Faithful Husbands, Faithful Wives

Marital fidelity is an important theme in the Ramayana

- Devdutt Pattanaik

IF the Mahabharata tantalises us with a female protagonist who has five husbands, then the Ramayana impresses with a male protagonist who looks at no other woman but his lawfully wedded wife. It almost seems that the two epics are talking to, and challenging, a society that has normalised monogamy for women and polygamy for men. Ram is described by poets as Eka-Bani (one who needs only one attempt with his bow to strike a target) and Eka-Vachani (one who always keeps his word) and Ekam-Patni-Vrata (one who is forever faithful to a single wife).

Marital fidelity is an important theme in the Ramayana, and this is foreshadowed by the very first tale we encounter when we are introduced to the epic. Valmiki, the poet-author of the epic, witnesses a hunter shooting down one of a pair of cranes. The surviving female mourns her loss with piteous cries that fills Valmiki with agony. It reminds him of Sita mourning her separation from Ram, Tara mourning the death of her husband, and Mandodari mourning the death of her husband, Ravana.

Tara remarries Vali’s younger brother, Sugriva, who then becomes king of Kishkinda. Mandodari remarries Ravana’s younger brother, Vibhishan, who then becomes king of Lanka. But Sita does not remarry. Nor does Ram. Remarriage is okay for the vanara (monkeys, forest-dwellers) and rakshasa (demons, barbarians?) but not for the Arya, followers of the Veda.