The most important journey is the one we take for ourselves. Sometimes it requires us to fight the battle for our soul and slay our demons in order to realize the importance of this journey. When we’re in the middle of this battle, we need a cry, one that calls out to the king or queen inside of us to inspire us on this legendary battlefield.
śrī rām jai rām jai jai rām
Luminous King Rāma! Hail Rāma! Hail, Hail Rāma!
Because this chant calls to our inner king (or queen), this is a great chant for when we need a little extra “oomph” or power to be brave and overcome a challenge. It is also a chant that helps to brighten up the inner light so that it can shine through any dark patterning that is holding us back and enable us to be strong in order to break through it.
This chant beckons forth the inner hero that is waiting to manifest our fullest potential, which is portrayed eloquently in the epic tale of the Rāmāyana — the story of King Rāma, Queen Sītā, and their best friend, Hanuman. We are all born kings and queens in the world who lose our love and spirit in the forest of the unconscious, and we have to reclaim it in order to find our way home.
In nearly every moment of our lives, each of us has critical choices to make, each of whose outcome inevitably determines our course in life. It is only when we walk in accord with this so-called destiny, or dharma, that the meaning and inherent value of our life unfold. The Rāmāyana is the journey of Rāma’s dharma, and the course of his life reveals the power in every choice he makes.
As all great tales begin, once upon a time in a land far, far away, there was a mighty king named Daśaratha of Ayodhyā. He had four sons, the greatest of whom was known as Rāma. Rāma was beloved by his people, and when it was time for Rāma to step into his father’s shoes as king, the entire kingdom rejoiced. However, the mother of his half-brother thought it was a travesty that her son, Bharatha, was not ascending to the throne. Through the power of an age-old promise made to her by Daśaratha, she then compelled Daśaratha to give the throne instead to Bharatha. Even Bharatha thought that Rāma was the better choice and tried to discourage his mother’s wishes. However, the power of promises made and the sacredness of speech at this time had a binding effect, and unfortunately, what was said could not be undone. And so, against everyone’s best hopes and wishes, Bharatha was crowned the new king of Ayodhyā, and his brother Rāma was banished to the forest.
As Bharatha said good-bye to his beloved brother, he vowed to keep the throne safe and to rule the kingdom wisely throughout the term of Rāma’s banishment — fourteen long years. Rāma was accompanied by his fair wife, Sītā, and another loyal brother, Lakṣmana, to wander the vast forest alone. The forest contained hermits, ancient beasts, enemies, and friends. It contained mysterious caves and shape-changing creatures, and it ultimately revealed to Rāma the path to self-discovery. After fourteen years, as the brothers and beloved wife were ready to return home, the evil demon Rāvaṇa kidnapped Sītā and stole her away to his remote island of Lanka. This abduction compelled Rāma out of the forest and into his rightful place on the throne of Ayodhyā as king, where he could fight the war with Rāvaṇa to win back not only the confidence of his kingdom but the love of his beautiful wife.
While in this dark forest, Rāma encountered a great band of monkeys who were willing to help in his cause. The greatest of these monkeys, Hanuman, became his best friend. Ultimately, Hanuman’s service and devotion to Rāma were of paramount importance to Rāma’s ability to wage war, win the battle, and reclaim his lady wife. Without Hanuman, Rāma would have lost everything.
In the end, Rāma prevailed, as good always prevails over evil. Rāvaṇa was defeated and slain, and Sītā returned to her beloved husband. During her long captivity, her heart never wavered in her love for him. To this day, Hanuman is revered as the greatest friend and most loyal warrior and servant of the heart.
Great myths serve as metaphors for our own existence and as revelatory tools for our personal path. Rāma is an avatar (avatāra) — a prepackaged form of god who has arrived on earth to aid humanity in returning to a more elevated state based on dharma. Dharma can be defined as the cosmic order of things, the social order of things, and the personal order of things, all of which uphold one another. As he is in a human body, Rāma is inherently forgetful of his divinity, and he ends up wandering in the dark forest for fourteen years before stepping up to the plate to uphold the purpose of his existence! It makes one wonder…how, then, is a hero born?
