Hanuman had accomplished a singular feat in leaping across the Indian Ocean from Rameshwaram to Ravan’s Lanka. He was clear about his role as well as his mission in the alien land. He was Ram’s emissary and he was to find Sita, observe her situation and assure her of Ram’s determination to rescue her from the captivity of the rakshas chief.
It was not going to be easy for him though. Seeing him in his native form, Princess Sita might not have received him as a messenger sent by her loving husband. And Lanka was a stronghold of rakshasas who would fight to death with someone like him who had devoted himself entirely to Ram’s cause. But Hanuman had come fully prepared. He had Ram’s signet ring to assure Sita of his identity. Possessed he was too of the physical strength of a giant, the suavity of a courtier, the wisdom of a divine being and the self-assurance of a Ram-bhakta – sovereign attributes that could outmatch anyone in the universe.
Landing on Mount Trikoot across the ocean, Hanuman surveyed Lanka. A lively forest spread before him. In a variety of fragrant flowery bushes and fruit trees, birds twittered and branches danced to the tune of a gently blowing wind. Lakes and ponds here and there shone like a silver patch-work on a rich tapestry. On the front side of the mount nestled Lanka, surrounded protectively by a moat. Hanuman had an eyeful of the flourishing city –
Kanak kot vichitra mani krit sundrayatna ghna/
Chauhatt hatt subatt bithin charu pur bahu bidhi bana//
Gaj baji khachchar nikar padchar rath baruthinh ko ganai/
Bahuroop nisichar jooth atibal sen barnat nahin banai//
There was a golden city-wall studded with wonderful jewels, which enclosed beautiful houses. The magnificent city was arrayed with crossroads, bazars, attractive passages and lanes. Who could count there the number of elephants, horses, strings of ponies, pedestrians and chariots! There were many teams of rakshasas of diverse shapes – their powerful army was hard to describe.
Ramcharitmanas/Sunderkand/Chhand 1
What concerned Hanuman the most, however, was the heavy security which was visible all over the place. That had to be so because it was there that Kuber – Ravan’s older brother and Protector of Wealth – had once ruled. Carrying spikes and pettish (sharp edged spear or some other weapon with three points – A Sanskrit English Dictionary, M. Monier Williams, p. 579), fierce-looking rakshasas stalwarts protected Lanka in the same manner as poisonous snakes protect their abode. From the defences of the citadel, it appeared to him that only the four quick-witted members of his army – Bali’s son, Angad, Neel, Sugriv and himself – could get inside it. The bulk of the monkey-army would prove ineffective, he feared, before the deadly warriors of Ravan, even if they managed to approach the city.
But his immediate worry was to find whether Sita was alive or not. He would think of a battle plan only after meeting her. For that, it was necessary for him to avoid being caught by the city’s defenders –
Lakshyalakshyen roopen raatrau Lankapuri mayaa/
Praptkaalam praveshtum me krityam saadhyitum mehet//
I should enter the city only at night-time. For acquitting this opportune task of looking for Sita, I must take such refuge in such a form as should not be visible to the eye. Only from (my) action should it be guessed that someone had come (from outside).
Balmiki Ramayan/Sunderkand/Canto 2(xxxv)
Hanuman waited for the nightfall and tried to enter the city as a small monkey, the size of a cat. But there was the local deity of Lanka herself who appeared before him in the guise of a female sentinel of a forbidding disposition. “O Monkey of the Forest! Who are you and why are you here? Tell me truthfully, or you lose your life!” She shouted at him.
The dauntless Hanuman asked in turn who she was. “I am Lanka in flesh and blood. Dare you enter without my permission and I shall kill you this instant!” She thundered in response.
Hanuman instantly resumed his gigantic form and said, “I am curious about the city-wall, its city-gates and the mansions standing inside. I have a great desire to see them at close quarters. That is why I am here. Noble Woman! I will go away after satisfying my curiosity.”
Rather than granting him permission, Lanka gave him a resounding slap on his face. Hanuman was furious. Yet, seeing that he faced a woman aggressor, he tempered down. Knitting the fingers of his left hand, he punched her just once. Lanka fell to the ground with a great shock. Conceding her defeat, she told him he was free to go anywhere in that accursed city.
Hanuman jumped across the wall rather than bothering to go through the city gate. It was a vibrant city. Sounds of singing, playing of musical instruments and dancing emanated from the houses. Crowds of rakshasas jammed a highway, singing paeans to Ravan. At the center of the city, he could discern a band of royal spies in their matted hair – some of them bare-bodied and others sporting cowskin or deerskin around their loins – pretending to be hermits. Among the ordinary denizens of the rakshas-city were those who had just one eye, distended bellies and breasts or twisted faces. Some were giants in stature while others were dwarfs.
Walking through the city, Hanuman reached Ravan’s antahpur – women’s quarters in his search for Sita. The sight of denuded women in the caverns of lechery and satiation filled him with odium, yet he remained steadfast in his quest. A feeling of surprise overtook his senses when he saw Ravan deep asleep with a very beautiful woman by his side. Could it be Sita? He wondered. It did not take him long to conclude that Ravan’s companion in sleep was his own wife, Mandodiri, not Sita (see, ibid, Canto 10).
Hanuman was frustrated. He feared even that Sita had died and thought of abandoning the mission –
Drishtmantahpuram sarv drishta Ravanyoshitah/
Na Sita drishyate sadhvi vritha jato mam shramah//
I have thoroughly searched Ravan’s antahpur, I have seen each and every one of his women, but not seen the saintly Sita till now, therefore all my labour (of crossing the ocean) has gone completely waste.
Ibid/Canto 12(vi)
But a greater fear deterred him. He could not risk telling Ram that he had failed to locate Sita.
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