Hanuman's Anguish and Sita's Safety

Shloka 1 (sundara.55.1)

संदीप्यमानाम् विध्वस्ताम् त्रस्त रक्षो गणाम् पुरीम् । अवेक्ष्य हानुमाम्ल् लन्काम् चिन्तयामास वानरः ॥ 55.1 ॥

saṃdīpyamānām vidhvastām trasta rakṣo gaṇām purīm | avekṣya hānumāml lankām cintayāmāsa vānaraḥ || 55.1 ||

Seeing the city blazing, laid waste, and its hosts of demons thrown into terror, Hanuman the monkey grew thoughtful.

Shloka 2 (sundara.55.2)

तस्य अभूत् सुमहान् त्रासः कुत्सा च आत्मनि अजायत । लन्काम् प्रदहता कर्म किंस्वित् कृतम् इदम् मया ॥ 55.2 ॥

tasya abhūt sumahān trāsaḥ kutsā ca ātmani ajāyata | lankām pradahatā karma kiṃsvit kṛtam idam mayā || 55.2 ||

A great dread arose in him, and self-contempt was born in his own heart: "What is this act that I have done, in setting Lanka ablaze?"

Shloka 3 (sundara.55.3)

धन्याः ते पुरुष श्रेष्ठ ये बुद्ध्या कोपम् उत्थितम् । निरुन्धन्ति महात्मानो दीप्तम् अग्निम् इव अम्भसा ॥ 55.3 ॥

dhanyāḥ te puruṣa śreṣṭha ye buddhyā kopam utthitam | nirundhanti mahātmāno dīptam agnim iva ambhasā || 55.3 ||

"Blessed indeed are those great-souled, excellent men, who by their wisdom restrain their rising anger, just as a blazing fire is checked by water."

Shloka 4 (sundara.55.4)

क्रुद्धः पापम् न कुर्यात्कः क्रुद्धो हन्याद्गुरूनपि । क्रुद्धः परुषया वाचा नरः साधूनधिक्षिपेत् ॥ 55.4 ॥

kruddhaḥ pāpam na kuryātkaḥ kruddho hanyādgurūnapi | kruddhaḥ paruṣayā vācā naraḥ sādhūnadhikṣipet || 55.4 ||

"What sin would an enraged man not commit? An enraged man may even slay his elders; a man in fury may insult the virtuous with harsh words."

Shloka 5 (sundara.55.5)

वाच्यावाच्यम् प्रकुपितो न विजानाति कर्हिचित् । नाकार्यमस्ति क्रुद्धस्य नावाच्यम् विद्यते क्वचित् ॥ 55.5 ॥

vācyāvācyam prakupito na vijānāti karhicit | nākāryamasti kruddhasya nāvācyam vidyate kvacit || 55.5 ||

"An agitated man never knows what is fit to be said and what is not; for one enraged, there is neither any act that is improper, nor any word that is unspeakable."

Shloka 6 (sundara.55.6)

यः समुत्पतितम् क्रोधम् क्षमयैव निरस्यति । यथोरगस्त्वचम् जीर्णाम् स वै पुरुष उच्यते ॥ 55.6 ॥

yaḥ samutpatitam krodham kṣamayaiva nirasyati | yathoragastvacam jīrṇām sa vai puruṣa ucyate || 55.6 ||

"Whoever casts aside a suddenly arisen anger by forbearance alone, as a serpent sheds its worn-out skin, he alone is truly called a man."

Shloka 7 (sundara.55.7)

धिगस्तु माम् सुदुर्भद्धिम् निर्लज्जम् पापकृत्तमम् । अचिन्तयित्वा ताम् सीतामग्निदम् स्वामिघातकम् ॥ 55.7 ॥

dhigastu mām sudurbhaddhim nirlajjam pāpakṛttamam | acintayitvā tām sītāmagnidam svāmighātakam || 55.7 ||

"Shame upon me, so foolish, so shameless, the greatest of sinners — who, without a thought for that Sita, became a bringer of fire and, as it were, a destroyer of my own master's cause."

Shloka 8 (sundara.55.8)

यदि दग्धा तु इयम् लन्का नूनम् आर्या अपि जानकी । दग्धा तेन मया भर्तुः हतम् कार्यम् अजानता ॥ 55.8 ॥

yadi dagdhā tu iyam lankā nūnam āryā api jānakī | dagdhā tena mayā bhartuḥ hatam kāryam ajānatā || 55.8 ||

"If this whole Lanka has been burnt, then surely the venerable Janaki too has been burnt — thus, unknowingly, I myself have ruined my lord's purpose."

