Lord Rama

Lord Ram, the Ideal

Godman: Birth and Boyhood

Koshal was a well known province situated beside the river Saryu. The people residing here were leading a prosperous as well as happy life. The famous city of Ayodhya, built and established by King Manu in the ancient times, was situated in this district itself.

This beautiful city was 96 miles in length and 32 miles in width. The main thoroughfare of this city was lined with beautiful, fruit-bearing trees on both sides. The gardens were overflowing with bright, colourful flowers.

This city struck the visitor with its splendour. In its beauty, it resembled Amravati, the celestial city ruled by Devraj Indra.

Huge gates, alert security guards, spacious bazaars, sculptors and artistes, drama troupes, beautiful dancers, majestic attics–all enhanced the splendour of Ayodhya city. It seemed as if this place was as precious as the chariot, gained as a result of the prayer and devotion of the entire celestial realm.

King Dashrath’s splendid palace was located in the centre of this city. This city was designated as the capital of Koshal province owing to its beauty. There was no person here who was not involved with performing yajnas and associated rites of purification.

King Dashrath’s ministers were able, learned men of character, who were deeply devoted to their king. For this reason, King Dashrath’s reputation had spread far and wide.

Mahamuni Vasistha and Vamadeva were among the respected elders of this city. Along with them, Goutama, Markandeya and Jabali were the other honoured figures. The prevalence of justice, good faith and order in the city ensured due respect for all its inhabitants.

With the support of this able council of ministers, Dashrath used to rule over the entire earth. He had no enemies and all the feudal lords submitted to his authority.

In spite of all this, the learned king Dashrath was a deeply troubled man. The cause behind his worries was that he had no son to succeed him.

He had one daughter, Shanta, whom he had married off to Muni Kumar Rishyashringa, the son of Vibhandak Muni.

The presence of the son-in-law could not quench his desire for son. His worries multiplied by the day.

One day, the idea of performing the Ashwamedha Yagya (sacrifice) struck the king’s mind. He was certain that a son would be born to him as a result of performing this yajna. Contemplating thus, he called his learned ministers and family priests Vasistha, Vamdev and Jabali to reveal his intentions.

"I am always lamenting for a son. The absence of an heir makes my pleasures and comforts meaningless for me. Hence, I have decided that in obedience to the scriptural suggestion, I would undertake this pure yagya. All of you who are assembled here are learned sages, kindly tell me how this wish of mine (for a son) would be fulfilled?"

This is a very fine idea, O King! agreed Mahamuni Vasistha praising the king for this fine inspiration.

Munis such as Jabali and Vamdev, and ministers like Sumantra wholeheartedly supported the King and said, "Maharaj! This is a great idea. Let us arrange the material (for the yagya) as quickly as possible."

It was decided that the yagya would be performed on the banks of river Saryu and the ground was cleared for the purpose. The sacrificial horse was released to roam the earth and Muni Kumar Rishyashringa was made the overall in-charge of the yagya.

Several Brahmins and seers, well-versed in the Vedas graced this auspicious occasion with their presence.

As per the instructions of sages such as Muni Vasistha and Rishyashringa, on the auspicious day Maharaja Dashrath took the vows for the yagya, along with his wives Kaushalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra. By this time, the sacrificial horse had also returned after roaming the earth.

The required offerings were made for this yagya and all the associated tasks were accomplished without obstruction and mistakes. Several Brahmins partook of the food daily and were handsomely rewarded for their participation in the yagya.

Maharaja Dashrath, intensely desirous of ensuring his lineage, donated the entire region east of Ayodhya city to Hota, as reward for his contribution to the yagya. Adhvaryu and Brahma were gifted the western and southern regions of the kingdom; and Udgata was given the entire land in the northern direction.

Maharaja Dashrath was extremely pleased on fulfilling these duties. But the Brahmins and the Purohits pleaded with him thus, "O Maharaj! We are a simple people with few needs–we are humble interpreters of the holy Vedas–what will we do with so much land? O King! Instead of granting us so much of land, kindly gift us with money equivalent to it. That would be more appropriate for us."

Understanding this, the Maharaja gifted them with cattle and gold coins instead.

At the inauguration of the yagya, Maharaja Dashrath requested Muni Rishyashringa to start with the procedures.

"O King! You will have four sons (instead of one only) as a result of this yajna. They will be able sons, who will bear the future responsibilities of your dynasty in a wonderful way." Saying this, Mahamuni Rishyarshinga uttered the sacred mantras from the Atharva Veda and thus initiated the yagya for begetting sons. Offerings were then made in accordance with holy tradition.

All the Devas, Siddhas, Gandharvas and the Maharishis assembled in one place with the intention of sharing their future tasks. Addressing the creator of the universe, Brahma, they said, O Lord! The demon Ravan is giving all of us a tremendous amount of trouble by misusing the powers which you blessed him with as a reward for his devotion to you. Ever since you have given him your blessing, he has been endlessly troubling the creatures of all the three worlds. He hates anybody whom he sees as a threat and does his best to destroy him. He has become so fearless that he feels free to insult anybody and everybody anytime, anywhere. He has scant respect for the human race.

On hearing the word ‘human’, Brahmaji immediately responded, "I have a plan for finishing off this evil soul. While seeking my blessings, he had sought the blessing of being protected from the mortal attacks of the Gandharvas, Yakshas, Devas and the Rakshasas. Since he had a low estimate of the human race, he didn’t ask for protection from that quarter. For this reason, only a human being can end his life."

