Ravanavadha 9
English (machine translation) 9
- Language
- English
Contents
9.1
Agitated by the crash of breaking trees, bewildered by the flocks of screeching birds, / the night-roaming demonesses reported it to Rāvaṇa:
9.2
"Where the sun scorched gently, where the wind blew moderately, / where the grove was nourished by the cool-rayed [moon], a monkey is destroying it!"
9.3
Then, bewildered with fury, the father of Indrajit / ordered eighty thousand servants for the destruction of the son of Marut.
9.4
Holding lances, spears, iron clubs, darts, maces, and mallets in hand, / pervading the directions, resembling sight-venomed snakes, they reached the forest.
9.5
Taking up an iron club, the monkey roared terribly like a cloud; / they too, with blazing weapons, bellowed like clouds containing lightning.
9.6
With the monkey steady as the ocean, the demons clashed, / just as in the rainy season rivers with swollen torrents of water [clash] with the sea.
9.7
Waving his uplifted tail, raising his heavy iron club, / he mounted the archway and stood; he did not strike first.
9.8
The demon-clouds poured waters of arrows upon him, / yet the monkey-mountain did not waver nor did he experience fear.
9.9
The monkey cried out loudly, "Stand!" and swung his club / in such a way that in battle he took the lives of many enemies.
9.10
Through their wounds they vomited blood, with their bodies they covered the earth, / and other demons, terrified of him, covered the directions [in flight].
9.11
Deprived of courage, their bodies shattered, their dear lives crying out in distress, / they were terrified of the monkey's roar, like deer at the sound of a lion.
9.11.p1
Here ends the section on the vṛddhi substitution before the marker s- (sic).
9.12
Masters of illusion though they were, holding weapons in hand, on chariots / those destined to be slain returned again to kill the son of Marut.
9.13
Leaning against the archway, the monkey struck with his swinging iron club / those who were gathered, eager to capture him, and deserving to be crushed to the earth.
9.14
Then, wishing to protect their lives and desiring to cry out in protest, / the surviving night-wanderers went to the presence of Rāvaṇa.
9.15
"Many of us heroes, having displayed our might, like heedless men / were turned back by one [foe]!" they said loudly before the Ten-headed one.
9.16
Seeing them swollen with the enjoyment of meat yet agitated, / he, his eyes rolling [with anger], dispatched his friends, his own ministers.
9.17
Plumped up, accompanied by their sons, resolute of mind, possessing great prowess, / shouting with unblemished voices, they set forth with various weapons ready in hand.
9.18
Seeing them, very steadfast, bold, arrived at their master's command, / shouting hideously, cruel, with weapons ringing against their hands, the monkey—
9.19
Undaunted, the monkey swiftly tormented those who had approached, / who resembled mountain peaks, were skilled with weapons, ready for great enterprises, and tamed even by the thirty gods.
9.20
Having subdued his foes, his brilliance calmed, having filled the quarters with his roar, / enraged, he swiftly struck down the furious warriors who had arrived in haste.
9.21
As they were being slain, by their ear-piercing shrieks / the whole world became frightened, filled with overwhelming terror in all quarters.
9.22
Then, their hair standing on end from fear, those enemies of the worshipful, / their valor diminished in an instant, were brought to destruction by the monkey.
9.23
Having slain the demons, the son of the wind, who restrained the commands of his foes, / strode out again to cut down that very Aśoka grove.
9.24
The son of the wind showed no mercy as he destroyed the forest, / which stood risen as if to veil the sky and to bar the birds.
9.25
Wishing to bring about welfare for Maithilī, he flung the wishing trees; / the hurled trees seemed to cover the earth all around.
9.26
Desiring to conceal his own purpose and wishing to issue a command at once, / the ten-faced Rāvaṇa chose Akṣa to kill the monkey, enduring the unendurable.
9.27
He said: 'May you restrain the enemy’s prowess! Go! / May you strike him down with illusions in battle! Advancing against the foe,
9.28
may you quickly roar aloud, fearless, in this highest battle!' / He, the instigator of illusions, went forth to extinguish the brilliance of the monkey.
