Canto II: The Avatara
Long, long ago in the beautiful land of Kosala on the banks of the river Sarayu, was situated the magnificent town of Ayodhya, ruled by the wise and just king called Dasaratha. He belonged to the solar dynasty in the lineage of lkshvaku, who was the son of Vaivasvatha Manu, the first of all created beings. Dasaratha had one sorrow and that was that he had no son to carry on his line. As he was brooding over this, his GurUy sage Vasishta exhorted him to perform the Horse sacrifice {Ashvamedha yaga), as well as the Putrakameshti yaga for the sake of begetting a son. He told him to approach the famous sage, Rishyasringa and request him to be the chief priest in conducting the yajna.
It was at this time that the gods approached the creator Brahma and begged him to intercede with Lord Vishnu on their behalf to kill the demon king, Ravana, who was harassing them sorely. Brahma conveyed the message to Lord Vishnu who agreed to descend to the earth, taking on four forms, as the sons of Dasaratha. At that very moment, king Dasaratha had successfully completed his Asvamedha yaga and had commenced his Putrakameshti yaga. Rishyasringa had raised the ladle high and had just poured the ghee into the flaming fire, invoking the presence of Lord Narayana, the protector of the world. Just then out of the sacrificial fire there appeared a striking figure – of a divine personage carrying a golden vessel containing an ambrosial confection of rice, milk and honey. The celestial being handed over the vessel to the king and told him to give it to his three queens. The king gave half of this nectar-like sweet to his eldest wife, Kausalya. He divided the remaining half into two portions and gave one portion to his second wife, Sumitra.
The remaining quarter he split into two and gave one part to his third wife Kaikeyi and the remainder again to Sumitra. As soon as they ate the pudding, the queens became pregnant with the spirit of Lord Narayana. In course of time they gave birth to four sons, each of whom manifested the power of the Lord in proportion to the amount that their mothers had partaken of the divine confection. The first to be born was Kausalya’s son, Rama, who contained within him one half of the power of the Lord. He was born in the month of Chaithra – March/April, when the star Punarvasu was in ascendance, at a most auspicious time, when five of the planets were in an exalted state. Next, Kaikeyi, the youngest queen, gave birth to Bharata, who possessed a quarter of the Lord’s powers and finally the second wife, Sumitra delivered twins who were called Lakshmana and Shatrugna. The king’s joy knew no bounds. In place of the one son he had wished for, he had been given four. Gifts were distributed in abundance to all. The city of Ayodhya went crazy with joy. There was a month-long rejoicing and festivities.
As the children grew up they were given all the training necessary for royal princes. Their Guru was the great sage Vasishta. Even as a child, Rama exhibited extraordinary powers of intellect as well as great nobility of character. Though the other three were all devoted to him, Sumitra’s son Lakshmana, followed Rama like a shadow and could not bear to be parted from him even for a minute, whereas his twin Shatrugna kept close to Bharata.
After their return from the hermitage of their preceptor, Rama was desirous of going on a pilgrimage round this holy land of Bharathavarsha. Dasaratha was pleased to grant his request and the four brothers went on a tour with their retinue. After his return, his father and brothers noticed a great change in Rama. He became very pensive, took no delight in the various sports and pastimes of his brothers, shunned all social contacts and even refused to eat, unless coaxed by one of his mothers. He became pale and emaciated. He politely evaded all the questions of his anxious father.
At this time, it so happened that sage Vishvamitra came to the court with a request. The king assured the sage that his wish would certainly be granted. Vishvamitra then asked Dasaratha to send his son Rama to kill the two demons, Maricha and Subahu who were molesting his ashrama and preventing him from completing his sacrificial rites. The king was stunned to hear this request for he feared for the safety of his son who was barely 16 years of age. He offered to send his entire army to help the sage or even to come himself but the sage refused all these offers, for he said that Rama alone had the power to kill the demons. At last, urged by his own Guru Vasishta, Dasaratha reluctantly gave his consent and ordered an attendant to fetch Rama. The attendant returned and gave the news that ever since his return from the pilgrimage, the prince was strangely lethargic. He seemed bereft of hope and bereft of desire and attached to nothing.
Hearing this Vishvamitra said, “His condition in not the result of delusion but is the result of wisdom and dispassion, leading to enlightenment. Let him be brought to the court”.
Rama came to the Assembly hall and bowed to his father and the sages. His loving father asked him, “My dear child why have you become so sad and dejected, when you have everything in life? Who has harmed you? What has happened to you”?
Rama replied, “During my recent pilgrimage through this holy land of ours, I saw many sights which I had never seen before. Agony and suffering did I see and poverty, disease and death. A new trend of thought has taken hold of me. What happiness can we have from this ever changing world? All beings take birth only to die, and die only to be born again. I see no meaning in this transient phenomenon which has its roots in suffering and ignorance. Everything in the world depends on our mental attitude but the mind itself seems unreal, even though we are bewitched by it. We are not bonded slaves, yet we have no freedom. Ignorant of the world, we have been wandering aimlessly in this forest of samsara for many lives. How can this suffering come to an end. My heart bleeds with sorrow when I think of these things and I do not feel like eating or sleeping, much less engaging myself in vain pursuits, unless I have an answer to these questions”.
He went on in this strain for some time and the whole Assembly was stuck by the depth and perspicacity of the young boy*s reflections. At last, he said, “I do not consider him a hero who is able to battle against an army. I regard him a hero who is able to conquer his mind. By reflecting on the pitiable state of living beings who have fallen into this pit called samsara. I am filled with grief. My mind is confused. I have rejected everything but I am not yet established in wisdom. Hence I am partly caught and partly freed, like a tree that has been cut, but not severed from its roots. Pray tell me how I am to reach that supreme state of bliss”?
All the assembled sages and people were thrilled to hear Rama’s speech and settled themselves down to hear the reply of Vishvamitra and Vasishta.
Vishvamitra said, “0 Rama! You are indeed the foremost among the wise and there is nothing further that you need to know. However, your knowledge needs confirmation and I earnestly request sage Vasishta to instruct you so that all of us who are assembled here may also be inspired. Vasishta is truly a liberated sage, who is not swayed by sensual pleasures and who acts without motivation of fame or any other incentives”.
On hearing Vishvamitra’s request, the great Brahmarishi Vasishta proceeded to instruct Rama on Atmic knowledge and Brahmic bliss. This discourse came to be known as the “Yoga Vasishta”. Though many people had listened to this marvelous discourse, it was only Rama, of mighty intellect, who could grasp in its totality the essence of Vasishta’s teachings.
This was how Rama at the tender age of sixteen became a truly liberated being, who was steadfast in his quest of dharma, who cared not for the pursuit of personal happiness but only for the pursuit of righteousness, for he realised that only in dharma, could a person find eternal bliss.
