31. THE SURPANAKHA EPISODE :

THE Princes and Sita, following
Agastya's instruction, took the way to
Panchavati. On the way they met a huge
figure perched on a big tree. They took it
to be a Rakshasa.



"Who are you?" asked Rama in an
angry tone. The vulture however
answered in a voice full of mildness and
affection: "My child, I am your father's
aged friend." Then he proceeded to tell his
story.



Jatayu was the brother of Sampati, the
son of Aruna the dawn-god, who was
brother to Garuda the great eagle-vehicle
of Vishnu.



He said: "When you leave Sita alone
and go hunting in the forest, I shall be
looking after her safety."
The prince was pleased and accepted
the offer of the bird with gratitude. They
then proceeded on their journey.



Rama was thrilled by the beauty of
Panchavati and gratefully offered praise in
his thoughts to Agastya for recommending
the spot to them. He told Lakshmana: "We
can build our ashrama and enjoy our stay
here for any length of time. Those hills are
near and yet not too near. Look at those
herds of deer. The trees with their flowers
and the sweetly singing birds, the river,
the clean sand, everything is beautiful.
Choose for us a good site and build a
cottage."



Lakshmana did as he was told. He
constructed an ashrama.
Valmiki pauses here to explain the skill
and swiftness of Lakshmana's
workmanship. He describes in detail how
the mud walls were raised and the
thatched roof was made. Rama admires
Lakshmana enthusiastically.
"You are more than a father to me,"
said the prince shedding tears of love and
joy.



We, too, may pause to think how the
noble prince Lakshmana acquired this
skill. We may infer that in those days
education even of princes included a
knowledge of the realities of life and
development of manual skill such as could
enable one to collect materials in a forest
and put a neat cottage for oneself.
In the ashrama at Panchavati, Rama
and Sita lived happily, lovingly served by
Lakshmana.



One morning in early winter the three
went as usual to the Godavari for their
bath and to offer their morning prayers
and fetch water for the day's needs. They
walked conversing about the beauty of the
season. Lakshmana thought of Bharata
and how he would then be busy
performing the ceremonies appropriate to
the month.



He said: "Bharata is entitled to live in
ease but he has taken on himself a life of
hardship because we live a life of hardship
in the forest. My heart is full of sorrow for
him. Even in this cold weather poor
Bharata no doubt eats sparingly and sleeps
on the bare floor. This cold morning he
too is probably walking towards the
Sarayu. How fortunate we are to have
such a noble brother! Pure in mind and
speech and conduct, renouncing all
pleasures, he lives a life of austerity for
our sake. He is exactly like our dear father
and quite the opposite of his mother. How
could so cruel a woman as Kaikeyi bear
so good a son?"



Rama stopped him, saying: "Talk as
much as you like of Bharata and our
father, but stop condemning Kaikeyi. All
that you say of Bharata is true and my
thoughts too today go to him in love. How
long yet to see him again? When shall we
have that pleasure, Lakshmana? When
shall we four brothers live together again?
Bharata's loving words are still sweetly
ringing in my ears."



Thus thinking longingly of home and
Bharata they bathed in the Godavari on
that early winter morning.



After offering oblations to their
ancestors and prayers to the sun, Rama
rose transfigured like the Lord Siva and
returned to the ashrama with Sita and
Lakshmana.
Their morning duties over, they sat
whiling the hours with wistful talk of old
days and tales of long ago.



While they were thus recapturing the
past in sweet companionship suddenly
there came a Rakshasa woman who saw
them. She was Surpanakha, Ravana's
sister who was roaming the forest full of
the idle thoughts of well-fed ill-taught
youth. She was horribly ugly, but had the
magic power to assume any lovely form at
will. When she saw the godlike beauty of
Rama, she was filled with uncontrollable
desire for him and accosted him.
"Who are you, dressed like an ascetic
but accompanied by a woman and
carrying warlike weapons and arrows?
Why are you here in the forest that
belongs to the Rakshasas? Speak the
truth."



On such occasions it was the courtesy
of those days for the person accosted to
announce himself and recite his name, city
and history and inquire of the newcomer
concerning his or her family and the
purpose of the visit.



Rama began, "I am the eldest son of
the great King Dasaratha. My name is
Rama. This is my brother Lakshmana.
And this is my wife Sita. Obeying the
behests of my father and mother and in
fulfilment of dharma, I am now in the
forest. And now please announce who you
are. What is your family? You look like a
woman of the Rakshasa race. What is
your purpose in coming here?"
She answered, "Have you heard of
Ravana, the heroic son of Visravas and
the king of the Rakshasas? I am his sister.



My name is Surpanakha. My brothers
Kumbhakarna and Vibhishana are also
renowned warriors. The lords of this
region, Khara and Dushana, are also my
brothers. They too are mighty men at arms
and wield great authority in these regions.
But I am not subject to their control, but
am a free person, free to do what I like
and please myself. Everybody in this
forest is, as a matter of fact, afraid of me."
She said this to strengthen her wooing
position.



