KUBERA HOMAM FOR WEALTH?

YUGA DHARMA:
Our Puranas divide the duration of mankind on Earth into four Yugas; Satya Yuga which equals 1,728,000 Human years, Treta Yuga equals 1,296,000 Human years, Dvapara Yuga equals 864,000 Human years and Kali Yuga equals 432,000 Human years. The Yugas gradually undergo a reduction in dharma and likewise, mankind over the yugas undergo a decline in their dharmic values, wisdom, knowledge, lifespan and physical strength. The prescribed mode of worship is hence different for each yuga. The recommended form of worship for each yuga takes into account the ability of the people. In Satya Yuga, the Golden Age, the mode of worship is rigorous penance (tapas). The people of this age had the longest lifespan and could undertake tapas for thousands of years at a time. The next yuga, the Treta Yuga saw a reduction in dharmic values by 25% and the capacity of people too declined by 25%. During Treta Yuga, people worshipped Perumal by performing great yagnams like Ashwamedha, and Vajapeya yagams. The advent of Dwapara Yuga once again saw a reduction in dharmic values and the capacity of people deteriorated by another 25% and therefore the recommended mode of worship for people of the Dwapara Yuga was through archana. We are now in the last Yuga called Kali Yuga. Figuratively, we are balancing on just one leg as we have seen a reduction in dharmic values and our abilities by 75%. We can neither perform tapas nor perform yagnams. We can’t even perform archanas with focus as we have many things like a cell phone which distract us easily and hence the recommended mode of worship for us is the very simple but effective “Hari Nama Sankeerthanam”.

In Kali Yuga though our abilities has declined by 75%, our greed and materialistic attitudes has increased by 100%. Our wants are more and we want to fulfil our desires quickly and instantly. The people of this Yuga do not have the patience to work hard to earn good results. We want instant gratifications and this mental attitude drives people to perform yagams as the means to achieve their ends. One such homam is the “Kubera Homam”. Is it right to perform such homams? We will examine some details in this series.

To Be Continued:

THE BOY, THE FISH & THE PIG – A LESSON IN IMPARTIALITY

For the convenience of the readers, names have been assigned. The original story is narrated without any names. This week in one of the upanyasam I heard the following story which made me look at all life with love and compassion.

**********************************************************************************

Bhutatman was a young boy. He studied at a gurukulam along with his friends. His tuition was free. His guru not only taught them for free but, also provided them with free room and board.  The students helped their guru with everyday chores as a token of their gratitude.

One day, the guru assigned the task of washing clothes to Bhutatman. The young lad took the laundry basket and hurried towards a nearby stream. The water gurgled as it jumped across rocks in the stream. There were many varieties of fish which rushed back and forth playfully. Bhutatman jumped into the stream disturbing the fish. His guru had asked him to be careful while washing clothes in a stream. ‘We must never disturb or hurt other life,’ his guru had said. ‘Treat all life as you would treat yourself.'

‘They are just fish!’ thought Bhutatman. He didn’t understand why a lowly creature like fish must also be treated with respect. The boy thrashed around in the stream and started the wash the clothes. As he immersed the clothes in the water, some fish got trapped inside the folds of the clothes but, Bhutatman without paying any attention to the little fish, folded the cloth with the fish inside and squeezed the water from the clothes. The tiny fish trapped inside the clothes were mangled and killed. Tiny droplets of blood from the fish stained the pure white clothes washed by Bhutatman. The lad threw the washed clothes inside the basket and returned home.

‘Bhutatman, have you washed all the clothes? So quickly?’ Querried his guru. ‘Bring the basket over here. I will hang the clothes on the clothesline to dry.’ The guru picked a cloth from the basket and shook it in the air to straighten the folds and remove any water droplets left in the clothes. As he shook the clothes, dead fish fell down on the ground. ‘What is this!’ exclaimed the guru ‘How did these fish come here?’ The guru was horrified to see tiny drops of fish blood on the clothes.

‘Bhutatman!’ called the guru. ‘How did these fish die? I had told you to treat all life with respect and is this how you show respect?’

