SRI RANGA SRI E_JOURNAL _ VOL.09 / ISSUE # 21 dated 1st March 2008

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SrI:

SrimatE Raamaanujaaya Namaha //

SrimatE Nigamaanta Mahaa Desikaaya Namaha //

SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya/

SrIman! SrI Ranga Sriyam anupadravam anudhinam Samvardhaya//

KAvEri VardhathAm kAlE, kAlE varshathu vAsava: /

SrI RanganAthO jayathu Sri Ranga Sri cha VardhathAm//

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SRI RANGA SRI VOL.09 / ISSUE # 21 dated 1st March 2008

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IN THIS ISSUE:

 

1. YUDDHA KHAANDAM PART - 11 (SRIMAD RAMAYANAM DISCOURSES IN THE

HINDU TEMPLE OF ATLANTA by SRI ANBIL RAMASWAMY SWAMI)

2. TAATPARYA RATNAVALI - SUBMISSION 51- SLOKAM 20 -PART 1

(SRI N. KRISHNAMACHARAIAR SWAMI OF CHICAGO)

 

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ISSUES RELEASED

With this issue, about 284 Regular issues of SRS have been released

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27 Issues of Vol. 1

15 Issues of Vol. 2

42 Issues of Vol. 3

35 Issues of Vol. 4

28 Issues of Vol. 5

30 Issues of Vol. 6

50 Issues of Vol. 7 and

36 Issues of Vol. 8

21 Issues of Vol. 9(including this)

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1. " YUDDHA KHAANDAM " PART - 11 OF SRIMAD RAMAYANAM

(ANBIL RAMASWAMY)

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51. THE PENULTIMATE ROUND

 

Ravana deputed the remaining few of his close confidants only to

sacrifice them to the arrows of Rama. The widows of slain Raakshasas

wailed and lamented to no end (94 to 96). Ravana set out with the

only chieftains left behind to stand with him still namely, Viroopa-

aksha, MahOdara, Mahaa-paarsva. (96)

 

Viroopa-aksha shot at Sugreeva with his sharp sword which rendered

Sugreeva unconscious for a while. Recovering soon, Sugreeva hit at

the forehead of Viroopa-aksha with his fist when the Raakshasa was a

little inattentive. This broke his head and he fell dead (97).

 

It was now the turn of MahOdara to meet with his end. It was again

Sugreeva who offered a fierce fight with him. MahOdra was trying to

extricate his sword that got caught in Sugreeva's shield. Before he

could do this, Sugreeva cut his head (98).

 

Mahaa-paarsva was aroused at the fall of his comrades only to fall

victim to the fist hit of Angada who hit him right at his heart

where his lifeline was. The heart literally broke and Mahaa-paarsva

also followed his comrades. (99)

 

52. RAMA – RAVANA YUDDHAM

 

Having lost everyone and everything, Ravana had no choice to attempt

a last ditch attempt. He tormented the monkey battalion with

powerful Tamasa Astrams and several other Astras at Rama and

LakshmaNa. Rama sent " Rudra Astra " through his kOdanDa bow but even

it could not break Ravana's coat of arms. There never was a fight

before equal to the Yuddha between Rama and Ravana. Never had

Ravana thought even in a dream that he would face such a mighty foe.

Matchless bowmen, both of them matchless in the mastery of weapons,

matchless too in their knowledge of the secrets of Astras, they

displayed every step and device known to men and Gods. Ravana aimed

several weapons that had warheads resembling lions, tigers,

vultures, eagles, crows, jackals, wolves, five-headed serpents,

snakes, mules, boars, dogs, hens, crocodiles and the like. All of

them were pulverized by Rama's arrows that worked with equal vigor

and force. (100)

 

Ravana directed " Rudra Astra " against Rama, but, Rama quelled it

with " Gandharva Astra " ; Dasaanana shot " Surya Astra " which Rama

destroyed with many arrows. Meanwhile, LakshmaNa hurled seven high

class arrows that severed the head of Ravana's charioteer and broke

Ravana's bow to pieces and felled his horses. Ravana then aimed at

VibheeshaNa his " Sakti " . LakshmaNa intervened to save Sugreeva and

smashed it. Now, he directed his powerful " Sakti " against LakshmaNa

himself determined to kill him. Rama saw this and uttered a spell

saying that the weapon should go waste without killing LakshmaNa.

