Surya Vamsa, Ravana's lineage and Srilanka's history!!.. Part 3

Lets look at some aspects which are widely debated:

• Ravana was a brahmin since he was born to a Brahmin Sage but had the qualities of his mother who is a Demon. How can one be a Brahmin and a demon? Though Ravana was born in a Brahmin family he was not a Brahmin by his deeds but was a demon by deeds. One of the important aspects of Hinduism is Karma theory, You shall reap what you sow!, places conduct over creed. So, conduct and deeds determines an individual and hence Ravana was called a demon king and not a Brahmin!.

• Unlike popular belief it should be highlighted that Rama was a Kshatriya and not a Brahmin. When Soorpanaka approaches Rama and asks him to marry her, Lord Rama refuses her and one of the reasons he gives is "I am a human being and it would not be apt to marry a demon pricesss".. வருத்தம் நீங்கு அரக்கர்தம்மில் மானிடர்
       மணத்தல், நங்கை! பொருத்தம் அன்று". Understandably Kshatriya male cannot marry a Brahmin girl as per Manu laws but a Brahmin male can marry a Kshatriya or Vaishya girl.

In Tamil Nadu there are some "rational" species which does not believe in Ramayan or Rama but claim that Ravana was a lower caste and Rama was a Brahmin and the entire story is of oppressive past India had. This along with the next argument needs to be trashed.

The next argument is Ravana was a Tamilian (Dravidian) and Lord Rama was a north Indian (Aryan) and hence Ramayana is all about Aryan supremacy story over Dravidians. The Aryan invasion theory has been comprehensively debunked and the other theory that Aryans migrated from Europe / Russian is also sent to dustbin at the same breath.

The birth place of Ravana is not mentioned in any scriptures as Tamil Nadu or Sri Lanka nor it is said that Ravana's mother tongue is Tamil.  It is popularly believed that Ravana was born in the current day village of Bisrakh, closer to Noida in North India. Geographically Ravana is more north Indian than Lord Rama as Noida is north of Ayodhya :). Please note that he displaced Kubera and captured Lanka.

To my knowledge there were no linguistic divide as we see now between Tamil and Sanskrit. Any Sage or author seems to have mastered both the languages and it was like 2 eyes for them. They did not claim that one eye is superior nor they claimed that the right  eye came from left eye. Those who make those arguments are mentally blind.. Let me give some perceptions about it:

• Sage Agasthiyar who is the head of Tamil Sidha parampara and also the chief disciple of Lord Muruga - the origin of Tamil, was sent to South India by Lord Shiva and he was not a native of South India. Yet he created so many works in Tamil and Sanskrit. The famous AdityaHridayam sloka in Ramayanam where Sage Agasthiya tells the secret to win Ravana is in Sanskrit. The Lalitha Sahasranamam told by Sage Agasthya to Hayagreeva is in Sanskrit. These are couple of examples i can draw.

• Ravana was known for his singing and Veena playing abilities. His valor was unheard of and excelled in many things. He also is attributed for lots of works in Tamil and Slokas in Sanskrit too. Listen to this Shiva Tandava Stotra believed to be composed by Ravan in Sanskrit. Like Mantras, this was also supposed to be sung in one breath. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwMyiDbQrjY You can check out Ravana's breathing rhythm and how he could have sung the entire song in one breath here in this article.. http://ragsgopalan.blogspot.in/2012/10/breathing-rhythm-of-king-dasarath-lord.html

• Lets look at Poet Kambar. He enjoyed the Valmiki Ramayan in Sanskrit, the Alwar pasurams and then created Kamba Ramayanam. Recollect this,

நாரணன் விளையாட் டெல்லா நாரத முனிவன் சொல்ல

வாரணக் கவிதைசெய்தா னறிந்துவான் மீகியென்பான்

சீரணி சோழநாட்டுத் திருவழுந் தூருவச்சன்

காரணி கொடையான் கம்பன் றமிழினாற் கவிதை செய்தான்.

• Sage Vashishta has created songs in Tamil and of course his works in Sanskrit are very well known.

Now to summarize:

• It really should not bother us whether Rama is a Aryan or Kshatriya or Brahmin and whether Ravana was a Brahmin or Demon or Tamilian. The message is more important than the messenger. That's one of the important aspects of Hinduism.

• As per Vedanta, at one stage Lord Rama or Krishna or for that matter any name or from ceases to be relevant. Hence the message also ceases to be relevant at the highest stage. At the worldly life it is ones choice whether to believe or dismiss these as just stories. But if one argues about facts of the case then we need to depend on what is written by Sages like Valmiki and not draw wrong conclusions.

•  Languages like Tamil and Sanskrit have been there for eons and have flourished as two eyes giving us vision about science, literature, metaphysics, arts and what not. Why should some one claim that one is superior over other? The petty political considerations may not vanish from this earth but it is important that it is countered in the right way with facts and then leave it to the intelligence of the readers.