Bhutatman sulked. He didn’t understand his guru’s emotions. ‘They are just fish!’ thought the boy. ‘Tiny , worthless fish. What does it matter if they live or die!’ But, he didn’t dare to tell what he thought to his guru. ‘I don’t know how they died,’ answered the boy. ‘They must have got trapped in the folds while I was washing the clothes.’

‘Didn’t you even notice them? So careless!’ The guru was able to read Bhutatman’s thoughts. He felt angry and also sad to think that one of his disciples didn’t understand the value of life. ‘Your parents have named you Bhutaman, didn’t they explain the meaning of this name to you?’

The boy sulked and looked rebellious. 

‘As your guru, it is my duty to teach you the value of life. You have failed to treat all life equally. Very soon, may you take birth as a pig!’ cursed the guru. He gathered the clothes and returned to the stream to wash them.

Bhutatman looked horrified. There were tears in his eyes. He felt abashed and at the same time was also worried that his next birth would be that of a pig. His classmates gathered around Bhutatman to console him.

‘Did you hear how our guru cursed me?’ he asked with tears in his eyes. ‘I have to take birth as  a lowly pig!’

His classmates didn’t know how to console him. Taking birth as a pig didn’t appear to be a good prospect.

‘Pigs roll around in slime! They are nature’s scavengers and eat filth!’ cried the boy.

‘How can we help you?’ Asked Mangala. ‘If there is any way, we will definitely do our best to help you.’

‘Our guru cursed that very soon I should take birth as a pig. That means I have to die soon…’

‘Don’t say such things!’ exclaimed his friend Sudama.

‘But it’s true,’ sobbed Bhutatman. ‘How can anyone take rebirth without dying first. After I die, wait for a good opportunity when our guru is in a good mood. At that time, please find out my whereabouts from him.’

‘Do you want us to bring you here as our pet?’ asked Mangala. 

‘No, no,’ said Bhutaman. ‘As soon as you find my location, please come and find me. Bring heavy clubs with you and as soon as you see me, club me to death.’

‘But, that’s a sin!’

‘It’s not a sin if you free me from a lowly birth! Please promise me that you will kill me. What kind of a life will I have as a pig! If you kill me as soon as I take birth, I will get my freedom and could get a good life as a human being again.’

His classmates promised to help him. ‘Don’t worry, ‘ they assured him. ‘We will make sure you don’t live a long life as a pig.’

A few days later the boy succumbed to the curse and died. The classmates grieved for their friend. They wondered how long it will take for him to take birth as a pig. They found some heavy clubs and kept it ready to fulfil their promise. 

The classmates waited for an opportune moment. They didn't have to wait very long. One day, they found their guru in a jovial mood and they seized the opportunity and asked their guru about the fate of their friend.

'Your friend,' said the guru, ‘has taken birth in the next village as a pig. If you walk towards the outskirt of that village, you will come across a slum. In that slum lives a large sow with her twenty new-born piglets. Your friend is the twelfth piglet. He can be easily recognized as he is the only one who is white with a black tail and a  black left ear. '

Having ascertained all the details about their friend, the disciples grabbed hold of heavy clubs and started towards the birthplace of their friend.  They found the slum easily. ‘Disgusting!’ they cried.

 ‘Dirty, narrow paths!’ they grumbled as they trudged along the slushy path. Soon, they located the sow slushing around in a puddle with her twenty piglets. They found their friend, the only one with a black ear and a black tail playing with another piglet. The disciples raised their clubs and rushed towards the tiny piglet. They had to release their friend from this hellish existence so that he can get a better life. 

The tiny pig saw his former friends rushing towards him with clubs in their hands. At that moment, the piglet by the grace of the Vedic verses he had studied in his past life was not only able to recall his past life but was also able to speak with his former classmates.

The classmates stopped when the little pig yelled 'stop! Don't kill me!'

'It is for your own good,' they argued.

'I know I requested you to find and kill me but, at that time I thought that it will be a hellish experience to live as a pig but, look at me ' he pleaded.  'You see slime and filth but I see warmth and love. My mother dotes on me and she licks me with love. Look at my siblings, they all love me and we play tag and have lots of fun. I thought our guru had cursed me but he has only blessed me because I had never experienced such love and affection. Leave me alone. Let me enjoy the company of my family till the time allotted to me.'

