. The party visited the Vishwanath Temple of Lord Shiva at Banaras and the city of Ayodhya, which is associated with life of Lord Sri Rama.


Later, Sri Sarada Devi visited Brindavan which is associated with Lord Sri Krishna. At Brindavan, she experienced nirvikalpa Samadhi. Here she began her role as guru after Sri 
Ramakrishna appeared before her and told to initiate his disciple Swami Yogananda. Later she also initiated several of the Ramakrishna's disciples including Mahendranath Gupta. In course of time she started giving initiation to innumerable number of devotees without refusing any one.

Again, in 1888 she went to Puri and then Gaya. On the invitation of Swami Ramakrishnananda, a disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, in 1911 she went to Chennai and visited Rameswaram temple[see picture] and some other temples in Tamil

Nadu.[picture:courtesy:indugodwallpaper. blogspot.com].

6. AT Kolkata:

After the pilgrimage, Sri Sarada Devi stayed alone in Kamarpukur, Ramakrishna's native village and endured poverty and starvation for a year. When the news reached the lay and monastic disciples of Sri Ramakrishna that she needed their care and attention, they invited her to Kolkata and arranged for her stay. Swami Saradananda, a disciple of Sri Ramakrishna, built a permanent house (called Udbodhan House) for Sri Sarada Devi in Kolkata where she spent the longest period of her life.

At Udbodhan House, Sri Sarada Devi was accompanied by other women disciples of Ramakrishna, Gopal Ma, Yogin Ma, Lakshmi Didi and Gauri Ma. Here an increasing number of people began to flock for guidance, instructions and spiritual initiation. Other Western women followers of Ramakrishna Order including Sister Nivedita [UK] and Sister Devamata [USA] formed close relationship with her. She regarded all her disciples as her own children. Sri Sarada Devi’s hospitality was unique and was characterized by motherly care and solicitude.

Traditional accounts recount the mystical experiences of her devotees. Some devotees dreamt of her as a Goddess in human form though they had never seen her picture before. Others reportedly received their initiation from her in their dream. One such example is of Girish Chandra Ghosh, the father of Bengali drama, who reportedly saw Sri Sarada Devi in a dream when he was nineteen years old and received a mantra. When he met her many years later, to his astonishment it was the same person in the dream.

7. last  days:

Sri Sarada Devi spent her final years moving back and forth between Jayrambati and Kolkata. In January 1919, Sri Sarada Devi went to Jayrambati and stayed there for over a year. During the last three months of her stay, her health seriously declined. Her strength was greatly impaired and she was brought back to Kolkata on February 27, 1920. For the next five months she continued to suffer.

Before her death, Sri Sarada Devi gave the last advice to the grief stricken devotees, "But I tell you one thing—if you want peace of mind, do not find fault with others. Rather see your own faults. Learn to make the whole world your own. No one is a stranger my child: this whole world is your own!” This is considered as her last message to the world. She passed away at 1.30 am on July 20, 1920 in Udbodhan house. Her body was carried to Belur Math and cremated. In Belur Math now stands a beautiful temple facing the Ganges, the most sacred river of the Hindus and much loved and adored by the Holy Mother Sri Sarada Devi.

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LIFE OF SRI KRISHNA



Hari Om. Sri Krishna, the son of Vasudeva and Devaki was born in the clan of Vrishnis or Yadavas. Devaki was the sister of King Hamsa who was cruelty personified. While driving the chariot in which were seated his newly married sister and her husband, he heard a voice saying, ‘O fool, the eight child of this couple will be your slayer’. At once he was on the point of killing his sister, but desisted from doing so, after Vasudeva, who was famous for his truthfulness, assured him that he would hand over all his children to Kamsa as soon as they were born. [Picture: Courtesy:salagram.net]

Devaki and Sri Krishna

Just before the birth of Krishna, Vasudeva and Devaki were imprisoned and were heavily shackled. The Lord, who is the deliverer and savior of the people, was born in a prison in Madhura[Picture:Courtesy:devotionalonly.com] The guards fell asleep, Vasudeva was unshackled, and the doors were opened through His divine maya, and the child was carried to Gokula on the other side of the river Yamuna to the house of Nanda and was exchanged with his new born daughter.

