HANUMAN MEETS SITA

In the Ashoka Vatika, Hanuman saw Sita, guarded by many ogresses. He his himself when he heard the approaching steps of Ravana.

Ravana asked Sita to become his Queen. He tried to tempt her by offering her all kinds if luxuries and comforts if she accepted his proposal. But Sita angrily refused his proposal and said, "O Ravana, only a coward like you could kidnap me in this deceitful manner. You should be ashamed of kidnapping me like a thief in my husband's absence. " 

On hearing Sita's reply, Ravana angrily returned to his palace.

At night when the ogresses guarding Sita went to sleep, Hanuman decided to meet her.

Sitting on the tree above Sita, Hanuman started praising Lord Rama. He described every detail of Rama's life from his exile to sita's abduction.

On hearing this, Sita wondered who could talk of her Lord so affectionately in this country of demons. When she requested the voice to come before her, Hanuman jumped down from the tree. At first sita was scared. She asked, "Who are you?"

Hanuman replied, "Lord Rama sent me to search for you. I am his messenger."

Sita asked, "How can I be sure that you are my Lord's envoy?"

Hanuman took out Rama's ring which Rama had given to him and gave it to sita.

Hanuman then assured Sita, "very soon Lord Rama shall rescue you and kill all these demons."

Sita gave Hanuman her ornament and said, "Give this to my Lord and pay him my salutations."

When Hanuman felt hungry, he asked sita to permit him to take fruits from the trees around. Sita happily gave him the permission but warned him of the presence of demons in the Ashok vatika.

Hanuman jumped from one tree to the other, eating the fruits and uprooting the trees. He was deliberately doing this so that the guards would wake up. He wanted the demons to take his to Ravana.

When the demons attacked Hanuman, he killed many of them. The few who remained ran to inform Ravana that a monkey had created havoc in the Ashok Vatika by killing the demons and uprooting the trees.

  Then Ravana sent his son Indrajit to capture Hanuman. When Indrajit saw the mighty monkey destroying his father's garden, he at once attacked him. In return, Hanuman uprooted a tree and threw it at his chariot.

The duel between them continued for a long time. At last Indrajit shot the noose of Brahma at Hanuman. Not wanting to be disrespectful towards Brahma, Hanuman gave him.

When Indrajit told his demons to carry the monkey to the court, they were not able to do so, even a hundred demons failed to lift Hanuman.

Then Hanuman made himself very light in weight. When the demons lifted him, he became heavy again and crushed them all to death.

He then told them to remove the rope and that he would himself go to Ravana's court. When they did so, he went to the court.

On their way to the court, all the demons wondered who the mighty monkey was and why he was destroying Ravana's garden and killing the demons.