The Valmiki Ramayana

by Amish Tripathi

325 Shimshapa is the ashoka tree and jambu is the rose apple tree.

  326 Bulls, Surabhee is the mother of cattle.

  327 This makes it twenty-eight to thirty-two miles.

  328 The word used is tata.

  329 Dasharatha.

  330 The words Dhata (Dhatri) and Vidhata (Vidhatri) are used synonymously, but have slightly different nuances. Vidhata is more like creator, while Dhata is more like presever. Hence, Dhata can be interpreted as Vishnu.

  331 Kousalya’s.

  332 The Indian laburnum.

  333 Referring to Sumitra.

  334 The Critical Edition excises a shloka that expands on this, mentioning the purification of gods, danavas and rishis. With or without that shloka, Bharadvaja’s statement can only mean the rishi had some inkling about the future course of events.

  335 Of animals.

  336 Implying darkness in complexion.

  337 Vasishtha.

  338 They are red.

  339 Flowering plant.

  340 A kind of gem.

  341 The lotus bark tree.

  342 The chironji tree, also known as piyala.

  343 The axle-wood tree.

  344 The starfruit tree.

  345 The Indian rosewood.

  346 The Indian rubber plant.

  347 Medicinal plant.

  348 The sacred garlic pear tree.

  349 The honey tree.

  350 The bleeding heart plant.

  351 The kadamba tree.

  352 Vasvoukasara is another name for Alaka, Kubera’s capital. Nalini is the name of Kubera’s lake. The Uttara Kuru region is beautiful.

  353 Rajaraja is one of Kubera’s names.

  354 The ruddy shelduck.

  355 The banks.

  356 Bharata’s standard.

  357 Meaning Dasharatha.

  358 Bharata.

  359 Rama was following the instructions of Dasharatha.

  360 The Himalayas.

  361 Kubera’s pleasure garden.

  362 The signs of Rama’s hermitage.

  363 Gathered so that these could be burnt to ward off the cold.

  364 Such as at night. The barks were tied to trees.

  365 To keep away wild animals.

  366 Bharata.

  367 Literally, posture of a hero. A seated position used by ascetics.

  368 Similar to sala.

  369 The capital of the nagas in the nether regions.

  370 The word used is tata.

  371 There is an inconsistency in this section. Having asked about Dasharatha, Rama doesn’t wait for the answer. But the succeeding questions seem to suggest that Rama knows that Bharata is the ruler now. In any event, this section doesn’t seem to belong.

  372 This is a reference to Vasishtha.

  373 The name isn’t mentioned. This could be a reference to Vasishtha, but is more likely to be a reference to Vasishtha’s son, since Vasishtha has already been mentioned. Vasishtha’s son was named Suyajna.

  374 Loosely, political economy, or the science of creating wealth.

  375 The king destroys himself in the process. A brave person who desires prosperity might seek to become the king himself.

  376 The eighteen officers of the enemy are the prime minister, the royal priest, the crown prince, the commander in chief, the chief warder, the treasurer of the palace, the superintendent of jails, the treasurer of the kingdom, the herald, the public prosecutor, the judge, the assessor of taxes, the one who disburses salaries to soldiers, the one who disburses salaries to workers, the superintendent of public works, the protector of the borders, the magistrate and the supervisor of forests and waterbodies. On one’s own side, the prime minister, the royal priest and the crown prince are exempted from scrutiny, thus yielding fifteen.

  377 Ayodhya means something that cannot be attacked or fought against.

  378 The word chaitya has several meanings—sacrificial shed, temple, altar, sanctuary and a tree that grows along the road.

  379 Dasharatha.

  380 Tirtha is a ford, a sacred place of pilgrimage.

  381 Rama.

  382 This explains why forest fare is being offered, instead of properly prepared funeral cakes.

  383 Wild ones.

  384 Gokarna means cow-eared and is a kind of antelope. Gavaya is the gayal, it is the wild variety of domesticated cattle.

