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Raghuveera Gadhyam: Uttara KhAndham--Part 5

From the Bhakti List Archives

V. Sadagopan • January 6, 1997 


Dear Rama BhakthAs:

I will cover the salutations 91 and 92 in htis posting.

GS 91 : sakEtha janapadha jani dhanika tadhitara 
janhtujAtha divya gathi dhAna darsitha nitya nisseema 
vaibhava ! Jaya ! Jaya ! 

(Meaning ) : Hail to Thee O lord of limitless and eternal glory
who blessed  the  ENTIRE body of the  chetanAs and achetanAs 
of your kingdom to attainn the higher world known as Saandhanikam .

(Background ) : After the tragedies of  the deaprtures of Sita and LakshmaNA ,
Rama decided to go back to Sri VaikunTam to be united with them . His 
avathara kaaryam was completed. He crowned Kusa and LavA as the kings 
of the Southern and Northern Kosala desam .

He decided to take his remaining two brothers as well as the 
monkeys and bears that fought with Him in LankhA . He advised 
VibhishaNA , HanumAn , JambhavAn, DwividA and MaindA to remain 
on earth . He gave His family's aaradhana vigraham to VibishaNA 
and asked him to worship the presiding deity of IshvAku kulam
( Aaraadhaya JagannAtham IshvAku Kula daivatham ) . 

Next , RamA spoke to HanumAn and said : O Best among Monkeys !
As long as the story of my deeds circulate on this earth , so long  live
happily on this earth keeping my words in your mind ( MathkathA pracharishyanthi

yavallokE hareesvara ,  thaavadh ramasva supreethO madh vaakyam
anupAlayan ) . HanumAn was very moved by the blessings of 
Sri Ramachandra and  replied : " As long a sYour divine story 
will circulate on this earth , so long shall I stay on this earth
carrying out Your orders ". 

Rama hten ascended to Sri VaikunTam .  Acharya VasishTA 
peformed all the rites connected weith the final departure 
as enjoined by the sAstrAs . All of Rama"s weapons went in 
human forms with Him. The VedAs in the form of BrahmaNAs ,
Gayathi , the OmkArA and the VashatkArA followed RamA . All 
the subjects , birds , animals followed Rama to heaven by merely 
seeing Him durin gthis occasion . All sthavarA (Stationary forms ) 
who saw the scion of Raghu , wishing the best of Him followed Him 
into heaven known as Saanthaanikam ruled by BrahmA . 
Rama entered the divine lustre of Sriman NArAyaNA in 
Sri VaikunTam and was reunited with his 
Consort and AdiseshA (LakshmaNA ) there .  

NammAzhwAr celebrates the glory of RamA's mercy in giving 
Sadhgathi to all of the sthavara and Jangama of AyodhyA in
a moving verse of ThiruvAimozhi :

karpAriramapirAnai allAl maRRum kaRparO
puRpAmudalAppullerembhuhaadhiyonrinRiyE
naRpaalayOddhil vazhum charAcharam muRRavum
naRpaalukkyutthanan naanmuhanAr peRRa nAttuLE 
                 --- Thiruvaimozhi 7.5.1

NammAzhwAr wonders about the DayA of RamA in blessing
all the sentient and insentients of AyodhyA to reach the heaven 
known as Saanthaanikam at the time of His own departure from
His kingdom . AzhwAr is moved by the compassion of the Lord and also
the significanc eof Bhagavadh Sambandham . He asks in this mood 
a rhetorical question: Is there any thing else to study and to learn 
except the Rama Tatvam  in this world ? He hints that there is nothing
superior than the study and enjoyment of Sri Rama's deeds on this earth
as the son of king DasarathA .

GS 92 : bhava tapana taapitha bhaktha jana bhadrArama !
              Jaya ! Jaya ! 

(Meaning ) : Hail to Thee O Lord , who serves as an auspicious and
shady grove of flowering trees to the devotees of Yours , who are 
scorched by the hot rays of the sun of SamsArA  ! 

(Comments ) : The human beings exposed to the scorching rays of 
the sun in summer get relief from taking rest in the cool shade of the trees
in a dense grove. Similarly , the devotees of the Lord afflicted by the hot
rays of the htre afflictions associated with their SamsAric life think of 
the cool shade of the sacred feet of the Lord as a cool nandavanam 
and are freed from their sufferings. The comparison of the thought of the 
Lord for Samsaris to a shady grove or a cool pond in summer is frequently
used by AzhwArs and AcharyAs . 

indeevaradhaLa syAma: pundarikanibhEkshaNa : I
dhrutha kodhanDatooNeerO Rama yeva gathirmama II

Oppiliappan Koil VaradAchAri Sadagopan