VIJAY TV BHAKTHI THIRUVIZHA SEASON 12, DAY 3 – DHARMAME VELLUM BY PROFESSOR ILLAMPIRAI MANIMARAN – Part 3

VIJAY TV BHAKTHI THIRUVIZHA SEASON 12, DAY 3 – DHARMAME VELLUM BY PROFESSOR ILLAMPIRAI MANIMARAN – Part 3

Another episode narrated during the discourse was about a happening during the Agnyathavaasam of the Pandavas. After 13 years of vanavasam, the Pandavas were spending a year in Agnyathavasam in hiding. The Pandavas had chosen Virada Desam for staying hidden. Yudhishtra had joined as the king’s advisor naming himself Gangubattar. Bheema became the royal cook, Arjuna, a eunuch while Nakula and Sahadeva took care of the horse stables. Draupadi took up the job as the queen’s companion.

When the queen’s brother Keechakan tried to misbehave with Draupadi, Bheema killed him. Hearing of Keechakan’s death, Duryodhana guessed that the Pandavas should be in Virada Desam as only a great warrior could defeat Keechakan. The Kauravas attacked Virada Desam and the prince went to the battlefield with Brigannalai (Arjuna, the eunuch) as his sarathi.

The Virada King was in his court playing the dice with Gangubattar. As they were wondering what could have happened in the battlefield, Gangubattar said that Brigannalai would have defeated the Kauravas.

Angry that Gangubattar suggested that Brigannalai could have defeated the opponents and not the prince, the king threw the dice at Gangubattar. Blood started flowing from the wound and Draupadi ran to stop the blood ensuring that not even a drop fell on the ground. This is because Yudhishtra is such a great person that if a drop of blood from his body fell on the ground, there will be no rain in that area for a number of years and the Pandavas did not want such a thing to happen to a country who helped them spend their Agnyathavasam period comfortably!

The Professor also narrated the episode of “Ashwathama hathaha kunjaraha”   he only place where one could say Dharmaputra’s dharma slipped a little, but that too was because of Krishna leelai.

It is the 15^th day of the Kurukshetra battle and the only way to defeat Drona was to tell him Ashwathama had been killed. Drona would not believe the news unless it was uttered by a Dharmavan such as Yudhishtra. Krishna suggests that Yudhishtra says it but the latter refuses to lie.

Krishna asks Yudhishtra to announce that an elephant name Ashwathama had been killed and when Yudhishtra announces “Ashwathama hathaha kunjaraha”, Krishna blows his conch just as Yudhishtra says “kunjaraha”. Drona believes his son Ashwathama is dead and drops all his weapons. In that weak moment, Dhristadhyumna kills Drona!

The moment Yudhishtra announces “Ashwhathama hathaha kunjaraha”, his chariot which was always a few inches above the ground declaring his Dharma, touched the ground.

Here is the you tube link

 

Ramayana on TV on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanthi

 

Ramayana on TV on the occasion of Hanuman Jayanthi

The first story was by Sri Velukkudi Krishnan in Sriramanin Arulamudham in Podhigai TV.

This series on Ramayana has just begun after the completion of Bhagavatham and is in introduction stages. Sri Velukkudi Krishnan explained today how we have to proceed from Krishna to Rama with the help of Hanuman, who was present in the times of both the Avatars.

He began with the mention of a Hanuman sannidhi next to the sannidhi of Parthasarathy in the Ananthapadmanabhaswamy Temple in Trivandrum. (I have not had the opportunity to visit this temple so far).

During his extensive travel, Arjuna reached the southernmost part of the country. When he saw the ocean, he wondered why Rama strived to make a bridge with stones and not just with his arrows across the ocean to reach Lanka. There was a small monkey around and the monkey said it was not practical to make a bridge with arrows as it would not have taken the weight of the vanara sainyam (monkey army). Arjuna did not accept this and said he will make a bridge with his arrows. He made a bridge in a jiffy and the lone monkey tried to walk across and the bridge gave away. He tried not once but thrice and the same thing happened. Krishna could not see his dear friend Arjuna failing and came there in the form a young boy. The boy asked Arjuna to try building a bridge again and this time when the monkey walked, the bridge was intact. Both Arjuna and the monkey looked at the boy and Arjuna said “Hey Krishna” and the monkey, which was actually Hanuman said “Hey Rama”. God showed himself as both Rama and Krishna to his respective devotees.

Here is the link to the above programme

The next story is part of Vijay TV Bhakthi Thiruvizha - “Vibeeshana Saranagathi” by Sri Thamal Ramakrishnan. Today was the last part of this discourse.

