Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 9: “Liberation”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Chapter Ten
The Pastimes of the Supreme Lord, Ramacandra
SB9.10Summary
This Tenth Chapter describes how Lord Ramacandra appeared in the dynasty of Maharaja Khatvanga. It also describes the Lord’s activities, telling how He killed Ravana and returned to Ayodhya, the capital of His kingdom.
The son of Maharaja Khatvanga was Dirghabahu, and his son was Raghu. The son of Raghu was Aja, the son of Aja was Dasaratha, and the son of Dasaratha was Lord Ramacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When the Lord descended into this world in His full quadruple expansion—as Lord Ramacandra, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna—great sages like Valmiki who were actually in knowledge of the Absolute Truth described His transcendental pastimes. Srila Sukadeva Gosvami describes these pastimes in brief.
Lord Ramacandra went with Visvamitra and killed Raksasas like Marica. After breaking the stout and strong bow known as Haradhanu, the Lord married mother Sita and cut down the prestige of Parasurama. To obey the order of His father, He entered the forest, accompanied by Laksmana and Sita. There He cut off the nose of Surpanakha and killed the associates of Ravana, headed by Khara and Dusana. Ravana’s kidnapping of Sitadevi was the beginning of this demon’s misfortune. When Marica assumed the form of a golden deer, Lord Ramacandra went to bring the deer to please Sitadevi, but in the meantime Ravana took advantage of the Lord’s absence to kidnap her. When Sitadevi was kidnapped, Lord Ramacandra, accompanied by Laksmana, searched for her throughout the forest. In the course of this search, They met Jatayu. Then the Lord killed the demon Kabandha and the commander Vali and established a friendly relationship with Sugriva. After organizing the military strength of the monkeys and going with them to the shore of the sea, the Lord awaited the arrival of Samudra, the ocean personified, but when Samudra did not come, the Lord, the master of Samudra, became angry. Then Samudra came to the Lord with great haste and surrendered to Him, wanting to help Him in every way. The Lord then attempted to bridge the ocean, and, with the help of advice from Vibhisana, He attacked Ravana’s capital, Lanka. Previously, Hanuman, the eternal servant of the Lord, had set fire to Lanka, and now, with the help of Laksmana, the forces of Lord Ramacandra killed all the Raksasa soldiers. Then Lord Ramacandra personally killed Ravana. Mandodari and other wives lamented for Ravana, and in accordance with Lord Ramacandra’s order, Vibhisana performed the funeral ceremonies for all the dead in the family. Lord Ramacandra then gave Vibhisana the right to rule Lanka and also granted him a long duration of life. The Lord delivered Sitadevi from the Asoka forest and carried her in a flower airplane to His capital Ayodhya, where He was received by His brother Bharata. When Lord Ramacandra entered Ayodhya, Bharata brought His wooden shoes, Vibhisana and Sugriva held a whisk and fan, Hanuman carried an umbrella, Satrughna carried the Lord’s bow and two quivers, and Sitadevi carried a waterpot containing water from holy places. Angada carried a sword, and Jambavan (Rksaraja) carried a shield. After Lord Ramacandra, accompanied by Lord Laksmana and mother Sitadevi, met all His relatives, the great sage Vasistha enthroned Him as King. The chapter ends with a short description of Lord Ramacandra’s rule in Ayodhya. SB9.10.1 TEXT 1 sri-suka uvaca khatvangad dirghabahus ca raghus tasmat prthu-sravah ajas tato maha-rajas tasmad dasaratho ’bhavat SYNONYMS sri-sukah uvaca—Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; khatvangat—from Maharaja Khatvanga; dirghabahuh—the son named Dirghabahu; ca—and; raghuh tasmat—from him Raghu was born; prthu-sravah—saintly and celebrated; ajah—the son named Aja; tatah—from him; maha-rajah—the great king called Maharaja Dasaratha; tasmat—from Aja; dasarathah—by the name Dasaratha; abhavat—was born. TRANSLATION Sukadeva Gosvami said: The son of Maharaja Khatvanga was Dirghabahu, and his son was the celebrated Maharaja Raghu. From Maharaja Raghu came Aja, and from Aja was born the great personality Maharaja Dasaratha. SB9.10.2 TEXT 2 tasyapi bhagavan esa saksad brahmamayo harih amsamsena caturdhagat