Greatness of Lord Sri Rama
There are many upadeshas in the Ramayana. If we were to adhere to even a few, our lives would be sanctified and we would attain much shreyas.
When confronted with the situation of giving up his rightful position as the crown prince and asked to go to exile, Sri Rama attaches supreme importance to the Dharma of pitruvakya paripaalanam (obeying the words of one’s father). Disregarding his position and power, he willingly accepted giving up all for the sake of Dharma.
If we are ever confronted with a situation where we must compromise on either Dharma or the pleasures of the world, then we must forgo only worldly pleasures and never give up Dharma. All objects of the world can be pursued only so long as they are not in conflict with Dharma. These days however, people are all too willing to forgo Dharma in the pursuit of all else. The significance of Dharma however is that if we were to steadfastly hold on to Dharma, even letting go of the other objects we hold dear, we will find that in due course all other objects will come to us manifold.
Such was also the goodness of Sri Rama’s heart that he even stated that he was given a much easier task of living in the forest, where his sole duty was to just protect himself from wild animals. However, despite being younger, Bharata had been assigned the difficult task of protecting not just himself, but the entire kingdom and its citizens! Sri Rama concludes: Does this not prove that Kaikeyi was more concerned and affectionate towards Sri Rama, as opposed to even her own son Bharata? This has been beautifully captured in the kavya:
वनभुवि तनुमात्रत्राणमाज्ञापितं मे
सकलभुवनभारः स्थापितो वत्समूर्ध्नि ॥
तदिह सुकरतायाम् आवयोः तर्कितायां
मयि पतति गरीयान् अम्ब ते पक्षपातः ॥॥vanabhuvi tanumātratrāṇamājñāpitaṃ me
sakalabhuvanabhāraḥ sthāpito vatsamūrdhni .
tadiha sukaratāyām āvayoḥ tarkitāyāṃ
mayi patati garīyān amba te pakṣapātaḥ ..
Our duty is to remain equanimous in both situations by not becoming overly distressed during difficult times nor over elated when things are happy.
Sri Adi Shankaracharya mentions the greatness of chanting the divine name of Sri Rama in the Rama Bhujanga Stotram –
सदा राम रामेति रामामृतं ते सदा रामम् आनन्दनिष्यन्दकन्दम् ॥
पिबन् अन्वहं नन्वहं नैव मृत्योर्बिभेहि प्रसादाद् असादात् तवैव ||sadā rāma rāmeti rāmāmṛtaṃ te sadā rāmam ānandaniṣyandakandam .
piban anvahaṃ nanvahaṃ naiva mṛtyorbibhehi prasādād asādāt tavaiva ||
If we always chant ‘Rama Rama’, all our impurities will be removed and the Lord will inspire us to engage in sadhana (spiritual practice) for moksha (liberation). Therefore the Rama-Nama japa has such importance.
It has been the desire of many devotees to build a temple for Sri Rama at His janma-kshetra (birthplace) in Ayodhya, visit the place at least once and sanctify their lives. By the grace of the Lord, that opportunity has come now. It is indeed a matter of much happiness that the construction of the temple has started and the consecration and kumbhabhisheka will happen in due course. Keeping this opportunity in mind, this program, Ramamrita Tarangini, has been organized. It may not be possible for all to participate on the day of the kumbhabhisheka. However, this program is an opportunity for everyone to participate, as the water that will be used for the kumbhabhisheka, taken from all the holy rivers, will be taken to different parts of the country, to different cities, and to the homes of anyone interested, regardless of caste, creed and so on.
The rivers are the building blocks of the nation. In the same way that the prana (vital life force) is important for the body, rivers are of utmost importance for the country. The Upanishads say: आपोमयः प्राणः āpomayaḥ prāṇaḥ
Water is extremely important for the sustenance of our prana. We can live on water for a number of days, even if we don’t get food. Therefore, our sacred rivers are of utmost importance. Not only are they reservoirs supplying water for us, but also embodiment of divinity. In our Puranas, many devatas, great sages and mahapurshas lived on the banks of rivers, bathed in their holy waters and sang their praises.
In the Ramayana, when Sri Rama goes on vanavasa and has to cross the various rivers, Sita Devi prays to the various rivers.
Therefore, if one were to view the rivers simply as a water body, bathing in their waters will merely cleanse only the bodily impurities. However, if we view the river as a holy devata and the mud on its banks as sacred, then a holy dip will not only purify the body but also the mind. The paapa (demerits) of several janmas will be destroyed. Such is the power of the pure holy rivers like the Ganga, Yamuna, etc.
We must therefore protect our rivers and not in any way harm them. When the lockdown was imposed last year, many rivers which were severely polluted became automatically clean when human activity reduced. This in itself is an indication of the extent to which humans have polluted and harmed our rivers, one of the greatest gifts to us by Nature. Therefore, we must worship the rivers, use it in a manner that is most beneficial and not harm them in any way.
It is the practice during any kumbhabhisheka that water is fetched from different rivers and used for the abhisheka of the deity. Keeping this in mind, the Ramamrita Tarangini organizers have fetched water from various major rivers such as Ganga, Yamuna, Narmada, Godavari, Cauvery, Tungabhadra, Tamraparni, Sarayu, Purna, Gandaki, Brahmaputra, etc., in all totalling sixteen.