“The man who reads and recites this narration of the Ramayana will be blessed with a long duration of life and after death will be welcomed and respectfully received in the heavenly region, along with sons, grandsons, and relatives.” (Valmiki Ramayana, Bala Kand, 1.99)

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एतदाख्यानमायुष्यं पठन्रामायणं नर:
सपुत्रपौत्रस्सगण: प्रेत्य स्वर्गे महीयते

etadākhyānamāyuṣyaṃ paṭhanrāmāyaṇaṃ nara:
saputrapautrassagaṇa: pretya svarge mahīyate

“Listen, every person in this world struggles. We can debate as to whether or not they have sufficient justification for complaining. For instance, in my childhood I had to change schools quite often. It was the worst experience. I was shy to begin with. Do you have any idea what it is like being introduced to an entire class full of strangers? I have to explain where I am from and why I moved to the area. I have to make new friends, over and over. I have to repeat my name four or five times and then go over the correct pronunciation. What a nightmare!

“At the same time, I was a kid, so I did not know better. I never once thought about complaining. I never considered it an option to actually ask my parents to stay in one place. Meanwhile, today the complaints are of a different variety. The internet service goes down for an hour. The smartphone stops working. We are out of the particular potato chips that the children like. They consider these to be great austerities. They demand immediate rectification.

“The suffering is real, whether we try to explain the good fortune to them or not. If we read memoirs from famous people, it is amazing to hear about what they overcame in life. So many obstacles. So many impediments. One person after another told them that they would not succeed. Fortunately, they did not listen. They persevered. They had determination.

“This is all to say that the appeal of the Ramayana may not be as strong as you think. Why should someone living today want to hear about the supposedly ideal man who roamed the earth thousands of years ago? Just what exactly will they learn from that experience, even if retold in beautiful Sanskrit poetry and translated into the prevailing language of the local area? Successful people today rarely had it easy during childhood. We already have many examples from which to draw. Do you see what I am saying? Learning begins with interest. Why would any person today be interested in Shri Rama?”

There is one distinction of note in the real-life drama of the narrative featuring Shri Rama as the main character. Indeed, He is Vishnu as a human being. He is one man to fight against many. He can stand on foot, while the attackers have everything aligned to their liking. Rama stands tall against fourteen-thousand of the wickedest creatures this world has ever known.

चतुर्दश सहस्राणि रक्षसां भीमकर्मणाम्
हतान्येकेन रामेण मानुषेण पदातिना

caturdaśa sahasrāṇi rakṣasāṃ bhīmakarmaṇām
hatānyekena rāmeṇa mānuṣeṇa padātinā

“Those fourteen thousand Rakshasas of frightening deeds were eliminated by that one man, a foot-soldier, who was Rama.” (Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 26.35)

To understand the distinction with the Ramayana, let’s imagine the scene of a waiting room in a doctor’s office. We made our appointment months ago. We arrived early and checked in with the receptionist. We even filled out their three-hundred pages of paperwork. Now all we have to do is wait for what seems like an eternity to see the doctor. It could be any doctor, in fact, since ours might be on vacation, in desperate search for relief from the never-ending river of patients that arrive at his door throughout the year.

In the meantime, back in the waiting room, there are other patients in a similar situation. One mother is grappling with several children. One of those children starts to cry. The sound is rather loud. No one can pretend that it is not happening. This child is still in the stage of infancy. For some reason, however, the sound does not bother you. This is because the child is not yours. It is not your responsibility to fix the situation. The mother feels the burden to pacify. She feels the pressure to remove the disturbance caused by the discomfort of the child. She has to find a way to make the child feel comfortable.

Imagine if we were in that situation. Think of the pressure we would feel. Imagine that the situation involves a task with even greater significance. So many people are counting on us. We have to set the proper example. They look to us in the way described by Shri Krishna in Bhagavad-gita.

यद्यदाचरति श्रेष्ठस्तत्तदेवेतरो जनः
स यत्प्रमाणं कुरुते लोकस्तदनुवर्तते

yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas
tat tad evetaro janaḥ
sa yat pramāṇaṁ kurute
lokas tad anuvartate

“Whatever action is performed by a great man, common men follow in his footsteps. And whatever standards he sets by exemplary acts, all the world pursues.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 3.21)

Hardship is more difficult to endure when there is resource contention, when there are competing responsibilities. Do I attend to this issue or that? Which issue takes precedence? What is the highest priority? Whatever decision I make, someone will be upset. They will feel that I let them down. Someone is going to get their feelings hurt. Someone might be devastated based on my failure to act.

This begins to tell the situation voluntarily accepted by Vishnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, in His avatara of Rama. There was the most responsibility. There was also tremendous hardship, which never arrived in a predictable manner. Rather, the troubles arose whenever it looked like all was going well. When everyone was happy, peaceful, and enthusiastic about the days ahead. Unexpectedly, tragedy would strike.

The Ramayana allows for studying Rama’s behavior. We can see how He tolerated disturbances. We can see how He upheld dharma, in the face of great interference. Rivalry, enviousness, wickedness, and even a desire to eat innocent people. These were the dangers Rama faced. People explicitly asked for His assistance. They knew that only He could rescue the world from the pitiable situation of the rise of the Rakshasa class, which was geographically concentrated in Lanka.

Shri Rama is the most accountable person, and so the way He tolerates hardship is the most remarkable. It is not a surprise that Narada Muni would give his full endorsement to the Ramayana history. He blesses any person who hears or recites that story, as everything desirable in both this life and the afterlife can be found through the association of the husband of Sita.

In Closing:

Against series of issues to fend,
With my resources to contend.

Such that if only one problem to face,
Another priority must replace.

Whereas Rakshasas not to relent,
A massive army to Dandaka sent,

But Rama always to stand tall,
As our Lord and savior to call.

Categories: fourteen thousand, questions

Tags: dailyprompt, history, life, poem, poems, poetry, ramayana, sanskrit