By: Sri Radhakrishna Swamiji
Sai Baba venerated Lord Ramachandra. He directed his devotee Mother Khaperde to chant ‘Rajaram Rajaram’ to cross the ocean of life. When some devotee asked him about his birthday, he said ‘Rama’s birthday is my Jayanti too’. To his intimate devotee Kaka Dixit, he directed the Yoga Vasishta which narrates the dialogue between Sage Vasishta and Prince Rama, the essence of which is that one attains something only by making the effort. Sai Baba pointed that to leave things to the divine is ideal. Making appropriate efforts leads to the desired result. Acting in accordance with devotion to Rama leads one to happiness and prosperity. Sai Baba insisted one should be upright and give up vices. Actions build destiny and the root cause of actions lies in vasana, a memory of sensual pleasures, therefore, one gets what one craves for.
Meditating upon Lord Ramachandra is true contemplation, which is accompanied by good sense and leads to detachment. Getting involved with worldly things is the biggest ailment, the cure for which is true contemplation on Rama. One cannot realize the Rama by visiting holy places or by making donations but only through constant remembrance of Rama. Meditation on Rama erases ego.
To get firmly rooted in the Self one needs to follow the right path and be virtuous. There is no difference between the one firmly rooted in Self and Brahman. Sage Vasishta exhorts Rama, performs his duties, enjoys the kingdom, looks after people, and goes with Maharshi Vishwamitra.
Rama is called ‘Maryada Purushotham’. The character and conduct of
Rama are an example of how he applied this knowledge in his life. He accompanied Vishwamitra to protect his yajna and killed rakshasas, broke the Shiv-Dhanush, married Sita, and returned to Ayodhya as crown prince. On the eve of his coronation, he is asked to leave the royal palace and go to the jungles for 14 years. But this does not upset him, rather he happily leaves for the jungle. His wife Sita is kidnapped by Ravana, yet he remains balanced and plans for her rescue. He does not side with Vali, the powerful king who had defeated Ravana but is friends with Sugreeva, who was weak and oppressed by Vali, yet was upright. He gladly ate defiled berries offered by Shabari. He restored the dignity and honor of Ahalya, who was exiled by her husband, Maharshi Gautam. He crossed the sea by building a bridge across it. He gave shelter to Vibhishana, the younger brother of Ravana; took nothing for himself from Lanka after defeating Ravana and made Vibhishana the king of Lanka.
Rama respected the wisdom of even a defeated enemy and asked Lakshmana, his younger brother, to learn about the duties of a king from Ravana. He fulfilled all his duties with equanimity and when he was informed that the time had come for him to depart, he walked into the River Sarayu and got submerged. Through his exemplary conduct, Rama established the highest ideals of human behavior, which is why he is venerated as Maryada Purushottama and as Bhagavan Rama.
Sai Baba encouraged the worship of Lord Rama and insisted that his devotees constantly recite ‘Ram Nam’.
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