AcArya rAmAmRtam - Feb 06 - 1

[Guest guest]

SrI:

SrImate ra’ngarAmAnuja mahAdeSikAya nama:

SrImate SrInivAsa rAmAnuja mahAdeSikAya nama:

SrImate vedAnta rAmAnuja mahAdeSikAya nama:

SrI ra’nganAtha divya maNi pAdukAbhyAm nama:

SrI ra’ngarAmAnuja mahAdeSika divya pAdukAbhyAm nama:

 

AcArya rAmAmRtam - Feb 06 - 1

Translation of

SrImad rAmAyaNa upanyAsam in tamizh by SrImad

tirukkuDandai ANDavan

 

As published in SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA by

SrI U.Ve. nATTEri kiDAmbi rAjagopAlAcAriyAr (Editor

of SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA)

 

The footnotes are indicated by the letters “fn”

followed by a number.

 

SrImad ANDavan tiruvaDi,

kalyANi kRshNamAcAri

 

 

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SrI:

AcArya rAmAmRtam

SrImad rAmAyaNa upanyAsam by SrImad tirukkuDandai

ANDavan

 

guhan is a hunter. SabarI is also a huntress. He

(rAman) ate the fruits offered by SabarI. So many

people in the world make tiffin for rAman and offer it

to Him; vAlmIki asked rAman which was the best tea

party among the many offerings. rAman went to

Sarabha’nga ASramam, bharadvAja ASramam, agastya’s

ASramam and has eaten in these places. He went to

sutIkshNa’s ASramam. He went to all these ASramams.

Who fed Him the best food? I have been to several

places. If you ask me which place had the best

tadIyArAdhanam, what can I say? Everybody does

something… If you ask which is best .. what can I say?

(audience laughs). SabaryA pUjita: samyak (in the

proper or appropriate manner). PerumAL went to so many

Rshis’ hermitages, but vAlmIki declares that SabarI’s

ArAdhanam was the best. In samkshepa rAmAyaNam,

everything is condensed, and only important events are

included. . “SabaryA pUjita: samyak rAmo

daSarathAtmaja:” is included without fail - SabarI

is the only person who did pUjai fit for a prince.

 

There is a humorous thing in rAmAyaNam. She was from

the hunter community. She was in an ASramam for

Rshi-s. All the Rshis left over time. She was waiting

for rAman. That guhan was a hunter. He was a close

friend of rAman. guhan brought all kinds of fruits

for Him, but He did not eat there. He ate in this

female hunter’s place. guhan was also a hunter and he

gave fruits. rAma told him: “nAham pratigrahe vartte’

– I have come to live in forest for 14 years; I cannot

take from anyone else’; and then he told LakshmaNa:

‘lakshmaNa jalam Ahara’- saumitra, bring water.

lakshmaNa brought water from the ganges river in a

lotus leaf; He drank that water and said that was

enough for the night. What else could He do, in a

place where nothing is available? guhan brought so

many fruits. rAma declined. What does He do in

SabarI’s ASramam? SabaryA pUjita: samyak rAmo

daSarAthAtmaja: - He goes and eats in SabarI’s

ASramam. He has not eaten here, and he has eaten

there. “Here, it is too close to ayodhyA; let us not

eat here; people may come to know of it…” (the whole

audience laughs). Some people will say ‘parAnnam’

(will not eat in another person’s place) and refuse to

eat in some places. What is that? I will tell you

the reason when we come to kishkindA kANDam. If I

tell you right now, you may think I am too easy to get

information from (audience laughs). ‘konvasmin

sAmpradam loke guNavAn’ – who is the one who is

endowed with sauSIlyam? He talks about 16 guNams or

characteristics, right? These 16 guNams have to be

explained in 24000 Slokams. That is all what rAmAyaNam

is about. Because it has so many aspects, this is the

reason that people have been listening to it from

tretA yugam till today. What one upanyAsaka might not

say, someone else will say; it has so many meanings.

He (vAlmIki) asks – kaSca vIryavAn dharmaj~naSca

kRtaj~naSca satya vAkyo dRDha vrata: …. “vidvAn ka:”

He asked - “vidvAn ka:” The one who has all these

characteristics must be a vidvAn also. Then,

samarthaSca – he should be a vidvAn, and in addition,

he has to be one who is capable as well (in applying

that knowledge). Normally learned men are not capable

also – that is the common observation. Wherever you

go, you cannot find the sAmarthyam in them. VidvAns

must be skilled also. This person that vAlmIki is

seeking should be a vidvAn among vidvAns, but should

also be a samarthan (skilled – in applying the

vidvat). kaScaika priyadarSana: - with all these

characteristics, he should be good-looking also.

