Lakshmana- Hindu DemigodDemigod"The Devoted Brother"

The Serpent Born as a Brother

Lakshmana was born to Queen Sumitra on the same day as his three brothers, after King Dasharatha performed the Putrakameshti fire sacrifice. A divine being emerged from the flames bearing consecrated food for the queens. Sumitra bore twins: Lakshmana and Shatrughna. From infancy, Lakshmana attached himself to Rama. He would not eat unless Rama ate first. He would not sleep unless Rama lay beside him. The sage Vasishtha recognized what the child was: Shesha, the cosmic serpent on whom Vishnu rests, born into the world to serve his master again in human form.

The sage Vishwamitra took both brothers to guard his sacrifice from demons. Lakshmana fought beside Rama against the demoness Tataka and the rakshasa Subahu. When Rama broke Shiva's bow at Janaka's court and won Sita, Lakshmana married Sita's sister Urmila.

Exile and the Demoness

When Kaikeyi demanded the throne for her son Bharata and Rama's banishment for fourteen years, Lakshmana urged Rama to take the kingdom by force and imprison Kaikeyi. The earth trembled under his rage. But Rama chose obedience, and Lakshmana submitted.

He followed Rama into the Dandaka forest. His wife Urmila stayed behind in Ayodhya. In Tulsidas's Ramcharitmanas, the goddess Nidra appeared to Urmila and offered a pact: sleep for fourteen years, absorb Lakshmana's share of rest, and he would be able to guard Rama through every night without closing his eyes. She accepted.

Lakshmana built the huts at Chitrakuta and later at Panchavati on the Godavari. He gathered food, kept watch, never slept. At Panchavati, Ravana's sister Shurpanakha found them. She desired Rama, was redirected to Lakshmana, and when he mocked her, she attacked Sita. On Rama's command, Lakshmana cut off her nose and ears. She fled to Lanka. Her mutilation became Ravana's reason for war.

The Golden Deer

A golden deer appeared near their hut. Sita wanted it. Rama went after it, leaving Lakshmana to guard her. The deer was the demon Maricha in disguise, and as Rama killed it, Maricha cried out in Rama's voice, begging for help.

Sita demanded Lakshmana go to Rama. He refused. He had recognized the deer as demonic from the start and knew the cry was false. Sita accused him of wanting Rama dead so he could take her for himself. The accusation was unbearable. In the Ramcharitmanas, Lakshmana drew a protective line around the hut and warned Sita not to cross it. When Ravana came disguised as a wandering brahmin, Sita stepped beyond the line to offer him food. He seized her and flew south to Lanka.

Indrajit and the Mountain

In the war to reclaim Sita, Lakshmana's battle was against Ravana's son Indrajit, who had defeated Indra himself and fought from invisibility. His Nagapasha weapon bound both Rama and Lakshmana in coils of serpents, and they lay paralyzed until Garuda, the divine eagle, tore the bonds apart.

Later, Indrajit's Shakti weapon struck Lakshmana down. He lay dying. The physician Sushena said only the Sanjeevani herb from Mount Dronagiri could save him, and it must arrive before sunrise. Hanuman flew north but could not identify the herb among the luminous plants on the mountainside. He uprooted the entire peak and carried it back through the sky. Sushena administered the cure. Rama had wept through the night. Without his brother, he said, he had no reason to live.

Lakshmana rose and returned to the battlefield. In his final duel with Indrajit, he drew his bow and prayed: if Rama was truly righteous, and if his own service had been sincere, let the arrow find its mark. It did. Indrajit fell.

The Door and the River

After Ravana's death and the return to Ayodhya, Lakshmana served Rama's reign as he had served his exile. Then the sage Durvasa came to the palace gates.

Rama was in private conference with Kala, Time personified. The condition of their meeting was absolute: anyone who interrupted would die. Lakshmana stood guard at the door. Durvasa demanded immediate entry and threatened to curse all of Ayodhya if turned away.

Lakshmana chose. He opened the door. Then he walked to the banks of the Sarayu, sat down, and left his body through yogic concentration. His soul returned to its cosmic form: Shesha, the serpent who holds the world. Rama followed him shortly. Neither brother could outlast the other.