The Saints Hold Rama's Lotus Feet Dearer than Body or Home
Aranya Kanda, Doha 45
Doha 45 · Movement 2 of 2
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Rama continues the portrait of those who are treasuries of virtue. Worldly sorrow no longer possesses them, and doubt has departed. Their inward ground is not shaken by the changing conditions through which the body moves.
Nothing is dearer to them than Rama's lotus feet. Beside that love, body and home lose their claim to ultimate affection. What ordinarily defines identity and shelter no longer establishes the boundary of the saint's heart.
The saints have not become empty of love. Love has become completely centered upon Rama's feet. Worldly sorrow and uncertainty have receded, and neither bodily identity nor the shelter of home is held dear beside that chosen refuge.
Body and home fall from the center, and the lotus feet of Rama remain the saint's dearest dwelling.
Read the passage from the Manas
गुनागार संसार दुख रहित बिगत संदेह।। तजि मम चरन सरोज प्रिय तिन्ह कहुँ देह न गेह।।45।।
Those who are abodes of virtue, free from worldly sorrow, and beyond all doubt; who cherish My lotus feet above all else; for them there is neither body nor home that can bind them.