Atri-Anasūyā Saṃgama

When Rāma, Sītā and Lakshmaṇa left Citrakūṭa for the Daṇḍaka forest, their first stop was the āśrama of Atri Maharshi and his wife Anasūyā. Atri welcomed Rāma as a father welcomes a son. Anasūyā was famous in the three worlds as a pativratā (a wife wholly devoted to her husband), and her tapas had given her great power. She taught Sītā and gave her divine gifts. At her request, Sītā then told how she had married Rāma. This is the last episode of the Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa of the Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa.

Leaving Citrakūṭa

Rāma chose to leave Citrakūṭa for several reasons. Bharata’s large army camp had disturbed the quiet of the āśrama, because its waste, fires and noise had changed the forest. The place was also full of memories: the family’s visit, Daśaratha’s death, and the great sorrow of the meeting with Bharata.

Khara and his rākshasas had also been troubling the tāpasas (ascetics) living near Citrakūṭa. They threw unclean things into their yajña fires, broke their homa vessels, and killed ascetics at night. The ṛshis of the place could no longer live there safely and were leaving for another old forest. Rāma promised them protection, but he could not stop them from going. He walked a short way with them to show respect.

Rāma then turned south into the Daṇḍaka forest. His first stop was the āśrama of Atri Maharshi (Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 116 and 117).

Atri Maharshi welcomes Rāma

Atri Maharshi is one of the seven great ṛshis, the saptarshis. He is a mind-born son of Brahmā, known for his tapas and his lineage. He received Rāma at his āśrama with the warmth of a father meeting a son he had long waited for.

He gave Rāma the full honour due to a great guest: water for the feet, arghya (a welcome offering of water) and a seat. He spoke of his deep joy that Rāma had come to his āśrama. Then he led Rāma and Sītā to his wife Anasūyā (Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapter 117).

Anasūyā’s great deeds

Atri told Rāma of the wonderful deeds of Anasūyā, all done by the power of her pativratā dharma.

The drought. Once a ten-year drought seized the whole earth. Rivers dried up and crops failed. Animals and people died of thirst and hunger. By the power of her tapas, Anasūyā made food from nothing to feed those in need. She also did tapas so strong that she brought the holy Gaṅgā to that region. The river flowed through the dry land and gave it life again.

The great tapas. Anasūyā performed a cāndrāyaṇa tapas that lasted ten thousand years.

The long night. The ṛshi Māṇḍavya had once spoken a terrible śāpa (a curse) on a devoted wife named Śāṇḍilī. By it her husband would die at dawn, because she had erred by rising late. Anasūyā stepped in. By the power of her tapas she made ten nights into one night and stopped the sun from rising. Dawn did not come, and the husband did not die. In this way Anasūyā’s tapas held back Māṇḍavya’s śāpa.

Atri said to Rāma that all these deeds came from the śakti (power) she had gathered through a lifetime of pativratā dharma (Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapter 117).

Anasūyā’s teaching to Sītā

Anasūyā was very old, white-haired and bright with tapas. She welcomed Sītā with great love and asked her to sit beside her. Then she taught Sītā about pativratā dharma.

She said that a husband is the wife’s deva, whatever his qualities or behaviour. Whether he is good or harsh, rich or poor, the wife’s dharma toward him does not change. Anasūyā gave Rohiṇī as the example. Rohiṇī is the beloved of all the nakshatras, and she followed Candra with unshaken devotion as the ideal pativratā. Women who live by this dharma win the highest lokas after death and fame in this life. Women who look to other men or leave their husbands win shame in this world and suffering in the next.

Sītā listened with respect and humility. She said she already knew these truths, and that Rāma’s great qualities made devotion to him natural and joyful. She spoke of Rāma: his dharma, his gentle strength, his love of truth and of those dear to him. She spoke of her joy in being his wife (Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapter 117).

The gifts

Anasūyā then wished to give Sītā a vara (a boon). Sītā refused, because she felt that all her wishes were already met. Anasūyā insisted with loving warmth and gave Sītā divine gifts:

• Garlands of divine flowers that would never fade
• Garments of celestial beauty
• Jewels and ornaments of rare quality
• Angarāga, a divine paste that would never fade and would keep Sītā’s beauty and glow

She asked Sītā to wear them, and said they would keep her beauty and well-being through the years in the forest (Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapter 118).

Sītā tells of her svayaṃvara

Anasūyā then asked Sītā to tell how she had met and married Rāma. Sītā said:

She was born from a furrow in the earth. King Janaka was ploughing a field for a yajña, and she came up from the earth itself. Janaka raised her as his daughter, dear to him and to his queen. She was named Sītā from sīta, the furrow.

Janaka held the great bow of Bhagavān Śiva, a divine weapon that had come to him through Devarāta, and originally from Varuṇa. Janaka made a vow that only the one who could string this bow would receive Sītā in marriage. Many kings came and tried to lift the bow. None could even move it.

Rāma came to Mithilā with Viśvāmitra and Lakshmaṇa. He lifted the bow with ease and strung it. As he drew it to its full stretch, it broke. The sound of the breaking bow was heard across the worlds. Daśaratha was called to Mithilā and the wedding was held with full ceremony. Ūrmilā, Janaka’s second daughter, was given to Lakshmaṇa. Sītā was dressed and brought to Rāma, and the great ṛshis blessed them. The Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa ends with the three of them entering the Daṇḍaka forest (Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 118 and 119).

Sources

• Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Ayodhyā Kāṇḍa, Chapters 116 to 119