Lady Sita as Lord Rama's Advocate

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MANUSHI/Issue 125

Sita as Rama's Advocate

Propriety in the Ananda-Ramayana

Vidyut Aklujkar

The author teaches at the University of British Columbia.

 

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The bridge that Rama built over the ocean to reach Lankain order to

rescue his queen, Sita, who had been abducted by Ravana, was a major

achievement and a matter of great pride for Rama's followers.1 This

is an analysis of how Sita defends the building of the bridge in the

15th century Sanskrit version of the Ramayana, the Ananda-Ramayana.

This voluminous text has been influenced further retellings of Rama

katha in Maharashtra such as those by Eknath, and Mukteshvar. The

Ananda-Ramayana is still read and followed in other regions of South

India and is one of the central texts of the Ramnami sect in North

India. It offers a careful study of Sita's dignity and composure

under pressure and gives us insights and an understanding of the

continuous hold of this legendary pativrata on the minds of people

to this very day.

 

Sita Lopamudra Dialouge

 

The debate on the building of the bridge known as the Sita-Lopamudra

samvada, takes place in the ninth sarga of the fourth Kanda, the

Vilasa Kanda, of the Ananda-Ramayana. In it, Lopamudra, the wife of

sage Agasti/Agastya, questions the propriety of Rama's action. In

response, Sita defends Rama's endeavour and offers a unique gloss on

it.

 

While focusing on the propriety of a skillful action of an acclaimed

hero, the two women demonstrate their talents in conversational

strategies and propriety of speech. Lopamudra's playfully innocent

question turns into a challenge which Sita meets head-on, using tact

to convert an insult into an advantage, and scoring points by

advancing several impeccable arguments about behavioral propriety.

When Sita wins the debate and the older woman is silenced, it is the

proper courtesy shown by the younger woman out of respect for the

age and reputation of the older woman which saves the situation.

 

The Sita-Lopamudra samvada thus offers a rich context for the study

of Sita's talents both in action and in speech. As the recent series

of articles in manushi has demonstrated, Sita uses her perseverance

and regard for propriety to protect what she considers most

valuable. This essay provides an example of how Sita wins the verbal

battle by a gentle but firm exercise of intellect accompanied by her

respect for propriety.

 

The entire episode is narrated in 30 verses in Sanskrit, and I offer

a translation before discussing it in detail further.

 

"At the time of a solar eclipse Rama, along with Sita, and other

relatives, mounted the Pushpaka vimaan (aircraft) and went to

Kurukshetra to bathe. The gods followed them, together with the

Gandharvas, the Kinnaras, and the Pannagas. Sages from several

hermitages and thousands of kings came as well. There, while the sun

was eclipsed, Rama bathed along with Sita, and donated many

elephants, camels, horses and chariots to those gathered there. Then

the kings bearing many gifts came to visit Raghava, and the queens

came to visit Janaki. Sita greeted the consorts of the kings and

offered them honoured seats alongside her friends and wives of the

sages. After accepting the hospitality offered by Sita, Lopamudra

(wife of Agastya), hoping to please Sita, began, `O Sita, with eyes

dark as the Kanja birds, and with a gait like an elephant, you are

so fortunate. Do tell us something about Rama's valour.'2

 

Gentle but Firm

 

At this request, Janaki narrated the story from the time of her

wedding up to the visit to Kurukshetra. Having heard the story,

Lopamudra said to Janaki with a laugh, `O Sita, everything that the

great-soul Archive did was proper3. There is only one occasion on

which I think he exerted himself in vain. What was the purpose of

undertaking the great effort of building the bridge? Why didn't

Raghava turn to the pot-born sage, Agasti? Agasti would have drunk

the salt-ocean in just one moment and dried it up so that the

monkeys would have been able to cross over easily. He made all those

vanaras toil unnecessarily in the cause of building the bridge.'

 

On hearing this proud speech Sita laughed aloud and said to

Lopamudra, 'O great pativrata3, Lopamudra, Raghava acted quite

properly when he built the great bridge. I will tell you the reason.

