Vaali

Vaali

Killing of Vaali is a very controversial incident in Valmiki’s Ramayana. This incident has been debated countless times at different Forums to decide whether Rama could be at fault or could his action be justified. Here is an attempt to recreate the incident and reexamine the motives and answer the question. Read the story again ……


Chapter1

Vaali stood tall in front of the massive gates of city of Kishkinda, his powerful hands on his hips, legs spread apart and feet firmly planted on the ground. His long tail snaking on the ground with its tip standing upright .He made a powerful presence, with broad chest, shoulders heavy with muscles. The hands were long and fingers clenched to form a hammer head. His body was covered in silvery gray colour hair and his face was shining...His beady eyes were wide open and stared straight ahead. There was no fear or doubt in them. .He was strong and he was aware of it. He had never retreated from any call for battle. And when he fought he always won... He was now looking across the space at the new challenger in the form of a giant buffalo, who had bellowed at the top of his voice, rousing him from sleep amidst beautiful vanara ladies. Vaali was ready.

From a ledge on top of his palatial cave Vaali and his ladies had earlier, looked down at the great form of Dhundubi who had made a huge din, smashing trees, and blasting mountains with his powerful bull runs. All the quarters had reverberated with the sound of pounding hoofs, thundering on the ground. He wanted to wake up Vaali and he succeeded. .On seeing the great Vaali on the ledge accompanied by his ladies, Dhundubi had roared,”I have come here seeking one to one combat with you, Vaali, after defeating Himavan the king of mountains and Samudra Raja the king of oceans. They have directed me to prove my prowess against you to lay claim to be the greatest fighter in the three worlds. They felt you could stop me. Come on show me what you are. If you are too tired after your amorous night with your ladies, I shall come again at Sunrise.

Vaali was the personification of intolerance and never could he suffer fools. It was not in his nature to turn his back on a call to fight irrespective of the time of day or night. .Now he was calm and his voice carried across to Dundhubi impinging on his massive ears like thunder bolts. Vaali simply said, “Go away Dhundubi, I know you for what you are... I have already killed your brother .I do not wish to add to the miseries of your family, by killing you also. Regarding your defeating Himavan and Samudra raja, that is a joke. I respect them and I know they would not have given you the time of the day, leave alone engage in a combat with a scum like you... They have displayed their magnanimity by allowing you to go free and directing you to me. I am not like them. I fight and when I fight I kill.” Chilling words that would have scared any one. But Dhundubhi was different and he was not rattled. He bellowed back “speaking is easy, especially in front of ladies. It takes courage to back your words with action I am waiting VAALI …If you don’t show up for a fight by sun rise, I will smash your pretty city of Kishkinda to hell and high water”

Vaali looked to the east. There was some more time left for sunrise. He said to himself that he would deal with this nuisance after completing his early morning ablutions and the ceremonial circling of earth from east to west in obeisance to Sun god. He completed his rituals with out hurrying and with out thinking about Dhundubhi. The only slip he made that morning was not to greet the Sage Matanga, who was walking in the opposite direction for his morning prayers.He hoped that the Rishi had not noticed. But the sage had and he smiled to himself.

Vaali put all such thoughts out of his mind, as he now stood facing Dundhubhi .The sun had made his appearance and the peaks of Rishyamukha Mountains were aglow with soft lights of the rising sun. The golden vyjayanti necklace adorning Vaali’s neck was glowing .That was a special gift to him from his father Indra. The jewels embedded in the necklace usually emitted strange light that blinded most of his opponents and that was one of the secrets of his invincibility. Now he was measuring up his new foe.

Dhundubi, the demon in the shape of a Buffalo, looked solid like a moving mountain with a huge body and very sharp horns. He had the strength of a thousand elephants. He believed that with his enormous strength and powerful horns he could make short work of the eminently agile Vaali. So thinking, he charged, head kept low and horns slanted for scooping action that would end up in a toss.

Vaali stood his ground, squarely facing the enemy. When he was with in striking distance , Vaali leaped up in air and jumped clearly over the on rushing buffalo .Now on his hind side,Vaali grabbed the demons tail and stopped the speeding buffalo.With enormous power and using his steel like muscles , he strained and succeeded in holding him still. Then like an athlete in a throwing arena in the royal games, he twirled the big buffalo by his tail and released him in air. The demon flew some distance and crashed into a tree and tree and the animal fell on the ground together.Dhundhubi was stunned and took some time to get his breath back. In the mean while, the herons who got scared at the falling of their tree buzzed around his ears, making him mad. Dhundubi realized that Vaali was not an ordinary adversary. He decided to slow down .He steadied himself and kicked his hind legs and bellowed to boost his own confidence than to strike terror in his opponent who was now standing nonchalantly waiting for another charge..Now moving with a little more caution, he got closer to Vaali By deft movement of his horns to right and left he managed to pin Vaali against a massive tree.Then with a lightening move he plunged his horn deep into the stomach.Vaali moved fast and tried to avoid the horns by glancing them to the side, but could not avoid a nasty gash near the ribs. Blood spurted from the wound and Dhundhubi boomed having drawn first blood...Vaali simply ignored the bleeding , getting ready for the next assault and when it came ,
Dhundhubhi was taken aback.Vaali simply stopped his rush by holding him by his horns. A vigorous swing of head and Vaali was thrown ten feet away.Vaali closed down on his opponent and both traded hefty blows that would have stopped any other fight...Dhundhubi moved away when Vaali relaxed his hold a little.He saw Vaali uproot a giant tree and used it as a club when the buffalo tried to rush. The sledge hammer blows began to have effect and slowly Vaali‘s superior fighting abilities came to the front.Vaali decided it was time to cut the fight short. He walked behind the huge body of the weakening foe, grabbing the hind legs in his huge hands and broke the legs. He lifted the massive buffalo over his hand and brought it crashing to ground. Two, three such blows made Dhundhubi scream, with blood flowing from his nose eyes and mouth.Then Vaali lifted him again and with a big cry of triumph spun him like a wheel overhead and threw the buffalo up in air.The bleeding Dhundubhi fell among the trees of Rishya mukha mountain s. On the way blood got smattered all over the place disturbing the sage Matanga, who was liberally, smeared with blood from the flying buffalo’s, dead body. In total anger , he cursed’ who so ever did this act of defiling my person , my ashram and this mountain range will not step into this territory any more and if he does so foolishly his head will break into thousand pieces.”Vaali heard the curse and shivered .He did not mean to insult the sage but got carried away during the fight. He hung his head in some repentance and walked slowly towards his cave. His beloved Tara hugged him and wanted to look at the wound. He brushed her aside and retired to his private quarters

