We had seen the story of the Ramayana evolving all the way and arriving at the beginning of the final battle with Ravana. There are five Kandas or books taking us through the journey of Rama and leading us to this moment in the sixth book – Yuddha Kanda. We had seen through the end of previous book and the beginning of this book on battle till the last chapter that there are various efforts made to prevent the war by Ravana’s own men and Rama as well. There are more than six instances where someone gives wise counsel to Ravana to shun the wrong path. But this was met with undivided derision by the demon king who is immersed in a sea of belief that his powers will prevail. The lust, anger and ego of Ravana gets the better of him as he was consumed by this poison which fuels his resolve to fight. We had seen Rama sending Angada in the last post as the final attempt to stop war. Ravana, however, ordered his rakshasas to kill Angada. Undeterred, Angada picked up two of them, rose into the sky, and threw them down. As he left the city, Angada also broke off the tower of Ravana’s palace. All these actions and the history of Ravana says that he has arrived at this point by walking a path of misdemeanors, evil and many fallacies, which propelled him into his final days of battle.
On the other hand, Rama approaches the battle after treading a path of dharma, goodness, righteousness and full of compassion. The young prince does not commit a single big mistake as he was born to great ancestry, educated by great men, admired by everyone for his virtues, symbol of sacrifice who lived in exile giving away kingship and kingdom despite immense valor, greatness, surrounded by devotional brothers, vanaras, friends and committed to a doting wife who is a symbol of purity. The journey of Rama is laced with great moments and tales which upheld and exhibited his characteristics at every turn. He seeks to give Ravana every possible opportunity to make the decision to concede and live. Even when faced with an adversary who wishes to kill him, Rama aims to spread goodness. A duel of opposites will take place and it is written in black and white that good prevails over evil and a symbol of cruelty will be decimated forever. Rama’s virtuous deeds result in divine assistance despite his human form as the lone man in exile is assisted by many while Ravana’s arrogance and cruelty bring about his downfall despite his great powers and boons. This can be a brief philosophy of the battle and the moment of annihilation of wicked is about to transpire as battle begins in this Kanda from the following chapters.
In chapter 42, the demons break the news to Ravana about Lanka. Ravana having been laid siege to by the monkeys. Ravana then ascends his mansion and surveys the innumerable troops of monkeys, occupying the entire city of Lanka. Meanwhile, Rama issues a command to the monkeys to destroy the enemies forthwith. The monkeys start demolishing various important defensive structures of the city of Lanka and besiege all the city-gates. Ravana also commands his army to commence combat. Sounds of couches blown by the army and terrible roars on both sides re-echoes the air, earth and sea. Demons begin to strike the monkeys with their weapons and the monkeys respond the strike with trees, mountain-tops, nails and teeth.
Ravana climbed up the ramparts of his city to look at the teeming vanara armies, seeming to cover not only the earth and the sea, but also the sky. Once again restlessness seized him. While Ravana worried about the vanaras, Rama wondered about the inviolable fortifications of the city, and the army from Kishkindha swore to reduce Lanka to rubble. In the clash that followed, rakshasas plowed through their enemies with spears, maces and axes, while the vanaras fought back with their teeth, nails, rocks and trees until the ground under their feet turned into a blood-soaked mire.
In chapter 43, Extra-ordinary duels arose between the monkeys and demons, who ran up towards each other. Indrajit fought with Angada, Sampati with Prajangha, Hanuman with Jambumali, Vibhishana with the demon Shatrughna, Gaja with Tapana, Nila with Nikumbha, Sugreeva with Praghasa, Lakshmana with Virupaksha, Agniketu and others with Rama, Vajramsushit with Mainda, Ashaniprabha with Divivda, Pratapana with Nala and Sushena with Vidyunami. Streams of blood flowed from both sides. In a series of hand-to-hand encounters, the valiant monkeys destroyed the strong demons. The remaining demons waited for the sun to set in and re-assembled with a renewed vigor for the battle.
