राम से बड़ा राम का नाम

 रामदरबार में हनुमानजी महाराज रामजी की सेवा में इतने तन्मय हो गये कि गुरू वशिष्ठ के आने का उनको ध्यान ही नहीं रहा। सबने उठ कर उनका अभिवादन किया पर, हनुमानजी नहिं कर पाये। वशिष्ठ जी ने रामजी से कहा कि राम गुरु का भरे दरबार में अभिवादन नहीं कर अपमान करने पर क्या सजा होनी चाहिए । राम ने कहा गुरुवर आप ही बतायें । वशिष्ठजी ने कहा मृत्यु दण्ड ।राम ने कहा स्वीकार हॆं। तब राम जी ने कहा कि गुरुदेव आप बतायें कि यह अपराध किसने किया हॆं?  बता दूंगा पर राम वो तुम्हारा इतना प्रिय हॆं कि, तुम अपने आप को सजा दे दोगे पर उसको नहीं दे पाओगे  राम ने कहा, गुरुदेव,  राम के लिये सब समान हॆं। मॆने सीता जेसी पत्नी का सहर्ष त्याग धर्म के लिये कर दिया तो, भी आप संशय कर रहे हॆं?

नहीं, राम! मुझे तुम्हारे पर संशय नहीं हॆं पर, मुझे दण्ड के परिपूर्ण होने पर संशय हॆं।

अत:यदि तुम यह विश्वास दिलाते हो कि, तुम स्वयं उसे मृत्यु दण्ड अपने अमोघ बाण से दोगे तो ही में अपराधी का नाम और अपराध बताऊँगा । राम ने पुन: अपना ससंकल्प व्यक्त कर दिया। तब वशिष्ठ जी ने बताया कि, यह अपराध हनुमान जी ने किया हॆं। हनुमानजी ने स्वीकार कर लिया। तब दरबार में रामजी ने घोषणा की कि, कल सांयकाल सरयु के तट पर, हनुमानजी को मैँ स्वयं अपने अमोघ बाण से मृत्यु दण्ड दूंगा।

हनुमानजी के घर जाने पर उदासी की अवस्था में माता अंजनी ने देखा तो चकित रह गयी. कि मेरा लाल महावीर, अतुलित बल का स्वामी, ज्ञान का भण्डार, आज इस अवस्था में?  माता ने बार बार पुछा,  

तब हनुमानजी ने बताया कि, यह प्रकरण हुआ हॆं अनजाने में। माता! आप जानती हें कि,  हनुमान को संपूर्ण ब्रह्माण्ड में कोई नहीं मार सकता,  पर भगवान राम के अमोघ बाण से भी कोई नहीं बच सकता l   

तब माता ने कहा कि, हनुमान, मैंने भगवान शंकर से, "राम" मंत्र (नाम) प्राप्त किया था ,और तुम्हे भी जन्म के साथ ही यह नाम घुटी में पिलाया।  जिसके प्रताप से तुमने बचपन में ही सूर्य को फल समझ मुख में ले लिया, उस राम नाम के होते हुये हनुमान कोई भी तुम्हारा बाल भी बांका नहीं कर सकता । चाहे वो राम स्वयं भी हो l राम नाम की शक्ति के सामने राम की शक्ति और राम के अमोघ शक्तिबाण की शक्तियां महत्वहीन हो जायेगी। जाओ मेरे लाल,  अभी से सरयु के तट पर जाकर राम नाम का उच्चारण करना आरंभ करदो। माता के चरण छूकर हनुमानजी, सरयु किनारे राम राम राम राम रटने लगे।

सांयकाल, राम अपने सम्पूर्ण दरबार सहित सरयुतट आये। सको कोतुहल था कि, क्या राम हनुमान को सजा देगें?

पर जब राम ने बार बार रामबाण ,अपने महान शक्तिधारी ,अमोघशक्ति बाण चलाये पर हनुमानजी के उपर उनका कोई असर नहीं हुआ तो, गुरु वशिष्ठ जी ने शंका बतायी कि, राम तुम अपनी पुर्ण निष्ठा से बाणो का प्रयोग कर रहे हो?  तो राम ने कहा हां गुरूदेव मैँ गुरु के प्रति अपराध की सजा देने को अपने बाण चला रहा हूं, उसमें किसी भी प्रकार की चतुराई करके मैँ कॆसे वही अपराध कर सकता हूं?