Chapter2

Rama was seated on huge boulder under a giant banyan tree, with the ever watchful Lakshmana standing behind, with bow in hand and great sword at his side grip.Sugreeva with his attractive face and very wise words had already made a good impression .He spread the silken cloth on the ground and placed one by one the jewels retrieved by him from where sita had dropped them while being carried away by Ravana in his vimana..Rama touched them one by one and was so much overcome by emotion. Keeping his dignity in front of the Vanara leader, he thanked Sugreeva for handing them over. For Rama every jewel had a story to tell rekindling the pangs of separation from his beloved. The wise ogre Kabanda was right in directing him towards Sugreeva. In sugreeva, Rama saw a kindred soul for sugreeva also was separated from his consort by Vaali...A more powerful brother had deprived him of his sovereignty .Kabanda had told Rama “Sugreeva is a noble soul, son of surya. He is very intelligent and loyal. Even though he is in exile, he still commands the respect of huge army of monkeys presently under Vaali’s control. If you come to an agreement to restore his sovereignty somehow, he will help you to locate Sita. Go and seek his hand of friendship. Proceed towards Rishya mukha mountain range and Sugreeva will see you long before you meet with him.

Blessing the wise kabanda mentally, Rama began to think how best to help Sugreeva, so that he will be obliged to help Rama in his search for Sita...He expressed a desire to know more about the altercation between the two brothers that had led to Sugreeva’s exile.Sugreeva explained about the good times the two brothers had and the affection for each other..”We had fought shoulder to shoulder against our common enemies. He always treated me like a son. It never occurred to me at any time that I would have to match Vaali any time. I was happy to serve him. Every thing was happy before the advent of Mayavi who had challenged Vaali.

Mayavi was spoiling for a fight and Vaali liked to fight. Very quickly Vaali thrashed the brigand, who after a severe beating ran towards the mountain.Vaali wanted to finish him off, so gave him a chase. I tried to dissuade him from going after him but he was determined. There was a huge cave in the mountain and that cave was leading to a sub terrainian territory, where it was believed that a huge horde of demons were living Thus VAALI was tricked into falling into a trap. I suggested to Vaali that if we had to go inside their territory we should go with our army Vaali laughed at me saying I was a coward. He said to kill Mayavi; he did not need an army. He ordered me to wait at the entrance till he returned after killing Mayavi and any one else who came to his aid. I did not want to let him go alone .So I offered to go with him saying two of us could handle any situation better. But he was adamant .He went inside alone .I waited as per his wish. .

From where I was I could only hear the sound of running feet, trees smashing and weapons clang as they crashed. There was a big war on. I could hear many people groan in pain but there was no shout from Vaali. There was a long period of silence .The fighting went on for many days and very soon lot of time was spent waiting for Vaali’s return. Then one day it rained inside and I could see blood and foam mixed with rainwater streaming out of the caves. I have never seen so much bloodshed in any war before. Then there was silence. I called out for Vaali a number of times and got no response. I began to have doubt and was anxious about his life. Still as per his order, I waited, as I was afraid of his anger when any one disobeyed him. I came to the conclusion that Vaali might have been overcome and killed. I was also afraid; the demons might come out and attack kishkinda. In my fear, I rolled a huge boulder to the mouth of the cave and effectively sealed the opening and returned home with out Vaali. I explained to the vanara elders all that happened. As more than a year had passed by, all concluded that Vaali was dead. All the elders of our tribe gathered and the ministers counselled together. In their wisdom they installed me as their king and guardian for Vaali’s son and spouse. I discharged my duties as a king in impeccable manner. I took particular care of Angadha; Vaali’s Son and installed him as yuvaraja. I respected Tara the senior most queen of Vaali and I sought her advice on all-important matters as she was very wise. Thus every thing became normal in our land after the disappearance of Vaali.

