THE RAGHUVAMSA by Kavikula Guru Sri Kalidasa -1

THE RAGHUVAMSA

THE

RAGHUVAMSA

THE STORY

OF RAGHU'S LINE

BY KALIDASA

TRANSLATED BY

P. DE LACY JOHNSTONE

PREFATORY NOTE

The Introduction tells the story of the poet and

the poem. For the Mythological Notes which follow,

and which I hope will help English readers, I ask

the special indulgence of Scholars. A Note on

Pronunciation is added. The Index is intended only

to supplement very shortly the Mythological Notes.

For the Illustrations which embellish my book I am

indebted to the kind permission of Miss Growse, of

Thursby Hall, Haslemere, Surrey. These are diminished

reproductions of works by native Indian artists,

prepared at great expense for her brother, the late

Mr. Growse, CLE., of the Bengal Civil Service, to

adorn his valuable and scholarly translation of the

Hindi Rdmdyana^ which may be called the Sacred

Book of North-Western Bengal. Mr. Growse's early

death is a loss to Indian scholarship that will not

easily be repaired.

INTRODUCTION

Kalidasa is little more than a name. There hangs over his

personal history that mist of time and distance which seems

to enwrap all things historical in the early life and thought of

Ancient India. But his work is with us,—more of it probably

than of any other great Sanskrit author; and he must always

have a special interest for us, as the translation in 1781 of

his drama Qdkuntala by Sir William Jones gave the first

impulse to the study of that wonderful literature of old India

which has revolutionised philology, and has had very great

influence in modifying our thoughts in the political domain also

towards our Indian fellow-subjects. The pretty legend that

made him one of the " nine gems " at the polished Court of a

Vikramaditya reigning in the age of Roman Augustus has

vanished before later research, but the charms of his tender

Dramas, and of his noble Epics, abide with us.

Kalidasa lived probably about the middle of the sixth

century of our era, but beyond this we know nothing of him

personally. His fame is perennial, as that of India's greatest

dramatist, and the greatest epic poet of her classical days.

With the noble simplicity of the Ramdyana his work does not

come into comparison ; but in respect of true poetic feeling

for the aspects of nature, and insight into both the manly

and the tender moods of human emotion, he stands very

high among the great poets of all lands and ages. That he

xii RAGHUVANgA

fell in his epics occasionally into the snares laid for him by

the technical perfection of classical Sanskrit, and played with

words and sounds in a way that seems frivolous to us, should

not blind us to his great and varied excellence. Nor should

we forget how very much less he has done this than any other

of the famous classical poets of India. Bharavi in the

Ktratarjumya and Bhatta in his poem shows us what temptations

Kalidasa resisted, and will make us more highly value

the self-restraint he has shown in this matter of artificiality.

As I have said, his Dramas are supreme in Indian

literature,^which indeed is not rich in that province,

considering the nature of the people, who seem apt for

such branches of literary activity. But the beauties of

(^akuntala and the Ring and of The Hero and the

Nymph have long been before the European and particularly

the English public, and I need not dilate on them. Among

his own countrymen, however, Kalidasa is at least equally

renowned as an epic poet of the classical period, which extends

over several centuries. There are different lists of the Six

"great poems"—Maha-Kavyas ; but all name two {Kumarasambhava^

the Birth of the War-God Kartikeya, and

Raghuvan^a, the Story of Raghu's Line) of Kalidasa's among

them ; and one that is well accredited would include a third,

the graceful Cloud-Messenger, in the short roll of fame. The

poem which I have here translated is by far the most

esteemed of them all. It is a storehouse of poetry and

legend, while the varied metres and exquisitely beautiful

language lend it in the original a charm that cannot be

transferred into another tongue. It has long been a wonder

to me that no one has hitherto done for it what Mr. Griffiths

has so well done for its companion, the Birth of the War(

INTRODUCTION^ Xlll

God, especially as it appears (from Stenzler's Preface, p. ii.)

that the greater part of the poem had been already translated

into English before the work of editing it was given to him.

But name and fame of the translator seem to have vanished,

nor have I been able to find any further trace of them.

And here I must acknowledge my debt to the great scholar

just named. While I have used for my work the best native

editions of the poem, with constant reference to the Sanskrit

commentators, I have always derived the greatest help from

Stenzler's Latin translation : without it, indeed, my own

would probably not have been undertaken. I must here

add also, what only lately came to my knowledge, that Mr.

Griffiths has made (but not published) what he calls, in his

Notes to the translation of the whole Ramdyana, a " rough "

translation of the Raghuvanca. He adds that fragments of

it have appeared in print, but I have not seen them.

The Poem as we have it is certainly incomplete. Tradition

tells us that in its original form it consisted of twenty-five I

Cantos, of which only nineteen have come down to us ; and

the abrupt ending of the poem confirms the tradition.

Its theme is the glories of the great Solar race of Ikshvaku,

in which Vishnu was pleased to become incarnate as Rama,

that he might destroy the giant Ravana, who had his capital

in Ceylon (Lanka), and might free gods and men from his

tyranny. This supremacy Ravana had won, supplanting

Indra, the Thunderer, chief among the Gods inferior to the

great Three (Brahma, Vishnu, Civa,—Creator, Preserver,

Destroyer), by the power of his ascetic austerities, which

could, according to Brahmanical notions, compel Fate.

When therefore his yoke had become too hard to bear, when

xiv RAGHUVANgA

the Gods were banished or made to serve him, they sought

the aid of Vishnu, who heard their prayer and promised his

help. This he would afford them by taking birth as a man,

in the noble kingly line of Raghu ; for when Ravana asked

to be made invulnerable, he had omitted to secure himself

against mere human foes. In our poem Cantos i to ix

trace the fortunes of Rama's four immediate predecessors,

from Dilipa to Dagaratha; Cantos x to xv are occupied

with the story of Rama himself,—from his wonderful birth,

through his noble youth and manhood, his triumphant

marriage with Sita, victory over Ravana, and happy reign,

till the time when he shook off the veil of humanity and

returned to his original glory as the Unconditioned God

;

and Cantos xvi to xix carry on the tale of the Kings who

succeeded him to (as we have it) a sad eclipse in the luxurious

Agnivarma.

THE STORY BRIEFLY TOLD IN PROSE

(i) The poet makes excuse for his rashness in attempting

such an arduous task as that of celebrating the praises of this

famous line of Kings. But he has been attracted by its very

magnitude. The race is dazzling in its virtue and might, and

the great Valmiki has trodden the path before him. In the

line sprang Dilipa, pious King, who grew old, rich in the love

of his Queen Sudakshina and the devotion of his happy

subjects, but not blessed with a son to succeed him. So,

purifying himself and casting off for a season the cares of

sovereignty, he goes with his Queen to seek counsel and help

from the saintly Vacishtha in his hermitage. After a pleasant

journey through lands prosperous and smiling with the

INTRODUCTION xv

blessings of his rule, where all good omens attend them on

the way, they reach the peaceful hermitage. Their errand is

told, and the saint points out the remedy for their sorrow.

