The Ramayana

by Valmiki

  Elephants and horses who had been freed ran around in confusion and made Lankā seem like the ocean boiling over at the end of time. Torched by the monkeys, in a single hour, Lankā had become like the universe blazing with the doomsday fire. Women suffocated by smoke and burned by the flames could be heard wailing ten yojanās away. When the burning rākṣasas ran out of the city, they were attacked by the monkeys who were waiting for a fight.

  Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa were perfectly recovered and healed and they stood there, ready to use their bows. Rāma twanged the string of his great bow and the sound put fear into the hearts of the rākṣasas. Lankā’s towering gateway, which was as high as Mount Kailāsa, came crashing down under his arrows. The rākṣasas who were still in their homes prepared themselves for battle and struggled into their armour. Sugrīva ordered his leaders to man the gates and fight with any creature that dared to pass.

  When Rāvaṇa saw the monkeys at the city gates with torches in their hands, he flew into an uncontrollable rage. He summoned Kumbha and Nikumbha, the sons of Kumbhakarṇa, and sent them out against the enemy with a huge force of rākṣasas, urging them to shout their battle cries and spurring them on to victory.

  The warriors emerged from Lankā, their bright weapons gleaming, their elephants and horses and chariots raising a terrible din, their colourful flags waving in the wind. The monkey army surged forward to meet them and the rākṣasas charged on, like moths into a flame. A terrible battle ensued with the monkeys and the rākṣasas clashing, weapon against weapon, body against body. The rākṣasas demolished the monkeys seven and ten at a time and the monkeys did the same. But when the rākṣasas tried to flee, their hair dishevelled, their clothes and armour and battle banners in shreds, the monkeys surrounded them.

  Many great warriors lost their lives in this terrible battle. Angada smashed the rākṣasa Prajangha’s head, Śonitākṣa and Yūpākṣa were killed by Mainda and Dvivida, and Sugrīva himself killed Kumbha who had injured a number of monkey leaders. Enraged that Sugrīva had killed his brother, Nikumbha jumped into the fray with renewed vigour. After a frightful battle, Hanumān took the rākṣasa’s life by twisting off his neck.

  Then Rāvaṇa sent Khara’s son, Makarākṣa, onto the battlefield with specific instructions to kill Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa. Makarākṣa was motivated by the idea of avenging his father’s death and though he was a skilled and brave warrior, he was no match for Rāma. Rāma eventually killed him with a magnificent arrow powered by the fire god and once again, the other rākṣasas ran back to Lankā in terror.

  Meanwhile, Indrajit grew angrier and angrier as he thought about the innumerable heroic rākṣasas who had been killed in battle. Mighty Indrajit, thorn in the side of the gods and a descendent of Pulastya, rode forth from the western gate surrounded by rākṣasas. When he saw that Rāma and Lakṣmaṇa were still full of energy and enthusiasm for battle, he felt he had to resort to sorcery. He decided to surround himself with a large band of rākṣasas, create a phantom Sītā and kill her in front of all the monkeys in order to crush their spirit.

  The monkeys surged forward when they saw Indrajit emerging from the city gates and Hanumān charged towards him, armed with a huge tree. Suddenly, he noticed that a pathetic and miserable Sītā was seated in Indrajit’s chariot. Emaciated and pale, her hair in a single braid, Rāma’s beloved was dressed in dirty clothes and was covered with dust. Hanumān looked twice to make sure that it was really Sītā and his eyes filled with tears at the sight of her terrible state. He wondered why Indrajit was displaying the miserable woman and asked this question aloud as he approached Indrajit.

  Indrajit was in a rage when he saw the monkey forces. He unsheathed his sword and grabbed Sītā by the hair. In front of everyone, he slapped her hard and she cried out, ‘Oh! Rāma! Rāma!’ Hanumān was outraged and berated Indrajit angrily. ‘Vile wretch! Wicked creature! You have called for your own destruction by grabbing Sītā by her hair! You were born in a line of royal sages even though you emerged from the womb of a rākṣasī! Damn you! Your powers are rooted in unrighteousness! Who but the vilest and most dishonourable would do something like this? Sītā has neither a home, nor a kingdom, nor even Rāma! What did she ever do to you that you should want to kill her? If you kill Sītā, you will soon die, for your life will be in my hands! And you deserve death for this terrible deed! You shall die and go to the hell reserved for killers of women. Those hells are reviled even by the lowest of the low!’