9.29
Having plunged deep into the forest, that monkey, a piercer of his enemies, / began to overpower Akṣa, who was the subduer of the dwellers of Laṅkā.
9.30
To tear out the life-breaths that were to be torn out from the son of the ten-faced Rāvaṇa, / he stood holding an iron bar, having stripped the trees from the forest.
9.31
Wishing to destroy the one who sought him in battle, seeking to endure the endured, / furious Akṣa discharged volleys of weapons to injure the injurer.
9.32
Against him who wished to play in battle with weapons, the monkey, wishing to wield his iron bar, / wishing to torment him, struck with trees the one who sought to obtain glory and fame.
9.33
Again having challenged that prince who sought to deceive him, desiring to defeat him, / he struck him; then [Akṣa], swooning, desired to cling to his chariot-banner.
9.34
Having recovered in an instant, as if wishing to consume the worlds with his brilliance, / Akṣa showered with arrows the monkey, who appeared wishing to burn [him] in anger.
9.35
Against Akṣa, who wished to unite all quarters with arrows, the monkey, desiring to repel him with trees, / seemed to create magic, displaying his prowess in battle.
9.36
Akṣa shone, wishing to cover the monkey with weapons; / the monkey beamed, wishing to cover him with stones and trees.
9.37
As if wishing to make their own strength known, or wishing to preserve the worlds, / those two with weapons prompted such a thought in the onlookers in the fight.
9.38
Having tormented for a long time with illusions the monkey whose actions were untiring, / the demon, reaching the ground, fell struck down by the iron bar.
9.39
Purified by favorable, cool breezes after bathing in the ocean, / becoming hungry, he once again shattered the forest inhabited by birds.
9.40
Lifting his tail high, carrying his head as if raised, / bearing a mane yellow as fire, ruffled by the winds,
9.41
other branches of his fell as if grown old from his speed; / and tearing up other helpless trees, he felled them with force.
9.42
Even after taming the multitudes of foes, unwearied, the monkey-lion / roamed the forest, intending to cut it down, as if about to dance, unrestrained.
9.43
Then, desiring to reach the end of the enemies who were bound to return, / he disported in the forest of the dwellers of Laṅkā like an intoxicated elephant.
9.44
'If the intent of the lord of the demons had been prepared to fight himself, / I would have cut him down too today,' saying thus, the monkey roamed.
9.45
'When he is slain, the master, hearing the agreeable news, will form the highest joy; / and today itself the supreme satisfaction will take shape in Sītā's heart.'
9.46
Then Rāvaṇa, having summoned Indrajit close by, said: / 'A furious, noble elephant, as it were, roaming madly in the forest during battles,
9.47
you went to the end of your enemies, and you will go again many times; / you were able to conquer the gods, and you remembered illusions in combat.
9.48
You discharged weapons, you saw irresistible foes, / and you alone shattered with weapons even the weapons of the great.
9.49
So you, intending to slay the evil-minded monkey, go forth at my command; / do not fail to reveal demon-illusions, do not fail to display prowess!
9.50
Do not fail to discharge great missiles, do not fail to pursue the foe in battle, / do not fail to bind the monkey; go swiftly, free from fear!'
9.51
Departing from the palace, Indrajit bowed to his feet, / and having obtained blessings from him, he attained supreme joy.
9.52
When he had gone, the lord of the demons ceased from his fury, / knowing Indrajit's prowess and considering the monkey already conquered.
9.53
Desiring to boast, wanting to display illusion against his foe, he advanced, / like the irresistible wind at the end of an aeon wishing to purify the world,
9.54
equal to Death wishing to devour the worlds at the dissolution, / wishing to swallow the strength of the monkey who desired to scatter the trees in the forest.
9.55
As he arrived, the flock of birds seemed to weep loudly in grief / over the destroyed trees, as over slain kinsmen upon the arrival of a kinsman.
9.56
And as he arrived, struck by the wind of his speed, the forest, / shining with multicolored clusters and with tossed leaves, seemed to sigh.
