श्री राम राम रामेति रमे रामे मनोरमे ।
सहस्रनाम तत् तुल्यं रामनाम वरानने ॥
śrī rāma rāma rāmeti rame rāme manorame .
sahasranāma tat tulyaṃ rāmanāma varānane ..
In chanting his name again and again, ‘śrīrāma rāma rāma,’ I discover joy in Lord Rāma who pleases my heart and whose face is a blessing. His name is equal to the one thousand names of Lord Vişnu.
Excerpt from the book ‘Prayer Guide’ by Swami Dayananda Saraswati
This is a wonderful verse and a mantra worth chanting daily.
The word ‘Rama’ comes from the root ram which has the meaning of playing, reveling, being joyful, ramu kridayam. The one in whom people discover joy is Rama, ramante yasmin iti ramah. The word ‘rama’ was there long before Lord Rama came. The word, ‘krsna’ was also there before Sri Krsna came.
The verb in this verse is rame. Aham rame, I revel in joy. In what do I discover this joy? Rame, in Lord Rama, manorame, in the one who pleases my mind, my heart. Manorame rame ahai rame, I discover joy in Lord Rama who pleases my heart.
How do you revel? Srirama rama rameti japan rame, I discover joy, repeating Lord Rama’s name. Sahasranama tat tulyam. Tulyam means equal to. The name of Rama is equal to the sahasranama, the one thousand names of Lord Visnu. You do not need to read the sahasranama. Just one word ‘Rama’ is enough. This is called prasamsa, praise. When you are praising Lord Rama’s name, the Visnu-sahasranama is seen as being nothing in comparison! Similarly, when you praise the sahasranama, you elevate it and describe it as being better than everything else.
Varanane goes with rame. Rame varanane, to think of his face is itself a blessing for me. Varam ananam yasya, that anana, the face of Lord Rama, is a blessing. Because it is upasya, an altar of meditation and prayer, it becomes the varanana, the face that is a blessing. Varanane rame manorame aham rame srirama rama rameti, in chanting his name again and again I discover joy in Lord Rama who pleases my heart and whose face is a blessing.
-End of Excerpt.
This is actually a mantra having the full powers of the Vishnu Sahasranamam.
This sloka was actually disclosed by Lord Shiva himself to his consort Parvati.
Parvati was very much alarmed at the ignorance and the agonies faced by people. When God imparted the Vishnu Sahasranamam as the only remedy for people to get rid of their worldly sins and troubles, Parvati grew worried and felt concern for the ordinary person who would not be able to recite those 1,000 names of the Lord.
So, she approached Lord Shiva with her concern. It was then that Lord Shiva disclosed to Parvati, the power of the word “Rama”. He tells her that taking the name of “Rama” three times is equal to the recitation of the entire Vishnu Sahasranamam.
This verse is from the Vishnu Sahasranamam, pointing to the above.
pārvatyuvāca —
kenopāyena laghunā viṣṇornāmasahasrakam .
paṭhyate paṇḍitairnityaṃ śrotumicchāmyahaṃ prabho .. 26..
Parvati Spoke:
I am desirous to know oh Lord,
How the scholars of this world,
Will chant without fail,
These thousand names ,
By a method that is easy and quick.
īśvara uvāca —
śrīrāma rāma rāmeti rame rāme manorame .
sahasranāma tattulyaṃ rāma nāma varānane .. 27..
For which Isvara (Lord Shiva) replied: Chanting the name of Rama once, is the same as chanting the 1,000 names of Lord Vishnu, which is entire Vishnu Sahasranama.