Discourse on the Full Awareness of Breathing

The Valmiki (also Balmiki) is a Scheduled Caste
community of India. They have historically faced exclusion and
oppression in Indian society, and are frequently affected by anti-SC/ST violence and repression by members of other castes.

Valmikis claim that they descend from the Hindu sage Valmiki who is traditionally ascribed as the writer of the epic Ramayana.

The caste group also built a temple of Valmiki in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh.

According to the Indian Census of 2001, the Valmikis formed 11.2 per cent of the Scheduled Caste population in Punjab and were the second-most populous Scheduled Caste in Delhi, where they were recorded as “Chuhra (Balmiki)”. In Punjab, Chuhras who follow Hinduism are known as Valmikis.

The 2011 Census of India for Uttar Pradesh showed the Balmiki population, which was classified as a Scheduled Caste, as 1,319,241.

In the UK, the Council of Valmiki Sabhas UK claims to represent the Valmiki.Rama is the hero of the Ramayana whose
author is Valmiki. The story of the Ramayana is a very short one.
Besides it is simple and in itself there is nothing sensational about
it. But just 0.1% intolerant, violent, militant, number one terrorists of the world, ever shooting, mob lynching, lunatic, mentally retarded rapist foreigners from Bene Israel chitpavan brahmins after RSSIsing Ramayana for political gains planning to build Rama Temple after demolishing a religious place without any due respect for the Marvelous Modern Constitution which says status quo have to be maintained.

Rama is the son of Dasharatha the king of
Ayodhya the modern Benares. Dasharatha had three wives, Kausalya,
Kaikeyi and Sumitra besides several hundred concubines. Kaikeyi had
married Dasharatha on terms which were at the time of marriage
unspecified and which Dasharatha was bound to fulfil whenever he was
called upon by Kaikeyi to do so. Dasharatha was childless for a long
time. An heir to the throne was ardently desired by him. Seeing that
there was no hope of his begetting a son on any of his three wives he
decided to perform a Putreshti Yajna and called the sage Shrung at the
sacrifice who prepared pindas and gave the three wives of Dasharatha to
eat them.

After they ate the pindas three wives
became pregnant and gave birth to sons. Kausalya gave birth to Rama,
Kaikeyi gave birth to Bharata and Sumitra gave birth to two sons Laxman
and Satrughana. In due course Rama was married to Sita. When Rama came
of age, Dasharatha thought of resigning the throne in favour of Rama and
retiring from kingship. While this was being settled Kaikeyi raised the
question of rendering her satisfaction of the terms on which she had
married Dasharatha. On being asked to state her terms she demanded that
her son Bharata should be installed on the throne in preference to I
Rama and Rama should live in forest for 12 years. Dasharatha with great
reluctance agreed. Bharata became king of Ayodhya and Rama  accompanied
by his wife Sita and his step brother Laxman went to live in the forest.
While the three living in the forest Ravana the king of Lanka kidnapped
Sita and took her away and kept her in his palace intending to make her
one of his wives. Rama and Laxman then started search of Sita. On the
way they meet Sugriva and Hanuman two leading personages of the Vanara
(monkey) race and form friendship with them. With their help the place
of the abduction was located and with their help they marched on Lanka,
defeated Ravana in the battle and rescued Sita. Rama returns with Laxman
and Sita to Ayodhya. By that time twelve years had elapsed and the term
prescribed by Kaikeyi was fulfilled with the result that Bharata gave
up the throne and in his place Rama became the king of Ayodhya.
Such is in brief the outline of the story of the Ramayana as told by Valmiki.

