AcArya rAmAmRtam - (from SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA dt. November 08 Part 1)

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SrIH

SrImate ra’ngarAmAnuja MahA deSikAya namaH

SrImate SrInivAsa rAmAnuja MahA deSikAya namaH

SrImate VedAnta rAmAnuja MahA deSikAya namaH

SrI ra’nganAtha divya maNi pAdukAbhyAm namaH

 

AcArya rAmAmRtam - (from SrI ra’nganAtha pAdukA dt. November 08 Part 1)

 

English 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)

 

(Please set your encoding to Unicode UTF-8)

SrImad ANDavan tiruvaDi,

kalyANi kRshNamAcAri

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

SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan’s SrImad rAmAyaNa upanyAsam

 

rAma was shining radiantly with His kalyANa guNam-s [auspicious attributes] -

guNaiH virurucE rAmaH dIptaH sUrya ivAmSubhiH | (ayodhyA.1.33) So, daSaratha

cakravarti convened for a huge court assembly. All the ministers, army

commanders, other kings and general public had all come. cakravarti announced

that he was going to speak. How did he talk?

 

svareNa mahatA - He spoke in a high resounding voice. It sounded like the

thundering cloud. Look at how the elders of the years of yore sounded? He was

60,000 years old. He sounded like a thundering cloud. jImUta iva nAdayan

(ayodhyA.2.2).

 

viditam bhavatAm etat yathA me rAjyam uttamam |

pUrvakaiH mama rAjendraiH sutavat paripAlitam || ((ayodhyA.2.4)

 

mayA'pyAcaritam pUrvaiH panthAnam anugacchatA |

prajA nityam anidhreNa yatASaktyabhirakshitAH || (ayodhyA.2.6)

 

idam SarIram kRtsnasya lokasya caratA hitam |

pANDurasyAtapatrasya cAyAyAm jaritam mayA || (ayodhyA.2.7)

 

" My beloved subjects! You know about everything that is going on. You know how

I ruled this kingdom. All our ancestral kings treated the people of the kingdom

as their own progeny. Just as they taught me, I also looked after the kingdom

like watching over a child. I even lost sleep over caring for the same. I have

used as much strength as possible to protect the kingdom. You are all aware of

all this. But, I am getting old now.

 

idam SarIram kRtsnasya lokasya caratA hitam |

 

I started with an aspiration of protecting all the folks and now my body is

losing strength. vArddhagyam [old age] has set in. My hair is turning white.

 

pANDurasyAtapatrasya cAyAyAm jaritam mayA ||

 

My hair is all white. Why is it white? It is because of being in the reflection

of the white umbrella. "

 

If he were under a black umbrella, his hair would have been black! (slight

laughter in the audience). When old age sets in, everyone finds it difficult.

 

pANDurasyAtapatrasya cAyAyAm jaritam mayA ||

 

Kings are supposed to be served with white umbrellas. They will be studded with

pearls. The whiteness of those pearls fell on his hair and made them look

white! Otherwise, his hair might have been black! Look at his desire!

 

A family went to look at a boy for marriage alliance. His hair was all white.

When asked the reason for that, they were told, " He is doing research; because

of so much research, his hair has become white " . That excuse alone will be

accepted, not if old age is given as excuse.

 

pANDurasyAtapatrasya cAyAyAm jaritam mayA ||

 

Some folks become white-haired before marriage. A man sees an advertisement

saying if he uses their oil, the hair will turn black. He starts applying the

oil; does so for a month. His hair turns yellow (audience laughs). It should

have turned black. What should he do to make the yellow go away? He buys

another oil.

 

Nothing like that. pANDurasyAtapatrasya cAyAyAm jaritam mayA ||

 

" My hair became white under the white umbrella. So, I am thinking of performing

coronation for my son, rAma " .

 

anurUpaH sa vai nAthaH lakshmIvAn lakshmaNAgrajaH |

trilokyam api nAthena yena syAt nAthavat taram || (ayodhyA.2.13)

 

He will be the Lord of the three worlds. " amarnda nAthanai avaravar Agi

avarkkaruL aruLum ammAnai " (tiruvAi. 8.4.10) - He is a nAthan fit for that name;

He is One who can aptly fulfill the role of nAthan - anurUpaH sa vai nAthaH -

the correct tamizh word for this is " amarnda nAthan'. rAma will rule the land

very well. What do you all say? "

 

When the people heard this, they were exuberantly ecstatic.

