3 May 2020

Day 3

Sita Rama Katha

Hare Krishna. Welcome all. Here devotees of ISKCON Pandharpur are participating in Katha. Katha is being telecasted from Pandharpur and hence it is obvious that Pandharpur devotees are taking part in this Katha. Devotees from different parts of the world are doing sravanam. Devotees from 862 locations are taking part in the Katha which has been organized on the occasion of Sita Navami.

Today is the third day of the Katha. Tomorrow is Mohini Ekadasi. The subject remains the same, whether you do Katha of Rama or Syama. Sometimes stupid people sing ” Kabhi Rama banke, kabhi syama banke ” or they sing ” Kabhi Sai Baba banke” If this is the case then you have not understood Siddhanta. So there will be no change in the topic. Krsna is Rama. As Kunti Maharani says…..

maya-javanikacchannam
ajñadhoksajam avyayam
na laksyase mudha-drsa
nato natyadharo yatha

Translation:
Being beyond the range of limited sense perception, You are the eternally irreproachable factor covered by the curtain of deluding energy. You are invisible to the foolish observer, exactly as an actor dressed as a player is not recognized. [SB 1.8.19]

…that in each drama the actor remains the same, but his dress keeps on changing. He looks different. His name also changes. His costumes are also different. The actor remains the same. Kunti Maharani is informing us of this .

kesava dhrita-rama-sarira jaya jagadisa hare
kesava dhrita-narahari-rupa jaya jagadisa hare

How many times does this have to be said?

advaitam acyutam an?dim ananta-r?pam
?dya? pur??a-puru?a? nava-yauvana? ca
vede?u durlabham adurlabham ?tma-bhaktau
govindam ?di-puru?a? tam aha? bhaj?mi

Translation:
“I worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Govinda (K???a), who is the original person—absolute, infallible, without beginning. Although expanded into unlimited forms, He is still the same original, the oldest, and the person always appearing as a fresh youth. Such eternal, blissful, all-knowing forms of the Lord are usually not understood by even the best Vedic scholars, but they are always manifest to pure, unalloyed devotees.”[ Brahma-sa?hit? (5.33)]

anadi rupam. All expansions are one. These incarnations are eternal. Then there is Mina sarira (Fish incarnation). There are Varaha Rupa and Kalki incarnation also. All these are stories of the same subject only. Govindam adi purusam.

r?m?di-m?rti?u kal?-niyamena ti??han
n?n?vat?ram akarod bhuvane?u kintu
k???a? svaya? samabhavat parama? pum?n yo
govindam ?di-puru?a? tam aha? bhaj?mi

Translation:
The Lord is situated as Himself, Lord K???a, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and He is accompanied by His expansions like Lord R?ma, Baladeva, Sa?kar?a?a, N?r?ya?a, Mah?-vi??u and so forth. The devotees worship all these forms according to their liking, and the Lord, out of His affection, presents Himself as arc?-vigraha.[Brahma-sa?hit? (5.39)]

There are many forms, but the cause of all incarnations is only one – Krsna. Sri Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu showed His six hands Shad-bhuja-darsana to Sarvabhauma Bhattacarya in Jagannatha Puri. In two hands there was a bow and arrow. The colour of His hands was the same as yesterday when Radha Pandharinatha appeared as Sita Rama. In the other 2 hands, there was a flute with the colour like that of Ghanshyama. And in the other two hands was a danda and kamandalu having a golden complexion. At different times the Lord appears.

sambhavami yuge yuge

In Treta-yuga the Lord appears before ten lakh years. Very few people know this or have faith in this. Ramayana is an Itihaas, a History. But today’s historians begin their history from Lord Buddha, 2500 years ago. There was Lord Buddha and King Ashoka. They say there were no human beings before that, only monkeys. Darwin’s theory is there which is just speculation. They don’t know that the Mahabharata war happened 5000 years ago. They say all these are fictitious stories. 9 – 10 lakh years ago there was Ayodhya which was the best city. They say this is not possible and people were living in caves and were using stones to fight. This is the belief of most people today. It is also important for listeners to have faith that Lord Rama was there. He came to Pacavati and Ramtek, in Nagpur in Maharashtra. Lord Rama was there in Dandakaranya meaning Dandak Aranya just like Vrinda’s forests or Vrindavan.

I was in Los Angeles and they were celebrating the foundation day of Los Angeles. I asked them how old is your Los Angeles? They replied that Los Angeles is a very old city, 200 years old. Srila Prabhupada would say this is Kupamanduk philosophy or Dr. Frog’s philosophy. This is the understanding of people. They are our brothers and sisters. They think that if it is 200 years old means it is very old. How old is Ayodhya? Just saying 9 to 10 lakh years old is also an offence against the dhama.

