Valmiki Ramayana 1.55

1.55.1

evam ukto vasiṣṭhena viśvāmitro mahābalaḥ
āgneyam astram utkṣipya tiṣṭha tiṣṭheti cābravīt

But Vis'vámitra, at the threat
Of that illustrious anchoret,
Cried, as he launched with ready hand
A fiery weapon, 'Stand, O Stand!'
Vas'ishtha, wild with rage and hate,
Raising, as 'twere the Rod of Fate,
His mighty Bráhman wand on high,
To Vis'vámitra made reply:
'Nay, stand. O Warrior thou, and show
What soldier can, 'gainst Bráhman foe.
O Gádhi's son, thy days are told;
Thy pride is tamed, thy dart is cold.
How shall a warrior's puissance dare
With Bráhman's awful strength compare?
To-day, base Warrior, shall thou feel
That God-sent might is more than steel.'
He raised his Bráhman staff, nor missed
The fiery dart that near him hissed:
And quenched the fearful weapon fell,
As flame beneath the billow's swell.

1.55.2

vasiṣṭho bhagavān krodhād idaṃ vacanam abravīt

But Vis'vámitra, at the threat
Of that illustrious anchoret,
Cried, as he launched with ready hand
A fiery weapon, 'Stand, O Stand!'
Vas'ishtha, wild with rage and hate,
Raising, as 'twere the Rod of Fate,
His mighty Bráhman wand on high,
To Vis'vámitra made reply:
'Nay, stand. O Warrior thou, and show
What soldier can, 'gainst Bráhman foe.
O Gádhi's son, thy days are told;
Thy pride is tamed, thy dart is cold.
How shall a warrior's puissance dare
With Bráhman's awful strength compare?
To-day, base Warrior, shall thou feel
That God-sent might is more than steel.'
He raised his Bráhman staff, nor missed
The fiery dart that near him hissed:
And quenched the fearful weapon fell,
As flame beneath the billow's swell.

1.55.3

kṣatrabandho sthito 'smy eṣa yad balaṃ tad vidarśaya
nāśayāmy eṣa te darpaṃ śastrasya tava gādhija

But Vis'vámitra, at the threat
Of that illustrious anchoret,
Cried, as he launched with ready hand
A fiery weapon, 'Stand, O Stand!'
Vas'ishtha, wild with rage and hate,
Raising, as 'twere the Rod of Fate,
His mighty Bráhman wand on high,
To Vis'vámitra made reply:
'Nay, stand. O Warrior thou, and show
What soldier can, 'gainst Bráhman foe.
O Gádhi's son, thy days are told;
Thy pride is tamed, thy dart is cold.
How shall a warrior's puissance dare
With Bráhman's awful strength compare?
To-day, base Warrior, shall thou feel
That God-sent might is more than steel.'
He raised his Bráhman staff, nor missed
The fiery dart that near him hissed:
And quenched the fearful weapon fell,
As flame beneath the billow's swell.

1.55.4

kva ca te kṣatriyabalaṃ kva ca brahmabalaṃ mahat
paśya brahmabalaṃ divyaṃ mama kṣatriyapāṃsana

But Vis'vámitra, at the threat
Of that illustrious anchoret,
Cried, as he launched with ready hand
A fiery weapon, 'Stand, O Stand!'
Vas'ishtha, wild with rage and hate,
Raising, as 'twere the Rod of Fate,
His mighty Bráhman wand on high,
To Vis'vámitra made reply:
'Nay, stand. O Warrior thou, and show
What soldier can, 'gainst Bráhman foe.
O Gádhi's son, thy days are told;
Thy pride is tamed, thy dart is cold.
How shall a warrior's puissance dare
With Bráhman's awful strength compare?
To-day, base Warrior, shall thou feel
That God-sent might is more than steel.'
He raised his Bráhman staff, nor missed
The fiery dart that near him hissed:
And quenched the fearful weapon fell,
As flame beneath the billow's swell.

1.55.5

tasyāstraṃ gādhiputrasya ghoram āgneyam uttamam
brahmadaṇḍena tac chāntam agner vega ivāmbhasā

But Vis'vámitra, at the threat
Of that illustrious anchoret,
Cried, as he launched with ready hand
A fiery weapon, 'Stand, O Stand!'
Vas'ishtha, wild with rage and hate,
Raising, as 'twere the Rod of Fate,
His mighty Bráhman wand on high,
To Vis'vámitra made reply:
'Nay, stand. O Warrior thou, and show
What soldier can, 'gainst Bráhman foe.
O Gádhi's son, thy days are told;
Thy pride is tamed, thy dart is cold.
How shall a warrior's puissance dare
With Bráhman's awful strength compare?
To-day, base Warrior, shall thou feel
That God-sent might is more than steel.'
He raised his Bráhman staff, nor missed
The fiery dart that near him hissed:
And quenched the fearful weapon fell,
As flame beneath the billow's swell.

