________________
COMPARATIVE STUDY OF THE RAMA-STORY
67
Dūşaņa, Triệiras and Khara (3.26-30.27). Lakşmaņa and Sită come back to Rāma.
Räksasa Akampana? reports to Rāvana the death of Khara and others. He further praising the beauty of Sītā asks Rāvaņa to kidnap her so that Rāma might die in separation from her (3.31.31). Ravana seeks help from Mārica but the latter advises him not to fight with Rama and not to kidnap Sita. Sūrpanakhā abuses and excites Rāvana and makes him a false report that she went there to bring Sītā, the peerless beauty, for him but Lakşmaņa disfigured her (3.34.21). She further instigates him to kidnap Sīta. Rāvana reapproaches Mārīca and asks him to help in removing away Sítā by becoming a golden deer. First Mārīca prevents Rāvana but being threatened by the latter he accedes to his plan. On seeing the golden deer Sītā asks Rāma to bring it for her. Rāma leaves behind Lakşmaņa and chases the deer (3.35-43). When the deer is pierced with the arrow of Rama, it makes a noise of alarm 'Hā Sīte hā Lakşmaņa.' Hearing it Sita sends away Lakşmaņa to help her husband (3.44-45).
The TR follows the VR but it does not refer to any desire of Surpanakhā to devour the blood of the culprits and the first battle of 14 Rākşasas. Here Khara is mentioned to have first demanded Sītā to avoid the slaying of Rāma in the battle. When Rāma declines to give away Sítā, a battle takes place (3.19). Rāma transforms the Raksasas into Rāmas with the power of his ‘māya'.? The Rakşasas bring their own end (3. 20). It does not refer to the message of Akampana. When Sürpapakha3 reports the beauty of Sītā and the assassination of Khara and Dūşaņa, Rāvana thinks that Rāma is not an ordinary person, but he is an incarnation of God. So he plans to be killed at the hands of the god by kidnapping Sītā4 (T6 maiṁ jai
1.
.
he is buried alive (See Sec. 4 C). In the Adhyātma Rāmāyana Viradha is mentioned to be a Vidyadhara (3.2.38) while in the VR he is Gandharva (3.4.16). Akampana's message to Rāvana is not found in the Gaudiya and the NW versions of Rāmāyaṇa (Bulcke p. 329). The Ramopākhyāna (MB. 3.277) and the Bhattikāvya (Ch.5) also do not mention it. The Raghuvansa mentions that each Rākşasa was seeing a number of
Rāmas (12.45). 3. The Raghuvansa does not mention Akampana (12.51). Here also sūrpanakha
reports to Rāvana. 4. According to the VR as stated above Sürpanakhā instigates Rāvana to
kidnap Sitā. But the interpolated chapters No. 2, 3 and 4 after 7, 37 (Uttarakānda) state that Rāvana wanted to attain the abode of Hari or Bhagavān or Vişnu by being killed at the hands of Rāma, the incarnate God, hence he kidnapped Sita.
