Kamba Ramayana by Sundaram P S

Author:Sundaram, P S [Sundaram, P S]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9789351181002
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Published: 2002-05-03T04:00:00+00:00

GETTING THROUGH A TUNNEL

(Hanuman and the other stalwarts, all of whom were looking forward to the prospect of a war, went past the Vindhyas, the gracious mountain that resembled Siva’s bejewelled head, the sacred Narmada where they came upon buffalo calves in the water looking rather like dark clouds drinking up the sea, Mount Hemakuta with its crest of flashing streams and many other wondrous places. Everywhere they searched diligently for Sita but in vain. They saw her dark hair in the sand of the river, her bright face in the lotuses that floated in the pools, her teeth in the pearls that lay scattered among the hills, but nowhere did they see all of her together. At Hemakuta they were sure that the fortress shaped hill was where the evil rakshasa was holding her prisoner. They scoured it a whole day, frightening the elephants and yalis that lived there. But nowhere could they find the golden maiden.

Finally, they reached a desert tract where water was unknown, where the sun himself feared to tread. No birds or beasts ever came there; no grass or flowering tree had ever been found; everything from without that dared set foot there was turned to dust by that dreadful desert).

Senses numbed, feelings crushed, their golden bodies tortured with sweat, they were like worms and boneless creatures wilting in the fires of hell. Their tongues hung out and boils erupted on the soles of their feet. So hot was the ground that when they trod upon it, they leapt up, like sparks from a stone.

Seeing no shade to rest under, tortured without end, their souls having almost deserted their bodies, they approached a long tunnel. ‘We cannot go further without dying. This will at least give some shelter from the heat,’ they told themselves, and entered the dark opening.

Once inside, it was as if they were stuck in a thick ghee of blackness. It was like a cave where, fearing the sun, all the darkness in the world had taken refuge.

They could neither move nor even see their own feet. Not knowing what to do, feeling they were about to die, they prayed earnestly to Hanuman to save them.

‘Don’t despair,’ said he, ‘hold on to my tail and don’t let go.’ Groping his way through, hands outstretched, he began to walk fast. His earrings, flashing like intermittent lightning in a dark sky, dispelled the surrounding darkness.

All of a sudden, they came upon a city that shone as if the sun had hid himself there. With karpaka trees and lotus pools, golden towers and a strong fortress, it had been fashioned with care by Maya, the architect of the asuras.

In total astonishment, the monkeys thought it must be Ravana’s own city and were happy that the end of their quest was at hand. Then Jambavan said, ‘That arch thief who has stolen Sita, has contrived an excellent trap for us. How are we ever going to get out of this endless cave?’

Hanuman snapped impatiently, ‘Stop these howls of despondency.

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