Chapter 7(52)
Sumantra arrived and addressed Raghava in these words. ‘O king! Some ascetics are waiting at the gate, having been stopped there. At the forefront of those maharshis is one who is named Bhargava Chyavana. O great king! They have urged that they wish to see you. O tiger among men! They reside along the banks of the Yamuna and seek your favours.’ Hearing his words, Rama, who knew about dharma, replied, ‘Let the great-souled brahmanas, with Bhargava at the forefront, enter.’ Placing the king’s command at the forefront, he683 joined his hands in salutation above his head and asked the many revered ascetics who were at the gate to enter. There were more than one hundred of them, blazing in their own energies. Those great-souled ascetics entered the royal residence. Those brahmanas held pots filled with water from all the tirthas. They held many kinds of fruits and roots that they had brought for Rama. Rama accepted everything that had been offered with affection—all the water from the tirthas and the many kinds of fruit. The mighty-armed one spoke to all those great sages, ‘As you deserve, please sit down on these excellent seats.’ Hearing the words spoken by Rama, all those maharshis sat down on those beautiful and golden seats, spread with cushions. The destroyer of enemy cities saw that the rishis had seated themselves. Controlling himself and joining his hands in salutation, Raghava addressed them in these words. ‘O stores of austerities! Why have you come here? What can I do for you? All the commands of the maharshis will be cheerfully undertaken. Everything in this kingdom and the life that is in my heart is all for the sake of the brahmanas. I am stating this truthfully.’ On hearing his words, loud words of praise arose from the rishis who resided along the banks of the Yamuna, fierce in their austerities. Filled with great delight, those great-souled ones said, ‘O best among men! Other than you, there is no one on earth who could have said this. O king! We have been to many kings who are extremely strong. Despite hearing about the importance of the task, the idea of taking a pledge to accomplish it did not appeal to them. However, displaying the due respect to brahmanas, you have taken a pledge without ascertaining the reason. There is no doubt that you will do what you have promised to. You will certainly save the rishis from a great fear.’
Chapter 7(53)
When the rishis said this, Kakutstha addressed them in these words. ‘Tell me what task must be done for you. I will destroy your fear.’ When Kakutstha said this, Bhargava spoke these words. ‘O lord of men! Hear the reason for our fear and it is the foundation of the country’s fear too. O Rama! Earlier, in krita yuga, there was an extremely strong daitya. He was the eldest son of Lola and the great asura’s name was Madhu. He was the refuge of brahmanas and possessed great intelligence. He had unmatched affection for the extremely generous gods. Madhu was full of valour, extremely controlled and devoted to dharma. Revering him a lot, Rudra gave him an extraordinary boon. Extremely delighted, the great-souled one gave the immensely valiant one an extremely radiant trident that was superior to his own trident and addressed him in these words. “You possess unmatched dharma. I am greatly delighted with you. Therefore, as a mark of my favours, I am giving you this excellent and auspicious weapon. O great asura! As long as you do not act against the gods and the brahmanas, till that time, this trident will remain with you. However, if you act in a contrary way, you will no longer possess it and it will be destroyed. As long as you possess it, you can fight without any anxiety. The trident will consume684 and again return to your hand.” Having obtained this boon from Rudra, the great asura again bowed down before Mahadeva and addressed him in these words. “O illustrious one! O god! O lord of the gods! Let this excellent trident also remain in my lineage.” When Madhu said this, the god Shiva Mahadeva, the lord of all creatures, replied, “This cannot be. However, because of my auspicious favours, your words cannot be futile either. Therefore, this trident will pass on to one of your sons. As long as the trident is in the hand of that son and as long as he holds the trident in his hand, he cannot be killed by any creature.” Thus, Madhu obtained this great and extraordinary boon from the god. The best among the asuras created an extremely radiant residence.685 His immensely fortunate and beloved wife was Kumbhinasi. The immensely radiant one was the daughter of Visvavasu and Anala. Her son was the terrible and extremely valiant one named Lavana. Since childhood, he was evil in his soul and wicked in his conduct. On seeing that his son was insolent, Madhu became filled with sorrow. However, though he grieved, he did not tell him anything. Having left his world, he entered Varuna’s abode. He gave Lavana the trident and told him about the boon. Thanks to the powers of the trident and his own evil-souled nature, he tormented the three worlds, especially the ascetics. These are the powers of Lavana and his trident. O Kakutstha! Having heard about it, determine what is best for us. O Rama! O brave one! Earlier, because of our fear, we have sought freedom from fear from many kings. But we have not been able to find a protector. We heard that you have killed Ravana, with his forces and mounts. We seek a protector in you. There is no other king on earth. We are afflicted by fear on account of Lavana and desire that you should save us.’
