Adhyatma Ramayanam Day 29. Uttarakandham Contd

Adhyatma Ramayanam Day 29. Uttarakandham Contd.

Audiobook Link - Adhyatma Ramayanam  40.20 m

Ramayanam Kilippaattu Day 29 രാമായണമാസം - ദിവസം  29

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hnj-VBpVQig

Uttarakandham Contd.

The Dialogue Between Nimi and Vasishta

Rama continued: “Lakshmana, listen. I will tell you the story of Nimi, a great king of the yore who lived near the Ashram of Gautama. He wanted to do a Yagna and sought help from his Guru, Vasishta. Vasishta told him that Lord Indra had already asked for his help for a Yagya and after completing that one, he would return to conduct the one for Nimi. Vasishta left for Amaralaya, the city of Gods. In the meantime, Nimi engaged the sage Gautama and conducted the Yagna successfully. It took thousand years before Vasishta returned and when he reached Nimi’s palace, the king was asleep. So, there was no formal welcome afforded to him. Vasishta was already displeased with the king for engaging another sage to conduct the Yagna and now he felt insulted by the king. He cursed the king: “May your body and soul stay separated!”. Hearing this Nimi cursed the sage the same, in retaliation. They both became body-less, in the form of air. Vasishta, the son of Lord Brahma went to see his father to complain. He suggested that he can get a body if Mitra & Varuna would jointly donate sperm and deposit it in the womb of the celestial damsel, Urvashi. But the process of retrieving the sperms from the two and depositing them in Urvashi did not work out on time. But sage Agastya was born to Lord Brahma, out of a pot followed by the creation of Vasishta’s body. Mitra cursed Urvashi for failing in the experiment: “May you become the wife of a human being!” So, she became the wife of king Pururavas.  Nimi’s soul still did not get a new body and the sages offered to create a body for him. But he declined the offer saying, “body is the root cause of all sorrows and I do not want a body for myself. But I will live on the eyelids (nimi) of all the creatures. When the sages turned the separated body of Nimi, a king by the name Mithi was created. His lineage was known as Videha, meaning the ones who were not born out of bodies. As the king was born (janana) by the process of Madhana, churning, they are known as the Janakas.”

“How come Nimi cursed Vasishta? They are not a match to each other based on their penance and spiritual awakening.” 

“Not everyone is endowed with patience and that is what happened here. Now listen to another story. In the Soma dynasty, there was a king Pururavas whose son was Ayus. Nahusha was his son, and Yayati was his grandson. Suka’s daughter Devayani was Yayati’s wife. Sharmishta, daughter of Vrishaparva was also his wife. Yadu and Turvashu were the children of Devayani. Druhyu, Anudruhyu, and Puru were Sharmishta’s children. Devayani was upset that the king was more attached to Sharmishta. She complained about it to her father, Shukra, and he cursed Yayati. “May you suffer from old age!” 

The king was worried about having the body of an old man at a young age and called his son Yadu and asked him to give him his youth in exchange for his old age. He was not willing to do that quoting that it would be inappropriate for him to do so. He then asked his other son, Puru and he readily agreed thinking that it would bring him virtues in this life and the afterlife. became young again, and Puru, an old man at a young age. The king was pleased with Puru and lived happily enjoying his youthful body for a long time. After a while, he took back his old age from Puru and gave him his youth and made him the king to following him. He cursed his other sons: “May you lose all your royal qualities and insignia.” In this story, Yayati did not give a return curse to Shukra due to his good nature. We also should not fall into a trap that happened to Nriga. If there is anyone out there wanting to see me, please bring him to me.” Thus, Rama and Lakshmana spent time telling stories and it was almost dawn. They both got themselves busy in their royal duties. 