  385 Kind of duck.

  386 Rama.

  387 Rama.

  388 Dasharatha.

  389 Brahma.

  390 The three sacrificial fires are ahavaniya, garhapatya and dakshinatya (the fire that burns in a southern direction). Garhapatya is the fire that burns in households. Ahavaniya has various meanings, the simplest being the monthly sacrificial rites offered to the ancestors on the day of the new moon.

  391 Indra.

  392 Primogeniture.

  393 Garuda.

  394 Because it does not yield any fruit.

  395 The text uses the word kritanta, meaning fate, destiny, death.

  396 Dasharatha.

  397 Of not killing a woman.

  398 Kaikeyee’s anger.

  399 The four ashramas are brahmacharya, garhasthya, vanaprastha and sannyasa. Stated simply, brahmacharya is the state of being a celibate student, garhasthya is the state of being a householder, vanaprastha is when one resorts to the forest and sannyasa is the state of being an ascetic.

  400 The Maruts are wind gods who are companions of Indra (Vasava).

  401 The three debts are owed to gods, ancestors and sages.

  402 The great lord, also a name for Shiva.

  403 The word used is tata.

  404 The place known as Gaya.

  405 The hell is known as pum. Pumnama means ‘known as pum’. One who saves (trayate) from pum is putra.

  406 Jabali is an exponent of the lokayata school. While there are nuances as to what this school believed in, the emphasis is on the material world and not on the metaphysical and the world hereafter.

  407 There is the image of a woman, ekavenidhara, wearing a single braid of hair. This is done by a mourning woman, when the husband is away or dead.

  408 The word used is ashtaka (eighth). This is a special kind of funeral ceremony (shraddha) performed on the eighth day of the bright lunar fortnight (shukla paksha), where food is offered to the deceased ancestors.

  409 Lakshmi, the goddess of wealth, who is seated on a lotus (padma).

  410 All of these are a function of adherence to the truth.

  411 From the water. The implied identification is with Brahma, though Vishnu assumed the varaha (boar) incarnation.

  412 Marichi was one of the sons born through Brahma’s mental powers.

  413 There are some inconsistencies with the genealogy given in ‘Bala Kanda’.

  414 Asita.

  415 One of Asita’s wives.

  416 The word used is tata.

  417 Sumantra.

  418 The practice in question is prayopavesa. While this does mean voluntary fasting to death, it is adopted by someone who has no worldly desires left.

  419 This doesn’t mean the brahmana is poor. He has simply given everything away, including his wealth.

  420 The word used is tata.

  421 That is, has crowned himself as a king.

  422 Bharata.

  423 Rama.

  424 That is, before the period of exile is over.

  425 Water is touched before taking a vow.

  426 A reference to a contract of sale.

  427 Pratipada means the first quarter from the start, so this is the first quarter of shukla paksha.

  428 Rama.

  429 The flank of the mountain.

  430 The word used is tata.

  431 This makes it unclear whether the idea was originally Vasishtha’s or Bharata’s. Perhaps the idea was Bharata’s, but Bharata gave the credit to Vasishtha.

  432 Bharata.

  433 The nakshatras are the wives of the moon, but the moon loves Rohini more than the other
s.

  434 Killed by the enemy in the battle.

  435 Liquor.

  436 The word used is tata.

  437 Janasthana is another name for the Dandakaranya region. Sometimes, Janasthana is also described as the capital of Dandakaranya.

  438 That is, kill other ascetics.

  439 The word used is tata.

  440 The story is that the sage Mandavya cursed Shandeeli, a lady sage and a friend of Anasuya’s that she would become a widow within ten nights. Anasuya responded with her own curse that there would be no dawn. To remedy the situation, and thus accomplish the task of the gods, Anasuya subsequently transformed ten nights into one night and Shandeeli did not become a widow.

