The Poet of Poets.
Among all the poets in the world, Srī Valmiki is truly exceptional, for he is endowed with the title of Adikavi (the original poet). It was Sri Valmiki who composed his Ramayanam with the intention of portraying the pastimes of Srī Rama while keeping karuna-rasa (piteous-ness) as the central mood of this magnum opus.
To take the Valmiki-ramayanam as inspiration and render it into the Avadhi language (an Eastern Hindi dialect) while keeping bhakti as the central mood is the unparalleled achievement of Srī Tulasīdas. Millions have benefited from his munificent service to the cause of Srī-Ra-ma-bhakti. No wonder, it is popularly said that Srī Valmīki himself appeared as Srī Tulasīdas in the age of Kali:
valmikis tulasīdasah kalau devi bhavisyati
ramacandrakathsm sadhvi bhasabaddham karisyati
Srī Valmiki will appear in the age of Kali and will compose an epic on the pastimes of Srī Rama in the local dialect.
(Verse attributed to Bhavisyottara-purana)
Srī Tulasidas marks a historical moment in the progress and upliftment of the Hindi language. Along with Srī Suradas, he certainly occupies the topmost place among all Hindi poets. His Rāmacaritamanasa is arguably the most important work of literature that exists in this language. While it is true that a poet can easily show expertise by composing a few poems, this is not the case with Srī Tulasīdas. The Ramacaritamanasa is not just a collection of poetry; it is a complete prabandha-kavya (epic narration) in itself.
वितरसि दिक्षु रणे दिक्-पति-कमनीयम्
दश-मुख-मौलि-बलिं रमणीयम्
केशव धृत-रघुपति-रुप जय जगदीश हरे
vitarasi diksu rane dik-pati-kamaniyam
dasa-mukha-mauli-balim ramantyam
kesava dhrta-raghupati-rupa jaya jagadisa hare
O master of the universe, Srī Hari! O killer of the Kest demon! Assuming the form of Sri Rama, You engage in battle with the ten-headed demon king Ravaņa, and distribute his coveted crowned heads as offerings to the demigods of the directions, such as Indra. May You be victorious!
The great devotee-poet, Srī Jayadeva Goswami, composed this verse as part of his description of the ten prominent incarnations of the Supreme Lord, Sri Krsna. Lord Sri Rama is the most com-passionate incarnation, who appeared in this world during Treta Yuga, millions of years ago.
Even though Lord Rama's appearance and activities occurred long ago, the descriptions of His pastimes remain vibrantly alive, as if happening today. The Lord's pastimes are eternal, ever-joyful, and ever-fresh. Wherever they are recounted, those places are transformed into spiritual realms, free from the miseries of the material world.
The above verse by Jayadeva Goswami specifically mentions the annihilation of the demon king Ravana. However, this pas-time occurred just in one year of the Lord's manifest pastimes on Earth. Lord Rama graced the earth for over thirty-six thousand years, yet this event of killing Ravana is particularly highlighted.
This emphasises the Lord's kindness towards the demigods and devotees, as He bestowed extraordinary happiness upon them by vanquishing the wicked Ravana.
As stated in the scriptures, the Lord appears in various incarnations to enact religious principles, annihilate miscreants, and pro-vide happiness and protection to His devotees.
The Sri Ramacaritamanasa is an epic poem composed in the Awadhi language by the 16th-century Indian saint, Goswami Tulasidas (c. 1532-1623). "Ramacaritamanasa" literally means "the Manasa lake of the virtuous life and deeds of Lord Sri Rama." Tulasidas envisioned the seven sections of this epic as the seven steps leading into the holy waters of Lake Manasa (Manasarovara) in the Himalayas a lake believed to purify both body and soul.
The poem recounts the story of the Sanskrit epic Ramayana, focusing on the life of Lord Srī Rama, the crown prince of Ayodhya. It is also known as Tulsikrt Ramayana, meaning "The Ramayana composed by Tulasidas," or simply "The Ramayana of Tulasīdas." His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, the founder-spiritual master of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, succinctly defined Ramacaritamanasa as "Thinking of Lord Rama."
Tulasīdas began writing the Ramacaritamanasa in 1574 in Ayodhya, on Rama Navami, the birthday of Lord Srī Rama. He completed much of the poem in Varanasi, where he spent his later years.
Today, the Srī Ramacaritamanasa is considered one of the greatest works of Hindu literature. Srīla Prabhupada considered it the most important work in the Hindi language. Western scholars have even called it the "Bible of Northern India."
Before this, the story of Lord Srī Rama was primarily accessible through Valmīki's Sanskrit Ramayana, an epic of 24,000 verses. However, Tulasīdas wanted to bring this sacred narrative to the common people. He chose to write in Awadhi, a version of Hindi language widely spoken in northern India, because Sanskrit was considered difficult to learn. His work inspired the tradition of Ramlila, the dramatic enactment of Srī Rama's story.
The inspiration to produce this edition of Sri Ramacaritamanasa came to me a few years ago in Srī Mayapur Dham when Srī Bra-jasundara dasa, the director of ISKCON Bhagavat Mahavidyalaya, requested me to publish a good English rendition. He emphasised its benefit for devotees, especially those unfamiliar with the Indian tradition.
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