Who is Taraa Rani?

[prince_visram]

Are there any sites or articles or ginans/documents that refer to Taraa Rani? Who is she? I was reading about her in the verses of Anant Akaado (Dont mind my spelling).. Thanks

[agakhani]

Tara Rani was queen of King Harichandra and mother of Prince Rohit from Ayodhya kingdom.
There are two-three Ginans written on the story of Tara Rani by Pir Sadardin but I can not recall it right now. You may look in Ginan section of Ismaili.net.

[nagib]

One of these ginans is Amar te Ayao

http://www.ismaili.net/ginans/g17ama.html

[nagib]

And in the new Heritage there are many references:

http://ismaili.net/heritage/search/node/tara+rani

And one of these is Moman Chetamni

177. In the Treta Joog, Harischandra came and his wife was Queen Tara. Their son was Rohidas and they all served Lord Vishnu.

178. Queen Tara served the Lord and achieved salvation. She was like our Satguru and that is why she had a husband like Harischandra.

179. King Harischandra remained devoted in his services and when the time came, he even gave his son, his queen and kingdom for religion.

180. All his wealth and his material comforts diminished. He got sold as a slave and it was after going through this ordeal that he attained Satguru.

181. During that time, Ram was manifest and Satguru was Vijayshthan who served Ram and because of that he achieved salvation.

182. With him, seven Karor went to Heaven, so be like Vijayshthan and Momins, do think about this incident.

[nagib]

In Amar te ayao Tara Rani says she does not have parents. Indeed she was an orphan and there is an anecdote, a small story about her birth which is interesting. My mother used to tell me that story of Tara Rani as a bed time story when I was few years old.

Here is the story:

It was somewhere in the Jungle before tara rani was born. A prayer ceremony of Jamatkhana was going on and it was one of those big days mijlas. Outside the place of prayer, whatever it was called in those times, volunteers were preparing a big casserole of food, a 'degro' as we call it.

A cat was looking from the branch of a tree. While the volunteers were busy and distracted in some other work, a snake [serpent] jumped into the food which was supposed to be distributed to the Jamat.

The cat thought that the whole Jamat will die of poisoning if it ate this food. What to do?

When the Jamat came out, they saw the cat jumping in the boiling food. They could not eat the food, they decided to throw it. The sacrifice of that cat was not gone unnoticed in the heavens. The people also decided to bury her at the base of the same tree.

Sometimes later, there was another mijlas and as the Jamat came out, they heard the sound of a baby crying like a cat... it was night and the sky was full of stars.

They looked at the tree and inside they found a baby which they decided to name Tara. indeed she was an orphan and had no parents. While this story is probably not in any of the ginans that have survived,

the ginans Amar te ayo says:

"From what I saw in the dream, I came to know", (Harishchandra said)
"That you had gone to your parents' house".
(Taaraaraani replied) "O great and majestical king,
I have no parents' home to go to".

[prince_visram]

In Amar te ayao Tara Rani says she does not have parents. Indeed she was an orphan and there is an anecdote, a small story about her birth which is interesting. My mother used to tell me that story of Tara Rani as a bed time story when I was few years old.

Here is the story:

It was somewhere in the Jungle before tara rani was born. A prayer ceremony of Jamatkhana was going on and it was one of those big days mijlas. Outside the place of prayer, whatever it was called in those times, volunteers were preparing a big casserole of food, a 'degro' as we call it.

A cat was looking from the branch of a tree. While the volunteers were busy and distracted in some other work, a snake [serpent] jumped into the food which was supposed to be distributed to the Jamat.

The cat thought that the whole Jamat will die of poisoning if it ate this food. What to do?

When the Jamat came out, they saw the cat jumping in the boiling food. They could not eat the food, they decided to throw it. The sacrifice of that cat was not gone unnoticed in the heavens. The people also decided to bury her at the base of the same tree.

Sometimes later, there was another mijlas and as the Jamat came out, they heard the sound of a baby crying like a cat... it was night and the sky was full of stars.

They looked at the tree and inside they found a baby which they decided to name Tara. indeed she was an orphan and had no parents. While this story is probably not in any of the ginans that have survived,

the ginans Amar te ayo says:

"From what I saw in the dream, I came to know", (Harishchandra said)
"That you had gone to your parents' house".
(Taaraaraani replied) "O great and majestical king,
I have no parents' home to go to".

