Valmiki Ramayana - Chapter 66

Chapter 66

Aranya Kanda - Book Of Forest

तम् तथा शोक संतप्तम् विलपंतम् अनाथवत्
मोहेन महता आविष्टम् परिद्यूनम् अचेतनम्

tam tathā śoka saṃtaptam vilapaṃtam anāthavat
mohena mahatā āviṣṭam paridyūnam acetanam

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

While Rama is bewailing like a forlorn as his anguish is scorching him, rendered impoverished with an inanimate heart as a high passion possessed him, Lakshmana, the son of Sumitra, suppliantly gripped his feet and started to address him. [4-66-1, 2]

VERSE 3

महता तपसा राम महता च अपि कर्मणा
राज्ञा दशरथेन असि लब्धो अमृतम् इव अमरैः

mahatā tapasā rāma mahatā ca api karmaṇā
rājñā daśarathena asi labdho amṛtam iva amaraiḥ

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"Oh, Rama, as gods have reaped ambrosia after a prolonged churning of Milky Ocean, you are a reap of King Dasharatha's superlative ascesis and even by his superior acts... [4-66-3]

PURPORT

The comparison of Rama to ambrosia is noteworthy. Ambrosia is not self-useful but it is manifoldly useful to every other being. If Rama is useful to all created, animate, or inanimate beings, inclusive of gods, and the thought of that prime mover to destruct what it is moving, is self-contradictory. Next, the prime object of ambrosia is to enliven but not to eradicate, thus that thought itself is self-contemptuous. Next, the very same demons turned destructive from day one, and now if Rama destructs everything, it tantamount to brand Rama to have taken sides with demons. This is again a self-critical phenomenon of his incarnation. And so on...

VERSE 4

तव चैव गुणैः बद्धः त्वत् वियोगात् महिपतिः
राजा देवत्वम् आपन्नो भरतस्य यथा श्रुतम्

tava caiva guṇaiḥ baddhaḥ tvat viyogāt mahipatiḥ
rājā devatvam āpanno bharatasya yathā śrutam

SYNONYMS

bharatasya: of [from] Bharata | yathā śrutam: as to how, heard | mahi patiḥ: kingdom, husbander of [an enlivener of his subjects, our father Dasharatha] | rājā = king: Dasharatha | tava guṇaiḥ baddhaḥ: by your, [rosy] endowments, fastened [beholden to] | tvat viyogāt: by your, separation | devatvam āpannaḥ: godhood, he obtained. |

TRANSLATION

"Our father was an enlivener of all the subjects and that king was beholden only to your rosy endowments, but he obtained godhood by your separation... this is what we heard from Bharata... [4-66-4]

PURPORT

Annex: 'You know that our father fought demons on behalf of gods and was an ablest and an impeccable ruler... and you said that our father might deride you in saying: 'you are a wilful disobedient, despicable and even that way a dishonest one, such as you are, fie on you...' [as at 3-61-8b, 9a,] but when you resort to undertake still deplorable devastation of worlds, than that of demons, what will he say of you...

VERSE 5

यदि दुःखम् इदम् प्राप्तम् काकुत्स्थ न सहिष्यसे
प्राकृतः च अल्प सत्त्वः च इतरः कः सहिष्यति

yadi duḥkham idam prāptam kākutstha na sahiṣyase
prākṛtaḥ ca alpa sattvaḥ ca itaraḥ kaḥ sahiṣyati

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"If you are unable to withstand this anguish chanced on you, oh, Kakutstha, then how a simpleton and whose boldness is meagre can withstand it... [4-66-5]

PURPORT

Annex: 'Kakutstha-s are the pure beings shuddha sattva, and you are still purer, because of the speciality of your birth through some divine dessert given by some yaGYa puruSa, a Ritual Deity, therefore you should have some divine endowments, if not all, and why do you compare yourself to a commoner and bewail like this, instead of making humanly efforts... and if a person of your stature sits bewailing and moaning, whereto a commoner has to go in a similar situation...

