Part 42

Saying this, the daughter of the king Janaka, bathed her countenance with tears and hanging down her head began to lament. And she began to roll on the earth like unto a colt as if she was mad, possessed by a devil and had lost her sense. "I, the spouse of Rama, who was drawn away at a distance by the Rakshasa (Maricha) assuming shapes at will, was seized and borne away by Ravana. A captive of the Rakshasas, subject to their terrible threats and taunts, sunk in grief and anxiety,--I desire not to keep my life. Of what avail are wealth, ornament and life unto me, who am living in the midst of the Rakshasas and separated from Rama, of the mighty car? Forsooth my life is made of stone, imperishable and immortal since it is not riven asunder even by this mighty grief. Woe to me! who am unchaste and vile and my life is vicious, since breathe I still in the absence of my lord. What of fixing my fancy on that night-ranger, my meaner foot even shall not touch him? That (demon) who is courting me in this terrible way, doth not know himself, his own race and that I loathe him so much. What more shall I speak unto you, I shall never consent to Ravana's prayer, I might be rent from limb to limb or burnt in fire. Raghava is grateful, true, wise and kind. I fear it is through my ill-luck that he doth not feel pity for me. Will he not take me back who alone slew the thousands of the Rashasas in Janasthana? I have been captured by Ravana, a Rakshasa of feeble prowess. Forsooth my lord is capable of slaying this Ravana in conflict. Will not that Rama regain me, by whom was killed in the forest of Dandaka, Viradha, the foremost of the Rakshasa crew? Although situated in the midst of the ocean, Lanka is unapproachable by others, but Raghava's arrows shall also reach here. (I am at a loss to ascertain) why Rama of firm prowess, doth not regain me, his beloved spouse who have been borne away by the Rakshasa. Methinks Rama doth not know that I am here, or else, powerful as he is, he would not have put up with this insult. That lord of vultures, who could have informed Raghava, of my being borne away by the Rakshasa, was killed by Ravana in the battle. O great was the work done by him, who, old as he was, for my sake, addressed himself to bring about Ravana's destruction. If Raghava could know that I was here, he, exceedingly wroth, would have cleared the earth with his arrows, of the Rakshasas. He would have then burnt down the city of Lanka, dried up the deep and blotted out the name and fame of Ravana. And from each ruined home would have risen the Rakshasa widows' groans and cries like unto those of mine. And instituting enquiries, along with Lakshmana, he shall soon reduce Lanka to this plight. And observed by them the enemy shall not live for a moment. And in no time, shall Lanka, assume the appearance of a cremation ground, having all her high ways enveloped with smoke issuing out of the funeral pyres, and filled with vultures. And soon shall this desire of mine be fulfilled. All these words of mine do sound improbable now but they all indicate your misfortune. Besides from these bad omens, that are to be seen here, it appeareth, that Lanka shall soon be shorn of her grace. The lord of the Rakshasas, the vicious Ravana being killed, forsooth shall Lanka, divested of wealth, appear like a widow. This Lanka, which is now full of pious ceremonies, shall, on the death of the Rakshasas and their master, appear like a husbandless woman. For certain, shall I soon hear the cries and groans in every house, of the daughters of the Rakshasas worn with grief. If that heroic Rama, having dark-blue eyes, comes to know that I am in the abode of the Rakshasas, the city of Lanka shall be burnt down with his arrows and shall be stricken with darkness and shorn of grace and all the foremost of the Rakshasas shall be destroyed. The time which was appointed by the vile and cruel Ravana, hath arrived. And that vicious wretch hath resolved to destroy me now. There is no crime which cannot be perpetrated by those vicious demons. Mighty is the disaster that shall arise on account of this crime--the Rakshasas who live on flesh do not know what virtue is. Forsooth shall the Rakshasa serve me for his morning meal. What shall I do without my lord of comely presence? Debarred from my husband's presence, stricken with grief and not beholding Rama, having dark-blue eyes, I shall soon meet with death. Rama, the elder brother of Bharata, doth not know that I am still alive or else he and Lakshmana would have ransacked the whole world for me. Or renouncing his body on this earth for my grief, the heroic elder brother of Lakshmana, hath repaired to the celestial region. Blessed are the celestials, Gandharbas, Siddhas and mighty ascetics who are beholding my heroic lotus-eyed Rama. Or that highly intelligent royal ascetic deairous of securing piety and freed from the troubles of life, hath no need of a wife like me. Or people have fancy for what they see and which disappeateth as soon as the object is out of sight. The ungrateful are capable of renouncing their love, but not Rama. Or there might be some folly in me. Or on the wane of my good luck have been separated irom the excellent Rama. Death is more preferable unto me than life since I have been separated trom the high-souled heroic Rama, of unblemished character and the slayer of foes. Or those two brothers, the foremost of men, laying aside their weapons, and living on fruits and roots, have been wandering in the forest. Or those two heroic brothers Rama and Lakshmana, have been, by treachery, put to death, by the vicious-souled Ravana, the lord of Rakshasas. At this time of distress, I do with all my heart long lor death,--(but alas!) even death is not approaching me in this my misery. Oh blessed are those high-souled, great ascetics abiding by truth and having their senses in control, who have no objects of love or displeasure. They are not distressed with misery for their objects of love or grief for them whom they do not love. They are freed from them and I do bow unto those high-souled ones. Being forsaken by the beloved Rama, knowing his ownself, and brought under the control of Ravana, I shall renounce my life."

