Junior Sringeri Swamiji tells a story from Ramayana

Post Reply
Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Junior Sringeri Swamiji tells a story from Ramayana

Post by Sachi_R »

Image

http://valmikiramayan.net/utf8/yuddha/s ... rseLocator

आज्ञप्ता रावणेनैता राक्षस्यो माम् अतर्जयन् ||६-११३-४३
हते तस्मिन्न कुर्युर्हि तर्जनं वानरोत्तम |

अयं व्याघ्रसमीपे तु पुराणो धर्मसंहितः ||६-११३-४४
ऋक्षेण गीतः श्लोको मे तं निबोध प्लवङ्गम |

न परः पापमादत्ते परेषां पापकर्मणाम् ||६-११३-४५
समयो रक्षितव्यस्तु सन्तश्चारित्रभूषणाः |

A great story from Valmiki Ramayana

Last night, on Sankara TV, I heard this story narrated brilliantly by the junior Sringeri Swamiji in his Tenkasi camp. For once I tolerated the advert intrusions and interruptions mid-discourse.

The story is from Valmiki Ramayana. Rama tells Hamuman go go and break the news of Ravana’s slaying and Rama’s victory to Sita in Ashoka Vana. Hanuman goes and after he inimitably delivers the happy news and cheers Sita up, he broaches the subject of the rakshasis guarding her during her abduction. When he had sought her out the first time in Ashoka Vana, he had hidden in the tree before coming down to announce himself to her, and had first-hand seen how badly they had treated her and torutured her with their words. Hanuman therefore now proposes to kill them all, each one with what he considers the appropriate method of inflicting injury and death. This is described graphically by him and Sage Valmiki spares no detail for the reader.

Sita responds, after a thoughtful pause.

She says that after all, all the rakshasis did all those terrible things only because they were under the employ of Ravana. They were simply compelled by their sense of feudal duty. And her own suffering and all the unhappy events had been an act of Destiny and a result of her own Karma. (although Swamiji didn’t stress the second point, it is in Valmiki). Sita says that she is sure that now the rakshasis are no longer under any compunction to harm her, and they will not do so.

She continues that there is a bigger matter of principle here. A noble person will not commit a sin of hurting someone, even after their doing wrong to him,in an act of revenge. His own Dharma
drives his compassion and forgiveness. She therefore tells Hanuman that she will not give him permission to kill the rakshasis.

She then narrates a story.

A man travelling in a forest is suddenly chased by a tiger. Frightened beyond wits, he manages to scramble up a tree. But once there, he espies a bear resting on a nearby branch above.
The man is saying his last prayer, but the bear makes no move. The bear sees the entire situation very clearly.

The tiger counsels the bear, “You and I are brothers in the forest. This human is my power lunch. So just push him down.” The bear replies, “No. this man has scrambled up to save himself. I can see in his eyes the plea for me to give him protection. So I will not push him.” The stand-off continues for some time and the bear slumbers off.

Now the tiger tells the man, “Look, I am not going away. You need to come down sooner than later. I shall surely eat you. However, I see a way out. If you push that bear down, he shall be my lunch, and satisfied, I shall go away. That way, you can save yourself, and go on your way.”

The man thinks for a little while, and precipitately reaches up and shoves the slumbering bear down. The bear is woken up with a start, and just in time manages to catch a lower branch and save himself from falling to the ground. The bear gathers himself together, and once again lumbers up to his original perch. The tiger now addresses him, “ Oh bear, see! This wretched human has no morality. He shoved you down, just to save himself! No gratitude for your earlier noble gesture. That man deserves to be pushed down, remember what I told you- we need to stick together, we are on the same side in our Dharma.”

The bear said, in the most sagely voice you can imagine, “No, Tiger sir. My sense of ethics and Dharma towards someone who has come to me for refuge is clear. That the man pushed me does not alter my moral stand."

https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/73 ... rishna.jpg

thanjavooran
Posts: 2972
Joined: 03 Feb 2010, 04:44

Re: Junior Sringeri Swamiji tells a story from Ramayana

Post by thanjavooran »

Sachi avl,
Quite interesting. Many thanks for sharing.
Thanjavooran
03 08 2017

rshankar
Posts: 13754
Joined: 02 Feb 2010, 22:26

Re: Junior Sringeri Swamiji tells a story from Ramayana

Post by rshankar »

Sachi_R wrote: 03 Aug 2017, 09:12She says that after all, all the rakshasis did all those terrible things only because they were under the employ of Ravana. They were simply compelled by their sense of feudal duty.
This was the excuse that many of the Nazis used during the trials post World War II. Not sure if it flies completely.

Sachi_R
Posts: 2174
Joined: 31 Jan 2017, 20:20

Re: Junior Sringeri Swamiji tells a story from Ramayana

Post by Sachi_R »

Ravi,
That is the view expressed by Sita. That is the core meaning of क्षमा and दया।

Even the Geneva Convention says prisoners of war should be treated with dignity.

As far as the Nazis were concerned, if that is their own defence, or justification, they will pay the price for their actions, whether it is in Nurenberg or in Hell.

Gandhiji advised all the officials and policemen, Indians, who were carrying out their draconian orders, to use their conscience and join the freedom struggle. Many did and were punished severely by the British. But to his own followers, he preached the principle of peaceful resistance, never revenge.

Post Reply