The Valmiki Ramayana

by Amish Tripathi

  Chapter 6(78)

  With his horses slain, the immensely energetic roamer in the night was stationed on the ground. Indrajit became extremely angry and blazed in his energy. Those two archers wished to kill each other and shot fierce arrows. They were like two bull elephants in the forest, emerging in search of victory over each other. The rakshasas and the residents of the forest devastated each other. Here and there, they attacked each other, but did not forsake their masters in the battle. He resorted to his great dexterity and aiming towards Lakshmana, showered down arrows, like Purandara showering down rain. Indrajit shot these showers of arrows that were extremely difficult to repulse. However, Lakshmana, the slayer of enemies, fearlessly countered them. Ravana’s son formed the view that Lakshmana was clad in impenetrable armour. Extremely angry, and displaying his dexterity in using weapons, Indrajit therefore pierced Lakshmana in the forehead with three well-tufted arrows. With those arrows adhering to his forehead, the descendant of the Raghu lineage was resplendent. He took pride in fighting and in the forefront of the battle, he looked like a mountain with three peaks. In the great battle, he was afflicted by the rakshasa’s arrows. Swiftly, Lakshmana struck him back with five arrows. Lakshmana and Indrajit were brave and possessed extremely strong bows. Terrible in their valour, they struck each other with sharp arrows. Those two archers clashed against each other, and desiring victory over each other, pierced each other’s bodies with arrows everywhere.

  Vibhishana became extremely angry and killed his horses.321 He struck him in the chest with five arrows that were like the vajra to the touch. Those gold-tufted arrows reached their target and penetrated his body. They were smeared with blood and looked like giant red serpents. The immensely strong Indrajit became angry with his paternal uncle and attacked him in the midst of the excellent rakshasas, using an arrow given by Yama. The immensely energetic Lakshmana saw that he had picked up that great arrow and, terrible in his valour, picked up another arrow. In a dream, Kubera, immeasurable in his soul, had himself given him this. It was impossible to vanquish and impossible to withstand, even for Indra, the gods and the asuras. At the same time, those two excellent arrows were affixed to the excellent bows. As those two brave ones stretched them, they blazed in their great radiance. As those two arrows were released from their bows, they illuminated the sky. With great energy, the points struck each other and fell down. They crashed against each other like giant planets and fell down. In the battle, they shattered into a hundred fragments and fell down on the ground. Both of them saw that their arrows had been repulsed in the field of battle. Both Lakshmana and Indrajit were ashamed, but anger was generated in them. Angry, Soumitri affixed Varuna’s weapon. In the battle, Indrajit stationed himself and released Rudra’s great weapon. There was an extremely tumultuous and wonderful clash. The beings who were in the firmament surrounded Lakshmana. A fearful and terrible engagement continued between the apes and the rakshasas. The many beings who were in the sky were astounded and gathered around. In the battle, the rishis, the ancestors, the gods, the gandharvas, Garuda and the serpents, with Shatakratu at the forefront, protected Lakshmana.

  Raghava’s brave younger brother affixed another excellent arrow that was like fire to the touch and would prove to be extremely terrible for Ravana’s son. It was well tufted, with a rounded frame and excellent joints. It had been crafted well. The arrow was decorated with gold and would bring an end to the body. It was impossible to counter and impossible to withstand. It caused great fear to rakshasas. It was excellent, like venomous poison. It was worshipped in assemblies of the gods. In ancient times, in the battle between the gods and the asuras, the immensely energetic lord Shakra, borne by tawny steeds, had used this for victory over the danavas. In the battle, Soumitri invoked the unvanquished aindrastra. The best among men affixed this excellent arrow to the excellent bow. He affixed the arrow that could crush the enemy to the bow. The invincible one readied himself, like the Destroyer at the time of the destruction of the worlds. Lakshmana possessed the auspicious qualities. He affixed it to his excellent bow, drew it back and spoke meaningful words that were meant to accomplish his objective. ‘If Rama has dharma in his soul, if he is devoted to the truth, if he is Dasharatha’s son and if he is unmatched in his manliness, then slay Ravana’s son.’322 In the battle, the brave Lakshmana drew the bow all the way back up to his ear and released the arrow towards Indrajit. Lakshmana, the slayer of enemy heroes, invoked aindrastra. Indrajit’s handsome head was clad in a helmet and was adorned with earrings. The head was severed from the body and fell down on the ground. The rakshasa’s giant head was severed from his shoulders. It was seen on the ground, shining like gold and covered in blood. Slain, Ravana’s son swiftly fell down on the ground. His armour and helmet were shattered and his bow was fragmented.

