The Raana: An Ancient Sanskrit Epic
Read The Ramayana... You Find Answers For Your Doubts.
Once an Old Villager was reading the Ramayana while sitting in a Railway station waiting for the Train to come.
A young man with his wife was standing nearby and said to the old man, "You old fashioned people read only the Ramayana all the time. Do you not have any other book to read? There are so many best sellersavailable these days. What is so great in the Ramayana anyway?"
The Old man continued to read and smiled without any reply to the young man. The arrival of the Train was delayed so the young man left for about 30 minutes. On his return, he saw the Old man stillreading the Ramayana and became really annoyed and began to criticize the old man even more.
Soon, however, the train arrived. Everyone, in a hurry, rushed in to get a seat (as one must do in India). It turned out that the Old man and young man were seated next to each other in train too.And... the Old man continued to read the Ramayana.
Suddenly the young man realized that his wife was missing! He looked for the emergency-chain to stop the train and shouted anxiously, "My wife! Where is she? I think she has been left behind on the platform!"
The Old man said to him calmly, "If you had read the Ramayana, you would never have committed this mistake."
"What?" said the young man
The old man explained:
"It is said in the Ramayana that when Ram Chandra, Sita and Lakshmana were standing on the bank of the Ganga and the boat man came with the boat, Ram Chandra asked Sita to get in the boat first and onlythen did he get in the boat himself!
So why are you asking me what is said in the Ramayana when you do not even know enough to take care of your own wife and see that she gets onto train first?
You see, the Ramayana tells you even this!"
True enough, any time you are confused and cannot decide what your duty is, just read the Ramayana and you will find the answers to all your doubts!
Treat with respect all things held sacred to others, whether you understand these things or not.
Author Unknown --- Submitted by Jambunathan Iyer --- India
The Ramayana is an ancient Sanskrit epic. It is ascribed to the Hindu sage Valmiki and forms an important part of the Hindu canon, considered to be itihasa.It depicts the duties of relationships, portraying ideal characters like the ideal servant, the ideal brother, the ideal wife and the ideal king.
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