Raghu Nandana

पर्वते रघु नन्दनं, Parvathe Raghu Nandanam
And when climbing high mountains, invoke Raghu Nandana

I have to confess, that this is perhaps the most difficult of His names to write about, not because I am pressed for information, but rather because I am pressed for brevity. How can a mere few lines capture the essence of the Scion of the Raghuvamsa – Sri Raama, when Valmiki had to resort to several thousand lines? The naama is literally translates to ‘son of the Raghu clan’ and hence refers to Sri RaamaChandra moorthi, who was born in the Raghuvamsa under the Suryakula in the Ikshavaaku dynasty. And I will stop here lest I write the entire Raamayana.

Sri Raama Chandra Moorthi
पातालभूतलव्योमचारिणश्छद्मचारिण: |
न द्रष्टुमपि शक्तास्ते रक्षितं रामनामभि: ||
रामेति रामभद्रेति रामचन्द्रेति वा स्मरन् |

नरो न लिप्यते पापैर्भुक्तिं मुक्तिं च विन्दति || - श्री रामरक्षास्तोत्र
“Those invisible powers which roam around in the netherworld, on the earth and in the sky,
Which move incognito, are not even able to sight a man protected by the names of Raama.
O Raama, O Raamabhadra, O Raamacandra, reciting thus, a man is not smeared by sins,
And he obtains both worldly enjoyment and liberation.”-Sri Raama Raksha Stotra

For me to think of Raama in times of difficulties is like second nature. The word ‘Parvath’ does mean mountain literally, but in actuality it refers to the difficult times that we face in our lives, to those instants when the tasks before us appear to rise up like a tall mountain. In times like this, we should remember Him, who had faced numerous difficulties in life - troubles before which our own daily problems appear mundane – Sri Raama. Born a prince, He was forced to exile by one of His very mothers where He was separated from His dear wife. Neither could He perform His father’s last rites, nor could He return back when all His family urged Him to - all this for the cause of Dharma. At no point in His life did He waver from the path of Dharma. The glory of His name is limitless and has been described in copious amounts by all our sages. It has been said that if the whole of the Vedas were weighed against the two letters ‘Raama’, the scale containing the single word would still be heavier. In perhaps the greatest example of Raama Naama Mahima, Shiva explains to Parvathi :
ईश्वर उवाच -
श्रीराम राम रामेति रमे रामे मनोरमे

सहस्त्रनाम तत्तुल्यं राम नाम वरानने - श्री विष्णु सहस्रनामस्तोत्र
Eeshwara says -
“The chanting of Raama Raama Raama thrice, Oh Auspicious Lovely Lady.
Is Equivalent to chanting all the thousand names of Mahaa Vishnu”
- Sri Vishnu Sahasranama Stotra

Also, there are numerous examples in the Raamayana where the importance and the power of Raama Naama are glorified. For instance, even when Raama Himself was in trouble, His Naama came to help. When Sri Raama was worried about building the bridge to Lanka, the Ocean King asked Him to inscribe ‘Raama’ on the stones and throw them into the ocean. The very name made the stones float. At the Ashoka Vana, the only source of inspiration for Seetha was the name ‘Raama’. And of course, the greatest source of Raama Naama Mahima is Shri Hanuman. It is believed that Hanuman was more aware of the power of Raama Naama than Raama Himself (which is not a surprise as He was Shiva’s very incarnation).

The chanting of His name does not necessarily mean that the difficulties would be removed, but yes they would certainly be reduced and the mountain may become a molehill. But definitely, it would provide us with the strength and courage to face and overcome these difficulties, all the while sticking to the way of Dharma.

रामाय रामभद्राय रामचन्द्राय वेधसे |
रघुनाथाय नाथाय सीतायाः पतये नमः ||
“Oh Raama, the auspicious, moon like one, the dwelling of the Vedas,
The Lord of the Raghus, Our supreme Leader, the husband of Seetha, I bow to thee”