Mortally wounded Jatayu tells Rama who the abductor of Sita is. When Jatayu breathes his last, Rama is sorrowful. He blames Himself for what has happened. Rama laments: “This bird which had nothing to fear and lived in the forest is now dead because of me. He tried to rescue Sita and lost his life because of that. Even the loss of Sita does not disturb me as much as the loss of Jatayu. He was as worthy of respect as my father Dasaratha.” Rama then performs the last rites for Jatayu, and grants him moksha.
Usually, a question is raised here. Rama Himself says He is human. He never claims at any time that He is God. So, how can He grant moksha to anyone? This question was raised centuries ago and answered too, said Akkarakkani Srinidhi, in a discourse. Naduvil Tiruveedhi Pillai, who lived in Srirangam, was a little envious of Nampillai’s popularity as an Acharya. One day, Naduvil Thiruveedhi Pillai went to meet the king. On the way, he happened to meet a disciple of Nampillai, called Pinbazhagiya Perumal Jeer. The king asked a question to Naduvil Thiruveedhi Pillai, which left him stumped. The king wanted to know how Rama could have granted moksha to Jatayu, when He Himself had said He was human and not God. Naduvil Thiruveedhi Pillai consulted Pinbazhagiya Perumal Jeer. The latter said this question had been raised in a discourse of Nampillai, and the latter had answered it convincingly.
The answer is there in Valmiki Ramayana itself. Valmiki says ‘SatyEna lOkAn jayati’ — Rama conquered all the worlds through satya. If He conquered all the worlds, He conquered Sri Vaikuntha also. So, although Rama claimed He was human, He could send Jatayu to Sri Vaikuntha, because He had conquered it by His adherence to Truth.
