Whereupon Ravana, with sweet words amd gestures, expressed his own
desire unto Sita, poorly, deprived of joy, encircled by Rakshasees and
leading the life of an ascetic. "O thou having thighs like the trunks of
elephants, while thou hast, beholding me, hidden thy breast and belly,
perhaps thou art afraid of exposing thy person unto me. I do long for
thee, O thou having expansive eyes; do thou esteem me, O my dear one, O
thou gifted with all accomplishments and pleasant unto all persons. O
Sita, here is no human being or any Rakshasa assuming shapes at will, do
thou therefore renounce all fear from me. O timid damsel, for certain it
is the virtue of the Rakshasas that they always visit others' wives or
come by them by force. In spite of this, O Maithilee, I do not touch
thee for thou art not under the influence of amour--but for me, I am
completely under its sway. Do not fear me, O worshipful damsel, confide
in me, O my beloved one, and become attached unto me. Do not give way to
grief. A single lock of hair, to lie down on earth and useless
fast--these do not become thee. Attaining me, O Maithilee, do thou enjoy
excellent garlands, sandal, ornaments, costly wines, beds, seats, songs,
dancing and music. Thou art a jewel of a female; do thou not therefore
remain in this guise. Put on thy ornaments therefore. How shalt thou
remain unadorned obtaining me, O thou of a beautiful figure? This thy
beautiful youth is passing away, which like the current of a river when
once gone, doth not turn back. O thou of a fair look, having created
thee, the artist of Gods, the maker of celestial beauties, hath ceased
from his work, for a match of thy beauty I find in none. Who is there, O
Vaidehi, who can withstand the influence of amour, getting thee, gifted
with beauty and youth? (What of others) even Brahma, the grand-father of
the celestials, is moved. O thou having a moon-like countenance, and
well-developed lips, whatever limbs of thine, I behold, I find my gaze
fixed therein. O Maithilee, do thou become my spouse, and renounce this
delusion. Do thou become the foremost queen of all my excellent wives. O
timid one, all the jewels that I have collected from the three worlds,
and all my kingdom I shall confer on thee. O sportive damsel, for thy
satisfaction, I shall conquer the whole earth, engarlanded by many
cities and bestow it upon Janaka. Find I none on this earth who can
withstand my prowess. Do thou behold my matchless prowess in battle. The
celestials, and Asuras are incapable of withstanding me, defeated as
they were by me in battle and their pennons struck down. Do thou
therefore desire me to-day, dress thyself in excellent robes and adorn
thyself in beautifully brilliant ornaments. I shall behold thy dazzling
beauty when adorned with ornaments. For pity unto me, do thou embellish
thyself with ornaments, O thou of a graceful countenance. O timid
damsel, do thou, at thy pleasure, enjoy all sorts of comforts and
luxuries, and do thou, as thou desirest, confer wealth and land on
others. Do thou confiding in me, ask for thy wished-for objects and do
thou command me like unto an unmannerly damsel. Thou shalt, by asking
favours from me, satisfy the desires of thy friends. O gentle lady, O
thou of great renown, do thou observe my prosperity. What shalt thou do
with Rama, wearing bark, (O thou of pleasant presence. Rama hath ceased
from his endeavours for gaining victory. He hath lost all his beauty,
lives in the forest, is engaged in observances and always lies down on
earth. I fear whether he is living still. O Vaidehi, Rama shall not be
able to see thee like unto the rays of the moon covered with blue clouds
preceded by _Valakas_.[322] Raghava shall never get thee back from my
hands, like unto _Hiranyakasipu_ unable to regain his wife _Keerti_ from
Indra. O thou of beautiful teeth, O thou having beautiful eyes, O
sportive damsel, O timid one, thou dost steal my mind like unto Garuda
catching serpents. Beholding thee, wearing a shattered silken cloth,
slender and without any ornaments, I do not find any attachment in my
own wives. O daughter of Janaka, do thou exercise, thy supremacy, over
all my wives, living in my seraglio and gifted with all accomplishments.
O thou having black hair, all my wives are foremost in beauty over the
three worlds. And they shall all attend thee like unto Apsaras waiting
upon the Goddess of wealth. O thou having beautiful eye brows and
well-developed hips, do thou, along with me, enjoy at thy pleasure all
the wealth and riches of Kuvera.[323] O worshipful damsel, in
asceticism, strength or prowess, wealth or fame, Rama is not my equal.
Do thou therefore at thy pleasure drink, enjoy and eat. I shall confer
on thee wealth and the whole earth. Do thou satisfy all thy desires in
me, O fair damsel, and let thy friends be satisfied in thee. And adorned
with a beautiful golden necklace, O timid lady, do thou at thy pleasure,
range with me, in the forests, situated on the bank of the ocean, and
filled with flowery trees and black bees."
[322] A kind of crane.--T.
[323] The God of wealth or Pluto in Greek myth.--T.