Valmiki's Ramayana by Vālmīki Sattar Arshia

Author:Vālmīki,Sattar, Arshia [Sattar, Arshia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishing Group, Inc.
Published: 2018-03-21T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Swiftly, they all went to Kiṣkindha, Vālī’s city, and stationed themselves in the forest, hiding behind trees. Sugrīva girded his loins and, outside the gates of Kiṣkindha, he let out a mighty roar that pierced the sky, challenging Vālī to fight. Vālī heard his brother and charged out in a rage, red as the sun over the western mountains. A huge and noisy fight ensued between Vālī and Sugrīva, like the clash of Mercury and Mars in the sky. In their fury, both the brothers attacked each other with their fists and feet, hitting one another with the force of thunderbolts.

His bow at the ready, Rāma watched the two monkeys fighting. They looked exactly like each other, like the aśvins. Rāma could not tell which was Vālī and which Sugrīva, so he held back the arrow that was bound to kill one of them. Worsted in combat, his spirit broken, Sugrīva ran back to the Ṛṣyamūka mountain because he could not see his protector, Rāma, anywhere. Vālī followed him, wounded, tired and covered with blood. But when he saw Sugrīva enter the area where he could not go because of the curse, he shouted, ‘You have escaped this time!’ and went back to Kiṣkindha.

Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa and Hanumān returned to find Sugrīva, his head hanging low, feeling utterly disgraced. ‘Rāma, you showed me your skills and urged me to challenge Vālī. Then you let me be injured by my enemy! Why did you do this?’ said Sugrīva plaintively, wretched and miserable. ‘If you had made it clear before that you were not going to kill Vālī, I would never have left his place!’

‘Listen to me, dear Sugrīva, and do not be angry,’ said Rāma. ‘Listen to why I held back my arrows. You and Vālī are exactly alike. You look like each other, your movements are the same, even your clothes and ornaments do not distinguish you from one another! Monkey, I could not even tell you apart by voice and complexion, nor by your skills, your speech or your personalities. I was thoroughly confused by these resemblances and so I did not release my deadly arrow which would have taken a life. But within the next hour, you shall see Vālī laid low by my arrow, writhing on the ground. Put on something that will distinguish you from him so that I can recognize you when you are fighting. Lakṣmaṇa, take this flowering creeper and place it around Sugrīva’s neck as a garland!’

Lakṣmaṇa picked up the creeper, abundant with flowers that grew on the hillside, and arranged it around Sugrīva’s neck. With that garland, the monkey shone like a cloud in the evening sky. Then he made for Kiṣkindha, reassured by Rāma’s words.

Once again, they all hid themselves in the trees of the forest. Sugrīva looked around the forest that he loved and worked himself up into a rage. Again he let out a great roar that seemed to pierce the sky and challenged Vālī to fight. Sugrīva blazed like the morning sun and his gait was like a lion’s.

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