The apes saw him and roared. On seeing them, he also roared back in delight. Hearing the roars that they let out, the residents of Lanka roared in even more terrible voices. The great-souled one descended on that excellent mountain,279 amidst the soldiers of the apes. He lowered his head down and greeted the best among the apes and embraced Vibhishana. The two human princes inhaled the fragrance of the great herbs and were freed from all their wounds. The brave apes also stood up. The ape who was the son of the bearer of fragrances used his fierce valour to carry back the mountain with herbs.280 Using his force, he returned again to Rama.
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Sugriva, the immensely energetic lord of the apes, addressed the immensely strong Hanumat, indicating the subsequent course of action. ‘Kumbhakarna and the four princes have been killed. Therefore, it is not possible for Ravana to undertake any action now. There are apes who are extremely strong and dexterous. Let those bulls among apes swiftly take torches and attack Lanka.’
The sun had set and it was the start of a terrible night. The bulls among apes headed for Lanka, with torches in their hands. With torches in their hands, large numbers of apes attacked it from all sides. The guards, with malformed eyes, suddenly ran away. Cheerfully, they set fire to the turrets, floors of mansions, many roads and palaces. The fire burnt down and consumed thousands of houses and all the residences of rakshasas, who loved their homes. There was armour decorated with gold and vessels full of garlands and garments. Because they had been drinking, their eyes were unsteady and they lurched as they walked. Their garments were entwined with those of their lovers, though they were filled with intolerance because of the enemy. They had maces and spears in their hands, but they were eating and drinking. With their beloveds, they were lying down on extremely expensive beds. They swiftly grabbed their sons and fled in different directions. Thousands of houses of the residents of Lanka were burnt by the fire and blazed repeatedly. There were extremely firm and extremely expensive houses, with deep qualities. They were made out of gold, in shapes of the moon and the half-moon. They were excellent and with many floors, shining like the moon. There were colourful windows and couches everywhere. Decorated with jewels and coral, they seemed to touch the sun. There was the sound of herons and peacocks and the jingling of ornaments. Those houses that were like mountains were burnt by the fire. Surrounded by the fire, the turrets looked like masses of clouds tinged by lightning, when summer is over. Beautiful women who were asleep in mansions were burnt. Throwing aside all their ornaments, they lamented, ‘Alas!’ Surrounded by the fire, the houses fell down. They were like the shattered summits of mountains, struck by the vajra of the wielder of the vajra. From a distance, as they were burnt, the houses resembled the summits of the Himalayas, blazing with groves of herbs. The tops of the mansions were burnt and blazed, engulfed in flames. In the night, Lanka seemed to be full of flowering kimshukas. The keepers of elephants set the elephants free. The keepers of horses set the horses free. Lanka was like the turbulent ocean at the time of the end of the worlds. On seeing a freed horse, an elephant was scared and retreated. On seeing a frightened elephant, a horse was scared and retreated. In a short while, the city was burnt by the apes. It seemed as if the earth was ablaze at the time of the terrible destruction of the worlds. From ten yojanas away, one could hear the sounds of the women screaming, as they were burnt and scorched and enveloped in smoke.
With their bodies burnt by the fire, the enemy rakshasas emerged. Desiring to fight, the apes attacked them violently. The sound emitted by the apes and the rakshasas resounded in the ten directions, the ocean and the earth. The great-souled Rama and Lakshmana had been freed of their wounds. With excellent bows in their hands, they fearlessly advanced. Rama twanged his excellent bow and this created a tumultuous sound that caused fear to the rakshasas. Stretching his giant bow, Rama was as radiant as the illustrious and enraged Bhava,281 stretching a bow made out of the Vedas. The sound created by the apes, the roar of the rakshasas and the sound of Rama twanging his bow —these three pervaded the ten directions. Because of the arrows released from his bow, the main turrent of the city, resembling Kailasa’s peak, was shattered and fell down on the ground. On witnessing Rama’s arrows, in mansions and houses, the Indras among the rakshasas armoured themselves and created a tumult. As they prepared for battle, they roared like lions. To the Indras among the rakshasas, that night was terrible. The great-souled Sugriva, Indra among the apes, commanded, ‘O apes! Approach the gates and fight. If someone is present there, but acts in a contrary way, he will slight the command of the king and should be killed.’