Surprised by their friend's speech, the disciples left the little pig unhurt in his new home. The moment they entered their school, their guru welcomed them.

‘I know where you have been. If you had asked me, I could have saved you a trip. Now, did you learn the value of life? Every creature finds happiness in its existence and it is not right to discriminate against them just because they are not human beings like us.’

Author’s Note:

I chose the name of the boy as Bhutatman to remind everyone about God who exists within all beings as their inner soul. Bhutatman is the eighth name in the Sri Vishnusahasranamam. Perumal is called as Bhutatman because He exists as the inner-controller within all beings. As the inner controller, He supports all beings. He also controls them. Just like our soul controls our body and supports it from within, Lord Narayana resides in all souls and supports and controls them. One who realizes Lord Narayana as the “antaryami” of all souls will not discriminate against any creature and will treat every being with love.

In this society, people fight over differences. The differences we see are in the body we have attained in this birth but, internally all souls look the same and are equal to one another in every way.

As per our past karmas, we take birth as men and women while some as animals, plants , birds and even insects. Through this story we know that the dog or cat we see on our daily walk may have been human like us in its pastlife. Whatever karma it accumulated in its past existence has given it the life of an animal. The animals, birds and plants we see around us are not different from us. We are all the same on the inside. The form we take is just like a dress. It is silly to hate someone because of the dress they are wearing. We should love all and be compassionate. The intent of this story is to promote real world peace and promote love for all beings. 

the Lord of the Universe, Krishna exists as antaryami in each and every one of our hearts even if we are sinners. He loves us and never abandons us. He has accompanied us on every one of our births. He stays with us as antaryami and witnesses our acts waiting patiently for that moment when we may turn to Him for help. This is indicated by the following verse (11.11.6) in Srimadh Bagawatham.

suparnav etau sadrisau sakhayau

yadricchayaitau krita-nidau ca vrikshe

ekas tayoh khadati pippalannam

anyo niranno 'pi balena bhuyan

There are two birds that have made a nest on a

tree. One bird eats the fruits present on the tree

and grows weaker while the bird which does not

eat the fruits stays stronger.

The above verse also indicates that the two birds are friends. The tree is our body. The bird which eats the fruit is the jeevatma and the fruit itself arises due to our karma. The other bird is Paramatma. He patiently waits near His friend the jeevatma waiting for him to get tired of eating the fruits and turn to Paramatma with the desire to go back to Him. Lord Krishna is the true friend of the jeevatma and accompanies the jeevatma in every one of its births even if the jeevatma takes birth as an insect. The word “balena” in the above verse shows that Perumal remains unaffected even when He accompanies us and stays within us as our antaryami. His qualities and potencies remain unaffected.

People fight over their religious faiths. Many mistakenly believe that only people of certain faith attain salvation while all others go to hell. This is not true. Salvation is available to every being including plants and animals. The cycles of births we take as different beings is a learning program; we pass the course when we learn to treat all life equally with love. Discrimination and hate towards other beings including humans, animals and plants keeps us tied to this Universe while love for all creatures frees us from this Universe.

If you like this post, please share and spread the message of love and peace.

SOLUTION TO KNIGHT'S TOUR PROBLEM FROM SRI RANGANATHA PADHUKA SAHASRAM

Solution to the knight's tour problem in the Sri Ranganatha Padhuka Sahasram composed by Sri Swami Vedanta Desikan around 700 years ago!

Swami Vedanta Desikan has given the solution in the 13th century whereas, the solution was given for the first time in the Western Hemisphere by Leonhard Euler only in the late 18th century i.e, 500 to 600 years after Swami Desikan had given the key to solving this mathematical problem!

video has closed captioning enabled as volume might be low

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1Ro5ht1GERc&feature=share

THE BUTTER BANDIT - AUG 2018 NEWSLETTER

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Swami Desikan The Parrot In The Hand Of Goda Piratti
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Thiruppavai - Goda's Gita Vol 2 (Thiruadipooram Special)

THIRUADIPOORAM 13 AUGUST 2018

Celebrate this Thiradipooram with your own copy of Thiruppavai Goda’s Gita – Volume 2.

