Lava

Lava is the younger of the twin sons of Bhagavān Rāma and Sītā. He was born in the āśrama (hermitage) of Vālmīki after Sītā was left in the forest, while she was expecting. He and his twin brother Kuśa were raised by Vālmīki. They learned all the Vedas, the use of weapons, archery and the art of music, and Vālmīki taught them the Rāmāyaṇa.

The Padma Mahā Purāṇa tells how Lava seized the Aśvamedha horse from the procession of Śatrughna near Vālmīki’s āśrama, defeated the whole army, killed the general Kālajit, and made Hanumān fall unconscious. Śatrughna then made Lava unconscious. Kuśa freed him, and the two brothers drove the army back. After Rāma recognised his sons, they sang the Rāmāyaṇa with great joy.

Birth

Lava was born in Vālmīki’s āśrama together with his twin brother Kuśa. Vālmīki had given shelter to Sītā after Rāma left her. The twin sons “illumined the ten quarters” at birth. Vālmīki named them and performed all the saṃskāras (life rites) for them. This is told in the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 59.

Education

Vālmīki taught Lava himself. Lava mastered all four Vedas with their aṅgas (limbs of the Veda), the Upaniṣads, Āyurveda, archery, the science of divine weapons and missiles, the lore of magic, and the art of music and singing. With his brother Kuśa he sang on the banks of the Gaṅgā and in forest bowers, and he charmed the wild animals and birds. Vālmīki gave both twins all the divine missiles and blessed them with his hand. He also taught them the Rāmāyaṇa that he had composed. This is told in the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 66.

Seizing the Aśvamedha horse

Rāma’s Aśvamedha horse came near Vālmīki’s āśrama, and Lava seized it. He was strengthened by Vālmīki’s teaching and by the weapons he had received. The guard-soldiers of Śatrughna could not get the horse back. The general Kālajit saw the boy and spoke kindly: “O boy, leave the horse. Seeing you resembling Rāma, pity arises in my heart.”

Lava answered sharply: “Your name Kālajit was given by your mother for its sound, not for your valour. Show me your prowess.” He told Kālajit: “Go, you are free. Report to that Rāma the seizure of the horse. I am not afraid of you, though you utter words of political wisdom. I do not care if crores like you encounter me. Due to the grace of my mother’s feet they are to me as light as cotton.” This is told in the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapters 54 and 60.

The battle and the death of Kālajit

In the battle that followed, Lava showed great skill.

• He broke the arrows of Kālajit in the air.
• He destroyed Kālajit’s chariot, so that Kālajit had to climb onto an elephant.
• He cut off the elephant’s trunk, climbed onto its tusks, and knocked Kālajit down.
• He cut off Kālajit’s right arm, then the left arm, then the feet.
• At last he killed him with a sword by cutting off his head.

Lava then drove off the whole army of four divisions. Hanumān was sent to fight Lava, and Hanumān also fell unconscious. The source is the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapters 60–61.

Made unconscious by Śatrughna

Śatrughna himself then entered the battle. He is the great warrior who had killed the asura Lavaṇa. After a fierce fight he made Lava unconscious on the field. Lava was placed in the chariot of Śatrughna. His companions ran to tell Sītā.

Sītā grieved deeply: “O hero Lava, where are you, full of great power? You are a boy; they are in chariots and invincible. Without you, how shall I live in the forest? You who wash away my sorrow, do not realize my sorrow.” This is told in the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 63.

Freed by Kuśa

Kuśa came from Ujjayinī and heard that Lava had been taken. He rushed to the battle. While Kuśa fought Śatrughna and broke the army, Lava was freed from the chariot. Together Kuśa and Lava drove the whole army to flight. Kuśa threw them to the east and Lava threw them to the west. The Purāṇa compares the battle to the churning of the ocean with its waves rising. This is in the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 63.

Recognition and the singing of the Rāmāyaṇa

Rāma appeared and recognised the boys, and Vālmīki confirmed who their parents were. Kuśa and Lava then sang the whole Rāmāyaṇa before the assembly of Rāma, the devas, the asuras and the gandharvas. Their singing, the Purāṇa says, enticed the three worlds. All who were present praised the two princes. The source is the Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapter 66.

The Uttara Kāṇḍa account

The Uttara Kāṇḍa of the Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa tells of the birth of Lava and his early life at the āśrama of Vālmīki. It tells of his training in the Rāmāyaṇa with Kuśa, and of their coming to the Aśvamedha yajña of Rāma. It does not include the battle with Śatrughna, which is found in the Padma Purāṇa account above. In the Uttara Kāṇḍa, Lava and Kuśa simply enter the assembly and begin to sing. Their rare voices hold the whole gathered world still. After the recognition and Sītā’s entry into the earth (bhūpraveśa), Rāma made Lava king of Śrāvastī, the capital of northern Kosala, before the mahāprasthāna (Rāma’s great final journey). The source is the Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Uttara Kāṇḍa, Chapters 69–70, 96–100 and 106.

The Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Janma Khaṇḍa

The Janma Khaṇḍa of the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa gives the origin and battles of Lava in much greater detail than other texts.

