06:43, 6 பெப்ரவரி 2010 இல் நிலவும் திருத்தம்

Angada

Think of a boy who was the darling of his father, who was bathed in luxury – being the only son of the king – suddenly losing his father one day, killed by a mighty archer about whom he picked up intelligence only the other day and about the vow of friendship that this archer and his paternal uncle had entered into, to kill his father. Just look at the scenario from Angada’s point of view.

It was Angada who first came to know that Sri Rama had assured Sugriva to put him back on the throne, by killing his father. Tara mentions this in her forewarning to Vali, when he bounded up to face the challenge thrown by Sugriva. “I shall communicate (to you) today the useful report which has already been heard by me from the mouth of Prince Angada (on one occasion) O gallant one! The aforesaid Prince Angada for his part had (once) gone to the interior of the forest. The following news, which was broken (to him) by spies conveyed by him (to me).” (Valmiki Ramayana, Kishkindha Kanda, Canto XV, Sloka 15-16)

And this youngster soon finds his father – mighty and unshakeable, terror of all his enemies, unmatched in prowess – in a pool of blood, breathing his last. He sees the archer and his paternal uncle standing by the side of his dying father. And, the father takes his hands and places them in those of the archer, seeking his protection. The world suddenly presents a different and difficult picture now. Listen to what Vali advised him before giving up the ghost.

“Have due regard to time and place (while doing an action) viewing alike the agreeable and disagreeable and ignoring joy and sorrow when the time comes for it, be amenable to the control of Sugriva. Sugriva may not hold you in high esteem if you behave in the same way as you actually did when constantly cherished by me, O mighty-armed prince!” (Ibid, Canto XXII, Sloka 20-21)

I smothered you with all my love. But you cannot continue to be the same child that you used to be. You have to change yourself quite a lot and do only things that please your guardian as well as protector. “Remain devoted to the interests of your master, self-disciplined and subordinate to the will of Sugriva. Neither excessive fondness nor lack of affection should be shown by you (towards anyone); for both constitute a major fault; therefore keep your eye on the golden mean.” (Ibid, Sloka 22[part] and 23)

This poor boy, who had foreknowledge of what was going to happen and could not stop it in any way, who had lost his father, is faced with a different world, in a trice! Or at least from what his father advises him, it appears that his world would not be the same any more and that he should be able to adapt himself to the demands that may be placed on him by his guardian, which may be different altogether. No more protecting and patient hands of his own father. From what Vali says, it appears that Sugriva might be unkind to him. Further, here is a paternal uncle who schemed to kill his father! And he is placed under his protection!

How easy will it be for anyone to get reconciled to this situation?

Implicit obedience. That is the first impression that anyone gets of Angada. It takes a great deal of maturity to understand the peculiar circumstances that we saw in our last instalment. It is not easy for anyone placed in the situation of Angada to react in the way he did. He had a father to be mourned; a mother to be taken care of; a life that is presenting a dark picture now, to contemplate; a stepfather who was responsible for the death of his father, to be obeyed.

There was only one relief of course. This Rama seemed to be comforting. Strange. He is the one who killed Vali and yet there seems to be no hatred for him in Angada’s heart. Vali, in his last words had told Angada - ‘baalamai thavir.’ Stop all your childish pranks at once. ‘nee en sol patrudhi aayin,’ if you value my words and would take them (listen, this Rama is none but) ‘mEl oru poruLum illaa mey poruL’ the Ultimate, the One who has none above him, the Truth, ‘villum thaangi’ (it is that Truth which has) come with a bow, ‘kaal tharai thOya nindru katpulak kutradhu amma’ and is standing before us with feet firmly placed on earth and also in a form that may be seen by us. (Though Rama is the Supreme one, his feet are pressed firmly on the earth – as against the tradition that the feet of celestials do not touch the earth – and has assumed a form out of compassion on us, so that we can see Him).

Angada had no difficulty in accepting Sri Rama as his protector, immediately. And he did not show any hatred or malice towards Sugriva. However, there is one instance when his deep-seated feelings find expression – and die as well, after they are expressed. This however, is found only in Valmiki Ramayana and not in Kamban.

