Yuddha Kanda · Sarga 82 of 128 · 28 verses
Hanuman Withdraws; Indrajit Goes to Nikumbhila
Hearing Indrajit’s terrible roar, like the crash of Indra’s thunderbolt, the monkeys look about in every direction and flee. Hanuman calls to them as they scatter, downcast and afraid: why do you run with sad faces, leapers, having given up the will to fight? Where has your courage gone? Follow behind me as I go ahead into battle; it is not fitting for heroes of good birth to turn back. Roused, they take mountain peaks and trees and charge the rakshasas, roaring, following Hanuman. Surrounded by them, Hanuman burns the enemy army like a blazing fire, making slaughter like Yama at the end of time. Overcome by grief and great anger, he hurls a huge rock at Indrajit’s chariot; the driver sees it coming and pulls the chariot far away with its obedient horses, and the rock, missing Indrajit, his chariot and his driver, splits the earth and sinks in vain, crushing many rakshasas. The monkeys rush at Indrajit by hundreds, hurling trees and peaks, and the rakshasas writhe on the ground. Indrajit, angry, comes at them with his army, kills many monkey heroes with arrows, spears, thunderbolts, swords, axes and hammers; the monkeys kill his followers with trees and rocks; Hanuman slaughters the rakshasas.
Then Hanuman holds back the enemy army and says to the monkeys: turn back; this army is not for us to overcome. We struggle, ready to give up our lives to please Rama, but the daughter of Janaka, for whose sake we fight, has been killed. Let us tell Rama and Sugriva and do whatever they decide. Calmly, unafraid, he leads the army slowly back. Seeing Hanuman go toward Raghava, the evil-minded Indrajit goes to the Nikumbhila shrine to make offerings. There on the sacrificial ground he offers into the fire, which, fed with blood, blazes up wreathed in flames like the sun at twilight. Indrajit, skilled in rites, offers oblations by rule for the rakshasas’ prosperity, and the rakshasas, who know right and wrong policy, stand watching in great crowds.
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श्रुत्वा तु भीमनिर्ह्रादं शक्राशनिसमस्वनम् । वीक्ष्यमाणा दिशः सर्वा दुद्रुवुर्वानरा भृशम् ॥ १ ॥
Hearing that terrible roar, with a sound like Shakra’s thunderbolt, looking at all the directions, the monkeys fled fast.
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Hanuman Withdraws; Indrajit Goes to Nikumbhila 1 min read.
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तानुवाच ततः सर्वान् हनूमान् मारुतात्मजः । विषण्णवदनान् दीनांस्त्रस्तान् विद्रवतः पृथक् ॥ २ ॥
Then Hanuman, son of the Wind, said to all of them, downcast in face, wretched, frightened, fleeing separately:
कस्माद् विषण्णवदना विद्रवध्वं प्लवंगमाः । त्यक्तयुद्धसमुत्साहाः शूरत्वं क्व नु वो गतम् ॥ ३ ॥
“Why do you flee with downcast faces, leapers, having given up your zeal for battle? Where has your courage gone?
पृष्ठतोऽनुव्रजध्वं मामग्रतो यान्तमाहवे । शूरैरभिजनोपेतैरयुक्तं हि निवर्तितुम् ॥ ४ ॥
“Follow behind me as I go ahead in battle; it is not fitting for heroes endowed with good birth to turn back.”
एवमुक्ताः सुसंक्रुद्धा वायुपुत्रेण धीमता । शैलशृङ्गान् द्रुमांश्चैव जगृहुर्हृष्टमानसाः ॥ ५ ॥
Spoken to so by the wise son of the Wind, very angry, they took mountain peaks and trees, delighted in mind.
अभिपेतुश्च गर्जन्तो राक्षसान् वानरर्षभाः । परिवार्य हनूमन्तमन्वयुश्च महाहवे ॥ ६ ॥
And the bulls among monkeys rushed, roaring, at the rakshasas; surrounding Hanuman, they followed him in the great battle.
स तैर्वानरमुख्यैस्तु हनूमान् सर्वतो वृतः । हुताशन इवार्चिष्मानदहच्छत्रुवाहिनीम् ॥ ७ ॥
Surrounded on every side by those chief monkeys, Hanuman, like a fire with flames, burned the enemy army.
स राक्षसानां कदनं चकार सुमहाकपिः । वृतो वानरसैन्येन कालान्तकयमोपमः ॥ ८ ॥
That very great monkey made slaughter of the rakshasas, surrounded by the monkey army, like Yama, the ender at the end of time.
स तु शोकेन चाविष्टः कोपेन महता कपिः । हनूमान् रावणिरथे महतीं पातयच्छिलाम् ॥ ९ ॥
But the monkey Hanuman, filled with grief and great anger, brought down a great rock on Ravana’s son’s chariot.
तामापतन्तीं दृष्ट्वैव रथः सारथिना तदा । विधेयाश्वसमायुक्तः विदूरमपवाहितः ॥ १० ॥
As soon as he saw it coming, the chariot, yoked to obedient horses, was carried far away by the charioteer then.
तमिन्द्रजितमप्राप्य रथस्थं सहसारथिम् । विवेश धरणीं भित्त्वा सा शिला व्यर्थमुद्यता ॥ ११ ॥
Not reaching Indrajit standing in the chariot with his charioteer, that rock, raised in vain, entered the earth, splitting it.
