Sambodhi 2010 Vol 33

SR No.: 520783
Original Sutra Author: N/A
Author: J B Shah, K M patel
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad
Publication Year: 2010
Total Pages: 212
Language: English, Sanskrit, Prakrit, Gujarati
Classification: Magazine, India_Sambodhi, & India
File Size: 21 MB

Page 13

Vol. XXXIII, 2010
Rāmāyaṇa Characters In The Thai Mould
is proud of his origin and misses no opportunity to highlight it with verve27. A young man with lovely appearance, he is devoted to the well-being of others. His pretty face is matched by his sweet tongue. He is generous to a fault. His devotion to Rāma is proverbial28. He is ever ready to risk his life for the sake of his master. He is indeed an epitome of devotion, sacrifice and self-abnegation.
What strikes as the most notable characteristic of Hanumān is his phenomenal energy. He is vaour incarnate. It is because of his boundless might that he acts as the Rāma's most trusted lieutenant in the series of disasters that he has to encounter. However grave the challenge, he invariably comes out of it with flying colours. He frustrated the concerted efforts of Suvarnamatsyā to destroy the causeway, which alone paved the way for its construction on schedule. It was again he who administered resounding rebuff to Mahipāla-devāsura and secured Vibhisana's release. The greatest challenge to him was posed by Mahipāla-devāsura and secured Vibhīşana's release. The greatest challenge to him was posed by Maiyarāba in deceitfully kidnapping Rāma right from his camp to the nether region. There too he picked up the gauntlet and proved his mettle. He not only overcame a series of obstacles and difficulties in his long journey to Pātāla but also killed the demon on his home-ground and retrieved Rāma right from the jaws of death29. The credit for freeing Sugrīva from the clutches of Kumbhakarna also rests with him30
It is, however, not the brute force alone that he embodies. His prowess is deeply tempered with resourcefulness and discretion. His foresight had been chiefly instrumental in revealing the identity of the fake Sītā, that had all but thrown Rāma out of gear. As a hard-boiled strategist, he does not hesitate in employing tricks and stratagems to accomplish his mission. He often believes that the ends justify the means. He thus had no qualms in assuming the form of a dead dog to frustrate Kumbhakarna's bid to propitiate his lethal missile31. It was again through a neatly executed stratagem that he disposed of Rāvana's soul, encaged in Goputra's hermitage and thereby enabled Rāma to liquidate the demon32. But for his strategies and resourcefulness, the outcome would have been disastrous to Rāma. While he aborted the designs of the adversaries through trickery, he employed powerful logic to wean away Survarnamatsyā from foiling the construction of the causeway33. It is surprising that such a brilliant strategist and an intrepid combatant had to eat an humble pie in his encounter with the hermit-boys Mankuta and Lava34.