The second impression that Angada’s character leaves on the minds of the reader is the readiness with which he accepts responsibility. The reader may recall the scene when Lakshmana stormed into Kishkindha at the end of the rainy season angered as there was no news about getting the army ready for a search of Sita, as promised. Though the situation was too big to be handled by him, and though the person responsible for answering it – Sugriva – was dead drunk, we see Angada running from place to place to find the right person to handle this job. We know how the situation was managed smoothly after that. But it was Angada who took it upon himself to initiate action.

As we mentioned earlier, Angada led the team that went south. They could not find Sita anywhere and there was no clue as to where she could be found or should she be looked for, though Angada bifurcated the group into subgroups to scour specific areas. And he gives specific instruction to all of them to assemble in a particular place, after a specified number of days. ‘theLLu neer ulagu elaam therindhu thEdi neer’ After looking for her in all the (assigned) places ‘eLLa arum mayendhirathu emmil koodum’ come and join us in Mahendra parvatha. Organising and administrative skills.

But when they assembled as planned, without any result, the first one to feel frustrated was Angada. When all the other teams had no difficulty in returning empty-handed, Angada could not think of doing so. Let’s see the reasons why he feels frustrated and even goes to the extent of deciding not to return and to give up his life by undertaking a fast unto death, in detail.

Fear of failure and what it can do

The conversation that follows the assembling of the monkeys that went south under Angada, in mount Mahendra is full of ideas that cloud the minds of a frustrated lot. ‘There is no point in returning to Kishkindha now. We have exceeded the time limit specified for us to return.’ “The time appointed by Sugriva having expired now, it is but proper for us, all the monkeys, to sit down without food awaiting death. Vehement by nature and (now) established in authority, Sugriva would never forgive us all if we approach him as offenders. And in default of any news about Sita, he will surely make short work of us. Therefore, it is desirable (for us) to have recourse to fasting for death this very day, bidding adieu to our progeny and wife and also our wealth and homes.” (Valmiki Ramayana, Kishkindha Kanda, Canto LIII, Sloka 13-15)

At this point of time one sees Angada coming out with all kinds of unkind and even unfair allegations against Sugriva. “How does he know what is right, by whom, evil minded as he is, the opening of the cave was closed even though he had been enjoined by his brother – while the latter was going to meet his enemy for an encounter to guard the entrance?” (Ibid, Canto LV, Sloka 4)

‘How does he know that it was Vali who was killed by Mayavi? Why should he have closed the cavern?’ And how can we expect any kind of piety or sympathy from him? He would not spare us. It is therefore not safe for us to return to Kishkindha now. Though these sound like feelings nursed in his heart unknown to others, there is no evidence to prove in the subsequent scenes till the very end of Ramayana, that these feelings were deep-seated in his heart. It appears therefore that these were born out of the frustration of the moment.

“Angada denounced Sugriva not only for base treachery to his brother Vali, but for black ingratitude to his sworn ally, Rama,” observes Rt. Hon’ble Srinivasa Sastriyar and cites the following portion from Angada’s attack. “Whose good offices will he remember (with gratitude), by whom (even) the highly illustrious Sri Rama – (a scion of Raghu) – who had been accepted as a friend (by clasping the hand) in the name of truth and who had rendered good offices to him – was put out of the mind?” (Ibid, Sloka 5)

Sugriva conveniently forgot to organise the army as promised to go in search of Sita, accuses Angada. ‘He did so not because he realised his moral responsibility to do so. But because of his fear for the wrath of Lakshmana.’ Now, we know what Angada is coming out with is not right. Sastriyar says, “Here Angada was wrong, as we have seen, Rama and Lakshmana came to know the truth about what Sugriva ha done to assemble the monkey hosts and apologised to Sugriva. But Angada was not willing so to excuse him and he was quite wrong.” Sugriva organised the army much before that and it was in fact Angada who assisted Nila in organising the forces.

Valmiki plays strongly on the ways to which people are driven when stalked by fear of failure. If I have the faintest of feelings of failure, I immediately start accusing whoever is available closest to me. And he portrays Angada falling a victim to this mindset.

