Ancient Indian Historical Tradition c29.239

c29.239

Through the intrigue of his step-mother Rāma was banished, with his wife Sītā and brother Lakṣmaṇa, from Ayodhyā to spend fourteen years in the Daṇḍaka forest.⁶ He travelled south to Prayāga, then south-west to the region of Bhopal, then south across the Narbada, and then to a district where he dwelt ten years. That was probably the Chhattisgarh district, because that was called Dakṣiṇa Kosala, and in it was a hill called Rāmagiri. His long stay there would have connected it with his home, Kosala; hence probably arose its name.¹ Afterwards he went south to the middle Godāvarī, where he came into conflict with the Rākṣasas colony of Janasthāna. It is said he avenged on the Rākṣasas their ill-treatment of munis. Rāvaṇa carried Sītā off to Laṅkā.² Rāma went south-west to Pampā lake and there met Sugrīva (with his counsellor Hanumant) who had been expelled by his brother Bālin, king of Kiṣkindhā.³ They went south there, and Rāma killed Bālin and placed Sugrīva on the throne. These persons and the people of Kiṣkindhā are called monkeys, but they were a Dravidian tribe and were apparently akin to the Rākṣasas of Laṅkā, for Rāvaṇa and Sugrīva are spoken of as ‘like brothers’.⁴ With their aid Rāma proceeded south to what was afterwards Pāṇḍya, crossed over to Ceylon by Adam’s Bridge, killed Rāvaṇa and recovered Sītā. Thus the only civilized communities in S. India mentioned at that time were in Janasthāna and Kiṣkindhā. No others are alluded to, not even the Pāṇḍyas, through whose country Rāma passed. Hence Pāṇḍya had not then come into existence, nor therefore Cola or Kerala⁵ (p. 108).