Kamba Ramayanam Bala Kandam 2 (Padalam 5)
Kamba Ramayanam Bala Kandam 2 (Padalam 5)

By Kambar (Kavichakravarthy Kamban)

Translated in English by P. R Ramachander

Kamba Ramayanam: Bala Kandam 2 (Padalam 5)

5. Thiru avathara  Padalam The chapter on divine incarnation    (This chapter  starts with Dasaratha  telling  Vasishta  that he   does not have sons  and wants them. Vasishta   remembers about the promise of Lord  Vishnu   to be born as  son of Dasaratha. He advises him  to    get ASwamedha sacrifice by    bringing sage Rishya Srunga. A ghost like being comes out   of the fire and gives a PInda of sweet offering. Dasaratha divides it and gives it to his queens Kausalya  , Kaikeyi and Sumathra  . Rama , BHaratha, Lakshmana and Sathrugna are born to them. They grow up wel and are  taught by sage Vasishta. Dasaratha   loves Rama most.   Valmiki Ramayana tells this story in a different manner. Dasaratha   desires to do Aswamedha yaga to get sons. Sumanthra his minister tells  him how he has heard Sage Sanathkumara   telling other sages that  Lord Vishnu would be born as  son to  Dasaratha. He also tells him that  the Fire sacrifice should be performed under leadership of Rishya Srunga, Dasaratha brings Rishya Srunga   and ASwamedha sacrifice is performed. At the end to fulfill    the desire of Dasaratha for sons a “Puthra Ishti”  is performed by Rishya Srunga. A divine being comes out of the fire and gives  Payasa  to Dasaratha who distributes it   among his queens.  Children are born to them and they are  taught by sage Vasishta.  )
180.One day that king   approached    and worshipped sage Vasishta* ,Who was equivalent     to God Brahma   and told him,“You are the result of penance of mothers  and fathers of our clan,AS well   the God   on whom I have great respectful love  ,And  you all others    as well    all the souls to me .”  * Vasishta is the son of Lord Brahma.

181. ”The leaders of my clan looked   after the world   like sun God   and  made their clan famous ,And  though there are none who    do not get soft by fame,I looked after  this entire world properly     from this Ayodhya ,Due to the    shower   of your grace  .”

182. ”I have ruled over this world   suppressing  all my enemies,For the past sixty thousand years  and I do not have any problems,Except a worry  in me that  after me   this world is likely to be  confused.”

183. ”The sages  doing great penance   and great Brahmins,Were living very comfortably   without any sorrow  til now,Due to my having  no children  , would not ,Those great ones   suffer   due  to great sorrow.This  worry is causing great      sorrow   in  my mind.”

184. Then Vasishta , the son of Lord Brahma   who sits on a lotus,Hearing all  these   words    from the king ,Who had a door where  drums are being played ,And who was wearing   a crown studded with gems, Started   thinking  like this  in his mind.

185. The God Vishnu   who had the colour of the dark cloud,Who was sleeping   like huge mountain    on a  serpent  bed  ,Which was in the middle of the ocean of milk,Had given word  to   the suffering     devas  , that  ,He would put an end to the Rakshasas   whose only job was killing.

186. When the devas who were living in heaven   troubled.By the Rakshasas   whose job was  causing trouble to them,Approached  the feet of Lord Shiva , who had poison standing in his neck,And when they told him about their sorrow  , that God Shiva,Who already knew what the future    holds,Told them, “I will not fight from now on”   and,Along with the Devas    went to  Lord Brahma.

187. They reached the jeweled pavilion  without any defects, At the top of the Meru mountain  and saluted    the Lord Brahma   who came there,And  started telling him about    the  evil acts   of those Asuras,Who   were enemies of devas , Which were   like the thunder in the sky .

188. Then Lord  Brahma who sits on the lotus flower   told ,About   how  The Meghanadha(indrajith)   kidnapped Indra from his town,And how he tied him and took    to the city of Lanka,And how he went there   and brought   back  Indra.

189. Against that twenty armed    and ten headed Ravana,Who lacked   the wealth of graceful nature,Since  we were not able to take  any  action  ,The only   way to release us from this problem,Would be   for  Lord Vishnu   who is like a black  cloud ,And is  the sea  of mercy  to   wage a war and  then kill him.

190. After mentally  saluting   Lord Vishnu who is like a divine emerald mountain,Who was   lying   on the ocean of milk with its torrential waves,If he salute  him with folded hands  , meditate on him and pray him,With a knowledge that this indeed is salvation  , he  would without delay help.

