Book IV : Kishkindha Kanda – The Kingdom of Holy Monkeys
Hanuma fetches Rama and Lakshmana to Sugreeva, and advises him to befriend Rama. Accordingly Rama and Sugreeva take the oath of friendship before an altar of fire and Rama assures to eliminate Vali the vice, from the face of earth. |
\ZymUkat! tu hnuman! gTva tm! mlym! igirm!,
Aacc]e tda vIraE kip rajay ra"vaE. 4£5£1
1. hanumaan= Hanuma; R^iSamuukaat tu= from Mt. Rishyamuka; tam malayam giram gatvaa= to that, Mt. Malaya, having gone; kapi raajaaya= to the king of monkeys; raaghavau tadaa= then; viirau= about the valiant ones; aachachakSe= has reported.
Hanuma on going from Mt. Rishyamuka to Mt. Malaya, has reported to the king of monkeys Sugreeva, about the two valiant Raghava-s. [4-5-1]
Aym! ramae mhaàa} s<àaÝae †F iv³m>,
lúm[en sh æaÇa ramae=ym! sTy iv³m>. 4£5£2
2. mahaa praaj~naH= oh, great discerner - Sugreeva; ayam raamaH= this is Rama; dhR^iDha vikramaH= oh, stubbornly, valiant one; bhraatraa lakshmanena= along with his brother, Lakshmana; sampraaptaH= arrived; saH raamaH ayam= Rama, he is; satya vikramaH= virtuously valiant one.
"Oh! great discerner Sugreeva, this is Rama... oh, stubbornly valiant Sugreeva, this virtuously valiant Rama arrived along with his brother Lakshmana... [4-5-2]
#úvakª[am! k…le jatae ramae dzrwaTmj>,
xmeR ingidt> c @v ipturœ indeRz kark>. 4£5£3
3. iksvaakuuNaam kule jaataH dasharatha aatmajaH= in Ikshvaku, dynasty, born, Dasharatha's, son; Rama; dharme nigaditaH ca= in virtue, adept, also; eva= thus; pituH nirdesha kaarakaH= thus, father's, orders, adherent.
"Rama is the son of king Dasharatha, one born in Ikshvaku dynasty, an adept one in virtue and thus an adherent of his father's orders... [4-5-3]
rajsUy AñmexE> c viû> yen Ai-tipRt>,
di][a> c twa %t!s&òa gav> zt shöz>. 4£5£4
tpsa sTy vaKyen vsuxa yen pailta,
ôI hetae> tSy puÇae=ym! ram> Ar[ym! smagt>. 4£5£5
4. yena= by whom; raajasuuya ashvamedhaiH ca= by rajayasuuya, ashvametha rituals, also; vahniH= ritual fire; abhi tarpitaH= is well worshipped; tathaa= likewise; shata sahasrashaH gaavaH dakSiNaaH uthsR^iSTaa= in hundreds and thousands, cows, as charities, were given; yena= by whom; tapasaa= devoutly; satya vaakyena= truthful to his word; vasudhaa= this earth; paalitaa= was ruled; tasya putraH ayam raamaH= his, son, is this, Rama; strii hetoH araNyam samaagataH= a lady, being the reason, to forests, he came.
"By whom the ritual fire is well worshipped in Vedic rituals like rajasuuya, ashvametha, and thus cows in hundreds and thousands are donated in those rituals, by whom this earth is ruled devoutly and truthful to his word, such Dasharatha’s son is this Rama, who has to come to forests owing to a woman... [4-5-4, 5]
tSy ASy vstae Ar{ye inytSy mhaTmn>,
rav[en ùta -ayaR s Tvam! zr[m! Aagt>. 4£5£6
6. vasataH araNye= when dwelling, in forests; niyatasya= principled one; tasya= his; asya= this; mahaatmanaH bhaaryaa= great soul Rama’, wife; raavaNena hR^itaa= by Ravana, stolen; saH tvaam sharaNam aagata= such as he is, to you, for shelter, he came.
"Ravana stole the wife of this principled one and great soul Rama when dwelling in forests, such as he is, he came seeking your refuge... [4-5-6]
-vta sOy kamaE taE æatraE ram lúm[aE,
àg&ý c AcRySv @taE pUjnIytmaE %-aE. 4£5£7
7. tau bhraatarau= those two, brothers; raama lakSmaNau= Rama, Lakshmana; bhavataa sakhya kaamau= with you, friendship, interested; puujaniiyatamau= most venerable are; imau= them; ubhau= two; pragR^ihya= you receive them; arcayasva= worship.