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Goda and her friends are ready to start the sacred ritual. When they arrive at the banks of the Yamuna, they notice that their ten friends are missing. They go in search of their ten friends.
The essence of ThiruppAvai is that ANDAL observed the month-long Paavai vratam to perform eternal service to Lord Krishna and gain the ultimate fruit of gaining Lord Krishna as Her husband.
Everyone should learn the essence of the Bagawad Gita but, with over 700 slokams in the Bagawad Gita, it's not an easy text to study; but, what if there was a simpler way to learn the Bagawad Gita? Thiruppavai - Goda's Gita offers an easier way to learn the essence of the Bagawad Gita.
A short preview of the book is given below.

PREDAWN

The much-awaited morning finally arrived. Goda had been unable to sleep as she was filled with sweet anticipation. Outside, the sky was still dark like soft velvet. The stars twinkled like diamonds sewn on a lush velvet cloth. The moon was lower on the Western horizon. Soon, the sky will be filled with a rich medley of yellows, pinks and orange hues. Goda rushed outside with joy. Her friends also rushed out of their homes. The grass felt soft and moist to touch. The cool air from the Yamuna embraced them and welcomed them once again welcomed them to her bank.
As before, Goda took her place under a tamala tree. The silence which is a characteristic of the predawn hour was broken by animated chatter. The girls had been unable to sleep after the meeting and the hour seemed to crawl by. The meeting had finished quite late and even though they returned to the banks of the Yamuna in just a few hours, the girls didn’t look sleep deprived. They felt vibrant and energized.
They were asked to stand together in groups of ten while Goda took their headcount. ‘Four hundred ninety-nine thousand, nine hundred ninety,’ said Goda. ‘That doesn’t sound right,’ she said as she recounted. ‘We are missing ten,’ she announced with concern. ‘We have to wait for them.’
‘Why?’ asked Padma. ‘We had announced that everyone should gather here at this hour. Why should we wait for the latecomers? It’s their fault!’
‘We need them,’ said Goda. ‘Our team is not complete without them. We have gathered here not to perform a ritual but, to submerge ourselves in the ocean called Krishna. We are here to experience the auspicious qualities of Krishna. When we bathe in rivers and large water bodies, we make sure that we go with a spotter so that someone is there to pull us to safety. ….’
‘That’s true for regular rivers,’ interrupted Padma. ‘Why should we need a spotter to take a holy dip in the lake called Krishna?’
‘Krishnanubhavam too can overwhelm us suddenly. Too much joy is also difficult to handle by an ordinary person. This is why we form a group to experience His divine qualities. Also, each one of us experiences Krishna in a unique way and when we share our experiences, the end result is a very vibrant and unique one.’
‘That may be true but, I don’t think we should unnecessarily delay the start of the ritual just because these ten girls are missing!’ said Shyama.
‘Shyama, ‘said Goda. ‘At Sri Vaikuntam, the nithyasuris enjoy serving Paramapada Nathan and yet they are eager for more people to join them from samsara. When even the nithyasuris work to help us attain liberation and don’t feel satisfied with their service until their experience is shared with all of us, shouldn’t we wait for our friends? The best things are enjoyed when we share with everyone.’
‘What should we do now?’ asked Padma. ‘How long should we wait?’
‘Why do you think they are late?’ asked Champaka Latha. ‘Are they still sleeping?’
‘They are not sleeping,’ answered Goda. ‘They are meditating upon Krishna in solitude. They are submerged in their experience that they haven’t realized it is morning. A few of you come with me; we will go to the girls homes and bring them here. There is no point in waiting for them here. They have to be awakened from their experience. Who is the first one on our list?’

