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The terrible sins of Vaishyaagaman and Parastriigaman, the story of Ravana
Yoga Shastra, Second Light, Verse 99: Knowing this, how can a wise man engage in Paradaaragaman? Let alone Parastriigaman, even thinking about another woman is a great sin. ||96|| This is explained. ||155|| Even though he shook the entire world with his prowess, Ravana, despite having his own wife, abducted Sita Sati out of lust and looked at her with lustful eyes. This led to the destruction of his lineage, the end of Lanka, and he went to hell after death. Even such a great warrior faced the consequences of his actions, so what chance does anyone else have of not facing the consequences of Parastriigaman? ||99|| Therefore, one should learn from this. The mere desire for Parastriigaman led Ravana to hell:
In the island called Rakshasa, on the peak of the Trikut mountain, which is like the crown jewel of the earth, there was a vast city called Lanka, made of gold. There ruled King Ravana, the jewel of the Polasthya lineage, a great warrior who shook the world with his prowess, the lord of the Vidyadharas. He had two brothers, Kumbhakarna and Vibhishana, who were like pillars of strength. One day, he saw a garland adorned with nine gems, inherited from his ancestors. As if it were the family goddess, Ravana looked at it with wonder and asked the elders there, "Where did this garland come from? What is special about it?" They said, "This garland was obtained by your ancestors as a boon. It is a very essential and valuable garland of gems. The special thing about this garland is that whoever wears it will become half-lord. Thus, according to the family tradition, the king has been wearing this garland. According to this custom, your ancestors also worshipped it. Hearing the importance of the garland, Ravana put it on his neck." As soon as he put it on, the reflection of Ravana's face appeared in the nine gems. Due to this, instead of one face, ten faces appeared. This is why Ravana became known as Dashmukha. From then on, people greeted Ravana with the words "Jai Jai". At that time, he seemed to be excited for conquering the world. Ravana possessed perfect knowledge like Pragyapti, etc., which was like a well-trained army acquired through intense practice. Due to this, he easily conquered the difficult half-Bharat region, as if conquering a village; yet, his desire for kingdom, like an itch, did not subside.
Indra, the king of the Vidyadharas, who had experienced Indrahood in his previous birth, was a master of many arts and ruled on the Vaithadya mountain. Due to the excess of wealth and power in the world and the practice of Indrahood in his previous birth, he became proud and considered himself as Ahminndra. He named his queen Shachi, his weapon Vajra, his elephant Airavata, his horse Matali, and his four great generals Soma, Yama, Varuna, and Kubera. Because he considered himself Indra, he considered others as insignificant as straw. Being a fierce warrior, he considered even Ravana as insignificant in front of him. When the powerful Ravana, who was as strong as Yama, came to know this, he became angry and roared like the clouds of Shravan, and went to fight the said Indra king. With the power of knowledge, he crossed the sea with an army of water, land, and sky, and arrived at Vaithadya like a storm of the apocalypse, the dust from the whirlwind of his army covering the sky. Seeing Ravana approaching, Indra also came forward, because it is the first duty of men to face each other in friendship and enmity. The mighty Ravana sent a messenger to Indra, conveying a message in sweet words, "There have been many rulers here who are proud of their strength or are Vidyadharas. All of them have sent gifts and served King Dashkandha Ravana. Due to being forgotten by Ravana and your simplicity, 1. In other texts, it is mentioned that the garland was worn around the neck at the time of birth.
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