The Valmiki Ramayana

by Amish Tripathi

  Chapter 2(109)

  Raghava thought about the departure of the ascetics and could think of many reasons why it was no longer desirable to live in that place. ‘This is where Bharata met me, with the mothers and the citizens. That memory remains with me and I always sorrow over it. The great-souled one’s army set up camp here and the dung from the horses and the elephants has caused a great deal of devastation here. Therefore, we should go somewhere else.’ This is what Raghava thought and left, with Vaidehi and Lakshmana.

  He reached the hermitage of the immensely illustrious Atri and worshipped him. The illustrious one welcomed him like a son. He personally instructed that all the arrangements should be made for treating the guests well. He honoured Soumitri and the immensely fortunate Sita. He summoned his aged wife and welcomed her too. The one who knew about dharma and was engaged in the welfare of all beings spoke to her. Anasuya was an immensely fortunate ascetic lady who followed dharma. The excellent rishi told her, ‘Welcome Vaidehi.’ He told Rama about the ascetic lady who was devoted to dharma. ‘The world incessantly suffered from ten years of drought and she is the one who created roots and fruits and made the Jahnavee flow then. She performed fierce austerities and was ornamented with all the rituals. She performed great austerities for ten thousand years. O son!439 Through her vows, Anasuya removed all the impediments. O unblemished one! To accomplish the task of the gods, she converted ten nights into one night.440 She is like a mother to you. This aged and illustrious one is never angry and all creatures bow down before her. Let Vaidehi approach her. When the rishi said this, Raghava agreed. He spoke these excellent words to Sita, who knew about dharma. ‘O princess! You have heard what the sage has said. For the sake of your own welfare, quickly approach the ascetic lady. Because of her deeds, Anasuya has obtained fame in the world. You should swiftly approach the ascetic lady.’

  Raghava always sought Sita’s welfare. On hearing this, Maithilee circumambulated Atri’s wife, who knew about dharma. She was aged and weak and her body was marked with wrinkles. Because of old age, her hair had turned grey. Her limbs always trembled, like a plantain tree in the wind. Sita attentively worshipped the immensely fortunate Anasuya, who was devoted to her husband, and told her her own name. Vaidehi worshipped the unblemished ascetic lady. Cupping her hands in salutation, she cheerfully asked about her welfare. The one who followed dharma saw the immensely fortunate Sita. Comforting her, she happily said, ‘It is good fortune that you look towards dharma. O Sita! O beautiful one! It is good fortune that you have given up your relatives, honours and prosperity and have followed Rama in his exile to the forest. For a woman who loves her husband, regardless of whether he resides in a city or a forest and irrespective of whether he is wicked and vile, the great worlds result. For a noble woman, the husband is the supreme divinity, even if he is evil in conduct, addicted to desire and bereft of riches. O Vaidehi! When I think about it, I do not see a relative who is superior to an appropriate husband. He is like the undecaying result of austerities. Wicked women who make their hearts drive their desire and those who lord it over their husbands do not understand what is a good quality and what is a sin. O Maithilee! Indeed, women who act in this undesirable way of controlling441 obtain ill fame and are dislodged from dharma. However, women like you, who possess the quality, regardless of prosperity or adversity in this world, roam around in heaven, like the performers of auspicious deeds.’

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  Vaidehi was thus addressed by Anasuya, who was without jealousy.442 She worshipped her in gentle words and said, ‘It is not extraordinary that a noble one like you should address me in this way. I also know that the husband is the preceptor for a woman. O noble one! Even if my husband is without a means of subsistence, I should show no hesitation in obeying him. What more can one say for someone who is praised for his qualities, compassion, conquest of the senses, firmness in devotion and for one who has dharma in his soul, following his mother and loved by his father? Whatever conduct the immensely strong Rama exhibits towards Kousalya is identical to the conduct he exhibits towards all the other women of the king. He knows about dharma and is devoid of false pride. Even if the affectionate king has looked towards a woman with a favourable glance, the brave one treats her like a mother. When I left for the desolate forest that conveys fear, my mother-in-law told me something great and it is firmly lodged in my heart. I also bear the words my mother used to instruct me in earlier times, when my hand was given in marriage, with the fire as a witness. “O one who follows dharma! Your words will render everything new. Serving a husband represents austerities for a woman. Nothing else has been recommended. Having served her husband, Savitree obtained greatness in heaven.443 If you follow that kind of conduct of serving your husband, you will obtain heaven. The goddess Rohini is supreme among all the women in the sky and the moon is not seen without her, not even for an instant. Such supreme women are firm in their devotion to their husbands. Through their own auspicious deeds, they have obtained greatness in the world of the gods.”’ Hearing Sita’s words, Anasuya was delighted. She happily inhaled the fragrance of Maithilee’s head and said, ‘O Sita! O one who is pure in vows! Because I have tormented myself through many rituals, great austerities exist in me. Using that strength, I wish to confer a boon on you. O Maithilee! Your words are appropriate and right and I am pleased. Tell me. What can I do for you?’ Sita told the one who possessed the store of austerities, ‘I have already obtained success.’444