Pasuram 6

Goda followed by some of her friends went in search of the first girl on their list. The dark, black sky slowly started turning into a velvety dark blue colour. The birds started to stir in their nests and the early morning silence was broken by chirping sounds.
The group soon arrived at the girl’s house. They gently knocked on the front door.
‘Chirp, chirp, chirp,’ tweeted some birds from a nearby tree as if in response to Goda’s knock.
‘I can’t believe this girl is still sleeping!’ said Champaka Latha. ‘I know her very well. She is very enthusiastic and is crazy about Krishna!’
‘That’s the problem,’ said Goda. ‘As she is inexperienced but, keen on meditating upon Krishna, she doesn’t realize that one must share their experiences with other devotees. This is why there are group prayers and rituals to bring devotees together.’
‘She reminds me of Chintayanthi,’ said Padma. ‘Do you remember Chintayanthi?’
‘Who can forget that dear girl!’ answered Goda.
‘She was too shy to join us when Krishna called us by playing on His flute. She had just been married and she wasn’t born in our village. She was a newcomer and was very shy. She was afraid to leave her house as her in-laws were home. She wasn’t plucky, but, her heart ached to be with Krishna and her heart melted while she listened to Krishna’s flute. She enjoyed the divine music and the more she listened to the sweet tunes, her punyas just melted away. At the same time, she also felt unhappy because like us she hadn’t been brave enough to run after Krishna. Her distress at not being with Krishna melted her papams and before the end of the night, she left this world and attained salvation! Both punyas and papams prevent us from attaining Perumal.’
‘We can understand that sins i.e. papams are hurdles which prevent us from attaining Perumal but, how can merits i.e. punyams create obstacles in the path of bakthi?’ asked Radha.
‘Didn’t you hear what happened to Madhumangala and Upendra when they went on a pilgrimage to Kanchipuram?’
‘What happened to them?’
‘They had reached the outskirts of Kanchipuram when they met Subala a friend of Upendra. Subala had just returned from his trip to a foreign country. As it had been many months since he had last seen Upendra, he took Upendra with him so that he could show him all the goods he had purchased as souvenirs. Madhumangala decided to proceed to the temple. He was travelling through a coconut grove when suddenly he was attacked by a group of robbers who beat him and tied him to a coconut tree. As the coconut grove was in a desolate area, it was quite some time before some pilgrims travelling through the grove rescued Madhumangala.
Upendra in the meantime had a swell time with his friend Subala but, his heart was at Kanchipuram. He felt bad that he had missed darshan of Sri Varadaraja Perumal that day. The next day when the two friends met, they found out that neither of them had obtained darshan of Sri Varadaraja Perumal. Subala who had taken Upendra with him is like punyams. Upendra had an enjoyable time with Subala but, he was prevented from worshipping Perumal. Madhumangala had a horrible time because he was beaten by robbers and he too was prevented from worshipping Perumal. The robbers symbolize papams and the friend, Subala symbolizes punyams. Those who accumulate punyams in this world are taken to heaven by Indran and thus, they miss bagawath anubhavam at Paramapatham. Everyone knows what happens to sinners. Now, do you understand how punyams too prevent us from obtaining salvation?’
The girls again knocked on the door.
‘Who is it?’ asked a girl from inside. She sounded annoyed at being disturbed from her sleep.
‘It is us!’ said Goda. ‘Come on, it is already late and we have to go to the Yamuna.’
‘It is not late!’ protested the girl. ‘It is still night. Go away and come back at dawn.’
‘But it has dawned!’ exclaimed Goda.
‘How do you know it has dawned?’ demanded the girl without getting up from her bed.
‘Can’t you hear the birds chirping in their nests? Chirping sound is an auspicious sign. When Sita Piratti was worried after Ravana had given Her an ultimatum, she heard melodious chirping sound. She saw that the birds perched on the tree branches were chirping merrily without any fear. It was then that She met Lord Hanuman. The birds signaled to Sita Piratti that Lord Hanuman had arrived. Thus, birds by their chirping indicate to the jeevatma the arrival of the acharyan. Listen how merrily the birds are chirping. Arise as it is time to attend spiritual discourse rendered by our acharyan. ’
‘Yes, but they are chirping because you have disturbed them. You are worse than Parankusa Nayaki!’ she said, ‘like her, you do not sleep at nighttime and neither do you nap at daytime. You spend your waking hour thinking about Krishna and submerged in your experience, you do not pay any attention to your surroundings! You are very eager to start the ritual and blinded by your keenness, you are not even able to see that it is still night! Neither do you sleep nor do you let anyone sleep! You have not only woken me but, you have also disturbed the birds!’
‘We didn’t disturb them. They are up because it is dawn. They are summoning all devotees to worship Perumal and to attend kalakshepam.’
‘Do birds attend kalakshepam too?’ questioned Padma who was standing outside with Goda.
‘Haven’t you heard about the two swans who advised King Janashruthi to learn Samvargha Vidhya from Sage Raikvar?’