Thanks soo much! I believe I have heard a similar story from my grandmother 2-4 years back (im only fourteen), however you have placed the story in perfect sequence in my mind! The only difference, i believe, is that I was told it was a dog, and they found tara rani blossom from a flower where they had thrown the food. But - we're both on the same track!

You guys are amazing! Thank you for the site link (nagib) and thank you all for the amazing details! very appricated! [/url]

[Admin]

Just to add that some people say that SITA had a similar birth.

[hungama25]

In Amar te ayao Tara Rani says she does not have parents. Indeed she was an orphan and there is an anecdote, a small story about her birth which is interesting. My mother used to tell me that story of Tara Rani as a bed time story when I was few years old.

Here is the story:

It was somewhere in the Jungle before tara rani was born. A prayer ceremony of Jamatkhana was going on and it was one of those big days mijlas. Outside the place of prayer, whatever it was called in those times, volunteers were preparing a big casserole of food, a 'degro' as we call it.

A cat was looking from the branch of a tree. While the volunteers were busy and distracted in some other work, a snake [serpent] jumped into the food which was supposed to be distributed to the Jamat.

The cat thought that the whole Jamat will die of poisoning if it ate this food. What to do?

When the Jamat came out, they saw the cat jumping in the boiling food. They could not eat the food, they decided to throw it. The sacrifice of that cat was not gone unnoticed in the heavens. The people also decided to bury her at the base of the same tree.

Sometimes later, there was another mijlas and as the Jamat came out, they heard the sound of a baby crying like a cat... it was night and the sky was full of stars.

They looked at the tree and inside they found a baby which they decided to name Tara. indeed she was an orphan and had no parents. While this story is probably not in any of the ginans that have survived,

the ginans Amar te ayo says:

"From what I saw in the dream, I came to know", (Harishchandra said)
"That you had gone to your parents' house".
(Taaraaraani replied) "O great and majestical king,
I have no parents' home to go to".

ok first of all how can a person die of eating snake ???
scientifically unless and until a snake bites the venom is not generated then how can our jamat die ????

i m just curious because i have seen it on discovery channel and animal planet [ " survivor/survival series " ] people eat live snakes

[TheMaw]

I heard the story of Queen Tara but that she was not a devotee of Vishnu but of the Mother (Siri Mata Kali). The Hindus also have this story of Tara and her devotion to "Jagdambe". This is God addressed as ar-Rahmaan wa r-Rahiim: the rahm (womb) of compassion - as well as al-Mumiit: the Dark One, Kali, bringer of death.

[hungama25]

the ginans Amar te ayo says:

"From what I saw in the dream, I came to know", (Harishchandra said)
"That you had gone to your parents' house".
(Taaraaraani replied) "O great and majestical king,
I have no parents' home to go to".

brother you are mixing it up

what he saw in his dream is as follows :


It is said that the great sage Vishwamitra, once approached Harishchandra and informed him of a promise made by the king during the sage's dream to donate his entire kingdom. (Accounts differ on how the sage had got the promise from the king. Some other legends say, it was by way of pacification when the king had once disturbed the sage's penance to his consternation.) Harishchandra was so virtuous, that he immediately made good his word and donated his entire kingdom to the sage and walked away with his wife and son.

Since, the entire world was under the sage after he donated his kingdom, the king had to go to Benares, a holy town dedicated to Lord Shiva. This was now the only place outside the influence of the sage. But, the sage, proclaimed that for an act of donation to be completed, an additional amount as Dakshina (honorarium) had to be paid. Harishchandra, with no money in his hands, had to sell his wife and son to a Brahmin Grihastha to pay for the Dakshina. When the money collected still did not suffice for the purpose, he sold himself to a guard at the cremation ground, who was in charge of collecting taxes for the bodies to be cremated.

The king, his wife and son had to sustain tremendous hardships doing their respective chores. The king helped the guard cremate the dead bodies, while his wife and son were used as household helpers at the house of the Brahmin. Once, the son had been to the garden to pluck flowers for his master's prayer, when he was bitten by a snake and he died instantly. His mother, having nobody to sympathise for her, carried his body to the cremation grounds. In acute penury, she could not even pay the taxes needed to cremate him. Harishchandra did not recognise his wife and son. He asked the lady to sell her golden mangalasutra and pay the tax. It is at this instance that his wife recognises the man as her husband. She has a boon that her husband only could see her mangalasutra. Harishchandra then came to her and recognised her as his wife and was stung by pangs of agony.