putratvam prarthitah suraih rama-laksmana-bharata- satrughna iti samjnaya SYNONYMS tasya—of him, Maharaja Dasaratha; api—also; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; esah—all of them; saksat—directly; brahma-mayah—the Supreme Parabrahman, the Absolute Truth; harih—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; amsa-amsena—by an expansion of a plenary portion; caturdha—by fourfold expansions; agat—accepted; putratvam—sonhood; prarthitah—being prayed for; suraih—by the demigods; rama—Lord Ramacandra; laksmana—Lord Laksmana; bharata—Lord Bharata; satrughnah—and Lord Satrughna; iti—thus; samjnaya—by different names. TRANSLATION Being prayed for by the demigods, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth Himself, directly appeared with His expansion and expansions of the expansion. Their holy names were Rama, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna. These celebrated incarnations thus appeared in four forms as the sons of Maharaja Dasaratha. PURPORT Lord Ramacandra and His brothers, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna, are all visnu-tattva, not jiva-tattva. The Supreme Personality of Godhead expands into many, many forms. Advaitam acyutam anadim ananta-rupam [Bs. 5.33]. Although they are one and the same, visnu-tattva has many forms and incarnations. As confirmed in the Brahma-samhita (5.39), ramadi-murtisu kala-niyamena tisthan. The Lord is situated in many forms, such as Rama, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna, and these forms may exist in any part of His creation. All these forms exist permanently, eternally, as individual Personalities of Godhead, and they resemble many candles, all equally powerful. Lord Ramacandra, Laksmana, Bharata and Satrughna, who, being visnu-tattva, are all equally powerful, became the sons of Maharaja Dasaratha in response to prayers by the demigods. SB9.10.3 TEXT 3 tasyanucaritam rajann rsibhis tattva-darsibhih srutam hi varnitam bhuri tvaya sita-pater muhuh SYNONYMS tasya—of Him, the Supreme Personality of Godhead Lord Ramacandra and His brothers; anucaritam—transcendental activities; rajan—O King (Maharaja Pariksit); rsibhih—by great sages or saintly persons; tattva-darsibhih—by persons who know the Absolute Truth; srutam—have all been heard; hi—indeed; varnitam—as they have been so nicely described; bhuri—many; tvaya—by you; sita-pateh—of Lord Ramacandra, the husband of mother Sita; muhuh—more than often. TRANSLATION O King Pariksit, the transcendental activities of Lord Ramacandra have been described by great saintly persons who have seen the truth. Because you have heard again and again about Lord Ramacandra, the husband of mother Sita, I shall describe these activities only in brief. Please listen. PURPORT Modern Raksasas, posing as educationally advanced merely because they have doctorates, have tried to prove that Lord Ramacandra is not the Supreme Personality of Godhead but an ordinary person. But those who are learned and spiritually advanced will never accept such notions; they will accept the descriptions of Lord Ramacandra and His activities only as presented by tattva-darsis, those who know the Absolute Truth. In Bhagavad-gita (4.34) the Supreme Personality of Godhead advises: tad viddhi pranipatena “Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth.” Unless one is tattva-darsi, in complete knowledge of the Absolute Truth, one cannot describe the activities of the Personality of Godhead. Therefore although there are many so-called Ramayanas, or histories of Lord Ramacandra’s activities, some of them are not actually authoritative. Sometimes Lord Ramacandra’s activities are described in terms of one’s own imaginations, speculations or material sentiments. But the characteristics of Lord Ramacandra should not be handled as something imaginary. While describing the history of Lord Ramacandra, Sukadeva Gosvami told Maharaja Pariksit, “You have already heard about the activities of Lord Ramacandra.” Apparently, therefore, five thousand years ago there were many Ramayanas, or histories of Lord Ramacandra’s activities, and there are many still. But we must select only those books written by tattva-darsis (jnaninas tattva-darsinah), not the books of so-called scholars who claim knowledge only on the basis of a doctorate. This is a warning by Sukadeva Gosvami. Rsibhis tattva-darsibhih. Although the