fire.
In them the power and glory live Which zeal and saintly fervour give. Their constant task, their sole delight Is worship and each holy rite, To chant aloud the Veda hymn, Nor let the sacred fires grow dim. Now through the air like thunder ring The echoes of the chants they sing. The vapours of their incense rise And veil with cloudy pall the skies, And Rakshas might grows weak and faint Killed by the power of sage and saint. By Brahma's boon thy life was screened From God. Gandharva, Yaksha, tiend; But Vanars, men, and bears, arrayed Against thee now, thy shores invade. Red meteors, heralds of despair, Flash frequent through the lurid air, Foretelling to my troubled mind The ruin of the Rakshas kind. With awful thunderings overhead Clouds black as night are densely spread, And oozing from the gloomy pall Great drops of blood on Lanka fall. Dogs roam through house and shrine to steal The sacred oil and curd and meal. Cats pair with tigers, hounds with swine, And asses' foals are born of kine. In these and countless signs I trace The ruin of the giant race. 'Tis Vishnu's self who comes to storm Thy city, clothed in Rama's form; For, well I ween, no mortal hand The ocean with a bridge has spanned. O giant King, the dame release, And sue to Radiu's son for peace.'
Canto XXXVII.
THE RAMAYAN.
CANTO XXXVI.
RA'VAN'S REPLY.
But Ravan's breast with fury swelled, And thus he spake by Death impelled, While, under brows in anger bent, Fierce glances from his eyes were sent: ' The bitter words which thou, misled By friendly thought, hast fondly said, Which praise the foe and counsel fear, Unheeded fall upon mine ear. How canst thou deem a mighty foe This Rama who. in stress of woe, Seeks, banished as his sire decreed, Assistance from the Vanar breed? Am I so feeble in thine eyes, Though feared by dwellers of the skies, — Whose might in many a battle shown The glorious race of giants own? Shall I for fear of him restore The lady whom I hither bore, Exceeding fair like Beauty's Queen1 Without her well-loved lotus seen? Around the chief let Lakshman stand, Sugriva, and each Vanar band,* Soon, Malyavan, thine eyes will see This boasted Kama slain by me. I in the brunt of war defy The mightiest warriors of the sky; And if I stoop to combat men, Shall I be weak and tremble then? This mangled trunk the foe may rend, But Ravan ne'er can yield or bend, And be it vice or virtue, I This nature never will belie. What marvel if he bridged the sea? Why should this deed disquiet thee? This, only this, I surely know, Back \yith his life he shall not go.'
Thus in loud tones the king exclaimed, And mute stood Malyavan ashamed. His reverend head he humbly bent, And slowly to his mansion went. But Ravan stayed, and deep in care Held counsel with his nobles there, All entrance to secure and close, And guard the city from their foes. He bade the chief Prahasta wait, Commander at the eastern gate. To fierce Mahodar, strong and brave, To keep the southern gate, he gave, Where Mahaparsva's might should aid The chieftain with his hosts arrayed. To guard the west— no chief more fit- He placed the warrior Indrajit, 1 Lakshmi is the Goddess both of beauty and fortune, and is represented with a lotus in her hand. 30 His son, the giant's joy and boast, Surrounded by a Rakshas host: And mighty Saran hastened forth With Suka to protect the north.1 1 1 will myself,' the monarch cried, 'Be present on the northern side.' These orders for the walls' defence The tyrant gave, then parted thence, And, by the hope of victory fired, To chambers far within, retired.
CANTO XXXVII.
PREPARATIONS.
Lords of the legions of the wood, The chieftains with Vibhishan stood, And, strangers in the foeman's land, Their hopes and fears in council scanned: ' See, see where Lanka's tovvers ascend, Which Ravan's power and might defend, Which Gods, Gandharvas, fiends would fail To conquer, if they durst assail. How shall our legions pass within, The city of the foe to win, With massive walls and portals barred Which R&van keeps with surest guard?' With anxious looks the walls they eyed: And sage Vibhishan thus replied: ' These lords of mine* can answer: they Within the walls have found their way, The foeman's plan and order learned, And hither to my side returned. Now, Rama, let my tongue declare How Ravan's hosts are stationed there. Prahasta heads, in warlike state, His legions at the eastern gate. To guard the southern portal stands Mahodar, girt by Rakshas Lands, Where mighty Mahaparsva, sent By Ravan's hest, his aid has lent. Guard of the gate that fronts the west Is valiant Indrajit, the best Of warriors, Ravan's joy and pride; And by the youthful chieftain's side Are giants, armed for fierce attacks With sword and mace and battle-axe. North, where approach is dreaded most, The king, encompassed with a host Of giants trained in war, whose hands Wield maces, swords and lances, stands.
