Dharmaratha Upadeśa
During the final battles in Laṅkā, Rāvaṇa came onto the field in a great war-chariot. Bhagavān Rāma stood on the ground. Vibhīshaṇa, troubled by this, spoke to him. Bhagavān Rāma smiled and answered with one of the best-known teachings of the Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa: the Dharmaratha, the chariot of dharma, which gives victory to the one who rides it.
Vibhīshaṇa’s worry
Rāvaṇa arrived on the battlefield in his war-chariot, with all the signs of a royal ruler. He wore full armour and carried weapons of every kind. He looked like a king nobody could defeat.
Bhagavān Rāma stood on the earth in garments of bark. He carried his bow and quiver. He had no chariot, no armour on his body and no sandals on his feet. To human eyes the two sides were not equal.
Vibhīshaṇa saw this and was truly troubled. He came to Bhagavān Rāma and spoke with care:
“Prabhu! Ratha lēdu, kavacamu lēdu, tudakā pādarakshaṇalu kūḍā lēka ī dānavavīruni eṭlu dārkoṇagalaru!”
Prabhu Rāma, there is no chariot, no armour, not even sandals. How will you face this dānava warrior?
Bhagavān Rāma answered first with a gentle smile (mandahasituḍai). Then he spoke words that Vibhīshaṇa came to see as a teaching about the whole of life, not only about battle.
The chariot of dharma
Bhagavān Rāma said to Vibhīshaṇa:
“Sakhā Vibhīshaṇā! Jaya sādhanaku dharmaratha madhishṭhiṃca valenu. Sādhāraṇa syandana mārōhiṃcina phalitamu śūnyamu.”
Friend Vibhīshaṇa, to win you must mount the chariot of dharma. If you mount an ordinary chariot, nothing will come of it.
Then Bhagavān Rāma named each part of the Dharmaratha.
- Wheels (cakrālu): śaurya (valor) and dhairya (courage, steadiness). As wheels carry a chariot forward, these two carry a person through hard times in life and war.
- Flag and banner (dhvaja-patākālu): satya (truth) and śīla (good character). A flag shows who the rider is, and truth and character show who rides the chariot of dharma.
- Horses (aśvālu): bala (strength), viveka (clear judgment) and hitopakāra (working for the good of others). These three pull the chariot forward.
- Reins (kāḷḷeṃlu): dayā (compassion) and dākshiṇya (generosity, kind consideration). Reins guide the horses and keep them from going astray.
- Charioteer (sārathi): Śaṅkaruni bhakti, devotion to Bhagavān Śaṅkara (Śiva). The charioteer guides the whole chariot through battle. Without a good charioteer, the best chariot and the fastest horses are of no use.
- Weapons (astra-śastrālu): jñāna (wisdom), vairāgya (detachment), saṃyama (self-control) and santosha (contentment). These destroy the inner enemies of desire, delusion and pride.
Then Bhagavān Rāma said it all together:
“Sakhā! yē rathimunaku — śaurya dhairyālu cakrālu gānu, satya śīlālu dhvaja patākālu gānu, bala viveka hitopakārālu gurramulu gānu, dayā dākshiṇyālu kāḷḷeṃlu gānu, śaṅkaruni bhakti sārathi gānu, jñāna vairāgya saṃyama santoshālu astra śastrālu gānū amariyuṃḍunō aṭṭi dharmaratha mekkina rathuḍu ajēyuḍugā nuṃḍunu. Vāni nadiriṃcu yōdhuḍī mujjagamula nuṃḍa bōḍu nani nammuṃu.”
Friend, the rider who mounts this chariot will be unconquerable. For him śaurya and dhairya are the wheels. Satya and śīla are the flag and banner. Bala, viveka and hitopakāra are the horses. Dayā and dākshiṇya are the reins. Devotion to Bhagavān Śiva is the charioteer. Jñāna, vairāgya, saṃyama and santosha are the weapons. A warrior who can stand against such a rider does not exist in the three worlds. Believe this.
Vibhīshaṇa understands
Vibhīshaṇa saw that the words were about the coming battle, but that their meaning went much deeper. Bhagavān Rāma was using the moment of war to give a teaching for all of life. The Dharmaratha shows the inner strengths that any person needs to succeed in any task, and in the end to reach moksha (liberation).
Vibhīshaṇa became prasanna, filled with inner peace. The teaching took away his fear of the battle that had seemed so unequal.
Sources
- Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa, Laṅkā Kāṇḍa, the section Rāvaṇuni Pratibhatudai Rāma Rāvaṇa Yuddha (the Dharmaratha teaching)