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| Tara and Rama as imagined by Gemini AI |
Tara was an apsara, a celestial nymph, who emerged
from the ocean. When the gods and demons churned the ocean to obtain the nectar
of immortality (Amrita), many divine beings and objects emerged. Tara was one
of those precious entities. She was so stunningly beautiful that almost every
man there – gods, demons, and the vanaras – wanted to marry her. According to
certain Puranas, Lord Vishnu resolved the problem by declaring that the person
standing on the right side of Tara would be her husband. Vali, the vanara,
happened to be the lucky one.
In Valmiki Ramayana, Tara is the
daughter of a venerable vanara physician. Depending on where you read about
her, Tara assumes multiple forms. The Puranas venerate her as one of the
Panchakanyas, Five Holy Virgins, whose names are believed to have purifying and
protective power when recited. Tara was not a virgin physically. She was the
wife of both Vali and Sugriva, and had a son too. It is her moral qualities that
gave her an elevated holy status. Tara was endowed with beauty and grace, apart
from intelligence crowned with wisdom. Vali was the vanara king when he married
Tara.
It is this Vali whom Rama kills,
rather deceptively, for the sake of winning over the friendship of Sugriva,
Vali’s brother. This story has already been told in this series in the post Friendship in Kishkindha.
Tara questions Rama’s act. First of
all, she pours out her grief in vivid detail to Rama. Vali was a noble king who
loved her with his whole heart. After describing the greatness of her husband
in immense detail, she spits out the question: Why did Rama kill him? “How can
one who calls himself a kshatriya claim valour by lying in ambush and attacking
a person?” She asks without any hesitation. “You killed a person who did no
harm to you, who had nothing to do with you. Is this the dharma of a righteous prince?”
Tara embodies a moral voice of the
epic. Rama fumbles before her indignation. He realises that righteousness isn’t
just about ends (defeating evil) but also about the means (use of deception).
Tara is one of the very few women in the epic who openly questions its hero.
The word ‘tara’ means star. Tara, the
character, is a guiding star in the epic. She highlights a moral complexity, a
dilemma between the means and the end, and the inevitability of the grey area
in all our moral codes. Even Rama has his faults.
Being wise, Tara decides to move on,
instead of dwelling on the present grief. She accepts her grief with grace and
resilience. She navigates loss, love, and power with wisdom. She speaks truth
with compassion. She upholds dharma without dogma.
Tara is a personification of
nobility. No wonder, the Puranas elevated her to the status of a Holy Virgin.
Her heart was chaste.
It is purity of the heart that makes
her a heroine par excellence. Look once again at what she does in the time of
her calamity. Her husband is killed deceptively without a valid reason. Her own
future is in peril. How does she handle the situation?
She feels the injustice deeply and articulates it boldly. She speaks truth to power with compassion even when she knows that the power has been misused. She advises towards restoration of order. She safeguards communal wellbeing. Her anger is righteous, but not murderous. Her anger catalyses healing, wisdom, and dharmic order.
PS. I’m participating in #BlogchatterA2Z. This series looks at the Ramayana
from various angles.
Tomorrow: Universe in
Pursuit of Harmony
Previous Posts in this series:
She sounds like a fascinating character.
ReplyDeleteShe is, but her appearance in the epic is brief.
DeleteHari OM
ReplyDeleteA valuable example laid out before those who are willing to acknowledge the lesson of the good of all versus the benefit of one. The world needs more Tara presence. YAM xx
However, people like her tend to be ignored in the wider picture.
DeleteNever heard of her before this
ReplyDeleteYou've always lived in a male narrative 😊
DeleteYour portrayal of Tara as a wise and politically astute figure added such depth to her character. I had always seen her as a peripheral figure in the Ramayana, but your insights made me reevaluate her significance. The way you described Kishkindha as a liminal space between humans and gods was fascinating. It made me think about the complexities of that realm and how characters like Tara navigated it. Your analysis of her role in mediating conflicts and her influence on the political landscape was enlightening. I also appreciated your discussion on the dynamics between Tara, Vali, and Sugriva. It shed light on the intricate relationships and the emotional turmoil involved. Your writing style is engaging and thought-provoking, making ancient epics feel relevant to contemporary readers. Thank you for sharing such a nuanced perspective.
ReplyDeleteI'm happy you're with me on this journey supporting my forays into the epic's subtleties.
DeleteThanks for visiting my blog today Tomichan, and glad to have found yours because of that! Love your theme for A2Z. I have had something like this in mind for a few years now (and had my spreadsheet with different Indian mythological characters all waiting for me to write about them for a while now!) I will have to return to read the rest of the series, and glad to have learned about Tara for I can't recall reading about her when I read the Ramayana years ago.
ReplyDeleteTara is a minor character in the epic. I found her questions major.
DeleteGlad you're thinking of writing on the mythological characters.
Thank you for introducing Tara to us. She was brave and beautiful and her questions and thought processes were so powerful. Mayuri
ReplyDeleteTara is one of the heroic women in the epic.
DeleteNot much is known elaborately about Tara ! Thanks for bringing her to the limelight.
ReplyDeleteI am happy to do it. Women like Tara deserve more attention.
Delete