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SETUBANDHA which one could hold one's head high, by shaking off the fetters of humiliation,
9. "Honest persons that achieve their tasks silently are rare. Few also are the trees that yield fruit without their flowering being noticed.
10. 'Let not Rāma apply his weary hand to his bow, surrender his long anxious mind to wrath, and direct his tearful eyes to his arrows 10
11. 'Let your fame dominate the ten regions of the sky, maidens as it were, by crumpling up their girdle, the ocean; (maidens) held captive by the king that is Rāvana's might, and abiding in the recesses of their home, the sky. 11
12. "When a person desists from daring deeds, it is surely because he wants to preserve his dear life. But, on the other hand, whoso fails to repay a kindness is counted in the world as dead even while alive.12
13. 'Are ye not aware of this,—that even an easy task, pondered too much, leads to utter confusion in the end, like as the tender flower of a poisonous plant makes one unconscious while being crushed with the hand.13
14. "The valiant carry even their failing enterprise to the path (of success), inaccessible to others; just as the Sun drives his tottering one-wheeled chariot through the middle region of the universe.
15. 'Behold before long your arms resembling palm trees, crowned with success without great toil. Let the sovereignty of
8. Trans. follows Rāmadása's reading. The idea is, the tasks ahead will give them a chance to prove their superiority to their unworthy rivals, and bring to an end the humiliation of competing with them for favours.
9. Lit. without saying anything.
10. i.e., they should take the initiative and relieve Rāma from the necessity of fighting.
11. Rāvana's world-conquering might is fancied as a king, and the regions of the sky as women taken captive by the latter. The idea is, let them overcome the resistance of the sea, i.e., cross over to Lankā, and earn universal fame in a world dominated by Rāvana's prowess. Cf. Kulanātha in Extracts.
12. Sugrīva reminds his followers of their obligations to Rāma. 13. This is a warning against weighing the pros and cons too much.
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