1 The poet appears to have forgotten that Suka and Saran were dismissed with ignominy in Canto XXIX., and have not been reinstated.
* The four who fled with him. Their names are Anala, Panasa, Sampati, and Pramati, THE RAM AY AN.
Book VI.
All these are chiefs whom Ravan chose As mightiest to resist his foes; And each a countless army1 leads With elephants and cars and steeds.'
Then Rama, while his spirit burned For battle, words like these returned: ' The eastern gate be Nila's care, Opponent of Prahasta there. The southern gate, with troops arrayed Let Angad, Bali's son, invade. The gate that fronts the falling sun Shall be by brave Hanuman won; Soon through its portals shall he lead His myriads of Vanar breed. The gate that fronts the north shall be Assailed by Lakshman and by me. For I myself have sworn to kill The tyrant who delights in ill. Armed with the boon which Brahma gave, The Gods of heaven he loves to brave. ^ And through the trembling worlds he flies, Oppressor of the just and wise. Thou, Jambavan, and thou. O King Of Vanars, all your bravest bring, And with your hosts in dense array Straight to the centre force your way. But let no Vanar in the storm Disguise him in a human form. Ye chiefs who change your shapes at will, Retain your Vanar semblance still. Thus, when we battle with the foe, Both men and Vanars will ye know, In human form will seven appear; Myself, my brother Lakshman here; Vibhishan, and the four he led From Lanka's city when he fled.'
Thus Raghu's son the chiefs addressed: Then, gazing on Suvela's crest, Transported by the lovely sight, He longed to climb the mountain height, CANTO XXXVIII.
THE ASCENT OF SUVELA.
1 Come let us scale,' the hero cried, 4 This hill with various metals dyed. This night upon the breezy crest Sugriva, Lakshman, I, will rest, With sage Vibhishan, faithful friend, His counsel and his lore to lend. From those tall peaks each eager eye The foeman's city shall espy, Who from the wood my darling stole And brought long anguish on my soul.'
1 The numbers here are comparatively moderate: ten thousand elephants, ten thousand chariots, twenty thousand horses and ten million giants, Thus spake the lord of men, and bent II is footsteps to the steep ascent, And Lakshman, true in weal and woe, Next followed with his shafts and bow. Vibhishan followed, next in place, The sovereign of the Vanar race, And hundreds of the forest kind Thronged with impetuous feet, behind. The chiefs in wooas and mountains bred Fast followed to Suvela's head, And gazed on Lanka bright and fail- As some gay city in the air. On glittering gates, on ramparts raised By giant hands, the chieftains gazed. They saw the mighty hosts that, skilled In arts of war, the city filled, And ramparts with new ramparts lined, The swarthy hosts that stood behind. With spirits burning for the fight They saw the giants from the height, And from a hundred throats rang out Defiance and the battle shout. Then sank the sun with dying flame, And soft the shades of twilight came, And the full moon's delicious light Was shed upon the tranquil night.
CANTO XXXIX.
LANKA'.
They slept secure: the sun arose And called the chieftains from repose. Before the wondering Vanars, gay With grove and garden, Lanka lay, Where golden buds the Champak showed, And bright with bloom Asoka glowed, And palm and Sal and many a tree With leaf and flower were fair to see. They looked on wood and lawn and glade On emerald grass and dusky shade, Where creepers filled the air with scent, And luscious fruit the branches bent, Where bees inebriate loved to throng, And each sweet bird was loud in song, The wondering Vanars passed the bound That circled that enchanting ground, And as they came a sweet breeze through The odorous alleys softly blew. Some Vanars, at their king's behest, Onward to bannered Lanka pressed, While, startled by the strangers' tread, The birds and deer before them fled. Earth trembled at each step they took, And Lanka at their shouting shook. Bright rose before their wondering eyes Trikuta's peak that kissed the skies, And, clothed with flowers of every hue, Afar its golden radiance threw. Most fair to see, the mountain's head Canto XLL THE RAM AY AN.
A hundred leagues in length was spread. There Ravan's town, securely placed, The summit* of Trikuta graced. O'er leagues of land she stretched in pride A hundred long and twenty wide. They saw a lofty wall enfold The city, built of blocks of gold. They saw the beams of morning fall On dome and fane within the wall, Bright with the shine that mansion gives Where Vishnu in his glory lives. White-creste'd like the Lord of Snows Before them Ravan's palace rose. High on a thousand pillars raised With gold and precious stone it blazed, Guarded by giant warders, crown And ornament of Lanka's town.
