The Valmiki Ramayana

by Amish Tripathi

  Chapter 7(72)

  ‘In a short while, the divine sage, infinite in his radiance, returned to his own hermitage. He was surrounded by his disciples and was suffering from hunger. He saw the miserable Araja, smeared all over with dust. She was like the moonlight in the morning, no longer radiant because the sun was in front. Especially because he was suffering from hunger, he was filled with rage. About to burn down the three worlds, he spoke to his disciples. “Behold these perverse signs. I know that this has been done by Danda. Like the angry flames of a fire, I will bring down a terrible hardship on him. With his followers, the evil-minded and evil-souled one will head towards destruction. He is like a person who desires to touch the blazing flames of a fire. He has performed such an evil act, terrible to behold. Therefore, the evil-minded one will reap the fruits of his wicked deed. The evil-minded one has perpetrated a vile act. Within seven nights, with his servants, forces and mounts, the king will be killed. In every direction, an expanse of one hundred yojanas around the evil-minded one’s dominion will be destroyed. The chastiser of Paka will bring down a great shower of dust. Everywhere, all creatures and all mobile and immobile objects will be destroyed by this great shower of dust. Within seven nights, everyone who resides within Danda’s kingdom will be reduced to dust and will vanish.” Blazing in his anger, he said this to the residents of the hermitage and asked the people to go to regions that were beyond the frontiers of this country. Hearing the words spoken by Ushanas, all the people who resided in the hermitage left that kingdom and started to reside in regions that were outside its limits. Having told the people this, the sage spoke to Araja. “O evil-minded one! Control yourself and dwell here, in this hermitage. There is an extremely beautiful and dazzling lake that extends for one yojana. O Araja! Do not suffer from anxiety. Enjoy it and wait for your time. During those nights, all creatures who reside near you will never be killed by that shower of dust.” Having said this, Bhargava went to live somewhere else. As the one who knew about the brahman had said, within a week, everything was reduced to ashes. The area between the slopes of Vindhya and Shaivala are Danda’s kingdom. Because of the act of adharma that had been done, it had been cursed by the brahmana rishi in earlier times. O Kakutstha! Since that time, it has been known as Dandakaranya.731 Because the ascetics reside here, it is also known as Janasthana.732 O Raghava! I have thus told you everything that you had asked me about. O brave one! The time for performing the sandhya rituals is passing. O tiger among men! In every direction, all the maharshis are holding full pots of water, to perform the water rites and worship the sun. O Rama! The sun has set. Go with the excellent brahmana rishis and perform the water rites.’

  Chapter 7(73)

  Following the rishi’s words, Rama worshipped the sandhya, near the sacred waters of the lake, populated by apsaras. Rama touched the water and worshipped the western sandhya. He then entered the hermitage of the great-souled Kumbhayoni. For food, Agastya arranged roots and fruits with many kinds of qualities, herbs and sacred green leaves. The best among men ate the food that was like amrita. Happy and content, he spent the night there. In the morning, the scorcher of enemies arose and performed the ablutions. The supreme of the Raghu lineage went to the rishi to seek permission to leave. Rama greeted the maharshi who had been born from the pot. He said, ‘I seek your permission to depart. Please grant me leave. O great-souled one! I am blessed and favoured at having seen you. To purify myself, I will come here to see you again.’ Kakutstha spoke these words to the one who was extraordinary to behold. With his eye towards dharma, the store of austerities was greatly delighted. He said, ‘O Rama! These words of yours are extremely wonderful and are full of auspicious syllables. O descendant of the Raghu lineage! You are the one who will purify all the worlds. O Rama! Even if someone sees you for an instant, that person is purified and goes to heaven. He is worshipped in heaven by the gods. Creatures on earth who glance at you with terrible eyes are immediately slain by Yama’s staff and go to hell. Without any anxiety, proceed along the path you desire, without any fear. Follow dharma and rule over the kingdom. You are the refuge of the universe.’ When the sage said this, the king joined his hands in salutation. He honoured the wise and sacred sage. He greeted the best among sages and all the other stores of austerities. Without any anxiety, he mounted Pushpaka, which was decorated with gold. As he left, in every direction, large numbers of sages pronounced benedictions. With a complexion like that of the great Indra, it was as if the immortals were worshipping the one with the thousand eyes. When Rama was firmly seated in Pushpaka, decorated with gold, he was like the moon amidst clouds, at the onset of the rainy season.