• I believe no one can claim to protect these languages or heritage. In the cycle of evolution not just languages and civilizations but even demigods come and go. If it serves some petty political purpose to play one-upmanship, then i don't give a damn about it and here I rest my case.

Happy reading!

The article which prompted me to write this article is given below and i thank the individual to encourage me to write this :).

இராவணன்

-----------------

இரா – இரவு.

வண்ணன் – நிறம் பொருந்தியவன்.

இரவு நிறமான கருநிறம் கொண்டவன் என்று பொருள். பெயரிலேயே தமிழன் என்று உணர்ந்தாலும் சில மூடர்களுக்கு இராவணனை தமிழன் என்று உணரமுடியவில்லை.

இராவணன் தமிழன் -

ராவணனைப் பற்றி பேச முற்படுகின்ற போது, முதலில் அவன் இனம் எது வென சொல்லிவிடுதல் நலம். ஒரு வலைப்பதிவர் ராவணணை சிங்கள அரசன் எனச் சொல்லியிருந்தார். இன்னொரு வலைப்பதிவர் ராவணனை பிராமணன் எனச் சொல்லியிருந்தார்.

ஆனால் நான் மதிக்கும் ஜெயமோகன் தனது வலைப்பூவில் காளிவிளை ராஜா’ எழுதிய சீரிய ஆய்வுக்கட்டுரை பற்றி குறிப்படும் போது, விளவங்கோடு வட்டம் மருதங்கோடு பரக்குன்று, அகத்தீஸ்வரம் வட்டம் தெக்குறிச்சி போன்ற ஊர்களில் அதற்கான தடயங்கள் உள்ளன. இங்கெல்லாம் இராவணனை தங்கள் குலமுன்னோராக போற்றும் மரபு சில குடும்பத்தாரிடம் இருந்துவருகிறது… இராவணானால் எழுதப்பட்ட தமிழ்ச் சுவடிகள் சிலவும் இவர்களிடம் இன்றளவும் உள்ளன என்கிறார்.

ஆதாரத்தின் சுருக்கம் –

1.குமரிமாவட்டத்தில் உள்ள நாடார் அல்லது சான்றோர் சாதியினரே ராவணனின் குலத்தவர்.

2. சான்றோர் சாதியில் முந்நூற்றுவர் என்ற பிரிவு உள்ளது.ராவணனின் படைப்பிரிவை முந்நூற்றுவர் என கம்பன் சொல்கிறார். அது இவர்களே.

3. ராவணன் சீதையை சிறைவைத்த இடம் குமரிமாவட்டத்தில் உள்ள மிஞ்சிறை என்ற ஊரே. இது உண்மையில் ராவணப்படையினரான சான்றோர் சாதியால் முன்சிறை என்று சொல்லப்பட்ட இடம்.

4. சான்றோர்கள் கேரளத்தில் ஈழவர் என்று சொல்லப்படுகிறார்கள். அவர்கள் ஈழத்தில் அதாவது ராவணனின் இலங்கையில் இருந்து வந்தவர்கள் என்பதற்கான ஆதாரம் இது.

5.ராவணன் மனைவி மண்டோதரி சான்றோர் குலத்தவள். அவள் அப்பா மயன். இவர் குமரிமாவட்டம் விளவங்கோடு வட்டத்தைச் சார்ந்தவர்

6. இந்த மயன் மாபெரும் பொறியியல் மேதை. ஆகாயவிமானம்[வானூர்தி] போன்றவற்றைக் கண்டுபிடித்தவர். மயனச்சிற்பி என்றும் இவருக்கு பெயர் உண்டு. ஐந்திறம் போன்ற அரிய நூல்களை இவர் எழுதினார்

7. திருவிதாங்கூர் மன்னர்கள் சான்றோர் குலத்தவரே

ஆதாரங்களாக புலவர் குழந்தை எழுதிய ராவண காவியம், அரக்கர் நூல் [ஓலைச்சுவடி] கோயிலூட்டம்மை வழிபாடு -இராவணேசுவரன் பூசை [பதிப்பாசிரியர் சு.செல்வகுமார் 2004] குமரிமாவட்ட எழுத்தாளர்கள் யார் எவர் -மயன் மற்றும் திரு பாஸ்கரன் வைத்தியர் நேர்காணல் ஆகியவை சுட்டப்பட்டுள்ளன.

ராவண காவியம் -

ராவணன் தமிழன் என உறுதி படக் கூறவே ராவண காவியம் இயற்றப்பட்டது. கம்பனின் சொல்வழக்குகளில் மயங்கியதால் தமிழர்கள் பலருக்கும் இக் காவியம் சென்றடையவில்லை. கடவுள் மறுப்பு கொள்கையில் தீவிரமாக இருக்கும் தி.க வினரும் இதை கவணத்தில் கொள்வதில்லை.