CANTO XL.
RA'VAN ATTACKED.
Still stood the son of Raghu where Suvela's peak rose high in air, And with Sugriva turned his eye To scan each quarter of the sky.
There on TrikuU, nobly planned And built by Visvakarma's hand, He saw the lovely Lanka, dressed In all her varied beauty, rest.
High on a tower above the gate The tyrant stood in kingly state.
The royal canopy displayed Above him lent its grateful shade, And servants, from the giant band, His cheek with jewelled chowries fanned.
Red sandal o'er his breast was spread, His ornaments and robe were red: Thus shows a cloud of darksome hue With golden sunbeams flashing through.
While Rama and the chiefs intent Upon the king their glances bent, Up sprang Sugriva from the ground And reached the turret at a bound.
Un terrified the Vanar stood, And wroth, with wondrous hardihood, The king in bitter words addressed, And thus his scorn and hate expressed: * King of the giant race, in me The friend and slave of Rama see. Lord of the world, he gives me power To smite thee in thy fenced tower.' While through the air his challenge rang, At Ravan's face the Vanar sprang, Snatched from his head the kingly crown And dashed it in his fury down. Straight at his foe the giant flew, His mighty arms about him threw, With strength resistless swung him round And dashed him panting to the ground, Unharmed amid the storm of blows Swift to his feet Sugriva rose. Again in furious tight they met: With streams of blood their limbs were wet, Each grasping his opponent's waist. Thus with their branches interlaced, Which, crimson with the flowers of spring, From side to side the breezes swing, In furious wrestle you may see The Kinsuk and the Seemul tree.1 They fought with fists and hands, alike Prepared to parry and to strike. Long time the doubtful combat, waged With matchless strength and fury, raged. Each fiercely struck, each guarded well, Till, closing, from the tower they fell, And, grasping each the other's throat, Lay for an instant in the moat. They rose, and each in fiercer mood The sanguinary strife renewed. Wei 1 matched in size and strength and skill They fought the dubious battle still. While sweat and blood their limbs bedewed They met, retreated, and pursued: Each stratagem and art they tried, Stood front to front and swerved aside. His hand a while the giant stayed And called his magic to his aid. But brave Sugriva, swift to know The guileful purpose of the foe, Gained with light leap the upper air, And breath and strength and spirit there; Then, joyous as for victory won, Returned to Raghu's royal son.
CANTO XLI. RAMA'S ENVOY.
When Rama saw each bloody trace On King Sugriva's limbs and face, Ie cried, while, sorrowing at the view, His arms about his friend he threw: Too venturous chieftain, kings like us ring not their lives in peril thus; or, save when counsel shows the need, tempt so bold, so rash a deed, lemember. I, Vibhishan, all lave sorrowed fearing ior.Jtliy fall. ) do not— for us all I speak— 'hese desperate adventures seek. I could not,' cried Sugriva, 'brook Jpon the giant king to look, The Kinsuk, also called Palasa, is he Butea Frondosa. a tree that bears eautiful red crescent-shaped blossoms nd is deservedly a favourite with poets. Jhe Seemul or 3almali in the silk-cottoa ree which also bears red blossoms.
THE RAM AY AN.
Boole VI.
Nor challenge to the deadly strife The fiend who robbed thee of thy wife.' 'Now Lakshman, marshal,' Kama cried, ' Our legions where the woods are wide, And stand we ready to oppose The fury of our giant foes. This day our armies shall ascend The walls which fiavan's powers defend, And floods of Rakshas' blood shall stain The streets encumbered with the slain.' Down from the peak he came, and viewed The Vanars' ordered multitude. Fach captain there for battle burned, Each fiery eye to Lanka turned. On, where the royal brothers led To Lanka's walls the legions sped. The northern gate, where giant foes Swarmed round their monarch, Ramachose Where he in person might direct The battle, and his troops protect. What arm but his the post might keep Where, strong as he who sways the deep,1 Mid thousands armed with bow and mace, Stood Ravan mightiest of his race? The eastern gate was Nila's post, Where marshalled stood his Vanar host, And Mainda with his troops arrayed, And Dwivid stood to lend him aid. The southern gate was Angad's care, Who ranged his bold battalions there. Hanuman by the port that faced The setting sun his legions placed, And King Sugriva held the wood East of the gate where Ravan stood. On every side the myriads met, Arid Lanka's walls of close beset That scarce the roving gale could win A passage to the hosts within. Loud as the angry ocean's roar When wild waves lash the rocky shore, Ten thousand thousand throats upsent A shout that tore the firmament, And Lanka with each grove and brook And tower and wall and rampart shook. The giants heard, and were appalled: Then Raghu's son to Angad called, And, led by kingly duty,* gave This order merciful as brave: 4 Go, Angad, Ravan's presence seek, And thus my words of warning speak: ' How art thou changed and fallen now, O Monarch of the giants, thou Whose impious fury would not spare Saint, nymph, or spirit of the air; Whose foot in haughty triumph trod On Yaksha, king, and Serpent God: J Varuna.
