Hari Om.
Let us begin the forty sixth sarga of the araNya kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.
The scheme that rAvaNa asked mAricha to follow seemed to be unfolding exactly as planned. Even though mAricha was unwilling and tried to prevent rAvaNa’s misadventure in a variety of ways, he finally cooperated with him. Donning the guise of a deer and luring sItA with its strikingly attractive skin and as an amusement thing, he managed to pull rAma out of the cottage deep into the forest. As expected earlier by mAricha, his life was finished the moment rAma shot an unerring arrow at him. But in those dying moments he faithfully ran rAvaNa’s scheme and in the voice of rAma he sent out fake distress signal. Again as planned, sItA was alarmed and immediately asked lakshmaNa to rush to the help of rAma. Intelligent lakshmaNa was pretty sure it was deceit and asked sItA to be calm and assured that rAma would be back soon, unharmed. But sItA, overcome with fear about rAma’s life, started insinuating lakshmaNa and suspecting his character. She threatened to end her life if rAma is harmed and left lakshmaNa is an extremely difficult situation. Even in the midst of these insinuations, recognizing that sItA was being fickle in her accusations, with lot of respect lakshmaNa set out for rAma. The mission of the demons was inching closer to their desired completion …
Stung by the insinuations of sItA, keeping rAma’s welfare in mind, soon lakshmaNa set out for rAma. Immediately, rAvaNa who was hiding in the form of a wandering mendicant donning ochre robes, matted hair, wearing insignia in the form of a staff and pot (kamanDalam) approached sItA. That mighty rAvaNa approached sItA bereft of the protection of the two brothers like the darkness approaches the twilight bereft of the sun and the moon.
तामाससादातिबलो भ्रातृभ्यां रहितां वने।।3.46.4।।
रहितां चन्द्रसूर्याभ्यां सन्ध्यामिव महत्तमः।
As the wicked rAvaNa walked towards rAma’s hermitage like the (evil) planet casting its eye on rOhiNI (moon’s consort) in the absence of the moon, the trees in the janasthAna were frightened, the wind ceased to blow, the gOdAvari river slowed down! In the cottage sItA deeply apprehensive of her husband’s safety was lost in the thought of rAma. rAvaNa in the guise approached her like the planet saturn approaches the start chitrA.
With bad intentions, rAvaNa gazed at sItA dressed in elegant silk, and who was auspicious, sported well lined teeth, her countenance like that of full moon with lotus eyes and was smitten by the arrows of manmatha (love god). With vEdic chants (to make her believe of his mendicancy), he addressed the most beautiful woman resplendent like goddess lakshmI without her lotus, sItA and said –
“O lady with golden complexion, adorned with golden silks, you are srtikingly beautiful like a lotus pond. Are you the deity of shyness (hrI), or goddess of prosperity (SrI), or an apsara, or goddess of fame, or goddess of love (ratI) who is roaming at will, O beautiful one! Your sparkling white teeth are well laid out, your large white eyes are decked with dark black pupil with a tinge of red at the margins, your thighs resemble the trunk of an elephant, you have a well endowed bosom, O lovely lady with a bewitching toothy smile, your very sight captures my mind like the river water captures the banks. Surely you are neither a goddess, nor a gandharvI, nor a yakshI, nor a kinnarI, a woman who can rival beauty has not been spotted by me thus far. I cannot fathom and my mind goes mad to think that with the best of beauty, tenderness and youth you have chosen to live in this forest! O lady, you must move out at once from this wretched forest, this is the abode of demons who move assuming different forms at will!
Your deserving place is in the best of palaces, and in elegant and luxurious fragrant gardens of the cities and you ought to be sporting the best of garlands and sandal smears, donning the best of clothes and of course with a suitable husband. Who are you among the rudras, gandharvas, devas or kinnaras and why are you here where neither gods nor gandharvas move about. Here the wild beasts such monkeys, lions, jackals, bears, wild elephants and the like rule the roost and how come you are not frightened to be among them? Who are you, whose are you and why are you staying in this forest all by yourself”.
Thus asked by rAvaNa in the guise of a brAhmin, the unsuspecting sItA taking him to be a guest who came with his bowl of the mendicant asking for alms, invited him in, offered him a seat and the performed the honors due to a guest like offering water to wash their feet and quench thirst. She offered him a cushion to sit and offered some of the forest produce as food and asked him to partake unhesitatingly.
Thus invited by a well speaking queen, rAvaNa gazed intensely at maithilI (sItA) with a firm desire to forcefully abduct her and thus submitted himself unmistakably to his own death!
निमन्त्र्यमाणः प्रतिपूर्णभाषिणीं नरेन्द्रपत्नीं प्रसमीक्ष्य मैथिलीम्।
प्रसह्य तस्याहरणे धृतं मनः समर्पयत्स्वात्मवधाय रावणः।।3.46.36।।
sItA on her part had her mind on rAma and was looking out for him desperately and as she did so in to the distance, she only found the green forest cover, not either rAma or lakshmaNa.
Here we conclude the forty sixth sarga of the araNya kAnDam of SrImath vAlmiKi rAmAyaNam and humbly offer it at the lotus feet of SrIrAma. Hari: Om!
jAi SrIrAma.
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Next: 3.47. Devout sItA lambasts rAvaNa
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rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 