The Upside-Down King

by Sudha Murty

  Sugriva’s responses did not satisfy Vali, and he yelled at his brother, ‘Leave this kingdom. Now. If you enter my lands, I will kill you. As an act of revenge, I will detain your wife, Ruma. She will not be accompanying you.’

  Left with no choice, Sugriva departed from the land.

  Sage Matanga lived in Rishyamukha Mountain. As Vali grew powerful, his arrogance also grew and became the cause of a curse from Matanga, who said, ‘O Vali, your pride is at a peak, and you have become blind to your flaws. If you enter the kingdom of Kishkindha, you will instantly die!’

  Vali, therefore, stayed away from Kishkindha. Sugriva took advantage of this and came back to the kingdom to rule it. But he was aware that he must not cross the kingdom’s boundaries at any cost.

  Yet, Vali remained extremely powerful. He had the ability to travel in all directions to perform his daily prayers to Lord Surya, who moved from east to west, and even had a special boon that allowed him to gain half of his opponent’s energy whenever he fought anyone in single combat. It made him virtually indestructible, but he remained unhappy at the loss of his kingdom.

  Kishkindha is recognized today as the heritage site of Hampi in northern Karnataka. It is this kingdom that gave rise to the great empire of Vijayanagara.

  A Greater Purpose

  Lord Shiva and Goddess Parvati were living together happily for a long time. One day, Parvati felt that she was carrying a baby in her womb. As time passed, she became certain that the baby was extraordinary. So she turned to her husband and said, ‘I can feel the baby bursting with energy inside my body, and I cannot keep it much longer. Tell me, what should I do?’

  ‘Why don’t you transfer the energy and the baby to Mother Earth?’ advised Lord Shiva. ‘After all, she is the epitome of patience and perseverance, and she can hold anything.’

  So Parvati transferred the baby to Mother Earth through her belly button. Surprisingly, Earth also found it difficult to hold the child in her womb. As she struggled to take care of it, Vayu, the lord of the wind, visited her and saw the condition she was in.

  He said, ‘Please don’t worry. I have a solution. Anjana Devi, the queen of the monkeys, who is married to King Kesari, is desperate for a baby and is a great devotee of Shiva. For years, she has been performing a penance to become a mother. And this baby is Shiva’s own child. I will transport the baby to Anjana’s womb. What could be a better reward for her penance?’

  Thus, the unborn baby was transferred to Anjana’s womb with the help of Vayu. In due course, a baby boy was born and named Anjaneya.

  Even when the child was young, he was extraordinary in every way, mentally agile and physically very strong. Everyone was delighted by him. He had the blessings and protection of Lord Shiva, Lord Vayu and King Kesari. Nobody could touch him.

  One day, Anjaneya saw the sun shining in the sky, looking like a juicy yellow mango! Since he was hungry, he flew to the sky and chased the sun, who ran straight to Indra. The sun complained to the king of the gods that he was in danger because of the young monkey prince.

  Indra was upset with Anjaneya. He took his mighty weapon Vajrayudha and slapped Anjaneya on the cheek. Anjaneya’s face and chin changed shape, and he began falling from the sky. When Vayu saw this happening, he was distraught. ‘How dare Indra hit this baby whom I brought to Anjana’s womb from Mother Earth? This child is precious and a reflection of Shiva!’

  Upset, the lord of the wind vanished from the earth and people began dying without air. The world came to a standstill.

  Everyone requested Indra to ask for forgiveness from Vayu and to bless Anjaneya.

  Indra saw the threat to the human race and asked Vayu for forgiveness, and the wind returned to the earth.

  From that day on, Anjaneya was called Hanuman, or ‘the one with a prominent chin’. He also has many other names, like Maruti, Kesari Nandana and Bajaranga Bali (‘the strong one’).

  All the gods promised Vayu to assist the young child, and each gave a boon to the young monkey prince.

  Brahma’s boon protected Hanuman such that nobody would be able to kill him with any weapon in a war.

  Shiva blessed him with longevity, spiritual wisdom and the ability to cross oceans.

  Indra declared that Vajrayudha would no longer have any effect on Hanuman, because he would be stronger than the weapon itself.

  Varuna, the lord of water, promised Hanuman that he would always be protected by water.

  Agni, the god of fire, blessed him with immunity from burning.