While Brahmaji was uttering these words, lord of the universe Vishnu appeared on the scene. He was mounted on his vehicle, Garuda, dressed in saffron, and armed with a conch, a wheel and a mace by his side.

All of them worshipped Vishnu humbly and said, O omnipresent Lord! Kindly hear our plea for the protection and welfare of all the three worlds.

"O Lord! The king of Ayodhya is a learned scholar of all religions. Apart from that, he is generous, austere and ascetic as the Maharshis. His three queens–Hri, Shri, and Kirti–bear goddess-like qualities. O Lord! Kindly use your tremendous powers to transform yourself into four forms and take birth from the wombs of these three queens. And thus, by taking on the human form, deliver this earth from this demon Ravan and his misdeeds."

On seeing everyone so troubled and worried, the eternally generous Vishnuji said, May all of you be blessed. For the sake of your welfare, I will definitely destroy Ravan and his entire kin. Subsequently, Vishnu decided to transform himself into four forms and bestow fatherhood upon Dashrath.

Vishnu transformed himself into the form of a divine man and immediately appeared in the midst of the sacrificial fire of King Dashrath’s yajna. Addressing King Dashrath, he said, O King! I have come here by the orders of the king of the universe. Saying this, he handed over a golden plate, which was filled with the sacred porridge (and covered with a silver covering). Turning to the king, he said, "This sacred porridge is prepared especially by the Devas and carries within itself the power to produce sons. Tell your beloved queens to eat this porridge. On eating this, they will definitely bear sons."

On receiving this ‘prasada’ from the Devas, the king was as pleased as the poor man who has gained sudden wealth. The divine man disappeared from the scene after handing over the sacred porridge and the king retired to his palace with it.

Dashrath divided the sacred porridge among his various queens: Half of it he gave to Queen Kaushalya; half of the remaining portion was given to Queen Sumitra. Half of the remainder was given to Kaikeyi and again what was left was given to Sumitra.

After eating the sacred porridge, all the three queens soon became pregnant. Their wombs shone like the sun and fire. Thus, with the fulfilment of King Dashrath’s desire the yagya was concluded.

The Devas returned to their abodes on receiving their share from the yagya. The Brahmins, Munis and Muni Kumar Rishyashringa also returned to their homes after receiving rewards for their contribution.

The assembled guests were sent off with all honours. And on the due date on an auspicious time the elderly queen Kaushalya gave birth to a son bearing divine qualities. This heir to the Ikshvaku dynasty was named Ram, the reinearnation of Vishnu.

King Dashrath was on cloud nine on the birth of his four sons. All his heart’s wishes were now fulfilled.

King Dashrath’s loyal and devoted subjects were also filled with joy on seeing their beloved king’s happiness. A grand celebration was organized in Ayodhya. The Gandharvas sang melodious songs on this precious occasion. The Devas played their instruments joyfully and flowers rained from the sky.

Eleven days after the birth of his sons, Maharaja Dashrath performed the rite of naming them. Mahamuni Vasistha joyfully named the boys. Since Kaushalya was the eldest queen, her son was named Ram. Kaikeyi’s son was named Bharat while Sumitra’s two sons were named Laxman and Shatrughan.

On this joyous occasion, several prisoners were released from their prisons and presented with gifts. The Brahmins as well as all the inhabitants of the city were fed meals with due respect and affection and were bestowed with rewards and donations.

All the three mothers were filled with motherly delight. Playing with their children in their laps, they were enjoying their womanhood in the true sense.

The clouds of worry that had enveloped the king all this while had evaporated by now. Instead, the bright moon of hope, in all its splendour, had arisen in his life. On this happy occasion, Ayodhya was decked like a bride.

With the passage of time, these boys started growing. King Dashrath now spent much of his time with his sons. The palace at Ayodhya boomed with the playful shouts of these young boys.

Now these small boys had started crawling. They could now occasionally cross the threshold of their rooms onto the road outside. Several servants were pressed into service to look after them and attend to them.

Maharshi Vasistha performed further religious ceremonies for these boys as required by tradition. Rama was the eldest among them. He possessed the best qualities and was generous and serious by temperament. Laxman had a slightly mischievous nature while Bharat and Shatrughan demonstrated a spirit of service.

These boys were the four lamps of the royal household. In order to develop them fully, Guru Vasistha took personal charge of their education. His aim was to educate them all in such a way as to make them both wise and capable in all respect. Of all the boys, Rama was the brightest and the most valiant. He possessed the gift of soothing everyone’s heart like the spotless moon. Rama was highly skilled in the art of archery and was constantly engaged in perfecting this art through practice. Rama was also a deeply filial son. For this reason, King Dashrath had a soft corner for him.

Laxman was good in the art of creating wealth. He had a strong attachment to Rama and always stayed in his presence. He took a lot of care of Rama and was perennially engaged in his service. Rama, in turn, was deeply attached to Laxman and couldn’t do without him.

Whenever Rama went on a hunting expedition or travelled somewhere on horseback, Laxman used to follow him with the intention of protecting him from harm. In the same way, Bharat and Shatrughan were deeply attached to one another.

The education of these boys proceeded apace under the watchful supervision of able gurus like Vasistha, Vamdev and Jabali. Gifted with sharp minds, these four boys were unflinching in the fulfilment of their duties. They were extremely obedient and could accomplish all their prescribed tasks within a short span of time.

These four boys became adept in the art of horse-riding very quickly. They mastered all