இதன் சாராம்சத்தில்…

இரண்டாம் கடல்கோளுக்குப் பின்னர்த் தோன்றிய இலங்கையிலிருந்து தமிழகத்தை ஆண்டு வந்தான். தமிழர் இனத் தலைவனாகிய விச்சிரவாவு. அவன் மனைவி கேகசி. அவர்களுக்கு இராவணன், கும்பகன்னன், பீடணன் என்ற மூன்று ஆண்மக்களும் காமவல்லி என்னும் ஒரு பெண்மகளும் பிறந்தனர். தன் தந்தை விச்சிரவாவுக்குப் பின்னர் இராவணன் தமிழகத்தை ஆண்டான்.

Surya Vamsa, Ravana's lineage and Srilanka's history!!.. Part 2

Now lets look at Ravana's lineage. Much of it is taken from "Uttara Ramayan" where Sage Vishwamitra tells Lord Rama and others about Ravana's lineage.

One of Lord Brahma's sons is Sage Pulasthiyar and his great grandson is Ravana.

Ravana's father Vishravas, had 2 wives, one was Devavarnini whose son is Lord Kubera, the god of wealth.

Long ago, Srilanka was ruled by 3 demon kings Malyavan, Maali and Sumaali. It is told that Lord Vishnu displaced them from throne and they ran for their life. Demon Sumaali's daughter Kaikasi enamored Sage Vishravasa and got 4 kids - Raavanan, Kumbakaranan, Soorpanaka and Vibhishanan.

In Kamba Ramayana, Lord Rama asks Soorpanaka - tell me who are you? and she replies as follows:

பூவிலோன் means Brahma, புதல்வன் means Son, மைந்தன் again means son,  புதல்வி; means daughter..

பூவிலோன் புதல்வன் மைந்தன் 

     புதல்வி; முப்புரங்கள் செற்ற 

சே-வலோன் துணைவன் ஆன செங்கையோன் 

     தங்கை; திக்கின் 

மா எலாம் தொலைத்து, வெள்ளிமலை 

     எடுத்து, உலகம் மூன்றும் 

காவலோன் பின்னை; காமவல்லி ஆம் 

     கன்னி' என்றாள்.

• So Ravanan and Kubera are co-brothers having same father, different mothers.
• Ravana's great grand father (Sage Pulasthiyar) and Lord Rama's first ancestor (Sage Marichi) are brothers. So Lord Rama and Ravana are distant relatives. :).
• Celestial architect Mayan's daughter is Mandodari. Ravana married her, captured Sri lanka and chased out Kubera.
• Mayan was based out of Kumari Kandam aka Lemuria and you can read more about it here.. 

http://ragsgopalan.blogspot.in/2012/01/mahamuni-mayan-was-father-in-law-of.html

This Mayan and South american Mayan with the famous 2012 calander are the same and you can read about it here... http://ragsgopalan.blogspot.in/2012/01/time-space-series-part-13-south.html

• Architect Nalan is the son of Mayan and helped Lord Rama to build the bridge to Sri Lanka.
• Lord Rama takes Vibheshana as a brother along with Guha, Sugreevan. You can see that there is no contradiction and they are designed that way.

That's all about lineage and relationships. Lets come to few info bits on Ravana's history:

• Kubera establishes his kingdom at Srilanka (it is said that there was a mountain called  Trikoota then). It is also told that the country is one of the best designed places and looks lovely like heaven.
• Ravana when born was named as Dasagrivan since he had 10 heads and 20 arms.
• After taking boons he started his demonic activities he troubled the entire universe and became a terror to everyone.
• Then comes the well known story, Dasagrivan reached Kailasa and was trying to lift the mountain but Lord Shiva subdued him. In the process Ravana's hand got stuck under the mountain.
• He writhed in pain and his cry was heard in all the 3 worlds. Lord Shiva pardoned him and named him "Ravanan". Ravanan means one who cries loudly, continuously.
• Ravana was making fun of Nandi Deva's looks just before this event and Nandi Deva cursed him that he shall die fighting the ugly creatures of this world - the monkeys! This is why the devas were born in the form of monkeys! This is Curse No. 1.
• Ravana misbehaved a lady called Vedavathi, daughter of Sage Kusathvajar. Unable to stop Ravana's advances she cursed him that she will kill him in her next life and jumped into fire. This is curse no.2. It is believed that she came as Ma Seetha and if you notice Seetha was not born out of pregnancy but she came out of earth when King Janaka was ploughing.
• Ravana fought with Anaranyan, (king No.6 in Surya Vamsa) one of the ancestors of Lord Rama and killed him in the battle field. While dying the king cursed Ravana that one of the sons of my dynasty shall come and kill you. This is curse no.3.
• Lord Kubera's daughter is Ramba. She was forcefully raped by Ravan despite she begging that she is like his daughter. Ramba's husband NalaKoobaran cursed Raavan that his head shall burst into 7 pieces if he tries to rape any lady / woman without her consent. This is curse no.4.
• Finally, during one of the wars Soorpanaka's husband was killed by Ravana and it is told that Soorpoanaka was bent upon bringing ruins upon Ravana. Read the Kambar's words here... 

