Goswami Tulsidas's Ramcharit Manas Explained as Ramcharit Charcha Sundar Kand

Email

Whatsapp

Facebook

Pinterest

Twitter

Copy link

Ram Katha as we know it today formed first in the heart and mind of Lord Shiv who then told it to Parvati. Kakbhusundi, the saint in the form of a crow, came to overhear too by the grace of Lord Shiva. Rishi Yagyavalkya listened to the same from Kakbhusundi and told it to Muni Bhardwaj at Prayag, the holy junction of divine rivers Ganges and Yamuna. Goswami Tulsidas retells the same to us in his book of epic proportions called Ramcharit Manas also popularly known as Ramayana. This Katha is immense in scope and carries innumerable hidden messages and every one retelling Ram Katha discovers and presents some of them to his audience. Ramcharit Charcha is an attempt to decode, interpret and explain Goswami's Ramcharit Manas.

Going at a comfortable pace, the author took seven years in the process of presenting it to you beginning on 8th November 2012 and ending it on 13th April 2019, Ram Navami, the birthday of Shri Ram. Whenever you listen to Ram Katha from the pundits every time something extra is revealed as it covers the essence of Indian scriptures. The Indians at large are greatly influenced by Ram Katha and it reflects in relations between the members of the family, social customs and religious practices. This is also a poetic masterpiece of Hindi literature.

Krishnakumar Balkrishna Khandelwal, a post-graduate in Economics, has been an avid blogger for more than 15 years. Born (1949) at Rampur, UP., he is the eldest among the two brothers and four sisters. He now lives in Ahmedabad (Gujarat), India. He has worked in diverse fields for more than 45 years and is still active as an investment consultant. He has been a regular reader of Ramcharit Manas for the last 40 years and has listened to Ram Katha from many Swamis and Gurus who routinely speak on it. Pt Ramkinkar Upadhyay, a well-known exponent of the spiritual aspects of Ramayan, was the first one whose evening discourses he attended to get enriched. Because of his interest in Ram Katha and to make the younger generation aware of the nuances in Ram Katha.

Jai Shri Ram,

There are many planes on which all the religions rest upon, in similar ways or differing ways. The religious practices are mentioned for the seekers for limited relief or satiate demand but none is meant to work for the one who is all out to find the reality or the one who is behind basic forces (the creator, the sustainer, and the destroyer). Knowing Him one becomes part of Him only. This reality remains hidden due to ignorance about it. The highest point is achieved when this veil of ignorance is removed, it is not reached by getting something afresh. The one-pointed mind without desires happens to achieve it. To keep this one-pointedness of the mind is an uphill task, so many fail while rare few succeed. The saving grace is that the ground covered is not lost and the journey ahead is commenced in the next life. The basic philosophy is the same yet told in varying ways, we have therefore the Buddhists, the Jains, the Sikhs, and many other sects and subjects who have had an underlying same principle. Here the fact also is that other popular religions have the same common thread running.

Ramcharit Manas by Goswami Tulsidas is inspired by Rambhakti and generates Rambhakti. Ram and Sita are adored as divine incarnations. Composed in the Awadhi dialect of Hindi, the Manas has acquired immense esteem and popularity throughout India. It is part of the daily devotional practice of millions of people as also public ritual ranging from simple recitation (path) and storytelling (Katha). The most popular of the epic's seven Kands or Chapters is the "Sundar Kand" which tells in sixty stanzas about the mission of Hanuman, the Monkey God, and his visit to the demonic capital of Lanka in search of Sita. Hanuman's meeting with Sita in Ashok Vatika and battles with her captors are main events in Sundar Kand. His return to Ram and the preparations for war to rescue Sita are also part of this chapter.

Sundar Kand is recited by many devotees on a daily basis, and especially on Tuesdays and Saturdays. This book covers Sundar Kand with verses of Ramcharit Manas along with its English illustration.