Harikatha on Valmiki Ramayanam by TNS  during 23-4-2008 to 27-4-2008 at Hamsadvani

There was a shower of nectar of Ramakathaa for five days in Hamsadvani sabha by TNS  and it was panchadhina panchaamrtham. ValmikiRamayana, expounded by TNS  through the medium of his eloquence and music and spiced with his humour ,was a karNa rasayana , an elixir to the ears, administered with all ingredients in correct proportion, which inspired the devotion in the heart because the whole exposition was devotion-oriented.

I try to reproduce the harikatha,  highlighting its salient features because to write it in full will result in a thesis due to  the rich content.

Part1

 TNS started with the following sloka from Bhagavatgita and explained its significance.

ParithraNaaya saadhoonaam vinaaSaaya cha dhushkrthaam

DharmasamsThaapanaarThaaya ambhavaami yuge yuge

The Lord has  emphasized that it is for the protection of the good  for which the destruction of the wicked is necessitated  as a subsidiary , He has incarnated in each yuga, So in ramavathara also the bhaktha kaaruNya  reigns supreme. TNS said the Ramayana itself is the divine kaaruNyaa given to us through Valmiki.

Among the navaviDha bhakthi, namely SravaNam, keerthanam, vishNoH smraNam, paadhasevanam, archanam, vandhanam,  dhaasyam , sakhyam, Athmanivedhanam, there is a exalted place for keerthanam  because it is the easiest and independent of other requisites.

Ramayana was in form of kirthana only as it was sung by Lava and Kusa. There are several Ramayanas like anandha ramaayana, adhyaathma ramayaana and others in all languages but the Valmiki Ramayana is the source of all. Kamba Ramayana comes next in importance as Kamban followed Valmiki closely though enhanced it by his poetical skill. But for Valmiki  the story of Rama would have acquired different dimensions, quipped TNS, like the sthalapuraaNaas related by the guides in the temples using their own imagination.

Then TNS sang the sloka ‘koojantham raamaraamethi,’ in mohanam, meaning, ‘ salutations to  the cuckoo Valmiki, who is cooing sweetly the sweet name  “rama rama” ascending on the branch of poetry, and the word koojantham was sung exactly like the cooing of the cuckoo, and was ‘mohanam.’

TNS extolled the role of Narada  who not only  transformed Valmiki  into a sage but also sowed the seeds of Ramayana by telling him about Rama in answer to his question. TNS said that the character of Narada is always wrongly portrayed in the plays and films as kalahapriya whereas he always stays near the Lord through his namasankeerthanam because the Lord said that he will be present wherever His devotees are singing His name and glory. ‘madhbhakthaa yathra gaayanthi thatra thishTaami.’  Narada presents himself whenever and wherever there is a need for enlightenment. Here also as soon as the question about the perfect human being arose in the mind of Valmiki, which was due to the will of the Lord , as a precursor to the birth of the epic Ramayana, Narada appeared also by the will of the Lord to answer his question and described Rama to him as the one endowed with all good qualities , a man of perfection.

The Ramayana starts with Valmiki questioning Narada, with the sloka ‘thapasvaaDhyaaya niratham,’ which is really the mangalasloka , said TNS, because as it is customary to start a grantha with some auspicious word like Sree, the word thapas here denotes auspiciousness as it is the Sree or Sreyas of the sages. It is also the first syllable of Gayatri mantra, the 24000 slokas representing the 24 syllables of gayatri , the slokas beginning with each syllable are made into gayatriramayana.

TNS then explaining the question of Valmiki said that the reason he mentioned all those qualities was that the qualities such as guna and veerya, virtue and valour, righteousness and generosity, knowledge and skill etc. are not always found together.

Valmiki had obtained guru anugraha first which secured him the devaanugraha later by which Brahma came and commanded him to compose Ramayana. TNS briefly narrated the incident of the krouncha birds and explained how the sloka   ‘,maanishaadha prathishTaam thvam agamaH  saasvatheeH samaaH, yath krounch miThunaadhekam avaDheeH kaamamohitham, uttered as a curse of the hunter, nishaadha, who killed one of the loving pair of birds, that he will never get peace, ‘maa prathishTaam agamah,’ turned out to be a mangalasaasana for the Lord for killing one of the pair, meaning Ravana and Mandodari, the one who was obsessed with lust, maa nishaadha being construed as the abode of Lakshmi , that is Narayana.(maa=lakshmi, nishaadha =abode)

TNS sang the sloka in subapanthuvarali, making the letters ‘ma ni sha dha ‘ as svatakshara. The Soka of Valmiki has turned into a sloka and TNS said that the reason he sang that in the raga subapanthuvarali is not to denote the Soka but to show that it is the raga used to portray auspiciousness as the sloka turned out to be the mangalasasana . It is Subha( auspicious) panthu varaali  that is why Dikshitar composed Srisathyanarayanam in that raga, with the words ‘satyajnaanaanandamayam sarvam vishnumayam.’ 

The definition of music and kavya  is given in Ramayana in three slokas(VR-BK-ch.4-sl.8,9and10) which TNS explained in detail saying that this is the forerunner  of all the music that came later on.  The next two slokas describe Lava and Kusa who were skilled in singing, and playing the veena.  And they were the spit image of Rama. TNS explained here the manner of singing with the sound emanating from nabhi,hrth and kanta  and the playing of the veena like vocal singing.

