SATYALOKA
Which
great personage created
Vast
series of worlds out of maya of ideas rich
Which
self-governor shaped
the
wheels of time fired by talent
which
fount of knowledge gave
Vedas
all, a fruit of real creativity
Which
kind-hearted man impressed
The
group of rishis by meeting their desires
Such
father of the world, the lord of Satyaloka
Giver
of compassionate wellbeing of universe
The
great Vani play riches taker
Sat
in court Brahma, the savior of the suffering.
The
beam of rays of infant moon is
A
line of jewel on her crown beautiful
The
beauty of hibiscus flower red is
Her
beauty’s Sankranti splendor
Harmony
of music and letters is
Light
of her lotus-eyes eminent
The
knowledge of Vedas, Shastras and Puranas is
Glow
of her beauty delicate
Such high
goddess, holder of lotuses in her hands
Purest
of all, supreme voice of the feminine
The
queen of Brahma, Omkara Bhadra Peethi
Shone
with harp golden in her hands.
While
the hordes of angels followed in terror great
Rishis
and rulers of corners followed in fear
The
lord of angels arrived and stood
crestfallen
At
the feet of the father of the world.
Reconciler
of all, giver of worldly riches
Knower
of creation , giver of all decisions
Looked
graciously at the king of angles
With
compassion utmost.
Salutes
master of words
Salutes
the one with lotus feet praised by worlds all
Salutes
the flower of hearts of devotees
Give
us protection the form grand!
Many
rishis did tapas in the past
But
not in the fiercest way
Never
did we witness
Such
terrible penance by a mortal.
Deluded
the team of rulers of corner
Shaken
the horde of angels
Dullness
affected the team of horses of the Sun
Puzzled
the elephant grand
Lost
his lustre the Moon, the friend of the lotuses
Moved
the cluster of stars
Troubled
the earth with darkness thick
Suffered
the series of the worlds
To
the great fire of Maharshi’s penance
Uprooted
the system of the worlds all
To
the hurricane of such fierce satva
Perturbed
planets one and all.
One
who sat on the lotus! You have to go
Make
the rishi stop his tapas great
Through
granting boons to his satisfaction
Should
you prevent the disturbance of universe.
In
humbleness the lord of the angels
Hurried
and prayed to the creator
To
stop the tapas of the rishi
And
save these spheres, the Compassionate one!
On
seeing Indra who lost his glow
Turning
affectionate asked the
Lord
of Vani
“Tell
me the name of the sag of supreme.”
“Aren’t
you aware grand father ?
Need
I mention the name of such great rishi ?
Is
there any whose name unknown to the creator?
Is
this not for teasing ?”
Listening
in smile to Indra’s words
Spoke
he ”Who’s that great rishi?’
Appeared
to is eye divine
The
best of rishis, the sage supreme.
Incarnation
of peace- abode of virtues pleasant
Soul
miraculous-famous entirely
Temple
of miracle great- shining like the Sun
The
purifier of the world- figure of truth
and kindness
The
form of dharmatapas
Flourishing
with the holiest diksha.
With
a face beaming with smile
Looked
the Grandfather askance at
The
lotus face of his wife
“Indra
! be gone
Do
I go and appear before the Maharshi
And
make him content with his desire satisfied.”
Sent
him Brahma , the giver of things auspicious.
Looking
at Vani touching the strings of the harp
Saw
Brahma the story of Maharshi
Appeared
before his eyes divine
The
story of the rishi – weird is maya.
Visiting
Sages Supreme
Most
terrific afternoon
The
sun is scorching
Reverberating
the path of the forest
To
the overwhelming waves of Tamasa.
Treading
the forest path the souls great
Sages
supreme of knowledge divine and visages bright
Yearning
to visit the holy places
Might
whose merit get fruition on that day?
Jumped
on the way of those sages
A
thief most notorious with eyes fierce
and moving
His
roar shakes the forest entire
And
a huge axe on his shoulder.
“Fetch
your riches ,gold and silver
Keep
them here, unwrap your bags
Would
I leave you sages
If
you stand silent like pretenders?
“Why
do you dart your eyes here and there?
Are
you bereft of your sense?
Won’t
I coax you to yield your riches
Is
there any savior? Show your riches !”
Observing
the thief roaring
One
of the sages turned kind
And
spoke, “ we don’t possess
Riches
coveted by you!
What’s the use of demanding ?
How
can we have gold and silver?
The
staff and kamandalam
Deerskins
and saris of bark are our riches !
If
you find them useful
You
are free to take them
Lest
Why should you bother us?
Let
our riches be with us!”
Laughed
the thief at once
“
What kind of people are you?
Hoe
can you remain as the paupers
Without
a coin single or a jewel?
Would
I trust your words
Do
you truly have no money?
Search
slowly .”
Listening
to his words spoke the rishi with a thought new.
“
Yes, we have money the greatest in the
world
You
need to take diksha
And
merit of your life past
Must
bear and ripen a fruit!’
