shrIrAm rAmAnujam
The larger purpose of Sri Rama avatAram 1 of 5 Srimad Ramayana is regarded as sharaNAgati shastra by our AcharyAs. sharanAgati at various stages and khAnDams by many people are usually highlighted.
However often overlooked is the result or the fruit of the sharanAgati. Per our AchAryas, the simple act of bhagavad ArAdhanam is the greatest gift and lesson to be learned for life in bhulokam and forever in SriVaikuntam. With the most important part of aradhanam being neivedhyam or bhojyAsanam.+++(5)+++
Valmiki has highlighted important events that show us bhagavad aradhanam being performed by great bhagavatas and Perumal Himself to show its importance. However before talking about Perumal’s aradhanam, achArya (Vishwamitra) initiating SriRama is shown first.
Bala kANDam
pavitrotsavam
Vishwamitra not only brought to us gAyatri mantram. He is also the first documented person that performed gAyatri japam and bhagavad tiruvArAdhanam with vibhava avatAra perumal right in front of him.
It is said Viswamitra performed pavitrotsavam before anything else for all the penances and not feeding the antaryAmi perumal for many years.
Many of us know pavitrotsavam is performed in temples for lapses in performing daily aradhanam to Perumal. The biggest of those lapses are said to be neivedhyam to Perumal. During utsavams and generally too, quality, quantity consistency leads to lapses and not feeding the shareeram or overfeeding the shareeram is also considered incorrect.
This is expiated by performing homams for 3-10 days in a year at temples. And our participating in temples helps our antaryAmi perumal also.
After arguing for Rama as public property and needs to accompany him (aham vedmi mahAtmAnam rAmam satya parAkramam, Vasishata can vouch), Vishwamitra at the first stop, performs upadesham of the sacred mantras bala and atibala (BK Sa 22.Sh 9-12)
Those are said prevent hunger from taking over bodily functions and also keep the body fully satisfied. This is considered the first offering or aradhanam to Perumal and iLayazhwar. It would appear as if Vishwamitra lovingly offers this so Perumal’s quest to subdue Ravana is done so without the pangs of human hunger as Rama has owed to be atmAnAm mAnusham manye to be just a ordinary human sustaining only on truth.
Vishwamitras aradhanam where Ganga and Sarayu meet
And that night when the three of them halt on the banks of ganga, with thoughts of performing full aradhanan starting at day break, Vishwamitra starts with the famous line of suprabhAtam kousalya suprajA rAma pUrvA sandhya pravartate. It is said Vishwamitra offers all arghyams in sandhyavandanam and gayatri to Srirama and performs full aradhanam at the banks of river ganga that day.
Ahalya and Gautama rishi aradhanam
Ahalya knows Rama will come to give her moksham and is in tapas with Rama nAma japam. As soon as she gets her original stree roopam she gives arghyam, pAdyam to Sri Rama and Sri Valmiki adds, she lost no time to provide full hospitality with prasada naiveidyam-aradhanam to Perumal by feeding Him and iLAya Perumal BK.Sa49.Sh18 - “पाद्यमर्घ्यं तथातीथ्यं चकार सुसमाहिता” and it is said PerumAL gladly accepted the offering. When Rama reaches Mithila for Sita swayamvaram, SatAnanda eagerly asks Vishwamitra if his parents did ateetyam to Sri Rama and LakshmaNa with whatever was available in the forest, this also shows SatAnanda knew SriRama was paramAtma and the importance given to arAdhanam of Perumal. BK.Sa51.Sh4, 5
api rAmo mahAtejA mama mAtA yashasvini|
vanyai: upahArat pUjAm pUjArhe sarva dehinAm||
Srimad Tirukudandai Andavan makes an important observation about Vishwamitra not having a single shloka for Perumal tiruvadi that walked with him hundreds of miles in 10 days. Vishwamitra had enjoyed full Aradhanam for those days however, He apparently thought to himself, I am going to get someone in my vamsam/gotram. He is going to sing not 1, but 1000 shlokas on that tiruvadi. I cannot do justice to that tiruvadi right now. That is how Paduka sahasram was born, blessed by Vishwamitra maharishi himself!.
Ayodhya kANDam
ranganAtha AyK.Sa6.Sh1-4
Perumal’s aradhanam to Sri Ranganatha, Jagannatha. Valmiki mentions SriRama’s devotion and aradhanam to Perumal -
saha patnyA visAlAkshi nArAyaNamupAgamat |
on how Srirama with Sita worshipped nArAyaNa and mentions in the third shloka that He took the prasAda offered to His nArAyaNa - “seSam cha haviShastasya” .
He also sleeps in the sannidhi of Peria Perumal with thoughts on nArAyana - “dhyAyannArAyaNam devam”
Many of our acharyas talk at length about SriRama’s dedication and love for aradhanam to SriRanganAtha the paravAsudevan.
And have vouched that SriRama wanted to experience the pleasure of performing aradhanam and this was the sole purpose of the avatAram.
BharadwAja aradhanam - AyK.Sa54.Sh17,18
SriRama, Sita and Lakshmana reach prayAga after enjoying Guha’s hospitality. They look for smoke from the yAgashAla of BharadwAja ashramam and are treated to feast that this rishi is famous for. BharadwAja says he was expecting SriRama and had already heard about the vanavAsam. Offers to host him in His ashramam but SriRama declines the offer sighting proximity to Ayodhya. Valimiki says BharadwAja arranged for a variety of preparations from wild roots and fruits - nAnAvidhAn rasAn vanyamUlya phalAshrayAn |
Valmiki aradhanam - AyK.Sa56Sh17
BharadwAja rishi recommends his guru vAlmIki’s ashramam for SriRama to set up vanavAsa ashramam before proceeding to danDakAraNya. When they reach chitrakooTam, vAlmIki who is going to document Srimad Ramayana in the future, with ultimate humility adds just one shlokam in the whole itihAsam of his part in receiving and honoring SriRama .
