Whenever one thinks of a popular saga, the first things that come to mind are the protagonist, antagonist, and the cause of the conflict. Talking about the great Indian epic Ramayana, these roles are fulfilled by Lord Rama, the Brahmin-Rakshasa Ravana, and Goddess Sita. But as we explore further, we find many other laudable characters who played vital roles in this classic saga. These include Vayu Putra Hanuman, Ravana’s mighty son Meghnad, the inspiring demigod Jatayu and Lord Rama’s brother Lakshmana among many others.
Through this piece of writing, I seek to dive deeper into the character of Lakshmana who was an incomparable warrior and took up a pivotal place through the proceedings of this epic.
The Third Son
Lakshmana was born to King Dashratha and his third wife Queen Sumitra. He was one half of a twin set with his brother Shatrughna. He was the second youngest out of the four sons of King Dashratha of the Surya Clan. According to the documentation of Ramayana, Lakshmana was considered to be the incarnation of Shesha Naga, the vehicle of Lord Vishnu. While Shri Rama was Lord Vishnu’s reincarnation, Lakshmana was his vehicle in the heavenly world. His personality is popularly described as that of a loyalist, brave warrior and dedicated brother. On closely observing his journey, we find that Lakshmana’s commendable feats are just as praise-worthy if not more than Lord Rama’s himself.
Childhood and Marriage
Starting with his childhood, Lakshmana was trained in warfare at a very early age by his father. Then he proceeded to go to Rishi Vashisht’s gurukul. During his stay at gurukul, he accompanied his teacher on conquests of defeating a variety of demons in neighboring kingdoms. Once all the four brothers had entered their youth, Lord Rama went on to win Princess Sita’s ‘swayamvara’. King Janaka, being impressed with the brothers of Ayodhya, wedded all four of his daughters with the four princes. Lakshmana married Princess Urmila. The two remained devoted to each other despite spending fourteen years in separation.
The Vow to Accompany Rama
After six loving years of marriage, Lord Rama was exiled from the kingdom for fourteen years. This happened as a result of his stepmother Queen Keikayi courting a favor from her husband. Refusing to let Lord Rama complete this exile by himself, his wife and devoted brother immediately decided to accompany him. This virtue of ultimate sacrifice, despite little obligation to do so, reflects how Lakshmana worshiped his elder brother.
Before departing for this journey, Lakshmana convinced his wife not to accompany him. Instead, he requested her to take care of their parents and the royal household. They both promised to fulfill their duties, even if it meant facing separation from each other. His love as a husband was strong and faithful, but he put his duties of protecting his brother and mother-like sister-in-law before all else.
The Exile
From the commencement of their exile, Lakshmana ardently protected Rama and Sita while slaying many devils who obstructed their path. A great feat of Lakshmana was his sacrifice of sleep and food, and not seeing a woman’s face for the tedious period of exile. He was tempted multiple times by Nidra, the goddess of sleep. However, he refused to give in by shielding his eyes with arrows. Ultimately impressed by him, Nidra allowed him to transfer his share of sleep to someone else. And, he chose to make his wife’s longing easier by sending his quota to her. Urmila gladly accepted the request of her husband and sacrificed all those years of her life for her husband.
The Ultimate Warrior
Out of respect for his sister-in-law, Lakshmana refused to look at her face and instead chose to look at her feet. During the initial stages of the search for Sita, he was the one who immediately recognised Sita’s anklet. After all, he had spent all his time with her, looking at her anklets! His strict penance also paid off during the slaying of Indrajit- Ravana’s undefeatable son. Indrajit had the boon that he could only be killed by a man who had not slept or seen a woman’s face in 12 years.
Lakshmana was also known to be a man of great anger. This anger fueled him throughout the war against Ravana’s army. He slayed a significant number of his soldiers and most elite warriors including many of his sons. He was the one who killed Ravana as well. It is a popular misconception that Lord Rama killed Ravana, however the sin of killing a brahmin could not be borne by the venerated Lord Rama, and thus this duty was given to Lakshmana.
There are many other stories about the role of Lakshmana in the proceedings of Ramayana. His valor, and devotion towards all the people he loved and worshiped is laudable and his conquests have been incomparable in all the yugas that have since passed.
Writer : Kriti Gupta
Grade : 11 (Year 2023)
Place : Ambala, India
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