The Arrival of Sages Kanchana and other Rishis

When the sages Kanchana and others arrived at the gate of Ayodhya, the doorkeeper went to Rama and informed him of their arrival. They had brought auspicious gifts with them, and the king received them paying respects. After the pleasantries, Rama asked them: “I trust that everything is fine with you all. Are you facing any difficulties in conducting your daily Tapas? I am bound to protect sages and Brahmanas who are engaged in penance for everyone’s benefit. I will forsake my wealth, kingdom, and even my life for that. So, please tell me what you need me to do, and I will ensure that is done immediately.” 

Hearing this the sages replied. “Who else will offer such an unconditional assurance without even thinking whether our request is achievable or not? Oh! King, may you always prosper! Since you asked, we will tell you what is in our minds. Long ago, there was an Asura by the name Madhu. He was devoted and his penance was accepted by Lord Siva who blessed and gave him a divine spear. The spear was a special one that after killing the enemy, it would come back to the owner. But Mahadeva warned him that if he ever abuses the weapon by disturbing the cows, Brahmanas, or Devas, it will be withdrawn. Then Madhu requested the Lord: ‘please bless me to hand over this to my children when I die so that it will become our family weapon.’. 

Mahadeva said: “I cannot allow that, but as you wished for it, I will allow you to transfer it to one of your sons. He will not be able to pass it on to the next generation. If the spear is in his hands, he will not face death. After he dies, the spear will return to me.” Madhu prostrated at the feet of Siva and received the spear with great devotion. Madhu had a son by the name of Lavana and he was a cruel fellow from an early age. He started troubling sages and Madhu tried to advise him against it. Madhu, disappointed with his son’s behavior went to the forest to do penance again. He had given the spear to Lavana, and he became more aggressive and violent towards noble and pious people. The whole world suffered a lot under this Rakshasa, and we are here to report our distress. Ordinary kings cannot kill him, and we know, it would be easy for you, as you have killed the mighty Ravana.” 

Then Rama asked them to give him the details of Lavana’s whereabouts and his daily routines and food habits. Sages replied that he lives in Madhu Vana, follows the Rudra rituals, and his food was mainly fresh flesh of humans and animals. 

Rama assured that he will put an end to the demon’s atrocities. Then he turned to his brothers and asked: “Who wants to take care of this?” “I will do it”, Bharatha was ready. Then Shatrughna came forward and said: “Let me do this for you. When you were in the forest, brother Bharatha looked after the kingdom for you. Brother Lakshmana came with you and served you. I could not serve you in any of these times and I request you to let me do this.” Rama agreed. “You go and kill Madhu’s son and be victorious all the time. After that, you can establish a kingdom there. We will coronate you in advance as the king of Madhu Forest.” Then Shatrughna replied: “It is not right to coronate a younger brother when the older ones are there. Please do not let me incur the sin of disobedience.” 

“You do not worry about it as I am telling you, it is dharmic for you to reign a kingdom on your own.” Rama, with the help of Vasishta and his brothers, crowned Shatrughna as the King of Madhu Forest. Before starting his trip, Shatrughna prostrated at the feet of Rama, and he embraced him. “Listen, I have a special arrow that was used to annihilate the demons, Madhu and Kaitabha. With that arrow with you, you would be able to kill anyone. But be careful; I haven’t used it on anyone because of its effect on the universe. It can destroy the whole world. Also do not ignore the power of the spear given to Lavana by Yama, the god of death. You should approach the demon, only if he does not have his spear in his hands. I will tell you how to do this. In the early mornings, Lavana will go out to hunt for meat, and when he comes back, make sure that he does not go inside his house to get hold of his spear and start your fight. Please proceed; cross the river Ganga and kill the demon. Take four thousand horses and hundred thousand soldiers and enough wealth with you.” He took blessings from the brothers, gurus, sages, and the mothers. He reached the Ashram of Valmiki first and took rest for the evening, accepting the sage’s reception. After dinner, Shatrughna asked the sage: “Who from the Surya Clan did a great Yagna here a long time ago?”