  With Vibhishana, all the apes roared in joy at his death, just as the gods had when Vritra had been killed. In the firmament, the gods, the great-souled rishis and the gandharvas and the apsaras pronounced chants of victory. The large army of the rakshasas saw that he had fallen down. They were slaughtered by the apes who desired victory and fled in different directions. The rakshasas were slaughtered by the apes and cast aside their weapons. Deprived of their senses, all of them rushed towards Lanka. Terrified, many hundreds of rakshasas fled in different directions. All of them abandoned their weapons, the spears and the battleaxes. Afflicted by the apes, some were frightened and entered Lanka. Some fell down in the ocean and some sought refuge in the mountain. They saw that Indrajit was lying down, having been killed in the battle. Among the thousands of rakshasas, none could be seen. When the sun sets, its rays no longer remain. Like that, when he fell down, the rakshasas set in different directions. The rays of the sun had been pacified. The fire had been put out. The immensely energetic one had departed and his life had set. When the son of the Indra among the rakshasas fell down, many sufferings of the world were pacified and enemies who had been destroyed rejoiced. With the illustrious Shakra, all the bulls among the gods were delighted. The rakshasa, the perpetrator of wicked deeds, had been killed. The sky and the water were purified and the daityas and danavas rejoiced. Someone who had caused fear to all the worlds had fallen down.

  Together, all the gods, the gandharvas and the danavas said, ‘May the brahmanas roam around, devoid of anxiety and with all the sins cleansed.’ The bull among the nairittas was supreme in his strength. On seeing that he had been slain in the battle, the leaders of the apes were delighted and applauded this. Vibhishana, Hanumat and Jambavat, the leader of herds of bears, were delighted at the victory and praised Lakshmana. The bulls among the apes leapt, shouted and roared. With the objective having been attained, they surrounded the descendant of the Raghu lineage. The apes lashed their tails and slapped themselves. They exclaimed, ‘Lakshmana has been victorious.’ Delighted in their minds, the apes embraced each other. They conversed with each other about Raghava’s many qualities. The gods saw and heard that their beloved well-wisher, Lakshmana, had accomplished an extremely difficult task in the battle. They were happy and their minds were filled with great delight, on hearing that Indra’s enemy had been killed.

  Chapter 6(79)

  Lakshmana, the possessor of auspicious qualities, was covered with blood all over his body. But he was delighted at having been able to kill Shakrajit in the battle. The immensely energetic one returned with Jambavat, the valiant Hanumat and all the residents of the forest. Lakshmana leant on Vibhishana and Hanumat and quickly reached the spot where Sugriva and Raghava were. Soumitri greeted Rama and approached him. He drew near his brother, just as Indra’s younger brother323 approaches Shakra. The brave one told him that the terrible Indrajit had been killed. Delighted, Vibhishana informed Rama that the great-souled Lakshmana had severed the head of Ravana’s son. He made him sit down on his lap and embraced the injured one. He inhaled the fragrance of his head and repeatedly touched him. The bull among men spoke these words of assurance to Lakshmana. ‘You have performed a supre
mely beneficial deed, one that is extremely difficult to accomplish. Since Ravana will emerge, I will be freed of my enemies today. On hearing that his son has been brought down, he will come with a large army with battle formations. The lord of the rakshasas will be tormented by grief because his son has been killed and will emerge. He will surround himself with a large army and will be difficult to vanquish. But I will kill him. You have killed Shakrajit in the battle today. O Lakshmana! With you as my protector, and of Sita and this earth, nothing is very difficult for me to obtain.’ Raghava comforted his brother and embraced him.