  Hanumān and the other monkeys rushed towards the rākṣasa prince. Indrajit loosed thousands of arrows at them and shouted to Hanumān, ‘Sītā was the reason for you and Rāma and Sugrīva coming here! I shall kill her in front of your eyes! And after this, I shall kill Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, Sugrīva, you and that vile traitor Vibhīṣaṇa as well! As for your idea that women should not be killed, I think one can do anything to demoralize the enemy!’

  With that, Indrajit killed the phantom Sītā, slitting her across her body from her shoulders to her hips. The lovely woman fell to the ground as Indrajit yelled, ‘Look! I have killed Rāma’s wife!’ Standing in his chariot, Indrajit shouted for joy and the monkeys were filled with despair as they turned away.

  Hanumān rallied them, for they were utterly disheartened and ready to flee. ‘How can you run away like this in dismay? What has happened to your legendary courage? Follow me into battle! The noble and the brave do not run away like this!’

  The monkeys’ spirits revived and they armed themselves with trees and stones, roaring as they fell behind Hanumān who led them against the enemy. Hanumān hurled a huge rock against Indrajit but the skilled warrior moved his chariot away from it. The rock fell to the ground, creating havoc among the rākṣasas as it smashed many of them to pulp. The monkeys continued their onslaught and more and more rākṣasas fell writhing to the ground. Indrajit unleashed his fury on the monkeys, attacking them with every kind of weapon and killing a great number of them. But Hanumān inflicted an equal amount of damage on the rākṣasas, wielding trees and hurling rocks with great skill.

  But suddenly, Hanumān decided that it was futile to continue fighting. ‘We have been throwing our lives away for Rāma’s sake. Now that Sītā has been killed, the reason for doing this no longer exists! We must go and tell Rāma and Sugrīva that this has happened. Then we shall do as they think best.’ Slowly, Hanumān and the other monkeys retreated and went back to Rāma. Indrajit saw the monkeys turning away and went quickly to a nearby temple. He fed the sacred fire with flesh and blood until it blazed like the morning sun. As his followers stood around and watched, he made offerings to the fire and conducted a special ritual for the rākṣasas’ success in battle.

  Hanumān hurried back to Rāma and sadly, he said, ‘During the battle, Indrajit killed Sītā in front of our very eyes! I was overwhelmed with grief when I saw this and came immediately to tell you about it.’

  Rāma fell to the ground in a faint, like a tree axed at the root. The monkeys came running from all directions and sprinkled water perfumed with lotus and lily on his face. Lakṣmaṇa embraced his grieving brother, trying his best to console him. ‘All this talk of dharma is futile!’ he said. ‘Your adherence to dharma has not protected you from all these calamities. We cannot see dharma the way we can see other objects. I am beginning to believe that there is no such thing! If dharma really did exist, Rāvaṇa would be in hell and you would not be suffering like this! Rāvaṇa suffers nothing. Has dharma become adharma? If dharma did exist, nothing bad should ever happen to you!

  ‘Or maybe dharma rallies around might, it supports the strong. Which means that we should never ally ourselves with the weak. If dharma helps only the mighty, then give up your allegiance to it and rely, instead, on your strength. Taking refuge in either dharma or adharma on principal is ultimately destructive. A man should choose which of them to follow according to circumstances.

  ‘You cut at the root of dharma when you renounced the kingdom. Purposeful action flows f
rom the accumulation of wealth from all possible sources, like rivers from a mountain. Men who lack wealth and power can never act in any significant way. The man who renounces wealth will continue to hanker after pleasure because he is accustomed to it. That will lead him to unethical practices. A wealthy man can support his friends and well-wishers who will then proclaim his wealth, his learning, his skills and his virtues. I do not know what you were thinking about when you gave up the kingdom!

  ‘Wealth gives access to pleasures and happiness, to the fulfilment of desires. It sustains a man’s pride and allows him to cling to dharma. You were obedient to your father’s wishes and went into exile. A rākṣasa abducted your wife who is dearer to you than your own life. As a consequence of all that, Indrajit has brought this disaster upon you today.

  ‘But I shall put and end to all this! I shall release my anger and avenge the killing of Sītā. I shall raze Lankā to the ground, along with all its elephants and chariots! I shall kill the king of the rākṣasas!’