"These two brothers Rama and Lakshmana, are interested to make friendship with you... thus you receive these two and worship them, for they are most venerable ones..." Hanuma thus advised Sugreeva. [4-5-7]
Here Hanuma's role as teacher is depicted. God comes to the rescue of the needy, and communicates through a competent teacher. Only the teacher can visualize the god and his intent, and thus narrate it to the taught. That is what Hanuma's advise to Sugreeva.
ïuTva hnumtae vaKym! su¢Ivae vanr Aixp>,
dzRnIytmae -UTva àITya %vac ra"vm!. 4£5£8
8. vaanara adhipaH= monkey's chief; sugriivaH=Sugreeva; shrutvaa= on hearing; hanumataH vaakyam= Hanuma's, words; darshaniiyatamaH bhuutvaa= presentable, he became; priityaa= gladly; uvaaca raaghavam= spoke to, Rama.
On hearing Hanuma's words Sugreeva, the chief of monkeys has become presentable and gladly spoke to Rama. [4-5-8]
Sugreeva is not in a presentable form till now because he is outrageously furious with 'friend-or-foe' syndrome, on seeing Rama and Lakshmana. None can calm these vanara heroes down, except their own favourable interests. On listening from Hanuma that the entrants are friends, Sugreeva got his cool back, and thus became 'presentable,' befitting to his honourable kingship.
-van! xmR ivnIt> c sutpa> svR vTsl>,
AaOyata vayupuÇe[ tÅvtae me -vdœ gu[a>. 4£5£9
9. bhavaan= you; dharma viniitaH= virtue knower [you are trained to tread virtuous path]; su tapaaH= best, scrupulous one; sarva vatsala= to all, kindlier one; aakhyaataa vaayu putreNa= said so by, Air's son, Hanuma; tattvataH= in subtlety; me= to me; bhavat guNaaH= your, attributes.
"You are a trained one in treading righteous path, best by your scruples, and a kindlier one to all, so said Air-god’s son Hanuma to me about your attributes, in subtlety... [4-5-9]
tn! mm @v @; sTkarae la-> c @v %Äm> à-ae,
yt! Tvm! #CDis saEhadRm! vanre[ mya sh. 4£5£10
10. hè prabho= oh, lord; tat tvam vaanareNa mayaa saha sauhaardam icChasi= therefor, you, with a monkey, [like] me, along with, friendship, you wish to have; iti yat= thus, that which topic is there; eSa= this way; mama eva= for me, only; satkaaraH uttamaH laabhaH ca= an honour, best, achievement, also.
"Therefor oh, lord, you wish to make friendship with a monkey like me, thereby this is an honour and a best achievement to me alone... [4-5-10]
raecte yid me sOym! ba÷> @; àsairt>,
g&ýtam! pai[na pai[> myaRda bXytam! Øuva. 4£5£11
11. me sakhyam rocate yadi= my friendship, you aspire, if; eSa baahuH prasaaritaH= here is, arm, is extended; paaNinaa paaNiH gR^ihyataam= hand, by hand, be taken; dhruvaa= stably; maryaadaa badhyataam= convention, make fast.
"If you aspire my friendship here I extend my arm, take this hand of mine into yours, thus let the convention be stably made fast...” Thus Sugreeva proffered friendship to Rama. [4-5-11]
@tt! tu vcnm! ïuTva su¢IvSy su-ai;tm!,
s<àùò mna hStm! pIfyamas pai[na. 4£5£12
ùò> saEùdm! Aalm!By pyR:vjt pIiftm!,
12, 13a. etat tu= all those; ugriivasya su bhaashitam vacanam shrutvaa= Sugreeva's, well-said, words, listening; samprahR^iSTa manaa= gladdened, at heart [Rama]; paaNinaa= with hand; hastam= [Sugreeva's] hand; piiDayaamaasa= started to clutch; sauhR^idam aalambya= friendship, while abiding; hR^iSTaH= happily; piiditam= grippingly; paryaSvajata= embraced.
