By Kambar (Kavichakravarthy Kamban)
Translated in English by P. R Ramachander
Kamba Ramayanam – Bala Kandam 4 (Padalam 13)
13.Ezhuchi PadalamChapter on departure.
(Another 5 chapters describe how Dasaratha departed from his city along with his wifves, teacher , army and men ans women. This entire aspect is covered by Valmiki using very few slokas .Another important difference is that none of the ladies of Ayodhya including the queens attend the wedding of Rama. No women from the family of Janaka also allow d the wedding. Similar system is followed even today in some sections of North India. Possibly Kamban wanted to follow the custom of South India.)
732. Those messengers who travelled fast went with the speed of wind,And reached the city of Ayodhya where drums were playing like thunder,And reached the main door of the king where the small kings with knocking crowns,Were crowding,, since they did not get space to salute the feet of the king.
733. After getting the grace of the king they entered inside ,And as per rule reached in his front and after saluting the feet of the king,And also praised the king and told, “oh king ,This is what has happened after your sons left with sage Viswamithra,”
734. After telling about Rama ‘s valorous deeds they showed.The king the note requesting marriage and then told,“Oh king without endless fame , this is a letter given by king Janaka .Another learned official of the court who was supposed to read notes and letters,Received the note with joy and Dasarathha who was wearing ,Changing clanging heroic armlets told him, “You may read.”
735. When he heard what Janaka wrote about the proficiency in use of bow,By his eldest son in that note on palm leaf , his diamond like shoulders ,Increased in size with great joy and the armlets that he was wearing started crying.
736. That king who had victorious spear in his hand ,with great surprise told,That he heard in Ayodhya the great sound raised by the breaking of the huge bow ,Which was used to win over the seven worlds after destroying Yagna by Daksha,By Lord Shiva who had a very long matted hair and who had axe as a weapon.
737. Dasaratha who was having stout shoulders resembling the mountain,After telling suitable reply and telling “Let those messengers ,Who were wearing heroic armlets close by receive it”,And went on giving them golden ornaments and cloths.
738. Dasaratha ordered , “ Let Valluvai(Official announcer) Play drums which are kept on elephants and announce”,“Let our army as well as princes go in front towards Mithila,Where Rama who looks likes the God of love ,Who was born to good acts of forefathers belonging to clan of Sun is there.”
739. Like Jambavan announced the news of the reddish eyed Lord Vishnu ,Who has hair decorated by Thulasi leaves which used to shower honey ,As per his nature measured all the world by two of his steps,The Announcer(valluvan) of the ocean like army ,Went round all places and announced the news.
740. The army of the king who walked like a bull,Making it appear that there is no space left in this worldRose like the sea at the deluge with great wind,And marched imprinting its feet everywhere.
741. Making it appear that the entire earth is but a small place ,The densely marching chariots in which kings rode,Looked like Sun, similar to the Sun embossed on themAnd the elephants with decorations of their head Made by pearls which were rays of the Sun ,And also like the clouds having rain bows.
742. The white decorative umbrellas being held in between the army,Looked like innumerable swans flying on the sky spreading their wings ,And the crowd of decorative flags which were held upAppeared as if they were falling from sky whose skin is removed.
743. The waving flags on the elephants whose water of rut,Was flowing down to the holes in the trunk belonging to the army ,Which was making people say “This indeed is the sea.” ,
And flags which were like clouds which appeared,As if they were coming down to drink water of the sea.
744. The ornaments worn by people reflected the early sun’s rays,Which hits the umbrellas made of peacock feathers , which without leaving a shadow,Spreads in all places and those peacock feather umbrellas ,Would make the blue water rich clouds in the sky ashamed,And the drums would blare out from the army making those clouds wilt,Because they do not posses such a very regal sound.
745. The horses tied with bells on the neck carrying the ladies ,Look like the flowing river with tide carrying swans .Those ladies with dense breasts and long thin braids looked like ,Streaks of lightning and the young she elephants looked like clouds.
746. Due to the huge crowd as one person was rubbing on another ,The saffron red paste worn on the breasts of young ladies ,And the sandal paste worn on the mountain like shoulders by men,Dropped down and the ocean like path that the army followed,Shined like the thin bed on which men and women engaged in love play.
747. The breasts of Ladies with words which are sweeter than sugar syrup and a red mouth,Which trouble like god of death and which are hidden by their cloth ,Using the pearl necklaces lying over them give out the luster of moon,And due to the gems that they are wearing in a row , give out early sun light.