Starting the story of Ramayana, TNS mentioned about the grief of Dasaratha on being childless and said that he wanted a son not for selfish reasons but  because he wanted a heir who will take care of his subjects like his own children as he himself had done so long. TNS sang the krthi of Arunachala kavi, ‘pilaai illaa bhaagyam petrirundhenna,’ in dvijavanthi, mentioning how the north Indian ragas were used in Ramanataka by Arunachalakavi.

While Dasaratha was advised to do the yaga for getting progeny, the Lord was seeking  a father for Himself, TNS said, He was looking with His widened eyes like lotuses, padmapalaaSaakhaH, and decided to have DasaraTha as his father after dividing Himself into four.

thathaH padmapalaasaakshaH krthvaathmaanam chathurviDham

Pitharam rochayaamaasa thadhaa dasaraTham nrpam

At that time the planets, .said TNS, went of their own accord and occupied their destined places by the will of the Lord. TNS astounded the rasikas with his knowledge of astrology while explaining the effects of the five planets in exalted position and the aspect  of guru etc. and sang the Ramanatakakrthi ‘parabrahma svarupame’ in panthuvarali. .

Then the birth of Rama and others were explained quoting Kamban(of course TNS sang the verse in part) who describes the  Rama as ‘anjanakkarumugil kozundhu ezil kaattum jothi,’ as looking like a dark cloud beautiful and lustrous. TNS explained  why Kamban  said ‘thiru ura ppayandhanaL thiramkoL kosalai,’ calling Kousalya as thiRamkoL kosalai., meaning she was skilful or powerful. It is because , said TNS, she gave birth to the one who had all the worlds in His stomach., which fact is indicated by the words of Kamban, referring Rama as ‘orupagal ulagu ellaam udharatthuL podhindhu----avanai.’ This same idea is reflected in Thyagarjakrthi , brovabharamaa, in bahudari, said TNS, singing the line ‘srivaasudeva andakotla kukshineeunchukoledhaa,’ asking Rama , is it great burden for Him to protect as he had protected all this world by keeping it  inside Him.

TNS . concluded the day’s programme with referring to the happiness of Bhoomidevi on the birth of Rama because she was going to feel his feet all over her when he would walk in the forest. Probably this reminded him of the other one who purified the earth by walking on it, that is Krishna . TNS  referred to the phrase ‘thooya peruneer yamunai,’ from Thiruppavai and said Andal called Yamuna as  thooyaperuneer  because the river was not afraid of Kamsa who was near, and after rising up and touching the feet of Krishna when Vasudeva carried him across to Gokula, parted and made way for him, as compared with Godavari who never disclosed the fact that Ravana carried Seetha off when asked by Rama  out of fear even though Ravana was far off.

The glory of Ramayana was that it was sung in front of Rama himself as the glory of Mahabharatha  consists in the  narration of Vishnu sahasranama by Bhishma in front of   Krishna.

Part 2

After the birth of Rama and others, Valmiki  straight away proceeded to the narration of Dasaratha pondering over the marriage of his sons after a brief mention of the skill of the princes in learning the sastras etc. and of Rama serving his father as a son should, pthrSurooshaa. Then , said TNS, Visvamithra came as the aspect of the planet Guru  needed for the successful marriage. TNS vividly described the effect of the words on Dasaratha   who swooned and when he came back to consciousness perhaps hoping that the sage would have gone he saw Visvamithra there and pleaded with him that his son Rama was very young , not even sixteen years of age. TNS sang the sloka  in sahana , expressing all the anguish of Dasaratha by the raga, as a contrast to the earlier one in which Visvamithra asked for Rama which he sang in subaapanthuvarali, may be to denote that only shubham is going to happen to Rama  through Visvamithra. Dasaratha referred to Rama as ‘raamam raajeevalochanam,’ one of lotus eyed, implying that he is still a young boy who would sleep as the lotus closes at the sunset, while the rakshasas will come only in the night and hence he would not be able to fight with them.

Visvamithra even at the outset said ‘aham  vedmi mahaathmaanam raamam sathya paraakramam ,’(VR-BK-19-14) to Dasaratha, and TNS explained this here, singing the sloka in fitting raga Atana, saying that the words  meant that Dasaratha could not understand Rama, his own son because he was blind with attachment considering Rama as his son whereas the sage knew him as the Lord Himself. The king had not conquered his indriyas and was overwhelmed with affection for Rama while the sage had conquered the senses. Visamithra possessed divine insight while Dasaratha could perceive  everything only with his mortal eyes. He was in simhasana as a king whereas Visvamithra was used to darbhasana, the exalted position  as a brahmarshi.

Visvamithra paid tribute to Vasishta at the outset itself when Dasaratha promised him to do his bidding, by addressing Dasaratha  as vaSishtavyapadesin, meaning that being the disciple of Vasishta  how else would he speak,. Now again Visavmitra paid tribute to Vasishta saying that not only himself but even Vasishta and the sages assembled there and elsewhere knew the glory of Rama. ‘VaSishto api  mahaathejaaH ye cha ime thapasi sThithaah.’(BK-19-14)

On seeing Visvamithra enraged by the words of Dasaratha that he would not send Rama with him, Vasishta intervened and said it is for the welfare of Rama Visvamitra was asking him though he himself could have destroyed the demons  with no effort and he will take care of Rama whom no one will be able to harm like the nectar protected by fire and advised Dasratha not to swerve from his promise and Dasaratha agreed to send Rama and Lakshmana with Visvamithra. TNS explained all this in his own inimitable style and proceeded to describe the experience Visvamithra in enjoying the presence of Rama with him.

