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Anil Kumar Questions and
Answers
Question 57
Why was Rama commanded to spend 14 years in exile?
(09.02.2003)
I
am very grateful to this devotee who gave an interpretation.
“Why was
Rama commanded to spend 14 years in exile?”
He
provided an answer to this question. I am very grateful to him. I
will just read out the answer that he gave from Sai literature.
One question was asked some weeks back: “Why 14 years? Why not 13?
Why not 12?” Then my answer was, “Why bother about 12 or 13? When
He could not be in society, when He could not be in Ayodhya, the
capital of His kingdom, after all 10 or 12 years, what does it
matter?” That’s what I said, of course in a jovial way. But this
is the correct answer given by Bhagavan, which was sent to us by
e-mail from a friend. I will read it to you now.
“There was a
question regarding why the number 14 years was given for Sri
Rama’s exile. Swami did mention why it was 14 years. During Sri
Rama’s time, it was considered that if a husband and wife live
separately for 13 years, then the marriage is considered null and
void. So, Mandhara wanted Kaikeyi to ask Dasaratha to banish Sri
Rama for 14 years so that His relationship with the throne was
destroyed. Even now Indian law says that if anyone rents your
house for more than 12 years, we don’t need to ask him -- he owns
it! (Laughter) So that is the point.”
© Anil Kumar Kamaraju 2004 - Here
reproduced for personal use of the devotees for the purpose of
seva.
Anil Kumar website:
http://www.internety.com/anilkhome/ -
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