748. The men with scented hair , having shoulders which say that mountains are not their equal,Who wear very great quality gold ornaments , holding the bow as well as the sword,Walked like the male elephants which walk embracing the she elephants,By the side of their pretty wives who had a waist like a thin climbing plant.
749. Like the pretty flowers with good perfume surrounding the clouds ,Since only the faces of ladies with large hair was visible that too near each other,The groups of palanquins in which they were travelling looked like, Several full moons were travelling together in vehicles on the sky.
750. Due to the ceaseless flow of rut of elephants wearing face decoration ,The entire land was slushy and not able to cross that slushy earth,Al the elephants were confused and with the booming sound of ocean with tides,And it seemed that they were searching for the eight elephants that bear the earth.
751. The flock of the horses like the nature of God as well as the mind of prostitutes,Who show love outside but who really do not love , who wear cloth over their pretty breasts,With the jingling sound by the gems in their neck , were jumping in different directions,And were not firm and stable in any place for a long time,
752. Those ladies who had love tiff with their men , Who were not seeing them directly,Who were taking deep breath often , Who were lifting up their eye brows in anger ,Who were wearing garland with open flowers, and who were spreading their hair,On hearing the news like the soul of men went very near to their men.
753. The fearless elephants who had cheeks from which water of rut flows like a stream,And which give out fire when they hear the word “goad” , considering that they are their enemies,Dash against both shores and break the huge trees in several places , uprooting some times,And rubbing on those trees some times and looked as if one river was moving.
754. The tree branch like Dasaratha who showers grace on all persons in trouble,Still had not departed from Ayodhya and in spite of it , it looks as if there is no space ,Even to put a black gram on earth and one part of his army which left Ayodhya,Had already reached and touched the outer walls of the great city of Mithila.
755. The ladies surrounded by bees travelling in a series of carts ,Were causing confusion in the mind of men who see them,And the crowd of the faces of those ladies were like lotus flowers in a lake.
756. When a lady who was getting up a cart , with dense love,Saw with a corner of her eyes her lover who was running behind her,The Kajal of her eyes appeared like sweet nectar to that man.
757. A man who was going away from a lady who had eyes of a young deer,In those cultivated fields which were filled with water and slushy mud,Saw a swan and tender lotus flower and being reminded ,Of his lover’s gait and feet was tottering with body and mind ,And had the appearance of of one who was swinging in the swing.
758. That army accompanied by the blaring noise of conch and drums,Due to it being completely filled with white umbrellas and fans,Looked like the River Ganges and the royal insignia were found in pretty heaven.
759. That army also was comparable to a big battle field because ,Their ladies who speak sweetly and are comparable to celestial maidens,Were sending their sharp tipped eyes which was comparable toThe spear of God of death To hit on the chest of their lads.
760. The shoulders neared each other like pillars of stone ,The sword army neared each other like lightning of their swords,The feet neared each other like the intertwining of lotus flowers,And the foot soldiers neared each other like Yalis.
761. One lad who never moved away his face which was staring, At the tied up breasts of a young lady , not able to know his path,Proceeded like a blind man and hit against an elephant in rut.
762. When a girl who had the looks of a peacock slipped and fell,From A springing horse with good hair whorls on his body,A merciful man using his long hands supported ,But instead of keeping her down, continued to hold her.
763. When one pretty girl was continuously walking moaning,Her two lotus like feet pain, One lad said,“To hug this girl with huge breasts resembling ,A head of elephant in rut , my chest is not broad enough”.
764. One person who had curly hair over which bees fly around, And who was walking like an elephant showering water of rut ,Seeing a girl’s eyes which were very sharp , his sharp spear,Wanted to find out which of them is more sharper.
765. Seeing a pretty lady with wave like hair ,With lotus like feet and sword like black eyes,A lad asked, “Oh lady who has long arms wearing bangles,Where have you misplaced your waist while coming?”
766. Seeing a lady with killing eyes like god of death,And who did not reply by her mouth but only by her eyes,One lad asked, “Who would help you to climb ashore ,By lifting you from the waters of the river on the way?”
767. One camel which was carrying a big burden ,Which it cannot download , without eating ,All the newly formed fresh leaves was eating the bitter leaves of neem,Like the people drinking toddy whose heart and mouth had dried.
