Introduction:
As we study seriously the story of the present novel “The Serpent and the Rope” by Raja Rao we find it a complex composition of fiction. It shows both the difference as well as the synthesis between Rama, and his French wife, Madeleine. In the beginning, Rama loved her and married her with the common consent. Later she turned into a follower of Buddhism and a legal divorce was arranged between wife and husband. Rama had gone to France for his research work but he married there a French girl by mutual consent. Later his marriage turned into a divorce.
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| The Serpent and The Rope—A Spiritual Autobiography of A Religious Indian |
Rama's Doubts and Difficulties:
Though Rama was a devoted follower of his religion and cultural heritage, yet later on he faced some doubts and difficulties. In his early age, he could sing from the scriptures at the age of four and he also got the holy thread at the age of seven. His such religious life did not continue in an easy way because he was compelled to face a number of difficulties. N. K. Naik says, “In the beginning. Rama's ideals are worldly enough. He falls in love, marries and hopes to settle down comfortable life of a professor in an Indian university.” He thought to take Madeleine to India and settle there for his happy married life but in vain. After the death of his father, he was compelled to return to India for the last rites in Benares. He had left his wife Madeleine in France and she felt uncomfortable in the absence of her husband.
When Savithri entered his life, the happiness of his married life broke up and it created some doubts in the mind of Madeleine. It was a sin on the part of Rama who had married Savithri who was to be married to Pratap Singh according to the wishes of her parents. In this way, his relationship with Savithri created spiritual problems for him. It was neglect on the part of his first wife, Madeleine. Again he plunged into the love - affair with Lakshmi in Bombay but soon he realised his mistake that he was going to take a wrong turn in his life. He returned to his senses and came back to France. In the meantime, Madeleine had developed some doubts about her husband, Rama who was certainly a man of some real moral lapses.
The Role of the Guru:
When Rama was in London, he fell seriously ill and a lung operation was made. Savithri often met him again and again in the hospital. He tried to persuade her to marry Pratap Singh and she consented to do the same. When he was feeling lonely and restless, he had a strong desire for a Guru. He had taken a divorce from Madeleine who had become a true devotee of Buddhism after giving up the comforts and pleasures of the world. Both Savithri and Saroja had settled with their husbands after their marriage. Little Mother had taken her place in the family at home.
Though he had completed his thesis, yet he was feeling lonely and unhappy. Its main reason was that Madeleine had become separate from him after the divorce. Savithri had started living with her husband, Pratap Singh, so she also did not think of Rama. In the same way Saroja was also enjoying her married life with her husband. In such circumstances, Rama was in the urgent need of a Guru who could guide him. It is clear from these words of Rama, “No, not a God but a Guru is what I need Lord, Lord my Guru, come to me, tell me: give me thy touch, vouchsafe, I cried, the vision of Truth. Lord, my Lord.” It is mentioned in the story that suddenly Rama saw the vision of the Guru and he became very happy. He also felt that he was giving him his blessings. He was feeling that the Guru was giving him light of the sun, even more brilliant. He also had the feeling of truth in his heart. In that vision he touched his holy feet like a true disciple. He felt the need of going to his Guru at Travancore. His quest of the Guru was under the old spiritual traditions of India. It is necessary to point out that the Guru has the highest place in the life of that man who is in search of truth.
Conclusion:
All great thinkers of Hindu religion assert that the right Guru is very necessary to show the right path to each and every person. Thus, Rama also needed the Guru for his mental peace and the uplift of his soul.
