Monday 23 May 2011

Rama's samrambha Yoga- the fruit of which was reunion with Seeta.

Samrambha Yoga is known as the path of Wrath which can be more efficacious than any other in achieving Union. This seems counter-intuitive. Surely Love, Mercy, Forgiveness, Compassion and so on are higher than Wrath and present a less risky and more socially beneficial type of Yoga or path to Union?
Let us look at a situation where Samrambha Yoga proved its worth, paving the way for the universally desired re-union of Lord Rama and Seeta Devi after the overthrow of Ravavana.
Valmiki tells us about Ram's emotional state-
Verse Locator
taamaagataamupashrutya rakShogR^ihachiroShitaam |
harSho dainyaM cha roShashcha trayaM raaghavamaavishat || 6-114-17
17. upashrutya= hearing; taam aagataam= that Seetha had arrived; rakShogR^iha chiroShitaam= after living long in the abode of a demon; raaghavam= Rama; aavishat= was filled; harShaH= with jo; roShashcha= indignation; dianyam= and felt miserable (too); trayam= all the three (at once).
'Hearing that Seetha had arrived after living long in the abode of a demon, Rama was filled with joy, indignation and felt miserable too all the three emotions at the same time.'
This mixture suggests heteronomous love- such as that of the child overwhelmed by the return of the mother whom nevertheless renewed rancour at the reminder of separation and the cruel maw of the misery of abandonment simultaneously lacerates and tears apart.

Yet Valmiki does not use the word anger as being part of that mix. Ram's wrath awakens for a different reason and he paces the path of Samrambha Yoga for a purpose wholly different.
saMrabdhashchaabravIdraamashchakShuShaa pradahanniva |
vibhIShaNaM mahaapraaGYaM sopaalambhamidaM vachaH || 6-114-25

25. raamaH= Rama; samrabdhaH cha= enraged as he was; chakShuShaa pradahanniva= with his looks as though burning; abraviit= spoke idam vachaH= the follwoing words; sopaalambham= with a reproach; mahaapraajJNam vibhiiShaNam= to the highly intelligent Vibhishana.
(The enraged Rama, consuming the demons with his looks as it were, Rama spoke the following reproaching words to the highly intelligent Vibhishana)

What provoked Rama's samrambha (anger) and caused him to reproach his virtuous client and ally?

At Rama's request, the King of the demons, Vibhishana, had brought Queen Seeta to the audience chamber. Thinking that protocol demanded the chamber be cleared of the bears and monkeys and demons who were milling about, Vibhishana and his retinue proceeded to throw them out roughly. This mistreatment of his own  people incensed Rama and set him on the path of Samrambha.
He reproved Vibhishana saying-
vyasaneShu na kR^ichchhreShu na yuddhe na svayaM vare |
na kratau no vivaahe cha darshanaM duShyate striyaH || 6-114-28
28. stiyaaH= A woman; darshanam= becoming visible; vyasaneShu= in times of a clamity; na duuShyate= is not condemned; na= nor; kR^ichchheShu= in battles; svayamvare= in self-choosing of a husband by a princess at a public assemly of suitors; na= nor; kratua= in sacrificial ceremonies; na vaa= nor; vivaahe= in marriage functions.
"A woman becoming visible to public in times of a calamity is not condemned in difficult situations, nor in battles, nor in self-choosing of a husband by a princess at a public assembly of suitors, nor in sacrificial ceremonies nor in marriage-functions."
saiShaa yuddhagataa chaiva kR^ichchhre mahati cha sthitaa |
darshane.asyaa na doShaH syaanmatsamIpe visheShataH || 6-114-29
29. saa eShaa= the yonder Seetha; vipadgataa chaiva= is in distress; sthitaa= and beset; mahati= with a great; kR^ichchhre= difficulty; naasti= there is no; doShaH= fault; ayaaH darshane= in her becoming visible in public; visheShaataH= particularly; matsamiipe= in my presence.
"The younder Seetha is in distress and beset with a great difficulty. There is no fault in her appearance in public, particularly in my presence."
visR^ijya shibikaaM tasmaatpadbhyaamevopasarpatu |
samiipe mama vaidehiiM pashyantvete vanaukasaH || 6-114-30
30. tasmaat= that is why; upasarpatu= let her come; padbhyaameva= on foot alone; utsR^ijya= leaving; shibikaam= the palanquin; vanaukasaH= let these monkeys; pashyantu= see; vaidehiim= Seetha; mama samiipe= in my presence.
"That is why, let her come on foot alone, leaving the palanquin there. Let these monkeys see Seetha in my presence."

Notice, Rama on the brink of being re-united with Seeta, did so under the condition and in the mode of 'samrambha' or wrath. This wrath arose out of mistreatment of his own people who were not considered worthy to look upon Seeta Devi- who is our very own Mother and can never be denied to us by officials with staves in their hands beating us 'stupid monkeys' during Processions of the Deity in the name of Public Order and Seemliness.
However samrambha (wrath) can not be disassociated with fear. The Samrambha Yogis- like Ravana, Putana etc- had their minds concentrated on the Lord from fear of the goodness and innocence that has power to destroy evil doers even if incarnate in our feeble and contemptible human form.
If Ram's anger is at our being excluded from the vision of Seeta Ma, this anger goes hand in hand with fear. Fear of what? 
pashyatastaaM tu raamasya samiipe hR^idayapriyaam |
janavaadabhayaadraajJNo babhuuva hR^idayaM dvidhaa || 6-115-11
11. hR^idayam= the heart; raajJNaH raamasya= of King Rama; pashyataH= as he saw; taam= Seetha (hR^idaya priyaam= the beloved of his heart); samiipe= near him; babhuuva dvidha= was torn; janavaada bhayaat= for fear of the talk of the public.
The heart of King Rama, as he saw Seetha, (the beloved of his heart) near him, was torn for fear of what people might say or how people talk.

Thus, we may conclude, there is a special beatitude attaching to a Samrambha Yoga based on wrath that common folk are being debarred from sharing in the Unqualified Good, provided that wrath is mediated by a chastening fear that the free and public discourse of those same people might, in the process, so to speak, seize upon the wrong end of the stick.

In Rama's case, not only does he get Seeta back but also his father and all the monkeys slain in the War they had fought for his sake.

One final point- Rama in his cruel remarks to Seeta suggests she choose Lakshman or Bharata or Vibhishana and live happily. This parallels his comment to Surpanakha that she may kindly take Lakshmana as a husband..

There is reciprocity between Creator and Creature, vyatihaaraha, vishinshanthi hiitaravatas Brahma Sutra (3.3.37) states, because both agree to be bound by this sort of ironic karma or universalization of individual love compacts into an imperishable, for perfectly Just, Civilization and Cosmos in which all relate to all on the basis of that same principle.









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