While it failed to kill LakshmaNa, it made him swoon. Rama's wrath

knew no bounds and he rained arrows non stop on Ravana who ran away

from the warfront. (101)

 

Rama believed that LakshmaNa had given up his life and bewailed his

loss saying " Wives are easy to get anywhere in the world; and so are

other kith and kin. Yet I know no land in the world where such a

brother could be got "

 

dEsE dEsE kaLatraaNi dEsE dEsE cha bhaandhavaa: /

Tham tu dEsam na pasyaami yatra bhraataa sahOdara:// (102-12, 13)

 

SushEna comforted Rama saying that there was no danger to the life

of LakshmaNa because his color had not changed, his face was as

bright as ever; his eyes were like lotus petals. These were not the

signs of a person who had died. SushENa asked Hanumaan to go again

to bring the herbs that once brought back to life the dead monkeys.

Hanumaan brought the whole mountain and placed it in front of

SushENa who caused LakshmaNa to smell the scents of the herb.

LakshmaNa woke up as if from sleep. Rama once again embraced

LakshmaNa with affection and told him that if he were to have died,

there was no meaning in his own survival or that of Sita. LakshmaNa

replied that it was not appropriate for Rama to utter so and said

Rama had a duty to coronate VibheeshaNa as the ruler of Lanka by

finishing off Ravana. LakshmaNa requested Rama not to delay fighting

Ravana anymore. (102) The Devas could not bear to see Rama fighting

standing on the ground while Ravana was mounted on his chariot and

then brought Indra's chariot for Rama to ride on. (103) Ravana

hurled his powerful three pronged weapon against Rama. Rama broke it

to pieces with a special weapon sent by Indra through Madali, the

charioteer. It also broke Ravana's chariot and he fell down with

wounds all over his body. He got thoroughly dispirited. The

Charioteer of Ravana slowly moved him from the battlefront back to

Lanka. (105) When Ravana regained his composure, he chided his

charioteer for bringing him dishonor by moving him away in front of

the enemy saying that perhaps he took a bribe from Rama to do this.

The charioteer explained the situation. Ravana asked him to take him

back to the battlefront again. (106)

 

53. AADITYA HRIDAYAM

Agastya saw Rama steeped in the thought as to how he could defeat

Ravana. He initiated Rama in " Aaditya Hridayam " , a prayer to the

ancestor of " Surya-kula " , Surya (Sun God) (107)

 

IMPORTANT NOTE:

In some Ramayana kOsams, this Sargam does not appear nor has been

commented upon by some commentators like uTaari, probably because

this runs repugnant to the Paratvam of Narayana, who is the Lord of

Surya himself. uTaari has a count of only 130 Sargams while with

this Sargam, it would work out to 131 Sargams.

 

54. BAD OMENS FOR RAVANA (108)

Ravana set out and was greeted with several bad omens that foreboded

his death.

1. Ravana was heading in an anti-clockwise movement (a-pra-

dakshiNam).

2. There was a twister that also was doing the round anti-clock

wise.

3. Eagles were circling and following his chariot.

4. The evening glow of the Sun made Lanka appear as if it was

in flames.

5. Earthquakes everywhere Ravana stepped.

6. Hands prevented from use mysteriously.

7. Sun's rays falling on Ravana's body taking different colors.

8. The wailing of fox in a hoarse voice.

9. Frightful sounds made by Eagles and kites.

10. Strong winds beating at Ravana blinding him with dust.

11. Thunderbolts roared dreadfully.

12. Saarika birds were fighting in groups ceaselessly.

13. The whole atmosphere was dark with dust.

14. Horses shed tears.

 

55. FIGHT TO THE FINISH

The much expected final moment had arrived. First, Rama brought down

the flag of Ravana from atop his chariot signaling the beginning of

Ravana's end. This angered Ravana to no end. He vowed to fight to

the finish and either kill Rama or be killed by him. The speed with

which the missiles were hurled at each other was such that there

seemed to be a constant and continuous shower of weapons without any

gap completely preventing all visibility (109). The horses, the

frontage of chariots, the frontage of yokes on either side were

dashing with each other and were so close that there was no space

left in between them. The celestials who were watching from above

the great destructive fires darting forth from either side wondered

that - as sky could be compared only with sky, and - the ocean only

with ocean, Rama- Ravana yuddham could be compared only with itself!