That is the only occasion when Angada is seen frustrated and indulges in vain accusations. A dark patch in a bright personality.

To be or not to be

In the version of Kamban, however, we do not see this kind of virulent and vituperative attacks from Angada, on Sugriva. In Valmiki Ramayana we see him getting agitated when Hanuman tries to pacify him and tries to make him see things as they are, reminding him of the fact that it was Sugriva who made him Prince Regent. ‘It was not Sugriva who made me Prince Regent. It was Rama who did it. Sugriva would not have done so but for Sri Rama,’ Angada retorts back.

But the situation requires a certain amount of frustration to settle down among the monkeys, something strong enough for them all to sit on a fast unto death, so that the attention of the vulture king Sampati, who is lying there with his wings singed, is attracted out of a desire to feast on their mortal remains. He should move there in full view of the Vanaras, and then get to know each other and with the Vanaras chanting Rama nama at the request of Sampati, his wings having been restored, the vulture king would help the Vanaras with the vital piece of information on Sita – seeing her with his ‘eagle’s eye’ in Lanka. Undertaking a fast unto death is actually used as a bait – by the Poet – to bring Sampati out of his hiding. He needs a strong reason for the vulture king who has lost his wings to move out to the place where the monkeys had camped, dragging his great weight on his feet.

Kamban plays very mildly on the scene. Frustration turns into self-pity. Angada finds fault with himself for not being able to get information on Sita and is unable to bear the thought of the suffering that he would cause – the leader of the team on which all hopes were pinned – on Sri Rama, if he were to return empty handed. Angada doesn’t say anything disrespectful of Sugriva. ‘We made so many tall claims in the presence of Rama and now we have not moved anywhere near our goal. We have not spotted Sita nor do we have any information on her. I cannot return to Kishkindha now. Since this is the team that was most likely to be successful, Sri Rama would be waiting eagerly for the good news. If I return empty handed, it would cause him untold agony. ‘endhai muniyum.’ (Sugriva) my (step) father would be angry. But it is not that I am afraid of facing his wrath. ‘em iRai iraamanum sindhanai varundhum.’ Our lord Sri Rama would be agonised. ‘ach cheygai kaaNgurEn.’ I cannot bear the sight of Sri Rama in sorrow, due to my failure. Therefore, let me give my life up by performing a fast unto death. You all return to Kishkindha. As the leader of this team, I accept responsibility for this failure. Let me atone for this with my life.

That ensues in an exchange of words between Angada and veterans like Jambavan. ‘We would also join you in giving up our life. Either we all live or all of us die.’ But somehow, Kamban could not accept the thought of committing suicide, in passive inactivity, accepting – or rather assuming – defeat. Especially among these warriors! But he had to bring Sampati to the spot. He achieved this purpose without having to compromise on any count, proving the master craftsman that he is, once again!

Dying in action and in inaction

“O Warrior clan! Why would you think of giving up your life? We have not yet completed our search of even one-third of the total area over which we are supposed to look for,’ roared Hanuman. ‘Where is the need for thinking of death? Why should we give up so easily? When there is such a vast space to be sieved, why would we have to sit here idly, denying ourselves food and going on a fast until death? We have not been defeated. Why would we meekly accept defeat, when there is none, actually? Now, we are not accepting defeat – we are actually assuming it. Come out of this morass and shine like the suns you are.’

‘pinnarum kooruvaan.’ He would say further. ‘pilathil, vaanathil, pon varaik kudumiyil, purathuL, aNdathil, nannudhal dhEviyaik kaaNdum naam enin,’ if we are able to locate Sita somewhere in the underworld, or in the heavens, or on any hill or in the outer space, ‘sonna naaL avadhiyai iraivan sollumO?’ would Sugriva think of the expiry of the time-limit even then and punish us for it?

You have decided to give up dear life. Let us give it up in action and not inaction. Death should be either natural or should be invoked for the sake of a strong cause. If at all we die, we should die we would die in our attempt to locate Sita.

