Rama said, ‘It is through your favours that we have been able to overcome the great calamity caused through the powers of Ravana’s son. We have swiftly become strong. My heart is as pleased at meeting you as with meeting my father Dasharatha and my grandfather, Aja. O handsome one! Who are you, adorned with divine garlands and pastes? Your garments sparkle and you are adorned with divine ornaments.’
The immensely radiant and immensely strong king of the birds was pleased in his heart. With delight in his eyes, Vinata’s son replied, ‘O Kakutstha! I am your friend, as loved by you outside your body as your breath of life is inside. I am Garuda and I have come here to help the two of you. The asuras are immensely valiant and the danavas are immensely strong. But they, and all the gods and gandharvas, even if they placed Shatakratu at the forefront, were incapable of freeing you from this extremely terrible bondage of arrows fashioned through the strength of maya by Indrajit, cruel in deeds. These nagas are Kadru’s offspring. Their fangs are sharp and filled with virulent poison. Because of the strength of maya of the rakshasa, they assumed this form of arrows. O one who knows about dharma! O Rama! O one who has truth as his valour! With your brother, Lakshmana, the slayer of enemies in the battle, you are fortunate. Having heard what happened, out of affection for the two of you and observing my friendship, I quickly came here. The two of you have now been freed from the extremely terrible bondage of arrows. However, you must always remain vigilant. In all encounters, the rakshasas naturally fight in deceitful ways. But for brave ones like you, pure in sentiments, uprightness constitutes your strength. In the field of battle, you must never trust the rakshasas. He is an example to show that the rakshasas are always deceitful.’ Having told Rama this, the extremely strong Suparna affectionately embraced him and prepared to leave. ‘O friend! O Raghava! O one who knows about dharma! O one who is affectionate even towards his enemies! I desire your leave, to return where I came from. With arrows that are like waves, you will only leave the young and the aged in Lanka, killing your enemy, Ravana. You will get Sita back.’ Having said this, Suparna, swift in his valour, removed the wounds from Rama. In the midst of those residents of the forest, he circumambulated and embraced the valiant one. Like the wind, Suparna then penetrated the sky.
The leaders of the apes saw that the wounds on the two Raghavas had healed. They roared like lions and lashed their tails. Kettledrums and drums were sounded. Delighted, they blew on conch shells. As was the case earlier, they started to jump around. Some brave apes, who fought with trees, boasted. Hundreds and thousands of them uprooted trees and stood there. They emitted loud roars and scared the roamers in the night. Desiring to fight, the apes assembled before Lanka’s gates. A terrible and tumultuous roar arose among the herds of apes, like the extremely terrible roar of the clouds in the night, when summer is over.
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The spirited apes created an extremely tumultuous sound. Ravana, together with the rakshasas, heard the sounds of their roaring. They heard that terrible, deep and rumbling sound. In the midst of his advisers, he spoke these words. ‘It is evident that the apes are delighted. An extremely loud roar, like the thunder of the clouds, has arisen amidst them. There is no doubt that there is a reason for their great joy. That is the reason this loud roar is agitating Varuna’s abode. The two brothers, Rama and Lakshmana, were bound down with sharp arrows. Because of this extremely loud roar, a doubt has arisen in me.’ Having said this to his ministers, the lord of the rakshasas spoke to the nairittas who were near him. ‘Go and quickly find out everything about the roamers in the forest. At this time of grieving, how has a reason for delight arisen?’ Thus addressed, they swiftly climbed up the ramparts and saw the army protected by the great-souled Sugriva. They saw that the two Raghavas had been freed from the extremely terrible bondage of arrows and that the two immensely fortunate ones had got up. The rakshasas were distressed. With their hearts full of fear, they descended from the ramparts. With pale faces, all of them presented themselves before the Indra among the rakshasas. With distress in their faces, the roamers in the night, accomplished in the use of words, told Ravana everything about that disagreeable and unpleasant news. ‘In the battle, Indrajit had bound down the two brothers, Rama and Lakshmana, in bonds of arrows and had disabled their arms. They can be seen in the field of battle, freed from the bondage of arrows. In their valour, they are like Indras among elephants and, like elephants, have severed their bonds.’
