Thiruvaheendhrapuram RathnAngi Kaimkaryam Special: Part 194/Sundara KahANDam/2004 SrI Raama Navami Series : Fourth Day .

[Guest guest]

SrI Raama Jayam

 

Dear Raama BhakthAs:

 

RaaghavO vijayam dadhyAth mama SeethApathi: Prabhu:

Raaghavasya yathathdhvandhvam dadhyAth amitha vaibhavam

 

(Meaning): May Raaghavan , the Lord of SeethA PirAtti grant

me victory in my kaimkaryams ! May His sacred pair of feet

bless me with limitless glory of Kiamkaryam to Him !

 

Overall Summary of Sargams 21-26: Todays' coverage

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SithA PirAtti rejects totally RaavaNan's many appeals to become his wife .

RaavaNan gets mad and sets a date for Her complicance . The Raakshasis

keep pushing SeethA to accept their king's proposals. When SeethA Piratti

rejects their suggestions , the Raakshasis threaten Her. SeethA Devi gets

more dejected. She decides to give up Her life out of despondency

and a sense of abandonment by Her Lord .

 

Sargam 21: RaavaNa NirAkaraNam ( Rejection of RaavaNan)

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SeethA was very much agitated by RaavaNA's arrogant statements .

She thought of Her Lord and placed a blade of grass between Herself

and RaavaNan and responded to him . The commentators have explained

that there were three reaons for SeethA PirAtti to place the blade of

grass between Herself and the offending RaavaNan ( ThruNam

antharatha: kruthvA prathyuvAcha suchismithA ) :

 

1) As a MahA Pathivrathai , She could not speak directly with

a para purushan ( strange man ) .

2) She sent the message to RaavaNan that his worth inspite of his

gloating was equal in value to that of an insignificant blade of grass .

3) She considered Her life as worthless and therefore She will neither

be intimidated by RaavaNan nor succumb to his appeals.

 

SeethA PirAtti directed RaavaNan to turn his mind away from Her

and focus on his own wedded wife, MandhOdhari.She instructed

him not to committ mahA pAthakam of asking another man's wife,

who strictly observes pathivrathA dharmam.She warned RaavaNan that

his life , Isvaryam and keerthi would quickly come to an end , if he

persisted in his despicable ways.She cried out in despair: " Are not

there any Saadhus in LankA , who could chastise RaavaNaa and

prevent him from his destructive ways ? " ( iha santhO na vaa santhi

sathO vaa nAnuvarthasE ) . She reminded RaavaNan that being his

Empress or sharing his wealth are not of interest to Her.

She described that She is inseperable from Her Lord

just as the lustre of Sun is never seperated from the Sun.

 

SeethA PirAtti appealed RaavaNan to unite Her with Her Lord

and advised RaavaNan to develop friendship with Her Lord

to save his life and save LankA from destruction by Raama BhANams .

SeethA Devi knew that the arrogant RaavaNa will NOT respond

favorably to Her counsel to perform SarNaagathy at the feet of Her

Lord and therefore She suggested that RaavaNan befriend Her Lord.

She went further and instructed RaavaNaa on how to befriend

Her Lord and offered to help RaavaNa in that effort .She concluded

Her upadEsam to RaavaNan with a reminder that his days

would be numbered , if RaavaNan does not take the initiative

to befriend Raamachandran and seek His protection .

 

Sargam 22: avadhi vidhAnam/ Setting a deadline

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RaavaNan flew in to a rage over SeethA PirAtti's upadEsam.

He threatened SeethA and set a deadline of two months to comply

with his appeal to become his wife . He mentioned that SeethA PirAtti's

failure would result in being eaten up as breakfast by the attending

Raakshasees.SeethA PirAtti responded by calling RaavaNan

an ayOgyan with no friends to save him from his sure destruction

by the power of Her Lord . She told him the reasons why

She did not reduce RaavaNan to ashes with Her Paathivrathya

Balam and tEjas :

 

asandEsAtthu Raamasya tapascchAnupAlayan

na thvAm kurmi DasagrIva basma basmArhatEjasA

--Sundara KaaNdam: 22.20

 

(Meaning): Oh ten-headed monster ! I have not reduced you

to ashes for your unforgivable utterances through the power of

my Chastity , since I do not have my Lord's permission and

I have to protect the penance of Paathivrathyam.

 

RaavaNan was enraged and ordered his retinue of Raakshasees

guarding SeethA PirAtti to hasten the process of their ward's

consent to comply with his wishes and left AsOka Vanam with

his wives , who in unison appealed to RaavaNan to stay away from

SeethA PirAtti to save his life .