What!
Do you have some money?
Why
not tell me earlier?
Show
that to me -
Would
I be content with such an amount
tiny ’
“Do
we possess riches great
auspicious
and a fruit of tapas
Do
we possess riches great
truthful
and eternally blissful
Do
we possess riche great
Beneficial
and admired by all
Do
we possess riche great
Ever charitable
and ever growing
Imparted
by devotion, concentration and teacher
Worthy
of worship by all
That
is riches of knowledge
Giver
of pleasures earthly and unearthly.”
Caused
inner struggle the rishi’s words sweet
Showed
the path ahead- generated interest anew
Glowed
his eyes with light endless and saw memories past
Born
in the mind the garland of ideas novel.
“
O, Maharshi! Strange is it
To
find me heart mellowed
Spoke
you about riches great
Hand
them over to me with speed.”
Grasping
the inner mind of the thief
Spoke
the rishi with love
“Awakened!
Good! But
Can
you get money so easily?
How
much violence might have you done !
How
much burden of sin might have you carried!
Without
grasping the mistake done knowingly
Can
you get the money most precious?
How
many hearts might have shattered under your axe!
How
many heads might have rolled on the earth !
How
many lives perished?
Need
not you think and grasp the error?
Those
who take money stolen by you
Through
such violence heinous
Those
kith and kin won’t share your sin
You
alone have to bear the burden.”
Looking
at rishi speaking from top to bottom
Nodding
his head in contemplation
Narrowing
his eye brows and gazing at the sky
Spoke
the thief with feeling gentle.
“Is
it so, Maharshi? Never did I think
That
my kith and kin who enjoy
Pleasures
form money stolen
Won’t
share the burden of my sin!
My
mind is perturbed greatly
My
soul is tortured by doubt
Would
I go home speedily to remove my doubt
And
return. Please, remain here !”
Saying
those words the thief
With
eyes filled with tears
Threw
down his axe and
Fell
at the lotus-feet of the Maharshi.
CLARIFICATION OF DOUBT
Gone
home amidst the deep forest the thief in a great hurry
“Oh!
Why does she come with empty hands in a rush
Looked
at him strangely his wife and sons
With
faces turned away , dejected and
despaired.
If
gold is brought, tender words
Smiles
and polite welcomes
Considering
the nature of wife and posture of his sons
Spoke
he to his wife.
“See!
If I can earn no longer
And
stay at home idle, what would you say?’
“
it’s your duty to take care of us
And
it’s injustice gross to sit idle.”
“
Along with the riches of others
Would
I fetch the sin like a hill
You
who partake riches of others
Would
you also share the fruit of my sins?”
“
Stop your words weird
In
stead of riches
Why
would we your bear sins and their means
Who
would bear the burden of others’ acts?”
With
his woman’s words vanished the darkness of ignorance
Which
covered the street of husband’s mind
With knowledge of truth and falsehood
Heedless
of cries of kith and kin went he for
progress human.
Show
mercy, Swami! I am a soul evil
Children
are sullied by selfishness and illusion
Grasped that philosophy
And
grant me a way out with compassion!
Vicious
guy am I ! walked evil paths in the dark night
Did many a evil deed with haughtiness of muscle
and soul wicked
Turned
penitent and I pray you to open my eyes
Come
rishis to make me do expiation! The
luminous divine!
Sages
supreme! Under the canopy of my mind
New
ideas a few have come to stay
Teachers
Pure! In the sky of my heart
Shining
are stars anew.
“Give
me humanity , Rishis!
Give
me nectar of peace and diamonds among sages!”
Drowned
his tears their lotus feet
And
his head in the tears of the latter.
While
pollution inner and outer gone
Entered
the Tamasa river
And
returned sage pure with Nishta
To
get teaching of mantra from rishi divine.
Samskaras
of past lives many
Emerged
at once- The mansion
Of
ideas beautiful and harmony
Filled
with melodies of auspicious dawn.
Meditating
‘Nama Sivaya’
The
Yogi imparted
Mantra
divine to the pure
Cancels
all sins the supreme boon
Meets
all purushardhas, holder of soul power
Got
rishi the nectar of Stchidanada
Miracle
of Taraka brahma.
Thus
turning the sinner into the holiest
Gone
the rishis at their pleasure
Grasping
the pearl of mantra
Glowed
the rishi new with light divine.
Giving the
Boon
Past
days and years
In
calm meditation of the saint
The
wheel of time turned times many
The
supreme sage won’t come out of his Samadhi
!
Gone
many years in your tapas-
How
much unperturbed the sage supreme
The
birds built their nests in his hair
Enveloped
the anthills the Maharshi’s unique
meditations!
Incarnation
of peace- abode of virtues pleasant
Soul
miraculous-famous entirely
Temple
of miracle great- shining like the Sun
The
purifier of the world- figure of truth
and kindness
The
form of dharmatapas
Flourishing with the holiest diksha.
