Ramayana – Laxman vs Indrajit – {Ep.245}

This episode is a story from the Ramayana about Laxman’s battle against Indrajit, and Hanuman to the rescue as he flies all the way to the Himalayas when his side needs a pharmacy run!

Welcome to “Stories From India”. This is a podcast that will take you on a journey through the rich mythology, folklore and history of the Indian subcontinent. I am Narada Muni, the celestial storyteller and the original “time lord”. With my ability to travel through space and time, I can bring you fascinating stories from the past, the present, and the future. From the epic tales of the Mahabharata and Ramayana to the folktales of the Panchatantra to stories of Akbar-Birbal and Tenali Raman, I have a story for every occasion.

The purpose of the stories is neither to pass judgment nor to indoctrinate. My goal is only to share these stories with people who may not have heard them before and to make them more entertaining for those who have.

Today’s Story

In this episode, we’re back to the Ramayana.

The Ramayana together with the Mahabharata are the two major epics in Indian mythology. 

The saga begins in the Kingdom of Ayodhya with Ram as its Crown Prince. He almost became King except his stepmother threw a spanner in the works at the last minute and forced him into exile for 14 years. Ram went, accompanied by his wife Sita, and brother Laxman.

Ram was an avatar of Vishnu who is the preserver of the Universe. Vishnu creates a balance between Brahma the Creator, and Shiva, the Destroyer. Together they are the Holy Trinity of Indian mythology. Not to brag too much, but Brahma is my dad, and I’m president for life of the Vishnu fan club, and I am a regular on Mt. Kailash where Shiva lives. So this is about as authentic as it gets.

Back to Ram, Laxman and Sita. They overcame several challenges in the wild. Demons and demonesses that were constantly trying to either eat, enslave or kill them. 

Ram and Laxman had no problems with any of those Demons and Demonesses, until Ravana abducted Sita! Ravana was the ruler of Lanka, and the mega villain in this epic. This 10 headed ultimate boss-level character was full of so many superpowers that defeating him was virtually impossible. Take any pop culture villain – Lord Voldemort, Darth Vader, Scar, Jafar, Maleficent before she turned all good in the reboot. Add up their villainy, subtract any weaknesses, and multiply it with 10 because Ravana had 10 heads.

Sita had been kidnapped without so much as a ransom note ordering a cartload of money at a sinister rendezvous point. In the absence of any police force, CBI, or the Gumshuda Talash Kendra, Ram and Laxman got help from the next best option – the Vanars. These Vanars were a kingdom of monkeys led by their King Sugriva. Of the Vanars, Hanuman who was Sugriva’s adviser and right hand Vanar provided most of that help. Hanuman located Sita across the ocean in Lanka. He delivered Ram’s words of support, and delivered Sita’s message back to Rama. Burning down almost all of Lanka, and getting the scoop on Lankan defenses were just bonuses.

Ram, Laxman, and all the Vanars crossed the ocean to get to Lanka. First they had to build a bridge which any civil engineer will tell you is hard enough now, and was much harder still back in those days. Ravana’s brother Vibhishana switched sides and teamed up with Ram.

And then, the war began. The Vanars and the Lankans fought tooth and nail. 

Ravana’s son, Indrajit, had achieved what he thought was victory when he very badly hurt both Ram and Laxman. Luckily for them, Garuda, the King of birds, saved them (Episode blank).

The battle started to go against the Lankans after that. Ravana entered battle himself and made quite a splash, but Ram kinda embarrassed him on the battlefield. General after general fell, until later Kumbhakarna, Ravana’s mountain sized brother was beaten too.

Only Indrajit and Ravana remained. And unless they pulled a rabbit out of a hat, their days were numbered as well. I don’t mean that literally. A rabbit was unlikely to tip the scales in their favor against the Vanars. 

We’ll continue the story there.

Indrajit screamed and woke up. His wife Sulochana was startled out of her sleep. 

Quick introduction here – Sulochana was Sesh Naga’s daughter. Do you remember Sesh Naga, the ultimate snake? He’s the massive snake in whose coils Vishnu rests. Sulochana was no snake herself, but she had her father’s blood. There was a difference in opinion between Indrajit and Sesh Naga, with regards to the marriage. Indrajit thought that his marriage with Sulochana was a love marriage, and Sesh Naga thought his daughter had been abducted. It would be on-brand, considering his father Ravana was in the habit of abducting Princesses left, right and center.

Sadly, no one asked Sulochana what she thought. But at this point, even the care that she showed for her husband might have just been because of Stockholm Syndrome.

She asked her husband “You look Hisss-terical. Not another nightmare? What was it this time? The three headed pink elephant, or the blue Orangutan with the steel claws?”

“Neither, this was the worst of the lot. This one had just your regular John Doe except he hadn’t slept in 12 years”

“Why are you scared of a guy who hasn’t slept in 12 years? Even if such a person exists, the poor guy must be so exhausted he couldn’t even harm a wingless fly lying at death’s door.”

Sulochana was alluding to an important prophecy that Indrajit had heard a while ago. At this point I need to explain what was happening here.

