Followers

Friday, May 22, 2015

Aditya Hridayam


Agasthya was living in the midst of the sages in the forest of Dandakaranya. He was running a Gurukula (a residential institution to which students who sought education joined) and was the teacher of a large number of students.Shri Rama, the Prince of Ayodhya, had to spend fourteen years in the forest. (The story of Shri Rama is narrated in the great epic, the Ramayana.)He came to Dandakaranya with his wife Seetha and his brother Lakshmana. The sages welcomed them with greataffection. Shri Rama, Seetha and Lakshmana came to the hermitage of Agasthya. Because of his spiritual powers, Agasthya had known for a long time that Shri Rama would visit him. Agasthya looked after the guests well. He gave Rama a mighty bow known as the Vaishnava Dhanus and a quiver known as Akshaya Thuneera. This was a quiver known as Akshaya Thuneera.

This was a quiver, which would always be full of arrows. He also bestowed on him a number of weapons of rare power. According to his advice Rama and Lakshmana built a ‘Parnakuti’ (a hut) on the banks of the river Godavari and went to live there.Later, in the war between Rama and Ravana, Agasthya was among the many sages who assembled to watch the mightly battle. Ravana, too, was a great warrior. Shri Ramachndra was worried. He did not know how to kill Ravana. Then Agasthya came forward and taught him the most sacred mantra known as the ‘Adithya Hridaya’. It was addressed to the Sun God. By chanting it three times Rama got the strength to kill Ravana.

Ravana loses his heads

Detail showing Ravana losing his heads


Image of demon King Ravana, who has ten heads, being decapitated by a shower of golden arrows. In the bottom right corner, is one of Ravana's demon warriors.
This is the final battle between Rama and Ravana. Rama has pursued Ravana in his chariot and fires golden arrows, which turn into serpents as they reach Ravana. The arrows cut off Ravana's many heads but they immediately grew back again. This goes on for days and nights, and Ravana shoots hundreds of arrows as the two fight to the death.
Matali, Rama's charioteer watches the struggle and suggests that "To kill Ravana you must use the dreaded arrow of Brahma, given to you by Agastya, which never misses its target". So Rama shot the divine arrow, which had the power of the gods in it, which pierced Ravana in the heart and killed him.
This is a detail from an illustration of the battle scene from the Yuddha Kanda

Then peace and happiness reigned on earth.After returning to Ayodhya Shri Rama chandra became the king. He had killed Ravana and brought relief to a troubled world; but his mind was not at peace. He was worried. At this time with Agasthya as the leader, a group of sages came to see Shri Rama. Agasthya understood the cause of Rama's unhappiness. Rama had killed Ravana, the great grandson of Brahma, the Creator, and so his mind was clouded. As a remedy, Agasthya advised Rama to perform the Ashvamedha Sacrifice.

Thursday, April 16, 2015

Greatness

During the millenniums that have elapsed, the 450 miles of her course, from Sahyadri to the eastern sea, have been studded with temples, lingas, kshetras and teerthas, gathering mystic tradition for 
purifying the body, illuminating the mind, and liberating the soul. Shiva  and Parvati claim that they both got each other by bathing in  Cauvery.  Harischandra, the victim of Viswamitra, Nala, the victim of Karkotaka, recovered their kingdoms by bathing in the Cauvery. Indra and Chandra, becoming accursed owing to their lapses, bathed in the Cauvery and became normal. Rama made Vibheeshana bathe in the Cauvery in order to wash off the pollution of Ravana's contact. Krishna advised Arjuna to bathe in the Cauvery in order to attain Subhadra. Bhrigu and Kundina become Gotra-Rishis by bathing in her. Yagnyavalkya, Bodhayana, Apastamba attain intellectual illumination through her grace.

Therefore it is rather presumptuous to attempt to speak of her spiritual greatness in less than a quarter of an hour.