The King had neglected to pay due honour to the Holy Cow,

Surabhi, and must now (with his Queen) lead an ascetic life

and pay all worship to her offspring—the Saint's own Cow

—

until she be propitiated, and grant him the desire of his

heart.

(2) And the days went by. From early morning to dewy

eve the noble, patient King assiduously tended the semi-divine

Cow—and at evening the Queen welcomed them back, and

herself took up the pleasant, hopeful task.

But one fateful day the King had followed his charge up

the green slopes of the Himalaya, and while he gazed on the

beauties of the scene, secure that her own sanctity would protect

her from all harm, he was startled by her agonised cry,

and in dismay saw her prostrate under the paw of a fierce

lion. He fitted an arrow to his bow, but could not draw it,

and found himself powerless to help. The lion addressed him

in human voice, told him he was set by Civa to guard a

favourite tree beloved by Uma, that the Cow had trespassed

and had justly forfeited her life, and bade him leave her to

her fate and himself return, saving his own valuable life. But

the King would hear of no desertion. He entreated that he

might save his honour though he should lose his life, and

offered his own body a ransom for that of his charge, that she

might go unharmed. Then the magic scene rolled away : the

Cow praised his devotion and promised him the boon he

sought, and the two returned to the hermitage. The Queen

and her husband drank the sacred milk, and were dismissed

in peace and gladness to their own city.

xvi RAGHUVANCA

(3) Then in due time the Queen bore to her husband a

fair son, delighting all hearts and wearing from his birth the

signs of worth and prosperity. His nurture in holy things

was intrusted to the wisest Brahmans in the land, and he

richly rewarded their care, whilst the King himself instructed

him in the arts of war and the chase. Raghu was he called,

the vehement in battle, and he grew up noble and generous,

the light of his father's eyes and the hope of his kingdom.

Fully trained in all sacred and kingly lore, he was raised to

association in his father's dignity, and happily wedded to

noble princesses. And Dilipa, having devolved on his son

the cares and honour of the kingdom, set himself to perform

the long series of a hundred sacrifices, which is crowned by

the great Offering of the Horse, and raises the sacrificer to

the rank of Indra, King of Heaven. The God, ever on the

watch to foil such enterprise, stole away the destined victim :

and the Prince, to whose care it had been committed, pursued

the aggressor. He plied him first with vain entreaties,

and then boldly attacked him. A terrible battle ensued

;

each inflicted wounds on the other ; but at length the God,

moved by the courage and devotion of the young hero,

relaxed his anger and granted that, though the crowning

sacrifice might not be accomplished, yet Dilipa should win

the prize of his sacred acts, and mount to the throne of

Heaven. So Dilipa forsook Earth and Raghu reigned

gloriously in his stead.

(4) Raghu, being seated on his father's throne, by his firm

but mild rule soon took even a higher place in his people's

affections than his father had held ; and the Fortune of the

kingdom, like a loving bride, clung closely to him. Just

and valiant, he ruled his people for a time in peace ; then,

I N T R O D U C T 1 N xvii

nobly ambitious, he set forth with a mighty and wellappointed

host on a career of universal conquest. In the

mild autumn season, when calm skies and pleasant days

invited him, and Earth and Heaven rejoiced, he set forth.

Smiting down all foes, he led his victorious army across great

rivers, over lofty mountains, through pathless forests, to

the shores of ocean. Then, having set up everywhere pillars

of victory, and restored the vanquished kings to their thrones

as his vassals, the hero returned to his capital, Ayodhya, and

there with magnificent pomp, swelled by the infinite treasures

he had received in tribute, and graced by the presence of

captive kings, celebrated the gorgeous sacrifice which only a

Universal Conqueror may offer !

(5) But the sacrifice he had made involved the bestowal of

all his wealth in alms, and at its close the Monarch was as

bare of earth's riches as the meanest of his subjects, when

there came before him an eminent Brahman, Kautsa, to ask

from his generosity the fee required by his Preceptor

Varatantu. In gracious words the king first inquired of the

welfare of the Saint and all his dependants, and then the

purpose of his guest's coming. The Brahman, seeing the

King had stripped himself of all he possessed, was reluctant

to make an unreasonable request ; but, being pressed, he

told his need. The King invited him to stay for a little while

as his guest, and himself prepared to start forth to obtain, by

force of arms, if necessary, the almost boundless treasure

wanted, from Kuvera the Lord of Wealth. But while he

slept, meaning to set forth in the morning, the God poured

down, unconstrained, into his palace courtyard riches untold

and unimagined. Then ensued a contest of generosity. The

Brahman at first refused to receive more than his Teacher's

fee, but was at length persuaded by the generous King to

b

xviii RAGHUVANCA

take the whole ; then he blessed him with the promise of a

glorious son to continue his race, and departed. .

>J So to Raghu was born a son, Aja, called after Brahma the

Uncreated, noble and brave and gentle as himself, the

desire of aU eyes and hearts. And when the Prince was

fully perfect in wisdom and in arms, his father sent him to

Vidarbha, whither King Bhoja had invited many a noble

King and Chief, that his fair sister Indumati might choose

her husband from among them. Aja marched with such

attendant army as befitted his royal rank, and was

welcomed by King Bhoja, having on the way secured a

friend in the demi-god Priyamvada, whom he freed from

enchantment and who gave him a magic spear whose virtues

could strike whole armies with sleep. One night the Prince

slept before Vidarbha, and in the morning was roused from

his slumbers by the sweet voices of minstrels, hymning him

in soft lyrical strains, which form one of the gems of the

poem.

(6) Then the Prince, nobly attired, went to join the company

of suitor kings in the lofty hall where Princess Indumati

was to make her Maiden's Choice, of the lord of her love and

her life. Waiting her entry, there sat round the hall on lofty

thrones an anxious assemblage of all the most famous and

noble Chiefs of the time, come from far and near to woo the

peerless Maid. To hide their anxiety they trifled with their

garlands, their jewels, their robes, or talked in whispers to one

another. Then, to the sweet sounds of music, borne in a

litter, came fair Indumati into the hall, and the eyes of all

were fixed on her. Her guide, Sunanda, led her past the

Kings in their order, eloquently praising each as the Princess

slowly passed along the line. But neither the valiant and

INTRODUCTION xix

pious lord of Magadha, nor he of Avanti, nor of Anga, nor

the mighty King of AnQpa, before whom Ravana stooped and

who braved fierce Paragu-Rama's axe ; nor devout Susheria,

who in beauty and valour rivals the mighty Gods,—found

favour in her eyes. And as she passed, each one, silently

rejected, felt the hue of glad hope fade from his face,

shadowed by the gloom of failure. Then she passed on, and

her guide commended to her the King of Kalinga, lord of the

southern realm, bordering on Ocean, where palm-trees wave

and spice-laden breezes blow; and next the Pandu King,

friend of Indra, ally even of mighty Ravana ; but neither of

those powerful Kings won the Maiden's choice, and they too

passed into darkness, " like wayside trees lit up but for a

moment by a traveller's torch." Onward she went to Prince

Aja, and her choice was no more doubtful. She heard his

praises, she saw his noble beauty, and she cast over him the

wreath that proclaimed her election, and the happy union

was welcomed with loud acclaim !