191.  Then Lord Vishnu   came like a blackish cloud  ,Making   the forest of lotus    flowers bloom,And  Holding two flames on both his  sides,And appeared there   as if he was climbing on a golden mountain,Along with Lakshmi who was sitting on a full open lotus flower  ,Riding on Garuda   and reached the great Meru  mountain.

192. Then   the lord with the blue neck   and Brahma who likes  ,To sit on a lotus flower   saluted his feet   and along with devas  ,Along with all devas   stood up   and went  before Lord Vishnu,And when they were praising  him , danced with great joy.

193. They all drank the honey of joy   thinking  that,All  the asuras  have been killed   and without knowing any other thing,Sang and danced  , ran here and   there  and after  saluting,The  feet of that God  with scent of THulasi  (ocimum sanctum) and kept it on their head.

194. With the prettiness of     a cloud  getting down from the  golden mount Meru, Getting down from the shoulders of the   great one who has  made me  his own,Reaching  the pavilion which was as tall    as   the   sky  ,My lord sat   on a seat which was looking like a lion.

195. Lord Brahma, the sages , all the devas,And Lord Shiva who has tufted hair   and wears the moon,With great wonder   and with great happiness ,Sat on seats near to that of Lord Vishnu  ,And informed him of the cruel acts  of  those bad Asuras.

196. ”Oh  Lord   of Goddess  Lakshmi  due to the ten headed Ravana,And those born after him   who are all strong asuras,The earth and heavens   are  slowly loosing their blessed deeds,And there is no way to save them” saying this  they left a deep breath.

197. ” Those asuras who have grown great , due to our great boons ,Are killing the  people of all the three     worlds  by fighting with them.Oh Lord with lotus like eyes , if we   do not put an end  to their cruelties now,Very soon they  would destroy all the three    worlds.”

198. When so saying , those sorrowing devas prayed and saluted Lord Vishnu,He who is pretty  wearing the scented THulasi and flower garlands ,Told them, “Do not wory, I would cut off   the heads of those cheating asuras,And remove the sorrow of the worldand please hear about it.”

199. ” Let all of you in heavens  , go  and be born as  monkeys,In the forests , mountains  and valleys  as my army  “Thus told   Lord Vishnu    who was an ocean of mercy.

200. ”I myself would be born  in the earth  , as son of Dasaratha,Who has   sea like army  walking as well as riding on elephants, horses  and chariots,And using my arrows   which never miss their target  .I would destroy the mirage like Asuras, their strength got  out of boons  and their lives.”

201. “The wheel and conch which are my weapons   and Adhisesha,Who has a poison which would even destroy the northern fire  ,Would be born as my  younger brothers who would salute me,In the city of Ayodhya   which has walls all across the earth.”

202. When  he  the enchanter who wears the scented Thulasi garland,  Told like this  ,  due to great happiness all   the devas Thinking that   God saved them all, stood up and danced ,And sang  the auspicious song that  does good to all.

203.  Indra became happy  thinking that his sorrow has come to an end,Brahma who lived in the pure lotus flower  and Lord Shiva who wore the crescent ,And  all those who live  in the great heavens said, “our subjugation is now over”,And then  That Lord Vishnu who had once swallowed the entire earth,Placed his divine feet  with his anklets  on Garuda , his steed.

204. After  Lord Vishnu   who has made me his,  has gone back ,On the Garuda , Lord Brahma addressing the devas    told,“Even earlier I have been born as Jambavan , the king of bears,And you all now go back    take incarnation as monkeys.”

205. Then Indra   who was the Lord of Devas who possessed  the wish giving tree,Told, “My  contribution is Vali who is like thunder to his enemies and Angadha,”Sun God told  “Understand that my contribution is Sugreeva, the brother of Vali”,And the god of fire told, My contribution is the monkey hero   called Neela.”

206. When the wind God told that he is represented  by Maruthi,All the other  devas told that they have decided   to  be born,AS monkeys who will destroy enemies in earth,And Lord Shiva who burnt the three cities told   thatHe would be born as Hanuman   and so  he asked“How can there be sorrow to all  people in the world?”

207. As per the desire  of the merciful lotus eyed God ,Lord Brahma who sits on the lotus and the dark necked Lord Shiva,Along with the devas  , took the forms   as mentioned above ,And have come as monkeys  in dark forests and the earth ,And Lord Brahma and Lord Shiva both went to their places of residences.

