Whenever one is feeling down or sorrowful, wise men say reading of the Ramayana will uplift such a person. Every character in the epic will show all of us the way forward in spiritual and material life and provide relief from sorrow, said Damal S Ramakrishnan in a discourse.
The Ramayana is a practical guide on various premises, including on how a son should conduct himself, upbringing of children by parents, the equation between a guru and sishya, the connection between a ruler and his subjects and the understanding between a husband and wife. Above all, it showcases sibling bonding.
Rama is a stellar example of the ideal brother, right from birth, to Lakshmana, Bharata and Shatrugna. Lakshmana, who would not stop crying in his cradle until he was placed in the same crib as his older brother, was inseparable from Rama. When sage Viswamitra summoned the bala Rama to his yagna, Rama took Lakshmana along, who stood by his brother. Bharata, likewise looked up to his two older brothers. When he was summoned to Ayodhya after Rama’s banishment — an event he knew nothing about — Bharata went to the palace of Rama in order to ascertain what had unfolded in his absence. Upon learning of his banishment, and his own impending elevation as ruler, Bharata refused the realm forthwith. He immediately donned the attire of an ascetic and set out to bring Rama, the lawful heir, back to Ayodhya. Shatrugna, who looked up to his sibling Bharata, likewise followed suit. Kausalya. who wanted another glimpse of Rama, also joined the growing ranks of people determined to go to the forest. Guha, the boatman who Rama embraced as his own sibling, was initially suspicious of Bharata’s motive; however, upon coming face to face with him, he too became aware of Bharata’s nobility.
