The Ramayana (Its spiritual significance)

The Ramayana is not just a story

 which happened long ago;

 it has deep significance

and a deep truth in it.

The words ‘rays’ and ‘radiance’

come from the Sanskrit

 root word ‘ra’.

‘Ra’ means light,

‘Ma’ means within me, in my heart.

So, Rama means the light within me.

That which is radiant in

every particle of the being is Rama.

Rama was born to Dasharath and Kousalya.

Dasharatha means ‘Ten Chariots’.

The ten chariots symbolize

 the five sense organs

and five organs of action. 

Kousalya means ‘skill’.

 The skillful rider of the

ten chariots can give birth to Ram.

When the ten are used skillfully,

radiance is born within.

Rama was born in Ayodhya.

 Ayodhya means ‘a place where

 no war can happen’.

When there is no conflict in our mind,

 then the radiance can dawn.

It is said that the Ramayana is always

 happening in our own body.

The soul is Rama, the mind is Sita,

the breath or life-force(prana) is Hanuman,

the awareness is Laxmana

and the ego is Ravana. 

When the mind was stolen

 by Ravana (the ego) then

the soul got restless.

Now the soul cannot reach

 the mind on its own,

 it has to take the help

of the breath – the prana.

With the help of the prana,

 the mind got reunited with the soul,

and the ego vanished.