  Happy, Rama addressed Sushena in these words. ‘O immensely wise one! Soumitri is devoted to his friends and he is suffering from these wounds. Act so that he can be happy and well soon. Act quickly, so that Soumitri and Vibhishana are cured of their wounds. The brave soldiers of the bears and the apes fight with trees. There are others who have fought and are suffering from wounds and stakes. Make all the efforts so that they can be happy and well soon.’ The leader of the apes was thus addressed by the great-souled Rama. Through the nose, Sushena gave Lakshmana a supreme medicine. Once he had inhaled its fragrance, all his wounds were healed. His pain was gone and all his injuries were cured. Following Raghava’s command, he324 also treated Vibhishana, best among the well-wishers, and all the other foremost apes. Soumitri attained his natural state. His wounds were healed and his pain was gone. In a short while, his fever disappeared and he was happy. Rama saw that the lord of the apes, Vibhishana, Jambavat, the lord of the bears, and Soumitri were hale and had got up, freed from injuries. With the soldiers, he rejoiced for a long period of time. Dasharatha’s great-souled son worshipped the extremely difficult task that had been accomplished by Lakshmana. On hearing that Shakrajit had been brought down in the battle, the Indras among the herds rejoiced.

  Chapter 6(80)

  Poulastya’s advisers heard that Indrajit had been killed. Distressed, they went and told Dashagriva the news. ‘O great king! O immensely radiant one! In the battle, your son has been killed by Lakshmana, with Vibhishana’s help, while all of us looked on. When he engaged in fighting, the brave one was invincible in encounters. Indrajit, your brave son, defeated the gods. But he has been slain by Lakshmana.’ Hearing that fearful, dreadful and terrible news about his son’s death in the battle, he lost his senses for a long period of time. After some time, the king, the bull among the rakshasas, regained his senses. He was afflicted by grief on account of his son and miserable. With his senses in a whirl, he lamented. ‘O foremost in the army of the rakshasas! Alas! My child! O maharatha! Having defeated Indra, how could you have come under Lakshmana’s subjugation today? Indeed, when you were angry in a battle, your arrows could have even penetrated Death and the peaks of Mandara, not to speak of Lakshmana. Today, I hold a great deal of respect for King Vaivasvata.325 O mighty-armed one! It is because of him that you have been subjected to the dharma of time. This is the path followed by excellent warriors and large numbers of immortals too. If a man desires heaven, he should be killed for the sake of his lord. On seeing that Indrajit has been killed, the large number of gods, all the guardians of the world and the rishis will sleep happily today, freed from fear. Without Indrajit, all the three worlds and the earth with its groves seems lonely and empty to me today. Today, I will hear the screams of the nairitta maidens in the inner quarters, like the roars of herds of female elephants in mountain caverns. O scorcher of enemies! You were the heir apparent over the rakshasas in Lanka. Abandoning them, your mother and your wife, where have you gone? O brave one! When I had left for Yama’s abode, you should have performed the funeral rites for me. But the opposite has happened. Sugriva, Lakshmana and Raghava are alive. Without uprooting my stakes, why have you abandoned us and left?’ Ravana, the lord of the rakshasas, lamented in this and other ways. Because of the calamity over his son, he was immersed in great rage.

  He was naturally terrible and the rage of his fire made him senseless. His form was like that of the angry and unassailable Rudra. Tears dropped from his enraged eyes, like drops of oil from the flames of blazing lamps. The loud sound of his gnashing his teeth could be heard, as if the danavas were dragging around a mechanical contrivance. He was like the fire of destruction. In whichever direction he looked, the rakshasas were scared and terrified and hid themselves. As he looked at the directions, he was like an enraged Death, desiring to devour all mobile and immobile objects. All the rakshasas could not approach him. Ravana, the lord of the rakshasas, became extremely angry. Desiring to assign rakshasas to the field of battle, he spoke to them in their midst. ‘I have performed supreme austerities for one thousand years and when these were over, Svayambhu was pleased with me. As a consequence of those austerities and because of Svayambhu’s favours, I have never suffered any fear from asuras and gods. Brahma gave me armour that dazzles like the sun. When I crushed the gods and the asuras, the strength of the vajra could not shatter it. I will now wear that, astride my chariot in the battle. Even Purandara himself will be unable to act against me today. When he was pleased with me, Svayambhu gave me a great bow and arrows. I used those when I crushed the gods and the asuras. To the terrible sound of hundreds of trumpets, let that bow of mine be taken out for the great battle in which Rama and Lakshmana will be killed.’