SECTION XXVII.

Being thus addressed angrily by Sita, some of those Rakshasees, beside themselves with ire, proceeded to relate this unto the vicious-souled Ravana. And approaching Sita those grim-visaged demons again addressed her with words rude and rough. "O vile Sita, O thou bent on committing sin, we Rakshasees shall to-day devour thy flesh to the best of our satisfaction." Beholding those vile demons threaten Sita, a Rakshasa matron, wise and old, named, Trijata cried--"O vile demons, do ye eat your own persons[334] but do not devour Sita, the daughter of Janaka and the esteemed daughter-in-law of the king Dacaratha. I dreamt a terrible dream last night which made my down stand on their end. And in that dream I foresaw the overthrow of the Rakshasa race and the conquest of her husband." And being thus addressed by Trijata, those demons, exercised with wrath and terrified, accosted her with the following words,--"Do thou relate (unto us) what sort of dream didst thou dream last night." And hearing those words proceeding from the mouths of the Rakshasees, Trijata began to describe the dream she had at the latter end of the night,--"I saw Rama, wearing garlands and clothed in white, ride in a celestial charriot, along with Lakshmana, made of ivory, traversing the etherial regions and drawn by a hundred steeds. I saw in my dream to-night, that Sita, clad in the purest white, appearing on a snow-white hill beaten by the waves of the ocean, had at last met Rama, like unto light joined to the Sun. And I again saw Rama and Lakshmana appear in effulgence, seated on a huge elephant, having four tusks and resembling a bull. Thereupon those two (brothers), resplendant like unto the Sun by their own effulgence, and wearing white garlands and clothes, appeared near Janaka's daughter. And the lotus eyed Janaki, on the top of the hill situate on the welkin, first fell on the lap of her husband and then stationed herself on the neck of the elephant guided by her husband. Then I saw Sita rubbing the Sun and the Moon with her two hands. And then that best of the elephants, with those two princes and the large eyed Sita on him, stood high above Lanka. I again saw Rama, clad in white, and adorned with garlands, ride along with Lakshmana in a charriot drawn by eight white bullocks. I again saw that highly energetic, best of men--Rama, having truth for his prowess, along with his brother Lakshmana and Sita flee to Northern realms, ascending a celestial flowery charriot resembling (in brightness) the Sun. And I saw Ravana too, shaved and shorn, besmeared with oil, wearing a crimson cloth, drinking honey, wearing a garland of Karavira flowers, fall down on earth from the flowery charriot. And dragged by a woman, shaved, wearing a red cloth and garlands and sprinkled with crimson paste, Ravana was again seen by me riding in a charriot drawn by asses. And quaffing oil, laughing and dancing, that one of agitated senses, forgetting himself sped on the charriot to the South.