51 The duty of a king to save the lives of his people arid avoid bloodshed until milder methods have been tried in vain.
How art thou fallen from thy pride Which Brahma's favour fortified 1 With myriads at thy Lanka's gate I stand my righteous ire to sate, And punish thee with sword and flame, The tyrant fiend who stole my darne. Now show the might, employ the guile, O Monarch of the giants isle, Which stole a helpless dame away: Call up thy power and strength to-day. Once more I warn thee. Kakshas King, This hour the Maithil lady bring. And, yielding while there yet is time, Seek, suppliant, pardon for the crime, Or I will leave beneath the sun No living Rakshas, no, not one. In vain from battle wilt thou fly, Or borne on piniona seek the sky; The hand of llama shall not spare; His fiery shaft shall smite thee there.'
He ceased: and Angad bowed his head; Thence like embodied flame he sped, And lighted from his airy road Within the Rakshas king's abode. There sate, the centre of a ring Of counsellors, the giant king. Swift through the circle Angad pressed, And spoke with fury in his breast; * Sent by the lord of Kosal's land, His envoy here, O King, I stand, Angad the ^on of Bali; fame Has haply taught thine ears my name. Thus in the words of Kama I Am come to warn thee or defy: Come forth, and fighting in the van Display the spirit of a man. This arm shall slay thee, tyrant: all Thy nobles, kith and kin shall fall: And earth and heaven, from terror freed, Shall joy to see the oppressor bleed. Vibhishan, "when his foe is slain, Anointed'king in peace shall reign. Once more I counsel thee: repent, Avoid the mortal punishment. With honour due the dame restore, And pardon for thy sin implore.'
Loud rose the king's infuriate cry: ' Seize, seize the Vanar: let him die.' Four of his band their lord obeyed, And eager hands on Angad laid. He purposing his strength to show Gave no resistance to the foe, But swiftly round his captors cast His mighty arms and held them fast. Fierce shout and cry around him rang: Light to the palace roof he sprang, There his detaining arms unwound, And hurled the giants to the ground. Then, smiting with a fearful stroke, A turret from the roof he broke,— As when the fiery levin sent Canto XLI1I.
THE RA MAYAN.
By Indra from the clonds has rent The proud peak of the Lord of Snow,— • And flung the stony mass below. Attain with loud terrific cry He sprang exulting to the sky, And. joyous for his errand done, Stood by the side of Raghu's son.
CANTO XLIL THE SALLY.
Still was the cry, * The Vanar foes Around the leaguered, city close.' King Ravan from the terrace gazed And saw, with eyes where fury blazed, The Vanar host in serried ranks Press to the moat and line the banks, And, first in splendour and in place, The lion lord of Raghu's race. And Rama looked on Lanka where Gay flags were streaming to the air, And, while keen sorrow pierced him through, His loving thoughts to Sita flew: * There, there in deep affliction lies My darling with the fawn-lil^e eyes. There on the cold bare ground she keeps Sad vigil and for Rama weeps.'
Mad with the thought, ' Charge, charge,' he cried.
• Let earth with Rakshas blood be dyed.'
Responsive to his call rang out A loud, a universal shout, As myriads filled the moat with stone, Trees, rocks, and mountains overthrown, And charging at their leader's call Pressed forward furious to the wall. Some in their headlong ardour scaled The rampart's height, the guard assailed, And many a ponderous fragment rent From portal, tower, and battlement. Huge gates adorned with burnished gold Were loosed and lifted from their hold; And post and pillar, with a sound Like thunder, fell upon the ground. At every portal, east and west And north and south, the chief tains pressed Each in his post appointed led His myriads in the forest bred.
