Samartha Ramadas

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Samartha Ramadas

`Oh dear! Look at the face of the bride ! Imagine her fate !

If you desert her now, at the verge of marriage will anybody marry

her ?'

`Think of the condition of the father ! Can he recover from

the shock ? To find a bridegroom itself is a difficult task. Can he

find yet another bridegroom now? The father of an unmarried girl

can't rest in peace. How can he ever rest in peace if the marriage

comes to a stand still at the verge of performance.?'

The bridegroom paid no heed to the pleadings of the

relatives or the reasoning of his friends. He just walked out

without uttering a single word.

The news that the bridegroom walked out of the mantap,

walked out of the girl's life, walked out of his parents, walked out

of the society - spread like wild fire. The commotion came to a

stand still for a long minute. The brahmin's voice, chanting

mantras, ceased. The music stopped as if shocked at the turn of

events.

Then people started commenting in their own way depicting

their mentalities. `If he is not interested , why didn't he inform

beforehand ? What right has he to spoil the bright future of a

young girl ? Such people have to be lined up and shot at with one

bullet ! He liked the girl, he agreed to marry but suddenly

something went wrong somewhere !' `May be something is wrong with

the girl'. `Whatever is the reason, we are just a tool in God's

hand. It is destined to happen. He is destined to remain a bachelor

and the girl is destined to suffer. Who are we to criticize God's

ways ?'

Whatever were the reactions of the people, the boy who

walked out cared a foot for them. He remained an irresponsible brat

before everybody. He left sorrow in the hearts of many. His name was

Naroba. He looked irresponsible, but he was the most responsible

person. He attained self realization. He looked inefficient in the

samara sagara but he swam over the sagara quite efficiently. He

became a blessed soul and won the name of Samardha Ramadas in due

course.

Naroba was born to Suryajipanth and Nirubai in a village

called Jamba in Aurangabad district. He lost his father at the age

of eight and father's death developed a detachment in him. We use

the words `Smasana vairagyam', `Prasuthi vairagyam'. We develop this

detachment or vairagya when we see the death of somebody close. A

woman develops prasuthi vairagya at the time of delivery. But these

are short lived. Very soon we are brought back to this mundane

world and continue to be chained by our desires, by our relatives

and so on. But the vairagya in Naroba was sincere and serious. He

was sick of the world around. He wanted to seek the blessings of God.

One day he went to the temple of Lord Hanuma in the

outskirts of the village. He was thrilled at the darshan of Hanuma

and with tears of joy expressed his feelings. He sought the

blessings of Hanuma to be relieved from the world around. Hanuma

realized the urge in his prayer and blessed him. He expressed this

experience in a song.

`Aamha Saayamsi Hanumantha! Aaradhya daivatha Raghunadha

Guru Sri Rama Samardha ! Kaayune de sapi'.

With the help of Hanuma, I had the darsan of Rama. I am

Ramadas now. Whatever befalls me, I will not leave His lotus feet.

This Ramadas settled himself at the feet of Ramadas unmindful of the

world around.

Naroba's mother came in search of his son and at last found

him there. She could read vairagya writ all over his face, but she

could not digest that fact. She did not want her son to be some one

special. She wanted him to be her son-that's all!

So she requested him to come home. Naroba answered `I am

very much at home. House is not the one created by man, but it is

created by God. I am at the feet of God. That's my house.'

" Punarapi Jananam, Punarapi Maranam. " I am caught in the

cycles of rebirth. I was born to many parents but my ultimate parent

is God.'

Any argument led him to God ultimately but she managed to

bring him home though she could not bring him back to normalcy. He

continued to live in a detached way till he reached his twelth

year. As anybody felt, she too felt that marriage was the only

solution for his vairagya. So, against his wishes she settled it and

brought him to the mantap. Subhamastu it is the opportune time

to.... Naroba took it as `Yes it is the opportune time to give up

samsara. So did he give up much against the wishes of his kith and

kin.

He chose a thick forest for his meditation and presented his

situation before God. `Oh God! I got up from marriage pandal at the

wrong time since I felt it was the right time to give up the world

around. I am more attracted to your graceful feet than to the

physical body of a woman. I don't know whether I am right or

wrong . I leave it to you to decide `

Rama was moved by his ardent prayer and appeared beforehim.

He spoke to him thus - `Oh Ramadas ! You are a blessed soul. You

have to guide many suffering souls in the world. You sit at the

banks of Krishna river and do your meditation. You spread bhakti to

people around you.'

Accordingly he meditated upon God for 12 long years. He

chanted Ramanama incessantly. He was blessed with many miraculous

powers. Then, as per the orders of Rama he toured all over the

country spreading Bhaktimarg all through his marg. He rennovated

many temples and guided many disciples.

