Chapter summary
सेतुमाहात्म्यम् Setu Māhātmyam
The Glory of Setu
**The Revered Guru said:**
For sixty thousand years, the glorious and mighty King Daśaratha, lord of Kosala, protected the world. Such was the strength of his arms that Indra, king of the gods, having vanquished the demons, dwelled fearlessly and happily in heaven with all the deities. Under King Daśaratha's rule, the earth flourished; the rain-god showered his bounty in due season, and the land was rich with abundant crops. No fear of thieves or death troubled anyone; all people lived tranquil and contented lives. (v.1-4)
Despite his three wives, no son was born to him, plunging the king into deep sorrow. In his desire for a worthy heir, the lord undertook various religious duties: he installed Nāga idols, circumambulated the sacred Aśvattha tree, and performed the Śiśumāra-śānti ritual. He embarked on pilgrimages, bestowed countless gifts, and observed fasts for sixty days, yet still, no son graced his home. Seeing no fruit from his pious acts, the weary and deeply saddened king, lord of the earth, turned to his family priest, Vasiṣṭha. (v.5-8)
**Daśaratha said:**
"O venerable sage," Daśaratha lamented, "the religious duties I have performed bear no fruit, surely due to sins committed in a previous birth. Therefore, O best of sages, without the removal of that very sin, I, who am devoid of fortune, consider all my efforts to be in vain. Please, tell me the means to expiate this sin. I shall perform it with unwavering faith, so that the fruit of my dharma may at last be realized." (v.9-11)
**Vasiṣṭha said:**
"On the shore of the southern ocean," Vasiṣṭha replied, "lies a great and holy place known as Phullāraṇya, blessed with a divine temple tank. There, the Lord Janārdana, master of the universe, reclines upon Śeṣa, visible to all eyes, bestowing desired boons upon humanity. O King, journey there and worship the Lord of the Universe with devotion; you shall be freed from all sins and attain the fruition of your every endeavor." (v.12-14)
**The Revered Guru said:**
Thus instructed by the sage, the king, accompanied by his three wives, set forth with faith and devotion, joined by Brāhmaṇas and other pilgrims. Upon reaching Phullāraṇya, the king, yearning for a son, worshipped Keśava, the Primeval Person, Viṣṇu. Then, the blessed Lord of the Universe, husband of Śrī, being pleased, mercifully granted him a divine vision and spoke to him with great affection. (v.15-17)
**The Blessed Lord said:**
"Do not grieve, O great king!" the Blessed Lord declared. "You shall surely obtain sons who are like the guardians of the worlds, divine, and who will increase the joy of the entire world. All your obstacles, born of past sins, have now been utterly destroyed. Return to your city, O lord of the earth, and perform the Putrakāmeṣṭi sacrifice." (v.18-19)
**The Revered Guru said:**
Thus instructed by Viṣṇu, the king returned to his city and, having been initiated, performed the Putrakāmeṣṭi and Aśvamedha sacrifices. Then, Vāsudeva, the Supreme Soul, the Lord of Vaikuṇṭha, mercifully took an incarnation on earth for the protection of the people who were oppressed by Rāvaṇa, the lord of the night-wanderers. (v.20-21)
Even in his childhood, accompanied by Lakṣmaṇa, the son of Sumitrā, He accomplished the slaying of Subāhu and Mārīca, swiftly protecting the sacrifice of Kauśika [Viśvāmitra] with bow and arrow in hand. On the way, by the mere dust of His feet, He purified Ahalyā and reached Mithilā. Breaking the bow of the Supreme Lord [Śiva], He obtained His beloved, the daughter of the king of Mithilā. Greatly honored by His father-in-law, the king, He then set out and, with little effort, Rāma broke the pride of Bhārgava Rāma [Paraśurāma], before proceeding to Ayodhyā with Sītā. There, He lived happily in His own kingdom, joyfully worshipped by all people, honored by His father, mother, and brothers, His being filled with every good quality. (v.22-25)
When His father, oppressed by Kaikeyī, endeavored to perform His coronation, Rāma, by His father's word, departed for the great forest with Sītā, clad in bark garments and matted hair. The great soul, whose lotus feet were served by Lakṣmaṇa, the son of Sumitrā, wandered in the depths of the forest. And the king, Daśaratha, due to grief for his son, crying "O Rāma, Rāma!", attained heaven. (v.26-27)
