#RAM_NAVAMI
The Ramcharitmanas, composed by Goswami Tulsidas, is a treasure held most dear throughout Hindustan—the jewel upon the brow and to many, dearer than life itself. In the homes of Hindi speakers, this sacred text is recited with reverence at festivals and in kirtan gatherings held for every occasion. Touched by the hand of a great soul, this mighty work overflows with the nectar of devotion; even the illiterate masses find profound joy in listening to its recitation, and those who themselves read and sing its verses find solace in sorrow and are lifted upon waves of devotional rapture. Because Hindi has not been widely propagated, this work's influence has not yet spread as fully among the Bengali-speaking regions.
The Ramayana is not merely a collection of historical events—it is rather a repository of the various doubts and perplexities that arise in a person's life under different circumstances, and through its myriad narratives and paths, it offers solutions to the fundamental question of how one must discern and fulfill one's duty.
The finest aspect of Sanatana Dharma philosophy lies in this: it teaches humanity above all else the performance of one's own prescribed duties—dharma is repeatedly declared to be action itself. For this reason, followers of Sanatana Dharma have neither the time nor the occasion to meddle in the affairs of those who follow other paths. The principle that one should not busy oneself with others' homes when one's own house stands in need of work—no school of thought within Sanatana Dharma has ever endorsed such conduct. The instruction to honor and tolerate differing paths and doctrines is an inseparable part of Sanatana Dharma's theoretical and practical foundation. Every human being must continually fulfill familial, social, political, and spiritual duties. These duties may appear contradictory at first glance, yet it is through harmonizing all of them and acting accordingly that dharma is truly established and the welfare of humanity is assured—this is the great ideal of the Ramayana. The text also elaborates in manifold ways upon questions of statecraft, the proper relation between king and subject, and the place of public will.
Knowledge and power acquired through spiritual practice become worthy of humanity only when they are employed for the welfare of the many. When one becomes consumed with greed, plunders wealth from all directions, and inflicts terrible suffering upon the masses, the demonic nature crystallizes—in the sense conveyed by verse 9:12 of the Bhagavad Gita—and Ravana is its embodiment. No matter how mighty and glorious his power appears, its only outcome is destruction. When unrighteousness assumes a vast form, the Divine descends to establish dharma. Through His celestial touch, even the weak, the uneducated, the lowborn can become filled with courage, vigor, and wisdom, manifesting tremendous power.
The teaching of the Gita—that to uphold truth and conduct oneself accordingly, one must bear upon one's shoulders the sorrows and griefs of the world, and that this is the very duty and dharma of being human—shines forth luminously in the narrative of Rama's life. Tulsidas has woven family, society, king, and the King of Kings together with the delicate yet unbreakable threads of truth-keeping and devotion. Divine devotion is the sole treasure humanity must strive to gain; through it alone can harmony and equilibrium be achieved, and once it is attained, all else in the world is won.
The ancient sacred texts and literary works of our tradition speak of the Eight Perfections. The Eight Perfections (ashta-siddhi, eight forms of knowledge) refer to eight varieties of divine knowledge which, when attained by a seeker, grant him supreme understanding in all matters. Ganesha is called the Bestower of Perfections, and these Eight Perfections are invoked during worship of Ganesha. In the thirty-first couplet of the Hanuman Chalisa, composed by the devotee Tulsidas, it is written:
Ashta-siddhi nava-nidhi ke data,
As var din'ha janaki mata..
(Thou art the giver of the Eight Perfections and the Nine Treasures,
Which thou hast received as a boon from Mother Janaki.)
Translation: By the grace of Mother Sita, thou art the Bestower of the Eight Perfections and the Nine Treasures. (Through Mother Sita's boon, Hanuman is not merely the possessor of the Eight Perfections and Nine Treasures—he was always their master—but he becomes their giver as well; that is, through the worship of Hanuman, one attains these eight perfections and nine treasures.)
Because Hanuman is an incarnation of Rudra, he was endowed from birth with the Eight Perfections and the Nine Treasures. Mother Sita blessed him and granted him the power to bestow these Eight Perfections and Nine Treasures upon others. It is worth noting that when Hanuman went to Lanka in search of Sita, he employed the perfection called "anima" to enter the enemy's stronghold. When he reached Sita's presence, he again used the power of anima to assume a subtle form, so that Mother Sita would not be frightened upon seeing him. Again, using another perfection called "mahima," Hanuman outwitted the demons and defeated the demon army in battle. Hanuman also employed the perfection known as "garima" when he deliberately allowed himself to be captured by Meghnad in order to appear before Lanka's lord Ravana. His purpose in employing the perfection of "garima" while imprisoned in Ravana's court was this: to demonstrate to the most powerful demon-king Ravana the strength of Lord Rama's servant; to strike fear into Ravana's heart; to make him realize that if the servant of the Lord possesses such power, how immeasurable must be the power of the Lord himself. He employed the perfection of "mahima" in such a manner that the mighty demon-king Ravana himself proved unable to lift Hanuman's tail.
