The Valmiki Ramayana

by Amish Tripathi

  Chapter 5(57)

  Hanumat, the son of the wind god, told them everything. He then again started to speak these excellent words. ‘Because of Raghava’s enterprise, Sugriva’s efforts and Sita’s good conduct, I was able to perform that great leap. O bull among the apes! The noble Sita’s conduct is worthy of her. Ravana can burn down the worlds because of his austerities. If he is angry, he can burn them down. The lord of the rakshasas is powerful in every way. Though he touched her body, he has not been destroyed because of his austerities. It is like touching a flame with one’s hand. That is the reason she has not behaved like a flame of fire. If she is enraged, Janaka’s daughter is capable of removing all sins. In the midst of the evil-souled Ravana’s Ashokavana, the virtuous one is in that pitiable state, under the shimshapa tree. She is tormented by grief and is surrounded by the rakshasis. She is like the marks on the moon, losing all resplendence at having been surrounded by the marks of clouds. Vaidehi does not think of Ravana, who is insolent because of his strength. Though Janakee has been confined, the one with the excellent hips is devoted to her husband. In all her soul, the auspicious Vaidehi is devoted to Rama. She is single-mindedly devoted to Rama, like Puloma’s daughter to Purandara. She is attired in a single piece of garment, though it is soiled and covered with dust. She is tormented by griefs. Her limbs are miserable. Sita is engaged in her husband’s welfare. In the midst of the rakshasis, she is repeatedly censured. I saw her in that pleasure garden, amidst malformed rakshasis. She is distressed and wears her hair in a single braid. She is devoted to thinking about her husband. She lies down on the ground. Her limbs are faded, like a lotus at the onset of the winter. In her attempt to refuse Ravana, she has made up her mind to die. Somehow, I managed to instil confidence in the one with eyes like those of a fawn. Thereafter, I spoke to her and told her everything. Hearing about the friendship between Rama and Sugriva, she was filled with joy. She is controlled and full of good conduct. She is excellent in devotion to her husband. That is the reason she has not killed the great-souled Dashagriva Dashanana. Rama will only be the instrument in bringing about his death.277 Full of grief, the immensely fortunate Sita is like this. Everything that must now be done should be undertaken.’

  Chapter 5(58)

  Hearing his words, Vali’s son took the permission of all the great apes, with Jambavat at the forefront. ‘In this situation, let me tell you what I think we should do. It is proper that we should see those two princes when we have Vaidehi with us. I am alone sufficient to go to the city that is full of large numbers of rakshasas. I will quickly destroy Lanka and the immensely strong Ravana and bring her back, not to speak of a situation where I have these brave and powerful ones, who have cleansed their souls, with me. The apes are accomplished in the use of weapons. They are capable of ensuring victory. In the battle, I will destroy Ravana, with his soldiers, his vanguard, his sons and his brothers. Shakrajit’s278 weapons may be impossible to countenance in a battle—they are Brahma, Aindra, Roudra, Vayavya and Varuna weapons.279 But I will destroy them and kill the rakshasas. I seek your permission to restrain them with my valour. I will incessantly shower down a continuous downpour of boulders. I can kill even the gods in an encounter, not to speak of the roamers in the night. The ocean may cross the shoreline, Mandara may tremble, but the army of soldiers cannot make Jambavat quake in a battle. The brave ape who is Vayu’s son is sufficient to destroy all the numerous rakshasas and the rakshasas who are their ancestors. From the force of the thighs of Panasa and that of the great-souled Nila, Mandara can be shattered, not to speak of rakshasas in the battle. Among the gods, the asuras, the yakshas, the gandharvas, the serpents and the birds, tell me who can fight against Mainda and Dvivida. These two supreme among apes are extremely forceful and are the sons of the two Ashvins. These two are proud that they have received excellent boons from the grandfather. They are supremely haughty. In earlier times, to show respect to the two Ashvins, the grandfather of all the worlds gave them the unmatched boon that no one would be able to kill them. Haughty and intoxicated because of the boon, these two brave apes crushed a large army of the gods and drank amrita. All the other apes can stand and watch. When they are enraged, these two brave apes are alone capable of destroying Lanka, with its horses, chariots and elephants. Even though the queen has been seen, it is not proper for the apes to go to the great-souled Raghava’s presence without her. It is not appropriate for you,280 famous for your valour, to report that you have seen the queen, but have not brought her back. O supreme among apes! Even in the world of the immortals and the daityas, there is no one who is our equal in leaping and valour. Hanumat has killed the brave ones among the rakshasas. What should we do now? We should get Janakee?’