 

 

56. KSHURAM FINISHES OFF RAVANA'S 101 HEADS!

Rama fired a sharp weapon called " Kshuram " and this cut off Ravana's

heads along with the crowns adorning them. But, Lo! And Behold! In

the place of the cut off heads sprang new heads with new headgears.

Thus, a hundred and one heads were cut off and a similar number of

heads appeared in quick succession. There was no difference either

in shape or color or brilliance or decoration between the old and

the new ones. Rama was perplexed that the same arrows that

devastated Maareecha, Kara, DhooshaNa and others had become

ineffective in the case of Ravana (110). Maadali, the chauffer

suggested politely to Rama that it was high time that he used the

famous Brahma Astram. Rama consecrated his arrow with Brahma Astram

and it pierced the heart of Ravana and entered the earth with his

life and blood and having fulfilled its mission emerged quickly and

returned to its place in Rama's quiver. The whole Raakshasa

battalions were in the grip of great fear and ran scattered from the

battlefield (111).

 

dasoham

Anbil Ramaswamy

(To be continued)

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3.TAATPARYA RATNAVALI - SUBMISSION 51 - SLOKAM 20 -PART 1

(SRI N. KRISHNAMACHARAIAR SWAMI OF CHICAGO)

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SrImate ra'nga rAmAnuja mahA deSikAya namaH.

tAtparya ratnAvaLi - Submission 51- Slokam 20- Part 1

 

Slokam 20:

 

paryante [dRshTam] (1.9.1) atke ca dRshTam (1.9.2)

sva-viraha-vidhuram (1.9.3) Dimbhavat pArSva lInam (1.9.4)

citte klRpta praveSam (1.9.5) bhuja Sikhara gatam (1.9.6)

tAlu simhAsanastham (1.9.7) |

cakshur-madhye nivishTam (1.9.8) sthitam alikataTe (1.8.9)

mastake tasthivAmsam (1.9.10)

pratyAhAroktarItyA vibhum anububhuje Atmya bhoga pradAnAt (1.9) ||

 

sAtmittal - enjoy to the fullest extent; digest completely.

 

svAmi deSikan describes the message of this tiruvAimozhi as

reflecting bhagavAn's guNam expressed as 'sAtmya bhoga pradAnAt' -

'Because He gives the enjoyment of Himself to His devotee in small

doses at a time such that the devotee completely enjoys, digests,

and assimilates every instance of His revealing Himself' - in other

words, in small steps at a time. In our tradition, it is considered

that bhagavAn does not reveal Himself completely to a devotee all at

once, because such an experience could be unbearable for the devotee

in one dose. This is the explanation given for ANDAL having gone

through great agony and suffering being separated from Him (nAcciyAr

tirumozhi); He reveals Himself to her only in gradual steps, before

She ultimately unites with Him. We will see the ten pASuram-s of

this triruvAimozhi supporting this aspect.

 

In his introduction to this tiruvAimozhi in his 'bhagavad vishaya

sAram', SrImad tirukkuDandai ANDavan notes that bhagavan interacts

with AzhvAr in different roles each time: as He would with pirATTi -

His consort, as He would with garuDan - His vehicle, as with

AdiSeshan - His bed, and as with yaSodA - His mother. In each

case, He lets AzhvAr completely digest that experience and enjoy it,

and AzhvAr is describing these different experiences in this

tiruvAimozhi. AzhvAr sang in pASuram 1.8.5 - " poi kalavAdu en mei

kalandAnE " - 'He mingled with my body in actual fact'. In the

current tiruvAimozhi, AzhvAr describes the different ways and the

different steps in which bhagavAn mingled with him.