Listen with a steady mind. May all the assembled wives of kings also

listen to what I have to say. If Raghava had dried up the ocean by

shooting an arrow, then it was feared that many beings would have

been killed. Had Rama simply managed to fly across the ocean by air,

then how would Ravana recognise Rama as human? Had he sought to

arrive on the other shore of Lanka by riding on the back of Hanuman,

then they would have said, 'Where is Rama's greatness in that?' If

you suggest that he should have swum across the ocean, the doubt

raised would be, `How can one cross the piss of a brahmin?' If Rama

were indeed to request your husband, the pot-born sage to drink up

the salt-ocean in one mouthful, then this is what Rama would have

considered in his heart: 'True, we have heard that this ocean was

once drunk by the angry Agasti, and then released through his urine,

which is why it has since become salty. It is entirely salty just

like urine,4 so how can Agasti deserve to drink it now? Even if at

my request, the sage should indeed drink it up, then it is I who

would be the butt of ridicule everywhere. They would point to me and

say, this is that Rama who for the sake of his own selfish ends,

commanded a brahmin to drink urine.' It is because of this

consideration that Rama, who is steadfast in dharma, did not request

this of the sage. Thus has Rama conducted the bridge-building with

great thought, in order to advance his fame. No one has done

anything like it before, nor will they do again. Now the entire

world knows him and speaks of him as `The one who made the rocks

float on the ocean'.

 

How Sita Vanquishes

 

With these words of Sita, Lopamudra was vanquished. She became

embarrassed and remained silent for a moment before the assembly of

women. Then with a laugh, Vaidehi placated Lopamudra. She also

worshipped the other wives of sages and appeased them over and over

again.

 

`I have offended you today, great pativrata, please pardon my

offence. Thanks to the occasion, and because of your friendship, I

have ventured to speak of Rama's valour in front of you. I know very

well that Rama owes his valour to your husbands' blessings.'

 

Having propitiated them thus, she bid farewell to all the sages'

wives."

 

[ A. R. Vilasa Kanda, Sarga nine, verses 1 - 30 ]

 

This conversation between Sita and Lopamudra unfolds like a game of

tennis between the champion of yesteryear and an aspiring young

star. The past champion delivers a great service, but then the young

star takes over and with a few well-aimed fast strokes renders the

older champion completely vanquished. Like a good sport, the older

champion accepts defeat gracefully, when to sweeten the sorrow, the

young champion passes on all the credit of her victory to the

coaching of the older star.

 

Let me first note the uniqueness of this episode. Such a

conversation between the two women, Sita and Lopamudra, does not

occur in the Valmiki Ramayana, the Adhyatma Ramayana or in any of

the other older Ramayanas. None of the major Puranas mention it

either, and it does not occur in any of the older plays based on the

myth of Rama. As far as I can tell, the Ananda-Ramayana is where it

appears for the first time. The Agastya-Lopamudra hermitage is

briefly mentioned in Valmiki Ramayana. Agastya's exploits such as

lowering the mountain, drinking up the ocean and gobbling up demons

are mentioned in the various Puranas. Lopamudra's birth, her wedding

to Agastya and the birth of her son are mentioned in the Mahabharata

and in some myths of the major Puranas. However, this sort of battle

of wits between the two ######## is not to be found anywhere else.

The Ananda-Ramayana is original in this respect.

 

Secondly, the locale and the time that the Ananda-Ramayana has

chosen for the setting of this myth are fitting to the outcome. The

locale is Kurukshetra, famous as the battlefield of the great

Mahabharata war. It seems fitting that even a casual visit in this

locale may somehow result in a confrontation. The time is said to be

of a solar eclipse, symbolising temporary overshadowing, or

eclipsing of brilliance. Lopamudra'############# remark, were it

allowed to go unchallenged, may have eclipsed Rama's fame. Rama

traces his lineage to the solar dynasty, hence the choice of the

imagery of a solar eclipse is all the more befitting. Rama follows

the customary injunctions of behavioral propriety in passing over

the inauspicious times of an eclipse and gives several donations.