(7) Then did King Bhoja pass to the city, with his sister

and her chosen lover, while the disappointed wooers followed

in their train. The glad procession was welcomed with loyal

shouts of the citizens, while their ladies looked on eagerly

from the lattices, hastening—though dishevelled or but halfattired—

to see the goodly sight. Next the grave marriage

ceremonies were accomplished, hallowed by the witness of

Fire and hailed by all onlookers as fortunate. Then the King

with lordly gifts dismissed to their own places the suitor-kings,

who took their leave with pleasant words, but with thoughts

of revenge in their hearts.

So when Aja and his bride on their homeward journey had

parted from Bhoja, the banded Kings barred the way, to

XX RAGHUVANCA

carry off the bride. But Aja, placing Indumati in safety,

boldly charged them, and fierce battle was joined. Chariots

with chariots, horse with horse, elephant with elephant, met

in deadly strife. Heaven was obscured by the dust, and

earth flowed with streams of blood. So swift came death

that the disembodied warriors saw their lifeless trunks still

tottering on the plain, as themselves mounted to heaven,

there to renew the strife. The fortune, of battle wavered, and

Aja had more than once to rally his yielding battalions. At

length, weary of slaughter, the Prince used the magical

weapon given him by his friend Priyamvada. At once the

foes were charmed into sleep, the noise of battle was stilled,

the Prince wound his horn to rally his forces, and at his

bidding blushing Indumati set her foot on the necks of his

prostrate foes. So, happy and triumphant, they returned to

Ayodhya, and were welcomed by King Raghu.

(8) Thereafter, King Raghu, rejoicing in his son's glory and

happiness, gave the kingdom, to Aja, and himself prepared for

the life of austerity and meditation with which the pious

Kings of the Sun-Race make themselves fit to exchange earthly

for heavenly crowns. But his son weeping besought him to

stay in the city, and the loving King yielded. So the two

remained together, the one by justice and wise counsel ruling

his subjects, winning their love and fostering their well-being,

while they saw his father live again in him ; but the other,

subduing all desire, fixing his thoughts on the Supreme,

—

waited for the call to heaven. When thus some years had

gone by, the father passed to his rest, deeply mourned by

his son.

Now Indumati bore to Aja a noble boy, and the clouds of

softened regret were dispelled by a new delight, while Aja's life

INTRODUCTION xxi

budded forth in wondrous fulness towards his son Da^aratha,

fated father of the divine hero Rama.

But sorrow follows joy. As one day the loving pair

sauntered through their pleasant gardens, there fell on

Indumati's breast from the sky a wreath of flowers, fallen

from the harp of the Minstrel-Saint Narada, at touch of

which she paled and fell dead. The King swooned, and on

recovering burst into a passionate lament for the cruel loss.

" Why, O my Beloved, hast thou so suddenly left me, whose

heart was all thine own? Never wittingly did I aught to

displease thee, yet without a word am I forsaken ! Let me

too die with thee. Yet was Death kind to slay thee with

flowers ! O Love, how couldst thou have the heart to leave

me, and our son, and even the deer and trees thou hadst

tended ? All, all mourn for thee. Ah, Beloved, I scarce can

think thee dead : the breeze stirs thy hair and rustles through

thy dress. But thou art gone from me for ever ! Counsellor,

Friend, Queen of my heart and home, thou hast left me,

and what good is my life now to me ? Nought more can I

do for thee. Thy fair body must lie on the rough funeralpyre,

and I must drag on my lonely life

! " Yet for his

people's sake the King lived on, and bore himself nobly

though sorrowful. Duty he performed, but joy was gone

from his life. The counsels of his Saintly Preceptor, who

told him the true story of his lost Indumati—a Nymph of

Heaven condemned for former sin to a period of exile on

earth and now recalled to her home—fell on unheeding ears.

For a few years he endured ; then, committing the kingdom

to his son, he peacefully departed, to be reunited for ever to

his beloved Indumati.

(9) Thereafter did mighty Da^aratha rule in righteousness,

xxii RAGHUVANCA

just as Yama, beneficient as Indra, terrible as the War-God.

He also subdued all the Earth under him, made the Sacrifice

for Universal Dominion, fought often side by side with Indra

against the Demons, and raised his famous line to the

pinnacle of glory and prosperity. Three noble princesses he

wedded—of Magadha, Kogala, and Kekaya—with whom he

lived in unclouded happiness, save that no son was born to

him.

So the years rolled on. One fateful spring, when all the

world rejoiced in new beauty, as the warmer Sun dispelled

the chill numbness of winter, the King with his Queens went

forth to enjoy the pleasures of that season of love. Earth

put on her robes of fresh green, and the forest trees budded

and blossomed ; the air was filled with the glad hum of bees

and the love-notes of birds of varied plumage. Youths and

maidens rejoiced in the spring-time of life and snatched the

bloom of the fleeting hour, careless of the morrow. Lovers

decked their mistresses with fresh flowers, and feasted them

with all that was choicest, and the sounds of laughter or the

soft murmurs of love were heard throughout the land. The

King, having drunk of this cup of pleasure to the full, sought

the more manly delights of the Chase, sport of Kings.

Through the forests went he with his great bow, rejoicing in

his skill and might. Watched by the eager eye of forestgods,

he smote the fierce boars and lions but spared the

gentle deer ; breezes fanned his cheek, and great trees lent

their shade. But one morning, fresh from his fragrant

woodland couch, keen for sport, he heard in the reeds of the

sacred river Tamasa a gurgling sound as of an elephant

drinking. In his eagerness he forgot the law forbidding a

king to slay an elephant : his arrow is shot ; horrified he hears

INTRODUCTION xxiii

a human cry of pain, and bursting through the reeds finds a

lad mortally wounded with his water-jar beside him. The

boy, adopted son of a saintly Ascetic, is borne by the sorrowing

King to his aged parents, and honoured with due funeral

rites ; and the Hermit lays on the penitent King the heavy

weird that his heart too shall in old age be broken by the

loss of his son. Meekly the King received the doom,

carrying with it the promise of a son yet to be born. He

thanked the grieving father, and returned, sorrowful yet in

hope, to his home.

