Yuddha Kanda · Sarga 20 of 128 · 34 verses
The Spy Shuka
Ravana’s spy Shardula sees the monkey army camped by the sea, fearless on every side, and hurries back: a host of monkeys and bears, deep and boundless like a second ocean, is moving on Lanka, led by the brothers Rama and Lakshmana, who have tracked Sita; it covers ten leagues. Let messengers be sent; let gifts, conciliation or division be tried. Ravana, alarmed, sends the rakshasa Shuka to tell Sugriva, in polished words: you are of a great royal line, son of Riksharajas; I have nothing against you, and you are like a brother to me. If I took the prince’s wife, what is that to you? Go back to Kishkindha. Lanka cannot be taken by monkeys, or even by gods and gandharvas.
Shuka flies across the ocean in the form of a bird and delivers the message from the sky. The monkeys leap up, seize him, drag him down and beat him with their fists. Shuka cries out to Rama: messengers are not killed; stop the monkeys. A messenger who abandons his master’s message and speaks his own mind deserves death, but not one who speaks what he was told. Rama tells the monkeys to stop. Light as a leaf, Shuka rises again and asks Sugriva what to tell Ravana.
Sugriva answers plainly: you are no friend of mine, nor deserving of pity, nor a benefactor, nor dear to me; you are Rama’s enemy with all your kin, and so deserve death as Vali did. I will kill you with your sons, kin and family and burn all Lanka. You will not escape Raghava, fool, even guarded by the gods and Indra, even hidden, even on the sun’s path or in the underworld or at Shiva’s lotus feet. You killed the old vulture-king Jatayu; why did you not take Sita in Rama’s and Lakshmana’s presence? You do not know the best of the Raghus, who will take your life. Angada says this is no messenger but a spy who has counted their forces; seize him. The monkeys bind him; Shuka cries to Rama that they are tearing his wings and eyes, and that if he dies, all the evil he has done from birth to death will fall on Rama. Rama stops them: “Release him; he came as a messenger.”
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ततो निविष्टां ध्वजिनीं सुग्रीवेणाभिपालिताम् । ददर्श राक्षसोऽभ्येत्य शार्दूलो नाम वीर्यवान् ॥ १ ॥
Then a valiant rakshasa named Shardula came and saw the camped army protected by Sugriva.
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चारो राक्षसराजस्य रावणस्य दुरात्मनः । तां दृष्ट्वा सर्वतोऽव्यग्रां प्रतिगम्य स राक्षसः ॥ २ ॥
A spy of evil-souled Ravana, king of the rakshasas, that rakshasa, seeing it unflustered on every side, went back,
आविश्य लङ्कां वेगेन राजानमिदमब्रवीत् । एष वै वानरर्क्षौघो लङ्कां समभिवर्तते ॥ ३ ॥
entered Lanka swiftly, and said this to the king: “This flood of monkeys and bears is advancing on Lanka,
अगाधश्चाप्रमेयश्च द्वितीय इव सागरः । पुत्रौ दशरथस्येमौ भ्रातरौ रामलक्ष्मणौ ॥ ४ ॥
“bottomless and immeasurable, like a second ocean. These two sons of Dasharatha, the brothers Rama and Lakshmana,
उत्तमौ रूपसम्पन्नौ सीतायाः पदमागतौ । एतौ सागरमासाद्य संनिविष्टौ महाद्युते ॥ ५ ॥
“excellent, handsome, have come on Sita’s track. Having reached the ocean, they have camped, radiant one.
बलं चाकाशमावृत्य सर्वतो दशयोजनम् । तत्त्वभूतं महाराज क्षिप्रं वेदितुमर्हसि ॥ ६ ॥
“The army covers the sky for ten leagues on every side. You should quickly learn the truth of it, great king.
तव दूता महाराज क्षिप्रमर्हन्ति वेदितुम् । उपप्रदानं सान्त्वं वा भेदो वात्र प्रयुज्यताम् ॥ ७ ॥
“Your messengers should quickly find out, great king. Let gifts, conciliation or division be used here.”
