by Vanamali
Hanuman also went to him and apprised him of the gravity of the situation.
“Rama is a wonderful friend, but he will be like a malefic comet if aroused to wrath. It is your tardiness that has made Lakshmana come here in search of you. You have to go and pacify him.” But Sugriva was totally intoxicated and in no condition to meet Lakshmana. “What crime have I committed? Why should he be angry with me?” whined the tipsy monarch.
“You must admit that you have allowed time to elapse. You have lost track of the seasons in your ardor. Rama has been counting the days to go in search of his wife. Pained in heart and mind, he has sent Lakshmana to remind you of your promise. Please go and talk sweetly to him.”
Sugriva did not dare to go and face him, so he begged Tara to go and pacify him since he knew that Lakshmana would not display his anger before a woman. Tara was also in a state of inebriation. Her gait was unsteady and her hair and clothes disheveled.
In the meantime, Lakshmana had forced an entrance into the palace and noted the abundance of wealth and luxury. His heart burned with rage when he thought of his dear brother’s plight and how this ungrateful monkey was enjoying himself, oblivious to the woes of his master. He was loathe to force an entrance into the inner apartments.
Tara met him just outside the harem and pacified him with her sweet words.
“Why, O Prince, are you so angry? Who has been foolish enough to kindle your wrath?”
Lakshmana replied, “Your husband seems to have forgotten all the rules of dharma. Lapped in lust, he has forgotten the promises he made to my brother. If you wish to do him some good, go and tell him to rouse himself from this orgy of lust and help Rama. Ingratitude leads to the destruction of the best of men. We have been betrayed by one whom we considered a friend!”
Tara replied in a sweet and gentle tone. “O Prince! Please don’t be angry with Sugriva. You know that kama (lust) is a powerful emotion. Even rishis have fallen beneath its spell. What need be said about a mere monkey, who is fickle by nature and who has been denied these pleasures for many years? Please pardon him for his apparent indifference, which has been caused by weakness. Actually, he has already ordered the army to be mobilized, and soon thousands of monkeys from all over the country will assemble here to start out on their quest to discover Sita. Please return to your dear Lord and apprise him of the situation.”
Lakshmana was slightly appeased by these words and turning to Hanuman, he asked him if it were true that the monkey hordes had been commanded to come. Hanuman assured him that he himself had despatched messengers to all the great monkey strongholds in the subcontinent and very soon all of them would come.
By this time Sugriva had got himself under some sort of control. He accompanied Lakshmana, went to Rama, prostrated himself at his feet, and begged his pardon for his seeming tardiness. Rama was always the soul of compassion, and he immediately forgave Sugriva and embraced him. Just then Jambavan, the king of bears, arrived. He was an old dark bear with a crown and earrings of gold, with smoky gray eyes, huge paws, and long arms, and he stood on two feet. He pointed out to Rama the monkey troops that had started to arrive from all over the world. The whole hillside was covered with tree folk. They came in millions, lion-tailed, dark-faced, red-bottomed, white-furred, and golden-haired, ranging from all parts of the country from the Himalayas to the tip of the southern sea. The entire world’s tree folk answered Sugriva’s call and crowded round their king to await his commands.
Sugriva was delighted and pointed out the different types to Rama.
“Look over there at the white tree-dwelling monkeys who can change their forms at will. Note the tall blue coconut monkeys who are as strong as elephants, the yellow honey-wine monkeys with sharp teeth, the charcoal monkeys born to the daughters of the gandharvas, who worship the sun, the gray apes from the woods skirting the edge of the world who are handsome from eating only berries, the black ones with snaky tails from the caves on the banks of the Ganga, the red ones with lion manes and all the great bears of the earth, dark as gloom, brown, black, and terrible in combat. They have all answered my call and are ready to do your slightest bidding.”
Rama was very pleased to see them. Since Sugriva did not know the exact whereabouts of Lanka, Rama asked him to choose four leaders who could take their troops to the four quarters and begin the search for Sita without further ado. The general called Vinata was sent to scour the eastern regions.
“Dawn first appears bright with brilliant glory in the east and people living there also become golden-colored. Search everywhere, but stay away no longer than one month from today.” One-quarter of the monkeys followed him. The ground trembled as they left.
Another batch led by Sushena, his father-in-law, was sent to the west.
“Explore the west for Sita. That is where the sun’s light ends and the lady of the night has her home. Follow the cool forest streams that flow from the high cold lakes, search the kingdoms and empires, the plateaus and wastelands. There live the gandharvas. But don’t let any creature see you. Do not go farther than where the sun goes. Return here within a month.”
Satabali, the white furred bear, was told to proceed north.
“Go to the enchanted lands of the Himalayas where the mountain of Kailasa rises pale and silver as the moon and go to the palace of Kubera, the Lord of wealth. Examine the icy slopes of the Himalayas and listen to the music of the Apsaras and the Nagas who live beneath the ground. Turn back from the dark and fearful northern border of the country and let not more than a full month pass before you return.” With him went the third quarter of the monkey warriors.