[335] And I again saw Ravana, the lord of the Rakshasas, stricken with fear, fall, headless, down on the earth. And then rising all on a sudden, and uttering obscene and inconsistent words like unto a maniac, Ravana overwhelmed with fear, and amazement, and intoxicated, fell into a mass of dirt, stinking and resembling the very hell. And again proceeding to the South he entered into a lake devoid of mud and water. And a dark woman, clad in a crimson cloth, and bedaubed with mud, dragged the Ten-necked demon, entwining herself round his neck. Then followed the mighty Kumvakarna[336] and all the sons of Ravana, shaved and shorn and besmeared with oil. And they all proceeded southward--the Ten-necked demon on on a boar, Indrajit[337] on a porpoise, and Kumvakarna on a camel. I saw only Biveesana, with a white umbrella and accompanied by four courtiers, range in the welkin. And there was audible in the large assembly sound of music and stringed instruments. And all the Rakshasas wearing crimson clothes and garlands, were quaffing oil. I saw the royal and picturesque city Lanka with her steeds, cars and elephants, drowned in the ocean, having her gateways and ornamented arches broken. And in Lanka, covered with dust, Rakshasa women, laughing; and making terrible sound, were engaged in quaffing oil. I saw all the leading Rakshasas--Kumvakarna and others, dark-hued and wearing crimson clothes, emerged in an abyss of cow dung. Do ye therefore fly at some distance, and will find that Raghava shall regain Sita. And exercised with ire he shall destroy you all along with the Rakshasas. Raghava shall never brook, his esteemed and beloved spouse, living in the forest, being taunted and threatened by you. No more with rough words therefore; do you console the lady and humbly pray her to forgive you. This I think proper. Surely shall she, divested of misfortune, be reconciled to her beloved and excellent husband, regarding whom, in her misery, I have dreamt such a dream. Ye Rakshasees! You have threatened her, do ye implore her forgiveness--no more with harsh words. Forsooth, from Raghava shall proceed the mighty disaster of the Rakshasas. If Maithilee, the daughter of the king Janaka, be pleased with you (for your imploring her forgiveness) you might be saved from the mighty disaster. I do not perceive any inauspicious mark on the person of this large-eyed dame. It appears from the paleness of her countenance that she hath been overcome by misfortune. And I saw (in my dreamt this worshipful damsel, unworthy of any misfortune, stationed in the welkin. Verily I do perceive, before me, the satisfaction of Vaidehi's end, the destruction of the lord of the Rakshasas and the conquest of Raghava. Behold I there, her left eye, spacious, as a lotus-petal, is dancing to hear this pleasant dream announcing the satisfaction of her own end. And her left arm is also dancing with joy, all on a sudden. And her excellent beautiful left thigh, resembling the trunk of an elephant, is also dancing as if indicating, that she shall at no distant date, be reconciled to Raghava. And the birds, again and again, entering their nests, and highly delighted are pouring forth their notes announcing the advent of a happy occasion." Thereupon that modest dame, greatly delighted in the prospective conquest of her husband, said-- "If this be true I shall save you all."

