||Sundarakanda ||

|| Sarga 54||(Summary in English)


||om tat sat||
वीक्षमाणस्ततो लंकां कपिः कृत मनोरथः।
वर्थमान समुत्साहः कार्यशेषमचिंतयत्॥1||
स॥ ततः कृतमनोरथः कपिः लंकां वीक्षमाणः वर्धमान समुत्साहः शेषं कार्यं अचिंतयत्॥
Then having achieved his objectives, the Vanara looking at the city of Lanka with growing zeal thought over the remaining work.

Sundarakanda
Sarga 54

Then having achieved his objectives the Vanara looking at the city of Lanka with growing zeal thought over the remaining work.

Hanuman said to himself. 'Presently the action that is left over as my duty is that action which will give more torment to these Rakshasas. The grove was destroyed. Powerful Rakshasas were killed. One part of the army is destroyed. The destruction of the citadel is left. If the citadel is destroyed that action will be a happy conclusion. In this action success is possible with a little effort. It is proper to satiate the fire burning on this tail with these best of mansions'.

Then Hanuman with his glowing tail, looking like a cloud with lightning, wandered on the top of the mansions in Lanka. That Vanara wandered without fear seeing the gardens and mansions, moving from one house to the other house of the Rakshasas.

The mighty and speedy Hanuman, equaling the speed of Vayu, jumped on the mansion of Prahasta, setting fire to the same. Then jumped on the mansion of Mahaparsva. Hanuman looking like the fire at the time of dissolution set fire to that also.

The very brilliant and great Vanara jumped on the mansions of Vajradamshtra's, Suka's, wise Sarana's houses setting fire to the same. Then the best of Vanaras burnt the palace of Indrajit. Then he burnt Jambumali's and Sumali's mansions. Then Rasmiketu's palace, similarly the mansions of the Rakshasas Hrasvakarna, DamShtra, and Roma were burnt. Rakshasas Yuddhonmatta's, Matta's, DhvajagrIva's, Vidyujjihva's, Ghora's, similarly Hastimukha's mansions were burnt.

Karala's, Pisacha's, Sonitaksha's mansions also were burnt. Kumbhakarna's palace, and Makarakshasa's palace also were burnt. Yagnyasatru's mansion, similarly Brahmasatru's, Narantaks's, Kumbha's and the wicked Nikumbha's mansions were also burnt. The best of Vanara's burnt all the mansions proceeding in an orderly fashion, leaving the palace of the great Vibhishana.

The great Vanara burnt the wealth in wealthy one's mansions. The heroic and illustrious one, after crossing the residences of all the Rakshasas reached the palace of Ravana, the king of Rakshasas.

Then Hanuman set the palace decorated with different kinds of gems, filled with exquisite auspicious articles, a palace that was resembling mountains Mandara and Meru, on fire with tip of his burning tail. Then he roared like the thundering cloud at the time of dissolution.

The flame of the fire grew rapidly. It glowed like the fire at the time of dissolution. Fanned by the favorable wind it grew rapidly, becoming fierce and powerful. The mansions with golden mesh work and with studded pearls and gems were reduced to ashes and the palaces came crashing down.

Running to protect their own houses, unable to protect them Rakshasa were saying, 'Surely the fire has come in the form of a Vanara'. A tumultuous sound arose. Some women breast feeding their babies, with hair let loose, shouting jumped out of burning mansions. And they looked like the lightnings dropping from the clouds.

He saw pearls and silver mixed with diamonds and colorful corals in molten form dropping from the palaces. Like the fire which was not satisfied with dry sticks and grass, Hanuman was not satisfied with killing of Rakshasas.

Flames of the fire shining at one place appeared like Kimsuka flowers, some other place appeared like Salmali flowers, and yet another place like Kumkum flowers. The speedy Vanara Hanuman burnt the city of Lanka like Rudra burnt down city of Tripura.

The fire lit by the speedy Hanuman who has fierce valor, created circles of fires which rose to the mountain top on which city of Lanka was sitting. The fire without smoke from the mansions, fanned by the wind, fire from the Rakshasa bodies which were offered up to the fire, grew at the speed of the fire at the time of dissolution. The radiant fire appeared like crores of Suns, surrounding and standing on entire Lanka. It was glowing with sounds, like the sounds produced by Indra's thunderbolt, as through whole universe was breaking.

The fire spread intense brightness with flames shooting up to the sky looking like the red Kimsuka flowers. The clouds engulfed by the smoke rising from the subsiding fire were shining like blue lotuses.

People were saying to themselves, 'This is not a Vanara. Surely it is wielder of thunder bolt, the lord of the gods, Indra or Yama himself or wind god, Rudra or fire god, Sun or Kubera or moon or the god of death himself. Or is it Grandsire Brahma, the supreme four faced god, enraged and arrived in the form of a Vanara to kill the clan of Rakshasas. Or else the infinite, indescribable, unthinkable one Vishnu, the Supreme god of great glory, assuming the form of a Vanara by virtue of his own Maya, came here to destroy the Rakshasas'.

Seeing that the city with all its homes with trees including all creatures has been burnt, many eminent men and Rakshasa collected together and spoke to each other.

Then with Lanka suddenly burnt along with Rakshasas, chariots with horses, with elephants with flocks of birds, with animals and trees, there arose a tumultuous piteous sound and they cried. Those Rakshasas speaking out in a piteous way made dreadful noise saying, "Oh father, oh son, oh dear, oh friend, that life which is enjoyable and pious has been destroyed".

Engulfed in the flame spread by the fire god, with its heroes dead, with its retreating troops, with the power of the anger of Hanuman, the city of Lanka appeared as if it was cursed. Highly sensitive Hanuman saw the city of Lanka which succumbed to flames of fire god. With the Rakshasas perplexed scared and sorrowful, it looked as if the earth was hit by the anger of Brahma.

Hanuman, the son of wind god, having destroyed the grove full of excellent trees, having killed many Rakshasas, having burnt the city with rows of beautiful houses, stood there. On the wonderful peak of Trikuta, with a glowing tail, the lion among the Vanaras, shone like the Sun with its brilliant rays.

The great Vanara having killed many Rakshasas, having destroyed the grove with many trees, having set fire to many palaces of Rakshasas, reached Rama in his mind. Then all the Devas praised the very mighty, wise, efficient, chief of Vanara warriors, who has the speed of the wind god, who is the son of wind god.

The very brilliant and great Vanara shone, having destroyed the grove, having killed the Rakshasas in the battle, having burnt the beautiful city. All the Devas with Gandharvas, Siddhas, great Rishis, seeing the city of Lanka, which was burnt, were very much wonder struck.

Seeing Hanuman the best of Vanaras as if he were the fire at the time of dissolution all the beings were terrified.

Then all the sages, Gandharvas, Vidyadharas, Nagas, Yakshas, all the creatures experienced great happiness.

Thus ends the Sarga fifty four of Sundarakanda in Ramayana the first poem ever composed in Sanskrit by the first poet sage Valmiki

||om tat sat||
देवाश्च सर्वेमुनिपुंगवाश्च गंधर्वविद्याधरनागयक्षाः।
भूतानि सर्वाणि महान्ति तत्र जग्मुः परां प्रीतिमतुल्यरूपाम्॥51||
स॥तत्र सर्वे मुनिपुंगवाश्च गण्धर्वविद्याधरनागयक्षाः महंति सर्वाणि भूतानि अतुल्यरूपां प्रां प्रीतिं जग्मुः॥
Then all the sages, Gandharvas, Vidyadharas, Nagas , Yakshas, all the creatures experienced great happiness.
||om tat sat||