Vibeeshana has just reached Rama’s camp and requests the vanaras to recommend his case to Rama. He tries to convince them by narrating different stories. One such story was very cute and I would like to share here.

Chased by a tiger, a man climbs a tree in the forest. He thinks he can sit on the tree till the tiger goes away. By the time he settles down, he sees an old monkey atop the tree. The monkey bares its teeth and the man is frightened. He straightaway takes hold of the monkey’s feet and requests the monkey to save him. Since he said saranagathi, the monkey ensures that the man is saved and takes care of him over the next few hours by plucking fruits from the tree for the man when he is hungry and even allowing him to sleep on its lap when he is tired. The tiger from below the tree suggests that the monkey pushes the man when he is fast asleep. The monkey does not accept this. By afternoon, the man wakes up and the monkey asks the man if it can sleep on his lap as the monkey is very tired now. As soon as the monkey goes to sleep, the tiger tells the man that all it needs is meat whether it is human or monkey, so push the monkey down. The ungrateful human tries to push the monkey down. Waking up, monkey catches hold of the lower branch and climbs up again. The shameless man again catches hold of the monkey’s feet and the benevolent monkey still promises to save him. Vibheeshana narrates the above story to the vanaras highlighting the greatness of monkeys over man and beseeches with them to take his saranagathi message to Rama!

Here is the you tube link

I heard that Hanumath Jayanthi is being celebrated in some parts of India today, hence the title!

VIJAY TV BHAKTHI THIRUVIZHA SEASON 12, DAY 3 – DHARMAME VELLUM BY PROFESSOR ILLAMPIRAI MANIMARAN – Part 2

VIJAY TV BHAKTHI THIRUVIZHA SEASON 12, DAY 3 – DHARMAME VELLUM BY PROFESSOR ILLAMPIRAI MANIMARAN – Part 2

The next episode explained by the Professor Illampirai Manimaran to show the Dharmam of Yudhishtra brought tears to my eyes. In fact, the Professor herself was so involved and emotional while narrating the same that all of us were transported to the battleground of Kurukshetra.

It was the 13^th day of the Mahabharatha battle. A padmavyugam had been formed by the Kauravas. Abimanyu, who had learned how to enter the padmavyugam when he was in his mother Subhadra’s womb, entered all alone into the vyugam as his father and uncles were elsewhere in the battleground.  Bheema was the only one close by and he noticed Abhimanyu proceeding deep into the vyugam breaking down the formation by killing the soldiers.

Aware that Abhimanyu only knew how to enter the vyugam and not how to exit, Bheema tried to help him. Jayathrathan, Kaurava’s brother in law (married to the only sister of the 100 Kauravas) threw a kondrai flower garland across Bheema’s path. A great Shiva bhaktha, Bheema hesitated to cross the garland and in this momentary hesitation, the vyugam completely closed around Abhimanyu and never allowed him to come out.

At the end of the day, when Arjuna came to know that Abhimanyu was crushed inside the vyugam, he was inconsolable. When he learnt that Jayathrathan made sure Bheema could not help Abhimanyu, he vowed to kill Jayathrathan before sunset the next day or else kill himself.

That night, the great dharmavan, Yudhishtra called Gadothgajan and asked him to go and warn Duryodhana to hide Jayathrathan the whole of next day so that he does not get killed. Inspite of Arjuna’s vow that he will kill himself if he does not kill Jayathrathan by next evening, Yudhishtra did this as Duchalai, wife of Jayathrathan was the only sister for both Kauravas and Pandavas and Yudhishtra did not want her to be widowed.

That Krishna did a leelai the next evening by hiding the sun and then showing it later thereby helping Arjuna kill Jayathrathan is another story.

The above was narrated with great emotion by the Professor. Her description of the Pandavas sorrow for the loss of Abhimanyu made the audience feel the loss of Abhimanyu right there and then and not as if it happened eons ago!

Here is the you tube link of the programme

 

VIJAY TV BHAKTHI THIRUVIZHA SEASON 12, DAY 3 – DHARMAME VELLUM BY PROFESSOR ILLAMPIRAI MANIMARAN – Part 1

VIJAY TV BHAKTHI THIRUVIZHA SEASON 12, DAY 3 – DHARMAME VELLUM BY PROFESSOR ILLAMPIRAI MANIMARAN – Part 1

With weekend household chores I never expected to attend the Sunday programme but my description of Saturday’s programme got my sister Sundari, who happened to be in town, very much interested. We planned to leave home early, take an auto and reach Narada Gana Sabha by 4.30 pm. But as usual God had better plans for us. Ranga had been out for the day returned early and surprised me. With the result, we comfortably travelled the 10 km by car.

