Ravan and Ramayan: A Retake? Part 2

 Ravan and Ramayan: A Retake?

Part 2:

I touched upon the issue of the simultaneous presence of opposing qualities within us. Fear and courage, honesty and dishonesty, composure and chaos, thoughtfulness and impatience, selfishness and selflessness, greed and contentment, simplicity and complexity, knowledge and ignorance, sensitivity and indifference, kindness and callousness, gratitude and ungratefulness. We can and do exist with a whole lot of such contradictions. 

Ram and Ravan are the Yin and Yang of such things. Both are within us. Ramayan tells us in the form of a vivid tale what to expect when we choose to be Ram, and what to expect if we choose to be Ravan.

For that we must look beyond the concept of hero and villain. We must recognize them for what concepts, ideals, or qualities they stand for. Like a pack of cards we must spread them on the carpet before us and examine each card separately to understand what each pack holds. 

Ravan, in my opinion now, was the quintessential raw human that exists in each of us. He was doing just fine, or more than just fine, until he couldn’t contain his ambitions and desires. When he reached that point of transgression, he lost sight of what belongs to him and what doesn’t. He grew oblivious of the consequences of trying to gain sovereignty over others. He couldn’t resist the temptation to prove himself superior to others. 

It was only when that threshold was challenged that the otherwise silent power in the form of Ram came into the picture. 

What ensued was what nobody had anticipated, neither Ravan himself nor those that he bullied, nor those that supported him. 

Ravan had not anticipated a challenger. He sat in his own shell of complacency thinking he is invincible. So when Ram appeared and refused to be removed from the scene as easily as initially thought, Ravan started to get furious. And to some extent even confused. Who the heck is this guy who is showing the audacity to confront me? Doesn’t he see who I am? Doesn’t he know that I make the rules? 

When the battle showed no signs of slowing down, Mandodari and Vibhishan tried to reach Ravan with well meaning hopes that he would take a more humble approach and make truce with his opponent. Neither side was winning from the showdown. Lives were lost from both sides in the midst of this conflict. 

Who are Mandodari and Vibhishan? They are Ravan’s well wishers. They are on his side. They do not wish to see his defeat and destruction. But they recognize what is going to bring that undesirable defeat and destruction. His stubbornness to not accept his mistakes. His blindness towards a law that works on certain principle such as non-stealing ( not taking what doesn’t belong to you), non violence( live and let live), truthfulness. The blindness lies in not realizing that if you break this law, the law is designed to break you. There is no person sitting anywhere to enforce that law. The law nevertheless applies itself unfailingly. Just like the law of gravity.  And the laws of nature like whatever is born, will die. 

Mandodari and Vibhishan are important to understand. They are the saints who hold compassion even for Ravan. They are those who don’t want to see him being defeated. They want him to do well. Yet they are not to be reduced to just “feel good people”. They know the science underlying the laws of justice in the universe. They know what can lead to defeat and what can bring victory. What can bring peace and joy, vs what can bring endless suffering and pain. They know what can confer immortality and what would condemn to death. 

Ravan had both Mandodari and Vibhishan on his side. Both tried their best to sway his thinking. Both probably realized that there is no chance that he will change. At one point, Vibhishan defected to the side that was on the right side of the law. Not because it was the winning side, but because he wanted to be on the side of law. 

Mandodari too saw and respected the rule of law. But her obeisance was pledged to her husband and she decided to go down with the side she knew very well that is going to face defeat. It was matter of deciding your loyalties. 

Kumbhkarna, the other brother, was loyal too. But Mandodari’s loyalty is not the same as Kumbhakarna’s . Kumbhakarna was ignorant of the law of truth. A blind follower. He supported the leader but wasn’t wise enough to guide him. He was submissive. 

Mandodari was neither blind nor submissive. Her loyalty is a matter of deep study. Hindu mythology lists her as one of the pati vratas, or ideal wives. She fulfilled her duty as a wife with complete dedication and perfection in spite of her husband’s faults. She cannot be held responsible for his faults because at no point was she complicit in his behavior and put a cover on it. Quite the contrary. But she had a fine line to walk. She couldn’t rebuke him publicly or try to explain to anyone that she doesn’t share his views or support his decisions. There was no sympathy for her from most outsiders despite suffering under her unique circumstances. She could not make anyone understand how she could still love her husband despite his wrongful actions. Only she knew and God knew her ordeal. 

Recently I wrote a post about the script of Lion King. There I mused about the twist in the plot where Mufasa would not be as perfect a character as shown in the original version of the movie. On somewhat similar lines, or as a counter point, I imagined to myself, what would Ramayan look like if Ravan had listened to Mandodari or Vibhishan and surrendered to Ram? In that case ,Valmiki would not have been able to give a warning to those who came after Ravan about how ugly things could get without his surrender. It’s a different story that despite this oft repeated plot there are still many who don’t learn from Ravan’s fate. 

But my optimistic mind kept musing. What if? What if Ravan had listened? Would he become friends with Ram? I thought he would. 

Coming back to my original premise that Ravan is the quintessential raw human that exists in each of us. Then I am Ravan. If I were to listen to the sages around me and mend my ways, recognize the invincibility of the laws of this universe (what Ram is symbolic of and synonymous with), then the Ravan in me would be different from the Ravan in Ramayan! He would be a good friend of Ram ! That’s how I’m going to have it for myself. Allow the Ravan in me be friends with Ram. Give his Sita back to him with due honor and apologize for my past. Be content and proud about my Lanka and grateful for my Mandodari. Thankful for Vibhishan’s good counsel and accountable to keep Kumbhakarna from sleeping during work hours. I may be able to protect my Lanka from burning!

A simple change of heart could create a twist in the entire plot.