1.55.6

vāruṇaṃ caiva raudraṃ ca aindraṃ pāśupataṃ tathā
aiṣīkaṃ cāpi cikṣepa ruṣito gādhinandanaḥ

Then Gádhi's son in fury threw
Lord Varun's arm and Rudra's too:
Indra's fierce bolt that all destroys;
That which the Lord of Herds employs:
The Human, that which minstrels Keep,
The deadly Lure, the endless Sleep:
The Yawner, and the dart which charms;
Lament and Torture, fearful arms:
The Terrible, the dart which dries,
The Thunderbolt which quenchless flies,
And Fate's dread net, and Brahmá's noose,
And that which waits for Varun's use:
The dart he loves who wields the bow
Pináka, and twin bolts that glow
With fury as they flash and fly,
The quenchless Liquid and the Dry:
The dart of Vengeance, swift to kill:
The Goblins' dart, the Curlew's Bill:

1.55.7

mānavaṃ mohanaṃ caiva gāndharvaṃ svāpanaṃ tathā
jṛmbhaṇaṃ mohanaṃ caiva saṃtāpanavilāpane

Then Gádhi's son in fury threw
Lord Varun's arm and Rudra's too:
Indra's fierce bolt that all destroys;
That which the Lord of Herds employs:
The Human, that which minstrels Keep,
The deadly Lure, the endless Sleep:
The Yawner, and the dart which charms;
Lament and Torture, fearful arms:
The Terrible, the dart which dries,
The Thunderbolt which quenchless flies,
And Fate's dread net, and Brahmá's noose,
And that which waits for Varun's use:
The dart he loves who wields the bow
Pináka, and twin bolts that glow
With fury as they flash and fly,
The quenchless Liquid and the Dry:
The dart of Vengeance, swift to kill:
The Goblins' dart, the Curlew's Bill:

1.55.8

śoṣaṇaṃ dāraṇaṃ caiva vajram astraṃ sudurjayam
brahmapāśaṃ kālapāśaṃ vāruṇaṃ pāśam eva ca

Then Gádhi's son in fury threw
Lord Varun's arm and Rudra's too:
Indra's fierce bolt that all destroys;
That which the Lord of Herds employs:
The Human, that which minstrels Keep,
The deadly Lure, the endless Sleep:
The Yawner, and the dart which charms;
Lament and Torture, fearful arms:
The Terrible, the dart which dries,
The Thunderbolt which quenchless flies,
And Fate's dread net, and Brahmá's noose,
And that which waits for Varun's use:
The dart he loves who wields the bow
Pináka, and twin bolts that glow
With fury as they flash and fly,
The quenchless Liquid and the Dry:
The dart of Vengeance, swift to kill:
The Goblins' dart, the Curlew's Bill:

1.55.9

pinākāstraṃ ca dayitaṃ śuṣkārdre aśanī tathā
daṇḍāstram atha paiśācaṃ krauñcam astraṃ tathaiva ca

Then Gádhi's son in fury threw
Lord Varun's arm and Rudra's too:
Indra's fierce bolt that all destroys;
That which the Lord of Herds employs:
The Human, that which minstrels Keep,
The deadly Lure, the endless Sleep:
The Yawner, and the dart which charms;
Lament and Torture, fearful arms:
The Terrible, the dart which dries,
The Thunderbolt which quenchless flies,
And Fate's dread net, and Brahmá's noose,
And that which waits for Varun's use:
The dart he loves who wields the bow
Pináka, and twin bolts that glow
With fury as they flash and fly,
The quenchless Liquid and the Dry:
The dart of Vengeance, swift to kill:
The Goblins' dart, the Curlew's Bill:

1.55.10

dharmacakraṃ kālacakraṃ viṣṇucakraṃ tathaiva ca
vāyavyaṃ mathanaṃ caiva astraṃ hayaśiras tathā

The discus both of Fate and Right,
And Vishnu's, of unerring flight:
The Wind-God's dart, the Troubler dread,
The weapon named the Horse's Head.
From his fierce hand two spears were thrown,
And the great mace that smashes bone;
The dart of spirits of the air,
And that which Fate exults to bear;
The Trident dart which slaughters foes,
And that which hanging skulls compose:
These fearful darts in fiery rain
He hurled upon the saint amain,
An awful miracle to view.
But as the ceaseless tempest flew,
The sage with wand of God-sent power
Still swallowed up that fiery shower.