The Story of Soudasa

Valmiki told him about a king Mitrasaha, son of Sudasa, a king of the Surya Clan. He was interested in hunting, and he used to kill wild animals for enjoyment. He came to know that there were two Rakshasas in the forest in the guise of tigers and he killed one of them. The other Rakshasa threatened to avenge the death of his friend. Soudasa became the king when Sudasa died. He did a Yagna as advised by sage Vasishta. There the Rakshasa arrived in the guise of Vasishta and demanded Soudasa to make a meat dish for dinner. The king happily arranged for making the meat dish. The Rakshasa again changed form and came as the meat supplier and brought human flesh, instead of animal meat, for cooking. Unbeknownst to him, the king served the dish to Vasishta. The sage was furious: “How audacious! How come you are serving me human meat? Don’t you know I am a Brahmana? I curse you to live as a demon, eating human flesh, wandering in forests” 

Later the sage came to know the truth and wanted to make amends. “My words will not go futile, but the effect of the curse will end in twelve years. Also, you will not have any memory of having led such a demonic life after that period.” After the twelve years of lowly life, Soudasa regained his kingdom, and this is the location of their Yagna. As they slept in the Ashram, at the midnight, a disciple of Valmiki came and told him the news of Sita’s delivery. “Sita Devi delivered two dynamic, beautiful boys.” Shatrughna was elated to hear the news. The sage did the rituals associated with the birth of the babies.

The Killing of Lavana

Shatrughna got ready early in the morning and started his journey. He reached the banks of river Kalindi and stayed there at a hermitage along with his army. He heard stories from the sages and enjoyed the Satsang. He asked a sage if he knew about anyone who was killed by the Asura using his special spear.  He narrated the story of Mandhata, a king who wanted to conquer the three worlds. He had already won over the earth, and he was about to attack the heavens. Shukra, the guru of Rakshasas was not sure if he could accomplish that. So, he asked him if he had won over Lavana of Madhu Forest. Mandhata went to Madhuvan and challenged Lavana. As soon as the Rakshasa arrived with the Yama Spear to fight the king, he became a fistful of ashes. The sage concluded: “We should fear the Yama spear, so be careful.”

Shatrughna got up very early and went to see Lavana at the tower gate when the Rakshasa was out to get his meat. The son of Madhu, Lavana came back before noon. Seeing Shatrughna fully prepared for a fight, he said: “Several kings have come to challenge me, but I sent all of them to heaven. Come to think of it, it is nice that you are here today. Today, I did not get enough flesh in my hunt, and I can satisfy my appetite with your flesh.” 

Shatrughna was furious hearing his boasting. “I am not going to postpone the fight as it is not becoming of a warrior king.” Lavana plucked a group of trees and hit Shatrughna, but it was stopped by the arrows. Then Shatrughna shot the arrow Rama had given him. That hit the Rakshasa and cut his head off. The arrow went to the sea and got washed by itself, before coming back to Shatrughna’s quiver. The sages in the banks of Yamuna rejoiced. In four years, Shatrughna was able to clean the Madhuvan off all the Rakshasas and made it into a magnificent city. There were forts, trenches, and towers around the city of Mathura, and it was shining better than the Amarapuri of the Devas. Shatrughna lived there for a while and then went to see Sage Valmiki at his hermitage. Then he went to Ayodhya and paid his respects to his brothers and elders in the palace. Mothers blessed him and Rama embraced him dearly. He narrated to Rama how he killed Lavana, and how he established the city of Mathura. After spending a few days in Ayodhya, Rama told him that it was time for him to return to Mathura. Shatrughna was upset that his brother was forcing him to go away from his presence. Rama consoled him: “You are still a young boy, it seems! I want you to look after the city and the kingdom you have built up so well, spending a lot of time and effort. Look after the kingdom and you may visit me any time. Take enough wealth with you, along with arms and warriors as much as you need.” Shatrughna lived in Mathura, reigning his small kingdom.

