Itihasa Puranas-tools for evolution

Brevity is the forte of Vedas. They convey the deepest of meanings and highest of truths in the shortest form possible. The level of Vedic understanding that we humans display depends on the level of our connectivity with the cosmos and grades of our intuition towards nature. Such aspects of our existence varies with time. We have displayed better cosmic connectivity and intuition in the earlier yugas than now in Kaliyuga. Hence the Itihasa Puranas become even more important to us in Kaliyuga than in the previous yugas to understand the essence of the Vedas.

Kanchi Mahaperiyava explains thus.

Take for example the hymn – Sathyam Vadha – Speak the truth – the Taittiriya Upanishad stops with that statement and does not expand on it. But in Markandeya Purana we find King Harischandra’s life and a detailed account of his travails for being someone who always spoke the truth. The meaning of this short hymn and the effect of speaking and not speaking the truth has been chronicled and elaborated in the king’s life history. Dharmam Chara – follow dharma – is another popular hymn whose inner meaning has been exhaustively shown in Mahabaratha through the life of Yudhishtir. Rama showed us the meanings of Maathru devo bhava and Pithru devo Bhava by living the meaning himself. While these are just examples to drive home the point, we will be able to find many instances in all their lives to showcase all the Vedic principles.

The Vedas don’t expand on the meanings of whatever they preach and the Puranas don’t mention the Vedic hymns explicitly while narrating the stories. This is where the śreṣṭha like the pauranikas play their parts. They make both the ends meet and bring out the Vedic message when narrating the Puranic stories thus expanding the reach and coverage of the Vedas to include the masses so that we can appreciate the highest good and build up our inner spirit. Kanchi Mahaperiyava says that while we get to know about their lives and sufferings through Itihasa Puranas, our hearts melt for them thus cleaning away the dirt that we have accumulated in our minds due to our Karma, thereby clearing the way for our evolution-as a Jivatma-to higher levels of existence.

Rama – in the eyes of Brahma

Ravana thinks of Rama as a lowly human. But it is Rama who kills Ravana. But after killing Ravana,  he asks Sita to enter the fire to prove her conjugal fidelity. While Sita is readying herself to enter the fire, Rama is filled with thoughts and melancholy which come out as tears in his eyes. At that instance, Kubera, Yama, Indra, Varuna, Shiva, and Brahma appear on the skies over Lanka and approach Rama. On seeing them he offers them his salutations with folded hands as if he is a mere mortal.

They question him thus, for ignoring Sita like a common man.

“Among the Vasus , you are the Vasu, named Ritadhama the first creator of all the three worlds and the lord of creatures. You are the eighth Rudra among Rudras and the fifth among the Sadhyas. The twin Aswinis are your ears. The sun and the moon constitute your eyes. You are seen at the beginning and at the end of creation. Yet, you ignore Seetha, just like a common man.”

But Rama is still adamant. He says that he thinks of himself as a human being, by the name of Rama and son of Dasaratha. The Gods are perplexed. Who would not be? Here are the gods themselves saying that Rama is none other than the Supreme Being and yet he chooses to think otherwise.

Then Brahma the creator speaks.

“You are the Lord Narayana himself the glorious god, who wields the discus. You are the Divine Boar with a single tusk, the conqueror of your past and future enemies. You are Brahma, the imperishable, the Truth abiding in the middle as well as at the end of the universe. You are the supreme righteousness of people. You are the four-armed. You are the wielder of a bow called Sarnga, the lord of the senses, the supreme soul of the universe, the wielder of a sword named Nandaka, the all-pervader and the bestower of happiness to the earth. You are the origin and the dissolution of all, Upendra the Divine Dwarf and (the younger brother of Indra) as also the destroyer Madhu, the demon.”

Brahma then continues to eulogize about who Rama really is, about how Rama acts as the Sesha, a large serpent in water which holds the three worlds from earth’s bottom, and how Brahma is his heart and Saraswati is his tongue. Brahma concludes by saying that since Rama’s mission of killing Ravana has completed, he should return to his Supreme Abode without further delays.

At last, Rama seems to realize who he really is, but chooses to stay behind on earth to rule his people till his time comes. He wants to fulfill all his duties as a son to Dasaratha by getting consecrated to the throne of Ayodhya to serve his people. By this last act, he re-emphasizes that he is more human than god.

