Gift_18

Monkey Deluge

Gift of the Siddhas

Chapter 18

"Of wielders of weapons

I am Rama."

-Sri Gita

As Rajan went to sleep again that night, he had another dream, in which he saw visions of scores of monkeys, swinging and scampering about, chanting songs of Rama and Hanuman. Rajan couldn't quite discern the meaning of the bizarre scene, as it turned into a wild Pandemonium of monkeys gone berserk with warcrys and shouting. Then a voice whispered to Rajan that they must take up their journey in the morning to the northeast direction to a mountain pass at that way.

The next morning, Rajan prepared himself for the journey as a dim light appeared in the east. The air was crisp and cool as the ions surcharged the ether and filled Rajan's lungs with vibrant energy. Ravi, `the eye of the world,' rose up and peeked over the distant mountain ridge, and yellow ribbons of pure light streamed between the trees, knifing through the fleeing shadows. As they murmured Gayatri ... the rising sun destroyed all darkness ... just as Krishna's Sudarsana Cakra illuminated the path of Arjuna's chariot as they passed through the outer layer of the universe.

They left that forest by way of a mountain pass to the northeast. As they traveled, Rajan described his dream to Vikar, who found the scenes of the monkeys quite amusing. After a day's journey they passed through another mountain pass and made camp in a secluded patch of trees.

They rose early the next morning and started before sunrise. They passed through a narrow pass and came upon a dense forest within a valley. The valley was illuminated by the dawn's twilight and it appeared to be a gigantic bowl, encircled around by vertical mountain walls that reached to the sky. It had a narrow solitary mountain peak in the center. The outer rim of mountains appeared to be a great colossal wheel and the central peak appeared to be the hub and spoke of that wheel.

The sun had risen out of view, blocked by the high mountains. They stopped to chant Gayatri, but as they chanted, they were irritated by several monkeys making mischievous racket in nearby trees.

Ending his meditation, and being miffed, Rajan threw a rock at the monkeys, who in return, squealed with glee. Then, from all directions, there emerged hordes of playful monkeys in the trees, making faces and chattering incessantly. They made a tumultuous roar that raised to the heavens and echoed back and forth off the mountain walls. Rajan and Vikar looked in vexation at each other.

Monkeys of all kinds seemed to descend from the trees, There were long-tail monkeys, spider monkeys, howling monkeys, Sakis, and Quakaris, some were large and some small. Then a monkey scampered up to Vikar, and recognizing each other, they both embraced with joy giving out cries of delight. Vikar then embraced a second monkey then a third, they were all jumping up and down in happiness. After they calmed down, Vikar introduced Rajan to several monkeys, saying they were old friends of his. Their names were Vakra, Narkavakra, Vegaraja, Neela, Chandasimha, Chitrangada, Gongada, and others. They all greeted Rajan warmly as did Rajan salute them all with namaskaras. Having much to talk about, the monkeys took Vikar and Rajan to the center of their tree village.

However, upon the path, Vikar and his friends could not help but fall into the diversion of playing tag in the trees. Actually, Rajan had to admit that the sight of Vikar scampering in the trees in chase of his friends, and raising a tumult of chattering, was a breath of fresh air and the medicine he needed to get his mind off the quest for a while.

After the fun, and walking into the village, Rajan could see the beauty of the forest valley. On all sides were vertical mountains, which formed a great circle about the valley of trees, walling them in like a huge coliseum. There were groves of auspicious trees such as Mango, Banana, Jackfruit, Kiwi, Coconut, Banyan, Asoka and many others.

There were only two entrances into the valley, one in the north and one in the south. In the center of the valley was a small solitary mountain that jutted straight up like an elephant tusk. The monkeys called it the Jaggerhorn.

As they entered the village, they saw monkeys of all shapes and sizes walking about, and some were carrying small children. All the monkeys were curious about the newcomers and they all crowded around to see them.

They all sat in a circle and Vikar told them their adventures of the quest and the Gem, and the Rakshasas who had pursued them. He told them of the mystic vortex that incarcerated the demons, and how they must reinforce the spell of the crystal cave.