At last he called Hanuman and Angada and told them to proceed to the south. Jambavan also lumbered in after them and all sat on rugs before Sugriva.
Sugriva said, “We saw Ravana fly south with the princess. I make Prince Angada the leader of the batch. Pavana Putra, the son of the wind, will surely find her.” He then took out a scroll, gave it to Hanuman, and said, “Memorize this and give this message to the demon king when you meet him.”
Hanuman turned to Rama, who was sitting beside Sugriva, prostrated himself at his feet, and begged him to bless him. Rama placed his lotus palms on Hanuman’s head and blessed him. He then took him aside and gave him a perfect description of Sita so that he would know her when he saw her.
“O Hanuman,” he said. “I feel sure that you will be the one to find Sita. Look at her feet, and you will find that her toenails glow like rubies. Her heels have been compared to a quiver. As for her waist, it is delicate and unseen. However, it is enough for you to observe her feet. They are incomparable. When you see her, give this ring to her so that she will know that you are not a spy but have come as my messenger. It is the signet ring of the Ikshvakus, and she will surely recognize it.” Rama then gave a description of how she spoke, how she walked, and how her voice would sound. He also narrated some anecdotes to him that only he and she knew so that she would have no doubt that Maruti was indeed her husband’s messenger.
Hanuman respectfully listened to every word that Rama spoke. He had a very good portrait of Sita in his mind now and he felt that when he saw her, she would look familiar to him. He took the ring, reverently placed it on his head, bowed low to Rama, and departed to the south, followed by a host of monkeys led by Angada and Nila.
Even before a month had passed, the generals who had been sent to the east, west, and north returned despondently and declared their inability to find out anything concerning Sita. All of them felt sure that Hanuman alone would accomplish the impossible.
Hanuman proceeded to the south with his party and passed many forests and rivers. The stipulated time of one month was coming to a close, and the monkeys were exhausted and hungry since they had just passed a forest that was totally denuded of fruits and roots due to the curse of a sage. They had crossed chasms and ravines and forests and thickets. They couldn’t find even a drop of water to drink. Exhausted and dispirited, they collapsed on the hillside. Just then, Hanuma
n noticed two birds with water dripping from their wings coming out of a cave. He told the monkeys that there must be water and fruits inside and decided to follow the birds. It was pitch dark in the tunnel, so they walked single file, one catching the tail of the other, until they suddenly came to a wonderful grove with trees of gold under one of which was sitting a woman ascetic. At first they thought that this must be Sita, but Hanuman observed her carefully and could not detect any of the signs given by Rama. He approached her in all humility and begged her to tell him the story of the cave and this wondrous place.
She told them that her name was Swayamprabha and that she was the guardian of this cave, which belonged to her friend Hema, the apsara. The demon king Ravana had married Mandodari, Hema’s daughter. Swayamprabha now plied them with fruits and nuts to eat and delicious honey drinks until they were satiated. She was very lonely and did everything to charm the monkeys and make them stay on. Even Jambavan, the wise old bear, succumbed to her allure and forgot about their mission. Only Hanuman remembered and told her the whole story of their search, and courteously asked her whether he could do anything for her in return for her hospitality. She begged him to marry her and stay on in the cave and she would give him anything he wished for. He sternly refused her offer and insisted that he would have to leave with or without his companions. Seeing his determination, she promised to help them. She told him that this was a magic cave and no one who entered it ever got out alive. However, she took pity on them and told them to close their eyes and she would transport them out of the cave. When they opened their eyes, they found that they were standing on the shore of the southern sea. The perfume of sandalwood from the Malaya Hills swept over them. Around them stretched the lifeless sands without a single fruit tree and before them the emerald green ocean, stretching to the horizon. The island of Lanka was nowhere to be seen.
Angada looked at the sun and realized that much more than a month had passed since they had entered the cave. He was utterly dejected. None of them knew what they should do now. Hungry and helpless, the monkeys groaned in despair. Angada looked at the dejected monkeys and said, “I’d rather starve myself to death than return and face Sugriva’s wrath!”
The rest of the monkeys and bears swung their arms up and down and cried, “We will die with you!”
Hanuman told Angada not to be a coward and that it was better to return and face Sugriva, who was sure to be kind to them. Angada had painted a lurid picture of Sugriva to all the other monkeys, and all of them agreed that it would be better to fast to death. Nothing Hanuman said could persuade them to change their minds.
They lay on the seashore with their heads facing south.
In the meantime, a huge vulture by the name of Sampati heard their talk and came out of the cave where he was living. Seeing the monkeys lying in rows on the beach, he congratulated himself on finding that his food had been supplied to him by the kind gods.
“Today fortune has indeed favored me. I have not eaten for days, and here are some delicious monkeys, all laid out in neat rows, waiting for me to go and gobble them up!” With these words, the bird started to hop toward them, since he didn’t have any wings.
When they saw this enormous bird hopping toward them with the sole purpose of devouring them, the monkeys started lamenting their fate. They who had decided to starve to death now appeared to be frightened of being eaten alive!