There is an interesting version as to why the Supreme Being took this incarnation to kill Ravana. After all, he could have easily finished the job from his seat in Vaikuntha where he is Narayana.

Rama in the eyes of Ravana

Maricha could not dissuade Ravana with his depiction of the relationship between Rama and Sita. So he changes tact by trying to instill a sense of fear in Ravana. He argues with his king by telling him that Rama guards his wife like the ritual fire and explains what would happen if Ravana tries to steal her from Rama. Maricha says that he tried to steal the literal ritual fire of Vishwamitra which Rama was guarding and asked his king to see what had happened to him. How dare would Ravana be to steal Rama’s wife from him?

Maricha asks Ravana how he could even think of snatching away Sita which was like trying to deceive Surya – the sun God to steal his light from him. He asks Ravana not to harbor any thoughts of even laying his sights on Sita which could immediately bring upon Rama’s wrath upon Ravana. He even goes on to tell Ravana that if the ten-faced king had any issues with the prince of Ayodhya, he should fight the prince face-to-face like a man and die on the battlefield a hero. He is sure that the king of Lanka would die in the battle no matter what the reasons for the battle are!

But Maricha is not able to persuade his king to give up his mad idea, for it is implanted so deep in him by his sister Surpanakha. He rejects all advice like a man with a death wish rejecting medicaments.  According to Ravana, Rama is an iniquitous and an imprudent prince who has forfeited his kingdom, friends, family, relatives and even his mother. His logic is that such a person’s wife cannot be what she is portrayed to be and her relationship with her husband cannot be as strong as depicted from the outside. So he has decided on his next course of action and came to Maricha not to ask him for his suggestions but expecting him to help his king. Ravana is ready to kill Maricha if he does not accede to his plans and makes his stance known. Maricha understands that death is waiting for him either which road he chooses. He knows what Rama’s arrows could do and also knows that Ravana is the victim of lust and all his good advises will never prevail over his king.

So he makes the decision and agrees to Ravana’s plan. Why Maricha agrees to be part of the deceit is a million dollar question that people ask even today. The answer is obvious.

He fully understands the ramifications of his decision. Although it is sure death waiting for him, he knows that it is better to die in the hands of Rama-the Supreme Being than to die by Ravana-a lowly Rakshasa. By his death, he proves who Rama really is!

Rama and Seetha, according to Maricha

Maricha paints a frightful picture of Rama to Ravana on hearing the idea of abduction that Ravana narrates to him. The demon-turned-saint goes on to explain how Ravana would play an important role in the eradication of all demons from the world through Rama’s hands if he goes further with his obsession of abducting Seetha. Maricha goes to the extent of exclaiming whether Seetha had taken birth just to ensure Ravana’s downfall!

He tries his best to dissuade Ravana by telling that Rama is neither ruthless nor un-scholarly and he has not definitely conquered his senses, but at the same time, Rama is identical to the thunderous Mahendra and tempestuous Varuna, the Rain-god. By this extolling, it is pretty clear that Maricha sees Rama both as a human and as God at the same time. He tells Ravana that Rama is the embodiment of righteousness, he is an equable person with truthfulness as his valour, and as with Indra to all gods, he is the king of the entire world.

Maricha wonders how Ravana could believe that he could rob Seetha from Rama which is equivalent to robbing the Sun of his resplendence. By bringing up this analogy, Maricha tells his king that Rama would make his life miserable just like how it would be if the Sun loses his resplendence and stops being the source of light for the world.

Then he explains to Ravana the beauty of Rama’s relationship with Seetha. Every time he talks about Rama’s resplendence, he continues to emphasize that the quality of almost unbelievably majestic beauty is not only inherent in Rama but is also augmented to a great extent due to Seetha’s presence near him. He elucidates on how Rama thinks of Seetha as his dearest and on how she, in turn, has avowed to follow him alone into eternity, wherever Rama went. He compares Mythili to a blazing ritual fire and expounds how she can never be abused just like the ritual fire!

Now Ravana is totally confused and flabbergasted. He is confused because he came to Maricha for help and gets a big lecture on the qualities of the very person whose wife he wanted to abduct. He is flabbergasted because of the fact that the very person  whom he thought would readily help him in his endeavour was expounding the greatness of the couple whose relationship he wanted to destroy.