Similarly, Sita gives gifts to appease everyone assembled, and hopes

to come unscathed through this trial of her devotion to Rama, by

using her tact in speech as a gracious hostess.

 

Test of Sita's Virtues

 

Sita is the hostess, and the sage's wife, Lopamudra, is one of

several guests. Again, customary propriety of behavior demands

mutual respect, polite exchanges, and gifts given by the hostess to

the assembled guests. By definition, the guests have the privilege

and are honoured and pampered at all costs.5 Sita does that to begin

with. However, Lopamudra broaches the subject of Rama's exploits,

and having heard the epic story, decides to question the propriety

of his celebrated feat. At this point, we enter the second ring of

propriety, as now it is Rama's bridge building which has become the

focus of discussion and the propriety of its construction under

scrutiny.

The issue of behavioral propriety here is tied to the respective

accomplishments of the two husbands, bridge-building versus drinking

the ocean, which establish their respective heroic worth and claims

to fame. At this point, Sita faces a dilemma, as would any well-

meaning hostess. She is confronted with a mischievous guest, who has

asked her a seemingly innocent question, which will overshadow her

husband's glory. If Sita accepts the criticism, then she will have

failed to defend the honour of her husband. On the other hand, if

she defends the honour of her husband, as a good wife should, then

she fails as a hostess and risks offending the elderly wife of a

great sage. This incident serves as a test of her hospitality, and

can be regarded as her sattiva-pariksha (a test of her virtue).

 

Furthermore, the legendary relationship between Agastya and Rama is

not just of the cordial guest-host variety, nor is it the common

complimentarity between a great sage and a great king. It is much

more intimate than that. Agastya, the Brahmin sage conquered the

South before the Kshatriya king, Rama ever set foot on the southern

land. He lowered the Vindhya mountains, he drank up the ocean to

help the gods locate the demons hidden in its waters, and he subdued

demons like Vatapi by literally consuming and digesting them. In

other words, the great sage performed deeds of equally great

proportions, and is venerated throughout the North and South for his

extraordinary prowess and wisdom. In addition, in the epic, he

helped the young hero Rama in his present victory in many ways.6

With all this in mind, Sita must answer his wife's question in such

a manner as to erase any blemish on Rama's judgement and re-

establish his wisdom without offending the guest.

 

Offense with Decorum

 

Sita accepts the challenge and, at the risk of offending the guest,

manages to re-establish Rama's claim to wisdom, judgement, and

propriety. The fact that Lopamudra has posed an embarrassing

question in the presence of the other ladies gives Sita a

justification in taking on the offensive. Nevertheless, she does it

with utmost decorum, without any harsh words, ridicule, or ill

feeling. All she does is to ask counter-questions. She depicts

alternate scenarios and reduces them to undesirable or ridiculous

situations. Thus, through a simple process of elimination, Sita

establishes the inevitability and thereby the propriety of Rama's

action.

 

It is worthy of note that Sita does not tackle the solution offered

by Lopamudra right at the beginning. Instead, she examines the other

possible options which could have been exercised. The importance of

her strategy will be obvious to myth analysts. These options are, in

fact, other variations on the myth of Setu-bandhanam, as found in

other versions of the epic.7 In considering them one by one, Sita

finds fault with each one of them, and discards them as unsuitable

alternatives. She then addresses the question of getting Agastya's

help as suggested by Lopamudra. At this point, Sita talks of

something unusual and embarrassing. She mentions what is a familiar

version of an earlier myth about Agastya's drinking up the ocean.8

It is a rather indecorous version and suggests humble folk-tale

origins.9 Yet Ananda-Ramayana has managed to incorporate the folk

version in Sanskrit verse, in the language of the gods, and thereby

has legitimised it, since within the text itself, the creativity of

the entire Ananda-Ramayana is ultimately attributed to the venerable

sage, Valmiki. The later Marathi texts simply echo this version of

the release of the ocean by Agastya as his urine.

