Rama Katha Rasa Vahini - Post 16

Chapter 3

Ravana, the Rakshasa King of Lanka, heard of Dasaratha and his fame. He was so filled with envy that he determined on a sure plan to destroy him, by means, fair or foul. Ravana sought for an excuse to provoke Dasaratha into a fight; one day, he sent word through a messenger, that unless tribute was paid to him, he would have to meet Ravana on the battlefield and demonstrate his superior might in war. This call was against international morality, but what morality did a Rakshasa respect?

When Dasaratha heard the messenger speak, he laughed outright, in derision. Even while the messenger was looking on, he shot sharp deadly arrows which reached Lanka itself and fastened the gates of that City!

Addressing the envoys, Dasaratha said, "Well, Sirs! I have now made fast the doors of your fortress city; your master cannot open them, however hard he may try; that is the 'tribute' I pay to your impertinent lord". 

When the envoys returned and informed Ravana of this, he was shocked to find all the doors closed fast; the desperate efforts made by Ravana with all his men met with failure; they could not open the gates. When Ravana was struck with shame, strangely enough, the arrows returned to Ayodhya and the doors flew open.

Ravana, however, decided that he must overpower all the rulers of the world and, realizing that he could do so only by winning Divine Grace, he went over to the depths of the forest and selected a favourable, auspicious spot for his ascetic practices.

The asceticism of Ravana was so intense and satisfying that God Brahma was compelled to appear before him and offer to grant him whatever boon he desired. "Ravana! Ask for anything you want! I shall give you your heart's desire", said Brahma. 

Ravana was revolving in his mind the insult he had suffered at the hands of Dasaratha; he argued that Dasaratha might get even mightier sons from whom he might suffer more; so, he asked the boon he wanted, "Lord! Bless me with this gift of Grace: let no child be born from the loins of Dasaratha".

At this, Brahma said, "So be it", and immediately vanished from the scene, lest Ravana might frame another foul request if He were present before him! Ravana strutted about, proud and devoid of fear, exulting over his prowess and success.

Meanwhile, another project entered his head! "Dasaratha is a youth of marital age now; if I so contrive that he does not marry at all, it will make my safety doubly sure", he thought within himself! Looking about with the aid of his Rakshasa skills, he discerned that there was a great likelihood that Dasaratha will wed the daughter of the King of Kosala. So, he decided to put an end to that princess! When one's own destruction is imminent, reason turns crooked - as the saying goes! He entered the Kosala kingdom stealthily in disguise and kidnapped the princess. Placing her in a wooden box, he cast it over the waves of the sea.

Continued…

Love.

Rama Katha Rasa Vahini - Post 15

At this, the sage melted a little and said, 'O weak one! It is not possible for me to retake my words. But I shall indicate an occasion when you will be released. Listen! The moment a flower from heaven drops on your head, your human frame will fall and you can return to Heaven. Indumathi is that divine damsel and she has found her release this day. When a flower I wore fell on her, she rid herself of the curse. Why grieve over this? It is of no avail.' Narada spoke of the duties of a monarch and his responsibility and the example he must set before all; he spoke of the evanescent nature of life and the mystery of death, the ultimate fate of all beings that are born. After this, Narada wended his way across the sky.

Unable to save his beloved, Aja performed the obsequies and reached the capital city. He was heavy with grief; only Prince Dasaratha could give him some consolation and renew his will to live; he spent his days in morose dreariness. Since Dasaratha was now a full-grown youth, Aja made over the kingdom to him and sat on the bank of the Sarayu river, bent on fulfilling the vow of "non-acceptance of food", (Anasana). Denying himself the sustenance to continue, he caused his life to ebb away.

As soon as Dasaratha heard the news, he hastened quickly to the Sarayu bank, and bewailed the loss of his dear father. He arranged for the funeral without delay and felt some relief that his father had given up life through a ritualistic vow. He drew some strength from this fact and resumed his duties as the Ruler, with full mastery of all his varied faculties.

Within a short time, the fame of Dasaratha illumined all quarters, like the rays of the rising Sun. He had the intrepidity and skill of ten charioteers rolled into one and so, the name Dasaratha (The-ten-chariot hero) was found appropriate. No one could stand up against the onrush of his mighty chariot! Every contemporary ruler, mortally afraid of his prowess, paid homage to his throne. The world extolled him as a hero without equal, a paragon of virtue, a statesman of highest stature.

