Aranya Kanda · Sarga 59 of 76 · 27 verses
Lakshmana Explains
On the way back from the hermitage, the delight of the Raghus, Rama, asks Saumitri in his sorrow: “Why did you come away, leaving Maithili, when she was left in the forest without me, trusting in you? As soon as I saw you coming, having left Maithili, Lakshmana, my mind, suspecting some great evil, was truly stricken. My left eye throbs, and my arm and my heart, seeing you far off on the path without Sita, Lakshmana.” Spoken to so, Saumitri Lakshmana of auspicious marks, more overwhelmed by sorrow, says to grieving Rama: “I did not come here of my own will, leaving her. I came to you here urged by her with harsh words. A cry, ‘Lakshmana! Save me!’, shouted in a broken voice as if by the noble one, came to Maithili’s hearing. Hearing that cry of distress, out of love for you, Maithili, weeping, overwhelmed by fear, told me, ‘Go, go,’ at once. Urged by her again and again to go, I answered Maithili with these words, full of confidence: ‘I see no rakshasa who could bring him fear. Be calm; it is not so. This was spoken by someone else. How could the noble one, who could save even the gods, say the condemned and lowly words, “Save me”, Sita? For some reason, someone has imitated my brother’s voice and uttered in a broken voice, “Lakshmana, save me!” The words “Save me!” were spoken by a rakshasa out of fear, lovely one; you should not feel distress, which only common women feel. Enough of going into panic; be at ease, without anxiety. There is no man in the three worlds, born or yet to be born, who could defeat Raghava in battle; Raghava is invincible in battle even by the gods led by Shakra.’ Told this, Vaidehi, her mind confused, shedding tears, said these cruel words to me: ‘A very wicked feeling for me has been settled in you; with your brother dead you want to win me, but you will not have me. You follow Rama by arrangement with Bharata; that is why you do not go to him as he cries out so loudly. You are an enemy acting in secret, following him for my sake, seeking a chance against Raghava; that is why you do not go to him.’ Spoken to so by Vaidehi, angry, his eyes red, his lips trembling with rage, I came out of the hermitage.”
To Saumitri, speaking so, Rama, bewildered by anguish, says: “You have done wrong, gentle one, in coming here without her. Though you know I am able to ward off the rakshasas, you left because of Maithili’s angry words. I am not pleased with you, since you left Maithili and came here, having heard the harsh words of an angry woman. In every way you went astray, in that, urged by Sita, you fell into the power of anger and did not do my command. That rakshasa lies there, struck down by my arrow, who in the form of a deer led me away from the hermitage. Drawing my bow and fitting an arrow, I struck him with an arrow loosed with ease; abandoning the deer’s body, with a broken cry, that rakshasa became one wearing armlets. Struck by the arrow, with a cry of pain, imitating my voice so that it could be heard very far, he spoke those very terrible words, because of which you came away, leaving Maithili.”
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अथाश्रमादुपावृत्तमन्तरा रघुनन्दनः । परिपप्रच्छ सौमित्रिं रामो दुःखादिदं वचः ॥ १ ॥
Then, on the way back from the hermitage, Rama, the delight of the Raghus, questioned Saumitri with these words, out of sorrow:
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तमुवाच किमर्थं त्वमागतोऽपास्य मैथिलीम् । यदा सा तव विश्वासाद् वने विरहिता मया ॥ २ ॥
He said to him: “For what reason have you come, leaving Maithili, when she was left by me in the forest trusting in you?
दृष्ट्वैवाभ्यागतं त्वां मे मैथिलीं त्यज्य लक्ष्मण । शङ्कमानं महत् पापं यत्सत्यं व्यथितं मनः ॥ ३ ॥
“As soon as I saw you come, having left Maithili, Lakshmana, my mind, suspecting a great evil, was truly stricken.
स्फुरते नयनं सव्यं बाहुश्च हृदयं च मे । दृष्ट्वा लक्ष्मण दूरे त्वां सीताविरहितं पथि ॥ ४ ॥
“My left eye throbs, and my arm and heart, seeing you far off on the path without Sita, Lakshmana.”
एवमुक्तस्तु सौमित्रिर्लक्ष्मणः शुभलक्षणः । भूयो दुःखसमाविष्टो दुःखितं राममब्रवीत् ॥ ५ ॥
Spoken to so, Saumitri Lakshmana of auspicious marks, overwhelmed further with sorrow, said to grieving Rama:
न स्वयं कामकारेण तां त्यक्त्वाहमिहागतः । प्रचोदितस्तयैवोग्रैस्त्वत्सकाशमिहागतः ॥ ६ ॥
“I did not come here of my own will, leaving her. I came here to your side urged by her with harsh words.
आर्येणेव परिक्रुष्टं लक्ष्मणेति सुविस्वरम् । परित्राहीति यद्वाक्यं मैथिल्यास्तच्छ्रुतिं गतम् ॥ ७ ॥
“The words, ‘Lakshmana! Save me!’, shouted in a broken voice as if by the noble one, came to Maithili’s hearing.
सा तमार्तस्वरं श्रुत्वा तव स्नेहेन मैथिली । गच्छ गच्छेति मामाशु रुदती भयविक्लवा ॥ ८ ॥
“Hearing that cry of distress, out of love for you, Maithili, weeping, overcome by fear, told me at once, ‘Go, go.’
