(svadharma) of the good warrior/king who is faithful to his word (r.ta) and
to his duty; it portrayed the ideal of wifely fidelity in Sı ̄t a ̄. The narration
reconciled the imagery of kingship and urban duty with that of asceticism
and forest life. Among other things, it legitimated warfare insofar as Ra ̄van.a
was the paradigmatic enemy.
The basic “plot” of the epic followed Ra ̄ma’s heroic exploits. He was the
eldest son and heir to his father Das ́aratha, king of Ayodhya ̄. His stepmother,
however, demanded her own son be made heir and crown prince (cashing
in on a boon made available long before). Ra ̄ma voluntarily withdrew
to the forest with Sı ̄t a ̄ (literally, “furrow”).^31 In the forest, sages sought
Ra ̄ma’s help against harassing demons. Ra ̄ma agreed to join the conflict
against the demons, whose king, Ra ̄van.a, abducted Sı ̄t a ̄, keeping her captive.
Ra ̄ma was aided by the monkeys of the forest, led by the general Hanuman,
and eventually Ra ̄van.a was overcome and Sı ̄t a ̄ was rescued. Ra ̄ma was
restored to the throne of Ayodhya ̄. In a later addition to the text the chastity
and fidelity of Sı ̄t a ̄ were questioned and she proved herself by surviving
fire. Eventually, she returned to the earth and resumed her rightful place
as a goddess.
Many of the themes discussed earlier were reflected in this epic – the
importance of kingship, the dialectic between city and forest (note now that
it was important to have Ra ̄ma return to his throne); and the sacred duty of
husband and wife. Many of the stories told to Ra ̄ma to inspire him and
provide an example of how he should behave were stories of gods (like
Skanda) who were heroes in their celestial roles. Over the years, the main
characters in the epic have been understood in various ways depending on
local retelling. Ra ̄ma, for example, has been seen, not only as a “sacred king”
and incarnation of Vis.n.u, but also as a major deity in his own right, especially
amongst Hindi-speaking people after the seventeenth century when his
story appeared in a Hindi dialect. Hanuman, his monkey general, was even-
tually divinized and was perceived by some as the model of fidelity, virility,
and patron-hero of warriors and wrestlers. Sı ̄t a ̄ herself was not merely the
dutiful wife, but by some women has been seen as a model of independence
and strength, willing to stand up to her husband when asked to defend
herself.
The other epic is the Maha ̄bha ̄rata. Its origins appear to be in songs sung
by bards in praise (stotra) of their noble patrons. The verse form is generally
known as maha ̄ka ̄ vya, wherein well-known themes are put into verse form.^32
Songs sung for kings or patrons became songs sung for deities. Between
the fourth century BCEand the fourth century CE, many additions, stories,
and anecdotes were added by various reciters until some 100,000 s ́lokas
comprised the final text organized into eighteen books – the longest single
volume ever reduced to writing. Whether the epic reflected the affairs
70 The Urban Period