And then it happens so naturally. In the midst of his inspiring peroration, Hanuman cites the example of Jatayu. ‘naadudhalE nalam.’ It is desirable that we continue our search. ‘naadi ath thOdalar kuzhalidhan thuyarin sendru,’ Let’s go after her like earlier when she was in distress ‘amar veediya sadayuvaip pOla veedudhal,’ Jatayu rose up to the occasion in her cause and gave his life up and went down in glory, fighting the demon, for ‘paadavum alladhu pazhiyitraam endraan.’ Only such a death would bring us glory. Not a fast unto death. This would take us nowhere. More over being an act of cowardice, this would cause a black mark on our name.

Let’s die like Jatayu, doing a glorious deed, and while discharging duty and not in idle inactivity. Now, the name ‘Jatayu’ fell on the ears of Sampati. He understands from this statement that his brother has died. Naturally, his emotions run high and he wants to know how, why and when his brother died. The need for him to move towards the Vanara army with a desire to prey on the mortal remains after they die of fasting is circumvented now! He has of necessity to go to the army for information on his brother!

And then we know Sampati moved to them, each came to know of the other and Sampati grew his wings by the monkeys chanting the name of Rama and his ‘envisioning’ Sita in Lanka. Kamban gives a master touch to the scene and changes the entire perspective, besides giving a strong message to poor souls going through the same plight as that of the Vanaras, who decided to give up and die when victory was just inches away. Angada is saved from indulging in mudslinging. Hanuman rises still up in his glory of infusing confidence in the poorest, lowliest and the lost and the entire scene reverberates again.

The last attempt for peace

As we had seen, just before the commencement of the war, Rama wanted to give one last chance to Ravana. He wanted to send a message to Ravana to restore Sita back to him. This was something none would think of, especially when colossal efforts were pressed in to build a bridge across the ocean and to reach the other side. More so, when Vibishana, a brother of Ravana has walked over to the side of Rama and Rama had assured him that he would make Vibishana the king of Lanka. It was too late to start any fresh conciliatory steps. Even then Rama sincerely felt that the door to peace should not be closed and all possible steps should be taken to stop a war. Rama’s decision to send a messenger to Ravana even at this stage shows his desire to try even ‘all impossible steps’ and go overboard to stop the war.

‘thoodhuvan oruvan thannai ivvazhi viraivil thooNdi,’ We should send a messenger now to quickly reach Ravana. ‘maadhinai vidudhiyO endru uNarthavE.’ And ask him if he is willing to send Sita back. ‘marukkum aagil kaadhudhal kadan endru uLLam karudhiyadhu.’ If he refuses to do so, we have to start the war. That’s what I sincerely feel. ‘aranum ahdhE.’ That’s the path of rectitude. ‘needhiyum ahdhE.’ And that’s what should be done by all those who stand by justice.

‘That’s right and proper,’ said Vibishana and Sugriva welcomed the move, excepting of course, Lakshmana. He was all set on direct action rather than negotiations – that too at this time. That is one point, which deserves our attention as the arguments adduced by Lakshmana bring out his character, so very beautifully. We will go into this when we study Lakshmana.

But Rama was firm in his opinion. He however, was not in favour of sending Hanuman again. ‘They would then be tempted to think that there is nobody else other than Maruti with us, who can be entrusted with this job.’ The person chosen must be able to match somewhere closest to the abilities of Hanuman. Good communication skills. A courageous heart to face the brute and deliver the bitter pill to him. In fact not deliver. He has to inject this into his head even if the attempt is not successful.

But that was a formidable task. Taking this message to Ravana was not that easy. The experience and exploits of Hanuman were there already for everyone to see. Ravana’s penchant for impulsive action is widely well known. Hanuman at least caught them by surprise and being the first self-appointed ambassador did not have much difficulty in doing what he did. There was Vibishana on the side of Ravana to advise him against killing an emissary. Now even that Vibishana has moved on to this side and Ravana was fretting and fuming that at heart Vibishana’s good counsel to leave Hanuman alive, without killing him must have been motivated.