Rama is gladdened at heart on listening all those words well said by Sugreeva, and then clutched Sugreeva's hand in his, and ardently abiding by the vow of friendship he embraced Sugreeva, grippingly and happily. [4-5-12, 13a]
ttae hnUman! s<TyJy i-]u êpm! AirNdm>. 4£5£13
kaóyae> Sven êpe[ jnyamas pavkm!,
dIPymanm! ttae viûm! pu:pE> A_yCyR sTk«tm!. 4£5£14
tyaerœ mXye tu suàItae indxaE susmaiht>,
13b, 14, 15a. tataH= then; arindamaH hanuumaan= enemy destroyer, Hanuma; bhikshu ruupam samtyajya= ascetic's guise, leaving off; svena ruupeNa= with his own, form; kaaSThayoH paavakam janayaamaasa= with two sticks, fire, started to ignite; tataH= then; vahnim diipyamaanam satkR^itam = fire, making to glow, decorated; puSpaiH= with flowers; abhyarcya= worshipped; supriitaH= gladdened; susamaahitaH= devoutly; tayoH madhye nidadhe= them, in between, placed.
Then the destroyer of enemies Hanuma discarding the guise of ascetic assumed his original monkey form, and on producing fire with two sticks then made it to glow. decorated, worshipped with flowers, then gladly and devoutly placed that fire in between Rama and Sugreeva. [4-5-13b,14,15a]
The holy fire used to kindle the ritual fire in a yajna will be produced by constantly rubbing two dry wood sticks, and this is called as araNi . When sparkles of fire and a little fume appear, it will be put into the Altar of Fire. Here, Hanuma has changed his ascetic form to his original monkey shape. This form changing at their will and wish is called kaamaruupa vidya, changing guise at will, which will be useful to Hanuma in the coming episodes of Ramayana.
ttae Ai¶m! dIPymanm! taE c³tu> c àdi][m!. 4£5£15
su¢Ivae ra"v> c @v vySyTvm! %pagtaE,
15b, 16a. tataH= then; tau diipyamaanam agnim pradakshiNam cakratuH= they two, glowing, at fire, circumambulations, they made; Sugreeva; Raaghava; ca= also; eva= thus; vayasyatvam= friendship; upaagatau= entered into.
Then those two performed circumambulations to that well glowing ritual fire, and thus, Rama and Sugreeva entered into the pact of friendship. [4-5-15, 16a]
tt> suàIt mnsaE taE %-aE hir ra"vaE. 4£5£16
ANyaeNym! Ai-vI]NtaE n t&iÝm! Ai-jGmtu>,
16b, 17a. tataH= then; supriita manasau= gladdened, at heart; tau ubhau= those, two; hari= monkey; raaghavau= Raghava anyonyam= at each other; abhi viikshantau= gazing at; na= not; tR^iptim= satisfaction; upajagmatuH= they got.
And then gladdened at heart are those two, that monkey and Raghava, gazed enough at each other eye-to-eye, but their hearts did not derive any fraternal satisfaction. [4-5-16b, 17a]
Tvm! vySyae=is ù*> me ih @km! Ê>om! suom! c naE.4£5£17
su¢Ivae ra"vm! vaKym! #it %vac àùòvt!,
17b, 18a. tvam me hR^idyaH vayasyaH asi= you, are my, amiable, friend, you are; nau sukham duHkham ca ekam= our, mirth, misery, are one [the same]; iti sugriivaH prahR^iSTa vat raaghvam vaakyam uvaacha= thus, Sugreeva, rejoicingly, to Raghava, sentence, said.
Sugreeva rejoicingly said to Raghava, "you are the amiable friend of mine, henceforth our mirth or miseries are same for us..." [4-5-17b, 18a]
tt> sup[R b÷lam! -<kœTva zaoam! supui:ptam!.4£5£18
salSy AaStIyR su¢Iv> in;sad s ra"v>,
18b, 19a. tataH= then; Sugreeva; saalasya parNa bahulaam= of sala tree, with leaves, many; supuSpitaam= well flowered; shaakham chitvaa= branch of tree, snapped off; aastiirya= spread it; sa raaghavaH= along with, Rama; niSasaada= sat on it.
And then Sugreeva snapped off and spread a fully flowered tree-branch of sala tree with many leaves, and sat on it along with Rama. [4-5-18b, 19a]
lúmnay Aw s<ùòae hnuman! maétaTmj>. 4£5£19
zoam! cNdn v&]Sy ddaE prm pui:ptam!,
19b, 20a. atha= then; samhR^iSTaH= gladly; maaruta aatmajaH= Air's son; Hanuma; chandana vR^ikshasya= of sandalwood, tree; parama puSpitaam= well, flowered; shakhaam= branch of; laksmanaaya=for Lakshmana; dadau= gave.