768. Those people of Babbara country who had red eyes,And body of dark colour , who were tied to a staff,And carried a huge stick on their shoulders so they cannot move speedily,Went forward like an elephant in rut carrying a huge stem ,Which was tied so that they would not knock on each other ,Carrying the stick of the frame of their burden.
769. When the mad elephant getting angry ,touched,The she elephant then those ladies sitting on that she elephant,Greatly scared wanted to close their eyes by their hand,But became sad because Their eyes was beyond their two hands.
770. In that forest of pretty lotus flowers ,The ladies travelling on she elephants whose tails touched the earth,Looked like a toad travelling on a tortoiseWith their dwarf guards travelling with them.
771. One flower branch like lady carried by a horse ,Which had bent its forelegs upward and was being ,Followed by an elephant looked like saying,“This girl is not fit to live here but ,She belongs to the king of devas.”
772. When the men told that our lord Rama ,Has broken the bow , well pleased the ladies,Who had tied hair which was likely to fall ,Instead of holding it and without trying ,To collect the gems when their waist belts broke ,Started running thinking of marriage of Rama.
773. ,The Brahmins who were scared of the elephant in rut , As well as pretty damsels started going in the front,Holding their umbrella , walking on their toes,Holding their water pot and without taking their hand from their nose.
774. The ladies with scented flowers decorating their hair,When they saw a form of a lad came before them bringing tears in to their eyes,Told them, “If you have come to receive me ,Get in to chariot with me “ and waved their hands.
775. Chariots making sound , elephants , horses,Long row of drums generating sound,Made all the people not understand ,What the other person was talking ,And all of them were walking dumb.
776. The ladies who wore cloths thinner than the small spider web,Who were having pretty black hair, which made bees fly around,When they were walking with gem stuffed anklets making sound,And they resembled the swans in the lake making sound.
777. The ladies who resembled Goddess Lakshmi who was,Born in the ocean of milk with very clear waves ,When they were watching them through a hole in the thin screen,The eyes of lads were filled with joy and made them shout loudly ,And also the playful bees seeing the rut water from elephants made noise.
778. The anklets worn by ladies with black eyes Which can reach the soul of the lads,Produced music similar the sound of deer,And accompanying it the horses neighed ,Resembling the thunder of clouds.
779. The lustrous face of ladies who were walking,With soft steps making the Goddess earth happy ,And their eyes which resembled the small bees,Trapped in the lotus flower after drinking honey,Made the God of love happy as well as some lads.
780. Apart from the dust raised by the army the scented powders,Dropping from the coconut like and well built breasts of ladies,Whose waist was smaller than thought , who had pretty coral like red mouth,And spoke words which were sweeter than fruits, filled up everywhere
781. The big chariots decorated by pictures whose ,Number cannot be guessed very easily was crowded,By innumerable men as well as ladies and ,All of them were rushing forward crowding with each other,Only bothered about the way that they have to take .
782. With harnessed horses , chariots and soldiers assembled,And travelling very fast , the dust raised spread and mingled ,With the water drops of the cloud and not only that ,They spread in all directions and reached the elephants in eight directions,And blocked the holes through which rut water flowed of those elephants.
783. With their hands that held the shield holding the lustrous sword ,And wearing shining armlets due to being studded with gems in the other hand,Holding their wives wearing anklets in legs by their tender hand wearing choodakam(bangle?)They slowly lead them through the slippery path made by ,The flow of rut water from several elephants wearing decorative face shield.
784. Seeing the fields , ponds and depressions were completely filled ,With fully open Neithal flowers , lilies and red lotus flowers,Which indicated their hands , face mouth as well as eyes ,The ladies saluted their husbands to pluck and give it to them.
785. The ladies who got down on the earth from horses going in a row,Seeing that an elephant has come started running helter-skelter,With their scented tied up hair falling down due to weight,With gem studded ornaments falling down and with the pretty thin cloth,That were wearing getting loosened and they ,Ran like a peacock holding their cloth with their tender hands.
786. With umbrellas with peacock feather hangings , cluster garlands,And with forest of flags which had hidden all areas without leaving even a small area, Which made the place dark but different weapons of the army ,And crowns which were worn by people went on ,Spreading and spreading light everywhere ,The path of the army had day as well as night time.
787” .Ladies with lips like drumstick tree flowers and with pearl like teeth,Are having eyes which are like sharpened knives on their lotus like pretty faces Which are capable of cutting us if we go near , so come away, come away “Saying like this those men who were having sun like bodies moved themselves away.