The tyrant Kamsa, as soon as he came to know of the birth of Devaki’s child, rushed to the prison to kill his would- be- slayer with his own hands. But to his utter astonishment he saw the child to be a girl. Yet remembering the prophecy, he caught hold of the babe and was going to kill her when she miraculously slipped from his hands and went up into the sky saying,’ He who will slay you, is growing at Gokula.’ This made Kamsa furious and he ordered all the babies in Mathura and its neighborhood to be killed. But He who was born to re-establish Dharma remained unscathed and subsequently baffled all Kamsa’s attempts to put an end to his life. Ultimately, Kamsa was killed by Krishna. Kamsa’s father Ugrasena was installed on the throne.



Sri Krishna with Gopis

 Krishna’s childhood was full of miracles. He moved to Brindavan a few miles from Mathura where his playmates were the cowherd boys and girls, known as gopis.[picture-courtesy:yamuna.blog.yamuna.biz]

After some years, Krishna felt the call of a new mission and came to Dwaraka. He entrusted the government to his kinsmen, the Vishnu’s. Though Himself a famous warrior, a wise statesman, an intelligent diplomat, he never occupied a throne. He conquered many kingdoms, but gave them over to others. He was often seen in the midst of intense activity, but he remained calm and unattached.

Sri Krishna in Kurushetra

Krishna’s greatest message is the immortal Gita, which he recounted to Arjuna when, in Kurukshetra, the Kauravas and Pandavas were ranged in battle. Becoming desperate with grief, Arjuna wanted to leave the field rather than killing his kinsmen and elders. Krishna’s Gita removed Arjuna’s illusions[picture: courtesy: agori.it]

After installing Yudhishthra the throne, Krishna went back to Dwaraka, where after a tie a civil war broke out among the members of the Vrishini clan. They fell upon one another and perished. Krishna looked on all these as a detached witness seeing the fulfillment of destiny in all.

After realizing that the time of his departure was near at hand, he restrained his mind and senses in yoga and lay down on the bare earth under a tree. Seeing his rosy feet from a distance, a hunter mistook them for a crouching deer and aimed as arrow which pierced his feet. Coming near, the hunter realized his grievous mistake and was sorely grief stricken, but Krishna blessed him with a smile and soon gave up his body.

“The glory of Krishna is that He has been the best preacher of our eternal religion and the best commentator on the Vedanta that ever lived in India.” says Swami Vivekananda.

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LIFE OF LORD SRI RAMA:

1. A BRIEF LIFE OF SRI RAMA:
2. NAMA RAMAYANA (VIDEO) BY M.S. SUBBHULAKSHMI [SEE BELOW] 

Sri Krishna  declares in Bhagavat Gita: “I come into being in every Age for the protection of the good, for the destruction of the wicked, and for the establishment of Dharma (Righteousness).” It is also a common belief of Hindus that Lord Vishnu, the All-Pervading Supreme Being incarnates in every Age.[Picture: Source: Net]

Sri Rama, son of a glorious King Dasaratha of Ayodhya is believed to be an incarnation of Lord Vishnu in Treta Yuga. His task then was to rid of Bharath from the onslaught and oppression of the Rakshasas who ruled in Sri Lanka at that time, to protect the saints and sages and show an ideal and perfect life to the Society.




CHILD SRI RAMA AND HIS BROTHERS

The King Dasaratha had three wives – Kausalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra but was not blessed with a son to succeed him to the throne. So he performed a horse- sacrifice under the guidance of sage Rishya–Sringa. In sacrificial fire a majestic figure came out holding a pot of Payasam. It was distributed to all three queens. In course of time Sri Rama was born of Queen Kausalya, Bharata of Queen Kaikeyi and Lakshmana and Satrughana of Queen Sumitra[Picture Courtesy:netglimse.com]. The sons are considered to be the parts of Lord Vishnu. The eldest son Sri Rama was the repository of all divine qualities, the object of love and reverence of all. They received all the training prescribed for princes. Lakhsmana was specially devoted to Sri Rama.




