Hari Om.
Let us begin the thirty third sarga of the sundara kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.
At first sItA dismissed the sweet story of rAma that she heard from hanumAn as a dream. But she reasoned that one who is not able to sleep cannot dream. She then thought it could be pure hallucination as she seems to be hearing the story that is close to her heart as she longs to hear it. But then here was a clear manifestation of a vAnara who was singing it! So, it couldn’t be hallucination! She ruled out the dream since she wouldn’t sleep and she ruled out hallucination because evidently the sweetness was coming from outside and she even spotted the vAnara who was brilliant like the rising sun! The saga took a turn for sure and mixed feelings swept through sItA. There was absolute delight to hear the name of rAma there. She was battling delight arising out of hope and suspicion coming from experience. Onwards…
The illustrious son of the wind god, hanumAn, got down from the SimSupa tree. Presently he had a very sober and modest presence as he approached sItA with palms folded in reverence and spoke sweetly –
“O lotus-eyed one, dressed in crumpled silks, who indeed are you standing here clinging on to the branch? Why are tears rolling down from your eyes like water drops falling from lotus petals?
किमर्थम् तव नेत्राभ्यां वारि स्रवति शोकजम्।
पुण्डरीकपलाशाभ्यां विप्रकीर्णमिवोदकम्।।5.33.4।।
O elegant one, do you belong to the gods or demons or nAgas or yakshas or the kinneras? Or do you belong to the rudras or maruts or the vasus? You appear verily a goddess to me. By any chance, are you the stupendous star rOhiNI who has fallen from the grace and bereft of your lord, the moon? Or, are you by any chance, the auspicious arundhatI who offended your lord vasisTha and made him angry? O beautiful lady, are you brooding about your lost son, father, brother or husband?
By virtue of your laments, deep sighs, being grounded on the earth and the marks of royalty that you carry, I believe you are not a dEvI. Those marks make me think that you are the consort of a king. O lady, good be unto you, if indeed you are sItA who was abducted from janasthAna by rAvaNa, kindly tell me.
यथा हि तव वै दैन्यं रूपं चाप्यतिमानुषम्।।5.33.13।।
तपसा चान्वितो वेषस्त्वं राममहिषी ध्रुवम्।
By your piteous plight, super human charm and austere form, I ascertain that you are the consort of rAma”.
Delighted by the praise of rAma, sItA responding to the questions of hanumAn said –
“I am the daughter-in-law of the best of the emperors in the world, daSaratha who is known for vanquishing his enemies. I am the daughter of the great king janaka, my name is sItA and I am the consort of the sagely rAma.
दुहिता जनकस्याहं वैदेहस्य महात्मनः।।5.33.16।।
सीतेति नाम नाम्नाऽहं भार्या रामस्य धीमतः।
समा द्वादश तत्राहं राघवस्य निवेशने।।5.33.17।।
भुञ्जाना मानुषान्भोगान्सर्वकामसमृद्धिनी।
I lived in the palace of rAghava for twelve years and lived luxuriously enjoying every comfort that was available. In the thirteenth year, the king daSaratha wanted to crown his son with the blessings of his preceptor. As the preparations for the coronations were in full swing, the queen kaikEyI objected vehemently and threatened to give up food, drink and her life if rAma were to be crowned. She challenged the king to be true to the promise he had made to her earlier (to fulfil any of her two wishes) and exile rAma immediately. The truthful king remembered the two boons he had conferred on kaikEyI and hearing the cruel and unpleasant wish of kaikEyI lost his senses. The aged king deeply steeped in truth and dharma beseeched his illustrious elder son to stay on in the kingdom. But for the illustrious rAma, the promise that his father had made earlier (to kaikEyI) mattered way more than his crowning.
दद्यान्न प्रतिगृह्णीयान्न ब्रूयात्किञ्चिदप्रियम्।।5.33.25।।
अपि जीवितहेतोर्वा रामस्सत्यपराक्रमः।
rAma, who derives his valor from truth believes in giving and not receiving and never speaks unpleasantly even if to save his own life. The famed rAma, at once gave up everything along with the kingdom and asked me to take care of his mother. However, I got ready to live in the forest ahead of him as without him I do not enjoy even the heavens.
साहं तस्याग्रतस्तूर्णं प्रस्थिता वनचारिणी।।5.33.27।।
न हि मे तेन हीनाया वासस्स्वर्गेऽपि रोचते।
Even the great saumitri, lakshmaNa, delight of his friends, got ready to follow his brother to forest and dressed up in barks. We three, obeyed the command of king and with resolve entered the deep forests. As we lived in the danDaka forests, me the wife of the illustrious rAma was abducted by the evil rAvaNa. The demon has stipulated a time of two months for my life. I will not live beyond that and will give up my life”.
Here we conclude the thirty third sarga of the sundara kAnDam of SrImath vAlmiKi rAmAyaNam and humbly offer it at the lotus feet of SrIrAma. Hari: Om!
jAi SrIrAma.
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Next: 5.34. To trust is hard when experience is bitter
Previous: 5.32. Despairing, she wonders if it is a dream
rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 