The Mahabharata declares,

  1. Ganges purifies a person in 3 nights, 
  2. Krishnaveni in 4 days, 
  3. Yamuna in 5 nights, 
  4. Hemakoota in 5 nights.
  5. Goutamee in 7 nights, 
  6. Tunga in 10 nights, and 
  7. The Cauvery  purifies immediately even the prospective sins till death.

The Puranas affirm,

"There are five means of wiping out the five capital sins and attaining salvation: 

  1. the Purusha-Sookta among the Vedas, 
  2. the Geeta in the Mahabharata, 
  3. the Gayatri among mantras, 
  4. Ekadasi among Vratas, and, 
  5. among river-baths, bathing in the Cauvery in the month of Tula (Aippisi), in the presence of Ranganatha.


Mahadeva tells sage Gowtama,

Maidens who bathe with due sanctity in the sacred waters where the paschima vAhini (westward flowing branch) mingles with the dakshina vAhini (southward flowing ) on the auspicious day of the week, Friday, and devoutly worship Goddesses Ramaa and Umaa with flowers, will get happily 
married, and be blessed with children and grandchildren. And men who bathe in those sacred waters on Sundays in the morning, facing the Sun, will attain all the four vargas, dharma, artha, kama and moksha.

Agneya Purana says,

"If Shesha, with big thousand mouths, spoke for 10,000 years, he could not finish recounting the glory of the Cauvery." 

"Just as food is the best of charities, Moon is the best of  planets. Sun is the best among the lustrous, Cauvery is best among the rivers."

In an eloquent peroration Agneya  Purana  says,

"Punya cannot be obtained without straining the body. Therefore he who would bathe in the Cauvery should observe these restraints. Bathing without observing the rules will only remove superficial dirt. The body is like a bubble, and is the abode of much filth. Yama is alert, always watchful for loopholes. Morning and evening are enemies which wear away life. Therefore, you should not, you should not, you should not, waste the day. The body is in your command; the senses are not bad. Rivers are easily accessible, and afford sanctity. Autumn is an auspicious season. The man who fears naraka should drive away the demon of sleep, awake at daybreak, and bathe in the waters of the Cauvery. I tell you again and again, with raised right hand, "Cauvery, best of rivers, flows incessantly, capable of destroying all sins. Those who bathe in it, without worldly desires, will attain Heaven by mere bathing."

Tuesday, March 10, 2015

Kuvera

"Yudhishthira said, 'O divine one, why wast thou cursed by the high-souled Agastya? O god, I am curious to hear about the occasion of that imprecation. I wonder that at that very moment, thou together with thy forces and attendants wast not consumed by the ire of that intelligent one.'
"Thereupon the lord of treasures said, 'At Kusasthali, O king, once there was held a conclave of the gods. And surrounded by grimvisaged Yakshas, numbering three hundred maha-padmas, carrying various weapons, I was going to that place. And on the way, I saw that foremost of sages, Agastya, engaged in the practice of severe austerities on the bank of the Yamuna, abounding in various birds and graced with blossoming trees. And, O king, immediately on seeing that mass of energy, flaming and brilliant as fire, seated with upraised arms, facing the sun, my friend, the graceful lord of the Rakshasas, Maniman, from stupidity, foolishness, hauteur and ignorance discharged his excrement on the crown of that Maharshi. Thereupon, as if burning all the cardinal points by his wrath, he said unto me, 'Since, O lord of treasures, in thy very presence, disregarding me, this thy friend hath thus affronted me, he, together with thy forces, shall meet with destruction at the hands of a mortal. And, O wicked-minded one, thou also, being distressed on account of thy fallen soldiers, shalt be freed from thy sin, on beholding that mortal. But if they follow thy behests, their (the soldier's) powerful sons shall not incur by this dreadful curse. This curse I received formerly from that foremost of Rishis. Now, O mighty king, have I been delivered by thy brother Bhima.'"

http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/m03/m03160.htm

Labels

Blog Archive