Shloka 9 (sundara.55.9)

यत् अर्थम् अयम् आरम्भः तत् कार्यम् अवसादितम् । मया हि दहता लन्काम् न सीता परिरक्षिता ॥ 55.9 ॥

yat artham ayam ārambhaḥ tat kāryam avasāditam | mayā hi dahatā lankām na sītā parirakṣitā || 55.9 ||

"The very purpose for which this whole effort was undertaken has now been ruined — in burning Lanka, I have not kept Sita safe."

Shloka 10 (sundara.55.10)

ईषत् कार्यम् इदम् कार्यम् कृतम् आसीन् न संशयः । तस्य क्रोध अभिभूतेन मया मूल क्षयः कृतः ॥ 55.10 ॥

īṣat kāryam idam kāryam kṛtam āsīn na saṃśayaḥ | tasya krodha abhibhūtena mayā mūla kṣayaḥ kṛtaḥ || 55.10 ||

"This task had indeed already been accomplished with but little effort — but, overpowered by anger, I have destroyed its very root."

Shloka 11 (sundara.55.11)

विनष्टा जानकी व्यक्तम् न हि अदग्धः प्रदृश्यते । लन्कायाः कश्चित् उद्देशः सर्वा भस्मी कृता पुरी ॥ 55.11 ॥

vinaṣṭā jānakī vyaktam na hi adagdhaḥ pradṛśyate | lankāyāḥ kaścit uddeśaḥ sarvā bhasmī kṛtā purī || 55.11 ||

"Janaki has surely perished — nowhere in Lanka is any spot to be seen that has not burnt; the entire city has been reduced to ashes."

Shloka 12 (sundara.55.12)

यदि तत् विहतम् कार्यम् मया प्रज्ञा विपर्ययात् । इह एव प्राण सम्न्यासो मम अपि हि अतिरोचते ॥ 55.12 ॥

yadi tat vihatam kāryam mayā prajñā viparyayāt | iha eva prāṇa samnyāso mama api hi atirocate || 55.12 ||

"If, through the perversity of my own judgement, that very task has been ruined, then it seems fitting for me too to give up my life here and now."

Shloka 13 (sundara.55.13)

किम् अग्नौ निपतामि अद्य आहोस्वित् वडवा मुखे । शरीरम् आहो सत्त्वानाम् दद्मि सागर वासिनाम् ॥ 55.13 ॥

kim agnau nipatāmi adya āhosvit vaḍavā mukhe | śarīram āho sattvānām dadmi sāgara vāsinām || 55.13 ||

"Shall I now leap into fire, or into the mouth of the submarine fire? Or shall I offer my own body to the creatures that dwell in the sea?"

Shloka 14 (sundara.55.14)

कथम् हि जीवता शक्यो मया द्रष्टुम् हरि ईश्वरः । तौ वा पुरुष शार्दूलौ कार्य सर्व स्व घातिना ॥ 55.14 ॥

katham hi jīvatā śakyo mayā draṣṭum hari īśvaraḥ | tau vā puruṣa śārdūlau kārya sarva sva ghātinā || 55.14 ||

"How, having ruined the entire task, could I, still living, ever bear to look upon Sugriva, lord of monkeys, or upon those two tigers among men?"

Shloka 15 (sundara.55.15)

मया खलु तत् एव इदम् रोष दोषात् प्रदर्शितम् । प्रथितम् त्रिषु लोकेषु कपितम् अनवस्थितम् ॥ 55.15 ॥

mayā khalu tat eva idam roṣa doṣāt pradarśitam | prathitam triṣu lokeṣu kapitam anavasthitam || 55.15 ||

"It is I who, through the fault of my own anger, have displayed this very apishness, notorious throughout the three worlds for its instability."

Shloka 16 (sundara.55.16)

धिग् अस्तु राजसम् भावम् अनीशम् अनवस्थितम् । ईश्वरेण अपि यत् रागान् मया सीता न रक्षिता ॥ 55.16 ॥

dhig astu rājasam bhāvam anīśam anavasthitam | īśvareṇa api yat rāgān mayā sītā na rakṣitā || 55.16 ||

"Shame upon this passionate, unmastered, unsteady nature of mine, through whose excitement I, though capable, failed to protect Sita."

Shloka 17 (sundara.55.17)

विनष्टायाम् तु सीतायाम् ताव् उभौ विनशिष्यतः । तयोः विनाशे सुग्रीवः सबन्धुः विनशिष्यति ॥ 55.17 ॥

vinaṣṭāyām tu sītāyām tāv ubhau vinaśiṣyataḥ | tayoḥ vināśe sugrīvaḥ sabandhuḥ vinaśiṣyati || 55.17 ||

"If Sita perishes, those two brothers too will perish; and with their death, Sugriva along with his kinsmen will likewise perish."

