The search begins

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Namaste. Last time, Hanuman met Rama for the first time, Rama and Sugriva became friends before a sacred fire, and Sugriva became king of Kishkindha again. Then the rains came, and Rama and Lakshmana went to wait in a cave on Prasravana hill.

Tonight the rains end, and the search begins.

**

Valmiki loves the monsoon. He describes the clouds like elephants, the peacocks dancing, the rivers running full and brown, the frogs singing after their long silence. But every beautiful thing reminds Rama of Sita. Four months is a long time to wait when someone you love is in trouble and you do not even know where she is.

Some evenings Rama sits in silence at the mouth of the cave. Lakshmana sits with him. He does not try to talk him out of his sadness. He only says, when Rama seems to lose hope, that a person who keeps his courage will find what he has lost, and that grief should not be allowed to swallow his strength. Rama listens, and holds on.

Down in Kishkindha, things are different. Sugriva has his kingdom back, his wife back, and after years of hiding he is enjoying comfort. The days slip by. Autumn comes. The sky clears. And still no word from Sugriva.

It is **Hanuman** who first notices. He goes to Sugriva and reminds him, respectfully, that a friend who has received help must return it in time. Sugriva agrees and gives orders to gather the vanaras. But then he slips back into his easy days.

**

On the hill, Rama sees the clear autumn sky and his patience runs out. He asks Lakshmana to go to Kishkindha. Remind Sugriva, he says, that the path Vali took is still open. Lakshmana, who never needed much reason to be angry on his brother's behalf, takes his bow and goes.

The vanaras see him coming and are frightened. And here Valmiki gives one of his quietly brilliant scenes. Sugriva does not go out first. He sends **Tara**.

Tara was Vali's queen, a woman known for her wisdom. She comes out calmly to meet an angry prince. She does not argue. She does not make excuses. She tells Lakshmana, in effect, you are right to be upset. Sugriva has been careless. But he has not forgotten. Even now, vanaras are gathering from every forest and hill. Please, come inside. Anger does not suit someone as noble as you.

And Lakshmana's anger melts.

**

I always think of Tara when I see someone calm down a heated room. She did not deny the problem. She named it, then showed the way forward. That is a gift.

Sugriva comes to Lakshmana with folded hands and apologises. Then he keeps his word in full. Vanaras and bears arrive in huge numbers from mountains, forests and shores. Sugriva goes to Rama with his army and they make a plan.

The search parties go out in all four directions. Sugriva, who had once wandered the whole world while fleeing Vali, describes each land to the leaders in great detail: rivers, mountains, peoples, seas. It reads like an ancient map. He gives them one month.

**Vinata** goes east, towards the rising sun. **Sushena**, Tara's father, goes west, to the ocean where the sun sets. **Shatabali** goes north, towards the snowy mountains.

I like to imagine these vanaras setting out. Thousands of them, climbing hills, wading rivers, asking in villages, looking into caves. Nobody knows which group will find her. Every group searches as if it might.

**

The southern party is the most important, because Jatayu had said Ravana went south. It is led by young **Angada**, and with him go Hanuman and the old, wise king of the bears, **Jambavan**.

Now watch what Rama does. Out of everyone, he turns to Hanuman. He takes off his ring, the one with his name on it, and gives it to Hanuman. Show this to Sita, he says, so she will know you come from me.

Nobody has told Rama that Hanuman will succeed. He simply trusts him. Sometimes trust is the thing that helps a person rise to the task.

**

The southern party searches forests and hills. Once, thirsty and lost, they enter a dark cave and find inside a bright hidden garden looked after by an ascetic woman named **Svayamprabha**. She feeds them and, by her power, brings them out at the edge of the southern sea.

But the month is over. They have found nothing. Angada is heartbroken. He feels he cannot go back to Sugriva with empty hands, and he decides to sit by the sea and fast until his life ends. The others, loyal to him, sit down beside him.

As they sit there, talking sadly about everything that has gone wrong, someone mentions the name of Jatayu.

**

High on the nearby mountain lives a very old bird, too weak to fly. His name is **Sampati**, and he is Jatayu's elder brother. He has not heard his brother's name in years. He calls down to them, what did you say about Jatayu?

The vanaras tell him everything. Sampati grieves for his brother. Then he gives them the news they have been searching for all this time. His eyesight is still sharp, he says, and he can see far across the sea. There, a hundred yojanas away, is the island city of **Lanka**. And in Lanka, in a garden, sits Sita.

Valmiki adds a lovely touch. As Sampati helps them, his lost wings begin to grow back, as an old sage had once promised him. He rises into the sky, and the vanaras cheer.

**

Now they know where Sita is. But between them and Lanka lies the ocean. One by one, the leaders say how far they can leap. Ten yojanas. Twenty. Fifty. Ninety. Angada says he could reach Lanka, but he is not sure he could come back.

And through all this, Hanuman sits quietly to one side.

Old Jambavan goes to him. He reminds Hanuman of who he is. Your mother was **Anjana**. Your father is **Vayu**, the wind. When you were a baby, you saw the rising sun and thought it was a ripe fruit, and you leapt up into the sky to catch it. You have forgotten your own strength. Rise now.

As Jambavan speaks, Hanuman begins to grow. He stands up, larger and larger, full of light, and he says, I will cross the sea. I will find Sita. I will bring the news.

**

So let us gather what we heard tonight.

When Sugriva forgot his promise in comfort, Lakshmana went to remind him, and Tara calmed Lakshmana with gentle, wise words. Sugriva sent search parties to all four directions, and Rama gave his ring to Hanuman, trusting that he was the one who would find Sita. Old Sampati told the searchers that Sita was in Lanka across the sea, and Jambavan reminded Hanuman of the strength he had forgotten.

**One thing to take with you.** Jambavan did not give Hanuman anything new. He only reminded him of what was already there. Is there someone near you who has forgotten what they are capable of? This week, tell them one true, good thing about themselves.

In the next episode, Hanuman stands on Mount Mahendra, takes a deep breath, and leaps.

*[Sea wind. Silence 2 seconds.]*

**Credits (read out):** Written by the DharmikStudio team from the Valmiki Ramayana, Kishkindha Kanda. Narrated with an AI voice. If you hear a mistake, please use "Report a mistake" on this episode.

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• Listen: The search begins
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• All episodes of Ramayana: Valmiki's story, told gently