Secondary Tales of the Two Great Epics

Author(s): Rajendra I Nanavati
Publisher: L D Indology Ahmedabad

Page 56

The Tales in Rāmāyaṇa
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daughter of the king intoxicates and seduces him, and as long as he has intercourse with her, it rains.” It is well-known among folklorists that the primitive folk almost always look upon human mating - particularly ritual or festive mating – as a sympathetic charm to induce rains. The mating of human couple is believed to be similar to the mating of the divine couple — the sky and the Earth — and is a microscosmic presentation of it, sympathetically inducing the macrocosm to imitate it resulting in rains which is the procreative energy divine. This belief of treating the ritual human mating as a fertility-rite is symbolised - mythified - in the entire story of Rsyaśộnga as is revealed in the common motif-structure observed in all the versions of the tale.
The basic motif-structure of the tale is familiar to us in a slightly different form. A sage takes to austere penance, and Indra gets frightened. He causes some nymph to break the penance of the sage which task is invariably accomplished by seducing the sage. The pattern is too familiar to need any illustrations. The mention of the episode of Viśvāmitra and Menaka only will suffice. In the epic versions of the Rşyaśrñga tale, the frightened Indra does not occur directly. But it is said there, that on account of some mistake of the priests the rain in the Anga country is withheld by Indra and released on account of the fear of Sage Rşyaśộnga.64 This role of Indra as the 'penance-breaker' is very clearly shown in both the Jātaka-versions of the tale. In the Alambusā-Jataka he himself orders the nymph to seduce sage Rsyaśțnga, whereas in the Naļiņikā-Jataka he withholds rains thus compelling the king to persuade his princess daughter Naļiņikā to seduce the sage. This recurrence of the motifpattern in numberless tales, therefore, points to its purely imaginary, rather mythical, character.
There is one more slightly different, motif-structure which is familiar to us through numerous episodes of sages in our traditional literature. The motif-pattern which leads to the birth of sage Rsyaśțăga is also very characteristic. Sage Vibhāndaka, being excited at the sight of nymph Urvasi, drops his procreative energy into water, which results in the birth of Sage Rsyaśộnga. The intervening motif of the seed passing with water into the mouth of a doe thus causing her to conceive65 is only motivated to justify the son's characteristic of possessing a deer-horn and is not necessary. In a folk-tale, the sage could be born even without her. “The blood or seed of gods, if it falls on the ground, is nearly always fertile."66 The seed of MitrāVaruņā, dropping at the sight of Urvašī, gives birth to the sages Vasiştha and 64 VanP. 110.3, 21, 26 etc. The queer thing is that though the Brāhmaṇas advise the king to ex
piate, in the same breath, they promise that if Rsyaśråga comes into his country, it will rain ! Are we to suppose that bringing Rsyassnga or giving him the princess in marriage was a form
of expiation ? 65 VanP. 110. 14-16. 66 The Nature of Greek Myths, G. S. Kirk, Pelican Series P. 115. It will be interesting to note
in this connection that the epithet 'amogha-virya' is very commonly applied to the sages and gods, particularly n such cases. Cf, the epithet given to Vibhāədaka, Van P. 110. 11.