Hari Om.
Let us begin the thirty seventh sarga of the sundara kAnDam by offering our prostrations at the lotus feet of SrIrAma and our sathguru.
At the insistence of hanumAn that he was indeed an emissary of rAma and with sItA getting some positive vibes about his sincerity and truthfulness, he put him through a test to describe about the appearance and virtues of rAma and lakshmaNa. We have not seen mahaRshi vAlmIki taking about hanumAn and rAma’s interactions a lot until now except in their first meeting in the kishkindhA kAnDam (4.2,4.3). However the graphical account that hanumAn gave of rAma and lakshmaNa puts it beyond all doubt that hanumAn had deeply studied rAma and influenced by his virtues to be devoted to him and derive strength from him. It is thus that her earnest queries met with his sincere replies and thus she was completely convinced. She had no fear now, with the surety that rAma not only retained his love for her but he actively looked for her and wanted her to unite with him. This was reassuring for sItA since she knew that if rAma had set his mind on something he was sure to achieve it. Therefore, she was at peace. But she was sad that rAma was grieving in her absence. Clutching the signet ring of rAma, sItA spoke further with hanumAn. Onwards…
Hearing the description given by hanumAn, sItA of moon like charm, spoke appropriate words laced with dharma and focused on the objective –
“O vAnara, when you say that rAma is focused on me and that he is grieving, it like poison mixed with nectar for me. Indeed, the destiny is insurmountable. See how afflicted me, rAma and lakshmaNa are by it. This proves that whether one is luxuriating in an expansive manner or one is down in the dumps, destiny haunts them equally and with drags them along like a rope is tied to them.
My husband rAghava is like a survivor of a shipwreck who is swimming to reach the shore and is tired. When will he cross the ocean of grief and reach ashore? When will he vanquish the demons, uproot lanka and see me? He must be told that I will be alive only as long as one year is not completed. We are already in the tenth month and only two months remain. This is the time that rAvaNa has stipulated for me. rAvaNa is not in favour of giving me back to rAma and thereby he is awaiting his death on the battle field with his time up. This has been told to me by the elder daughter of vibhIshaNa by name nalA who was sent by her mother.
असंशयं हरिश्रेष्ठ क्षिप्रं मां प्राप्स्यते पतिः।
अन्तरात्मा च मे शुद्धस्तस्मिंश्च बहवो गुणाः।।5.37.12।।
O best among the vAnaras, my conscience is pure and tell me that my husband will soon be united with me. There are innumerable virtues in him – enthusiasm, manliness, prowess, compassion, gratitude, valour and influence. Which enemy will not tremble in fear before him who single handedly without the help of his brother lakshmaNa vanquished fourteen thousand demons in the janasthAna? Just like the consort of indra and daughter of pulOma knows indra’s prowess I know rAma’s, he cannot be shaken by adversity. O vAnara, rAma is the sun with innumerable arrows as his rays using which he will dry up the enemy forces like the sun dries up water bodies”.
As she spoke thus about rAma with tears in her eyes, pining for him, the vAnara said –
“Once he learns about your whereabout from me, rAghava will at once come surrounded by the large army of the vAnaras and bears. Or else, O blemish-less lady with a charming face, I shall free you from distress right away. Get on to my back and with you aboard I will take you across the ocean. I have adequate might to even carry the entire lanka along with rAvaNa. I shall reach you to the praSravaNa mountain as dutifully and purely as agni carries the fire offerings to lord indra.
त्वां हि पृष्ठगतां कृत्वा सन्तरिष्यामि सागरम्।
शक्तिरस्ति हि मे वोढुं लङ्कामपि सरावणाम् ।।5.37.20।।
अहं प्रस्रवणस्थाय राघवायाद्य मैथिलि।
प्रापयिष्यामि शक्राय हव्यं हुतमिवानलः।।5.37.21।।
O vaidEhi, you shall see right today rAghava along with lakshmaNa who are making arrangements like vishNu for vanquishing the demons. The mighty rAma is longing to see you and waiting for you like indra sitting on the airAvata. O dEvi, don’t demur, get on to my back and I shall unite you with rAma like the star rOhiNI is united with Chandra (moon). You can be chatting with the sun and moon as I take you across the ocean on the skies. Worry not, not even all the inhabitants of lanka can together follow me as I take you across the ocean. I can carry you on my back and go back as swiftly and successfully as I came here”.