Lava made from kuśa grass. In the Janma Khaṇḍa, Lava is not born from the womb of Sītā. Vālmīki makes him from a blade of kuśa grass by the power of his tapas (austerity). Sītā had left the infant Kuśa alone while she bathed in the river. Vālmīki took a blade of kuśa grass and charged it with mantras and tapas. From it he made a living child, the same as Kuśa in form and radiance. The child was named Lava. Both children were then raised as the sons of Sītā. Rāma said this openly in the assembly: “I know that Lava was created from kuśa grass by you out of compassion when Sītā was alarmed.” The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Janma Khaṇḍa, Chapter 4.

Vālmīki’s blessing of growth. Vālmīki blessed Lava so that water poured on him would make him grow in strength and not lose it. This was seen when Lakṣmaṇa had taken Lava with the Brahmāstra and tried to hold him down. As water was poured on the bound Lava, he grew in size and power before the amazed warriors. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Janma Khaṇḍa, Chapter 7.

The battles in detail. At the age of five, Lava defeated 114 guards of the royal garden of Ayodhyā, and on later visits he defeated 1,000 guards. At the hundredth Aśvamedha, Lava seized the horse of the yajña. He defeated these warriors one after another: Śatrughna (with the Vāyavyāstra), Sugrīva, Aṅgada, Nīla, Jāmbavān, Nala, Sumantra, Bharata, Hanumān, Garuḍa, Vibhīṣaṇa and Suṣeṇa. He made them all unconscious with the Mohanāstra. He was finally taken by the Brahmāstra of Lakṣmaṇa. After the miracle of the water, Kuśa came and freed him with the Gāruḍāstra. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Janma Khaṇḍa, Chapters 6–7.

Upanayana and pilgrimage. Vasiṣṭha performed the upanayana (the sacred thread rite) of Lava after that of Kuśa. Rāma arranged celebrations of the same grandeur. Lava then finished his study of the Veda. With all eight royal princes he went on a five-month pilgrimage (tīrtha-yātrā) to all the holy places of Bhāratavarṣa. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Janma Khaṇḍa, Chapter 9.

The Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Vivāha Khaṇḍa

Svayaṃvara of Sumatī. Bhūrikīrti Mahārāja arranged the svayaṃvara (the bride’s own choice of husband) of his granddaughter Sumatī at Vaṭapura on the eastern sea coast. Rāma travelled there with his family to attend. The dādi Sunanda presented the assembled kings one by one. They were Ugrabāhu, king of Avantī; Aṅganādha, king of Vidarbha; Paraṃtapa, king of Magadha; Kambukantha, king of the Draviḍas; and Vijaya, king of Karnāṭa. Also present were Yūpaketu, Subāhu, Puṣkara, Takṣa, Citraketu and Aṅgada. All were respectfully turned down. When the procession reached Lava, Sumatī placed her garland (māla) on him. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Vivāha Khaṇḍa, Chapter 3.

Wedding and gifts. The wedding of Lava and Sumatī took place at Vaṭapura with all the Vedic rites, at the same time as the wedding of Kuśa. Bhūrikīrti gave Lava the same great gifts that he gave Kuśa: one lakh elephants, one lakh palanquins, five lakh horses and one lakh chariots. The couple returned to Ayodhyā after the celebrations. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Vivāha Khaṇḍa, Chapters 3–4.

Marriage to Kañjānanā. The nāga kings were grateful, because Rāma had freed their daughters from the captivity of Jaladevī at the Pañcappa lake. At their request, Vasiṣṭha Maharṣi gave the nāgakanyā (serpent maiden) Kañjānanā to Lava as his second wife. Their wedding was the first of the twelve weddings of nāgas and gandharvas. It took place at Ayodhyā at a fixed auspicious time (muhūrta) in the bright half (śukla pakṣa) of Vaiśākha. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Vivāha Khaṇḍa, Chapters 6–7.

Children. In the account of the family lines, Sumatī and Kañjānanā each bore Lava eight sons and one daughter. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Vivāha Khaṇḍa, Chapter 9.

The Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Pūrṇa Khaṇḍa

The battle at Hastināpura

Lava fought beside Kuśa in the last battle of Rāmarājya, the six-month war at Hastināpura against the kings of the Somavaṃśa (the lunar line). In the single combats with astras (divine missiles), his opponent was Nādyuka, son of Nala. When the forces of Nādyuka pressed hard on Lava, he used the Vāyavyāstra, the wind-missile. It threw the whole force of Nādyuka into the salt ocean. This duel was one of a series of single combats that marked the last phase of the battle, before Kuśa made ready the Brahmāstra. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Pūrṇa Khaṇḍa, Chapter 3.

The farewell and the Kāmadhenu

At the farewell assembly on the bank of the Gaṅgā, before the Vaikuṇṭhārohaṇa (the going up to Vaikuṇṭha), Rāma and Sītā honoured Lava together. Rāma told him to return with his family and army to Uttara Kuru, where he had earlier been made king. Sītā gave Lava the divine Kāmadhenu, the wish-fulfilling cow, with great joy, as a gift from a mother to her son. Through this gift the Kāmadhenu came to be in the realm of Uttara Kuru. The source is the Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Pūrṇa Khaṇḍa, Chapter 5.

Sources

• Padma Mahā Purāṇa, Pātāla Khaṇḍa, Chapters 54, 59–63, 66
• Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Janma Khaṇḍa, Chapters 4, 6–9
• Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Vivāha Khaṇḍa, Chapters 2–4, 6–7, 9
• Ānanda Rāmāyaṇa, Pūrṇa Khaṇḍa, Chapters 3, 5
• Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Uttara Kāṇḍa, Chapters 69–70, 96–100, 106