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The Lotus In The Lord's Hand
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The Vanaras the Ape-Men of Ramayana
Video
History
Health Tips &
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THE VANARAS THE APE-MEN OF RAMAYANA - Part 2

Continued From:

There have been many fossil records which reveal the existence of “hominid” species; i.e., species which were definitely not human but were more akin to apes. It is quite plausible that the divine celestials could have incarnated as one such “hominid” species. It is not improbable that such a species coexisted with humans millions of years ago during the period of Ramayana. The Neanderthals, for example, were not human but were a different species. Their scientific name is Homo neanderthalensis while human beings are known by the scientific name of Homo sapiens. The Neanderthals were very similar to human beings in their behaviour. When such beings have been shown to exist in prehistory, it is definitely not a scientific impossibility that the Vanaras existed. Moreover, it is wrong to compare the Vanaras with any of the hominid species. The explanation about the hominid species is only given here to help the readers understand that in prehistory similar beings have existed and hence it is not inconceivable that a superior race of Vanaras endowed with divine supernatural strength existed on our Earth.

The second reason for not accepting the existence of Vanaras is because of the belief in the theory of evolution. Anyone who believes in Darvin’s theory of evolution believes that humans evolved from apes. The scientific community who believes in evolution claims that each of the eight hominid evolved from one another until finally evolving into modern day human beings some 100,000 years ago. The interpretation of fossil records depends on the observation made by scientists. There is room for human error and even of purposeful manipulation of data to fit the existing scientific theories. For example, in the mid-nineteenth century, after the publication of Darwin’s The Origin of Species, many scientists found fossils containing intentionally cut/incised bones of animals. The supporters of Darwin’s theory claimed that the bones were broken by other carnivores despite finding stone tools in the same strata. Scientists carried out experiments with these stone tools and determined that a cut made by these stones on modern animal bones, replicated the cuts discovered in the fossilised bones. Despite all the proofs, this data was never included into the accepted list of evidence because the fossils were from the Pliocene era and according to Darwin’s theory, humans couldn’t have existed in the Pliocene period.

A nail had been found pounded into an ancient slab of Devonian sandstone estimated to be around 360 to 408 million years old in Scotland. Another piece of amazing evidence was the discovery of a gold thread embedded in a stone estimated to be around 320 to 360 million years old. In 1852, a metallic vase was discovered embedded in a Precambrian rock in Massachusetts. All the above discoveries and many more such discoveries not listed above disprove the theory that human beings evolved from hominid species only a hundred thousand years ago. Even paleoanthropologists agree that many fossil records prove the existence of beings resembling anatomically modern humans as far back as in Early Pleistocene and Pliocene. By examining the evidence obtained from fossil bones and artefacts it is very clear that humans have coexisted with other primates for tens of millions of years.

My advice to the younger generation is to take scientific theories with a pinch of salt. There have been many theories which have gained popularity only to be debunked later. If we start believing in science completely, then the existence of God or the fact that this Universe was created by His Divine Design will also lose credibility. Science cannot empirically prove the existence of God and neither is science the right tool to prove God. A person who wants to prove the existence of microbes must use a microscope. A magnifying glass cannot serve the purpose of a microscope. Likewise, Science with its limitation is like a magnifying glass and cannot be used to prove or disprove God. To study about God, we have to use the tool called “Vedas” which is like the microscope in the above example.