Chapter 7(54)
Thus addressed by the rishi, Rama joined his hands in salutation and replied. ‘What does Lavana eat? What is his conduct? Where does he reside?’ Hearing Raghava’s words, all the rishis told him how Lavana had grown up. ‘He eats all creatures, especially ascetics. His conduct is always terrible. He always resides in Madhuvana. Every day, he always kills and eats ten thousand lions, tigers, deer, leopards and humans. The immensely strong one eats many other creatures. They face destruction, as if they face Death with a gaping mouth.’ Hearing this, Raghava addressed the great sages in these words. ‘Let your fear be dispelled. I will slay that rakshasa.’ He thus took a pledge before the sages, fierce in their austerities. The descendant of the Raghu lineage summoned all his brothers and asked them, ‘O brave ones! Who will slay Lavana? Whose share does he belong to? Is he meant for the mighty-armed Bharata or Shatrughna?’ When Raghava said this, Bharata replied in these words. ‘I will kill him. He should be part of my share.’ Hearing Bharata’s words, Lakshmana’s younger brother,686 who was full of power and valour, got up from his golden seat. Bowing down before the lord of men, Shatrughna spoke these words. ‘The mighty-armed middle one687 among the descendants of Raghu has performed his appointed task. O noble one! Earlier, the noble one has protected the empty city of Ayodhya, despite his heart being tormented while he waited for your return. O king! He had to tolerate many kinds of hardship. In Nandigrama, the great-souled one slept on a bed of misery. He ate fruits and roots. He had matted hair and was attired in bark. The descendant of the Raghava lineage undertook such kinds of hardships. O king! If you send me, while he remains here, he will not have to face a hardship again.’ Thus addressed by Shatrughna, Raghava again said, ‘O Kakutstha! Then let it be that way. Act according to my instructions. O mighty-armed one! I am conferring the kingdom of the auspicious city of Madhu on you, since it is your wish that Bharata should reside here. You are brave and accomplished in learning. You are capable of establishing a prosperous city and an auspicious countryside in Madhu’s dominion. When a lineage is uprooted and a king is also slain, a person who does not set up a king there goes to hell.688 Pay heed to my words. Having killed Madhu’s son, Lavana, who is wicked in his determination, follow dharma and rule over that kingdom. O brave one! You should not speak any words in reply that contradict mine. Since I am older and since you are a child, there is no doubt that you must act in this way. O Kakutstha! With Vasishtha at the forefront, and with the other brahmanas following the rituals and pronouncing mantras, it is my desire that I should make efforts to consecrate you.’689
Chapter 7(55)
When Rama spoke in this way, Shatrughna, who was full of valour, was filled with great shame. In a soft and gentle voice, he replied, ‘O bull among men! One must certainly act in accordance with your command. O immensely fortunate one! It is impossible to cross your instructions. O king! O bull among men! I will inde
ed do what you desire.’ When the brave and great-souled Shatrughna said this, Rama was delighted and spoke to Lakshmana and Bharata. ‘Control yourselves and bring all the objects required for the consecration. I will consecrate the invincible tiger among men today. O Katkusthas!690 Convey my command and summon the priest, the priests who will offer oblations, the priests who will officiate and all the ministers.’ Thus commanded by the king, the maharathas acted in that way. With the priest at the forefront, they made arrangements for the consecration and entered the royal palace, which was like Purandara’s residence. After this, the great-souled Shatrughna’s consecration was undertaken, delighting everyone who was in Raghava’s prosperous city. Having performed the consecration, Raghava took Shatrughna up on his lap and addressed him in these sweet words, filling him with energy. ‘O destroyer of enemy cities! O amiable one! O descendant of the Raghu lineage! I am giving you this divine and invincible arrow. Kill Lavana with it. O Kakutstha! When he was lying down on the great ocean and could not be seen by the gods and the asuras, the god Svayambhu691 created this arrow. While he was invisible to all creatures and was filled with rage in a desire to kill the evil-souled Madhu and Kaitabha, the brave one fashioned this excellent arrow. Desiring to create the three worlds, he used this excellent arrow to kill those two in the battle and created the worlds. O Shatrughna! Desiring to kill Ravana earlier, I did not shoot this arrow because there would have been great fear among creatures. The great-souled Tryambaka gave Madhu the excellent weapon of a giant trident for the sake of slaying the enemy. Keeping it in that residence and repeatedly worshipping it, he692 looks towards all the directions, seeking to obtain food for himself. Whenever anyone wishes to challenge him to a battle, the rakshasa seizes the trident and reduces him to ashes. O tiger among men! When he is outside the city, he is without a weapon.693 With your weapon, remain at the gate, before he has entered the city. O bull among men! O mighty-armed one! Challenge him to a fight before he has entered the residence. You will thereby slay the rakshasa. If you act in any other way, he cannot be killed. O brave one! If you do what I have said, he will be destroyed. I have told you everything about the calamity that resulted from the trident. The prosperous Shitikantha694 gave it and it is invincible.’