  After half a day, Kakutstha reached Ayodhya and was worshipped in every direction. He descended from the vimana. He allowed the beautiful Pushpaka, which could go wherever it wished, to leave. Rama went to the inner chambers and addressed the gatekeeper in these words. ‘Go to Lakshmana and Bharata, who are light in their valour. Without any delay, go and tell them that I have arrived.’

  Chapter 7(74)

  The gatekeeper heard the words spoken by Rama, the performer of unblemished deeds. He told them what Raghava had said and brought the princes there. Raghava saw that his beloved Bharata and Lakshmana had come. Rama embraced them and addressed them in these words. ‘I have performed the brahmana’s excellent task exactly. O Raghavas! I again want to build a bridge for dharma.733 With the two of you, I wish to perform an excellent rajasuya sacrifice. Eternal dharma is vested in this. Mitra, the slayer of enemies, performed a rajasuya sacrifice. Having performed that excellent sacrifice and having offered excellent oblations, he obtained the status of being Varuna. Soma, who knows about dharma, followed dharma and performed a rajasuya sacrifice. He obtained fame in all the worlds and an eternal position. Today, with me, the two of you should think about what is best and beneficial. Control yourselves and tell me about our welfare.’ Raghava was accomplished in the use of words. Hearing his words, Bharata joined his hands in salutation and spoke the following words. ‘O virtuous one! Supreme dharma is vested in you. O mighty-armed one! The entire earth is vested in you. O infinitely valiant one! So is fame. O great-souled one! All the kings look towards you, as the immortals do towards Prajapati. You are the protector of the world. O king! O immensely strong one! The subjects look towards you, as they do towards a father. O Raghava! You are the refuge of the earth and that of all living beings. O king! Why do you want to undertake this kind of a sacrifice? It can be seen that all the royal lineages on earth will be destroyed because of this. O king! When you are filled with rage, all the men on earth who are filled with manliness will be destroyed because of this.734 O tiger among men! O one who is infinite in qualities and valour! You should not destroy the earth. It is already under your subjugation.’ Rama, for whom truth was his valour, heard Bharata’s words, which were like amrita, and was filled with great delight. He spoke these auspicious words to the one who extended Kaikeyee’s delight. ‘Because of the words you have spoken today, I am delighted. I am content. These words are not the result of impotence. They are full of dharma. O tiger among men! You have spoken about how the earth can be protected. O one who knows about dharma! Because of what you have said, I am giving up my desire to undertake a rajasuya sacrifice. The dharma of a respected king is to undertake sacrifices whereby the subjects are protected. Therefore, I am listening to your words. You have controlled yourself and spoken words that are full of virtue.’

  Chapter 7(75)

  When Rama said this to the great-souled Bharata, Lakshmana also addressed the descendant of the Raghu lineage in these auspicious words. ‘The great sacrifice of ashvamedha purifies from all sins. O invincible one! If you wish to purify yourself, you should undertake this, the best among sacrifices. The ancient account of the extremely great-souled Vasava has been heard. When he committed the act of killing a brahmana,735 Shakra purified himself through a horse sacrifice. O mighty-armed one! In ancient times, there was a clash between the gods and the asuras. The
re was a great daitya named Vritra and he was revered by the worlds. He was one hundred yojanas wide and three yojanas tall. Filled with attachment towards the three worlds, he always looked towards them with affection. He knew about dharma. He was grateful and he possessed great intelligence. Extremely controlled, he followed dharma and ruled over the entire earth. When he ruled, the earth could be milked for all the objects of desire. It yielded succulent roots and fruits. Without being tilled, the earth yielded extremely large quantities of crops. When the great-souled one ruled, the kingdom could be enjoyed in this fashion. It was prosperous and was extraordinary to behold. The thought arose in his mind, “I will perform supreme austerities. Austerities represent the supreme benefit. Austerities represent supreme happiness.” He instated his eldest son, Parameshvara, in the city. He resorted to fierce austerities and tormented all the gods. When Vritra tormented himself through these austerities, Vasava was greatly afflicted. He went to Vishnu and addressed him in these words. “O mighty-armed one! Through his austerities, Vritra has conquered all the worlds. The one with dharma in his soul is powerful and I am incapable of countering him. O lord of the gods! As long as he undertakes these austerities, he will hold sway over these worlds and they will remain under his subjugation. O immensely strong one! You are ignoring this extremely pervasive one. O lord of the gods! If you are angry with him, Vritra will be destroyed in an instant. O Vishnu! When he approaches you, as long as you look towards him with affection, till then, he will remain the protector of the worlds. It is because of the favours you have done that he obtains this extremely great fame in the worlds. It is because of what you have done that everything in the universe is peaceful and without decay. O Vishnu! All these residents of heaven are looking towards you. You should render great assistance in slaying Vritra. You have always aided these great-souled ones. No one else can withstand him. You are the refuge of all those who do not have a refuge.”’