 तो तुम्हारे बाण अपना कार्य क्यों नहीं कर रहे हॆ?

तब राम ने कहा, गुरु देव हनुमान राम राम राम की अंखण्ड रट लगाये हुये हॆं।  मेरी शक्तिंयो का अस्तित्व राम नाम के प्रताप के समक्ष महत्वहीन हो रहा है।  इसमें मेरा कोई भी प्रयास सफल नहीं हो रहा है। आप ही बतायें , गुरु देव ! मैँ क्या करुं।

गुरु देव ने कहा,  हे राम ! आज से मैँ तुम्हारा साथ तुम्हारा दरबार, त्याग कर अपने आश्रम जाकर राम नाम जप हेतु जा रहा हूं। जाते -जाते, गुरुदेव वशिष्ठ जी ने घोषणा की कि हे राम ! मैं जानकर ,मानकर. यह घौषणा कर रहा हूं कि स्वयं राम से राम का नाम बडा़ हॆं, महा अमोघशक्ति का सागर है। जो कोई जपेगा, लिखेगा, मनन.करेगा, उसकी लोक कामनापूर्ति होते हुये  भी,वो मोक्ष का भागी होगा।  

तभी से राम से बडा राम का नाम माना जाता है ।

 

Kewat- a friend indeed

During the years of exile when Lord Rama reached at the banks of river Ganga, he needed a boat to cross it. He approached a boatman, Kewat for his services. But Kewat refused.He said, “I have heard that there is magic in the dust of your feet. By the touch of your feet, a stone can change into a woman.( he was referring to the previous incident in which Lord Rama removed the curse of Ahilya by touching his foot to a stone which turned into a woman)”. Kewat laid the condition that first he would wash Rama's feet to remove the dust and only then he would allow him to to sit on the boat. Lord Rama smiled  and allowed Kewat to wash His feet. Kevat by his simple manner, thus achieved what great sages could not achieve. It was kewat’s   devotion which made it possible for him to accomplish a feat that even the gods are envy of.

After washing the Lord’s feet, Kewat ferried them across the river Ganga. As soon as they alighted from the boat, goddess Sita immediately withdrew a ring from her finger and handed it over to Lord Rama, signaling to him to pass it on to the boatman.But Kewat refused to accept it. On asking the reason, kewat replied," Lord, ! how can i accept any money from You because   people of the same profession do not charge each other for their services. A barber never takes payment, when he gives a haircut to another barber. Even a washer-man never charges a fellow washer-man.". Lord Rama was surprised with the response and wanted clarification from Kewat that how could he be of the same profession . Kewat answered "Lord, both of us do the same work. I ferry people from this bank of the Ganges to the other. You ferry people across the ocean of Sansaara (Bhav-sagar), through the journey of life.How can I accept payment from you? Lord! . But please, as I have made you cross this river today, when my time comes, take me across sansaar saagar (the ocean of life). That would be your return to me."The Lord was so overwhelmed at this devotional request from Kewat, that he held out his arms and embraced the boatman and blessed him. Later, the Kewat was liberated from the cycle of birth and death just because of this little service done unto the Supreme Lord! After the completion of his exile when Lord Rama returned to Ayodhya, he was crowned as King. But in coronation ceremony his eyes were looking for some special guest. When Sita asked Rama that is he waiting for some one. Lord Rama replied that he is missing Kewat too much today. Even on the day of extreme happiness Lord Rama did not forget the  good deed done by Kewat long time ago.
Jai Shri Ram!