Whoever sees him should think he is handsome.

Everybody is good-looking in the eyes of their own

folks. A baby is remarkably dark like the black

stove. (The mother) calls the baby “paTTE! (silk),

muttE! (pearl). If you ask her what name she has

given to the baby, she will say ‘paTTu’. If you say,

‘but, your baby is dark; how can you call it

‘paTTu’?’, she will say “isn’t there black silk?’

(laughter in the audience). In everyone’s eyes, their

own close ones will look attractive.. . vAlmIki is

asking for the person who looks attractive to

everybody’s eyes. kaScaika priyadarSana: - he should

look priya darSanan, whoever looks at him. “You

should tell me who is like that”. He should be a

virtuous man; and being virtuous, he should also be

handsome. It is not enough if he is priya darSanan in

the eyes of the Rshi-s - na kevalam RshINAm, na

kevalam manushyANAm, sarveshAm api priyadarSanam – he

should be good-looking in everyone’s opinion. Not for

just people from his country; even if he goes to

mithilA, the boy should be thought of as beautiful.

He went to mithilA. “tOL kaNDAr tOLE kaNDAr, kamalam

anna tAL kaNDAr tALE kaNDAr taDakkai kANDArum ahdE”

 

Same was the case in ayOdhyA. If the Rshi-s look at

Him, they also feel that way. “rUpa samhananam

lakshmIm saukumAryam suveshatAm rAmasya vismitAkArA:

dadRSur-vanavAsina: “ when the Rshi-s saw His form

and beauty, they were all surprised. (… I will finish

in 5 minutes – says AcAryan) Look at the words that

vAlmIki uses – vanavAsina: - Rshi-s in the forest

were taken by surprise when they saw rAman. Who is a

vanavAsi? “neDum kAlam Saraginai vizhu`ngi kARRinai

puSittu irundataRku payan peRRArgaL enRa paDi” (for a

long time, they were surviving by consuming the dry

leaves that fell by themselves from the trees after

becoming dry, or living on air as food intake, and

doing penance to have a darSanam of some big

purushArtham; and now these Rshi-s suddenly find the

result of their effort. A Rshi was having a vow of

silence for a month. Another was performing a hOmam

for a month, with the firm resolve not to move away

from the homam till it is completed. And rAman was

passing through this area in daNDakAraNyam..

 

maNivaDambini tasya manohare

vapushi maghnA manA: muni maNDalee |

japam amu’ncata homam amu’ncata

vratam amu’ncata vedam amu’ncata ||

 

The one who was doing japam, left that japam, got up

asking Him “rAma, are you doing well?” The one who was

doing homam, left that and came. The one who was

observing a vratam of silence, left that and came. (It

is like someone saying “Because you all came, I left

my sandhyAvandanam in the middle and came here; I will

do it in the morning!) (audience laughs). The Rshi-s

were all stunned by His beautiful appearance. What a

surprise! They become involved with how handsome He

is in this tapasvi (saint) appearance with matted hair

and kRshnAjinam (black antelope skin) and mara uri

(tree-bark clothes).

 

The Rshi-s have taken the purest of foods; because of

the purity that they had attained by the intake of

pure food, they could see rAman’s inherent beauty.

Another lady came by. She said He is very handsome.

What was her food? Everyday, she ate the newly beaten

up and killed brahmaNa’s dead body. As soon as she

kills a brahmaNan, she will drink the warm blood; very

good lady; there is no one better than her – concludes

tiruma’ngai AzhvAr. What did she say? “If you look at

rAman, you cannot say if He is a deva or man; what a

beauty!”

