Doubts and Discussions from the Ramayan II - Page 23

Oh, Surasura was the name of the fictitious rakshasha here in Sagar Puran who sent 3 of his guards to Kubera to get the golden lotus (swarankamal). Wednesday's & Thursday's update describe how each of them was distracted, and killed after they went astray.

So we were discussing all the characters with names including 'Sur', like Surasur, Surapadma, Surasa...

Btw, enjoy the IPL - you ain't missing much in the Ramayan. 'Luckily', the Ramayan takes place during the innings break, so we can catch it without losing much of the action (unless a few early 2nd innings wickets fall). As far as the Ramayan goes, reading the online written updates is enough to tell you what's going on - and it ain't from any 'Ramayan'.

Ananya

What are the sources of the above info on Kubera, such as Saugandhika kanaka? In fact, where can one find more info on post-Ravan Kubera? All I know is that after Rama returned to Ayodhya, he returned the Pushpak to Kubera, who offered it to him, and Rama returned it anyway and said he'd use it only on very rare & special occasions, and one of them, according to one account, was when Rama returned to Vaikuntha.

Also, I originally read that Kubera was the god of wealth. The way I read the difference between him and Godess Lakshmi is that while Kubera is the god of all material wealth, Lakshmi is the presiding deity of prosperity, which is a lot more. Am I off base here as to the differences?

Kubera is the Lord of wealth and material but not its originator. His responsibility is to distribute the above two things properly. Creating wealth and material is the Goddess Lakshmi.

Thanks for this explanation, Chen2.

On the subject of wealth, I noticed an interesting contrast between the previous Ramayan serial and this one. In the previous serial, when there were some floods in Ayodhya, some citizens were concerned that they'd be taxed. That Rama then explained that just as the water from rivers and streams evaporate, become clouds and then as rain gets re-distributed equitably over the land, similarly is the role of taxes. The way I read it was that that particular Rama was a socialist🤔 (See 1:50-3:00 of the clip below)

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=neQJfre0pC8[/YOUTUBE]

In this serial, otoh, Rama launched his reign by announcing a 5 year tax holiday. In other words, this Rama was more of a free enterprise ruler, who did not see the role of government as redistributing wealth, but rather seeing to it that people kept the fruits of their labor.👏 (See 7:20-7:45 of the clip below)

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ua_jqRRb_2g[/YOUTUBE]

Not only that, but after Sita's exile, when some subjects wanted to pay taxes, Rama asked Sumantra to direct the village in question to use it towards their own development👍🏼

Interesting contrast in economic policies between the 2 Ramas.

Originally posted by: Chandraketu

Ananya

What are the sources of the above info on Kubera, such as Saugandhika kanaka? In fact, where can one find more info on post-Ravan Kubera? All I know is that after Rama returned to Ayodhya, he returned the Pushpak to Kubera, who offered it to him, and Rama returned it anyway and said he'd use it only on very rare & special occasions, and one of them, according to one account, was when Rama returned to Vaikuntha.

Also, I originally read that Kubera was the god of wealth. The way I read the difference between him and Godess Lakshmi is that while Kubera is the god of all material wealth, Lakshmi is the presiding deity of prosperity, which is a lot more. Am I off base here as to the differences?

Thanks for the details.

I think that the time the Pandavas mined for gold in Alkapuri was in preparations for the Ashwamedha Yagna, where they would have needed to fill their depleted coffers to finance the yagna. And it was during that trip that Parikshit was born, if I remember right.