The tale of the tail

Angada sparkles in quick wit and excels in repartee when Ravana starts his address in his usual haughty manner. Imagine the imposing person that Ravana was with a row of heads, the very sight of whom would strike terror in the minds of those who encounter him. As soon as Angada finished the first line of his address and introduced himself as the emissary of Rama, Ravana burst into a roaring laughter.

O! That person! You mean that puny human! ‘aran kolaam ari kolaam matru ayan kolaam enbaar andri,’ Leaving aside the great Gods like Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva, ‘kurangu elaam kootti,’ one who sought the help of monkeys and collected them in one bunch; ‘vElaik kuttathai sEdhu katti,’ built bridge over a puddle of this ocean and came here. I thought he would be wise enough to seek the help of the Trinity in his war against me. So, they did not come forward to aid him? Do they dare doing so? That puny human, who in association with monkeys, came here with the thought of vanquishing this Ravana, did he send you? Why? Is he afraid of me now? Is he asking for my mercy? Why did he send you here? But before that, tell me who you are. You don’t seem to be the very same monkey who came earlier. Do tell me your name, now. I want to know you, you who are so brave as to step into this palace, which even the celestials dread, on behalf of a two-handed human carrying his message to me. You seem to be brave indeed. Who are you?

Angada smiled. He kept his cool and introduced himself in the most casual manner.

‘indiran semmal; paNdu Or iraavaNan enbaan thannai
sundharath thOlkalOdum vaalidai thoonga sutri
sindhurak kirigaL thaavith thirindhavan devar uNNa
mandharap poruppal vElai kalakkinaan maindhan endraan.’

You know, there was a Vanara king called Vali, son of Indra. He used his tail to bundle up one ogre known as Ravana, with all his shoulders held tight under the strong hold of his tail. He carried that Ravana in his tail and jumped into oceans and over hills and dales with that fellow hanging from his tail precariously. He even assisted the celestials in churning the ocean of milk in their endeavour to collect nectar. Well, he was my father. I am the son of Vali.

Imagine the kind of shock that would have given Ravana. He is reminded of the way he was slighted by a monkey – the clan of whom he was moments ago speaking so lightly – in his very own Court, in the presence of all his ministers and commanders-in-chief. That too, in a very cool and casual manner. Can there be a better way of deflating the bloated ego of this Ravana? He called the bridge over the ocean ‘a structure over a puddle’ just moments ago. He is rendered speechless for a few moments.

There was no need for long speeches of who is better and who is stronger and who is going to be the winner. Just a casual dropping of a vital piece of information at the right time and you render the ‘matchless’ ruler of the world tongue-tied! But Ravana could not be underestimated. He had his own cards under his sleeves.

On the third and fourth hands too…

You know, people used to bandy phrases like ‘Don’t wag your tail. I will slice it down.’ It was a tail that silenced the braggadocio, the big bow-wow that Ravana was! His countenance changed suddenly. He tried to present a better and calm picture, regaining his composure and behaving as if he had never lost it in the first instance. He managed to feign a friendly smile. ‘O! You are the son of Vali? You should have told me that.’

‘undhai en thuNaivan andrE!’ Your father was my friend, my dear lad. ‘Ongarach chaandrum uNdaam.’ There is sufficient and inviolable evidence to prove the friendship that we had. But what are you doing? What a shame that you came as the emissary of that human? ‘nindhanai idhan mEl undo nee avan thoodhan aadhal?’ Is there a shame worse than this? But don’t worry. I am here. I will protect you. You must be afraid of that fellow who killed your father. I can see that. You are a boy after all. ‘thandhanen ninakku naanE vaanarath thalaimai.’ I give you this instance the leadership over all the monkeys. ‘thaazhaa vandhanai nandru seydhaai ennudai maindha.’ My dear son, you came to me at the right time. Good that you did so.

One from a puny monkey clan suddenly turning into ‘ennudai maindha,’ ‘my dear son’, within a matter of seconds! Is that Ravana speaking? It is really the tail of Vali that is speaking from within that stout egotist! Threaten if you can. Divert, if you must. That’s the tactical move Ravana is employing now. ‘Are you not ashamed of serving the person who killed your mighty, matchless father? Natural. I understand young boy. You are afraid of that fellow. You came to me rightly. Here, I am here my dear child. I will protect you and make you the king of your clan.’