Shloka 18 (sundara.55.18)

एतत् एव वचः श्रुत्वा भरतो भ्रातृ वत्सलः । धर्म आत्मा सह शत्रुघ्नः कथम् शक्ष्यति जीवितुम् ॥ 55.18 ॥

etat eva vacaḥ śrutvā bharato bhrātṛ vatsalaḥ | dharma ātmā saha śatrughnaḥ katham śakṣyati jīvitum || 55.18 ||

"And hearing this very news, how will righteous Bharata, so devoted to his brother, together with Shatrughna, ever be able to live on?"

Shloka 19 (sundara.55.19)

इक्ष्वाकु वंशे धर्मिष्ठे गते नाशम् असंशयम् । भविष्यन्ति प्रजाः सर्वाः शोक सम्ताप पीडिताः ॥ 55.19 ॥

ikṣvāku vaṃśe dharmiṣṭhe gate nāśam asaṃśayam | bhaviṣyanti prajāḥ sarvāḥ śoka samtāpa pīḍitāḥ || 55.19 ||

"And with the fall of that righteous Ikshvaku line, all the people without doubt will be tormented with grief and anguish."

Shloka 20 (sundara.55.20)

तत् अहम् भाग्य रहितो लुप्त धर्म अर्थ सम्ग्रहः । रोग दोष परीत आत्मा व्यक्तम् लोक विनाशनः ॥ 55.20 ॥

tat aham bhāgya rahito lupta dharma artha samgrahaḥ | roga doṣa parīta ātmā vyaktam loka vināśanaḥ || 55.20 ||

"Therefore it is I who am unfortunate, who have destroyed the whole accumulated store of righteousness and purpose — possessed by the fault of anger, I have plainly become the destroyer of the world."

Shloka 21 (sundara.55.21)

इति चिन्तयतः तस्य निमित्तानि उपपेदिरे । पूरम् अपि उपलब्धानि साक्षात् पुनः अचिन्तयत् ॥ 55.21 ॥

iti cintayataḥ tasya nimittāni upapedire | pūram api upalabdhāni sākṣāt punaḥ acintayat || 55.21 ||

As he pondered thus, favourable omens presented themselves to him, whose fruits he had directly experienced even before; and again he reflected as follows.

Shloka 22 (sundara.55.22)

अथवा चारु सर्व अन्गी रक्षिता स्वेन तेजसा । न नशिष्यति कल्याणी न अग्निः अग्नौ प्रवर्तते ॥ 55.22 ॥

athavā cāru sarva angī rakṣitā svena tejasā | na naśiṣyati kalyāṇī na agniḥ agnau pravartate || 55.22 ||

"Or else, that gracious lady, lovely in every limb, guarded by her own splendour, cannot perish — fire, after all, does no harm to fire."

Shloka 23 (sundara.55.23)

न हि धर्मात् मनः तस्य भार्याम् अमित तेजसः । स्व चारित्र अभिगुप्ताम् ताम् स्प्रष्टुम् अर्हति पावकः ॥ 55.23 ॥

na hi dharmāt manaḥ tasya bhāryām amita tejasaḥ | sva cāritra abhiguptām tām spraṣṭum arhati pāvakaḥ || 55.23 ||

"Fire cannot even bear to touch her — that wife of the righteous, immeasurably splendid Rama, guarded as she is by her own virtuous conduct."

Shloka 24 (sundara.55.24)

नूनम् राम प्रभावेन वैदेह्याः सुकृतेन च । यन् माम् दहन कर्मा अयम् न अदहद्त् हव्य वाहनः ॥ 55.24 ॥

nūnam rāma prabhāvena vaidehyāḥ sukṛtena ca | yan mām dahana karmā ayam na adahadt havya vāhanaḥ || 55.24 ||

"Surely it is by Rama's power and by Vaidehi's own merit that this fire, whose very nature is to burn, has not burnt me."

Shloka 25 (sundara.55.25)

त्रयाणाम् भरत आदीनाम् भ्रातृऋणाम् देवता च या । रामस्य च मनः कान्ता सा कथम् विनशिष्यति ॥ 55.25 ॥

trayāṇām bharata ādīnām bhrātṛṛṇām devatā ca yā | rāmasya ca manaḥ kāntā sā katham vinaśiṣyati || 55.25 ||

"How could she perish — she who is a very godhead to the three brothers beginning with Bharata, and who is the beloved of Rama's heart?"

Shloka 26 (sundara.55.26)

यत् वा दहन कर्मा अयम् सर्वत्र प्रभुः अव्ययः । न मे दहति लान्गूलम् कथम् आर्याम् प्रधक्ष्यति ॥ 55.26 ॥

yat vā dahana karmā ayam sarvatra prabhuḥ avyayaḥ | na me dahati lāngūlam katham āryām pradhakṣyati || 55.26 ||

"Or again, this fire, whose office is to burn, all-pervading and imperishable as it is, has not even burnt my own tail — how then could it burn the venerable Sita?"

