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Continued from yesterday's instalment
 A counsellor is supposed to keep quite a few things in mind. He should first of all know the nature of the project in hand. He should know the advantages and also the constraints. He should know the ability of the person to undertake the project. Not only that, he should know the strengths and weaknesses of the foe - or the competition in the present times and he should persuade or dissuade the person concerned, dispassionately. Dispassionately. That is the key word. His own ideas, prejudices and preferences should not play any part in his effort, though intuition may be given its due place. He should have the necessary data on the project, person and the competitor. And he should not be afraid of giving the correct feedback, if the findings are negative. He should not try to please and try to tinker with the report to suit the present mindset of the boss.
Each and every word of Vibishana reflects the above rules. The project in hand was not in any manner, worthy of pursuing. The present situation that Ravana considers as an insult to the entire Rakshasa race - of a monkey setting fire to the city of fearless and mighty race of his - was the result of his own making. The act in question - of robbing a woman from her husband and keeping her in isolation - was neither desirable nor worthy. The strength of Ravana and his army was no doubt immense. But the boons that he had did not explicitly protect him from men and monkeys. The track record of Ravana on this account was not encouraging. He was defeated by Karthaveeraya Arjuna, a man with thousand shoulders and Vali, a monkey. That did not augur well for his success in this venture.
The foes - competition - were the descendants of a valorous family. Their father was the one who helped Indra to win his war against Samparasura. Their ancestors were valiant. The Sagaras, who were Sri Rama's ancestors, had dug a major portion of the earth in their attempt to find out the horse that was stolen from their father for performing the Aswametha Yaga. And it was due to their act that the seas around the world formed. The word 'Sagara' (sea) was derived from their name. It was Bageeratha, a descendent of Sagaras, (and an ancestor of Rama) who brought the Ganges down to the earth to wash their ashes and appease their departed souls.
 Vibishana drew attention to the fact that Dasaratha was able to rule his kingdom, not by the rod, but by love. 'poi uraiththu ulaginil sinavinaar arap porudhu' He fought with only those who were going against Dharma and rooted out their kind from the face of the earth and then 'than vel nei uraiththu urayil ittu' he applied lubricants to his spear to prevent them from rusting and sheathed them. 'aram valarththu oruvanaai neriyil nindran' He nurtured Dharma and always stood by it. He did not hesitate to send his own children to the forest, just because he had promised two boons to his wife and she asked for the exile of them to the forest. (Of course it was difficult for Dasaratha to do so. But Vibishana does not see that aspect here. He emphasises the fact that the family is known for its virtuous ways, against odds.)
Vibishana points out another situation that Ravana was in. Information vacuum. Let's see that in our next
instalment.
More follows…
Hari Krishnan
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