Chapter 37 - Sita refuses to be rescued by Hanuman

The moon-faced Sita, hearing this speech, addressed Hanuman in words, fraught with piety and sound judgment:—

“O Monkey, you have revealed to me that Rama is wholly pre-occupied with my remembrance and also that he is plunged in grief, which is as nectar mingled with poison. Whether man be at the height of his power or in the abyss of sorrow, death draws him as with a cord. Living beings are unable to escape their destiny, O Excellent Monkey, behold how I, Rama and Saumitri are sunk in misery! As a wreck floating on the waters seeks to reach the shore, so does Raghava seek to come to the end of his woes.

“After destroying the titans, slaying Ravana and laying Lanka waste, will not my lord see me once again? Do you tell him to hasten, for at the end of this year I must die. This is the tenth month and two alone remain, that is the term fixed for me by that evil wretch, Ravana. His brother Bibi-shana made great entreaty to him to restore me, but he paid no heed to his proposals. Ravana does not look with favour on my release for death lies in wait for him, driven on, as he is, by fate. O Warrior, on her mother’s request, Kala, Bibishana’s eldest daughter told me of this. There is an old and trusty titan, named Avindha, full of wisdom, virtue, intelligence and nobility, highly revered by Ravana, who prophesied the imminent destruction of the titans by Rama, but that perverse wretch disregarded his salutory words. O Best of Monkeys, I still hope that my lord will soon be re-united with me, for my heart is pure and Rama’s virtues are infinite. He is endowed with endurance, courage, compassion, gratitude, energy and strength, O Monkey. What foe would not tremble before him, who slew fourteen thousand demons in Janasthana without his brother’s aid? That lion among men cannot be surpassed by the titan warriors; I am conversant with his powers as Saci is with Indra’s. O Monkey, that sun, Rama, with his innumerable arrows as his rays, will dry up the lake of hostile titans!”

Speaking thus, Sita, overwhelmed with grief at the thought of Rama, her face bathed in tears, was again addressed by Hanuman, who said to her:—

“No sooner shall I have spoken to Raghava, than he will hasten hither at the head of a powerful army composed of bears and monkeys or shall I deliver you this very day from the grasp of those titans and these present afflictions? Do you climb upon my back, O Irreproachable Lady, and bearing you on my shoulders, I will cross over the sea; verily I am able to carry away the City of Lanka together with Ravana himself. This day, as Anila bears the sacrificial offerings unto Shakra, I shall bring you back to Raghava on the Prasravana Mountain, O Maithili! To-day you shalt behold Rama, who is accompanied by Lakshmana, preparing to destroy the enemy, as Vishnu engaged in the destruction of the Daityas and you shalt see that mighty hero, eager to behold you, on that solitary mountain, resembling Purandara on the head of the King of the Serpents.

“O Lovely Goddess, mount on my shoulders, do not hesitate and be united with Rama, as Rohini is restored to Shashanka, as Saci to Indra, or Savarshala to the Sun. I shall cross the ocean by the aerial path 1 O Fair One, bearing you away from here, none of the dwellers in Lanka will be able to follow me. I shall return as I came, O Vaidehi, bearing you through space.”

Hearing these astonishing words, Maithili, trembling with joy, said to Hanuman: “How canst you hope to carry me so great a distance, O Hanuman? This demonstrates your monkey nature! How dost you deem it possible that your little body should convey me from here to my lord, that king among men, O Monkey?”

At these words Hanuman reflected: “This is the first affront I have suffered! Vaidehi is unaware of my prowess and strength. She shall learn that I am able to assume any shape at will 1” Thinking thus, that foremost of monkeys, Hanuman, the scourge of his foes, showed himself to Sita in his true form.

In order to inspire Site with confidence, leaping down from the tree, that monkey began to expand in size and grew equal to the Meru or Mandara Mountain or a flaming brazier and that lion among monkeys, of a coppery countenance, his body like a mountain, with nails and teeth like diamonds, standing before Site, said:—

“I am capable of uprooting Lanka with its hills, woods, fields, palaces, ramparts and gates and its monarch also! Take heart therefore O Queen, do not delay further, O Vaidehi! Come and dispel the grief of Raghava as also Lakshmana’s.”

Seeing the son of the Wind-god grow to the size of a mountain, the daughter of Janaka, whose eyes resembled lotus petals, said to him:—

“O Mighty Monkey, now I recognise the extent of your powers and your speed which equals the wind, also your radiance like unto fire. How should an ordinary monkey have reached this land beyond the infinite ocean? I know that you are able to take me from here and bear me away, but, O Foremost of Monkeys, I must consider if the consequences are to mine advantage. Furthermore, is it fitting for me to go with you? Your speed equal to the wind may render me giddy and I might fall from your back whilst you were proceeding high over the ocean. Flung into the sea filled with sharks, crocodiles and giant fish, I should certainly become the chosen prey of those monsters. Nay, I cannot go with you, O Destroyer of Your Foes and for you undoubtedly there is also grave danger. When the titans see you bearing me away, they will pursue you at the wicked Ravana’s command and, surrounded by those warriors furnished with spears and maces, carrying a woman, you will be beset with peril, O Hero! Fully armed, in great numbers, those titans would pursue you, who art unarmed; how couldst you then resist them and protect me? And when you are engaged in combat with those terrible demons, O Foremost of Monkeys, I, stricken with fear, will slip from your back. Those terrible, huge and powerful titans would then end by overcoming you in the conflict, O Excellent Monkey. Or turning my head, whilst you are engaged in fight, I should fall and those wicked titans would bear me away and bring me hither or, wresting me from your grasp, tear me to pieces. Victory or defeat is uncertain in combat! If I died under the threats of the titans, O First of the Monkeys, all thine efforts to deliver me will have been in vain. Though you are well able to destroy all the titans, Rama’s fame would thereby suffer decrease or the titans, bearing me away, would confine me in a secret place unknown to the monkeys or to Rama. Then, all thine efforts to rescue me will have been fruitless, but if Rama returns with you, great will be the chances of success.

“O Great-armed Warrior, the lives of Raghava, of his two brothers and of King Sugriva depend on me. Having given up hope of delivering me, worn out with grief and anxiety, those two brothers with all the bears and monkeys would end their existence. O Monkey, furthermore, being wholly devoted to my lord, I am unable to touch the body of any save Rama. When t was forced into contact with Ravana’s limbs, I was helpless and without a defender and was no longer in control of my person. If Rama comes to destroy Ravana and the titans and takes me away from here, it will be a feat worthy of him! I have heard of that hero’s great exploits and have myself witnessed them, nor can Devas, Nagas nor titans equal Rama on the field of battle!

“Who, having beheld him in combat, wielding his marvellous bow, endowed with a valour and strength like unto Indra’s, could withstand Rama who is accompanied by Lakshmana and who resembles a fire fanned by the wind? O Foremost of Monkeys, who would seek to oppose Rama, accompanied by Lakshmana, resembling elephants intoxicated with Mada juice, showering shafts like the rays of the sun at the time of the dissolution of the worlds? O Best of Monkeys, do you bring my dear one and Lakshmana with the Lord of the Monkey Hosts, here with all speed. On account of separation from Rama, I have long been consumed with grief, now, O Valiant Monkey, make me happy once more.”