208. Sage Vasishta thought in his mind , that  these have happened earlier,And told , “Oh king   who has powerful  shoulders   and who has won in wars  everywhere,Please do not get worried due  to  not getting a son. If you perform properlyThat fire sacrifice   which can give you sons     who can protect ,All the fourteen worlds  , your sorrow of the mind will vanish,”

209. When the great sage Vasishta told like this  , Dasaratha,Stood up with very great joy , saluted the feet of that great sage  ,“How can sorrow come to me , when I have surrendered to you only?And so  please tell me  the work involved  of doing that fire sacrifice properly?”

210-211. The son of sage Kashyapa   who is the father   of guiltless devas ,As well as other asuras ,   has a son called    Vibhandaka  ,Who has been praised even by Lord Shiva who carries   the GangesAnd who is equal to his father Kashyapa , and he himself has a son,Who is equal to Lord Brahma ,  if we consider   his great  mastery of knowledge ,And  due to his   knowledge   of tenets of justice   as told by Vedas.He   is one who is ignorant of   of the  differing personalities  and nature of the world,And  has a deer like antlers attached to his face  and is called Sringa .

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212. He is one with a mind which  thinks that    all human beings of this    great earth,Which is carried  by the very many heads     of the  snake   are only animals, And who has done great penance  and if we properly consider  ,He is the one who is fit to be praised  by Brahma who likes to sit on lotus,And the Lord Shiva    who destroyed     the three cities,And   if that Rishya Srunga  carries out the  fire sacrifice,Which would give sons  , definitely you will get   sons.

213. Then that  king of kings of all the worlds  after worshipping,The flower like feet of that great sage  , who gave him this good advice  ,And who is the chief of all the great sages who do penance  ,Asked him, “Where   does that faultless sage who has all good qualities live?How can I   bring that great sage  here? Oh sage    who is like a God to me ,please tell me.”

 214.  There is a king called  Roma pada  , who rules all this world  and,Who   is the son of Uthanapada   who was born in the clan of Manu ,Who was capable of winning over all his enemies,Who was like the cool shade    even for mercy , Who   was having a true nature,Who used to rule his country in such a way   that  ,The bad fate which was like an anthill   and strange   sorrows are destroyed.

215. In  the divine country    ruled by that great king ,Since   for a long time the clouds that lead to lightning was not there,Which lead to great sorrow  , the king summoned great sages who were  expert in Vedas,And gave them  gifts  of charity as mentioned in Vedas   ,And since this also did not  lead to the coming  of the rain,He again summoned those sages   and enquired ways to bring rain,And they told , if sage Rishya Srunga comes  to the kingdom then it would rain.

216. ,When he thought    about ways   to bring that great sage ,Who thought that all men who are  in this earth  dressed by   sea are only animals,And who   has  faultless    great penance  , some ladies of the assembly ,Who had    shining forehead , long black eyes,  red coral like lips  .And  who had firm  breasts,  stood up and   told,“We would bring that great sage here.”

217. When they told like   this, the king was overjoyed   and gave them,Ornaments  and cloths as per need and asked   them  with,Foreheads like a cool moon’s crescent  , With shoulders  like thick Bamboo,Thin waist , thick breasts  , dark hair m, shifting eyes  and   red mouth like silk cotton flowers,And told them, “Oh ladies who resemble   the ornamental climbing plant  , please go”,And on hearing this  they saluted   the king  and went by chariot.

218. Those girls after   crossing several Yojanas   and understanding,The hermitage of the faultless  sage was only one Yojana from there,Constructed a  place to stay using leaves and branches ,And  Started living there    as  faultless  sages   of great penance.

219. Then waiting for   a suitable  time  when his father  of great penance was not there,Those ladies with black broad eyes   who were experts in all  arts reached the  hermitage of the saint,And then that sage thinking that  they are also sages,Who thought men are animals  started being hospitable to them.

220. He gave them water to wash  and drink , and offered them a seat ,And after  sweetly   telling them to occupy their seatsAnd then those girls   who had lips like murukku   flower,After saluting the   saint speedily got up and entered  his hermitage.

221. , Those  ladies  who were  wearing  gem studded  ornaments  , after a few days,Again visited him  carrying   several  fruits like jack fruit  , Banana fruit and  mango fruit  ,And also coconut   and told him , “oh  sage of great penance  ,Please eat these   and that age  ate   them.

222. After several similar days had passed by  ,Those damsels having a pretty forehead,Requested that sage Rishya srunga   who is faultless, “You have to come to our house also.”And then saluted him and that sage  went along with them.

223.  With very great joy   and with great surprise ,Those ladies   having  dark eyes , followed by that  great   sage,Took him through the long broad path  , saying this is our home, And took him speedily  in a path, which they liked.

