Ravan, the all powerful demon king of Lanka is often quoted in day to day conversations in India. Whenever my Grandmother commented on an arrogant person, she would say, “Ghamand to Raja Ravan ka bhi nahin raha tha,” she meant that, even the all powerful Ravan perished because of his pride. There are many other quotes and sayings related to, the demon king Ravan.
According to the Ramayan, Ravan was the eldest son of Sage Vishrava and the demon princess Kaikasi. He was born with ten heads and ten pairs of arms. He looked frightening. Vishrava gave his son the name Dashagriva, which means Ten-Necks. Later he was called Ravan, He-Who-Roars.
Ravan was considered the most revered devotee of God Shiva. This demon king was well-versed in religious texts, and was the creator of Ravanhatha, the ancient bowed string musical instrument of Rajasthan. In spite of having many rare qualities, he is considered evil. His arrogance, conceit and false pride led him to abduct Lord Ram’s pious wife Sita. He held her in captivity in Ashok Vatika. Ram killed Ravan, and rescued Sita ji with the help of Vanara king Sugreev and his army.
Ram Leela, a dramatic re-enactment of Lord Ram’s life is performed during the nine days of Navratri. Actors dressed as Ram, Lakshman, Sita, and Ravan are ferried in floats, that are part of a big procession. The actors enact scenes from the epic.
Delhi has regular traffic problems which increase many fold during the festive seasons. During a Ram Leela procession, I captured in my camera, Ravan caught in a traffic jam on a Delhi street. He patiently waited for the traffic to clear. He even smiled at me. I tried to imagine what would have been the scene, if the real Ravan had visited Delhi during rush hour. Would he laugh and try to scare people, like the actors playing the role of Ravan in Ram Leela’s? I find their loud HaHaHa!s are very entertaining.
Actor playing the role of a vanar in Sugreev’s army.
Dussehra, also known as Vijaya Dashami, marks the victory of Lord Ram over the demon king Ravana, symbolising the triumph of good over evil. The effigies of Ravana, Kumbhkaran, and Meghnath are burnt as a symbolic act to celebrate this victory.