நீல மா மணி நிற
     நிருதர் வேந்தனை
மூல நாசம் பெற முடிக்கும்
     மொய்ம்பினாள்,
மேலைநாள் உயிரொடும்
     பிறந்து, தான் விளை
காலம் ஓர்ந்து, உடன் உறை கடிய
     நோய் அனாள்,

This is one of my favorite songs. Kambar describes Soorpanaka as "Like the congenital disease which is born along with us, but waits for the right time", the meaning goes that she came as if she was a congenital disease for Ravana and was bent upon uprooting him. The beauty of this song and the depth of the meaning is simply amazing! You can consider this as Curse no.5

So Ravana's future was firmly linked to his past deeds and the same is true for all of us. These 5 curses would partly explain the questions like why Devas came as monkeys, Why Ravana could not force his way with Seetha or just the number of people who were earnestly waiting for his demise!

We will continue in the next part.

Happy reading!

Surya Vamsa, Ravana's lineage and Srilanka's history!!.. Part 1

Disclaimer: Just compiling my understanding here with a disclaimer that there are minor variations between multiple scriptures but writing here what appealed to me. Shall be open to any suggestion or corrections :)

Praja means people, you would note that the root "Pra" associates with Prana (Life force), Prani(Living being), Pran(Life) etc.

It is said that Brahma created 21 Prajapatis (the count is 17 according to Valmiki Ramayan) and they are responsible for the creation of the entire living beings in this universe. Hence in one way we are all distant relatives as I am going to prove that Ravana and Rama were also relatives :).

Lets consider just the 2 Prajapatis Sage Marichi and Sage Pulastaya among the 17 or 21 as the case may be. Since they are sons of Brahma they are brothers. Sage Marichi's lineage through King Manu and "Ikshavahu" is the Solar dynasty or Surya Vamsa. I am enclosing the list of kings under Surya Vamsa starting from Brahma. Please enlarge the image.

Scriptures say that there were 42 main kings of Surya dynasty ruled for approximately 3 million years. Collating from different sources including Kalidasa's Raghuvamsa i have listed 58 kings in Raghu Vamsa. I still could not find references to Musukundan and Sibi and they are not part of the list, though you may find that they are part of the dynasty as per Kamba Ramayana and the relevant songs are listed below. The duration is Satya and Treta yuga put together - 3024000 years to be precise. You may be interested in this article too.. http://ragsgopalan.blogspot.in/2012/10/breathing-rhythm-of-king-dasarath-lord.html

• Lord Rama is the 36th King in the list starting from Manu and i wanted to invite the attention to the following:
• We will see later that No.6, King Anaranyan fought with Ravana and lost so there is enmity and past between Rama's ancestors and Ravana.
• No. 14, King Bharath was the famous king of Solar Dynasty and our country is named after him!.. Mera Bharath Mahan!
• No. 20, Bhageerath got river Ganges to earth and hence the river is also known as Bhageerathi.
• No.22, Raghu was the most famous king after Bharath and hence this vamsa is also called as Raghu Vamsa. Name Raghurama means Rama from the Raghu Clan.
• There were few kings after Lord Rama which i am not covering here.

Sage Vishwamitra helped King Thrisangu (No. 8) by creating a separate world for him and the same Sage helped Lord Rama. These Sages lived through the ages and had conquered death.

In the next part we would see the lineage of King Ravana and the relationships.

In Kamba Ramayana, Sage Vishwamitra introduces Lord Rama to King Janaka and he talks about rama's ancestors.. I am producing few songs which I like.

Happy Reading!

On Manu:

ஆதித்தன் குல முதல்வன்

மனுவினை யார் அறியாதார்?

பேதித்த உயிர் அனைத்தும்

பெரும் பசியால் வருந்தாமல்

சோதித் தன் வரி சிலையால்

நில மடந்தை முலை சுரப்பச்

சாதித்த பெருந்தகையும் இவர்

குலத்து ஓர் தராபதி காண். Kambar, Manu through his bow ensured, that mother earth gave enough grains so that none went hungry in his kingdom. We should note that the entire world were under Surya Vamsa for these 3 million years and not just Bharath! On, King Ikshavahu:

‘பிணி அரங்க. வினை அகல.
   பெருங் காலம் தவம் பேணி.-
மணி அரங்கு அம் நெடு முடியாய்!-
   மலர் அயனை வழிபட்டு.
பணி அரங்கப் பெரும் பாயற்
   பரஞ் சுடரை யாம் காண.
அணி அரங்கம் தந்தானை
   அறியாதார் அறியாதார்!

Lord Ranganatha as the deity in form has been given by Lord Brahma to King Ikshavahu for the benefit of mankind. This is the deity in Srirangam today.