There is nothing in this story to make
Rama the object of worship. He is only a dutiful son. But Valmiki saw
something extraordinary in Rama and that is why he undertook to compose
the Ramayana. Valmiki asked Narada the following question :
“Tell me Oh! Narada, who is the most accomplished man on earth at the present time?”
and then goes on to elaborate what he means by accomplished man. He defines his accomplished man as:
” Powerful, one who knows the secret of religion, one who knows
gratitude, truthful, one who is ready to sacrifice his self interest
even when in distress to fulfil a religious vow, virtuous in his
conduct, eager to safeguard the interests of all, strong pleasing in
appearance with power of self-control, able to subdue anger,
illustrious, with no jealousy for the prosperity of others, and in war
able to strike terror in the hearts of Gods.”
Narada then asks for time to consider and after mature deliberation
tells him that the only person who can be said to possess these virtues
is Rama, the son of Dasharatha.

It is because of his virtues that Rama
has come to be deified. But is Rama a worthy personality of deification?
Let those who accept him an object worthy of worship as a God consider
the following facts.
Rama’s birth is miraculous and it may be that the suggestion that he was
born from a pinda prepared by the sage Shrung is an allegorical glass
to cover the naked truth that he was begotten upon Kausalya by the sage
Shrung although the two did not stand in the relationship of husband and
wife. In any case his birth if not disreputable in its origin is
certainly unnatural.

There are other incidents connected with the birth of Rama the unsavory character of which it will be difficult to deny.
 Valmiki starts his Ramayana by emphasizing the fact that Rama is an
Avatar of Vishnu and it is Vishnu who agreed to take birth as Rama and
be the son of Dasharatha. The God Brahma came to know of this and felt
that in order that this Rama Avatar of Vishnu be a complete success
arrangement shall be made that Rama shall have powerful associates to
help him and cooperate with him. There were none such existing then.
The Gods agreed to carry out the command of Brahma and engaged
themselves in wholesale acts of fornication not only against Apsaras who
were prostitutes not only against the unmarried daughters of Yakshas
and Nagas but also against the lawfully wedded wives of Ruksha,
Vidhyadhar, Gandharvas, Kinnars and Vanaras and produced the Vanaras who
became the associates of Rama.

Rama’s birth is thus accompanied by
general debauchery if not in his case certainly in the case of his
associates. His marriage to Sita is not above comment. According to
Buddha Ramayana, Sita was the sister of Rama, both were the children of
Dasharatha. The Ramayana of Valmiki does not agree with the relationship
mentioned in Buddha Ramayana. According to Valmiki Sita was the
daughter of the king Janaka of Videha and therefore not a sister of
Rama. This is not convincing for even according to Valmiki she is not
the natural born daughter of Janaka but a child found by a farmer in his
field while ploughing it and presented by him to king Janaka and
brought up by Janaka. It was therefore in a superficial sense that Sita
could be said to be the daughter of Janaka.

The story in the Buddha Ramayana is
natural and not inconsistent with the Aryan rules  of marriage. If the
story is true, then Rama’s marriage to Sita is no ideal to be copied. In
another sense Rama’s marriage was not an ideal marriage which could be
copied. One of the virtues ascribed to Rama is that he was monogamous.
It is difficult to understand how such a notion could have become
common. For it has no foundation in fact. Even Valmiki refers  to the
many wives of Rama. These were of course in addition to his many
concubines. In this he was the true son of his nominal father Dasharatha
who had not only the three wives referred to above but many others.

