Devlok With Devdutt Pattanaik Read online

  And at the time of leaving her maiden home, the doli (palanquin) ceremony, she throws the rice back into the house, to suggest that she is released from the debt she owes her parents. As she is a roop of Lakshmi, she always gives rice (wealth) whether entering or departing.

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  Women in the Ramayana

  We’ve heard detailed stories about some women in the Ramayana but not about all of them. Let’s talk about them chapter-wise. To begin with, the Baalkand.

  Mothers play an important role in the Baalkand. Dashratha has three wives—Kaushalya, Kaikeyi and Sumitra. Not much is said about these women. Kaushalya hailed from Kosala, which was divided into two parts. One side was ruled by Dashratha, and the other by Kaushalya’s brother. To maintain peace, Kaushalya was married off to Dashratha.

  There is an interesting story about Kaikeyi. She was from the kingdom of Kaikey, which is now in Pakistan. The horses of this land were famous, hence her father was called Ashwapati—the keeper of horses, where ashwa is horse. He knew the language of animals. However, he had been told that he would die if he shared that knowledge with anyone.

  Once, when he is sitting in the garden with his wife (Kaikeyi’s mother), he overhears a conversation between two swans (hansa) and laughs. His wife asks him what he heard, and he says he cannot tell her. Unthinkingly, his wife says, ‘If you love me, you’ll tell me.’ The king wonders what kind of a wife does not care about her husband’s life. He abandons her. So Kaikeyi grows up without a mother. Manthara raises her.

  When Rama was being taught by Vishwamitra, did he meet any women?

  Women play an important role during Rama’s education by Vasishtha and Vishwamitra. When Rama goes into the forest, he engages with women at different levels. One is violent—he kills a rakshasi called Tadaka. Thus, the very first battle he wins is against a woman. And the other is kindness—the very first person he protects is also a woman, named Ahilya. He kills one woman, and saves another. He is taught that a king has to be ruthless sometimes. When he hesitates to kill a woman, he is told not to look at the gender but at her actions. With Ahilya, he must repair her wrong, which may’ve been an accident—something which only a king can do. Rama learns about the two extreme aspects of a king—violent and kind.

  We haven’t heard much about Lakshmana’s wife, Urmila.

  The four wives of the four brothers were—Sita, Urmila, Shrutakirti and Mandavi, all King Janaka’s daughters. Urmila’s stories are found in loka kathas. One story is about how Lakshmana is approached by Nidradevi (sleep) when he is in the forest with Rama. He tells Nidradevi that he cannot sleep because he has to serve Rama day and night. Instead, she should go to his wife, Urmila, and ask her to take his exhaustion and his sleep. Urmila accepts. As a result, she sleeps during the day for her husband and at night for herself. Almost like Sleeping Beauty, she sleeps for fourteen years. And Lakshmana never gets tired. In this way, both husband and wife serve Rama and Sita.

  When Rama is in the forest, does he meet other women?

  Here too women play an important role. It is said that when Sita is preparing to go to the forest, she starts wearing clothes appropriate for the forest—the clothes made of bark that the wives of rishis wore. The women of the palace object. Sita is a kulvadhu, bride of the clan, and cannot dress like a sanyasin, or someone who has renounced worldly life. She should dress like a bride, otherwise there will be a negative influence, a bad omen, and it will bring bad luck into the home. So Sita goes like a princess to the forest although it’s depicted otherwise in pictures. In those times, it was believed that the ‘ghar ki Lakshmi’, the devi of the house, should always be well dressed and made-up, and look happy, otherwise it’d be bad luck for the household.

  In the jungle, when Rama, Sita and Lakshmana go to Rishi Atri’s ashram, they meet his wife, Anusuya. She too advises Sita about shringara, and gives her a garment which will never get dirty. Through the fourteen years that Sita is in the forest, her clothes are always clean and beautiful.

  The other famous encounter Rama has is with Surpanakha. She is a woman of the forest and wants to have relations with Rama, who refuses. Then Lakshmana also turns her down, and cuts off her nose. It’s a very violent episode.

  There are many loka kathas about Surpanakha as well, especially in the south Indian tradition. One talks of her husband, Vidyutjeev. There’s an argument between him and her brother, Ravana, during which Vidyutjeev, who has a big tongue and mouth, gobbles Ravana up. Ravana then asks Surpanakha to pull him out of her husband’s stomach. Surpanakha knows that if she does so, she will lose her husband. Ravana promises to make her son the uttaradhikari, the heir to the throne, if she saves him. So Surpanakha pulls her brother out, and her husband dies. Later, Ravana forgets his promise and makes his son, Meghnad, the heir. Surpanakha is roaming around in the forest, distrustful of all men. Here, Lakshmana accidentally kills her son. Surpanakha goes looking for her son’s killer and comes upon Rama. Seeing his beauty and grace, she falls in love with him, and forgets all her brother’s wrongdoings and the murder of her son. You find many such stories in loka kathas.

  This story about Lakshmana cutting off Surpanakha’s nose is a very violent one; there’s also Tadaka’s story.

  There are stories in the Ramayana about violence against women. Surpanakha’s story is significant. She is sexually aroused, wants to have relations with these handsome men; she is a rakshasi and has no understanding of marriage, fidelity, etc. She is simply following her desires. To stop her, rather than just push her away, they cut off her nose. After this incident, Rama’s life is invaded by misfortune and sorrow. Sita is abducted, there’s a war; even after they return to Ayodhya, he has to give up Sita. Rama and Sita’s relationship breaks down. This incident is a turning point. This is to show karma. You may feel you have done a good deed but every action bears a fruit.

  When Sita goes to Lanka, does she meet women there?

  Yes, Sita meets many rakshasis in the Ashoka Vatika (garden) where Ravana keeps her. There’s Ravana’s favourite queen, Mandodari, and Vibhishana’s wife (in some stories, daughter) Trijata, with whom Sita becomes good friends. Trijata is the positive influence on her. Other women push her to marry Ravana, wondering why any woman would resist a great ruler like him. There’s of course Surpanakha too who keeps pestering her.

  What was Sita’s relationship with Mandodari like? I’ve heard she used to help Sita and keep asking Ravana to send her back to Rama.

  In Lanka, there were many characters who would tell Ravana that keeping Sita against her will was not right. But Ravana would remain adamant. He would say he was avenging his sister’s (Surpanakha’s) insult, but actually it was to appease his ego and sexual desire. So there was a lot of tension in his household.

  In one of the loka kathas, Sita is Mandodari’s daughter. This version has become quite popular now. According to this story, a rishi predicts that Mandodari’s daughter will become the reason for Ravana’s death—his nemesis. So Mandodari throws her infant daughter into the ocean. This child is given by the ocean to Bhudevi, who lets Janaka find her. This child grows up to become Sita.

  Are there any important women Rama meets in Kishkinda?

  Yes, this is after Sita’s abduction when he wanders the land, looking for her. On the way, he meets Vedavati, who is doing tap because she wants to marry Vishnu. She recognizes Rama as Vishnu’s avatar and asks to marry him. He tells her he cannot marry her in this birth, but that in another yuga, in another birth, he will. It is believed that as Vaishnodevi, she waits to marry Vishnu.

  There’s also Shabari’s story—Shabari feeds Rama ber.

  When he finally reaches the monkey kingdom (vanara desh), Kishkinda, he finds that Vali has forcibly captured Sugriva’s wife, Ruma. Vali’s own wife is Tara. These are the two significant women in this part of the tale. When Vali is killed, Tara marries Sugriva and becomes his favourite queen. In some stories, Tara curses Rama, saying that since he killed her husband, he will suffer the loss of his