Lakshmana
Lakshmana | |
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Suryavaṃśa |
Lakshmana (
Lakshmana was born to King
Etymology
The name Lakshmana is of
Legend
Birth and early life
King Dasharatha of Ayodhya had three wives: Kausalya, Kaikeyi, and Sumitra. He performed a yajna to beget sons and as a result, his queens became pregnant.[7] Lakshmana and his brother Shatrughna were born to Sumitra, while Rama and Bharata were born to Kausalya and Kaikeyi.[8]
In the
Marriage to Urmila
After Rama won the svayamvara of Sita, their marriage was fixed. King Dasharatha arrived in Mithila for his son's wedding and noticed that Lakshmana had feelings for Urmila, but according to tradition, Bharata and Mandavi were to marry first.[13][14] King Dasharatha then arranged for Bharata to marry Mandavi and Shatrughna to marry Shrutakirti, allowing Lakshmana to marry Urmila. Ultimately, all four sisters married the four brothers, strengthening the alliance between the two kingdoms.[15] The wedding ceremony was conducted under the guidance of Shatananda. During the homeward journey to Ayodhya, another avatar of Vishnu, Parashurama, challenged Rama to combat, on the condition that he was able to string the bow of Vishnu, Sharanga. When Rama obliged him with success, Parashurama acknowledged the former to be a form of Vishnu and departed to perform penance at the mountain Mahendra.[16] The wedding entourage then reached Ayodhya, entering the city amid great fanfare.[17]
According to
Exile and war
Lakshmana served Rama and Sita reverently during the exile. In Panchavati, Lakshmana also built a hut for Rama and Sita to live in. Lakshmana cut off
On the first night of exile, when Rama and Sita were sleeping, the deity Nidra appeared before Lakshmana and he requested her to offer him the boon of not sleeping for the fourteen years.[21] The goddess asked him that she could grant his wish, but someone else would have to take his place asleep. Lakshmana asked the goddess to enquire his wife Urmila regarding this, who happily accepted the task. Urmila slept continuously for the fourteen years of exile, to complete the sleep of her and her husband's share. Urmila is notable for this unparalleled sacrifice, which is called Urmila Nidra.[22][23]
When Sita asked Rama to fetch a magical golden deer for her, Rama asked Lakshmana to stand guard as he sensed danger and evil. The golden deer was the demon
Through their search for Sita, Rama and Lakshmana meet Hanuman a, the biggest devotee of Rama, greatest of ape heroes, and an adherent of Sugriva. Rama befriends Sugriva and helps him by killing his elder brother Vali thus regaining the kingdom of Kiṣkindha, in exchange for helping Rāma to recover Sita. However, Sugriva soon forgets his promise and this enrage Lakshmana, who was ready to destroy the ape citadel.[25]
During the war between Rama and Ravana, Meghanada hurls a powerful weapon at Lakshmana and he gets mortally wounded. So Hanumana assumes his gigantic form and flies from Lanka to the Himalayas. Upon reaching Mount Sanjeevani, Hanumana is unable to identify the herb that will cure Lakshmana and so he decides to bring the entire mountain back to Lanka.[26] Post his recovery, Lakshmana killed Meghanada and Atikaya, who were the sons of Ravana.[27]
Post exile
After the end of the Lanka war, Rama was crowned King of Kosala, and Bharata became the crown prince. Rama had offered to make Lakshmana the crown prince, but he refused, saying Bharata was elder to him and more deserving of the title. Rama, hearing this, was very pleased and said "O Lakshmana, in this birth, you served me so well and did your duties as a younger brother, so I will do the same in my next birth as your younger brother". Thus, in the next birth, Rama became Krishna and Lakshmana became Balarama, Krishna's elder brother.[28]
Goddess Nidra had told Lakshman that he would have to go to sleep as soon as the exile ends, so that Urmila could awake. After the exile, Lakshaman went to sleep and Urmila saw the coronation of Rama.
