Ramayan Part 25 - Years Roll By In The Forest Poem by Rajaram Ramachandran

Moving from place to place,
Blessed by the sages’ grace,
The forest life went in peace,
Thus ran ten years apace.

“Princely order you renounced,
Why then you pronounced,
That the demons be destroyed,
And the holy men protected.”

“How in this ascetic role,
You’ve the right to kill,
If they take up the fight,
You can then kill, as your right.”

“Why in haste you gave,
Sages your promise to save;
Committed you’re now
To kill demons with your bow.”

So pleaded Sita to Ram,
But Ram remained firm,
And said he couldn’t go back,
To his words, he would stick.

Thus ten years passed away,
They spent their life this way,
Protecting the sages virtuous,
And killing the demons vicious.

Ram went to Agasthya,
In south, on their way,
The sage embraced him
And then blessed him.

Many stories of Agasthya,
Like the sage Viswamitra,
Run in the spiritual world,
And are interestingly told.

Agasthya was sent to south,
To counterbalance north,
Where all the sages congregated,
When Shiva and Parvati married.

Vindhya Mountain grew tall,
In response to Heaven’s call,
He with his spiritual power,
Ordered it to flatten and lower.

Vatapi and Ilvala, the demons,
Gave trouble to the holy men.
“Vatapi enjoyed a terrible boon,
Dismembered, he'll still rise a full man.'

Ilvala cut Vatapi into pieces,
Mixed them in the food recipes,
Fed the holy men well
Thereafter made out a call.

“Vatapi come out”
When Ilvala cried out
Alive he came out
Tearing the guest’s gut.

Agasthya went one day,
When Ilvala acted this way,
Vatapi couldn’t come out,
With Sage’s power to digest.

It was this Sage mighty,
Ram had the opportunity,
To meet and get blessed,
That was what he wished.

Vishnu’s bow, he gave
Ram, the warrior brave
Received it more to save
The mankind from grave.

He advised the prince,
To go to Panchavati place,
And spend the remaining years,
In peace, with no fears.