But Maricha is not finished yet!

Maricha extols Rama’s character

When Ravana talks about Rama to Maricha, he shudders in fright. He starts explaining to Ravana about what happened in Dandaka forest. He starts off by retelling about Rama’s appearance as a 12-year-old boy. He shares with his king on how Rama as a boy of fewer than twelve years of age had demolished him. Unborn are the identities of adulthood like moustache on Rama’s face, and that providential one was magnificent in looks with a peacock-blue complexion, wearing a single cloth, locks of hair, and golden locket, and wielding a bow, and he was irradiating the Dandaka forest with a radiating radiance of his own, and then he appeared like the just risen baby-moon.

Since Maricha knows that he cannot directly praise Rama’s qualities to his king, he infers a couple of things indirectly through this retelling. By alluding to his moustache and his boyish looks which are natural to humans, Maricha infers to Rama as a human being. By inferring that Rama was wearing a single cloth, he clearly conveys that Vishwamitra was treating the brothers just like he would treat any other young scholar. Also, the single cloth clearly means that Rama was not wearing any armor or shield even when he knew that he would be meeting demons like Tadaka, Subahu, and Maricha.

Rama does not sport princely jewelry, but only a single pendant. His cleanly arranged locks of hair show how his mother Kausalya still treats him as a small boy and arranges his hair in neat locks.  By comparing him to a baby moon, Maricha seems to emphasize Rama’s age during the encounter. For Maricha, everything about Rama cries “boyish” during that frightful meeting, except the bows and the arrows that he unleashed on the demon. The hits that he got from Rama still brings him the jitters so much that he tells Ravana that after that day, he has shuddered every time he even heard someone utter the word RA!

With a parched throat, Maricha goes on to say that Ravana is trying to bring ruin to his race and to his country by planning to abduct Seetha and thus earning Rama’s wrath. He pleads to Ravana not to listen to his informers who have misled him so far. He explains that Rama is neither a renegade nor a criminal and that he is in the forest to honor his father’s words. He begs Ravana not to make Rama his implacable enemy and bring total destruction to his kingdom and people!

Rama in the eyes of Mareecha

Being Ravana’s wife does not stop Mandodari from talking the truth about Rama. In the same vein, there is another person from the same camp talking about Rama, but this time to Ravana himself.

Shurpanakha comes back to Ravana after all her brothers are killed by Rama. Ravana inquires about Rama’s valour and weaponry for which Shuurpanakha narrates about Rama, Seetha, and Lakshmana and what has happened in Janasthaana. Thus, she prompts Ravana to achieve Seetha as his wife, for none surpasses Seetha in her beauty. Ravana is now brainwashed into submission by his sister. So he proceeds to meet Maareecha to seek his help in the abduction of Seetha. In his search for Mareecha, he arrives at a pleasing hermitage in the sacred and scenic interior of the forest.

In this hermitage he sees Maareecha, wearing jute-clothes and black deerskin and tufts of hairs. Maareecha welcomes the king Ravana, offers him meals and drinking water, and venerates him properly before enquiring about the purpose of his visit. Ravana explains his intent of abducting Seetha and asks for Mareecha’s help. He wants Maareecha to assume the shape of a golden-deer and lure Seetha. He is sure that Seetha will ask Rama and Lakshmana to fetch that golden-deer. If Rama and Lakshmana are distracted from the hermitage, Ravana can safely abduct Seetha. On hearing this, Mareecha is dumb-struck.

He explains to Ravana how he was on the rove around this earth, taking pride in his valor, bearing the strength of a thousand elephants, mountainous in his size and black-cloudlike in his sheen, wearing ear-knobs and a crown made out of refined gold, with a bludgeon as his weapon, and how he rambled Dandaka forest causing terror to the world, and eating the fleshes of sages. He shares with his king on how Rama as a boy of less-than-twelve years of age had demolished him. Mareecha continues to exclaim how unborn were the identities of adulthood like moustache on Rama’s face, and that providential one was magnificent in looks with a peacock-blue complexion, wearing a single cloth, locks of hair, and golden locket, and wielding a bow, and how he was irradiating the Dandaka forest with a radiating radiance of his own, and appeared like the just risen baby-moon.