Angada started wailing, “Just look at our fate. This bird looks like Yama, the god of death himself, coming to make an end of us. It is said that all birds and animals love Rama. Even the old vulture Jatayu was prepared to give up his life for Rama’s sake! Then why should this bird try to kill us and stop us from helping Rama?”
Actually, Sampati was the brother of Jatayu, who had helped Rama during his exile and who had been killed by Ravana while trying to stop him from abducting Sita. As soon as Sampati heard the word “Jatayu,” he stopped in his tracks and enquired from Angada as to what he knew of Jatayu, who was his younger brother. He asked him to help him down from the rock since his wings had been burned. Angada now became a bit bolder and helped the old vulture to climb down the rock, and then he narrated the whole story of Rama and of their own search for Sita.
Sampati’s eyes filled with tears when he heard of his brother’s fate, and he wept bitterly. Angada asked him how he knew Jatayu, and Sampati recounted his own story to them.
“Jatayu was my younger brother. When we were young, we had a competition to see who could fly higher, and we flew straight at the sun. When I saw that Jatayu was getting burned due to the scorching heat, I flew over him and protected him so that he escaped, but I fell to the ground with my wings totally burned. I have not been able to fly ever afterwards and I have never met my dear brother since. My life has been one long suffering since then, and I have kept myself alive because I have been told that my redemption would come when I heard the story of Rama.”
As soon as he heard Angada’s tale of Rama, the old vulture sprouted wings and soared into the sky like a young bird, much to the surprise of all the monkeys. They were astonished at the miraculous power of the story of Rama. Sampati swooped down once again and told them that he had seen Sita being abducted by Ravana. Angada begged him to tell them all he knew.
Sampati said, “One day while I was sitting on this rock, I saw a beauteous young lady being carried away by force by one of the night wanderers who was undoubtedly their king—Ravana. She was trying her best to wriggle out of his grasp, but he held her in a fierce grip. She was crying out piteously for Rama and Lakshmana.”
Hearing this, a flash of hope dawned in the hearts of the monkeys and they crowded round the old vulture and begged him to tell them all he knew.
He continued, “Ravana is the son of Vishravas, who was the son of Pulastya, one of the seven sages. He had two wives. One was a yakshi who gave birth to Kubera, and the other was a rakshasi who gave birth to Ravana. This city of Lanka, which I can see with my keen vulture’s vision, was built by Kubera. Ravana was jealous of his brother. He did austerities to Shiva and was given a sword with which he defeated and drove out his brother and appropriated the island for himself. He also grabbed Kubera’s aerial car, the Pushpaka. Riding on this flying chariot and wielding his divine sword, Ravana indulged in an orgy of rape and plunder. Once he had kicked a hermit and called him a monkey. The enraged hermit cursed Ravana that monkeys would indeed be the cause of his death.”
Peering to the south, Sampati assured the monkeys that with his keen vulture’s vision, he could see Sita sitting in a grove surrounded by rakshasis. Sampati blessed the monkeys and told them that they would surely be successful in their search. He advised them to select one out of their clan who would be able to leap to Lanka and give them news of Sita.
Angada and the other monkeys now became hopeful once again that their mission would be successful and started making plans as to who could jump farther and who would be able to go to Lanka and get news of Sita.
Angada now asked each of the monkeys how far he was capable of jumping. One said he could jump ten miles, another twenty, and another thirty, and so on. But they all proclaimed their incapacity to jump a hundred yojanas, or eight hundred miles! Angada himself said that he felt sure he could jump all the way to Lanka but feared that he would not be able to make it back.
Jambavan, the great old bear, was noted for his sagacity and strength. The incarnation of Rama was taken to annihilate Ravana and before he took birth as Rama, Vishnu asked the creator Brahma to create a number of monkeys who would be able to help him in his mission. The story goes that Brahma cogitated over this for a while and then he felt sleepy and yawned. Out of his mouth jumped a small creature that later became the wise old bear, Jambavan.
Another story about his birth goes as follows. Once when Brahma was reclining on his lotus seat, there suddenly appeared two huge demons before him called Madhu and Kaitabha. Seeing them, Brahma was frightened out of his wits and started to perspire. Jambavan is said to have bee
n born out of those divine drops of perspiration. He was a great devotee of Vishnu and is purported to have taken birth along with Vishnu in each of his incarnations. In this manifestation, he had taken on the form of a bear in order to help Rama. Though he had possessed mighty powers before, he was old and weak now and confessed his inability to do this amazing deed.
All the while Hanuman was sitting apart, gazing at the sea and chanting the name of Rama. While all the other monkeys were bragging about their prowess, Hanuman alone sat silent, deep in some reverie of his own.
Jambavan now went to him and said, “O jewel among monkeys! Why are you remaining silent? Don’t you know that you are the son of the wind god? You have the ability to jump as far as you wish. In fact, even as an infant you jumped over twenty thousand miles in order to catch the sun! You alone among us have the power to accomplish this impossible task. Rise up and soar into the air and leap over the vast sea, for you can easily do this.”