Ravana Under the Mountain

Transcript

Evidence labels distinguish sourced context from the episode's fictional story.

1. It was a rainy evening in the kitchen, the kind of evening when the windows go soft and grey and the whole house smells of cardamom tea. The kettle ticked quietly as it cooled on the stove, and a drip from the gutter went plip, plip, plip against the back step. Mira had her story book open on the table. Her little brother Kannan sat across from her, wrapped in a blanket like a very small, very serious burrito. Outside, far away, thunder gave a long, low grumble. Kannan's eyes went wide. He did not love sounds in the night. Mira noticed, because Mira always noticed. She slid the book a little closer and smiled at him.

   Evidence:Fictional scene

2. "That's just thunder," said Mira. "Big sky, big voice. Want to hear a story about a mountain with a big voice of its own?" Kannan peeked out of his blanket. "Is it a scary mountain?" "It's a snowy mountain," said Mira. "And I promise the story ends gently. Everyone is safe by the end. Ready?" Kannan nodded slowly, and pulled the blanket up to his nose, just in case. Mira lowered her voice, the way storytellers do, and the kitchen seemed to grow very quiet around them.

   Evidence:Fictional scene

3. "Mountains can't talk," Kannan said from inside his blanket. "Can they?" "Not the way we do," said Mira. She tapped the page with one finger. "But in this story, a mountain trembles, a sea goes wild, and one shout echoes so far that the whole world hears it. So here's our mystery for tonight. Who is the strongest one on the mountain? Keep your eyes open, and see if you can work it out before the end." Kannan narrowed his eyes like a detective in an old film. "I'm good at noticing things," he said. "I know," said Mira. "That's exactly why I picked you."

   Evidence:Fictional scene

4. Imagine a high white peak, far in the north, where the snow glitters and the air is thin and clear. This is Kailasa. The sky above it is a deep, cold blue, and far below, the clouds drift past like slow white sheep. A bell rings somewhere, very faintly. The wind hums a slow tune over the ice. Now imagine a great flying chariot, called Pushpaka, sailing through the sky. It glides without a sound, its shadow sliding across the snowfields like a great bird. Inside it rides a king with ten heads and a great deal of pride. His name is Ravana. He is flying along, looking down, when the chariot comes toward the mountain.

   Evidence:Fictional scene

5. "Ten heads?" Kannan whispered. "How does he even fit through a door?" Mira bit back a smile. "That's a very good question, and I don't think anyone ever dared to ask him. But remember what I said. A great deal of pride. That's the important thing to notice about him tonight. Not the heads." Kannan thought about it. "Pride like when I said I could carry all the groceries at once, and then the eggs?" "Exactly like the eggs," said Mira. Kannan winced at the memory. "Okay. I'm watching his pride."

   Evidence:Fictional scene

6. At the mountain stands Nandi, the faithful guardian, and he lifts his hand to say stop. Nandi tells Ravana to halt at Kailasa, because Sankara, who is Shiva, is sporting on the mountain, and nobody can approach him. It is a calm, polite warning, like a guard at a quiet library door who says, please, not this way today. The wind drops. Even the snow seems to wait, to hear what the king will say.

   Evidence:Supported

7. But Ravana did not like being told no. He grew angry. He jumped down from Pushpaka onto the snow, and he laughed at Nandi's monkey face. The laugh bounced off the ice and rolled away. Nandi stayed calm, and he gave his reply. He said that monkeys with his own form and his own energy would one day be born to bring down Ravana's race and crush his pride. Then the mountain was quiet again, and the snow went on falling.

   Evidence:Supported

8. "That's so rude," whispered Kannan. "You don't laugh at someone's face!" "No, you don't," said Mira. "And listen to how Nandi answers. He doesn't shout or fight. He just says what is true, and he keeps standing there. Sometimes being calm is the strongest thing there is." Kannan nodded. "Nandi is brave," he said. "Very," said Mira. She leaned in. "Remember our mystery. Who is strongest? Is it the king who laughs the loudest, or the guardian who doesn't need to?" Kannan frowned, thinking hard. "Now let's see what Ravana does next," said Mira. "Hold your blanket." Kannan held it. The rain tapped the window, tap, tap, tap.