  Chapter 7(76)

  The slayer of enemies heard Lakshmana’s words and said, ‘O Lakshmana! Complete the account about Vritra being killed.’ Hearing what Raghava had said, Lakshmana, the extender of Sumitra’s delight, again started to speak about the divine account. ‘Vishnu heard the words of the one with one thousand eyes and those of all the residents of heaven. He spoke to all the gods, with Indra at the forefront. “I am already bound in affection towards the extremely great-souled Vritra. Therefore, to bring you pleasure, I cannot slay the great asura. However, I must certainly do what will bring you great happiness. Hence, I will tell you about the means whereby you can kill Vritra. O supreme among gods! I will divide myself into three parts. O one with one thousand eyes! There is no doubt that Vritra can be killed through this means. One part will enter Vasava, the second part will be in the vajra, while the third part will be in the earth. O Shakra! Thereby, Vritra will be killed.” Addressed by the lord of the gods in this way, the gods replied in these words. “O slayer of daityas! There is no doubt that what you have said will transpire. May you be fortunate. Desiring to slay the asura Vritra, we will depart now. O extremely pervasive one! Pervade Vasava with your own energy.” Thereafter, with the one with one thousand eyes at the forefront, all those great-souled ones went to the forest where Vritra, the great asura, was. They saw the supreme asura tormenting himself. Full of energy, he seemed to drink up the three worlds and burn up the sky. On seeing the best among asuras, all the gods were terrified. “How can we kill him? How can we not be defeated?” While they were thinking in this way, Purandara, the one with one thousand eyes, seized the vajra in his hands and brought it down on Vritra’s head. It was as terrible as the fire of destruction, blazing in its great rays. It scorched Vritra’s head and the universe was terrified. The lord of the gods736 thought that this killing of Vritra should not have been done. The immensely illustrious one went to the end of the worlds. However, wherever Indra went, the sin of killing a brahmana followed him. It entered his body and Indra was filled with misery. With the enemy dead and Indra also destroyed, the gods, with Agni at the forefront, went to Vishnu, the best in the three worlds, and repeatedly worshipped him. “O god! You are the supreme refuge. You are the lord who predated the creation of the universe. You have assumed the form of Vishnu for the sake of protecting all creatures. You have ensured that Vritra was killed. However, Vasava has been contained because of the sin of killing a brahmana. O tiger among the gods! Instruct a way for him to be freed.” Hearing their words, Vishnu spoke to the gods. “If Shakra, the wielder of the vajra, performs a sacrifice to me, he will be purified. Let the chastiser of Paka perform the sacred horse sacrifice for me. He will be freed from fear and will again become Indra of the gods.” The gods were commanded by his words, which were like amrita. Praised by the gods, Vishnu, the lord of the gods, departed.’

  Chapter 7(77)

  Lakshmana recounted everything about Vritra being killed. The best among men then started to speak about whatever was left of the account. ‘The immensely valiant Vritra, who caused fear to the gods, was thus killed. However, because he had killed Vritra and was surrounded by the sin of killing a brahmana, Shakra did not regain his senses for some time. Having lost his senses and unconscious, he sought refuge in the end of the worlds. Writhing like a serpent, he resided there for some time. When the one with one thousand eyes was destroyed, the universe became anxious. The earth was destroyed. The forests were dry and without any juices. There were no flows in the stores of waters, lakes and rivers. Because there were no rains, all living beings were agitated. When the worlds were being destroyed, the gods were scared in their minds. As they had been told by Vishnu earlier, they started to perform the sacrifice. All the large numbers of gods, with the preceptors and the rishis, collectively went to the spot where Indra was, confounded by his fear. They saw the one with the one thousand eyes, confounded by the sin of having killed a brahmana. With the lord of the gods737 at the forefront, they commenced the horse sacrifice. O lord of men! For the sake of purifying himself from the sin of killing a brahmana, the great-souled and extremely great Indra undertook the prosperous horse sacrifice. When the sacrifice was over, the sin of killing a brahmana emerged from the great-souled one’s body and asked, “What place has been ordained for me?” The gods were satisfied. Filled with joy, they told it, “O invincible one! Divide yourself into four parts.” Hearing the words spoken by the great-souled gods, in their presence, the sin of killing a brahmana, which was finding it difficult to find a place to reside in, said the following. “These are the places I have chosen. One of my parts will dwell in rivers, when they are full of water. The second part will reside in trees. I am stating this to you truthfully. Young women are full of pride. To destroy their pride, my third part will reside in them for three nights.738 O bulls among gods! My fourth part will resort to those who kill brahmanas, without first considering whether they have been injured by them.” Thus addressed, all the gods replied, “O one who is finding it difficult to find a place to dwell in! Everything shall be exactly as you have stated it. May you accomplish what you desire.” Delighted, the gods worshipped the one with one thousand eyes. Vasava was cured of his fever and cleansed of his sin. The entire universe was pacified and found a refuge in the one with one thousand eyes. Shakra worshipped that extraordinary sacrifice. O descendant of the Raghu lineage! Such are the powers of the horse sacrifice. O extremely fortunate one! O king! Perform a horse sacrifice.’