 

Sargam 23: The goading by Raaksahsees/ Raakshasee PrEraNam

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Now that their king had returned to his palace , the raakshasees

surrounded SeethA DEvi and screamed at Her with foul words.

They switched their pitch thereafter and tried to persuade SeethA

Devi to consider " the excellent proposal " of their king with favor

by praising the kulam , Iswaryam and veeryam of RaavaNan and

expressed dismay that SeehtA PirAtti would summarily reject

the invitation of RaavaNan to become his principal wife.They requested

SeethA Devi to reconsider RaavaNan's appeal favorably .

They pointed out that denial of RaavaNan's appeal would end

in SeethA DEvi losing Her life .

 

Sargam 24: The screaming by Raakshasees( Raakshasee Tarjanam)

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The ogresses took on another approach now. They stopped saying

sweet words of persuassion and began to shout at SeethA and

hinted at dire consequences for not obeying RaavaNA's wish.

They ridiculed SeethA Devi for Her devotion to a mere human

being like RaamA . SeethA PirAtti instructed the Raakshasees

about the glory of PathivrathA dharmam . She told the ogresses

that Raamachandran is Her Lord , whether He had a kingdom

or not and that She will always be seeking His protection just as

others following PathivrathA dharmam . She told these ignorant

ogresses that She will follow RaamA's footsteps like Arundhathi

followed VasihstA's , Suvarcchalai followed Sooryan's , LobhAmudrA

followed AgasthyA's , Saavithri followed SathyavAn's , SukanyA

followed Sounakars' and IndhrANi followed Indhrans' .

 

The ogresses got wild now over SeethA Devi's statements and

threatened Her with their weapons besides their cruel words.

They intimidated SeethA Devi with their intention to eat Her up.

SeethA PirAtti got discouraged by the threats of these ogresses

and began to cry over Her lot.

 

Sargam 25: SeethA's sorrow( SeethA NirvEdham )

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SeethA reminded the Raakshasis with shaking voice that

it is not appropriate for a human to become the wife of

a Raakshasan like RaavaNan. The Raakshasees shouted

and threatened SeethA Devi even more She swooned ,

got up and began to pray to Her Lord and family:

 

Haa RaamEthi cha dukkhArtthA haa punar-LakshmaNEthi cha

haa Svasu mama KousalyE haa SmithrEthi bhAmini

 

The sorrow-stricken SeethA PirAtti cried out " Oh RaamA !

Oh LakshamaNA ! Oh My Mother-in -laws KousalyA

and SumithrE !

 

SeethA wanted to give up Her life and condemned the status

of the humans , who can not have control over their lives and

who find themselves under other's control :

 

dhigasthu khalu maanushyam dhigasthu paravasyathAm

na sakyam yath parithyuktam aathmacchandhEna jeevitham

---Sundara KaaNDam: 25.20

 

Sargam 26: Determination to give up Her life ( PrANa ThyAga Niscchaya: )

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SeethA declared that She has no longer any interst in holding on

to Her life.She declared that life without Her dear Lord was not

worth living.She told the Raakshasees waiting for Her answer

that She will not desire RaavaNan , even if they cut Her up

to shreds or roasted Her in high flames .

 

SeethA PirAtti reflected on Her misfortunes next: being stolen

by RaavaNan in a cowardly way, when Her lOrd was away ;

the heroic fight of JatAyu with RaavaNan to save Her and

Her imprisonment in LankA .She saw ahead tremendous

inauspiciousness landing on the city of LankA because of the unpardonable

trespasses of RaavaNan.She began to worry about the dimunition of

RaamA's love for Her because of Her extended absence from His side.

She got dejected and concluded that it was better to die than staying

seperated from Her heroic Lord known for His sadAchAram and

valour in the battle against His enemies:

 

SrEyO mE JeevithAn-marthum viheenAya MahAthmana:

RaamAdhaklishtachAritthrAchha-SoorA: Chathru nibharhaNAth

---Sundara KaaNDam: 26.45

 

She announced Her intention to kill Herself because of being

seperated from Her dear Raamachandran and for being controlled

by the evil RaavaNan arising from his kidnapping:

 

Saaham thyakthA PriyENEha RaamENa vidhithAthmanA

prANAmsthyakshyAmi paapasya RaabaNasya gathA vasam

---Sundara KaaNDam: 26.51

 

SrI JaanakI SamEtha SrI Raamachandra ParabrahmaNE Nama:

Raama Daasan , Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri SadagOpan