The Valmiki Ramayana

by Amish Tripathi

  He heard Hanumat’s polite words, which were in conformity with dharma and were full of respect towards their lord.307 However, Angada spoke these words. ‘Stability in every respect of one’s being, purity, non-violence, uprightness, valour and patience are not discernible in Sugriva. When his elder brother was still alive, his beloved queen and wife, following dharma, was like a mother to him. But he desired her and seized her as his own. When his brother was fighting inside the hole and instated him at the entrance, he abandoned him. How can such an evil-souled one know dharma? Grasping his hand in a pledge of truth, the immensely illustrious Raghava performed a good deed for him. He forgot that. What other good deed will he remember? The coward has not been scared of adharma. He has commanded us to seek out Sita’s path because he was terrified of Lakshmana. How will he follow dharma? He is wicked and ungrateful. He and his memory are both fickle. Which person, born in a noble lineage, who wishes to remain alive, will trust him as one who is noble? A son must be established in the kingdom, whether he possesses qualities or does not possess qualities. Therefore, how can Sugriva permit someone like me, born from his enemy, to remain alive? My advisers have been weaned away.308 I have committed a crime. Who is as inferior in strength as I am? Even if I reach Kishkindha and remain alive, I will be weak and without a protector. He may punish me in secret ways. He may bind me up. For the sake of the kingdom, Sugriva can be deceitful, cruel and violent. Resorting to praya is superior to bondage and suffering. O apes! All of you have my permission to return to your houses. I am informing all of you that I will not return to the city. I will resort to praya here. That kind of death is superior for me. First greet the king and ask about his welfare. Then speak to my younger father, Sugriva, the lord of the apes. Speak words to my mother, Ruma, and first ask her if she is well. You should then ask about my mother, Tara, and reassure her. That ascetic lady naturally loves her son and will not be angry. On hearing that I have been destroyed, it is evident that she will also not remain alive.’ He spoke these words to the aged ones and greeted them. Distressed in his mind, Angada lay down on the darbha grass that was spread around there. When he lay down there, the bulls among the apes started to weep. Since they were miserable, warm tears started to flow from their eyes. They censured Sugriva and praised Vali. All of them surrounded Angada and decided to engage in praya. The bulls among the apes got to know the words that Vali’s son had spoken. All of them touched water and sat down, facing the eastern direction. The tips of the darbha faced the southern direction and they were on the shores of the water. Those apes, who were like the peaks of mountains, lay down there, having traversed many mountains and stepped through many caverns inside them. The salty ocean roared, like terrible thunder clouds.

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  On the slope of the mountain, all the apes sat down in an act of praya. At that time, a king of the eagles arrived at the spot. His name was Sampati and he was a bird who lived for a long time.309 He was handsome and renowned because of his strength and manliness. He was Jatayu’s elder brother. He emerged from a cave in the great mountain of Vindhya. He saw the apes seated there. Cheerful in his heart, he spoke to them. ‘Destiny decides and all men in this world have to follow destiny. I have been waiting for food for a long time and destiny has presented itself before me. I will eat these apes one after another, as they progressively die.’310 Having spoken these words, the bird glanced at the apes. The bird desired food and on hearing his words, Angada became supremely anxious. He spoke to Hanumat. ‘Behold. As if on Sita’s command, Vaivasvata Yama seems to have presented himself before us. He has arrived at this spot to cause a calamity to the apes. We have not accomplished Rama’s task. We have not followed the king’s instructions. While we did not know it, this calamity for the apes has suddenly presented itself before us. Jatayu, the king of the eagles, performed a good deed in a desire to bring pleasure to Vaidehi. We heard the complete details about it there. All creatures, even those born as inferior species, are doing what brings pleasure to Rama and are giving up their lives, just as we are about to. We have abandoned all thought of our lives and are exhausted, trying to accomplish Raghava’s objective. We traversed through all the desolate areas, but did not see Maithilee. The king of the eagles who was slain by Ravana in the battle is happy. Freed from all fear of Sugriva, he has attained the supreme destination. After the destruction of Jatayu and King Dasharatha, and Vaidehi’s abduction, all the apes face an uncertain situation.311 Rama and Lakshmana resided in the forest with Sita. Raghava killed Vali with an arrow. All the rakshasas were slain because of Rama’s rage.312 Because of the boon given to Kaikeyee, all these catastrophes have come about.’

