Hanuman jumped lightly down to a branch, from which he could be seen and at last her anxious eyes spied him – the messenger of Ram, the harbinger of hope and happiness. She saw a small monkey clinging to the branch of the tree. He was small and cute with white fur and red face and his eyes were the colour of liquid gold. He was seated humbly on the branch and looked harmless. Still she had her doubts. She had been cheated and tormented so many times in the past few months, that she was always suspicious of everything and everyone, in case it was some new ploy of Ravana*s. Then she decided that it was all a figment of her imagination and started to call agitatedly for Ram and Lakshman. Hanuman guessed what was going on in her mind and decided that it was high time for him to appear before her. He jumped down lightly from the branch and prostrated before her. He held his folded palms above his head, in a gesture of worship and began talking in a soft tone.
“0 fair lady, tell me who you are? I see you wearing soiled garments but you look as if you are a princess. Like dew-drops on a lotus petal, tears seem to be clinging to your eyes. Why are you alone here and what is the cause of your sorrow? If by some great good fortune you are that, Sita, wife of the noble Ram, who was forcibly brought here by Ravana, then please listen to me carefully. I feel that you are indeed Ram’s queen. Your beauty has no parallel. Tell me truthfully, are you not Sita”? Sita was elated when she heard these words and cried out, “Yes indeed, I am the daughter-in-law of the great Dasaratha and wife of the noble Ram. My father is the king of Videha and I am called Sita. I accompanied my husband to the forest and was kidnapped by Ravana and brought here. He has given me two more months to succumb to his passion. If Rania does not come before that I will end my life”.
Hanuman listened attentively to these words and then spoke, “My lady! I have been sent here by Ram. He is well, though he is also desperately unhappy at being parted from you. He grieves for you night and day and has sent me, as his messenger, to tell you that he will come for you, very soon and kill Ravana and rescue you”.
Sita was thrilled when she heard these words. She had been living in the darkness of despair for so many months, that she had almost given up hope of rescue. These words put new heart into her and she said, “It is said that if a person lives in hope, happiness will come her way sooner or later. I see now that this is true”.
Hanuman came closer and once again fear rose in her heart. She shrank into herself. She had been tricked so often that fear always lurked in her heart and she doubted everyone. Maybe this was a new trick of Ravana’s to beguile her into believing him, by pretending to praise Ram. Her mouth went dry and her limbs grew weak and she sank to the ground, unable to cling on to the branch. Again Hanuman guessed a little of what was going on inside her mind. He prostrated full length before her and refused to look up.
Timidly, Sita cast puzzled glances at him and said, “0 Ravana, you tricked me once before, in the garb of a sannyasi. Have you now come in the form of a monkey? If so, it is useless. Please do not torment me further”.
Hanuman remained silent and Sita spoke again, “Perhaps you are indeed what you profess to be. Somehow I feel drawn to you. Please tell me more about Ram and allay my fears”. She was torn between doubt and hope and it was pitiful to see her.
Softly and sweetly Hanuman began to speak of the one who was closest to her heart. “My Lady Please believe me. I have indeed been sent by your husband, the noble king of Ayodhya. In looks, he is veritable god of love. In valour, he is a lion. He is a terror to his enemy but now he is in the depths of despair, at having lost you. I am the minister of the vanara king Sugriv and my name is Hanuman. I had been searching for you all these days. I crossed the ocean and had to enter the city to see you and now my mission is over. All I have to do is to return and give my message of hope to Ram who is waiting anxiously for my return.
Very soon you will see Ram and Lakshman entering the city of Lanka with a large army and you will be rescued At last Sita was convinced that he was indeed a messenger from Ram She asked him to tell her everything about Ram. What did he do after she was abducted, where did he go, how long would it be before I reached Lanka, and so on. She was thirsty for news of Ram and eager. lapped up every scrap of news which Hanuman gave her. Hanuma was only too happy to speak of Ram, who was his god. He told her how they had picked up the jewels, she had thrown to them, while they sat on the peak of Rishyarnukha and all the other incidents ending with his finding her. At the end of the recital, he stood respectfully with folded palms before her. Sita’s joy knew no bounds. She was now convinced, that he had indeed come from Ram. Tears of happiness replaced the tears of sorrow, which had been flowing in torrents down her cheeks. She was speechless with delight.
Hanuman said respectfully, “My lady! Please give me leave to go now. I have told you all that you wanted to know. Rest assured that Ram will arrive Portly and rescue you. Here is his signet ring — the ring of the Raghu dynasty—-which he has sent with me, to reassure you of my identity”. So saying he went near her and handed over the ring which she knew and loved so well.
Taking the precious article in her cupped hands, she gazed and gazed at it, as if hungry for the hand which used to wear the ring. Tears coursed down her checks. With eyes filled with gratitude, she looked at Hanuman who had brought new hope to her barren heart.
“0 Hanuman”! she said, “you are indeed the noblest and bravest of all people. How could you have crossed the ocean, which is a hundred miles wide and dared to enter this citadel, which is guarded on all sides? You must surely be possessing some miraculous powers. You have also given me news of my beloved husband, who is dearer to me than my father or mother or any one else in the world. Banished from his kingdom, he walked about all these years in the forest, with me by his side. We were so happy together until this calamity overtook us. I hope he has not lost heart. Please tell him that I cling on to life, only in the hope of seeing him again”.
“My lady! If Ram had known where you were, he would have come for you, long ago. As it is, he lives in a cave and hardly eats or sleeps. He does not care for anything any more and is always lost in thought. Even when he falls into a fitful sleep, due to exhaustion, he wakes up calling, ‘Sita! Sita!’ Whenever he sees something which is pleasing to you, he sighs and is inconsolable”.
Sita was thrilled to hear that Ram’s desire for her was as great as hers for him. At the same time, she was unhappy to know that he was neglecting his own health. “Your words bring both happiness and unhappiness to me, 0 Hanuman. When I think of his unhappiness, I become sorrowful too. Both extreme happiness and extreme sorrow are the outcome of one*s actions in a past life. I wonder if he will be able to reach me in time. I have barely two more months to live. This is the tenth month of my captivity and I have been given one year by the rakshasa king, before he kills me”. Hanuman could not bear to think of going away and leaving Sita alone for another two months. “My lady’! he said, “no doubt, Ram will come soon. But I can’t bear to think of you being left alone here. Come with me and I will carry you across the ocean and take you to Ram this minute. Just give me the command”.