The foremost among the apes held blazing torches in their hands and were stationed at the gates. Ravana was filled with intolerance. The ten directions were agitated because of his yawning and stomping around. He was seen to resemble Rudra, with rage permeating his body. Angry, with many rakshasas, he sent Kumbha and Nikumbha, the two sons of Kumbhakarna. The lord of the rakshasas commanded all the rakshasas, ‘O rakshasas! Roar like lions and advance.’ Thus urged, the brave rakshasas emerged from Lanka, with blazing weapons and roaring repeatedly. There were terrible horses, chariots and elephants, with innumerable foot soldiers. They had blazing spears, clubs, swords, javelins, spikes and bows. That army of rakshasas was terrible and was filled with terrible valour and manliness. There were nets of golden armour on the arms and they brandished battleaxes. They whirled around great weapons and affixed arrows to their bows. The air was filled with the intoxicating scent of perfumes, garlands and liquor. With so many terrible and brave ones, the roar resembled that of a thundering cloud.
On seeing the invincible army of the rakshasas advance, the army of the apes stirred itself and roared. The army of the rakshasas also attacked the army of the enemy with great force, like insects heading towards a fire. There were iron clubs in their hands and bludgeons in their fists. That excellent army of the rakshasas was supremely radiant. The roamers in the night were terrible in form and their brave warriors used swords and sharp arrows to sever the heads of the enemy apes. A warrior who was striking someone else was killed.282 A warrior who was bringing someone else down was brought down. A warrior who was censuring someone else was censured. A warrior who was biting someone else was bitten. Some said, ‘Strike me.’ Others said, ‘You are being struck.’ Someone else said, ‘I will strike you.’ Someone spoke to another and said, ‘Why are you suffering this hardship by remaining here?’ They raised giant spears, javelins, swords and fists. There was a great and tumultuous battle between the apes and the rakshasas. In the battle, the rakshasas killed apes in tens and sevens. The apes brought down rakshasas in tens and sevens. Hair and garments were dishevelled. Armour and standards were cast aside. The apes attacked and surrounded the army of the rakshasas.
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There was a tumultuous battle that led to the slaughter of brave warriors. Desiring to fight, Angada approached the brave Kampana. Challenging Angada, the angry Kampana first struck him with the great force of a club. Severely struck, he reeled. When he regained his senses, the energetic one hurled the summit of a mountain. Afflicted by the blow, Kampana fell down on the ground. With the brave ones killed, the army of the Indra among the rakshasas was distressed. It retreated towards the spot where Kumbhakarna’s son283 was. Kumbha reassured the army and attacked with force. Controlling himself, the supreme among archers seized his bow. He shot excellent arrows that were like virulent serpents, capable of tearing the body apart. With excellent arrows affixed, his excellent bow was like a second bow of Indra, tinged with lightning, astride the radiant Airavata.284
He drew his bow all the way back to his ears and using an arrow with a golden shaft, tufted with the feathers of birds, struck Dvivida. The excellent ape possessed the complexion of the summit of Trikuta. However, suddenly struck, his feet tottered. He was agitated and fell down, writhing. Mainda saw that his brother had been routed in the great encounter. He seized a giant boulder and attacked with force. The immensely strong one
flung the boulder towards the rakshasas. However, Kumbha shattered the boulder with five sparkling arrows. He affixed another arrow with an excellent tip, resembling a virulent serpent. The immensely energetic one struck Dvivida’s elder brother in the chest. The blow pierced Mainda, the leader of the apes, in his inner organs. Senseless, he fell down on the ground. Angada saw that his immensely strong maternal uncles had been brought down. He attacked Kumbha, who had his bow upraised, with force. As he descended, Kumbha pierced him with five iron arrows and three other sharp arrows, the way one strikes an elephant with a goad. Kumbha pierced the valiant Angada with many kinds of arrows, which were extremely sharp, pointed and keen, decorated with gold. Though he was pierced in his limbs, Angada, Vali’s son, did not tremble. He rained down showers of boulders and trees on his head. Kumbhakarna’s son sliced down all of them and all the boulders hurled by Vali’s handsome son. Seeing that the leader of the apes was descending on him, Kumbha pierced him between the eyebrows with arrows, the way one strikes an elephant with a flaming torch. He was covered with blood, flowing from his eyes. Angada covered these with one hand and used the other hand to seize a sala tree. That tree was like Indra’s standard, like Mandara. While all the rakshasas looked on, he hurled it with force. However, he shot it down with seven arrows that were capable of mangling the body. On seeing this, Angada was distressed. He lost his senses and sank down. The invincible Angada was distressed, as if he was submerged in an ocean. Witnessing this, the best among the apes went and informed Raghava.