 We do not know how the life on Earth was millions of years ago. From fossil records, we can gather that human beings did co-exist with apes or ape-like creatures millions of years ago but, we do not know the characteristics/capabilities of these ape-like creatures. We can only guess from the observations we have made. We shouldn’t constrain our thinking to what we know about modern apes. If Sage Valmiki has said that these ape-like beings i.e, the Vanaras could communicate with humans and were quite civilized, then we have to trust Sage Valmiki because, we didn’t live millions of years ago in Treta Yuga but, Sage Valmiki did.

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THE VANARAS THE APE-MEN OF RAMAYANA - Part 1

 

 Lord Brahma in the above Ramayana sloka, commanded the Devas to incarnate as Vanaras from monkeys and bears. Many even while having faith in our sampradayam, refuse to believe that the Vanaras existed. Even while having faith in our sampradayam, they wonder how Vanaras could have existed. Their refusal is the result of the firm faith they have in science.  There is no need to bring science into Ramayana. Science cannot explain miracles. The Vedas and the Puranas say that Lord Narayana incarnated as Lord Narasimha with the face of a lion and the body of a man. Can science explain Narasimhavataram? Perumal has incarnated as a fish, a boar, a swan, a tortoise and so on. Can science explain these incarnations? Is it correct to say that since the fish and tortoise that we normally see in this world do not speak, it is impossible that Perumal spoke when He incarnated as a fish, a tortoise or a boar?  Those who firmly believe in the divine will and the creative power of God, will not use science as a tool to explain Ramayana or the many other miracles listed in the Vedas and the Puranas. 

The very definition of miracles is, “a surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divine agency.” Supernatural is defined as manifestation or event attributed to some force beyond scientific understanding or the laws of nature. If we can explain something with the aid of science then it becomes natural and those manifestations and occurrences which cannot be explained by any known scientific laws fall into the category of supernatural. Divine Will is the most supreme power which need not conform to scientific laws. Divine Will is a supernatural force that can create many wonders. It is true that Perumal incarnated as Narasimha, as a fish, as a boar and so on. Likewise, it is also true that the Devas incarnated as Vanaras. There is no need to question the authenticity of the Vanaras.

We must have firm faith in the Vedas. It is uncalled for to bring scientific theories to explain the Vedas. Those who have more faith in science, immediately take the side of science over religion whenever they are faced with what they deem to be a scientific impossibility. I have even heard claims that the Vanaras are the “poetic exaggeration” of Sage Valmiki. Let us for the moment assume that Sage Valmiki exaggerated by writing about the Vanaras; why would he exaggerate? Sage Valmiki’s intention was not to write a best seller to earn millions of dollars. His motive was not to write about fantastic fairy tales or fictitious tales like the Harry Potter. All he wanted was to state facts as they were. He was a historian who logged the events that took place in his lifetime. Why then would he exaggerate and write about fictitious beings? If I am a historian chronicling about the current events like the Iraq War, how silly would it be if I wrote that a band of ape-men helped the allied forces to win the war?  Hence, it is impossible that Sage Valmiki mixed fiction with facts. As per the famous detective Sherlock Holmes’s, when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. We have proved that Sage Valmiki didn’t mix facts with fiction. It is impossible that he wrote about a fictitious band of monkeys while chronicling history; having eliminated this, we are left with the fact that a band of apes or ape-men did exist in prehistory and they participated in the Ramayana war. They were not ordinary beings as they were the incarnation of the Devas; so, don’t go hunting for fossils.

Let us now examine the reasons people refuse to accept the existence of Vanaras.  The number one reason is that they believe that monkeys can’t talk or behave like humans? This is not a scientific impossibility. According to the Smithsonian, talking apes are not a scientific impossibility. Apes have been shown to mimic human speech and the famous gorilla Koko can carry on a conversation using sign language. However, we are not dealing with modern apes when we are discussing the capabilities of the Vanaras. Superhuman beings i.e. the celestial beings known as the Devas, incarnated as the Vanaras to help Lord Narayana. The Vanaras were endowed with divine strength and divine knowledge. It is blasphemous to compare them with ordinary bears and monkeys whether modern or prehistoric.

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