  The brave one was tormented because his son had been killed and fell prey to rage. Ravana thought about it in his mind and resolved to kill Sita. His eyes were coppery red and extremely terrible. He was horrible to behold. He was miserable and in a distressed voice, he glanced towards all the roamers in the night and addressed them. ‘My child used maya to deceive the residents of the forest. He showed them the sight of Sita being killed. I will make that come true. This is pleasing to me. Vaidehi is devoted to the friend of the kshatriyas326 and I will destroy her.’ Having told his advisers this, he swiftly touched his sword and drew it out. It possessed all the qualities and was as radiant as a clear sky. Surrounded by his advisers, he left the assembly hall with great force. Ravana was afflicted by sorrow on account of his son and his eyes were full of grief. Having angrily seized the sword, he violently went to the spot where Maithilee was. On seeing the angry rakshasa leave, the rakshasas roared like lions. They embraced each other and said, ‘Today, those two brothers will see him and be agitated. When angry, he has vanquished the four guardians of the world. In battles, he has brought down many other enemies.’ While they were conversing, he went to Ashokavana. Senseless with rage, Ravana rushed towards Vaidehi. He was extremely angry. His well-wishers, those who thought about his welfare, sought to restrain him. But he rushed forward angrily, like a planet in the sky heading towards Rohini. The unblemished Maithilee was guarded by the rakshasis. She saw the enraged rakshasa, holding the excellent sword. On seeing him with the sword, Janaka’s daughter was distressed, though many well-wishers tried to restrain him and make him withdraw.

  ‘This one is angry and is himself rushing towards me.327 Though I have a protector, this evil-minded one will render me without a protector. I have been devoted to my husband and he has urged me many times. He has asked me to be his wife and seek pleasure. But he has been rebuffed by me. That is the reason he has come here. It is evident that he has lost hope. It is evident that he is full of anger and confusion and is ready to kill me. Or, for my sake, this ignoble one might have brought down the two brothers, Rama and Lakshmana, tigers among men, in the battle today. If the two princes were destroyed because of me, that would be a shame. I was inferior and did not act in accordance with Hanumat’s words. I could have easily left on his back. Though I would have been censured, I would have been on my husband’s lap and would not have had to grieve today. I think that Kousalya’s heart will be shattered when she hears that her son has been destroyed in the battle. She has only a single son. When she remembers the great-souled one and weeps, she will think about his birth, his childhood, his youth and all the acts of dharma he has performed. On hearing about her son being killed, she will lose all hope. Though she will p
erform the funeral rites, she will be unconscious. It is certain that she will enter a fire or enter water. Shame on Kubja Manthara, the one with evil inclinations. It is because of her that Kousalya will suffer from this hardship.’

  The ascetic Maithilee lamented in this way. She was like Rohini separated from the moon and under the subjugation of a planet. The lord of the rakshasas, had an intelligent adviser named Suparshva. He saw her. Though he was restrained by the other advisers, he spoke these words to Ravana. ‘You are Dashagriva and you are the younger brother of Vaishravana himself. How can you forget dharma in your rage and desire to kill Vaidehi? You have studied the knowledge of the Vedas and have bathed thereafter.328 You have always been devoted to your own dharma. O brave one! O lord of the rakshasas! How can you think of killing a woman? O king! Look at Maithilee. She possesses beauty. Therefore, with us, release your anger towards Raghava. You should arise now. It is the fourteenth day of krishna paksha. Surround yourself with an army and emerge on amavasya329 for the sake of victory. You are brave and intelligent. You have a chariot and a sword. Station yourself on an excellent chariot. Kill Rama, Dasharatha’s son, and you will obtain Maithilee.’ The generous-souled well-wisher said this and Ravana accepted the words that were in conformity with dharma. The valiant one went to his residence. Then, surrounded by the well-wishers, he again went to the assembly hall.