Author: Indo-Asian News Service
Publication: The Hindustan Times
Date: October 27, 2004
URL: http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_1075939,00110004.htm
Ten-headed demon king Ravana of
the Hindu epic Ramayana actually had one head and the other nine were its
reflection on the nine large polished gems that he wore around his neck,
an American scholar of Sanskrit has reasoned.
According to Berkeley professor
RP Goldman, ancient scholars who delved deep into Hindu mythological texts
like the Ramayana, tried to "rationalise" several of the seemingly improbable
tales -- like Ravana's 10 heads, or how fast could Hanuman the monkey god
have flown to get the sanjivani, or elixir, for Laxmana, or even how long
would Kumbhakarna - Ravana's brother - have slept.
In a lecture in New Delhi titled
aptly, "How fast do Monkeys Fly? How Long do Demons Sleep?" where he read
commentaries on Sanskrit epic poetry, Goldman said ancient scholars like
Nagoji Bhatta, Govindaraja, Maheshwara Teertha, Satyateertha and Madhava
Yogendra tried to "track down the narrative" and explain through "scientific
reasoning" the seeming exaggerations in the works.
Goldman, who is professor of Sanskrit
at the University of California at Berkeley, said the Sanskrit scholars,
who lived between 1200 and 1800 AD, were not "prepared to swallow anything"
and went through the texts carefully.
Reciting extracts of Sanskrit couplets
in a singsong manner from the works of these scholars, Goldman explained
the meanings and the finer nuances of the language to the audience at India
International Centre.
According to him, the commentators
have painstakingly chronicled day-to-day events of the Battle of Lanka,
the 6th book of the Ramayana. They have done meticulous calculations of
the lunar calendar to explain how many hours could have elapsed between
the slaying of Kumbhakarna to the vanquishing of Meghnad, or even if the
war with Ravana lasted just one night or 'sapta ratras' (seven nights).
One important question that these
scholars raised was how long could Hanuman have taken to fly to the Himalayas
- to the Mahodaya mountain to fetch the life-giving herb for Lakshmana
- from Lanka, where the battle was raging?
