Swayamvara

Sage Vishwamitra had been invited to a marriage in the land of Janakpuri. He urged the two divine brothers to accompany him there.

King Janaka was the wise and benevolent King of Janakpuri. It is claimed that his beautiful daughter Sita was the daughter of the Earth.

Our Hindu scriptures have always believed that the whole of creation is energy. Science too agrees with this theory. Hindus believe that the manifested Energy of God is Female. Hence all Hindu incarnations have a female counterpart.

Energy arises from the Earth. Sita was the daughter of the Earth. However Sita was humble and loving. Sita was ‘Bhakti’ itself.

BHAKTI

What is Bhakti? Bhakti, according to Hindu scriptures, is one of the paths through which to achieve the Ultimate.

Bhakti is Love for the Lord; Total Surrender, Total Devotion and Total Compassion.

Bhakti is not blind. In its foundation lies the unshakable knowledge that the God one seeks is not far. Bhakti believes that God’s proximity is in direct proportion to one’s faith.

King Janaka wanted to get Sita married. He decided that, that man would be worthy of his daughter’s hand, who would be able to string the bow of Lord Shiva.

The bow of Lord Shiva was so heavy that no one could move it, let alone pick it up and string it.

The bow is symbolic of the Ego.

Kamsa, the demon during Krishna’s time, also possessed a bow to which he would pray regularly.

This is what we subtly do with our ego - we inflate it by worshipping it.

King Janaka on the other hand wanted to move it and was not displeased when it was broken by Rama.

Looking at the bow, some contestants did not even attempt to try to pick it up whereas others failed miserably.

King Janaka was angry. “Is there no one man enough to be able to perform this feat”, he roared.

His anger is natural. Here are contestants who have come in order to make prayer and devotion incarnate Sita, their life-partner and they are not able to even move their ego, leave alone break it.

Sri Rama had only to touch it and the bow broke of its own accord.

God is said to have everything, but lacks the ego.

We may be asked to praise God during our prayers, but that is not to flatter him. That is a lesson to us in humility. It is a reminder of how very helpless we truly are when it comes to brass tacks.

Thus came about the Great Union of Wisdom (Gyan) with Bhakti (Devotion).

According to Hindu philosophy, mere knowledge without devotion is as incomplete as the other way round. It is only the union of both these qualities that truly liberates man from the bondage of life and death.