Ramayana composed by Valmiki is a huge literature, the same activities are summarized here by Sukadeva Gosvami in a few verses. SB9.10.4 TEXT 4 gurv-arthe tyakta-rajyo vyacarad anuvanam padma-padbhyam priyayah pani-sparsaksamabhyam mrjita-patha-rujo yo harindranujabhyam vairupyac churpanakhyah priya-viraha-rusaropita-bhru-vijrmbha- trastabdhir baddha-setuh khala-dava-dahanah kosalendro ’vatan nah SYNONYMS guru-arthe—for the sake of keeping the promise of His father; tyakta-rajyah—giving up the position of king; vyacarat—wandered; anuvanam—from one forest to another; padma-padbhyam—by His two lotus feet; priyayah—with His very dear wife, mother Sita; pani-sparsa-aksamabhyam—which were so delicate that they were unable to bear even the touch of Sita’s palm; mrjita-patha-rujah—whose fatigue due to walking on the street was diminished; yah—the Lord who; harindra-anujabhyam—accompanied by the king of the monkeys, Hanuman, and His younger brother Laksmana; vairupyat—because of being disfigured; surpanakhyah—of the Raksasi (demoness) named Surpanakha; priya-viraha—being aggrieved by separation from His very dear wife; rusa aropita-bhru-vijrmbha—by flickering of His raised eyebrows in anger; trasta—fearing; abdhih—the ocean; baddha-setuh—one who constructed a bridge over the ocean; khala-dava-dahanah—killer of envious persons like Ravana, like a fire devouring a forest; kosala-indrah—the King of Ayodhya; avatat—be pleased to protect; nah—us. TRANSLATION To keep the promise of His father intact, Lord Ramacandra immediately gave up the position of king and, accompanied by His wife, mother Sita, wandered from one forest to another on His lotus feet, which were so delicate that they were unable to bear even the touch of Sita’s palms. The Lord was also accompanied by Hanuman [or by another monkey, Sugriva], king of the monkeys, and by His own younger brother Lord Laksmana, both of whom gave Him relief from the fatigue of wandering in the forest. Having cut off the nose and ears of Surpanakha, thus disfiguring her, the Lord was separated from mother Sita. He therefore became angry, moving His eyebrows and thus frightening the ocean, who then allowed the Lord to construct a bridge to cross the ocean. Subsequently, the Lord entered the kingdom of Ravana to kill him, like a fire devouring a forest. May that Supreme Lord, Ramacandra, give us all protection. SB9.10.5 TEXT 5 visvamitradhvare yena maricadya nisa-carah pasyato laksmanasyaiva hata nairrta-pungavah SYNONYMS visvamitra-adhvare—in the sacrificial arena of the great sage Visvamitra; yena—by whom (Lord Ramacandra); marica-adyah—headed by Marica; nisa-carah—the uncivilized persons wandering at night in the darkness of ignorance; pasyatah laksmanasya—being seen by Laksmana; eva—indeed; hatah—were killed; nairrta-pungavah—the great chiefs of the Raksasas. TRANSLATION In the arena of the sacrifice performed by Visvamitra, Lord Ramacandra, the King of Ayodhya, killed many demons, Raksasas and uncivilized men who wandered at night in the mode of darkness. May Lord Ramacandra, who killed these demons in the presence of Laksmana, be kind enough to give us protection. SB9.10.6-7 TEXTS 6–7 yo loka-vira-samitau dhanur aisam ugram sita-svayamvara-grhe trisatopanitam adaya bala-gaja-lila iveksu-yastim sajjyi-krtam nrpa vikrsya babhanja madhye jitvanurupa-guna-sila-vayo ’nga-rupam sitabhidham sriyam urasy abhilabdhamanam marge vrajan bhrgupater vyanayat prarudham darpam mahim akrta yas trir araja-bijam SYNONYMS yah—Lord Ramacandra who; loka-vira-samitau—in the society or in the midst of many heroes of this world; dhanuh—the bow; aisam—of Lord Siva; ugram—very fierce; sita-svayamvara-grhe—in the hall where mother Sita stood to select her husband; trisata-upanitam—the bow carried by three hundred men; adaya—taking (that bow); bala-gaja-lilah—acting like a baby elephant in a forest of sugarcane; iva—like that; iksu-yastim—a stick of sugarcane; sajjyi-krtam—fastened the string of the bow; nrpa—O King; vikrsya—by bending; babhanja—broke it; madhye—in the middle; jitva—gaining by victory; anurupa—just befitting His position and beauty; guna—qualities; sila—behavior; vayah—age; anga—body; rupam—beauty; sita-abhidham—the girl named Sita; sriyam—the goddess of fortune; urasi—on the chest; abhilabdhamanam—had gotten her previously; marge—on the way; vrajan—while walking; bhrgupateh—of