ககுத்தன் 723. “தான் தனக்கு வெலற்கு அரிய     ‘தானவரைத் தலை, துமித்து என் வான் தரக்கிற்றி கொல்? ‘என்று     குறை இரப்ப, வரம் கொடுத்து ஆங்கு ஏன்று எடுத்த சிலையினனாய்     இகல்புரிந்த இவர் குலத்து ஓர் தோன்றலைப் பண்டு இந்திரன்காண்     விடை ஏறாய்ச் சுமந்தானும்!‘‘

கடல் கடைந்த காவலன் 724. ‘அரச! அவன் பின்னோரை என்னானும்     அளப்ப அரிதால் : உரை குறுக நிமிர் கீர்த்தி இவர்     குலத்தோன் ஒருவன் காண், நரை திரை மூப்பு இவை மாற்றி,     இந்திரனும் நந்தாமல், குரை கடலை நெடும் வரையால்     கடைந்து அமுது கொடுத்தானும்.

மாந்தாதா 725. ‘கருதல் அரும் பெரும் குணத்தோர்,     இவர் முதலோர் கணக்கு இறந்தோர், திரிபுவனம் முழுது ஆண்டு     சுடர் நேமி செல நின்றோர், பொருது உறைசேர் வேலினாய்!     புலிப் போத்தும் புல்வாயும் ஒரு துறையில் நீர் உண்ண     உலகு ஆண்டோன் உளன் ஒருவன்.

முசுகுந்தன் 726. ‘மறை மன்னும் மணி முடியும்     ஆரமும் வாெளாடு மின்னப், பொறை மன்னு வானவரும் தானவரும்     பொரும் ஒரு நாள், விறல் மன்னர் தொழு கழலாய்!     இவர் குலத்தோன் வில் பிடித்த அறம் என்ன ஒரு தனியே திரிந்து     அமராபதி காத்தான்.

சிபி 727. ‘இன் உயிர்க்கும் இன் உயிராய்     இரு நிலம் காத்தார் ‘என்று, பொன் உயிர்க்கும் கழல் வரை ஆம்     போலும் புகழ்கிற்பாம்! மின் உயிர்க்கும் நெடு வேலாய்!     இவர் குலத்தோன் மென் புறவின் மன் உயிர்க்கும் தன் உயிரை     மாறாக வழங்கினனால்.

சாகரர் 728. ‘இடறு ஓட்ட இன நெடிய     வரை உருட்டி இவ் உலகம் திடல் தோட்டம் எனக் கிடந்தது     என விரி தார்த் தவெ் வேந்தர் உடல் தோட்ட நெடு வேலாய்!     இவர் குலத்தோர் உவரி நீர்க் கடல் தோட்டார் எனின், வேறு     ஓர் கட்டுரையும் வேண்டுமோ?

பகீரதன் 729. ‘தூ நின்ற சுடர் வேலோய்!     அனந்தனே சொல்லானேல், யான் இன்று புகழ்ந்து உரைத்தற்கு     எளிதோ? ஏடு அவிழ் கொன்றைப் பூ நின்ற மவுலியையும்     புக்கு அளைந்த புனல் கங்கை, வான் நின்று கொணர்ந்தானும்,     இவர் குலத்து ஓர் மன்னவன் காண்‘

அசுவமேத யாகம் நூறு செய்தவன் 730. ‘கயல் கடல் சூழ் உலகு எல்லாம்     கை நெல்லிக் கனி ஆக்கி, இயற்கை நெறி முறையாலே     இந்திரற்கும் இடர் இயற்றி, முயல் கறை இல் மதிக் குடையாய்!     இவர் குலத்தோன் முன் ஒருவன், செயற்கு அரிய பெரு வேள்வி     ஒரு நூறும் செய்து அமைத்தான்.

ரகு 731. ‘சந்திரனை வென்றானும், உருத்திரனைச்     சாய்த்தானும், துந்து எனும் தானவனைச் சுடு சரத்தால்     துணித்தானும் வந்த குலத்து இடை வந்த ரகு என்பான்,     வரி சிலையால் இந்திரனை வென்று, திசை இரு நான்கும்     செரு வென்றான் ‘

அயன் 732. ‘வில் என்னும் நெடு வரையால்     வேந்து என்னும் கடல் கலக்கி, எல் என்னும் மணி முறுவல்     இந்துமதி எனும் திருவை அல் என்னும் திரு நிறத்த     அரி என்ன, அயன் என்பான் மல் என்னும் திரள் புயத்துக்கு,     அணி என்ன வைத்தானே.

தசரதனும் அவன் திருக்குமாரர்களும் 733. ‘அயன் புதல்வன் தயரதனை     அறியாதார் இல்லை; அவன் பயந்த குலக் குமரர் இவர்     தமை உள்ள பரிசு எல்லாம் நயந்து உரைத்துக் கரை ஏற     நான்முகற்கும் அரிது ஆம்; பல், இயம் துவைத்த கடைத்தலையாய்!     யான் அறிந்தபடி கேளாய்!

