66697602-The-Ramayana-R-K-Narayan

They reached Panchvati, set in sylvan surroundings in the
proximity of the river. Lakshmana, adept as he had proved to
be, had already gone ahead and created a home for them
with clay, thatch, leaves, and wood, enclosed with a fence,
and affording protection from sun and rain, and privacy for
Rama and Sita. Again Rama was delighted with his
brother’s engineering and architectural genius, and entered
his new home filled with a sense of wonder. For all its idyllic
charm, and in the joy of companionship of Sita, Rama never
lost sight of his main purpose in settling down in this region
—he had come here to encounter and destroy the asuras,
the fiends who infested this area, causing suffering and
hardship to all the good souls who only wanted to be left
alone to pursue their spiritual aims in peace. Rama’s whole
purpose of incarnation was ultimately to destroy Ravana, the
chief of the asuras, abolish fear from the hearts of men and
gods, and establish peace, gentleness, and justice in the
world.
And so one evening, when he noticed in the woods,
amidst the creepers and plants in his front yard, a damsel of
the utmost beauty, he became wary. The damsel’s anklets
jingled at her feet when she walked, her eyes flashed, her
teeth sparkled, her figure, waist, and bosom were that of a
chiselled figure. Rama, even the austere Rama, was struck
by her beauty. As she dallied at his gate, he stood staring at
her in wonderment, and when she flashed her smile at him
and approached him half-shyly, Rama said, “Oh, perfect one,