Mandodari Counsels Ravana

Dadi**: "Guddu, sometimes the wisest advice comes from someone we don't expect. Tonight I'll tell you about Mandodari - the wife of Ravana - who tried desperately to save him."

Guddu**: "Ravana had a good wife?"

Dadi**: "She was described as beautiful, pious, and righteous. She loved her husband deeply. But Ravana wouldn't listen to her wisdom, and it cost him everything."

Guddu**: "What did she try to tell him?"

Dadi**: "When news came that Rama's army had arrived at Lanka, Mandodari's heart filled with dread. She went to Ravana and pleaded: 'Return Sita to Rama! Please, for the sake of our family, for Lanka!'"

Guddu**: "She knew they would lose?"

Dadi**: "She sensed something the mighty Ravana couldn't see through his pride. She told him that Rama wasn't just an ordinary king - he was the lord of the universe, Vishnu himself!"

Guddu**: "Did Ravana listen?"

Dadi**: "No. His son Prahasta supported his mother's words. His own brother Vibhishana begged him too. 'Rama is a Vishnu incarnation,' Vibhishana said. 'Return Sita and end this!'"

Guddu**: "What did Ravana do?"

Dadi**: "He threw Vibhishana out of Lanka! Called him a traitor for speaking the truth! Everyone who loved him - his wife, his brother, his advisors - they all saw the danger. Only Ravana remained blind."

Guddu**: "That's so sad, Dadi."

Dadi**: "Even Mareecha had warned him earlier about Rama's power. Kumbhakarna, when he was awakened, first accused Ravana of doing wrong. Mandodari's father Maya tried to counsel him. Everyone!"

Guddu**: "Why didn't he listen to anyone?"

Dadi**: "Pride, beta. Terrible pride. He was too arrogant to admit he might be wrong. He thought his power made him invincible."

Guddu**: "And then the war came..."

Dadi**: "One by one, Ravana's greatest warriors fell. Still he wouldn't yield. Still Mandodari prayed. And finally, when Ravana was slain by Rama's arrow, Mandodari rushed to her husband's body."

Guddu**: "What did she say?"

Dadi**: "She wept and asked how a 'mere mortal' could defeat her invincible husband. But slowly, understanding came. She realized Rama was not just mortal - he was Vishnu incarnate who had come to fulfill a divine purpose."

Guddu**: "She understood in the end."

Dadi**: "She said: 'O Ravana! You did not hear the advice of your friends. You did not listen to your brothers. The counsel of Vibhishana was not followed. The tears of virtuous women you wronged brought this curse upon you.'"

Guddu**: "She was right all along."

Dadi**: "And here's something beautiful, Guddu. Rama, who had just killed her husband, instructed Vibhishana to perform proper funeral rites. 'Enmity ends with death,' Rama said. Even in victory, Rama showed dharma."

Guddu**: "Rama was kind even to his enemy."

Dadi**: "Mandodari is remembered as one of the Panchakanya - five virtuous women whose names, when recited, are said to remove sins. Her wisdom was true, even if her husband couldn't see it."

Guddu**: "Dadi, the story makes me sad."

Dadi**: "It should make us thoughtful, beta. When people who love us give us advice, we should listen - even if our pride doesn't like what they say. Mandodari couldn't save Ravana because he wouldn't let himself be saved."

Guddu**: "I'll try to listen when you or Mummy tell me things."

Dadi**: "That's wise. The people who love you see things you sometimes can't. Ravana was mighty, but without the wisdom to hear truth, even might becomes weakness. Sleep now, and remember - pride closes ears, but love opens them."