The Dhama is eternal. This understanding is transcendental. We are trying to understand this Katha with the right understanding. Valmiki Muni had seen this dhama and he was shown all the pastimes by Lord Brahma and Narada Muni. All these pastimes can be understood by the soul, not by our mind or intelligence. These pastimes are inconceivable, hence they should be accepted as it is. This is called Avaroha Pantha.

eva? parampar?-pr?ptam
ima? r?jar?ayo vidu?
sa k?leneha mahat?
yogo na??a? paran-tapa

Translation:
This supreme science was thus received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time, the succession was broken, and therefore the science as it appears to be lost. [BG 4.2]

These pastimes are being explained since that time. Luv and Kush began it and then it continues by disciplic succession. We need to hear it with humility.

vidy?-vinaya-sampanne
br?hma?e gavi hastini
?uni caiva ?va-p?ke ca
pa??it?? sama-dar?ina?

Translation:
The humble sages, by virtue of true knowledge, see with equal vision a learned and gentle br?hma?a, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste].[ BG 5.18]

Brahman is humble.The more one gets knowledge, the more one becomes humble. Knowledge makes one humble. The hope and prayer is that by hearing Katha we will become humble and qualified to understand this Katha and become patra. Do you understand Patra or vessel? There is a patra and there is a chalani or a vessel with holes. If you keep something in a vessel with holes then it may get lost and you won’t find it next time. It is necessary so that we become qualified.

When Lord Rama was young Vishwamitra Muni came from Siddha Ashram. He was welcomed in the Assembly of King Dasaratha. Then King Dasaratha asked Vishwamitra Muni what they could do so that all his requests could be fulfilled. He said, “Just give me your Rama.” In English we say, your wish is my command. When King Dasaratha heard this then his vatsalya bhava was awakened. King Dasaratha asked Vishwamitra Muni, “Where you are going to take Them?” Then Vishwamitra Muni said,”I will take Rama and Laksmana to the forest where we do yajna. They will protect us as. There are so many demons”. When Dasaratha heard this then he fell unconscious. When he came back to consciousness then King Dasaratha said, “My son is too young. He is just 15 years old. My son is a rajeeva locana.” How is he? He has eyes like lotus petals. He was not meant to say that his son is beautiful, but as He is rajeeva locana He feels sleepy at night. Then how will He protect the yajnas during the night? Then Vishwamitra Muni got angry. He knew who Lord Rama was. He knew Lord Rama is Purushottama. He knew that He can kill all the demons who are creating so many obstacles. King Dasaratha was not aware of this because of Yogamaya due to his fatherly affection. Both had different feelings. Vishwamitra Muni wanted to glorify Lord Rama and Laksmana as They would go to Siddha Ashram. Once Radha Govinda Maharaja was saying that when King Dasaratha heard all this he said: “He is my son and how is it that you can know more about Him?” Vatsalya Bhava hides the “bhagawatta” of the Lord. Then Rama and Laksmana went to Siddha Ashram, where Sri Rama kills Tadaka.

He starts the killing of the demons. In Krsna’s pastimes Putana was the first demoness to be killed by Him. Then Subahu was killed. Marici was wounded and was taken to Lanka as he was going to be useful in future pastimes. At the time of the kidnapping of Mother Sita, all things were explained to him by Ravana. Ravana had told him to become a deer and run. Rama would follow him and kill him. Then Marici replied, “ We should not go to Rama. I’ve experienced it and I know.” He was asking Ravana, “Do you want to die?” He said that he was just about to die, but was saved. Then Ravana said, ‘Do you want me to kill you?’ Then Marici agreed to die by Lord Rama’s hands.

Janakpuri or Mithila was not far from Siddha Ashram. Vishwamitra Muni along with Rama and Laksmana proceeded towards Mithila. On the way Ahilya Uddhar took place. They were welcomed in Janakpuri. At that time Sita’s Swayamvar was going on. Sita was about to garland Her husband. Who was to be selected as Her husband? One who can lift and string Lord Siva’s bow. No king was able to lift the bow and if someone was able to lift it, he was unable to string it. Ravana had also tried. Everyone wanted Mother Sita as their wife. King Janaka asked Vishwamitra Muni whether Rama could try.

