Srî Râm/ Râma
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Srî Râm/ Râma (Hindu deity)
Title and authorship of the original article(s)
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Iqbal On Rama’s Personality By Vijay Krishna Misra, The Times of India, 2013/04/19 |
This is a newspaper article selected for the excellence of its content. |
Allama Iqbal's Imaam-e-Hind
Eulogies to Rama, the Maryada Purushottam or epitome of highest human ideal conduct, have been sung, written and spoken of for millennia. Interest in Rama continues to this day. Interestingly, despite being an avatar of Mahavishnu in human form, Rama was supposedly unaware of this fact, while Krishna, another avatar, was fully aware of his avatarhood.
“Hai Ram ke wajood pe Hindostaan ko naaz, Ahl-e-nazar samajhte hain isko Imaam-e-Hind.” – India is proud of Rama’s personality and thinkers consider him as a leader of India. These profound lines have been penned by none other than Muhammad Iqbal, who composed Tarana-e-Hind (Song of India), better known for its famous lines: “Sare jahan se achchha, Hindustan hamara.”
Iqbal goes on to say in the same poem titled simply ‘Ram’: “The miracle of this luminescent truth, brightens the dust of India like the dawn of an era. He was an expert warrior, unmatched in valour, purity personified and also a devoted lover.” This analysis of Rama’s persona paints the total spectrum of his multifaceted personality and also his impact on India’s psyche over the ages.
Valmiki's view
Who was (or is) Rama, a warrior prince of ancient India – a folk hero immortalised by the first poem and first epic Ramayana of Valmiki, an ideal emperor of yore whose model of Ram Rajya set the standard of governance even in this Kalyug, an obedient son, doting husband, sincere friend, and lovable brother eliciting fraternal affection unheard of thereafter, a friend and master, a commanding, inspiring leader heading a motley militia to victory over the most powerful demon king?
By his conduct Rama set standards of exemplary behaviour in all fields of life. He is known as Maryada Purushottam, an epitome of human conduct. Was he a creation of literary fantasy or a real person idolised over the ages wrapped in the mist of folklore reflecting a halo of a dreamt ideal sought but never achieved?
The Paramatma
Apart from the depiction of Rama as prince, king and ideal human, there is another dimension of Rama in Indic philosophy, as an all-pervading, omnipresent essence of Godhead. For believers it is a synonym of Elahe Allah, Dieu and God of Middle Eastern and western religions. For nirakar bhaktas, he is Paramatma, the formless ultimate soul, creator and protector of all mortal souls. Kabir Panthi and Sikhs also adopt this symbolism. For sagun bhaktas who believe in epiphany, Rama is God incarnate who descends to earth to destroy evil and re-establish dharma.
Tul[a]sidas
Tulsidas, creator of the last and largest version of the epic, titled Ramcharitmanas, explains: ‘‘Uma Ram Gun Goorh’’ – the attributes of Rama are arcane, meaning thereby to understand his character as God and his incarnation displaying all human strengths and frailties is not easy and simple.
Tulsidas also said that Rama is viewed differently by different persons according to their bhavana or perspective: ‘‘Jaki rahi bhavana jaisi’’.
On the one hand there is adoration and adulation; on the other there is criticism and hostility – it was so during his lifetime and it is so today. That is why there is a proliferation of literature narrating his life and deeds and depicting his character and conduct in varying shades, some complimentary and some not-so-complimentary. Yet, on the whole, the standards and ideals set by Rama are viewed as benchmark in human relationships; that is why he is idolised by believers as avatar and bhagwan and by others as Imam-e-Hind and Chirag-e-Hidayat.
Too Perfect To Be True?
The Times of India, Apr 12 2016
Swami Tejomayananda
The Ramayana is the story of a noble prince who was an ideal son, brother, disciple, husband and king. Generally we find that a person is perfect in only one or two relationships. To find someone who is ideal in all of his relationships, in all fields of activity, is nearly impossible.Yet, in the Ramayana, Sri Rama achieves what we consider “nearly impossible“.
Maryada Purusha
Sage Valmiki wrote the Ramayana and presented Sri Rama as the perfect person because every society always needs an ideal. When people have a higher goal in their lives, they strive hard to improve and bring out the best in themselves. But if one's ideal is low or there is no higher goal to aspire to, one only drifts along.
Some believe that the Ramayana is imaginary , not historical. This may be because we are unable to live up to even the simplest of noble principles in life, and conclude that a person as perfect as Sri Rama is not possible. The fact is that Sri Rama was a living person, and, even now, lives in our hearts. The Ramayana is not a work of fiction.
Vishnu avatar
Sri Rama was not only an ideal man, he was an avatar of Mahavishnu. Because Sri Rama's life was the embodiment of dharma, of righteousness, the Ramayana is also considered to be a dharma-shastra. Its method of teaching is different from shruti and smriti, as the latter teach by way of commandments or injunctions prabhu vakya; they state directly what one ought to do and what one s ought not to do; what is right and what is wrong. But another way of teaching is mitra vakya, by which we are given friendly advice about good and bad conduct. As a dharma-shastra, the Ramayana is considered to be a mitra vakya.
Most of us need more than just commandments or advice. We need demonstrations in practical life, and our question is, “Has there ever been a person who has lived this life of perfection?“ We want to see him, not far off somewhere, but right here in front of us, going through all the ups and downs of life!
Life manual
If we study the Ramayana carefully, we will discover that not only are day-to-day duties demonstrated through Sri Rama's example, but we are also taught how to deal with the greater conflicts in life, although the exact circumstances may be somewhat different. For example, one day Sri Rama is told that he will be crowned king and the very next morning, he is told that he is to be exiled to the forest for 14 years. The whole population of Ayodhya as well as King Dasharatha begged him to stay and although there were many other arguments against his going, Sri Rama left for the forest, knowing it was his dharma to fulfil his father's promised boon to Kaikeyi.
It is often difficult for people to determine dharma because, as it is said, “The mystery or the secret of dharma is hidden“. The great importance of the Ramayana is that it teaches us to observe challenging situations and come to right decisions.