Bhrgupati; vyanayat—destroyed; prarudham—rooted very deep; darpam—pride; mahim—the earth; akrta—finished; yah—one who; trih—three times (seven); araja—without a royal dynasty; bijam—seed. TRANSLATION O King, the pastimes of Lord Ramacandra were wonderful, like those of a baby elephant. In the assembly where mother Sita was to choose her husband, in the midst of the heroes of this world, He broke the bow belonging to Lord Siva. This bow was so heavy that it was carried by three hundred men, but Lord Ramacandra bent and strung it and broke it in the middle, just as a baby elephant breaks a stick of sugarcane. Thus the Lord achieved the hand of mother Sita, who was equally as endowed with transcendental qualities of form, beauty, behavior, age and nature. Indeed, she was the goddess of fortune who constantly rests on the chest of the Lord. While returning from Sita’s home after gaining her at the assembly of competitors, Lord Ramacandra met Parasurama. Although Parasurama was very proud, having rid the earth of the royal order twenty-one times, he was defeated by the Lord, who appeared to be a ksatriya of the royal order. SB9.10.8 TEXT 8 yah satya-pasa-parivita-pitur nidesam strainasya capi sirasa jagrhe sabharyah rajyam sriyam pranayinah suhrdo nivasam tyaktva yayau vanam asun iva mukta-sangah SYNONYMS yah—Lord Ramacandra who; satya-pasa-parivita-pituh—of His father, who was bound by the promise to his wife; nidesam—the order; strainasya—of the father who was very much attached to his wife; ca—also; api—indeed; sirasa—on His head; jagrhe—accepted; sa-bharyah—with His wife; rajyam—the kingdom; sriyam—opulence; pranayinah—relatives; suhrdah—friends; nivasam—residence; tyaktva—giving up; yayau—went; vanam—to the forest; asun—life; iva—like; mukta-sangah—a liberated soul. TRANSLATION Carrying out the order of His father, who was bound by a promise to his wife, Lord Ramacandra left behind His kingdom, opulence, friends, well-wishers, residence and everything else, just as a liberated soul gives up his life, and went to the forest with Sita. PURPORT Maharaja Dasaratha had three wives. One of them, Kaikeyi, served him very pleasingly, and he therefore wanted to give her a benediction. Kaikeyi, however, said that she would ask for the benediction when it was necessary. At the time of the coronation of Prince Ramacandra, Kaikeyi requested her husband to enthrone her son Bharata and send Ramacandra to the forest. Maharaja Dasaratha, being bound by his promise, ordered Ramacandra to go to the forest, according to the dictation of his beloved. And the Lord, as an obedient son, accepted the order immediately. He left everything without hesitation, just as a liberated soul or great yogi gives up his life without material attraction. SB9.10.9 TEXT 9 raksah-svasur vyakrta rupam asuddha-buddhes tasyah khara-trisira-dusana-mukhya-bandhun jaghne caturdasa-sahasram aparaniya- kodanda-panir atamana uvasa krcchram SYNONYMS raksah-svasuh—of Surpanakha, the sister of the Raksasa (Ravana); vyakrta—(Lord Rama) deformed; rupam—the form; asuddha-buddheh—because her intelligence was polluted by lusty desires; tasyah—of her; khara-trisira-dusana-mukhya-bandhun—many friends, headed by Khara, Trisira and Dusana; jaghne—He (Lord Ramacandra) killed; caturdasa-sahasram—fourteen thousand; aparaniya—invincible; kodanda—bows and arrows; panih—in His hand; atamanah—wandering in the forest; uvasa—lived there; krcchram—with great difficulties. TRANSLATION While wandering in the forest, where He accepted a life of hardship, carrying His invincible bow and arrows in His hand, Lord Ramacandra deformed Ravana’s sister, who was polluted with lusty desires, by cutting off her nose and ears. He also killed her fourteen thousand Raksasa friends, headed by Khara, Trisira and Dusana. SB9.10.10 TEXT 10 sita-katha-sravana-dipita-hrc-chayena srstam vilokya nrpate dasa-kandharena jaghne ’dbhutaina-vapusasramato ’pakrsto maricam asu visikhena yatha kam ugrah SYNONYMS sita-katha—topics about Sitadevi; sravana—by hearing; dipita—agitated; hrt-sayena—lusty desires within the mind of Ravana; srstam—created; vilokya—seeing that; nrpate—O King Pariksit; dasa-kandharena—by Ravana, who had ten heads; jaghne—the Lord killed; adbhuta-ena-vapusa—by a deer made of gold; asramatah—from His residence; apakrstah—distracted to a distance; maricam—the demon Marica, who assumed the form of a golden