Sundara Kanda Saptaha
Day 4, August 10 2015
Sri Maha Ganapataye Namaha
Sri Saraswatyai Namaha
Sripada Vallabha Narasimha Saraswati
Sri Guru Dattatreyaya Namaha
Prayers
Sri Ramachandra Parabrahmane Namaha. Sri Sitaramabhyam namaha.
Bhajan: Anjaneya Pahime
Hanuman, hidden amidst the leaves of the Simsupa tree observed Sita and listened to her conversation with Ravana. Ravana, as he left, ordered the female guardians of Sita to forcibly convince her to marry him. Sita told the demonesses firmly that she would never leave Rama, no matter what they all said or did to her. The demonesses then began to put fear into Sita’s heart, without touching her. Sita could not bear the noise they made or endure to see the ugly and dreadful forms they assumed. Sita felt like a deer that strayed away from its group and fell amidst a hundred ravenous wolves. That was Sita’s situation. How could she protect herself? How could she remain sane? How could she escape from this torment? She held on to a flowering branch of a tree and remembering all her near and dear ones, she wailed loudly, calling out, “Ha Kausalya, Ha Sumitra, Ha Lakshmana”. She realized sadly that while one’s lifespan remains unexpended, there is no way one can get away from this life. Despite the immense pain inflicted upon her by those surrounding her, she still remained alive. When the Mother of the Universe Herself wept like that, what is the use of mortals wishing to die before their time comes? It will not happen. The lifespan has to run out its course. Our count must be finished. We just have to remain patient. Death does not occur as per our wish. Everyone wishes for a painless death. Only the lucky ones experience such quick, unexpected, and painless death, where they are here this minute, and gone the next minute.
We pray to live a life of honor and experience death that is painless.
Sita wept, thinking of what sins she might have committed in her past lives that she was now being subjected to so much sorrow. You might ask, how can Mother Goddess have Karma? She has, Rama has, everyone has karma and they have to experience its consequences. You know that Ravana’s past sins had reduced him to his present pitiable state. Rama incurred sin for killing Ravana and had to suffer the consequences. Justice and karma are two different entities.
Mother Sita prayed that the misery that she was having to endure, no other being should ever have to endure. In my past life, I must have sinned terribly, Sita thought. She blamed herself, indulging in Atma Ninda. One should never put oneself down. Yet, her troubles made even Mother Sita blame herself for her woeful plight.
When we observe this incident, we learn a valuable lesson. Every action of ours will produce a reaction, a result. Joys and sorrows occur as consequences of our past deeds. Sometimes they extend into future lives and get prolonged. That is why till the very end one should remain free from desires. After reaching the age of 40-45, one must reduce one’s desires, because those desires will not be fulfilled in this lifetime. Because you have entertained such desires, you will be forced to take another birth to experience their fulfillment. It will be as if we ourselves are oiling the wheel of our births and deaths and prolonging the cycle. Anyone who dies with pending desires, unfulfilled wishes, will certainly be born again. There is no escape. One must resolve not to have any remaining desires at the time of death. Those who die with desires will have to be born in the appropriate locations and circumstances to satisfy such desires. When you earn more merit, you gain a good future life. When you sin, you gain a bad future life. People make wishes and they soon forget that had made such wishes. Before yesterday’s wish is satisfied, they forget the past desires and begin generating fresh desires. But all the wishes that their minds had generated get permanently recorded. It will take a long time to get them all fulfilled. Until then, they have no liberation. Desires themselves force an individual to keep taking births again and again. That is why it is better not to keep wishing.
Sita lamented, regretting all her mistakes and sins committed in the past.