 

By mentioning this ending of the earlier Agastya myth, Sita has

killed two birds with a stone. She has ruled out several options,

such as Rama's swimming across the ocean, or his drinking it, or

even Agastya's drinking the waters. Regarding the last option, Sita

even manages to portray the cordial relationship between Agastya and

Rama, and describes as inadmissible and totally absurd the scenario

of Rama asking Agastya to drink his own urine, and Agastya

complying. The only inhibition which restrains Rama from taking this

option, Sita says, is the consideration of propriety. Thus, Sita

succeeds in answering all the unasked questions of alternate courses

of action, and establishes Rama as one who recognises the proper

dharma for a King.

 

Last Ring of Propriety

 

At this point, we enter the third and the last ring of propriety.

Lopamudra, who is equal to Sita in her devotion to her husband,

decorous behavior and in taking quick decisions,10 meets her match,

and realises that she has been defeated. She remains silent, and is

embarrassed among the gathering of women. It is at this point that

Sita once again shows her exemplary tact and nobility and reverts to

proper behavior as the gracious hostess. She apologises sincerely to

the elderly lady, begs for forgiveness, acknowledges the gift of

grace bestowed on Rama by Agastya, and attributes the entire glory

of Rama's adventures to Agastya's blessings. This humbleness on the

part of the young hostess saves the situation, and the sage's wife

departs with no ill feelings.

 

The beauty of the Ananda- Ramayana passage is in the total absence

of male participation in the exchange of words. Neither Rama nor

Agastya are present in the Ananda- Ramayana on this occasion. This

is entirely a conversation between the two women.11 Although the

Ananda- Ramayana was a very influential text in the medieval period

in Maharashtra, we find that the Marathi poets of the time, while

following the Ananda- Ramayana, present a rather watered-down

version of the incident. They do not let the women resolve the

situation by themselves. Their world is entirely male-centered. In

their versions, Rama either instructs Sita not to mention his bridge-

building to Lopamudra, or ultimately saves the situation by

propitiating Agastya and Lopamudra himself. For example, Ekanatha

(1533-99) mentions this incident in his Bhavartha Ramayana, in

another context. Here, in the Yuddha-kanda, right after the actual

bridge-building, when Rama goes to meet the old sages in Ramesvara

tirtha, they congratulate him on his feat, Rama cautions

Sita, 'Lopamudra will ask you to tell her of my exploits. But you

should not mention my bridge-building to her or else you will be

sorry.' This anticipation of future outcome of the conversation by

Ekanatha's Rama may stress Rama's omniscience, but it takes the

punch out of the entire incident. There is also no focus on Sita's

clever verbal skills in Ekanatha's version. Instead, both Lopamudra

and Sita act more like ornamental wives basking in the reflected

glory of their own famous husbands. The utmost restrain exercised in

the choice of words in Ananda-Ramayana by both women is also absent

in the versions of the later poets.12

 

In comparison to such later portrayals of the two women's dependence

on their husband's wisdom, the Ananda-Ramayana's portrayal stands

out as a refreshing battle of wits between the two ########. This

portrayal of Sita as an intelligent hostess abiding by the rules of

propriety depicts her as one capable of tackling difficult

situations with admirable ingenuity. Sita is shown in the Ananda-

Ramayana as not just a passive pativrata, but as one who can argue

with wit as well as with decorum, one who can win an argument and

also win over Lopamudra's heart by her disarming humility. r

 

References

 

1. The residents of Rameshwar, a town near the southeast tip of

India, fondly point out to pilgrims some great rock surfaces in the

ocean overlooking the shores of Lanka as Rama's celebrated bridge.

Valmiki-Ramayana describes

it as an unprecedented feat. Abhuta-purvam ramena sagare

setubandhanam. Valmiki Ramayana yuddha kanda, 16.

