| Great Personalities |
 |
| Biographies of Great Indians & Hindus |
LAKSHMANA |
|
| "I
am Ravan’s Sister"Some time passed. One day, young woman came to the Ashram and seeing
Rama and Lakshmana, she was struck by their charming personalities. Lakshmana was standing
nearby. The young woman approached them and enquire who they were, what they were, etc.
Rama told her about them and inquired about her. She said: "I am Ravana’s
sister. I stay in this habitation. I want to marry you. Please accept me." Rama then
said surprised and distressed: "I have my wife. Why should you become my another
wife? My brother has no wife. Go and marry him," he said jokingly. All right, she
said and asked Lakshmana to marry her. He also said humorously: "My brother is a king
and I am his slave. Why should you marry a slave instead of the king?" "Yes,
that is also correct. Rama, marry me," she pleaded again and saying, "Because
you have a wife you will not marry me, isn’t it? I will finish her,"
she menacingly rushed towards Sita who felt really afraid. Sri Rama asked Lakshmana to stop this evil woman. He properly punished her and she ran away. (In the present-day text, the punishment has been interpreted as cutting off her ears and nose. It may not be so in the original. The poem which says this woman was Shoorpanakha says she later went to Lanka and met her brother Ravana. At that point, no reference is made to the absence of ears and nose. Will any brother, on seeing his sister who hascome after losing her ears and nose, neither it nor talk about it? Probably, this episode of ears and nose must have been added later. There are many such instances in Ramayana.) The woman, punished by Lakshmana, rushed to Khara and complained. He, his brothers and others came and attacked Rama but were defeated, and died in the fighting. Hearing this, Ravana Decided to wreak revenge and in consultation with Mareecha hatched a plan and both cames to Rama’s Ashram. |
|