Then Hanuma the son of Air, gladly gave a well-flowered branch of sandalwood tree to Lakshmana... [4-5-19b, 20a]
tt> àùò> su¢Iv> ðú[m! mxurya igra. 4£5£20
àit %vac tda ramm! h;R Vyak…l laecn>,
20b, 21a. tataH= then; prahR^iSTaH= that delighted one; Sugreeva; madhurayaa giraa= with sweet, words; harsha= with happiness; vyaakula= quavering; lochanaH= eyes; shlakshnam= softly; tadaa= that way; prati uvaacha= replied; Rama.
Then that delighted Sugreeva with his sweet words, and with his eyes quavering in happiness, replied Rama softly. [4-5-20b, 21a]
Ahm! ivink«tae ram crim #h -y AaidRt>. 4£5£21
ùt -ayaeR vne ÇStae ÊgRm! @tt! %paiït>,
21b, 22a. Rama; aham= I am; vinikR^itaH=ridiculed; hR^ita bhaaryaH= stolen, wife; bhaya aarditaH= fear haunting me; iha vane charami= here about, in forest, I am moving; trastaH= dread; durgam= impenetrable; etat= this forest; upaashritaH= took refuse.
"Rama, I am ridiculed, stolen is my wife, I move here about in these forests with dread and fear haunting me... I took refuge in this impenetrable forest... [4-5-21b, 22a]
sae=hm! ÇStae vne -Itae vsaim %dœ æaNt cetn>. 4£5£22
vailna ink«tae æaÇa k«t vEr> c ra"v,
22b, 23a. Raaghava; bhraatraa= by my brother; vaalinaa= by Vali; nikR^itaH= denounced; kR^ita vairaH ca= made, an enemy, also; saH aham= such as I am; trastaH= fearing; udbhraanta chetanaH= with dismayed, vitality; vane= in forests; abhiitaH= scared; vasaami= I am living.
"Oh, Raghava, my brother denounced me, he even made me an enemy of his, such as I am I am living in these forests with scare and fear, and with dismayed vitality... [4-5-22b, 23a]
vailnae me mha-ag -y AatRSy A-ym! k…é. 4£5£23
ktuRm! AhRis kak…t!Sw> -ym! me n -vedœ ywa,
23b, 24a. mahaabhaaga= oh! highly fortunate one Rama; vaalinaH= from Vaali; bhaya aartasya= in fear, intimidated; me= to me; a + bhayam kuru= no, fear [fearlessness] give me; kaakutsthaH= Rama; me yathaa bhayam na bhavet= to me, as to how, fear, will not, be there; [tathaa= that way]; kartum arhasi= to do so, apt of you.
"Oh, highly fortunate Rama, affirm fearlessness to me from Vali by who I am highly intimidated, and as to how there will be fearlessness to me from him, it will be apt of you to accomplish that, that way... [4-5-23b, 24a]
@vm! %> tu tejSvI xmR}ae xmR vTsl>.4£5£24
àit A-a;t kak…t!Sw> su¢Ivm! àhsn! #v,
24b, 25a; evam= thus; uktaH tu= who is said so; tejasvii= resplendent one; dharmaj~naH= righteous one; dharma vatsalaH= virtue, patron; kaakutsthaH= Rama; sugriivam= to Sugreeva; prati abhaaSata= in turn, spoke [replied]; prahasan iva= laughing off, as though.
When thus said, that resplendent and righteous one being the patron of virtue Rama replied Sugreeva, as though laughing off. [4-5-24b, 25a]
%pkar )lm! imÇm! ividtm! me mhakpe.4£5£25
vailnm! tm! vix:yaim tv -ayR Aphair[m!,
25b, 26a. mahaa kapeH= oh, great monkey; mitram= a friend has; upakaara phalam= helpfulness, as resultant fruit; viditam me= known to, me; tava bhaarya apahaarinaam= your, wife's, adductor; tam vaalinam= that one, Vali; vadhishyaami= I intend to kill [eliminate.]
"A friend is the resultant factor of helpfulness... that I know... oh, great monkey I intend eliminate that Vali, the abductor of your wife... [4-5-2b, 26a5]
Amae"ae> sUyR s<kaza> mm #me inizta> zra>.
4£5£26
tiSmn! vailin Êrœv&Äe inpit:yiNt veigta>,
kNk pÇ àitCDÚa mheNÔ Azin s<in-a>. 4£5£27
tIú[a¢a \jupvaR[> s rae;a -ujga #v,
26b, 27, 28a. amoghaaH= unfailing; suurya sankaashaaH= sun-like; nishitaaH= sharp; kanka patra praticChannaa= eagle's, feathers, tied with; mahendra ashani sannibhaaH= Indra's, Thunderbolt, similar to; tiikshNa agraa= sharp, pointed; R^iju parvaaNaH =with straight, egress; sa roSaaH bhujagaa iva= with rage, snakes, like; ime mama sharaaH= these, my, arrows; vegitaaH= speeded [in shooting]; durvR^itte= vicious one; tasmin vaaalini nipatiSyanti= on that, Vali, will fall.
