Apoorva Ramayanam

From the Bhakti List Archives

• January 18, 2002


sri:
srimathe ramanujaya nama:
srimath vara vara munaye nama:
sri srinivasa maha gurave nama:

Poojya Swamin.
I recently came across a book titled "Apoorva
Ramayanam" by Sri Prathivadi Bhayankaram
Annangarachariyar of Kanchi written in1959. The book
seeks to savour Sri Ramayanam through the analysis of
the 16 questions put forth by Sri Valmiki to Sri
Narada.
I shall try to transalate the same for the enjoyment
of all of us, within my limitations. Correctness of
the transalation shall be due to the grace of Sriman
Narayana and lapses due to my ignorance.

Apporva Ramayanam

Preface

Sri Ramayanam starts at the point when Sri Narada
Muni, at the behest of Brahma, visits the ashram of
Sri Valmiki and Valmiki after offering service to
Narada asks Narada to inform him about any person in
the world who is bestowed with 16 kalyana gunas-"kothu
asmin sAmprathan loke gunavAn kachcha vEruavAn?". Sri
Narada, pleased discourses about Sri Rama and his
story in short. Later with Brahma's blessings, Sri
Valmiki writes Sri Ramayana as applicable to this
world.

We cannot say that Valmiki learned about Sri Rama only
through Narada's upadesa. He was living at the time of
Sri Rama and was indeed aware of Sri  Rama's kalyana
gunas. Narada's upadesa was only a pretext and
initiative for the bringing down of Sri Ramayana to
this world.

There is a saying that Sriman Narayana came down to
this world -"manisarkka padathana pattu"- only to let
his kalyana gunas glow in this world-"irul tharuma
gyalathil inthalathil thamarai poothathu pol"- and the
killing of Ravana etc were only an incidental result.
The same has been revealed by Sri Parasara Bhattar in
his sri sookthi- "guna parEvAhAthmanAm janmanAm".

So we can safely assume that Valmiki was always
savouring the kalyana gunas of Sri Rama throughout.
Each of his questions on gunas are put forth for the
enjoyment of the bhakthas.

The guna anubhavam of the first question "kho
gunavAn?", I shall post in a day or two.

Adiyen Sri Vaishnava Dasan,
Selva narana ramanujan.

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