But, Harishchandra, was dutybound by his job to perform the cremation only after the acceptance of the tax. So, he asked his wife, if she was willing to undergo further hardships and stand by him in this hour of calamity. The faithful wife readily gave assent. She had in her possession only a saree, a part of which was used to cover the dead body of her son. She offers half of her lone dress as the tax, which Harishchandra could accept and perform the last rites of his son. When she proceeded to remove her dress, miracles happened.

Lord Vishnu, Indra and all Devas and the sage Vishwamitra himself manifested themselves on the scene, and praised Harishchandra for his perseverance and steadfastness. They brought his son back to life. They also offered the king and his wife, instant places in heaven. The virtuous king, refused saying that he cannot leave behind his subjects, by Kshatriya Dharma. He asked for a place in heaven for all his subjects. But the gods refused, explaining that the subjects had their own Karma and they have to undergo them. The king was then ready to forego all his virtues and religiousness for his people, so that they could ascend to heaven leaving him behind. The gods, now immensely pleased with the unassailable character of the great king, offered heavenly abode to the king, the queen and all their subjects.

The sage Vishwamitra helped to populate the kingdom again and installed Harishchandra's son as the king.

This moving story affected one of the greatest men of the 19th-20th century, Mahatma Gandhi who was deeply influenced by the virtues of telling the truth when he watched the play of Harishchandra in his childhood.

Rohitashva was the son of Harishchandra. He founded the town of Rohtas Garh in Rohtas district, Bihar, as well as Rohtak, originally Rohitakaul, meaning from the Kul (family) of Rohit .

Rustagi's, Rastogi's & Rohatgi's are from the clan of Raja Harishchandra.

[Admin]

When you say "brother you are mixing it up what he saw in his dream is as follows : "

You mean to say our Pir is mixed up because that particular quote to which you give less importance then to some stories written by Hindus, that quote is from our Pir. Unless this bahiji knows more about Harischandra's dream then our Pir who wrote in the ginans what was in the dream. Or maybe you are mixed up? Is that not a possibility to consider?

Put it into the Ismaili context. Only what is in the ginans about those things can be considered true.

Otherwise there are many stories in other faith similar or with similar names but there is a difference between our religious literature and so many stories that can be cut and pasted from the Internet..

[Admin]

Here is the other ginan on Tara Rani and Raja Harischandra

http://ismaili.net/ginans/transcription ... 5-003.html

And from late al-Waez bandali Haji's Nooran Allah Noor, we have the story as follow:

http://ismaili.net/heritage/node/19758

The powerful search on the new Heritage web site gives 2 pages of result for Tara Rani!

http://ismaili.net/heritage/search/node/tara+rani/

[hungama25]

admin said :

You mean to say our Pir is mixed up because that particular quote to which you give less importance then to some stories written by Hindus, that quote is from our Pir. Unless this bahiji knows more about Harischandra's dream then our Pir who wrote in the ginans what was in the dream. Or maybe you are mixed up? Is that not a possibility to consider?

brother admin , iam not talking about fairy tales such as slippers made of flour or a hindu[belonging to ram's dynasty] eating meat[horse]

brother naqib said that the queen tararani was a cat as per his story and then the jamat heard a baby crying

does any of our ginans say that tara rani was a cat turned into human ????????

[Admin]

iam not talking about fairy tales such as slippers made of flour or a hindu[belonging to ram's dynasty] eating meat[horse]

If the Pir says that Hanslo the horse was sacrificed during the ceremony and came back to life, this may be fairy tales to you but some people on this board do respect more the ginans of the Pir then your interpretation.

You may want to better understand the status of Pir as it is central to the Ismaili faith.

You may want to read a little bit more about our faith before judging the knowledge of the Pir, and you may also want to know a little bit about the Noor of Piratan which is according to Mowlana Sultan Muhammad Shah's will, in Shah Karim, the present Imam and Pir of the Ismailis.

There are several thread on this topic, just do a search and get some information on the topic before posting. as you know we do not have any tolerance for people making mockery of Imam, Pir or their family.

[TheMaw]

http://ismaili.net/granths/gin0017.html

There's your 411 right there. And at http://ismaili.net/drupal5/node/9543 it notes that Hanslo (the pony in question) is identified as Ali's Duldul and with Muhammad's al-Buraaq of Laylat al-Qadr (the Night of Power).

... I always thought "Thunderbolt" (al-Buraaq) was a great name for a steed.