   Evidence:Fictional scene

9. Ravana did not listen to Nandi at all. He said he would uproot the mountain. Then he wrapped his arms around Kailasa and lifted it. The mountain trembled. The attendants of the god shook. And Parvati trembled too, and she held close to Maheswara, which is another name for Shiva. All of this shows how proud Ravana was, and how sure he felt of his own strength.

   Evidence:Supported

10. Mira stopped and put her hand on the table. "Kannan, this is the shaky part, and it's the shakiest it gets. Parvati is right beside Shiva, holding on to him, and he is the one with all the real calm. The mountain is not going anywhere. Take a slow breath with me. In, and out." They breathed together, in the warm kitchen, with the tea steaming between them. Mira counted softly on her fingers. One. Two. Three. The steam curled up and up, slow as a cat stretching after a nap. Kannan's shoulders came down. "Okay," he said. "I'm still listening."

    Evidence:Fictional scene

11. And now, the god himself. Mahadeva, who is also called Hara, pressed down on the mountain with his great toe, just as if he were playing. That was all. No thunder, no fuss, only one little press. Ravana's arms felt the shock of it, and his councillors stared in amazement.

    Evidence:Supported

12. Kannan blinked. "Wait. Just his toe? Not his whole foot? Not his hands?" "Just his toe," said Mira. "And not even pushing hard. Like he was playing." Kannan wiggled his own toes under the table and looked down at them very seriously. "My toe can't do that." "Mine can't either," said Mira. "That's sort of the point. The king was using every bit of his strength, and the god barely had to try." Kannan's eyes lit up. "Then I think I solved it. The strongest one isn't the one who lifts the mountain." "Keep going," said Mira. "It's the one who stays calm on top of it." Mira grinned. "Hold on to that. There's one more part."

    Evidence:Fictional scene

13. Then Ravana cried out. In his wrath and his pain he shouted so loudly that the triune world shook, and the sea grew wild. Imagine the biggest echo you have ever heard, rolling out over the waves and the mountains and the sky. It went on for a long moment, and then, far away, it began to fade, the way an echo always does. In the kitchen, as if it had been listening, the thunder outside gave one last soft rumble, and then fell still.

    Evidence:Supported

14. Kannan had pulled the blanket right over his head. A small voice came out. "Is he squished?" Mira laughed softly. "He's stuck, and he's very sorry, and he's learning something. But keep listening, because the next part is about what you do when you've made a big mistake." The blanket came down an inch. Two bright eyes appeared. "What do you do?" he asked. Mira pushed his tea a little closer to him. "Have a sip first. This part is a slow one. Let's find out." Outside, the thunder had gone quiet.

    Evidence:Fictional scene

15. Ravana's councillors came to him with a simple piece of advice. They told him to seek shelter in blue-throated Mahadeva, the one place they could see to turn. So Ravana bowed to the god. He sang hymns to Shiva, and he went on singing, and a good thousand years of lamentation passed. At last Mahadeva, pleased, set his hands free and spoke to him. The story ends there, in release.

    Evidence:Supported

16. "A thousand years?" Kannan's mouth fell open. "That's longer than Grandma has been alive. That's longer than anyone." "It's a very long sorry," Mira agreed. "But old stories like this one stretch time out on purpose, so we can feel how big the change is. Ravana started out laughing at Nandi and trying to pull up a mountain. He ends up bowing and singing." Kannan was quiet for a moment. "What did Shiva say to him, when he let him go?" Mira turned the page, then turned it back. "The story keeps that part a secret. So I think we get to wonder about it. What would you say?" Kannan considered this very carefully. "I'd say, next time, just listen to Nandi." Mira laughed. "That might be the wisest line in this whole kitchen."