224. Even before the great sage Rishya Sringa came and reached the town,The clouds in the sky became as black as   the poison filled neck of Lord  Shiva,And went on raining  with very huge rain drops  , so that the ponds and rivers got   filled up.

225. Due   the flowing water   due to that heavy rain  ,When the ponds and rivers filled up   as per the wishes of people,The   sugarcane   and red rice  became pretty   and  grew luxuriously, Seeing the continuous heavy rain,  the king knew about coming of the sage.

226. That king of sages Rishya Srunga   who has forsaken,Passion  ,  anger  as well as   enjoyment  , due to the trick played by,Those ladies  who had red lips like   the Kovai fruit  ,Face like lotus flower  , teeth like lustrous   pearls,And smoke like  hair which was perfumed   with smoke   of Akil,Has possibly come here , that king thought.

227. Thinking   like that,  king who had strong rounded shoulders,Rose up and started  , surrounded by four parts of his army  ,Great sages who were expert in Vedas and went for two Yojanas,And  saw Rishya Srunga  who was like a mountain of penance,Amidst the girls  who had pretty and scented  hair.

228. ,As soon as  that king saw the sage, with his eyes,Filled with tears   of joy   saluted him by falling on the floor and said,“From now on me and the people of my country have got back our life”,And then that king who had a mind filled with joy   told those ladies,Who saluted him, “By your trick  you have removed my sorrow.”

229. When   the king and sages   went and met him, the blessed saint,Understood that he has been brought there by deceit ,And the devas  started shivering with fear  and due to request of the  king,That sage who was like a ocean with waves   which can damage the shore  kept quiet.

230. The king who possessed   a sharp sword  , requested that sage several times,And told him how    the rain which cannot be stopped by any one  removed sorrow,In great detail  , then the great anger that   was in the mind of sage left  him.

231. , With grace entering him   and anger going away  , that sage  ,Blessed the king   and entered  the chariot   which can travel fast,And with many sages with good ideas and thoughts following him  ,That  sage who was capable of giving boons  to all those with good thoughts , went further.

232. That city was decorated   and the people came towards him to receive him,And the king  along with the sage   reached his palace in that city,Reached  a pavilion  constructed of matchless gold  ,And then the king  made that  sage  sit   on a   throne .

233.,. As if there is nothing  to be  told further  ,after hospitably  treating him,By giving him  water to wash and drink  , that king ,Adopting the rituals of the Vedas  gave in marriage ,His daughter  Santha   who was as soft as the flower of Murukku tree.

234. Due to the gift from the sky  , the disease of poverty was cured ,That country    completely got rid of all its sorrow,And being  properly looked after  by the daughter of the king with pretty hair,That sage   is happily staying  there, told Vasishta.

235. When the great saint told like this  Dasaratha saluted his feet,Said, “now itself I will go and bring him  “  and he climbed in to his chariot   decorated by gems,After being saluted   by many kings  who wore heroic armlets and gem studded crown,And after being saluted and praised by Sumanthra  and great ministers like him,And then  all the devas blessed him   and showered ceaselessly   flowers,Saying,  “Our problems have come to an end from today,” and also praised the king.

236. With huge drums and other musical instruments  making sound greater than ocean,With songs being sung   by great musicians ,With great Brahmins who are experts in Vedas praising him,With pretty sweet ladies  singing  “long live” , With ocean like army accompanying him,He went speedily like Sun, crossing all difficulties  and  reached the divine city of Romapada.

237. Informed by the  spies , that  the  king whose fame was spreading like burning fire ,Has reached his city , That king Romapada who wore heroic anklets   ,Surrounded  by  ocean like soldiers   who held  bows , which has become thin with use,With  very great ear studs and other ornaments shining , with poets coming as  crowd and praising him,With ebbing joy , he went one Yojana to properly    receive ,That king whose   fame keeps on spreading  like a climbing plant.

238.  After seeing   that victorious king who had come to receive him  ,When he got down from his golden chariot which would make even the clouds ashamed,Romapada fell at his feet , with  greatly ebbing love further increasing,Dasaratha made him rise up and hugged him   and  the very joyous Romapada , Seeing that  king with greatly    shining spear   spoke as follows.

239. ” Oh king with a shining spear     who made the world of devas   firm,Is it due to the great penance that I did, that you have come here to see me?,Or is it because the penance this country undertook? Or other   good acts done by us?”Saying like this   with great joy Romapada , who made the bodies of enemies as dead bodies,With his shining and sharp spear and who had great shoulders    made Dasaratha climb   on his chariot,And brought that king who had a powerful chariot army , in to his prosperous city.