Then one day Vaali reappeared and took me to task for deserting from my duty of standing guard at the mouth of the cave. It appeared that he was surrounded by the demons and had to fight for long before killing all of them. After the fighting was over, he was so exhausted that he slept for long. When he woke up and tried to return, the cave was found to be sealed from this side. He accused me of betrayal and wanted to kill me for taking control of the kingdom and his sovereign power. I was very happy to see my brother safely home and offered to restore all power back to him. He did not trust me and made up his mind that I should be killed. He quickly disrobed me and confiscated all my assets including my wife Ruma When reason failed and I had to defend my life, I fought back which made him more furious. It did not take much time for him to beat me in a fight and I had to run. It is not that that I am weak or I have no spirit for fighting. Vaali is simply unbeatable. I realized that only space where I could be safe from attacks of Vaali or his army, was the Rishyamukha mountain and the forests around that, on account of Sage Matanga’s curse. Sage received me well and allowed me to use that area. Soon some of my friends who did not like Vaali’s action joined me. Vaali could not do much to stop them because they were all powerful in their own way they are Hanuman, Nala, Neela and Tara. They are my friends and my minister’s .I depends on them for my safety and they regard me as their king. Vaali continues to harass me and has made several attempts to assassinate me through his agents who can freely roam about these forests. These four are always vigilant and catch their spies. We have kept fighting to keep ourselves ready for a day when we could move against Vaali. Every day I pine for my spouse, the pretty Ruma who is languishing in Vaali’s cell as his plaything. You know what kept me alive.” Rama looked up to see Sugreeva’s face and studied all the pent up emotion Sugreeva continued “ sage Matanga always assured me that one day the Prince of Ayodhya would visit this place and he would liberate me from the harassment of Vaali.’ Rama wondered how fate moves
Different people at different places bringing the needy together for a cause. Sugreeva looked at Rama and declared, “Now that you are here we should get together. I know you have suffered on account of separation from your spouse. I will help to locate Sita. .” Rama did not speak but Lakshmana had already read his brother ‘s mind and spoke” Do not despair, oh king. Your days of suffering are over. We have come a long way searching for Sita. With your friendship we will reach her. We will deal with Vaali suitably’
Sugreeva was very happy with the initiative shown by Lakshmana on behalf of Rama.But yet, Rama was the person he looked upto for assurance.So he addressed Rama directly, in a pleasing manner choosing his words carefully ‘Rama, You are the scion of a great family, descending from a race respected world over. Your reputation for salutary qualities of character, valour, fortitude and word of honour are known far and wide. You are said to be personification of the righteous ness as depicted in Dharmasastra, enunciated by your worthy progenitor , the much revered Manu, .I am an ordinary monkey ,presently in a state of destitute robbed of my family and prosperity. If you will accept my hand in friendship, I on my part promise to render all help to locate your spouse, wherever she may be. And put myself and my army at your disposal for any action you may wish to take to retrieve her from captivity... I shall not rest in peace till I see the glorious union of the princess of Mithila with the lord of Ayodhya , Sri Rama” Rama heard these words said with so much reverence and sense of commitment that his heart warmed upto accepting Sugreeva. He experienced a strange sense of elation as though he had already won Sita back. Tears rolled down from his eyes and Sugreeva stood expectantly. The pact was sealed in presence of five witnesses , with Lakshmana on Rama’s side and the four Vanara nobles from Sugreeva’s side , with each one adding his own solemn pledge to the accomplishment of the stated objective.

Sugreeva was silent after that. While he sensed some amount of satisfaction at having acquired a powerful ally, in one corner of his mind a worm of doubt was gaining strength... He was very afraid to put in words his doubt. After a long pause he told Rama” Great King, You heard what I said and you know I keep my word. I am still afraid that for me to be true to you, I must be free from the threat Of Vaali once for all and it is up to you to make me free. I surrender myself to you totally, now it is your duty to protect me.” Rama noted the doubt, though not expressed explicitly about his ability to protect sugreeva from Vaali. He reached for his great Bow and showed it to Sugreeva “Look at this Bow. This belonged to Lord Vishnu and reached me through sage Agasthya. This quiver full of arrows are divine and were presented to me by Agasthya. I have received instructions in the use of missiles directly from Sage Vishwamitra. These missiles have special power of coming back to me after accomplishing their objectives. Many demons, ogres and enemies of my state have found death at the tip of these missiles. I can use them to burn up all the three worlds, I can use them to dry up all the seven oceans or smash all the mountains on this earth, so believe, Vaali is not a match for me. When the time comes you will see me shoot down Vaali a clearly as you see the sunrise after a dark night.

Chapter3

The team now began to move towards Kishkinda leaving the safe haven of the mountains. On the way they passed through an area made famous by the Saptajanas who had practiced severe penances and austerities for over 700 years subsisting only on air breathed once in seven nights. The hermitage of the saptajanas was used by travelers to rest and recoup their energy after a punishing march through the mountains Sugreeva suggested that they should stop for a moment to pay homage to the souls of the saptajanas and prey for success of their mission. That was the spot from where those great souls ascended to heaven. They all stood silently putting their palms together over their hearts in reverance to the noble souls each with his own prayer and seeking fulfillment.
All through the journey Sugreeva remained silent and in deep thought. .His mind was wrestling with various options and strategies they should follow for elimination of Vaali. The more he thought about him, bigger and more formidable he became, sending slight shivers of fear down his spine. With Vaali as an adversary most of the strategies normally failed. That much Sugreeva knew from personal experience. From close quarters, he had watched Vaali fight many a battle blasting all strategy by sheer use of brute strength. His opponents simply lost the will to fight after merely exchanging initial blows. He had that effect on his opponents. How would Rama fare in front of Vaali? Once this question came to his mind his doubts began to grow. All he had heard about Rama’s prowess was all hearsay and nothing watched in person. He was not at all sure that Rama would be able to handle VAALI in a face to face combat. He looked at Rama from the side and thought compared to great Vaali he really looked small.