  Chapter 7(78)

  Lakshmana, eloquent in the use of words, spoke these words. Hearing them, the immensely energetic Raghava smiled and replied in these words. “O best among men! O Lakshmana! It is indeed as you have said, the complete story of Vritra’s death and the fruits of a horse sacrifice. O amiable one! I have heard that in ancient times, Kardama Prajapati’s son was named Ila. He was handsome and was extremely devoted to dharma. He was the lord of Bahlika. The immensely illustrious king brought the entire earth under his subjugation. O tiger among men! He protected the kingdom as if it was his own son. O amiable
one! O descendant of the Raghu lineage! The gods, the extremely large daityas, the giant asuras, the serpents, the rakshasas, the gandharvas and the extremely great-souled yakshas always worshipped him. They were scared of him. The three worlds were scared of the great-souled one’s rage. The king was like that, established in dharma and valour. His intelligence was extremely pervasive and the immensely illustrious one ruled over Bahlika. The mighty-armed one went on a hunt to a beautiful forest, with his servants, forces and mounts. It was the pleasant month of Chaitra. In the forest, the king killed hundreds of thousands of animals. Despite having killed them, the great-souled king was not satisfied. The great-souled one killed tens of thousands of many kinds of animals. He then reached the spot where Mahasena739 was born. At that time, the invincible Hara, the lord of the gods, was sporting there with the daughter of the king of the mountains and with his own companions. To please the goddess, in a waterfall in the mountain there, Uma’s lord, the one with the bull on his banner, had transformed himself into a woman. In that part of the forest, all the creatures which were male in nature had also got transformed into female forms. At this time, King Ila, Kardama’s son, reached the place, having killed thousands of animals. O descendant of the Raghu lineage! He saw that the predatory creatures, the birds and the animals, and he and his companions, had all become feminine. On seeing what had happened to himself, he was filled with great sorrow. Knowing that this had happened because of Umapati,740 he was terrified. With his servants, forces and mounts, the king sought refuge with the great-souled god, Shitikantha Kapardi.741 With the goddess, the immensely illustrious granter of boons laughed. The granter of boons himself addressed Prajapati’s son in these words. “Arise! O royal sage! O Kardama’s son! O immensely strong one! Arise! O amiable one! O one who is good in vows! Ask for any boon other than that of becoming a man.” Having been thus refused by the great-souled one, the king was afflicted by sorrow. In the form of a woman, he did not ask for any other boon from that excellent god. Filled with great sorrow, the king prostrated himself before the daughter of the king of the mountains. “O great goddess! O one who is in everyone’s heart! O granter of boons! O beautiful one! You are the one who grants boons to the worlds and even to Isha.742 O goddess! O amiable one! O one who should be worshipped! Your sight cannot be futile. I am bowing down before you.” She was near Hara and got to know what was in the mind of the royal sage. Honouring Rudra, the goddess replied in these auspicious words. “The god, the granter of boons, will grant you half of your boon and I will grant you the other half. As you wished, between a man and a woman, therefore accept half.” He heard the excellent and extraordinary boon granted by the goddess. Delighted, the king replied in these words. “O goddess! If you are pleased with me, let me be a woman for one month, sought after because she is unmatched in beauty on earth. For the next month, I can become a man.” The goddess with the extremely beautiful face got to know his desire. She replied in auspicious words. “It will be that way. O king! When you are in the form of a man, you will not remember what happened as a woman. In the next month, when you are a woman, you will not remember what happened as a man.” In this way, the king who was Kardama’s son remained a man for one month. In the next month, he became the woman Ila,743 most beautiful in the three worlds.’