The tireless ferocity of their enemy infuriated rakshasas. Radiant in their magnificent armor, riding gold bedecked elephants, horses and golden chariots, they whose exploits were demonic and whose desire for Ravana's victory obsessive, fell on the vanaras roaring like lions. Angada battling with Indrajit shattered his chariot while all around them thousands fell dead. The carnage was fearful. The battle ground was strewn with broken chariots, bodies and weapons, while blood flowed like great rivers in spate. In that stubborn engagement, decimated by the foremost of monkeys, the demons - rangers of the night as the day ended, maddened by the smell of blood, in desperation made preparations for the morrow, and those Rakshasas, their limbs covered with blood, desired nothing so greatly as that night should fall.
In chapter 44, A nocturnal war commences between the hostile demons and monkeys. The demons destroy some monkeys. The monkeys drag and kill elephants, chariots and their occupants. Rama and Lakshmana even in that darkness kill the foremost of demons. As a result of the struggle, streams of blood flow in the battle-field. That fatal night transforms into a night of dissolution. When some demons attack Rama with arrows, Rama strikes down six of the demons within a moment and they run away for life. Rama then clears off innumerable demons from the battle filed. Angada strikes Indrajit, his chariot and the charioteer all at once, but Indrajit vanishes from the spot. Sugreeva and his monkeys feel delighted and praise Angada's prowess. Indrajit comes back in an invisible form and by recourse to magic, makes Rama and Lakshmana captive by hurling a network of serpentine around them.
Dark bodied rakshasas wearing gold armor glowed in the dark of night as they ranged devouring and destroying their enemy. The vanaras went around tearing and biting, and Rama's arrows flew even as prowling demons perished like moths in a flame. Gods, celestials and creatures of the world were delighted to see Indrajit fight a losing battle while Rama told his men that Indrajit with an arrogance born of the boon of Brahma had gone on rampages without end. "His time to die draws near and destined to die in your hands, he stands before you. But for now and for my sake, be careful and be patient." Just then Indrajit began raining deadly arrows at the enemy, but soon disappeared unable to face Rama. From behind the veil of his deceit, he shot arrow after arrow wounding and disabling the princes Rama and Lakshmana.
Indrajit, who had been overcome in the duel with Bali's son of redoubtable deeds, was seized with violent wrath. Rendering himself invisible by virtue of the boon he had received from Brahma, that wicked wretch, who was exhausted by the fight, transported with anger, loosed some sharp arrows, bright as lightning on Rama and Lakshmana. On the field of battle, in his rage, he pierced the limbs of those two Raghavas with formidable shafts resembling serpents. Enveloped by illusion, he sought to confuse them in the struggle and, invisible to all beings through his magic arts, that ranger of the night bound those two brothers Rama and Lakshmana with a network of arrows. Then the monkeys beheld the two warriors, those lions among men, enmeshed by the serpentine darts of that furious demon. Not being able to overcome those two princes in his manifest form, the son of the King of the demons, in his perversity, had recourse to magic in order to make them captive.
In chapter 45, Rama orders ten of the monkey-generals to search for the whereabouts of Indrajit. But Indrajit arrested the approach of those monkeys, by means of his arrows. Both Rama and Lakshmana were transfixed by Indrajit with a network of serpentine arrows into the vital parts of Rama and Lakshmana and they fell down on the battleground in a bath of blood. Seeing those two scions of Raghu in that state, the monkeys give way to utter despondence.
Rama sent ten in all, including Hanuman, to find Indrajit. But unseen and invisible, the rakshasa continued to shoot at Rama and Lakshmana until from every pore of their pierced bodies, like water from a spring, gushed blood. Finally, Rama's bow slipped to lay by his side, while watching him Lakshmana felt as if his own life was draining away. Victims of Indrajit's treachery, the brothers lay not only wounded but bound by his Nagastra.