1.55.11

śaktidvayaṃ ca cikṣepa kaṅkālaṃ musalaṃ tathā
vaidyādharaṃ mahāstraṃ ca kālāstram atha dāruṇam

The discus both of Fate and Right,
And Vishnu's, of unerring flight:
The Wind-God's dart, the Troubler dread,
The weapon named the Horse's Head.
From his fierce hand two spears were thrown,
And the great mace that smashes bone;
The dart of spirits of the air,
And that which Fate exults to bear;
The Trident dart which slaughters foes,
And that which hanging skulls compose:
These fearful darts in fiery rain
He hurled upon the saint amain,
An awful miracle to view.
But as the ceaseless tempest flew,
The sage with wand of God-sent power
Still swallowed up that fiery shower.

1.55.12

triśūlam astraṃ ghoraṃ ca kāpālam atha kaṅkaṇam
etāny astrāṇi cikṣepa sarvāṇi raghunandana

The discus both of Fate and Right,
And Vishnu's, of unerring flight:
The Wind-God's dart, the Troubler dread,
The weapon named the Horse's Head.
From his fierce hand two spears were thrown,
And the great mace that smashes bone;
The dart of spirits of the air,
And that which Fate exults to bear;
The Trident dart which slaughters foes,
And that which hanging skulls compose:
These fearful darts in fiery rain
He hurled upon the saint amain,
An awful miracle to view.
But as the ceaseless tempest flew,
The sage with wand of God-sent power
Still swallowed up that fiery shower.

1.55.13

vasiṣṭhe japatāṃ śreṣṭhe tad adbhutam ivābhavat
tāni sarvāṇi daṇḍena grasate brahmaṇaḥ sutaḥ

The discus both of Fate and Right,
And Vishnu's, of unerring flight:
The Wind-God's dart, the Troubler dread,
The weapon named the Horse's Head.
From his fierce hand two spears were thrown,
And the great mace that smashes bone;
The dart of spirits of the air,
And that which Fate exults to bear;
The Trident dart which slaughters foes,
And that which hanging skulls compose:
These fearful darts in fiery rain
He hurled upon the saint amain,
An awful miracle to view.
But as the ceaseless tempest flew,
The sage with wand of God-sent power
Still swallowed up that fiery shower.

1.55.14

teṣu śānteṣu brahmāstraṃ kṣiptavān gādhinandanaḥ
tad astram udyataṃ dṛṣṭvā devāḥ sāgnipurogamāḥ

Then Gádhi's son, when these had failed,
With Brahmá's dart his foe assailed.
The Gods, with Indra at their head,
And Nágas, quailed disquieted,
And saints and minstrels, when they saw
The king that awful weapon draw;
And the three worlds were filled with dread,
And trembled as the missile sped.

1.55.15

devarṣayaś ca saṃbhrāntā gandharvāḥ samahoragāḥ
trailokyam āsīt saṃtrastaṃ brahmāstre samudīrite

Then Gádhi's son, when these had failed,
With Brahmá's dart his foe assailed.
The Gods, with Indra at their head,
And Nágas, quailed disquieted,
And saints and minstrels, when they saw
The king that awful weapon draw;
And the three worlds were filled with dread,
And trembled as the missile sped.

1.55.16

tad apy astraṃ mahāghoraṃ brāhmaṃ brāhmeṇa tejasā
vasiṣṭho grasate sarvaṃ brahmadaṇḍena rāghava

The saint, with Bráhman wand, empowered
By lore divine that dart devoured.
Nor could the triple world withdraw
Rapt gazes from that sight of awe;
For as be swallowed down the dart
Of Brahmá, sparks from every part,
From finest pore and hair-cell, broke
Enveloped in a veil of smoke.
The staff he waved was all aglow
Like Yáma's sceptre, King below,
Or like the lurid fire of Fate
Whose rage the worlds will desolate.