  Thus addressed, the one who knew about dharma became happier still. She said, ‘O Sita! I will do something that will make you successful and happy. O Vaidehi! Here are some divine and excellent garlands, garments, ornaments, unguents for the limbs and extremely expensive pastes. O Sita! I am giving these to you so that your body can be ornamented. You deserve them. Even when they have been used, they will remain fresh. O Janaka’s daughter! With these pastes and unguents smeared on your limbs, you will be beautiful with your husband, like Shri with the undecaying Vishnu.’ Maithilee accepted the garments, pastes, unguents, ornaments and garlands that had been given as a supreme gift of love. Having accepted those gifts of love, the illustrious Sita joined her hands in salutation and patiently sat down near the store of austerities.

  When Sita was seated, Anasuya, firm in her vows, started to question her, conversing about the pleasant things that had once happened. ‘O Sita! I have heard the story that you were obtained by the illustrious Raghava in an act of svayamvara. O Maithilee! I wish to hear that account in detail. You should tell me everything, exactly as you felt it.’ Thus addressed, Sita said, ‘Listen to the account.’ She told the one who followed dharma the story. ‘The brave lord of Mithila was Janaka and he followed dharma. Devoted to the dharma of kshatriyas, he ruled over the earth properly. With a plough in his hand, he was tilling a plot of land. It is said that I split the earth and arose as the king’s daughter. King Janaka was engaged in scattering seeds from his fist and was astounded to see me, all my limbs covered in dust. Affectionately, he placed me on his own lap. Since then, lovingly, he has referred to me as his daughter. It is said that an invisible human voice was heard from heaven. “O king! Following dharma, she will be your daughter.” My father, the lord of Mithila with dharma in his soul, was delighted at this. After having obtained me, the lord of men obtained great prosperity. The performer of auspicious deeds gave me to the eldest queen, like something obtained from a sacrifice. She gently reared me, with maternal affection. My father saw that I had attained the age when I should be united with a husband. He was overcome by thoughts, like one without riches when his wealth has been destroyed. Even if a daughter’s father is Shakra’s equal on earth, in this world, he is reviled by those who are his equal and inferior.445 The king saw that such condemnation was not far away. He was immersed in an ocean of thoughts, like a person without a boat who is unable to cross over to the other shore. He knew that I was not born from a womb and was unable to find an answer to his thoughts. Where was an equal or simi
lar king who would be my husband? After thinking incessantly about this, he arrived at a determination. The intelligent one decided that he would marry his daughter off through a svayamvara. In a great sacrifice, the great-souled Varuna was delighted with him and had given him a supreme bow and two quivers with an inexhaustible supply of arrows.446 It was so heavy that even if men made efforts, they were unable to move it. Even in their dreams, the lords of men were unable to bend it. My father, truthful in speech, invited the kings first. When they assembled, he told the Indras among men that the bow would have to be raised. “If a man raises this bow and strings it, I will bestow my daughter on him as a wife. There is no doubt about this.” That excellent bow was as heavy as a mountain. The kings were incapable of raising it. They worshipped it and went away. After a long period of time, the immensely radiant Raghava came to witness a sacrifice, together with Vishvamitra. Rama, for whom truth is his valour, was with his brother Lakshmana. Vishvamitra, with dharma in his soul, was honoured exceedingly well by my father and told my father, “These two Raghavas, Rama and Lakshmana, are the sons of Dasharatha and they wish to see the bow.” When the brahmana said this, the bow was brought there. In a mere instant, the valiant one bent the bow. The valiant one then quickly strung the bow and stretched it. Because of the force of the stretching, the bow snapped in the middle into two parts. The resultant sound was terrible, as if a bolt of thunder had descended. My father, fixed to the truth, fetched an excellent vessel of water and immediately bestowed me on Rama, with that vessel. Though bestowed, Raghava did not accept me then, not until the views of his father, the lord who was the king of Ayodhya, had been ascertained. My father, the aged King Dasharatha was invited and my father bestowed me on Rama, who knows about his atman. My younger sister is the virtuous Urmila, lovely to behold. My father himself bestowed her on Lakshmana as a wife. In this way, I was bestowed on Rama in that svayamvara. Following dharma, I am devoted to my husband. He is supreme among valiant ones.’