  Hearing the words that had emerged out of Angada’s mouth, the eagle with the sharp beak uttered these words in a loud and rumbling voice. ‘Who has spoken these words, making my mind tremble? I love my brother, Jatayu, more than my own life. Who has announced his death? How did this encounter between the rakshasa and the eagle happen in Janasthana? I have heard my brother’s name mentioned today, after a long period of time. He is younger to me and possesses all the qualities. His valour is praiseworthy. O bulls among the apes! That is the reason I wish to hear about his destruction. My brother, Jatayu, was a resident of Janasthana. How is Dasharatha, my brother’s friend? His eldest son, Rama, loves his seniors and the people, and is loved by him.313 Since my wings have been scorched by the rays of the sun, I am incapable of stretching them.314 O destroyers of enemies! Therefore, I wish that you should lower me from this mountain.’

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  The leaders of the apes heard his words, which wavered because of his sorrow.315 Though they honoured his words, they were unsure about their course of action.316 Seated in the act of praya, the apes saw the eagle. They then decided, ‘This terrible one will not devour all of us. In any event, if he eats us, we are seated in praya in every possible way. What is going to occur will happen and we will speedily obtain success.’ Having made up their minds in this way, all the bulls among the apes lowered the eagle from the peak of the mountain.

  Angada spoke to him. ‘There was a powerful Indra among the apes and his name was Riksharaja.317 O bird! The noble king had two sons who were devoted to dharma. These sons were Sugriva and Vali and they possessed intelligence and strength. King Vali, famous in the worlds because of his deeds, was my father. There is a maharatha in the lineage of the Ikshvakus and he is the king of the entire earth. This is the handsome Rama, Dasharatha’s son, and he entered the forest of Dandaka, with his brother, Lakshmana, and his wife, Vaidehi. He did this because of his father’s command and because he always resorts to the path of dharma. His wife was forcibly abducted from Janasthana by Ravana. The king of the eagles, named Jatayu, was the friend of Rama’s father. He saw that Sita Vaidehi was being abducted through the sky. He deprived Ravana of his chariot and rescued Maithilee. However, he was exhausted and aged and was slain in the battle by Ravana. This is the way the eagle was killed by a stronger Ravana. After Rama performed his funeral rites, he reached the supreme destination. After this, Raghava contracted an act of friendship with my uncle, the great-souled Sugriva, and killed my father. Since he had acted against my father, he had bound up Sugriva and his advisers. However, having slain Vali, Rama consecrated him as the king. Sugriva was instated in the kingdom, as the lord of the apes. The king, foremost among the apes, dispatched all of us. Having been thus engaged by Rama, we thus searched the routes here and there. But we could not find Vaidehi, just as the radiance of the sun is unreachable during the night. Controlling ourselves, we searched everywhere in Dandakaranya. In our ignorance, we entered a cave that extended inside the ground. We searched in that cave, constructed by Maya through his use of maya. The month that the king had decreed for us passed in that way. All of us are engaged in acting in accordance with the commands of the king of the apes. Since the contracted period was over, we were terrified and have resolved to fast and undertake praya. Kakutstha, Sugriva and Lakshmana will be angry with us i
f we return there. Therefore, no purpose is served by us remaining alive.’

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  The apes, who were ready to give up their lives, spoke these piteous words. The voices of the apes choked with tears. The eagle replied in a loud voice. ‘O apes! My brother, named Jatayu, is younger to me. He is the one who has been spoken about, as having been killed by a stronger Ravana in the encounter. Though I cannot tolerate what I have heard, I am aged and do not possess any wings. I do not possess the strength now to save my brother from his enemy. Earlier, when Vritra was killed, the two of us wished to rival each other.318 We approached the sun, blazing in its garland of rays. With a terrible speed, we travelled through the sky and covered it, reaching the sun at midday. Jatayu began to suffer. I saw that my brother was suffering because of the rays of the sun and became extremely anxious. Out of affection, I covered him with my wings. O bulls among the apes! When my wings were burnt, I fell down on the Vindhyas. While I resided here, I no longer noticed what my brother was up to.’ Sampati, Jatayu’s brother, said this.

  The immensely wise Prince Angada replied. ‘If Jatayu was your brother, you have heard what I have said. If you know about the residence of that rakshasa, tell us about it. Ravana, the lord of the rakshasas, does not possess foresight. Whether he lives nearby, or far away, if you know, tell us.’

