Hari Om
1. Good always prevails over Evil
In the Ramayana, Goddess Sita is manipulated and lured by evil plans of Ravana. Despite all his wicked plotting, in the end Lord Rama wins back Sita. Irrespective of his extreme wealth, strength, power and blessings from God Shiva himself, Ravana was killed by Lord Rama, for good to prevail in the society over evil. A very important moral to learn from this tale is, it doesn’t matter how mighty or maleficent the opposition is, as in the end noble values and right intentions will always be victorious and rewarded.
2. Choose relationships over material things.
It is established throughout Ramayana that where true love exists, greed, anger or treachery could never sustain. When Laxman willingly followed Rama for fourteen years and stayed by him in both good and bad, Bharata (Kaikeyi’s son) never once took upon the chance to take over the kingdom when the opportunity arose. In fact, he merely perfomed his duties during Rama’s absence and asked him to rule the kigdom that belonged to Lord Rama duly and rightfully on his return. The love they shared each other was greater than any money, property or materialistic object and that made them value their relationships over anything.
This inspiring story of Brotherly love teaches us in the modern world to forgo greed and material gain and give greater value to relationships over money or property.
3. Treasure good company
It is believed that from the very beginning Queen Kaikeyi loved Rama much more dearly than her own son Bharata. However, when Manthara, her handmaiden manipulated her and poisoned her mind about Lord Rama, the Queen became the reason for Lord Rama’s fourteen years of exile from his family and kingdom. The story reiterates the importance of being surrounded by good and positive company. It is crucial that we all maintain a beneficial circle of people who can constantly motivates us and help us be the the best version of ourselves.
4.Togetherness despite Differences (Unity in Diversity)
The divine epic celebrates the unique nature of all three wives of the King Dashratha as well as the varied nature of all four brothers. Despite all their differences, they loved each other immeasurably and when life put them through tough times, their hearts were united even when they were apart physically. The moral to be learnt from this is when one is able forgo the idea of differences and instead appreciate the fruits of togetherness, a family can smoothly sail through with ease even in the testing times.
5. True Devotion and Surrender
Throughout the epic story of Ramayana, Hanumanji, the monkey god stands as a proof of unalterable faith and love for the lord, his Prabhu. His unconditional devotion and service to the Lord is witnessed throughout the tale. It teaches everyone about the importance of loyalty and undying love. It asks us to surrender ourselves in the lotus feet of the divine without any question or doubts. By practising this attitude of surrender and gratitude towards almighty, we can expect to attain nirvana and get rid of the circle of karma.
6. Forgiveness over Revenge
When Ravana learned that Laxman has insulted his sister Supnakha, he immediately went to seek revenge and this resulted in him abducting Goddess Sita. Ravana’s abduction of Goddess Sita leads to his subsequent downfall, although he was a very knowledgeable man of many good traits. This illustartes that in the fire of revenge, we often burn our own house rather than bringing much harm to the opposition party. Ravana falls into his own trap of anger, treachery and vengeance. This teaches us that we should always maintain an attitude of forgiveness rather than giving into negative behaviour like revenge, ego and anger.
7.Love and Compassion
Lord Rama is often viewed as an epitome of love, compassion and positivity and if we human beings try to embody even 10% of Lord Rama in our daily lives, we can expect to emerge as a true human being with a happy and gratified life. His righteous and kind ways to complete any task, surrender to his duties as a son, a husband, a brother and a king. Lord Ram was ready to become the king as a service to Maharaj Dasarath and was also willing to go to the forest as a service to his father. Ramayana sums up the importance of human values and mutual love & respect.
8. True Service to God
During the testing time before Lord Rama leaves for his exile, Laxmana has a conversation with his mother Sumitra. During this conversation, she counsels him on his conduct with Rama and Sita implying that, one who serves God with their heart can experience real heaven and this is the only true path to salvation. She explains to Laxmana that it does not matter where Laxmana stays as long as he is always present with Rama and Sita because true Ayodhaya is where Lord Rama resides. She teaches Laxmana’s to serve the lord with the best of his knowledge and ability, which is the biggest deed and the real purpose of anyone’s lives.
9. Power of faith in God
The greatest demonstration of the power of God can be witnessed through the stone bridge that was formed from India to Srilanka in order for Lord Rama, Laxmana and the Vanar Sena (monkey battalion) to reach their destination. It was an act of pure faith that was able to create this bridge by merely writing the name of god on the stones, which was floated in the water. This teaches us a very crucial lesson that by taking or chanting god’s name we can get through the toughest times and emerge stronger than ever.
10.Treating everyone equally.
Lord Rama’s humble demeanour and his unwavering respect for both elders and younger ones, is an important lesson for everyone. Lord Ram ate fruits that were already tasted by Shabri, a poor old woman who had nothing much to offer but her pure unconditional love.
To be a righteous and compassionate human being, we must treat everyone equally and never discriminate anyone on the basis of status, caste, religion, sex, age etc. This principle needs to be extended to even animals and they should be treated with love and kindness.
The classic text of the Ramayana is filled with constant lessons, teachings and reminders, which allows the readers to be on the righteous path of Dharma and Karma. The devotees and followers of Rama in Ayodhya were even prepared to go with Lord Ram to forest and leave behind all the comforts (Aaram) of the City Ayodhya. In today’s day and age, we must be able to follow the teachings of Ramayana in order to overcome the challenges and ills/negatives prevalent in the society.
GF’ Blessings.