Hanuman and Betel leaves

When the war between Lord Rama and King Ravana was over, then it was time for them to return to Ayodhya along with Goddess Sita. But at the time of departure Hanuman was missing who played a key role in the victory of Lord Rama. Everyone searched for Hanuman. Eventually, Sita found Hanuma in a betel leaves garden .  When Hanuman saw Sita , he bowed his head down to seek the blessings.Sita was overwhelmed with his devotion. She plucked few betel leaves and showered on hanuman in order to bless him. Since then  this tradition of offering garland of betel leaves is follows

Shabri- The blessed devotee

 Shabri was born in a tribal family. Since childhood she was a great devotee of Lord Rama. When she reached marriageable age,she was surprised to see his father arranging animals to be serve in marriage feast.Se could not able to tolerate this act and she escaped and reached the ashram of Sage Matang. she served at  the ashram with great devotion. When the Sage Matang was about to leave his mortal form, he blessed Shabri that one day Lord Rama would visit this ashram to bless her.She was overwhelmed and from that day she spent every minute in the waiting of her god.Everyday she plucked the berry fruit from the forest and tasted it. If she found the fruit to be sweet then she stored them for Lord Rama and rest she discarded. Her devotion was pure. Many years passed. Shabri was now too old . One day her wait was over when Lord Rama visited her ashram. This was the ultimate moment for which she was waiting for.She was overjoyed and welcomed Lord Rama by washing his feet. She offered berry fruit to him. But before the offer again she tasted each fruit and she gave only sweet fruit to him.Even Lord Rama had tears in his eyes to see her devotion.On the other hand Lakshman was not happy as Shabri offered unworthy fruit after tasting. Lord Rama explained to Lakshman that the berries are offered with true devotion and nothing in this world could be as good as these berries. He blessed Shabri .She reached the ultimate height of spirituality which was difficult for even great sages.

Queen Tara- The Beauty with a brain

In Ramayana, one of the unsung character was Tara who was the daughter of physician Sushena(vanar). She was the wife of Bali .Tara was famous for her divine beauty and  great intelligence. She had an ability to understand the language of all the animals and birds. When she learnt that Lord Rama joined the band of Sugreev , she immediately adviced her husband to make treaty with Sugreev. But Bali ignored her warning and ultimately died in a battle with Lord Rama. After the death of her husband, she demanded promise from Sugreev to make her son Angad as a heir to throne. In another incident, when Lakshman tried to attack Sugreev for forgetting his promise to help Lord Rama, Tara immediately intervened and solved the crisis. This was the proof of her diplomacy.Actually she was a ‘beauty with a brain’

Trijata- The Sita's saviour

 'Trijata'  was one of the demoness in King Ravana’s court. She was appointed to have an eye on Sita and convinced her to marry King. Due to her past lives good deeds,Trijata, was devotee of Lord Rama despite born in demon community. Instead of threatening Sita, she was the only one there in Ashok Vatika where Sita was kept who treated Sita like her daughter. She even freed Sita from the fear by disclosing the secret that Ravana could not marry her due to involvement of previous curses to him. One night she had a dream in which she saw that Lord Rama defeated Ravana. After the dream she even tried her best to persuade King to set Sita free from his captivity.She was sure the Ravanas act of keeping Sita in his kingdom would bring destruction to the whole family. Trijata clearly understood the powers of Sita at once. Even during the war she kept the hopes of Sita alive when Ravana spread the rumors about his victory.She morally supported Sita all the way during the war. Trijata's role can never be underestimated. Actually Trijata was a niece of Ravana,the daughter of Vibhishan.

Ek Shloki Ramayana

Ramayana , the hindu epic,consist of   24000 shlokas in 7 books.Reading a Ramayana has a power to wash off all the sins of a human. But in modern era where time is always in scarcity, the benefits of reading a whole Ramayana can be obtain by reading "Ek shloki Ramayana" in which the context of whole epic is reduced into one shloka(verse).

Mantra as follows

आदि राम तपोवनादि गमनं, हत्वा मृगं कांचनम्।

वैदीहीहरणं जटायुमरणं, सुग्रीवसंभाषणम्।।

बालीनिर्दलनं समुद्रतरणं, लंकापुरीदाहनम्।

पश्चाद् रावण कुम्भकर्ण हननम्, एतद्धि रामायणम्।।

Meaning

Once Rama went to forest,

He chased the deer,

Sita was kidnapped,

Jatayu was killed, There were talks with Sugreeva,

Bali was killed,

The sea was crossed,

Lanka was burnt,

And later Ravana and Kumbhakarna,

were also killed.