  Surya gave him two boons—Yagima and Garima—through which he could change his size any time and become miniature or gigantic.

  Yama, the lord of death, blessed him with a healthy life free from Yamadanga (the weapon of Yama), thus making him immortal.

  Kubera blessed him that he may always be happy and content.

  Vishwakarma vouched that he would be protected from all his creations that were in the forms of weapons.

  Vayu blessed him with more speed than he had himself—he would be faster than the wind.

  Once Hanuman had received all these boons, he wanted to receive his education from Surya and learn everything. He enlarged his body, went to the sun god and asked him to teach him. Surya, however, refused. ‘I would really love to teach you, but I am always on the move in my chariot. How will I be able to teach you effectively?’

  Hanuman smiled. ‘O Sun God, don’t worry. I will stand still, keeping one leg in the east and one in the west. I will listen to you with concentration.’

  Surya was happy to see his devotion and taught him all that he knew.

  When Hanuman finished learning, he asked what gurudakshina his teacher would accept.

  Surya refused to take any because he felt lucky to have such a devoted and sincere student like Hanuman.

  When Hanuman insisted, Surya said, ‘Go to Kishkindha, where my spiritual son, Sugriva, resides. He requires a wise minister and a companion. You are born for a great purpose, and that will be possible only if you are there. Help my son until you get called for your duty.’ Surya knew that a day would come when Hanuman would meet Rama and Lakshmana during the course of his duty to Sugriva.

  During his childhood, Hanuman was very mischievous. He troubled sages while they were in meditation and disturbed them. One day, some of the sages became upset, even though they knew that Hanuman was a child and born to fulfil a greater purpose. ‘You have great power, child, but may you forget all about it until the right person comes along and reminds you,’ they admonished Hanuman.

  In the Ramayana, when Hanuman had to cross a stretch of water to reach Lanka, he became worried. How would he do it? Then Jambuvanta the bear reminded Hanuman of his powers, thereby helping him cross the ocean. That’s how Hanuman rediscovered his powers, which stayed with him for ever after.

  Five Candles, One Breath

  Ahiravana and Mahiravana were Ravana’s powerful and ruthless stepbrothers who ruled Patala Loka. They were devotees of Goddess Mahamaya.

  When Indrajit, son of Ravana and Mandodari, met his end fighting for his father in the war, Ravana became dejected. He remembered his stepbrothers and called upon them. When they arrived, he said to them, ‘You must capture Rama and Lakshmana and sacrifice them to Mahamaya. Since these are pious princes, your sacrifice will bring you prosperity.’

  Almost instantly, Ravana’s youngest brother, Vibhishana, learnt of this development through his spies and sent word to Hanuman. ‘You must take care of Rama and Lakshmana because either Ahiravana or Mahiravana will attempt to kidnap them as they rest.’

  Forewarned, Hanuman kept a tight vigil on the brothers and thwarted Ahiravana’s multiple attempts. In a smart move, Ahiravana took the form of Vibhishana and entered the camp. Before Hanuman or the soldiers could react, Ahiravana kidnapped the brothers and took them to Patala.

  Humiliated, Hanuman went to Vibhishana. ‘Sir,’ he said, ‘I have failed my duty. I mistook Ahiravana to be you and allowed him inside the camp. I was cheated. Ple
ase help us.’

  Vibhishana indicated the urgency of the matter. ‘Hanuman, I know what those brothers are capable of. If you don’t rescue Rama and Lakshmana immediately, the asuras are sure to slay them as sacrifice. You can save them. Leave now.’

  With those words ringing in his ears, Hanuman turned around and made his way to Patala. He defeated the gatekeepers and the security guards and entered the realm, noticing five candles located in five different directions. The asura brothers had a huge and strong army, and Hanuman knew that these were no ordinary candles—the only way to defeat the armies was to blow out all the candles in one go.

  With less than a second’s thought, Hanuman knew what he had to do. Instinctively, four additional heads popped up on his neck and he became Panchamukha, or ‘the five-headed one’. With all the strength that he could muster, Hanuman blew out all the candles together.

  Thus, Hanuman defeated Ahiravana and Mahiravana easily. Pleased, he rescued Rama and Lakshmana and brought both of them back to the camp.