Although to the un-initiated, these may sound like normal extrapolations of a boy entering his boy-hood, there are a couple of hidden meanings that Mareecha is implying when he speaks thus to Ravana. He also speaks more about Rama and how Rama has affected him and his life.

Rama in the eyes of Mandodari

The dialogue between Rama and Garuda clearly showed the state in which Rama was in. Time and again he unleashed the God within him and his human nature according to the situation. There are also multiple situations in Ramayana where others have spoken about him with great reverence since everybody around him identified and acknowledged that he was God.

Rama kills Ravana in a fierce battle which lasts for seven days. He cuts off Ravana’s heads one by one only to see them grow back in place once again. On the seventh day, Matali, Rama’s charioteer is surprised with the prince of Ayodhya. He does not understand why the prince is still fighting the demon. Unable to control his emotions he asks Rama “Why are you still carrying out the battle with Ravana as though you are unaware (of how to dispose of him)?” Then Matali advises him to use the arrow that he received from Brahma through sage Agastya. Rama acknowledges his charioteer, loosens that arrow and kills Ravana.

On Ravana’s death, all his consorts lament his death. They are surprised as to how he was killed by a mere mortal! His wife, Mandodari also laments his death by recollecting his strength and power. But she also knows one thing that others don’t seem to know, that Rama is no ordinary mortal but lord Vishnu himself. She wails that the moment Khara was killed by Rama in Janasthana, the true nature and personality of Rama became evident to her. She goes on to say that- hanuman could jump over the mighty ocean to easily enter Lanka which even the celestials found very difficult to enter and all the monkeys could build a bridge on the great ocean- just by the support that they received from Rama the God. How else could an animal like the monkey whose middle name is instability be disciplined enough to march across India or build a bridge between two countries with floating stones?

She goes on to talk about Rama saying that he is an ascetic person who does not have a beginning or end, is eternal and greater than the distinguished universal spirit like Brahma. She continues that Rama is the nourisher, wielding a conch, a disc and a mace, wearing the ‘Srivatsa’ mark on his chest, of lasting beauty, incapable of being conquered, a perpetual one, being the constant soul of the universe, truly mighty, the lord of all the worlds, the prosperous one having a great splendor and Vishnu, the lord of maintenance of the world with a wish to benefit the worlds, assuming a human form surrounded by all the gods in the form of monkeys. She then consoles herself by saying Ravana died when fighting this Rama and not the ordinary mortal.

The Godliness in Rama was evident even to his enemies and their families. Like Madodari, many others shared their own feelings for Rama as God. Who did that and when?

Rama speaks with Garuda

Garuda comes down personally to save Rama and Lakshmana from the bounds of the deadly Nagastra. After healing them, he lifts the brothers to a sitting position. He then embraces Rama. The senior prince realizes that Garuda is the one who saved both of them from near death. So he offers his salutations to the mighty bird and thanks him for helping them overcome the disaster which was originally created by Indrajit. As a warrior, Rama understands fully, the impact of a leaderless army fighting Ravana.

He compares Garuda to his father Dasaratha and his paternal grandfather Aja and tells the son of Vinata that he is gladdened to meet him.

Then he asks who his savior is!

“Who are you, the one endowed with beauty, having blissful garlands and anointments, wearing clean garments and adorned with divine ornaments?”

He asks this question because he genuinely does not know who Garuda is. Now, does he not know? How can he not identify his own vehicle? Garuda belongs to an elite group known as Nitya Suris. We the Jivatmas are in bondage and go through unending cycles of births and deaths and are called Bhaddhas or Bhaddh-athmas.  People who were once Bhaddh-athmas and have crossed that stage successfully to attain Moksha are called Mukth-athmas. Blessed Souls who were never in this cycle and who are eternally free from any bonds are called Nitya-athmas or Nitya-Suris. Garuda belongs to this group along with Adhisesha and Vishvaksena. They are always by the side of Lord Narayana and submerged in his duties day in and day out.  The question is surprising given the stature of Garuda. From the other side, it is also not very surprising as we all know about Rama by now and to what extent he can go to prove that he is fully human.

Garuda replies thus.

“O, Rama! I am your dearest friend Garuda dear as your own breath moving outside I came here for the purpose of helping you, both.”

Now, the great bird says the princes are his friends. But the prince asks Garuda who he was. Garuda understands that Rama is human now and hence rightfully he does not recognize him for they have never met each other till that instance. He satiates Rama’s curiosity by uttering these words and then flies away to his abode having completed his duty.