Visvamithra called Rama by his name in order to give them  manthropadesa, ‘ramethi mahuraam vaaNeem,’ savouring the sweet name ‘raama.’ Here TNS quoted Kamban, who says that Vasishta  gave the name Rama to the one who hurried to save the elephant Gajendhra,  and made a brief reference to the story of Gajendhra , saying that the crocodile must have grasped the foot of Gajendra because he was a great devotee, bhaagavathotthama in order to be freed from his curse. The reason of the reference of Kamban to  this episode on naming Rama was that Rama  went to the devotees to grace them as he did when Gajendra called. This  secret was known to Thyagaraja also , said TNS, singing the line from ‘raminchuvaarevaruraa,’ where Thyagaraja says the secret connected with the verb ‘ram,’ and  the bliss contained in the word ’rama,’ will not be had even for the best of the devas. ‘ramyanesumarmamu raamayane Sarmamu lasath amaravarulakappeno.

TNS remarked that Visavamithra had committed a great sin in tormenting Harischandra in order to make him utter a lie and he may have wanted to atone for his sin of separating Harischandra from his wife by effecting the union of the Lord with Thayar and also by causing the redemption of Ahalya through Rama, which enhanced the quality of  his anugraha  which extended even to the wrongdoers.

Not only Visvamithra enjoyed  having Rama with him by calling him by name which itself was giving him joy but he also derived joy by enjoying Rama sleeping and in waking him up. It is always a joy to see the sleeping form of the Lord. Visvamithra , said TNS must have enjoyed seeing Rama sleeping during the whole night. He wakes up Rama in the morning with the words ‘Kousalya suprajaa rama—‘ the sloka that has become the traditional suprabhatham in all the temples now. Visvamithra addressed him as kaousalya supraja and not as ‘dasaratha  sutha’ etc. This was because he was expressing his gratitude to Kousalya, said TNS,  who did not prevent Rama from coming with him in which case Rama being young may not have disobeyed his mother.

Then  in Thataka episode , TNS  quoted Kamban who says that the arrow Rama flung at Thataka  went through her like the advice given to the wicked fools, which goes in one ear and comes out of the other.

TNS briefly explained the Ahalya episode pointing out the difference in Kamban from Valmiki, according to whom Ahalya sinned knowingly. Kamban on the other hand, may be in order not to portray womanhood contrary to the Tamil tradition, calls her ‘nenjinaal pizaippu ilaaL, ’  not guilty of mind. Then TNS sang the lines ‘kaivanNNam angukanDEn kaal  vaNNam ingu kanDEn in PanthuvaraLi, and said the feet of Rama was capable of purifying even a sinner and said that Thyagaraja refers to this episode in his krthi ‘Sreeraamapaadhamaa,’where he says it is enough to have the grace of the feet of Rama which redeemed Ahalya.

Then the princes  reached Mithila with Visvamithra and were welcomed by Janaka. The sloka in which Janaka enquired about the princes was sung by TNS  in which Janaka describes them as having the gait of elephant, lion, bull and tiger .’gajasimhagathou veerou Saardhoolavrshabhopamou.’

TNS explained the significance of the different gaits ascribed to the Lord. The elephant can kill with its trunk  but at the same time can lower itself and allow even children to ascend its back. Similarly the Lord lifts the devotees up when they bow down at his feet, which is why Kamban refers to Rama as the two handed elephant, ‘irukaivezam, ’ one that kills the enemies ,other lifting up his devotees. TNS also said that the elephant signifies the attitude of a devotee as it sprinkles the mud on its head after bathing because the dust of the earth on which the devotees of the Lord had walked is sacred. The gait of the lion refers to Nrsimha and that of tiger reminds one of the prowess of Rama in janasThaana when he destroyed the army of  Khara and DhooshaNa  single handed. The gait of vrshabha may mean the doubt of the onlooker whether He is Lord Siva himself. Janaka  wondered  whether they have come to bring fame to him and to his clan thus expressing perhaps the wish that Rama may become his son in law.

Viisvamithra replied to Janaka  disclosing their identity and told him that they have come their to see his bow .’dhrashtukaamo dhanusSreshTam.’ Valmiki describes Visavamithra as vaakyaviSaaradhaH, said TNS, one who is skilled in speech. Here TNS said no discourse on Valmiki will be complete without referring to Kamban because Kamban not only provides exact translation of Valmiki at times but also a commentary on Valmiki. Here also when Visavamithra  told Janaka about the  princes Kamban as though to alleviate the fear in the mind if Janaka  hearing that they are the sons of Dasaratha, that whether Rama will also have many wives like his father, says, ‘pudhalvar  enRu payaredhaan, marai odhuvutthu vaLartthaanum vasittan,’ meaning that Dasaratha was their .only in name but Vasishta was the one who taught them and brought them up. For the adjective of the princes given by Visvamithra , ‘dhanurvedha viseshajnou,’, skilled in archery  Kamban gives a commentary, ‘thaatakai than uram uruvi,malai uruvi, maram uruvi maNN uruvittru oru vaaLi,’ meaning  Rama flung only one arrow at at Thataka which went through her chest, through a mountain, through the tree and pierced the ground.

TNS sang the krthi of Arunachalakavi, ‘ivanai nee yaaro enReNnaamal ,’ in sankarabharana  fully, which comprises of the reply of the sage to Janaka.