(lo) But when many years had rolled by, and the King

was aged, the Gods, led by Indra, sought—in the fulness of

time—from the mighty Vishnu rest and refuge from the

terrible oppression of the Giant-Demon Ravana, the tenheaded

King of Lanka, who had by his penitential austerities

won from the Creator (Brahma) dominion over the Universe

and invulnerability from all superhuman foes. Them the

Supreme favourably received, and listened well-pleased to

their hymn of praise. They hailed him Omnipotent, Allembracing,

the Substance from which all other entities

proceed and into which all are reabsorbed. " Passionless art

Thou and All-wise, yet grantest to all their desires ; Changeless,

yet Author of all the vicissitudes of existence ; Source

of Duty and Law, Lord of Life and Death : Thyself untouched

by pain or sin, yet All-pitiful for the sorrows and errors of

Thy creatures ! " Then Almighty Vishnu, in a voice that rose

above the thunderous roar of Ocean, on which he was seated,

promised that He himself, becoming incarnate in! the heroline

of Dacaratha, would slay the Oppressor and free Gods

and men from his tyranny.

So, at the Sacrifice which Dacaratha was offering, the mighty

xxiv RAGHUVANgA

God entered the milk of the oblation : this the pious King

divided among his three wives, who in due time bore four

noble sons—-Rama, Bharata, Lakshman, and ^atrughna.

And the Princes grew up, trained to all royal virtues and knit

together in brotherly love, desired of all mankind, dear before

all things to their father.

(ii) But, while they were still boys, the Brahman Kaugika

claimed from the King the help of Rama and Lakshman,

who were bound together in special love, to guard his

sacrifice from assaults of the Demons. So the Princes went

with him, welcomed and helped on their way by all nature.

The Sage lightened the road with legends of olden time, and

sustained them by his magic powers. On the way Rama

slew the Demon Taraka, and at the Saint's hermitage he

discomfited the Demon-hosts, shot their leaders, and enabled

the Saint to perform his long-obstructed Sacrifice.

Thus having proved their valour, the princes went with

Kaugika to a great Sacrifice which the King of Mithila had

made. On the way favouring portents occurred, heartily

were they welcomed, and Rama achieved the adventure of

^iva's Bow by bending and even breaking it—task which had

baffled many famous warriors—and so won for his bride

lovely Sita, the mysterious daughter of King Janaka. On his

invitation Dagaratha came with a gallant army to be present

at the marriage, when Rama's brothers also were united to

fair brides, and after due festivities he went home with his

sons and their newly-wedded wives. But on the way they

were terrified by evil omens. The wind was adverse, the sun

was darkened, jackals howled : at last appeared awful Paragu-

Rama, with his dreaded axe, sworn foe of the Warrior-Race,

whom twenty-one times he had swept from the face of the

INTRODUCTION xxv

earth—beginning the savage deed by slaying his own

mother, who belonged to it. He taunted and defied his

namesake, whose name and fame were equally a reproach to

him ; made light of his adventure with ^iva's bow, and

offered him his own huge weapon to bend. Rama, to whom

as Vishnu's bow it was familiar, lightly grasped and bent it,

smiling the while. But the glory of his foe paled before his,

the elder before the later manifestation of the God; he

humbled himself, embraced the offer to purchase pardon at

the expense of losing that heaven which his arduous austerities

had won—and departed, after blessing and praising his

Conqueror. Then in joy and triumph Da^aratha and his

sons went home, amid the plaudits of the heavenly host

rejoicing over Rama.

{12) Then the King, having drunk life's pleasure-cup to

the full, prepared (according to the wont of his noble race) to

establish Rdma on the throne and himself to seek the

hermit's cell. All the people rejoiced, but Rama himself

grieved. And now the doom long-since pronounced was to

overtake the aged King. His wife Kaikeyi, Bharata's mother,

who had once saved his life when he was sore wounded,

claimed fulfilment of a promise then made her of two boons,

—whatsoever she should ask. She demanded the kingdom

for her own son Bharata, and the banishment for fourteen

years of Rama. The promise was fulfilled : Rama, with his

faithful wife and his brother Lakshman, went into exile

;

Bharata, against his own will, was seated on the throne ; and

the aged King, after a short, sad term in the hermitage,

passed away. Bharata, after duly performing the funeralrites,

followed Rama, and vainly besought him to return and

take up his birthright. But the Hero would not be persuaded,

xxvi RAGHUVANgA

till the years of his exile should be complete, and to escape

further importunity plunged into the great Southern forest.

Then began for Rama a series of battles with the Rakshasas,

allies and kinsfolk of the Demon-King of Lanka. He slew

Viradha, who attempted to carry Sita away ; and he dreadfully

mutilated the terrible Surpanakha, when she furiously

attacked him, frenzied at rejection of her proffered love.

She fled for aid to Ravana, and a great host came forth

against the two mighty brothers. But Rama slew them with

his death-dealing arrows, and only Silrpanakha escaped to

tell the tale in Lanka. Ravana himself then took the field ;

he decoyed Rama away, and carried off Sita to his island

fortress.

Rama disconsolate made alliance with the great Monkey-

King Sugriva, whom he restored to his throne ; and whose

general, Hanuman, Son of the Wind, discovered and comforted

Sita in Lanka, and brought back tidings to Rama.

The Hero then marched south with his allies. By their aid

he built a causeway over the strait to Lanka, and by it he

crossed to storm Ravana's capital. A terrible battle was c--"

fought before the walls. Apes and Giants performed'^

prodigies of valour. Meghanada with his deadly lasso was'^~

slain, and so was the terrible but slothful Kumbhakarna.'"^

Ravana himself came forth to the battle, and nearly slew

Lakshman, when Rama advanced against him, mounted on

Indra's war-chariot. The champions encountered ; Gods

and Giants looked anxiously on while the stupendous duel

raged : each put forth his utmost valour against his foe : for

long the strife seemed doubtful, and arrows flew thick and

fast between them. But at last Rama smashed the Giant's

mighty club, smote off his ten heads with unerring arrows,

INTRODUCTION xxvii

and laid the Oppressor low. Then was he hailed with shouts

of joy by the Gods, and celestial flowers were rained on his

head. Sita was recovered, and Fire attested her stainless

purity ; Vibhishan, whom happy fate had led to desert his

brother Ravana, was crowned in the dead tyrant's stead ; and ^^

the joyful victor turned his face homewards. J, ^^JuT^

(13) Then he travelled with Sita in the magic car Push-

'^aka, which moved through the air obedient to his will,

—

the while he called on her to admire the varied loveliness of

sea and land over which they passed. Ocean with its

monsters, its foaming waves, its waterspouts ; the shore

fringed with sombre betel and waving palm-forests ; the lofty

mountains, crowned with clouds ; the cool, dark woods

through which he had sought his lost bride ; the peaceful

hermitages of saintly ascetics :—all he lovingly pointed out

to her, telling the story (tender or terrible) of each. And as

they drew near the place of their exile, he told her of the

grief in which he had sought her, and how mute nature had

shared his sorrow and helped his search. At length they

reached the noble river Sarayii, which washes the walls of

Ayodhya, honoured as divine by Raghu's race, whose banks

were studded with the pillars that marked each the completion

of some great Sacrifice. There was he met by Bharata

and his other brothers, with the Chiefs of his allies. They

embraced one another, and rejoiced at their meeting : and

Rama, the set term of his exile having now expired, received

back the kingdom from loyal, unselfish Bharata, and entered

Ayodhya in triumph.