Hearing that Vali’s son was suffering in the great battle, Rama commanded the best among the apes, with Jambavat at the forefront. The tigers among the apes heard Rama’s command. Extremely enraged, they attacked Kumbha, who was brandishing his bow. Their eyes red with rage, they held trees and boulders in their hands. The bulls among the apes desired to protect Angada. Jambavat and the apes Sushena and Vegadarshi angrily attacked Kumbhakarna’s brave son. Seeing those extremely strong apes advance, he countered them with torrents of arrows, the way one dams a store of water with rocks. The great-souled Indras among the apes were unable to breach his storm of arrows, just as the great ocean cannot cross the shoreline. The large number of apes were afflicted by these arrows. On seeing this, the lord of the apes kept his brother’s son, Angada, in the background. In the battle, Sugriva attacked Kumbha with force, just as a powerful lion attacks an elephant that is roaming around on the slope of a mountain. He uprooted giant boulders and many ashvakarna and dhava trees. The immensely strong one hurled many other trees. Kumbhakarna’s invincible son used his sharp arrows to sever that invincible downpour of trees that enveloped the sky. Kumbha aimed his fierce and sharp arrows at these trees. Shattered by them, they were as radiant as terrible shataghnis. That shower of trees was severed by the valiant Kumbha. On seeing this, the handsome and great-spirited lord of the apes was not distressed. Though he was himself pierced by those arrows, he tolerated it. He violently seized Kumbha’s bow, which was as resplendent as Indra’s bow, and broke it. He swiftly attacked and performed this extremely difficult deed. Kumbha was like an elephant with its tusks broken and he angrily spoke to him. ‘O Nikumbha’s elder brother! Your valour and the force of your arrows are extraordinary. Both you and Ravana possess good intentions285 and powers. You are the equal of Prahlada, Bali, Vritra’s destroyer,286 Kubera and Varuna. You have been born in the likeness of your father, who was supreme in strength. O mighty-armed one! O slayer of enemies! If you wield the spear in your hand, the gods cannot cross you, just as someone who has conquered his senses cannot be agitated. Because of the boon he received, your paternal uncle287 can withstand the gods and the danavas. However, Kumbhakarna could withstand the gods and the asuras because of his valour. You are Indrajit’s equal in the wielding of the bow and Ravana’s equal in powers. Because of your strength and valour, you are now the best in the world of the rakshasas. Today, let all the creatures witness the great and extraordinary encounter between you and me, like that between Shakra and Shambara. You have performed unmatched tasks and have shown your skill in the use of weapons. You have brought down brave apes who were terrible in their valour. O brave one! If I do not kill you, I am scared of being censured. However, you are exhausted because of what you have done. Rest and then behold my strength.’ Sugriva’s words sounded like respect, but actually indicated disrespect. Like oblations rendered into a fire, they served to enhance his energy. Kumbha leapt up and attacked Sugriva. He angrily struck him on the chest with a fist that had the force of the vajra. His skin was splintered and blood started to flow out. With the great force of his fist, he struck him again on the chest. It was as if the blazing vajra had struck Mount Meru. However, the force of the blow ignited his energy again. Thus struck, the immensely strong Sugriva, bull among apes, countered with his own fist, which was like the vajra. His fist was as radiant as the solar disc, emitting one thousand rays. He brought that clenched fist down on the valiant Kumbha’s chest. Struck by the fist, the rakshasa swiftly fell down. His limbs were red,288 like the sky when its radiance has dissipated. Kumbha fell down, his chest shattered by the fist. His form was like that of the earth when it is afflicted by Rudra. He was terrible in his valour, but was killed in the battle by the bull among the apes. The earth, with its mountains and forests, trembled. The rakshasas were filled with greater fear.