They were taken to the king’s assembly by 5000 soldiers. I heard that Sita played with the bow as one plays with a toy horse. She is Rama’s Sita. She is not ordinary. Then Lord Rama came. Sita was also there. The groom was there and the bride was also there. Everyone wanted Rama to be successful. King Janaka started to think, “It would have been better if hadn’t kept this condition of lifting the bow”. He wanted Lord Rama as Sita’s husband. He was thinking what will happen if He could not lift it . Then Lord Rama took Vishwamitra Muni’s blessings and circumambulated the bow.

He lifted the bow with His left hand and put pratyancha on it and the bow broke into pieces. There was a tumultuous sound and only five personalities remained standing. The five personalities were Rama, Laksmana, Vishwamitra, Janaka, and Sita.

Everyone congratulated Rama as they got up. Mother Sita was ready with a garland and She made Her way to Lord Rama. But She was stopped by Lord Rama saying that He needed to take into consideration the opinion of His father. A message was sent to Ayodhya and all Ayodhyavasis came in 6 days. King Dasaratha agreed, but also said that his remaining sons should also get married. Then discussions started. King Janaka had two daughters Sita and Urmila. King Janaka’s name was Siradwaja. His other brother was there named Kushadhwaja who had two daughters named Mandavi and Srutakirti. Mandavi got married to Bharat and Srutakirti married Satraguna. Then the mass marriage took place as it is said today. They returned to Ayodhya.

Lord Rama had to go to exile. Mother Sita insisted that She will also follow Lord Rama. Laksmana also followed. They reached Ramtek and He took the vow to free the earth from demons. They stayed at Pancavati. The 5 trees are still there. Ravana abducted Mother Sita from there. Lord Rama was calling ‘Site Site’ but only the trees were responding. These lilas are taking place in Aranyakand. Then They meet Sugriva and Hanuman in Kishkindha kand. In Sunderkand Hanuman is successful in finding Mother Sita. As he shared this with Lord Rama, the Lord embraced him. Then they constructed a bridge over the ocean, fought the war, and emerged victorious on the day of Dasami. Sukadev Goswami has described the qualities of Mother Sita when he was describing Ramayana in Srimad Bhagavatam.

prem??nuv?tty? ??lena
pra?ray?vanat? sat?
bhiy? hriy? ca bh?va-jñ?
bhartu? s?t?haran mana?

Translation:
Mother S?t? was very submissive, faithful, shy, and chaste, always understanding the attitude of her husband. Thus by her character and her love and service she completely attracted the mind of the Lord.[SB 9.10.55]

At the end of the war, Lord Rama went to Ashoka Vatika and saw Mother Sita. They saw and met each other. Then they flew back to Ayodhya where Bharat was waiting for Them. They were welcomed by all. And then Rama became Raja Rama.

Sita Rama Laksmana Hanuman Ji ki jay
Gaur Premanande

2 May 2020

Day 2
Sita Rama Katha
Appearance Day of Mother Sita

Jai Sri Rama hor gaya Kama. All endeavours become successful with Rama Nama. Katha commenced yesterday. Today is Day 2.

We were remembering Balakanda, the first sarga of Ramayana which was spoken by Narada Muni. He can also be called Ramada as he gives Rama. He can also be called Krshnada as he gives Krsna. He is the acarya of our Brahma Madhava Gaudiya Sampradaya. Narada Muni gives us Rama, Krsna, and Narayana. He tells us Their Katha and for that purpose he travels throughout the universe. He goes out of the universe also. He even goes to Vaikuntha Goloka. Yesterday we heard Sankshipta Ramayana from Narada Muni. Valmiki Muni tells the latter pastimes. Valmiki Muni reached the banks of River Tamasa with Bharadwaja Muni. The water of that river was very clean, free from garbage. It’s said that this river was as clean as the mind of the sages. Valmiki Muni wanted to take rest on the banks of River Tamasa before taking a bath. At that time he saw two Krauncha birds – a male and a female. In English they are called cranes. One hunter came and killed the male bird. We heard about the state of the female bird. Seeing the condition of the female bird Valmiki Muni felt compassion and cursed the hunter. In his lamentation a verse came from his mouth.

maa nishada pratistham tvamagamahs?svati samaa
yat kraunchamithunaadekam avadhi kaamamohitam

Translation:
“Oh! violent Hunter, by which reason you have killed one bird of the couple, when it was infatuated by passion, for that reason you will never get a state of rest for everlasting years to come…” [1-2-15]

He was surprised as he hadn’t composed a single verse till then. It was in anushtup chandaha or meter. Most of the verses of Bhagavad-Gita are in anushtup chandaha (metres with 8 syllables in a quarter). So the verse being uttered by Valmiki Muni was in anushtup chandaha.

