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The Rāmāyaṇa, the glory of God Rāma, is in every aspect full of joy and happiness. Those who listen to it will gain wisdom and devotion (bhakti), and will cross the ocean of ignorance. This Rāmacaritra, this Rāmāyaṇa, is as beautiful and pleasant as the full moon, whose light gives everyone a feeling of pleasantness. But it is especially more joyous for the saints and devotees (bhaktas). Likewise, Lord Śiva had been explaining the Rāmāyaṇa. He narrated it to Pārvatī, who had asked him questions. I will try my best to tell in detail what God Śiva told her. Katha sunī nahī̃ soi jānī, āchā, rājū kare sunī soi kathā. Yalaukik sunahī̃ je gyānī nay, āchā, rājū karahī̃ asat jānī. Rām kathā ke mithik jag nahī̃, asī̃ pratītitin ke manmahī̃. Nanābhaktī Rāmā avatāra, Rāmāyaṇa satkoṭi aparā. Those who have not listened to this Rāmāyaṇa before, and those who have the opportunity to hear it for the first time, should not merely wonder. The wise ones who listen are not surprised, because in this world, the glory of God Rāma is limitless; it has no border. God’s glory is Ānanda, endless. There is never an end to God’s glory. Hari Ānand, Ānand Hari Katha. God is endless, beyond all boundaries. Therefore, His play (Līlā), His mercy, is also endless. That is why the knowledge of Him has no limitations. When you dive into the ocean of this wisdom, you can swim endlessly. Similarly, when you enter into spiritual consciousness and the glory of God, it is very pleasant, soft, gentle, divine, and full of bliss. Hari ananta, Hari kathā ananta—God and His realization are endless. Therefore, in this world, there are no limitations to the telling of God’s story. Those who know this will also understand the different kinds of incarnations of God Rāma. There are millions of Rāmāyaṇas, and there will be millions more. All holy books that speak about God’s different incarnations and glory have been like this and will continue to be. According to the time, all great saints have been singing the glory of God and His miracles in many different ways, not just one. They always had love for God in their heart. Therefore, Tulsīdās Jī said that when you hear the glory of God, no matter in which way, you should never harbor doubts in your heart. Karyan Sansay Asa Uraani. You shall listen to the glory of God with great respect and love. Suniye Katha Adar Rati Mani. Tulsīdās Jī said: "Rām anant, anant guṇa, amit kathā bistār." Sunyāchārajun Manī Hai Jinke Vimal Vichār Siyāvar Rām Chandra Kī Jai Pavan Sutta Hanumān Kī Jai. Śrī Rām is endless, and His qualities (guṇa) are also endless. His Līlās and the telling about Him are without any boundary. This means that those who have pure thoughts (nirmal vichār), when they listen to this glory, will not just wonder but will enjoy it. It is something that belongs to their very nature. We like to listen about God. Why? Because we are part of Him. When you are far away and someone brings news of your parents, brothers, and sisters after a long time, how happy you are. Sometimes, during war, all communications are blocked—no telephone, no post. When you finally get a message, how happy you are. Likewise, we have lost our connection to God in the worldly war of kāma (lust), krodha (anger), mada (pride), lobha (greed), and īrṣyā (jealousy). But when a message from God comes, someone tells us, our inner self enjoys because it belongs there and wants to listen more and more. You are part of Him, a relative of Him, the essence of Him. It is natural to feel this way, and those divine qualities (guṇas) are within you. If you develop this feeling, you will come closer and closer. As soon as doubts, complexes, jealousy, and anger appear, everything else disappears. You have disappeared in many, many lives, but now it seems you appear again. So do not lose this chance. That is why Tulsīdās Jī said the wise devotees (bhaktas) are not surprised; they know and they enjoy. It is like when an empty battery is connected to electricity; it begins to recharge. Different batteries need different kinds of power, otherwise they may explode. Similarly, different devotees need different treatment and different kinds of knowledge—slowly, step by step. But in everything, it is His play, His love, His divine divinity. Therefore, Sunyāchārjun Manahī Jhinke Vimal Vichār—they will not be surprised. Those who have nirmal vichār (pure thoughts) will not be surprised. Karata Kathā Jai Lagana Khoṛī. Likewise, I give up all my doubts at the dust of my Śrī Gurudev’s holy feet. I put it on my head as a tilak, and with