‘thaadhayaik kondraan pinnE thali sumandhu iru kai naatri pEdhayan enna vaazhndhaai enbadhOr pizhayum theerndhaai.’ The blame that you went behind the person, who slew your father, with your hands over your head in reverence, is cleared now, by your coming to me. ‘seethayai petrEn.’ I possess Sita now. ‘unnai siruvanum aagap petrEn.’ And I have you here as my very own son. Who can match me in happiness! How lucky I am!

Playing upon sentiments and throwing breadcrumbs. Any lesser individual would have fallen a prey. Or at least stammered for a suitable reply. Here is a person who you are trying to poke with memories of olden days and he in turn tries to turn the table and tries to put a finger on a place where it must hurt anyone. ‘Going behind a person who killed one’s father and serving him too!’ And there is a smoothly buttered bait also, hanging from above. Sentiment on the one hand. A reminder of friendship between Vali and himself on the other. The ready acceptance of Angada as his own son on the third. And the promise to make him the leader. The phrase ‘on the other hand’ is quite flexible with Ravana, for he had twenty of them, you see!

Lion accepting alms from a dog

Compare the opening line of Angada with that of Hanuman, when he was caught in Sundara Kanda by Indrajit and produced before Ravana. ‘I have come here as the emissary of Angada, the son of Vali.’ Hanuman knew the pulse of Ravana and where to touch him to make him hear what he had to say. Ravana belonged to that class of people who always believe in speaking to and not spoken to. They are not good listeners. They insist on others listening to them and not the other way about, however important and good it might be. There were Vibishana and Malyavan, the grandfather of Ravana in his Court to plead with him about what was right. Though Vibishana was expelled, Malyavan remained by his side till the very end, advising him to stop the idiotic mission he was in. Sadly, nothing worked.

Hanuman knew that only fear of extreme kind could make Ravana listen at least for a few moments. As could be expected, Ravana was jolted out of his stance and immediately enquired about the welfare of Vali. ‘anjalai arakka,’ laughed Hanuman. Do not be afraid, O demon! ‘paar vittu andharam adaindhaan andrE.’ Vali left this earth for his heavenly abode. He is no more. ‘venjina vaali meeLaan.’ (The dead do not return and obviously) Vali, who has died, will not return as well. Not only that. ‘vaalum pOi viLindhadhu andrE.’ Even the tail of Vali has gone with him. It won’t come back. Therefore rest assured that there is no further danger from him.

And then Hanuman let the cat out of the bag. ‘anjana mEniyaan than adu kaNai ondraal maazhgith thunjinan engaL vEndhan.’ Our king was killed by the unfailing arrow of Sri Rama. The writing on the wall is so large and clear. But Ravana had no eyes to read that warning. He didn’t want to. What else could have prevented this stout fool from seeing the fact that there was a person who vanquished his victor and he could not be taken lightly? Was it his passion for Sita? It cannot be. Viewed in proper perspective, one can see that Ravana’s lust for Sita was not as strong as it appears to be. It is something else. We will study that portion later.

Coming back to Angada. The young lad clapped his hands in mock admiration and laughed. ‘I came here as a messenger and now you are offering to make me the king! You don’t seem to be in control of your tongue!’

‘vaai tharath thakka solli,’ by uttering whatever (nonsense) that comes to your mind, ‘ennai un vasam seivaayEl,’ if you attempt to cajole me to your side, ‘aai tharath thakkadhu andrO thoodhu vandh arasu adhu aaLgai’ one should think twice indeed for an emissary to accept kingship. ‘nee tharak koLvEn yaanE? Do you think that I would accept such an offer from you? ‘idharkku nigar vERu ennin,’ If one wants to draw a parallel, ‘naai tharak koLLum seeyam nal arasu endru nakkaan’ it is like a lion accepting its kingship (as alms) from a dog!

Stop bragging!