[prince_visram]

Here is the other ginan on Tara Rani and Raja Harischandra

http://ismaili.net/ginans/transcription ... 5-003.html

And from late al-Waez bandali Haji's Nooran Allah Noor, we have the story as follow:

http://ismaili.net/heritage/node/19758

The powerful search on the new Heritage web site gives 2 pages of result for Tara Rani!

http://ismaili.net/heritage/search/node/tara+rani/

Thank you, I was wondering if you would have the meaning to the ginan that is 117 verses long because I would love to read the translation of that ginan. Thank you very much, very knowledgable info.

[prince_visram]

admin said :

You mean to say our Pir is mixed up because that particular quote to which you give less importance then to some stories written by Hindus, that quote is from our Pir. Unless this bahiji knows more about Harischandra's dream then our Pir who wrote in the ginans what was in the dream. Or maybe you are mixed up? Is that not a possibility to consider?

brother admin , iam not talking about fairy tales such as slippers made of flour or a hindu[belonging to ram's dynasty] eating meat[horse]

brother naqib said that the queen tararani was a cat as per his story and then the jamat heard a baby crying

does any of our ginans say that tara rani was a cat turned into human ????????

Okay. By the way,that's probably not what he meant. When my grandmother told me the story, she said that when they threw out the dish near a tree, over time a flower grew there and one day the flower bloomed a baby which the Jamat heard crying.

The story does not have any sources written out, but my grandmother wasn't the first peson to tell me this story. I'm not trying to say the story is true, but, I'm not saying it's faulse either. I'm just trying to say that it is one of those stories pasted down over generations and you just have to choose whether to believe in it or not. That's all.

[asifmomin1]

Admin Posted: 13 May 2009 10:05 am Post subject:

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

When you say "brother you are mixing it up what he saw in his dream is as follows : "

You mean to say our Pir is mixed up because that particular quote to which you give less importance then to some stories written by Hindus, that quote is from our Pir. Unless this bahiji knows more about Harischandra's dream then our Pir who wrote in the ginans what was in the dream. Or maybe you are mixed up? Is that not a possibility to consider?

Put it into the Ismaili context. Only what is in the ginans about those things can be considered true.

Otherwise there are many stories in other faith similar or with similar names but there is a difference between our religious literature and so many stories that can be cut and pasted from the Internet..

Dear Admin,
With all due respect I feel you are being unreasonable here. As our prophet said "going into a debate or discussion, we must first agree to disagree." I felt your tone was rude and uncalled for and undermined the spirit of a healthy debate / discussion. As Ismailis, we of all must know how it feels when your point of view is completely shut out, stepped on and termed illegitimate by some self proclaimed righteous individuals or groups. hangama25 stated how he interprets the story, if you disagree, you must express it in a respectful manner. Just like Mowla's Farmans and the holy Koran, ginans must not be taken at face value, but rather, researched and analyzed to derive the true essence; that's my opinion and I could be wrong. I apologize if I offended anyone in anyways. Ya Ali Madad.

[Admin]

Dear Admin,
With all due respect I feel you are being unreasonable here.

Letters to admin should be written to [email protected]

As to the content of the posts, we are very tolerant on subjects discussed and even criticism of Admin but as stated in the rules if you want to participate in this Forum, you should know that this Forum does not allow anyone to ridicule or criticize any sayings of the Imams or the Pirs. Its a general rule.

Since these sayings and writing's value is based on faith, like for any faith, it is easy to ridicule when you do not believe this or that aspect of it and there are many Forums on the Internet where not only it is allowed but even it is encouraged. This Forum is not one of them.

When you post, make sure to stay withing the limits of what is considered acceptable on this board.

Thank you for your understanding.

Admin

[prince_visram]

Oh! I have one last question and I don't want to open another thread. I was wondering: are you allowed to read the ginan Amar te ayo more.. in Jamat Khana on a regular date? My mom said that you can only say it on changeover time and not otherwise. Is this true? She told me to double check here. Thank you,

Prince_Visram

[kmaherali]

Oh! I have one last question and I don't want to open another thread. I was wondering: are you allowed to read the ginan Amar te ayo more.. in Jamat Khana on a regular date? My mom said that you can only say it on changeover time and not otherwise. Is this true? She told me to double check here. Thank you,

Prince_Visram

In my opinion any Ginan can be recited at any time. However if the correct Ginan is recited for a particular occasion it adds to its significance and meaning. Appropriate Ginans said at the right time can inspire and transform a context. Amar te aayo inspires obedience to the command of appointment and the need to fulfil it in a complete manner. It also inspires mutual trust between the Jamat and those appointed.