शार्दूलस्य वचः श्रुत्वा रावणो राक्षसेश्वरः । उवाच सहसा व्यग्रः सम्प्रधार्यार्थमात्मनः । शुकं साधु तदा रक्षो वाक्यमर्थविदां वरम् ॥ ८ ॥
Hearing Shardula’s words, Ravana, lord of the rakshasas, suddenly alarmed, having settled his own course, said then to the rakshasa Shuka, the best of those who know affairs:
सुग्रीवं ब्रूहि गत्वाऽऽशु राजानं वचनान्मम । यथासंदेशमक्लीबं श्लक्ष्णया परया गिरा ॥ ९ ॥
“Go quickly to King Sugriva and tell him from me, as instructed, boldly, in a smooth and excellent voice:
त्वं वै महाराजकुलप्रसूतो महाबलश्चर्क्षरजःसुतश्च । न कश्चनार्थस्तव नास्त्यनर्थ- स्तथापि मे भ्रातृसमो हरीश ॥ १० ॥
“’You are born of a great royal family, mighty, the son of Riksharajas; there is no gain for you here and no loss; yet you are like a brother to me, lord of monkeys.
अहं यद्यहरं भार्यां राजपुत्रस्य धीमतः । किं तत्र तव सुग्रीव किष्किन्धां प्रति गम्यताम् ॥ ११ ॥
“’If I carried off the wife of the wise prince, what is that to you, Sugriva? Go back to Kishkindha.
नहीयं हरिभिर्लङ्का प्राप्तुं शक्या कथंचन । देवैरपि सगन्धर्वैः किं पुनर्नरवानरैः ॥ १२ ॥
“’For this Lanka cannot be reached in any way by monkeys, nor even by gods with gandharvas; how much less by men and monkeys.’”
स तदा राक्षसेन्द्रेण संदिष्टो रजनीचरः । शुको विहंगमो भूत्वा तूर्णमाप्लुत्य चाम्बरम् ॥ १३ ॥
Instructed so then by the king of the rakshasas, the night-wanderer Shuka became a bird and quickly flew up into the sky.
स गत्वा दूरमध्वानमुपर्युपरि सागरम् । संस्थितो ह्यम्बरे वाक्यं सुग्रीवमिदमब्रवीत् ॥ १४ ॥
Going a long way above the ocean, standing in the sky, he spoke these words to Sugriva:
सर्वमुक्तं यथाऽऽदिष्टं रावणेन दुरात्मना । तत् प्रापयन्तं वचनं तूर्णमाप्लुत्य वानराः ॥ १५ ॥
he said everything as he had been instructed by evil-souled Ravana. As he was delivering those words, the monkeys leapt up swiftly
प्रापद्यन्त तदा क्षिप्रं लोप्तुं हन्तुं च मुष्टिभिः । सर्वैः प्लवंगैः प्रसभं निगृहीतो निशाचरः ॥ १६ ॥
and came at him at once to tear him and beat him with their fists. The night-wanderer was forcibly seized by all the leapers
गगनाद् भूतले चाशु प्रतिगृह्यावतारितः । वानरैः पीड्यमानस्तु शुको वचनमब्रवीत् ॥ १७ ॥
and quickly brought down from the sky to the ground. Being beaten by the monkeys, Shuka said:
न दूतान् घ्नन्ति काकुत्स्थ वार्यन्तां साधु वानराः । यस्तु हित्वा मतं भर्तुः स्वमतं सम्प्रधारयेत् । अनुक्तवादी दूतः सन् स दूतो वधमर्हति ॥ १८ ॥
“Messengers are not killed, Kakutstha; let the monkeys be properly restrained. But a messenger who abandons his master’s view and sets out his own, speaking what he was not told, deserves death.”
शुकस्य वचनं रामः श्रुत्वा तु परिदेवितम् । उवाच मावधिष्टेति घ्नतः शाखामृगर्षभान् ॥ १९ ॥
Hearing Shuka’s lament, Rama said to the bulls among monkeys who were beating him, “Do not kill him.”
स च पत्रलघुर्भूत्वा हरिभिर्दर्शितेऽभये । अन्तरिक्षे स्थितो भूत्वा पुनर्वचनमब्रवीत् ॥ २० ॥
And he, becoming light as a leaf, when the monkeys had granted safety, stood in the sky and spoke again:
सुग्रीव सत्त्वसम्पन्न महाबलपराक्रम । किं मया खलु वक्तव्यो रावणो लोकरावणः ॥ २१ ॥
“Sugriva, full of courage, of great strength and valour, what am I to say to Ravana, who makes the worlds cry out?”