Sri Sita garlanding Sri Rama

 When Sri Rama was only sixteen – years age, sage Viswamitra came oneday to Ayodhya. He asked Dasaratha to send Sri Rama and Lakshmana with him to slay the demons who were creating disturbances and were not allowing the sages to do their sacrificial rites. By the blessing of the sage Viswamitra and by his own powers and skill in archery, Sri Rama killed all the demons. Receiving the blessing of the sages, the brothers were brought to Mithila, the capital of the renowned king Janaka. Here Sri Rama exhibited his wonderful strength and skill by lifting and stringing the wondrous bow of Lord Shiva, which many mighty princes had failed to do. He drew back the bow-string with such a force that the weapon snapped asunder with terrific noise. King Janaka, true to his promise, gave his dearest and lustrous daughter Sita in marriage to Sri Rama.[picture courtesy; hindudevotional.blog.com]

In course of time Dasaratha became old, and he wanted to install Sri Rama as the crown prince. All arrangements were complete, when all of a sudden the cruel queen Kaikeyi who was ill-advised by her very crooked maid servant Manthara, asked Dasratha for two boons, which he had once promised. By one boon, Sri Rama should be banished for fourteen years and by the second boon, her son Bharatha should be installed as the crown-prince. Being deeply devoted to father, Sri Rama at once retired to the forest, accompanied by Sita and Lakshmana. Unable to bear the rude shock of his separation from Sri Rama, Dasaratha died. Bharatha who had great reverence and love for Sri Rama tried in vain to bring back Sri Rama. Then he ultimately installed Sri Rama’s sandals on the throne and started ruling the kingdom in the name of Sri Rama.

Sri Rama, Sita and Lakshmana went to Panchavati. During the absence of Sri Rama and Lakshmana, who had been drawn away by the deception of Rakshasa Maricha, Sita was abducted by Ravana, the Rakshasa King of Lanka.

Ravana tried his best to persuade Sita to become his queen. But Sita rejected his evil proposal with all contempt. Ravana imprisoned her in a grove called Ashokavanam. She was always absorbed in the thought of Sri Rama.



Sri Rama set out with Lakshmana in search for Sita. He got some clue from the dying Jatayu and the Vanara King Sugriva. He also met his great devotee Hanuman[picture:courtesy:devotionalonly.com] who was the most faithful to him. He helped Sri Rama to find Sita. He helped Sugriva to destroy his usurping brother Vali and made him king. With help of the army that was provided by king Suriva he reached Lanka for the rescue of Sita.

A great battle took place between Sri Rama and Ravana. In the end Sri Rama killed Ravana, his brother Kumbakarana, sons and all warriors, and rescued Sita. At first Sri Rama refused to accept Sita, as she had been confined so long by Ravana. To prove her innocence Sita entered fire [See picture: Courtesy: flickr.com]. Agni, the god of Fire, came out with Sita declaring her to be of unsullied purity. She bade Sri Rama to take her back as his wife. Sri Rama’s joy knew no bounds.

SRI RAMA AFTER CROWNING

Sri Rama installed Vibhishana, the brother of Ravana, on the throne of Lanka. He returned to Ayodhya with Sita, Lakshmana, Vibhisana, Sugriva and Hanuman. At the return of Sri Rama after fourteen years people of Ayodhya rejoiced and celebrated the great occasion. Sri Rama along with Sita was crowned as the King of Ayodhya by the sage Vasistha. Thus began the long and prosperous rule of Sri Rama. Every where there was health and happiness It was the ‘Golden Age’ of Ayodhya.

The immortal sage Valmiki has depicted this wonderful and divine life of Sri Rama in his famous epic Ramayana. Even today it is an eternal companion of Hindu households and will remain for ever.

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NAMA RAMAYANA BY DR. M.S. SUBBHULAKSHMI
[PART-I].

PART-II

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