240. After  reaching a pavilion  in a mansion shining like gold,And  after  pretty ladies  who had decorated   their legs,  ,Sang  the greetings of a long life , the one with a flower decorated  spear,Was made    to sit on a golden seat  and after .And was offered  formalities    as per    the rules of hospitality,By that  Romapada who was wearing   a garland of densely tied flowers,And the king who  saved the world    of the devas  became extremely  happy..

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241. After the feast the king  Romapada offered   scented sandal paste ,And looking at that king of ten chariots  and told him,“Kindly tell us    the purpose    of your visit?”For which Dasaratha told in detail all that happened,And further told, “I would take sage Rishya srunga  ,Who does not   have any bad  qualities like jealousy,To Ayodhya and after   wards bring him back,Oh king  who is wearing a pretty crown,”   said Romapada,And immediately Dasaratha   retuned   back to Ayodhya.

242. After the king went back  , the king Romapada who was victorious,Reached  the place of the blessed saint  who looked like personification of Vedas,And after saluting the  lotus like feet of the sage so that it became ornament to his crown,And after   doing necessary honours and while he was standing there,When the sage asked   about the purpose  of his visit  ,The king told him  “Please give  a boon to this lowly man.”

243. Romapada told the boon he wanted was  that,“You   should visit   the well protected   city of Ayodhya,Decorated with gems    which is ruled by   the famous Dasaratha,Who is one with a great scepter   and   who has a spear  ,Which defeated Asuras    who caused trouble  to devas.Who was one who followed Dharma strictly  ,Who belonged to the  clan of Emperor Shibi,Who for the sake  of saving a dove,Kept his own flesh     on the balance,And then return back to   this same city.”

244. When that sage  of great penance said, “ I give you that boon,And so go and bring the chariot  “ that Romapada  who possessed,A spear    which was sharpened and which had very great luster,Saluted the feet of the sage Rishya Srunga   , and thinking that,The king of kings Dasaratha would now live happily forsaking his sorrow,Immediately arranged   for a chariot with a rolling sound brought,And said, “ Oh greatest in all arts , please get in to this chariot,Along  with  Santha who has a crescent    like forehead and  is like Lakshmi”,And   then that sage took his seat as requested   in that chariot.

245. With the king  who possessed a curved bow , stood  saluting him,With many faultless     sages following him  , that sage,Who   looked like the personification of rare   Vedas  ,Along with his wife  sat on that  mechanical chariot  ,And desired to proceed to    do his Dharma.

246. Dharma as well as Devas   thinking  that this sage will ,Shower his grace   so that the great god of truth would  appear there,So that   the fate   that gives   great sorrow due to the asuras would be destroyed,And  started playing  the divine drums and other  musical instruments.And went on showering  scented  flowers    from the sky.

247. The emissaries   who were standing on the way reached Ayodhya,And informed about the arrival   of the great sage  Rishya Srunga  ,Before  the  great assemblage of   kings with big shoulders ,Who have arrived   from different directions  and ,King Dasaratha   dipped himself  in to the measureless ocean of love  ,

248. Dasaratha speedily got on to his chariot,And flowers were showered on him ,Words of blessings were chanted,Various   musical instruments were played,Drums were played and  the bad  fate  was uprooted.

249. That great king  of kings who  had drums which made great sound,Thinking that  the  mountain of sorrow in his mind has been powdered,Travelled   three Yojana distance   and saw with his own eyes,That mature saint   who had done   great penance.

250-251. That sage  looked as  if all good penances ,Have taken a form of faultlessness , who was  ,Looking  like a deer  and was wearing a wooden hide  ,Who seems to have a form which was not looking suitable ,Who seems to have the ability   to remove  the fate  ,Of   the great sorrow of devas   and the undefeatable strength of asuras,Who possessed water pot , umbrella  , books as per the rules,As well as the staff  in his   hand ,

252. That king of king  as soon as he  saw the sage   ,Got down from his chariot    and fell down  and saluted,On the lotus like feet of that sage   and that sage  ,
looking like a stick allowing the climbing plants of the Vedas  to spread,According to the  proper   rules   , told words of blessing.

253. With all other sages also blessing him  , Dasaratha,With hands that gives charity like the clouds giving rain,Saluted    that sage   and his wife who had  eyes ,Which were like fish in the ebbing water of the lake ,And made  that expert in arts  climb on   the chariot,That he has taken   and brought them,To his town   with proper hospitality.

254. With  ladies   having lustrous face like lotus greeting him   all the way,That king who was wearing a crown along with the sage Rishya Srunga  ,With  in a very short time reached Ayodhya where drums were  being beaten by sticks.

