Is lord ram depicted of 2 arms or 4 in ram raksha stotra?

Question

In dhyan mantra of ram raksha.. 1st line says meditate on ajaanubaahu ram(hands long till knees) who's holding arrow & bow. Then second line says baddha padmasanastham.. So is he 4 or 2 armed here as baddha padmasan needs both hands catching feet & at the same time he is holding arrow & bow.. + there's no painting or image based on this dhyan where he's watching ma sita who's sitting on his left thigh & he having matted hairs till his thighs.. So is he 2 or 4 arms here?? + there r bhadrachalam like temples having he 4 arms but yes I know nothing of mentions in text like that.. Please tell your views or solve if u can..

Answer 1

The following are the relevant verses (from Bharatiweb.com) from the DhyAnam:

dhyaayet aajaanubaahum dhruta shara dhanusham baddha padmaasanastham |
peetam vaaso vasaanam nava kamala dala spardhi netram prasannam |
vaamaankaarooDha seetaa mukha kamala milallochanam neeradaabham |
naanaalankaaradeeptam dadhatamurujaTaa manDanam raamachandram ||

The Hindupedia.com translates these verses as follows:

I meditate on that Ramachandra, whose arms reach up to his thighs, Who carries bow and arrows, who sits in a lotus pose, Who is dressed in yellow cloths, who has eyes like the petals of newly opened lotus flower, Who is always pleasant looking, who is the colour of the black cloud, Whose sight is fixed on the lotus eyes of Sita, sitting on his left thigh, And who shines in various decorations and who has a matted hair around his face

"Baddha PadmAsthanam" means the legs are "locked" in that posture. If he was sitting in Baddha PadmAsan posture then probably it would have been said something like "Baddha Padmasane sthithAm" or something similar.

See from here the various meanings for the word "Baddha" which are applicable here like joined, folded, locked etc.

To be doubly sure that what I am saying is correct I checked other DhyAna Slokas for Sri RAma.

For one RAma Mantra found in the Tantras, the following is the DhyAnam:

kAlAmbhodhara kantikantamnisham virAsanAdhyasinam mudrAm
jyAnamayim dadhAm maparam hastAmnujam jAnuni |
SitAm pArshvagatAm saroruha karAm vidyunnibhAm
rAghvam pashyantam mukutAnga dAdivividhAkalpojjvalAngam bhaje ||

The meaning is:

The complexion of the deity is like that of the color of clouds, darkish is the complexion, exteremely soft is the body of RAmachandra and he is seated in VirAsana posture. On one hand he is showing JyAnamudrA and the other hand is placed on the thigh. Situated at his side is SitAdevi, who's holding in her hand a lotus, and who's complexion is like that of thunderbolt. RAmachandra is looking at SitAdevi and his body is decked with dazzling jewels and a crown made of jewels.

So, he has two hands only.