(14) First of all the brothers and Sita visited the widowed

Queens, to comfort them in their bereavement, and were

specially tender to remorseful Kaikeyi. The ceremonies of

xxviii RAGHUVANgA

consecration and enthronement were observed with unexampled

splendour ; Rama and Sita entered the city amid

the glad acclaims of the whole people, and a reign of peace

and prosperity began. Living happily with her Lord, Sita

soon gave signs that she was about to become a mother, and

the glad King redoubled his tenderness, and readily promised

to indulge her wish to revisit the quiet hermitages by the

Godavari.

Now on a day the King went up on his palace-roof, and

his heart swelled within him as he marked the splendour of

his city, the richness of her busy marts, the security and

happiness of her citizens. He turned to a follower, and

asked what the people said of him. The loyal servant

answered that in all things they praised him, save for the

matter of the Queen—whom he had taken back after long

sojourn in Ravana's palace. Struck with horror at the

insinuated calumny, after fierce struggle with himself, Rama

deemed it his duty to put away his innocent Queen, rather

than the cloud of reproach should rest on his line, hitherto

stainless. So he summoned his brothers to counsel, told

them his decision, and charged Lakshman to escort Sita to

the hermitage of Valmiki, and leave her there. None dared

to remonstrate, and Lakshman with heavy heart obeyed.

Sita innocently rejoiced at her Lord's kindness, but on the

way—as she admired the pleasant scenes and sounds,

—

unfavourable omens roused her fears, and she prayed for her

Lord's welfare. But when on their arrival at the hermitage,

Lakshman told her the dreadful truth, at first she swooned

away. Then graciously she forgave him his share in her

sorrow, sent loving greetings to all her relations, and tender

words of farewell to the King. The blame of her misery she

INTRODUCTION xxix

laid not to his charge, but bewailed it as the punishment for

her own sin in a former life ; she promised to endure her sad

life until his child should be born, and vowed that then she

would devote herself to penance and prayer, that in a future

existence they might be reunited for ever. Then Lakshman

went back to Ayodhya, and Sita entered the hermitage. The

trees shed their blossoms, the deer ceased to feed and the

peacocks to dance, all in mute sympathy with her. The

Poet-Saint Vdlmiki welcomed her to the peace of his dwelling,

soothed her sorrows, blamed her husband, and, for her

father's sake and her own, blessed her and her future

offspring. So the pure Queen lived on in hope and resignation

: but Rama in his palace mourned her, and devoted himself

solely to the duties of his rank, joy having passed from

his life.

(15) Thus Rama all lonely ruled the world. Now there

came from Yamuna's banks hermits to seek help against the

Rakshasa Lavana, who troubled their sacrifices. The king gave

them as their champion his younger brother Catrughna, who

after a terrible fight slew the Giant and returned in triumph to

Ayodhya. But on his homeward way he stopped at Valmiki's

hermitage, and that same night Sita gave birth to twin sons,

Kuga and Lava. These the Poet-Saint brought up, performing

for them all religious rites, and teaching them the sweet strains

of the Epic of their father, which he himself had made

{Ramayana)r Then did Catrughna found the noble city of

Mathura, after which he returned to Rama's court, where he

was lovingly received, and where he told all his story, save the

birth of Sita's sons, which the Saint had forbidden him to tell.

Now there came to Rama's palace a Brahman, weeping for

his son who had died untimely, and reproaching the King.

XXX RAGHUVANgA

Rama, all-pitiful, promised him relief, and set out on his

celestial chariot to compel Death to restore his prey. But a

warning voice told him as he started that first he must root

out a grievous sin which was being committed in the land.

This he found to be a Ciidra, who was seeking to win Heaven

by the practice of severe austerities, a thing forbidden by the

Law to his degraded order. The King slew him with his own

hand, and by that happy death the sin was wiped away and

the sinner passed to Heaven. Then Rama returned, found

the Brahman rejoicing over his son restored to hfe, and

received his grateful blessings.

Rama now prepared to celebrate with extraordinary

splendour the great Horse-sacrifice. To it came all the

great Saints, gathering from the regions of Earth and

Heaven ; and the Rakshasas, formerly disturbers, were now

guardians of the rites ! With the rest came Valmiki, at

whose command Ku^a and Lava went singing before the

King and the people, melting them to tears when they heard

the sweet story of Rama in the Poet's matchless verse. Then

were his sons made known to Rama, and the Saint craved as

a boon that he should take back his own true wife. Sita,

summoned by the Saint, came forward, and solemnly prayed

that Earth would proclaim her stainless and receive her to

her bosom. A chasm opened, Earth appeared in glorious

form, clasped her pure daughter to her breast, and vanished.

The King was hardly restrained from a vain attempt to

recover her, but at length submitted to Fate's decree.

Rama, having established his brothers' sons in separate

kingdoms, now prepared for the end. Death himself came

with a summons from the Supreme, and the Divine Hero

returned to the repose of that eternity which he had quitted

INTRODUCTION xxxi

for a time, to deliver Gods and men from Ravana's tyranny.

And when he departed, there followed him in one mighty

stream the dwellers in Ayodhya ; and his faithful allies, the

Rakshasas and Monkeys, bitterly bewailed his loss.

(i6) The sons of Rama and his brothers ruled their various

realms in harmony, the chief rank being given to Ku^a, who

dwelt in Ku^avati. But one night, when all the palace was

still, he woke from sleep, to see in his chamber the guardian

goddess of his ancestral capital, Ayodhya, clad as a mourning

bride, who besought him to return to her. She bewailed the

desolation of her streets and palaces, where jackals howled

and spiders spread their webs ; of the painted halls, where

now fierce lions lurked; of the pleasant gardens, fallen a

prey to apes ; of the river-banks, where once fair women

bathed and now wild buffaloes wallowed. Her houses were

fallen into decay, grass grew on the roofs, and no fires burned

on the hearths. So the King promised to return to her, his

ministers approved, and on a propitious day he set out. His

host was like a moving city, with its multitude of chariots

and horses, its mountainous elephants, its forest of flagstaffs.