deer; asu—immediately; visikhena—by a sharp arrow; yatha—as; kam—Daksa; ugrah—Lord Siva. TRANSLATION O King Pariksit, when Ravana, who had ten heads on his shoulders, heard about the beautiful and attractive features of Sita, his mind was agitated by lusty desires, and he went to kidnap her. To distract Lord Ramacandra from His asrama, Ravana sent Marica in the form of a golden deer, and when Lord Ramacandra saw that wonderful deer, He left His residence and followed it and finally killed it with a sharp arrow, just as Lord Siva killed Daksa. SB9.10.11 TEXT 11 rakso-’dhamena vrkavad vipine ’samaksam vaideha-raja-duhitary apayapitayam bhratra vane krpanavat priyaya viyuktah stri-sanginam gatim iti prathayams cacara SYNONYMS raksah-adhamena—by the most wicked among Raksasas, Ravana; vrka-vat—like a tiger; vipine—in the forest; asamaksam—unprotected; vaideha-raja-duhitari—by this condition of mother Sita, the daughter of the King of Videha; apayapitayam—having been kidnapped; bhratra—with His brother; vane—in the forest; krpana-vat—as if a very distressed person; priyaya—by his dear wife; viyuktah—separated; stri-sanginam—of persons attracted to or connected with women; gatim—destination; iti—thus; prathayan—giving an example; cacara—wandered. TRANSLATION When Ramacandra entered the forest and Laksmana was also absent, the worst of the Raksasas, Ravana, kidnapped Sitadevi, the daughter of the King of Videha, just as a tiger seizes unprotected sheep when the shepherd is absent. Then Lord Ramacandra wandered in the forest with His brother Laksmana as if very much distressed due to separation from His wife. Thus He showed by His personal example the condition of a person attached to women. PURPORT In this verse the words stri-sanginam gatim iti indicate that the condition of a person attached to women was shown by the Lord Himself. According to moral instructions, grhe narim vivarjayet: when one goes on a tour, one should not bring his wife. Formerly men used to travel without conveyances, but still, as far as possible, when one leaves home one should not take his wife with him, especially if one is in such a condition as Lord Ramacandra when banished by the order of His father. Whether in the forest or at home, if one is attached to women this attachment is always troublesome, as shown by the Supreme Personality of Godhead by His personal example. Of course, this is the material side of stri-sangi, but the situation of Lord Ramacandra is spiritual, for He does not belong to the material world. Narayanah paro ’vyaktat: Narayana is beyond the material creation. Because He is the creator of the material world, He is not subject to the conditions of the material world. The separation of Lord Ramacandra from Sita is spiritually understood as vipralambha, which is an activity of the hladini potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead belonging to the srngara-rasa, the mellow of conjugal love in the spiritual world. In the spiritual world the Supreme Personality of Godhead has all the dealings of love, displaying the symptoms called sattvika, sancari, vilapa, murccha and unmada. Thus when Lord Ramacandra was separated from Sita, all these spiritual symptoms were manifested. The Lord is neither impersonal nor impotent. Rather, He is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha [Bs. 5.1], the eternal form of knowledge and bliss. Thus He has all the symptoms of spiritual bliss. Feeling separation from one’s beloved is also an item of spiritual bliss. As explained by Srila Svarupa Damodara Gosvami, radha-krsna-pranaya-vikrtir hladini-saktih: the dealings of love between Radha and Krsna are displayed as the pleasure potency of the Lord. The Lord is the original source of all pleasure, the reservoir of all pleasure. Lord Ramacandra, therefore, manifested the truth both spiritually and materially. Materially those who are attached to women suffer, but spiritually when there are feelings of separation between the Lord and His pleasure potency the spiritual bliss of the Lord increases. This is further explained in Bhagavad-gita (9.11): avajananti mam mudha One who does not know the spiritual potency of the Supreme Personality of Godhead thinks of the Lord as an ordinary human being. But the Lord’s mind, intelligence and senses can never be affected by material conditions. This fact is further explained in the Skanda Purana, as quoted