 

vRshTimantam mahAmegham nardanta iva barhiNaH || (ayodhyA.2.17)

 

janaughodhghushTa sannAdo vimAnam kampayanniva || (ayodhyA.2.18)

 

aneka varsha sAhasraH vRddhastvamasi pArthiva

sa rAmam yuvarAjam abhishincasva pArthivam || (ayodhyA.2.21)

 

The audience responded with rapturous voices like the joyful noise made by

peacocks at the onset of huge, rainy clouds. There was a cheery, tumultuous,

reverberating uproar that made the whole court tremble - " vimAnam kampanniva " .

 

aneka varsha sAhasraH vRddhastvamasi pArthiva |

 

" How many thousands of years had passed? So many thousands.

 

sa rAmam yuvarAjam abhishincasva pArthivam ||

 

Crown rAma.

 

icchAmo hi mahAbAhum raghuvIram mahAbalam |

gajena mahatA''yAntam rAmam chatrAvRtAnanam || (ayodhyA.2.22)

 

 

We desire to see rAma atop the royal elephant, sitting on the howdah [canopied

seat] under the imperial white umbrella.

 

rAmam chatrAvRtAnanam - Evil eyes should not fall on Him. rAmam chatrAvRtAnanam

- We wish to see rAma sitting under the white umbrella on a golden seat and

riding on an elephant. It is our desire that He should come like that down the

street and get crowned as king. So, you delivered a wonderful thought that you

want to do coronation for your son. We are all extremely enraptured. "

 

daSaratha was very pleased too. He was extremely thrilled that they all

approved as soon as he announced the news. What a great surprise; not a single

person objected. Everyone agreed unanimously. In order to show his happiness, he

displayed a gesture of disappointment. Why should he do that?

 

katham tu mayidharmeNa pritivIm anuSasati |

bhavanto dhrashTum icchanti yuvarAjam mamAtmajam || (ayodhyA.2.24)

 

daSaratha asked, " What is this, people? For my question if I can do coronation

to rAma, what should you be saying? You could have said, 'Please do as per your

wish'. You could have said that with respect, 'If that is your wish, please do

so'. Or, you could have said, 'Why can't you wait for one year or two more

years'. This is what you all could have said, right? "

 

" When I asked you what to do, you could have said, 'Do as per your desire', or

you could have said out of respect to wait for one or two years. Not only that.

Like folks under the spell of malaiyALar [inhabitants of mountain lands,

exercising supernatural powers by means of mantra-s], you all said, 'How many

years have passed; do the coronation for your son.' How have I wronged you?

What erroneous act did I perform? Couldn't you have said a word out of

respect? "

 

When a guest wants to leave a house, shouldn't a host request the guest to stay

for one or two more days?

 

" You did not say that I can do it as per my desire. Not even that, you are

stating how many years have passed. You are thinking there is no way of this

old man dying and you all want to do coronation for my son " .

 

" Didn't I protect you with devotion? Didn't I treat you all well? What did I

do to you? You did not utter a word of respect for me. What was my blunder? "

 

The people answered, " We are asking you to go only because of your deficiency.

We are supporting rAma only because we do not want you and because of your

fault " .

 

What was his slip-up?

 

The people say -

bahavo nRpa! kalyANaguNAH putrasya santi te (ayodhyA.2.26)

 

" You have flaws. What are they? You got a son who has greater kalyANa guNam-s

[auspicious attributes]. Would we have said that if you had a stupid son?

bahavo nRpa! kalyANaguNAH putrasya santi - bahavaH guNAH - bahavaH kalyANa

guNAH - bahavaH kalyANa guNAH te putrasya santi |

 

You have a son who is more eminent and esteemed than you. That is a drawback

for you, right? That is why we are saying that your son must become the

mahArAja immediately! "

 

" Oh, is that so? Is He that great? "

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To be continued …..