Lakshmana a keen observer of human emotions saw Sugreeva struggling with doubts, reading his mind accurately. He walked up to Sugreeva and tapped his back and asked ‘You are still not sure about Rama, is it not. Please tell me what would satisfy you about Rama’s ability to bring Vaali down.’ Sugreeva was grateful to Lakshmana for bringing up that subject as he himself found it difficult to broach the matter. Just then they had come to a spot very close to Matanga‘s hermitage immediately after Dundhubi’s dead body crashed in the undergrowth close by. Sugreeva pointed out to Lakshmana a heap of bones of the dead dundubhi after the jungle beasts had made a meal of all his flesh. Look Vaali had thrown dundubhi over a distance of 10 miles. Lakshmana asked with all seriousness if Sugreeva would be satisfied if Rama threw the heap of bones twice that distance. Rama was not impressed with Lakshmana treating the matter with any levity. He walked upto the carcass with out any body telling him anything to be done. He simply inserted the lower tip of his bow under the heap of bones and with his left foot toe flicked the bow end. The entire mass of bones flew in air and went out of sight. He looked at sugreeva‘s face for some reaction. Sugreeva shook his head saying ‘when Vaali threw him he was full of blood and flesh weighing a great deal more than his bones thrown by you. RAMA ACKNOWLEDGED THE POINT MADE. Sugreeva rushed forward exclaiming you must realize that Vaali is incredibly strong. He could destroy a forest full of mature Saal trees in no time “Rama asked him if he would like to see him shoot through a saal tree...Sugreeva with out answering pointed out to a line of saal trees as if he was challenging Rama to have a go at them. Rama stopped to fit an n arrow to the bow string. He twanged the string testing for its tension. The twang reverberated in the forest frightening a team of deer resting under the saal trees. Rama held the arrow, pulled the string as far back as it would go and then let go. The string slapped back at the grip releasing the arrow which now seemed to have a mind of its own. . It shot through space screaming like a wind, drilled a straight through hole in the first tree. It emerged from there in with increasing velocity to the second tree. It blasted another neat hole screaming out towards the third. Entire forest shook as the missile rushed through third, fourth, fifth, sixth and emerged from the seventh now aglow with light. Sugreeva was dumb with fear as the arrow had still not stopped it blasted through the mountain in the backdrop and plunged down towards earth. It still had not stopped! The arrow blasted through earth, towards the subterranean regions. The hordes of ogres fell flat on the ground as if they had seen the fiery sudharshana wheel in action. Emerging from the depths, the arrow went round the vanara leaders and screamed close to the ears of sugreeva before softly landing back in Rama’s quiver after making a circle around Rama’s head Sugreeva had ducked in terror expecting it to slam into Rama’s back and wanted to cry for looking out. Rama was still looking at the line of saal trees. They were all speechless and they were very sure they had never before seen a display of archery as this one... Lakshmana was the first to recover and he held his hand towards Rama and exclaimed to sugreeva .Here is
Dhanurdharo dhanurvedho dhando dhamayita dhamaha
Aparajita sarvasaho niyanta niyamoyamaha
Sugreeva the most intelligent of the monkey race and an illustrious son of Sun understood the meaning of every word uttered by Lakshmana. Rama was being referred as the greatest wielder of great bows and master of art and science of archery, He was also referred as the weapon used for punishing (dhanda) and he is the Dhamayita, person for meting out punishment to the sinners. For those receiving punishment at his hands he is the dhamaha, the release from further sinful acts meaning fruits of repentance and ultimate liberation from the cycle of birth and death. .He is unbeatable as aparajita; he can withstand all enemies as sarvasaha. He is niyanta the power that ordains people to different positions and as niyamaha he is not bound in any way by any codes to which ordinary mortals are bound and as ayamaha he is deathless.
As the full impact of these words sunk in, sugreeva was thrilled and marveled at his own fortune for having entered into a friendship pact with such a mighty warrior. All his doubts had vanished like snow in front of rising sun. He was now a friend of a super being who will dictate the future course of events... In his eyes Rama now looked only as the punisher of the unrighteous and realize d that Rama had already established a platform for the destruction of Vaali. With a very clear and doubtless mind sugreeva fell flat at the feet of Rama and passionately recited

Satvavan satvikah satyaha satya dharmaparayanaha
abhiprayaha priyorarha priyakrit preetivardhanaha

I realise now that you are the embodiment of Satvaguna which is the compact combination of compassion , courage and valour, you are the epitome of satva guna, you are the satya the truth that stays true for ever, you are the protagonist of satya dharma parayana steeped in righteousness, you are the desired and loved by all and you enhance every ones love towards you

Sugreeva knew his days of prosperity are close at hand and for that he must thank Rama .He knew also that Rama had already worked out a strategy and there would be a solution to his problem. Rama now addressed him

‘ YOU KNOW, I CAN HIT Vaali from any place. So there is no need for face to face confrontation between him and me. You will challenge Vaali for a dual and he will not decline . When you are engaged in the fight , at appropriate time , I shall shoot him down “

Sugreeva was aghast. He was so mortally afraid of Vaali that he could never visualize a situation where in he would have a dual with him. Rama watched him with amusement as sugreeva was running out of emotion as his mind was trying to absorb the strategy and his own role in it. It was as though Rama was trying to tell that every body will pay his dues in this sacrifice.. Slowly the warrior in sugreeva surfaced and he lifted his hand in excitement and punched air with power. The other Vanara leaders shouted encouragement with great vigor and mood turned towards the expected engagement between two great brothers in arms

Chapter4

Angadha , the wise Tara and her husband Vaali were engaged in a serious conversation, trying to analyze a report from one of the spies monitoring the movement of Sugreeva and his friends He had mentioned seeing a line up of seven saal trees being pierced by a single arrow. Tara was sure that it was the handiwork of the newly acquired friends of Sugreeva. She was telling “ please note this is supposed to be demonstration of strength and a message for us. Sugreeva has finally found a powerful ally It is possible that Sugreeva might have asked for a show of strength before accepting this newcomer as a dependable ally. He knows your strength and he wont accept a non entity as a friend. We must watch the development very carefully.” That is what VAALI liked in Tara . She could analyze every thing very clearly. Vaali also sensed that this was not a simple demonstration , it was a warning from a very sophisticated warrior who seemed to be saying . I can hit beware.

Angadha was telling that he was talking to some monkeys who had strayed into rishya mukha forest lands and saw dhundubhi ‘s carcass flying in air and disappearing. Tara sucked air with a hissing sound that a monkey would make when they see a dangerous snake near by. "You know , it would take lot of strength even to shift that carcass. Here it went flying Stupendous power. We must watch out.”
They continued to discuss . Angadha felt that very soon some very powerfully endowed warrior may confront Vaali, on behalf of Sugreeva. I am going to personally find out what they are upto. Tara agreed that was the proper thing to do . find out every thing about this new comer. Possibly the junior ascetics at the Matanga ashrama may have some vital information .Vaali was watching the mother and son discuss security with so much concern . This is what he liked in them ,always concerned about their Vaali and arranging his security with commitment He thought this time they were going over board. He told them “ Sugreeva is very intelligent . he is possibly working out a new strategy to retrieve Ruma .If we release Ruma his ally will have no work. .You all know very well no body can beat me. Only a fool will side with Sugreeva in his fight with me.” He was slowly rubbing the golden necklace presented to him by his father Indra the lord of Devas The necklace was some thing very special. It was part of his armament. It had the power to rob his enemy of half his strength. The necklace made him unconquerable.” With this ornament in place , nobody can harm me. So do not worry too much. However like Tara always says let us know more about this new entity .It would be helpful to decide how to negate his influence on sugreeva.” He now patted his dear son and told him to go to the mountain and find out about this person who likes to shoot. He smiled and said “ , take care . Don’t let them see you “

