In the Ramayana, Nila is described as the son of
Agni, the god of fire, and as the "Kapishreshtha (foremost among the vanaras) in effulgence, reputation, and prowess".
Search for Sita The
Ramayana describes Nila as the commander-in-chief of the vanara army, under the king
Sugriva. Sugriva orders Nila to assemble the vanaras so that they can be sent to locate Sita. The epic specifics Nila as a member of the search-party that headed in the southern direction. The
Mahabharata epic also tells of Nila being sent with other vanaras in the search for Sita. In the narrative,
Hanuman, Rama's devotee and vanara general, is chosen to fly to Lanka and search for Sita, which he succeeds in accomplishing. Nila is ordered by Sugriva to find a route to Lanka, through which plenty of food is available. Sugriva and Nila also issue directives to the army to march.
Builder of the bridge Rama, aided by an army of vanaras, reaches the end of land, but needs to cross over to Lanka to retrieve Sita. The Ramayana credits
Nala as the sole builder of the
Rama Setu, a bridge across the ocean between
Rameswaram and Lanka, enabling the forces of
Rama to pass over to Lanka. However, the
Ramacharitamanasa credits Nala and his brother Nila for the bridge's creation. The sea-god
Varuna tells Rama that both of them possess the ability to make stones float on water. The tale elaborates on how the two vanaras came to have this power: In their youth these vanaras, being very mischievous, often play by throwing the
murtis (holy images) worshipped by the sages in the water. To prevent the sacred images from drowning, the sages decree that any stone tossed by them in water will never submerge. Another tale narrates how as assured by Varuna, the stones dropped by Nala and Nila would forever float, but with the condition that they would drift in the sea without forming a contiguous structure. The version has Hanuman suggest that the name of Rama be written across the stones so that they stick together, and describes the strategy as overcoming the proviso.
Battle of Lanka Nila heads the vanara army in the battle led by Rama against Ravana and his rakshasa army. The Ramayana tells of Nila facing the rakshasa
Nikumbha. Though injured by the rakshasa, Nila picks up the chariot wheel of Nikumbha and kills him with it. Nila also battles with Ravana, jumping onto his chariot. Nila and Hanuman together battle with the rakshasas
Trishira and Mahodara, when Nila kills Mahodara with a rock. The Mahabharata states that he slays the rakshasa Pramathi in the battle. The
Krittivasi Ramayan narrates how the vanaras are sent to disturb the
yajna (fire sacrifice) that Ravana is performing in order to make himself invincible. Nila is described as polluting the ritual by climbing on Ravana's heads and urinating on them. ==Jainism==