The
giver of boons all, the ruler of Satyaloka
Emerged
before the Sage at once
To
meet Indra’s desire and wellbeing of the world
To
stop the great tapas of the rishi .
Keeping
the anthill to side
Touched
Brahma the rishi ;
Under the nectarine touch of the Creator
Opened his eyes the sage supreme.
“Up,
the sage supreme! Awaken from the anthill-
You are Valmiki from today onwards
Shining
in the light of infinite miracle
As
a new inspiration of poetic talent of tapas
transcendental
You
as me –as a form of message glowing of
universal welfare !
Praise
be to your resolution firm
I
arrived to bless you, Valmiki!
Given
you knowledge supreme
To
Earn the laurels of the world with history perfect !
Thus
vanished the Lotus-born
Leaving
the Sage after granting boons
Adorning
the ashram on the shore of tamasa
river.
MA NISHADAMU
To
the shore of river Tamasa
Went
Valmiki on that day
Like
the heart of a good man
The
stream was flowing full and pure.
The
shore of the river on that morning
serene
gorgeous shapes of waves of Tamasa
The
tirtha looked pleasing and peaceful
The
winds were pleasant and slow.
Those
creepers allied to trees
The
species of animals rapt in movement
The
profusion of clusters of fruits and flowers
Amazed radiating
beauty of nature.
Listening
and enjoying to the full
The
sounds melodious of the birds
Moving
in that deep forest
Forgetting
time and morning ablutions.
Forgotten
Valmiki in joy extreme
On
seeing a bird couple
Ecstatic
in each other’s company
On
the branch of a tree nearby.
Meanwhile
a nasty hunter
Aimed
an arrow at the couple
And
hit one of the birds
Fell
a bird Krauncha drenched in blood.
On
seeing the male bird fallen on the earth
The
female wept in great misery
On
noticing the agony of the bird
The
sage’s heart turned sad.
When
the Rishi raised his head
Fell
in his eye the evil hunter
The
sage’s sorrow turned into anger
A
curse issued out of his anger.
“In
the couple playing in union
You
killed one, oh, sinner!
Notoriety
is yours and your life is short.”
Proved
the sage’s words true and swift.
The sage’s sorrow
turned into wrath
The
wrath turned into curse and caused hunter’s death.
Most
compassionate Valmiki’s
Sorrow
became Sloka in sudden
Thus
it came out of his mouth
Thus
was born the first sloka.
The
beginning of literature worldly
The
first sloka was born like that
As
the mystery of first kavya
The
first song was born like that.
The
Sanskrit voice symmetrical
Issued
thus spontaneously
The
great sage reached ashrama
emerged the meaning of sloka into his soul.
“Slaying
the evil soul wrought by lust
Attained
glory Sri Rama Chandra! “
Thus
appeared a new meaning of sloka
Remembered
the tale told by Narada.
The
moon of Raghu dynasty ,
The
taker of Sita after breaking Shiva’s arrow
Saw
the sage Rama as ‘Bala ‘ (child)
Saw
Valmiki kalyan Rama.
Stood
before the sage
The
hero “Ayodhya” Rama
Going
to forest accompanied by his brother
and
Sita to fulfill his father’s desire.
Stood before the sage Sri Rama
who destroyed
the demons to rescue rishis
comforted
the brother Bharata
searched
the “Aranya ‘ (forest).
Stood before the sage Sri Rama
Who
reached the shore
of Pampa
Crowned
Sugriva the king of “Kishkinda”
Sent
Hanuman and others in search of Sita.
Saw
the Wise on the shores of the sea
Most
beautiful Rama’s brightness
The
great shape of idea of nature and man
Miracle
bound “Sundara” Mantra.
Stood
before Valmiki “Pattabhi” Rama
Who
killed Ravana , took Sita to Ayodhya
Cajoled
Bharata.
***
Reverberated
repeatedly in Rishi’s heart
Miraculous
‘Ma Nishadam”
He
felt most amazing experience
As
if it gave some message.
Appeared
Brahma before
Rishi
in contemplation.
“Happy
am I at your words tasty
Impressed
by your perspective kind
You
lit the “light of truth” to usher in Sankranti
Shaped Universal sloka in your heart.
Man
of life momentous!
You
became Adi Kavi
By
blessing great of mine
Write
the epic tale of Rama
The
man of pure fame
The
giver of four Pususharthas
And
the most handsome form in universe.
That
epic would live forever
Purges
the sins, famous in universe
Your
sentences would be true
Oh,
Valmiki!
Your
merits would multiply
From
nectarine steam of story of Rama.
The
koel of Valmiki sings
Ramayana
of sweetness
It perches
pleasantly on the branch
Of
Sanskrit poetry and sings ‘Rama’.
Put Maharshi his head
At
the feet of lord of Vani
The
lotus-born Brahma of compassion full
Blessed
the Rishi and turned invisible.