Then while bathing he was thinking whether he had done anything wrong by cursing the hunter? When he was returning from the bath he witnessed one more surprise as four-headed Brahma had appeared there.

aajagaama tatah brahmo lokakartaa svayam prabhuh |
chatur mukho mahaatejaa drastum tam munipungavam ||

Translation:
Then, the great resplendent four-faced creator of fourteen worlds, almighty Brahma, arrived there on his own, to see that eminent saint Valmiki. [1-2-23]

He did padaprakshalan and offered him a seat. While doing everything he was wondering how this verse was spoken by him. Then he asked Brahma who had made him say this verse? Lord Brahma replied, “Everything happened with my blessing. Mother Saraswati made you recite this verse. You composed one verse, but I want you to compose such many verses.”

raamasya charitam kritsnam kuru tvam rishhisattama

Translation:
You shall render the legend of Rama, in its entirety.

In this way, Lord Brahma instructed Valmiki Muni to compose Ramayana describing the life of Lord Rama. How long will this Ramayana remain popular?

yaavat sthaasyanti girayah saritah cha mahiitale |
taavat raamaayana kathaa lokesu pracharisyati ||

Translation:
“As long as the mountains and even rivers flourish on the surface of the earth, so long the legend of Ramayana will flourish in this world… [1-2-36]

Till the time there will be mountains and flowing rivers this Ramayana Katha will keep on spreading. It will be there till there is no annihilation. One person named Sanjay passed away in Delhi. People said that his name will br remembered till the sun and moon exist. The sun and moon are still there, but the name of that person is forgotten. People try to imitate the same things which happened with Rama. People make a big donkey a leader of the assembly of all donkeys. This takes place in the assembly of demons. Valmiki Muni said, “I haven’t seen or listened to this Katha and you are saying I should compose the whole Ramayana.” Lord Brahma replied, “Do not worry. The Katha will be revealed in your heart and you will be able to see all the pastimes.”

Ramayana was already composed when Rama appeared in this world. Only a few pastimes had happened and it was composed. He was 16 years old, He got married, stayed in Ayodhya for some time, went to the forest for 14 years. Yesterday we explained that one washerman was blaming his wife for something and chasing her out of his house and saying that he was not Lord Rama who took Sia back. Seeing this, Lord Rama sent Sita Devi to the forest. She stayed in Valmiki Muni’s asrama. Luv and Kusha were born there. Only 40 years of the 11,000 years had passed. At that time Ramayana was composed.

In one sense all the Lord’s pastimes take place in the present. Pastimes never get destroyed. Hence we call the Lord sat-cit-ananda. We should understand the pastimes of Lord in truth.

janma karma ca me divyam
eva? yo vetti tattvata?
tyaktv? deha? punar janma
naiti m?m eti so ’rjuna

Translation:
One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.[ BG 4.9]

We should understand kathas with siddhanta or philosophy. We shouldn’t be lazy in understanding the siddhant. Srila Prabhupada also repeatedly spoke about siddhanta. We should hear and repeat katha while understanding the siddhanta. There is the Sandhini potency of the Lord which maintains everything. Sandhini comes from sat, Samvit from cit and Hladini from ananda.
Sandhini potency keeps everything fresh. What is the Hladini potency of the Lord? Lord Rama’s Hladini potency is Sita. This potency gets personified. She appeared today in this universe in Lord Rama’s pastimes. She appeared in the Prakat Lila. When there is a situation Lord Rama appears. Whenever there is a decline in religious principles the Lord has to descend. Hence such pastimes are called prasangika lila, Lilas which have a reason behind it. Lord Brahma is telling Valmiki Muni that he will witness all these pastimes.

iti uktvaa bhagavaan brahmaa tatra eva antaradhiiyata |
tatah sa shishhyo bhagavaan munih vismayam aayayau ||

Translation:
On saying thus that Divinity Brahma vanished then and there only, and then that godly sage Valmiki came by astonishment, along with his disciples. [1-2-38b-c]

By saying this Lord Brahma went back to Brahmaloka or Satyaloka on his hamsa. Then Valmiki Muni composed Ramayana.
Earlier Valmiki Muni was a dacoit named Ratnakar. He would rob many people. Then Narada Muni reached there. What can be stolen from him? He just has the pearls of the holy names of Lord Rama. He asked Ratnakar to chant the names of Lord Rama. He was chanting mra mra mra and then it became ram ram ram. Earlier he was doing offensive chanting and then ceto darpana marjanam happened. There is one verse in Ramayana about the glories of chanting the Lord’s name.