Sloka: atyutkataihi punyapapaihi
Generally, powerful good deeds and wicked deeds produce results in the present lifetime itself. But some excessive desires will not be satisfied in one lifetime, because one’s lifespan is limited. Therefore, they get carried over into the next life. They necessitate rebirth. Like demons, the desires will chase after you, and make you take another birth, so that they may be satisfied. Desires not only remain unfulfilled in this lifetime, but force us to go through yet another whole lifetime for their sake. It is best not to wish. It is best to leave it up to God to give you what He wishes, and to do what He wishes with you. Make a resolve not to have any desires. Whatever joy or sorrow He gives, simply accept. Only do penance to merge in God and attain Self-realization. Aiming for that is not a desire. You should know your Self. The efforts made towards that end do not spell desire.
Those who argue foolishly and obstinately that there is neither sin nor merit, have a lesson to learn here. Even Mother Sita lamented about past life sins which have caused her present sorrow.
Sita kept remembering Rama and in her intense grief, even resorted to rolling on the ground in desperation. By this description of Sita’s grief everyone must understand that their entire time must be spent in the contemplation of God. This whole episode of Sita’s anguish was deliberately brought upon herself by Mother Goddess, just to caution us, to show and teach us this lesson. She actually suffered the pain and dejection. What it means is that the mind should be totally absorbed in God. There should be no place in the heart even for a blade of straw. Only God should fully occupy and envelop one’s consciousness.
Because of her obsession and desire to have the deer, Sita lost the company of Rama. She deeply regretted her wish to have the golden deer. Why did I have such a desire? She questioned herself. God gives such supreme bliss with His presence. When we listen to something nice, or when we see something beautiful, we enjoy the sweet experience, like enjoying a sweet dessert like Payasam or Paramannam. Even those with diabetes will desire to enjoy the sweet. It is only afterwards when they reap the bad consequences, they regret the desire for the dessert.
One must always meditate only upon God. He alone gives unadulterated happiness. God Himself has declared in the Bhagavad Gita, in the Bhagavatam, and in many other scriptures, without any ambiguity, that He would grant the ultimate bliss to those who concentrate only upon Him. And yet, many persons wish only for worldly pleasures and joys. They have no faith in the words of God Himself. They would rather build two more houses and purchase two more cars rather than fill their minds with thoughts of God. They wish only for temporary thrills and joys.
Namadeva asked for another birth so that he may only remember and praise God. In Vaikuntha, he said, he will not have the chance of singing the praises of God. Whereas, as a human being, he can indulge in this joy of singing of God.
There are no devotees who wish for a longer life so that they can listen to two more Saptahas. They want to live longer only to see the new house and live in the new house. Happiness from worldly things fades very quickly. Those who wish for fleeting pleasures will distance themselves from God. They will not experience love for God. They are great losers.
Mother Sita was drowned in an ocean of sorrow. There was no visible hope for her. She wept going from tree to tree, touching the branches and holding on to them. She fell to the floor and tumbled on the ground in her uncontrollable grief. She realized that it was her own desire that made Rama go far away from her in pursuit of the deer. Rama was completely free from blame. It was all her own fault.
My heart always dwelt upon Rama. Why did my mind stray in that one instant, and get distracted with the desire for the golden deer? Because of that one mistake committed by me, for a whole year now I am kept captive in the company of these dreadful demons. It was truly a mistake on my part. I acknowledge it and I have no escape from suffering the horrible consequences. It is only with the hope that one day I will be reunited with my Rama, that I still remain alive. Without such a hope, what will happen to me? It is only that hope which sustains me and keeps me alive.
O demonesses, as per the instructions given to you by your master, chop me into bits and pieces. Use me as you please. Your king has told you to cook my flesh and serve him as a snack. Please do so. As many seconds as Rama was distanced from my thoughts because of the deer that many days I am having to suffer here amidst you. It is my own desire which has inflicted this punishment upon me. I am a wretched person. I sometimes lose hope of seeing my Rama again. I am becoming wicked. O demon women, I am ready. I will not listen to your words. Do not waste your time. Kill me right now. My mind is in my own control. Rama is everything to me. I always only think of Rama.
Sita then lost herself in her contemplation of Rama.
Bhajan: Rama hare jaya soure
Sri Guru Datta
To be continued in part 2
Compiled by Smt Hira Duvvuri