 

2. Many later literary works including Hanuman nataka [8:19] and

Ananda- Ramayana mention the bridge-building of Rama across the

ocean as one of his major exploits. The Skanda Purana (3:1-52)

spends in all 52 chapters on the description of the glory of the

bridge, setu-mahatmya-varnanam.

 

2. Vrtha te sramitah sarve vanarah setu-bandhane. A.R. Vilasa Kanda

9.12

 

3. Sita calls her pativrate, which refers to her being completely

devoted to her husband, a quality for which, traditionally, Sita

herself is recognised as being the foremost one. The topic of

conversation is the relative worth of their husband's exploits, and

their own worth as pativrata is reflected in the best defence of

that fame.

 

4. The use of urine to give saltiness to liquids is a folk motif

that occurs in shocking tales told in pubs, and barrooms. The

liquids may be inadvertentlyconsumebyunsuspecting victims. The most

recent example of this is in a movie called Barnone from British

Columbia, directed by Mark Tuit, released in the Vancouver

International Film Festival in September-October 1997.

 

5. See on this topic, my earlier paper, Queer Guests and gracious

Hosts, read at the annual South Asia conference at Madison,

Wisconsin, on October 19, 1996. An earlier version of this paper was

read at the American Oriental Society's 206th meeting at

Philadelphia, PA, March 19, 1996.

 

6. Details may differ, but the acknowledgement of help from the

elderly hero to Rama remains common in many Ramayanas. He has taught

Rama a hymn, called aditya-hrdaya (V.R.), or has given him a great

bow belonging to Visnu, or a sword, etc. (Kamban R.). In most

Ramayanas, Rama stops over in Agastya's hermitage before he sets out

to the deeper forests, and gains blessings from the old sage.

 

7. For example, [a] occurs in the Abhiseka nataka, and drying up of

the ocean by Varunastra occurs in the Padma Purana, uttara khanda,

adhyana 269.; occurs in the Jaina Ramayana by Hemacandra, and

also in the Uttara Purana by Gunabhadra. [c] occurs in the Birhor

Ramakatha. See Bulcke, 1971.

8. There are at least two endings of this myth. The Mahabharata, the

Agni Purana, and the Padma Purana accounts say that having drunk the

ocean, Agastya refused to release it. He digested it. So then they

had to rely on other figures such as Bhagiratha to refill it. This

ending of the myth is consistent with another myth of Agastya's

swallowing and digesting demon Vatapi in order to vanquish him.

However, there is a variant version which says that Agastya released

the ocean by way of relieving himself. I have not been able to trace

this version back. It appears to be a well known oral tradition.

9. Motif Index of Folk Literature by Stith Thompson mentions A923.1.

as Ocean from urine and also cf. A933 as River from urine of goddess

(giantess) and lists myths from Irish, Nordish, French, Sudanese,

Korean and Indian sources.

10. In the Mahabharata, when Agasti asks Lopamudra how many sons she

wants, a thousand, a hundred, ten or one who will be equal in

prowess to a thousand. MBh. Aranyaka parvan, 3.97.18-20

11. There is a slender thread in later Sanskrit literature and

certainly in the Marthi literature where conversations between two

women are versified. Thus we have Laksmi-Gauri-samvada, Ganga-Gauri

samvada, Sita-Lopamudra-samvada, and others. A Draupadi-Satyabhama

samvada occurs in the Mahabharata.

12. Vamana Pandita's (1618-1695) treatment of the theme in his Sita-

Lopamudra samvada is similar to Ekanatha. His Rama cautions Sita not

to boast in front of Lopamudra, Sita cannot resist, Lopamudra taunts

her. Rama then uses the work "ksarabdi" to refer to the ocean, and

thereby again prompts Sita to refer to the release to the ocean as

urine. His Sita does reply to the taunt, but after being prompted by

Rama, and not on her own.

The author teaches at the University of British Columbia.