Rama Nama Rama Nama Ram namaiva kevalam

By chanting the holy name, he became Valmiki. Valmik or an anthill grew where Valmiki Muni was chanting the Lord’s name. All ants ate his flesh and just his bones and the Lord’s name was there. Hence Lord Brahma said to Valmiki that he was great amongst the sages. He composed the Ramayana and then he was thinking who will spread this Ramayana. He had accomplished his task. It was not only writing of the books, but distribution was also necessary. While Valmiki Muni was thinking like this Luv and Kusha came and sat in front of him. They were the sons of Mother Sita. They were reflections of Lord Rama. Seeing them Valmiki Muni thought that they will spread Ramayana. Valmiki Muni trained and taught them Ramayana. They were srutidhar hence they understood as they heard. They started to speak the Ramayana in song form. Similarly, Sukadeva Goswami became a preacher of Bhagavad Katha as he heard it. Both of them were practicing in describing the pastimes of Lord Rama which has all the mellows – virya, raudra, madhurya, hasya. This Katha is full of the different mellows and hence Ramayana is called Mahakavya or great epic.

Luv and Kusha spread this Katha at various places and Munis who were hearing this Katha were developing all the ecstatic symptoms. The audio would turn into a video and they would witness all the pastimes of the Lord. Then some of the Risis would come forward and embrace them, touch their feet, smell their head, and give them various gifts. In this way one day they reached Ayodhya and started Rama Katha. This became the talk of the town. As they were describing this Katha, people would sit and hear. If they started to walk people would follow them. This news reached Lord Rama. Lord Rama wanted to hear this Katha. Luv and Kusha were called into the assembly where all the personalities were present. Then the Katha started.

In this way, we come to the 4th sarga. As the Katha started Lord Rama was sitting on His throne. He thought, “I shouldn’t sit on a high throne,” Considering this as inappropriate from the point of view of the listeners, He stood up and sat at the feet of Luv and Kusha. And He started to hear the Katha from them.

Today is the appearance day of Mother Sita. Lord Rama appeared on Navami and Mother Sita also appeared on Navami. This is not a coincidence, but this is an arrangement of the Lord. Sita Mata appeared in Janakpuri or Mithila. Hence She is called Maithili. One of my god sisters was named Maithili Devi Dasi by Srila Prabhupada. She displayed her courage as the municipal officials came to destroy the altar of Sri Sri Radha Rasabihari at Juhu, Mumbai. She told them, “You have to cross over my dead body to get to the altar.” I’ve described the incident in Bombay Is My Office. Her name is Janaki also. There is Sita Sahasranam like Radha Sahasranam. Janaka Maharaja wanted to perform a sacrifice at that time and they were preparing the place for the sacrifice by ploughing the land. Janaka Maharaja was plowing it with the help of bulls, but the plough got stuck. There he found Mother Sita. In the same way, King Vrishabhanu also found Radha on the lotus. They didn’t appear in maternity homes. With this we can understand that the Lord’s birth is transcendental.

Sita Mata’s mother Sunaina was somewhere else and Sita Mata is appearing at another place. Who can give birth to a personality like Sita? She is sakti tatva. All such personalities are eternal and ever-existing. All incarnations appear from their respective abodes and like that only Sita appeared today. There is a place known as Sitamadhi where Sita Mata disappeared. She appeared from the earth and again disappeared into the earth. There is no doubt that by the mercy of Sita we get Rama. satyam satyam punaha punaha Without the mercy of Radha no one can get Krsna. In the same way, to get darsana and the service of Lord Rama we need to go through Sita. We get the mercy of Mother Sita through Guru parampara.

Soon we will get darsana of Radha Pandharinatha. Radha expands as Sita when Krsna expands as Rama. Krsna is theprimeval Lord and Radharani is adi prakrti. Krsna’s expansion is Rama and Radha’s expansion is Sita.

Thank you
Hare Krishna

1 May 2020

Sita Rama Katha

Ramayana – The Divine History!

Hare Krishna!

Welcome to all of you. It has been announced that there are many festivals and Vai?nava tithis in the upcoming 7 days till 7 May. There is Sita Navami, Rukmini Dvadasi, Narasimha Caturdasi and on 7 May there is thea appearance day of Madhavendra Puri and Radha Raman Deity of Vrindavan. The Sila became Radha Raman. There will be katha for 7 days. I was thinking whether we should do katha from 6.30 to 7.30 am or 8 to 9 am?