TNS then extolled the glory of Seetha, saying that only in Ramavathara  for the first time Thayar appeared along with Perumaal, because of the contingency tat he could not show his divinity as a human being and she wanted to supply the shakthi for him  unlike all the other incarnations where she came only after the purpose of the avathara  was fulfilled. In this avathara Seetha helped the purpose and hence seetha  kalyaana is very important and could not be hurried, this being the third day of the harikatha, two more remaining! But to do the harikatha on the whole of Valmiki Ramayana in five days is next to impossible  and hence TNS had to hurry through the rest of the story in two days mentioning only the important events as much as it was within his time limit. Thayar personifies the mercy of the Lord without whom he will be merciless, said TNS, as Parasara bhattar remarked on seeing Ranganatha donning the costume of Thayar, during the utsava,  that he looked the spitting image of  Thayar except for the absence of mercy in His eyes. Seetha showed mercy even to Kakasura, which episode comes later in the epic. Seethaa was even greater than Rama in as much as  she was ayonija, manifested herself from the ground  while Rama was born to Kousalya. In vaishnava tradition tracing the guruparampara right to the Perumaal, Thayar stands before Him in the line.

In Valmiki Ramayana Seetha and Rama see each other only on the day of marriage unlike Kambaramayana. The breaking of the bow comes next in Valmiki. Visvamithra said, ‘vatsaRama DhanuH paSya,’ “Rama, dear boy, see the bow.” But Rama understood the intention of his guru and took the bow and trying to string it broke it. This sentence ‘vatsa raama dhanuH paSya has been explained elaborately by the commentators said TNS. It was a caution to Lakshmana that only Rama is to do the stringing of the bow. Calling him vatsa  was to remind him that he was appearing as a boy and should act like one and not show his divinity, as he did in Vamanavathara when appearing like a boy he grew into Thrivikrama.

TNS  sang the Thyagaraja krthi ‘alakalellalaadakani,’ in which Thyagaraja exclaims whether the sage Visvamithra attained joy on seeing the curly forelocks of Rama moving beautifully at the time of his killing Subahu or when he took the hint of his guru and strung the bow, Rama being described as sadhaika priyadarSanaH, always a joy to the eyes, whatever he is doing Here TNS referred to Kamban saying that Rama and Lakshmana protected the yaga of Visvamithra.. Rama and Lakshmana  protected the yaga , like the eyelids protecting the eyes, said TNS., quoting Kamban,  explaining the significance of the expression ‘kaNninai kaakkinRa imaiyinai kkaatthanar.’ He said that it is only the upper eyelid that moves while the lower stays in its place. Similarly it was Lakshmana who was moving around while Rama stayed in one place with his bow strung ready to face the rakshasas. Thyagaraja reflects this idea ,said TNS, in his panthuvarali krthi ‘apparamabhakthi,’ that the ramabhakthi will protect the devotees like the eyelids protecting the eye..

Valmiki says that Rama grasped the bow in the middle with ease. ‘leelayaa sa dhanurmadhye jagraaha, which is expressed beautifully by Kamban, said TNS, that he took it as the garland to put on Seetha, ‘Edu aviz maalai idhu enna edutthaan.’ Valmiki saying that the bow broke as soon as Rama took it, is explained by Kamban, edutthadhu kandaar ittradhu kEttaar,’ All saw him take the bow and heard it break, both happening simultaneously.

The day of the marriage dawned and the first visitor to the marriage, says Kamban. TNS sang the krthi ‘kalayanaraamaa,’ in hamsanadham. TNS explained the reaction of the people of Mithila on seeing Rama and sang the verse from Kamban, ‘dhayaradhan pudhalvan enbaar,’ beautifully in hamsanandi, in which people were seen talking that Rama was  the son of Dasaratha, nay, he was divine being etc. and some saying that Seetha should have thousand eyes to see Rama while others said that even Rama needs that to see Seetha. TNS also sang several pieces from Thyagaraja where he describes the beauty of Rama.

Then TNS described the marriage singing the pallavi and anupallavi of the krthi in natakurinji,  ‘kolamkaaNa vaareer.’ And the slokas ‘iyam seethaa mamasuthaa ,’ and pathivrathaa mahaabhaaga,’ from Valmiki , all in natakurinji. Valmiki says , ‘abraveeth janako raja  kousalyaanandhavardhanam,’ and TNS explained that the word  denotes that while he was born to Kousalya Seetha was ayonija. The word ‘mama suthaa,’ “my daughter” is similar to the expression ‘periazvarapettreduttha peNpillai,’ to denote Andal who also appeared under the tulasi bush.

Then TNS sang the verses from Kamban describing Rama and Seetha who looked like the union of yogam and bogam in kurinji followed by the Thyagaraja krthi ‘seethaakalyaana  vaibhogame.’ He said that it is a rare combination of yoga and boga which normally are not found together. Seetha, being Lakshmi  represents bhoga while Rama is the yoga, grace of the Lord.  TNS said to get the bhoga in the form of bhagavatbhakthi, we need yoga of the grace of the Lord.he sang the pasuram ‘thuppudaiyaarai adaivaddhellaam,’ in shanmukhapriya and explained the meaning. Periazvar says  “The purpose of resorting to the powerful being is to get their support when in trouble. I came to You, even though I am not deserving, because You protected even an elephant. I will not think of You when I am suffering. So I am telling You now itself , Oh Ranganatha.”

To illustrate that yoga and bhoga are not always together TNS gave a mouth watering description of food, which he said  could not be enjoyed when one is able to get it due to doctor’s orders  and when good health one may not get it.

Commenting on the Thyagarajakrthi ‘seethakalayanavaibhogame,’ TNS said Thyagaraja felt that Anjaneya was left out in the marriage of Rama and Seetha and brought him also in the line ‘pavanajasthuthipathra,’ pavanaja meaning Hanuman, the son of vayu. In the last line Thyagaraja included Siva also (parmesanuthageetha) whose amsa was Anjaneya.