by Madhvacarya: nitya-purna-sukha-jnana- tathapi loka-siksartham jnapanartham punar nitya- naksatra-masa-ganitam ramo ramo rama iti It was actually impossible for Ravana to take away Sita. The form of Sita taken by Ravana was an illusory representation of mother Sita—maya-sita. When Sita was tested in the fire, this maya-sita was burnt, and the real Sita came out of the fire. A further understanding to be derived from this example is that a woman, however powerful she may be in the material world, must be given protection, for as soon as she is unprotected she will be exploited by Raksasas like Ravana. Here the words vaideha-raja-duhitari indicate that before mother Sita was married to Lord Ramacandra she was protected by her father, Vaideha-raja. And when she was married she was protected by her husband. Therefore the conclusion is that a woman should always be protected. According to the Vedic rule, there is no scope for a woman’s being independent (asamaksam), for a woman cannot protect herself independently. SB9.10.12 TEXT 12 dagdhvatma-krtya-hata-krtyam ahan kabandham sakhyam vidhaya kapibhir dayita-gatim taih buddhvatha valini hate plavagendra-sainyair velam agat sa manujo ’ja-bhavarcitanghrih SYNONYMS dagdhva—by burning; atma-krtya-hata-krtyam—after performing religious rituals required after the death of Jatayu, who died for the Lord’s cause; ahan—killed; kabandham—the demon Kabandha; sakhyam—friendship; vidhaya—after creating; kapibhih—with the monkey chiefs; dayita-gatim—the arrangement for delivering Sita; taih—by them; buddhva—knowing; atha—thereafter; valini hate—when Vali had been killed; plavaga-indra-sainyaih—with the help of the soldiers of the monkeys; velam—to the beach of the ocean; agat—went; sah—He, Lord Ramacandra; manu-jah—appearing as a human being; aja—by Lord Brahma; bhava—and by Lord Siva; arcita-anghrih—whose lotus feet are worshiped. TRANSLATION Lord Ramacandra, whose lotus feet are worshiped by Lord Brahma and Lord Siva, had assumed the form of a human being. Thus He performed the funeral ceremony of Jatayu, who was killed by Ravana. The Lord then killed the demon named Kabandha, and after making friends with the monkey chiefs, killing Vali and arranging for the deliverance of mother Sita, He went to the beach of the ocean. PURPORT When Ravana kidnapped Sita, he was obstructed on the way by Jatayu, a large bird. But the powerful Ravana defeated Jatayu in the fight and cut his wing. When Ramacandra was searching for Sita, He found Jatayu almost dead and was informed that Sita has been carried off by Ravana. When Jatayu died, Lord Ramacandra did the duty of a son by performing the funeral ceremony, and then He made friends with the monkeys to deliver Sitadevi. SB9.10.13 TEXT 13 yad-rosa-vibhrama-vivrtta-kataksa-pata- sambhranta-nakra-makaro bhaya-girna-ghosah sindhuh sirasy arhanam parigrhya rupi padaravindam upagamya babhasa etat SYNONYMS yat-rosa—whose anger; vibhrama—induced by; vivrtta—turned; kataksa-pata—by the glance; sambhranta—agitated; nakra—crocodiles; makarah—and sharks; bhaya-girna-ghosah—whose loud sound was silenced through fear; sindhuh—the ocean; sirasi—on his head; arhanam—all paraphernalia for worshiping the Lord; parigrhya—carrying; rupi—taking form; pada-aravindam—the lotus feet of the Lord; upagamya—reaching; babhasa—said; etat—the following. TRANSLATION After reaching the beach, Lord Ramacandra fasted for three days, awaiting the arrival of the ocean personified. When the ocean did not come, the Lord exhibited His pastimes of anger, and simply by His glancing over the ocean, all the living entities within it, including the crocodiles and sharks, were agitated by fear. Then the personified ocean fearfully approached Lord Ramacandra, taking all paraphernalia to worship Him. Falling at the Lord’s lotus feet, the personified ocean spoke as follows.
pariprasnena sevaya
upadeksyanti te jnanam
jnaninas tattva-darsinah
manusim tanum asritam
param bhavam ajananto
mama bhuta-mahesvaram
svarupo ’sau yato vibhuh
ato ’sya rama ity akhya
tasya duhkham kuto ’nv api
aduhkho duhkha-vartivat
antarhitam loka-drstya
sitam asit smarann iva
sambandhah svatmanah sriyah
ayodhyaya vinirgacchan
sarva-lokasya cesvarah
pratyaksam tu sriya sardham
jagamanadir avyayah
trayodasa-sahasrakam
brahmaloka-samam cakre
samastam ksiti-mandalam
sarvesam abhavat tada
sarvoramamayo loko
yada ramas tv apalayat