Angadha left the parents and went out to seek out the spy who had brought the information about the flying bones. Spy presented himself, a nervous little monkey .He was meeting the Yuvaraja Angadha for the first time and he was in some sort of a trance .Angadha was not small in Stature or physical shape. He was tall and powerful and in due course of time would grow up like his father. He was now talking to the spy in a calm and self assured manner” I saw it sir , with my own eyes. All he did was insert the tip of his bow under the heap and flicked it with his toe and the entire mass of debris flew in air out of sight . Never believed any man could pack so much power in a toe.’ Angadha was now getting slightly irritated seeing the little monkey keep rambling about that man’s power. He said “ enough , now tell me about the man” Well he was a marvel to look at. Never seen a more attractive person. Tall and dark he was . very strong, very broad at the shoulders He lifted the great bow with ease , sir . The bow looked very big and when he twanged it entire region reverberated. He has very long hands sir and he could pull the bow string right upto his ears
‘ who is he ? where does he come from “
There are two of them sir, I do not know much about their back ground. I did not want to get very near them . You know what happened to Kushi sir Nala caught him and killed him immediately . I was afraid me being so small. I am sorry sir “
Angahdha did not like any of this. Two of them , he thought. He asked the little monkey . Tell me how were they dressed?
They looked like Muni kumaras . They were dressed in saffron clothes , they had matted hair piled high over their head. They had shoulder straps and in the side grip they held long swords. They really looked dangerous sir especially the younger one . he was like the fire god The elder one who threw the bones , he was so serene , and not even an earthquake could shake him”
Angadha’s curiosity was aroused. He desperately wanted to get close those men and find out what they were upto . He dismissed the little monkey and decided to go to the mountain personally to see the situation. He adapted a simple disguise. He removed all his jewellery and changed his cloth. He could do nothing to hide his powerful young body . He thought if he ran into Nala he could handle him. He moved fast and silently and very soon he was in that stretch of forest which abounded in Saal trees. It did not take much time for him to locate those seven trees. He examined the trees with new interest and saw the clear holes made by power full arrow. Angadha always admired marksmanship. This was archery at its best Angadha could never master the bow. Like all monkeys he depended on brute strength of hand and feet. Agility and ability to hit hard were his means of winning a war. He wondered how could one arrow shoot through seven trees and reach back the quiver. By any stretch of imagination , it was a super human feet and for the first time in his life he believed his father could be in real danger if he had to face this man. Vaali had a huge reputation. His chest was said to be as hard as iron , impenetrable In his various wars with rakshasas who wielded bows vaali was never hurt because he was so fast and agile he could dodge the speeding arrows , will he be able to dodge this Man’s arrows. A question mark found a place in his mind. Worried about his father , he found a fine sense of respect towards this man who had suddenly sprung from no where to disturb their sense of security.
He reached the Matanga ashram and soon found a talkative young disciple who knew about the new friends of Sugreeva He had lot of information. It appeared as though the entire ashram was agog with the arrival of princes of Ayodhya , sons of legendary king Dasaratha. Rama and Lakshmana. So sad that Rama’s wife Sita the princess of Mithila, was kidnapped by Ravana. Now Rama was searching for Ravana. Sugreeva and Rama had entered into a friendship pact

Angadha could now understand the development. He asked a simple question to himself . How can a deposed monkey lord with out an army offer to mount an all out search for Sita Anghadha shivered as the enormous significance of his findings dawned on him .There was a sort of quid pro quo agreement in place. He was now very sure that Sugreeva was going to use Rama to kill Vaali and take over the army.

Angadha became very angry at Sugreeva. He wanted to reach Sugreeva then and there and deal with Rama later. He also had to alert his father and mother . They will have something better to deal with the diabolical plot hatched by Sugreeva . H e rushed back to his cave in kishkinda. On the way he saw Rama near a pond and stopped to look at him .He was blue like the winter sky. Rama turned to look at the handsome monkey and he raised his hand . The monkey bowed his head and his hands were held together. There was an amazing sense of devotion in his person and Rama was overcome with compassion. He blessed the young monkey heartily and saw him speed away

Chapter 5

Tightly girded around the waist, Sugreeva roared with an eagerness for battle , rending the air with his shouts .With hitherto unknown vehemence called out to Vaali to come out for a fight. Sugreeva sounded very confident possibly because he had a new ally , hiding somewhere among the trees to drop Vaali dead .Vaali was standing on a ledge on top of his cave with his vyjayanti necklace dazzling in the evening sun. He looked down on Sugreeva some what nonplussed by his belligerence. Vaali had always loved fighting and to beat the day lights out of the vengeful Sugreeva was a past time he enjoyed immensely. With a promising entertainment close at hand he was preparing to jump to the ground when he saw his young soon swing from top of a tree and land in front of Sugreeva. Vaali waited to see how Sugreeva handled his son.