Let us next consider his character as an
individual and as a king. In speaking of him as an individual I will
refer to only two incidents one relating to his treatment of Vali and
other relating to his treatment of his own wife Sita. First let us
consider the incident of Vali.
Vali and Sugriva were two brothers. They belonged to the Vanar race and
came from a ruling family which had its own kingdom the capital of which
was Kishkindha. At the time when Sita was kidnapped by Ravana, Vali was
reigning at Kishkindha. While Vali was on the throne he was engaged in a
war with a Rakshasa by name Mayavi. In the personal combat between the
two Mayavi ran for his life. Both Vali and Sugriva pursued him. Mayavi
entered into a deep cavity in the earth. Vali asked Sugriva to wait at
the mouth of the cavity and himself went inside. After sometime a flood
of blood came from inside the cavity. Sugriva concluded that Vali must
have been killed by Mayavi and came to Kishkindha and got himself
declared king in place of Vali and made Hanuman his Prime Minister
As a matter of fact, Vali was not killed. It was Mayavi who was killed
by Vali. Vali came out of the cavity but did not find Sugriva there. He
proceeded to Kishkindha and to his great surprise he found that Sugriva
had proclaimed himself king. Vali naturally became enraged at this act
of treachery on the part of his brother Sugriva and he had good ground
to be. Sugriva should have ascertained, should not merely have assumed
that Vali was dead. Secondly Vali had a son by name Angad whom Sugriva
should have made the king as the legitimate heir of Vali. He did neither
of the two things. His was a clear case of usurpation. Vali drove out
Sugriva and took back the throne. The two brothers became mortal
enemies.
This occurred just after Ravana had kidnapped Sita. Rama and Laxman were
wandering in search of her. Sugriva and Hanuman were wandering in
search of friends who could help them to regain the throne from Vali.
The two parties met quite accidentally. After informing each other of
their difficulties a compact was arrived at between the two. It was
agreed that Rama should help Sugriva to kill Vali and to establish him
on the throne of Kishkindha. On the part of Sugriva and Hanuman it was
agreed that they should help Rama to regain Sita. To enable Rama to
fulfil his part of the compact it was planned that Sugriva should wear a
garland in his neck as to be easily distinguishable to Rama from Vali
and that while the dual was going on Rama should conceal himself behind a
tree and then shoot an arrow at Vali and kill him. Accordingly a dual
was arranged, Sugriva with a garland in his neck and while the daul was
on, Rama standing behind a tree shot Vali with his arrow and opened the
way to Sugriva to be the king of Kishkindha. This murder of Vali is the
greatest blot on the character of Rama. It was a crime which was
thoroughly unprovoked, for Vali had no quarrel with Rama. It was most
cowardly act for Vali was unarmed. It was a planned and premeditated
murder.

Consider his treatment of his own wife
Sita. With the army collected for him by Sugriva and Hanuman, Rama
invades Lanka. There too he plays the same mean part as he did as
between the two brothers Vali and Sugriva. He takes the help of
Bibhishana the brother of Ravana promising him to kill Ravana and his
son and place him on the vacant throne. Rama kills Ravana and also his
son lndrajit. The first thing Rama does after the close of the fight is
to give a decent burial to the dead body of Ravana. Thereafter he
interests himself in the coronation of Bibhishana and it is after the
coronation is over that he sends Hanuman to Sita and that took to inform
her that he, Laxman and Sugriva are hale and hearty and that they have
killed Ravana.
The first thing he should have done after disposing of Ravana was to
have gone to Sita. He does not do so. He finds more interest in the
coronation than in Sita. Even when the coronation is over he does not go
himself but sends Hanuman. And what is the message he sends? He does
not ask Hanuman to bring her. He asks him to inform her that he is hale
and hearty. It is Sita who expresses to Hanuman her desire to see Rama.
Rama does not go to Sita his own wife who was kidnapped and confined by
Ravana for more than 10 months. Sita is brought to him and what does
Rama say to Sita when he sees her? It would be difficult to believe any
man with ordinary human kindness could  address to his wife in such dire
distress as Rama did to Sita when he met her in Lanka if there was not
the direct authority of Valmiki. This is how Rama addressed her :  
I have got you as a prize in a war after
conquering my enemy your captor. I have recovered my honour and punished
my enemy. People have witnessed my military prowess and I am glad my
abours have been rewarded. I came here to kill Ravana and wash off the
dishonour. I did not take this trouble for your sake.” Could there be
anything more cruel than this conduct of Rama towards Sita? He does not
stop there. He proceeded to tell her:
” I suspect your conduct. You must have
been spoiled by Ravana. Your very sight is revolting to me. On you
daughter of Janaka, I allow you to go anywhere you like. I have nothing
to do with you. I conquerred you back and I am content for that was my
object. I cannot think that Ravana would have failed to enjoy a woman as
beautiful as you are.”

naturally Sita calls Rama low and mean
and tells him quite that she would have committed suicide and saved him
all this if when Hanuman first came he had sent her a message that he
abandoned her on the ground that she was kidnapped. To give him no
excuse Sita undertakes to prove her purity. She enters the fire and
comes out unscathed. The Gods satisfied with this evidence proclaim that
she is pure. It is then that Rama agrees to take her back to Ayodhya.

