Uttara Kanda, Sarga 6

Meaning

“The gods, as well as seers given to asceticism who were being killed by them (the Rākṣasas), were terribly afraid and sought refuge in Maheśwara, the god of gods, the creator and destroyer of the world, the unborn, the unmanifest, the support of all the worlds, the worshipful one and the highest Guru. (1-2)

Meaning

“Approaching in a body, the enemy of Kāma and Tripura, the three-eyed God, the aforementioned gods said with folded hands, in a voice faltering due to fear: (3)

Meaning

“ ‘O divine lord of living beings, all creatures are being harassed by the sons of Sukeśa who have grown haughty by reason of the boons granted to them by Brahmā and who are the scourge of their foes. (4)

Meaning

“ ‘Our habitations and hermitages have been made unfit for our residence. Driving out the gods from heaven, they sport there as if they were gods. (5)

Meaning

“ ‘The Rākṣasas Mālī, Sumālī and Mālyavān and their lieutenants, thirsting for battle, give us trouble saying, ‘I am Viṣṇu, I am Rudra, I am Brahmā, I am Indra, I am Yama, I am Varuṇa, I am the moon and the sun.’ (6-7)

Meaning

“ ‘O Lord, please grant fearlessness to us, who are afraid; kill these enemies of gods by assuming a fierce-looking form.’ (8)

Meaning

“Spoken to in these words by all the gods, Lord Śiva, the god with matted locks, who had some consideration for Sukeśa, said to the host of gods: (9)

Meaning

‘I will not kill them as the said ogres are exempt from death at my hands; but I shall advise you as regards the person who will surely kill them. (10)

Meaning

‘With this purpose in view, O great seers, go and seek refuge in Viṣṇu and the said Lord will kill them.’ (11)

Meaning

“Then greeting Maheśwara with a shout of victory, they, who were afraid of the Rākṣasas, came to the presence of Lord Viṣṇu. (12)

Meaning

“Paying obeisance and praising the Lord, who holds the conch and the discus, in a voice full of awe, they spoke the following words with regard to the sons of Sukeśa: (13)

Meaning

“ ‘O Lord, by reason of the boons granted to them, the three sons of Sukeśa, resembling the three fires, have usurped our places after invading them. (14)

Meaning

“ ‘There is a city, Laṅkā by name, situated on the crest of Mount Trikūṭa, which is difficult of access. The Rākṣasas settled there are harassing all of us. (15)

Meaning

“ ‘O Lord Madhusūdana, we have taken refuge in You; as such be our saviour and kill them for our good, O Ruler of gods ! (16)

Meaning

“ ‘O Lord, except You there is surely none else who will grant us protection in times of danger; with Your discus tear the lotus-like faces of these haughty Rākṣasas who are full of haughtiness for war and give them as a gift to Yama alongwith their followers and remove our fear as the sun melts the frost.’ (17-18)

Meaning

“Thus spoken to by the gods, Janārdana, the adored of gods, the scourge of His foes, granted protection to the heavenly beings and said: (19)

Meaning

“I know the ogre Sukeśa who has grown arrogant by reason of the boons granted to him by Śiva; I know his notorious sons also, of whom the said Mālyavān is the eldest. (20)

Meaning

“Getting infuriated I will kill these despicable Rākṣasas, who have transgressed all propriety, O gods; be free from worry.” (21)

Meaning

“Having been assured thus by the All-powerfull Lord Viṣṇu, the gods praised Janārdana and left for their respective places full of joy. (22)

Meaning

Having heard of the move of the gods, Mālyavān, the Rākṣasa, spoke as follows to his aforesaid heroic brothers: (23)

Meaning

“The gods and seers, seeking our destruction, addressed in a body, the following words to Śaṅkara: ‘O Lord, the fierce-looking sons of Sukeśa, grown haughty and arrogant by reason of the boons granted to them, torment us every now and then. (24-25)

Meaning

“O Lord of living beings, we are overpowered by these Rākṣasas; for fear of these wicked ones we are unable to reside in our abodes. (26)

Meaning

“O three-eyed God and the foremost of destroyers, kill these Rākṣasas for our good and consume them with just a roar (Huṅkāra).” (27)

Meaning

Listening to these words of the gods, the Slayer of Andhaka, shaking His head and hand, spoke the following words: (28)

Meaning

‘O gods, those sons of Sukeśa are immune from death at my hands in war; but I shall advise you as regards the person who will surely kill them. (29)

Meaning

‘Seek refuge in Him, the glorious Janārdana, who holds in His hands the discus and the club, who wears a yellow garment and who is also known as Hari and Nārāyaṇa.’ (30)

Meaning

Receiving this advice from Hara, they paid obeisance to the foe of Kāma (Lord Śiva) and reaching the abode of Nārāyaṇa, submitted all their woes to Him. (31)

Meaning

“The gods led by Indra were thereupon assured by Nārāyaṇa: ‘I will kill those enemies of yours, O gods, shed your fear.’ (32)

Meaning

“O best of Rākṣasas, Hari has promised to the frightened gods that He will bring about our destruction; therefore, think of what is the proper action to do on this occasion. (33)

Meaning

“The death of Hiraṇyakaśipu, and other enemies was encompassed by him. Nay, Namuci, Kālanemi, Saṁhrāda, the best of the brave, Rādheya, who knew many conjuring tricks, the righteous Lokapāla, Yamala, Arjuna and Hārdikya, Śumbha and Niśumbha and other demons and giants of great might, and full of courage, who were never defeated on the battlefield are heard of no more. (34—36)