He crossed Ganges, adoring the sacred stream, and came to

Saraytl, hard by his own city. He restored the buildings,

worshipped the Gods in their temples, and established himself

in the ancient capital of his race.

Then came the grievous heats of summer, when scarcely

even the rich could escape from misery. The King with all

the ladies of the palace went forth to bathe in the cool water

of Sarayu. There they played, delighting in the pleasant

cold, splashing one another and the King, floating and

dancing, displaying all their charms. But when the King

left the water, he found he had lost a precious bracelet, the

xxxii RAGHUVANCA

gift of his father Rama. Fishermen searched the river, but in

vain. They told the monarch of a Serpent-King who dwelt

below the water, and had perhaps stolen it. Armed with his

bow the King repaired to the bank, when at once there

appeared the Naga, with his fair sister Kumudvati, who when

playing at ball had seized the glittering bracelet as it fell.

The bracelet was restored, and the appeased Kuga took

Kumudvati to wife, thus forming an alliance auspicious to

the Worlds.

(17) To Kuga Kumudvati bore a son Atithi, whom his

father trained in all noble nurture ere he fell in battle with a

Demon ; Kumudvati followed him in death, and Atithi

reigned in his stead. Him did Brahmans and ministers unite

to consecrate King, stablishing him on an ivory throne in a

new-built palace. When duly anointed he lavished gifts on

the priests and set all his captives free. Fair in form, by his

beauty and winning ways he made all hearts his own ; his

royal state was as Vishnu's, his palace a second Paradise.

Pious to the Gods, terrible in war, careful and just in administration,

was he—and his kingdom flourished. Truthful and

generous, resisting all temptation, trampling on the allurements

of sense, tempering severity with mercy, he struck the

roots of his Kingship deep in the hearts of his subjects.

Carefully dividing his time, he daily held his council and

watched both friends and foes. Boldly he attacked, but

guarded his own realm well ; nor by over-confidence did he

put himself in the power of any. Riches he gathered as

reserve of power and fostered his army therewith ; commerce

he protected, and religion ; using power or policy as best

served. Mighty, generous, modest—all bowed before his

throne ; his subjects adored, and the Gods favoured him.

^

INTRODUCTION xxxiii

(i8) To him his Queen, Nishada's princess, bore a famous

son, Nishiidha, who sat on the throne when Atithi passed to

heaven. When Nishadha's glorious rule was ended fiery

Nala reigned, and after him mild, virtuous Pundarika. Then

valiant Devanika came and after him magnanimous Ahinagas

—lofty-souled, skilled to discern the thoughts of men. Next

^ila succeeded, and Ku^a and Unnabha ; Vajranabha,

^ankhana, Dhushita^va, Vi^vasaha, Hiranyanabha, pleasant

Kau^alya, mighty Putra, Paushya, and peaceful Dhruvasandhi

—Polar Star among Kings, slain untimely in the chase.

But when Dhruvasandhi died his son Sudargana was but a

child. Him the council installed, prince of high promise and

mighty heart, whose dignity and grace delighted his people.

Kings bowed before him, eloquent of speech, and earth

rested in peace under the shadow of his boyish arm. Apt

was he to learn, soon mastering the arts of wisdom and war

;

and when he grew to man's estate he wedded a lovely bride

who bore him a fair son, Agnivarma.

(19) Now when Prince Agnivarma was of age, his father

placed him on the throne, and himself retired to the hermit's

cell. For some few years Agnivarma endured the cares of

royalty ; but then, fearing no foreign foes, he gave himself up

entirely to sensual pleasure, nor recked of his people's

welfare. Wasting his life in ignoble pursuits, lavishing his

strength in vicious indulgence, heeding no counsel—he consumed

away before his time, unblest with offspring. But his

sage ministers, hastily and secretly performing his obsequies,

honoured the widowed Queen as regent and performed the

ceremonies of inauguration for her unborn son.

(So abruptly closes the Poem in its present state.)

NOTES MYTHOLOGICAL AND

EXPLANATORY

In orthodox Hindu cosmogony Brahma is the Supreme Soul.

All that exists proceeds from Him. In Him exists no will

nor anything that (to human apprehension) indicates soul.

But at determined periods—Kalpas—Brahma becomes energetic

in the forms of the three Supreme Gods of Hindu

mythology—Brahma, Vishnu, and ^iva. At the end of

these world-periods, whatsoever exists—Gods, men, all living

creatures, and all matter—is reabsorbed in Brahma, who goes

to sleep again for an equal period. But the object of each

individual soul is to free itself from the chain of births within

the world-age and be reabsorbed in Brahma, so losing

individual being and responsibility. In our poem Vishnu is

identified, and made co-extensive with Brahma.

The function of Brahma, performed either directly, or

through the Prajapatis, "fathers of living souls," ends with

creation, except that He is represented as granting the boons

won by asceticism. To him therefore no altars rise and no

worship is paid. Vishnu, the Preserver, is the chief God of

adoration in the world, and to him incarnate as Rama the

whole poem looks. Nine times has he been incarnate in

the current World-Age—a period of stupendous length,

430,000,000,000 years for a Day of Brahma, divided into four

MYTHOLOGICAL NOTES xxxv

Ages, of which each is less long and more vicious than that

which preceded it, gradually sinking from primeval goodness ;

and a tenth Descent in human form (Avatar) remains to

come, before all shall be reabsorbed, and the Dvine shall go

to sleep again.

Vishnu's first four incarnations or Descents (Avatars) took

place in the first, the most perfect. Age ; the three that

succeeded, of which the last was the divine Hero of our

poem, in the second ; the eighth and most complete,

Krishna, in the third Age ; whilst the last and most evil,

and also the shortest, boasts of two, the Buddha and Kalki,

who is yet to come. Each of the four Ages, corresponding

in some sort to the Golden, Silver, Copper, and Iron Ages

of Classic Mythology, is preceded and succeeded by a

" twilight " equal in length to one-tenth of the period to which

it belongs. But of what happens during these minor periods

of rest we know nothing. In each succeeding Age the Great

Sages, usually reckoned as Seven and sometimes identified

with the stars of the Great Bear, come again into being and

activity ; apparently they live through the World-Age, as does

Vagishtha, the great spiritual Director (Guru) of Ikshvaku's

line, Ikshvaku being himself the son of Manu, the seventh

of the great succession of Manus, of whom Hindu mythological

chronology numbers fourteen.

This seventh Manu has the Sun for his father, and is himself

the progenitor of the mighty Solar line of Kings. A Manu

presides throughout the whole of a Kalpa or Great Yuga,

which is thence called also a Manu-period or Manvantara.