  Jatayu’s elder brother was immensely energetic. Thus addressed, he spoke words that were worthy of him and delighted the apes. ‘O apes! I am an eagle whose wings have been burnt. My valour has been lost. But even then, through my words, I will render excellent help to Rama. I know the world of Varuna and that of Vishnu of the three strides.319 I know about the clash between the gods and the asuras and the churning of amrita.320 I am the first one who will perform a task in accomplishing this objective of Rama’s. However, I am aged and am robbed of my energy. My breath of life is ebbing away. I saw a young lady being abducted by the evil-souled Ravana. She was beautiful and was adorned in all the ornaments. The beautiful one shrieked, “Alas, Rama! Rama! Alas, Lakshmana!” As she writhed, she flung away the ornaments from her limbs. Her excellent silken garment was like the dazzle of the sun on the summit of a mountain. On that dark rakshasa, she was as radiant as lightning on a cloud. Since she spoke of Rama, I think that she must have been Sita. Listen, as I tell you where the residence of that rakshasa is. He is the son of Vishravasa himself and Vaishravana’s321 brother. The rakshasa named Ravana rules over the city of Lanka. This island322 is in the ocean and is a full one hundred yojanas from here. The beautiful city of Lanka was constructed by Vishvakarma. The miserable Vaidehi, attired in silken garments, resides there. She is confined to Ravana’s inner quarters and is guarded well by rakshasis. You will see Maithilee, King Janaka’s daughter, there. On all sides, Lanka is protected by the ocean. When you reach the shores of the ocean, it is a full one hundred yojanas from there. When you reach the other side of the southern shore, you will see Ravana. O apes! You should hurry and quickly exhibit your valour. Through my knowledge, I can see that you will return. The first path is for kulingas and others who live on grain.323 The second is for those who survive on leftovers of sacrifices324 and those who eat the fruits of trees.325 The third is travelled by predatory birds, curlews and ospreys. Hawks reach the fourth level and eagles travel along the fifth. The sixth path is for swans that possess strength and valour and also have youth and beauty. However, the descendants of Vinata can go beyond this. O bulls among apes! All of us have been born from Vinata. The one who survives on flesh has perpetrated a reprehensible deed. From here, I can see Ravana and Janakee. Golden ones like us possess the divine power of eyesight. O apes! Therefore, because of our food, valour and lineage, we can always see anything up to one hundred yojanas, as if it is right in front of us. For those born in our lineage, it has been ordained that our subsistence should be through what is far away. For those who fight with their feet,326 it has been ordained that their subsistence will be found near their feet. Think of a means so that you can leap over the salty waters. You will then reach Vaidehi and be successful in accomplishing your objective. I desire that you should convey me to the ocean, Varuna’s abode. I wish to offer the water rites to my great-souled brother who has gone to heaven.’

  At this, the extremely energetic apes took Sampati, whose wings had been burnt, to a spot near the shore of the lord of the male and female rivers. After this, they again brought the lord of the birds back to the original spot. The apes were delighted on realizing that they might be successful.

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  The words of the king of the eagles were like a taste of amrita. On hearing his words, the bulls among the apes were delighted and rejoiced. With Jambavat, foremost among the apes, all the apes quickly arose from the ground and spoke to the king of the eagles. ‘Where is Sita? Who saw her? Who abducted Maithilee? Tell us everything and thereby offer an indication to us, those who reside in the forest. Who will be brought down by the arrows of Dasharatha’s son, which possess the force of the vajra? Who will be singled out by the valour of Lakshmana’s own releases?’ The apes had collectively composed themselves, wishing to hear about Sita.