Let’s discuss this. We don’t have much time. Temple brahmacaris are also sitting here. What do you think?I think it’s good if everything gets done in one sitting. Otherwise you will also need to come back – first for chanting and then for katha. It’s better to have the chanting and katha in one go. Many devotees are in favour of 6.30 to 7.30 am. Katha will end at 7.30 am. I am of the opinion that the katha should be conducted between 6.30 to 7.30 am. Let’s do it then. We will not do kirtana as japa is kirtana itself. You have to stop chanting by 6.30 am. This class will be released in the evening on YouTube as well. This will be broadcasted later.

This can be called a katha mahotsava or ?ravanotsava sapta. There is netrotsava also – festival for the eyes. Darsana of Lord Jagannatha opens in Jagannatha Puri one day before Ratha-yatra. Jagannatha temple remains closed for some days and when it opens again, devotees eagerly gather to receive darsana of their Lord, thinking that for so many days they didn’t have darsana and that day they will have darsana. It is a feast for the eyes. Prasada is a feast for the tongue, darsana a feast for the eyes and katha a feast or festival for the ears.

Srila Gopal Guru Goswami has written a commentary on the Hare Krishna maha-mantra.

sva-presthena saha svabhista-lilam sravaya

Translation:
O Radha! O Hari! O Ram! O Sita! Please let me hear about your pastimes that you performed with your beloved. (9th Hare, of maha-mantra. Radha Krishna Smaran Paddhati, Gopal Guru Goswami)

This is ?ravanotsava. Then later he has said, sva-presthena saha svabhista-lilam darsaya

Translation:
O Radhe! O Hari! Please show me your pastimes that you performed with your beloved. Let me have darsana!(11th Hare, Radha Krishna Smaran Paddhati, Gopal Guru Goswami)

jagann?tha? sv?m? nayana-patha-g?m? bhavatu me

Translation:
May that Jagannatha Svami be the object of my vision

In this katha, there will be hearing and then darsana also. There can’t be darsana without ?ravana. Of the nine forms of devotional service sravana is the first. This will be a ?ravanotsava for the ears, then netrotsava for the eyes.

prem?ñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena
santa? sadaiva h?daye?u vilokayanti
ya? ?y?masundaram acintya-gu?a-svar?pa?
govindam ?di-puru?a? tam aha? bhaj?mi

Translation:
I worship the primeval Lord, Govinda, who is always seen by the devotee whose eyes are anointed with the pulp of love. He is seen in His eternal form of ?y?masundara, situated within the heart of the devotee. (Brahma-samhit? 5.38)

By hearing about the Lord, when will streams of tears glide down from our eyes? When this happens, we will have darsana of the Lord. As Rama Katha takes place, we will be taken to Treta-yuga. When there is Rukmini Katha, we will be taken to Dvapara-yuga and when Narasimha Katha takes place, we will be taken to Satya-yuga. This katha will allow us to have darsana of all these three yugas.

There will be katha of Sita Rama for the first 3 days. Then katha of Rukmini Dvadasi for the next 2 days which will include Rukmini Dvarakadish, Rukmini Haran. On Mohini Ekadasi, we will hear about the glories of Vitthala Rukmini and Pandharpur Dhama. Then there will be katha on the Appearance of Narasimha dev and on the last day on the appearance of Madhavendra Puri and Radha Raman.

Katha of Rama Sita is not just a story of a King and Queen. The story could be fiction also. But this is not a story, it is a history. There was a time in Treta-yuga when Lord Rama was there. Lord Rama and Mother Sita appeared from Saket dhama. Ayodhya dhama is in between Vaikuntha and Goloka. Lord Rama appeared from there. Lord Rama was on this planet for 11000 years.

dasa sahasra dasa shatani ca

Dasa sahasra means 10000 and dasa satani means 1000. For 11000 years, Lord Rama, Sita and Their associates lived in Ayodhya. They went to Lanka and returned to Ayodhya by Pushpak plane. Lord Rama became the King of Ayodhya. If rule or governance has to be there, then it should be like that of Lord Rama. Ramayana and Mahabharata are histories and the one who has written this Ramayana history is Valmiki Muni. He did not witness it, He was given special ability by Lord Brahma.

Ramayana was written by Valmiki Muni on the banks of Ganga in his asrama while Lord Rama was performing His pastimes. Only a few years had passed of the 11000 years and Bala-kanda was completed. There are 7 Kandas (cantos), 500 sargas (chapters) and 24000 verses in Ramayana. There is Bala Kanda, Ayodhya Kanda, Aranya Kanda, Kishkindha Kanda, Sundara Kanda, Yuddha Kanda and Uttara Kanda. Rama Vijay mahotsava had happened. Lord Rama killed Ravana, returned to Ayodhya and became king.

