Ramnavami: Birthday of Lord Ram

Siddhi B. Ranjitkar

People in the Hindu world celebrate the birthday of Lord Ram on the ninth day of the bright fortnight of Caitra (March-April) following the Nepal calendar every year. This day is called Ramnavami means the ninth day of Lord Ram. Hindus believe that He was the seventh incarnation of Lord Visnu. His life partners such as spouse Sita and his younger half brother Laksman were also the divine incarnations. His teachings are relevant even today; so, it would be appropriate to celebrate the birth anniversary of Lord Ram following his teachings rather than simply making offerings to his idols.

Lord Ram defended holy men from devils that had always harassed holy men and disrupted their fire worship. Devils had been harassing the holy men causing many hindrances to the fire worship the holy men had been holding.  So, Bisvamitra Rishi went to the palace of King Dasharath and asked Dasharath for sending Lord Ram and his half brother Laksman to protect them from devils while performing fire worship. Lord Ram complied with the holy men’s request and finished off all devils that had been the cause of misery to the holy men.

Ram went into exile for fourteen years to keep the morale of his father high. Lord Ram was supposed to be crowned on the day when his father Dasharath revealed him the wishes of his stepmother called Kaekai that he should go into exile and his half brother Bharat: son of Kaekai should be crowned instead.

Lord Ram accepted the wishes of his stepmother Kaekai happily. He disrobed his princely costume, put on the ascetic saffron color robe and left the palace for forest with the possession of a bow and arrows only. His spouse Sita and his younger half brother Laksman accompanied him.

Younger half brother Bharat became disgusted with his mother Kaekai at her irrational wishes for sending Ram: the heir to the throne, into exile and then crowning him. He however did not accept the throne. He always considered Lord Ram was the only heir to the Ayodhya throne. He therefore went out for Lord Ram and attempted to bring Lord Ram back home from exile. When he saw that it was futile to persuade Lord Ram to return home, as Lord Ram was determined to keep the words of his father King Dasharath he asked Lord Ram for his footwear to keep it as a symbol of the presence of Lord Ram in Ayodhya. He enthroned the footwear and then had run the administration in the name of Lord Ram for fourteen years until Lord Ram returned from exile.

Lord Ram even restored the order in the animal society. He killed the monkey monarch called Bali for the wrong doings against his own brother Sugriva. The monkey monarch had been harassing his brother and even denying him his spouse. That was not only a great injustice done to his brother but also he had violated even the norms of the animal society. Lord Ram hence agreed to the request of Sugriva for eliminating Bali. He destroyed the most powerful monkey monarch and restored the law and social order in the animal kingdom.

Sita also was a symbol of the protest of the holy men against the indiscriminate tax imposed by the monarch called Ravan on them. Monarch Ravan decided to levy a tax on the holy men who had been living on the wild roots and fruits and making offerings to divinities in forest. They had nothing to pay for the tax imposed on them by Monarch Ravan. They, therefore, collected the blood of all holy men in a clay pot, sealed its mouth and wrote on it that it contained the tax imposed by the monarch but whoever would opened it would ruin himself. Then they dispatched it to Monarch Ravan. Reading the label on the sealed clay pot he could not dare to open it rather he sent it as far away as possible from the border of his kingdom. So, it reached Janakpur: the capital of Mithila kingdom ruled by Monarch Janak in the north.

Sita was born of the blood of the holy men in a clay pot. Monarch Janak found the clay pot with a gorgeous girl child in it when he was leveling the ground by his golden plow for the fire worship, as it was the tradition at that time the king needed to plow the land for leveling and making a space for holding fire worship. So while leveling the ground, his golden plow brought the clay pot with an extremely beautiful child to the surface. The monarch could not believe it but it was true. He named the child Sita after the tip of the golden plow and adopted her. She grew to a unique woman. Monarch Janak therefore wanted to give her in marriage to an equally unique person. He therefore made an announcement that Sita’s hand would be given to a person who could lift and break up the Shiva’s bow. A person needed to possess divine power to do so. So, all powerful and brave monarchs and nobles failed in even lifting the bow not to mention breaking it up. Lord Ram however did accomplish it with a little effort and thus received the hands of Sita.

Monarch Ravan paid not only by his own life but also by the precious lives of his son and brother for kidnapping and molesting Sita. He inflicted misery on his people by his misdeeds of kidnapping Sita. Monarch Ravan thought that Lord Ram, his spouse Sita and his half brother Laksman were helpless wanderers in the forest for fourteen years and they would never be able to fight against him. Disregarding the moral value of a monarch, he took an opportunity of kidnapping Sita when both Ram and Laksman were out for hunting a golden deer. Lord Ram and his half brother Laksman demonstrated how they could mobilize an army of monkeys and other animals literally but in reality in alliance with them and fight against the most formidable army of Monarch Ravan, and win the battle ultimately making the victory of good over evil.

Lord Ram did have respect for the public opinions. By the time he defeated Monarch Ravan and then crowned his brother the monarch of Lanka, fourteen years had passed; so, Ram had completed his stay in exile. He returned to Ayodhya triumphantly. However, his mission had not ended, yet, as he needed to demonstrate how to run the administration following the public opinions. He therefore, sent intelligence to monitor the public opinions throughout the kingdom. Honoring the public opinions he took appropriate actions accordingly. Therefore, his administration was popularly known as ‘Ram Rajya’ literally means the Lord Ram’s rule but in reality it was the administration run following the people’s opinions.

Lord Ram never did care for his personal comfort. He went into exile for fourteen years for the sake of honoring his father’s words given to his stepmother Kaekai. He risked his own life for defending the holy men from the devils. He fought for the justice of the monkey monarch. Ultimately he even sacrificed his personal life only to keep up the high esteem he had earned. Currently, rulers might learn a few lessons of morality from Lord Ram and the sacrifices he made for preserving the integrity of the rulers. That might help to lessen the rampart corruption, nepotism and moral degradation prevailing in the country.

March 25, 2010.