  441 Their husbands.

  442 The name Anasuya means someone without jealousy (asuya).

  443 Savitree’s husband, Satyavan, died. Savitree followed the dead body to Yama’s abode and obtained the boon of bringing her husband back to life.

  444 She didn’t want a boon.

  445 If the daughter is not married.

  446 In some versions, this bow and the quivers were received from Shiva.

  447 Though not stated very clearly, there seems to have been a choice of two paths through Dandakaranya.

  1 This is the right place to mention the story of Dandakaranya. Ikshvaku’s youngest son was Danda. Since he was wicked, his father exiled him. Danda went to the region around the Vindhya mountains and built a kingdom there, with a capital in Madhumanta. Danda consorted with the demons there and became the disciple of Shukracharya, the preceptor of the demons. However, he molested Shukracharya’s daughter and was cursed by him. Madhumanta was destroyed and the area came to be known as Dandaka, danda also being punishment. The southern part of Dandakaranya, to the south of Madhumanta, was known as Janasthana. While Madhumanta was cursed, the southern part was exempted from the curse. Therefore, people began to reside in Janasthana, though Madhumanta was deserted. Ravana made Khara the ruler of Janasthana. When Rama entered Dandakaranya, with a desire that Rama should destroy the demons, the sages continually urged him towards the south, towards Janasthana. In the process, an area that was once under the Ikshvaku empire would again be brought under it.

  2 Rama.

  3 The king was created with one fourth of the parts from each of the guardians of the world, Indra being one of these guardians.

  4 Yama.

  5 Pointing out the anomaly of ascetics (dressed in bark) wielding weapons and apparently finding pleasure with a wife.

  6 Demon.

  7 Since she was born from the earth and was not a biological daughter.

  8 This is an inconsistency, since Sumitra is the one in the middle.

  9 Garuda.

  10 The word used is tata. Though it means son, it is affectionately used for anyone who is younger or junior.

  11 Semi-divine species, companions of Kubera, celestial musicians.

  12 Kubera.

  13 Kubera.

  14 An apsara.

  15 A yojana is a measure of distance, between 8 and 9 miles.

  16 That is, rakshasas were buried.

  17 Successful sages.

  18 Of killing the rakshasas.

  19 This requires explanation. When soliciting a boon about who could kill him, Ravana forgot to mention humans and therefore, Ravana could only be killed by a human. Until this happened, if Indra spoke to Rama, Rama’s divine nature would have been revealed and he wouldn’t have been able to kill Ravana. This was to be avoided.

  20 Indra.

  21 Lakshmana and Sita. Once Indra had departed, they joined him.

  22 With Sharabhanga dead, Rama could have resided there. But Sharabhanga directs him to Suteekshna and Suteekshna directs him to Agastya. This is part of the plan to make Rama head southwards.

  23 The word used is tata.

  24 Brahma.

  25 Sages believed to have been born from Brahma’s nails.

  26 Sages believed to have been born from Brahma’s hair. There are 60,000 such sages and they are the sizes of thumbs. They precede the sun’s chariot.

  27 Sages believed to have been born from the water used to wash Brahma’s feet.

  28 Those who subsist on the rays of the sun and the moon. There may also be some connection with the sage Marichi, who was born through Brahma’s mental powers.

  29 Those who eat raw grain after it has been ground on stone.

  30 Those who use their teeth as mortars, that is, they eat raw grain that has not been ground.

  31 Those who perform austerities by submerging themselves in water.

  32 Those who performed austerities with four fires around them and the sun overhead.

  33 Great warrior, more specifically, a maharatha is someone who can single-handedly fight ten thousand warriors.

  34 The word used is tata.

  35 Of production.

  36 Of the merits obtained by the sages, though this is true of all subjects in general.

  37 In the four stages (ashramas) of life, brahmacharya is the first, followed by garhasthya, vanaprastha and sannyasa, in that order. Vanaprastha is when one resorts to the forest.