  While Lakṣmaṇa was comforting his brother, Vibhīṣaṇa came back from an inspection of the forces. He saw Rāma overwhelmed with grief, lying with his head in Lakṣmaṇa’s lap, almost senseless with sorrow, and all the monkeys with tears in their eyes. His heart sinking, Vibhīṣaṇa asked, ‘What is the matter?’ Lakṣmaṇa looked at Vibhīṣaṇa, Sugrīva and all the monkeys and said, ‘When Hanumān told Rāma that Indrajit had killed Sītā, he fainted!’

  Vibhīṣaṇa interrupted him before he could say any more. ‘What Hanumān reported is as unlikely as the ocean drying up! I know what vile Rāvaṇa’s intentions are towards Sītā! He would never have her killed. I told him many times for his own good that he should give Sītā back but he would not do it.

  ‘Indrajit has done this to confuse and demoralize the monkeys. Now he has gone to the temple to perform a special sacrifice. If he can complete it, then even the gods led by Indra will not be able to defeat him in battle. He will use magic and sorcery to prevent the monkeys from using their skills in battle. Let us go there with our forces before he can complete his rituals.

  ‘Shake off this dejection. It has no basis! The entire army suffers when they see you like this! Rāma, stay here and pull yourself together. Let Lakṣmaṇa come with us. His sharp arrows will prevent Indrajit from completing his ritual. Then it will be simple to kill him. Command Lakṣmaṇa, the mighty warrior, to destroy this rākṣasa!’

  Chapter Ten

  ‘Listen and I will tell you what is the best course of action,’ continued Vibhīṣaṇa. ‘Let Lakṣmaṇa lead a large force to the temple where Indrajit is and then let Lakṣmaṇa kill him in battle. His snake-like arrows will fly from his bow drawn back to its fullest extent and they will take Indrajit’s life! Indrajit has won his boons from Brahmā because of the austerities he performed. He has the power to use Brahmā’s weapon and he has horses that can take him anywhere he pleases. Brahmā decreed that the enemy who prevents Indrajit from completing this ritual would be the one to kill him. We must kill him as soon as we can, for when he is dead, Rāvaṇa and all the others are as good as dead, too!’

  Rāma replied that he knew the kind of power Indrajit commanded as a result of his knowledge of sorcery and magic. He instructed Lakṣmaṇa to go with Hanumān and the other monkey leaders and to kill Indrajit. Mighty Lakṣmaṇa picked up his great bow, girt his sword, picked his arrows and put on his armour. Full of joy, he touched Rāma’s feet and said, ‘The arrows released from my bow will pierce Rāvaṇa’s son and then fall in Lankā as swans alight in a pool! My arrows will cut that vile creature’s body to pieces!’

  Lakṣmaṇa set out quickly, eager to kill Indrajit. Hanumān, Vibhīṣaṇa and many thousands of monkeys accompanied him to the temple where Indrajit was performing his ritual. From a distance, Lakṣmaṇa could see the rākṣasa forces, ready and waiting. He lifted his bow and prepared to kill Indrajit in the manner that Brahmā had ordained.

  Vibhīṣaṇa gave Lakṣmaṇa some advice on his battle strategy. ‘Force the rākṣasa army to break their formation. Then you will be able to see Indrajit. Shower him with arrows which will land with such impact that he will not be able to complete the ritual. Kill this unrighteous creature who has mastered the arts of magic and who torments the worlds!’

  Lakṣmaṇa loosed a rain of arrows upon Indrajit and the monkeys attacked the rākṣasa army ferociously with trees and rocks and boulders. The rākṣasas used all their weapons, determined to slaughter the monkeys, and the din raised by the clashing armies could be heard all over Lankā. The sky was blotted out by the multitude of weapons and trees and rocks that were hurled in all directions.

  Indrajit could hear the sounds of his army under attack and the invincible rākṣasa had to leave his ritual incomplete. He emerged from the dark grove of trees in a rage and mounted his chariot. Carrying his frightful bow, Indrajit looked like death, with his red eyes and skin the colour of a rain cloud. The rākṣasa forces rallied the moment they saw him.

  At that moment, Hanumān began his assault with huge trees which were impossible to counter, consuming the rākṣasa army like the doomsday fire. Thousands of rākṣasas charged towards him and attacked him at the same time with any weapon they could find, even using their fists. Hanumān ploughed through them with ease but Indrajit saw what was happening and told his charioteer to take him into the middle of the battle.