Hearing their words, the immensely strong Indra among the rakshasas was overcome by thoughts and sorrow. With a distressed face, he said, ‘Indrajit was granted a terrible boon and tied them down with arrows, invincible and like the sun, in the form of virulent serpents. He crushed them in the encounter. Despite the bondage of that weapon, if my enemies have freed themselves, I can see a great danger presenting itself before all my soldiers. They were shrouded in arrows that possessed Vasuki’s energy. However, that has been rendered unsuccessful. Despite having faced that in the battle, my enemies are still alive.’ Having said this, he sighed like an enraged serpent. In the midst of the rakshasas, he spoke to the rakshasa named Dhumraksha. This rakshasa was filled with great strength and was terrible in his deeds. ‘Leave and kill Rama and the apes.’ Thus addressed by the intelligent Indra among the rakshasas, Dhumraksha prostrated himself. Delighted, he emerged from the king’s residence.
Emerging through the gate, he told the commander of the forces, ‘Ask the forces to hurry. Why delay in fighting?’ Following Ravana’s command and hearing Dhumraksha’s words, the commander of the forces told the soldiers who followed him to quickly ready the army. Those roamers in the night were terrible in form and bells were tied to their bodies. They roared happily and surrounded Dhumraksha. They wielded many kinds of weapons in their hands. There were spears and clubs in their hands. There were bludgeons, lances, staffs and extremely terrible iron maces. There were clubs, bhindipalas,149 javelins, spikes and battleaxes. The terrible rakshasas emerged, roaring like clouds. Some were on chariots. Others carried decorated standards and readied nets made out of gold. These150 were yoked to mules with many kinds of faces, extremely swift steeds and excellent elephants that were crazy and excited. As unassailable as tigers, the tigers among rakshasas emerged. Dhumraksha ascended a divine chariot that roared like a mule. It was decorated with gold and yoked to mules that had faces like wolves and lions. Surrounded by rakshasas, the immensely valorous Dhumraksha emerged laughingly through the western gate, where Hanumat, the leader of the herd, was stationed.
The extremely terrible rakshasa left and he was terrible to behold. From the sky, terrible birds tried to restrain him.151 An extremely terrible vulture descended on the top of his chariot and seated itself on the top of his flag. Others that fed on corpses also descended. A giant torso, wet with blood, fell down on the ground near Dhumraksha and emitted a harsh roar. A god showered down blood and the earth trembled. The wind blew in a contrary direction, with a sound like that of a storm. The directions were enveloped in waves of darkness and could not be discerned. The rakshasas saw these ominous signs, the harbingers of fear. These extremely terrible portents manifested themselves and Dhumraksha was distressed. However, the strong one was eager to fight and emerged. He was surrounded by many extremely terrible roamers in the night. He saw the army of several apes. It was like the ocean and was protected by Raghava’s arms.
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With a terrible roar, the rakshasa Dhumraksha emerged. All the apes desired to fight. On seeing this, they were delighted and roared. A terrible fight ensued between the apes and the rakshasas. They fought against each other and slew each other with terrible trees and spears and clubs. In every direction, the apes were struck down by the terrible rakshasas. Using trees, the apes also felled the rakshasas down on the ground. Enraged, the rakshasas pierced the apes with sharp and terrible arrows that were shafted with the feathers of herons. They used clubs, terrible spears, heavy bludgeons, terrible maces and colourful tridents. The immensely str
ong apes also routed the rakshasas. They were excited because of their intolerance and fearlessly performed these deeds. Their bodies were mangled by arrows. Their bodies were struck by spears. However, the leaders among the apes seized trees and boulders. Terrible in their force, the apes roared here and there. They announced their names and crushed the terrible rakshasas. An extraordinary and terrible battle ensued between the apes and the rakshasas. Many boulders and trees with many branches were used. Some rakshasas were crushed by apes who wished for victory. Some who subsisted on blood152 vomited blood from their mouths. Some were struck along the flanks. There were piles of those who had been struck by trees. Some were shattered with boulders and some were torn apart with teeth. Standards were crushed and shattered. Mules were brought down. Chariots were fragmented. The roamers in the night were brought down. The apes, terrible in their valour, repeatedly flung themselves on the rakshasas, tearing their faces apart with the sharp nails on their hands. Their faces turned pale, their hair was torn out.153 Senseless because of the smell of blood, they fell down on the ground. This made the rakshasas, terrible in their valour, extremely angry. In the battle, they rushed against the apes with palms that possessed the touch of the vajra. When they were attacked with force, the apes retaliated with greater force. They brought the enemy down with fists, feet, teeth and trees.
