Chapter 7 - The Combat between Vishnu and the Rakshasas

“In the midst of rumblings, the clouds in the form of Rakshasas poured down a shower of weapons on the Peak Narayana, as with their torrents they shroud a mountain, and the dark and immaculate Vishnu, surrounded by those swarthy and powerful rangers of the night, resembled Mount Anjana under rain. As locusts in a rice field or gnats in a flame, as flies in a pot of honey, as monsters in the deep, so did the arrows, keen as diamonds, swift as the wind or thought, which the Rakshasas loosed on Hari, piercing him, disappear as the worlds vanish at the time of universal destruction.

“Warriors in chariots or seated on the heads of elephants, soldiers on horseback, infantry stationed in the sky, leaders of the Rakshasas resembling mountains, with their shafts, spears, swords and darts, caused Hari to hold His breath, like unto the Twice-born when practising Pranayama [i.e., The science of breath control].

“Like an ocean where fishes play, that invincible God, under the countless blows of those rangers of the night, drew His bow and loosed His shafts on them; then Vishnu with extreme force, like unto lightning, swift as thought, riddled them with His penetrating weapons and spears by hundreds and thousands. Having dispersed them under a load of arrows as the wind a downpour, the Supreme Purusha blew His great Conch Pan-chajaya, and that king of conches, born of the waters, into which Hari blew with all His strength, re-echoed in such fearful wise that it shook the Three Worlds as it were. The sound of that king of conches struck terror into the Rakshasas, as the King of Beasts in the forest terrorizes the elephants intoxicated with ichor. At the sound of the conch, the horses were no longer able to stand erect, the frenzy of the elephants was subdued, whilst the warriors fell from their cars bereft: of strength.

“Loosed from His bow, Vishnu’s arrows, possessed of plumed hafts, having rent the Rakshasas, penetrated into the earth. Pierced by those darts, which the hand of Narayana loosed in the fight, the Rakshasas fell on the earth like crags struck by lightning, their powerful limbs tom by Vishnu’s discus, the blood flowing in torrents, as from mountains secreting gold. The sound of that king of conches, the twanging of the bowstring and the voice of Vishnu stifled the cries of the Rakshasas.

“Then Hari severed their trembling necks, their darts, banners, bows, chariots, pennants and quivers. As the rays fall from the sun, as masses of water spout forth from the sea, as mighty tuskers rush down the mountain side, as torrents of rain fall from a cloud, so did the darts and arrows discharged by Narayana from His bow, fall in hundreds and thousands. As a lion before a Sharabha, as an elephant before a lion, as a tiger before an elephant, as a panther before a tiger, as a dog before a panther, as a cat before a dog, as a snake before a cat, as mice before a snake, so did the Rakshasas flee before the mighty Vishnu. Some escaped, others fell in their flight and the rest lay stretched on the earth. Whilst slaying his foes in their thousands, the Destroyer of Madhu filled the conch with his breath, as Indra the clouds with water.

“Put to flight by Narayana’s shafts, terrified by the sound of the conch, the army of the Rakshasas, their ranks broken, fled in the direction of Lanka.

“Seeing his troops routed, decimated by Narayana’s arrows, Sumali covered Hari with a hail of darts on the battlefield, as the fog obscures the sun, whereupon the valiant Rakshasas plucked up courage. Then Sumali, proud of his strength, rallying his forces, hurled himself forward with a great shout. Shaking his earrings as an elephant his trunk, that night-ranger, in his joy, raised a great clamour like unto a cloud pierced by lightning and, while Sumali cried out thus, Hari cut off the head of his charioteer with its dazzling earrings, and the steeds of that Rakshasa swerved, bearing away Sumali, the leader of the Titans, as those other steeds, the senses, when uncontrolled, bear away man’s judgment.

“Thereafter while Sumali was being borne away by the horses of his chariot, Mali, alert, armed with his bow, rushed on the mighty Vishnu who, on his vehicle, had thrown himself into the fray; and he let fly his arrows decorated with gold from his bow, which fell on Hari piercing him, as birds penetrate into the Krauncha Mountain. Assailed by the shafts, which Mali loosed in their thousands in the fight, Vishnu remained as undisturbed as one in full control of his senses in the face of adversity.

“Twanging His bow-string, Bhagavat, the Author of all beings, still bearing his sword and mace, discharged a hail of arrows on Mali, like unto thunder and lightning, penetrating his body, and those shafts drank his blood as serpents a pleasing draught.

“In the confusion into which he had thrown Mali, the God who bears the conch, discus and mace, struck oft his diadem and brought down his banner, his bow and his steeds. Deprived of his chariot, that most powerful ranger of the night seized hold of his mace and, with this weapon in his hand, like a lion from a mountain height, hurled himself on the King of the Birds [i.e., Garuda, Vishnu’s vehicle] as Antaka on Ishana, striking him on the forehead, as Indra strikes a mountain with his thunderbolt.

“On receiving that violent blow dealt by Mali, Garuda, distracted with pain, carried the God away from the fight, and Vishnu, having turned away through this act of Mali’s and Garuda’s, a great clamour arose from the Rakshasas shouting in triumph.

“Hearing the Rakshasas shout thus, the younger brother of Harihaya,the blessed Hari, was incensed with that King of Birds who served as his mount and, with the intention of slaying Mali, though his back was turned, He loosed His discus that was as bright as the solar orb, whose radiance illumines the heavens. Like unto Kala’s wheel [i.e., The Wheel of Time, consisting of days, weeks, months, years, decades, centuries and aeons], the discus fell on Mali’s head and that terrible head of that leader of the Rakshasas, thus severed, rolled down amidst torrents of blood, as formerly that of Rahu.

“At that instant, the Gods, transported with joy, emitted roars like unto lions, crying with all their strength, ‘Victory to You, O Lord!’

“Beholding Mali slain, Sumali and Malyavan, in burning grief, took refuge in Lanka with their forces. Meanwhile Garuda having recovered, retraced his steps and, in fury, dispersed the Rakshasas with the blast of his wings. Their lotus faces cut with the discus, their breasts tom by the mace, their necks severed by the ploughshare, their foreheads split open by pikes, some pierced by the sword, some slain by arrows, those Rakshasas began to fall from the skies into the waters of the sea.

“Narayana, like unto a luminous cloud, with his excellent shafts loosed from His bow, as so many lightning strokes, exterminated those rangers of the night with their hair dishevelled and streaming in the wind. Their parasols broken, their rich apparel torn by the shafts, their entrails ripped open, their eyes wide with fear, those warriors, throwing away their arms, fell into a frenzy of terror. Resembling elephants attacked by a lion, those night-rangers with their mounts emitted cries whilst fleeing from that Primeval Lion [i.e., Vishnu’s incarnation as Nrsimha—half man, half lion], who pursued them.

“Overwhelmed by a rain of darts from Hari, they threw away their weapons, and those rangers of the night resembled sombre clouds which the wind drives before it. Their heads severed by the discus, their limbs crushed with blows from the mace, cut in two by strokes of the sword, those foremost of the nightrangers, resembling sable clouds, crumbled like rocks and they stumbled and fell on the earth which they covered completely like dark mountains which have been shattered.