“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

“Pardon me for this brief tangent. By the end, you will know where I am going with this. In my particular community, for my particular generation, there is a kind of running joke that the parents forced the children to become doctors. Sometimes the force is a subtle hint and a nudge, and other times it might be a literal beating when the child fails to get the marks necessary for admission into medical school. We can try to laugh off the behavior, but it actually happened, and it is not cool, at all. At least not to me.

“Anyway, being older now I have taken stock of many of the people I grew up with, who were in the same culture. They are doctors. They are respected members of society. They earn a good living. At the same time, I can honestly say that they have no character. Like zero. I have no respect for them, no matter what society says. These people prove their lack of character on a daily basis. They celebrate murder of political opponents. They actively champion poisoning young children, starting from the time of birth, with injections that would never be legalized in any fair and rational system of government. These people might be part of the scheme themselves, wherein they bully skeptical parents into going along with the charade. After all, the children need to attend school. How can they get in when there are no exemptions left?

“Anyway, I consider the landscape in terms of being a parent. If my child should happen to grow up to be the same, would I be happy? Does it matter how much money the child makes? If all of society respects them, but they actually have no values, what good did I really do? Every person lives. Every person dies. Why is money the most important thing? Will you give up your soul for a nice house and expensive vacations to exotic destinations?

“Shouldn’t we be teaching character? You bring that up today and people will attach all sorts of negative labels to you. The tried and true invective is ‘racist.’ Another favorite is ‘white supremacist.’ Like what the hell are you people talking about? You can’t reason with these people, either. As soon as you ask them to supply particulars for their claim, they run away. They block you online. These are sub-humans, if you ask me. How did it get to this point? How do we get out of this mess? I want a society full of honest, considerate, gentle, and rational people.”

Narada Muni has the same goal. Valmiki Muni has the same goal. The entirety of Vedic culture, in its original, true, and unadulterated form, has the same goal. The objective of the human birth is purification. Bring about a level of awareness, of understanding, of consciousness that was previously not possible. Athato brahma-jijnasa is the call to action for the human being. It is now that they can inquire into the Absolute Truth, which is Brahman. They likely could not before, since they were living out a term inside of a species that covered the brilliant consciousness that is perpetually the companion of the living being.

Narada Muni recommends hearing about a single man. Though this man takes birth in the ordinary sense, though He has parents and remains manifest for a certain duration, He is actually the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Bhagavan appears in this world to show us the way, to give a glimpse into ideal behavior. His character is so splendid that someone like Goswami Tulsidas creates a lake in his mind, consisting of the deeds based on that character. The ensuing output, which is a kind of meditation, in putting pen to paper, is known as Ramacharitamanasa.

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 her husband in glowing terms. The complete set of qualities in Rama is rarely found in the world today. Those qualities appear contradictory. Rama is both gentle and brave. He is pure and honest. He tells the truth, but He also applies dexterity and discrimination in dealing with bad actors. Most importantly, Rama wishes well to everyone. Even His so-called enemies, the ones who want to take, who want to steal, who want to kill innocent people – Rama wishes them well by delivering justice at the appropriate time.

अवश्यं लभते जन्तुः फलं पापस्य कर्मणः
घोरं पर्यागते काले द्रुमाः पुष्पमिवार्तवम्

avaśyaṃ labhate jantuḥ phalaṃ pāpasya karmaṇaḥ
ghoraṃ paryāgate kāle drumāḥ puṣpamivārtavam

“Just as a tree starts to blossom during the proper season, so the doer of sinful deeds inevitably reaps the horrible fruit of their actions at the appropriate time.” (Lord Rama speaking to Khara, Valmiki Ramayana, Aranya Kand, 29.8)

We may be too burdened by the troubles around us to give attention to someone else. Why should we hear about some character described in ancient books when we can study and advance along the economic ladder? Why should I focus on the past when there are matters of utmost urgency in the present?

The reality is that without character, without purification of consciousness, there is no hope for lasting peace, tranquility, happiness, and optimism in moving forward. The diseased condition is known as ajitendriyah. It is having your senses conquered. Rama is the great purifier, as He was even kind enough to physically remove the ailment from the suffering Ravana, who was the ten-headed leader of Lanka.

For those on the peaceful side, who are trying their best to rise to a higher standard of consciousness, Rama brings relief through His story, through His eternal presence in sound, which can be approached as easily as through a mantra: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

In Closing:

Eternal presence in sound,
For awakening profound.

Character mattering most,
Rather than honors a host.

Of just one man can hear,
For disturbances to clear.

The prince who Dandaka forest defended,
By Valmiki and Narada recommended.

Categories: questions

Tags: dailyprompt, hare krishna, life, poem, poems, poetry, ramayana