According to the scriptures, the Eight Perfections are: anima, mahima (or kamavaasayita), garima, laghima, prapti, prakamya, ishitva (or ishita), and vashitva (or vashita). Each perfection governs certain qualities of nature or character, and a seeker who has mastered all eight perfections becomes the possessor of all the qualities that these eight perfections control. Below is an explanation of these eight varieties of perfection:
Anima: Upon attaining this perfection, a seeker gains the power to contract his own body as he wishes; however, anima cannot be used to expand the body's form. One who possesses this perfection becomes capable of making his body infinitesimally small—even atomic in nature. The most remarkable application of this perfection is seen in the Sundara Kanda of the Ramayana, where Hanuman enters Lanka in search of Mother Sita. As he moves about Lanka searching for Sita, Hanuman employs anima to make his body so subtle that the demon guards of Lanka cannot see him.
Mahimā: The power to assume any material form at will or on whim, to harness and concentrate the force of one's divine wealth and luminous power—the attainment of such a siddhi is called mahimā, or the acquisition of greatness. With its aid, a practitioner can increase his physical form. Without the attainment of this siddhi, the attainment of aṇimā siddhi remains incomplete, for aṇimā merely helps to contract the body; it is through the application of mahimā that a contracted form can be made vast again. In the Laṅkākāṇḍa of the Rāmāyaṇa, when Lakṣman fell unconscious from the powerful shaft hurled by Rāvaṇ, Hanumān applied mahimā to transform himself into a colossus so that he might bring the Sumeru mountain along with the life-restoring herb. He wielded this siddhi to save Lakṣman's life. Another instance of mahimā's application is found in Hindu scripture in the account of Lord Viṣṇu's Vāman incarnation. To quell the arrogance of the demon-king Bali, Lord Viṣṇu takes the form of a dwarf. When the demon-king Bali promises to give the Vāman three paces of land, the dwarf incarnation applies mahimā, assumes a colossal form, and with his three strides conquers heaven, earth, and the underworld.
Garimā: This siddhi enables the practitioner to alter the weight of his body. Through it, a practitioner can make his body heavy, from slight to extremely weighty. The body becomes so ponderous at such times that it is no longer possible to move or shift the body or any of its limbs. When Aṅgad, the commander of Śrī Rām's forces and the young prince of Kiṣkindhyā, came as Rām's emissary to Rāvaṇ's royal court, he placed his foot in such a manner that none of Rāvaṇ's courtiers could move it. Aṅgad had then applied garimā. Another instance of garimā's application is found in the Mahābhārata. To humble Bhīm of his arrogance concerning his mighty strength, Hanumān took the form of an old monkey and lay across Bhīm's path. When Bhīm arrived, Hanumān asked him to move his tail and pass, but despite his immense power, Bhīm failed to lift that tail. In that moment, Hanumān applied garimā.
Laghimā: This is the exact opposite of garimā. The relationship between garimā and laghimā is much like that between aṇimā and mahimā—inverse and complementary. Laghimā helps the practitioner diminish the weight of his body. Through its application, a practitioner can make his body so light that he becomes capable of flying in the sky or even walking upon water. It was by applying this siddhi that Hanumān was able to soar across the ocean. Apart from Hanumān, various other deities and demons were capable of wielding this siddhi.
Prāpti: Obtainment stands utterly distinct from the four siddhis that precede it. With its aid, the practitioner may acquire whatever he desires from any place; he gains the power to bring knowledge of past, present, and future under his command. Anima, mahima, garima, and laghima relate to the form and weight of the body, yet prāpti is not of their kind. Through prāpti, the practitioner can instantly procure any object according to his will. By this siddhi's application, the adept can obtain his most coveted things from nothingness itself. When we read the ancient Hindu scriptures—the Puranic texts—we encounter many deities and demons who mastered this siddhi's use; we see the gods themselves obtaining objects from the void to bestow as boons upon their devotees. The demons, too, would acquire weapons and arms from nothing.
Prākāmya: This is a siddhi that aids the practitioner in extending the span of life, in fulfilling any desire, and in granting the strength never to despair. Beyond this, through prākāmya's application, the practitioner becomes capable of shifting location in an instant, journeying to any place of his choosing, and even surviving beneath water. In truth, prākāmya's application enables the adept to harmonize himself with his environment. Hindu scriptures abound with references to sages and seers, deities, demons, and the 'Chiranjivis'—those who, having mastered this siddhi, could sustain life in the depths of waters or extend their lifespan at will. (The 'Chiranjivis' are a company of the 'immortals' who, according to Hindu literature, are believed to remain upon the earth until the end of the present age, known as the 'Kali Yuga'.)
Īśitā: Through this siddhi's application, the practitioner can command nature itself according to his will, creating wondrous things in any place or destroying whatever he desires. The power to bring forth the new and make the old vanish in the realm of creation—this acquisition is called īśitā. When a practitioner attains this siddhi, he becomes capable of rotating the earth at his pleasure or summoning rain. Through īśitā's application, every phenomenon of nature comes under the control of the practitioner's will. In the Puranic Hindu texts, we encounter many deities who, through this siddhi's exercise, could cause a tree to grow in a moment or bring down rain from the heavens.
Vaśitā: The eighth and final siddhi is 'vaśitā,' through whose application the practitioner can control the minds of others. By this siddhi's use, it is possible to command not merely human minds but those of all living beings below mankind as well. Thus, through vaśitā's application, one can subdue the minds of wild beasts and those bereft of mental equilibrium—indeed, the practitioner can control even inert matter solely through his will—bringing every creature of creation into submission becomes for him merely a matter of a glance! The various avatars of Lord Vishnu demonstrate this siddhi's application. Through vaśitā's exercise, they have subdued countless enraged beasts and men at different times.