And what does he do with her when he
brings her back to Ayodhya. Of course, he became king and she became
queen. But while Rama remained king, Sita ceased to be a queen very
soon. This incident reflects great infamy upon Rama. It is recorded by
Valmiki in his Ramayana that some days after the coronation of Rama and
Sita as king and queen Sita conceived. Seeing that she was carrying some
residents of evil disposition began to calumniate Sita suggesting that
she must have conceived from Ravana while she was in Lanka and blaming
Rama for taking such a woman back as his wife. This malicious gossip in
the town was reported by Bhadra, the Court joker to Rama. Rama evidently
was stung by this calumny. He was overwhelmed with a sense of disgrace.
This is quite natural. What is quite unnatural is the means he adopts
of getting rid of this disgrace. To get rid of this disgrace he takes
the shortest cut and the swiftest means—namely to abandon her, a woman
in a somewhat advanced state of pregnancy in a jungle, without friends,
without provision, without even notice in a most treacherous manner.
There is no doubt that the idea of abandoning Sita was not sudden and
had not occurred to Rama on the spur of the moment. The genesis of the
idea the developing of it and the plan of executing are worth some
detailed mention. When Bhadra reports to him the gossip about Sita which
had spread in the town Rama calls his brothers and tells them his
feelings. He tells them Sita’s purity and chastity was proved in Lanka,
that Gods had vouched lor it and that he absolutely believed in her
innocence, purity and chastity. “All the same the public are
calumniating Sita and are blaming me and putting me to shame. No one can
tolerate such disgrace. Honour is a great asset, Gods as well as great
men strive to maintain it in tact. I cannot bear this dishonour and
disgrace. To save myself from such dishonour and disgrace I shall be
ready even to abandon you. Don’t think I shall hesitate to abandon
Sita.”

