Rama-carita-manasa
by
Tulsi das
Prabhupada on Rama-carita-manasa by
Tulsidas Srila Prabhupada starts the lecture on Radhastami 1968 by a verse of
Tulasidasas Rama-carita manasa. Prabhupada calls him a great devotee of the
lord, that all he writes is on the basic of shastra, and he quotes him many times.
It may be that Srila Prabhupada said
dome things about Tulasi das which were not very nice. But one has to consider
the circumstances.
I saw it so often: Many devotees take
just some quotes of Prabhupada and missuse it immaturly in their preaching.
Even against great devotees like Tulasi das. Most of us have never even read
these books, but we dare to criticize it. If Srila Prabhupada did so some
times,-even though he also said that Tulasi das is a very great devotee- it
does not give us the right to imitate him. Just like parents have to protect
their child very intensly in the beginning, but if they continue like that for
20 years, it becomes an abnormal situation and behavior. In the same way did also
Srila Prabhupada, like a loving father, protect the very weak devotional
creeper of his new disciples in the beginning. So in the beginning it is best
just to concentrate oneself. That is why he discouraged his early disciples to
read that.
Srila Prabhupada writes in the 46th
chapter of Krishna book:
"Srila Vishvanatha cakravarti
Thakur has given us a transcendental literary work entitled Krishna
Bhavanamrta, which is full with Krishna’s pastimes. Exalted devotees can remain
absorbed in Krishna-thought by reading such books. Any book of krishna lila,
even this book, Krishna, or our Teachings of Lord Caitanya, is actually solace
for devotees feeling separation from Krishna."
Rama carita Manasa is certainly such a
book. Please never preach against such a jewel of the vaishnavas.
Sri Tulasi das ji maharaj says in his Vinay patrika: "May
that tongue fall from the mouth and may it become the loitering place of the worms
which grow in the stool of a dog which does not sing the glories of Sri Janaki naatha."
I have many vaishnava friends in India
who grew up with Ram-carita manasa. By hearing this regulary they got so much
love of godhead. When I heard their parents singing it, they often had tears in
their eyes. And these were not sentimental tears but the ones I am praying for
daily (nayanam galad asru dharaya)
Here some quotes of Srila Prabhupada:
30.August 1968 Class on Radhastami by Srila
Prabhupada
...am aprameyam anaghaà
nirväëa-çänti-pradaà brahma-çambhu-phanéndras tebhyo ’niçaà vedänta-vedyaà
vibhuà sura-guruà mäyä-mänuñya-harià vande ’haà karunäkaraà raghu-varaà
bhü-päla-cudämaëim This is a verse composed by a great devotee, Tulasi dasa. He
was a devotee of Lord Rämacandra. So Lord Rama and Lord Krishna, there is no
difference. When we speak Krishna, that means He includes all other
incarnations.
Actually, Tulasi dasa has expressed his own
feelings about his devotion to Lord Rama, and therefore he has named it
Rama-carita-manasa, his mind full with service attitude for Lord Rama. That is
the real meaning of this book.
So in the fifth chapter, Sundara-Khanda,
it is a very nice verse. What is that? Çäntaà çäçvatam aprameyam anaghaà
nirväëa-çänti-pradam. Each word is meaningful. Çäntam. The Lord is never
disturbed. Why He shall be disturbed?
I
have explained that one Sloka from this Rama-carita-manasa
Lecture 21.8.73 in London . That...
Tulasi dasa has said that in the ocean, the waves of the ocean, if you put one
elephant very powerful, very strong, the elephant will be washed away by the
waves. But a small fish, a teeny fish, it is swimming against the waves.
Lecture 9.7.74 in Los Angeles
And there is a version of Tulasi dasa in
Hindi. It is said sukse sabe hari bhaje, duhkhse saha hari bhaje, sukse bhaje
khoya.(?) Or sukhase ara hari bhaje, tu duùkha hase hoya(?). It is very nice
instruction. The instruction is that when one is distressed, everyone remembers
God. Yes. Duhkhse saba hari bhaje. Saba means “all.” At that time...
24.4.72 in Tokyo
Tulasi dasa says—it is very nice—that “Put and
mut, they are coming from the same source. So a put, if he is devotee of the
Lord, then he is put. If he is not, then he is mut. Then he is mut.” If the
son... After begetting son, if the son does not become devotee, then he is as
good as mut. I pass urine. Mut son, he says, because he’s less than mut.
Because mut, I pass urine. The obnoxious thing, that is gone away. But it is
present. It is present. The bad smell is constantly giving me trouble. Mut
karma’s there.(?) So these are very instructive.
.. Anyway, that Tulasi dasa says that if
he is devotee, then he is son.
26.11.76 in Vrindavan
And Tulasi dasa, he has also said... Tulasi
dasa is big poet in Hindi language. He has written the Rama-carita-manas. His
opinion... Not only his opinion, that is the Vedic opinion, that... He says...
room conversation 12.4.69 in New York
“If you have got so much attachment for
this skin and bone; if you had so much attachment for Rama then your life would
have been different.” So he took it seriously. “Why not attachment for Rama?”
So he became a great devotee of Rama, Tulasi das. His book, Rama-carita-manasa.
“Thinking always of Rama,” that is his book. It is very famous book, and that
is the only important literature in the Hindi language, Rama-carita-manasa.
Evening darshan 8.7.75 in Washington
Prabhupäda: The Tulasi dasa’s Ramayana
means Rama-carita. It is not Ramayana. Rama-carita Manas. He was devotee of
Lord Ramacandra. So as he was thinking of Lord Ramacandra, he has written. So
he was a learned scholar, brahmana, he must have read Bhagavad-gita,
Bhagavatam. So all his translation is there on the basis of the sastra,
especially Bhagavata and Bhagavad-gita. You’ll find many parallel passages.