The Great Sages of India - Brahmins Vs Kshatriyas - Part 10

Throughout the history we can notice that the Brahmins and Kshatriyas have always shared a Love / Hate relationship with each other. 

• Brahmins have always been under the protective cover of the rulers and even Lord Krishna says (Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.16.10), “The brahmanas, the cows, are defenseless creatures and they are my own body.”

• Kshatriyas have largely been patronizing the Brahmins for their wisdom, knowledge and austerity. But there are many instances where Brahmins and Kshatriyas have been at loggerheads like cats and dogs and when you read few stories filled with vengeance and violence it would send shivers through your spine.

• Barring the story of Parasurama who belongs to the same Bhargava Clan, Brahmins have always been at the receiving end.

• We read many instances of inter-caste marriages between Brahmins and Kshatriyas that were very prevalent those days and it should be noted that Brahmin men were allowed to marry ladies from the 3 castes (lowest class excluded) but Kshatirya men were not allowed to marry Brahmin ladies but can marry ladies from other 3 castes. I don't know the logic for this but this was the rule.

• When Ravana's sister Soorpanaka asks Rama to marry her, Lord Rama rejects her saying, she is the daughter of grand son of Brahma who is a Brahmin and hence he cannot marry her. Poet Kambar uses a fantastic term to describe her "பூவிலோன் புதல்வன் மைந்தன் புதல்வன் புதல்வி..."

• Sage Chavanar married Sukanya who is the daughter of King Saryathi. The kings were also very much happy in most of the instances to marry their daughter off to Sages like Chyavanar.

• In Ramayana Seeta tells Lord Rama "Sukanya Chyavanam Yatha" meaning i shall be as dedicated Sukanya who was a loyal and dedicated wife to Sage Chyavana.

• As i said in my introduction we need to recollect the sage and his wife together since the tapas, austerity and spiritual powers were shared by both and it was not a male dominated society. There are multiple stories about Sage Chyavanar and Sukanya which highlights Sukanya's loyalty and dedication to her husband.

Sage Chyavanar could foresee that this inter-caste marriage arrangement would lead to extreme hostilities between Brahmins and Kshatriyas and he tried his level best to avert this but he could not.

We will see this story in the next part.

Happy reading!

The Great Sages of India - Value of ONE Cow - part 9

Sage Chyavanar was once meditating under Ganges for many years continuously and one day he got caught in the fishing net of the local fishermen. The fishermen were shocked to see a Sage in meditation midst the catch and the Sage came out of his meditation.

The fishermen pleaded for the Sage's mercy and they told him that it was a mistake that he was fished out his meditation from deep waters. The Sage understood that it is not their mistake and he submitted himself to them and said,"I am your catch and you can sell me just like you would sell the fish". The fishermen did not know how to react and they ran to their king and told them the story.

The local king then was Nahusha, who was known for his governance and dharma. He came running to the Sage offering apologies for the inadvertent mistake of his people. Then a discussion starts between Sage Chayvanar and King Nahusha which is called as "Chayvana- Nahusha Samvadam".

King: Oh! Sage, please accept my apologies for the mistake of my men. Please tell me how can i be of help to you.

Sage: Never mind Nahusha. It is not their mistake and I belong to them now and they should see me like any other catch of theirs. You can buy me from them and set me free for me to continue my meditation.

Nahusha realized the embarrassing position he was put in. He was also scared to put a value for the Sage, so he requested the Sage to tell him what the value is so that he can pay that to the fishermen. The king thought that he would offer few thousand gold coins and buy out the sage from the fishermen. Just as he was thinking the Sage said:

Sage: Use your Buddhi (intelligence) and decide for yourself as to what my value is.

King: Can i value you and offer 100000 gold coins?

Sage: Please talk to your ministers and decide what my value is.

King: The king summoned most intelligent of his ministers and finally came to the Sage and said, Can i value you and offer 10,000,000 gold coins?

Sage: The sage neither agreed or disagreed but said, please talk to learned Brahmins  and decide what my value is.

King: By that time the word had spread and the crowd has started swelling around the place. After consulting the learned Brahmins, the king said, i can offer my entire kingdom for you Sage. Please accept my offer.

Sage: The sage neither agreed or disagreed but said, please talk to wise Sages in your country and decide what my value is.

The king for the first time realized that there is something of more value than his kingdom which he thought is the highest value that he can offer. Probably he understood the difference between his perception of value and the Sage's perception of value. As he was about to set off to his forest to meet wise Rishis, one Rishi was walking through the country at that time.

The King prostrated to the Rishi and explained him the problem and requested for a solution. The Rishi quipped just once sentence and walked away. What was the one liner that provided instant solution for this problematic question?