788. In the difficult to travel path due to crowding people , being cut off ,The gems with great shine and pearls fell down and were scattered,And due to that surrounded by several gems and having hips which is like the hood of snake ,They were not able to walk with tender feet decorated by jingling anklets .And getting very perplexed they stood there itself.
789. Very good musical instruments sounded like thunder of clouds ,And as a result the bullocks pulling the carts got scared,Making the simple girls resembling swans scared and move away,Upsetting all the load that they were carrying by throwing them down,And as the connection to the bullocks were cut ,They went away like saints making an end to all sorrow.
790. Mountain like elephants got down in water bodies,And without bothering about the balls being thrown by the Mahouts,Showing out their breasts which are normally tied and ,Also showing out their trunk as well as tusk,And stood there without coming out like the divine elephant ,Born from the ocean of milk , without coming out.
791. The women folk singers(viraliyar) who were comparable to Kinnara singers, Who had hair like black sand , sword like eyes , Red mouth showering nectar,Accompanied by male folk singer (Panan) who were playing using Yaazh , Got up horses and like pouring nectar in one’s ears sang nectar like songs,Set in Naivala Pan and went further without making any mistakes.
792. When the goad of the Mahout was lifted up , the elephant ,Rising up like the mountain from which water of streams flow ,And started angrily running without any control, and this made ,All people move away , but the bees which have opened up wings,Moving away from that elephant which had youth and small eyes ,Went and settled on the flowing rut of another elephant andSat on the black hair of ladies and moved to a she elephant.
793. With the army playing drums like the blue sea which has seen the full moon, When Elephants , chariots , victorious horses , ladies whose eyes are blood stained spears,And Lads gathered in a pretty manner and were speedily going by the road,The dear ladies of the king Dasaratha also started to Mithila.
794. Like a swan in the middle of the forest of lotus flowers in the lake,The daughter of king of Kekaya surrounded by two hundred maids ,Making even the deva maidens shy , with the bees humming a song ,Departed in a palanquin made by selected gems.
795. Two thousand maids riding on the back of zebra wearing open gem garlands, Who had broad eyes with tinge of red accompanied the lady with two sons(Sumithra),Making one suspect whether her form is indeed a streak of lightning ,Travelled on a palanquin studded with blue gems , along with music of Yaazh.
796. She with white teeth , red mouth resembling flower petals of silk cotton tree,Seeing whom all the stars thought she was the full moon and came near her ,Who was the lady who gave birth to Rama travelled in a multigem palanquin ,Which appeared as if all the stars in the sky have joined together .Accompanied by expert musicians singing honey like songs and devas saluting her.
797. When we think about it ,it looked like that the entire earth which was surrounded by seven seas,Except here and there, there were no ladies , for ladies holding in their pretty hand ,Peacocks, swans small birds , female dolls and ornamental white fans Which were like the conches which have been just taken out , went near the palanquins.
798. The security guards who were stitched dress up to the feet , from whose eyes fire,Came out for no reason at all , who were holding big staff exhibiting their valour,Were either riding on horses with jingling bells or walking on earth ,And who spoke harsh words which made all others sad,Went on protecting the feet of those ladies who were similar to divine damsels
799. When the white horses over which hunchbacks and groups of dwarf and mini dwarfs,Were riding, they were moving on earth similar to the swans and the ladies, Wearing flowers and hence were followed by honey bees and bees and grass hoppersWalked on the sides similar to the walk of the she elephants.
800. Sixty thousand ladies with thin breasts like the lotus flower buds,Who were having the matchless prettiness of the Goddess Lakshmi,Got in to carts which were shining due to corals, pearls , gold, rubiesAs well as the emeralds and were looking as if they were matchless ,And went profusely praised by art works.
801. Vasishta the husband of the virtuous Arundathi surrounded by Thousand crore Brahmins who have heard using their ear ,One hundred nectar like questions and who were habituated,To offer devas offerings which would be tasted by them,Riding on a white palanquin in the shade of white umbrella,Looking like God Brahma who moved riding on a swan.
802. The battle elephants , horses and pretty chariots,And lads wearing heroic golden armlets surrounded ,The two brothers Bharatha and Sathugna ,Like the ocean surrounding the passage less mountain,And went in front as well as behind them and those two,Having a chest where valorous Lakshmi existed ,And who had divine bow and were heroes riding on chariot,Went like the other two brothers who followed the sage.