"Unfailing are these arrows of mine, scorchers like sun, sharp ones tied with eagle feathers, similar to Indra's Thunderbolts, sharp are their point and straight is their egress, similar to enraged snakes, and these arrows of mine will be speeded up to fall on that vicious Vali... [4-5-26b, 27, 28a]
tm! A* vailnm! pZy tIú[E> AazI iv; %pmE>. 4£5£28
zrE> ivinihtm! -UmaE àkI[Rm! #v pvRtm!,
28b, 29a. adya= now; aashii visha upamaiH= snakes, venomous, in similarity; kruuraiH sharaiH vinihitam= by cruel, arrows, completely ruined; bhuumau= on ground; prakiirNam= splintered; parvatam= mountain; iva= like; vaalinam= Vali; pashya= you see.
"You will see now itself the falling of Vali like a splintered mountain onto ground, when completely ruined by these cruel arrows that are similar to venomous snakes..." Thus Rama inculcated confidence in Sugreeva. [4-5-28b, 29a]
s tu tdœ vcnm! ïuTva ra"vSy AaTmnaeihtm!,
su¢Iv> prm àIt> prmm! vaKym! AävIt!.4£5£29
29b, c. saH tu= he, also; sugriiva= Sugreeva; aatmanaH hitam= for himself, appeasing; raaghavasya tat vachanam = of Raghava, that saying; shrutvaa= on hearing; parama priitaH= completely satisfied; sumahat=fine; vaakyam= sentence; abraviit= said.
On hearing Raghava's words that are appeasing for his self, Sugreeva is very completely satisfied and said this fine sentence. [4-5-29b, c]
tv àsaden n&is<h vIr
iàyam! c raJym! c smaßuyam! Ahm!,
twa k…é Tvm! nr dev vEir[m!
ywa n ih<Syt! s punrœ mm A¢jm!. 4£5£30
30. tava prasaadena= by you, grace; nR^i simha= lion, among men; viira= valiant one; aham= I will; priyaam cha= wife, also; raajyam ca= kingdom, too; sam aapnuyaam= let me regain; nara deva= humans', god; saH=he; punaH= again; yathaa= as to how; na= not to; hinsyat= suffer me; tathaa tvam kuru= like that, you, do; vairiNam= to my enemy; mama agrajam= my elder brother.
"By your grace, oh, lion among men, let me regain my wife and kingdom too... oh, god of humans, as to how he does not suffer me again, thus you may please make happen... let not my elder brother turned as an enemy of mine suffer me again... [4-5-30]
sIt kpINÔ ][da cra[am!
rajIv hem Jvlnaepmanain,
su¢Iv ram à[y ps¼e
vamain neÇai[ smm! S)…riNt. 4£5£31
31. Sugreeva; Rama; praNaya= friendly; prasa~Nge= conversation; siita= Seetha's; kapi indra= monkeys, lord's [Vali's]; kshaNadaa charaanaam= night, walker's [Ravana's]; raajiiva= lotus; hema= golden; jvalana= fireball; upamaanaani= in similitude; vaamaani= left side; netraaNi= eyes; samam= equally; sphuranti= fluttered.
During the friendly conversation of Rama and Sugreeva, the left eyes of Seetha, Vali and Ravana that bear similitude with lotuses, golden orbs, and fireballs respectively have fluttered equally. [4-5-31]
This verse is in krama alankaara, an equated metaphoric expression, by juxtaposing words equally to compare Seetha's eyes with lotuses, Vali's eyes with golden-balls for his complexion is golden, and Ravana's eyes with fireballs. But all are left eyes only that have fluttered. The flutter of left eye to the male is a bad omen while to the female it is a good omen. Hence the friendship of Rama and Sugreeva is the seedling point for eradication of vice, namely Vali and Ravana, from face of the earth.
#it vaLmIik ramay[e Aaid kaVye iki:kNx ka{fe pÂm> sgR
Thus, this is the 5h chapter in Kishkindha Kanda of Valmiki Ramayana,the First Epic poem of India.
© 2000, Desiraju Hanumanta Rao, [Revised : March, 04]