पतितायां शिलायां तु व्यथिता रक्षसां चमूः । निपतन्त्या च शिलया राक्षसा मथिता भृशम् ॥ १२ ॥
When the rock fell, the army of the rakshasas was distressed; by the falling rock the rakshasas were badly crushed.
तमभ्यधावन् शतशो नदन्तः काननौकसः । ते द्रुमांश्च महाकाया गिरिशृङ्गाणि चोद्यताः ॥ १३ ॥
The forest-dwellers rushed at him by hundreds, roaring; the huge ones, with trees and mountain peaks raised,
क्षिपन्तीन्द्रजितं संख्ये वानरा भीमविक्रमाः । वृक्षशैलमहावर्षं विसृजन्तः प्लवंगमाः ॥ १४ ॥
the monkeys of terrible valour hurled them at Indrajit in battle; loosing a great rain of trees and rocks, the leapers
शत्रूणां कदनं चक्रुर्नेदुश्च विविधैः स्वनैः । वानरैस्तैर्महाभीमैर्घोररूपा निशाचराः ॥ १५ ॥
made slaughter of the enemies and roared with many sounds. By those very terrible monkeys, the terrible-looking night-wanderers,
वीर्यादभिहता वृक्षैर्व्यचेष्टन्त रणक्षितौ । स सैन्यमभिवीक्ष्याथ वानरार्दितमिन्द्रजित् ॥ १६ ॥
struck by trees with force, writhed on the battlefield. Then Indrajit, seeing his army tormented by the monkeys,
प्रगृहीतायुधः क्रुद्धः परानभिमुखो ययौ । स शरौघानवसृजन् स्वसैन्येनाभिसंवृतः ॥ १७ ॥
with weapon in hand, angry, went toward his foes. Loosing floods of arrows, surrounded by his own army,
जघान कपिशार्दूलान् सुबहून् दृढविक्रमः । शूलैरशनिभिः खड्गैः पट्टिशैः शूलमुद्गरैः ॥ १८ ॥
the one of firm valour killed very many tigers among monkeys, with tridents, thunderbolts, swords, axes, tridents and hammers.
ते चाप्यनुचरांस्तस्य वानरा जघ्नुराहवे । सुस्कन्धविटपैः शैलैः शिलाभिश्च महाबलः ॥ १९ ॥
And the monkeys too killed his followers in battle. With rocks with fine trunks and branches, and with stones, the mighty one,
हनूमान् कदनं चक्रे रक्षसां भीमकर्मणाम् । संनिवार्य परानीकमब्रवीत् तान् वनौकसः ॥ २० ॥
Hanuman, made slaughter of the rakshasas of terrible deeds. Holding back the enemy army, he said to those forest-dwellers:
हनूमान् संनिवर्तध्वं न नः साध्यमिदं बलम् । त्यक्त्वा प्राणान् विचेष्टन्तो रामप्रियचिकीर्षवः ॥ २१ ॥
“Turn back; this army is not to be overcome by us. We struggle, giving up our lives, wishing to do what is dear to Rama;
यन्निमित्तं हि युध्यामो हता सा जनकात्मजा । इममर्थं हि विज्ञाप्य रामं सुग्रीवमेव च ॥ २२ ॥
“but she for whose sake we fight, that daughter of Janaka, has been killed. Having made this matter known to Rama and Sugriva,
तौ यत् प्रतिविधास्येते तत् करिष्यामहे वयम् । इत्युक्त्वा वानरश्रेष्ठो वारयन् सर्ववानरान् ॥ २३ ॥
“whatever counter-measure those two make, that we will do.” Having said this, the best of monkeys, holding back all the monkeys,
शनैः शनैरसंत्रस्तः सबलः संन्यवर्तत । ततः प्रेक्ष्य हनूमन्तं व्रजन्तं यत्र राघवः ॥ २४ ॥
slowly, slowly, unafraid, turned back with his army. Then, seeing Hanuman going to where Raghava was,
स होतुकामो दुष्टात्मा गतश्चैत्यं निकुम्भिलाम् । निकुम्भिलामधिष्ठाय पावकं जुहवेन्द्रजित् ॥ २५ ॥
that evil-souled one, wishing to make offerings, went to the shrine Nikumbhila. Having reached Nikumbhila, Indrajit offered to the fire.
यज्ञभूम्यां ततो गत्वा पावकस्तेन रक्षसा । हूयमानः प्रजज्वाल होमशोणितभुक् तदा ॥ २६ ॥
Then, having gone to the sacrificial ground, the fire, being offered to by that rakshasa, blazed up then, eating the blood of the offering.
सार्चिःपिनद्धो ददृशे होमशोणिततर्पितः । संध्यागत इवादित्यः सुतीव्रोऽग्निः समुत्थितः ॥ २७ ॥
Wrapped in flames, satisfied with the blood of the offering, the very fierce fire was seen to rise like the sun gone to twilight.
अथेन्द्रजिद् राक्षसभूतये तु जुहाव हव्यं विधिना विधानवित् । दृष्ट्वा व्यतिष्ठन्त च राक्षसास्ते महासमूहेषु नयानयज्ञाः ॥ २८ ॥
Then Indrajit, knower of the rites, offered the oblation by rule for the prosperity of the rakshasas; and seeing it, those rakshasas, knowers of good and bad policy, stood by in great crowds.