The Rishi's answer was "Gaurmoolyam Parikalpatam", meaning that just offer one Cow as the value for that Sage and free him from the fishermen. Sage Chyavanar accepted this happily and the issue was resolved.

This is captured in Mahabharatha (13.51.27,28) as:

कीर्तनं श्रवणं दानं दर्शनं चापि पार्थिव।
गवां प्रशस्यते वीर सर्वपापहरं शिवम्।। 
गावो लक्ष्म्याः सदा मूलं गोषु पाप्मा न विद्यते।
अन्नमेव सदा गावो देवानां परमं हविः।।

"King, Cows are the most sacred among the universal creatures.

Even seeing them, talking about them, donating them can reduce your sins

Goddess Lakshmi is permanently residing in the cows

All the Devas are kept happy through the offerings from Cows"

Not just protection of the cow but praying Cows as mother goddess is deeply embedded in our culture. Should i say WAS part of our culture.

Today I can't express my emotions after i saw this film in you tube. I want you to watch this movie in the You tube and spare 30 minutes:

Tamil version of the film: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=eGHfPQGbUlc#!

English Version: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8-Hi2N8FcE&feature=relmfu

From being country which respected every living being and killing a cow was thought to be one of the worst crime you can commit, we are today among the top 5 exporters of meat / meat products. The government of the day encourages slaughter houses and gives concessions with tax payers money.

I shall write a separate article on the importance of Cow protection and how our future is inextricably linked to the welfare of cattle. But for now, let me stop this blog with a quote from MAHATMA GANDHI:

"If there is an option to choose between Independence and prevention of Cow Slaughter, I would choose the latter, for its protection shall open all means to achieve true independence."

And we did not know that Gandhi placed cow protection above India's independence.

Happy reading!

The Great Sages of India - Chyavana Prasava Lehyam - Part 8

The brilliant boy with so much radiance who protected his mother and burnt the demon  at the time of his birth is Sage Chyavanar. He is one of the most respected sages in the Bhrigu clan and his name in the pravara is mentioned as Chyaavana. 

It is told that he does Tapas for years together, which includes 12 years of Tapas under water at Prayag (at the junction of Ganga, Yamuna and Saraswati) and also some instances where termites build castles around him since he meditates unmoved in one place. He is also described as extremely skinny and looks very old, impatient, obstinate, quick to anger.

In one instance in a Yagna he invited "Ashwini Devas" for the Soma bana drink. Each Yagna is done with specific invitees and the offering in Yagna is given to only those invitees. Typically only Devas are invited and though technically being devas, "Ashwini Devas" are the lord of medicine to the mankind. Since Devas are immortal they do not require any medicine so they considered "Ashwini Devas" as inferior to them. The other reason why devas were against Ashwini brothers is interesting, "They kill plants and herbs to make medicines, though medicines save human life, they still kill the plants and hence they are not qualified in this divine gathering". Now this highlights that killing even a plant despite it saving lives are considered bad in certain section of the universe. Compare the type of crime we commit when we kill animals to satisfy our taste buds.

The devas objected to Sage Chyavanar that he cannot call Ashwini Devas for the yagna and offer them Soma Bana as it the right of "qualified" devas only. But the sage was obstinate and told them that it is his Yagna and he shall decide whom to invite and what to offer. Considering the spiritual powers of the Sage, the devas grudgingly agreed.

Ashwini Devas were treated well in the yagna by Chyavanar and were offered Soma bana drink. In return Ashwini Devas gave Sage Chyavanar a special medicine which shall remove his old age and bring back youth and virility to him.

This potion / medicine which was given to Sage Chyavanar by Ashwini Devas is called as Chyavana Prasava Lehyam now popularly called as "Chyavanprash" today.

The above story is documented part of our Vedas which are actually undated, yet it is dated at least 5000 years back even by skeptics. Now if that is so, we have a medical product in Ayurveda, to this date which delivers the same benefits.

I leave it to you whether to dismiss this as some story or mythology or accept that it could have been part of our remote past. Lets see more about Sage Chyavanar in the next post.

Happy reading!

The Great Sages of India... Bhargava Ganam ... Part 7

Apart from astrology and contribution to Vedas Sage Bhrigu also has contributions in Ayurveda, Bhriguvalli section in Taitropanishad, Sage Bhrigu - Bharadwaja samvadam in Maha Bharatha et al.

Agni as Sarva Pakshan (All consuming) :

One of the qualities of Agni (Fire), as we know today, is that it burns everything. In Vedas it is referred as Agni consuming / eating things. Can you believe that Agni once upon a time used to burn only things which were given as a part of Yagna and nothing otherwise? Sounds difficult to believe but there is a story to it, linked to Sage Bhrigu.

Sage Bhrigu was also married to Puloma (understandably he had many wives) who was very beautiful and a demon wanted to snatch her away from the Sage. Since the Sage was very powerful it was scared to do that and hence was waiting for the right time. Knowing the demon's intent the Sage used to keep Agni as the guard for his wife, if he has to go out of the ashram.