  He had thus made up his mind. However, Jambavat, supreme among apes and one who understood the objective, though extremely delighted, spoke these words that were full of meaning. ‘O prince! It is as you perceive it. We are not incapable of doing what you have made up your mind about. But you must consider what Rama intends and then determine the best means of accomplishing the objective.’

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  The residents of the forest, the brave ones with Angada at the forefront, and the great ape, Hanumat, accepted the words that Jambavat had spoken. With Vayu’s son at the forefront, all of them were delighted. The bulls among the apes abandoned the summit of Mahendra and started to leap away. They were like Meru and Mandara and like maddened elephants. Those immensely strong ones, gigantic in size, shrouded the sky. Hanumat was in control of his soul and greatly strong. He was worshipped by all creatures. His force was great, as if he was being borne along by the power of sight. His purpose was to accomplish his lord, Raghava’s, objective, and to obtain great fame. All the foremost ones wished to tell their loved ones what had happened. All of them were delighted at the prospect of war. All the spirited ones had made up their minds about ensuring Rama’s revenge. Those residents of the forest leapt. They leapt up into the sky. They reached a forest that was like Nandana, filled with trees and creepers. There was a grove named Madhuvana there and it was protected by Sugriva. It could not be approached by any creature and it pleased the hearts of all beings. An immensely brave ape named Dadhimukha always protected it. This foremost among apes was the great-souled Sugriva’s maternal uncle. Having approached the large and beautiful grove that belonged to the Indra among the apes, the apes became extremely ferocious. Delighted, the apes saw the gigantic Madhuvana. Tawny, with the complexion of honey,282 the apes asked the prince283 for some honey. After taking the permission of the aged apes, with Jambavat at the forefront, the prince gave them permission to taste some honey. The residents of the forest were delighted at having obtained the permission. Filled with joy, they began to dance around, here and there. Some sang, others bowed down. Some danced, others laughed. Some fell down, others wandered around. Some leapt, others spoke incoherently. Some leaned against each other. Some spoke excessively to each other. Some leapt from one tree to another tree. Some leapt down from trees on to the ground. With great force, some sprang down from the tops of large trees on to the ground. Some sang, others laughed and approached others. Some laughed, others laughed at others. Some wept, others made others weep. Some roared, others made others roar. The soldiers in the army of the apes were excited. Having drunk the honey, they were haughty and intoxicated. There was no one there who was not drunk. There was no one there who was not satiated. The ape named Dadhivaktra284 saw that the grove was being destroyed and the trees, full of leaves and flowers, were also being destroyed. He was filled with anger and tried to restrain the apes. While they raged, the aged ape, the protector of the grove, reprimanded them. The immensely fierce and energetic one thought of means to protect the grove from those apes. He addressed some in harsh words. He approached others and struck them with his palms. He approached others and made them quarrel with each other. He approached others and tried conciliation. However, they were intoxicated and forcibly countered him. He couldn’t restrain
them by force. They got together and fearlessly attacked him. They saw nothing wrong in dragging him along in this way. They struck him with their nails. They bit him with their teeth. All the assembled apes struck the ape with their palms and feet. In their intoxication, they robbed the great forest of all its possessions.285

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  Hanumat, best among apes and bull among the apes, told them, ‘O apes! Without any anxiety in your minds, drink the honey.’ Hearing Hanumat’s words, the supreme one among the apes, Angada, was delighted in his mind and told the apes to drink the honey. ‘I must certainly make Hanumat’s words come true and do what he says, even if it is a task that should not be performed, not to speak of at a time like this.’286 Hearing the words that emerged from Angada’s mouth, the bulls among apes were delighted and praised him. The apes honoured him. All the apes worshipped Angada, bull among the apes. Like the flow of a swift river, they headed towards Madhuvana. Delighted, they used their valour to attack the grove’s guards. Those accomplished ones saw that they had been granted permission and they had heard about Maithilee. Together, they leapt on all the hundreds of guards of the grove of Madhuvana who approached and struck them. They seized many dronas of honey.287 They got together and struck.288 Others devoured the honey, brown in complexion, some drank honey and flung away the vessels thereafter. Still holding the leftover honey, others got intoxicated and struck others. Some resorted to the roots of trees. Others clung to branches. Some were extremely drunk. They spread out leaves and lay down on these. Because of the honey, the apes became mad. Though intoxicated, they seemed to be cheerful. They playfully struck each other. Others addressed others in slurred voices. Some roared. Others cheerfully whistled. Some apes were intoxicated by the honey and slept on the ground.

