A
gift for his Lord
(Dec 09th2001)
He left his relatives and weapons outside the hermitage, before
he even reached its doorsteps.
When
love rules high
(Dec 10th2001)
Guha had taken along with him honey and something unimaginable
with him when he went to meet Rama…
The
Unbounded bound in love
(Dec 11th2001)
“If what is offered is suffused with love and devotion, it is
sacred for the likes of me,” Rama said.
A
brother in the making
(Dec 12th2001)
Note the word ‘friend.’ This is the first endearing term
that Rama uses and establishes a personal relationship between
him and Guha…
Stay
with us
(Dec 13th2001)
Guha’s mind was working on something else. Rama was asked live
in the forest. He wanted his Lord to stay with him…
Where
He resides…
(Dec 14th2001)
Guha was one such person who fulfilled all the conditions that
Huxley speaks of. That was why the Lord was close to him.
The
language of love
(Dec 15th2001)
Guha spoke the language of love and Rama knew that the only way
to make him understand is to speak to him in the same
language…
Be
like Bharata
(Dec 16th2001)
‘When you become my brother, your people become mine. If you
come with us, our people would have none to lead or protect
them,’ Rama told Guha.
He
is here to harm
(Dec 17th2001)
Guha concluded that Bharata was here to cause harm to Rama, so
typically like Lakshmana…
The
preparation
(Dec 18th2001)
‘Bharata has not realised one thing. He has to cross this
Ganges before he could reach my Lord. And he needs our service
to do so.’
The
innermost self of Guha
(Dec 19th2001)
Going by the final word of Rama, Guha should have actually said
‘sagOdharan endru avar solliya sol oru sol andrO?’ Did he
not call me his brother?
The
innermost self of Guha II
(Dec 20th2001)
The words that slip out when a person is excited may be
unintended. But very often they do hold a clue to his
personality…
The
innermost self of Guha III
(Dec 21st2001)
Even when such a beautiful relationship has developed between
Sri Rama and himself, Guha is not able to see it. His modesty is
preventing him…
As
one perceives
(Dec 22nd2001)
The world is what one perceives to be. The situation and the
perception may not match!
The
realisation
(Dec 23rd2001)
Guha saw Bharata from a distance. All his rage was quenched in a
moment. He was frozen by what he saw and stood there with a
dropped jaw…
Inference
and verification
(Dec 24th2001)
‘He looks very much like my Lord. He is wearing the same
attire, as does my Lord. That gives me a clue,’ thought Guha…
“The
most unkindest cut”
(Dec 25th2001)
I hope, you do not intend to do (any bodily) harm in this forest
to Lakshmana (his younger brother) and the highly illustrious
prince Sri Rama…
What
brings you here?
(Dec 26th2001)
Bharadwaja, as we saw above, did know the real feelings that
were surging in the heart of Bharata. Yet he chose to tease
Bharata…
Who
touched whose feet?
(Dec 27th2001)
He paid his obeisance to he who came before him and fell at his
feet. He who is worshipped even by He who is seated on the Lotus
fell at his feet…
Who
touched whose feet? II
(Dec 28th2001)
The argument is that Guha doesn’t have that kind of glory and
this third line should be interpreted to mean ‘Guha fell at
the feet of Bharata…
Who
touched whose feet? III
(Dec 29th2001)
And that’s how Guha’s evolution from a mere hunter to
someone whose glory is to be thought of and celebrated takes
shape.
The
glory of a thousand Ramas…
(Dec 30th2001)
‘If you follow the path of rectitude so meticulously that you
throw away the throne that fell on your laps, your glory is
extremely great,’ Guha said…
The
seed and the plant
(Dec 31st2001)
Crossing the river is a very vivid scene in Kamban - a virtual
verbal painting. He takes the basic material from Valmiki and
works upon it…
The
seed and the plant II
(Jan 01st2002)
‘Kamban has very carefully followed Valmiki, using his own
wealth of imagination, making the drama exceedingly
beautiful’, says Rajaji.
The
introduction of the queens
(Jan 02nd2002)
He notices Kausalya first, who being the senior of the three,
comes first. Her very appearance makes Guha to feel ever so
reverent about her…
Kausalya’s
response
(Jan 03rd2002)
How could this happen at all! How could she sound so very much
like Rama! Was it because she was the mother of Rama? Or was it
the other way about…
The
mother of woes and nurse of infamy (Jan
04th2002)
Bharata then ventures into the choicest of vituperative remarks.
‘Don’t you know her by her very appearance? Does she need to
be introduced?
The
twist in the drama (Jan
05th2002)
This drama takes place in Bharadwaja Ashrama in Valmiki
Ramayana. It is Bharadwaja who asks the questions that Guha
asks…
Rama
remembers Guha
(Jan 06th2002)
It is this simpleton that Rama is thinking of - even after the
passage of fourteen long, long years - and attaching so much
importance to him…
The
story of a devotee (Jan
07th2002)
The story takes a different shape in Kamban He shows Guha
getting the news of Rama’s arrival…
In the following pages we present a study of various major and minor characters of the Ramayana as told by Valmiki and Kamban. This study attempts to go into the character sketch, analyse the different ways in which the two poets have constructed their drama with liberal direct quotations and interpretations. These pages are sure to delight the heart of the devotee as well as the litterateur. Click on a link below to access all the articles under each character. Happy reading!
Ramayana – a character study
By
Hari Krishnan
Epics Generalia
The epics and their
relevance - (Feb. 23rd 2001)
You must read the story as a human story, lived among human beings, by a human being, and, then, Oh, what rich treasures there are of wisdom in it!