Text COM:3070440 (45 lines) From:
Nayana-ranjana (das) (BBT Bombay - IN)
Date:
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(Krsna) Katha [3750] Comment: Text COM:3071109 by Krsna Candra (das) SNS
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Rama-carita-manasa by Tulsidas
------------------------------------------------------------ Room Conversation
with Srila Prabhupada, August 21, 1976, Hyderabad
Jayapataka: When the public began to
recite Gitar-gan at their functions, like they're doing this Tulasidasa
Ramayana, if they start that in Bengal, Gitar-gan, then it will be a big
success. Prabhupada: Tulasidasa. Tulasidasa Ramayana is very popular. Because
the Hindis, they have no literature. There is no literature. Jayapataka: If
some Gaudiya Vaisnava could rewrite that according to siddhanta, then it would
be very good. Prabhupada: Which one? Jayapataka: His Ramayana has got many
philosophical errors in it. Prabhupada: Oh, yes. Jayapataka: If a Gaudiya
Vaisnava could write that properly... Prabhupada: Why? Gaudiya Vaisnava has
immense literature. Why they should bother with Tulasidasa? By reading
Tulasidasa's Rama-carita-manasa in my experience I've not seen a single man has
come to the spiritual platform. I have not seen a single man. Gargamuni: That
is not transcendental literature. Because by reading these books you come to
transcendental realization. Prabhupada: Yes, that is wanted. They want
asirvada. Just like so many people come, asirvada. "You are a saintly
person, you give me asirvada so my material happiness may increase. I am not interested
with the spiritual knowledge. Give me blessing so that for nothing I get,
upgrade my material opulence." This is their... So those Tulasidasa
readers, they are like that. They want material opulence. Arto-artharthi,
artharthi, want some material benefit. They chant Tulasidasa's
Rama-carita-manasa for some material benefit. They're not interested in the
spiritual advancement. Nobody. That Delhi temple where they have pandita? I'm
forgetting his name.
Srila Prabhupada's Letter to: Raktaka,
Hamburg, 6 September, 1969
Regarding the two books you have
mentioned, Sri Ramacharitamanasa by Goswami Tulasi das is not very authorized,
and Ramayana is authorized. One thing is though, you have got enough other
books to study. Did you appear in the examination held on Janmastami Day? Why
should you go to Ramayana when you have got Bhagavad-gita, Srimad-Bhagavatam
and Teachings of Lord Caitanya? Don't divert your attention in that way. The
author of Ramacharitamanasa, Goswami Tulasi das, has a tint of Mayavadi
philosophy. He belongs to the Ramananda Sampradaya. They are mixed up
combination of personalist and impersonalist. Therefore, the author is not
considered as pure Vaisnava. Pure Vaisnava is free from all material
contamination of fruitive activities and mental speculation. The pure Vaisnava
is simply, purely disposed to transcendental loving service to Krishna. The
pure Vaisnava rejects anything which has no pure idea of serving the
Personality of Godhead.
Text COM:3072264 (50 lines) From:
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COM:3072630 by Govinda Nandini (dd) (NE-BBT) Subject: Prabhupada on Rama-carita-manasa by Tulsidas
------------------------------------------------------------ I accept that
Prabhupada has accepted Tulasidas as a great poet & devotee.
But I cannot accept that
Rama-carita-manasa can be equated to the most superlative book of Radha-Krsna's
ashta-kaliya lila, "Sri Krsna Bhajanamrta" by Srila Visvanatha
Chakravarti Thakura who is one of the greatest self-realized acarya poets in
our bona-fide parampara. Valmiki has got diksha from Narada so the Valmiki
Ramayana is considered as the bona-fide Ramayana by Srila Prabhupada. Whereas
according to Prabhupada, Tusidas is from the Ramananda sampradaya which is not
a bona-fide sampradaya.
As quoted earlier, Prabhupada says:
"Therefore, the author (of
Rama-carita-manasa) is not considered as pure Vaisnava."
In some other places Prabhupada
glorifies him as a great devotee of Lord Rama, so we can conclude that he is
indeed a great devotee but not the purest of devotees because of his connection
to the Ramananda sampradaya. Prabhupada never says anywhere that he was a pure
devotee. Like the demigods are great devotees but they are mixed.
Rama-carita-manasa is also his genuine
attempt to glorify Rama but Prabhupada makes a point in his conversation with
Jayapataka Swami that when we have our purest Goswami literatures why should be
go in for something inferior like the Rama-carita-manas. This book is for those
who don't have the Gaudiya Vaisnava literatures.
> I have many vaishnava friends in
India who grew up with Ram-carita manasa.
> By hearing this regulary they got
so much love of godhead.
> When I heard their parents singing
it, they often had tears in their eyes.
> And these were not sentimental
tears but the ones I am praying for daily
> (nayanam galad asru dharaya)
If this book could enable you to come to
the platform of 'nayanam galad asru dharaya', why did our Goswamis or Lord
Caitanya not read it.
Your above statement contradicts
Prabhupada's following statement:
"By reading Tulasidasa's
Rama-carita-manasa in my experience I've not seen a single man has come to the
spiritual platform. I have not seen a single man."
And you are saying that you have seen
many crying & getting love of Godhead after reading RCM. I presume that
Prabhupada has better experience about India and RMC than any of us. So I would
prefer to accept Prabhupada's statement and I cannot accept that they got love
of Godhead after reading RCM.