RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN CHAPTER 22 PART TWO

                                                                   RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN

                                                              CHAPTER NUMBER 22 PART TWO

Rama continued to speak to his brother, Lakshmana; “My mother need not vex herself for such a trifle. Wipe away her tears. Bring peace to her pained heart. Because I cannot bear to see her doubt and suffer! I never knew till now the slightest grief to my father or mothers. Our father always speaks the truth. He never goes back on his promise. He is endowed with might and valour. The same never fails its purpose. Our father might harbour a doubt. He might doubt about having a place in the worlds of the gods if he goes back on his promise. It is our sacred duty to keep him away from such doubts. My coronation must be cancelled. His sworn words to Kaikeyi must be upheld. It will wring my heart. So I wish to stop the preparations towards my coronation. I wish to start to the woods immediately. Let the daughter of the Kekaya monarch see the realisation of her hopes. It will make her happy if I take my way to the forest.  I must be dressed in deerskin and the bark of trees. My matted hair must be coiled on my head. Nothing can shake my resolve. I have resolved to go to the forests of Dandaka. Till now Dharma was the sole motive of my actions. But there is a greater and nobler one. It is not Kaikeyi that deprives me of this kingdom. We should not waste our breath in cursing her. The Lord put such a notion into her head. Otherwise, why should Kaikeyi try to harm me? I make no difference between my mothers. Each one of them is entitled to my boundless love. Kaikeyi makes no difference between me and Bharata. Yet she was able to speak cruel words. She was able to get our father’s nod to banish me to the forests. The Lord, it is, who has changed Kaikeyi’s nature. It must be for some inscrutable purpose of His. She is gifted with a natural grace of mind and heart. She has the blood of the mighty monarchs in her veins. She is adorned with compassion, generosity and other excellences. Then why should she behave like the meanest of her sex? She could have spoken her command to some other person. But she has chosen to speak like this to her lord and husband! She could have sent words to me through a servant or slave of hers. But she has chosen to speak to her Lord’s face! Did she suggest that I may go to the forests? She minced no words! She tirelessly repeated her words! You can see the Lord’s hand in this. None dare set himself up against His will. God’s ways are mysterious. We cannot understand them. It is because of Him my crown slips from my hands. It is because of the Lord that Kaikeyi has turned against me. There is no armour against Fate. Joy and sorrows are inscrutable mysteries. Serenity and anger, gain and loss, birth and death all happen because of our Fate. Mighty sages like Visvamitra observed stern tapas. Even they became the slaves of their passions. They lost their serenity and peace. And they fell headlong from their spiritual heights. It is but Destiny that raises a barrier before our efforts. It says, ‘This far thou shalt go and no further’. And we direct our energies to some other purpose we never dreamt of. So I never allow my peace of heart to be ruffled. Joy or sorrow cannot ruffle my serenity. And this aborted coronation does not affect me in the least. You, Lakshmana, should also put away grief and anger from you. Go and see that the preparation for my coronation is stopped. The sacred waters have been brought from all over the world. They are meant for my consecration bath. Now they should serve for the preparatory rites and baths. They are toward my departure to the forests. No! There is a chance for Kaikeyi to misconstrue the same. She might think that I want to crown myself secretly as the ruler of this kingdom! So, I will have nothing to do with these holy waters. The holy waters are the property of the king, hence of Bharata.”

“Lakshmana! We do not let this kingdom and wealth slip through our fingers. You must not worry on this score. It is all one and the same to me, Lakshmana. I do not care if I am the monarch of the earth or a humble recluse of Dantaka. On hindsight, a forest life is free from all cares. I will be free from the misfortunes and the sins that beset a ruler’s path. In the forests, you get to see everywhere the rarest creatures of God! Hence I prefer a life in the woods to an uneasy throne.”

“Lakshmana! I tell you what. No one knows better the might of Destiny. It sits at the heart of Kaikeyi. And it prompts her to speak harsh words to us. So we should not think that Kaikeyi has stopped my coronation!”

            

  

RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN CHAPTER 22 PART ONE

                                                          RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN

                                                     CHAPTER NUMBER 22 PART ONE

                                                                 LAKSHMANA CALMED

Rama was a master of his emotions. He was an omnipotent Lord of the worlds. He had an iron will. Lakshmana lay nearer to his heart. Lakshmana was not famous for patience. Angry fires shot from his eyes. His eyes were like the red mouth of a volcano. He let out burning sighs. It looked like the sound produced by the Lord of serpents. Yet Rama forgave him. For Lakshmana was his brother, his friend and companion. He was the darling of his heart. Now Lakshmana was stricken with grief. So Rama turned to him and said these words. “Lakshmana! What has become of your self-control? Yours is the marvellous fortitude. You must bury your indignation and fury deep in your heart. Don’t say, ‘What! On the eve of your coronation! When everything is ready for your coronation? And the joyful millions are filled with high expectation! It would be an unspeakable shame if the installation doesn’t come off’. The coronation is off. It is not due to any fault of ours, Lakshmana. There is no want of courage or valour on our part. But we should show happiness at what has happened now! We are chosen to fulfil the orders of our father! We must win for him the seats of the righteous. Preparations are afoot towards my consecration. You must stay them immediately. And then help me in my preparations to fulfil our father’s order. You must show enthusiasm. You should make everything necessary for my departure to the forest. My mother is much grieved. She wants me to sit on the throne of the Ikshvakus. She doubts my safe return after fourteen years. You must assure her that going to the forest is a light task. I will return from the forest in no time!  

        

RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN AYODHYAKANDA CHAPTER 21 PART SIX

                                                                  RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN

                                                                         AYODHYAKANADA

                                                                    CHAPTER 21 PART SIX

Rama continued to talk. “A wife secures to her husband wealth. She helps him to achieve three Aims of Life. These are the means to attain the happiness born of Dharma. In other words, do your duty to the best of your ability. And you are master of the above means. Take my word for it. This is utter truth and beyond all doubts. There are Three Purusharthas. Time and energy should be applied to everything that leads to them. Engage yourself in that which will secure Dharma all the times. You should not seek wealth at any cost. The world hates such a person. We should not devote ourselves solely to the pursuit of pleasure. Let us decide what my duty is now. The king is my Guru. I learnt from him the art of War and the science of Polity. He is my monarch. I live in peace and happiness under his shadow. He is my father. He brought me into the world. I should respect his great age and ripe experience. If such a man commands me to do anything, I should implicitly obey. He knows the mysteries of Dharma. I always seek to do what my father says.

“He is my lord and of my mother too. He is the highest goal of her aspirations. He will lead his wife, my mother, to the worlds of the Blessed. He is ruling over this vast empire for long. He has ruled this kingdom more righteously than his predecessors. It is not just for my mother to come with me. You are not an ordinary woman. You are not helpless and friendless. You are not a widow needing protection. Mother, I go to the forest. I pray give me leave. Engage in auspicious rites. That will safely see us return to your side. King Yayati was banished from heaven. But he was unshaken in the path of Truth. Thus he was restored to heaven. I shall come back to you safely at the end of fourteen years. I will never sacrifice my fame for the sake of kingly rule and power. Our life on the earth is like a flash of lightning in the dark. I shall not stain my hands with the crime. I do not desire to be the lord of the earth.”

Thus Rama consoled his weeping mother. And he was resolved to go to the forests of Dandaka. He explained to Lakshmana the course of action he was to adopt.  And Rama prepared himself to get his mother’s leave to depart. He was ready to go round his mother in salutation.        

  

RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN, AYODHYAKANDA, CHAPTER 21 PART FIVE

RAMAYANA FOR CHILDREN

                                                                                AYODHYAKANDA

                                                                          CHAPTER 21, PART FIVE  

Rama’s pleading was eloquent. It spoke volumes for his virtue and duty. He was respectful to his mother. But he was firm in carrying out his father’s command. He had no grief or disappointment. It was too much for Kausalya. She fainted under the shock. After a while, she regained her senses. She looked Rama in the eye. She cried, “Don’t I deserve as much obedience as you have for your father? You are flesh of my flesh. I bore you in the womb. And I watched you grow from infancy to youth. Does it not count for anything? You see my unspeakable misery. And yet you want to leave me here. I am alone and helpless. You leave me to the mercies of my enemies. Do you expect my consent? What is life to me in the world? If you are not by myself, life is not worth living.”

Elephant-hunters take their stand during dark nights across its path. They drive the elephant towards the pit. They do this by threatening it with blazing torches. Even so, the pitiable laments of his mother had no effect on Rama. Her portrayal of her miseries only roused him to fresh energy and firmness. He would not let him go back from the Path of Dharma. He saw his mother in deep grief. He looked at his brother, Lakshmana. He was writhing under impotent anger. Yet Rama would never waver from the path of Dharma. And his words to Kausalya were in agreement with Dharma. Duty hemmed him on every side. He did not hesitate to choose the best course of action. “Lakshmana!” Rama addressed his brother; “I know your devotion to me. You and my mother cause me annoyance and trouble. You both are wilfully blind to my motives. Hear me once again. I will speak to you two at length. I will elaborate on what I hinted to you just now. A wife secures to her husband Dharma. It is possible only if she walks the path of her husband’s law of life. She secures to him Love if she wants a place in his heart.”

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