9.57
'You will not live, vile wretch! Nor do you rule over illusions, / if you do not praise the descendant of Kakutstha!'—the monkey spoke these words to him.
9.57.p1
Thus ends the section on the augment iṭ.
9.58
Accompanied by his army, covering him in battle with arrows, razor-faced shafts, and illusions / by the hundreds from all sides repeatedly, Indrajit advanced against him.
9.59
The monkey, resembling a principal mountain, having endured the shower of weapons, / charged the demon-wretches who were dark as gloom, seeking glory.
9.60
Bearing a mane splendid as light, he put to flight in the battle those holding bows and nooses, / who showed no salutations and were led by the lord of demons.
9.61
The monkey, displaying his power in order to pay the debt to his master, / shone in battle, slaying the enemies, keeping wicked deeds far away.
9.62
Hurling trees in the four quarters, putting foes to scorn in the fight, / he was seen wandering in many forms, his vast reach obscuring the directions.
9.63
Multiplying fourfold the strike of the enemies who doubled it with their men, / tawny as fire, he intended to banish his adversaries from the battle.
9.64
Radiating brilliance as if solitary, of highest worth, he roamed in the fight; / the enemy of Indra, holding his bow, reached him who brought an end to life.
9.65
Discharging wound-inflicting arrows, having a splendor equal to the sun, / the renowned one struck with arrows the monkey who was desirous of fame.
9.66
Moving in the sky, that son of Marut did not set foot below, / even though repeatedly pierced by darkness-shafts that split the vitals.
9.66.p1
Thus ends the section on the change of [visarga to] s.
9.67
Piercing the lives within their skins, the son of Prabhañjana freed / the horses harnessed to the yokes of the carriage of the foe of Puruhūta.
9.68
When they fell asleep on the ground, Rāvaṇa’s son, hard with departed fear, / then ordered the charioteer to bring others.
9.69
Desiring to praise the fight again, wishing to instill fear, / and as if wishing to inspire his own folk with courage, he mounted the chariot.
9.70
Desiring victory, Indrajit again formed an invincible battle-array / against that monkey-cloud wishing to shower his forces with trees.
9.71
Rushing forward out of wrath, they seemed to sprinkle the monkey / with his own warm blood trickling from wounds caused by the combat.
9.72
Intending to overcome them in battle, perching upon the city-gate, / undaunted, he checked those demons whose shouts struck men.
9.73
Gaining strength, the enraged demons showered a network of weapons, / which even Indra could not endure; but the monkey endured it.
9.74
With flowing blood, the monkey, himself unwavering, struck with an iron club / his unwavering foes, crimsoned by the stream of blood.
9.75
Leaping forward, the glittering Meghanāda bound with the Brahma-noose / the agile son of Āśvari, so that he leapt no more.
9.76
Seized by the flashing man-eaters, he became motionless; / though capable of resisting, he did not move out of respect for Brahmā.
9.77
“Produce joy for the lord! Do not fail to mount the sky swiftly / to carry off the monkey!” Thus Indrajit shouted loudly to his men.
9.78
Leading the son of Marut away, his enemies said: / “We will devour you, who have fallen into the clutch of our fingers, having come here from a place of cowards!”
9.79
And they said: “This is the messenger of that mortal / who protected the brahmins at the Agniṣṭoma and other Jyotiṣṭoma sacrifices;”
9.80
“who cut off the nose of Rāvaṇa’s maternal aunt, / and who slew Khara and the rest, sons of his mother’s sister;”
9.81
“and in whom no terrors arise at the encounter with demons— / of that ill-begotten kṣatriya, this spy has arrived;”
9.82
“having seen the king of kings fast asleep, this wicked one of crooked mind, / skilled in espionage, entered the women's grove.”
