The Ramayana Part 145

Then from the hand of Indra came A red bolt winged with wrath and flame.

The child fell smitten on a rock, His cheek was shattered by the shock, Named Hanuman(783) thenceforth by all In memory of the fearful fall.

The wandering Wind-G.o.d saw thee lie With bleeding cheek and drooping eye, And stirred to anger by thy woe Forbade each scented breeze to blow.

The breath of all the worlds was stilled, And the sad G.o.ds with terror filled Prayed to the Wind, to calm the ire And soothe the sorrow of the sire.

His fiery wrath no longer glowed, And Brahma's self the boon bestowed That in the brunt of battle none Should slay with steel the Wind-G.o.d's son.

Lord Indra, sovereign of the skies, Bent on thee all his thousand eyes, And swore that ne'er the bolt which he Hurls from the heaven should injure thee.

'Tis thine, O mighty chief, to share The Wind-G.o.d's power, his son and heir.

Sprung from that glorious father thou, And thou alone, canst aid us now.

This earth of yore, through all her climes, I circled one-and-twenty times, And gathered, as the G.o.ds decreed, Great store of herbs from hill and mead, Which, scattered o'er the troubled wave, The Amrit to the toilers gave.

But now my days are wellnigh told, My strength is gone, my limbs are old, And thou, the bravest and the best, Art the sure hope of all the rest.

Now, mighty chief, the task a.s.say: Thy matchless power and strength display.

Rise up, O prince, our second king, And o'er the flood of ocean spring.

So shall the glorious exploit vie With his who stepped through earth and sky."(784)

He spoke: the younger chieftain heard, His soul to vigorous effort stirred, And stood before their joyous eyes Dilated in gigantic size.

Canto LXVII. Hanuman's Speech.

Soon as his stature they beheld, Their fear and sorrow were dispelled; And joyous praises loud and long Rang out from all the Vanar throng.

On the great chief their eyes they bent In rapture and astonishment, As, when his conquering foot he raised, The G.o.ds upon Naraya?(785) gazed.

He stood amid the joyous crowd, Bent to the chiefs, and cried aloud: "The Wind-G.o.d, Fire's eternal friend, Whose blasts the mountain summits rend, With boundless force that none may stay, Takes where he lists his viewless way.

Sprung from that glorious father, I In power and speed with him may vie, A thousand times with airy leap Can circle loftiest Meru's steep: With my fierce arms can stir the sea Till from their bed the waters flee And rush at my command to drown This land with grove and tower and town.

I through the fields of air can spring Far swifter than the feathered King, And leap before him as he flies, On sounding pinions through the skies.

I can pursue the Lord of Light Uprising from the eastern height, And reach him ere his course be sped With burning beams engarlanded.

I will dry up the mighty main, Shatter the rocks and rend the plain.

O'er earth and ocean will I bound, And every flower that grows on ground, And bloom of climbing plants shall show Strewn on the ground, the way I go, Bright as the l.u.s.trous path that lies Athwart the region of the skies.(786) The Maithil lady will I find,- Thus speaks mine own prophetic mind,- And cast in hideous ruin down The shattered walls of Lanka's town."

Still on the chief in rapt surprise The Vanar legions bent their eyes, And thus again sage Jambavan Addressed the glorious Hanuman: "Son of the Wind, thy promise cheers The Vanars' hearts, and calms their fears, Who, rescued from their dire distress, With prospering vows thy way will bless.

The holy saints their favour lend, And all our chiefs the deed commend Urging thee forward on thy way: Arise then, and the task a.s.say.

Thou art our only refuge; we, Our lives and all, depend on thee."

Then sprang the Wind-G.o.d's son the best Of Vanars, on Mahendra's crest, And the great mountain rocked and swayed By that unusual weight dismayed, As reels an elephant beneath The lion's spring and rending teeth.

The shady wood that crowned him shook, The trembling birds the boughs forsook, And ape and pard and lion fled From brake and lair disquieted.

BOOK V.(787)

Canto I. Hanuman's Leap.

Thus Rava?'s foe resolved to trace The captive to her hiding-place Through airy pathways overhead Which heavenly minstrels visited.

With straining nerve and eager brows, Like some strong husband of the cows, In ready might he stood prepared For the bold task his soul has dared.

O'er gem-like gra.s.s that flashed and glowed The Vanar like a lion strode.

Roused by the thunder of his tread, The beasts to shady coverts fled.

Tall trees he crushed or hurled aside, And every bird was terrified.

Around him loveliest lilies grew, Pale pink, and red, and white, and blue, And tints of many a metal lent The light of varied ornament.

Gandharvas, changing forms at will, And Yakshas roamed the lovely hill, And countless Serpent-G.o.ds were seen Where flowers and gra.s.s were fresh and green.

As some resplendent serpent takes His pastime in the best of lakes, So on the mountain's woody height The Vanar wandered with delight.

Then, standing on the flowery sod, He paid his vows to saint and G.o.d.