VERSE 6

आश्वसिहि नरश्रेष्ठ प्राणिनः कस्य न आपद
संस्पृशन्ति अग्निवत् राजन् क्षणेन व्यपयान्ति च

āśvasihi naraśreṣṭha prāṇinaḥ kasya na āpada
saṃspṛśanti agnivat rājan kṣaṇena vyapayānti ca

SYNONYMS

naraśreṣṭha: oh, best one among men [first and foremost man] | prāṇinaḥ: for living beings | kasya na āpada samspṛśanti: who is, not, mischance, touches [catches, uncaught] | agnivat kśaṇena vyapayānti: fire [-catch,] like, momently, takes away [lets up] | rājan: oh, king | āśvasihi: tell me. |

TRANSLATION

"Oh, first and foremost man, tell me who is uncaught by mischance, which mischance will be catchy like fire-catch, and oh, king, even that, that lets up momently... [4-66-6]

PURPORT

Annex: 'I am not imparting any maiden version of Bhagavad Gita to you in saying that gataasuuna agataa suunau na anushocanti panNDitaaH; maatraa sparshaH tu kaunteya shiita uSNam sukha duHkhadaa... Gita 2-11, 13; 'This that irks- / Thy sense-life, thrilling to the elements- / Bringing thee heat and cold, sorrows and joys, / 'Tis brief and mutable!' but we are in an era of action, let us undertake some action, rather than bewailing... all this is but brief and mutable...' but think yourself, what to do next, in a human way...'

VERSE 7

दुःखितो हि भवान् लोकान् तेजसा यदि धक्ष्यते
आर्ताः प्रजा नर व्याघ्र क्व नु यास्यन्ति निर्वृतिम्

duḥkhito hi bhavān lokān tejasā yadi dhakṣyate
ārtāḥ prajā nara vyāghra kva nu yāsyanti nirvṛtim

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"If you are going to blaze away worlds with your radiance in your ruefulness, to where the ordinary people in rue shall go for solace, really... [4-66-7]

PURPORT

Annex: 'A farmer fences his farm to not to allow stray cattle to graze the crop... you are an implicit farmer of this universe and you alone fenced this universe with their respective protective areas or spheres, say stratosphere, troposphere and suchlike... thus you have come here explicitly as a fence to this world, and when the fence alone is trampling the crop of the rightness, who else will come to the rescue of that forlorn elements of crop, called the inmates of worlds...'

VERSE 8

लोक स्वभाव एव एष ययातिः नहुष आत्मजः
गतः शक्रेण सालोक्यम् अनयः तम् समस्पृशत्

loka svabhāva eva eṣa yayātiḥ nahuṣa ātmajaḥ
gataḥ śakreṇa sālokyam anayaḥ tam samaspṛśat

SYNONYMS

eṣa loka svabhāvaḥ eva: this is, world's, disposition, only | nahuṣa ātmajaḥ yayātiḥ: Nahusha's, son, Yayaati | śakreṇa sālokyam gataḥ: with Indra, egalitarian. on becoming | anayaḥ tam samaspṛśat: writhe, him, touched off |

TRANSLATION

"World's disposition is this way only, even if Nahusha, the son Yayaati, has become an egalitarian with Indra, writhe touched him off... [4-66-8]

PURPORT

Yayaati attains heaven after performing many Vedic-rituals. But when Indra asked Yayaati 'who is the best personality in your kingdom?' Yayaati, as a straightforward person replied 'I am the best in my kingdom...' Then Indra said 'Self-eulogisers have no place in heaven, hence you return to mortal worlds...' thus Yayaati met with a mischance. Instead of telling as Yayaati, he is said to be the 'son of Nahusha' which expression suggests disobedience. Once Nahusha made the Seven Sages, the stars in Ursa Major, as the bearers of his palanquin and hastened them saying sarpa, sarpa... where that word means 'move fast, move fast...' besides its general meaning 'serpent...' Then Sage Agastya curses Nahusha, 'be like that...' i.e., 'become a serpent...' taking the general meaning of that word. Then Nahusha, though a renowned personality, for he is accursed he had to fall supine as a big serpent. So Lakshmana is obliquely suggesting Rama, 'you may be a god supreme... but it is in your realm... not on earth... on earth you have to behave like an earthling... wrecking the system from within is meaningless... have some obedience to the set order...'

