Rama Navami: The Birthday of Rama
“Bhaye prakat kripala” from Rama Charit Manas of Tulsidas
The beautiful hymn written by Tulsidas Goswami has become extremely popular. But it points to issues from Hinduism that we seem to have forgotten in our devotional fervor
Rama Navami is celebrated as the birthday of Rama, the seventh incarnation of Vishnu. According to the Hindu calendar Ram Navami falls on the 9th day of the bright fortnight of the month of Chaitra. This year it will be celebrated on Sunday, the 13th of April by the Hindu community worldwide.
The birth of any aspect of God is a joyous occasion, whether it is of an incarnation or the Son or the messenger. Some of the best Christian hymns are the carols sung to celebrate the birth of Christ. Hindus too have several hymns that are sung during Rama Navami. By far the most popular is “Bhaye prakat kripala” written by Tulsidas Goswami.
Bhaye prakat kripala
“Bhaye prakat kripala” translates as “The Merciful appeared”, Merciful being an epithet for God. It is a part of the Rama Charit Manas, which describes the events of the Ramayana with special emphasis on the character displayed by Rama in this incarnation. It appears as verse 192 in the Baalkaand or the Childhood Canto. A rough translation of the first six lines is given below.
Then the Merciful and the Supporter of the weak appeared, and Kaushalya was blessed;
The mother beamed, but the sages were unable to adequately describe the child’s unparalleled beauty.
He had bewitching eyes, dark skin, and was bearing weapons in his four arms;
He was wearing a garland of flowers, and his large eyes reflected the pristine beauty of the oceans.
With folded hand we pray O! Infinite One, tell us how we should worship you;
Shall we praise your Divinity or Greatness or shall we recite the Vedas and Puranas?
Important Issues
In common usage the “appearance” of Rama and Krishna is described as “birth”, which is not a problem. But it should be remembered that God is eternal. He cannot be born and cannot die. Here Tulsidas uses the more correct verb to describe the “birth” by saying the God appeared.
God is described as the “supporter of the weak”. This is not a Hindu concept alone. The Bible too says, “Blessed are the meek” (Matthew 5:5). However today the weak are in danger of being cast aside, with major temples and other institutions providing preferential access to the wealthy and the powerful.
The infant Rama is portrayed as carrying weapons. This refers to the prime reason for the incarnation, which was to kill the evil Ravana and free the righteous from his terror. It was a signal to Ravana that his end is near. It is not a signal to all and sundry to wreak violence in the name of religion.
The most important issue concerns “He was wearing a garland of flowers”. This was God’s only adornment. In today’s images, whether painting and sculpture or in theatre and film, it has become customary to project Rama as laden with ornaments of gold and precious stones. Our material desires are being imposed on God. The prestige of a temple depends on the value of the ornamentation that the idol is wearing. Tulsidas’ words are a clear indication that God cannot be bought. It is high time we returned to the basics.
The question that is raised in the last two quoted lines is meaningful. The answer is hinted at in the different reactions of the mother and the sages. Later in the hymn Tulsidas says that common folk can only take delight in God’s lila since they have no knowledge of scriptures or rituals. He suggests that this delight should be an appropriate offering to God.
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