प्रचोद्यमानेन मया गच्छेति बहुशस्तया । प्रत्युक्ता मैथिली वाक्यमिदं तत् प्रत्ययान्वितम् ॥ ९ ॥
“Being urged by her many times, ‘Go,’ I answered Maithili with these words, full of confidence:
न तत् पश्याम्यहं रक्षो यदस्य भयमावहेत् । निर्वृता भव नास्त्येतत् केनाप्येतदुदाहृतम् ॥ १० ॥
“’I do not see that rakshasa who could bring him fear. Be calm; it is not so. This was uttered by someone else.
विगर्हितं च नीचं च कथमार्योऽभिधास्यति । त्राहीति वचनं सीते यस्त्रायेत् त्रिदशानपि ॥ ११ ॥
“’How would the noble one, who could save even the gods, say the condemned and lowly words, “Save me”, Sita?
किंनिमित्तं तु केनापि भ्रातुरालम्ब्य मे स्वरम् । विस्वरं व्याहृतं वाक्यं लक्ष्मण त्राहि मामिति ॥ १२ ॥
“’For some reason, someone, taking hold of my brother’s voice, uttered in a broken voice the words, “Lakshmana, save me.”
राक्षसेनेरितं वाक्यं त्रासात् त्राहीति शोभने । न भवत्या व्यथा कार्या कुनारीजनसेविता ॥ १३ ॥
“’The words were uttered by a rakshasa out of fear, “Save me!”, lovely one. You should not feel distress, practised by common women.
अलं विक्लवतां गन्तुं स्वस्था भव निरुत्सुका । न चास्ति त्रिषु लोकेषु पुमान् यो राघवं रणे ॥ १४ ॥
“’Enough of going into panic; be at ease, without anxiety. There is no man in the three worlds who could defeat Raghava in battle,
जातो वा जायमानो वा संयुगे यः पराजयेत् । अजेयो राघवो युद्धे देवैः शक्रपुरोगमैः ॥ १५ ॥
“’born or being born, in combat. Raghava is invincible in battle by the gods led by Shakra.’
एवमुक्ता तु वैदेही परिमोहितचेतना । उवाचाश्रूणि मुञ्चन्ती दारुणं मामिदं वचः ॥ १६ ॥
“Spoken to so, Vaidehi, her mind bewildered, shedding tears, said these cruel words to me:
भावो मयि तवात्यर्थं पाप एव निवेशितः । विनष्टे भ्रातरि प्राप्तुं न च त्वं मामवाप्स्यसे ॥ १७ ॥
“’A very wicked feeling has been set in you toward me. With your brother destroyed, you want to obtain me; but you will not obtain me.
संकेताद् भरतेन त्वं रामं समनुगच्छसि । क्रोशन्तं हि यथात्यर्थं नैनमभ्यवपद्यसे ॥ १८ ॥
“’By arrangement with Bharata you follow Rama; for though he cries out so much, you do not go to him.
रिपुः प्रच्छन्नचारी त्वं मदर्थमनुगच्छसि । राघवस्यान्तरं प्रेप्सुस्तथैनं नाभिपद्यसे ॥ १९ ॥
“’You are an enemy moving in secret, following for my sake, seeking an opening against Raghava; so you do not go to him.’
एवमुक्तस्तु वैदेह्या संरब्धो रक्तलोचनः । क्रोधात् प्रस्फुरमाणोष्ठ आश्रमादभिनिर्गतः ॥ २० ॥
“Spoken to so by Vaidehi, enraged, my eyes red, my lips trembling with anger, I went out from the hermitage.”
एवं ब्रुवाणं सौमित्रिं रामः संतापमोहितः । अब्रवीद् दुष्कृतं सौम्य तां विना त्वमिहागतः ॥ २१ ॥
To Saumitri speaking so, Rama, bewildered by anguish, said: “A wrong has been done, gentle one; you have come here without her.
जानन्नपि समर्थं मां रक्षसामपवारणे । अनेन क्रोधवाक्येन मैथिल्या निर्गतो भवान् ॥ २२ ॥
“Though knowing me able to ward off the rakshasas, you went out because of this angry speech of Maithili’s.
नहि ते परितुष्यामि त्यक्त्वा यदसि मैथिलीम् । क्रुद्धायाः परुषं श्रुत्वा स्त्रिया यत् त्वमिहागतः ॥ २३ ॥
“I am not pleased with you, since you have left Maithili, since, having heard the harsh words of an angry woman, you came here.
सर्वथा त्वपनीतं ते सीतया यत् प्रचोदितः । क्रोधस्य वशमागम्य नाकरोः शासनं मम ॥ २४ ॥
“In every way it was ill-judged of you that, urged by Sita, coming under the power of anger, you did not do my command.
असौ हि राक्षसः शेते शरेणाभिहतो मया । मृगरूपेण येनाहमाश्रमादपवाहितः ॥ २५ ॥
“That rakshasa lies there, struck down by my arrow, by whom, in the form of a deer, I was led away from the hermitage.
विकृष्य चापं परिधाय सायकं सलीलबाणेन च ताडितो मया । मार्गीं तनुं त्यज्य च विक्लवस्वरो बभूव केयूरधरः स राक्षसः ॥ २६ ॥
“Having drawn my bow and fitted an arrow, he was struck by me with an easy arrow; abandoning the deer’s body, with a broken voice, that rakshasa became one wearing armlets.
शराहतेनैव तदार्तया गिरा स्वरं ममालम्ब्य सुदूरसुश्रवम् । उदाहृतं तद् वचनं सुदारुणं त्वमागतो येन विहाय मैथिलीम् ॥ २७ ॥
“Struck by the arrow, then, with a voice of pain, taking hold of my voice, audible very far, he uttered those very terrible words, by which you came, leaving Maithili.”