  Indrajit hurled spears, swords, clubs and battle axes at Hanumān but the monkey ignored the weapons and taunted the rākṣasa. ‘Fight me if you dare, son of Rāvaṇa!’ he shouted. ‘I am the son of the Wind! You shall not return alive! Fight me in single combat with your bare hands! Then you really will be the best of the rākṣasas!’

  Vibhīṣaṇa pointed Indrajit out to Lakṣmaṇa as he was fighting with Hanumān. ‘There he is, the one who defeated Indra in battle! Kill him with your unrivalled arrows that never spare the enemy’s life, Lakṣmaṇa!’ Lakṣmaṇa looked carefully at his powerful foe who was as large as a mountain and was yelling on the battlefield in order to intimidate the monkeys.

  Lakṣmaṇa twanged his great bow and shouted to Indrajit who was seated in his shining chariot, clad in armour and wielding a huge bow. ‘I summon you to battle! Come and fight with me!’

  Indrajit looked over at Lakṣmaṇa from his chariot. The mighty archer raised his enormous bow and chose the finest of his arrows, the ones that had wrought the most destruction among the enemy. He saw that Lakṣmaṇa shone with his own splendour as he sat on the shoulders of Hanumān, like the sun on a mountain. ‘You shall see my powers today! My arrows shall consume you the way fire consumes bales of cotton! Who can oppose me when I shower arrows like a thundering cloud showers rain!’ shouted Indrajit.

  Lakṣmaṇa was not in the least bit intimidated by Indrajit’s ranting and he replied, ‘You are promising the impossible, rākṣasa! An intelligent person backs up his boasts with action! Making yourself invisible in battle the last time was not the act of a heroic warrior but of a coward!’

  Indrajit drew his bow to its fullest extent and loosed a series of arrows which were sharp and swift and as vicious as snake poison. But they fell to the earth, hissing like snakes before they reached Lakṣmaṇa. Then he showered more arrows on Lakṣmaṇa, covering the warrior’s entire body. Wounded and drenched with blood, Lakṣmaṇa blazed like a smokeless flame. Indrajit shouted with joy. ‘My deadly arrows will take your life today, Lakṣmaṇa! Packs of jackals and vultures shall devour your body when I have killed you!’

  ‘Why don’t you do something instead of talking?’ roared Lakṣmaṇa. ‘Do something to prove that we should respect your skills as a warrior!’ and he fitted five arrows into his bow. He drew it back right to his ear and loosed the gleaming arrows which struck Indrajit in the chest and shone there like the rays of the sun. Lakṣmaṇa and Indrajit continued to assault each other with arrows which were sharp and swift. They were well matched as opponents, for both were determined to win
and both were known for their strength and skill and their mastery over all kinds of weapons, even celestial ones. The invincible warriors fought like lions as they deluged each other with arrows, delighting when they found their mark.

  Lakṣmaṇa kept shooting, hissing like an angry snake. But suddenly, Indrajit heard the bow-string snap against Lakṣmaṇa’s palm. He turned pale and appeared distracted. Immediately, Vibhīṣaṇa said to Lakṣmaṇa, ‘The signs indicate that Indrajit is done for! Finish him off quickly!’

  Lakṣmaṇa hit Indrajit with arrows which burned like flames and the rākṣasa was stunned for a while. But he recovered and shot ten arrows at Lakṣmaṇa and another seven at Hanumān, wounding the monkey. Lakṣmaṇa loosed such a formidable rain of arrows that Indrajit’s golden armour was shattered and fell to the floor of the chariot like a cluster of stars. Bereft of his armour, Indrajit’s body was covered with arrow wounds and seemed like a mountain with trees growing out of it. Indrajit used a thousand arrows to destroy Lakṣmaṇa’s armour and the warriors pursued each other relentlessly, their bodies a mass of bloody wounds.

  They fought for hours, neither gaining the upper hand. They used every weapon at their command and sometimes their arrows would lock in combat in mid-air while thousands of others splintered each other before they reached the ground. Bent on destroying one another, Indrajit and Lakṣmaṇa went on and on with their fight, showing no signs of fatigue. Their bodies were drenched with blood and covered with arrows, making them resemble tongues of flame.

  Indrajit’s charioteer and horses had been killed by enthusiastic monkeys who jumped into the fray to help Lakṣmaṇa. The other monkeys and the rākṣasas continued their own battle, inflicting as much damage as they could upon each other, but they took care to see that they were never too far from their commanders.