Svayambhu(788) and the Sun he prayed, And the swift Wind to lend him aid, And Indra, sovereign of the skies, To bless his hardy enterprise.

Then once again the chief addressed The Vanars from the mountain crest: "Swift as a shaft from Rama's bow To Rava?'s city will I go, And if she be not there will fly And seek the lady in the sky; Or, if in heaven she be not found, Will hither bring the giant bound."

He ceased; and mustering his might Sprang downward from the mountain height, While, shattered by each mighty limb, The trees unrooted followed him.

The shadow on the ocean cast By his vast form, as on he pa.s.sed, Flew like a s.h.i.+p before the gale When the strong breeze has filled the sail, And where his course the Vanar held The sea beneath him raged and swelled.

Then G.o.ds and all the heavenly train Poured flowerets down in gentle rain; Their voices glad Gandharvas raised, And saints in heaven the Vanar praised.

Fain would the Sea his succour lend And Raghu's n.o.ble son befriend.

He, moved by zeal for Rama's sake, The hill Mainaka(789) thus bespake: "O strong Mainaka, heaven's decree In days of old appointed thee To be the Asurs bar, and keep The rebels in the lowest deep.

Thou guardest those whom heaven has cursed Lest from their prison-house they burst, And standest by the gates of h.e.l.l Their limitary sentinel.

To thee is given the power to spread Or spring above thy watery bed.

Now, best of n.o.ble mountains, rise And do the thing that I advise.

E'en now above thy buried crest Flies mighty Hanuman, the best Of Vanars, moved for Rama's sake A wonderous deed to undertake.

Lift up thy head that he may stay And rest him on his weary way."

He heard, and from his watery shroud, As bursts the sun from autumn cloud, Rose swifty, crowned with plant and tree, And stood above the foamy sea.(790) There with his lofty peaks upraised Bright as a hundred suns he blazed, And crest and crag of burnished gold Flashed on the flood that round him rolled.

The Vanar thought the mountain rose A hostile bar to interpose, And, like a wind-swept cloud, o'erthrew The glittering mountain as he flew.

Then from the falling hill rang out A warning voice and joyful shout.

Again he raised him high in air To meet the flying Vanar there, And standing on his topmost peak In human form began to speak:(791) "Best of the Vanars' n.o.blest line, A mighty task, O chief, is thine.

Here for a while, I pray thee, light And rest upon the breezy height.

A prince of Raghu's line was he Who gave his glory to the Sea,(792) Who now to Rama's envoy shows High honour for the debt he owes.

He bade me lift my buried head Uprising from my watery bed, And woo the Vanar chief to rest A moment on my glittering crest.

Refresh thy weary limbs, and eat My mountain fruits for they are sweet.

I too, O chieftain, know thee well; Three worlds thy famous virtues tell; And none, I ween, with thee may vie Who spring impetuous through the sky.

To every guest, though mean and low.

The wise respect and honour show; And how shall I neglect thee, how Slight the great guest so near me now?

Son of the Wind, 'tis thine to share The might of him who shakes the air; And,-for he loves his offspring,-he Is honoured when I honour thee.

Of yore, when Krita's age(793) was new, The little hills and mountains flew Where'er they listed, borne on wings More rapid than the feathered king's.(794) But mighty terror came on all The G.o.ds and saints who feared their fall.

And Indra in his anger rent Their pinions with the bolts he sent.

When in his ruthless fury he Levelled his flas.h.i.+ng bolt at me, The great-souled Wind inclined to save, And laid me neath the ocean's wave.

Thus by the favour of the sire I kept my cherished wings entire; And for this deed of kindness done I honour thee his n.o.ble son.

O come, thy weary limbs relieve, And honour due from me receive."

"I may not rest," the Vanar cried; "I must not stay or turn aside.

Yet pleased am I, thou n.o.blest hill, And as the deed accept thy will."

Thus as he spoke he lightly pressed With his broad hand the mountain's crest, Then bounded upward to the height Of heaven, rejoicing in his might, And through the fields of boundless blue, The pathway of his father, flew.

G.o.ds, saints, and heavenly bards beheld That flight that none had paralleled, Then to the Nagas' mother(795) came And thus addressed the sun-bright dame: "See, Hanuman with venturous leap Would spring across the mighty deep,- A Vanar prince, the Wind-G.o.d's seed: Come, Surasa, his course impede.

In Rakshas form thy shape disguise, Terrific, like a hill in size: Let thy red eyes with fury glow, And high as heaven thy body grow.

With fearful tusks the chief defy, That we his power and strength may try.

He will with guile thy hold elude, Or own thy might, by thee subdued."

Pleased with the grateful honours paid, The G.o.dlike dame their words obeyed, Clad in a shape of terror she Sprang from the middle of the sea, And, with fierce accents that appalled All creatures, to the Vanar called: "Come, prince of Vanars, doomed to be My food this day by heaven's decree.