The Kundamālā is a play in six acts based on the Uttara-rāmāyaṇa. The following is the summary –
Lakṣmaṇa, as per the command of Rāma, drops off a pregnant Sītā on the banks of the river Gaṅgā, and returns to his kingdom. That evening, Sage Vālmīki finds her there, identifies her, and escorts her to his āśrama. Sītā pledges before the Gaṅgā that she would worship every day using kunda-mālā, i.e., a garland of jasmine flowers, if her delivery is smooth (Act 1).
Lava and Kuśa are born; they are the favourites of all the residents of the āśrama; they narrate the Rāmāyaṇa and sing to the accompaniment of the vīṇā; Rāma readies himself for the aśvamedha in the Naimiṣāraṇya, in a place not far away from Vālmīkis āśrama. (Act 2)
As Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa head towards the place where the yajña is to take place, they spot a garland of jasmine flowers floating upon the river Gaṅgā. Rāma immediately recognises that the garland was strung by Sītā. The brothers proceed further and rest near an overgrowth of plants and shrubs. As they sat conversing there, Sītā happens to come there to pluck flowers. She overhears their conversation and is touched by Rāma’s pathos. (Act 3).
As Rāma is walking around the tapovana, his eyes are affected by the smoke from the fire of the yajña; he goes to a pond nearby to wash his eyes. He spots the reflection of Sītā, who was roaming around in the vicinity. But, he is not able to see her person, for she was invisible due to the magical blessings of Sage Vālmīki. Rāma faints in his attempts to catch her, and Sītā brings him back to consciousness by embracing him. In the process, Sītā’s uttarīya lands in Rāma’s hands. It was gifted to her by a vana-devatā called Māyāvatī in the past. He recognises the garment and dons it for a moment. Fearing that he would be spotted, he spontaneously casts it away; Sītā immediately picks it up. As Rāma wonders if Sītā has acquired the superhuman ability to be invisible due to her presence in the siddāśrama, vidūṣaka appears there and declares that it is all an illusion created by Urvaśī. (Act 4)
As per the instructions of Sage Vālmīki, Lava and Kuśa sing the Rāmāyaṇa in the presence of Śrī-rāma; to learn what Śrī-rāma feels, they arrive at his court. The king places the young twins on his lap as he is seated on the throne and asks about their whereabouts. He strongly suspects that they are his children, but he is unable to say so conclusively (Act 5).
Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa, along with the townsfolk, listen to the rendition of the Rāmāyaṇa by Lava and Kuśa; they also listen to the story recited by Kaṇva. They thus infer the details connected with Sītā; Lava and Kuśa also realise who their biological parents are. They fall unconscious out of joy and surprise, and Sītā lovingly wakes them up. Sage Vālmīki requests Rāma to display empathy and accept his wife back; Rāma, however, pays no heed to his words. Sītā then declares that she is a pativratā and requests Bhū-devī to testify to her character. Bhū-devī, listening to her daughter’s request, emerges from the earth and announces that Sītā hasn’t even thought of anyone else other than Rāma; saying so, she vanishes from there. The skies rain flowers, and divine trumpets resound in all directions. Rāma accepts Sītā as his wife in a yajña. As per Rāma’s wishes, Vālmīki coronates Kuśa. Rāma seeks Kuśa’s permission and anoints Lava as yuvarāja. (Act 6)
This play is thus, a story of the uttara-rāmāyaṇa, which ends on a happy note. Rāma is guided by Vālmīki, accepts Sītā back, performs the mahā-yāga, and rules the earth with his twin sons (4.44).
A short sthāpanā occurs at the beginning of the play.
जम्भारिमौलिमन्दारमालिकामधुचुम्बिनः।
पिबेयुरन्तरायाब्धिं हेरम्बपदपांसवः॥
The above is a benediction to Gaṇeśa; this is followed by a prayer to Bhagavān Śiva; the Śiva-stuti at the beginning of the play brings to mind the nāndī-sloka of Mṛcchakaṭikam. It appears that the poet is suggesting the noble qualities of Rāma as the king through the verse that describes Śiva’s fire in the third eye, the waves of Gaṅgā, the phase of the moon, and the matted hair.
To be continued ...
The current series of articles is an enlarged adaption of Prof. A. R. Krishnasastri's Kannada treatise Saṃskṛta-nāṭaka. They are presented along with additional information and footnotes by Arjun Bharadwaj.