* Charge, let the gates be opened wide: ' Charge, charge, my giants,' Ravan cried. They heard his voice, and loud and long Rang the wild clamour of the throng, And shell and drum their notes upsent, And every martial instrument. Forth, at the bidding of their lord From every gate the giants poured, ^s, when the waters rise and swell, waves preceding waves impel.
Again from every Vanar throat A scream of fierce defiance smote The welkin: earth and sea and sky Reechoed with the awful cry. The roar of elephants, the neigh Of horses eager for the fray, The frequent clash of warriors' steel, The rattling of the chariot wheel. Fierce was the deadly fight: opposed In terrible array they closed, As when the Gods of heaven enraged With rebel fiends wild battle waged. Axe, spear, and mace were wielded well; At every blow a Vanar fell. But shivered rock and brandished tree Brought many a giant on his knee, To perish in his turn beneath The deadly wounds of nails and teeth.
CANTO XLIII.
THE SINGLE COMBATS.
Brave chiefs of each opposing side Their strength in single combat tried.
Fierce Indrajit the tight began With Angad in the battle's van.
Sampati, strongest of his race, Stood with Prajangha face to face.
Hanuman, Jambumali met In mortal opposition set.
Vibhishan, brother of the lord Of Lanka, raised his threatening sword, And singled out, with eyes aglow With wrath, $atrughna for his foe.
The mighty Gaja Tapan sought, A nd Nila with Nikumbha fought.
Sugriva, Vanar king, defied Fierce Praghas long in battle tried, And Lakshman fearless in the fight Encountered Virupaksha's might.
To meet the royal Rama came Wild Agniketu fierce as flame; Mitraghana, he who loved to strike His foeman and his friend alike; With Rasmiketu, known and feared Where'er his ponderous flag was reared; And Yajnakopa whose delight Was ruin of the sacred rite.
These met and fought, with thousands more, And trampled earth was red with gore, Swift as the bolt which Indra sends When fire from heaven the mountain rends Smote Indrajit with furious blows On Angad queller of his foes. But Angad from his foeman tore T he murderous mace the warrior bore, THE RAM AY AN.
Boole VI.
And low in dust his coursers rolled, His driver, and his car of gold. Struck by the shafts Prajangha sped, The Vanar chief Sampati bled, But, heedless of his gashes, he Crushed down the giant with a tree. Then car-borne Jambumali smote Hanuman on the chest and throat; But at the car the Vanar rushed, And chariot, steeds, and rider crushed. Sugriva whirled a huge tree round, And struck fierce Praghas to the ground. One arrow shot from Lakshman's bow Laid mighty Virupaksha low. His giant foes round Rama pressed And shot their shafts at head and breast; But, when the iron shower was spent, Four arrows from his bow he sent, And every missile, deftly sped; Cleft from the trunk a giant head.1 CANTO XLIV.
THE NIGHT.
The lord of Light had sunk and set: Night came; the foeman struggled yet; And fiercer for the gloom of night Grew the wild fury of the fight. Scarce could each warrior's eager eye The foeman from the friend descry.
• Rakshas or Vanar? say;' cried each, And foe knew foeman oy his speech.
' Why wilt thou fly? O warrior, stay: • Turn on the foe. and rend and slay:' Such were the cries, such words of fear Smote through thegloom each listeningear. Each swarthy rover of the night Whose golden armour flashed with light, Showed like a towering hill embraced By burning woods about his waist.
The giants at the Vanars flew, And ravening ate the foes they slew: With mortal bite like serpent's fang, The Vanars at the giants sprang, And car and steeds and they who bore The pennons fell bedewed with gore. No serried band, no firm array The fury of their charge could stay. Down went the horse and rider, down Went giant lords of high renown. Though midnight's shade was dense and dark, With skill that swerved not from the mark 1 I have omitted several of these single aombats, as there is little variety in the details and each duel results in the victory of the Vanar or his ally.
Their bows the sons of Raghu drew, And each keen shaft a chieftain slew. Uprose the blinding dust from meads Ploughed by the cars and trampling steeds, And where the warriors fell the flood Was dark and terrible with blood. Six giants' singled Rama out, And charged him with a furious shout Loud as the roaring of the sea When every wind is raging free. Six times he shot: six heads were cleft; Six giants dead on earth were left. Nor ceased he yet: his bow he strained, And from the sounding weapon rained A storm of shafts whose fiery glare Filled all the region of the air; And chieftains dropped before his aim Like moths that perish in the flame. Earth glistened where the arrows fell, As shines in autumn nights a dell Which fireflies, flashing through the gloom, With momentary light illume.