"The moment I set eyes on you," she
continued, "I fell in love with you. You
are now my husband. Why do you wander
around with this midget of a woman! I am
the mate worthy of you. Come with me.
Let us wander at will through the forest. I
can take what shape I please. Do not mind
this girl of yours. I shall cut her up in a
trice and dispose of her. Do not hesitate."
Under the influence of lust, she thought
in the manner of her race and prated thus.



All this amazed and amused Rama. He
smiled and said: "Oh beautiful one! Your
desire for me will end in trouble for you.
My wife is here with me. I do not care to
live the life of a man with two wives. But
my hefty brother here is untrammelled
with a wife, and is as good-looking as
myself. He is the proper husband for you.
Offer your hand to him and leave me
alone."



Rama said this, being confident that
Lakshmana would deal with Surpanakha
suitably.



The Rakshasi took Rama's advice
seriously and approached Lakshmana
saying, "Oh, my hero, come with me. Let
us together wander at will in joy through
this Dandaka forest."



Lakshmana entered into the humor of
the situation and said, "Do not be foolish.
He is trying to cheat you. What is your
status and what is mine? I am here a slave
to my brother, while you are a princess.
How could you become my wife and
accept the position of a slave's slave?
Insist on Rama's taking you as his second
wife. Do not mind Sita. Soon Rama will
prefer you to her and you will be happy
with him."



Some critic might ask whether it was
proper thus to torment a woman,
especially a woman in love. But if we
exercise our imagination and have before
us a monster of ugliness we can
understand the situation. It is true that she
could assume any charming form she
chose, but in the intoxication of lust, she
seems to have omitted even this
allurement.



"This ugly, corpulent and paunchy
Rakshasi, with leering eyes blood-shot
with lust, her red hair all dishevelled and
her voice hoarse with passion, accosted
the handsome, beautifully built and
smiling Rama", says Valmiki. The Tamil
poet Kamban varies the situation by
making Surpanakha assume a lovely
shape from the outset.



Impelled by brute passion, the
Rakshasi did as she was told by
Lakshmana and went again to Rama. She
thought and acted like a Rakshasi for she
knew no other way of life.



The sight of Sita enraged her. "It is this
wretched little insect that stands between
you and me. How could you love this girl
without a waist? Look. I shall finish her
off this instant. I cannot live without you.
Once I have put her out of the way, you
and I shall live together happily." Saying
this, she sprang on Sita.



Rama intervened just in time to save
Sita. The farce had gone too far and
threatened to become a tragedy. Rama
shouted to Lakshmana, "Look, I have just
been able to save Sita. Attend to this
monster and teach her a lesson."



Lakshmana at once took up his sword
and maimed Surpanakha and drove her
out. Disgraced and mutilated, Surpanakha
uttered a loud wail and disappeared into
the forest.



Bleeding and mad with pain and rage,
she flung herself on the ground before
Khara, as he sat in state with his
colleagues. Yelling with anguish, she
related the story of her wrongs. The scorn
and mutilation she had suffered was an
insult to the Rakshasa race which only
blood could efface.



She said: "Look at me. Rama and
Lakshmana have done this and they are
still alive and roaming in your domain.
And you sit here doing nothing."



Khara stood up and said: "My dear
sister, what is all this? I understand
nothing. Calm yourself and tell me what
has happened. Who dared to do this thing
to you and is he in this forest? Who is he
that wants to become food for crows and
vultures? Who has stirred up the black
cobra? Who is that fool? Where is he?
Tell me, and he shall die at once. The
earth is thirsty for his blood. Stand up and
tell me everything as it happened."




"Two handsome young men," said
Surpanakha, "have come into the forest,
dressed like ascetics and accompanied by
a girl. They say they are the sons of
Dasaratha. These two together, making an
excuse of the girl attacked me and have
hurt me thus shamefully. I am thirsting for
the blood of these villains. Slay them first.
Everything else can wait."



Khara ordered his generals: "Go at
once, slay these men and bring their
lifeless bodies. Drag hither the woman
also. Delay not."
Fourteen generals set out to do his
bidding.



In Kamban's Ramayana, Surpanakha is
delineated as having come in the shape of
a beautiful young woman, entirely human,
who tried to tempt Rama. Kamban departs
widely from Valmiki in this episode and
he makes a beautiful episode of it as will
be seen in the next chapter.




There are some people who pose as
critics of our holy books and traditions
saying, "This hero killed a woman. He
insulted and injured a woman who offered
him her love. He killed Vali from behind,
rather than face him and accept honorable
defeat. He unjustly banished Sita to the
forest at the end of all the adventures. If
the banishment of Sita was not unjust and
if he rightly suspected Sita's fidelity, why
then, we too, must suspect her fidelity."




All such criticism is based on a
mentality of hatred. We have
unfortunately plenty of barren, heartless
cleverness, devoid of true understanding.
Let those who find faults in Rama see
faults, and if these critics faultlessly
pursue dharma and avoid in their own
lives the flaws they discover in Rama, the
bhaktas of Sri Rama will indeed welcome
it with joy. If they exhibit the virtues of
Rama and add to these more virtues and
greater flawlessness, who can complain?



NEXT : 32. KAMBAN'S SURPANAKHA -


Continues...