The three of us managed to reach the venue only by 5.45 pm and missed most of Suchitra’s performance. The second programme at 6 pm was discourse by Professor Ilampirai Manimaran. The topic was “Dharmame Vellum”.

Of course when the topic is Dharmam, it has to be about Dharmaputra – Yudhishtra. The Professor first narrated an episode that happened during the vanavasam of the Pandavas. A deer had taken the arani kattai (the wooden sticks used for lighting the fire of the yagna) of a Rishi and the Pandavas went after the deer to retrieve the sticks. They searched for the deer for a long time but could not find it. Yudhishtra was very thirsty and asked his brothers to find water. On climbing a tree, they saw a river at a distance.

Dharmaputra sent Sahadevan to get some water. When he did not return, he asked Nakulan to go in search of him. Like this, all the four brothers went and when none of them came back, Yudhishtra himself went. He reached the river and was shocked to find all his brothers lying dead. His throat parched, Yudhishtra tried to drink some water from the river before finding out about his brothers’ deaths. That’s when he heard a voice. A Yaksha came before him and wanted Yudhishtra to answer some questions before taking water from the river. He also said that he had so instructed Yudhishtra’s brothers but they did not listen to him. The ever patient Yudhishtra was ready to answer the Yaksha’s questions. Professor Ilampirai Manimaran detailed the Yakshaprasnam beautifully.

  

Very happy and satisfied with the answers given by Yudhishtra, the Yaksha reveals himself as Yamadharma and blesses Yudishtra, declaring that the latter is a Dharmavan.

Yamadharma further asks Yudhistra if Yama is ready to bring one of his brothers back to life, who will Yudhishtra choose. Yudhishtra once again establishes that he is a Dharmavan by asking Yamadharma to bring Nakulan back to life. When Yama asks him why he chose Nakulan and not Bheema or Arjuna, Yudhishtra beautifully explains that he, Kunti’s son is alive. If Nakulan comes back to life, then it will be one of Madhri’s sons who will live. Pleased with his explanation, Yamadharma brought all four of them back to life.

More about Professor Illampirai Manimaran’s talk on “Dharmame Vellum” on my next blog.

Here is the you tube link

Rama Anjaneya Yuddham

Rama Anjaneya Yuddham

As I was switching channels last evening, there was a musical discourse for Rama navami on Doordarshan. I had not seen the artiste earlier, so I am unable to say who it is. But the story he narrated was so cute that I want to share it here

It was the reign of Rama in Ayodya and there was a king called Sagunthan, who was a Rama Bhaktha. He performed a yagna calling all the rishis right from Vashishta and Viswamitra. It so happened that Narada found a seat next to Viswamitra during the yagna and began his “kalagam”. The king Sagunthan, mentioned in the sabha that he thanked all the rishis right from Vashishta present at the yagna. Narada asked Viswamitra, why the king mentioned Vashishta first and not Viswamitra, how he says Vashishta is greater than Viswamitra.  This way he kindled Viswamitra’s anger and the short tempered Viswamitra cursed that the king’s head will roll at his feet before sunset the next day and Rama will do this for him. Shaken, the king asks Narada for help and Narada directs him to Anjana devi, mother of Hanuman. The king runs to her saying “abhayam, abhayam” and seeing a king requesting for help, Anjana granted his wish and promised to save him. Slowly Narada entered the scene and told Anjana that she has to save the king from Rama. Anjana is rattled and feeling his need for him, Hanuman enters. When she explains the situation to Hanuman, Hanuman accepts it.

At the palace, Rama gets ready for a war and a surprised Sita asks him about it. She is even more surprised when Rama says the war is with Hanuman. None of the ever obedient brothers of Rama are ready to join Rama against Hanuman and Rama goes alone.

In the battlefront Hanuman has built a fort with his tail and made king Sakunthan sit inside. Rama takes his bow and arrow and aims at the tail fort. The arrow flew towards the fort, touched it, went around Hanuman, who was continuously chanting “Rama japam" and came back to Rama. How many ever times Rama aimed his arrow same thing happened. This went on for a long time. Even the Sun was scared that Viswamitra will curse him and was not setting. The world came to a stand still with no cycle of sun rise and set.

Narada brings Viswamitra to the battle ground and Viswamitra declares that his curse that  Sagunthan’s head should roll at his feet, need not necessarily mean that it should be separated from his body, hence it is enough if the king falls at his feet and apologizes to him.

This kalagam of Narada also ended well with the world coming to know again about Hanuman's bhakthi for Rama

Happy Rama Navami!