9.83
“By night he saw Maithilī abiding in the conduct of twice-born men, / whose cords are well washed, whose luster is like Kapiṣṭhala’s,”
9.84
“first in all virtues of women, seated on a grass-mat, steadfast on the earth, / lying on bare ground, like a spotless star fixed in the sky,”
9.85
“chanting beautiful Sāman hymns among all splendors, slender, exceedingly radiant, auspicious, / as if burning herself, turning the forest into light,”
9.86
“surrounded by bees tawny with filaments turned into honey, / bearing glistening blossoms, holy, like a creeper of gold and gems,”
9.87
“shedding eye-water, making a shower, / as it were, of her heart tormented by the fire of grief, holding highest vows.”
9.88
“Seeing her, he broke the trees, slaying the foes who tried to stop him; / he scattered them all around, like the angry Wind himself.”
9.89
“He whose valor was unresisted, who endured missiles in the great battle, / him the cloud-voiced one, never unresisted himself, has paralyzed.”
9.90
Knowing that he was about to dry up the demons with blood, they, suffering, / led him along, tied with other strong leather straps, chains, and the like.
9.91
Indrajit became dejected, perceiving that another binding had been applied over the bond, / because the divine bond does not tolerate any other binding.
9.91.p1
Thus ends the section on the change of [s to] ṣ.
9.92
Holding the monkey, who seemed to steal their splendor, / the demons approached the broad-chested Daśagrīva ahead.
9.93
The terrifying Kharaṇasa and others, whose vitals had been pierced in many ways, / [came] while the lunar orb was in the west before the forest.
9.94
“The pleasure garden has been made devoid of groves by him, with its mango groves and others / mingled with deodar groves!” said the monkey’s foes.
9.95
Joyful in the forenoon, the demons, taking the monkey, / approached the lord of blood-drinkers, who bears wrath.
9.96
The liquor-drinkers went openly to him who was intoxicated by drinking wine, / who arose to destroy the pride of enemies, and who carried off the wives of others.
9.97
Eager for conflict, the foes of the gods bowed to his feet, / presenting Hanūmat, who crushed the minds of his enemies.
9.98
“Let me cast down the head of the monkey who destroyed the grove upon the ground!” / addressed the enraged lord of demons to the assembly.
9.99
Then Vibhīṣaṇa, intent on his own duty, spoke to the king of demons / who was striking him down, like a cloud roaring deeply:
9.100
“Listen, Daśagrīva! Be pleased to restrain your wrath. / Understand that messengers are not killed, even when there is fault.”
9.101
The king of demons replied to Vibhīṣaṇa who was trying to save his enemy's life: / “This sinner who broke the women's grove does not deserve to live!”
9.102
“By whom trusted demons were slain in my grove— / how should we not kill that sinner who was the first offender? Speak!”
9.103
“Do not place an obstacle before me, who out of anger will effect the destruction / of my enemy's home within; know that he is fit for the journey [to death].”
9.104
“Those who do not deprive an approached enemy of life / quickly cause the abandonment of even legitimate royal fortune.”
9.105
“What man of vile intellect, having caused the flare-up of Rāvaṇa's wrath, / would be capable of protecting his life in the world, even if he were Indra?”
9.106
“This wicked one who swings in the forest, this destroyer of fruits, / having reviled us, will not again suck our honey.”
9.107
“There is no entry for the sun, no blazing for fire, / and no excessive trembling of the wind in the grove guarded by me.”
9.108
“Yet by this monkey, whose discipline is lost, that supreme, sweet flower-liquor / in the forest, collected by bees, which is hard to drink, [was drunk].”
9.109
When he with a face terrifying in fury had thus spoken, trembling, the monkey / uttered conciliatory words to Rāvaṇa for the accomplishment of his purpose:
9.109.p1
Thus ends the section on the change of [n to] ṇ.
9.110
“To you, who look upon a single bound monkey, a messenger brought to your palace, / lord of the three worlds, why is your anger as light as straw?”
9.111
“Why is there agitation in you, skilled in statecraft, toward an ascetic / who bows to keepers of the sacred fire and has turned his back on the desire for conquest?”
9.112
“Neither women bringing good fortune throughout the night nor lands of jewels / are gained by conquering him; who would make war with such a one?”