TNS said that there is evidence that Thyagaraja must have read Valmiki and Kamban as there are references in his krthis of incidents in both, such as Seeetha seeing Rama,(kankanaruchira). He in his panthuvarali krthi sang the sopana after the marriage of Rama and hints at  the next event namely the advent of Parasurama in the krthi. Saying this, TNS sang the krthi which is a mangalasasana by Thyagaraja . Then he concluded the discourse of the day with the harati by Thyagaraja, ‘pathiki mangala hartheere’ in arabhi.

Part3

While describing the marriage of Seetha TNS mentioned that Thyagaraja has described the upacharas to be done to the Lord in his krthi ‘mithribhaagyamu’ in karaharpriya and explained the meaning demonstrating how a raga should be sung to the delight of the rasikas.

Visvamithra comes only in Balakanda  and was seen present for only 29days but  his role was very big as he laid the foundation for the avathara karya by uniting Seetha with Rama and gave Rama all the asthras. Next comes Parasurama . Briefly describing the episode TNS sang a few lines from Ramanataka in which there is a enjoyable conversation between the two Ramas, such as Parasurama  saying that Rama killed a woman to which Rama replied that Parasurama killed his own mother etc. TNS said that the purpose of Parasurama avathrara is for Rama, while being young and also would not be in a position to do any penance due to the fast moving events in his life, to acquire the power of penance done in the earlier incarnation as Parasurama.

Valmiki  never felt contented to describe the virtues of Rama, said TNS, and even in describing how Rama lived in Ayodhya after his marriage he lavishes praise on Rama saying that he always remembers and praises even a single good done to him by others while forgets  even hundreds of harm by others. ‘kaTham chith upakaareNa krthena ekena thushyathi;na smarathi apakaaraaNaam satham api.’ TNS sang the sloka  ‘buddhimaan maDhuraabhaashee  poorvabhaashee  priyan mvadhah,’ in shanmukhapriya and explained dhow important it is to be not only sweet speaking, maDhuraabhaashee but also poorvebhaashee, to take the initiative to speak first. One is not good without the other. Thyagaraja exclaims about the manner of speech of Rama to all in his krthi ‘emani maatladithivo,’ in thodi, said TNS singing the krthi. Rama , he said , knew how to speak to each one, to near and dear ones, friends, women, kings etc.

When  Dasratha informed his courtiers and ministers about his decision to crown Rama, they expressed their joy as one man which made Dasarata exclaim that whether they were not satisfied with his reign , not because he had a doubt, said TNS, but because he wanted to hear the praise of Rama. They all praised Rama , another instance of Valmiki’s encomium, and said they wanted to see Rama on the elephant under the royal umbrella his face half hidden by it, ‘Chathraavrthaananam.’

Dasaratha  called Rama and watched him walking towards his palace from the balcony and here Valmiki uses several epithets to describe Rama, such as ‘gandharvaraajaprahimaH,’ which TNS explained that it is not the likeness of the king of gandharvas in Rama which was meant but  viceversa.( gandharvaraajaH prathimaa yasya), meaning whom the king of gandharvas resembles. The adjectives dheergabaahuH, mahaasatthvaH  etc denote his beauty as well as pourusham. The gait of Rama was like that of mattha maathanga , an elephant majestic and saathvik which is beautiful to look at, as Thyagaraja describes Rama as ‘saamajavaragamana.’

In his krthi muddhumomu in raga suryakantham , Thygaraja marvels at the beauty of Rama which enchanted even the sages in dandakaranya , causing them to be born as gopis in the next incarnation of the Lord as Krishna , said TNS , singing the krthi in full and explaining the meaning.

Dasaratha  told Rama that he wanted to crown him while Bharatha was away, which shows, said TNS, that even the mind of the good  has other thoughts at times.

Then TNS sang the sloka that describes Manthara ascending the palace tower by chance, in raga kamas. Valmiki says that she was jnaathidhaasee, a relative and attendant of Kaikeyi., who came from no one knows where, yatho jaathaa. TNS beautifully described the actions of the hunchback ascending slowly the palace and seeing the festivities for the coronation of Rama and descending fast being agitated.  She woke up kaikeyi who was sleeping saying ‘utthishTa mooDe,’ “rise you fool” and told her the news, foreboding great calamity to Kaikeyi  whereupon Kaikeyi answered by the sloka , ‘raame vaa bharathee vaa ahm visesham na upalakshaye ’ which TNS sang in hamsanandi. He explained briefly how Manthara poisoned the mind of Kaikeyi using the enmity between Kekaya and Mithila as the trump card. Then said TNS, Kaikeyi could not see the  difference between arTha and anarTha. When Dasaratha came to see her and promised her anything she wanted, being distressed at her state, Kaikeyi asked the two boons putting Dasaratha  in a dilemma  to choose between marabhu, tradition and vaaimai, to be true to his word. To show how corrupt the mind of Kaikeyi had become Kamban makes her say seethai kELvan to refer to Rama, said TNS, Manthara’s words echoing perhaps in her mind.

Sumanthra sent by Kaikeyi to fetch Rama saw Rama and Seetha in private conversation, said TNS , and  as to what they would have been discussing, TNS said that they would have  been talking about dharmaparipalana only.