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Nikumbha saw that his brother had been brought down by Sugriva. He glanced at the Indra among the apes, as if he would burn him down in rage. The brave one grasped his club, which was like the peak of an excellent mountain. It was auspicious, decorated and plated and was five fingers in width. It was bound in a golden piece of cloth and studded with diamonds and rubies. It was as terrible as Yama’s staff and dispelled the fear of the rakshasas. It was like Shakra’s standard. In the battle, the immensely energetic Nikumbha, terrible in his valour, seized it and opening his mouth wide, roared. There was golden armour on his chest and armlets on his arms. He was adorned with earrings and decorated with a colourful garland. Because of the radiance of his ornaments and his club, Nikumbha was as resplendent as a cloud, tinged with lightning and a radiant rainbow. The tip of his club thundered like the gust of a storm. It blazed and roared, like a fire without smoke. As the great-souled one whirled his club, it was as if the city with the excellent residences of the gandharvas289 was whirled around, or Amaravati with all its residences was whirled around. As Nikumbha whirled his club around, it was as if the firmament, with the stars, the planets, the nakshatras, the moon and the giant planets, was also whirled around. As he dazzled and whirled his club around, he became impossible to approach. Nikumbha was blind with rage, like the fire of destruction that arises at the end of a yuga. Because of their fear, the rakshasas and the apes were incapable of moving. However, with his chest bared, the strong Hanumat stood in front of him. His290 arms were like clubs and his shining club dazzled. The strong one used his strength to bring it down on his chest. The club struck his steady and broad chest and shattered into one hundred fragments. Shattered, it fell down, like hundreds of meteors dislodged from the sky. Struck by the blow of the club, the great ape wavered a little. But he was like a mountain during an earthquake. Struck in this way, Hanumat, supreme among apes and immensely strong, used his strength to clench his fist. The immensely energetic one, like Vayu in valour, raised it and with force and strength, brought it down on the valiant Nikumbha’s chest. At this, his skin splintered and blood started to flow. The fist seemed to blaze, like lightning in the sky. Nikumbha trembled because of the blow. However, he recovered and seized the immensely strong Hanumat. In that terrible battle, seeing that Nikumbha had raised the immensely strong Hanumat, the residents of Lanka roared. The son of the wind god was being carried off by Kumbhakarna’s son. But he struck him with a fist that possessed the force of the vajra. Hanumat, the son of the wind god, quickly freed himself and flung Nikumbha down on the ground. Making great efforts, he flung Nikumbha down and crushed him. He flung him dow
n with force and leapt on to the valiant one’s chest. He seized him with his arms and twisted his head around. He tore off his head and emitted a loud and terrible roar. Suffering, Nikumbha roared in the encounter with the son of the wind god. An extremely terrible battle commenced between Dasharatha’s son and the army of the Indra among the rakshasas and it was devastating.
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Hearing that Nikumbha had been killed and Kumbha brought down, Ravana was greatly enraged and blazed like a fire. Because of both anger and sorrow, the nairitta became senseless. He commanded the large-eyed Makaraksha, Khara’s son. ‘O son! I am instructing you. Take an army with you and go. Slay Raghava and Lakshmana, together with the residents of the forest.’ Hearing Ravana’s words, Makaraksha, the roamer in the night who was Khara’s son, prided himself on his bravery and signified his assent. He greeted Dashagriva and circumambulated him. Obeying Ravana’s instructions, the strong one emerged from the auspicious house. The commander of the army was near him and Khara’s son addressed him in these words. ‘Swiftly bring a chariot and quickly summon the soldiers.’ Hearing his words, the roamer in the night who was the commander of the army brought and presented the chariot and the army. The roamer in the night291 circumambulated the chariot and ascended it. He instructed the charioteer to quickly drive the chariot away. Makaraksha spoke to all the rakshasas. ‘O rakshasas! All of you remain in front of me and fight. The great-souled Ravana, the king of the rakshasas, has commanded me to kill Rama and Lakshmana in the battle. O roamers in the night! I will slay Rama and Lakshmana with my excellent arrows today and also the ape Sugriva and the other apes. Today, I will use my spear to bring down the large army of the apes. I will burn down those who approach, like a fire consuming dry kindling.’ Hearing Makaraksha’s words, the strong roamers in the night controlled themselves and armed themselves with many kinds of weapons. They were cruel and could assume any form at will. They were tawny eyed and armoured. They roared like elephants. With their dishevelled hair, they were fearful. Gigantic in form, they surrounded Khara’s son, who was huge in size. They cheerfully attacked and made the earth tremble. Thousands of conch shells and drums were sounded in every direction. A great sound of beating and clapping arose.
The Valmiki Ramayana Page 109