Ramayana of Valmiki and Kamban- sundarakanda

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6. Ravana

arrives and entreats Seetha who rebukes him

 

 

The

night had elapsed and it was early morning. Hanuman heard the vedic chants of

the brahma rakshasas. Ravana was awakened

with the sound of auspicious instruments. The moment he woke up Ravana

thought of Seetha. He entered the Asokavana. followed by hundred women with

cowries, torches and fans and also his wives. Valmiki says,

 

Sa cha kaama paraadheenaH pathiH

thaasaam mahaabalaH

 

seethaasakthamanaaH mandhaH

madhaanchitha

gathirbaBhaou

 

Ravana

of great might, the husband and master of those women, walked with slow gait with his mind possessed

of the desire for Seetha, becoming dull

witted. He became devoid of intelligence not knowing who Seetha was and had the

temerity to think of the divine mother as a woman to be attained.

 

Hanuman

saw Ravana thus approaching the entrance of Asiokavana and hid himself well

among the leaves and flowers of the branch of the tree and recognized him as the same person seen sleeping in the palace.

 

Seetha

seeing Ravana coming towards her trembled like a plantain tree in a strong wind

and concealed her body with her legs and hands. She was seen sitting on the

floor and looked like a green branch broken and fallen on the ground, and like

a lotus covered by mud.

 

Valmiki,

in the sarga in which Hanuman saw her for the first time and also in this sarga

when she was seen by Ravana , becomes eloquent in describing her by various similies

which run from sloka 6 till the end of the chapter, comprising of 17 slokas, which might have been the forerunner of Kalidasa,

reputed for his similies.

 

Ravana

strated talking to Seetha with an intention of tempting her into accepting his

love. Told her not to be afraid of him and said that for rakshasas, abducting

another man's wife is righteous deed only. He reassured her that he would not

touch her against her will. He persuaded her to change her attitude and enjoy

life by accepting him. He gave her the reason

why he was enamoured about her. It seemed to him that Brahma after creating her

never created anyone equal to her. This idea is reflected in Kalidasa in his

meghadhootha where he says, describing the yashakanya , srshtiH aadhyeva dhaathuH, she

was the first creation of a

beautiful woman., another example to show that Kalidasa must have been

influenced by Valmiki, the aadhikavi.

 

 

Ravana

justifies his feeling towards Seetha by saying that whoever will not be

attracted on seeing her beauty, not excluding even the creator himself. He

superimposes his feelings on all which reminds us of the words of Arjuna who said,

on seeing the visvaroopa of the Lord, that the whole world is trembling with

fear while it was only he who was frightened and he superimposed his own

feeling on the world.

 

Then

Ravana tried to appeal to her attachment towards her father by saying that if

she accepted him he would win the whole world and give it to Janaka. But Seetha

was no Kaikeyi whose mind was changed by Manthara by kindling her attachment to

her father by saying that if Rama became the king Janaka would defeat the king of Kekaya, her

father.

 

Then

Ravana started decrying the valour of Rama, saying that Rama was no equal to

him in might and he lost his kingdom and was living in forest and it was highly

doubtful whether he still lived. Even if he does, says Ravana , he would never

be able to get her back from Ravana like Hiranyakasipu got his wife from Indra.

Indra took away Keerthi, the wife of Hiranyakasipu, who was pregnant, while he

had gone to do thapas, to kill her foetus fearing that she may give birth to a

son who might be more terrible than his father. Narada advised Indra to let her

go, telling him that her son was going to be a great devotee. This is the

reference made by Ravana here. But Indra did not abduct Keerthi because of lust

nor Rama was Hiranyakasipu, who was Ravana himself in his previous janma.

 

Thus

Ravana tried to change the mind of Seetha by temptations and by pointing out that she could have no hope of being

retrieved by Rama. The reply of Seetha was full of scorn and at the same time an effort to make him see

that he was heading for destruction. She placed a blade of grass between her

and Ravana and started speaking.

 

The

act of putting the blade of grass in front and starting to speak, is explained by

the commentators thus.

 

Seetha

observed the protocol due to a king and putting the blade of grass in front was

like offering a seat. The blade of grass

was like the pariSesha to ward off the evil. Women of noble birth should not speak

to a man other than their husband directly and finally, to indicate that Ravana

was like a blade of grass in front of Rama to whom even a blade of grass became

a brahmasthra in attacking Kakasura, and all his riches and luxuries offered was

like a blade of grass to her.