255. Vasishta   who has controlled his    five sense organs  ,Because they were wandering like ignorant thieves,Who were responsible   for  sinful activities,Being  great sage who was greatly shining, Like the personification of rare VedasReached  the royal court  and made  it   shine further.

256.  After reaching that great jeweled pavilion  and making  ,The great saint Rishya Srunga   who was   equal to Vedas ,Sit on  throne , made by faultless   gems and after   attending Very properly   to the  responsibilities which he would accept,He started telling him   about other aspects in a best manner.

257. ” Oh greatest  among the greats , oh pure one ,Who shines just like penance and Dharma ,Due to your coming   and by your grace  ,My age old clan   would  shine greatly.And I also would not lose my penance like qualities.”

258. When he told like this , that sage  saw him sweetly  and told,“Please hear , oh king of kings, when you have  the help ,Of  the famous  Vasishta who has done  very great penance ,And  also your own guiltless behavior  ,Would any  other king of this world  be equal  to you.”

259. After telling several such sweet   words   to him he told,“oh king with big shoulders  who carries   suitable  and great bow,Did you call me here , thinking about performing  the aswamedha sacrifice,Which would lead to good results .please tell”

260. Dasaratha replied,   “for several innumerable years  ,Without any problem I was carrying the burden of this kingdom,But   sons who would look after it after me were not born to me,And so I request you  to bless me with  sons , who are capable of looking after,This kingdom after me  so that my welfare and fame are   increased.”

261. When he told like this “Oh king , do not become sad,Please get ready  to do a great fire sacrifice   which  ,Can give you  sons with great ability    who can rule,Either this world or  even all the fourteen worlds.”

262. All that was needed   for that great fire sacrifice,Was   brought by   Dasaratha’s servants , even before he said “hey”,And that king of kings   after taking bath in    pure water ,Reached   the pavilion    erected as per Vedic  injunctions.

263. After the fire sacrifice was started,  in the fire that rose,During morning, noon  and evening  , sacrificial offerings  ,Were   offered   and after   twelve such months,In the faultless sky   the music of divine instruments were heard,And devas   assembled in the sky   filling it without  any left over space.

264. All the devas who were living  in the heavens of the sky  stood there,With their shining lotus   like faces ,  rained  scented flowers from there,And  raised   sounds of greetings   and that saint who was suitable  ,Offered the offering meant to get sons   in the middle of the fire.

265. Then from the sacrificial fire   one ghost * with burning fire like hair  ,And red eyes  , carrying a pretty golden plate   ,Over which was one  pure  heap of cooked rice resembling nectarWas kept  , rose   from that   fire.   * It could be translated as “being” also.

266. That ghost which appeared in that manner  , kept ,That golden plate   on the earth  and went again,Inside the sacrificial fire and vanished and the saint,Instructed the king   to give   that   heap of nectar like rice,To his queens in the order  of their seniority .

267. As per the instruction of that great saint  , that king of kings  ,Gave a part  of that nectar like rice   in the hands of Kausalya.Who had   black hair scented by akil  smoke   and red  fruit like mouth  ,And then conches  blared    and the grace continued.

268. That Dasaratha  king of Kosala country   which is  blessed,With ponds  , rivers   and gardens where swans live  ,In a similar fashion  gave   a part of that  nectar like riceIn the hands of the daughter of Kekaya with Devas greeting him loudly.

269.  That  king who was born in the clan of Nimi   who was strong enough,To make all enemies     shiver greatly  , similar to  the previous times,Gave a portion    to Sumithra his youngest wife   when, Indra ,The king of devas along with devas celebrated saying ,“From today all our enemies would be destroyed.”

270. And again that great one   collected   the remaining rice ,Which was scattered on the plate   and gave it   to Sumithra herself,Making  the eyes and shoulders   of his enemies ,Throb on the   left side and to all other beings on the right side .

271. After completing   the fire sacrifice of the horses that jump  ,And the great fire sacrifice that would lead    to birth of sins,And other connected rituals   as per the instruction of that Brahmin,That protector of the world  , stood up , being praised by every one.

272. Drums and several other musical instruments blared,All the people whose  world was darkened by the asuras  ,Got out from their sorrows and after finishing  the fire sacrifice,That gives clarity  , that graceful king reached  his  royal hall.

273. After doing his duties  without error  and having,Given offerings properly to proper Gods without  mistake,After giving offerings to al the devas   as  per practice  ,He also   rained   gold    to all the Brahmins.