Kaikeyi when she informed Rama that Dasaratha wished him to go to forest, she said nava varshaaNi pancha cha, nine and five years, perhaps , said TNS, she did not have the temerity to say fourteen years. TNS then sang the verse from Kamban in which Kaikeyi conveys the command  of Dasaratha ’aazi sooz ulagamellaam bharathane aaLa ,’ in kedaragoula , and mentioned that here also she said ‘iyambinan arasan,’ meaning the king had said so,  as she referred to Rama earlier as ‘seethai kELvan.’ Rama replied in the same vein that he would not disobey even if it was her command and not the king’s, ‘mannavan paNi allaal num paNi maruppano.’

Then TNS described the scene of Rama coming to see Kousalya without any paraphernalia , as she expected from  a prince about to be crowned as portrayed by Kamban  and sang the verse, ‘kuzaikkinra kavari inRi kottraveNkudaiyum inRi, izaikkinRa vidhi mun sella dharumam pinnirandhu Enga,’  in subhapanthuvarali.

TNS brefly described Lakshmana’s anger and  Rama pacifying him and quoted the verse of Kamban, ‘nadhiyin pizai anRu’ meaning that it is not the fault of the river if it has no water an similarly the change of mind of Kaikeyi was only due to destiny, that is, the will of the Lord. Kousalya was also comforted by Rama and she gave out a mangalasasanam to Rama which TNS sang in suruti. Then he described the reaction of Seetha who found out that something was amiss on seeing Rama, who could not disguise his feelings from her. Than Seethaa insisted on going to the forest with him and remonstrated with ‘raama jaamaatharam praapya sthriyam purushavigraham, meaning that her father had secured as son in law a woman in a man’ garb as a final shaft which stimulated Rama to agree with her wish. TNS said, the Lord as a man had experienced even this which is common to mortal husbands!

Lakshmana  also accompanied Rama saying that he will do all the service to Rama, ‘aham sarvam karishyaami.’ When they started for the forest seeing Seetha trying to put on the bark garment Sumanthra burst out at Kaikeyi saying ‘like mother like daughter” because her mother tried to persuade her father  to reveal what the ants there were talking in spite  of his plea that his head will break into pieces if he did that.

TNS briefly described how, according to Kamban,  even the nature and all including the baby in the womb cried at Rama leaving for the forest and narrated how Rama went to the place of Guha, who prayed to him to stay there itself for fourteen years and sang the Ramanataka krthi ‘ingeyeirungaaNum, ‘ in kalyani.  Rama accepting him as his brother, according to Kamban , went to the hermitage of Baradvaja and proceeded to chithrakoota.

TNS then described in detail how Dasaratha died of grief on learning that Rama had gone in to the forest from Sumanthra, who told him the life of Rama in the forest and the words the three of them have sent through Sumanthra, including the anger of Lakshmana.

Bharatha came back and  TNS explained how Kaikeyi revealed what happened step by step to Bharatha who flared up in anger at his mother and went to fetch Rama back, all this was explained briefly. Bharatha met Rama  who asked him in detail how he discharged his duties towards the kingdom and parents and TNS explained the whole sarga, comprising of the code of conduct for kings enunciated by Rama by way of questioning Bharatha, which is why the sarga is known as kaschith sarga,.

TNS then describing Bharatha ‘s request and the dilemma of Vasishta , who knew dharma and Rama but at the same time was compelled to comply with the request of Bharatha to ask Rama to return, sang the verse from Kamban ‘vimminan bharathanum’ in  raga Lalitha , in which Bharatha asks ‘semmaiyinthiruvaditthalam thandheega.’

Then TNS briefly narrated the episode of Viratha , who took Seetha first, because to be freed from his curse he needed the grace of the Lord which can be secured only by resorting to the divine mother first. Even Rama  needed her glance to break the sivadhanus , said TNS which is why Kamban has written the episode of  Seetha and Rama seeing each other. Ravana  separated the two and hence met his end.

After a brief mention of the meeting of Rama  with Sarabanga and Agasthya,  TNS narrated their stay in panchavati and Surpanakha episode and the battle with Khara and DhushaNa whom with all their army Rama killed single handed disproving the statement of Seetha ‘sthriyam purushavigraham,’ said TNS, because Seetha embraced Rama and shed tears perhaps resenting her words.. The golden deer was not desired by Seetha actually, said TNS , as some quoting the incident say ‘vinaasa kale vipareetha buddhi,’ meaning Seetha got the idea because of the impending calamity destined for her, but it was visnaasakaala for Ravana and hence Seetha assumed that desire, vipareetha buddhi, to effect the destruction of Ravana.

Jatayu fought with Ravana seeing him carrying away Seetha and fell down wounded and waited for Rama to tell him what happened and died. The bird , said TNS, had the good fortune of being performed the last rites by Rama which Dasaratha could not get.. In Ramayana we see the divine grace being shown to all beings, man, bird and beast. TNS said that the Lord has shown that all beings are the same to Him.

Then Rama met Kabandha an killed him to release him from his curse,  who directed him to Sabari. The version that Sabari gave Rama fruits after tasting them to test whether they were ripe and sweet has no validity either in Valmiki or Kamban. The story  must have been circulated in order to prove the glory of devotion.. She attained moksha while the Lord Himself was her witness. This was the end of the fourth day discourse.

Part4

This was the fifth and final day of the Harikatha and it is remarkable that TNS, not only covered 30 to 40 slokas everyday but also sang them giving a musical treat to the rasikas. No narration was without his singng the corresponding sloka. He had to rush through the last two days obviously due to the fact it is virtually impossible to do Harikatha on Valmikiramayana in five days though he did a wonderful job of it. To savour the rich  repertoire from Valmiki, Kamban and Thyagaraja  spooned out through his wonderful music and eloquence we shall have to wait for a lengthier programme consisting of several days, Also it was wonderful to hear TNS singing the abhangs at the suitable places and in the beginning of each day’s harikatha  in the manner it should be sung traditionally..

