Searching for Sita in the Vindhya Mountains

In the previous chapter, we saw The Vanara army going in search of Sita. , Now we'll see Searching for Sita in the Vindhya Mountains.

The Sarga 48 describes the search for Sita by Hanuman and his army. They started from the Vindhya Mountains searching the forests and the caves but in vain. They then came to a region that was devoid of any trees or water. There is a story connected with that.

In our Itihasas and Puranas, it is common that these kinds of small stories (Upakathas) crop up to explain certain things. In this case, it was about the great Rishi Kandu who was living there. He lost his son who was in his prime youth and Kandu got so enraged that he cursed the whole place to become desert-like and the region became like that.

I wonder if this region does not correspond to the present Deccan plateau. One can see as we fly over how rocky and desert-like the region is!

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They then came to another forest region. As they entered they saw a Rakshasa who was the son of Mareecha, huge like a mountain who rushed towards the Vanaras with the intention of killing them and eating them. Angada thought that he was Ravana and so slapped him with full force and killed him. Still finding no sign of Sita they all sat down totally discouraged. Angada lectured them and encouraged them to try and search for Sita without abandoning her. He reminded them also about the death penalty that awaited them if they returned empty-handed.

Gandhamada one of the Vanara chiefs then addressed the Vanaras and told them that they should as per the advice of Angada should restart their search in every nook and corner of the forest and the mountains. The Vanaras started the search again in the forests on the southern slopes of the Vindhya Mountains and climbed Rajata Mountain (which could be a small mountain among the ranges of Vindhya Mountain) and searched on its slopes again but with no success. They continued towards the south and came to a cave with a big opening called Rikshabila (Bila in Sanskrit means cave), which was guarded by a Rakshasa. They were all exhausted, dying of thirst and tired. Hanuman then noticed several birds coming out of the cave that was all dripping wet.

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So he told the Vanaras that there ought to be a water source inside the cave and they should go and satiate their thirst. It was totally dark inside and all the Vanaras entered the cave holding each other’s hands. They first came to a big forest rich in varieties of trees bearing flowers and fruits. Some of them were palm, Sala, Marudu, Magizham, Konrai and so on. Some of the trees are unknown to us now. They saw ponds and streams with dark blue water filled with lotus and other flowers. They were so surprised to see some palaces with rich interiors. There were different types of furniture for relaxing all made of gold and silver and very luxurious. In one place there were so many varieties of food which were without parallel! As they proceeded they came upon a very old woman Sanyasini. She was lean due to control of her hunger and was glowing.

Hanuman respectfully asked her who she was and who was the owner of that place? He also said that they were all very thirsty and hungry and were in search of food and water and hence entered the cave in search of food and water. Hanuman asked her to tell them by whose penance this lovely place with palaces and garden was created. The Sanyasini started to reply to Hanuman.

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Here is a short account of what she said which is a small anecdote (upakatha). The old Sanyasini called Swayamprabha had been doing penance. She said that the whole place in the cave was built by a famous Asura called Maya (not Maaya) who was an expert in creating illusions. He had learned the science of sculpture created by Ausanas, thanks to his penance towards Brahma. He fell in love with a Deva lady Hema which enraged Indra and he killed the Asura. This place was gifted to Hema and was now being guarded by Swayamparabha. She then asked Hanuman to tell her about him and the Vanaras and what brought them there. But she was gracious enough to say that they all could first eat to their heart’s content and then tell her their story.

Hanuman thanked Swayamprabha for her hospitality. All the Vanaras feasted themselves and drank water to their heart’s content. They all felt happy to have found food and water at last. Hanuman thanked Swaymprabha for her kind hospitality and asked her if there was anything that they could do to repay her kindness. But she replied that she had no wants in her life having attained the highest state by her penance. Then Hanuman told Swayamprabha about Rama and how Sita was carried away by Ravana and how they were all there in search of Sita under the leadership of the Vanara King Sugreeva. He asked her to help them as they had lost the time allotted to them by their king Sugreeva while searching in the cave. Therefore all of them faced a death punishment from their king. He requested her to help them find their way out of that huge cave. She assured them that by the power of her penance she would help them. She said that no one could go out with their eyes open and said that all they needed was to close their eyes. Accordingly, they all closed their eyes with their tender fingers and in a short time all of them found themselves out in the open.

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Swayamprabha addressed the Vanaras and said, “This is the Vindhya Mountain covered with forests. This hill is called Prashravana. You can see the great sea called Mahodadhi. Great Vanaras may good things happen to you all. I am returning to my palace”. After saying this she vanished into the cave.

It is noteworthy that Swayamprabha tells the Vanaras that they were in the Vindhya Mountain ranges and on a hill called Prashravana. It may be recalled that Rama and Lakshmana were also waiting on the Prashravana hill in Kishkindha for the Vanaras to return after their search. This is conceivable only if there were two hills in different locations but with the same name. Such inconsistencies (apparent) make things difficult to understand.

The Vanaras saw the big Ocean with the big roaring waves. They all sat down and started analyzing the situation. They realized that the time limit of one month given to them by Lord Sugreeva was over.

Here there is something to ponder about. Swayamprabha specifically told the Vanaras that they were in the Vindhya Mountains. It is obviously difficult if not impossible from that location to see the ocean (Indian?). Therefore one has to presume that Swayamprabha did not refer to The Indian Ocean but either to The Bay of Bengal or The Arabian Sea. So it has to be remembered that at that point in time all the Vanaras were not at the southern tip of India. They were all further to the north of Kishkindha and Rama along with Lakshmana was in Kishkindha.