One time Lord Rama was roaming in His kingdom to get to know what the people of His kingdom think about Him. He heard one washerman chastising his wife. ‘Lord Rama might have accepted Sita Devi, but I won’t accept you.’ He was blaming Lord Rama. When Lord Rama heard this blasphemy, He ordered Laksmana to send Sita Devi away. Lord Rama was strict. Laksmana didn’t want to send Sita into the forest again, but Lord Rama was Agraj (elder) and Laksmana was Anuj (younger) even though They had appeared on the same day. Everyone respected Lord Rama. It was an order from Sri Rama and Laksmana fulfilled His order. Laksmana thought, ‘When We appear the next time, I won’t appear as a younger brother but as an elder brother and Lord Rama will appear as a younger brother.’ Hence in Dvapara-yuga, Laksmana appeared as Balarama and Lord Rama appeared as Sri Krsna. He didn’t leave Mother Sita just anywhere, but near the asrama of Valmiki Muni. Valmiki Muni gave shelter to Mother Sita. At that time Mother Sita was pregnant. When Prahlada Maharaja’s mother was pregnant, she was also given shelter by Narada Muni. Sita started to stay in Valmiki Muni’s asrama when she was pregnant. Luv and Kush were born and grew up within his asarama.

This is now the 7th and last Uttara Kanda taking place. Lord Rama had just returned to Ayodhya after exile. He went to exile once and sent Mother Sita to exile twice. At this time, Valmiki Muni had compiled Ramayana. The 1st sarga of Bala kanda is also known as ‘Sankshipta Ramayana’ or ‘Mool Ramayana’. It comprises of 100 verses. This sarga is compiled by Narada Muni.

One time Narada Muni came to Valmiki Muni’s asrama. He keeps on chanting the names of Radhika Raman and Sita Rama. Valmiki Muni asked Narada Muni,

ka? nu asmin s??pratam loke gu?av?n ka? ca v?ryav?n |
dharmajña? ca k?tajña? ca satya v?kyo dh??ha vrata? ||

Translation:
Who really is that person in this present world, who is principled and also a potential one, a conscientious one, a redeemer, and also a truth-teller and self-determined in his deed… (1-1-2, 2 verse, 1 sarga, Bala Kanda)

“At this point of time on Earth who is great in strength, truth personified and maintainer of the welfare of all living entities. I want to hear about such a personality.” This is an inquiry about absolute truth.

Narada Muni answered,

ik?v?ku va??a prabhavo r?mo n?ma janai? ?ruta? |
niyata ?tm? mah?v?ryo dyutim?n dh?tim?n va?? ||

Translation:
One emerged from the Ikshvaku dynasty and known to people as Rama by his name, and he is conscientious, highly valorous, resplendent, steadfast and a controller of vice and vile.and his own senses, as well.(1-1-8- verse, 1 sarga, Bala Kanda)

Sit like a yogi when you are hearing or chanting. When you sit like a bhakti yogi then there will be Sravanotsava or Karnotsava.

Narada Muni said, “That personality is Lord Rama.” Narada Muni described the whole Ramayana in one sarga or chapter of Bala Kanda. At the end of the 1st sarga, he described Treta-yuga and also described the miserable situation in the age of Kali. There was a different situation in Treta-yuga.

prah???o mudito loka? tu??a? pu??a? sudh?rmika? |
nir?mayo hi aroga? ca durbhik?a bhaya varjita? ||

Translation:
When Rama is enthroned then the world will be highly regaled and rejoiced, exuberant and abundant, also rightly righteous, trouble-free, disease-free, and free from fear of famine.Thus Narada is foreseeing the future and telling Valmiki.(1-1-90 verse, 1 sarga, Bala Kanda)

How were the people at that time? All the people in Treta-yuga were blissful, but now the people are unhappy. All of them were satisfied which means that at that time their nourishment was available. They were righteous, free from adhi and vyadhi. They were not diseased or ill in mind and body. Mental illness is more dangerous than physical illness. It is said that 20% of the population of America is fit to be sent to the mental hospital. Prabhupada would say that the people of Kali-yuga won’t give charity. There will be no sign of atithi devo bavah. Instead there will be a sign ‘Beware of the dog’ at the entrance. Since there will be no prosperity people will not be in a position to give charity. But at that time, people donated freely.

na putra mara?am kecit drak?yanti puru??? kvacit |
n?rya? ca avidhav? nityam bhavi?yanti pati vrat?? ||

Translation:
While Rama is on the throne men will not see the deaths of their children anywhere in their lifetime, and the ladies will remain husband-devout and unwidowed during their lifetime.(1-1-91 verse, 1 sarga, Bala Kanda)