9.113
Join with Rāma and Sugrīva for the prosperity of the world,
just as the Himavat connects the eastern and western oceans filled with jewels.
9.114
Rāma and Sugrīva are friends, and the monkey troop-leaders are servants;
they are won merely by surrendering another's wife. Release Maithilī!
9.115
Attaining righteousness by giving back Sītā, wealth through alliance with Rāma,
[and] desire through living in confidence—obtain the three [goals of life] by giving up Sītā.
9.116
Has not your enemy been revealed to you
by Virādha, Tāḍakā, Vālin, Kabandha, Khara, and Dūṣaṇa, and also by Mārīca?
9.117
And do not consider the death of Khara and the others a cause for enmity,
because that was done to protect himself, not out of a desire for conquest."
9.118
Then Rāvaṇa, the lotus-cluster of whose faces trembled with a blast of wind-like anger,
agitated like a great lake, said to the monkey:
9.119
"For one whose demonic warriors have been killed, whose garden trees have been broken,
[and] who claims, 'I am an envoy'—what about you is worthy of an envoy?
9.120
If the descendant of Kakutstha, who killed the crippled, young, and women—
Kabandha, Khara, and Tāḍakā—is an ascetic, then tell [me], what is a sinner?
9.121
Knowing that pride is the fruit [of conquest], how can you say
that war with Rāma is futile because it lacks the gain of jewels and the like?
9.122
Taking and enjoying another’s woman is the very duty of man-eaters;
you spoke because you have a mouth; what fear do I have of you?
9.123
Tell [me], Hanūmat, what friendship can there be between men, monkeys, and demons,
who are utterly disparate in prosperity, conduct, deeds, and lineage?
9.124
The single Virādha was not worth mentioning, conquered by two [men];
and this fool was killed by deceit. Why should even that cause you pride?
9.125
And Mārīca, devoted to flight by my command,
with no desire to fight, died in the forest while luring Rāma away.
9.126
Rāma did indeed strike down the monkey when engaged with another;
reflect and say yourself whether that is fitting for the great.
9.127
Shall the slaughter of relatives by a man who is food [for us],
done to protect himself, be tolerated by the Ten-faced One? Where did this foolish thought of yours come from?"
9.128
The monkey said: "I am an envoy. Deliberately I used the means
of destroying trees and demons in order to see you.
9.129
Those of yours who made the world up to Trikūṭa devoid of living beings—
O Ten-necked One, how can you say they were not to be killed by a king?
9.130
Because of what you called the fruit of pride in war with Rāma,
hundreds of families of asuras and demons have perished.
9.131
Because you adopted what is non-righteousness as your own duty against the weak,
and are fearless before your enemy Rāma, this will not bring well-being for long.
9.132
Just as you do not desire friendship with those differing in lineage and the like,
you should likewise not pursue hostility with men and monkeys.
9.133
If Rāma, the best of bowmen, having conquered Virādha,
the obstacle to austerities, killed him, why is he not worth mentioning?
9.134
Even while fleeing, Mārīca of great illusions could not escape
the range of the arrows of Rāma the elephant, as was said by yourself.
9.135
That you do not recall the prowess of Vālin who was engaged with another
is surely because you were fainting, squeezed by his arms as he saluted the twilight.
9.136
Give up the fight with the strong, which originated from the slaying of bad relatives;
surrender Sītā, along with treasury, army, your own self, and territories, to the one who deserves obeisance."
9.137
Being addressed loudly in the assembly in this manner, in clear, harsh, and unbearable [words] by the son of the wind,
the Ten-faced One looked around at his attendants and ordered the burning of the monkey.
Commentaries (4)
- Sarvapathīnā — Mallinātha Sūri, Sanskrit
- Bhaṭṭikāvyavyākhyā — Harisvāmin, Sanskrit
- Bhaṭṭikāvyaṭīkā — Bharatamallīka, Sanskrit
- Jayamaṅgalā — Jayamaṅgala, Sanskrit
Linked texts (1)
- Rāvaṇavadha — Bhaṭṭi, Sanskrit