VERSE 9

महाऋषि यः वसिष्ठः तु यः पितुः नः पुरोहितः
अह्ना पुत्र शतम् जज्ञे तथैव अस्य पुनर् हतम्

mahāṛṣi yaḥ vasiṣṭhaḥ tu yaḥ pituḥ naḥ purohitaḥ
ahnā putra śatam jajñe tathaiva asya punar hatam

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"Which great sage Vashishta is there, who is also the priest of our father, he parented a hundred sons in one day and like that they are all eliminated in one day by Vishvamitra, for which Vashishta also lamented, but not for a long... [4-66-9]

PURPORT

Annex: 'world's disposition is such, a hundred living beings may take birth on one day and even die in hundreds, or thousands in one day... birth entails death... you ordained it to be so, but when the problem has come right under your seat, you go on bewailing without undertaking humanly effort... is this befitting...'

VERSE 10

या च इयम् जगतो माता सर्व लोक नमस्कृता
अस्याः च चलनम् भूमेः दृश्यते कोसलेश्वर

yā ca iyam jagato mātā sarva loka namaskṛtā
asyāḥ ca calanam bhūmeḥ dṛśyate kosaleśvara

SYNONYMS

kosala īśvara: Kosala kingdom, oh, king of | jagataḥ mātā: worlds, mother | sarva loka namaskṛtā: by all, [beings in the] world, one who is venerated | yā iyam = śe vho is, this one: this Earth is there | asyāḥ bhūmeḥ calanam: her, to this earth, movement [undergoes earth tremors] | dṛśyate: is evident. |

TRANSLATION

"This Mother Earth who is the mother of worlds and venerated by all animate and inanimate, or even celestial beings, oh, king of Kosala kingdom, even she undergoes tremors and earthquakes... [4-66-10]

PURPORT

Mother earth is not only held as a mother of living beings on her surface, but even Moon, Mars etc., planets are said to have emerged from her, and she is lone female in planetary system capable enough to produce offspring, and hence she is regarded as the wife of Vishnu, and hence Vishnu has to incarnate Himself on her periodically, to ease her of her problems. As such 'your weeping for your loss is subjective, while putting your other wife, namely bhuu devi, Mother Earth, to suffering by earthquakes, storms, whirlwinds, twisters, and what not... is it appropriate of you to make her suffer periodically, while you say that your one-time-suffering such as this one is nonpareil... or what... world's disposition is as such... not even you can change it, lest it boomerangs...'

VERSE 11

यौ धर्मौ जगताम् नेत्रे यत्र सर्वम् प्रतिष्ठितम्
आदित्य चन्द्रौ ग्रहणम् अभ्युपेतौ महाबलौ

yau dharmau jagatām netre yatra sarvam pratiṣṭhitam
āditya candrau grahaṇam abhyupetau mahābalau

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"Which duteous pair is the pair of eyes of the world in whom all the systems of world are peremptory, though that pair of Sun and Moon are doughtily influential in this solar system, eclipse draws nigh of them... [4-66-11]

PURPORT

Annex: 'for a while you stop thinking that you as Vishnu are reclining on me, aadi sheeSha the Divine-Thousand-hooded-serpent-recline-bed of Vishnu in vaikuNTha, yon the dwaadasha aadtya-s, 'Eleven Suns' and numerous Moons of this Universes... you are now right under the nose of this solar system, and on earth... and in this solar system there is none supreme than this mighty sun, and mellowly moon, a pair of eyes of this system, where one opens one's eye by day and the other closes that eye with his cooling effect by night... and it is also said in Veda-s: aadityaat jaayate vR^iShTiH - vR^iShTiH tato annam abhijaayate - candramasau oShadhi vanaspatau 'Sun causes rains, rains cause food, Moon causes herbs and plants of condiments...' and even they, they are eclipsed occasionally, for they are around the mortal world... and what if, your anguish eclipses you, temporarily...'