Hut Indrajit, when Bali's son2 The victory o'er the foe had won, Saw with a fury-kindled eye His mangled steeds and driver die; Then, lost in air, he fled the fight, And vanished from the victor's sight. The Gods and saints glad voices raised, And Angad for his virtue praised; And Raghu's sons bestowed the meed Of honour due to valorous deed.
Compelled his shattered car to quit, Rage filled the soul of Indrajit, Who brooked not, strong by Brahma's grace Defeat from one of Vanar race. In magic mist concealed from view His bow the treacherous warrior drew, Arid Raghu's sons were first to feel The tempest of his winged steel. Then when his arrows tailed to kill The princes who defied him still, He bound them with the serpent noose,3 The magic bond which none might loose, CANTO XLV. INDRAJIT'S VICTORY.
Brave Rdma, burning still to know The station of his artful foe, 1 Yajnasatru, Mahap/irsva, Mahodar, Vajradanshtra, 3uka, and Saran.
* Angad.
3 A mysterious weapon consisting of serpents transformed to arrows which deprived the wounded object of all sense and Dower of motion.
Canto XLVL THE RAMATAN.
Gave to ten chieftains, mid the best Of all the host, his high behest. ISwif t rose in air the Vanar band: Each region of the sky they scanned: But Ravan's son by magic skill Checked them with arrows swifter still, When streams of blood from chest and side The dauntless Vanars' limbs had dyed, The giant in his misty shroud Showed like the sun obscured by cloud. Like serpents hissing through the air, His arrows smote the princely pair; And from their limbs at every rent A stream of rushing blood was sent. Like Kinsuk trees they stood, that show In spring their blossoms' crimson glow. Then Indrajit with fury eyed Ikshvaku's royal sous, and cried: * Not mighty Indra can assail Or see me when I choose to veil My form in battle: and can ye, Children of earth, contend with me? The arrowy noose this hand has shot Has bound you with a hopeless knot; And, slaughtered by rny shafts and bow, To Yama's hall this hour ye go.'
He spoke, and shouted. Then anew The arrows from his bowstring flew, And pierced, well aimed with perfect art, Each limb and joint and vital part. Transfixed with shafts in every limb. Then-strength relaxed.theireyesgrewdim. As two tall standards side by side, With each sustaining rope untied, Fall levelled by the howling blast, So earth's majestic lords at last Beneath the arrowy tempest reeled, And prostrate pressed the battle field, CANTO XLVL INDRAJIT'S TRIUMPH.
The Vanar chiefs whose piercing eyes Scanned eagerly the earth and skies, Saw the brave brothers wounded sore Transfixed with darts and stained with gore. The monarch of the Vanar race, With wise Vibhishan, reached the place; Angad and Nila came behind, And others of the forest kind, And standing with Hanum^n there Lamented for the fallen pair. Their melancholy eyes they raised; In fruitless search a while they gazed. But magic arts Vibhishan knew; Not hidden from his keener view, Though veiled by magic from the rest, The son of Ravan stood confessed.
Fierce Indrajit with savage pride The fallen sons of Raghu eyed, And every giant heart was proud As thus the warrior cried aloud: ' Slain by mine arrows Rama lies, And closed in death are Lakshman's eyes. Dead are the mighty princes who * Dushan and Khara smote and slew. The Gods and fiends mav toil in vain To free them from the binding chain. The haughty chief, my father's dread, Who drove him sleepless from his bed, While Lanka, troubled like a brook In rain time, heard his name and shook: He whose fierce hate our lives pursued Lies helpless by my shafts subdued. Now fruitless is each wondrous deed Wrought by the race the forests breed, And fruitless every toil at last Like cloudlets when the rains are past.' Then rose the shout of giants loud As thunder from a bursting cloud, When, deeming Rama, dead, they raised Their voices and the conqueror praised.
Still motionless, as lie the slain, The brothers pressed the bloody plain. No sigh they drew, no breath they heaved, And lay as though of life bereaved. Proud of the deed his art had done, To Lanka's town went Ravar*'sson, Where, as he passed, all fear' was stilled, And every heart with triumph filled, Sugriva trembled as he viewed Each fallen prince with blood bedewed, And in his eyes which overflowed With tears the flame of anger glowed. 'Calm,' cried Vibhishan, 'calm thy fears* And stay the torrent of 'thy tears. Still must the chance of battle change^ And victory still delight to range. Our cause again will she befriend And bring us triumph in the end. This is not death: each prince will break The spell that holds him, and awake; Nor long shall numbing magic bind The mighty arm, the lofty mind.'