  Dadhimukha sent those who were meant to protect the honey. However, attacked by those terrible apes, they fled in different directions. They were dragged by their thighs and were seen to be flung up into the sky. Extremely anxious, they went and addressed Dadhimukha in these words. ‘Because of the boon granted by Hanumat, they are destroying Madhuvana with their force. We have been dragged by our thighs and are seen to have been flung up into the sky.’ The ape Dadhimukha, the guardian of the grove, became angry. Hearing that Madhuvana had been destroyed, he comforted those apes. ‘Come here. Let us go to those extremely insolent apes. We will use our strength to restrain those who are devouring the honey.’ Hearing Dadhimukha’s words, the brave bulls among apes assembled together and again went to Madhuvana. Having seized a giant tree, Dadhimukha was in their midst. All those apes attacked with force. The apes picked up boulders, trees and rocks. Having seized these, they angrily went to where those elephants among apes were. The brave ones had imbibed the words of their master in their hearts. With salas, talas and rocks as weapons, they attacked swiftly. Thousands of brave guards attacked the insolent and strong apes who were on trees or under the trees. The bulls among apes saw the angry Dadhimukha. With Hanumat at the forefront, they attacked with force. Angada angrily used his arms to strike the immensely strong and mighty-armed aryaka,289 who was wielding a tree. Intoxicated and blind, he did not realize that this was his maternal uncle. Using force, he swiftly crushed him down on the ground. In an instant, the ape among elephants suddenly lost his senses. His arms were shattered. He was distracted and blood began to flow. He could no longer fight. Somehow, the bull among apes managed to extricate himself from those apes. He went to a solitary spot and told the assembled servants. ‘Let the others remain here. Let us go to where the master of the apes, the thick-necked Sugriva, is with Rama. I will make the king hear all the sins Angada has committed. On hearing my words, he will become intolerant and will slay these apes. Madhuvana is desired by the great-souled Sugriva. It is divine and belonged to his fathers and grandfathers. Even the gods find it impossible to approach it. Greedy for honey, all these apes have lost their lifespans. Sugriva will chastise and kill them and their well-wishers. These evil-souled ones have disregarded the command of the king and deserve to be killed. Our intolerance, power and anger will certainly be successful.’ The immensely strong Dadhimukha said this to the guardians of the grove. Surrounded by all the guardians of the grove, he quickly got up. In a short while, he reached the residence in the forest where the intelligent ape, Sugriva, the son of the sun, was. On seeing Rama, Lakshmana and Sugriva, he descended from the sky on to the flat ground. Surrounded by all the guards, the immensely valiant one, Dadhimukha, the supreme lord of the guardians, descended. His face was distressed. He joined his hands in salutation above his head. He lowered his head at Sugriva’s auspicious feet.

  Chapter 5(61)

  The ape fell down, with his head lowered. On seeing this, the bull among apes became anxious in his mind and addressed him in these words. ‘Arise! Why have you fallen down at my feet? Arise! O brave one! Do not be scared. Tell me the truth about what has happened.’ Thus assured by the great-souled Sugriva, the immensely wise Dadhimukha arose and spoke these words. O king! Riksharaja, you, or Vali had never allowed unrestricted access to the grove and those apes have consumed it. When they were restrained by the guards of the grove, they oppressed them. Without any heed, they devoured and drank the honey. While some are devouring, others are flinging away what is left of the honey. When they are restrained, they are showing their eyebrows.290 When they291 angrily restrained them, they were oppressed. Those enraged bulls among apes prevented them292 from entering the grove. They have many brave apes, bulls among apes. Eyes red with rage, they have driven away those other apes.293 Some have been struck with the hands. Some have been struck with the thighs. As they wished, they have dragged some and flung them up into the sky. While you are here as their master, those brave apes have been struck. As they wish, they are devouring all of Madhuvana.’

