Article sent from The Hindu on indiaserver.com

[Guest guest]

=============================================================

This article is emailed to you by Ram Chandran ( rchandran )

=============================================================

Source: The Hindu (http://www.the-hindu.com)

 

God, the ultimate refuge of mankind

 

CHENNAI, JAN. 13. The crux of the doctrine of surrender to God as

the sole refuge is the fact that He alone can rescue the

suffering humanity from bondage. Due to attachment human beings

believe that their kith and kin will come to their rescue in

times of distress. This may be true of normal difficult

situations in which instinctively one turns to the person one is

dependent on emotionally. But, it is important to understand the

subtle truth that one will be able to get relief only to the

extent it is humanly possible from others.

 

Ultimately it is divine grace which guides the destiny of human

beings and by understanding this truth and submitting totally to

His will, it will be possible to face the vicissitudes of life

with equanimity of mind. If this is true of even worldly problems

it goes without saying that the Lord alone can liberate man from

the trauma of transmigration.

 

The epic Ramayana has been interpreted by scholars as a scripture

expounding the concept of Self-surrender (Prapatti, Saranagati).

The Lord's manifestation as Rama happened when the celestials

surrendered to Him when they could not tolerate the atrocities of

Ravana who had become so invincible that he posed a threat to

even them.

 

Each episode in the epic has been interpreted by commentators to

highlight the purpose of the Lord's incarnation which was to help

the devout who had sought refuge in Him. For instance, the reason

why Rama befriended Sugriva and not Vali who was stronger of the

two, must be seen against Vali's unrighteous behaviour and his

friendship with Ravana who also was given to unlawful ways. By

punishing Vali and giving the kingdom to Sugriva, the Lord sent a

signal to Ravana to mend his ways though he did not heed anyone's

advice, said Kalyanapuram Sri R. Aravamudan in his discourse.

 

The Almighty's manifestation in the man-lion form, Narasimha, to

fulfil the conditions of the boon granted to the demon-king

Hiranyakasipu, was similarly to save His child-devotee, Prahlada,

who had surrendered to Him unconditionally. The Lord had promised

that He would incarnate in this instance when the scriptures,

cows and the devout faced threat and extinction.

 

The case of the Lord coming to the rescue of His elephant-

devotee, Gajendra, was also because of its devotion to Him. The

Bhagavata Purana says that realising that its kith and kin would

not be able to save it from the snare of Providence which had

caught it in the form of the alligator, Gajendra turned to the

ultimate refuge, the Almighty, for protection and He rushed to

its aid.

 

Copyrights: 2000 The Hindu & Tribeca Internet Initiatives Inc.

 

Republication or redissemination of the contents of this screen are expressly

prohibited without the consent of The Hindu & Tribeca Internet Initiatives Inc.