Anghadha stood tall and bold . But in front of Sugreeva he appeared to be a little small. Sugreeva had always loved the young Prince and would have liked to exchange some pleasantries, if the time and place was different . But the situation demanded that he should not dilute the aggressive mental make up as he was certain Vaali would come down for a fight. Anghadha held Sugreeva’s hand and hissed” Go away . I have seen Rama and before something untoward happens please go away. Sugreeva was somewhat annoyed that Anghadha knew about Rama’s presence and he became anxious. His anxiety led to indiscretion and he threw Angahdha The young prince expected to be thrown , and with amazing agility , did a somersault in air and landed safely. But WHAT Vaali saw was his son being thrown by Sugreeva. He lost his temper. He jumped from his high position on sugreeva and they both fell down together. Then There ensued a hand to hand fight of such intensity that spectators were spell bound. Each blow was accompanied a grunt of pain and shout of triumph. The two brothers were a good match and neither showed any compassion to other. Years of travail made sugreeva bold and he wanted to hurt his brother as much as possible Vaali showed no mercy wanting to finish off Sugreeva as soon as possible. It was a close quarter fight where neither opponent wanted to be the first to move away .Very soon the superior skills of Vaali began to dictate the effects. Sugreeva in the initial zeal for fight forgot all about Rama and as Vaali ‘s telling blows began to take heavy toll of his stamina , he started wondering what the hell Rama was waiting for. He realized if it continued this way he would soon end up dead. So he broke free and jumped towards a great tree and uprooted it with his bare hands and Vaali caught the swinging trunk to avoid getting smashed. As he ducked under the tree Sugreeva saw an opportunity to run He expected Vaali to give chase but Vaali for some strange reason held his place and shouted CONSIDER YOURSELF AS SPARED. He pointed a finger at Sugreeva as he shouted those word and slowly moved in a circle .He was directing the finger at Rama and wanted to locate his hide out. From his cover , Rama admired Vaali ‘s daring posture opening out his broad chest and presenting a fine target .Rama realized that here Vaali was inviting him to shoot but Rama was not ready yet. He had watched his ward receive a severe beating but was happy that he was not killed in this encounter. He had given Vaali sufficient time to plan his next set of action Rama was a very patient man.

Sugreeva was in a foul mood. He believed that Rama failed to keep his word and was furious .He had taken a heavy beating and his morale was very much shattered. Rama had tough time consoling sugreeva. HE TOLD HIM , “ look ,you two are so much alike that from the distance I was not sure I was aiming at vaali. I did not want to shoot you down by mistake You must wear something different to distinguish between you two. Lakshmana immediately brought a garland of Gaja pushpika flowers. Rama asked sugreeva to wear that for the next round of fight. Sugreeva trembled at the very thought of fighting Vaali again.

Chapter 6

Vaali was in his room talking to some of the Vanara ladies when he heard the booming shouts of Sugreeva from a distance. He made a face with disgust at the thought of having to fight sugreeva again. Only the other day Sugreeva had retreated from a fight when he was very close to getting himself killed. How come he is keen for another round? Vaali was intrigued to find out the reason. For him a challenge was meant to be accepted. He could tell you instances of kings who came to grief because they avoided a challenge. He came out of the room with all intentions of going out to fight his dear brother again.
Tara and Angadha were running towards him , their faces distraught . They stopped when they were close to him Tara said softly ‘ My Lord , we have some very important information for you. Please listen to us patiently and do not step out to fight him today. Let him make a din . We must ignore him today. He will get tired howling this way and then he will go back. Whatever happens you must not step out today” Vaali did not like to be told what he should or should not do. He always decided that on his own . But the insistence in Tara’s words, which worried him because Tara was a daring woman. She also liked to see him fight.” Sugreeva has hatched up a plan to get you killed and we know all the details. please listen to what your son has found out”

Angadha explained “ I visited Matanga Ashram and spoke to the inmates about the new friends acquired by Sugreeva. They are the princes of great city of Ayodhya ,capital of kingdom of Kosala ruled by king Dasaratha . You have spoken to us about him. These princes go by the names of Rama and Lakshmana. They have reached here while searching for Rama’s spouse kidnapped by a Rakshasa king called Ravana. Sita is the princess of Videha ruled by the RajaRishi called Janaka. Thus they are the scions of very illustrated family steeped in Dharma. Sugreeva has entered into a pact with Rama seeking his protection from attacks by you. In return Sugreeva is expected to assign his army to search for where abouts of Sita and for any action required for her retrieval. This pact can be used to put you out of your present position. And Sugreeva can regain his lost glory and prosperity.
The sages speak very highly about Rama’s various classical attributes. His commitment to establish order and righteousness is very much lauded and his devotion to this cause is very firm. He has already decimated a large section of hordes of Rakshasas as per requests of Rishis dwelling around DHANDAKARANYA. Rama received instructions in scriptures from Vasishta their Raja guru who also descended from Brahma. His martial training was completed under the great Vishwamitra , culminating in destruction of THATAKA and her son SUBAHU . Recently Sage Agasthya bestowed on Rama the famous Vishnu Dhanus along with a set of divine missiles with instructions on their usage. Thus Rama is a complete warrior of great distinction. It is said he is the only man capable of burning up all the three worlds , dry up all oceans and smash all mountains., with his missiles.

He has already demonstrated his prowess with bow and arrow by shooting through 7 saal trees. A warrior of this caliber siding with Sugreeva is not for our good. Recent increase in his belligerence against you is possibly a ploy to serve as an excuse for Rama to intervene on his behalf to put you down.

This is a sure and certain danger that you should take serious note of. Unless we negate this alliance with suitable counter , you must not move out.

I have seen Rama from a distance and he looks capable of great deeds. So we must be wary of him.”