Dhumraksha, bull among the rakshasas, saw that the soldiers were being made to flee. In his anger, he fought and created carnage among the apes. Some were crushed with lances, other apes began to ooze out blood. Some others were struck with clubs and fell down on the ground. Some were struck with maces, others shattered with bhindipalas. Others were struck with spears and, senseless, lost their lives. Some residents of the forest were killed and, wet with blood, fell down on the ground. Some were driven away and destroyed, as the angry rakshasas fought. The hearts of some were shattered and they lay down on one side. Some were struck with tridents and their entrails came out. That encounter between the apes and the rakshasas was great and extremely terrible. Many kinds of weapons were used and so were boulders and trees. There was the sweet sound of bowstrings being twanged. Other sounds seemed to possess a rhythm. It was as if a song was gently being sung by the gandharvas. In the field of battle, Dhumraksha laughed. With a bow in his hand, he drove away the apes in all the directions, showering arrows over them. Maruti saw that the soldiers were distressed and afflicted because of Dhumraksha. He seized a gigantic boulder and angrily attacked. His eyes were coppery red. He was like his father in valour and his anger doubled the strength. He flung that boulder towards Dhumraksha’s chariot. On seeing that boulder descend, he quickly raised a club, leapt down with great force from the chariot and stood on the ground. Having crushed the chariot, its wheels, kubara,154 horses, standard and the bows, the boulder fell down on the ground. Hanumat, the wind god’s son, destroyed the chariot. He then used trees with trunks and branches to create carnage among the rakshasas. The rakshasas were covered with blood, their heads crushed. Others were mangled by the trees and fell down on the ground. Hanumat, the son of the wind god, drove away the rakshasa soldiers. He seized the summit of a mountain and rushed towards Dhumraksha. As he descended, the valiant Dhumraksha raised his club. Roaring, he violently attacked Hanumat. The club was studded with many spikes. With force and anger, Dhumraksha brought it down on Hanumat’s head. But the ape possessed the strength of the wind god. Though he was struck by a club that was terrible in form, he paid no heed to the blow. Instead, he brought down the summit of the mountain on Dhumraksha’s head. Struck by the summit of the mountain, all his limbs were shattered. He suddenly fell down on the ground, like a mountain that has been fragmented. Seeing that Dhumraksha had been killed, the remaining roamers in the night were frightened. Slain by the apes, they entered Lanka. The son of the wind god killed the enemy. From their wounds, a river of blood started to flow. Exhausted from having slain the enemy, the great-souled one was delighted and was worshipped by the apes.
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Ravana, the lord of the rakshasas, heard that Dhumraksha had been killed. The commander of the forces was present there, his hands joined in salutation. He told him, ‘Let invincible rakshasas, terrible in their valour, quickly emerge. Let them place Akampana, skilled in the use of all weapons, at the forefront.’
Terrible in appearance, with horrible eyes, the best among rakshasas seized many kinds of weapons. Urged by the commander of the forces, they attacked. Akampana left, surrounded by terrible rakshasas. He was astride a large chariot that had the complexion of a cloud and made a loud clatter, like the rumbling of a cloud. He himself possessed the complexion of a cloud and was adorned with ornaments made out of molten gold. In a great battle, even the gods were incapable of making him quake. Among the others, Akampana’s energy was like that of the sun. He rushed forward angrily, wishing to fight. But suddenly, the horses that bore his chariot along seemed to be struck with lassitude.155 Though he took joy in fighting, his left eye started to twitch. The complexion of his face paled and his voice became tremulous. Though it was an excellent day, it turned into a bad day and a harsh wind started to blow. All the animals and birds shrieked in cruel tones and this signified fear. However, his shoulders were like those of a lion and he was like a tiger in his valour. Without thinking about these omens, he rushed forward into the field of battle. As the rakshasa emerged with the other rakshasas, there was an extremely loud roar that seemed to agitate the ocean. The large army of the apes was terrified by this sound. With trees and boulders as weapons, they stationed themselves for the battle. An extremely fierce battle ensued between the apes and the rakshasas. For the sake of Rama and Ravana, they were ready to give up their lives. All of them were extremely strong and brave. All of them were like mountains. The apes and the rakshasas desired to slay each other. There was the sound of those extremely spirited ones roaring as they clashed. One could hear them roaring at each other in great rage. As the apes and the rakshasas fought, an extremely terrible dust that was red in hue arose and spread in the ten directions. Like a white silken garment waving in the wind, this dust covered all creatures and they could no longer distinguish each other on the field of battle. Because of the dust, standards, flags, armour, horses, weapons and chariots could not be seen. There was only the extremely loud and tumultuous sound of roaring and clashing. This could be heard in the battle, but nothing could be seen. Exceedingly angry, apes killed other apes in the battle. Because of the darkness, rakshasas also killed other rakshasas. The apes and the rakshasas killed the enemy and also those from their own side. Wet with blood, the earth smeared itself with mire. The dust was sprinkled with waves of blood and settled down. The earth was seen to be strewn with dead bodies. The energetic apes and rakshasas quickly struck each other with trees, spears, boulders, lances, clubs, bludgeons and javelins. The apes were like mountains and terrible in their deeds. With arms like clubs, they fought against the rakshasas and killed them in the battle. The rakshasas were also angry and had spears and javelins in their hands. With those extremely terrible weapons, they slew the apes who were there. The apes used large trees and large rocks to attack and rout the rakshasas, using their valour to counter those weapons.