At that time sons never died while their fathers were still alive. Seniors died first. Women were pati vrata (husband-devout). The women lived for lesser years than their husbands and hence there were no widows.

na ca agnijam bhayam kincit na apsu majjanti jantava? |
na v?tajam bhayam kincit na api jvara k?tam tath? ||

Translation:
In the kingdom of Rama there is no fear for subjects from wildfires, gale-storms or from diseases. (1-1-92 verse, 1 sarga, Bala Kanda)

One of thhe symptoms of Coronavirus is a fever. But in Treta-yuga, no one suffered from a fever.

na ca api k?ut bhayam tatra na taskara bhayam tath? |
nagar??i ca r???r??i dhana dh?nya yut?ni ca ||

Translation:
There is no fear from hunger or thieves, nor the cattle is drowned in floodwaters. May it be a township or a remote province, it will be replete with coin and grain. (1-1-93 verse, 1 sarga, Bala Kanda)

There was no hunger or thirst at that time. Today many people are dying because of starvation. At that time there was no stealing. Today security businesses has risen. There was no need for any protection or guarding anything at that time. This all happened at that time. This is history. Narada Muni is saying this. This is a 9 hundred thousand year old history, but still it’s very fresh. It remains fresh news. In Kali-yuga yesterday’s news becomes old today and we put the newspaper in the garbage. But scriptural news is always fresh. We should hear scriptures with faith.

idam pavitram p?paghnam pu?yam vedai? ca sa?mitam |
ya? pa?het r?ma caritam sarva p?pai? pramucyate ||

Translation:
This Ramayana is holy, sin-eradicating, merit-endowing, and conformable with the teachings of all Vedas… and whoever reads this Legend of Rama, he will be verily liberated of all his sins…(1-1-98 verse, 1 sarga, Bala Kanda)

Narada Muni said, “Whosoever will read or hear this Ramayana with attention will result in getting rid of their sins. This is a punya (holy) katha and one who will hear this, will become a pious soul.”

hari mukhe mahna hari mukhe mahna
punyachi ganana kon kari

Jai Jai Rama Jai Jai Rama Jai Jai Rama
Jai Jai Rama Jai Jai Rama Krishna Hari

Translation:
Oh Seeker, Chant Hari! Chant Hari all the time. Don’t worry about counting how much Punya gets accumulated. (Hari Path, – Hari Mukhe Mahna, Abhanga 1, Sant Jnaneshwar Maharaja)

By hearing Ramayana katha, one will become a pious soul.

mhanun mazi vitthala awadi

Then one can awake one’s love for Vitthala or Sita Rama and become free from all sins.

After describing this Sankshipta Ramayana Valmiki Muni and his disciples performed Guru Puja, A?arya Upasana, Malyarpana, Pushpanjali, Padaprakshalan of Narada Muni. After this Narada Muni left. Narada Muni is parivrajakacarya. He preaches everywhere. Therefore he has disciples everywhere. Valmiki Muni is a disciple of Narada Muni. Srila Vyasa deva is also a disciple of Narada Muni. Before the compilation of Srimad-Bhagavatam, Vyasa deva was guided by Narada Muni. Then Srila Vyasa deva compiled Srimad-Bhagavatam. In the same way, Valmiki Muni was guided by Narada Muni for the compilation of Ramayana.

Earlier Valmiki Muni had not compiled any verse on his own. But one day he witnessed a scene in which there were 2 birds. The male bird was killed by a hunter and then the female bird started to lament. Seeing this Valmiki Muni also started to lament and cursed the hunter. Within that lamentation, a verse was uttered spontaneously from his mouth,

maa nishada pratistham tvamagamahs?svati samaa
yat kraunchamithunaadekam avadhi kaamamohitam

Translation:
Not only human beings, but even animal couples should not be hurt/disturbed when they are romancing being Kamamohitam. You have done a sin by doing it.

Valmiki Muni cursed the hunter that he will never be peaceful for the rest of his life as he had killed one bird while it was romancing and had separated those birds. This ?loka is his first composition. A?aryas relate this incident with the story of Lord Rama and Mother Sita. The hunter in this story is Ravana who took Mother Sita which distressed Lord Rama in Her separation. This ?loka is the base in the composition of Ramayana.

We will take the same scene ahead tomorrow in which Valmiki Muni meets Lord Brahma and Lord Brahma instructs him to compile the Ramayana.

Tomorrow we will have japa from 5.30 to 6.30 am and then 6.30 to 8 am IST, we will have katha.

Jai Ramayana!

Rama Katha Mahotsava ki jai!
Sita Navami Mahotsava ki jai!

Haribol!