  Even today, Hanuman is worshipped as Panchamukha Pranesha in a few locations in India.

  The Ball of Sand and the Five Witnesses

  When Rama and Lakshmana returned from exile, they went to Gaya to perform the last sacred rites (or shraadha) for their dead father. The river Phalgu, considered sacred and believed to flow from Vishnu’s feet, passed by the town of Gaya.

  As the brothers bathed in the river, Sita sat alone on the side, playing with the sand.

  To her surprise, the spirit of Dasharatha appeared in front of her and said, ‘I am very hungry.’

  ‘Will you be kind enough to wait until your sons finish the required rituals and give the traditional pinda (ball made of rice and sesame seeds) daan?’ asked Sita.

  ‘Oh, rice or sand does not matter. Just give me something immediately,’ the spirit insisted.

  Sita could not refuse her father-in-law and give him a pinda made of sand.

  When Rama began performing the shraadha with the rice balls, Dasharatha did not appear. Rama wondered aloud, ‘Why has father not appeared yet?’

  Sita knew that Dasharatha was no longer hungry because she had already fed him. So she recounted her actions to her husband. Rama, however, did not accept the story. Instead, he asked, ‘How can I believe that my father ate a sand ball instead of the rice ball? I need some witness to this incident.’

  Sita recalled that there were, in fact, five witnesses to her actions—an old man, a cow, a tulsi plant, the river Phalgu and a pipal tree.

  Since most of the witnesses were afraid of disappointing Rama, they all lied. ‘We don’t know the sequence of events,’ they said.

  The pipal tree, however, admitted the truth.

  The lack of truthfulness from the other witnesses made Sita furious. She said, ‘I curse all of you who have lied today. Life will teach you lessons that will make you realize the error of your ways. Until you truly repent, you will never find happiness.’ People believe that this is why old age is filled with a lot of difficulties, a cow is unable to fend off attacks on her own, a tulsi plant never grows into a tree and the Phalgu is perpetually short of water.

  She turned and blessed the pipal tree. ‘O blessed one, whoever performs the prayers for their ancestors in front of you will ensure that their ancestors go to heaven.’

  This is why people perform shraadha near the pipal tree.

  The Power of a Name

  King Shakuntan was the ruler of a small kingdom.

  One day, as he was returning from a hunt, he saw the sages Vasishtha, Vishvamitra and Atri performing a yagna in an ashram. Since the king’s body was covered with sweat, dust and blood from the hunt, he did not want to desecrate the holy ceremony. From where he stood, he could only see Vasishtha clearly. So he bowed to him from a distance and carried on with his journey.

  Narada, who had been observing the king, entered the ashram. Narada is known for instigating fights to humour himself, and that is just what he did.

  He said, ‘O Atri and Vishvamitra, didn’t you notice that Shakuntan did not greet you both? He has deliberately insulted you by only bowing to Vasishtha.’

  Sage Atri smiled. ‘He did not do that to insult us, Narada. I was sitting opposite Vasishtha and he may not even have seen me,’ he said. ‘In any case, it doesn’t matter.’

  Vishvamitra, however, was offended. ‘How dare the king insult me? He needs to be punished.’

  Narada immediately agreed. ‘Yes, yes, he must. You are no less powerful than Vasishtha. You are also the great guru of the great warriors Rama and Lakshmana. Perhaps you should take a promise from Rama to punish Shakuntan as soon as possible.’

  Vishvamitra nodded and called Rama. ‘My dear student,’ he said, ‘Shakuntan has insulted me, and I want his head at my feet before the sun sets today.’

  Dutiful Rama promised his teacher that he would do so.

  Meanwhile, Narada rushed to Shakuntan’s kingdom. He met the king and asked, ‘Do you know the sort of difficulty you have put yourself in? Rama, the great warrior and the son of Dasharatha, is going to behead you by the end of the day at the behest of Sage Vishvamitra. Your death is certain at the hands of the lord.’

  Shakuntan was alarmed. ‘But what have I done to offend the great sage? I am only the ruler of a small kingdom.’

  ‘Don’t think of that now.’ Narada waved his hand in impatience. ‘Your focus must be on surviving the day. Rama always keeps his word.’

  ‘O Narada,’ said the king, ‘please help me. I don’t know how I got myself into this, but you have brought this disastrous news to me, so you must also help formulate a solution to this problem.’

