Tara replied in a sweet and gentle tone? “0 prince, please do not be angry with Sugriv. You know that kama is a powerful emotion. Even rishis have fallen to its lures, what need I say about a mere monkey, who is fickle by nature and who has been denied these pleasures for many years? Please forgive him for his apparent indifference, which has been caused by weakness. Actually, he has already ordered the army to be mobilised and soon thousands of monkeys from all over the country will be assembled here, to start out on their quest to discover Sita. Please come inside and meet Sugriv”.
So saying, she led him into the inner apartments. Sugriv said not a word and stood with folded palms in front of him, while Lakshman berated him. Tara tried once more to intervene and make excuses for her husband.
“0 prince”, she said, “For Ram’s sake Sugriv will give up everything, even me and his wife, Rumi. He is devoted to Ram. His army will be here at any moment. Please relax and rest assured that everything will be done as you wish”.
Lakshman was a little pacified by this assurance. Sugriv seeing his anger to have abated a little, now humbly begged his pardon. Both of them went to see Ram and tried to convince him that things were already under way.
Sugriv bowed before Ram and said, “You are like a god to me. How can I ever forget what you have done for me. Please do not think me to be ungrateful. Soon this entire hillside will be covered by monkeys. I will despatch them to all corners of the globe and find out the whereabouts of Sita. Rest assured that you will soon be reunited with her”.
Within ten days, as he said, the whole hillside was covered with monkeys. They came in millions, lion-tailed, dark-faced, red-bottomed, white-furred and golden-haired, ranging from all parts of the country, from the Himalayas to the southern sea. All the world’s tree folk answered Sugriv’s call and crowded round their king to await his commands. The bears also came with their king, Jambavan, who was an old and shaggy, black bear, noted for his wisdom and respected by all the monkeys. Sugriv summoned his general, Vinata, and asked him to go east and scour the forests, hills and caves of the east, for any signs of Sita and return within a month on pain of death. Another troop was despatched to the west and another to the north. Turning to Hanuman he said, “You are exceptional. Please take a troop and go south. You are sure to find a way to reach Sita”.
Ram was delighted that Hanuman was being sent south. Taking out his signet ring with the crest of the lkshvaku dynasty, he handed it over to him as a token to reassure Sita that he was indeed Ram’s messenger. His last words to him were, “Hanuman, remember I am depending entirely on you. Make every attempt to locate Sita. I know that you will succeed”.
The monkeys who had been sent to the north, east and west returned within the stipulated time of a month and sadly admitted that they had found no traces of Sita. Sugriv told Ram that Sita must be somewhere in the south, as he had seen her being carried in that direction. He assured Ram that if anyone could achieve the impossible, it was Hanuman, who was son of the wind-god.
Hanuman’s party which had gone south made a thorough search of all the forests and caves. The time given to them was coming to an end and they were last losing nope. They had not been able to find any food or water for days. Suddenly, they saw a cave, in front of which, birds were flying. They decided to go in and see. It was dim and dark and they could hardly see anything. Hanuman went first and Angada caught hold of his tail and followed. All the rest came, each catching the tail of the one in front. Thus they slipped and slithered down the slope of the cave and suddenly fell into a garden which was so enchanting, that it could only be described as celestial. There they saw many beautiful mansions and lovely ponds, looking like gems. At last they came upon a lady ascetic and questioned her about the place. She said that the place had been designed by the architect of the demons, who was called Mayan.
He was the master of illusions and she said that all the things they were seeing were pure illusion. She was the guardian of the place and her name was Swayamprabha. She naturally wanted to know all about them. But first she entertained them with a lavish feast of fruits and honey. Then Hanuman told her the whole story of their quest and asked her the way out of the cave. She said that normally one who entered the cave by accident would never be able get out of it by themselves, but with her yogic powers, she wafted them out. She pointed out to them the sea on one side and the Malaya mountains on the other and told them to choose their course.
The monkeys stood dejectedly on the seashore watching the magnificence of the ocean. Their stipulated time was over, for they had spent a long time in the enchanted garden. They dared not go back empty handed. They feared the wrath of the king. Angada called a meeting of the vanaras and said.
“The time allotted to us is over and we dare not return, for we will be executed. It is best that we fast to death on this seashore. The king has no affection for me and will punish me severely. I would rather die on this seashore than return to face his wrath”.
The monkeys said that they would prefer to return to the cave, where they could live in comfort and plenty rather than sacrifice their lives. Angada was undecided when he heard this. Now Hanuman took a hand. He had no desire to go and live a life of pleasure in the cave, nor did he wish to starve to death.
“Let us so back and bee forgiveness from Sugriv he said, “That is the honourable thing to do”. But Angada who feared his uncle greatly was not convinced of this. He decided that he would give up his life on the seashore. Those wanted to join him could do so and the rest could go back. So saying he lay down on the hot sands and prepared for death. The rest followed suit.
Thus ends the third Canto called “The Search for Sita” of the Kishkinda Kanda in the glorious Ramayana of the Sage Valmiki.