The Sundar
Kand begins right after Lord Hanuman regains his lost supernatural
powers, which had become hidden from him because of a curse given in
childhood by an ascetic. For a partial incarnation of Shiva, many major
events, including this curse, could have been predetermined. Probably
Hanuman wanted to experience the devotion of Rama, the seventh
incarnation of Vishnu, as a common being for a while – as a being free
from any supernatural abilities and the responsibilities that accompany
divine powers. When Nature, who is believed to have incarnated as Sita
in the Ramayana, found the moment appropriate to trigger the destruction
of evil, represented by Ravana and his army, Hanuman got transformed
from a fulltime devotee to a divine warrior. He was given the task to
locate where Sita was held captive and bring this bit of information for
Rama. For Hanuman, the eternal devotee of Rama, this was his first major
assistance to his Lord.
Hanuman began his journey of Lanka by destroying the protective covering
of the city, symbolized by the mystical gatekeeper – Lankini. While he
examined the structure of the city, and the strengths or weaknesses of
the city, he did not forget his eternal task of finding souls who are
worthy of receiving a vision of Rama. He found a prospective follower in
Ravana’s brother Vibhishana and this meeting became the latter’s
inspiration to take refuge in Rama when his brother Ravana abandoned
him. In a spiritual sense, this was not a diplomatic move though it
probably turned out to be one. Hanuman had only done what he enjoys the
most, besides chanting the name of Rama. He had connected a jiva
(soul) to the Absolute.
As Hanuman reached Ashoka Vatika, he saw Sita – distressed but immersed
in the remembrance of Rama. As always, Hanuman’s timing of arrival was
perfect; he had reached moments before Sita planned to give Her life in
longing for Rama. Hanuman narrated Rama’s biography, offered his Lord’s
ring to Sita, and made Her believe that Rama would be there shortly.
Sita became so pleased with Hanuman’s devotion to Rama, which was way
above being nishkama, that She blessed Hanuman with boons that
were to last till the end of time.
On a spiritual plane, Sita is the Universal energy, beyond happiness and
sorrow, who was performing in a self-created delusion to restore
righteousness. The tree, in Hindu symbology, depicts spiritual
experience and sages or incarnations like Buddha are generally portrayed
under a tree to highlight their enlightened form. Similarly, Sita’s
location under a tree may have depicted Her spiritual form in the
Ramayana. When even regular souls can attain an enlightened state
through uninterrupted Rama remembrance, an incarnation of the benevolent
Divine Mother may easily aggregate universal forces by tapasya to
establish dharma in the world and bestow extraordinary boons to the
devotees of Her choice. It was not coincidence that among all the
righteous beings in the Ramayana, only Hanuman was considered worthy of
parental affection from this spiritual form of Sita. Some of the
blessings Hanuman obtained from Sita, as Tulasidasa mentions, include:
immortality, infallibility, un-changeability, continual affection from
Rama, and a ‘blank cheque’ to bestow any of the divine riches (Ridhhi)
or powers (Siddhi) to others at his own discretion in future
times.
After eating
some fruits from the trees in Ashoka vatika, Hanuman engaged in a small
battle. Care had to be taken not to annihilate Ravana and his major
generals, for he was performing the role of an envoy and destruction at
a large magnitude may have equaled overriding Rama’s orders. But a
psychological defeat was allowed. In the fight, one of Ravana’s son was
destroyed, and Hanuman displayed such extreme valor that Meghanada,
Ravana’s bravest son, found no alternative to shooting the Brahmastra –
an arrow invoked with the Creator’s destructive potential. Hanuman
decided to show respect…not to the opponent, but to the presiding deity
and got himself tied. This made way for him to meet Ravana and give him
instruction on righteousness in person. Hanuman explained that Ravana
always had the option of returning Sita and apologizing to Rama for his
inappropriate behavior. Hanuman’s behavior with Ravana was in line with
what Lord Shiva, the controller of all souls, always does. He provides
the jiva multiple chances to improve, birth after birth. There is
never a last chance to leave arrogance and say ‘sorry.’ But like other
egotistical jivas, who fail to recognize Shiva in their heart,
Ravana failed to recognize the incarnation of Shiva, Whom he had always
worshipped in life.
In the final
phase of his journey to Lanka, Hanuman burned the city of Lanka. He then
revisited Sita to offer farewell salutations and obtained an ornament
that was a part of Sita’s message to Rama. Hanuman might have recognized
that the next time he sees Sita, the city of Lanka would belong to a new
king, who happens to be a devotee of Sita-Rama, not someone who
practices Rama remembrance with animosity.
Hanuman’s visit to Lanka created such a psychological havoc that the
Lankans could not come out of its impact until they lost the war. By the
time Hanuman departed, Ravana was left with a dead son, a wife who was
worrying and panicking Rama’s grand ambassador, and a burnt city devoid
of their mystical protection. Although the city was rebuilt, just like
evil springs up again following its suppression, the scars of conquer
never healed. To make things worse, Vibhishana, who had been spiritually
initiated by Hanuman, joined the ‘opponent’ forces. Hanuman, who is
considered to be the controller of Mars (the god of war) in Vedic
tradition, set everything for Rama’s victory. He saved Rama from
spending time on many subtleties of warfare. As a result, Rama could
focus on establishing moral boundaries on earth, even towards one’s
enemies, and on spending time with ‘fellow’ souls to reciprocate their
love. In Hindu thought, whenever God incarnates, His forces accompany
Him to carry out the divine play, so that most of His time may be spent
on interacting with jivas, and initiating them into goodness.
When Hanuman returns to Rama, he gives Sita’s message, Her ornament and
the details of his visit. Soon Hanuman finds that Rama has formed a new
relationship with him. This was not a relationship between a lord and a
devotee, or a father and a son, but was the relation of being ‘indebted’
to Hanuman for what he had done for Him. On the other hand, Hanuman
could not understand what Rama was praising him for. In his heart,
Hanuman had already transferred the entire doership of his
accomplishments to his Lord. Such is the vastness of Hanuman’s love for
Rama.
Today, Hanuman is worshipped among Hindus for his delight in connecting
jivas to God. All saintly devotees of Rama in recent times,
including Tulasidasa, Samarth Ramdas, Thyagaraja, and Ramananda, have
worshipped Hanuman with a similar aspiration. He is believed to be
responsible for propagating the name of Rama in the world, and for many
followers, Hanuman remains as the only way to Rama.
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The Sundar
Kand begins right after Lord Hanuman regains his lost supernatural
powers, which had become hidden from him because of a curse given in
childhood by an ascetic. For a partial incarnation of Shiva, many major
events, including this curse, could have been predetermined. Probably
Hanuman wanted to experience the devotion of Rama, the seventh
incarnation of Vishnu, as a common being for a while – as a being free
from any supernatural abilities and the responsibilities that accompany
divine powers. When Nature, who is believed to have incarnated as Sita
in the Ramayana, found the moment appropriate to trigger the destruction
of evil, represented by Ravana and his army, Hanuman got transformed
from a fulltime devotee to a divine warrior. He was given the task to
locate where Sita was held captive and bring this bit of information for
Rama. For Hanuman, the eternal devotee of Rama, this was his first major
assistance to his Lord.