"My brother, I have waited for this grand moment for years and just when I was about to witness my Lord Ram being crowned king, the goddess of sleep, Nidra, reminds me of our agreement and demands that I submit to her this very moment and go to sleep and let Urmila awaken."[29]
—The Princess Who Slept For 14 Years
Lakshmana was the one who left Sita in the forests near sage Valmiki's ashram after she expressed her desire to leave the kingdom. Lakshmana remained loyal to his brother and fought against Rama's sons Lava and Kusha later on.[30]
According to the
Renunciation of life
Sage Durvasa appeared at Rama's doorstep, and seeing Lakshmana guarding the door, demanded an audience with Rama. At the time, Rama was having a private conversation with Yama. Before the conversation began, Yama gave Rama strict instructions that their dialogue was to remain confidential, and anyone who entered the room was to be relieved of their life. Rama agreed and entrusted Lakshmana with the duty of guarding his door. When Durvasa made his demand, Lakshmana politely refused. The sage grew angry and threatened to curse all of Ayodhya if Lakshmana did not immediately inform Rama of his arrival.[33]
Lakshmana, in a dilemma, decided it would be better that he alone die to save all of Ayodhya from falling under Durvasa's curse and so interrupted Rama's meeting to inform him of the sage's arrival. Durvasa cursed him that he should go to heaven alive. Rama quickly concluded his meeting with Yama and received the sage with due courtesy. In order to fulfil his brother's promise, Lakshmana went to the banks of the river
Belief and assessment
Lakshmana has been described in the Ramayana, as a man with unwavering loyalty, love and commitment to his elder brother, through times of joy and adversity alike. He was also noted for being an obedient son, both to his parents and to his sister-in-law.[35]
Bandhavgarh Fort in Madhya Pradesh (bandhav as brother, garh as fort) was said to have been given by Rama to his brother Lakshmana to keep a watch on Lanka.[36]
Military officers given the rank equivalent of admirals in navies in the Malay Archipelago, including Malaysia and Indonesia, are titled "Lakshmana" (Jawi script: لقسامان) after the figure. There are five ranks with his name, under General/flag officers.[37]
In other versions
Jain version
Lakshmana is referred to as Vasudeva in the Jain Ramayana. According to the Jain Ramayana, it was Lakshmana who killed Ravana, not Rama.[38] According to Jain storytelling, Lakshmana had around sixteen thousand wives in which Prithvisundari was his principle consort (in the Hindu epic, he had only one wife Urmila).[39][40]
Gond version
Lakshmana is the main protagonist in the Gond Ramayani. In this version, that is set post the Lanka war, Lakshmana goes through agnipravesham and not Sita.[41][42]
Mahaviracharita
The Sanskrit play Mahaviracharita by Bhavabhuti is based on the early life of Rama. According to the play, Vishwamitra invites Janaka to attend his sacrifice, but he sends his brother Kushadhvaja and daughters Sita and Urmila, as his delegates. This is the place, where Laxman and Urmila meet for the first time. By the end of the act, Kushadhvaja and Vishwamitra decide to marry Sita and Urmila to Rama and Lakshamana.[43]
Temples and worship
Although Lakshmana's statue is always kept with Rama's statue in Rama temples, there are some temples dedicated him, where he is worshipped alongside his wife, Urmila.[44]
- In Bharatpur district of Rajasthan, there is a temple dedicated to Lakshmana and Urmila. The temple was built in 1870 AD by the then ruler Balwant Singh of Bharatpur and is considered as a Royal temple by the royal family of Bharatpur State.[45]
- In Bhind district of Madhya Pradesh, there is another temple dedicated to Lakshmana and Urmila.[46]
- In the Medak district of Telangana, there is a temple called Sri Kalyana Ramachandra Sannadhi that is dedicated to Lakshman and Urmila. This temple is the only one in India that has installed statues of Rama's brothers and their wives.[47][48]
- In the Ernakulam district of Kerala, there is a temple dedicated to Lakshmana, called Thirumoozhikkulam Lakshmana Perumal Temple.[49]
- In Thrissur district of Kerala, there is a temple called Vilwadrinatha Temple, where Lakshmana is one of the main deity.[50]
- In Kottayam district of Kerala, there is a temple dedicated to Lakshmana and Rama, called the Vennimala Sree Rama Lakshmana Temple.[51]
Influence and popular culture
Lakshmana's story and his devotion have inspired "painting, film, novels, poems, TV serials and plays". Prominently, he is depicted in all the adaptations of Ramayana.[52]
Films
The following people portrayed Lakshmana in the film adaptation of Ramayana.
- Umakant portrayed him in the 1943 Hindi film Ram Rajya.
- P. V. Narasimha Bharathi portrayed him in the 1958 Tamil film Sampoorna Ramayanam.
- Raghavaiah portrayed him in the 1968 Telugu film Veeranjaneya.
- Master Sridhar portrayed him in the 1976 Tamil film Dasavatharam.
- Venkateswarlu portrayed him in the 1977 Malayalam film Kanchana Sita.
- Mishal Varma and Shakti Singh voiced him in the 1992 animated film Ramayana: The Legend of Prince Rama.