1.55.17

brahmāstraṃ grasamānasya vasiṣṭhasya mahātmanaḥ
trailokyamohanaṃ raudraṃ rūpam āsīt sudāruṇam

The saint, with Bráhman wand, empowered
By lore divine that dart devoured.
Nor could the triple world withdraw
Rapt gazes from that sight of awe;
For as be swallowed down the dart
Of Brahmá, sparks from every part,
From finest pore and hair-cell, broke
Enveloped in a veil of smoke.
The staff he waved was all aglow
Like Yáma's sceptre, King below,
Or like the lurid fire of Fate
Whose rage the worlds will desolate.

1.55.18

romakūpeṣu sarveṣu vasiṣṭhasya mahātmanaḥ
marīcya iva niṣpetur agner dhūmākulārciṣaḥ

The saint, with Bráhman wand, empowered
By lore divine that dart devoured.
Nor could the triple world withdraw
Rapt gazes from that sight of awe;
For as be swallowed down the dart
Of Brahmá, sparks from every part,
From finest pore and hair-cell, broke
Enveloped in a veil of smoke.
The staff he waved was all aglow
Like Yáma's sceptre, King below,
Or like the lurid fire of Fate
Whose rage the worlds will desolate.

1.55.19

prājvalad brahmadaṇḍaś ca vasiṣṭhasya karodyataḥ
vidhūma iva kālāgnir yamadaṇḍa ivāparaḥ

The saint, with Bráhman wand, empowered
By lore divine that dart devoured.
Nor could the triple world withdraw
Rapt gazes from that sight of awe;
For as be swallowed down the dart
Of Brahmá, sparks from every part,
From finest pore and hair-cell, broke
Enveloped in a veil of smoke.
The staff he waved was all aglow
Like Yáma's sceptre, King below,
Or like the lurid fire of Fate
Whose rage the worlds will desolate.

1.55.20

tato 'stuvan munigaṇā vasiṣṭhaṃ japatāṃ varam
amoghaṃ te balaṃ brahmaṃs tejo dhāraya tejasā

The hermits, whom that sight had awed,
Extolled the saint, with hymn and laud:
'Thy power, O Sage, is ne'er in vain:
Now with thy might thy might restrain.
Be gracious, Master, and allow

1.55.21

nigṛhītas tvayā brahman viśvāmitro mahātapāḥ
prasīda japatāṃ śreṣṭha lokāḥ santu gatavyathāḥ

The worlds to rest from trouble now;
For Vis'vámitra, strong and dread,
By thee has been discomfited.'

The hermits, whom that sight had awed,
Extolled the saint, with hymn and laud:
'Thy power, O Sage, is ne'er in vain:
Now with thy might thy might restrain.
Be gracious, Master, and allow

1.55.22

evam ukto mahātejāḥ śamaṃ cakre mahātapāḥ
viśvāmitro 'pi nikṛto viniḥśvasyedam abravīt

Then, thus addressed, the saint, well pleased.
The fury of his wrath appeased.
The king, o'erpowered and ashamed,
With many a deep-drawn sigh exclaimed:
'Ah! Warriors' strength is poor and slight;
A Bráhman's power is truly might.
This Bráhman staff the hermit held
The fury of my darts has quelled.
This truth within my heart impressed,
With senses ruled and tranquil breast
My task austere will I begin,
And Bráhmanhood will strive to win.'

1.55.23

dhig balaṃ kṣatriyabalaṃ brahmatejobalaṃ balam
ekena brahmadaṇḍena sarvāstrāṇi hatāni me

Then, thus addressed, the saint, well pleased.
The fury of his wrath appeased.
The king, o'erpowered and ashamed,
With many a deep-drawn sigh exclaimed:
'Ah! Warriors' strength is poor and slight;
A Bráhman's power is truly might.
This Bráhman staff the hermit held
The fury of my darts has quelled.
This truth within my heart impressed,
With senses ruled and tranquil breast
My task austere will I begin,
And Bráhmanhood will strive to win.'

1.55.24

tad etat samavekṣyāhaṃ prasannendriyamānasaḥ
tapo mahat samāsthāsye yad vai brahmatvakārakam

Then, thus addressed, the saint, well pleased.
The fury of his wrath appeased.
The king, o'erpowered and ashamed,
With many a deep-drawn sigh exclaimed:
'Ah! Warriors' strength is poor and slight;
A Bráhman's power is truly might.
This Bráhman staff the hermit held
The fury of my darts has quelled.
This truth within my heart impressed,
With senses ruled and tranquil breast
My task austere will I begin,
And Bráhmanhood will strive to win.'