  While he was reporting this to Sugriva, bull among apes, the immensely wise Lakshmana, the destroyer of enemy heroes, asked, ‘O king! This ape294 resides in the grove. Why has he come here? He is addressing you in grieving words. What is he drawing your attention towards?’ Hearing the words spoken by the great-souled Lakshmana, Sugriva, eloquent in the use of words, replied to Lakshmana. ‘O noble Lakshmana! This brave ape, Dadhimukha, has told me that the brave apes, Angada and other foremost ones, have devoured the honey. They should not have acted in this way and done what should not have been done. When they have overpowered the grove, those apes must have accomplished their task. There is no doubt that Hanumat, and no one else, has seen the queen. No one other than Hanumat could have accomplished the task. Hanumat, bull among apes, possesses the intelligence to accomplish the objective. He is established in conduct, valour and learning. With Jambavat as the leader, Angada as the lord of the force and Hanumat as the supervisor of the work, there cannot have been any other outcome. Indeed, Angada and the other foremost ones have destroyed Madhuvana. Those bulls among apes have returned after searching the southern direction. They returned and entered Madhuvana. Having arrived there, those apes destroyed the entire grove. When they were restrained by the guards, they collectively struck them with their thighs. This is the reason he has come here, to tell us about it in sweet words. This ape is named Dadhimukha and he is famous for his valour. O mighty-armed one! O Soumitri! Behold the truth. Sita has been seen. That is the reason all those apes have come and are drinking the honey. O bull among men! This famous grove has been bestowed as a divine boon. Had they not seen Vaidehi, those residents of the forest would not have destroyed it.’

  At this, with Raghava, Lakshmana, with dharma in his soul, was delighted. They heard the words, pleasant to hear, that emerged from Sugriva’s mouth. The immensely illustrious Rama and Lakshmana were extremely delighted. Hearing what Dadhimukha had said, Sugriva also rejoiced. Sugriva again addressed the guardian of the grove295 in these words. ‘O amiable one! Since they have accomplished their task, I am glad that they have devoured the grove. Since they were successful in their task, they can be pardoned and I forgive them. Since those apes, as
insolent as the lord of animals,296 with Hanumat as the foremost, have been successful in their task, with the two Raghavas, I wish to quickly see them and hear about the efforts they made to reach Sita.’

  Chapter 5(62)

  Hearing the words spoken by Sugriva, the ape Dadhimukha was delighted. He paid his respects to Raghava, Lakshmana and Sugriva. He bowed down before Sugriva and the two immensely strong Raghavas. With the other brave apes, he leapt up into the sky. As was the case earlier, he left with great speed. He descended from the sky on to the ground and entered that grove. He entered Madhuvana and saw those leaders of the apes. Having passed out the honey as water, all of them were still excited, but sober and chastened now. The brave one joined his hands in salutation and approached them. Delighted, he gently spoke these words to Angada. ‘O amiable one! You should not be angry that the guards were enraged and tried to restrain and obstruct you. They did it in their ignorance. O immensely strong one! You are the prince and the lord of this grove. We have earlier committed a crime because of our folly. Therefore, you should pardon us. O supreme among apes! You are just like your father, the former lord of the apes, and just like Sugriva. It is not otherwise. O unblemished one! I went to your paternal uncle and told him about all the residents of the forest arriving here. Hearing that you have come here, with all the leaders of the apes, he is not angry, but rejoiced, even on hearing that this grove has been destroyed. Sugriva, your paternal uncle and the lord of the apes, rejoiced. The king said, “Quickly send those apes here.”’ Hearing the words spoken gently by Dadhimukha, Angada, eloquent in the use of words, addressed the best among apes in these words. ‘O leaders of the apes! I suspect that Rama has heard the account about our arriving here. O scorchers of enemies! Therefore, having accomplished our objective, it is not proper that we should remain here. As they wished, those who roam in the forest have drunk honey. They have rested. What is left to be done, except go to the place where Sugriva, my senior, is? I will do whatever the assembled leaders of the apes tell me. I am obedient to whatever task all of you indicate. Though I am the prince, I am not a lord who ought to command you. You have been successful in your objective and it is inappropriate for me to instruct you.’ Angada said this and hearing these undecaying words, the residents of the forest were delighted in their minds and replied in these words. ‘O king! O lord of the apes! Who but a lord can speak in this way? Every person who is prosperous is intoxicated and intolerant and thinks of himself as “I”. These words are extremely worthy of you and no one else could have spoken them. This humility is telling us about your future good fortune. All of us have come here and are waiting for the right time to go where Sugriva, the undecaying lord of the brave apes, is. O best among the apes! Without you saying so, the apes are not able to step forward anywhere. We are telling you this, truthfully.’