“O friend. Sita now wishes to give to your wife a pearl necklace, a string of gold and a girdle. O gentle one, please take them.” (Lord Rama speaking to Suyajna, Valmiki Ramayana, Ayodhya Kand, 32.7)

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हारं च हेमसूत्रं च भार्यायै सौम्य हारय
रशनां चाधुना सीता दातुमिच्छति ते सखे

hāraṃ ca hemasūtraṃ ca bhāryāyai saumya hāraya
raśanāṃ cādhunā sītā dātumicchati te sakhe

“I know that one of the points of emphasis in your tradition is this idea of defining God. There is generally no enmity with other religions or other faiths. If someone hears about a savior, for instance, who helped to uplift people in a specific part of the world, during a specific period of time, there is a smile. After all, the Vedic tradition features thousands of such saviors. I believe there is even a scientific term that applies: shaktyavesha avatara. In other words, the acharya is like sent from above; they are god-like in so many powers. They are empowered; they have shakti.

“His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada likes to use the comparison of dictionaries. There is the pocket version. There is also the full or unabridged version. He likens Vedic teachings to the full dictionary, to provide as much information about the Divine and divine living as is possible for the human mind to comprehend. One area of distinction is in defining the very term, in understanding who is God.

“We have the definition from Parashara Muni found in Vishnu Purana. That father of the celebrated Vyasadeva says that you know you have found God when the person in question has the attributes of beauty, wealth, strength, fame, wisdom, and renunciation to the fullest degree. That same person possesses all of these attributes simultaneously. There are no conflicts or contradictions. Each opulence can become prominent at any moment, and there is no confusion. In other words, God never gets in the way of Himself.

“What is the benefit to such detailed information, though? What is to be gained by having the full dictionary as opposed to the pocket version? Is it contemplation? We will better be able to practice dhyana, or meditation, if there is more knowledge of the object of attention? Why isn’t it enough to fear God? Why isn’t worship at standard intervals, in formal settings, sufficient for checking the box of a pious life well-lived?”

ऐश्वर्यस्य समग्रस्य
वीर्यस्य यशसः श्रियः
ज्ञान-वैराग्ययश् चैव
षण्णां भग इतीङ्गना

aiśvaryasya samagrasya
vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ
jñāna-vairāgyayaś caiva
ṣaṇṇāṁ bhaga itīṅganā

“Bhagavan means who possesses these six opulences in full: all riches, all strength, all influence, all wisdom, all beauty, all renunciation.” (Vishnu Purana, 6.5.47)

Knowledge in this case facilitates appreciation at the end. Knowledge in the beginning is for curing the condition of ignorance. If we are in ignorance about God, then it is like the tether has been broken. The object which is meant to strictly follow chooses its own direction instead of travelling along the proper lines, to reach the proper destination.

The Sanskrit word is sambandha. This is the relationship. The more we know about God, the more we see the similarities. The more we know about Him, the more we understand the significance of our relationship to Him. He has always been our constant companion. He will remain so into the infinite future. We have forgotten His presence, and so knowledge is one way to jog our memory, to wake us up from the slumber of ignorance.

श्री-भगवान् उवाच
बहूनि मे व्यतीतानि
जन्मानि तव चार्जुन
तान्य् अहं वेद सर्वाणि
न त्वं वेत्थ परन्तप

śrī-bhagavān uvāca
bahūni me vyatītāni
janmāni tava cārjuna
tāny ahaṁ veda sarvāṇi
na tvaṁ vettha parantapa

“The Blessed Lord said: Many, many births both you and I have passed. I can remember all of them, but you cannot, O subduer of the enemy!” (Bhagavad-gita, 4.5)

Another facet to the knowledge-culture is appreciation. We already have a tendency to appreciate. A knowledgeable person is also a grateful person. They recognize the sacrifices that others make on their behalf. If we are knowledgeable about God, we will be more likely to appreciate everything He has done for us.

रामेति प्रथितो लोके गुणवान्सत्यवान्शुचिः
विशालाक्षो महाबाहुस्सर्वभूतहिते रतः

rāmeti prathito loke guṇavānsatyavānśuciḥ
viśālākṣo mahābāhussarvabhūtahite rataḥ

“My husband Rama is famous throughout the world. He is pure, truthful, and very gentle. He is mighty-armed, has wide eyes, and is always busy working for the welfare of all living beings [sarva-bhuta-hite-ratah].” (Sita Devi speaking to Ravana, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 47.11)

Sita Devi describes that her husband wishes well to all living beings. This is a constant. It is not that Rama sometimes succumbs to envy. He does not take a vow of silence to show disapproval for an offense made against Him. The fact that He is steady under pressure, firm in His vows in the face of happiness and distress, further highlights the attribute known as vairagya.

Rama is an avatara of the Almighty. Rama appears in this world. He gives visual confirmation to the definition provided by Parashara Muni. The more we know about God, who is Bhagavan in the definition from Vishnu Purana, the more we will appreciate Him. In addition, when those different attributes are exercised across the large playing field, kshetra, of the material world, others automatically benefit.

We see this in Rama’s departure from Ayodhya. The eldest son of the king is leaving due to the wishes of Queen Kaikeyi. This is Rama’s vairagya on display. He does not lose His way due to a temporary setback. Rama has the riches rightfully deserved of an heir to the Raghu dynasty, but He is also not hesitant to give valuables away.

Rama gives wealth away through His wife, who is an incarnation of the goddess of fortune, Lakshmi Devi. The recipients are devoted souls. In one case, the brahmana named Suyajna receives a pearl necklace, a gold sash, and a girdle. These are gifts from Sita to be given to Suyajna’s wife. This means that even the family of brahmanas are blessed through their dedication in service to God. Everyone benefits in the long-run from hearing about the attributes of Vishnu, and through Rama’s behavior some even receive direct benedictions from time to time. No one loses anything in their connection with the son of Dasharatha.

In Closing:

If that connection to choose,
Then never a thing to lose.

Like brahmanas in Ayodhya there,
Given all attention and care.

Through Sita the prince gave,
From vairagya nothing to save.

Valuable jewels and gold too,
The devoted blessed through and through.

Categories: questions

Tags: bhagavan, dailyprompt, poem, poems, poetry, ramayana, religion