RE: MODERATE -- geelakshman@... posted to

March 7, 2008

Dear Sri Lakshmanan Swamin: Thank you for referring the question to me.

The following is from Paragraph 53 of "Yuddha KhaaNDam" from my forthcoming book - "Pearls of wisdom from Srimad Ramayanam"

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"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) (Sargam 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"

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Then, why did Rama recite it?

The answer is that Rama belonged to "Surya Vamsam". The Sun god being an ancestor of his, paying obeisance to his ancestor was incumbent on him especially because Rama (though he was Bhagavaan himself) had taken a human form (aatmaanam Maanusham manyE) and a Kshatriya is required to pay obeisance to such dEvatas.

In fact, we find him offering prayers to Kula deivam and Vana dEvatas while exiting in exile.

It should, however, be remembered that he did not do "Vandanam" seeking "mOKsham" and he had no need to do so, as he himself was the ONE and ONLY "mOkshapradan"

But, there is an alternate view why it can be recited by others for the following reasons:

1. Even those precluded from reciting the Vedas are recommended to read / recite Itihaasas and PuraaNas.

"Srimad RamayaNam" is an Itihaasa and therefore, Aaditya Hridayam which forms part of it can be recited by such folk also. This is akin to ladies reciting "Sri VishNu Sahasranaamam" which forms part of another "itihaasa" and the "Phala Sruthi" specifically mentions the fruits of recitation accruing to all including Brahmanas, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas and even Sudras"

2. Aaditya is a demigod whose antharyaami (indweller) is Sriman Narayana and the prayer if offered only with this view (NOT for seeking mOKsham, it seems to have been permitted.

The only things that a Prapanna should scrupulously guard against are -

1. Doing Vandanam to Devataantaras in the belief that they can grant “mOKsham" and

2. Bhaagavata Apachaaram (which includes Achaarya Apachaaram which in the words of Bhagavad Ramanuja is an "Asahya Apachaarm" (intolerable offence)

Therefore, those who have done "Prapatti" and strictly follow the injunctions connected therewith do not recite "Aadtiya Hridayam".

Hope this clarifies.

Dasoham

Anbil Ramaswamy

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Fri, 7 Mar 2008 17:09:04 +0000-accept-6T3vZ1aQSkn63j34OursE_k To: -owner Subject: MODERATE -- geelakshman posted to

Hello, A message has been sent to the group from geelakshman The message summary:--------------------FROM: geelakshman DATE: Fri, 07 Mar 2008 17:09:01 -0000 SUBJECT: aditya hrudayam SrI: SrimatE gOpaala dEsika mahaadEsikaaya nama: adiyen would like to know if we can recite aditya hrudayam. Was doing it every morning unitl few years back, then stopped. Remember to have read in one of the groups - as Vaishnavite who has done prapatti adiyen should not do it. Request some knowledgeable person like Sri Anbil mama to clarify. adiyen Lakshmana dAsan vaachika doshaha kshantavyaha -------------------- A complete copy of this message has been attached for your convenience. This message requires your approval for one of the following reasons:* Your group is set to moderate all messages from this user, OR* Your group is set to moderate messages from all users To approve or reject this message using the web, please visit:/pending?view=1 & msg=8622 To approve this message using email, reply to this message. You do not need to attach the original message, just reply and send. To reject this message using email, forward this message to -reject-d2zEDVzBFi5L_yRVVUwk6mg NOTE: The pending message will expire after 14 days. If you do not take action within that time, the pending message will be automaticallyrejected. does this to maintain a high quality ofservice for our users. Thank you for choosing . Regards, Customer Care

March 8, 2008

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naras_newcastleTo: ramanbilSubject: RE: RE: MODERATE -- geelakshman posted to Sun, 9 Mar 2008 04:48:01 +1100

Dear Anbil Swamin, I am one of the silent readers of , a wonderful newsgroup. Thanks for your explanations on Adityahrudayam. One of my mentors says that Adityahrudayam is not part of Srimad Ramayana for one more reason, namely, in Srimad Ramayana, every sargam leads to the next sargam - i.e., the last few slokas of every sargam not only summarizes the sargam, but also leads to the next sargam by informing as to what is in the next sargam. Apparantly, this is something that most Sanskrit poets also do. Actually it is also a recommended practice, when someone writes a book, PhD thesis or a substantial article even today! However, according to this mentor of mine, there is no mention of Adityahrudayam in the preceeding sargam nor in the succeeding sargam, hence it is an insert (sorukku??). Could this explanation be correct? Please forgive me for stating the above. With due apologiesDasanLakshminarasimhanComputer Science DepartmentWestern Kentucky UniversityBowling GreenKY 42101

Fri, 7 Mar 2008 21:38:49 +0000RamanbilSubject: RE: MODERATE -- geelakshman posted to geelakshman;