TNS recapturing the previous episodes, said that Thyagaraja had a doubt which he expresses in his krthi ‘sandehamunu theerppavaiyaa,’ in ramapriya. He asks Rama whether His feet or His paduka is greater. He himself answers the question saying that those who worshipped His feet secures a place in vaikunta whereas to Bharatha who worshipped the paduka attained the Lord Himself. TNS said that Dasaratha and Bharatha  wished to make Rama the king  while Kaikeyi wanted to crown Bharatha. All were in vain because it was the paduka which ruled the kingdom for fourteen years. Here TNS said that once the shankha and charka of the Lord made fun of Paduka and the Lord promised to the grieving Paduka that it will be in an exalted position one day and it came true in ramavathara where Bharatha and Sathrugna who were the amsas of shankha and chakra became the servants of the Paduka which was placed on the throne.

Next the meeting of Rama with Hanuman was described. Rama  extolled Hanuman judging him  from his manner of speaking. His delivery diction and voice all showed him to be learned in Vedas Rama called Hanuman ‘ sollin selvan’  in Kambaramayana, and wondered whether he was Siva or Brahma, said TNS, but not mentioned Vishnu, which is significant that Rama was only playing the part and had not become a human. TNS explained the epithet ‘sollin selvan,’ as meaning that Hanuma will be present wherever the’ in sol’ sweet wi ord Rama is uttered and ‘selvan’ means that he is rich in the wealth of ramanama sankeerthanam and will go, ‘selvan,’  where the name Ram is uttered.

Thyagaraja   chides Rama that he did not speak to Hanuman, though he must have known that Hanuman was going to be the greatest bhaktha and servant and also that he was the amsa of Siva, but made Lakshmana speak to him, in his krthi in charukesi, ‘aadamodigaladhe,’ and TNS sang the krthi as it should be sung with bhava and not as a mere concert piece.

TNS mentioned how Sugreeva wanted to test the prowess of Rama to see whether he was capable of killing Vali and said that even though He was the Lord Himself, Rama could not escape experiencing the result of his action. He tested a poor Brahmin when he gave away all his possessions before going to forest by asking him to fling his staff among the herds of cows as far as he could and saying that he will give the brahmin as many cows as were covered by the distance where the staff lands. As a result of the action Rama here was tested by a monkey. Similarly Sugreeva did bhaagavathaapachaara by not offering seat to Lakshmana who was seated n only by Hanuman. For this he had to take severe beating by Vali and Rama made Lakshmana put a garland on him to atone for the wrong committed by him earlier.

Then TNS briefly mentioned the valivadha and the monkeys reaching the sea shore and sang the sloka ‘goshpadheekrtha vaaraasim’ in praise of hanuman in  charukesi. He said he chose the raga to sing about Hanumaan  because it has sankarabharanam in its poorvanga, first half and hanumatthodi in uttaraanga, second half. So first half refers to Shankara whose amsa hanuman was and the second refers to Hanuman himself. This comment drew the applause from the audience. TNS sang the other slokas on hanuman also in charukesi.

TNS extolled the glory of Sundarakanda and said that by reading Sundarakanda one could get the benefits of reading the whole Ramayana. Hanuman on crossing the ocean displayed the vamana and narasimha avathara of the Lord, said TNS. In making himself small and entering the mouth of Surasa he resembled vamana while increasing his size on crossing the ocean he resembled Thrivikrama. In entering the mouth of Simhika the demon and tearing her and emerging out he enacted the narasimhavathara.

TNS then described the search of Hanuman all over lanka and getting desperate in not finding her, he suddenly remembered that he did not pray to Rama and Seetha . TNS sang the sloka ‘namosthu raamaaya salakshmaNaaya namosthu dhevyai janakaathmajaayai,’ said that Hanuman refereed to Seetha as Janakathmaja implying that she should appear to him as she did to Janaka from under the earth, 

Then TNS described the  effect on Hanuman when he saw Seetha under the asoka tree vividly and with feeling. Then Ravana came and spoke to Seetha and TNS said anyone reading that chapter could not help feeling the trial the divine mother was undergoing and tears of anger at the blasphemous words of Ravana.  Seetha replied putting a blade of grass in front. This was beautifully explained by TNS.

1. Since Ravana was a king she put a throne in front showing that she would never forget the protocol to be observed towards vistors.
2. To indicate that he was only equal to a blade of grass as far as she is concerned.
3. To show that compared to Rama his prowess, wealth and glory are equal to a blade of grass
4. Since he behaved like an animal he deserves only grass as his food.
5. To remind him  of the plight of Sukra when he tried to stop Mahabali  when the Lord pricked the eye of Sukra who  blocked the nozzle of waterpot, with durbagrass.

The word ‘Suchismithaa,’ used by Valmiki means that Seetha was capable of  destroying Ravana with her laughter and as the sloka  on Hanuman ‘ullanghya sinDhoh ----‘ makes out that Hanuman took the fire of the  grief of Seetha, Sokavahni,  and burnt Lanka, the Soka of Seetha was enough to destroy Ravana. Seetha herself tells Ravana that she could do so but did not, because she could not act without the orders from Rama and also it would be a blemish for his prowess,’villukku maaSu,’ as Kamban puts it.