274. He also gave other  kings   as per their  status ,Country  , wealth  , chariots  , horses  and good cloths ,And then  accompanied by playing of various musical instruments,He reached the Ghats of the river Sarayu     and took bath.

275. Then   accompanied by playing of drums and other musical instruments,With   a white pearl  royal umbrella giving   him shade  ,With very many kings surrounding him  , he  reached the royal  hall,And saluted the feet of    sage  Vasishta   who had fame   ,Which would make even Lord Brahma shy   and became great.

See also  Chapter 17 – The Bhagawad Gita

276. As per the  orders of Vasishta who had done very great penance  ,He saluted the feet of sage Rishya srunga  and praised him,Using suitable  words of praise    and told him,“Because of you I am honoured and what other thing is there  for me to achieve.”

277. When Dasaratha told him, “Oh my father like saint    , due  to your grace and help,I  have   come out of my sorrow     and  have become successful”.That sage Rishya Srunga of great penance   due to great joy blessed the king ,And along with sages who accompanied him   got in to chariots   to start  back.”

278. That king who had got rid of his sorrow  , afterwards  saluted,And praised all sages who  had accompanied Rishya Sringa  ,And those sages who became very happy   because of  great treatment,Blessed the king  and went back   and Dasaratha lived happily.

279.   Those three  middle aged queens  , after some more days,Got  many desires and also   underwent many sufferings of pregnancy,And apart from their face    , their other limbs  ,Also shined   like  moon   and they were like moon because of it.

280. When the   time for delivery came  ,And the goddess earth became very happy And the bamboo like Punar poosam star  . the devas,And the pure Rasi of Kadaka   , jumped with joy.

281. Sidhas  , devas   and middle aged women,Famous saints , those who live   in  heaven,And those who live   in heaven after   death ,Shouted in joy when time came closer and closer ,Thinking that   the great God of Dharma   would live long.

282. That  Kousalya with great ability  , for the sake  of auspiciousness.Gave birth to a child , who  kept  the world safe during the time of final deluge  ,By keeping it in his belly , And who    is the  one who cannot be understood by Vedas,And who  is the lustrous light showing   the prettiness of  a budding  cloud.

283. With devas shouting with joy in all directions,And with  Indra and other devas   saluting and praising,The daughter of the faultless   king of Kekaya ,Gave birth to a son in Pushya star  ,When the meena   Rasi    was shining.

284. While   Indra   who wears  the garland of flowers of the wish giving tree,Who cut off with great anger   the feathers of all mountains  ,And all his subjects who are the devas   shouted in the world of devas  ,When the snake born  Ayilya  atar and the    crab rasi of Kadaka  becoming friends ,The youngest queen who was like  a  thin climber    gave birth to the younger one.

285.  With the world supported   by Adhi sesha with  several heads  dancing ,And the Vedas also recited the music for that  dance  ,The queen had  eyes  which  can trouble like poison,Gave birth to another child when Maka  star  and Simha rasi joined together.

286. The divine damsels danced, Kinnaras sang the   songs of  seven notes,Several type of drums were played and due to   ebbing joy,Born out of the feeling that   all Asuras    have been destroyed,They all ran and wandered    all around the sky.

287,. The lady assistants   ran  to meet the king   and after telling,The news of birth of his sons , they all danced,All priests of the palace joined together and examined position of planets and days, And told   that by the birth of these sons  world would be saved from  evil.

288. The  king of kings became extremely happy  and,After bathing in cold water  gave  in charity ,Plenty of paddy  and other grains   and with white  conches blowing,Went along   with the great sage  and went and saw pretty faces of the princes.

289. That great king ordered  that it should be announced along with drums,That the kings who have paid seven year tribute  need not pay  further tribute ,And also  that the  doors of the treasury be opened and kept open,So that poor people can take away whatever they want without  limit.

290. He further told., “Let all the kings   captured by me in war be released,So that they  can go to their homes  and let Brahmins who are expert in Vedas , Be released if they have been punished     for any misbehavior  ,And let all the temples in  the country celebrate     festivals.”

291.   Let all the temples in country be repaired,Let  special roads   be built for   those who follow dharma   along with junctions,And let    pretty lamps and garlands  for Gods be given as  ,A gift to all temples    in the country.”

292.  When   the king ordered  like this  , the announcer,Riding on an elephants   and  with beating  of good drums ,Made this announcement   and hearing    this,The citizens and the ladies with  lightning like waist  ,Reached   the immeasurable  ocean of joy through weeping..

293. Again and again   those citizens shouted   with joy  ,And their bodies were covered by  the excess of joy leading to sweating,And they went on giving lot of gifts to  all those who told the news of birth,Possibly indicating   that they knew that God who should be saluted  is born.