Vaali heard Angadha’s warning and smiled.” M y son, there is no cause to be alarmed.. If Rama is really what you he is , then I need not fear any danger arisising from him .I f he is really a disciple of Vasishta , he would know what is right and what is wrong. As I am not fighting him , I don’t expect him to fight me. If he has received martial training from Vishwamitra and Agasthya , two great souls very well known to me, I know his great and proven prowess will not be misdirected at me .I now have great confidence in the character of Rama now that we know his antecedents. A scion of IKSHWAKU line will not indulge in unjust killing. So please do not be alarmed on my account. Look, Sugreeva is calling me again for a fight. Do you want me to behave like a coward

Tara spoke softly , ‘ MY LORD, we are not suggesting that you should behave like a coward. How can any one say Vaali was afraid. No , what we are suggesting is that we must reconsider our relationship with Sugreeva in the light of Rama’s entry into the scene. After all Rama is a man , however noble he may be, he is now desperate for help and Sugreeva has assured him that help. As nothing is given free , rama has to pay for what he is expecting to receive and that would be at our cost. Do you see , what is ahead of us. Now is not the time for confrontation but consultation and accommodation in the form of subtle diplomacy. Please consider burying the hatchet as for as Sugreeva is concerned Make him a regent, restore Ruma to him and restore his high status in our kingdom and get Rama off our back . with Sugreeva back in our fold , we can offer Rama the same help that sugreeva has promised. This way will work to every ones advantage . For us to mount the diplomacy we need to buy time That means you should not go out for this fight with sugreeva . I fear the worst. “ Tara could not hold back her tears. Her keen intelligence had offered a very viable solution acceptable to all the members Vaali was very impressed. He took her in his arms and said very softly ‘ every word uttered by you is true and acceptable to me. But I would take recourse to diplomacy only from a position of honour and not out of fear of somebody. Let it be clear I am not scared of Vishnu or Rama who ever it is against me.

He strode past Tara and young Angadha. The distraught son ran ahead pleading with his proud father to stop. Then he cried out ,father look at that Gaja pushpika garland around his neck . You know what it means. It is the signal to you from Rama that if you walk out to fight Sugreeva he will kill you . he has given you time to reconsider. That is why he did not kill you first time Rama is compassionate. But he will kill if there is reason. Your treatment of Sugreeva will decide if he has a reason or not. So . please father do not advance any further.

Vaali turned back to look at Tara, Tell your Son that his father is not a coward

I know you are not. But if you insist on fighting, please snatch away that garland at the first opportunity
Vaali embraced his son and kissed him on his head and walked away

Chapter8

Vaali walked like a lion . tall and majestic , with out any fear what so ever. He stood in front of his brother and with one hand held his shoulder His right-hand stretched out, index finger pointing out , he turned him slowly in a small circle trying to locate Rama’s hide out. The finger stopped at a point directly looking at Rama. It was like a dagger pointed at his chest, Rama felt slightly disconcerted, but held his place and did not show up. He marveled At Vaali ,and waited for action to begin. Sugreeva stood transfixed not being able to release from that grip. Slowly he saw the fingers close into a fist and a thumping blow on his head made him reel away. Vaali quickly followed him swinging his feet in wide arc and kicking sugreeva at the nape of neck. The kick made sugreeva turn around presenting his face for a series of hard punches to the nose and mouth. He started bleeding. Vaali did not relent . He grabbed sugreeva a by both hands and threw him head over heels .Sugreeva flew like a ball landing fifteen feet away. So far he had not touched Vaali even once . Vaali ran up to him staggering Sugreeva just trying to stand erect , with a high kick to the chest. In no time sugreeva was down and Vaali Stood over him triumphant that he had vanquished his tormentor and his protector had still not acted. Vaali bent down grabbing Sugreeva by the neck and shaking him up like a doll.

Rama had never seen such a vicious attack. Sugreeva stood no chance against a determined Vaali .He stood watching the one sided fight with out any remorse. WHEN VAALI BROUGHT HIS LEG Up TO SMASH THE NOW LIMP BODY OF SUGREEVA IN THE HEART Rama acted. The arrow was already locked in place . he did not even look at Vaali when the arrow shot out of his hold. It went screaming towards Vaali. He caught it squarely in the breast. Even though he was expecting it when it came he was not prepared for the impact. The blow made him leap in air and was thrown back 15 yards and he landed on his back while the arrow stuck out like a flag mast out of his body.

Vaali knew he was mortally wounded . he looked in the direction from which the arrow came and he saw Rama walking towards him. The bow was on his shoulder after it had served its purpose. There was no arrow in his hand. Rama did not expect to be attacked. In his face there was only peace. No sense triumph at having felled a giant.
Vaali had built an image in his mind about how Rama looked and now he could see that he was face to face with that image. For some reason , his mind was highly disturbed and a storm of questions rushed forth in his mind It made him angry and it was with great effort that he greeted Rama with words “ well done , Rama, well done . “ Rama found a rock near by and he sat on it and watched Vaali As vaali spoke he became emotionally charged and words flowed out of him in a torrent” You know , my wife Tara , told me that you would do this to me. She has uncanny mind to perceive things not clear to others. She also said you learnt your scriptures from THE GREAT VASISHTA . Did he teach you that it is alright to intervene I n a battle where you do not have a part. Do the dharma sastra that you propagate hold that shooting from cover is bravery. would your instructor of martial arts , sage Vishwamitra be proud of what you have done today. Is this the hall mark of your distinguished race starting from Manu. Was a divine missile designed to shoot down a monkey

Rama did not respond. He kept looking at Vaali for some sign of remorse. There was none, not at that point of time Vaali still very angry continued
“ what did you see in what I have that you covet, so much that you are prepared to shoot to kill with out warning.
My kingdom does not boast of any riches that are not already available in the great kingdom of Kosala. So what is that you wanted that you visit my territory on the sly.
Monkey flesh is not edible and my skin wont serve any use in your palace , so why this.

I do not remember that any time in the past , I have done any harm to any of your kin Then why did you have to shoot me down in such covert manner.
My Son Angadha tells me that you have entered into a pact with sugreeva as per which his army would help you to locate your spouse kidnapped by Ravana. How can a deposed monkey sugreeva be of any help to you. Had you come to me straight , I would have presented both sita and the vile ravana to you in no time. I am the only power , Ravana could not defeat , and did you know that . he beat every body else but not me.
As he spoke he was greatly getting agitated. He felt Rama had committed a mistake and had been very unfair in felling him. He continued to berate “You are regarded as the protector of Dharma . You are said to be free from blemishes that are normally associated with humans. You are supposed to be the purveyor of justice. Alas , you have slipped. The great Ikshwaku clan now boasts of a son who did stray from straight path . I am ashamed for you

The words became slow drained of all strength. His breathing was becoming increasingly difficult. Rama held his hand and addressed him softly.