Now that was pretty too much even for anyone, let alone Ravana. This lad calling him a ‘dog’ in his own Court! He rose up from his seat with fiery eyes. ‘aduvanE endrup pongi Ongiya arakkan,’ Ravana who rose up shouting, ‘kill him’ (stopped from doing so for shame prevented him from responding to a challenge from a weakling of a monkey.) ‘andhO’ Alas! ‘thoduvanE kurangaich cheeri sudarp padai?’ How am I to touch my weapon to kill a monkey! What would happen to my reputation! Am I to fight with this monkey considering it my equal!

‘Ravana, you seem to think too much of yourself. If you were really brave, why didn’t you fight with Rama or at least with Lakshmana, before you coveted Sita? Why did you go stealthily, when they were not there? Why did you fly away with woman who was unprotected? More over Ravana stop bragging about yourself. Enough of it.’

‘parundhu uNap paati yaakkai paduththa naaL,’ There was a day when your grandmother (Tataka) was killed and her body was lying on the ground for the vultures to feast on. ‘padaingyarodum marundhinum iniya maaman madindha naaL,’ There was another day when your maternal uncle, Subahu, was killed with all his retinue. ‘vanathuL vaigi irundha naaL,’ And there was another day too, when Sri Rama was living in the forest when ‘vandha nangai irum sevi mulayum mookum arindhuzhi vandhilaadhaan’ your sister’s (Surpanakha) earlobes, nose and breasts were severed. Where were you on those occasions, Ravana? What were you doing? Why did you not rush to that spot to avenge for what happened? ‘inich cheyyum aaNmai undo?’ What kind of bravery is still left in you to defend yourself against the arrows of Sri Rama?

‘You are going to die. Vibishana joined Rama only because he knew what would happen. ‘dheviyai viduga.’ Give Sita back. ‘andrEl seruk kaLathu edhirndhu than kaN aaviyai viduga.’ Or else meet Sri Rama in the battlefield to give your life up.

The effect built by a rude shock is lost as soon as the advice to return Sita is tendered. That happens again and again in the case of Ravana. It happened once again with Angada too. As we were discussing, it was not lust alone that fuelled Ravana against sending back Sita. It was his ego. Pure and unbridled ego. If he could not send Sita back, it was not her charms alone that were responsible for his stance. It is a peculiar kind of combination of ego, audacity and adamantine behaviour.

He ordered four of his soldiers to get hold of Angada. Angada allowed himself to be caught by them, says Valmiki. “In order to exhibit his strength before the host of ogres on that occasion, the resolute and valiant Angada (son of Tara) voluntarily allowed himself to be seized (by the ogres). Taking (with him) the (four) ogres who clung to him like (so many) birds, the aforesaid Angada then leapt on to (the roof of) the palace, which stood like a mountain. Violently shaken by the impetuosity of his bound, all the (four) ogres fell to the ground while Ravana stood gazing.”

Angada then trampled on the decorative minar-like top piece of the palace and broke it into pieces while Ravana stood down below, dazed and mesmerized.

When the sky is overcast

Many are under the impression that just because Rama was the incarnation of the very Lord himself, he would have had no difficulty in eliminating the evil forces that he had to contend with. The mystical and metaphysical aspects of the epic sometimes overshadow an important message. Rama also went through frustration. Rama also went through misery. Rama faced all kinds of challenges that we face in our lives and more and he overcame every single one of them.

When one reads the portions describing the frustration he went through, one is able to identify one’s own problems and diffidence that one feels and goes through in his or her own life. And when he comes out of them, he shines like a beacon, guiding us out of the darkness that shrouds us.

As we have been emphasising time and again, it is important to read Ramayana without losing that grip on the fact that the epic portrays – that Rama came to this earth as an ordinary individual – as ordinary as we are – and led a life that was full of events that caused him the very same feelings that we go through today. And the final message is he reached greater heights and excelled in playing his role very well, thus goading us to move in the same direction with determination. The Ramayana – or Mahabaratha for that matter – may not provide solutions to the problems of our times. In fact there cannot be any cut and dried formula to solve any and every problem. What we learn from the epics is the mental frame, the attitude and the courage with which one should face these problems.