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  Anasuya, who knew about dharma, heard this great account. She inhaled the fragrance of Maithilee’s head and embraced her in her arms. ‘You have recounted it in distinct, colourful and sweet syllables and sentences. I have heard everything about the story of the svayamvara. O one who is pleasant in speech! I am delighted and happy to hear about this account. The sun has set and the auspicious and beautiful night has arrived. The chirping of birds can be heard. During the day, they travelled long distances in search of food. Now that it is evening, they are back in their nests, desiring to sleep. The sages are wet from their ablutions, having eaten fruits. They are returning together, their garments of bark wet with water. Following the prescribed ordinances, the rishis are offering oblations into the agnihotra fire. Raised by the wind, the smoke can be seen, red like a pigeon’s neck. In every direction, though they possess limited leaves, the trees seem dense. In this region, where the senses are restrained, the directions are never visible. The animals that roam around in the night are travelling everywhere. The deer of the hermitage are sleeping around the sacrificial altar. O Sita! The night has arrived, adorned with nakshatras. The moon can be seen to have arisen in the sky, surrounded by moonlight. I grant you permission. Go and follow Rama now. I am satisfied with the pleasant conversation with you. O Maithilee! In front of me, adorn yourself with these ornaments. O child! I will be delighted when you become beautiful with these divine ornaments.’ Sita adorned herself with those ornaments and was like a daughter of the gods. She bowed her head down and prostrated herself and left to meet Rama.

  The supreme among eloquent ones saw the ornamented Sita. Raghava rejoiced at what the lady ascetic had given as a gift of affection. Sita Maithilee showed Rama everything that was given as a gift of affection by the lady ascetic—the garments, the ornaments and the garlands. Rama and maharatha Lakshmana were delighted on seeing that Maithilee had been honoured in this excellent way, extremely difficult for a human to obtain. The descendant of the Raghu lineage, with a face like the moon, was delighted and spent the auspicious night there, worshipped by the ascetics and the siddhas.

  When the night was over, the two tigers among men asked the ascetics, who had offered oblations into the fire and dwelt in the forest. The ascetics who resided in the forest and followed dharma told them about parts of the forest that teemed with rakshasas. ‘This is the path that the maharshis follow to fetch fruits from the forest. O Raghava! It is proper that you should follow this. There is this other one through this impenetrable forest.’447 The scorcher of enemies joined his hands in salutation before the ascetics, and the brahmanas pronounced words of benediction over them. With Lakshmana and his wife, Raghava entered the forest, like the sun entering a mass of clouds.

  This ends Ayodhya Kanda.

  Acknowledgements

  This journey, with Penguin, started more than a decade ago. It is a journey of translating Sanskrit texts into English, in unabridged form. It commenced with the Bhagavad Gita in 2006, followed by the Mahabharata (2010 to 2014) and the Harivamsha (2016). It continues with the Valmiki Ramayana and will be followed by the Puranas. To the best of my knowledge, the great translator, Manmatha Nath Dutt (1855–1912), is the only other person who has accomplished the ‘double’ of unabridged translations of both the Valmiki Ramayana and the Mahabharata in English. In this journey with Penguin, special thanks to Meru Gokhale, Ambar Sahil Chatterjee and Paloma Dutta. All three have made this journey easier to traverse.

  My wife, Suparna Banerjee (Debroy), has not only been patni, she has been grihini and sahadharmini too. Had she not provided an enabling and conducive environment, juggling professional commitments and carving out the time required for translating would have been impossible. य: तया सह स स्वर्गो निरयो यस्त्वया विना (2.27.16).

  This translation is based on the Critical Edition brought out (between 1951 and 1975) by the Oriental Institute, now part of Maharaja Sayajirao University, Baroda. When I started work on translating the Mahabharata in 2009, there was a thought, however hazy, of attempting the Valmiki Ramayana too. Therefore, one had to acquire the seven published volumes of the Critical Edition. Those who have tried this acquisition will testify this is no mean task. Multiple channels and multiple efforts failed. The Oriental Institute is not known for its marketing and distribution successes. The context changed in 2015, because I joined the government. By then, I had still not been able to get copies of the Critical Edition. What with joining the government, which made finding time difficult, and an inability to get the text, I remarked to my wife that destiny willed otherwise. A few months later, on a flight, I found myself seated next to Shailendra Mehta, economist, scholar, friend, and currently president, director and distinguished professor at MICA, Ahmedabad. ‘What next, after the Mahabharata?’ asked Shailendra and I described my frustration. A few weeks down the line, Shailendra Mehta walked into my office, lugging a trolley bag, with all seven volumes in them. ‘All yours,’ he said. What destiny willed was clear enough. The dedication of this three volume set to Shailendra is a paltry attempt to say thank you.

  ‘What next, after the Valmiki Ramayana?’ Life moves on to the Puranas, beginning with the Bhagavata Purana. At one point, the Mahabharata translation seemed like a mammoth task, stretching to infinity. With the major Puranas collectively amounting to four times the size of the Mahabharata, they are more monumental than the mammoth. But as always, if it so wills, destiny finds a way.

  The Valmiki Ramayana Volume 2

  THE VALMIKI RAMAYANA VOLUME 2