I am not sure if I have to justify my action to you. But I am very sure that the questions you posed would definitely be posed by coming generation who will read about you and me in future. An affected and biased mind can not dissect, analyze and pass judgment on actions that seem unwarranted to the ignorant.

You are now wounded and your brain functioning is slowing down covering the truth with irrational thoughts

Yes , I learnt my scriptures and dharma shastra at the feet of the eminent Vasishta. You can not ask for a more knowledgeable preceptor or a versatile teacher. As I say these words , I bow to my guru in all sincerity When you made comments on my action and cast aspersion on my guru , you acted out of ignorance. You cant claim to have learnt any shastra that I have not learnt. As a monkey you are at a different intellectual level.

Yes , the martial arts and dhanur vidhya that I learnt from Vishwamitra and the divine missiles received from SAGE AGASTHYA were meant for use to protect weak from the wicked. Certain very secretive missile usages have been taught to me with total faith that I possess the courage to use them when wanted and do not resort to them for personal aggrandizement or frivolous ends. .As on date I swear I have not misused them. Hence your reference to them is reading nonsense. In my lineage , we have kept our faith even at the cost of our own life.

Yes , you, VAALI as an individual or as a king do not possess any thing that I could ever covet. Your kingdom of kishkinda is a part of greater Kosala for which presently Bharata , my dear brother , is the emperor. This land under bharatakanda was bestowed to our clan for administration by eminently reverable Manu. As his agent I am roaming about these parts helping the sages and ascetics to lead a life free from tormentation by ogres and unscrupulous agencies. In the process I have killed a countless number of different kinds of agencies of evil. when I killed them as per my duty as kshatriya and agent of the lord of the land , I did not have to look any one in the eye or sound out an alarm of warning before killing them . They all died at my hand as sinners and on having died they got their due redemption in the other world.
Yes , you mentioned that had I approached you directly , you would have readily presented me with my wife Sita and ravana. I did not ask for help to deal with Ravana.
I got into a friendship pact with your brother , and as per that pact his problems became mine. I am duty bound to restore his prosperity and redeem his spouse presently held by you. A king and his agents are duty to bound to listen to complaints of the subjects and remove the problems and give them solace. Sugreeva ‘s problems were recounted to me in that way and I had to take action.
As an agent of great Bharata , I am hereto promote virtue among people and ensure adherence to righteous path. It is our cardinal duty to judge and punish the wrong doers who so ever they may be

All good beings who follow the path of righteousness and value virtue as important in life , all regard their father, elder brothers and teacher as Father having similar values and deserving respect. Similarly a younger brother, ones own son and a deserving virtuous pupil are to be regarded as ones own son. The principle governing the conduct of the virtuous is indeed subtle.

Now Vaali , get to know the reason for your present situation. The sin committed by you as per above code of conduct, morality and that is dictated to every living soul by what is called their conscience , is your behavior towards your younger brothers wife. Throwing all decencies to wind and ignoring the eternal law concerning relationships , you have sinned while cohabitating with the Fair Ruma , the wedded spouse of high souled Sugreeva , your younger brother. Ruma IS VIRTUALLY YOUR DAUGHTER IN LAW .While your brother is still alive , you have coveted his spouse. This perpetuation of sin by you attracts punishment of death to be enacted by the king. As an Agent of the king my arrow has found you. A punishment has been meted out to you as per precedent set by my illustrious forefather Mandhata who had to kill a pious monk for a deed very similar to yours. I as a kshatriya born of a high and imperial pedigree can not brook your indulgence in sin Death is the punishment ordained for a sinner who approaches carnally his own offspring , a sister or wife of an younger brother
Why were you not killed during your first fight with Sugreeva Your Son Angadha and spies of your wife Tara were allowed to see for themselves the saal trees to assess my strength and threat I pose to your life. In your own words you talked of the advice given by Tara to resort to diplomacy and do what is right for Sugreeva. Anghadha identified the threat my presence pose to you and pleaded for reconsideration of your conduct towards Sugreeva. Your faith in your own strength had made you blind to realities around you and you missed a lifetime opportunity to correct the situation. Hence there was no scope for condoning your punishment

You must know by now that every sin has to be punished and the punishment acts as a cleansing agent for the soul and serves towards gaining redemption . You have been punished now and having received the punishment you stand redeemed. You still have time to rectify the wrongs You are no doubt a great warrior with countless admirable qualities that include all that I too respect. You are now free to go to your appointed position in the heavens, commensurate with what you do.

Vaali was silent for a long time. He watched his son and wife rush toward him Sugreeva was standing nearby tight with emotion. Slowly he muttered to Rama


Dharmagubdharmakrudh dharmi sadasatksharamaksharam
Avignata sahastraaamshu vidhata krutalakshanaha

You safeguard dharma with your action. You transcend the distinction between dharma and adharma. All your actions are towards establishing dharma and righteous values. You are the Dharmi the protector of dharma For you Sat and ASAT have only one meaning and you apply it to all kshr and aksharas. As avignata you are indifferent . You are vidhata the ordainer and as krutalakshana you are the eternal conscienceor chaitanyatvam
You cant be wrong at any time .I accept your decree for the sins I admit that I committed. In the remaining time I have at my hand I will what is right for Sugreeva .please offer protection to my son Angadha and wife Tara

Slowly he raised his two hands together with closed palms and said with out hesitation

ABHIRAMA GUNAKARA DASARATHE, JAGADEKA DHANURDHARA DHEERANUTE
RAGHUNAYAKA RAMA RAMESH VIBHO
VARADHO BHAVA DEVA DHAYA JALADE

AGNANINA MAYADHOSHAN ASESHAN VIHITANA HARE
KSHAMASVA TVAM , KSHMASVA TWAM RAGHUVAMSHA SHIKAMANE

Rama held Vaali’s hand helped him to lie at his feet. Vaali heaved a great sigh of relief. He had made his peace with his creator. His was a noble soul
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