A lecture captioned “Universal appeal of the Ramayana” was held under the auspices of the Academy of Yoga and Oriental Studies (AYOS) here last week with chief guest former administrator Sanjib Chandra Hota speaking on the salient features of the great epic, which has earned for itself a universal appeal.
The Ramayana’s appealing features, he pointed out, are the acceptance of fourteen years of exile; the parting of the divine consort Goddess Sita; the killing of Bali for Swadharma; and, finally, the separation from Sita and putting her into the fire ordeal. lord Sriram had to separate from Sita on the charges levelled against her by a lowly citizen, on whose allegations the Supreme Power acted.
This was to balance the trust deficit between lord Sriram as the chief ruler and his subjects which democrats and politicians of today should learn from the glaring examples illustrated in the Ramayana, Hota said.
lord Sriram is the archetypal embodiment of the quintessential goodness as opposed to the forces of malevolent evil, which is the sine-qua-non for a smooth and successful operation of democracy to be emulated from the Ramayana, Hota exhorted to the audience.
AYOS Director Dr Indulata Dash glorified the sacred conjugal love between lord Sriram and Goddess Sita as the highest epitome of ideal married life. The seminar was presided over by noted Sanskrit scholar Sundar Rajan.
A warm ovation was accorded to london-based Odia architect and writer Prafulla Mohanti for his new books on Indian themes. Replying to the felicitation, Mohanti appealed to all to preserve, protect and defend Odia culture and the typical Indian landscape which is conspicuous by its absence even in Western countries. Prominent among others present were Taradutt, Mahamegha Saraswati and other Sanskrit scholars. The meeting ended with a vote of thanks by Mihir Mishra.