In the wider context of the epic, the events depicted in Sarga 43 portray the Rama’s exile. This is an important part of the Ramayana devoted to self-knowledge and search for self. The creation of the universe and its constellations, human procreation, and the birth of all else resulted from the exile from the world of Purusha, the primal cosmic being. For Rama and his wife Sita, exile or self-sacrifice is considered to be a reenactment of Purusha’s self-immolation. Thesis In the wider context of Valmiki’s Ramayana, Sarga 43 depicts Sita’s abduction and represents a conflict of the epic.
This Sarga is a part of the description devoted to Sita, Rama and Lakshmana and their life in the forest. Stricken with panic when she heard what she thought was Rama’s cry for help, Sita insists that Lakshmana helps his brother Rama. This Sarga portrays that Sita acts impulsively, ordering Lakshmana to save her husband: “You must rescue your brother, who cries out in the forest. Run to your brother at once, for he needs help!”. This Sarga can be seen as raising actions of the story conflict. Upon her arrival, Surpanakha found Ravana ensconced amidst a bevvy of gorgeously appareled females. Skilled in the art of cunning, she accused the ruler of failing to recognize his real enemy, Rama, and thus attacking his pride. Sita was unaware of demonic plans and believed that her husband needs a helping hand. The conflict is that Lakshmana argues that no one could kill or overcome Rama, thus Sita’s anguish is undiminished. Sita says: “I think you would be happy should some disaster befall your brother. You have no real affection for him, so you stand there calmly with the splendid prince gone from sight”. She goes so far as to accuse him of wanting her for himself, to which with sage-like reverence he replies that he looks upon her as a goddess and not a human. Nonetheless, pains by Sita’s suffering, Lakshmana leaves in search of Rama.
The significance of this passage to the epic is that Sita is depicted as a loving and devoted wife who does everything possible to save her husband. Taking into account the antecedent actions, it is important to note that when she decided to join Rama in his exile, her arguments were based neither on a desire to prove her independence nor her power over him; nor was she seeking to have her own way. On the contrary, she conceived arguments that would demonstrate; she felt, the extent of her loyalty to her husband. Life without her husband would be worthless. Thus did Sita comport herself not only with dignity and finesse but with love. She was transformed into Rama’s equal, and, more importantly, she would function in an advisory capacity.
In a wider context, this passage unveils the theme of marriage and human morals. When Lakshmana left, Ravana, the antagonist of the story, emerged from hiding. So overwhelmed was Ravana by Sita’s beauty that he quickly made his intentions clear: he offered to make her queen and give her five thousand slave women to wait on her. The two brothers set out in search of Sita. They happened upon the fallen Jatayu, whose will had kept him alive until he could apprise Rama of events. A human is weak to resist temptation, but strong morals and beliefs help Sita to survive. The protagonists in the Ramayana are not mere mortals. Rather, they are divinities who have descended onto earth in humans. Thus they cannot be conceived only in terms of gods or of mortals, but rather as a fusion of both, with unlimited and limited understanding. This passage unveils that because of the sacred nature of the Ramayana, notions such as heroism and love, particularly as determinants of action, must not be interpreted in their specificity alone but rather in universal and transpersonal terms. As for manifestations of the divine nature, they encompass the unknowable but are revealed in the world of phenomena as understandable conceptualizations. The Ramayana depicts the quality of life awarded to women during the five-century time span of the epic’s composition. Also, this Sarga unveils that marriage, viewed as a sacrament in India, was also a duty, betrothal being the basis of family structure. Because the religious ceremony bound husband and wife to each other during their earthly existence as well as beyond it, a firm understanding of dharma was expected prior to marriage. It included the development of inner sight: deeper awareness, that is, the perception and recognition of good and evil, visible or invisible forces. Such development enables an individual to be conscious of his or her acts, as well as of their acts.
In sum, the passage plays an important role in the story conflict. Sita stands her ground, courageously defending her own values. Authentic and dauntless, she is the real heroine of the Ramayana. According to Hindu belief, each deed perpetrated not only affects the here and now but also determines the person’s karma, or cycle of births, deaths, and rebirths.
Works Cited
Damrosch, D. The Longman Anthology World Literature: Volume A, The Ancient World, Longman. 2004. p. 879