Well, there were times without number when the army of Sri Rama could not hold against the enemy and we have been mentioning the efforts of commanders like Maruti, Angada and even Sugriva in collecting, regulating, reorganising and motivating the forces in difficult circumstances. But there was a time when even the commanders were also frightened and ran away from the field. Imagine! You are engaged in a tough task and are doing all that you can to achieve the goal, and suddenly you find your team deserts you!

The remarkable thing about Rama is he outshines all when faced with a challenge of this kind – though it cannot be denied that he was also through all kinds of depressions and desperations. He leads by example. He establishes his clear supremacy when the task in hand calls for it. He motivates his team by his performance. A combination of determination during distress; confidence during calamity and composed frame of mind during a crisis.

We will study a scene in the Yuddha Kanda that was so formidable when almost all the deputy commanders-in-chief, including veterans like Jambavan, Nala, Nila and almost all of them, excepting a handful, fled from the battlefield. The amazing point is that this young lad, Angada, did not lose his courage even at that time and went all out to go and speak to the veterans, bring them out of the morass, clear their minds and secure their support once again. But before that, we need to study the actual frustration that crossed the minds of these war veterans and how they perceived the situation that impelled them to desert, in the first instance. Let us see how they saw the situation and how Angada brought them out of it. Of course, how Rama faced the situation is a discussion for a later day.

Summoning the core strength

After the death of Indrajit, Ravana was shaken out of his senses and made one last attempt to kill the enemy through his forces. The narration of the battle scene and the order in which it takes place in Kamban differs widely from that of Valmiki. But one fact emerges very clearly and unmistakably and that is Ravana wanted to avoid facing Rama again in the war front, as far as he could, after his war with Rama on the first day. It was on the last day when Ravana is left bare, that he collects himself and comes back as the warrior that he was – an attitude that perhaps Rama wanted him to be when slaying him. Killing him only after cleansing him of his lust and of course, the trace of cowardice that he had developed.

Coming back to the scene after the death of Indrajit. Ravana summoned his forces that formed the core strength of his army – moola bala sainya. This army was dispersed all over the globe and was not in the island of Lanka. Ravana had no intention of summoning them, initially. In fact, he considered it below his dignity to summon the moola bala sainya to kill these meek humans and monkeys. Kumbakarna advised him to collect all the forces and go against the army, all at once, instead of dispatching them in batches, conveniently small enough for the enemy to butcher. But that slighted the pride of Ravana. He mocked at Kumbakarna for having made such a suggestion.

The point is, this moola bala sainya was such prized possession of Ravana that he would not think of using it – let alone frittering it – in tasks that he did not consider that big. After the death of Indrajit, Ravana really felt quite so lonely and helpless. He had already lost all his relatives, his most valiant brother Kumbakarna, his sons Adhikaya and Indrajit, his vast army and this core army was the only force left with him. He decided to press that into action now and they were all summoned from all over the world.

Kamban dedicates a whole canto – padalam – to portray the embarrassment that Ravana tries to conceal, when the commanders of the core army ask him in amazement as to why they were called to fight humans and monkeys! He is not able to relate the defeat that he suffered at the hands of Rama in the first battle. The whole canto bubbles with subtle humour while Ravana struggles to justify the necessity to call the core army to face ‘after all two humans.’ We will see them in detail later. But here is a verse that beautifully captures the mood of Ravana.

‘vaanarap perum sEnayai yaan oru vazhi sendru, Un aRak kuRaiththu uyir uNbEn.’ I will go and take that vast army of monkeys. ‘neeyir pOi orungE aana mattravar iruvaraik kOrir.’ You all collect together and fight just these two persons, and kill them. That is to say, ‘Let me handle all those monkeys, though they are very vast in number and destroy them. You – the core army, the moola bala sainya – all of you go together and kill just these two puny humans. What chivalry! What magnanimity! What bravery! Ravana handling a vast horde of Vanara army and a vast horde of his core army to handle just two humans!

That apart. Ravana divided thus the task between his army and himself. And when the moola bala sainya walked into the battlefield, it had quite an unexpected effect.

Hari Krishnan