VERSE 12

सुमहान्ति अपि भूतानि देवाः च पुरुष ऋषभ
न दैवस्य प्रमुंचन्ति सर्व भूतानि देहिनः

sumahānti api bhūtāni devāḥ ca puruṣa ṛṣabha
na daivasya pramuṃcanti sarva bhūtāni dehinaḥ

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"Even very great incorporates like earth and suchlike planets, oh, bullish man, or even the gods, or even all corporeal beings, cannot get release from the predestine of Supreme Being... [4-66-12]

PURPORT

This verse is held as an interpolate or the problem with copyists, by the use of the word bhuutaani twice, and even the last compound is said to be self-contradictory sarva bhuutaani dehinaH or sarva bhuutaadi dehinaH Hence it is up to the grammarians to decide. Some mms use vedaaH for devaaH in first foot, thus 'even all Veda-s put together cannot transcend the Absolute...'

VERSE 13

शक्र आदिषु अपि देवेषु वर्तमानौ नय अनयौ
श्रूयेते नर शार्दूल न त्वम् व्यथितुम् अर्हसि

śakra ādiṣu api deveṣu vartamānau naya anayau
śrūyete nara śārdūla na tvam vyathitum arhasi

SYNONYMS

nara śārdūla: oh, man, tigerly | śakra ādiṣu deveṣu api: Indra, et al., for gods, even | naya anayau: in ethical, unethical [course, their resultant agonies and ecstasies] | vartamānau: as functional | śrūyete: we hear so | tvam vyathitum na arhasi: you, to anguish, not, apt of you. |

TRANSLATION

"Oh, tigerly-man, we hear that whether gods like Indra et al., are ethical and/or unethical, yet they too have the resultant agonies and ecstasies... hence, it is inapt of you to fret thyself... [4-66-13]

PURPORT

The last compound in second foot na tvam vyathitum arhasi is the 'theme instruction' in Gita na tvam shocitum arhasi which again appears in the next verse. This has a near psalm in The Bible: 'Fret not thyself because of the ungodly...' Psalm 37, v 1.

VERSE 14

हृतायाम् अपि वैदेह्याम् नष्टायाम् अपि राघव
शोचितुम् न अर्हसे वीर यथा अन्यः प्राकृतः तथा

hṛtāyām api vaidehyām naṣṭāyām api rāghava
śocitum na arhase vīra yathā anyaḥ prākṛtaḥ tathā

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"Whether Vaidehi is stolen or slain, oh, brave one, it will be inapt of you sadden like this as with any other commoner without tracking her whereabouts... [4-66-14]

VERSE 15

त्वत् विधा नहि शोचन्ति सततम् सर्व दर्शिनः
सुमहत्सु अपि कृच्छ्रेषु राम अनिर्विण्ण दर्शनाः

tvat vidhā nahi śocanti satatam sarva darśinaḥ
sumahatsu api kṛcchreṣu rāma anirviṇṇa darśanāḥ

SYNONYMS

rāma: oh, Rama | sarva [or, satatam sama ] darśinaḥ: [always,] all, [equably,] seers [always equable in their outlook] | a nir viṇṇa darśanāḥ: non, without, spirit, [non-dispirited,] seers | tvat vidhā: your, like | su mahatsu api: in very, high [highly desperate straits,] even | kṛcchreṣu: in straits | na śocanti hi = vill not, sadden: non-dispirited, indeed. |

