The King's Shadow (Week 7: Storytelling)

There were two brothers—

Together they flowed,

Together they travelled,

On the same road.

One was the king,

The other his shadow,

Behind his radiant half,

Forever aglow.

With the king he remained true,

With the king he stuck fierce,

Like a silent shadow,

The king’s enemies he did pierce.

And in all their time together,

He never faltered nor did he fade,

For his loyalty was unrivaled,

Till his last moment came.

My brother, the king thought,

It may not often appear,

How much you mean to me,

How much I hold you dear.

Like when I was exiled,

You need not have done so,

But without any hesitation,

You, too, said you’d go.

And leaving the comforts

Of our family, our home,

For fourteen long years,

With me, you would roam.

You think I’d not noticed?

I may not have shown.

But on that dark day,

My love for you had grown.

My brother, we’ve been through

Many hurdles and tests,

And sometimes what feels

Like never-ending quests.

That one time, for example,

Where Ravana came,

And took my sweet wife,

With no care and no shame.

It was then I felt lost,

But wasn’t consumed by fear,

For through those restless nights,

You were always near.

And with me you were,

As we stormed through the lands,

Till the very moment,

She returned safe into my hands.

My brother, your loyalty

Always leaves me inspired.

No matter what I ask,

You never grow tired.

Even the hardest of tasks,

Like Sita’s exile to the river,

Had you conflicted,

But you did deliver.

All that way you took her,

And with her, I’m sure you wanted to stay,

For you have a good heart,

One that does not sway.

I’m sorry for the pain

I may have caused you,

But my faith and my trust

Have multiplied by two.

My brother, the king smiled,

Your spirit I admire.

In you there burns

A passionate fire.

Your strength held steady,

Even on your last day,

When Time came to visit,

And made you his prey.

I wish you looked back,

After I dealt you the news,

That you’d entered our meeting,

So through death pay your dues.

But silently you left,

Without a single protest.

I’ll never forget you;

You were the best.

Lakshmana, the shadow,

Knew all this in heart.

He felt all that his brother thought,

When they both did forever part.

And with his last breath,

Lakshmana lay beside the water,

And peacefully rested,

And let his mind wander.

And slowly death's arms took him,

Leaving only memories of his face,

The king’s brother, his shadow,

Now gone without a trace.

Author's Note: I just wanted to write a poem to commemorate Lakshmana's death at the end of Buck's Narayana. Time had come to see Rama and requested to have a meeting with him. He had told Rama not to let anyone interrupt their meeting otherwise that person would die, so Rama told Lakshmana to guard the door. In that time, a sage came and threatened Lakshmana to let him see Rama or else he would destroy the city. Lakshmana then had to interrupt the meeting and as a result, die.  

I always had an appreciation for the love Lakshmana had for Rama and how much he cared for his brother. It was something I admired and so felt it fitting to have my final story for the Ramayana be one to show how much Lakshmana meant to me. The first and last paragraph of this poem is just a beginning and a closing not from anyone's perspective, but all the paragraphs in between I wrote from Rama's perspective. This poem was one I wanted to write from Rama to Lakshmana to show that Rama, too, appreciated all that his brother did for him. This is what I felt Rama wanted to say as Lakshmana was walking away towards his death after entering Rama's conference with Time. When Rama told Lakshmana, he didn't say a word and left but I wanted to convey his feelings and this is what I thought might have been running through his head at the time. His ending is one I was the most sad about; his loyalty and love for his brother really touched me.

I didn't change anything about the story; I basically just wrote out all the main scenes Lakshmana played a part in a poem format. 

Bibliography: Buck, William (1976). Ramayana: King Rama's Way.

Lakshmana: the great warrior

Source: Blogspot

Week 7: Reading Diary B (The End)

Buck's Ramayana
Pages 374-432:

• Flying back towards Ayodhya, Rama shows Sita all the locations and events that occurred on their way to her rescue. 
• Rama then sends Hanuman ahead to tell Bharata of their return, who was extremely glad to find out about their return.
• The coronation begins soon after Bharata ties the sandals back on to Rama's feet. Then all these gifts come for Rama and Sita.
• Gossip about Sita spreads throughout the Sita after about 10,000 years when she is pregnant with a child. They gossip about how Rama let her back after her living with Ravana, questioning her chastity. 
• Rama tells Lakshmana to take her to the Ganges and leaves her there. Lakshmana is conflicted but due to his loyalty to Rama, he takes her there. 
• Sita's banishment is seen as the continual of the curse where Vishnu was parted from his wife.
• The Ganges tries to get Sita to jump into the waters.
• Sita gives birth to her two sons Kusha and Lava in Valmiki's home in the forest.
• Rama plans a huge festival where he invites a lot of people including Sita's father. Shatrughna invites Valmiki—he doesn't know that Sita is with Valmiki. 
• Rama finally realizes that the two boys are his sons at the festival. They have been telling his story bit by bit each day, the festival lasting for a year.
• Sita, while proving her innocence, disappears for a thousand years.
• Time has a meeting with Rama. Lakshmana disturbs them during this meeting because of the hermit who wants to speak to Rama. Lakshmana has to die because of this and goes to Sarayu river where he dies. :(

Kusha and Lava: sons of Rama

Source: SaveTemples

Week 7: Reading Diary A (the end of Ravana's reign)

Buck's Ramayana
Pages 325-373:

• Mandodari tried to persuade Ravana to give Sita back to Rama, but Ravana is deaf to this advice. His lust for women is too great. Mandodari tells Ravana that she loves him.
• The final battle against Ravana finally begins after all the people he kept sending kept on dying. It begins with Rama cutting off Ravana's hands.
• Eventually Rama kills Ravana and Vibhishana now takes over his brothers place. Ravana's wife mourns him, loving him despite his horrible actions. 
• Rama tests Sita's innocence through a trial: she has to sit within a circle of fire.
• The time has almost come for Rama to return. All the monkeys and bears and everyone, including Vibishana escort Rama back. Basically, a huge army is taking them back home.

Ravana and Sita

Source: Wordpress