After talking for an hour, the monkey Angada addressed Vikar thus, "After hearing of your wonderful adventures, we feel very thrilled to hear of such a noble quest and your brave exploits in defeating the demons thus far. And now the time of day is auspicious for us all to hear the grandest story of all time, and so we humbly beg that you, Vikar, will now honor us with the immortal tale of the Ramayana."

With this request, all the monkeys let out a huge roar of delight which echoed throughout the mountain valley. Excitement spread like wildfire throughout the camp as monkeys were scampering and jumping here and there and especially all the young kid monkeys were scurrying to get a front row seat and some sat in the surrounding trees. Most sat respectfully, and although sitting still was extremely hard for kid monkeys, still they calmed down to hear the story of Rama.

Vikar sat upon a high platform and he was given a garland of Champa flowers. Then the forest became deadly silent as he began his tale, and even the insects and birds seemed to stop in their business to turn their ears to the nectar of the spiritual exploits of Sri Rama.

Vikar first uttered obeisances to his spiritual preceptor and then spoke thus: "My dear friends and assembled devotees, I'm deeply honored to speak to you the immortal Ramayana. As many years as the sun shines, as long as the mountains stand rooted in the earth, and as long as the rivers shall flow down to the sea, so shall the deeds of Sri Rama be sung among men. Please hear with devotion the Ramayana which was originally sung by Brahma in 1000 million verses. I will speak this epic as far as I have realized it from the words of my Guru."

And so he began the narration, "Once the Monarch of Ayodhya, King Dasaratha, being without a son, propitiated Suryadeva to grant him issue. Thereupon, there was delivered by Agni, from the sacrificial flame, a vessel of heavenly nectar to which the King divided unto his three wives, Kaushalya, Kaikeyi, and Sumitra. That nectar gave divine fertility to his three wives and thus granted advent to the incarnation of Sri Rama and his three brothers, Bharata, Laksmana, and Shatrughna."

"Upon foreseeing the advent of Rama, Lord Brahma addressed the Demigods as thus: `You shall all now assist in the pastimes of Lord Rama by begetting sons of your own potency. In the wombs of Apsaras and Gandharvas and Yaksha women, and in wombs of Nagas, Kinnaras and Apes shall you beget powerful sons in the form of monkeys. Your offspring shall be equal to yourselves in valor, sagacity and virtue. They shall be as swift as the wind and endowed with bodies as strong as thunderbolts. They shall be able to assume any form at will and be able to create illusions and perform many heroic acts for the assistance of Rama's pastimes.' And so Bali the king of monkeys was born of Indra, Sugriva was begotten by Surya, and Hanuman was begotten by Vayu, the wind god. Hanuman was the best of the monkeys, he was as strong as a thunderbolt, and swift as Garuda, the carrier of Lord Visnu. Thus being endowed with supreme devotion to Lord Rama, thousands of monkeys took birth to assist Lord Rama in his pastimes of killing the demon Ravana."

"Jai, Jai," the monkeys spontaneously chanted, unable to contain the sublime emotions of hearing the descent of the sons of Demigods in the form of monkeys.

Vikar spoke for several hours on the exploits of Sri Rama and the following is just a summary description of his narration:

Vikar explained how Rama frolicked as a child and grew up to leave home with the sage Visvamrita, in order to curb the demons Maricha and Subahu, and also to study the Vedas and Vedangas.

Then, Vikar continued to explain that the day before Rama's coronation, it so happened that the wicked Manthara poured poison into the ear of Kaikeyi and caused her to request two promised boons from king Dasaratha. The first boon was for her son Bharata to be crowned King instead, and the second boon was for Rama to be banished into the Dandaka forest for fourteen years. Although mortally stricken by those evil requests, Dasaratha was bound by the ropes of Dharma, and to keep his father's word sacred, Rama graciously accepted Kaikeyi's order and repaired into the forest, accompanied by his chaste wife Sita and his ever present and faithful brother Laksmana, for fourteen years. At this point, all monkeys including the kids were gravely silent and tears were falling from their eyes.