Of course most famous is BharadwAjA’s aradhanam of Bharata and also bhAratA’s aradhanam of PerumAl’s divyamaNi pAduka, the kainkaryam he got for his sharaNAgati that most already know.
AraNya kANDam - shabarI
Sa 74 Sh 12, 13 Aradhanam by various rishis are numerous, however the most significant aradhanam is that is Shabari’s. She has her acharyAs kaTAksham, and is blessed by them to wait for 14 yrs. As soon as Rama enters chitrakootam, she is instructed to perform SriRama aradhanam before she can attain moksham.
Until then she is satisfied doing acharya aradhanam in matanga vanam.
When SriRama reaches her ashramam, she performs a full aradhanam to Perumal. Chakravarthi Tirumagan is instructed by Kabanda to seek Sugriva’s sakhyam and visit Shabari.
Perumal shows no emotions, does not ask, lament, cry about Sita. Until reaching her ashramam He was in a pitiful state for losing Sita, fighting with Kabanda. However as soon as He sees Sabari, all he asks is about her achAram, anushTAnam and accepts full aradhanam by the devoted Sabari. Not once does He enquire or mention Sita’s loss to this bhAgavatottama Shabari.
Kishkinda kANDam - Sugriva’s aradhanam of Perumal -Kk.Sa5.Sh13-21
The aradhanam is celebration of the sakhyam or contract of Perumal with Sugriva. Hanuman makes agni and they perform pUja, archana to agni indirectly to Perumal. Sugriva offers Perumal a seat with trunk of sAlavriksha laden with flowers-
“bhanktvA shAkhAm supushpitAm,
sAlasyAstIrya sugrIvo niSasAda sarAghava: |”
It is here our achAryAs point out that Sugriva leaves out Lakshmana pUja not once but twice.
However tiruvadi Hanuman tries to make up with a better seat mArutAtmaja offers lakshmaNa shAkhAm chandanavRkshasya dadau parama pushpitAm. vAlmIki points out, it is not just a sandalwood branch but one with lots of flowers, as if doing archana.
The lapse in Sugriva’s aradhanam to perumAls parivAram costs him the first day’s fight with Vali, point out our achAryas.
sundara kANDam - Perumal offering Himself to Hanuman
The ArAdhanam of sundara kANDam is seen Yuddha kANDa 1st sarga. It appears as if vAlmIki wants to sanctify Yuddha kANDam with mangaLam.
However Swami Desikan who uses just one shlokam in Raghuveera gadyam to summarize Sundara kANDam says -
kapivara parishvanga
bhAvita sarvasva dAna.
He includes the act of Perumal as the epitome of sundara kANDam.
The speed of Hanuman crossing the ocean and return, setting Lanka on fire and His parishvangam of Hanuman is the essence of Upanishads say
ahamannam ahamannam ahamannam
we offer ourselves to Perumal as His consumable and He gladly gives Himself to us, He is fully satiated by offering himself to us.
As Hanuman presents the good news of finding Sita, Hanuman is given parishvangam which is Perumal’s tirumeni itself and this is the highest aradhanam or gift that Swami Desikan calls sarvasva dhAna . He gave in bhUlokam what other get in SriVaikuntam.
Yuddha kANDam
BharadwAja’s aradhanam to Perumal along with pArAyaNam of Srimad Ramayanam in front of Perumal.
As Perumal is returning to Ayodhya in pushpaka vimAnam after rAvaNa samhAram, they stop over at BhardwAjA’s ashramam again to complete the journey where they started. BharadwAja not only performs ArAdhanam to Perumal but asks SriRama to leave the next day and ask for a boon.
And KaruNAkara Rama asks for ALL the trees to be blooming with fruits and honey along the way so every monkey accompanying Him can have a sumptuous feast. The trees were said to have the look similar to the ones in SriVaikuntam. Perumal’s offering to the vAnarAs! - UK.Sa124.Sh19,20
There were two people in Ramayana that CAME to Perumal to perform SaranAgati. Bharata and Vibeeshana. Perumal gave away His Paduka to the first one. And to the second person gave away His aradhana perumal Himself. Vibeeshana wishes to perform aradhanam to Peria Perumal SriRanganatha. However sarveshwaran, svatantram decides kaveri madhya deshe mRdutari phaNirAd bhogya paryanka bhAge..as His home.
Uttara kANDam - vAlmIki’s aradhanam of Sita piratti
When Sita is left near vAlmIki’s ashramam, Her stay and vAlmIki’s aradhanam is said to have given birth to not only Lava and Kusha but Srimad RamayaNam too. tAyAr kaTAksham was needed for this great itihAsa to be born through vAlmIki as a gift or reward for his aradhanam when the divya dampati’s visited chitrkootam for the first time.
And it is said that vAlmIki wanted to see the divya dampatI’s together again in chitrakooTam as He did in Ayodhya kANDam, and that’s how Perumal took avatAram in thilla tiruchitrakooTam divya desam as Govinda rAjan getting arAdhanam to this day.