Responding to the startling offer of hanumAn, sItA was filled with surprise and delight and said to hanumAn –
“O hanumAn, you have displayed your fickle nature and poor judgment by saying you will carry me across! You are so tiny in your form and you are saying you will take me across and unite me with my lord rAma”!
सीताया वचनं श्रुत्वा हनुमान्मारुतात्मजः।
चिन्तयामास लक्ष्मीवान्नवं परिभवं कृतम्।।5.37.31।।
hanumAn heard sItA and the illustrious vAnara felt slighted and said –
“O lady of lovely eyes, you are indeed unaware of my being or ability. Hence take a look at this form which I can assume at my will.”
Saying so, the best among the leaping vAnaras, jumped off the tree, began to show his true form to vaidEhI and grew to gigantic proportions like the mount mEru and mandara in order to convince sItA of his abilities and stood in front of her with his like the blazing fire! The mountainous vAnara with blazing face and nails hard like diamond spoke thus to vaidEhI –
“I carry the ability in me to take away this entire lanka with its edifices, mountains, forests along with its king. Therefore, get rid of this pessimistic attitude and doubt and rid rAghava and lakshmaNa of their grief”.
Beholding the gigantic vAnara, the lotus-eyed daughter of janaka said –
तव सत्त्वं बलं चैव विजानामि महाकपे।
वायोरिव गतिं चैव तेजश्चाग्नेरिवाद्भुतम्।।5.37.40।।
“O great vAnara, I reckon your wind like speed and fire like brilliance. Which ordinary vAnara can actually cross over the ocean and land here? I am aware of your prowess, your ability to take me across, immaculate planning and faultless execution. However, O great vAnara, it would be improper for me to go with you. Your wind like speed will terrify me. And in that fear, I may fall off into the sea and become food for the aquatic animals as you fly across it. O devourer of enemies, you will get into trouble because of me. Seeing me being taken away, the wicked rAvaNa will order his demons to chase and fight you. They carry deadly weapons and how can you fight them without any weapons and sky-borne and at the same time protect me? Those demons are fully armed and are very fierce and might some how win over you. Or as you fight them I may slide off your back and fall and the evil demons might carry me back to captivity and hide me in place that either you or the other vAnaras may not be able to find. Or they might even shred me into pieces. Win or loss is uncertain in a war. I may simply die out of the fear of being captured by the demons again and in that case your efforts will go waste.
कामं त्वमसि पर्याप्तो निहन्तुं सर्वराक्षसान्।
राघवस्य यशो हीयेत्त्वया शस्तैस्तु राक्षसैः।।5.37.55।।
O great vAnara, you may well be able vanquish all the demons but that will indeed diminish the fame of rAma. All these efforts that you have put for my sake will meet fulfilment when you come here along with rAma. The lives of the great rAghava, lakshmaNa, their brothers and that of your royal clan of sugrIva hinge on my survival. The duo are grieving for me and are emaciated and they should not give up their lives along with that of the vAnaras.
O best of vAnaras, I shall tell you, cherishing the devotion towards my husband rAma, I shall not touch another man. If I came in contact with rAvaNa by force then I had no control on myself and what could a helpless woman do?
भर्तुर्भक्तिं पुरस्कृत्य रामादन्यस्य वानर।
न स्पृशामि शरीरं तु पुंसो वानरपुङ्गव।।5.37.60।।
यदि रामो दशग्रीवमिह हत्त्वा सबान्धवम्।
मामितो गृह्य गच्छेत तत्तस्य सदृशं भवेत्।।5.37.62।।
If rAma routs the ten-headed demon king along with his ilk and takes me home from here, tat will befit his stature. Having heard of his prowess in battlefield and seen it myself, I can tell you neither gods, nor serpents, not the demons or gandharvas can face him off on the battlefield. As he stands with indra like valour along with lakshmaNa in the battle field and blazing away with his wondrous bow who can stand him? Along with lakshmaNa, rAma stands with the certainty of the elephants that carry the quarters on their head. And as he unleashes his arrows like the rays of the sun who will be able to survive that?
स मे हरिश्रेष्ठ सलक्ष्मणं पतिं सयूथपं क्षिप्रमिहोपपादय।
चिराय रामं प्रति शोककर्शितां कुरुष्व मां वानरमुख्य हर्षिताम्।।5.37.66।।
Therefore O hanumAn, ensure that my lord reaches here soon along with lakshmaNa. I am grieving for rAma and so fill me with delight by bringing him hear very soon.
Here we conclude the thirty seventh 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: 5.38. The crest jewel carries her message
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rAmabhaktisAmrAjyam 