Once when the Sage went out with Agni as the guard, the demon entered the ashram and was trying to abduct Puloma. Agni could have prevented the demon but did not do it for whatever reason. At that time Puloma was pregnant and was about to deliver a baby. Just as the demon carried the pregnant Puloma from the ashram, the Sage returned and at the same time Puloma delivered a radiant baby boy which fell to the ground.

The radiance of the new born child just burnt the demon fully and saved his mother. Sage Bhrigu was so angry that he cursed Agni that you shall become Sarva Pakshan. This is a very demeaning curse for the devas since Agni was supposed to be pure and should consume only what is given as Havis in a yagna and nothing otherwise.

Since the Sage was very powerful and also angry at that time, even Lord Brahma (his father) could not pacify the Sage and reverse the curse. No doubt had there been no curse like this, we would have an Agni which is so different in its quality then we know today.

So a Sage who was in love with Agni and discovered him in water was also the one who cursed it to change its quality to burn everything instead of a selective few.

The boy who fell on the ground and burnt the demon with his radiance was called Sage Chayavanar. We will discuss about him in the next post.

Happy reading!

PS: You may think what about fire resistant / retardant products which are fire proof. If you read the fine print of any of the fire proof products or for that matter fire extinguishers it says that it is a matter of time that it can resist, the maximum temperature it can resist, the strength of the fire, of course being a function of all the three.

The Great Sages of India - Bhargava Ganam - Part 6

Sage Bhrigu was created by Brahma from his skin and is the father of Sri Vatsa Gothra and his clan is called as Bhargava Ganam. We will start with this lineage. 5 Rishis form the pravara who are direct sons of each other starting from Sage Bhrigu, as 

Sage Bhrigu - Sage Chayavanar - Sage Aapnavar - Sage Auravar - Sage Jamadagni

All the five sages have significant contribution to our Sanatana Dharma and if Lord Krishna in Bhagavad Gita says "Maharishinaam Bhriguraham", meaning Sage Bhrigu is the superior of the rishis then there is nothing more required to praise his greatness.

• Sage Bhrigu and his wife Khyadi gave birth to Goddess Maha Lakshmi and hence Sage Bhrigu is the father in law of Lord Vishnu. Goddess Lakshmi is called as "Bhargavi" daughter of Bhrigu.
• Sage Bhrigu and Khyadi gave birth to Sage Sukrachariyar the Guru of Demons.
• Khyadi was the daughter of Dakshan and hence Bhrigu is the Co-brother to Lord Shiva (Who married Sati - Dakshan's daughter), Co-brother to Sage Kashyapar (who married 13 daughters of Dakshan), Co-brother to Chandran (who married 27 daughters of Dakshan). Looks like Dakshan was a whole sale producer of good looking girls and every male at time in India should have wished that is father in-law is like Dakshan. :)
• Lord Indra's daughter Jayanthi aka Kavya was married to Sukrachariyar and hence Lord Bhrigu was Sambandhi of Indra.
• Bhrigu Samhita is the first treatise in the field of predictive Astrology written by Bhrigu.

Sage Bhrigu was also highly self-conceited at some point of time and his pride was removed by Lord Vishnu when the eye in sage's feet was destroyed. This is a well known story.

Fire from Water:

According to Vedas fire can be produced from different sources like Space, plants, trees, thick & dry shrubs, stones, forest, some medicines and also from water. Till our western science came up with the formula for water as H2O, they did not know that fire (Oxygen) is embedded in water and can be produced from it.

इमं विधन्तो अपां सधस्थे पशुं न नष्टं पदैरनु गमन |

गुहा चतन्तमुशिजो नमोभिरिछन्तो धीराभ्र्गवो.अविन्दन ||

imaṃ vidhanto apāṃ sadhasthe paśuṃ na naṣṭaṃ padairanu ghman |

ghuhā catantamuśijo namobhirichanto dhīrābhṛghavo.avindan ||

Worshipping, seeking him with adoration like some lost creature followed by its footprints,

Wise Bhrgus, yearning in their hearts, pursued him, and found him lurking where the floods are gathered.

The above Rig Mantra says that Sage Bhrigu, was the first person who discovered that fire can be produced from water. All the sages have significant relationship with fire and fire rituals. The above sloka states that just how a person who has lost his cattle would search around even tracing its footprint, Sage Bhrigu searched for fire in this universe and discovered it in water. Such was the Sage's love for fire that he even cursed and changed the quality of fire totally which we will see in the next section.

The above verse is dated 3000 BC even by the skeptics of Sanatana Dharma which is certainly 4500 years earlier than the western scientists told us that fire can be produced from water. Why should such wisdom be allowed die due to our ignorance and indifference? Think about it.

We will see more in the subsequent blogs...

Happy Reading!