In the pastimes of Sri Ramacandra, the following of ethical codes is of primary importance.
His pastimes strongly evoke the sentiment of compassion.
By the mercy of Sri Ramacandra, we can be saved from immorality and adharma (unrighteousness). The Supreme Lord, Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself, prayed to Sri Ramacandra in the following way to teach us: ‘Rama Raghava Rama Raghava Rama Raghava raksha mam’ (‘raksha mam’-rescue me).
From the pastimes of Sri Ramacandra, we learn about the necessity of accepting and serving a spiritual master, devotion to one’s parents and the duties of a brother and a wife. Supreme Lord Sri Ramacandra has exhibited the pastime of abandoning the opulence of royal life, which is very difficult to give up, and of abandoning a perfect wife for keeping dharma and ethics intact.
He accepted all kinds of suffering, accepted exile in the forest and went without food and sleep. He walked with His soft lotus feet on the forest paths, which were full of thorns. Out of love for His devotees, the Lord bestowed His mercy on the candala, Guhaka.
As the protector of one who surrenders to Him, the Lord awarded shelter to Vibhishana.
Sri Rama’s pastimes demonstrate how a henpecked person becomes miserable, and how those who consider someone merely dressed as a sadhu (lacking genuine qualification) to be a real sadhu, become cheated and end up miserable. By annihilating demons such as Ravana and Kumbhakarna, He destroys the living being’s inner demoniac tendencies. To instruct His subjects and for their pleasure, He underwent suffering by asking for Sita’s trial by fire and Her banishment to the forest. Austerities are prohibited for those with evil motives, who are in the mode of dark ignorance, because those austerities only create havoc in the world. To teach this, He killed the sudra Sambuka while the latter was engaged in performing austerities. He taught all these lessons by setting the example Himself.