Kambar Again - Will You Welcome Him? I am Not Sure!

Dear Vandhana,
Thanks for accepting my explanation.
After reading two books on Sundara Kandam one by Indra Soundarajan (I met him in person to hand over my book Manase to him; he personally wrote a letter and enclosed his Sundara Kaandam book as a gift to me) and the other by Suki Sivam, I am impressed by Anjaneya in many ways. So there will be more to come on Him.
regards,
sridhar

Dear Malathy,

Being responded to by Induslady herself, well, I feel like having entered the Hall of Fame already, though I have light years to travel! It is similar to Bill Gates coming down to a programmers desk and appreciating the work.

I am happy that you and Jey liked this posting.

Far from taking offence, I loved the title you have conferred on me, Vambukkara Varalotti. Had you done this by June 2005 my user ID here in IL will be that word. Vambu, in this sense it does not mean gossip, is the spice of life. And in a forum with lots of Indian ladies who love spicy food, vambu has always a role to play.

But honestly in this case I did not know the second explanation till I posted it on Monday. A sudden half an hour time gap in work (perhaps Sita Devi granted it) and a fresh reading of the third verse I posted gave me the explanation as a flash.

While this is true, I still love your way of explanation, of my being VV, drawing crowds to my thread with some controversy. I have done that a hundred times before.

I want my threads to be democratic forums where I give liberty to the readers to condemn me (believe me, ILites have done that) make fun of me (have done that a million times) or blast my words (are still doing it) That makes life and IL a very interesting propostion.

Thanks once again Malathy for your visit. As we say in sanskrit
shobanaarthe kshemaya punaraagaman aaya cha
For the welfare and well being of all of us, may your visit happen again.
regards,
sridhar

Dear Vidhi,

the greatest thrill in posting in IL is this interesting exchange of views. While it is true that I provoke the ladies with my controversial or bold thoughts, they in turn provoke me with their strong responses. Then I come out again and this interesting game continues till all of us have perfectly understood the concept and the context.

The only difference between me and your malayalam teacher is this. There you can escape when the bill rings. But here it is I who ring the warning bells. So there is no escape. Howzzat?

Thanks Vidhi for your nice words,
sridhar

Most Gracious ILites,

At present I am enjoying the unique privilege of wishing 3000 plus ladies on this wonderful site, "Happy Valentine's Day."

As the technology of giving electronic roses has not yet been refined and made commercially available, I am offering the roses which Kambar offered on the happy occasion of Sita eyeing Rama in the streets of Mithila.

As part of Valentines Day celebrations please visit the thread
Happy Valentines Day! Let's Celebrate With KC Kambar!
and leave your comments there.

This time, Ladies, you will have do more than just praising or criticising, which you have been doing all these days. Want to know the details? Please visit the thread.

Take care, play safe and have a great Valentines day!
regards,
sridhar

Originally Posted by varalotti

Most Gracious ILites,


There has been an unanimous voice of dissent among the ILites regarding the first verse I have chosen for this thread, Sriranjani’s being, the most strident of all.

I am now using the opportunity of representation, an undeniable right of the accused, to do two things. One is offer an explanation (likely to be turned down by the gracious ladies) and two providing a compensation by choosing another verse where Sita and womanhood is glorified.

Sita is Mahalakshmi and as some one pointed out she could have burnt the entire Lanka, Ravana and his clan included, and could have flown back to her husband. But Dear Ladies, Ramayana, especially the way Kambar narrated it, is not theology, is not even sacred literature, but a spiritually profound love story.


It is Sita’s love for Rama that prevents her from taking any action against Ravana. She wants Rama to come for her, to wage a war against the demons and then rescue her.

Sita is Goddess Herself. For her to annihilate Ravana would take no time. Yet, out of her boundless love for Rama, she opts to wait.

Women always do that. I have known many women who might be the General Managers and CEOs of companies. They might have the money power to buy the entire Flower Market in the town. But they would lovingly wait for their husband to get, as we say in Tamil, “oru muzham poo.” (the minimum quantity of flowers sold as strung together) That is the state of Sita.


Thus the poem is not exhibiting Sita’s weakness; it is a tribute to her love. And believe me ladies, there are thousands of Sitas, who though they are more qualified and more competent than their husbands and could have easily outshone them in their career paths, have opted to be a prisoner at home, have opted to subdue themselves, out of love for their partner.

There is also a spiritual dimension to Sita’s grief. The mystics compare it with the longing of the soul for God. Sita, though being powerful to take action, remains silent, just to make it clear, that God’s love is not won by efforts. You cannot do anything to get God’s grace. The very word Anugraham for grace means that it descends on us, on its own. It is not a reward for our efforts; it is the culmination of our love for God and His love for us.

And now the compensation.

Hanuman has returned to Rama, his mission accomplished. Given his bakthi for Rama, and given the fact that he has not seen Rama for days, he should have fallen at his feet.

But he does not do that. He has now seen Sita. Naturally he thinks that she deserves his devotion more. So he turned in the opposite direction, in the direction of Lanka, and fell down, folding his hands in an utmost state of reverence. And then went on to sing her praises.


எய்தினென் அனுமனும் எய்தி ஏந்தல்தன்
மொய்கழல் தொழுகிலன் முளரி நீங்கிய
தையலை நோக்கிய தலையன் கையினன்
வையகம் தழீஇ நெடிது இறைஞ்சி, வாழ்த்தினான்

Hanuman reached Rama and having reached,
Did not worship at his ankle-laden feet
Instead he turned his head
Towards the Goddess of Wealth
Who has left her lotus abode
To be born as Sita in this world
And folding his hands in reverence
Prostrated in her direction
And sung her praises!


In most of the marriages, you can always find the wife sacrificing much more than her husband to sustain the marriage.

A speaker in Tamilnadu said that there is no renunciation, the process of becoming a sanyasi for women in Hindu religion. When a feminist objected that this was chauvinism and that she would fight for that right, the speaker calmly replied, for women the sanyas happens at the time of marriage. What is sanyas? A man leaves behind all those he loves and goes into the forest. A woman also leaves behind all of those whom she loves (her mother, father, brothers, sisters and even friends) and goes to live in her husband’s place, which incidentally can be more dangerous than a forest.

While taking sanyas the man changes his name. Thus Rajesh Kumar can become Swami Nithyananda. So does the wife when she gets a new name from her husband. In Hindu religion her gothram also changes.

Hanuman should have had all these things in his mind when he bowed to Sita in Rama’s presence. It is a beautiful moment when a naisthika brahmachari like Hanuman proclaims the supremacy of women for all time to come.

There is also another explanation. That Hanuman wanted to convey to Rama that Sita is safe on the otherside of the ocean. There was no need to worry.

Being a die-hard romantic as I am I would rather prefer the first one. Kambar, I am sure, would have also endorsed my choice.

Have I done my part, Ladies?
varalotti

VERY APT!!! LOVED READING THIS!