Say Ram

When I saw this picture some weeks before in HT Brunch, something happened to me. I don’t know how to express that, but it was something like a strong attraction. Then I took a snap of the picture. At that time, I didn’t know what to do with the picture.

On Saturday evening, suddenly I wrote all that I posted on my previous blog. It was instantaneous. I don’t claim to be wildly read J or a learned sole J or any thing nearby. I reason things out before I believe, and once I believe in something, then I reason it out why shouldn’t I continue believing that. I am neither fluid, nor rigid. We all learn in life, and that needs us to remain open to ideas.

I never imagined that the emotional post of mine would create some emotional reactions too J. I was asked some questions, which I replied. Here is an account of some parts: just to make it immortal J

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Which version of Ramayana you have read? There are many.

Actually, I haven’t read any of them. I know Ramayana from the folk lore that are known to all, the stories that I read in my childhood, and Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayana that we all watched on TV (that was Valmiki’s).

I believe the writers of the books were human, and I am a human too. I don’t wish to write a new Ramayana though J

BTW, did you read Kabir Das say: pothi padh padh… dhai akhar prem ka… J

Ram as a brother: Ram took his wife with him, but Lakshman didn’t. Was that fair?  

It was not fair. Vanvas was given to Ram and it was not necessary for Lakshman to accompany Ram. But Lakshman insisted. It was not a decision of Ram to take Lakshman with him. It was Lakshman's decision to come with him. He was kind that he allowed him. Because he loved Lakshman like one can ever love his brother.

Again, it was Lakshman's decision not to take his wife with him, not Ram's direction. Ram was strong enough to take care of him and his wife, and needed no help. As I said, may be he agreed to Lakshman's decision because he loved him so much.

Ram as a husband: wasn’t Sita deserted and disgraced by her husband?

Deserted? Yes. Disgraced? No. Ram loved Sita. Just try to imagine how bad Ram felt when he had to leave Sita like that. How would one feel? Ram knew the truth that Sita was pure, as Hanuman had told him that Sita was living with honour in Ravana's Lanka. Still Ram had to take that decision, because he was 'people's king'. Even in our democracy, we want prime ministers to just 'act' on what 'people' 'want'. And Ram did just that.

I am not justifying deserting one's wife. Perhaps no one should ever do that, even if the world says whatever. But one should understand the 'situation', 'perception', 'time', 'expectations', and a whole lot of things before trying to judge other's decisions taken in a different time.

Ram as an administrator: just because one person said something inside his house, Ram left his wife? 

A good administrator has to keep a watch on what public is thinking. May be a thousand people criticized Sita in their homes, but it was just one person who said that by mouth! Just like many of us doubt many things, but it takes one/two of us to put that into words!

I wonder if I would ever like Ram to be either my husband or my father.

No Ram of today would do what Ram of then did at that time. So even if Ram is a husband today, he won’t do that. So rest assured J A father? Here I differ. It would be so great: living in peace with nature in a forest, playing with tiger cubs, taken care by one’s mother, and trained by a Guru. At least I would love that! Do you have an offer? I am for it!

You painted Ram as a human being, and not as God.

Gods are just like that: you can fit them into whatever shape and role you like, and they won’t mind. That is why they are Gods. Human beings are Gods too.

Complements

I won’t take complements seriously J Writing is easy. Doing is not. While I do take care that I always practice what I say or write, I would rather be remembered for what I did rather than what I said or wrote. I would like to do great some day. Every day.

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Snapshots from childhood: Revisited

Even before Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayana made the epic reach our homes, we read one Comic version of Ramayana from Gita Press. We had received a copy from our grandpa. Whole Ramayana was pictorially described in the thin book. I was around 8 then, and was highly inspired by many of the scenes. The most inspiring for me was when young Ram and Lakshman went with their Guru on a trip, to kill the Rakshasas, just after they had completed their education. And they cleared them all.

I got this dream many times. I was Ram. My younger cousin brother was Lakshman. And many of my other cousins were Bharat and Satrughna. And my mother and aunts were like the four mothers Ram had J We had bows and arrows like Ram had. And then one night, I fought a very long battle with the demons, and when I woke up, I was tired and exhausted. But I was happy because I had won it J

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PS: Thanks a lot to all those who asked questions, so that I got another chance to post this picture. J