Rama Katha Rasa Vahini - Post 30

LAKSHMANA'S FURY AND RAMA'S TEACHING

Dear All,

When Rama communicates the news about Kaikeyi's boons and demand for Rama to be away in exile, Lakshmana, who is listening to the same, is furious and interrupts thus.

Swami writes, 

"Lakshmana was watching the anguish of Kausalya and listening to her words. He could not control his emotions. He was bursting with anger. He held his hands tight over his chest, and said, "O! Revered Mother! I shall never accept this. Is Rama to leave the kingdom and betake himself to the forest, yielding to the prattle of a woman?

I cannot tolerate it. Father has become too old; his mind is very unsteady as a result. And, he is entangled in sensual pursuits, and he has become a slave to the enticements of Kaikeyi; he is pitiably uxorious; he has no sense of discrimination about the consequences of his actions. He is liable to issue any kind of order in his infatuation. Orders of such type should not be obeyed. The king is in a state of feeble-mindedness, unable to distinguish the real from the unreal, the momentary from the momentous. When such rulers give orders out of infatuation they can well be disobeyed. What crime did Rama commit that he should be sent into the forest? Even the cruelest enemy of Rama (if he has any), or even the most hard-hearted barbarian suffering punishment for his crimes, cannot point his finger at the slightest slur on his behaviour or action. 

No king on earth has the authority to drive into the forest as an exile a person of such unquestioned innocence, purity of intentions and holy sanctity. Rama is steady in his straightforward path; he is the master of his senses; he honors and treats with respect enemies of every type. Will any father drive such a son into the jungle? Moreover, the king is most attached to Dharma; he is a hero full of sacred ideals; he is an adherent of the best in all faiths. Can such a king issue this command? Judging from this, it is certain that

Dasaratha is either insane or enslaved by passion. Any command from a person who is either of these, is unworthy of consideration. The words of a king who behaves like a lunatic or an infant need not be honoured at all. Forgetting the dictates of political morality, giving up the path of worldly wisdom, throwing to the winds the demands of paternal affection, he has become mad, giving free vent to his whims and fancies. Need his command be treated as valid? I wonít agree that it should be respectedî. 

Lakshmana turned towards Rama, and clasping his hands in reverence, he said, "Rama! Pardon me! Assume the rulership of the realm before news of this spreads and becomes known to all. I shall be by your side, with my bow. Whoever in Ayodhya stands up against you will have to meet the arrows from this bow. Of course, there is no such, either in Ayodhya or any other place. But, if any opposition develops, this great City will become a desert, with no human inhabitant. My sharp arrows will see to that. Why repeat a thousand things? If Bharatha opposes, or any one on his behalf, I shall destroy him, root and branch. I will not care. Even Dasaratha, if he stands forth as a supporter of Kaikeyi in this struggle, I shall capture him and shut him up in prisonî. 

While Lakshmana was holding forth in this strain, Rama looked at him sternly, intercepting the flow of his feelings and admonished him thus: 

"Lakshmana! Your words are crossing the bounds. No one can deny me what I wish for. None can change the march of my will. My exile in the forest cannot be avoided. You are talking prompted by your love towards me and the desire to prevent your separation from me. Forbear! Forbearance will save you against all anxiety and fear. Be patient. Donít get agitated. Do not entertain ideas of hatred against either father or brother Bharatha. They are pure, holy persons. Kaikeyi too is highly venerable. She is to be honoured and worshipped. The boons she asked are also blameless. She loved me, caressed me, fondled me, nursed me, played with me, derived joy from me, more than her own son, Bharatha. When the Mother prays today for such boons from father, boons quite contrary to the ways of the world, surely there must be some hidden significance in the affair. This must be the Divine Plan, not mere human tactics. Be quiet, give up your fears and hatreds, We shall await what happens next", Rama advised him. 

At this, Lakshmana fell at the feet of Rama and said. "Rama! On what basis, under what authority is Bharatha to be given the Crown that ought to be yours? Which other son has the right which the eldest has not? You are obeying this absurd, unjust order because of father; but I will not approve of it, whatever you may say in justificationî. Turning to Kausalya, Lakshmana continued: ìRevered Mother! To tell you the truth, I am devoted to Rama. I speak this on oath: I cannot exist even a single moment apart from Rama. If Rama has no desire for the Kingdom and if he moves into the forest, I will follow him. I will walk in his footsteps, I will be the shadow for him. If he but orders so, I shall jump most joyously into the blazing fire. I shall heed only his orders, not of any one else. Mother! I cannot bear the sight of your sorrow. He is your son; he is my Ramachandra. How can any one be away from his own life-breath?" Listening to Lakshmana, Kausalya was a little comforted. She stroked the head of Lakshmana saying, ìYour love gives me much consolation. Your words give me great strength. Brothers of your kind are rare indeed! The world considers the mother who has borne such children as venerable and holy; but, we are afflicted now with the feeling that we are great sinners. Rama will not desist from his resolve. Exile is inevitable for him. I want only this now: Take me also with youî, she wailed. 

Rama looked at Lakshmana and said, "Brother! I know the extent of the love you bear towards me. I am not unaware of your heroism, your ability and glory. Mother is suffering great grief, since she is unable to understand the true facts and the value of self-control. Besides, since I am the child born of her loins, grief is natural. But consider: for all values of life, righteous conduct, Dharma, is the very root. And, Dharma is secure only on the foundation of Truth. 

"Sathya and Dharma are interchangeable. One cannot exist without the other. Truth is Goodness; Goodness is Truth. I am now achieving both Sathya and Dharma, while acting in accordance with the command of Father. No one dedicated to the good life shall break the word plighted to the mother, the father or the esteemed Preceptor. Therefore, I shall not overstep the orders of Father. That is certain. 

............Give up violence and cruelty and adopt my stand. I Rama stroked the beck of Lakshmana, who was weighed down by anger and sorrow and spoke soft loving words to assuage his grief."

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Dear All,

Through the above content, Swami teaches us on how to uphold both Sathya and Dharma together at times when there is an apparent contradiction/conflict between the two.

Imagine, in place of Rama, a person with ego and selfishness may give an interpretation to Dharma as " taking charge as prince and protection of people of his kingdom'

Here, Rama shows to the world that foremost Dharma is to obey parent's command and also along with that, Sathya or truthfulness is to take up father's command with full  reverence and truthful heart!

Love.