- Narayanam Nikhil portrayed him in the 1997 Telugu film Ramayanam.[53]
- Arun Govil portrayed him in the 1997 Hindi film Lav Kush.[54]
- Rishabh Shukla voiced him in the 2010 animated Hindi film Ramayana: The Epic.[55]
- Srikanth portrayed him in the 2011 Telugu film Sri Rama Rajyam.[56]
- Sunny Singh portrayed him in the 2023 Hindi film Adipurush.
Television
The following people portrayed Lakshmana in the television adaptation of Ramayana.
- Sunil Lahri portrayed him in the 1987 series Ramayan and the 1998 series Luv Kush.[57]
- Manish Khanna portrayed him in the 1997 series Jai Hanuman.
- Amit Pachori portrayed him in the 2000 series Vishnu Puran.
- Bijay Anand portrayed him in the 2002 series Ramayan.
- Ujjwal Rana portrayed him in the 2006 series Raavan.
- Ankit Arora portrayed him in the 2008 series Ramayan.
- Kunal Verma portrayed him in the 2011 Devon Ke Dev...Mahadev.[58]
- Neil Bhatt portrayed him in the 2012 series Ramayan.
- Aniruddh Singh portrayed him in the 2012 mini-series Ramleela – Ajay Devgn Ke Saath.
- Ankur Verma / Arun Mandola portrayed him in the 2015 series Sankat Mochan Mahabali Hanumaan.
- Karan Suchak portrayed him in the 2015 series Siya Ke Ram.[59]
- Navi Bhangu portrayed him in the 2018 series Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush.[60]
- Priyom Gujjar portrayed him in the 2019 series Shrimad Bhagwat Mahapuran.
- Richard Joel voices him in the 2021 web series The Legend of Hanuman.
- Akshay Dogra portrayed him in the 2021 web series Ramyug.[61]
- Basant Bhatt portrayed him in the 2024 series Shrimad Ramayan.[62]
Plays
The following plays portrayed Lakshmana's story in the theatre adaptation of Ramayana.
- Lakshmana's struggle and separation from wife, was portrayed in the "Laxman-Urmila episode" of the 2023 play, "Prem Ramayan".[63]
Books
The following novels talks about Lakshmana's life.
- The Sharpest Knife: Lakshmana and His Words of Wisdom by Krishna's Mercy, published in 2011.[64]
- Lakshmana by Prof. T. N. Prabhakar, published in 2019.[65]
- LakshmiLa : The Eternal Love Story by Shubhi Agarwal, published in 2022.
- The Trials of Lakshmana by Story Buddies Play, published in 2024.[66]
References
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- ^ Moor, Edward (1810). The Hindu Pantheon. J. Johnson. p. 316.
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- ^ "Temple Profile: Mandir Shri Laxman Ji". Government of Rajasthan. Retrieved 29 September 2022.
- ^ "The place where not Ram and Sita, but Lakshman and Urmila are worshipped". News18 India. Retrieved 28 November 2022.
- ^ "Sri Kalyana Ramachandra Swamy temple: Small wonder on a hillock". Deccan Chronicle. 3 December 2017.
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- ^ Elayavalli, Venkatesh K. "108 Divya Desam: A Virtual Tour". Archived from the original on 19 July 2011.
- ^ "Thiruvilwamala Vilwadrinatha Temple – Hindu Temple Timings, History, Location, Deity, Shlokas". Retrieved 21 June 2023.
- ^ "Vennimala Sree Rama Lakshamana Perumal Temple". www.vaikhari.org.
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- Dalrymple, William (23 August 2008). "All Indian life is here". The Daily Telegraph. Archived from the originalon 2 September 2013. Retrieved 15 February 2018.
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- ^ "Karan Suchak and Yukti Kapoor: Siya Ke Ram's Laxman and Urmila are a match made in heaven". The Asian Age. 13 March 2016.
- ^ "Ram Siya Ke Luv Kush". PINKVILLA. Archived from the original on 3 December 2020. Retrieved 5 August 2019.
- ^ "Ramyug first impression: Kunal Kohli's retelling of Lord Ram's story misses the mark". The Indian Express. 6 May 2021. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
- ^ "Basant Bhatt on playing Lakshmana in Shrimad Ramayan: It is about commitment, brotherhood, loyalty and love". Times of India. Retrieved 12 February 2024.
- ^ "Darpan theatre festival: Tales of epic love, sacrifice draw applause". Hindustan Times. Retrieved 19 September 2023.
- ISBN 9781458108296.)
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: CS1 maint: date and year (link - ^ Story Buddies Play (6 May 2024). The Trials of Lakshmana. Story Buddies Play.
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Further reading
- ISBN 81-293-0406-6, archived from the originalon 13 July 2010
- Bhalla, Prem P. (1 January 2009), The Story Of Sri Ram, Peacock Books, ISBN 978-81-248-0191-8