Sundara Kanda · Sarga 43 of 68 · 25 verses
The Temple-Palace Burns
Having killed the Kimkaras, Hanuman reflects that he has broken the grove but not the caitya-palace, a lofty temple-mansion like a peak of Meru. He leaps onto it, shining like a second sun, grows huge and slaps his arms, filling Lanka with the sound; birds fall and the temple guards faint. Again he proclaims victory to Rama, Lakshmana and Sugriva, names himself the servant of the lord of Kosala, and promises to crush Lanka and leave in full view of the rakshasas.
A hundred guards attack him with darts, swords, axes, maces and arrows, surrounding him like a great whirlpool in the Ganga. Hanuman tears out one of the palace’s gold-plated pillars and whirls it; sparks fly, and the palace catches fire. Having killed the hundred like Indra killing asuras with the thunderbolt, he stands in the sky and declares: thousands of mighty monkey chiefs like him are roaming the earth at Sugriva’s command, some with the strength of ten elephants, some of a thousand, some like a flood or the wind, some beyond measure. Sugriva will come with millions of them, armed with teeth and claws. Neither Lanka nor the rakshasas nor Ravana will survive, now that they have made an enemy of the great hero of the Ikshvakus.
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ततः स किंकरान् हत्वा हनूमान् ध्यानमास्थितः । वनं भग्नं मया चैत्यप्रासादो न विनाशितः ॥ १ ॥
Having killed the Kimkaras, Hanuman fell to thinking: “I have broken the grove, but the caitya-palace has not been destroyed.
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तस्मात् प्रासादमद्यैवमिमं विध्वंसयाम्यहम् । इति संचिन्त्य हनुमान् मनसादर्शयन् बलम् ॥ २ ॥
“So I will destroy this palace today.” Thinking so, Hanuman, showing his strength in his mind,
चैत्यप्रासादमुत्प्लुत्य मेरुशृङ्गमिवोन्नतम् । आरुरोह हरिश्रेष्ठो हनूमान् मारुतात्मजः ॥ ३ ॥
leapt up onto the caitya-palace, lofty like a peak of Meru, and climbed it: Hanuman, best of monkeys, son of the Wind.
आरुह्य गिरिसंकाशं प्रासादं हरियूथपः । बभौ स सुमहातेजाः प्रतिसूर्य इवोदितः ॥ ४ ॥
Having climbed the palace, like a mountain, the leader of monkey troops shone, of great splendour, like a second sun risen.
सम्प्रधृष्य तु दुर्धर्षश्चैत्यप्रासादमुन्नतम् । हनूमान् प्रज्वलँल्लक्ष्म्या पारियात्रोपमोऽभवत् ॥ ५ ॥
Having assailed the lofty caitya-palace, unassailable Hanuman, blazing with splendour, became like Mount Pariyatra.
स भूत्वा सुमहाकायः प्रभावान् मारुतात्मजः । धृष्टमास्फोटयामास लङ्कां शब्देन पूरयन् ॥ ६ ॥
Becoming huge in body, the mighty son of the Wind boldly slapped his arms, filling Lanka with the sound.
तस्यास्फोटितशब्देन महता श्रोत्रघातिना । पेतुर्विहंगमास्तत्र चैत्यपालाश्च मोहिताः ॥ ७ ॥
At that great, ear-splitting sound of his slapping, the birds fell there, and the guards of the caitya fainted.
अस्त्रविज्जयतां रामो लक्ष्मणश्च महाबलः । राजा जयति सुग्रीवो राघवेणाभिपालितः ॥ ८ ॥
“Victory to Rama, master of weapons, and to mighty Lakshmana! Victory to King Sugriva, protected by Raghava!
दासोऽहं कोसलेन्द्रस्य रामस्याक्लिष्टकर्मणः । हनूमान् शत्रुसैन्यानां निहन्ता मारुतात्मजः ॥ ९ ॥
“I am the servant of the lord of Kosala, Rama of untiring deeds: Hanuman, son of the Wind, slayer of enemy armies.
न रावणसहस्रं मे युद्धे प्रतिबलं भवेत् । शिलाभिश्च प्रहरतः पादपैश्च सहस्रशः ॥ १० ॥
“A thousand Ravanas would not be a match for me in battle, as I strike with rocks and trees by the thousand.
धर्षयित्वा पुरीं लङ्कामभिवाद्य च मैथिलीम् । समृद्धार्थो गमिष्यामि मिषतां सर्वरक्षसाम् ॥ ११ ॥
“Having assailed the city of Lanka and bowed to Maithili, I will go, my purpose achieved, while all the rakshasas look on.”
