In the Ramayana, the earlier of the two
great Indian epics, Mandodari is the
wife of the demon-king Ravana, and the
mother of Indrajit, Atikaya and
Akshakumara. Despite being a loving
and loyal wife to Ravana, Mandodari
continually advises him that he has
done wrong in kidnapping Rama’s wife
Sita. She pleads with him to come to
terms with Rama before it becomes
necessary to fight. Ravana refuses to
do so, because of his pride and his determination to avenge the insult to his
sister Shurpanakha, who has been
mutilated by Rama’s brother Lakshmana.
In the end, this stubbornness costs
Ravana his life.