[prince_visram]

Thank you again.

I also have something to share. When I was browsing through the Ginan list, I also found another Ginan that I think is related to Raja Harishchandra & his son named DHARAM LAADHO LAAKHENNE FULADDE, but I am not sure because the spelling of Raja Harischandra is different, and I was just wondering whether this ginan is refering to the King Harischandra and his son. (I believe it is, and just looking for confirmation. Thanks!!)


http://www.ismaili.net/granths/gin0028.html

[prince_visram]

Thank you again.

I also have something to share. When I was browsing through the Ginan list, I also found another Ginan that I think is related to Raja Harishchandra & his son named DHARAM LAADHO LAAKHENNE FULADDE, but I am not sure because the spelling of Raja Harischandra is different, and I was just wondering whether this ginan is refering to the King Harischandra and his son. (I believe it is, and just looking for confirmation. Thanks!!)


http://www.ismaili.net/granths/gin0028.html

Ya Ali Madaat,

I'm sorry that I keep continuing on the same topic, however I am now trying to dissect the Ginan Amar te aayo. In the below verse I would like to know what the word "Meta" means. Thank you in advance

Prince_Visram

[kmaherali]

Thank you again.

(I believe it is, and just looking for confirmation. Thanks!!)


http://www.ismaili.net/granths/gin0028.html

Yes it is the same. Transliterations can vary in their presentations.

[kmaherali]

In the below verse I would like to know what the word "Meta" means. Thank you in advance

Prince_Visram

Where is the verse?

[prince_visram]

In the below verse I would like to know what the word "Meta" means. Thank you in advance

Prince_Visram

Where is the verse?

Never mind. Forget I said that, in the Waez provided it said meta, but when I looked at the Ginan and it translated to meat. Thank you.

[prince_visram]

In the below verse I would like to know what the word "Meta" means. Thank you in advance

Prince_Visram

Where is the verse?

Never mind. Forget I said that, in the Waez provided it said meta, but when I looked at the Ginan and it translated to meat. Thank you.

I have another question:

I do not understand what Late Al-Waez Bandali Haji means in his waez about Harischandra. Here is the quote:

Though a king, he was asked by GAT JAMATH to go for slavery at the Iron Smith’s workshop for some time. Also, he was asked to follow up some VRATS (TEKS), religious traditions and practices. The final test was to fill water in an untreated clay pot supported by a flimsy cotton thread.

The first challenge was to work at slavery at a workshop, I understand that one.

However, I don't understand the other two challenges. Thank you and waiting

[kmaherali]

However, I don't understand the other two challenges. Thank you and waiting

I have no knowledge of the other two challenges beyond what has been stated. Generally they are meant to test the endurance and the capacity for forebearance in the service of faith...

[kmaherali]

There is an anecdote given in Mumtaz Tajdin's 225 Anecdotes at: http://ismaili.net/source/books/225anecdotes.pdf suggesting that Tara Rani is always around!

(100) In 1934, Imam Sultan Muhammad Shah attended in Bombay a private gathering of the members of the Baitul Khiyal, who reached to different spiritual ranks. The Imam enjoined upon Pir Sabzali (1884-1938) that when any member entered, he/she would whisper in his ear, and according to their ranks, he would make their sitting in the respective rows before the arrival of the Imam. One woman came and spoke something to Pir Sabzali, but he could not comprehend. He again heard second time, but could not grasp to locate her rank. In the meantime, the arrival of the Imam became due,
therefore, he told the woman to sit in the last row.

The Imam made gracious arrival and saw the seven row beginning from high to low ranks. Pir Sabzali asked the Imam, where he himself stood, to which Imam pointed with a finger and said, “You sit behind that woman who was given seat in last row.” The Imam started the proceeding and then the members left the room. When all have gone, Pir Sabzali asked the Imam about that woman. The Imam said, “Sabzali, she was Tara Rani. I had promised her to give my didar in my every form (joma).” Pir Sabzali tried
hard to search the woman, but failed.

[swamidada_2]

Ahalya Draupadi Kunti Tara Mandodari tatha
panchakanya smare nityam mahapataka nashanam

Remembering ever the virgins five Ahalya, Draupadi, Kunti, Tara and Mandodari
Destroys the greatest of sins.