Hanuman wondered how he would convince Rama that it was truly Seeta whom he had seen. Seeta told him of incidents that only she and Rama knew of. Then she gave him her chudamani, a hair ornament, to be given to Rama. It had been a gift from her mother when she married him.
Bowing to her, Hanuman left. He had decided to do something in order to frighten the demons before he left. So, he sought Seeta’s permission and began to eat fruits, uproot trees, break tanks and cause havoc in the Ashoka Vatika. The frightened demons ran helter-skelter trying to escape Hanuman. The soldiers on duty were killed.
The news of the wreckage reached the palace. Ravana flew into a rage. He ordered Prince Akshaya and some soldiers to capture the monkey and bring it to him. When Hanuman saw them coming, he uprooted a massive tree and flung it at them, killing all of them. When Ravana heard about the killing of prince Akshaya, he shook with anger.
“How dare a mere monkey wreak havoc in Ravana’s Lanka?” Calling his another son Indrajeet, who was a great warrior, he ordered him to arrest the troublesome monkey and bring it to him. Indrajeet was also called ‘Meghnad’. He was the only warrior who could use the Brahmastra, the Vaishnavastra and the Pashupatastra, having been trained by Shukracharya, the preceptor of the demons.
Indrajeet thundered ferociously on his chariot and Hanuman increased his form to a great height. He broke Indrajeet’s arrows like straws. They battled for long, but Indrajeet could neither injure nor capture him. The prowess of Hanuman baffled Indrajeet. Finally, he decided to use the Brahmastra to capture Hanuman.
No weapon could ever harm Hanuman who had been blessed by the gods. Nevertheless, respecting the Brahmastra, he allowed Meghnad to tie him up. Hanuman was captured and taken to the court. On the way, the citizens of Lanka mocked him and insulted him. They were unaware that such behaviour would invite Rama’s wrath. Hanuman inspected the whole city, going through all the main places. It would benefit him at a later time.