You see, a long time ago, Indrajit had defeated and imprisoned Indra, the King of the Devas and the ruler of Swarg. That story deserves an episode of its own. But the outcome was that Indra was only released after my father brokered peace. Yes, Brahma, the creator of the Universe, sat at the negotiating table and made a deal with Indrajit. Let Indra go, and Brahma would grant him something in exchange.

By the way, that is also how Indrajit got his name. Previously he was called Meghnad. Indrajit was my dad’s idea. It means the one who won against Indra.

Anyway, this was the opportunity that Indrajit had been waiting for. He demanded to be made invincible. Brahma couldn’t really grant that. True, unconditional invincibility was impossible. But hey, invincibility under some conditions was not. So they worked something out. Indrajit would only become invincible if he performed a yagna to summon a very special chariot. As long as he was on that chariot, no one could harm him. Now comes the catch. A person who interrupted his yagna attempt would be the one who would end Indrajit’s life.

Indrajit protested. “Wait, wait, you want me to release Indra just for this? Not happening. It’s so easy to interrupt my yagna. My butler might do it if he’s bringing me a drink or something. At least make it so that only a person who destroys your yagna can kill you.”

Brahma wasn’t happy with that. So the two of them haggled.

Finally, they ended up with a clause that only a person who hadn’t slept in 12 years and who also destroyed Indrajit’s yagna would be capable of killing him. Brahma’s haggling skills weren’t at their best on this day.

Indrajit may have walked away fully satisfied at the time. But as you can imagine from his recent nightmares, he was less than confident now. And he didn’t know why, but the nightmares were occurring more frequently now that the Vanars had landed on the Lankan shore. Probably just a coincidence. Or maybe not, maybe Ram was the ordinary chap who hadn’t slept in 12 years. It couldn’t be Hanuman, or Sugreeva, they were Vanars, not ordinary humans. His head hurt.

Sulochana offered him an Asp-irin, and finally they went back to sleep.

The next morning, there was no trace of nervousness on Indrajit’s part. On this day, he resolved to kill one of the Ayodhya brothers. Garuda may have helped them once, but he wasn’t always going to be there. And Indrajit’s invisibility batteries were recharged, so he had a massive advantage now.

He entered the battlefield looking for Ram, but it was Laxman who found him. A volley of arrows all aimed perfectly, and yet Indrajit managed to avoid them. By disappearing. And by reappearing behind Laxman he launched a few arrows of his own. Laxman narrowly avoided being hit, but just barely. This Indrajit chap was turning out to be a pretty tough cookie. 

Laxman unleashed his heat seeking arrows. But again, Indrajit disappeared along with his heat signature, and the arrows went on to hit an unfortunate bystander standing in the line of fire.

Laxman was getting frustrated now. He was sure he was the better archer, but one thing that is different in real life is that the target doesn’t magically disappear and appear behind your back.

Hmm behind my back, huh. He had a brainwave. He aimed at the place where Indrajit stood laughing. The arrow he was using was the U turn one. Laxman fired it with a long enough distance setting to make Indrajit disappear. Indrajit reappeared behind Laxman laughing again, but the joke was on him, because the arrow had turned 180 degrees mid-flight and came straight for Indrajit. It was just sheer luck that Indrajit was only scratched, and not something more serious.

Indrajit was upset by this. “Enough of this game Laxman. I’m going to end it now. I was saving this arrow for some kind of a showbiz event, but I’m going to use it on you now”

“Oooh, I’m terrified,” mocked Laxman. “What does the arrow do, does it talk and threaten like you do? Or does it run away scared?”

“It’s something I call Vasavi Shakthi, a five a.m. exploding heart arrow. But that’s probably meaningless to you. You’ll see a demonstration first hand,” Indrajit retorted, and he fired it.

Lakshman tried to counter the arrow, but if you know your catalog of ancient indian arrows, you’ll know it’s futile to try and stop the five a.m. exploding heart arrow. 

The arrow pierced Laxman’s chest and he fell. But it did not explode Laxman’s heart, at least it wasn’t going to do so immediately. That was where the “5 a.m.” part of the name came in. The arrow would leave the victim in a sort of coma until the next day at sunrise. That’s when the victim’s heart would explode. Not good. Not good at all.

Indrajit howled with pleasure. He had done it. Laxman was as good as dead. In true evil mastermind fashion, he did not stay and finish off the job. He went back to the palace, throwing confetti that he had brought along just for this reason.

The Vanar army, and Ram were in distress. Both sides decided to call an early end to the battle that day.

Everyone thought Laxman was dead, but Ram realized his brother was still breathing. He was just in some kind of stasis. “He’s still alive, there’s hope!” he exclaimed.

Sugreeva was skeptical. He scanned the barcode on the arrow, and pulled out the army field manual. “It’s Indrajit’s,” he said. “I can see the arrow specifications. It’s called the 5 a.m. exploding heart arrow, but the treatment section is completely blank. I don’t know how we can save your brother.”