Moksha of Shambuka

In Ayodhya, there was a pious Brahmana, leading a house holder’s life. He had a son, but when the boy was five years of age, he died suddenly. The Brahmana was grief-stricken, and he rushed to the gate of Rama’s palace carrying the body of his son. Rama asked his guru Vasishta the reason for this to occur. They reported that it happened due to the severe penance done by Shambuka, a person belonging to a lower Varna. “If you kill him, the boy will come back alive,” they told him. Rama asked the Brahmana to preserve the boy’s body in an oil bath until he returns. He mentally ordered the Pushpaka to come and went around the kingdom to see if there was any adharma being practiced anywhere. He could not see adharma anywhere and finally reached the Southern province where he met with a person doing a strange penance. He was hung upside down, motionless from the branch of a tree. Rama asked him: “You seem to be very proficient in the penance you are doing. But what is your purpose of undertaking such a harsh penance? He prostrated at Rama’s feet and narrated his story.

“I am Shambhuka, A Soodra by birth. I am an ardent devotee who is longing for moksha. My mind is immersed in Paramatma, and I do not seek anything else. Lord, you show me the path to achieve that.” Hearing this, Rama took his sword and cut his head off, thus redeeming him from the cycle of birth and death. The Brahmana boy was alive again and the Devas showered flowers from the sky.

In Ayodhya, Indra came and told Rama that he is going to attend a great Yagna to be presided by the sage Agastya, son of Lord Brahma. “The sage will be excited to see you with us.” They took the Pushpaka flight and reached the Ashram of sage Agastya. They were elated to see each other after so long. The sage said: “I came to know about you giving moksha to Shambuka to save the life of the Brahmin boy. I see you in my mind’s eye all the time. Please stay with us tonight. It is so hard to get the Satsang of great men. You can leave tomorrow morning in Pushpaka.”  Sage Agastya showed him a peculiar ornament, very beautiful and special. “It was hand-made by Vishwakarma, and I do not see anyone more suited to wear this than you, Rama.” So, saying, the sage gifted that necklace to Rama. Rama accepted it gracefully. “I would like to know how you got it.” Asked Rama.

“When I was walking in the Dandaka Forest, I saw a pristine lake and a dead body near it. Suddenly I saw a Vimana in the sky and a divine being fully decked in ornaments and royal regalia with celestial men and women serving him. He had the beauty surpassing that of Kamadeva, but suddenly he entered the lake and ate up the dead body. I asked him: “You seem to be a Deva, but you are eating the dead body of a man! How come you are doing the unthinkable?” 

Then he told me: “There was a king by the name Sudeva, in Vidarbha. He had two sons, I am the older one Shwetan and my brother is Suratha. When my father passed away, I became the king. But I got fed up with the royal duties and decided to do Tapas to get a better afterlife. I made Suratha the king and went to do penance near this lake. In time, I left my body and reached heaven. I enjoyed the heavenly comforts, but I felt sad because of hunger and thirst. We did not have anything to eat and drink. I went and asked Lord Brahma about it. “I am not sure what I did wrong, but in heaven, we do not have anything to eat and drink. Please tell me what I should be eating. Please give me food, Oh! Compassionate one.” 

“You have not done any food donation in your life; you took care of just your body, and that is the reason why you are experiencing this in heaven. Your body is in the lake; go and eat it daily. It would be very tasty for you, and it will not be exhausted even if you eat it every day. You have to do this until you meet sage Agastya when he will tell you to stop this nonsense.” I have been eating my own body for a long time. You are here to redeem me”. He gave me this ornament as a gift and then went to heaven in the Vimana. It is not easy to know the dharma and adharma, appropriate to different situations. 

The sage wanted Rama to wear the ornament and Rama obliged. Then Rama asked: “How come there are no animals in this forest?