TRANSLATION

"Persons of your like who are always equable in their outlook, oh, Rama, they will remain non-dispirited even if they are undergoing desperate straits, and they will not just sadden like this... [4-66-15]

VERSE 16

तत्त्वतो हि नरश्रेष्ठ बुद्ध्या समनुचिंतय
बुद्ध्या युक्ता महाप्राज्ञा विजानन्ति शुभ अशुभे

tattvato hi naraśreṣṭha buddhyā samanuciṃtaya
buddhyā yuktā mahāprājñā vijānanti śubha aśubhe

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"Oh, foremost man among men, you ratiocinate in subtle pursuit, objectively and brainily, and great brains will comprehend good and bad in subtlety with their braininess... [4-66-16]

VERSE 17

अदृष्ट गुण दोषाणाम् अधृवाणाम् च कर्मणाम्
न अंतरेण क्रियाम् तेषाम् फलम् इष्टम् च वर्तते

adṛṣṭa guṇa doṣāṇām adhṛvāṇām ca karmaṇām
na aṃtareṇa kriyām teṣām phalam iṣṭam ca vartate

SYNONYMS

a dṛṣṭa: not, seen [indiscernible] | guṇa doṣāṇām: rights, wrongs | a dhṛvāṇām ca = not, definite [indefinite,] also [a dhṛtānām = not, firm: infirm] | teṣām karmaṇām: those, of actions | iṣṭam phalam ca: cherished, fruits | kriyām antareṇa: action, without [performing any action] | [phalam ca: fruits, also] | na vartate: not, will be in existence [nonexistent.] |

TRANSLATION

"Indiscernible are the rights and wrongs of actions, and indefinite are the cherished fruits of those actions, and without performing any action, fruits also will be nonexistent... [4-66-17] "The great brains with their braininess are clearly comprehending the indiscernible, indefinite or infirm rights and wrongs of their actions, thus they translate their thinking into action... and thus they are undertaking humanly possible action... but not sitting back, unlike you... Oh, brave one, to those that are interested in endeavours, whether or not they are uninterested in the results of their actions, either rights or wrongs, but even to them cherished fruits does not occur, effortlessly...

PURPORT

Vividly: We cannot discern the rights or wrongs of any action we perform now in this lifetime, nor we can recollect the actions done us in earlier births, to asses their rights or wrongs. And they are indefinite and infirm, because any action we perform it ceases to exist on its competition. And if we have not performed such an action in last birth, conducive to yield good result in this birth, its fruition is nonexistent. Thereby we may perhaps muse over our actions basing on the results occurring now. In any case, nonexistent is the fruits of action, may it be right or wrong, if there is inaction. This is according to Govindaraja. He uses word a dhR^itaanaam 'infirm' for a dhR^ivaaNaam 'indefinite' and Tilaka uses word ca vartate 'also, happens' for pravartate 'will be in existence' and in either way the meaning is the same. anena praaptam sukham duHkham vaa puurva karma adhiinam iti uktam - tathaa ca bhaarate - aaraNyake - yaani praapnoti puruShaH tat phalam puurva karmaaNaam | dhaataa api hi sva karmaiva taiH taiH hetubhiH iishvaraH || dk Another way of declining the meaning is by ellipting the words from previous verse buddhyaa yuktaa 'with braininess' as below: There is another shade to this verse with some altered verbiage as below: And the commentaries go on expanding these tenets, till this chapter vies with Bhagavad Gita.