This shows that he had made up his mind
to abandon Sita as the easiest way of saving himself from public calumny
without waiting to consider whether the way was fair or foul. The life
of Sita simply did not count. What counted was his own personal name and
fame. He of course does not take the manly course of stopping this
gossip, which as a king he could do and which as a husband who was
convinced of his wife’s innocence he was bound to it. He yielded to the
public gossip and there are not wanting Hindus who use this as ground to
prove that Rama was a democratic king when others could equally well
say that he was a weak and cowardly monarch: Be that as it may that
diabolical plan of saving his name and his fame he discloses to his
brothers but not to Sita the only person who was affected by it and the
only person who was entitled to have notice of it. But she is kept
entirely in the dark. Rama keeps it away from Sita as a closely guarded
secret and was waiting for an opportunity to put his plan into action.
Eventually the cruel fate of Sita gives him the opportunity he was
waiting for. Women who are carrying exhibit all sorts of cravings for
all sorts of things. Rama knew of this. So one day he asked Sita if
there was anything for which she felt a craving. She said yes. Rama said
what was it. She replied that she would like to live in the vicinity of
the Ashrama of sage on the bank of the river Ganges and live on fruits
and roots at least for one night. Rama simply jumped at the suggestion
of Sita and said ” Be easy my dear I shall see that you are sent there
tomorrow “. Sita treats this as an honest promise by a loving husband.
But what does Rama do? He thinks it is a good opportunity for carrying
through his plan of abandoning Sita. Accordingly he called his brothers
to a secret conference and disclosed to them his determination to use
this desire of Sita as an opportunity to carry out his plan of
abandonment of Sita. He tells his brothers not to intercede on behalf of
Sita, and warns them that if they came in his way he would look upon
them as his enemies. Then he tells Laxman to take Sita in a chariot next
day to the Ashram in the jungle on the bank of the river Ganges and to
abandon her there. Laxman did not know how he could muster courage to
tell Sita what was decided about Sita by Rama. Sensing his difficulty
Rama informs Laxman that Sita had already expressed her desire to spend
some time in the vicinity of an Ashrama on the bank of the river and
eased the mind of Laxman. This confabulation took place at night. Next
morning Laxman asked Sumanta to yoke the horses to the chariot. Sumanta
informs Laxman of his having done so. Laxman then goes into the palace
and meets Sita and reminds her of her having expressed her desire to
pass some days in the vicinity of an Ashrama and Rama having promised to
fulfil the same and tells her of his having been charged by Rama to do
the needful in the matter. He points to her the chariot waiting there
and says ‘let us go!’ Sita jumps into the chariot with her heart full of
gratitude to Rama. With Laxman as her companion and Sumanta as coachman
the chariot proceeds to its appointed place. At last they were on the
bank of the Ganges and were ferried across by the fishermen. Laxman fell
at Sita’s feet, and with hot tears issuing from his eyes he said ‘
Pardon me, 0, blameless queen, for what I am doing. My orders are to
abandon you here, for the people blame Rama for keeping you in his
house.”
Sita abandoned by Rama and left to die in a jungle went for shelter in
the Ashrama of Valmiki which was near about. Valmiki gave her protection
and kept her in his Ashram. There in course of time Sita gave birth to
twin sons, called Kusa and Lava. The three lived with Valmiki. Valmiki
brought up the boys and taught them to sing the Ramayana which he had
composed. For 12 years the boys lived in the forest in the Ashrama of
Valmiki not far from Ayodhya where Rama continued to rule. Never once in
those 12 years this model husband and loving father cared to inquire
what had happened to Sita whether she was living or whether she was
dead. Twelve years after Rama meets Sita in a strange manner. Rama
decided to perform a Yadna and issued invitation to all the Rishis to
attend and take part. For reasons best known to Rama himself no
invitation was issued to Valmiki although his Ashram was near to
Ayodhya. But Valmiki came to the Yadna of his own accord accompanied by
the two sons of Sita introducing them as his disciples. While the Yadna
was going on the two boys used to perform recitations of Ramayana in the
presence of the Assembly. Rama was very pleased and made inquiries when
he was informed that they were the sons of Sita. It was then he
remembered Sita and what does he do then? He does not send for Sita. He
calls these innocent boys who knew nothing about their parents’ sin, who
were the only victims of a cruel destiny to tell Valmiki that if Sita
was pure and chaste she could present herself in the Assembly to take a
vow thereby remove the calumny cast against herself and himself. This is
a thing she had once done in Lanka. This is a thing she could have been
asked to do again before she was sent away. There was no promise that
after this vindication of her character Rama was prepared to take her
back. Valmiki brings her to the Assembly. When she was in front of Rama,
Valmiki said, ‘0, son of Dasharatha, here is Sita whom you abandoned in
consequence of public disapprobation. She will now swear her purity if
permitted by you. Here are your twin-born sons bred up by me in my
hermitage.’ ‘ I know,’ said Rama ‘that Sita is pure and that these are
my sons. She performed an ordeal in Lanka in proof of her purity and
therefore I took her back. But people here have doubts still, and let
Sita perform an ordeal here that all these Rishis and people may witness
it.”
With eyes cast down on the ground and with hands folded Sita swore ” As I
never thought of any man except Rama even in my mind. let mother Earth
open and bury me. As I always loved Rama in words, in thoughts, and in
deed, let mother Earth open and bury me! As she uttered the oath, the
earth verily opened and Sita was carried away inside seated on a golden
simhasana (throne). Heavenly flowers fell on Sita’s head while the
audience looked on as in a trance.