 

taruNau rUpa sampannau sukumArau mahAbhalau |

puNDarIka viSAlAkshou cIrakRshNAjinAmbarau ||

 

phala mUlASinau dAntau tApasau dharmacAriNau

putrau daSarathasyAstAm bhrAtarau rAma lakshmaNau

devau vAmAnushau vA tau na tarkayitum utsahe

 

“mai vaNNa naRum ku’nci kuzhal pin tAzha

makaram cEr kuzhai iru pAl ila’ngi ADa

ey vaNNa vem cilaiyE tuNaiyAi i’ngE

iruvarAi vandAr en munnE ninRAr

kai vaNNam tAmarai vAi kamalam pOlum

kaNNiNaiyum aravindam aDiyum ahdE

avvaNNattavar nilaimai kaNDum tOzhI

avarai nAm dEvar enRu a’njinOmE” (tiruneDum. 21)

 

“devau vAmAnushou vA tau na tarkayitum utsahe”; “

tOzhI, avarai nAm dEvar enRu a’njinOmE”. The reference

by tiruma’ngai AzhvAr by the word ‘tOzhi’(friend) is

to SurpaNakai.. “Oh friend, we were afraid He was a

devan”. tiruma’ngai AzhvAr is assuming nAyikA bhAvam

when rAman and lakshmaNan are showing themselves

before him; his pAsuram is in the form of telling his

tozhI. tiruneDum tAnDakam 21 is an amazing pAsuram. It

is wonderful experience no matter for how many, many

days we keep chanting it. “rAman came, lakshmaNan

came; oh friend! I thought they were deva-s!” Friend

asks: “You fell in love with rAman; You said He was a

good person! Is He somewhat uncultured?” “Why do you

say that?” “Doesn’t He have any skills on how to

conduct Himself? Does He belong to some previous

century? Isn’t He civilized? You say two people

came!”

 

When a person comes to visit his nAyaki, will he come

with another person accompanying him? Only in the

olden days, a bridegroom will come with a friend; not

in these days; why take a friend when going to the

in-laws’ place? Why does He bring lakshmaNan?

nAyakan must have come alone. tiruma’ngai AzhvAr says:

“Two people came. They stood in front of me.” (tOzhi

says) “When a husband goes to see his wife, he should

go alone. You say he came as two; when one goes to

visit paramAtmA, one should go in a crowd; if you say

two came, it doesn’t sound good; he is not a rasikan

(good admirer)”.

 

nAyikai says: “He is a very good rasikan; He has

appeared in a wonderful way, and you are asking if he

does have any culture!””; tOzhi asks “How do you say

that?” nAyikA says: “He came with His ‘bed’; He came

with lakshmaNan. He came to see His wife; He brought

with Him the best velvet bed tailored in Calcutta, and

carried it with Him on His waist! Is He a non-admirer

or a rasikan?” Who is lakshmaNan? He is His bed. “He

came as two”; so what? He is a bed with knowledge.

Our beds do not have any knowledge. The beds of some

people have j~nAnam. The beds of vaidika-s have

j~nAnam; if they lie down, it will bite – mosquitos

and bed bugs (mUTTaip pUcci!) (audience laughs).

PerumAL’s bed has j~nAnam. A very amazing bed. So,

“iruvarAi vandAr en munnE ninRAr” - “He came as two

and stood before me”. The meaning for this is in

rAmAyaNam “kousalyA suprajA rAma” Slokam. If we talk

about that place, this meaning will be obvious. [fn1]

 

So, paramAtma is like that. SUrpaNakai calls rAman

“beautiful”. ‘kaScaika priyadarSanah” – Whoever looks

at Him, feels and says that He is beautiful (the

Rsh-s, SurpaNakhA, etc.).

 

 

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fn 1: bAlakANDam sargam 23 first 3 Slokams –

 

prabhAtAyAm tu SarvaryAm viSvAmitro mahAmuni: |

abhyabhAshata kAkutstham SayAnam parNasamstare ||

 

kausalyA suprajA rAma pUrvA sandhyA pravartate |

uttishTha naraSArdUla kartavyam daivam Ahnikam ||

 

tasyarshe: paramodAram vaca: SrutvA narottamau |

snAtvA kRtodakau vIrou jepatu: paramam jayam ||

(bAla. 23.1-3)

 

viSvAmitrar, who took rAman and lakshmaNan from

ayodhyA, spread fresh green grass on the banks of the

sarayu river that night and the two children were

lying on the grass; he woke up those two children. He

said “kousalyA suprajA rAma” – the Slokam talks about

only rAman being awaken. Both the boys got up, took

bath and did anushThAnams. lakshmaNan is AdiSeshan.

He is perumAL’s bed; there is no need to wake up a

bed. But, it is a bed with j~nAnam; when Seshi is

awaken, Seshan will also wake up accordingly.

 

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To be continued………