The inner Ramayana

[1]

Swami Tejomayananda [1]

Why does one study the Ramayana? Will it be of any help in our daily lives? This is what we will be talking about today. The study of the Ramayana will not only lead to the discovery of our daily duties, but also the techniques to deal with the greater conflicts in life.
For example, Sri Rama was told that he would be crowned king and the next morning he was told that he has to live in the forest for 14 years. The whole of Ayodhya; including King Dasharatha begged him to stay, and though there were many arguments against his going, Sri Rama left for the forest, knowing it was his dharma to fulfil the boon his father had promised to Kaikeyi. This was a big decision to make — one which he made without showing any bitterness.
On the other hand, the situation in which Sri Rama’s brother Bharat was in was more difficult. When he was told that he had to become king in Rama’s absence, Bharat wondered what he should do. However, Ram told Bharat that he should fulfil the wishes of their father and become king according to the second boon given to Kaikeyi. But Bharat said, “No.”
How did he arrive at this conclusion? You see, in a law there is both the letter and the spirit. Which is more important? Naturally the spirit or intention is more important than the letter or literal meaning. Bharat knew that the coronation arrangements had really been made for Ram and that their father, King Dasharath, had decided to make Sri Ram the king, but had unfortunately been cornered by Kaikeyi. So Bharat asked himself, “Is it my dharma to fulfil my father’s words or his wishes?” Realising that his dharma was to fulfil his father’s wishes, he did not accept the kingship. It is often difficult for people to determine dharma because, it is said, “the secret of dharma is hidden”.
The great importance of the Ramayana, therefore, is that it teaches us how to observe situations and come to the right decision. There is a symbolic meaning in the story of the Ramayana and its characters. We shall see a few.
Sri Rama is: “He who delights everyone”. What is it that delights everyone? If you ask a child, he may say, “Nintendo”, a videogame. Any other person may say “money”. But what actually delights everyone is joy. It is not the toy, house, or money, but the joy that we derive from them.
Sri Rama is the essence of joy, the Sat-Cit-Ananda playing in our heart. Therefore, the Rama about whom we read in the Ramayana is actually our own absolute spiritual nature. And who is Sita; to whom Rama is married? She is the absolute peace wedded to our blissful nature. And the “Ayodhya” in which bliss and peace dwell together is the space in the heart. We shall dwell more on the characters of the Ramayana later.

Swami Tejomayananda, head of Chinmaya Mission Worldwide, is an orator, poet, singer, composer
and storyteller. Visit © Central Chinmaya Mission Trust for more details.