 

pASuram 1.9.1:

 

ivaiyum avaiyum uvaiyum ivarum avarum uvarum

yavaiyum yavarum tannuLLE Agiyum Akkiyum kAkkum

avaiyuL tani mudal emmAn kaNNa pirAn en amudam

Suvaiyan tiruvin maNALan ennuDaic cUzhal uLAnE.

 

KaNNa pirAn who is my Lord, who is like nectar to me, and who is the

Consort of LaksmI, is making His appearance all around me,

displaying all His wealth and greatness without hiding them from me -

He who has swallowed all the sentient and insentient objects of the

whole universe without exception at the time of pralaya, and gives

them all bodies again in His next cycle of creation and protects

them, who is the antaryAmI in everything, and who performs His

creation by being the Material Cause in the creation Himself while

undergoing no change of any kind and without recourse to any other

material cause.

 

AzhvAr's experience is given in graphic detail, step by step, in

steps that are fully assimilated and digested. First, bhagavAn just

comes in the regions near AzhvAr - not yet too close, but He

appears, along with pirATTi, in the regions surrounding AzhvAr, as

if trying to decide from which side to approach AzhvAr - ennuDai

cUzhalil uLAnE. svAmi deSikan describes this as 'paryante dRshTam' -

He who is making His appearance in the adjoining regions.

 

SrImad tirukuDandai ANDavan comments that bhagavAn coming around

AzhvAr looking for an entry is like His seeking the friendship of

sugrIvan - the monkey-king, though He is the loka-nAthan

Himself: 'loka nAthah purA bhUtvA sugrIvam nAtham icchati', 'yasya

prasAde sakalAh prasIdeyuh imAh prajAh sa rAmo vAnarendrasya

prasAdam abhikA'nkshate' - rAma whose blessing will make all the

citizens rejoice, is seeking the favor of the monkey-king sugrIvan.

 

pASuram 1.9.2:

 

Suzhal pala pala vallAn tollai am kAllattu ulagaik

kEzhal onRAgi iDanda kESavan ennuDai ammAn

vEzha maruppai oSittAn viNNavarkku eNNal ariyAn

Azha neDum kaDal SErndAn avan en arugalilAnE.

 

avan en arugalilAnE - He who is far, far away is getting closer to

me - He is the same Lord who takes many different incarnations in

the forms of different species with the aim of attracting His

devotees, the same keSavan who took the incarnation as the Great

Boar to retrieve the Earth from below the seas, My own Lord kaNNan,

the same One who broke the tusk of the elephant kuvalayApIDam, One

who is beyond the comprehension of even the deva-s, and One who is

reclining in the Milky Ocean - is getting closer to me after having

shown all His kalyANa guNa-s and His divya ceshTita-s (His wonderful

acts) to me and thus having attracted me to Him.

 

AzhvAr's anubhavam is that bhagavAn takes different beautiful

incarnations in which He performs many incomprehensible acts - such

as retrieving the Earth from the depth of the ocean, easily breaking

the tusk of the powerful elephant by name kuvalayApIDam, etc., just

to attract the devotees. He shows His infinite kalyANa guNa-s to

AzhvAr and attracts him first, and then gets even closer to AzhvAr.

 

svAmi deSikan describes AzhvAr's experience in this pASuram through

the words 'atke ca dRshTam' - avan en arugal ilAnE - He is getting

closer to me, after attracting me with his wonderful acts and His

infinite kalyAna guNa-s - after these experiences have been

digested.

 

(SrI UV gives one interpretation where he uses the pATham 'arugal

il' - il meaning 'dwelling' - One who has His dwelling place closer

to me). Note that the word 'Suzhal' was used in the previous

pASuram to indicate 'surroundings', and in this pASuram it is used

to denote 'incarnations' - taken to 'surround' or attract the

devotee to Him.

 

Regards

dAsan kRshNamAcAryan

(To be continued)

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