स एवमुक्तः प्लवगाधिपस्तदा प्लवंगमानामृषभो महाबलः । उवाच वाक्यं रजनीचरस्य चारं शुकं शुद्धमदीनसत्त्वः ॥ २२ ॥
Spoken to so, the lord of the leapers, mighty bull among monkeys, of pure and undaunted spirit, spoke to the night-wanderer’s spy Shuka:
न मेऽसि मित्रं न तथानुकम्प्यो न चोपकर्तासि न मे प्रियोऽसि । अरिश्च रामस्य सहानुबन्ध- स्ततोऽसि वालीव वधार्ह वध्यः ॥ २३ ॥
“’You are not my friend, nor someone to pity, nor a benefactor, nor dear to me; you are Rama’s enemy with your kin, and so you deserve death, like Vali.
निहन्म्यहं त्वां ससुतं सबन्धुं सज्ञातिवर्गं रजनीचरेश । लङ्कां च सर्वां महता बलेन सर्वैः करिष्यामि समेत्य भस्म ॥ २४ ॥
“’I will kill you, lord of the night-wanderers, with your sons, your kin and your whole clan, and with a great army, all of us together, I will turn all Lanka to ash.
न मोक्ष्यसे रावण राघवस्य सुरैः सहेन्द्रैरपि मूढ गुप्तः । अन्तर्हितः सूर्यपथं गतोऽपि तथैव पातालमनुप्रविष्टः । गिरीशपादाम्बुजसंगतो वा हतोऽसि रामेण सहानुजस्त्वम् ॥ २५ ॥
“’You will not escape Raghava, Ravana, fool, even guarded by the gods with Indra, even hidden, even gone to the sun’s path, even entered into the underworld, even clinging to the lotus feet of the Lord of the mountain: you are dead at Rama’s hands, with your younger brother.
तस्य ते त्रिषु लोकेषु न पिशाचं न राक्षसम् । त्रातारं नानुपश्यामि न गन्धर्वं न चासुरम् ॥ २६ ॥
“’For such a one as you I see no protector in the three worlds, no pishacha, no rakshasa, no gandharva, no asura.
अवधीस्त्वं जरावृद्धं गृध्रराजं जटायुषम् । किं नु ते रामसांनिध्ये सकाशे लक्ष्मणस्य च । हृता सीता विशालाक्षी यां त्वं गृह्य न बुध्यसे ॥ २७ ॥
“’You killed the vulture-king Jatayu, bent with age. Why was Sita, the large-eyed, not carried off in the presence of Rama and of Lakshmana? You have taken her and do not understand.
महाबलं महात्मानं दुराधर्षं सुरैरपि । न बुध्यसे रघुश्रेष्ठं यस्ते प्राणान् हरिष्यति ॥ २८ ॥
“’You do not understand the best of the Raghus, mighty, great-souled, unassailable even by the gods, who will take your life.’”
ततोऽब्रवीद् वालिसुतोऽप्यङ्गदो हरिसत्तमः । नायं दूतो महाराज चारकः प्रतिभाति मे ॥ २९ ॥
Then Angada too, Vali’s son, best of monkeys, said: “This is no messenger, great king; he seems to me a spy.
तुलितं हि बलं सर्वमनेन तव तिष्ठता । गृह्यतां मागमल्लङ्कामेतद्धि मम रोचते ॥ ३० ॥
“He has weighed up our whole force while standing here. Let him be seized; let him not go back to Lanka; that is what I think.”
ततो राज्ञा समादिष्टाः समुत्पत्य वलीमुखाः । जगृहुश्च बबन्धुश्च विलपन्तमनाथवत् ॥ ३१ ॥
Then, ordered by the king, the monkeys leapt up, seized him and bound him as he lamented like one without a protector.
शुकस्तु वानरैश्चण्डैस्तत्र तैः सम्प्रपीडितः । व्याचुक्रोश महात्मानं रामं दशरथात्मजम् । लुप्येते मे बलात् पक्षौ भिद्येते मे तथाक्षिणी ॥ ३२ ॥
Shuka, harshly treated there by those fierce monkeys, cried out to great-souled Rama, son of Dasharatha: “They are tearing out my wings by force, and they are piercing my eyes!
यां च रात्रिं मरिष्यामि जाये रात्रिं च यामहम् । एतस्मिन्नन्तरे काले यन्मया ह्यशुभं कृतम् । सर्वं तदुपपद्येथा जह्यां चेद् यदि जीवितम् ॥ ३३ ॥
“And for the night on which I die, and the night on which I was born, all the evil I have done in the time between will fall on you if I give up my life.”
नाघातयत् तदा रामः श्रुत्वा तत्परिदेवितम् । वानरानब्रवीद् रामो मुच्यतां दूत आगतः ॥ ३४ ॥
Hearing his lament, Rama did not have him killed; Rama said to the monkeys, “Let the messenger who has come be released.”