    Evidence:Fictional scene

17. Picture it once more. The snow lies still on Kailasa. Tiny flakes drift down and land without a sound. The bell rings softly in the cold bright air. The sea settles down, wave after wave, until it is calm and glassy. Everyone on the mountain is safe, and the great echo is only a memory now. Far below, the clouds go back to drifting like slow white sheep. The wind hums its slow tune and carries it away across the peaks, and the whole world breathes out together.

    Evidence:Fictional scene

18. Now here is something to talk about together. Ravana was very proud of his strength, but in the end, what helped him was asking for shelter. Can you think of a time when you needed to say sorry, or to ask for help? How did it feel afterwards, when you did? There's no wrong answer. Take a moment, and share your answer with someone near you.

    Evidence:Fictional scene

19. Back in the kitchen, Mira closed the book. The rain was lighter now, just a soft patter. The kettle had stopped ticking, and the drip from the gutter had slowed to a plip... and a plip. Kannan unwrapped himself from his blanket, stood up, and walked to the window. "I think the thunder was only saying goodnight," he said. "I think so too," said Mira, and she poured two small cups of warm milk. Kannan wrapped both hands around his cup. "Mira? Next time it thunders, I'm going to think of Nandi. Just standing there. Calm." "That's a very good thing to think of," said Mira. They sipped quietly together, and the house felt cozy and calm.

    Evidence:Fictional scene

20. Thank you for listening to Banyan Stories. Tuck in your blanket, take one slow breath, and sleep well. Until next time, goodnight.

    Evidence:Fictional scene

Source notes

These notes show what a source supports. They do not turn fictional dialogue or scenes into historical claims.

• The Ramayana, Uttara Kandam

  Not named on the page (an English prose translation of the Ramayana's Uttara Kanda, hosted on the Internet Archive)

  Evidence:Supported

  In the Uttara Kanda translation, Nandi tells Ravana to stop at Kailasa because Sankara is sporting on the mountain and nobody can approach him. Ravana becomes angry, jumps down from Pushpaka, and laughs at Nandi's monkey face. Nandi replies that monkeys of his form and energy will be born to destroy Ravana's race and crush his pride.

  Claims: c1, c2 · Evidence: e127-nandi-warns-ravana-at-kailasa-v1

  View the registered source

• The Ramayana, Uttara Kandam

  Not named on the page (an English prose translation of the Ramayana's Uttara Kanda, hosted on the Internet Archive)

  Evidence:Supported

  Ravana's councillors advise him to seek shelter in blue-throated Mahadeva. He bows and hymns Shiva, and after a good thousand years of lamentation Mahadeva, pleased, sets his hands free and speaks to him. The story ends in release.

  Claims: c5 · Evidence: e127-ravana-hymns-shiva-and-is-freed-v1

  View the registered source

• The Ramayana, Uttara Kandam

  Not named on the page (an English prose translation of the Ramayana's Uttara Kanda, hosted on the Internet Archive)

  Evidence:Supported

  Ravana ignores Nandi, declares he will uproot the mountain, and lifts it with his arms. The mountain trembles, the attendants shake, and Parvati trembles and embraces Maheswara. The episode shows Ravana's pride and confidence in his strength.

  Claims: c3 · Evidence: e127-ravana-lifts-the-mountain-v1

  View the registered source

• The Ramayana, Uttara Kandam

  Not named on the page (an English prose translation of the Ramayana's Uttara Kanda, hosted on the Internet Archive)

  Evidence:Supported

  Mahadeva (Hara) presses the mountain with his great toe as if in sport. Ravana's arms feel the shock and his councillors are amazed. He shouts so loudly in wrath and pain that the triune world shakes, and the sea grows wild.

  Claims: c4 · Evidence: e127-shiva-presses-with-toe-v1

  View the registered source