folded hands, I request all listeners: if in this telling you find any mistakes, they are my mistakes, not mistakes in God’s glory. Please listen with love and respect; it is God’s name. The holy books are the embodiment of God Himself, because His words (Vākyas) are there. It is said, "Guru Nānak." Every word of the Gurudev should be carried on your head. Katahari Padhari Sisa. Now, with great respect and adoration, I bow down to Lord Śiva. With this adoration, I pray to Lord Śiva to bless me so that I can describe the divine qualities of God Rāma. I bow my head to Śrī Hari and begin to write this. He wrote the date: 16,031 (Vikram Samvat, not A.D.). Śruti Gāvahī, Tīrathā Sakalāṭā Calāyāvahī. On the ninth day of the moon, on a Monday or Tuesday, in the beautiful month akin to April, the light of this Rāmāyaṇa, the glory of God, began to be written. On the day of God Rāma’s incarnation, all holy places and pilgrims come to have darśan. This month is around April, the 9th, in Ilāhābād, also known as Ayodhyā. This Rāmāyaṇa was written during the Kumbha Melā. We may try to go to some pilgrim places there—old āśramas thousands of years old, like Vālmīkī’s, where Sītā lived, where Rāma lived, and so on. I think we will go, but I cannot promise; it depends on circumstances. Janma mohota savāracha hī sujāna kara hī Rāma kala kīrti gana. Asuras, Nāgas (snakes), birds, humans, sages, and goddesses—all come to Ayodhyā. They all come to serve (seva) God Rāma. All the wise ones celebrate the day of God Rāma’s incarnation and sing His name in kīrtan, glorifying Him. Śrī Rām. All sages and devotees come on that day and bathe in the holy river Sarayū, which flows near the palace where God Rāma was born. Every day He used to bathe in that river. When He left this world, they all entered the river, and the river gave them way again to Vaikuṇṭha, Svargaloka. They come and bathe in that holy river, meditating in their hearts on the blue God Rāma and repeating His name. All the time, the name of God is on their lips. Anything happens, good or bad. Always the devotee says, "Rām, Rām... Rām, oh Rām, Rām." Like you say, "Oh God." An accident happens, you say, "Oh God," and something good happens, you say, "Thanks to God." But you will notice that when something negative happens, you automatically say, "Oh God," yet when something good happens, sometimes you forget. You say, "Oh, really? Is that so?" We forget God. Therefore, it is said that when there is trouble, everyone remembers God and repeats mantras, but when there is happiness, they do not remember God. If you remember God intensely even in happiness, then troubles will not come. So devotees always remember God. Always on their lips is His name, and on their face is a smile. When you remember God, your face and skin relax, your whole body relaxes. But when you remember something else, like an enemy, your face becomes tense. So always keep God’s name in your mind—when you have God in mind, everything is positive. Therefore, it is said: Apakah Veda Purānāḥ Nāḍī Puṇṇit Yamit Mahimā Ati Kahina Sakai Sadhrada Vimalamati? The Vedas and Purāṇas all say it. Darśa Pāras Mañjan Arupana. When you have darśan and when you touch—if you touch the lotus feet or touch that river or God’s feet—you will be very happy, and it purifies your karmas. Just as washing in water cleans away dirt, the darśan of the sand and touching the feet of the sand is like bathing, removing the impurity of karma. That river Sarayū is very pure and divine. Tulsīdās Jī said the glory of that river is also endless. A river is life; it is a source of our life. Water is life. In rivers, many creatures exist. All human civilization is based on the banks of rivers. Those thousands-of-years-old cultures were based on riverbanks. That river is divine because God Himself incarnated and bathed in it. That is something divine. That river must have good karma. Once a poet said: "Radha, tum badbhāginī, kon tapasyā kī, tin lok ke tāran tīran, sadarhat adhī o Radhā." How fortunate you are! What kind of tapasyā and sādhanā have you done in past lives? The Lord of all three worlds, the liberator of all three worlds, is always obeying you. She must have done good sādhanā. When she said no, he said, "Okay, that sādhanā can only be bhakti, love." In that bhakti, there should be no doubts at all. Similarly, that river must be holy. That tree must be holy. And that piece of land where His divine feet stepped must be divine and holy. That divine energy never disappears; it is always there. So, you remember I told you yesterday? In those intellects where there is