One day, Ramadas was lost in his prayer. A death procession

went past him. The wife of the deceased looked at Ramadas and fell

prostrate before his feet. She pleaded for his blessings with tears

rolling down her cheeks. Ramadas opened his eyes and said `May you

be blessed with a son. `She cried even more bitterly'. Swami! I am

helpless. My husband is on his way to cemetary. How is it

possible ?' Ramadas was unperturbed. He smilingly said, `These

words are not spoken by me. They are Rama's words. Rama's words

can't go wrong. Bring your husband here.'

The dead body was brought. All people were made to

chant, `Sri Ram Jaya Ram Jaya Jaya Ram. `Rama nama echoed into the

sky and within no time the deceased sat up. The people around

couldn't believe their eyes ! They were surprised at his faith in

Ramanama. Ever since then he came to be known as Samardha Ramadas.

In the course of his pilgrimage he came to Pandaripur.

Sarvam Ramamayam Eko Vishnu. Such words tell us that though we pray

to different Gods they are all one and the same. The Almighty If we

know this principle don't the saints like Ramadas know ? But he was

so preoccupied with Rama that he couldn't bear to see Krishna, `Oh

God! I know you only as Ram! I can think of you as Ram, can pray to

you as Ram. I know you are Omnipotent. You are Krishna but please

forgive my foolishness. Please give me your darsan as Rama. Rama did

not treat it as foolishness but only blessed him as per his wish.

We get it in the following song.

`Yedhe Kam Ubha Sri Rama

Mana Mohana Megha Syama'

It begins with where is Sita, where is Hanumanthu, why is

Rukmini here and ends with a delightful note ! Oh God! How kind you

are ! You have blessed me in the form of Rama.

Ramadas came to Singhanvadi from Pandaripur. Sivaji was the

then ruler of Maharastra. He could at one glance make out that this

man was no ordinary saint and became his disciple. Sivaji was

provided Brahma Jnana.

One day Ramadas came with his begging bowl to the royal

court. The king prepared a document in which he donated his entire

Kingdom to the saint. But what will a saint do with earthly

riches ? The saint ordained him his representative. Sivaji ruled the

kingdom thus for six years hoisting saffron flag over the kingdom.

Then Samardha Ramadas went to Tamba, his native place. All

the villagers gathered round him including his mother. Before his

mother could fall prostrate before him, he fell to her feet. She

was taken aback at the turn of events. Then he explained to her who

he was. He told her, the credit went to her. The mother wondered

how he could be so great. He explained, that is the power of

Ramanama. If we totally surrender to God and pray to God for His

blessings, he will take us into His lap as a mother takes her son

into her lap.

The irony of the life was, when he developed vairagya as a

child, she chided him, but when he came back as a saint she

appreciated him. But the tragedy was she couldn't see him to her

heart's content, since she became blind.

He touched the eyes of his mother caressingly and lo! She

could see her son! Her joy knew no bounds. Ramadas extolled the

greatness of Rama and the impact of Ramanama. He stayed with his

mother till she breathed her last and served her as a dutiful son.

He prayed for her soul to rest in peace.

One day on his way to see Sivaji, he relaxed under a tree

with his sishyas. The sishyas stole a few sugarcanes and the owner

came and thrashed every one including Ramadas. Ramadas didn't mind

it since his sishyas did something wrong, but Shivaji couldn't bear

it. As he was personally attending to Ramadas he came across the

wounds on the body and gathered the information from his disciples.

The owner was hastened to his presence at once. But can you guess

the punishment Ramadas made the king give ? He was given 25

villages as a compensation! Man attains godly qualities in the

presence of God.

On another occasion when Ramadas came to Shivaji he had

undertaken the construction of palacial fort. That provided work for

5000 people and that boosted up the ego of Shivaji. Ramadas wanted

to teach him a lesson. So he told Shivaji to beckon a worker and to

make him break a rock. His orders were obeyed immediately. A frog

jumped out of the broken rock. Can you believe it that there was

sufficient water in the rock for the frog to survive. Then Ramadas

proclaimed. `Oh Maharaj! You assume that you provide a livelihood

for many people. But did you see how many creatures are surviving

without seeking your help ? Do you know who helps them ? Lord Rama

undoubtedly.' Shivaji realized how much vanity he was nourishing and

pleaded guilty.

If we go back to analyse Naroba's life, if we seek to find

causes which transformed him from Naroba to Samardha Ramadas, we

understand that he was different from all of us in every way. When

we are controlled by Kama, Krodha, Lobha, Moha, Mada, Mastaryalu, he

brought them under control. When we pray to God with an element of

faith and a heap of doubt in him, he prayed to God with no element

of doubt but only a heap of faith. He believed in the samardhata -

capacity of God and that made him samardha Ramadas.

Antha Ramamayam, Ee Jagamantha Ramamayam is a song which

teaches the essence of Upanishads. Ramadas wholeheartedly believed

in that and spread that. His slokas were manachi sloka and dasa

byodha!