Laksmana prepared a hermitage in the beautiful forest of Panchavati, and Rama and Sita lived there in great bliss. Then one day a female Rakshasi, by the name of Surpanaka, came upon their path and accosted Rama. Lusting after him, she asked to be joined with him to roam the forest together, and forsake Sita. At this, the kid monkeys in the trees began to make sour faces to each other while snickering and laughing causing everybody to look toward them until they settled down again. At her proposal, Rama declined, explaining that he was already married and the rivalry would be unbearable between the two wives, but, he suggested, that his brother Laksmana was a eligible bachelor and a suitable match for her. At this, Laksmana got somewhat annoyed.

Surpanaka turned her hideous, love struck eyes toward Laksmana and implored him to join with her to roam the Dandaka forest. But in return, Laksmana retorted with the reason as to why she should accept such a slave as himself who was only a subordinate to Rama. Better, he said, that she marry the master Rama, and soon he would lose his interest in Sita whose limbs were deformed.

At this the monkeys in the trees could not contain their mirth and broke out with a loud chattering laughter. The elders sent admonishing looks at them and restored the peace and then Vikar continued the tale.

Feeling highly insulted, the hideous Rakshasi then said, "How dare you make a mockery of me, I see it is this ugly woman who stands in my way, and so I shall eat her on this very spot!" And at that, the monster threw herself at Sita meaning to devour her. But, Laksmana caught her and dealt her a lesson by cutting off her ears and nose, at which she went screaming away.

The kid monkeys started shouting Jai, Jai! and some were swinging vigorously in the trees, branch to branch. This caused a disturbance, and the elder monkeys cast disapproving glances in their direction. The kid monkeys caught their drift and calmed down again to listen with rapt attention.

The mutilated Surpanaka, after getting her brothers Khara and Dushana killed by Rama, fled to her brother Ravana, who was infuriated by her wounds. He swore vengeance and employed the demon Maricha to assume the form of a golden deer to entice Sita. The illusion worked it's magic as Rama went to capture the golden deer for Sita, and Laksmana was also lured away by the false voice of Maricha imitating distress cries of Rama. Sita was left alone and Ravana did kidnap her, carrying her away through the airways, and He also slew Rama's friend, the aged vulture Jatayu.

Pain and anger swept over the faces of the kid monkeys, and they began to shake their sticks menacingly until the elder's glances did once again calm them down.

Returning to the empty hermitage, Rama plunged into an ocean of grief and he wailed to the heavens and earth and all creatures the loss of his Sita. He exclaimed to his brother Laksmana, "Today you shall see my arrows filling the firmament, the planets will be stopped in their orbits, the moon blackened and the sun dimmed, the peaks of mountains shattered, and the ocean dried up." Rama threatened to destroy the universe with his sharp arrows if Sita was not returned to him that very day. By now, all of the monkey audience was as quiet as the yogi who meditates upon the supersoul, and hot tears were seen to be falling down their cheeks.

From there the two brothers went in search of Sita and came to the lake Pampa. Hanuman, the son of the celestial Vayu, who took birth in monkey form, and could assume any form at will, appeared to them in the form of a Brahmin. (At this the kid monkeys got very excited and cheered.) Hanuman then revealed himself and befriended Rama. Afterward, Rama helped Sugriva, the monkey king, to regain his lost kingdom from Bali, and then Sugriva sent his legions of monkeys to look for Sita. Hanuman then leapt across the ocean to Lanka and delivered Rama's ring to Sita, burned down the city of Lanka, and then returned to Rama with the words of Sita in which she said that she would be saved by Rama only.

The monkey army then marched to the seashore and built a bridge of stones, which floated in the sea by the potency of Sri Rama, and then they crossed to Lanka. All the monkeys were wild with joy at this point of the story.

Then the great war ensued and after killing all Ravana's generals and Kumbakarna and Indrajit, Rama finally slew Ravana and carried Sita back to Ayodhya in a flower aeroplane. Now all the monkeys were cheering and jumping up and down and chanting "Jai Rama, Sri Rama, Jai Jai Rama!" They danced and chanted in wild Pandemonium for several minutes and after much effort they managed to calm down again and sit attentively.

"Thus ends the glorious epic of Rama and his monkey warriors," said Vikar, as he looked out at the large assembly of smiling faces. All the monkeys were in deep bliss and the youngsters were enchanted with thoughts of Rama and Hanuman. In unison, they let shouts of Jai! Jai! ring throughout the forest. Again incessant chanting ensued and the forest was surcharged with spiritual sound vibrations.