no name of God, in those minds where there is no name of God, in those words where there is no name of God, in those hearts where there is no name of God, and in those actions where there is no devotion to God—that body is just a cave of the Rākṣasas (devils). But in those minds, intellects, speech, and actions where God is in the heart, that is a holy temple, a holy pilgrim place. Unfortunately, the physical form of God has disappeared; it is gone. For us, only memory remains. Or those objects that witnessed Him, that were touched by Him—only through that touch can we satisfy our mind. Even the wind blowing from that direction carries immense spiritual energy. Only devotees can receive that energy. You see the sun shining; we know there is a lot of solar energy, but we do not utilize it properly. Those who developed techniques to harness solar energy are using it. It is like a wonder, but the sun does not lose energy. It is not that if someone puts up many solar panels, the whole Czech Republic will become cold or dark. Spiritual energy is like that. Millions of people can think of you and take energy from you, and you are still full. Pūrṇa is always pūrṇa (complete is always complete). Like that, the river Sarayū’s glory is also endless. Tulsīdās Jī said even the pure-minded goddess Sarasvatī, the goddess of wisdom, is not able to describe the glory of that river. So what can we describe? We humans do not understand the rivers, and we are polluting them. We pollute all the rivers of the world, and all life inside is dying. As an American Indian wise man said, "When the last tree is cut down and the last fish dies, O men, then you will realize that you cannot eat your dollars." You may have a bag full of dollars, but when you are hungry, you cannot eat them. You need an apple, and an apple cannot grow on dollars—only on a tree. So we have to protect the environment. We have to protect the rivers and oceans. Let us work towards this aim. It is said that charity begins at home. So the first steps, you have to do it. You have to open your door to walk. In America, there was once a tradition or law: when a white person stepped into a bus or train, black people had to get up and give them their seat. One day, a black lady who was pregnant was sitting on the bus. All seats were occupied. A white man stepped in, and she said loudly to herself and others, "Now I will not get up." From her, consciousness began in other people, and they ended this law. Everyone understood, and there was no more fighting. So one has to begin. Everyone is throwing everything, but you should not. Tell your friends, tell your children, tell your colleagues. Slowly, we can protect our environment and rivers. This is not just for yourself but for your children. A very interesting thing is that, in any case, if you are not liberated, you have to come back. Then you will be angry at your ancestors for being stupid and polluting everything. And who are those ancestors? You. That is how karma recycling comes back. Therefore, healthy thinking keeps a healthy atmosphere and a healthy world. Charity begins at home. Anything good you want to do, do it yourself first. That is it. Rāma Dāma Purī Suhavanī Loka Samasthā Vidhita Yatī Pāvanī Charikhanī Jagjīva Aparā Avadhtā Jetānu Nahī Sansāra. That beautiful, glorious Avadhpurī, Avatārapurī—Ayodhyā, the birthplace of God Rāma—is very famous in all three worlds. From all spiritual worlds, all go there to have darśan of that holy place. As said in a bhajan: Bada ho bhag un desh ka, jahan Satguru liya avatāra. How glorious is that land where the Satguru Dev is born—that place, the birthplace. All creatures who come through the four different ways of entering this world—Aṇḍas (born from eggs), Svedas (born from sweat/moisture), Udbhijas (sprouting from the earth, vegetation), and Jarāyus (born from the womb, like us)—these are the four doors to enter this world. And there is one door to go out: death. Tulsīdās Jī said all who come there will get liberation. Anyone who dies there will get immediate liberation and come to God. They will not come again to birth and death in this world. That must be the adoration, love, and respect that brought Tulsīdās to God Rāma’s birthplace. That is how the devotee thinks. How pure their consciousness is, how clear their vision is. That is very important. So keep God in your heart, and you will always be happy. And why are you happy? In those hearts that know God, that heart is a temple. But in those hearts without God, it is the cave of the Rākṣasas or a grave. So let us make our heart a temple.