Ram was
the 7th avatar or incarnation of Vishnu. While all his avatars may not be
worshipped as Gods, Ram is worshipped as God, perhaps because he appeared in
human form and he exemplified the ideal human being, the ideal man, son, brother,
husband, friend, king… and so on. This, to my mind, is the reason why Ram and
his story, the Ramayan, appeals to all people, of all communities,
across all religions. He showed us how each one of us was intended to live on
this earth, irrespective of religion, with our parents, our family, our friends,
our enemies, with fellow humans, with Nature. He showed us what it means, what
it calls for, and how each one of us, whether we are son, brother, friend, father,
husband, king, how each one of us can progress – by first becoming the ideal human
and in so doing, even become God.
However, we
realised this was tough and calls for a lot of doing. And as we are the
smartest of all creatures on earth, we found a way to get out of this. We
decided to call him a God and shut him up in temples and began worshipping him.
I feel we
need to take him out of the temple and see him as a human who lived through all
of life with composure, compassion and balance. Within the span of a single day,
not only did he lose a kingdom, he also got exiled to the forest. He maintained
his composure and saw both with the same eyes… of detachment. When he went to
take leave of his mother, he said, “Father has not deprived me of the throne of
Ayodhya, he has made me the king of vast forests.” If he
wanted to, he could have side-stepped the issue of keeping up the promise his
father had given to his third queen by saying it’s a promise you made, so you
need to keep it, not me. His father’s honour became a question of his own
honour.
When the
battle with Ravana was about to begin, Vibhishan asked him how he hoped to
emerge victorious when Ravana and he were clearly on an unequal footing. “Look
at him, he’s mounted on a chariot and look at you… leave alone riding a
chariot, you are barefoot!” Rama smiled and told him, “I am riding a chariot,
Vibhishan….only you can’t see it! When Vibhishan looked surprised, he told him “I
have everything I need to win this war. I am riding a chariot mounted on twin
wheels; one of Courage and the other of Fortitude. Strength and Intelligence fly
like banners on this chariot which is pulled by three horses: Truth; Modest and
Humble behaviour, and the spirit of Goodwill, Helpfulness towards all. I am
holding the reins of Forgiveness, Kindness, Grace and Mercy that keep these
horses tied to my chariot. Such is my chariot, O Vibhishan, and as long as I am
on this chariot, no one can shake me, leave alone defeat me.”
So at any
time in our life’s battles, if we feel we have fallen short of resources, tools
or implements to win, if we have these resources on our side, let us firmly
believe we are invincible.
Throughout
his struggles, he didn’t look for help to royal armies which would have been
his for the asking. Instead he befriended the depressed, the marginalised, the
natural citizens of the lands he set foot in and put his faith in the knowledge
of the locals.
The day
he left the palace, he left his princely self behind. This was the reason he
could identify with the likes of Jatayu, Sugreev and Hanuman. He saw himself as indebted to the boatman who
he had nothing to pay for taking his wife, his brother and himself across the
river. He saw himself as an equal.
We need
to see him in everyone we come across.
On RamNavami, the day Ram came to earth, let us try to see him as a man, who became
God through being an ideal human being.
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Image credit: Google
Also see:
https://leftrightthodasacenter.blogspot.com/2019/04/rama-navami.html
https://leftrightthodasacenter.blogspot.com/2019/04/muskmelon-drinkpanaka.html
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