Shloka 27 (sundara.55.27)

पुनश्चाचिन्तयत्तत्र हनुमान्विस्मितस्तदा । हिरण्यनाभस्य गिरेर्जलमध्ये प्रदर्शनम् ॥ 55.27 ॥

punaścācintayattatra hanumānvismitastadā | hiraṇyanābhasya girerjalamadhye pradarśanam || 55.27 ||

Then, filled with wonder, Hanuman there recalled once more that sight — the vision of the golden-veined Mount Mainaka in the midst of the sea.

Shloka 28 (sundara.55.28)

तपसा सत्य वाक्येन अनन्यत्वाच् च भर्तरि । अपि सा निर्दहेत् अग्निम् न ताम् अग्निः प्रधक्ष्यति ॥ 55.28 ॥

tapasā satya vākyena ananyatvāc ca bhartari | api sā nirdahet agnim na tām agniḥ pradhakṣyati || 55.28 ||

"By her own penance, by her truthful speech, and by her undivided devotion to her husband, that Sita could even burn the fire itself — fire will surely not burn her."

Shloka 29 (sundara.55.29)

स तथा चिन्तयन् तत्र देव्या धर्म परिग्रहम् । शुश्राव हनुमान् वाक्यम् चारणानाम् महात्मनाम् ॥ 55.29 ॥

sa tathā cintayan tatra devyā dharma parigraham | śuśrāva hanumān vākyam cāraṇānām mahātmanām || 55.29 ||

As he thus pondered there upon the princess's overpowering virtue, Hanuman heard these words spoken by the high-souled Charanas.

Shloka 30 (sundara.55.30)

अहो खलु कृतम् कर्म दुर्विषह्यम् हनूमता । अग्निम् विसृजता अभीक्ष्णम् भीमम् राक्षस सद्मनि ॥ 55.30 ॥

aho khalu kṛtam karma durviṣahyam hanūmatā | agnim visṛjatā abhīkṣṇam bhīmam rākṣasa sadmani || 55.30 ||

"Ah, indeed Hanuman has accomplished a most arduous feat, hurling that terrible fire again and again into the houses of the demons!"

Shloka 31 (sundara.55.31)

प्रपलायितरक्षः स्त्रीबाल वृद्धसमाकुला । जनकोलाहलाध्माता क्रन्दन्तीवाद्रिकन्दरैः ॥ 55.31 ॥

prapalāyitarakṣaḥ strībāla vṛddhasamākulā | janakolāhalādhmātā krandantīvādrikandaraiḥ || 55.31 ||

"This city, thronged with demons fleeing along with their wives, children and elders, echoing with the uproar of its people, seems to weep aloud through its very mountain-caves."

Shloka 32 (sundara.55.32)

दग्धा इयम् नगरी लन्का साट्ट प्राकार तोरणा । जानकी न च दग्धा इति विस्मयो अद्भुत एव नः ॥ 55.32 ॥

dagdhā iyam nagarī lankā sāṭṭa prākāra toraṇā | jānakī na ca dagdhā iti vismayo adbhuta eva naḥ || 55.32 ||

"This entire city of Lanka, with its towers, ramparts and archways, has burnt down, and yet Janaki has not burnt — this is indeed a wonder and a marvel to us!"

Shloka 33 (sundara.55.33)

स निमित्तैः च दृष्ट अर्थैः कारणैः च महागुणैः । ऋषि वाक्यैः च हनुमान् अभवत् प्रीत मानसः ॥ 55.33 ॥

sa nimittaiḥ ca dṛṣṭa arthaiḥ kāraṇaiḥ ca mahāguṇaiḥ | ṛṣi vākyaiḥ ca hanumān abhavat prīta mānasaḥ || 55.33 ||

By those omens, by their apparent, high-natured causes, and by hearing those words of the sages, Hanuman's mind became filled with delight.

Shloka 34 (sundara.55.34)

ततः कपिः प्राप्त मनो रथ अर्थः । ताम् अक्षताम् राज सुताम् विदित्वा । प्रत्यक्षतः ताम् पुनः एव दृष्ट्वा । प्रतिप्रयाणाय मतिम् चकार ॥ 55.34 ॥

tataḥ kapiḥ prāpta mano ratha arthaḥ | tām akṣatām rāja sutām viditvā | pratyakṣataḥ tām punaḥ eva dṛṣṭvā | pratiprayāṇāya matim cakāra || 55.34 ||

Then, his heart's desire fulfilled, and learning that the princess remained unharmed, Hanuman resolved that he would set out on his return only after seeing her once more with his own eyes.