294. In that great pretty city  , there was a great elation,Among girls in the crowd of girls and boys in crowd of boys,And they went on sprinkling  oil mixed with,Scented powders   as well as  unguents.

295. Like this the citizens of Ayodhya  for those twelve days,Were elated with joy in their mind   and ,Were not able to recognize    even their own selves,And the faultless sage   thought of naming   those children.

296. To that Lord  who was real , who rushed and killed  the crocodile,When the  elephant who was caught by a crocodile and got tired,Called him  “Oh God who sleeps on the bed of serpent  “Sage Vasishta gave the name    of “Rama.”

297. That Vasishta who observed all penances  and knew ,The real meaning of Vedas  as clear  as the gooseberry in a palm,Named the next shining   child    as “Bharatha.”

298. And he said , “From now on the deceiving Asuras are dead,Devas    would get welfare  , the problems of Goddess earth comes to an end,And the lustrous baby     who is very strong and who is   going to do this all is called Lakshmana.”

299. Since the other  baby   was  as pretty  as if  pearls  ,Have taken a shape of baby   and looks as if it is ,A fully opened   lotus flower   and called baby  Sathrugna.

300. After Vasishta who has never gone in the path of lie,Named   the children as per tenets of Vedas,The river of gifts that  flowed through the hands of the king,More and more filled up   the mind Brahmins who were experts in arts.

301. That Dasaratha who was    looking after  the earth all under his royal umbrella,Thinking that   there  is body and soul , which are there for him,Looked after    Rama    who was as pretty as a picture  ,And who was like the blue lily and red lotus , lived happily.

302-304 . During the time  when those  babies   were growing  ,Talking nectar  like lisping , practicing to walk  the pretty  baby walk,Looking like Sun God   who is coming    to remove  the darkness,And similar to the four Vedas, so that all problems of earth are  removed,Performed   rituals   like Choula(first hair cut)  and Upanayana( sacred thread ceremony), as  per rules,And  when  Vasishta   who was   equal to Lord Shiva   who wears the moon,Taught them   all the important arts    along with   the Vedas ,As if there is no  end to such knowledge  and with  no measure  to what is taught,They  were taught managing and driving   of elephant, horses and chariots,And    also   all   other   arts of war necessary    for the princes,And also fighting with bow and arrow  as well as  other weapons ,As also the understanding of the body parts   of  enemies.And like this  Rama   who is the matchless  leader of devasWas growing up along      with his younger brothers,

305.  Sages who are experts in Vedas, devas , the  goddess earth,And the people living  in that city , were confidant that ,All the problems that they faced would be solved by this prince ,And so  they   would never   go away from the place where he lives,And were living  in places where those princes resided.

306. The lord Rama   and his younger brother , for the sake,Of intimately knowing about   the penances   and  assets of the pretty earth,Reached   rivers   and gardens surrounded by dark clouds  ,And wandered everywhere like the thread   and the cloth.

307. Bharatha and Sathurugna  , though , they  were,Wandering everywhere riding on horses  without a gap  even in a minute,Were  together   even when they were  learning Vedas,And were together   like our Lord Rama and Lakshmana,

308. Rama and his brothers   going to the gardens which were sweet scented,And there they met   great sages   and talked to them with love  ,And when they were returning to city of Ayodhya in the evening,Whoever met them became joyous,  like crops   at the receipt of  rain.

309. All the ladies   and   their very strong   husbands ,Who lived  hugging   the heavy breasts   of such ladies ,And the relations   and friends who were living there,Said that these   children would live long  as also Kausalya and Dasaratha  ,And for that purpose saluted and  worshipped their Gods.

310. Rama and Lakshmana who are difficult to search and see  by the Vedas,Resembled the black clouds given out by the sea  and the bevy   the lustrous  lotus,Accompanied by the Meru  mountain  , said  people who saw them both.

311. My God Rama   with his very matured  merciful kindness,When he saw the people   of his city , with face shining like fully opened lotus,Asked  “Is there any thing    that I can do for you?  Is there any sorrow?Is your wife doing well ?   and   Are  your intelligent sons  living with  strength?”

312. ”oh sir , we are all OK, Since we have you as our king,This is not important to us but you should   be our king,Till the   deluge of Brahma   and as  long as,All the seven worlds exist  and as long as we exist.”

313. Like  this all   the citizens , praised   him  truly,And his three younger brothers of great valour,Without fail prayed    his divine holy feet  ,And Rama   who is the first    among,Vishnu  , Shiva and Brahma started living.

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