Hanuman obeying Rama’s orders entered Lanka and he was acclaimed by the rakshasas. All the rakshasas were not bad. Many of them for fear of punishment had to obey Ravana. Now that Vibheeshana became their king, the subjects were happy with the end of Ravana’s reign.
Hanuman entered Ravana’s
palace and went to where Sita was sitting in a sad mood. He went near her and
paid his respects to her. However, Sita sat in silence. Hanuman said “Mother,
Rama has killed Ravana with the help of Lakshmana, Sugreeva, and Vibheeshana and
also the Vanara army. Here is Rama’s message to you which says ‘Devi I express
my love to you. By good fortune you are alive and Ravana also has been killed.
I ask you now to be peaceful and without any worry. I completed my duty in
building the bridge across the ocean and came and delivered to you. The kingdom
now belongs to Vibheeshana who is coming to see you”. Hanuman waited for Sita’s
reply but she kept silent.
So Hanuman asked her the reason for it and she said that she was at a loss to think of a suitable reward for Hanuman who brought her such good news. She said with her voice choked by feelings that she would never be able to thank him adequately. For this Hanuman replied in his usual brilliant way that he had been rewarded by seeing Rama victorious and safe. Sita appreciated his reply. Then Hanuman asked permission from Sita to let him kill all the rakshasis who were guarding her. He said that very much wanted to kill them, hurt them, and mutilate them. But Sita spoke softly and said that one should not bear malice and feelings of hatred to those rakshasis. Sita said that they simply had to obey their king Ravana and hence they acted so. Sita said that what she had gone through was because of her Karma and no one was to be blamed for that. Sita narrated a story from the Puranas to illustrate how a good person should forgive even those who did harm.
The story goes like this.
Once in a forest, a hunter was chased by a tiger and in order to save himself
climbed up a tree. But there a bear was sitting, so the hunter requested the
bear to protect him. The bear agreed. The tiger requested the bear to push
the hunter down but it refused because it had promised protection to him. Later
in the day, the bear went to sleep and the tiger returned and told the
hunter that if he would push the bear down it would leave him alone. Tempted by
this proposition the hunter did not hesitate to push the bear forgetting the
help it rendered him. But the bear clutched onto a branch. The tiger told the
bear how the hunter was ungrateful and therefore asked the bear again to push
him. But the bear said that it had given protection to him and so it would not
go back on that.
So Sita told Hanuman that
even the evil rakshasas ought to be shown forgiveness. Hanuman praised Sita
saying that she was great and deserved fully to be Rama’s wife. Then he asked
Sita to leave and Sita told him that she was desirous of seeing Rama. Hanuman
then left her to join Rama.
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