History of Danda Forest

Agastya told Rama: “In the Surya Clan, there was this mighty emperor Iswaku, who had a hundred sons. The youngest of them was Danda. His father knew that Danda will be afflicted with a bad disease sometime in his life. He made a country near the Vindhya mountains, measured one hundred Yojana in width, and made Danda the king. He had Shukra as his Guru and lived happily there. One day in the month of Chaitra, he went to see his Guru and met a beautiful young girl near the Ashram. He got smitten by love and lust and went to her and expressed his desire. She told him not to talk to her with such demands, but he could approach her father and if he agrees, she will oblige. “But if you are trying forcefully take me, my father will curse you and that will crush you.” Danda was impatient and he raped her and went to his palace immediately. Shukra saw his daughter in distress having been violated by the king, cursed the king: “May you and your army along with your wealth become ash forthwith! May that ash rain all over the kingdom for seven days! My dear daughter, you can stay near the lake, without any trouble from the ash.” He arranged for the sages and Brahmanas in the country to stay outside the kingdom. The whole area became a thick forest in no time, known as Dandaka Forest.”

The sage and Sri Rama did the oblations and pooja for the evening and retired for the night. They spent the night telling stories and when it was sunrise, Rama bid goodbye to the sage and left the ashram on Pushpaka. In Ayodhya, he narrated to Bharatha and Lakshmana, what happened.

Importance of Aswamedha Yaga

Rama called his brothers, Bharatha and Lakshmana, and told them: “You are indeed my Atman, and I am ruling the kingdom for you. I desire to do a Yaga, but you should think about it and tell me openly the pros and cons of doing it now. Bharatha said: All great men have prospered doing Yagas. Mitra, Varuna, Moon, and Kubera have done major Yagas. If you plan to do one, you must undertake a grand one, the Aswamedha Yaga.”  

“It is the greatest of all Yagas”, Lakshmana reminded Rama. “But there are other types of Yagas too. For example, the demon Vritra did a Yaga. His body was huge: three hundred Yojana tall and one-third of that wide. He started a Tapas to ensure winning over all enemies. Indra came to know about it as the demon was trying to get control of the three worlds. Indra went to the milky ocean and prayed to Lord Padmanabha. He got the Lord’s blessings and Indra wanted an assurance that he will annihilate the demon. But Lord Vishnu told him: “Vritra is a great devotee, and I cannot kill him. But with my spear, Shakthi, you can try fighting with him. You should ask the sage Dadhichi to donate a bone from his body and make a spear with it. Request Vishwakarma to make one for you. You can use it to kill the Asura.” Lord Vishnu went back to his Yoga sleep. Indra prepared the spear and fought with the asura, killing Vritra cunningly, after a great fight. Since Vritra was a devotee, the murder caused Indra to incur a Brahma-hatya level sin. That resulted in Indra losing sleep and being unable to eat.

Sages advised Indra to conduct an Aswamedha Yaga to get rid of his sin. The sin was divided into four parts and distributed the parts in the water foams, in murderers of Brahmanas, in places of gambling, and in the places where ladies spend time during their menses. Indra was relieved. Aswamedha Yaga is such a powerful one.” 

Then Rama narrated another incident. “Ila, the mighty king was hunting, and he reached a place called Ilavrita. The place is such that every man who ventures into Ilavrita will become a lady immediately. The king also turned into a lady, and ‘she’ roamed around in the forest when Buddha happened to see ‘her’ and got infatuated. 

The king went home to regain his manhood and prayed to Lord Siva requesting his help.  But Mahadeva asked him to approach Parvati. He propitiated Parvati and she appeared. She said: I can give you half the blessing to regain your manhood, the other half needs to be obtained from Mahadeva. So, you will be a woman for a month and then become a man for the next month and alternatively, you can live the lives of a man and a woman. You will not feel any ‘woman sensations’ while you are a man and vice versa.” 

“‘She’ became pregnant with Buddha’s seed and Pururavas was born. He became a famous king, and he was the first king of the Surya clan. King Ila had to go through this ordeal due to Lord Siva’s curse and the sages advised the king to conduct Aswamedha Yaga to please him. After the Yaga was concluded, Mahadeva blessed the king and gave him moksha. Such is the importance of Ashvamedha Yaga, Rama reminded.”