At this time, the brave apes, Kumuda, Nala and Mainda became supremely angry and displayed excellent force. In the field of battle, those extremely swift leaders among the herds of apes seemed to be sporting as they created great carnage, using trees against the rakshasas.
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Witnessing the extremely great deeds performed by those excellent apes in the battle, Akampana was filled with fierce rage. His form became senseless with rage and he seized his supreme bow. Witnessing the deeds performed by the enemy, he addressed his charioteer in these words. ‘O charioteer! Quickly drive the chariot there, where a large number of rakshasas are being slain in the battle. The strong apes, terrible in form, are there. With trees and boulders as weapons, they will stand before me there. They pride themselves on fighting and I wi
sh to slay them. It can be seen that they are crushing all the rakshasa soldiers.’ The chariot of the supreme among warriors was drawn by swift horses. In his anger, Akampana attacked the apes and enveloped them in nets of arrows. The apes were incapable of standing there, not to speak of fighting in the battle. They were routed by Akampana’s arrows and all of them ran away.
The immensely strong Hanumat saw that his relatives had come under the subjugation of death and were being subdued by Akampana. He attacked and all the leaders among the apes saw that great ape. All those brave apes assembled in the battle and surrounded him. The leaders among the apes saw that Hanumat was stationed there. Because he was strong, the strong ones also sought succour in him. Hanumat was stationed there, with a complexion like that of a mountain. Akampana showered down arrows on him, like the great Indra pouring down rain. Torrents of sharp arrows descended on his body, but he paid no heed to them. The immensely strong one had made up his mind to slay Akampana. The immensely energetic Hanumat, the son of the wind god, laughed. He made the earth quake and attacked the rakshasa. He roared and blazed in his energy. His invincible and radiant form was like that of the fire. The bull among the apes knew that he possessed no weapons. Filled with anger, he used his force to uproot a mountain. Maruti seized that great mountain in one of his hands. The valiant one emitted an extremely loud roar and whirled it around. With that, he attacked Akampana, Indra among the rakshasas, the way Purandara had used his vajra to attack Namuchi in a battle. Akampana saw that the summit of the mountain had been raised up. From a distance, he used arrows that were in the shape of a half-crescent to shatter it. In the sky, the summit of the mountain was shattered by the rakshasa’s arrows and, fragmented, fell down. On seeing this, Hanumat became senseless with rage. Full of anger and intolerance, the ape approached an ashvakarna tree. He swiftly uprooted it and like a great mountain, held it up. The immensely radiant one seized the ashvakarna tree, which possessed a gigantic trunk. Greatly happy, he seized it and whirled it around in the battle. Full of great rage, he rushed forward with it. The trees were quickly shattered from the force of his thighs. The earth was shattered from the force of his footsteps. Elephants climbed atop elephants and chariots atop chariots. The intelligent Hanumat slew rakshasa foot soldiers with this. In the battle, he was as angry as Death and destroyed lives. Hanumat saw that the rakshasas were running away. He descended angrily and caused fear to the rakshasas.
The Valmiki Ramayana Page 100