Beholding Rama, that lion among men, fall under a hail of arrows, Lakshmana gave up all hope of living and he was overcome by grief on beholding the lotus-eyed Rama, his refuge, who ever delighted in battle, lying on the earth. The monkeys too, witnessing this, suffered extreme distress and, their eyes full of tears, overcome with despair, emitted mournful cries; and while those two warriors lay unconscious on that heroes' bed, the monkeys surrounded them and, assembling there, with the son of the Wind at their head, remained inconsolable and a prey to despair.
In chapter 46, the monkeys along with Hanuman and Angada begin to grieve, on beholding the plight of Rama and Lakshmana who were entwined in a network of arrows. Indrajit informs demons about his adventure of captivating both Rama and Lakshmana by his network of serpentine arrows. Indrajit strikes the other monkey-cheifs like Nila, Mainda, Dvivida, Hanuman, Gavaksha and Angada as also Jambavan. When Sugreeva looks depressed on seeing the plight of Rama and Lakshmana, Vibhishana consoles him, saying that Rama is not going to die. He also reassures the disheartened monkeys and infuses confidence in them. Indrajit, meanwhile, informs Ravana that both Rama and Lakshmana have been killed. Ravana applauds his son for his daring act.
Indrajit claims he has killed him, the cause of his father's torment, reason for his worries and sleepless nights. He who has reduced Lanka into a turbulent, rain fed river lives no more. Indrajit rejoiced, Sugriva grieved and Vibhishana consoled as he said, "Sugriva, all wars are the same and victory is never an assurance. If at all we have any good fortune remaining, Rama and Lakshmana will come out of the mist of their swoon. Meanwhile, Indrajit marched into Lanka to announce the death of Rama and Lakshmana and the delighted king of rakshasas rose to embrace his son and hear of his exploits.
In chapter 47, Ravana summons some female demons including Trijata and instructs them to take Sita in Pushpaka-plane to the battle-front and show Rama and Lakshmana alleged to have been killed by Indrajit. Accordingly, the female-demons take Sita in Pushpaka-plane and show her Rama and Lakshmana lying unconscious on a bed of arrows in the battle-field. Imagining Rama and Lakshmana to have been dead, Sita bursts into sobs.
While Indrajit returned to Lanka, the vanaras continued their intense vigil over the princes. Ravana bade the demons guarding Sita to take her to where Rama laid. "Tell her," he said, "that she who refused me while Rama was alive will now come to me of her own free will." Taken to the battlefield where she beheld the greatest among men, pierced and thrown to the ground, Sita's grief poured out of her eyes as hot tears of anguish.
And when the unfortunate Sita beheld those two intrepid lions among men, pierced with spears, she broke into piteous lamentations, and the dark-eyed Sita, the daughter of Janaka, of faultless limbs, beholding her lord and Lakshmana lying on the earth, burst into sobs. Exhausted with weeping and grief on seeing those two brothers resembling the offspring of the Gods and, believing them to be dead, overwhelmed with affliction, she spoke in lamentations.
This concludes chapters 42, 43, 44, 45, 46 and 47 where we had seen the full-blown war erupting between the Rakshasas and the vanaras led by Rama. Extraordinary one to one duels erupts between vanara chiefs and Rakshasa generals. While rakshasas plowed through their enemies with spears, maces and axes, the vanaras fought back with their teeth, nails, rocks and trees until the ground under their feet turned red with blood. The vanaras fight valiantly initially, which draws back the demons as they waited for the night to set in. At this time, with the help of magical powers, Indrajit held in captive Rama and Lakshmana through Nagastra and darts a number of arrows at them. The two great brothers were bound, bleeding and lay unconscious which had the vanaras fell in despair. Sita was brought to witness the same and she bursts out in grief while Ravana rejoices as he hears about this from Indrajit. How this difficult phase was overcome can be seen in subsequent chapters.
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