803. Dasaratha who was wearing ornaments made of pearls and quality diamonds,After completing his daily rituals , after keeping the feet of Lord Vishnu on his head,After presenting limitless gem, gold , rows of flocks of cows and earth,With great happiness to Brahmins who are experts in Vedas,Started on a good day that was greatly auspicious.
804. After eight thousand Brahmins holding gem embedded pots ,And chanting rare Vedic Manthra groups , sprinkled water ,And after they greeted him and after crores of ladies who had,Auspicious lisp and red mouth and who had heavy golden waist belts ,And who generation after generation sang “Long live” to the king ,With proper tune sang song of “long live” Dasaratha departed from there.
805. ”Some said, “the conches blared , some told, “Possibly king would be starting”,The small kings all came together and “Saw me” some said, “did not see me , “ said some others,Some said”My ear globes fell down” and some others saying that,“Now it will not be possible to go near him” but went near him.
806. With ladies wearing Bangles , the crowd of horses which were wearing ,Golden garlands were moving like the wave of ocean which was full of lotus flowers,With heroic kings holding their red hands like a lotus bud and saluting him,Dasaratha like another Sun God travelled in another gem studded chariot,
807. The dust raised by the huge army went up and touched the sky,And returned not finding place there and completely masked all directions,Making it impossible for one person to see another person,And as if showing its enmity towards the ocean, went and filled up all oceans.
808. The conches , flutes , horns , cymbals , the drums indicating auspiciousness ,Raised so much sound that the sound of thunder in the sky was driven out,The flower garlands umbrellas , the pea cock feather fans hiding the sun,And moon running away after seeing the white royal umbrella ,And the devas being grealy confused Dasaratha went from there with greatness.
809. When Dasaratha who had as much riches as Indra was going from there ,The sound of singing of Vedas, The sound of blaring of right whorled conches,The sound of the blessings by Brahmins , the sound of the blaring drums,The shouting of elephants to break away the staff on which they are tied,And the singing of time keepers to indicate time reverberated in all directions.
810. With people in all directions looking only at him , With kings,
Wearing heroic anklets on their legs saluting him with their hands ,
Which were like fully opened lotus flowers
With elephants fighting with each other and with horses ,
Chariots and marching land army raising dusts ,
Which reached the heaven and made it it in to earth , Dasaratha went.
811”. When heroes Elephants, Chariots , Horses and near by armies ,Wanted to shift camps there was no place in earth which was vacant ,Because since there is no other world , the earth dressed by the sea,Unable to bear the burden bent its back slightly ,Does this indicate that Dasaratha lightened the burden of the earth?”This is what is said by wise people of earth.
812.The king of kings Dasaratha thus departing and travelled for two Yojanas,And reached the bottom of Chandra saila mountain which was similar to Meru mountain.His great army stayed there which had the scent of breasts of ladies ,Which are the flowers of God of love and had the natural scent of paste of sandalwood.
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About Kavichakravarthy Kamban
Historians place him in the 9th century CE, But surely Kamban belongs to the third great wave of Tamizh literature that started with the Sangam period (dated before the Common Era), followed by the widespread impact of Bhakti literature of the Alwars (vaishnavite saints) & Nayanamars (shaivaite saints). Kamban Authored Ramanaya in Tamil…Known as Kamba Ramayanam..
Kambar has been the milestone for the Tamil scholars that none had reached. He was also known as “Kamba Naatazhvar” at his time. Many Tamil authors from the modern world have written the books on the poet Kamban.
FAQs
Kambar or Kavichakravarthy Kamban (1180–1250) was a medieval Tamil poet and the author of the Ramavataram, popularly known as Kambaramayanam, the Tamil version of the epic Ramayana.
Valmiki Ramayana and Kamba Ramayanam are two versions of Ramayana written in the Sanskrit and Tamil languages respectively. … Kamba Ramayanam is originally called as Ramavataram. Although Valmiki Ramayana is the original version of the story of Rama, Kamba Ramayana is believed to be based on the work by Valmiki.
The Kamba Ramayanam, is a Tamil epic that was written by the Tamil poet Kambar during the 12th century. Based on Valmiki’s Ramayana (which is in Sanskrit), the story describes the life of King Rama of Ayodhya.
The book is divided into six chapters, called Kandam in Tamil. The Kandams are further divided into 123 sections called Padalam (படலம்) in Tamil. These 123 sections contain approximately 12,000 verses of the epic.