  This was just what Narada wanted. He put on an appeasing and wise tone and said, ‘Go find Anjana, Hanuman’s mother, and ask her to shield you, without mentioning the name of the person you seek protection from. She will take care of the rest.’

  King Shakuntan ran to Kishkindha and found Anjana performing prayers to Lord Shiva in her home. The king went and touched her feet. ‘O Divine Mother!’ he exclaimed. ‘Please help me. A man has decided to take my head today for no fault of mine. You are the mother of the great Hanuman, and without your help I will not live to see the day end.’

  At first Anjana was disturbed. She did not know what to do. Then she thought over it. A small-time king had come in search of protection and it wasn’t such a big ask. She knew her son could perform this job with ease. So she promised Shakuntan, ‘I will tell Hanuman to protect you. He never disobeys me. Now you may leave your worries aside and feel assured of your safety.’

  ‘Give me your word,’ Shakuntan insisted.

  ‘Fine. You have my word. I promise on Lord Rama’s name that Hanuman will protect you,’ said Anjana and continued her prayers.

  Shakuntan felt relieved and waited.

  As soon as Hanuman came home and Anjana finished her prayers, she told her son to protect Shakuntan. ‘Yes, I will protect you,’ said Hanuman. ‘Now, tell me, who wants to kill you before sunset?’

  ‘It is Lord Rama,’ replied the king, much to Hanuman’s dismay. Shakuntan explained the sequence of events. Hanuman sat down and meditated to find a solution. He saw through his mind’s eye how Narada had manipulated the incident. Now Hanuman had already promised the king that he would ensure his safety.

  After some thought, Hanuman told the king, ‘Chant Rama’s name until you hear further from me. Go now.’

  Meanwhile, Hanuman headed to Ayodhya, travelling at the speed of the wind. At Rama’s palace, he told the lord about how Narada had played a trick on Shakuntan. Hanuman beseeched the lord not to wage a war against the poor king.

  ‘I agree that it is an unfair trick, my dear friend. However, I have given my word. I have to complete this task, come what may,’ Rama replied heavily.

  ‘But how can I fight against you? I have promised to protect Shakuntan, my lord.’

  ‘Then you stick to your promise and I will stick to mine. In my kingdom, no one must break a promi
se.’

  ‘Give me your word, Lord, that whoever chants your name will not be disturbed or targeted until they have completed the chanting. I hope you can at least do that!’

  Rama said, ‘But of course! That is fine.’

  With limited options in sight, Hanuman thought of Angada, the son of Vali, who was very dear to the lord. Perhaps he could mediate and convince Rama not to fight against Hanuman. So Angada arrived in Ayodhya and spoke to Rama. ‘Hanuman is your truest devotee, Lord. Think of his everlasting devotion and the way he assisted you in the war against Ravana.’

  ‘I agree with all you say, Angada, but I must present Shakuntan’s head at my guru’s feet before sunset; I have promised him so. There is no other solution,’ said Rama.

  Anjana, who was dismayed at the misery she had caused by offering to help the king, said to her son, ‘Hanuman, please go and pray to Sita. She is sure to identify a solution.’

  Hanuman instantly went to Sita’s abode and apprised her of the situation. ‘Rama won’t listen to anyone,’ she said. ‘Instead, I give you a boon, dear one. There is no devotee as precious as you. So when Rama’s arrows try to pierce you, they will turn into flowers instead.’

  Soon, the news spread that a battle between Rama and Hanuman was to take place before the end of the day. Everyone, including Narada, came to the site of the battle.

  Hanuman created a fort with his long tail and told Shakuntan to stay there.

  And the battle began.

  Rama began shooting arrows at Hanuman. To his surprise, the arrows seemed to have no effect. So he asked Lakshmana to find out the cause. Soon, Lakshmana returned and said, ‘Brother, this battle is futile. You have promised that whoever chants your name will be protected. Shakuntan is busy chanting your name and that’s why none of the arrows are reaching him. Meanwhile, I have heard that Mother Sita has given a boon to Hanuman that transforms your arrows into flowers as soon as they touch his body. So there is a heap of flowers near Hanuman’s feet. Hanuman is also chanting your name. No one can fight against your devotees, brother.’