एवमुक्त्वा महाकायश्चैत्यस्थो हरियूथपः । ननाद भीमनिर्ह्रादो रक्षसां जनयन् भयम् ॥ १२ ॥
Having spoken so, the huge leader of monkey troops, standing on the caitya, roared with a terrible noise, causing fear among the rakshasas.
तेन नादेन महता चैत्यपालाः शतं ययुः । गृहीत्वा विविधानस्त्रान् प्रासान् खड्गान् परश्वधान् ॥ १३ ॥
At that great roar a hundred guards of the caitya came, taking weapons of every kind: darts, swords and axes.
विसृजन्तो महाकाया मारुतिं पर्यवारयन् । ते गदाभिर्विचित्राभिः परिघैः काञ्चनाङ्गदैः ॥ १४ ॥
Hurling them, the huge ones surrounded the son of the Wind. With wonderful maces and iron bars bound with gold
आजग्मुर्वानरश्रेष्ठं बाणैश्चादित्यसंनिभैः । आवर्त इव गङ्गायास्तोयस्य विपुलो महान् ॥ १५ ॥
and with arrows like the sun they came at the best of monkeys. Like a great, wide whirlpool in the waters of the Ganga
परिक्षिप्य हरिश्रेष्ठं स बभौ रक्षसां गणः । ततो वातात्मजः क्रुद्धो भीमरूपं समास्थितः ॥ १६ ॥
the troop of rakshasas looked as it encircled the best of monkeys. Then the son of the Wind, angry, took on a terrible form.
प्रासादस्य महांस्तस्य स्तम्भं हेमपरिष्कृतम् । उत्पाटयित्वा वेगेन हनूमान् मारुतात्मजः ॥ १७ ॥
Tearing out with force a great pillar of that palace, ornamented with gold, Hanuman, son of the Wind,
ततस्तं भ्रामयामास शतधारं महाबलः । तत्र चाग्निः समभवत् प्रासादश्चाप्यदह्यत ॥ १८ ॥
the mighty one whirled it, with its hundred edges; and fire sprang up there, and the palace too was burned.
दह्यमानं ततो दृष्ट्वा प्रासादं हरियूथपः । स राक्षसशतं हत्वा वज्रेणेन्द्र इवासुरान् ॥ १९ ॥
Seeing the palace burning, the leader of monkey troops, having killed the hundred rakshasas as Indra kills asuras with the thunderbolt,
अन्तरिक्षस्थितः श्रीमानिदं वचनमब्रवीत् । मादृशानां सहस्राणि विसृष्टानि महात्मनाम् ॥ २० ॥
standing in the sky, the glorious one spoke these words: “Thousands of great souls like me have been sent out,
बलिनां वानरेन्द्राणां सुग्रीववशवर्तिनाम् । अटन्ति वसुधां कृत्स्नां वयमन्ये च वानराः ॥ २१ ॥
“mighty chiefs of monkeys, obedient to Sugriva. We and other monkeys are roaming the whole earth.
दशनागबलाः केचित् केचिद् दशगुणोत्तराः । केचिन्नागसहस्रस्य बभूवुस्तुल्यविक्रमाः ॥ २२ ॥
“Some have the strength of ten elephants, some ten times more; some were equal in valour to a thousand elephants.
सन्ति चौघबलाः केचित् सन्ति वायुबलोपमाः । अप्रमेयबलाः केचित् तत्रासन् हरियूथपाः ॥ २३ ॥
“Some have the strength of a flood, some are like the wind in strength; some leaders of monkey troops there are of immeasurable strength.
ईदृग्विधैस्तु हरिभिर्वृतो दन्तनखायुधैः । शतैः शतसहस्रैश्च कोटिभिश्चायुतैरपि ॥ २४ ॥
“Surrounded by such monkeys, whose weapons are teeth and claws, by hundreds, hundreds of thousands, tens of thousands and tens of millions,
आगमिष्यति सुग्रीवः सर्वेषां वो निषूदनः । नेयमस्ति पुरी लङ्का न यूयं न च रावणः । यस्य त्विक्ष्वाकुवीरेण बद्धं वैरं महात्मना ॥ २५ ॥
“Sugriva will come, the destroyer of you all. This city of Lanka will not survive, nor you, nor Ravana, since he has bound himself in enmity with the great-souled hero of the Ikshvakus.”