Valmiki Ramayana - March 20

March 20 - Sarga 66 of Uttara Kanda. 

What can be more beautiful and joyous than the birth of Kusha and Lava!? 🙏

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यामेव रात्रिं शत्रुघ्नः पर्णशालामुपाविशत् ।

तामेव रात्रिं सीतापि प्रसूता दारकद्वयम्    ॥

"On the very night that Shatrughna spent in the Valmiki hermitage, Devi Sita delivered twin boys."

The ascetic disciples rushed with the happy news to Sage Valmiki in the middle of the night.

भगवन्रामपत्नी सा प्रसूता दारकद्वयम् ।

ततो रक्षां महातेजः कुरु भूतविनाशिनीम् ॥

"Revered master! Sri Rama's queen Devi Sita has delivered twin boys! Please therefore come and bless the babies to ward off the evil influence of elements."

The sage happily hastened to the hermitage where the delivery had occurred. He saw two new-borns with a divine radiance. He blessed them and invoked protection for them against all evil forces.  

  

The sage picked up a fistful of darbha grass with sharp ends in one hand, another fistful in the other hand which had no sharp ends (cut that way), and separately invoked protection as he waved them auspiciously over the two babies. He gave the first fistful to the ascetic women and said that they should bathe the first baby (born earlier) sprinkling water with the sharp-ended darbha grass. That boy would be named Kusha, in memory of the sharp-ended grass. The other baby should be bathed with sprinkling from the second fistful of grass without sharp ends, and would be named Lava (remnant of grass).

एवं कुशलवौ नाम्ना तावुभौ यमजातकौ ।

मत्कृताभ्यां च नामाभ्यां ख्यातियुक्तौ भविष्यतः ॥

"Let it be known that these twin boys named Kusha and Lava respectively by me shall become great and be known by those names alone."

As the women gave the babies the ceremonial and obligatory propitiatory baths with the grass handfuls, they chanted aloud the lineage gotra, nakshatra, and parent's names and so on. This reached the ears of Shatrughna. 

He went at once to the hermitage, and bowed low to Devi Sita. "Oh, divine mother, it is indeed my greatest fortune that I am here on this momentous occasion!" As they were conversing, the night passed.

The next morning, Shatrughna finished his ablutions and prayers and devoutly took leave of Sage Valmiki. He then proceeded westward to the bank of the Yamuna.

He spent the next eight days and nights in the hermitage of Sage Chyavana in the Madhu forest. He got to hear many wonderful stories from the redoubtable Bhargava Chyavana.

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॥               श्रीरामजयम्                 ॥