Meaning

“All of them had performed hundreds of Vedic sacrifices and all of them knew deceitful warfare; all of them were well-practised in all arms and all of them were such as created fright in the minds of their enemies. (37)

Meaning

“They were killed in hundreds and thousands by Nārāyaṇa; keeping this in mind all of you will do well to do that which is proper for you all at this juncture. It is difficult to conquer Nārāyaṇa, who desires to kill us at this moment.” (38)

Meaning

“Hearing these words of Mālyavān, Sumālī and Mālī spoke to their elder brother even as the Aświns speak to Indra: (39)

Meaning

‘We have studied the Vedas, have performed acts of charity and the Vedic sacrifices. We have safeguarded our wealth; we have obtained a long lease of life free from disease. We have Dharma installed in our life. (40)

Meaning

‘The sea in the form of gods, which was incapable of being disturbed has been penetrated by our missiles; unequalled foes have been conquered. There is no fear of death to us. (41)

Meaning

‘Nārāyaṇa and Rudra and Indra, and Yama—all of them are always afraid of standing in front of us. (42)

Meaning

‘O Lord of Rākṣasas, Viṣṇu has no cause for quarrel with us; his mind has been poisoned only by the crookedness of gods. (43)

Meaning

‘Therefore, let us all even now join together and, guarded by one another, kill the very gods from whom enmity has started.’ (44)

Meaning

“Having taken counsel in this manner, all those strong leaders of the Rākṣasas, like Jambha, Vṛtra and etc., followed by all their troops and proclaiming their intention, sallied forth for war in anger. Having thought thus, O Rāma all the said Rākṣasas of huge bodies and immense strength, set forth for war with all preparations. Leaving Laṅkā, all the Rākṣasas, the enemies of gods, in the pride of their strength, proceeded towards the abode of gods to wage war followed by chariots, elephants, horses huge as elephants, mules, cows, camels, Śiśumāras (dolphins), snakes, alligators, tortoises, fish, birds huge as Garuḍa, lions, tigers, boars, varieties of deer known as Sṛmara and Camara. Other living beings, who were residing in Laṅkā, foreseeing its destruction and apprehending danger, became sad. The Rākṣasas in their hundreds and thousands soon set out collectively in the best of chariots towards the realm of gods with determination. The gods also went out through the same passage as the Rākṣasas. (45—52)

Meaning

“Portents, both terrestrial and celestial, ordained by Yama and indicating the impending danger, distinctly arose suggesting the destruction of the Rākṣasas. (53)

Meaning

Clouds rained bones and hot blood; the oceans transgressed their limits and mountains rocked. (54)

Meaning

Creatures roaring like thunder raised yells resembling a horse-laugh and fierce-looking she-jackals, emitted piercing howls. (55)

Meaning

The elements appeared to be dissolving as it were one after another, and a huge circle of vultures spitting forth flames through their mouths, were hovering like Death over the Rākṣasa hordes. Red-footed pigeons and mynas flew with speed. (56-57)

Meaning

The crows cawed aloud, the cats growled and the elephants etc., too trumpeted at that very spot. “Not minding these evil forebodings, the Rākṣasas, arrogant as they were by reason of their strength, did not retrace their steps, but proceeded drawn by the noose of Yama. Mālyavān and Sumālī, as well as Mālī, of great strength, marched like blazing fires at the head of the Rākṣasas. On Mālyavān, unshakable like Mount Mālyavān, the Rākṣasas relied even as the gods relied on Brahmā. The aforesaid army of the leaders of ogres under the command of Mālī, and producing a noise resembling the peal of thunder, proceeded to the realm of gods with a view to conquering it. “Hearing of the aforesaid endeavour of the Rākṣasas from the envoy of the gods, Lord Viṣṇu, for His part made up His mind to fight, and equipped with a quiver full of arrows rode on Garuḍa. (58—63)

Meaning

Mounted on the beautiful-feathered Garuḍa, who looked like a hill, equipped with a pair of immaculate quivers full of arrows, putting on His celestial armour shining like a thousand suns, arming Himself with His excellent weapons—the conch, the discus, the mace, the Śārṅga bow and the sword, and fastening His belt as well as His splendid sword, the lotus-eyed Lord set out at once to bring about the destruction of the Rākṣasas. (64—66)

Meaning

Mounting on the back of Garuḍa, the most handsome Lord Hari, clad in yellow, shone like a cloud with a streak of lightning on a peak of Mount Meru. (67)

Meaning

Holding the discus, the sword, the bow and the conch in His hands, the Lord, the enemy of Asura hordes, duly arrived, His praises being sung by Siddhas, gods, Ṛṣis, Mahoragas (huge serpents), Gandharvas and Yakṣas. (68)

Meaning

By the wind arising from the flapping of Garuḍa’s wings a portion of the Rākṣasa king’s army was blown away, their banners whirled and their weapons slipped from their hands; the said army of the king of ogres shook like the crest of a blue hill with its crags displaced. (69)

Meaning

The Rākṣasas in their thousands surrounded Viṣṇu and attacked Him with sharp excellent weapons daubed with blood and flesh, and resembling the fire arising at the end of the world-cycle. (70)