The Inner Dialogue Between Jatayu and Ravana

Question:

You explained the meaning of Jatayu, the vulture or Gridhra. But in the story, Jatayu gives a long speech to Ravana. How should we understand that scene — how can both the Ravana tendency and the Jatayu tendency coexist within us at that moment?

Answer

We can understand it like this — imagine a scene within your own mind.

Suppose you don’t have a job and you’re longing for one. You wish for a government job, but it’s not easy to get. Then a friend comes and says, “If you’re willing to make a little sacrifice — spend some money — I can get you the job.”

Now imagine you’re an honest, sincere person — your mind is pure.
The moment your friend says that, two kinds of thoughts will start running inside you.

One thought — the pure mind — says,
“Why should I do this? I’ve worked so hard to keep my mind clean and honest. I’ve studied, stayed in good company, built my integrity — should I throw all that away now just for this?”

This is the Jatayu tendency inside you — the Gridhra quality — speaking to Ravana, that is, speaking to your own egoic nature. It tells the Ravana tendency within you,
“Why are you trying to abduct purity? Why are you stealing away your own inner goodness? You will only harm yourself if you take purity away from your life.”

This inner voice — that sense of restraint, that appeal toward integrity — is the voice of Jatayu.

Then the other thought arises — the Ravana tendency.
It says,
“Oh, forget honesty! Who stays honest nowadays? Just do it. You’ll get the job, you’ll move ahead, you’ll make money.”

That’s Ravana speaking — the voice of pride, desire, and self-centeredness.

So, within your own mind, these two opposite movements begin — one calling you toward purity and truth, the other pulling you toward selfish gain.

That is exactly what the scene between Ravana and Jatayu represents.
When Jatayu warns Ravana, saying, “Don’t do this — you’ll be destroyed,” he’s really expressing what our inner pure mind tells the ego.

Because where does purity (Sita) come from?
It comes from knowledge (Rama).
Knowledge gives rise to purity.
So, if ego (Ravana) tries to steal away purity (Sita), the knowledge (Rama) within will inevitably destroy that ego — just as Rama later destroys Ravana in the story.

So Jatayu’s warning to Ravana is our own inner voice saying,
“Don’t do this wrong — if you harm purity, your ego will be destroyed by the truth within you.”

That’s the dialogue happening inside each of us — the conversation between the pure mind (Jatayu) and the ego (Ravana).