“Oh I knows what can save Laxman!” said Budhdha, who was an old geezer of a Vaanar. “There be a legend. Forked tongues speak of a magical herb that grows far away in the Himalayas. It can bring life to the dead. Whispers of this magical herb echo through time, and I’m the one that knows the secret better than anyone else! I tells you – I know how to fix it.”

“I’m not sure I trust this new age medicine,” Sugreeva remarked.

“We’ve got to try,” Hanuman remarked. “What other chance have we got?”

“Well genius, how is anyone going to get us the herb from the Himalayas before 5 am tomorrow? If you’re thinking of ordering it on the Zomato intercity service, they only do metro cities.”

“Quite right,” agreed Jambavan, the bear. “They just do the major cities. They can’t do a generic area like the Himalayas”.

Hanuman rolled his eyes.

Ram saw what others hadn’t. “Hanuman – you! You could do it, couldn’t you?”

Hanuman nodded that he could indeed go there and come back before 5 am the next day. But he needed some kind of a map or something. The Himalayas were over 2400 kilometers long, and covered almost 600,000 square kilometers. The odds of finding a needle in a haystack were higher.

Budhdha said he could draw Hanuman a map. He got out a rag, made some scribbles. “X marks the spot. Steer clear of the spot marked Y, here be dragons! And the one marked S is where the Yeti lives. You want to take a right there, and go past the blue and purple lake that’s marked H. You can’t miss the mountain that the herb grows on. It be a pot shaped hill. It be named Dronagiri.”

Are the letters meant to stand for something? 

“They be! They be!” Budhdha clarified. “X stands for Extraordinary herb here. Y stands for why is anyone crazy enough to walk into the dragon’s den? S stands for the secret cave where the Yeti lives in, H is for the H20 that fills the lake. It be a very straightforward system.”

All the intricate labeling system may have confused an ordinary mortal. But Hanuman was, well Hanuman. He was extremely smart and intelligent and with a photographic memory. All he needed was a description of the herb. It’s leaves and so on. But, Budhdha needed to hurry up because Hanuman had to leave now. Budhdha said not to worry. He handed over to Hanuman what he said was the description of this wonderful herb.

Without wasting any time on goodbyes, Hanuman launched himself into space. To cover the distance of almost 3000 kilometers most quickly, he decided to fly in the stratosphere. You may ask, how did he keep himself warm at that altitude? How did he breathe with the air so thin up there? Again we aren’t talking about an ordinary human. We’re talking about Hanuman. If you remember he’d launched himself into space to swallow the Sun. And another time, he flew backwards facing the Sun back when he had been tutored by the Sun. So a little stratospheric jaunt didn’t bother him.

It may seem surprising that Budhdha’s directions were correct. It didn’t take Hanuman long at all to find the hill shaped like a pot. Now he just had to find the right herb growing on it. He opened up the bit of paper that had the description. It said “small plant, green colored leaves”. Hanuman sighed. That could be any of the thousands of herbs here. He could get one of each. But that might not be enough. Ugh, it was past midnight now, and with at least another 4 hours flying time ahead even with tailwinds, this was cutting it too close.

Ideally, Laxman would be here. And then Hanuman could just try to feed him all the different herbs and see which one worked. If Laxman were here – that was an interesting thought. All Hanuman had to do to save Laxman’s life would be to fly him somewhere where it was any time other than 5 am. Maybe the north or south pole. But Laxman wouldn’t be much help so far away from the scene of action.

Enough rambling, it was decision time. There was one thing to do. If Laxman couldn’t come to the mountain, the mountain must go to Laxman. Hanuman worked quickly. He dug a hole all around the base of Dronagiri. He then changed his size into that of Ant Man. I mean Ant Man when he was about to go subatomic. Not the ant-man that was 80 feet tall. Quickly Hanuman burrowed under Dronagiri, and then suddenly made himself large. And not just large, I mean colossal!

He lifted the heavy mountain easily enough. Hanuman launched into space again and a few hours later was back in Lanka. It was still mostly dark, so no one saw the vast shadow that darkened an already dark sky.

He gently set down Dronagiri next to the battlefield. Budhdha was woken up. He was puzzled why Hanuman had brought along an entire mountain. Wasn’t it obvious that he had meant this unique shade of green?

It wasn’t so obvious to Hanuman or to anyone else. To Budhdha it was though. He found Sanjeevani Booti on Dronagiri, though he still had to hike up the hill a bit. Quickly, they ground the plant into some kind of a paste, mixed it with water and poured the potion down Laxman’s throat. 

Laxman yawned and woke up. They had made it with just a few minutes to spare!

Relief spread throughout the Vanar camp. Despite a very sleepless night, they all got ready for another fight. Indrajit though was not ready for another shock.

That’s all for now

Some notes on the show

Budhdha is a made-up person. That word literally means old man.

Previous Ramayana episodes: https://sfipodcast.com/category/ramayana/

That’s all for now. 

Next Time

In the next episode, we’ll feature the Udupi Sri Krishna temple, along with two famous characters – Madhavacharya and Kanaka Das.

Feedback

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The music is from Purple Planet.

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