  He was delighted at this and again reassuring them, he addressed them in these words. ‘Listen to how I heard about Vaidehi’s abduction and about who told me where the large-eyed one is. For a long time, I have been on this impenetrable mountainous region that extends for many yojanas. I fell down. I am aged. My valour and breath of life have decayed. When I attained this state, my son named Suparshva, supreme among birds, sustained me by providing me food at the right time. Gandharvas are fiercely addicted to desire. Serpents are fiercely addicted to rage. Deer are fiercely addicted to fear. Like that, we are fiercely addicted to hunger. On one occasion, I was afflicted by hunger and desired some food. The day was over and the sun had set. But my son did not bring me any flesh. Because of sentiments associated with age, I censured him in my rage. I was overwhelmed by hunger and thirst. I was deprived of food and suffering. But my son, supreme among birds and the extender of my delight, entreated me. He told me the truth and addressed me in these words. “O father! In search of flesh, at the right time, I did fly up into the sky. I stationed myself properly at the entry to Mount Mahendra. There are thousands of creatures there, roaming around the shore of the ocean. With my glance lowered, I stationed myself there, obstructing one of those paths. At that time, I saw something that was like the radiance of the sun when it rises. Seizing a woman, he was advancing, like a mass of broken collyrium.327 On seeing the two of them, I made up my mind that they could be food. However, using conciliation and humility, he pleaded that I should provide a path for them. There is no one on earth who strikes those who resort to conciliation, not even those who are inferior people. How could someone with limbs like mine not have yielded? With his energy and force, he departed, as if flinging the sky aside. At this, the creatures who roam around in the sky and on earth approached me and praised me. O father! The maharshis told me, ‘It is through good fortune that Sita is alive. The wife has been taken away in some way. But there is no doubt that she will be safe.’ The siddhas, supremely handsome, addressed me in this way. They also told me about Ravana, the king of the rakshasas. They showed me the ornaments that Janaka’s daughter, the wife of Rama, Dasharatha’s son, had flung away, with her dishevelled silken garments. She had been vanquished by the force of her grief. With her hair loose, she had wailed, mentioning the names of Rama and Lakshmana. O father! That is the reason the time passed.” Suparshva, supreme among those who are eloquent in the use of words, told me everything about all this. Even after I heard this, my mind did not turn to thoughts of exhibiting valour. How can a bird like me, without any wings, undertake any such endeavour? Possessing the qualities of speech and intelligence, I have done all that I am capable of doing. Having heard what I have told you, you must now resort to your virility. With my speech and my intelligence, I have done what should bring you pleasure. You have a task to perform for Dasharatha’s
son and there is no doubt that it is mine too. You are supreme in intelligence. You are strong and spirited. That is the reason the king of the apes has sent you. Even the gods will find it impossible to withstand you. Rama and Lakshmana’s sharp arrows are shafted with the feathers of herons. They are sufficient to save, or chastise, the three worlds. Dashagriva is indeed addicted to desire and he possesses energy and strength. However, you are capable and there is nothing that you will find difficult to accomplish. We have spent enough time together. Now make up your minds about what is to be done. Intelligent people like you should not delay in accomplishing the task.’

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  The eagle offered the water rites and bathed. On that beautiful mountain, the leaders of the apes surrounded him from every direction and seated themselves. Angada was seated, with all the apes surrounding him. Delighted that he had won their trust, Sampati spoke again. ‘O apes! Be silent and listen attentively to me. I will recount the truth about how I came to know about Maithilee. O unblemished one!328 Earlier I fell down on the summit of Vindhya. My limbs suffered because of the heat of the sun and I was burnt by the rays of the sun. Though I regained my senses after six nights, I was unconscious and senseless. I glanced in all the directions, but could not identify anything. On looking at the oceans, mountains, all the rivers and lakes and the regions in the forests, I got my intelligence back. The caves inside the mountain were filled with a large number of cheerful birds. I made up my mind that this was Vindhya, on the shores of the southern ocean. There was a sacred hermitage there, extremely revered by even the gods. It belonged to the rishi named Nishakara, who was fierce in his austerities. Nishakara, who knew about dharma, went to heaven. But even without the rishi, I resided there for eight thousand years. Through that uneven terrain, I slowly descended from the summit of Vindhya with difficulty. I found my way through the sharp darbha grass with hardship and again reached the ground. I desired to see the rishi and was therefore full of great misery. Jatayu and I had gone to him on several occasions. Many kinds of fragrant breezes blow through the spot where his hermitage is located. Trees without flowers are never seen there, nor those without fruits. I reached the sacred hermitage and found refuge at the foot of a tree. I waited there, desiring to see the illustrious Nishakara. From a distance, I saw the rishi, blazing in his energy. After performing his ablutions, the unassailable one was returning, his face turned towards the north. Bears, antelopes, tigers, lions and many kinds of reptiles surrounded him and followed him, like living beings follow the granter of life.329 On knowing that the rishi had returned, all the creatures followed him, just as all the ministers and soldiers follow when a king returns. On seeing me, the rishi was content and entered his hermitage again. However, he emerged in an instant and asked me the reason why I was there. “O amiable one! I can see that you are disabled and your body hair cannot be seen. Your wings have been burnt by the fire. There are wounds on your skin. I have seen two eagles earlier and they were like the wind god in their speed. Those two brothers could assume any form at will and were kings among the eagles. O Sampati! You were the elder and Jatayu was your younger brother. You used to assume the form of men and touch my feet. What disease has come over you? How did your wings fall off? Who has punished you in this way? Tell me everything that I have asked you about.”’