  38 Obviously meaning Sita.

  39 The word used is cheera, meaning bark or rags worn by ascetics as garments.

  40 Sandhya is any conjunction of day and night. Hence, it is dawn, as well as dusk.

  41 Rama.

  42 Type of duck.

  43 The dharma of kshatriyas to kill rakshasas. However, the rakshasas are being killed without any valid reason. They have caused no injury to Rama, Lakshmana and Sita.

  44 The only possibility that remains is fierceness without enmity.

  45 The southern parts of Dandaka.

  46 Austerities lead to powers and Indra was always worried that ascetics would acquire powers and dislodge him. Therefore, he created impediments.

  47 For leaving something in trust. He would pick up the sword later.

  48 The ascetic.

  49 Kind of goose.

  50 Literally, five apsaras.

  51 The word used is tata.

  52 The sacred fig tree.

  53 Agastya’s brother’s name was Sudarshana, but the name is not mentioned here.

  54 It is preferable that flowers meant for worshipping are collected by the worshipper himself. If obtained from someone else, half of the merit goes to the person who originally gathered the flowers and only half goes to the worshipper.

  55 Meaning Agastya.

  56 Vatapi was Viprachitti’s son and Hiranyakashipu’s nephew.

  57 The text uses the phrase samskritam vadan. This means—with polished words. It can also mean—speaking Sanskrit. The latter seems unlikely, since the word Sanskrit (which means polished) was used for the language much later. Earlier, the language was simply referred to as bhasha.

  58 They ate the flesh of the brahmanas who had been killed.

  59 Ilvala invited Agastya to a funeral ceremony and Agastya digested Vatapi.

  60 Agastya.

  61 From sacrificial fires.

  62 Probably enmity among themselves.

  63 There is a pun. The south is known as dakshina and the word daksha/dakshina means someone who is accomplished.

  64 Mount Meru was the tallest mountain and Mount Vindhya was jealous. Vindhya grew taller and obstructed the sun’s path. Agastya interceded and asked Vindhya to lower itself, so that he and his wife (Lopamudra) could travel southwards. Once he returned from the south, Vindhya could increase its height again. However, Agastya never returned from the south. The name Agastya is derived from mountain (aga), stay (stha).

  65 Yakshas are semi-divine species, described as companions of Kubera, the lord of riches.

  66 This is a departure from their practice of entering a hermitage together and is worth noting.

  67 Probably because he had not ushered them in immediately.

  68 The sun god.

  69 To this list of ten, non-Critical versions add the names of other gods too, such as Varuna, V
asu, Garuda, Kartikeya, Dharma and so on.

  70 Rama.

  71 Agastya.

  72 These are objects always offered to a guest—padya (water to wash the feet), achamaniya (water to wash the mouth/face), arghya (a gift) and asana (a seat).

  73 The food offered was appropriate for vanaprastha.

  74 Agastya.

  75 The practice of honouring a guest.

  76 The text says Vaishnava. Strictly speaking, this means associated with Vishnu.

  77 By implication, also given by Indra.

  78 The word used is utkantha, which means anxiety. However, it is possible to translate the word utkantha as above the neck, that is, they were sweating above their necks.

  79 Those in prosperity.

  80 Vasishtha’s wife.

  81 The word used is tata.

  82 Agastya doesn’t want Rama to live in his hermitage because he wants the destruction of the rakshasas.

  83 The Indian fig tree.

  84 Literally, lords of beings. They were the creators of beings. The number of Prajapatis varies from text to text, though the usual number is ten. We are given a list of seventeen here, unless Bahuputra is an adjective. Then the number becomes sixteen.

  85 This can also mean that Samshraya had many sons.

  86 Twelve Adityas, eight Vasus, eleven Rudras and two Ashvins.

  87 The word used is tata.

  88 Demons who are descendants of Diti.

  89 The mother is Kaalakaa and the son is Kaalaka.