Ram Navami, Ram Rajya and Corona Virus....

Ram Navami, Ram Rajya and Corona Virus....

It is Ram Navami today , a day to celebrate the birth of Lord Rama. The seventh avataar of Vishnu, born to King Dasharath and Queen Kausalya is known as maryada purushottam, one who adhered to principles of being a disciplined human. Unlike Lord Krishna , he never revealed that he was an avataar of Vishnu at any point.
His life was full of trials and hardships but he went through it with stoic calm. His sense of obedience towards his father when he accepted the exile for fourteen years, his devotedness towards his wife, Sita Devi when he confesses that despite being a Kshatriya King she would be his only wife, his love for his mother and affection for his brothers and above all his sense of duty towards the citizens are well-known examples which set him apart.
It is also a well-known fact that Lord Ram was sent to exile on the insistence of Queen Kaikeyi. Her desire, to wish the best for her son Bharat was kindled by Manthara, who was her family servant.
By herself , Queen Kaikeyi appears to be naive expressing joy when she first heard about Lord Ram being crowned as king for she believes that her son Bharat being next in the lineage would later follow him . However Manthara poisons her mind successfully and coaxes her to ask for the two boons which Lord Dasharath had promised her when she had helped him win a war against Lord Indra. Fully convinced by the desire to give the best to her son which was fanned by her ego to be queen mother she unabashedly asks for the two boons which include the crown for her son Bharat and a fourteen year exile for Lord Ram.
Lord Dashrath gets caught in the web of his own karma. It was he who had promised two boons to Kaikeyi when she had helped him win a war. He was therefore in dilemma where he would be spoling the name of his dynasty by breaching a promise and at the same time he would be doing injustice to Lord Rama if he sent an innocent, righteous son and the true successor of Ayodhya to exile.
Kaikeyi ultimately had her way and Lord Ram being an avataar of Lord Vishnu unflinchingly accepts the exile. Sita Devi joins him to fulfil her duty as a devoted wife and Lakshman is duti bound by himself and his mother as he also chooses to go with Ram.
Shocked by the sequence of events King Dashrath severes his relationship with Kaikeyi and ultimately dies with remorse.
Kaikeyi's son Bharat who is away during the course of these happenings returns only to be shocked. He also proclaimed that henceforth Kaikeyi would remain a queen and not his mother. He also relinquished his right to the throne and ruled on behalf of Lord Ram by keeping his paduka on the throne.
Kaikeyi's victory remained pyrhhic. She lost her husband's love and respect and even his life along with her son's affection. All that she garnered was anger and hatred from all quarters.
It is said that she too realised her mistake and spent her life in repentance. She also did great penance to overcome the burden of her actions. She had learnt a lesson in her life only too late. She could do nothing which could bring back her husband's life or his love and affection. In the process she lost the love of her son and also her near and dear ones. All the remorse and repentance in the world could not get back her peace of mind.
However if one looks at the context, her actions were based on the spur of the moment when “time” had overtaken her consciousness and had used her as a medium for the order of events to take place. It was as if she was playing her part in the bigger game.
Srimad Bhagavata Puran also says that Kaikeyi had once pledged to destroy the Asura clan and she therefore needed to send Rama to exile. On his return to Ayodhya Lord Ram is also believed to have said to Kaikeyi that her task was completed. There are many legends in history .
They all teach us many lessons like never promise anything in joy just like King Dasharath who had promised two boons in a hurry to Kaikeyi. One must also not take any decisions when angry. One must exercise caution against poisoning of our minds by persons like Manthara. 

It also teaches us that God always forgives those who repent for their wrongs from their heart. Kaikeyi's deeds were also forgiven by Lord Ram and his mother Kausalya.
The most important lesson is to be learnt from Lord Ram himself. Despite being the eldest son along with capability and qualities of the head and heart he is deprived of his right on the eve of his coronation. Added to it he has to head to the forest and live a life of uncertainties. He accepts all this without a whimper and finds joy in living in the forest, befriending human and animals and taking care of them. This is so much in contrast to our modern world when smallest of discomfort or a loss of position makes us unstable.
The present crisis and our fight against corona virus teaches us to practice social distancing , use masks, wash our hands frequently and maintain hygiene. We also need to follow the instructions issued by the Government and its authorities from time to time. The example set by Lord Ram can be an eye opener to each one of us to put our lives back on the track, give up on our materialistic dreams and work towards setting up an ideal state because Ram Rajya is no utopia but a state in which the ruler and the ruled both work together to create a progressive society where there is no poverty, pain, grief or discrimination.