Surasā

Surasā is a divine being, the mother of the nāgas. She appeared in the middle of the ocean while Hanumān was crossing from Bhārata to Laṅkā. She blocked his path and said that the devas had decreed she would test him: no one could pass without first entering her mouth.

What followed was a famous contest of growing forms. Hanumān matched every enlargement of hers. Then he suddenly shrank to the size of a thumb, entered her mouth, came out at once and went on his way. He had done what her condition asked, and she had not swallowed him. Surasā was delighted, blessed him and let him go.

The commission from the devas

The devas saw Hanumān leap from Mahendra mountain toward Laṅkā, and they sent Surasā to test him. They wished to know whether this great vānara had wit, skill and flexibility of mind. These were needed for more than strength of body. His mission asked him to enter an enemy city, find a hidden prisoner and return without being destroyed. Surasā was the means of that testing.

The contest of forms

Surasā appeared before Hanumān in a huge form that blocked the sky above the ocean. She announced that, by divine decree, she was entitled to eat whoever crossed the sea, and that Hanumān must enter her mouth before going on.

Hanumān first tried to persuade her. He told her that he was going to find Sītā for Rāma and asked her to let him pass. She refused. Then he made his body grow to an enormous height. She opened her mouth wide to take him in. He grew larger, and her mouth grew larger still. Every growth of Hanumān’s form was matched by an equal widening of her mouth, and neither gained anything by size alone.

Then Hanumān suddenly shrank his whole form to the size of a thumb, darted into her open mouth and came out on the other side before she could close it. He bowed before her and said: “I have entered your mouth as you required. Now I go on my way.”

Surasā’s blessing

Surasā at once showed her true nature. She was not an enemy but a divine tester. She praised Hanumān with joy, because he had passed the test not by overpowering her with force but with intelligence and quickness. She blessed him and said: “Go and find Sītā. Return with success. May your mission prosper.” She stepped aside, and Hanumān went on across the ocean.

Sources

• Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Sundara Kāṇḍa, Chapter 1