Until the individual soul by pious meditation and abstraction

frees itself from the chain of individuality, it remains subject

to the laws of transmigration, and is born in successive states

xxxvi RAGHUVAN^A

of existence—higher or lower, happy or miserable, according

to the deeds done in the body. These previous births constitute

Fate, as determining the course of Hfe in subsequent

existences.

In the human sphere the Creator placed on earth four

orders of men—Brahmans, Kshatriyas, Vaigyas, and Cudras :

Priests, Warriors, Husbandmen, Slaves. The three former

are bound by common rites and duties, admitted to common

privileges ; but the last is a slave, and may not attempt to

rise higher. On the other hand, it will be seen that whereas

the earlier Rama is a Brahman, the second (and mightier)

is a Kshatriya; and the Mythology tells of more than one

Vai^ya, who was both Saint and King. Throughout the

poem the extraordinary supremacy of the Brahman is insisted

on. Gods and Kings alike tremble before his curse, and

alike seek his aid against calamity. The chief duty of Kings

and heroes is to protect the Brahmans in the performance of

their sacrifices, and Ravana's guilt lies at least as much in his

obstruction of their rites as in his oppression of the worlds.

Now, while men are on earth, their lives are by Brahmanical

rule divided into four stages—those of student, householder,

recluse, and ascetic : in the poem the last two seem to merge

into one. It was the duty of a boy of the three upper classes

to spend the years between childhood and maturity in the

study of the Vedas and other sacred lore : when perfect therein

he was permitted and ivas bound to marry and have a household

of his own. When he had a son to carry on his line,

he was free to consult his own future happiness by withdrawing

himself from the world, and by meditation on the

Supreme fitting himself for that union with Brahma which is

the final goal. But most awful consequences awaited the

MYTHOLOGICAL NOTES xxxvii

man who had left no son to succeed him : the ghosts of his

ancestors would be in misery : and he himself could never

escape from the dread round of transmigration. (This is

how the matter is presented to us, though if the ancestors

in succession had attained—as Raghu's line did—to union

with Brahma, one does not see how they could be affected by

failure of the line ; cf. in. 26. It may be noticed too that the

expedient of adoption is not contemplated.)

Inferior to the three Great Gods are many less mighty, in

their origin elemental,—of whom the chief is Indra, the

thundering god of the sky, who has won his place by performing

a hundred sacrifices, and may be supplanted by any

one who does the like (see C. in.) Indra too has been the

champion of the Gods against the Demons, and he has drunk

the Nectar produced by the Churning of Ocean with Mount

Mandara for the churning-stick, which gave the gods strength

to overcome their foes. He has a hundred eyes, drives seven

bay horses, and is lord of the thunder ; the rainbow is his

bow, and he clipped the wings of the mountains when they

threatened heaven in their flight. His wife is Cachi, his son

Jayanta, and his special heaven Svarga, on Mount Meru ; his

followers are the Maruts or wind-gods. According to one

legend Vishnu is his younger brother, both being sons of

Aditi. Agni is god of fire ; Yama, of death and of justice

;

Kuvera, of w^ealth, his followers being the Yakshas, his home

(and Vishnu's) Kailasa ; lastly, Varuna, of the waters.

In the earthly life each individual in his student-stage

chooses as preceptor in Sacred Lore a Brahman, his Guru,

whom he is bound to venerate far beyond his natural father,

and to whom he would seek on all occasions of special need.

Such is Vacishtha to the whole Sun-descended Kingly line.

xxxviii RAGHUVANCA

The Brahmans, as we find them in the poem, live for the

most part in little separate communities, in groves by sacred

rivers, where they perform their sacrifices and lead holy,

peaceful lives. They have their wives and children about

them, live in huts, and wear robes of bark ; their enemies

the Rakshasas trouble their rites ; and when Kings

have solemn festivals—births, marriages, funerals, or other

solemnities—they gather to them, and are graced with rich

gifts.

The Rakshasas are spirits of evil. Of terrible aspect,

feasting on raw flesh, delighting in darkness, able to assume

varied shapes at will, they trouble the holy rites of the pious.

Their King was Ravana, whose brother was Kumbhakarna,

his son Meghanada or Indrajit, slain by Lakshman, his sister

S<irpanakha.

A King is imaged as having wedded the Earth, loving and

protecting his realm as a bridegroom his bride. Also, Royal

State is represented as his bride, the Fortune or Luck of the

Kingdom ; sometimes she is figured as jealous of his human

bride (as of Sita). The special insignia of royalty are the

umbrella and the yak-tail whisks or fans (Chamari). When

the heir comes to manhood, he is usually installed as Yuvaraja

or associate-King.

The elephant is a favourite subject of comparison, for

dignity and strength, and also for the peculiar sweet-scented

liquid that exudes from his temples in the season of lovepassion

(mada). Among plants the lotus or water-lily takes

chief place,—for its two species, distinguished by the fact that

the one opens up to the rays of the moon and closes during

the day, while the other expands to the sun and remains closed

at night. There is frequent allusion also to the phosphoresMYTHOLOGICAL

NOTES xxxix

cent plants, specially flourishing on Himalaya, which shine

through the darkness as though the setting sun had left his

light with them.

File is thought specially pure ; it ministers at the sacrifice,

and pervades all nature, abiding even in the sea (which, perhaps,

is its phosphorescence). The dead are consumed on the

pyre, but perfect ascetics are buried : and Rama also buries

the Rakshasas.

The Law under which all are set is the Code of the first Manu,

—divine progenitor of the whole human race. This Code was

revealed by Bhrigu, son of the Creator, and is a Smriti or

derivative sacred book, the authority on which it rests being

the Cruti, or Heard Revelation,—the Veda. That Code,

which in its present form was probably composed in the third

century a.d., is a mine of information on the orthodox

Brahmanical system. The perfect King orders himself by

Manu's precepts, the cosmogony of the poem is his, and his,

above all, is the exalted position of the Brahman, whether as

Preceptor (Guru), Sacrificer, Ascetic, or Counsellor. From

his Law-book too are derived the ceremonies which consecrate

the royal children, and the studies that fit them for their high

position. There also are found the rules that regulate the

solemn ceremonies of the Qraddha^ those sacrifices to departed

Ancestors that were so imperatively incumbent on

every Hindu, and the duty of which made a son the object of

such fervent desire. [These sacrifices to the spirits of the

dead probably point to an earlier stage of belief than most

which we find prevailing among Hindus.]

As three of Vishnu's incarnations are prominently brought

before us in the poem, it may be interesting to give a catalogue

of them all.

xl RAGHUVANCA

I St. The Fish—when he saved Manu and the seven Risbis

in the great Deluge, and rescued theVedas from

destruction {cf. xiii. 20).

2nd. The Tortoise—when in that form he allowed the

gods to pivot on his back the Mountain Mandara,

with which they churned the Ocean to obtain the

Nectar to strengthen them against the Demons

(Asuras).

