Maṇḍodarī Hitabodha (Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa)

After Hanumān burned Laṅkā, fear spread through the whole city. In the Sundara Kāṇḍa of the Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa, Maṇḍodarī, the chief queen of Rāvaṇa, goes to her husband and speaks to him out of love and fear. She tells him plainly who Rāma and Sītā are, and she warns him that the whole rākshasa line will be destroyed on Sītā’s account. Rāvaṇa laughs at her and walks away.

Setting

Hanumān had burned the palaces of Laṅkā, slain the rākshasa warriors and filled the city with dread. Fear ran through every house. The rākshasa women whispered to one another: “This one vānara messenger crossed the ocean that no one can cross. He entered our city that no one could attack. He killed our champions and burned our palaces, and then he vanished. If the servant of his master is like this, what must the master himself be? Laṅkā’s safety was only a belief. Something terrible is coming.”

This fear reached even the inner chambers of Rāvaṇa’s antaḥpura (the women’s quarters of the palace). Maṇḍodarī felt the dread move through her body. She left the antaḥpura and went to find Rāvaṇa, to speak to him before the disaster could no longer be stopped.

The counsel

Maṇḍodarī spoke to Rāvaṇa with respect and with urgency. Her words are very clear about who Rāma and Sītā are.

“Nātha (my master)! You have seen with your own eyes what Rāma’s messenger has done. Even the unborn children in the wombs of the rākshasa women shook with fear when they heard of his deeds. He is no ordinary being. His śakti (power) is beyond measure. Prāṇeśvara (lord of my life)! You make a great mistake when you think of Śrī Rāma as only a mortal. That very Śrīmannārāyaṇa, who creates, protects and dissolves the worlds, has appeared as Rāma. And Ādi Lakshmī herself has been born as Sītā. To make enemies of these two will not bring us good. To keep the daughter of Janaka as a prisoner in Laṅkā is not auspicious for this kingdom.”

She then gave a picture. A winter night is the enemy of a lotus grove. In the same way, Sītā’s presence in Laṅkā destroys everything around her. The whole rākshasa line, she said, will be wiped out because of this one wrong act. She ended with direct advice: “Danujeśvara (king of the danujas)! Even now, if you will listen to my words and care for the welfare of your line, give Sītā back to Rāma at this very moment and make peace with him.”

Rāvaṇa’s answer

Rāvaṇa heard her tearful plea and laughed. He answered with pride and with gentle mockery: “Maṇḍodarī! Women are timid by nature. You are the wife of the one before whom the devas, the dikpālas (guardians of the directions) and all the worlds trembled and ran. Yet you let a woman’s fear take hold of you like this. It makes me ashamed. Kāntāmaṇī (jewel among women)! When the army of men and vānaras comes to our gates, the rākshasas will eat them to their heart’s content. Your fears have no ground and they bring bad luck. Do not speak such words.”

With these words Daśakaṇṭha (Rāvaṇa, the ten-headed) drew Maṇḍodarī close. He stroked her head with love, kissed her, and comforted her like a husband sure that nothing could defeat him. Then he left the antaḥpura in a proud and careless mood and went to his court.

Maṇḍodarī’s grief

Left alone, Maṇḍodarī fell into deep grief. She thought of the signs of ruin around her husband. Those whose end is near cannot smell the lamp as it dies. They cannot hear the advice of those who wish them well. They cannot read the signs that the wise know to be certain. She said to herself: “What has fate written for my husband? What terrible thing waits for him?”

What the Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa shows here

In this scene of the Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa, Maṇḍodarī names Rāma as Nārāyaṇa and Sītā as Ādi Lakshmī before the war begins. She makes this known to Rāvaṇa while there is still time to act on it.

Rāvaṇa meets her counsel with laughter and kind words. He pats her head and calls her timid. The text, in Tulasīdāsa’s words, remarks on vidhikṛta (what fate has ordained): those whose time of destruction is near cannot see clearly, even when the truth stands in front of them.

After this, the Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa gives the assembly scene in which Vibhīshaṇa advises Rāvaṇa.

Sources

• Tulasī Rāmāyaṇa, Sundara Kāṇḍa