Chapter 7(56)
Kakutstha said this and repeatedly praised him. The descendant of the Raghu lineage again spoke these words. ‘O bull among men! There are four thousand horses, two thousand chariots and one hundred elephants here. The shops along the roads have many kinds of merchandise.695 O Shatrughna! Let dancers and actors follow you. O bull among men! Take ten thousand golden coins. O Shatrughna! Go with sufficient quantities of riches and mounts. O brave one! Take excellent, cheerful and healthy forces who are armed properly. O supreme among men! Address them, give them gifts and make them happy. O Raghava! In a place where there are no wives and relatives, large numbers of servants reside only when they are happy. Therefore, depart with a lot of happy people and a large army. However, approach Madhuvana alone, with a bow in your hand. That way, the subjects will not know that you are going there to fight. Without arising suspicion, you will be able to approach Lavana, Madhu’s son. O bull among men! There is no one else who can bring about his death. As soon as he sees anyone approach, Lavana kills him. O amiable one! Lavana should be killed when summer is over and it is a night in the rainy season. That is the time for the evil-minded one’s death. Let your soldiers advance with the maharshis at the forefront. When there is a little bit of summer left, the waters of the Jahnavee can be crossed. Control yourself and make all the forces camp along the banks of the river. O one who is light in valour! With your bow, advance ahead.’ Rama spoke in this way to the immensely strong Shatrughna. He696 summoned the foremost commanders and addressed them in these words. ‘These are the camps earmarked for you to reside in. Dwell there, without any conflicts. But make sure there are no impediments.’ Having been commanded in this way, the large army departed. He greeted Kousalya, Sumitra and Kaikeyee. Circumambulating Rama, he bowed his head down before him. Shatrughna, the scorcher of enemies, took Rama’s leave. He joined his hands in salutation and bowed down before Lakshmana and Bharata. Controlling himself, Shatrughna circumambulated the priest, Vasishtha. The immensely strong one departed.
Chapter 7(57)
After the entire army had left, it resided for one month along the path. Shatrughna left quickly, alone and speedily. After residing for two nights along the way, the brave descendant of the Raghava lineage reached Valmiki’s excellent and sacred hermitage. He greeted the great-souled Valmiki, supreme among sages. He joined his hands in salutation and addressed him in these words. ‘O illustrious one! I have come here, wishing to do something for my senior. Tomorrow morning, I will leave for the west, Varuna’s direction.’ Hearing Shatrughna’s words, the bull among sages smiled and replied, ‘O great-souled one! O immensely illustrious one! Welcome. O amiable one! My hermitage is for the lineage of the Raghavas. Without any hesitation, accept a seat, padya and arghya from me. Accept the honours and fruits and roots as food. O Kakutstha! Eat and be filled with great satisfaction.’ After eating, the mighty-armed one asked the maharshi. ‘Near the hermitage, there are signs of a former sacrifice. Whom does this belong to?’
