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SETUBANDHA
161
10. Hit by Rama's arrows, the lord of the demons moved towards Lanka, with his royal parasol torn and fallen, and the apes making fun of his chariot as it turned back.
11. Faced with ruin, he prematurely woke Kumbhakarna who was fast asleep, abandoning reliance on his own strength, and lowering his high renown.
12. Kumbhakarna yawned, his head heavy because of the premature waking, and sallied out after a long laugh on hearing the trivial command to slay Rāma.
13. The golden wall of Lankā that seemed to touch the track of the Sun's chariot came up to the region of his thighs, and looked like a golden girdle that had slightly slipped off his waist.
14. When he stepped over the wall, the waters of the sea entering the moat1 reached only his knees, with the crocodiles and sea lions taking to flight.
15. As soon as the apes saw him they turned their backs, ceasing to fight, and ran away, impeded by the mountains dropping from their hands.
16, 17. After he had violently attacked the entire host of apes in a moment with mountains, trees, clubs and maces as well as strong pikes, arrows and heavy sticks, he, being harassed by Rama's arrows, and mad with blood, began to devour the apes as well as the elephants, horses and the demons, in both the armies, his own and that of the enemy.5
18. After he had fought for a long while, both his arms, severed by Rama's arrows, fell to the ground, followed by streams of blood spouting from the wounds.
19. One of his arms lay on the seashore, like the Suvela, blocking the mouths of the rivers; while the other lay motionless across the sea, like another causeway.
4. i.e., the moat reached as far as the sea letting in the waters of the
ocean.
5. The authenticity of the verses is doubtful. They are found only in Rāmadāsa. It may also be noted that the poem describes only the apes as fighting with trees and mountains as their weapons.
S. 21
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