Then, consoling His devotee Bharata, who had surrendered to Him, and bestowing upon him His own sandals, He spent many years in the forests, in the regions of holy hermitages. When the daughter of the king of Videha, Sītā, was deceitfully abducted by the vilest of demons in His absence, He, though the Lord of all, deluded by love, wept piteously like a helpless man. (v.28-29)
While searching for His beloved, having granted liberation to Jaṭāyu, He went to Śabarī. On the bank of the Pampā lake, upon seeing Māruti [Hanumān], Rāma suddenly felt great joy. Having forged a friendship with Sugrīva and given him the kingdom in the capital of the monkeys, the great soul learned of Sītā's story through Hanumān, whom He had sent. (v.30-31)
Then, with the monkeys and Lakṣmaṇa, holding the Kodaṇḍa bow, He joyfully and swiftly reached the seashore with His army, a place of wonder with its rolling waves. There, Dāśarathi [Rāma] beheld the Lord of Śrī, the dweller of Phullāṭavi [Phullāraṇya], the very Janārdana whom His own father had worshipped, the cause of His own birth, the abode of the entire universe. The great soul, of lovely fame, desiring to conquer the king of the night-wanderers and wishing to regain His wife and His lost kingdom, worshipped Him. (v.32-34)
There itself, Rāma gave refuge to the surrendered Vibhīṣaṇa. And there, for three nights, He, who is served by the lords of heaven, lay on a bed of darbha grass [a sacred grass]. Then, having bowed to the Lord of the Universe, the great soul built the bridge [Setu], reached the city [Laṅkā], fought a battle, killed His personal enemy Rāvaṇa, and then saw His beloved Sītā. Having given the kingdom to Vibhīṣaṇa and returned to Ayodhyā with Sītā, He was coronated and, as the King of Kings, Rāmacandra protected the world. (v.35-37)
This holy place of Phullāraṇya, served even by Rāghava, bestows auspiciousness and liberation from all sins upon people. By worshipping Jagannātha in Phullāraṇya, human beings obtain the good fortune of having sons, just as Daśaratha did in the past. Here itself, at Darbhaśayana [the place where Rāma rested on darbha grass], one should worship the God Rāghava, the scorcher of foes, who slept peacefully, ever affectionate to those who take refuge in Him. And this Darbhaśayana, the destroyer of great sins, the bestower of the fortune of progeny to men, should be served here with faith. (v.38-41)
The dust particles on earth can be counted, the stars in the sky can be counted, but the merit arising from the sight of Setu cannot be counted even by Śeṣa [the cosmic serpent]. The line drawn by Rāma's bow in the salt ocean—from its mere sight comes liberation; I know not the fruit of bathing in it! The holy ford in the southern ocean, famous as Dhanuṣkoṭi, is the destroyer of all sins for those who serve it with faith. (v.42-44)
Here, the great god Mahādeva was worshipped by Rāma, the Supreme Soul who Himself removes all sins, for the sake of instructing the world. How can there be any sin for that Rāma, the Supreme Soul, by the chanting of whose name the sins of men, such as the killing of a Brāhmaṇa, are destroyed? How can there be any sin for Him, whose name is the liberating mantra that Śaṅkara [Lord Śiva] always chants and by which he gives liberation in Kāśī? For the destruction of the sins of the worlds, Rāmacandra, the ocean of compassion, established Śaṅkara, who became famous as Rāmeśvara. (v.45-48)
By merely seeing him, by remembering him, and by chanting his name, all the sins of human beings are destroyed in the age of Kali. Crores of Brahmahatyās [the grave sin of killing a Brāhmaṇa] and crores of illicit unions are immediately destroyed by chanting "Mahādeva". Here itself, one who desires a son should faithfully worship Viṣṇu, Śrīdhara, Setu Mādhava, who is revered by all the gods. For those who listen with faith to the glory of Setu day after day, all sins are destroyed and auspicious things happen. (v.49-52)
Here ends the seventh chapter, titled "The Glory of Setu," in the Fifth Part of the "Divya Desa Vaibhavam" composed by Śrī Kṛṣṇapremi Mahāprabhu.
Thus ends Chapter 7, named "Setu Māhātmyam", in Pañcama Bhāge, in the Divya Deśa Vaibhavam, composed by Śrī Kṛṣṇapremi Mahāprabhu.