Hearing what he said, Valmiki replied in these words. ‘O Shatrughna! Listen to whom this place belonged to in earlier times. Your ancestor was the son of the great-souled King Sudasa. His son was named Mitrasaha. He was valiant and devoted to dharma. Even when he was a child, Soudasa697 started to hunt. While he was roaming around, the brave one saw two rakshasas. They were in the form of two terrible tigers. Even when they devoured thousands of deer, they were not satisfied. It was not sufficient for them. He saw that those two rakshasas had emptied the forest of all deer. Filled with rage, he used a large arrow to kill one of them. Soudasa, bull among men, brought down one. Without anxiety and with his intolerance over, he looked towards the slain rakshasa. While he was thus looking, the rakshasa’s companion was filled with great and terrible torment. He told Soudasa, “You have slain my companion, though he has committed no crime. O wicked one! Therefore, I will give you the reaction to your action.” Having said this, the rakshasa vanished from the spot. When time passed, Mitrasaha became the king. The king performed a sacrifice near that hermitage.698 He performed a great horse sacrifice, tended to by Vasishtha. There was a great sacrifice there and it lasted for an extremely large number of years. It was extensive and greatly prosperous and was like a sacrifice of the gods. When the sacrifice was over, the rakshasa remembered the former enmity. It assumed Vasishtha’s form, came before the king and said, “Now that the sacrifice is over, give me some flesh to eat. Quickly give it to me. You should not think about it.” He heard the words spoken by the rakshasa who could assume any form at will. The lord of the earth spoke to those who were skilled in preparing food. “Swiftly prepare tasty oblations699 that are mixed with meat, so that the preceptor is satisfied.” Hearing the king’s command, the cook was scared in his mind. But the rakshasa assumed the form of a cook and did what had been asked. It offered the flesh of a human to the king and said, “These are tasty oblations with meat, prepared by me.” O tiger among men! He,700 with his wife, Madayanti, offered the meat prepared and brought by the rakshasa and offered it to Vasishtha. The brahmana got to know that food with human flesh had been brought. He was filled with great rage and started to say the following. “O king! Since you wish to serve this kind of food to me, there is no doubt that this will be your food.” The king and his wife repeatedly prostrated themselves before him. They told Vasishtha what the one in the form of a brahmana701 had told them. Learning from the lord of men that the rakshasa had distorted everything, Vasishtha again spoke to the king, lord of men. “I spoke those words when I was overcome by rage. I am incapable of rendering them false. However, I will grant you a boon. The duration of this curse will be for twelve years. O Indra among kings! Because of my favours, you will not remember the past.” Thus the king, the
destroyer of enemies, was cursed in this way. He got his kingdom back and protected the subjects. O Raghava! This is the auspicious and extensive sacrificial ground of Kalmashapada.702 You asked about it. His hermitage is nearby.’
Having heard the extremely terrible account about that Indra among kings, he703 honoured the maharshi and entered the cottage made out of leaves.
Chapter 7(58)
On the night when Shatrughna entered the cottage made out of leaves, Sita gave birth to two sons that very night. In the middle of the night, the children who were sons of the sages came and gave Valmiki the agreeable news about Sita’s auspicious delivery. ‘O immensely energetic one! Protect her and destroy the evil demons.’ Hearing their words, the sage was filled with delight. He protected her by performing the rituals that would kill demons and destroy rakshasas. The brahmana took some kusha grass in his fist and cut it.704 To protect them and destroy demons, Valmiki gave each of the two one half. To the pronouncement of mantras, the one who was born first was named Kusha. He was cleansed with kusha grass. That is the reason he was named Kusha. The one who was born later was carefully cleansed with the cut off bit that was left. The aged one thus gave him the name of Lava. Hence, those two twin sons obtained the names of Lava and Kusha. He705 said, ‘Because of what I have done, they will be famous by these two names. They were protected in this way at the hands of the controlled sage. They were protected and were cleansed of all sin. They706 performed the rites to protect them and gave them their gotras and their names. They pronounced that these two auspicious ones were the sons of Rama and Sita.’ In the middle of the night, Shatrughna heard this extremely pleasant news. In the night, he went to the cottage of leaves and said, ‘This is good fortune. It is fortunate.’ In this way, the great-souled Shatrughna rejoiced. Swift in speed, the monsoon night in the month of Shravana passed. In the morning, the immensely valiant one performed the morning rituals in due order. He joined his hands in salutation and took the sage’s permission. He then again left for the western direction. Spending seven nights along the way, he reached the banks of the Yamuna. There, he resided in the hermitage of the rishis who are auspicious in their deeds. Residing with the immensely illustrious sages, with Bhargava at the forefront, the king707 heard many kinds of accounts.
The Valmiki Ramayana Page 135