This in short is the story of Ramayanam

Procedure

-consistency is required

-after the morning bath ,start chanting the mantra in front of idol of Lord Rama

-atleast recitation of 108 times is necessary everyday

 -try to recite at the same time and at the same place everyday.

Curse of Sage Bhrigu

During the fight between gods and demons, at one stage gods overpowered demons. Sensing the massive defeat ,the demons reached the ashram of Sage Bhrigu who was not present at that time. His wife greeted the demons as they were came for the help and she promised to provide shelter to demons. On the other hand, Indra who was chief of gods came to know about the hideout of demons. Indra reached the ashram and threatened demons to surrender before him. But wife of Sage Bhrigu stood in between them and drove Indra away. Indra rushed to Lord Vishnu for the help. To assist Indra he went to ashram where the demons were hidden. Again, the wife of Sage Bhrigu came to rescue demons. Finally, Lord Vishnu killed her with his Sudarshan Chakra in order to ensure win for gods. At this point Sage Bhrigu returned to ashram and shocked to see the dead body of his wife. When he came to know that it was Lord Vishnu who was responsible for the death of his wife, he cursed Lord Vishnu that he too would have to suffer the pain of separation from his wife on earth like him . Lord Vishnu accepted the curse with dignity. Due to curse he was born as Lord Rama(an incarnation of Lord Vishnu) and had to suffer the grief of separation from his wife Sita.

The curse of Vedvati

King Kushadhwaj was a powerful king and he was true devotee of Lord Vishnu. His wife gave birth to a daughter. At the time of birth the little girl was chanting the vedic mantras(prayer). This was a good omen for an extraordinary child. As a result her parents named her as “Vedvati”. Like her father she was also a true devotee of Lord Vishnu. She performed very tough tapasya(meditation) to please Lord Vishnu. As she grow older and older , she became adamant that she would marry to only Lord Vishnu. All the efforts of her parents of guiding her to marry some other king on earth went in vain. After the death of her parents , she preferred to stay in the forest and did meditation just to have a glimpse of lord Vishnu. Once the King Ravana, the ruler of Lanka visited her hermitage. He was stunned by the beauty of Vedvati and proposed her to marry him. But Vedvati rejected his offer. The angry King Ravana insulted her and destroyed her tapasya. She cursed Ravana that in her next birth she would become the cause of his death .She could not bear the insult , so she immolated herself . The vedvati reborn as Sita in the next birth. Due to all her merits which she acquired in previous birth she married to Rama(an incarnation of lord Vishnu). Later , Sita(vedvati , in previous birth) became the cause of destruction of the vast empire of King Ravana!

Shani ki drishti

When King Ravana succeeded in getting the control over all the nine planets, he installed them face downward on the nine steps that led to his throne. Each morning, he would step on their back to ascend his throne, causing insult and anguish to them. One day the sage Narada came to Ravana, and upon seeing the state of the nine planets asked Shani, how as the mightiest and the most terrible of the planets, he can bear this insult? Shani replied that because he is laying face downward he is helpless, if only he can cast his gaze on Ravana, matters would change. After Narada was shown around the magnificent palace of Ravana the proud king wanted his opinion. The wise sage replied that everything was excellent at the palace of Ravana, except for one. That was, how can Ravana get the pleasure of subduing the nine planets when they are lying face downward? It is better if they were to lay face upward so that when Ravana stepped over their chests, he could get the pleasure of seeing their discomfort on their faces. This suggestion appealed to the mighty king and he quickly ordered his staff to turn the nine planets around on their backs. As soon as that was done, Shani's gaze fell on Ravana and his reason abandoned him. Within a few months he kidnapped Sita, the wife of Lord Rama that led to Lord Rama's invasion of his kingdom. Ravana and his entire family was killed, all this during the seven and half year cycle of Shani.