3rd. The Boar—when on his mighty tusk he raised up the

solid earth above the waste of waters.

4th. The Man-lion—when he tore to pieces the Demon

Hiranyakagipu, who was oppressing the world, in

defence of his son Prahlada, a devout worshipper

of Vishnu.

5th. The Dwarf—who saved the world from the tyranny of

Bali. Approaching him at the end of a great

sacrifice, he obtained as a boon the grant of as much

space as he could cover in three strides ; then rising

to his own Divine proportions, with the first stride

he covered earth, with the second heaven {cf. xvi.,

"Vishnu's second stride"), and with the third he

crushed Bali down to Patala, the region of semidivine

snakes below the earth.

6th. Rama with the Axe, Paragu-Rama, son of Jamadagni,

descended from Bhrigu (hence Bhdrgava). He

came to earth to deliver from the Demon Arjuna,

King of the Haihayas, who provoked his death at

Rama's hands by stealing his father's cow. Arjuna's

death was avenged by his sons on Jamadagni, and

MYTHOLOGICAL NOTES xH

then did Rama in his fury, twenty-one times in succession,

sweep away the generations of the Warrior

Class. In obedience to his father he had already

slain his own mother Renuka, for having entertained

impure thoughts. But when his father, delighted at

his obedience, granted him whatever he should ask,

he obtained her restoration to life and pristine

purity, the revocation of curses laid on his brothers,

and for himself the highest renown as a warrior.

7th. Rama Chandra—the Rama of our poem, incarnate for

the destruction of Ravana.

8th. Krishna—the most popular form of all Vishnu's

earthly manifestations. In him the whole God is

said to have come down, whereas in the others He

came only in part. Krishna is the Divine Hero of

the Mahabharata, as Rama is of the Ramayana,

He was born in a humble home, for the destruction

of Ci^upala. His worship is the most widespread of

any in India at the present day, and the god is a

compound (one may say) of Hercules and Cupid.

9th. Gautama the Buddha—though this is by no means

undisputed. This manifestation is said to have been

made to restore religion to pristine purity. The

inclusion of the arch-heretic among the Avatars of

Vishnu is a masterpiece of Brahmanical craft.

loth, and last, is the Descent of Vishnu as Kalki, which is

still to come, when the earth—at length full of all

evil and lawlessness—is to be restored for a while to

primeval innocence, before the end of the Age and

the Great Dissolution (Maha-Pralaya).

xlii RAGHUVANgA

Vishnu's special weapon is the Quoit (Chakra) ; he rides on

Garuda, King of birds, foe of snakes, his constant attendant

;

he wears the jewel Kaustubha, won from Ocean at its Churning,

and his breast is marked by a sacred curl, the Crivatsa.

His wife is Lakshmi, and in the intervals of his activity he

slumbers on the waters seated on a lotus.

The Svayamvara, the maiden's choice of her bridegroom, is

a great feature in both Sanskrit Epics—those of Sita and

Indumati in the story of Rama, and of Draupadi in the Mahabharata.

It points to a freedom of choice by the women of

India which has now been curtailed or abolished, probably

through the influence of Mohammedan modes of thought.

Mount Himalaya has a divine character. From his slopes

comes the sacred Ganga, and on his peaks did the god Civa

perform his arduous austerities. His daughter was Uma,

specially Parvati, daughter of the mountain, who by her

austerities won the love of Civa and became thereby the

mother of Kartikeya (so called "from his six nurses, the

Kritikas, now the Pleiades in heaven), born among the reeds

of Skanda—leader of the armies of the gods. [See the

Kuviarosambhava?[ She is invoked with ^iva at the beginning

of the poem.

For the ordinary daily sacrifice were needed—ist, the

butter-oblation, havis (ghi)—clarified butter—laid on the holy

fire ; 2nd, the Kuca grass, a scented grass still much esteemed

in India,—Khas-Khas.

The greatest of all sacrifices was that of the Horse—the

AQvamedha—being the final one of a series of a hundred, the

accomplishing of which would raise the sacrificer to the rank

of Indra. For this final sacrifice it was necessary that the

horse chosen as the victim should have been free to range

MYTHOLOGICAL NOTES xliii

where he would for a full year before he was offered up. So

was the victim carried off by Civa, when Sagara tried to complete

his series of sacrifices, and so also by Indra when Dilipa

attempted it,—and Raghu attacked the god. (C. in.).

(j^iva, the third of the Great Gods, is the Destroyer. With

five heads, and in the principal one three eyes, he rides

—

clothed with a tiger-skin—on the bull Nandi. He wields the

Trident and a mighty bow, bears on his brow the crescent

moon ; his neck is blue from the effect of drinking the poison

produced at Ocean's Churning ; and on his breast hangs a

chaplet of human skulls. In one of his life-stages his wife

was Sati, one of the daughters of Daksha. But Daksha

slighted both by not inviting them to a great sacrifice he

made. Sati in wrath leaped into the altar-fire and destroyed

the ceremony, and Civa with a flash from his terrible central

eye smote off Daksha's head; but afterwards relented and

replaced it with that of a ram.

His two most famous achievements are :

—

I St. When the Ganges was to descend to earth from heaven

to purify from sin the ashes of the sons of Sagara, he broke

its fall with his head, lest it should overwhelm the earth. It

wandered for a thousand years among his matted locks before

its final descent to earth.

2nd. While he was engaged in severe austerities on Mount

Himalaya, Kama, god of love (sent by the Gods), archer of

the flowery bow, attempted to awake passion in his breast,

that he might beget a son to lead the hosts of heaven, whereupon

the angry God reduced him to ashes with one flash of

his terrible eye. Hence Kama is called (Ananga) Bodiless,

—though at last, yielding to the prayers of Rati, his wife, and

of the Gods, ^iva gave him a body again. The story is told

xliv RAGHUVANCA

at length by Kalidasa in the Kumarasambhava ("Birth of

the War-God"). It is an unending source of allusion and

metaphor throughout Sanskrit poetry, especially in combination

with beautiful descriptions of Spring, the gladsome

season of love.

Ganga was the daughter of Mount Himalaya, and originally

flowed only in heaven. But King Sagara having by austerities

gained by one wife one son, and by the other 60,000,—prepared

for the great Horse-sacrifice. When all was ready,

the victim was stolen away by Civa in guise of a monstrous

snake. The 60,000 dug down through earth, enlarging the

bounds of Ocean, hence called Sagara, and were reduced to

ashes by the angry God when they found him in Patala.

Their half-brother renewed the quest, and found the ashes.

Garuda, Vishnu's bird, told him from that God that the ashes

could be purified only by the waters of heavenly Ganges.

Om Tat Sat

(Continued ..)

(My humble salutations to Kavikula Guruh Kalidasa and  greatfulness to Sreeman C H Tawney

 for the collection)