2nd chapter ends

Dear All,

Swami said on death, 

"Feel that you are born with the dawn of every day; that you nestle in the lap of death when your eyes close in sleep. For, what happens in deep sleep? The body, the senses, the mind, the intelligence – all is negated and there is no trace of awareness of the world. Know that waking from sleep is but birth and going into sleep is death."

Echoing the same thoughts, Swami Sivananda Says,

"Death is not the opposite of life. It is only a phase of life. Life flows on ceaselessly. The fruit perishes, but the seed is full of life. The seed dies, but a huge tree grows out of the seed. The tree perishes, but it becomes coal which has a rich life. Water disappears, but it becomes the invisible steam which contains the seed of a new life. The stone disappears, but it becomes lime which is full of new life. The physical sheath only is thrown, but life persists. 

Dissolution of the body is no more than sleep. Just as man sleeps and wakes up, so is death and birth. Death is like sleep. Birth is like waking up. Death brings promotion to new, better life. A man of discrimination and wisdom is not afraid of death. He knows that death is the gate of life. Death, to him, is no longer a skeleton bearing a sword to cut the thread of life, but rather an angel who has a golden key to unlock for him the door to a far wider, fuller, and happier existence. 

Birth follows death, just as waking follows sleep. You will again resume the work that was left off by you in your previous life. Therefore do not be afraid of death. 

Birth and death are jugglery of Maya. He who is born begins to die. He who dies begins to live. Life is death and death is life. Birth and death are merely doors of entry and exit on the stage of this world. 

Just as you move from one house to another house, the soul passes from one body to another to gain experience. Just as a man, casting off worn out garments, takes new ones, so the dweller in this body, casting off worn-out bodies, enters into others which are new. 

Death is painful to worldly man. A Yogi or a sage, or even a real aspirant, has no fear of death. A desireless man never weeps when he dies. A full-blown Jnani  never dies. His Prana never departs. 

Your highest duty is to prepare for a peaceful life hereafter. Conquer the fear of death. Conquest of the fear of death, conquest of death, is the highest utility of all spiritual Sadhana. The one aim of all Yoga Sadhana is to meet death fearlessly and joyfully.

O man, do not be afraid of death at all. Death is Maya's illusory phenomenon. Death is dissolution of the elements. Thou art immortal, Amara (immortal).

Love.

Rama Katha Rasa Vahini - Post 14

The death of the woman he loved as intimately as his own breath caused desperate grief to the ruler; his lamentation shook the forest from end to end. The earth quaked in sympathy; the trees stood still, rooted in wonder at the sorrow that filled the royal heart and overflowed it. 

Narada heard the wail of the king - his sobs and groans - as he wept over the corpse of his beloved. He came down to console his agony. "Raja!", he said, "sorrow is of no avail when death strikes; the body is prone to birth and death; what brings about birth brings about death too; to seek to know why they happen is an exercise in insanity. 

The acts of God are beyond the cause-and-effect chain. Ordinary intellects cannot unravel them; they can at best guess the reason, as far as their faculties can reach. How can the intellect grasp something out of its domain?

"Death is inevitable for each embodied being. However, since the death of Indumathi is resonant with strangeness, I have to tell you its reason", Narada said. He drew Aja near and said, "Listen! In former days, the sage Thrnabindu was engaged in extreme asceticism, and Indra resolved to test his attainments and the depth of his equanimity. 

He dispatched a Divine Enchantress, named Harini, to attract him into the world of sensualism. But, the sage was immune to her wiles and remained unaffected. He opened his eyes and said, ‘You do not seem to be an ordinary woman! You are perhaps a godly damsel. Well, whoever you are, you must suffer the penalty for resolving to execute a foul deed, a nefarious plan!’ 

Be born as a human being, fallen from heaven; learn what it is to be a mortal human. Cursing her thus, the sage closed his eyes and plunged into meditation again.

Harini shook with fear and shed profuse tears of repentance; she prayed for pardon and for cancellation of her exile from heaven, she pleaded pathetically for the removal of the curse. 

Continued...

Love.