[334] The proper expression, I think, should be--"Eat me." The commentator Ramanuja explains _Atmanam_ as your own bodies.--T.

[335] In the south is the region of Yama, the God of Death and hence his going to the South is not an auspicious sign.--T.

[336] Ravana's brother.--T.

[337] Ravana's son--the name signifies the conqueror of the lord of the celestials.--T.

SECTION XXVIII.[338]

Hearing those unpleasant words of Ravana, the lord of Rakshasas, Sita, racked with sorrow on account of her husband, became terrified, like unto a she-elephant, worsted by a lion on the skirt of a forest. Threatened by Ravana and encircled by the Rakshasees, that timid damsel bewailed like a girl cast off in a lonely forest. "Truly the sages say that death in this world doth not come untimely. Or else would I have, vicious as I am, lived for a moment, being thus sorely threatened. Forsooth, my mind, divested of happiness and full of misery, is firm or else why is it not broken in sunder like unto the summit of a hill clapped by a thunderbolt. Nor am I to blame for this--I am worthy of being killed by this demon of uncomely presence. As a Brahmana cannot impart instructions in Vedas unto the people of other castes so I shall not confer my mind on Ravana. If that lord of the people doth not come within the appointed time, forsooth shall that vile lord, of the Rakshasas, mince my limbs with his arrows like unto a surgeon cutting off the limbs of an embryo.[339] Two months shall pass away in no time and I shall have to suffer the pain of death, overwhelmed with sorrow as I am, like unto a thief, confined in stocks, at the command of the sovereign to receive death the next morning. Rama! Lakshmana! O Sumitra! O Rama's mother! O my mothers! I am worsted in this ocean of grief, like unto a bark, driven hither and thither by the blast, in the midst of an ocean. Verily for me, those two powerful, lion-like sons of the king, have been killed by (this demon) effulgent like the lightning and assuming the semblance of a deer. Unfortunate as I am, forsooth I was tempted then by death wearing the shape of a deer and thus foolishly lost Rama and Lakshmana, the sons of the worshipful sire. O Rama, O thou of truthful vows, O thou of long arms, O thou having the countenance of a full moon! O my life! engaged as thou art in the welfare of the people, dost thou not perceive that I am about to be killed by the Rakshasas. Alas! this my devotedness unto my husband, my forgiveness, my lying down on the bare earth, my observance of religious vows, my wife-like virtues, are lost like unto service done for an ungrateful wight. In vain are my pious rites, and in vain is my devotedness unto my husband--since I do not behold thee, am pale and feeble in thy absence and have given up all hopes of seeing thee. And duly satisfying thy sire's command, and returning successfully from the forest, thou shalt fearlessly sport with many a damsel having large eyes. (But for me) O Rama, I was for my own destruction, devoted, soul and heart, unto thee. Oh! fruitless is my asceticism and wifely virtue! Oh fie on me! I shall renounce this my unfortunate life. I desire to do away speedily with my being by means of poison or a sharp weapon. But there is no one in this city of the Rakshasas, who bringeth me this poison or weapon." Bewailing thus in various accents, and remembering Rama with all her heart, Sita, having her countenance dried up, and trembling, got at the biggest tree enveloped with flowers. And thinking thus, Sita, stricken with grief, took up in her hand, her braid of hair and thought--"I shall soon hang myself with this braid and reach the abode of Death. And that one of tender person reached the tree, and holding a branch, began to think of Rama, Lakshmana, and the glory of her race. And on her person were perceived many auspicious marks, well-known in the world, removing grief, fostering patience, and announcing the advent of future welfare.

[338] The sections 28 and 29 are not found in all the texts. They are found in Bengal edition. Gorressio translates it and remarks--"I think the chapter XXVIII--The auspicious signs--is an addition, a later interpolation by the Rhapsodists. It has no bond of connection either with what precedes or follows it and may be struck out without injury." We have however thought it proper to give a full version.--T.

[339] This passage clearly indicates that there were proficient and skilled surgeons at the time when Ramayana was written.--T.

SECTION XXIX.

Like unto servants waiting upon a wealthy person various auspicious omens waited upon Sita of a blameless and comely person, racked with grief and divested of joy. And the large left eye of that dame having graceful hairs, having dark pupils, white ends and thick eye-lashes, began to dance like a lotus shaken by a fish. And her beautiful, round, plump left hand, which, ere this, sprinkled with costly _aguru_ and sandal, used to serve for a pillow unto Rama, began to dance now again and again after a long time. And her well built plump left thigh, resembling the trunk of an elephant, dancing, announced that she would soon behold Rama. And the gold-hued cloth, now covered with dust, of that damsel of a comely person, having teeth like pomegranate seeds, slipped a little off its place. And being enlivened by those and various other auspicious omens, she attained joy like unto a seed, spoiled by the wind and the sun, growing afresh in the rainy season. And her countenance, having lips red as _Bimba_ fruits, beautiful eyes, eye-brows extending to ears, curling eye-lashes and white teeth, again appeared graceful like unto the Moon released from the full grasp of _Rahu_.[340] Her grief and exhaustion were removed--sorrow was pacified and her heart was filled with joy. And she with her countenance appeared beautiful like a lunar night beautified by the rays of the Moon.

[340] Like the Moon when full eclipse is just over--In mythology Rahu is the son of Sinika, a daitya, with the tail of a dragon whose head was severed from his body by Vishnu, but being immortal this head and tail retained their separate existence and being transferred to the stellar sphere, became the authors of eclipses.--T,

SECTION XXX.