Ramayanaof Valmiki and Kamban

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Kaikeyi whose intellect was clouded with delusion asked Manthara to tell her the way to do it and as though waiting for the occasion Manthara started speaking. He reminded Kaikeyi about the battle of Dasaratha with Sambarasura to help Indra when he became wounded and lost consciousness. Kaikeyi was adept in driving chariot and accompanied Dasaratha as his charioteer and she saved him by bringing him swiftly away from the battlefield and nursing him back to consciousness. Then being pleased with her Dasaratha wished to grant her two boons. But at that time she did not want anything and told him that she would ask him when needed. To the doubt that may arise in the mind that how did Manthara knew all this she herself clarifies saying that she knew about it since Kaikeyi herself told her.

 

Apart from the fact that it is the fate that directs the actions of individuals, as Rama himself says later, viewed as a human drama, this shows the effect of placing confidence in wrong persons in life. Manthara was the confidante of Kaikeyi and trusting one whose mind was as crooked as her body Kaikeyi had to pay heavily for her action. This also indicates the result of folly of Kaikeyi in allowing a third person to come between her and Dasaratha. This is normally the case in all families to this date wherever any one is allowed to interfere between close relations, like husband and wife, father and son etc. whoever they may be.

 

Manthara advised Kaikeyi what to do . She even directed her actions by telling her to enter the villa of sulk, kopagrha, and not to give up until Dasaratha agrees to crown Bharatha. Also as an additional precaution she told Kaikeyi to ask for Rama's exile to forest for fourteen years. Her calculation seems to be that if Bharatha rules the kingdom for fourteen years as he was also virtuous and pure-hearted, the people will start loving him and forget Rama.

 

Valmiki calls Manthara as papadarsanee, evil minded because she was more intent on Rama's exile than the crowning of Bharatha, raamaartham upahimsanthee , says Valmiki (Ay.Kan.9-10). In fact she reminds Kaikeyi again and again not to forget Rama's exile even if the king, who is very fond of her, agrees with the proposal of crowning Bharata.

 

The question is , why was she so particular about Rama's exile? Not considering the machinations of the devas, there goes the story that Rama as a boy hit her hunched back with his toy weapon, which is also mentioned by Kamban as 'pandai naal iraagavan paani vil umizh undai undadhanai than uLLatthu uLluvaaL' but it is highly improbable that she would have taken vengeance for a childish prank. It becomes sensible only if, as Valmiki says, she is evil minded. The wicked cannot tolerate goodness in others and takes pleasure in creating trouble for them. This is what Krishna terms as asooya or carping in Bhagavatgita. Valmiki himself says that she threw the ornament Kaikeyi gave her, pleased with the news of the coronation of Rama, with asooya, `Mantharaa abhyasooya enaam utsrujya aabharanam ca that.'(Ay.Kan.8-1)

 

Manthara knew Kaikeyi thoroughly to brainwash her completely by clever arguments.

The reasons she gave to Kaikeyi for stopping Rama's coronation were very convincing and prove that she was indeed vakyavisaarada, as Valmiki calls her.

 

The arguments Manthara gave to change the mind of Kaikeyi were:

1. Dasaratha arranged the coronation while Bharata was away. This, she said , was to avoid the promise given to the father of Kaikeyi that only the son of Kaikeyi will succeed him to the throne.

2. She pointed out that if Rama became the king, Kousalya, whom Kaikeyi had insulted, intoxicated with the influence she had with the king, would be more powerful and she would take revenge.

The first one put a doubt in the mind of Kaikeyi while the second one whipped up her jealousy towards her co-wife. Both together have done the trick.

 

Here it would be of interest to see what Kamban says about this episode. He make Manthara give a third and more powerful reason for preventing Rama from ascending the throne. She says,

`Kaadhal un perum kaNavanai anji akkanivaay seethai thandhai un thaadhaiyai theRugilan

Iraaman maatulan avan nundhaikku vaazhvu ini uNdO?'

 

That is, she reminded Kaikeyi about the enmity between Janaka and her father and if Rama became the king Janaka would be more powerful as the father in law of the king. Then where is the protection for her father, she said. As it is the nature of women to have a soft her for their parents, Kaikeyi was completely changed.

 

Kamban expresses the act of Manthara and the transformation of Kaikeyi in emphatic terms. He describes Manthara as `innal sei iraavaNan izhaittha theemai pOl tunna arumkodumankkooni.' She was as wicked as the actions of Ravana and capable of harming all the three worlds.' moonRu ulaginukkum oru idukkaN moottuvaaL `

 

Kaikeyi who at first said ,' enakku nallaiyum allay nee; en magan bharatan thanakku nallaiyum allay,' meaning, "you are neither my well-wisher nor of my son Bharata," later changed so as to say, "enai uvandhanai; iniyai en maganukkum, you are dear to me and my son."

 

Kamban explains the effect of the counsel of Manthara as `theeya mandharai ivvurai seppalum dhEvi thooya chindhaiyum thirindhadhu.' The pure heart of Kaikeyi was changed and the reason for this, says Kamban was not mere words of Manthara but due to the plotting of the devas , the promise to them by the Lord and the penance of the pious.' Soozhcchiyin imaiyor maayaiyum , avar petRa nalvaram uNmaiyaalum aaya andhaNar iyaTRiya arum thavtthaalum.'

 

Thus Kaikeyi mistook the words of Manthara, which was going to bring disaster for her,

as something of great value 'anarTham arTharoopeNa graahithaa,' and became uncontrollable, like a filly which has lost its way, `kiSoreevotpaTham gathaa,' says Valmiki. She even praised Manthara for her looks and said that she alone was beautiful and promised to decorate her with ornaments once Bhartha became the king, which showed that Kaikeyi completely lost her reason being deluded by the magic of Manthara.

Then she cast off all ornaments and rich clothes and lay down on the ground swearing that if the king did not grant her wish she would give up her life. It was in this state Dasratha found her when he came to tell her the good news of the coronation of Rama, naively thinking that she would be pleased to hear it.