TNS then gave an amusing description of rakshasis as portrayed by Valmiki  and said Hanuman is the only character which all the devotee-saints would opt if they were to play a role in Ramayana.  Hanuman possessed of wisdom, valour, discrimination courage and above all love for others. Hanuman, after Ravana went away, thought about the proper way of presenting himself, said TNS, and started chanting ramanama. Saying thus he himself chanted ramanama for few minutes creating a proper atmosphere for the events to follow.

Hanuman narrated the events in the life of Rama and Seetha, said TNS,  as a beautiful story in the form of Sanskrit prevalent in Ayodhya to instill confidence in Seetha, lest she may suspect him to be either Ravana or some one sent by him. TNS also remarked that it was Hanuman who was the first one to narrate Ramayana within the epic, the manner of his speech proving that he was indeed a ‘sollin selvan.’

Here TNS said that Hanuman realized only on seeing Seetha how much Rama was grieving for her because being used to the behaviour  of Vali and Sugreeva who thought nothing about appropriating each  other’s wives  he could not understand the feelings of Rama earlier but now he wondered how Rama managed to survive without Seetha.

Then TNS described how Seetha took the ring from his hand , as Hanuman offered it with his hands, saying ‘paSya devi anguleeyakam,’ and did not give it so that her hand would have been lower, as it is the propriety when offering  something to great and revered.

Sita related the kakasuravrtthaantha , the story of kakasura, to Hanuman as a sign that he has seen her giving her choodamani as well to give it to Rama. Describing the kakasura episode TNS said that he got reprieve only due the mercy of Seetha because he fell down before the feet of Rama and she only placed him  near the feet of Rama. Such was the mercy of the divine mother who even forgave the rakshasis. TNS remarked that the crow cries kaa ka meaning She, kaa, was more merciful and even he, Rama, kaH, was merciful etc.

TNS briefly describing the exploits of Hanuman in asokavana and his being led to the presence of Ravana and his advice to Ravana. TNS said that it was fitting that Hanuman  gave the advice because he was the amsa of Siva who alone could advise Ravana. TNS described how Ravana  reacted and Vibheeshana’s intervention and Hanuman burning Lanka and returning to Rama saying, ‘dhrshtaa seethaa,’ TNS said that Hanuman could get the full grace of Rama only after he got the blessing from Seetha. Starting from Rama himself, who was able to fuflfil his avatharakaarya  after uniting with her, Viraatha and Mareecha attained mukthi because they approached Seetha first. Sugreeva got back his kingdom because he received the lakshmikataaksha when Seetha saw him on Rsyamuka mountain and threw her jewels. Even Vibheeshana must have been pointed out by his daughter to Seetha in asokavana when he  to travelled in the sky .to Rama.

Vibheeshanasarangathi was mentioned by TNS and when he informed Sugreeva and others that he has come to surrender to Rama, Sugreeva objected saying that how could Rama trust the one who abandoned his brother and TNS remarked that Sugreeva  forgot who he was because it is not fit for him to say those words while he himself was no better.

TNS referred to the sloka in which Rama says even if it were Ravaan himself he would not say no if any one surrenders to him naarrating the story of the to pigeons, the female  being  caught by a hunter who took shelter under the tree on which the male was sitting. Seeing him shiver with cold the female bird asked its mate to make a fire for him because he was a guest to their abode and seeing him suffer with hunger the male fell into the fire  for him to have food. Saying thus Rama said that when even a bird behaved so how could a human being be less merciful. Vibeeshana did not desire for the kingdom and asked Rama only the bhakthi samrajya he had given to  Bharata as Kamban puts it, ‘iLaiyavarkku kavitthamouli.’ Rama gave him the kngdom of Lanka and to the doubt that if Ravana realizes his fault and sureenders what Rama would have done, TNS said that Thyagaraja had the answer in his krthi ‘sarasasamadhana’ in kapinarayani where he says ‘sathamugaanayodhya niche nantivi’ he promised the Ayodhya to Ravana when he sent messengers to him, because Ayodhya was his whereas Lanka was given to Vibheeshana already. This is why Kamban at this juncture calls him ‘kosalanaadudaiya vaLLal.’ But Ravana never realized who Rama was till the end, and finally was killed by Rama. The arrow of Rama pierced the heart of Ravana and expelled his desire for Seetha when only he got wise that Rama was none other that the primal cause.

TNS said though Rama was merciful and told Ravana to return the next day, seeing him divested of his armour and weapons, he was enraged when he saw Ravana hitting Hanuman to show that the Lord will even forgive a harm done to Him but not when His devotees are attacked. TNS explained why Rama and Lakshmana seemed to be under the spell of nagasthra by Indrajit earlier , the former being the Lord who rests on the bed of serpent while the other is the serpent himself. It was , said TNS to give a role to Garuda in the Raamayana, who came and drove away all the serpents of the nagastra. At this juncture TNS looked at his watch and sang ‘inithaamadham seyyalaagaadhu,’; and stopped his harikatha to allow the rasikas to come on stage and honour him and afterwards quickly performed the coronation of Rama.

In the end he offered his obeisance to his guru who prophesied that he will one day become a harikatha exponent on hearing him speak and it is his blessing and wish that TNS should fill the gap after Muthiah bhagavathar, who was a musician cum harikatha exponent, since there was none among his forty and more disciples to take up harikatha, that he was able to become a harikatha exponent  in such a short time because he started his first harikatha in 2003.

That was the end of the five day session of  Valmiki Ramayana by TNS. What have been written here is neither a complete picture nor a reproduction of his eloquence , knowledge on the subject nor of his excellent music appropriate to the bhava of the context. My write up is an effort to cross the ocean in a raft as Kalidasa puts it in Raghuvamsa.