“”O, hero! You need not be so curious to know the cause of my friendship. You will know of it once you have accomplished success in battle.”

This dialogue proves how well Rama undertook the human form. The totality of his incarnation is pretty evident from episodes like this.  Whereas at some places, we see him performing Godly acts, there are places where others around him prove that he is God by their acts and speeches…

Rama and Lakshmana saved

Bound by that formidable network of arrows, the two high-souled sons of Dasaratha lay bathed in blood, breathing like serpents. In the meantime, the mighty Rama by virtue of his native strength awoke from his swoon, despite the shafts that held him captive. But Lakshmana is still unconscious.

The elder of the Raghu clan is stricken with grief on seeing his brother’s body lying nearby without any movement. He tells everyone around him that the rescue of Seetha means nothing to him if he were to lose his dear brother in the process. He feels that he can never face Sumitra if he were to return to Ayodhya without Lakshmana. He is so badly shaken that he thinks he cannot fight anymore and even asks Sugriva to return home immediately.

Vibishana enters the scene and is totally taken aback to see Rama in this plight. He consoles him by saying that Lakshmana would be fine and would get up soon. He is also angry that the son of his brother has deceived two honorable fighters using his cunning demonic mind. Sushena, the father in law of Sugriva, tells him that there are herbs of sacred formulas in the ocean of milk, which the celestials used to treat all their injuries during their war with the demons. He also asks his son in law to send some monkeys to get them so that he could treat the fallen brothers.

When they are discussing thus, a great wind arises, accompanied by massive clouds and lightening. The wind whips up salty waves in the ocean and makes the mountains tremble. Trees are uprooted from the mountains. The animals and snakes from the mountains plunge into the ocean.

From the winds arose Garuda, he king of birds and son of Vinata like a blazing torch. Naturally, on seeing him, the snakes released their grips on the brothers and fled away. Taking them into his hands, Garuda caresses their faces with affection. Touched by him, Rama and Lakshmana are healed of their wounds. They regain their shine, radiance, strength, valor, endurance and memory all of which are now doubled.

Would Garuda himself come down to our world to save some ordinary human bound by serpents? His arrival proves that Rama is God. But then, the conversation that happened next will make you tizzy.

Rama slayed by Indrajit

Vibishana chooses the side of Dharma when he chooses Rama as his mentor. Soon the war starts. Monkeys are fighting the mighty asuras with mountains, trees, nails and every other thing they could lay their hands on.

Monkey army engages in hand to hand combat to which the asuras have no answers. They realize that they cannot defeat Rama’s army in daylight. So they wait for the sun to set as their strengths increase in darkness and they can fight with renewed vigor. Angada is fighting Indrajit, Hanuman is pitted against Jambumali and Nala is fighting Pratapana. Warriors from each side pick their opponents and engage them in a fierce personal battle. While the asuras use arrows, maces, and other weapons, the monkey army is using their strong hands, nails, and trees. Sugriva kills Praghasa after being hit by a volley of arrows.

When Angada hits Indrajit, he becomes invisible along with his chariot. The monkeys think that Indrajit is dead and are in a jubilant mood. They hail Angada as a true hero who killes Ravana’s son. But soon Indrajit starts sending out fierce serpentine arrows which entwine all the monkeys rendering them incapable. Rama and Lakshmana are also hit by these arrows and fall down unconscious.

Sugurva’s entire army is desponded on seeing the two brothers tied by the serpents and lying unconscious in the battle field. They don’t know what to do. The arrows are shot with such precision that the brothers are bounded by them in a twinkling of an eye. They are covered by numerous arrows and fall down like a cut tree. Blood is gushing from them like water from a tap.

The entire monkey army is now gathered around the brothers of the Raghu Clan. They are depressed. Vibishana comes to the spot and identifies Indrajit through his powers. He realizes that it was Indrajit who fell the brothers with magic and the serpentine arrows. He then tries to encourage his army by saying that both Rama and Laskhmana are not dead and would surely raise from this position.  Meanwhile, Indrajit informs Ravana that he has killed both Rama and Lakshmana. Ravana is overjoyed.

Is Rama really dead? Can God die? Is Rama proving us that he is humane by dying?