[Advaita-l] Ramayana Reading

[Venkata sriram P]

Namaste,

On the last day, appoint a purOhita who should represent the AchArya sthAna who represents the vashiSTa maharishi. He should be preferably a rAmabhakta.  Invite your bandhus to the house. Perform laghu pUja to the rAma-parivAra and perform sIta-rAma kalyANa.  If you are initiated in rAma tAraka mantra, do the japa of the same either 108 or 1000 times.  If not, just chant the rAma nAma. 

In the assembly of the AchArya & your relatives, do the pArAyaNa of rAmapaTTAbhiSEka sarga.  Because the entire relatives including the AchArya should listen to that sarga.  After that they should be fed. 

Later, the AchArya (purOhita) should be given the new clothes, rAma-parivAra pratima / chitra-paTa (the idol / portrait painting consisting entire rAma-parivAra viz., sIta,rAma,lakshmaNa,bharata,shatrughna, hanuma,bharata,jAmbavAn,angada, nila) (preferably paTTAbhishEka portrait) alongwith vAlmIki rAmAyaNa book and prostrate before the AchArya saying:

// Asmai brahmaNAya .....(amuka) gOtrAya ..........sarmaNE shrI sItArAma parabrahma paramAtmanaH
prItiM kAmayamAnaH pITa-kalasha-vastra samEta shrI sItArAma pratimAM tubhyaM ahaM sampradadE na mama 

//

Later the following mangala slokas of sIta & rAma should be chanted:

Sita:

dharaNI garbha sambhUtE dharaNIdhara vallabhE /
dharaNIM mE prayacchAshu prItA bhava shuchismitE //

Rama:

kausalyA garbha sambhUta bhUbhArOttAraNAya cha /
pratimAdAna santuSTO vAncchitaM yaccha rAghava //

iti mantra dvayEna dadyAt 

by uttering the above mantras, the portrait / idols of sita-rama alongwith ramayana book should be given to the purOhita / achArya).

regs,
sriram