Next onwards Ambedkar talks about Shambhuka Vadha incident as follows:
That means that Sita preferred to die
rather than return to Rama who had behaved no better than a brute. Such
is the tragedy of Sita and the crime of Rama the God. Let me throw some
search light on Rama the King. Rama is held out as an ideal King. But
can that conclusion be said to be founded in fact?
As a matter of fact Rama never functions,
as a King. He was a nominal King. The administration as Valmiki states
were entrusted to Bharata his brother. He had freed himself from the
cares and worries about his kingdom and his subjects. Valmiki has very
minutely described  the daily life of Rama after he became King.
According to that account the day was divided into two parts. Up to
forenoon and afternoon. From morning to forenoon he was engaged in
performing religious rites and ceremonies and offering devotion. The
afternoon he spent alternately in the company of Court jesters and in
the Zenana. When he got tired of the Zenana he joined the company of
jesters and when he got tired of jesters he went back to the Zenana .
Valmiki also gives a detailed description of how Rama spent his life in
the Zenana. This Zenana was housed in a park called Ashoka Vana. There
Rama, used to take his meal. The food according to Valmiki consisted of
all kinds of delicious viands. They included flesh and fruits and
liquor. Rama was not a teetotaller. He drank liquor copiously and
Valmiki records that Rama saw to it that Sita joined with him in his
drinking bouts*[f81] . From the description of the Zenana of Rama as
given by Valmiki it was by no means a mean thing. There were Apsaras,
Uraga and Kinnari accomplished in dancing and singing. There were other
beautiful women brought from different parts. Rama sat in the midst of
these women drinking and dancing. They pleased Rama and Rama garlanded
them. Valmiki calls Rama as a ‘Prince among women’s men ‘. This was not a
day’s affair. It was a regular course of his life.
As has already been said Rama never attended to public business. He
never observed the ancient rule of Indian kings of hearing the wrongs of
his subjects and attempting to redress them. Only one occasion has been
recorded by Valmiki when he personally heard the grievance of his
subjects. But unfortunately the occasion turned out to be a tragic one.
He took upon himself to redress the wrong but in doing so committed the
worst crime that history has ever recorded. The incident is known as the
murder of Sambuka the Shudra. It is said by Valmiki that in Rama’s
reign there were no premature deaths in his kingdom. It happened,
however, that a certain Brahman’s son died in a premature death. The
bereaved father carried his body to the gate of the king’s palace, and
placing it there, cried aloud and bitterly reproached Rama for the death
of his son, saying that it must be the consequence of some sin
committed within his realm, and that the king himself was guilty if he
did not punish it: and Finally threatened to end his life there by
sitting dharna (hunger-strike) against Rama unless his son was restored
to life. Rama thereupon consulted his council of eight learned Rishis
and Narada amongst them told Rama that some Shudra among his subjects
must have been performing Tapasya (ascetic exercises), and thereby going
against Dharma (sacred law); for according to it the practice of
Tapasya was proper to the twice-born alone, while the duty of the
Shudras consisted only in the service of the twice-born. Rama was thus
convinced that it was the sin committed by a Shudra in transgressing
Dharma in that manner, which was responsible for the death of the
Brahmin boy. So, Rama mounted his aerial car and scoured the countryside
for the culprit. At last, in a wild region far away to the south he
espied a man practising rigorous austerities of a certain kind. He
approached the man, and with no more ado than to enquire of him and
inform himself that he was a Shudra, by name Sambuka who was practising
Tapasya with a view to going to heaven in his own earthly person and
without so much as a warning, expostulation or the like addressed to
him, cut off his head. And to and behold! that very moment the dead
Brahman boy in distant Ayodhya began to breathe again. Here in the wilds
the Gods rained flowers on the king from their joy at his having
prevented a Shudra from gaining admission to their celestial abode
through the power of the Tapasya which he had no right to perform. They
also appeared before Rama and congratulated him on his deed. In answer
to his prayer to them to revive the dead Brahman boy lying at the palace
gate in Ayodhya, they informed him that he had already come to life.
They then departed. Rama thence proce