VERSE 18

माम् एवम् हि पुरा वीर त्वम् एव बहुशो उक्तवान्
अनुशिष्यात् हि को नु त्वाम् अपि साक्षात् बृहस्पतिः

mām evam hi purā vīra tvam eva bahuśo uktavān
anuśiṣyāt hi ko nu tvām api sākṣāt bṛhaspatiḥ

SYNONYMS

vīra: oh, valiant one | purā tvam eva: previously, you, alone | mām evam: me, this way | bahuśaḥ uktavān [anvaśaḥ] hi: repeatedly, you have said [you instructed me,] indeed | sākṣāt bṛhaspatiḥ api: actually [professedly,] he were to be Jupiter, even [if] | kaḥ nu: who, really | tvām anuśiṣyāt hi: to you, can profess, indeed. |

TRANSLATION

"Oh valiant one, indeed you alone have said this way to me previously and repeatedly, who really can profess you even he were to be professedly the Jupiter... [4-66-18]

VERSE 19

बुद्धिः च ते महाप्राज्ञ देवैः अपि दुरन्वया
शोकेन अभिप्रसुप्तम् ते ज्ञानम् सम्बोधयामि अहम्

buddhiḥ ca te mahāprājña devaiḥ api duranvayā
śokena abhiprasuptam te jñānam sambodhayāmi aham

SYNONYMS

mahāprājña: oh, great discerner | te buddhiḥ: your, thinking process | devaiḥ api dur anvayā: by gods, even, impossible, to explicate [non-explicatory] | śokena abhi pra suptam: by sadness, obliquely, utterly, slumberous | te jñānam: your, to percipience | aham sambodhayāmi: I am, addressing. |

TRANSLATION

"Oh, great discerner, your thinking process is non-explicatory even to gods, but now that thinking process is obliquely and utterly slumberous owing to your sadness, hence I am addressing your percipience and this is no schoolteaching... [4-66-19]

VERSE 20

ओर्

SYNONYMS

kṣvāku vṛṣabha: oh, Ikshvaku's, foremost among | avekṣya: contemplate / consider / count | divyam ca mānuṣam ca: divineness, also, humanness, also | evam: that way | ātmanaḥ ca parākramam: your own, valour | yatasva dviṣatām vadhe: try hard, in abser's, elimination. |

TRANSLATION

"Oh, foremost one among Ikshvaku, oh, Rama, contemplate the divineness of those immortals and their pure being in maintaining world order, also consider the humanness of these mortals and their helpless susceptibility to pain, also count on your own valour that which can annihilate the whole of anything... and then come to conclusion whether or not to annihilate everything... but, before that try hard to eliminate the abuser, lest he may abuse many others... [4-66-20] "Oh, best one among Ikshvaku-s, oh, Rama, contemplate the divine valour you have derived, also consider the human valour you have inherited, also count on your own innate valour... hence, try hard to eliminate the abuser...

PURPORT

The second meaning is when 'valour' is taken as main principle. This verse has another shade if the compound in first foot is read as, according to some other ancient mms: divyam ca maanuSam ca astram aatmanaH ca paraakramam | where the word aatmanaH is replaced with astram and then the meaning is 'you have missiles unknown to humans and you also have missiles unknown even to gods, by the courtesy of Vishvamitra and Agastya, and you have your own valour, then try hard for the abuser...'

VERSE 21

किम् ते सर्व विनाशेन कृतेन पुरुष ऋषभ
तम् एव तु रिपुम् पापम् विज्ञाय उद्धर्तुम् अर्हसि

kim te sarva vināśena kṛtena puruṣa ṛṣabha
tam eva tu ripum pāpam vijñāya uddhartum arhasi

SYNONYMS

TRANSLATION

"Oh, best one among men, what is it you gain on performing a complete annihilation owing to a single soul's malefaction, hence, mark him... that malefactor and a malevolent of yours, and it will be apt of you to uproot him... him alone... [4-66-21]

VERSE 21

इति वाल्मीकि रामायणे आदि काव्ये अरण्य काण्डे षट्स् षष्टितमः सर्गः

iti vālmīki rāmāyaṇe ādi kāvye araṇya kāṇḍe ṣaṭs ṣaṣṭitamaḥ sargaḥ