Chapter 54 - Angada slays Vajradamshtra

The extermination of his army through Angada’s prowess filled the valiant Vajradamshtra with fury. Stretching his formidable bow, like unto Shakra’s thunderbolt, he assailed the monkey battalions with a hail of shafts whereupon the foremost of the titans mounted on chariots, armed with every kind of weapon and full of courage, entered the lists whilst the monkeys, those powerful bulls among the Plavagas, assembling on all sides, fought with rocks.

Thousands of weapons were hurled in that desperate encounter by the titan and monkey leaders and, from their side, the great monkeys with the ardour of elephants in rut, showered down giant trees and huge lumps of rock on the demons so that between those intrepid warriors, the titans and the monkeys, who never retreated in battle, a tremendous struggle ensued.

Monkeys and titans, still possessing heads but bereft of arms and legs, lay on the earth bathed in blood and bristling with arrows, a prey to herons, vultures and crows or devoured by troops of jackals.

Monkeys and night-rangers fell on the battlefield; headless trunks leapt up to the terror of all, their arms, hands and heads severed and their limbs hacked to pieces in the fight.

Meanwhile the army of Vajradamshtra, overcome by the monkeys, broke up under his eyes, whereupon that leader, seeing the titans terrorised and decimated by die Plavamgamas, his eyes red with anger, bow in hand, penetrated the enemy ranks, sowing panic amongst them. Thereafter he dispatched those monkeys with arrows furnished with heron’s plumes that flew straight to their target and pierced seven, eight, nine or five of his opponents simultaneously, thus destroying them in his fury. Put to flight, those simian battalions, their limbs crippled by those darts, sought refuge with Angada as all creatures with Prajapati; and when he beheld those monkey divisions fleeing in disorder, the son of Bali exchanged glances of hatred with Vajradamshtra and, in a paroxysm of rage, they entered into a terrible duel one with the other so that it seemed a lion and an elephant intoxicated with ichor fought together. And the son of Bali full of valour, was struck in his vital parts by a hundred thousand arrows resembling tongues of fire and all his limbs were besprinkled with blood. Then that exceedingly energetic monkey of redoubtable courage hurled a tree at Vajradamshtra but that intrepid titan, seeing it fall, cut it into innumerable pieces which fell in heaps on the earth.

Witnessing the strength of his rival, that lion among the Plavagas seized hold of a huge rock which he spun round, emitting a shout and, as it descended, that hero leaping down from his chariot, armed with his mace, stood waiting unperturbed. Meanwhile that rock discharged by Angada fell on the forefront of the battle where it shattered the chariot with its wheels, shafts and horses.

Then the monkey broke off a great crag from the mountain once more and it was covered with trees and he brought it down on the head of his adversary so that Vajradamshtra, seized with a sudden giddiness, faltered and began to vomit blood, clenching his mace convulsively and breathing heavily. Thereafter, coming to his senses, in a transport of fury he hit the son of Bali full on the chest with his mace and, letting it fall, began to fight with his fists whereupon a hand-to-hand struggle ensued between monkey and titan. Exhausted by the blows, spitting blood, those valiant warriors resembled the planets Mars and Mercury.

Meanwhile the exceedingly powerful Angada, that lion of Plavagas stood waiting and he seized hold of a shield covered with the hide of a bull and a great sword decorated with golden bells enveloped in a leathern sheath.

In the midst of innumerable graceful evolutions, the monkey and the titan attacked each other, roaring and thirsting for victory. With their gaping wounds, they shone like two Kimshuka Trees in flower and the struggle robbed them of their breath so that they sank to their knees on the earth. Thereafter in the twinkling of an eye, Angada, that elephant among monkeys, rose up, his eyes inflamed like a serpent that has been struck with a stick and, with his stainless sword that was well sharpened, the son of Bali who was full of vigour, struck off the huge head of Vajradamshtra, whose limbs were bathed in blood. Under the stroke of that sword, his beautiful head fell, cleft in twain, the eyes rolling.

Beholding Vajradamshtra slain, the titans, wild with terror, fled panic-stricken towards Lanka, harassed by the Plavamgamas, their faces woe-begone, their heads bowed in shame.

Having struck down the enemy with his powerful arm, the mighty son of Bah experienced great joy amidst the monkey army, honoured by them for his high courage and he resembled the God of a Thousand Eyes surrounded by the Celestials.