The trajectory is simple. First, the initial push into the adventure comes. In Rāma’s case, this is his apparent misfortune at losing the kingship to his brother. Often, what looks like a bummer is what starts a journey into a whole new level of awakening or heroism. But, in order to awaken, most heroes have to go through some kind of struggle to unearth their demons — both real and imagined. Rāma finds these as he enters the forest, where he wanders for fourteen years. This is a metaphorical retreat into his unconscious whereby the demons of his shadow side must be met and vanquished in order for him to leave. What happens next is the crux of the adventure, the moment when the hero of the story becomes the hero: The evil demon, Rāvaṇa, abducts Rāma’s beloved Sītā. This, finally, inspires Rāma to leave the dark forest.
This story follows an archetypal trajectory, and in fact, these mystical stories are meant to serve as perfect metaphors for our own lives. King Rāma is born a god, and yet he still has to overcome the trials and tribulations of a mere mortal before finally overcoming his shadows and defeating the evil demon to allow good to prevail over evil. We often spend our early years learning about and believing in our true potential, only to wander in the metaphorical forest of unconsciousness before finally, hopefully, returning to reclaim the grandeur of this precious life. Rāma has helpers, as we have helpers. He has his family (Lakṣmana), he has his spirit (Sītā), and he has the power of his heart (Hanuman). The catalyst for his readiness to play his role, or in yogic terminology, to live his dharma, finally arises with the abduction of his spirit by evil forces.
It is in this moment that the hero decides his or her fate.
We are also heroes. When this fateful moment arises for us, we choose to either become the hero of our own story and give meaning and purpose to our own lives or remain unconscious, wandering the dark forest forever. As mystics, yogis internalize these mythic metaphors. We see how the story plays out in our own lives and conditions. This is why Joseph Campbell would encourage us to “follow our bliss.” (For more on this, see the Oṁ Namaḥ Śivāya mantra, page 181.)
Following that bliss may not always be easy. It may not always be the path of least resistance. There may still be dragons or demons to slay while we’re on the path, but it is what makes life worth living because it is our path. For Rāma, Sītā is what makes life worth living. She is his spirit — pure, untouched, perfect, and transcendent. The loss of that, of her, is staggering, as there is nothing more debilitating than an amputated soul. We see this unfortunate circumstance played out in daily life in the state of the potential hero who has either not yet heard or not yet heeded his or her own call.
Rāma’s call comes loud and clear, and it is the kick start necessary to affirm his own divinity and utilize all his resources to become the king that lovers of the epic Rāmāyana story know him to be all along. His greatest asset in the ensuing fight is the representative of his heart, the glorious, faith-filled primate Hanuman. Hanuman is propelled across oceans and moves mountains solely because of his love for Rāma. At the end of the story, Hanuman rips open his chest to reveal the contents of his heart, showing benevolent onlookers images of Rāma and Sītā contained therein. In this way, Hanuman is Rāma’s own heart beating outside of his chest.
And sometimes life happens that way.
Our children. Our pets. Our loved ones become external touchstones of our own individual hearts. They become those who get us through the most difficult times imaginable. It may have been impossible for Rāma to fight the battle of his life on his own. But, with Hanuman by his side, he successfully restores dharma to his dynasty. For us, as mystics, we have most certainly had personal battles that would have been quite impossible without someone we love believing in us just a little more than we believe in ourselves. When we fight our most fearsome foes, we will prevail when we are fighting with our whole heart in order to liberate our spirit. This is how we slay our own demons and dragons — whether they are found in the office, in relationships, or in addiction. We prevail when we understand the critical importance of what is at stake and what we are capable of when we have the power of love by our side.
Ultimately, Rāma wins his battle and navigates his path toward love and inspiration back in his kingly court. Rāma returns to his kingdom, and his story is sung by his two young bardic sons across time and space to reach even the most contemporary listeners. It is when one hero conquers his fear and then returns to inspire another that his tale is complete. The precious gem of the return of the hero is evidence…evidence of knowing that it is possible to become heroes ourselves. And so, the cycle continues as each of us comes to understand ourselves to be the heroes of our very own story. Like Rāma, we become kings when we stop wandering in the forest of the unconscious. Like Rāma, we become empowered when we know the value of having love on our side. And like Rāma, we know ourselves to be whole and complete when we will do whatever it takes to liberate our precious spirit and walk the path of our own hero’s journey. As Joseph Campbell reminds us:
We have not even to risk the adventure alone, for the heroes of all time have gone before us. The labyrinth is thoroughly known. We have only to follow the thread of the hero path, and where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god. And where we had thought to slay another, we shall slay ourselves. Where we had thought to travel outward, we will come to the center of our own existence. And where we had thought to be alone, we will be with all the world.