* * *

Rajan and Vikar spent several days in that forest. Rajan was unsure of where to go next. Something told him to wait for Viraja to return with news of Varga's progress. And so they spent time in recreation with the fun-loving monkeys, climbing trees and playing games, and enjoying many fruits of Mangos, Bananas, Jackfruits and others. Thus enjoying, it so happened that Rajan almost forgot the pressures of his quest to save the world.

On the third morning, Vikar felt uneasy inside, nervous about something. A bad omen of twitching on his left side foretold of something bad in the air. He warned Rajan that there may be thorns ahead on their path. His friend Chitra said some strange bats were spotted in the forest, flying about in a suspicious manner. Gongada ordered some scouts to go out in both directions and comb the north and south areas beyond the southern and northern passes. Several hours later, the monkey scouts scampered back with wide open eyes. They reported the advances of the Rakshasas from both directions, and there seemed there was no escape for Rajan and Vikar! They appeared to be trapped within the forest of the monkeys! Then Vegaraga, the wise monkey, devised a plan. He thus spoke to Rajan and Vikar, "Although you appear to be caught like birds in a trap, we will turn the tides of fate and hang the enemy with their own noose, please listen closely."

Vegaraga continued his plan, "You and Vikar will climb to the top of the peak of the Jaggerhorn and remain visible. The smaller monkeys will run in fear of the demons as they advance, and the warrior monkeys will lie in hiding. When Gongada gives the signal, then we will all lay ambush on the demon horde."

And so, Rajan and Vikar accepted this plan of the sagacious Vegaraga and taking drink and fruit and their weapons they began to scale the walls of the Jaggerhorn. Reaching the top they sat back and waited for the approaching demons. Gongada arranged his warrior monkeys in strategic areas around the Jaggerhorn, all hiding in tall trees. They all sat still and waited.

As the monkeys sat and waited, they were absorbed in the ecstasy of the Ramayana and they were all thinking that these demons were the same Rakshasa demons of the bygone age of Lord Rama, and thus they imbibed the fighting mood of the Varnara monkeys of Kiskinda with great relish.

Absorbed in this ecstasy, one monkey spoke as if he were Hanuman, another spoke as if he were Sugriva, and another spoke like Angada, and so they whispered amongst themselves, eager to fight the approaching Rakshasas.

Then Vikar heard monkey cries from the distant passes, both north and south, which signaled the advancing Rakshasa demons. As the demons infiltrated the basin at both ends, the smaller monkeys ran in fake fear, just as thieves run in fear of the rising sun. They were yelping shrill screams of fright as the demons poured into the forest from both sides with upraised weapons, emitting gruff growls and howling at the fleeing monkeys. As the Rakshasas drew near to the Jaggerhorn, Vikar notched an arrow to his bow and let loose that shaft into their midst. Pandemonium broke loose as they looked skyward, howling in outrage and pointing up toward Rajan and Vikar. Just then Gongada, the monkey general, sounded his battlehorn thrice. As that horn bellowed and echoed throughout the forest, those battalions of monkeys swept down out of their hiding places, swinging through the trees and let forth one unified battlecry that seemed to shake the mountains and vibrate up to heavens and echo back again.

That mighty roar petrified the demons and struck fear into their hearts, leaving them stunned and looking all about. The monkey warriors swung from tree to tree, working their sling shots with lightning speed and bellowing loud cries of war. Some monkeys were working bows and crossbows from the trees, raining showers of arrows upon the demons. The Rakshasas were hit from all sides and they turned around and around in confusion and ran hither and thither with no position to defend. As the valiant monkey Vakra attacked in the mood of the siege of Lanka, he hurled a slingshot stone with sizzling speed and shouted, "so you shall feel the force of our rocks and shafts, just as the Hanuman of yore uprooted a tree and smashed the Rakshasa general Akampana!"

In this way, the monkey warriors attacked fiercely while remembering the battle scenes of Ramayana. Thus in a short time, the demon forces were routed, and they all fled in a frenzy, howling for their lives, just as the darkness of ignorance flees from the light of truth.